Woo Yeon-Hee said the notification messages about her achievement and rewards appeared when she was dying, and she had received the trait ‘Revival.’ Meanwhile, she stayed quiet in the car while we headed back to Seoul. She didn’t ask any further questions about whether there were actually other Awakened like us as she was quick-witted. When we arrived at her home, she gazed at her unchanged room with deep emotion. Then, she asked hastily as I was about to leave, “When’s the next time?”

***

Woo Yeon-Hee had mastered hiding her innermost thoughts. Therefore, she could pretend that nothing was happening when the horny teenage boys were rude to her at school. It was the same now as she asked Seon in a nonchalant manner, concealing her doubt.

“When’s the next time?”

Seon was surprised.

“You are still heavily injured…When you get better, let’s talk about the contract money first,” he replied.

“Money!”

“Yes. We should think about how I transfer your money. Wait, never mind. I’ll take care of it, so call me or come to my office when you completely recover. I’ll take your ID and seal,” he said.

Woo Yeon-Hee couldn’t take her eyes off of his back when he headed out. She turned her head to look at her room again and saw the television, air conditioner remote control, and a cup of parched barley tea Seon had boiled for her.

He’s a nice guy.

Of course, she had first doubted whether Seon would be as ruthless and unfeeling inside as he was on the outside, but she became more certain after they went through the dungeon together. She realized that he was only cold for the sake of his own and his companion’s survival.

Therefore, Woo Yeon-Hee couldn’t understand his hidden rage. She felt his anger whenever he talked about the other Awakened and even when he had lost consciousness. She had firmly believed that Seon was not the kind of guy who would make enemies and harbor resentment that deep for so long unless there had been a misunderstanding with others.

However, he had a deep-set fury toward all the other Awakened beside herself. Woo Yeon-Hee couldn’t forget the scenes where he had fought alone and barely managed to survive multiple times. She thought that if others could’ve helped Seon, things would’ve been less horrific. Therefore, she was about to ask him for permission whether she could search for the other Awakened. She wanted to help others the way he had saved her.

However…Woo Yeon-Hee muttered in pain.

“But I shouldn’t have asked, and should never even see them.”

***

Ten days later, Woo Yeon-Hee was waiting for me.

“You’re the same,” she smiled as if she had not seen me in years.

She had finally regained the flawless skin of an Awakened, and she turned around in front of me like a woman showing off a new dress to her boyfriend. Her wounds had regenerated fully.

I looked over the prepared office that was full of the major papers and printed private newsletters. It resembled the time during the Russian financial war. Although that war was over, we continued focusing on the news as another war was brewing on Wall Street in the aftermath of that battle. All kinds of takeover battles were underway over the huge hedge funds and financial institutions that had collapsed with Russia.

“You’re in good shape now. We should have a celebration party, but…” I trailed off.

“No, don’t worry about it. Go ahead and work. I’ll wait,” she replied.

I headed to the seat that Woo Yeon-Hee had set up and checked the information papers while leaning on the sofa. Then, I found an article about the takeover battle.

「Jonathan Investments confirms acquisition of LTCM.」

The illustration attached was interesting. Three giants were wearing Lincoln hats with dollar signs on them, and they were looking down at a bunch of small, naked people. Each giant had a badge on them, and the logos of Jonathan Investments, Silverman and Gold of America (GOA) were on it. They were pushing on each other’s faces, but their eyes and their remaining hands were directed at the small people. The small people personified the hedge funds and financial institutions that were on the verge of bankruptcy. I thought it was interesting because of the intuitive expression of the illustrator.

It was amusing to see that our New York firm was now competing with Silverman and Morgan. This was impossible in the past. However, Jonathan Investments has grown so much in the Russian war, and we had ninety billion dollars to prove it. I headed to the safe after checking all the papers quickly. Next to the talisman given to me by my father, there was a document file for Woo Yeon-Hee. That file was her money earned with her own blood.

“Check it out. I’ll change it if you don’t like it,” I said.

“I can’t take it,” she answered after checking the documents.

“You want money instead?” I asked.

“You know it’s not that. This is more than what I’m supposed to get, including the lands, buildings and medical equipment,” she replied.

I had given her the Hwasung Pyeonghwa Mental Health Clinic building in its entirety. The original amount was a total of two billion won. She was supposed to get five hundred million won for entering the dungeon, five hundred million for successfully returning, and one billion as an annual salary. However, the corporate liquidation value stated on the document was much more than that, and that was what she was referring to.

“I only built the ward to disguise the dungeon. It’s useless to me now since the dungeon has been destroyed, but it might be different for you,” I said.

The starting salary of middle school teachers was low, but it was enough to keep a single person alive. Nevertheless, Woo Yeon-Hee had been financially suffering even though she didn’t spend much on herself and her family. She had been donating eighty percent of her salary, and perhaps it was largely due to her life history and her empathic senses.

“You knew?” she asked.

“What?”

I pretended not to know as I couldn’t confess that I had searched her room several times before in the past.

“What are you going to do?” I questioned.

She replied, “I might lose it all. I’ve never dealt with such an amount, and it's a medical corporation. I’m too old to take the college entrance exam again.”

However, her eyes shone as she looked over the file.

“Office managers are very important in practice, and medical corporations are similar to that. You don’t need to be a doctor. You should hire paid doctors. You can use this doctor’s license to maintain the hospital,” I explained.

“Who’s this guy? Yang Jin-Won?” Woo Yeon-Hee asked while looking at the copy of a doctor’s license. Until a week ago, all the property and the hospital licensing paperwork were under that name. However, I had moved the ownership to Woo Yeon-Hee including the land and building ownership. The new owner of the New Hope Medical Corporation was Woo Yeon-Hee.

“Flip it,” I said.

She found the account number on the back of the copy.

“Send five million won every month there if you want to maintain the corporation,” I added.

Her expression wasn’t wooden, but she was slowly nodding.

“You won’t have to meet the rest of the hospital board. I can give you their ID cards and seals, so do you want this?” I asked.

“I do, but…”

I interrupted her and handed her another bankbook that I had prepared in case she refused. She looked at me in confusion when she saw the two billion won under her name.

“Are you going to run the business with empty pockets? I’m giving you the deed because it’s useless, and this is the money I promised. Once again, you don’t need to worry about those things linked to the hospital that are only on paper,” I said.

“You don’t have enough time to help me with this, right?” she questioned.

“I’m just throwing it away,” I answered while glancing at the bankbook.

“Are you not going to take it? My arm hurts,” I said.

It was basically giving a sword to a child, and Woo Yeon-Hee was aware of it, too. She wanted to do it, but she had never been involved in the medical field in her life. I placed a business card down after putting the bankbook on the table. Woo Yeon-Hee took it, then her face brightened as she saw the name on the card. It was an accountant from Samwoo Accounting Corporation.

“He specializes in hospitals and has a good reputation in the industry. Learn a lot from him and then proceed from hiring to running the business,” I said.

“Seon-Hu?” She looked at me.

“For your information, you’ll have to spend a lot. Don’t think of it as an unnecessary expense and hire a good firm so you won’t be swindled,” I added.

“Can I run it my way?” she questioned.

“It’s yours,” I answered.

She asked, “Even if I run it for a non-profit?”

“I don’t know how long you can keep it that way, but I told you. I won’t and don’t want to care about it. Do as you wish. It’s all yours,” I replied.

Helping people in distress must’ve been her wish. Medical corporations had to make profits, but there were other ways to structure a nonprofit system. I didn’t need to explain further as Woo Yeon-Hee was a social worker who had worked as a teacher. She looked at the bankbook and me alternately and gratefully took the bankbook.

“Are you still down to join me in entering the next dungeon?” I asked.

“What about you?” she questioned.

“What?” I asked.

“Is going into a dungeon still like a job for you? You’re going to keep entering regardless of me, right?” she questioned again.

“You don’t need to worry about that. Just think about yourself,” I responded.

“I need more money to run things…like this.”

She shifted her gaze to the document file.

“So you’re going to keep the contract as it is for money, right?” I asked.

Woo Yeon-Hee smiled brightly and nodded.

“Yes. Let’s do this, leader.”