After the Divorce, a Treasure Map Made Me a 1,000-Trillionaire Chapter 17
[Ripple / Current Price: 3,062 KRW] [Current Balance: 4,942,000,000 KRW]
It hadn’t even been a few hours, yet over 50 million won had vanished.
I already knew it, but coins—these cryptocurrencies—were far more volatile than stocks could ever be. Stocks had the courtesy of closing at 3:30 p.m., giving your heart a rest. But coins? No such mercy. The market ran 24/7, without a single second of pause.
I knew it would rise on April 2. I was sure of it. But with such a huge investment, even the smallest drop made my heart plummet.
“Haah… I’m gonna lose my mind. Seriously.”
I thought I had grown bolder, but apparently, I was still just an ordinary guy.
To stop obsessing over it, I tried keeping my Ubitt app as far away from me as possible. But pretending not to think about coins was easier said than done.
“Sir, shall I grill the meat for you?” “Oh… yes.”
Even at Gahojeong, chewing on premium Korean beef ribs, my head was full of nothing but Ripple.
This is the last time.
And yet, I kept opening the app. Not just at meals—before bed, during workouts… coins were always there, lodged in my brain.
“Phew… this really isn’t easy.”
I was beginning to understand why people’s lives collapsed once they got hooked on crypto.
Still, time crawled forward, and at last, March 31—the final day of the month—arrived. Only two days left until April 2, the promised date.
Ripple was now at 3,015 KRW. It had dipped, sure, but nothing dramatic—just a normal correction. Still, because of my large position, even a measly 2.68% drop meant over 130 million won gone.
“Alright… in the crypto world, this isn’t even a big drop. Stay calm.”
I tried to hypnotize myself into steadiness. But the decline didn’t stop there.
I had gone for a walk to clear my head when my phone suddenly buzzed.
[Alert: Ripple down 5%]
Ubitt’s drop alert. It meant Ripple had fallen more than 5% from my buy-in price of 3,098 KRW.
Panicked, I stopped and opened the app. The candlestick chart was plunging red, minute by minute.
The 3,000 KRW mark had already been broken, and the price kept sliding until it barely clung to 2,902 KRW.
“Is this really the treasure…?”
I couldn’t help doubting it. Seeing the numbers in my balance hurt more than anything.
[Ripple: 1,614,000 coins] [Buy Price: 3,098 KRW] [Current Price: 2,902 KRW] [P/L: -6.33% / 4,683,828,000 KRW]
My vision swam. If I kept watching the chart, I’d lose faith and sell.
So I took the ultimate measure—shutting my phone off.
Alright. Just two days without my phone.
For two days, I avoided it completely, distracting myself with books and TV. Coins still drifted into my thoughts, but I pushed them away.
Finally, April 2 came.
As soon as midnight hit, I turned my phone back on and opened the Ubitt app with trembling hands.
It had risen a little, but was still nowhere near my buy-in price.
What… was this really not the treasure?
I was debating whether to sell at a loss when suddenly—BAM—Ripple shot up on the minute chart.
[Ripple: 2,954 KRW] [Ripple: 3,005 KRW] [Ripple: 3,087 KRW]
It was skyrocketing. And not just Ripple—Bitcoin, ADA, and SOL were also surging like mad.
Minutes later, Ripple returned to my buy-in price of 3,098 KRW. Less than five minutes after that, my phone buzzed again.
[Alert: Ripple up 5%]
I scrambled to check the news. A breaking headline on the front page:
[U.S. President Trump declares Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, ADA, and SOL as national reserve assets.]
“…This has to be fake, right?”
It was hard to believe. Why would the U.S. President designate specific coins as reserve assets?
But the news claimed the source was Trump’s own social media. I rushed there to confirm… and froze.
The post was long, about making the U.S. the capital of crypto, but the key point was undeniable—Trump had officially named Ripple as part of the U.S. government’s reserves.
As if to prove it was no hoax, my alerts kept coming:
[Ripple up 10%] [Ripple up 15%] [Ripple up 20%] [Ripple up 25%]
From 4.68 billion, my Ripple holdings soared past 5 billion, then added another 1.2 billion in profit.
It was time to cash out. I couldn’t hold forever.
After a moment’s thought, I set my sell order at 4,300 KRW for all my Ripple.
And right then—my stomach growled. The tension must have broken now that I was in profit.
I’d already placed the sell order. All I had to do was wait.
Compared to the WhiteSoft deal, this should definitely hit my target.
I turned off my phone, grabbed my wallet, and headed to the Kimbap Heaven in front of my goshiwon.
“Hey, you’re back again,” the ajumma greeted me warmly. “Yes, hello.” “What’ll it be?”
Without hesitation, I ordered the special set meal and a bowl of ramyeon.
“Special set and one ramyeon!” she shouted to the kitchen.
I was nervous, but right now was mealtime. Time to focus on eating.
Soon, my 15,000-won feast arrived.
I devoured the special set and ramyeon, then topped it off with a Häagen-Dazs from the convenience store before returning to my room.
With a racing heart, I turned my phone back on.
Not long after the data connected—
[Your sell order has been filled.]
I couldn’t help shouting, even at this late hour. This wasn’t like last time, where I made just 10 million won.
Checking Ubitt, my balance now read: 6.94 billion KRW.
In just a few weeks, with nothing more than a few taps, I’d made nearly 2 billion won in profit. How could I not cheer? My hands were still shaking.
First 6 billion, now another 2 billion. Not long ago, I was surviving on 3,000 won a day after my divorce. Now I could spend hundreds of thousands without even denting my fortune.
[H Bank] [Balance: 7,153,000,000 KRW]
7.1 billion in cash. Add the 1 billion I’d put into H Bank’s investment product, and my net worth was now over 8 billion won.
I looked around my room. For a goshiwon, it wasn’t bad—but it was no place for an 8-billion-won man.
I opened a real estate app to look for a new home.
I’d never really thought about it before. Back then, I was too busy scraping together rent.
I browsed the most expensive and desirable neighborhoods in Korea.
Gangnam—home to the priciest real estate in the country. Even old apartments there went for over 2 billion won.
Great transport, great everything… but even 8 billion feels tight here.
My budget cap was about 2.5 billion for a house. But newer apartments in Gangnam blew past that easily.
Next, I checked Pangyo and Bundang. Both new towns in Seongnam City, nice places to live, close to Seoul with plenty of amenities. But Pangyo had terrible rush-hour traffic, and Bundang, despite its “new town” title, felt too old.
Then, one city caught my eye—Gwanggyo.
I’d once visited Gwanggyo Lake Park, and it was so beautiful I’d promised myself I’d live there someday. Back then, I gave up instantly after seeing the prices.
But now? Things were different. I didn’t have just a few hundred thousand won anymore—I had 8 billion in my account.
Without hesitation, I grabbed my BMW keys.
Gwanggyo, here I come.