Mr. Kim Strikes It Rich with Auto-Hunting [Novel] Chapter 49

Bokdeongi.

Rani dropped a bombshell.

“Rani wants to get stwonger too!”

And she even claimed she knew how.

How?

I was curious, but first things first.

“Rani, do you want to go to dungeons?”

“Dungeons? Yeah! Rani likes safety too! Like it! Like it-! Wanna do that!”

See, she really loved that chant.

She used to parrot it whenever she got the chance, and lately she was even humming it to herself.

Well….

Still, I had to admit I was curious.

What would happen if Rani grew stronger?

Would she tap monsters over the head with that tiny hammer of hers?

“Hehe-!”

Whoa, hold on.

Smiling isn’t going to solve everything.

Fine, whatever.

She said she knew how to get stronger, so let’s hear that out first.

“Need lots of good materials! ‘Cause Rani gets stronger by making lots of pretty things!”

“Huh? Good materials?”

Hmm….

So.

“You get stronger if you make a lot of good items?”

“Yeah! Uh-huh!”

“Hmm….”

That was it?

Not bad.

Maybe that was how it worked because her specialty was Item Crafting.

“Is twue?”

“I’m asking because I don’t know either, man.”

“Awthur thinks. Bokdeongi gets twained by Awthur!”

“That’s not a bad idea either.”

Good old Arthur.

He seemed a bit dim at times, but his training was nothing short of miraculous.

He’d even trained those orcs all the way up to high-grade.

If she crafted items while getting trained by Arthur at the same time?

With two barracks running, could she power-level in no time?

“Huh?! Rani gets trained? Whhyyy?!”

“Bokdeongi said! Want to get stwong! No?”

“Yeah! Rani wants to get stwonger!”

Right.

“‘Cause when Rani gets stronger! I can make lots of different things! And make prettier things! Like this!”

“Awthur can twain you!”

Hmm.

Arthur, hold on a second.

Wait….

Did we completely misunderstand her?

The thing Rani’s little finger was pointing at.

[High-Grade Ring of Recovery]

It was the accessory I’d received from Lee Bojun.

Somehow, I got the feeling….

She wasn’t talking about wanting to brawl with anything.

Let’s ask to be sure.

“Rani, you said you wanted to go to dungeons, right?”

“Yeah! Rani wants to go like-! Too!”

“Then what about fighting monsters?”

“Umm…. Don’t like fighting! That’s scary!”

“R-Right….”

Phew….

Figures.

I knew something felt off.

“Boss? What Bokdeongi say?”

“It seems ‘getting stronger’ doesn’t mean combat, Laborer Arthur. She just means raising her grade.”

“Bokdeongi said! Get stwong?”

“That’s just how little kids talk.”

“Rani not a kid!”

All the other kids say the exact same thing, Rani….

Anyway, to sum it up.

“Raising your grade means you can craft a wider variety of items.”

And the method was crafting by using good materials.

Hmm….

Come to think of it, that made sense.

I’d never seen her make accessories.

Weapons, shields, scrolls….

Ah, she made those gloves at the very beginning, too.

If going up in grade let her craft a wider variety….

Sounds pretty great, doesn’t it?

She was already busted as it was.

Now she could make accessories on top of that?

This was a no-brainer.

Make it happen.

“Rani, you said you needed good materials, right?”

We had plenty of materials.

Todd?

Why don’t we show her?

I immediately opened the inventory.

I showed it off with pride, but—

“Uuuum…. No! Better materials!”

What brought this on?

She firmly shook her head, searched around for a long time, and then.

“Like this!”

What was that?

[Ogre Chieftain’s Leather]

Did we have something like this?

Where did this even drop?

I looked it up right away.

“Hmm… Floor 61 of the tower.”

Must have been a material from China.

Was it Wei Jin?

They said that person stopped at Floor 62.

Then….

“You need materials that drop from above Floor 61?”

“Yeah! That’s right!”

“Okay, got it.”

Since I was on Floor 51 right now….

I’d get there in no time, wouldn’t I?

Five days at best?

“Director, wouldn’t it be more efficient to run a crafting commission during that period?”

“A crafting commission?”

“Yes. If you announce you’re taking orders, people will come swarming in.”

That was true.

We were already getting flooded with inquiries anyway.

It was absolute chaos.

The United States, Germany, Japan, Russia….

Even if we only took requests from those past Floor 60, how many would that be?

“Sounds good. You fine with that too, Rani?”

“Yeah! Rani likes anything as long as it’s made from good materials!”

Okay.

Then should I put up a post on AwakenedNet for the first time in a while?

Saying that the Manpower Office Director was taking commissions again.

“Director, one moment.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Heheh. I have a great idea. Would you leave this to me?”

This guy.

Or rather, this teddy bear.

That sly smile of his was back for the first time in a while.

Whenever he looked like that, he always brought back an unbelievable deal.

Fine.

Let’s leave it in his hands.

[Accepting Crafting Commissions.]

A post uploaded to AwakenedNet.

It had an ordinary title, but….

The author was anything but ordinary.

[Author: Manpower Office Director]

– Holy shit. The Manpower Office Director is taking crafting commissions??

– Insane….

– Is that guy really that good at crafting?

– You seriously don’t know? LMAO. The weapons used by the rank 1 and 2 hunters were both made by him.

– And on top of that, he’s a monster who clears S-grade dungeons….

That Manpower Office Director was taking crafting commissions?

The opportunity everyone had been waiting for.

Views skyrocketed in an instant.

The problem was….

– Ah, these requirements are brutal as hell;;;

– Minimum Floor 61+ materials…? Doesn’t that mean the number of people in the entire world who can actually submit a request can be counted on one hand?

– Whew….

——-

[Commission Terms]

1. Must strictly be materials from Floor 61 or higher.

2. No commission fee.

3. Instead, you must supply at least double the required materials. (Requests offering superior terms will be prioritized.)

——-

Materials from Floor 61 or higher?

How many people in the entire world could even farm those?

And above all else.

– The real kicker is that there’s no commission fee.

– No fee, but in exchange, hand over at least double the materials LMAOOOOOOOO

– Exactly LOL. Honestly, with materials of that caliber, a commission fee doesn’t even mean anything….

– For real. At Floor 61 and above, each material is worth hundreds of millions or billions of won.

No commission fee.

Instead, a condition requiring clients to provide at least double the materials.

– But do you guys realize? Double isn’t even guaranteed….

– So true LMAO. Requests offering the best terms get accepted first….

– It’s literally ‘battle royale begins now’ LMAOOOO

In short?

An auction had begun.

It was brazen commerce in its purest form, but….

– Well, when you have the skills to back it up….

– The person who makes top-tier gear has always held all the cards LOL

– The rankers from the Five Great Powers are probably sprinting over in pure bliss.

– We might as well just sit back and watch the show LMAO

– Sounds fun though?

– FR, when else are we ever gonna see the bastards from the Five Great Powers begging like dogs?

The defining trait of hunters:

They never looked up at a tree they couldn’t climb.

What was the point of getting greedy for nothing?

You’d only tear your groin trying to take too big a step.

Knowing they were far below the level required to submit an order, they coolly gave up.

Instead, they might as well pop some popcorn.

To watch the big shots from world powers around the globe grovel on their knees.

“We’re submitting a request immediately?”

“Hmm…. The terms seem awfully harsh. Will this really be alright?”

Materials dropping from Floor 61 at a minimum.

Brutal terms forcing an auction using materials with zero commission fee.

Even so….

For those who had been waiting solely for this moment, it was a priceless opportunity.

America’s rank 1 hunter, Ralph Carter, was one of them.

So?

As soon as he heard the news, he summoned his management team.

“We have to take it, no matter what.”

Who cared about the terms?

The Manpower Office Director was opening commissions.

“Is it really that big a deal?”

The management team remained half in doubt.

Good grief.

How could they even hesitate over this?

“Of course it is. If I just upgrade to a top-tier weapon right now in my current state, I can push straight through to Floor 70.”

“Hmm…. Still, double the materials is a bit….”

It was steep, no doubt.

Asking for at least double, after all.

Still….

“Double probably won’t even cut it, you know.”

Triple?

Maybe even quadruple or more.

Why?

Because he wouldn’t be the only one eyeing this chance.

To prioritize orders that offered the best terms….

“Ruthless bastard.”

“Agreed.”

How did he come up with this idea?

Phew….

Handing over double or triple these materials.

His hands shook just thinking about it.

What choice did he have?

Right.

“Then we’re going with three times….”

No, wait.

Let’s check the internet first.

What were the names of the weapons he’d made before?

Some kind of….

Strange names.

“Found them.”

Searching for the weapons of South Korea’s rank 1 and 2 hunters brought them right up.

[Wharuruk]

[Ttakkeum]

What kind of weapon names were these…?

Yet their performance was breathtaking.

Right.

With gear like that, no wonder both of them shot straight up to Floor 61.

“Think about it. Those weapons pulled off that kind of performance with materials from the 50s. The materials I have? Floor 60, and 66 at that. Can you imagine? Just how insane a weapon will come out of this.”

“That… makes sense.”

Monsters from Floor 50 versus Floor 60.

It was night and day.

The rewards were naturally on an entirely different level as well.

The quality of the materials?

Goes without saying.

“It’s decided. I’m offering three-point-five times the materials.”

Still….

His naming sense was a bit rough.

Wharuruk, Ttakkeum….

If possible, Ralph hoped his weapon would get a cool name.

Since he was paying plenty of materials, the guy would surely come up with something plausible, right?

I’m trusting you, Manpower Office Director.

“Ah. By the way, would he take two commissions, by any chance…? I’ve gathered plenty of materials….”

“What, he already put in a bid? He put in for two of them, no less. Why is the guy ranked first in the entire world so damn greedy? He could show some restraint for once….”

The United Kingdom’s rank 1 hunter, Arthur Brandt.

His current tower floor?

Floor 65.

Two floors lower than Ralph Carter.

That was why he wished Ralph would step aside for things like this….

That greedy jerk.

“The Manpower Office Director too, and this bastard Ralph. I can’t stand a single one of them.”

Especially the Manpower Office Director.

That guy was the absolute worst.

Thanks to him, all the groundwork laid in India and Egypt had gone straight down the drain.

[Reconstruction Efforts in India and Egypt Proceeding Successfully]

An article from yesterday.

Normally, the United Kingdom should have provided tremendous aid there and expanded its influence….

Fat chance.

They couldn’t get so much as a foot in the door.

People asked why Britain was trying to horn in when the Manpower Office Director had handled everything.

“The operation we tried to run in China failed, too.”

Calling that a failure was an understatement.

They were lucky they hadn’t been caught.

Good grief.

Who in their right mind would stab China right in the back?

That was why he’d intended to keep his distance for a while without getting involved….

This, however, was too good to pass up.

Especially if that jerk Ralph was the one getting the chance?

“Ugh, it makes me sick just thinking about it.”

Disliking the Manpower Office Director was one thing.

His abilities had to be acknowledged.

Especially his crafting skills….

Knowing Ralph’s personality, he had definitely thrown in every single one of his best materials.

And if results came from those materials?

Missing this chance meant the gap with the United States could never be closed.

So….

“I have to secure it, no matter what.”

The problem was.

“Will Floor 64 materials be enough…?”

Ralph’s materials were probably from Floor 66.

This wouldn’t do.

As much as possible.

He’d have to scrape together everything he had and send it over.

Beijing, China.

Central Awakened Management Bureau.

“Director, have you seen this?”

“I’m busy out of my mind. What is it now?”

China had two hunter-related agencies.

The aboveground Central Awakened Management Bureau.

The shadowy Special Operations Unit.

Right now?

Only the aboveground bureau remained.

Thanks to that, they were swamped with work trying to oversee the dungeons that unit used to manage….

Why was someone suddenly asking if he’d seen something?

“They say the Manpower Office Director is accepting crafting commissions.”

“That crazy bastard….”

Accepting weapon crafting commissions?

Now, of all times?

Seriously….

He should have accepted them sooner!

Or at least dropped a hint.

“At this rate, the President and the Special Operations Unit truly died for nothing.”

“Well….”

“Sigh….”

The terror that flipped China upside down.

Even if others didn’t know, the Director had a rough idea.

This….

The Manpower Office Director was probably involved.

Otherwise, the timing made no sense at all.

Well, everyone said so.

That they had brought punishment upon themselves by doing evil deeds.

“Bullshit….”

If that was the reason, there was more than one department that qualified.

Why single out the Special Operations Unit?

Well….

He had zero intention of seeking revenge, though.

“That scoundrel of a Manpower Office Director.”

Still, cursing was free.

“Whew….”

A sudden thought crossed his mind.

Just like back during the S-grade dungeon.

And just like this time.

It felt as though getting greedy only led to getting struck down in return.

Sigh….

What choice did they have?

“Scrape together every last Floor 61 material left in the warehouse Wei Jin left behind, and reach out to other nations. Tell them we’ll pay whatever it takes, just sell us materials.”

“Are you going to submit a request?”

“We have to….”

Without this, there was no way to cultivate Chen Yu.

Still….

Would he even accept it?