A Brand-New Market

'He's cooking up another evil scheme,' Cain thought to himself. Every time Tae-hyun closed his eyes like that, all sorts of wicked ideas popped out. Who was going to be the victim this time?

"Th-this... this is impossible...! It's a trick!"

"?"

Gorsuk, the Orc Shaman, collapsed to the ground, the shock finally catching up to him.

"That is Lord Shiiba's holy relic! It is supposed to be Lord Shiiba's holy relic!"

"You keep saying 'Shiiba, Shiiba,' and it's starting to sound a bit vulgar."

"Shh. Let's keep it down."

Tae-hyun approached Gorsuk and gently patted his shoulder. Having obtained everything he wanted, he was feeling exceptionally generous.

"It happens. I mean, we all make mistakes and get confused sometimes in life, don't we?"

"Ugh... human..."

"Well, I'll be off then. Take care. I hope you find that Shibal—er, Shiiba relic of yours."

"It's Shiiba. Shiiba."

Tae-hyun tried to make a cool exit. But at that moment, Gorsuk grabbed his shoulder.

"Help me!"

"Huh?" Tae-hyun paused. "Right. Leaving quickly is the best way to help you. I get it."

"N-no! That's not what I meant!"

Brush, brush. Tae-hyun quickly slapped Gorsuk's hand away!

"I'm not a cold-hearted person, but I have a lot on my plate right now. My next quests are piling up. Let's think about it the next time we meet."

A true professional at rejection! It was a rejection that carried the weight of countless past rejections. Cain marveled at him once again. So that's how you reject someone!

—Got it, Cain? When you reject someone, you have to do it with the same casual vibe as saying, "Let's grab lunch sometime."

Cain finally understood the true depth of Tae-hyun's past advice.

"The other Orcs only worship Mogok, the Orc God! An Orc like me who believes in Shiiba has nowhere to stand!"

"Well, you have to figure that out on your own. Do you think I had a ready-made church waiting for me? I had to gather everything, find the authorities, and build my church from scratch! And all the followers I do have are missing a screw or two!"

As Tae-hyun spoke, he felt a sudden surge of resentment. Seriously, what kind of church was the Archisus Church anyway?

"Th-that..."

"Got it? That's just how religious factions are! Worshipping a minor god is a one-way ticket to suffering!"

"No, I didn't say that to move you..."

"I want to follow you and learn! Please accept me!"

"I refuse!"

"Why?!"

"What do you mean 'why,' you punk? Asking the leader of the Archisus Church to accept a new religion. Does that make any..."

Tae-hyun paused mid-sentence. Come to think of it, he had accepted the Sadique Order, and he had accepted Karbanog...

"...Well, it's not completely impossible!"

"?!"

"But anyway, there's nothing in it for me to accept the Shiiba Cult. Why don't you just convert to Mogok right now? If you do, I can ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠take you in."

Tae-hyun was coveting Mogok, the mainstream Orc god! Mogok was a great option. Countless Orcs worshipped him, and although there was no official church due to the nature of Orcs, the passive effects were excellent. As the God of Orcs and Struggle, his benefits were guaranteed.

'Besides, Orcs are practically overflowing in the Uruk Region right now, so I could always recruit them later.'

The number of citizens was directly tied to national power! In that sense, Shiiba, the God of Slimes, was a deity that didn't offer any immediate appeal. What was so good about having a slime god? Would it just increase the number of slimes in his territory? At least Karbanog had the effect of reducing rabbit damage to crops and making rabbit meat taste delicious...

"H-how could I abandon my faith?!"

"Why not? People do it all the time. Just recently, an angel I know abandoned her faith."

"Don't lie to me!"

"This guy calls everything a lie just because he doesn't like it. Whatever. I'm leaving."

"W-wait! I will give you the Orcs' treasure!"

"!"

Tae-hyun stopped in his tracks.

"Tell me about this treasure in extreme detail. What are its stats, what does it look like, and where can I get it?"

"..."

Gorsuk hesitated for a moment. Can I really trust this human?

"Bradley. Come to think of it, how are the griffin eggs doing?"

"O-of course. Everything is going very well. They are maturing nicely, and we are just waiting for them to hatch!"

"The higher-ups really want to form a Griffin Knight Order. You have to do a good job."

"O-of course!"

Bradley bowed his head deeply at the guild member's words. The higher-ranking guild member was essentially his boss.

'Argh... what do I do?'

After the coronation event ended (though there was an accident in the middle), Bradley, who had been enjoying the spectacle, realized a shocking truth. All the griffin eggs were gone!

'This is impossible! This makes no sense! Who on earth took advantage of the chaos... What kind of audacious bastard would do this!'

This area had extremely tight security, to the point where any mediocre thief would be chased away by the guards. Unless some major incident had drawn all the guards away, it should have been impossible to infiltrate this place!

And Bradley was the manager of these stables. Thanks to his Heroic class, he had been fast-tracked for promotion! He had even been given charge of these high-end stables, making him rejoice, thinking, 'I've finally made it!'...

'I'm ruined... I'm absolutely ruined!'

He had managed to talk his way out of it so far, but he was skating on thin ice. The moment anyone came to check in person, the truth would be out.

'Why are there only chicken eggs here instead of griffin eggs? Bradley! Have you lost your mind?!'

After agonizing over it, Bradley sent a whisper to a guild friend he knew.

Zhang Shan, who was working as a Guard Captain, nodded as he received the message. He knew that feeling all too well! Having worked under incompetent bosses before escaping to become a spy for Tae-hyun, Zhang Shan's mind was at peace now, but...

'Poor guy. He must be going through a lot. I thought he was doing well since he got promoted recently...'

Zhang Shan felt pity for Bradley. They had joined the guild around the same time, after all.

Bradley poured his heart out, explaining how the griffin eggs had suddenly vanished. Hearing this, Zhang Shan was shocked.

Bradley cried out in despair, then asked:

Lately, within the Guild Alliance, Zhang Shan was being held up as the gold standard of recruits, with phrases like "the rookie guild member to emulate" or "be more like Zhang Shan" being thrown around. While countless spies and assassins had been crushed by Tae-hyun, Zhang Shan had successfully infiltrated the capital and even secured an official position.

'Why can't you be more like Zhang Shan?'

'Zhang Shan even infiltrated right under Kim Tae-hyun's nose. Are you seriously scared of just this? Try to be at least half as good as Zhang Shan!'

Such rumors were circulating constantly. Of course, Zhang Shan himself had no idea these words were being spoken.

'Ah, so he already looked...' Seeing Bradley panic so much that his typing was getting messy, Zhang Shan felt even more sympathetic. Those Guild Alliance bastards. They should overlook a mistake or two, why did they have to torment the poor guy like this!

"So that's how things turned out. I'm really sorry to ask, but is there any way we could obtain some griffin eggs?"

'Why is he asking me that...'

Lee Da-bi stared at Zhang Shan with a dubious look. Judging by his demeanor, it didn't seem like he knew the truth.

"Why are you asking me?"

"Well, aren't you the Guild Master of the Power Warrior Guild, Miss Lee Da-bi? The one ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠who knows everything, can obtain anything, and can do anything in this world..."

"?!"

It was a grand modifier that even Lee Da-bi, the Guild Master herself, was hearing for the first time!

'There are plenty of things I don't know, plenty of things I can't get, and a hell of a lot of things I can't do!'

When on earth did such a bizarre rumor spread?! Lee Da-bi was flustered, but she maintained her composure.

"H-he's a pretty close friend of mine, so I really want to help him. I'll even pitch in some of the gold I've saved up... Is there any way you could get them for us?"

"Hmm. Well... alright. I'll try to get a few."

"!"

Zhang Shan was startled. She was actually going to get them!

'As expected of the Power Warrior Guild Master! Amazing!'

"Thank you! Thank you so much!"

If he could just get a few eggs, Bradley would be able to scrape by somehow. He could just claim the rest failed to hatch. Griffin eggs were notoriously delicate, after all.

Once Zhang Shan withdrew, Lee Da-bi shook her head. She had never imagined things would play out like this.

"Could you bring me a few griffin eggs?"

"Yes, Guild Master!"

"By the way, why did our guild get such a reputation?"

"Huh? Doesn't it make us look strong and cool?"

"..."

Lee Da-bi felt like she had just found the culprit.

Lee Da-bi had learned a lot from Tae-hyun.

Lee Da-bi was worried. No matter how she thought about it, Tae-hyun and the broadcasting crew were not a good match. One side was a hardcore gamer, while the other consisted of casual players who had come lightly, expecting a free ride!

'He didn't get angry and PK all of them, did he?'

For a moment, Lee Da-bi wondered if Tae-hyun was being blackmailed by someone.

'No. He's not the type of person who could be blackmailed!'

Lee Da-bi sent a whisper to Cain.

After Cain's whisper ended, Tae-hyun spoke again.

"Hmm. The Orcs have something like that?"

"They do..."

"Is there anything else? Gems, ores, artifacts, whatever—I'll take anything."

"..."

Gorsuk stared at Tae-hyun with cold, dead eyes. No matter how he thought about it, choosing this human seemed like a massive mistake.

"There might be things like that in the chieftain's treasury, but..."

"Oho."

"...That is not what's important. The chieftain's staff! That staff is Lord Shiiba's holy relic!"

Rather than being impressed upon hearing this, Tae-hyun cast a highly skeptical look at him.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Are you absolutely sure that's Shiiba's holy relic?"

"I am positive!!"