The F-Rank Guild Master Has Too Much Money Chapter 74

 

 

“Corne?”

 

At the sudden oracle, I lifted my head and looked toward the ceiling. But nothing followed.

 

“You bastard! If you’re going to say something, at least follow the basics—who, what, when, where, why, how! What am I supposed to do with half a sentence like that?!”

 

I shouted into the empty air in frustration, but there was no response. The oracle didn’t return.

 

“Why would there even be a clash? Gods are different beings, so their powers shouldn’t coexist… no, wait.”

 

Corne and I were both created by our father, the Supreme God. Our divine powers were identical. That meant they wouldn’t clash. In fact, we had once combined our powers to create a hero.

 

A realization struck me.

 

With renewed excitement, I burst out of the study. Having found a way to save the seed, I rushed over to the flowerpot.

 

Seeing that the sprout might not have the strength to push through the soil, Choi Tae-hyuk kept gently brushing the soil aside. I grabbed his hand.

 

“I found a way!”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Just a moment.”

 

Letting go of his hand, I placed mine over the pot and slowly drew up my divine power.

 

Golden energy—too fine for human eyes to see—spread like thin threads and seeped into the soil.

 

Just as the God of Plants had said, the seed carried Corne’s power. But there was no rejection.

 

If anything, it felt like it had been waiting.

 

It eagerly absorbed my power.

 

Like feeding milk to a baby, I carefully controlled the flow so it wouldn’t choke—until…

 

When it could take no more, I pulled my hand away. It had absorbed far more divine power than I expected; sweat beaded on my forehead.

 

“That should do it.”

 

“What exactly did you do?”

 

“I gave it a little boost.”

 

Choi Tae-hyuk’s expression turned slightly odd.

 

I quickly came up with an explanation, recalling something I’d read before.

 

“Then… can I give it some too?”

 

“Y-you use electricity. I’m wind, so it’s fine—but if you try, it might damage the seed.”

 

Even with that clumsy excuse, Choi Tae-hyuk nodded.

 

Letting out a quiet sigh of relief, I turned back to the pot—

 

Just as the soil shifted and a small green sprout pushed its way out.

 

☆ The God of Divine Artifacts has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

Well done. A healthy sprout has grown.

 

I smiled at the sight.

 

* * *

 

After that, I fed the sprout a small amount of energy every morning and evening—no more, no less. And it grew rapidly.

 

A week later, a large flower bud, about the size of two adult fists, had formed.

 

“So… is a fairy going to come out of that now?”

 

“Yeah. It’ll be a fairy that looks like Yun-seo.”

 

“I want to see it already. Fairy, come out quickly!”

 

Ever since the sprout appeared, Ji Yun-seo had been calling it a fairy and talking to it every morning. Gumiho and An Bom, who had looked up what a Plarin looked like, were just as excited.

 

Everyone was looking forward to it—but the one most excited was, of course, Choi Tae-hyuk. Whether it was just that he liked the sprout that much, he even skipped his morning workouts—something he had never done before—just to take care of the pot.

 

“Gaun.”

 

Meanwhile, with the start of vacation, Kwon Beon-gaun had begun receiving basic training to become a blacksmith.

 

It was such a fundamental level of training that it should have been boring, but—

 

“I’ll repay your kindness!”

 

—she threw herself into it with intense determination, eager to prove herself.

 

“Yes?”

 

“What time are you going to the hospital today?”

 

“I don’t have any classes, so I was planning to go now.”

 

“Then I’ll go with you.”

 

After telling Choi Tae-hyuk, who had just finished eating, to get ready, I went to change as well.

 

Kwon Beon-gaun’s younger brother, Kwon Beom-yeoun, who had been transferred to S Hospital, had undergone every possible test. The doctors had done everything they could, but they still couldn’t find the cause.

 

After the transfer, Kwon Beon-gaun had held onto a sliver of hope—but as time passed, that hope turned into quiet resignation.

 

She no longer wished for a cure.

 

She only hoped her brother could stay by her side like this.

 

“Sir…”

 

With a soft knock, the door opened, and Kwon Beon-gaun stepped in hesitantly.

 

“Why… the hospital?”

 

She spoke carefully, clearly nervous. It seemed she had misunderstood—thinking that since her brother wasn’t recovering and the hospital bills kept piling up, we might be planning to discharge him.

 

“A visit.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“He’s your brother. If something happens later, I’ll need to look after him—so I should at least know what he looks like.”

 

Kwon Beon-gaun blinked blankly—then her face lit up.

 

“Yes! That’s right!”

 

“Then go get changed first. You’re not going in your pajamas, are you?”

 

“Just a moment!”

 

She dashed out of the room.

 

After changing into a shirt and heading to the living room, I saw Choi Tae-hyuk standing there in a suit, looking at the flowerpot.

 

“You’re ready?” Choi Tae-hyuk asked.

 

“Yeah. Kwon Beon-gaun said she’ll be out after changing.”

 

“Understood.”

 

It looked like he had just watered it—droplets clung to the flower bud.

 

“When do you think it’ll bloom?” he asked.

 

“I’m not sure.”

 

I had even checked with the Information Guild to see if there was anything else we needed to do, but since no one had ever successfully raised a Plarin before, there was no useful information.

 

“Let’s go!”

 

We headed to the car together with the excited Kwon Beon-gaun.

 

“But why are you wearing your school uniform again?”

 

“It’s the warmest thing I have!”

 

“Why is your uniform the warmest?”

 

Kwon Beon-gaun looked at me like I was the strange one.

 

“Because I don’t have any other clothes.”

 

“…What about your contract money?”

 

I was the one paying the hospital bills.

 

Kwon Beon-gaun’s contract fee was in the hundreds of millions—top-tier even among SS-rankers.

 

So where had all that money gone?

 

“I put it into savings, just in case.”

 

“Why would you put it all in savings?!”

 

“I don’t really have anything to spend it on.”

 

As Kwon Beon-gaun casually replied while getting into the car, I felt my frustration rising.

 

“Why wouldn’t you want to spend any money?! Buy clothes, eat what you want, do what you want!”

 

“Guild Master, please get in the car first.”

 

Choi Tae-hyuk, who had placed me in the passenger seat, started the car as I fumed.

 

“The guild provides meals, and I don’t want to eat anything, nor do I want to buy anything.”

 

At her age, she should be wanting things, exploring the world, setting goals… So why wasn’t she?

 

As I turned in my seat with a perplexed expression, Kwon Beon-gaun, wearing a wry smile, explained:

 

“I don’t know what will happen to my little brother. If he gets better, we’ll have to live together, so I need to find a place for us to stay. And pay for school fees too.”

 

I sighed at her practical answer.

 

“Even if your brother gets better, he’ll stay at our guild. I can’t watch minors living on their own.”

 

“That would be too shameful.”

 

“If it’s shameful, don’t scrimp on money—buy some clothes. Actually, let’s go buy clothes today.”

 

“What?!”

 

Instead of arguing, I called An Bom.

 

When I told her Kwon Beon-gaun’s ridiculous excuse, she got mad too and insisted we go buy clothes immediately.

 

After our hospital visit, we arranged to meet in front of the department store. Kwon Beon-gaun hurriedly grabbed the passenger seat.

 

“No, I’ll pay for mine myself!”

 

“No, you’ve lost that chance.”

 

“You didn’t even offer!”

 

“Exactly. You should’ve done it earlier.”

 

☆ Hmm. has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

She’s really persistent, isn’t she?

 

☆ Had You Not Done It That Way has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

Kwon Beon-gaun seems like she won’t accept it anyway.

 

Spouting nonsense—or something like it—we arrived at the hospital.

 

Even upon arrival, Kwon Beon-gaun grumbled about how ridiculous everything was. I dragged her up to the ward. Her younger brother, whose condition had improved after being transferred to S Hospital, had been taken off the oxygen respirator.

 

“I’ll buy some drinks for the nurses.”

 

“Then I’ll go to the room first. Choi Tae-hyuk, go with her.”

 

Seeing Choi Tae-hyuk’s reluctant expression, I signaled that he could just pay, and he had no choice but to follow Kwon Beon-gaun to the store.

 

As his breathing improved, Kwon Beon-gaun’s brother, who had come out of the intensive care unit, was now staying in the VIP room.

 

☆ Quickly has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

I hope he gets better. Poor Kwon Beon-gaun… ㅠㅠ

 

☆ Exactly! has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

They said healing wouldn’t even work because he’s not a hunter; there’s nothing anyone can do—it’s frustrating.

 

I opened the door to the quiet VIP room. The smell of disinfectant hit my nose, and the curtains swayed in the breeze. The room was silent.

 

The faint sound of breathing confirmed someone was there, and I quietly approached the hospital bed.

 

Kwon Beom-yeoun, 14 (M)

 

The nameplate on the bed displayed his name, age, gender, and the words: “cause unknown.”

 

“So your name is Kwon Beom-yeoun.”

 

She had always just said “little brother,” never giving me his name. As I looked at him in the ICU, he was emaciated—his body almost skeletal from how sick he had been.

 

☆ Aether, Aether! has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

Something’s off about him.

 

☆ I Know, Right? has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

It’s not a simple illness.

 

☆ I Don’t Know What It Is has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

Something’s wrong… there’s something with his heart.

 

All the gods who had been chatting along the way—saying they hoped Kwon Beon-gaun’s younger brother would get better and not be in pain—suddenly all agreed: something was wrong.

 

“Something’s wrong?”

 

☆ That Thing has donated 100 Mana Stones.☆

“You can’t see it? Try using Clairvoyance.”

 

I had been planning to use Clairvoyance anyway to figure out what his illness was, but the gods suddenly pushed me, so I activated it in a hurry.

 

‘Clairvoyance.’

 

[Kwon Beom-yeoun, ■■■■, 14 years old

 

– ■ ■■■■’s ■■■ ■■

– ■ ■■■■’s ■■■

– ■ ■■■■ and ■■■’s ■■

– ■■ ■■■ ■■■

– A seal placed with life as collateral. If the seal is not lifted, he will die.

– Conditions required to lift the seal:

 

• Stage 1: Power of a god
• Stage 2: Feather of Tarejisang
• Stage 3: Heart of Arcana

 

Time remaining: 719 minutes 52 seconds]

 

‘What the— a seal?’

 

No wonder the hospital couldn’t figure out the cause. I took Kwon Beon-gaun’s younger brother’s hand.

 

As I gently infused my power, just like the gods said, the energy that had been flowing smoothly suddenly stopped at his heart.

 

‘A seal on the heart…’

 

He had collapsed out of nowhere, so the seal must have been placed around that time. But the real issue wasn’t just the seal.

 

The aura of the sealed soul felt… strange. No, rather than strange, it felt incredibly familiar.

 

On top of that, even though he was an ordinary person and not a hunter, parts of his information were hidden.

 

‘Information that even Clairvoyance can’t see… what is that?’

 

“Guild Master?”

 

I turned at the sudden voice to see Kwon Beon-gaun and Choi Tae-hyuk already back after handing out drinks.

 

“Is something wrong?” Kwon Beom-gaun asked.

 

“Huh? Why?”

 

“Your expression looks really serious, mister.”

 

I must’ve unconsciously stiffened at that familiar aura.

 

Seeing Kwon Beon-gaun’s worried face, I flicked her nose lightly.

 

“What would you do if I saved your brother?”

 

“I’ll give you my soul!”

 

“Nope, don’t need it! Let’s go back!”

Her answer came out without even a second of hesitation, so this time I flicked her forehead.

“Aw… then I guess I’ll be your sla—”

“Tsk!”

 

“Then there’s nothing I can do for you…”

 

I had only said it casually, but Kwon Beon-gaun took it seriously. I ruffled her hair before turning to Choi Tae-hyuk.

 

“Let’s get him discharged. This isn’t something that’ll be cured by staying here.”

 

“You saw it?”

 

Knowing that I could appraise not only awakened people but sometimes objects as well, Choi Tae-hyuk asked.

 

I nodded.

 

“I’ll explain the details back at the guild, but… I found a way to cure him.”