Chapter 110: Downtown Area (1)

Chapter 110: Downtown Area (1)

The total area of the dungeon island was not as large as one might expect, and the distance between the school grounds and the downtown area was relatively close.

But since it was a rather cumbersome distance to walk, there was a shuttle bus that traveled between the two on a regular basis.

Just then, one pulled up in front of us and we stepped onto the bus.

There were plenty of empty seats inside.

There were barely ten students on the bus and all of them were upperclassmen from the second or third year.

Compared to the bustling schedule of a freshman, these students had more relaxed timetables, and most of them were not heading out for leisure like us but were on their way to complete some assignments.The source of this content no/v(el)bi((n))

For this reason, a few upperclassmen cast glances that seemed to say, Are first-year students already heading downtown? However, neither Seo Ye-in nor I were the type to care about others stares.

Seo Ye-in took the seat by the window and I settled next to the aisle. Shortly after we sat down next to each other, the shuttle bus started moving with the smoothness reminiscent of a luxury limousine.

..!

Seo Ye-in leaned halfway out the window and gazed intently outside.

Gone was her usual sleepy-eyed expression. It was replaced by eyes that were clear and sparkling.

I took it as a sign of her excitement.

For now, rather than force her to talk, I decided to let her enjoy the scenery outside.

Meanwhile, I drifted into my own thoughts.

The night before.

I had met with An Jeong-mi and we had a conversation.

***

As soon as An Jeong-mi saw me, she started with words of gratitude.

Thanks to you, Kim Ho-nim, this weeks mentoring was a success.

She told me how Seo Ye-in had bravely kept up with her rigorous training and had also scored highly in the strategy battle of this week.

Pride and satisfaction were evident in An Jeong-mis expression.

And as always, I responded with humble words.

I only told her to work hard; all the real effort was yours.

Thats not true at all. You dont realize how much strength that simple encouragement gave to the young miss and to me.

It seemed I had become something of a morale-boosting totem in An Jeong-mis eyes.

But her expressions of thanks did not end there.

Thank you again on behalf of the Future Strategy Office for your unwavering support of the young misss growth.

Her tone was more serious than usual which made me wait for her next words without interrupting the flow of conversation with my usual humble words.

Sure enough, An Jeong-mi reached into her jacket pocket and said,

After much thought on how to express our gratitude

She pulled out an elegant coupon and handed it to me.

[Coupon Long Eared Magical Tool Shop (B)]

I prepared this. I hope you will accept it.

This Long Eared Magical Tools Shop was located in the downtown area and they stock a variety of powerful magic items. But the prices for all of them were high which made it difficult for students to purchase anything there.

However, with this coupon, I could take any item equivalent to a B-rank from that Magical Tool shop.

It was far more useful to give me the choice rather than simply handing over a B-rank item.

As expected, if you give away, you get it all back again.

As I had anticipated even before our first meeting, the butler was a person who knew gratitude.

I did not refuse and accepted the coupon.

I will gratefully accept it. As Ive mentioned before, Im in need of many things.

Im sure Kim Ho-nim will find it useful. Also, I have another request.

Yes, please tell me.

An Jeong-mi handed over another Long Eared coupon (B) and said,

While youre at it, I would appreciate it if you could also pick out some equipment for the lady.

That wont be difficult. But given the capabilities of the Hye-seong Group, I wonder if theres really a need to use that particular shop.

They could even effortlessly secure the highly coveted Feather Walk skill book, so would B-rank magic tools be a challenge?

I suspect that if they decided, they could aim for some A-rank items as well.

With such capabilities, was there really a need for the Hye-seong Group to use a shop in such a downtown area among the many available?

When I posed this question with such implications, An Jeong-mis face took on a complex expression.

By now, Kim Ho-nim, I think you understand. Its important that everything depends on the young misss own will.

Despite So Ye-in possessing such dazzling talent,

And despite receiving the full backing of the Hye-seong Group,

She was only now beginning to build her basic skills and traits.

The reason for this was that she had absolutely no motivation to learn anything until now.

However, after enrolling in the Dragon Slayer Academy and meeting various people, including me, her desire to learn began to grow little by little.

Given the flow of our conversation, she probably isnt much interested in items either.

Yes, she generally doesnt easily form attachments to any kind of object. But

An Jeong-mis face then changed in a different way.

Then I would pretend not to be able to win and follow along and take a look at that amazing thing together.

We explored the line of street vendors,

shared a cotton candy,

and watched various street performances.

There were buskers, of course,

a dancer who hovered about an inch off the ground, presenting intricate dance moves,

and a magician who erected a pillar of ice and then sculpted a statue right there on the spot.

Among these, the magic show attracted the most spectators.

A gentleman wearing a mask climbed onto a small makeshift stage with exaggerated gestures.

Without speaking a word, he pointed to a pigeon perched on his hand and signaled, I will make this pigeon disappear!

After placing the pigeon into a magic hat, the masked gentleman vigorously crumpled it.

He gently shook the now fist-sized hat, which suddenly expanded and unfolded into a large cloth.

Then after smoothing it out over the ground, he abruptly pulled it back

Snap!

Dozens of pigeons flew into the sky.

Clap clap

The audience sent up a cheer along with their applause.

It was a show cleverly mixing magic and tricks.

.

Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in remained unimpressed throughout.

Her gaze didnt linger on the magic show but on the places where the tools, rabbits, and pigeons used in the tricks were concealed.

She does have sharp eyes.

She probably had figured out all the tricks this time too.

Just as her interest seemed to fade and she was about to turn away,

The masked gentleman on the makeshift stage suddenly appeared in front of her, blocked her path, and bowed politely in greeting.

Seo Ye-in stared back intently at him.

The masked gentleman silently communicated with her through hand gestures, and Seo Ye-in responded with nods and head shakes.

? !

. .

It was impossible to understand them.

Anyway, it seemed they reached a silent conclusion after their non-verbal exchange.

The masked gentleman then pulled out a deck of playing cards,

Frrrrrr.

He fanned the cards out so their faces were visible and quickly gestured for Seo Ye-in to pick one.

When Seo Ye-in randomly selected a card,

The masked gentleman slipped it back into the deck,

then dazzled with a swift shuffle before splitting the cards into three piles and offering them back to her.

It was an invitation to guess where the card might be.

.

However, Seo Ye-in did not even pretend to look at the piles of cards but instead focused on the gentlemans suit pocket.

She got it right

During the shuffle, the gentleman had discreetly slipped the card out and hidden it, and Seo Ye-in had seen right through his trick.

And even more impressively, she knew exactly where he had hidden it.

.

Realizing he was caught, the masked gentleman slapped his forehead in mock dismay and then sharply snapped his fingers toward the pocket where he had hidden the card.

Then, just as he had done when he first blocked our path, he bowed respectfully and returned to the makeshift stage.

Clap clap

And as the magic show resumed, we began to move away.

?

But after walking a little, Seo Ye-in tilted her head in curiosity and stopped to rummage through her pocket.

Suddenly, the card she had picked earlier sprang out and it was twinkling beautifully.

It was the [Lucky Trump Card]. A hidden piece.

She really can get anything.

She effortlessly scooped up a hidden piece just by passing by. Seo Ye-in was really a true luck master.

Amidst this, one question remained in my head,

But why is that here in the downtown area?

When I turned back to look at the masked gentleman, it seemed as though the eyes behind the mask met mine and winked.

He wasnt hostile, though

But he was an event boss.