Cold wind moved lightly across the rooftop.
Fang held the phone against his ear silently.
Static noise continued for a few seconds before the rough male voice spoke again.
"Chung Soo."
Fang's eyes remained calm.
"We need to talk about your debt."
Memories from Chung Soo's life surfaced immediately.
Illegal lenders.
Interest.
Threats.
Pathetic life.
Fang leaned against the rooftop railing casually.
"How much?"
The man laughed coldly from the other side.
"You forgot already?"
Fang stayed silent.
The man continued,
"One million yuan."
Yuan!! Isn't it China's currency, and actually, how much is this amount
Even Fang paused slightly this time.
Hm..the item I brought today was 700, so it seems this amount was big
"...That idiot borrowed this much?"
The caller became confused.
"What?"
Fang rubbed his forehead slowly.
This body's previous owner truly was trash beyond imagination.
One million.
The caller's voice became colder.
"Listen carefully. The boss already gave you many chances."
Fang looked down toward Gangbak city lights calmly.
"When is the deadline?"
"Three weeks."
"No."
Silence.
The man frowned from the other side.
"...What?"
"Three months."
The rooftop atmosphere became quiet.
Then, sudden laughter came through the phone.
"You think you can negotiate now?"
"I wasn't asking."
The man's tone instantly became dangerous.
"Do you want us to visit your apartment again?"
Fang's eyes slowly narrowed.
Dangerous words.
Very dangerous words.
His voice became colder for the first time.
"Try it."
Silence.
Even through the phone
The caller suddenly felt strange pressure.
Like talking to a completely different person.
Not drunk, Chung Soo.
Not desperate, Chung Soo.
Something else.
The man frowned heavily.
"...What's wrong with you lately?"
Fang ignored the question completely.
"Three months."
The caller clicked tongue angrily.
"You better not run away."
"I won't."
"You have my word?"
Fang looked toward the night sky calmly.
"...I don't break promises."
The call ended.
Fang lowered the phone slowly.
One million yuan.
Annoying.
He originally planned to escape this mess after stabilizing Seo Yuna and Noah slightly.
But now
Debt tied him down, too.
Fang sighed quietly.
Civilian life truly was exhausting.
No enemies to kill.
Instead, people suffocated each other with money.
Pathetic system.
Then suddenly
"BREAK TIME OVER!"
The manager's loud voice echoed from downstairs.
Fang calmly placed the phone back into his pocket and returned downstairs.
The storage floor again became busy immediately.
Workers moved around tiredly.
Some complained.
Some yawned.
Only Fang still looked emotionless.
Min Jae approached while stretching.
"Brother, you seriously don't get tired?"
"Hm."
"...What does that even mean?"
Fang ignored him again and grabbed another box.
Min Jae sighed dramatically.
"One day I'll understand your species."
"How much is 1 million Yuan? means what can you buy from it?"
"1 million Yuan is a very big amount for people like us - you can buy a good car or apartment, or live 2 years unemployed with normal expenses."
"Why did you ask? Did you have a loan or something?"
"No, just asking."
Hours passed quietly afterward.
4:52 AM.
Final inventory checks started.
Everyone looked exhausted beyond salvation.
Except Fang.
The manager walked through the storage floor holding a clipboard.
Then suddenly stopped near aisle seven.
His eyes slowly widened.
Everything was perfectly organized.
Cleaner than the morning staff usually managed.
The manager looked genuinely surprised.
The manager checked another aisle.
Then another.
All organized perfectly.
No mistakes.
No mixed products.
Nothing.
Even experienced workers rarely maintained this level.
The manager stared at Fang strangely.
This man truly worked like a machine.
Meanwhile, Min Jae whispered nearby,
"I think he's secretly a Terminator."
One worker laughed tiredly.
"I think so too."
The manager suddenly cleared his throat.
"Chung Soo."
Fang looked up.
"You worked before in logistics?"
"No."
"...Military?"
"No."
The manager became even more confused.
Then, after a brief silence
"Hm."
He took out an envelope from the clipboard.
"Good work today."
Fang looked at the envelope.
"What's this?"
"Bonus."
Several workers instantly became shocked.
"WHAT?!"
"On the first day?!"
The manager ignored them.
"Night staff have been struggling for months. You alone finished the work of almost three people."
Min Jae immediately looked betrayed.
"Boss! What about my hard work?!"
"You spent thirty minutes crying on boxes earlier."
"...Fair."
The workers burst laughing.
Meanwhile, Fang opened the envelope calmly.
Inside was extra cash.
Useful.
The manager continued,
"And from tomorrow, you will supervise the inventory section during the night shift."
Silence.
The workers became stunned again.
"Promotion too?!"
"Crazy."
Even Fang looked slightly confused.
"...Already?"
The manager rubbed his forehead tiredly.
"I don't care about seniority if someone actually works properly."
Then he looked seriously at Fang.
"Just don't suddenly disappear after a few days."
Fang silently stared at the money.
Then casually answered,
"I won't."
For some reason
The manager believed him immediately.
Meanwhile, Min Jae looked emotional suddenly.
"Brother... buy us food someday after becoming rich."
Fang glanced sideways.
"You think this makes people rich?"
"...Good point."
Morning finally arrived.
Workers slowly left the building one after another.
Outside
Cold early morning air filled the streets.
Fang walked calmly through waking Seoul city while holding a small paper bag.
Inside it
10,000 yuan.
Not much.
But enough to stabilize the apartment temporarily.
Fang looked toward sunrise silently.
In his previous life, money came through killing.
Fast.
Simple.
Now he spent the entire night carrying boxes for this amount.
Humiliating.
Yet strangely
Not unpleasant.
No blood smell.
No corpses.
Just work.
As Fang walked through the apartment complex entrance
Several early-rising neighbors noticed him immediately.
Their expressions turned shocked.
Chung Soo...
coming home from work?
One old man even checked the time suspiciously.
"...Miracle."
Fang ignored everyone and entered the elevator.
Fifth floor.
The apartment remained quiet when he entered.
Seo Yuna and Noah still slept together near the bedroom wall.
Looks like they waited too long before sleeping.
Fang quietly removed his shoes and walked toward the kitchen.
Then stopped.
A small sticky note sat on the table.
Ugly handwriting.
"Food in fridge. Heat before eating."
Fang stared silently for a few seconds.
"..."
Noah probably wrote it.
Or tried to.
Strange feeling again.
Annoying feeling.
Fang heated leftover food quietly.
Simple meal.
Still warm enough.
After eating, he washed dishes automatically.
Then walked toward the bedroom door silently.
Seo Yuna looked exhausted even during sleep.
Noah hugged her tightly again.
Fang looked at them briefly.
Then casually placed 9,000 yuan on the nearby table.
Only keeping 1,000 for himself.
These Yuan Notes are also very different from the Chinese notes from last time.
He turned around toward the guest room.
But suddenly
"Where did you get that money?"
Seo Yuna's tired voice echoed quietly.
Fang stopped.
She had woken up already.
Her eyes immediately locked onto a thick stack of cash.
Fear.
Suspicion.
Confusion.
All appeared instantly again.
Fang answered calmly.
"Work."
Seo Yuna slowly sat up.
"No normal part-time job gives this much money in one night."
Reasonable suspicion.
Fang looked toward her.
"Bonus."
"What kind of bonus?!"
"The manager liked me."
Seo Yuna became speechless.
Noah slowly woke up too from the voices.
Her sleepy eyes widened immediately, seeing Fang at home.
"Dad..."
Fang glanced toward her.
"Hm."
Noah rubbed eyes cutely.
"You came back..."
"...Obviously."
Seo Yuna ignored them completely.
Her attention remained on money.
Her voice slowly became nervous again.
"...You didn't do something illegal again, right?"
Fang looked genuinely offended this time.
"I carried boxes all night."
"That still doesn't explain this much money!"
Fang sighed softly.
"This country's labor system surprisingly rewards competence."
Seo Yuna stared blankly.
What kind of answer was that?
Fang walked toward guest room calmly.
"Use money carefully."
Seo Yuna clenched fingers slightly.
"Wait."
Fang stopped near doorway.
"...What."
For few seconds, Seo Yuna stayed silent.
Then quietly asked,
"Why are you giving almost all of it to me?"
The apartment became still.
Fang answered without hesitation.
"You're managing house."
"...What about you?"
"I don't need much."
Simple answer.
Too simple.
Seo Yuna looked at his back silently.
This man truly spoke like someone who never cared about money itself.
Completely different from old Chung Soo who stole even Noah's allowance.
Fang finally entered guest room.
Then casually threw final sentence before closing door.
"And buy proper food. Both of you look half dead."
Click.
The door closed.
Seo Yuna remained sitting silently.
9,000 yuan rested on table before her.
Real money.
Earned honestly.
For family expenses.
Not alcohol.
Not gambling.
Not debt.
For the first time in years
Chung Soo brought money home instead of taking it away.
Noah looked toward the closed guest room innocently.
"...Dad worked hard."
Seo Yuna slowly lowered her eyes toward the money again.
Her chest suddenly felt strangely heavy.
Because deep inside
A terrifying thought had quietly started appearing.
What if...
Was this change actually real?