I entered the house and got straight to the point.
"Do you happen to know anything about the black market?"
At that, Kang Changho stopped drying himself with the towel and looked over.
"Black market?"
"I thought you might know of a few places, Hunter."
I addressed the silent S-rank.
"Actually, I'm personally interested in markets like that."
The black market, or underground market.
A place where goods are traded in secret, beyond government control and outside the reach of legal oversight.
As I mentioned earlier, I was currently gathering information about illegal transactions. And I had already confirmed that black markets specializing in magical tools existed.
There had been reports of merchants evading taxes by selling dungeon items through the black market. There were also cases where ordinary people without the proper qualifications had secretly acquired dangerous equipment and used it to commit crimes.
A quick search alone brought up plenty of examples.
"Even Korea isn't exactly safe."
If the black market was a place where illegal goods ran rampant, there might be some ingenious item there that could solve my problem.
More importantly, there was a 'certain item' I needed that was only distributed through places like this.
So I had originally intended to investigate the black market on my own, but unfortunately, it wasn't easy for an ordinary person to gain access to the underworld.
These days, in this IT-driven society, even dangerous transactions were mostly conducted online.
And their method of recruiting customers—creating anonymous chat rooms through highly encrypted messaging apps, then repeatedly dissolving and recreating them—was anything but welcoming to an outsider like me.
"I gave up on trying to do it alone a long time ago. It was too difficult."
Kang Changho had once been a VIP customer of Awakened kidnappers.
Wouldn't it be reasonable to assume that he also knew how to access the black market?
"If it's all right with you, I was wondering if I could ask for your help, Hunter Changho..."
That was why I'd come here.
No one else came to mind as someone who might know their way around the criminal underworld.
"Black market."
As expected, Kang Changho seemed to know something about the subject.
"Kim Giryeo, you're on good terms with the Association, so you shouldn't have any trouble using legitimate markets, right?"
"I don't."
"Then why are you interested in a place like that?"
"It's a little embarrassing to admit because the reason is so trivial, but honestly, half of it is just curiosity."
The truth was that I needed materials for my revised plan...
But I wasn't obligated to report every little detail.
And, to be fair, part of me really was curious about the black market.
"Curiosity? You're not looking for anything specific?"
"No."
"Hmm."
"Would that reason make it difficult?"
I lied without batting an eye and made my request to the owner of the house, who was standing by the window.
"If you could just help me gain access to the market, I'll repay you however I can. For example... I could appraise items for you. Come to think of it, didn't you say before that you needed a personal appraiser?"
I wasn't trying to get something for nothing, and I fully intended to compensate him fairly for the information.
As far as courtesy went, this should have been more than enough.
"...I didn't expect you to come asking for something like this."
Kang Changho seemed to consider my words for a moment, but the silence didn't last long.
"All right."
He soon gave me a favorable answer.
"I'll put you in touch with a black market I know. I'll have them add you to their customer list."
"Oh."
"Will that be enough?"
The S-rank Hunter finished drying his hair and added,
"This isn't a big deal, so I'll just consider it a favor between people under contract. But don't get your hopes up too much. It's a small operation. Practically a low-end flea market..."
Then he continued.
"I found an appraiser a long time ago, so don't waste your time. If you're done here, just leave."
"Ah, yes, yes."
Surprisingly, Kang Changho was quite generous.
He granted my request without demanding anything in return.
Come to think of it, aside from the minor flaw that he might do literally anything depending on his mood, he was a rather useful human being.
"Until I get my strength back, I might as well stay on his good side."
I thanked him once more and began preparing to leave.
But just then, Kang Changho suddenly approached the drink box I'd set aside and picked it up.
"By the way, what's with the gift?"
Isn't it a little late to comment on that?
"It's the first time I've ever received a gift from another Hunter."
"Is that so?"
Sask.
The blue-haired S-rank quickly raised the gift set to eye level.
"Let's see. The weight of Hunter Kim Giryeo's sincerity..."
He quietly studied one side of the box.
Then he said,
"13,000 won."
As expected.
I really should have removed the price tag.
***
How do black markets operate these days?
There was once a time when transactions were commonly handled through delivery services or the mail. But items brought out of dungeons were usually bulky and detectable by magical-energy scanners, so those old methods were no longer practical.
That was why black-market merchants came up with another trick.
More precisely, they began taking advantage of newer technologies that had appeared in this world.
"Hello."
I was currently standing in front of a gate in Seoul.
And this gate itself was the true identity of the black market I'd been introduced to.
Apparently, some particularly bold black-market dealers took over monster nests like these and used them as places of business.
'They clear out every mob in a low-level dungeon except the boss, then remodel the remaining space into a marketplace...'
"Please show me your raid certificate."
At the entrance to the F-grade dungeon, located in a secluded area, stood a security guard in a suit.
I handed over the invitation I'd prepared.
Normally, in order to obtain an invitation like this, you would have to access a place called the 'Dark Web' and go through all kinds of troublesome procedures...
"But... are you really Hunter Kim Giryeo?"
"..."
"Ah! O-of course, I was informed in advance that you'd be coming. But just to be safe... I apologize, but I'll need to perform one final check to make sure you aren't under an illusion skill."
Thanks to an S-rank Awakened, I'd been able to become a member relatively easily.
Soon afterward, the guard dabbed some sort of magic-interfering potion onto her finger and rubbed it against my cheek.
When nothing happened, she hurriedly bowed her head.
"V, verified! You may enter immediately."
She probably regarded me as an S-rank Hunter who had been personally introduced by Kang Changho.
No wonder she looked so nervous.
'If I'd come here with him, that guard would probably be unconscious by now. Good thing I asked to shop alone.'
I slipped the invitation she'd politely returned into my pocket.
But apparently the procedure wasn't over yet.
Just before I stepped through the gate, the guard suddenly held something out toward me.
"Oh, customer!"
"Hmm?"
"We place the highest priority on our customers' privacy. Therefore, everyone inside the market is required to wear a mask so that their identity remains concealed."
"Aha."
The object she handed me was an Earth-made product—a mask designed to cover the entire face.
"If everything is covered like this, will I even be able to see where I'm going...?"
I put on the mask.
Surprisingly, my vision only darkened slightly, and there wasn't any real inconvenience.
The lenses around the eyes seemed to work like sunglasses. A long piece of fabric at the back completely concealed my hair.
At this point, as long as I kept my mouth shut, it would probably be difficult for anyone to recognize me.
'Of course, that was the whole point. That's why I paid attention to every detail of my clothes too.'
Ssshk.
I lowered my head and checked what I was wearing.
A black short-sleeved T-shirt and dark blue jeans.
Since I'd deliberately chosen clothes I normally wouldn't wear, this should be enough to keep my identity hidden for now.
"Are you finished?"
"Yes, yes!"
Once the formalities were complete, I stepped through the gate without hesitation.
"Huh."
And the sight beyond it was spectacular.
Bright daylight.
Signboards scattered everywhere.
Young men enthusiastically calling out to potential customers.
And between them, masked visitors filling the space.
"This is beyond what I imagined."
Indeed, it was an ideal place to set up a marketplace.
The dungeon itself resembled an old village, with buildings constructed from mud bricks. As long as the monsters were properly controlled, the existing structures could easily be converted into shops.
'Just like I heard. It's small, but it has everything it needs.'
I slowly inspected the surrounding earthen buildings one by one.
Some shops sold weapons.
Others dealt in various types of items, including things like a knight's oath.
"Oh my?"
Some of them were priced outrageously high.
Maybe the sellers, being Hunters themselves, didn't usually source their goods through normal markets and simply had no idea what standard prices looked like.
'What are people thinking, paying this much?'
Still, this was a black market.
Some stalls were openly selling forbidden magical tools that had been banned by the government.
But the thing I actually needed was nowhere to be found.
"Hmm."
Do they not sell it here?
Feeling disappointed, I moved farther away.
Eventually, I entered a small stone-walled building on the outskirts...
"Ah."
At last, I saw something welcome.
Large letters had been written across a thick cardboard sign.
[Blueshell – 0.5 per set]
And beside them was the blue, grain-like symbol of the very fruit I'd seen before.
'There it is!'
Blueshell!
That's right.
The reason I'd taken the risk of coming to the black market was precisely because of this fruit.
####################
Preparation 3. The internal magic required for the activation of five different spells.
####################
The lung exchange technique required a considerable amount of magical energy.
'A fruit capable of drawing out a person's magical power...'
In fact, even now, a small amount of Blueshell remained in circulation inside my body.
The Alphawet were skilled in techniques like this. They could maintain a temporary state of heightened magical activity—something similar to the effects of caffeine—for an extended period of time.
But this time, I needed to raise my magical power to a level far beyond the mere 10-point increase I'd achieved before.