Chapter 12

Chapter 12

‘Okay, I’ve got a rough estimate now.’

For the first time in a while, Haejin spent some time thinking seriously.

As he scribbled ideas onto paper and mulled them over, the things that had been blurry in his mind gradually became clearer.

Today’s income: 320 million won.

Adding his existing savings brought the total to a little over 400 million.

Where and how should he invest it?

Haejin stared quietly at the list written on the paper.

‘First, option one. Drop 300 million on a house. It’s definitely the safest choice.’

Especially when he considered the Skill he had obtained recently.

[The Weight of a Landlord]

-Attack power increases in proportion to the value of properties you own.

-Leased buildings provide no effect. Only real estate you personally own is recognized.

Since Haejin was invincible on his property, the most important stat for him was naturally attack power.

And this was the crucial Skill that increased it.

‘It goes up by 1% per hundred million won, so a 300-million-won house means a 3% increase. Hmm... It’s good, but.’

Something about it felt lacking.

He had spent all this time being a Hunter on easy mode, and now suddenly he was supposed to make a sensible investment in raw stats?

It wasn’t bad, but honestly, it felt disappointing.

What was he supposed to do with a mere 3% increase in attack power?

‘Then option two. Experiment with my abilities some more.’

It would essentially be an extension of the successful shack experiment.

It was a little embarrassing to admit, but honestly, Haejin still didn’t fully understand his own abilities.

He had never even heard of a class called God-Tier Landlord before.

It was so unusual that no information about it existed anywhere.

So what else could he do? He had no choice but to experiment and learn one step at a time.

‘The biggest thing I need to know right now is exactly how far the definition of “property I own” can stretch.’

Even the crude shack he had thrown together in an empty field had been recognized as a building.

So perhaps something even more outrageous might work.

‘Honestly, the odds seem pretty low. But if it succeeds...’

Jackpot.

No, maybe today’s 320 million would end up looking like pocket change.

‘It could make winning first prize in the lottery look like nothing. Yeah.’

Having made up his mind, Haejin nodded.

Then he muttered quietly.

“Good. This is worth trying.”

He had unexpectedly made an enormous sum of 320 million won.

Rather than being satisfied with it, he planned to put it straight back to work.

* * *

The very next day.

Haejin woke up early and immediately left home.

His destination wasn’t the shack he used as a base, nor was it the Hunting City.

It was downtown Seoul, where his old semi-basement apartment was located.

Joining the crowded morning commute, Haejin headed toward the store where he had made a reservation yesterday.

‘Oh, there it is.’

[Hyunseong Rent-a-Car]

The largest rental-car company in Korea, operated by a major conglomerate.

The moment he entered, a salesman in a suit approached him.

“Welcome to Hyunseong Rent-a-Car, where we rent happiness! Is there a particular vehicle you’re looking for?”

“I made a reservation under Lee Haejin.”

“Ah, Lee Haejin... You’re the customer looking for a camper van, correct?”

“Yes, yes.”

Exactly.

There was a reason Haejin had suddenly come to a rental-car company.

He wanted to rent something other than an ordinary car.

A camper van.

‘Renting is basically similar to paying monthly rent, right? And a camper van is a vehicle designed to function like a small house you can live in.’

So what if a camper van could be recognized as real estate?

It would become an invincible fortress on wheels.

A house with legs, essentially.

“The camper van you reserved is 250,000 won per night. The minimum rental period is three days and two nights.”

“Can’t I rent it for just one day?”

“I’m sorry, sir. Other vehicles may be available for shorter periods, but camper vans have a fixed minimum rental duration.”

“Then I’ll take it for two nights.”

He might have 300 million won, but his miserly nature hadn’t disappeared.

He had wanted to rent it for just one day as cheaply as possible in case the experiment failed.

That was a little disappointing.

“Thank you! We hope you enjoy your camping trip, sir!”

For now, he rented a camper van for three days and two nights.

He twirled the key he had received as he walked outside, then climbed into the vehicle waiting in the parking lot.

“All right, let’s see?!”

Would a camper van be recognized as real estate?

Could his dream of a mobile invincible property become reality?!

Filled with anticipation, Haejin started the engine.

Vroom-!

* * *

“Ugh... Was I dreaming too big?”

He drove along in the rented camper van.

He had set The Forest Pension as his destination and was currently traveling down the highway.

‘No system message. Figures.’

Even if he had only rented it for three days and two nights, leased property was still property.

If the system recognized it, a message should have appeared immediately and updated his list of properties.

But even after driving for more than three hours and trying all sorts of things, the system remained completely silent.

The thing normally annoyed him by going ding-! ding-! all the time, yet when he actually wanted it to speak, it stayed quiet.

What a cruel system.

‘Does this mean it failed?’

He had blown an entire day and 500,000 won.

He spent a moment wondering whether he should simply accept that conclusion.

‘No. It’s too early to give up. I should try everything I can. That’s what experiments are for, right?’

While he wrestled with those thoughts, the camper van finally arrived at the pension.

Vroom-!

He passed through the large gate and drove into the yard.

Pasu, who had been peacefully napping, spotted Haejin’s vehicle and ran over wagging his tail.

Planning to rest for a moment, Haejin parked the camper van on an empty patch of land behind the pension.

-Ding!

“O-ohhh!!”

The system notification he had been waiting for finally rang brightly in his ears.

[New real estate has been discovered!]

[Would you like to register this property with the system?]

“Yes! Obviously yes!”

-Ding!

-You have acquired new real estate!

-The list of available properties has been updated!

[Owned Properties – 26]

[Leased Properties – 3]

“Nice!!”

The camper van was immediately registered as Haejin’s property.

Since it was rented, it appeared under leased properties.

‘So I was right after all!’

Haejin hadn’t attempted this experiment based on nothing but blind possibility.

The hypothesis he had formed yesterday was as follows.

First, he needed to ask a more fundamental question.

What exactly was real estate?

According to the dictionary.

[Real Estate]

[Noun]

[1. Property that cannot be moved or transported, such as land or buildings.]

Exactly.

This was the important part.

‘Property that cannot be moved or transported.’

Haejin nodded as he finally understood.

‘So to sum it up, while I’m driving the camper van, it isn’t real estate. But once I stop the vehicle and occupy a piece of land, the system recognizes it as real estate?’

To be a little more precise.

‘My ability is based on land, not buildings. Okay, now I know for sure.’

Unfortunately, it seemed difficult to perfectly realize his dream of an invincible moving property.

But he had discovered something even more important, and that was enough.

“Good. Then this... can definitely work.”

Now that he had proven his hypothesis, it was time to apply it in practice.

Haejin intended to move straight on to his next plan.

* * *

Camper vans turned out to be a far more expensive and luxurious hobby than expected.

Even camper conversions based on ordinary SUVs started at over thirty million won.

Proper models ranged from seventy million won to more than two billion.

But Haejin was a miser.

No matter how much money he had, buying a brand-new one felt like a terrible waste, so he quickly picked up the cheapest used camper van he could find.

The used price was a whopping twelve million won!

It was so cheap that he felt nervous even driving it.

And sure enough.

Rattle-rattle-rattle-rattle-rattle---

“Why does a camper van sound like a tractor? This thing isn’t going to explode, is it?!”

The moment he took the wheel, he couldn’t help laughing in disbelief.

The vehicle was beyond crappy—it was practically rotting.

If he took it to a repair shop, they would probably recommend scrapping it instead of fixing it.

‘I mean, sure, I bought it cheaply because I’m relying entirely on my Skill... but wow, isn’t this a little too much? Did the person who sold this thing actually have a conscience?’

He drove nervously while praying.

Please.

Just please.

Could it at least make it to his destination without breaking down or exploding?

Perhaps his desperate prayer reached someone.

Despite shaking violently the entire way, the camper van somehow made it there.

“Whew... I survived.”

Haejin wiped away the cold sweat that had formed and parked the camper van.

His destination wasn’t The Forest Pension.

It was a hunting ground deeper inside the Demonic Realm.

The same place where he had built the shack and hunted the Basilisk several days earlier.

‘All right. If I’m right, then if I park on ownerless land like this...’

The moment he registered the camper van as real estate again.

-Ding!

-‘My Comfortable Home’ has been activated!

A brilliant flash of light suddenly burst from the camper van.

Under the effect of the Skill, the vehicle began repairing itself instantly.

The completely peeled paint restored itself, and even the engine that had sounded ready to explode was repaired to perfect condition.

The transformation finished in the blink of an eye.

When Haejin opened his eyes again, a gleaming camper van stood before him as though it had just rolled off the production line.

“Kyaaaa! This is it!!”

The moment he saw its beautiful form, an exclamation burst from him.

How much had this model cost brand-new again? A little over sixty million won, if he remembered right.

‘I could sell it immediately and make almost fifty million in profit. This is insane!’

Wasn’t this what it meant to use an ability properly?

But Haejin wasn’t satisfied with something as ‘small’ as that.

He had long since become someone who could no longer be satisfied with merely fixing and reselling camper vans.

‘Hehehe... Good. This means the restrictions of space and distance have loosened considerably.’

It was somewhat limited, but he now had a mobile house.

So what should he do with it?

Use it to make money, obviously.

‘Let’s go. Time to get rich!’

Vroooooom--!

Unlike its earlier rattling, Haejin’s camper van roared smoothly as it sped away.