TL: Hanguk
Hel’s Pawnshop
“Ugh. Water…”
Hel, who had lost consciousness after drinking Sejun’s Samyangju given by Toryong and getting drunk, struggled to crawl out from under the blanket.
Roll.
As Hel moved, the empty liquor bottles nearby rolled across the floor.
Hel ignored them and walked to the table.
Gulp. Gulp.
She chugged water straight from the bottle.
With her thirst quenched, Hel finally took in her surroundings and,
“Huh?! What happened to my pawnshop?! Who did this?!”
She got agitated upon seeing her pawnshop in a state of utter chaos.
“Ow, ow.”
Gripping her head in pain from a splitting headache, she quickly held onto her head.
A moment later.
“What did I do…”
Hel, belatedly recalling the words and actions she had taken while drunk, slumped down onto the floor with a vacant expression.
Going to the Seed Shop Headquarters and singing loudly.
Dancing wildly, though it could hardly be called dancing, at the Combat Shop Headquarters.
All of that was fine. She could handle being teased and embarrassed.
But,
“I shouldn’t have said that…”
The slip of the tongue she made to Toryong was too fatal.
[A fine of 10 billion divine power has been imposed.]
[You are short by 300 million divine power.]
[300 million divine power from future earnings will be forcibly seized.]
“I’m ruined…”
Drinking all the liquor Toryong had given her only increased her divine power by 3,000, yet she had lost 10 billion divine power. A complete loss.
As she sat there in gloom,
“No! That’s not right!”
I am Hel, the God of Merchants! I never take a loss!
“Think of a way! Hel, the God of Merchants!”
As she stared intently at ten bottles of well-aged, golden Samyangju she had yet to open,
“Huh?!”
A sudden idea struck her.
Who made this?
“Trust-in-Park made it.”
…!!!
“That’s it! This is a liquor made by none other than Trust-in-Park!”
That meant it had collectible value!
This would work! Hel’s merchant intuition told her it absolutely would.
“Hehehe. Time to make some money!”
With a confident expression, completely different from just moments ago, Hel packed the liquor and headed to the Seed Shop Headquarters, where Trust-in-Park fanatics were overflowing.
***
Black Tower, 99th Floor.
“Puhuhut. Chairman Park, I’m back, meow!”
Theo had returned from the White Tower.
“Meow?! Chairman Park, what is this, meow?!”
He asked upon seeing the massive monument that had appeared in front of the house.
“A money-eating hippo.”
“Meow?! This is a hippo, meow?!”
“There’s something like that.”
As Sejun was explaining the Creator God’s Tablet to Theo,
Kihihit. Kking?!
[Hehe! Butler! Can I eat my lunch now?!]
Blackie wagged his tail excitedly and asked in an eager voice.
“No, it’s still far from lunchtime.”
Kking…
Blackie looked disappointed at Sejun’s response.
“Puhuhut. Money-eating hippo, surrender the money you took to our great hybrid Chairman Park, meow!”
In the meantime, Theo had approached the Creator God’s Tablet, attempting to extort money from it.
Good job, Vice Chairman Theo. Take some of it back.
Sejun smiled in satisfaction as he watched Theo. It felt refreshing to see someone boldly demand money from a target that was supposed to be taking his money.
Sejun laughed heartily, watching Blackie whining for lunch and Theo trying to rob the Creator God’s Tablet.
Then,
“Let’s go to the Herb Field and have lunch with Cuengi.”
“Puhuhut. Sounds good, meow!”
Kihihit. Kking!
[Hehe! Let’s go, hurry!]
They headed to the Herb Field, where Cuengi was after a long time.
Upon arriving,
“Wow. It’s gotten much bigger.”
Compared to Sejun’s last visit, the Herb Field had expanded dozens of times.
“Ah. Cuengi is over there.”
Kuehehehe.
Sejun spotted Cuengi diligently tending to the herbs.
Swoosh. Swoosh.
“Flying squirrels?”
A group of five white sugar gliders could be seen darting around at an incredible speed, diligently tending to the herb field.
These were the very same five sugar gliders who had come to rob Sejun’s house, only to be caught by Pink-fur.
Pink-fur had no desire to see blood spilled on the 99th floor of the Black Tower, so,
Kuoong. Kuoong. Kuoong.
[I’ll kill you if it’s revealed that you’re thieves. I’ll kill you if you escape from here and I’ll kill you if the herbs die.]
With these conditions, Pink-fur spared the sugar gliders’ lives.
Thanks to that, the sugar gliders these days were looking after the herbs while running around until their feet were sweating with the desperate mindset of ‘If the herbs die, we die too!’ and
Surprisingly, they had a natural talent for growing herbs, and the plants were flourishing under their care.
At that moment,
Kueng?!
[Dad, you’re here?!]
Having caught Sejun’s scent, Cuengi excitedly waved his front paws at him.
Then,
Kueng!
[Cuengi’s Herb Squad, assemble!]
He called for the sugar gliders.
Kuehehehe. Kueng!
[Hehehe. Dad, these are Cuengi’s herb-raising subordinates! Mom brought them here!]
“”Greetings, Sejun-nim!””
That guy is Sejun Company’s Chairman Park, the richest person in the Black Tower?!
The sugar gliders, feeling both fear and resentment, bowed deeply at a 90-degree angle in a show of utmost respect.
“Meow?!”
To Theo. Because among those present, Theo looked the wealthiest.
Of course, if other members of Sejun’s family had been around, the outcome might have been different. Among them, the ones who looked the richest were Theo, Black Rabbit, and Paespaes.
The bar for looking rich was just set incredibly low here.
Kueng! Kueng!
[No, no! Cuengi’s dad is this one!]
As Sejun’s face soured, Cuengi quickly corrected the sugar gliders.
“Ack! We’re sorry! Chairman Sejun-nim, greetings!”
The sugar gliders hastily apologized and re-bowed to Sejun.
“Hmph. I need to check if you’re even worthy of working in my Cuengi’s herb field.”
Of course, Sejun’s pride was already completely bruised by that point.
“Huh?!”
What?! If we get kicked out of here, Pink-fur will kill us!
The sugar gliders of the Herb Squad panicked at Sejun’s words.
However,
“If you fail three tests, you’re disqualified. Let’s start the first test.”
Sejun, the strictest man in Sejun Company, announced the test with a solemn voice, paying no mind to the sugar gliders’ distress.
Gulp.
Even Cuengi swallowed dryly, feeling nervous about whether his subordinates could pass Sejun’s test.
And then,
“First test passed already.”
Because they were cute.
The Herb Squad easily passed the first test.
If they were Cuengi’s subordinates, they had to be cute.
“Huh?!”
What just happened?
The sugar gliders were completely bewildered, not understanding why they had passed.
“Now, let’s begin the second test.”
Sejun declared, pulling various ingredients from his Void Storage and,
Sizzle!
started cooking.
To be Cuengi’s subordinates, they needed to eat well.
After all, if someone didn’t eat properly when Cuengi was eating, his appetite would drop, and he’d eat one portion instead of two.
Anyone who spoiled Cuengi’s appetite could not become a subordinate!
And so, Sejun began cooking.
“Here. Eat.”
He set up an unlimited buffet for the sugar gliders.
“Wha-?! Thank you for the meal!”
The sugar gliders, who had only been eating weed roots lately, felt like they had hit the jackpot and eagerly devoured Sejun’s food.
At that moment,
Thud. Thud.
Pink-fur, who had been training with the Minotaur King, arrived for lunch with Cuengi.
Shiver.
The sugar gliders trembled uncontrollably at Pink-fur’s presence.
“Good. You pass both the second and third tests.”
Since the sugar gliders ate well and didn’t try to flee even at the sight of Pink-fur, Sejun decided to let them pass the test.
Of course, the real reason they didn’t run was that they had nowhere to escape within the herb field, but Sejun wasn’t aware of that.
Kuehehehe. Kueng!
[Hehehe. Mom, eat this!]
Kuoong.
[You try some too, son.]
While Cuengi and Pink-fur happily ate the lunchbox Sejun had packed for them,
Kihihit. Kking?!
[Hehe! Butler! Can I eat my lunch now?!]
Blackie, excited, asked eagerly.
“Yeah, go ahead.”
Kihihit.
Blackie quickly took off the bag he had been carrying and started eating his lunch.
104.28.193.250
Then,
“Puhuhut. Chairman Park, grill my fish too, meow!”
Theo, ignoring his own lunchbox as usual, asked Sejun to grill some fish for him.
“Alright.”
Sejun had already given up on trying to persuade Theo otherwise, so he just grilled the fish while preparing more food for himself and the others.
Before he knew it, their gathering at the herb field had turned into a picnic.
Once they finished eating,
Kueng!
[Dad, lean on me!]
Cuengi enlarged his body, making a comfortable spot for Sejun to lean on.
“Aah. This is nice.”
Sejun leaned against Cuengi’s soft fur.
Then,
“Puhuhut.”
Kihihit.
Theo and Blackie snuggled up to Sejun, finding their own spots.
Kuuuur.
Kurorong.
Kkirorong.
…
…
They all fell into a deep nap.
“Hehehe. Should we sleep too?”
“Sounds good.”
The sugar gliders tried to sneak into the cozy spot between Sejun and Cuengi, But,
Kuuur…
Pink-fur let out a low growl.
“Ah. Right! I just remembered, I have unfinished work!”
“Me too!”
“Suddenly, I feel like working!”
They jumped up and rushed off to work.
Once the sugar gliders left, Pink-fur carefully lay down to provide shade so that Cuengi and the others could sleep comfortably.
She watched over Cuengi and the rest of the group with a gentle smile, but when it was time for her special training, she quietly left.
A little while later.
“Mm.”
Sejun opened his eyes, and the others also woke up.
Just then,
“Meow?!”
Theo suddenly started waving his front paws around.
“Vice Chairman Theo, what’s wrong?”
“I feel a pull, meow!”
“A pull?!”
It’s here!
At Theo’s words, Sejun’s eyes lit up as he watched Theo.
“Chairman Park, this way, meow!”
Following the pull he felt, Theo led Sejun to the ginseng field.
Then,
“It’s here, meow!”
Theo pointed at a single ginseng plant growing in the soil.
Kueng?
[This one?]
Cuengi carefully pulled up the ginseng Theo pointed to.
Then,
Paah.
A faint, breathy sigh escaped as a small golden ginseng emerged from the ground.
Kueng! Kueng!
[Dad, take this! But I don’t think we should eat it right away!]
[Baby Ginseng]
Cuengi handed the freshly harvested ginseng to Sejun.
At the same time,
[A Promotion Quest has been issued.]
[Promotion Quest: Grow Baby Ginseng, Baby He Shou Wu, Baby Extreme Ice Herb, Baby Extreme Flame Herb, and Baby Ten-thousand Poison Herb into fully matured elixirs.]
Reward: SS-rank Tower Farmer Promotion
A quest message popped up before Sejun’s eyes.
Grow them well?
Sejun carefully examined the Baby Ginseng Cuengi had handed him.
→ A ginseng that has gained spiritual energy through an extremely rare occurrence, significantly increasing its medicinal properties.
→ However, it has not yet fully matured, so its medicinal effects are weak.
→ When consumed, all stats increase by 1,000, but the consumer will be cursed by the Baby Ginseng, causing all growth to halt for one year.
→ Usage Restriction: Level 70 or higher, all stats must be at least 10,000.
→ Grade: SS
I should replant it after all.
Not only did the quest require it, but the curse that stopped all growth for a year was far too dangerous.
Even now, Sejun struggled to keep up with the rapid growth of his allies on the 99th floor, losing a year of progress would be devastating.
Carefully, Sejun stored the Baby Ginseng in his Void Storage.
Then,
“Alright, guys, let’s go.”
Sejun and his group headed home to replant the Baby Ginseng with care.
At that moment,
Aileen collected blood and scales from the Nine Dragon Clans and sent them to Sejun.
She was offering either Attribute Liquor or Black Beans to the dragons visiting Dragon Market, in exchange for 1 liter of blood or 10 scales.
Aileen was even more dedicated than Sejun when it came to completing the Creator God’s Tablet quest.
“Yes. Thank you.”
Sejun expressed his gratitude to Aileen and took the dragon blood and scales to the Creator God’s Tablet.
The tablet instantly absorbed the dragon blood and scales, and for a moment, a faint red aura flickered across its surface before fading away.
***
Seed Shop Headquarters.
“Now, we will begin the auction for this well-aged, golden Samyangju crafted by Trust-in-Park! The starting bid is 100 million divine power!”
The bold declaration of Hel, the God of Merchants, marking the start of the auction.
However,
“……”
“……”
The non-combat gods all stared at the liquor with deep longing, but no one placed a bid. No, they couldn’t.
The Seed Shop Headquarters was growing rapidly, but none of the non-combat gods had that much divine power to spare.
“Then… how about a starting bid of 10 million…?”
She lowered it to a tenth of the original price, but still, no one responded.
“1 million?”
Silence.
“100,000?”
With an expression on the verge of tears, Hel continued to lower the starting bid.
“Starting bid 10,000! I can’t go any lower! Also, I’ll accept any unwanted divine relics, valuing them at 100 divine power each!”
This was her last resort.
Finally,
“10,000!”
“10,000 plus 5 divine relics!”
At last, there was a response.
A little while later,
“Sold out!”
Hel successfully sold all 10 bottles of the well-aged, golden Samyangju.
“Hehehe. I earned 679,000 divine power and collected 300 divine relics!”
She was thrilled as she calculated the divine power she had earned.
But then,
[Remaining amount to be seized: 299,321,000 divine power.]
“Aaaah! Nooo!”
You damn system! At least leave me some money to do business!
Hel lost every last bit of her earnings to the forced seizure, leaving her broke once again.
The system should be impeached!!!
Hel officially joined the movement to overthrow the system.
*****
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