ICTU 02

Chapter 2

I Got 30,000 Coins Through a Second-Hand Transaction 

Chapter 1. I Got 30,000 Bitcoins Through a Second-Hand Transaction (2)

He felt unbelievably happy.

But.

He could not simply be happy.

Because, to begin with, these were not Choi Hyuk’s Bitcoins.

“Can I really…… use this?”

Of course, he could not.

There was someone else who originally owned the hard drive.

He never wanted to get involved with that strange-looking man again.

Even so, Choi Hyuk took the hard drive containing the wallet file with 30,000 Bitcoins and went to the PC café he had visited earlier.

But.

“……Huh?”

Choi Hyuk could not believe his eyes.

There had definitely been a PC café on the fourth floor of this building.

“There’s…… nothing?”

It was even an empty space.

Choi Hyuk went to a nearby real estate agency.

“Sir! Sorry, but you know the building next door?”

“Oh, are you here to look at the building? As a matter of fact, it’s empty right now, so even the owner has been wondering what to do with it.”

“Yes! The building next door! On the fourth floor, wasn’t there a PC café with a sign until today?”

“Huh? What are you talking about? That place has been empty since the beginning of this year.”

“……”

It was impossible to believe.

Just a few hours ago, Choi Hyuk had personally completed a second-hand transaction there.

But it turned out that no one had been there at all.

Had he been tricked by a ghost?

Or was the real estate agent lying?

No matter how he looked at it, the agent did not seem to be lying.

At that moment, Choi Hyuk remembered what the man wearing the traditional hat had said.

From now on, his misfortune would end and his happiness would begin.

‘Could it be……? Did he give this to me on purpose because he knew?’

The real estate agent tilted his head and asked,

“Why? Is there some kind of problem?”

“……No. It’s nothing.”

His footsteps were weak as he returned home.

Even after that, Choi Hyuk asked around in an attempt to find the man wearing the traditional hat.

But.

He found nothing.

‘At this point…… I’ve tried hard enough, right?’

He had desperately tried to find the owner and return the hard drive.

But all he got in return were strange looks.

Even when he asked the nearby residents, they said there had never been a PC café there.

In the end, there was only one conclusion Choi Hyuk could reach.

A gift from the heavens.

It was an unbelievable story.

‘But for now, this is probably the most likely explanation.’

Even at this moment, he still could not believe it.

Unlike the cold metal of the heavy hard drive, it somehow even felt warm in his hands.

Inside it were numbers that would now change his entire life.

30,048.42219 BTC.

After taking a deep breath, he converted a certain amount into cash and transferred it to his bank account.

‘About…… 5 billion won? No. Taxes!’

It was less than one percent of the total amount.

But 5 billion won was more than enough to erase all the terrible moments he had experienced until now in an instant.

A few days later.

The moment his bank notification rang, he ran outside.

[Deposit: +5,000,000,000 won]

He stared at the screen of his phone and then sat down against the wall.

It felt as if something he had been holding down for a long time was about to burst out all at once.

“……Father’s hospital bills, Mom’s nursing home fees, overdue rent, credit card bills……”

Then, suddenly, he smiled quietly.

“Yeah. Now I can finally live like a proper person.”

Being able to properly enjoy the blessings you are given is also a kind of ability.

At first, it might have been nothing more than an accident and good luck.

But from now on, he had to turn this luck into an opportunity of his own.

This was entirely.

Up to Choi Hyuk, and his own hands.

Even so, Choi Hyuk was not very worried.

There was a reason.

‘If I have money in the trillions of won, even if I fail at some business, I can try hundreds of times.’

It made him incredibly happy to know that even if he failed many times, he had so much money that he could afford it.

The stairs of the one-room apartment building were filled with the musty smell of old cement.

It was a smell he had encountered for years whenever he climbed those stairs.

But today, it felt different.

As always, the old landlady stuck her head out through the window.

“You’re home early these days. Last time, you always came home late because you said you worked overtime. Did you move to some good company?”

“I didn’t change jobs. But something really good did happen to me.”

“Really?”

“Yes. So I’m going to pay all my overdue rent today.”

“Oh, it’s okay. You can pay me slowly. It’s not like I’m going to starve to death tomorrow. People who are having a hard time should be helped.”

Choi Hyuk was always grateful for her warm heart.

And he was always sorry, too.

He handed her an envelope.

“No. I should settle everything.”

The old woman opened the envelope, and her eyes widened.

It contained six months of rent at once.

“Oh my, why did you put so much in here all at once……? But the amount seems like it’s too much.”

“I added some interest.”

He had put in twice the original amount.

The old woman shook her head and held the envelope back out to Choi Hyuk.

“No! Don’t give me more! Take it back! I’m not taking it.”

“I told you earlier. Something good happened to me.”

“……Don’t tell me you’re thinking about killing yourself. Don’t do that.”

Since he had suddenly changed so much in one day, the old woman seemed to have gotten a bad feeling.

Choi Hyuk laughed loudly once.

“I won the lottery. So I can’t die now.”

“My goodness! Really?”

“Yes.”

“Congratulations! You’ve suffered so much. Finally, things are going your way!”

“Exactly.”

If Choi Hyuk told her that he had bought a hard drive from a strange man wearing a traditional hat at a PC café, and that the hard drive contained Bitcoins worth more than 3 trillion won, would she really understand?

Choi Hyuk was certain that she would never understand.

So, to make it easier for her to understand, he used winning the lottery as an excuse.

Just as he expected, the old woman held his hand and sincerely congratulated him.

“And this, too. I didn’t want to cause you any trouble all this time. But you always looked after me.”

He handed her a paper bag.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a set of premium Korean beef, 1++ grade.”

“No, why would you give me something this expensive? Wait. You said you won the lottery. I suppose I can accept it?”

“Of course. When your son’s family visits later, please grill it and enjoy it with them.”

The old woman was silent for a moment.

Then she waved her arms and said,

“Good grief, you’re overdoing it just because you got some money……. Still, thank you. Thank you.”

Choi Hyuk slightly bowed his head.

“I’m going to prepare to move out now, too. Thank you for everything.”

The old woman looked at him for a long time before quietly saying,

“Yeah. When you get money, you should move into a good house. In our country, you know, it’s all about real estate. Real estate. Live happily. And come visit sometimes whenever you think of me. This old lady will make you something delicious.”

For a moment, Choi Hyuk felt a lump in his throat.

He had paid back his rent.

Now it was time to repay something else.

For the first time in a long while, Choi Hyuk sat side by side with three of his friends.

“Hey, Choi Hyuk. Your face looks a lot brighter these days.”

“Yeah, I think so, too.”

“You punk. You kept avoiding us because you borrowed money from us and felt awkward about meeting us. Looks like you’ve had a really hard time.”

Choi Hyuk said with a startled expression,

“Was it that obvious?”

“Of course it was, idiot!”

“Hey, it wasn’t that much money. So don’t worry about it, and from now on, come out right away whenever we call you. Okay?”

“Exactly. You have to listen to your creditors. We’ll buy the drinks.”

At his friends’ words, Choi Hyuk gave a bitter smile and placed three paper envelopes on the table.

“What are these?”

“Open them.”

Inside each envelope was twice the amount of money he had borrowed from each of his friends.

“Hey, you crazy bastard……!”

“Did you win the lottery or something?”

“Hey, I’m not joking. Seriously, why are you doing this?”

Choi Hyuk raised his glass.

“I have to pay you back.”

“No, I told you, you don’t have to pay it back. When a friend asks me to lend them money, I originally give it to them without expecting to get it back.”

“I have to pay it back. That way, I can earn the right to properly stand at the starting line again.”

Choi Hyuk emptied his glass in an instant and said firmly to his friends,

“I’m starting over now. Honestly, if it weren’t for you guys, I wouldn’t have been able to make it this far. Thank you. Really.”

His friends could not say anything for a moment.

“……Hyuk.”

“You’re really okay, right?”

“You didn’t get mixed up in something strange, did you?”

They had the exact same worries as the old landlady.

Choi Hyuk grinned and told them that nothing like that had happened.

“I had some Bitcoin that I bought a long time ago. I recently found it, and it made me some money.”

“What? Really?”

“How much? Huh?”

He had no intention of revealing everything.

He decided to reveal only a tiny part.

“About 5 billion won in total.”

His friends’ mouths dropped open.

“This crazy bastard!”

“Wow, one big hit really changed your life.”

“Take back what you said earlier. You’re buying the drinks today, okay?”

Choi Hyuk nodded as if it were obvious.

After emptying his glass once again.

One of his friends asked him,

“So. What are you going to do with that money?”

“Well…… it’s obvious.”

Choi Hyuk grinned and said,

“I’m going to make even more money with it.”

The more money you have, the better.