The Clerk glanced at Kim Songcheol and entered Phase 2.

From experience, it’s more effective to tell such customers the truth directly.

Also, while she did lie in some parts, there were also parts that were not lies.

It’s definitely profitable if Kim Songcheol buys the package now.

That was certain.

“It seems you’re a little worried. About whether you’re being ripped off? Something like that.”

“Ah… rather than that, I just don’t have enough information yet. As I said earlier, I just came to look around.”

“That could be the case. I completely understand. But look. You said you came after receiving a recommendation, right?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Then receiving a recommendation usually means that there isn’t yet a ‘country’ in your world that has purchased these magic official position-related blueprints. Am I right?”

“That’s… also right.”

“Every world, at least as far as I know, isn’t composed of a single country. There are dozens, or even over 500 countries, and they compete among themselves. I’ve never seen a country that purchased an unlimited package offer it to other countries for free. This is our revenue model.”

The Clerk simply revealed something that was akin to a trade secret.

Of course, it wasn’t a secret that absolutely had to be kept, but it was also a story that didn’t necessarily need to be brought up.

Upon hearing the words ‘revenue model,’ Kim Songcheol roughly understood how it worked.

“Ah, our country becomes a living advertisement?”

The Clerk smiled, as if she knew he would figure it out.

“Exactly. It’s a bit difficult to do advertising if you’re doing business in an A-rank dungeon. But if you sell an unlimited package to one world just once, you’re essentially advertising to all the countries in that world. Of course, your country isn’t going to give away the blueprints for free, right? When other countries buy them at a high price, they’ll eventually find out about the unlimited package. So why wouldn’t they buy it?”

Kim Songcheol nodded. These were things he had already guessed.

“If they have the ability, they’ll come right away, and if they don’t, they’ll try to come. From our perspective, we’re securing dozens, even over 500 potential customers. I told you at the beginning. Our motto is ‘Park, Lee, Da, Hawk.’ That’s why the price of the unlimited package is set low. This isn’t sales; it’s genuinely better to buy it quickly. Shouldn’t you reap the benefits while other countries haven’t purchased the unlimited package?”

The more he listened, the more it made sense.

So much so that there was no need to calculate the profit relationship between the unlimited package and individual purchases.

If he purchases the unlimited package, as the Clerk said, the Republic of Korea can handle the intermediate distribution of blueprints.

Since it’s unlimited anyway, it means they can take as much as they want and sell it to the countries that need it, adding value.

And since other countries might want blueprints that haven’t been purchased, it was better in many ways to purchase the unlimited package.

Kim Songcheol was frantically calculating in his head.

The Clerk delivered her final counter at this point.

“If you purchase it right now, I’ll offer it to you at a 10 percent discount, for 41 million points. How does that sound?”

Kim Songcheol had no choice but to give in completely.

“I’ll… purchase it.”

He nodded as if possessed.

Kim Songcheol paid the fee.

“Payment received. Please wait a moment.”

The Clerk smiled and said, then went inside. She soon returned with a USB drive and placed it on the counter.

“All the blueprints are in here. If you open it, there’s a separate catalog, so you can look through it and use them as you wish.”}]}

“This is a 41 million Points USB drive. Quite rare…”

“I can give it to you on paper if you want. But it would be more convenient in many ways if you printed it yourself, wouldn’t it?”

“That’s right. Of course.”

“Then, thank you for the trade. I hope you achieve endless progress.”

Kim Songcheol, fearing he might lose it, stored the USB drive in his Subspace and immediately returned to Earth.

***

President Seo Jae-pil was taking a short break at his residence.

He had just finished a national assembly meeting concerning Portals and the economy as a whole.

Seo Jae-pil was a very passionate President, so his throat always hurt after meetings.

“Hmm.”

As always, a warm cup of tea was essential after a meeting.

After enjoying tea for about five minutes, he planned to review documents that required the President’s approval, but…

Knock, knock.

His plan was slightly derailed by the sudden knock and the arrival of the Minister of Interior and Safety.

“Mr. President.”

The Minister of Interior and Safety’s expression was hard to read. At first glance, it looked like something big had happened.

The B-rank Gate incident flashed through Seo Jae-pil’s mind.

Just thinking about that time made his heart drop and his hands sweat.

‘Could it be that an A-rank Dungeon has appeared…?’

Seo Jae-pil took a deep breath and put down his teacup. His mouth instantly went dry, but he didn’t feel like drinking tea.

“What is it?”

Seo Jae-pil asked.

“Hunter Kim Songcheol has…”

The Minister of Interior and Safety took a breath and continued.

“He has returned with the blueprints for a Mana generator! Moreover, it requires no power!”

His voice naturally grew stronger.

“That’s not all. We also have the blueprints for a Purification Facility! Now we no longer need to expend resources on sewage treatment and wastewater treatment!”

Seo Jae-pil froze.

The Minister of Interior and Safety continued to pour out more news, unconcerned.

“That’s not all! He also found a new way to use Portals! It can be used by installing a Portal near the sun and dumping all trash into it!”

Again, Seo Jae-pil was motionless.

“That’s not all! We also have the blueprints for a building that can control the weather!”

At that moment, Seo Jae-pil gently closed his eyes.

“Also, all these blueprints can be traded with other countries… Mr. President?”

The Minister of Interior and Safety, who had been relaying news for a while, called out to him. Then, a single tear rolled down from between Seo Jae-pil’s eyelids.

He, who had been sitting still like a statue, finally began to move.

He pulled out a tissue from the box on the desk and dabbed away his tears.

“I’m not usually one to cry, but tears are coming out…”

The days of distress he endured while serving as President during a particularly difficult period flashed before his eyes.

The B-rank Dungeon incident, in particular, remained deeply etched in his mind, almost a trauma for him as President.

That pent-up emotion sublimated into joy, releasing tears.

“Mr. President…!”

Even the Minister of Interior and Safety was moved, his eyes welling up.

He, who was always meticulous, was also a human being.

After a brief moment to compose themselves, the two middle-aged men resumed their serious discussion.

“Tell me in detail. What exactly happened?”

“I was also in a state of confusion, so…”

The Minister of Interior and Safety reported to the President what he had heard.

In short, Kim Songcheol had purchased numerous blueprints for 41 million points.

Now, all they had to do was build them as instructed.

“And you’re saying there’s no problem with trading those blueprints?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Furthermore, how the blueprints were to be sold was entirely up to the Nation.

Kim Songcheol didn’t need to do that troublesome work.

He was already busy with Dungeon matters; when would he have time to coordinate all that?

“Go prepare a briefing now. Call all the ministers and vice-ministers back.”

Since Kim Songcheol had given them work, it was now the nation’s turn to act.

***

Thermal power plants account for approximately 65 percent of electricity generation in Korea.

Coal and natural gas are used in roughly equal proportions.

The electricity produced by a single thermal power plant is approximately 500 to 1,000 MW.

Since a Mana Power Plant produces 10 MW, 50 to 100 Mana Power Plants would be needed to replace one thermal power plant.

However, what cannot be ignored is that Mana Power Plants are inherently small.

They were about the size of a 99 square meter house, and compared to solar power generation, the required land area was hundreds of times smaller.

Moreover, they use mana, which is almost infinite, as their power source.

It is a power generation system that requires no fuel.

Furthermore, compared to solar power, which requires a large area of land, and wind power, which requires strong winds, its accessibility is fundamentally different.

You could just insert one of these in the middle of a housing complex, and it would be perfectly fine.

And this news was broadcast across the Republic of Korea.

“The Government has announced new news. They have obtained blueprints for a power plant that operates on Mana. In response, the Government will undertake extensive power plant construction…”

At this dream-like news, the Republic of Korea was once again abuzz.

Mana is an almost infinite resource, making it close to infinite power, and it is an eco-friendly power generation method that does not emit pollutants.

It was a new answer presented to modern society, which had been waiting for nuclear fusion.

Naturally, the news about the blueprints spread across the world through the airwaves.

“What? A Mana Power Plant?”

The President of China frowned as soon as he heard the news.

He was already displeased with having to be mindful of Korea regarding the Portal installation, and now a Mana Power Plant?

“We can’t steal the Portal’s Capital City, but we can copy the blueprint, can’t we?”

“It seems the Republic of Korea is considering a bidding war from the beginning. Information related to their official position keeps coming in. We should coordinate and move in the direction that benefits us.”

“Really? Let’s hear the price first, shall we?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of Japan received a similar report.

“It’s a Mana Power Plant. Illusion-friendly, Nothingness-powered.”

“Since they announced it, it seems they have a deal maker?”

“Yes, it seems they are hinting at that.”

“But where on earth did they find such a blueprint?”

“It would probably take an A-rank Dungeon to even get an outline, but…”

“A-rank…”

In Japan’s situation, there were no Hunters yet capable of entering an A-rank Dungeon.

That being said, an A-rank Dungeon didn’t feel completely out of reach either.

It had been almost 10 years since Dungeons and Gates first appeared, and Japan’s Hunters had been steadily growing stronger.

The thought of waiting for a Japanese Hunter to reach A-rank seemed plausible, but there was no guarantee that reaching A-rank would immediately lead to obtaining the blueprint.

After all, they didn’t know how the Republic of Korea obtained the blueprint, did they?

“Still, we should discuss it. We can’t fall behind other countries, can we? It’s not confirmed, but there are also rumors of another blueprint.”

“Another blueprint…? What other buildings could there possibly be… There’s no choice. Prepare for a visit to Korea.”

Various countries, upon hearing the news from the Republic of Korea, once again dispatched envoys to the Korean Peninsula.

As the global community was in an uproar,

Kim Songcheol, having received the Thunderclap Magic, quietly secluded himself at home.

The request was not difficult.

The gist of the request was that a dispute had arisen with Ilwol’s Martial Artist, and Ilwol had unilaterally set a date for a Death Match.

On the day of the Death Match, Kim Songcheol took the Celestial Spirit Maiden to the agreed location, and at the Celestial Spirit Maiden’s official disposition to ‘spare his life if he called it off,’ Ilwol’s Martial Artist, grateful to be alive, retreated.

That’s how the request was resolved.

Kim Songcheol began to learn the Thunderclap Magic he had received as payment.

After a full week of intense focus,

Kim Songcheol raised his hand and rubbed his index and thumb together vigorously.

Zap!

With a small, sharp noise, his index and thumb blurred, then transformed into a bluish electric shock, flashing in the air before returning to their original finger forms.

The biggest feature of Thunderclap, ‘Lightning God Transformation,’ was slowly taking shape.