MSGE 18

Chapter 18 You Look Like a National Representative, Don’t You?

Drawing.

It’s Kang Hoon’s hobby these days.

Drawing as a profession and drawing as a hobby are worlds apart.

Once it became a hobby, he grew to love drawing even more.

‘Right, this is how it used to be, wasn’t it? Drawing whatever I wanted to draw freely – this is how fun it was.’

Such thoughts came naturally to him.

He had been drawing his entire life.

The only difference was.

Now he could draw whatever he wanted without worrying about money!

Whether inquiry emails for freelance work poured into illustrator ‘Kang Hoon’s’ email or not.

Kang Hoon was free and happy.

There was no need to take on freelance work he didn’t want to do just to pay rent.

Unless he casually drew brand posters for ‘Kang Hoon Shop’ or something.

“Hmm hmm hmm~! Let’s add a hammer here too~ Should I draw some potion bottles on the desk as well?”

While he was enjoying his hobby like this.

Something happened that startled Kang Hoon.

Ding dong- Ding dong-!

The intercom bell at the villa’s common entrance was pressed.

“Huh? What’s this?”

The monthly rental room itself was so small that it would be embarrassing to invite anyone over.

And Kang Hoon had no acquaintances to invite home in the first place.

The people who visited once a year were at most.

A boiler repair technician or gas inspector, perhaps?

“Is it already that season?”

Rubbing the back of his neck, he opened the common entrance door without much thought.

Then the unfamiliar visitor climbed up the villa stairs and soon knocked on Kang Hoon’s front door.

“Yes, coming, I’m coming~!”

The person he encountered as soon as he opened the door.

He was neither a repair technician, nor a gas inspector, nor the ill-tempered landlord grandfather.

He was a young man neatly dressed in a clean suit.

“…Who are you?”

Seemingly just as flustered.

The unfamiliar man looked Kang Hoon up and down and asked.

“Enhancement Specialist, Mr. Park Kang-hoon’s residence… is this correct?”

“Yes. That’s me.”

Then the man who had been cautiously looking around inside the house changed his expression.

The displeased eyes that had been scanning Kang Hoon’s stretched-out t-shirt and pajama pants, and the front door area packed with PET bottles for recycling.

Those eyes became quite respectful.

“Good day, Hunter Park Kang-hoon. I am a scouter from NO.7.”

And then he offered his business card.

Kang Hoon tilted his head.

To maintain minimum courtesy, he slipped his bare feet into flip-flop slippers from the shoe rack.

‘Wait. Isn’t Number Seven a corporate guild?’

As if to dispel Kang Hoon’s suspicions, the man handed over his business card.

The stiff, high-quality business card and his precise manner seemed to explain his profession.

“Hmm. But what brings you to my home…”

Then the scouter smiled and said.

“NO.7 Guild would like to recruit Enhancement Specialist Park Kang-hoon. Would a brief meeting be possible?”

At that, Kang Hoon closed the front door again.

And hurriedly!

He ran inside the house and pulled out jeans to put on.

He found a clean t-shirt that didn’t have cup noodle soup stains and put it on.

Since there was no time to wash his hair, he also pressed on a cap.

Creak.

He opened the door again and said this.

“Let’s go to the downstairs cafe.”

And so, a corporate guild meeting began unexpectedly.

Kang Hoon was a little excited.

He had been constantly worrying about how to handle tax processing.

NO.7 was a guild that ranked in the top ten in South Korea.

Since such a guild had personally come to recruit him, the conditions would probably be incredibly good.

And so, for the first time in Kang Hoon’s life.

At a window seat in a cafe where two men sat facing each other.

Indeed, the NO.7 scouter made a generous proposal.

“10 billion. We would like to offer 10 billion won in cash as an advance payment.”

At that, Kang Hoon’s eyes lit up.

“10 billion, you’ll give it right away just for signing a contract?”

“That’s correct.”

It was an amount that would make one momentarily tempted to shout ‘Stamp it right now!’

However.

Kang Hoon was no longer a freelancer struggling with poverty.

“When you mention such an amount, there must surely be conditions, right?”

It wasn’t even a contract fee, but an ‘advance payment.’

It wasn’t money given for free.

It was clearly money that would be deducted from the profits he would earn and pay back in the future.

Sure enough.

The scouter carefully took out a contract, pamphlet, and iPad.

“You would need to add NO.7’s logo to the products sold at ‘Kang Hoon Shop’ going forward.”

Word by word.

“We would also like to change the shop name ‘Kang Hoon Shop’ by mutual agreement.”

The more he listened.

“Also, we think about 15% would be appropriate for the commission rate on sales revenue, set at a reasonable level.”

The more alert he became.

‘…What kind of bullshit is this?’

Simply put.

They wanted to subordinate Enhancement Specialist Park Kang-hoon’s brand to the guild.

Moreover, what?

A commission of 15%?

‘Yesterday the Cheongjeong Guild Master personally proposed a 5% commission?’

Even that was 500 million won per 10 billion, which Kang Hoon had been pondering.

But three times that amount!

Every time he sold a 10 billion won jade bracelet.

The money taken by NO.7 would be a whopping…

‘150 million won!’

When you think about it that way, the 100 billion won advance doesn’t seem like much.

‘After all, they’re going to extract that much through commission fees from the items I enhance and sell!?’

It’s just that the amount of 100 billion won feels ridiculously large.

Given the current trend of ‘Kang Hoon Shop’, it’s definitely a feasible proposal.

‘As expected of a major corporation. They don’t take even the tiniest loss.’

Kang Hoon became somewhat indifferent.

He sent the scouter away with the words ‘I’ll think about it’.

“We’ll keep the door open for negotiations, so please feel free to call anytime.”

The man remained polite and upright even on his way out.

“Yes, yes.”

Just as he pocketed the man’s business card and was about to return home.

“Hunter Park Kang-hoon?”

Two women in suits stood in front of the shabby villa’s common entrance.

They stopped Kang Hoon.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m a scouter from Guild Paryeondan. Do you have a moment?”

‘?’

The iced Americano he just drank hadn’t even reached his stomach yet.

Kang Hoon pointed at the cafe he had just left with a bewildered expression.

“Let’s talk over there.”

What on earth is going on?

* * *

Completely exhausted, Kang Hoon immediately buried himself in his bed.

“Ugh. I’m drained.”

Kang Hoon is a homebody.

He’s the type to bundle all his ‘outside errands’ into one outing.

But today alone, he met more than ten people face to face.

It was because of the endless stream of scouters visiting him.

“I shouldn’t meet anyone for a month…”

His energy is drained and he’s exhausted!

Kang Hoon buried his face in his pillow.

He wants to be alone.

Though he’s already alone.

He wants to be even more intensely alone!

“Even their commission rates were all outrageous.”

Letting out a long sigh, Kang Hoon threw off his stuffy pants.

Then the business cards he had put in his back pocket scattered everywhere.

Starting with NO.7, then Taecho, Paryeondan, Seorabeol, Daehan Geona, and more.

Not only Korea’s top-ranked guilds, but even overseas partner guilds came in the afternoon.

“Sigh.”

As soon as he picked up his mobile phone to escape into the world of mobile games.

[Unread emails +29]

[Text messages +34]

[Missed calls +21]

Countless contacts had piled up.

“Huh?”

After roughly skimming through them, the results weren’t different from today’s meetings.

How did they even find out Kang Hoon’s contact information?

Numerous guild scouters had sent photos of their business cards.

Along with contract proposals asking him to join their guilds.

“Wow… Is this the life of a popular hunter?”

A worry he had never considered in his life came to Kang Hoon.

South Korea’s 1st, 2nd, and 3rd ranked guilds.

Today, he received love calls from all of them.

Which of their love calls should he accept?

However, his contemplation didn’t last long.

“15%? No thanks.”

Kang Hoon decided not to accept any of their proposals.

How could he help it when his heart naturally leaned toward one direction?

──Toward ‘Cheongjeong’.

The reason was also clear.

“The best commission rate is what matters most.”

When everyone else came late and demanded 15%.

The family-like guild that offered 5% first!

That place that’s foolishly and stubbornly honest in today’s world!

Now he understands why they’re called a hidden gem.

Guild Master Cheong Jeong-kwon gave up his own profit.

‘He wants to run a ‘guild’, not a company.’

That stubbornness kept lingering in his memory.

So he decided.

To share meals with the Park Seri and Park Ji-seong siblings.

“Just hearing their names gives off a national team vibe, doesn’t it?”

* * *

And so he returned to ‘Cheongjeong’.

“Welcome! To becoming part of our family!”

Ji-seong with his beaming smile welcomed Kang Hoon.

The more he saw of him, the more he noticed Ji-seong was both thick-skinned and charming.

“Ahem! You’re signing the contract today, right? Well… you won’t regret choosing our ‘Cheongjeong’.”

On the other hand, his older sister Seri had a demure side to her.

Still, she seemed very interested in Kang Hoon.

“…But why are you both here together?”

Seeing them come all the way to the contract signing to give welcoming greetings.

“We came to monitor whether our guild manager treats you well.”

“Of course. Kang Hoon hyung, you’re my life’s savior.”

The siblings were chattering away.

Leaving them aside, Cheongjeong’s general manager spread out the contract.

“Who’s on whose side, really… Hunter Park Kang-hoon, here’s the contract. Once you sign this, you’ll become a hunter affiliated with ‘Cheongjeong’ starting today.”

Following the manager’s guidance, Kang Hoon carefully examined the contract.

The document shown last time must have been a simplified version.

This contract is much longer than that one.

‘The distribution ratio remains the same though.’

Moreover, several clauses had changed.

‘Ooh.’

[Participation in Gate missions is left to Party A, Park Kang-hoon’s discretion.]

‘…So, it’s my freedom?’

It seems Cheong Jeong-kwon had taken care of it.

The conversation from the previous meeting room was reflected as is.

That part pleased Kang Hoon the most.

The 5% distribution rate was also reasonable.