Quests: The Essence of Being an NPC 2

"If you hear my secret, you might have to hand over your soul to me. Still wanna listen?"

"C-Cough...!"

This wasn't supposed to happen, but teasing Jeonghun was just too damn fun.

"What? Just a minute ago you were ready to stake your life, but now you're stingy about your soul?"

"Ah, n-no, Hyung—I mean, Suho-nim, that's not it. Sorry."

His mind was already half-gone, words tumbling out without passing through his brain.

From Jeonghun's perspective, it made sense. A healer from one of the five great guilds was top-tier in Korea. Even they had shaken their heads two years ago, saying it was too late.

Yet now, after two years, four bottles of mysterious potion-looking stuff had cured him completely. That alone was a miracle, but what was happening now went beyond miracles.

He shoved something at me saying take this, and suddenly a quest window popped up right in front of his eyes.

This couldn't even be explained as a miracle. God. Yeah, maybe a god could pull this off. Dungeons popped up, hunters awakened—why not a god or two?

When the soul talk came up, I'd thought of demons, but I hoped it wasn't that bad. Better a god than the alternative.

I wanted to tease him more, but seeing his expression turn deadly serious, I decided to cut it short.

"It was a joke, so relax. I'm just a special kind of hunter. I'm one of you, same as always."

"E-even so, this doesn't seem like something a hunter can do..."

Fear still lingered in Jeonghun's eyes.

"Hmm... ever heard of an Irregular?"

"No way—Hyung, you're an Irregular?"

I'd tossed it out casually, but the effect was better than expected. The fear vanished, replaced by awe and admiration ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in his gaze.

"So you have heard of them."

"Yeah. Back in my old guild, there was one. The Lightning Sorcerer."

Lightning Sorcerer. I knew him. Hell, 70-80% of the nation did. The guy who'd solo-cleared the world's first S-rank dungeon.

No wonder his strength was off the charts—it was Irregular stuff. It all clicked.

"Wait—what? You were in Emperor Guild?"

"Yeah. Got kicked out, though."

Cough. He'd shocked me way more than I'd shocked him.

Seo Taehee had mentioned his overflowing talent, and since they were from the same guild, I'd taken it at face value. But Emperor Guild?

Emperor Guild—one of Korea's five great guilds, composed solely of elites. Entry required pure talent and skill, and constant evaluations meant you were out the second you slipped.

This is jackpot. A guy who made it into Emperor Guild? Already polished gem, not raw ore.

I hadn't expected much from Jeonghun skill-wise. The quest picked him, Taehee vouched for his character—that was enough. Turns out he was a finished jewel.

I fought the grin creeping up, barely holding it back before continuing.

"Anyway, since you know, it's easy to explain. I'm that Irregular. Others are combat-focused; think of me as support-specialized. The Poison Drake detox, the quest window you saw, everything beyond common sense you'll experience—it's all my ability. Oh, and keep me being Irregular and handing out quests secret from everyone else."

Luckily, he knew the term and nodded along. At my not-quite-request, his face hardened.

"Suho-hyung, don't worry. Even if my head's chopped off, I won't breathe a word."

I patted his serious shoulder lightly, lightening the mood.

"If it comes to that, just spill. Don't make me set up an altar for my one little bro. More importantly, gotta hunt 10 Poison Drakes."

"Yes."

"Not going right now. You've been out long, need to shake off the rust. I got prep to do too."

"Yes."

"And tell Taehee-noona we're done there."

"Yes, we should."

Jeonghun's expression turned complicated—happy to be healthy, but guilty.

"Your old gear still around?"

His face fell like he'd forgotten something crucial.

"No... sold it..."

"Then since we're on it, let's shop for gear tomorrow."

"Uh..." He trailed off again. Probably blew all his savings on treatments—no cash for weapons.

"I got money. Don't worry. Consider it a recovery gift from big bro."

"S-Suho-hyung, this is too expensive."

"Why? Sword not to your liking?"

"No, love it. But the price..."

I'd come to the same weapon shop where he'd bought his original. Emperor Guild covered it back then, so he'd been clueless. Now, seeing the price tag on this upgraded greatsword, he freaked.

Me too, a bit. 100 billion won.

"Recovery gift, remember? When you find what you want, grab it no hesitation. Boss, we'll take this one."

As we headed out after buying, a bracelet caught my eye. Plain silver, but I couldn't look away.

What is this pounding?

I stopped, staring, and asked the owner.

"Boss, what's this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bracelet?"

"Oh, that? Honestly, no clue."

I gave him a dumbfounded look.

"You're selling it but don't know?"

"Don't know exactly. More like, no idea what it does. Curious buyers demanded refunds eventually. Now it's just dead stock."

"Why keep it?"

"Sentiment. Found it once in a dungeon treasure chest. Can't toss my one treasure find."

His words solidified my gut feeling. I have to have this.

"Want it? Take it."

"Huh?"

"Told you—sentiment. No idea how it works, just breeds more regret. No returns, though. I wanna forget it now."

Stressed out from it, apparently. He handed it over instantly.

Planning to buy at any price, free was a no-brainer. I took it.

We finished buying armor and gear.

"Suho-hyung, really, thank you."

"No need. Told you—recovery gift. If you're that grateful, hurry and find your edge to clear the quest."

Cured his poison, gave him an absurd quest, now full gear. Jeonghun didn't know how to repay such overwhelming kindness. No need to boast; he kept insisting it was just a bro gift, no burden.

Suho-hyung, if it's not a whim and you really want something—anything—I'll do it.

Hunter life abandoned in despair's pit. Now, wings spreading again. For the man who gave him this chance, Jeonghun would do anything Suho asked.

* *

Back home, I examined the bracelet from every angle, but it didn’t seem to have any special features. It looked like a seamless piece of cast metal—that was all.

"What are you?"

No matter how long I stared at it, nothing happened. I slipped it onto my wrist. Though it felt loose at first, it automatically adjusted to fit perfectly.

I infused it with mana. Nothing happened.

"Nothing?"

The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mana simply disappeared as if it had been absorbed. I tried again, but the result was the same.

"What the...?"

That strange, unexplainable pounding sensation persisted, as if something was hidden within it.

I kept pouring mana into it, but there was still no response. Eventually, my mana was completely depleted.

"Seriously...?"

Even after exhausting all my mana, there was no change. My stubbornness kicked in. After waiting two hours for it to recover, I poured more mana into it again. Still nothing.

"You really want to play it like that?"

My instincts told me this item had potential, but nothing happened. My pride flared up.

Since I had already completed this month's batch of healing potions, I wasn’t worried about running out of mana. It was time to see this through to the end.

"Fine. Let’s see who wins."

I continued to pour mana into the bracelet relentlessly.

Time passed slowly.

Meanwhile, Jeonghun informed Seo Taehee that he had recovered and left Origin Potion Workshop. He apologized repeatedly, but she sincerely congratulated him and wished him well.

She was curious about how he had recovered, but since he chose not to explain, she didn’t press further. She was simply happy for him.

While Jeonghun focused on regaining his edge through dungeon runs, I continued processing herbs. I managed to fully understand four types: Gernoa, Tsukeunon, Kuderon, and Paichin. However, no new potions had been completed yet.

Progress: Stamina Potion 95%, Mana Recovery Boost 65%, Advanced Healing Potion 92%.

Despite making several attempts, I still ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hadn’t achieved full understanding of any new potion.

And the bracelet... still showed no change. It had absorbed an absurd amount of mana, yet nothing happened. Aside from delivery days, I poured every bit of recovered mana into it, but there was still no response. Two whole months passed like this.

"Sigh... how much more are you going to absorb? I'm down to just two types of herbs. At this rate, I just hope I can complete the potions soon..."

Time continued to pass. Eventually, I fully understood one more herb, leaving only one remaining.

"Ugh... why is everything getting tangled like this? Don't tell me I have to extend for another three months..."

If I couldn’t complete the remaining potions with tomorrow’s batch, an extension would become inevitable.

"Damn it! This is all your fault. Take this!"

Frustrated, I vented my anger on the bracelet and poured mana into it once again.

Then—something changed.

The bracelet began to vibrate, emitting a faint light.

"Oh?!"

I immediately poured all my remaining mana into it. The vibration intensified, and the light grew brighter.

Flash.

After absorbing all the mana, it emitted a blinding light before finally going still.

At last, its true form was revealed.

Gulp.

In the quiet room, only the sound of someone swallowing echoed.

NPC-exclusive equipment? I had never even imagined something like that. And its effect—reducing mana consumption by 50% when purchasing potions.

What was truly terrifying was that unlocking more shop functions would likely enable even more transformations.

"No wonder other hunters couldn't use it."

Although it was shocking, it didn’t leave me completely stunned like before. Maybe I was starting to get used to it. Still, a grin slowly spread across my face.

"This means I can save a lot on potion costs... maybe I should start stocking up?"

The day after I first met Lee Musin, I received a spatial-expansion backpack. I had assumed it was an average 3-cubic-meter type.

I had completely underestimated what an Irregular meant.

What I received was a massive 30-cubic-meter storage instead. It was bound to its owner through mana, making it impossible for other hunters to use. A true dungeon-grade item beyond anything crafted by humans.

They had said, "Sorry, use this for now. We'll get you a better one later. The overseas hunt won’t take long."

When I checked its value, I found that items like this were never sold on the open market—they only appeared in secret auctions.

I had never once considered filling it up completely before. But now, with this staff... it might actually be worth trying.

As if a knot had been untied, everything began to fall into place.

The final herb was completed, and the Stamina, Strength Boost, and Speed Potions all reached 100% understanding. Meanwhile, Jeonghun had regained his edge and was now confident enough to hunt Poison Drakes.

It was finally time to leave Origin Potion Workshop.