Chapter 930

Strange.

The unfamiliar ceiling that should have been waiting for me, just like always, somehow felt familiar.

What is this?

As my vision slowly sharpened, I looked around.

The space was far too large to call a mere bedroom. Thick pillars stood between the curtains surrounding it, while braziers placed here and there and night-shining pearls set into the ceiling like stars bathed the room in a soft glow.

Wait. Night-shining pearls?

Then I realized where the déjà vu was coming from—and why the place felt familiar.

This is…

That’s right.

This was a vast pavilion built to serve as both living quarters and a place to handle state affairs—and a fortress filled with an ironclad guard.

Qianqing Palace.

No wonder it felt familiar.

Without the night-shining pearls, it might have taken me longer to figure it out. Only an emperor could plaster his ceiling with pearls big enough to fetch hundreds of silver nyang¹ on Bok Choy Market as if they were glitter stickers.

But…why am I here?

The question surfaced in my strangely empty head.

Whoosh.

A faint breeze stirred the curtains around the bedroom. At the same moment, a man in black appeared like a ghost and bowed his head slightly.

“Have you awakened?”

His voice was muffled, almost a mumble.

I stared blankly at the unexpected intruder, then calmly assessed the situation.

The Emperor’s quarters. The Emperor’s blanket. The Emperor’s bed. The Emperor’s pillow.

My clothes were golden from head to toe, and when I lifted my pants for a peek, even my underwear was gleaming golden silk.

The full King-God-Emperor package.

And on top of that, No Shadow—the Emperor’s hidden guard, an assassin and Supreme Peak master—was speaking to me with such courtesy.

Then could this be…

Through clear-headed reasoning, I reached a conclusion. A shudder ran through me.

“Possession…!”

It had to be. There was no other explanation.

I’d gotten a good night’s sleep, woken up, and my life had changed genres from fusion Murim to a possession story. Just as I was reeling from the shock, No Shadow spoke in his usual muffled voice.

“Are you all right?”

Would you be all right? nearly burst out of me, but figuring out what had happened came first.

“What time is it? No, how many days have passed since the grand banquet?”

“……?”

Apparently, that was a strange question from an emperor who’d just woken up. No Shadow stared at me before answering.

“Three days.”

“Three days?”

“Yes.”

“……Then how long was I asleep?”

“Three days as well.”

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Three days. In just three days, everything had gone to shit.

To hell with being an emperor. I’d gone from a handsome guy in his early twenties with his whole life ahead of him to a middle-aged man who looked ancient, and everything I’d achieved had gone up in smoke.

System window…open.

I silently tried the command, just in case.

But it scattered into the void.

There was no clear chime, no translucent holographic window.

What the hell is going on? How did things get like this?

I couldn’t breathe.

The levels I’d busted my ass to gain, my stats—I couldn’t even access the System window now. I might never make it back to the real world.

Wait. Then what happened to the original me?

The thought suddenly struck me, and my eyes flew open. I shouted at No Shadow in a panicked voice.

“Then what happened to me…? No, what happened to Jin Taekyung!”

No Shadow blinked above his pitch-black mask.

“You mean Jin Taekyung of the Jin Family of Taiyuan?”

“Yes, the Blazing Flame Divine Dragon, Jin Taekyung! The guy who’s handsome, tall, and perfectly muscled, and I have no idea why women aren’t all over him!”

His answer brought my thoughts to a halt.

“He has yet to awaken.”

“What?”

“For reasons unknown, he has not regained consciousness. I regret to report that, according to the examination of the one called the Divine Physician, he is as good as dead.”

“……!”

“As a result, His Highness the Imperial Younger Brother has refused food and drink for three days. He said there was something he must return to a friend with whom he shared a bond…”

No Shadow trailed off and carefully held something out. I accepted it in a daze.

Rough, cold metal.

Gleaming like obsidian, it was the divine artifact of the Sichuan Tang Clan—the one I’d given Zhu Bao in case the worst happened.

The Myriad-Poison Ring.

I could see the boy who’d promised to survive and return it to me before long.

But…

Damn it.

I didn’t know how it had happened, but that shitty fate had twisted my life into knots once again.

Jin Taekyung of the Jin Family of Taiyuan was gone.

And perhaps Jin Taekyung the Hunter’s life in Korea had ended here too.

Crack.

At some point, I’d clenched my fist so hard my knuckles had gone white. Then I saw the wrinkles covering the back of my hand, and the strength left me.

Slide.

My fingers loosened. The Myriad-Poison Ring rolled over my rough skin and fell onto the bluestone floor.

Clang. Clang.

The cold sound echoed alone through the vast room.

With hope drained from my eyes, I watched the Myriad-Poison Ring spin rapidly.

Each time the black gem caught the light of the night-shining pearls and flashed, faces I would never see again crossed my mind.

My family, more precious to me than my life. Team Leader Choi and so many other comrades.

All the people I trusted, and who trusted me.

And someone else I’d only just learned had been born to the same fate.

The Martial God.

Another System user. Another Player.

Someone chosen by this cruel fate long before I was.

Where was he now?

Had he gone through the same thing?

Or had the System chosen me as a new Player because he really was dead?

I didn’t know.

Not right now. Perhaps not ever.

I was no longer the chosen one or a Player. The System knew the truth, but it wouldn’t answer my questions.

No. I wouldn’t be able to hear its answer.

That was the kind of power the System was.

A power meant for one person alone.

And so…another Player will appear.

The hollow thought hovered on the tip of my tongue without becoming words.

With my eyes sunk deep, I kept watching the Myriad-Poison Ring spinning.

It was still turning and turning on the blue bluestone floor, without end.

“……?”

Wait.

Something was wrong.

“H-how long is that thing going to keep spinning?”

No Shadow answered my cautious question.

“This is why I hate people who catch on too fast.”

What?

Quietly. Very quietly, I opened my eyes to slits as narrow as a flounder’s.

An unfamiliar ceiling came into view. Unlike the one from a moment ago, it was moderately luxurious and moderately Murim-like.

Good. First check passed.

I lifted a hand, moving so little I made no sound.

The glittering golden sleeve made my heart sink.

Second check, pending.

I ignored the cold sweat beading on my forehead and carefully lifted my pants.

I didn’t know which son of a bitch had put this on me and called it underwear, but sure enough, it was dazzlingly golden.

Third check. This is getting shitty.

Afraid to confirm what was real, I closed my barely open eyes again.

A bad sign. But it wasn’t over yet.

In the awful silence, I slipped a hand inside my pants and felt over my underwear.

The familiar weight—the one I’d have recognized anywhere, and was so glad to feel I could have cried—made my whole body shudder.

“Ah, ah…”

An indescribable electric thrill coursed through my whole body.

I was alive.

I was still alive.

This wasn’t that shitty dream from a moment ago. This was vivid reality, the present in which I was alive and breathing.

I was Jin Taekyung the Hunter and Jin Taekyung the Blazing Flame Divine Dragon.

Damn it. What a thing to be grateful for.

Just being alive as myself felt overwhelming. I wiped a few tears away with my sleeve.

Then I opened my eyes to face the world with more gratitude than ever.

Ah.

I met the eyes of several familiar people who’d been watching me without making a sound.

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

The suffocating silence seemed as though it would last forever. The Divine Physician broke it first, his voice grave.

“That is perfectly understandable.”

Beside him, Jeok Cheongang avoided my gaze.

“Yes. It’s the Scorching Yang Qi. He’s done nothing wrong.”

The Bow Saint nodded and murmured, “Truly the chosen one…”

I took a quiet, deep breath.

It felt as though the world had stopped.

No—more accurately, I wished it would stop.

But even after I shut my eyes tight, made a fervent wish, and opened them again, the dreadful reality was still waiting for me right there.

The Divine Physician. Jeok Cheongang. The Bow Saint.

Fine. I could understand them. They were old enough to have been through every kind of trouble and seen every kind of thing they’d rather not have seen.

But they weren’t alone in the room.

The Fire Dragon Pavilion.

Fuck. The Fire Dragon Pavilion.

I was looking at them. They were looking at me.

More precisely, they were staring at me with their eyes wide, as though they couldn’t believe what they were seeing—at the sight of my hand inside the front of my pants.

Ah.

I barely swallowed the sigh that was about to burst out.

Then, as calmly as I could, I spoke.

“I know. It looks like there’s plenty of room for misunderstanding.”

“I don’t think it’s really a misunderstanding, mm.”

Song Ilseom cut himself off when he saw my expression.

Beside him, Sama Pyo looked distinctly surprised. He silently gave me a thumbs-up.

……You bastard.

Somehow feeling a little pleased and utterly humiliated at the same time, I tried again.

“But there were…circumstances.”

“Taishan knows! Taishan knows the circumstances! Taishan knows what that is!”

“Shut your mouth, you bastard!”

Ah.

Taishan had been bouncing with excitement, but shrank back at my thunderous shout. For some reason, Namho was still perched on his shoulders, riding him like a human throne. He spoke with a serious expression.

“But when are you going to take that hand out?”

Straight to the heart of it.

I kept my cool.

“I was just waiting for the right moment.”

“Mm. In a situation like this, it can’t be easy to pull it out.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Still, there are a lot of eyes on you. You should take it out now. Quickly, not slowly.”

“May I ask why?”

“The slower you move, the longer they’ll watch. I’ll count to three. Take it out exactly on three.”

“That’s a good idea, except I think saying it has drawn even more attention.”

Namho glanced around, then nodded as if I’d made a good point.

“That’s true.”

“Please don’t say anything else. Just for a moment. A very short moment.”

“All right.”

Namho fell silent. I took a small breath, then cautiously addressed the one person standing beside Hyuk Mujin and looking the other way.

“Young Lady Ju.”

The next moment—

Whoosh. Bam!

Ju Hwaran bolted out of the room faster than I’d ever seen her move. Hyuk Mujin came over and patted my shoulder.

“I understand exactly how you feel, Captain.”

“……Shut it.”

“Yes, sir.”

I wished it had just been a dream.