I Have Too Many Money-Making Talents - Chapter 106

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Too Many Lucrative Talents — Episode 106
Seongbuk-dong.
Beneath the slopes of Bukak Mountain, an affluent neighborhood.
Politicians, entrepreneurs, artists — cultured and dignified people of means gathered here, making their homes.
The landscape before me confirmed it.
‘So they live in a place like this.’
Stepping into this upscale residential district for the first time, I felt the atmosphere itself was different.
Quiet, harmonious with nature, privacy palpable in the air.
According to Director Jung Soo-yeon, homes here started at four hundred million won.
“This is it.”
Following the GPS guidance, I parked slowly.
Perhaps because I’d spent my entire life in a narrow room above a shop and in multi-unit housing.
Stepping out of the car, I felt overwhelmed by the grand scale of the mansion — something you’d only see in films.
Steadying my nerves, I pressed the doorbell.
Ding-dong!
A moment later, the iron gate slid open with a soft click.
Stone steps leading inward came into view.
Following them upward, a well-maintained garden opened before me.
Neatly arranged trees.
Natural stones placed along the ground.
And what caught my eye most — a Go Board resting on the central table.
I approached the front door and pressed the doorbell once more.
The door opened quietly, and O Su, 9-dan, appeared with a faint smile.
“Welcome. Traffic wasn’t bad, I hope?”
“No, it was fine.”
I removed my shoes and stepped inside.
An antique-styled, spacious, high-ceilinged living room.
Soft lighting enveloped the furniture and the entire space warmly.
Then, a delicious aroma drifting from the kitchen.
“Welcome.”
A gentle voice.
My eyes naturally turned, and there stood a woman with an air of refined elegance.
A beauty that seemed to flow backward through time.
Modest, graceful in bearing.
O Su, 9-dan, introduced her with quiet propriety.
“This is my wife. Say hello, dear. Kim In-ha the Kuksoo.”
“I’ve heard a lot about you. The person who beat my husband.”
I offered a brief greeting and added my own words.
“Hello. I’ve heard about you as well. You’re a professional instructor at the Korea Baduk Association — or rather, you’re correct, aren’t you?”
Go Eun was 6-dan.
Over a decade ago, she’d served as a guest professional at the Korea Baduk Association — a Chinese female player.
I’d heard she came from a distinguished family back in China.
“It’s been a while since I’ve heard that title. It feels a bit nostalgic, actually. Please, call me simply by my name.”
Grace emanated from her smiling face.
“Dinner will be ready soon, so please chat with him in the meantime.”
“Thank you.”
Having finished speaking, she turned back toward the kitchen.
I sat on the sofa and looked around the living room.
The walls were covered with trophies and plaques.
A space where the years O Su, 9-dan, had walked seemed preserved in amber.
It felt like the history of Korean Baduk itself had been recorded here.
“In-ha’s collection is probably even more impressive than mine.”
“What? No, that’s not… What do I have? Ah, but more than that — please, drop the formality. I’m much younger than you.”
“Not at all. I believe respect matters more than seniority or age.”
O Su, 9-dan, smiled quietly and turned his head.
“Do Jun!”
At his call, footsteps echoed from upstairs.
Coming down the stairs hesitantly was a boy who looked about thirteen.
A shy gaze.
A body withdrawn in embarrassment.
But it was plain to see.
The facial features bore a striking resemblance to his mother.
And those bright, alive eyes—they were unmistakably O Su’s.
“Look, Kim In-ha is here. You’ve been wanting to meet him so badly.”
“……Dad, don’t.”
Do Jun looked embarrassed, scurrying down the stairs and hiding behind his father.
He said nothing, but his eyes were keen and alert.
O Su smiled quietly, reaching up to ruffle his son’s hair.
“My boy has taken quite a liking to your Baduk, it seems. He wouldn’t stop pestering me to meet you.”
Do Jun stole a glance at me, his gaze refusing to waver.
“……So your son plays Baduk as well?”
He nodded.
His eyes held a complexity of feeling that was difficult to name.
“Yes. I wasn’t keen on having him learn, but…… as you can see, there’s no stopping him.”
I met the boy’s gaze directly.
In those eyes lay the same yearning I’d harbored as a child.
“Please, come and have dinner.”
Go Eun’s voice carried from the kitchen.
We set aside our conversation and made our way to the dining table.
‘Impressive.’
A Korean spread so abundant the table groaned beneath it.
Short ribs, soup, mixed vegetables, various namul side dishes, even jeon—nothing was missing.
“Thank you for the meal.”
The presentation was elaborate, yet the flavors were restrained and profound.
The four of us sat together, sharing a warm meal.
A feeling I hadn’t known in a very long time.
“By the way, you don’t have a girlfriend, do you?”
Go Eun ventured the question carefully.
“Me? No, I don’t.”
I laughed awkwardly.
She tilted her head as if surprised.
“You must be far too busy?”
“Dear, we shouldn’t pry.”
O Su gently intervened.
Go Eun smiled and nodded at his words.
“Do Jun, eat slowly.”
I quietly took in the three of them—this family.
The intimacy of shared time, woven into everyday moments.
Happiness savored together with another.
Warmth lay upon that table like a fifth guest.
Just then, a phone vibrated in the living room.
“Dear, I think you have a call.”
O Su rose quietly and stepped into the living room.
For a moment he spoke with someone on the line.
In the interim, Go Eun leaned toward me and whispered softly.
“……If you meet someone good, don’t let them go.”
“Pardon?”
Go Eun gazed toward the living room.
Affection gleamed in her eyes, where O Su stood framed in the doorway.
“People who make competition their calling are so terribly lonely. They need comfort, encouragement, someone to hold them when the weight becomes too much.”
I answered with a small nod instead of words.
Her words resonated in my chest with quiet force.
After the meal, O Su, Do Jun, and I moved to the living room.
A fireplace flickered warmly in one corner.
Chrysanthemum tea, still steaming.
We were settling into conversation within a space that spoke of careful taste.
“Dad.”
A small voice.
But it carried urgency.
“Can I…… play just one game with Kim’s mentor?”
“Do Jun, today our Kuksoo is here as a guest.”
The words were soft but resolute.
Yet Do Jun didn’t give up.
“Just one game…….”
“You promised your father you wouldn’t pester him.”
At O Su’s stern words, Do Jun’s shoulders sagged.
But his eyes found mine.
There, in that gaze, lay a boy’s heart—more truthful than any words.
“One game would be fine. It’ll help with digestion, too.”
“……Really? No, I couldn’t impose like that.”
“You treated me to dinner. Shall we sit over there?”
I gestured toward the Go Board set in the corner of the living room.
Do Jun’s face lit up.
The expression of someone watching a long-awaited dream come true.
In the end, even O Su couldn’t stop me.
And so we took our seats across from each other at the board.
“How many stones do you want?”
I asked carefully.
Do Jun hesitated for a moment, then shook his head quietly.
“……I’d like to learn with an Even Match.”
“Do Jun.”
O Su gently reproached him, as if giving him a hint.
But I raised my hand to stop him.
“All right. But no komi—just twenty minutes of Rapid Play. That should work.”
Do Jun nodded.
I pressed the Timing Clock, and the game began.
In that instant.
The light in Do Jun’s eyes shifted.
Something hardened—the face of a true competitor emerged.
‘He’s changed.’
Click.
Do Jun’s first stone: a Small Point Opening.
I responded with a Star Point.
An AI Opening.
The sequence appeared simple on the surface.
But within it, Do Jun sought small variations.
Complex formations.
Woven threads of move sequences.
His aggressive nature revealed itself.
‘He plays well.’
Thirteen years old.
A sixth-grader.
Judging by the opening alone, his strength was that of a top-tier Research Player.
Click.
Rapid Baduk moved quickly.
Early to middle game.
Intuition blended with sense, more than precise Move Reading.
Do Jun began playing aggressive moves without hesitation.
Striking plays.
Shaking plays.
Some of them were so intuitive that even I had to pause.
‘……It’s different from O Su’s style.’
It was truly unexpected.
O Su, called the living Divine Calculator.
A master of precise calculation and rational Move Reading.
I’d naturally expected his son to follow a similar flow, influenced by his father.
But Do Jun’s Baduk Style, in truth,
‘resembles mine.’
Shaking, stirring, widening gaps.
Blending intuition and sensation.
There are still unstable elements, certainly.
But the resemblance is striking, and the alignment with my own style is astonishing.
‘It simply hasn’t reached completion yet.’
His moves still carry excess, and he relies too heavily on pattern recognition.
His depth in Move Reading and board state judgment remain immature.
And yet—this is his current level.
I swallowed without thinking.
‘Terrifying talent.’
Three years at the fastest.
Or perhaps even sooner.
This child will stand before me soon enough.
And he’ll come to challenge me.
“…I’ve lost.”
In the middle game, Do Jun finally conceded and set down his stones.
There were no glaring mistakes.
But small differences accumulated, layer upon layer, until they became a gap that couldn’t be bridged.
“Why didn’t you play here? Why here instead? I was certain you’d strike at this point.”
Do Jun pointed to the center of the board, frustration burning in his eyes.
Beneath his fierce competitive spirit churned a hunger to learn.
“You’ve answered your own question.”
“…What?”
“You predicted I would play that move.”
I quietly indicated a stone.
“So I didn’t play it.”
“…!”
Do Jun’s mouth fell open slightly.
The look of sudden understanding.
“Baduk isn’t about playing moves ahead of your opponent. It’s about seeing better moves. Whether it’s one move or two—ultimately, that’s what decides the game.”
“…I see.”
I smiled quietly and began organizing the stones.
“Thank you so much! I’m going upstairs to review the game. I’ll come back down before you leave!”
Do Jun bowed eagerly and climbed to the second floor.
O Su, watching his departing figure for a long moment, spoke softly.
“He prefers your Baduk to mine.”
“You’re not disappointed, are you?”
“How could I be?”
He smiled—a deep, complex smile.
“I retired because I had no confidence I could offer anything different from AI. Watching him pursue your Baduk rather than mine is a joy to me.”
I studied him quietly.
His silent gaze carried countless emotions.
Among them, a faint strand of regret.
“Truthfully, I didn’t want to burden him.”
O Su’s eyes deepened.
“Even now he’ll carry the label of ‘someone’s son.’ But if he were active, those comparisons would only grow sharper.”
I understood his heart.
O Su still maintained the skill level of a top-tier professional player.
If Do Jun were to gain his Professional Promotion, his father’s shadow would follow him always.
He seemed unwilling to have his son measured against him.
But.
I thought differently.
“Why not trust Do Jun?”
O Su looked up.
“He has talent enough for that.”
Go Eun had arrived without my noticing.
Perhaps because it was about their child.
She stood quietly behind O Su, listening to my words.
“And the Do Jun I saw…would even enjoy the challenge of taking his father’s titles.”
Just one game.
Yet in that Baduk, I saw it.
Do Jun’s talent.
And even in defeat, the attitude of wanting to challenge again, feeding on that loss as nourishment—
a child who would never collapse under it.
Growing only stronger with each loss, possessing that very nature.
“At least, that’s what I observed.”
O Su set down his head without a word.
Then he smiled quietly.
“You’re a dangerous man, Kim In-ha.”
“Pardon?”
“You have a gift for touching people’s hearts.”
Go Eun placed a hand gently on O Su’s shoulder.
O Su gazed at it for a moment, then quietly took hold of it.
“……Being challenged again might not be so bad.”
At those words, I smiled softly.
Not that he’d declared a return, or made a promise.
But in his heart, a faint flame was kindling once more.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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