How a legendary returner lives

“…….”

“Second question: Kim Min-jae, who was working as a certified realtor in Kimcheon Innovation City, has died. Is this related to the disappearance of the 200th Apostle?”

At this point, it was impossible for her not to know.

No, it would be strange if she didn’t know.

“John Marcel, you were an Apostle.”

“Third question: Tell me everything about the Returnee Jin Si-hoo.”

“That’s impressive. You really are like a ghost. Have you been acting all this time?”

It was a strange situation where they were only talking past each other. John Marcel frowned.

“That’s not an answer to my question…”

“Just the first verse, just the first verse. Don’t go further.”

“……”

“What exactly are you doing on Earth?”

“……That’s none of your business…”

“Isn’t it embarrassing?”

“What?”

“Doppelgänger. Hiding in the world while pretending to be someone else—that’s really embarrassing, isn’t it? Don’t you think?”

John Marcel wiped his chin. It seemed like words wouldn’t work. His expression slowly began to change.

Crack, crack.

With the sound of bones twisting, his body started to elongate.

His height, which was originally only 170cm, grew to a massive 2 meters, and muscles began to form.

Two horns sprouted from his forehead, and six wings rose from his back.

It was definitely the first time Jin Song-yi had ever seen such a creature in her life. Moreover, she didn’t even react as the creature came so close.

Yes.

Jin Song-yi didn’t react.

“You’re just a woman who’s used to being called ‘queen’ in the human world, aren’t you?”

His tone had changed.

Up until now, John Marcel had been speaking softly, seemingly respectful. But not anymore.

John Marcel, now right in front of her, swung his fist.

It hit Jin Song-yi’s cheek with no interference.

Boom!

With a huge sound, Jin Song-yi was sent flying.

Crash, she slammed into the wall and coughed up blood. She hadn’t seen it coming. She hadn’t even felt it.

She slid down the wall, her feet touching the ground. She barely managed to regain her balance. At the same time, five spheres appeared around her.

John Marcel, with an expressionless face, stared at her.

“Knowing about the existence of the Apostles means you cannot survive in this world. I’ll give you a chance to die without pain. So answer my question.”

Jin Song-yi didn’t answer with her mouth. She sent her thoughts into the Light Spheres, telling them to fire.

Five beams of light shot toward the creature. The creature waved its hand in response.

Boom!

The beams exploded in mid-air with a deafening noise. Jin Song-yi didn’t stay still. She had already closed the distance.

In an instant, Jin Song-yi rushed right in front of the creature and concentrated all her mana into her palm.

Her palm turned red.

This could be considered a skill or a martial technique. It was a technique no one in this world knew, and Jin Song-yi had created it herself.

It was Jin Song-yi’s exclusive martial art.

[Flame Yang Divine Demon Art]. [Chapter 1: Purple Yang Demon Flame Palm.]

She thrust her palm forward.

Boom!

A distinct handprint of Jin Song-yi was etched into John Marcel’s abdomen.

“Mm.”

He let out a short grunt as he was pushed back.

“Not bad.”

Like a well-oiled machine, his next move was incredibly smooth.

He reached out. Jin Song-yi’s hair was grabbed.

Jin Song-yi kicked out.

[Flame Yang Divine Demon Art]. [Chapter 2: Purple Yang Demon Flame Kick.]

Her entire foot turned red. This time, John Marcel was pushed back.

John Marcel looked up.

With a strange expression, he stared at Jin Song-yi’s hair in his hand.

“To think, in just 10 years, even with a ‘fragment,’ you’ve grown this much? Interesting…”

Ziiing!

Five beams of light struck John Marcel. A massive cloud of dust and an explosive sound filled the air. Jin Song-yi didn’t stop.

She was ready to continue her attack.

However…

Boom!

With another deafening sound, Jin Song-yi was sent flying toward the wall once more.

She crashed into the wall and coughed up blood again.

As she struggled, she heard the sound of air being torn by a powerful gust.

Then, crack, before she knew it, John Marcel was holding her neck.

Boom!

Once again, Jin Song-yi was slammed into the wall. John Marcel—or rather, the monster—spoke.

“You’re excessively rude.”

“Cough.”

“Are you worried about the humans outside? If you just accept my offer, they’ll be safe.”

“…Let go.”

“Don’t waste my time. My name is the 99th Apostle, Kar…”

“Hey.”

Just as John Marcel was about to introduce himself as “Kar something,” he quickly turned his head.

He froze. Who was this man?

When had he arrived?

The man in the black coat seemed completely out of place in this setting. A sense of unease spread over him.

He definitely looked human, but why did his presence feel beyond human?

And his face was so familiar.

The smile on his lips sent a chill down John Marcel’s spine.

His mouth smiled, but his eyes were not smiling.

Also…

His fist was coming toward me.

Boom!

With a massive sound, Marcel was sent flying far away.

My side hurt. It felt like my bones had been shattered. What kind of destructive power is this?

Just as I was about to quickly get up, a shadow loomed in front of me.

It was definitely a ‘foot.’

And then—

Boom!

Marcel’s face slammed into the ground once again. The destruction was so intense that a giant crater formed around him.

The man stomped on Marcel’s face and took a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it.

Hiss.

The cigarette flared to life.

Marcel wanted to ask. Who are you?

It was just too late.

The man, Si-hoo, took a drag and exhaled smoke as he spoke.

“Who are you?”

Jung-bin had shared some facts with me.

To become an Awakener, one must graduate from the “Awakener Academy.”

Graduating from this academy is necessary to officially obtain the title of an Awakener and gain the qualification to enter gates.

However, this is only the “rule of Earth.” When the gates first appeared, there was no rule stating that one had to graduate from the Awakener Academy to pass through them.

Anyone could enter a gate.

It didn’t matter whether the gate had been cleared or not.

But there was an unofficial rule.

Only living creatures could travel through the gates.

In the early days, many people—such as streamers or those who didn’t know any better—entered the gates recklessly, often meeting tragic ends.

That’s why, whenever a gate appeared, the police would immediately surround it.

Gates explode exactly 2 weeks, or 336 hours, after their emergence, causing a phenomenon known as a Gate Break. For an F-class gate, the shockwave can destroy an entire building, while an S-class gate can devastate an area within a 20 km radius.

Naturally, if a gate undergoes a change in its classification, the shockwave’s intensity increases accordingly.

If it’s an SS-class gate, it could wipe out an area of over 100 km.

There had once been an SS-class gate that erupted in Dalian, China, and the city was erased from the map.

“The Texas gate, which occurred on Monday, has caused a shift today. Its level has reached SS, which is the same as the Baekdusan gate that occurred long ago. And now, the grade of this gate is continuously rising… Currently, South Korea’s unique Awakener, Jin Song-yi, is entering the gate. As the guild master of the Salvation Guild, she is single-handedly helping the U.S. Helios Guild… The situation is getting more serious… We must quickly assemble a rescue team… A firm decision from the World Hunter Association is urgently needed…”

A reporter, presumably from South Korea, was speaking into a camera.

She seemed to be trying her best to stay calm, but her trembling hands were betraying her. It was understandable.

When entering a gate, certain procedures must be followed. The same goes for altered gates.

In both cases, approval from the Awakener Association is required. For altered gates, the approval of the World Awakener Association is mandatory.

“…Unfortunately, due to the constant rise in the gate’s level, it seems that no one, except our Salvation Guild, is stepping forward to assist.”

Yoon Young-su’s words spoke to the harsh reality.

Yeah, even if they are called heroes or whatever, it couldn’t be helped.

That’s just how the world works.

“I’m going in. I’ll be out soon, so take care of things.”

With those words, I slipped the watch into my pocket.

I left my seat.

No one noticed my presence. Without any obstruction, I entered the gate. Once inside, I saw many people nervously pacing around the gate.

I almost forgot.

This is another “unofficial rule.”

Once you enter a gate, you cannot exit until the gate is cleared.

In simpler terms, you can enter at will, but you cannot leave freely.

Before their gazes could fall on me, I made my way forward.

Then, I saw it.

My older sister, her neck being gripped by some bizarre-looking monster.

It seemed like they were talking, but it was unsettling.

An indescribable anger surged within me.

That was as far as it went.

I wasn’t an amateur anymore, and I had long graduated from being ruled by anger.

My mind quickly became calm.

At the same time, the “ten” circles surrounding my heart opened. They began to resonate with each other.

This was the preheating stage before awakening the circles.

Slowly, I spun “five” of the circles that had awoken.

My body, which had already surpassed human limits, once again transcended humanity, though I kept the power suppressed to act like an ordinary human.

My vision became clearer.

Dust floating in the air moved sluggishly. The flow of mana hanging in the air became distinctly visible to my eyes. In that beautifully entangled world, I—

Moved.

In the blink of an eye, I was right beside the monster.

“Hey.”

The monster flinched and turned its head. That was as far as it got.

I swung my fist. A simple punch, with no pretense or style, landed in its side. Its eyes bulged as a crackling sound echoed through the air, and the bones in its side shattered, reverberating like thunder.

Boom!

The monster was sent flying. After a few bounces on the ground, it tried to rise, but—

Boom!

I stomped on its face.

By the way, I had bought exactly two items with the card my sister gave me.

One was a cigarette, and the other was a lighter.

I pulled the cigarette from my chest pocket and lit it with the lighter.

The smoke filled my lungs.

Hoo.

Exhaling the smoke, I asked:

“Who are you?”