The next morning, I told Mom everything.
When I finished, her eyes widened in disbelief.
"ByteReserve Coin? What even is that?"
"It's a kind of cryptocurrency. Only exists online."
"So, like… game money?"
"Honestly, yeah. That's probably the easiest way to think about it."
The 100,000 won I received back in middle school had ballooned into 13.6 billion won. Of that, 1.24 billion was mine.
A hundred-thousand-fold return—absurd. But still just a tenth of what Taejin made.
The difference? His character was high-level. Mine was barely leveled up. If I'd known the future, I might've ground out XP instead of homework.
Now that we had real money, the first thing on the list: get out of that moldy semi-basement.
The air was damp year-round. The walls stained. The place was bad for our lungs—especially Mom's, with that cough she couldn't shake.
I suggested we go big, find a proper home.
Mom, ever cautious, shook her head.
"Don't spend wildly just because you came into money overnight."
We compromised.
After checking a few listings, we settled on a modest two-room villa. ₩120 million deposit. A bit aged, but recently renovated. Fresh wallpaper. Clean flooring. Good light.
On moving day, we didn't even hire movers. We didn't have enough stuff to bother. One van did the job.
After unloading, I helped Mom unpack.
"You like it?" I asked.
She smiled as sunlight streamed through the wide window.
"Of course. Two rooms and real sun? This is more than I imagined."
I could've spent three times more. But her happiness said enough.
While opening a small box, Mom froze.
Inside: an old photo frame, a dusty album, a worn notebook.
Almost everything of Dad's had been tossed over the years. Small places leave no room for memories.
This box… was what she couldn't bring herself to throw away.
She picked up the frame.
It was us—taken in front of our old two-story house. Dad on one side, Mom on the other. Me grinning in the middle.
Dad built that house with his own hands. It was their dream—to live in a standalone home. That was before I was born. That house held everything.
Mom stared at the photo in silence.
"You think about him sometimes?" I asked.
She nodded, smiling faintly.
"Of course. He went through so much. If he were still here… he'd finally get to rest."
I looked at Dad's face again. So young. A little unfamiliar.
After a long moment, Mom stood and forced a cheerful tone.
"I should finish tidying up. You go set up your room."
"Alright."
The cleaning didn't take long—there wasn't much to clean. With so little furniture, the house felt larger than it was.
A table, a bed, a fridge, a washer—all still needed to be bought.
Mom tried to insist she'd go back to work soon.
"You don't have to," I told her. "Take three months off. Please."
After a few tries, she gave in.
"Okay, son. I'll rest for a bit."
Even after buying the house, I had ₩375 million in the bank—though ₩100 million would likely go to taxes.
Another ₩740 million was still pending from Taejin.
Technically, we could coast for decades.
Still, the ease of it… bothered me.
Was it supposed to be this easy to make money?
I handed Mom a bankbook with ₩100 million in it.
"This is for you. Use it however you want."
"I don't need this. I've saved enough."
"Well, I do need it to go to you. So take it."
She eventually nodded, her fingers tightening around the cover.
Just then, Taejin walked in with a pack of toilet paper and detergent in each arm.
"I'm here, Mrs. Li!"
Mom beamed.
"Oh, Taejin! You came!"
She treated him like a second son. Even while I was in the military, he visited on holidays and birthdays.
"Have you eaten?" she asked.
"Nope. I'm holding out for jjajangmyeon—moving day rules."
He looked around.
"Anything left to help with?"
I grunted.
"You could've come earlier."
"Hey, I came for food, not lifting boxes."
We went into my room. No desk yet, so we sat on the floor. Mom came in briefly to drop off a plate of sliced fruit.
I stabbed an apple with a fork and said, "Did you see the news? Pinnacle Vault is officially gone."
Taejin nodded.
"It's a mess. Chaos, really."
Pinnacle Vault—once the largest BRC exchange—was gone.
Losses were estimated in the hundreds of billions, maybe over ₩1 trillion. In theory, the exchange should compensate users.
But how could it? No way they had the capital.
Bankruptcy proceedings started fast.
"So what about all those people?"
"Wiped out," Taejin said. "Just gone."
If it had been a bank, the government would step in. But this wasn't regulated. No oversight. No safety net.
That's the gamble of cryptocurrency.
Taejin told me smaller hacks had happened before, but never like this.
This was the largest crypto hack in BRC's history. No confirmed culprit. Rumors blamed Anonymous or even IS-linked cyber groups.
BRC dropped hard. From $1,120 per coin to under $800 overnight.
News headlines poured in:
Pinnacle Vault Collapse Shakes Investor Confidence
ByteReserve Coin: Future of Finance or Just a Bubble?
Experts Warn of Crypto Fragility After Historic Hack
Some financial analysts predicted BRC would soon be worthless.
"Looks like it'll be cut in half again," Taejin said.
Didn't matter to him. He'd sold everything before the collapse.
He looked at me, frowning.
"You sure you didn't know?"
"Know what?"
"That this would happen."
"It was just a hunch."
"Come on, man. You don't just stumble into that. In my opinion…"
He paused.
"…I think you've got a superpower."
"Here we go."
He ignored me.
"A crisis hit, and BAM. Your ability awakens. That's how superheroes are born."
"You're an idiot."
"I'm serious."
Then he perked up.
"I've got it! Let's call it the Oracle Eye."
"No."
"It's perfect."
"Absolutely not."
Tirling!
His phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen—then went pale.
He answered.
"Uh—when did you get here? Now? No, I wasn't avoiding… Okay, okay. Yeah. Got it."
He hung up, looking wrecked.
I raised an eyebrow.
"Who was that?"
He swallowed hard.
"…Elena."
"Elena Rowe? Your sister?"
He nodded slowly.
Elena, Taejin's ten-years-older sister, was a high-powered exec at Golden Gate, an American investment bank.
Thanks to her, Taejin had managed to set up OTK Corp in Keora Cay, a Caribbean tax haven.
"So why the panic?"
"She's here. In Korea. And I have to meet her. Now."
Elena usually worked in Hong Kong and rarely visited. Growing up, Taejin was always terrified of her. Strict. Uncompromising.
He grabbed my shoulder.
"Come with me."
"Why would I do that?"
"Because she's terrifying. But she likes you. You're like a mini prodigy to her."
"I'm not—"
"She went to K University too, remember?"
He had a point. I'd last seen her before I enlisted.
"Alright. I'll come."
Taejin blinked, surprised.
"You will?"
I got up and threw on my coat.
"Yeah. Let's go."
I turned to Mom as I headed out.
"I'll be out for a bit with Taejin."
She looked up from the kitchen.
"What about dinner?"
"We might be late. Eat without us."