Villain wants to live as a commoner chapter 48

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So, Moon Haeyoon was also close with Lee Shinhae. She’s part of the Pasa Guild, rivals with Baek Gunho, yet she’s also friendly with him.

And now, she even knows Lee Shinhae, who’s very selective about who he associates with. She sure knows a lot of people.

Since the filming was taking place inside Lee Shinhae’s workshop, there wasn’t much to see.

I was debating whether to head inside and wait when I heard some commotion from inside.

Lee Shinhae was coming out with Moon Haeyoon. The filming crew, who had been waiting, moved quickly.

It seemed the filming was over, as Moon Haeyoon emerged alone. As she talked with the crew, our eyes met.

After finishing her conversation with the crew, Moon Haeyoon walked over to me.

“Hi, fancy meeting you here.”

“Yeah, right? But aren’t you in the middle of filming?”

The cameras weren’t pointed in our direction, but I still felt uneasy and asked.

Moon Haeyoon smiled and waved her hand dismissively.

“I have a little time while the crew packs up. But what brings you here, Heewon?”

“I’m here to get some items checked by Hyung.”

“Really? Wow, getting your items checked directly by a craftsman—that’s amazing.”

Moon Haeyoon’s eyes sparkled with admiration.

“It’s nothing. You’re getting something made by him this time, right?”

“That’s true. I was lucky.”

Moon Haeyoon looked quite pleased, probably because the weapon request had gone well.

After chatting about her impressions of Lee Shinhae and her expectations for the weapon being made, Moon Haeyoon said she had to go and left.

Alone again, I headed inside the workshop.

Unlike the lively Moon Haeyoon, Lee Shinhae, who had just greeted a guest, was slumped on the sofa.

“Heewon, you’re here…”

“Hyung, why do you look so drained?”

“She’s a bundle of energy…”

He must have been exhausted, as he weakly got up from where he’d collapsed and pulled out a fatigue recovery drink from his inventory, gulping it down.

“If it weren’t for Baek Gunho asking me as a favor, I wouldn’t have taken this request…”

“Baek Gunho?”

“Yeah. He introduced her to me, asking me to take good care of her. That guy doesn’t usually ask for favors like this, so I agreed… But I’m not doing it again, seriously.”

Lee Shinhae grumbled. Hearing that made my mind whirl with thoughts.

‘Baek Gunho asked you to take good care of her?’

Those words didn’t sound like something Baek Gunho would say.

He’s not the type to introduce someone unless he really cares about them, nor is he the type to emphasize taking good care of someone.

It was strange when he got all serious about Moon Haeyoon not being a suitable match for me.

It’s weird how he’s okay with everyone else I associate with but suddenly disapproves when it comes to her.

When my uncle first mentioned Moon Haeyoon, I thought it was for recruitment.

But if that were the case, it would’ve made more sense to bring her into the guild first and then provide weapons.

There was no need to involve Lee Shinhae.

It’s not for recruitment. But despite that, Baek Gunho is uncharacteristically considerate. So, this really means…

“Could it be… does Baek Gunho have feelings for Moon Haeyoon?”

Lee Shinhae spoke. It seems like it’s not just my eyes that see it that way.

“It could be.”

Hiding my gloom, I forced myself to respond nonchalantly. Lee Shinhae opened another bottle of energy drink and handed it to me.

“Have a drink.”

“Me?”

“You look tired.”

It seemed my attempt to appear fine didn’t work. I accepted the drink. The logo on it was familiar.

“It’s from our company.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty good. Tastes nice too.”

I gulped down the energy drink in one go. Watching me, Lee Shinhae asked.

“Do you have someone you’re interested in, Heewon?”

“Why do you ask all of a sudden?”

“Won’t you get bored if Baek Gunho starts dating? He’s your only friend, after all.”

His words hit a sore spot. Look who’s talking, as if he has any friends himself.

Am I holding on because Baek Gunho is the only friend I have in my life?

Baek Gunho tries to set me up with a partner, but maybe what I really need is a friend.

“I don’t care. I wish he’d just start dating and leave me alone.”

I said something I didn’t really mean. Lee Shinhae laughed it off, saying, “You’re just saying that.”

“Can you hand me the gun?”

Grateful for the change of topic, I handed the gun to Isinhee.

With a serious expression, Lee Shinhae carefully disassembled the gun, inspected it, and then reassembled it.

Once I got the gun back, I took out another item from my inventory.

“Hyung, can you take a look at this?”

It was a mysterious item I found buried in my inventory before entering the dungeon.

1■■th’s Trace (S): The last weapon fragment held by ■■■ of 1■■th.

Even after reading the item description again, I still couldn’t figure out what it was.

“The item description seems a bit odd.”

“Odd, how?”

With a cautious expression, Lee Shinhae picked up the small metal fragment, barely the size of a fingernail.

After checking the system window, his eyes sparkled.

“You’re right. It is strange. What is this?”

Staring intently at the fragment, Lee Shinhae slowly opened his mouth with a serious face.

“This is…”

“Do you know what it is?”

“It looks like an old SR item fragment.”

His response was unexpected.

“An SR item?”

“Yeah. This metal was mined from the Mars Mine Dungeon, but the dungeon was closed due to resource depletion, so it’s no longer produced. Sometimes old items are reused, but the equipment is different, so the processing method differs.”

Lee Shinhae excused himself and disappeared into the workshop’s storage. After a while, he returned, holding a dagger.

Comparing the dagger to the metal fragment, Lee Shinhae nodded.

“That’s right. This dagger was made by SR a long time ago, and it’s processed the same way.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, but where did you get this?”

“It’s a dungeon drop item…”

A frown creased Isinhee’s brow.

His conclusion didn’t make sense. If it was an SR product, it was an item made outside the dungeon, but it was strange for such an item’s fragment to appear as a dungeon reward.

“Really?”

“Maybe not…”

“How did you get it?”

“It was in my inventory. The only thing I can think of is that it’s a dungeon reward…”

“Then it must be a dungeon reward.”

Lee Shinhae responded, fiddling with the fragment.

“Even the rank doesn’t make sense. The Mars Mine Dungeon was closed 10 years ago, so this item would have been made at least 10 years ago. But SR couldn’t make S-rank weapons back then.”

“…”

“The rank is strange, the description is unclear, and it seems like a used item. But why would this be a dungeon drop item…”

Lee Shinhae put the fragment down, crossed his arms, and stared at it for a while. When no conclusion came to him, he scratched his head irritably.

“What the hell is this?”

“I have no idea…”

“Where exactly did you get it?”

“There was a time when I got caught in a dungeon with the Baekmyeon sect, and back then… ah.”

“What is it?”

“I got another item in that dungeon that had its description obscured. I used it, though…”

“You used it? What was it?”

“It was an item called ‘Memory’ or something, and when I used it, it made the opponent confess.”

To be precise, it had that effect after being consumed by dust.

“I would’ve liked to see that…”

“It’s gone now.”

The item had already disappeared into the dust.

“That dungeon is unusual. It needs to be investigated right away…”

“It was closed after we defeated the boss.”

“What? Why!”

Lee Shinhae clutched his head in despair.

The dungeon boss is currently within the shadows, but maybe I could learn more if I asked the snake.

At that moment, Isinhee, who was in despair, suddenly stood up.

“It’s okay, I have a solution.”

Lee Shinhae gestured for me to follow. I followed him to the inner part of the workshop.

Although I had glimpsed it from the outside before, it was my first time entering.

The inner workshop was packed with items.

Some were easily recognizable weapons or armor, while others, like a small fountain spurting water upside down or a broken hourglass, were completely unidentifiable.

“Do you want something?”

Lee Shinhae asked as I looked around.

“No, it’s okay.”

“If you need anything, just say the word. I’ll be generous with Heewon.”

It’s probably something too expensive to even ask for. I continued to follow Isinhee, thinking about selling one of them.

“Where did I put it…”

Lee Shinhae was not only a famous item maker but also a collector.

They say he spends the astronomical amounts of money he earns on buying items, and there were indeed many.

“Found it!”

After searching for a long time, Lee Shinhae finally stopped.

What he picked up was an old, shabby-looking magnifying glass.

“If you can’t appraise it, then you can read its memory.”

Is there really such a convenient item?

Lee Shinhae handed me the magnifying glass with a sinister smile.

“Try using it.”

“Me?”

“It’s S-rank. I’m low on mana since I just finished making a weapon.”

Memory Magnifying Glass (S): A magnifying glass that allows you to peek into the memories of the observed object. (Uses left: 1/10)

Thinking it could be useful elsewhere, I noticed it had a usage limit.

“It only has one use left.”

“It’s okay, go ahead.”

“But still…”

“It’s fine. It’s meant to be used. Besides, I don’t think this is an ordinary item.”

Since the owner said so, I decided not to decline any further. I was curious to know what it was too.

Holding the fragment close to the magnifying glass, I infused it with mana as Lee Shinhae advised.

Smoke-like illusions rose above the magnifying glass. A

s I tried to get a closer look…

Replaying the memories of the previous ■■.

Suddenly, a system window popped up, and the surroundings changed.

Someone was standing in front of a small, overgrown abandoned building.

That familiar yet unfamiliar person was none other than the old man.

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