Driver's License (4)
Driver's License (4)
"Seriously...? This is an incredibly expensive item."
Her joy at the promise of a gift was short-lived.
She wore a wry smile now, probably having remembered the price.
Considering everything A-ra had done for me up until now,
it would be nothing, not even worth a drop of blood.
But even A-ra, who could easily drop ten million won without blinking, was calling it expensive.
Just how much did it cost to make her react that way?
I was starting to get a little worried.
Was it really an item I couldn't afford with the money I had?
"How much does it cost to install the full setup? Oh, and please let me know including all transport and installation fees."
"Just a moment, I'll have to calculate it... Mr. Jaehwan!"
When the owner called out toward somewhere,
someone who looked like an employee emerged from a different door, not the one the owner had entered through earlier.
In their hands were what looked like a contract and a tablet PC.
Maybe they had just been seeing another customer.
The owner had said even they would need to calculate the details,
so I had to brace myself for an amount that would make my jaw drop.
Perhaps because there were many estimates to compile, the employee stared intently at the tablet PC
and worked it with their fingers for a while.
Once the calculation was finished, they pushed the tablet PC forward.
"First of all, the model Ms. A-ra ordered is the Besaro Professional Formula Stage 7.
Once the payment is completed today, we can take it out from the warehouse and install it immediately."
"How long does the installation take?"
"Including transport, it will likely take about 3 hours."
It only takes 3 hours.
Thinking back to when I was in the orphanage and it took over 6 hours just to install one air conditioner,
this was incredibly fast.
"And regarding the most important matter, the price..."
He moved the tablet slightly again and placed it on the table.
A-ra and I stared intently at it.
"The Besaro Professional Formula Stage 7 model full setup is 87 million won.
Installation and transport fees are 1.5 million won."
"So the total is 88.5 million won."
As soon as the employee finished speaking, the owner announced the total price.
88.5 million won...
As I'd expected, my instincts had been right.
The price of that huge car simulator
was enough to buy A-ra's Porsche 718 Boxster GTS.
I had been thinking it would be around 20 to 30 million at most.
Was that thing really that expensive?
Since I couldn't make sense of it with a layman's logic,
I asked the expert owner directly.
"Is... is it really that expensive?"
"Besaro is a company that makes racing simulators. And since it's a commercial model,
there is a bit of a price difference."
The owner walked over, her shoes clicking on the floor, and pointed to
a large screen with three monitors connected to it.
"This 55-inch curved display comes with three installed as standard, and the seat..."
She added various other explanations after that,
but honestly, I couldn't really understand what she was saying.
What I gathered was
that the company Besaro originally made professional racing simulator equipment
and custom-made items for famous racing teams.
They had started making home and commercial simulators recently,
but the essence was still a professional racing simulator,
so it was incredibly, incredibly expensive.
A-ra was nodding with a serious expression, listening carefully,
so I decided I'd ask her about it later.
"How do I make the payment?"
"If you transfer the amount, we will process a cash receipt."
Of course, dealing with a price like this, they wouldn't just swipe a card.
I wasn't sure exactly what the card processing fee was,
but I'd heard it was around 1 percent.
So, paying 80 million won would mean 800,000 won in fees alone.
I took out my phone and opened the banking app.
And I checked the balance in my account.
Looking at it now, spending this much wouldn't be bad at all.
Considering that if I didn't spend it, I would just have to pay it out in taxes later,
splurging on expensive things wasn't a bad idea.
I entered the account number the owner gave me and, to complete the transfer payment,
pressed the final button.
No, I tried to press it.
A-ra, sitting next to me, had grabbed my sleeve,
so I hadn't been able to tap it yet.
Why was she doing that?
I turned slightly to the side and met her eyes.
Once again, she wore an unreadable expression, a mix of happiness and guilt.
"Seong-hwan-a... Noona is okay with just accepting the thought..."
"Noona, when a woman receives a gift from a man, she should quietly accept it."
"Isn't it the other way around?"
"Anyway. This is the first gift I'm giving you, isn't it?"
"Okay..."
As if she hadn't meant her refusal in the first place, she quickly gave in and lowered her head.
Even though just moments ago she was as happy as a child.
Seeing A-ra hanging her head, I chuckled softly,
then pressed the transfer button and completed the remittance.
Still, I hadn't quite hit the one-time transfer limit.
***
"Check left and right... and the car doesn't turn at a right angle, so
keep a bit of distance and turn left... that's right..."
After the installation was done, A-ra—who probably wanted to try it herself first—
said she would help me practice driving. She swapped the racing wheel for a standard one
and helped me practice driving with the training simulation.
It was a simulation made overseas,
but since it was programmed differently according to each country's laws and driving ecosystem,
I could practice much more smoothly and comfortably than I expected.
Since I heard it was a British company,
I felt like an idiot for having worried about what I would do if the driver's seat was on the opposite side.
Anyway, that was how I'd been learning from A-ra for a solid week now.
Practicing diligently for two hours every day, I had even started to gain confidence,
feeling like I could now drive safely on the road.
Still, overconfidence is a dangerous poison.
The road is a chaotic place.
It doesn't move uniformly like a program; it's an unpredictable place
where you never know what might happen where or when.
I finished parking properly, engaged the side brake,
unbuckled my seatbelt, and got out of the chair.
With these kinds of details, that price tag made sense.
I hadn't understood it at first, but the more I used it, the more I had to admit it.
You are a machine worth about 80 million won.
As if my performance hadn't been half bad, right up to the very end,
A-ra gave a small clap and smiled brightly.
"At this rate, you'll pass the road test on your first try!"
"Phew... Thanks. But the real thing is still very different from a simulation."
"Of course it's different, but they say even professional racers use this for practice."
A-ra slapped my shoulder with an audible thump, telling me to be confident.
Conditions similar to what those sensitive racing drivers used.
Thinking about it that way, I felt a little reassured, but also not...
Isn't the goal of racing to drive at incredibly high speeds...?
"You practiced with this and passed the vehicle control test on your first try too, right?"
"Although the T-shaped perpendicular parking was a little hard."
I had been practicing reverse parking diligently just now,
but I felt that parking was the hardest part of driving.
It hadn't really sunk in before,
but thinking back on it now that I had learned to drive to some extent,
the image of A-ra parking with one hand seemed incredibly cool.
It just made my heart pound.
"If you keep saying such unconfident things... I'm going to devour you?"
A-ra's eyes traveled down to my lower half, and with an intensely sticky gaze,
she started licking her lips.
Those eyes were as alluring and threatening as a beast eyeing its prey.
"I won't."
I had an important road test tomorrow, and if I got devoured, I wouldn't be able to wake up in the morning.
Especially after how hard I'd prepared.
I stopped any more whimpering and walked slowly toward the door
to leave the room.
I had sweated a little from the tension,
so maybe I should take a bath.
"Noona, do you want to shower together?"
"No, I'll pass for today. Because if we go in together, I don't think I'll be able to hold back."
"Oh... okay."
She licked her lips once more while looking at my body, then turned her gaze back to the simulator.
It seemed A-ra wanted to race on the circuit.
*
- Shortly after, the test will end.
- You have arrived at the end point.
An announcement sounded from the navigation system,
and I finished parking at the location the examiner had specified.
Did I really drive just now?
Wasn't it A-ra possessing me and moving for me?
"Good work. You passed with 80 points."
"Phew... I passed... Really? Thank you..."
I really hadn't expected to pass on the first try,
so an exclamation slipped out.
I even asked again, as if I couldn't believe it myself.
The young male examiner saw that and gave a bitter smile,
then unbuckled his seatbelt, opened the door, and stood up.
"This is your first time taking the road test, right? Passing on your first try—looks like you practiced hard.
From now on, drive like you did today and stay safe. No accidents."
"Thank you for today."
Aside from getting a deduction for not turning on my turn signal, I hadn't made any mistakes,
so I passed smoothly.
When I actually got into the vehicle for the road test,
I was a little nervous because it felt different from the simulator I had practiced on.
But once I came out and entered the road,
I started thinking, 'What's this? Why is this doable?'
And the sound of the navigation—which couldn't have been more familiar—rang out,
and my heart and mind felt at ease.
I mentally thanked A-ra once again
for setting the navigation sounds to be similar.