Chapter 89: Surprise Gift.

Hans returned bearing news of victory.

I thought I had broken the contract, but instead, he came back having wrung out even more rights for us.

“That’s amazing.”

“Strictly speaking, Lime didn’t break the contract.”

Hans explained, highlighting the contract in red as he spoke.

He really doesn’t have to explain it in so much detail.

But I listened anyway.

He’s right, I didn’t break the contract.

If I had gone, I would have thought I broke the contract and ended up losing out.

“Thanks to Lime’s special clause, the negotiations were much easier.”

“A special clause?”

“Yes. There’s a clause stating that the cost of materials consumed by Lime’s children is covered by the alchemy waste disposal fee, and that even if the material cost exceeds the disposal fee, nothing extra will be billed.”

Did I ever add something like that?

Ah, I did.

That was back when I was still a Grade D alchemist, right?

When Counselor Park Taeyang used to pester me to increase production volume.

Wow… it really feels like a different era now.

As Gongdori grew, it seemed likely that the alchemy waste would no longer be enough to secure sufficient <Slime> materials. That’s why I asked for that clause.

That contract is pretty funny, too.

After all, it’s like squeezing something out of the Alchemy Center in exchange for raising a Gongdori who isn’t even affiliated with them.

Oh, is it like a company getting subsidies for building a factory in Korea?

Anyway.

Why does that become a weapon?

“According to this clause, after processing the alchemy waste provided by the Alchemy Center, I can bill the Center for all the material costs used by Mother.”

Wait, can I really do that?

Hans explained it in even more detail.

I see.

I didn’t intend for this kind of situation when I made that special clause.

“I never intended to exercise this right. I only used it as a threat. If I actually enforced it, it would have turned into a really dirty fight.”

“That’s fine. If it’s something money can solve, just pay up and be done with it.”

There’s plenty of money.

Way too much.

After the last Slime family gathering, I ramped up production, and now the money piles up even faster.

In terms of net profit, I’ve even surpassed most big companies.

It hasn’t even been a year since I became an alchemist.

Sometimes, when I look at the balance in my bank account, I worry that the Korean economy might develop arteriosclerosis.

But since four-fifths of it comes from America, I don’t think it’s that bad.

It’s a good thing I take some of my payments in monster materials and artifact data.

If I’d taken it all in cash, the exchange rate might have crashed.

Following Hans’s advice, I’ve been quietly buying up bits of land here and there.

Sometimes, the money I make during a contract period is more than the price of land.

The number in my bank account just never seems to go down.

“Still, it’s really amazing. You managed to wrestle all these rights for us.”

“Considering all that Lime has given, these are rights you absolutely deserve.”

I don’t really think it’s natural for an individual to have rights like these.

If the details got out, I bet a lot of people would turn into my anti-fans.

But I guess I’ve risen too high to be called just an individual anymore.

Hans brought back a lot of rights, but the core is twofold.

One is the underground rights.

They’re much broader than what I got last time.

Basically, you can consider all public underground land as mine.

I can dig tunnels hundreds of meters below public roads however I want.

I can even build an underground transportation network deeper than the subway, surpassing it entirely.

Who knows how long it’ll take to actually build something like that.

But the difference between being able to and not being able to is huge.

Since it’s come to this, maybe I’ll dig an underground passage all the way to the Han River and secure a massive amount of water resources.

And while I’m at it, I might as well purify the Han River’s water too.

“This is the part I like best.”

But even more important than the underground rights is the next right.

-Special law applies to land I own.

“Now we can freely sell <Slime> in Slime Land. That was my biggest concern.”

“Solving Lime’s problems is my job, after all.”

On my own land, even people without an alchemist license can buy and sell <Slime>.

The law that only licensed alchemists can trade alchemy products was a real headache.

Should I use vending machines, or bring in a separate <Chip Slime> to do barter trades, or maybe charge an entry fee like a subscription game and make everything inside free?

I thought of a bunch of ways, but every one of them would have been a hassle if someone nitpicked.

But with the special law applying to my own land, I can now sell <Churros Slime>, <Popcorn Slime>, <Ice Cream Slime>, and so on without any worries.

Pulling <Ice Cream Slime> from a vending machine is nice and all.

But wouldn’t it be more nostalgic to get <Ice Cream Slime> handed to you by a <Mascot Slime>?

“We got a lot out of this, but nothing comes for free, huh.”

“A relationship where only one side benefits never lasts long and just breeds resentment. Still, I made sure to avoid any conditions that would block Lime’s future.”

It’s not like I got all these rights for nothing.

The invoice is just a weapon to establish dominance.

It can deal a massive blow to the other side, but if you actually use it, they’ll fight back with everything they’ve got.

That’s why it’s just for threats, and I had to give up a few things they wanted in return.

-Purchase of safety inspection reagents.

I sell tens of thousands of <Slime> a day in Korea alone. I needed over a hundred thousand safety inspection reagents.

So the Alchemy Center signed a large-scale alchemy reagent supply contract with Sole Alchemy.

Grade A alchemists, who are trustworthy enough by license alone, don’t even need safety inspections.

So I ended up taking on a bunch of useless alchemy reagents.

I can just eat them up and turn them into <Slime>, but still.

It’s a waste of resources.

I don’t really care about spending my own money.

After all, I make even more money selling the <Slime> made from those reagents.

But I don’t like that resources are wasted just to make those reagents.

…Let’s just think positively and say I helped the circulation of funds, the lifeblood of society.

-No monopolizing <Slime>.

It means I have to keep supplying <Slime> to the Alchemy Center.

These days, <Slime> is sold online at the alchemy shops in Korea.

And at the offline alchemy shops in various Alchemy Centers.

And at duty-free shops.

The commission is one thing, but the duty-free shops are just as important.

There are a ton of tourists who come to Korea just to buy <Slime>.

I’ve heard plenty of people decide where to travel just so they can buy <Slime> in Korea.

When they come to the duty-free shop, are they only going to buy <Slime>? I’m sure a lot of them will grab other things too.

If <Slime> suddenly disappeared from duty-free shops, it would have a huge negative impact on the tourism industry.

Honestly, I have no intention of monopolizing <Slime>.

Even if they told me to, I wouldn’t want to.

[A commotion breaks out as people demand their expired <Slime> be exchanged for new ones.]

[Tourists swarming in groups, cutting in line.]

[Chinese bundle merchants. Furious over the sales quantity limit on <Slime>, causing a commotion.]

News like this comes up all the time.

I don’t want to deal with troublesome people flocking from all over the world.

It’s not just foreigners; Koreans are a problem too.

There are even police stationed inside the Alchemy Center.

Even with the police staring intently, they still cause a ruckus, so how would they act toward me?

Celebrities, even when the other party is clearly at fault, often can’t act harshly just because they’re famous.

Since I’m famous too, the same thing could happen to me.

There’s also the issue of the location.

Slime Land, where there will be many child visitors, is a place where a cheerful atmosphere is crucial.

To protect the children’s memories, there’s a high chance I’d have to back down, so I might come on strong instead.

Inside Slime Land, due to its nature as an alchemy testing ground, they can’t hold me criminally responsible unless someone dies.

In the future, special laws might apply as well.

If someone causes a disturbance, I can just throw them out of Slime Land.

But it’s better if such incidents don’t happen at all.

Ideally, people like that wouldn’t come to Slime Land in the first place.

No matter how amazing Hans is, it’s probably impossible to eliminate troublesome people entirely.

If <Slime> is sold elsewhere, the number of troublesome visitors to Slime Land would decrease.

So, I’ll keep supplying <Slime> to the Alchemy Center in the future.

“And this is the main goal the Alchemy Center prioritizes, right?”

“Yes. It was clear they’d do anything to protect that, so it was easy to handle.”

I’ve completely played into Hans’s hands.

-When dealing with other countries, go through Korea’s Alchemy Center.

The core rights the Alchemy Center is aiming for.

Here, other countries doesn’t mean foreigners. It’s fine to deal with individuals or companies, but if it’s with public institutions of other countries, it must go through the Alchemy Center.

“The Alchemy Center has set its course on intermediary trade.”

Since they probably can’t exploit me easily, it seems they plan to exploit other countries. According to Hans, they’ve already gained quite a bit diplomatically.

And they want to keep doing that.

“It’s not mandatory, but if you’re not planning to change your base, it’s better to comply.”

Unless I’m planning to leave Korea entirely, they’re saying to keep the Alchemy Center in the middle.

I don’t really have any complaints.

I can’t leave the country since I don’t have a usable passport.

Given my current position, they might let me enter without even checking my passport and issue me permanent residency, but still.

Isn’t it too suspicious to go through all that without ever revealing my true self?

Rather than engaging in behavior that sparks unnecessary curiosity, I’d rather just stay in Korea.

And if the government steps in to act as a shield, that’s convenient.

The government is ultimately a collection of humans.

Just as there are troublesome people when humans gather,

when countries gather, there are troublesome nations among them.

If they’re willing to deal with them on my behalf, I can pay a commission for that.

It feels like a contract where I’m giving something up.

But if you think about it, all I’m giving is a 10% commission and purchasing alchemy reagents, right?

Considering the tax benefits from selling items through the Alchemy Center, the commission is actually a form of tax saving.

Isn’t this like breaking in and stealing even the house deed?

As expected of Hans.

Truly formidable.

“Thanks, Hans. I’m very satisfied.”

“I’m glad Lime is satisfied.”

It feels like I was sailing down a river on a boat and got caught in a sudden rapid, advancing in an instant.

If I had been steering the boat, it probably would’ve capsized in the rapid.

Since Hans handled it, not only did we get closer to the destination, but it feels like we stole the sail from the boat next to us and upgraded ours.

Having a competent person by your side is really great.

From now on, I’ll leave everything like this to him.

***

Almost at the same time as receiving the A-rank license, a delivery arrived from Sole Alchemy.

It’s not something sent under Chairman Ash’s name. It’s a delivery under Sole Alchemy’s name.

Inside the box were three items.

A letter.

A white piece of wood, too hard to be just wood and too warm to be stone.

And a bottle containing a purplish liquid.

I opened the letter first.

It’s not a demand for repayment for raising me to A-rank.

It was a request form.

“<Sacred Wood> production?”

I picked up the white piece of wood.

This is the <Sacred Wood> that got me raised to an A-rank Alchemist.

The request was to create a quantity of <Slime> that could replicate the effect of 10kg of this <Sacred Wood>.

The reward for the request is the potion that came with it.

Among the alchemy potions sold by Sole Alchemy, it’s a buff potion from the ultra-expensive line.

If you ask whether that potion is worth 10kg of <Sacred Wood>….

I think it might be?

After looking it up a bit, I found an interview with an S-rank Hunter.

In a desperate situation where all colleagues had fallen, and they were left alone,

drinking this potion gave them a surge of strength, allowing them to defeat the enemy and conquer the dungeon.

In other words, this potion provides a buff comparable to protagonist-level plot armor.

It’s essentially like having an extra life.

Naturally, many people want this buff potion.

But since no one except Ash can make it, the quantity is extremely limited.

They sent the request fee without even asking if I’d accept the request.

The request form says to return just the buff potion if I don’t intend to accept it.

Is this the kind of trust an A-rank Alchemist receives?

For now, I swallowed the <Sacred Wood>.

Though it’s a sample, it was clearly stated that I could do whatever I wanted with it.

My <Aroma Slime> has been recognized as essentially serving the same purpose as <Sacred Wood>.

Just compressing <Aroma Slime> into a small size with the [Store+] skill and sending it would be enough, but,

since they even sent a sample, I should eat it, run the [Analyze+] skill, and make it even more similar.

I also need to figure out exactly how much 10kg of <Sacred Wood> is.

[The level of the Decompose+ skill has risen to 44.]

–

[The Convert skill has evolved into the Convert+ skill.]

[The level of the Convert+ skill has risen to 46.]

Ah, right.

<Sacred Wood> is also an A-class artifact.

For some reason, since I was told I could make it, it started feeling insignificant.

[Convert+ Lv. 46.

-Converts one form of energy into another.]

The result of the [Analyze+] skill didn’t change much.

I wonder exactly what has changed.

I plugged my tentacles into the power strip and tasted 220V.

One, two, three.

The loss occurring during the energy conversion process has slightly decreased.

I picked up something random from the monster materials box and put it in my mouth.

I should be able to produce more mana than before.

The amount of mana that <Glutton Slime> releases after eating trash will increase.

Since it’s come to this, should I make <Aroma Slime (Sacred Wood)> after drinking that buff potion?

What skill will evolve if I consume the buff potion?

[The level of the Decompose+ skill has risen to 45.]

–

[The Accelerate skill has grown into the Accelerate+ skill.]

[The level of the Accelerate+ skill has risen to 46.]

[The level of Trait: Slime☆☆☆ has risen to 45.]

[You can select a new skill.]

Ah, level 45.

Since I haven’t used [Special Divide] before, I can either divide into a new child or acquire a new skill.

…Is there really a need to divide into a new child?

These days, even houses with many children usually have three.

With Gongdori, Gongsooni, and Mother, the three of them are already handling things well enough.

Wouldn’t it be better to just acquire a skill here and quickly level up to 50?

“Status window.”

[Trait: Slime☆☆☆ Lv. 45

+Courage +Temperance +Faith

Skills:

Decompose+ Lv. 45

–

Skill+]

I pressed the last item.

[You can select a skill.

1. Ordinary Skill: Transform Lv. 1.

2. Special Skill: Special Divide.]

Huh?

I rubbed my eyes.

[You can select a skill.

1. Ordinary Skill: Transform Lv. 1.

2. Special Skill: Special Divide.]

The drowsy feeling I had somehow vanished, and my mind snapped awake.

[Transform]?

That [Transform] which allows me to change into the form of a creature the more I eat it alive?

That [Transform] I deliberately ignored because I feared I wouldn’t be able to resist eating a human and becoming a true monster if I acquired it?

That’s showing up here?