“The leader of Isthart, Nayef bin Salman Al Saud.”
As soon as I stepped inside, playing along with the somewhat clumsy guild master of Isthart, his name was immediately spoken.
Then, the person next to him, who seemed to be his secretary, whispered something softly to him, but I could hear everything.
“You were too fast with the timing, Mr. Nayef.”
“……”
However, Nayef remained silent, stubbornly maintaining his composure as if he had made no mistake.
Thanks to that, I felt a little less tense.
To be honest, my impression of Isthart wasn’t great—not from the first meeting and certainly not from the rude guild members who later came to Korea.
Naturally, I had developed some biases about the guild master as well.
But now that I was meeting him in person, I found that the guild master of Isthart was a young man full of clumsiness.
‘……Young?’
Why was he young? Wasn’t he a Level 9 Awakener?
As far as I knew, the youngest Level 9 Awakener was the Grand Witch Katrina.
Yet, the Nayef standing before me looked just as young as her.
Could he be like our guild master, who has a youthful appearance?
“My name is Lee Kyu-seong. It’s an honor to meet you, Guild Master Nayef.”
“I am Ara.”
As I politely bowed in greeting, Ara, standing beside me, arrogantly crossed her arms and introduced herself.
At that moment, Nayef suddenly stood up and walked toward us.
Straightening my slightly bent posture, I watched him approach.
Step!
Before I knew it, Nayef was standing right in front of me.
But he wasn’t looking at me—he was staring at Ara.
“Ara?”
“I am Ara.”
“Hmm, not bad.”
The two of them stood there, arms crossed, engaged in a strange battle of wills.
Confused by the situation, I turned to look at Hassan.
“Sigh.”
He let out a deep sigh.
As if this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.
“Mr. Nayef. We have guests.”
Just then, Nayef’s secretary intervened at an appropriate moment.
Only then did Nayef relax his arrogant gaze and look at me.
“My apologies for being rude to a guest. As you can see, I have quite the charismatic presence, so I can’t help but react when I see someone of my kind.”
“……Excuse me?”
“In any case, welcome to Isthart.”
What was with this eccentric person?
This was the first time I had met someone who described themselves as charismatic.
I never knew such a person actually existed.
And calling Ara his kind?
I glanced down at Ara.
She was still standing with her arms crossed, chin raised arrogantly.
Why was she acting like this all of a sudden?
‘Is it because she met someone like her, just like Nayef?’
That would at least explain things a little.
So should I see Nayef as someone on the same level as Ara?
I guess so.
“Thank you for the warm welcome. I don’t have much, but I brought a small gift as a token of appreciation for the invitation.”
I took out something I had prepared in advance.
First, a set of rice cakes and snacks.
Second, goblin-crafted ornaments.
“Oh.”
Nayef let out a short exclamation as he accepted the gifts.
Then, his eyes narrowed slightly.
“Are these items?”
“They are, but don’t worry. They’re primarily food-focused.”
The rice cakes and snacks I brought were made from special ingredient crops, which turned them into items.
The taste wasn’t significantly different, but being classified as items made them stand out more as gifts.
[Magic Injeolmi]
[Magic Honey Rice Cake]
[Magic Songpyeon]
[Magic Biscuits]
[Magic Chocolate Chip Cookies]
The effects were decent.
Given the ingredients, they were the kind of food that improved health when consumed.
Had he ever heard of snacks that made you healthier the more you ate them?
Nayef carefully examined the effects of the rice cakes and snacks before asking me,
“Can I try one right now?”
“Of course.”
When I nodded readily, Nayef picked up a cookie first.
Then, he took a cautious bite.
“Mm!!”
He reacted immediately.
Since it was probably his first time tasting my food, this reaction was expected.
And Ara was now staring at him, drooling slightly.
Perhaps feeling pressured by her gaze, Nayef took another cookie from the gift box and handed it to Ara.
“These things are best shared.”
“May I eat it?”
“Of course.”
Nayef.
He was a bit odd, but he seemed like a good person.
After sharing a cookie with Ara, he also handed out snacks to the other people in the room.
“Abdullah, come have some. Elder, you should try it too. And you, Lee Kyu-seong.”
Before I knew it, an impromptu snack party had started.
We each picked a rice cake or a snack to eat.
I chose the honey rice cake.
The moment I bit into it, the roasted Lapipi seeds and Alfheim honey burst with flavor—like a honey explosion.
The chewy texture of the rice cake paired perfectly with it.
The more I chewed, the nuttier the taste became, filling my mouth with honey.
“This is incredible.”
“Haha, even an old man like me can enjoy these.”
“Lee Kyu-seong’s food is the best!”
Abdullah, the secretary, checked the effects of the item before eating it.
And then he froze in place.
Hassan, who had already experienced our dungeon, ate the snacks without hesitation.
His eyes crinkled into a smile, resembling a traditional Korean Hahoetal mask.
“Excellent, truly excellent!”
Nayef tried each snack, marveling at them repeatedly.
Then, out of nowhere, he grabbed my hand.
“Awakener Lee Kyu-seong!”
“Yes?”
“Would you consider joining our guild?”
Wait, what?
This was quite the sudden escalation.
I had no idea how to respond to Nayef’s abrupt proposal.
For now, I decided to politely decline.
“I appreciate your offer, Mr. Nayef, but I plan to be cautious with my next contract. I’d like some more time to think.”
“Hmm, that’s unfortunate. In that case, how about we establish a separate supply contract? The thought of not being able to eat these snacks whenever I want is unbearable.”
“The supply quantity is still unstable, so it would be difficult for now.”
Recently, Jae-seong had been specializing rabbits in cooking.
He was categorizing them into Western, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese cuisine specialists, along with pastry and dessert-focused rabbits.
Lately, he seemed intent on mass-training pastry chef rabbits, and once that was completed, we would be able to produce a sufficient supply.
The ingredients were already abundant.
With our steadily expanding farmland and an increasing number of slimes, our storage facilities were growing as well.
I could simply supply the raw crops, but once the rabbits’ training was complete, I was willing to provide processed goods.
While the crops themselves had excellent effects, cooking them into items enhanced their effects even further.
“Hmm, that makes sense. Producing snacks of this quality in large quantities must be difficult.”
“Mass production is possible, but we’re just not fully prepared yet. Once we are, I’ll contact you.”
“……You can mass-produce them? Lee Kyu-seong, weren’t you only capable of mass-producing crops?”
“Well, that’s the case for now, but I’ve been making preparations. Once those are complete, it will be possible.”
“Amazing!”
Nayef smiled brightly, almost like a child, genuinely delighted.
Seeing his pure, boyish expression, I felt a strange disconnect—was this person really the guild master of Isthart?
“Oh, before that! There’s something I need to address first.”
The cheerful Nayef suddenly hardened his expression.
Though the cookie crumbs on the corner of his mouth made it hard to take him seriously.
“I heard that one of our guild members caused great offense in Korea.”
“Ah.”
“For that, I sincerely apologize on behalf of Isthart. I’m sorry.”
Nayef bowed his head in apology, but the one actually receiving it was Ara.
“Hmm, I will accept it. Do not let it happen again.”
“Thank you for accepting my apology.”
Why were they talking as if I wasn’t here?
Still, thanks to Ara, the awkward situation was resolved instantly.
I needed to learn how to be as shameless as her.
“I don’t intend to let it end with just words. Lee Kyu-seong, do you have anything you’d like in return? Of course, we’ve prepared something on our side as well.”
“There’s nothing in particular that I want.”
“The members who mistreated you have all been expelled from the guild. But they weren’t just kicked out—expulsion would mean they could cause trouble elsewhere, so we’re keeping them under direct supervision. They won’t be able to join any other guilds either.”
“Oh.”
“So you don’t have to worry about any retaliation. Not that they could do anything even if they tried.”
Nayef gave me a meaningful look.
Did Hassan tell him something?
I glanced at Hassan, but he shook his head as if to say he hadn’t said a word.
“I’ve heard that you’ve been targeted in quite a few attacks. Yet, each time, you’ve managed to deal with them safely. In fact, I heard that two of our guild members recently tried to pick a fight with you and were instantly neutralized. So, contrary to what some believe, you seem to have some hidden cards up your sleeve.”
“Hidden cards… Well, I do have a few.”
I didn’t bother denying it.
A little bluffing was useful in situations like this.
And technically, it wasn’t even a bluff.
I had Ara by my side at all times, and in my dungeon, I had three of the Seven Deadly Sins.
I even knew the location of the next one.
Once this was settled, I planned to head out with Kyler to find the fifth Sin.
In any case, while I didn’t want to reveal too much, showing a glimpse of my abilities wasn’t a bad idea.
“Abdullah.”
At Nayef’s quiet call, Abdullah stepped forward, carrying something.
Several boxes.
Curious, I watched the boxes being placed in front of me.
“These are all legendary-grade or higher items. You may choose one to take with you.”
“A legendary item?”
Wasn’t this a bit much?
And I even got to choose from five of them?
Isthart had indeed wronged me, but this seemed like an excessive level of compensation.
Of course, as the world’s number-one guild, they might not care about giving away a single legendary item, but…
‘They must be trying to get on my good side.’
It was an overly generous reward.
But I had no intention of refusing.
I was well-off in terms of money and other resources, but items were always scarce.
Since I wasn’t an Awakener who cleared dungeons, I rarely had the opportunity to obtain items.
And items were rarely available for purchase—even if I had money, getting my hands on them was difficult because most guilds kept them for their own use.
“May I take a look?”
“Of course. This isn’t a random selection. You should choose wisely.”
First box.
It seemed to be a piece of armor.
Reading the description, I understood what it was.
[Maxim’s Crimson Shoulder Guard]
It was a defensive item, likely chosen with my abilities in mind.
I didn’t fight directly, but having an item to protect my body was always welcome.
Its performance was excellent, as expected from a legendary item.
However, it didn’t captivate me.
“It looks delicious.”
Meanwhile, Ara was staring at the items, practically drooling.
She must have been tempted by their legendary status, but Ara, you can’t eat that.
Second box.
A consumable legendary item.
[Great Elixir]
A round pill with a refreshing scent.
It was about half the size of a fist.
Its effect? Complete recovery from all injuries and diseases.
That alone made it worthy of its legendary status.
But the additional effect caught my eye.
[Upon consumption, lifespan increases by two years.]
An item that increased lifespan.
Not only that, but it also increased magic power significantly and raised magic rank by one level if it was below tier 3.
Even though it was a consumable, its worth was clear.
‘Having one just in case would be great.’
Still, I decided to check the other boxes first.
Third box.
After seeing the Great Elixir, my expectations weren’t high.
But when I opened it, I tilted my head in confusion.
“What is this… just a scrap of cloth?”
It really was just a piece of cloth.
A dirty, stained white cloth.
It was slightly larger than a handkerchief but smaller than a towel.
This only made me more curious about its true nature.
As soon as I checked its details—
“!!”
I froze.
At the same time, Ara shouted while looking at the cloth.
“Ashu!”
Indeed.
This item was—
[Relic of Lust (??)]
Ashu’s apron.
Cliche Novel 