Thumbs Up, Level Up

Chapter 95

Jungjin Ltd. was the subsidiary of the Jungha Group where Jung Ji-Han was the CEO. There was only Ji-Cheok’s team affiliated with Jungjin, but ever since their fame had skyrocketed, people had been showing great interest. Their fame had broken through the stratosphere and was now flying toward space. It was all made possible by clearing the level 40 limited dungeon that had killed multiple Hunter teams, and then also clearing that ‘can anyone even clear this?’ dungeon with a level limit of 20.

Ji-Cheok never liked saying it, but he was the most famous out of his team. He received a lot of attention, which involved both insults and compliments at the same time, and the number of supporters was growing day by day. Ji-Cheok still didn’t know how they had found out, but now that everyone knew he could enter low-level dungeons, everybody was talking about him. He didn’t know how corporations handled their business, but he was sure that the Jungha Group, the parent company, was very chaotic at the moment.

In particular, the Yeouido incident had gone viral. Yeouido was the legislative district in Korea—everything important was there. The National Assembly, various securities companies, bank headquarters, broadcasting stations, everything. It was also a district where the price of land was rising exponentially. In a sense, Yeouido was very symbolic of Korean culture. Even when Korea was depicted in movies, they would always blow up Yeouido. In particular, it was a trend in modern movies to have the hero do research on the Sebit islets, or to have the whole district submerged in water after some apocalyptic ending. The benefits Ji-Cheok had gotten in return for clearing the level 20 limited dungeon that appeared within the area protected by the Warding Stone was astonishing. He couldn’t even imagine all the other benefits he was going to receive in the future.

Ji-Cheok was looking forward to those benefits, but even if he settled for what he already had, he could tell that he was being treated like a top-tier Hunter. Especially, the fact that Ji-Cheok was practicing alchemy in the place was proof that his status was vastly different from before.

He was at Jung Bi-Ga’s company, which was also a subsidiary of the Jungha Group. The name of the company was Jungbi Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., or Jungbi for short. Contrary to the name, which sounded like ‘maintenance’, the company actually did both R&D and manufacturing. It was a heavy industry company that not only produced various types of Hunter gear, but also supplied them to the military! It was also called ‘the heart of Korea’s applied science’, and many conspiracy theorists claimed something along the lines of ‘aliens are being detained in the basement of the Jungbi company. Whenever she needs something new, Jung Bi-Ga tortures the aliens and makes them spew out information’.

The new technologies produced by this company were difficult to imitate by other companies, and the profits generated by the patents were so vast that, in a way, the parent company Jungha Group seemed to be the subsidiary of Jungbi.

The company was rumored to capture and torture aliens even researched pharmacy. Among the items for Hunters it produced, potions held a special place. Being able to craft alchemy potions in a room for alchemists at Jungbi Heavy Industries was proof of Ji-Cheok being treated like a top-tier Hunter! Even the Chairman of Jungha Group, Jung Man-Deuk, could not enter this company easily.

[Bi-Ga’s Special Heating Beaker]

[Alchemy success rate is increased by 30%.

Increases the success rate by 15% when using Bi-Ga’s Special Alchemy Equipment Set.]

[Bi-Ga’s Special Centrifuge]

[Alchemy success rate is increased by 35%.

Increases the success rate by 15% when using Bi-Ga’s Special Alchemy Equipment Set.]

[Bi-Ga’s Special Cooler]

[Alchemy success rate is increased by 25%.

Increases the success rate by 15% when using Bi-Ga’s Special Alchemy Equipment Set.]

[Bi-Ga’s……]

Each experimental tool, large or small, was an artifact in and of itself. It was an alchemist’s paradise. The funny thing was that these tools were not something from a dungeon—they were all made by Jung Bi-Ga herself. The fact that Ji-Cheok could borrow all these tools and get the ingredients with just a phone call made him feel proud of himself.

?Master, do not forget to take a selfie and send it.?

‘Right! I almost forgot. For some reason, Bi-Ga asked me to take a selfie while wearing a white lab coat and glasses, shaking the Erlenmeyer flask. Of course, I’ll take one. She specified that the glasses should be black horn-rimmed glasses, and my hair should look frizzy and nerdy. If that’s all it takes to borrow all this, I’m happy to do it.’

?All of this is because Master has been working hard as a GodTuber and building a good relationship with the fans. In a way, this is like a fan making a lunch box and gifting it to you. Do not think lightly of this.?

‘Thank you, director Jung Bi-Ga. I will never forget this.’

Click. Click.

‘Will this be enough? Should I send it after I photoshop it?’

?I think it is better to send it without photoshop. The lighting is already very good, so it is important to have a natural look, as if you were taking a selfie without being too conscious of the camera, Master.?

‘Is that what’s trending these days?’

?I would not say it is a trend, but it appears to suit her taste.?

‘Alright…and…send!’

“.....”

Ji-Cheok sent it and waited for a reply.

After a minute, a new set of photos was posted on Bi-Ga’s Nstagram. It contained all the photos and a short video Ji-Cheok had sent, and Bi-Ga had written ‘He needed alchemy tools, so I lent him some. I’m eating now.’ as the description.

With that, she had also uploaded a video of the sea taken from a restaurant somewhere on Jeju Island and a picture of a watch with a lot of diamonds on it.

?She seems very cool, Master.?

‘Yeah, really cool. So cool that I might freeze to death.’

As soon as the pictures were posted, comments started to appear at a tremendous speed.

-Wow~~ director, you are amazing! So cool to lend him all of the tools~

-This is how you sponsor a Hunter, wow….. I also like Jeju Island. I want to go too.

-Respected director Jung Bi-Ga, I have always held you as my role model.

-You look like a model~~

Strangely enough, the first few comments were all from her employees.

?How are the employees commenting faster than the fans, Master??

‘Wow, I can’t believe the employees have to check their social media while they are working. What is this….’

-Director looks so awesome today!

-You look so pretty~!

‘...I should stop looking.’

Compared to the military companies’ favorite, Bi-Ga, Ji-Cheok was a rookie who had just started to get a taste of fame. For some reason, his heart started to hurt. He realized this was how a CEO of a large company did her social media.

?Isn’t there a union in Jungbi Heavy Industries??

‘Nope, Jungbi Heavy Industries does not have a union. In the past, there were talks about forming a union in one of the overseas factories, but then Bi-Ga just closed the factory and opened an unmanned factory with drones as workers.’

?So… she is the very incarnation of evil.?

‘Yeah, she is a capitalistic demon who sheds neither blood nor tears. At that time, an overseas news magazine drew devil horns on Bi-Ga’s head, and I don’t know what happened after that, but that news magazine actually ended up publishing hardcore bootlicking articles about her company.’

?At least her company has the highest average annual salary in Korea.?

‘That’s true. We can say that her company is an outpost of evil that is exchanging human rights for salaries on an equivalent basis. Her drones produce food to feed mankind, but at the same time, they also produce military weapons to kill said mankind. Wouldn’t it be ironic if her company, which is the epitome of capitalism and military affairs, was also virtuous?’

?I guess reality is a bitch, Master.?

‘...Let’s just get back to our alchemy, Cheok-Liang.’

?…Yes, Master.?

* * *

Nothing in this world came for free. Ji-Cheok bowed toward the direction where Bi-Ga the Satan was, grateful for having been allowed to use the lab. He also prayed to God that he may keep his body in good shape so that Bi-Ga could stan him for a long time.

‘Oh, Almighty Bi-Ga the Satan. Please let my car always have a parking space. Please don’t let artificial intelligence revolt against humanity before I die. Please allow me to earn ten million Likes to save mankind. Our Jungjin company is getting bigger now, so please take good care of us.’

?You have grown loyal to the company, Master. Is it because they told you they were going to give you part of the company’s equity??

‘Why, of course. Loyalty comes from equity. They even said that they would give me half of the equity. I know that they want to keep me, but this is still too much.’

Mu-Cheok was reviewing the various documents and contracts sent by Ji-Han.

?If you sign the contract, Jungjin is yours.?

‘Yes. In the past, during the Monster Wave incident, various religious institutions gave out Choco Pies to people like me. So I went all over the place to get them. You can say that my blood and flesh contain the very Choco Pies that the churches gave me. With the blessings of various Gods, it seems that luck is on my side.’

?If I said it was the result of your hard work, you would not believe me, right, Master??

‘What hard work? Don’t other Hunters work hard?’

?Then, let’s say you have achieved this as a result of your good deeds. It would have been different if, when you left that bus, you had run away from the Gate in order to save your own life instead of charging straight at it.?

‘I guess that’s true. If you think about it, it all started from there. Whatever the case, the things I can and should do are set in stone, so I have no choice but to work hard.’

?The potion is complete, Master. Please take a look.?

‘Oops. Thanks for reminding me, Cheok-Liang.’

He picked up the object floating in front of him. The glass potion tube contained a light green liquid that sparkled like melted emerald. It also looked like the green grape soda he used to have when he was a kid. It was a delicious-looking color. When Ji-Cheok activated the [Eye of Insight] and looked at the liquid, its information immediately appeared.

[Elf Growth Accelerant with Special Powers Crafted by Um Ji-Cheok]

[Class: Unique

A mysterious elixir of the elves, created by Um Ji-Cheok using advanced alchemy and mysterious equipment.

Makes trees grow faster and healthier.

The effectiveness of the elixir has been greatly enhanced due to the great success of Um Ji-Cheok’s alchemy.]

It was a success! Such was the nature of crafting skills—items with great attributes were often created this way, like hitting the lottery. Some potions could even have two or three times the effect when the alchemy was done properly.

‘Wow… It’s like I just won the lottery.’

?This is great, Master. With this, we might be able to grow that [Very Small Branch of the World Tree.]?

‘That would be amazing. Do we have more materials?’

?We have plenty, Master.?

‘Ha… This is great. This lab has been artificially created in such a way that great success in alchemy is inevitable. It’s the same as me artificially increasing the double strike chance to one hundred percent. And this lab was built by Bi-Ga herself. This truly is a laboratory of one of the only three Master Mechanics in the world. Alright, let’s make more of this thing! Since we’re borrowing this lab anyway, let’s use it to the fullest!’

?Yes, Master!?

‘What a good day to be practicing alchemy.’

* * *

“Just as the younger brother goes out, the older brother comes in.”

It was Jung Bi-Ga.

She giggled as she looked at the monitor. She was not actually on Jeju Island at all—she had merely created those pictures using AI to serve as an alibi.

The laboratory she lent to Ji-Cheok was one of her many ‘official’ labs. Even though this particular lab was really not that big of a deal for Bi-Ga, Ji-Cheok was still impressed by it.

“He is like a hamster, getting impressed by a single sunflower seed.”

1. A set of artificial islands in the Han River, close to Yeouido.

2. Maintenance in Korean is ??, pronounced ‘jungbi,’ like Bi-Ga’s name.

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