Chapter 3 A miserable morning (3)
"What did you just say?" the old man asked, slightly surprised.
Ken sighed.
"Do you accept bank transfers?"
He wasn't interested in the book. He just wanted to make a symbolic gesture, like the final nail in the coffin of his life.
After this purchase, he would officially be broke. No more money. No more roof over his head. Just a homeless man wandering the streets.
The old man, who had been frozen for a moment, suddenly broke into a radiant smile for his age and slowly stood up.
Then, as he walked away, he said,
"He accepts all forms of payment."
He?
Ken raised an eyebrow.
Why was this old man referring to himself in the third person?
Even worse, he was leaving without even taking the money, leaving the book in Ken's hands.
Ken wanted to say something, but... he was exhausted. Too tired to react. He simply watched the man walk away... until he disappeared into the shadows.
He didn't even take my payment… This isn't theft, right?
Night had already fallen, and Ken was still there, sitting on his bench, suitcase next to him, a book on his lap...
...and his stomach growling as his only company.
Whatever. Let's see what kind of scam this old man tried to sell me.
He opened the book casually.
It was a novel. A short story, judging by the number of pages.
Ten minutes... Thirty minutes... An hour passed.
Ken, initially uninterested, was now absorbed.
The story was pretty standard:
A man, born into an immensely rich family, ruins the family business due to his incompetence.
His life falls into hell.
Why am I so captivated by this…?
(A/N: Maybe because you've caused as much trouble as him, right?)
Ken strangely identified with the protagonist...
He kept reading, intensely, until his eyes widened.
What the hell is this?!
The story had just taken a weird turn.
As the protagonist was on the brink of despair, a blue interface appeared in front of him.
On it, it read:
[Choose your personal skill, Divine Aspirant.]
For a fan of webnovels or webtoons, this might've seemed normal.
But for Ken, who had never read that kind of story... it was just incomprehensible.
He kept reading anyway... until the book had another surprise in store for him.
— Ha…
Ken let out a small, bitter grin.
I really got scammed.
There was now a strange passage in the book:
[ Dear reader, if you were the hero, what would you have chosen? Say it, from where you are. ]
The next five pages were filled with skill names.
— Chef — Master Pianist — Finance Expert — ...
What is this nonsense?!
Ken sighed deeply and quickly flipped through the pages, trying to get back to the story.
But it was impossible.
All the pages were filled with this list of skills.
A choice had to be made.
— Pfft… Since we're here… might as well play along.
He scanned the list.
— Hmm… If I had to choose a skill… hmm…
— Ant Trainer? Does that even exist?
(A/N: Of course it doesn't... Right? Right?)
— CQC? Hmm… that sounds familiar... Wait, I'll search it on Google.
He pulled out his phone and opened the search engine…
...then froze.
His eyes widened.
His breath caught.
He had just received a message…
[ Your account has been charged 900 yen.
New balance: 100¥. ]
Message time: 8:32 PM.
Two minutes after the old man left him.
He replayed the scene in his head.
They never made a transfer.
Yet, the money had disappeared.
A chill ran down his spine.
Then, he remembered the old man's last words.
— "He accepts all forms of payment."
Holy shit…
— This day is unreal... It's a dream, right?
A nervous smile crept across his face.
— Feels more like a nightmare…
He gave one last glance at his phone.
— Why doesn't the recipient's name even show up? A bug...? Whatever.
He returned to the book and refocused.
— Well… since I'm already here… might as well play along until the end.
This time, he seriously skimmed through the list.
— Hmm… CQC… Ah! I remember!
He quickly typed on his phone.
The CQC (Close Quarters Combat) method is a close-combat fighting system designed to be effective in real-life situations, particularly for military forces and special units.
— Wow…
He then remembered a Korean movie he loved.
— What was it called again? Oh yeah… Beneficial Evil.
The combat scenes of the MC were amazing.
He also remembered Nora, who was obsessed with the main actor.
— She was more obsessed with the actor than the character…
A bitter smile crossed his face.
…Let's not think about it.
He took a deep breath.
Then, aloud, he said:
— "Well… if I could perform these moves in real life, that would be cool. I'll go with… 'CQC Expert.'"
...
Meanwhile, in a black van...
— "Man, don't you think we're lucky?"
The man sitting in the passenger seat spoke to his accomplice, who was driving.
— "What are you talking about?"
— "I thought we were going to come back empty-handed… but the heavens smiled on us."
— "Are you dumb or what? We're still in trouble."
— "Look to the left."
The driver slowed down.
On a bench, a man sitting alone in the dark.
They exchanged a smile like a crescent moon.
— "Remind me to go to church after this job."
...
Back to Ken.
As soon as he made his choice, his vision blurred.
His exhaustion became unbearable.
Then, he heard a robotic voice:
[ Permanent privilege 'CQC Expert' granted.
End of free trial. ]
— What the…
He passed out.
At that moment, the black van slowly approached the spot…