Full-Scale Monetization
Choi Junseok approached and clasped the hand Haetaesik extended while seated.
“Choi Junseok… sir. Yes, thank you.”
Well, what did it matter if his name was Junseok or Junshik? He should just be grateful he wasn’t being called “sword sheath” or “holy sword launcher.”
“So. You’re the one who summoned that sword earlier? The one that’s Yu Junhyeok.”
“That’s right. You figured it out on your own, huh.”
Haetaesik showed no particular surprise that someone he knew had returned as a bag.
“How did that happen?”
“Something occurred on the 100th floor. He reached the state of Unity of Sword and Body.”
“The more I hear, the more jealous I get. Should I start swinging a sword from today onward too?”
“Heh heh… It’s not that easy!”
“Damn it. Fused with a mythic-grade sword, no less.”
“Exactly. I knew you’d understand. The holy sword you helped create by merging with me has surpassed mythic grade and become transcendent.”
“…What? Transcendent?!”
Haetaesik’s eyes widened in shock.
“That’s right. Just as you guessed, this kid’s ability is like a sword sheath. He’s the only one who can hold onto a sword that should never see the light of day. Even if I still had a physical body, wielding this sword would be impossible.”
Recalling the aftermath of Choi Junseok summoning the holy sword moments earlier, Haetaesik nodded in agreement.
“No matter how mythic-grade the sword is, simply being summoned shouldn’t be enough to shatter rocks and trigger a lava tsunami…”
“Transcendent, huh…” he muttered in awe before continuing. “It feels like just yesterday when you came asking me to sharpen the holy sword’s edge after clearing the 100th floor. Has it already been several days?”
“Quite some time has passed, my friend. Over three years have gone by in the human realm.”
“Three years. That’s long. I don’t even know how much time that really is. Hmm… So you’re Yu Junhyeok’s descendant?”
“No! Descendant?! What kind of filthy nonsense is that? I’ve never shared a bed with anyone but a sword in my entire life!”
Choi Junseok cut into their banter. While it would be nice if Yu Junhyeok’s intimacy level rose, he had no desire to hear about the man’s romantic history.
“So. The reason I came today is…”
“It’s obvious. The only reason anyone visits a forge is to ask for weapons or equipment, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“Show me everything you’ve got. Including monster parts along with your gear and weapons.”
Choi Junseok pulled out even the items he’d obtained from the VIP shop. Large and small cold weapons kept appearing from thin air with soft thuds. Even at a glance, the sheer weight and volume exceeded what any ordinary player could carry alone.
“Whoa, impressive!”
Haetaesik stroked his chin and nodded in admiration.
“Heh heh… Is that so?”
“Two reasons. First, it’s shocking that such trash-tier weapons were even allowed near a transcendent-grade sword.”
“…And the second?”
“The second is my surprise at the sheer capacity and weight limit of your Inventory skill. Want to work as my assistant? I’ve got plenty of work.”
Then he added firmly, “If you want me to make something, you’ll need to bring better materials. I don’t accept anything below Unique grade. With junk like this, I can’t craft a single thing. Even if it’s a weapon suited to your level, that rule doesn’t change.”
At that resolute tone, Choi Junseok thought of the Recovery Fairy Dragon waiting in reality.
“There might be a way.”
─┼
At the same time.
Across from Choi Junseok’s house.
A stranger had arrived at the residence where Lee Jun-hui and Choi Hye-ri lived. It was none other than Lee Jin-gyeong, Lee Jun-hui’s older sister and Choi Junseok’s aunt.
She had first been skeptical when she heard they’d moved into a brand-new luxury officetel. Beneath Lee Jin-gyeong’s surprised and admiring tone lay a sharp undercurrent of anger.
“Oh my! Look at you. So Junseok really did awaken? At this level… A-grade?! What in the world? Oh my, oh my…”
Her expression grew increasingly cold, in stark contrast to her shocked words. It was fueled by jealousy and the thought: They can afford to move like this, yet they still haven’t repaid the thirty million won?
Lee Jin-gyeong already knew how much money players B-grade and above could earn. Her own son, Park Suho—Choi Junseok’s cousin—had awakened as an A-grade player with the appearance of the Suseo Magic Tower and instantly elevated their family’s lifestyle to the upper class.
While Lee Jin-gyeong’s current standard of living was better than when she’d lent the money after the Incheon Magic Tower emerged, thirty million won was still no small sum.
There was another reason she had come. She had gone to the container house to collect the debt from her sister, only to find they had vanished. At first she had felt a twinge of pity, wondering if they had even been evicted from the container. But upon learning they had moved into a luxury officetel, anger surged instead.
With what money did they move? No—if they have money to move, they should repay the debt first!
She had lent the money believing that once her brother-in-law awakened as a player—a high-income profession—he would repay it quickly. Yet not only had they failed to repay, there had been no word even after their son awakened as a player.
“How did you end up moving into a place like this? You must have borrowed money from all over, right?”
“Sister, don’t misunderstand. It’s only been a week since Junseok awakened. I was going to tell you right away. Really.”
“Ah… I see. I understand. It’s just… a little disappointing.”
While outwardly congratulating them, Lee Jin-gyeong’s eyes swept critically around the house as she visited.
“When our Suho awakened as A-grade, we didn’t get this kind of treatment. Strange. If it’s only been a week, he should only be climbing the lower floors by now.”
Lee Jun-hui couldn’t tell the truth.
—No one must know that I am Function. It could put us all in danger.
Choi Junseok’s warning flashed through her mind.
Lee Jun-hui hesitated to answer. Lee Jin-gyeong patted her shoulder and said, “Well, it’s good that things worked out. You’ll be able to repay the money soon. Our Suho works at one of the five major guilds, so we’re not exactly struggling either.”
She had only come to check on them because her husband kept grumbling about when they would get the thirty million won back and whether it was money thrown away. Her initial intent had been closer to a casual visit, but seeing the house changed her perspective.
A brand-new three-bedroom apartment like this in Seoul… even if the deposit is cheap, it must be around a billion won.
“By the way, how did you get in here? What money did you use?”
“Ah, sister. That… When Junseok awakened as a player, the country gave us a loan for this place… It’s not our house.”
That was partially true. It wasn’t even a lease contract. There was no protection, no contractual relationship at all. The team leader named Kang had simply told them to move in, and they would have to leave the moment he said so—with no power to resist. It was a life worse than renting.
“Oh, sister… We’ll be able to repay the debt soon. I’m sorry.”
“The country gives loans even for A-grade awakeners? I didn’t know that. Did our Suho not tell me?”
No. Suho had been the first to research the benefits the country provided to A-grade players with fire in his eyes. His mother had excitedly looked into them as well. Yet surprisingly, there weren’t many benefits from the government. It was as if they were told to get everything from the five major guilds instead. After comparing and selecting various benefits, they had joined Ohsung Group, one of the five major guilds—a fully owned subsidiary of the famous Ohsung Electronics with solid welfare and treatment.
“I’ve never heard of the country providing support like this…”
The conversation reached Lee Nayeon, whose senses had sharpened in the next room. Song Hana had also tensed at Lee Nayeon’s unusual demeanor and had just sensed the unfamiliar presence outside the door.
“Thirty million won… While Lord Junseok is absent, protecting his family is our duty. Isn’t that right?”
Song Hana stamped her feet anxiously.
“What do we do?! We didn’t put up a talisman on the neighbor’s house!”
“They appear to be blood relatives. Should we kill her?”
“K-k-kill her?!”
“As far as I know, the place where humans become most cruel—after the battlefield—is within the family.”
“Hooeeng! I’m scared!”
There wasn’t a single normal person present.
“It seems… we may need to pull Kkamdori’s tail soon. For now, let’s wait quietly. If physical harm is anticipated… we will proceed with punishment and thorough retaliation.”
Song Hana nodded vigorously in agreement.
“Before pulling Kkamdori’s tail, I’ll… give a blessing!”
Clutching the fairy dragon, she fidgeted as if ready to yank its tail at any moment.
“No. It would be better to cut her down before Lord Junseok returns…”
While Lee Nayeon glanced toward the kitchen as if considering using a kitchen knife, both of them sensed Choi Junseok’s return through their heightened awareness.
Recognizing their suspicious behavior at once, Choi Junseok immediately furrowed his brows.
“What’s going on? I don’t know what you were about to do, but both of you—freeze.”
The fairy dragon twisted in Song Hana’s arms and leaped straight toward Choi Junseok. He caught the approaching creature as if it were a good thing and immediately yanked its tail.
Crack!
With the sound, Kkamdori’s eyes widened and its mouth opened wide.
“Gweeeek!”
Kkamdori began regurgitating everything it had acquired in the Magic Tower. Magic stones and equipment rained down with soft thuds. Though there were only five or six purple magic stones, each was easily worth several million won. The largest and purest-looking one among them was probably worth over ten million won. Adding to the absurdity was the massive skull of a Troll Great Warrior dropping from the small dragon’s mouth. Among the items was the Troll Archmage’s prayer beads—an item that bound on equip. Unique-grade items and various byproducts had dropped.
Using Appraisal confirmed that, as a Unique-grade material, it was certainly a useful item.
“So what’s happening outside?”
“Lady Lee Jun-hui’s sister has come to demand repayment of a debt.”
Debt?
Choi Junseok finally understood. It was the existence of money borrowed from relatives that both parents had hidden from him.
He made a simple video call. Team Leader Kang, who answered immediately, looked puzzled at the video call instead of voice, but soon grasped the intent.
“Tell me the market prices of the items laid out here.”
“…I can tell with the magic stones, but I’ll need to appraise the items. Trash items… won’t fetch high prices yet… Just a moment. Lord Junseok, don’t tell me… that skull… is it the 10th-floor Troll Great Warrior’s skull?”
“I’ll explain the details later. Just the prices, quickly. This prayer beads is a bind-on-equip item, and it says it’s a Unique-grade weapon. Equip level 45.”
“…A bind-on-equip Unique-grade level 45 item… The price is whatever you name. If you put it up for auction, it’ll easily go into the hundreds of millions, and three hundred million won is a safe estimate.”
“Then will the Player Management Agency buy this for three hundred million?”
“…Excuse me?”
“Why? If it’s over three hundred million, it’s a profitable deal for both sides. Saves time, and they make money on it.”
“No… We don’t handle item brokerage, and even if we did, after auction fees, taxes, and commissions… three hundred million won wouldn’t come through in full.”
“Including the magic stones, wouldn’t it roughly come to three hundred million after fees?”
That would require exact calculation. Even Team Leader Kang himself didn’t know the precise market prices of items or magic stones. It was merely a rough estimate.
“…It seems you need the money urgently. Very well, let’s do that. Please wait a moment. I’ll make a quick call. Check your account in one minute.”
True to Team Leader Kang’s confident words, moments later, three hundred million won was deposited into Choi Junseok’s account.
Honestly, he knew the actual net profit from the items shown wouldn’t reach three hundred million. But Team Leader Kang had supported him because Choi Junseok, who rarely mentioned money, had brought it up now—meaning there must be a reason he needed it.
After instructing the two to stand by firmly, Choi Junseok opened the door and stepped out. Lee Jin-gyeong, who had been about to leave, spotted him emerging from the opposite apartment and snorted in disbelief.
“What… So it’s not just one apartment, but two?”
“Ah… Sister, that’s…”
“You’re really living comfortably, aren’t you?”
“Hello, Aunt.”
“Yeah… You’ve become quite well-off while I wasn’t looking. Unlike me.”
“You came to collect the borrowed money, right?”
“No. Junseok, you don’t need to worry about this… This is…”
“The borrowed money. How much was it?”
Lee Jin-gyeong quietly held up three fingers.
“You don’t think your aunt came all this way just to borrow three hundred million, do you? And… Junseok. If you’ve awakened as a player, shouldn’t you have contacted your cousin first? What’s the point of having an A-grade cousin in the Ohsung Guild among your relatives? Hm?”
“Give me your account number.”
“…Huh?”
Caught off guard, Lee Jin-gyeong gave her account number. Immediately after, her phone slipped from her hand in shock. Three hundred million won had just been deposited into her account.