Level 4 Human in a Ruined World

Chapter 280: Karma (1)

"A hundred million?"

"A hundred million... you want that much?"

"What...?"

One hundred million karma.

This amount was quite significant even for Yeongwoo, who was already bleeding the continent dry.

"Are you sure? A hundred million?"

Yeongwoo asked in a concerned tone.

It was fine to extort a lot of money in exchange for sparing someone\'s life, but it had to be an amount that was actually collectible.

If the amount was too absurd, the other party might not even try to gather the money, or worse, decide to die instead, and that would be a problem for Yeongwoo too.

‘It’s not like I can take back what I said and ask for a lower price now.’

Yeongwoo looked at "Early Bird," who had blurted out the figure of a hundred million.

‘This guy is really crazy.’

Then, he carefully examined the facial expressions of the person who would be owing that hundred million.

He wondered if they had a face that looked capable of gathering such a huge amount.

‘Hmm.’

The participant, who was in danger of being forced to pay a hundred million due to Early Bird’s slip of the tongue, was a rather tough-looking Westerner.

"Where are you from? Which country do you belong to?"

Yeongwoo politely asked the man who was now his hundred-million-customer.

The man furrowed his brow and scanned the rest of the participants.

"...The United States."

"The United States? Which part?"

"Andrew Bolton, Guardian of Vermont."

"......"

Yeongwoo usually had a habit of smashing the heads of anyone who talked down to him, but this time, he held back for the sake of the hundred million.

"Vermont...?"

As Yeongwoo looked up, trying to recall the unfamiliar name, Ottavio chimed in.

"Vermont is in the northeastern United States."

"Oh? You know a lot about American geography."

"No, it’s just the hometown of Ted Bundy."

Ted Bundy.

The notorious American serial killer from the 1970s.

Yeongwoo had heard of the name but didn’t know the guy’s hometown, so he tilted his head in curiosity.

In any case, if Vermont was in the northeastern United States...

‘If the American continent is attached to Europe and Africa, it’ll take some time to visit.’

This was because the highway being constructed by his brothers was heading toward China, not the Pacific.

So, the road would likely traverse Eurasia first.

‘Which means I\'ll be passing through Europe and the Middle East before reaching the U.S. That’s quite a distance.’

As Yeongwoo was lost in these strange thoughts, Andrew, the Guardian of Vermont, asked him,

"How exactly do you plan to collect this money?"

Yeongwoo answered as if he was grateful for the question.

"When the time is right, I plan to visit wherever you are and collect it personally."

"Oh, then..."

This time, another participant spoke up.

"So, it\'s on credit?"

"Yes. Believe it or not, it\'s on credit. You survive and pay later."

"......!"

The participants\' eyes widened at Yeongwoo\'s words.

If that were the case, they had no reason to refuse.

‘Is he really an idiot?’

‘How is he going to find us with so many countries represented here?’

‘Once we’re out, I just won’t pay. Same as getting my gear back.’

The participants sighed in relief, unable to believe the seemingly foolish proposal.

But Yeongwoo, who was well aware of their thoughts, warned them as he memorized each of their faces.

"Let me make this clear. You will see me again. And I will collect every last cent."

"......"

It was a chilling warning for some reason, but despite that, the participants prioritised survival.

"Okay."

"Paying is a hundred times better than dying."

"So, this American has to pay a hundred million, and we’ll renegotiate our amounts?"

When someone in the group said this, Yeongwoo smiled and raised his hand again.

Swish.

Then he spread out two fingers.

"But I’m a reasonable man, so I’ll only double the price each time."

"What, what did you say?"

This meant the second person would pay 20 million, the third 40 million, and the fourth 80 million.

"The rule is the same as before. First come, first served, one person per round."

As Yeongwoo waved his two fingers, the participants hurriedly shouted out.

"Twenty million!"

"Me! Me!"

"Then I’ll pay 30 million!"

Even a person offering to pay more came forward, but Yeongwoo stuck to his principles.

"No, those who were late will pay 40 million next time."

"Goddamn it..."

And watching this crazy scene from a distance, Anubhav reconsidered the 30 million he had to pay for his life.

‘What... what is this? That guy... he must have something up his sleeve.’

Even if he had command over the guards in the dungeon, that power would disappear once they left this place, wouldn’t it?

Yet, here he was, mocking the strongest fighters from countries around the world...

‘Either he’s a madman living for today, or he really does have something up his sleeve.’

South Korea.

A small peninsula somewhere in the Far East.

That was all Anubhav knew about the country the man belonged to.

So, strangely enough...

"......"

It made him even more terrified.

The line between mystery and fear was thin.

And no matter how you looked at it, this crazy Oriental belonged to the "fear" side.

"Now, who\'s next for 40 million!"

As Yeongwoo’s auction for lives reached the 40 million mark, Anubhav began to think that he had gotten off lightly.

If things had gone differently, he might have ended up flat on the ground, being extorted for 40 million... or perhaps even 80 million.

‘What on earth is happening in the East?’

* * *

"I’m really glad to have made a connection with all of you."

After collecting all his debts, Yeongwoo said with deep emotion, but most of the people in the room still looked like they had swallowed something bitter.

And for a good reason.

Many of them now owed tens of millions, or in the worst case, even a hundred million.

"Now, you\'ll all be able to leave soon. But first, let’s go through the list."

Yeongwoo cleared his throat and began to read out the list of survivors who would have to pay him.

『White Deer of Lubelskie』

|Burza Janowski, Poland.

*10 million Karma.

『Swordmaster of Hampshire』

|Ricky Brown, United Kingdom.

*20 million Karma.

『Stone Wall of Huancayo』

|Lerana Castillo, Peru.

*40 million Karma.

『Medina Mahdi』

|Bin Ali, Saudi Arabia.

*80 million Karma.

『Guardian of Vermont』

|Andrew Bolton, United States.

*100 million Karma.

And lastly, Anubhav from Assam, India: 30 million Karma.

"Any objections? If your location is incorrect, I\'ll allow one correction, so speak up now."

Yeongwoo asked to confirm, but no one raised any objections, and the debt collection process was finalized.

"Thank you, everyone."

From Peru to Poland.

Could this man really travel the world and collect all that money?

Some of those present were certain of one thing: by tomorrow, Yeongwoo would forget most of the names on the list he had just read.

However, as if reading their minds, Yeongwoo continued,

"I trust no one here thinks they\'ll be forgotten, that with so many people involved, I won\'t remember them, right?"

“……”

Feeling a sharp sting of guilt, the participants kept their mouths shut, and Yeongwoo issued a firm warning.

"I never forget the money I\'m owed."

Swish.

Yeongwoo pointed his command sword at Andrew, the Guardian of Vermont, who owed the 100 million.

"So, make sure to have the money ready. Otherwise, you\'ll realize that escaping death today was only a delay, not a reprieve."

With that, Yeongwoo gestured to the guards, who released the participants they had been holding.

"Go ahead! You’re all free!"

“……”

Before Yeongwoo even finished speaking, the participants were already sprinting toward the exit, heading for the blue portal that had opened on one side of the fortress wall.

Anubhav from India nervously shuffled his feet and looked at Yeongwoo.

"Um... Can I go too?"

"Yes, go ahead."

Yeongwoo nodded, and Anubhav dashed toward the portal with unprecedented speed.

Tap tap!

And with that...

“……”

Only Yeongwoo and Ottavio from Sicily were left standing in front of the exit.

"I had hoped we’d meet in a dungeon again someday, but not like this."

"I don\'t know what you were expecting, but it might exceed that next time."

As Yeongwoo said this, Ottavio shuddered slightly.

"Are you really going to collect from those people?"

"Of course."

"...How exactly?"

"There’s a shortcut being built just for me. I might even stop by Sicily someday."

"There’s no need to come by."

Leaving a comment that could be either a joke or a warning, Ottavio also began to run toward the exit.

"Anyway, see you alive next time!"

With that, the man from Sicily disappeared into the portal.

Yeongwoo watched him go, then began to walk toward the exit himself.

Swoosh.

\'Looks like I can finally get some sleep tonight.\'

All that was left now was a good night\'s sleep at the hotel and then checking in the morning to see how much work his brothers had done.

At last, he had nearly completed what had been a long, long week.

\'Tomorrow will be exactly the seventh day since the reset. Feels like I’ve lived through seven years.\'

With a morality score of 14 points—likely the highest among the participants—Yeongwoo threw himself into the portal.

Flash!

Then, as the brief, peculiar sensation of the portal surrounded him, he didn’t immediately return to Earth but entered a sort of waiting state.

\'Ah, the settlement!\'

Yeongwoo instinctively knew that the dungeon settlement was about to begin, and right on cue, system messages started to appear in his field of vision.

[Moral Lecture]

|Dungeon Rank: Ancient

|Difficulty: B

|Required Participants: 8

|Recommended Participants: 16

「The dungeon is now complete.」

「The instructors will now begin grading for the rewards.」

"What...?"

And then, a name he hadn’t expected to see again appeared on the screen.

「Desirak, Head of Military Affairs, is completing the grading sheet.」

「Talgia, Head of Development, is completing the grading sheet.」

「The Thousand Eyes, the Dogo Shareholders\' Association, are completing the grading sheet.」

「The King of Destruction, Chairman of Dogo, is completing the grading sheet.」