What Happens When an NPC Crafts Leather Armor? 2
“NPC, sir. Sorry to keep you waiting.”
Lee Musin's tense expression put me on edge right away.
“We've done our absolute best to prepare, but I'm not sure if it will meet your expectations.”
The tension wasn't just in his face—it seeped into his voice too. It made me think he probably hadn't brought any major results.
Hmm, so what now?
I was suddenly deep in thought. If they thought they could treat me like a pushover just because I'd handled everything so far?
I'll cut off potion supplies, leave for another country, or find some other way.
I couldn't decide on the spot, but whatever it took, I needed a countermeasure. It was obvious this couldn't go on forever, letting them drag me along. Even if it meant exposing my identity, I'd do it if necessary.
The guild members? They'd probably follow, but if by some chance they didn't, there was nothing I could do. They had their own situations, and I couldn't force them. All I could do was take extra good care of those who did choose to come.
As these bold thoughts raced through my mind, Lee Musin pulled out a stack of ID cards and continued.
“First, this is your new ID as NPC, sir. And these are IDs from other countries obtained under your new identities. As a multiple national, you now hold citizenship in 15 European countries excluding the Republic of Korea: Belarus, Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Latvia, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Malta, Moldova, Kosovo, Montenegro, San Marino, Liechtenstein, and Andorra.”
Multiple citizenship in 15 countries? It felt extraordinary right from the start, drawing me in and making me focus intently on his words.
“These are all countries where citizenship can be bought with money. We deposited around 200 to 300 billion won in their banks and bought a building or two to spend some cash, ensuring strict confidentiality on your identities. Just to be safe, we've even dispatched people with similar builds and looks to those countries, so you don't need to worry about immediate exposure.”
Contrary to my initial worries, things were scaling up nicely.
Depositing 200 billion in each of 15 countries, plus buying buildings—that was already trillions of won. If they'd spent trillions just on securing identities, it was starting to feel like I could expect big things.
“Using these 15 identities, we've bought up a wide array of lands and buildings with land attached that came up at auctions. Due to the nature of auctions, they're scattered across the country. In total land area...”
Lands and buildings from court auctions, I figured. I didn't know the details of that world, but as he spoke, I could tell it wouldn't be small-scale. Then Lee Musin stated the area.
127.3 km²
“That's about one-fifth of Seoul's area. However, because these were auction purchases, a large portion includes greenbelt areas, mountains, farmland, and other largely meaningless zones. Out of the 127.3 km², Seoul has about 6.3 km²—that's roughly one-twentieth. We'll continue buying any new auctioned lands going forward, so please bear with us if the initial amount seems a bit short.”
I was genuinely shocked. I'd had high hopes the moment those 15 countries came up, but securing this much land? Unbelievable. And it wasn't even the end—they planned to keep buying more, which floored me again.
To qualify as an NPC Hideout, the land had to be legally recognized as mine within society's framework. In simple terms, my name had to be on the registry office documents. That ruled out proxies.
That's why I'd tried buying buildings myself but gave up and handed it to Lee Musin. I never expected him to pull this off so well.
Mountains or farmland? Didn't matter at all. I was cheering inwardly but kept a straight face to avoid showing it.
Misreading my expression, Lee Musin grew urgent and pressed on.
“We considered transferring national or public lands like roads or mountains, but current laws make it impossible. We'd need special legislation, which couldn't be done without revealing your identity, sir. Even ignoring the opposition, our own party wouldn't grant that to a single individual. Even if we revealed who you are, passing it through the National Assembly is no guarantee, though with proper public opinion shaping, we have a solid shot.”
He paused to catch his breath, then added,
“But in this impossible situation, this was the only way. That said, we'll keep pursuing auctions, and we're preparing transfers for government-held lands in areas where transactions are currently blocked.”
National or public lands like roads or mountains? Revealing my identity might make it feasible? His words kept hitting like bombshells, leaving me dazed.
“If I reveal my identity, could we really transfer public lands into my name?”
I suppressed my emotions as I asked, and seeing my interest, Lee Musin answered immediately.
“Our simulations conclude it's more than feasible. Right now, no one welcomes the Miracle Potions more than the general public. Reveal yourself, and your popularity will skyrocket. Shape the mood with that public support, and it's entirely possible.”
I barely held back a burst of laughter. If worst came to worst, as he said, I could expose myself and turn Korea's public lands into my NPC Hideout. A perfect ace up my sleeve.
The auctioned lands were already satisfying, and now this backup plan too. Entrusting it to Lee Musin was the right call.
“How is it... to your liking?”
Lee Musin asked cautiously once more, and I replied with a broad smile.
“Yes, I'm very satisfied. I knew leaving it to you, Bureau Chief, was the right move.”
Only then did the tension ease from Lee Musin as he let out a relieved sigh.
“Thank goodness. I was worried what I'd do if you weren't pleased.”
“Not at all. These results exceed every expectation—thank you.”
At that moment, Lee Musin quietly added,
“These buildings and lands were purchased solely to put them under your name as requested, sir. Please keep in mind that you hold no actual exercise of rights over them. The lands will be distributed in a leased form under government guarantee—and that right is recognized only until you, as Korea's Irregular, fulfill your duties.”
His voice was low but firm. It felt like: We've met your conditions, now honor your promise.
It was only natural, so it didn't bother me at all.
“Of course. As I said before, I have no intention of doing anything with those lands or buildings. Use them however you see fit. All I need is the name on the title.”
A deal satisfying both of us—we could both smile contentedly.
Then a sudden question hit me. Seeing my obsession with land, he must be curious why, yet Lee Musin never asked. That piqued my curiosity more, so I brought it up first.
“Aren't you curious why I'm so fixated on land?”
“Curious? Of course I am—I'm dying to know. Not building anything on it, no plans for it, just needing the title? It's driving me crazy.”
With the mood relaxed now, Lee Musin spilled his honest feelings.
“Then why not ask?”
To my question, he looked me straight in the eye and countered.
“Would you actually tell me if I did?”
“That's why I haven't asked. Irregulars all have their quirks. You're not the only special one, sir. When it's hard to understand, I just let it be.”
A loaded statement. Other Irregulars besides me.
Other Irregulars... I'll meet them someday.
Curiosity stirred about the others, but it wasn't urgent, so I brushed it aside quickly.
Finally, I got the locations and info on the lands, synced it to my phone for real-time updates on my titled properties and nearest GPS spots, then parted with Lee Musin.
“Nice! This is perfect.”
Forgetting leatherwork for a moment, I browsed my land info. As he said, from neighborhood hills to farmlands, rivers—tons of spots wondering what they'd even be used for. Of course, plenty were former factory sites or urban buildings too.
Scattered nationwide. Even islands like Ulleungdo had my land.
“Wherever I go, I'll have a hideout ready, huh?”
Looking at it spread out like this felt way better than concentrated in one spot. An NPC Hideout anywhere in the country? I couldn't help but grin.
After savoring the land overview, I dove back into leatherworking.
:k *
Leather was definitely different from herbs. Or was it the same?
The first herb unlocked the Potion Shop and bonus stats; each new herb's comprehension boosted intellect by 3 and mana by 5.
Leather followed suit. First C-rank leather opened the Leather Armor Shop with bonus stats; B-rank gave strength and stamina +10 each.
No more bonuses after that, no matter how many B-rank sheets I crafted.
Herbs had variety for the thrill of new ones, but same-rank monster leathers were treated identically regardless of type.
Thus, crafting 300 C-rank or B-rank sheets yielded bonuses only on the first B-rank—except special stats like dexterity and focus, so I poured my all into it.
During B-rank work, dexterity hit +60, focus +32.
Meanwhile, potion addicts grabbed new quests and left; eyeing the piled A-rank corpses, I knew the moment had come.
Prepped for this, I'd bought an A-rank leather armor from another workshop and prepped an upper-grade plate armor too.
I'd have loved top-grade plate or better, but unavailable short-term, so set aside.
Comparing to these will show performance levels. Details to the Three Dragons Guild.
Plan set, I started butchering the A-rank monster in earnest.
A-rank corpses were leagues beyond B or C. The grip strength needed for the butchering knife felt different. Now I understood Ha Geonmin's sky-high stats.
Without Justice Guild stats, I couldn't have handled A-rank leather now.
“Damn, this thing's filthy huge.”
B and C-ranks varied by type but averaged 1-2m. A-ranks? 3m baseline, some over 5m.
And this first pick? A 5m bear.
Even more shocking: mana levels worlds apart from B or C. If B was double C, A was at least five times B. Purity far higher too.
Now Ha Geonmin's words clicked. Why no A-rank leather on market.
This swirling high-purity mana would overwhelm most hunters, botching butchery.
Also explained why the bought A-rank leather armor felt like trash. Mana felt off from the start—not A-rank level, more like my finished B-rank.
Suspected but unknown cause; now clear. Butchery screwed from the beginning.
Badly butchered leather? Tanning couldn't save it.
Excitement built. What power would my butchered and tanned A-rank leather armor unleash?
Butchery and tanning finally done, notifications popped.
NPC Class effect activated.
Leather A-rank Leather created.
Armor using A-rank Leather as material unlocked.
A-rank Leather added to materials. Reward granted.
Done. The A-rank leather reward popped, and I immediately checked the Leather Armor Shop.
To inspect leather usage in the armor.
When I first saw C-rank armor needed 20 sheets, it didn't faze me. Just figured 20 sheets.
Then B-rank jumped to 25, raising questions. So I asked Ha Geonmin.
How many sheets for a typical leather armor? Expected an average.
Her answer blew my expectations.
“It depends on the leatherworker's skill.”
“Huh? Skill?”
She explained post-tanning leather compression, akin to a blacksmith's hammering and quenching—the benchmarks of their craft. For leatherworkers, compression defined skill.
It compressed multiple sheets to bolster defense.
Her next words were wilder.
“Truth is, I'm not a specialist butcher, so butchery and tanning are my weak spots. My real specialty is compression. Busy now, but let's try it together later.”
Right—her class was Leatherworker, not Butcher. Forgot amid her natural proficiency.
Non-specialist with that skill? Inconceivable effort.
Unlike distinct roles like herbalist/potionmaker, leatherworkers often handled butchery/tanning too—but inferior to pros.
Ha Geonmin bridged it with talent and grind. A woman obsessed with leather.
She said she managed 13-15 sheets; master workers 15-20. World's best, Hespera? 25-30.
I realized sheet count equaled compression rate. Otherwise, no need for so many.
My A-rank leather armor: top materials, world-class compression.
Anticipation surged; I butchered and tanned like mad.
30 sheets done, I opened the shop and hit buy on A-rank armor.
To be continued in the next chapter... The Hunter Who Awakened as an NPC