Chapter 71
Chapter 71
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: The Path to B-Rank Hunter (4)
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The next morning after C-Rank Hunter Kim Sung-cheol—who had burst onto the scene at the Hunter Autonomous Guild like a comet—completed three requests.
"Fwaaaah~. Uuuum…."
Choi Hwa-young, the owner of the private pharmacy "Lakeside Pharmacy," run by a former hunter turned pharmacist, was kicking off her leisurely morning.
A 10 a.m. wake-up was quite late for a pharmacy owner, but her shop wasn't affiliated with any hospitals or clinics—it was more of a personal hobby. So there were no real issues.
Choi Hwa-young's life after retiring from S-Rank Hunter status never lacked for money, and her pharmacy didn't deal in formal medications. It was closer to a shop selling the potions and antidotes she'd favored during her active days.
Whether she opened on time or not wasn't a big deal for her. Her potions were made for hunters anyway, and most were supplied directly to guilds.
"My head's gonna split…. Did I sleep too much…."
After roughly washing her sleep-tousled hair and crusty-eyed face in the bathroom, she donned a proper white pharmacist's coat and headed down to the first-floor shop.
Being a pharmacist catering to hunters was surprisingly convenient.
With customers who had no fixed schedules, she could open at her own pace without trouble. And the iconic white coat saved her from agonizing over what to wear.
No matter if she had a T-shirt or sweats underneath, people judged her first by the coat—so for hassle-hating Choi Hwa-young, pharmacy was an appealing gig.
If she truly loathed inconvenience that much, lounging through retirement on her savings would've been smarter. But she'd chosen pharmacy as her second career for a reason more vital than money.
She'd learned that sourcing materials for her active-day hobby required a pharmacist's license—an unavoidable decision.
For Choi Hwa-young, addicted to special cigarettes made from black slime mucus (a habit ingrained from her hunter days), pharmacy wasn't a choice. It was essential.
Though highly addictive—making distribution and sales illegal in many countries—production and personal use weren't violations. That was the deal with black slime materials and products.
In Korea, her only way to secure her vice was becoming a pharmacist.
Of course, with no black slime materials lately, it was natural for her to question the job at its core.
"Sigh, regular tar cigarettes are such trash…. It's been months since materials last came in…."
Already tormented by months without her fix, slumping at the counter and muttering this was her daily routine.
"Should I raise the purchase price…? Though I doubt it'd help…."
She knew from her active days just how tricky black slimes were.
How much she'd annoyed her old party members with her hobby back then.
Even accounting for that, hiking the buy price made sense—but to truly lure profit-hungry hunters, she'd need to nearly double it.
Already feeling like she spent too much on hobbies, it wasn't appealing. Black slime sourcing was always her headache.
"If I'd known it wouldn't come in, I'd have rationed the leftovers…. Withdrawal's driving me insane…."
Next commission, she'd double the pay if needed—but first, secure stock.
As she lay dying at the counter with those thoughts—
'Ding-ding-a-ling-ding~♪'
"……."
Her work phone rang. Still groggy, she picked up the receiver in a drawling voice.
"Yes…. Lakeside Pharmacy…."
Figuring it was a guild or company call about next quarter's potions and antidotes, she answered casually.
"Yes…. That's my request… yes?"
Good news from the other end jolted her upright.
"I'll head over right now!"
Choi Hwa-young's stalled time began flowing again.
…Though it was all for cigarette materials—a bit regrettable.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Arriving at the Hunter Autonomous Guild's Gangdong branch, Choi Hwa-young bolted straight to the request counter without hesitation.
"The black slime materials came in, right?!"
"Y-Yes?!"
"Hurry! Here's my purchaser cert—check it fast and hand 'em over!!"
Her face lit up like an addict's as she shoved the certificate at the staffer.
"Identity confirmed. Here's the ten black slime cores you ordered…."
Before the explanation finished, she snatched the materials and dashed to the guild's smoking booth. From inside her coat, she pulled a long pipe and dripped in a couple drops of black slime mucus.
"Ignite."
-Fwoosh.
A flick of her spell sparked a small flame at the pipe's mouthpiece, slowly burning the tobacco and mucus inside.
Retired or not, conjuring fire to replace a lighter was easy for her—leading straight to the long-craved smoke.
"Fuuuuuuuu…."
She felt alive.
Her take on the vice after half a year: the first drag she'd savored in ages.
Never forgotten its rich flavor during those months subbing with regular smokes. The thick, satisfying haze filling her lungs eased her expression.
Even the other hunters in the smoking room eyed her dramatic shift curiously.
"Siiiip, haaaaaah…."
Another deep breath, another rush of volatile bliss.
'Worth skipping the pricey warp gate and flying here.'
She savored the missing black slime essence over five minutes, then returned to the counter with a satisfied look.
"Sorry about earlier. Couldn't hold back."
"It's fine. You get used to weirder folks in this job."
"While I'm here, let's renew the request. Same as before: ten vials of black slime mucus…."
Mid-sentence, an idea flashed. She halted the renewal and switched gears.
"Wait, no. Make it a designated request."
"Designated?"
"Yeah, designate it to whoever completed this one. Same terms: ten cores, ten vials—but bump the pay a bit…."
An ongoing deal with a hunter capable of black slime hunts.
Helpful even beyond restocking her vice—that was her judgment.
But alas, it didn't pan out.
"Sorry, you can't designate this request."
"Why not?"
"The completer's a C-Rank Hunter. Rules say no designated requests below B-Rank."
"C… C-Rank…?"
Black slimes were baseline B-Rank monsters. You'd need at least one B-Rank for physical attacks and one for magic.
Her eyes widened at the news.
"Not a party completion? Surely not both C-Rank?"
"Not sure what you mean, but records show one C-Rank Hunter soloed it."
"That can't…."
About to call it nonsense, she bit her tongue.
Hunter ranks were just guild admin labels—not absolute measures of skill. She knew that.
"Yeah, makes sense—otherwise, no one'd take this pain-in-the-ass request…."
Realizing her request had been XP fodder for some rank-grinder, she gave a wry smile.
She'd hoped for steady supply now. But soloing what needed two B-Ranks or one A+? They'd ignore her post-rank-up.
"Just renew it then…."
"……."
The staffer clocked her crestfallen look and gauged her mood.
As a veteran guild guide, Choi Hwa-young was a VIP: major buyer of dungeon drops for potions/antidotes, quarterly supplier to the guild.
Key account—no harm keeping her happy.
"Choi Hwa-young."
"Yes?"
"Can't do designated per rules, but how about this instead?"
"What kind of proposal?"
"This hunter who cleared yours? Newbie, but super active lately."
Choi Hwa-young waited curiously for the rest.
"Next time they show up, I'll call you. Meet and talk directly?"
"…Is that okay?"
"Not breaking any rules."
Of course, need the hunter's okay too—but she didn't hesitate.
"Please do that for me."
An unexpected connection between the two began at that moment.