Guardian Of Balance (2)

Kang-hoo spent quite a long time examining each item one by one and pondering.

Even Kang-hoo’s balance of over 1 trillion won was an amount that would end with just one or two items here.

The world of trillions.

Once the value of the items being handled entered the world of trillions, that was when the true upper world began.

That was what had always been said in the original work. Seeing the prices of the items, he could finally feel it.

While Kang-hoo looked around, Kang Bok-hwa only quietly watched.

She did not even make the faintest footstep, nor did she speak to Kang-hoo separately or urge him to choose.

As if respecting the customer’s careful choice, she waited for Kang-hoo’s decision without even making the sound of breathing.

How much time had passed?

Around the time Kang-hoo belatedly recognized Kang Bok-hwa’s presence and wondered whether he had made her wait too long, his decision was over.

“I’ll go with this.”

What Kang-hoo pointed at was a first-grade anklet. The marked price was written as 500 billion won. There was no problem purchasing it.

“Shall we proceed?”

“Yes. Did this one also have some interest from waitlisters? I’d like to know whether there were competitors.”

“There were, but compared to other items, there were fewer. Since you saw the options, you would know…… there’s a reason for that.”

“That’s true.”

He nodded.

The reason Kang-hoo had taken interest in the anklet was that, while its stats were stats, its core options were interesting.

Kang Bok-hwa added words to Kang-hoo, who was checking the options again.

“First, the fact that there’s a lot of uncertain information is probably the reason people hesitate to buy it. It doesn’t tell you what the mark is or how the oath ceremony manifests.”

“It could be a trap?”

“That’s right. If one slips up, one could become a minion swayed by a Constellation with bad intentions.”

“Then the waitlisters are still trying to wear the item despite considering those problem factors?”

“No. It’s just for collection. They buy it and just keep it for the time being. They have as much money as they want.”

“Buying it first, huh…….”

If one had a lot of money, such a decision was not strange.

It might be an item that felt somehow interesting yet was too troublesome to wear. It might also be an item they did not want to give to someone else.

But Kang-hoo’s interest did not come from that kind of vagueness or pointless stubbornness born from abundant wealth.

It was because of the mark.

Kang-hoo was certain about the marks. They were materials used for the descent of the being called the Ruin King or Demon King.

He did not know what form or ability the Mark of Disorder granted, but it was certainly one of the seven marks.

If so, regardless of reason, it was right to chase the clue of the mark. Before it entered “Eye’s” hands.

‘Oath gives up one main Constellation slot and promotes the growth of the other main Constellations. This is a setting that appeared in the original work too, so it’s certain.’

Oath was also not an area of uncertainty for Kang-hoo.

However, the only characteristic was that the number of main Constellation slots most hunters had was significantly fewer than Kang-hoo’s.

Thanks to the Twisted Contract, which had allowed him to irregularly add Constellations, Kang-hoo had six slots.

Among them, five slots had owners, and one was still on hold. A new Constellation could be accepted there.

‘Just providing a clue about the mark is valuable enough. If it’s placing a bounty on a Constellation contractor, in other words, a hunter, there are often cases where it tells you to eliminate a strongly evil-aligned hunter…… so there must be a reason for that.’

He could not yet confirm the existence of the Constellation hidden behind this item.

But Kang-hoo thought there was a high possibility that it was a good-aligned Constellation belonging to the Hall of Radiance, like Angel of the Battlefield.

Of course, the opposite case could appear, defying his expectations.

If that happened, there might be a situation where he had to kill an innocent hunter.

That was something he could think about again when the time came. There was no need to cross the boundary between good and evil in advance right now.

Kang-hoo said.

“I’ll purchase it. Could I get a bit of a discount?”

“Hoho. We absolutely do not negotiate the price of an item with waitlisters. It’s fixed price.”

“So you’re saying there are plenty of people who will buy it even if I don’t.”

“That’s right. Perhaps you should be grateful that I’m not trying to charge a premium?”

At Kang Bok-hwa’s appearance, which seemed more sincere about money than usual today, Kang-hoo chuckled.

It was because he thought this was her true self.

The gentle appearance he had seen until now as Jung Yuri’s maternal grandmother was only the appearance of someone’s ordinary grandmother.

When she had to deal with people outside the frame of grandmother, her current appearance suited her perfectly.

“Good. Let’s proceed. May I ask just one thing?”

“As much as you like.”

“Where did this item come from?”

“It came out six days ago from an underground dungeon in the Philippines. It’s an anklet almost unknown to the world.”

“An underground dungeon in the Philippines.”

“Yes. It seems the Philippine Public Safety Bureau has recently begun a large-scale exploration of underground dungeons. Since there are so many things that make money, it’s only natural.”

Dungeons and the world behind them, where there were still more things unknown than known to the world.

Kang-hoo was certain that he would continue to see many unexpected items like this in the future.

And if there was one that carried an important clue like this anklet, he intended to purchase it no matter the reason.

Because if he wanted to possess an item that already had an owner, there was usually no method other than killing them.

While the balance transfer and ownership transfer procedures were being carried out.

Kang-hoo once again checked the options of the anklet he had purchased from Kang Bok-hwa for 500 billion won.

It was one that gave him 200 more gain in Durability and Magic Resistance than the Frenzied Roar Anklet he had been wearing before.

On top of that, it increased the hidden stat Divine Power by 75. In terms of the value of ordinary stats, it was the same as adding 300 more.

He did not intend to sell the anklet he had been wearing before, but to have Mumyeong wear it. Because it had a usable option.

Frenzied Roar, which he had taken from Ishihara Yuji after killing him.

Frenzied Bloom had not had any occasion to be used so far. There had not really been a situation where he had to use it either.

The 1.5-second “Transcendence” state, to put it simply, was like being in the state of having taken Gaksinhwan for 1.5 seconds.

The problem was that unlike Gaksinhwan, which had almost no side effects, Frenzied Bloom had an enormous aftereffect.

So he thought Mumyeong, for whom there would be no lingering trouble even if problems arose because of the aftereffect(?), was the right candidate to wear it.

‘Remaining balance 535 billion won. It didn’t even take a second for it to be cut in half.’

Looking at the balance that had fallen from the realm of trillions back to the realm of hundreds of billions, Kang-hoo burst out in a hollow laugh.

Money that easily disappeared even if it was there.

He had no idea who said hunters made money well. It was this easy to spend money lavishly.

For now, he planned to examine the Bounty and Oath options when he was alone.

Since he did not know what kind of situation he might be placed in, securing the stability of the surrounding environment was essential.

In the meantime.

Kang Bok-hwa, who had finished all the procedures, walked toward Kang-hoo and spoke with a subtle look in her eyes.

“If it’s all right with you, how about a short teatime? Coincidentally, today is a day with few appointments. I have some time open.”

“That sounds good.”

A teatime proposed first by her, who used her time divided down to the minute and second. It carried a different meaning.

Was it coincidentally a day with few appointments? She might have intentionally scheduled fewer appointments. Depending on the customer she was to receive.

In any case, Kang Bok-hwa was Jung Yuri’s adoptive grandmother, Master K’s wife, and a major figure in the Gyeongsang commercial world.

Maintaining a good relationship with her in any form would be beneficial.

If Kang-hoo was securing influence over Daejeon through Lee Ye-rin.

If he built a suitable relationship with Kang Bok-hwa, he could include the Gyeongsang region as an activity stage as much as he wanted.

Especially if Kang Bok-hwa was behind this “Glory Alliance” matter, its value would shine even more.

The room they moved to for teatime.

The interior was composed in a hanok style to the point that he wondered whether this really was a building inside Busan.

If not for the virtually implemented blue-sky background, it was a scene that could be called a quiet afternoon hanok.

Although it was surely artificially made, the blowing wind carried the feeling of nature.

Sitting across from Kang Bok-hwa, Kang-hoo drank the tea she slowly brewed. It was good tea.

Kang-hoo did not intend to ask Kang Bok-hwa about the Glory Alliance. Whether she was involved or not, she would not answer.

As he kept his mouth shut while watching Kang Bok-hwa’s reaction, she opened the conversation first.

“Busan is a bit noisy, isn’t it?”

“It is. I was surprised because the scenery was very different from when I came to Busan last time. I heard the breaking news too.”

“Yes. It has changed a lot.”

“It’s human nature to let stagnant and rotten water flow away, and to accept clean new water flowing in.”

Kang-hoo subtly brought up the story he had intended. It was a nuance that said he somewhat agreed with the Glory Alliance.

There was no way Kang Bok-hwa, who could gauge a customer’s worth just by looking at their eyes, would not understand the meaning of those words.

“I think more safe cities that can replace Seoul should increase from now on. And there is also a need to possess the strength to protect themselves independently, without watching Seoul’s mood.”

She was speaking softly.

But they were words more deeply soaked in ambition than anyone else’s.

There was no way someone like Kang Bok-hwa would speak this carefully just to complain or lament.

Nor were they empty words.

It was only that there had not been a reason to carefully examine it until now, but Kang Bok-hwa was also a high-level hunter.

Even the total number of Constellations identified by Scan alone exceeded fifteen.

If the information hidden from viewing was included, it would be twenty. It also meant his estimate of her level was possible to some degree.

Meanwhile, on the large TV inside that had only been turned on in silence.

Breaking news was coming out, informing that a large number of Japanese hunters had also flowed into the “Glory” Alliance as mercenaries.

The reason was.

It was said to be revenge by victims who had suffered labor exploitation, conflicts of interest, and violence from the satellite guild Haeyeong Guild had established in Japan.

News with titles such as the weak’s counterattack, or retaliation, was being reported one after another.

When Kang-hoo’s gaze stayed on the TV for quite a long time, Kang Bok-hwa carefully added words.

“I hope that from now on, Kang-hoo-ssi will continue to maintain a good relationship with our market. Furthermore, I hope you can always be a reliable companion to my husband and Yuri as well.”

It seemed this was the main point.

Of course, to Kang-hoo, K was K, Jung Yuri was Jung Yuri, and Kang Bok-hwa was Kang Bok-hwa. They were separate relationships.

But if the direction they looked toward was the same, he could give all of them the color of “allies” together.

It was just that a trust relationship with Kang Bok-hwa had not yet been built enough for that. Kang Bok-hwa probably thought similarly as well.

Kang-hoo politely bowed his head.

“If you show and prove trust first, I absolutely do not betray that trust. That is all I have.”

He also did not forget to speak clearly so that she could understand without misunderstanding.