The first day passed in silence.
Joon woke early, showered, and opened his laptop as the KOSDAQ ticked to life. He stared at the opening bell like a knight staring at a gate he wasn't allowed to pass through.
Passive Quest Active: Trader's Code
Make no trades for two full market days unless high-confidence conditions are met.
Progress: Day 1 / 2
He wasn't sure what "high-confidence" meant by system standards, but he decided he wouldn't risk it. Not today.
Instead, he studied.
He didn't study the price.
He studied why he wanted to trade.
Every itch to click—every twitch in his hand as the charts moved—he wrote it down.
"Market rising. Feels like I'm missing out."→ Fear of missing out. Not logic.
"Stock I researched yesterday jumped."→ Revenge bias.
"Price dipped. I think it'll bounce."→ Gambling, not analysis.
The trading world called it psychology.
But it felt like war.
A quiet, invisible one.
Afternoon came and went. He made himself some rice, reheated leftover kimchi stew, and resisted opening his brokerage window.
That night, he received a notification—not from the System, but from reality.
A text from Junho, his older cousin in Seoul.
Junho: "Yo. Still doing that stock thing?"Junho: "If you're serious, try value investing sometime. Not all about candles and speed, bro."
He hadn't talked to Junho in a while. Joon remembered the guy as loud, funny, and obsessed with Warren Buffett.
He replied:
Joon: "Yeah, I'm in it. Been short-term trading. What's value investing exactly?"
Junho responded instantly.
Junho: "Finding a good company that's undervalued. You hold for months, not minutes."Junho: "Check out Keonjin Foods. Market overreacted last quarter. Solid fundamentals."
Joon blinked.
Keonjin Foods?
He opened a financial site and searched.
The company had recently missed earnings expectations due to rising grain costs. But their year-on-year revenue was strong. No scandals. Dividend-paying. A solid chart—down now, but clean fundamentals.
No hype. No spikes.
Just... potential.
For the first time, Joon looked at a stock and didn't think How fast can I exit?
He thought: Could this be worth waiting for?
He smiled, then closed the tab.
Tomorrow was still part of the Trader's Code.
Day 2
Morning sun slanted through his curtains.
He sat down, coffee in hand, and opened the charts.
Keonjin Foods was at ₩1,150 per share.
Flat volume. No real movement.
He didn't buy.
He read their quarterly reports instead. Balance sheets, not candlesticks.
Two hours passed before he realized he hadn't even touched his trading window.
At 3:30 p.m., the closing bell rang.
Quest Completed: Trader's Code+40 XP
You've resisted impulsive behavior and learned patience. Trading is not just action—it's judgment.
Current XP: 0 → 40 / 500
That night, another notification followed.
New Skill Unlocked: Long-Term Perspective (Passive I)
Your decisions are no longer driven only by speed. Gain a subtle bonus when analyzing multi-week or multi-month setups.
Effect: +5% to Research effectiveness on long-hold positions.
His Research stat was only 3, but now he could feel it mattering.
The System wasn't just rewarding trading—it was rewarding maturity.
He opened his status window.
[Status Window]
Level: 6
XP: 40 / 500
Capital: ₩175,500
Market Insight: 10
Negotiation: 2
Stamina: 2
Research: 3
Titles: Beginner Trader, Pattern Seeker
Skills:
Long-Term Perspective (Passive I)
The final alert of the day came just as he was closing his laptop.
New Quest Available: Fundamentals First
Objective: Invest in a company based on research of financials, not chart trends. Hold for at least 10 days.
Reward: +50 XP
Bonus: +₩20,000 if stock returns more than 6% in 10 days
And beneath it:
Suggested Opportunity Detected: Keonjin Foods Co.
The System had listened.
He whispered to himself.
"This isn't just about being fast anymore. It's about knowing who I want to be."
The market would open again tomorrow.
But for the first time, Joon didn't feel desperate to jump in.
He felt ready to build something slower.
Something stronger.