《Seducing the Student Council President》 Prologue Ninea, the capital city of Kaldea Kingdom. Ninea, having played the role of the kingdom¡¯s capital for thousands of years, boasting glamorous and beautiful scenery as any thriving city, had now become a sea of flames. Half of the royal palace that symbolises the dignity of the kingdom had collapsed, and the surrounding ground, as if an earthquake had occurred, was cracked, and split into countless pieces. In the midst of this wretched destruction. Only two remain living and breathing within this vicinity. Craaaaack. Giant fireworks rise in all directions. And with the rising fireworks as a background, stands a woman who can only be described as having black hair and is pretty. ¡°Not bad, human.¡± An elegant voice, like a jade marble rolling on a silver plate. However, roots of loathing and disgust towards the opponent that can no longer be hidden permeate the voice. ¡°Many warriors have come at me but, this is the first time someone has inflicted an injury on me.¡± She gazed at the injury on her right palm as she spoke. On her palm was a wound that looked as if it had been roughly scratched by some beast. However, at the same time, that was it. When compared to the boy¡¯s injuries, her injury could only be described as pathetic. Because, as a price for the injury he had inflicted on her, half of his upper body was slashed diagonally and there was a giant hole pieced through the middle of his heart. ¡°¡­ pant, pant-¡± Even though his defeat was instantaneous, he remained gasping for air, grasping his upper body as if it was about to fall off. Even though he was maintaining his life by forcefully circulating mana, that was his limit. He no longer had the strength to keep fighting the woman in front of him. The war that had been fought just now, with Ninea as its background, ended in Jin¡¯s defeat, rather, it ended in the defeat of mankind. Because that woman in front of him had cornered a capital city of tens of thousands, no, cornered an entire nation through destruction, one of the seven apocalypses expected to bring about the end of the world. The key of Destruction. And the symbol of the apocalypse. The Crimson Dragon, AZIDAHAKA. That was the identity of the woman in front of him. ¡°Anyway, it truly is an insignificant fight. Despite the strongest humans all gathering to fight me, for them to only be able to inflict this measly injury.¡± Lick Azidahaka licked the slash on her palm as she spoke. And as she did, the injury Jin had fought frantically to inflict was completely healed as if time had been reversed. ¡°If I had known that it would be like this, it would have been better to not have killed my father or my proud ancestor. At least they would have had the potential to kill me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not as if you took us down from the front, you talk a lot for someone who ambushed us from the inside out.¡± Azidahaka¡¯s eyes turned cold as soon as Jin provoked her in such way. Smack. Boom- ¡°Cough!¡± Azidahaka, who had been staring at Jin, lightly flicked her finger and sent Jin flat on the floor. In an instant, the surrounding gravity became several tons heavier and squashed him in place. ¡°You¡¯re chatty, for a bastard who lost. If you¡¯re a bastard, you should just lie flatly on the floor like the bastard you are. If you find that difficult then we can¡¯t help it. It¡¯s a bit inconvenient but from now on I¡¯ll have to teach you a lesson myself." Azidahaka¡¯s eyes, filled with the feeling of coldness and disdain towards humans, began to fill with a mean and violent enthusiasm. Among those insect-like humans, the human that was dying in front of her was a human that was worth taking a closer look at. Those stupid insects who can think of nothing but their own profit, gathering together to eliminate the apocalypse and, the only human that signified hope for the future of the humans who had fallen into despair. You could call that achievement worthy of a hero in a fairy-tale and Azidahaka couldn¡¯t help but acknowledge he who had achieved such a thing. Even though it was nothing more than a scratch, he had managed to pierce through her so-called invulnerable defence and left an injury. So, she had no choice but to look forward to it. He had gathered all his strength just to kill her and, was even burning his life force; in the end, what kind of face will that hero that is going out like a candlelight show right before he dies? Would he stare at her with loathing as he was doing now even if his body was broken in pieces everywhere? Or would he beg for his life with tears falling like a young child? Would this heroic person in the end display an image that is different from a regular person right before death? No matter what he did, it didn¡¯t matter. Because, no matter what he did, watching him die would be fun. Personally, according to her taste, she hoped he cried before his death. The tear drops at the hero¡¯s tragic last moment, would in truth be fascinating. ¡°Ah¡­ ah, ugh¡­¡± Even while under the pressing gravity pressure, Jin opened his mouth as if attempting to say something to Azidahaka. Watching this sight delightedly, Azidahaka once again waved her finger and released the gravity field that was restricting him. It was the last words of Sir hero.1 So, as much as they were his final dying wishes, it was her duty as the victor to grant him this mercy. ¡°Huhu, go ahead. Say what you want to say. What do you want to tell me that is making you so frant-¡± ¡°Hey you bitch.¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± The words that came out of Jin¡¯s mouth were not the ¡®Hero¡¯s¡¯ splendid dying wish, it was cheap insults. ¡°You fucking bitch. Even though I invested 10 years just to catch you, it¡¯s ending like this once again. Tsk, beating all the lazy bums to death in order to overcome this second end must have caused our defeat. If we had more supplies, a reinforcement strategy2 would have been worth trying.¡± ¡°What did you just-¡± ¡°And another thing, I¡¯ve wanted to say this since I first saw you but why are you going around with a handle on your head? If I was the one who won today, I would have started by shattering that unsightly horn.¡± As he finished saying that, Jin spat. However, seeing blood instead of spit come out, Jin tutted and spoke. His ¡®life¡¯ this time round had come to an end anyway. ¡°I guess this is the end of the 9th regression3. I¡¯ll make sure to crush that smug face of yours in the 10th regression. Ah, and that damn horn too.¡± Hearing such dirty language that would only come from cheap mercenaries who have lived their entire lives on the battlefield, Azidahaka spoke with a bewildered expression. At the end of the final battle for humanity¡¯s salvation, are those words that should be coming out of the mouth of a man who will be called humanity¡¯s hero? ¡°¡­ don¡¯t tell me, have you lost it?¡± ¡°Lost it, I lost it a long time ago. Since I¡¯ve been uselessly working hard in this god forsaken world for over 100 years, you think I would endure this without losing it?¡± Pointing a finger to his head and turning it round and round as if mocking her, he soon smirked dispiritedly, laughed and spoke. This was the end of everything anyway so what could she possibly do to him if he complains like this? ¡°See you around, darned lizard bitch. I¡¯ll make sure to cut and marinate that pig neck of yours in salt next time. And also cut that horn in half.¡± His consciousness was fading. However, far from plainly closing his eyes, he only stared at Azidahaka with a fed-up expression. In truth, he was sick and tired of this. How many times had he managed to get to this point and, from now on, how many more times will he have to get here for him to find a day when he doesn¡¯t have to see that bitch¡¯s face. With his vision gradually darkening, Jin, who was now somewhat familiar with the feeling of dying, closed his eyes. Like that, his 9th regression had come to an end. At the same time, with no consideration to his will, his 10th regression began. Jin, no, Seol Hajin.4 He remembered all nine ¡®conclusions¡¯ of this damn world and could only welcome the 10th regression. The sole main character in this damned story. 1 T/N: Sarcasm detected.? 2 T/N: Reinforcement strategy ¨C sending in countless reinforcements one after the other to tire the opponent.? 3 T/N: Regression: dying and being reborn back in time.? 4 T/N: Korean names are usually written surname then first name. We will be keeping the same format for this novel.?? CH 1 EP.1 1. The 10th regression ¨C 01 ¡°The way I see it, there aren¡¯t any true gamers in the world these days.¡± ¡°¡­ What bullshit are you spouting again?¡± ¡°Hey, just shut up and listen first. Cause when kids these days simply call it a ¡®game¡¯ and act all arrogant, I often get upset.¡± As he said that, Seol Hajin guzzled the drink that was placed in front of him. ¡°Based on my standards, this game is part of the art genre. It¡¯s not just a simple story, the control, level design, convenience, and even the gaining of lingering feelings after the ending, it¡¯s a work of art that can impress people. Looking at it from this perspective alone, it is no different to a movie.¡± ¡°So, what.¡± ¡°So, what I¡¯m saying is, in the eyes of a true gamer like myself, those guys in the gaming caf¨¦ who scream and yell that I¡¯ve stolen their CS1 or throw millions of dollars at mobile games for scraps of data don¡¯t deserve to be called gamers. I don¡¯t know about anything else but there¡¯s no feeling in such games, no emotion and ultimately no happiness.¡± ¡°Woow, how very philosophical. So, what great game then does our resident professor Seol Hajin play for you to lump the general majority together and criticise them like that?¡± ¡°At least, we don¡¯t handle low-quality games, right.¡± Seol Hajin bobbing the soju2 glass from side to side and as if giving advice with an arrogant attitude, started to get drunk. ¡°Hyunseong, what are these things called games? If we strip away all the fancy words and look at the essence, aren¡¯t they here to help us escape our complicated daily lives even for just a moment? However, games these days don¡¯t have any business ethics. When playing games like that, it may be fun for a moment but if you look at it based on the outcome, there¡¯s nothing left.¡± ¡°Hajin, I don¡¯t know much about anything else but there¡¯s one thing I do get.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°The fact that since you¡¯re talking all this nonsense, no one is approaching us.¡± As he said that, Lee Hyunseong lifted his chin and looked around them. It was quite a wide and fancy bar which gave off an overall noisy atmosphere since it was currently packed with people. Next to them was a table with 4~5 people, men, and women, seated and having a conversation, however, rather unsatisfyingly, at this table there were only two dingy men, Seol Hajin, and Lee Hyunseong, sipping alcohol. ¡°Even though I tried my utmost and attended the general course meeting3 after getting discharged4, to think, I would be in this situation throwing back a few beers while talking with a nutjob about some nonsense topic.¡± ¡°I should be the one saying that, you idiot.¡± Like that, the two, who had been exchanging warm remarks towards each other, ended up making eye contact with the girl that had been making a toast on the opposite table. The girl that had unfortunately locked eyes with them put a grinning smile on her face, picked up her glass and, walked softly over to Seol Hajin and Lee Hyunseong¡¯s table. ¡°Hello guys. Are you enjoying the general course meeting?¡± Even if a girl had joined the table that reeked of singleness, the boys¡¯ expression did not change. Because they knew very well the reason why a popular girl that was just laughing it up with the cool kids would come over and sit at a table of losers. ¡°You really don¡¯t have to go out of your way for us. We know that you¡¯re really busy as the student representative Jieun.¡± As such. The only reason why she would bring her glass and come over to this table when everyone else had been avoiding it, was because she took on the role of this semester¡¯s direct student rep. Fyi, she was also the person who invited these two friendless losers to this meeting. If she had not asked them to ¡®please¡¯ attend the meeting via the communication network, they wouldn¡¯t have known that there would be an afterparty here today. ¡®You never know, perhaps, at this very moment, she is regretting inviting us.¡¯ She may have just invited us here out of sympathy or she could have just mentioned it out of courtesy, but without reading the room we said we¡¯d attend and she¡¯s now conflicted about it. Ah¡­ why did I ask those two to come to the meeting? Thanks to them I can¡¯t even enjoy my drink. And they kind of smell funny. That smell won¡¯t rub off on us will it? Anyway, because of pity I sat with the losers and made conversation but unintentionally ended up inviting them and they really showed up. If it were me, I would have read the room and not showed up. I didn¡¯t think they would be so bold. How annoying. Can I not tell them that we¡¯ll pay for their taxi so could they go back home? They¡¯re not talking to us anyway so what would it matter if they went home a bit earlier. Should I? Them sitting here so tactlessly was also bothering me a bit anyway. Since I¡¯m the student rep, I should say something. But I really don¡¯t want to talk to those people. Yeah, since that¡¯s your boyfriend, you say it. Nah, that¡¯s YOUR boyfriend. Then, let¡¯s decide fairly using Rock, Paper, Scissors. The losing person will have to talk to them. ¡­Well, you never know, the cool kids probably have conversations like this without the losers knowing. Actually, I¡¯m 99% sure they do. Because the ¡®senses¡¯ that have steadily grown for 6 years in elementary school, 3 years in middle school and 3 years in high school were in the middle of warning me. They say gazelles in the savannah that have survived countless surprise attacks from predators for long time are scarily sensitive to all kinds of threats. This is similar to that. The instinct that has allowed them to survive in the middle of a class full of bullies for over as many as 12 years, was whispering in their ears. That girl in front of them, different to them, was a cool kid deep to her bones. ¡°By the way, what were you guys talking about so intensely? From over there, it slightly sounded like it was about some game or something.¡± Seeing Lee Jieun smile showing her dimples as she spoke, Seol Hajin and Lee Hyunseong exchanged a glance. Perhaps, if they were really tactless, they would have entertained that girl with the good-looking face bringing up the topic of ¡®games¡¯. What, even though the distance between this table and that table is quite far, she had been listening to everything we were saying about games and stuff? But aren¡¯t the cool kids originally not interested in games and don¡¯t find them fun? Don¡¯t tell me, as a cool kid, she secretly has a hobby of gaming that no one knows about? And in order to have a conversation about games with us, she went out of her way to pick up her glass and come all the way here? Ah, I see. She was actually the kind of girl that can have a conversation with me well. In that case, it should be okay to expect a good vibe with her today, right? Could the vibe from today continue on until tomorrow, and possibly even develop into a good relationship? Could we maybe even end up dating5? Then would tomorrow be our day 1? Maybe we could even end up getting married? If that¡¯s the case, how many kids would she want? I want enough kids to fill a baseball team, would she think the same? While roughly repeating this kind of delusion, I was to end up accidentally tactlessly confessing such feelings, ¡®ah¡­ I¡¯m sorry. I never thought of it that way. Could we maybe just stay in this current senior junior relationship? It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t like you, it¡¯s just that I don¡¯t have any plans to date someone right now.¡¯ A rejection of this kind would probably come flying out6. ¡°It was nothing really. We were just having a lame conversation because there¡¯s two guys here and there¡¯s nothing much to talk about.¡± They say girls tend to ¡®pretend¡¯ to be interested so Seol Hajin and Lee Hyunseong tried to change the subject but unfortunately, Jieun was not that easy an opponent. ¡°Not at all. Actually, I¡¯m also gaming a bit lately. I thought maybe you two seniors might also have been talking about that game so.¡± ¡°What game?¡± ¡°Ragnar?k. Have you heard of it?¡± It¡¯s a game I know. Rather, there¡¯s no way I wouldn¡¯t know this game in the first place. Ragnar?k. Released this year, it¡¯s a mobile game that is receiving high level recognition and is creating a buzz. Even though it was a casual game released exclusively on mobile for popularity, due to its deep storyline and charming characters, it¡¯s a legendary game that boasts a degree of freedom and a number one rank in sales worldwide on its first day, that won¡¯t fall short even when compared to AAA games7. Matching its popularity, there were not only adverts on portal sites relating to Ragnar?k but also on buses and trains so if you are Korean person with 20/20 vision, there¡¯s no way you would not have known about Ragnar?k. ¡®Still, it¡¯s not a game I play.¡¯ At the same time, it was a game that Seol Hajin paid no attention to, let alone had any interest in. The reason was simple. It was because no matter how good, outstanding it was and how much high praise it received publicly as a game, it was still at best a ¡®mobile game¡¯. In Seol Hajin¡¯s opinion, mobile games were not games. In his eyes, mobile games were merely children¡¯s playgrounds masquerading as games. Since the game has to target a large unspecified majority, they can¡¯t add a lot of distinct elements and since the play has to be seamless even on a smart phone, a lot of compromises have to be made including with resolution and graphics. Also, because players have to be able to clear levels using only their fingers most mobile games are simple in nature. Traditionally with games, one has to die countless times until they become familiar with the game controls and, even until one can clear the game it¡¯s so complicated that learning even half of all the game commands is borderline impossible. Putting in at least thousands of hours for you to feel like ¡®ah, I¡¯ve finally escaped the noob8 stage!¡¯ is what a serious game is, isn¡¯t it? To Seol Hajin, who had fallen into the superiority mindset of steam9 and console gaming, people who play ¡®mobile games¡¯ are all ignorant and are pretty much silly primitive beings. ¡®Once you realise what true gaming is, you¡¯ll never look at such games ever again.¡¯ However, Seol Hajin was also very well aware. How difficult a task it is for the almighty and ignorant public to realise what ¡®true games¡¯ are. You¡¯d understand very well just by flicking through a history book. How much oppression and persecution did wise men who tried to explain and deliver the truth quickly to the public get in the past? This was the same as that. In order to truly play a game, you have to have the optimal settings, and purchase the game and, once you¡¯ve made some time and space to play the game, there may be a few connection issues, however, with mobile games, those kinds of annoyances don¡¯t exist. You just have to press your finger a few times and the game automatically connects, and mobile games that automatically hunt by pressing your finger a few more times may be the most suitable entertainment for the modern person who are busy struggling in daily life and don¡¯t have much freedom. To be distracted by overwhelming convenience and overwhelming simplicity, that you can''t really enjoy the game and to think that just merely pressing a button is entertainment. That in itself is proof of the uneasy darkness hiding behind today¡¯s society- ¡°Jieun, you¡¯ve also played Ragnar?k?¡± ¡°Yeah, a friend recommended it so I tried playing it and found it interesting. I even lost track of time following the storyline.¡± Looking at Lee Jieun laugh brightly as she spoke, Seol Hajin, without knowing why, spoke bluntly. ¡°Is it really that fun? I honestly couldn¡¯t tell if it would be fun even after seeing the ad.¡± Lee Jieun was completely unaware that Seol Hajin¡¯s words were tinged with the elitism and superiority of the thought that ¡®there¡¯s no way mobile games that are tantamount to cyber gambling would be fun¡¯. ¡°Yes, to be honest, I usually don¡¯t enjoy gaming but this game was quite fun. Do you seniors play Ragnar?k by any chance?¡± ¡°Oh? Um well. I¡¯m playing a different game so I¡¯m busy.¡± ¡°Really? In that case, do you wanna give it a go? If you have any plans of playing it let me know. Okay?¡± ¡°Let you know? Why?¡± In that moment, Seol Hajin¡¯s heart ended up fluttering. Don¡¯t girls usually consider guys who game unsatisfactory? However, why is Lee Jieun trying to come onto me and asking me to contact her? Don¡¯t tell me, she¡¯s interested in me? Nah, no way. We¡¯ve only exchanged greetings here and there so there¡¯s no way she¡¯s interested in me. What¡¯s going on right now then? Don¡¯t girls usually not give any attention to guys they aren¡¯t interested in no matter what the guy does? In that case, does that mean that her even asking to game together is some kind of signal? Is that it? ¡°Ah¡­ I was just wondering if you could add my ID to the recommendation list if you¡¯re going to sign up. Because that way, I can get 500 diamonds for free.¡± ¡°¡­..¡± The reason was so understandable that I couldn¡¯t help but nod. Well, you can¡¯t help it, it is 500 diamonds. 1 T/N: CS (creep score), refers to how many minions and jungle monsters a player kills in the popular game League of Legends.? 2 T/N: Soju ¨C a type of distilled alcohol with a varying alcohol percentage (12% - 50%), I assume the type they are drinking here is on the lower end.? 3 T/N: General Course Meeting ¨C a meeting done at the beginning of the semester before official courses start that usually culminates in everyone heading out for drinks to get to know their course mates.? 4 T/N: Discharged from compulsory military service that all able-bodied Korean men have to attend.? 5 T/N: Getting a little ahead of ourselves here aren¡¯t we.? 6 T/N: He had a whole relationship in the space of minutes. What a skill.? 7 T/N: AAA Games: a classification used within the video gaming industry to signify high-budget, high-profile games that are typically produced and distributed by large, well-known publishers.? 8 T/N: Noob: Used to refer to beginner/newbie players of any game..? 9 T/N: Steam: An online gaming platform.? CH 2 That evening, having come home feeling slightly tipsy from the alcohol, Seol Hajin was rolling on his bed staring at his phone. [Ragnar?k] ¡°¡­. Should I download it, or not download it.¡± To be honest, he had thought about playing Ragnar?k a while back. It was because, as much as the game Ragnar?k was currently receiving sensational popularity worldwide, his curiosity was also strongly affected. Just how fun was this game for there to be such an uproar about it from all sorts of places and for there to be advertisements everywhere? If he hadn¡¯t become curious looking at such a scene, he would be lying. However, since he has a record of ignoring mobile games that received rave reviews, he couldn¡¯t hastily start playing the game even if his pride got hurt. For a man to say one thing and then change the next minute is something rather embarrassing, isn¡¯t it? Usually, he wouldn¡¯t have downloaded the game due to his pride, however, right now the alcohol in his system was making his decision making a bit fuzzy. Anyway, it¡¯s not like he intends to actually start playing the game, he¡¯s just momentarily checking how the game is. As they say, know thy enemy, know thy self1, right? That¡¯s right, I¡¯m not betraying my pride and selling out. If I were to compare it, this is more like doing reconnaissance, checking on the enemy¡¯s condition before the war starts. And, at the same time gifting a junior 500 diamonds¡­. In the end, after all those trivial thoughts running through his head, Seol Hajin succeeded in rationalising and without any particular concerns, clicked the ¡®install¡¯ button. And then- ¡°¡­Oh?¡± There was no warning or anything like that. At the same time, he pressed the install button, Seol Hajin ended up losing consciousness into a darkness. It was the start of a fucking nightmare. *** A while back, while on a trip abroad with his parents, Seol Hajin had experienced losing his way. Although this was something that happened many years ago, he still remembered it clearly. Sights that were indistinguishable, strange foreigners who spoke a different language, the fear and despair of feeling like you are the only one left on earth. Although at that time, luckily, his parents who had quickly realised that he was missing, after frantically searching for him, found him in under an hour releasing him from being a missing child. Regrettably, it seemed who could not expect that kind of luck this time. That¡¯s because, the place that Seol Hajin had gone missing was at most not another country, but another dimension. The first day he had fallen here, he thought it was a dream. Or if not a dream, he had also suspected it to be a large-scale prank being filmed. However, that suspicion ended up being disposed of pretty quickly. That¡¯s because no matter how developed someone¡¯s skills of deception are there¡¯s no way someone can conjure fire from their fingertips or bring down lightning. He wasn¡¯t sure what kind of world this was, but there was one thing he was sure of. This place was not earth, it was another world where magic and such was as natural as breathing. Luckily, amongst all the misery, he could at least understand other people speaking, although the situation he was in didn¡¯t change much. That¡¯s because, unfortunately being a 21st century liberal arts student who studied at a Korean university wouldn¡¯t be all that helpful in a fantasy world. At first, he was busy just getting used to it. He had to get used to a living environment that had changed overnight and a culture that was way different to the one he had known till now. More than anything, he had to accept that he was useless in this world. Nevertheless, would having studied for 12 years in elementary, middle, and high school and being more useful in writing than other ignorant blockheads be an advantage? Working from that society¡¯s lowest of the low, he put in all his effort doing whatever he could to tenaciously survive. Like that, 10 years passed by. At the end of all the hard work, he was able to somehow get along well with other people and more than anything, he was able to secure himself a house in the middle of the capital. It was a great accomplishment that he may possibly never have achieved even if he died and rose back up, if this was Korea. That¡¯s right, there¡¯s nothing great about a hometown anyway. No matter where it is, if you live there and feel a sense of attachment to that place then that is your hometown. Even living in this world for the past 10 years had become familiar. Well, there were times when he couldn¡¯t take missing the culture of 21st century Korea or wanting to see his parents but¡­ Those were just problems that could be solved with time. I mean, ultimately if he was in Korea, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to acquire his own place in his 20s, would he? He¡¯ll probably die a normal death after living a less than spectacular life with nothing happening. Someday, he could even find a kind blind girl and possibly get married. That¡¯s how, Seol Hajin, I mean Jin, was living a quiet life that cannot be compared to the last 10 years, however. One day, all that he had worked hard and achieved came crumbling down in an instant. Without as much as a warning, the apocalypse approached, and because of that the world collapsed. The house that he had worked so hard for also ended up being turned to dust along with it And in the end- ¡°¡­AH?¡± Jin had gone back 10 years. To the very moment he had first arrived in this world. *** He wasn¡¯t dead. No, to be more precise, right at the moment of his death, he regressed back to the past. It¡¯s as if the world did not wish for Jin¡¯s death. At first, he thought that getting to live a second life was great, however, he didn¡¯t realise it until quite later. How horrible not being able to die when he chose and instead being forced to live was. Jin even thought about where he should run away to as soon as he regressed. However, after he found out that the apocalypse destroyed the whole continent, he gave up on even running away. No, he had no choice but to give up. If he wanted to live and not die, confronting it face first and fighting was not a choice but a necessity. He refused to end up a monster¡¯s meal after his body had been put through it as he did in his first life. He had regressed a total of nine times. Jin had met the apocalypse and also his end a total of nine time. There were times when he had met a low end without accomplishing anything. And the world had been destroyed due to the apocalypse. There were also times when all of humanity¡¯s strength was gathered in one place to overcome the apocalypse. And the world was destroyed due to a second apocalypse. There were times when new ¡®heroes¡¯ were raised in order to leave hope for the future. And the world was destroyed due to a third apocalypse. During his last nine lives, even though he had gone around this damned world like a dog and gone through a lot of things, there was a limit. Of course, he was not just recklessly starting from scratch or attacking and throwing his life away in vain. There were also things he got to know after dying like a common fly as many as nine times. This world was not just a simple world, it was a world inside [Ragnar?k]. The apocalypse was simply not the cause of the world¡¯s destruction, rather, it was a part of the game¡¯s scenario. And as much as the apocalypse was a part of the game¡¯s scenario, the way to overcome the apocalypse must also exist somewhere within this world. That¡¯s because, if the developers of [Ragnar?k] didn¡¯t suddenly lose their minds and go nuts, one could easily assume that there was without a doubt an important role that could defeat the apocalypse. However, apart from that, as he repeatedly regressed numerous times, Jin could feel parts of the things that formed him being worn away. ¡®I¡¯m sick of it.¡¯ In the beginning, the fact that his life could easily end like that of a fly was shitty but he had gotten used to even that. Even killing someone, and even dying all felt rather simple. He was sick of it. Just how long would he have to roam around inside this cage going through the same thing. Just how long would he have to spectate this infinitely repeating act. After spending as many as 100 years before meeting the third apocalypse, just how much would it take for him to overcome all the apocalypses and meet the end. And, would he maintain his sanity until then. How long could his extremely weak sanity take these never-ending repetitive regressions. Click, click, click- Is it just a feeling? He could hear the sound of a clock being wound from somewhere. No, it can¡¯t simply have been just a feeling. Because until now, he had heard that damned sound every time he died, which was nine times. ¡®Please just leave me alone. Just let me die.¡¯ He was tired of it. Screw the apocalypse or whatever, he just wanted to rest. He just wanted to thoughtlessly die and give up. However, with no consideration to what he wanted, his regression started. Reconstruction of the world from 10 years earlier began, the exact way it had been that day. His consciousness flew off somewhere. And when he opened his eyes everything had gone back to the way it was. ¡°Shit.¡± He was already standing in the kingdom¡¯s capital, Ninea¡¯s central city square. Typical of a place with the most traffic in the city, there was an energy nearby that was filled with noisiness from the people. Despite the nearby surroundings being engulfed in a sea of flames, even right until that damned lizard bitch had pierced his heart, right now, traces of that could not be seen anywhere. He was certain. He had once again come back to that day, that time, that place, where he had arrived in this world 10 years ago. Thus, having been through nine regressions, Jin¡¯s 10th life began anew. Overcoming a miserable death caused by the apocalypse, he had the chance to change everything in the future. ¡°¡­Fuck, I¡¯m going to seriously lose it.¡± Of course, this was not something Jin himself wanted to do. 1 T/N: full quote ¨C ¡°Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.¡± ¨C Sun Tzu, Art of war. It means: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.? CH 3 As a nation located in the south west of the continent, Kaldea kingdom was a rich kingdom that possessed the largest breadbasket1 and coastline on the continent. Worthy of the richest kingdom on the continent, the capital city Ninea was a bustling city and the square located in the centre of Ninea had more people going in and out and could not help being crowded. So, to reiterate, standing in the most crowded and bustling place- ¡°Are you alright? You¡¯ve been standing here spacing out staring at the sky for a while. I was wondering if you¡¯re okay?¡± ¡­like this, there is ample possibility that you might run into nosey people who would go as far as to care about the health of a total stranger. ¡°I¡¯m alright. I was just a bit dizzy. Thanks for the concern.¡± As Jin slightly bowed his head to thank the middle-aged man, the middle-aged man lightly nodded his head putting on an expression of relief. ¡°I was worried since you were spaced out for a few minutes. Still, it¡¯s a relief that you are okay.¡± Smiling nicely, the middle-aged man laughed heartily. This was the first time that Jin and the middle-aged man had met in their lifetimes, however saying that they were complete strangers was an awkward, subtle relationship. That¡¯s because, after he had arrived in this world, and every time he had regressed, this was the very first face he ran into. ¡®Thanks to him, the first time Jin had arrived in this world was really crazy.¡¯ Thanks to the middle-aged man that possessed a kindness enough to strike up a conversation with a fool who was looking around his surroundings like a puppy that had lost its owner, Jin had attempted to illegally enter the kingdom and had become a criminal ¨C Even though it was technically something similar to a foreign labourer ¨C he had been harassed with forced labour for at least 3 months. Even though he had somehow explained that he was not a spy that had trespassed from a foreign kingdom and gotten released, those were memories he could not easily forget even after 100 years. ¡®Although, he did gain the lesson that this world was not flowing with milk and honey like the ones that appear in fantasy novels.¡¯ Letting out a rather low sigh, Jin collapsed and sat on a bench near the fountain that was installed in the middle of the city square. Screw the regression, he planned to take a break. His head hurt. Doing this and that, he had spent a lot of time without rest facing that lizard bitch, and as a result, his heart was pierced through by that damn bitch. Of course, once he had regressed, everything ended up as if ¡®nothing had happened¡¯ at all, and the state of his body had gone back to its original state, although the mental fatigue was another issue. After dazedly perching on the bench for a while, Jin suddenly looked down and touched his body. Squishy. ¡°Fuc¡­.¡± The body that had been extremely trained by going through a lot of real-life combat for over 10 years before the regression had disappeared without a trace. And instead, a feeble body full of extra fat, that couldn¡¯t even do a single push-up properly let alone had any muscles was left. It may be obvious to say but, having regressed back to 10 years before, his body had also returned back to the body that he had when he was first summoned to this world. Simply put, it meant that all the hard work and effort he had put into training his body to prepare for the apocalypse over the past few years had instantly vanished into thin air. Of course, it was something he was used to. Since it was something he had experienced over nine times now, he could brush past it and ¨C ¡°Brush past it my ass. Fucking shit!¡± So, what if he was used to it? It was so frustrating, he felt like he¡¯d lose his shit. Those that have tried exercising at a gym, even a little bit, would understand. Between exercising from scratch without even knowing any basics vs starting exercising while having some idea and having built some muscle, which one is more difficult and tiring. If you didn''t know anything from the beginning, you wouldn''t know how much the thought of cultivating and training this weak trash of a body made him feel sick. Without paying much attention to his surroundings, Jin who had been going crazy let out a sigh. Is there any point in going crazy like this. He¡¯s going to have to train his body again anyway. ¡°¡­Ah, come to think of it I haven¡¯t done the thing yet.¡± He had almost forgotten to check, as he always did after every regression. However, before doing that, Jin stealthily checked his surroundings. Even though he knew very well that no one was paying him any mind, he still somehow looked around without realising. That¡¯s because, having to this do kind of thing at his age was a bit embarrassing. ¡°Status Window.¡± As soon as Jin recited those words, a partially see-through screen that was only visible to him started to light up in front of him. -¡ö¡ö¡ö- ¡ö¡ö! ¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö¡öto ¡ö ¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö. ¡ö¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö¡ö ¡ö ¡ö ¡ö ¡ö¡ö¡­. ¡­¡­ ¡°Sigh.¡± Looking at the crumbled letters that looked like a broken code and were illegible, Jin felt tongue-tied. Actually, it wasn¡¯t something that surprising. From the beginning till now, it has always been this way. Or rather, the words are broken up this time round. There were spaces in the words this time around. Back in the day, the words were all blank making it hard to decipher what on earth the message was. Status Window. Usually appearing in novels or games, it¡¯s one of those cliches that would be regrettable if it didn¡¯t make an appearance here. Without knowing why, Jin who had arrived in this world and had the ability to summon the status window, however he was in no way happy about it. What was he supposed to do with being able to summon a faulty product whose words you couldn¡¯t even see clearly. However, saying that it was completely useless was also a bit of a stretch. After all, it was because of the Status window ability that he realised that this world was a world inside [Ragnar?k] and he was also able to figure out and have an idea of what he needed to do. On top of that, the more regressions he went through, the more the warped and broken words changed so that he could understand some of them. Even though it was a minimal change, he would periodically check the status window every time he repeated a regression. ¡°I can¡¯t even guess what that¡¯s supposed to say anyway.¡± At least 100 years had gone by since he got the status window ability, and he¡¯d also been through nine regressions but there were only at most a few words that he could decipher. So, just how much time and effort would he need to put in until he could completely understand what nonsense this damn status window was saying. That is why Jin thought that this was only half of that damn status window. He was already on the verge of losing his mind because of frustration so there was no need to add another source of stress. ¡®¡­ what¡¯s this?¡± Jin, who was scrolling down the status window began to notice something. -¡ö ¡ö ¡ö- ¡ö ¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö ¡ö, Erekaya ¡ö Pen¡ö¡ögon ¡ö¡ö¡ö¡ö ¡ö. ¡ö¡ö¡¯s ¡öer¡ö happy¡ö¡ö make¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö¡¯s ¡ö¡ö¡ö more¡ö ¡ö ¡ö¡ö. ¡ö to ¡ö that ¡ö¡ö ¡ö¡ö apocalypse¡ö to ¡ö¡ö ¡ö ¡ö¡ö ¡ö. ¡°Some words became readable.¡± In truth, it was something startling. Readable parts of the contents in the status window that he previously couldn¡¯t make sense of because the words were all broken up had appeared! Of course, because there were more words that he couldn¡¯t read than those he could, he couldn¡¯t grasp what the darned status window was jabbering on about but it was still something great considering. It was a far more welcome sight compared to before when the status window didn¡¯t show anything and all the words were broken apart. ¡°Apocalypse, Erekaya¡­ and happy?¡± Firstly, he knew what the apocalypse was. In fact, he knew better than anyone in this world. Since the creation of this world, there have been seven elements destined to destroy the world someday. The lizard bitch Azidahaka, who pierced a whole in Jin¡¯s heart was also one of them. Jin assumed that the apocalypse was part of [Ragnar?k¡¯s] scenario. It meant that it was no different from a game system or game tree that had to occur. That¡¯s because Jin had experienced nine regressions and no matter what he did he could not delay the apocalypse or he would try to prevent it beforehand but would fail and end up regressing back. With every regression, the cause of the apocalypse would automatically change however there had not been a regression in which the apocalypse did not occur. It was until then that he realised. The fact that it seemed like part of a restriction that meant that humans could never prevent the apocalypse with their strength alone. ¡°And Erekaya, Erekaya¡­.. it¡¯s a name I¡¯ve heard a lot somewhere.¡± He was sure of it. It¡¯s a name he¡¯s definitely heard somewhere. And not long ago either, recently. However, he couldn¡¯t remember where he¡¯d heard it. Just where did he hear this name from. It must definitely be a name worth remembering if it was vaguely in his mind¡­ - Stupid Erekaya Del Pendragon. Isn¡¯t that the name of the heart of the kingdom, the Duke of Pendragon¡¯s one and only heir. Although he couldn¡¯t see the name clearly because of the broken-up words on the status window, there was only one noble woman in the kingdom with the name Erekaya and it was feasible to point to her in this case. ¡°Ah, oh yeah. Erekaya Del Pendragon. I finally remember. I was wondering where I¡¯d heard it, turns out the name of that old man¡¯s granddaughter was Erekay-¡± In that moment, Jin ended up shutting mouth. Obvious to say, the status window was only visible to Jin. Other people could not see it let alone knew anything about it. However, someone was whispering in his ear as if they could see the contents of his status window. Who was it, and from where and using what method were they sneaking a peek at his status window and giving him advice? ¡°Who is it? Is this magic right now? Or amplification? Just where are you peeking at me from? As soon as Jin whispered those words into the air, a clear elegant voice from somewhere answered back in his ear. - What do you mean peeking? That¡¯s real funny. Do you think yourself so great that someone would want to take a peek at you? I mean, it¡¯s not like wizards are so jobless that they would use magic to peek on a man who looks so stupid. ¡°Stop messing about. Aren¡¯t you the one who started talking to me without having to go far. From your voice you sound like a girl, you must be a wizard who really has nothing to do. Or an old maid hungry for a man.¡± - Hmm. It¡¯s true. You must be a professional at guessing wrong. All your guesses are wrong. Firstly, I¡¯m not hungry for men and I¡¯m also not a wizard. And I¡¯m definitely not talking to you right now. ¡°Not talking to me? Nonsense. Then what is it that I¡¯m hearing in my ear right n-¡° And in that moment, Jin felt goosebumps all over his body. It was as if that girl had said. That girl really wasn¡¯t talking to him. Thinking that someone else was talking to him was Jin¡¯s mistake. That was because, the voice was not coming from somewhere else, it was in his head. A mysterious voice was directly communicating in his head in the form of ¡®thoughts¡¯. ¡°¡­You, just who are you?¡± - You asked that pretty quickly. That¡¯s a question I should have asked you. Of course, if you were that smart you wouldn¡¯t have gone through nine regressions. As she said that, her voice flowed with snickering laughter. It was enough to make someone feel bad but she did have a point. - In that case, let me officially introduce myself. My name is Erekaya Del Pendragon. - The sole enemy descended from the Duke of Pendragon and owner of the family, and at the same time¡­ - The immoral person who will without any hesitation kill blood relatives who share the same blood and cause the destruction of my family. 1 T/N: Breadbasket - breadbasket refers to regions that supply cereals, grains, and rice to the whole world. i.e., the USA is the breadbasket of the world. ? CH 4 The Duke of Pendragon. Aside from the royals, so called descendants of heaven, the Pendragon family, called the most precious, are one of the most noble families of this age. Possessing the post of duke, their history that has dominated the top of high society is at least a few hundred years. Even if you search the kingdom¡¯s oldest history book, the name ¡®Pendragon¡¯ will be mentioned and there¡¯s no need to mention how much value is flowing through their blood. That wasn¡¯t all. Those who were of Pendragon blood all possessed outstanding abilities, and all had handsome or beautiful faces. As if to prove that those with Pendragon blood are different from regular humans. Of course, people from the Pendragon family possessing abilities that regular people don¡¯t is something quite natural. That¡¯s because, if you trace back the generations of the noble family, it starts with a military family who passed on their abilities to their descendants. In other words, since they have remarkable ancestors and inherited their blood, the descendants are also naturally talented. However, the Duke of Pendragon family was incomparably excellent when compared to regular people let alone other noble families and was even more outstanding. Different from all the average noble families who had at most inherited a few abilities from their ancestors, the ancestors of the Duke of Pendragon family were divine people so you could say that the abilities they inherited were also proof of them inheriting their blood as transcendental beings. And they say that even within the Pendragon¡¯s very long history, Erekaya Del Pendragon is the best masterpiece and was born possessing the perfection worthy of a masterpiece. Their blood ability, which is similar to or even more efficient than their ancestors, a talent that touches the sky that cannot simply be expressed by the term "remarkable." On top of that, even having a beautiful face that could be called the ultimate beauty. Even just the existence of Erekaya Del Pendragon itself is no different to a miracle and so her leading the Duke of Pendragon family as the head can be considered to be something completely natural. ¡­ that¡¯s right, if only she hadn¡¯t awakened as the third apocalypse and turned the capital into a sea of fire. ¡®The third apocalypse, Crimson Dragon, Azidahaka.¡¯ The Crimson Dragon, revealed in the prophecy. The great old snake. The incarnation of calamity destined to devour the world in the end. It is said that with one sweep of its tail, the Crimson Dragon can drop a third of all the stars in the sky and that it holds the great power to spit fire from its mouth. Jin, who had met the Crimson Dragon Azidahaka in person, knew full well that the portrayal in the prophecy was far from absurd. ¡®She was a really strong lizard.¡¯ As if not enough to turn the capital Ninea, which boasts an area larger than ten cities combined, into a sea of fire in one breath, she was also able to easily massacre over 1000 of the strongest people coming at her as if she were swatting a fly. And the person chosen as the ¡®vessel¡¯ for Azidahaka to manifest herself into the real world was none other than Erekaya Del Pendragon. He didn¡¯t know why. And didn¡¯t have any precise inside information either. The only thing he knew was that after Erekaya Del Pendragon massacred the Duke of Pendragon family with her own hands, she plucked out their hearts and used them as a sacrifice to bring Azidahaka. ¡°Erekaya Del Pendragon, how exactly are you doing this? Just how are you in my head and do you remember everything that happened before the regression?¡± Jin had never really hidden the fact that he ¡®regresses¡¯ from those close to him. He just didn¡¯t talk about it because it wasn¡¯t something worth running your mouth about. However, there was a big difference between him coming out and revealing information about the regression and with him not saying anything, the other party figuring out that he had in fact regressed. Judging from what Erekaya said, it seemed there was no use in hiding anything about the regression now. Because no matter what he says, the other party was the one who referenced the ¡®regression¡¯ first. ¡®No way, does Azidahaka have a way to cross time and maintain her memories?¡¯ If that¡¯s true, that would be a really terrifying assumption. The biggest merit of a regressor is that they know information about what will happen in the future. And they can use this information to change futures unfavourable to them. However, if the opposition also had information about the future wouldn¡¯t the information he had instantly be reduced to trash? Because there¡¯s no way the opposition would sit idly by while Jin benefited from that information. At Jin¡¯s words, Erekaya replied in a strange voice. - There¡¯s no need to be wary. Because if I had intended to trick you, there would be no need for me to use such a wretched method. Even before that, I wouldn¡¯t need to give you any information, let alone alert you to my existence. If you think about it a bit, you should understand what I¡¯m saying. ¡°¡­¡­¡± Jin, had no choice but to agree with what Erekaya had said. Whether she knew it or not, she had given him a lot of information. Starting with revealing that she was the Erekaya Del Pendragon who had killed Jin, she had revealed that she had regressed and even that she could see the status window. If really Erekaya had any evil intentions towards Jin, she would have not revealed any information and skilfully tricked him or she wouldn¡¯t have alerted him to her existence in the first place and appeared at the crucial moment and hit him in the back of the head. ¡°You never know, right. After getting on my good side, you may turn around and screw me over in the crucial moment.¡± Even though Jin answered in his most blunt voice, Erekaya, with no particular bad feelings, carried on in a relaxed voice. - Hmm, you could think like that. There¡¯s nothing I can do. I mean, since they are crimes I¡¯ve committed. From now on, should we work on our lacking mutual trust step by step? ¡°¡­Did I say I would give you my trust?¡± - Fool. Trust is not for giving. It is something you acquire from others. As such, trust is impossible to acquire easily and in a short time. Even though traditionally, humans can easily wrap up a moment¡¯s actions in good faith, they cannot cloak the life they have accumulated with lies. Erekaya¡¯s words were so honest and upright that Jin ended up momentarily forgetting to speak. Is this really something that an immoral person who killed her parents with her hands and plucked their hearts out would say? - In that case, I will answer all the doubts that you have. However, for me to answer you, I¡¯ll have to first explain how I transform into the crimson dragon. ¡°What do you mean transform. Didn¡¯t you kill your family and use their hearts to perform a ceremony to gain power from the crimson dragon?¡± There were quite a number of witnesses and the trace evidence left on the scene was so clear there was no excuse. Erekaya, who had gained the power of the crimson dragon, definitely went around telling people herself that she had killed her family in order to gain great power. - ¡­That¡¯s right. I murdered my mother and father with my own hands and plucked out the hearts of everyone in the family of the Duke of Pendragon. I killed everyone from old people to babies that had just been born. You can say this was my inexcusable mistake. Erekaya¡¯s voice was shaking a little as she said that. - However, I am the person who committed that act but at the same time it wasn¡¯t me. To be more precise, something from my spirit had been eaten away. ¡°Spirit? Do you mean your soul?¡± - Yes. But it wasn¡¯t as dramatic a change as losing my sanity. There were no signs either. It definitely not a change in the basis of who I am. It was just a slight change in my way of thinking. It was unnatural and uneasy and an unknown impulse took over me and eventually, I went crazy in my right mind. I wonder if ¡®crazy¡¯ is the right expression. Because she still did all those actions of her own volition to some extent. It was just that her self-control had disappeared and she merely couldn¡¯t control the strange impulse in her heart. - And I ended up not having any will of my own once the ritual had been performed and my body had become the perfect vessel for the crimson dragon. However, in a sense, it was the last chance I had left. Because the crimson dragon had completely occupied Erekaya¡¯s body, she became an existence in the corner of her consciousness that couldn¡¯t even lift a finger, however, at the same time, she could also free herself from the devilish nature that had eaten at her consciousness. - Do you remember what happened in the last moment right before you regressed? ¡°Last moment?¡± Is she talking about that shitty moment when his heart had been crushed by that damn lizard? -Yes. In the moment when I pierced your heart, I could use my ability to transfer my soul deep into your subconscious. I honestly thought it was a chanceless gamble at the time. Because the chance of you surviving after that was the same as being non-existent. However, thankfully it missed her concern. Because the human she chose in the end, was a regressor who could restart everything even if they met a terrible death. - And the reason why I know about your regression¡­ is thanks to my ability. ¡°Ability?¡± - It¡¯s an ability called Synaesthesia1. Do you know it? ¡°Roughly.¡± I remember hearing about it in an elective class. Did it refer to the phenomenon of sharing certain senses with others? - It¡¯s similar. However, in my case, it goes over simply connecting senses with other senses, and has reached the level of transcendental cognition and sensing, commonly referred to as the sixth sense. And, the moment my consciousness flowed into your mind I ended up reading all the deep information inside against my will. And in that moment, Erekaya realised. That Jin was not simply a hero-like existence fighting to oppose the apocalypse, he was nothing but an average man that was struggling to the point of being unsightly, to destroy the apocalypse. - However, since I read your information, I didn¡¯t get to know everything about you. I don¡¯t know why but there are restrictions on most of the information that I can read. As if there is information I shouldn¡¯t know. He had a rough idea of what ¡®information¡¯ it was that Erekaya couldn¡¯t read. It was probably about, everything that happened before he arrived in this world. Even if he had heard the explanation of how she came to be in his head and how she knew about the regressions, Jin¡¯s wrinkled expression didn¡¯t straighten. Or rather, he sharply shot he a reply in a voice even more blunt than before. ¡°So, what is it you want to do then? To sum up your story, are you saying that because you couldn¡¯t have known everything that happened till now you did nothing wrong? So, I should pity you and show some kind of compassion?¡± - Not at all. I am not that brazen or have no sense of honour. Whether it was my intention or not, it¡¯s a fact that everything that happened is because of me. If by chance I become unable to confront the things I did directly, all the things I¡¯ve done will end up being anomalous crime. As she said that, there was a firm determination in Erekaya¡¯s voice that could not yield on this matter. - However, separate from that, I can never sit idly by and watch all the tragedies that will occur soon. Even if you say I am a woman who shouldn¡¯t say anything even if I drop to the deepest parts of hell, I want to save the innocent soul that will die in my hands in the future. She thought it was already over. Because there was no way for a dead person to return and on top of that that woman¡¯s body having awoken due to the apocalypse, the countdown to the destruction of the world was close. However, whether it¡¯s a joke of fate or a miracle, at the ned of various factors crossing, she had once again obtained a chance. She had returned to before everything had started, the first and last chance to rectify all the tragedies that will occur in the future. If she hadn¡¯t lost her body and hadn¡¯t parasitically entered another¡¯s subconscious, it no different to her wishing to be a being that could not even prove her existenc- -There is only one thing I need from you. Regressor Jin, use me. Use everything I have, change the past filled with destruction and prevent the tragedy that will occur in the near future. Stop the approaching apocalypse and save this world that is destined for destruction. - That is the only hope I wish to leave in this world, even as I am reduced to this wretched form.