The smell of grilled mackerel drifted into Joon's room from the kitchen. His mother was humming a folk tune, and the morning sun cast long shadows across the tiled floor. It was peaceful.
Too peaceful.
Joon sat in front of his monitor, arms crossed. He'd been scrolling for thirty minutes now and still couldn't find a good setup.
His Market Insight stat was at 10 now. But that didn't mean every day offered gold. Sometimes the market went quiet—not flat, but uncertain, jittery.
And that made it dangerous.
Still, ₩178,300 was just sitting there. And the itch to act was crawling beneath his skin.
He took a deep breath.
New Optional Quest Available: Trade Under Pressure
Objective: Make a trade during a low-volume, high-volatility day. Accept the risk.
Reward: +30 XP
Failure Penalty: -10 XP if trade results in a net loss
It wasn't a mandatory quest. But it was honest.
The System was challenging him to decide: act with risk, or wait with discipline.
His hand hovered over the mouse.
Then he clicked.
Quest Accepted: Trade Under Pressure
He spotted a stock: ChungHa SolarTech
A solar energy stock that had surged 18% the previous week. Now it was bouncing erratically—three red candles, then one green spike, then more chop. A typical whiplash stock.
High risk.
Low conviction.
He knew this.
But part of him thought: What if I catch the reversal?
Buy Order Placed: 70 shares @ ₩2,500 = ₩175,000
Remaining Capital: ₩3,300
The price jumped almost immediately: ₩2,540.
He held.
Then it dipped: ₩2,470.
He held.
Then a sharp drop: ₩2,420.
He winced.
By market close, it had recovered to ₩2,460.
Net Loss: -₩2,800
Quest Failed: Trade Under Pressure-10 XP penalty applied
Current XP: 0 / 500 → 0 / 500 (no change)
(XP cannot go below zero.)
Joon sighed and stared at the position.
He could sell now and eat the small loss.
Or hold and hope it bounces tomorrow.
But that wasn't trading. That was gambling.
He clicked sell.
Sell Order: 70 shares @ ₩2,460 = ₩172,200+₩3,300 (leftover capital)
New Capital: ₩175,500
It hurt. Not the money.
The mistake.
That night, he sat at his desk, silent.
He opened his notebook and wrote:
"Don't trade just to trade. Insight isn't instinct."
His fingers hovered again.
Then the System pinged him.
New Passive Quest Unlocked: Trader's Code
Objective: Make no trades for two full market days unless high-confidence conditions are met (XP reward locked until completed).
Reward: +40 XP
System Note: You have demonstrated awareness of impulsive behavior. Traders must also know when not to act.
For the first time, a quest asked him to wait.
He exhaled.
Money Tracker:
Bought 70 ChungHa @ ₩2,500 = ₩175,000
Sold @ ₩2,460 = ₩172,200
Remaining capital before trade: ₩3,300
New Capital: ₩175,500
Net Loss: -₩2,800
New Quest Available: Trader's Code (not yet completed)
The next morning, Joon sat in front of the screen.
But he didn't touch the keyboard.
He let the market move without him.
Because this time, doing nothing was part of the growth.