Chapter 189: The Creator (2)
“I think I need to go see Hunter Kang Soyeong later this afternoon… Is that okay?”
As we stepped into the building, Noah hesitated before speaking. Come to think of it, today was Kang Soyeong’s birthday. With the cruise ship incident yesterday, the guild leader and Sesung itself must have faced disciplinary action. Looks like her birthday mood this year would be just as bleak as last year’s.
“Yes, of course, it’s fine. Don’t worry, there are plenty of other Hunters here.”
Yerim was out, but Yuhyun was just in the building next door, and Seonghan was around as well.
“Are you going to be okay, Noah? Liette might be there, and that could be uncomfortable, right?”
“It’s difficult to gather properly because of yesterday’s incident. We’re meeting separately. Most of the people Hunter Kang Soyeong knows are high-ranking Hunters, so visitors are scheduled at different times.”
Ah, that makes sense. Yerim and Moon Hyunah seemed close to Kang Soyeong too, so they’d probably want to celebrate her birthday. That would make four S-rank Hunters already. Gathering like that right after what happened yesterday would not only attract attention but probably give Chief Song Taewon a stomachache.
…But still, meeting one-on-one felt kind of like a date. I instinctively stared at Noah. Honestly, the two of them seemed like a good match. Even though Noah tended to put up walls, the fact that he was willing to go for her birthday meant he didn’t dislike her entirely.
‘And most of all, Soyeong likes him.’
I’d run into Kang Soyeong here and there because of Comet, but honestly, she didn’t seem to have much interest in Yuhyun. It was heartbreaking for me as his older brother, but it made me wonder if the rumors before my regression were just baseless gossip. Yuhyun never even brought her up.
“Noah, you look cute—or cool—in anything, but you should dress up neatly for the occasion.”
“Huh? Oh, okay.”
“For a birthday, a bouquet of flowers is a must.”
“…Flowers?”
“You’d look great holding a big bouquet, Noah.”
A giant bouquet of red roses filling his arms would suit him perfectly. It’d be a perfect match. And his outfit? A white suit would be ideal… Though maybe that’s going too far. That’s more for a wedding, engagement, or at least a proposal.
I shooed him off, urging him to get ready quickly. I even suggested he ask Haeyeon for help, then sent him on his way before stepping alone into the elevator. I tried calling Myungwoo, but he didn’t pick up. Maybe his phone had been damaged by water.
The elevator couldn’t take me directly to the residence at the top of the building. I had to switch elevators after passing through a security checkpoint. The top three floors had been remodeled into housing, but less than a quarter of the space was currently occupied.
Myungwoo’s home was on the highest floor and wasn’t very large. He had a separate workspace and could access the Golden Forge at any time, so he said having a bigger place would just be inconvenient. The only thing he’d requested was a large kitchen.
‘Should I ring the bell?’
I hesitated in front of the door. I knew the passcode, but since he supposedly wasn’t in a good mood, barging in felt wrong. Still, it felt awkward to suddenly ring the bell. As I wavered, the door opened.
“What are you doing, just standing there?”
“Oh? No, nothing.”
He didn’t seem any different from usual. Lowering Chirp from my head, I stepped inside. I had to be careful in his home; mana stones or mana stone fragments were often lying around.
Sunlight streamed into the spacious living room, which felt even larger given the size of the house. As soon as I sat down on the sofa, Chirp began flapping his wings.
-Chirp chirp!
“No. You just ate not too long ago.”
-Cheep! Chirp!
He flapped his wings toward a mana stone on the table, looking exactly like a child reaching out for something they wanted. The sight of his tiny wings flapping so eagerly was so adorable that I almost caved for a moment. But I couldn’t. That was an A-grade mana stone, Chirp.
“Here, have this instead.”
I took out a D-grade mana stone fragment from my inventory and placed it in his beak. He still wouldn’t take his eyes off the table, but at least he quieted down for now.
“About yesterday.”
Watching Myungwoo as he brought over some snacks, I cautiously broached the topic.
“Did the other Hunters act up a lot in the forge?”
“Not really.”
The snacks on the plate were thinly sliced jerky and dried fruit. The fruit looked like cut apples, but its flesh was red. It didn’t seem like persimmon either. What was it?
“It’s fruit from a dungeon. It’s been cleared for consumption, so I tried making something with it. Since it’s safe to eat, it can be stored in inventories too.”
“The jerky as well?”
“No, not that. There are edible monsters, but…”
The higher the grade, the more likely they were to contain toxins, but lower-grade monsters were often surprisingly tasty. While people still had strong aversions to eating them, they eventually became regarded as premium ingredients. Being inventory-compatible, they also became widely used as food supplies for dungeon raids.
Even now, most drinking water used in raids was sourced from dungeons. Including the cost of the bottle, a 500ml bottle of dungeon water sold for 10,000 won. Considering the transportation costs, inspection fees, and healer purification fees, people said it was actually cheap.
“This is good.”
Not that I’d ever disliked anything Myungwoo made, but even though it was just dried fruit, it was delicious. The jerky was tender and tasted like perfectly roasted meat. It wasn’t even in the same category as anything I’d tried before.
“But Noah mentioned, and not to tattle—he just seemed worried about you—that you looked upset.”
“How could I not be?”
He scoffed lightly as he sat down.
As I paused eating the jerky, I turned my gaze toward Myungwoo. Our eyes met as he leaned back on the sofa, his expression just as heavy as his voice had been.
“I regret making Grace for you.”
“…What?”
“I made Grace because I wanted to protect you, Yujin. I didn’t make it so you could recklessly throw yourself into danger.”
“That’s…”
“If you didn’t have Grace, you wouldn’t have stepped in, and you would’ve taken shelter in the forge instead.”
That was true. I would have, of course. I wasn’t reckless enough to act without any means to protect myself.
“How could I feel okay seeing the person I want to protect out there, exposed, while they’re busy protecting others? Especially when it’s because of something I made.”
“It’s absolutely not your fault!”
I spoke quickly, almost desperately.
“I’ve gotten so much help from you. Besides, you made it exactly as I requested. Honestly, there were several times I trusted Grace and stepped into danger. But without the items you made, I wouldn’t even be sitting here right now, safe and sound.”
Even if I had lived quietly, the Venom and Curse Dragonkin King, Diarma, wouldn’t have left me alone. He’d already figured out how important I was to Yuhyun. Something similar would have happened anyway, and without the damage-nullifying item, defeating the Dragonkin would’ve been impossible.
“I know that, too,” Myungwoo said with a soft sigh.
“But I can’t help wondering—why does it have to be you?”
“…What?”
“That thought keeps coming back. You could just stay safe in the breeding facility, under protection. Plenty of people, including me, would prefer it that way, and it’s something we could easily arrange.”
“That’s because I…”
I have things I need to take back. And, more importantly, things I’ve been given. Most of the skills I have now—nearly all of them—are…
“…I’ve told you before, haven’t I? Dungeon difficulties are going to increase, and we need to prepare for that. And honestly, I’ll probably just raise monsters whenever I can.”
“I really hope that’s true.”
It looked like Myungwoo wanted to say more, but after glancing at my expression, he stopped and pressed his lips together. A short silence followed. As I tried to push away the thoughts bubbling to the surface of my mind, I casually said, as if it were nothing:
“If there’s nothing else going on, how about we go to a dungeon for a bit?”
I was curious about how the volleyball’s preparations were going and had some questions to ask. It also seemed like a good opportunity for Myungwoo to meet the volleyball. Although I’d explained some of the system related to Ismuar and the forge, seeing it in person would leave a stronger impression.
I was also curious about the jellyfish’s comment that a blacksmith might be a rescue target. It would be best to find out for sure.
“A lower-grade dungeon… Just for a short while.”
I contacted Haeyeon to check if there was a lower-grade dungeon under their management that we could enter immediately. If it was guild-managed, we could skip the bidding process and go straight in.
They confirmed there was an E-grade dungeon available, so I requested clearance. It wasn’t long before I got a call—my younger brother.
[Are you planning to enter a dungeon?]
“Yeah, with Myungwoo. I want to check on the volleyball while I’m at it.”
Since it was an E-grade dungeon, it shouldn’t be a problem for just the two of us, but just in case… Noah wasn’t an option, and neither was Yerim. Naturally, my thoughts drifted toward Seong Hyunjae. I really needed to stop including him in these considerations, but he kept sneaking in. In the past, I might’ve called him and told him to hand over a dungeon. He would’ve prepared everything with a single word and even come to pick me up.
‘Change doesn’t happen overnight, so this’ll keep happening for a while.’
“I’m thinking of bringing Peace and Blue along. Bellare can stay behind… Two of them should be enough.”
Bellare was still young and fast, so if she got excited and started running wild, it could be dangerous for Myungwoo. He didn’t have poison resistance. Even if I could detoxify him immediately, it was better not to create risky situations.
[Should I come too?]
“It’s fine. Aren’t you busy with the MKC-related work? You said you were testing items as well.”
[Yeah, but…]
“I’ll be back before dinner, so don’t worry too much.”
Yuhyun hesitated a little before saying he understood. He didn’t immediately try to stop me like he used to, but it was clear he was still concerned. Well, I felt the same way about him.
Not long after, Haeyeon contacted me again, saying they’d prepared the dungeon and a vehicle. Since Blue was coming along, they sent a van with plenty of cargo space. For now, this was sufficient, but if she grew any larger, we might need a cargo truck instead.
‘Should I also get a personal vehicle and driver?’
It seemed like something I could arrange with a contract through Haeyeon. Rather than casually asking for favors over the phone like now, I’d need to establish proper contracts moving forward.
I’d also need accountants and bookkeepers. At the moment, I didn’t even have a clear record of my assets in my head. What was the breeding facility registration like? I’d left everything to Haeyeon…
‘I can’t do it all alone. I need people. Good people.’
While waiting for the dungeon preparations, I told Do Hamin that I wanted to find someone. Unfortunately, since I’d just changed phones, even Do Hamin’s ability couldn’t locate them. Instead, he said he’d connect me with a reliable private investigator he knew.
Beyond that, I’d need to hire even more people. It would be difficult to find trustworthy individuals right away, but I’d have to start somewhere.
Entering the E-grade dungeon building, I knocked on the gate three times. As soon as we stepped inside, Blue leapt forward.
-Kyaaaaooo!
Blue, startled by the snow under her feet, flinched before swiping her front paws at the flakes fluttering in the air. Her initial shock was short-lived, and soon she was bounding around excitedly, like a puppy seeing snow for the first time. Next to me, Peace watched her antics, his tail giving a slow, deliberate swish. It looked almost like he was sighing in exasperation.
“Are you cold?”
“This much is fine.”
Myungwoo replied without even putting on the outerwear we had prepared.
“But this place… it’s kind of unusual.”
“It’s not a typical dungeon.”
“No, that’s not what I mean.”
Myungwoo narrowed his eyes, scanning the surroundings.
“…To think something like this could be crafted.”
“Huh?”
“It’s like… a building or an item. I can’t figure out everything, but seeing it like this, I realize something like this is actually possible.”
What was he talking about? Just then, the volleyball came bouncing over. Blue, spotting the white orb, leapt at it gleefully, only to be deflected and sent bouncing away herself.
-Kyaaa!
[Honey! You brought a blacksmith with you today! Hello!]
The volleyball floated over to Myungwoo, spinning around him.
“This is…”
[I’m Rookie! I made this place!]
“Oh, I see.”
Myungwoo responded politely.
“Your craftsmanship is impressive.”
[Right? Even my seniors were amazed at how good I am at things like this.]
The volleyball practically puffed up with pride, or it would have if it had shoulders to shrug. I had already heard that this place had been made specifically for me, but as I listened to their conversation, the surroundings suddenly felt fresh and new to my eyes. It looked like an ordinary snowy forest, but to think it was constructed. More accurately, the entire space itself had been created by this volleyball.
‘We have film sets for shooting, too, but…’
This felt like an overwhelmingly transcendent upgrade of that kind of concept. But how had Myungwoo realized at a glance that it had been created?
[Um, Honey, it’s not even time for our scheduled meeting yet. What brings you here?]
The volleyball hovered around me nervously, like a subcontractor afraid of being rushed by their client. I couldn’t help but find its personality odd. For a being much stronger and higher-ranked than me, it had this strangely… human vibe.
…Except when it was talking about Yuhyun.
“I had something I wanted to ask.”
I looked at the volleyball and pointed to my chest.
“The mana stone in my chest. A fragment of Seong Hyunjae’s chain is embedded in it. Are you absolutely sure it’s harmless?”
At my question, the volleyball tilted slightly, as if cocking its head.
[Yes. It’s such an extremely small fragment that it can’t have any effect. That’s usually the case, assuming the chain is really something human.]
–TL Notes–
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