Chapter 289

Chapter 289

After returning, Zeon did not take a single step outside for three days and simply lazed around inside the house.

Naturally, Briel and Levin also stayed home.

Briel had always preferred researching indoors to wandering outside, and Levin, who had finished his revenge, could not find any particular reason to go out either, so he stayed home as well.

Like that, the three of them remained at home and spent time in their own ways.

If there was one thing that had changed, it was that a single baby whale had been added to the group.

The one who brightened the most after Gaia came home was Briel.

There had always been a shadow over Briel’s face.

Gaia’s appearance drove away the darkness that had always lingered on her face.

“You see, this is something I made recently.”

Squee?

When Briel shook a bottle filled with blue liquid, Gaia tilted its large head.

The sight was so cute that Briel smiled brightly and said,

“Tada! It’s a Mana Recovery Potion.”

Squee?

“What’s different from the old one? The efficiency, of course. I concentrated a ton of mana into this one. To be honest, I couldn’t follow Zeon because I was making this. If I’d gone with him, I would’ve met you sooner.”

The potion she was holding now was different from the potions she had made before.

Its efficiency had been greatly improved compared to the existing Mana Recovery Potion. If consumed, it would restore fifty percent of a Grade C Awakened’s mana within two hours.

One might wonder what was so impressive about “only” fifty percent, but in a situation where all mana had been exhausted, recovering fifty percent could mean the difference between life and death.

Elura’s Tear, which Zeon possessed, was simply an absurd item. Fifty percent alone was already tremendous.

For Grade A or Grade B Awakened, their mana reservoirs were too large for the effect to be significant, but for Grade C Awakened and below, this level of performance was like another lifeline.

Naturally, Grade D and Grade E Awakened recovered even more mana.

This was the result Briel had created while shutting herself in her room during Zeon’s absence. But because of that, she could not help feeling regretful that she had not met Gaia earlier.

Seeing Briel’s regretful expression, Gaia patted her with its pectoral fin as if to say it was all right.

Squeeee!

“Yeah! I think so too. In any case, we met like this. Oh, my thoughts went off on a tangent again. The important thing is that this potion’s efficiency is really good. The ingredients are easy to get too. So its cost-satisfaction...... no, cost-effectiveness is very good.”

Squeak, squeak?

“What’s good about that? Of course it’s good. We can make it cheaply and sell it for a high price. Then we can earn a lot of money.”

Squee?

Gaia tilted its head.

It did not know what was good about earning a lot of money.

As a spirit lifeform, Gaia did not even have the concept of “money.” Naturally, it did not know what was good about earning a lot of it.

“If you earn a lot of money, life gets comfortable. You can do everything you want, and you can buy everything you want. Of course, we can expand this house too. And another good thing is......”

Briel chattered excitedly, and Gaia listened to all of it beside her.

At that moment, Zeon said,

“You said you were going to sell that recipe to the Dokkaebi Market, right?”

“Yeah!”

“Then let’s go now. I’m going to the Dokkaebi Market too.”

“Okay!”

Briel stood and immediately put on her robe.

Levin also put on his clothes and said,

“Then I’ll go too. I wanted to get some fresh air anyway.”

And so, all of them came out of the house.

Gaia entered Zeon’s subspace.

If Awakened saw a baby whale flying through the air, there was no telling what they might do.

For Gaia’s safety, it was better not to let it be seen by people.

Fortunately, Gaia did not seem particularly dissatisfied with that.

Spending time outside with Briel was nice, but Zeon’s subspace was also a very good resting place for Gaia.

The three walked down the street shoulder to shoulder.

Perhaps because it had been a long time since they had gone outside, Briel and Levin looked very cheerful.

Zeon also felt quite good.

Staying shut inside the house was nice, but going out like this was not bad either.

“How is Dongdaemun these days?”

“It’s quiet.”

“Really?”

“Yes! I don’t know if they received a warning from City Hall, but in any case, they’re not coming anywhere near Shinchon.”

“That’s a relief.”

“But......”

“What?”

“It’s become more closed off. Before, people could still come and go freely, but now the inspections have gotten strict. Anyone who looks like they might be harmful to Dongdaemun can’t enter at all.”

“Then I guess I can never enter Dongdaemun again.”

“Congratulations, Hyung! You’re probably at the very top of Dongdaemun’s blacklist.”

“Thanks.”

They walked while joking like that, and before they knew it, they had arrived at the Dokkaebi Market.

All three of them were VIPs of the Dokkaebi Market.

The Guards let them pass the moment they saw their faces.

As soon as they entered the Dokkaebi Market, they could feel the bustling atmosphere.

Not only the merchants, but also the people who had come to buy goods looked full of energy.

Briel tilted her head.

“What is this? I’m seeing more Awakened than usual.”

“You’re right. Did something happen?”

Levin also noticed that the atmosphere of the Dokkaebi Market was different from usual.

It was not as if the Dokkaebi Market being lively was anything new, but right now, it felt more overheated than usual.

At that moment, someone answered their question.

“Didn’t Zeon tell you? A new Mana Stone Mine was discovered.”

“Hm?”

“A Mana Stone Mine?”

When Levin and Briel turned around, they saw Yu Se-hee standing with Black Lion.

Zeon greeted Yu Se-hee.

“It’s been a while.”

“It has. I thought you’d come right away...... I didn’t expect you not to show your face for three whole days.”

“I wanted to rest properly.”

“Well, I suppose you must’ve been tired. So, has your fatigue gone away?”

“To some extent.”

“That’s good!”

“You said this commotion is because of the Mana Stone Mine?”

“Yeah! Word has spread that Neo Seoul’s Pathfinders discovered a candidate site for a new Mana Stone Mine.”

Zeon naturally knew that fact.

He had personally helped Pathfinder Team 3 confirm that Mana Stones existed there.

With a puzzled expression, Zeon asked,

“What does that have to do with this?”

“You really have no interest in this side of things. Think about how huge the interests tied to a new Mana Stone Mine would be.”

“Ah! So the Awakened are moving to claim those interests first.”

“Exactly! If they achieve a major contribution, the reward will be just as large.”

A Mana Stone Mine was like Neo Seoul’s lifeline.

The moment the supply was cut off, Neo Seoul would return to the medieval era.

Because of that, Neo Seoul staked everything on developing new Mana Stone Mines.

No official announcement had been made yet, but rumors were secretly circulating that an attack force would soon be recruited to successfully develop the Mana Stone Mine.

Because of that, countless organizations, including dungeon raid teams, were sweeping up supplies to join that attack force.

Thanks to that, the Dokkaebi Market was also enjoying an enormous boom.

The goods the merchants had stockpiled were nearly sold out.

Because of that, the merchants too had been thrown into an emergency as they scrambled to secure more supplies.

Briel, who had been quiet until then, opened her mouth.

“What’s selling best right now?”

“There are rumors that the monster in the Mana Stone Mine might be Grade S, so naturally, potions like emergency medicine are selling well.”

“So potions are selling well?”

“Brat, you created something, didn’t you?”

Yu Se-hee’s eyes flashed in that instant.

They had not known each other for only a day or two.

A considerable portion of the potions now circulating in the Dokkaebi Market had been created by Briel.

Because of that, the Dokkaebi Market treated Briel as an even more valuable guest than Zeon.

“What did you make this time?”

“Mana Potion!”

“What’s the effect?”

“It restores fifty percent of a Grade C Awakened’s mana within two hours.”

“Really?”

“We’ll need to test it for the details, but according to my calculations, yes.”

“What are the production costs?”

“They’re not that expensive.”

“Really?”

Yu Se-hee smelled it.

The thick scent of money.

“Brat! This is your chance to make big money.”

“I know.”

“Hand over the recipe. I’ll pay you well.”

“Do I look like I started doing business yesterday? You make the first offer.”

“An elf getting this shrewd...... I thought elves were supposed to be a race without greed?”

“I realized you need a lot of money to survive in this damn city.”

“You fallen elf.”

“Remember that you helped with that too, auntie.”

“Auntie?”

“Or not.”

“Eek!”

Yu Se-hee’s face twisted.

She usually did not show emotion easily to others, but for some reason, whenever Briel was involved, she ended up getting dragged around.

She barely controlled her emotions and said,

“Fine! I’ll add another five percent to the existing terms.”

“Ten percent!”

“No way! Then we take a loss. Six percent!”

“Then let’s make it a clean seven percent. If you don’t accept that, I can’t hand over the recipe either.”

“Haa! You’ve become human down to the bone.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Fine! Seven percent. Hurry and hand over the recipe. If we’re going to start producing it now, we have to hurry.”

“Here!”

Briel handed Yu Se-hee the recipe paper she had prepared in advance.

Yu Se-hee immediately handed it to Black Lion and said,

“Tell them to hurry production. If we want to match the quantity, even staying up for several nights won’t be enough.”

“Understood, Miss!”

Black Lion took the recipe and ran into the inner part of the Dokkaebi Market.

Briel asked with a puzzled expression,

“You’re going straight into production without even verifying the recipe?”

“I know your ability. Apart from your rotten manners, that is.”

“Hmph!”

Briel crossed her arms with a triumphant expression.

Rather than looking annoying, the sight was cute, so Yu Se-hee chuckled.

“Fine! You’re the greatest.”

“Hehe!”

“I really can’t compliment you, can I?”

“Oh! Did any attribute-related items come into the Dokkaebi Market?”

“What do you mean by attribute-related?”

“You know how some items rarely have attributes attached.”

“Ah!”

Yu Se-hee frowned.

A considerable number of the items distributed through the Dokkaebi Market were made in Neo Seoul’s workshops.

Items made in workshops almost never had attributes attached.

Unless they were made by a skilled Enchanter or artisan.

The best ones were items excavated from dungeons.

Dungeon-made items sometimes had unimaginable attributes attached. But items with attributes like that were extremely rare and almost never circulated in the market.

Even for the Dokkaebi Market, obtaining such things was not easy.

“You need an item with an attribute attached?”

“Yeah!”

“You’re not going to tell me why, are you?”

“Nope!”

“Damn elf!”

“Do you have one?”

“One came in not long ago. It’s an item called Kona’s Bracelet, and unusually, it has fire resistance attached. In simple terms, if you wear this bracelet, you can endure a little longer when you’re hit by fire-related attacks.”

“What’s the price?”

“It’s dungeon-made, so it’s pretty expensive. Are you buying it?”

“Yeah!”

“Okay! Then I’ll deduct it from your Mana Potion profits?”

“Do that.”

Briel, who had been so strict when negotiating the profits from the Mana Potion recipe, agreed far too easily, so Yu Se-hee asked,

“What are you going to use an attribute item for?”

“To give it to a friend.”

“A friend?”

“Yeah! A friend!”

Briel answered with a bright expression.