NOVEL NEXT Chapter 4 - Scheming
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“Just try it once! Premium healing magic! Cures diseases! Heals the body! Even severed arms grow back! It’s top quality, I tell you!”
Diligent, sincere, and persistent, I was promoting myself in a corner of the adventurer’s guild after finishing my serving job today.
At first, I had positioned myself near the reception desk where the angelic Celine was.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Lee Jin-sang. It’s interfering with my work…”
“Yes, I’m sorry.”
Since I couldn’t disturb the angelic Celine, I promoted in a corner of the guild.
“There he goes again.”
“Hey, quack healer, don’t you ever get tired of this?”
Of course, the response wasn’t good.
“Come on, don’t call me a quack healer when you haven’t even tried my healing!”
“Don’t~ call~ me~ a~ quack~ healer~.”
The B-rank adventurer who always mocks me teasingly.
The elf Samurth.
He’s a member of the city’s signature adventurer party.
But his personality is terrible.
Samurth, who frequently teases and enjoys mocking me.
Looking at his face, he must be quite old even among elves, but he teases like a child.
“Hey, someone as old as you finding it fun to tease people like that!”
“Yep, fucking fun.”
Don’t they include a personality check when ranking adventurers?
“Hey, Samurth! Stop teasing him and let’s go!”
“Oh, right. Quack healer! Don’t cause medical accidents trying to treat other people~.”
Giggling, Samurth left with his party members to perform a request.
Phew, now that the damn old child is gone, it’ll be quiet.
“Just try it once! Premium healing magic! Cures diseases! Heals the body! Even severed arms grow back! It’s top quality, I tell you!”
I started promoting again.
“Wow, he doesn’t get discouraged at all despite being teased like that every day.”
“That kind of persistence is really impressive.”
I can hear the voices of adventurers talking about me nearby.
“Free for first-time customers! It’s a free service!”
“Didn’t he say he was recruiting companions at first?”
“He’s changed to talking like a merchant since he’s had no success.”
“Um, excuse me… I’d like to try it once…”
Ears perking up!
My ears, starving for trust and achievements, didn’t miss that voice.
Swiftly turning around, I saw an adventurer with black rabbit ears and a cute rabbit tail.
With ample breasts and sturdy hips, there stood the voluptuous rabbit beastkin, Luna.
I’d seen her occasionally while serving. She was a slightly timid C-rank adventurer scout who mainly used daggers.
Perhaps because she’s a rabbit beastkin, she eats small amounts but does so quickly with a cute chomping motion.
“What? Really?”
“What is it, Luna?”
“W-well, I got a small wound on my forearm during a request that hasn’t fully healed yet… Since he said it’s free for first-timers, I don’t have to pay a cleric for it… hehe.”
Good! Good good good!
Come! Come, Luna! Luna noona! Please! Noona!
I looked at Luna with expectant eyes.
However.
“Don’t do it, sis.”
“Yeah, what if your wound gets worse because of that quack? Let’s just go to the temple, we’ll cover the healing cost.”
“B-but that would be a b-burden on you g-guys…”
“What burden is this much? Let’s go, Lien.”
“Yeah, Kal.”
Kal and Lien, human C-rank adventurers in Luna’s party, dissuaded her from becoming my noble first customer.
No, no! My long-awaited first customer!
“W-wait! Stop!”
With the agility I’d developed while gathering herbs, I blocked them from leaving.
“What?”
“Get out of the way.”
Kal and Lien looked at me very irritably.
But ignoring them, I spoke to Luna.
“Your wound hasn’t fully healed? Oh my! That won’t do! Yes! If a beautiful woman like Luna were to get a scar, that would be a big~ problem!”
“Huh? B-beautiful? Me?”
“Of course! Your glossy, flowing black hair that reaches your shoulders, your yellow eyes that shine like the full moon at night! Round eyes and fair skin! How beautiful you are!”
“Ha, hu. He! R-really? He, hehe. Th-thank you.”
Honestly, seeing her so bashful like this, her cuteness stands out more than her beauty, but older women prefer to be called beautiful, right?
I’d like to mention her voluptuous figure too, but that would be sexual harassment, so I’ll refrain.
“Hey, don’t flirt with our sister.”
“Yeah, yeah, Luna sis must be too kind-hearted! Who would trust a quack healer like you!”
That damned “quack healer” again…!
My voice rose at the tired phrase “quack healer.”
“Hey! Seriously! If I had tried even once and made a mistake, I’d understand! But how am I a quack healer when I’ve never even made a mistake!”
“You haven’t made a mistake because you’ve never tried!”
“That’s why I’m saying I’ll show you this time! I’m not asking you guys! I’m doing this because the beautiful~ Luna wants it!”
“Luna sis won’t receive treatment from an unlicensed quack healer like you!”
Ah, when they bring up the license, I have nothing to say.
“Ah, I guarantee my skill!”
“You should guarantee with a license! Not with words! Will you take responsibility if Luna’s skin rots while you’re treating it?”
“Yes! Absolutely! I’ll bet my entire fortune on it! Happy now?”
“What’s there to bet with your tiny fortune from just gathering herbs!”
“What! Are you done talking? Do you know how amazingly I gather herbs and save money!”
“Pfft! Is that enough to pay for a cleric’s healing fee even once?”
“G-guys. S-stop fighting…! W-we’re in the guild.”
Luna tried to stop our argument, looking back and forth between me and her party members.
“Wait a minute, sis! This quack healer is trying to do business recklessly!”
“It’s free for the first time!”
“Calm down! Okay? Let’s calm down.”
Luna soothed her party members and then said to me.
“S-sorry, J-Jin-sang. O-our party members d-don’t like it. I’m r-really sorry…”
When Luna, who had been willing to receive treatment, spoke with such difficulty, I couldn’t press further.
“N-no, it’s okay.”
“Sis, let’s go now.”
“Yeah, just leave that guy behind.”
As the two party members walked out, Luna followed them.
“O-okay! L-let’s go together!”
And I could only stare blankly at their retreating figures.
“Haah…”
Fuck.
“Hehe, looks like you struck out again today, cutie~?”
“Eek!”
Startled by a suddenly sultry voice from behind, I turned around with a shiver.
There stood the B-rank adventurer with bulging muscles and two battle axes strapped to his back, clearly a warrior class.
It was Blex.
“Ah, you scared me! Why are you suddenly talking from behind!”
“Oh my, I’m sorry. Did I startle you?”
I thought my heart was going to drop.
Blex looked at me pityingly and said.
“Jin-sang, instead of clinging to people who won’t trust you anyway, why don’t you move your body like me?”
“I don’t want to.”
“Don’t just refuse, listen to me. The sweet despair on an enemy or monster’s face when they see my wounded body healing is just so~ delicious~.”
“Ah, I don’t have that kind of hobby!”
By the way, Blex was someone who, like me, could use healing magic without a license.
And he was active as a dealer using such healing magic.
A pervert among perverts.
Incidentally, he was the person Celine gave as an example when recommending the mage dealer role.
“Listen more~. The mysterious euphoria of healing one’s own body becomes addictive with experience~. So come with me… let’s switch to dealer♡ We’ll make a good… berserker combo♡”
“Aaaaaaah!”
Feeling that staying here any longer would be very dangerous,
I rushed over to Celine and shouted.
“Celine! I’m going herb gathering! Please prepare the paperwork!”
“You’re going out early today.”
“Blex scares me.”
“Despite appearances, he’s a very kind adventurer with a good reputation.”
“Is it good to try to drag someone who refuses into becoming a berserker? And his way of speaking gets creepier by the day, it’s really scary!”
“I’ll prepare the request acceptance paperwork. Good luck today, Mr. Lee Jin-sang.”
“Don’t ignore me, Celine! But thanks for the encouragement! I’ll be back!”
I immediately left to gather herbs.
“Aah~ little miser~.”
Blex’s voice from behind me made me break out in cold sweat.
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Since I went herb gathering earlier than usual and had some time left,
“Munch munch munch.”
I chewed on a chicken skewer I bought from a street vendor with the money earned from herb gathering, reflecting on today’s events.
-What’s there to bet with your tiny fortune from just gathering herbs!
-Pfft! Is that enough to pay for a cleric’s healing fee even once?
“Hmm…”
Those were the words spoken by the woman in Luna’s party.
Yes, to gain trust, perhaps the fastest way is to prepare enough compensation to cover failures.
It means they might give me a chance if I can compensate them for the cost of getting treated at a temple if their skin gets slightly damaged.
But the problem is that temple healing costs are ridiculously expensive…
The money I’m earning now isn’t enough to cover temple healing fees yet…
“Munch munch munch, I really need to earn more money.”
Preferably in a way that doesn’t hurt me… Huh?
While lost in thought, walking mindlessly,
I realized I had entered an area I don’t usually frequent.
“This is…”
What’s commonly called the shady area.
A place with brothels selling sex, detective agencies handling suspicious requests, gambling dens that sometimes lead people to ruin, and black markets dealing in rare and illegal items.
It was the nightlife district.