CHAPTER 5: Am I Not Human?

"Am I... not human?"

My dumbfounded voice echoed through the room. The receptionist who'd been subtly looking down on me just moments ago—an F-rank punk demanding a re-measurement—now had her jaw on the floor. Her eyes darted frantically between the red-flashing crystal orb and my face.

"Um, excuse me. Mr. Kwon Daesung."

"Yes? Yeah?"

"What in the world is...?"

She swallowed dryly, asking cautiously, "You're not, like... not human or anything, right?"

I couldn't believe it. Me, not human?

"No way! I'm a homegrown Korean, born and raised right here in the Republic of Korea! Want to see my resident registration card?!"

I jumped up yelling, and she frantically waved her hands, backing away.

"R-right? Must be a machine glitch. Hold on. This is the brand-new model headquarters imported last month for billions of won—why's it acting up...?"

She muttered to herself, her trembling hands fumbling with the measurement panel.

"Okay, rebooting it real quick?"

"Yeah, take your time."

As the machine whirred into reboot, I wiped the cold sweat from my brow.

'No way...?'

I knew exactly what had happened. What I'd just poured into that crystal orb was the alien, massive energy hunkered near my heart. Mana from the Dragon Heart.

'The Dragon Heart mana made the machine think I'm a dragon? Shit...'

A chill ran down my spine. If it flagged me as a monster or unidentified lifeform? S-rank combat hunters from the Association could swarm in any second, capturing me or dragging me to a dissection lab.

But the reboot finished surprisingly fast.

"All done rebooting. Mr. Kwon, hand on it one more time? If it glitches again, we'll rule it unmeasurable."

Unmeasurable? Yeah, right. God knows what that'd mean for me.

"Ah, sure. One sec."

I took a deep breath. Only one play here: channel the normal mana flowing in my body, not the Dragon Heart stuff.

'Stay put, you damn lizard!! You're gonna get me killed!!'

I mentally clamped down on the throbbing Dragon Heart mana, gathering only the rest and feeding it into the orb.

Weeeeng—

"......"

'Please...'

All I'd come for was a license renewal, not to end up as a lab rat.

But thankfully, no explosion this time. Instead, a faint blue glow shimmered inside the orb. Complex numbers raced across the monitor.

Ding—

The receptionist checked the monitor, her tense expression easing into odd relief as she sighed.

"Phew, good thing. Total machine error. Scared me. What kind of glitch was that?"

"R-right!? So, what's the result?"

She looked more relaxed now. "Well, mana capacity did rise just a tiny bit... but honestly, it's nowhere near enough to switch to combat class. You'll barely scrape by for F-rank combatant status."

Might not sound like much, but F-rank production and F-rank combat are worlds apart. I clenched my fist.

"Congrats anyway. Switching from production to combat class is a miracle in itself. License renewal fee's 100,000 won."

"Ah... thanks!"

I forced a disappointed look as I handed over my card. Truth be told, I'd dreamed of a flashy C-rank badge and tax breaks. But thinking it over, this might be better.

'Yeah. F-rank combatant.'

Low enough to fly under the radar—no spotlight, no annoying Association drafts or guild scrutiny. Tax breaks aren't much different from C-rank anyway.

'The hunter hiding his power. Heh heh, way cooler.'

Moments later, I pocketed my fresh-off-the-press F-rank 'Combatant' hunter license and strolled out of the Association with light steps.

"Ah, beef for dinner tonight. Gotta hit the butcher."

Whistling cheerfully, I returned to Daesung Resources and froze at the sight of a sleek black foreign sedan parked at the entrance.

'What the hell?'

None of my acquaintances drove luxury sedans like that.

"Who could it be? Wrong address?"

No reason for a car like that at a junkyard. Stepping into the yard, I spotted a woman curiously eyeing my beat-up workbench.

'Whoa, who's this?'

Ponytail not a strand out of place, form-fitting charcoal suit. Her cool, intellectual beauty clashed hard with the oil-stinking junkyard.

"Hey. Who are you?"

She turned slowly at my voice. Her gaze hit me, and her red lips curved smoothly.

"Ah, the owner?"

"Yeah, that's me."

"Nice to meet you. Hello. I'm Jeong Yuna, chief appraiser at the Seoul Hunter Association's official exchange."

Exchange chief appraiser? My heart dropped.

'No way...'

The three B-rank mana ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stones I'd sold at the exchange earlier. The ones I'd bullshitted as "grandpa's heirloom." Had the origin leaked?

They must've noticed the freakish purity and sent an Association investigator. Sweat trickled down my back as I forced nonchalance.

"Ah, yeah. So, what brings an appraiser to my humble junkyard...? Problem with the items I sold?"

"Problem? No. They were perfect."

Jeong Yuna stepped closer. Click-clack— Her heels echoed with eerie tension.

"99% purity mana stones. Flawless. Never seen their like in Korean hunter history. Minus your ridiculous 'heirloom' lie, the deal was flawless."

She nailed it. I scrambled for excuses, but words stuck.

"It was real, though? Grandpa really left them to me."

But instead of grilling me, she pulled a business card from her bag.

"Relax. Not here to pry."

"Huh?"

"Wherever you stole those mana stones from, or snuck them out of some illegal dungeon—I won't ask. My only interest is whether you can keep bringing them."

Her eyes burned with certainty. She wasn't a cop or investigator. No need to freak.

Then she dropped the bomb.

"Supply me exclusively."

"Pardon?"

"No other exchanges or black markets. Just me, and I'll pay 1.5 times your quoted price."

"One-point-five times?"

I couldn't believe my ears. A top-grade B-rank stone fetched 45 million won. At 1.5x? 67.5 million each. Three of 'em? Over 200 million!

And no origin questions. Perfect clean laundering straight from the Multidimensional Secondhand Market to cash.

But you don't negotiate like that.

"Two times."

She blinked. "Pardon?"

"Two times."

"Excuse me?"

"Double the price, and I'll supply only you."

"Ha?"

"I'm not desperate. Can't spill details, but they're not illegally sourced. Deal?"

I fought a grin as I replied. She clapped lightly.

"...Not your average guy, huh? Deal. Looking forward to doing business."

Damn, should've started at triple... No, greed brings trouble.

"Likewise. Pleasure doing business."

"Hmm... Mind if I look around?"

Hoo... Suspicious. Wonders if I'm producing them here.

I tossed it back casually. "Sure. Nothing to see, but go ahead."

Jeong Yuna poked around curiously—rusted parts, fans, greasy tools. I scratched my head watching her back.

'Huh... She's pretty.'

Hell if I remembered the last time I saw a woman. Better than dingy old dudes, anyway.

"I'll head out, boss Kwon. Contact me for the next delivery?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Hee hee, glad you're reasonable. See you next time, boss Kwon?"

After Jeong Yuna left, silence blanketed the junkyard. I slammed the shutter and sank into my work chair.

Things were going smooth. Ever since gaining my ability, life flowed effortlessly.

'Time ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to sell more stuff, then?'

I pulled up the Multidimensional Secondhand Market interface. But first, settle scores.

Before browsing, I opened messages and whispered the guy who'd sold me the potion.

Recalling the shaky terror from the measurement room still boiled my blood.

I was about to type in disbelief when the next message froze my fingers.

"......What?"

I glared at the screen, eyes bulging. Wasn't sure I'd survive? This psycho sold me an untested drug?

I snorted in disbelief. Wanted to curse him out and block, but paused. Annoying as his guinea-pig treatment was, he wasn't wrong.

"Hoo... So as long as the deal closes, no liability?"

I cooled my rage and nudged a box of elementary school lab discards with my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠foot. Dozens of unsold glass beakers and flasks inside.

Points. I needed points now.