Custom-made for Cha Seoyun (1)
Custom-made for Cha Seoyun (1)
Cha Seo-yun was sitting still with her eyes closed.
She was having a casual conversation with Hong Chae-yeon, who was seated across from her.
Suddenly, Cha Seo-yun's head tilted slightly.
Hong Chae-yeon's breathing, which had always been rough and irregular.
That breathing was now continuing incredibly calm and steady.
Cha Seo-yun's eyebrows raised slightly above her tightly shut eyes.
"...You've been healed."
At Cha Seo-yun's sharp remark, the sound of Hong Chae-yeon bursting into a bright smile approached.
"Your sense is really ghost-like. That's right! I'm fully healed."
No sooner had she finished speaking than Hong Chae-yeon leaned forward and abruptly grabbed Cha Seo-yun's hand.
Cha Seo-yun's hand, which was always cold, was completely enveloped.
"Seo-yun-ah. Just like I was healed, you might be able to have your eyes treated too. I found someone with incredible abilities."
A voice drenched in joy and hope.
With her eyes still closed, Cha Seo-yun gazed down quietly at Hong Chae-yeon's hand holding hers.
Hong Chae-yeon is a mage who handles fire.
She had heard that her basal body temperature was much higher than other people's.
But from Cha Seo-yun's fingertips, no warmth was transmitted at all.
[Skill: Sixth Sense]
*Activates the Sixth Sense in exchange for eyesight.
This ability is described as paying eyesight as the price, but in reality, it wasn't just that.
While living in the black-and-white dots and lines without sight, even other senses began to dull gradually.
Perhaps the newly acquired sense was so sensitive it pressed down on the brain, and the body itself judged the remaining senses as unnecessary.
The reason was unknown.
Like now, she couldn't feel a person's warm body temperature, nor could she smell the bitter scent of grass.
Unless someone was directly conversing right in front of her, the surrounding noise would scatter like distant spray and she wouldn't pay it any mind.
Now, she clearly felt that even her sense of taste, which had remained until the end, was becoming dull.
Of course, in terms of combat, this was the most optimal body state, couldn't be more perfect.
She became a body that could read all movements in the world as dots and lines, but what remained inside her was only a piercingly cold void.
It had been a long time since she had forgotten anything like anticipation.
Deep inside, she was in a half-resigned state.
But beyond the Sixth Sense, Cha Seo-yun read Hong Chae-yeon's beaming expression and lifted the corners of her stiff lips into a faint smile.
"...I hope so."
As soon as I exited the tower, I headed straight home.
I flopped onto the bed, looking at the familiar ceiling.
As expected, home is the best.
Like a habit, I took out my smartphone and connected to [Tower Gallery].
Since I cleared the 21st floor, it was about time my strategy video was uploaded.
As expected, the gallery was already plastered with stories about me.
[Title: Is It Real That Barcode's 21st Floor Video Is Up?]
[Author: ㅇㅇ]
Hey, is this really the 21st floor we know?
Why is a Beastman Village suddenly popping out?
More than that, what's with Barcode's insane physical?
He just throws around a giant beastman that's at least two heads taller than him.
But that little Tigris clinging next to him? Isn't she fucking cute?
Am I the only one who thinks she's cute?
└ ㅇㅇ : ㄹㅇ my brain stopped when the Beastman Village appeared too.
└ ㅇㅇ : Barcode's strength stat, really, what is it? The size difference is that huge and he throws him down in one hit?
└ ㅇㅇ : Beastman Village is insane. I want to go too.
└ ㅇㅇ : I want to touch Tigris's tail. It looks like a cotton ball.
└ Fur1ryLover : ...Fur?
└└ ㅇㅇ : Um...
As I scanned through the reactions, a chuckle escaped me.
At the comments saying Tigris was cute, I nodded unconsciously.
That kid was definitely cute.
"Shall I head out soon?"
Since Hong Chae-yeon left a message saying to meet up, I got up from my seat and got ready to go out.
Lately, I've been getting a strange enjoyment out of making things like cooking or baking.
Maybe due to my job characteristics, even the process of kneading flour dough and setting the oven temperature felt like an extension of production.
Thanks to that, the desserts I'd occasionally made were piled up quite a bit in the fridge.
I packed the macarons and a few slices of cake I'd set aside to give to Hong Chae-yeon to taste, put them in a pretty box, and left the house.
As soon as I opened the front door and went outside, a familiar figure standing in the alley caught my eye.
It was that girl I'd run into before.
As soon as she spotted me, she came over with her arms crossed and a prim expression.
"It's absolutely not because what you made was delicious that I came back."
It was a sudden first remark without even a greeting.
The girl slightly lifted her chin and glanced at the box in my hand.
"It's just that it's decent enough to eat, so I came to buy the desserts you made."
At that bold attitude, I almost let out a hollow laugh.
Isn't that exactly how a cat would stiffen its tail and pretend indifference while coveting a treat?
Since I had packed generously to give to Hong Chae-yeon anyway.
Sharing a bit wouldn't be a problem.
I took a few macarons and a cake box out of the box I was holding and handed them to the girl with a smile.
"I don't really have the purpose of selling them. Just take them."
The girl flinched and then abruptly took the snack box from my hand.
Then she pulled a heavy paper bag from her bosom and tossed it into my arms.
It was a moment where I caught the bag with both hands in a daze.
I only blinked once, and the girl vanished from the alley without a trace.
Just like last time, she disappeared as if fleeing in an instant.
"...Is she very shy?"
At her sudden exit, I tilted my head and looked down at the paper bag in my arms.
Thinking it was probably a few ten-thousand won bills for the snacks, I carelessly opened the bag.
"......?!"
I doubted my eyes.
Inside the paper bag, there were crisp, bluish bundles of bills that seemed about to burst.
And it wasn't even Korean money, but bundles of dollars.
At the sight of stacks of hundred-dollar bills tightly wrapped with bands piled high, my jaw dropped.
"Was it that delicious? No, this is too excessive......?"
I stared blankly at the bundles.
No matter how much I put my skills to work and made them with care, it wasn't an amount to drop for just a few macarons and cake slices.
It was bewildering, but the appointment time to meet Hong Chae-yeon was quickly approaching.
I hurriedly turned around and went back inside the house.
I carefully placed the heavy paper bag with the dollar bundles on the living room table and went back outside.
I hastened my steps, resolving to return it when I ran into that kid again.
When I met Hong Chae-yeon, we naturally got absorbed in the topic of the house I had asked her to find for me to move into.
"I found a house that perfectly fits the conditions you mentioned. A place with tight security, ample space, and you don't have to worry about noise between floors at all."
Hong Chae-yeon said in a confident voice.
But at the words she immediately added, I had to doubt my own ears.
"However...... the price is a bit high."
"How much?"
"It's listed at 50 billion."
I almost spat out the air I was inhaling.
'What kind of house is 50 billion......?'
I screamed in astonishment internally.
Even if land prices in Seoul are going crazy, 50 billion is just...
It felt like just the other day I was overjoyed like I owned the world for earning 10 billion, but the number 50 billion had no sense of reality at all.
"Where is it that it's that expensive?"
At my question, Hong Chae-yeon hesitated for some reason.
She turned her head slightly to the side as if embarrassed and said in a barely audible voice, like a whisper.
"......The house."
She spoke too softly, so I couldn't hear properly.
"What??"
When I asked again, Hong Chae-yeon shut her eyes tight and shouted in a slightly louder voice.
"The house next to my house!"
"Ah......."
Only then did the whole situation become understandable.
The top-class penthouse where Hong Chae-yeon lives, The Palace.
If it was here, the crazy price of 50 billion was somewhat understandable.
I recalled the structure of that splendid, huge house in my mind.
Perfect security, pleasant environment, vast living room.
Honestly, looking at the house itself, there was no better place.
The problem was my bank account balance.
With the 10 billion I currently have, it's woefully insufficient.
Then there was only one method.
'It seems it's about time to start releasing the Mithril equipment.'
The Mithril equipment I had made like crazy while climbing the tower under the pretense of filling the encyclopedia was sleeping soundly in the corner of my inventory.
Mithril equipment is quite common on the market, so there's no chance it'll be mistaken for Barcode.
I began taking out the equipment one by one.
Mithril armor and weapons with a subtle silver sheen quickly filled the table.
Hong Chae-yeon's amber eyes grew wide.
She appraised them one by one with trembling hands, then her jaw dropped.
"This many?! And why are there so many Epic-grade ones??"
She kept looking back and forth between the equipment and my face as if she couldn't believe it.
"You really are just making equipment at home......."
At her murmur, I scratched the back of my head awkwardly and asked.
"Would this be enough to make up for the lacking money?"
At my question, Hong Chae-yeon swallowed empty air and made a dumbfounded expression.
"Make up for it? Huh...... There's plenty leftover after making up for it!"
Hearing her confident answer, I was finally completely relieved.
As expected, there was reward for sweating while hammering.
Then, the sound of the front door opening was heard.
Actually, the main point of this meeting wasn't my moving problem or finding a house.
While I was organizing the equipment on the table, Hong Chae-yeon's front door quietly opened and someone walked in.
Hong Chae-yeon got up from her seat and introduced the person who came.
"She's the friend I mentioned. Do you know her name?"
I nodded.
Of course I know.
Cha Seo-yun with her eyes tightly closed.
The rumors that circulated countless times in [Tower Gallery] brushed my mind.
Maybe it's because she keeps her eyes closed, but just standing next to her creates a chilly atmosphere.
Reviews say that even without unsheathing a sword, you feel like you'll be cut just by that aura.
I thought it was a bit exaggerated, but now that I actually faced her, those words were right on point.
But something was strange.
It was definitely the first time facing her today, but I got an oddly familiar feeling.
A sense of déjà vu like I'd passed by somewhere. I opened my mouth unconsciously.
"...Have we met somewhere before?"
At my question, a thick question mark appeared on Cha Seo-yun's face.
Her closed eyebrows twitched slightly, and then she quietly shook her head.
"No. Today is the first time."
Right, when would I have ever met the renowned Cha Seo-yun.
Even if I had run into her by chance on the street, there's no way I'd remember.
Feeling awkward, I shook my head internally and moved on to the main point. That wasn't what was important right now.
"So, what should I do for you?"
At my question, Hong Chae-yeon's mouth twitched as if to explain something.
But before that, Cha Seo-yun opened her mouth in a calm voice.
"Among my abilities, there is a skill that activates other senses in exchange for eyesight."
Her voice had no inflection.
"Because of that, I haven't been able to see since awakening. I...... I want to see again, even if it means losing this ability."
I rested my chin on my hand and quietly listened to her story.
A skill paid for with eyesight.
Suddenly, an idea flashed in my mind.
'Maybe?'
Without Hong Chae-yeon or Cha Seo-yun noticing, I slightly took out the Orichalcum Dagger from my inventory.
This dagger had a useful special option attached to it.
*Salvation: When striking an ally, immediately removes harmful effects or status conditions afflicting the target.
I gripped the dagger handle tightly under the table and very lightly tapped the end of the handle toward Cha Seo-yun's knee area.
The thought was that maybe the status condition that blinded her eyes would also be cleanly removed.
But.
No reaction occurred.
Her closed eyes remained tightly shut, and there wasn't the slightest sign of the skill being released.
As expected, it doesn't resolve that easily.
I inwardly clicked my tongue in regret.
Since it's a fundamental cost constraint required by the skill itself, it seems it isn't treated as a harmful effect.
'Then there's no helping it.'
In the end, I had no choice but to go the direct route.
I quietly put away the Orichalcum Dagger and approached closely in front of Cha Seo-yun.
And I carefully reached out my hand toward her tightly closed eyes.
"Excuse me for a moment."
The moment my fingertips touched her cold eye area, a familiar notification sound rang and a system window appeared before my eyes.
[Custom Production begins.]