Chapter 48 - Chapter 48

Chapter 48

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Translated by Jinmu

Read more at hivetoons.org

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After the electronic servant had been executed.

Rajix, like a fish in water, began sweeping and scrubbing the spacious house.

With a fervor that would not permit even a single speck of dust.

The topmost-floor penthouse of the apartment complex even had a small garden utilizing the rooftop.

Before long, he had also gone out to the garden and was snipping tree branches with a garden scissors pulled from his backpack, tidying them up beautifully.

Gyeon Dal-rae watched his contentment with a warm smile.

"He seems so pleased now that his station has risen."

"...What? A rise in station?"

"He has become a servant of a great household, has he not. Surely the dream of every servant. This one is glad as well."

That was what she meant.

Well, compared to the officetel, the penthouse was certainly a great household.

He himself had once desperately wanted to become a servant at a large corporation... no, a great household.

"And here I thought it meant his rank had risen. From R to SR."

"A petty rank cannot measure a servant's worth. Look there at SSR Cossack and Gobang."

He turned his eyes to look.

Gobang was in the kitchen.

He seemed fascinated by the faucet that dispensed water on its own when a hand was placed near it, repeatedly putting his hand in and pulling it out.

Cossack was sprawled sideways on the wide luxury sofa with his arm propped up.

He was scrolling through TV channels from 0 to 999 with the remote, yawning hugely the whole time.

And then their eyes met.

"Are we having a company dinner today, sir?"

"My, my... tsk tsk tsk. Look at that. What good is being an SSR, sir? He doesn't even know the duty of a servant."

Cossack seemed to have quickly adapted to the new house.

"Of course, we should have a company dinner."

"He he he he, as expected of Summoner Bong, sir. Shall we order delivery, sir?"

"Oh come on, would it do to order delivery food on a day like this? We have to go with room service."

He had already thought it through.

The concierge service exclusive to luxury apartments.

The basic monthly management fee alone was 3 million won.

A place like this had its own dining system and even served breakfast service in the mornings.

Room service was naturally possible.

"From now on, company dinners are unconditionally room service."

"Yay! Summoner Bong is the best, sir!"

Joo-hyuk spread open the service guide left on the living room table.

Looking at the room service menu items.

Words failed him.

No wonder.

'What sort of menu items are these...'

Staggering prices.

30,000 won for a plate of organic vegetable salad, 60,000 won for a plate of pasta, 150,000 won for a plate of tenderloin steak.

Even a boiled egg was 15,000 won per egg.

'What, did a phoenix lay these eggs or something?'

Gobang alone would eat 300 eggs.

He could easily handle 100 plates of steak too.

"What is wrong, sir?"

"The, there's just nothing on the menu that particularly appeals to me. The food doesn't look delicious either."

Thwack!

Joo-hyuk closed the service guide.

"Eehh, then we must absolutely not order, sir. Food is extremely important, sir. There is even a saying, 'Even the Black Tower can wait until after a meal, sir.'"

"This time what Cossack says is correct. A servant works well when servant food is good."

"I'll eat anything. Something cheap and plentiful."

Joo-hyuk nodded.

"Let's order delivery. That will taste way better."

"Yes, sir!"

In any case, this was a house that had everything.

They could move in right away.

This apartment's price was approximately 15 billion won.

Including acquisition tax and one year's management fee.

He had asked why the price was so low.

Apparently, it was not the actual market price but the officially assessed land price.

The officially assessed land price was set by the government, so it had no choice but to be sold at that rate.

He knew it was just an excuse, but well, he should accept this much.

In any case, no need to drag things out.

He'd check out of the officetel first thing tomorrow.

And on top of that, he'd diligently strip the basilisk leather.

Though he didn't know what price the leather would fetch, he needed to keep stock on hand so he could hand it over immediately when the time came.

And from the day after moving in.

Joo-hyuk and the summoned entities proceeded with repetitive clearing on the 45th floor.

* * *

HG Fashion's Go Yeon-ha visited the Awakening Management Agency.

It had been 3 days since receiving the proposal to supply Basilisk leather.

"Excuse me, coming through. Deputy Director-nim."

"Welcome, CEO Go Yeon-ha."

They exchanged greetings.

"How is it? Has a conclusion been reached on the leather value assessment?"

To assess it, Go Yeon-ha had brought leather samples and photos of the Basilisk with her 3 days prior.

However.

"I'll be honest with you. We couldn't find an answer either."

"Hmm, the value assessment seems difficult."

"But I have a proposal, and I need to give you some explanation first..."

"Yes, I'll listen."

What kind of proposal is this?

"Using crocodile leather as an example, to produce one high-end bag, typically the leather of about 3 crocodiles is needed."

"Just for one bag?"

"That's right. When processing crocodile leather, parts that can't be used as a product get cut away. There is a quality difference, and most importantly, the patterns and markings are crucial."

"Oh! I understand what you mean."

"Of course, a Basilisk is many times larger than a crocodile, and since the patterns and markings are alive across its entire body, there won't be as much being cut away."

Naturally.

Was a crocodile and a Basilisk even comparable?

"We plan to make products in three lines with this leather."

"Three lines, meaning..."

"A mid-to-low price range that people can easily access, a high-quality range that requires some real deliberation before spending, and a high-end luxury range that not just anyone can purchase."

"Each would have a different quality of leather."

"Yes, the high-end luxury line would have Rainbow Basilisk leather mixed in."

Go Yeon-ha lifted the teacup in front of her to wet her lips, then continued.

"So here's the idea I came up with: rather than us paying for the materials upfront, how about splitting the final product sales revenue at an appropriate ratio?"

"Oh!"

A reasonable idea.

Given that assessing the leather's value was difficult anyway.

Splitting the final profit might actually be the most convenient and sensible approach.

Go Yeon-ha briefed Jeon Kwang-il on her proposal.

Accepting what needed accepting, revising what needed revising.

And the conclusion they reached.

First, they would create a new corporation and brand.

Brand name: Wildflower & Basili.

So, from the total sales of Wildflower & Basili products, all costs were deducted: the leather processing cost, the cost of turning leather into products, labor costs, distribution costs, equipment costs, marketing costs... everything.

Production cost accounting would then be audited by the Awakening Management Agency.

What remained after taxes were paid was the net profit.

"Please take 80% of the final net profit to the Awakening Management Agency. What do you think?"

80%, meaning HG Fashion would take 20%...

"Let's make it 95%. Since this is a net profit split, not revenue."

"5% is too little..."

"You'll be selling other things too. And the Wildflower brand value will rise as well."

"We also need to invest in facilities..."

Jeon Kwang-il casually tossed out a comment.

"Wildflower & W."

"...Yes?"

What was he saying?

Wildflower & W?

"What might 'W' be short for?"

"Oh!"

"Not Wildflower & W, but it could become Ilseong & W, or Daehyun & W..."

Are you serious!

"Wi, Wyvern leather is also possible?"

"It is unconditionally possible. Once Wyvern leather becomes available down the line, let's renegotiate the profit split ratio for Wildflower & Basili."

Go Yeon-ha answered quickly.

"Yes, our company will take the 5%."

Only a fool would hesitate over this.

Not to mention Ilseong & W, Daehyun & W.

Just imagining it was horrifying.

Jeon Kwang-il was satisfied too.

If the net profit were 1 million won, the Awakening Management Agency, or rather Player Bong, would take 950,000 won as the leather fee, and HG Fashion would take 50,000 won.

HG Fashion wouldn't have major complaints either.

It was a net profit split, after all.

They'd develop other products and sell them alongside it.

For instance, bundling clothes that matched Basilisk leather bags and selling them together.

They would work to maximize their own profits too.

On top of that, the Wyvern & W bait had been dangled.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"There is one thing."

"Please say it."

"We processed the sample leather through a chemical treatment process. It took a bit of time, but as a material base for products, it was sufficient."

"Good."

"However, cutting and crafting it is extremely difficult. Even with just an A4-paper-sized piece, regular tools don't cut it cleanly. So we need tools incorporating tower metal. A lot of them."

Tower metal.

That was just as rare as the leather.

Perhaps even more so.

Players sporadically brought back ingot-form tower metal as clear rewards, but honestly, even that was insufficient for weapon-making.

"Understood. I'll inquire at the workshop. And let's write the contract after getting the final approval from the Commissioner."

"Yes."

Now all that was left was to make the products and sell them.

The disappointing thing, if there was one, was that money wouldn't be coming in right away.

Permission was needed.

He told Go Yeon-ha it was the Commissioner's approval, but in reality it was from someone else.

* * *

The 4th day of clearing only the 45th floor.

Entering the tower twice a day.

It seemed like it would be tiring and take a long time, but it was nothing of the sort.

For one thing, the S++ grade clear didn't need any attention.

It had already been done, and this was the repeat clear.

The amount of leather that could be taken per entry was 6 regular pieces and 1 boss piece, totaling 7.

Two entries meant a total of 14.

Every other day, Officer Lee Min-ah would come and retrieve 28 pieces into her inventory, and that was it. Not a single thing was difficult.

The most challenging part of this whole process, if there was one, was meeting with Officer Lee Min-ah; she talked so much that he nearly died from trying to answer everything.

Anyway, after clearing and resting back at home, a call came in from Jeon Kwang-il.

The content was about the leather supply contract.

"Wha, 95% goes to me? Did anyone call me a thief?"

- They accepted readily.

Is the HG Fashion CEO an easy mark?

"Well, I have no complaints. If anything I'm grateful. I just need to supply the leather."

The plan was to sell leather products and split the profit.

95% of net profit.

Money he earned while doing nothing.

- Understood. Then we will proceed with drafting the contract with HG Fashion. Just so you know in advance, Player Bong Joo-hyuk's name will not appear in the document. Superficially, it is a contract between the Awakening Management Agency and HG Fashion.

"That's actually great. And please don't forget to take 1 piece of leather each time you collect as the Awakening Management Agency's share."

- Thank you so very much. Oh! And there's something I need to tell you... I'd like you to pause leather collection for the time being.

"What?"

Stop stripping leather?

"Why?"

- Allow me to explain. First...

Jeon Kwang-il had two reasons for requesting the pause in leather collection.

First.

The leather processing facilities were not yet fully operational.

Which meant not a single piece of the incoming stock could be processed.

Second.

It was about scarcity.

If leather kept piling up in excess, its value would inevitably drop.

It was better to supply it slightly under demand.

Joo-hyuk agreed.

When it couldn't be processed or turned into cash immediately, continuing to collect would only diminish the value of the goods.

He gathered the summoned entities and relayed the content of his phone call with Jeon Kwang-il.

"I knew it would come to this. Thanks to this, only our Worker Rajix has labored for nothing. I can only imagine how frustrated the Young Master must feel."

As she said this, Gyeon Dal-rae glared at Cossack.

"Money needs to forcefully strike his account? I earnestly desire the same. However, the money has been tied up. And there is no telling when it will be converted to cash."

"Ho-eng!"

"How do you intend to take responsibility? The time put in feels wasted. We should have just mined Mana Stones and sold those."

"Ho-eng?"

"You were so confident during the briefing, and you don't even know the first thing about how production, distribution, and sales work."

"Ho-e-e!"

Cossack's face turned bright red.

He kept glancing at Joo-hyuk, seeking help.

Since he had been the one to approve the briefing.

In truth, he hadn't done anything particularly wrong.

It simply meant the money would come in later.

Wait and it'll come eventually.

It was just that Gyeon Dal-rae, who had been looking for an opportunity to point out Cossack's mistakes at every turn, seized the moment and went in for the bite.

Still, seeing the desperate look in Cossack's eyes as he stared at him.

How could he look away?

"Now now, it's done, so let's not talk about it anymore. And actually, why don't we sprint to the 50th floor from here? Let's start the 46th-floor clear tomorrow."

"Ye, yes, sir! Agreed, sir!"

Cossack answered as if he'd been waiting for that.

"Don't worry, sir. That SSR, right-hand man of Summoner Bong, the faithful confidant Cossack will finish it at S++ grade, sir."

"Good. That's reassuring. Let's start the 46th-floor clear tomorrow. However! The 50th-floor clear will be done once the Random Summoning cooldown resets."

Cossack raised his hand as if something had occurred to him.

"...Um, the b, briefing, sir?"

"No. Please don't."

"Yes, sir!"

Gyeon Dal-rae and Gobang also agreed.

"As expected of the wise Young Master. This one concurs."

"The warrior agrees too. Whatever is commanded, it shall be done."

Then,

"Ho-eng?"

Rajix also raised his hand high.

"Please speak, Mr. Rajix, worker."

"Do we peel the scorpion exoskeleton?"

Hmm, what to do.

The exoskeleton also required processing just the same.

Still, let's bring a few as samples.

"Peel just one or two. We don't need many."

"Ho-e, yes."

And so, the decision to climb to the unchallenged upper floors was made.

* * *

[You are entering the 46th floor of the South Korea (South Korean) Black Tower.]

The 46th through 50th floors were the giant scorpion section.

The scorpion's attribute varied by floor.

The environment was identical across all.

Barren mountains without a single blade of grass scattered here and there, plains that were all desert, with house-sized boulders dotted throughout.

What kind of scorpions would appear?

Venom was standard equipment, and the type of venom determined the attribute.

Paralysis venom, bleeding venom, hallucination venom, acid venom, and a King with all of the above.

This was the section where Healing Potions were consumed the most.

Whether the clear succeeded or failed hinged on how many Potions were secured beforehand.

[46th-floor Mission: Eliminate 15 Paralysis Scorpions.]

[Completion Time Limit: Within 13 hours.]

[Failure Condition: Death or mission abandonment]

The tail had venom, and the claws did too.

The creature even spat venom-laced saliva from its mouth.

"These scorpion bastards, they spit saliva everywhere, sir. If hit, you're paralyzed, sir. If paralyzed, you can't move your body, sir. So..."

"I should hang back?"

"As expected, you're sharp, sir. Summoner Bong, you're like a genius, sir."

"I don't think I can do that. And what about Gobang and Cossack? They'd get paralyzed too, wouldn't they?"

"Gobang, paralysis venom doesn't work on him, sir. Look at his absurdly thick skin, sir. And I am also a specialist with venoms, sir. Even if I'm hit, I can purge it quickly, sir."

Gyeon Dal-rae also nodded.

Rajix also started to nod... then rolled.

Poor Rajix with no neck.

"..."

Just you wait and see.

Whether I move or I don't.

The clear began.

Krak-krak-krak, clak-clak-clak.

A large blue Paralysis Scorpion, raising its claws and tail, appeared.

Gobang was truly unfazed by the venom.

Even with the saliva from the scorpion's mouth soaking his entire body, far from being paralyzed, he moved even faster.

Gobang ripped off a scorpion's claw and bashed its own head with it.

Thwack!

Cossack, sneaking behind Gobang to dodge the venom, launching finishing blows when an opening came.

Gyeon Dal-rae's buffs as reliable as ever.

But...

"Hm?"

Rajix, the little guy disappeared again.

If he gets venom on him somehow.

Right at that moment!

He shifted his gaze.

There, without anyone noticing, was Rajix with a pickaxe, stout arms swinging away to break apart a giant boulder.

And he picked up a lump twice the size of an adult's fist from between the rocks and tucked it into his backpack.

He had a feeling he knew what it was.

"That's ore, isn't it?"

The scorpion section.

Aside from the exoskeleton shell, there was more to gather here.