God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 136: Episode 27_The Secret Merchant of the Fog Region (1)
1.
"Pardon?"
"A guild member. A guild member! How about it?"
"No, why so suddenly..."
Even for Nodaji, excessive kindness forced him to be suspicious first.
It was natural.
It wasn’t a guild made just for friends to play together; it held the rank 1, 2, and 3 players in the level rankings. And the man right in front of him, Han Simin, possessed a noble title and even owned this massive territory!
Why someone like me in a place like that?
Could it be because I’m a person of such value?
"I think your Tomb Raider class fits really well with me, Mr. Nodaji. These items are useless without me, but the important thing is that there is at least one place they can be used. The guild is just a justification to be together; I want to contract with you so you can consistently bring me these items."
"Hmm."
He was unsure, but he was certain of one thing.
At least Han Simin liked the items he brought!
His shoulders lifted involuntarily.
The worry that he might not be able to earn income during the gap when he wasn’t called vanished completely.
At the same time, he became serious.
Employment. Contract.
It was inside a game, but it was not a matter to be treated lightly.
Moreover, wasn’t the person in front of him someone who looked like he would make an obscene amount of money at a glance?
He adopted the neat and clean mindset of an interviewee.
Seeing that, Han Simin took it as acceptance, smiled brightly, and presented the conditions.
"Guaranteed basic monthly pay of $1,000. A $100 incentive for bringing items of Unique grade or higher, $200 for Epic, $400 for Special, and $800 for Legendary. For other valuable items that aren’t junk options, I’ll take them at 20% off the market price. How does that sound?"
Gasp!
He rattled it off like an expert, but considering the base price of other Unique grade items, it was practically robbery.
However, to Nodaji, it didn’t feel like that at all.
"Of course, I’ll also cover full benefits, including the Four Major Social Insurances."
"T-That much..."
He could barely remember the last time he earned $1,000 a month, whether it was when he was digging and selling herbs or after starting the game.
Only when he occasionally stole and sold a few roots of ginseng or wild ginseng planted by others could he barely recover from near-death situations.
But now, just for playing the game, he’d get $1,000 won!
Of course, if he did nothing, he would return to the state of doing nothing for the rest of his life, but regardless, it was a satisfactory condition from the start.
On top of that, the incentives.
His jaw dropped.
"D-Does the incentive apply even if you don’t like the item?"
"Yes, it’s a condition applicable only to items found through grave robbing."
Gasp.
They didn’t drop often.
Even if he dug all day, he’d be lucky to get one. With bad luck, he might not find one even after digging for a week.
But the important thing was that if one appeared, $100 would roll in for free.
Is that all?
If he got luckier, he would earn more.
Double!
’Then right now, this is...’
It meant this was a $200 item.
He swallowed hard involuntarily.
Besides that, among the pile of items he collected, there were two more Unique items.
Already $400.
If he signed the contract and received the base pay, he would be getting $1,400 this month.
"What do you think?"
"I’ll do it."
He didn’t waste time thinking about negotiating better terms.
Nodaji didn’t have the energy to weigh the pros and cons.
Right now, he had been walking while looking only at the sky for years, hoping for a rotten rope or anything to fall so he could grab it.
He was ready to accept even a slave contract if it meant he could feed his family, but in his judgment, the conditions were actually good.
"Then let’s meet in reality to write the contract. As for joining the guild, I’m not the Guild Master, so I’ll let you know after talking it over. Don’t be too disappointed if you can’t join. The guild is just a means for quick contact within the game anyway."
"Of course. Thank you. Thank you."
"I look forward to working with you."
A contract that satisfied both parties!
After talking, they reviewed the items piled up like a mountain again.
As expected, it wasn’t easy to find anything Han Simin liked below Unique grade, but both still looked satisfied.
’From now on, all things like this are mine.’
Han Simin was happy because of the possibility of receiving an exclusive supply of ‘honey-option’ items.
’They wouldn’t sell on brokerage sites anyway. And he says he’ll buy sellable options immediately, even if slightly discounted.’
Nodaji was happy because he had a stable income.
Of course, the contract proceeded so smoothly that he couldn’t help but wonder if he was losing out, but his rapidly spinning brain told him there was no need to cancel the contract, so he didn’t mind.
Certainly, Han Simin wasn’t wrong.
It seemed no one else would buy them if not for him.
And he had a family to support to be greedy.
There’s a reason people aim for secure, stable jobs.
Taking risks might earn more money, but that’s only a story for when basic livelihood is guaranteed.
Having finished the transaction, Nodaji hurriedly logged out.
He wanted to tell his wife and daughter this fact as soon as possible.
* * *
Han Simin was satisfied, even though he only salvaged one item out of many.
"How can there be two lines of drop options?"
And the same option at that.
He had never even heard of such a thing.
But it appeared right in front of his eyes.
Wearing the grade of Epic Unique.
In enhancement, the Epic grade usually only appears when an item evolves, so this meant Nodaji was lucky enough to dig up an evolved item.
Naturally, no one would have buried an item as high as Epic Unique in a grave, so it must be a class characteristic.
To have such luck strike shortly after changing classes meant the future prospects were needless to say.
So he went for it immediately.
"Paying $1,000 every month is a bit of a waste, but..."
On top of that, he had to buy all items Unique grade or higher even if he didn’t like them.
There wouldn’t be many.
However, for Han Simin, who had made a habit of saving every penny, it was bound to be a painful time.
Nevertheless, his robust bank account made him propose such a contract.
Of course, it was a contract entirely beneficial to him.
Because the opportunity to monopolize rare or unique option items, whether in reality or in a game, was priceless.
If there was another condition, it was perhaps that only Han Simin had the skill to process that item into a jewel?
So he decided to think positively.
He had returned to the territory, and just in time, he had obtained the item he wanted.
"If I enhance this..."
It has a base drop rate four times higher than the Ring of Luck.
If he enhanced it to +15, since the Ring of Luck got 10.5%, this meant at least 42% would be attached.
And if he got lucky and hit an enhancement jackpot, even more would be added.
"Crazy."
He would be able to secure at least twice as many awakening Potions as others.
Thinking about that, he felt it didn’t necessarily need to change into a Special Aura this time.
It would be good if it did, but whatever.
"As long as I eat well and live well, that’s enough."
Things didn’t always go as desired.
If he obsessed over it for no reason, that psycho BetaGo might torment him more just to screw with him.
With that comfortable mind, he opened the guild chat.
—Miss. Seolah.
A brief wait, then an answer.
—Yes?
—Are you hunting?
—Yes, is something wrong?
He struck as soon as the answer came that she was hunting.
—Can I recommend a guild member?
He didn’t give her time to think!
If she was hunting, in the middle of combat with monsters, it would be hard to make a cold judgment in this short time.
—He won’t be traveling with us, but he’s someone who will support me. You know that person who brought a bunch of stuff last time? The one who digs graves for items. That person...
If he attached plenty of plausible reasons, her judgment would blur, and there was a possibility she would nod.
Though he couldn’t be sure since it was Jeong Seolah.
He was prepared to accept it even if she said no.
He only chose this because if the man joined the guild, he would be easier to exploit, Simin could check if he had any ulterior motives, and a sense of belonging might prevent such motives from arising in the first place. But it wouldn’t be a problem even if he didn’t join.
’It makes no sense for me to leave the guild because of him.’
Usually, in situations like this, the development would be to threaten strongly, saying, "If you don’t accept this person, I’ll leave and make my own guild," but Han Simin never entertained such stupid thoughts.
Meeting the Specialists was like luck pouring from the sky in his life; where would he go if he abandoned them!
If he had to give up something, he would have given up Nodaji.
—So if you don’t feel like it, you don’t have to...
—Yes, it’s fine with me.
—Pardon?
—If it’s a recommendation from Simin, they’re worth accepting. But we are hunting right now, so let’s have him join when we return to the territory.
—...Okay.
What was this? This emptiness.
Before the emptiness could even fade, Kang Yeseul’s voice came through.
—What is it? Is it a woman?
—Why does gender matter here?
—No, it could be that she’s pretty and you fell for her at first glance, so you’re trying to get her in.
—It’s a middle-aged man.
—Tch. That’s a shame. It would have been nice if it were a handsome guy. Another sucker must have been hooked. Seeing as you’re even getting him into the guild, he must be a useful sucker?
—Ahem! You say the darnedest things. Not a sucker, a colleague!
—A sucker disguised as a colleague.
—...
He couldn’t deny it.
Still, since he received permission, he didn’t reply further and maintained silence.
Then he packed his gear.
Things proceeded so much according to his wishes that it felt uneasy, but was there only one or two strange things in life?
Money is the answer.
He just needed to make money.
Han Simin set off for the mountain range again.
* * *
The two didn’t raise any objections to Jeong Seolah’s unilateral decision.
Not only did it not matter to them, but they also trusted her decision.
And because they knew Han Simin better than anyone.
"Whoever it is, I feel sorry for them."
"Tsk tsk. To get caught by that guy."
The guy who would sell his soul for money wasn’t just moderately using someone, but dragging them into the guild in earnest?
A stranger?
No, they had seen him once, so he wasn’t a total stranger, but they were just in a transactional relationship.
And suddenly they became close enough to join the guild?
It was as absurd as saying Han Simin was doing charity work.
He must have some scheme.
And that scheme would certainly not be poison to the Specialists.
At least Han Simin tended to bring benefits to them.
"I never thought we’d get more guild members."
"It’s just a game."
"If he doesn’t adapt, he’ll leave anyway."
Moreover, this guild admission wasn’t like Han Simin’s case, where he joined after forming a bond with the three of them.
There was no need for the three to be nice just because he was a new guild member, nor did they intend to force themselves to be close just because of the guild fence.
It was just a game, after all.
The guild was only created for communication.
They would watch from a third-party perspective.
Then, if he mingled and adapted, who knows?
They might become a perfect Specialist team of five instead of four.
If that happened, just as they leaped forward when Han Simin joined, they would be able to widen the gap even more.
"Shall we make a bet?"
Whatever it was, one thing was certain: this saying was not wrong.
Birds of a feather flock together.
* * *
