Ch.158158. Money is Might

User D-Sol was at the end of Farming World.

That’s the user who came when I was busy decorating Suhyun’s Farming World 1 base and created a cherry blossom path, lake, and pavilion for me.

The same user who posted on the community forum calling me a “rotten player” and whatnot.

At the time, it wasn’t like my entire map had been exposed, and it was just some relatively well-known user’s opinion, so I let it slide. Besides, I wasn’t the only “rotten” player out there, so there was no need to be overly sensitive about it.

After that, I didn’t particularly need any more of User D-Sol’s designs, and as I was busy decorating other things, about a year passed before I knew it.

That was around when I received the letter from the Rift Dimension.

The reason User D-Sol suddenly came to mind was that, looking at the expanding base in the Rift Dimension, I felt it needed a more systematic design approach.

With my Farming World map, I had put in a lot of effort and since I was the only one who would see it, I focused on what I wanted as long as it met my standards of satisfaction. But the Rift Dimension is different.

I’ve already done everything I wanted to do in Farming World, and if I were to decorate the Rift Dimension myself, my narrow perspective would just produce slightly modified versions of the same designs.

Besides, the Rift Dimension is no longer a dimension where I live alone.

Kim Soo-jung and Lee Ji-hyun.

More helpers will be coming to tend the farm in the future, and since aesthetics greatly influence how a farm is evaluated and valued, I needed to recruit an expert.

Of course, is User D-Sol an expert? I honestly don’t know.

From community posts, they claimed to work in a related field, and they were so skilled at design and decoration that I wondered if they really were a professional. But since 99% of what people say on community forums contains lies, it’s hard to believe.

Still, it doesn’t matter.

Expert or not, User D-Sol’s skill in decorating Farming World maps had already been recognized through their numerous map designs.

Taste.

There’s a saying that design is about taste.

That’s why I decorated my farm with my own design.

But User D-Sol’s designs received overwhelmingly positive responses in the realm of taste.

I even thought that if I ever got the chance, I’d like to hand over my entire farm to User D-Sol.

Now I have the map, the money, and even pristine, untouched land.

That’s why I contacted them.

I couldn’t wait too long, so I sent a message planning to wait only about a day.

– Oh! That trash player? Long time no see! What’s up? Want me to do something for you again?

– Yeah, can we talk in person?

– You contacted me right when I’m in Korea. OK OK. Send me an invite.

In the community, in games, it’s customary to speak informally to people you don’t know.

When we met in Farming World, we spoke with moderate formality, but when not face-to-face, this kind of informal speech was comfortable for both of us.

Even after contacting them after a year, User D-Sol’s familiar gaming speech style felt oddly comforting.

I guess after living in this world for 10 years, I’ve been feeling too socialized lately.

But I still had to get things done.

– No, not in the game. I have something to request in real life. Can we talk over coffee?

– Whoa, what is this? Are you flirting? LOL Why the sudden contact… Did you quit gaming to sell insurance?

– You’ll probably find it quite appealing once you hear it. Just give me 30 minutes. I’ll buy you a nice meal.

Kim Sol-yi. From User D-Sol’s perspective, this must be a bewildering contact.

Our only connection was that they came to my map about a year ago and decorated a cherry blossom path.

They didn’t even do it specially for me.

They had done similar things for several others with different designs, hosting such events occasionally, if not frequently.

We didn’t have any special relationship; to Kim Sol-yi, I was just one of many people.

Yet here I was, contacting them after a year and abruptly asking to meet in person.

If it were me, I would have told them to go to hell and blocked them.

That’s why I got their number.

With my social skills, it seemed difficult to arrange a meeting through the community forum.

Contacting them separately via phone might get me reported as a stalker…

And showing up in person would be a perfect way to get reported.

While I was contemplating my next step, an unexpected reply came.

– LOL You’re an interesting person as expected. OK, let’s meet. But to protect against kidnapping, terrorism, stalking, etc., we’ll meet at a restaurant of my choosing, at a time I want. And I’ll order expensive food.

– Please make it soon. I’m busy.

– LOLOL Sure^^ I’m leaving the country soon too, so I’ll contact you.

Kim Sol-yi.

From her subsequent messages and the photo she sent, she seemed to have quite a cheerful personality, like during our meeting.

Whether it’s cheerfulness or liveliness, she had a pretty appearance and an open manner that probably made her popular.

I thought that while the meeting was easily arranged, the conversation might not go as smoothly.

—————–

Surprisingly, we set the appointment time quickly.

Lunch the next day.

I came to the restaurant Kim Sol-yi had reserved, along with Kim Soo-jung.

“Wow. This place is really famous. It’s a 3-star Michelin restaurant? You got a reservation here? With just one day’s notice?”

“Is it expensive?”

“Very… though lunch is a bit cheaper, it’s still about 400,000 won per person.”

“That’s really expensive to reserve.”

“You said she’s someone you need, right? It won’t be easy though.”

I thought having Kim Soo-jung with me would make the conversation go more smoothly than if I went alone.

The restaurant had only 5 tables, all of which were full.

We were guided to one of only two private rooms.

“Oh! Suhyun-ssi. Hi!”

Kim Sol-yi, sitting in the room, raised her hand high in greeting.

With a striking fashion style rarely seen on the street, hair in twin tails, and a bright smile as she waved, her greeting immediately revealed her personality.

Like an idol? That’s the feeling I got.

Loose jeans and a boxy tank top with a short t-shirt underneath.

Someone who made it all work without standing out too much.

“Wow. You look exactly like your game character? Was it just your real appearance all along?”

Standing up to shake hands, Kim Sol-yi naturally started the conversation.

To her, did I seem like someone she’d known for years rather than a first-time meeting?

Plus, she remembered me even after a year.

“You remember me?”

“Of course. Your Farming World map was the most obsessively detailed one I’ve ever seen. How did you think to invest so much time in a single map? I wanted to visit it again, but you weren’t visible on the community, and I hesitated to contact you first.”

Kim Sol-yi was a very sociable person.

“Wow. But I never expected you to contact me first for a meeting. Did you know what I do when you contacted me?”

“I just liked your map design.”

“Game map design? Are you in the gaming industry? You look familiar somehow. Wait a second.”

After responding to my single comment with several of her own, she paused and quickly took out her phone.

“Wait. Wait. Oh my! Is it you? Right? Farmer Hunter!”

Then she covered her mouth with both hands in amazement.

“No way. Why is someone I’ve only seen in videos all day yesterday here? Wow! I thought you looked familiar. How could I remember this handsome face but not think it was the same person! How could someone who spent thousands of hours gaming be a Hunter!”

“…”

Taking her to the farm would certainly never be boring.

Fortunately, she wasn’t the type to be annoyingly loud.

Just someone who appropriately lifted the mood.

And when you think about it, she didn’t actually say that many unnecessary things.

“And who is this person…?”

“This is Kim Soo-jung. My sister. She’s also my manager.”

“Ah. Then you’re not looking to hire me for game design. You don’t even know what I do, so why did you contact me?”

Kim Sol-yi asked as the first course arrived.

I made my proposal to her.

“I have a map of immeasurable size. My farm is there. I want you to design it, like in Farming World.”

“…A Farming World map?”

“It’s not a game. Not on Earth either. It’s a dungeon, but a dungeon only I can enter.”

“What do you mean…”

If I weren’t currently the hottest Hunter, she might have laughed at me.

Even while letting out a small laugh, she asked about my serious statement.

“I don’t quite understand. So you want me to design a Farming World map?”

“Something similar. You’ll understand when you see it.”

“When would you like me to do this?”

Fortunately, Kim Sol-yi was cooperative.

Is she interested in Hunters?

“If possible, within this week. I’m planning to go there next week, and it would be good if you could come along and work on it while living there.”

I know the explanation is insufficient.

But it’s too vast and complicated to explain here.

Kim Sol-yi slightly furrowed her brow.

“That’s difficult. I’m leaving the country tomorrow or the day after. I’m a spatial designer. Quite successful too. I have a lot of scheduled exhibitions and other commitments these days…”

This was something I didn’t know.

In this difficult situation, I just made my proposal in my usual way.

“Blank check.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’ll give you as much as you want.”

I had obtained several blank checks from the bank president who had come to greet me after I deposited my auction earnings.

I took one out and handed it to her.

“…Huh?”

“If it’s not about the money, I can wait. I’d prefer it to be as soon as possible, but please decorate my farm.”

After examining the blank check for a moment, Kim Sol-yi’s expression hardened.

“I’m not sure what kind of person you think I am.”

“…?”

“Art is about money. Money. Money makes everything possible. With this much, my schedule? I can cancel everything. When? This week? I’ll cancel everything for the entire year.”

I had thought she might be a difficult person, but now I think we might get along well.