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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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Chapter 1: Let's Go Die (1)
A woman, neatly dressed in a suit, walked into the café. I lifted my head and looked at her.
"Eighteen."
The number of steps it took for her to reach and sit down in front of me was exactly eighteen. She stopped precisely at the eighteenth step and sat down.
Holding an iced Americano worth 10,000 won, she took a sip and said, “You’re Lee Seo-joo from Golden Line, correct?”
With a reluctant expression, she pulled out a chair and sat across from me, sliding a business card and a tablet in my direction.
“You can go ahead and order coffee first.”
Lee Seo-joo gave a slight nod and went over to the counter, likely murmuring to herself, "Huh? Did I tell him my name?" Right about now.
“Huh? Did I say my name?”
Checking her phone, she mumbled once more.
“It’s not in our company’s client data records.”
After glancing back, noticing my gaze, she quickly made her way to the counter. While she ordered a hot café latte, I picked up the business card instead of the tablet in front of me.
[Golden Line Insurance Company - Lee Seo-joo]
She returned with a coffee in a white glass cup embossed with the company logo, sitting diagonally across from me. Her chair tilted slightly at a forty-five-degree angle.
She placed her latte down and, crossing her legs, sipped her coffee. Noticing I hadn’t touched the tablet, she turned on the screen for me.
“I’ll explain the Awakener Insurance terms. If you start here…”
“It’s fine. I’ll sign.”
I interrupted her and picked up the pen. She’d probably insist again. Still, regulations require an explanation...
“Well, it’s mandatory to explain, so I have to cover the main points. For a two-star Awakener, the maximum death benefit insurance payout is 5 billion won. As you’d expect, suicide isn’t covered, nor is death at a gate significantly higher than your rank. However, as you requested, we’ve included a special clause for large-scale raids. The condition is that the Association approves it and that you have an official participation permit from the guild.”
That’s all I needed. I nodded and quickly signed the paperwork.
“Your name is Lee Su-hyuk, you’re twenty-two, and your beneficiary is your younger sister, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Just to reiterate, suicide isn’t covered. Lately, there’s been an increase in Awakeners attempting suicide for insurance claims.”
People think becoming an Awakener means instant wealth, but reality is harsh. Lose a limb fighting monsters in the underworld? Reattaching it costs at least hundreds of millions.
Can’t reattach it? You’re left doing odd jobs, drifting from one party to another, until you quietly die somewhere unnoticed.
Whether I die like this or that, I figured I might as well leave some money behind for my family by maxing out the life insurance.
Lee Seo-joo’s eyes were full of suspicion. Yeah, it must seem odd that a young twenty-something Awakener, with only a two-star rank, is taking out the highest death benefit of 5 billion won.
But I have my reasons.
“Why would I die? Haven’t you seen my logs? I’ve gone back and forth to the underworld over a hundred times, even as a two-star. Any suspicious record in there?”
“…”
“Why make a person who’s living just fine sound like a suicide risk? People will think I’m taking insurance just to die.”
It’s a lie.
I took out the insurance precisely because I intend to die.
I slammed my empty glass down in frustration. Damn, Su-hyuk, you’ve come a long way. At first, you couldn’t say a word in front of this woman, and now you’re even getting angry. Impressive.
“It’s just that so many people are like that. Anyway, your policy starts tomorrow, so keep that in mind.”
Yeah, I know. I even paid an extra 200,000 won to make it effective immediately.
After finishing her coffee, Lee Seo-joo gathered her things, glanced at the business card on the table, and said, “If you need anything, feel free to contact me at the number on the card.”
She lowered her head and left the café. Even after she left, I sat there alone, deep in thought.
“Ugh, doing this over and over is exhausting.”
How many times had it been? Ten? Twenty? No, more than thirty. I lost count after thirty.
The point is, I die in 48 hours.
I don’t know why, but I die. And then I come back two days prior.
I’m trapped in an infinite two-day loop.
But the reason I keep doing this crazy thing is simple.
It's the best way to leave the most money for the person I’ll leave behind.
At first, I thought about buying a lottery ticket.
Not a bad idea, except that today’s Monday, I die on Tuesday, and the lottery draw is on Saturday. So, I’m stuck in this endless two-day loop without ever knowing the winning numbers for this week’s lottery.
If I were to loop back with the weekend, I’d know the lottery numbers by now.
But now, I have a more reliable method than the lottery, so it doesn’t matter.
I’ll die as per the policy, and the person I leave behind will receive the death benefit.
That’s enough. I’ve become a cool guy who loops back in time to secure the death benefit for the person I’ll leave behind. Incredible, right, Su-hyuk?
[Brother, I’ll come by after class later, so you have to be there, okay?]
She’s the person who’ll be left behind when I die and loop back.
At first, I tried everything to escape this cursed loop. I did everything I could think of.
I even acted like a madman.
Suicide? I’ve done it so many times I’ve lost count. Every time Lee Seo-joo tells me not to kill myself, I have to laugh. Has she ever tried it? Because I have.
I’ve felt the pain of drowning, my lungs filling with water, the agony of burning alive, the pain of explosions—everything.
If there were a world championship for enduring pain, I’d be first place. Not maybe, I would definitely be first. I’m confident.
There were times when people didn’t look like people to me. Why? Who cares if I die? I’ll just come back. But if I go back to the past, are the people in the future resurrected, or does it never happen?
When I die, I return to two days before. Even if I sit still, I die from a heart attack. I don’t know why, but I die and return.
At least if I knew the reason, I’d feel less resentment.
What stopped my reckless behavior was my younger sister, Min-Ah.
She pulled me down when I was about to hang myself, cried for me when my body was shattered in a car accident, and even came running to the police station when I’d killed someone.
“Brother, please don’t die!”
“I believe you didn’t do it. Right? There must be a misunderstanding, right?”
“Is it because of me? Are you struggling because of me?”
“I’m sorry. It’s my fault, so please stop this.”
My one and only sister in this world.
Somewhere along the line, I became so wrapped up in myself that I forgot about her.
The reason I held on and survived before these loops was for Min-Ah.
“Pathetic.”
Thinking back now, I was foolish.
Since then, I’ve changed little by little.
I don’t know if time is reversing after I die or if it’s flowing differently somewhere else. But one thing is certain.
If there’s a future left for us, Lee Su-Hyuk won’t be in it. That’s why I chose the best path available to me.
If I’m going to die anyway, I’ll do it in a way that leaves Min-ah with as much money as possible.
After countless trials and errors, I devised a flawless plan for my death.
My death will be perfectly executed.
[Of course. Come after school, I’ll be waiting at the café.]
[ㅇㅋㅋ]
Is it so hard for her to just reply with something like “Sure” or “Got it”? She’s my sister, yet she doesn’t have a single delicate bone in her body.
And here I am, the sensitive big brother, getting hurt by her lack of tact.
After finishing the chat, I set down my phone.
“2:59 PM.”
I tapped the table exactly ten times with my fingers, and right on cue, my phone lit up as a call came through.
It was Chief Choi from the Cheong-Yeong Guild.
I answered immediately, almost like I’d been waiting for it.
[Oh, you picked up right away. Are you busy?]
[Not at all. What’s up?]
[Well, got any interest in a raid? Don’t tell anyone, but our guild leader’s heading into the Inner World and there’s a spot open.]
Cheong-Yeong Guild’s leader, Kim Do-jin, also known as Sword Saint, a 9-Star.
Currently, he’s one of the most powerful Awakened in South Korea—no, in the world. Among countless Awakened, he alone reached the level of 9-Star. No wonder they call him “Sword Saint.”
He truly is the god of the sword. When it comes to the sword, Kim Do-jin is unrivaled, a world unto himself. People even joke that he should be called “Kim Geom” instead of “Kim Do-jin,” the word “Geom” meaning “sword.”
[Really? Is that true?]
[Yup. It’s a minor role, but it’s a 6 Star dungeon. Didn’t you mention your sister’s medical expenses went up? Complete this safely, and we’ll make sure you’re well-compensated, so come on over.]
Chief Choi, a 4-Star Awakened, has always held me in high regard. He’s also the one who sympathized with the fact that, even after two years since my awakening, I’m still stuck at 2-Star.
Whenever a good opportunity came up, he’d offer it to me, and I owe about a third of my Inner Gate earnings to him.
So, as soon as a spot opened up this time, he reached out to me.
“At first, I was thrilled.”
Money was tight, and it wasn’t every day that a 2-Star could participate in a 6 Star raid led by the guild leader.
Even for a 2-Star, one doesn’t get into these raids without a solid track record. I felt like all the trust I’d built up over time was finally paying off.
Not anymore.
This 6 Star gate is a trap. I don’t know all the details, but the real boss was waiting behind it.
“The Lord of a Thousand Forms, Nyarlathotep.”
A celestial monster at Level 80, Nyarlathotep. Monsters above Level 50 are considered calamity-grade or boss-tier, and Nyarlathotep is among the highest, even for a boss.
The sudden appearance of this celestial monster threw everyone into chaos, and that’s where I die. I have no idea if the Sword Saint managed to defeat Nyarlathotep afterward or not.
Simply put, this raid is doomed from the start.
[I’d love to! Seriously, Chief Choi, you’re the best. When should I be there? Total respect, sir!]
[Suck-up. You haven’t even done your military service, yet you’re buttering me up. Briefing’s tonight, so get your ass over to the guild.]
[Yes, sir!]
At 6 Star, this gate provides the perfect conditions for a “death by accident”—and, by extension, a payout from my life insurance.
Alright time to die.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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