Chapter 12

Nobody in this world doesn’t know that money is important.

Even a five-year-old brat whose hair hasn’t even grown out yet knows that.

And as everyone grows up and starts their social life,

most people come to deeply understand just how difficult and exhausting earning money can be.

Unless you were born with rich parents or somehow won the lottery,

the reason is simple: to make money, you have to keep creating value worth it.

Therefore, whenever you spend money, you should understand

just how precious it is.

Otherwise, someday you’ll end up regretting what you’ve done.

‘I’m out of money. I definitely had some spare cash though…’

*Jingle.*

A coin weakly rolled around inside an empty can.

Two 1-credit coins and one 5-credit coin, totaling 7 credits.

This was the change left after buying the deluxe chocolate pastry for lunch today.

To think that this measly amount, not even enough for a single meal or even a piece of gum, is now my entire fortune!

Overwhelmed by a sense of self-loathing, I covered my face with both hands and rolled around on the bed.

‘Why did the bakery uncle have to bring out a special menu at a time like this!’

Of course, the bakery uncle wasn’t really at fault.

Thanks to the recent increase in customers, he had some extra time and ambitiously created a limited batch of new products.

It was my foolishness for giving in to temptation.

The idiotic decision to blow all my money was entirely mine.

‘But still… how could I resist that giant chocolate pastry glowing golden like it was coated in honey!’

Half-resigned and half-self-loathing, I crumpled the edge of the bed with my telekinesis.

Soon after, I held my head in my hands, feeling gloomy.

‘Haa, originally I wasn’t someone who particularly loved eating. But ever since I got this body, it’s been hard to control my appetite. Especially lately, it’s gotten worse.’

Back when I first fell into this underworld, a single hamburger a day was enough.

Maybe it’s because every time I use telekinesis, I get hungry fast?

As time went on, my food intake started noticeably increasing.

Sooner than I thought, one meal turned into two, then three.

At this rate, I might soon turn into a pig with a bloated belly.

‘Ugh… well, whatever. Eating well is actually good. This short body will grow quickly too. But more importantly, right now the problem is that I’ve blown all the money I managed to save…’

I glanced up slightly to look at the dirty calendar hanging on the wall.

Today marked exactly one week since I had that nighttime chase with the blonde pervert.

For the past week, I’d been minimizing going outside.

If I ran into that pervert again in some back alley, I knew there was no way I could shake him off.

Of course, I’d completely stopped my only source of income—thievery.

Without earning anything, I’d been spending my days burning through money.

Thanks to saving a bit to buy a bed, I hadn’t starved immediately.

But it seemed like even that was reaching its limit now.

Now, I really had to do something.

‘Just a little… maybe I’ll try thievery just for today?’

I cautiously entertained the thought.

No matter how I looked at it, finding work outside seemed impossible.

First, I needed to cover my body as much as possible, at least my face.

My face was far too noticeable in this underworld.

But which employer would hire someone who hides their identity?

Especially if they couldn’t talk and didn’t know how the world worked. Even I’d kick myself out.

On top of that, aside from telekinesis, I was pretty useless.

And openly using telekinesis was far too risky.

In the end, thievery remained my best option.

Huh? Then why not just blatantly steal things or rob anyone I see?

Unfortunately, that would be the absolute worst choice.

Would I willingly give myself a reason to get beaten up in this city full of people stronger than me?

I’d have a better chance of surviving a bungee jump off a skyscraper without a rope, breaking only my legs.

‘Haa. If only I could speak. There would be so many things I could do. Who knew being mute would be this frustrating.’

After circling back, thievery was the only thing I could do.

I tried to suppress the rising anxiety and calm my emotions.

Still, a whole week had passed.

Surely that blonde pervert wouldn’t still be lurking around?

Even if I ran into him again, there was nothing I could do.

No matter what, I couldn’t just sit around and starve to death.

So, suppressing the creeping fear,

I covered myself with a newly acquired cloth and hopped across the night sky of the western labyrinth.

“Kyaaak!”

‘Found you. Bad guy.’

Night Haven’s underworld hadn’t changed in my absence.

As usual, it didn’t take long to find someone bad enough to rob.

Familiar with the routine, I silently landed in the back alley and easily subdued the bad guy with a telekinetic flick.

Just as I was about to snatch the wallet from the collapsed man,

I heard a stampede of footsteps rushing toward me.

“There it is! A real ghost!”

“Kihahaha! We must capture it alive!”

“Woooot! 700,000 credits are mine!”

What the heck?

The sight of a suspicious group resembling end-of-the-world mohawks made me instinctively step back.

And their numbers weren’t just two or three—it was enough to overflow the alley.

I couldn’t even grab the wallet from the fallen man and had no choice but to flee.

Fortunately, there didn’t seem to be anyone as strong as the blonde pervert, and I managed to lose them quickly.

But it was clear that something unusual was happening.

‘Wha, what is this?’

Completely flustered, I paused my thievery and decided to carefully observe the back alley from the rooftop.

“Kyeek!”

“Is it a ghost?! Damn it, no! Who released a hell toad in the back alley?”

“I heard those pointy-headed guys found it earlier! It seems like the ghost is real!”

“700,000, 700,000 credits! Where is it? Kihahaha!”

The back alley was swarming with an unusual number of different species.

Crocodile-men with swords, dwarves with spiky hair, and even fishmen wearing fishbowls.

Their eccentricities made it hard to tell what they had in common,

but they quickly reacted to screams and commotion, flocking to the scene.

Listening to their conversations, I realized they were bounty hunters.

And shockingly, there was a ridiculous bounty of 700,000 credits on me.

From what I knew, 700,000 credits was enough to live comfortably for a year.

Judging by their reactions, it was enough to drive the bounty hunters wild.

‘This isn’t a situation where I can do thievery…’

Honestly, each bounty hunter wasn’t particularly strong.

Watching them fight thugs in the back alley, they were only slightly stronger than regular people.

But their numbers were overwhelming. No, overwhelmingly excessive.

How many were there that they took down the bad guys before I even found them?

At this rate, I couldn’t even safely walk around at night, let alone steal.

‘Ugh, this is bad. I never expected this.’

It was completely unexpected.

If anything, I thought the blonde pervert would be lurking around.

Who could’ve guessed the back alley would be crawling with bounty hunters?

This meant my grand plan to earn money through thievery was utterly ruined.

‘What should I do…’

*Gurgle.*

Maybe because I’d been treating myself to luxurious meals recently,

my tiny stomach didn’t care about my worries and demanded food.

To be so oblivious during such troubling times.

Feeling depressed, I slumped my shoulders and wandered aimlessly.

‘How did I end up here?’

Suddenly, I realized I had wandered near Greg’s general store.

Perhaps it was because bounty hunters rarely came here.

Unconsciously, my feet must have led me to this quieter place.

…Quiet was nice, but I didn’t have anything to sell anyway.

There was no need to risk getting entangled with key characters unnecessarily.

Having quickly judged in my mind, I turned to leave without hesitation.

That is, until an incredible smell of meat suddenly wafted over.

‘Urk, this smell… B, barbecue…!’

It was a kind of violence.

To someone as hungry as me, it felt like a chokehold around my neck—a brutal assault of aroma.

The intense, dizzying scent was so powerful it made me drool uncontrollably.

‘Sniff, no. Greg is only a reliable trading partner. Creating unnecessary contact like this…!’

“Is that a ghost? Have you come to trade?”

‘Ah.’

When I came to, I realized I had somehow moved from the rooftop to standing in front of Greg’s half-open shop door.

To fall for just the smell of meat, what an idiot!

Overwhelmed by self-loathing, I tightly shut my eyes and lowered my head.

Just then, Greg approached me with curiosity.

*Grrrrr!*

A thunderous growl erupted from my stomach.

It was so loud I felt all the blood drain from my body in shame.

“…Do you want one?”

Greg, seemingly noticing my state, cautiously offered.

An orc offering meat?

He was so gentlemanly it brought tears to my eyes.