Ch.2828. Sole Contract

I had just rushed out to the market, but within an hour, the words “fuck this” were already rising to my throat.

“Fuck off if you’re not buying anything, you broke bastards.”

I shouldn’t say that out loud, right?

Fortunately, as if reading my thoughts, the annoying ones stopped talking to me, but they still blocked my stall like dogs that needed to take a shit.

I wanted to tell them to get lost since they were blocking potential customers, but since this wasn’t a place where I could control that, I left them be.

After all, when a place gets crowded, passersby tend to get curious and take a peek.

I kept my eyes wide open, watching for anyone who might try to steal something.

“Hey, just look. Only look. If you touch it, you have to buy it.”

“Wow, this is really good quality. Where did you get this?”

“Where would I get it? From a dungeon, of course.”

“You hit the jackpot. Seriously hit the jackpot.”

“I sure did.”

I did hit the jackpot.

It’s the legacy left by poor Lulu’s previous owner.

Good grade, good effect.

[Recovery Herb Fruit]

– Grade: D+

– Fruit grown from a recovery herb. Grown in soil rich with life force, it contains the energy of life. Appears to have extremely strong recovery properties.

– When crafted into a recovery potion: Recovery effect +30%

– When consumed: Natural life force recovery +100%

This option was added because it was grown in the Rift Dimension.

Fruits rarely come with options like this.

Though not listed in the map effects, it’s an inherent property of the Rift Dimension’s soil.

It makes sense—recovery herbs from Earth’s dungeons, a lower dimension, shouldn’t be the same as those from the Rift Dimension, which Lulu claims is a top-tier dimension.

I could charge more for these and it wouldn’t be strange.

Nevertheless, since I’m selling recovery herbs as pocket money, I tried to set a reasonable price.

The problem is that these items have high supply and demand, with an established market price.

People hesitate because they’re a bit expensive.

If they were truly rare items, people would buy them before others could, regardless of price. While the option on the fruit itself is excellent, for mass-produced items like these, the cost of resources is what matters.

“If you could lower the price a bit, I’d buy it…”

“I could pay in cash right now…”

They’re cautious but still making offers despite me holding a sword.

They must really want to buy these.

“Making potions with those would be incredibly effective.”

“Did fruits originally come with options?”

“A tank could become invincible just by eating that fruit, right?”

I didn’t budge.

If the merchants who hang around here are reacting like this, these will definitely sell.

It’s not that they can’t afford the price—they just want to haggle to increase their profit margin.

In the midst of this subtle tug-of-war, a pretty woman approached as if entranced and began praising my recovery herbs.

“This is amazing… How did you… Did you grow these yourself?”

This woman was different.

She looked about my age and was quite pretty.

Not just somewhat pretty, but genuinely beautiful.

She wasn’t wearing heavy makeup, yet her clean skin stood out with a pure look.

Her long black hair was tied back for convenience while shopping, and her casual attire reinforced the impression that her purity wasn’t manufactured.

And that sincerity was evident in her expression, proving there was no pretense in her behavior.

Her desire to have them was written all over her face.

I could see she wanted to buy them but was holding back, probably because she didn’t have enough money.

Well, whether it’s a pretty woman, a middle-aged woman, or a man, they’re all the same—everyone standing in front of me is in the same position.

I had to sell to someone eventually.

There was no way I was going to lower the price.

If I waited, the right buyer would come.

But I was given another option.

[Farming Window]

– Name: Lee Ji-hyun

– Age: 25

– Level: 11

– Stats: Strength (E), Stamina (D-), Agility (E+), Magic Power (B+)

– Physical: 159cm / 45kg / C

– Abilities:

1. Alchemy (A)

– Skills:

1. Potion Crafting (A+)(A)

2. Ointment Crafting (A-)(A)

3. Good Materials (A+)(P)

I was just wondering why this woman was looking at the recovery herbs so desperately.

Then suddenly, this woman—Lee Ji-hyun’s farming window appeared before me, displaying all her information.

I was surprised, but she had quite impressive abilities.

Alchemy is a noble ability.

She had two active (A) skills and one passive (P) skill, all A-grade.

I immediately understood why she was staring so desperately at my recovery herbs.

It makes sense for an alchemist.

Crafting large quantities of potions with good materials would give her experience points.

This is surprisingly convenient, isn’t it?

Without having to ask questions, I can see the reasons behind someone’s actions just by looking at their information.

Though I don’t know why it shows unnecessary physical details… height, weight, and whatever that C is supposed to be.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes?”

“Can I have your number?”

It felt like fate.

I had a good idea.

So with pure intentions, I made an offer to Ji-hyun.

“Could we talk privately? I’ll sell all of these to you.”

Her face turned red as she fumbled with her words, but she handed me her phone so I could enter my number.

Then I packed all the leaves back into her pink carrier and put the fruits in a basket before storing them in my inventory.

“Let’s go.”

“…What?”

“To talk.”

“Huh? Aren’t you selling them?”

“What do you mean? Didn’t you see they’ve all been sold?”

The people who had been waiting and watching tried to stop me urgently, but no one actually grabbed me since I was carrying a sword.

Ji-hyun and I headed to a nearby café by the Han River.

——————

“You want me to make and sell potions?”

“Yes. You’re an alchemist, right? Aren’t you making potions to gain experience?”

“…That’s true, but…”

“You have to sell what you make anyway, right?”

“…Yes, that’s true…”

“You couldn’t buy them because you didn’t have money, right?”

“…Yes, that’s true, but…”

“So I’m giving them to you on credit. Make potions and ointments and sell them at a premium. The split is 9 to 1. I get 9, obviously. For the first transaction, I need money, so I’ll sell them all to you with a 10% discount.”

“…”

“Not good enough?”

“No, it’s actually great, but…”

I told Ji-hyun my plans without holding back.

Beating around the bush or considering others’ feelings is difficult for a 26-year-old unemployed person like me.

Besides, I’m in the superior position in this conversation.

The only reason I stopped selling and came to talk with Ji-hyun instead of continuing to sell for cash is this.

If Ji-hyun doesn’t accept my terms, I’ll just go back to the market and set up my mat again.

“…”

Ji-hyun was lost in thought for a while.

Then she carefully asked:

“Did you… actually grow these? That shouldn’t be possible, but…”

Growing recovery herbs is impossible.

At least that’s what my research showed.

While the climate for growing recovery herbs is relatively forgiving, the problem is the seeds.

Recovery herbs only grow in dungeons, and obtaining their seeds is impossible.

Naturally, given the impact of recovery herbs on modern society, the first thing they tried was analyzing and creating recovery herb seed DNA, but it failed.

If you had recovery herb seeds, there are plenty of dungeons with the right biome to grow them, but there are no seeds.

So asking if I grew them is the wrong question.

But her question…

It sounded like she was asking if we could trade regularly, which made me suspicious.

I avoided answering Ji-hyun’s intuition-based question.

Instead, I gave her a plausible answer.

“I can provide them regularly. Think of it as something like an herbalist ability.”

“Then I’ll do it. How should we proceed?”

Ji-hyun’s expression was firm, unlike her hesitant demeanor earlier.

Now only the practical issues remained.

“I don’t have money right now… Could we do this gradually, selling and buying bit by bit?”

“How much do you have?”

“…I only have about 500,000 won on me…”

“Hmm…”

Credit has its limits.

Even with a contract, giving everything on credit is too risky for the seller.

Especially when the seller has the upper hand in this deal.

She knows I have plenty of other potential buyers.

She understands that there’s no need to be submissive in this contract, but such good opportunities don’t come easily.

“I’m selling these because I need money, so I can’t do everything on credit.”

“I understand. Of course. D+ grade 88, C- grade 12, D+ grade leaves 224, C- grade leaves 76… That’s 57.4 million won. With the discount, about 52 million won…”

“When did you…”

I was impressed that Ji-hyun had already calculated the exact quantities when even I didn’t know them.

It seemed like I was making a good deal.

“I’ll try to gather as much as I can, up to 30 million won.”

I was satisfied with Ji-hyun’s determined commitment.

“But…”

Along with her commitment, Ji-hyun asked worriedly:

“Are you planning to sell the potions at a premium too?”

She probably asked after seeing me sell at cost price.

I nodded naturally.

“Of course we have to sell them at a high price. That’s why I’m contracting with an A-grade alchemist.”

“Right…? They’ll definitely sell for a high price, but… recovery potions can take time to sell without established buyers…”

“Worried about inventory piling up?”

“Yes… I need to sell quickly to pay you the balance, so I was wondering if I could take the loss on that part…”

I understood what she meant.

So I refused.

“No. We both need to win for this to last.”

Finding an A-grade alchemist in a street market is incredibly lucky for me.

To maintain this luck and create a steady income stream, I can’t let her take losses.

While she might lose on her 10%, I’d be losing on my 90%.

She’s offering to cover that, but bankruptcy would come quickly that way.

There’s a way for both of us to profit.

“Let’s stick to my plan instead.”

I made a phone call to someone.