At a famous shopping center.
'If I wear a dress like this, I'll have no choice but to stand out even if I don't want to.'
Those were the words brought up by Eunha when they had left the house.
Of course, it would've been better for her to wear the dress, even if she didn't like it, in battle. However, she could stop wearing the outfit in her daily life.
But, it would be inconvenient. Because she didn't have any other clothes for going out.
So that was why. That was the reason why she decided to go shopping all of a sudden.
Eunha walked past the lined store windows, looking for suitable clothes. Siwoo quietly followed Eunha without saying a word.
Come to think of it, she had no idea when the last time she leisurely went shopping with someone like this was. It was probably the day before her mother died.
The shopping center Siwoo guided her to was a dedicated space for VIPs only. Thanks to this, she was able to look around freely without worrying about people's gazes.
"Shall we go back?"
With a shopping bag in hand, Eunha glanced around as she turned her head.
"Are you done already?"
"Yes. One outfit is enough."
All Eunha bought were long jeans and a plain, short-sleeved t-shirt with no logo.
Suddenly, Siwoo's blue gaze shifted downwards. It was towards the shoes Eunha was wearing.
"…Now that you're out, how about looking around for some shoes?"
"Shoes?"
Eunha stopped walking and looked down at her shoes. Certainly, it wouldn't have been a bad idea to buy shoes that were comfortable to walk in.
'However…'
Eunha pondered for a moment, then flipped through her sleeves.
Eventually, she pulled out a penguin-shaped coin purse. It was a gift she had gotten. She opened the beak of the penguin. Then she closed it.
"It's okay. I can buy it next time."
Although Eunha had made quite some profit from the two gates she had cleared, she didn't have much cash with her because she had most of her money stored in a bank account. She didn't even have a debit or credit card. So, she couldn't afford to spend a lot of money on shopping.
Siwoo watched Eunha as she stored her penguin purse and let out a low smile as he licked his lips.
"Since this is a long-awaited shopping trip, I'll buy you that much."
Peek.
Eunha turned her head and looked at him.
"…I'm fine."
Siwoo had already provided Eunha with more than just a down payment. A phone of the latest model and a high-end officetel. Jehwi, the competent manager he also assigned to her, was conscious enough to not make any more demands, even when he was in charge of cleaning the house and managing her schedule.
Perhaps reading Eunha's mind, Siwoo folded his arms with a face that seemed a little dissatisfied.
"Do I look like someone who can't afford to buy a pair of shoes?"
"No."
"Right?"
Siwoo raised the corner of his mouth.
"I'm quite rich. Don't worry, I won't charge you back for it later, so just keep your coins in your purse."
"…"
Maybe he had seen it.
The two five hundred won coins that were in the penguin's mouth.
Well, given the inflated prices of modern times, the money wouldn't even be able to buy a pair of socks, let alone shoes.
'I have many coins.'
Since they hadn't been used, 300,000 coins probably still remained in her inventory.
"What can I do with 300,000 coins?"
Eunha suddenly asked Siwoo as she walked down the street. He was a hunter. He also had a pretty high rank. So, he must've known the uses and value of coins.
"…You have 300,000 coins?"
Siwoo was walking a few steps ahead but suddenly stopped with a look of surprise.
Coins were a currency sponsored by a god. In other words, having coins meant that you had signed a contract with a divine beast.
"No. I'm just asking."
Eunha pretended to be innocent. Siwoo stared at Eunha and soon looked up, shrugging his shoulders.
"I don't know. It is difficult to calculate coins as a normal commodity, but…"
His blue eyes looked through the air. He opened his mouth, tapping his forearm several times with his index finger.
"If I had to guess, maybe 30 billion?"
"…What?"
"Ah, of course, in won, not dollars."
e/n: ₩30B = ~$24M (USD), ~22M€.
A yellow message window popped up in front of Eunha, who had stopped walking with a surprised face.
Ding!
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' smiles proudly. Have you seen, have you clearly seen my wealth—]
Siwoo's face abruptly overlapped the yellow message window. He had a questioning look on his face.
"Who has 300,000 coins?"
"…I just saw it on the internet."
"Don't believe it too deeply. Most of them will be bluffs."
In the first place, she showed a tendency to be addicted to the internet. Siwoo shook his head nervously and took a step away.
Was it like that? Was it something like that?! On the other hand, a yellow message window went wild in the corner of her vision, perhaps not liking Siwoo's choice of words.
"As you may be aware, there are some divine beasts who have hundreds or thousands of contractors."
Siwoo also added that like many powerful people, divine beasts wanted more followers.
"Even if one contractor was particularly favored, they wouldn't be able to pour power or coins into them alone."
Ah. At that moment, Eunha vaguely understood.
The cat had said to Eunha, 'you are my only friend'. Thinking back, it also meant that for the cat, Eunha was its only contractor.
"…So what can you do with coins?"
"You can purchase useful items in the System Market that is held from time to time."
"System Market?"
That was something Eunha didn't know.
"You can buy items such as consumables like potions, equipment such as weapons and armor, and skill books. It opens randomly, and the products that come up are random as well."
And once a year, an auction where you can obtain valuable resources or equipment retrieved from gates, called a hunter auction, is held. It was said that the currency used for the auction was coins.
Although it was impossible to exchange coins for cash, in some ways, it was a currency worth more than cash.
Siwoo spoke up to that point and stared at Eunha with strange eyes.
"Are you interested in a contract? Well, since it's Sunbae, signing a contract with a divine beast would only be a matter of time."
Rather, it was more strange that she hadn't signed a contract yet.
"…Not really."
Eunha roughly answered and passed Siwoo as she walked forward. 30 billion, 30 billion… Only that was deeply embedded in her mind.
* * *
Eunha and Siwoo finally got out of the shopping center around sunset.
Siwoo said that he would only buy a pair of shoes but did not stop there, giving her a hat, a bag, and even a phone case.
Eunha stared at Siwoo's hand with a puzzled face. The shopping bags he held with both hands were a testament to their enormous spending. Even 30 years ago, she had never enjoyed such a hot shopping experience in one day.
"If I had known that there would be so much luggage, I would have parked nearby."
SIwoo didn't seem to be affected.
"It's much later than I expected. Are you fine?"
Although he was like a porter with both hands full, Eunha was well aware that he was not such an idle person.
"Yeah, well…"
Siwoo shrugged his shoulders once. He glanced at the time.
It was well past 7 p.m.. The time he was supposed to go to the hospital was 6 o'clock, so it was quite late.
Bzzt…
Even at this moment, his phone was vibrating violently. There were 23 missed calls. All from the guild's side.
"It doesn't matter. I didn't have any important plans today."
He turned off his phone and said softly.
"By the way, you look like a different person, Sunbae."
As she stood with her back to the sunset, Eunha's appearance was quite different from when she left the house.
It was the first time he'd seen Eunha in everyday clothes and not a dress. He thought it'd be very strange, but it surprisingly wasn't. She had fit into the modern world without any sense of oddness. To the extent that he had completely forgotten that she was a first-generation hunter from 30 years ago.
"I really can't believe you're 53 years old."
"Neither can I."
Eunha expressed her understanding with a neutral face. It was somehow funny, so Siwoo burst into a faint smile.
After exiting the shopping center, they slowly started walking towards the parking lot. Looking down the weekend streets was like looking at an anthill infested with black specks.
"Ah, that woman… I think I've seen them somewhere."
"Where, where?"
Eunha suddenly stopped walking.
She was unaware of it because she had gone to the VIP-only shopping center. Come to think of it, it was only natural that there were people who'd recognize her face now that the media controversy over the Princess of Dark Flare was raging.
Even though she had changed clothes, it seems that her face had spread more than expected.
She hadn't ever imagined that she would be subjected to something like this since she wasn't even a celebrity.
She didn't appreciate the sudden hail of attention and gazes.
The moment she was about to quicken her steps after stopping in order to get out faster.
Cover—
A shadow was cast over her sight.
When she suddenly lifted her head, she saw Siwoo's chin as he fixed his gaze in front of her.
"I'm glad I bought the hat too."
Without replying to Siwoo's words, Eunha slowly raised her hand and smoothed down her hair.
"Right?"
His eyes, clear as lakes, were curled in the shape of a crescent moon.
Eunha, who belatedly realized that there was not enough shade over her head, opened her mouth.
"…Thank you."
Meanwhile, the crowd that followed them was still there.
"Ah, where have I seen her?"
"Isn't she supposed to be that woman? That… Dark Flare Dragon, was it?"
"Did she have that kind of image?"
Despite the fact that she hid her face under the shade of her hat, the eyes of passersby followed Eunha viciously. Whether or not they knew it was rude, they hovered around her.
Swish.
Then, Siwoo stood in front of Eunha, as if blocking them.
"Let's get back to the car."
She didn't usually think about it, but seeing him up close like this, Siwoo was taller than she'd thought.
Siwoo hurried his steps in a position that seemed to shield Eunha.
Because of their close distance, Eunha's shoulder touched Siwoo.
"Sorry."
Glancing up, Eunha looked at Siwoo and apologized briefly. Siwoo opened his mouth while staring in the opposite direction, not looking at Eunha.
"No, it's fine."
At that moment, Siwoo realized one thing.
'Strange.'
It was very strange.
Siwoo secretly glanced at her, as if observing her.
Eunha always had an unpleasant bloody scent.
But why was it that…
She didn't seem to have the smell of blood right now?
It was more refreshing than that, and somehow comfortable. He'd never smelled it, never known it.
"What?"
"…Nothing."
―It doesn't seem to be an unpleasant smell.