TCBMF 04

Chapter 4

Se-hee’s body froze completely.

“Did you… hear that?”

With no one else to rely on, Se-hee instinctively turned toward the wolf.

The wolf was already growling low toward the grass.

Se-hee took a breath and cautiously approached.

When she pushed aside the grass, she found a man collapsed inside.

“Huh?”

There were deep wounds on his shoulder and side, as if they had been hastily bandaged.

He was covered in blood.

And yet, what came out first was admiration.

“That’s insane.”

His wet black hair fell over his forehead, while his long eyelashes cast shadows across his pale face.

Even though he was stained with blood, his features were unnaturally clear and sharp.

Se-hee was speechless for a moment.

“Wow…”

It was a face she had never seen in real life.

Calling him handsome wasn’t enough.

He looks like the male lead who jumped straight out of the cover of a romance-fantasy novel.

Her gaze naturally moved downward.

The black coat-like top was finely tailored, and there were metal decorations attached to his shoulders.

It was difficult to see clearly because of the bloodstains, but even the material itself looked far from ordinary.

He’s definitely not a normal person.

Se-hee stared blankly down at his face for a moment.

Even she found herself ridiculous.

Can a person really look like this…?

Even if she’d seen a celebrity in real life, she didn’t think it would have shocked her this much.

Se-hee shook her head hard once.

And I’m looking at his face first in a situation like this.

She examined the man again.

His breathing was uneven, and his body trembled slightly every time he inhaled.

When she placed the back of her hand against his forehead, she immediately felt the heat.

“His fever is really high.”

There was nothing she could use to cover his wounds.

“And of course, I don’t have anything useful for this.”

As she scrolled down the list, one familiar name caught her eye.

[Bakgas]

Effect: Randomly grants fatigue recovery / temporary awakening / slight recovery of stamina and concentration.

Effects cannot be stacked.

“It does have a recovery effect.”

It wasn’t a potion, but it was better than doing nothing at all.

If she left him like this, he seemed likely to get worse.

“I should at least give him this for now.”

Without hesitation, Se-hee took out the Bakgas.

She opened the cap and held the man’s chin.

“Just for a moment. Try drinking this. It should help.”

The man weakly shook his head.

Se-hee didn’t hesitate.

“Ah, you don’t get to refuse right now.”

She simply pushed the bottle straight into his mouth.

…What was that taste?

A faint memory surfaced just before his consciousness disappeared.

A battle against a group of Liches and skeletons.

The moment he swung his sword, something twisted inside his body.

His mana wouldn’t obey him.

An attack he normally could have blocked struck him directly.

And just like that, his vision went dark.

But…

At first, he thought it was simply some kind of stimulant.

An unfamiliar taste, both bitter and sweet.

The moment it entered his mouth, his disordered flow of mana began to settle, as though it were being pushed back into place.

The energy that had been surging wildly suddenly became calm.

The noise that had filled his head disappeared, and the sounds around him became clear.

…Purification?

When he raised his head, he saw a light.

A small fire burning in front of a tent.

And a woman standing before it.

Her skin looked as if a thin layer of light had settled over it, while her light-brown hair was loosely tied, as though it had been hastily gathered.

For some reason, his gaze lingered as he wondered what she would look like with her hair let down.

There was something strangely difficult to look away from in her face.

But… a Drain Wolf?

They were wolves classified as high-ranking monsters.

Wolves that fed on mana had a strong sense of territory and normally wouldn’t stay near humans without reason.

And that many of them?

The wolves were clearly following the woman.

Could she have tamed them?

Cassian recalled how strangely stable his condition had become moments ago.

Holy power?

That attitude of hers when she had shoved the bottle into his mouth without the slightest hesitation.

If she were a Saintess—

She wouldn’t act like that.

And yet, the sense of stability he felt throughout his body could not be explained.

Was it a coincidence, or…

After gathering his thoughts, Cassian tensed his body.

The moment Cassian sat up, his sword flashed.

The cold, gleaming blade stopped directly in front of Se-hee’s throat.

It was close enough for her to feel his breath.

The wolves growled, but Cassian’s gaze did not waver.

His cold blue eyes stared straight down at her.

“Don’t move.”

Even with his injured body, the hand gripping the sword did not shake in the slightest.

“Who are you?”

Yet the woman standing before him didn’t seem frightened.

“Oh, you’re awake.”

Her reply came in a completely casual tone, as if nothing unusual had happened.

What’s going on? Why is he suddenly pointing a sword at me?!

Se-hee forced herself to stay calm and changed the subject.

“Do you have any money?”

Cassian looked at her as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Money?”

“For what I gave you earlier. It’s not free, you know.”

Cassian fell silent for a moment.

He hadn’t expected money to come up in a situation like this, much less in this manner.

“…This is the Greenhal Forest.”

Se-hee tilted her head at the sudden statement.

“Huh?”

“A forest of monsters.”

Cassian’s eyes grew cold.

“Ordinary humans don’t come here.”

After pausing briefly, he added,

“Especially not without a weapon.”

Se-hee was momentarily speechless.

There wasn’t a single thing wrong with what he had said.

“Who are you?”

That was when—

Grrrrrr—

The wolf beside Se-hee growled.

As the blade moved closer to Se-hee’s throat, all three wolves lowered their bodies at once.

Cassian’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Hey.”

Se-hee lightly tapped the wolf.

“Don’t.”

The wolf immediately closed its mouth.

A brief silence fell between them.

Cassian’s gaze returned to Se-hee.

Strange.

She was acting like that despite being surrounded by Drain Wolves.

If she had approached him with some kind of ulterior motive, there was no reason for her to be this calm.

Cassian’s gaze fell to the empty bottle in his hand.

If I hadn’t had this, I probably still wouldn’t have regained consciousness.

The sword in Cassian’s hand lowered slightly.

“…Why did you save me?”

Cassian’s gaze pierced straight through her.

Se-hee answered bluntly, as if there were nothing strange about the question.

“Just because.”

“…What?”

“You’re a person. You were bleeding a lot, and you looked like you had a really high fever.”

Cassian’s eyes wavered ever so slightly.

Her answer was completely different from anything he had expected.

“You’re a strange woman.”

After a brief silence, he lowered his sword completely.

“It’s late, but I would like to formally introduce myself. My name is Cassian del Valer. I am the head of House Valer.”

A duke?

The fact that Se-hee had read so many novels actually helped in a situation like this.

If he’s a duke, isn’t that just below the king?

Se-hee’s eyes grew about one and a half times larger than usual.

The noble hierarchy quickly sorted itself out in her head.

“Ah, I’m Han Se-hee. I’m the shop owner here.”

“Han… Sei?”

Cassian struggled with the unfamiliar pronunciation of Hee, eventually saying it however it was easiest for him.

“No, Se-hee.”

Se-hee felt a little frustrated when he kept getting her name wrong.

“Right. Sei.”

Cassian continued to mispronounce her name, completely unaware of how she felt.

“Hee. Can’t you pronounce hee? No, never mind. Just call me whatever you want.”

Se-hee gave up, figuring there was no point in wasting her energy on this.

There was no need to keep correcting him just because he pronounced her name a little wrong.

At that moment, Cassian threw something toward Se-hee.

Clink.

With the sound of coins striking each other, three gold coins landed in Se-hee’s palm.

“That should be enough.”

One gold coin alone was enough to buy a high-grade recovery potion.

“What is this?”

She had definitely felt something touch her hand, but now there was nothing there.

Instead, a familiar window filled her vision.

[Exchange Notification]

• Target detected: Imperial Gold Coin ×3

• Converted value: 3,000P

• Fee (20%): -600P

• Final amount acquired: 2,400P

“…Huh?”

Se-hee stared blankly for a moment.

“But why are there so few points?”

When she looked at the system window again, the fee caught her eye.

“Minus twenty percent?”

Se-hee frowned.

“Wait, then did the system take this much from that gemstone too, which is why I only got those points?”

After a brief silence, another window immediately appeared, almost as if it were making an excuse.

[Gemstone Exchange Fee Discount]

Gemstones and magic stones can be recycled as system power sources.

• Gold Coin Exchange Fee: 20%

(Varies according to shop level)

• Gemstone / Magic Stone Exchange Fee: 10% (Fixed)

• The point conversion value of gemstones and magic stones changes in real time according to their market value and mana content.

Se-hee let out a short breath.

“That’s a pretty blatant double standard.”

At that moment, she felt someone’s gaze from behind her.

Anyone would think I’m a complete weirdo right now.

From this man’s perspective, she had just received some gold coins, watched them suddenly disappear, and started muttering to herself while staring into empty air.

“I’m not a weirdo!”

Only after saying it did Se-hee realize something.

I’m the one standing here talking to empty air with a pack of wolves behind me.

Se-hee awkwardly avoided his gaze and bit her lip.

But contrary to her worries, Cassian’s thoughts were going in a completely different direction.

Could it be? Does that mean what I gave her wasn’t enough to cover the price of the potion?

Considering the effect of the potion, that possibility made perfect sense.

“If you need more, tell me.”

Cassian still had more gold coins.

“No, this is enough for now.”

But Se-hee’s gaze had already shifted somewhere else.