Kang Nari (2)

Recovery potions are exactly what they sound like—potions that heal wounds. They're mainly used by hunters who hunt monsters in the rift zones. Nobody wants to die from a stray arrow. But hunters with recovery skills are incredibly rare, so you can't always count on getting that kind of support in every monster fight. That's why hunters always carry emergency potions with them, no matter the cost.

Of course, there aren't many potions with dramatic, game-like HP restoration effects. The most widely used one, the Emergency Recovery Potion, just stops bleeding and replenishes lost blood. Think of it as basic first aid. Naturally, since it can save lives in a pinch, demand for potions is always high.

"To be honest, the potion business is one that's hard to fail. Demand is overflowing, and there are so few people who can make proper potions."

Kang Nari said this as she pulled a potion bottle filled with a 'dark crimson liquid' from her potion box, along with a white painkiller. Eunha watched her actions curiously for a moment, but then Kang Nari gripped the potion bottle in her left hand and the painkiller in her right, focusing intently.

Whoosh—

A faint blue glow began to scatter around Kang Nari. The residual mana that leaks out when a hunter uses a skill. After about five seconds, she exhaled softly and set the items down on the table.

What her left hand placed down was the familiar Emergency Recovery Potion. The liquid, which had been dark crimson just moments ago, had lightened to a bright scarlet. But the painkiller in her right hand had turned pitch black, as if it'd been dipped in ink.

"Oh..."

"As you probably know, Eunha, my skill is Component Swap."

"I had no idea."

"Right? I can hold two different objects in each hand and swap specific components between them. This one swapped the toxicity from the 'monster blood' with the pain-relieving component from the painkiller."

According to Kang Nari, potions work by refining the blood of certain monsters with strong regenerative abilities and temporarily mimicking that power. That's the basic mechanism. The quality and price vary depending on the blood used. Plus, monster blood is basically poison if a human drinks it raw, so you need a skill like hers to remove the toxicity and make a proper potion. That explained why the potion business was so hard to fail—hardly anyone could make them.

"I honestly thought it'd be a huge hit... Normally, right? People use 'purification' or 'refinement' skills to remove the toxicity. But my Component Swap lets me eliminate the poison and add extra effects. Can't you tell my skill is the best?"

"I see."

"Especially this potion—it was a blockbuster with pain relief added in. A massive success. Big money rolled in, and even the Hunter Association wanted an exclusive contract..."

As her story dragged on, Kang Nari's expression darkened. Her voice grew quieter, fading to a whisper by the end.

Listening to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her, Eunha could kind of understand why she was so down. She'd gone into massive debt to ambitiously launch this business. She clearly had huge pride in her Component Swap skill, but now that prized venture had tanked, leaving her gnawing on potatoes in a basement room. No wonder she had depression.

At the same time, a question arose. Even to Eunha, an F-rank hunter, Kang Nari's Component Swap seemed incredibly useful. And it was for the potion business, which was supposedly fail-proof. Why on earth had it really failed? Hair in the potions? Or maybe they tasted like crap.

"Haa... Half a year ago, the Hunter Association announced a new potion. Galaxy Potion. It was truly a 'potion revolution'—insanely amazing."

"Ah, I've heard of that one."

Kang Nari let out a deep sigh and replied in a gloomy voice. Eunha also recalled it with a small sigh of her own.

Yeah, that thing.

Half a year ago, the Korean Hunter Association had made a huge fuss with special news broadcasts about developing a 'potion from the gods.' For the first few days, it was all over every channel like Korea had won the World Cup—Eunha remembered it well. Her favorite variety show even took a week off because of it. Thinking back still pissed her off.

A potion that didn't just stop at first aid—it reattached severed limbs without aftereffects. No side effects or addiction, and it even cured cancer. The term 'revolution' was no exaggeration; it was a miracle potion.

"The biggest problem is the supply! It's several times more effective than A-rank monster blood potions, and there's tons available at cheap prices! Isn't that too much?! Did the Association torture some alien or what?! What monster's blood did they even use?!"

"So you got pushed out of the competition."

Eunha finished her miyeokguk while appropriately soothing Kang Nari, who was banging on the table in outrage. Her body felt better after the iron intake. Time to head home.

Ding~♪

Right on cue, a text came in on Eunha's smartphone. The sender was 'Evergreen Emergency Center.' Eunha pursed her lips at the unexpected contact and checked the message.

The message came with a photo: the front door of Eunha's home in Saetbyeol Apartment, Room 904... and right next to it, her black suitcase standing there prominently.

No wonder she'd felt empty. She'd left the suitcase on the blood donation bus. The Black Book was probably inside too. Such thorough after-service. Fine. She'd definitely donate blood ten times and claim those souvenirs.

"Hoo... Sales dropped so much I could barely cover the loan interest. To pay off even a little of the debt, I sold my old house and now I'm living in this basement, rummaging through used clothing bins."

After venting, Kang Nari flopped down onto the mattress laid out like a bed. The old springs creaked pitifully.

"Wasn't there anything from the Cheongryong Clan?"

Did her family not help at all when their youngest daughter was living like this? Eunha asked cautiously, but Kang Nari laughed hollowly and brushed it off.

"Haha. As if. You know what? My siblings and I—we used to be four."

"You said just your brother and sister earlier."

"...My father, Chairman Kang, when my eldest brother was eaten by a monster in the rift zone and only his left hand came back to the family... he said to throw it away because it stank of rot."

Kang Nari's smile was empty. The face of someone who expected nothing and was given nothing in return.

Eunha, picking miyeokguk bits from her teeth, quietly gazed at the blue-haired woman. It seemed like she was sadder about having no one to lean on in this situation than the near-kidnapping by loan sharks or her current basement life.

Eunha looked at Kang Nari, who lay on the mattress staring blankly at the ceiling, with a complicated expression.

It was just one bad blood ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠donation. Yet here she was, having saved a chaebol heiress from loan sharks by chance, drinking miyeokguk in a stranger's home, and hearing her heartbreaking story. Fate was a funny thing. How did it come to this?

Still... this is fate too.

In a world where you need debt to see light. A world with nowhere to lean. Alone is lonely, so she wished someone would reach out. That's why Eunha ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠became a hunter.

Feeling a bit of kinship with Kang Nari, Eunha asked, hoping she could help if possible.

"...So what are you going to do now? You said the loan sharks are coming again next month."

"Hehe... What else? Keep earning money like this... If it doesn't work, dump all my remaining cash into lottery tickets!"

Kang Nari shouted defiantly at Eunha's question. With her current potion sales, she couldn't handle the debt anyway—so if she was going down, might as well go big. Better than quietly getting her organs harvested, she said. But wasn't that just no plan at all?

When Eunha asked why she'd used her organs as collateral in an era with recovery skills, apparently hunter organs fetched high prices for research.

"My Component Swap is super rare, so those guys even praised me specially, saying they'd pay extra...!"

"That probably wasn't praise."

"Heehee... Ah! And I'll definitely repay you properly for saving me, Eunha! I can't live owing debts!"

"That doesn't sound trustworthy coming from someone drowning in debt."

The more they talked, the odder she seemed. She'd scraped by today thanks to Eunha, but in a month, the loan sharks would probably drag her off anyway.

Still, if she just pays off the debt, she seems like she'd succeed big time... Wonder if there's a way.

Eunha pondered ways Kang Nari could pay off her debt in a month while eyeing her curiously.

Chaebol youngest daughter. Component Swap skill... Hmm... No idea.

She'd probably figure it out herself.

Potions from monster blood... What if she used human blood?

Eunha touched the needle mark near her carotid while thinking. If potent monster blood worked for recovery, wouldn't strong human blood work too?

But ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she didn't voice it. Revealing her own skill to a near-stranger felt off, and meddling in someone determined to handle it alone felt wrong too. She still had about a month left anyway.

Well... If fate brought them together again later, they could talk then.

Eunha left some words of encouragement for Kang Nari and stood up.

…

"Oh my, what a coincidence. Lady Eunha. Out for a stroll?"

And as soon as she left the basement, she ran into Banharin. She was panting like she'd run here in a hurry.

What was this? Fate again?