I Just Traded in the Forest of Monsters, but the World Changed - Chapter 17

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 17
Erasmus studied her expression for a moment, then spoke slowly.
“If you need it, I can help with things beyond cleaning.”
Se Hui looked at him and smiled.
“I’m grateful for even that much.”
“Heh, well, now that I work here, it’s only natural.”
Se Hui forced a smile.
But inside, nothing had cooled.
Sensing this, Erasmus turned away with an understanding nod and resumed sorting the recycling.
The moment Erasmus turned his back, Se Hui stared into empty space again.
“Hey.”
No response came.
“Hey, why aren’t you answering? Is this lagging?”
The screen flickered subtly, as if it had heard her complaint.
The response grew slower and slower, as though protesting that it was busy.
Finally, a familiar blue window appeared at last.
The delay in responding felt deliberate, as though done on purpose.
Se Hui crossed her arms and spoke.
“About the Commission. Can’t you lower it a bit?”
Silence stretched between them.
[Reviewing your request.]
Her heart skipped a beat.
‘Could it actually be adjusted?’
Even that brief moment felt unusually long to Se Hui.
[Reducing the Commission is not feasible in your current state.]
“Wait, hold on.”
Se Hui’s brow twitched.
“No, but twenty percent is too much, isn’t it? At the very least——!”
The system cut short her protest and spoke immediately.
[We recommend raising your Rank.]
“What?”
It was the first she’d heard of this.
‘Raise my Rank?’
Se Hui frantically tapped around the system interface.
‘Nothing.’
There was no such explanation anywhere to be found.
Then the blue window flared again.
[Commission benefits begin from the next Rank tier onward.]
Se Hui was at a loss for words.
“Wait, you mean from the Convenience Store Grade? That’s when Commission reductions kick in?”
No matter how much she pressed, the system gave no answer.
“No, tell me more!”
Watching the system refuse to budge at her insistence, Se Hui felt frustration building.
Se Hui let out a sigh, her eyes fixed on empty air.
The system remained silent.
In the end, there was only one answer.
She had no choice but to survive within this structure.
If she couldn’t escape, she had to change the game itself.
Se Hui’s lips slowly curved upward.
“So that’s how it works.”
She spoke quietly toward the empty space.
“Fine.”
Se Hui slowly lowered her arms.
The tension in her fists remained.
“Good. Whether it’s Convenience Store Grade or whatever, I don’t care.”
She bit her lip slightly.
Her eyes narrowed and dimmed, then flashed bright again.
“I’ll make it happen.”
Her voice held no hesitation.
“Until the day I don’t have to pay Commission.”
Se Hui glared into empty air, her teeth clenched.
“I’ll absorb every last coin in this forest—gold or otherwise.”
The backs of her fists blanched white as she squeezed them shut.
‘Gold, silver—doesn’t matter. The more that comes in, the better.’
Her thoughts simplified, as though there was nothing left to debate.
“I’ll make Convenience Store Grade for certain.”
If she couldn’t eliminate the commission, she’d earn enough to make it meaningless.
If there was a loss, she’d simply earn enough to swallow it whole.
Se Hui didn’t yet know that things would flow quite differently from this resolve.
Right beside her, Erasmus’s hand stilled as he listened to her words.
His eyes gleamed with sudden light.
“Oh…!”
A breath tinged with wonder escaped him.
He placed a hand over his heart and regarded Se Hui with reverence.
“Indeed, Se Hui…”
He couldn’t find the words; instead, he gripped the trash bag more tightly.
“Such a grand aspiration—to gather the world’s coins unto yourself…”
He murmured this and nodded slowly.
His eyes held a hint of solemn purpose.
One of the mercenaries watching from a distance stopped bundling supplies and frowned.
Another mercenary tossed out a comment.
“Leave it. She’s not some old crone we can handle.”
Vargas added his voice as well.
“That woman’s no ordinary person either.”
As if recalling the hellish heat of the Fire Chicken sauce, the mercenaries nodded in agreement.
“Still, the food here is good.”
“Hot as it was, the drinks were incredible.”
They spoke of food for no particular reason and turned their heads away.
Pretending indifference, they focused on organizing supplies and preparing to depart.
Yet they weren’t entirely unmindful.
Their hands paused in their work, then resumed.
They’d all caught at least a glimpse of Se Hui glaring into the void, teeth clenched.
No one dared speak first.
They’d already learned that accidentally poking the bear might result in something spicy shoved down their throats.
* * *
The mercenaries gathered their belongings and began preparing to leave the forest.
“We’ll just come back next time.”
“Ramen is a more dangerous food than you’d think.”
“Yeah, and that coffee was seriously strange too.”
Already, they spoke as if assuming a return visit.
The mercenaries cast one final, regretful gaze across the space beneath the Parasol.
Vargas lingered until the last moment, then fixed Se Hui with a meaningful look.
“Make sure you come back again.”
With only those words, he vanished into the forest with the other mercenaries.
The tent entrance, which had been bustling with noise, fell silent.
‘They ate ramen—a culmination of modern convenience—so they’ll have no choice but to return.’
Beneath the Parasol, Se Hui’s eyes had changed.
The eyes of a merchant tapping at a ledger.
Eyes that pierced profit and loss, flow and structure—eyes lit with a touch of madness.
‘When will the next customer come?’
Se Hui idly swept her gaze along the edge of the tent.
The wolf that was always there was gone, and it troubled her.
‘Should I just go ahead and make a contract?’
But then, a strange presence brushed past from deep within the forest.
Something different from the wolf.
“Hmm, well—it’s fine, isn’t it?”
With both wolf and mercenaries gone, the forest lay quiet.
In the hush left behind as though after a storm had passed, Se Hui sank into her Parasol chair.
‘Maybe I’ll have some coffee.’
Her mouth felt strangely empty.
Since there was a contract in place, Se Hui called out to Erasmus, who was diligently sorting recyclables.
“Once you’re finished, shall we have a cup of coffee?”
Se Hui waved her hand lightly, and Erasmus’s eyes brightened.
“Splendid. Coffee is always welcome.”
Se Hui opened her Inventory and pulled out a small pouch.
Not golden, but white wrapping that gleamed with a subtle luster.
“We’ll have this today.”
“That’s also coffee?”
At Erasmus’s question, Se Hui nodded.
“Yes, it’s the same coffee.”
She took out two paper cups, tore open the pouch, shook the grounds into them, and poured hot water.
The pale brown powder scattered across the water’s surface, then slowly dissolved.
Se Hui stirred it with a wooden stick.
A subtle aroma drifted into the air.
Erasmus took the cup and sipped carefully.
Then his eyes narrowed slightly.
“Hmm.”
He seemed to pause in thought before nodding.
“This has a different character from what I had before.”
“It does?”
“A bit softer and lighter, I’d say.”
Se Hui chuckled.
“That was Maximum Gold.”
She lifted her cup and swirled it gently.
“This is Maximum White Gold.”
Erasmus’s eyes brightened again.
“The name alone sounds like a superior grade.”
“No, it’s just a different variety.”
Se Hui shrugged lightly and took another sip of coffee.
A faint sweetness lingered on her tongue.
“I could probably alternate between selling Gold and this, depending on demand.”
“Then I’d recommend the Gold. To my palate, it’s more delicious.”
“The basic version has its charm, though.”
Se Hui set down her cup with a quiet laugh.
The aroma was gentle, but something in her chest felt oddly rough.
Unlike the coffee’s sweetness, the numbers she’d tallied kept gnawing at her mind.
Contrary to her bold resolve from moments before, her mouth had gone bitter.
“Making money really is hard…….”
Se Hui opened the shop window out of habit.
[Limited-Time Items Now Available!]
• [Nostalgic Golden Chewy (10 pack)] … 30P [Purchase]
*Available for purchase only for 1 hour after opening!
A new item had appeared with no prior notice.
“Seriously? They should’ve told me about this! The price is insane.”
Se Hui scrolled through the window with narrowed eyes.
She tapped the numbers again to confirm.
Just in case she’d misread them.
“Thirty Points for ten pieces?”
Though she needed Points to pay the utility bill, thirty seemed like a worthwhile expense.
Se Hui pressed the purchase button without hesitation.
An orange envelope, solid and flat, fell into her palm.
“Never thought I’d see this here.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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