Chapter 66

 

Next to me, Yeon Seung-yeon had finished his drink and was slumped over. As I looked around at the colorful fluctuations and movements, I heard the soothing sound of liquid splashing. 

 

When I turned my gaze, Seong San-ha was filling up an empty glass. The surging blue hue had a strangely mystical feeling, even though it was just alcohol. As I stared blankly at the shimmering dew, a muted voice reached my ears.

 

“You seem to have quite a knack for potions compared to when you first learned about skills. Did you study separately to become proficient?”

 

“Why are you so curious? Are you trying to cast doubts again?”

 

“Haha, no, nothing like that. Your potions are quite impressive, considering your experience, or rather, they’re honestly excellent. Quite surprising, actually.”

 

I was taken aback by the unexpected praise. It was something I naturally expected to hear, but coming from Seong San-ha, it was surprising. I looked at his lips, which formed a smirk, and asked bluntly.

 

“Are you speaking as if you’ve tasted them? You don’t drink potions.”

 

“Did you hear it from Lee Cho? That’s right. I don’t usually drink other potions, but I still had to try it. I made it, after all.”

 

“How was it?”

 

“As I said, excellent.”

 

Seeing Seong San-ha smiling brightly as he answered, I couldn’t help but feel a little proud. That’s right, who made it! Suppressing the corners of my mouth that were about to curl up into a smile, I replied.

 

“In my opinion, it seems innate.”

 

“Yeah… Yeah, I think so too. You’re definitely born with it. It doesn’t seem like something you can just learn by following.”

 

“That’s right. I think so too.”

 

Maybe it was the alcohol, but unlike the usual playful atmosphere where Seong San-ha would banter with me as if he knew everything, there was a slightly more serious atmosphere. He murmured as he raised the glass to his lips.

 

“You seem sincere, which I found a bit surprising.”

 

“Well, …”

 

‘To me, potions are everything.’

 

Whether it was the alcohol or if for some reason, Seong San-ha’s unusually kind request got to me, I swallowed the sincerity that almost slipped out and casually replied.

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Oh, nothing, just amusing.”

 

“What’s so amusing about it?”

 

“Because I can do whatever I want. I can knock out annoying people or save someone in pain.”

 

As I spoke, I noticed Seong San-ha’s gaze becoming more intense and mysterious, furrowing my eyebrows.

 

“What’s with that look?”

 

“You just reminded me of someone. Ah, … Did I say it was unpleasant?”

 

Sorry. A myriad of emotions flooded me with the softly spoken words. The question of who he was looking for when he mentioned Kang Eui-jin, the frustration and pity towards Seong San-ha who was holding onto the dead person, and even the guilt of unintentionally deceiving him.

 

“I think you should give up.”

 

Silence fell after the words slipped out uncontrollably. I looked at Seong San-ha cautiously with dry lips. He didn’t seem particularly upset. Instead, he responded rather calmly.

 

“Yeah.”

 

“What?”

 

“…Maybe it’s time to let it go.”

 

Seong San-ha hesitated for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth as he swirled his glass, pondering the implications.

 

“I received intelligence yesterday that Tae Jae-heon is alive. However, they couldn’t find any other signs of life. I thought they would be together for sure.”

 

Of course, that crazy bastard. There’s no way he’s dead. Judging by the fact that the leash hasn’t disappeared, it seems like Seong San-ha still hasn’t figured out Tae Jae-heon’s exact location.

 

As I absentmindedly touched my neck, a sluggish gaze fell upon me. The redness around his eyes indicated that he was definitely drunk.

 

‘He’s been acting strange since earlier, I should have known this would happen….’

 

The liquor was initially strong. Despite having a detoxification skill that potion makers typically possess, I could feel the effects of alcohol rising faintly.

 

It seemed like a good idea to stop drinking, so I tried to secretly remove the glass in front of me. Seong San-ha, who had been silently watching, raised his eyebrows sharply and grabbed my hand in one swift motion. The hand that was tightly held was soaked in the spilled alcohol. Seong San-ha, with a flushed face hotter than before, tilted his head slightly and asked.

 

“Why? Worried about me?”

 

“Yeah, I’m worried about my workshop. You brat.”

 

“Puppy—”

 

“Ah, damn it, I got it! Drink up, you bastard. You’re the boss here.”

 

Taking advantage of the loosened grip, I quickly let go of the glass and pushed it forward. Seong San-ha accepted it with a smirk, drinking it down and letting out a laugh.

 

“It’s a bit disappointing. I was hoping that finding Tae Jae-heon would dissolve our contract.”

 

“Disappointing indeed. I was counting until that day.”

 

“Shall we renew our contract? How about joining Cheon Rang?”

 

I responded with a raised middle finger. Seong San-ha chuckled amusingly, and I quickly emptied the glass in front of me. Seong San-ha smoothly refilled his glass and asked casually.

 

“Any thoughts of joining a different guild?”

 

“No, not really.”

 

“Both of you are from the center, so are there no particular guilds that you have special connections with?”

 

“Since earlier… What’s with all this talk about guilds? There’s no such thing.”

 

“Okay. I guess it’s just up to me to put in the effort.”

 

“What?”

 

I squinted my eyes at the incomprehensible remark, but Seong San-ha simply nodded and said nothing more. Instead, he pushed the glass towards me, urging me to drink. After downing several more glasses in a row, it felt like the effects of alcohol were hitting me like waves, despite my passive skill not having any effect.

 

As I shook my head momentarily, a faint light appeared and disappeared somewhere. When I looked up groggily, the seat was empty.

 

‘Where did he go, Seong San-ha…?’

 

As I tried to get up from my seat, my foot got caught in the chair leg, causing my body to wobble. Just as I was about to fall, a strong arm reached from behind and lifted me up. As I obediently let myself be guided to the couch and lay down, a blanket was gently draped over me with a soft chuckle.

 

‘I covered Seung-yeon with this… If I had this now, then he…’

 

As I lightly shook my head, the comforting touch of the hand soothingly stroking my head prevented any further thoughts.

 

“Sleep tight.”

 

I didn’t notice at the time that Seong San-ha’s eyes and cheeks, which had been flushed and hazy from alcohol just a moment ago, had returned to normal, as if he hadn’t had a single drink.

 

***

 

Since that day, Seong San-ha has visited the workshop every day. Sometimes annoying, sometimes rude, but overall tolerable, our relationship was quite smooth. Of course, I couldn’t deny that the gifts brought by Lee Cho, who always followed behind Seong San-ha with both hands full of gifts, played a significant role in this.

 

Today, I glanced at the uninvited guests filling the lobby while chewing on the snacks brought by Lee Cho. They seemed to be loitering around endlessly, so how could there not be a single customer? Despite considering advertising, I kept pushing back the idea due to unpleasant memories resurfacing.

 

Jin-myeong, who was transporting potion ingredients, approached while adjusting his gloves and greeted me with a bow.

 

“Boss, I’ll be off now.”

 

“Oh, done already? Good work. Take this to the bosses.”

 

As I handed Jin-myeong one of the snacks brought by Lee Cho, he hesitated and looked at me.

 

“Boss, you always take care of us like this yet… I’m sorry.”

 

“What’s with the sudden apology?”

 

“I saw the recruitment notice for mercenaries. A friend showed it to me, and it turned out to be Boss’s workshop… I thought I should’ve tried to find at least one ingredient to contribute.”

 

“No need to apologize… Let’s meet again the day after tomorrow.”

 

Jin-myeong bowed and left the workshop. As the small truck rumbled away and the sound faded, Yeon Seung-yeon’s nervous voice could be heard.

 

“A—About hiring mercenaries, what does that mean, Ho-hyun nim?”

 

“Hmm?”

 

I finally realized as I looked at his bewildered expression that I hadn’t mentioned that I personally posted the mercenary recruitment notice yet. Checking the calendar, I realized that the interview was scheduled for tomorrow.

 

“That’s right, Seung-yeon ah. I posted the mercenary recruitment notice.”

 

“You did it yourself, Boss? I’m sorry! I should’ve taken care of it…”

 

“It’s okay. It was easy.”

 

Pfft! Laughter could be heard from somewhere. Suppressing the urge to snap back, I confidently approached the counter computer, where Yeon Seung-yeon was anxiously waiting.

 

I logged into Huntropolis.

 

‘Username, darn it… What’s the password…’

 

I accessed the job board. My notice wasn’t there.

 

“Huh? Where did it go?”

 

After some confusion, I found my post by clicking on the “Posts I’ve Written” tab. Despite the initial relief of finding it quickly, I became puzzled when I noticed that there were no comments. While other posts I had seen earlier had one or two comments, strangely, there were none on mine. Furthermore, the comment section was blocked.

 

“Was there no one interested?”

 

Seeing Yeon Seung-yeon anxiously waiting beside me, I showed him the screen.

 

“Here, this is it.”

 

“Boss, is this… our post?”

 

“Yeah. But there were no comments at all. Is no one coming tomorrow? But some might still show up, right?”

 

“Oh, no…”

 

Yeon Sung-yeon’s legs seemed to give out as he stumbled. Seong San-ha’s laughter grew louder. Unable to ignore it any longer, I turned my head and asked.

 

“Why are you laughing?”

 

“No, it’s nothing. Let’s finish what we were doing.”

 

Yeon Seung-yeon, who had been reading the post carefully beside me, finally slumped down. Worried, I asked.

 

“What’s wrong? Worried that no one will come? Did I schedule the time wrong… It’s okay. Let’s repost it as it is. Other people do the same thing.”

 

“No! No!! Please, Boss, it’s fine! I’ll take care of it from now on! Please!!”

 

Yeon Seung-yeon shouted desperately. That little punk, he’s definitely useful as an assistant.

 

I looked at the perfectly crafted post again, filled with consideration, workshop introductions, and accurate conditions, and muttered to myself.

 

“Really? But since there might be no applicants tomorrow, wouldn’t it be better to do it quickly?”

 

At the mention of no applicants, a flicker of relief and disappointment passed over Yeon Seung-yeon’s face.

 

“Recruiting people is an important task, so let’s think carefully and slowly about it, Boss.”

 

Seong San-ha, who had been watching like he was watching something entertaining, also nodded and said with a chuckle.

 

“Yeah, cheer up.”

 

“Get lost!”

 

“Such beautiful words.”

 

“Fuck you!!”