Mr. Kim Strikes It Rich with Auto-Hunting [Novel] Chapter 52

Chapter 52

Ha-jun Yoon, 23 years old.

Now a reasonably seasoned Manpower Office Director.

I’m fairly confident in translating the laborers’ way of speaking.

“Boss? Arthur is here, two-two-three okay?”

Arthur’s speech?

Easy.

Translated, it means: please make me a coffee.

“Yeah. Naturally, go ahead and fix yourself one.”

“Kyah, good!”

“This wizard also feels his mana reserves require a replenishment soon.”

Guan Yu’s dignified speech pattern is the same.

Those words mean: I’d appreciate a cup as well.

That’s all it is.

But….

Rani-speak is still difficult.

Even just this time.

What on earth is ‘pew-pew’?

Having no clue, I asked, and—.

“Pew-pew is pew-pew! If Director goes pew-pew, we get happy!”

That’s the only answer I get.

Still, well.

I think I kind of get it roughly….

“Is this something that can influence the laborers or something…?”

“Heh-!”

No.

Don’t just laugh, give me an answer.

Even when poking her lightly—.

She only giggles without answering.

She’s unexpectedly stubborn.

Well, nothing can be done about it.

“Anyway, Rani, we need to craft this first, is that okay?”

I’ll find out once it’s made anyway.

Why bother prying?

Let’s just resolve the received commission first.

Then I can just watch her make it afterward.

“Which one?!”

Which one, you ask?

This.

——-

[Crafting Commission]

Client: Ralph Carter (United States)

Requested Item: Armor

——-

The customer who took the axe came back again.

What’s more, bringing bundles of materials with him.

He must have been satisfied with the item he received.

“Umm…. Armor? Sounds great!”

“Okay, then let’s craft that first. Getting the received commission handled will set my mind at ease.”

“Yup! Rani likes that! But there are tons of good materials here, is it okay to pick and use whatever Rani wants?!”

Whoa.

Of course.

Naturally.

“It’s fine to use all of it, so feel free to take and use whatever you want.”

“Gasp…. Rani can’t use all of this! There’s so much?!”

“Uh…. Don’t actually use all of it…. Just pick and take what Rani wants.”

“That’s great!”

When I open the inventory?

Rani.

Bouncing around excitedly this time too, shopping begins.

And after picking this and that—.

“Preparations complete! Rani will make it right away!”

A hammer in one hand.

Tightly gripping materials in the other hand, she headed straight for the room.

What’s next?

“Hehe.”

Clang, clank, clang, clank.

With a beaming smile, she starts hammering.

First, I should switch it to the training grounds.

Otherwise, it’ll be noisy for the other houses.

[Training Grounds ON]

Kyah.

As expected, perfect soundproofing.

It turns quiet the moment it’s switched.

[This is the living room, wow! Everyone! Can you see this view? This is that famous Han River view—]

“Bear bastard, watches that all the time, yes?”

“Laborer Arthur. Look at that view. Does it not make one naturally gasp in awe?”

That, that teddy bear.

Watching Han River view videos again today.

Is it really that great…?

Honestly, I’m not quite sure….

“Todd, didn’t you say you were looking into a new house?”

“Yes, Director. I left it to the subcontractors.”

“Once we get there, you’ll be able to look at it to your heart’s content.”

“Kuh…. Thank you, Director.”

Still, whatever makes them happy is good.

If we’re moving to a new house?

How could anyone resist a Han River view?

Since it’s been handed over to the Eye of Truth folks, an answer should arrive soon.

Whether it works out or not….

It would be nice if we could get it.

Todd would love it immensely too.

“Boss, having a coffee?”

“Me? Nah, I’m good.”

“Boss rests too, once going up above have to work hard so cannot rest!”

“Above?”

“Right! Above!”

Hmm.

What on earth is up there?

Lately, the laborers have been mentioning that often.

They said up to the 60th Floor was easy, so it must be the 70th Floors….

It certainly seems to be tough.

“Still, well…. Even if we go up, won’t I stay the same?”

“Umm…, that would be true for Director, right?”

Exactly.

All I can do is….

Raising the grade of my unique skill?

To do that, I need to clear missions, but that isn’t easy.

[Mission List]

1. Conquer the 60th Floor of the Tower of Chaos (58/60)

2. Conquer S-rank dungeons 5 times cumulatively (3/5)

Number 1 is easy.

Doing the 59th and 60th Floors takes only a day at most.

The problem is Number 2.

“Todd, no intel on S-rank dungeons, right?”

“Yes. I’m looking into it separately as well, and told the subcontractors to focus on searching for that intel, but there’s no news.”

“Well…. They said those hardly ever appear.”

Sigh, who knows.

“Arthur, make me a cup of coffee too.”

“Great! Arthur makes it amazingly!”

Yeah.

Let’s just take a little break for now.

With everyone resting except Rani, if I’m the only one rushing around, they’ll feel uncomfortable.

Besides, I don’t actually have much to do right now anyway….

“Two-two-three is here.”

“Thank you.”

It’s definitely not a two-two-three though.

Always mixing an instant coffee stick and calling it two-two-three.

Still, whatever.

As long as it tastes good, that’s what counts.

*Slurp.*

Taking a sip of coffee instantly melts away the tension—.

“Kyah…, this is it.”

Yeah.

This is peace.

It’s been a while since feeling this relaxed.

I hope things stay just like this.

* * *

Around that time.

“Nice! Done!”

The United States Number 1 Ranker.

Ralph Carter clenched his fist tightly.

[Winning Bid Successful!]

[Please enter commission specifications.]

“Crazy Arthur Brandt, you really threw yourself into this like mad?”

The reason is obvious.

Because his pride was hurt.

But….

Is this my fault?

The fault lies with the guy who made such a ridiculous proposal in the first place.

Giggling and scheming behind closed doors?

That’s not Ralph’s style.

And he has even less intention to yield.

“He takes this one and yields the next one…? When nobody even knows if there’ll be a next time, what total nonsense….”

Well, perhaps crafting commissions might be accepted again someday.

“Though it won’t be anytime soon.”

How can he be so sure?

[Anonymous South Korean Hunter breaks the 58th Floor with a new world record! Where is the limit?!]

That headline continuously popping up in articles.

It has to be the Manpower Office Director.

From what he’s heard, the timing of his active emergence aligns closely.

And constantly pulling off such ridiculous feats….

It’s just the Manpower Office Director himself through and through.

– That Korean hunter is reaching the 60th Floor soon….

– But won’t he get blocked from the 61st Floor onward?

– Probably, right? Because from there on, the difficulty increases insanely.

The public reaction was along those lines.

Hmm.

Could that really be the case?

“Seeing Whooosh’s performance, they wouldn’t be able to say things like that….”

The new axe, Whooosh.

A playful name, but….

Its performance is astounding.

Compared to this, the axe used previously was practically a toy.

Was the axe originally used bad?

“No way, everyone else praised that one as a lifetime weapon.”

Ralph’s thoughts were similar.

Unless one went above the 70th Floor.

A weapon better than that in the 60th Floors?

He thought he’d never be able to obtain one.

However.

The moment he used Whooosh on the 67th Floor, the realization hit immediately.

“The Manpower Office Director is a god.”

The 67th Floor monster, Giant Stone Worm.

Similar to a sand worm, but its entire body is solid rock.

Incredibly durable.

With previous weapons, it barely left a scratch.

What….

Only after wrapping oneself in buff potions and debuff items could he barely chip away its health.

Whooosh was different from the very first strike.

*Crunch—.*

As if it weren’t even tofu.

Giant Stone Worm or whatever, it just cleaved right through….

That tactile impact still feels vivid.

Having experienced such a sensation, how could anyone resist?

“Still, spending 174 pieces was quite a massive bleed, but….”

No.

In the first place, gaining both weapon and armor makes this an indisputably profitable trade.

As for materials….

They can just be gathered again from now on.

If that UK Arthur Brandt guy had gotten the weapon?

Ugh….

Perhaps he might have caught up in the Tower.

Though of course, now he’ll never catch up.

[Client: Ralph Carter]

[Requested Item: Armor]

“Kyah….”

Equipping a Manpower Office Director-crafted armor on top of Whooosh?

Clearing straight through to the 70th Floor might be possible.

UK Arthur Brandt, it must sting, but what can you do?

That’s capitalism for you.

If you have a complaint, bring a mountain of cash next time.

* * *

While the victor, Ralph Carter, is reveling in happiness.

What about Arthur Brandt, who lost the competition?

[Bid Failed]

“Damn it!”

*SLAM!*

At the message popping up before his eyes, he slammed the desk furiously.

“Even for an American bastard, does this make any sense?!”

Arthur Brandt also felt it instinctively.

If not this opportunity.

He would never be able to catch up to that bastard Ralph.

So, he mobilized every single resource, yet….

The result was failure.

What.

Bringing 174 primary materials?

“Throwing materials worth at least several hundred billion into this?!”

That crazy lunatic.

Just how good was the initial weapon he received that his eyes completely flipped….

“Ha….”

How long has it been since he felt rage this uncontrollable?

It seems like the first time since awakening.

“Ever since that Manpower Office Director bastard appeared, not a single thing goes right.”

This resentment.

He wants to vent it somehow, is there no way?

* * *

“Did you see this? They say he won the bid by offering 174 primary materials from the 61st to 65th Floors.”

“Saw it. How could we not know about that?”

“Indeed, considering it’s prime contractor business….”

Really.

Even now, it’s unbelievable.

Us, once a small-scale private detective guild, acting as the Manpower Office Director’s subcontractor?

Pinching a cheek brings a sharp sting.

Yeah.

It’s not a dream.

“Doing that again.”

“No, it’s just that ever since seeing Guan Yu back then, it feels like I’m constantly dreaming.”

Good grief.

Guan Yu.

The real Guan Yu.

“Indeed…. Who could have dreamed our prime contractor would smash China to pieces?”

“Smashed…. That’s right.”

An accurate expression.

This is what getting smashed looks like.

Even now, the Chairman seat remains vacant.

And the hunter-related departments are in total Chaos.

“Well, they brought it upon themselves.”

“That’s true.”

“Thinking about how terrified I was of dying back then…. Ugh, I still wake up with a start at night. Those bastards deserved it.”

Not just terrified of dying.

The benefactor.

Rather, if Lord Guan Yu hadn’t come, they would have simply died.

Furthermore.

“Saving our lives was already gracious, but providing work like this too? One has to show absolute loyalty.”

“Agreed. And honestly, if we had continued our private detective work, we would have starved to death.”

Uh….

Is that so?

“For starters, we wouldn’t have touched this kind of massive money until the day we died.”

“That’s true.”

The first assignment given by the prime contractor.

Establishing an office in China.

The result?

A resounding success.

“Well done. Take this, as our Director bestows this reward upon finding your work satisfactory.”

What the bear that visited afterward handed over was….

High-grade magic stones.

50 of them each, no less.

Good heavens.

Handing over 500 million won just for doing one job well?

“If you achieve results on the next task, rewards will follow, so work diligently.”

Two tasks assigned along with those words.

1. Safely liquidate the magic stones provided outside of the bonus into cash.

2. Find information regarding S-rank dungeons.

Number 1 is easy.

Even if the scale is ridiculously massive.

It can just be converted slowly over time.

The problem is the S-rank dungeons….

Hmm.

Honestly, no idea on this one.

It’s not like they appear often.

For now, requests were submitted to information agencies worldwide, but….

Well, would one actually show up?

*Ring-ring-ring—!*

“Umm…. An S-rank dungeon appeared in the United Kingdom?”

Oh.

One actually appeared.

* * *

Having rested well, time to head to the Tower again.

I called all the laborers.

“Alright, everyone gather at the training grounds.”

Clang, clank, clang, clank.

Our Rani is still hammering away.

A shame.

We’re about to do what Rani likes.

“All together! Safety! Good! Good! Good!”

As expected of Arthur.

His pronunciation is always spot-on when shouting slogans.

“Good! Good! Good!”

“Chwik! Good! Good! Chwik!”

Robin, Lord Guan Yu, and the orc laborers too.

Shouting slogans amiably together, preparations are complete.

Shall we do a quick briefing now?

“Today, let’s clear just the 59th and 60th Floors. That will yield an A-rank key, so let’s all head there together tomorrow.”

“Great!”

Okay.

Then preparations are finished.

Shall we head out now?

[Dispatch Laborers]

– Tower

Just as I was about to send them right away—.

“Huh? Director. A message just arrived from the subcontractor stating that an S-rank dungeon has appeared.”

What?

Then we should head over there instead.

Where is it?