Mr. Kim Strikes It Rich with Auto-Hunting [Novel] Chapter 44

“I believe it would be best to take them on as a subcontractor, then have them establish an office in China.”

Todd’s suggestion.

The reasoning?

Taking them as a subcontractor would unlock the dispatch feature.

Once they opened a branch office, we could travel there as well.

Todd was our go-to information broker.

Every so often, he’d drop crucial intel like this.

Just as he’d done with the manpower office.

Still…

It would be nice if he let me know ahead of time.

When I gently probed him on it, though…

“My apologies. The rules dictate that I may only disclose information once the Director has drawn close to it.”

That was all he ever said.

Bummer.

Sure would be nice to get a heads-up beforehand…

Whatever rules bound him, I had no idea.

Guess I’d find out eventually.

For now…

“Then let’s bring them on as a subcontractor. As for the China branch, someone needs to go over there and talk to them…”

Hmm.

Who should I send?

I glanced around the room.

“Arfur can do it! Just leave it to me!”

“Hnnngh. Rani doesn’t wanna go… It’s too hard…”

“…….”

“Shall this Archmage depart upon the task?”

Well.

Hrm…

“Director, I would be grateful if you entrusted this matter to me.”

Done.

Case closed!

Todd gets the job.

“What about Arfur?”

“Want a cup of coffee?”

“I like coffee! Wait, Boss, you changin’ the subject?”

Ah.

Busted.

Still… credit where credit’s due.

Dealing with people?

Todd, whose specialty was commerce, was hands down the best choice.

The rest of us could just kick back and drink coffee.

Oh, right.

First, I had to open the door.

[A subcontractor affiliation request has arrived.]

– Eye of Truth

[Would you like to accept?]

Of course.

I tapped accept immediately.

[Subcontractor registered.]

[A new function has been added.]

[Dispatch Laborers]

– Office (Eye of Truth)

Nice.

Registration complete.

Opening the Manpower Office interface revealed a brand-new option under the dispatch tab.

Shall we open it up, then?

[Dispatch Laborers]

– Office (Eye of Truth)

All right.

It opened.

“Todd, you’re free to head in now.”

“I’ve only ever watched the other laborers go through, so this feels quite peculiar.”

“Teddy bear, do a good job!”

“Thank you, Laborer Rani. Well then, everyone, I shall be on my way.”

Todd stepped right inside.

No message popped up announcing that auto-hunting had begun.

Makes sense…

It’d be a disaster if he went on a hunt.

Instead, a new prompt appeared.

[Monitoring]

Oh…

Let’s take a look, shall we?

I tapped on it lightly.

“Ahem… Haha, greetings to you all.”

Huh?

Todd’s tone of voice…

“Huh…? The teddy bear talks weird now!”

“Right? I’m not the only one hearing this, am I?”

“Dat’s right! Bear’s talkin’ fancy!”

Tell me about it.

Why did his voice drop so deep all of a sudden?

Look at that.

The others were already gathering around out of sheer curiosity.

“Have I startled you? I am Todd, dispatched from the prime contractor. Moving forward, I shall oversee our subcontractors.”

“Rani knows! That’s Grandpa’s voice!”

“Bear, why you actin’ like dat?”

“Haha…”

Oh boy.

We’re in trouble now.

Just look at our laborers’ faces.

Every single one of them had a smirk plastered across their lips.

They were playful enough already, but now they’d stumbled onto prime material.

Todd was going to get roasted endlessly the moment he came back…

Sorry, Todd.

Still.

How was I supposed to know?

I had no idea he’d commit to a bit that hard out of nowhere.

Anyway, hang in there…

Do a good job over there.

We’ll be watching and cheering you on…

“A… teddy bear…?”

The two employees belonging to the subcontractor tilted their heads in bewilderment.

Exchanging glances with each other…

Hm.

Their expressions were so painfully obvious.

I could read them like open books.

What is that thing…

Don’t ask me…

They had to be thinking along those lines.

A teddy bear arriving at their subcontractor firm under the orders of the Manpower Office Director.

Todd felt deeply satisfied.

Yes.

This was the exact reaction he wanted.

People were bound to feel disoriented when confronted with an unnatural sight.

What if he added a touch of flair to the persona?

“Have I startled you? I am Todd, dispatched from the prime contractor. Moving forward, I shall oversee our subcontractors.”

Aha.

The atmosphere was set.

Laborer Yunchang’s tone really was ridiculously effective.

Todd had been looking for a chance to try it out sometime.

And here it was, coming in handy already.

“The… prime contractor…?”

“Ah, perhaps I should phrase it differently for your comprehension. I have been sent by the Manpower Office Director.”

“Gasp! Yes, sir!”

Sure enough, the effect was unmistakable.

They snapped straight to attention.

Still…

Just what kind of display had Laborer Yunchang put on to have them disciplined to this degree?

Regardless, it was a good thing.

First step — seizing the upper hand — complete.

Now, if he discussed business while tossing in a plausible reward?

Game over.

Smooth sailing.

Time to talk business.

The private detective guild, Eye of Truth.

Now a subcontractor under the Manpower Office Director.

How did Guild Master Kim Seonwoo feel about all this?

“Is this a dream…?”

A quick pinch to his own arm.

Ouch.

That hurt.

It wasn’t a dream…

“Seeing as this is your initial assignment, I shall entrust you with something modest.”

No.

On top of everything else, it actually talked.

How could this possibly not be a dream?

“Um… by any chance, the person who came yesterday…”

“Ah, Laborer Yunchang? Why, do you wish to see him?”

“N-no, not at all!”

Whew.

That was a close call.

The man was their savior, sure, but Seonwoo had zero desire to see him again.

He was terrifying.

This teddy bear might actually be preferable.

“A real teddy bear…”

“Quiet down, you punk.”

“Haha, think nothing of it.”

Right.

He’d heard about it yesterday.

That there was a bear fellow.

Still…

He never imagined it would literally be a stuffed teddy bear.

“Well then, have you regained your composure somewhat?”

“Yes…”

Seonwoo answered in the affirmative, but it was a lie.

How could anyone be calm in this situation?

Small wonder.

Anyone could tell this was a mind-boggling organization…

Traveling by opening Gates straight out of thin air?

Ah…

Was that how they’d cleared China’s S-grade dungeon too?

No wonder.

Rumors had circulated that the dungeon was cleared, yet not a single soul was found inside.

It made total sense now.

If they could pop out of nowhere and vanish just as fast, how could anyone ever track them down?

A bizarre yet overwhelmingly powerful man claiming to be a mage.

On top of that, a talking teddy bear.

No.

The odds were high that this wasn’t the end of it.

It was just a guess, but there might even be someone else dedicated entirely to crafting weapons.

The thought sent shivers down his spine.

Entities like these served a single individual?

Just what kind of person was their leader?

“Well then, do you deem it feasible?”

While Seonwoo was lost in thought, the question looped back around.

They had instructed him to establish a branch in Beijing.

Was it feasible?

Need he even ask?

He had to make it happen no matter what.

“Naturally, it is possible. We shall do our utmost to see it through.”

The Manpower Office Director and his subordinates.

They were the benefactors of Kim Seonwoo and Lee Minguk.

Without them, both men would already be dead.

Just yesterday, Seonwoo had sworn he would give up anything if only they spared his life.

There was no way his mind would change in a single day.

Besides…

Backing out now after learning this much wasn’t an option.

They’d never leave him in peace if he tried to walk away.

“You will require funds during the process, so make use of these.”

“Thank yo— Wait, what?!”

Wait.

They were actually giving him money on top of everything?

Insane.

Just how many magic stones was this…

Unbelievable.

“The more diligence you display, the greater the compensation I shall bestow, so exert your finest efforts.”

More?

Saving their lives and giving them money…

Handing over this much, what was left for them?

“Guild Master, at this rate, shouldn’t we call the other guild members back?”

“Contact the kids. Tell them vacation is over.”

The Eye of Truth guild had five members in total.

Currently, only two were present.

Why?

Because there was no work, so he’d sent them on leave.

Time to gather everyone back.

From now on, it looked like they’d have to work themselves to the bone.

Oh, but before that.

“Loyalty! Whatever you command, we will give it our all!”

“Todd has completed his mission and returned.”

Whew…

Todd, our resident brain.

He had wrapped up the meeting with the subcontractor flawlessly and returned.

Time to welcome him back properly.

“Thou hast returned.”

“Heh, Teddy Bear hath returned.”

“Uh… Director? Laborer Rani? Why are you speaking like that?”

“Arfur saw it! Teddy Bear copied the rookie’s talk!”

“Gasp… You couldn’t have.”

Yup.

That couldn’t have was exactly what happened.

“Haha, you observed well. It appears you have studied this mage’s manner of speech quite closely.”

“Even Laborer Yunchang… Director, why did you let them?”

“Come on, how was I supposed to know Todd would get so into character like that?”

“Arfur didn’t know either, that Bear had that side to him!”

“You people, really…”

Seeing this side of our brain, Todd, was quite refreshing.

Normally, he was always so composed.

Even so…

That was enough teasing.

Tease him any further, and he might just clock out for the day.

Time to change the subject.

“Todd, I saw you receiving something earlier. What was that?”

“Ah… do you mean this? Well, Laborer Yunchang told them to set it aside.”

“Indeed. It was a curious item, and I deemed this child would take delight in it, so I instructed them to keep it.”

“Huh? Rani?”

What was that?

An anklet?

Ah, don’t tell me…

“Is that the thing the Chinese bastards put on them to threaten them with?”

“It is.”

Yikes.

That was a dangerous object.

I stared at it in alarm, but…

“Hehe… Grandpa gave Rani a fun toy!”

Rani’s reaction was completely nonchalant.

She tapped it a couple of times, then clutched it tight with both hands.

Looks like she loved it.

“Can Rani play with this?!”

“Isn’t it dangerous?”

“Huh? Hmmm… Nope! Rani can handle this!”

“Go ahead and play with it, then.”

Well, yeah.

What was I even worrying about?

Rani was a high-grade laborer, after all.

“In that case… Rani wants to go in here!”

“Okay.”

Was she trying to craft something?

She was asking me to open the training ground.

[Training Ground ON / OFF]

I immediately toggled it to ON, then looked back at Todd.

“It certainly proved to be a convenient feature.”

“Right? Since it moves back and forth through a Gate, you can even transport goods through it.”

A new feature of the Manpower Office (Temporary).

[Dispatch Laborers]

– Office

After trying it out once?

I could only marvel.

Unbelievable convenience that let us travel anywhere a subcontractor was established.

On top of that, we could even move cargo?

If we made proper use of this, it would be ridiculously useful.

Well, I could mull that over as we went along.

“It would be best to observe how they handle the matter in China first before deciding on our subsequent steps.”

“True… We need to see what kind of people they are, too.”

“Yes. That is precisely why I deliberately provided them with an abundance of magic stones. To see how they respond.”

“Right, good thinking.”

Todd, the merchant.

He already had plenty of plans lined up.

Chief among them was establishing a corporation utilizing the laborers’ abilities.

Such as selling Rani-crafted items, for instance.

He probably intended to watch how those two worked and carve out other avenues accordingly.

Well, sounds great to me.

First task:

Setting up a branch in Beijing.

Let’s just keep an eye on how they handle this one first.

“It seems the pressing matters have been resolved for now, Director.”

“Yeah. Quite a lot changed in a short span of time.”

China.

And the subcontractor.

The China situation in particular was a shocker.

Good grief.

To think they had almost pinpointed my identity.

I hadn’t had the slightest clue.

Yoon Hajun, 23 years old.

D-grade hunter.

…Or so my title claimed, but in truth, I was just coasting off auto-hunting.

Honestly, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t anxious.

Even so…

“Sitting on my hands won’t fix anything.”

Quitting now just because I got spooked?

Nope.

Once started, I had to see it through to the end.

So even if I felt anxious, I had to do what needed doing.

In that case, what was the next move?

The answer was simple.

[Unique Skill: Summon Laborers (Grade: Gold)]

I had to level this up.

Todd had mentioned it before.

If I raised the unique skill’s grade and secured a larger space, the Manpower Office would upgrade alongside it.

A formal manpower office, not a temporary one.

From then on, I’d probably be able to disguise myself without needing disguise vouchers.

Which meant I wouldn’t have to wander around alone anymore.

Naturally, there would be nothing left to fear.

Our laborers.

They might seem a little unhinged at times, but their combat power was monstrous.

Having even one of them by my side was immensely reassuring.

The problem was…

“The missions are getting tougher and tougher…”

How do you raise the grade?

You have to clear missions and accumulate EXP.

My current EXP stood at:

[4/20]

The mission list read:

1. Clear the 50th Floor of the Tower of Chaos (42/50).

2. Accumulate 5 S-Grade Dungeon Clears (3/5).

The Tower of Chaos was one thing.

That S-grade dungeon requirement, though…

“It’s rough.”

Clearing an S-grade dungeon?

That was doable.

Even with item buffs carrying the weight, Arthur and Robin had cleared one with just the two of them.

Now we had another highest-grade laborer on our side.

The real problem was…

“There has to be one available to clear it in the first place.”

Usually, whenever I broke through a tough bottleneck mission like that, the next few would clear in rapid succession.

Couldn’t two unclaimed S-grade dungeons just drop out of thin air or something?

Sigh.

As if that would ever happen.

Nothing for it.

“Let’s just climb the Tower of Chaos.”

Two floors a day.

Reach the 50th floor within four days.

Just as I was laying out the plan…

“Ahem.”

General Yunchang cleared his throat.

What now?

“Director.”

“Yes, General Yunchang?”

“This Archmage stands in need of a new staff.”

A staff?

Actually, I had something sitting in my inventory that would suit him to perfection.

I wonder if he’d ever heard of the Green Dragon Crescent Blade.