Episode 23
Lee Jae-heon himself was at least aware that he was worried about the group.
I keep forgetting, but these babies were all chicks, and in the existing world, the value of life was high.
Lee Jae-heon, who had saved such lives several times, deserved the group’s concern.
‘That’s why he was caught quietly on purpose.’
Perhaps the main character, assistant manager Jeong In-ho, had regressed, and perhaps because of that, he was in a somewhat mentally unstable state.
Lee Jae-heon couldn’t explain his plan to the guy who was probably worried about his safety because he had already died right before his eyes.
In fact, Jaeheon Lee’s plan was to use himself as bait.
But no matter how I thought about it, in order to spend this evening safely, I needed bait to attract the green algae monster.
However, the blood-tasting larvae must have dried up due to the protagonist’s passion, and there was not enough time to find a new bait.
In that respect, Jaeheon Lee was very good as a bait.
He was currently bleeding profusely, and it was his fault that the green algae monster had been drawn here in the first place, and the only one who was able to gently lure the green algae monster by running and holding on all evening was Lee Jae-heon.
How efficient is this? If he could just hold on until the sun rose, no one would die, and when the sun came up, they could regroup.
A reorganization that will get you through the next day.
‘But the protagonist won’t agree.’
He hasn’t abandoned his humanity yet.
If you taste Jung In-ho, it’s still Jung In-ho.
I don’t know how he came to be wary of underage siblings, but he was basically a good guy, and even though he was an old man, there was no way he would welcome the sacrifice of others.
Of course, Lee Jae-heon didn’t think it was a sacrifice, but wouldn’t the protagonist think differently?
Lee Jae-heon was slowly getting to know the chicks’ warm spirit.
‘…Actually, I feel uneasy because I don’t know how the main character has returned.’
In what way did Deputy Inho Jeong make a comeback? By dying like Lee Jae-heon himself? Or did you survive and find another way?
If the latter had been the case, fellow regressor Lee Jae-heon could have been in a bit of trouble.
In the first place, isn’t the concept of regression itself a distortion of the timeline?
If Deputy In-ho Jeong returned while he was still alive, I didn’t know how Lee Jae-heon would be perceived in the current time period, and I didn’t know how things would be twisted if Lee Jae-heon died in the meantime.
However, in the former case, it was at least a relief.
‘Because it requires the prerequisite of dying.’
Lee Jae-heon, who was so mentally ill, talked about regression and resets, but turning back time through death was something that was difficult for a sane person to do.
Because Lee Jae-heon was so crazy, he accepted reality as soon as he returned. Other people wouldn’t be able to do that.
In that context, no matter how half-hearted the main character was, there was no way he would commit suicide just because Lee Jae-heon was in danger of dying.
I might be able to go back in the first place, but I’m not stupid enough to take risks.
So, of course, you may lose consciousness for a moment, but if you understand the situation, the protagonist will find the group.
Without Lee Jae-heon, the only person who could protect the group was the protagonist.
‘I told you what to do in case you didn’t understand, so there shouldn’t be any problem.’
Assistant Manager Jeong In-ho is shrewd.
Because it was so dark, he wouldn’t go looking for Lee Jae-heon, who didn’t even know where he was taken, like an idiot, so he would probably be a little embarrassed and go to protect his group out of a sense of duty.
That was the wisest choice.
So now there was only one thing he had to do.
“…Whew.”
Okay.
Jaeheon Lee hit the vine that was dragging me with his pipe.
“Let go, you fucking bastard.”
Running around until the sun comes up.
That was Lee Jae-heon’s job: to lure green algae monsters with blood-smelling bait.
“The baby like a dog is false.”
―Kkikkieeek…!
“Let the fuck go.”
Quack quack. bang!
The toothed vine was certainly strong, but it could not withstand the strength of the pipe any more than the green algae monster could withstand a piece of iron.
Of course, there were other reasons for Lee Jae-heon not to die.
He had mastered most of the fighting skills from his previous life and knew how to defeat opponents stronger than me.
Although I had never competed with a vine-shaped monster like this, I felt comfortable considering that it was a bit creepy.
As he repeatedly hit the pipe like a thug beating up people, the vine let out a strange scream, and Jae-heon Lee was able to escape from the vine by violently shaking off his foot just before it caught fire and started burning.
He quickly stepped back and looked at the writhing man-eating vine.
―Kwaukkukkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk…!
“Wow, that’s gross.”
What Assistant Manager Jeong In-ho is doing is disgusting, but I was really annoyed by how those things came to be.
I thought that making someone feel sick just by looking at them would be a talent.
Blood was dripping from my standing leg and it was throbbing, but it was okay.
‘The green algae monster is slow anyway.’
The reason the green algae monster served as the final boss of the park episode was because of its persistence and durability.
In short, it’s okay as long as you don’t get caught by the monster’s slow gestures.
Of course, Lee Jae-heon, the hunted, had one of his legs tattered and was unable to exert any strength, but…
“…Haha.”
Rather, I liked this episode better.
‘It will work well as bait.’
There was no way the green algae monster that had followed me in the first place would have found another prey, leaving Lee Jae-heon in perfect tatters.
The vaguely clever monster would eventually follow Lee Jae-heon, whom he judged to be easy prey.
‘The speed is just right.’
Lee
Jae-heon tightened his legs and immediately started running away.
Of course, the speed was not very fast, but even in a world where mental power is omnipotent, there are limits to humans.
My body was so damaged and I couldn’t rest properly except for the bare minimum, so running at this level was a miracle.
No, in the first place, in the other world, my mentality became deteriorating just by breathing.
My head is pounding and traumas come to mind every minute and second. Do I have any mental strength left to use in a world where mental power is omnipotent?
Really, even after thinking about it 25 times and then 3 more times, the fact that Jaeheon Lee is running now is a miracle.
It was like running without one leg at all.
This shit world view and shit life. Lee Jae-heon was so unfair and absurd that he burst out laughing.
“I’m going to die like this.”
I wish someone could give me a break.
* * *
In other words, the green algae monster was not as durable as expected.
Of course, this was only Lee Jae-heon’s opinion, and in the eyes of others, there could not be a bigger monster than this.
Nevertheless, I thought that Lee Jae-heon’s green algae monster was not very strong.
Well, we were now at the very beginning of the novel.
If the author did not intend to kill the main character at the beginning of the novel, he had to set up an enemy appropriate to that level, which means that the enemy is a monster at a level that Deputy In-ho Jeong, who still has enough humanity but lacks survival skills, can survive.
Moreover, for Lee Jae-heon, who knew how the novel would progress in the future, the current situation could not help but be funny.
‘How many monsters are running rampant in the other side of the world?’
Jaeheon Lee ran, trampling on the vines that were trying to tie his feet.
As far as Lee Jae-heon, who read the novel, knew, there was at least one monster in each episode that literally broke pots.
At the company, a bleeding spider leg killed Manager Kang, creating a fear of the underworld, and the current green algae monster cruelly devoured the other company employees who survived in the darkness.
Considering that the final boss monster becomes more vicious as the episode progresses, the green algae monster, which does not inflict much mental damage other than its disgusting and strange appearance, was very gentle.
If you leave the park and enter the hospital episode, the current monsters will look very cute.
Moreover, the green algae monster did not necessarily hunt humans unless they smelled of blood.
The speed was at most that of an adult male walking, and the durability was at least weaker than that of a piece of iron.
It looks like it might be as heavy as a bear, but if you collect large stones and hang them, it is light enough to sink into a lake.
Of course, there was no disaster that the current Lee Jae-heon and the others could handle.
If his condition had been fine, even if he couldn’t have been killed, he could have been dropped into the lake.
Thanks to this, I felt resentment once again, but…
“…Oh really!”
Quad deuk!
Lee Jae-heon hit the approaching vines with a pipe.
The large creatures that looked like they were entangled with snakes or earthworms posed enough of a visual threat, and the sound of them exploding all at once was twice as disgusting.
Even though he suddenly felt irritated, Jaeheon Lee tried not to lose his mind as much as possible.
‘The distance from the green algae monster is approximately 20m.’
Lee Jae-heon was originally born with good hearing and eyesight, and his senses became even more alert as he recalled his past life.
He could see roughly how far he had been dragged by the vines.
Even though there was darkness, the green algae monster could not overcome its anger or made mistakes in judgment and burned the vines several times.
It spread thinly everywhere and became a light source, and thanks to this, Jaeheon Lee was able to find out where the green algae monster chasing him was.
I saw it with my eyes and heard it with my ears.
The location is southwest based on my line of sight. If you look at the clock, it’s 8 o’clock, which is close to 7 o’clock.
I couldn’t see it clearly as it was running ahead, but it was a green algae monster that hadn’t even opened its mouth.
What this means is that they are not yet hungry enough to desperately need prey.
Jaeheon Lee thought as he turned his body at a right angle to avoid the vines.
‘It’s probably because of the caterpillar that the main character threw away.’
In fact, Lee Jae-heon also does not know completely about the green algae monster, but if the bodily fluid produced by the blood-tasting caterpillar is really close to blood, the green algae monster will have already had its stomach to some extent filled with the bait that Assistant Manager Jeong In-ho threw.
If so, the chances of Lee Jae-heon returning safely alive are even higher.
This means that the predator is not serious about hunting, so the siege will not be as tight, and the speed, which was already slow, will become even slower, so even Jaeheon Lee, who is a complete stranger, will be able to escape.
At least I had the courage to survive this evening.
Lee Jae-heon, who was adjusting his speed based on the monster’s location, turned around to check the vines that were chasing him and then immediately struck them down.
Quaz that is!
“…flaw.”
It was gross.
When a sound as if he had trampled and exploded a large crowd of small insects with his bare feet rang in his ears, Lee Jae-heon was overcome with nausea, so he grabbed a nearby tree and covered his mouth.
I wanted to scratch my whole body.
However, Jaeheon Lee, who saw the new vine that had secretly appeared, soon pulled himself away from the tree.
‘…Ugh it’s frustrating.’
Beetle.
The body, which had lost anything to support, stumbled for a moment.
I felt sick. Of course, since I didn’t eat anything, I wouldn’t have to vomit, but apart from that, my internal organs would turn over a lot.
The sharp pain rising from the tip of his neck made him nauseous, but Lee Jae-heon ran.
Sometimes people want to go crazy, and even people who are already crazy often harbor such feelings.
And when it gets to that point, a person’s whole body becomes so fed up that they want to cry out of injustice and scream out of frustration.
You want to stomp your feet and struggle, and that’s exactly what Jaeheon Lee is doing now.
At that moment, Jaeheon Lee took a deep breath, took it in again, and strained his eyes as much as he could.
I don’t know if it was because of the physical pain or the mental pain, but some physiological tears flowed, but instead, I pulled my lips up as much as I could and smiled, exposing my teeth.
If you cannot die, you will live, and if you survive, you will enjoy a happier life than anyone else.
Lee Jae-heon, who had a bad personality, had a desire to stand above everyone.
“…These bastards are real.”
Phew.
Lee Jae-heon takes a deep breath and hits the toothy vine in front of him with his pipe.
“Am I so fucking funny? “Fuck it because it’s funny!”
―…Keuuuuk!
“Why are you treating healthy people like prey?”
Quack!
Jiik wow!
Lee Jae-heon could see his teeth being broken by the pipe he hit.
White crumbling pieces. Or, I saw a monster that had its gums shattered and hurt itself, and was shaking in disgust.
A disgusting, crying sound came through my two ear holes.
So isn’t Lee Jae-heon worse than these monsters?
I didn’t bother to suppress the laughter that came out.
“…I will live.”
So we will win one way or another.
Only that fact made Lee Jae-heon, who was on the verge of collapse, run.
He had a bad temper. It was like that in my past life, and even more so in my current life.
My self-esteem may have been low, but my pride was strong, and I hated losing more than dying.
Everyone had to be weaker than me. They had to roll in the palm of my hand and I had to look down at them from above.
Maybe Lee Jae-heon deserved to die.
In his previous life, he enjoyed wealth through the sacrifices of countless others, and in his current life, he enjoyed his innate power and tormented others.
If I hadn’t remembered my past life, I would have died with my limbs torn apart by monsters while trying to save myself using my underage siblings as bait.
From the beginning, it was a being created with the value of such a refreshing death.
But I didn’t want to die. If I was going to die, I wanted a comfortable and peaceful death, but I knew that wasn’t possible, so I wanted a life full of pleasure.
I had been holding it since birth, but I had no intention of losing to these fucking monsters.
I was so broken by losing that I had absolutely no intention of breaking down in the end. I had no intention of continuing my life as nothing more than a breath of fresh air, and at the same time, I always hoped to enjoy more than I had.
Jaeheon Lee ran with numerous trees as support and let out a good laugh.
“It’s really hard to make a living….”
Because I am worth much more than those things.
Because I deserve to be happy too.
* * *
Lee Jae-heon was a person who highly valued efficiency.
Of course, such values were formed not by nature but by the surrounding environment, but still, Jaeheon Lee wanted the best for the greatest number of people, including me.
Although he was selfish, he knew the value of community.
We know that humans are animals that can never stand alone, and we also know that we ourselves are not outside the category of humans.
Lee Jae-heon wanted his own wealth and fame, but he was a person who believed that in order to achieve that, those around him should also be happy.
And Lee Jae-heon’s way of thinking was revealed in his actions.
Even though he regretted his own sacrifice, he stepped forward because it was the most efficient, and the interpersonal relationships between people were funny and yet he acted calmly.
Jaeheon Lee, who now knew that he could not die, would observe and adjust the situation even more for the sake of the ideal life I envisioned.
Therefore, Lee Jae-heon’s sacrifice did not contain the full value of sublimity. His consideration was for his own benefit.
Because he knew that even if he died, he would come back to life and get another chance, he would act more sacrificial, and because he knew that the trust and affection he was building up now would serve as a stepping stone to wealth, he would act even more kind.
Lee Jae-heon always wanted a better life, and since death was not an option, the only path left to him was a happy life.
He was so broken by losing that he had absolutely no intention of breaking down in the end. He hoped for true wealth and glory, not a mere life.
However, the problem was that Jung In-ho, the main character of this world, was completely unaware of that.
“….”
Lee Jae-heon, reflected in his eyes, was overly altruistic.
It’s sacrificial and in some ways kind. Even if he is not a good person, he is a good person.
He suffered serious injuries to his arms and legs for co-workers who hated him, allowed his ankles to melt for the owner of a flower shop and a doctor he had never seen before, and was a person who willingly embraced two underage students simply because they were young. .
I couldn’t be that selfless.
Jeong In-ho stood blankly for a long time at the spot where Lee Jae-heon was taken.
“Why…”
Why didn’t he ask me for help?
If only I had told him back when the toothy vines were wrapped around my legs.
If only the words he left before being dragged away were not ‘please protect the others,’ but rather a request to help and save his life.
Perhaps, if that were the case, In-ho Jeong could have helped him avoid being taken away.
He didn’t know that Lee Jae-heon could return to death, and he didn’t know how great his desire for life was.
Lee Jae-heon hid everything himself, so it was natural that Jung In-ho didn’t know anything.
However, if there was a problem, it was due to the gap in information and the various misunderstandings and emotions that Jung In-ho experienced.
“….”
Suddenly, In-ho Jeong remembered the time when Manager Jae-heon Lee was dying from a green algae monster.
To be precise, I remembered the calm gaze that resembled that colorless color and the clean wound between the torn and burned shirt.
Wasn’t bright red blood flowing between the lines, which were too clean to have been scratched and torn by a nail?
A cut from something sharp, such as a knife. A wound that Manager Lee Jae-heon had, which had no reason to happen in the peaceful times, not now.
Who made that wound?
“…ah.”
In his opinion, Director Lee Jae-heon probably wanted to die.
It shouldn’t have been that way for a number of reasons.
