We Do Business In Full Auto [EN]: Chapter 13

013

About two weeks have passed since I started cleaning the building.

It’s mid-November now.

The wind has become harsher, and the temperature has dropped more than last year. The jet stream that used to protect our country has weakened, and the cold air from the Arctic has come straight down.

Due to the extremely cold weather, I had to turn on the heater in the office to stay warm while working, and it wasn’t easy to practice in the cemetery at night.

In the end, Sujeong didn’t come today.

So far, I’ve learned the entire process of black magic from Sujeong, and I’ve been picking it up quickly.

Sujeong was surprised that I understood black magic better and learned faster than she thought I would.

I guess that means my genes, which passed on genius-level traits, aren’t entirely useless.

Whoosh.

I pull up my collar and focus on absorbing black mana.

It was damn cold, but I didn’t catch a cold. I feel like my overall immunity has increased since I started using black magic.

Quarrrrrr.

Black mana pours in quickly.

However, ultimately, there wasn’t enough black mana to form three rings.

I felt a great sense of disappointment as the black mana, which had been circling my heart and trying to latch onto the ring, slipped away.

“Ah! Is that the only way after all?”

Up to the 3rd Circle isn’t an area of enlightenment.

It could be achieved solely through talent and black mana, and it was entirely possible if the conditions were right.

These days, I can pay attention to the undead during work hours and still focus on other things.

Because of that, I’ve been deciphering the black magic book in my spare time.

There’s a passage I found in the process.

…If you have risen to the 2nd Circle in one breath, you must have a body blessed by the Demon God. Even black magicians who have not received the blessing of the Demon God will hit a limit when they reach that level. The way to solve this is the Maren Pill.

The most important thing to be aware of when ingesting it is that it should only be taken once when ascending from the 2nd to the 3rd Circle. If you are greedy, disaster will surely strike, so be sure to follow the above instructions.

The ingredients for the Maren Pill are as follows.

There’s something like a pill used in black magic.

You must take it only once, and it warns several times that you may lose your life if you violate this.

Most of the ingredients for the Maren Pill were easy to obtain. They’re common ingredients that you can easily find just by going to an herbal medicine shop.

But the problem is the Cliff Herb, which is the last ingredient.

A rare herb that occasionally blooms only on cliffs, even in mountains full of yin energy and evil energy.

It contains very cold energy, so it only blooms in sub-zero temperatures. The color of the flower was black and resembled the shape of a demon.

Until now, I haven’t been able to focus my mind enough to try it, but I think it’s time to give it a try.

“Okay. I should take some workers tomorrow to look for the Cliff Herb.”

I can barely sleep for a few hours before waking up, feeling like my whole body has been beaten.

“Ugh.”

“Honey, breakfast is ready.”

“Why is it so cold in the house?”

“I think the boiler is broken.”

“The boiler is broken?”

It’s a whopping 30-year-old boiler.

It came out in the late 80s, so it must be even older than that.

Isn’t it about time to replace it?

But soon, I realized the problem was more serious than I thought.

In the first place, this building is an illegal structure built illegally on government-owned land. A retired carpenter built it roughly in his heyday and rented it out.

The problem is that it’s been 30 years since it was built, and the carpenter, who used to boast great strength, has now been reduced to a lonely old man in his room.

He’s spent all the money he’s saved and is living on his pension and monthly rent, so I wonder if he can afford to replace the boiler.

“I need to contact the landlord.”

“It’s okay. We can live a little cold and heat up cold water to wash. We still have gas.”

“We have a newborn baby in our house, how can we do that?”

“I’m really okay.”

“Even if you’re okay, I’m not okay.”

“Cough! Cough!”

Sujeong comes out coughing as well.

“Dad, it’s freezing in the house.”

Sujeong is even sniffling.

The baby is still okay because he’s wrapped up in an electric blanket, but the problem is the cold air.

The atmosphere is gloomy during a rare meal together.

A calamity has struck the house.

The boiler broke down in the middle of winter, and if we can’t get it repaired, it’s a really serious problem.

I leave the house with a heavy heart.

The landlord lived in a shantytown.

When there was talk of developing this place in the past, he even laid down in front of the excavator and protested.

An unauthorized house on government-owned land. Of course, he couldn’t receive any legal protection. So he opposed it so vehemently.

That would be the same for me.

Even if I could receive legal protection under the Lease Protection Act, it would take months to resolve. We’d freeze to death before that.

Knock knock knock!

“Are you there?”

“Who is it?”

He’s said to be from Chungcheong Province, and his speech is very slow.

An old man in long underwear opened the door.

“It’s me.”

“Aren’t you Lee? What brings you here?”

“Grandfather, I think the boiler in our house is completely broken, so I’m here to request a repair.”

“I don’t have any money.”

“Then I can’t pay the rent.”

“That’s a problem. If you live on rent, you have to pay, of course.”

“Grandfather, this is really unfair, you have to make repairs if you want to receive rent!”

“I’d fix it if I had money. But what can I do if I don’t have any?”

The grandfather was acting very defiant. I thought he would be like this, but it’s frustrating that he’s really acting that way. I can’t yell at a helpless old man. What can I do if he doesn’t have money? If I report him, he’ll probably tell me to go ahead.

If the situation worsens here, I’ll be kicked out right away.

“Sigh.”

I take a brief sigh. It was impossible to communicate. I took my wife out and took her and the baby to a motel. It looks like we’ll have to sleep here today. We’ll freeze to death if we sleep in a house that isn’t insulated in the cold winter.

I have to start cleaning the building first.

The temperature rises above freezing during the day, so if I finish quickly, I’ll be able to finish cleaning the building within this week.

I’ve already received one installment of the down payment, so I think I’ll have to scrape together all the money I have to find a house.

I spent the whole morning pounding the pavement [searching for a place to live].

The maximum amount I can put down as a deposit is 5 million won [approximately $3,700 USD].

It’s the same Mangwon-dong neighborhood, but I’m looking in an area with a concentration of villas, not shantytowns.

The real estate agent looked troubled.

“No, this won’t work, that won’t work, what am I supposed to do?”

I could see the annoyance in his eyes at a glance.

“Isn’t that what I’m paying you for! Why are you so annoyed?”

“These days, what kind of two-room apartment are you going to get with a deposit of 5 million won? You’re saying even a 1.5-room won’t work?”

“That’s why I’m giving you money. Brokerage fee. My family will freeze to death if you can’t find one!”

Normally, I would have tried to please the other person to get what I wanted, but I was so desperate that I snapped.

Motel fees in Seoul are no joke, and we can’t keep doing that forever, and it’s impossible to live there. So I need to find a room quickly.

But I can’t move to the countryside when I’m doing business in Seoul, so I’m at a loss.

The real estate agent waved his hand.

“You need to have at least 20 million won [approximately $15,000 USD] to find a room. With 20 million won and about 1 million won [approximately $740 USD], you can get into a new two-room apartment. Fully furnished.”

He sighed and said.

He looked desperate, so his tone had softened a bit.

“20 million…”

“Try to get it somehow. Take out a loan or something. It’s hard to find a 5 million won studio these days.”

It’s an eviction order.

He’s telling me to go back because it’s impossible to find one.

He’s turning away a customer even though he’d get a decent commission just for brokering the deal, so it must really be impossible.

So, am I going back to the shantytown?

I can’t do that. I have to go up little by little, I can’t give up here.

I can’t focus on my work.

Still, I somehow managed to concentrate and clean, but when my mental strength flagged, I sometimes created dizzying situations, and sometimes the undead were staring blankly at the glass window.

I feel like living in Seoul is tough even though I’m earning money like this.

If I go to the countryside, there are plenty of two-room apartments with a deposit of 5 million won and a rent of 400,000 won [approximately $300 USD].

I thought about moving down to Taean, but I couldn’t do that yet. I have to save money in Seoul and then go down.

I’m in a dilemma in many ways.

In the end, I’ll have to stay in a studio for a while and then move, or stay in a motel until I get the balance and find a room.

“I’m really something.”

Then a burst of laughter comes out.

Just two weeks ago, my entire fortune was 300,000 won [approximately $220 USD].

It was the worst situation where four family members had to live on that money. But now I had some money.

The debt on the private loan was adjusted, and I paid off some of the overdue interest, although it was tight. Soon, my credit will start to recover.

And I had a huge sum of 5 million won.

It was a much better situation, but humans are animals with endless greed, so they want even more than that.

I feel a little better when I think about it that way.

Knock knock.

The knock on the door suddenly wakes me from my reverie.

“Come in.”

“You’re working hard in the cold.”

It was Lee Seo-kyung.

She visited for the second time in a row without missing a day.

She was in charge, but each company was very interested in keeping their landmarks clean.

Lee Seo-kyung was also working hard to meet their expectations.

The beginning was management.

She was indifferent to people who were not related to her or who were not helpful at all, but once she got to know them and thought that I could be helpful to her, she was looking for ways to win-win.

Above all, warm coffee was a bonus.

“Here, have some.”

“Ah, thank you. I’m sorry about this every day.”

“What are you talking about? It’s my job as a manager.”

I wondered if she was the same woman I saw at first.

Now she sometimes smiled and her tone had changed softly. Maybe this is her true self.

And whenever the story of Sujeong came up, she would overreact a lot and often ask about Sujeong’s well-being. Maybe I’m benefiting from my daughter.

When the coffee was half empty, Lee Seo-kyung spoke.

“President, would you like to take on another job?”

“Yes?”

“H Construction has made a request.”