Chapter 242: The Time for Nurturing Has Passed
Chapter 242: The Time for Nurturing Has Passed
“Hey!”
At Vivian’s scream, Hayeon whipped her head around in surprise. With a nonchalant expression, I quickly stepped forward. I could hear Vivian squawking behind me, but I ignored her and walked through the open door.
The moment I stepped inside, a wide, overgrown lawn came into view. In terms of size, it was comparable to the grounds of an ordinary elementary school.
Two buildings stood on the lawn, forming an L-shape. First, a wide, rectangular building stood imposingly in the center. Gauging its height by eye, I could tell it was a four-story building. It wasn't particularly tall, but its footprint was so large that it didn't seem like it would be inconvenient.
Next, I shifted my gaze to the right. A building that looked like a row house came into view. Counting the neatly arranged windows from the first floor up, I saw it was also four stories, but it was only about half as wide as the first building.
The building's exterior was unremarkable. It wasn't so ornate as to immediately catch the eye, but it was an unassuming and conventional-looking building. And the metaphysical symbols visible on parts of the light gray walls gave it a slightly classical atmosphere.
“What do you think?”
“Well… my first impression is that it feels modern.”
“Hehe. That's right. I thought the same thing the moment I saw it. It made me feel strangely nostalgic.”
“Still, I never expected to find buildings like this. Was this a Clan House used by another clan?”
Instead of answering, Hayeon pointed straight ahead. I enhanced my vision with magic and looked closely, spotting the letter ‘P’ drawn on the main entrance.
“You spotted it right away. This used to be the Pistachio Clan’s Clan House.”
“Pistachio?”
“Yes. They're the clan that participated in the recent Steel Mountains expedition. They might not be well-known across the entire Northern Continent, but they were quite famous in Monica. I heard Istantel Low Clan tried hard to stop them, but they went anyway.”
“So what happened to them?”
“All the clan members died. Not a single User made it back. Therefore, no one can claim ownership of this Clan House. According to the rules, it has now been repossessed by the Representative Clan.”
Hearing Hayeon's words, my mind suddenly went blank. Feeling as if I were possessed, I walked forward, one step at a time.
The property was entirely surrounded by a stone wall about the height of a grown man. The vines climbing the wall were withered and drooping everywhere. I passed a small pond with dried weeds floating on its surface and pushed through grass that brushed against my shins before finally reaching the main entrance.
I gently raised my hand and stroked the wall, and a fine layer of dust came off on my palm. Perhaps because it had been baked by the sun, it felt warm and soft.
“Kim Soohyun. Let's go inside!”
“Don't get your hopes up for the interior.”
Vivian, who must have followed me at some point, grabbed the doorknob, poised to enter at any moment. Hayeon gave a bitter smile and offered a warning, but Vivian, her face full of excitement, threw the door open. I dusted off the hand that had been stroking the wall and immediately stepped inside the house.
As I entered and looked around the first floor, the decent impression I'd gotten from the outside was instantly shattered. I could immediately understand why Hayeon had told me not to get my hopes up.
The first floor was a complete mess. It wasn't exactly old, but it was incredibly filthy, likely from a long period of neglect. The stairs leading to the second floor were discolored and blackish. The first floor seemed to have been used as a lobby and reception area, or perhaps a dining hall, but honestly, it was so chaotic that not a single corner looked intact.
Did they think the Steel Mountains expedition would be a 100% success? They left the place in a total wreck.
I surveyed the long space stretching left and right before letting out a sigh and speaking.
“We'll have to factor in the cost of renovating both the exterior and interior.”
“Still, it's much better than buying the land and constructing new buildings from scratch.”
“What's our clan's financial situation, and what's the price of this place?”
“Right now, we have about 80,000 gold in pure gold coins. The original price of the land is around 58,000 gold, and it would cost an additional 27,000 gold to build two new buildings of this size. And as you know, since we aren’t registered with a nation, we can't receive any discounts. And of course, we can't get a loan either.”
“The land price is one thing, but the construction cost is higher than I expected. Even for two new buildings, I didn't think it would exceed 20,000 gold.”
When I asked, Hayeon pressed her lips together. Just as I was wondering why she suddenly went silent, I saw Vivian hesitantly raising her hand beside me.
“S-sorry. I was going to say something earlier, but…”
“Yeah.”
“The reason it's over 20,000 gold is mostly my fault. Y-you see… you told me not to spare any expense when building the workshop, right? You said you'd support it fully. So I added this and that, and…”
“Ah. So how much is it?”
“E-eight thousand two hundred gold.”
I wanted to say, ‘You really went all out, didn’t you?’ but I managed to hold it back by biting my lip. Come to think of it, I did remember saying that.
I thought about it for a moment, but I couldn't help but tilt my head slightly. Even with a generous estimate, the two buildings combined were large enough to accommodate at least two or three hundred people. But the Mercenary Clan currently has only nine members.
“Setting aside the location, it seems far too excessive for the current Mercenary Clan.”
“Yes. I don't know how many total members you're planning for, but our clan has immense potential for growth. If you plan to establish a permanent base in Monica, I thought it would be a shame to miss this opportunity.”
“Speaking of which, you said Istantel Low Clan contacted you. What did they say?”
“They offered to sell us the land and buildings together for 40% of the original cost.”
For a moment, I doubted my ears. I furrowed my brow and asked her again.
“Not a discount off the total price, but 40% of the original cost?”
“Yes. That means we'd only have to pay a total of 34,000 gold. Of course, we'd have to cover the cost of renovating the exterior and interior. We'll need to work out the details, but it will still be much cheaper than 27,000 gold, since the buildings are already standing.”
The offer was so ridiculously good that I let out a hollow laugh. Just then, Vivian, who had been listening quietly, muttered in a low voice.
“It's a little strange.”
“What is?”
“Isn't it? I don't understand why they'd do that with no strings attached. Don't you think they want something from us?”
I knew all about Han Soyoung's greed for talent, but it was certainly a situation that would make anyone who didn't know the circumstances suspicious. And since Vivian's point was quite valid, I turned my gaze to Hayeon.
“Did Istantel Low Clan say anything else?”
“They did. But I'm not sure how to put it. It's just…”
“Just tell me exactly what they said.”
“From the very beginning, they made their intentions clear. They said they hope the Mercenary Clan will be active in Monica for a long time. And that they hope we will contribute greatly to the stabilization of the South. That's it. Aside from those two things, they didn't attach any other conditions.”
“They must have known that Mercenary is a Mercenary Clan.”
“Yes. But they were actually very respectful about that part.”
I nodded once or twice at Hayeon's answer. Suddenly, my conversations with Han Soyoung during the Call to Arms came to mind.
‘What I'm trying to say is, even if the Mercenary Clan has the nature of a free mercenary group, there's a way for you to receive benefits similar to those of existing Users.’
‘It's simple. The Representative Clan that manages the city can directly provide conveniences to your clan.’
“Soohyun?”
“Ah, yes. I understand perfectly.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Rather than decide right now, I think I need to consider it a bit more. This place is close, so let's come back again tomorrow. For now, I'd like to see the other location.”
“What? You don't need to look around more?”
I didn't need to go upstairs to imagine what the upper floors looked like. And regardless of whether we accepted Istantel Low Clan's offer, the interior would have to be completely renovated anyway. So, I just gave a calm nod and turned to leave. After a moment of stunned silence, I stepped through the door and sensed the two of them scrambling after me.
Soon after, seeing Hayeon walking cautiously to my left, I spoke in a calm voice.
“By the way, Hayeon. There's something I'm curious about.”
“Yes. Are you curious about the next location?”
“No. Earlier, I asked about the clan's current financial situation. Why did you only mention the gold coins and exclude the jewels? As far as I know, we have over a thousand jewels, and at an average of 200 gold each, that's a whopping 200,000 gold.”
“That's…”
Hayeon didn't answer right away. She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye before speaking in a cautious voice.
“It's just something I've felt for a while. I had a feeling you were deliberately saving the jewels instead of using them. And then you actually brought Kim Hanbyul here…”
“Does the Jewel Mage class consume that many jewels?”
“Yes. Didn't you know? According to her, she needs at least one jewel per spell to draw out her full power.”
“One jewel per spell. That's astounding.”
Hayeon nodded a couple of times as if in agreement. But even though I said that, it wasn't what I was truly thinking. Suddenly, worrying about money just a moment ago felt pointless. I had lived so frugally until the middle of the first playthrough and had no memory of being wasteful, so it had become a habit.
Kim Hanbyul. I wouldn't have brought her here if I couldn't handle the cost. That's how confident I was that I could support a Jewel Mage. No, at the very least, I had no intention of being short on money from now on, and I planned to make sure of it. How many undiscovered ruins did I know about? Even if I only succeeded in exploring half of them, I wouldn't have to worry about gold or jewels until I cleared the Hall Plain.
If worse comes to worst, I can just visit the Forest of Jewels. Ah, but my brother was originally the one to discover that, so I feel a little bad… Speaking of which, I wonder if he's doing okay.
Coming to Monica meant being by Han Soyoung's side, but that didn't mean I wasn't thinking about Yoohyun-hyung. Hyung was probably at the peak of his activity in the East right now. Honestly, I wanted to run to Hyung right away, but I held back because I knew he was destined for continued success. I still needed to gather more strength, and I didn't want to needlessly interfere and introduce even the slightest variable into Hyung’s brilliant future.
Still, I didn't know how the future might twist again, so I had asked Ko Yeonju to keep me updated on him, along with news from the Western Continent. If there was even the slightest hint of something wrong, I would drop everything and run to him.
As I walked, lost in these thoughts, I saw Vivian suddenly dash out in front of me and to my right. She then stopped running, tossed something to the side, and cried out in a surprised voice.
“Ah! I dropped my money!”
Then she bent over and began to search earnestly for the dropped item. The problem was that her butt was wiggling excessively in my direction as I walked past. Not only that, it was positioned perfectly at the height of my right hand. As expected of an Alchemist, her calculations were truly meticulous.
Watching her plump butt sway gently, I glanced down at my right hand. The springy sensation from before felt like it was coming back to life.
Come to think of it, it felt pretty firm earlier.