The Black Dragon Guild attempts to conquer the 40th floor of the Tower. Didn’t they confidently declare that they were going to finally show the might of the greatest guild? Unfortunately, they have returned empty-handed.

The Rank 1 Hunter! The Flame Emperor (炎帝) has single-handedly subjugated a Boss once again!

I envied him.

While blankly staring at the TV, I thought to myself: ‘I envy him. I envy him so much—it’s driving me crazy.’

Hello Flame Emperor-nim!

Ah, right. Hello…

The Flame Emperor furrowed his eyebrows. For some reason, even his scrunched brows looked handsome.

You have set a new record once again! You are the only person who can single-handedly subjugate a boss monster. May I ask you to share your impressions?

First of all, I would like you to change that shitty title.

Excuse me?

I’m talking about the Flame Emperor. Call me by my name instead of using that shitty title. Like, what is the Flame Emperor supposed to mean? It’s embarrassing. I would rather be called the Plague than the Flame Emperor. [1] Someday, I’ll definitely find the bastard who gave me this title and beat the living shit out of him.

U-Uhhh.

The surprised reporter stuttered. He could only stammer, unable to respond. Because the formidable man in front of him was widely known as the protagonist of this era. The subject of countless legends being written.

In comparison, I was just an extra who couldn’t even take on a minor role.

“Aaah,” I mumbled. “I really envy him.” How nice would it be to live a life like him? A life where you can say anything in front of a camera. I touched my smartphone and entered a random Internet community bulletin board for Hunters. I wanted to see how others reacted to the interview.

Hey, the Flame Emperor is screwing around again! [2]

2 minutes ago | Report

Reply ⏷

He is always on air, just like a plague.

2 minutes ago | Report

Reply ⏷

As expected, the community was on fire as they watched the interview. With a flick of my finger, I continued to scroll through the comments.

Can’t he hold his tongue when the entire world is watching him?

1 minute ago | Report

Replies 5 ⏶

ㄴIt’s not like this is the first time.

1 minute ago | Report

ㄴIt’s the broadcaster’s fault for doing this even though they know what kind of a person he is.

56 seconds ago | Report

ㄴReal talk… They’re doing this just for the views…

44 seconds ago | Report

ㄴWow. Even this place is plagued. How sickening.

37 seconds ago | Report

ㄴI want to become just like the Flame Emperor.

1 second ago | Edit

The internet community was divided into two sides: Those who defended the Flame Emperor and others who ridiculed him.

Flame Emperor-nim, I wish your personality matched your skills. Please bear in mind that you represent all Hunters in Korea. As a fellow Korean, I feel embarrassed whenever the interview gets transloted and distributed across the globe…

1 minute ago | Report

Replies 5 ⏶

ㄴIt is translated and not transloted. Before considering other languages, please give Hangul some more love. Also, your nationality does not matter inside the Tower.

1 minute ago | Report

ㄴAnd you guys can tolerate your master cursing in Korean? Flame Emperor, you are a disgrace.

50 seconds ago | Report

ㄴIt’s just a grammatical mistake. Why do you need to insult him for that? Your personality is fucked up.

38 seconds ago | Report

ㄴIt’s not my personality that is fucked up. It’s yours. GG.

23 seconds ago | Report

ㄴI want to become just like the Flame Emperor.

1 second ago | Edit

What utter chaos. But, this wasn’t the only community that was noisy. Any place that talked about Hunters was like this.

The Flame Emperor got a girlfriend! Apparently, it is the Saintess!

1 minute ago | Report

Replies 4 ⏶

ㄴThe Saintess? Really?

48 seconds ago | Report

ㄴMy friend is a Hunter and he saw the two of them together!

39 seconds ago | Report

ㄴMy friend is the Saintess and she said that isn’t true;

27 seconds ago | Report

ㄴI want to become just like the Flame Emperor.

1 second ago | Edit

Along with the Flame Emperor, the Saintess was one of the most popular Hunters. In one post, someone even kindly left an attachment file called, “Best Photo of the Saintess.” She was famous for her exceptional beauty that matched her stellar personality. And he is dating her?

“Uwauu.” I put down my smartphone and rubbed my head in frustration. By the way,

ㄴI want to become just like the Flame Emperor.

1 second ago | Edit

were all written by me. I wrote those posts as I surfed across a whole bunch of conversations. I would normally leave this comment on every post I visited. Why have I posted the same remark over and over?

Because: “I envy him! I really envy him! I want to be successful, too!”

Because I’m envious. This is how I truly feel. Since I live alone in a single room apartment, I can honestly admit how envious I am. Because I live alone. Because it’s my space.

So, of course, if anyone were to enter my space, they would be shocked. To say the least. Every wall held countless magazine and newspaper scraps accounting the adventures of the World’s Rank 1 Hunter, the Flame Emperor. Every day, I’m surrounded on all sides by his great legacy.

『The Flame Emperor single-handedly subjugates the 39th floor!』

『The Flame Emperor solo clears the 38th floor! Another legendary feat!』

『Hunter Yoo Sooha crowned as the World’s Rank 1. The first Korean to achieve it!』

ㆍ

ㆍ

ㆍ

『Disappearance of the Sword Saint & the empty Rank 1. Who will take the throne? Expert foreigners believe “Yoo Sooha from Korea is the best candidate.”』

『The impregnable 10th floor cleared! Who is the mysterious hero?』

『22 days since the Sword Saint’s disappearance. Will the Hunter Association face its worst crisis?』

The oldest articles dated back to 10 years ago, their yellow and curling edges proof of the time I’ve followed his feats. Of course, the newest articles of him held firmly to the wall, pristine and flawless. This was history. The Flame Emperor’s history. No. This was Hunter Yoo Sooha’s history that was recorded long before he received the title, and it surrounded me in all its glory. In this room. With me.

Ahhh. I clutched my head, staring at his accomplishments all around me.

‘I want to be successful too! Just like the Flame Emperor!’

I want to be so successful that others would become envious of me. By becoming successful, I would make an example out of everyone who looked down on me or failed to respect me. After making an example of them, I would tell them to “Live properly from now on.” Afterward, I’d kindly forgive them. I would forgive them—then everyone would praise me as a man with a big heart.

A hero with a big heart.

That’s right. I envied the hero on TV.

Flame Emperor-nim.

Wow. Didn’t I just tell you to not call me by that? I already knew from your trash journalism that your brain was rotten but were your ears also rotten?

S-sorry. Before you leave, please tell our viewers one last thing!

Hah? What do you want me to tell them?

There are many aspiring Hunters who look up to you and try their best. Awakening soon after entering the Tower in his early-20’s! Defeating a boss monster in less than a month later! A Hunter who literally writes legends, the Flame Emperor Yoo Sooha! Please tell your aspiring fans the key to success in one phrase! Just one piece of advice, please!

The Flame Emperor smirked.

If my advice could make them succeed, they would succeed with anything. If so, what difference will I make if they’ll succeed anyways?

Even so, please say something!

Ah, this is why fucking reporters are really… Fine. Just a few words then.

The Flame Emperor scratched the back of his head. His front hair was pulled back and tied with a rubber band. Was that hairstyle called a ponytail? His black hair, which was long like a horse tail, shook a bit.

Those who will succeed will succeed.

The Flame Emperor glared directly into the camera.

But, don’t get in my way even if you succeed. Or I’ll kill you.

Excuse me?

That is all. I don’t have anything else to say, so don’t follow me.

And it really ended with that. The Flame Emperor left the camera and walked away, alone. The reporter shouted, “Flame Emperor-nim! Flame Emperor-nim! What do you mean by that?” But he was completely ignored.

I gaped at the Flame Emperor’s back, slowly fading away.

Fuming rage.

I was furious.

It was the reporter who was being ignored, but it felt like I was personally being spurned, as well. From the bottom of my heart, I was boiling mad.

“If I just had one decent skill,” I said out loud to myself. Yearning was clear in my voice, but I didn’t care. To wish and to reach for something better was human nature.

In reality, I was the lowest F-Class Hunter. I didn’t have such things like making the Internet heated up—in real time—from an interview. Or having people interested in trivial matters of my private life. Or most importantly, succeeding with my own skills… and becoming rich. My life was far from such a successful life. Light-years away, if I was being honest.

But I didn’t care about petty semantics right now. What I wanted in this moment wasn’t to highlight how unattractive my life was. It was my yearning. “I want to succeed,” I said to the walls all around me. “I want to have an S-Rank skill too.” I considered the Flame Emperor’s bold face and all of the exclamations telling of his prestige. “And it’s not about the money,” I said. “I just want to succeed. How great would it be if the Flame Emperor’s skill was mine!”

If someone saw my current state, they would probably think I was insane. Obsessive. A freak. Annoying. After all, I was talking to myself and being quite explicit about my desires. But I’ll say this again. As many times as it takes. This is my single room apartment—my space. And in my room, I will say it out loud as many times as it takes.

“I want to succeed!”

And I’ll continue saying this because venting out my frustration in an empty area is my unique stress relieving method. It’s really unsightly to see, but who cares? It’s better than going outside and disturbing others.

It’s not like anyone was listening to me.

“… Huh?”

But it seemed like I was wrong.

As if someone heard me, a golden light flashed in front of me!

“I-Is this…?”

A scene that I’ve only seen from videos. A scene that I’ve rewatched hundreds of times—no, thousands of times. A scene that fueled my envy every morning because it’s never happened to me.

The light that appeared when a Hunter awakened their skill!

And—“It’s a golden light!”

Hovering before me. The light I’ve been wanting, needing, and coveting over. It was mine! And it was a golden light! A GOLDEN LIGHT.

At least an S-Rank skill! The golden light only appeared if the skill was at least an S-Rank skill!

My heart pounded like crazy, loud in my ears, as if it wanted to leap out of my chest.

The golden light concentrated in one spot and shaped into a card.

| An unsightly envy that is yet to be found in History!

| The Tower, astonished by your unsightly envy, throws you a skill.

Wait… The skill awakening sound was different compared to what I was told.

Normally, you would hear something cool like, “The Tower is moved by your determination,” or “The Tower rewards you for your honest efforts,” or “The Tower praises you for your achievements.”

But it threw me a skill because of my unsightly envy? It’s as if the Tower is treating me like a beggar.

‘N-Nah. Why should I care about its tone when I just received an S-Rank skill?’

Unease rose in my chest, but I brushed it aside. How long have I been waiting for this moment? It was not the time to be concerned with negative thoughts.

| Creating a skill card.

The light exploded one last time and a golden card waited before me.

With shaking hands, I grasped the card.

I blinked.

For a moment, I thought I misread something.

So, once again, I slowly read the last sentence written on the bottom.

However, you die!

It really said that. Right there, all in red. Exclamation point. As if the system was laughing at me. At my ten years of yearning and wishing.

If I use this S-Rank skill, I’ll die.

I blankly stared at the card.

The wind blew from the open window and shook the scraps of paper glued all over the walls. The crinkling of the paper tickled my ears. Time passed.

Then I screamed. Everything in me tore out of my throat. “FUUUCK! WHAT THE **** IS THIS?! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO USE THIS SKILL?!”

On this day, I obtained the greatest ever S-Rank skill. [3]

The greatest ever SHIT skill.

[T/N]

[1] The Plague (염병) is a play on words with the Flame Emperor (염제).

[2] 염병 is an insult that can mean screwing / fucking around or causing trouble.

[3] 역대급 which translates to all time greatest was simplified to the greatest ever.

Skill.

A word that reduced many Hunters to tears.

Conditions for awakening a skill vary from person to person:

I struck a scarecrow 10,000 times in the training room. Then, it naturally appeared.

One day, I suddenly heard a voice from God!

Magic? I was able to use it soon after entering the Tower.

Hunters with good personalities and strong willpower struggled to climb to higher heights because they lacked skills. In contrast, there were Hunters with dog shit personalities living good lives thanks to their skills. The Flame Emperor, who represented Rank 1, was the latter.

If we compared life to a game, wouldn’t the Flame Emperor be playing a game where luck was a skill? He could get anything he wanted with his luck skill.

In contrast… my life was comparable to a typical shitty RNG game.

I grumbled and heaved as I stumbled along who knew where. I’d left the bar after getting shit-wasted, but I couldn’t remember when that was. I entered an alley and more sludge spewed from my mouth. I swayed, my eyes focusing on my vomit: I recognized some of the food I’d eaten before.

“You are unlucky” is what my vomit seemed to be telling me.

“Shit…” I slurred. “If I am supposed to be unlucky, then don’t give me any luck at all. This false hope has killed me.”

When you play a game, when do you feel despair?

Those who have played gacha games on their phones would understand. It is not when you can’t get a single 5-Star unit after multiple pulls—It’s when you get that 5-Star that just happens to be utter garbage. A 5-Star that’s worse than a 3-Star.

Hell, my 5-Star was worse than a 1-Star.



I hurled again but nothing came out except a sob. “Fuck!”

Yeah. My life was truly a shitty RNG game.

Normally after awakening a skill, you had to report it to the Hunter Bureau. But I didn’t report it. Like hell I would. This shit was too depressing. Too embarrassing. Why the hell should I show them such a trash skill? Like, what would I say or how would it go:

“Hello, Hunter-nim,” they would say. “ How did you awaken your skill?”

What could I say? “Uh—I was envious of the Rank 1.”

“Excuse me?” Their faces would distort in confusion.

So, just to make it all better, I’d expound further. “I thought I would go insane because of my envy and jealousy. Then the Tower tossed me a skill like it was telling me to eat this and get lost.” Here was where I’d flourish my hand as if I was discussing a fine reward I casually got. “It even told me that I’m an ugly person with the greatest envy,” I’d say with a laugh. Haha. Right.

It’s not like I could say that! As if there was any way to tell anyone about this. I alone would laugh and be miserable at my unlucky, shitty life.

So I drank to my heart’s content and ended up wobbling around in a remote alley.

Though, nothing had changed—I was still failing. I couldn’t even wobble properly. Without realizing, I’d staggered into an unknown alley. I couldn’t remember how or when I got here. Where the **** I was, that was anyone’s guess.

Could I just fall asleep on the floor like this? ‘Ah. This is sad.’ So unlucky. I held back my tears.

A faint scream rose on the night’s air. It came from the other side of the alley.

The pained voice begged, “…please, ugh! Why are you…”

Instantly, my drowsiness disappeared.

That voice was too real to be mistaken as a drunken hallucination. While I could not know who it was, I understood that what was happening was life threatening.

‘What’s going on?’ I wondered, treading silently. Instinctively, I held my breath. One step at a time, I quietly stepped towards the alley where the scream originated.

As I approached, the voices became clearer.

This was—

“F-Flame Emperor-nim. Why are you suddenly—” a female voice said.

“—No use. No one is nearby to—” a male voice said.

—This was—the second stupid mistake I made today.

The first mistake—drinking until my mind fuse broke. Throughout my entire life, I never got dead drunk. However, today was an exception. I was extremely furious to find out that my first S-Rank skill was shit, so I ended up drinking makgeolli like water. [1]

My second mistake—not running away as soon as I heard the scream.

“I’ve poisoned your drinking cup in advance,” the male voice said. I couldn’t figure out why he sounded so familiar.

“P-poison? Flame Emperor-nim, I can’t understand what you are saying.” Even the woman’s voice. She sounded altruistic.

“Hey, your acting is pretty good. If someone else saw you, they would be fooled.”

A dead end.

In the dark alley without any street lights, there was indeed a man and a woman. Perhaps it was weird to describe them as simply being there. The man was threatening the woman and the woman was being threatened.

“Basilisk’s stomach acid,” the man said. “Originally, you would have poisoned my drinking cup with this. Wow. If it wasn’t for my skill, I would have been in deep trouble. Hm? What’s wrong? You look pale, Miss Saintess.”

“Is it the Ten Thousand Poison Immunity (萬毒不侵)…? I-impossible! You shouldn’t have such a skill.”

“Of course not.” The man laughed, the up and down of it echoing softly. “But I have a skill that’s slightly better than the Ten Thousand Poison Immunity.”

Finally, I realized who this man was. No matter how dark the alley was, I could see the man’s back—I couldn’t possibly miss that ponytail. I’d seen him and his feats surround me in my room every single day for the last ten years. And I’d seen him from TV just last night. I’d always wished to be just like him.

‘It is actually the real Flame Emperor!’ I goggled.

The Rank 1 Hunter. The protagonist of this era. An idol who tens of thousands of people looked up to. And because of that, he was the hero who received all the attention and envy… especially my envy.

Additionally, ‘Isn’t she the Saintess!?’

I covered my mouth to hold my breath. The Saintess. A Rank 9 Hunter who was selected by the Bureau. She is rumored to be dating the Flame Emperor. It was her recent behavior that sparked the entire scandal. The greatest beauty, who I’ve only seen from Internet photos and videos, was right there.

“But playtime is over,” the Flame Emperor said. “It’s time to pay the price for going against me.”

And she wasn’t just standing there. She was being threatened. “W-wait a moment, Flame Emperor-nim,” she begged. “You must have misunderstood… I only wish to clear the Tower with you as a team!”

“I thought so too, but that wasn’t the case,” the Flame Emperor said.

“Please wait a moment! Think about it. If we team up, we can easily clear up to the 40th floor! We might even clear up to the 50th floor in a year! That’s right! It’s the place that humanity has not reached yet, but if it’s the two of us—”

“I thought so too, but that wasn’t the case,” he said again.

Dumbfounded, I thought, ‘Weren’t those two… dating?’ The Internet said so. Even broadcasters discussed the two heroes’ passionate love. But the scene in front of me had no elements of romance whatsoever. It was difficult to even joke about it being a lover’s quarrel.

Murderous intent (殺意).

I only saw a man who wanted to murder and a woman who clung on for dear life.

“Please! Let’s just talk to clear up the misunderstanding,” she cried.

“Talk? Ah, talk. Alright. It’s the courteous thing to do.” The Flame Emperor seized the Saintess’ neck.

Her voice let out a loud choking noise before her air was completely cut off. After that, only small groans sounded.

“But, I’ll decide the rules and who gets to talk,” he growled.

The Saintess struggled as she suffocated. I watched her struggle and I also felt like suffocating. Unbelievable. Oh my God. Something that shouldn’t be happening was happening in front of me.

“I’ll ask the questions. Just answer me. Ah, you don’t need to talk. Simply nod your head to answer. Okay?”

She strove to nod, whimpering. I gulped in fear and sympathy.

“If you answer sincerely, I’ll let you live. I’ll even give you the antidote. But if you ignore my personal consideration… Well, do I need to explain further? I heard you graduated from Oxford. Use your smart head.”

The Saintess desperately attacked the Flame Emperor’s arm latched onto her neck.

The sound of her scrambling made its way to my ears but nothing happened. It was impossible for the the Saintess, who was well known as one of the best healers, to physically win against the Flame Emperor.

“Truthfully speaking, I only have one question for you.”

The Saintess fought for air.

“Who commanded you to kill me. Just answer me that. Was it the Black Dragon’s Witch?”

The Saintess flinched and stopped struggling.

“Think carefully before you answer,” the Flame Emperor said. “I might not have Ten Thousand Poison Immunity, but I do have a Lie Detection skill. If you lie to me and I find it out, I’ll burn even your bones into ashes.”

The Saintess didn’t answer right away. In the dark alley, it was difficult to see her face. However, you could feel her silence. While the Flame Emperor was watching, the Saintess slowly nodded her head.

“I knew it.” His small laughter rose in the air between them. “Goodbye, Saintess Isabelle.”

Flames erupted.

The fire swallowed the entire alley. It spread from the Flame Emperor’s grasp to the Saintess’ neck and then her entire body was engulfed in flames. She started to desperately struggle. It was her last resort to live. But no matter how hard she floundered against him, she could not escape the Flame Emperor’s grasp.

The Flame Emperor merely gazed at the burning Saintess. Untouched by his own affairs.

In front of the scorching flames, the Flame Emperor was calm. Being perfectly calm, he held onto the Saintess’ neck until the very end. The Saintess swung both of her arms. She dug her nails into the Flame Emperor’s arm and tried to scratch it. In the end, she reached towards the sky… and stopped soon after.

She went limp.

And she did not move anymore.

Emotions roiled in my stomach and smashed into my chest. ‘That crazy bastard!’

A hero of humanity died right in front of me. It was wrong to even say she simply died. That’s right-—her death was not normal.

She was murdered. Murdered by another hero of humanity, the Flame Emperor.

‘A madman.’

The Saintess was now just a burnt corpse. Even so, the flames did not stop. The Flame Emperor did not stop there. He burned everything until her flesh and bones melted. He did so with an emotionless face from beginning to end.

‘He is not sane.’ I took a step back. ‘I need to leave immediately.’

And thus, I made the third mistake of today. My final mistake—

Crunch—

It was a small sound. I didn’t step on a can. Instead, it was a small glass shard.

Perhaps it was a glass shard from a shattered soju bottle. [2] Maybe it was carried by the wind from another place… I didn’t fucking know how it got there. Rather, there was no need to know.

Instead, there two things I really needed to understand:

First, I’d made a retarded mistake.

“…Hoh,” the Flame Emperor’s voice turned towards where I was hiding.

And second, the Flame Emperor was not a predator who would miss out on another person’s mistake.

“I thought I took care of all the rats nearby. I guess one slipped.” His eyes found mine.

I ran.

I ran without looking back. Those were the eyes of a murderer. Not someone who killed one or two but someone who killed tens. Perhaps even more. His eyes were like a fucking demon.

And that demon was trying to kill me.

“Ha? How cute.” As soon as the Flame Emperor sneered, a hot sensation pierced near my ankle, and in the next moment, I rolled along the ground. At first, I couldn’t understand how I tripped.

At least not until I saw my legs on the floor.

“H-hiik…!?” A screech escaped my lips.

My legs were severed. My legs. Both of them were chopped. Left and right. They were still wearing shoes, too.

I could even see the famous brand logo drawn on the side of the sneakers.

“P-please let me live! Please!” I begged. Just like the Saintess.

“Then why did you run? You fucking scared me,” the Flame Emperor said, bending over. He picked up one of my legs. Then he started playing catch with it like it was a baseball. “Hey. Did you see?” he asked.

My eyes followed the up and down of my leg in the air. To his hands. And then back in the air. “I d-didn’t see anything!”

The Flame Emperor approached closer. “What did you not see?”

“I don’t know anything! Ugh. Please. I don’t know…”

“What do you not know?”

“Please… Flame Emperor-nim. Please… let me live. I won’t say anything. I won’t tell anyone.”

I felt his presence above my head.

He was bending his knees to look down on me. “Wow. So you’re telling me that you saw me and even recognized me? You might as well have seen it all. You probably know everything, too.”

“Please…”

“Hyung-ssi, you’re disappointing me. [3] Why are you acting like you know nothing?” The Flame Emperor probed my leg. “Tell me. Who sent you? Is it the Black Dragon again?”

“I… really don’t know… anything…”

“You’re still telling me that you don’t know anything but happened to watch over me and the Saintess from there? Silently, like a fucking rat? Hey, now. Hyung-ssi, your story is so reliable. If I was a bit more retarded, I would have probably believed you.”

The Flame Emperor grinned. “But you see, I’m not a retard. Are you fucking mocking me?”

Sparks of fire erupted in front of me. Flames erupted from the Flame Emperor’s palm and it spread onto my legs. The burst of fire eating my legs sounded like a barbecue, the wafting smell of roasting meat reached my overwhelmed senses.

He burned everything, leaving nothing behind. Not even the famous brand logo. Not even the shoes I’d worn for so long. Not even my legs, which were part of me for even longer.

All of it disappeared.

“Next will be your head. Answer me straight.”

My mind became all white.

This demon… was insane.

He was a madman. There was no point in talking to a madman. He didn’t care about what others thought, and he firmly believed he was always right. He was a fucking psychopath who would kill innocent people for no reason.

As someone who represented Rank 1. As a person, how could he do this?

You’re telling me that I was obsessed over someone like him?

Many people—including me—believed he was a hero. We liked him for being upfront and honest. We praised him as someone with a refreshing personality. This fucking lunatic?

“L-lie…” I stumbled.

“What?” he asked.

“Lie Detection skill… I heard you have a Lie Detection skill.” I desperately continued talking. “You told the Saintess that you can tell when someone lies. And that she should answer sincerely.”

When the Flame Emperor didn’t react, I continued, “So test me with that skill. Test me to see if my words are a lie or not. Flame Emperor-nim… I just happen to, really coincidentally, pass by. Please believe in me!”

The Flame Emperor’s expression became strange. “I made that up,” he said.

[T/N]

[1] Makgeolli is a popular Korean rice wine.

[2] Soju is a popular Korean alcohol. It’s a distilled spirit that comes in a variety of flavors.

[3] Hyung-ssi is a Korean honorification used by younger males when they speak to older males. Hyung directly translates to ‘older brother,’ which doesn’t sound as cool. -ssi is added at the end when the person is a stranger.

“What?” I asked.

“I made it up,” the Flame Emperor said. “Don’t you recognize a bluff?” He chuckled. “I don’t have any Lie Detection skills. It was a bluff to trick the Saintess. Wow, the two of you are really naive. Did you really believe me?”

“T-then…” My lips quivered. I was shocked. “Did you kill the Saintess without any concrete proof?”

A Rank 9 Hunter, the Saintess. Unlike the psychopath in front of me, she was an upright Hunter who donated most of her hard-earned money to orphanages. That’s how she earned her title as the Saintess. But you’re telling me that this man killed her based on a suspicion?

‘If that’s true, then…’ He’s not the greatest Hunter. He’s the greatest psychopath.

“Hey,” the Flame Emperor said. “Those were some harsh words. How can you judge a person like that? Of course, I checked. The Saintess really tried to kill me. If I didn’t kill her first, she would have poisoned me to death by tomorrow.”

The Flame Emperor spat on the floor. “Fucking plague! Just remembering it ruins my mood.”

“H-how do you know—”

“I know everything,” the Flame Emperor said, sounding as if what he said was obvious. “I just know everything. I have a secret trick.”

I gaped at him.

“But you don’t need to know about that,” he said.

I was at a loss for words. It wasn’t only because… the Flame Emperor was absurdly self-confident. There was a certain conviction reflected in his eyes. Confidence that there was a good reason to kill the Saintess. At the very least, that’s how it appeared to me.

“Well, you must be truly innocent since you heard me talk about the Lie Detection skill.” The Flame Emperor’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

“Ah…” I couldn’t close my mouth.

“To be fair, it is my first time seeing your face. I memorized the faces of all the rats hiding in this area. All 18 of them. I even counted their heads to make sure I didn’t miss a single fucker… Hmm. Anyway, you’re right. I don’t recognize seeing your innocent face amongst them.”

The Flame Emperor touched my head. Pat. He was smiling. Did he finally believe in my innocence?

“T-thank you—”

“But you know who I am,” he said. “You even saw me kill the Saintess.”

Pat.

“That’s why you have to die for me.” His fingers on my head stretched outward, extended into flames, and clasped my skull. Burning.

“My name is Yoo Sooha. Good bye.”

Heat seared my head. The inside became hot. Burning. Boiling. My skull churned like an oil container.

I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t scream. Under the intense pain, all circuits were cut off—impossible to make any noise at all.

‘To a madman like him… I guess I’m going to die like this. I’m…’

Kim Gongja (金孔子).

It was a name given to me by the caregiver of the orphanage. He wanted me to become a great person like Confucius. But I lived a life nothing like Confucius and died pitifully like an emaciated street dog.

Sorrow filled me. Overflowed from me and burned into the ground with the rest of me. If you compared this to a game, it would be a bad end. In plain words, a ruined life. A life where you die broken.

With only sorrow remaining.



I hated it.

| Skill conditions were met as a result of death.

Why did I have to die like this? Rather, why did I have to live like this? It was unfair. Fury engulfed me. Everything was unfair. I could have lived a better life. I had the right to live a better life.

But, I also made three mistakes: Died by mistake. Lived making mistakes. Born by mistake. Was everything a mistake since birth?

| Randomly copying Hunter Yoo Sooha’s skills.

| Creating skill cards.

I couldn’t hear anything. I couldn’t even see. But, a dim light flickered. It was like there were fireflies dancing in front of me. Some fireflies were brown. Others were silver. And some fireflies were… gold.

Fast.

The golden fireflies flew quickly. They were so fast, it was near impossible to catch them. There were many brown fireflies. They appeared easy to catch. There were also many silver fireflies. As expected, it was also possible to catch them. Then there was the sun. The only golden firefly that flickered so fast I could barely follow it with my eyes. It shone as brightly as the sun, difficult to focus on. That one.

| Please select a skill card.

I reached out for the one and only golden sunfire.

| Selected.

And I caught it.

| Copying the skill.

And then I died.

* * *

| Activating skill.



* * *

Do you know what Hell looks like?

I’ll tell you firsthand. First, there was no hellfire. In fact, I couldn’t find any fire. There was a gas stove, but it lacked the firepower to start a hellfire. Ah. Contrary to my expectations, Hell had a small fridge. It also had a small bed… and even an old TV.

“Huh?”

In other words, it looked exactly like my rented room. Rather, it was my rented room.

No matter how I looked at it, this was not Hell. It was my lovely 125 square-foot room that I rented for a cheap price.

“H-huh… Huh?” I felt my head with one hand.

It was perfectly fine. Just to make sure, I looked at my smartphone screen’s reflection. I saw a face that looked like an unfinished Apollo statue. It wasn’t handsome, but it wasn’t bad either.

I couldn’t find any burn marks.

“…Huh? What is going on?” Really, what was going on? ‘Did the Flame Emperor treat me and carry me back home?’

As if.

However… it was the only explanation I could think of at that very moment. Perhaps he was kinder than I thought. He was crazy, but maybe he wasn’t a psychopathic murderer. He could have pretended to kill me and instead saved me at the last moment.

Breaking news.

Then did he leave the TV on before he left?

The Black Dragon Guild attempts to conquer the 40th floor of the Tower. Didn’t they confidently declare that they were going to finally show the might of the greatest guild?

Unfortunately, they have returned empty handed.

No, that wasn’t the case. The Flame Emperor wasn’t present in this 125 square-foot room. He didn’t leave the TV on before he left either.

Instead—

The Rank 1 Hunter! The Flame Emperor has single-handedly subjugated a Boss once again!

Instead, he was on the TV screen with furrowed brows. I found myself blankly staring at the TV.

Hello Flame Emperor-nim!

Ah. Right. Hello…

You have set a new record once again. You and the Sword Saint are the only people who can single-handedly subjugate a boss monster. With the disappearance of the Sword Saint, it can be said that you are the only person capable of such feat. May I ask you to share your impressions?

At the top right corner of the broadcast, there were large bold letters that read: LIVE.

I continued to gape at the TV.

First of all, I would like you to change that shitty title.

Excuse me?

I’m talking about the Flame Emperor. Call me by my name instead of using that shitty title.

Yoo Sooha—The World’s Rank 1 Hunter. The protagonist of this era. The hero I envied was right there. That’s right. Perhaps, it was inappropriate to say he was there, since he just killed me, and I died to him a moment ago.

“No way.” Even as I said, “No way,” my hands had already grabbed my smartphone. I checked the date. It was yesterday. My hands shook. I checked the Internet communities:

Hey, the Flame Emperor is screwing around again!

2 minutes ago  | Report

Reply ⏷

Here.

Can’t he hold his tongue when the entire world is watching him?

1 minute ago  | Report

Replies 5 ⏶

There, too.

The Flame Emperor got a girlfriend! Apparently, it is the Saintess!

1 minute ago  | Report

Replies 4 ⏶

This site, too. That community, too. All over social media.

Everything was the same.

All the texts I’d seen yesterday were being posted in real time. I’d certainly seen these exact posts yesterday, but people were responding to it as if it were their first time seeing the TV interview.

Despite that, there was something different.

ㄴI want to become just like the Flame Emperor.

1 second ago  | Edit

I could not find the comments I’d written.

It was obvious. Normally, I would be passionately leaving comments by now. But my soul left my body a long time ago.

I’d returned to yesterday.

I’d really returned to yesterday.

“…Open skill card.”

Flash!

A golden card emerged in front of me like flames.

[I Want To Become Just Like You (S+)]

I’d already memorized this skill after reading it multiple times since yesterday. Despite being S-Rank, it was a skill that was unusable. The price of using it was my death. It was a rare garbage skill. But, that wasn’t all of it.

“Oh, my God,” I exclaimed.

Two.

There were two burning flames in front of me.

[I Want To Become Just Like You (S+)]

[Returner’s Clockwork Watch (EX)]

Two golden cards floated before me.

‘How?’ My heart pounded against my chest, loud in my ears.

Returner’s Clockwork Watch. This was a new skill I’d never seen before. It wasn’t there when I checked it yesterday, and it wasn’t there right before I died to the Flame Emperor. I only had a garbage skill that was totally unusable; I never had any other skill with that name… I definitely did not have another golden skill. I would have absolutely noticed something crazy like that.

‘How?’ So, of course, I couldn’t understand.

How the hell had I obtained this skill? How had it become mine? I couldn’t understand. I didn’t understand it.

But.

‘It’s mine.’

I knew it. This card was mine.

‘All mine.’

I also knew: it could be the skill card that changed my life.

I reached for the card and grabbed it.

I flipped it.



Return. It said “return.”

Upon death, you return to 24 hours prior.

“Ah…”

As if my head got struck by lightning, I trembled. My heart pounded so hard that it might as well have been a sledge hammer.

I finally fucking realized it.

“This was the Flame Emperor’s secret move…” I muttered at my news-filled walls.

How did the Flame Emperor become the World’s Rank 1 Hunter?

How did he defeat the impregnable 10th-floor boss all by himself?

And lastly, why was he so certain that the Saintess tried to kill him?

I finally understood everything.

“The Saintess really tried to kill me.”

“If I didn’t kill her first, she would have poisoned me to death by tomorrow.”

These were his words.

“I know everything.”

“I just know everything. I have a secret trick.”

“But you don’t need to know about that.”

He’d died to the Saintess once.

Just like he said, he was poisoned to death. That’s why he returned to 24 hours prior, gritting his teeth to pay back what he suffered. For revenge.

‘And because of that, even I died.’ I clenched my fists. ‘He killed an innocent person like me! Just because I was in his way!’

He severed my legs. He burned my head. And he killed me. He played with me like an insect.

The interview progressed:

Before you leave, please tell our viewers one last thing!

Hah?

From the reporter’s question, the Flame Emperor scratched the back of his head.

Yesterday, I looked up to him as a hero. Today, I only saw a psychopath. It didn’t matter if he was the World’s Rank 1. It didn’t matter if countless people praised him as a hero.

He was my enemy.

The Flame Emperor glowered directly into the camera.

Those who will succeed will succeed.

I glared back.

But, don’t get in my way even if you succeed.

I clenched my golden card. It was the same card that man possessed, and it was a skill I copied from him. The Flame Emperor was Rank 1, and I was the weakest Hunter that didn’t even have a rank. But right now, I was at the same starting line as him.

Or I’ll kill you.

This time, it was going to be my revenge.