Translator: Nox
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: The Slum's Clothing Shop
“What, clothes?”
“Yeah. I’m thinking of going to buy some. If you want to come, you can.”
Cheon Dowoon recalled the return stones he had at home. He had eight stocked up, just in case he ever needed to run errands or fetch supplies. And now, the right time to use one had come.
“Clothes…!”
Surprise flashed in Kim Nari’s eyes—followed by joy.
Kim Nari had never really felt inconvenienced by her current lifestyle. But if she was being offered new clothes, why would she refuse?
“You can actually get clothes here? I didn’t know. I thought the Demon Realm didn’t have any clothing shops.”
“No, well… Hmm. There are, but the tribes that sell clothes are too far away. Even farther than that Coconut Tribe you used to live in.”
“Then where are you going?”
“The human world. I’ve got a return stone anyway, so it’s faster to go there and buy some.”
Kim Nari’s expression stiffened at his words.
Fear, rejection, psychological terror. The look in her eyes reminded Cheon Dowoon of something he had forgotten.
‘Didn’t she say she has a GPS function embedded in her body?’
Inside a gate, the signal wouldn’t work properly. But in the human world, the exact coordinates would be automatically sent to the lab.
“I… I won’t go. I’ll stay and guard the house.”
“Alright. Then tell me what kind of clothes you want. A dress? Pants? Tracksuit maybe? If there’s a style you like, tell me. I’ll pick it up for you.”
“Uh? I… Anything is fine.”
Kim Nari averted her gaze as she answered. Her reaction now was different from when she’d initially been happy about getting new clothes.
Cheon Dowoon immediately understood why.
‘She’s probably never worn proper clothes before.’
Kim Nari’s true form was a metallic mechanical frame. The lab had never provided her clothes.
Having never worn any before, she had no sense of what to ask for.
“Alright, I’ll just go pick something out.”
“Th-thank you.”
Kim Nari gave a deep bow, hands together at her waist.
“I’ll repay your kindness. I’ll work even harder.”
“Good. Stay with Uncle Nam Ki-seok. Help him get used to touching the water. And spar with him from time to time.”
“Got it. I’m happy I have more to do.”
She rolled up her sleeves with a bright grin. Playing fire-extinguishing games with Nam Ki-seok had been fun, so she was already looking forward to it.
Back at the house, Nam Ki-seok, who had been fast asleep, suddenly shivered from a mysterious chill.
* * *
Around noon.
Nam Ki-seok and Kim Nari headed to the waterfall basin for training.
Guu, meanwhile, lay sprawled in the mandragora garden, sunbathing.
“Hooong, hoooong!”
“Huuuung!”
Every so often, grumbles came from the soil beneath him.
Complaints from the mandragoras that a freeloader was lying on their turf.
They were signaling the adult mandragora to come kick him out.
Cheon Dowoon went to the garden and placed his hand on the ground. He released mana into the soil, spreading it across the entire garden. The mandragora leaves twitched in response.
“Huuuung...”
This time, it was a sound of satisfaction. The leaves relaxed gently, showing their approval.
“Let Guu nap here, okay? This spot gets the best sunlight. He’s from the volcanic zone, so he really likes the heat.”
The warm, sun-baked earth made for a perfect nap spot for Guu.
As he snored softly, Cheon Dowoon couldn’t bring himself to move him elsewhere.
Instead, he fed the mandragoras a generous helping of mana, and they voiced no further complaints.
“Okay, prep’s mostly done. Ah, I guess I should change before I go.”
Back inside, he pulled clothes from the drawer.
Clothes scavenged from the snow mountain—ones he hadn’t worn because they were slightly too small—were now his best option.
‘I should probably pick up some new clothes for myself too.’
After changing, he clicked his tongue.
The pants were short, and the shirt was tight. It was uncomfortable and clearly ill-fitting. That’s why he hadn’t worn them until now.
He looked like he’d stolen someone else’s clothes. Still, it was better than walking around like a caveman in fur.
He grabbed two return stones and two checks he’d stashed in the wall—everything useful he’d looted from the mountain.
Outside, he shattered one of the stones, and a blue gate shimmered into existence.
It was the first time he’d returned to the human world since his rebirth.
There was no nervousness. Though his memories were foggy, he’d gone through gates countless times.
‘Alright, let’s go.’
With the casualness of someone going for a stroll, Cheon Dowoon stepped into the gate.
* * *
A plaza in a certain city.
A blue shimmer flickered as a gate opened.
It was a mystical sight—but no one passing by paid it any attention.
In today’s world, gate openings weren’t unusual.
And this one was blue.
‘A hunter must be returning from a hunt.’
Red gates were natural phenomena—monsters poured from those.
Blue gates, on the other hand, were man-made.
They were safe, so there was no reason to panic.
A moment later, Cheon Dowoon stepped through the gate.
He looked around. This plaza was exactly the location he’d visualized when activating the return stone.
“It’s been a while since I came to the slums.”
His hometown—a notoriously poor district often called a breeding ground for criminals.
It was the only outdoor location he remembered clearly, so it had been his best bet for a return point.
‘The vibe is different than I remember. It’s gotten a lot better.’
Old buildings, rusted cars, kids begging on the street—that was the slum he remembered.
But something was clearly different now.
‘There’s even cops patrolling now.’
That alone made the place feel more stable.
The people also looked a bit more relaxed.
It still felt like a poverty-stricken area, but it wasn’t the kind of place where you’d find corpses on the street anymore.
“Hey, mister. Haven’t seen you around here. You from out of town?”
As he looked around, a boy approached. Maybe 15 at most.
‘Probably an orphan.’
The child was small, likely due to malnutrition. His shabby clothes and dirt-streaked face made it obvious he was a street orphan.
“As you can see, this area has a lot of alleys. Outsiders almost always get lost. I’ll guide you for a service fee of 10,000 won. How about it? I grew up here, so I know the area really well.”
The boy spoke with a bold grin. Kids like him, who made their living this way, had existed since even back when Cheon Dowoon was a child.
‘I used to do that kind of thing too, come to think of it.’
Even if this was his hometown, it had been decades. The geography would’ve changed a lot, so having a guide wasn’t a bad idea.
“I’m looking for a clothing shop. Which way should I go?”
“Clothes?”
The boy looked puzzled. What would a clear outsider want with cheap clothes from the slums?
‘Now that I look at him, that outfit… it does look like he picked up someone else’s clothes. He’s not even wearing shoes. Did he run into muggers or something?’
Had his clothes been stolen by muggers who preyed on outsiders? That kind of thing was common around here. Sometimes you'd see someone wearing clothes they clearly plucked off a random clothesline.
‘Wrong customer. He probably doesn’t have a penny on him. Is he planning to buy on credit or something?’
The boy regretted his approach for a moment, but shrugged it off. Time was all he had anyway, and the clothing shop was nearby. He could at least help a poor soul.
“Follow me. I’ll show you the way. But… mister, you’re a Hunter, right?”
“What makes you think that?”
“I saw you coming out of the gate earlier. You’re newly Awakened, aren’t you?”
The boy spoke confidently. Since Cheon Dowoon didn’t respond, he took it as a yes and nodded.
“Most of the Hunters who come here are like that. This city’s nickname is ‘Newbie Hunter Central,’ after all.”
“Really? How’d it get that name?”
“Hunter gear is expensive. Buying all the equipment wipes out a new Hunter’s savings, so they move here where rent is cheap.”
“You know a lot for your age.”
“Told you, this place is crawling with new Hunters.”
The boy gestured to the other side of the street, where groups of people were drinking in broad daylight.
“They’re all debt-ridden Hunters. D-class or lower. They don’t make much from monster hunts, but every time they go out, they rack up gear costs. The debt piles up.”
Newly Awakened people often fell into delusions of grandeur. Dreaming of getting rich from monster hunting, they rushed into the Hunter world. But there were countless who ended up as nothing more than debt-ridden wrecks.
This slum’s 13th district was where such Hunters gathered — a place where people clung to the edge of a cliff.
“They drink and complain about their lives all day. You end up overhearing all kinds of things. Oh, and...”
The boy pointed to a wide road across the way.
“See that street? Don’t ever go past it. That’s the center of the slums.”
His voice dropped, like he was sharing a secret.
“That area is really dangerous. Even the cops gave up on it.”
Cheon Dowoon knew. That’s where he had grown up — beyond that road. Though public safety had improved over the past 70 years, the core districts were still beyond the law’s reach.
“People who don’t know better move there because rent’s cheaper. Eight out of ten don’t come back out alive. Even locals avoid that area.”
He remembered well. Back in the orphanage days, he’d seen many people from out of town die after going into that zone.
“We’re here. This is the clothing shop.”
The boy stopped in front of a store.
“The owner’s a good guy. If you show your Hunter license, he’ll probably let you buy a set on credit.”
After saying that, the boy turned to leave — but Cheon Dowoon stopped him.
“You need to get paid for your help.”
“Nah, it’s fine. I’ve got more pride than to take money from someone who just got mugged.”
“Well, I’ve got more pride than to use people for free. I’ll give you some change after I buy clothes. I don’t have any right now, so wait a bit.”
“You actually have money? Well, if you’re offering, I won’t say no.”
The boy grinned brightly.
‘Some folks just run off after getting directions. This guy’s decent. Maybe I’ll give him a discount.’
With a cheerful smile, the boy stepped aside.
* * *
Shop owner Park rubbed his face with a sigh.
“So this is why not everyone can run a business…”
He had opened a store in a city called the “graveyard of D-rank Hunters,” but his profits were deep in the red.
“Centering the store around kids’ clothes was a mistake.”
Who opens a children’s clothing shop in a city full of Hunters? It was like opening a porridge stall in front of a steakhouse.
Still, Park had thought he was being clever.
‘If this city is full of retired Hunters in their 20s and 30s, that means couples are settling down and having kids.’
He was aiming for that niche. And indeed, plenty of newlywed Hunter couples lived here.
“But the moment they have a kid, they go into debt to move out...”
No one wanted to raise children in the slums.
‘Should I ditch the clothes and switch to weapons?’
He sighed again. Ding—
The door opened.
“Welcome!”
Reflexively, Park ran to the front.
He didn’t even notice how strange the customer looked.
“Can I get some recommendations for clothes for a 7-year-old girl?”
“Of course! One moment!”
Park summoned a practiced smile from the depths of his soul.
A young father in his 20s — at peak doting dad levels. Likely to splurge. If he played this right, he could sell three outfits.
‘Three sets, let’s go!’
He clung to hope.
“And I’d like to buy something for myself too. Do you have adult sizes?”
“Absolutely! We focus on kidswear, but we cater to families too.”
Park’s shoulders quivered with glee.
‘If I sell kids’ and adult clothes both... maybe five sets?!’
To someone else it might seem small, but for Park, it was a windfall. People rarely bought five outfits at once in this area.
“How many do you need?”
“I won’t be coming back for a while, so...”
Please say five. Three for the kid, two for yourself. Park prayed.
Cheon Dowoon thought for a moment, then said:
“Fifty. Show me fifty outfits each for the girl and myself.”
