The Kingdom - 1
A room so dim and dreary that one couldn't tell if it was day or night.
Enclosed by thick blackout curtains and soundproof walls, nothing—not sunlight, not the noise of the outside world—could penetrate this space. It was a fortress, a true castle that perfectly shielded its master from any threats, allowing for nothing that might disturb his peace.
A place of absolute sanctuary. In this private space where he didn't need to care about anyone's gaze, the man who owned the room had shed even the barest remnants of his humanity.
His body was a landscape of layered, overlapping folds of flesh. Even the slight tremors caused by his breathing made his flabby rolls quiver, and the sweat that welled up flowed down, leaving rain-like streaks across his skin. But he couldn't see the waterfall of sweat cascading down his body. When he looked down, all he could see was the mass of folded flesh. Even the source that biologically defined him as a man was buried so deep within the rolls that it was invisible.
To anyone, it was a sight that could only be described as abnormal. And that "anyone" included himself.
Ugly.
He loathed his own appearance, which could be summed up by that single word. That was why there wasn't a single mirror in the room to reflect his image. Yet, he couldn't deny that the body was his. The weight of the flesh he felt with every breath was far too vivid.
In the end, as he always did, he turned his eyes away to escape and ignore the reality. Stomping forward, his rolls of fat sloshing with every step, he headed toward the only light source in the room: the desk where his computer sat. It was the only medium connected to the outside world in this completely isolated place.
With a creak of the worn-out chair, he settled his body and began to operate the mouse and keyboard. A happy smile spread across his face as he welcomed this moment—the moment he shed his ugly, wretched reality to transform into a perfect version of himself.
But that smile soon twisted into a grimace.
"Damn it, how is there not a single sane bastard out there?"
The man thought society was trash. A world where morons who couldn't even prove their own righteousness without hating someone else lived. If such a world wasn't trash, what would you call it? Though the world had become more complex with more things to consider, he found it pathetic how people didn't even think to study, focusing only on what was visible and making shallow judgments.
Do they not read books? Do they not watch the news? If they just took a little interest and looked into things, they could judge what's right and wrong, so why don't they make that effort? They're being looked down upon because they only fight among themselves when they should be joining forces. If they know something is unreasonable and unfair, they should unite, but instead, they just act like "cool" cynics, saying "who cares."
Pathetic! Ignorant! Are these people really equal to me in a democracy? No, most of them can't even use their single vote properly! They know how to memorize game characters, but do they even know the names of the politicians? Are they interested in what those people are doing to maintain their vested interests? Do they know that they're dividing the youth to make them fight each other for that very purpose?
The man hammered away at the keyboard. With a sense of mission that he was different, that he was "awake," and that he had to teach people what was right, he wrote comments and posts. He did this while having over five windows open, logged in with different accounts.
They say if three people gather, they can even create a tiger that doesn't exist. Believing that "white lies" were necessary to build the society he believed in as justice, he worked to manufacture public opinion by replying to his own posts.
"……."
He joined forces with like-minded people, engaged in heated debates with those who disagreed, got into fights over trivial matters, and dealt with idiots who tried to belittle others as fools over a single mistake—as if people couldn't be ignorant of some things. Eventually, he grew exhausted.
The computer screen went black. The room lost its only light and plunged into total darkness. The man asked himself, sitting in the dark:
So, what's left in the end? When you step out of the computer world, what do you have? Who are you?
He looked at the thick workbook sitting in the corner of his desk: "Complete Conquest of Civil Service Exam Questions! Guaranteed 9th Grade Pass!" The front part showed signs of use, but more than half of the book was as clean as a new one. Nearby, ballpoint pens were scattered haphazardly. They were new pens he'd barely held, but the tips were dried out as if they were ancient. There were trash bags strewn about the room, exercise equipment left in a corner gathering dust, and a yellowed blanket and pillow he couldn't remember the last time he washed. And hanging on the wall was a suit he couldn't recall when he last wore. It was carefully covered in plastic to keep the dust off, neatly pressed, and sharp-edged. It looked as if it held his desire to never show a shameful appearance, no matter what situation he faced.
"……."
The man stared at the suit with dull eyes for a moment before hanging his head low. Turning away as if to escape, he picked up his smartphone. The corners were shattered, and a long crack ran across the screen. Even though he had just turned off the computer, he threw himself back into the space called the internet, only the medium having changed.
"……Morons."
Whether it was social media, which was nothing more than a shared diary of how others lived, it was no different from other communities. It was like a cesspool where idiots dragged in every story they could find to brag about how well they were living. He sneered as he watched the posts being updated as if they were competing to see whose shit was prettier or whose shit had a better color.
That's why life is hard, because you live while comparing yourselves and worrying about others' eyes. Why would the birth rate fall? It's because people don't want their children to live the same life they do, living a life worse than others. Why don't the politicians know a fact that can be understood just by looking at social media? Are they pretending not to know because they don't want to let go of their vested interests? Is it because the country won't collapse before they die anyway? Is it "I don't know what happens after"? Why do you vote for such people and make the country like this? It's a government that perfectly fits the level of its citizens. The country is collapsing because of the thoughtless, average-intelligence people who enjoy the benefits of democracy. Voting rights should only be given to those who pass a test.
As if he never grew tired, his fingers began to work hard again. Because while he was so engrossed in this, he could turn his eyes away from reality. Because he could only feel at ease when he saw the shortcomings of others and felt that he was better. Like an alcoholic who finds reality more painful when sober, the man threw himself into the spiral of Sodom and Gomorrah that spun endlessly.
Then, suddenly, one post caught his attention.
'Video of no-panties girl throwing a Korean man over her shoulder'
Is this clickbait?
Even knowing that, his curiosity drove his fingers toward the play button. There might be a weird trap hidden by the fishing title, but it could also be exactly what the title said.
"……Whoa?! That's insane! So clean!"
He hadn't expected much, but the man let out an exclamation as he watched the video. A woman overpowering a knife-wielding attacker with a fluid judo throw. It was a perfect, clean "ippon" that looked like something out of a movie. If this were a judo tournament, wouldn't the match have ended with this one throw? More than that, this wasn't staged? Did she really pull off such a clean technique in a real-life situation? Who on earth is she? It doesn't look like she's done it once or twice. Is she an athlete? If such a stunning beauty were an athlete, there's no way I wouldn't know her, right?
The woman in the video boasted such incredible beauty that she wouldn't look out of place compared to most celebrities. A tall height of around 170cm. A sleek body line. Above all, her slender frame combined with quite voluminous breasts and hips created the image of an ideal beauty. Can such a body exist in reality? And she's even good at sports? She felt like someone from such a different world that he didn't even feel jealousy, let alone admiration. She felt so far removed that he didn't even feel like she was the same species.
When his thoughts reached that point, the next thing he checked was whether the woman in the video was wearing panties. Because it said so in the title! He replayed the video, hoping to see the no-panties look of such an incredible alpha woman, but—
"……Tsk!"
What a shame! It seemed certain she wasn't wearing any, but not even a single frame of the video showed her crotch. It was thoroughly defended, hidden by her fluttering clothes or her slightly raised legs.
"Learn to film properly, what is this teasing?"
Saying it wasn't enough to "get one off," the man smacked his lips. He searched for other videos, wondering if maybe it could be seen if there was footage from a different angle, but his expectations cooled down coldly.
"Hmm…… well, she's a beauty anyway, should I just do it?"
Even if it was baggy, oversized clothing, it didn't cover her entire body. Thinking of it as a "hidden gem," he started to puff out his nose, "Hmph, hmph!" It wasn't bad. Just the fact that such a beauty existed in the world, that he breathed the same air and lived in the same time, was enough to excite him. As he was preparing to let his imagination run wild, vividly painting the woman from the video in his mind, he suddenly widened his eyes at a sense of familiarity.
"This face, I've seen it before?"
The man played the video again to check the woman's face. After replaying the high-quality video several times, he shouted with wide, confident eyes.
"Ah! The neighbor!"
The alpha couple living next door, whom he could occasionally run into when he went out to take out the trash. He recalled that the beauty had already been taken by a man on her level, and the wife living next door was a stunning beauty, while the husband was someone who didn't look like he'd ever be described as "a nice guy" anywhere. He had just thought of them as clouds passing by, people living in a different world who just happened to be nearby. But what was this?
The woman in the video was undoubtedly the neighbor's wife. She wasn't just a simple beauty. Was it true that people with outstanding looks also had outstanding abilities? Was this why only superior genes survived? It seemed like this video was taken by chance when she went on a trip with her husband.
As he watched the video with such thoughts, the man doubted his own eyes for a moment. A giant man having a friendly conversation with the neighbor's wife. The man dealing with the police officers who were questioning them to investigate the situation and take the culprit into custody was a completely different person from the neighbor's husband he knew. There was an atmosphere between the two, who were naturally reaching out to each other and checking if the other was hurt, that suggested an illicit relationship.
"Is this, by any chance…… an affair?!"