"Recently resolved issues, as well as those related to Cheongho, the rumors were very interesting. "You made a complete fool of Yang Seo-ho of the management office, right?"
I forgot, something like that happened.
Yang Seo-ho was informed of a colony of parasites from outer space.
She would have been very happy too.
I kindly reported dangerous places and took out all the problematic monsters.
In addition, I have organized artifacts and other things that should not be exposed to the general public, so maybe if you meet me... … .
"I don't know what he did, but it would be better not to meet Yang Seo-ho. Vasilisa has already come and gone twice."
Yes, if Yang Seo-ho meets me, I'll kill him because I'm so happy. me.
"But what does that have to do with the prosperity of the store?"
"That's because the magician who is so great that he can make fun of Yang Seo-ho on the floor of Paju is my exclusive subordinate. As the number of customers coming to see me increased, the other troubleshooters who signed with me were also able to eat a lot of rice cakes and snails."
"Ah, I almost know what you mean."
"But apart from that, there was a lot of work to do. "It's not like it was 20 years ago, but it feels like I went back almost 10 years."
"Right."
I know the general story, but there is no need to tell Tudor. Moreover, no matter what you say, there is nothing Tudor can do to respond.
"So honestly, there are a lot of things I want to ask of you. This incident... … "It's good for both of us in the long run, but if possible, I'd like you to come visit us more often after this."
"I plan on doing that in the future."
"good. "Then, while we're still talking, let's talk about work right away."
This job has an unusually low monetary reward.
Instead, there are more rewards at stake.
"A thousand gold pieces."
"Yes, Cheongeumdang."
"I don't know how you tricked the old man, but I would be very welcome if I could make a deal with a troubleshooter who has a ticket to the Golden Temple."
"It looks like there's something you'd like me to run for you?"
"Hehehe… … Did you get caught? "If you do this kind of work, unpleasant items are bound to pile up in your warehouse."
Cheongeumdang is a store so special that it can only be found in Cthulhu World.
It is completely different from a black market or a membership-based auction house for simply trading secret items.
Cheongeumdang handles only one item.
A curse.
Cheongeumdang is a store where curses are purchased.
It doesn't matter whether it's a cursed object, a cursed person, or the land where the curse has taken root.
Cheongeumdang purchases the curse itself and pays a price equivalent to the depth of the curse.
From a sales standpoint, this is a truly absurd benefit.
It solves your problems, but instead of having to pay for it, you get paid for it.
Of course, as wonderful a place as it is, there are many hidden problems.
In the first place, it is impossible for an ordinary person to find Heavenly Geumdang.
And no matter how you get a chance to enter, there is no guarantee that you will come out of Cheongeumdang alive.
This is the general outline of Cheongeumdang.
The story Tudor told is not much different from what I know.
"You already heard it, but there is someone visiting Cheongeumdang this time and he needs your escort."
"escort. Right."
"The compensation is exactly 10 million won. Considering the risk of the job and other things, it is a trivial amount that does not even amount to a starting fee... … ."
"Instead, you are saying that you will write a letter of introduction along with the opportunity to visit Cheongeumdang?"
"that's right. "There is no guarantee that the letter of introduction will be returned as an admission ticket, but this is definitely an opportunity to visit."
"And if you have any items you want to dispose of, you can dispose of them."
"Hehe… … Yeah, that's the point."
"Well, okay. For me, one visit is enough. But what are you going to do about the fee?"
"what? "You're quick-witted too."
He's quick-witted.
The fee issue was already hinted at by Tudor during the phone call yesterday.
Nevertheless, Tudor smiled slyly.
"You say 10 million won is the amount without fees?"
"okay. I won't specifically deduct any fees this time. instead… … ."
"What are you asking me to dispose of?"
"that's right."
"What is right? "I think I might be able to charge a fee for that."
"Hmph, you can take care of the fees yourself, right? "Give the items I entrusted to you to Cheongeumdang, and keep the money that Cheongeumdang gives you."
"Hmm… … really?"
"Hehe… … Instead, bring me a souvenir."
This isn't a bad story. This type of event occurs frequently in games, so you can roughly guess what will happen.
Moreover, if it were something that would be difficult for a Tudor-level witch to deal with, it would be an extremely terrible item.
For something like that, the compensation given by Cheongeumdang would be considerable.
The things I am trying to hand over to Cheongeumdang are so trivial.
"okay. "Then let's proceed."
[Quest accepted!
Visit Cheongeumdang with the 'Professor' who has a suspicious package.
You must escort the professor so that he can return to reality safely.
Reward: 500,000XP + 10,000,000 won + 'Admission ticket to the Thousand Gold Hall' depending on performance
In case of failure: The professor's curse transfers, or you cannot return from Cheongeumdang.]
As soon as the quest message was over, Tudor held out a large attache case.
"Now, this is it. "You can dispose of this."
It is that square leather bag that is commonly called the 007 bag.
"The technique is quite strict… … ? "What on earth is in here?"
It reminds me of Lee Chang-hyuk.
On the outside, it looks like a bag with an outdated design, but the security technology on the bag itself forms a significant barrier.
"If I knew that, would I have to skip dinner tonight?"
Then Tudor lifted his finger and put it to his lips.
'Ugh, that witch… … .'
From the looks of it, it doesn't seem like something to be entrusted with a smile.
I decided not to be surprised even if the story continued that the bag I moved, thinking it was no big deal, contained an unstable nuclear bomb.
No, that doesn't mean you can just receive it in peace.
As soon as I received the bag, I activated the magic.
[Arrest letter]
[Cold Prison of Bones]
[protection team]
[Purification Zone]
"Hey, it's not something that would go that far."
"I hope we can talk about things like that after visiting Cheongeumdang."
"Hehe… … . By the way, you're becoming more and more amazing, aren't you? Are you using that level of magic without any hand seals or chants? At this rate? "There are no catalysts or assistive devices?"
"Well, it just happened to be like that."
Come to think of it, there was no need to use magic in front of Tudor.
There's still a smile on Tudor's face, but it's a smile with a completely different meaning than what you usually see.
Greed, anticipation, curiosity... … .
It's a smile that can only be seen because she is a witch with hundreds of years of experience, rather than a middleman.
"I'm not confident that I can activate it at the same speed as you, but it's really amazing. As expected, next time, I'll do something more worthy of being a wizard... … ."
To cut her off, I lifted the bag in my hand up to Tudor's eyes.
"Well, first of all, I want to proceed with what I decided to do today."
Tudor's laughter is heard from beyond the bag.
And I see her white fingers slowly grasping the bag. For some reason, it doesn't look like a finger, but rather like a spider or snake crawling on one side of the bag.
"that's right. "Other things are important, but Cheongeumdang is also very important."
And Tudor slowly lowered the bag he was holding.
The bag is put away, and Tudor's face is revealed again.
I see the lazy smile of a skilled broker I used to know.
"Hurry up and introduce me to the client I mentioned yesterday."
"Oh, yes, that's right. "Just wait a moment."
Tudor looked blank for a moment, then looked up somewhere into the sky and said.
"Now that we are ready, please bring the professor."
I spoke to the orb outside.
As soon as his blank expression disappeared, Tudor pretended to be shy and smiled.
"Do you know the rules? "I am a wizard, and my client is a professor."
"I know. "Those who go to Cheongeumdang must not call each other by their first names."
"It's better not to engage in strange friendships."
"okay."
This is a measure to prevent people from saying their names in Cheongeumdang, even if by mistake.
Cheongeumdang is not an ordinary place.
It is a secret and dangerous place with many taboos and restrictions.
After a while, the door opened, and a person named 'Professor' came in along with the orb.
In fact, this is the person I saw in Vasilisa's hall a little while ago.
"excuse me."
A man in a wheelchair.
I already thought he looked too foreign to be among Vasilisa's rugged thugs.
Age is… … Around mid 50s? If he were to introduce himself as someone in his 60s, his appearance is so well-maintained that you would think he was young.
Well-combed all-white hair, thin-rimmed, angled glasses.
There was a faint smile on the corner of her mouth and a faint wrinkle, giving off a charm that made those who saw her feel at ease.
I haven't had a conversation yet, but I had a feeling that he would be a gentle and polite person.
He turned his head for a moment and thanked Orb for pushing the wheelchair all the way here.
Orb nodded his head silently, then turned and walked out of the office.
"Now, this is…" … This is a professor who came to me through the introduction of an elderly person at Geumchon Pawn Shop. professor? This is the wizard I talked about yesterday. Despite what he looks like, he is quite a famous friend."
I nodded at Tudor's words and held out my hand towards the 'professor.'
"hello. "He's a wizard."
"Nice to meet you. I'm a professor. "That's a cool mask."
The professor's hand held mine… … It was very strange.
"This… … ."
"Oh, this is rude-."
The professor said with a humble smile, gently biting his hand.
"-You must have been in a bad mood."
The texture felt rough and foreign, as if holding a dead tree branch with your hands.
No, to be exact, it's not the feeling I felt at my fingertips... … The magical power in my body is strange.
It seems that this is the strange poison I felt in the hall earlier.
"Is it because of the curse?"
"Well, that's it. "Something bad happened."
"okay."
I glanced at the jade-colored bundle on his lap.
It's a bundle that can be thought of as old-fashioned as it is old-fashioned. These days, even elderly people in the countryside don't carry around bundles like that.
It looked like there was a rice cooker in it, but as I watched it, I could see something inside the package squirming little by little.
'Is that a curse?'
It's not portrayed this way in the game. It was just marked as 'suspicious package' in the form of an icon in the inventory.
In the game, the grimoire was simply presented as a clickable item.
It's like having never seen the writing in those books before being dragged into this world. That was the case with the [Black Goat's Body Fluids] in Lee Chang-hyuk's bag.
In other words, unlike in the game, if I make a mistake, the curse wrapped in that bundle will be transferred to me... … This means that it may cause problems that are not implemented in the game.
'You'd better be careful.'
"I came already prepared, but what about you, wizard?"
"I am ready too. and-."
I took a moment to choose words and then continued.
"-Please just speak softly. "We will go a long way in the future, but it is uncomfortable to continue to be called that."
"hmm… … still… … ."
I adjusted my relationship with him, although I didn't have to. This… … It's just because of the memories of my previous experience playing the game.
I became involved with the professor in many ways, but the most enjoyable time was the route I took as his student.
of course… … The route didn't end in a pretty way either. Anyway, this crazy game forces endless sacrifice and despair on the inhabitants of this world.
I still remember crying for three or four days when the professor died.
Although it might not be visible because of the mask, I smiled as kindly as I could and spoke to the professor.
"Then shall we leave?"
"good. Let's go."