Chapter 28

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 28

Chapter Title: Trading Mistake

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I was pounced on by Eun Ha-min.

With the back of my head resting on a fluffy pillow, I ended up pinned helplessly underneath her.

"Mmph, mmph...!"

The feeling of being completely subdued, my mouth toyed with...

It wasn't half bad.

She was eight years younger and a bit arrogant, but hey, it was a woman's lips.

It was a situation others would envy, not something to complain about. At least, that's what I told myself.

Still...

'Her technique is way better than in the bathroom last time...'

She must've practiced on her own.

Eun Ha-min's tongue didn't just play around inside my mouth—it wrapped around the base of my tongue too, melting my brain.

In the midst of this one-sided deep kiss, I realized something.

It's no wonder guys and girls fight so hard for the top position when they're getting it on.

Being on top means you basically have command over everything.

Just like Eun Ha-min right now.

'Can't let this go on.'

No matter how solid our relationship was, there was no reason for me to stay on the bottom in a kiss like this.

A man has to know how to pin a woman down.

I reached out to wrestle back control.

At first, I tried to push her shoulders away or grab them.

Thud.

But in my haste, my hand didn't land on her shoulder.

"Mmph...!"

Eun Ha-min's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

In the heat of the moment, my hand had brushed against her breast.

The firm outline at my fingertips.

Probably the underwire from her bra.

"Ugh..."

I tried to apologize, but with her lips and tongue dominating mine, all that came out was a weird noise.

Distracted by that dizzying sensation, I missed the timing to reclaim control from her.

Wet, slick sounds echoed through the room.

Eun Ha-min, now somewhat accustomed, didn't seem to care that my hand was on her breast.

She kept devouring my lips without a second thought.

'Ignoring me, huh?'

It sparked my competitive side.

I tapped the breast I was holding with my knuckles.

"Hngh...!"

Finally, our lips parted slightly.

A faint moan escaped her.

At the same time, a tiny gap opened in the balance of her pinning me down.

'Now.'

I didn't miss that split-second chance.

I gave up on retrieving my tongue from her grasp.

Instead, I tensed every muscle in my body and bucked my hips.

My vision flipped.

The ceiling vanished from view, replaced by Eun Ha-min's flushed red face.

Success.

To prevent her from flipping us again, I wedged my knee between her legs to lock her in place.

Only then could I finally push back her tongue, which had been relentlessly invading my mouth.

"Haa... haa..."

The kiss, which had lasted nearly five minutes, finally ended.

As our lips separated, a long string of saliva stretched out and snapped.

Eun Ha-min and I gasped for the breath we'd been holding.

I wiped my glistening lips with the back of my hand and looked down at her.

"Eight years younger, and you... haa..."

"How was it? Felt good, didn't it, puppy oppa?"

Eun Ha-min gazed up at me with slightly unfocused eyes and flashed a bright smile.

She looked so innocent, it was hard to believe this was the same woman who'd just dominated a man's mouth.

"It's all your fault for turning me into this, puppy oppa."

"W-what did I do?"

"Now you're playing dumb? Should I tell your dad about that day in the bathroom when you groped my ass while kissing me?"

"...I'd end up buried in those hills."

"Don't worry. It won't come to that."

Still pinned beneath me, Eun Ha-min squirmed a bit, then grabbed my hand.

She placed it right on her breast with a thud.

"If you wanna touch, you can touch more."

I swallowed hard without thinking.

I could feel her heartbeat pounding under my palm.

Honestly, I was tempted.

The urge to dive back in for another kiss and slip my hand under her clothes surged up.

But.

"N-no, that's enough. We've gone way too far today."

"Tch."

I shook my head and jumped out of bed.

We'd only just started seeing each other like this—pushing further would just give me a headache.

'We've already done the deep kiss, so it's kinda late for that.'

Still, we weren't officially dating or anything.

Eun Ha-min seemed to understand that too.

For now, it was just mutual fun?

Eun Ha-min pouted like she was bored and sat on the edge of the bed.

She roughly swept back her tousled hair and stared at me.

"Oppa."

"Yeah."

"How does it feel to kiss the second daughter of a chaebol family who's eight years younger—and grope her boobs?"

"...I didn't grope them..."

What a violently worded question.

I cleared my throat awkwardly and looked away.

My face burned.

"S-soft."

"That's it? No more detailed review?"

"Nope."

"Pfft."

She burst out laughing at my curt reply.

Eun Ha-min got off the bed and came over to me.

She stood on her tiptoes, leaned into my ear, and whispered.

"Next time, not just on top... I'll let you touch other places too."

"Ahem..."

"You can look forward to it."

Eun Ha-min grinned mischievously and winked.

Is this what it feels like to have your energy sucked out by someone eight years younger?

Before leaving, Eun Ha-min handed me an envelope.

"Thanks for hanging out with me today. Here's your allowance."

"Thank you, sugar mama."

I bowed, and she headed out.

That was already six hours ago.

"..."

The memory suddenly hit me, and I glanced down at the envelope of cash on my desk.

I picked it up and checked inside: 100 bills of 50,000 won each.

I crossed my arms and let out a deep sigh.

"Haa..."

500,000 won for a kiss.

Pretending to be her boyfriend in front of friends before was one thing, but kissing and getting paid felt like prostitution.

But the guilt didn't last long.

I didn't see getting money as a bad thing.

It might seem a bit immature, but...

'This should be enough to whale a bit on Chrono Leah.'

The classic RPG I'd recently returned to.

Chrono Leah.

I was getting sick of returnee gear.

Time to drop some cash on decent items.

I booted up my computer and logged into the gold trading site.

Me, who'd only ever sold before, now headed to the buy section and clicked the [Rubia] category.

"Let's see."

The top listing caught my eye.

They were a bit pricier, but reliable.

I messaged the seller one-on-one.

Response came quick.

[1000 billion Rubia x3.]

[Deal now?]

[Yeah, totally possible.]

These guys are always glued to their computers.

It's their livelihood.

"Hmm... prices..."

800 won per 100 million Rubia.

1000 billion would be exactly 800,000 won.

[Buying, confirmed.]

[Next time, I'll cover the fees.]

[Thx]

The deal wrapped up in seconds.

I stared at the 1000 billion Rubia in my inventory with a bitter smile.

"Haa. My life's game... totally fucked."

Why the sudden gloom?

Before I enlisted, 100 million Rubia went for 15,000 won.

Now? Just 800.

I felt the full weight of Chrono Leah being a dead game beyond saving.

Curiosity struck.

When did prices tank this hard?

I clicked the price history graph.

"...Huh?"

The graph was weird.

The downward curve had spiked sharply recently.

Records showed just a few weeks ago, it was 300 won per 100 million.

"Wait..."

Three weeks ago.

In just three weeks, prices had surged by 500 won.

I calculated the dates.

The Rubia boom started the exact day I uploaded my Chrono Leah countryside kindness video to Nutube.

"Ah..."

I was the culprit.

Viewers from my video must've boosted demand, driving up prices.

Should I be happy or not?

Pride in reviving the game, but as someone needing to whale now? Not thrilled.

"Gear first."

I opened the auction house.

1000 billion should get me near-endgame immortal set, I figured.

Mouth watering at the thought of farming mobs in full gear.

But...

I'd overlooked something.

"..."

My face hardened as I stared at the search results.

Adding tempting items to my cart blew past my budget.

Rubia prices weren't the only thing up.

More players meant more demand, and item prices skyrocketed too.

"Damn, shoulda bought gear first."

1000 billion wasn't enough.

If you're drawing the sword, you might as well cut rice cakes.

Better to go all-in than half-ass it.

"Gotta buy more."

No choice—additional Rubia purchase.

Plenty of cash left.

I pulled out my phone and requested another 1000 billion Rubia.

Messaged the seller again.

But no quick reply this time.

Bathroom break?

Or grabbing food?

5 min ago [You there?]

4 min ago [Online?]

Just now [Need more.]

No response.

Whatever, not urgent.

While waiting, time to check Nutube.

Right after Eun Ha-min left, I'd self-generated and uploaded a Shorts video.

My channel's bread-and-butter: bullshit stories.

Used to be pseudoscience or conspiracies, but now it's societal issues or urban legends treated dead seriously.

This one's theme: [My Dad Caught a Spy During His Military Days].

Aggro gold, even by my standards.

Nothing fancy: Embellished tales of my dad bragging over drinks as a kid, "[Back in the day, I caught a spy and got a commendation...]"

100% pure fiction, of course.

I'm an orphan who's never seen my parents' faces.

No dad, yet spinning yarns about him catching spies...

True bullshit Shorts perfection.

The "my dad caught a spy" bit was fake, but the very existence of "my dad" was the real bullshit.

"Hmm... why so positive?"

Unlike typical fake story Shorts channels, reactions were solid.

Relatable repertoire everyone’s heard from their dads formed a bandwagon.

I opened the comments.

Not long since upload, but dozens already.

'Reveal I'm an orphan later, reactions will be wild.'

Wonder what they'll say.

Instant Gichul drip incoming?

Ding~♪

Right then.

My phone on the desk vibrated.

Trading site notification.

[1:1 message received.]

The additional 1000 billion Rubia order.

Seller was back.

"Oh, finally."

Stopped checking comments and grabbed my phone.

Eager to wrap the deal and gear up.

Tapped the alert to go to the trade page.

Buttons lined up: [1:1 Chat], [Confirm Item Receipt], [Cancel Trade].

Mobile web was cramped, buttons all bunched—annoying to tap.

"Hurry up and take my money."

Reached to hit chat for account info.

Extended my thumb to touch the screen.

That instant.

"Huh?"

My thumb didn't hit the blue chat button.

It hit the red one next to it.

[Confirm Item Receipt]

Cold sweat poured.

This button confirms receipt after getting the gold—finalizes and sends payment instantly.

I hadn't gotten the Rubia yet!

"No, shit!"

One tap mistake.

The cost was brutal.

[Trade completed.]

Screen refreshed, bold [TRADE COMPLETE] at the top.

All buttons grayed out.

No take-backs.

"...My money."

I stared blankly at the screen.

10 seconds.

20 seconds.

Time froze.

Wish it was a dream, but reality was crystal clear.

'Fucked.'

Snapped to, hands shaking as I opened the 1:1 chat.

Still hope.

Decent seller might acknowledge the error and send it.

[Hey.]

[Hit confirm by mistake.]

[Haven't gotten Rubia yet, you'll send it right?]

[You there?]

Sent and stared anxiously.

1 minute felt like a year.

Ding~♪

Reply.

Heart leaped—checked it.

[Gulp~]

[Thanks for the meal lololol]

That was it.

No more.

"You... fucking bastard!!!"

[Opponent left the chat.]

The system message at the bottom shattered me.

I stared vacantly into space.

Just vaporized 800,000 won.

Easy money or not... my precious 800k...