How a legendary returner lives

The secretary of the Salvation Guild, led by my sister, finished a bottle of soju in an instant.

He didn’t pour it into a glass. He drank straight from the bottle. It only took him about 2 seconds to finish it.

“Are you drinking alcohol like water?”

Yoon Yeong-su chuckled.

“Awakened people don’t get drunk easily. You know that, don’t you?”

“I know, but did something bad happen? Are you drinking like that because you’re hesitant to spend money on buying me dinner?”

“Of course not.”

He then ordered another bottle of soju and downed it.

At first, I thought he had a very smart image, but I’m seeing a different side to him now.

I asked him, “Are you lonely?”

“Yes, I’m still single.”

“You should hurry up and find a partner. You’re just lonely. Lonely.”

Yoon Yeong-su smirked.

Then he said to me, “Master left the country today.”

“Where to?”

“To the United States. He’ll probably be there for about a week.”

Yoon Yeong-su checked the time.

“You probably wouldn’t know, but compared to the past, transportation like airplanes has advanced exponentially.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It’s been about 4 hours since Master left, and by now, he should have arrived on the mainland.”

I tilted my head.

“But why are you here then?”

I was just curious. Yoon Yeong-su immediately replied.

“Master told me to stay.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Yes. And I also have something to discuss with you, but I didn’t expect to meet under a murder case.”

I laughed as well. Slowly, Yoon Yeong-su started grilling the meat. I asked him, “Aren’t those four coming? It would be nice to eat together.”

“I don’t think they would benefit from hearing what I have to say. I believe you would agree with that.”

There was nothing strange about that.

The 200th Apostle, whom I had impersonated, and the current me are different individuals. He was some kind of genre writer and broadcaster, but I don’t know anything about that.

I didn’t want to explain that difference, nor did I want to keep pretending.

Yoon Yeong-su pulled out a small box and handed it to me.

“What’s this?”

“Open it. You’ll know when you see it.”

I opened the box. Inside, there was a card.

It was a black card, and it had something written on it in English, but even though I don’t speak English well, I could recognize this:

American Express.

“It’s a Centurion card. If you need something or want to buy something, you can use this.”

I knew this was a credit card. And I’m not the kind of person who turns down a gift. Sure, if you pick up something weird, it might cause problems, but my stomach is strong enough. This much is fine.

“And this is the watch that the 200th Apostle used when he impersonated you. It’s registered under your name and is still usable. I haven’t erased any numbers or anything, so you can use it as it is or get a new one.”

I looked at the watch that Yoon Yeong-su handed me.

It was the watch that Apostle used…

But since it was registered under my name, it would be strange not to use it.

I thought I could thank him later. After putting the card and the watch in my pocket, I asked him, “Is this the main point?”

“It is, but there’s something more to add. Is your current residence at the JAE Apartment in Heungdeok District, Cheongju?”

“I’ll be staying there for the time being.”

“Would you like me to find you a place to live? I can find you something in Seoul or Pangyo.”

Before answering, I grabbed a piece of meat. It was delicious. Meat never betrays you.

Chewing, I asked, “Why are you offering to find me a place? Did my sister tell you to do this?”

“That’s not the case.”

“Then why?”

“I need to ask you something first.”

“What is it?”

“I need to know what you plan to do next.”

I laughed.

“Well, I guess I’ll do anything.”

“Will you be dealing with ‘doppelgängers’ like Kim Min-jae’s case in the future?”

This part is important to clarify.

They all call themselves Apostles, but to me, they’re just doppelgängers.

The 200th doppelgänger, the 189th doppelgänger.

I killed those two. Now there are 198 left.

“Let me answer first. I’ll probably deal with them. There are many people who’ve asked for my last will.”

“Are all 199 people, except for Jin Si-hoo, involved?”

“Let’s clarify this too. ‘People’ should be ‘things.’”

“…I see. So, you’ll be dealing with all 198 of them?”

“Not all of them, surely? Confucius said that when five people are gathered, one of them is bound to be trash.”

“Isn’t that something a comic character said, not Confucius?”

“Oh, is it?”

“Yes, Confucius did say something similar, but it was about how when three people walk together, one must be my teacher. It’s probably from the *Analects*.”

“Ah, you must have learned something weird from Min-jae. But you’re smarter than that. Have you read books like the *Analects*?”

“Well, I did read some Western and Eastern literature in college.”

Anyway, to answer the question:

“There were a lot of scummy guys among them, so not all of them were allies. Actually, there were more scum than good people.”

“What about Jin Si-hoo?”

“As for me? I was just a murderer.”

Yoon Yeong-su flinched at that answer.

So I asked, “Why are you curious about that?”

Yoon Yeong-su took out a pen and paper from *A-Gong-Gan* and wrote something down, then handed it to me.

“This is my email. If you make a list and send it, I’ll investigate and send it back to you.”

I held the paper for a moment.

Hmm.

“I’m really curious, though. Just asking.”

Yoon Yeong-su blinked at my next question and then let out a short laugh.

It was understandable.

“Do you like men?”

Anyone would have thought he was going to react like that. Yoon Yeong-su answered.

“No. I like women. I’m a thorough heterosexual.”

“Then why are you being so nice to me? I don’t think my sister ordered you to do this.”

“Actually, I was ordered to look after you, but that’s not the only reason. There’s a personal reason.”

“A personal reason?”

Yoon Yeong-su downed his drink in one go.

Then, slowly, he looked me in the eye and spoke clearly.

“To be honest, I don’t care whether you’re the ‘real Jin Si-hoo’ or an ‘Apostle.’”

“Why not?”

“Because I need you.”

“You need me?”

“Whether you genuinely care about our master, or if our master is in danger and needs help, if any of those three things are true, I will actively help you. And one of those things has already been confirmed.”

He smiled mysteriously. Look at this.

“So, what’s the real reason?”

“…”

“If you don’t tell me, I’ll tear this paper up.”

Yoon Yeong-su gave me a very serious look.

He said, “I share the same dream as our master. A world without gates, and the freest person in the current world with gates is probably Jin Si-hoo. You’re the only one.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. I plan to make my dream come true in some way. I need Jin Si-hoo’s help in that process. That’s all.”

I roughly understood.

This was enough. If he needed me, then what could I do?

I put the paper in my pocket and stood up.

“I’ll send you the list by the end of the day. I’ll mark the names that need to be prioritized, and you can send those back to me by tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, I’ll do that.”

I shook the card in my hand.

“I’ll use this, so tell my sister thanks.”

“I’ll do that as well.”

I walked out. My stomach was mostly full now.

I took out my smartphone. There were a few messages.

[What the hell are you doing, running around? I’ve been at the police station for a while.] [Being questioned as a witness? This is driving me crazy.] [They suddenly told me not to come, is this right? Hyung, please reply.]

How should I explain this?

Personally, I felt a little bad for Jeong-bin.

Not right now, but I will feel bad in the future.

I stared at the messages for a moment before pressing the call button.

Jeong-bin’s voice came through. He asked what was going on.

I said to him, “Is there a gate near Cheongju?”

-…What?

“I’m asking if there’s a gate.”

-There are gates, of course. But most of them are scheduled to be cleared soon.

“Scheduled to be cleared?”

-Um… I didn’t mention this, but when a gate appears, bidding for it starts every day. A guild in Seoul handles gates in Seoul, and a guild in Cheongju handles gates there. The guild that wins the bid clears the gate. As a public servant like me, I control the area until the guild’s bidding is complete. As far as I know, all gates near Cheongju have been cleared, and only F-class or D-class gates are left.

I understood roughly.

This is how the world is going.

“Bin-ah.”

-Yes, Hyung.

“Find an S-class gate.”

-…Did you hear what I just said?

“Do you think I’m deaf already? I heard you.”

-You want me to find you an unregistered gate?

“Can you do it?”

-…The Gate Safety Management Department is the organization that detects gates the fastest in the world. But as far as I know, there have been two S-class gates in Cheongju this year, and one of them has already been cleared.

I paused for a moment.

So,

“What about the S-class gate that is scheduled to be cleared?”

-At Sangsan Fortress in Cheongju, ‘Our All Guild’ is scheduled to clear it at 6 PM tomorrow. Are you… planning to enter that one?

“I’m thinking about it. Hang up for now.”

I ended the call.

What should I do?

* * *

Yoon Yeong-su, left alone, was on the phone with Jin Song-yi.

-How is Si-hoo? He’s not starving or anything, right?

“Yes, no. We just had samgyeopsal with soju together.”

-Good, good. Has there been any other issue?

“No, none.”

Currently, South Korea is enjoying an unprecedented period of peace after the great upheaval. It could be called a golden age.

Not only South Korea, but the whole world.

The rapid increase of S-class gates?

The level of Awakened people worldwide is now such that they can clear S-class gates without significant difficulty, and SS-class gates can be cleared with only minor casualties.

What Yoon Yeong-su mentioned as a danger wasn’t the present, but the future.

If SS-class gates appear as frequently as S-class gates do now, it would definitely be a serious problem. And if SSS-class gates show up, well, that’s a whole other issue.

-I’m just worried because I’m far away.

“Is that so?”

-Our secretary doesn’t have any younger siblings, so you might not understand this.