As expected of a chaebol family's mansion, it was ridiculously huge. The end wasn't even visible.
And yet, in this enormous place, there wasn't a single person on his side.
Completely isolated.
He was treated worse than even the dogs freely running around in that vast courtyard.
Yeah.
That was him.
“Ha, maybe setting my lawfulness and ethics to zero was a bit too much.”
To fit the character concept, he had pushed several stats to extremes.
Who would have thought it would come back like a boomerang?
“Still, it's interesting. The game became reality, and stories were added to fill in the blanks.”
For example, perhaps because his Reputation stat was zero, television stations were constantly broadcasting criticism of Lee Shin.
In the game, it had merely been a stat that made recruiting people difficult and made it easier to earn hostility from surrounding factions.
But once it became reality, it turned into people directly pointing fingers and shouting,
“That bastard is a complete piece of trash!!”
It felt as if the stat had gone into the negatives.
“Come to think of it, it makes sense that this character became a chaebol.”
The concept from the beginning was a character with almost no real ability who somehow compensated with charm and money.
What would happen when that became reality?
A reason had to be created.
The process had to be adjusted to match the result.
“Since he has no ability, self-made success is impossible. Naturally, it becomes ‘born rich.’ And the reason he can remain attractive despite doing every kind of terrible thing is...”
An unrealistically handsome face reflected in the mirror.
A physique he could never have dreamed of in his previous life.
From head to toe.
A man whose only accomplishment was being born with a diamond spoon in his mouth.
“A third-generation chaebol.”
In the end, he was the one who had dug his own grave.
Leaning his chin on the windowsill, Lee Shin laughed.
“Puhahaha. This is interesting. It's fun. Incredibly fun.”
Without any warning signs, he had been struck by lightning and thrown into a game.
He had been called a drug addict, a bastard, a delinquent, and every insult imaginable.
Now he was being treated worse than a dog.
And yet Lee Shin was smiling.
So what?
What was important?
What if he was a delinquent?
What if he was a bastard?
Being a chaebol wasn't important.
Being treated worse than a dog wasn't important.
Look at this pounding heart.
“Good. The simpler the plan, the better.”
This was a story from the past.
The story of middle-school student Lee Shin.
Back then, Lee Shin was weak in many ways.
He was small and frail.
He had no parents.
His family was poor, and he often wore his older brother's oversized school uniform, becoming the target of ridicule.
Perhaps it wasn't strange that someone like him became a victim of bullying.
At that age, school life operated according to the law of strength.
Bread bags flying toward the back of his head.
The bullies' snickering laughter.
The silent indifference of bystanders desperately avoiding eye contact.
For Lee Shin, who wanted nothing more than a peaceful life, the classroom was not a pleasant place.
Most children would have burst into tears from such relentless humiliation.
Others might have exploded in anger.
A smarter child might have gone to a teacher.
Lee Shin had tried all of those things.
None of them worked.
One day, after being beaten in retaliation and cornered helplessly by curses, threats, and flying fists, there was one thing that set him apart from others.
As he wiped the blood from his lips, he ran a hand over the cold electronic device in his pocket.
‘This should be enough, right?’
A person needed to know exactly what they possessed.
Only then could they achieve what they wanted.
That was the truth about life that middle-school Lee Shin had discovered.
·
·
Self-awareness.
It was a term middle-school Lee Shin didn't know.
Yet he had instinctively grasped its meaning.
Ever since childhood, he had been exceptionally good at it.
So good that it sometimes appeared cynical.
What did he have to offer?
What weapons did he possess?
He understood that accurately evaluating those things increased the chances of success.
Using dozens of accounts, Lee Shin steadily uploaded posts at staggered times.
Government offices.
Morning television programs.
News stations.
Small internet newspapers.
He poured every resource he had into the effort.
As mentioned before, middle-school Lee Shin was small, poor, and from a disadvantaged family.
And fortunately for him, the bully happened to be the child of a major corporation executive.
The weakness that had made him a target became his greatest weapon.
Labels were attached in an instant.
A sense of justice ignited.
The flames spread across the nation.
And Lee Shin obtained the peace he desired.
Compared to then, his current situation was far better.
After all, who was the one who created the character Lee Shin?
The very person who forged the weapon and placed it in his hands was none other than himself.
The overall stats he had assigned while creating the character were below average.
The exception was his high Wealth stat.
But he wasn't an idiot.
He couldn't exactly flaunt money inside a chaebol household.
Besides, he was practically under house arrest.
‘Even if I set aside the money I can't use right now.’
Fortunately, one weapon still remained.
Charm.
The stat that allowed one to captivate or persuade characters.
In Guild Management, players could use it to interact with characters in various ways.
At its simplest, it increased affection and brought greater rewards.
Through goodwill, useful information could also be obtained.
Depending on the value, hidden quests might become available.
Interfering with hidden storylines could even allow recruitment of characters who normally couldn't be recruited.
‘Of course, it wasn't all advantages.’
As the saying goes, where there is attention, there is trouble.
Characters with high Charm attracted attention, but they also became easy targets of jealousy, envy, and unexpected events.
Used properly, it could produce tremendous results.
Used poorly, it was worse than useless.
That was Charm.
Many players considered it a mediocre stat.
But Lee Shin possessed an enormous amount of it.
No.
"Enormous" wasn't enough.
The greatest.
The highest.
At least in terms of Charm, Lee Shin stood unrivaled in this world.
[ Charm 101 ]
Charm beyond the player limit of 100.
An abnormal value of 101.
His strongest weapon.
A weapon obtained by sacrificing almost every other stat.
Once you knew what weapon you possessed, the next step was simple.
Use it.
Lee Shin moved.
The expression on his face changed as he grabbed the doorknob.
His usual mischievous grin vanished.
In its place appeared a gentle and warm smile.
Even his eyes curved pleasantly.
When he opened the door and stepped out, the Lee Shin reflected in the full-length mirror had become a man attractive to everyone.
“Hello. Good morning!”
Every house has its own atmosphere.
A quiet family home naturally feels calm.
A lively family fills a house with cheerful energy.
The atmosphere of the Lee mansion belonged to the former.
Beyond calm.
Rigid.
Whenever Vice Chairman Lee Young-bin, the head of the household, was present, it even became intimidating.
Recently, however, that atmosphere had begun to change.
And the people who noticed it first were, naturally, the employees.
“It's strange. Really strange.”
“What is, unni?”
“When I first started working here, the place felt cold. Like I was coming down with a fever. But for some reason, that feeling disappeared a few days ago.”
“Maybe you really did catch a cold?”
“You brat. Do you think I can't tell the difference?”
“Hehe, just kidding. Actually, I kind of agree. It used to feel uncomfortable, but lately it's gotten better.”
“Right? You feel it too?”
It wasn't just them.
The gardeners.
The arboretum caretakers.
The security guards protecting the massive estate.
Even the chefs responsible for everyone's meals.
All of them could feel the mysterious pressure hanging over the mansion gradually fading.
Everyone wondered why.
What had changed?
Just then, a bright voice rang out.
“Good morning! Sujin noona. Hello! Good morning, Mi-young noona~”
“You're awake, young master.”
“Good morning, young master.”
“Calling me 'young master' is embarrassing. Just call me Shin. Oh, Lucky! You're energetic as always. Good morning. High five!”
It was Lee Shin.
Greeting everyone one by one in the gentlest voice imaginable.
The occasional bit of cuteness was the finishing touch.
He even bent at the waist and high-fived the Samoyed.
The employees hid their smiles.
The man who had spent his days locked away in reflection because of a scandal had suddenly begun greeting everyone cheerfully.
And strangely enough, it wasn't unpleasant.
Just look at that smile. Seriously, his face is a work of art.
He's a delinquent on the inside, but he looks so innocent. The contrast is unbelievable.
Honestly, if you ignored his past behavior, Lee Shin was extremely likable.
Especially to women.
The reason was simple.
He was absurdly handsome.
Tall.
Perfect proportions.
A little thin due to lack of exercise, but that only made his shoulder line look better.
And his face?
There was no need to explain.
His puppy-like appearance and drooping eyes made him seem utterly harmless whenever he smiled.
Enough to trigger protective instincts regardless of gender.
To think someone who looked like that could behave so terribly...
Like the saying that cats would have gone extinct if they weren't cute.
If Lee Shin hadn't been this ridiculously handsome, he probably would have been buried alive already.
Seriously.
As the two women unconsciously admired his face, Lee Shin interrupted their thoughts.
“Noonas, can I ask something?”
“Yes! Of course.”
“Nothing important. I just haven't seen the butler. Where did he go today?”
“The butler? I think today is his day off. Right?”
“Yes, he's off today. Did you need something?”
“No, it's just that today is the ingredient delivery day. It's the biggest event of the week around here. He's usually always present.”
“Don't worry about it.”
Waving casually, Lee Shin turned away.
The women failed to see the genuine smile tugging at his lips.
He walked outside.
Several employees in the courtyard bowed to him.
He returned every greeting with a friendly smile.
“Hyung Changsuk, looks like you enjoyed your day off. Heard you went out with your girlfriend yesterday. Half your face is gone from all that smiling—hahaha!”
“Take it easy, sir.”
“Come on, it's already spotless. And didn't you say your back was hurting? Why are you sweeping so hard?”
Just one week.
That was all it took for Lee Shin to break down their guard and earn their goodwill.
Even the owner of the house, who had warned everyone not to associate with Lee Shin, would have been shocked.
Who could have imagined that rude brat smiling so warmly at the employees?
After all, if you're kind all the time and fail once, you're called a jerk.
But if you're rude all the time and act kindly once, you're called an angel.
Lee Shin had become an angel.
“Going to the arboretum again today?”
“Looking at plants relaxes me. Oh, right!”
Just before entering, he stopped.
“My laptop is still where I left it, right?”
“If you mean the central lounge, it should still be there.”
As the caretaker said, the laptop was exactly where he had left it.
His eyes immediately searched for the LAN cable connected to it.
The eraser he had placed on top of the cable was still there.
No one had touched it.
Smiling, Lee Shin sat down.
Before turning on the monitor, he carefully checked his surroundings.
Power on.
Password entered.
A window immediately appeared.
The black screen was filled with numbers and letters.
Code.
‘Let's finish this.’
Licking his lips, Lee Shin ran his fingers across the keyboard.
Commands entered.
Code modified.
Variables removed and inserted.
New windows opened.
The mansion's security protocols.
There were many.
As expected of a chaebol family.
Its security was far beyond that of an ordinary household.
But security systems were designed to stop outside intruders.
And when someone worked from the inside through a LAN cable for an entire week...
‘Knock, and it shall be opened!’
He inserted a USB drive containing the key code.
At that moment, the dummy programs he had planted over the past week activated simultaneously.
Whiiiiiir—
The lights on the computer in his dark room began blinking.
Then the nearest CCTV cameras started blinking as well.
The second-floor hallway.
The stairs.
The living room.
The kitchen.
One after another.
Unexpected code occasionally appeared.
It wasn't his area of expertise.
But Lee Shin didn't panic.
Today, one way or another, things would be settled.
“Good. Complete!”
He had stolen administrator access.
This house now belongs to me.
Forty minutes later, Lee Shin greeted the caretaker he had seen earlier.
“Mmm~ Phytoncides! Coffee tastes best in the arboretum.”
“I'm glad you're feeling better.”
“Ah, leave the laptop where it is as usual. I'll be back tomorrow.”
“I'll let everyone know.”
“Please do.”
Leaving behind a polite request, Lee Shin headed back.
Toward the dining hall.
And every person he encountered received another smiling greeting.
Most of them were simple:
“Enjoy your meal.”
Room.
Arboretum.
Dining hall.
The same route he had repeated for the past week.
Because of that, nobody found his behavior suspicious.
Not while he ate.
Not when he entered his room.
Not even the security guard monitoring the CCTV.
— “He just lay down on the bed. Looks like he's about to sleep.”
— “Confirmed.”
Using his abnormal Charm, he had gradually dissolved everyone's vigilance.
Through repeated routines, he created openings in their guard.
And into that opening, he inserted his hidden trump card.
Closing his eyes, Lee Shin quietly began a countdown.
“Three, two, one. Ding!”
At that moment, the laptop in the arboretum roared to life.
The security room monitors lagged and their displays changed.
The footage on screen was yesterday's recording.
And then—
BEEEEEEP—!!
The fire alarm erupted throughout the mansion.
As everyone's attention focused on the disturbance in the arboretum, Lee Shin calmly stood up and walked through the hallway.
He slipped out through the back door.
Hid inside a laundry cart.
Changed clothes.
Then descended to the basement.
What would take pages to describe as an adventure was already over.
Before him stood the vessel that would grant him freedom.
The food delivery truck scheduled to arrive that day.
“Mmm. The sweet taste of freedom.”
With that, Lee Shin hopped into the cargo compartment of the food delivery truck waiting in the basement.
A passionate storyteller who loves creating immersive worlds and captivating characters.
