Chapter 53
Chapter 53
Chapter 53: The New House
Translation: godtl
It was spacious.
To exaggerate a bit, it was vast.
A duplex structure as the foundation, numerous sizable rooms, bathrooms, and even a rooftop garden.
'Truly befitting of the Ranker Palace.'
This luxurious penthouse was so opulent it felt like my eyes might pop out any second.
"So then."
What was even more astonishing was—
"This place only costs 4 billion won?"
The fact that this place was only worth a measly 4 billion won.
Of course, this wasn't the market price Si-mun had researched.
"Yeah. To be exact, 4.1 billion."
"That's right, Oppa. They said it was priced low because it wasn't originally intended for sale."
Kim Si-hyeok and Lee Yu-jeong nodded in perfect unison, as if they had rehearsed it.
Even considering their relationship—
It made no sense for them to be this in sync.
"Wait, was this place exposed to radiation or something? Or maybe a high-ranking Undead from the Outbreak is hiding here? Something like that?"
To Si-mun, the idea that this place was only worth 4 billion—
No, scratch that.
4.1 billion won made even less sense.
But he couldn't just keep doubting either.
"Ah, hyung. You and your jokes."
"Right? Hehe, Oppa, you're always so funny."
The source of this market price information was none other than two actual residents of the Ranker Palace.
And not just any residents—they lived on the most expensive, most luxurious floor of the entire complex.
"Haah..."
Si-mun pressed his fingers to his forehead and let out a small sigh.
'So this place really is 4.1 billion won?'
Kim Si-hyeok and Lee Yu-jeong.
Just looking at their specs and backgrounds alone made doubting them impossible.
'Then why is this so hard to believe?'
For some reason, Si-mun couldn't bring himself to fully trust his younger siblings' words.
It wasn't just because of their close relationship.
'Even though it's from my past life, I distinctly remember the Ranker Palace's market price being in the tens of billions...'
The Ranker Palace's price, which he had only seen in news articles in his past life.
Sure, the regular Arena hadn't fully opened yet, and there weren't that many Diamond-grade Players at the moment.
But even taking all that into account, this price still didn't make sense.
More than anything—
'Why exactly 4.1 billion?'
That was the part Si-mun found most suspicious.
'Even if I just bring the bare minimum furniture, I'll need at least 400 to 500 million won just for my alchemy equipment.'
Of course, even that wouldn't be enough, but it should cover the essentials for now.
But isn't it strange?
[Kim Si-mun: You were right, hyung. Thanks to you, I hit the jackpot lol.]
[Kim Si-mun: 4.6 billion won, what a steal! Hah~!]
'Why does that text I bragged to Si-hyeok about keep popping into my head?'
4.1 billion for the house, 500 million for the furnishings.
This price felt like it had been tailor-made to match that exact text. What the hell was going on?
Si-mun furrowed his brows so deeply it looked like he was carving grooves into his forehead.
Perhaps sensing his unease—
"Uh... hyung? If you're having second thoughts, you can just stay at my place. I'd actually prefer that."
"That's right. We can't risk another terrorist attack. This is a matter of safety, not just relocation, so take your time to think it over, Oppa."
Kim Si-hyeok and Lee Yu-jeong spoke up, their voices tinged with urgency.
Then—
"Still, it'd be best to decide as soon as possible. An opportunity like this won't come around twice..."
Yu-jeong, who had been watching Si-mun's reaction, added one more line.
Perhaps that was the final push.
"Alright. Let's do it. Contract."
"Really?"
"You've made the right choice, Oppa!"
In the end, Si-mun decided to go through with the purchase.
Of course—
"From the fact that it suddenly went on sale for 4.1 billion, to the sheer coincidence that the only residents here are the two of you... There are way too many suspicious things about this."
He didn't hold back from voicing his doubts until the very end.
"But still, if a place like this is selling for 4.1 billion and I have the means, I'd be a fool not to buy it. Deals like this don't last."
"Uh... Yeah! That's right, hyung!"
"...Y-Yes! You have to buy while you can!"
He might not know the current market price of the Ranker Palace.
But he did know that its value would eventually skyrocket into the tens of billions.
A house jumping from 4.1 billion to tens of billions?
'I can't pass this up.'
Who in their right mind would?
Moving in wasn't all that difficult.
In fact, the very idea of "moving in" was laughable.
'What kind of moving in is this when everything's been blown to smithereens?'
Jace Clark's spectacular fireworks display.
Thanks to that, everything—from the daily necessities and clothes I'd painstakingly gathered while living in poverty, to the furniture—had turned to ashes in an instant, hadn't it?
Still, furnishing the new place wasn't too hard.
"Hyung! Housewarming gifts!"
"I had a feeling you'd buy this place, so I prepared in advance. Oh! If it's alright with you, can I handle the furniture arrangement?"
Kim Si-hyeok and Lee Yu-jeong.
The two siblings had brought in furniture the moment the purchase was finalized.
And it wasn't just furniture.
"I didn't know what you'd like, so I prepared clothes in all sorts of designs. We're about the same size, after all."
"Glasses go here, non-refrigerated ingredients over there. This bar is stocked with wine, spirits, and craft beer..."
"The computer and training room are all set up with the latest equipment."
"You have dry skin, Oppa, so use this after showering, then this. And for your face, start with the toner, then ampoule, essence, and go straight to the cream..."
From food to clothes, household items, toiletries, and skincare—they had brought in an overwhelming amount of stuff, more than I could even begin to count.
'It was so sudden that it startled me.'
Just two hours.
That was all it took to fill this vast penthouse.
It was only natural.
Dozens of workers had swarmed in, arranging the furniture and necessities without a moment's hesitation, as if they were running a simulation.
I was downright shocked when they even stocked the fridge with food, bringing everything in one go.
But in any case...
"Hah! This is delicious. Is it because it's expensive?"
On moving day, without lifting a finger, I could crack open a refreshing craft beer like this—wasn't that enough?
"Maybe one more glass..."
Just as Si-mun was about to head to the bar, noticing his nearly empty glass—
-Oppa, that's enough. Didn't you promise the kids earlier that you wouldn't drink much alone?
A cheerful voice echoed in his chest.
It was the Philosopher's Stone.
"D-Did I say that?"
-Yeah, you totally did. I heard everything, you know?
"But one more glass wouldn't hurt, right?"
-Oppa!
"Alright, Yonseok-ah."
Yielding to the Philosopher's Stone's scolding, Si-mun resignedly set down the empty glass.
The way his body language practically radiated disappointment made the stone inside his chest flutter slightly.
Yeah.
Almost as if it were shaking its head disapprovingly.
-Ugh! If you were going to be like this, why didn't you just join the kids when they suggested a housewarming party? They even offered to cook for you.
"That's out of the question. After all they've given me, I should be the one treating them properly."
When Si-mun shook his head firmly, the Philosopher's Stone continued.
-Heeey, so you were pretending not to notice after all?
"How could I not notice?"
Si-mun chuckled dryly as he glanced around.
Sure, he had bought the house with his own money, but—
'Given the circumstances, those two must've pulled some strings with the market prices.'
Not to mention furnishing this penthouse to match its status.
"After all they've done, asking them to cook too would be crossing the line—no, it'd be way past it."
-But I don't think they'd see it that way. If anything, they might be disappointed that you're thinking like this.
"Probably. They're good kids like that. But wrong is wrong."
Besides, as the elder of the two,
No matter how close they were—family or the next best thing—receiving such generosity and brushing it off casually didn't sit right with Si-mun's nature.
"I'll treat them properly later."
-Hmm. Oppa, something tells me you're not just talking about a meal, are you?
"See, our Bokdeong is sharp as ever."
-Hehe! I've got a pretty good eye for these things!
The Philosopher's Stone laughed cheerfully.
-But what are you planning? Those two don't seem to lack for anything.
"Good question. You're right—our siblings are so capable that they don't seem to lack anything. But..."
At the Philosopher's Stone's question, Si-mun grinned and immediately strode forward.
"But that doesn't mean they don't have anything they want."
Having already lived alongside high-rankers like Si-hyeok and Mal-suk, he knew exactly what they desired.
Si-mun walked through the glass-walled corridor and opened one of many doors. Unlike the lavishly decorated rooms, this one boasted only spacious square footage—no furniture or interior decor in sight.
The Philosopher's Stone spoke as it surveyed the room.
-Isn't this the room you set aside for your lab?
"Right."
Fortunately, most of his materials were safely stored in his inventory, so nothing was lost—except for the rest of his alchemy tools, which had been obliterated in the bombing.
Especially...
'Losing the Spirit Pill Aging Machine was a real shame.'
The destruction of the aging machine, which had cost him Achievement Points, stung particularly hard.
Still, with a new house and a fresh start, he'd left this room empty to convert it into a lab.
-Ah, now I get it. Oppa, you're planning to make spirit elixirs for them, aren't you?
"Yeah."
What did the strong crave?
Having spent his past life rubbing shoulders with high-rankers, Si-mun knew the answer well.
'Power.'
What high-rankers and countless nations had desperately sought was always power.
Even the Fist King Jong-ri Chu must have made his choices out of that same hunger.
And the reason they kept chasing strength was simple.
'The higher your realm, the more exponentially powerful even minor growth makes you... but achieving that minor growth becomes incredibly difficult.'
Leveling up itself slows down.
Reaching enlightenment becomes a requirement at the top tiers.
Ultimately, to widen the gap between themselves and others, they have no choice but to turn to items or spirit elixirs.
'But high-grade, precious elixirs aren't something you can buy with just money.'
The higher your level, the higher the grade of elixir you need to consume.
Naturally, high-grade elixirs circulating in the market are mostly arena rewards rather than crafted goods.
Literally, there are countless cases where people can't get them even if they want to.
But.
'I'm different.'
Even in his past life, though only level 1, he had synthesized even the mythical alchemical product—the Elixir.
Back then, many top-tier players had commissioned high-grade spirit elixirs from him.
'Because I know all the undiscovered elixir recipes.'
Of course, crafting them with rare materials would pose some challenges, but he could still produce decent-quality elixirs.
Above all...
"Elixirs aside, once the lab is complete, there's something I want to tell Yu-jeong."
-Something to tell her?
Si-mun nodded calmly.
"Auntie—Yu-jeong's mother—is very sick. She's an Arena Disease patient, just like me."
-Ah!
The Philosopher's Stone let out a sigh of realization, catching onto Si-mun's thoughts.
-So you're planning to make a cure for Arena Disease?
"Yeah. It'll be tough right away, but when the time comes, I want her to know I can make it."
-That's good. Then gathering the ingredients for the cure should be easier too. Yu-jeong's a ranker, after all.
"That's part of it."
First, he'd need to identify Auntie's specific condition, but...
'If the illness is severe enough to put someone as strong as her in a coma, making a cure at my current level is impossible.'
He'd probably need to reach Platinum, the tier where upper-tier players are divided.
Having sorted his thoughts, Si-mun opened his inventory.
"For now, let's make whatever tools we can in advance."
-Mhm~! I'll handle the overall layout! I'll design it with super efficient workflow!
The Philosopher's Stone buzzed with excitement at the prospect of building a lab.
"You rascal."
Si-mun chuckled as he began retrieving crafting materials, including lumber—when suddenly.
"Ah."
His gaze fixed on one spot in his inventory.
'I forgot about this.'
Scratching his head, he promptly pulled it out.
It was none other than the reward from the arena where he'd last met Marnel.
[Corrupted Serum]
Grade: F
A serum transformed by eons of time.
A liquid contained in a unique glass vial reminiscent of reptilian scales.
The moment Si-mun checked its information—
[Constellation Zeus bolts upright from his throne.]
[Constellation Black Goat's eyes gleam fiercely.]
[Constellation Heavenly Demon's eyes widen sharply.]
[Constellation Odin's once-innocent face hardens terrifyingly.]
A flood of unexpected messages erupted.