LIVING in Seoul is expensive as hell.
As Ahn Navi, she never had to worry about money— not even before the apocalypse— since she was born in a wealthy family.
And when she awakened as a Hunter during the apocalypse…
Let's just say my wealth exceeded that of the chaebols'.
Well, that was Ahn Navi.
Having said that, as Viki Young, she would say that her life was still comfortable.
The Mana Stones and other stuff in her Inventory helped her earn cash in the fastest way possible.
"Mama, Eunwoo Hyung is done with the trade."
Viki stopped daydreaming when she heard Yu Gamin's report.
She finally lifted her head and looked around.
Right, the kids and I are on the rooftop of our new house.
Yu Gamin was sitting on the floor (with a picnic blanket underneath) while his fingers were furiously typing on the laptop's keyboard…
… while using Han Nora's head as a table for the laptop.
It was Han Nora's fault for using Yu Gamin's lap as a pillow when their youngest was busy hacking all the CCTVs in the neighborhood.
The oldest is really… strange.
On the other hand, Chae Baam was staring blankly into the air.
Well, the pink-haired kid may look like he was spacing out— but he was definitely checking Do Eunwoo's movement in his Status Window.
"Mama, I received a message from PD Lim," Nam Juno, who was sitting on the sofa next to Viki— yes, they put a sofa on the rooftop— said. "He's asking if he and the other staff members could drop by at our house and—"
"Mama, Eunwoo Hyung is being attacked," Yu Gamin said in an urgent voice, accidentally cutting off Nam Yejun. "I'm sending the video to your Status Window now."
And then Viki's Status Window really popped up in front of her.
The video playing showed Do Eunwoo— in his chubby bird form— carrying a silver pouch in his red beak.
At least three Hunters— all clad in black from head to toe— were chasing Do Eunwoo, throwing daggers at the bird. The Hunters' faces were covered with masks. But their intention was clear even without knowing their identities.
There's a group of Hunters called 'Bandits' who, just like their name suggests, steal from clients of the Incognito Market.
"Han Nora, wake up."
"I'm already awake, Mama," Han Nora, who had already gotten up, said while drawing a big circle in the air using his finger. "And I'm sending Do Eunwoo home now."
The "invisible" circle that Han Nora drew in the air started to materialize.
A warp hole— with the rim glowing— had a burning violet flame swirling inside.
Yes, it was a portal.
The video that Viki was watching showed that Han Nora's Violet Warp Hole also appeared right in front of Do Eunwoo.
Hence, the round white bird with red beaks and tail sped up, flying towards the portal fast.
But then— BANG!
Viki and the kids were startled when they heard a loud gunshot— and then Do Eunwoo's left wing bled.
Oh.
My kid was shot…
"Chae Baam!"
"On it, Mama."
Viki didn't have to say anything else.
Chae Baam immediately pulled out a fancy steampunk rifle from his inventory, aiming the muzzle at the portal at the same time a pair of shooting glasses materialized on his face.
"Han Nora."
"I understand, Mama."
Han Nora clapped his hands once.
After that, a strong gust of wind pushed Do Eunwoo— still in his bird form— into the portal.
"Nam Juno."
"I got him, Mama."
Nam Juno quickly grabbed Do Eunwoo as soon as the chubby bird was "spat out" by the portal.
And then…
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Chae Baam immediately shot the Hunters.
"Don't kill them," Viki reminded her pink-haired son. "Just shoot them where it hurts the most."
"Roger, Mama."
"Yu Gamin."
"We still have one minute left, Mama," Yu Gamin answered even though Viki didn't ask a question. "I can't mess with the CCTVs longer than that if we don't want to be caught."
"Alright. Then let's wrap this up in one minute," Viki said. "Chae Baam, leave those bastards half-dead in thirty seconds. Yu Gamin, give us a signal when you're almost done hacking the CCTVs. Han Nora, bring us back inside the house before Yu Gamin ends his hacking."
Everyone answered at the same time: "Yes, Mama."
Viki immediately turned to Do Eunwoo.
The red-haired kid had already turned back into his human form— still dressed because the children could make clothes out of their Mana.
"Do Eunwoo, are you alright?"
Nam Juno, the Healer of the group, was already treating the gunshot wound on Do Eunwoo's shoulder.
It seemed like it was only a graze, but she was still worried.
Nam Juno used his
Any injury inside the
So, even if the bullet was poisoned, Nam Juno's skill will serve as an antidote.
"I'm fine, Mama. It's just a graze~" Do Eunwoo said cheerfully, and then he pulled out a briefcase from the silver pouch. Yes, the silver pouch that he carried in his beak while he was in his bird form earlier was the extension of his Inventory. "More importantly, I got our one billion won in here!"
Viki laughed out loud. "I can't believe we sold some glass coins for one billion won."
***
THE INCOGNITO Market operates quite simply.
First, you just have to download the Incognito Market App.
But only those who had a legit referral code could access the real contents of the app— otherwise, you'd just be redirected to a cheap game with lots of pop-up ads.
I got the referral code from Oh Sion.
Viki used the codename 'Alien Mom' when she made a seller account on the app.
After that, she started posting the Items that she wanted to sell.
Most of the things she posted were expensive Mana Stones that were considered pretty normal today. However, the quality of her Mana Stones was superb because they got them from S-Class and Special Grade dungeons— and only high-ranking Hunters had access to those.
But it's not like there's a way to find out which dungeon the Mana Stones came from.
That was how she made millions of won easily over the past year without getting caught.
And today…
"The glass coins from the Glass Tower are pretty, but they're the lowest form of currency from Astra," Moon Noa said. 'Astra' was the nickname they gave to Planet Astralume-023, the planet where they came from, because its full name was a mouthful. "The equivalent of one glass coin in this world— no, in this country— is only 1,000 won."
"I feel bad that I sold one glass coin each for 500 million won," Viki said, playing with some of the glass coins that she had left. "To be fair, in this world, those glass coins are more valuable than they are in Astra. The sand that they were made from doesn't exist here, after all. If the buyer has the skill or the Item to turn those glass coins into sand, then they'll have something unique in their hands."
"Even if they can't turn the glass coins into sand, they still got themselves something of high value," Nam Juno said as if he were trying to make Viki feel less guilty for scamming— er, for being greedy for money. "The glass coins are crystal clear because of the pure Mana they hold. That amount of Mana each coin contains might mean less to Astra since Mana is as natural as air back there. But that's not the case for this world. So, we should look at the value of the glass coins from this world's perspective— not Astra's."
"Oh, I get what Juno Hyung is saying," Chae Baam said, and he looked proud that he understood what they were talking about. "It's like how some currency in this world is stronger than others."
It was more complicated than that, but…
"Yes, let's just say you're correct, Baam," Viki said, nodding. "Very good."
Chae Baam smiled proudly while Nam Juno patted the pink-haired kid's head.
Moon Noa rolled his eyes at the two, but didn't say anything.
But if Do Eunwoo were here, he would have teased Chae Baam for being simple-minded.
She let Do Eunwoo rest early since the red-haired kid worked hard today.
"Anyway, now that we have the budget to open a new restaurant here in Seoul, I'll deactivate my Incognito Market account for now," Viki said, and it was a decision that she made after Do Eunwoo got hurt earlier. "Since Do Eunwoo was attacked earlier, we can assume that some people involved in the Incognito Market have noticed the precious Items we sell."
As she said earlier, it was easy to sell and buy Items in the Incognito Market because they didn't care about your identity.
But the 'trade' part was pretty dangerous.
After all, deliveries weren't allowed.
The seller and the buyer will have to meet in person in places approved by the Administrators of the Incognito Market. And the usual places they recommend are abandoned E-ZONE areas. Those places are dangerous, yes. But the security in those areas is usually lax.
Anyway, the Incognito Market would only recommend places for a meet-up— and their responsibility ended there.
You're on your own during the trade.
So, hiding one's identity was encouraged.
That was why Viki would send her kids— in their bird form— to deliver the Items she sold.
It's not strange since there are Hunters who can control animals and monsters.
"This is the first time our Incognito Market account had a billion won transaction, so we caught the Bandits' attention. That's why we should lie low for now," Viki said, clapping her hands. "Let's call it a day, since we'll be busy looking for a place for our new restaurant tomorrow."
That was the plan…
… until a VIP guest ruined it.
***
"YOU MUST be Miss Viki Young."
Oh?
Viki knew that she was bound to meet her former colleagues the moment she crossed paths with Won Yiwon.
But she didn't expect one of them would come knocking on her door.
While she was still in pajamas.
Dammit.
"I'm Hunter Cha Hyein."
Yep, the beautiful and elegant Hunter who paid Viki a surprise visit was none other than Cha Hyein— aka the Domain Goddess and…
… the cause of my inferiority complex as Ahn Navi.
"I know who you are, ma'am," Viki said, talking politely even though she was older than Cha Hyein. "But I want to know what you're doing here at my house so early in the morning."
"Then let me get straight to the point, Miss Young," Cha Hyein said bluntly while shooting Viki a cold look. "If you have any conscience, please don't send your foster siblings to Idol Chemistry."
***
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