13. I'm Quitting Now
On the bus ride home, Ryumin looked at his bankbook.
It was a new VIP account created by Nonghyup Bank.
[Balance: 15,052,102,983 won]
15 billion won.
An amount that would be more than enough to spend for a lifetime was printed in the bankbook.
Yet Ryumin's expression was indifferent, far from surprised.
'As expected, nothing beats the lottery for making money.'
He just thought he had gotten off to a good start.
'I can't be satisfied with this. I need to keep growing this money.'
That's why he firmly rejected the financial products suggested by the bank.
He had no intention of letting the money sit idle in the bank.
'I'll leave about 1 billion and invest the rest in Bitcoin.'
The cryptocurrency craze was still ongoing from last year until now.
Especially next month, Bitcoin would surge four-fold.
But that's as far as the coin's surge goes.
'After that, as the population decreases exponentially, the cryptocurrency market will fluctuate too.'
Still, Bitcoin is safe to grow until next month.
There's no reason not to invest when it will quadruple.
'Now that I'm an adult, I can open a stock account too.'
After growing the money through coins, he plans to invest in stocks.
For Ryumin, a regressor, it's not surprising information that certain stocks will surge in the future.
'Of course, I'll have to keep guessing lottery numbers in the meantime.'
Lottery winners come out every week.
Ryumin remembered the numbers for up to 5 weeks.
'There's no need to remember beyond that. The lottery market will collapse next month anyway.'
In other words, he can raise funds through the lottery four more times.
He plans to go all-in on one number each time to monopolize the prize money as much as possible, just like now.
'Of course, I might be suspected if I keep winning first place, but that's all. Well, what can they do? I just got lucky and won consecutively.'
The bank has no choice but to pay out the winnings once someone wins.
Ryumin got off the bus and entered his house.
The small house with just a narrow kitchen and a tiny room greeted him.
'We won't be living here much longer.'
Though it was the house he lived in with his parents, he had no lingering attachment as he planned to move to a much better place.
"Brother!"
His brother, who had been waiting at home, came out to greet him with a bright face.
"Did you wait quietly?"
"Of course. How about you? Did you get the prize money?"
Instead of answering, Ryumin handed over the bankbook from his pocket.
"Gasp! H-how much is this? One, ten, hundred, thousand..."
Ryuwon, who had been counting the digits, soon looked up with wide eyes.
"15... billion?"
He expected they would receive quite a lot after winning 100 games, but not to this extent.
"It was originally 22.4 billion, but this is what's left after taxes. Not much money."
"How can you be so calm, brother? You're joking in this situation? It's 15 billion! Not 1.5 million, but 15 billion!"
"Be quiet. The neighbors will hear. Well, it doesn't matter now since we're moving."
"Moving? Are we moving to a better house?"
Ryumin nodded with a smile, and Ryuwon's face lit up with joy.
"Haha! We're moving! Moving!"
"Are you that happy?"
"Of course! This place has bugs and it's cramped. Plus, it's expensive."
"True. 500,000 won monthly rent is quite expensive."
Being in Seoul, the rent was high compared to the size of the house.
Yet the reason they stayed in Seoul, attending school and being self-sufficient, was none other than:
'Because it's the house we lived in with Mom and Dad.'
Three years ago, the brothers' parents died in a car accident.
Thinking of his brother crying bitterly then still makes his heart heavy.
'It felt like we were suddenly thrown into a forest, just the two of us.'
Originally, when parents suddenly die, relatives have an obligation to protect minors until they become adults, but...
'Everyone turned their backs on us.'
At the time, Ryumin was a first-year high school student, and Ryuwon was in sixth grade of elementary school.
It was too early an age to be independent, but the brothers had no choice but to live self-sufficiently.
'That's when I started part-time jobs.'
Since his elementary school brother couldn't work part-time, Ryumin had to earn living expenses alone.
Fortunately, there was a meat restaurant owner willing to hire him as a high school student, but...
'I can't say he was a good person.'
The owner's tyranny of cutting wages and abusing his power because he was a high school student was another form of violence for Ryumin.
'Expensive rent, the meat restaurant owner's tyranny, bullying from delinquents, etc. Until now, I endured it all and lived tenaciously, but...'
Not anymore.
Now that he's an adult and has money, there's no need to endure anymore.
'I tried not to move as much as possible since it was the house we lived in with our parents, but...'
Now he could let go of his parents.
Enough time had passed through countless regressions to leave no lingering attachment.
"Won."
"Yes?"
"We're going to look for a house to move to now. Want to come along?"
"Yes! Let's go together, brother!"
Though he had already decided where to move, there was still a lot to do.
He needed to tell the landlord they were leaving, contact a real estate agent.
Visit the community center to get documents, and open a stock account.
"What should we eat for lunch while house hunting, and for dinner?"
"What kind of food?"
Ryumin raised the corner of his mouth.
"Meat."
* * *
7 PM.
At a normal meat restaurant, it should have been packed with customers at this hour, but.
"Damn it, I should either close this business or do something. What kind of shop only has flies?"
The owner's face was full of discontent.
It was because not a single customer had come in yet, despite it being peak hours.
"This is why I don't hire part-timers on weekdays. There are no customers, tsk."
It was painful to admit there were no customers in the shop, but that was the reality.
It's too tough a world for a small meat restaurant in a back alley to survive.
"I shouldn't have jumped at the low rent, damn it. To think it would only attract flies like this."
What's the use of regretting now?
He had to keep operating like this or there would be no way to make a living.
"Damn. After closing, I should at least grill some meat and drink soju alone, yeah."
Though he had many complaints, weekends were somewhat busy with customers, so he could make a living.
Plus, he hired weekend part-timers cheaply.
'Hehe, it was good to hire high school student part-timers. Perfect for taking advantage of naive kids.'
By law, even high school students should be paid minimum wage.
But the owner only paid about 80% of the minimum wage.
He cut wages using the excuse that they were high school students.
'Students should study, not work part-time jobs.'
When he strongly said to look elsewhere if they didn't like it, they took the bait.
Thanks to that, the owner had been able to take unearned income until now.
'No, come to think of it, that kid agreed to it too. He should be grateful I'm even hiring him.'
I heard he doesn't even have parents, so shouldn't he be grateful just for being given a job?
But this is the end of using that kid.
'I should fire him soon and find another part-timer.'
He's become an adult this year, so he must have grown smarter.
It would be troublesome if he complained about unpaid wages or asked for a raise.
'I should get rid of him quickly and find a pretty part-timer.'
Wouldn't sales increase more with a pretty female student than a small male student?
As he was smiling at that thought, he heard the door open.
The owner, who had been wiping tables, reflexively turned his head and smiled.
"Welcome..."
But contrary to expectations, the person who entered wasn't a customer.
"Ryumin?"
It was the high school student part-timer he had been cursing in his mind just moments ago.
The owner's expression changed instantly.
The smile disappeared from his face, replaced by an irritated expression.
"What brings you here at this hour? And who's that next to you?"
"This is my brother."
"Ah, hello."
What could they be here for on a weekday that's not even his part-time hours, with his brother?
The owner asked with a disgruntled expression.
"What's your business? If you came to work part-time together..."
"I'm quitting the part-time job now."
"What?"
The owner's face crumpled mercilessly at the unexpected announcement.
Though he was planning to fire him anyway, he felt upset that he quit first.
"How can you notify me so suddenly?"
"Suddenly? It's Monday, so you should have plenty of time to find a part-timer by the weekend, right?"
"Who said you can quit? Don't you want to make money?"
"Do I need your permission to quit?"
'This kid...'
The owner glared at Ryumin with fierce eyes.
But only for a moment.
'What's with those eyes...'
The owner was the first to back down from Ryumin's icy gaze.
"Ahem, fine, I got it. Quit if you want! Happy? Now get out!"
"I'm not done yet."
"What else?"
"You've only been paying me 80% of the minimum wage because I'm a high school student, right? You're supposed to pay the full wage."
"You agreed to that..."
"Do you have proof? When did I agree? I never knew about this."
"..."
"Plus, you made me work past 2 AM, right? Do you know that's illegal? I found out minors can't work past 10 PM."
The owner flinched and shut his mouth tightly.
His face showed that what he had been worried about had finally happened.
"No meals, no meal allowance, constant swearing, taking advantage because I'm alone, power harassment... Now that I know, you've done a lot of trashy things."
"Wh-what are you saying? A kid like you daring to speak to an adult like this...!"
"I'm also an adult now at 19 years old. If you verbally abuse me like before, I won't tolerate it anymore."
"..."
As he unexpectedly took a strong stance, the owner had no way to respond.
"So? What do you want? Do you want me to apologize for my wrongdoings?"
"Yes. I'd like to hear a sincere apology."
"You bastard... You think I'd apologize to a wet-behind-the-ears kid?"
"If you don't, well, I'll have to report you to the Labor Office. I'll also proceed with criminal charges for all the illegal acts you've committed so far."
"Ugh..."
The owner knew that what he had done was illegal.
That's why the threat of reporting was so scary.
If things went wrong, he might have to close his business due to heavy fines.
"F-fine. Just an apology is enough, right?"
"Not just any apology, but a sincere one."
'Damn this young bastard...'
His pride was hurt, but he had no other choice.
If he could prevent being reported to the Labor Office with just one apology, it would be getting off easy.
The owner lowered his head.
"Sigh... I'm sorry for everything."
"Is that all?"
"Wh-what else?"
"I don't feel any sincerity at all. Try again."
'This little...'
Swallowing his curse words, the owner pleaded again with desperation.
"I'm sorry, Ryumin. I withheld your part-time wages to save a few pennies. I'm really sorry. I'm sincerely reflecting, so please don't report me to the Labor Office."
"That sounds more like an excuse than an apology. And there's still no sincerity."
"Damn it, then what do you want...!"
For a moment, the owner couldn't control his temper but tried hard to close his mouth and swallow his anger.
"See? Looking at how you flare up, it seems you have no intention of apologizing."
"Sigh... I said I'm sorry. Isn't that enough? What exactly do you want? Would you feel better if I paid you the wages I withheld?"
"That's not it. I just wanted to hear an apology... But it seems impossible with your personality."
"Then what do you want me to do? What do you want?"
"I won't ask for the wages you withheld. Instead."
Ryumin grinned and sat at a table.
"Bring out some food. Maybe after filling my stomach, I won't feel like reporting you anymore."