Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Skill Shopping
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Woojin could feel his heart beating a little faster than usual.
But he quickly shook his head.
'In Unriworld, I went back and forth between life and death, but I'm getting cold feet over something like this?'
He needed to get his head straight.
The situation wasn't exactly in Woojin's favor.
As the real estate lady had advised, implicit renewal meant he might have to pay another three months' rent.
That was because terminating an implicitly renewed lease only took effect three months after the tenant gave notice.
But Woojin now was a far cry from his old self.
A 5 million won deposit?
All it took was selling 100 chopsticks.
Even tossing in three months' extra rent and walking away wouldn't faze him now.
And yet, the reason Woojin was bothering to confront the landlord wasn't about the money.
This was a ritual of sorts, to wash away the defeats and betrayals of the past.
It was revenge for himself and Sangjin, shivering through winter nights when the boiler broke and they caught colds.
– Bro... why is our house so cold...?
He could almost hear young Sangjin's trembling voice in his ear even now.
"Stop just yelling and let's wrap this up cleanly so we can both go our separate ways. Okay?"
[Oh, come on...! I took in you orphan brats with nowhere to go and let you stay...!]
As expected, the grandma was ignoring all talk of implicit renewals and just flying off the handle as usual.
Like most worldly conflicts, it was rare for blame to lie entirely on one side.
Legally speaking, Woojin definitely had some disadvantages.
But solutions came not from law books, but from 'agreements' between the parties involved.
Woojin had spent his whole life as the loser in those rings of negotiation.
Because he didn't know better, because he was weak, because he was from the marginalized class.
But not this time.
It might not be a perfect victory, but a judges' decision win was the goal.
"Anyway, that's how it is. Please return the deposit on time. I don't want to raise my voice with you anymore either, Grandma."
Woojin tried to wrap it up politely, but the grandma had no intention of letting it go.
No, she couldn't accept it.
Those orphan kids who used to jump at her every word were now daring to stand up to the landlord? It must have been absurd.
Boiler, window frames, plumbing.
She hadn't fixed a single thing in seven years while pocketing 500,000 won rent every month.
[Ha! You think I don't know anything!? Fix the whole house spotless before you leave! If even one thing's off, I'll sue you, sue!]
There it was—Grandma's ultimate move.
Woojin let out a chuckle at the deafening 'sue' echoing through the receiver.
'Right on the mark, not an inch off.'
Woojin thanked the real estate lady in his mind and opened his mouth.
"Listen, Grandma. That house? We've fixed more stuff while living there than it had when we moved in. If anything, we should be billing you for repairs since you never paid a dime. We've got all the photos and videos from move-in day, so go ahead and sue if you want. Want it back to original condition? Should we smash everything to bits like it was when we got there? I've always wanted to wreck that damn boiler someday—perfect."
The grandma stammered at Woojin's fluent counterattack.
This wasn't the kid who used to cower and shrink at her shouts anymore. It was like he'd lain in bed for a year and come out brewing some genius tonic.
[Sm-smash what!? I don't know anything! Either find new tenants or fix it up clean—do one or the other, or kiss your deposit goodbye!]
Logic failing, now she was going all-in.
"The certified mail will arrive this week. If the deposit isn't back by the due date, I'll apply for a tenant rights registration order, then a payment order, and go straight to forced execution after. Ignore that, and you'll be the criminal, Grandma. Criminal."
Certified mail had no legal force in itself. Nor did it make her a criminal.
But in Woojin's eyes, he could picture her flinching at the word 'criminal.'
[Th-then! Fix the house! If it's not restored, I'll deduct the full repair cost from your deposit!]
"Grandma, Civil Code Article 623 says landlords have a duty to maintain the house in a usable, profitable condition, right? You never did a thing for seven years. Want me to go full law on you? Bill you for seven years' repairs all at once? It'll come to ten million won."
Woojin drove the wedge home, reading from his pre-written notes.
[......]
Perfect effect.
Mentioning the law clause silenced the other end.
Or maybe it was the ten million won repair figure.
Not because she'd realized her wrongs. Just that Woojin was so confident, she panicked thinking, What if I really have to pay ten million?
[...Th-the agency fee... the agency fee's supposed to come from the tenants, right?]
To the still-clinging grandma, Woojin delivered the final blow.
"Why would an outgoing tenant pay that? You're finding someone for your building—the owner pays! Say one more weird thing, and we're going full legal. No more nonsense—just send the deposit now! Try holding it back, and I'll report you for real estate fraud!"
Woojin was about to hang up when he added one more thing.
"And stop living like that! Doesn't it feel good scamming kids without parents? You old hag!!"
Beep–
The moment he hit end call, Woojin's heart went wild.
Thump-thump–
Thump-thump–
He'd lived his whole life without ever saying a harsh word to anyone.
He'd been rough and playful only with his brother Sangjin—otherwise, out of fear of repercussions or just valuing his life, he always bowed his head.
Those pent-up emotions exploded refreshingly today.
The pounding heartbeat turned into pure exhilaration, like it might burst.
Woojin sprawled out starfish-style on the office floor and burst into laughter.
"Kuhahaha!! Puahaha! Damn!! Should've done this ages ago! Who knew it'd feel this good!!"
It cleared the center of his chest like downing 1.5 liters of soda in one go.
"They say you can't sleep straight if you've wronged someone? From today, I'll be stretching both legs out and sleeping like a baby!"
To Woojin, who'd always been pushed around, this was a meaningful first step.
A vow to never just take it lying down again.
"Hahaha, Kim Woojin!! You've grown!! Yeah, smash 'em all!!"
Just then, a familiar voice dropped from above Woojin's head.
"Smash what?"
Sangjin, done with school, was walking into the office.
"Whoa! Perfect timing, Sangjin! Listen to this!"
Woojin recounted his call with the grandma like an epic tale.
When he even played the recording as proof, Sangjin clutched his chest like in those famous digestive ad memes.
"Ahh! So refreshing! Good job, bro!"
"Right? Thinking about how we suffered because of that old hag in winter—man."
Sangjin giggled.
"Grandma doesn't know jack, and neither do you really about the law. Fun watching two amateurs fight it out 'by the book.' Heh heh heh."
"Hey, I wouldn't have said a word without that real estate lady. Gotta buy her a drink next time."
After their brotherly chatter, they finally looked around the empty office.
"Alright, past cleared! Now, shall we head to the future?"
"Okay."
"Let's fill it up tight."
First day of the office lease.
The brothers' next stop was a massive furniture district just 10 minutes away by car.
Woojin's eyes went wide upon arriving at the furniture district.
"Whoa, it's huge!"
"I didn't know it was this big either."
It was a veritable sea of furniture.
His lips curved into a smile at the sight of enormous warehouse stores lined up in a row.
"With this much stock, there has to be furniture with skills. Hey, not saying it now, but how crappy does furniture have to be to not have a single skill on ours?"
"For real?"
"One. Hun-dred. Per-cent."
The reason the two had come to buy furniture themselves was clear.
It was all for the 'skills.'
His eyes didn't activate on internet shopping.
He had to see and touch them in person to know their true value.
Planning to dedicate the whole day, the brothers headed into the nearest furniture store first.
"Ooh."
"Ooh..."
High-end sofas and beds they'd never imagined owning in their lifetime filled the place.
And Woojin's eyes sparkled.
"This place... jackpot?"
Woojin's gaze swept over a cowhide sofa near the entrance.
A transparent status window popped up before his eyes.
'What the hell is this insane skill?'
A sofa with Comfort as a skill? He couldn't even imagine what it did.
"Hey, hey. Sangjin. That sofa has a skill called 'Comfort.'"
"Comfort? Sounds intriguing. But the design's kinda ugly."
"Picky bastard."
Woojin furrowed his brow, and Sangjin snickered, pointing to another sofa.
"Bro, what about that one? What's on it? I like that design."
Woojin stared at the sofa Sangjin pointed to, doubting his own eyes for a moment.
"Holy crap, unbelievable. We absolutely can't buy that."
"What's the skill?"
"Laziness."
Sangjin's eyes widened as he looked at his brother.
"???"
"Skill name's 'Laziness.' And it's not even level 1. It's a whopping Laziness Lv.2. What mad company made this?"
Sangjin doubled over, exploding in laughter.
"Pfft! Hahaha! The craftsman who made it is a legend. Slapping a god-tier Lv.2 skill on it? Hahaha!"
"Man, no wonder people lie on sofas and never get up. With a skill like that, how could you?"
Woojin shook his head and checked another sofa.
"Hey, check that one. Guess what skill it has?"
"What?"
"'Back and Waist Pain Relief.' Does that even sound like a sofa skill?"
"Huh? What's wrong with that? Sounds good."
"Nah, it's stupid."
"Why?"
"Conditional activation. Says 'Sit on the floor and lean back and waist against the sofa.'"
"Pffft!! Insane, hahahaha!!"
"Turns out Koreans use sofas as backrests for a reason. No wonder back pain's so common."
A feast of utterly bizarre, beyond-imagination skills.
Woojin and Sangjin lost track of time, wandering the forest of furniture.