Chapter 4
Early the next morning.
Holding the A-rank Common Magic Stone in my hand, I slowly made my way toward the Hunter Association.
I had made pocket change plenty of times by selling F-rank and G-rank magic stones, but this was my first time trading something as valuable as an A-rank magic stone.
For some reason, I felt strangely nervous.
Is this how people feel when they win first prize in the lottery...?
Well, I didn't have a single won to my name right now, so there was no reason to put this off.
The Association building was unusually crowded today.
Employees were hurriedly exchanging documents near the entrance. Hunters were checking their equipment, while others who seemed to have finished their transactions walked out with smiles on their faces.
The magic stone exchange center occupied the second and third basement floors of the Association.
The second basement floor handled magic stones of B-rank and below.
The third basement floor handled B-rank and above.
I heard they take people with S-rank magic stones straight to the VVIP room.
I quietly headed to the second basement floor, took a number, and waited for quite some time before finally approaching the counter.
"Welcome. Are you here to exchange a magic stone?"
The employee sitting behind the counter greeted me politely.
"Ah, yes. That's right."
"Is it B-rank?"
"No, it's an A-rank Common Magic Stone..."
"An A-rank Common?"
I nodded and carefully took the A-rank Common Magic Stone out from inside my clothes.
Clatter.
The moment I placed it inside the special magic-stone container on the desk, I could feel the atmosphere around us change.
The employee, who had been smiling casually until then, froze the instant she saw the magic stone.
She blinked several times, staring back and forth between my face and the stone.
"Uh... u-um... oh... Please wait just a moment!"
"Okay."
I answered briefly.
Still wearing a look of disbelief, the employee examined the magic stone again.
Mana flowed faintly through it.
There was no doubt about it.
It was a high-purity A-rank Common Magic Stone.
A high-grade item that could only be obtained from mid-to-high-level dungeons.
The employee's eyes turned toward me once again.
Then she discreetly checked my Hunter ID.
An F-rank Hunter brought in an A-rank Common Magic Stone?
That was probably exactly what she was thinking.
There was no other reason for her to look this shocked.
But I didn't need to explain myself.
"Please wait just a moment."
The employee quickly disappeared into the back.
A few minutes later, she returned with someone who appeared to be a manager.
This time, they treated me much more formally.
"We apologize for making you wait. After confirming it, this is indeed an A-rank Common Magic Stone. You said you'd like to exchange it for cash, correct?"
I gave a small nod.
Cash Payment
It didn't take long to determine the price.
The market price for A-rank Common Magic Stones had already been established, and the Association simply deducted the relevant taxes and fees before paying out the remainder.
"Since this is your first time, I'll explain it briefly. After deducting taxes and transaction fees, the total payment will be fifty million won."
A thick stack of cash sat in front of me.
Whoa!
Five hundred thousand won.
That had been my entire fortune.
Just two days ago, I'd been thinking about using that money to start selling bungeoppang.
This is insane!
With this much money, I'd have more than enough to buy cooking ingredients for quite a while.
And there would still be plenty left over.
"Thank you for using our services."
I gave the employee a small bow and packed away the money.
Just then, a man who had been watching me from nearby leaned closer and whispered.
"Excuse me."
"Hm?"
"Next time, use a private exchange."
I immediately turned toward him.
The man who had spoken to me was a young Hunter who looked to be around B-rank.
"I'm talking about A-rank Common Magic Stones. Private exchanges don't deduct taxes, and they'll give you a better price too."
He smiled before turning around and walking away as though nothing had happened.
Well, that doesn't sound bad...
Though there was no telling when I'd ever get another A-rank Common Magic Stone.
Without saying anything, I left the Association.
As soon as I returned home, I put my bag down and let out a sigh.
Fifty million won.
Had I ever held this much money in my entire life?
When I thought about it, the one who had made all of this possible overnight was...
Poming.
Well over twelve hours had already passed.
I cautiously called out to Poming.
"POMING!!!!!!!!"
...
"POMIIIING!!!!!!!"
...
Nothing happened.
What? How was I supposed to summon it again?
Come to think of it...
I didn't know.
I hurriedly searched for the [Random Summon Box], but—
Ah. Right. I threw it away yesterday.
After all, the box itself had only been a box.
Just then...
A soft glow spread through the room, followed by a familiar voice.
"Puwaaang! Poming has arrived-dat!"
A ball of white fluff appeared in midair, spinning around as it materialized.
Its round body.
Its sparkling black eyes.
Poming looked ridiculously cute no matter how many times I saw it.
The little guy waved both front paws at me.
"Master! Is there something the super-duper adorable Poming can help you with today?"
"What the? Why didn't you come out right away?"
"Sorryyy. I was in the bathroom. You just happened to call me when it was urgent."
I couldn't help but chuckle.
"Right. Uh... first of all, I wanted to say thanks."
"Your gratitude is far too precious to waste on me! You don't need to thank me! I'm suuuper excited about going on this cooking journey with you, Summoner!"
"Ah, the cooking journey... But here's the thing."
No matter how I looked at it, thanks to this little guy, I now had fifty million won in cash, along with the abilities and items of the deceased B-rank Hunter, Sama Cheon.
Honestly, isn't this already enough?
I had been completely left behind in the Hunter world.
That was why I'd been preparing to find another path entirely.
Absorbing Sama Cheon's abilities had definitely made me stronger, but it wasn't enough to immediately make me a successful Hunter.
Compared to A-rank and S-rank Hunters, there was still an enormous gap between us.
In other words, I had finally reached a proper starting line.
But still...
"What are you thinking so hard abooout?"
"Huh?"
Had I looked funny while getting lost in thought?
