Chapter 9

Time flows quickly.

After thoroughly confirming that the side effects of the newly purchased cigarettes were much less than those of the previous ones, Renok rested for a few days in that state.

There were many things he could do during his rest. Now that he could handle magic, he could easily study it while lying in bed, and his growing talent was more than enough to allow him to immerse himself in magic.

As he continued to study magic, his casting time gradually shortened, and the number of spells he could apply increased.

By combining a few known electric spells in new ways, he could create new spells. Lost in the fun of something he couldn't even attempt in the original WORLD game, Renok studied magic without any interference, finding peace in it.

When he felt his energy had somewhat returned, he would stop resting and go back to work.

He would visit Jenny's bar and repeatedly pick out wanted criminals.

It's unclear if Jenny chose this job simply to test Renok's abilities, but from Renok's perspective, who was short on money, it was quite a decent income.

Tracing a wanted criminal was not difficult as long as there was a blood trail, and subduing them was even easier.

There were few jobs that guaranteed the same reward as the first bounty he caught, Taylor, but the income he earned in a day was considerable.

When Jenny seemed to subtly try to assign him other tasks after he brought in the third wanted criminal, Renok continued to focus on chasing bounties.

Before starting a job, he would smoke a cigarette, catch a wanted criminal, and hand them over to Joe.

After receiving the bounty, he would return to the hotel and collapse in bed for the day. After resting for about four days and studying more magic, he would go out again when he felt better.

By repeating this process, Renok eventually accumulated nearly ten million cells.

In the process, his name, Ban, seemed to become known in several places, but as long as he wasn't directly involved, it didn't matter.

On the contrary, Renok thought it wasn't a bad thing to be known as a capable bounty hunter.

One day, about a month after he started studying magic and earning money,

"......"

Waking up to the sunlight streaming through the window, Renok opened his eyes.

He grabbed his aching head and sat up.

The two cigarettes he had smoked in succession while chasing a wanted criminal yesterday were still affecting him.

He drank a glass of water from the sink, washed his sweat-soaked body, and came out.

Renok was so accustomed to this lifestyle that he could find the towel hanging on the rack with his eyes closed.

After finishing his shower, Renok's gaze turned to a corner of the hotel room. The ten million cells he had earned from catching wanted criminals were piled there.

Hundreds of 10,000-cell and 100,000-cell bills. It was a significant amount of money, but it was clearly inappropriate to leave it piled up in a corner of the room and ask for a room cleaning.

As a result, Renok hadn't changed the bed sheets for over a week.

Although it felt uncomfortable, it was better than showing ten million cells to a stranger.

"I should open a bank account..."

There was no other way to store money except by opening an account, but for Renok, who had no proper identity, visiting a regular bank was out of the question.

There was an anonymous bank in Sector 49 for people in similar situations to Renok, but the high fees, even for the poor, had long made him give up on it.

In the end, Renok had only one option.

To buy a new identity. To buy the identity of a missing person and completely alter the information.

The cost to contact a dealer who sells fake IDs and complete the transaction was 20 million cells.

If it weren't for Jenny's arrangement, he would have paid at least 10 million cells more, so he owed her a significant debt.

Especially since Renok had recently realized how inconvenient it was to have no official records, he planned to create a new identity as soon as he had the funds.

After lying in bed for half a day due to the lingering effects of the drugs, Renok finally got up, dressed with difficulty, and went outside.

"Phew...!"

Without smoking a cigarette, even walking out of the hotel was incredibly difficult.

This weak body broke out in cold sweat just from being in the sun for a while, and walking for too long raised his body temperature, causing a headache.

He couldn't even understand how he managed to survive for four days in the factory and escape.

His hand instinctively reached for the cigarette butt in his pocket, but using it on a day off would not only waste money but also weaken his body.

Even though the new drug had fewer side effects, it still put a strain on Renok's weak body.

Leading his unsteady steps, he found himself at a small market near a residential area.

Despite the intense midday heat, the market was bustling with people buying and selling all kinds of fresh ingredients under makeshift tents.

The reason he chose this local market over a supermarket or store was, of course, the price.

While the freshness and storage conditions might be slightly lower, most of the ingredients were directly sourced or produced by the sellers.

Moreover, the prices were relatively lower than those of stores that went through distributors, making it perfect for Renok.

Of course, when he first arrived and didn't know anything, Renok was often overcharged for the hotel's breakfast and frequently fell for expensive restaurants without knowing the prices, but things were different now.

After realizing that this world's civilization was a slightly more advanced form of Earth's, he significantly reduced such wasteful spending.

He sometimes bought disposable bento boxes from convenience stores and occasionally chose cheap fast food.

However, recently, Renok had been focusing on buying ingredients from the market and cooking for himself.

His body's condition was completely different from before.

While he had to smoke drugs to work, he could reduce their side effects and maintain a basic nutritional balance.

Taking care of his health and managing his body to prevent it from deteriorating was extremely important.

Yesterday, he squeezed his meager budget to order a set of comprehensive nutritional supplements online for the first time.

"Auntie, give me two or three onions, five leeks, and six bell peppers."

Renok, who had visited the market a few times, skillfully selected the ingredients he wanted and asked the vendor.

The ingredients were different in appearance and name from those on Earth, but it was absurd for Renok not to remember their names.

"34,000 cells."

"Hmm?"

Surprised by the calm voice, which was different from the one he remembered, Renok looked up at the speaker.

A woman with short black hair was staring at him.

"Who are you?"

"I'm the owner of this stall."

Can this makeshift tent near the market even be called a store?

"......Auntie?"

"I hired her."

"Then what are these vegetables?"

"Hobby."

The vegetables were piled up densely on one side of the stall.

It was an excessive amount to be grown as a hobby.

Only then did Renok take a closer look at the woman he was talking to.

She had calm eyes and an expressionless face, a small but prominent nose, and red lips, making her a beautiful woman.

She was squatting in a loose bomber jacket and jeans, but her unique calm demeanor was striking.

She was clearly out of place among the people selling fruits and vegetables.

"To grow this much as a hobby, you must be incredibly rich."

"Yes, I make a lot of money."

"......"

Without a word, Renok paid her 34,000 cells and took the bag.

He couldn't tell if her words were true or a lie.

But if she could afford to do all this as a hobby, she must be quite wealthy.

Renok didn't intend to pay her any more attention.

Until she spoke to him again as he was about to leave for the hotel.

"Interesting magic."

"......Pardon?"

"Why is a magician like you in a place like this?"

"I don't understand what you mean..."

"A pattern that precise would stick in my memory. Have you been in Balkan for long?"

Feeling a chill run down his spine at her matter-of-fact muttering, Renok's mind quickly found the answer.

'...The barrier was the problem.'

After being able to use various public spells, Renok had habitually cast a permanent barrier spell whenever he went out, and the magic pattern it emitted must have caught her attention.

Not just noticing that he was using magic, but reading the magic pattern from it—was that even possible?

It was something that could only be done with a police measurement device, and for her to do it with her eyes, she must have a natural talent or be a powerful magician.

Either way, she was not a pleasant opponent for Renok.

Putting his hand on the cigarette in his pocket, Renok calmly replied.

"Yes, I haven't been in this city for long."

"Indeed, that's what I thought."

"But how did you know?"

"Hmm? Oh, don't worry about it. It's part of my job."

"......"

From the moment her curiosity was satisfied, she seemed to lose interest in Renok and casually shook her head.

Then she began to subtly recommend a vegetable similar to an onion to a customer approaching from behind him.

Renok looked at her in disbelief for a moment before leaving the market.

"Phew...."

The city is vast, and there are many peculiar people.

He never imagined that buying ingredients would make him feel a chill down his spine.

"I need to be more careful with my magic."

The more he used magic, the more his magic power increased, and his casting speed continued to improve.

Recently, he had been neglecting to learn more about magic, despite his skills growing without much effort.

He thought he had no deficiencies once he could use most of the public spells he knew, but he had been seen through by a stranger, hadn't he?

Even if he couldn't immediately learn new spells to become more versatile, there was still room for him to use magic more efficiently in terms of technique.

Back at the hotel, Renok wiped the sweat off his body and put the ingredients in the kitchen.

After resting for a while due to the fatigue from going out, he washed and stored all the purchased ingredients in the refrigerator.

Then he took out just the necessary amount and started cooking.

"One spoon of cornmeal... two spoons of sugar...."

Next to the cutting board was a memo with cooking instructions, copied from a cookbook in the library.

On days when he didn't visit Jenny's bar, he often went to the library.

It was open to the public, had a vast collection of books and data, and allowed the use of computers if needed.

Renok had been gradually building his knowledge of this world and magic whenever he had time, and this time he had borrowed a cookbook related to healthy eating.

Although it was his first time trying this recipe, Renok's face was extremely serious.

He understood very well that maintaining his body in a good state required more than average effort.

Not only the low physical stats he had chosen when creating his character, but also the various penalties he had given to increase his magical talent were constantly wearing him down.

While he couldn't directly address those penalties, there must be a way in a world with magic.

He shouldn't rush.

Renok reminded himself and slowly moved the kitchen knife in his hand.

'First, I need to create a proper identity and bank account.'

The vegetables on the cutting board were cut unevenly, but Renok didn't mind. He couldn't expect skill in any physical task.

'It's not too late to create a safe place to store money after that. Accumulating money and finding a method come next.'

The road ahead was long, and there was much to do.

But he had to proceed cautiously.

The environment around him was still unfamiliar, dangerous, and precarious.

To survive and thrive, he had to be prepared for many things.

And Renok believed he was ready.

With that desperate will to survive, Renok extended his knife toward the third vegetable.

It was a late evening when the sun was setting.