I received USD 500.000 as a reward.
Maybe for some millionaires, it was pocket change. But for me, it was enough to make my hands shake.
I was thinking about how I should spend my earnings from the lottery... No. I mean reward for catching a criminal, but I thought I should buy a house before anything else.
I was starting to get tired of living in a tiny room with Katrin.
Now that I think about it more carefully.
The first time I saw Katrin was ten years ago. Back then, she was around 8 years old.
But now that 10 years had passed, she had become an adult.
Even though she was still a little kid to me, I felt she should have her own private room.
After all, Katrin was at a crossroads in her life.
No. I shouldn't think like this. It isn't like I'm her father or anything.
Not only am I not married, but I also don't have a girlfriend.
The truth is that the most urgent thing is equipment. Even if I'm good at close-range combat, there's a limit to how well you can fight in real life without having any equipment.
Think about it. It doesn't matter how good I am at putting nails in the wall. It will always be more effective to use a hammer rather than something like a stone.
It's also more comfortable.
The main point here is that equipment is indeed very important. But, equipment pieces for hunters are too expensive.
A normal armor made of steel doesn't cost that much money. You could also order one that was okay for use in dungeons.
But, once the armor had some fancy material like titanium mixed in it, the price went up.
Weapons that had a Magic Stone in them were even more expensive.
The main ingredients for ether weapons were magic stones. Then, because this had to be mixed with other ingredients, the price increased even further.
On top of that, magic stones of high purity were extremely expensive. What I want to say here is that it is out of my reach.
'Well, once I enter a guild, I'll probably be able to buy one.'
First, I need to buy whatever gear I can. Even low-class ones.
After all, he still had the two-handed sword that was gifted to him by the orc champion the other day.
Anyway, I went to a real estate agency.
Although it wasn't enough to buy a nice house, I had decided to buy one for USD 300.000.
But there was one thing that bothered me.
Young man, I'm giving you a good price for this house. It really is a bargain. "
"Excuse me. I'm just wondering. Do you know who I am? "
"Huh? Have you visited us previously? "
"No."
"Because of my old age, I tend to forget things."
It was the first time we saw each other, so there was no way he would know me.
But the strange thing was that everything was too quiet.
I had awakened. Not only that, I was able to catch a famous villain. I also had the record of having the most inventory.
I had done a lot of things that should've been news material. I thought South Korea would be covered by the news about me. But nothing of that had happened.
'Well, it's not that I was expecting to become famous after catching one villain.'
After closing the deal, I searched for my name on the search engines.
-Lee HyunBin
The only news available was about a famous person with the same name who had admitted to dating someone.
-Anyang Amusement Park Dungeon
The only news that appeared mentioned that a villain named "The Salaryman" had been captured at the Anyang Amusement Park by a hunter.
It didn't even say my name.
If it were going to be like this, why did the reporters ask me so many questions? What a useless bunch of guys.
Even though it was a shame, I had nothing to worry about. After all, I'm eventually going to get fame and recognition.
Even people from the TooShin Guild are trying to scout me.
If the news that I'm about to dual-awaken was spread, I would probably be able to get more money for signing off with a guild.
No. Since I'm starting from zero, I should try to get to the top once more.
I was the strongest. If I'm going to start again from the bottom, I should try to reach as high as possible.
'I should buy Katrin some food.'
Since she watches the news, she already knows that I've received a reward.
Then she'd probably demand that I buy her some food. What an arrogant child.
She's trying to live off the fact that she's helped me in the other world by giving me a place to stay, food, and some equipment.
'Last time I ordered Jajangmyeon and Tangsuyuk, she really liked it. So that should be okay, right? '
While living as a ruler in the other world, she probably got to eat a lot of different delicious foods. But the fact that she was just eating noodle-based foods saddened him a little bit.
After all, she came to this era because of me.
Well, I've received a lot of money, and my income will probably keep growing. So I shouldn't worry about every single penny spent.
The only explanation I could think of was that she had found some gold while walking on the streets.
At my question, Katrin acted as if she were crying.
"I sold items."
"What items?"
"The items of the game I was playing, of course."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. But wait, what kind of game item is so expensive?
"You really seemed to like that game. Why did you suddenly sell your items?"
"I'm considering quitting that game. I think I won't need to play anymore."
Well done. You're spending too many hours gaming. Despite your pretty face, now you look like a panda.
Even though she is very pretty, her dark circles have worsened because of video games.
"You've officially become a hunter, right? I've heard that the only equipment you have is a sword that you've taken from an orc. You're the only person I know in this world. So I don't want you to get hurt."
Even though she's a video game addict, she's also very sweet, kind, and intelligent.
I was moved by it. It's not because she bought expensive items for me. Her feelings are what moved me. Yeah, her feelings.
"I never knew your highness was thinking about me so deeply. If there's anything else you wish to eat, please tell me. "
"Hmm... I really want to eat chop suey."
"Understood."
Wait, how does she know what a chop suey is? Oh well, who cares? I ordered chop suey and kkanpunggi.
Is this why they say that it's worth raising a child?
I called the Chinese food restaurant from which I had ordered food. As soon as I ordered more food and finished paying, a number I'd never heard of called.
"Mister, there's something I haven't told you..."
"Hello?"
Katrin was about to say something when I answered the phone call.
I beckoned Karin to wait a minute. She nodded while smiling.
"Am I talking with Mr. Lee HyunBin?"
"Yes. May I know who I am talking with? "
"Hello. I'm Kim Minjeong from the gate control department. Since you've saved many lives and done something that serves as a role model for others, we wanted to award you an 'Order of Military Merit.' "
"An award?"
I had never received any kind of award, even when I was still in school.
An 'Order of Military Merit?' Once I receive this, I'm entitled to a privileged pension. Right? Also, I get to take a picture with an important person.
"Yes, you will need to have a previous meeting with the director. Are you okay with that?"
"Yes I am."
"I'll send you a message later with the time and place for the meeting. If you happen to be busy at that time, you just need to send me a message with the time."
"Okay, thanks."
As soon as I ended the call, Katrin happily clapped.
"Wow! Are you going to receive an award? Nice! When you were in our world, you never received any kind of distinction. "
The other world, huh? It was full of betrayal and revenge.
"So, what did you want to tell me?"
"Hmmm? Oh, it's nothing important. "
"You're not going to ask me for more food, right?"
"No, it's nothing. Really. Don't worry."
Your face is full of doubts. It seems like it's something that you've been struggling with for a while. It's all written in your face.
"Just tell me. You're eventually going to do it, so why not do it now? "
Katrin remained silent. After thinking about it for a while, she carefully opened her mouth.
"Mister. To tell you the truth, I've awakened. "
"Awaken?"
"Yes..."
What is she talking about? The only thing she's done is stayed indoors while gaming.
"Did you awaken as a food-eating god? How much more are you planning to eat? Oh my god. "
"No!"
"No!"
"Don't imitate me!"
"Don't imitate me!"
Katrin frowned at her fine eyebrows as if they were a piece of paper. First, I should listen to her story.
"Okay, understood. What did you awaken as? "
Since she's a person from another world, her awakening isn't something unreasonable. The probability of awakening increases if you frequent the dungeon, but some people are awakened in normal residential areas.
"It says level 1, Lord..."