Relieved that I could finally return home, I hastily stood up from my seat.

I took a towel out of my bag and scrubbed the seat thoroughly.

Even as I wiped the chair, the girl kept offering me more food, but after a few rejections, she soon gave up.

After cleaning the chair and was about to sling my bag over my shoulder, I realized my clothes were cleaner than usual.

“Um…”

“Yes?”

“I want to change into my own clothes…”

The clothes I was wearing were uncomfortably luxurious.

If I damaged them, I might have to pay hundreds of thousands of won in compensation.

It was clear that the girl was using these clothes to control me.

“But it’s a gift. Don’t you want to keep wearing it?”

The girl insisted that I keep wearing the clothes.

She was a dangerous woman I couldn’t let my guard down around.

“I prefer my own clothes.”

“Really? Weren’t the ones you were wearing a bit too worn out?”

“Yes. But they’re my treasure.”

To call such tattered and worn clothes a treasure seemed ridiculous, but I had no choice.

I had to climb a mountain to get to where my tent was.

If the clothes got dirty with dust or snagged on branches, it would be the end of my life.

“Okay… Just wait a moment, alright?”

“Sure.”

I looked around the hotel while the girl talked to an employee.

In a corner of the restaurant, I spotted the man who had hit me on the back of the head.

“Ah.”

Our eyes met.

Startled, I was about to look away when he turned his head first.

It felt urgent.

‘Huh?’

This was the man who always glared at me.

Why was he avoiding my gaze now?

Confused, I decided not to dwell on it, as it was better than getting into a conflict.

There was something more important right in front of me.

Empty bottles.

Objects worth between a hundred and a hundred and thirty won each were piled up on a table.

Just picking a few to sell could make me a fortune.

“Wow.”

When I was captured by the witch, I wondered what would become of me.

But maybe you really do reap rewards after trials.

Swallowing hard, I walked towards the bottles.

I estimated I could fit about four beer bottles in my bag.

Just as I reached for a bottle, I heard footsteps approaching from behind.

Perhaps because of my new animal-like ears, I was very sensitive to sounds.

“What are you doing?”

I only tilted my head back to the sound of the girl’s voice.

It felt like being caught stealing precious jewels, even though they were just discarded bottles.

“Bo, bottles…”

“Bottles?”

“Be, beer bottles… a hundred and thirty won each…”

I was too startled to speak properly.

Before anything else could happen, I placed the bottle back on the table.

“Oh, were you going to take the bottles to sell them?”

“Yes…”

She’ll surely say it’s not allowed.

As I gazed at the empty bottles with regret, the girl began placing them one by one into my bag.

“It seems like they won’t all fit.”

“No, four is enough!”

I quickly showed her four fingers, indicating the number of bottles I needed.

Perhaps she didn’t understand the value of these empty bottles.

“Okay, I’ll help you put four in. Then you can sell more, right?”

“Yes…”

Four bottles in the bag.

Four more in the girl’s hands.

And one more in my arms.

In a short time, I could make more than a thousand won.

—

—

Yeomyeong Guild.

Even the headquarters of the strongest guild in South Korea had a convenience store.

The convenience store clerk, Joo Sang-wook, was scanning the interior with tired eyes.

It was a busy time of day that the manager loved, yet there was not a single customer.

‘It’s quiet for a change.’

He decided to enjoy the rare moment of peace, knowing it would soon get busy again.

As Joo Sang-wook yawned, a customer entered, and he quickly put on a business smile.

“Welcome…?”

The person who entered the convenience store was a familiar face to Joo Sang-wook.

It was Han Yeoreum, a top-ranking member of the powerful Yeomyeong Guild.

‘Huh?’

Working at the store, Joo Sang-wook often saw famous members of the Yeomyeong Guild.

So, seeing Yeoreum was not a surprise, but this time he widened his eyes unusually.

It was because of the young beast-kin girl following her.

‘What’s that?’

She was one of the rare beast-kin in South Korea, numbering less than fifty.

Despite her adorable white ears and tail, Joo Sang-wook couldn’t easily smile.

Her appearance and demeanor seemed off.

Wearing blood-stained shabby clothes, she clutched a single empty beer bottle as if it were precious.

Her fearful demeanor, constantly looking around, was pitiable.

‘What’s going on?’

Joo Sang-wook suspected the relationship between Han Yeoreum and the beast-kin child.

It was strange for the wealthy Han Yeoreum to treat a young beast-kin child like this.

‘Abuse… couldn’t be, right?’

Yeoreum was known for being kind to children.

In fact, the entire Yeomyeong Guild was famous for its kindness to children.

They had even wiped out a criminal organization the government had given up catching, just to rescue one kidnapped child.

There must be a reason for her behavior.

As Joo Sang-wook tried to make sense of the situation, the beast-kin girl approached the counter with the bottles.

“Pl, please buy these bottles…”

“Bottles?”

Was she selling them to make a living?

Why would such a young child do this?

Joo Sang-wook reflexively glared at Han Yeoreum.

“He, here are nine bottles.”

Stuttering, Yeoreum placed the bottles on the counter.

Joo Sang-wook had a lot to say but decided to fulfill his duty as a clerk for now.

“The total for nine bottles is one thousand two hundred won.”

As Joo Sang-wook operated the cash register, the child peeked out with a cute face.

“Could I get it in coins instead of bills?”

“Sure. I’ll give you coins.”

Joo Sang-wook handed the child several of the cleanest coins.

The child, seemingly delighted by the shiny coins, clutched them tightly and hopped joyfully.

Her adorable ears bounced cutely with each hop.

“Shall we go now that we’ve sold them all?”

“Yes.”

Han Yeoreum, looking a bit anxious, glanced at Joo Sang-wook and took the child’s hand to lead her away.

Anyone could tell she was in a hurry.

Joo Sang-wook decided to speak up, even though it might be overstepping his bounds.

He was aware of the gap between himself and Han Yeoreum, but he was concerned about the child as an adult.

“Excuse me. Shouldn’t you get the child some new clothes?”

“Yes, y-yes. I’m sorry…”

Instead of getting angry, she apologized.

And quite meekly at that.

Joo Sang-wook let out a sigh of relief at her response.

It meant she knew what she had done wrong.

—

—

Four coins.

Two of them were five-hundred-won coins.

I looked at the coins, which seemed more beautiful than jewels, in the sunlight.

They were the shiniest coins I had ever touched, even more so than diamonds.

“Wow.”

To collect a single bottle, I had to wake up before dawn and roam around the neighborhood.

Earning money this easily was unbelievable.

“Gyeoul, I have a question.”

“A question?”

Maybe, because she helped me earn money, she had the right to ask?

The corners of my mouth drooped at the thought that I had been tricked.

Having received the money, I felt obligated to answer her question.

“It’s nothing much, but why did you want coins instead of bills?”

“Coins are harder to lose.”

“Ah, because they’re heavier?”

“Yes.”

Coins, unlike bills, have weight.

They wouldn’t fly away in the wind, and if dropped, they made a sound that made them easy to find.

Also, it was harder for someone to run away with a lot of coins.

Realizing this, the girl clapped her hands with a pop!

“That’s amazing. It’s like wisdom for life, isn’t it?”

“Yes…”

In truth, it wasn’t wisdom for life.

I just had an experience of watching bills fly into the sky on a stormy day.

I was so sad that day that I couldn’t eat at all.

Though it was a long time ago, it felt as fresh as yesterday.

‘Coins are good because they don’t fly away when there’s a lot.’

I wonder if my piggy bank at home was alright.

As I held the coins close, the girl led me to a car that looked expensive and stopped in front of it.

“Do you want to get in?”

She opened the passenger door for me.

The inside of the car looked much nicer than my house.

“Why would I get in here?”

“Isn’t your home near the horned rabbit hunting ground? It’s a bit far from here.”

“Oh…”

That explained why there were so many tall buildings around.

I never imagined I had been moved such a distance while unconscious.

I stared inside the car for a while and then cautiously stepped back.

“Are you going to drive?”

“Why? I’m a good driver, you know?”

The girl showed me her driver’s license.

I had assumed she was a minor due to her appearance, but she was actually a legal adult.

“Then you go by car. I’ll walk.”

“Why…?”

Why, she asks.

Does she really not know?

Feeling annoyed, I showed her the coins in my pocket.

“I don’t have money. This is all I have.”

It was obviously an expensive car, likely costing a fortune even just to rent.

There was no way I could afford to ride in a car like this with just a few coins.

“Oh… You don’t need to pay.”

“…Why?”

“Well, I was the one who wanted to see Gyeoul’s house first. It’s only right for the person who wants to see it to pay.”

“Oh.”

That made sense.

She would be the one missing out if she didn’t come to my house.

Convinced, I approached the car.

“Then, I’ll clean the seat after.”

“That’s, um… not necessary.”

But it was.

To avoid any issues later, it was best to clean where I sat.

“If not, I won’t ride.”

“Okay, okay. You can clean it. So, shall we go?”

“Okay.”

I carefully sat on the car seat.

It was finally time to go home.

—

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep