A single line from some fortuneteller threw the entire United States into an uproar.
-In the not-so-distant future, the God of Death will descend upon this land!
A prophecy like something you'd see plastered across a comic book cover—it was the kind of statement that would normally get zero attention. But the fact that it was delivered by one "Norma Selner" made it a very different story. Who was she? Having suddenly awakened her spiritual eye two years prior, she had correctly predicted the death of the North Korean leader, a terrorist hijacking of a passenger jet, and the collapse of the stock market triggered by a housing crash. She was a figure forever at the center of controversy. For someone like her to suddenly leave behind a message hinting at the end of the world, everyone could do nothing but be stunned. Norma Selner's other nickname was "The Fortuneteller Who Never Misses." The media outlets that had given her that title scrambled in a panic, tripping over one another to request interviews. But Mrs. Selner turned away every reporter, and quietly delivered these words to just one person—a journalist she happened to be close with.
-The God of Death will descend upon this land with countless soldiers of death. Just as there is no escaping death itself, there is no fleeing from the God of Death.
And then, the very next day—when a massive black hole appeared in the skies above Seoul, large enough to blot out the entirety of the heavens—her prophecy made the headlines of every newspaper in the world.
* * *
And inside that Gate. Jin-Woo looked down at the crowd below, packed so tightly together it was as if every person in the world had been gathered in one spot, and let out a sigh.
"Ahhh..."
How wonderful it would be if that were a welcoming crowd. But he knew better than anyone that this was far from the case, so he simply gave a bitter smile. The Gate would open soon. For the people below, it would be an object of dread—but for Jin-Woo, it was the road home. His hometown. The thought that the path back to the home he had missed so dearly would open any moment now made his heart swell.
Come to think of it, was this the first time he had looked out from inside a Gate?
From the inside, the outside world showed through transparently. That was how Jin-Woo was able to observe the people who had gathered below his feet. He placed his hand against the Gate's wall—the barrier separating him from the world outside. In the past, shattering this wall had required him to exert his full power and clash with the force of the Sovereign Authority.
But now...
With just a slight application of force, a crack spidered across the surface of the Gate's wall with a sharp *snap*. A little more pressure, and it would crumble without resistance. For the briefest moment, Jin-Woo considered breaking through and descending. Then he shook his head with a smile.
...No.
No need to scare the people down there any more than they already were. He had waited nearly thirty years for this very moment. He could manage a few more days. As he quietly withdrew his hand, he noticed something.
Wait a minute. Since when was this the hand of a middle-schooler?
He realized his own hand was far too large. Having spent an astonishing twenty-seven years in the space between dimensions, Jin-Woo had already become a middle-aged man. The time his body had experienced had long surpassed the age of his father. But the time he had been gone from the outside world was a mere two years. He needed to adjust his body's age to match the outside world's timeline, so that the people who once knew him wouldn't be shocked by how drastically he had changed. It wasn't that he particularly wanted to look younger—not even a little... well, actually, maybe a little. Either way.
"Can't be helped."
Grinning, Jin-Woo looked down at his body and used his power. For Jin-Woo, who had fully mastered the abilities of the Shadow Monarch, the aging of the body was no great obstacle. In moments, his frame shrank down to the size of a middle school boy. *Swoosh*—the face of a middle-aged man with stubbled features smoothly transformed into that of a bright-faced teenager. The black smoke that had briefly coiled around him dissipated, and the clothes he wore shifted into the school uniform he had on before he left home.
This should be about right?
Jin-Woo smiled, apparently satisfied with his new appearance—now unmistakably that of a student. Body and soul, he had finished preparing himself to go home and see his family. All that remained was to wait.
Just two more days...
Even this time spent waiting for the Gate to open was a joy for Jin-Woo, who now stood at the end of a long journey.
* * *
"Uh... huh? Over there—it's opening!" "The hole is opening!"
People shrieked and pointed at the Gate as it began to open. Aaahhh! Kyaaa! But all that was revealed was the deep interior of the Gate—the tunnel leading somewhere far below. Nothing jumped out from inside it, nor did anything of the sort happen.
"...?" "What is it?" "Is that it?"
The crowds who had flocked from all over the world like clouds to watch the Gate murmured among themselves as they gazed at the flickering, slowly fading aperture. Meanwhile, Jin-Woo slipped quietly out from between the people without anyone noticing. On a deserted street, he dropped his concealment. The crowds were so fixated on the disappearing Gate that not a single person paid any attention to the middle schooler who had suddenly appeared on the street. Jin-Woo glanced around at the onlookers, then turned to head home—when he spotted a young man standing before him, holding an expensive-looking bouquet of flowers. The man smiled and spoke.
"Welcome back safely, Mr. Sung Jin-Woo. Or should I address you as the Shadow Monarch?"
A face he had never seen before. But there was no malice in the emotions he gave off.
"I don't care what you call me."
Jin-Woo took the bouquet from the man's outstretched hands with one arm and cracked a small smile.
"It's not bad having even one person here to welcome me."
He briefly leaned in to smell the flowers, then looked up. The man spoke, looking genuinely surprised.
"I truly... never imagined you would handle them all on your own and return. Yet I can feel the weight of ten million soldiers in your footsteps."
The Legion had been defeated, and the citizens of Chaos, once their forces, had all fallen under the Shadow Monarch's banner. Jin-Woo—now the greatest power among all Monarchs and Rulers combined—let the bouquet droop slightly in his hand as he asked.
"Surely you didn't come all this way just to hand me a bouquet... What business does the Rulers' messenger have with me?"
Despite a tone that could come across as haughty, Jin-Woo's expression was utterly at ease. A lion does not fear sheep. The overwhelming strength, honed sharp through countless wars, was enough to make even the man who had sought Jin-Woo out knowing full well who he was tremble. It was those in the position of sheep who needed to fear. Before the majesty of a lion-like Monarch, the man bowed his head respectfully.
"The Rulers have a message to deliver to the Shadow Monarch. It may be a lengthy matter—shall we move to a different location?" "Sure."
With a smile on his face, Jin-Woo walked past the man, taking the lead.
"As a matter of fact, I just thought of a place I've been wanting to go."
* * *
"..."
The man stared down at the ice cream placed before him, then looked up.
"The place you wanted to visit was an ice cream shop?"
Looking younger on the outside didn't mean his tastes had changed along with it. It was simply that—
"When you've been in the wilderness for a long time, you start craving something sweet."
Jin-Woo answered with a smile and began eating his ice cream. The coolness touching the tip of his tongue. And the sweetness. Only now did it truly feel like he had come back home. He had been stopping the man from getting to the point several times over, and it was only after the bowl was scraped clean that Jin-Woo finally spoke.
"What do the Rulers want?"
The man, who had been blankly watching the Shadow Monarch's snack time, finally snapped back to his senses and spoke hurriedly.
"Ah, first of all, the Monarch has our sincerest gratitude..." "Skip the formalities."
The Rulers, who no longer had any business left in this world, had sent a messenger. Jin-Woo surmised this was no ordinary matter, and refused the preamble.
"Is there some kind of problem?" "No. Nothing of the sort. In fact, it is precisely because all problems have been resolved that I have come to find you, Monarch."
It is because all problems have been resolved that you came. Jin-Woo's gaze grew serious. Meeting that look, the man swallowed dryly with a click of his throat. But he could not let fear make him forget his errand. The man spoke with difficulty.
"The Rulers are... worried about the impact your power will have on this world. As you yourself are aware, the power you possess is of a magnitude that this world can barely withstand." "And?" "This world has no mana, and is far too fragile. Therefore, if it is acceptable to you, the Rulers wish to transfer you to a world that can bear your power." "Rather than going through the trouble of relocating me, you could always just seal me away cleanly." "That method is also available."
*BOOM!* Jin-Woo lightly struck the table, and the man, whose face had brightened as he was about to reply, instantly fell silent. Jin-Woo's voice rumbled out, heavy and low.
"Is this your way of saying I've outlived my usefulness, and now you want to get rid of me? Because you're afraid of the power I hold?"
Jin-Woo was still smiling, but his eyes were incomparably colder than just moments before. The man flinched violently, waving his hands in a panic.
"No! Absolutely not!"
And he thrust a newspaper toward Jin-Woo. Jin-Woo read the article splashed across the front page. It featured one of those familiar faces—an article about the prophecy of Mrs. Norma Selner, who in a previous timeline had been active as an "Upgrader" ability user.
-In the not-so-distant future, the God of Death will descend upon this land!
At the words "God of Death," Jin-Woo's eyebrow twitched for just a moment.
"In the original timeline, she was not originally such a remarkable fortuneteller. But contact with our world changed the course of her life."
A portion of the articles about her. Jin-Woo's gaze lingered on the passage stating that she had "suddenly awakened her spiritual eye." Two years ago. The timing—so close to when the gods' tool had been used to rewind time—could not possibly be a mere coincidence.
"You're saying my existence could continue to cause changes like this in the future?" "That is correct, Monarch."
Seeing that Jin-Woo appeared to have calmed his anger, the man let out a sigh of relief.
"In anticipation of changes that may or may not occur, the Rulers' thought is that, if you are willing, they would like to offer you a place to stay." "..."
Jin-Woo leaned back in his chair. He still could not detect a shred of malice in the man. Both the man and the Rulers connected to him were making their proposal driven entirely by good intentions. But—to have to hear this on his very first day back home. Jin-Woo, who had been buzzing with excitement at the thought of returning, could not hide the bitterness in his heart. He did not want to deal with this kind of talk right now. And he made no effort to conceal that feeling.
"Could you come back another time?" "...I will do so, Great Monarch."
With a deferential bow befitting the supreme hero who had ended the war between Monarchs and Rulers, the man rose to his feet. All that remained where he had been sitting was a single business card, black on both sides. Presumably, it was an unspoken request to contact him here once Jin-Woo had made up his mind. Jin-Woo examined the card's front and back, smiled a lonely smile, and tucked it into the inner pocket of his school uniform. The anticipation and excitement of having come home deflated like a bubble. A torrent of thoughts swirled chaotically through his mind.
If every living being had a predetermined purpose for its existence...
One thing he could be certain of. As the Shadow Monarch, he had fulfilled his original duty by using that power to repel the world's anomalies and the Monarchs' invasions. He had achieved his purpose. And so, a tremendous power whose purpose had been served was nothing more than a troublesome relic—like spent nuclear fuel. In that case, a sudden question surfaced.
Have I now become an entity this world no longer needs?
His chain of thought had just about reached that point when Jin-Woo spotted someone passing in front of the ice cream shop. As if drawn by something, he opened the door and stepped outside without thinking.
From here on, there would be moments when he would wonder whether he—the Shadow Monarch—should continue to remain here. But.
If there is even one reason left for me to stay...
A girl in athletic wear lightly jogged past the front of the shop, then stopped and turned around. Where she had caught a whiff of a wonderful scent, through the wide-open door of the ice cream shop, a boy she had never seen before was gazing at her.
What's this? Was ice cream always this good-smelling?
The girl tilted her head, looking back, but unable to resolve her curiosity, she soon started running again. Watching her retreating figure, Jin-Woo smiled for a moment. For there were still people he loved in this world. People who loved him, and people who had loved him. That was more than enough reason for him to remain here. He would stay, and he would find yet another reason to belong—and with that promise to himself, Jin-Woo smiled.