CHAPTER 10…………………………………..
After the red-haired chihuahua visited my house, I also left. My destination was a secondhand luxury shop that would clean up all of Seo Goun’s flashy taste.
“We do not accept returns on purchased items under any circumstances. Understood? Please sign here.”
I listened to the shop owner’s words with one ear and let them out the other as I signed the sales agreement.
Maybe Seo Goun would come back later and cry over this.
‘Not my problem.’
I needed money right now.
“Alright. The transfer has been completed.”
Worried that this easy customer might change their mind, the owner quickly showed me the transfer confirmation and took the contract.
Considering there were limited-edition items among them, and that he had bought them at a bargain price, I could understand his eagerness to finish the deal quickly.
But… separate from the owner’s impatience, I was also unexpectedly satisfied with the amount of money I’d just obtained.
“Where is the nearest item shop?”
Thinking about my suddenly fuller bank account, I asked him for the location of an item store.
“An item shop? There’s a small one right next door, and a bigger one down the alley. But… are you a Hunter?”
“Yes. Thanks for your help.”
I quickly finished the greeting and left the shop.
Luxury goods were preferred by civilians, but Hunters mostly favored items that helped them survive.
So it made sense that the owner hadn’t recognized Seo Goun.
What kind of Hunter would spend more money on flashy designer goods than on equipment that couldn’t even protect them? The strange one was Seo Goun, who, despite being awakened, didn’t live like a proper Hunter.
“It’s really big.”
The item shop was enormous, with a beautiful exterior.
Since civilians could also use items, there were many people coming and going.
I grabbed a guide map and slowly walked inside.
Under dazzling lights, items were displayed neatly, accompanied by soft classical music.
Huh. It feels like a department store I once visited to buy a gift for my class president.
I checked the products on each floor and stepped onto the escalator.
“Wait, isn’t that Seo Goun?”
“Yeah, it is. Seo Goun.”
“Why is he here? Is he going to cause trouble again?”
“Last time he kicked out all the customers and even took over the place, then refunded everything he bought, right?”
“I heard the leader of the Noon Guild personally came and processed the refunds.”
Even though Hunters weren’t common, people wouldn’t recognize you unless you were a top-ranked one.
Seo Goun wasn’t even a ranked Hunter—he barely did any real activity at all.
And yet they recognized him.
‘Just how infamous is this guy as a troublemaker?’
Embarrassed, I covered my face with my hand.
In the novel, “troublemaking” was just a simplified description, so I didn’t know exactly what Seo Goun had done—but for Hunters to recognize his face like this…
‘I should hurry up, buy things, and get out.’
I pretended I heard nothing and got off the escalator, entering the nearest shop. My enjoyment wasn’t luxury shopping—it was item shopping.
But…
“What do you ne— …Eek!”
The man who saw me immediately recoiled and collapsed.
His neatly styled hair, formal suit, and polished smile all vanished as he trembled like he had seen something disgusting.
‘What did I even do to deserve a scream…’
I looked at him in confusion.
He was shaking on the floor, and I felt like I was some kind of robber.
Don’t tell me Seo Goun did something here too?
“What’s going on?”
A staff member came rushing out from the back storage room.
Seeing the gold name tag, I assumed he was the manager.
The manager, who rushed out, stiffened as soon as he saw me and asked stiffly:
“May I ask what brings you here?”
“I came to an item shop to buy items. What else would I come for?”
“Sorry, but no matter how much you threaten our staff…”
“Which staff are you talking about? The one who screamed the moment we made eye contact? And I already said I’m here to buy items.”
I snapped back at the manager who was unfairly accusing me.
“Jeong-hwan. I’ll handle this. Go inside.”
“Yes… sorry, manager.”
After sending the trembling employee back inside, the manager spoke again.
“If you tell me what items you need, I’ll prepare a catalog immediately.”
With a face that looked like he was ready to “stop me at all costs,” he waited.
I handed him my prepared list.
After glancing at it, his expression quickly changed from serious to puzzled.
“…Are you planning to go into a dungeon?”
“Do I have to explain my usage to make a purchase?”
He flinched and waved his hands.
“N-no, not at all. It will take some time to prepare. Please wait…”
“Then I’ll go look around another floor.”
I swiped my card as I spoke. The manager processed the payment and returned it.
“The card has changed. From the Noon Guild card to Seo Goun’s personal card.”
“You talk quite a lot.”
“…We’ll prepare everything while you’re away.”
I nodded and headed to the 5th floor.
People were already gathering and murmuring behind me, but I didn’t care.
I wouldn’t see them once I returned to my own world anyway.
Since I had already given up on improving my relationship with Seo Taeju, there was no need to care what others thought.
On the 5th floor.
From here upward, only Hunters were allowed, so the entrance was blocked by a steel door.
I approached the staff checking Hunter IDs.
“Hello. This area is… Seo Goun Hunter?!”
So my face is basically my ID card now.
I clicked my tongue and pointed at the door.
“Can I go in?”
“Y-yes! Of course, you may enter!”
Ignoring the flustered staff, I went inside.
Unlike the lower floors, there were no separate stores.
It was a private room for Hunters.
‘So Seo Taeju bought his sword here.’
Even from the description, it felt surprisingly simple for a “private Hunter room.”
“Welcome, Seo Goun Hunter. Please follow me.”
Unlike the staff downstairs, the personal shopper here was extremely polite.
He led me, almost bowing in deference, into a room far more luxurious than the plain exterior suggested.
I sat on a soft sofa as instructed.
A golden potion was placed on the table.
‘Oh. So they even serve potions here.’
In the novel, potion colors indicated their effects.
Silver was healing, gold was stamina recovery, blue was mana recovery.
The one in front of me was a stamina recovery potion.
‘I wonder what it tastes like.’
I picked it up and turned it around curiously.
The shopper spoke again, lowering himself even further.
“If you tell me what you need, I’ll bring the catalog immediately.”
“No. Just bring me all the catalogs. I’ve got a lot to buy today.”
I leaned back on the sofa and smiled.
A smile that the detective Kim always said looked “dangerous.”
“Please don’t smile like that—it makes you look evil.”
“I am Seo Goun, you know?”
He misunderstood my smile as something malicious.
“I’ll bring catalogs for items more valuable than luxury goods.”
“And bring the Infinite Bags first.”
The shopper’s face brightened.
“Please leave it to me.”
I stared blankly at the massive forest that smelled like phytoncides.
“How is this even possible?”
Unlike the Tower, where stepping through a gate led to another world, dungeons changed scenery the moment you blinked.
The ground, the air—it all felt real.
“It feels like I came into the mountains to catch a drug addict.”
Before possessing Seo Goun’s body, I had once been deployed deep into the mountains to track a fugitive drug addict. I didn’t have the authority to refuse back then. I was too low-ranked to say no.
‘I think that took about two or three days.’
Lost in memory, I walked forward until I found a place matching the novel’s description.
Next to a grassy path were tall weeds reaching up to my waist.
A monster was hiding there.
I crouched and placed my hand on the ground.
‘Transmutation.’
At my command, a sharp cone erupted from the weeds, piercing a squirrel-type monster’s stomach.
A squeak echoed, followed by blood splattering across the grass.
A message appeared.
[EXP gained.]
“One down.”
I kept walking, using skills whenever I spotted more patches of weeds.
The forest dungeon was strangely quiet.
No insects, no birds—only my footsteps and the movement of monsters.
I placed my hand down again at another patch.
Another squirrel monster was pierced.
“Hm… fewer than expected.”
The “Animal Forest” dungeon was supposed to be full of monsters.
Squirrels, badgers, rabbits—basically every forest animal turned into a monster.
But so far, I’d only encountered hidden squirrel types.
No badgers. No rabbits.
‘According to the data, it was cleared about a month ago… so they should’ve respawned.’
“Don’t tell me someone came here before me?”
I had planned to test my mana consumption and recovery through repeated transmutation.
But the long gaps between monsters made proper testing impossible.
“Ugh. Whatever.”
Since this was an open dungeon, I couldn’t complain if someone had come earlier.
Maybe today just wasn’t my day.
“Transmutation.”
“Kieeek!”
Another monster died.
The more I used the skill, the more fun it became.
Transmutation improved with skill mastery—not only for attacks, but also for crafting items if materials were available.
“Why would Seo Goun waste a skill like this being a thug?”
The more I used it, the more I understood how absurd Seo Goun had been.
With a power like this, why did he only use it to exploit others?
‘Well, that’s probably why he died early.’
I shook my head and stopped.
The path ended.
“Then it should be around here… ah. There it is.”
Ahead were five large patches of weeds.
The final gate before the boss room.
I placed my hand on the ground.
Using five transmutations at once would be new, so I felt a bit tense.
“Transmutation.”
Mana drained in bulk, and five cones erupted from the ground at once.
Thud—thud—thud.
Screams followed.
[EXP gained.]
[EXP gained.]
[EXP gained.]
[EXP gained.]
“Wait… one is missing?”
Just as I frowned, a monster burst out and charged at me.
“Transmutation!”
A stone wall rose in front of me.
The monster crashed into it.
I immediately activated transmutation again on the wall.
Spikes erupted from its surface, piercing the monster.
“Kiee…”
A final sound.
[EXP gained.]
The delayed message appeared.
I dissolved the wall.
The monster lay dead, full of holes like a hedgehog.
“That was close. Did I miss? Or is my skill level too low?”
I scratched my head and moved on.
The path had disappeared, replaced by overgrown wildflowers and grass.
But signs were there—flattened plants showing someone had already passed.
“Don’t tell me it’s been cleared already?”
If someone had already killed the boss, that wasn’t a problem.
It would actually save me effort.
But if they had taken my item…
“Please don’t.”
I could only hope that worst-case scenario wasn’t true.
