Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 51

“Venus, what are you doing? You should play a game too.”

“Ah. Yes, Master.”

Venus hurriedly started inserting coins into the machine.

She had 15 chips worth 100 crons [a fictional currency] in her hand, and one of them stood out with a particularly yellowish hue. Bum-suk, noticing something strange, was about to check it, but then he remembered the 100 cron gold chip Emma had given him and stopped.

‘Emma wouldn’t have given me a fake chip, would she?’

However, even this worry disappeared as soon as Venus inserted the gold chip. He could see the amount of the deposit increasing on the machine.

“Venus, you know how to do it, right?”

“Yes. I just watched, so I know well.”

“Then give it a try.”

Venus carefully pressed the bet button once. But wouldn’t you know it, the machine malfunctioned and set itself to the maximum bet amount? Bum-suk, with an annoyed expression, got up from his seat and looked around. He wanted to ask for a refund for the money he had put in since he couldn’t play on the broken machine.

At that moment, the slot machine suddenly started spinning, and the screen began to whirl around.

“Hey, Venus. How can you start the game recklessly!”

At Bum-suk’s shout, she shrugged her shoulders.

“I, I didn’t do anything. It just started moving on its own.”

His expression darkened even more at those words. There was no way the elf, Venus, would lie to him, her master. Bum-suk spotted an elf employee in a black suit passing by in the distance with a tray of drinks and waved his hand frantically.

“Hey, come over here for a second!”

The elf employee, making eye contact with him, left the tray at the counter and hurried over.

“Sir, what’s the matter?”

“Well, you see, I was playing this slot machine and……”

Before Bum-suk could finish speaking, the machine’s screen stopped. At the same time, dazzling psychic lights spun around all at once, and congratulatory messages and exciting music were blasted from the speakers.

– Congratulations! You have hit the union jackpot! The prize money is 32.81 million crons!

He blinked his eyes and continued speaking.

“Ahem… I was too engrossed, and now I’m thirsty. Can I get a drink?”

Woosh, woosh, woosh.

Casino employees gathered around Venus and set off the prepared firecrackers all at once. Customers who were also enjoying the games came over and offered words of blessing.

“Oh, congratulations. The elf did something for her master.”

“Amazing. That elf is a goddess of luck.”

Venus blushed with embarrassment and lowered her head. She didn’t know what it was, but she knew that she had done something great for her master.

One of the counter employees approached her.

“Hey, what’s your name?”

“V, Venus.”

“Who is your master?”

Venus pointed to Bum-suk, who was sitting in the next seat.

“This person.”

The counter employee approached him. All financial actions of an elf are the responsibility of the master. It was to hand over the prize money to Bum-suk.

“The jackpot prize money, excluding taxes, is 31.17 million crons in total. We can’t give it to you in chips, so we’re going to transfer it online directly. Is that okay with you?”

He didn’t want to receive the huge sum of 31.17 million crons in chips either, so he took out his personal electronic notepad and handed it over.

“Yes, please do.”

The counter employee immediately brought up the financial transaction screen and transferred the entire prize money to Bum-suk. He smiled so wide that his mouth was about to tear as he watched the enormous number being engraved on his almost empty balance. This was enough money to buy another Erfina-class gladiator. The team would grow even stronger.

‘Hahaha. Such luck comes to me! Hahaha! Ha? Ha? Su, surely… that gold coin?’

Suddenly, something flashed intensely through Bum-suk’s mind. The gold chip Emma gave him, the message the manager whispered to him when he arrived at the hotel this morning, and the machine malfunction today.

He soon realized that this prize money was a sign of the Black Society’s gratitude for accepting Emma. Unless he was a fool, it was natural to give more weight to the possibility that the Black Society had played a trick, rather than the extremely low probability jackpot happening to him by chance.

‘Oh ho. As expected of the Black Society. They can’t give me money officially, so they’re solving it this way. Hehehe. But it’s a bit unsettling.’

He should have been very happy that he had made a lot of money, but that was not the case from the perspective of a casino customer. No one wanted to gamble on a machine that had been tampered with. He quietly pressed the cash-out button as the employees and customers returned to their respective places.

Then, an old gentleman sitting next to him glanced at him and said.

“Young man, are you stopping now? It didn’t seem like you did much?”

“Hahaha. My training time is almost up.”

“Ah. Is that so? You’re a friend with great self-control. Usually, when people hit such a big jackpot, they can’t get away from the slot machines for a while.”

“But if you keep getting addicted, you’ll ruin yourself. The odds of winning in gambling are always higher for the losing side.”

Bum-suk, with an awkward expression, opened his electronic notepad and opened the stock information window. The current team composition was strong enough to pass the promotion tournament to be held early next year. He thought it would be better to invest in stocks to prepare for the future since he still had enough money.

The old gentleman, who had been silently watching this, opened his mouth as if talking to himself.

“Stocks are the same as gambling. The government, as the host, takes taxes, so the odds of winning are less than half.”

“Hehe. That’s true. But unlike gambling, things change if you have a lot of experience or special information.”

Bum-suk looked at the stock price of Micro Engineering. The current price per share was 157 crons. It was already down 11 crons from the principal. Frowning, he immediately bought 190,000 shares in bulk.

– You have purchased 190,000 shares of Micro Engineering at 157 crons per share.

The old gentleman, overhearing the stock trading message, stared at Bum-suk with wide eyes. If you calculated it, you could see that he had invested most of the jackpot prize money he had just won in stocks.

“Yo, you. Are you crazy? How can you invest all that money in stocks?”

“Hehe. You have to go all in when you have to. Eventually, the economy will recover and the stock price will recover, right? Then I’ll make a lot of money. Isn’t that right?”

“W, well, that’s true… But what if that company goes bankrupt? You’ll be penniless in an instant. And I’ve heard rumors that Micro Engineering is a bit dangerous.”

Bum-suk, his heart sinking, hurriedly looked at the old gentleman. Micro Engineering, where all his assets were invested, was in danger… There was no sound more tempting than that.

“What are you talking about? Did something happen to Micro Engineering?”

“I don’t know well, but I heard that they are laying off a large number of employees recently. Looking at this, it is clear that the company’s financial situation is difficult. And rumors are spreading in the market that energy-related companies are unstable. You shouldn’t touch those stocks recklessly.”

Bum-suk smiled at those words. He had already heard this rumor from Lexter.

“Hehe. It doesn’t matter. Micro Engineering won’t go bankrupt, even if other companies do. Maybe they’re trying to get rid of unproductive employees by using the current economic crisis as an excuse. Hehehe. They’re having financial difficulties? Even a passing dog would laugh.”

“No, why are you thinking that?”

Bum-suk, who had scraped all the chips in the slot machine’s money box and put them in his pocket, smiled.

“Well, why? I want to tell you, but I decided to keep it a secret. Hahaha. Then I’ll go now because of training.”

The old gentleman watched him carefully as he disappeared with Venus, leaving these words behind. And after a while. He took out the electronic notepad in his arms, opened the hologram screen, and attempted to connect to somewhere.

After a few rings, a blonde man in his 30s with a frown appeared on the screen. He was pounding the desk with his fist as if he was angry about something.

– Damn it. Who is it!

The old gentleman waved his hand with a gentle smile.

“It’s me. Winkins.”

The blonde man in his 30s composed himself and straightened his seat.

– Ah. Chairman. What brings you to me during your vacation?

“Hehe. It’s nothing much. I have some advice for Kembler.”

– Ah. Yes. Is that so? I should definitely listen to the Chairman’s advice. Yes. Please tell me.

“Hmm. You’re in charge of purchasing Micro Engineering’s stock, right?”

– Yes. That’s right.

“Is it going well?”

Kembler turned pale and shook his head.

– Hmph~ Actually, there’s a slight problem. Someone just took away a large amount of stock that we put out for sale to dump the stock today. Considering that this has happened several times before, I think someone has the same information as us.

“Is that so? Then what kind of guy do you think that bastard is?”

– Well. Judging from the investment pattern, he doesn’t seem like a professional. If he knew, he wouldn’t have bought so many shares at once. I guess he’s just a nouveau riche [new rich] who got the information.

Wilkins immediately asked a question.

“Then what’s your investment strategy going forward?”

– I think we should stop dumping the stock and start buying it in bulk. If a non-expert knows about it, it means that the rumor has already spread in the market, right? We don’t have any more time to waste.

Wilkins shook his head.

“No. I don’t think it’s bad to dump some more stock.”

– Why not?

“The guy who pissed you off just now was sitting next to me. He bought 190,000 shares of Micro Engineering in bulk right in front of me. He definitely didn’t look like a professional, but he seemed to have some kind of background.”

– Re, really?

“Um. Yes. That guy hit the jackpot at the Osaha Hotel Casino, but it was caused by a malfunction of the machine. It seems that the rumor that the Osaha Hotel Casino is creating black funds for various corporate groups and governments is true.”

Kembler clasped his hands together and fell into thought. If Wilkins’ words were true, the person who had just bought the stock in bulk might be a primary recipient who had received information directly from the relevant government organization, just like them. He was a person who could take black money from Osaha.

But the opponent was an amateur. He might blabber his cheap mouth and put him in trouble.

– I’m thinking of going into bulk buying as is.

“Why?”

– Stocks are not gambling. You can’t take risks to hit the jackpot. I think it’s better to eat safely, even if the income is a little less.

Wilkins said with a satisfied expression.

“Hehe. Of course, you should. Life is long, and there are many companies listed on the stock market. The way to make money in the stock market is very simple. It’s to survive for a long time. If you take unreasonable risks while aiming for a jackpot, you’ll disappear from this field someday. Like Rex, who caused this economic crisis. Stock market? It’s a jungle. Only those who eat even rotten meat for sure will survive. In that respect, you’ve made an excellent choice.”

Kembler let out a long sigh of relief. He was able to realize that Wilkins’ urging to dump the stock just now was a test for him. He always treats his employees with kindness, but at the same time, he also has the ruthlessness to cut off their heads with a single stroke if he doesn’t like them. If he had acted carelessly according to his advice, his desk and chair might have disappeared one day.

– Yes. I will keep that in mind.

“Good. Then take care. I have to continue enjoying my vacation. Hehehe.”

Wilkins smiled, cut off the communication, and immediately pulled the lever.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

Hoo~ Since I don’t have any reserves, I’m always on the edge of my seat every time I upload a chapter. Recently, I’ve been uploading two chapters of Kingpanworld a day, so I haven’t been able to build up any reserves. ㅠㅠ. Even if I build it up, it flies away as soon as something happens… ㅠㅠ. But I will do my best to keep the serialization cycle.

Then have a comfortable day. I’ll see you again on Friday morning.