#051
“Speaking of which, do you think someone might have deliberately placed it there to induce mutations?”
Eunseok cautiously voiced his thoughts. Han Cheolyong’s face slightly hardened. After a moment’s hesitation, he spoke.
“To be honest, I had similar thoughts.”
A heavy silence fell between them. Judging by the size of the green mana stone, it was an item of enormous monetary value. If someone had intentionally thrown it deep into the mountains to cause mutations… It implied that the culprit had considerable background and ability. And in Eunseok’s opinion, such an act was unlikely to be a one-time occurrence.
“Oh, by the way. We’ll likely have a gate raid in a few days,” Han Cheolyong said, breaking the silence.
“An A-rank?”
“Yes. It was originally a gate that Sehwa Guild had won the bid for, but I heard they entered yesterday and ultimately failed the raid today. Plus, there were casualties… Sehwa Guild, though small, is quite solid, so if they failed after raiding all day, the difficulty must be extraordinary. Sehwa announced plans to regroup and re-enter, but with a core member deceased, the chances of failure are high. In that case, it’ll likely be passed to our guild.”
Eunseok nodded.
“We’ll need to prepare thoroughly.”
Eunseok spoke while roughly calculating the number of magazines he’d need to purchase in his head.
Since it was the day after the Bukhansan incident, today’s schedule was full with the 1st Combat Team, who had priority. At least Choi Hanseo seemed to have a conscience and didn’t request guiding.
With contact guiding involving hand-holding, there was some spare time in between sessions. While searching for information about mana stones on his laptop, a notification sound rang from his phone.
Eunseok frowned at the bank app notification on his phone screen.
One. Ten. Hundred. Thousand. Ten thousand. Hundred thousand. Million. Ten million. Hundred million. Billion.
No matter how many times he looked, the numbers didn’t change. Nearly two billion won had been deposited under the guild’s name. It certainly wasn’t payday. Wondering what this could be, Eunseok immediately called Secretary Kim.
– “Yes, this is Kim Hyunji. Guide-nim.”
“Ah, Secretary Kim. I just had money deposited into my account under the guild’s name. It’s not my salary, so what is this?”
– “Ah. What was settled today is probably your share from the A-rank gate we raided recently. Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s just that the amount is so large.”
– “Ah-. Don’t you have a certain share in the gate byproduct revenue? It should have been written in your contract. It’s probably settled according to that.”
“Oh, I see. Thank you.”
After hanging up, Eunseok slumped back in his chair and let out a deep breath. He had thought the annual salary stated in the contract was enormous, but in fact, it was nothing compared to the revenue from each gate raid. Humorously, Eunseok’s first thought at this moment was that he wouldn’t have to worry about bullet costs anymore.
After finishing the last guiding session with Shin Jeongho, Eunseok immediately left the guiding room. Today, he planned to do some proper shopping.
Entering the place where he had previously shopped for weapons and armor, a familiar employee approached.
“Guide Lee Eunseok. Have you come shopping?”
The employee in a suit asked with a friendly face.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I’ll guide you.”
“Ah, that’s okay. I’d like to browse leisurely by myself.”
“I see. Please call me anytime if you need anything.”
The employee smiled kindly and returned to his post.
Eunseok began excitedly browsing the displayed weapons first. With no one pressuring him, it was fun to pick up various items, give them a slight swing, and fiddle with them. Before he knew it, he had finished looking at all the weapons and moved on to the armor section. Since armor was what he intended to buy today, this was where the real shopping began.
Although he usually fires from a distance with a gun, there’s a limit to the number of magazines one can carry. Carrying too many magazines out of greed would reduce mobility. Eventually, he’d have to conserve bullets and resolve situations with hand-to-hand combat when possible. For that, basic armor was essential.
Eunseok started focusing on selecting armor that would protect his wrists and forearms, as well as his ankles and shins. These were the most vulnerable areas during hand-to-hand combat with two daggers.
Fortunately, there was a wide variety of armor available, making it easy to find what he wanted. However, the wrist and ankle guards seemed too thin to provide any protection.
Could these really withstand the teeth or claws of monstrous creatures?
As Eunseok was fiddling with the leather guards for a while, the employee who had been watching from a distance quietly approached.
“These are excellent items. They’ll be very helpful in close combat situations.”
“Will these really hold up?”
Eunseok asked skeptically.
“Please wait a moment.”
The employee walked over to the weapon display and picked up a dagger. He then put on the wrist guard and, without hesitation, brought the dagger down on the guard with a full swing as if to cut it.
Surprised by the action, Eunseok examined the surface of the guard where the dagger had struck. Unlike its appearance as just thick leather, there wasn’t even a small scratch on the guard’s surface. The employee rotated his wrist to show it off. His wrist moved naturally as if it hadn’t received any impact.
“These guards are made from S-rank boss leather. As you can see, they don’t even scratch from most attacks and even absorb shock.”
“That’s impressive.”
Eunseok didn’t hide his amazement. The employee took off the guard with a satisfied look and handed it over.
“These shin guards are made of the same material. Wearing just these two will effectively protect your wrists and shins in close combat.”
The employee explained with a business smile. Eunseok was already sold on the items without needing further persuasion.
“I’ll take these two.”
“Excellent choice.”
Eunseok, having also bought plenty of magazines, returned to his quarters feeling satisfied with the good armor he had acquired. Although a significant portion of the amount deposited today had been spent, it was a satisfying shopping trip.
After putting down his purchases in his quarters and thinking about going out for dinner, his phone rang. It was Choi Hanseo.
“Hello?”
– “Come up for dinner.”
“Dinner…”
Eunseok trailed off.
Having dinner with Choi Hanseo wasn’t an issue in itself. However, he hesitated a bit considering the intense skinship they had shared just yesterday.
Catching Eunseok’s hesitation, Choi Hanseo chuckled softly.
– “I won’t eat you up, so come on up.”
“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t eat me up yesterday too?”
– “And I didn’t, did I?”
For not eating me up, we went quite far.
Eunseok barely held back the words rising in his throat.
– “I’ll make something delicious, so come up. I also have something to talk about regarding that mana stone from yesterday.”
Choi Hanseo said enticingly.
“…Alright. I’ll come up in a bit.”
Eunseok finally agreed and hung up.
Stepping into the elevator, Eunseok fidgeted with his hair unnecessarily. His hair, thoroughly dried with a hairdryer, felt completely dry.
But it probably still smells of shampoo.
Eunseok examined himself in the elevator mirror. His face was slightly flushed, showing signs of having just showered.
Eunseok let out a soft sigh. He didn’t want to go to a dinner invitation reeking of having just showered. He was worried it might be misunderstood as having prepared in that way. But going without showering didn’t feel right either. If they ended up having any skinship…
‘Ah, what’s wrong with me.’
Eunseok rubbed his face with his hands. He felt foolish for being so restless, like someone in love. To be in this state when he hadn’t even made up his mind yet.
Ding-.
The elevator stopped. As he stepped out, a delicious smell immediately assaulted his senses.
Walking in, he saw Choi Hanseo, dressed casually, just setting down an earthenware pot on the dining table. The sight of him wearing oven mitts on both hands involuntarily brought a smile to Eunseok’s face.
“Come in and sit down.”
Choi Hanseo said softly. Eunseok took a seat at the table. Steaming white rice, appetizing side dishes, and soybean paste soup bubbling in the earthenware pot – everything looked perfect. The tension he had felt in the elevator had vanished, and his mouth watered.
Choi Hanseo took off the oven mitts, placed them by the sink, and sat across from Eunseok.
“Is there anything you can’t do?”
Eunseok complimented, and Choi Hanseo smiled with his eyes.
No one could resist a man like this who even cooks meals to persuade them.
Eunseok muttered inwardly as he picked up his chopsticks.
