Solo Leveling.
Yes, this was the world where Min-jun was reincarnated, and while it was weird for him to be reincarnated as a South Korean at first, he was used to it now. Also, instead of living in the game, living a fulfilling life where he could get anything as long as he worked hard, it was frankly tough to live in this world.
He knew that it was weird of him to think about this, especially when he lived in a world where the fantasy of every man was possible. Still, in reality, he hardly had time to think about those fantasies and dreams, spending all of his time either working or studying, since if he didn't work and study, he couldn't live. He knew that he would be in poverty, and he couldn't become anything, and lived in constant terror of the bills, taxes, and, more importantly, a future.
Also, yes, he wasn't a hunter, because if he were, he wouldn't think to study and focus on fighting and making money by hunting monsters, like the dreams of every boy.
Yet, without a doubt, it made him sigh since even if he were reincarnated into the world where he could become that powerful warrior in the RPG game, in reality, he was just a normal human.
He didn't have any special ability, nor did he gain a system, a cheat, or whatever you called it, previously, and in this country, South Korea, where everyone was expected to work hard from the moment they were born, he knew well that he could only study till he could be independent.
Fortunately, his hard work was repaid as he was accepted into one of the best universities in South Korea, Seoul National University (SNU), in the psychology department.
Did he like psychology?
Frankly, no, and he didn't even care what kind of department he was accepted into, as long as he entered SNU, his life would be stable, and based on his research before, this department would be the easiest to enter, especially among the popular departments, such as medicine, business administration, and engineering.
Yup, a stable, not the best, but calm, as he did not need to worry about losing his ability to make money and live, as long as he got a degree from the SNU.
Even if he wasn't a Hunter, someone who could use their powers to become superhuman in this world, despite not being able to do anything against the monsters that ravaged the world, he still had a certain value, as he would manage something that even the humans and the Hunters would have a hard time managing, and that was emotions, as the Hunters, despite how they looked, had the hardest trauma, PTSD, and stresses as they faced the danger directly and they couldn't stop themselves, especially when the majority of humans expected them to protect them, even if the monsters might kill them.
Moreover, he could take many other paths, such as working in public relations, human resources, or as a user experience (UX) researcher. There were many paths he could have taken in this department, and it was ultimately less stressful than others.
Yes, he just wanted the degree and prestige that came with SNU, but he didn't want to study to the point of stress, so he chose psychology.
His plan was clear, and that was to make as much money in this country as possible then move to a country or city where it cost him less to live, and probably open his psychology clinic, or a research on how human psychology affected the market, like when people are depressed, they tend to eat something sweet, as a guilty pleasure, which was something that always needed as businessmen always wanted to try to analyze and rationalize the reasons why in certain situations humans buy a certain item.
Then again, while his path was clear, it wasn't easy, especially when he was an orphan, like a cliche main character setting. His parents died early, and he was taken care of by his grandmother, who passed away after he graduated from high school. Frankly, it was so lonely, but life had to be continued, and he also had a few close people by his side, so he put all of his focus on his work, so that he could forget everything.
Wait, wasn't he a university student?
What kind of work did he do?
A part-time job?
No, he didn't want to work a part-time job because it would have taken up a lot of his time, and he also had to focus on his studies, as he couldn't let his grades be low.
So, among all the possible jobs, he chose to be an influencer.
Not those who made a joke, were funny, or talked in a strange way, but a simple, minimalist study influencer.
Yes, it might be strange, but let's look at the reality, okay?
His tuition is approximately 2,442,000 KRW (~$1,850 USD) per semester, and about 4,900,000 KRW (~$3,700 USD) per year.
In four years, it is 19,600,000 KRW (~$14,800 USD)!
However, he was fortunate to receive the KOSAF (Korea Student Aid Foundation) National Scholarship, which covers full tuition, and the South Korean government provides full tuition.
In other words, he studied for free without worrying about student loans, but there was also the matter of "living expenses."
This is where the debt piles up. Even if school was free, he needed a roof over his head and food in his stomach.
When his grandmother left him a simple property bought with the insurance money from his deceased parents, the tax was quite immense, too. Moreover, there was food and essentials, which cost him at least ~500,000 KRW/month.
Seoul, the city where he lived, was expensive, especially when many dungeons emerged, causing a sudden spike in food, electricity, and water prices.
According to his calculations, if he had only done the part-time job when he was 22 years old, and ignored tuition, he would have had 12 million KRW (~$9,000 USD) hanging over his head when he graduated!
When he thought about all of that, he was jealous of those who had parents.
Still, at least his future was clear: when, at 24, he graduated and worked with top conglomerates (Samsung, Hyundai, SK, LG) in high-level corporate roles, his income would be around 50,000,000–60,000,000 KRW/year (approx. $38k-$45k USD).
"Fortunately, I have a property..."
Yes, it might not be huge, and it was on the lower end, but he was just grateful he didn't have to pay rent or go into debt again to buy a house, as the average house in Seoul was about 1.2 billion KRW ($900k USD).
When he thought about all of this, he had to say his grandmother was amazing, he thought, as she dared to purchase a decent apartment when he was still a child, and because of that, it made him at a loss when she wasn't there, but at least...
"Let's just live well.."
As he thought so, he suddenly gained a new ability, allowing him to connect with the other him from another world, share each other's knowledge, and, lastly, the "Manager," which was practically an AI within his mind.
Still, after he got this unique ability, what would he do?
"...."
No, he didn't do anything strange; he just kept his "24-Hour Exam Cram Study With Me" live stream going since there were still 4 hours left.