My mind froze for a moment.
Wait… suddenly my one-room apartment appears here?
A million thoughts flooded my mind instantly. Why on earth does my apartment exist in this space? What kind of place is this, what happened, and why am I here as Ho Cheon-an?
Big questions and little questions tangled together, making my head spin.
“Ugh…”
Perhaps it was the shock, but I felt dizzy. As I swayed, Miss Yeo Il-ye and Hyeok Gi-rin, who were next to me, were startled and grabbed me.
“Honorable Person! Are you alright?”
“Outcast!”
Yeo Il-ye and Hyeok Gi-rin helped support me.
“Ah, I’m fine…”
I was just surprised for a moment, my mind was scattered, but there was nothing seriously wrong with my body. Taking a deep breath and rotating my Qi a few times, my senses quickly returned.
I sat on the floor for a moment, looking at my apartment, then got up.
“Everyone, step back.”
“…Are you planning to go in there?”
I silently nodded. I was shocked, but the situation was clear enough.
There was no way my apartment could exist in this Martial World.
Since my companions were also witnessing the scene of my apartment, this wasn’t an illusion visible only to me.
I couldn’t understand why, how, or why my apartment had become a room here, but one thing was certain: I had to enter there.
My companions looked at me with worried eyes, but perhaps sensing something, they silently made way for me.
I glanced at the sword I held, the Chamam sword, and then returned it to its sheath for now.
If that really was my apartment… the likelihood of needing to draw my sword was low.
Bearing the worried gazes of everyone, I stepped into my apartment… and gave a nod to my companions before closing the door behind me.
Clang!
Whizz~ Piddick!
….The door that the Black Cat had opened was a wooden door with a metal hook, but on the other side was a deadbolt.
I stood silently in the narrow entrance… gazing around the room.
A small air conditioner that had faded with age. A bed that was newly bought last year. Even a small refrigerator next to the computer desk.
I hesitated at the entrance before I entered the room.
…I should take off my shoes.
As I untied the rugged leather laces, my eyes caught the shoes in the entrance. A pair of canvas shoes with completely folded heels. And a worn-out pair of Adidas slippers.
Looking at the leather boots placed between the canvas shoes and the Adidas slippers, I shook off the strange feeling and set the Chamam sword in the entrance.
In the veranda where I was attacked by the Rebirth Truck, curtains hung down. I thought about opening them, but for some reason, I felt a chill and decided against it.
….Perhaps it was just me turning away from the truth.
I couldn’t shake the thought that if I opened those curtains, I might see myself being hit by a truck falling from the sky.
Instead… I turned my gaze to the computer chair.
I awkwardly sat in the chair. The seat had some elasticity, and the backrest held my waist, but for some reason, it felt uncomfortable.
I grasped the mouse, sighed, and stared at the monitor.
The game screen of the Martial World, which I was playing before I got hit by the Rebirth Truck, was playing back. My character was moving according to a schedule I had input in advance.
[You have trained in Eulji Mun-gyeong’s Bicheon Yeonhwa Book.]
[Training Successful!]
[The training level of Bicheon Yeonhwa Book has increased by 1.2%.]
[Your energy has been depleted due to training the Bicheon Yeonhwa Book.]
I absentmindedly stared at the continuously rising log messages and opened the character status window.
————————
Name: Eulji Sangjo
Age: 46
Level: Peak Stage
Personality: Weird, gloomy, irritable.
Strength: 93 Agility: 101
Health: 92 Qi: 382
Luck: 2 Stamina: 75
Bone: 9 Spirituality: 19
Concentration: 15 Vitality: 3
Five Elements: 6
Traits:
[Paranoia] – Suffers from the obsession that someone is after their life. (Sometimes Concentration +10, while Relationship -15 with low probability -3 with opponents.)
[Weakling] – Born with a weak body. (All stats -1)
[Unfortunate Childhood] – Didn’t grow properly due to inadequate nutrition in childhood. (Bone -5)
[Killing Sense] – Has the ability to sense dangerous air. (Spirituality +3)
[Intermittent Tremors] – Has a certain probability of failing martial art techniques.
[Restlessness] – Probability of losing control over Qi increases while practicing Qi manipulation.
[Pierced Lung] – One lung is unusable. (Stamina growth rate -50%)
[Limited Talent] – You have no talent for martial arts. (Martial arts proficiency acquisition rate -30%)
[Unluckiness] – Gives off bad vibes to others. (Relationship with others -10)
[Imperfect Qi] – Too much Qi is mixed within your body. (Martial arts power decreases by 15% and Qi usage increases by 30%.)
————————————
“Wow… what the hell…”
I opened the status window and couldn’t help but curse.
…Games typically aim to increase difficulty as players become more familiar.
What symbolizes a veteran?
It’s the pants look.
That pants look serves as the most intuitive representation of increasing difficulty.
Even those with no knowledge or understanding of the game can comprehend the significance of undressing all their gear and playing the game.
Undressing to raise the difficulty in the game you’ve become accustomed to, that pants look is the very symbol of a veteran, just like how I kept piling on bad traits while playing the Martial World.
Even the veterans in the group chat merely respected this hardcore playstyle without agreeing to it.
The character Eulji Sangjo, created for that hardcore play.
What if I had become Eulji Sangjo instead of Ho Cheon-an?
Just imagining it sent chills down my spine.
Whether I had blood or not didn’t matter.
Eulji Sangjo’s starting stats would have been akin to a walking corpse, potentially leaving me exhausted before I even descended the mountain, going mad, and dying right there.
I continued watching Eulji Sangjo practice martial arts, then hit the stop button and dragged the mouse cursor outside the Martial World window.
…I wanted to check the message flashing yellow in the taskbar.
There was a message from that guy.
[Rebirth Truck: Hi]
Seeing that message truly stirred a mix of feelings. What kind of response should I send? As I read his message, the number 1 vanished.
[Rebirth Truck: Why so silent? Did you forget how to use a computer after 10 years?]
[Ho Cheon-an: Fuck you]
I reflexively shot back a curse.
Just as that guy said, after typing for 10 years, the keys were not where I remembered, but once I pressed a key, the dam in my heart burst open.
[Ho Cheon-an: Hey]
[Ho Cheon-an: What the hell happened?]
Watching the number 1 disappear in real-time, my insides boiled with rage. Emotions that had built up over the last 10 years without an outlet surged forth.
Tap tap tap!
[Ho Cheon-an: What do you want?]
[Ho Cheon-an: What is this place?]
[Ho Cheon-an: Answer me!]
Seeing the screen shake, I finally realized I was practically about to smash the keyboard with how hard I was typing. Though my insides were still boiling, I forcibly pulled my hands away from the keyboard.
If I broke this keyboard, I might lose my means of communicating with that guy.
[Rebirth Truck: Have you calmed down a bit?]
[Ho Cheon-an: Just answer me, you bastard]
[Rebirth Truck: Okay]
[Rebirth Truck: You seem calmer, let’s start talking]
[Rebirth Truck: We have plenty of time]
[Rebirth Truck: I can answer all your questions, so let’s discuss them one at a time]
[Rebirth Truck: Go ahead and ask one question at a time.]
[Ho Cheon-an: Why did you send me here?]
[Ho Cheon-an: Who are you?]
[Ho Cheon-an: Why did you do this?]
[Rebirth Truck: (shakes head and makes a NO bear emoji)]
[Rebirth Truck: I told you, one question at a time]
[Rebirth Truck: Well, let’s talk about something unimportant first]
[Rebirth Truck: Right now, the space you are in is something I briefly manifested]
[Rebirth Truck: You can think of it as similar to the array formation I found in the Odokmun’s domain]
[Rebirth Truck: This space will naturally disappear once its purpose is fulfilled]
His answer cooled my mind a bit.
In the end, the Rebirth Truck had manifested my apartment and pulled me into this space.
Had this guy been watching me? The thought of him enjoying my struggle in this Martial World twisted my gut, but I pushed that feeling down for now.
Who knows when I’ll have another chance to communicate with this guy?
I need to discover everything I can.
Thinking that way, the fact that this guy had been watching me wasn’t too bad. We could proceed with our conversation quickly.
[Ho Cheon-an: What is your identity?]
[Rebirth Truck: You have a rough idea, don’t you?]
A god.
Considering all the deeds this Rebirth Truck had done, that word came to mind first.
[Ho Cheon-an: Are you a god of this world? Or a god of Earth?]
[Rebirth Truck: A god.]
[Rebirth Truck: Why not try a more sophisticated word? You’ve read a lot of web novels, haven’t you?]
I frowned at the mysterious Rebirth Truck’s reply. After thinking for a moment, I somehow got an inkling of what word this Rebirth Truck desired.
[Ho Cheon-an: Transcendent?]
[Rebirth Truck: (thumbs up lion emoji)]
I wanted to argue the difference between a transcendent being and a god, but I held back for now.
What mattered was unearthing my piled-up questions.
[Ho Cheon-an: So, why did you drop me into this Martial World?]
[Rebirth Truck: Hmm]
[Rebirth Truck: I’ll tell you one thing]
[Rebirth Truck: I’m the kind of being you think I am, but that doesn’t mean I can do anything I want]
[Rebirth Truck: So your ‘questions’ are quite important]
I reflected on his attitude.
Thinking from the Rebirth Truck’s perspective, it was easy to anticipate the questions he would expect me to have.
Why did you send me to the Martial World?
What do you want?
Can I return?
Why did you cause this?
Yet this guy merely spoke of receiving questions; he didn’t bring up such obvious inquiries.
It would be much faster to talk that way.
I nodded at the answer of being a transcendent but wondered if it was related to not mentioning the word ‘transcendent’ himself.
I understood that even the Rebirth Truck had its constraints.
And he was indirectly conveying to me that the previous question was of a type he couldn’t answer, so I should ask in another way.
[Ho Cheon-an: Then I’ll change the question]
[Ho Cheon-an: What happened to me while I was living on Earth?]
[Rebirth Truck: I can explain this]
[Rebirth Truck: You probably thought you died after being hit by the truck]
[Rebirth Truck: But you actually stopped just before that.]
“….”
Are you saying you pulled me out just before the truck hit?
[Ho Cheon-an: So, can I go back?]
[Rebirth Truck: Yes. You can return.]
….I can return.
I should be happy about it, but somehow, my heart felt heavier. This was because various connections I had formed since coming to this Martial World rushed into my mind, creating chaos.
I shook my head and cleared my thoughts.
There were still many questions left to ask the Rebirth Truck. I could worry about everything after I grasped all the truths.
The same goes for how to return.
The Rebirth Truck was diligently answering my questions.
As for why I was sent to this Martial World, did the previous question miss what was actually important?
[Ho Cheon-an: Let me rephrase that]
[Ho Cheon-an: Was I put into this ‘Ho Cheon-an’ body intentionally?]
[Rebirth Truck: Hmm. The question is a bit ambiguous, but I suppose this is fine]
[Rebirth Truck: Ho Cheon-an, you entered that body by my design.]
I was slowly getting used to this 20 Questions game with the Rebirth Truck.
It seemed that he could only answer questions with some sort of clear answer.
Was I meant to infer his actions like a game of 20 Questions?
[Ho Cheon-an: Then what reason did you have for doing that?]
[Rebirth Truck: Because I received a request.]
[Ho Cheon-an: Who’s request?]
While the number 1 disappeared, there was no answer from him. Though there was no reply, I realized the question I asked was wrong.
[Ho Cheon-an: I must have to figure something out myself, right?]
[Rebirth Truck: (nods furiously with a rabbit emoji)]
This felt something like a quiz. He could answer questions, but the rules were such that related matters could not be answered.
[Ho Cheon-an: Did I fall here to prevent incidents happening in this Martial World?]
[Rebirth Truck: Nope.]
[Ho Cheon-an: What is this place where this room is located?]
My question met silence again.
I threw various questions, but I still had no clue about what the Rebirth Truck wanted in response.
So, I went for a direct demand.
[Ho Cheon-an: Honestly, I have no idea what you want]
[Ho Cheon-an: I need a hint]
[Rebirth Truck: Hmm]
[Rebirth Truck: You do seem like it]
[Rebirth Truck: You were a veteran in the game, Martial World?]
[Ho Cheon-an: Yes]
[Rebirth Truck: The ones left in the official group chat of Martial World were so-called veterans. They are those who’ve poured themselves into one game for a long time.]
[Rebirth Truck: But even among such veterans, you were uniquely devoted to this Martial World.]
[Rebirth Truck: The group chat members all enjoyed Martial World, but there was no one as immersed as you.]
I focused on the Rebirth Truck’s chat.
I had indeed put everything into playing Martial World. While the group chat members enjoyed Martial World in their ways, hardly anyone played as actively as I did, digging into hidden aspects and increasing the challenge.
[Rebirth Truck: You even memorized the realizations of the characters.]
[Rebirth Truck: It’s one thing to know the realization of one or two frequently met characters, but you aimed to memorize the realizations of all the characters in Martial World.]
Does this mean that my being the ultimate veteran of the Martial World is related to becoming Ho Cheon-an?
However, earlier the Rebirth Truck had answered ‘no’ when I asked if there were incidents to prevent.
So, did I fall into this Martial World merely as a game for transcendent beings?
As an unpleasant conclusion flickered through my mind.
[Rebirth Truck: No matter how much you loved the game,]
[Rebirth Truck: Do you really think it’s normal to try to memorize all the realizations of that many characters?]
The Rebirth Truck threw a topic at me that I never expected.
