Chapter 3 : Regular Life

The house was quite, no, extremely large.

After confirming I was alone, I examined the rooms.

Click, clack.

Most rooms felt devoid of life, but they contained basic furniture like desks and drawers. I opened each drawer, checking every nook and cranny, but…

“Nothing.”

There were no clues.

The only thing I found was a small remote control.

But then…

“It’s darkest under the lamppost,” as they say.

There, on a table in the living room, lay an ID card, a wallet, and a smartphone.

[Seol Hayun]
11xxxx-xxxxxxx
The Cheongdam Penthouse, Building 1, Apt. 1401, XX-dong, XX-si, Seoul

The ID card held a picture of me in a neat blouse.

Twenty-four years old, huh? Twenty years as a man in the modern era, and twenty years as Lutecia in that other world.

I considered it an awkward, in-between age, belonging to neither. But since Lutecia was four when I possessed her…

‘It roughly adds up…’

I liked that it was the same as my old name.

‘At least I don’t have to worry about my identity.’

As for the cards…

There were a lot.

A bunch of unfamiliar credit and debit cards.

‘Bank book… Is there one?’

My fingers fumbled with the smartphone.

‘It was… like this… right?’

I had to be careful not to break it.

Fortunately, I found a yellow banking app.

It was simpler to operate than I expected.

–Seol Hayun’s Account★
₩14,262,014

But the moment I saw the balance…

I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

14.26 million won.

1426.

14 gold, 26 silver… my last remaining funds in that other world. I couldn’t recall the exact change, but… I had a feeling it would match perfectly.

“Ha…”

Was this really a coincidence?

I instinctively grabbed my head.

‘No, it can’t be!’

This was, without a doubt, the exact amount I had in that other world.

Right before the final battle, I bought every potion and piece of equipment I could, and this was the amount left over. Why would I save money in the first place? To use it when fighting the Demon King, of course.

So, after buying everything I needed, I had 14 gold and 26 silver left.

No wonder…

I thought the Goddess seemed different from the midway point.

When I first opened my eyes in that world, it was hell.

The Goddess’s support? There was none.

What could a somewhat pretty, orphaned little girl do? It was a long story, but I had a rather harsh childhood.

I didn’t want to dwell on it any longer.

<Become the Saint and defeat the Demon King, and you can return to the modern era.>

After giving me that one, unhelpful quest, the so-called Goddess, who never interfered when things were tough, finally appeared after my coming-of-age ceremony at sixteen.

[I’m sorry. That demon I put in charge of management…]

How many times had I vowed to beat her up if she ever showed up?

But I couldn’t bring myself to hit her.

It wasn’t because her silver hair and sparkling golden eyes were too beautiful.

I wasn’t in any condition to do so at the time, and she hadn’t brought me there, nor ordered anyone to.

Still, she felt responsible and said she would help me as much as possible.

In short, the Goddess oversaw countless dimensions, and the demon she entrusted with management had basically raised and then neglected the soul fit to be the Saint—me.

She figured it was better to wait for the next Saint if I failed, rather than invest in just one. Something like that.

And from the perspective of managing the world, it wasn’t a wrong choice.

So, she had no reason to accommodate me.

In the end, I wasn’t in a position to complain. Frankly, even if she got pissed and abandoned me, well, the previous manager had been sealed away in some world as punishment. I heard he became a book.

I never saw her again after that. I heard she was extremely busy.

I vaguely remembered that the Goddess who sent me back at the end was a subordinate deity under her.

How did I know?

It just flowed into me when I obtained the Demon King’s heart.

Anyway, that Goddess provided me with various forms of support after I turned sixteen.

One of the most peculiar things was…

“Shop!”

Still not opening.

It was the shop function. I could use gold to buy not only convenient items, but even legendary elixirs for 100 gold.

So I used elixirs like they were water, and the item box I received as a “coming-of-age gift” from the Goddess was full of rare items and elixirs.

Honestly, I didn’t expect to be able to bring any of that overpowered stuff back with me.

The Demon King’s heart was essentially a philosopher’s stone.

That’s why, the moment I obtained it, I received various information.

Like the possibility of my return failing at that point.

The Hero was the only variable.

I would have been doomed if I fought the Hero in that condition.

He was always unpredictable.

In fact, in over 90% of the scenarios presented by the philosopher’s stone, the Hero stopped me.

What about the remaining 10%?

It tempted me to become the Demon King and rule that world.

What would I do ruling such a boring world?

So I chose the best option and succeeded.

But still…

Humans are greedy creatures.

I felt a pang of regret.

I had speedrun through the Four Heavenly Kings and the Demon King, so I didn’t collect any loot.

If only I had grabbed more gold…

Even just selling the daggers containing the soul of the Red Dragon chieftain, the ones I used up for a one-time barrier, at the shop…

I could have been a billionaire.

No, that’s just hindsight.

How could I have known the Goddess would be so kind as to exchange my currency? How could I know something the philosopher’s stone didn’t?

But even if I had known, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything differently. If I had wasted any time, I might have been trapped in that world, or the Goddess could have changed her mind. All I wanted at that moment was to return.

Here’s a simple analogy.

The military. Discharge day is approaching.

Today, right now, is the moment of discharge. But if you delay your discharge, even for just three days, maybe a week, or even a month, there’s a possibility of a higher severance pay. What would you do? Would you stay in the war zone, hoping for a pay raise, and postpone your discharge?

A six-year adventure was no less arduous than military service, perhaps even more so.

But oh well. It was in the past now.

Maybe if I had returned to the kingdom and tried to raid the treasury, I could have been caught in a trap set by that vengeful prince, who might have increased the security magic level just to screw me over.

I don’t even know what I’m talking about.

That’s just how life is.

At least I didn’t hold back on using the elixirs.

But still… I knew it, but…

A tear trickled down my cheek.

Think positive.

This wasn’t sadness.

It was just the door to my emotions opening up now that I was back in this world.

That’s what I had to think.

“First… should I eat something…?”

…

…

…

Bubble, bubble.

Hearing the sound of boiling water, I tossed in the pre-broken ramen noodles.

My first meal back in the modern world.

Some might say, “Just ramen?”

That’s why.

Seeing the familiar packaging of the ramen filled me with a strange nostalgia.

The smell of boiling water and the chemical-laden seasoning stimulated my appetite.

Gulp.

After all, my staple food at the monastery was grass and… grass soup.

It was upgraded to herbs after I entered the temple, but it was still just nutritious grass.

Ring, ring, ring.

My smartphone alarm went off.

[Current Time]
(9:46 PM)
Timer End.
-00:02:04

It felt like no time had passed.

There were surprisingly a lot of ingredients in the house. Enough to believe someone had been living here until just yesterday.

They probably weren’t the best housekeeper, though.

But at least there were eggs and ramen.

I cracked an egg into the pot and covered it with a lid.

Ten seconds.

“Is it done yet…?”

I turned off the heat and finished the preparations.

Sitting at the table, I picked up my chopsticks in a daze.

Fortunately, I hadn’t forgotten how to use them.

I skillfully picked up some noodles, put them in my mouth, and…

“Ah…”

This taste.

I devoured it mindlessly.

Hot. Spicy. Incredibly spicy.

But delicious.

“Cough…”

I coughed and drank some water. A full glass, drained to the bottom.

“Phew…”

I split the perfectly soft-boiled egg with my chopsticks, placed it on my spoon, and ate it with the ramen.

The rich flavor of the yolk and the savory broth filled my mouth.

“This is happiness…”

I didn’t crave extravagant happiness.

Not being bullied.

Not being forced into anything.

Just doing what I wanted and eating something moderately delicious.

That was the life I longed for.

“…By the way.”

A house with such a splendid night view from the living room table…

‘…It’s not a rental, is it…?’

It looked way too expensive…

I rested my hand on the living room window and checked my smartphone.

[Current Time]
(10:17 PM)

The city lights were bright.

But there wouldn’t be any government offices open at this hour.

I’d have to go to a government office tomorrow.