The Auction and a New Home
“32 billion won.”
“32 billion won. Any more bids? 32 billion won.”
“33 billion won.”
“33 billion won has been bid…”
The Hunter Market auction house was in full swing. Seolhee, seated in one of the VIP boxes, watched the proceedings with a bored expression.
When is it finally going to come up?
She, along with most of the people who had come to the auction today, was waiting for one particular item.
Epic-grade boots.
It was absurd that an item so rare only a handful existed worldwide had been put up for auction, but the expressions on the faces of everyone gathered here made it clear just how extraordinary the piece truly was. They had only been given three days’ notice—hardly enough time to scrape together emergency funds. The same was true for Seolhee. She had prepared a staggering 200 billion won to buy the item that started at 200 billion.
It won’t be enough.
She was certain it would fall far short, but she still had to try. So she sat through the minor auctions, soothing her boredom with nothing but anticipation.
That was when the current auction ended and the auctioneer’s demeanor shifted.
“Thank you for your patience.”
Those words meant only one thing.
“The reason all of you have come to our Hunter Market auction house today! It is, of course, because of this item.”
The auctioneer deliberately dragged it out, tormenting the participants.
“Before we reveal the item, since this is an unprecedented event for the Hunter Market, allow me to introduce someone who will be assisting with the auction. Please welcome her with a round of applause.”
Clap!
The auction house lights dimmed, and a spotlight illuminated one side of the stage.
“It’s Rachel, branch manager of the Hunter Market’s Korean branch!”
Rachel stepped into the light and walked out.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Rachel. Some of you may be meeting me for the first time, while others are already acquainted. As you can see, the guild masters of the Four Major Guilds are sitting right up there in the VIP seats.”
She openly flaunted her connections over the microphone, causing the atmosphere in the auction house to heat up even more.
“I also see the Hunter Association president. Representatives from the Meister Guild are here as well, and I spot several guild masters from the Corporate Tax Guild.”
While Seolhee was making a face that clearly said why is she introducing the guests like this?, Rachel continued.
“Yes, yes, I’m sure none of you are interested in that. Because…”
Ziiiing!
A display case rose from the center of the stage. Inside it was the item.
“You all came to see this.”
The spotlight shifted to illuminate the case containing the Epic-grade item. Then the entire stage lit up brightly.
The auction house instantly erupted into murmurs.
“Now, now, I know you’re all surprised.”
Swoosh!
A hologram appeared beside Rachel, displaying the item’s specs.
“As you can see, this is an Epic-grade item. Its name is Korams Boots. Doesn’t it sound like two trees standing side by side?”
“Branch Manager, that’s a bit…”
“Ahem. Anyway, because it’s an item like this, the starting price is quite high. It begins at 200 billion won. But let me be honest. In my opinion, something of this caliber should go for at least 200 billion—no, 300 billion, don’t you think?”
Rachel’s outrageous statement made the auction house burn even hotter.
“So, if you haven’t loaded your guns with at least that much, I suggest you start giving up now. Well then, since we’ve dragged this out long enough, shall we begin the real auction?”
Rachel raised the tension, then nodded at the auctioneer. He took the cue and shouted.
“Then, let the auction begin! Bids will be in increments of 10 billion won.”
At the auctioneer’s opening call, various amounts poured in. Seolhee, however, was seething with frustration.
That bitch is messing with me.
She was the one who had only prepared 200 billion won.
“45 billion!”
“Yes, 45 billion.”
“60 billion.”
“Yes, 60 billion.”
Watching the bids crawl up in small increments only made her angrier.
Screw it.
“200 billion!”
Since she figured she wouldn’t win anyway, she raised the amount for Hyunseong’s sake.
You’d better keep your promise, Choi Hyunseong.
After hearing about the door-to-door sales, she couldn’t call herself his friend if she didn’t at least do this much.
“Yes! Hunter Min Seolhee has boldly bid 200 billion won! Any more bids at 200 billion?!”
For a moment, the auction house fell silent. Seolhee felt a spark of hope.
What? Is it really going to me?
Of course, that wasn’t the case.
“210 billion.”
Ryu Jinyong, sitting right beside her, had immediately bid higher.
Goddamn it.
Seolhee could only sigh inwardly and watch the rest of the auction unfold.
(3,200 billion! Sold!!)
Hyunseong and Hyeonji were watching the exact moment the auction ended. The item had started with Seolhee’s bold 200 billion, turned into a fierce battle between conglomerates and major guilds, and ultimately came down to a showdown between Park Wonho of the Red Dragon Guild and his longtime rival Baek Insu of the White Tiger Guild. The final price was 3,200 billion won.
When Hyeonji saw the winning bid, she shot up from her seat.
“Oppa, is this real?”
“Of course. What, you think that was a deepfake video?”
“Where did you even learn that word? Anyway, does this mean we’re rich now?”
“Looks like it. They said the commission was 10%, right? So that’s 320 billion for us.”
“That’s way too much money.”
“It does feel like a waste, but anything over 200 billion is basically the same at this point.”
When he thought about how much money he would earn in the future, this amount wasn’t even enough to spend. That was why Hyunseong didn’t feel much attachment to it.
“I guess you’re right.”
Hyeonji agreed and, in her excitement, ran straight into her room.
“Be careful or the house will collapse.”
With that, Hyunseong turned off the TV with the remote. He had seen everything he needed to see. Instead, he opened a real estate app on his phone.
“Where should we even look for a house…”
He didn’t know much about the market, so even looking at the map felt overwhelming. Still, the feeling was good. Any house marked on that map was now something he could actually buy.
“Maybe something close to Itaewon would be nice.”
Hyunseong searched for houses and cars. He had secretly been envious of the car Seolhee drove around.
That was when a message arrived.
Hyunseong replied.
He had seen her practically going wild during the auction, so he had no choice but to acknowledge her effort.
With that, the chat ended, and an enormous sum of money was deposited directly into Hyunseong’s account.
Balance: 290,038,427,300 won
How many digits is that?
Staring at it any longer would hurt his eyes, so he closed the banking app.
They had earned plenty of money, but Hyunseong and Hyeonji’s dungeon runs did not stop. Even on the day of the auction, they had cleared one D-class dungeon in the morning. The next day was the same.
Swoosh!
Hyeonji sliced off the neck of a Donkau with her sword.
“Level went up.”
“So now you’re 24?”
She had gained one level the day before the auction, and this was the next one.
“Yeah. It feels like I need to clear three or four dungeons to gain one level. Should we try a C-class one?”
“With other hunters?”
“Ah, there’s a minimum party size, right?”
“If you’re okay with it… should I look for people?”
Hyunseong stood up after gathering byproducts from the Donkau’s corpse.
“Never mind. Let’s just stick to D-class for now.”
It seemed Hyeonji had finally awakened to the taste of growing stronger and was feeling the hunger for it. Hyunseong understood that feeling well.
That’s exactly how I was in the other world.
The temptation of growth was immense. The sense of accomplishment that came from levels rising, stats increasing, and feeling yourself become stronger directly was indescribable. That was why most hunters refused to settle for the present, constantly raising their levels, joining guilds, and taking tests to enter higher-ranked dungeons. The thirst grew stronger the higher the level and the more powerful the hunter. Though they didn’t show it, the ones who felt it most urgently were probably the guild masters of the Four Major Guilds.
“Or we could tell Mom and stay near a field dungeon for a few days.”
“Should we do that instead?”
She was clearly afraid of Mom’s scolding, but the desire to grow stronger seemed even greater.
“Let’s look for a house first and get settled. Then we can try right away.”
“Okay. Have you found any houses yet?”
“Yeah. I had no idea what I was doing, so I called the Ice Witch.”
“You called Sis?”
Hyunseong nodded. He recalled what had happened last night.
“I have something to ask.”
“(What?)”
“Where do you live?”
“(Huh? W-what? Why are you suddenly asking that?)”
“I’m trying to buy a house, and I suddenly came into a lot of money…”
“(Oh, is that it? You lucky bastard. Fine. Come over tomorrow evening with Hyeonji. I’ll buy you dinner while we’re at it, and you can keep your promise too.)”
“Can Mom come? She’s good at looking at houses.”
“(Of course Mother is welcome.)”
That was how the appointment had been made. Thanks to that, Hyunseong was secretly looking forward to it.
I wonder what kind of house rich people live in.
Lost in thought, he savored the cool breeze blowing across Donkau Hill.
“Excuse me. Are you here for a picnic?”
Of course, Hyeonji wasn’t about to leave him in peace. He had been sitting on the Donkau corpse that needed to be dismantled, eyes closed.
“This place is unnecessarily bright.”
“I’ll give you that. Sometimes I forget we’re even inside a dungeon.”
“That’s a problem.”
“Weren’t you the same? Hurry up and let’s go. I’m hungry.”
Hyeonji grumbled and hurried him along. Hyunseong didn’t forget his duty and quickly gathered the remaining byproducts.
“You said we’d eat at home, so why are we going out?”
Hyeonji was driving a luxury sedan with Hyunseong and their mother in the back, heading somewhere.
“Mom doesn’t do well with greasy or fancy food.”
“It won’t be like that. I told her you were coming, so I’m sure she prepared something delicious.”
“Who is it again?”
“It’s Seolhee. She said she’d buy us a meal last time.”
“Seolhee? Sigh~! She’s probably busy. There’s no need… Mom is fine. Let’s just go home.”
Mother said that, but their visit to Seolhee’s house wasn’t just for dinner.
“You need to see the house too. We’re going to live there from now on.”
“Huh?”
“Seolhee is incredibly rich and owns several properties.”
The place they were heading to was one of the houses Seolhee had kept as a spare. It was so close to her actual home—less than a five-minute walk—that she barely used it. She had offered to show it to them.
That was why they were first going to Seolhee’s current residence. Her house was very close to Itaewon and located in Hannam-dong, a neighborhood long rumored to be where the wealthy lived. Although Hannam had suffered heavy damage alongside Itaewon during the Great Cataclysm, it had recovered and was now filled with large mansions.
“We’re here. This is it.”
“Wow, is she living alone in a castle or something?”
The moment they arrived at the address, the atmosphere was overwhelming from the entrance. The overall style was modern, but the walls were built like castle ramparts, and the gate at the end of the driveway was enormous.
Beeeeep—
As soon as they reached the gate, it opened inward with a loud sound.
“Whoa.”
Beyond the gate was a huge garden. After driving in, they found a parking area right in front of the house. The sports cars Hyunseong had envied were lined up neatly.
Hyeonji tried her best to calm her trembling heart as she parked. They all got out together.
What greeted them immediately was a simple three-story house. Though its exterior was minimalist, its size was enormous. A woman walked out wearing comfortable clothes instead of her usual formal suit.
“Hello, Mother!”
Seolhee wore her best polite mask and greeted their mother with a sweet, nasal tone.