The Chairman of Pharmaceutical Company is a Poison King - Chapter 8

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 8: Sales Begin (1)

Tae-ju decided to rest for the day.

He hadn’t slept properly for the past few days making antidotes.

He had also visited the drug shop he was considering for a contract, and now he just had to wait for them to contact him.

What if they don’t?

He’d have to deal with other drug shops.

Still, he hoped they would.

Baek’s Drug Shop, where Baek Hong-pyo was the owner, had the best reputation in the city. In fact, that gentleman was famous for his high virtue in Gurye, something Tae-ju had heard much about during his time here.

Tae-ju practiced Honweonmusangdokryeongong in his shabby inn room.

The main purpose of his training was stabilizing his poison essence.

He had reached the 3rd level too quickly.

So speed control was also necessary.

What would happen if he just kept absorbing poison recklessly?

Poison energy that couldn’t be controlled risked exploding.

In terms of regular internal energy, it would be like qi deviation.

If he made a mistake, the poison energy could backflow and harm his own body instead.

He needed to compress and stabilize his poison essence.

‘I should abstain from poison for a while.’

Until the hastily cultivated poison essence found its proper place.

‘Well, the 3rd level is sufficient to take care of my own body.’

Let’s go slowly, slowly.

Water must boil for rice to cook.

Comparing the 3rd level of Honweonmusangdokryeongong to system awakeners, it was at least Regular level or above.

Even at the 1st level, he had killed Jang Indong, who was a Beginner.

Though that was partly due to the guy’s carelessness.

And as his level increased, the martial arts techniques he could use also grew.

Each martial art technique was practically like a skill.

After finishing his training, Tae-ju left his lodging in the afternoon.

‘Should I go out for a bit?’

He happened to have a place he wanted to visit.

After entering a restaurant for a simple meal, he paid the fare and boarded a passing streetcar.

‘The air conditioning is running full blast. This is definitely a wealthy neighborhood.’

Gurye, Free City.

The area wasn’t that large.

Instead, people lived closely packed together.

It had everything you could need.

Government offices including city hall, an airport, train station, power plant using demon beast crystals for electrical energy, residential complexes with apartments, and slums.

While anyone could freely move around like this, there were areas where entry was strictly controlled.

There it was, visible in the distance.

A medieval-style castle far away.

‘It’s a real castle wall. A castle in 2323.’

A massive wall built beyond an artificial lake.

A special residential area called the Castle.

You had to take a boat to enter that place.

Resident identification was absolutely required.

Those living in the Castle were Gurye City’s wealthy class, high-grade awakeners, high-ranking officials, autonomous committee members and their families.

Among them, the Autonomous Committee.

The core that operated and took responsibility for Gurye City.

The Autonomous Committee members were local influential figures and community leaders.

Composed of 23 members, there was no chairman but there were 3 standing committee members.

Nogo-dan Guild’s Guild Master Lee Jung-hak, Cheonwang Group’s Chairman Min Dong-yeol, and Grade 2 Administrative Officer Ji Gwang-in dispatched from the Imperial Home Office.

The major policies of Gurye Free City were made according to the decision-making of these 3 standing committee members.

‘The Castle.’

To live there, you had to own a house inside the castle.

Even a small apartment would cost at least 10 billion.

And even then, no properties came on the market.

Because it was the safest area in Gurye.

Even if a demon beast wave occurred, only the Castle would be safe.

‘Should I try living there if I make money?’

But money alone wasn’t enough.

You also had to have the appropriate power, and connections were necessary too.

The streetcar arrived at its destination.

Gurye Market along the Seomjin River, a market so large it was among the biggest in the entire Samhan Empire.

He hadn’t come to buy anything.

He didn’t even have enough money to live on.

He was just looking around.

Especially equipment made from demon beast byproducts.

‘How dazzling.’

Born as a mana rejecter, he had never left Paju Domain until enlisting in the military.

This was his first time seeing such a large market.

Entering the sector exclusively for adaptees and awakeners, all kinds of items were displayed proudly, filling the showcases.

The prices of the items…

‘Why is everything so expensive?’

The minimum unit for item prices was in the millions.

Ten million and hundred million units were common too.

They didn’t just sell ready-made products.

Custom orders were also possible.

That’s why handcraft workshops were abundant around the market.

‘Custom orders would definitely be better, right?’

Danggumak, the Jeoldaedokma of Gangho Murim who shared the same soul as him.

He was famous for always wearing gorgeous long robes that reached his ankles.

Inside the robe were countless pockets, and he carried various hidden weapons and poisons in them.

Was that all?

He made pockets on every piece of equipment – belts, wrist and forearm guards, shoes, gloves.

Because he couldn’t run out of hidden weapons during a fight.

In that sense, poison arts and hidden weapon techniques were…

‘Really expensive martial arts.’

But right now, Tae-ju was poor. He couldn’t even buy a crude dagger.

A leather workshop visible before his eyes.

A gray-colored long coat hanging there.

‘A coat made from phantom fox leather?’

Leather from phantom foxes living in the Temperate Forest of Siberia, Demon-Infested Region. The coat’s price was 3 billion, custom order required.

It had basic defensive capabilities and was said to be cool in summer and warm in winter.

‘Tempting.’

How much would it cost to order a full set of armor made from phantom fox leather at the leather workshop? At least 5 billion would be needed.

Next was a metal workshop.

A place selling swords, blades, throwing weapons, and such.

He needed to carry at least 100 each of willow leaf throwing knives, water caltrop knives, and iron pellets, and over 1,000 thin needles as well.

Poisons could be manufactured directly.

But weapons had to be bought with money no matter what.

Danggumak, the absolute poison master of the martial world, could simply order the blacksmiths affiliated with the Sichuan Tang Family to “make me a few,” and they would immediately comply. But Kim Tae-ju, the absolute poison master of the Three Han Empire, was dirt poor.

A pie in the sky.

He could only turn away, thinking he’d buy it next time when he had money.

Ready-made product stores also existed.

Shops mainly used by cash-strapped Aptitude Users and Awakened.

However, even here there were items expensive enough to slap custom workshop prices in the face.

Premium magic stores.

That’s right.

Literally magic.

They didn’t even have price tags.

You could call them OOPArts.

Items that couldn’t be analyzed with Earth’s mana science technology.

For example, arm guards that could deploy automatic barriers.

Rings that could shoot fireballs three times a day.

Swords that spewed lightning bolts with each swing.

Subspace bags with infinite capacity.

No one knew where these items came from.

Who made them was also unknown.

All that was known was that they sold for astronomical amounts.

‘If I just had one subspace bag, that would be perfect.’

However, he’d never even seen a subspace item.

There weren’t any here in Gurye Market either.

He’d only heard rumors that one sold for 500 billion won.

Even his father, General Kim Woong-bang, probably didn’t own a subspace bag.

‘Should I leave?’

Staying here would only raise his expectations.

Suddenly!

Bzzzzt!

His smartphone vibrated.

‘Huh?’

Not many people knew this phone number.

The broker he’d been friendly with when looking for porter work, or maybe…

“Hello.”

– This is Baek Hong-pyo. You’re the right person, aren’t you? The mosquito poison.

He’d gotten a bite.

Seems they’d noticed the effects.

– If it’s okay to talk on the phone…

“Let’s meet and talk in person. I saw there was a cafe in front of the drug shop earlier.”

Time to go sell the antidote.

* * *

“Let me introduce myself properly. I’m Baek Hong-pyo.”

“I’m Kim Tae-ju.”

The cafe across from ‘Baek’s Drug Shop.’

As soon as Tae-ju and he exchanged simple greetings, Baek Hong-pyo asked urgently.

“I’ll buy all the antidote you have. What’s the quantity like?”

“It was effective, I take it?”

“Of course. This medicine will bring a revolution to Jirisan monster hunting.”

Baek Hong-pyo was extremely excited.

“Do, do you have sufficient quantities?”

“Yes. I have the concentrate. Ten 20-liter containers, diluted with purified water and put into 10ml vials for consumption.”

“…What’s the dilution ratio?”

“3 to 1, so about 60,000 bottles.”

“Oh! If you sell them all?”

“I can produce more immediately.”

Baek Hong-pyo’s face brightened.

No matter how good a medicine was, it was useless if there wasn’t enough supply.

Now for the price discussion.

Boss Baek Hong-pyo, whom he’d personally chosen as a partner.

Let him ask.

“I don’t know much about this field… What should I sell this for? Please give me some advice, Boss Baek.”

Baek Hong-pyo pondered for a moment.

Then he spoke.

“Um… what’s the manufacturing cost per bottle?”

Tae-ju paused briefly at Baek Hong-pyo’s question.

‘Manufacturing cost.’

Well, purified water and containers? Plus his labor.

What should he set it at?

“About 10,000 won per bottle?”

“Ah! I see.”

In reality it wouldn’t even cost 100 won.

At his words, Baek Hong-pyo nodded and said.

“The consumers for this medicine are Mana Aptitude Users and Awakened. For ordinary people, the Mutated Three-Striped Mosquito poison isn’t very threatening.”

Right.

It was a type of mountain miasma poison that only affected people with mana.

“Of course, Awakened and Aptitude Users earn decent money, so they’d buy and use antidotes if available… but if it’s too expensive, they’d rather choose to wear protective clothing.”

The only way to avoid mosquitoes.

They wore armor but put insect-proof gear over areas where bare skin was exposed – that’s how it had been done until now.

However, the Jirisan area had a subtropical climate.

Incredibly hot.

They’d die of heat stroke trying to avoid mosquitoes.

“This antidote will definitely reduce the burden of monster hunting. If the price is reasonable, they’ll definitely buy it.”

“So what would be a reasonable selling price?”

“Around 50,000 won would make people open their wallets without hesitation.”

50,000 won.

A price worth paying to avoid mosquitoes.

The initial quantity was about 60,000 bottles, so at 50,000 won each, that’s 3 billion.

This was concentrate made from poisonous herbs collected in one trip to the Jirisan wilderness.

Making money was easy.

Indeed, people need to learn skills.

“You should also consider taxes.”

“Taxes?”

“There’s almost no tax on selling byproducts obtained from monster hunting. But tax on products distributed through secondary processing is uniformly 10% of net profit. It applies to both suppliers and sellers.”

If he sold 3 billion, the tax would be 300 million.

Not much money.

Truly Gurye, the free city.

“What’s the sales permit procedure like?”

“It’s fairly simple. You just need to confirm it’s harmless to humans.”

What remained was deciding the wholesale price.

Baek Hong-pyo opened his mouth with difficulty.

“At a wholesale price of 39,000 or 40,000 won, I could also generate profit. But if it’s more than that…”

Tae-ju also pondered for a moment.

“Could you possibly handle the drug sales permit procedures for me?”

He had no connections or acquaintances in Gurye.

Since this was also an administrative procedure, someone who had lived in Gurye for a long time would have an advantage.

“Yes, I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry about drug patent registration either. I have connections in the pharmaceutical approval department of the Self-Governing Committee.”

“And I’ll need space to manufacture the drug. Preferably somewhere discreet and quiet.”

“I have a suitable place in mind.”

“Also, you’ll need to help me deal with any unexpected situations that arise later… since I’m new here.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll do my best to help you.”

Baek Hong-pyo was quite an influential person in Gurye.

That’s why Tae-ju chose him.

“Then let’s settle on supplying it for 35,000 won. I’ll also give you exclusive sales rights for one year.”

“…What?”

Baek Hong-pyo was startled.

“No, you don’t have to go that far…”

The mosquito poison antidote.

A drug that would definitely sell once released to market.

In fact, from a drug shop’s perspective, a supply price of 35,000 won would leave a huge profit margin. Even at 40,000 won supply price, he’d be thrilled.

But on top of that, one year of exclusive sales rights.

“You run an orphanage, don’t you? I heard that most of the net profit from the pharmacy goes to operating the orphanage.”

“Oh, oh, ah, you knew about that.”

“It’s quite the talk around Gurye. I wanted to help too, that’s why.”

“Th-thank you.”

Baek’s Drug Shop and Baek’s Orphanage.

Boss Baek who sells medicine to care for orphans.

This was exactly why he had such a good reputation.

“And there’s something I’d like to ask.”

“Please tell me anything.”

“When profits come in, could you advance my share as quickly as possible? I have somewhere I need to use it.”

Baek Hong-pyo seemed to be in good spirits as he laughed heartily.

“Hahaha, that’s possible. I’ll deposit it immediately as money comes in.”

The deal was done.

Tae-ju was satisfied, and so was Baek Hong-pyo.

And about two weeks later.

Sales approval came down from the Autonomous Committee.

If this were 300 years ago, it would have required various stages like animal testing and clinical trials before getting market approval, but now it’s different.

Especially in Gurye, Free City.

When they could solve the detestable mosquito poison, was there any reason to delay?

Thus, the advertisement posted at Baek’s Drug Shop.

【Mosquito Poison Antidote Sales Begin!】

【Get freed from the Mutated Three-Striped Mosquito for just 50,000 won.】

It took less than ten days to sell all 60,000 bottles.

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