What is the most annoying situation when you wake up in the morning?
Is it the smartphone alarm you set last night ringing? Is it the stickiness of the greasy oil that stayed in your hair all night? Is it just the fact that you have to go to work again today?
-Wake up! Wake up quickly!
"Ah, for christ's sake, a little mo…"
-If you don't wake up right now, I'll start singing a song I love from my hometown. Did you know that I learned music all my life? When I sang a song, over thirty people broke down in tears!
Not at all.
The worst situation was when there was a ghost fluttering around your home.
-Look at the time and you're still in bed!
"What time is it?"
I cracked my eyes open and looked at my smartphone.
On the lock screen, 4:01 a.m. was written in a nice font.
"It's only 4 o'clock in the morning, you crazy bastard!"
-Uh huh. Four o'clock in the morning is when the worms wake up and begin to move. You're weaker than a worm, so you should wake up earlier.
"I guess you were just bored because you can't sleep."
-I don't know what you mean.
Bae Hu-ryeong looked away as if he'd been caught.
"Wow. I always wondered why the Sword Saint woke up at 4 a.m. to practice. It wasn't because he was hardworking—it was because you were too noisy!"
-Fine. I was bored alone and woke you up. Better? Thanks to that, if you get up and practice now, it's for your benefit. Come on, bow down and thank me.
"Ki-, I want to kill…"
-Huhu. I'm already dead so you can't kill me. If you want to try, then you'll have to die first! Ah, but you can't even die. You zombie bastard. Your name should be Kim Zom-bie, not Kim Gong-ja.
"Damn it."
I came out of the apartment dressed in sportswear. In the 2-pyung room, the ghost chattered without rest and I really couldn't take it anymore. For the sake of my mental health, I left my home and started jogging under the dark morning sky.
"Huk, huk…"
-Zombie Kim. I'll repeat, you really don't have any talent outside of your willpower.
Bae Hu-ryeong floated and caught up to me.
-I usually prefer to teach from the bottom up. But you don't even have a bottom. Should I say you're the bottom of the bottom?
It had been three days since I copied the skill [Sword Constellation] from the Sword Saint. In that time, I killed Yoo Soo-ha once more and avoided meeting the Sword Saint. Now, I was training according to a schedule that Bae Hu-ryeong had made himself. 𝙧𝐀ɴŎꞖƐŜ
-In terms of talent, you have what we should call the abyss talent. Kuh. So cool! I'm jealous!
"Huk… when people are running, you shouldn't interrupt them… hoo. Let's go..!"
(TL: The 'huk's and 'hoo's are basically him panting.)
-What? The bottom line is, you need special tutoring. And in order to receive special tutoring, you have to pay an expensive tuition.
Bae Hu-ryeong laughed.
-You're going to get a lottery ticket, Zombie.
…
There is a guild called Sangryun.
The common name for it was the Merchant's Union. The leader was the third-ranked hunter, commonly known as "Count."
As mentioned before, Count is the only player who could send and receive things from the outside world. He was like a one-man company. Thanks to this ability, the Sangryun Guild basically controlled the economy in the tower.
What that meant was—
"Excuse me."
"Yes, guest. How may I help you?"
"I'm here to receive my winnings for the lottery."
On the first floor, the Sangryun Guild in the city of Babylon was the only one who issued lottery tickets.
"Ah. Your lottery ticket won?!"
"Yes, that's right."
"Congratulations!"
The clerk who was wearing cat ears bowed toward me, a sunny smile across their face being a bonus.
-Hey, whenever I see this clerk I get curious about why they're wearing cat ears.
'The head of Sangryun likes cats.'
-No matter how good a cat is, do you need to make a normal person wear cat ears? He's just a perverted bastard. I can guarantee it.
'Is that even important right now?'
Of course, the clerk didn't wear the cat ears because they wanted to. They simply didn't have a choice. Whether cat ears or cockroach antennae—if the guildmaster told them to wear it, they had to.
Oh, for reference, this clerk was a man. The uniform was just unisex…
"Excuse me guest, but have you confirmed the date? I'm sorry but you can't win the prize if the ticket was purchased long before."
"That's fine. It's a ticket from last week."
"That's great!"
It was a lottery ticket that I'd bought right after my discussion with Bae Hu-ryeong. It was because I intended to win the lottery once anyway, and Bae Hu-ryeong had passionately shouted, 'You need the capital!'
"Then we will begin the identification and verification process. Ah, if I may ask, what place did you win?"
"First place."
"Yes?"
The clerk asked reflexively.
"I got first place."
"…"
"Here, please check the number."
Above the head of the clerk hung a billboard. On the billboard the words [The 1st Prize for the Sangryun Happiness Lottery.] were written, followed by the amount displayed on rolling slot-machine digits.
53,000 gold.
If I used the currency from my hometown, it would be 5.5 billion won.
-Hey, it's so easy to make money isn't it?
The humming voice of Bae Hu-ryeong filled the suddenly quiet hall area.
Wearing an embarrassed look, the clerk suddenly said:
"…I've checked the number. No-, now please wait a minute, customer, while I call for my manager to take over."
"Yeah, take your time."
The clerk hurried away. I could feel people peeking and gossiping—talking about my winning first place and expressing their envy.
-Will you be okay, Zombie? Won't you get stabbed in a dark alley?
"I have an idea."
I shrugged.
"Hiding it doesn't mean that it'll be hidden."
All hunters who won the lottery were recorded. Even the Flame Emperor. So everyone could see that he won first place twice in a row.
'If it's going to be known anyway, it's better to do it openly.'
When I won the lottery last time, I was immediately assassinated.
If such a rumor spread, the one harmed most would be the ones organizing the lottery, not me.
After a while—
"You've been waiting for a long time, Mr. Kim Gong-ja. My name is Arthur Taylor."
A man dressed more professionally than the receptionist appeared and bowed slightly. His greeting was very polite. However, something that didn't change was the fact that he also wore cat ears.
"Call me 'Vault Keeper', and I would appreciate it if you spoke to me comfortably."
(TL: He's basically saying, "you don't need to be too polite.")
"I'm Kim Gong-ja, and that's a pretty interesting name."
"Haha! I often hear that. Then let's go upstairs."
The Vault Keeper smiled brightly.
No matter how you looked at him, this man was a hunter at least in the top 300. I was only an F-class hunter, yet he remained polite to me.
-That's how 50,000 gold customers are treated, of course.
-Hey Zombie, do you know what I've been thinking about? I think you're too easily flattered because you've never been treated well before. A few days ago when I complimented your talent for dying, you looked so moved. I feel so sorry for you.
(TL: Oof, so savage…)
'Ah. Shut up, please. Just a bit.'
-Men shouldn't be that easy, man. Be like me. You gotta believe that everything in the world is simply for your benefit.
No matter how I thought about it, Yoo Soo-ha and Bae Hu-ryeong were very similar.
Both were "Emperors" and both were psychopaths.
"Ah, Mr. Kim Gong-ja. I'm sorry, is there something wrong..?"
The Vault Keeper asked while guiding me up the stairs. He looked worried he had offended me.
I hurriedly replied so I didn't look crazy.
"Ah, no. I was thinking about something."
"Ah, I'm glad."
The Vault Keeper sighed in relief.
"Your expression wasn't good, so I thought I'd been rude without knowing. Haha. When you said no, I felt so relieved…"
What the.
This person… is he an angel?
-Tch. So easy. It's so easy.
I ignored the nagging ghost. We entered a VIP reception room.
Gold coins were already piled upon the table. Someone must have prepared them in advance.
The Vault Keeper smiled.
"This is all the coins that customer Kim Gong-ja has won."
"…It's amazing."
Over 50,000 gold coins!
The room was bright and illuminated all the coins at once. Just looking at them made my heart swell. A feeling overflowed within me.
(TL: Is… is this love?)
"You can take all of these gold coins, or you can purchase a personal vault from us for safekeeping. What would you like to do?"
"Well."
I gathered my thoughts.
'As expected, the magical power of money is great.'
Frankly speaking, my mouth was watering. But my goal was to stand on top—to be a handsome hunter, admired by everyone. Money was just a means to that goal.
(TL: That's right Gong-ja! Ganbatte!)
'Be a man who controls money, not a man controlled by money, Kim Gong-ja.'
Regaining my calm, I nodded.
"I'll keep it in a deposit box."
"Ah. That's a very wise choice, customer!"
The Vault Keeper was delighted.
"I always suggest this for winners. I understand wanting to hold all your wealth, but I always strongly recommend a safety deposit box. After all, there are many people with bad intentions…"
"And."
I opened my mouth again.
"I would like to purchase the status of an honorary member of the Sangryun Guild."
"Yes?"
"The cost is 10,000 gold coins, isn't it?"
I placed my hand on the stacks of gold coins.
Gold—the color that dazzled humans.
But I already knew a gold even more enchanting: my future.
"I'll buy it in a one-time payment."
"…"
The Vault Keeper studied my face.
"Customer Kim Gong-ja… you haven't joined any other guild, right?"
"Yes."
Guilds weren't for socializing but for one thing:
Protection.
Even the Hunter Bureau or vigilantes—
'I might get attacked before I can say anything.'
I had seen both Yoo Soo-ha and the Sword Saint kill me without hesitation.
This world was far more brutal than the outside.
'I shouldn't follow the Flame Emperor's footsteps.'
He preferred to move alone.
He had no protection.
And that was why—
'He was poisoned and assassinated later.'
Pathetic. Why compete with big guilds?
"…Okay."
The Vault Keeper took out a notebook and wrote something.
"Anyone can become an honorary member for a fixed price. I'll have an employee come and issue you a second-class honorary membership card."
"Ah. And—"
I added:
"I live in a small, cheap apartment right now. I'd be grateful if Sangryun could recommend a place for me to stay. I'm willing to pay."
"…"
"And, when you announce the first-place winner in the newspaper… even if you reveal my name, please ensure they also report my honorary member status."
The Vault Keeper wrote it all down with a blank expression.
(TL: I bet he's regretting being so polite now hehe)
"You are quite thorough, customer."
"Ugh. With the world as it is these days? I need to be prepared for anything."
"…you're absolutely right."
Behind him, Bae Hu-ryeong held his stomach and laughed.
-Hey. The expression he's making as he gets treated like this by a pushover. It's so sweet. This is why I love making fun of the elite.
'No. You said I was easy. What's the big deal?'
-I did? I'm not sure. I don't remember, so maybe it didn't happen.
Oh my God. Even if he was disgusting, he didn't need to be this disgusting.
-Anyway, you're doing a good job on your own.
He kept laughing.
-I was worried I'd have to clean your diaper and wipe your ass like a baby. But seeing this, you'll be fine.
'If you don't talk, no one would hate you.'
-Boy, you seem to be in a good mood.
That was right.
My mouth was grumbling but my heart was happy.
'Absolutely. It starts from now on.'
4000 deaths to return 4000 days.
This was an ability of the regression skill the Flame Emperor had never taken advantage of.
Now, it was my time to enjoy it.