The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor

Lee Hyun believed none of it. It sounded far too absurd.

However, the moment he accessed the site, his auction post floated on the main screen

of the item trading site. Countless people posted comments in real time, and the

auction's successful bid amount was as she said, 3,090,000,000 won!

Lee Hyun managed not to faint only because of his grim tenacity.

'If this is a dream, I hope I never wake up.'

The next day, Lee Hyun confirmed the money receipt that more than 3,000,000,000

won had really been deposited into his own account.

He pinched his flesh until blood could be seen, unmistakably reality! Lee Hyun rushed

to show his grandma the bankbook. He still did not dare tell her in it its entirety.

"Grandma, I made money."

"Yes."

His grandma replied helplessly. It had been only 3 days after his ID card was issued.

He could not have earned much.

"Well, good work, Hyun-ah."

"It was not that much trouble, grandma."

"What is this?"

"Look. This here is the money I earned."

His grandma rubbed her dim eyes a couple of times while looking at the bankbook.

The amount stamped into the account, the reaction was disbelief.

"You, did you steal? No, no, this amount of money can't be stolen....

t o r A I Z E N 17 | 225

"What I did was sell my game account."

"Account?"

"It's complex to explain... anyway, I obtained this money legally."

His grandma, filled with rising emotion, softly sobbed.

"Hyun-ah, like others, we can now live without worrying about water and electricity

bills anymore?"

"Of course. We can even own our own home."

"You can go back to school.... and Hye Yeon can go to college. We no longer have to

live envying others."

His grandma was moved to tears. It was the same with Lee Hyun.

While remembering the suffering and bitterness he received.

"Now we can live happily together, grandma."

With the tough times together, the two people were thrilled that much more. After

several days they obtained a new house and received treatment at the hospital. In

addition to his grandma's hip, she was sick in many other ways and had to be admitted

to the hospital. His little sister Hye Yeon was also delighted. But their happiness was

short-lived.

The men dressed in black suits. The ones he did not want to see most came to the

hospital.

Black suited men with fresh from the store shoes, they literally pushed into the

hospital room. Well-built, even though only 5 came, the hospital room seemed to be

All other patients panicked in fear so with help from the caregivers, they quietly

slipped out.

Only Lee Hyun, his grandma and the men remained. Lee Hyun thought it fortunate his

little sister wasn't there the moment they came. But nothing good ever came from

those men. He expected it would be the no different from before.

"Lee Hyun. I heard of the good fortune bestowed to your family...."

The blonde haired man spoke.

Lee Hyun shot back sharply.

"So?"

"Debt?"

"Yes. And now that you have the money, I believe you're ready pay it back."

Lee Hyun gulped swallowing his saliva. When his parents passed away, Lee Hyun

inherited the 100,000,000 won debt.

It would have been fine if he had done the waiver of inheritance, but at that time Lee

Hyun was young and did not know about the law. In addition, his grandma, with the

grief of losing her child, did not apply the waiver of inheritance in court within 3

months and the legacy was inherited.

Therefore, Lee Hyun became indebted to the loan sharks for 100,000,000 won. He

afraid.

"I will repay the debt. How much is it?"

"Repay? Your words are a little short. Well, that's fine. We treasure our esteemed

customers. The money you have to pay is 3,000,000,000 won."

At the man's words, Lee Hyun's temples throbbed with rage.

"Absurd.... The money my father borrowed was clearly 100,000,000 won."

"Hey, it's been 8 years. As time goes by, interest piles up."

"Such a ridiculous thing... I'll report to the police.

5

"Report? Knock yourself out. You think the police will take your side?"

"Police are the people's cane."

"Puhahahaha."

The men laughed at Lee Hyun's words. In particular the blonde haired man, hearing

that absurdness, he put his hand on his forehead and had a good laugh. The man

standing quietly behind spoke. Considering the atmosphere, he seemed like their

leader.

"Explain to the kid straight up. Do not cause unnecessary trouble."

"Yes, Hyung-nim. I'm sorry. Well kid, listen carefully. What we are doing does not break

any laws. Because we received legitimate interest. To begin with, the interest is 50%

of the principal amount per year. Do you want me to calculate? Year 1 it increased from

100,000,000 to 150,000,000, year 2 roughly 220,000,000, year 3 it topped

330,000,000, year 4 close to almost 500,000,000."

At the calculation report, Lee Hyun felt despair. Debt increased 5 fold in just 4 years.

8 years passed, so it might have been 2,500,000,000, but the time that passed was

more than exactly 8 years so it was not wrong to say 3,000,000,000.

Lee Hyun while being harassed by the gang members did not know how much debt he

was in. Without him knowing, it acc.u.mulated to as much as 3,000,000,000.

Bankruptcy!

Others with a 3,000,000,000 debt would file bankruptcy. Even after bankruptcy you

would probably owe a few thousand won. Lee Hyun did not even consider bankruptcy.

It costs money just to file bankruptcy. The courts and legal counselors. Paying them

money and following the necessary steps, you could enter bankruptcy.

Lee Hyun could not even afford to file for bankruptcy. In fact, even if you had the

money, you can't seriously believe the vicious loan sharks would leave you alone to

file bankruptcy.

"We want 3,000,000,000."

"No, no way."

"No way? Suit yourself. If you don't want to we will come again tomorrow to collect.

At that time what you have to pay back will increase a little more, but your call."

The men dressed in black suits exuded confidence. The confidence of free will, the

confidence of power.

And also, Lee Hyun knew it was better to repay the debt if he could. In the first place

there were no other alternatives, they came knowing he had money. The men laughed

with a smirk.

"Poor grandma has been injured and hospitalized, but she sure looks comfortable in the hospital. Much like your little sister in the hallway. Such a beautiful little sister, I

bet she could be sold for quite a bit on the island...."

"Don't you dare touch Hye Yeon!"

"Relax, nothing happened, yet. Right now, we're just talking kid. But what if this family

of three was admitted to the hospital all at once. It'd be the most touching sight."

Lee Hyun could not stand the veiled threats anymore. It couldn't be helped. It would

be enough if the men left. Those unable to repay the borrowed money, in the slums he

had seen the fates of those with no money to give them. If there was a sin in the first

place, it was borrowing money from them.

Not even able to depend on the law, Lee Hyun had to surrender his bankbook. The

men received the bankbook on the spot, and pulled out 90,000,000 won in cash from

a bag. With it was the IOU for 100,000,000 won written by Lee Hyun's parents 8 years

ago. From the beginning they knew everything and came firmly prepared.

"Thank you. And sorry for your troubles."

As the men exited the hospital room, Lee Hyun yelled.

"Wait a minute!"

"Why kid? What's up?"

"Someday, I will surely make you pay for this."

"What?"

"Because the money has been paid, you guys think this is the end of things. It means

later on I will get even with you guys.

The men were about to laugh again. However, at the sight of Lee Hyun's eyes, their

laughter died before ever coming out.

A young, wild beast. The miasmic embrace of his eyes sent a chill down their spines.

"I see you still have some spirit in you. We need to teach a fearless kid like you about

the world."

The men rolled up their sleeves. But Lee Hyun was not the slightest bit scared, nor did

he shrink back.

"Enough. We have already collected the money, don't do anything unnecessary."

"But...."

"Do you really want to make a scene in a hospital?"

"Understood, Hyung-nim."

The men thundered getting out.

"And kid."

The casual leader of the men looked at Lee Hyun and gave him advice.

"I am Han Jinsup of Myongdong. Do you really your boldness will work in this

poisonous world? If you think it's unfair, make 3,000,000,000 in 5 years and look for

me. Then I will serve you as my Hyung-nim."

The loan sharks departed. Lee Hyun sat down on the ground helplessly. And at the

sound of his little sister crying in the hallway, his grandma broke into a sigh.

After being robbed to the tune of 3,000,000,000, he did not have the strength to do

anything. He was slammed by extreme emptiness. However, on the third day after

being robbed, he stood up.

There was hope. So he could not sit and hesitate. A smile casually drifted to Lee Hyun's

mouth. Amidst the tears, laughter emerged.

It was but a moment, the touching experience of a large sum of money that seemed to

enlighten him just a little about how to live in the world.

'Right. If I earned once, I can earn twice."

Lee Hyun was busy. 90,000,000 won was not taken away, but it did not mean he could

use it all. Because the house contract was already set, 50,000,000 won was set aside.

Able to cancel, but he would have to pay a penalty. He would rather die than pay the

penalty.

Ultimately, the amount that could be used was only 40,000,000 won!

All thanks to the real estate slump in the early 21st century.

Using part of the remaining money, Lee Hyun registered in martial arts halls such as

aikido, kendo and taekwondo. He placed himself on a rigorous schedule traversing to

as many as 6 places a day. As his body broke down at the various gyms, he mastered

martial arts.

The instructors there called him Wild Beast. Building his stamina, he swung his sword

all day long enough for blood to flow from his hands.

Virtual reality game!

A place where a person moves their body means you can act like in real life. Then

learning martial arts and studying about the game system a little more, would it not

be helpful?

Of course, those that learned martial arts would not be completely advantageous. But

to be stronger even at level 1, it was better to learn martial arts.

Imagine being at least 10% stronger throughout the game, the tremendous effects it

would bring. Because of that, Lee Hyun in the morning and daytime learned martial

arts, and in the evening studied about virtual reality games. Which game had the most

users, and how the game system worked was thoroughly analyzed.

For every profession, city and skill Lee Hyun made analysis tables and pinned them

onto the walls of his room. The paper records bombarded Lee Hyun's room.

1 year. Lee Hyun learned martial arts and studied virtual reality games. The time of 1

year wasn't just a preparation period, it was also used to closely observe the

development of Royal Road.

The virtual reality game at the end was as expected, Royal Road and like its name

walked the path of the emperor with serenity. Possessing more than 75% of the

world's game market share, more than 90% of Korean gamers played this game. It

could practically be called a scheduled sequence.

Especially during wars of kings, it came to a point where overwhelmed the viewership

of all other networks. The only game in the world where anybody could obtain fame,

power and money. Royal Road was the result of an ingenious system interlocking with

virtual reality.

"Great. All according to plan."

Lee Hyun's cold eyes stared at the monitor.

That day he purchased a capsule used to connect to Royal Road for 10,000,000 won.

It was expensive enough that tears seeped out, but he constantly reminded himself it

was a necessary investment. All preparations finished. It was the beginning of the

game. He felt like a soldier heading into the battlefield.

Connect to Royal Road

Yes | No

When the message came, Lee Hyun shouted without any hesitation.

"Yes!"