Chapter 119: A Peaceful Day
Chapter 119: A Peaceful Day
I rushed over to console her, but she ended up bursting into tears anyway. As a result, I had no choice but to spend quite some time calming her down. It was my fault, of course, but Vivian clung to me for over an hour and poured out her grievances.
“What did I do wroooong… Why do you always pick on me… Sob…”
“I was really trying my best… I’d made up my mind… Did I ask you to baby me…?! I’d be happy if you just treated me kindly, so why do you have to make my life so miserable… Waaah…”
I had my work cut out for me trying to calm her down. There was even a minor incident where Shin Sangyong came in and found Vivian sobbing pitifully in my arms while I was trying to soothe her. (For the record, Shin Sangyong bowed politely before closing the door again.)
“Kim Soohyun. Do you hate me? You don’t, right? Huh?”
“Of course not. You have no idea how much I rely on you, Vivian.”
“Hic… Sob…”
That was what I told Vivian as she questioned me through her sobs, but it was not what I truly felt. Right. Whenever I saw her, I wanted to tease her and make her cry. This would probably happen often from now on, so she had better brace herself. Cry plenty for me, Vivian.
“……”
But I could not very well say that aloud. After finally wiping away her tears, I left ⟨The Demure Lady⟩ with a sigh. Another deep sigh escaped me. How had Kim Soohyun ended up like this? Was living with the kids affecting me? However much I denied it, I could no longer ignore that I was becoming more perverted by the day.
In any case, I cleared my head of such thoughts for a moment and walked briskly through the streets of Mule, crossing the plaza. My destination for the day was a jewelry shop. I entered the street lined with stores before me. The plan for this morning was a simple visit to one jeweler. The tasks I needed to handle in Mule from now on would cost a considerable amount of money. As such, I also needed to secure some funds.
Of course, I had plenty of time. But even with time to spare, my personality wouldn’t allow me to procrastinate. I believed it was better to get things done as quickly as possible to relax later. The only problem was that I tended to find more work after finishing the last.
Pioneer cities always guaranteed a certain number of resident Users. It was truly rare for a pioneer city to be this quiet. And this current situation was proof of just how much attention the Golden Lion Clan’s plan to advance into the Steel Mountains was receiving. Barbara’s inn was probably so packed right now that there wasn’t even room to stand, let alone find a vacant room.
Of course, success would bring an enormous windfall. The profit from securing even one safe route between the southern cities and Atlanta would be beyond imagination. But having taken part in the Steel Mountains expedition myself, I had no lingering desire to join it again. I could guarantee that the expeditionary force would lose more than a quarter of its strength within two days of entering the mountains. Even after suffering that damage, they would press on recklessly, only to be utterly crushed in less than five days. I had seen it with my own eyes: only a handful of Users returned, reduced to rags.
The clans that accurately assessed the reality and foresaw the future would begin to soar from that point on. They would have been quietly building up their strength all this time. By the time I returned from the Cave of Screams, many things would have changed. That’s why I had intentionally saved the cave I considered the easiest for last.
As I mulled over these thoughts, I occasionally saw a few Users looking for a caravan. Passing them by, I soon found myself in an area dense with shops. I slowly looked around at the complex tangle of stores on either side of me. A first-time User would undoubtedly get lost wondering where anything was. As a pioneer city, it hadn’t yet been properly organized. I was a little fuzzy on the details myself, but I soon dredged up my memories and found the jewelry shop I was looking for.
“I wonder if the old man is doing well.”
Before going in, I was about to light a cigarette but stopped myself. The old man I knew hated the smell of tobacco. I smacked my lips and looked up at the sign in front of the shop. A simple name written in black letters caught my eye.
⟨Grandpa’s Jewelry Shop⟩. No matter how many times I saw it, the name still struck me as dreadful. I opened the door and stepped inside. A User was examining a gem from every angle. With his white hair and wrinkled face, he was exactly the sort of man people back on Earth would call a tiger grandpa.
A slight curiosity stirred in me, and I activated Third Eye.
Player Status
1. Name: Lee Manseong (Year 6 User) 2. Class: Gem Appraiser (Rare, Gem Appraiser, Master) 3. Nation: Barbara 4. Clan: - 5. True Name · Nationality: One Who Wishes for Seclusion · Republic of Korea 6. Sex: Male (67) 7. Height · Weight: 173.7 cm · 51.2 kg 8. Alignment: Neutral · Moderation
[Strength 18] [Durability 26] [Agility 34] [Stamina 28] [Magic Power 86] [Luck 78]
Achievements (0)
Unique Ability (1/1)
1. Seeker of Value (Rank: B Plus)
Special Ability (1/1)
1. Gemcutting (Rank: A Plus)
Latent Ability (3/3)
1. Orthodox Magic (Rank: B Zero) 2. Rapid Incantation (Rank: D Plus) 3. Item Appraisal (Rank: C Plus)
He possessed a Rare Class, though his stats were somewhat unusual. His True Name made his intentions clear. At his age, Lee Manseong had little ambition left. He possessed considerable ability, but was preparing to end his days living quietly in a small city. He was certainly capable enough to find a place in a clan if he wanted one.
In particular, his Unique Ability, Seeker of Value, wasn't a combat-type ability, but it seemed to have excellent synergy with his current profession. In any case, I remembered him as not being a bad person. Despite the sound of the door opening, Lee Manseong continued to inspect the gem, only speaking when he noticed me standing still.
“…Are you a customer?”
“Yes.”
“If you’re here, you should say something. Why are you just standing there?”
“You seemed to be concentrating, so I found it difficult to interrupt.”
“Hmph.”
At my response, he quietly set down the gem he was holding and turned to sit. Lee Manseong stared at me for a moment before gesturing for me to come closer.
“Ahem. It’s been a while since I’ve seen… Anyway, come and sit.”
“Thank you.”
I certainly possessed power. But I had no intention of abusing it. The world of the Hall Plain still saw me as a Year 0 User, and I needed to act accordingly. Besides, there was no harm in maintaining a good relationship with the old man before me.
“So. Are you here to buy gems, or to sell?”
This old man disliked long-winded explanations. In that case.
“I’m here to sell. One type of gem, ruby, and a total of eight pieces.”
“Alright. Take them out.”
The User Lee Manseong wasn’t well-regarded among other Users. His gruff personality played a part, but he also never accepted haggling, always providing a razor-sharp appraisal. Users who tried to get even a slightly higher price were invariably met with harsh words and had their attempts at negotiation rejected. Occasionally, hot-tempered Users would try to pick a fight, but Lee Manseong’s stats as a mage User were nothing to scoff at.
But he was an old man I got along with quite well. He hated wasting time on useless chatter and always appraised gems quickly and accurately. Users who thought like me frequented his shop for that reason. Still, he wasn’t completely cold-hearted; he was known to secretly give a slightly better price to customers he liked or to his regulars.
I quickly thrust my hand into my pocket, pulled out the pouch of gems, and placed it before him. He immediately tipped the pouch upside down, and with a soft clatter, eight rubies shimmering with red light spilled out onto the counter. They were the gems I had found on the first floor of the Ruined Laboratory.
With a familiar, practiced hand, he picked up the nearest ruby and examined it. He turned it over and over, inspecting it from all angles, and tapped it with his finger. But I could see the magical calculations happening in his eyes. It was likely the manifestation of his Unique Ability. As a Seeker of Value, he picked up the other rubies one by one, following the same process.
The appraisal didn’t take long. After examining all eight in just five minutes, he lined them up in a row and began to speak, pointing to each one.
“From the far left. 108 Gold, 112 Gold, 102 Gold, 117 Gold, 136 Gold, 122 Gold, 147 Gold, 101 Gold. Total of 945 Gold. For your information, I don’t haggle. This is the exact price. Anyway, if you don’t want to sell at this price, you can just leave…”
“That’s fine.”
“…Hm?”
At my immediate, unhesitating reply, the old man looked up at me with curious eyes. This was precisely why other Users misunderstood him. At a glance, it might seem that he merely glanced at the gems and named a price, but I had independently estimated them at roughly 100 Gold each. Having also confirmed his Player Status, I could safely say that his skill at appraising gems was second to none.
After staring at my face for a moment, he spoke in a husky voice.
“…You’re not going to haggle or anything?”
“I was referred here by an acquaintance. I heard you have a deep expertise in appraisal. I, too, trust in a master craftsman’s pride.”
“There aren’t many who’ve treated me so kindly. You’re a strange one. Both you and the one who told you that.”
“Haha.”
Though his words were blunt, a faint smile touched his lips. Seeing me laugh, he let out a series of dry coughs.
“Ahem, ahem! I don’t know where you got these… but I rarely give more than 100 Gold for gems of this level. Still, they’re all of good quality and the stones are large. I can see a few with clear coloring… and despite their age, the purity of the undispersed magic power is high. They have high concentration, the kind of gems mages love.”
“I don’t know much about gems. But I believe it’s a reasonable price.”
When I agreed without any argument, the old man gave me a look as if he were seeing something peculiar. Perhaps it was because I picked up gems on my dungeon explorations like they were stones on the road, but for novice Users, finding gems from monsters was a stroke of luck. Especially for Users struggling early on, they would try to haggle to sell at the highest possible price.
This was unusual for me as well. During my first run, every visit here had been a simple exchange of gems for money. If the pouch felt heavier than expected, I merely assumed he had added a little extra that day. We had rarely spoken, so Lee Manseong initiating a conversation with a User he had never met was certainly unusual.
At my polite response, he calmly rummaged through a drawer and tossed a pouch onto the counter in front of me.
“It’s a 1000 Gold pouch. I’ll give you an extra 6 or 7 Gold per piece.”
“Oh. There’s no need for that…”
As I waved my hands with a surprised expression, Lee Manseong pushed the pouch further toward me with an indifferent look. Did this old man eat something strange today?
“It’s just this once, anyway. It’s not easy to find gems of this quality, and I haven’t had many customers lately. Everyone’s lost their minds over that expedition… Tsk tsk. Just take it. And…”
“Thank you.”
Feeling that refusing any further would be impolite, I picked up the pouch with a pleasant smile. I had been expecting around 800 Gold at most, but I had just earned an extra 200 Gold in an instant. Considering the enormous amount of money needed to apply for a clan’s establishment, this was a very welcome development. I was planning to use GP to get more money soon anyway, but free money was free money.
As he watched me readily take the pouch, Lee Manseong continued.
“…Come by often. And don’t go to that place across the street. I’m sure I’m better than them.”
“Of course.”
“Hmph. If you’re done with your business, you can leave.”
He snorted at my agreeable reply and turned his gaze back to his gems. Was he actually feeling shy right now? I chuckled at this new, refreshing side of him and left the shop. The heavy weight of the pouch in my pocket felt reassuring.
And now, it was time to go to the temple. I had to report my exploration and get it certified for it to be recognized as an achievement. And… around now was when I should be getting a call from Seraph.