Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 26

He had clearly finished talking with Amnak Pharmaceuticals, but there was still no word or reaction from them. The deadline was today. Could it be that they had already found another freelancer? Lenok could just find another job, but it was an unpleasant outcome for Jenny, who had spent so long filtering through requests. However, instead of getting annoyed, she frowned slightly and replied, “They’ll be here soon.” “What?” “I called them, and they said they’d come in person. So, I just left it at that.” No sooner had she finished speaking than someone pushed open the bar door and entered. A shabby suit, a tired face, an old bag in his hand, and an awkward expression in the dim lighting. He looked like someone who was far removed from a smoky bar like this. Lenok probably didn’t look much different when he first came here. He wasn’t someone who liked bars or pubs back on Earth either. However, people are creatures of adaptation, and he had become accustomed to this place after coming here regularly to make money. He saw Jenny leaning against the bar, hesitated, and then approached her, asking, “Excuse me, I have an appointment to meet someone here…” Jenny nonchalantly spat out a single word. “Amnak?” “Ah, yes…. That’s right.” “I’m Jenny. This is Ban.” Only then did he notice Lenok’s presence, and he bowed his head with a startled look. “N-nice to meet you. I’m Luan Sage, the sales manager from Amnak Pharmaceuticals.” “Ban.” After exchanging greetings, Sage fumbled around as if trying to take something out of his bag, without even sitting down. Jenny shook her head at the sight and said, “I’ll get you a private room, so let’s talk there.” It was definitely not a good place to host a client. Jenny led the two of them up the stairs behind the bar to the second floor of the building. “…If you had a room like this, why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Lenok grumbled as he saw the clean and quiet room, which looked like a reception room from a fancy hotel. Jenny scoffed. “You always just take the job and run away, what are you talking about?” “…” It was true that he always went back to his hotel room to rest or think about magic research after getting a job, so Lenok shut his mouth. Sage, as if he was used to this kind of room, sat down with a much better complexion. “Since we don’t have much time, can we get straight to the point?” He said that without waiting for an answer and immediately took a piece of paper out of his bag and handed it to Lenok. “I assume that since you’ve accepted our offer, you’re already somewhat familiar with the details of this request.” “I did look over the details.” Lenok replied, recalling the details of the request proposed by the pharmaceutical company. Amnak Pharmaceuticals was currently developing a tranquilizer through small-scale crowdfunding. They had achieved tangible results compared to the size of the company, and there were positive prospects that it would far exceed the company’s current net profit. The problem was that the council member of the district where their headquarters was located was pressuring them to hand over the patent for the drug under development. The council member was closely associated with one of the gangs in the underworld as part of the district’s maintenance, and they were using those connections to pressure the pharmaceutical company. Amnak was trying various methods to prevent this, and one of them was to get involved in the same business. “So, what exactly do you want me to do?” “Contrary to what is publicly known, the development of the new drug is completely finished.” Sage said in a calmer voice. “We were planning to secretly submit a sample to the patent office while the council member thought the drug was still under development, but that has become difficult after information leaked from within the company.” “So, there’s a spy.” It was common for companies to plant spies and steal information, even back on Earth. If a company was large enough, they could prevent this to some extent by having systems in place instead of people, but a small pharmaceutical company would be helpless. Sage nodded and took a photo out of his bag and handed it to him. A warehouse located in a remote alley. Judging by the fact that the surrounding buildings were not very tall, it was not a busy area, but rather closer to the outskirts of the city. “After realizing that there was a spy within the company, the CEO moved the samples of the developed new drug to this location. It was because he was worried that the council member might try to steal the samples by force. The problem is that it’s almost certain that this information has also been leaked.” Listening to him, it seemed like security at Amnak Pharmaceuticals was meaningless, but Lenok understood. It would be difficult for a small company with a relatively lax system to keep its employees quiet. If they were given enough money and promised no repercussions, there would be many people who would open their mouths. “If the information is already leaked, there’s no point in moving the samples around anymore.” Lenok picked up the photo and flipped it over. District 54. Number 8. The address of the warehouse was written in a light cursive script. “We have contacted the patent office and received approval to submit the sample the day after tomorrow. We would like to entrust you, the mage, with the task of retrieving the sample hidden in this warehouse and submitting it to the patent office on our behalf.” Sage said, looking at Lenok with a nervous expression. Lenok, who had been staring at the photo of the warehouse, suddenly opened his mouth. “Did you say your name was Sage?” “…Yes.” A moment of silence. Lenok stared into his eyes for a moment, then chuckled. “If you want to hire me, you should speak clearly.” His tone was harsh, and Sage swallowed hard. “What, what do you mean…” Instead of answering, Lenok held up the outline of the request he was holding and shook it. “You wrote down what you wanted here, but are you pretending you don’t know? It’s not just about retrieving the sample and submitting it.” Before taking on a job, he had to address any uncomfortable parts. It wasn’t that he doubted the truth of the information Sage had given him, but it was also true that Sage hadn’t told him everything. Sage’s eyes darted back and forth, but in the end, he couldn’t say anything. He knew exactly what Lenok was talking about. Jenny drove the point home from beside him. “The gang.” “…” “You left out the part about the gang. If they know you hired a freelancer, the council member will hear about it. What guarantee do we have that Ban won’t clash with the gang then?” The council member wouldn’t directly get involved in this business, but the gang he was working with was different. If they found out that the pharmaceutical company had hired Lenok to retrieve and submit the sample, the gang would definitely get involved. “I could really just hide and submit the sample to the patent office. Is that what you want?” Lenok asked, but there was no answer. No, Sage had answered the question by remaining silent. In the end, what Amnak Pharmaceuticals wanted was not just a simple errand boy, but a force that could deal with the council member’s gang. They had talked big, but in the end, they had come here hoping that Lenok would clash with the gang and deal with them while retrieving the sample. Yet, the fact that they didn’t bring it up in person was enough to annoy Lenok. ‘…He’s definitely different from Valitz.’ Thinking about the giant corporation that accurately conveyed its goals, set different fees for each goal, and even paid additional fees considering unexpected variables, the way Amnak Pharmaceuticals was handling things was absurd. Lenok could guess that there might be some haphazard handling of work due to the nature of a venture company, but it was ridiculous that they were trying to play tricks from the moment they outsourced the work. Looking at their naive way of thinking that they would just retrieve the sample and deal with the gang… it might have been better to just hand the sample over to the council member. Perhaps aware of the suddenly tense atmosphere, Sage’s shoulders slumped and he started sweating profusely. Lenok suppressed the urge to take out a cigarette and glanced at Jenny. There was nothing to gain from venting his anger on Sage at this moment. It would be better to discuss with her first before deciding whether to accept this request. Jenny, noticing Lenok’s gaze, smiled as if to say she understood. “Hey, customer.” “Y-yes, yes!” Jenny flicked her cigarette at Sage’s tense reply. “Do you still want to hire us?” “Y-yes, I do…” “Then, it seems like we need to negotiate the compensation. You might have just wanted our mage to run an errand, but the risks we see are different. Do you understand?” Sage nodded. Only then did Jenny smile with satisfaction and point her cigarette at something. It was Sage’s phone on the table. “Then, let’s call your boss and ask. How much can you invest in us? How much money do you need to give Ban to make him want to beat up the gang he encounters while running your errand?” “…” “We’ll be out for a bit, so feel free to make your call.” She said that and naturally led Lenok out of the office. As soon as the door closed, Jenny said, “What do you want to do?” “About what?” “It’s true that they tried to play tricks, but honestly, this is cute in my eyes. If they really wanted to deceive us, they wouldn’t have even mentioned the council member or the gang in the request outline.” “…” That was true. The reason Lenok was able to notice that Sage hadn’t told him everything was because of the information written in the request outline they had sent. “Of course, I also cross-check when I receive a request, so I wouldn’t fall for a sloppy lie, but in this case, rather than trying to backstab us…” “Rather than?” “…I think they were trying to lower the price.” Jenny said that and glanced at Lenok, then quickly continued. “Of course, this is just my opinion, and it’s natural that you’re upset, Ban. It’s annoying when someone tries to deceive you. It’s your choice whether to accept the request or not. You can send that guy back right now. It’s not like there’s no work in this business, just no money. I can get another request from tomorrow.” Lenok chuckled as he watched Jenny, who was speaking so fluently. She was starting to understand what kind of person Lenok was, but her cautious approach was enough to earn Lenok’s favor. She seemed to have guessed that Lenok was quite wary, despite his personality. “What do you think the difficulty of the request is? What’s the possibility of the council member getting directly involved?” “It won’t be difficult. I’ve already looked into it separately. I’m sure of it.” Jenny asserted. “The gang that Mayor Meyer is working with is a violent organization of about 100 people, and it’s not a large gang even in the 50s district. Except for the leader, who is known to be a unique mixed-blood, the others are no different from scavengers. It won’t be difficult to deal with.” Considering that they were called a gang, they would be an organization of at least dozens of people, but there was no sense of burden in Jenny’s words. She already thought that Lenok was not someone who would be bound by simple numbers. In fact, Lenok also thought that it would be possible to deal with them without being in danger. The battle with the scavengers alongside the Creamgal Mercenary Office. The various spells that Lenok had used there, including [Chain Lightning], had the potential to allow an individual to face a group alone. Perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea to turn that potential into certainty in this request. Lenok, carefully considering his thoughts, nodded. “…Okay. But I want to get a higher fee than this.” If he wasn’t going to avoid the fight with the gang, it wouldn’t be unethical to add a risk allowance. Jenny grinned at Lenok’s words. “Leave it to me. You saw me throw the bait, right? I’ll rip off about ten million cells, so just wait a bit.” No sooner had she finished speaking than the office door opened. Sage, holding his phone carefully as if it were a precious object. He looked at the two of them and nodded silently. Lenok shook his head silently, watching her mouth stretch into a long grin right next to him. # After the pharmaceutical company backed down first, things progressed smoothly. Instead of doubling the ten million cells that were originally planned to be paid to Lenok as an advance, the success fee of ten million cells remained the same. Lenok, who had signed a temporary employment contract to receive 30 million cells upon success, immediately got into the car that Sage had brought and headed in the direction of the warehouse. There were no major problems since he had packed his belongings in advance. “It’s a bit late. The others have probably arrived first.”