Haruto wasn't very familiar with domestic stocks, but he had some understanding of foreign stocks. At this moment...
The price of $114 per Bitcoin left him wide-eyed. He hadn't paid much attention to Bitcoin before, and seeing its price now, he was genuinely stunned.
It wasn't exactly cheap. Most ordinary people wouldn't have much knowledge about it anyway. And with Bitcoin's price seemingly declining at the time, no one could have imagined that, several years later, it would once surge to $65,000! (T/N: 120000$ now)
Nearly a 600-fold increase—a goldmine in disguise. The only downside was the wait. Buying Bitcoin now meant at least four or five years before it could be sold for a massive profit.
"Buying about a hundred of these… six years from now, would that be another billion yen?"
Haruto stared at the data before him, quietly scanning news articles about Bitcoin and studying the relevant procedures and trading methods. He opened a trading website and registered his own account.
He carefully noted down his private key. Worried he might forget it, he silently wrote it in his notebook, tore out the page, and safely tucked it with his property documents. After a while, he created a small secondary email account and sent several emails to himself, splitting his password into multiple parts and saving them securely.
"With this, I shouldn't forget it," he murmured.
He returned to the trading page, watching the red and green numbers, following the fluctuating curves. Sitting in front of his computer for about two hours, he purchased 263 Bitcoins. Exhausted afterward, he quietly saved all the related data, noting it in his notebook and in emails, then deleted the originals. Finally, he lay down on his bed to rest. (T/N: BUY MORE you idiot.)
In total, Haruto spent roughly 5.5 million yen. But those 263 Bitcoins could bring him over two billion yen in a few years a guaranteed, risk-free profit.
Lying on his bed, he reflected on the fact that he had already spent 150 million yen today, plus the 5.5 million yen just now. It still felt unreal.
"Sleep," he whispered to himself, closing his eyes and drifting off.
The next day, newspapers and TV reported on him. Though there were no direct photos, his back was captured, alongside news that the One-billion-yen prize had gone to a young man, offering congratulations and encouraging others to participate in the lottery.
"This might get a little troublesome," Haruto muttered.
Silently, he dialed Koharu's number.
"Congratulations," she answered.
"Father knows?" he asked.
On the other end, Koharu lay in bed wearing a pure white silk nightgown. She turned slightly, tugging the duvet over her shoulders. When she heard Haruto mention 'Father,' she paused, pressing her lips together. She could guess the purpose of his call but hadn't expected him to act so decisively.
"Not yet. Should I tell him?"
"Family members don't need to hide secrets from each other. It's been a while since the New Year, so it's time to visit him. It's been a long time since I last saw him. So I would like to come and say hello."
"I understand," Koharu replied.
The girl slowly sat up, preparing to get out of bed once she knew Haruto would visit.
"Then I'll trouble you. It should take about two hours," he said.
"Mm," she responded.
After telling Koharu about his upcoming visit, Haruto tidied his clothes from yesterday, then went out to a nearby barbershop to trim his medium-short hair.
Next, he visited a nearby upscale mall to buy a new outfit and some gifts for the visit... premium tea and traditional confectionery from a long-established shop.
Once everything was prepared, Haruto hailed a taxi and headed to the Otori residence.
Thanks to Koharu's prior notice, when he arrived at the door, a middle-aged maid politely invited him inside and guided him to the tea room, where he saw Yuji Otori dressed in a simple kimono.
"Koharu already told me about this. You're the young man from the newspapers?"
Before Haruto could even greet him, Yuji asked this, glancing at the paper on the table, identical to what he had seen in the news.
"And the woman beside you?"
"She's my editor from the publishing company. She accompanied me to claim the prize."
"Hmph."
Yuji narrowed his eyes and studied the young man in front of him. When Haruto handed him the tea, he glanced at it and muttered, "Not bad."
He didn't make much of it, simply observing the boy calmly.
"So… what brings you here today? You're not planning to hand over that One billion to Koharu, are you?"
As an industrialist, Yuji didn't underestimate One billion yen. His company's cash flow was substantial, but One billion was not a trivial sum.
"I'd like to ask Father's advice on which property would be best for Koharu and me in the future," Haruto said.
"…"
Yuji stared at the audacious boy before him. Thick-skinned as he was, he couldn't understand why his daughter liked him so much.
"Tsk," he muttered, finding the boy unusually bothersome.
After about half an hour in the tea room, Haruto mentioned his involvement with online cryptocurrency. Yuji didn't fully understand and was somewhat dismissive, but after Haruto explained the basic principles, Yuji's expression shifted to one of contemplation, as if he were seeing Haruto in a new light.
By noon, their discussion concluded. Haruto handed the sweets to Koharu, who had been waiting, and took his leave.
"You're not staying?" she asked.
"Not yet… seems a bit early," he replied.
After saying goodbye to the girl, Haruto walked alone, thinking about other matters. He returned to the bank and transferred 5 million yen to his mother, Miyamizu Futaba, in Itomori.
To prevent his mother from worrying, he also sent her a message:
"Please rest assured it's from the royalty income."
Even with the note, three minutes later, his mother called from Itomori. Haruto stopped outside the bank.
"Haruto?"
"It's me, Mom."
"That 5 million yen… did you transfer it?"
"Yes."
Even though he had sent a message to reassure her, Futaba still didn't feel at ease and wanted to confirm with him again.
"How's life in Tokyo..."
"That's extra income. My earnings from old books are already enough to cover my expenses. I don't really have a use for the new book's income, so just keep it for now. If there's anything the family needs, feel free to use it. I have other sources of income anyway."
"But… aren't you planning to buy a house in Tokyo?"
"No rush. There's still plenty of time before I graduate from high school. Everything's fine, so don't worry about me."
"But..."
Even at home, Futaba couldn't help but worry. The sudden large sum made her uneasy. Previously, Haruto would transfer twenty or thirty thousand yen at a time. That was a significant amount, but nothing extraordinary. Now he had sent five million yen.
"I still have about twice that amount on hand, so don't worry," he said, downplaying the remaining funds in his possession.
Futaba still couldn't believe it, she never imagined writing books could be this lucrative.
"Understood. I'll keep it safe for you, and when you need it, just ask me."
"I understand."
After reassuring his mother, Haruto stood outside the bank, sighing lightly as he contemplated how to use the remaining funds.
He wanted to invest or run a business but wasn't sure where to start. Lost in thought, he found himself in front of a café. He glanced at it, entered, ordered a cappuccino, and began thinking.
A convenience store? But I have no experience running one. Franchising would be the easiest route, but becoming the store manager myself… I don't have time for that.
Still a student, he couldn't handle such responsibilities.
"Should I have Mai handle it?"
If Mai did, she'd have to quit her current job and become a convenience store manager. Her monthly salary of around 300,000 yen would drop to zero. Without enough knowledge about the business, a hasty decision would be meaningless.
A restaurant?
Haruto recalled the story two girls had mentioned at Yuka's home. He pondered silently.
Opening a bookstore could work. I could use Mari's position as an editor to meet writers, get their autographs, and sell them in the store.
He could even host events, offering lottery tickets for special prizes like an author or manga artist's autograph.
Sounds feasible, though a bit troublesome to implement… Wait, why not open a manga café instead?
Remembering Yuka's earlier experiences, he realized such a venture could be highly profitable. He even considered opening an unmanned love hotel in Ogikubo, guaranteeing nightly customers.
But the licenses and paperwork would be a hassle… what else could I do?
Sitting alone in the café, he muttered to himself, pondering the future.
Back home, he researched online: opening an ordinary convenience store would cost roughly 8 million yen, plus a franchise fee and deposit of another 4 million.
He silently abandoned the convenience store idea.
Although it sounded fun... hiring cute high school girls to work part-time... the process was too troublesome. The restaurant idea had similar obstacles: sourcing ingredients could be arranged with Sekai's help, but licenses, hiring chefs, and other issues remained.
A store in a remote area would have no customers. In a busy district, competition is fierce and rents high.
Haruto stared at the data, expression numb. Opening a bookstore seemed simpler and more satisfying.
Then, a bookstore it is.
After a long moment of reflection, he remembered his conversation with Yuji Otori, who advised him to start small, likely testing his business acumen.
Bitcoin will grow 600-fold in four to five years, but in four or five years… I'll only be a second-year college student then.
He sat up, returned to his computer, and purchased an additional 52 Bitcoins. [1]
Watching them appear in his account, he imagined a cheerful notification ringing in his ear: "Ding—5 billion yen credited to your bank account!"
Now I have 300 Bitcoins, right?
At its peak of 65,000 dollars, that would be 2.5 billion yen.
From winning One billion yen, he had spent 150 million on a house, and even with other expenses, he had barely touched 20 million. In the future, it could grow to 2.5 billion.
No one was more frugal and prudent than him.
I can't dump all these Bitcoins into the market at once. I'll have to sell gradually, carefully monitoring the price.
Was 300 Bitcoins really a large amount? In the future's massive market, it would be just a drop in the ocean.
Then I'll buy a little more and sell gradually, keeping careful records of purchase prices and times. I'll liquidate step by step.[2]
Knowing the future market gave him calm. It was almost guaranteed profit but for others, it was a bottomless pit, devouring the greed of everyone else.
~~~~~~~~~~
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[1] (T/N: BUY MORE you little bitch!)
[2] YES BUY MORE!