Transcendent Warrior with a Dimensional Shifting Inventory

1

[**50% Off Eggs!!**]

People lined up in a long queue at the grocery store.

The once-a-month half-price egg event at this local mart.

Limited to the first 200 customers, one carton per person was the rule.

Most in line were middle-aged ladies, but there was one young man in his twenties.

*’Today, I must get them.’*

Choi Min-hyuk was burning with determination.

Securing high-quality nutrition at a low cost was an essential strategy to survive in this era of high prices.

That’s why he came all this way to this mart, leaving the closer one to his home behind.

Last month, he arrived too late and missed out on the half-price eggs, but today, he was determined to succeed and return home with his prize.

*’Two, four, six, eight…’*

Min-hyuk counted the stacks of egg cartons on the display.

He also counted the number of people ahead of him.

*’Thirty cartons left, twenty-nine people in front of me!’*

Unless something unexpected happened, the last carton of eggs would be his.

But then,

An unexpected shadow loomed before him.

“Oh my, Hye-jung’s mom! What a surprise to see you here?”

A permed-hair lady who appeared out of nowhere approached someone in front of Min-hyuk, recognizing them.

Min-hyuk tensed up, wary of her.

It would be fine if she just exchanged greetings and went on her way, but it didn’t feel like that would be the case.

“Is Hye-jung doing well in her studies? But what’s with this long line?”

“They’re having a sale on eggs.”

“Really? I’ve run out of eggs at home.”

Swoosh-

The permed-hair lady pushed her shopping cart in front of her acquaintance’s spot.

Just as Min-hyuk had anticipated, she had executed a perfect act of cutting in line.

Those standing behind frowned upon the permed-hair lady’s action.

However, they only shot laser beams with their eyes, with no one stepping up to directly intervene.

“Lady!”

Min-hyuk stepped forward.

He wasn’t usually one to step up.

Nor was he one to stand up against injustice.

But now, he had no choice but to intervene.

Because he would be the one to suffer the most from her cutting in line.

“Lady! Don’t cut in line!”

At Min-hyuk’s outcry, the people around turned to look at him.

But the actual line-cutter feigned ignorance, looking straight ahead as if she heard nothing.

Min-hyuk raised his voice even more.

—

“Hey, lady in the pink shirt! No cutting in line!”

This time, the culprit’s description was called out specifically.

Yet, she did not turn around, standing her ground steadfastly.

It was clear that line-cutting was a habitual offense for her.

In that case, a stronger approach was necessary.

“Lady in the fake pink Chanel shirt! Stop cutting the line!”

Pfft-

Laughter leaked from the mouths of several people at the mention of ‘fake’.

Only then did the lady with the perm turn around.

Her face was a mottled red and blue.

“Oh my, how funny! My husband bought this for me on a business trip to Paris! It’s not a fake!”

“Is that really what’s important right now? Stop cutting and step aside!”

“What a scene! When did I ever cut in line? I just asked someone to hold my spot while I went to the restroom for a moment!”

Her blatant lie provoked an older gentleman who couldn’t hold back any longer.

“This shameless woman! Do you think everyone here is blind and deaf?”

“What! Shameless woman?”

“If you don’t want to be called that, stop cutting and get out of the line!”

“No way! Why should I leave? This is my spot!”

As she continued to argue, others began to raise their voices.

“Don’t cut in line!”

“What kind of lady does that?”

Then, she called for help from an acquaintance.

“Hyae-jung’s mom, please tell these people! This was originally my spot. I was just briefly at the restroom.”

The one referred to as Hyae-jung’s mom momentarily wore a troubled expression, then spoke sharply to the lady with the perm.

“Sua’s mother, please don’t cut in line! It’s not right for a parent raising children to do this.”

“What, what?”

Having expected support from her friend, the lady was stunned to receive a rebuke instead.

And eventually, she took her shopping cart and left the line.

She exited amidst the scornful stares of the crowd, her embarrassment trailing behind her.

And so, Min-hyuk safely secured the last carton of eggs.

He had defended his rightful claim against the unethical actions of the lady with the perm.

‘Heaven helps those who help themselves!’

Stepping out of the market, dusk had begun to settle.

It was only two subway stops to his home, but he decided to walk for exercise.

Choosing to walk, he followed the scenic path along the Han River.

As he walked, he looked across the river.

The apartments rose densely packed like bean sprouts in a rice cake, their windows spilling light.

‘So many homes.’

He didn’t dare to count how many households were in view.

‘With so many, why don’t I have even one?’

I know the reason, yet I ask the same question over and over.

*Chuckle-*

A smile leaked from the corner of Minhyuk’s mouth.

He felt futile, coveting an apartment with a view of the Han River, when he was in debt rather than having savings.

*Whoosh-*

His hair fluttered in the chilly river breeze.

Suddenly, memories of the past years flashed through his mind.

Minhyuk has little memory of his mother.

She passed away when he was very young.

After losing his wife, his father, despite difficult circumstances, tried his best to raise Minhyuk without shortcomings.

Minhyuk, in turn, obeyed his father, growing up straight without a hint of teenage rebellion.

And he lived up to his father’s expectations by getting into a prestigious university.

Time passed without incident.

Then one day, while preparing to return to school after military service,

His father collapsed suddenly.

The diagnosis was a rare disease, difficult even to pronounce.

His father underwent several major surgeries and was admitted to the ICU.

The hospital bills were astronomical due to the rarity of the disease.

Minhyuk gave up on returning to school and looked for a job.

He was in such a hurry for money that he couldn’t afford to take his time.

Fortunately, he found a job not far from the hospital where his father was admitted.

It was a company that assembled industrial machinery, and he worked overtime every day and on weekends to earn extra pay.

When the factory was quiet and there was no overtime work, he took any job he could find: construction day laborer, convenience store, restaurant dishwasher.

Still, the money was never enough, and the hospital bills kept piling up.

He moved from his house to a tiny room without a window, using the deposit to help pay the bills.

No matter how much he earned, it was like pouring water into a bottomless bucket.

Time dragged on in such a state.

‘I’m leaving you with nothing but hardship… Live a happy life, please.’

With those words as his last will, his father closed his eyes.

It marked the end of a three-year-long battle with illness.

Tears, thought to have dried up, poured bitterly from Minhyuk’s eyes.

Now, two years after his father’s passing,

Minhyuk was still paying off the debt incurred for his father’s hospital bills.

‘Not much longer now.’

Clearing the debt within the year was Minhyuk’s goal.

Once the debt was paid, he would try to live happily, as his father’s last words had wished.

But what does it mean to live a happy life?

He didn’t know much, but for starters, he would escape the tiny room.

Even a single room with a window would make life less gloomy.

Before he knew it, he had arrived in front of the tiny room.

Across the street, a sign stood in the vacant lot.

[Used Appliance Collection Point]

Not long ago, the local office created a space for neighbors to ‘freely share’ unused appliances.

If you left an unwanted appliance there, someone in need would take it away.

Items not taken after several days would be collected by a pickup service, free of charge.

Passing by the boarding house, I’d often glance over. Sometimes, there were high-end items like treadmills or massage chairs.

But for Minhyuk, living in his cramped boarding house room, they were as unreachable as a picture of rice cake.

Today, there was a refrigerator.

A small, two-compartment fridge.

Its charming design was tempting, but there was already a fridge in Minhyuk’s room.

There was no room for two refrigerators in such a cramped space, so this one was not meant for Minhyuk either.

Minhyuk entered the boarding house building.

He went up to the second floor, passed through the corridor, and into his room.

Turning on the light, he found the floor soaked with water.

‘Why is it like this?’

Minhyuk looked around.

It seemed to have come from the refrigerator.

With a jerk –

He opened the freezer door, and it was clear.

The ice that had been stuck to the coils had all melted.

That water had flowed out and pooled on the floor.

The power was still connected…

The refrigerator must have broken down.

For now, he mopped up the water on the floor with a rag.

The man from the next room peered through the open door and asked Minhyuk,

“What happened? Why is it flooded?”

“It seems the fridge is broken. I’ll have to ask for it to be fixed.”

“Who will you ask? The landlord? Good luck with that.”

“What? Isn’t the boarding house supposed to fix these things?”

“Normally, yes. But you know the landlord’s temperament. My fridge broke down recently, and he told me to fix it myself.”

“So, what did you do?”

“What can you do? The thirsty dig their own wells.”

The neighbor had argued with the landlord over the fridge for a long time and eventually bought a new one with his own money.

“I should’ve just bought a new one right away instead of suffering without a fridge for a month.”

Having lived here for five years, Minhyuk was well aware of the landlord’s nature.

Usually, he wore a kind expression, but he changed completely when it came to money matters.

‘Then…’

The fridge he had seen earlier came to mind.

In a rush –

Minhyuk dashed out of his room and ran across the corridor.

—