Cale then watched as many scenes passed by.
‘Kim Rok Soo!’
He could hear Choi Jung Soo’s voice. Choi Jung Soo was standing in front of him with his sword raised.
Cale could also see a large monster coming out of the ground, making it seem as if the world was covered in darkness and fire. Numerous other monsters that seemed to be the large monster’s subordinates were next to it.
He watched as his work buddies charged toward those monsters.
Fellow team members, his sunbaes, and his friends.
People who he had been working together were all charging toward this deathtrap.
‘Kim Rok Soo! Hurry up and contact the government and central HQ! Send an emergency signal to all guilds!’
Cale could hear his team leader, Lee Soo Hyuk’s voice.
This is what Cale, Kim Rok Soo, had said at that time.
‘…This is difficult. Team leader, this is too difficult.’
Kim Rok Soo who oversaw the strategical planning in the rear support calculated the numerous records in his mind ever since the monsters had appeared in the world and concluded.
‘We are all going to die if we try to fight that monster right now.’
This was how Lee Soo Hyuk had responded to him.
‘But what else can we do?’
Kim Rok Soo could not forget team leader Lee Soo Hyuk’s face as he asked that, as well as Choi Jung Soo’s face as he held the sword in his hand again.
He had not been able to respond to Lee Soo Hyuk’s question.
The large guild in charge of this area had run away.
Because of that, there were no ability users nearby who could block the monsters that suddenly appeared.
However, there was someone who had anticipated this sudden monster’s appearance.
‘Kim Rok Soo, it’s not your fault.’
The voices of his only friend who had said that to him in a mischievous way hit Kim Rok Soo, Cale, like a tsunami.
‘Hey, it would have been really bad if it wasn’t for you.’
The Kim Rok Soo at the time had so many records and data that he could use his ability to foresee the appearance of the second strongest monster ever seen in the history of the Earth.
One hour.
It wasn’t much time, but it had been enough for them to contact the guild responsible for that area to prepare and evacuate the citizens.
However, while Kim Rok Soo could foresee the location the monster would arrive but not its strength.
That was why his teammates who had already come here knowing that they might die had to face an existence beyond their expectations.
Cale could smell, see, hear, and feel the conversations from that day, the heat and burning smell in the air, as well as the black and red surroundings of that day.
‘Kim Rok Soo, wipe your nosebleed. You should get some rest if you have overloaded.’
Kim Rok Soo used his sleeve to wipe his nose. He had continued to pay attention to Lee Soo Hyuk as he did that.
‘Ah still, thanks to you and our efforts, most people evacuated on time. Well, although the guild in charge ran away as well. We just need to hold that monster back until reinforcements arrive.’
Cale felt his head getting hotter and hotter as if he was getting a fever.
However, the records in Cale’s mind did not stop.
He recalled what team leader Lee Soo Hyuk had said after that.
‘This isn’t that hard. Actually, no.’
Team leader Lee Soo Hyuk had seemed calm even while looking at that scary monster.
‘Hey, have you ever seen our team do easy work? We always have had to do everything in our powers to survive.’
Not even once.
Kim Rok Soo had never fought a battle with an overwhelming advantage ever since joining the company and working under team leader Lee Soo Hyuk.
They really never had it easy.
‘This is just the same as usual. That is why we need to do what we need to do. Isn’t that right?’
Kim Rok Soo had laughed at that comment back then. It was because Lee Soo Hyuk was right.
‘Huh? You’re laughing now, you little punk?’
Team leader Lee Soo Hyuk and Choi Jung Soo had left the laughing Kim Rok Soo behind as they joined the other team members to fight.
Cale felt his mind becoming a mess at that moment.
‘And then, after that-’
He knew that he had a clear record of what had happened next.
Those images quickly burst into Cale’s mind.
However, Cale was unable to read those records correctly.
The strength of the destructive monster.
His teammates fighting against it.
All of them being put in danger.
They started to run toward him.
All of these images mixed together in his mind.
He suddenly felt as if his hot head was cooling down fast.
He felt as if he had fallen to the bottom of a deep lake covered in ice.
He saw someone down there in the darkness.
He sat down to see everything being destroyed by that large monster.
He could also hear the siren behind him signaling the fact that reinforcements had arrived.
‘…You, you-’
And then…
‘You-’
Kim Rok Soo was standing there unable to speak properly while Choi Jung Soo was kneeling in front of him with his sword stabbed into the ground.
‘What is it, you punk.’
Choi Jung Soo who had no blood left to cough up was jokingly responding as he died.
‘I leave it to you.’
He could also see team leader Lee Soo Hyuk close his eyes while leaving the rest to him.
All of them.
All of his teammates had died just like that.
‘Mr. Kim Rok Soo! Mr. Rok Soo!’
Once Kim Rok Soo was the only one remaining, he had snapped out of it after someone from the reinforcements team grabbed his shoulder.
‘And then, and then I-’
Cale recalled how Kim Rok Soo had acted back then on the battlefield where all of his team members were dying.
He looked once toward team leader Lee Soo Hyuk who had closed his eyes, and then once at Choi Jung Soo who had his head down. After that…
‘Here is the status report.’
He looked toward the government officials, guild members, and ability users who had come to fight against this monster and calmly started to speak.
His team leader and his friends had left the rest to him.
‘I will explain the fighting patterns of that monster.’
He first explained about the battle. Then he asked the person next to him for something once he stepped back and the reinforcements moved in to fight against the monster because he had no fighting power.
‘Please collect their bodies.’
It was because Kim Rok Soo could not move at that time.
He had explained about the monster’s abilities with his remaining strength even as his nose continued to bleed. The reinforcements all focused on his explanation, but nobody said anything about wiping his bloody nose.
Kim Rok Soo had felt as if the world was crashing down at that moment.
‘…It’s too late.’
The reinforcements had been too late.
Boom. Boom.
Cale’s heart suddenly ran wild.
The sense of responsibility, anger, and sorrow that had made Kim Rok Soo’s heart boil had risen. The things that he had barely managed to suppress deep inside himself were running wild.
It was at that moment.
– Human!
“Cale Henituse.”
Pat. Pat.
Cale could feel a small paw and a hand placed on his shoulders.
He heard a voice behind him as well.
– Human, are you okay? I came over because I had a bad feeling.
“I didn’t look at the paper. I just thought you seemed off.”
It was Raon and Alberu Crossman.
Cale blinked his eyes.
The darkness disappeared and he could see the crown prince’s bedroom wall again.
He quickly folded and put away the paper with the weird language the God of Death had left for him and turned around.
He could see a concerned Alberu Crossman but not the invisible Raon.
Cale looked at Alberu and started to speak.
“What is it, your highness?”
Cale thought that Alberu Crossman would scoff if he asked this way.
However, he could see that Alberu, as well as the rest of the group at the table, were starting to look at him in a different way than he expected.
All of them had serious expressions on their faces.
Cale made eye contact with Alberu.
“Are you okay?”
Alberu could see Cale’s pale white face and his lips that had turned blue.
His forehead was full of cold sweats as well.
He had seen Cale cough up blood or be in pain, but never like this before.
He seemed like someone who was in shock after seeing something very scary.
Alberu’s gaze moved away from Cale’s face to the paper in his hand.
He had not seen what was written inside it.
‘Just what did he see?’
He was concerned, but Alberu was blocked by Cale’s hand.
-Human, human! Are you really okay? Grandpa Ron told me to remember and tell him about it if you even come close to fainting!
Cale could hear Raon’s voice. He then started to speak to Alberu who could not come toward him because of his hand as well as the invisible Raon.
“I am okay, but let’s talk in a bit. I haven’t finished looking at it.”
Cale nodded his head to Cage who had jumped up from her chair as well before slowly turning back around.
“…Alright then. I’ll wait for you over there.”
– …I’ll let it go for now as well! I’ll go wait over there, you weak stupid human!
Cale opened the paper once again after feeling Alberu and Raon moving away.
5 minutes.
Only five minutes had passed since everything went dark in front of him. No, five minutes had decreased.
Cale recalled Kim Rok Soo’s birthday.
He looked at the paper the God of Death delivered to him via Cage. He looked at the decreasing time.
The God of Death had said that it would be time for Cale to choose once that time hit zero.
He thought about the day that the time would run out.
That day was Choi Jung Soo and Kim Rok Soo’s birthday. It should also be Choi Jung Gun and Choi Han’s birthday as well.
Cale had to decide on that day.
‘How cruel.’
He couldn’t think of anything else to say.
He finished reading what was written on the paper.
< Choi Jung Soo was not supposed to die at that time. >
He was right.
Choi Jung Soo was not supposed to die at that time.
Team leader Lee Soo Hyuk and the other team members should not have died then either.
And then…
< Kim Rok Soo. >
< You were the one who was supposed to die. >
‘I can’t die either.’
Cale’s eyes lit up.
Those people should not have died that day.
He could not die either.
In addition, his people in this world could not die as well.
He read the rest of the message from the God of Death.
< Yes, you were the one who was supposed to die. >
< However, the world’s laws and coincidences... Humans are one of the few existences who can destroy all of those things. >
< The people who tried to save you broke the law that said that you were supposed to die. >
< That is why I respect and admire humans. >
< You learned many things from those people and put those lessons to use in your life. >
< I'm curious to see what your decision will be. >
Cale folded the paper and put it in his inner pocket.
He then turned around.
Cage, Taylor, and Rosalyn were still sitting at the table while Alberu was standing with his arms crossed nearby.
Raon was probably near Alberu as well. The fact that the corner of Alberu’s shirt was scrunched probably meant that Raon was there holding onto it.
Cale could see priestess Cage cautiously starting to speak.
“Young master-nim, was it bad news?”
She had copied down the image the God of Death had shown her, but she could not read or comprehend it.
She couldn’t even tell if they were images or words.
It was a message from the God of Death that was meant only for Cale.
The others had either nervousness or concern on their faces as they looked toward Cale after hearing Cage’s question. Cale answered without any hesitation.
“Let’s just…”
The group could see that Cale’s eyes were burning up contrary to his pale face.
‘Decision?
He wants me to decide when the White Star is running wild?
Who will be able to do something if I’m not involved?’
‘Avoid it?
Run away?’
It was one thing if they all ran away together, but he would never run away on his own.
Cale did not hide his anger as he continued to speak.
“Let’s just ignore it.”
The original, ‘The Birth of a Hero,’ didn’t exist anymore.
Cale planned to live however he wanted to live.
“…You’re going to ignore a message from a god?”
“Yes.”
The God of Death had told Cale to decide.
“He told me to live however I pleased.”
He chose to interpret it however he pleased.
“That is why I am going to do whatever I want.”
“…And what would that be?”
Cale responded to Alberu who cautiously asked.
“A shit show.”
“…What?”
Cale knew that he was selfish and bad and that he cherished people who were important to him the most.
“I plan to use overwhelming strength to destroy everything.”
He liked fighting battles where he had an overwhelming advantage.
That was when his people would not get hurt.
“Haven’t you already been doing that?”
Cale smiled at Alberu’s response.
“I plan to do it even more.”
“…What a disrespectful smile.”
Cale pretended not to hear Alberu’s comment.
The time was going down second by second even during that moment.
Bruh I think I died a little this chapter oof
The feels bro.. I feel so sad for Cale.. I don’t even know what to say.. and yeah, let’s just destroy everything with overwhelming strength!
i feel so bad for kim rok soo. he can’t escape from that day even as he crossed worlds.
you’re tearing me up ;-;
I’m literally sobbing 😭
Cale needs a hug.
(･–･) \(･◡･)/
Do it, Cale. Turn the tables and crush the opponents so that you won’t have to go through that again
Thanks for the chapter!
Raon was probably near Alberu as well. The fact that the corner of Alberu’s shirt was scrunched probably meant that Raon was there holding onto it.
Raon is holding onto Alberu because he is anxious it so precious! I hope our Human, Cale Henituse, could have his happy ending with you.
It’s just so sad if he would end up dying ._.
I- I feel so sad for Kim Rok Soo, no wonder his fear is to be left alone after fighting with White Star… it has happened to him before already😭
why u all spoiling so much???
I don’t think there were any spoilers here? I believe nineiscute is referring to the trial from around ch 350
Thank you for the chapter
Cale has ptsd: the chapter
I love the dynamic between Kim Rok Soo, Lee Soo Hyuk and Choi Jung Soo
They all have Soo in their name too LOL
I,I never thought of that …
You are slightly , slightly smarter than the great and mighty me who have re-reading it for a second time now 🌝
Same I thought the same 😂😂🥲
So we have 3choi(s)and 3soo(s)
I– i feel so bad for Kim Rok Soo and of course our Cale
Sigh… Every time I re read this chp…. I always feel the urge to tear up. And this has been my fourth time reading this part already…. Poor Kim Rok Soo, u have gone through so much. I can’t imagine the pain he felt seeing his two best bros died…. TT
I love your Username HAHAHA
hola, estoy llorando de vuelta ;;
-Kim Rok Soo past hit different😭😭😭😭😭 my heart is breaking while reading his past. Live cale don’t die you don’t deserve to die!!!
-We see how Kim Rok Soo ability record can help him and also can hurt him, imagine you want to forget that accident but you can’t because of your fucking record power and you keeps remembering it and hurting you
Imagine getting isekai’d just because you were supposed to die but the one who should get isekai’d took your place, now you somehow, albeit not directly, took his place.
I knew he haed through a lot as Kim Rok Soo…. sigh…. let me give u a hug Cale… actually, let your fam give u a hug, although I feel like u gonna awkwardly avoid it :”)
I cant imagine how it feels being told by a God that your friends weren’t supposed to die and you were….. like hello the survivor’s guilt is hard enough as it is?!?!? I’m glad KRS was able to stand up again and think about the people he has right now T____T
Oh yeah, I am total agree with you. It feels so bad when the god said no one should die except you, you are the one that supposed to die. Oh shit, it feels so fking bad. The heavy survivor’s guilt.
Just like Choi Han, Cale has a huge similarity with the 1st dragon slayer who hid behind the strong and is the only one who survived in the end…😿
(っ´ω`)ﾉ(╥ω╥)
He didn’t hid behind his comrades. They protected him. That’s just how he saw it probably because of the sense of responsibility that turned into guilt. When you saw it through his friend’s point of view later, he was supposed to be at the back because he is rear support,he is weak (his ability is not fighter type remember), but still he went into the battlefield when he saw his team members being killed. His friend has the option to run and save himself, but decided to protect kim rok soo since he stepped in even though he can’t do anything.
“Kim Rok Soo who oversaw the strategical planning in the rear support calculated the numerous records in his mind ever since the monsters had appeared in the world and concluded.”
– that’s why he was so confident to ask alberu to name him as a commander of northeastern region, and why he was able to come up with plans after plans even under pressure and his foresight is good like a seasoned general. like it was just nothing and natural to him. Heh! I knew cale is experienced about battle strategies as kim rok Soo. at first i thought he was a person who has position in military when they mentioned him as being a team leader and his previous TL giving him advices on how to deal with corrupt people like officials in government (he used that knowledge scamming/milking the bishop and empire merchant guild leader when he was at the caro kingdom during the auction) but then came the additional infos about monsters and ability users. I think the god of death got lucky too that it was kim rok Soo who was brought in in this world. sure his other team members are better fighter since he is more fitted on rear support based on his ability (though when he became team leader he also fought in the vanguard), but it was cale/kim rok Soo’ strategy that’s keeping them not to lose, he knows how to put his subordinates’ skills in battle and also the schemes he does behind the scenes that smacks their enemies at the back. Considering the white star is not just strong but cunning as well, pure strength is not enough to defeat him. We need someone as clever as cale who is willing to play dirty but whose foundation is good to deal with the white star since they are almost the same.
‘…who is willing to play dirty but whose foundation is good…’
What fitting words to describe Cale.
Cale is not good at controlling his emotions. He just bottle shit up and it’s exploded a couple of times. I think he is emotionally stunted in a way because of his childhood that never taught him how to channel and talk about his feelings.
Thank God he’s got well-functioning brain. It’s the only thing that stops him from jumping in front of a train/mana bomb, probably.
Imagine getting told, “They’re not supposed to die. They died for you.” It’s easy to just comprehend that as they died *because* of you. He never friggin asked for that, but now he’s subjected to yet another stupid crossroad of choices because some stupid dude wanted to become a stupid ruler.
I’m sure Cale will look for another choice rather than dying after that
this is even worse reading it a second time <\3
I feel really bad for Kim Rok Soo, the fact that he’s hiding and stopping his sorrow and other unpleasant feelings just makes me want to jump to their world and give him a hug ʕっ•ᴥ•ʔっ
Imagine bearing those feelings everyday, i just can’t (╯︵╰)
Still, thank you for the chapter!
Umm.. thats dramatic asf
I just wanna say something…
FUCK THOSE “STRONG” GUILD WHO RAN AWAY! MAY YOU LIVE IN GUILT FOREVER!
nossa eu sempre choro quando fala sobre o passado como Kim Rok Soo
Damn… PTSD is no joke, remember to thank veterans for their service, suicide is a real struggle. especially with a trauma from an entire team being wiped out with a single survivor. the guilt of surviving!!!!
Remembering the last flashback of Kim rok soo’s past when his coworkers gossiped about him being cold because he didn’t cry at the funeral makes me even more mad now that we have this new information. People have different reaction to grief. Who tf are you to tell me or judge me on how I react to the loss of my ENTIRE team members. This hits close to home because I can relate so much with Kim rok soo and this side of his personality that bottles everything up. Just because I don’t show it, it doesn’t mean I’m not feeling like hell. Having people tell me I’m heartless because I didn’t cry at my father’s funeral doesn’t fucking help. I can’t even imagine how difficult it must be to have this immense survivor’s guilt and ptsd after something like this happened. I can’t wait for the moment cale explodes or feels at ease talking about his pain because I can assure you it will be therapeutic as hell. Other than being an amazing character development for him it will also be a great sign of healing. I know it can be frustrating sometimes when he doesn’t communicate properly his intentions to the others (especially about his thoughts and emotions) but suppressing your feelings for so long makes you not being able to even understand yourself anymore. When your default setting is repressing and running away from the pain, it can be difficult to change all of a sudden and face things head on by talking about it with someone else. This is why I love Cale’s character because it makes him realistic and relatable and I can’t wait to see him grow.
\\ ‘It was one thing if they all ran away together, but he would never run away on his own.’
‘Cale knew that he was selfish and bad and that he cherished people who were important to him the most.’ \\
Awww 🥺🥺 ur’e trash, and then ur’e selfish and bad, I don’t even know the meaning of these words anymore 🤧 the amount of tears I shed for this chapter, hugs for cale miloves 🥺🫶
Thank you for the chap! 🤧🤗
I am sad.
This chapters sob sob make me crying so much!!!!!
KRS!CALE is really bottled up his own feelings for so longs😭DAMNNN IT
Wait… what if this is why he calls himself “trash”? Because he feels like the “trash” survivor… dear god
This chapter is so dark.. and traumatic..
Lets just hug kim rok soo and curse the GoD
No, if you read carefully, KRS was suppose to die that day but instead survive… In exchange, he lost all his team members. It’s like saying him surviving not only taking the place of someone else who suppose to live but also actively taking more life than planned. His survival costed 2 life.
You’d think there’d be less tears and heartbreak the second time around… but NO!
NO NO NO it’s the f**king opposite!
i still hate the GoD after so many time read this chapter.. even while i know what will happen next
that message that reminds kim rok soo that it cost him his partners life to be save is not necessary.
he already record it himself..
😥
thank you the chapter 🫡