***
By the time we tidied up the gym and did the grocery shopping, it was already dinner time.
We returned to the hideout carrying a large amount of prepared king crab and beef.
As expected, Jo Sang-nim was throwing a fit, asking why we were just arriving when she was so hungry.
We lightly ignored her words and went up to the second floor.
Considering the cold, I wanted to eat inside, but since we had bought a grill and charcoal, I intended to grill the beef over a charcoal fire.
Truly, charcoal fire was the only way to go for beef.
“Ugh, I’m sick of this.”
Huh?
As soon as we set up our spot on the rooftop bench, Jo Sang-nim, who had been picking apart and eating the king crab, had even mixed rice into the head shell and finished it before she muttered while stroking her bulging stomach.
Looking beside her, I saw a high pile of king crab shells. Goddammit. I had barely tasted a single leg because I was busy lighting the charcoal.
“Since you devoured an entire king crab by yourself, of course you’re sick of it. Even a beggar would be sick of it after that.”
“Did I eat it alone? Undonghwa ate some too!?”
Where do you think you’re lying? Woo Do-hwa had picked up and eaten one leg, then stopped, saying it wasn't to his taste. What a desirable and inexpensive guy.
I wished the beef wasn't to his taste either, but that didn't seem to be the case. His gaze was already focused on the beef in front of the fire.
A short while later. Once the charcoal had grown glowing red, I placed the wire mesh over it and put the beef on top.
Sizzle—
The sound and smell of the meat cooking drifted across the rooftop. Amazingly, as I flipped the meat a few times and put more new meat on, the previous meat would vanish.
It was a magical occurrence, but seeing the two of them moving their mouths in front of the fire, it didn't seem to be magic.
Having grilled only meat without being able to eat a single piece, I could no longer endure it and shouted.
“When it’s cooked, eat it properly, you bastards!”
“Beef is delicious when there’s still blood in it!”
Jo Sang-nim spoke while picking up undercooked meat once again.
“That’s right. That way it’s tender!”
Then, the silently eating Woo Do-hwa made an uncharacteristic play on words.
“Exactly!”
The two had become a fantastic duo before I knew it.
“You’re really something else. The two of you are in perfect sync today, hmm?”
I put more meat on the grill.
Although I spoke that way, seeing the two of them eating well made me feel full myself.
In truth, today was a gathering for the two of them. It was because I was grateful to the two of them for silently following my lead without any questions.
Surprisingly, the two of them did not yield a single piece to me until the meat finally ran out.
Bastards with no virtue of yielding. I take back the part about being grateful. Why do they eat so much?
No. In terms of eating well, these two were no match for Geon-ma.
I suddenly became curious about the whereabouts of the remaining two members of the Eagle Five.
“By the way, are Geon-ma and Myeong-chil in touch?”
“Myeong-chil is out of contact, and Geon-ma probably hasn't returned from Africa yet.”
Jo Sang-nim replied immediately without any buffering. As expected, she was the most active in communication among us. Honestly, if it weren't for her, the five of us wouldn't have continued to stick together.
“A truly devout Christian has emerged. Does a missionary suit that pig?”
“They give him food.”
“Right. They do give food well.”
I agreed quickly.
For the record, Kim Geon-ma gained weight even when he ate well and gained weight even when he couldn't eat well.
There was a rumor that when we were at the orphanage, the staff thought he was eating well even when he wasn't because he was fat, so they gave him less food.
After leaving the orphanage, he entered a Catholic school, and now he was said to be living as a missionary somewhere in Africa. Fortunately, there was no chance of him starving to death.
“Since when has Myeong-chil been out of contact?”
“I don't know. I don't even remember now. He just suddenly stopped being in touch.”
The guy named Myeong-chil was skinny, and he didn't gain weight even if he ate well, and he didn't gain weight even if he couldn't eat well… ah, is that natural?
Anyway, there was a rumor that when we were at the orphanage, they always gave him a lot of food because he was so thin they thought he wasn't eating well, even when he was.
After leaving the orphanage, he unfortunately associated with bad friends and his contact gradually began to become sparse; the number of times we met decreased, and at some point, he was no longer in touch.
“That aside, what are you going to do moving forward? Are you going to get a divorce?”
Jo Sang-nim asked.
“Not yet.”
“Then?”
“She’ll probably have another affair. I just have to crush the affair partner then.”
“Hmm, I see. By any chance, are you a pervert?”
She asked with an expressionless face while staring intently at me.
“No, I’m perfectly normal.”
I also replied while looking directly into her eyes.
“But why would you do such a crazy thing?”
She tilted her head.
Right, she could feel that way. It must be strange. Since she didn't know about my abilities.
“How should I put it. I get a ‘feeling’ about coins once a day, right?”
“Right.”
“You can think of that as the reason.”
“Then I accept!”
Jo Sang-nim spoke quickly while raising her hand high. It was natural. Since she was making a fortune thanks to me, there was no reason to refuse. It was money over curiosity.
This time, I spoke while looking at Woo Do-hwa.
“And you can think of it as the reason I can become a Super Saiyan.”
“What, is it like you awaken by catching affair partners or something? Your abilities go up?”
Woo Do-hwa blurted out the words without much thought.
I flinched for a moment.
This thoughtlessly sharp bastard.
“It’s something similar to that. But how did you know?”
“I had nothing to do when I was in the slammer, so I read them. In novels.”
Woo Do-hwa spoke as if it were no big deal.
“Novels?”
“Yeah. There’s a famous site called Mongpia. It appeared there, didn't it? A ‘byeong-mat’ novel about leveling up by catching affair partners.”
“Ah, I see.”
I nodded my head and vowed to definitely check out that novel when I had time. It was a subject matter that stimulated curiosity just by hearing the story.
“Then who is the next target? When do we start?”
“From what I can see, there are two or three months left. Let’s make some money in the meantime. And enjoy what there is to enjoy.”
In my words, the two of them each spread their wings of imagination.
“Deal! I like it! It’s thrilling! Extremely! Let’s buy a better computer while we’re at it! The current one is too crappy. The response is slow too. I should change the internet to Giga as well.”
“I felt like the gym needed some remodeling…”
“Goddammit, you’ll end up taking in trainees at this rate.”
At my words, Woo Do-hwa’s eyes sparkled as he asked.
“Should I? It would be perfect as a cover job.”
Thinking about it, that wasn't bad either.
<><><>
That night.
Jo Sang-nim called me, saying it was almost time.
“Look at it for 2 minutes.”
“2 minutes? Until now, it’s always been 1 minute.”
Jo Sang-nim, who was concentrating on the monitor, turned her head toward me and asked. It must have been sudden out of nowhere. However, it wasn't a big problem. I just had to make an excuse.
“My intuition ability has improved. Since it’s increased to 2 minutes, isn't it a much more advantageous condition?”
“Of course! 2 minutes is practically a freebie! On top of that, the chances of seeing a loss will definitely decrease.”
She spoke as if it were obvious.
Even though I thought so. Since the time had doubled, I cautiously speculated that the profit would more than double as well.
“But is it going to fluctuate greatly today?”
“I told you to trust me. There will definitely be an uproar in 10 minutes. The US government is making an announcement regarding cryptocurrency regulations. Whether they regulate heavily or loosen up. It’ll go between heaven and hell because of this.”
“Hmm… which side is good for us?”
“Us? That’s obviously the side where there’s a large wave. Whether it goes up or down is none of our business.”
“I see. You really are smart. Our Jo Sang-nim. Is it because you ate king crab?”
At my words, Jo Sang-nim gently raised her slender middle finger.
A short while later.
As she said, the US SEC made an announcement regarding cryptocurrency regulation policy. The coins suddenly began to fluctuate and run wild, and before long, they soared by nearly 6% in just 2 minutes.
It could be considered a truly tremendous rate of increase.
If I had only been able to see 1 minute like before, it was a percentage I never could have obtained.
“Now!”
At her shout, I turned back time by 2 minutes, and we invested 100 million won into a Long position with 100x leverage.
The 100 million won became 700 million won in 2 minutes and returned to us.
A magic trick of earning 600 million won in an instant with the ability to turn back a mere 2 minutes had unfolded.
“Jackpot.”
Jo Sang-nim spoke with a voice full of astonishment as she counted the amount displayed on the screen.
Just as she said, it was a real jackpot.
Just how far could this ability develop moving forward? And how much would I earn? No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't gauge it.
<><><>
The next morning.
Leaving the hideout early, I put on a hat and a mask and then turned my steps somewhere.
The place I headed to was Jongno-gu, Seoul, which is filled with high-rise buildings. It is a place where the headquarters of numerous corporations, foreign companies, major banks, and administrative agencies are concentrated as Seoul’s central business district.
Naturally, the people most commonly seen were office workers.
I sat in a cafe and waited for someone leisurely.
Had about 30 minutes passed?
A woman entered the cafe with a haughty stride.
She had short-cut hair, snow-white skin, heavy makeup, and red lips. Her figure was truly a coke-bottle. She was dressed in a suit that wasn't just a perfect fit, but was clinging to her body. The skirt was so short that it felt like her buttocks would be visible if she bent her waist.
‘As I thought, it was here.’
I knew who she was.
She was the secretary and slave of the affair partner my wife would cheat with next, and the partner who would have a threesome with my wife.
She was also the opponent I would practice my Mental Control ability on moving forward.