“Why… why is it ridiculous?” Jung Ha-Yan asked.

She wasn’t threatening them by releasing her mana, but the expression she had made them feel indescribable fear. Her hair must have been slowly rising because she was suppressing her mana and the way she looked straight ahead without blinking made it seem like she was emotionless. I wasn’t sure if it was the effect of Mind’s Eye, but it felt like I could feel the madness deep inside her.

‘Oh jeez…’

Overall, she gave off a threatening mood. Being able to instill fear into people without using any magic and just by her expression alone was a skill. It felt as if a dark shadow was oppressing everyone except me.

“It’s not… ridiculous,” she said.

‘I take back what I said about marriage.’

I was sure I would die before I could live up to my name...

I knew that Jung Ha-Yan had become stronger and seeing people like Cha Hee-Ra and Kasugano Yuno who were stronger than most people probably stressed her out because she knew she was lacking compared to them. It could be said that a huge incident didn’t occur because Jung Ha-Yan was busy. Aside from the time she spent with me, she invested all her time into magic because she had to get stronger. She wanted to grow more than yesterday and grow even more tomorrow—people like her were geniuses.

[Checking Player Jung Ha-Yan’s Status Window and Potential.]

[Name - Jung Ha-Yan]

[Title - None. Please work harder.]

[Age - 21]

[Nature - Advocate in Love]

[Job - Archmage - Epic Rank]

[Stats]

[Strength - 18/Below rare growth limit]

[Agility - 17/Below rare growth limit]

[Stamina - 30/Below epic growth limit]

[Intelligence - 71/Above epic growth limit]

[Endurance - 25/Below rare growth limit]

[Luck - 63/Above epic growth limit]

[Magic - 81/Above legendary growth limit]

[Gear]

[Staff of Water of Life of Lost Light - Epic Rank]

[Robe of Shadow Imbued with Magic - Epic Rank]

[Divine Protection - Rare Rank]

[Attribute - How to Become a Mage - Epic Rank]

[Overall Review - Her magic stat is over 80 points. When taking the item effect into account, her stats are definitely absurd considering the fact that she’s been here for less than a year. It’s difficult to say that her growth is balanced since her other stats are terrible, but it’s still absurd. It’s nice that she’s growing fast, but it could harm her body, so you must help her balance her growth. Of course, her mental health comes first. Please try harder, player Lee Ki-Young.]

Currently, Jung Ha-Yan’s magic stat was higher than Hwang Jung-Yeon’s, and just as the overall review said, it was difficult to believe that she grew this much despite being here for less than a year. Her other stats weren’t that good since she had been focusing on one area, but they were better than nothing.

After I organized my thoughts, I glanced at Jung Ha-Yan and noticed that she still had the same expression.

‘Yikes…’

The master of the Small Stone Guild was known to be high-leveled, so he was trying to brush off her influence, but the underlings behind him were afraid of Jung Ha-Yan. When the guild master used his magic, the members behind him sighed.

“Pant… pant…”

“Ha-Yan, loosen up,” I told her.

“Okay…”

“I apologize. It seems like my girlfriend is in a bad mood today. If it weren’t for you, we would've still been enjoying our date. Ahem. Anyway, I have the power to make impossible things happen,” I said.

“...”

“I’ll keep it simple since you don’t believe me. We can ask Lady Marilyn or we can discuss the religious reasons even though it’ll be a bit difficult. We can completely destroy the market by spreading very cheap potions and items in Castle Rock or we can move outstanding free city citizens from Lindel to here. Oh! Don’t you think it’ll be nice if the Red Mercenary Guild established a branch here? I think it’ll be good if I asked Hee-Ra noona what she thinks about starting a business,” I explained.

“...”

“What about moving the Sora Guild that Kasugano Yuno and I are managing here? The initial investment cost will be pretty high, but we can create a large potion factory in Castle Rock. The Small Stone Guild is also in the potion business, right? I’m not sure how much you’re currently selling, but I can afford to sell at even half the price you’re selling,” I added.

“...”

“How about I also sell your source of income, monster by-products to Castle Rock? At a cheaper price, of course. Or I can purchase the land you’re currently standing on. Hahaha. Castle Rock is only lending you this land because all of you are free city citizens, but since I have the honorary bishop title, I can purchase land,” I told them.

“...”

“Of course, you’re free to move to another city. You can go to another city and develop the area with the same mindset the young artists had. When it’s ripe, I’ll be sure to visit and pick the sweet fruits you worked so hard in growing. It can be anywhere in the Holy Empire of Benigoa,” I said.

“Y-You’re… crazy…”

“Whether you return to Lindel… remain in Castle Rock… or move to a completely different city, I’ll always be watching you guys. If you want to avoid me, you can either join the Republic or the Union of Kingdoms or live in the mountains while committing crimes,” I told them.

“...”

“Test me if you think I’m lying,” I warned.

The room was filled with silence. It felt like it got even quieter compared to when Jung Ha-Yan was staring at them earlier. I was certain they didn’t take my explanation as a joke because Song Jung-Wook’s pale face was proof of that. Naturally, it was impossible for me to carry out all those exhausting tasks. Forcefully selling monster by-products to Castle Rock and building a potion factory here was definitely a loss for me. Smart people may question whether my plan was possible or not, but this was slightly different from whether it was feasible or not. What if the guy in front of us was crazier than we thought? What if he could throw everything away and harass us with pure malice? From the moment they had that thought, it was already game over, and naturally, I thought it was time to deliver the final blow. But it was amusing how they immediately reacted as soon as I spoke.

“Money and power are the things that give people like me power in a world where power comes first. I know people will take their place based on the stats shown on their status windows and their personal strength, which makes them have high self-esteem, but… trying to go against me with the little power you have is like using an egg to crack a rock,” I explained.

“...”

“If you don’t have the power to break the framework of society, it’s your job to just stay quiet. What do you think I did to the people who didn’t do that? How do you think I got to where I am today despite being here for less than a year? You understand what I’m saying, right? You have two choices. Do you want to be a young artist or a parasite that siphons nutrients from establishments with large capitals?” I asked.

The answer was obvious…

“W-What do we need to do, sub guild master?” Song Jung-Wook asked.

He suddenly became polite.

“You picked your answer. I’m glad I don’t have to do anything tiring, Master. Hahaha. Now, we can have a proper meeting. This is great,” I commented.

I wasn’t sure what he was thinking, but on the outside, he looked like he had decided to obey me and it didn’t matter if he was being honest or not because getting them on my side wasn’t the important part.

“Hahaha. Is there a place that’s more comfortable than this boring office? Oh, you there. Why don’t you bring us some alcohol? It’s fine right, Master?” I asked.

“Yes… of course. Young-Cheol… do as he asks… and bring us something to drink,” Song Jung-Hwan ordered.

“Yes, Master.”

“Hahaha. It’s not fun if I drink by myself. You should drink with me too, Master. You can relax too, Ha-Yan. What do you want to drink?” I asked her.

“Oh… okay! I’ll just have milk, Oppa,” she answered.

“You heard her right, Mr. Young-Cheol? Also, it would be great if you could bring some snacks. Oh! I already brought the contract with me,” I told Song Jung-Wook.

“I see…”

“You can take your time reading it. It’s nothing big. I’m sure you already know that I’m managing a potion factory and it’s sad that I’m the only one using high-quality potions. I heard Castle Rock doesn’t have enough priests so I rushed over here. Hahaha. This is all for Castle Rock,” I explained.

“Well… thank you… for being considerate, sub guild master,” he said in a low voice.

“I was thinking about regularly supplying potions to the large guilds in Castle Rock. Of course, it won’t be for free, but it’ll be very cheap. Oh, you should probably see the item first,” I said.

“Yes.”

He didn’t seem all that excited, but the item itself was high-quality. I made it so it wasn’t a low-quality potion. I showed it because it was better to increase the brand’s value.

“Take a look…”

[Red HP Recovery Potion - Rare Rank]

[An amazing potion with healing effects. It possesses mid to high-range healing effects. It prevents poisoning and bleeding. After taking the potion, the target’s endurance will slightly increase for a certain period of time. Manufacturer - Lee Ki-Young.]

When I grabbed the potion after looking through my bag, the guild members looked surprised. Song Jung-Wook probably didn’t think that I would be selling something like this because he looked at me suspiciously, but nothing in the world was free. Not only did I establish who had more power in the conversation earlier, but my plan was designed in a way that I would get my money’s worth.

“The price is cheap. 40 gold,” I told him.

“Oh…”

“40 gold per bottle,” I added.

“T-That’s too expensive…” he stammered.

“Hahaha. It’s not expensive at all, Master. Didn’t you read the effects just now? It’s a reasonable price and I know you have enough funds to buy it. It’ll also increase your hunting efficiency, so there won’t be any problems,” I explained.

“O-Our guild isn’t capable of purchasing a potion for 40 gold and we can’t even purchase it in bulk… No matter how much I think about it, 20 gold is the most we can pay. Considering the amount written in the contract, the amount we’ll be paying annually is thousands…” Song Jung-Hwan explained.

“40 gold,” I said with determination.

“H-How about… 30 gold?” he asked.

“Hahaha. You’re starting to disappoint me, Master. Trying to buy an item like this for 30 gold is basically robbing me. It will be 40 gold,” I insisted.

“That’s…”

“It’s 40 gold,” I repeated.

“O-Okay,” he said.

“You just need to sign the contract and you don’t have to worry so much, Master. We’ll make sure to take good care of you. I’m very generous to the people close to me. Haha,” I reassured him.

“I see…”

“Now, now. You can just sign here and you’ll receive the potion right away,” I added.

I was the only one satisfied with this beautiful situation. This was what you call a real deal.