<p>In a private room of a high-end Japanese restaurant, Kim Dan sat quietly. He had even pulled out a suit he rarely wore.</p>

Footsteps approached, and as the door slid open, he rose from his seat.

"Thank you for coming all this way."

"Haha, all this way? When the great artisan Kim Dan invites me, I should come running at once."

The waitstaff naturally took the man's coat, hung it to one side, and withdrew. Soon after, the food arrived—various seafood, tuna sashimi, and drinks. Once the table was perfectly set, Kim Dan gave a slight nod, and the staff left.

"May I pour you a drink?"

"Of course. I'll gladly accept."

Glug, glug.

They poured each other a glass. The man popped a piece of sashimi into his mouth and immediately followed it with a sip of liquor.

"Kuh, excellent. As expected, you get what you pay for with good liquor and meat."

"If you like it, I can treat you anytime."

"Haha, eating this every day would be a bit much. So, what brings you here?"

"...Assemblyman Cheon!"

Assemblyman Cheon Sang-hyeon—one of the most influential figures currently dominating the National Assembly. Just as not all crafter-class Awakeners were the same, the man before him was no ordinary politician. If one had to rank him, he was at least an S-rank assemblyman. The lawmakers who followed him numbered no fewer than a hundred seats. He was a giant among giants.

"Please save us, Assemblyman Cheon!"

"Huu..."

Cheon Sang-hyeon looked at Kim Dan and lightly picked up his glass. Kim Dan immediately dropped to his knees and poured the liquor. Cheon downed it in one go and regarded him.

"Speak."

"At this rate, all of us crafters are going to starve to death! You must have heard of it too—Hyeolma Gentleman."

"Haha. These days, if you don't know about that, you're behind the times. It's the equipment company opened by the new ranker, the Shut-in Hyeolma, correct?"

"That's right! Because Hyeolma Gentleman is slashing equipment prices so ridiculously, small business owners like us are about to be thrown out onto the streets!"

"Is that so?"

"Yes! This is something the Fair Trade Commission should—!"

Cheon Sang-hyeon's eyes narrowed. In truth, the one the Fair Trade Commission should be investigating was the Crafters' Association. The fact that they had gathered all crafter-class Awakeners and forced price collusion was something most Awakeners knew. Yet the reason they escaped sanctions was precisely because of people like the two men sitting here.

"Hoho, even I can't freely manipulate a government agency like that."

"No, is there anything Assemblyman Cheon cannot do in the Republic of Korea?"

"Oh? This fellow?"

Cheon Sang-hyeon frowned as if scolding Kim Dan. Watching him, Kim Dan took out a prepared item and handed it over. It was a long object, easily 1.5 meters in length, wrapped in an antique cloth.

"What is this, Artisan Kim?"

"Please consider it a small token of my sincerity."

"Oh dear! You're going to get yourself in trouble! How could you—?!"

"Please, open it and see."

Unable to refuse, Cheon Sang-hyeon accepted the item. Though quite heavy, his regular exercise regimen allowed him to lift it without difficulty. When he unwrapped the cloth, a single sword appeared. It was a gift for Cheon Sang-hyeon, who collected weapons from the Labyrinth.

"Ooh... This is?"

"An Epic-grade sword obtained by Choi Kang-hyeok from the fifth floor. There are only a handful of them in existence."

"Th-this is..."

"Yes. That elegant form, that blade sharper than anything else—does it not resemble you perfectly? Haha!"

An Epic-grade sword, which appeared only on the fifth floor at an extremely low probability, surpassing even the Unique items that rarely dropped on the third and fourth floors. As if entranced, Cheon Sang-hyeon stood up and drew the blade from its scabbard. The light from the room's lamps scattered in all directions off the edge.

"A sword like this..."

"I only had the one. It suits a great man like you far better than a mere blacksmith like myself."

"Is it that serious? Is Hyeolma Gentleman such a threat that you're offering this?"

Cheon Sang-hyeon swallowed hard, sheathed the sword, and sat back down. The blade now rested across his knees as if it already belonged to him.

"It may not be immediate, but the moment he appeared, he began devouring the market. If he starts producing higher-grade and greater quantities of equipment, every one of us crafters will lose our jobs."

"Hoho... That simply won't do. It is because of you that Awakeners can enter the Labyrinth at all!"

"Exactly, Assemblyman! In a way, this is for the sake of the people! Only if we hold our ground can Awakeners safely explore the Labyrinth!"

They refilled each other's glasses and downed the liquor in one gulp.

"Artisan Kim."

"Yes, Assemblyman."

"An assemblyman cannot move alone. What matters is the voice of the people."

"..."

Kim Dan's face hardened. Was he about to refuse even after receiving the sword?

"So move. Win their hearts. In the meantime, I will prepare to draw my sword at any moment."

Having conducted countless dealings with Cheon Sang-hyeon, Kim Dan understood his meaning instantly.

"Yes, leave it to me! I will turn the people's hearts around!"

"Haha, with the people on our side, what is there to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fear?!"

Turn the people's hearts. Shape public opinion.

"Yes, Assemblyman!"

It was one of Kim Dan's specialties.

With the reset still far off on the second floor, the Golden Goblin would only be deployed right before the reset, leaving some time. Every two weeks he made sure the goblins' welfare was looked after, and the real-world employees of the Hyeolma subsidiaries also received generous benefits. But if it was a proper company, shouldn't customer welfare also be considered?

Beep, beep.

A large truck backed into the parking lot of the house. It was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a good thing he'd bought a house with a spacious parking area. If it had been smaller, he would have had to move again already.

The truck stopped and the driver approached.

"Hello! Seven units of the latest extra-large thermal containers! Please confirm the items!"

The driver opened the trailer. Inside were seven large, electrically rechargeable thermal containers.

"Yes, that's correct. They work properly...?"

"Yep! If there's any problem, we'll replace them with new ones! They've all been tested—no issues!"

Thermal containers that could keep water hot for a long time. The kind usually loaded onto large supply trucks.

"But why order something like this here? I thought it was for a business."

"Haha, I'm going to assemble them here before sending them out."

"The parking lot really is huge for a house. You're doing work here too?"

While signing the documents to confirm receipt, small talk continued with the driver.

"Yes, that's right. We're done."

"Yep, thank you for your business. I'll unload everything right here!"

The driver operated the machinery and slowly lowered the thermal containers. After unloading them all, he gave a bow and drove off.

I closed the parking lot gate.

"Come on out, everyone."

Once the gate was fully shut, the goblins popped out from inside. They moved in perfect unison, dragging the thermal containers inward. I followed the goblins into the Labyrinth.

"Kerrk! Over here!"

"Connect them, kerrk! Charge! Charge!"

I charged the thermal containers using a generator I had prepared in advance. I had deliberately spent extra to buy the battery-integrated models. While I was charging them, Mongmo flew in from somewhere and landed on me.

"Master? Are you really going to do this? Honestly, I don't get it!"

"What don't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you get?"

"It won't make money! If you're going to spend money anyway, you'd be better off using the Hobgoblins as exclusive bodyguards for royal members...!"

"It won't make money, that's true."

I watched the goblins efficiently mounting the thermal containers onto specially made carts.

"Mongmo. What comes to mind when you think of vampires?"

"Vampires? They drink blood?"

"Right. And from a human perspective, that doesn't look good, does it?"

Honestly, I was human too, but since I'd been forced into becoming a vampire, there was no helping it. I had to accept what I had to accept and plan for the future.

"So I'm making allies. So that even if I'm discovered later, instead of 'Vampires are scary!', people will think 'So what? What's the problem?'"

"Is that necessary? Just turn them all into Master's subordinates!"

This was a dangerous flying squirrel. Was he telling me to turn Earth into a vampire planet?

"Enough. I'd get assassinated. Outside the Labyrinth, I'm just a weak human."

"We will protect you!"

"No, it's better to make sure such a thing never happens in the first place."

"How?"

The Hobgoblins were stretching as they looked at the massive carts. Having already reached level 30—the limit for the second floor—they were powerful monsters capable of operating even on the third floor. On top of that, they wore full sets of custom equipment made by the Goblin Artisan.

"By building goodwill. At least with our members?"

"Goodwill?"

"Yeah, goodwill. We're raking in money from other places anyway."

Money was plentiful. Just Hyeolma Guard alone brought in over 150 billion won in annual revenue. Including Hyeolma Gentleman, Ether, and the Golden Goblin, the amount was more than I could ever spend in a lifetime.

"If you've earned it, you should spend it too."

What I was about to do was a form of service.

"Alright, Hobgoblins. Move out!"

"Kroooook!"

"Let's go! Finally, our turn!!"

"Kraaaah!"

I called this operation goodwill-building—or, in other words, accumulating "get-out-of-jail-free" cards.

These days, people's greatest entertainment was, without a doubt, browsing the community forums. Stories about the Shut-in Hyeolma appeared every single day. A newly emerged rank 1, and on top of that, a business genius? It would be strange if he wasn't the subject of gossip.

Every day the same topics appeared—talk of the Shut-in Hyeolma and how much money he was making. While comments like "Must be nice to have an easy life" and "What would you even think about if you earned that much?" were circulating, a sudden wave of anti-Shut-in Hyeolma posts appeared.

Suddenly, anti-Shut-in Hyeolma posts appeared. More precisely, they were anti-Hyeolma Gentleman posts.

While public opinion was boiling over, one post suddenly appeared on the community.

Suddenly, praise for the Shut-in Hyeolma was surging. Something was happening inside the Labyrinth.

Chew, chew.

"Hey, Goblin."

"What is it, member? Kerrk."

Kim Cheol-su, who had been resting while munching on jerky in the Labyrinth, looked at the goblin.

"Your public image isn't great these days? Wasn't Hyeolma Gentleman a bit too greedy?"

"Kerrk, I don't know about that kind of stuff!"

"I see. Well, what would a goblin know anyway."

"That's right, kerrk!"

"Right, my ass, kekeke. Whatever. I still like you guys."

"Thank you, member! We'll work hard too, kerrk!"

"Yeah, shall we get going soon?"

As Kim Cheol-su stood up, the goblin followed suit.

Growl.

At that moment, Kim Cheol-su's stomach rumbled loudly.

"Member, are you hungry, kerrk?"

"I should endure this much. It's the Labyrinth—what could I even eat here?"

"Sorry, kerrk, we already used up the bread last time... Sniff sniff."

The goblin suddenly started sniffing around.

"Sniff sniff, sniff sniff."

"What are you doing?"

"Kerrk! Member! Are you hungry?!"

"I told you I am. But why?"

"Keruk! How about resting a bit longer?!!"

"Resting isn't going to make the hunger go away."

"No, kerrk! This way. Come here for a second, kerrk!"

The goblin pointed in one direction and started running.

"Hey, what is it? What's going on?"

Kim Cheol-su had no idea what was happening, but he followed the goblin anyway. Goblins were excellent at farming. They found chests well and uncovered hidden items too. Had it caught the scent of a rare item somewhere?

Following the goblin, they ran through the Black Forest for about ten minutes. Gradually, voices began to reach them.

"Raaamen! Maaandu! Snacks! We sell them, kerrk!"

"Wh-what?"

"Over there, kerrk!"

"Hey, isn't that dangerous? In the Labyrinth, it's best to avoid stuff like that...!"

"No, kerrk! Just trust me, member!"

With the goblin leading the way, Kim Cheol-su ran toward the voices. After pushing through the forest, he came to a halt at the sight before him.

"Ho... Hobgoblin?!"

A Hobgoblin—the first boss monster Awakeners encountered. Although Kim Cheol-su, who already frequented the second floor, had long since outgrown ordinary Hobgoblins, the one before him was different. Its presence was on another level. Its equipment was clearly top-tier. He instinctively realized it.

To take that thing down, he'd have to risk his life. It wasn't a second-floor level monster.

"Hey!! G-Goblin, stop!!"

Panicking, he called out to the goblin, but it had already approached the Hobgoblin.

"It's fine, member!! Kerrk, hey, Mr. Hob! We're here!!"

"Krrrk. Ah. Kin? Then that person is?"

"That's right! It's our member, kerrk!"

The Hobgoblin nodded and stopped the large cart it had been pulling. With practiced ease, it pulled out a plastic chair and table.

"...What the hell?"

"Come on over, member. Aren't you hungry, krk?"

"...?"

"Ramen, bread, hot bar—pick whatever you want. If you want, you can eat everything! Kerrk!"

"...????"

In an instant, Kim Cheol-su found himself being led by the Hobgoblin. Before he knew it, he was sitting in a plastic chair with an armful of food.

"Huh? Huh?"

Glug, glug.

Spicy ramen cup noodles, a hot bar that was a little cold but slowly warming in the boiling water, and two dumplings floating in the ramen broth.

"Wh-what is this??"

"Eat up, kerrk!"

The goblin was already smiling and eating bread.

"H-Hobgoblin? What are you? Are you Hyeolma Guard too?"

Seeing him frozen in confusion, the Hobgoblin grinned.

"I'm the Hyeolma Carriage."

"H-Hyeolma Carriage? A new business?"

The Hyeolma lunatic was even starting a food business inside the Labyrinth?

"W-wait. I don't have money. Who brings money into the Labyrinth??"

Watching Kim Cheol-su wave his hands in panic, both the Hobgoblin and the goblin laughed and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Our members eat for free! Krk!"

"Eat as much as you want, kerrk! The boss said so! Go, go..."

When the goblin trailed off, unable to remember the rest, the Hobgoblin finished the sentence.

"The Hyeolma Carriage is a customer appreciation service, krk! Enjoy yourself, member!"

"This... crazy bastard."

Kim Cheol-su slowly picked up his chopsticks and brought the ramen to his mouth.

Slurp.

Then he drank the broth straight from the cup.

Gulp.

With his appetite now fully awakened, Kim Cheol-su immediately popped one of the dumplings soaked in ramen broth into his mouth. Every time he chewed, the juicy filling mixed with the rich broth burst in his mouth.

Warm broth in the Labyrinth. Ramen, dumplings, and even a hot bar. All of it free. If he had to put it in business terms, it was a service for Hyeolma Guard members.

"Shut-in Hyeolma, you crazy bastard..."

From now on, I'm your member for life.

End