Chapter 106

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 106: Times Square (3)

The tumultuous advertisement shoot finally came to an end.

The exhausted crew emerged, looking worn out.

“Thank you all so much for your hard work! It was absolutely perfect!”

Beside the director, who was giving double thumbs up, lay a pile of empty potion bottles.

As they left the set, Park Siwoo sighed, sticking out his tongue in exhaustion.

“Advertisements are no joke, huh?”

“We’re talking about 500 billion here. This level of effort is necessary.”

“Yeah, I guess so. But doesn’t it feel surreal? Just doing this and getting 500 billion… I’m not sure if it’s okay to accept this much money.”

“You’ll get used to it.”

The one who nodded in response to Kim Minwoo’s words looked at Seo Yerim.

“Big Sis.”

“Yeah?”

“What are you going to use the money for once you get it?”

“Well, first I’ll donate some to the Sword Sect… and then save the rest. It’ll come in handy when I need to buy equipment later.”

“But our guild supports all our equipment needs.”

“Even so. There’s a limit to what we can get for free. It’s difficult to find equipment that we can continue to use.”

“Yeah, that’s true. It’s tough to acquire stuff like that.”

Equipment that can be worn for a long time once put on.

Items that are difficult to obtain even with money were often referred to as luxury items.

Usually, this term referred to equipment of Legendary rank or higher.

These were often traded quietly among those in the know, or failing that, controlled by the government to prevent leakage.

You gonna sell that?

Oh, you can’t find a buyer among awakened in our country?

Then just sell it to the government at market price.

What? You won’t sell it?

Are you trying to see the country collapse or something?

Such ruthless pressure was common. The existence of Gates, a real threat, made it possible.

While usually quiet, if it were to explode once, countless victims would emerge from the structure. In such situations, good equipment could make a significant difference.

Naturally, there’s only so much control over leakage that can be exercised.

Of course, those who obtained the items could keep their mouths shut and secretly smuggle them overseas.

If successful, they could even fetch prices much higher than the standard market rate.

‘But it’s not easy.’

It’s not easy for an individual to get such equipment, and it’s usually obtained through guilds or gatherings.

Even if it’s quiet there, there’s always the risk of it being exposed after time passes.

What if that happens?

First of all, they’ll get a lot of hate from the public.

No, it’s not like the government is selling it off for cheap!

They paid the full price and are selling the nation’s security for money?

That’s the general idea.

The only exception was to put the item up for auction at the Sky Auction House.

In order to participate in this auction house, you had to register a certain number of items allocated to each country.

What if you didn’t register the item?

No invitations were sent to the related citizens.

This was actually a loss.

Their country needs archer-related items, but they only have the warrior’s items?

Wouldn’t it be more beneficial to just put it up for auction and participate in the auction to get archer-related items instead of stupidly holding onto it?

Moreover, the Sky Auction House is a stage where you can win with ‘money’.

‘Basically, it’s a structure that favors rich developed countries.’

So, even if you were caught putting items up for auction in the Sky Auction House, you wouldn’t face condemnation.

No, developed countries even encourage it.

Awakened selling expensive items in auctions with low fees was good for them.

The country could gain participation qualifications through this, and awakened buyers at the auction generously handed over money, making it a beneficial structure.

Of course, not everything could be resold. That would be impossible even in the United States.

It wasn’t just a small sum of money involved.

Think of it as items treated as “core equipment” being resold relentlessly.

‘I guess a Necromancer’s Gear would be relatively easy to ge

Since not many people use them anyway, and there are hardly any awakened who can fully utilize their equipment’s performance.

There’s not much reason for countries to scramble for them.

‘Getting gear for both a Swordsman and an Archer is going to be a problem.’

On the other hand, these two professions were among the top-tier main classes.

It’s going to cost quite a bit to acquire them.

Other countries will also be scrambling to obtain gear for mainstream professions first.

“If we go to the Sky Auction House this time, I’ll try to get gear for both Swordsman and Archer.”

“…The Sky Auction House?”

Seo Yerim asked with widened eyes.

Soon, she nodded as if understanding.

“Well, Minwoo has money and fame, so he might qualify. Maybe he’ll even get an invitation…”

“Right! With your status, you’ll definitely get invited, won’t you?”

“Well, we’ll see.”

“But can we actually get it? Our gear could be quite expensive…”

“Not all of it, but we should be able to get some.”

Awakened participants in the Sky Auction House. Their backers were their countries.

The country was a kind of organization.

As such, there were many considerations when purchasing items.

How to distribute items among different professions, how to ensure fairness, how much to spend at the auction to avoid public outcry, and so on.

You couldn’t just blindly bid in bulk for legendary items.

There were standardized price lines for each item.

If you bid above that?

Then you had to foot the bill, usually through taxes.

Naturally, people would be unhappy.

On the other hand?

They were wealthy individuals.

They could pour money into an item without anyone batting an eye.

‘Of course, spending too much could be problematic…’

In terms of mobility, this side was much more flexible.

It’s worth a shot.

‘After all, money can always be brought in.’

There are plenty of ways for dirty money to flow.

“…If you participate in the Sky Auction House, I’ll transfer all the money I received this time.”

“Me too, Minwoo. It’s not much money, but…”

“I’m still not sure if I’ll participate or not…”

It was when Kim Minwoo said that.

Suddenly, a golden ticket was handed to him.

[Achievement unlocked!]

[You have received an invitation to the Sky Auction House!]

“Huh?”

He looked at the item.

[Sky Auction House Ticket]

[Rank: Unique]

[A ticket that allows entry to the Sky Auction House.]

[Effect 1. On May 5th, you can enter the Sky Auction House.]

Seo Yerim and Park Siwoo also looked at the ticket held by Kim Minwoo with surprised eyes.

“That’s…!”

“The Sky Auction House ticket, right?!”

“Yeah. They’re giving this out already?”

It was early March.

Originally, they knew that tickets would be distributed from April onwards, so receiving an invitation almost a month earlier was unexpected.

‘Maybe it’s because of the 60 trillion investment?’

Probably because the monetary condition was fulfilled.

As for fame…

‘The ads haven’t even aired yet?’

To have fulfilled the fame condition even though the ads hadn’t aired yet.

‘Well…’

With 70 million NewTube subscribers, it couldn’t be ignored.

As for the level…

‘It’s a bit low, but I’m still a big shot, right?’

Anyway, it wasn’t bad to receive it early.

“We’ll deposit all the money we received this time.”

He looked at Seo Yerim and Park Siwoo.

Seeing the determined faces of the two as they promised to deposit 500 billion, he couldn’t help but laugh somehow.

Well…

For them, it was indeed a huge sum of money. No, honestly, it was a significant amount for the majority of Awakeners.

A total of 1 trillion won.

It was a decent amount to consider buying some good legendary items.

‘What should I exchange it for…?’

Accessories might be a bit tricky.

Sorry, but accessories are really expensive.

‘It might be good to exchange some equipment.’

Both of them currently had rare-rank equipment. If they could fit in at least one legendary-rank item, it would significantly boost their power.

Almost comparable to a Command Sword-rank power.

‘They’ve been leveling up diligently even when I’m not around.’

“Where are you going, Minwoo?”

“Oh, I think I need to go abroad for a bit.”

“Abroad?”

Minwoo nodded.

April was the period when the Super Rookie Selection Tournament was held.

If they came out on top, they’ll receive an invitation to the Sky Auction House in less than a week.

‘We don’t have much time left.’

In other words, it meant he needed to earn a lot of money this March to be able to participate in the Sky Auction House.

Since this event only happens once a year, we need to gather as much wealth as possible.

60 trillion seemed a bit lacking.

If a good accessory comes out?

Skipping by tens of millions is the norm.

‘If it’s not enough, we can always duplicate it.’

So, the plan was to go and duplicate some real money.

* * *

[(Breaking News) Ilsung Phone Ad Sweeps the World! Pre-order Exceeds 5 Million Units….]

[(Breaking News) Ilsung Phone Dominates New York Times Square!]

[(Breaking News) Cost of Money Talk Guild’s Advertisement Model, Estimated in Tens of Billions?]

[(Breaking News) All Ad Costs Already Withdrawn! Ilsung, A Joyful Scream!]

— Whoa, this is crazy. The price of the new Ilsung Phone increased by 50% compared to the previous version, but what’s with the pre-order volume? Isn’t this price range like that of an Apple phone?

— Nowadays, all Ilsung products are becoming premium. Seems like they’re aiming for a premium status even with their phones. Apple’s leaving plenty for them to chew on, haha.

— But it’s selling like hotcakes, haha.

— Yeah, the ad was quite catchy. Even the rugged design has changed a bit. And that skull emblem on the back seems to be a big hit. They’re already giving it nicknames overseas.

— Nicknames?

— Skeleton Phone, haha. Shortened to Skelephone, they say?

— They’re also ramping up the features. There are even aspects better than an Apple phone, haha.

— Wasn’t it considered good if pre-order volumes exceeded 1 million units? What’s with starting at 5 million? Kim Minwoo Syndrome, seriously.

— Park Siwoo and Seo Yerim also made some money, right? The ad was impressive, haha.

— Don’t you know that Merhen Snow is famous? Ignorant Black Bear?

— Yeah, for real. The magic community in the U.S. is buzzing right now, haha. Single-handedly drawing all the aggro, haha.

— Yeah, but what if it boils over~? It’s a fact that you can’t do magic, haha.

— Don’t you feel anything when you see a Dragon Summon? It’s just on a different level, haha.

— For real, haha.

— A mage? Kim Minwoo cut through all the summoners, haha.

— Looking at it like this, it’s really magnificent. Even the Troublemaker Channel subscribers are seeing ads and exceeding 100 million. Is it really Kim Minwoo’s era coming?

— 100 million, haha. Twice the population of Kimchi Soup, haha.

— (Real Scary Story) Now I’m a newbie who’s been awakened for three months, haha.

— Three months? Isn’t that like 30 years? Seriously crazy, haha.

— We’re living in Kim Minwoo’s era…

— But what about the Money Talks Guild? Isn’t leveling up the priority?

— Park Siwoo and Seo Yerim used to go through the gates alone. But where did Kim Minwoo go?

— Is he running another hidden gate again?

At that moment.

One breaking news came to mind.

[(Breaking News) Kim Minwoo, Overseas Departure? Destination reported as Saudi Arabia!]

— Huh?

— Saudi?

— Why suddenly head to an oil country?

— Who knows?

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]