Past Life Returner

Stomp. Stomp.

The sound of heavy footsteps resonated on the ground. Doom Caso’s head was sticking out above the forest as it moved. With its head frantically swiveling around to search for something, everyone could feel its anger. They could not even imagine the terrifying power contained in that rage.

It was valid for Jonathan to call it a ‘rampage.’

Would it be possible?

At the moment when such a daunting thought struck Woo Yeon-Hee’s mind, Doom Caso turned its head, directly tracking her location.

Thud, thud, thud!

It began to charge recklessly like a starving beast, but a massive pillar of fire erupted at one point, blocking its way. The scorching pillar curved gently from the sides and wrapped around the beast’s back.

Woo Yeon-Hee took advantage of that time, and she focused on hiding her presence while getting away from Doom Caso.

After a while, she realized she was inside the city. All that was left were corpses swarming with maggots. Not even a single intact body was in sight. Counting the limbs scattered haphazardly everywhere, at least thirty Awakened had met their end alongside the city. The situation in the remaining seven cities was likely the same.

Woo Yeon-Hee turned her head and confirmed there were no light pillars present.

[Mary: Where are you?]

[King of Hell: Let’s meet in City (3).]

The same scenery unfolded there as well. By the time she arrived, the massive beast had already broken through the fire pillar and was once again on the hunt.

She suddenly widened her eyes because she detected Jonathan’s presence only when he was within her attack range. Despite being so close, she couldn’t see him with her eyes.

[Mary: What is your level?]

[King of Hell: Five hundred eighty.]

Unlike her, who had almost annihilated the entirety of the Baclan mainland, Jonathan had been solely dedicated to handling Doom Caso. Indeed, his level was much lower than hers. Yet, the fact that he could hide his presence so perfectly before her implied several truths.

First, this proved that Jonathan was much superior in controlling the power, which was once called Mana. Second, he must have learned such a method from Seon-Hu. Third, that was the reason why Jonathan was able to deal with the stronger Doom Caso until now. Last but not least, this was evident how long he had trained in the spiritual world before the Final Stage, and his achievements were commendable.

[King of Hell: As of now, I cannot fight that.]

Woo Yeon-Hee agreed.

[King of Hell: However, it might be different with a capable guide.]

However, she could not agree with his last statement.

[Mary: To exploit his mental world… Yes, I see what you are thinking.]

Jonathan wished for another chance to train. To be precise, he wanted to revisit the process that Seon-Hu had undergone, believing he could find a way to defeat Doom Caso from it.

[Mary: Any stage you have in mind?]

[King of Hell: The most stable stage for you would be ideal. I am well aware that the guide’s stability is a priority.]

[Mary: Only the inferior ones bother with such things.]

[King of Hell: Ah, I see.]

Then, a roar from a massive beast began to shake the world. Woo Yeon-Hee hurried.

***

Woo Yeon-Hee was the owner of the mental world, and the stage was a place from her memories.

It’s perfect. What a stable stage.

Jonathan immediately recognized the surroundings he was in. At first glance, it looked like the stage where he had waited before the Act One, Final Stage.

However, the empty spots were filled with Korean students this time. The female teacher walking towards him from the podium was Mary, and the student sitting alone by the window was Sun. At that moment, Jonathan appeared like a student in the classroom, irrespective of his will, as set by Woo Yeon-Hee.

“He asked me to tell you that he is sorry.”

Woo Yeon-Hee passed by Jonathan and headed to the virtual Seon-Hu. The stage was frozen in time. Therefore, the virtual Seon-Hu had no reaction even when she picked up his notebook from the desk.

She flipped quickly through the notebook and stopped at one page. Then, she placed it on Jonathan’s desk so that he could clearly see it. What was on the paper was too impressive to be considered a scribble. Jonathan was well aware of what was drawn there. It was a low-class monster from the Declan Corps.

「Classification number: KF―07」

“K stands for Korea, and F is for the monster’s class. 07 is the classification given by the Awakened at the time.”

“Awakened at the time?”

“We refer to that time as the ‘past.’ The days leading up to when Doom Caso eventually ended all human civilization.”

Jonathan noticed that Woo Yeon-Hee’s eyes were fixed in distant space. It was a painful look, like the kind that was seen on the people who had tasted monster blood.

“Seon-Hu traveled back in time from humanity’s last moments.”

Jonathan remained silent. Woo Yeon-Hee quietly looked down at Jonathan and sat beside him after pulling up a chair.

“Sun always seemed desperate. It was more than can be explained by him just knowing the future. It was perhaps because he actually experienced it…”

“Yes.”

“He is more miserable than I thought. I feel sorry for him. I couldn’t ease his burden.”

Woo Yeon-Hee took a deep breath, organizing her thoughts. She was debating how to deliver Seon-Hu’s sincerity, and she was concerned how Jonathan would react to it.

However, she could not push it aside. They were in a situation where memories were eroded by the eternity of time and where she could not even guarantee her own life due to a stronger Doom Caso. If she died without telling him the truth, then the story she had to tell Jonathan would disappear.

It took Woo Yeon-Hee a while to confess the truth.

“Rebecca Hunter. It is the name of your daughter in the past.”

She carefully observed Jonathan’s expression. He looked indifferent and did not even furrow his eyebrows. However, such a look was a common reaction among rulers who were forced to hide their true feelings.

For a moment, Woo Yeon-Hee felt the temptation to use her Empathy ability.

“Rebecca. Rebecca. That is the name of my mother, who passed away when I was young. It seems I passed on that name.”

“...”

“I have never seen anyone who values family as much as Sun does. Isn’t that just like him? He even worries about a daughter I have never had.”

“I agree.”

“Have you seen the past?” he asked.

She nodded. “Of course.”

“You must have seen me and Sun from that era.”

“...”

“You probably know. On this stage, back in ‘97, I was on the verge of being kicked out of Wall Street. But that was also a turning point in my life. I received an email from an investor with exceptional insight. That was how we met. If Sun had not found me, I would have ended up as a Wall Street outcast. How could such a failure withstand the Stage of Advent?”

Jonathan continued, “Those who do not know how to seize victory are the same everywhere. Those who have never won have nothing to learn. Trust me. I would have been unable to escape the fate of a pathetic loser in the past. Losers seek comfort from their families for their defeats. Of course, I am not talking about Sun.”

Jonathan gulped down his saliva and added, “I am referring to myself from the past, who was nothing more than a loser. The only image of me Sun must have seen from the past was that pathetic figure. Rebecca Hunter… There is nothing to be sorry about.”

Ah!

Right then, Woo Yeon-Hee suddenly realized something that made her shiver.

Losers seek comfort from their families for their defeats. Losers seek comfort from their families for their defeats. Losers seek comfort from their families for their defeats…

Jonathan’s phrase echoed repeatedly in her mind. Such words might have been typical to rulers, but what Seon-Hu expected from Jonathan must have been different.

When Woo Yeon-Hee suddenly teared up, Jonathan’s eyebrows finally twitched. The tears Woo Yeon-Hee shed were because she realized the true reason Sun had asked her to tell Jonathan about the past. There was something other than just saying sorry.

Seon-Hu hoped that Jonathan would regain some of his former humanity, even if it were just a little. That is why he chose him as the ruler of the remaining mainland. He believes that we will defeat Doom Caso, but he thinks that the chance of him returning is not likely…

He is willing to sacrifice his own life if he can remove Doom Kaos. Otherwise, why would he ask me to deliver it when he could do it himself after the war? Seon-Hu might be annihilated alongside Doom Kaos.

Woo Yeon-Hee bit her lip.

“I’d like to see the past myself.”

“I was about to show you the image of you being a father.”

***

In the past, Jonathan always reeked of alcohol. When he got drunk, he grabbed Seon-Hu and repeatedly cried out the name ‘Rebecca.’ She was such a beautiful and smart kid.

“Every night, my bed was filled with heart-fluttering excitement. Although it made it hard to sleep, it was okay. I could just wait until the next day to see Rebecca again, and that alone fulfilled the purpose of my life. You will understand once you have children…”

Such scenes passed in front of Jonathan. The last scene displayed Jonathan, who was once a father, walking away while shouting for revenge for his daughter.

“So that was the end of me in the past.”

Woo Yeon-Hee nodded. When she checked his face, she noticed that the ruler’s mask on his face had slightly fallen off. His eyes were shaking.

“Why does he have to apologize? Rebecca was already dead in the past…and so was I. And now, thanks to Sun, I am still hanging on. How about you, Mary?”

She bluntly responded, “I would have died in a psychiatric ward if I had not met Sun.”

“We owe our lives to him. Was all this Sun’s request?” Jonathan asked.

“Yes.”

“It was a pointless favor. He is always calculating, always anticipating the worst. But Sun’s worst-case scenarios are just assumptions and have never come true. It is the same this time. He is probably erasing the worst-case scenario himself.”

Jonathan said that with gritted teeth and placed a hand on Woo Yeon-Hee’s shoulder.

“Never show tears again. Sun is strong. If we do our part, he will return victoriously as if nothing happened. Let’s start training now.”

Woo Yeon-Hee nodded. His last statement gave her great comfort. She tried believing that Sun was probably erasing the worst-case scenario himself…