There's something lottery winners usually do first.
Paying off debt.
It's a rather lonely story, but these days, just about everyone lives with debt.
There's talk about how debt is itself a kind of asset, but.
'In the end, it's money you have to pay back.'
That's what I think.
Anyway.
Usually, after paying off debts and escaping various financial pressures, the money you have left is enough for maybe one apartment out in the provinces.
Which is to say, it's impossible to live the rest of your life without working on what remains.
'I probably would've kept going to work even if I'd won the lottery.'
Thinking that gives me goosebumps.
I would've been able to live more comfortably and stably than I do now, but still, having to keep going to work...
And that's the ending of winning the lottery—odds the same as being struck by lightning seven times.
Well, even just owning a home is something to be grateful for.
But right now, I'm an asset holder with 500 billion won (though it's technically 499.9 billion since I spent 200,000 won earlier).
It's enough to play and eat for a lifetime even after paying off all debts.
All my debts were tied to Choe Minhu to begin with.
So then, does that mean my debts are gone?
I checked quickly, and sure enough.
Clean.
"Hah...."
A complicated mixture of emotions escaped as a sigh.
Was it a sigh of relief, or a lament that there was no trace of Choe Minhu left anywhere?
I don't know.
Scratching my tangled thoughts, I searched the internet for how to buy an imported car.
"...A car of my own."
My first car in life.
A car I almost leased in a fit of anger after enduring a hellish commute.
"Good thing I saved that money."
I muttered to myself, letting out a low chuckle.
####
I looked it up to get the gist.
I'd never bought a car before, so it was hard to understand.
Still, there was one thing I learned.
I have to go outside.
Of course, it's not just for the car.
I need to go grocery shopping, and I need to make a card. I can't just do bank transfers forever.
Ah, and I need to check the phone subscription too.
It's probably under Choe Yeonbi, not Choe Minhu, but it doesn't hurt to check.
"Or maybe not?"
If it were under Choe Yeonbi's name, wouldn't the team leader have been unable to call like this?
Wasn't it the only trace of me left?
My heart pounded at the sudden thought.
"Let's check."
Maybe this really is the last piece of evidence that I was Choe Minhu.
With that thought, I opened the closet.
"...I have nothing to wear."
I wasn't the type to buy clothes often.
It was an infinite loop of work, home, work, home, and there was no reason to care.
Or no, clothes are just too expensive these days.
A measly t-shirt costs 30,000, 40,000 won. I couldn't buy them; it was terrifying.
"Should I go buy some clothes too?"
Stroking my chin, I stared at the empty closet for a long while.
What should I wear?
First, I tried on a pair of jeans.
I remembered them being quite tight, but now they slid right off the moment I put them on.
"...Aren't I too skinny?"
Grumbling to myself, I took out some other pants.
None of them fit, either.
Even the training pants I'd pinned my last hopes on were too big.
If I forced them on and pulled them up, they somehow stayed on, but they were so loose I felt like they'd come right off if I even tripped.
"Absolutely not."
I took the pants off again and tossed them aside.
None of the clothes in the closet fit me at all.
"Well, of course."
The clothes in this room all belonged to Choe Minhu, not Choe Yeonbi.
The training pants I'd planned to wear out were loose, and the jersey top was too big too.
"Forget the car; I need to buy clothes online first."
No matter how I thought about it, going out like this was impossible.
And.
"Underwear too... I need to buy some...."
I tried not to be conscious of it, but every time I put on and took off a t-shirt, my chest bothered me too much.
It was my own body, yet my face grew hot for no reason.
Maybe that's why I still couldn't look at my body properly.
After all, I'm not Choe Yeonbi.
"...Can I really say that?"
I asked myself again, looking into the mirror.
Me?
I am....
Ring— Ring—
"You startled me...."
I had been looking at my face seriously in front of the mirror when a call suddenly came in.
Wondering who could be calling at this hour, I looked at my phone and saw the word "Moron" plastered right there.
This moron was none other than my high school friend, Bak Jimin.
Wondering why he was calling at this hour, I remembered we'd talked about a class reunion last time.
I casually answered to tell him I couldn't go.
["Hey, Choe Minhu. You said you'd come to the reunion, right?"]
A cheerful voice.
I sat on the bed and answered nonchalantly.
Maybe I should tell him about the time I cursed out the team leader too?
We could've cackled about it.
"Sorry to bring it up suddenly, but I don't think I can make it to the reunion."
Ah.
["...Isn't this Choe Minhu's phone?"]
The moron wasn't him; it was me.
Flustered, I hung up immediately.
I put the phone down on the bed and sat still for a long while, feeling my pounding heartbeat.
In front of me was a full-length mirror.
The mirror where I'd always checked my appearance before heading to work.
I trudged up to that mirror and grabbed its frame.
"Who are you."
Even to my question, the woman in the mirror gave no answer.
"I asked who you are!!"
####
When I opened my eyes, I was sitting slumped in front of the mirror.
My clothes were damp. It seemed I'd been crying without realizing it.
I raised my head and looked into the mirror.
Inside the mirror, a beautiful black-haired woman was looking at me with puffy, swollen eyes.
When I sniffled at the sight, the woman in the mirror sniffled too.
When I wiped my tears, she wiped hers too.
The woman in the mirror.
She was glaring at me with eyes that said I was strange.
'I am you.'
As if she was saying just that.
"..."
I don't know.
Why am I so sad?
I'm holding an absurd 500 billion won—money an ordinary office worker would have to work for an absurd four thousand years to earn—like it's nothing.
Why am I so sad?
"Mom."
Suddenly, I missed my mom.
My dad, who left when I was too young.
And my mom, who raised me through those young days only to suddenly disappear.
If Mom saw me now, what would she say?
'Didn't I tell you to stop going in and out of the kitchen? I told you your pepper would fall off~!'
Would she say that while laughing and slapping my back?
Or maybe she'd be happy to have a daughter and go around the city with me.
"...I'm tired."
I grew tired, like when I'd first woken up.
I trudged to the bed and buried my face deep in the fluffy blanket.
For some reason, it felt like tears were flowing again.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
And tried not to think about anything.
####
Ding-dong— Ding-dong—
Along with the doorbell, my phone vibrated.
A delivery had arrived.
'I told them not to ring the doorbell.'
Feeling annoyed for no reason, I got up.
A delivery? What did I order?
Yawning lazily, I opened the front door, where a large box sat.
"...Ah, the monitor."
The delivery I'd ordered to check if the money in my account was real.
They said same-day shipping, and it really came fast.
Then again, to think it arrived already when I'd ordered it at dawn.
I raised my head and checked the clock; it was already past three.
"I slept a long time."
I'd had a dream while sleeping for a long time.
A dream where I kicked the team leader's knee with my dress shoe.
For some reason, I felt more refreshed than before.
"Ugh... heavy...."
In that refreshed mood, I tried to lift the monitor box, but it was insanely heavy.
"Why is it so heavy?"
As I said that, my eyes caught my thin, fragile wrist.
I think I knew the reason.
I let out a light sigh.
"Ugh... fine."
I dragged the box and shoved it inside the entryway.
After a brief struggle, I cut the tape with a box cutter, and finally opened it.
"Oh...."
Inside the box, a 144Hz gaming monitor sparkled beautifully.
"It's something I really wanted."
I stared blankly at the monitor.
Then one thought occurred to me.
"Wait, then I have to lift this again and move it over there...."
I hadn't known lifting and moving it would be this difficult.
I think I need to start exercising.
Still, my mood had definitely improved compared to before.
Time is medicine.
And money is power.
The power that lets you get back up even after you fall.
"...That's nice, isn't it."
Looking in the mirror, the woman there was slightly raising the corners of her lips.
####
These days, it's an era where you can verify your identity with a cell phone.
So I checked, and apparently this phone was indeed my phone.
Meaning, it's Choe Yeonbi's phone.
All of Choe Minhu's records remain, but the owner is Choe Yeonbi.
It felt strange somehow.
"...I guess I can just use it."
Even though I cursed out the team leader, it shouldn't be a problem.
It's not like I was some big shot.
And no matter what they try to do to me, I'm Choe Yeonbi, not Choe Minhu—what can they even do?
"If push comes to shove, I'll just straight up sue them for stalking?"
I chuckled, looking at the 144Hz monitor in front of me.
Various thoughts came to mind.
That it was definitely bigger than the old one.
And the picture quality was sharp; playing games, I could feel much more clearly how much better it was than the previous one.
Plus.
"...I could buy an even bigger one than this."
I realized once more the power my money held.
"First I need to go out to do anything... let's buy some clothes."
So, until I went to bed, I spent my time adding clothes and various other items to my cart.
'Tomorrow I'll really buy a car. Should I visit a real estate office too? Since I don't need a deposit... I can prepare to move right away....'
Even lying in bed, I didn't stop thinking.