Visit! Sell! 'Sh...it?'
The fist stopped dead in front of my face. My eyes went wide.
I should've dodged it quick, but the attack came so suddenly without any warning that my body froze up.
I stared blankly at the fist for a moment before shifting my gaze.
Han Yuseon was expressionless, staring at me with cold eyes.
No, I caught the slightest twitch at the corner of her mouth.
Sticking her fist right in my face and smirking like that...
'Fucking asshole!'
Only then did I realize she had no intention of actually hitting me.
Thinking about it, puppets prioritize their puppeteer's protection above all else—there's no way she'd be unrestricted in her actions like this.
Still, maybe it was time to pull it out.
"Puppet Con—"
"W-Wait a second!"
Han Yuseon hurriedly pulled her fist back, looking flustered.
I glanced at her, and she had this aggrieved expression. What the hell did she have to be aggrieved about?
"Didn't you tell me to hit you?"
"...You done with your excuses?"
I let out a sigh. Useless garbage I didn't even need to listen to.
"No, it's not an excuse!"
"Anything that starts with 'no' is an excuse. That's one of my life hacks. Remember it. And yeah, I said hit me, but I didn't say go for a sneak attack. Common sense, right?"
Even as I said that, I had no real intention of using Puppet Control.
I gave her a look that said, go on, spit it out.
Han Yuseon cleared her throat with a hem, then reverted to her 'cold and composed' facade.
"I was testing your reaction."
"And?"
"If it were the old you, Puppeteer-nim, you wouldn't have even noticed my fist coming. I'm pretty confident in my hand-to-hand skills, you know."
Oh, for fuck's sake. Slipping in some self-praise there.
Well, I could guess the reason from that much.
She wanted to see how I'd react to a surprise attack at moderate strength.
'I did notice it, though. Does that mean I've definitely grown?'
Honestly, I wasn't sure. Whether it was meaningful growth or not.
"Got it. You were checking if I could sense an attack before it landed."
"Exactly. You at least need to notice it to respond. You can't dodge yet, but that's more than enough growth."
I pictured the moment earlier. Eyes wide open, and suddenly a fist right in my face.
'Definitely...'
I nodded. No need to lie about it.
"Cleaning's done anyway, so... time for some games with busty beauties."
"Hold on."
I shot her a sharp glare.
Han Yuseon, who had been slyly about to sit down, froze solid.
Her tense eyes locked onto me.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Taking a break..."
"You snuck up on me earlier. We just gonna sweep that under the rug? And did I say you could rest after cleaning?"
"..."
Han Yuseon rolled her eyes dramatically.
"Trying to slide past it all natural-like, huh? You've still got a mountain of shit to do. And that all means money. You know how expensive electricity bills are these days?"
"If we sell the gold we got this time..."
"You sell it. What, you think I will? I can't even go outside."
"..."
She was clearly floored by my ironclad logic.
Just look at that despair on her face.
"Today...?"
"Yeah, today. We're out of money for food now too. When else you gonna convert it if not today? You wanna starve tomorrow?"
"...Understood."
Han Yuseon stood up slowly, like she wanted to scream how annoying this was. Sighing so deep it looked like her soul was escaping.
I left her behind and narrowed my eyes.
'...'
My gaze drifted to the golem core.
I kept getting the feeling I could use that thing.
As Han Yuseon picked up the leather pouch with the 2,000 gold, I spoke up.
"Kinda random, but... that golem core. Can it be used to make a puppet? I couldn't make any after you, my first one, 'cause I lacked materials."
"Probably, yes. A golem core is basically the same as the mana that moves a puppet. Originally, Puppeteer-nim... Never mind that. But."
Han Yuseon let out a thoughtful hum.
She pondered for a moment, then shrugged.
"What do you think a puppet is, Puppeteer-nim...?"
"A puppet? Never really thought about it."
I shook my head.
Who sits around philosophizing about dolls? I know people buy them 'cause they're cute or beautiful or whatever.
But that's it. Never delved deeper.
Han Yuseon gave a wry smile.
"Puppets born from your hands can move like me. But it's not always the same. What if... something goes wrong?"
Her blue eyes darkened coldly.
"Even if it's flawed, could you embrace it, Puppeteer-nim?"
"..."
I shut my mouth.
Han Yuseon smiled to lighten the mood.
"Make as many as you want. But think it through. Your intentions. And the responsibility."
"Sounds like you're telling me not to make any."
I got what she meant, though.
"Just my greed talking."
Han Yuseon placed her hand on the doorknob.
"Hiiiyaaah!"
I instinctively shrank back.
Clunk.
"Just... hoping you'd look at me that way. Greed, I guess. Seventy points today. Your lowest score yet. Step it up."
"Cl-close the d-doorrr!"
Slam.
The door shut.
...
"Two thousand gold."
Han Yuseon frowned. The glittering coins in her hand.
'Turning this into cash won't be easy.'
To be precise, there was a high risk of exposure.
Simple, really. Go to a normal bank for exchange? They'd check ID, and since it wouldn't match, boom—problem.
Plus, Elysia-nim was an unregistered hunter. Hiding that would be even harder.
Two routes.
Fake an ID and disguise.
Or sell through unofficial channels.
'First one's out.'
Faking an ID? Too many ways to get caught.
Couldn't forge existing docs either.
So the second option it was.
"But I don't know any routes..."
Han Yuseon sighed.
Truth be told, she wanted to get back to Elysia-nim fast.
Stuff about the golem core, puppets—she had a lot to explain properly.
Felt a bit guilty too.
'Wait.'
There was one place whose location she'd learned this time.
Black Cloud.
The massive cartel led by 'Black Smoke' Aruen.
'Why not sell to them?'
If they refused... force it on them.
Not touching it when they knew the location? That'd just mean they were scared.
And Aruen probably knew about her existence too.
Han Yuseon grinned. She flicked her finger.
"Time to raise some hell after so long."
...
Snap.
The wooden chopsticks split into weird shapes.
"Ah, splitting like shit again! This is bad luck!"
Aruen grumbled.
She'd just gotten her jjajangmyeon and was about to dig in.
Bang!
The door flew open violently.
A mid-level exec burst in, panting.
"B-Boss!"
"...What?"
Aruen eyed him coldly.
She considered chewing him out for barging in without knocking, but it seemed urgent, so she held back.
She jerked her chin: speak.
"S-Suddenly this woman shows up demanding we buy 2,000 gold!"
"...Yeah? Kick her out."
Aruen snorted and rubbed her chopsticks together.
The exec shouted desperately.
"We tried, but... that woman's no joke in a fight! And besides..."
That was it.
Crunch.
A sound of flesh tearing.
Aruen whipped her head around.
The exec was being sliced up. Into chunks of meat, piece by piece.
Thud.
His horrified head hit the floor.
Her trembling gaze went to the door... or rather, behind the corpse.
A woman with black hair, red eyes, in a suit.
"Hello."
Han Yuseon greeted with a cold expression, her movements precise and disciplined.
Aruen didn't know her identity. But...
Her soul was screaming.
'Th-that bitch...!'
The one behind that incident.
It happened last night. No time to prepare defenses—she'd been busy talking with the branch.
She came in person?
Aruen swallowed hard.
Black smoke filled the room. She had to draw attention before they realized it was her weapon.
She forced nonchalance.
"Selling 2,000 gold? Sorry, we don't buy that kinda stuff here."
Han Yuseon smiled sweetly.
"You'll buy it."
Fucking terrifying!
Alarms blared in Aruen's head.
Should she attack the monster? Could she win?
'No. Focus the smoke... wait for an opening.'
Aruen forced a smile.
"How much you want for it?"
"Cash equivalent to 2,000 gold... Oh, and if I come back, keep buying gold from me ongoing."
As Han Yuseon rummaged in her pocket...
Opening!
Aruen's eyes flashed.
BOOM—!
The black smoke morphed into a massive drill. An attack that could crumble the walls.
A grin crept across her lips.
'Got her.'
Couldn't see through the smoke, but this was her turf. She'd controlled this room long ago.
But.
"Fifty points."
After realizing the red eyes were calmly watching her,
Aruen froze.