Guild Leader Noona (3)

The Guild Leader stared blankly at my words for about five seconds.

A mix of surprise and various emotions swirled into a smile around her lips.

However, the first smile was business-like.

The second seemed to imply she saw something cute.

The third was different.

Very much so.

“Hmm.”

I’m not sure if it’s right to use such words, but it was a rich… and sticky smile.

As I flinched unknowingly, the Guild Leader seductively smiled and licked her lips with a surprisingly long tongue that seemed impossible to fit inside her small, delicate mouth.

Uh, did I… touch something wrong?

“Ha, really now. Mr. Yu Seha? You are quite a sinful man.”

“…What?”

“It’s worrisome. It seems you are not aware of it yourself. If that’s the case, it must be innate… It’s surprising you’ve managed to do such things without facing harsh consequences.”

“…What??”

I dumbly repeated the question, not understanding the meaning behind it.

The Guild Leader raised her index finger and began to draw circles on my chest.

“Mr. Yu Seha? You are an attractive man. So much so that any passing woman would turn to look at you, harboring various emotions. Plus, having just become an adult, you also possess a fresh scent. You are, to anyone’s eyes, a fruit ripe for the picking.”

“Uh…”

“I have lived for about 290 years, but I have never seen a man as charming as you.”

“…Th-thank you?”

“If it were just about looks… it would be merely a fleeting, youthful desire. This is truly troublesome.”

The Guild Leader’s eyes gradually narrowed.
Then she brought her face close to my nape.
A sweet yet savory smell, almost like powdered milk, wafted up my nose that instant.

“Who would have thought such a kind and cute one would be so defenseless…?”
“Me… really…?”
“This is advice from someone older.”

The Guild Leader’s voice whispered in my ear like a snake.

“If you smile carelessly or wag your tail, you’ll be completely devoured by a bad woman. Like me, for example.”

“Ah, um…”

“You know why elves have such a bad reputation, right?”

I knew very well.
A quick search on Wiki, and there it would be.

In ‘GAL’, elves were the exact opposite of the typical fantasy image.

One day, they suddenly came from another world, destroyed nature, and committed atrocities as they pleased.
Eventually, they were driven to the distant land of steel, and became rootless foreign invaders.

There were many incidents, but there was one particularly famous event involving elves.

“Man hunting…”

Males of other species.

Particularly the cases of bride kidnapping involving indiscriminate abduction of human males who shared a similar aesthetic sense.
Even pretty women were said to be taken.
In fact, it was the decisive reason why the religious orders directly intervened to drive out the elves.

I was quite surprised when I first heard about it.
In ‘GAL’, it was just described as everyone being slightly annoyed by this development.
Since what happened wasn’t recorded.

Also, this indirectly became the main reason why elf characters didn’t appear.

“Our elf race has a very strong sexual desire. Despite that, our selfish genes ensure that only females are born.”

Ah, so that’s why bride kidnapping developed.
It was an inevitable structure, indeed.

“When I first became an adult, it was so hard to contain the surging desire. It has calmed down now by a lot… but still, among elves, I’m just a youngster. Meaning, I’m still in my prime.”

The Guild Leader, smacking her lips, smiled with her eyes and put her index finger to her lips, signaling, ‘Shush’.

“Purebloods are rare, but there are quite a few mixed-blood elves like me roaming around. So… be careful, okay?”
“Yes, yes!”
“M-m-mmm…”

A voice came as I nodded sincerely(?) to the advice.

Meowi was covering her flushed face.

Peeking through her fingers at the Guild Leader, she seemed to be thinking, ‘I-s this what adult love is?!’

…Meowi. Aren’t you going to protect me in such situations?

“Anyway, I understand.”

The Guild Leader, finding Meowi adorable, stroked her head as she continued speaking.

“If we really purchase it for 1 billion, the higher-ups will surely appreciate it. That will also increase my influence. The discounted amount will be considered a personal favor from me. And now, I will grant you your first favor.”

“Oh, right now?”

“Yes, it’s a bit awkward to call it a favor. I intended to give it to you regardless of the ‘Trial’.”

The Guild Leader looked at the two of us, puzzled, and smiled broadly.

When she reached out into the air, astonishingly, her wrist entered the space.

“What?! Ah, a spatial pouch?”

Meowi looked at it with eyes full of admiration, thinking it was an expensive artifact.

For her, who had taken on the role of a [Porter], there could be nothing more coveted than this.

‘…No.’

That was indeed a [Spatial Pouch].

But it was not an artifact.

It was the effect of a [Skill Rune].
The unique impact where black square particles erode space.

It was definitely the [Mimic’s] [Precious Treasure Vault] rune.

And it wasn’t just any ordinary Mimic.
Mimics could be identified by the color of their particles, and this one was black. It was a [Mirage Mimic].

“…Crazy. Isn’t that rune like a walking lottery ticket?”

The Pearl Spitting Tortoise (B+) was considered as precious as the rare Mirage Mimic.

Ever since I played ‘GAL’, I had only seen the Mirage Mimic less than 30 times.

Such a valuable creature…

“…What is the identity of this, Guild Leader?”

Click.

What the Guild Leader took out of the [Spatial Pouch] was a black case.

“These past few days, the Vice Guild Leader has been nagging me about this. Saying that it’s rude to merely compensate the heroes who prevented the disaster with cash.”

As beautiful as her words, the Guild Leader winked and pressed a button on the box.

With a hissing sound, the contents were revealed.

“This is a token of gratitude for the heroes who prevented the Break Out, and a gift for two promising juniors.”

Upon opening the box, two large glass bottles were visible.
Inside the bottles, a green sphere shimmered.
Emerald green wavelengths were swirling like a whirlwind around it.

“…Wow, it’s beautiful.”

Meowi uttered a small exclamation in awe.

For her, having never seen such a thing before, this reaction was expected, but I was immediately startled and asked about it.

“Guild Leader. Could this possibly be a [Trait Rune]?”
“Meow?!”
“That’s correct. Just by consuming it, one can acquire the [Trait] recorded inside.”

She explained nonchalantly, but my expression grew even sterner.

I had a pretty good idea about what it was.

5th year in ‘GAL’. A veteran, a broadcaster, and a ranker—my seasoned judgment was screaming.

This unique color and the rotating pattern.

It was undoubtedly ‘that’ [Trait], known to be difficult to obtain.

“It seems like Mr. Yu Seha knows what this is.”

“Meow?”

I nodded my head, answering on my behalf.

“…Isn’t this [Mesto’s Magnifying Glass]?”
“…M-Mesto?! Mesto?!”
“…Surprising. You actually guessed it right. Are you really a novice hunter?”
“I’ve seen it in a dictionary.”
“…M-M-Meoooow…”

[Mesto’s Magnifying Glass].

The name sounded grand, but simply put, it was an ‘Observation’ ability.

A type of skill commonly found in games that voyeuristically views and analyzes an opponent’s ‘Status’.

However, it wasn’t as convenient as one might think.

‘It can only be used on monsters.’

It couldn’t be used among hunters themselves.

The same went for Mines or Villains, with a few exceptions.

Additionally, its use was limited in areas without magic.
There were also various ways to block it, showing its problematic aspects in many respects of the game.

Yet, it was incredibly difficult to obtain, and the reason was in the epithet [Mesto].

‘Count Mesto.’

“The Blood-Soaked Castle (Grade A)” was a high-level dungeon where vampires appeared, and he was a rare boss that sometimes emerged there.

One of the dozens of [Runes] that dropped when this creature was defeated was exactly this one.

‘Insane, not just one but two of them… and they even processed it for long-term storage…?’

My suspicions about the Guild Leader grew even stronger now.

No, to be honest, I was scared.

In ‘GAL,’ it was rare for an NPC to casually show such a precious item.

Even considering her position as the Guild Leader, the rewards and influence she wielded were immense.

‘…Th-this…’

Had I caught the eye of a real big shot?

Regardless, the Guild Leader, looking amused, gestured for me to try it.

“Go ahead, try it.”
“…Are you really sure? This must be worth at least several billion won.”
“I told you. It’s a gift I offer to the heroes. Could it be… are you refusing my kindness?”

It would be rude not to eat it when she says that.

Meowi and I quietly consumed it, expressing our thanks.

“…Wow.”

I suppose the effects of the trait itself were one thing.

But the increase in stats was insanely high for this one.

Indeed, it was worthy of an Epic trait.

‘The types of abilities that are increasing are also great.’

Currently, my biggest weakness is indeed magic.

Was it because Yu Seha was a man whose mana pool was small? After using [Flowing Slash] a few times, he had been gasping for breath.

In this situation, gaining 2 in [Magic] was like rain in a drought.

“Do you like it? Both of you?”
“I’ve received too much to know what to say…”
“Mee… eooo… w…”
“Come to your senses, Meowi.”
“Mee… eooo… w…”
“Hehe… I’m glad you like it.”

Well, that’s enough…

“Shall we get up? Shall we?”

After finishing all transactions, we parted ways with the Guild Leader, all in smiles.

We gained something extra, too.

At the last handshake, I felt something odd in my hand.

Huh? Upon checking, it was a folded piece of paper with her name and number.

―See you next time~

I saved it right away in my phone.

Such a high-level connection.

Not easy to find anywhere.

‘…Su Ok-bin.’

It was an unusual name.

Was there even a ‘Su’ family in the character list to begin with?
No, it’s foolish to fuss over such things in a fantasy world.

Anyway, she was an unknown character.

Not just a character, but an extra I had never even heard of as an NPC.

Of course, to call her an extra seemed a bit much, given her abilities.

‘So what?’

Right now, the sight of our Meowi grinning happily was far more precious.

“Hehe.”
“Do you like it that much?”
“Yes, hehe. I can’t believe it…”

Meowi muttered, overwhelmed by the gift, ‘I-is this perhaps a dream?’

Then, she pulled on her own cheeks and mumbled, ‘No, it’s not a dream…’

“S-Seha.”
“Yes?”
“I… I’ll work hard.”

She had a lot to say, but perhaps she had no way to express it all… She just blurted out those words and clenched her fists tightly.

The corners of my mouth involuntarily twitched.

‘She’s an angel.’

An angel.

Yes, this is what an angel looks like.

I placed my hand over Meowi’s head.

She was now accepting my touch without any signs of dislike.

“Meeooow~”
“Hehe.”

I couldn’t help but smile like a proud father, and I ended up making a promise to myself again.

To make her dreams come true. To be by her side.

And to fight against the evil that would come her way.

For instance…

“Hey, half-breed. Having a good time?”
“Looking for a challenge? Who did you deceive this time?”

As if they had been waiting for us to come, this duo appeared.

They looked me up and down casually.

Dressed for the cold, with strange daggers hanging at their waists.

Definitely a duo from the [Assassin] class.

‘I remember.’

The first day I encountered Meowi.

It was definitely this duo who had passed by, uttering contemptuous words towards her.