Nestled between two rows of commercial buildings stood an unmanned café.
It looked like an ordinary self-serve café, but that was just a façade. Its real purpose was to serve as a special vault storing the hard-earned salaries of Ability Users.
I heard the system was designed so that unlocking a hidden password somewhere in the café would open a door to the vault.
I scanned every inch of the empty café, but there was no visible place to enter a password.
If I’d known it’d be like this, I should’ve researched the vault system more thoroughly.
“There has to be something here for password input.”
[Are you sure this is the right place?]
“It is. The location’s correct.”
As I took another careful look around, my eyes landed on six cups arranged on a table.
These cups… why are they here?
What stood out even more was that the cups were clear and marked with measurement lines from 1 to 10—why would they be deliberately placed like this on a café table?
Even if the place was so dead it hadn’t seen a customer in weeks, shouldn’t it at least be kept clean?
A strange thought crossed my mind when I noticed each cup was filled only up to the line marked “1.”
No way…
Next to the cups sat a pitcher containing an orange-colored liquid.
One sniff was enough to tell me—this was definitely not orange juice. This smells like that preservation fluid you get from monster drops… the kind used to maintain artifacts.
There was no way something like that would be left out so carelessly unless it served a specific purpose.
I carefully poured the liquid into the cups—one by one—matching the number I knew for the password.
The password I know… was the date of my first deployment as a Guide.
As soon as I filled the cups to that unforgettable number, I heard a clunk from the back of the café.
At the same time, Potato shouted joyfully.
[Master! A door to the basement just opened!]
“Let’s head down.”
It looked like the basement had been dug deep during construction. After descending a ladder, I stepped into a wide-open space.
Inside was a single elevator. The control panel only allowed access to one floor.
Good thing it uses a password system.
If it had been something like iris recognition, I’d have been seriously screwed.
With a sigh of relief, I stepped off the elevator and was greeted by the sight of rows upon rows of vaults, all illuminated under bright lights.
[So this is the vault where the early Espers and Guides’ life wages were stored…]
Potato looked around in amazement.
I ignored him and went straight to searching for my designated vault.
Every Ability User was assigned a unique number based on their enlistment date and rank—basically, their vault’s ID. As long as I remembered that, I could locate the one containing the wages I’d earned with my life.
“SSS1130… Here it is!”
Found it.
The vault containing all the wages of the SSS-rank Guide, Ahn Ga-hyun—who died 20 years ago.
[So now we open it with the same password as before?]
“No. This one’s different.”
The input pad accepted only numbers. Without hesitation, I tapped in the digits.
“Normally, the vault owner sets their own password. But if they die, it’s changed so their next of kin can still access it.”
[To what? ]
“To the date of their death.”
0811.
I entered the four digits I’d never forget, and the massive vault door swung open.
With a grunt, I pushed it fully aside, revealing stacks upon stacks of neatly organized Korean won.
[Whoa…]
“As expected… this is insane.”
Was this what Heungbu felt like when he saw the treasures pouring out of the gourd the bird gave him?
Seeing that mountain of cash stirred up a strange mixture of satisfaction and sorrow.
So this is the money I risked my life in those goddamn dungeons to earn…
My life’s worth. My blood price.
Seeing it all here, in tangible form, filled me with emotions I couldn’t even begin to name.
In life, I’d never dared to think I could actually spend this money—it always felt like it belonged to someone else. And now, only after possessing another person’s body could I finally use it.
Unbelievable.
If Je-ha were here beside me, I knew he would’ve understood exactly how I felt. He would’ve silently placed a comforting hand on my shoulder.
He was that kind of friend—warm and deeply empathetic.
…He’s probably still alive somewhere, right?
Normally, rampaging Espers are killed on sight. But according to Potato, Je-ha had survived and escaped the front lines. So maybe, someday, we’d meet again.
Come to think of it, he said he had something he wanted to tell me right before I died. What was it?
Once I finish this revenge and settle down… maybe I’ll try finding him.
Then again, I’m in Yeon Yu-jin’s body now—a D-rank Guide. He might not recognize me.
With that thought, I pulled a paper shopping bag out of my backpack.
The bills were large and took up a lot of space. As long as my body could handle it, I planned to take as much as I could.
“All right, time to scoop up my damn money.”
[Let’s go!]
Just as I reached out to shovel wads of bills into the bag alongside Potato…
“You. Who are you?”
A cold blade touched the back of my neck.
There hadn’t been the slightest hint of presence. How the hell—?!
Startled, I tried to turn around, but the intruder clicked his tongue and shoved me against the wall, making sure I couldn’t get a glimpse of his face.
“Turn around and you die.”
His voice was low, icy, utterly devoid of emotion.
If this bastard wants to kill me, he absolutely can. My survival instincts screamed at me.
The fact that he’d made it this far down into the vault meant he was one of the early-generation Ability Users—just like me.
If he were a Guide, maybe I’d have a chance. But if he were an Esper… he could crush me instantly with his power. And yet, I sensed nothing from him.
He’s completely erased his presence? How the fuck…
Curses filled my head, though I didn’t let any slip out—it might provoke him.
Shit. How do I deal with this psycho?
[Wh-What do we do?!]
Potato panicked, hopping nervously in place. I shot him a look telling him to stay calm, then addressed the lunatic holding me hostage.
“…What the hell are you doing? I’m just a customer here, opening the vault through proper channels.”
“…A customer?”
“Yeah, a customer. The Ability User who owned this vault—before they died—named my mother as the heir. She passed away early, and I inherited the right. That’s all this is.”
Though really, it’s me.
Revealing that I’d possessed someone else’s body would only get me labeled a nutjob, so I improvised.
The man’s voice, however, was thick with suspicion.
“That’s not possible.”
What the hell do you mean, not possible, you lunatic?
You don’t even know me.
…Wait a second.
His voice—there was something familiar about it.
“You…”
Who are you?
I almost asked.
If he was who I thought he was, I’d be overwhelmed with joy.
“You?”
But before I could speak, Potato screamed at me.
[He’s completely covered up, head to toe! He might not be who you think!]
Potato’s right.
Potato told me I was killed by someone after my resurrection ability.
If this was some lackey sent to dig up clues about that power I never got to fully develop… I couldn’t afford to let him learn who I was.
When I stayed silent, the man restraining me asked again.
“You? What were you about to say?”
“I was going to ask what you’re doing here.”
“And what would you do with that information?”
CRACK. He tightened his grip on my wrists.
“Augh!”
Dammit. Yeon Yu-jin’s body is too weak—I won’t last under this pressure.
A genuine fear that my wrists might snap surged through me.
The man whispered in a disturbingly gentle tone.
“I happen to know the owner of this vault very well. He wasn’t the type to leave his life’s savings to some random stranger.”
“And how would you know that?”
“I told you. I knew him well. We were close. Really close.”
At those words, hope sparked in me again.
“We were the kind of friends who knew everything about each other. Both of us lost our entire families in dungeon breaks. There was no one left to inherit anything—no one to leave our earnings to.”
Then these government rats came along, trying to snatch it all.
At that point, I finally understood why this intruder was hostile toward me.
“……”
“According to the law, after 20 years, the government can reclaim a deceased Ability User’s assets. But that’s bullshit. In the case of early Espers and Guides—orphans who died fighting dungeon outbreaks—the moment their deaths are confirmed, the seizure process begins.”
“……”
“For the past 20 years, I’ve been dealing with every single bastard who tried to sneak into this vault to steal my friend’s money. It’s the only thing I can do… until I find the bastard responsible for his death.”
And right then—hearing those words—I almost cried.
Hyun Je-ha!
It’s you.
