Chapter 2: Money is good, right?

“Thank you!”

Kim Chun-sik smiled brightly and shook the jingling leather pouch.

In an instant, Kim Chun-sik had a whopping 50 silver.

Without delay, Kim Chun-sik rushed to the commercial district and entered a tailor shop.

“Shoo. Get out. You stink.”

As soon as he entered the tailor shop, he was treated quite contemptuously, but Kim Chun-sik didn’t care at all.

On the contrary, he thought that this was a natural reaction, and silently shook the leather pouch and walked in confidently.

“Welcome!”

As a rather heavy metallic sound echoed, the clerk quickly changed his mask like a Bian Lian performer.

Indeed, he was a talent suited to the early capitalist era where only the strong survive.

Kim Chun-sik, receiving human treatment for the first time in a long time, personally experienced the power of money.

“Wide collar, two buttons, and tapered pants.”
“You’re a customer who knows a thing or two.”

Ah, this is it.

After waiting a bit, a suit that fit Kim Chun-sik’s frame perfectly was completed. It was possible because he was small.

Kim Chun-sik, throwing off the grimy dress, put on the finished suit, and felt as comfortable as if he had put on another soul.

Of course, the dress that had been so helpful until now shouted “Fck, fck” at the fact that it had become firewood 1 from today, but what could it do? It had to do what its owner told it to do.

“Please come again~.”

The tailor shop clerk, picking up the firewood that used to be a dress with his index finger and thumb, saw Kim Chun-sik off.

Kim Chun-sik’s appearance as he burst out of the tailor shop was quite a sight.

If you saw him for the first time, you might mistake him for the daughter of the emerging power of Bruneu, which is opposed to the noble and magical faction of Nobilla, as he was neat, and his outstanding appearance, except for his slightly dirty eyes and dark circles, added to the plausibility.

If you saw him for the first time, that is.

“Let’s go to the… no, the frontier village.”

Kim Chun-sik, realizing that he couldn’t do anything here because of his already widely known face, stopped a passing carriage, gave the driver some of the money he had left, and got on the carriage.

The frontier village, which he arrived at after a full week, was truly a frontier village.

There were many empty spaces here and there, giving the impression of desolation, but it was a strange place where the expectation that new buildings would soon be built also coexisted.

Originally, the military police, who were hell-bent on robbing anything, should have been guarding the entrance, but in the frontier village, the population was a valuable resource, so the entrance to the frontier village was completely empty.

It was truly an American… no, a pioneer dream. It seemed to be saying, “Whether you’re an orphan or a criminal, just come in and do whatever you want.”

It was a perfect place for Kim Chun-sik. Kim Chun-sik came with nothing but two balls (none), with no status, no connections, and no property.

Kim Chun-sik headed to the largest and most complete building in the frontier village, the restaurant, to fill his hungry stomach.

He passed under the swing door, which is a regular in Western movies, and sat down at a large walnut-oiled table to order.

“This, that, and this.”
“Yes.”

The owner of the restaurant was quite taciturn.

It was long before the catchphrase “The customer is king!” appeared, so Kitty waited quietly for her meal, thinking that was how it was.

“Here you are.”
“Wow.”

Fish and chips and roast beef that looked crispy at a glance. And tartar sauce for a refreshing finish filled the table.

“Delicious!”
“Oh dear…”

Over Kim Chun-sik’s table, where he was eating ravenously, the restaurant owner, with a pitiful expression, placed a plate he hadn’t ordered and quietly looked at Kim Chun-sik.

Kim Chun-sik looked at the plate he hadn’t ordered with suspicious eyes.

“…?”
“It’s on the house.”
“…Thag you.”

Kim Chun-sik politely declined the restaurant owner’s favor.

From Kim Chun-sik’s point of view, it was natural. He didn’t trust people basically, thinking that people can have dinner not because of the restaurant owner’s charity, but because of their desire to pursue profits.

He said it was on the house, but wouldn’t he secretly add it to the bill later?

“It’s amazing for someone so young…”
The restaurant owner, who was already sitting at the opposite table, clicked his tongue while watching Kim Chun-sik absorb the food.

These days, the meaning of a child walking around alone in the city of Belk was various, but nine out of ten meant a war orphan.

Now his face was a mess because he was ravenously putting food in his mouth, but when he first entered the restaurant, he looked like some kind of aristocrat. His clothes were plausible, adding certainty to the suspicion.

It certainly looked like he was from the Bruneu faction, which had recently begun to rise rapidly. It was a pity, there was nothing harder than suddenly having the bottom fall out after living well.

“What… what is it?”

Kim Chun-sik, reading the restaurant owner’s deep gaze, subtly showed the pouch attached to his waist as if he was embarrassed. He seemed to feel that he was being suspected of having the ability to pay for the food.

When he took out the pouch and raised it, the restaurant owner nodded.

The thought changed to certainty because of Kim Chun-sik’s actions.

The Bruneu class never tries to bear debt because of their unique pride. And that pouch was probably an inheritance that he barely found in the ashes.

It must be the only medium that connects his parents and himself. Nevertheless, he looked quite admirable for trying not to cause trouble.

Since it seemed obvious that he would put it on the table and leave even if he didn’t accept it, the restaurant owner sighed and took out 1 silver from the pouch.

“? Why are you only taking 1 silver?”
“You even know how to calculate. Is it obvious?”

The restaurant owner took 1 silver from the pouch and put in 5 coppers, and took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth with a heavy heart.

Kim Chun-sik stopped eating and looked at the thing moving back and forth on the restaurant owner’s lips.

“That’s…!”

Before he died, Kim Chun-sik was a pathetic person who was pushed around here and there in graduate school.

He had people he could call friends, but because he couldn’t meet them often, what soothed his devastated heart was always alcohol and cigarettes, the only drugs allowed by the state.

But Kim Chun-sik was a terrible drunk. As much as he couldn’t drink alcohol, he used all the stress that piled up on cigarettes.

That’s right! Kim Chun-sik was an incorrigible heavy smoker.

He had been so distracted these days that he had forgotten about it. But now that he saw that, his hands and feet suddenly trembled, and his body lost strength.

Kim Chun-sik fell into serious withdrawal symptoms and worry. Should he smoke that again or not?

Suddenly, he remembered the old days.

Lunch on the day he finished army training camp. The other recruits took what their friends or family gave them for granted and smoked after the meal, and he had the same worry as now.

He had been forced to quit smoking for 7 weeks in training camp, so he couldn’t resist the temptation and smoked again, but it wasn’t like that now.

Kim Chun-sik, who had quit smoking for free for a few days, would be able to do it! He’s starting under better conditions, so what’s so difficult?

I’m not an animal living by instinct, but a human with reason and will! If you can’t stand just one cigarette, are you even human? You’re a dog who eats poop.

I’m a dog who eats poop! I’m a dog who eats poop!

Kim Chun-sik’s resolution was shattered the moment he directly inhaled the smoke exhaled by the restaurant owner into his nostrils.

What Kim Chun-sik is sucking and sucking on now is a pure 100% original without a gay-like filter.

Unlike modern ones, it didn’t contain any additives, so it had a deep and rich taste, and the impact felt like a hurricane roll hitting his uvula.

As the repressed desire burst out like a flood, Kim Chun-sik, who defined himself as a dog, showed off his heavy smoker skills without reservation.

Turtle ship, waterwheel, big donut, small donut, heart shape, although I don’t know how to do it.

The restaurant owner stares at the donuts popping out of that small lung as if possessed.

“How do you do that?”
“Should I tell you?”

He just asked out of curiosity. The restaurant owner didn’t really want to know how to do it.

But after seeing that innocent expression that seemed so happy, he couldn’t easily say no.

Whether he knew it or not, Kim Chun-sik’s smile deepened in the illusion that he had made a smoker friend.

“Watch closely. You purse your lips like this…”
“It’s a bit vulgar… Wouldn’t your parents say anything?”

The restaurant owner cautiously brought up the topic of parents.

“Huh? I don’t have parents.”
“I’m… sorry.”

The restaurant owner unintentionally used the motherless.

He tries to say anything to make up for his mistake.

“You’re quite mature. People your age don’t even look at it because it’s bitter.”
“You don’t have to worry, it’s true. By the way, this is really delicious! It smells like chocolate…”

The restaurant owner, who had perfectly confirmed the kill, just closed his mouth and nodded.

Perhaps he was the person who obtained the valuable lesson of “Speech is silver, silence is gold” at the cheapest price in the world?

Whether or not, Kim Chun-sik was diligently satisfying the lung hunger that he had been starving for.

Basically, smoking cigarettes doesn’t make you happy. It’s because you can’t smoke that you’re unhappy.

Since he easily patches up unhappiness with lumps of tar, dopamine is explosively secreted in the brain, and as an antagonistic effect, nerve-inhibiting substances are also explosively secreted.

Even though his mind is in his mid-20s, the brain of this body has never been exposed to nicotine, so it’s still soft.

The brain, surprised by the first dopamine bomb, secretes more nerve-inhibiting substances than dopamine.

The remaining nerve-inhibiting substances wander between neurons, causing lethargy, emptiness, and exhaustion.

As the fire went out, Kim Chun-sik entered the greatest wise man time of his life.

‘Wow. Fly. Big fly. How the hell can flies stick to the ceiling?’

Kim Chun-sik thought while looking at the fly stuck to the ceiling.

‘What kind of tree is that on the ceiling? The food here is delicious. It’s like the nursery director made it for me. I was the only one who got scolded back then because I couldn’t memorize the multiplication table.’

Usually, only such useless thoughts come to mind.

‘9×1=9… 9×2=18… Ah, it reminds me of the old days? The nursery was so small that I studied in the restaurant… wait, study?’

“Owner! Can I talk to you for a moment? You won’t lose anything!”

As befitting the name wise man, during wise man time, creative ideas pop out one after another.

The school here, that is, the academy, is open to anyone, but only the upper class can enter due to the exorbitant tuition fees.

Of course, it’s not that there was no talk of public schools in this era of enlightenment.

However, the concept of public schools was still vague, and the academy cartels were frequently frustrated because they would freak out even if the “public” character of public schools came out, fearing that they would lose student share.

For this reason, as in the old Joseon, writing was the exclusive property of some high-ranking officials and certain classes here.

So, what I came up with was writing class. Regardless of East or West, education makes money.

“Data preparation ok, candy ok, curriculum ok, and…”

Kim Chun-sik, standing in front of the mirror, checks his clothes. Today is a very important day as it is the first lecture.

The dress he was wearing was friendly and comfortable, but this place requires authority rather than friendliness.

Since clothing is the first thing that forms the first impression of the object among the visible characteristics, it must look as dignified as possible.

Wide collar, two buttons, and tapered pants.

Finally, when he tied the tie to the end of his neck, it felt like he had put on another soul. This is comfortable after all.

The preparations were complete, and Kim Chun-sik slowly went down the stairs.

Thump- Thump-

It would have been better if there was the sound of shoe heels, but unfortunately, because of his light weight, the sound on the wooden floor was quite cute.

“Hello. Welcome to this lecture!”

Kim Chun-sik in a black suit greets energetically and brightly.

The restaurant owner… is he the only one?

I expected it, but it hurts a little when I face it.

But I can’t just do it half-heartedly.

That person is a kind of priming water. If I teach well and he learns well, word of mouth will spread and the number of students will increase.

Then shall we do it?

“Let’s begin!”