Chapter 115 (1/2)
Chapter 115 – Black Market Tenth Shopping (5)
Note: Term change ‘Ring of Helrick’ to ‘Helix Ring’ explained at chapter end note.
‘One two three four…’
Sungjin counted his receipts. There was a total of 10. One of the items he had put up last time as well as 9 of the 15 items he put up for auction today was sold.
Sungjin shoved all ten sheets into the cube at once.
“Operator, how many coins do I have now?”
[You currently have 59065 Black Coins.]
“Hmm really?”
Sungjin lost the sense of scale for the amount of money that he had.
‘So much money after buying two legendary class item like Blood Vengeance… compared to my last life…’
Running around diligently during the raid had paid off.
‘Since I got roughly 50,000 coins from 10 items… each one sold for an average value of 5000. I guess the average worth of items has gone up?’
The cause was twofold. The reason was the trolls now had better items, and the hunters buying items from the auction house generally had more money to spend.
“It was a really good day.”
Sungjin stretched. And
“Haaa~”
He couldn’t help but yawn. Sungjin rubbed his eyes and recalled
‘I said I would fuse Blood Vengeance as soon as I had the money…’
But he didn’t feel like making the trip to Kargos’s smithy. He could drop by the smithy at night on his way back from ‘Darker than Black’ and fuse his sword then.
He had to go there to pick up Artemio anyway. Sungjin stood up from his seat to head to bed. Soldamyr who was next to him asked
“Are you going back upstairs, Master?”
Sungjin replied
“Yeah. I am too tired today. I’ll be retiring early today. Please research on the ring until tomorrow.”
“Understood, Master.”
Sungjin who returned to his room didn’t take a bath like he normally would and only took a quick shower before collapsing into the bed. He fell right to sleep.
*
Four ten in the morning, Sungjin’s eyes opened themselves. He had gotten used to this sleep schedule and waking up early every morning.
Sungjin quickly washed his face before putting on day clothes and leaving the room. He saw Dalupin walking up the stairs. He must have come to wake Sungjin up.
When he saw Sungjin, he quietly moved out of the way. Sungjin passed him and reached the 1st floor. Soldamyr was inside his lamp. He didn’t require sleep, but it must have been easier for him to ‘research’ while inside the lamp.
Outside the Inn were the animals he had spiritual link with; Rajenta, Cain, and Shadowrun. Shadowrun looked like he did not need sleep at all. After Shadowrun saw Sungjin wearing Besgoro,
‘Brrr’
He let out a sound once. Cain noticed his master leaving, and stood up as well but
“Stay Cain”
Cain was stopped by Sungjin’s gesture and command and returned to sleep. The youngest of the bunch, Rajenta, was the only one to sleep soundly in his straw nest. As Cain had once done so, he was growing rapidly day by day. Estimating his rate of growth, Rajenta would likely grow to be double the size of Cain.
‘Well, I did hear that Royal Griffins… grow to the size of a small dragon.’
Sungjin left them behind and headed towards ‘Darker than Black’ alone.
He took the napkin out of his pocket on the way. And on the napkin was the following message.
‘He who searches for answers finds questions, and he who searches for questions finds answers.’
Sungjin read the completed text and thought of the ‘Darker than Black’ Merchant. The man had definitely uttered this from time to time. Sungjin stared at the pen. There was more to the message.
‘4:30 in the morning, head to the 3rd district, last building on the right, underground.’
It was written by ‘Mu – Pen of Reply’, the message which Ariana was unwilling to speak out loud due to her mother telling her ‘not to get involved with that man’.
The individual that even the mighty dragons were afraid to cross was none other than the merchant of Darker than Black. Sungjin said while holding onto the napkin
“Just what is he? God? Demon? Or…?”
If anyone saw Sungjin right now, he would appear to be talking to himself, but there was indeed someone that was listening. It was Besgoro.
‘Who the fuck cares. Why are you wearing me every time you go there, but take me off when you’re meeting with pretty ladies?’
“That’s because I can see better in the dark wearing you. The shop ‘Darker than Black’ is just as advertised. Furthermore… about when I’m talking to ladies… You know exactly why, right?”
Besgoro did not reply. He seemed upset.
‘Is this how a 50 year old man should act?’
Sungjin thought as he entered into the Darker than Black. The merchant was sitting in the same spot as usual.
Thinking about it, the merchant seemed more like a piece of furniture like tables or chairs rather than a person. Once Sungjin arrived, he greeted Sungjin.
“Ah, you’re still alive, Master Hunter K.”
His words expressed surprise, but his tone of voice said otherwise. Sungjin asked him
“You already knew though, that I’d be back.”
“Well, I could predict to some extent that you would.”
But once again his words were mismatched to his tone. Sungjin took the seat directly in front of him.
“This raid was really difficult. The boss Red Dragon, as well as her* mother”
“Ahh, so you met her? Ariane?”
Sungjin stared straight at him and asked
“You know her?”
“I have heard of her, although I’ve never directly met her.”
He looked slightly up as if thinking about something and said
“It’s just that I’ve met her mother before. When she was a tiny hatchling.”
Sungjin was surprised and asked
“When Ariane was a hatchling?”
If what he said was true, it would be an incredibly long time ago. But the man shook his head.
“No, no. I’ve met HER mother when she was an infant.”
Sungjin couldn’t believe it. If true, it meant that his age was more than a few thousand to tens of thousands of years old. Sungjin stared at him, and the man said
“What is it? Are you curious about my age?”
Sungjin said bluntly
“It’s not like you’re going to tell me even if I ask you anyway.”
“Well, that’s not entirely true. Also… something like age is completely unimportant, isn’t it?”
Sungjin said to him