Chapter 1: The Orphan’s Prologue.

What Went Wrong?
What on earth went wrong?

Was it having a father who brandished knives in gambling dens and a mother who was an Eastern European illegal immigrant and a harlot?

Was it rage-quitting my research position and enlisting in active duty like a Protoss who had their Nexus destroyed after failing a rush?

Or was it foolishly thinking I should go somewhere cool since I was going to the army anyway?

Or was it that goddamn military service law that requires you to serve unless you become an orphan before the age of 13?

“Ah…”

A small piece of metal weighing 147 grains pierced Kim Chun-sik’s stomach—a man who was about to become a part-time professor—leaving a small but significant hole.

Kim Chun-sik, lying on the ground, watched the distant plume of smoke and thought.

Neither ironware, firearms, nor nuclear weapons could deter human warfare. Then how terrifying must a weapon be for war to cease?

Perhaps if an incredibly huge weapon were created, it might stop it?

Name: [Kim Chun-sik] Date: [1998.03.29~2022.03.28] Affiliation: [-Censored-] Status: [Killed in Action]

When I opened my eyes, I was in a place that was… strange.

Moreover, I was a woman.

When I first opened my eyes here, everything was new and fascinating.

The gut that had gushed blood was nowhere to be seen, and my lungs, which had been filling with blood, were functioning perfectly. It felt like I had been given a new opportunity.

What’s more, in this reality that felt like reality, yet where magic existed as reality, Kim Chun-sik felt like he had become the protagonist of a story.

Orphan, Day 2.

I finally realized I was an orphan.

But Kim Chun-sik didn’t really care.

Looking at the rags he was wearing, he had vaguely suspected it, and besides, some things are only hard the first time; the second time is easier.

In the back of his mind, Kim Chun-sik thought, ‘Maybe?’, hoping he would have magical talent and cheats.

But Kim Chun-sik’s weak thoughts were shattered.

He was completely talentless, and the life of an orphan in a country with all sorts of social systems was completely different from the life of an orphan here.

And so, Kim Chun-sik went hungry all day.

Orphan, Day 3.

Kim Chun-sik was, after all, human. After not eating anything for two consecutive days, Kim Chun-sik borrowed the wisdom of the beggars on Line 1 and started begging.

“Please, some bread.”

“Alright.”

Led by a gentleman in a fancy silk hat and a monocle, Kim Chun-sik was given a frilly dress at the mansion.

He really didn’t want to, but he couldn’t go around in rags for hygiene’s sake, so Kim Chun-sik gritted his teeth and put on the dress.

Seeing this, the monocled gentleman stroked Kim Chun-sik’s thigh with a satisfied smile and tried to take off the dress again. Kim Chun-sik was startled and tried to stop him.

But a woman’s strength could not shake off an adult man’s hand.

“Cough… Keok…”

Fortunately, he had learned jiu-jitsu as a hobby, or he would have been violated by a man he had never met before.

And so, Kim Chun-sik left the monocled gentleman unconscious with a guillotine choke and fled the mansion with a few chunks of bread.

Kim Chun-sik chewed on the stolen bread in the back alley and cried all day.

Orphan, Day 7.

“F*ck.”

As if representing Kim Chun-sik’s situation of rummaging through trash cans in the back alleys, a stream of curses spewed from his mouth.

Orphan, Day 12.

“Heh… heh…”

Kim Chun-sik, once again rummaging through trash cans in a back alley, in stark contrast to the fancy dress.

“Heh… hehe… Bread, it’s bread.”

Kim Chun-sik, crawling to the bottom of the trash can, finally found some edible bread. Although there was some mold, he could cut off the inedible parts and have enough to fill his stomach.

“My cup runneth over!”

Where did he throw away his dignity as a person? Kim Chun-sik, who had already completely assimilated to the level of an animal, had become someone who could not hide his joy at even the smallest things.

“Orphan bastard.”
“Fck you, you sons of bches. If you’re going to curse, give me some bread first.”

The passing men and women threw daggers at Kim Chun-sik’s heart with each word, but he didn’t care at all. Because it was the truth.

Orphan, Day 30.

When Kim Chun-sik first saw his appearance through the glass of a bakery display case, he was amazed.

Putting aside why he was only realizing it now, he had a very outstanding appearance, although the dark circles and eyes were a bit dirty.

Even though he was in this state, his brain, which had earned him a doctorate in his past life, didn’t seem to have gone anywhere. Kim Chun-sik immediately began to formulate a new strategy.

“Alms, please.”

Kim Chun-sik, lying flat on the ground, dragged himself around with his arms and begged.

Of course, his legs worked normally, but the reason he crawled around on his arms was to evoke sympathy.

Humans are social animals that undergo neoteny, and they have cultivated the ability to read and empathize with each other through self-domestication since the days of Homo sapiens.

“Sniffle, sniffle. We must live diligently, Midori.”
“Yes? Ah, yes.”

This new technique, which only appeared after Seoul Station was built, worked amazingly well, and Kim Chun-sik received an unprecedented amount of bread.

That day, Kim Chun-sik was on the verge of death due to a stomachache caused by overeating.

Orphan, Day xx.

Kim Chun-sik was staring blankly at the sky.

His stomach was clamoring for bread, but Kim Chun-sik didn’t beg at all.

No, he couldn’t. Kim Chun-sik had rashly been caught walking on two legs by his benefactors.

Kim Chun-sik dragged his trembling legs and trudged back to the back alley to rummage through the trash cans again.

Orphan, x….

When he was really on the verge of starving to death, Kim Chun-sik embarked on a truly long-awaited constructive job search.

“You’re that bastard from before, right? Get lost.”

However, what constitutes ‘me’ is not just the body. Social connections also define Kim Chun-sik’s existence.

Unclear origin, orphan, caught lying.

Kim Chun-sik, who had accumulated too many negative points in the city, was shocked when he was rejected from a kitchen assistant interview.

“Should I look into manual labor?”

But could he even lift a single brick with this body? Eva, Eva, Eva. Rejected due to three strikes.

As Kim Chun-sik was whining, he turned to the side and saw a man.

Judging by his appearance, he didn’t seem to be a beggar like him.

But the way he was leaning against the wall with his head down made him look like a fellow beggar. Unusually, he was holding something like a letter instead of a can.

He seemed to be the type to evoke sympathy by showing a piece of paper with a long, drawn-out story.

But other than me, Kim Chun-sik, who else here would have a story? Well… he probably lost it all gambling.

Nevertheless, Kim Chun-sik was inwardly fond of the fellow beggar next to him.

That’s because that method requires good speaking and facial expressions, and it’s a very proactive way of begging.

To come up with that idea in this era.

Kim Chun-sik, who was inwardly fond of the fellow beggar, called out to the man who was hanging his head, wanting to give him some story feedback.

“Hey, mister.”
“…Huh? Are you talking to me?”

Oh, good expression. The runny nose is a deduction factor depending on the person… but, whatever.

“Show me that. I’m really good at this kind of thing.”
“Huh? Oh, okay…”

The fellow beggar handed Kim Chun-sik the paper with a dazed expression.

“What is this? It’s a letter? It’s a love letter.”

Good content and considerable vocabulary. It’s filled with rarely used expressions and literary style.

But it was easy to read, and seeing that he made sure to include ticklish words, the affection of the person who wrote this letter was vivid.

As Kim Chun-sik was immersed in the letter, exclaiming admiration, the fellow beggar spoke to him.

“You… you can read?”
“Uh… yes? Right?”

The fellow beggar widened his eyes at the casual reply.

“I have a favor to ask.”
“Ehh… no.”

Ugh, look at that expression. I thought he was a fellow beggar, but what a bolt from the blue?

From experience, it’s best to avoid crazy-in-love bastards. Kim Chun-sik quickly left the spot before getting caught up in it.

“If you read it for me, I’ll give you this.”
“Huh?”

The fellow beggar took out a pouch from his waist and showed it to Kim Chun-sik.

Clink, clink-

What was in the boss… no, the fellow beggar’s pouch was none other than 50 silver.

“Please… there’s a wedding date on the letter, but I can’t read it.”
“Boss… no, mister. Are you really giving me all of this? Just for reading it?”

Kim Chun-sik asked again, his voice trembling.

That’s because, from Kim Chun-sik’s perspective, reading? It was like eating rice cake while lying down and watching TV.

But there was one fact that Kim Chun-sik overlooked.

That is, this is not the modern era, but the early modern era in the original history when Napoleon was causing chaos.

Even though the Enlightenment was working hard, reading and writing were still the exclusive domain of some intellectuals and nobles.

“I don’t usually grant favors like this, but I like your face, mister, so I’ll do it just this once!”
“Oh? Oh… thank you.”