Chapter 2: Give me the money

Rain was pouring down outside the window.

Shhhwaaaaaa-!

“…Haa.”

Looking at the rainwater streaming down the window, a man let out a small sigh.

Was he now in his early twenties?

The man possessed an impeccably handsome appearance, and every single one of his movements seemed incredibly noble.

However, at present, he was experiencing immense confusion, which was unbefitting of his noble movements.

This was because the man’s true identity was none other than Seo-jun.

‘To think I possessed a game character…! I’m just an ordinary hikikomori college student who likes games a little…!’

Seo-jun cupped his face.

About two hours ago from now.

He had opened his eyes in the world of 『Statt 2082』, as the character he had created.

It wasn’t particularly difficult to figure out that this world was the world of 『Statt 2082』 and that this body was the character he had created.

Just by looking at the various high-rise buildings outside the window and the mirror inside the house, he could immediately tell that this world was not his original world and that this body was not his original body.

‘Why did something like this happen to me? I remember my monitor exploding, but did I really die and come here?’

Seo-jun pondered repeatedly.

However, no matter how much he pondered, he couldn’t figure anything out.

To his common sense, the very occurrence of such an event was truly bizarre.

“Haa… If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have played 『Statt 2082』… No, even if I did, if only I had reduced my play time a little….”

Seo-jun regretted his past.

But his regret didn’t last long.

Soon, he clenched both fists and muttered.

“No…! There’s no changing anything by regretting it now.

What I need to focus on right now is figuring out ‘how to live in this world.’”

Seo-jun thought deeply.

In fact, if one were to consider it, this incident wasn’t necessarily a bad thing from Seo-jun’s perspective.

Seo-jun was an orphan with no parents, and a college student who had received academic warnings twice.

On the other hand, the current Seo-jun was a munchkin-like figure with outstanding looks and seven unique traits.

Although this world was a cyberpunk setting filled with all sorts of dangers, a munchkin like Seo-jun would clearly be able to live a much more affluent and happier life than others in such a world.

‘…Yes.

This is a golden opportunity for me! From now on, I will live as Seo-jun of 『Statt 2082』!’

A moment later, Seo-jun, having collected his thoughts, sprang to his feet.

He no longer felt confused.

Before he knew it, his heart was filled only with anticipation for the future.

****

As soon as the rain stopped, Seo-jun began to figure out what specific time period this world was in and what specific situation he was in.

Immediately after possessing the body, all he could figure out was that this was the world of 『Statt 2082』 and that this body was the character he had created.

Since he knew nothing else, it was only natural for him to gather various pieces of information.

‘…This is troublesome.’

But by the time a day had passed since he began collecting various pieces of information.

Seo-jun realized a shocking truth and frowned.

The timeline of this world was a full month before the main story of 『Statt 2082』 began.

However, this wasn’t a particularly shocking fact.

What was more shocking to Seo-jun was that he currently only had 5,700 credits in his account.

Since an average meal cost 5,000 credits, the current Seo-jun could be considered no different from a complete pauper.

‘And this one-room apartment in Container Mountain where I’m staying isn’t even mine, it’s a rental…! If I can’t come up with next month’s rent and maintenance fees, I’ll be out on the streets.

Hehehe!’

Seo-jun let out a hollow laugh, as if in disbelief.

The problem wasn’t over.

The food in the refrigerator had also completely run out this morning.

This meant that before worrying about next month’s rent and maintenance fees, he had to worry about eating and drinking right now.

“Damn it… In the end, money is the problem no matter what world you’re in! It’s a problem! Anyway, this is no time to be like this!”

Seo-jun cursed and soon began browsing the internet on the old laptop in his room.

It was to find a way to get quick cash.

‘Hmm… a wanted bounty…! With my current abilities, I could definitely subdue any guy easily…!’

Seo-jun first accessed a site where wanted bounties were registered.

An F-class bounty had a whopping five million credits on them, so even catching just one would net him a considerable amount of money.

‘But how am I supposed to find a bounty? Unless I had ‘Tracking’ or ‘Hunter’ traits, I definitely wouldn’t find them quickly.’

Seo-jun shook his head repeatedly.

The traits he currently possessed were specialized in ‘Combat’ and ‘Survival.’

In other words, unless a bounty was right in front of him, it would clearly take a considerable amount of time to find and subdue them.

Of course, he knew exactly where some characters related to the main story were hiding even now.

However, Seo-jun didn’t want to get involved with such dangerous individuals already.

The more dangerous a person was, the more likely there was a formidable organization behind them.

For Seo-jun, who had decided to live as a resident of this world, getting involved with such dangerous organizations already was absolutely out of the question.

“Then how should I get quick cash? Ugh, why isn’t my brain working?”

Seo-jun frowned and clutched his head.

Ah, if only I had known, I would have invested in intelligence-related traits…!

Seo-jun lamented his foolishness and began to rack his brain as much as possible.

Was there truly no way to earn a lot of money in a short period without great risk?

“…Ah!”

But about half an hour later.

Seo-jun, who had finally remembered something, let out a great cheer.

A way to earn a lot of money in a short period…!

It was none other than selling information using the Deepnet.

Deepnet refers to a network that cannot be searched through conventional means, and it can be seen as a type of ‘black market site.’

The goods that could be bought and sold on the Deepnet were extremely diverse, with most of them being items that could not be traded on the open market.

Snuff films, drugs, valuable information, or deadly weapons, etc., fell into this category.

‘I know the main story of this game! If I sell the information I know on the Deepnet, I can definitely make a lot of money in a short period!’

Seo-jun grinned as he accessed the Deepnet.

Accessing the Deepnet was a very easy task for him.

He had done many Deepnet-related quests and had even played the game with a ‘Deepnet Master’ concept about a year ago, so this was something he couldn’t possibly not know.

‘…Good, I’ve created a seller account, so now I can sell information.’

A moment later, Seo-jun, who had accessed the Deepnet and even created a seller account, began to ponder what information would be best to sell.

He had to avoid information that was too valuable.

This was because it could significantly impact the main story, potentially rendering all the information he knew useless.

And there were also safety concerns.

If he leaked information that was too valuable, some higher-ups might track him down.

So, Seo-jun had to sell appropriate information, taking all those factors into account.

‘Ah…! Come to think of it, about a month before the main story, Ayakami would have lost a military android.’

Ayakami was one of the top five mega-corporations in 『Statt 2082』, and its main field was military contracting.

But according to Seo-jun’s memory, Ayakami would have definitely lost a military android around this time.

The story was that a prototype unit was being transported to the lab when a traffic accident occurred, and the android disappeared then.

‘A military android costs about five hundred million credits per unit…! If I sell its location as information, I could probably get about ten million credits.’

If one considered it, the information value of ten million credits was a very small amount compared to the android’s worth.

However, since Seo-jun was a complete novice seller who had never sold information before, this amount could be considered appropriate.

If he tried to sell it for a higher price, his credibility was so low that no one would want to buy the information.

‘If it were nearby, I would have just gone myself… Hmm?

Come to think of it, I haven’t set my nickname yet?

What should it be?’

Seo-jun, who was typing according to the sales form, suddenly tilted his head.

A seller’s nickname shouldn’t be chosen carelessly.

As a seller, he had to choose a nickname that everyone could easily remember for a long time.