Chapter 86: Life as a Sunflower

Mom.

That’s exactly how it was written on my phone.

I always got nervous when Mom called, but today I felt especially tense.

‘They say a thief’s feet tingle… No, mine have always tingled from the start.’

I’m already doing something wrong.

I’d submitted a leave of absence from school without saying a word, just enjoying my life as a game addict.

But now, since I’m making a lot of money, that burden has doubled.

With trembling hands, Seongwoo tapped the screen to answer the call.

“Hello?”

“Oh, my son.”

A bright, ringing voice.

Mom’s voice is always cheerful.

Which makes me feel even more guilty.

“What are you up to? Did you eat?”

When she asked if I’d eaten, I wanted to answer, ‘Even if I haven’t, I feel full just hearing your voice, Mother,’ but I held back.

Instead, I told the usual lie.

“It’s way past mealtime, of course I’ve eaten. What about you, Mom?”

“I ate too. Your semester is almost over, right? When does it end?”

At her question, Seongwoo finally glanced at the calendar on the wall.

Ah, come to think of it, the semester is almost over.

I’d completely forgotten because of gaming.

Looking at the calendar, Seongwoo vaguely told her the semester ended around mid-December.

“You must be busy, right? Don’t study too hard, make sure you take some breaks. And remember, what’s more important than studying is your youth—youth doesn’t come back. So enjoy it!”

I’m already enjoying it plenty, Mother.

That answer nearly burst out of my throat, but I swallowed it down.

He spoke with the polite tone you’d use to a difficult boss, then quickly ended the call.

“Man, I thought I was going to die.”

Once the call was over, Seongwoo tossed his phone onto the bed—a little performance to show his relief.

‘Now that I think about it, it’s been quite a while since I went home.’

Too busy with life.

No, too busy gaming to go home.

What greater act of filial impiety could there be in this world?

‘But I’m not a bad son anymore. I’m just a fire-attribute filial son.’

After exchanging plenty of gold, Seongwoo decided that next time he went home, he’d make sure to go with both hands full.

---

Sizzle.

A hanwoo restaurant in Gangnam.

The one grilling premium Korean beef for lunch was none other than Manager Bae Hyunwoo.

“Eat up, Seongwoo.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Although the company was supposed to have a meeting the next day, this wasn’t really a meeting—just a quick chat.

So, they decided to have lunch together, and thanks to yesterday’s huge success on the live stream, Bae Hyunwoo brought the corporate card.

“Wow, this ribeye just melts in your mouth.”

“This is the kind of place we bring our most honored guests—the flavor is incredible.”

“With prices like this, it’d better be.”

I make enough now to eat all the hanwoo I want, but these big splurges still feel unfamiliar.

Besides, it’s not even my money—it’s company money, so there’s no pressure.

As Bae Hyunwoo sliced the meat, he spoke.

“By the way, Seongwoo, do you know how much in donations you got just from the auction participation fee yesterday?”

“How much?”

“6,370,000 won.”

“What?”

Though he spoke matter-of-factly, Seongwoo froze when he heard the amount.

6,370,000 won.

It might seem small or large, depending on perspective, but knowing exactly how that money was made, Seongwoo couldn’t help but be shocked.

“Haha… I was just thinking about making four billion gold yesterday and didn’t even consider this part…”

“I didn’t expect it to be this much either. That’s just from the auction participation fees.”

“So, do we split the 6,370,000 won with the company according to our agreement?”

“No. All the donation money goes to the streamer. We’re just splitting video and ad revenue, remember?”

“Oh, so…?”

“After platform fees and withholding tax, the donation money will be deposited straight into your account.”

“Wow…”

Is this what they mean when they say money gets you drunk?

Even though he hadn’t had a drink, Seongwoo felt a pleasant buzz in his head.

“By the way, we’re also getting more banner ad offers these days. Your value is skyrocketing, so as soon as we settle on a price, we’ll be putting banners in your videos.”

“Ads too… You really can’t predict the future. Not long ago, I was just gaming to kill time and eat cheap meals.”

“There are a lot of people whose lives turned around because of Warlord. Of course, just as many crashed and burned pouring everything into it.”

Where there’s light, there’s shadow.

But Seongwoo decided not to dwell on the shadow.

After all, he was no longer living in the shade—he’d become a great sunflower growing tall in the bright sunlight.

Bae Hyunwoo asked, “So, what will you do now?”

“Sorry? About what?”

“Your earnings settlement. To be honest, salary is just paid as usual, but all these extra earnings get split and taxed accordingly.”

“Ah…”

He meant taxes.

But what did Seongwoo, twenty years old and a gamer, know about taxes?

Noticing Seongwoo’s confused expression, Bae Hyunwoo smiled gently.

“If you’d like, I can help you out.”

“Huh? You, Manager?”

“You’ll need to register as a sole proprietor and do a few other things. Actually, you’re not the first case we’ve had like this.”

“Ah…”

Exactly.

While there probably aren’t many people whose lives did a complete 180 in Open World like Seongwoo, it’s true that there are a lot of high earners.

And most of them are only good at gaming, not at this kind of thing, so Bae Hyunwoo has helped many streamers before.

Seongwoo, feeling awkward but grateful, offered sincere thanks for his help.

“Thank you, Manager.”

“Think nothing of it. I’m just doing what I should. The gold you exchanged will be deposited into your account within a few days.”

“Thank you.”

In-game, Seongwoo never brought a healer along, but in real life, there was no better supporter than Bae Hyunwoo.

Thanks to today, Seongwoo once again realized what a great person Bae Hyunwoo was.

“I’ll grill the meat, Manager.”

“No, I’ll do it. You just enjoy your meal, Seongwoo.”

“Manager…”

Bae Hyunwoo.

What a truly good person.

And that day, Seongwoo ate 400,000 won worth of hanwoo for lunch.

---

[Connecting to Warlord.]

[May you become a hero shining in the great war.]

[Starting Warlord play.]

Spot!

A flash of light, and his vision sharpened.

Once logged in, Levan opened his status window first.

[Levan]

-Level: 66

-Divine Throne: Rubix

-Class: War Mage

-Affiliation: #Herum #Freedom

-Stats.

Strength 191 (+5)

Perception 19 (+5)

Intelligence 47 (+20)

Dexterity 14

-Special

Movement speed +10% in combat

Movement speed +5% out of combat

Skill cooldown -20%

-Remaining stat points: 0

‘Maybe I should’ve sold the anklets too?’

Through the live auction, Levan had sold off a few items.

They weren’t things he was likely to use anyway.

Things like Dew of the Fairy Spring or the Gnoll Soldier’s Eyepatch.

But when it came time to sell, there weren’t many items worth putting up.

After all, the Staff of Power he received after his class change was soulbound, and most of the others were legendary or royal items.

So he sold Hoam’s Club.

Of course, you could only equip Hoam’s Club after gaining Hoam’s approval, but as “that famous Hoam’s Club,” it held considerable value among collectors.

Thanks to that, Hoam’s Club sold for an unexpectedly high price.

‘Guess I should go pick up my robe now.’

After checking his status and inventory, Levan immediately tore an Instant Travel Scroll.

Destination: Passna, of course.

Today was the day the robe would be finished.

As soon as he arrived in Passna, Levan headed straight for the palace.

He no longer had to ask for directions; he knew exactly where everything was in Passna Palace.

Even a monkey would memorize the path after coming and going so often.

Levan made his way to the Artisans’ Hall, and upon arrival, everyone greeted him warmly.

“Sir Levan, you’ve arrived!”

“Hello, everyone?”

Returning their warm greetings, Levan was immediately guided to where the Leatherer was.

The Leatherer’s place was a leather workshop within the Artisans’ Hall.

He’d never seen it before, but apparently, it had been built recently—the Artisans’ Hall had changed over the past few days.

“Welcome, Sir Levan!”

“Hello, how have you been? I see there’s a new leather workshop here?”

“Ah, His Highness completely revamped the Artisans’ Hall. This place used to be empty, so he generously divided up the space.”

As expected of Evergrand.

Levan nodded in approval at Evergrand’s bold management.

“You’ve come at just the right time. The robe was just finished.”

“Oh, good timing for me. Can I see it now?”

“Right this way.”

With that, the Leatherer pulled back a curtain.

Behind it stood a pristine white robe, draped on a black mannequin, revealed to Levan.

“Oh…”

A robe of pure white.

It looked exactly like the typical robe worn by doctors.

Standing beside the robe, the Leatherer began to explain.

“We paid special attention to the design. Since you mainly use shields and maces, we added loops for both on the robe itself, and…”

The Leatherer excitedly described the robe.

He hadn’t been able to work with leather for a long time, due to his convictions.

But this time, he was using nothing less than Master Orc leather, so of course he was excited.

Listening to the Leatherer’s explanation, Levan could feel just how much effort had gone into making this robe.

“It’s truly a unique leather. Not only is it incredibly strong, but it’s so thin that it hardly feels like leather at all… And the magical compatibility is so high, I couldn’t believe leather like this existed.”

It was true.

As the Leatherer said, even though it was made from leather, the robe felt as soft as cloth.

After listening to all the explanations, Levan touched the robe and checked the item information.

[Masterial—A pristine white leather robe crafted with the utmost devotion by Leatherer Bin from Master Orc leather.]

-Grade: Unique, Masterpiece.

-Restriction: None.

-Durability: 2,500/2,500

-Options

Physical Defense +350

Magic Defense +350

#Self-Repair

#Self-Cleanse

#Ultra-Light

#Heat Retention

#Advanced Protection

There it was: the “Masterpiece” grade.

Any user could theoretically craft a Masterpiece, but when a true master made one, the quality was on another level.

That’s why most Masterpiece items were named in this special way.

Levan spoke, genuinely impressed.

“This is amazing! May I try it on?”

“Of course! You commissioned it, after all.”

With permission, Levan didn’t hesitate to take the robe off the mannequin.

He put it on in style.

Snap!

The robe fit perfectly to his body.

Seeing this, the Leatherer gave him a thumbs-up.

And all the other Masterials nearby gave a thumbs-up as well.

Standing in front of the mirror, Levan admired the look of his new robe.

“Thank you, Leatherer. Thanks to you, I got something really great.”

“The favor you’ve shown us is worth far more than this, truly. Ahem, and, Sir Levan, here…”

The Leatherer cleared his throat and handed Levan a small pouch.

“Not now, but please open it when you’re alone later.”

“What’s this?”

“Hehe, just a little token from all of us.”

“A token? Oh, you really didn’t have to…”

“Oh, you must! If you don’t accept it, we’ll just throw it away! So please, please, take it!”

Not just the Leatherer, but all the other Masterials crowded around, insisting he take it.

With all that fuss, Levan accepted the bundle, unable to refuse.

“You really didn’t need to, but… anyway, thank you. I don’t know what it is, but I’ll put it to good use.”

“No, thank you! Please, remember you can always come to us whenever you need anything.”

The Masterials bowed deeply, expressing their heartfelt gratitude to Levan.

Levan did his best to control his twitching cheeks as he bowed in return.

‘Quest complete.’

Levan’s cheeks just couldn’t stop twitching.