Chapter 1
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Prologue
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The sky is yellow.
No, the sky was actually blue. But in his eyes, it wasn't blue at all.
“We meet again, Sunbaenim.”
A shadow fell over him.
His whole body ached. But his heart ached more than his body.
Thud. Something fell before him.
“It's a letter of excommunication. Issued directly by the head of the Fallenberg family.”
With a trembling hand, he picked up the letter. Its contents were exactly as the other had said.
And the seal stamped at the end was unmistakably that of the head of the Fallenberg family.
“Why, why would Father do this to me…!”
“You've crossed the line, far beyond what's acceptable. Becoming a dog for demons, helping the Vile Breed.”
“It's a setup! I've never done such a thing!”
“How can you call it a setup when the evidence is so clear? Stop before you embarrass yourself further, Sunbaenim.”
Cold, blue eyes looked down on him.
He felt a cold sensation on his neck. It was a sword.
“…I have a pact with the head of the Fallenberg family, so I won't kill you. As of today, you are dead.”
But soon, the other person withdrew the sword.
“Do not appear before my eyes—no, before anyone's eyes—ever again. That is the last courtesy I can offer you, Sunbaenim.”
“Then, my money…?”
At those words, the other person burst out laughing.
“Ah, my apologies. I didn't mean to scoff. Hmm… Should I call this being true to yourself to the very end, Sunbaenim, or just plain greedy?”
The other's expression turned cold.
“Naturally, you cannot take a single thing you've acquired under the Fallenberg name. It's ridiculous that I even have to point this out.”
“Th-that's absurd…!”
* * *
“…No! Just kill me instead!”
Pernyan woke up. Relieved by the familiar ceiling, he steadied his ragged breath and drank a glass of cold water.
He ran a hand through his hair irritably and swore.
“…Damn it.”
That dream again.
No, could this even be called a mere dream?
It was the future.
The power of prophecy, gained by a stroke of chance.
“Normally, prophecy would be something a merchant would welcome with open arms…!”
But Pernyan could not.
Because that future was one where his downfall was set in stone—a future where he would be excommunicated from his family and lose all his money.
“As if I'd let that happen…. It will never happen. Never, ever.”
As Pernyan vowed with bloodshot eyes, he heard someone outside.
Knock, knock—
“Gongjanim, are you awake?”
“…Wait a moment.”
Pernyan straightened his disheveled clothes and composed his face, and soon a servant entered.
“When did you wake up?”
“Not long ago.”
“Would you like to have your meal first?”
“Something simple. I don't have much of an appetite.”
“Yes, sir.”
A short while later, simple bread and soup were served. After finishing his meal, Pernyan checked the time and headed to the conference room.
“The Jibujangnim is entering.”
“Welcome, Jibujangnim.”
As he entered, everyone who was seated stood up.
Pernyan gave a cursory acknowledgment of their greetings and sat at the head of the table.
“Let's begin the meeting.”
He then opened the reports placed at his seat.
“Yes. We will now begin the regular meeting for February 11th.”
“Reporting. Yesterday, February 10th, was the entrance exam for prospective new students.”
“With the exam running all day, not only the students and parents but also their accompanying guards and servants used the guild's shops. Sales saw a significant increase…”
“Professor Alton of alchemy has requested we procure some magic reagents. The reagents in question are…”
“Furthermore, Professor Vendal needs Mana Stones to create Golem cores…”
The reports continued one after another, but none of them registered in Pernyan's mind.
It was always like this on the days he had that dream. His mind felt numb, his concentration shot.
In a way, it was to be expected.
It was a premonition of the worst possible future, approaching in real time. Anyone who could see that and remain unaffected wasn't human.
“Enough. Let's end the morning meeting here. We'll do the rest tomorrow.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Yes, sir!”
Pernyan left the conference room and settled on the terrace attached to his office. He let out a deep sigh while having a cup of coffee.
“Is something the matter?”
“The matter? Nothing.”
There was, but he couldn't tell anyone about the dream.
“You seem to have a lot on your mind lately.”
“Do I? Since when?”
“About half a year ago?”
“That's not exactly 'lately'.”
But the timing was accurate.
“Is it still the aftereffect of that day?”
“No.”
“But it's strange. Since then, you've often seemed dazed, and you've suddenly started making incomprehensible decisions.”
Of course, those decisions were ultimately beneficial. By getting ahead of major issues, Pernyan had maximized the guild's profits.
“They were the right choices in the end.”
“But it wasn't your usual way of doing things. You, who always prioritized thorough investigation and verification, suddenly started acting as if you were possessed.”
“It might have looked that way on the surface, but I had no choice at the time.”
“Do you have another source of information?”
“If I said I did, would you believe me?”
Yes, he did. A very valuable source of information that couldn't be obtained anywhere else.
Pernyan recalled the events of that day.
* * *
It was an ordinary day.
“Not a single one of these proposals is satisfactory. None of them seem particularly effective.”
A day like any other, holding a morning meeting and berating those who failed to meet his expectations.
There's a saying that misfortune and fortune always strike suddenly.
For Pernyan, that was such a day. A day when misfortune struck for no reason at all.
“Still, haven't things improved a lot?”
“They're much better than at the beginning, I'll grant you that. But that's all…”
—!
Without any warning or omen, Pernyan's world turned white.
Krrrrrumble—
A moment later, a deafening roar that seemed to tear the sky apart followed.
“Gyaaaaargh!”
He belatedly realized it was a lightning strike, but the shock was so intense it took his breath away, and his mind grew hazy.
Something pierced through that weakened gap.
—Wh-what is this?
It was a soul.
Possession? It chattered in an incomprehensible language and began to rummage through Pernyan's mind.
*'What the hell are you...!'*
Everything was painful and bewildering, but Pernyan first squeezed the mana from his heart.
He had instinctively realized that the intruder was trying to steal his body.
What little mana he had left began to attack the invader.
—What!
Gurgle. As the mana ravaged his insides, blood and white foam frothed from Pernyan's mouth, and tears of blood streamed from his bloodshot eyes.
But in return, the invader did not escape unscathed.
—Aargh! It hurts! Help me!
Contrary to its grand entrance, the being's soul shattered into dozens of pieces with absurd ease.
Some pieces fled, while others were absorbed directly into Pernyan.
“What is this…?”
And in that moment, unknown memories slammed into Pernyan's mind.
A vast amount of knowledge, too much to handle.
Most of them vanished in a flash, like acquaintances you greet and part with.
Sinking into the depths of his consciousness, as if waiting for the day they would resurface.
Perhaps because of that, only a few things remained from the memories that had faded like a dream.
“…The demons are stirring again?”
But they were more intense than anything else.
It was a prophecy of this world's ominous end.
“…I'm going to lose all my money and become a beggar? What kind of bullshit is this…!”
It was a glimpse of a future more terrifying than death.
His memory of that day ended there.
After waking up from a three-day coma, he used the rather trivial yet useful information for his merchant guild to increase its market share.
*'They say fortune and misfortune arrive together.'*
The good fortune of knowing the future, and the misfortune that this future was close to ruin.
Those were the things that had suddenly come to Pernyan that day.