Chapter 120
Chapter 120
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: Freeloading Adventurer Life
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“This might sound strange, but... I want to invite Yi Kang-hyun to serve as an advisor for the Phoenix Guild!”
“?”
Yerin Jeong's statement came out of nowhere.
An advisor, all of a sudden?
Her abrupt scouting offer left me speechless for a moment.
“......”
What was this? What was going on?
What on earth was she thinking?
Honestly, I was flustered.
The Phoenix Guild was one of the top guilds in our country.
For them to offer an advisory position to someone who wasn't even a member?
If I'd been making a name for myself publicly and caught their eye, that might make sense—but I hadn't.
My recent activities amounted to just entering a dungeon with Molu. That alone wouldn't draw interest from the Phoenix Guild.
‘Is there something I don't know about?’
I stared at Yerin Jeong's face in silence.
As the brief silence stretched, she looked somehow anxious.
Like a puppy fidgeting after its owner vanished.
“I've heard you out, Yerin.”
“Does that mean you'll accept?!”
Her face lit up before I'd even given a firm answer.
“Not quite.”
The moment I replied, her expression fell.
I was tempted to tease her a bit more, but that was enough fun.
What I really wanted to know was why she was scouting me.
‘She couldn't have figured out my abilities, could she?’
If so, that would be dangerous.
In the worst case, I might have to eliminate her right here.
So I asked carefully.
“I don't understand why you're making this offer to me.”
I truly didn't.
She began to explain in response to my question.
“It's hard to know where to start... Ah, right. Back when we first met at that café—”
Yerin Jeong launched into her rather lengthy story.
Through it, I could piece together why she wanted to scout me.
“So that's why I really hope you'll join my team as an advisor!”
Before I knew it, she had straightened up and was making her request with utmost politeness.
“Huh...”
Having heard her out completely, I was at a loss for words once again.
The reason was simple.
‘She... completely misunderstood who I am?’
Her misunderstanding about me was on the level of pure delusion.
‘No way she took what I said at that café seriously...’
A tiny misunderstanding had led to this entire situation.
Back then, I'd been managing the dungeon via my smartphone at the café.
I'd still thought it was just a game at that point. I'd read the description about the Goblin Lord on the screen, but it must have meant something entirely different to the woman in front of me.
“...So you followed my advice and took down the Goblin Lord?”
“Exactly! There was no strategy guide for the Goblin Lord, but thanks to you, I survived!”
I couldn't believe it.
Hell, even I thought it was just a game back then.
I'd only read the in-game lore without much thought.
It said the Goblin Lord weakens when the number of surrounding goblins decreases—I figured it was just flavor text from the developers.
But she took my words to heart and charged into the Goblin Lord dungeon...
This woman wasn't ordinary, either.
As Yerin Jeong chattered excitedly, she soon bowed her head.
“I'm sorry for eavesdropping like that. But let me make it up to you somehow—”
Her story boiled down to this: I'd given her the Goblin Lord strategy tip, so she wanted to repay me.
‘Doesn't bother me...’
If she was offering compensation, I'd take it.
But I planned to decline the advisor position.
At least now I knew why she was scouting me, so the nagging doubt was gone.
Still, accepting the role came with one big problem.
‘It'd eat into my time.’
Plain and simple.
I needed time to manage the dungeon and explore with Molu.
Something like that last auction might pop up again, sending me to the Eldorado Continent.
Taking on an advisor role would make me insanely busy.
Plus, I'd learned more details about the position.
It wasn't just any advisor for the Phoenix Guild—it was specifically for the team she led.
‘Who knew she had such a complicated family situation.’
Turned out Yerin Jeong was the daughter of the Phoenix Guild master.
‘That explains the shared surname.’
The current guild master's name was Jeong Taek-soo.
I knew the vice master was his son, but this was my first time hearing about Yerin.
Makes sense—she was the child of a concubine, so it wasn't widely publicized.
Even with the same blood, she faced discrimination within the guild.
Mostly from the vice master, her half-brother.
She'd been on track to get booted from the guild after failing the Goblin Lord dungeon clear.
‘In the end, I changed the course of events.’
By sheer luck, she overheard my mutterings at the café and learned how to defeat the Goblin Lord.
As a result, Yerin cleared the Goblin Lord dungeon and gained massive standing in the guild.
Meanwhile, her second older brother failed the Incubus dungeon and crumbled.
He'd filled his party entirely with male hunters, only to fail against incubi—what a tragic fate.
That's why she said she needed my help.
Not right away, but her vice master half-brother would surely come after her eventually.
Part of me wanted to lend her a hand.
But I didn't have the ability to back it up.
“I appreciate the offer, but an advisor role is beyond my capabilities. Even if I joined, it'd spark controversy over favoritism.”
“No, it wouldn't! You're an academy graduate, aren't you?”
This woman had really done her homework on me.
But my mind was made up.
“Since that's all in the past, I won't say more about the strategy.”
Well, she hadn't spread the starategy around anyway, so I wasn't in a position to complain.
Information was king in the hunter world—that was just how it worked.
“However, I'll have to decline the position you're offering.”
“......”
At my final nail in the coffin, Yerin made a pouty face.
Was this really that disappointing?
“I knew it... You're not satisfied with the advisor role, right? Someone like you could easily be guild master.”
Huh?
What was she talking about?
Why would I want to be guild master?
“I get it. If it were me, I'd feel the same—advisor in what amounts to a mom-and-pop shop...”
Comparing the Phoenix Guild to a hole-in-the-wall?
Then what would the other guilds be?
“But I really need you, Kang-hyun!”
Yerin pressed on relentlessly.
At that moment, Ciel in the kitchen covered her mouth with her hand.
‘No. It's not what you're thinking.’
Yerin didn't stop.
“And the moment I came here, I realized it—no one measures up to you.”
Molu, next to Ciel, was silently clapping.
“So I've made up my mind.”
Even the gargoyle I'd moved to the other room earlier was peeking out, watching us.
‘Aren't you only supposed to move for intruders?’
As everyone but me hung on her next words.
“Kang-hyun, please team up with me! No need to clock in. Ah, you won't have any duties here either! Just help me out occasionally when I need it. I'll come to you! I won't be a bother, I promise!”
Eh? The conversation was veering off strangely.
“You'll get all the guild member perks, and I promise the salary won't disappoint! If you need items or want to sell something, we'll cover all related taxes through the Phoenix Guild!”
So basically, no work, just lounge at home, and still get paid and perks?
Taxes covered too?
That was basically just putting a freeloader on the guild roster.
‘She's lost it...’
Right then, Yerin Jeong truly seemed a few screws loose.
A man stood in front of the Adventurer's Guild.
His species was dhampir.
A half-breed born between a vampire and a human.
Even as a half-breed, his appearance wasn't much different from a human's.
But up close, subtle differences emerged.
For one, his skin was paler than most people's. Like someone who never saw sunlight even in midwinter—strikingly white.
Yet that pallor exuded a mystical, alluring aura rather than frailty.
When he opened his mouth, his fangs occasionally peeked out. But they weren't large, so they stayed hidden unless he bared them deliberately.
Apart from that, he was indistinguishable from a human.
“This is the place.”
The dhampir's black eyes scanned the Adventurer's Guild office.
He had come here to carry out Celia’s orders.
The chief administrator Celia's command was singular.
Act as an adventurer and build fame for the sake of the Great One.
“Guess I'll be operating out of here from now on.”
He muttered to himself, then stepped inside.
As the doors to the Adventurer's Guild swung open, a lively clamor greeted the dhampir.
The hall was packed with adventurers of all sorts.
“This mission's too risky, isn't it? You need at least silver rank for that.”
“Relax, we've got the skills!”
On one side, a party prepping for adventure discussed strategy; on the other, adventurers fresh from completing a commission laughed and gossiped loudly.
The guild buzzed with energy.
The dhampir took it all in, surveying his surroundings.
“Welcome! Glad to have you at the Adventurer's Guild!”
A bright voice rang out. It came from the guild staffer behind the counter.
She seemed to be the receptionist.
With that thought, the dhampir headed to the counter.
“I'm Catherine, handling reception at the Sail Kingdom branch of the Adventurer's Guild! Ah, there used to be another staffer, but they retired for personal reasons, so I'm filling in! The weather today is just so—”
“Here to register as an adventurer.”
The dhampir cut off Catherine and got straight to the point.
Leave her be, and she'd talk all day.
“Ah! A first-timer!”
Undeterred by the interruption, Catherine pulled out a form.
“May I have your name?”
The dhampir started to answer her question.
“My name is Dam—”
He paused mid-word.
Dhampir was his species. It could pass as a name, but caution was wise.
“Actually, my name is Dambi.”
“Oh, Dambi? What a cute name!”
Just giving his name wrapped up the rest in a flash.
Moments later, the iron tag in Catherine's hand proved it.
“This is like your ID. It's iron, so we call it an iron tag. And Dambi, you're now eligible to adventure as an iron-rank adventurer starting today!”
Catherine beamed and gestured with her hand.
Following it led his gaze to a massive bulletin board.
“First, check the board over there for commissions. Rewards vary by difficulty and rank! Tip: To rank up fast, take high-rank quests often! Not my fault if you die, though? Hehe.”
Whether encouragement or a curse, Dambi headed to the board anyway.
It was plastered with all sorts of commissions.
「Herb Gathering for Beginners」
- Iron-rank adventurers welcome.
「Village Festival One-Day Security Gig!」
- Iron-rank adventurers welcome; same-rank preferred.
Simple quests even newbies could handle lined up.
But the time-to-reward ratio looked poor.
Dambi's eyes shifted elsewhere.
「Seeking Companions for Ancient Ruins Exploration」
- Recruiting 2+ gold-rank adventurers.
- Expect relic digging and monster subjugation.
- Estimated difficulty: Silver-rank minimum.
- Reward: 2000 gold coins + relic shares.
「Wipe Out the Infamous Bandits」
- 200 gold per head, no questions asked.
- Extremely difficult. Combat experience preferred.
Higher-difficulty quests caught his eye now.
Decent rewards, but sadly, Dambi was bottom-tier iron rank.
Most demanded silver or gold rank.
Regrettable, but Dambi kept looking.
As he scanned the board intently.
“?”
A peculiar commission stood out.
「Capture a Live Zombie」
- Capture one zombie alive.
- Rewards scaled by zombie condition.
“Hm.”
Capture a zombie alive?
Dambi found the request baffling.
As he stared, receptionist Catherine approached.
“Ah, don't take that one. Capture a zombie alive? Good luck with that—super tough. And the client's got a bad rep. Even if you deliver, they'll nitpick and withhold pay. Plus, they claim it's for research, but really...”
Dambi listened closely to Catherine.
“It's for... relieving urges... you know, that kind of thing. World's full of all sorts.”
“Ah.”
Despite her words, Dambi had already decided to take it.
A live zombie capture.
Impossible for most, but a breeze for him.
“You're really going for that one?”
Dambi brushed off Catherine's worried question.
As he left the guild office, he tossed back one line.
“Be back soon.”
Dambi's destination: the dungeon teeming with zombies.
And recently, the Great Master's dungeon had an influx of zombies.
Just snag one, and the commission was done.
In other words, pure freeloading.