“Wahahahahahaha!!”

Ugh.

Once again, the laughter of ‘Father’ echoed all around.

Gu Gyeon and this guy too, they both perhaps think being loud has a correlation to being powerful.

Then ‘Father,' who had been laughing, suddenly bared his teeth and spoke.

"My name is Yaksha."

Yaksha.

His appearance, his actions, everything about him.

It was truly a fitting name.

[T/N: In East and Southeast Asian mythology, a Yaksha (야차) is a nature spirit or demon, often depicted as either benevolent or malevolent.]

“Chun Haesun.”

After hearing Bisu’s words, I considered using an alias, but then I concluded it would be meaningless.

Well, it’s not like any names came to mind anyway.

“The more I look at you, the more fascinating you are. You’re young, but impressive.”

“You just unleashed a monster on me and now saying this kind of stuff..…”

“What are you talking about? Monster?”

Suddenly, Yaksha feigned ignorance.

This bastard, is he trying to play games now?

“You just sent that hyena over there after me, huh…?”

It was gone.

It was definitely there just a moment ago, but astonishingly, it vanished without a trace.

There was no sign that anything had just fallen.

Ever since arriving here, I had been on high alert, so I was certain.

And yet, there wasn’t even a trace of the hyena, not even a speck of blood on the ground.

“Hahaha. Seems like you were seeing things.”

Yaksha let out a suspicious laugh and walked right up to my face.

“Hoo… So it was just as I thought.”

He nodded to himself several times in admiration.

What the hell is so fascinating?

Tell me, too.

Yaksha, after eyeing me up and down, finally extended his thick hand.

A gesture proposing a deal.

“Let’s see what you’ve got.”

“And what, end up getting screwed the moment I hand it over?”

I took a step back and pulled the Cuprum Bloom out of the plastic bag.

“Oh… so it’s real.”

Yaksha stared at the soft glow of Cuprum Bloom, looking genuinely surprised.

Something felt off.

After seeing the expression on Bisu’s face beside me, I became certain that my suspicion wasn’t unfounded.

"That's strange."

"Hmm?"

"Someone your caliber should be familiar with both Cuprum Bloom and Aurum Bloom. Then why are you so surprised?"

This guy is strong.

Beyond his awakening, every single cell of this man sent out signals that he was a dangerous man.

Even when Gu Gyeon drew Ether toward me, it didn’t feel like this.

According to Bisu, Yaksha was practically the head of the underground black market.

Not only did he engage in secret transactions, he also collected monthly tribute from the shop owners of the massive market I'd seen earlier.

For such a big shot (?) to be so impressed by just one Cuprum Bloom was surprising.

I found that strange.

“Heh heh heh. Seems there was a misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding?”

“I’m not surprised by the Cuprum Bloom itself. I’m surprised that you brought it here alone. It seems you're a bit special, unlike the average Awakened."

Yaksha clearly seemed to be quite curious about me.

Unfortunately for him, there was only one thing I was curious about.

“Enough of that. How much are you paying?”

“Hey, watch your mouth!”

The answer didn’t come from Yaksha, it came from Bisu.

Judging by her expression, she didn’t seem too pleased with my blunt, casual tone.

Displeased?

No, more accurately, she seemed afraid.

She did warn me not to get Yaksha angry, or I'd have to part with at least one limb.

However,

Bisu’s interruption seemed to anger Yaksha instead.

"Who told you to interrupt?"

Swoosh, swoosh.

A sharp, needle-like, formless energy shot out from Yaksha in every direction.

“Ugh…!”

“Eek!!”

Bisu let out a scream and rolled back twice, while I had to forcibly choke down a groan.

This was killing intent.

The same kind of murderous aura as the tarantula in the dungeon once directed at me.

The only difference was that it was hundreds of times more powerful than the tarantula's.

Is he crazy?

Just his killing intent alone caused this kind of physical damage?

“Oh. My bad. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable too.”

Bisu must’ve hit her head on the ground, blood was now streaming down her forehead.

She didn’t even move, likely fainted from the shock.

She was probably one of Yaksha’s subordinates too. If I weren’t a customer, who knows what would’ve happened to me.

Sweat was starting to bead on my forehead, but I forced myself to stay calm.

“According to the girl you just knocked out, you’re the kind who is always open to business.”

Bisu still must have thought she was poisoned.

She said that under the belief she was about to die, so it probably wasn’t a lie.

And even if it was, I was confident I could find a way out.

After all, I had Poison Steps.

But after feeling Yaksha's murderous intent, I became certain.

If this bastard set his mind to it, I couldn't guarantee I would even see tomorrow.

Damn it.

Was I crazy to come to the black market alone like this?

“Six thousand.”

Six thousand my ass, the regret was washing over me like a tidal wave…..

Wait.

What??

“What, sounds cheap? Sixty million is already above market price.”

I hadn’t misheard.

Sixty million for just this one flower.

With that money, I could not only pay the Hunter Qualification Test fee, but still have a whopping ten million won left over.

That’s enough money to cover nearly two years of rent at my place.

They said it was an expensive rare plant, and indeed, the market price was beyond imagination.

It was hard to keep a straight face with my mouth naturally hanging open.

But there was no way I was going to act like a fool in front of this guy.

I struggled desperately to control my expression and replied.

“No. I heard you do honest business, so I have no intention to haggle further.”

“Hoo… So you actually trust me quite a bit.”

“To be precise, I trust Bisu.”

And to be even more precise, I trust the desperation of someone given a death sentence.

“Wahahaha. Bisu sure has a knack for charming people. Her tongue is slick, isn't it?”

How outspoken.

He probably thought I fell for Bisu’s charm.

“Think whatever you want. But you said you paid above market price. Why’s that?”

Doing an ‘honest’ deal and being ‘generous’ aren’t the same thing.

Offering a premium over what was supposed to be the market price was clearly a far cry from an honest trade.

Why would he be willing to pay extra so generously then?

“That's right….."

Yaksha's eyes, as he gazed at the Cuprum Bloom, gleamed like a tiger watching its prey.

"As I said earlier, the condition of this rare Cuprum Bloom is very good. In the case of rare plants, it's important to exit the dungeon without damaging the boss monster. If the boss monster dies or gets seriously injured, the condition of the rare plant naturally deteriorates as well."

It was exactly as Kiril and Dr. Jin had said.

Yaksha's insight certainly seemed to surpass ordinary level.

"On the other hand, look at this Cuprum Bloom. Its unique brilliance is perfectly preserved. At this level, you'd believe it was taken while the boss monster was lying down asleep."

He was probably joking, but I couldn’t help but avert my gaze like someone whose weak spot had been exposed.

Exa’s white blade.

White Dream.

"To be honest, I don't usually step in personally to trade for rare plants. There are plenty of appraisers besides me, after all."

An old man among his close subordinates gave a faint smile, as if in agreement.

"But how could I not be curious when someone who's come to the black market for the first time made it all the way here guided by Bisu? On top of that, the item you brought is a rare plant we haven’t seen in a while!"

In other words, he was more curious about me than the item up for trade.

“It seems people here like to unleash monsters at people they're curious about.”

“Haha. I apologize for that.”

He had been playing dumb earlier, but now he readily admitted it.

But from his appearance, I got the feeling that Yaksha wouldn’t be joking around anymore.

“If someone with no talent steals the Association’s goods to sell here, we’ll be in trouble too. I was suspicious, and you cleared it with your skill. Part of that verification fee is included in the ten million won.”

“Part of? Does that mean there’s another reason behind it?”

“I’ll explain that later.”

As Yaksha nodded, one of his subordinates came carrying a thick envelope.

I instinctively realized that was the price of the Cuprum Bloom.

A whopping 60 million won.

A large sum of money I had never touched in my life.

Not to mention 60 million won, I hadn’t even earned as little as 6,000 won before, so it didn’t feel real even as I looked at it.

‘It feels so light…’

I expected something like a bag of cash, but the 60 million won in cash was smaller in volume than I had imagined.

“As you probably know, wire transfers aren’t really our style.”

“I never expected that in the first place. If I get attacked by someone on my way out, that’d be my responsibility, right?”

“You understand well.”

Yaksha grinned, baring his teeth in satisfaction.

Chwarararak.

Maybe it’s because cash transactions were the rule here.

They brought out a machine you’d normally only see at a bank and quickly verified the number of bills.

After confirming the amount, I handed the Cuprum Bloom over to his subordinate.

“You look like a student. Where are you originally from?”

It’s not like he was asking for my home address.

Answering something like this shouldn’t be a problem.

"Seoul."

"Really? Then you must’ve come by bus? Khehehe."

Not just Yaksha, even his subordinates around him snickered as well.

What, seriously.

What’s so funny about being a minor?

Is being underage some kind of joke to you?!

“They sure ask all kinds of things in the black market.”

“Wahaha! That’s not what I meant. It’s just that you…”

Yaksha, now back in his throne-like chair, spoke with a glint in his eyes.

“It seems like you’re blessed with beginner’s luck.”

"What do you mean?"

“To collect a rare plant, you mustn’t defeat the boss monster. The dungeon would disappear otherwise.”

“Right.”

“On the other hand, if you leave the boss monster alone and only collect the rare plant, the dungeon won’t disappear. In other words, just because the dungeon is open doesn't guarantee that there will be Eternal Blooms inside."

"......!"

“There are plenty of people who collect rare plants themselves. When prices skyrocket, even we send our own people to collect them directly. Right now, most of Seoul is probably picked clean.”

That was something I hadn't even heard from Kiril or Dr. Jin.

If someone had already taken the Cuprum Bloom from the Poison Dungeon I entered, I would’ve wandered around cluelessly until I was completely drained, not knowing the truth.

“Judging by your awakened state, you probably only had two or three chances at most, maybe it was even your first try.”

So he means I pulled off a so-called ‘one shot, one kill.’

Now I understood what Yaksha meant by beginner’s luck.

"If you plan on finding rare herbs in the future, you'd be best off avoiding Seoul and Daejun. Those places are full of crazy people obsessed with rare herbs."

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Yeah. Next time, I hope to see a Silver or Aurum Bloom.”

Honestly, there was something I wanted to ask, but I held myself back.

If a Cuprum Bloom is sold this high, how much a Silver or Aurum Bloom would be sold?

Somehow, it felt like he could tell what I was wondering, but he wouldn't say anything first.

Damn bastard.

“We’ll meet again soon.”

The deal was over, and I had received his advice.

If I keep talking to a guy gnawing on monster meat in this gloomy place any longer, I feel like I would start losing it too.

But before I left, there was something I needed to do.

“Brie.”

I called out in a low voice to the one perched on my shoulder.

Phoowsh.

– Kkuwang!

"Oh…..!"

Exclamations erupted from Yaksha's subordinates.

Well, it was understandable. They were surprised by a monster that could use stealth.

But this was the black market, so there was no need to be cautious.

Step, step.

No one was bothering to pick up Bisu lying on the floor.

She was still bleeding profusely. It seemed like this group was pretty ruthless. Content originally comes from NoveI★Fire.net

“Let’s feast a little today.”

– Kkuwang!

At my command, Brie began absorbing the poisons inside my body.

Shuuuu...

Inside me, three energies mingled together.

Poison.

Healing power.

Black Aether.

Black Aether has now become my energy source, but the poison and healing power that arose every day are still locked in a fierce struggle.

In that state, what would happen if Brie fully sucked up all my poison?

Without poison left to neutralize, only the ‘healing power’ would naturally remain.

In other words, I would become a perfect 'healer'.

That’s why, despite having a body full of poison, I was taking the qualification test not as a ‘Poisoner’ or ‘Knight,’ but as a ‘Healer.’

The source was right here.

– Kkeuk.

Every morning, I purified the poison in my body with Black Aether, but a much larger amount remained inside me.

Seeing Brie burp, it seemed he had absorbed a significant amount of poison.

I focused the excess healing power left in my body into my fingertips.

Sharreurr….

“Umm..…”

A faint groan escaped from the unconscious Bisu’s mouth.

When she was snappy and talkative, I didn’t really notice, but now that she was expressionless, her small, delicate features stood out even more.

One side of the face, free of scars, was so pretty like this, yet the opposite side pressed against the floor bore a terrible scar.

No matter how much my healing power increased, it couldn't undo the scars that were already there.

If a healer’s ability were limitless, Kiril’s injured arm would have healed too.

While I was lost in these thoughts, Bisu’s wounds fully healed.

I considered wiping the blood stuck to her forehead, but with Yaksha already misunderstanding, I figured that would be too much.

“Healer? You're a healer?!”

Yaksha's eyes went wide at the sight of the healing scene.

He didn’t have that expression when I took out the Cuprum Bloom.

He must be pretty shocked.

“Yeah. My type is a healer.”

Actually, I was just a healer applicant.

That look on his face, as if he knew everything, made me not want to tell him that.

“That’s ridiculous. You definitely…”

“How much do you even know about me to say something like that?”

I asked casually, and Yaksha rolled his eyes as if pondering something.

Then suddenly, he let out a chilling laugh.

“Heh heh... hehehehehe…”

Yeah, if I stay here any longer, I’ll end up losing my mind too.

Yaksha kept nodding to himself, then began mumbling something under his breath.

And when those murmured words reached my ears, my entire body froze.

“Yeah. That’s right. Opposites always attract after all.”

* * *

It was a long journey, so much so that it was hard to believe it all happened in a single day.

After that intense ordeal, I finally made it home.

Not just with enough money for the Hunter Qualification Test fee, but with ten million won in earnings as well.

But. That. Did. Not. Matter.

“Haesun..…”

Disappointment, frustration, even anger.

A look my sister had never shown me in her entire life now pierced through me.

If I had known from the start that this condition was included in that extra ten million won, I might’ve just thrown the money back at Yaksha and walked away.

“Hello, sis. I’ll be in your care for a while!”

The pickpocket from the black market greeted my sister with a bright, cheerful face.

Bisu bowed politely toward my sister, whose pupils were practically shaking.

Fuck.

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