Chapter 45 : Chapter 45
Chapter 45 : Income
As the elevator doors opened, Sal let out a low whistle.
Until just a moment ago, they hadn't given him a glance, but now every employee on the Credit Floor was watching him.
It was entirely due to Sal that they were kept awake even at this hour.
When Sal approached the nearest employee, the man greeted him with surprised eyes.
Sal had heard earlier today that the man's name was Greg.
"Sir, are you a machine by any chance? Just how many more have you Appraised?"
Instead of answering, Sal set a pile of completed request forms down on the desk.
"I finished sixteen cases this time. One unexpected Epic rank, seven Rare, five Uncommon, and three Common. The Appraisal certificates are all attached to the tops of the boxes, and I have organized them all inside the room. I am ready to receive the next sixteen, so could you send them down when you have a moment?"
Sal checked the documents thoroughly one more time, then looked up and said with a smile.
"And... I am not a machine. At least, I think not."
Greg glanced at another employee next to him, who also shook his head, silently expressing his astonishment.
Sal watched as they moved to prepare the next boxes.
He felt inwardly relieved to see the remaining volume noticeably decrease.
Greg checked the request forms quickly but accurately.
"You have written these in such detail..."
Seeming to realize he had let out his admiration aloud, he blinked and shook his head lightly.
"I apologize, Mr. Argento... The total number of items you have Appraised so far is 53. We can settle the payment right now, or it would be fine if you visited again tomorrow morning."
He spoke in a tone mixed with forced hope, wishing for Sal to stop.
However, Sal smiled and shook his head.
"My exclusive Appraisal time is ending. Tomorrow I would have to compete with the internal Appraisal team here, but right now, none of them are around. So, since I am at it, I intend to finish everything before I leave. The Reavers Guild will like it if the Appraisal is done quickly, and at this speed, I might even be able to expect a bonus from the Credit Floor, don't you think?"
Sal shrugged and added.
"This is how we originally work at the Argento Auction House."
Greg let out a resigned sigh and nodded.
"Then shall we send the last twenty down all at once? That would be better than making you come back one more time, right?"
He looked at the employees standing across from him.
They were already waiting, holding boxes.
Everyone seemed to be waiting for his judgment, so Sal gave them a thumbs-up.
"I could ask for nothing more if you did that. Thank you very much."
Glancing at the clock on the counter, Sal realized he was becoming completely nocturnal.
The time was approaching five in the morning.
Sal wondered if he could finish the Appraisals before the Credit Floor opened for business.
The thought made him chuckle, and Sal hummed a whistle as he headed to the elevator.
***
Just before eight in the morning, Sal returned to the Credit Floor.
In his hand was the coffee Alex had brewed, and tucked under his arm were the last twenty Appraisal request forms.
When Sal appeared, Greg clapped his hands in delight.
Forgetting that he was a member of the Credit Floor staff, he turned to the employee next to him and burst into laughter.
"I told you he would succeed! Now pay up!"
Sal could not help but laugh inwardly.
Especially seeing the employee’s devastated expression.
He thought that while Greg fully deserved a tip, there was no need to reward the employee who had bet money on his failure.
Sal placed the documents on the desk and organized them one by one in front of Greg as he spoke.
"Additional twenty Appraisals complete. No Epic rank, but there are a whopping eleven Rare ranks! Three Uncommon, and six Common. All certificates are attached, and retrieval preparation is complete. Now... I will say the words you have been wanting to hear all night, Greg. I am ready to settle the account!"
Greg relaxed his shoulders in relief, a mischievous smile spreading across his lips.
"I am so looking forward to seeing the faces of the management team when they see that Mr. Argento handled all of this in a single night!"
He skillfully flipped through the documents, organized the figures, and brought up the report on the screen.
After checking a few times, he finally turned the monitor toward Sal to show him.
Client: Reavers Guild
Service: Appraisal (Silver Token Holder)
Appraiser: Salvatore Argento
Total Appraised Items: 73
Appraisal Commission:
- Epic Rank (7 items) - 137 Q-Credits (Total 959 Q-Credits)
- Rare Rank (26 items) - 87 Q-Credits (Total 2,262 Q-Credits)
- Uncommon Rank (28 items) - 37 Q-Credits (Total 1,036 Q-Credits)
- Common Rank (12 items) - 12 Q-Credits (Total 144 Q-Credits)
Q-Credit Floor Incidental Expenses:
- Appraisal Transaction Fee - 13 Q-Credits (Automatically Deducted)
- Night Shift Personnel Fee - 125 Q-Credits (To be paid)
- Voluntary Tip - To be decided
Final Total:
Total 4,276 Q-Credits
Sal stared blankly at the numbers before him for several minutes.
Greg, watching beside him, was also silent.
He wore an equally shocked expression.
After a moment, Sal let out a long breath.
His earnings were exactly as they appeared.
Of course, thanks to the transaction fees charged per item, he had to hand over nearly 1,000 Q-Credits to the Credit Floor.
Even so, he had never imagined he would earn over 4,000 Q-Credits from a single night's work.
When Sal raised his head to look at Greg, he could see a growing smile spreading across Greg's face.
"Seriously, this is insane. You really pulled it off."
Greg said this after checking around to ensure no one was listening.
Sal laughed along with him and picked up his coffee.
It felt so unreal that his hand trembled slightly.
He didn't even know how to process all of this.
"Internal appraisers split the profits fifty-fifty," Greg said quietly. "They are definitely going to be angry."
There was a strange amusement in those words.
From his conversation with Vanessa, Sal had vaguely sensed that many of the Credit Floor staff had grievances with the current management team.
Although it wasn't something he could step into directly, Sal decided to set the voluntary tip he could choose right now.
"Greg, about the tip. I would like you to distribute 50 Q-Credits equally among the staff members who moved and organized the boxes."
A look of disappointment briefly crossed Greg's face at Sal's words, but he listened calmly.
"And I want to give 100 Q-Credits to Vanessa."
Greg raised an eyebrow slightly but didn't ask why.
Sal suppressed a laugh as he finished the final calculation.
"And... I like even numbers. I will give you 126 Q-Credits as a tip, Greg. For helping me all night, and for believing I would succeed. Thank you very much."
"No way!"
Greg covered his mouth at the words that had slipped out.
His face had gone pale.
Sal smiled and reached out his hand to sign.
Still reeling from the shock, Greg shook his head as he added the tip items to the document.
"Thank you... thank you so much, Mr. Argento."
After signing the document, Sal extended his hand for a handshake.
"Between friends, just call me Sal, Greg. Thank you again."
Greg accepted the handshake, still shaking his head from side to side.
"I should apologize for how many times I cursed you throughout the night."
Sal laughed out loud as he looked at the tablet screen, watching his Credit balance increase significantly.
"Let's do this then, Greg. Spread the word about me. Introduce me if you have any friendly guilds. Work is always welcome."
Greg burst into laughter.
"You won't even need that, Sal. You are the one who processed 73 Appraisal items in less than 24 hours. And with far more precision than the internal staff. Everyone is going to hear about this."
Sal waved goodbye to the staff, holding his coffee.
Everyone watched him leave with looks of relief.
As the elevator doors closed, Sal saw Greg dancing behind the desk, showing the Appraisal records to the other employees.
It was truly the start of a wonderful day.
Sal did not regret a single choice he had made.
Leaving the workshop, Sal saw a few students in school uniforms gathered in the lobby.
He took another sip of coffee and approached one of them.
The student answered with an expressionless face.
"Do you need something?"
Sal shook his coffee cup and pointed around.
"No, I was just wondering if something was going on here."
Then, another student glanced at Sal and spoke.
"It's the day for the external activity with the Paradox Guild."
The student next to him nodded and looked Sal up and down.
"Even if you have Q-Credits, you can't go in casual clothes."
Continuing to speak, the student's expression softened.
"There is another external schedule in the afternoon, so if you plan to go out, you can change and come back then."
Sal waved his hand lightly and said,
"Thanks. But I don't plan on going out this weekend. I was just curious because it's the first time I've seen the lobby crowded at this hour. Have a good trip!"
"Thanks, buddy!"
One of the students answered and turned back to his group.
Sal looked around as he passed through the lobby to see if there were any familiar faces.
He didn't feel any particular interest in the external schedule with the Paradox Guild.
It was far from the experience he desired from the Academy in the first place.
Most looked forward to real combat where they could face monsters, but Sal much preferred the present where he could earn Q-Credits in the Workshop.
The word 'combat' itself was a terror to him.
Walking toward the elevator, Sal stopped at a notification on his tablet.
Opening the screen, he saw a message that his interview with the Headmaster was less than an hour away.
Sal sighed in despair.
He had completely forgotten about the interview.
When he closed the notification, a message from Hannah caught his eye.
She had suggested several times that she would stop by the Workshop so they could spend time together.
Of course, if that had actually happened, it likely would have gone beyond simple accompaniment.
Sal was not one to make the first move, but looking at the photos she had sent, he could sufficiently guess what she meant.
Just then, the elevator doors in front opened, and students participating in the external activity came out.
As Sal stepped aside, he realized he had been zoning out for a moment.
He changed direction and headed toward the premium coffee station.
It wasn't as good as the coffee Alex brewed, but it was definitely effective.
He threw the empty cup into the trash, brewed two fresh cups of coffee, and returned to the elevator.
Fortunately, the elevator was still waiting there.
Sal pressed the button for his floor and waited quietly, feeling the heat radiating from the hot coffee.
A few minutes later, Sal was standing in front of Hannah's room.
He had thought about sending a message to ask what she wanted, but he remembered what she had drunk on the first day and chose a chai latte.
He couldn't be sure if Kane had ordered it or if Hannah had, but if she didn't like it, he could just trade with her.
Sal needed to kill some time right now.
If she wasn't in her room, he planned to leave the chai latte in his own room and head to the Headmaster's office a little early.
Just as he was thinking he should do that, the door opened.
Beyond the door stood Hannah, looking somewhat disheveled and wearing a flustered expression.
"Han...?!"
Before Sal could say anything, he was dragged straight into the room.