전생검신 84권 4화

A loan, you say?

I was caught off guard by Lee Hwan-woong’s words.

“Are you talking about a loan… like borrowing money? Why…?”

Lee Hwan-woong blinked at me as if he couldn’t understand why I asked.

“Why, you ask? If the seed money is small, the speed of making money is slow, right? To earn a ton of money, like you said, Baek Woong, it’s better to take a loan and speed up the money-making process.”

“But when you borrow money, don’t you have to pay interest, no matter what?”

“Exactly.”

“T-That… isn’t that super risky? Are you sure this is okay…?”

I couldn’t help but feel super worried. I mean, the Zhuge Clan had this notorious method of forcing massive loan sharks to cause their enemies to self-destruct. Having seen them obliterate even [Old Ruler] using that method, I couldn’t help but fear loan sharks.

Then Lee Hwan-woong said,

“First, we should figure out what the interest is. I believe that [Power of Commerce] has had a loan feature from the start?”

“Oh.”

Thinking about it, I remembered asking about the possibility of loans when we were first testing out the Power of Commerce, thanks to a suggestion from the Thief Gang. Lee Hwan-woong must have learned about it while I was explaining.

‘When I was at Merchant Level 10, it allowed up to 50,000 units with an interest rate of 70% per day…’

I directly asked Daegwi,

“Daegwi! If I take out a loan now, what’s the max amount and interest rate I can get?”

Daegwi seemed to pause for a second, like he was deep in thought, then replied,

[As a level 3 front demon with high trustworthiness, the max is 12 billion units with an interest rate of 5% per year.]

“Oooh?!”

I was shocked by his answer. The lending conditions were ridiculously generous!

I mean, 12 billion units? That was way more than the 9 billion units I needed to lift the curse from my arm before!

Hearing this, Lee Hwan-woong questioned Daegwi,

“One more thing. Is the exclusive currency created from the combination of the Trimurti and the Power of Commerce treated the same as 1 unit?”

[That’s correct. One coin equals one unit. You can convert units into coins.]

“Alright. It’s like a stable concept. Good to know.”

After some thought, Lee Hwan-woong continued,

“That’s pretty reasonable. It’s exactly the level of a reliable customer loan from a top financial institution. Plus, it’s a level that even the creator, Chi You, hasn’t reached, so lending over 10 billion units is…?”

“Can I borrow 12 billion then?”

“Baek Woong, if you borrowed the full 12 billion, the interest you need to pay in a year would be 600 million units. Can you really hunt demon beasts or spirits in this era to make up for that 600 million?”

I thought back to the times I hunted demon beasts.

‘Even after taking down dozens of dragons, I only got 15 million…’

So, I’d need to catch over a thousand high-tier demon beasts just to cover 600 million?! But the black dragon I faced was a mythic-level being back in the Ming Dynasty; finding and killing over a thousand like it would be nearly impossible. Even in the chaotic mythological age, there are limits. And trying to hunt anything beyond that would mean facing powerful beings above the [Old Ruler] level, which would be extremely risky and difficult.

Finishing my calculations, I let out a sigh.

“… It seems really tough. 600 million is too much.”

“Right. The ‘labor income’ mentioned earlier can’t cover the interest at maximum loan amounts. In the end, we need to play the money game, generating capital income with money.”

Lee Hwan-woong flashed a smug grin as he added,

“And remember, when you sold all those treasures to raise to level 3, you became broke. You can’t rely on treasure sales anymore.”

“…”

Ugh… that’s right… Evolving the Golden Egg from Golden Crow Island and selling it all left me with nothing!

While I was licking my lips in dissatisfaction, Lee Hwan-woong said,

“Don’t worry. Earning over 5% return per year is a piece of cake. Just trust me.”

“Why are you so confident? Are you really good at that thing called stocks?”

With a hint of anxiety, I shot that question at him, and he grinned mischievously.

“Hehe. My investment returns from stocks I tried in my early teens were 52,500% over 5 years. In that era and world, no one could touch me in the stock market.”

“…?!”

“I cleaned up, left and right.”

What, that sounds pretty impressive?

“Considering that I didn’t even dominate the rules at that time, if you dive into it knowing the rules like you do, you’ll definitely do even better. But only….”

“Only?”

Lee Hwan-woong crossed his arms, looking concerned.

“There’s one rule to keep in mind. The limit value is 99.9 billion.”

“Why the limit value?”

“You felt it when you sold the Golden Egg before, right? The value of that Golden Egg could have been multiple times higher than 99.9 billion. But regardless of how high that amount is, once you hit the limit, that’s it. Even if we earned 999.9 billion, we can only acquire one exclusive currency, not ten.”

“…!!”

I finally understood Lee Hwan-woong’s words. I then said,

“So, even if I earn a ton from stocks, I could end up with only one exclusive currency?”

“Exactly.”

“Then can’t I just earn nearly 999.9 billion and spend it in ten installments of 99.9 billion?”

“… No, that’s a flawed premise. No matter how much you earn from stocks, your balance can’t exceed 99.9 billion. That’s the concept.”

“Ah.”

“Hmm, then let’s do this.”

Lee Hwan-woong continued,

“When we acquire the next exclusive currency, let’s use it up as well. We’ll use that to maximize the limit value.”

“Wait, so it’s tough to even reach 99.9 billion once, and now you’re saying I need to do it multiples times? That’s a lot to ask…?”

I looked at Lee Hwan-woong in disbelief as he smirked.

“Trust me a little, will ya? I may not be Mangnyang or Zhuge, but I’ve got some chops when it comes to this money game.”

“…”

“One more thing. We should check out the new privileges we got when we hit level 3 front demon. Daegwi, explain it again.”

When Lee Hwan-woong turned to Daegwi and requested, Daegwi began detailing the updates.

[Now you can trade ‘Portrait Ability’, ‘Soul’, ‘Constellation’, ‘Star’, ‘Galaxy Energy’, ‘Law’, and ‘Dimension’.]

[You can now use units to cancel contracts.]

[From now on, in assessing money units, you’ll use ‘round up’ rather than ‘discard’.]

[Now you can convert money into ‘souls’.]

[When forming a merchant association from now on, you’ll receive additional bonuses based on the scale of the association.]

[From now on, the beginner bonus will be nullified, and you’ll have an obligation to pay ‘taxes’ to the Void Record.]

Once the mechanical explanation finished, Lee Hwan-woong said as if he had expected this.

“Baek Woong, you do know that the trading tax you pay to the Void Record is 20%, right?”

“Ah…!! That’s right.”

“So, what’s your first priority now?”

“…”

“You should get this right. It’s about forming an association!”

“Hmm… I guess I need it to get that added stat boost.”

Finally grasping this, I noticed Lee Hwan-woong shaking his head.

“No, it’s about establishing your very own corporation.”

I went blank at his words.

“Huh? Corporation? Isn’t that basically the same as an association?”

“It’s not! There’s a huge difference between being a listed company in the stock market and not. If you form an association under the primitive Power of Commerce system, it’ll just boost your stats, but if it’s an association that’s a corporation, it allows for double gains. Or possibly even more…”

“…?”

“Let me lay it out simply. First, you borrow a full 12 billion units and invest that capital to set up your own corporation. After that, you’ll recruit investors from all over the world. You’ll use their investments to expand your size much easier. Just that much should easily get you about 20 billion.”

I couldn’t help but stare at Lee Hwan-woong, totally bewildered.

“Global investors? Humans are practically cavemen right now…”

“I’m not talking about actual human investors. What’s different between now and when you lived during the Ming Dynasty? The thing that overflows the world is deities.”

“…!! No way!”

“Exactly that way.”

Lee Hwan-woong continued with a mischievous grin.

“We’re talking about investing from the hundreds or so gods currently on Earth, whether they be Ancient Gods or [Old Ruler] types! They’re literally Great Beings, so they’ll definitely have huge sums to invest in you!”

“…”

I stood there, dumbfounded, my mouth agape.

‘Wait, getting investments from gods? By creating a corporation?’

I was completely flabbergasted, as this was a concept I had never considered before. It felt more confusing and complicated than hearing strategies from other masterminds. As my head was spinning, Lee Hwan-woong said,

“Don’t you see? At the level of a level 3 front demon, you can trade all sorts of intangible powers. So, if you get constellations from ancient gods or stars from the old rulers located in far-off galaxies… you can directly convert those into your units.”

“Hmm…!!”

That’s right! Gradually, I began grasping what Lee Hwan-woong was saying, and it left me quite fascinated.

“Got it. So, shall we set up a corporation then… Daegwi! Create a corporation!”

Daegwi, who had been listening, answered promptly.

[To create a corporation, you need stocks, capital, and signatures from ten initial shareholders excluding the founder. Please meet the requirements.]

“Eh?”

What does that even mean?

Then Lee Hwan-woong chimed in, “The necessary capital would be covered by borrowing 12 billion, and you should go through the process of issuing stocks first. Then, you need ten people who will fully commit their souls to you.”

I flinched at that.

“You mean… if something goes wrong with the corporation, those ten people might die?!”

“Worse than that! If it’s just death, you could bail them out from the Underworld right away. Since it’s a power connected to the Void Record, their souls might be completely annihilated in the cycle of cause and effect.”

“…!!”

Just how severe would that consequence be?!

I felt an inexplicable weight on my conscience crashing down on me. Lee Hwan-woong then added in a serious tone, one I’d never heard from him before.

“So, choose those ten wisely. If even one betrays you, you won’t be able to escape devastating repercussions.”

“Ten people…”

“First, let’s get this 12 billion loan and start the stock issuance. I’ll bet we could issue 120 million shares at a rate of one share for one unit.”

“Understood.”

Whoosh!

I proceeded as Lee Hwan-woong instructed. After I requested Daegwi to complete the stock issuance stage, I gathered all the people from Takrok Village.

Once I explained how things would progress, I calmly said,

“… So now we need to choose the ten initial shareholders.”

The room fell into a thick silence.

It was a silence more awkward than serious, and eventually, a representative from the Thief Gang raised his hand.

“My lord.”

“Yes, Thief Gang. Speak up.”

In a bashful tone, the Thief Gang said, “Honestly, I have no idea what a corporation is… To be more blunt, I don’t even understand what exactly you’re trying to do.”

“…”

I barely held back an urge to say “Me too!” I was none the wiser on what this whole corporation thing was about either. It seemed perfectly reasonable that someone who had lived for thousands of years like the Thief Gang wouldn’t grasp it, given how surreal this was for everyone in Takrok Village.

As I was stuck stuttering, the Thief Gang added, “But still, my lord, you are the one destined to dominate this era and truly embody the traits of a king. Knowing you’ve already surpassed Chi You, if this is your path, I, the Thief Gang, am ready to stake my soul alongside you!”

With that declaration, the Thief Gang stepped forward and quickly signed the paper sitting on the desk. I was startled by the bold move.

“Hey! Are you sure you heard the explanation correctly? If this goes wrong, you could end up not only dead but completely obliterated!”

“I’m not worried. Ever since I was juggling worlds, I’ve pretty much been dead already, but I owe my life to you, my lord!”

Boom!

The Thief Gang knelt before me and performed a martial salute.

“I’ll trust that I’ll return to my original world with you. So I will offer my life!”

“…!!”

In that moment, I nearly got emotional.

‘Damn it…’

In truth, I didn’t have much loyalty or particularly like the Thief Gang. We just ended up in a lord-servant relationship through some scuffles, and I held some contempt toward the Eight Parts of the Divine, so we were already on shaky ground. However, witnessing such a deep tribute in this unfamiliar world struck a chord in my heart. To even pledge his very soul made it impossible for me to treat him lightly.

I nodded and said, “We’ll definitely go together. You all… we need to look after the people of Soeul Village as well.”

“Haha! It will surely come to pass.”

The Thief Gang burst into loud laughter.

Next came Yeolsan.

“Baek Woong! No matter what anyone says, you’re the chief of Takrok Village right now!”

I was taken aback by that comment.

“Huh?! Why would I be the chief?!”

“Since the original chief, Yuso, went missing, I was just the interim chief. But now that you’ve brought the young girl here, it should naturally fall onto you as the chief.”

“…”

“In my eyes, there is no other benefactor like you! If you lead our Takrok Village, I will surely follow your command!”

Swoosh.

With that, Yeolsan, without hesitation, signed the document. Then Sang Ah sighed heavily from the side.

“Ha… I really have no idea what’s going on, but I hope everything works out.”

“Dude. If you don’t understand, it’s not really a good idea to sign. You don’t have to feel pressured to do it.”

I tried to dissuade Sang Ah, but she shook her head.

“Regardless of everything else, I know you’ve worked hard for us. Besides, you brought Qingyang back to life. I owe it to you to repay that kindness.”

“…”

Swoosh.

Then Subori and Dongfang Sak also signed without a word. Once five signatures were gathered, Heuk Woong, who was standing next to me, said, [Master! Let me try signing too.]

Swoosh.

[It’s possible.]

“…”

Seeing that, I got a tangle of thoughts.

‘Heuk Woong being able to join as an initial shareholder? Isn’t that kind of significant?’

But I didn’t quite grasp what it meant.

After a brief moment, Lee Hwan-woong also signed, muttering to himself as he looked at the document.

“Now we just need to get Yuso, Cheongyang, and Shim Su-ryeok to sign. Let’s go find Yuso.”

“Do you know where my sister is?”

“I’ve got the Dao (刀) she gave me. If I infuse it with divine power and follow the trace, I can find where the original owner is.”

“Oh!”

“She likely meant for you to ask for her and called you over right from the start. Now, let’s go.”

“…”

“Why?”

I cautiously glanced at the young girl nearby and asked, “Can’t we get her signature?”

It felt weird not to include her, especially when she was visibly present. Lee Hwan-woong said as if I’d asked something ridiculous.

“We’re ignoring her because there’s a high chance she could use her infinite powers as the initial shareholder to ruin you.”

“…!!”

No way! This dude just said that in front of her…!

Lee Hwan-woong didn’t care about my alarm, throwing it out casually, regarded it as an obvious fact, which shocked me, but the young girl gave a knowing nod.

“Perhaps that’s true. Being an initial shareholder requires immense trust, and your level of power is irrelevant.”

“…I’m not doubting you’ll betray me or anything.”

“It’s fine.”

The girl gave a lonely smile.

“Maybe we could become foes later on.”

“…”

I told Lee Hwan-woong, “Let’s go.”

Whoosh!

I followed the flow of divine energy through the Dao and simultaneously teleported to Yuso. When I arrived, Yuso was sitting below a waterfall, while Cheongyang was meditating in a cross-legged position on a cliff.

Whoosh—

The giant warrior, Yuso, was gulping down drinks without even looking my way and said,

“You’re here.”

“It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, my bad for taking you down earlier.”

“…”

It’s kind of the first time hearing someone say sorry for killing someone…

I stood there with a puzzled face as Yuso continued, “I thought you were just some punk who didn’t know right from wrong, but the warrior’s belief you showed back then was remarkable. I truly respect you as a warrior.”

Hearing such unexpected praise from Yuso made me feel a bit awkward as I replied, “I’m still a rookie compared to you.”

“No need to be modest. Few martial artists across the universe reach your current level…”

“…”

“And the one who received my Dao (刀) better not act too humble.”

As he downed more drinks, Yuso said,

“You’re a new face. Is that human your companion?”

“Yes. This is Lee Hwan-woong.”

“…”

Yuso finally turned his gaze and studied Lee Hwan-woong closely. After a moment, he remarked,

“He’s not from this era, is he? Must be another rule-breaking type like you.”