The Novel’s Villain

10. A Leisurely Afternoon (1)

There was a saying that a completely bankrupt friend had told Jin-woo before.

‘Don’t do business or anything. Don’t even buy stocks.’

‘Why?’

‘Just don’t do it!’

That friend was born with a silver spoon, but he went bankrupt. Seeing that, Jin-woo vowed to live as a salaryman for the rest of his life. Even if he thought about it cold-mindedly, he was in a position that he shouldn’t even try to run a small business, let alone be a businessman. He didn’t have the guts for it. He was a poor office worker who only wanted to raise his salary by about 200,000 won.

However, Jin-woo was running a business now: the JW Gate and G&P. JW Gate originally belonged to him, but G&P was a company that Jin-woo established himself. It was made to build Waste stacks, but even though it was about that, the amount of capital he spent was only so-so. Still, so-so in terms of Lee Jin-woo’s standards was an astronomical level of investment from a general point of view.

He stuffed huge amounts of capital into the Waste stacks. Still, he had to match the assortment first, so he had to pick someone through Yoo-na and put him in. He was a person who had been kicked out of a large corporation, and Jin-woo immediately agreed upon hearing the story. As long as he was kicked out, he was likely to build the Waste stacks faithfully.

A huge Waste stacks company with the name G&P was founded! However, contrary to Jin-woo’s expectations, strangely, the Waste stack didn’t accumulate much at all until the day before his confrontation with the Emperor of Greed. The Future Strategy Office, which Jin-woo recognized as his secretary office, and G&P, created to build the Waste stacks, did a great job. It was so good that he wondered how they could do it that well.

The Future Strategy Office and G&P showed fantastic chemistry. While Jin-woo didn’t show his face, the G&P briefly presented the achievements of the discovery, and the Future Strategy Office carried media press poured out many articles, and even large banners were displayed on large portal sites. G&P began to appear on public TV as well as on Internet ads with a short commercial.

It started with a scene where a rookie actor was sweating profusely while running around the Han River. He bent down to his waist and took a deep breath before raising his head.

[It’s okay to take a break.]

[After all, your story begins now. We will do it together. G&P]

The commercial ended as the rookie actor smiled and started running slowly again. There were many evaluations that it was okay to leave a big impression with that calm atmosphere. The sudden rise of G&P was heating various Internet communities as it was called the dream workplace. However, recently, it even hit the jackpot of the century’s discovery, making it incomparable to ordinary companies.

As if it was aiming for that timing, the s were added as the finishing touch.

Title: A Common Company in Korea

Do you remember me? I was the one that you said was the best at doing miserable jobs last year. As you said, I quit right away and left my job about a year ago. A manager who quit his previous job first told me to come, so I went and wanted to know what it was.

I went there, but I had an interview at a cafe LOL. I honestly believed in the manager, but I thought it was multi-level. The manager also got a lot of loans, so he lived a very tight life. For a moment, I thought I might be sold somewhere.

I just completed my interview comfortably while drinking a latte. The interviewer was like the man next door. We talked a little bit about my portfolio, and then we talked about this and that. The interviewer was a good smooth-talker. He somehow felt like a scammer. I must have been brainwashed into something.

But I kept talking to him, LOL.

He said he liked me and wanted to negotiate the salary, so I just said whatever I got in mind because he seemed like a scammer. I used to work for about 2500, so I just asked for 3,000. Then he said that he couldn’t give it to me because of company regulations. So I told him to give me however much he wanted, but he smiled and said the minimum was twice as much for a recruit.

Doesn’t that sound like a scammer? I felt like I was going to lose my organs. That’s why I was very keen on it.

Me: By the way, where is your company? Why were you interviewing at a cafe?

Interviewer: The building is still under renovations, and we just moved in today, so it’s a mess. This cafe will also be taken over soon.

Me: Hahaha, no, this is Tomstom Coffee though, taken over?

Interviewer: Lol. I’m speechless, too.

Doesn’t it just look like a scammer? But I became close with the interviewer, and we even drank together. So, I decided to just trust him and go to work. Before going to work, my mom asked me where I was going, so I said I was going to my friend’s house. I was wearing sneakers. If it were weird, I would run away.

I went to the place where I was told to go…crazy! The building was so high.

[Office Building Image 1.jpg]

[Company Gym.jpg]

[Company Swimming Pool.jpg]

[Company Hotel.jpg]

When I heard the name G&P, I wondered what it was. The facilities are amazing, and the dormitory is also at a level of a five-star hotel.

Ah! And that Tomstom Coffee was taken over. It seemed that a high-ranking person heard someone wanted some coffee. So they bought Tomstom Coffee and put it in the office building. I think it would be fine to just open a store, but that doesn’t fit the company’s regulations. That’s why they bought it.

Anyway, our company is cool. While we were eating, we talked about the game. And then we decided to make a bet among the staff, but we put it off because we were busy. But a few days later, I found a PC room in the office building. You can play anytime as long as you finish your work.

[G&P PC Arena.jpg]

Now, I’m afraid to say something. Brrrr

Going to the Gates department was a godsend. We are hiring in the second half of the year.

[Employee ID Verification.jpg]

2,133 Comments

Dream Bear: G&P?! It’s crazy, LOL

Chubby Cheeks: Is the CEO the one who called Mansour a fucking beggar?

Hard Life: This is no joke these days

A Man: I’m envious. What are the qualifications for applicants? I’m majoring in G-Character and arithmetic analysis department…

Callmelikeadog.: I think that way would be fine. If only your grades are good…I want to change jobs too.

IDontUnderstand: That’s why Tomstom Coffee changed to JIN Coffee.

Jun88: I heard that Korea is greater than oil-producing countries these days.

Platinum2: Crazy, is that a PC room? Is it bigger than the Nexplex Esports Center? No, could you even hold the Olympics in that swimming pool? It’s crazy.

The size of the building was so large that it could accommodate several facilities. Of course, it was a super-luxury facility. Jin-woo couldn’t remember the details because he roughly listened to the report and gave most of them approval. However, it was just a reminder to build it unconditionally bigger and excessively flashier than originally planned. He only watched carefully because he preoccupied the technology in the original novel and patented it.

It was a leisurely afternoon.

“The weather is nice.”

Jin-woo was out in the garden in front of his house. Of course, it was also large and very well-decorated. It felt like it had been a long time since he had such a good rest. There were no scheduled items he had to deal with today.

The peace of mind that came after solving the Emperor of Greed made Jin-woo relax. An image of leaving the rest to the main character and watching it from behind was drawn in his head, and a smile formed on his face. He was invited to the Blue House and received a request for a meeting from the top U.S. officials, but he refused them. It was because he wanted to enjoy this leisure more than anything else. However, if there was one complaint, it was the food.

Even with the best chefs, it was still nothing compared to the Gate cuisine he had whipped up. Sometimes it felt like he was chewing on hard sand. Jin-woo came to a suitable place with a shovel.

‘I also bought these seeds, so let’s plant them first.’

It seemed to be a good idea to try farming. He wanted to check how enhancement reflected in reality. Jin-woo took a table that he bought from the Dimension Store out of subspace. It was a craft table engraved with alchemy circles and made from the finest wood.

Thud!

However, Jin-woo placed a shovel full of dirt, seeds, and table. Then he took out the Enhancement Stone and the Attribute stone. The Enhancement Stone was about 300G or 3 million won per piece, while the Attribute Stones were about three times more expensive than Enhancement Stones at around 10 million won. Still, it was so cheap that he bought it in bulk. The price was as good as free for Jin-woo.

[F] Blue Apple Seed

Seeds of blue apples with an attractive, refreshing taste. It is one of the main foods of the Demon Realm as it grows very quickly anywhere and is rich in nutrients. It grows quickly as long as there is plenty of sunlight. It is also used as a material for low-grade potions due to its regeneration effect.

The Blue Apple tasted so good that even Jin-woo, who didn’t normally care for fruit, fell in love with it. It was also rich in nutrients, so it could be called the potato of the Demon Realm. To be honest, eating a Blue Apple was better than even premium beef. Arina also mentioned she had once survived two weeks with just one Blue Apple.

‘Let’s treat her nicer in the future.’

Looking at Arina made his heartache. Anyway, the overall enhancement was similar to Luna 5.

“It’s even better.”

It could also be covered with abilities, not relying solely on probabilities. Alchemy was fascinating, of real-life uses. Enhancement was an advanced skill that required high-level alchemy and blacksmithing technique. Unlike the game, it took a long time to train for, but it didn’t matter to Jin-woo.

Jin-woo put the seeds on the table and tried to strengthen them. The enhancement was completed with a pool of light. He was able to see the information of ‘[F] Healthy Blue Apple Seed +1’. It would grow a little bit bigger and now had an oil-like gloss on the surface. As the sun shone down upon it, he felt like he could already see the buds blooming.

“Oh….”

He tried to enhance it until it reached its limit. There was a limit of the number of times that it could be enhanced, just like with Luna 5, but he learned it would break if it exceeded that number as it became unable to withstand the mana. Jin-woo tried to imbue it with the attribute stone of the Earth as well.

“Huh?”

[F] Earth’s Strong Golden Apple Seed Monster +5

The successful breed that Golden Maker Lee Jin-woo tried to improve. It has been transformed into a monster due to the enhancement and attribute assignment that has reached the limit. As long as there is sunlight, it can grow like a weed anywhere. Beautiful fruits are expected with the effect of the Golden Maker.

Absolute obedience to its creator.

* Creator: Lee Jin-woo

* Tendency: Gentle

* Attribute: Earth

* Estimated Price: 7,000G (Dimensional Auction)

Jin-woo blinked and looked blankly at the seed the size of a thumb. A bud sprouted from the seed, and golden stems spewed out. It looked like a tentacle, but it was more beautiful than disgusting. It was like looking at a section of beautiful thread. Sprouts stretched toward Jin-woo’s palm.

Shrrrk-shrrk

The roots wrapped around Jin-woo’s palm and jumped to the ground. It looked at the lawn with its roots, then trembled and dug into the ground. It was a monster, though. Would it be okay?

“It will be okay, right?”

He didn’t think there would be a problem because it was gentle and obedient. He was thinking of sprinkling some water on it, but he was too lazy to bring water, so he took out a potion and sprayed it.

Slurp!

The stems began to rise through the ground. In an instant, a small seedling that reached Jin-woo’s waist was formed. The flower bud was a beautiful golden color that emitted a cool and sweet scent that Jin-woo found pleasant. It smelled as good as the finest perfume. With that sudden growth, the information was changed to ‘[F+] Golden Tree.’

“It’s unusual, but it is just a tree, right?”

Of course, it was different from ordinary trees.

Whieerk!

When a bug flew nearby, a stem with teeth sprouted out and ate the bug.

“…You’re indeed a monster. Do not attack people.”

Whether it had the intelligence or not, the leaves swayed up and down as if it understood. Jin-woo was able to fully realize the power of the Golden Maker. It wasn’t a Rank B+ technique for nothing.

‘It’s still a tree so that I can raise it in my yard for now.’

When he sprayed more potion on it, the growth speed increased even faster. Arina might have fainted if she saw the rare potion being consumed like this. The tree grew to like the bean tree in Jack and the Beanstalk to exceed Jin-woo’s height. As the petals unfolded, shining golden pollen began to fall in all directions. A single fruit slid out as if an egg were coming out. It was heart-shaped in perfect proportions and looked more like a jewel than a fruit.

[F+] Sweet Golden Apple

Beautiful fruit from the Golden Tree. The sweet and sour taste is superb. It is good for one’s skin and roots, so it is good for hair regeneration and strengthening. It boasts fantastic nutrients as well as taste. The fruit of the self-reproducing Golden Tree is seedless, and the skin is always kept clean, so it is okay to eat as is.

*[F+] Skincare: It has an anti-aging effect.

*[-E] Root Regeneration: Strengthens and regenerates hair roots.

Unexpectedly, a fruit effective for hair loss was created.

‘Well…a hair loss cure is something that comes up a lot in fantasy.’

Success with a hair loss cure was a familiar story. It was a world dominated by competent people, but hair loss hadn’t been cured. Oddly enough, those related to magic suffered a lot of hair loss regardless of gender. There was even a myth that you should give up your hair if you were a Circle Wizard. There was also an analysis that it was the reason for the avoidance of magic.

‘Just in case, let’s grow a lot of it.’

When Jin-woo reached out his hand, the golden apple approached Jin-woo’s hand and fell off. The rich juice was like a peach, but the texture felt delightfully chewy. In all, it was incomparable to any other apple he had ever tasted. He felt like he could never eat other fruits.

Jin-woo ate up one in an instant. As expected, the taste of the Gate was the best.

“That’s great.”

When Jin-woo praised it, the leaves of the Golden Tree fluttered as if it was in a good mood. Jin-woo looked down at the shovel on the table for a moment.

‘Is it possible with ordinary items?’

Although the limitations of ordinary items on Earth were clear, they seemed enhance-able as well. Jin-woo applied a lot of Enhancement Stone to the shovel and even put in a Wind Attribute Stone. The shovel shone faintly and turned shiny.

“Oh…”

A woman with wings was engraved on the iron surface, and a gentle breeze blew around the shovel. It was amazing.

[F] Wind Spirit Shovel +3

A common shovel has been enhanced to the extreme. It is as light as a feather as the spirit of the wind dwells in the beautiful embossing. Also, you can use beginner spirit magic (digging) whenever you swing the shovel. The blade is very sharp, so be careful.

*Attribute: Wind

* [F] Digging

* [F] Sharpness

It was near weightless. It felt like lifting a feather. When he threw the shovel into the air, it swayed slowly like a feather and fell to the ground.

Stretch!

It pierced the ground and stuck in. Jin-woo pulled out the shovel and dug the ground out once more.

Bwang!

The wind blew out in a straight line for several meters from where the shovel was inserted, and the ground exploded. Jin-woo stared blankly at the debris of the grass that soared and fell all over the place. It was more flipping the earth than digging.

“…Umm.”

He put the shovel down in the corner. This regular shovel was quickly turned into a very dangerous item. Jin-woo could feel the true power of enhancement.

“Young Master, you’re here.”

Hearing Yoo-na’s voice, Jin-woo turned his head and looked around. Yoo-na, now fully recovered, became even more beautiful. Although she still had a business-like expression, she felt lively in a way unlike before.

She asked for a vacation for a while, so he gave it to her on the spot, but he was worried that she might resign after returning. However, she showed no sign of that, and she was rather more active in the Frontline.