The Pyeongchang-dong estate.
Pyeongchang-dong, already regarded as one of the wealthiest neighborhoods, had become even more affluent after the Dimension Arena appeared in the world.
Those with wealth had used it to acquire the new materials and byproducts pouring out of the Dimension Arena, building estates that were larger, sturdier, and even more extravagant than before.
And naturally, the owner of the grand estate built on the safest and most expensive land among them was Chairman Choi Cheol-ho of Shinhwa Group, one of the corporate giants that dominated South Korea.
“It’s been a long time since we were all together.”
“Yes, Father.”
“It would be stranger if we saw someone as busy as you often.”
“Dad! Is it true Oseong got first dibs on the new-material bags and jewelry that were supposed to go to the department stores this time?”
Others besides Choi Cheol-ho had gathered in his residence.
They were Choi Cheol-ho’s three sons and one daughter.
Yet despite the phrase “three sons and one daughter,” only four people at the table, including Choi Cheol-ho, were taking part in the conversation.
More specifically, they were speaking while excluding the third son, Choi In-gyun.
Although seated at the table, In-gyun could not say a word and merely kept his lips tightly shut.
Choi Cheol-ho and the other siblings considered that perfectly natural.
The hierarchy at the table extended even into the kitchen.
“Sister-in-law, bring this to the table.”
“......Yes.”
“Ah, right. There’s this too.”
A woman with an unassuming charm was carrying dishes with her spirits crushed, caught between two women who both looked fiercely imposing.
When the two women gave her instructions at the same time, she could not hide her confusion.
“Um, the First Madam asked me first, so......”
“What? You’re saying you’ll listen to Eldest Sister but not to me? Fine. I understand.”
“......No. I’ll do it right away.”
“Good~ Thank you for your hard work~”
Ultimately, unable to withstand the sharp stares, she had no choice but to carry the heavy dishes with trembling hands.
A daughter-in-law of the household was receiving treatment worse than that of a maid.
And that cruel sight, treated as normal, extended even to the children.
“Ho-seong, I heard you were promoted to Platinum this time?”
“I’m the son of the Shinhwa Guild Master. This much is the bare minimum. I’m going to follow Father and reach Diamond Tier soon.”
“Second Uncle’s collection really is amazing. With that, won’t you reach Diamond Tier in no time?”
“It’s just an equipment advantage.”
“You guys talk about Diamond every time we meet. Don’t you ever get tired of it?”
“No, we don’t get tired of it. It always feels new.”
“Ugh, you’ve only gotten older. You’re still children.”
One was a man of average height with a sly-looking face.
Another was tall and handsome.
Then there was a woman dressed like a princess from a movie.
The three chatted away happily, but there was one young man who could not join their group.
“Honestly, I don’t know why Grandfather intends to let that worthless family into the main house.”
“Isn’t he still Unranked?”
“What does being Unranked matter? Just look at his older brother. It’s obvious what he’ll become.”
“Ah, what was it again? That......”
“Useless Jack-of-All-Trades?”
“That’s right, that one. If I were him, I’d have died already. Seriously.”
“......”
As his family was insulted to his face, Shin-hyeok’s younger brother, Shin-woo, could not say a single word.
He merely clenched his trembling hand into a fist.
Then—
“......Young Master Choi Shin-hyeok has arrived.”
A low voice echoed through the estate.
At the arrival of Shin-hyeok, who could be considered the day’s main figure, everyone fell silent, whether they were at the table, in the kitchen, or in the rooms.
Then quiet footsteps rang out.
STEP— STEP—
They were only footsteps, yet they carried an unmistakable strength.
As everyone failed to hide their curiosity at that fact—
“It is good to see you, Grandfather. Eldest Uncle, Second Uncle, and Aunt as well.”
“......Are you truly Shin-hyeok?”
“Yes. My father is Choi In-gyun, and my mother is Lee So-yeon.”
“You’ve become bold. Sit down first. We should eat. Koreans get their strength from rice, don’t they?”
Interest flashed through Choi Cheol-ho’s eyes at Shin-hyeok’s firm response.
Shin-hyeok had greeted the grandfather and relatives he had always feared before anyone else.
That alone meant he could withstand a certain degree of their pressure.
When Choi Cheol-ho gestured toward the table, Shin-hyeok started walking before coming to a stop.
“......? What are you doing? Come sit down.”
“I think there’s something I need to do first.”
“Something you need to do?”
With those words, Shin-hyeok headed into the kitchen and gently took the plates resting in his mother’s hands.
“Shin-hyeok...... Your mother should carry those—”
“I want to use some strength before I become a Player. You should go to the table too, Mother. I don’t think you’ve eaten yet.”
“No...... I......”
Lee So-yeon, Shin-hyeok’s mother, could not hide her bewilderment at his sudden actions.
She was even more at a loss when Shin-hyeok told her to join him at the table, which she could not approach without Choi Cheol-ho’s permission.
“Heh heh heh. That’s right. My daughter-in-law hasn’t eaten yet either. Come here. Let’s share a meal.”
“......Thank you, Chairman.”
“There, that settles it. Shall we eat now?”
It seemed that Shin-hyeok would finally sit at the table with Choi Cheol-ho’s laughter, but—
“I’ll have my younger brother greet you before we eat as well.”
“Your younger brother...... Ha! All right. Let’s see him greet me.”
“Choi Shin-woo. Come and greet Grandfather.”
“H-hyung. Maybe we shouldn’t—”
“Choi Shin-woo.”
“......Grandfather, have you been well all this time?”
“Yes, I have. You sit down too and have a spoonful of rice.”
“Pardon? Y-yes......”
Choi Cheol-ho’s interest deepened further as Shin-hyeok looked after his family until the very end.
Eventually, Shin-hyeok and all of his family were seated at the table for the meal.
Even though he had called them there to eat, Choi Cheol-ho asked Shin-hyeok another question.
“My grandson is becoming a Player this time, I hear?”
“There are two days left.”
“Right...... Being a Player is good. This old man is Platinum too, so I know all that needs knowing. But I hear my grandson’s reputation is not very good.”
At Choi Cheol-ho’s question, accompanied by a mischievous smile, Shin-hyeok calmly scooped up a spoonful of rice and stuffed it into his mouth.
Only after taking in some broth as well and chewing and swallowing did he answer.
“That’s correct. My expected tier is Bronze. Considering that placement is usually one tier lower than the tier measured by the school, the tier I’ll actually be assigned is likely Iron.”
“Iron, is it...... You do realize that would be a disgrace to this family, don’t you?”
A voice colder than ice rang out, as though the smile from moments ago had been a lie.
And the mention of being a disgrace to the family meant that, should Shin-hyeok be placed in Iron, Choi Cheol-ho might erase that disgrace.
‘That’s exactly what happened in the past. I was removed from the family register. I could never come here again.’
He could be certain because he had already experienced it once.
Even so, Shin-hyeok did not care.
“Grandfather. Do you know about gambling?”
“Gambling? I do. What are you trying to say?”
“In gambling, there are what people call long odds. And they say that when a long shot hits, the payout is huge. That’s true in reality as well.”
“That’s right, that’s right. Long odds are good. But you know long shots are called long shots because they rarely hit, don’t you?”
Choi Cheol-ho readily answered Shin-hyeok’s question with one of his own.
That answer regarding long odds was also a remark about Shin-hyeok himself.
Whether, upon scratching the lottery ticket known as the Placement Exam, the long shot named Shin-hyeok would hit.
As Choi Cheol-ho stared at him from the seat of honor, Shin-hyeok gave a broad smile.
“How about taking a chance on that long shot?”
“What would I trust in to make that bet? No, I have nothing I expect from you in the first place.”
It was a heavy answer.
Fulfilling the expectations of someone who wanted nothing was more difficult than satisfying someone who did have expectations.
That was even more true because Choi Cheol-ho’s expectations for Shin-hyeok and his family had already reached rock bottom.
Maintaining eye contact with Choi Cheol-ho, Shin-hyeok immediately began the wager.
“Oseong Group.”
“......!”
“Lee Ju-ho, the son of the Oseong Guild Master, is participating in this Placement Exam. He’s the same age as me.”
“......What are you trying to say?”
Shin-hyeok was proposing a wager with the name of Oseong, a company that was practically Choi Cheol-ho’s archenemy.
As Shin-hyeok looked at Choi Cheol-ho, who had become somewhat serious at the mention of Oseong, he spoke.
“In this Placement Exam, I’ll make the name of Shinhwa—not Oseong—the one everyone talks about. More precisely, I’ll give you something to use as kindling.”
“Kindling...... How? The eldest son of the Oseong Guild Master has an expected placement tier of Silver, and I hear he is at the very top of that range. In other words, he may be able to barely enter Silver Tier. And with the influence of Oseong Group standing behind Oseong Guild, even that alone will have the newspapers and news programs talking about him all day. Can you still make him kindling?”
Choi Cheol-ho had already investigated all the talented individuals taking part in the Placement Exam, and his question was sharp.
An ordinary person would have broken into a cold sweat under the pressure, as though facing a towering wall.
But Shin-hyeok was not an ordinary person.
“Yes. I can.”
“If that is true, then the long odds may be worth taking. But if your condition is absurd, I will refuse.”
At the immediate answer, Choi Cheol-ho nodded in agreement.
Even as Choi Cheol-ho drew a line, Shin-hyeok replied as though it did not matter.
“Lee Ju-ho, who will reach Silver Tier. To make his name fade, don’t I only need to become Silver Tier as well? I’ll shine even brighter. If someone like me—who took last place in practical exams throughout high school, was called the Useless Jack-of-All-Trades, and was the only person expected to be Bronze Tier—were proudly placed in Silver Tier.”
“......Huh. Are you serious?”
“I am.”
It was a resolute answer.
Choi Cheol-ho nodded and added,
“You are right. But that is only true if you are assigned Silver Tier. Are you asking me to assign Shinhwa Group’s public relations team because of that slim possibility?”
“Of course, I was not planning to come empty-handed.”
“Then what will you stake?”
Choi Cheol-ho was saying that he would stake something on the long odds named Shin-hyeok, so what would Shin-hyeok stake in return?
The moment he heard those words, Shin-hyeok looked once at each of his parents and his younger brother seated beside him before speaking.
“I’ll stake my family.”
“......You’ll stake your family? What do you mean?”
“If this fails, you may remove my family and me from the Choi family. No, we’ll withdraw on our own.”
“......!”
Since this had not been discussed beforehand, Shin-hyeok’s parents and younger brother looked at him with astonishment.
But neither Choi Cheol-ho nor Shin-hyeok paid attention to their gazes.
“......Hmm. Then let me ask the opposite question. If you succeed, what do you want in return?”
The reward for success.
Despite his grandson declaring that he would remove his own family from the family register, Choi Cheol-ho’s cold response was not to ask about that, but to ask what Shin-hyeok wanted as a reward for success.
Shin-hyeok smiled as he answered.
“I’ll stake my family in the same way.”
“What family are you talking about this time?”
“Please accept my family back into the Choi family. That is the reward I want for succeeding.”
“......”
Shin-hyeok was saying he would stake his family on both failure and success.
Choi Cheol-ho rested his chin on his hand, closed his eyes, and fell silent.
But only for a moment.
“......Hahahahahaha! Very well. My adorable grandson says he has prepared a little show for his old grandfather. I cannot refuse. Do it. Whether you fail or succeed, everything will be carried out exactly as you have said here.”
Choi Cheol-ho’s approval came with laughter that reverberated through the grand estate.
As though he had known it would happen, Shin-hyeok calmly smiled and nodded before looking at his parents and younger brother, who stared at him in a daze.
“Let’s eat. I’m hungry.”