WTRM 05

Chapter 5

“When I received the letter saying that the ‘Heavenly Demon’ had returned, it would be more accurate to say that I wished I could have died right there.

Forty years ago, I had walked across blood-soaked ground and climbed over mountains of corpses until I finally cut off that bastard’s head. And yet, hadn’t he supposedly been reincarnated?

Not only our family, but every other family, sent messengers immediately because we couldn’t believe such an unbelievable fact.

They all died.

Only one person returned alive and told us that everything was true.

Even then, perhaps because it was the Heavenly Demon’s intention, he vomited blood and died the moment he finished speaking.

The heads of each family didn’t even have time to gather.

They mobilized everyone they could possibly recruit from their respective families.

From our family, I, my son, and the most elite members skilled in poison and concealed weapons took the lead.

My wife tried to see me off with a determined expression without crying, but there was nothing she could do about her trembling hands.

It seemed as though she wanted to say something, anything at all.

But neither of us could say a word.

We both knew that the moment we opened our mouths, everything inside us would come crashing down.

And soon, my son came out of his room as well.

Hah…

His eyes were red, yet he was smiling as he lovingly held his barely one-year-old son in his arms.

My daughter-in-law had been desperately holding back her tears, but when she saw that scene, she simply collapsed to the floor and began shedding tears.

Only my innocent grandson laughed joyfully, completely unaware of what was happening, his laughter echoing throughout the main hall.

That was the last sound of laughter our family ever heard.

And so, we threw our entire bodies into the battle against the Heavenly Demon.

That terrible battle lasted for more than a year.

My son lost one of his eyes…

And I lost one arm and one leg, and I was bleeding far too much.

I already knew that it would come to this.

From the very beginning, I had thrown myself into battle with the intention of sacrificing myself.

That way, the talented younger warriors coming up from behind would have a slightly greater chance of reaching the Heavenly Demon.

I can never forget the moment my son screamed.

He had lost one of his eyes himself, yet he was wailing as he looked at my missing limbs.

I barely managed to grasp my son’s hand as he stared helplessly at the blood flowing from me.

That boy… Why did he have to cry like that?

If I could have saved even the one eye my son had lost, I would have told him to take my remaining leg as well.

I had already prepared myself to die, but I wanted my son to survive at least.

How long would that innocent, smiling grandson of mine wait for his father?

But I knew that even that would be difficult if things continued like this.

I raised my broken body and took one step forward, then another.

Even if my strength was insignificant, I wanted to contribute whatever little I had left and bring an end to this.

Far in the distance, the Heavenly Demon could barely be seen standing at the very top.

The masters who charged toward him were mercilessly cut down and sent flying, but even so, they continued rushing toward him without end.

Their courage was truly remarkable.

But the one who was trembling instead…

was the Heavenly Demon.

Despite being capable of blowing everything away with a single gesture, he was…

Heh…

He was shedding bloody tears.

Only when I was dying and had finally let go of everything could I see it.

I knew instinctively.

That bastard didn’t want any of this.”

“That was when my breath stopped, and I came here.”

“……”

The only information about this work that had been revealed to Sohee was the work’s introduction and the life record of the person requesting reincarnation, regression, and transmigration.

If she wanted to know anything beyond that, the only way was to hear it directly like this.

The web novel I Became the Immortal Heavenly Demon was the story of a kind protagonist who suffered unjust treatment and hardships, eventually became the Heavenly Demon after making a wrong choice, and was later killed.

He then repeatedly reincarnated and struggled to defy the fate that would eventually turn him into the Heavenly Demon.

In particular, information about the client’s important emotions, circumstances, atmosphere, and goals was far more useful to Sohee than the brief introduction to the work.

“Was that too heavy?”

“No. Thank you for telling me.”

She gently shook her head.

Dang Jaeik sat down in the chair and let out a long sigh.

Then he gazed into empty space.

“The Heavenly Demon… probably didn’t want me to become like that. But somehow, reincarnation kept happening, and fate must have continued leading him toward becoming the Heavenly Demon.”

“……”

A reincarnation, regression, and transmigration client could not know what happened after their own death.

Of course, the information delivered to Sohee only went that far as well, so there was nothing more she could say.

“And my son must have died… and my family must have been destroyed as well.”

Dang Jaeik let out a long breath.

“I want to go back solely to protect the people I love.

If I raise and care for the Heavenly Demon from childhood, before he becomes the Heavenly Demon… who knows?

Perhaps at the very least, he might protect me and my family.”

“…I understand what you mean.”

Sohee nodded, but Dang Jaeik instead let out a small laugh.

“It truly is a selfish decision, isn’t it?”

“No. This is an opportunity you can only have once. You can’t simply throw it away.”

Sohee meant every word.

It wasn’t an opportunity that would come twice.

Thinking as rationally and selfishly as possible and choosing the right direction was what increased the satisfaction of reincarnation, regression, and transmigration.

“I’ll try to have everything prepared within a week.”

“Do as you see fit.”

Dang Jaeik picked up the water dropper beside him and gently poured water into the inkstone.

Then he picked up the ink stick and began grinding it in circular motions.

Scritch, scritch.

The clear water absorbed the ink and gradually grew darker.

Sohee got up, leaving him to have some time alone.

She bowed her head slightly before stepping outside.

Then she headed toward the front desk.

“This is really too much.”

Sohee was reading the ‘Criteria for Reincarnation, Regression & Transmigration of Supporting Characters and Extras’ when she abruptly shut the booklet.

The conditions were so restrictive from every direction that she could barely breathe.

Still sitting in her chair, Sohee helplessly dropped her forehead onto the table with a thud.

“You can’t undergo reincarnation, regression, and transmigration for personal reasons. The protagonists can do it just fine….”

“The protagonists’ reincarnation, regression, and transmigration were intended by the author from the beginning.”

“If those were the only conditions, I wouldn’t say anything. This isn’t allowed for this reason, and that isn’t allowed for that reason. What is this supposed to be? Are they telling us not to even try?”

“I believe those are also devices designed to prevent chaos within the novel.”

Sohee kept her cheek pressed against the desk and muttered.

“There must be a reason the motel’s rules are as thick as an encyclopedia… Everything is forbidden. This is prohibited, that is prohibited, everything is prohibited….”

She listlessly flipped through the book while lying there.

Among the tiny, densely written list of prohibitions, one word suddenly caught her eye.

‘Permitted.’

Sohee blinked both eyes.

“…‘An opportunity is granted to completely change the original story into an entirely new story’…?”

Even as she read the words she had discovered, Sohee couldn’t believe them.

There was actually something like this hidden among all the ‘prohibited,’ ‘restricted,’ and ‘minimum’ conditions imposed on supporting characters?

When Sohee excitedly began reading the detailed conditions, Dal Hangari clicked his tongue.

“Tsk. Don’t get your hopes up over something impossible. That doesn’t apply to Dang Jaeik’s case anyway. And in any case, no sane supporting character would ever do that.”

Sohee had already been reading through the densely packed conditions one after another, and her shoulders quickly drooped again like a deflated balloon.

“I knew it.”

“It literally means an opportunity is merely being given. I have often seen supporting characters successfully undergo reincarnation, regression, and transmigration, but the number of times I have actually seen that opportunity succeed can be counted on one hand. No.”

“Ha….”

Sohee slapped the book shut.

“Then wouldn’t it be better to just block these opportunities entirely? Why give them opportunities at all? And why even create the motel?”

“Because if only the protagonists were given opportunities, people would complain that it was unfair.”

Sohee’s lifeless eyes suddenly lit up.

“What does that mean? Then… the conditions are extremely strict, but you still give supporting characters a chance to undergo reincarnation, regression, and transmigration?”

“That is essentially the case.”

“Wow… That’s seriously too much, isn’t it? Even without those conditions, whether supporting characters succeed in reincarnation, regression, and transmigration depends on the motel manager’s abilities anyway. You said my grandfather lived here for two hundred years. Just because he couldn’t fill that gourd.”

The more Sohee thought about it, the more unfair she felt, and she began huffing and puffing.

“So. You’re dissatisfied?”

“Of course!”

“Then what are you going to do about it?”

“…What?”

Sohee was momentarily speechless, her mouth hanging open.

Dal Hangari’s mechanical voice continued without the slightest change in pitch.

“If you cannot change the situation, then you must follow it. If you’re dissatisfied, don’t undergo reincarnation, regression, and transmigration. You can simply disappear.”

“No, but the situation itself is just too….”

“If you don’t like that, become the protagonist.”

Then all of that dissatisfaction would disappear.

Sohee opened and closed her lips, unable to come up with a response.

In the end, Dal Hangari was right.

All she could do was complain; she couldn’t change the situation.

Not unless she rose to a position where she could change everything herself.

If you had no power, you had to follow the rules.

The head that had been boiling with dissatisfaction gradually became cold.

She had already known that the opportunities and conditions were tilted heavily toward one side.

And she also knew that this imbalance itself was part of the balance of this world.

She felt ashamed that she had allowed her emotions to consume her in that moment, and her face gradually turned red.

“I’m sorry for saying something unnecessary.”

“Then what should you do now?”

“…Focus on preparing for the regression.”

Sohee straightened her body.

Then she looked toward the hotel in the distance through the glass doors.

The protagonists, wearing proud expressions, continued entering one after another.

If nothing went wrong, they would smoothly enter the reincarnation, regression, and transmigration gate as well.

Without a single failure.

The perfect source of motivation for Sohee.

A short while later, a man dressed impeccably in a suit appeared at the hotel entrance.

It was Chunrok, the hotel’s general manager.