Chapter 38: The Weight of Reality

My voice trembled uncontrollably.

“H-h-how much did you say?”

It was so absurd that my voice shook even more.

Unlike me, the clerk—who had been endlessly kind until just a moment ago, or at least until he mentioned the price—repeated the amount I’d just heard, exactly the same as before.

“Eight thousand gold, sir.”

“Huhh…”

I only truly understood after hearing it twice.

A staggering eight thousand gold—if converted to Korean won, that’s a whopping eight billion.

My gaze turned to the lower part of my inventory window, where the amount of gold was displayed.

“No way…”

Eight thousand gold? I didn’t even have a thousand gold quietly sleeping in my inventory.

It looked so miserably small.

Seriously… Ha… Whether here or back in Modern Society, the dream of owning a home is always distant and steep.

How many apartments are there crammed into that small land called the Republic of Korea? Yet, out of all those countless apartments, how many people can truly say one belongs to them?

Even when I lived in Modern Society, I worked through breakfast, lunch, and dinner, barely able to eat properly.

Breaks were a luxury, eating while working was the norm, and overtime was a given.

Even after scrimping on what I wore and ate, the best I managed was a tiny One-room.

And even that was rented, not owned.

Here, in this world, I’d done my best too.

Of course, I’d spent a lot of money on Magicbooks and Swordsmanship Books for the sake of survival. But when it came to food and sleep, I saved as much as possible.

Yet, even if I added together all the money I’d invested and everything I’d spent so far, it wasn’t enough to buy even a small Garrison.

My mind went completely blank.

“Baron Solo, if I may, there is a way.”

Perhaps it was my expression that prompted the clerk to speak kindly.

But at that moment, I already knew what he was going to say.

‘Obvious. A loan. And with a ludicrous interest rate, no doubt.’

So predictable it was almost funny.

No, it couldn’t be helped.

Isn’t Modern Society just the same? There were many types of loans, after all.

There were safe loans for those with credit, and high-risk loans where you’d gamble your future, and everything in between.

People in Modern Society couldn’t help but get used to loans.

The very first loan for most ordinary households was the Student Loan.

To get that diploma, you’d borrow two to four years’ worth of tuition just to attend college.

And as soon as you graduated and got a job, you’d begin paying it back, bit by bit, from your salary.

Depending on your abilities, the time it took to pay off the Student Loan might vary, but once that was done, the next thing you looked for was a home loan.

Since homes aren’t exactly cheap, the amount you’d borrow to buy one usually meant paying it off over a lifetime unless something extraordinary happened.

If the loan ended there, it’d be lucky, but in most cases, you’d end up taking out several more loans.

Money to raise kids, loans for your children’s university, and countless other cases.

‘Let’s hear him out for now.’

With that thought, I looked back at the clerk, who spoke up again.

“The first option is a loan under the Empire’s name. The annual interest rate is only 10%, and it’s a loan favored by many Nobles.”

“I thought as much…”

Just as expected, talk of loans began.

Naturally, I had to refuse.

No, I had absolutely no intention of taking it.

I’d rather go out and earn more money.

But he continued on, unfazed.

“If you consider the average income of Nobles, it won’t be much of an issue. Besides, if the Garrison doesn’t have a lord, it’s usually full of dumb Commoners who only know how to hoard money, so just squeeze them a bit and they’ll cough up the tribute—there shouldn’t be a problem.”

I was a little taken aback by his words.

So, he’s telling me to squeeze the Commoners for money?

‘That’s outright robbery.’

Really, it was an outrageous thing to say.

No, as someone from Modern Society, I could say with certainty—

This is wrong.

In Modern Society, the people make the country, and the country exists for the people.

But this place wasn’t like that.

Everything was for the Nobles and the Royal Family.

That’s why he could say such things so shamelessly.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

I tapped the armrest of the chair, trying to express my discomfort.

The clerk, who had been speaking so thoughtlessly at first, began to watch my reaction and eventually changed the subject.

“There’s another way. You could buy a small Manor instead.”

A Manor was, in principle, the same as a Garrison.

But there were differences, which created a price gap. First, compared to a Garrison, a Manor was much smaller.

If a Garrison was like a ‘city’ in Modern Society, then a Manor was about the size of a ‘village.’

At best, it would be one or two villages, and usually, Manors were in less desirable locations.

There was another crucial downside.

Even though you owned the Manor, it belonged to a Garrison, so you had to obey the lord’s commands.

Put simply, it was just like living in a rented home in Modern Society.

“Got it. I’ll come back another time.”

I didn’t see any point in listening further, so I got up from my seat.

The clerk looked at me as if he found it strange.

If I were an ordinary Noble, I’d have taken out a loan to buy a Garrison without hesitation.

But since I didn’t, he just looked stunned for a moment.

“Please visit us again.”

Soon, he put on a polite face and saw me out.

Guided by his farewell, I left the Government Office, passed by the Guards, and stepped outside.

“Ha…”

Once I was sure nobody was around, I let out a soft sigh.

I couldn’t even afford a single Manor.

If I really tried, maybe I could gather the money, but honestly, the thought didn’t appeal to me.

“Man, those houses sure look nice.”

Noble houses came into view.

There were all sorts of beautiful buildings, many with what looked like lovely gardens.

“Seriously, this world is filthy.”

Whether it’s Modern Society or here, owning a home is incredibly hard.

“I guess I’ll have to earn more money.”

With a bitter heart, I walked down the road.

Before I knew it, the day was getting dark.

As the sun slipped behind the mountains, the twilight filled me with complicated feelings.

“Is this what it means to be the head of a household?”

Thinking of Jenny and Toma, who depended on me, I’d tried to get us a home but failed—maybe that’s what it was.

And watching the dusky light, I remembered the feeling of heading home from work.

“Fighting, heads of households in the Republic of Korea.”

I genuinely cheered them on from the bottom of my heart.

***

I returned straight to the Inn and the first thing I did was check on Jenny.

“How are you?”

“I’m much better now.”

She really did seem better—her face looked healthier than before, and she no longer winced when she moved.

“That’s good.”

I went downstairs and ordered food.

Normally, I’d have sat down to chat and drink beer with the Store Owner, Hyung-nim, after a long while.

But with Jenny’s injury, I just asked them to bring the food up to the room.

Maybe because of Jenny’s injury, they brought us better food than usual, and we quietly ate our meal in the room.

When we finished, the Store Owner came up to collect the dishes himself.

He lingered a moment, then brought up a beer keg for us and said,

“It’s a hassle to keep running up and down the stairs, so just finish this off. There’s not much left anyway.”

“Thank you.”

“Sure, Jenny, get well soon too.”

He even brought us a little snack to go with it, then finally left us alone in the room.

“Ahh…”

As the cool beer slid down my throat, I couldn’t help but sigh in satisfaction.

I started sketching out a rough plan.

I’d already tracked down educational books and made skills for that purpose.

If Jenny could just learn a few simple spells, things would get much easier for me.

Even if she only mastered Fire Magic to start fires, Aqua Magic to create water, or Light Magic to make light for a while—it’d be a huge help.

I thought it should be possible, but I’d only know for sure once we tried.

Of course, it wasn’t something to do right away.

Jenny was still recovering, so there was no need to push her.

We could start tomorrow morning.

“But still… the problem is money.”

This time, I learned something for sure.

To buy a home, I’d need at least eight thousand gold, and even to rent, I’d need eighteen hundred gold.

Something I’d tucked away in the back of my mind started to surface again.

A production-related job…

That was something I’d tried briefly when I first fell into this world.

At the time, I’d had to give up.

To run a business, I’d need startup funds; for smithing or tanning, I’d need to learn the skills. But I didn’t know who the master craftsmen were or where to find them.

Unlike before, now I could do it.

And as for Magic Artifacts, which were the most revolutionary products, I could actually produce them endlessly.

Why, you ask?

The materials and mana needed to make even a single Magic Artifact were no small thing.

Every step required mana, so there was probably no one more suited to making them than me.

If I could just make one well, I could easily earn dozens of gold coins—if it gained fame and top-tier performance, even hundreds or thousands of gold would come in no time.

Honestly, if I wanted to make money fast, this was the best method.

“Do you think making Magic Artifacts would earn me good money?”

I asked Jenny.

But her answer was simply, “I don’t know.”

“I’m not sure?”

She said it with a genuinely puzzled expression.

Then she casually took off her outer clothes.

“I want to wash, Solo-nim.”

“Alright.”

With a drink in me, a full stomach, and my mind swirling with plans, I wanted it too.

As usual, I took a bathtub out of my spatial bag, warmed up the water, and Jenny and I climbed in.

Of course, I had a beer mug in one hand.

I took slow sips, letting the hot water soothe my body.

“Tomorrow, I’m thinking of teaching you some magic.”

I said it to Jenny, who was soaking in the water.

“What? Magic?”

Startled, she sat up, splashing water everywhere.

She climbed onto me, her eyes sparkling.

“I can’t promise anything, but let’s give it a try. If you learn some simple spells, it’ll make life much easier for both of us.”

“Yes!”

She must not have heard the “I can’t promise anything” part, because she was already muttering to herself.

“Magic, magic! Hehehe.”

She looked so happy, as if she could already use magic.

If she really does learn, there’s only so much I’ll be able to teach her.

After that, it’ll depend on her own efforts.

“Master~”

Her call snapped me out of my thoughts.

“Hm?”

Jenny’s eyes, usually bright and innocent, now sparkled with mischief and seduction.

She didn’t explain why she called me—she showed me with her body.

I’d wanted to let her rest and recover, but that night burned hotter than ever.