The Awakening Wholesale Shop's Park Juhee
The owner of the Awakening Wholesale Shop.
Twenty-seven-year-old Park Juhee was, in truth, far more capable than her modest appearance suggested.
Four years ago, at the age of twenty-three, she had graduated early from Hankuk University's Business Administration department—arguably the best in the country—and immediately joined an item trading company, racking up experience at a blistering pace.
Then, two years later,
at twenty-five, she founded her own distribution company dealing in Awakener-related goods.
She had dreamed big: move early into this brand-new market called Awakeners, and conquer the global stage.
But perhaps those first attempts were simply never meant to be? She met with an unexpected failure, lost most of her capital, and sank into debt besides.
Unwilling to give up on her dream, she knocked on every door she could find... but society was cruel.
No investor welcomed a loser, and no support of any kind was forthcoming!
In the end, Park Juhee spent two grueling years paying off her debts, and at her current age of twenty-seven, stretched out her hand to her parents for a small sum and took over a run-down wholesale shop near Gaemi Village.
Her reason for choosing this location was simple.
An outlying area not yet well known among Awakeners.
But.
Gates would surely appear here too, and demand would not be insignificant.
Park Juhee had spotted that demand quickly and plunged in.
I'll hold out here, build relationships with small-time Awakeners, earn their trust bit by bit, and expand my own distribution network.
She never staked her life on trivial profits.
She gave generously on fees, and in return earned just as much trust.
And lately, especially—
Things had finally loosened up a little, thanks to a certain man.
The man who keeps bringing me copper ore and low-grade magic stones to sell.
Is he not coming today?
She was tidying her merchandise and wiping away a steady trickle of sweat when it happened.
"Anyone here?"
Someone had come calling.
It was Yoo Seon-ah.
Park Juhee's eyes gleamed.
A new face!
She had to appeal to her unconditionally and lock her in as a managed client.
Undercut the whole industry at the start—no questions asked!
"Welcome! What brings you in today?"
"Here—I came because of this business card."
When Yoo Seon-ah held out the card, a flicker of surprise crossed Park Juhee's face.
A business card.
Park Juhee only handed out cards to regulars who had visited at least three times.
It was so she could offer them an even more compelling promotion.
But.
Only one person had received a card recently.
That copper-obsessed man!
An extraordinary Awakener whose dungeon clear speed was nearly on par with a full team!
Gulp.
Park Juhee swallowed.
"Actually, an acquaintance of mine said the owner here seemed really good at her job, so I came to check."
"Ahaha, really? Oh my, you're too kind!"
She flashed her customer-service smile with practiced ease.
"So—if I wanted to sell these items for the highest possible price, where would you recommend distributing them?"
Thud. Thunk. Thud!
Yoo Seon-ah set down four items.
Two Normal, two Rare.
"One moment, please. Let me take a look."
One. Two.
With each item she touched, each fresh wave of information she confirmed, Park Juhee's expression shifted.
Th-this is insane.
Two Rares.
Even the Normals were skill-bearing Normals.
Items that would command a hefty price no matter where she listed them!
They were the kind you couldn't sell for lack of supply—and the moment you had them, they were guaranteed money.
Why on earth would someone like this come to me?
Park Juhee's mind churned.
This wasn't a chance visit. It couldn't be.
That man.
Copper Guy, for short.
He was clearly moved by the fee rate I offered.
Which meant what?
He wants a fee agreement.
If he went to any other shop, they'd either dodge his calls and try every trick to shortchange him, or jack up the fee rate to squeeze him for more.
The industry-average sales fee was five percent.
Even if everything sold for a rough total of 300 million won, five percent alone would come to 15 million.
An absolute jackpot of a customer!
A customer she absolutely could not let slip away.
Park Juhee forced herself to keep her expression as composed as possible.
"Oh—two Rare grades and... two Normals. Solid contents, too. At this level, you can expect a genuinely high price. We could run them through black-market auctions, or selling them through legitimate channels would fetch a fortune as well. Just leave them to me, and I'll work my distribution channels to pull in the highest price I can."
Some might worry about getting ripped off—but that was exactly why established shops mattered.
A shop's name was itself a form of trust.
"Really? Could you maybe just... tell me those distribution channels directly?"
"...I'm sorry?"
Park Juhee was taken aback.
This person...!
She was just going to ask for trade secrets?
Scary customer.
But Park Juhee kept her cool and answered with the most professional smile she could manage.
"Well, my channels aren't limited to the domestic market—they reach overseas as well, and my network is... tremendously varied, you see. Haha."
"I see."
"The truth is, this is a network I've built over years of work... so sharing it openly is a bit of a delicate matter."
Firm, but not offensive!
Park Juhee had chosen every word with care.
"Hm."
Yoo Seon-ah considered.
Truthfully, she had checked out a good five shops before coming here.
Just to get a rough sense of market prices and fees!
And yet?
Every single one of them had been a crook.
From lowballing the market rate to people who openly said they'd tack on extra "handling charges" for big-ticket sales.
I'd rather sell them myself.
But she wasn't capable of that yet.
"Fine, understood. Then what's your fee?"
"Since you came in with one of my cards—exactly two percent."
"I'm sorry—what?"
This time it was Yoo Seon-ah who was thrown.
Everyone else quoted five percent.
Plenty of shops demanded even more than that, and this one was charging two?
Hwarang was right.
She couldn't say whether this woman was fully trustworthy, but on fees alone, she was undeniably the cheapest in the industry.
"You're not just going to dump these at some bargain-basement price, are you?"
"Aw, come on, of course not! Items at this level need to bring in at least 300 million won combined, minimum!"
"...!"
She'd even guarantee 300 million or more?
Was this owner the real deal?
The feel of the place was definitely different from everywhere else.
The problem was.
Trust.
Catching the shift in Yoo Seon-ah's eyes, Park Juhee smiled warmly.
"No need to worry too much. You see this mark and registration number, right?"
"Yes."
"We're a shop enrolled in item sales insurance. We guarantee transactions up to 500 million won, so if your goods ever fail to come back to you, just take this to the company and they'll compensate you in full! Type the registration number into their official website and you'll find us listed right there!"
"......"
Yoo Seon-ah's eyes widened slightly.
That insurance company.
Shadow Guardians!
A firm quite famous in the industry.
An insurance company made up of assassin- and rogue-class Awakeners—famous for never, ever letting anyone get away with stealing their clients' money!
What if a shop insured by them tried to run off with a customer's goods?
They'd hunt the culprit down to the ends of the earth and extract payment by any means necessary.
The fearsome insurer rumored to work deadbeats as dungeon slaves for life and then sell off their organs if they couldn't pay.
"Hm, fine. If you're insured, that's good enough for me."
Tap-tap.
Yoo Seon-ah gave the items a light pat.
Hwarang had vouched for this place too, so surely things would work out.
"Give them your best shot, then."
Three days later.
After receiving the call from Park Juhee, Yoo Seon-ah came to Gaemi Village.
She'd brought Hwarang along, too.
In the meantime, Hwarang had already mastered the 1st Circle skills Telekinesis and Growth.
He was currently looking into tailoring skills when Yoo Seon-ah called for him.
"Hey—hey hey hey, this is huge."
Yoo Seon-ah let out a whoop the moment she saw Hwarang.
Nobody could imagine how stunned she'd been when Park Juhee's call came in.
Jackpot.
Absolute, utter jackpot.
She'd been expecting somewhere between 200 and 300 million.
Good heavens.
Over 400 million!
"That owner you recommended is a total pro. She sold at those prices and had the cash ready in three days flat? And what's with the fee... she only took 8.4 million? Shouldn't a sale this size come with a bigger cut? Look here—she even attached itemized receipts for every auction."
"Hm."
Hwarang nodded.
She really does have talent, it seems.
His first impression had been good.
Good enough that he wanted to hire her on the spot.
"Haha, honestly, I suspected as much! So it was you all along!"
Park Juhee greeted them with a beaming smile the moment they arrived.
"Yes. I've got some rather pressing business, so from now on, this man will be handling things in my place."
"I see."
Park Juhee thought to herself.
I knew it.
An Awakener capable of delegating—someone with real means, clearly.
A customer not to be missed, under any circumstances.
Practically a stroke of fortune in human form!
"Here's your payment! The 400 million was transacted on the black market, so I've prepared it in cash. I'll transfer the remaining 11.6 million straight to your account. And I'll cover the currency exchange fees myself—my treat!"
"......"
It was genuinely astonishing.
A quick trip to the Etherion Continent, a handful of easy quests cleared—and over 400 million won just landed in his lap?
Really.
I suppose I can live without money worries from now on.
Hwarang gazed with a strange expression at the bundles of 50,000-won notes packed evenly across four large travel bags.
100 million apiece.
Presumably not counterfeits.
"Keep the small change."
"I'm sorry?"
"And one more thing."
Thump. Thud!
He pulled four bundles of cash from his bag and dropped them in front of her.
A full 20 million won.
"You sold them at a premium. A bonus is only right."
"N-no, please! I really couldn't!"
Even as she protested, Park Juhee's mind was whirring through the numbers at lightning speed.
Oh my god.
An absolute jackpot customer, no two ways about it.
Beyond a key managed client—this was VIP. No, VVIP.
After all, the best kind of customer was one who recognized your effort and rewarded it in cold, hard cash!
20 million on a 420 million sale...
That was roughly an extra seven percent on top of her compensation.
"Take it while it's offered. Honestly, you earned every won of it, didn't you?"
"Th-thank you for understanding. Truly."
"You're quite skilled, you know that?"
Hwarang liked her.
Truth be told, Yoo Seon-ah was just a kind-hearted noona hopelessly obsessed with magic.
When it came to business, he suspected this woman was far sharper.
And besides—
She knew her place.
What if she'd gotten greedy beyond her station?
Their connection might well have ended right there.
But she had sweat blood to sell over 400 million worth of goods and taken a mere 8.4 million for herself.
This was someone who prized trust over immediate gain.
Hwarang liked her.
Liked her enough that he was willing to give up his own one-tenth share of their nine-to-one split.
"Say."
Hwarang grinned.
"Would you be interested in running a company with us?"
"A c-company?"
Park Juhee was flustered.
A recruitment pitch, out of nowhere?
Beside her, Yoo Seon-ah's eyes went round too.
Her expression said: what on earth is that supposed to mean?
Yes.
Noona, you sit this one out for a minute.
Adults are talking here!
"If I could bring in goods like these practically every day... wouldn't that be worth a shot?"
Hwarang began laying out a deal too tempting for her to refuse.