Prologue
"Fuck, I can't do this anymore."
A pristine white room devoid of anything. Sprawled on the floor, Kang Hanbit spat out the curse.
It was all because of the goddamn holographic screen floating before his eyes.
[Regression: 31]
[Possession: 17]
[Reincarnation: 7]
Regression, possession, reincarnation. Elements you'd commonly see in novels or webtoons—back when this was just fiction for him.
"That one was quite long."
A mysterious voice echoed from beside his head. Lifting his gaze slightly, he saw a woman clad in platinum robes standing there.
"Quite long? Is that something you should be saying?"
"It's a fact. Based on the average duration so far, this cycle was..."
"Ah, I don't wanna hear that shit!"
Kang Hanbit shot to his feet, raising his voice. That expressionless woman was the Goddess. An absurd tale, but she truly was one.
"Ha."
With a short sigh, he dredged up his memories. Long ago, he'd been kidnapped by her. Any sense of time had long vanished, so he couldn't even tell how much had passed. But the number of times she'd hurled him into some world with a demand to save it? That had reached 55 now.
"Screw being a god or whatever. I'm really done. You find Erport yourself, or don't—I don't give a damn!"
The condition for saving the worlds was simple: locate the enigmatic entity known as Erport.
Yet across all those endless years of scrambling desperately through world after world, he'd never even caught a glimpse of it.
"That's impossible for me. If I did, the world would be destroyed."
"No, I'd be the one destroyed first. Don't you get that I'm a walking ball of PTSD now?"
"Your mental and physical treatments are proceeding normally. No need to worry on that front."
"Jesus Christ..."
There was no lie in her dry response. No matter the agony or torment he'd endured, returning to this space always left him pristine and healed. But the memories remained vivid—that disconnect, the way he was growing numb to it all, filled Kang Hanbit with utter loathing.
"Shall we prepare the next cycle, then?"
"Fuck off. Didn't I just say I'm not doing it?"
"For now, this body is biologically female. Thus, that proposal of yours is..."
"Aaaargh!"
He clawed at his hair, venting his frustration. No matter the curses or abuse he hurled, the Goddess always responded dutifully. There wasn't even the faintest spark of amusement—her dialogue was worse than a game's NPC.
But today felt... different.
"I was joking."
"...What?"
A joke? That single word threw Kang Hanbit off balance. As he gaped in disbelief, the Goddess continued.
"You've fulfilled your role adequately. You more than qualify to return to your original world."
"W-Wait a sec. It's over? Just like that? What about the worlds? We failed to save 'em 55 times, didn't we?"
"Process matters more than results. No need to concern yourself."
"No, what the..."
Kang Hanbit couldn't even muster a proper reaction. After grinding him down like this for so long, suddenly calling it quits? It made no sense.
"Then I'll open the door right away."
Flash! With a gesture from the Goddess, a dazzling portal materialized.
Before he could voice his doubts, his body was yanked toward the light.
"You've been a great help. Everything you've built up will connect into tremendous power."
"Wait..."
The Goddess spoke with her usual blank expression. As Kang Hanbit's vision was nearly swallowed by the brilliance, her final words rang in his ears.
"I have high expectations for you there, too."