“You have passed away.”
‘Ah… I’m dead.’
Twenty-eight years old. Depending on how you looked at it, it had been either a long life or a short one.
There had been things I wanted to become, and it was a little disappointing that I’d never even been in a relationship. Still, I thought I’d lived without regrets.
Mom, Dad, my brothers, my sisters, and my younger siblings.
Your unfilial, pathetic son is going ahead first. Whether it’s the afterlife or my next life, let’s meet again someday.
Well then… goodbye.
I was Kwon Tae-woo, born in South Korea.
I grew up loved by my parents and siblings, but I never managed to land a respectable job like everyone else. I bounced from one part-time job to another and spent more than half my time unemployed.
Elementary school, middle school, high school—I went through plenty of hard times, including being bullied. I’d never dated anyone even once. Maybe it had been a somewhat pitiful life.
Even so, I had no regrets.
And that was how I met my death.
The reason I ended up leaving my family behind was something that had happened two days earlier.
It had been an ordinary day, just like any other.
My father hated seeing his pathetic son lying around in his room doing nothing, so he ordered me to go buy soondae gukbap from the restaurant on the main road. On my way back, he also told me to pick up some makgeolli and coffee from the market.
I was annoyed and didn’t want to go, but my father scared me, so I ran the errand without complaining.
I was on my way back with the soondae gukbap when—
Suddenly, I heard a scream behind me.
I turned around and saw a taxi barreling toward me, swerving violently from side to side.
Looking closer, I saw that the driver had passed out, while a little girl who looked around five to seven years old was crying in the passenger seat.
And in the direction the taxi was heading, an old woman sat frozen on the ground, a look of alarm on her face.
The moment I saw that, I didn’t think about anything.
“Hit the brakes!!”
I shouted at the girl, then scooped up the old woman and threw myself to the side.
Fortunately, the old woman, the girl, and the taxi driver were all unharmed.
But I didn’t get away.
At the exact moment I thought the taxi would surely brake, it sped up instead.
Bang!
My body flew into the air, slammed into the ground, and rolled several times.
After that, I lost consciousness.
I remained in a coma for two days before finally dying today.
And so, my short twenty-eight-year life came to an end.
In a world existing in another dimension from Earth, Planet Lige.
There were eight continents there, one of which was the Krons Continent.
In the Frin Peninsula, where the Arfang Empire bordered the Frink Kingdom, deep within the Igman Forest of the Maekshan Mountains—
An old man and a young elf woman were walking along a forest trail.
The old man wore a long, worn robe and carried a staff engraved with a snake climbing up a pillar. An owl ornament hung from the tip of the staff, its eyes represented by gemstones.
The young elf woman had red hair, a red eye, and a blue eye—a heterochromatic elf. She had long, pointed ears and a beautiful figure, and she carried a basket filled with herbs, berries, and vegetables in her arms.
“I~lan♡”
The elf woman called to the old man in a coquettish voice.
“What is it, Aphrodite?”
The old man answered as he looked at her.
“We said we wouldn’t act like that when it’s just the two of us. I like Ilan’s real appearance better~!”
“Sorry. But this form is more comfortable.”
The old man shrugged.
“Even though I’m over a hundred years old, I haven’t aged and have kept my youth. That makes no sense by the standards of my past life or the standards of this world. It’s fine at home, but when we run into adventurers or mercenaries in a forest like this, the old man’s form is perfect.”
Aphrodite tilted her head.
“I don’t really get it. Why do you like looking like this?”
The old man chuckled.
“If I walked along this trail with you in my original form, who would think we were Shinwoo, the otherworld hero who sealed Demon King Tartarus a hundred years ago, and D’Elk, his lover and a red dragon–high elf hybrid, along with Aphrodite, the legendary archer with heterochromia?”
He pointed at Aphrodite with one finger.
“Everyone would just see a young elf woman with red hair and heterochromia. The kind of elf who looks easy to sell to a rookie adventurer or a slave trader.”
“Though anyone who tried to attack them would be nothing but slippery little minnows who couldn’t last even a moment.”
The old man raised his staff and laughed.
“On the other hand, when we look like this, everyone assumes we’re a Grand Mage affiliated with a Magic Tower or kingdom and his elf assistant. It’s convenient since no one comes too close for no reason. That’s why it’s perfect.”
“I see.”
Aphrodite nodded.
The two of them continued deeper into the forest while engaging in sappy couple talk.
They had been walking for who knew how long when—
A strange sound that should never have been heard in this forest reached Aphrodite’s ears.
But Shinwoo seemed not to hear it and continued talking about dinner.
“Honey, today we’ll have horse meat, grilled mushrooms, and wild-boar barbecue, and the other day—”
“Wait. Be quiet for a second.”
Aphrodite stopped walking.
“Huh?”
“Don’t you hear… a strange sound coming from somewhere?”