Chapter 34

I Am Not a Reincarnator Chapter 34

Paradise (1)

The day after the Seoul Station incident.

Oh Jin finished his morning training and headed to the Association.

*Knock knock.*

"Come in."

When he went to Team Leader Han Joon-man's office, there were piles of documents that could have filled a belly.

"What's this...?"

"Haha! Wasn't there quite a commotion yesterday?"

Despite the evident fatigue on his face, Team Leader Han Joon-man had a bright smile.

'Well, that's true.'

Yesterday, revealing that he was part of the Association must have caused quite a stir.

"Hey, there was a huge fuss about you on the internet. Did you see it?"

"I didn't specifically look for it."

He chuckled and sat down.

Team Leader Han Joon-man, grinning, poured two cups of coffee and placed them on the table.

"Already this morning, sixteen guilds have contacted us. Eight of them even sent sponsorship funds to the Association."

"Really, in just one day?"

"Haha! In this industry, the quick survive."

Team Leader Han Joon-man burst into hearty laughter and took a sip of coffee.

"...But."

His voice slightly lowered.

"Because of this incident... the fact that you are the Apostle of the North Star has also spread widely."

Indeed.

No matter how much media control was attempted, it was impossible for the news not to spread after he defeated a giant monster in front of so many people.

"Well, I expected that."

"I'm sorry. We tried our best to prevent the fact that you are the Apostle of the North Star from becoming public..."

"Hehe. It's fine."

After all, hiding the fact that he was the Apostle of the North Star was merely a temporary measure to buy time until he had built up enough strength.

'If I could have hidden it until I reached 5-star, or at least 4-star, it would have been better.'

But the water has already been spilled.

'Now it's time to use the name of the Apostle of the North Star to my advantage.'

The sole Apostle of Vega, the Weaver Star.

With this title, there would be no place where he would be overshadowed.

"By the way... according to the article, you demanded money from the people you saved..."

Team Leader Han Joon-man spoke cautiously.

"Oh, that, that..."

There's nothing to say about that.

While it was actually Vega who demanded the money, it probably looked to others like his summon or guardian spirit was following orders.

'They must be giving me a lot of flak for it.'

That's why he didn't look for the articles yesterday.

"─This was a true stroke of genius."

"Excuse me?"

What the hell is he talking about?

"Somewhat tsundere? It seems to have gained a lot of popularity that way."

"Excuse me?"

What the hell is he talking about?

"Um? Didn't you see the article in Chonri Daily yesterday?"

"I didn't see it..."

"Take a look at this."

Team Leader Han Joon-man handed him a tablet and clicked on the article.

The front of the article showed a dramatic scene of him dramatically saving a child who had fallen to the ground, captured in a stunning composition.

'When was this taken?'

Oh Jin's mouth dropped open.

He was standing in front of the fallen child, his clothes fluttering in the blue lightning.

It looked so real that it could have been a scene from a movie.

"The words you said while saving this child became quite a topic."

"What did I say?"

I only told them to run.

"Didn't you say, 'I didn't particularly save you' while saving the child?"

No.

I didn't say that.

"And then you even draped your coat over the fallen child!"

I wasn't wearing a coat, how could I have draped it over them?

Come on, you can see that from the photo.

"Finally, you turned around and said, 'Run... away' in a small voice!"

Write a novel, not a news article, please.

"Anyway, because of that, the demand for money at the end also received a lot of attention."

"..."

"Somewhat in the sense of, 'I saved you only for the money'..."

"Ah, yes. I understand."

Damn.

What the hell.

'After always pulling scams, it feels so strange to be on the receiving end.'

Thinking about how the people he scammed must have felt, his head spun.

'But in this case.'

Even though it was a scam, it worked to his advantage.

"...What's the name of the journalist who wrote this article?"

"Ko Gwang-hyun."

That guy?

No.

Thinking about it, there's no one else it could be.

'...I'll have to meet him sometime.'

It was a bit embarrassing, but thanks to this, he managed to avoid a crisis that could have solidified a negative image.

'If I can manipulate him well, he'll be useful in the future.'

In any case, having a connection in the media would be beneficial in many ways.

Whether by choice or by force.

The title of the Apostle of the North Star would inevitably attract public attention.

"By the way, because of this incident, there's quite a commotion in 'Paradise' these days. With a monster suddenly appearing in the city center..."

Paradise.

Hearing this word, the original purpose of his visit to the Association came to mind.

*Thud.*

He took out the holy stones he had collected from the flesh monster and the other variants he had gathered so far and placed them on the table.

"This is..."

"These are the holy stones I obtained from killing the giant and the reptilians this time."

"There are quite a few."

Team Leader Han Joon-man examined the pile of black holy stones on the table.

Except for the one taken from the flesh giant, most were only the size of coins, but the quantity was significant.

"I want to dispose of these."

"Hmm."

Team Leader Han Joon-man narrowed his eyes and spread out the black holy stones on the table.

"Except for these two, the quality isn't very good."

One was the holy stone he obtained from the flesh giant this time, and the other was the one he obtained from the black slime giant at the Mokdong Gate previously.

Of course, the one from the flesh giant was significantly larger.

"How much do you think they're worth?"

"Hmm..."

Team Leader Han Joon-man lifted a black holy stone and continued.

"Actually, the value of variant holy stones has dropped a lot recently."

"Dropped a lot?"

"Yes. Recently, the number of variants has suddenly increased, so the supply has become much larger."

It was the first he had heard of this.

"Although we are still investigating, it seems that the supply has increased by almost tenfold, according to rumors."

"..."

Could it be related to the constellations of the Black Star?

A question crossed his mind, but he didn't voice it.

"Still, because of the quantity, especially these two, which are so large and of high quality... Hmm. At the very least, 40 billion won? Maybe even more."

"Is that so?"

That would be enough.

It exceeds the amount he had aimed for.

"I want to dispose of these quickly."

"Quickly?"

"Yes. Preferably within a few days."

"Hmm... With this quantity, it might be difficult within a few days. Especially with the recent large fluctuations in the market for variant holy stones, the number of buyers has decreased."

"Then, how about giving me 30 billion won in advance and taking the profit for the Association?"

"Excuse me?"

Team Leader Han Joon-man's eyes widened.

Even if he needed money urgently, giving up a profit of at least 10 billion won to the Association was surprising.

'Oh Jin... isn't the type to do this.'

Although they hadn't known each other for long, from the way he acted during the contract and when taking on missions, it was clear how obsessed he was with money.

But.

Why.

"Can you do it?"

"Ah, yes... Of course. With those terms, we would even ask for it."

"Then, please do it that way."

"..."

There were many questions he wanted to ask, but he didn't press further.

"Then, I'll transfer 30 billion won to your account by lunchtime tomorrow."

"Thank you."

Oh Jin nodded with a faint smile.

"Oh, right. Can you repair this for me?"

He took out the wire shooter and placed it on the table.

"Is it not working?"

"No. One of the wire lines is broken."

"Ah. That shouldn't take long."

"Hehe. I feel a bit guilty asking for repairs so soon after you made it for me."

"Hahaha! No, it's fine. Considering what happened yesterday."

Team Leader Han Joon-man shook his head and took the wire shooter.

"Is there anything else you need?"

"No, that's all."

Oh Jin nodded and stood up.

"Wait a moment. I have something to give you."

"Excuse me?"

"As you mentioned before."

"Oh."

He remembered that when requesting the equipment, he had asked for one more thing.

"I have it prepared as the best quality."

*Thud.*

Team Leader Han Joon-man placed a high-end black case, about a meter long, on the table.

"How much was it?"

"About 17 million won."

"Just a moment."

Oh Jin took out his smartphone to transfer the money.

"No, I'll deduct this from the profit you mentioned earlier."

"Hmm..."

After a brief moment of thought, Oh Jin nodded.

"Yes, I understand. Let's do it that way."

Since he was giving the entire profit, it was essentially the same as buying it with his own money.

Oh Jin carefully took the black case offered by Team Leader Han Joon-man.

"Then..."

"Ah, I have one more thing to give you."

"Another one?"

He tilted his head and looked at Team Leader Han Joon-man.

Team Leader Han Joon-man handed him a card with the Association's emblem.

The card had Oh Jin's photo and basic information.

"This is..."

"It's a Special Agent qualification card."

"Excuse me? A Special Agent?"

Special Agent of the Association.

To put it simply, it was like a special agent of the Association.

'What the... They're giving me this?'

Although the Association is often in conflict with various groups, Special Agents are an exception.

They only issue qualification cards to awakened individuals whose abilities have been verified within the Association.

Most importantly, Special Agents have strong investigative powers.

In theory, they could even stop and search anyone on the street.

'Of course, if they did that, they would be dismissed immediately.'

Still, it meant they had significant power.

"This is... quite unexpected."

"Haha. Although it's a bit early, thanks to the President's active support, we were able to issue it quickly."

It seemed they were trying to secure him before he joined a large guild, given his sudden rise to fame.

No matter how much time had passed since he joined the Association, to give him a Special Agent qualification card was quite a stretch.

How desperate are they?

"Well... I'll take it for now."

Since they were offering it, there was no reason to refuse.

"Then, I'll be going."

"Sure. Take care."

After a brief exchange, he left the Association.

The fresh sunlight was shining down.

"Ha."

He exhaled deeply and lifted his smartphone.

He opened the bank app and checked his balance.

'70 billion won.'

With 30 billion won coming in tomorrow, he would have a total of 100 billion won.

"I... finally gathered it."

His voice trembled.

He turned his head and started walking.

He had achieved his goal.

'To Paradise.'

Just one more step.