CHAPTER 15

Quest Reward (1)

Oh Eun-joo had a dream.

A peaceful afternoon.

Watching her most precious son playing in the apartment playground.

Unable to take her eyes off him, worried he might get hurt—just another ordinary day.

Then, she quietly opened her eyes.

Realizing she had woken up, Oh Eun-joo gasped and wept softly.

It had been a sweet dream.

She couldn't hold back her tears because she knew that dream could never come true.

That was when—

"Oh Eun-joo."

A man stood at the emergency exit, looking down at her.

'What…?'

Perhaps because of the dream, the man in front of her felt oddly comforting.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Kim Jae-hyun."

There was something strange about him.

Her instincts told her—

The source of the unknown power she had just experienced was right in front of her.

That overwhelming presence was hidden beneath his gentle demeanor.

"…Was it you?"

"Sorry?"

"The one who blew the goblins' heads off."

He slowly nodded in confirmation.

"That's right."

He spoke as if such a thing was nothing to him.

'Maybe…'

Was it because she had just woken up from a dream?

Or was it because of the content of that dream?

A ridiculous thought crossed her mind.

'If it's this man…'

Maybe it was possible.

Oh Eun-joo, in front of a complete stranger, burst into tears and pleaded.

"Please… Please, save my son… Even if it's just for one day… Just one day…"

My first encounter with Oh Eun-joo was intense from the start.

[Citizen Oh Eun-joo's trust level has increased significantly.]

Just making eye contact caused a sharp rise in trust.

And after exchanging only a few words, another trust notification popped up.

It happened the moment I revealed that I was the one who had killed the goblins.

Immediately after, she stared blankly at me for a long time before bursting into tears and making a desperate request.

"Please, save my son… Please…"

"..."

She asked me to save her son.

That alone gave me a rough idea of the situation.

'Did she lose her child to the goblins?'

The emergency staircase was a mess, littered with goblin corpses.

Since they were killed before she became a citizen, the bodies hadn't disappeared.

And they were in a gruesome state—heads crushed, intestines spilled, necks broken.

I could picture the desperate battle she had fought.

And in those traces, I could feel the thick weight of hatred.

'Save him?'

She wasn't asking me to heal an injured child.

She was asking me to bring back her dead son.

"Huuh…"

As if she knew how impossible her request was, she simply wept sorrowfully after saying it.

Seeing her like that, something tugged at my heart.

'Is there any way…?'

Bringing back the dead—

If this were the past, it would have been a foolish thought.

But in this broken world, it wasn't entirely out of the question.

After all, wasn't the emergence of monsters and supernatural abilities an impossibility in itself?

As I pondered, an idea came to me.

'If this works…'

When I first gained the quest-granting ability, I tested its penalties.

But I had never tested the limits of its rewards.

'Quest grant: Hunt 1,000 goblins, no time limit, no penalties. Reward… the resurrection of her son.'

Ding!

The system notification chimed.

For a moment, I felt a glimmer of hope.

If this was possible, it meant I could bring back the dead.

And that meant it could also apply to my loved ones.

But—

[Quest cannot be granted.]

My hope was short-lived.

'So it's impossible after all.'

That made sense.

No matter how powerful an ability was, reviving the dead was a different matter entirely.

That's what I thought—

Until another message appeared.

[(Quest Reward: Resurrection) cannot be granted due to insufficient funds.]

[Please increase your available funds and try again.]

"…Huh?"

For a moment, I doubted my eyes.

The message was absurd.

But no matter how many times I reread it, the text didn't change.

'So, in other words…'

The meaning was clear.

'If I have enough money, I can bring back the dead?'

Even as I attempted it, I hadn't truly believed it would work.

'Holy…'

But it was actually possible.

"Sniff…"

Oh Eun-joo, stifling her sobs, looked utterly pitiful.

It was cruel to think about it, but as she wept, I was already calculating.

'I don't know how much money resurrection requires, but it's bound to be an astronomical amount.'

'Is she worth that kind of investment?'

I didn't need to think for long.

With her level and abilities, she was more than worth the cost.

"Oh Eun-joo. Oh Eun-joo."

She lifted her tear-streaked face.

"I believe I can help you."

"…What?"

"I can bring your son back."

"!!!"

Her expression instantly cleared.

"Really? You can bring him back?"

"To be honest, it's not possible right now."

"Ah…"

Her face fell, disappointment written all over it.

I continued.

"But I swear on my name—I will bring your son back."

"What do I need to do?"

She wasn't truly convinced.

She was just grasping at straws.

Her desperation was evident in her expression.

"Well…"

Ideally, I wanted to send her back to her family's home to bring them to the apartment.

She was the strongest citizen among us.

But sending her alone was too risky.

There was no way to predict what kind of monsters she might encounter on the way.

'If I send her, I need to ensure she has a solid team.'

The best combination I could think of was pairing her with Ha Dong-geon's party.

His team already included Moon Byung-ho and Kang Deok-soo, both sworn followers.

One was level 30, the other level 25, and both had awakened useful abilities.

Adding level 33 Oh Eun-joo to the mix would make them formidable.

'The best outcome would be having all seven as my followers.'

That way, even if they encountered an overwhelmingly powerful monster, I could summon them back instantly.

That would greatly reduce the risk of losing anyone.

After making my decision, I turned to Oh Eun-joo.

"Come with me. There are people I want you to meet."

This was only the beginning.

'Quest rewards… how far can I push them?'

Ding!

'Quest grant: Demonstrate your ability in front of me. Time limit: one hour. Penalty: Sleep in the hallway. Reward…'

How far could I take this?

'Strength enhancement.'

Ding!