Pension (1)

"Oppa. Are you really that stupid, or are you acting dumb just to mess with me?"

The waiting room for a music broadcast was buzzing with noise until the air turned cold and still. That was because a woman in a revealing stage outfit, pretty enough to make it obvious at a glance, was growling at the male manager in front of her.

"No, wait. There's no way Oppa has the nerve to screw someone over like that. Then you really are just stupid."

The makeup team, the stylists, and the other managers all kept their mouths shut as they looked at the two of them. Their faces were grim. The woman didn't care either way and kept shaking something right in the male manager's face. It was kimbap wrapped in foil.

"I clearly told you to buy plain kimbap. Not tuna."

With her small face and sharply defined features, she was the kind of beauty that stopped people in their tracks. Her skin was clear, her lips full yet cleanly outlined. More than that, her proportions were almost unfair; she was practically a doll. She was Rayoon, the visual center and leader of the top-tier girl group Ceriel.

But Rayoon was.

"This is annoying! Oppa, that stupid face!"

Unlike her beautiful face, her personality was a disaster. As Rayoon shook the wrapped kimbap in irritation, the male manager lowered his head and pushed up his dark-framed glasses, his eyes already shrinking with unease.

"...S-sorry."

Weak. Worn down. Pathetic.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sick of hearing that, too. Ha- seriously, why is Jaeha Oppa even on our team??"

Rayoon's irritation and nagging began in earnest. Yet the male manager, no, Kang Jaeha, only kept bowing and taking it while the people around them merely whispered among themselves; nobody helped him.

"Rayoon's having pre-show hysteria again."

"Exactly, but she always goes after Manager Jaeha."

"Didn't he even buy the kimbap wrong? I heard Rayoon had him switch it to tuna at the end."

"Is this even the first or second time? That girl's just looking for a victim, someone to dump her stress on."

"Poor Manager Jaeha."

"He's an idiot, that's why he keeps apologizing and gets picked on."

The other managers were the same. They ignored Kang Jaeha and stared at their phones or cleared their throats, pretending not to see. Jaeha, cornered by Rayoon, wasn't angry so much as he was trying his hardest to ease her mood.

"Rayoon. I'll go buy the kimbap again. Sorry... you're going on stage soon, so calm down."

Still, he came off as clumsy.

Ha- I want to run away.

Kang Jaeha, sweating through the ordeal, was a manager with four years under his belt. The agency he worked for was a solid mid-sized company. He was thirty this year. His looks, everything about him, were ordinary. He'd started as a contract worker and had made it this far. He wanted to quit, sure, but his timid personality had trapped him. Besides, he needed to make money.

Kang Jaeha removed his glasses and wiped the sweat from his face. The mood in the room was weak, pathetic. The whole setup looked like a herbivore standing before a top predator. Rayoon, the predator, shot him a sharp look like she was gauging prey.

"Hah? What, calm down? If anyone heard you, they'd think I was taking my stress out on you, Oppa."

"N-no, that's not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?"

There was no sign that Rayoon's tantrum was going to end anytime soon. With his eyes lowered, Kang Jaeha fumbled for an answer.

I'm done for. If Rayoon gets like this, it's at least ten minutes.

He was trying to apologize as much as possible without pushing her buttons any further.

Then, all of a sudden.

- Crackle.

Kang Jaeha's vision tore apart. No, maybe split was the better word.

"Huh?"

Everything cracked, and then the world in front of him began to blur.

Before long, Kang Jaeha's world was swallowed by darkness.

"W-what...?"

* * *

When Kang Jaeha opened his eyes again, he saw the sky. It was red. There were two suns. Another world. Around him were more than twenty people, and every one of them wore the same expression as Jaeha. Nobody knew what was going on, and some were crying.

"...What the hell is this?"

Instead of an answer, a long arrow flew in. It pierced the throat of the man standing beside Jaeha. Blood burst out in a fountain. With trembling hands, he wiped the blood that had splashed onto his face.

It smelled like iron.

It was real.

Then, from deep in the forest, grotesque figures strode out. They looked vaguely human, but they had yellow eyes, split mouths, and massive green bodies covered in green skin.

"Kraaaagh!"

What in the world were those monsters? Jaeha didn't even have time to figure it out before he ran. He sprinted with snot, tears, and spit streaming down his face.

Kang Jaeha spent the next three years running.

But humans adapt. Hunger changes a person fast. Go two days without food and your pride disappears; go a few more and you stop caring about anything in front of you.

- Swish.

Jaeha pulled food from a corpse. It had been someone else who had been summoned with him. Even while retching, Kang Jaeha chewed on hard bread. He had to survive. He wanted to live. Winter came quickly. In the blizzard, five more people froze to death.

Kang Jaeha survived.

It was because of a strange ability that had manifested from the moment he was summoned. Jaeha called it Déjà vu.

In the fourth year, Jaeha, the only one left alive, joined a mercenary band.

"Ever fought before?"

"No."

The commander clicked his tongue and threw him a rag instead of a sword.

"Then clean stuff."

It wasn't until his fifth year that Jaeha could hold an old sword. A year after that, Kang Jaeha finally.

- Slash!

He cut down a monster for the first time. Black blood soaked his face. If he hadn't cut it, Jaeha would have died. The sensation of the sword ripping through flesh and scraping bone made his hands shake, and in the end he vomited.

Nobody comforted him.

This was a place where you lived by killing.

By his seventh year, Kang Jaeha no longer trembled. He didn't even feel like vomiting. He killed monsters the same way anyone might do ordinary work. Combat was calculation. Distance, wind, the other side's breathing.

If you looked away, you died. If you hesitated, you died.

In his eighth year, Jaeha acquired an Inventory and started saving money in earnest. He gathered up mana stones, treasure weapons, anything he could get his hands on.

By his tenth year, Kang Jaeha had become a platoon leader. In his fifteenth year, after becoming commander, he fought a massive war against the Demon King's army, the monsters' stronghold. One city collapsed in a single day. At least hundreds of people died before his eyes. But Kang Jaeha remained cold.

"Abandon the west gate."

And in his eighteenth year.

Kang Jaeha's sword broke. A giant monster's claw severed his left arm.

"...Shit."

Red blood sprayed everywhere, but Jaeha clenched his teeth. The sword ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was broken. Still, there was a chance. In that instant, a scene flashed before him. The monster's next attack. Déjà vu. Jaeha gripped the broken sword tightly. The monster raised a massive arm and brought it down. Jaeha ducked low, then sprang upward.

"Go die, you piece of shit!!"

The broken blade sliced through the neck. The monster's neck. Filthy blood and stench slammed over Kang Jaeha. The monster collapsed, and Jaeha fell with it. Dirt shoved its way into his nose. He had no strength left anywhere in his body. One arm was gone. He should have stopped the bleeding, but he didn't.

Kang Jaeha found himself laughing for no reason.

"This is fucked up."

Eighteen years. Jaeha no longer wore glasses.

Then he heard a woman's voice from somewhere.

* * *

When Kang Jaeha snapped his eyes open, his vision was hazy. His skull rang.

Khh-

A vicious migraine. His body didn't feel like it used to. Weak, thin. Was he standing right now? As his dazed mind gradually cleared, a muffled whooshing sound leaked from his ears.

But his blurred vision didn't recover.

Jaeha raised a hand to rub his eyes, only for something to block him. Glasses. He pulled off the irritating frames. Only then did the world come into focus.

The makeup team whispering, the stylists looking at him with pity, the members of the girl group Ceriel watching, the managers pretending not to see.

The sharp smell of cosmetics and perfume.

This was the waiting room for a music broadcast.

A waiting room? Kang Jaeha, lowering the glasses he'd taken off, frowned. What the hell was this absurd situation? The details were hazy, but he was sure he'd seen this scene before.

Don't tell me this is- eighteen years ago.

That was right. Kang Jaeha's reality after returning had stopped eighteen years in the past, right before he was summoned. He had gone back to that moment. The proof was in his right hand. Kimbap wrapped in foil. Tuna kimbap, now cold.

He still couldn't quite understand it.

What the hell? I definitely lived eighteen years there.

The migraine worsened. His skull throbbed. Just as Jaeha's brow furrowed deeper, the woman standing in front of him snapped at him.

"There you go again with that stupid face. Ha- seriously, you're annoying. No, Oppa, what are you doing? Hurry up and go buy the kimbap??"

It was Rayoon, the visual center of the top-tier girl group Ceriel. Kang Jaeha found everything about her grating. Her scent, her voice, his own condition.

"......"

Without a word, Jaeha dropped the glasses and the kimbap onto the floor. Rayoon let out a scoff at that and raised her voice.

"Huh? Look at this guy. Are you crazy? What are you doing right now?"

She was already feeling better in real time. Jaeha had always been her target. He took her scolding and cowered, and when she pressed him, he bowed and scraped. He was always weak and stupid. Pathetic. He'd stay that way forever.

Perfect as a punchbag.

Rayoon was smiling to herself, but on the outside her face was full of irritation.

"If you're just going to stand there, then either pick it up or go buy it. Make up your mind."

"Hey."

Rayoon's words were cut off all at once. Kang Jaeha, frowning, spoke in a cold voice.

"Zip it. Stop chirping."

"...What did you say?"

"I said zip it."

Jaeha let out a light breath and looked down at Rayoon, who stood a head shorter than him. His eyes were cold. Without realizing it, she stiffened. But she recovered quickly.

"W-what?! What?! Y-you told me to zip it? You said that to me just now??"

Jaeha spoke again to the hopping furious Rayoon. It was a warning.

"Keep it up and you're done."

"......"

"Yeah. Shut up like that."

Rayoon stood there with her mouth opening and closing. The shock had gone beyond her threshold. She couldn't process what had just happened to her at all. What had that pushover Kang Jaeha just said to her? She asked herself, but she still couldn't put it together.

She wasn't the only one. Everyone in the waiting room was staring at Jaeha with eyes like startled rabbits. Kang Jaeha had crushed the atmosphere in just a few words, and one of the male managers who had been watching the situation the whole time cautiously stepped in.

"F-first, let's all calm down. Senior Kang? Are you okay?? Why are you suddenly acting like this?"

He gently rested a hand on Jaeha's shoulder. Kang Jaeha slowly turned his head toward him and answered in a low voice.

"Move. Don't get in my way ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠trying to act tough."

"Huh?"

The male manager flinched and pulled his hand back. He had every reason to. Kang Jaeha's stare was not normal. But Jaeha didn't care.

- Step.

He left the waiting room with one hand holding his head. One of the makeup staff, who had been staring blankly toward the door, whispered as if spellbound.

"A-are you sure he's okay? But didn't Manager Kang say he can't see without his glasses?? He's walking just fine."

"More importantly... he changed like a different person, didn't he?? In just a few seconds!"

"What's wrong with him? It's like he's somebody else entirely."

"Maybe he's just putting on an act or something?"

"Does Manager Jaeha even have the guts to put on an act? He looks completely out of his mind."

"Wow. Something just blew up."

By then, Rayoon had clenched both fists so tightly they were shaking.

"Call the representative! Now!!"

Meanwhile.

Out in the hallway after leaving the waiting room, Kang Jaeha still had a hammering headache.

"Agh."

It was getting better little by little, but it felt like it would take a while. As Jaeha walked toward the restroom, the crease ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠between his brows didn't loosen. The cheap perfume clinging to passing idols was part of it.

Maybe it's because it's been a while. Disgusting.

A while? Was that really the right way to put it? When Kang Jaeha reached the restroom, he washed his face right away. He splashed cold water over himself several times, then looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was wearing a short padded jacket. Right, it was winter here.

This was Kang Jaeha. Definitely him.

But it was Kang Jaeha from eighteen years ago. His body had grown smaller. What was this? Had he been dreaming?

"No. Who dreams for eighteen years?"

Without question, Kang Jaeha had lived eighteen years in another world. He had grown. Killed. And changed. Yet after returning, he was exactly as he had been eighteen years ago. After another round of splashing water over his face, he gave a short sigh.

"What a load of shit. Tch, whatever. Keep it simple. Just keep it simple."

The weakness that had once defined Kang Jaeha was nowhere to be seen. What remained was rough-edged and stripped bare. There was nothing strange about that. Anyone who spent eighteen years grinding through a hell of slaughter would come out like this.

However it happened, the important thing is that I'm here.

His face still wet, he stepped out of the restroom. A moment later, two male idols brushed past him. At once, Kang Jaeha's vision wavered.

Then a strange sense of familiarity rose in him. That familiar sensation. And before long, a scene appeared.

Two idols walking. The taller one trips over his own feet.

"W-whoa!"

He loses his balance and staggers. The other member reaches for him, but it's too late, and the taller one goes down hard on the floor. More than his body, he's worried about the stage outfit he's wearing.

"Shit, I'm screwed. This tore right here!"

"Sookyoung-noona is going to smack your back for this."

The scene cut off, and Kang Jaeha, who had frozen, slowly turned his head back. Of the two male idols talking as they walked, the taller one's foot twisted.

"W-whoa!"

He went down flat on the spot.

"Shit, I'm screwed. This tore right here!"

"Sookyoung-noona is going to smack your back for this."

Kang Jaeha, who had foreseen their conversation, let out a faint laugh and muttered to himself.

...What the hell? Can I use 'Déjà vu' here too?

Déjà vu. The name he had given it. One of the faint abilities he had possessed when he was summoned to the other world. He could see moments ahead, whether near or far, whether his own or someone else's. The fact that it appeared at random was a drawback, but thanks to Déjà vu, Kang Jaeha had managed to survive again and again.

That Déjà vu hadn't disappeared.

"Interesting."

Turning away, Kang Jaeha searched through his padded jacket pocket. Out came a wallet, his phone, and a few candies. Candy? Right.

I used to eat them whenever my stress built up. That was pathetic as hell.

He popped a strawberry candy into his mouth, left the station, and climbed into a waiting taxi. Whatever. Home first. It was still daytime. On impulse, Kang Jaeha decided work ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was over and sank into the seat.

He wanted a break.

- Vrooom!

The taxi pulled away.

That was when it happened.

Kang Jaeha's eyes widened slightly.

Conversion? What the hell is this all of a sudden?

The woman's voice answered almost immediately.

As soon as he heard the answer, Kang Jaeha let out a snort.

"...Two point four billion?"

No, it was nearly 2.5 billion. But the woman's voice still wasn't done.

Kang Jaeha's brow twisted hard.

"What kind of bullshit is that?"