Chapter 92
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 92
Chapter Title: Opening Day
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Using Invisibility, Ryu Min headed for the studio apartment where Lost Ark used to live.
It was equipped with video chat gear, and he didn't have to worry about being watched, so he visited every Sunday.
*'Now, I just need to use the Assassin's Mask and transform...'*
Ryu Min's form wavered, then changed into the bronze-skinned Lost Ark.
The transformation was so perfect that no trace of his former self remained.
[Lost Ark has entered the chat room.]
He logged into the channel they used for regular meetings, but no one was there.
It seemed they hadn't arrived yet since there was still time.
Just as he was getting bored of waiting, Yamtti logged in.
"Welcome, Yamtti."
"Oh, Lost Ark, you're here early?"
"I didn't have much else to do, haha."
His voice and face were identical to Lost Ark's.
Even his manner of speaking.
*'I already figured out Lost Ark's speech patterns using the Rune of Inner Thoughts.'*
There was no way Yamtti would notice.
And just as he expected...
Her gaze drifted elsewhere, as if she had lost interest.
[The Chairman has entered the chat room.]
"Oh, Chairman, you're here?"
"Hello, Chairman."
"Good day, everyone."
The Chairman replied with a bitter smile.
With only two executives left, it was no wonder he found the situation absurd.
"Let's start the meeting. We decided to recruit new executives last time, didn't we? Lost Ark?"
"Yes."
"Were there any suitable candidates among the applicants?"
Ryu Min opened the statistical data he had prepared on his desktop.
It hadn't been difficult to prepare.
All the necessary files and programs were already installed on Lost Ark's computer.
"I've shortlisted thirty candidates from the current applicants, ordered by the highest level and regional rank."
"I assume Black Scythe isn't among them?"
"That's correct. If he were, I would have reported it immediately."
"Any other big names?"
"None in particular. I checked, but there were no applicants using the nicknames Cheonma or Dumb Idiots."
"Hmm... Then we have no choice but to select our executives from those thirty candidates."
Although there were no big names like Black Scythe, the candidates were still relatively high-ranked.
"In that case, Yamtti, you will conduct the interviews. Select five candidates who pass the murder test and appoint them as executives."
"I'll do that, Chairman."
"And for the next item on the agenda. I hear there's a congressman who has been denouncing players recently."
"Ah, I saw that on the news. Congressman Lee Seong-hyun."
"Once we've selected the new executives, we should discuss how to deal with him. People in the legal field who try to bind us with laws are the enemies of us players."
*'He's not even a player, and he's talking about 'us players'?'*
Ryu Min scoffed inwardly but showed no sign of it.
After that, the meeting proceeded smoothly.
Once all the necessary agenda items were addressed, Ryu Min took the opportunity to casually bring something up.
"Has everyone seen the news?"
"What news?"
"The article about the new player-exclusive market. It says it's opening next week."
"Oh, I saw that. I took a look at the temporary homepage, and it seemed pretty good."
"Right? I'm planning to list some items as soon as it opens. I have a lot of useless stuff in my inventory right now..."
"I should do the same."
Ryu Min and Yamtti spoke with anticipation.
Only the Chairman, the sole non-player, remained silent.
Ryu Min watched him for a moment before speaking.
"Chairman, I have an idea."
"What is it, Lost Ark?"
"What if we post an announcement encouraging players to actively use the open market called Player Place?"
"Why should we do that?"
"You may not be aware, but the number of new members on our forum has been declining lately. We have ten thousand members, but the activity is low. In a situation like this, what if we inform them about an open market where they can trade items?"
"It would have the effect of making the forum more active."
"Exactly! You're brilliant, Chairman! You catch on so quickly!"
As he deliberately flattered the Chairman, the man appeared to be in thought.
He seemed to be seriously considering Ryu Min's proposal.
"Hmm, that's not a bad idea."
The Chairman gave his approval.
"Let's do as you suggest, Lost Ark."
He had successfully roped PleSeBa into promoting the site, just as he wanted.
"Thank you, Chairman."
No one saw the corners of Ryu Min's mouth curl up slightly.
* * *
*'Today's the day.'*
The long-awaited opening day of Player Place had arrived.
Dressed in a suit, Ryu Min attended the opening ceremony and stared at the monitor.
Ma Kyung-rok, sitting next to him, whispered.
"What do you think will happen, Prophet? It's opening soon. Will a lot of people log on?"
"Well, we'll have to wait and see."
At that uncertain reply, Ma Kyung-rok's eyes widened as if he'd been struck from behind.
"What? We've set the table exactly as you predicted, Prophet. For you to say that now..."
"Minor details of the future can always change. But the main outcome, that the company will be a huge success, remains unchanged."
"Ah... you scared me for a second."
Soon, other shareholders entered and came up behind the two men.
They were the shareholders with the next-largest stakes after Ma Kyung-rok.
"Welcome, shareholders."
"Ah, yes."
"Good day."
"..."
After exchanging brief, formal bows, everyone took their seats.
To be honest, they felt awkward being there.
It was a business venture they had reluctantly approved at the last shareholders' meeting.
*'Tsk, they even changed the perfectly fine company name to something weird.'*
*'Let's just see how well this goes.'*
With clearly displeased expressions, they all stared at the monitor.
In five minutes, the social market's homepage would go live.
Department Head Kim, who had been recognized for his skills back in the Cheonma Consulting days, was leading the event.
"The official site for Player Place will be launching shortly. I'd like to thank everyone for being here today and will briefly explain the site's opening process..."
The five-minute explanation to fill time passed, and the moment arrived.
"Alright, we have ten seconds until the official launch! Nine! Eight!"
Everyone watched the countdown with pounding hearts.
Though their expressions varied, they were all united in their hope for success.
"We are live! You can see the trend by looking at the traffic and user counts on the side, but... huh?"
Department Head Kim, who was watching the monitor, trailed off and adjusted his glasses.
"Uh, uh... one moment. This... this is..."
The rising traffic left everyone watching speechless.
Only Department Head Kim managed to speak.
"A-a-a jackpot! This is a jackpot!"
The words he squeezed out were filled with ecstasy.
"The traffic is skyrocketing at an unbelievable rate!"
He didn't need to say it; they could see it.
The numbers were climbing so fast that the thousands digit changed in the blink of an eye.
Not even five minutes had passed, and the number of users on the site had surpassed fifty thousand.
Overcome with excitement, Ma Kyung-rok looked at Ryu Min.
If they hadn't upgraded the servers on the Prophet's advice, they would have crashed long ago.
"Major Shareholder Ryu Min. This is a huge success."
"It seems so."
Although he spoke calmly, Ryu Min was also quite surprised.
*'It wasn't this explosive before.'*
He had watched the opening ceremony through many regressions, but he had never seen traffic explode like this.
Seeing the traffic surpass two hundred thousand, the shareholders broke into smiles.
It was the first time they had smiled since arriving at the opening ceremony.
"Congratulations, Representative."
"This seems to be doing much better than Cheonma Consulting ever did."
"Haha, thank you. Though we still need to wait and see."
After congratulating Ma Kyung-rok, the shareholders turned their attention to Ryu Min.
"Congratulations. You've hit the jackpot, just as you said you would at the shareholders' meeting."
"Now all that's left is for the company to soar."
"Thank you for trusting and following my lead."
Ryu Min smiled warmly at the shareholders' compliments.
"We already have over a thousand people applying to register as sellers!"
As requests for seller registration flooded in, the employees in the office grew busy.
"Sale posts are going up!"
Item sale posts were sprouting up like mushrooms after rain.
And along with them came comments, star ratings, purchase requests, and money deposits.
The once-empty site was now bustling with activity like a crowded market.
"Major Shareholder Ryu Min. At this rate, we might really go public on the KOSPI within six months."
"Can you tell that just from the first day's performance?"
"Of course. As they say, a great tree is known by its sapling. One look is all it takes. Just as you said, Major Shareholder, this is a jackpot."
Ryu Min didn't miss the twitching at the corners of Ma Kyung-rok's mouth.
He was trying to maintain his composure, but his expression betrayed his uncontrollable joy.
*'If no one else were here, he'd probably be grinning from ear to ear.'*
Ryu Min turned his gaze back to the monitor and smiled.
The primary reason for creating the social market was to facilitate the supply of items.
The more successful the site became, the more it would aid Ryu Min's own growth.
*'And the resulting stock price increase is just a bonus.'*
As expected, it was gaining immense popularity.
He couldn't help but feel pleased that the business idea he had championed was doing so well.
While everyone was celebrating and watching the monitor, Ryu Min spoke as if making a prophecy.
"Representative Ma. Something interesting is about to happen."
"Pardon? What do you mean all of a sudden?"
"I had an employee register an item for auction on opening day."
"An auction?"
PlePle had an auction system.
It was a system where an item was put up for a 24-hour auction, and anyone with money deposited on the site could participate.
"So you're saying you listed an auction item without my knowledge?"
"Yes. I figured an auction item would draw more attention."
"Ah."
"Of course, I'm not donating it. The profits from the auction must be counted as mine."
"That's a given. But what kind of item did you list?"
Ryu Min grinned.
"You'll see. Department Head Kim."
"Yes!"
"Please display the auction's progress on the monitor."
"Understood."
Department Head Kim clicked the mouse and brought up the auction page.
[Design: Minotaur's Armor]
[Auction in Progress]
[Starting Bid: 1 Won]
[Current Bid: 1,210,392 Won]
[Time Remaining: 23:52:34]
[The player with the highest bid at the closing time will win the auction.]
"This is the current status of the auction. As you can see, the price has already risen to 1.21 million won."
It had risen quite a bit in less than ten minutes.
But after an hour, the price surpassed 10 million won.
And after three hours, it exceeded 50 million won.
And the next day.
*Ding—*
[Mr. Ryu Min. The auction for your registered item has concluded.]
Ryu Min couldn't help but be surprised when he saw the text message.
[Final Bid: 1,000,123,912 Won]
The final bid was a staggering one billion won.