“K-Kang Chul-In…!” Dorian was shocked to see Kang Chul-In, who just regained his consciousness. “You… you… what’s up with you...”
Something was strange. Kang Chul-In, who woke up after 48 hours, was a totally different person from before. For Dorian, the feeling he had when he saw Kang Chul-In was extremely hard to explain. If someone had to describe it, they’d say that Kang Chul-In looked wiser than before. Immeasurable wisdom and insight seemed to radiate from his eyes. His atmosphere was no longer that of ‘dominance,’ but more of ‘the Supreme Being’s composure.’
“What… happened…? No, that aside...” Dorian asked cautiously. “Are you… really Kang Chul-In…?”
Kang Chul-In replied.
“In your eyes.”
“...?”
“Do I still...”
“...?”
“Look like Kang Chul-In?” Kang Chul-In asked, eerily.
s.h.i.+ver! A chill ran down Dorian’s spine.
“You… who are you...”
“Pfft.”
“...!”
“Naïve.” Kang Chul-In smirked. “Why, are you surprised?”
“...!”
“Kek… that’s why you are called an idiot. It’s so easy to trick you.”
That cunning smile. He was the Kang Chul-In that Dorian knew.
“Kang Chul-In...”
“Learn to be more skeptical, idiot.”
“Hey...”
“How many times do you want to be...”
“Heyyyyyyyy!”
“...!”
“Hey, you b.a.s.t.a.r.dddddd!” Dorian screamed. “You b.a.s.t.a.r.d, you…!”
“Who told you to be so naïve?”
“Urgh… Urghhhh…!”
“Tsk tsk.”
Despite Dorian’s roar, Kang Chul-In was as easy going as ever.
Tremble tremble…! As a result, Dorian’s body trembled as he tried to suppress his simmering rage.
If only I could just beat that guy up…!
He wanted to punch Kang Chul-In in the face. Of course, he didn’t, or rather, he couldn"t. If he did, Kang Chul-In would take out a horrifying revenge on him.
“Argh!” Dorian exploded in anger.
“Hmm… seems like someone is quite furious, huh?” Kang Chul-In made fun of Dorian as he twitched his lips.
“If you were me, you would be angry too.”
“I wonder?”
“...”
“The problem began when you asked whether I am Kang Chul-In.”
“R-Really?”
“I am me. Why did you ask such a r.e.t.a.r.ded question?”
“Hmm… t-that is… you look… somewhat different...”
“Like how?”
“The atmosphere...”
“...?”
“So right… hmm… How do I put it… anyways… urgh...” Dorian began to ramble.
“You don’t even know what you want to say, do you?”
“I do!”
“Answer my question then?”
“That is… if one’s friend froze in place for 48 hours and woke up with a change in ambiance, anyone would think like me.”
“48 hours?”
“Yeah.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
“...”
“You didn’t respond to my call, but I didn’t want to force you awake in fear of the adverse consequences. In any case, it was weird. You admit this, right?”
“I do.”
“And you’ve definitely changed.”
“That...” Kang Chul-In replied. “…Is to be expected.”
“Expected?”
“This suit.”
“The one you’re wearing now? The Ectoplasm Oversuit that the monkey mentioned?”
“Yes.”
“What about it?”
“Inside this...”
“...”
“The life of the Emperor of Blood and Iron of the ancient empire is recorded down.”
Kang Chul-In revealed all the details of his conversation with the Emperor of Blood and Iron.
“Gasp…!”
“I could absorb all of the Emperor of Blood and Iron’s memories – from birth to death – from this Ectoplasm Oversuit.”
“...!”
“Moreover, in the collection of memories...”
“H-Huh…?”
“Also lies the secret about this world.”
“By secret, you mean...”
“The Great Summoning.”
“...!”
“And the system.” Kang Chul-In did not try to hide anything. “You and I, the other Lords, and the explorers… why were we Earthlings summoned to this continent? The answer lies in the Emperor of Blood and Iron’s memory from 1,000 years ago.”
“Gasp…!” Dorian was shocked to his core. “T-Then… Kang Chul-In, you… you know everything? About this world’s secret?”
“Of course.”
“Huh...”
“What we’ve been experiencing… is part of a giant project that was planned 1,000 years ago.”
“I-I don’t really get you… Kang Chul-In… I don’t understand...”
“If you want, I will explain step by step.”
“Hmm…!”
“However.” Kang Chul-In added. “When you hear this story, you will have to face the unforgivingly tough reality.”
“...”
“And...”
“Yes? And what?”
“I’m not really happy with the word choice but… let’s just call it a great cause. In return for listening to the story, you have to help me achieve the great dream. Without abandoning it halfway, till the end.”
“A great cause? What kind? Don’t tell, you are referring to your ambition...”
“You idiot!”
“Ah, why...”
“I can conquer this continent myself without your help.”
“T-That’s true, now that I think about it...”
“What I’m referring to...”
“Uhuh...”
“Is protecting and reconstructing this world.”
“...!”
“Our opponent is not the Gullveig Alliance. The alien race Agnaga – the conquerors who wreaked havoc in this world 1,000 years ago – is our true enemy.”
“W-What…!”
“Pangaea is a land of sorrow. It had been devastated by the Agnagas in the past. That tragedy… is about to repeat itself.”
“...!”
“Let me ask you again, Dorian Explorer.” Kang Chul-In’s voice carried an immense weight. “Will you or will you not listen to my story. Choose. I’ll leave that decision to you.”
“Hmm…!”
“Even if you choose not to, I won’t blame you.”
“G-Give me some time...”
“But I will call you a coward.”
“...!”
“Forever.”
Provocation! It was a cheap move, but...
“Okay, okay!”
Dorian fell for it too easily. He seemed to be naïve in every circ.u.mstance.
Kang Chul-In laughed. That was the reply that he wanted to hear.
“What is it? Tell me! Tell me now!” Dorian urged Kang Chul-In. “What’s making you act so pretentious?”
“First.”
“First?”
“Let me reveal my secret.”
“Your… secret?”
“I am...” Kang Chul-In said. “Someone who has lived twice.”
“Huh?” Dorian tilted his head in puzzlement. “What do you mean? Are you James Bond?”
“...”
“Live twice?”
He was making a reference to the fifth film of the 007 series, “007: You Only Live Twice,” made in 1967.
“...”
Kang Chul-In stared at Dorian pityingly.
“Hey! Kang Chul-In!”
“What?”
“You are thinking that I’m an idiot, aren’t you? Huh?”
“N-No...”
“Right? Huh? Are you looking down on me? Huh!?”
Dorian seemed unable to control his anger nowadays.
“Put your nonsense aside.”
Kang Chul-In didn’t want to deal with the p.u.b.escent Dorian, thus he decided to go ahead with his story.
“Just listen.”
“Ok.”
“Let me reiterate. I’ve lived twice.”
“...?”
“I’ve returned.”
“...!”
“I am...” Kang Chul-In dropped the bomb. “Someone who has returned to the past.”
“...!”
“Using an ability called Soul Backup...”
“W-Wait!” Dorian stopped Kang Chul-In. “What does that mean?”
“It’s exactly as I said.”
“Yeah, so what does that mean?”
“I’ve returned to the past.”
“Argh!”
“...?”
“So what does ‘returning’ mean!?” Dorian shouted.
“… This b.a.s.t.a.r.d.” Kang Chul-In frowned.
“You keep looking down on...”
And...
Bam!
“Ugh!”
Kang Chul-In’s fist landed straight into Dorian’s solar plexus.
Dorian Explorer (Male/p.u.b.escent). He was going through p.u.b.erty at a late age.
***
3 hours later...
“S-So...” Dorian, with his eyes swollen and bruised, began to speak. “You are overwhelmingly stronger than me, because you’ve returned to the past?”
“Yes.”
“You could become strong in such a short duration thanks to your superiority in information?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’m the normal one here, I guess? And you are a cheater.”
“...”
“Of course… I knew it… you swindler… d-don’t hit me!”
Dorian was about to criticize Kang Chul-In when he freaked out at the sight of Kang Chul-In’s fist. He didn’t want to get beaten up further. Previous attempts to rebel didn’t end well...
“Hmm… so the second coming of the Agnagas is imminent, right?”
“Yes. But I suspect there’s already one b.a.s.t.a.r.d who has infiltrated into the system.”
“S-So fast?”
“From my understanding, I’m the only one who can be a variable in Erinyes.”
“Then?”
“Andrei Ivanovic.”
“...!”
“That guy is fishy, no matter how I look. If he turns out to be the Time Lord Milenius...”
Kang Chul-In shared his deduction with Dorian.
“That b.a.s.t.a.r.d definitely knows about the Wheel of Return. He probably observed me since before I returned, from the currently non-existent past. To be precise, he was trying to figure out who would be the Emperor of Blood and Iron’s reincarnation.”
“Huh…!”
“If he tried to organize the second coming of the Agnagas before I returned, then I would have recognized and responded to his challenge after returning to the past.”
“In other words… he waited for you to use up the Wheel of Return, is that it?”
“Highly probable. Otherwise, this n.o.body called Andrei Ivanovic would not have become an Overlord or become the second most powerful man in the Gullveig Alliance. It’s too grandiose to be a b.u.t.terfly effect.”
It was purely a deduction, but Kang Chul-In was exactly aware of Milenius’ actions.
“Hmm… so what now? How are you going to stop the Agnaga?”
“First,” Kang Chul-In replied. “We have to destroy the Gullveig Alliance.”
“Hmm… that’s true. We better have our rear clear. Ending the war with the Gullveig Alliance will be our first priority.”
“We have to end it as quickly as possible.”
“I agree.”
“And then?”
“I have a plan.” Kang Chul-In tapped his head with his finger.
“Really?”
“The information from the Emperor of Blood and Iron… if I ponder based on this...”
“Then…?”
“I already have the means to annihilate the Agnaga.”
“...!”
“Well, it’s not going to be easy… but we won’t have to worry about being caught off guard. An antic.i.p.ated threat is...”
“No longer a threat!”
“Yes, that’s right.” Kang Chul-In nodded. “The only thing we lack is strength.”
“Strength… it sounds like...”
“I’m already miles ahead of the enemy.”
“...!”
“This battle, I won’t lose.”
What confidence! Kang Chul-In was confident in a 100% win-rate.
Kang Chul-In… you have definitely changed…!
Dorian realized why he had sensed a change in the air around Kang Chul-In.
The superiority in information… wisdom, it’s wisdom! He is no longer the brainlessly strong Kang Chul-In! He is now as cunning as a snake…!
The a.n.a.logy was slightly weird, but Dorian was right. Kang Chul-In, who had absorbed the Emperor of Blood and Iron’s memories, was now a different man. To start with, he had already acc.u.mulated an immense amount of experience over the two lives. And now, he had taken in the memories of a man who previously operated a great empire. It would be to no one’s surprise that there was a hint of wisdom in Kang Chul-In’s demeanor.
His temper was still as atrocious as before, though!
“Let’s go.” Kang Chul-In began to make his way while Dorian was still in the midst of contemplation. “We don’t have much time.”
“W-Wait for me!” Dorian hurriedly chased after Kang Chul-In.
***
“All men, advance!” Kang Chul-In commanded his army immediately upon his return. The target was Styx, the lifeline of the Gullveig Alliance.
It was where the Gullveig Alliance’s main army was posted at!