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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Silverriver
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A moment ago.
In one of the countless dimensions connected to Earth through dimensional rifts.
“AHAHAHAHAHAHA! I’ve done it! I’ve finally done it!”
A handsome young man with beautiful black hair laughed heartily, his voice echoing through the world.
He was Seong Jin-hong, the 17th leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult, known as the Black Blood Demon Lord.
From beggars in the marketplace to high-ranking princesses, everyone in the Middle Kingdom knew his name. He was the strongest in the Middle Kingdom, unmatched under heaven, the greatest of all time.
“AHAHAHAHAHAHA!”
He couldn’t stop laughing, overwhelmed by an indescribable sense of happiness.
He’d done it! He’d finally achieved everything!
“Master. You’ve been beaming since the banquet began. Are you that happy?”
“Of course! How could I not be! I, Seong Jin-hong, the Black Blood Demon Lord, have everything under heaven in my grasp! How could I not be overjoyed!”
He wasn’t exaggerating. He truly possessed everything.
His martial arts prowess had reached the transcendental realm, leaving him without equal in the Middle Kingdom.
He could single-handedly slaughter an army of ten thousand, a feat that forced even the haughty imperial family to bow their heads.
Money, women, status, fame, power—all were his. He could usurp the throne and become emperor if he so desired.
“I’ve finally made it! I’m overjoyed! Truly overjoyed!”
Standing at the pinnacle of his life, Jin-hong had no doubt that this supreme happiness and contentment would last forever. He had overcome countless hardships to reach the summit, and now, he would enjoy eternal wealth and glory.
However.
Jin-hong didn’t know.
That endings always arrive unexpectedly.
-BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!!
“Gah?!”
A sudden, earsplitting ringing.
A massive rift tore open in the space before him.
“That’s…!”
He’d seen it before. But when?
His mind struggled to process the sudden change. The intensifying ringing made it impossible to think clearly.
“Guuuaaaagh…!”
Jin-hong collapsed to the ground, groaning. The rift widened, swallowing him whole.
Darkness.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The world went black for a brief moment, then light returned.
“…What in the world…huh?”
Jin-hong opened his eyes to a completely different scene.
The grand banquet, the bowing followers, the fawning beauties—all gone.
Instead, he found himself in a musty, old studio apartment.
“…What is this?”
At first, he couldn’t remember.
Then, memories buried deep within his mind began to resurface.
“This room…it’s where I used to live…”
The memory of the place triggered memories of the life he had long forgotten.
Seong Jin-hong, the 17th leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
He was originally an ordinary office worker in 21st-century South Korea.
His real name was Kim Beom-soo. A 41-year-old man.
His parents had both died when he was in his twenties.
He dropped out of college, drifted between factory jobs and manual labor, and then, through sheer luck, landed a job at a subcontractor for a large construction company. He’d even managed to climb the ranks to become a site supervisor.
But perhaps because of his hardscrabble life, he’d never had the time to look around.
His hastily lived life had been utterly bland.
He’d never married, never even had a girlfriend. He had a few friends from high school, but they’d drifted apart over the years.
His only remaining social connections were his colleagues, and even with them, he never shared anything truly personal.
Surrounded by this emptiness, he’d squandered his earnings on alcohol and fleeting pleasures. He had no real hobbies.
Perhaps reading martial arts novels on his phone during downtime at work could be considered a hobby.
That was his original life.
Completely different from the life of Seong Jin-hong, the 17th leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
An ordinary, if somewhat tedious, life.
That was the life he used to live.
“What in the world…”
And now, Jin-hong, or rather, Beom-soo, had been thrown back into that life.
Just as he’d been abruptly thrown into the martial arts world 15 years ago, without any warning.
And then.
-Click.
“!!”
Lost in his confusion, the door to his apartment swung open. A man and a woman in suits stepped inside, silhouetted against the setting sun.
“Who are you?!”
“Are you Mr. Kim Beom-soo?”
“I asked who you are! How dare you stand before me with your heads held high-”
“You must be confused. We understand. We’re officials from the Returnee Management Bureau. I’m Kim Ye-rim, in charge of the Gangbuk district of Seoul, and this is Officer Seo In-taek.”
“…Returnee, what?”
“Let me ask again. Are you Mr. Kim Beom-soo?”
The polite, official tone finally snapped Beom-soo back to reality.
‘I’m back?’
Back to reality. Back to his original world.
Back to being Kim Beom-soo, the office worker, not Seong Jin-hong.
“Who…who did you say you were…?”
He’d spoken politely, without even realizing it. It had been so long since he’d used honorifics. The officials kindly answered his bewildered question.
“We are Officers Kim Ye-rim and Seo In-taek from the Returnee Management Bureau. We’re government officials from an agency established to assist Returnees like yourself who have been transferred to other worlds and returned.”
Ye-rim offered him a business card. It read, “Returnee Management Bureau Officer Kim Ye-rim,” neatly printed.
“Ah.”
Not brushstrokes on paper. Clean, mechanical letters printed by a machine.
That’s when it truly sank in. He was back in his original world.
‘Does that mean I can’t go back?’
But the feeling that washed over him wasn’t relief.
It was regret, and a deep sense of injustice.
“Mr. Kim, you were a victim of the global-scale dimensional rift incident that occurred on April 25, 2018, commonly known as the ‘Great Transfer.’ Due to the dimensional rift, you were transported to another world, vastly different from this reality, and spent approximately 15 years there. Today’s date is March 10, 2033, and…”
He couldn’t hear a word the official was saying.
Now that reality had set in, thoughts of what he’d left behind flooded his mind.
My hard-earned skills?
My strength?
My power?
My wealth?
My authority?
My status?
My wives and women?
The realization that he’d lost everything filled him with an unbearable sense of loss.
Just moments ago, he’d been at the peak of happiness, possessing everything. Now, the exact opposite emotion consumed him.
“We detected early signs of your return, Mr. Kim, and came here promptly to provide you with the necessary information and assistance. Reintegrating into this world can be challenging, so please don’t hesitate to contact us at this number if you need any help-”
“Can’t I go back?”
He barely managed to get the words out.
Ye-rim’s expression momentarily darkened. But having dealt with countless similar cases, she quickly regained her composure.
“I’m sorry, but that’s impossible. There has never been a case of a Returnee returning to the world they were transferred to.”
A cold, but realistic answer.
Beom-soo couldn’t bear the overwhelming sense of loss.
He’d achieved everything, after all.
He’d started as a low-ranking member of the Heavenly Demon Cult, climbed to the position of Heavenly Demon, conquered the Middle Kingdom, and become the greatest of all time. He’d endured so much hardship.
He’d thought he could finally relax and enjoy a peaceful, happy life at the pinnacle of power.
But he was suddenly back in his original world.
Back where he started.
“A…nightmare.”
Ye-rim didn’t say anything to the despondent Beom-soo. She knew words wouldn’t help right now.
But given enough time, he would adapt and accept his situation. Their role was simply to facilitate that process.
“But there must be…there must be some way, right?”
After a while, still struggling to accept reality, Beom-soo asked in a weak voice.
“You…you’re Returnee officials or something, right? Then shouldn’t you know…a way to travel between worlds? Shouldn’t you?”
“Mr. Kim, as I said, there’s no such thing.”
“But…but this isn’t fair! I worked so hard to get where I was! Why…!”
Not fair. To whom? They had nothing to do with his transfer or his return.
“Why…why now…!!”
Then.
-Goooooooo……
As Beom-soo’s emotions intensified, an intangible energy began to emanate from him. He didn’t notice, but Ye-rim and In-taek’s expressions hardened.
“When I was a beggar, there was no sign of you…and now, after I’ve achieved everything, you tell me to go back? Why…why…!”
Despair and sorrow.
Grief and anguish.
Frustration and resentment.
All these emotions coalesced into rage.
And that rage began to awaken the power dormant within him.
“Mr. Kim, please calm down-”
“Why!!! Why now!!!”
-KABOOM!!!
With a furious roar, the intangible energy exploded outwards from Beom-soo.
Even though there was no wind indoors, Ye-rim’s hair whipped around her face as if caught in a gale. Dust billowed from every corner of the room, and a look of surprise flashed across all three faces.
Not just the two officials, but Beom-soo himself.
“Huh?”
He looked down at his hands.
They weren’t the hands of a 41-year-old construction worker.
They were the hands of Seong Jin-hong, the 17th leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
‘My body.’
It had transferred over. His body, and nothing else.
But that was enough. The power, the skills, the mastery he’d achieved were all ingrained within his body.
And then.
“Mr. Kim, please calm down. You’re understandably confused after your sudden return-”
“Send me back.”
Beom-soo’s speech had reverted back to the informal tone. Not just his speech, but his eyes, his expression, his demeanor. His very sense of self had shifted.
He was no longer Kim Beom-soo, the ordinary office worker.
He was Seong Jin-hong, the Heavenly Demon who had stood above all others.
“Mr. Kim, I repeat, there’s no way to-”
“How dare you talk back to me!!”
-KABOOM!!!
Another surge of energy erupted from Beom-soo.
This time, it was a conscious release of power.
A wave of murderous intent and pressure directed at the two officials before him. A crack appeared on Ye-rim’s glasses.
Beom-soo felt wronged. And that feeling of injustice morphed into resentment and rage directed at the two officials.
He knew it wasn’t their fault, but that didn’t matter to him right now.
“If there’s no way, then find one! Find a way to send me back, no matter the cost!”
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To Beom-soo, or rather, Seong Jin-hong, the other world was now his real world. Ye-rim sighed, seeing his distorted perception.
“In-taek.”
“Yes.”
In-taek stepped forward, an unfamiliar energy radiating from him.
It was part of their job to calm agitated Returnees. They were trained in combat.
“Rock.”
-Rumble!
As In-taek quietly spoke, his fists became encased in solid rock.
He was a Returnee himself. In his other world, he was a monk who channeled the power of spirits to enhance his physical abilities. His fists could shatter boulders and shake the earth.
But.
“You dare!!!”
Before In-taek could even react, Jin-hong’s fist shot out like lightning.
-CRASH!!!
In-taek’s body smashed through the apartment wall and out into the open air. He hadn’t even had time to defend himself or dodge.
A monk with the power of spirits?
So what?
He was facing the Heavenly Demon, who had reigned supreme above all.
“Huh?”
Ye-rim stared at the gaping hole in the wall. In-taek was nowhere to be seen.
That was the power of the strongest in the Middle Kingdom.
Unreasonable, unstoppable force that allowed for no resistance.
“…If you don’t want to end up like him, find a way. Any way.”
“…”
Despite Jin-hong’s threat, Ye-rim remained calm.
At least, on the surface.
‘Th-this is bad.’
Seo In-taek, a B-rank ability user, had been defeated without a chance to fight back.
That meant they needed military-level force to stop this man.
But they couldn’t just call in the army to a residential area.
There was only one option left.
“C-can I call my supervisor…?”
“You’d better hurry. My patience is wearing thin.”
Ye-rim, sweating profusely, pulled out her phone.
She wasn’t calling her supervisor for advice. Sending him back to his other world was impossible.
Instead, she sent a text message through the Bureau’s emergency channel:
[ Code 1 emergency. Returnee threat. ]
[ Requesting immediate Enforcer dispatch. ]
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everyone greet our Trainee Enforcer Lee Ha-yeon
