Jinah was practically glowing this morning, strutting into class like she was on a runway.
Why? Because of the sleek, ultra-luxury Phantom ZN Ultra in her hand—the kind of phone that hadn't even officially launched in Korea yet.
"Is that…?" one girl whispered, eyes wide with envy.
Jinah flicked her hair back casually. "Limited edition. Titanium alloy chassis. Mana-compatible processor. Unreleased OS."
"And… who gave you that?" another asked, voice already trembling in anticipation of the answer.
"My oppa," Jinah replied sweetly, watching the color drain from the other girl's face.
Even the school's chaebol offspring—the ones with drivers and bodyguards and Rolexes—were now quietly losing their minds. One rich kid was frantically Googling specs, only to find nothing online.
She smirked and turned it on with a flick of her wrist. The screen didn't just light up—it bloomed into a full holographic interface, suspended above the phone in vibrant 3D clarity.
"W-Wait, is that voice-activated?"
"Look at that rendering speed! Mine lags like a slug!"
"What the hell is that game? It looks like real life!"
As she launched a hyper-realistic RPG game that ran smoother than reality, a soft female voice chimed in playfully:
"Welcome back, Jinah. I've optimized your route to school and preloaded your music preferences. Shall I order your lunch?"
Aria-lite. Just the taste of something bigger. Her classmates froze. The rich kids, the ones who usually strutted like peacocks with their flagship models, gawked.
By lunchtime, Jinah had earned the nickname "Phone Queen."
And she wore the crown proudly.
----
"YOU GUYS!! HAVE YOU READ IT YET?!"
The shout exploded from a hallway down the corridor, followed by a stampede of students clutching their phones and tablets.
"'The Game of Thrones'! It dropped Today Morning under a new pen name—Dante! It's INSANE!!"
Jinah blinked. Game of… Thrones? That sounded ominously edgy.
Curiosity piqued, she downloaded the first chapter during her break.
She didn't blink for the next hour.
Lunch? Forgotten.
Homework? Who?
Reality? Irrelevant.
She devoured chapter after chapter, eyes wide, heart pounding, until—
"WHY DID YOU DO THAT TO NED?!"
A visceral scream. Her classmates stared.
She didn't care.
"I NEED MORE CHAPTERS!! I'LL DIE!!"
-------
Shift to the dark underbelly of Seoul, where a rusted, condemned warehouse sat on the edge of forgettable streets.
Below it, hidden behind layered illusions and mana seals, a high-tech alchemical forge glowed.
Jinwoo stood before a crucible swirling with crimson and pale-blue mana, a flask of Redroot extract in one hand and glimmering Dewdrop Essence in the other. Flames danced as Aria floated beside him, clad in a lab coat projection for style points.
"Mana structure analysis: 62% integrity. If we increase concentration and polarize the catalyst, we can push recovery efficiency to 50%."
"I dub thee… Potion v1.5 – Homebrew Plus," Jinwoo muttered.
Aria giggled.
"Very artisanal. Shall I market it as gluten-free too?"
The mixture stabilized, settling into a shimmering red potion that pulsed with vitality.
["Congrats, alchemist. Now you can heal papercuts and look cool doing it."] System mocked.
-------
"Aria," Jinwoo said, spinning his chair slowly. "Find me the money that shouldn't exist."
"Define shouldn't."
"Frozen government black ops funds. Billionaire deadman switches. Forgotten crypto wallets. War trust accounts.Hidden deep Assets of unworthy people."
Aria smirked.
"Robin Hood mode activated."
She vanished into code.
Three hours later…
"Operation complete. Shadow Account established across 217 secure endpoints. Total holdings: 913.2 billion USD, diversified in gold bonds, crypto, and digital equities."
Jinwoo blinked.
System:["Congratulations. You now surpass Musk, Bezos, and the GDP of several countries. Quietly."]
Aria added :[You're now richer than 99.9% of humanity. Want a private island chain? Space yacht? Elon's tears in a jar?]
System:["Would you like a gold-plated sandwich or an island shaped like your face?"]
He snorted. "Maybe later."
---
"Next," Jinwoo said, tapping his fingers, "Find me dungeons. Undermanaged. In countries without real Guild infrastructure. The kind no one else wants."
Aria's eyes gleamed.
"Searching…"
[System:I'm out of words. How did ur Little Garp Brain think about massacring Monsters Across the world.Ur Insane!!.. Honestly I Feel Proud too..]
Well why not system, Jinwoo Or the Original work didn't feature Much dungeons or monsters or crisis That Unfolded across The world.. But I'm the one writing the story,Here so if those Monarchs are giving me buffet Of High rank Monsters.. Why don't I Thank them.... In my way,..Ofcourse..
[System:..... Ur One Hell Of a Beast..]
"Targeting active B-rank and higher Gates in: Sudan, Venezuela, Mongolia, Laos, Ukraine... Low interference. No dominant Guilds."
"Good. Use shell corps. Burner funds. Buy the rights. Discreetly."
"Of course. Shall I send a fruit basket with the deal memos?"
["Nothing says 'world domination' like tropical gift baskets."]
-----
Jinwoo stood before his newly forged equipment.
Black Mana-Weave Trench Coat – stylish, fire and magic resistant.
High-Tech Wristwatch – teleport marker, disguise function, Aria-linked.
Cornea Lens HUD – tactical overlay, x-ray, vitals, mana readings.
Obsidian Ring And Earings ( Transparent )– Aria-integrated, for Johee. Emergency teleport, protection trigger, voice-activated AI.
He flexed his fingers, the coat fluttering behind him as Aria whistled.
"Slick. You look like a Bond villain made love to a superhero."
["Warning: Maximum drip detected."] System Mocked.
Jinwoo laughed. "Let's move."
---
He emerged above ground, leaving the illusioned lab behind. To everyone else, it was still a decaying warehouse.
"From trash to treasure," Aria said. "Nobody would guess the world's richest man works under a junk roof."
["Your aesthetic: secret billionaire alchemist ninja. I dig it."]
With a blink, he vanished toward the southern suburbs.
-----
Outside, he walked quietly through alleys, toward the sewers of a sleepy suburb. The trench coat fluttered behind him like a shadow. In one hand, he clutched the second ring—Johee's.
And at his back? Seven hundred billion dollars, an exploding fanbase, and the keys to the world's dungeon network.
And the best part?
No one even knew his name.
----
Jinwoo stood at the edge of an old manhole in a forgotten street. Faint pulses of mana bled through the cracks—visible only to those who could see.
Aria's voice chimed in his mind.
"Target approaching. Johee. ETA: 3 minutes."
He closed his eyes.
----
His mind flashed back to the dual dungeon.
Johee's face twisted in terror. Her hands shaking, blood dripping. Screaming his name.
He clenched his jaw.
"Not again," he whispered.
"Never again."
A gust of wind rustled his coat as he opened his eyes. Fire flickered in his gaze.
Johee was coming.
And this time, everything would change.
------
Johee arrived at the edge of the manhole with hesitant steps, her breath visible in the crisp morning air. She was dressed casually—slim jeans, a light jacket, hair tied up in a messy ponytail. Simple. Elegant. Beautiful.
She stopped when she saw him.
Jinwoo was leaning casually against a rusted lamp post, his black trench coat fluttering gently in the breeze like it had been rehearsed. Hands in his pockets. Calm. Effortlessly dangerous.
"Hey," he said with a smirk.
Johee blinked. "You... you came early"
"Apparently."
Her eyes swept the abandoned street, then flicked back to him.
"Jinwoo... how did you even get a gate like this? Don't you need Guild clearance? Or Association permissions?"
He shrugged. "I reawakened. Just like I told you."
She narrowed her eyes. "That doesn't explain the money. Or the coat. Or the... tech" , Glancing At his watch and phone that hummed Rich.
He chuckled. "Okay, okay.I went into a gate which had formed recently nearby my warehouse."
"You went there Alone into a gate without mana checking and rank determination.. Are you serious.. What if something happened to you... What would I Have done.. Without you"
"Sorry. But yeah it was a easier gate.It had a weird mana storm. The boss monster dropped a ridiculous number of magic stones. Sold them. Made a small fortune."
Johee's mouth parted in shock. "That's—wait, seriously?"
"I might've gotten a little lucky."
She raised an eyebrow. "A little?"
Jinwoo stepped closer, until their breaths mingled in the air.
"Also," he murmured, leaning down near her ear, "I'm Dante."
Johee blinked.
"…Excuse me?"
"You know, Dante. The one who dropped Game of Thrones this morning."
There was a full five seconds of silence.
Then—
Johee burst out laughing. "Don't joke, Jinwoo! You don't have the imagination to write something like that."
["OHHHHHH BURNNNNN!"] the System roared with glee. ["Your girlfriend thinks you've got the creativity of a wet sponge!"]
["Do you want me to write a pity poem? 'Roses are red, violets are blue, she thinks you're dumb, and it might be true.'"]
Jinwoo didn't flinch. Instead, he smiled and whispered again:
"Chapter 11. Daenerys walks into fire. The dragon eggs hatch."
Johee went dead still.
Her heartbeat spiked.
[He's not lying. Oh my god. My boyfriend… wrote Game of Thrones. He's handsome. Cool. Rich. Sexy. Hot. Smart. And now he's also creative? Innovative? Powerful??]
Jinwoo, still smirking, activated [Appraisal].
Reading mind… complete.
["Woah, slow down, girl. Your thoughts just went full K-drama thirst post."]
["System has detected: CRUSH LEVEL – MAXIMUM. Initiating: BLUSH.exe"]
Johee suddenly looked away, cheeks tinted with red.
"You're… insane," she whispered.
"And yet, you're still here," he said softly, brushing a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Ready?"
She nodded, flustered.
They turned toward the sealed manhole. Jinwoo entered through the hole surface, and a swirling portal of dark energy beneath lay beneath.
"Well here's the gate for our date"
Johee glanced at him, astonished. "What the Rank of this gate?"
" C-Rank"
Johee paused before stepping in.
Well typically A raid required a full fledged party and typical tactics. Also only A rank and above hunters can solo a C-Rank gate.. Those who can are very rare.... She glanced at Jinwoo trusting him with her life.
-----
Jinwoo's eyes flicked to her status as [Appraisal] hummed to life.
---
Name:Lee Johee
Rank: B
Level: 48
Stats
STR: 52
AGI: 49
SEN: 51
STM: 38
MANA: 81
Skills:
Advanced Healing Touch[ Lvl 2]
Group Heal[Lvl 1]
Cleanse: Minor Curses [Lvl 2]
Fireball [Lvl 1]
Trait: Heart of compassion.
Dormant Advanced Class Path Detected: 1.High Priestess
2.Archmage
Jinwoo's eyes widened just a touch.
["Ohhhh SNAP! Your girl's got range! Look at that dual route—support and nukes?!"]
["System Verdict: She's hotter now. Magically and emotionally."]
["Also, congrats. Your flirting has statistically increased her SEN stat."]
Jinwoo hummed thoughtfully. Priest or Archmage… Interesting.
He turned to Johee. "You've got hidden potential."
She blinked. "What?"
He smiled. "Just trust me."
Her eyes softened. "I already do."
And with that, they stepped through the portal—into darkness, flame, and the unknown.
The dungeon swallowed them whole.
---------
Author's Note:
Whew—Chapter 24 was a ride, huh?
From Jinah flexing on rich kids like it's fashion week, to Johee entering her K-drama crush arc, and Jinwoo casually becoming the secret overlord of global dungeon economics… yeah, things escalated quickly.
I wanted this chapter to blend world-building, flex moments, humor, and heart. Jinah's "Phone Queen" scene was a blast to write (Aria-lite supremacy incoming), and Johee's reaction to finding out Jinwoo is Dante, author of Game of Thrones, is basically peak rom-com energy with a supernatural twist.
Also: yes, Jinwoo is now richer than 99.9% of the planet and no, he still wears a coat that probably smells like monster ash and mystery. Priorities.
Next chapter? Dungeon raid time. Johee steps into danger again, but this time with someone who would burn the world before letting her fall. Expect action, teamwork, chemistry, and maybe—just maybe—a first real taste of the Shadow Monarch spark.
Thanks for reading, and as always: stay tuned, stay chaotic, and never trust a system with sarcasm settings set to "maximum roast."
– Author