Chapter 236
There Is No Merchant Who Isn’t Cunning
When the rescue team returned to the inn, Lyman had already arrived and was waiting there.
This smuggler, who looked like a clumsy farmer, immediately broke into a wide grin and approached as soon as the four of them got out of the car. His attitude clearly aimed to curry favor.
“So, you went into the underground ark and met Dimarco?”
His eyes were full of anticipation.
At this moment, Lyman had kept his bodyguards at a distance and faced the rescue team alone. He knew that this team in front of him was far stronger than he had imagined. Against such opponents, it didn’t matter whether he brought bodyguards or not.
Lyman also realized that even if he were the first to use the military exoskeleton device that a client had pre-ordered, it wouldn’t make much difference.
The opposing team had a military exoskeleton of their own, and an awakened individual nearby wasn’t someone who could be stopped just because they wore such a device. So, rather than showing off by bringing his guards, it was better to leave them behind as a gesture of sincerity.
At Lyman’s question, Jang Mok-hwa smiled teasingly.
“You must have quite a few friends. Even at the Boundary Church, you’ve got friends, huh?”
Lyman didn’t deny it and just nodded slightly.
“So? What did Dimarco say?”
“According to him, Lars, who found true love in the underground ark, no longer wants to go back to the surface. If you don’t believe it, you can go to the Boundary Church; he’ll let you video call Lars directly.”
Lyman couldn’t hold back the expression of collapse on his face. It seemed like he either didn’t believe the answer or was slightly angry. But the mention of a video call finally helped him regain his composure.
This meant that Dimarco hadn’t lied. Few people tell lies that can be seen through so easily.
After a long silence, Lyman forced a smile.
“I’ll go check. Thanks for helping me.”
Jang Mok-hwa could understand Lyman’s feelings. Seeing him like that even stirred a bit of sympathy, but she couldn’t avoid asking the question.
“So, what about your compensation?”
Lyman’s expression quickly reverted to its usual state.
“What do you want? As I said before, I could get you restricted items like a military exoskeleton or a T1 mechanical arm. But doing that might require me to use my network and could strain relationships I’ve carefully built.
In other words, the compensation I’ll give isn’t something you can see, but in terms of connections and routes, it’s incredibly valuable. You’d have to cover the cost of the items themselves, though. Of course, I can offer a discount. I’ll try to get you the best price I can.”
Before Jang Mok-hwa could respond, Seong Geon-woo interjected.
“That guy is your lover!”
Lyman smiled bitterly.
“Not anymore, I guess.”
Jang Mok-hwa snorted at that. So, he wants to offer a discount? Despite appearances, Lyman was indeed a cunning merchant.
However, Jang Mok-hwa wasn’t planning to obtain a military exoskeleton or a state-of-the-art mechanical arm with just one or two questions. Even she realized that they would have to break through heavy fire, hail of bullets, and a few awakened individuals to storm the underground ark and bring Lars back, just to demand a worthy reward.
So, instead of getting angry, she smiled and said:
“Changing the topic, huh? You don’t want to leave Redstone Market?”
For a moment, Lyman stiffened.
Seeing that, Yong Yeo-hong smirked and muttered to himself:
‘Is our ultimate villain-like image going to be cemented just like this…’
Jang Mok-hwa also thought she was acting like quite a delinquent. She noticed Seong Geon-woo preparing to act along with her, quickly stopped him, and sighed.
“Since you’ve lost your lover too, let’s do it like this. Go through your routes and connections and get us one military exoskeleton and one mechanical arm. Don’t get anything too old. When you have the items, contact us. We’ll trade what we’ve gathered for them then.”
Even if these restricted items couldn’t be used immediately, they could still be sold for a good profit.
Lyman looked slightly troubled and asked:
“Both the military exoskeleton and the mechanical arm?”
“Yes.”
Jang Mok-hwa’s answer was firm.
With such a major villain already backing down, Lyman, unable to insist further, forced a smile and replied:
“Alright, but it will take some time. How should I contact you?”
Jang Mok-hwa, who had already thought of this, answered immediately:
“I’ll give you the telegraph frequency and the corresponding password. When you get both items, send us a telegraph at 8 PM every night, for a month. If there’s no response after a month, you can do whatever you want with the items.”
The password she prepared was relatively common in Ashland. The contact wasn’t meant to be confidential.
After a brief moment of consideration, Lyman agreed.
After he left, Jang Mok-hwa looked around and spoke:
“One thing is settled. Now let’s go to Redstone Market and ask Mrs. Teresa who had a bad relationship with Helvik over the past month.”
They wanted to inquire not just about those who had fought but anyone who might have had poor relations, leaving no gaps in their investigation.
At this, Baek Sae-byeok expressed her concern:
“This might not be easy. According to Dimarco, the other party may have felt murderous intent even from a few casual jokes. People make jokes several times a day in daily life. No one remembers every single one. Yeo-hong also gets attacked by Geon-woo several times a day, but she doesn’t remember every instance.”
Yong Yeo-hong, unable to remember those instances, stayed silent.
“What if Yeo-hong remembered?”
Seong Geon-woo asked, going off-topic.
Baek Sae-byeok pursed her lips and ignored him. Jang Mok-hwa smiled and replied:
“That means Yeo-hong took your attacks seriously. Luckily, our little Red is optimistic and positive.”
Before Yong Yeo-hong could respond, Jang Mok-hwa neatly concluded the discussion.
Yong Yeo-hong felt slightly embarrassed.
“It’s nothing.”
Seeing this, Seong Geon-woo laughed:
“You drew maps on your blanket until you were five.”
“Shut up!”
Yong Yeo-hong, unable to contain her rising anger, spat out a curse.
Redstone Market, Gunfire Shop
The rescue team met Mrs. Teresa again.
She was still wearing a thick black dress, with a long veil draping over her hat of the same color.
“Any progress?”
Teresa asked flatly. She no longer looked terrified, agitated, or anxious. She seemed considerably calmer.
“We’ve investigated Helvik’s enemies, but none seemed suspicious. So we came to get more information. Has Helvik had any conflicts with anyone in the past few months? Maybe jokes that hurt someone’s feelings?”
Jang Mok-hwa lied without flinching.
After a moment of thought, Teresa answered:
“Too many. Helvik loved mocking others. If you base it on people who frowned at his excessive jokes, most residents of Redstone Market would be suspects.”
‘How much of a terrible human was Helvik…?’
As Jang Mok-hwa muttered to herself, Seong Geon-woo sighed.
“That’s unfortunate…”
“What’s unfortunate?”
Yong Yeo-hong asked cooperatively.
Seong Geon-woo fiddled with the monkey mask on his face and continued:
“That we never met the living Helvik. Otherwise, we could have seen who would anger him first and tried competing.”
Teresa, indifferent to their conversation, remained silent for a few seconds before speaking:
“Let’s end this mission here.”
“You mean we don’t need to investigate further?”
Jang Mok-hwa asked, slightly puzzled.
Teresa nodded:
“It seems highly unlikely that the truth of this case will be uncovered. Most Redstone Market residents may be involved. I also have to consider my and my child’s life. Helvik had committed offenses against so many that I had long prepared for his sudden death.”
‘She didn’t say that before.’
Jang Mok-hwa thought silently, but she also understood the reason for Teresa’s change in attitude.
When Helvik died, Teresa’s concern was whether her arms business would be taken away or if her subordinates would leave. Naturally, she focused on her husband and the incident.
Now that her small faction had stabilized and Lyman and others’ loyalty was reconfirmed, she had nothing to worry about. How Helvik died was no longer a pressing issue.
In fact, Teresa and Helvik had no real affection for each other. Perhaps she was just one of the many who silently wished Helvik dead.
When the four of them remained silent, Teresa, thinking they were protesting, hurriedly added:
“I don’t intend to ask for a refund. You were a great help retrieving the weapons in such a short time.”
‘Helvik must have really been a piece of trash.’
Jang Mok-hwa muttered to herself and slightly nodded.
“Then let’s do that. Go to the guild and cancel the mission.”
Stepping out of Gunfire, Jang Mok-hwa looked around, composed herself, and smiled.
“Now let’s go buy ingredients at the Mudok restaurant. Tonight, we’ll grill some meat and celebrate ourselves!”
They intended to celebrate finishing most of the work in Redstone Market.
“Sounds great!”
Yong Yeo-hong’s eyes sparkled.
Jang Mok-hwa laughed aloud again:
“We also need to get some spices and charcoal. I’ll show you a barbecue cooked with Chef Jang’s secret recipe.”
“Wanna make it a bet?”
Seong Geon-woo was eager.
“Deal!”
Confident in her cooking skills, Jang Mok-hwa immediately agreed—but worry crept in at once.
“What kind of bet?”
“A eating contest.”
Seong Geon-woo answered honestly.
Jang Mok-hwa spat on the floor and ignored him.
Evening, inside the inn
The rescue team placed the marinated meat on a makeshift grill.
Just then, a reply came from Bango Bio.
Jang Mok-hwa quickly decoded the message. The telegraph from the company contained only two lines:
“1. No further exploration of the island temple in the lake is necessary.
2. Observe Han Myung-ho a little longer.”
After reading it, Jang Mok-hwa muttered with slight irritation:
“Observe him a little longer? How am I supposed to watch someone who’s ready to leave at any moment, really!”
