Chapter 118. The Price of A Human (1/2)
Chapter 118. The Price of A Human
Was it possible to put a price on a human being?
While most people in the room were tilting their heads in curiosity, there were some who were nodding vigorously.
Merchants or assassins.
These were the people who often put prices on the lives of humans.
Out of all these people, there was one man who was more experienced than the rest.
Jeon Bak.
The man who was called the money-grubbing ghost in the church. He stood up, looked over the people in the room, and opened his mouth.
“All of those who have a problem with leaving the experts of the Alliance alive, raise your hands.”
“……”
A few people in the room shifted uncomfortably.
Wasn’t this too direct of a question?
Just how many people would be able to voice their opinions outright?
Did Jeon Bak even know where they were?
There was no way they’d let out their feelings in front of the Pope.
Just when everyone thought this,
Shf-
Someone dared to raise his hand.
Tian Zhongpae.
A member of the four families.
Those of the Tian clan had an unusually strong attachment to their bloodline.
The reason for doing so was simple: they produced the most amount of Popes in the history of the church.
“Rather than a problem, it’s more of a worry. Is it alright to put it this way?”
When Tian Zhongpae said this politely, Jeon Bak nodded.
“I suppose you can twist your thoughts that way, yes.”
“I am honestly a little worried? It has to be the same for the others. I am only this worried because the heir did something so massive.”
Jeon Bak heard all this, nodded, and opened his mouth.
“I get what you’re saying. But here’s the thing. Do you guys know how much your bodies are worth?”
“Just what are you…”
He was about to say ‘trying to say’ until he got cut off by Jeon Bak.
“I was asking if you all knew how much your bodies cost.”
Everyone made a peculiar face.
Did they know how much their bodies were worth?
What was the point of this question?
Around the point when everyone at the table made a similar expression, Jeon Bak opened his mouth again.
“I’ve been in charge of the church’s finances for a long time now. Most of my work often involved me putting a price tag on human beings.”
Put a price tag on humans?
When everyone made a dumb face out of surprise,
One of the old men in the corner grinned.
“Put a price tag on humans? Hah! You’ve been doing quite an interesting thing all your life, haven’t you? Then say, how much am I worth, Jeon Bak?”
The old man’s name was Jin Chun’ak.
When he, who controlled one of the ten battalions of the church, asked this question, Jeon Bak stopped all movements to take a look at the man.
Jin Chun’ak, seeing this, smirked.
“What? Is it a hard question? Do you need a lot of time?”
“……”
Everyone in the room looked at Jeon Bak with a face filled with curiosity. Jeon Bak twitched one of his fingers lightly and pointed at Jin Chun’ak.
“Hundred twenty gold coins.”
“What?”
“Your body’s worth at least a hundred and twenty gold coins.”
Jin Chun’ak frowned.
Just one hundred twenty?
Was he worth that little?
It was a large sum of money, but this amount wasn’t enough to satisfy anyone.
After all, weren’t they the top brass of the church?
Everyone in the room made a conflicted face.
“…Are you for real?”
“Why would I lie in a place like this?”
“I mean, do you legitimately think I’m worth that little? Me, Jin Chun’ak, worth only a hundred and twenty gold coins?”
Jeon Bak nodded unhesitatingly.
To him, the emotion of the other party did not matter at all.
After all, he had calculated the amount correctly using the data he had collected.
“That’s right. A hundred and twenty.”
The moment Jin Chun’ak was about to go into a fit,
Someone put a hand on his shoulder.
It was Chun Zhongpae.
[Don’t get flustered. Did you forget who was in this room?]
Jin Chun’ak cooled down immediately.
The Pope was here.
Who would dare act out in front of a man like this?
“How fun.”
Gongson Chun Gi had an excited expression on his face.
He had allowed Jeon Bak to take charge of the meeting but seeing how the man was talking about something he had never expected, his interest had been aroused greatly.
“Guardian Jeon, just what makes you come up with a number like that?”
Jeon Bak bowed once towards Gongson Chun Gi before opening his mouth.
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“It’s all just simple algebra in the end, but if I were to dig deeper… I’ve always thought that you could put a price on humans, and I’ve put countless hours into researching the matter as well.”
“Interesting thought. Go on.”
“For the case of Guardian Jin Chun’ak, I’ve come up with that number based on his age, ability, and capabilities.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. In order to come up with this result, it is a given that one would have to do a significant amount of background research on a person. Since I possess information of all the guardians here, it is easy for me to come up with a number quickly. The more information I have, the more accurate I would be.”
“So according to your data, Jin Chun’ak is worth a hundred twenty?”
“Yes. After all, age does play a big part in all this.”
“Hehe, how interesting. Quite easy to understand, too. Makes a lot of sense as well.”
Gongson Chun Gi smiled at Jin Chun’ak, who was currently trying his utmost to calm himself.
“Don’t get so mad. Just think of this as one of those fortunes you can get from the streets.”
“Kuh…”
Jin Chun’ak couldn’t do anything other than calm himself.
After all, the Pope had spoken.
But it was impossible to hide his reddened face.
Cho Ryu Hyang, who had been observing the meeting room carefully, touched his glasses as he thought to himself.
‘It’s plausible.’
Cho Ryu Hyang, too, had understood what Jeon Bak had said.
After hearing it, he nodded.