Chapter 1: Boarding the Ocean Fishing Ship
This was Busan Yeongdo Nambugu Pier, where the salty scent of the sea permeated the air.
In the dim light of dawn, amidst the chilly air tinged with blue, a young man with a lean frame stood, smoking a cigarette incessantly.
In the eyes of the man gazing at the 1,200-ton large fishing ship docked at the pier, there was an unexpected weariness not fitting his age.
“Sigh… How did I end up coming all the way here?”
Song Dae-woon (大運).
Contrary to the name characters that seemed to overflow with good fortune, my life was anything but abundant in luck.
“Great fortune, my foot. If anything, it’s the misfortune of the world.”
I realized later. Great fortune was simply the flow of luck changing every ten years.
Right around the time when one’s identity began to take shape, I became aware of the fact that I, an orphan abandoned in a dingy alley, was sent to an orphanage.
Later, I endured all sorts of abuse from my older brothers in the terribly inadequate orphanage, and the caregivers there turned a blind eye to me. Eventually, my pent-up anger exploded, and with resolve to either kill or be killed, I fought fiercely with the bigger brothers.
Afterwards, branded as a troubled youth, I moved through various facilities until I could finally settle down, and when I turned 19, I was thrown into society with a support fund of 5 million won.
“Let’s go! Song Dae-Won, your life starts now.”
Shouting out a spirited “fighting” as I stepped out of the orphanage door was just a momentary burst of energy.
It didn’t take long to realize that a mere 5 million won wouldn’t even cover the deposit for a one-room apartment.
I had no choice but to move into a goshiwon where no deposit was required. Thanks to the thin walls that offered no soundproofing, overhearing the trivialities of the person in the next room became an everyday occurrence, and something I soon got used to.
“This can’t go on like this.”
After realizing that living from one part-time job to another would never be enough. I decided to sort out my life and joined a press mold factory at the Siheung Industrial Complex. There, I relentlessly worked between the factory and the dormitory, solely focused on making money.
“Hey Dae-woon, are you just going in like that again today? Let’s grab a drink instead. I’ll treat you even though you’re being stubborn.
“Haha… It’s okay. I’m not feeling too well today.”
“Tsk tsk, what a boring guy. Young folks these days are no good even if they’re only after money. You should enjoy yourself at your age.”
“Hey, let’s just go! What’s the point of holding onto someone who doesn’t want to go? Maybe he doesn’t want to hang out with us.”
Entering my room alone, I lay down on the floor of the roughly 6-square-meter one-room apartment still dressed in my stained work clothes.
“Sigh…”
Today, the unusually oppressive silence felt strangely unfamiliar.
After lying there in a daze for a while, I reached into my pants pocket and pulled out my phone.
[Total balance for savings/deposit/funds/trusts]
₩21,423,209 (Transfer)
As I checked my account balance, the melancholy mood vanished instantly.
I am an orphan who doesn’t even know the faces of my parents.
Therefore, unlike ordinary people, my starting point was just as uncertain.
There was nowhere to rely on, nowhere to confide my deepest thoughts.
In this barren world, the only thing I could trust was myself.
“Let’s endure a little more, Dae-woon. Just a little longer…”
As I recalled my little dream that I hadn’t shared with anyone, a part of my heart itched.
‘A normal and harmonious family.’
Perhaps what was taken for granted by others was something I longed for so much.
But a ‘normal life’ required quite a lot.
There needed to be a lifelong companion, and to achieve that, marriage was necessary.
Marriage presupposed dating, and for ordinary dating, money was needed.
Furthermore, a comfortable house where one could live warmly with family was necessary, along with a steady stream of living expenses.
Money. Money. Money.
Money was needed to be “ordinary”.
“I’m still young. I can do it.”
But reality wasn’t that accommodating.
Hearing that most newlyweds these days started off with apartments, I checked the housing prices in Seoul and Gyeonggi.
[Seoul’s average apartment price breaks 1.1 billion for the first time in history…. Gyeonggi Province surpasses 500 million.]
“500 million…? 1.1 billion?”
I blankly stared at my phone screen, unable to grasp the reality of those numbers.
“With my current salary of 30 million per year… If I save 15 million each year….”
As I tapped on the calculator on my phone, I weakly collapsed onto the floor.
“33 years…”
And this was not even in Seoul but in Gyeonggi Province.
To think I had to do this for 33 years.
In 33 years, I’ll be fifty-four.
What meaning would there be?
The thought that the dream I had aimed for was unattainable drained all the strength from my body.
Of course, it was just a simple calculation, but even considering that, the number was too daunting.
It felt like being lost without a working compass.
“What should I do…?”
Some old-timers say, they started from living with their wife in a small single room and made it this far. Nowadays, they say the younger generation wants too much.
“That was possible back then…”
Rather than living a tedious life, it was not uncommon in this era to choose a life of singlehood and pursue happiness alone.
Moreover, they weren’t destitute orphans without a fence?
No matter how much I pondered, I couldn’t find an answer.
Hiding my deep worries, I went to work as usual and headed to the employee lounge in the afternoon.
There, several male colleagues were gathered together, engaging in lively conversation while holding their phones
As I stood by the water cooler, brewing a mixed coffee, my ears were tuned in their direction.
“I made 300 bucks on Eclo this time.”
“What? Really? Ah, damn… I should have just followed you. I went into Poppl and only made fifty.”
“That’s why, man. I told you to trust me and follow my lead.”
“How do you predict so well?”
“It’s not predicting, man. It’s all about studying. Understanding the coin circulation, knowing when the main net launches, ensuring the groundwork is solid, and analysing charts.”
I couldn’t make heads or tails of what they were talking about.
“What are you guys talking about?”
“Hey, Dae-woon. Take a look at Hyun Cheol’s account here. This guy might quit soon.”
Curious, I sat beside Hyun Cheol and peered at his phone screen.
[Transaction History]
Total Assets: ₩8,082,102
Total Unrealized Profit/Loss: ₩2,083,102
“Hyung…. You made this much?”
“That’s how much I earned in just one day.
“Wow, in just one day?”
Earning nearly a month’s salary in just one day.
It was truly astounding
“It’s nothing special. With such a small seed, you can’t expect much. Gotta inflate the seed and play big. If it goes well, I’ll quit my job and make a big move.”
From that day on, my mind was completely consumed by coins.
Even amidst the deafening noise of the press machine, the word dominating my thought was “coins”.
The image of the coin account screen that Hyun Cheol showed me continued to flicker in my mind.
And eventually, I made a mistake.
“Yeah. Life only comes once, right? Am I going to spend my whole life working and never own a house? If you were born in a dark world, you should be bold.”
Using all sorts of justifications, I successfully convinced myself, and in the end, I created a coin account.
That was the beginning of the disaster.
“Let’s just start with a million won.”
To me, who was trembling even with a mere ₩10,000, a million won felt like an incredibly large sum of money.
I scoured through every existing coin community as if I was possessed, and devoured cryptocurrency-related Youtube videos like a maniac.
Was it beginner’s luck?
The first coin I nervously invested in surged by 30% in just one day, bringing me a profit of ₩300,000.
With a mix of excitement and disbelief, a thrill surged from the depths of my heart. Yet, at the same time, I also felt a sense of regret.
“If I had invested 2 million, it would have been ₩600,000, and if I had invested 4 million… Uh, 1, 2 million won?
As such thoughts dominated my mind, I felt as if I had actually lost money.
Since that day, my seed money began to soar endlessly.
My previous assets of 20 million won became 50 million won in just one month.
It was like earning a year’s salary in just one month.
It seemed to be from that moment.
Money felt like game currency.
Drunk on victory, I felt like I had become an investment genius, and like a wild colt with its reins loosened, I began to rampage without fear.
If I set my mind to it, it seemed like I could easily earn about 500 million won in no time.
However, as they say, things in life don’t always go as planned.
My assets of 50 million won were shattered into pieces, plummeting to a mere 25 million won in just a week.
Technically, it was still a profit of 5 million won, but at that time, I was obsessed with the idea of making up for the losses.
My investments became bolder and bolder.
And finally.
I even dared to touch the futures market of cryptocurrencies, which was said to be best avoided.
As usual, the beginning was great. No, it was a jackpot.
The futures trading I started with 25 million won returned to me as a fortune of 100 million won in just one week.
Greed grew like a snowball, and that greed paralyzed my rationality.
There was no consideration for leverage or risk management, and a strange confidence that I could make money unconditionally crept in.
Dreaming of a bright future, I embarked on even more aggressive investments.
I touched every coin that seemed promising, and I invested without hesitation in newly listed coins.
The actions were easy, but the results that came back were anything but light.
It took just two weeks for the assets that had reached 100 million won to plummet to mere 10 million won.
Struggling even to sleep, I managed to pull it back up to 25 million won by the skin of my teeth.
But to me, who had seen the number 100 million, 25 million felt like far too little.
“I need more seed money.”
It was the beginning of a full-fledged disaster.
Since I was working for a fairly solid company, loans were relatively easy to come by.
For some reason, I mustered up the courage to gather 70 million won and invested it in cryptocurrency futures.
Thus begin the vicious cycle of repetition.
At the slightest hint of profit, I would blow all my money at once, and then I had to go out and borrow money again.
Losses kept growing, and debt ballooned like a snowball.
I don’t know if I slept or just closed my eyes.
Days that felt like hell continued.
My appearance deteriorated, my work efficiency dropped, and rumours started circulating within the company.
But such thoughts didn’t matter at all
What mattered to me now was somehow recovering my losses, at least to break even.
And so, three months passed.
“What, what have I done…?
After repeatedly trying to settle my debts, my bank account balance was now a staggering -60 million won, and what remained was debts totalling nearly 300 million won.
Living wasn’t living. I was gripped by a sense of despair that my life was over, and I couldn’t do anything.
Eventually, it reached the point where debt collectors came to the company.
“Let’s reset and start over.”
There was only one option left.
In the dead of night when everyone was asleep.
I climbed up a sparsely populated hill and tied the tie I bought for interviews around a sturdy-looking tree, and hung it around my neck.
“Cough… cough…”
My throat felt tight, and an immense pressure surged towards my face.
My face felt like it would explode, and my eyeballs felt like they would pop out.
It was much more painful than I had thought.
As my mind began to blur.
Thud…
“Kek!! Kolokolok!”
As the tie snapped and I fell, I grabbed my throat and coughed like crazy.
Paradoxically, a surge of exhilaration filled me with a sense of relief that I was alive.
As I held the broken tie in my hand, a mix of emotions overwhelmed me.
I never imagined that the cheap tie I bought online at the lowest price to save money would end up saving my life.
“Ha-ha-ha…. Cough-cough. What a fantastic life. What am I even… Sob… Sob… Sob…”
At first, it was laughter born out of disbelief, but then it turned into a flood of resentment and self-blame, culminating in a fit of wailing.
Lost in my tears, I suddenly noticed the dawn breaking.
“Damn…. It’s so beautiful.”
As the dim darkness was gradually pierced by the gentle dawn, my heart began to change little by little.
It felt too bitter and frustrating to end my life without trying anything.
“All those debts… If I can pay them off on my own, that’ll be the end of it. Song Dae-woon! You can still do it.”
Was this a moment of revival?
The dawn sunrise felt particularly majestic and mysterious.
As I gazed at the rising red sun with swollen eyes, I reaffirmed my new resolution.
***
The next day, having quit my job, I searched for ocean fishing ships on internet job sites. After going through a simple interview process, I secured an opportunity to board as an ordinary crew member.
Despite suggestions from acquaintances who learned of my situation to consider personal recovery of bankruptcy, I didn’t want to go down that path.
The things I’ve done… I felt like if I didn’t take responsibility and make amends, I wouldn’t be able to do anything in the future.
“Sigh…”
As I deeply inhaled the last puff of my cigarette.
The ship owner signalled for me to come aboard.
“Yes. I’m coming now.
I boarded the ocean fishing ship without hesitation, and the ship, resonating with powerful waves, set sail towards the vast ocean.
Time flowed like water, and four years passed.
