Chapter 142
Chapter 142
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 142
Chapter Title: Vice Guild Warehouse
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Chapter 142
Chapter 142
"Then I'll gratefully take a look around."
"Hahaha, perfect. We'll take care of the armor, so go ahead and take it off before you head out."
With that, Geunhwa and Jeong-hyeon resumed wandering through the warehouse.
"But is this really okay?"
"I'm the vice guild master, you know."
'Ah, right, he is.'
Jeong-hyeon remembered anew the man's position at his confident response.
Even for a guild centered on crafting, the title of vice guild master wasn't just for show.
Especially in a place like Vice Guild, where crafting and raids were split between teams.
Having already selected their armor, the two quickly exited the armor section.
That's when Jeong-hyeon's eyes caught something.
"What's that area over there?"
"Oh, that's the materials warehouse."
It was a space separated by a short hallway from where the equipment was stored.
'Materials warehouse?'
Normally, he wouldn't have paid much attention amid all the finished products, but this time, something drew him in.
"Is Harad kept there by any chance?"
"Hm? Ah, I see. Would you like to take a look?"
And well, he'd just pried Harad raw stones from those damn Grand Mantises, hadn't he?
Geunhwa paused in confusion for a moment but soon guessed his intent and readily suggested it.
The materials warehouse was a bit dimmer than the equipment storage area.
Unlike the museum-like exterior, rooms were divided by material type—leather here, ores there—since they needed to store raw stuff.
After a short walk, Geunhwa stopped in front of one room and opened the door.
"This is where we keep the Harad."
Creak—
The interior was narrower than expected.
Being gems, they didn't need much space, and as a rare material, the quantity was limited anyway.
'Feels like a jewelry store in here.'
Unlike the equipment, they weren't stored individually, but the Harads filled three walls of glass display cases, sorted by attribute.
Geunhwa stopped at one case and pointed inside.
"The raw stones you obtained haven't been processed yet, but we have Harad of the same attributes."
Sure enough, yellow and red Harads.
"Oh, so that's what they look like."
Jeong-hyeon peered inside with interest.
They were said to be socketed into gear, standardized in shape—sizes varied slightly, but most were processed to the same form.
"I heard Harad amplifies magic. How effective is it exactly?"
"Hmm... It depends on the size, but usually about 2 to 3 times. That said, raw stones are actually more efficient. What we socket are cut down to practical sizes for use."
Geunhwa answered after a brief think.
Jeong-hyeon nodded.
'Those punk-ass Grand Mantises were hauling around head-sized Harads. Just how much amplification were they packing?'
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.
Anyway, as he admired the various attribute Harads, something caught Jeong-hyeon's eye.
"Hm? This one's gray."
At first, he'd thought it was white wind-attribute Harad, but up close, it was subtly different.
Plus, the wind-attribute case was separate, so this had to be another type.
And being the only one made it suspicious.
Geunhwa looked a bit troubled at the question.
"We don't know its attribute either. We kept it since it's Harad anyway, but..."
A Harad with unknown attribute.
He had a hunch.
'No way.'
After all, he himself wielded an undocumented attribute.
"Um... could you take it out for me?"
"This one?"
Geunhwa hesitated but soon opened the case and handed it over.
'What the hell is this guy's deal?'
Not only had he worn the Cursed Armor without issue, but now he was interested in a Harad that even seasoned enchanters couldn't match to any attribute.
And despite requesting it himself, he seemed half-doubting. Super weird.
Anyway, Jeong-hyeon took the Harad from Geunhwa and tested it right away.
The result was, predictably,
"Why does this always happen to me?"
"Huh?"
"Oh, nothing. Haha."
The gray Harad whose attribute was unknown.
Infusing it with neutral magic produced a reaction, shockingly.
It was a perfect match for Jeong-hyeon.
"Could I maybe use this one?"
"That?"
Of course, Geunhwa found it absurd.
He knew Jeong-hyeon could enchant, but Vice Guild had already asked every enchanter they knew.
All had shaken their heads, saying it didn't match their attributes.
"If it's a burden, you really don't have to..."
"No, I really need it."
Jeong-hyeon's expression was resolute, without a hint of deceit.
"Ha, well..."
Geunhwa clicked his tongue.
First the armor no one could wear, now the Harad no one could identify.
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he never would've believed it.
"Then, anything else—"
If it had been a standard attribute Harad he used often, fine.
But an unknown one? Geunhwa couldn't satisfy his urge to repay him.
He even tried offering more, but
"I'm really good now."
Jeong-hyeon cut him off sharply.
'I'm already so loaded my teeth are rotting.'
Top-quality armor with mental attack immunity, a hidden achievement coin, and now a neutral magic-amplifying Harad? What more?
Even Jeong-hyeon, master of self-justification, couldn't accept more.
No, honestly, it scared him.
'Any more and I'll get indigestion.'
His karmic debt was already piled high.
Sure, the useless A-rank Blunt Technique had cleared a bit, but this visit blew past that limit again.
He'd barely handled two Grand Mantises for a level-up in Trait Shop and two B-ranks—now what nightmare awaited next gate?
"This feels too stingy sending you off like this."
But Geunhwa hated letting him leave empty-handed too.
He'd called him to give gifts, but it looked like he was just dumping useless junk from storage.
Gratitude aside, his vice guild master pride was on the line.
Of course, Jeong-hyeon waved him off desperately.
"Really, it's fine. I have an appointment to get to anyway."
Desperate enough to invent one.
Vice Guild's underground warehouse—a treasure trove any hunter dreamed of entering.
There unfolded a bizarre comedy: one pressing gifts, the other dodging them desperately.
***
"Whew... Never pegged him for the stubborn type."
Finally escaping Geunhwa's relentless offers, Jeong-hyeon wiped sweat as he left Vice Guild.
No matter how much he insisted it was enough, the guy wouldn't hear it.
"Heh heh heh..."
But process aside, the results were a total win.
Jeong-hyeon chuckled, thinking of the heavy case's contents.
A passerby would've flinched at that creepy grin.
Of course, getting the Harad was unexpected, adding one more stop.
He needed to socket the neutral Harad into the mace, so off to Doil.
'Wonder if Grandpa Doil will freak out again.'
System's bullshit difficulty had forced two Harads off Mantises by luck, but Harad was insanely rare.
A regular crafter might never see one lifetime—Doil had handled some, but still precious.
Thinking that, he dropped by the association workshop.
"Gasp!"
Predictably, Doil freaked at the Harad.
"What's that, Grandpa? Another one?!"
Yujeong, clueless, startled at Doil.
She scolded Jeong-hyeon, who scratched his neck sheepishly.
"Don't bring weird stuff anymore!"
With Doil's age, she always glared at Jeong-hyeon in these moments.
"It's valuable, though..."
"Anyway!"
He'd call the forge ahead next time.
Anyway, as expected, the golem core shot kept Doil calm quicker this time.
"You keep scaring this old man, Hunter. Where'd you get Harad this time? And this color's new."
"Ended up with one. Thought it might work for the mace."
"Hmm..."
Doil pondered the request.
"I could make a separate part and fit it to the handle, sure..."
Of course it was possible.
But Doil hesitated for another reason.
"This method's for artifacts, not regular gear. Efficiency drops otherwise."
"Huh?"
'Why's artifact coming up?'
But Doil's explanation made sense.
Gear with sockets is designed with spots prepped.
Artifacts can't have preset socket holes, so they use special metal reactive to artifacts for add-ons.
It auto-adjusts size on contact—convenient.
Problem: that metal's artifact-only, so regular gear loses efficiency.
"Hmm..."
And artifacts? Bad memories for Jeong-hyeon.
The pickaxe dumped in his room like junk.
"Of course, with Onyx and Harad being top materials, it's still way better."
Doil sounded a bit regretful despite saying it was fine.
That's when Jeong-hyeon's inner turmoil began.
'Tell him or not?'
Felt like losing to the pickaxe, but he decided.
"Actually... I did get an artifact this time."
"Oh? Perfect then. Better to use it there, right?"
"But it's..."
Jeong-hyeon trailed off awkwardly.
Doil and Yujeong eyed him suspiciously.
They'd never seen him struggle with words like this.
Having an artifact was brag-worthy, not shameful.
"It's... a pickaxe."
"......?"
Blushing as he confessed, they got it.
'An artifact... pickaxe?'
Doil prided himself on handling artifacts aplenty, but never a pickaxe one.
"Ahem... Bring it by sometime."
Doil coughed, avoiding his gaze.
Yujeong even turned away.
"Kuku... An artifact pickaxe...?"
Her red ears and twitching shoulders said it all, no need to hear the mutter.
'Like I wanted a pickaxe...'
In the end, Jeong-hyeon could only promise to return later and flee the workshop like he'd fled Vice Guild.