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Chapter 3
Just as Juha was about to leave the rooftop apartment, he stopped and turned back.
He gathered the five unconscious loan sharks and tied them tightly with the thickest industrial rope he could find.
As a bonus, he slapped his unpleasant former classmate across the face one more time.
“Whew… This should buy me half a day.”
Even though he’d knocked them unconscious by striking their vital points with the blessing of Heavenly Fortune, they’d wake up in a few hours.
After all, he hadn’t even unlocked his Strength stat yet. His ordinary physical power wasn’t enough to keep them unconscious for very long.
Still, tying them up meant it would take them longer to report everything to their boss after they woke up.
“So… what now?”
The real problem started here.
The money he’d borrowed had already been repaid many times over through outrageous interest.
As far as he was concerned, he owed them nothing.
But that didn’t mean he could simply cut ties with the organization.
He lacked both the strength and the influence.
The loan shark group might have been nothing but criminals, but their power was immense.
Within this city, the wealth they’d accumulated—and the network they’d built with it—made them nearly untouchable.
They had connections with local guilds, businesses, and even politicians.
That’s why they dared target the family of a B-Rank Hunter, Juha thought.
They believed their backing would protect them.
In the end, they had been destroyed by overwhelming power beyond politics.
Even the organization’s boss had once been an E-Rank Hunter.
Though retired, he had undoubtedly become even stronger over the years.
In other words…
Juha still couldn’t defeat him.
“I’ll have to run.”
In his previous life, he had spent five years working like a slave before the organization collapsed and he finally escaped to another region.
This time…
For both his own sake and his sister’s…
He needed to leave immediately.
The loan sharks already knew which hospital his sister was staying in.
There was no way they could remain here safely.
“But where?”
His sister’s illness had no known cause.
It didn’t even have a name.
She needed a hospital equipped with life-support systems and at least a D-Rank healer.
After thinking for a long time…
Only one answer came to mind.
Seoul.
The capital.
Both in his previous life and now, Seoul was a city he despised.
It was the place where the people responsible for ruining his family still lived.
After his parents disappeared, those same people had stolen everything.
Then they had sent two children—only five and four years old—to an orphanage in the countryside.
Eventually, as his sister’s illness worsened, he’d had no choice but to move to Seoul for her treatment.
But it had never been a place he wanted to call home.
This time is different.
Back then, he had been powerless.
There had been nothing a child could do.
He had watched helplessly as his parents—heroes of South Korea—were branded as traitors who had abandoned their comrades.
Their enormous fortune had been confiscated under the ridiculous excuse of “compensating the victims.”
In reality…
The money had simply filled someone else’s pockets.
Back then, I gave up on revenge because I had neither power nor influence.
Now…
I have both.
A path to strength.
And limitless wealth.
《Current withdrawable items:》
Purple Coins: 100,000,000
F- Rank Magic Stones: 1,000,000
Pure Gold Ingots: 10,000
Consumable Items: 3
Compared to the endless riches inside the Golden Treasury, these amounts were tiny.
To Juha…
They were priceless.
This is enough to pay for my sister’s treatment.
Enough to buy a good apartment.
He could spend freely for months without worrying.
Currently:
- A Purple Coin was worth roughly ₩1,000.
- An F-Rank magic stone sold for ₩5,000–7,000, depending on purity.
- As for the Pure Gold Ingots…
He wasn’t sure of their exact value.
But he remembered they were valuable enough to appear only in elite auctions.
“Still…”
“I can’t sell everything openly.”
A man who hadn’t even Awakened suddenly selling mountains of valuable materials?
The authorities would immediately suspect him of illegal activity.
At best, he’d be investigated as an unregistered Hunter.
Sure, there was one place where he could sell everything.
But with Misfortune already warning him of danger…
Taking unnecessary risks was foolish.
Besides, to use official sales channels, he first needed a Hunter License.
That wasn’t something he could obtain in half a day.
“I’ll only sell the minimum.”
Just enough for hospital expenses.
And a new home.
With that decided, Juha left the apartment.
The Hidden Entrance
“Whew… Finally.”
After searching for quite some time, he found what he was looking for.
An old public restroom inside a small park.
The kind of filthy bathroom no one would willingly use.
Yet…
Those in the know understood what it truly was.
Juha walked inside.
Second stall from the left.
“…How did he say it worked?”
He remembered a boastful E-Rank Hunter explaining it years ago.
Opening his inventory, Juha withdrew exactly one hundred Purple Coins.
Then dumped them into the toilet.
He flushed.
Whoosh!
The coins disappeared instantly.
In their place…
A tiny portal appeared.
“So I remembered correctly.”
The Black Market.
The largest underground organization in South Korea.
Its owner was one of only five S-Rank Hunters in the entire country.
Technically, the Black Market belonged to the underworld.
But because it was controlled by an S-Rank Hunter—a strategic national asset—it was also half-legitimate.
It had rules.
Government inspectors even maintained offices inside.
Of course…
They only answered to the S-Rank Hunter.
Unless a crime was truly enormous, they ignored almost everything.
Which naturally made it the perfect place for illegal business.
Since Juha wasn’t yet a registered Hunter…
This was the only place he could convert his treasures into cash.
Watching the portal grow large enough for a person to enter, he swallowed.
“I need to stay careful.”
The warning about Misfortune still lingered.
Who cursed me with this ability…?
Fortunately…
His original Heavenly Fortune had evolved into an Authority, making it even stronger.
The difference between Legendary and Mythic was enormous.
Even so…
“I’d better stay alert.”
Putting on a robe and mask, Juha stepped through the portal.
The Black Market
A sensation of falling lasted roughly ten seconds.
Then—
His surroundings changed.
The filthy restroom disappeared.
In its place stood an enormous underground marketplace.
“So this is the Black Market…”
Even in his previous life, he’d only heard rumors.
Truthfully…
An F-Rank Goblin Hunter like him had never belonged here.
Only three kinds of people came to the Black Market.
First—
Criminals.
Or people selling stolen goods.
Second—
People searching for items unavailable through legal channels.
Third—
Merchants who had purchased trading rights from the S-Rank Hunter.
Juha belonged to the first category.
At least officially.
An unregistered Hunter selling suspicious goods.
The entrance fee alone had cost ₩100,000.
Still…
It wasn’t a waste.
This place had originally been part of the Abyss itself.
Much like his own Tower of Gold.
The S-Rank Hunter who owned the Black Market had once obtained ownership of this territory during an Abyss expedition.
He had transformed it into this underground city.
“…Then why can’t I enter my own tower?”
The answer seemed obvious.
Ownership percentage.
“I’ll get there eventually.”
The Golden Treasury was merely the first floor.
If the higher floors contained even greater treasures…
Then raising his ownership percentage became his highest priority.
Acting naturally, Juha walked toward the largest building in the market.
Above it hung a massive sign.
BLACK MONEY
“I found it.”
Black Money.
The only company personally operated by the S-Rank Hunter.
It functioned as the Black Market’s bank.
Auction house.
Financial institution.
And currency exchange.
“It can even convert underground money into legal money.”
The fees were outrageous.
But right now…
He had no better option.
Without hesitation, he entered.
“Welcome. How may we assist you?”
“I’d like to use the bank.”
“Please follow me to the second floor.”
Guided upstairs, Juha found an enormous banking hall.
Aside from customers hiding behind masks, it looked surprisingly ordinary.
Just as regular banks had begun handling coins and magic stones after the Abyss appeared…
Black Money offered the same services.
Ding.
His number was called.
Entering the assigned room, Juha found an attendant wearing a fox mask.
As he closed the door…
The fox silently looked him over.
A chill ran down Juha’s spine.
The moment their eyes met…
The fox smiled warmly.
“Welcome, customer. How may I help you today?”
“I’d like to exchange coins and magic stones for cash.”
“You mean legal currency?”
“That’s right.”
The attendant spoke smoothly.
As though Juha’s earlier feeling had simply been his imagination.
“Do you already have a Black Money account?”
“No.”
“Then let’s create one first.”
“The account opening fee is one million won.”
“Please proceed.”
It was expensive.
But worthwhile.
He would be returning frequently as he became stronger.
Naturally…
The account couldn’t be used for tax evasion.
Doing so carried severe penalties.
Besides…
Part of Black Money’s enormous service fees undoubtedly found its way back to the government as taxes.
It was simply a mutually beneficial arrangement.
The government looked the other way.
Everyone profited.
“Your account has been created.”
“Here’s your card.”
“Since you have no transaction history yet, it’s an F-Rank card.”
“The more transactions you make, the higher your card rank will become.”
“Now then…”
“Let’s examine what you’d like to exchange.”
Juha opened his inventory.
Then withdrew five percent of his available assets.
- 5,000,000 Purple Coins
- 50,000 F-Rank Magic Stones
The enormous pile disappeared into the fox’s dimensional pouch.
The appraisal began.
“…That’s quite a lot.”
“It is.”
The attendant worked quickly using appraisal skills.
Moments later—
“Purple Coins currently trade at ₩1,012 each.”
“We’ll value them at an even ₩1,000.”
“That totals ₩5 billion.”
“The purity of these magic stones is exceptionally high.”
“We’ll purchase them at ₩7,000 each.”
“That adds ₩350 million.”
“The total comes to…”
“₩5.35 billion.”
Juha remained silent.
Even after working his entire previous life…
He doubted he could have earned this much.
Inside…
He wanted to jump up and cheer.
Outwardly…
He simply nodded.
“If you proceed with this transaction…”
“You’ll immediately satisfy the requirements for an A-Rank Card.”
“E-Rank requires ₩1 million.”
“D-Rank: ₩10 million.”
“C-Rank: ₩100 million.”
“B-Rank: ₩1 billion.”
“A-Rank: ₩5 billion.”
“Your commission rate will decrease from 45% to 25%.”
“Above that…”
“S-Rank requires ₩10 billion.”
“VIP requires ₩100 billion.”
“VVIP requires ₩1 trillion.”
The fox was visibly excited.
Large transactions were rare.
“I’ll proceed.”
“Deposit everything.”
“And…”
“This is your tip.”
“Transaction complete!”
“₩4,012,500,000 has been deposited into your account!”
“Thank you for choosing Black Money!”
“My name has been Fox.”
The transaction ended successfully.
His bank card instantly advanced from F-Rank to A-Rank.
His account was now overflowing with money.
This amount is perfect.
Just enough to look like a wealthy upper-middle-class Hunter.
Not enough to attract the government’s immediate suspicion.
Only one task remained.
Following another attendant to the seventh floor…
Juha consigned ten Pure Gold Ingots to the auction house.
Then he left Black Money.
He never noticed the conversation happening behind him.
“That’s definitely him?”
“Absolutely.”
“You doubt Fox’s judgment?”
“I stake my reputation on this information.”
Juha had no idea.
The Curse of Misfortune…
Had already arrived at his doorstep.
