Chapter 1

I Got Divorced and Found 1,000 Bitcoins

M.J. Capital.

It was an asset management company that handled a wide variety of investment-related work.

Kang Hyun belonged to the investment team, and today, just like every other day, he stared at the charts with his head in his hands.

‘Sigh… Why is it moving in the opposite direction again?’

This was already the third time this month.

Every time he carefully analyzed the market and opened a position, the chart moved against him.

If this kept happening…

Ring!

The internal office phone rang.

He had a feeling he already knew who it was without even answering.

With a heavy hand, he picked up the receiver.

“Hello.”

“This is Kim Min-joo from the Risk Management Team. Please close your position immediately.”

The Risk Management Team.

Their job was to monitor the company’s exposure to risk. Whenever they judged that an employee’s trading decision was wrong, they immediately ordered the position to be closed.

In other words, they were the grim reapers of the company.

“Could you give me just a little more time? The earnings report is coming out soon. Once that’s released…”

“Then you should have entered your position after the earnings report.”

She wasn’t wrong.

Why had he entered early and put himself through this misery?

“If your position isn’t closed within one minute, we’ll liquidate it by force.”

That was the end of the conversation.

If the Risk Management Team forcefully liquidated a trader’s position, it would damage that trader’s performance record within the company.

His performance had already dropped enough. If it got any worse, his job could be in danger.

In the end, Kang Hyun had no choice.

Click.

A few mouse clicks.

Then…

[Sell Order Executed.]

His position was closed.

[Today’s Profit/Loss: -₩5,854,628]

5.85 million won.

For a proprietary trader, it wasn’t an enormous loss.

‘That’s about six percent… Sigh… They’re going to reduce my trading capital again.’

All he could do was sigh.

People say bad luck always comes all at once.

Today seemed to prove that saying true.

“Hyun… Let’s get divorced.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

The moment he returned home, his wife held out a document.

[Application for Confirmation of Mutual Divorce Agreement]

The words at the top of the page made him freeze.

It was even more shocking than the time she’d slapped him awake because she dreamed he cheated on her.

“I can’t trust you anymore.”

“What are you talking about? Did you hear some strange rumor again?”

“Again? You’re always like this. You always shift the blame onto me. I’m sorry, but I’ve thought about this carefully.”

“You say you’ve thought it through, but instead of talking to me, you’re suddenly handing me divorce papers? Does that even make sense?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t see a future with you.”

The word future left him speechless.

“I told you this from the day we got married. I wanted a husband who would make a lot of money. But look at you now. Your company’s been reducing your trading capital over and over.”

“Th… That’s only temporary. I’m just going through a rough patch…”

“Hyun, I heard you might not even get your contract renewed.”

“Where did you hear that? Who told you?”

“W… Why does it matter who told me? Either way, I can’t live with someone who has no future. Let’s get divorced.”

Of course, he refused.

They had only been married for two years.

Including the years they dated, they had spent five years together.

Divorce wasn’t something you decided overnight.

But she wouldn’t change her mind.

They began sleeping in separate rooms.

Whenever he came home from work, she wouldn’t say a single word.

And whenever she did speak, the only thing she talked about was divorce.

As the days passed, it began affecting his work.

[Buy Order Executed.]

“Huh?”

He had clicked the wrong button.

Instead of selling the stock, he had bought it again.

At that very moment, his phone rang.

“What are you doing?! You were supposed to close your position! Why are you buying more?! We’re forcefully liquidating your position immediately!”

The Risk Management Team closed his position.

The mistake was immediately reported throughout the team.

Soon afterward, he was called into his manager’s office.

“Your performance has already been terrible lately, and now you’re making trading mistakes too?”

“I’m sorry…”

“Save the apology. This incident will be reported to upper management.”

He had nothing to say.

A trading mistake like this was something a professional trader should never make.

Everything was becoming too much to bear.

At least one problem had to be solved.

That’s why…

“I signed it.”

He wrote his name on the divorce papers.

“You made the right choice. It’s impossible to live with someone whose heart has already left.”

“You’re really a cruel woman.”

“Call me realistic.”

The woman he had once loved was no longer there.

The divorce process moved quickly.

The only property they owned was their apartment lease deposit, which he had paid himself.

Neither of them was legally at fault, so there was no need for alimony.

Fortunately, they had no children.

After submitting the paperwork, they entered the mandatory waiting period.

“See you after the waiting period.”

She packed her belongings and left immediately.

There wasn’t even the slightest hesitation.

It was as though she’d been waiting for this day all along.

He was left alone in their thirty-pyeong apartment.

“Was this place always this big?”

The living room was dark.

Only the kitchen light gave off a faint glow.

The lonely scenery matched his empty heart.

“I still have something I need to do.”

Now that the divorce was decided, he had to tell his parents.

Normally, people told their parents before making such a decision.

But after seeing how determined his wife… No, his soon-to-be ex-wife was, he felt there was no point.

So he had decided to tell them only after everything was settled.

And now was that moment.

Ring!

“Hello, son.”

The familiar voice of his mother made his emotions well up instantly.

He forced himself to stay calm.

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing much. Have you eaten dinner?”

Just like always, the first thing she asked was whether he’d eaten.

For some reason, those simple words pierced his heart today.

“I have. Mom… There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“I’m getting divorced.”

“What?! What do you mean? Divorce all of a sudden?”

Her shock was only natural.

But everything had already been decided.

He calmly explained everything.

After hearing the whole story, she gave an unexpected response.

“I understand.”

“…Are you okay?”

“What do I have to be upset about? You two aren’t children. I’m sure you discussed it carefully before deciding. Come visit us soon and have a meal.”

“Okay. I will.”

After hanging up, he stared at his phone for a long time.

“She accepted it much more calmly than I expected.”

He had expected a much stronger reaction.

Instead, her calmness made him feel relieved.

“I should visit home soon.”

With that thought, he spent his first night alone since getting married.

The waiting period wasn’t long.

It was longer for couples with children, but they had none.

Since it was a mutual divorce, there was no legal dispute.

The divorce was finalized almost immediately.

‘Does it normally end this quickly?’

That’s what it felt like.

Finally, the day of the hearing arrived.

His wife…

No.

His ex-wife, Han So-ye, looked even more dazzling than usual.

She was just as beautiful as the first day they met on their blind date.

She also carried an expensive luxury handbag he had never seen before.

“You’ve been doing well.”

“Yeah. Let’s go.”

There wasn’t even a proper greeting.

She answered colder than a stranger as they entered the Family Court.

“Mr. Choi Kang Hyun. Ms. Han So-ye. Are both of you still certain about your decision to divorce?”

If only things could still be changed…

“Yes. I’m certain.”

So-ye answered first.

The judge then looked at him.

Nothing had changed.

“Yes. I’m certain.”

“The court confirms that both parties sincerely intend to divorce.”

The process was simple.

After receiving the confirmation, they went to the local community office and submitted it.

“It’s been processed.”

That was it.

Their marriage, which had felt both short and long, came to an end.

“Take care.”

With those final words, So-ye got into her car and drove away.

Seriously.

She was selfish until the very end.

“So… I’m officially divorced now.”

Oddly enough, he felt lighter.

Maybe everything would finally start getting better.

At least…

That’s what he thought.

But he was wrong.

“Mr. Choi Kang Hyun, due to internal company circumstances, we’ve decided not to renew your contract.”

“…What?”

“Your recent performance has been poor, and you’ve made too many mistakes. We won’t be continuing with you. Thank you for your hard work.”

His contract wasn’t being renewed.

In other words…

He was fired.

“Ha… Hahaha…”

First divorced.

Now unemployed.

He thought he’d already hit rock bottom.

Turns out there was a basement below it.

He spent the next several days like a zombie.

He couldn’t remember another time when so many disasters had happened at once.

Today was no different.

He lay on his bed scrolling through short videos.

[Successful people always experience failure.]

His finger stopped on the video.

[And after those failures, they achieve unimaginable success.]

He laughed.

“If that were true, everyone in the world would be rich.”

Just then, a KakaoTalk message arrived.

[Lim Kwang-ho: You still alive?]

It was his best friend, Kwang-ho.

[Me: Yeah. Still breathing.]

[Lim Kwang-ho: I’m coming over.]

[Me: Okay.]

Kwang-ho often visited because he was worried about his friend.

“I should at least brush my teeth.”

After brushing, he sat on the living room sofa.

A moment later, the doorbell rang.

He opened the door.

Kwang-ho stood there carrying several heavy shopping bags.

“What did you buy all this for?”

“My wife made some side dishes for you.”

“Tell her thank you.”

“I will.”

He took the bags and put everything into the refrigerator.

As the once-empty fridge slowly filled up, Kwang-ho spoke from the dining table.

“Our company is hiring new traders. Why don’t you submit your résumé?”

Kwang-ho was also a trader.

Unlike Kang Hyun, who traded daily, Kwang-ho specialized in quantitative trading.

Still, they worked in the same industry.

“In my current state, I’d probably make another huge mistake.”

“…By the way, I saw your ex… No, I saw So-ye recently.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Our company had a dinner gathering, and I saw her going into Haru.”

Haru was a high-end Japanese restaurant in Yeouido.

The prices were outrageous.

Still, So-ye was capable and liked expensive things, so it wasn’t surprising.

What surprised him was the location.

“She was with some guy. I thought he looked familiar… Then I realized it was David from Clevers.”

“What? David? You mean Choi Chang-wook?”

David Choi.

Although he had grown up overseas, he attended the same high school as Kang Hyun and Kwang-ho.

Afterward, he studied in America, obtained U.S. citizenship, and later returned to Korea.

He was also a professional trader.

But the scale of his success couldn’t even be compared.

“Yeah. But did those two even know each other?”

People’s connections really were strange.

“…Wait.”

Something from the past flashed through his mind.

“Come to think of it…”

“What? Did you remember something?”

“A long time ago, So-ye came to my company to deliver some documents. She met Chang-wook briefly and exchanged greetings.”

“What?”

“But it was just a polite greeting…”

“Come on. Smoke doesn’t rise without a fire. Maybe that’s when they started seeing each other.”

He couldn’t be certain.

But the thick fog that had clouded his thoughts suddenly became much clearer.

“So another man was the reason she wanted a divorce?”

“Bastards.”

Kwang-ho said exactly what Kang Hyun wanted to say.

It felt strangely satisfying.

“Are you really just going to let it end like this?”

Everything was already over.

The divorce was finalized.

Even if she had cheated, proving it would be nearly impossible.

There was nothing he could do.

But…

“Are you just going to keep living like this? If they saw you now, what do you think they’d say?”

“They’d think I’m pathetic.”

He couldn’t stay pathetic forever.

After Kwang-ho left, silence filled the apartment once again.

Kang Hyun sat there thinking for a while before finally standing up.

“I need to do something.”

If he stayed still, his thoughts only became more complicated.

Maybe keeping his body busy would clear his mind.

He began cleaning.

Inside the walk-in closet, he sorted through clothes they no longer needed.

“If you were leaving, you could’ve taken everything.”

Although So-ye had packed her things, traces of her still remained.

He stuffed every last reminder into trash bags.

He wanted to erase all of it.

‘She was seeing another man while living with me? And then she blamed me?’

Anger surged inside him.

He wanted to go find her and slap her across the face.

Thud!

Thud!

Instead, he vented his frustration by violently shoving clothes into garbage bags.

After finishing the closet, he moved to the pantry.

‘And what about Chang-wook? Even if he liked her, how could he go after his old classmate’s wife? Is he even human?’

He had never liked Choi Chang-wook.

Back in school, the rich kid always looked down on everyone else.

Nothing had changed after they became adults.

Chang-wook had become a famous Wall Street trader.

When he learned Kang Hyun worked in the same industry, he constantly talked down to him.

‘Was he the one leaking information about my company too?’

The finance industry was both big and surprisingly small.

News traveled from one company to another with incredible speed.

That probably explained how So-ye always seemed to know what was happening inside his company.

“You bastards!”

Filled with rage, he threw a cardboard box toward the trash bag.

Thud.

The box missed.

It hit the floor, the lid popped open, and everything inside spilled out.

Old photographs.

A computer mouse.

Old CDs.

USB drives he no longer used.

Most of the photographs were with Kwang-ho.

“…I miss those days.”

Seeing pictures from college brought back countless memories.

“So this is where it was.”

It was the box that held the most precious memories of his life.

He had wondered where it disappeared after moving.

It had been sitting forgotten in the corner of the pantry.

In such a large apartment, this tiny corner had been the only space that truly belonged to him.

“I should keep this safe.”

He couldn’t throw away his memories.

Carefully, he began putting everything back into the box one item at a time.

Then something caught his eye.

A sticky note attached to one of the USB drives.

[BTC]

Just three simple letters.

BTC.

He immediately knew what they meant.

“…Bitcoin?”

This is the end of Chapter 1.