It was an era in which being a hunter had become an ordinary profession.
Since most hunters worked along the border regions adjoining North Korea, which had become a Demonic Zone, the related infrastructure had naturally become concentrated there as well.
These areas were commonly known as ‘Hunting Cities.’
Simply put, they were like garrison towns built around enormous military bases.
A fairly large Hunting City had also formed behind Cheorwon, where Hae-jin’s lodge was located, so he first took a bus there.
‘The atmosphere really is different...’
The outskirts of Cheorwon had once been completely depopulated because it was nearly impossible for ordinary civilians to live there.
The population had apparently increased somewhat recently, but there were still not many people on the streets.
Even the few people he saw appeared to be hunters or workers in related industries rather than ordinary civilians.
Some carried massive rifles or swords on their backs.
Others moved around in groups while wearing military uniforms.
As an ordinary working stiff, Hae-jin could not help feeling somewhat intimidated.
‘No, no. I’m a hunter now too. Straighten your shoulders and walk with confidence.’
Hae-jin, who had been slightly cowed, cleared his throat.
“Ahem.”
Then he began looking around.
By the time he had grown somewhat accustomed to the atmosphere of the Hunting City, it did not take long for him to find his destination.
[Jeil Jewelry Store – Pawnshop]
Amid stores selling weapons and equipment, a small jewelry store stood somewhat incongruously between them.
“This is it.”
Hae-jin had found several items while scavenging Odoek 4-ri.
He could simply keep the cash, but items such as the gold bracelet had to be sold.
Of course, he could have taken them to an ordinary jewelry store in the Seoul metropolitan area.
‘But trying to make things convenient only to end up creating trouble for myself would be a pain.’
After all, questionable goods were still questionable goods.
If he was unlucky, a jewelry store owner might become suspicious of where they had come from and call the police.
That was why Hae-jin had deliberately come all the way here.
Hunters were not the only residents of Hunting Cities.
Scavengers lived here as well.
BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!
A small alarm sounded when he pushed open the rather heavy door.
A security system right at the entrance.
It seemed he had come to the right place.
“Is anyone here?”
The interior was so dim that it was difficult to believe this was a jewelry store.
After Hae-jin waited for a moment, a middle-aged man slowly emerged from a room in the back.
“Oh, welcome. Are you here to sell something? Or are you looking to pawn something?”
“I do not need the pawnshop. I have something I want to sell this time.”
“To sell... Hmm. Let me see it first. We buy just about anything here.”
“I will start with this.”
It was the most valuable item among the goods he had scavenged.
Hae-jin carefully took the gold bracelet from his bag and held it out.
The moment the owner saw its gleaming surface, his voice became noticeably gentler.
“Gold, is it? Oh, you brought in something nice.”
“You buy these, right? How much would I get for it?”
“We need to appraise it first. Please wait a moment.”
The owner took the bracelet, fitted a jeweler’s loupe over one eye, and began performing various tests.
Hae-jin watched him closely while thinking.
‘If he tries anything funny, I’ll just leave.’
Naturally, Hae-jin knew almost nothing about precious metals.
Living in a semi-basement room had kept him rather far removed from shiny things like these.
However, he knew the exact specifications of this particular bracelet.
The reason was simple.
It had come with a certificate of authenticity.
Five don of 99.9% pure gold.
He had carefully researched the buying price, selling price, and other market information beforehand.
This was a world where letting your guard down for a moment could cost you dearly.
When it came to money, Hae-jin became exceptionally meticulous.
“You brought in the real thing. This is pure gold. Exactly five don.”
“Ooh.”
He had been slightly suspicious, but fortunately, the jewelry store owner had not tried to scam him.
Hae-jin’s trust in him rose sharply.
Feeling more confident, he asked again.
“That is correct. Exactly what the certificate says.”
“Oh, you even have the certificate? Our customer certainly came prepared. Do not worry. I cannot speak for other places, but I do not play tricks with people.”
“That is good to hear. So how much would you offer?”
“Taking off the odd bits, I can buy it for three million won. I will pay you cleanly in cash, right here.”
“...Excuse me?”
What was that supposed to mean?
He had just claimed that he did not play tricks, yet suddenly he was offering only three million won.
Hae-jin stared at him in disbelief.
“No, is that price right? Gold is selling for around 850,000 won per don right now. Even after deducting the workmanship, should this not still be worth more than four million?”
The price was far too different from the gold rates he had researched.
However, the owner merely laughed heartily.
“That is the Seoul price. This is a Hunting City.”
“Excuse me?”
“If you do not like it, you are welcome to go sell it in Jongno’s jewelry district.”
“...”
He had struck directly at the heart of the matter.
“We accept goods of questionable origin without asking questions, but in exchange, the going rate here is usually around seventy percent of market value. It takes us a fair amount of effort to move merchandise like this too.”
“That... makes sense.”
It was a perfectly reasonable explanation.
After all, the goods were of questionable origin.
There was nothing more to say.
Hae-jin simply decided to sell the bracelet for three million won.
The jewelry store owner immediately pulled out a stack of cash, counted it, and handed it over inside a paper envelope.
Sixty crisp fifty-thousand-won bills.
‘Three million won just from one piece of loot on a single Scavenger run... Kah! This is insane!!’
The moment he accepted the envelope, the corners of his mouth rose uncontrollably.
It was an enormous amount of money that he could never even have imagined earning so easily when he had barely scraped by working part-time jobs.
He had just earned roughly an ordinary office worker’s monthly salary with astonishing ease.
“Thank you very much. Please come again! Hahaha!”
“Since I am already here, may I ask you something?”
“Of course. From the look of you, I can tell you are not from around here.”
“Are there any real estate offices around here? Somewhere renting rooms, perhaps?”
What should someone do after making money?
Reinvest it.
Between using his skills and continuing his Scavenger work in Odoek 4-ri, he would need a place here even more.
Of course, while this area was dangerous, it was still a town where people lived.
“Of course there are. Looking for a place to stay, are you? Would you like me to introduce you to someone?”
“Apparently, there have been a lot of monsters around Cheorwon lately. A lot of hunters have been coming in, so quite a few decent rooms are available.”
“That is fortunate.”
Without wasting any time, Hae-jin visited the real estate office recommended by the jewelry store owner.
He climbed the stairs of an old commercial building alongside a pleasantly plump, friendly-looking licensed real estate agent.
One rather surprising discovery was that even Hunting Cities had monthly rentals and studio residences.
Perhaps because a minimum level of safety was guaranteed here, ordinary infrastructure continued to function.
Then again, there had to be a reason at least some civilians still lived here.
“All right. This is the property I recommend most. Would you like to take a look?”
For now, they had come to inspect a studio residence.
When she opened the door, a small room came into view.
It was a reasonably sized studio of about six pyeong.
There was a slight layer of dust, but it was cleaner than Hae-jin had expected.
It was a little depressing to admit, but the room was actually in better condition than his semi-basement apartment.
“There is a bathroom, a shower booth inside, a refrigerator, and a built-in wardrobe. It is a furnished studio residence, so you can move in with nothing but the clothes on your back.”
“This is better than I expected.”
“Right? It is perfect for a man living alone. I am telling you, rooms like this are hard to find.”
The real estate agent smiled lightly at Hae-jin.
Since he liked the place, he asked about the price.
“How much is it?”
“There is no deposit. The monthly rent is 800,000 won, including maintenance fees.”
“Eight hundred thousand...?”
He suddenly experienced déjà vu from the jewelry store.
Eight hundred thousand won for a five-pyeong studio residence.
That was a price difficult to find even in central Seoul.
‘Isn’t that way too expensive?!’
Of course, he had to consider the unusual circumstances of a Hunting City.
There was a reason there was no security deposit in the first place.
Whether they were hunters or Scavengers, people dying or being seriously injured after one wrong move was an everyday occurrence here.
Considering the danger of monsters appearing at any time and the isolated nature of the city, the price was understandable.
“Well... all right. I will take it.”
“Oh, you made the right choice. Let us head straight back to the real estate office and sign the contract!”
Hae-jin’s abilities required real estate to activate.
He considered this an appropriate investment for the sake of those abilities...
But.
“First month’s rent... Urgh!”
Perhaps his miserly nature could not be overcome so easily.
Hae-jin’s hand trembled as he pulled 800,000 won out of his envelope.
-A new property has been acquired!
-The list of available properties has been updated!
[Owned Properties – 1]
[Leased Properties – 2]
The skill window appeared immediately after he signed the contract.
He had now established a base in the Hunting City, which was packed with essential hunter infrastructure.
‘Going back and forth will be convenient now. I can basically use this as a second apartment.’
First, he purchased a small safe and stored his cash inside it.
But he still had something left to do.
‘I need to sell the Garbage Dog corpse too. It’ll start smelling once it rots.’
First, he returned to the lodge.
The studio residence was now recognized as one of Hae-jin’s homes, so he could use ‘Go Home’ there as well.
By simply opening and closing a door, he returned to his lodge in Odoek 4-ri.
He stuffed the Garbage Dog’s corpse into the large suitcase he had brought with him, then returned to the studio residence.
“Ugh, this is heavy.”
The monster was about the size of a large dog, so it weighed quite a bit.
Dragging the suitcase behind him, he headed for the Monster Exchange near the studio residence.
It was a government-operated facility specializing in purchasing monster corpses and byproducts.
“One Garbage Dog. The condition is good too. Yes, we have received it. How would you like to receive the payment?”
“Just give me cash.”
“Please go to the counter up front. Good work.”
He went to the counter and waited briefly before receiving his money.
Once again, crisp fifty-thousand-won bills.
Ten of them this time.
A single Garbage Dog corpse was worth an astonishing 500,000 won.
Perhaps because it was fairly strong for a monster hunted by beginners, its market price was relatively high.
“Kah...”
He had killed it in complete safety and comfort, yet the payout was this generous.
The sweetness of it sent a thrill straight through his brain.
‘Wait, then how much did I make in just one day?!’
The cash he had found.
The money from selling the gold bracelet.
The proceeds from the monster corpse.
Altogether, he had effortlessly made nearly five million won.
‘This is insane. Completely insane.’
His entire body trembled with excitement.
‘No. I can’t let a day like this pass without eating beef. Isn’t this exactly why premium Korean beef exists?!’
He had always wanted to do something like this.
He had imagined walking into an expensive beef restaurant alone and confidently treating himself to as much meat as he wanted.
And now, at this very moment, Hae-jin’s fantasy was about to become reality.
Of course.
“Whoa, are you kidding me? I guess I should avoid spending a single won while I’m here.”
Even Hae-jin could not stomach the outrageous prices in the Hunting City.
Thirty thousand won for a single serving of beef?
Not a chance.
He immediately used his skill and returned to his apartment in Seoul.
The moment he stepped outside, he spotted a beef restaurant nearby.
High-quality Korean beef cost somewhere in the upper ten-thousand-won range per serving.
Mm.
Now this was right.
“Two servings of fresh beef short rib... No, make it three! Ah! And a bottle of soju and cold noodles too!”
The magnificent beef appeared almost immediately.
SIZZLE—!
As it cooked over the charcoal fire, beads of fat rose to the surface.
Hae-jin picked up a piece that had cooked just enough and took a bite.
“Kah...”
It practically melted in his mouth.
Was this the taste of success?
His eyes inexplicably began to grow moist as he threw back a glass of soju.
“Khaaah!!”
The exclamation burst from him naturally.
“I’m seriously so happy... Hah, hehehe!”
For the first time in his life, he ate beef until he was completely stuffed.
Even after finishing all three servings, he ordered another two, then went all out and ordered an expensive bottle of bokbunja wine instead of more soju.
The smile never left Hae-jin’s face throughout the entire meal.
At least at that moment, he was the happiest person in the entire restaurant.
From now on, he would use this ability to earn even more money.
He already had a rough plan that would make today’s five million won look like pocket change.
Once he thought about that, even the alcohol he was normally terrible at drinking went down like water.
This was truly paradise on earth, a life of wine and meat.
Damn right!