One-Hundredth of a Hundred
I woke up.
“Ugh.”
I stretched, then looked to the side.
Seol-a wasn’t there. I could hear water running in the bathroom, so she must’ve been washing up.
A little later, Seol-a came out and walked over to me.
Even bare-faced, she’s gorgeous.
Seol-a really did have the looks to be an internet streamer. If she’d also had the right kind of streamer personality, she would’ve been an automatic member of the million-club every month.
With my help, she’d only just recently joined the million-club anyway.
“You’re awake?”
“You’re up early.”
“I think I slept really well because the bed was so nice. Usually when I wake up, I lie there for ages before getting up, but this time I woke up feeling completely refreshed.”
“A good bed really does make a difference. Come here.”
I spread my arms and pulled Seol-a in as she perched on the edge of the bed.
“Ack. You’re making me uncomfortable.”
“Bear with it.”
Holding her like that made my own sex drive start creeping up without my even noticing.
They say a man’s libido is strongest in the morning.
“You’re not thinking of doing it again, are you? It really hurts down there.”
“...I’m hurting too.”
Setting desire aside, I couldn’t even get my cock to cooperate.
I was sore too.
Who would’ve thought my dick would end up feeling like a bruised rib?
Come to think of it, we’d done it four times yesterday. It was a miracle anything was left.
I’d even been on the verge of getting charley horses while I was asleep.
“What are you going to do today?”
“Broadcast, obviously. Ever since our joint stream yesterday, I haven’t gone live, so people are getting noisy.”
“Take it easy. Don’t let them push you around. I’ll help you.”
“You really are reassuring. Still, don’t overdo it. Help me only as much as it won’t put too much pressure on you, okay?”
“It’s no pressure at all.”
“...Yeah, I guess not. Look who’s worrying about whom.”
“Exactly. Don’t worry. Go inside and call me. I’ll contact the driver for you, so just take the car.”
“You really are that kind of man?”
Seol-a stood up from the bed and gave me a kiss on the lips.
She was pure fox. She nearly stole my heart completely.
Even the way she looked screamed fox.
I almost leaned in for a kiss, then stopped myself.
I haven’t brushed my teeth.
Since I still hadn’t brushed, I decided a kiss was enough.
What if I had bad breath and she got turned off?
“She says she’s ready.”
“Really? Then I should get going, oppa.”
“Yeah. Be careful on your way.”
“I’ll call when I get there.”
It sounded like a conversation between lovers.
Seol-a said goodbye and left the house.
I sat on the edge of the bed.
“Hah...”
Then I let out the groan I’d been holding in.
I had no idea why the hell my muscle soreness was so bad, but every time I moved even a little, pain flooded through me.
That had been true yesterday too.
Once again, I was reminded of the importance of exercise.
Was this why rich people worked out even harder?
I took a little rest and sorted out what I had to do today.
***
I checked my phone.
I had missed calls from my aunt. She must’ve called because I hadn’t gone home yesterday.
After that hot night with Seol-a, I hadn’t even had a spare moment to contact her.
And after that, I’d been so exhausted I’d just fallen asleep.
“Hmm...”
For now, I decided I’d call her later.
I had something to confirm with the chief secretary.
I called him.
“I’ve received your call, Chairman.”
“Has the Afroliver Park penthouse been prepared?”
“If you have time, Chairman, I think you should come and take a look at the two properties. We can set the schedule whenever it suits you.”
“Then can I see them today?”
“Of course. If you like them after seeing them today, you can proceed with the purchase right away.”
“I’ll come by later.”
“I’ll have everything ready.”
I’d asked the chief secretary for his opinion before, because I was interested in the Afroliver Park penthouse.
He’d strongly recommended it.
From an investment standpoint, he said the location alone could lead to sharp appreciation.
Because I was an investor, he’d said that if I made a profit, I should convert a certain percentage of it into safe assets like real estate.
That way, even if I lost everything, I’d still have something left.
It didn’t sound wrong.
So I’d already asked him to look into the listing for that apartment purchase.
For now, I’d decided to go ahead and buy it as much as possible.
It wasn’t just about living with my aunt anymore; it meant something more than that.
After making my decision, I called my aunt back.
“Yes, Aunt. I was so focused on work yesterday that I completely forgot to contact you.”
“If it was for work, then that’s a relief. At the same time, I do feel sorry for you. Next time, could you at least send me a message?”
“Of course. I wasn’t paying enough attention this time. I’m sorry.”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. You’re already preparing to move out on your own, so scolding you for not coming home would be wrong.”
Something about the way she said it made it sound like she was leaning toward the side of not staying with me.
She might still not have made up her mind.
But even so, something in her words gave her away unconsciously.
“Aunt, have you thought about the suggestion I made last time?”
“...I have. But there’s a lot holding me back. Most of all, my job is here. At my age, changing jobs isn’t exactly easy.”
“Hmm... Do you remember what I said before, about how the house is so big that I need you there? It might be rude to say this, but... if you helped with the housework, I’d like to pay you a salary.”
“...”
“I’m not saying that because you’re my aunt and I want to give you special treatment, and I’m not talking about doing anything unreasonable either. Like I said, I’m an investor, so the environment around me matters most. The house is huge no matter what, and I need someone to clean it, someone I can trust when it comes to security and everything else.”
“...”
“That’s why I’m making this offer. If you’re okay with it, I want to put this in the hands of someone I can trust—my aunt.”
I was a little desperate.
I did need to buy the house, but if it wasn’t my aunt’s place, there was no particular reason for me to live there.
Besides, I’d been getting a lot closer to Si-hyun lately.
If there were just one special spark here, that would be enough—but if we suddenly drifted apart...
Then it wouldn’t be strange at all for things between us to become awkward.
She didn’t answer right away.
So I softened the pressure a little.
“If it’s hard to decide right now, would you like to come take a look sometime this week?”
“Take a look?”
“Yes. I think I’ll be buying it soon. The place is big enough that the two households could be separated properly, at least in my opinion, so I thought it might help you decide.”
“Hmm... Then when you have time, Doyun, could you show me the house?”
“Yes, I can do that. Si-hyun and noona can come too.”
“...All right. This isn’t something I should decide alone. Thanks for thinking of me.”
“Not at all. If anything, I’m the one asking for a favor because I want it.”
After hanging up, I went to inspect the two houses at the appointed time.
“Oh...”
It felt different from Signiel.
The best penthouse in the complex. The apartment buildings and the Han River spread out below it. It wasn’t as big as Signiel, but it had that home-like atmosphere too.
I liked it well enough.
In the end, I decided to buy it for sure.
I was going through with it.
There was no reason not to.
After telling the chief secretary my decision, I went back to Signiel.
“Hmm...”
Bitcoin had fallen to five thousand dollars. I’d also kept selling along the way, and my current assets had reached a staggering 500 billion won.
From here on, continuing to sell didn’t look easy.
For one thing, liquidity in the coin market—the most important part—was steadily draining away.
From this point on, I was standing at a crossroads.
Would coins keep falling?
Or would the cycle turn again and send them back up?
“It definitely looks like it’ll pass one hundred million won.”
By my estimate, Bitcoin would absolutely go past 100 million won within ten years.
There was no other reason for it. Bitcoin had already lodged itself in people’s minds all over the world, and I thought of it as a way to hedge against the decline of national currencies.
Not every country could easily buy and sell dollars.
I figured Bitcoin would end up replacing that role.
I decided to buy 20 billion won worth of spot.
If by some chance it really did break 100 million won...
Then that 20 billion would turn into trillions.
Even now, that was still a huge sum of money.
Of course, I couldn’t rule out the possibility that it might fall further.
That was what investing was: high risk, high return.
After making my decision, I shut down the computer.
I needed to clear my head too.
And for that, exercise was the best thing.
Since I’d already realized how badly I needed it, I planned to go that very day.
Just go like a normal person.
***
I arrived at a large gym near Signiel.
As a rule, the bigger the place, the better the quality of the staff.
Come to think of it, I really had changed a lot in a short time.
Before, if I came to a place like this, I’d get intimidated and could barely say a word. Now it didn’t bother me at all.
Maybe my biggest lack had always been money. Without it, my self-esteem had probably been a little low too.
Of course, at a gym, you could build your self-esteem from your body instead of your money...
But wherever you went, money still stood above it all.
As soon as I went in, a staff member greeted me.
“Is this your first visit?”
“Yes.”
“Ah, let me show you around. May I ask what your exercise goals are?”
“I’d like to get PT.”
“Just a moment.”
She’s cute. She looked less like a gym trainer and more like an information desk employee.
A little later, some guy came over. He was muscular.
Hmm...
“Haha. Nice to meet you. I’m Park Seong-woo, the head trainer!”
“Yes, nice to meet you.”
At the very least, I didn’t want to get trained by a man.
I hadn’t come all this way for that.
“Is there a trainer you’ve already had your eye on?”
“Could I see which trainers are available?”
“Of course! If you look at this list here...”
“I’ll train with this one.”
“Oh! Our member’s very direct!”
There was nothing to think about.
I chose the prettiest trainer.
“Trainer Bae Yujin does cost a little more than the others.”
“That’s fine.”
At most, it would be less than one-hundredth of what Seol-a cost me.