A Hard Day's Work
In the eastern Pelaron Mountain Range of the Baran Kingdom,
where the path to the eastern kingdom was completely blocked,
high-level monsters like trolls, sasquatches, and grogs swarmed everywhere.
A literal paradise for monsters, where even venturing into the outer areas was impossible for humans!
The Hahoe Mask Man walked calmly through the caves of the mountain range, as if it were nothing to him.
Passing a few forks in the road, he spotted a wooden door carved with a deer.
“No other intruders this time.”
The man brushed aside the pine needles dangling from the door handle and slowly opened it.
In the next moment, a starry sky unfolded in a flash of light.
A crystal-clear stream flowed across the floor, surrounded by beautiful flowers and herbs of every kind, with deer-like animals grazing everywhere.
This was the view of Yuldoguk, the first branch point of the Hwalbindang and their hidden headquarters.
“I’m here.”
“Doreong.”
“Doreong!”
Muscular knights scattered around the tiled houses nodded in unison, offering salutes.
“Where’s Woochi?”
“He’s inside.”
“Good. Hold onto this for me. Is there anything to report?”
“We captured all ten knights and one hundred and fifty soldiers sent on this extermination squad and locked them in the dungeon.”
“Pay them three gold each. The knights get ten times that.”
“Yes.”
The Hahoe Mask Man, who had entrusted the money, headed straight for the large tiled house in the center of the village.
“You’ve arrived, sir?”
Inside the tiled house, a young man wearing thick-rimmed glasses greeted him.
“The goods?”
“Here they are.”
The Hahoe Mask Man laid out the items he had brought, and the young man with the glasses checked them over.
“Whoa, these are all big hits. No one’s buying the level 140-range rares and uniques, right?”
“Evaluate them. I need to set the selling prices.”
“Okay.”
The Hwalbindang.
While Kindorhan, the ultimate gaming genius in the game with only luck, ruled the entertainment district and night streets, these people were the undisputed king of the underworld goods trade supplying them.
They were the first to explore not just player regions but also places inhabited only by NPCs and started selling goods there.
In the current state, they were the most famous goods dealer and information guild in the shadows.
Their structure was a strict hierarchical organization.
Even if you discovered the locations of a few branches, no one could know who the boss or subordinates were or what the organizational chart looked like.
The two men here each held the positions of boss and vice-boss of the Hwalbindang.
“The goods are in good condition, right?”
“Yeah. If I report to the Grand Duke, I’ll get a huge amount of revolutionary points.”
“The newcomers?”
“We’re training them. Soon they’ll be fully equipped.”
“If you’re short on money, don’t let the new ones know. Tell the Grand Duke instead, since they’re supported to receive it.”
The Grand Duke, the most powerful person in the Baran Kingdom!
They received support not just in money but also in manpower and facilities, in exchange for revolutionary points.
At the very least, the powerful NPCs outside were his knights, so it was only natural that the Hwalbindang had grown so rapidly.
“By the way, brother, why did you go yourself this time?”
“What?”
“This time’s smuggling deal. Until now you usually sent underlings, right? Why did you go personally?”
In response to Jeon Woochi’s question, Hong Gildong stroked his chin.
“I was just curious.”
“What? About Kindorhan?”
“There’s nothing to discuss about Kindorhan. He’s going to be a big shot. Just like me.”
He hadn’t even been in it for long, yet he was already at that level. There was no doubt he’d keep growing.
“Then the one you investigated is Kindorhan’s sponsor. Who is it? A foreign NPC?”
“No, a player.”
“A player?”
“……”
“How was it?”
In answer to the glasses-wearing youth’s question, the Hahoe Mask Man smiled thinly.
“There’s nothing to discuss.”
Despite being a necromancer, he was as sturdy as a warrior in weapons and body.
What was even more surprising was that his skeleton soldiers and necromancer minions were also strong enough.
Coming to trade goods, it wasn’t like he’d paid real money, yet it was impossible to guess who he was.
The glasses-wearing man replied,
“Then we’ll have to keep a close eye on him. We don’t know when the jackpot will fall.”
“The jackpot’s good too, but don’t forget, our play concept is that we’re real outlaws.”
“That’s why you’re leading a resistance.”
From the very start of the game, the two of them had firmly vowed to become outlaws.
Even now, as they led the largest goods trading group on the Korean server, that vow remained valid.
“It’s ready. Since these are mid-grade, we can sell them right away.”
“Good. Then shall we go?”
It was time to hand over the used items to the new owner.
Of course, he didn’t care whether the new owner was the same as the previous one or not.
***
- Logged out.
Clink, clank! After opening the capsule, Kim Ganghan stretched his arms.
“Today was packed with a lot of meaningful activities again.”
Outside, the sun had set and it was growing dark.
A life of ten hours gaming, two hours exercise, and the rest for information gathering or reading had finally settled into place.
Was the price for focusing so much on the game?
Kim Ganghan opened the smartphone messenger.
Horizon Market.
- 1,500,000 won has been deposited.
‘Solid as always today.’
One and a half million won.
An enormous amount, but in gold it was only about fifteen gold.
‘I stole one million from the Kingsman Guild, and the money from daily hunting and quests was five hundred thousand.’
A daily net profit of one hundred to one hundred and fifty thousand won.
Among self-employed people, this was quite successful—on the level of a large restaurant that could generate that kind of profit.
‘With stable trading partners, the goods trade is doing quite well.’
Normally, to leave goods with a goods dealer, you had to go through a lot of trouble.
Not getting caught meant there was a secret maintenance fee, and most merchants either haggled or delayed payment, so there were many problems.
The Hwalbindang was different. Unlike with riffraff, once the deal went through, they paid the money right away.
‘I remember from the original novel that they were amazing people.’
Their true identity was none other than a resistance!
After the Baran Kingdom fell to the orcs in the original story,
after the background expanded outside the kingdom, they grew into a massive organization handling goods for users from around the world.
If there was the Hermes’ Wings guild above ground, then in the shadows there was this Hwalbindang.
‘Since it’s clean, has no loose ends, and we’re definitely going to boom, there’s no harm in getting in early.’
It was worth making connections through Kindorhan somehow.
‘This is real jackpot money.’
A big-money deal and the best trading partner discovery all in one.
The corner of Kim Ganghan’s mouth lifted high.
‘I hope days like today continue like this.’
Kim Ganghan gazed at the night sky with a satisfied expression, having worked hard.
Today also felt like a fulfilling day.
That was when it happened.
As Kim Ganghan was still in a pleasant mood,
ding dong!
“Who is it?”
When he opened the door in response to the doorbell, a crazy woman in workout clothes stood there.
“Oh Hanbyul? Why are you here……”
“You’re awake? Did you just wake up?”
“Of course not.”
Sleeping during the day and waking at night was the fastest way to ruin your health!
For Kim Ganghan, who had received the body management quest, it was a lifestyle pattern he absolutely had to avoid.
“Then what brings you here? There’s still leftover food.”
“It’s not the food. I came because of Dad.”
“Dad?”
Oh Hanbyul continued,
“Our Dad’s having his sixtieth birthday in the fall. You don’t know about that? You never paid attention.”
“Ah.”
After transmigrating into the novel, Kim Ganghan had never neglected to look into family relationships or Oh Jinhwan’s past.
Thanks to that, he had confirmed that Oh Jinhwan had a poor relationship with his parents and that the reason was his studies or career.
‘Even so, since the sixtieth birthday came up, it means he’s not completely estranged.’
If internet community stories were coffee, then Oh Jinhwan was toothpaste with a coffee flavor.
‘In my heart I’d like to refuse with a reasonable excuse…… but there’s the quest, so I can’t.’
Since there was a family harmony quest, to resolve the awkward relationship, he had no choice but to reach out first.
“Got it. I’ll clear my schedule.”
“I delivered the message. Don’t say you didn’t hear me later.”
“I hear you.”
“Then it’s settled.”
Oh Hanbyul turned to leave immediately.
At that moment, Kim Ganghan reached out his hand.
“Since you’re here already, why don’t you eat? It’s time for dinner anyway.”
“Dinner?”
Oh Hanbyul remembered Oh Jinhwan as the typical room-bound idler.
But the idler was now saying to cook and eat dinner?
“Is that a joke?”
Oh Hanbyul asked with a smirk.
It wasn’t a joke.
“Eat.”
Kim Ganghan brought a well-prepared kimchi jjigae and shared it with her.
Oh Hanbyul, who had taken a spoonful suspiciously, was startled.
“It’s delicious?”
“Of course. It’s delicious.”
From his days as a pro gamer and even before that, he had done quite a bit of cooking.
When he fully demonstrated that skill, Kim Ganghan’s kimchi jjigae was tasty enough to sell in an ordinary restaurant.
“……It’s pretty good. Where did you learn that?”
“Just something.”
Oh Hanbyul, who had silently emptied her rice bowl, headed toward a corner of the room.
“Ah, that!”
“The capsule.”
“I know, but why is that here?”
“Um……”
Kim Ganghan shrugged his shoulders.
“Since it’ll be known anyway, I might as well say it first. Actually, I earn money with that.”
“With the game? Money?”
Oh Hanbyul’s eyes widened.
Kim Ganghan sighed inwardly.
‘This is going to be a huge leak.’
Oh Jinhwan’s family were the type who would freak out at the word “game.”
Even if Horizon was popular across generations lately, positive things wouldn’t come out of it.
‘No choice. I have to say it later when the profit comes.’
That was when,
as Kim Ganghan was preparing to respond to the incoming call,
“Huh? How’s the game? Doing well?”
Oh Hanbyul’s answer was quite different from what he had expected.
“Well? Um…… it’s growing steadily. I’m making money too.”
“Can you make enough to live on?”
“Of course.”
“Then it’s good. You seem to be living well.”
Kim Ganghan had expected a cold reaction, but Oh Hanbyul accepted it readily.
“What game are you playing?”
“It’s called Horizon……”
“Ah…… my friend was playing that too. Is it that fun?”
In this world, the perception of games was much better than reality.
Saying you made money from games was always lowered, but in reality it was a job that was fine enough if you had talent and didn’t have a bad social standing.
“More than that, I didn’t know you had talent for something like that. How did that happen?”
“Well…… I didn’t know until recently either.”
“Anyway, good. Before you were just an idler, but now you even know how to protect your future.”
Kim Ganghan sighed with relief inwardly.
‘Thanks to this world from the game novel, I’ve survived. If it had been the real world, there would have been chaos.’
Fortunately, Oh Hanbyul didn’t pursue the topic further.
After finishing the meal, when her stomach was full, Oh Hanbyul stood up from the seat without hesitation.
“Then I’ll really go.”
“You’re leaving?”
“I have to go for evening exercise. Making money from the game is good, but don’t get too obsessed. They say there are a lot of people who turned into losers from that.”
“Yeah.”
“And I told you, if you don’t come later saying you didn’t hear, you’ll really die.”
After showing a fist, Oh Hanbyul turned and walked away.
Left alone, Kim Ganghan shrugged his shoulders.
‘Still better than before.’
When they first met, she had been icy, treating him like an enemy, but this time even her unexpected reaction was a success.
‘It must have been thanks to the food.’
Aside from that, he was confident in simple dishes like kimchi jjigae and doenjang jjigae.
Probably that jjigae had changed Oh Hanbyul’s attitude.
Kim Ganghan shrugged his shoulders.
That was when,
- Intimacy with your sister has increased.
- The surrounding environment has become more positively oriented.
- Karma has increased.
- Memory has slightly increased.
- Willpower has slightly increased.
A message from the author appeared before his eyes.
‘What the……’
Kim Ganghan looked at it in slight surprise and clicked his tongue.
‘If the reaction’s just a little good, they give this? Maybe this is jackpot money.’
Even real-world quests might have more to do than he thought.
The main quest given by the author was in the game, so it was just another quest he could ignore, but if he did that, even after reaching the peak later, he’d regret it forever.
‘Good. Then I’ll remember to go during the fall……”
Kim Ganghan returned to his website.
He wanted to check for updates or news before logging in tomorrow.
When he opened the WWH main page, familiar menus and bulletin boards appeared.
That was when,
- Large-scale update scheduled!
- The developer of Horizon, Titan Co., has announced a new update and event.
- This event will be the main stream, and all users can participate. No further details have been revealed yet.
- On the other hand, user reactions are……”
“It finally came.”
Kim Ganghan, who had been looking at the news, clenched both fists and took a deep breath.
At last, the first main event of Horizon was about to begin.