Chapter 177. Black Market

Choi Jin said with a stern face.

"...You're suddenly saying strange things. Anyway, I understand what you said about Kang Changho, so you can leave now, Hunter Kim. We need to start getting ready to head home soon."

That's a strange reaction. So, Giryeo kept pressing on the topic repeatedly. However, because of this behavior, he ended up ruining the goodwill he had carefully built.

"Just go already! How many times do I have to say it for you to understand? I'm already tired as hell with how late it is!"

The Dragon Hunter quickly rejected the conversation and even shouted.

"Oh my. I tried to be considerate just because he's related to Yoonseung..."

Everyone has secrets they don't want to share. Moreover, the curse that has settled within the body is something I can't solve anyway.

"Hmm. Well, I guess there's nothing I can do."

Giryeo hesitated for a moment, then quickly let it go and moved on with the situation. After receiving the payment for the chicken galbi from Choi Jin, he left Chuncheon.

***

Whoosh.

...The heat that was incomparable to what Choi Jin used to give off stimulated my skin.

About three hours after returning to Seoul, I was teaching Jung Haseong the basics of magic, just like usual. Once we were done, I'd probably head home and finish the leftover dakgalbi. It was just another day in my routine.

"How was it, Hunter-nim?"

"Hmm?"

"It's the skill I used on the side. I tried focusing as much mana as you said, though."

"Aha."

"...But I'm still a little nervous. When you acted like an F-rank, you made me shoot the skill from far away. Now, I have to practice with Hunter nearby."

For now, Jung Haseong didn't find my defense power, which had soared drastically due to the [Sacred Tree Seedling], particularly strange. Besides, in just a little while, next month would come, and I'd be able to receive the 3 billion in tuition fees.

As you can see, my bank account balance is steadily rising. On top of that, with the item box I got recently, many aspects of convenience have been greatly improved. What could be a better flow than this?

"Hmm..."

However, in truth, even within this presumptuous peace, something still made me uneasy. The source of that unease was the gaze of someone who, I knew, was still watching me from somewhere.

Kang Changho. Ever since the warning last time, we've been spending unusually quiet days, almost too quiet...

"Damn it, this is so uncomfortable! It's going to drive me crazy!"

There's no problem right now, but honestly, that person is a ticking time bomb. No matter how obedient I am, he could suddenly change his mind and activate 'Improvement' at any moment.

"I regret signing the contract now."

When I signed the pact, I never expected the process of cleaning up the mess to drag on like this. My lungs are in a terrible state, and the magical energy in my body is at such a pathetic level that it's embarrassing to even be called a magician.

"There's nothing I like about this."

I had to escape from this shabby body somehow. That fact was always certain. Increasing my strength and altering in my physique. Both were essential goals that needed to be achieved, even if there was a slight difference in speed.

After finishing all the scheduled tasks, I returned home and immediately checked the listings for the items I wanted. It was a routine I hadn't skipped for a single day.

...

...or rather, it had been a routine.

[Search term: Dragon's Lung]

How many minutes had passed since then? I was sitting alone in Kim Giryeo's studio apartment, staring at my phone.

[Search results: 1]

Just to clarify, in case of any misunderstanding, I'm not saying that the item has come up for sale. Rather, someone has expressed their intention to buy [Dragon's Lung] on the purchase board. So, how much do you think this person has offered as their desired purchase price?

[76,800,000 (USD)]

When I copy the amount and input it into the currency exchange calculator on a portal site, this is the result I get.

[102,924,288,000 South Korean Won]

Ten, hundred thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million... I just double-checked the digits of the number, and no matter how many times I checked, the result was the same.

"102 billion."

...I forgot to mention this first, but actually, that morning when I was in Chuncheon, this news broke on TV.

[[Breaking News] 'Dragon's Lung' Hidden Function Revealed... A Potion That Allows You to Use Dragon's Breath!]

As a result, the previously despised item's market price skyrocketed.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Why...! How could such a terrible thing happen!

I collapsed, screaming like my intestines were going to burst. I can't believe it. When I first found that post, I thought, "There must be something wrong. Someone must have just typed random numbers as a joke," and denied the reality.

It seems that yesterday's news had already become quite famous overseas. A foreign hunter, while drinking a potion to increase elemental resistance, accidentally sneezed and discovered the hidden function of the dragon's lungs. That function was none other than the ability to unleash Dragon Breath. Once it was revealed that by using specific substances, the owner of the dragon's lungs could unleash the attack attributes of dead monsters, the world was thrown into chaos. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"Damn it! And the power of this breath, it follows not the caster, but the grade of the dead dragon!"

And in the midst of all this, the ones who had the greatest impact on the price were the former oil tycoons of the Middle East. I heard that the owner of the lung can use superpowers even if they are not awakened, so they jumped into the competition because they were curious?

Anyway, thanks to the attention from the Middle Eastern tycoons, the Dragon's Lungs became an unexpectedly valuable item. The asking price kept rising, and it has now reached a staggering 102 billion. Experts explained that the price surge might be temporary, as the number of times the breath can be used per day is limited, but no one really knows when the price will drop.

I calmly scanned the opinions of people on my phone screen. And then I shouted again with my face buried in the blanket.

"Oh my God!"

Honestly, it doesn't seem like a person would go crazy in this situation! If you think about it calmly, since the Kagoshima Gate incident, no dragons have appeared on Earth. Even those Middle Eastern tycoons haven't been able to purchase the Lungs yet, so it's highly likely that there's still no surplus of that organ in the world. Therefore, even if someone made an unreasonable purchase offer of around 10 billion before the new effect was announced, there wouldn't have been any variables.

In other words, this was a disaster that could not have been prevented even if time were turned back. It seems that this world's will is to give up [Dragon's Lungs].

So what am I supposed to do now? Am I supposed to rip out a living person's lungs and implant them in my body? But to even attempt that kind of surgery, I'd have to go through hell, just like when I had to gather 3 billion from the ground up.

"Why is this happening to me!"

It's a natural disaster. After thinking it over for a long time, the only conclusion I've reached is that I have to discard most of my plans up until now.

"Somehow, somehow, I must manage to transfer my soul..."

But what can I do? I have to do it.

I clenched my jaw and wracked my brain. My chest still burned with frustration, but there was no greater waste than pouring emotion into an unsolvable situation. Soon, that feeling of despair subsided as well.

***

100 billion. At first, I thought about borrowing money, but I heard that Hunter's loan screening is stricter than I thought.

"Since I don't know when I'll die, my credit is actually low."

So, should I diligently save up the target amount? If I simply calculate based on the tuition fees I get from Haseong, in about 33 months, I'll have 100 billion. The problem, however, is that the curriculum I made for Haseong lasts a maximum of 6 months.

"It's a bit much to extend this to 33 months."

Moreover, the plan to raise the tuition fees after the first three months of the trial period—at this point, that plan was half impossible.

"– Hunter Kim, by the way, regarding the tax handling of the tuition fees I'm paying..."

"Huh?"

"– Since you asked for this transaction to remain confidential, I assume you won't be registering a business. Given the size of the amount, it seems that the deposit will likely be considered a gift."

"–..."

"– Since I'm the one covering all the costs anyway, would it be alright if I handle the tax processing on my side?"

In fact, the 3 billion I was receiving wasn't just 3 billion. In a world as advanced as this, it's natural that there would be various taxes for the ruling class, and I hadn't thought it through properly. So, to get to the point, the actual amount of money Jung Haseong was spending, including taxes, was a whopping 6 billion won.

To be honest, even for an S-rank, this amount is excessive, and I'm taking quite a lot every month. But if I were to get greedy and raise the fees even more, the outcome would be pretty obvious, right?

"It's a complete story of a goose that lays golden eggs."

But selling my epic-grade Hydra right now... I really don't want to do that. Even I think the price for the lungs right now is ridiculously inflated. It feels wasteful in so many ways.

It seemed that buying the dragon's organs would be difficult for the time being. So, I reluctantly started reconsidering the backup plan I had been avoiding.

This is the alternative.

####################

Extracting the lungs of a living human and transplanting them in a fresh state.

Preparation 1. Lung donor

Preparation 2. A body to transfer into.

Preparation 3: A total of five different spells required for activation...

####################

My head is already starting to hurt. In a world where the legal system is so strict, how on earth would I even manage to capture a living person, and with my pitiful amount of magic power, what kind of audacity do I have to use advanced magic?

"Moreover, without fully understanding the Earth's environment and the structure of its inhabitants. Hmm?"

I tapped my temples with a hollow laugh escaping me.

"Haha..."

But then again, as I said before, nothing will change by complaining alone. If I think about it, the world isn't going to end today. So, I decided to just relax and take it easy.

"Well, life is fun when there are variables like this."

I stopped my wandering thoughts and pressed the square button in front of me. Then, a refreshing melody, like a song in the distant air, began to flow. Looking at it, it seems that what I just pressed is indeed the doorbell.

"Hmm."

I looked around, scanning the surroundings.

The place was a single house with its exterior painted in a monochrome color. The reason I had come to this secluded building was simple.

[Calling...Kang Changho ☎]

Before moving forward with my plans, I had something to ask an S-rank Hunter. That's why I had come all the way to this person's house. The topic I was curious about was something that felt too ambiguous to discuss over the phone.

Drrr. Drrr.

After a few rings, the ringtone finally sounded from the phone.

"Ah, Hunter Kang Changho! I just arrived, and I was wondering if..."

"– Just open the door and come in.

The phone screen went dark again. The other person hung up after saying only what he needed to say. Seeing that, I cautiously added "Eliminate the Primitive Shaman" to my future plans in my mind. But that was something for the future; for now, I had to follow the flow of today.

"Oh."

Kieeek.

As I opened the large iron gate, a garden stretched out before me. I proceeded in the direction where I could sense Kang Changho's mana, and as I crossed the front door, an unimaginable interior layout was revealed.

A wide, open, and antique space like an artist's studio.

"This is a house where people live?"

My eyes widened in surprise. Until now, I had thought that Kim Giryeo's house was quite nice, but now that I saw this, it seemed like nothing more than a doghouse. Kang Changho's residence was on a completely different scale, far beyond any comparison to someone's small studio apartment.

"Wow, it's decorated like a resort."

I walked down the quiet hallway. After a while, I finally saw the figure of the awakened one I had been searching for, through the window. A human lying on a long white chair outside. It was Kang Changho.

"Hmm?"

But if I wasn't mistaken, it looked like he was somewhat wet...

"Huh. With a building like this, is the bathroom inconveniently located outside?"

I tilted my head and approached the place where he was. As I got closer to what seemed like a terrace, the reason why Kang Changho looked like that gradually became clear.

"A swimming pool?"

A structure filled with blue water. I know it's called a swimming pool. But I never expected it to be embedded right in a private residence like this.

"Why did you suddenly want to see my face?"

Kang Changho, lying on the sunbed, didn't show any intention of sitting up and started the conversation. His dull-colored gown and the vividly glowing eyes of the dragon formed an oddly contrasting image.

Glance.

I couldn't help but keep glancing at the private swimming pool, a luxury reserved for the rich. My mouth watered slightly. Honestly, a part of me wanted to ask if I could just stay here for two days and enjoy it.

"First of all... shall we go inside and talk for a moment?"

I tried to hide my true thoughts for the sake of the Archmage's dignity, lifting up the box I held in my hand.

[Fresh Orange Juice]

It's a fruit juice set sold by the parent company of Neo Sisters. I recently learned that in this country, visitors to someone's residence are expected to bring a gift. I guess, as an alien, I still lack a bit in common sense.