The Reason I Came to This World
"Oh Sung-woon! You made Miran cry, didn't you!"
"..."
'I knew you'd come.'
Kang Yu-ri. She was the queen of our Daegil Elementary School. The girl who sat at the absolute top of the school caste system. If you grabbed any random student walking by and asked who the queen of the school was, they'd say Kang Yu-ri without hesitation, regardless of grade.
As expected of a queen, her looks were so overwhelming that comparing her to other girls felt like an insult. Her background was on another level too. She was the granddaughter of Kang Sun-woong, chairman of Tyche, Korea's leading conglomerate. At that point she might as well have been a princess. Though honestly, the title of queen suited her better than princess.
In every school there's at least one queen bee who struts around with a flock of girls following her. Kang Yu-ri was the ultra-enhanced final boss version of that. Maybe it was because of her overwhelming aura, but even the teachers couldn't throw their weight around in front of her.
We first met when we were put in the same class in first grade, and for the entire six years since, we'd been in the same class every single year. Six years together in the same class—could that really be a coincidence?
"Stop shutting your mouth and answer me! Why did you make her cry?!"
True to her queenly nature, whenever a girl got bullied she'd come charging in horns blazing like this. Thanks to that, at least while you were in the same class as Kang Yu-ri, there were no insane guys stupid enough to mess with girls. The boys were scared of her too. Actually, it felt like the boys were even more terrified.
"I just rejected her, that's all."
"If you're going to reject someone, do it gently so they don't cry! This is what, the umpteenth time, you damn player?!"
'Player? What kind of word is that coming from a kid...'
She was seriously pissed. But was the reason she was angry really because I'd made a girl cry?
"No matter how gently I reject them, they still cry. It breaks my heart too."
Getting confessions wasn't exactly unpleasant, but watching girls cry because of me was genuinely painful.
"But are you sure you're mad at me for making girls cry?"
"W-what?! O-of course! What other reason would I have to be angry?!"
Look at her stuttering with that bright red face. Normally she would never get this flustered.
"Hmm..."
"What! Why! Why are you looking at me like that?!"
Kang Yu-ri shouted, her flushed face turning slightly as her eyes darted around. I reached out and placed my hand on her forehead. The moment I did, she froze solid like she'd been petrified.
"You've got a fever. You feeling sick? Go to the infirmary."
"...Ugh..!"
Slap!
"W-where do you think you're putting your hand on a lady's forehead! You pervert!"
Her face now completely crimson, she knocked my hand away and backed off while cursing.
"..."
As expected. I'd been half-suspicious until now, but when she showed it this blatantly, there was no way I could miss it. Well, the way she acted was so childish it was honestly kind of cute.
Still, not yet. Come back after you've grown up a bit. If you come find me in about seven years, I'll consider it.
"Hey, hey! Sung-woon! Did you hear the news?!"
Jo Gong-heon—no, Jo Kwang-hoon—called me out during summer break and immediately started yelling with an excited face.
"What news?"
"What? You don't know?!"
"Don't know what? Why is this guy so worked up today? Did he find another trash game with dogshit luck again? If he wants to beat me, he should at least bring a game where skill actually matters."
"They succeeded in developing the full-dive VR machine!"
"Yeah, yeah."
I was trying to give an appropriate response when...
"Wait, what did you just say?"
"They succeeded in developing the full-dive VR machine!"
"......."
Ever since reincarnating, I'd carried one question with me throughout my life in this world.
"Tsk, you poor bastard... I'll specially send you to a world that you'll like. Be grateful."
The words spoken by the Gandalf-looking old man who had reincarnated me.
At the time, I couldn't understand what he meant. This world didn't feel all that different from the one I'd lived in during my previous life. The biggest differences that came to mind were that Korea here wasn't split into North and South, and that polygamy was allowed. It was nice not having to serve in the military because it was a volunteer system, but those weren't exactly massive changes.
Since a being who called himself a god had said it, there should have been some clear difference, but I couldn't see it. I didn't feel like this was a world I'd particularly enjoy.
But in this exact moment, I finally understood. I understood what the old man had meant. And a shiver ran down my spine.
As someone who had loved games, I'd had one dream. Aside from the impossible wish of escaping my terrible luck, there was one dream that might actually be achievable someday. Something that, if my previous self had lived a very long life, might have been possible.
That dream was 'playing a full-dive VR game before I die.'
That dream was about to come true.
It was common knowledge that Tyche had poured massive funds into full-dive VR research, but most people had mocked them for it. They said trying to develop something that only existed in movies and novels was the same as throwing money into the void. Even if it were theoretically possible, it was something that belonged to the distant future.
But Tyche ignored all the annoying criticism and continued investing in full-dive VR technology. It required enormous capital, and the probability of success was slim. Still, they had judged that successfully developing a full-dive VR machine would allow them to become not just Korea's top company, but the world's top company. So they rolled the dice.
And Tyche won that gamble brilliantly. The stock price, which had been skyrocketing nonstop since the announcement, proved it.
Tyche was no longer merely Korea's greatest corporation. They were now marching toward the position of the world's greatest corporation—their ultimate goal.
"Oh Sung-woon. What have you been frantically searching for since earlier?"
The final summer break of elementary school had flown by in the blink of an eye while I was lost in happy daydreams. The full-dive VR machine. Just imagining my dream coming true soon was enough to keep me endlessly excited. Thanks to that, I could confidently call it the happiest summer break of my life.
Even after coming to school, I was still lost in those happy delusions when something I'd momentarily forgotten suddenly hit me. I urgently pulled out my smartphone and started searching.
Right then, the queen of our school—and the princess of Tyche, the company that had invented the full-dive VR machine—popped up behind me. It was Kang Yu-ri.
I ignored her and kept searching.
"Kayaba... Akihito? Who is this person that you're looking up so desperately?"
"Who is he, you ask?"
Someone who absolutely must not exist...
"A very, very dangerous guy. A madman who could commit mass murder like it was nothing."
"What~?! There's someone like that? Why are you searching for such a dangerous person?"
Why? Obviously because...
"I don't want to get trapped in a death game."
"Death game...??"
Luckily—or rather, fortunately—nothing came up in the search. Still, I couldn't relax completely. It was something that must never happen, even by the slimmest chance.
"Kang Yu-ri!"
"Hik?!"
When I grabbed her shoulder, she jumped like she'd been electrocuted. It was pretty funny, but my heart was racing too urgently to enjoy it.
"Check the list of full-dive VR machine developers and make sure there's no one named Kayaba Akihito!"
"U-ugh... I-I don't know anything about that! And let go of me..!!"
Slap!
Kang Yu-ri knocked my hand away and glared at me angrily, but with her cheeks puffed up and bright red, it just looked like an adorable tantrum.
"Why are you asking me of all people?!"
"You're Tyche's princess, aren't you?"
"W-what?! Princess?! Jeez...!! Don't you call me that either!"
"Sounds like you've heard it plenty already."
"Shut up!"
"There's no one else I can ask. I'm begging you."
"...Ha. So annoying."
Now even her ears had turned red. She probably thought she was hiding her emotions well, but from my perspective it was so obvious it was almost impressive. It was getting harder and harder to pretend I didn't notice.
Kang Yu-ri took out her phone and made a call somewhere. After exchanging a few words, she told me to wait a moment. A few minutes later, she held her smartphone out to me.
"Here."
I hesitated briefly before taking her phone and checking the screen. It displayed a list of the full-dive VR machine developers. Not just names—there were photos too. As expected of the princess. One short phone call and she could produce something like this in minutes.
"Whoa~ Thank you, prin—"
"If you say princess, I really won't let it slide."
"Then quee—"
"You were about to say queen? Do you have a death wish?"
I really couldn't say anything right. Both were technically correct, but the suppression was too severe. What was I, Hong Gil-dong? I was only speaking facts.
Anyway, I checked the list of developers. As expected, that bastard's name wasn't there. I checked the photos too, but there wasn't a single person who looked similar.
"Whew—"
The tension drained from my body and a sigh of relief escaped naturally. I'd thought there was no way he'd be here, but the anxiety had been unbearable.
"With this, I've avoided the death game..."
If it were the current me, I believed I'd survive even if trapped in a death game, but fear was still fear.
"Thanks, Kang Yu-ri."
"Only saying it?"
"Huh?"
I'd expressed my gratitude for her help, but Kang Yu-ri was staring at me with a pout. It seemed she wanted something in return. She probably wouldn't ask for money, and if it was an object, one call from her would get it delivered before the tea even cooled.
"What do you want?"
"A wish coupon."
"What?"
"One wish coupon."
It's not like I'd asked for some massive favor. They really do say the rich are the greediest.
"...Isn't that a bit much?"
"Not at all. I just leaked confidential company information."
"What confidential information?"
"It is confidential. Right now, Tyche's most important project is the full-dive VR machine. Obviously the developers' personal information isn't something just anyone can look at."
"..."
Thinking about it again, it really was information that wouldn't be easy to obtain. The security around the full-dive VR machine would be top-tier. They'd probably be monitoring everything with extreme vigilance to prevent any leaks. The developers' personal information was likely the same. The only reason she could get it so easily was because she was the cherished princess of Tyche.
But if it's supposed to be confidential, why did you hand it over so casually...
'Chairman Kang Sun-woong... I think you failed in your granddaughter's education...'
At this rate, if I asked to see the full-dive VR machine itself, she might actually show me.
"One wish coupon!"
"...Fine."
"Good! Don't even think about trying to weasel out of it later!"
"What are you even planning to make me do?"
"That's... hehe, I'm not telling~ Bleh~!"
Thump.
'Wait, what? Fuck, why did my heart just skip?! No, you idiot!'
This was arrhythmia. Looked like a red flag for my health had already appeared. It had only been ten years since I escaped being an elementary schooler and things were already fucked. Honestly, I did think she was a tiny bit cute. But compared to the charm of a grown woman, that was nothing. How dare a schoolkid try to charm me? There were still seven years left.
I pounded my chest where the arrhythmia had hit and forcibly calmed myself down.