ALL NOVEL chapter 2
002.
Doxong, Mad Dog, Tugwi, Copy-Ninja X-Kashi, Genius, the First Dominator, Assassin, Devotee, 9 Heroes… and so on.
Throughout his ten years as a Hunter, there were countless names by which Lee Dohyuk was called.
And among them, the last one was,
‘The Savior.’
The sole hope of humanity.
Even if humanity were to perish in this timeline, in another timeline, there would be a Savior who would annihilate those damned alien races.
That was how the people from the future, 20 years later, referred to Lee Dohyuk.
However, such a Lee Dohyuk no longer exists.
“How do you face the others when you’re such a pushover.”
Could the members of the Execution Squad and the other 9 Heroes even imagine?
A former Transcendent Hunter and a member of the 9 Heroes.
Lee Dohyuk, who was once the Savior of humanity, is now…
“Here, Mr. Lee Dohyuk.”
180,000 won.
Taking away the introduction fee of 18,000 won, he receives the remaining 162,000 won as his daily wage.
At least they were generous enough to give him an extra 30,000 won compared to others.
“Damn it.”
Receiving the white envelope, Lee Dohyuk turned away and suddenly looked up at the sky.
Instead of the ashen sky, he saw a clear sky.
Months had passed since his return and preparation for the Outbreak.
Back then, he had no room in his mind to see or think about a different landscape from the ashen sky in his memories, but now he had the luxury to do so.
However, that luxury was not welcome.
The more he looked at that clear sky, the more he felt the difference from the original world.
Therefore, every time Lee Dohyuk looked at the sky, he felt a mixture of complex emotions such as disappointment, relief, frustration, and joy.
The past six months.
Lee Dohyuk had searched Mount Bukhan over and over again.
He even combed through the entire area of Mount Bukhan just in case.
But no matter how long he waited, the Outbreak never occurred in Mount Bukhan.
No, beyond that, there was no Outbreak, Wormhole, or a single alien entity to be found anywhere in the world.
The sudden appearance of alien races.
Awakened beings with superhuman abilities.
Unknown spatial ruptures.
None of it existed in this world.
In the end, Lee Dohyuk had to acknowledge that this place was different from the Earth he knew.
Perhaps a parallel world?
Could it be that?
“No matter how dominant the multiverse theory is.”
Vaguely remembered as a trend in superhero movies in the 2020s, the multiverse. It never crossed my mind, not even in my dreams, that such absurd events would occur not only in movies but also in reality.
The difficulty wasn’t just that.
It was adapting to the changed world.
No, more precisely, adapting to a world where nothing had changed at all.
The world was still, as it always had been, disgustingly peaceful.
Somewhere, Islamic extremists had seized power, while elsewhere, a mad dictator was invading a neighboring country.
Ido Hyuk knew well that such scenes were a testament to how truly peaceful Earth was.
Awakened members of the Taliban and the Holy Order of the Vatican joining forces to fight against extraterrestrial races, the memories of Earth where Israeli and Palestinian hunters protected each other’s lives…
“It was a hellhole.”
No words could better describe Earth at that time.
So, the fact that there was no outbreak was a good thing for everyone in the world.
But for Ido Hyuk personally?
“…Was it a good thing?”
Ido Hyuk had returned to save the world.
He had spent years preparing, continuing the war against the alien races.
Yet, upon returning, he realized it had all been in vain.
Of course, Ido Hyuk didn’t wish for an outbreak.
Within a month of the first outbreak, billions had died, barely surviving the hellish future thanks to the appearance of the hunters.
Naturally, it was better if such things didn’t happen.
Even though…
The efforts of Ido Hyuk and the other members of the alliance for years had been in vain.
The hellish training endured after the return had turned into mere floundering.
The combat skills he had honed over ten years were now useless, and above all…
[Web Message]
[ABank] Ido* Nim
Installment repayment loan
Amount due: 2,138,465 won
Scheduled withdrawal on July 30th
[Web Message]
[Peace Capital] Your loan is overdue
Ido* Nim Loan Overdue Notice
– As of July 26, 2024, there is an overdue amount of 146,948 won
[365 Help Line Manager Kim – Mr. Ido Hyuk. You know today is the deposit day, right? Don’t be late like last time.]
.
.
[Loan Brothers – Please deposit 450,000 won by 6 p.m. today]
···Itohyuk became a debtor.
**
Tock, tick-
“I’m back.”
“Hi.”
Ee Ji-an greeted Itohyuk as he opened the door and entered.
Itohyuk quickly headed to the bathroom to take a shower.
Ee Ji-an watched his back as he walked away, looking somewhat suspicious.
Her brother, who had suddenly started acting strangely about a year ago.
He used to come home once a month asking for pocket money, claiming he was independent.
But suddenly, he stopped visiting home under the pretense of being busy, only to reappear one day completely transformed.
His demeanor was as if he was on the verge of the most important event of his life.
Even his physique seemed to have drastically improved, as if he had been exercising rigorously.
“Was it about half a year ago?”
It was probably around that time.
Today, despite promising her and their parents to stay home, her brother, who had made several promises, ended up leaving the house without any contact for days.
“I thought he had gone crazy all of a sudden.”
And then, a few weeks later, he came back from the separate studio apartment he had been living in, claiming he had organized it.
Seeing him like that, not only Ee Ji-an but also her parents were taken aback.
“What is this?”
“Ma-s-k? And what’s with the gas mask?”
“Brother, did you join some kind of multi-level marketing?”
Surely, when he first moved out to be independent, it seemed like his belongings could fit in just two or three boxes.
But when he returned, they had multiplied to dozens of boxes.
Furthermore, the items inside those boxes were even more bizarre.
“Not military supplies or anything.”
It was as if he was stockpiling preserved food, masks, gas masks, water filters, bottled water, first aid kits, flashlights, batteries, like preparing for a nuclear war next month.
Itohyuk had arrived carrying all these survival items, reminiscent of a zombie movie.
Items survivors gather, preparing themselves.
Even though he didn’t smoke, he had hoarded hundreds of cigarettes.
“Something is definitely off.”
A few months before Itohyuk came back home.
Ee Ji-an, worried about her brother not keeping in touch, secretly went to the place where he used to work.
And what she heard was that her brother had quit his job months ago.
But where did he get the money to buy all these strange items in dozens of boxes?
Was that the only strange thing?
Even after returning home, her brother continued to exhibit countless odd behaviors.
One day, he would suddenly pack a large backpack and go on what seemed like a trip, only to return after a few days.
After repeating this several times, he eventually stopped going out altogether.
Then, he would spend the whole day glued to his phone, secretly searching for something strange.
‘…Monster, monstrosity… superpowers, hunters, awakeners… Was that it?’
Terms that could come out of a novel.
That’s what Ji-an was earnestly searching for on the internet.
‘No way…?!’
A thought brushed through Ji-an’s mind as she contemplated deeply.
It was then that she could understand why I Do-hyuk had turned out that way.
Not exactly understood, more like deduced, but most likely correct.
Ji-an immediately opened a group chat with her parents.
A chat room with only three members: Ji-an, her parents, excluding her brother.
Ping, pong-
-Ji-an: Mom… Dad…
Her parents, who were already extremely worried about their changed son, Ji Do-hyuk.
Every day, they were deeply concerned, trying to figure out what was going on.
Ji-an expressed her speculation without reservation.
-Ji-an: I think my brother got involved with a cult!’
-Mom: What? A cult?’
-Ji-an: Yes!
Ji-an had seen a documentary about it sometime.
An exposé documentary on cults.
There was definitely content about some cults that proclaimed apocalyptic beliefs.
The appearance of the believers she saw then perfectly matched the current state of I Do-hyuk!
Thud-
“Phew.”
I Do-hyuk emerged from the shower.
Since he had only thrown on his lower garment, his well-developed muscles were clearly visible.
‘…How much did those cult guys brainwash him!’
Ji-an’s eyes shook.
How severe must the indoctrination have been for his body to have improved like that?
Now she noticed even calloused palms.
There was no way such noticeable effects could appear overnight just from hard labor.
Ji-an glared at her brother, scrutinizing him.
Then, she noticed various scratches and scars all over his body.
Could it be that he was whipped for not obeying?
A fire lit up in Ji-an’s eyes.
Crackle.
At that moment, I Do-hyuk entered his room.
Through the closing door, she could see boxes stacked in his room.
Although most had been sorted out through secondhand deals over the past few months, there were still boxes left unattended.
Seeing that, she felt like she was starting to piece things together.
“Definitely! It’s brainwashing that makes the end of the world seem near, right, Oppa?”
Without a doubt, Oppa believed that firmly and bought loads of those things!
He must have been preparing for the end to come.
Perhaps it was the day of the end that Lee Dohyuk thought of, urging her and their parents not to leave the house.
Then, as nothing happened, he must have realized it was all a lie and finally returned to their hometown recently.
“So that’s why I’ve been feeling off lately…”
Now, it all made sense.
Since coming back to their hometown, he suddenly hated working hard, refused to do manual labor.
After returning, he just lay in bed, not wanting to do anything.
A sudden change in attitude and listlessness!
It perfectly matched the reactions of believers who found out that the doctrines of their faith were actually full of lies.
…What seemed unlikely was turning out to be true.
Tick-tock-
With a trembling heart, Lee Jihan knocked on the door.
Soon, Dohyuk’s voice calling her in could be heard.
“Oppa.”
As Lee Jihan cautiously opened the door.
“Do you… believe in God?”
A question she hesitantly asked.
“God? Well, I’m not sure if He exists, but if He does…”
His immediate answer turned Lee Jihan’s guess into certainty.
“…Even if there is a God, He wouldn’t be that much of a bastard.”
Clang-
Dohyuk’s sharp voice resonated loudly.
“Ah…”
Lee Jihan let out a soft sigh.
Denial towards God, and profanity!
No doubt about it.