「Hello, Mr. Fire Emperor!」
「Ah, yeah. Hi… 」
「You set a new record once again! And I must say, you’re the only Hunter who’s made this many feats on your own. How do you feel about it?」
「First of all, I want you to stop calling me that shitty name.」
「I’m sorry?」
The LIVE logo was in the corner of the screen. I blankly watched the interview on my old television.
「I’m talking about you people calling me “Fire Emperor”. I have a name, you know. What’s with that bullshit nickname? I’d honestly prefer Fucker to that cringe-ass name. I swear I’m going to hunt down the bastard who came up with that someday and bury him alive.」
The world’s Rank 1 Hunter, the hero of the current generation, the person I had been jealous of… Yoo Soo-Ha was there. Perhaps I was putting it too mildly given that he had killed me.
“Impossible.”
Despite what I said, I was already reaching for my smartphone. When I checked the date, it was the same date I saw yesterday. My hands trembled, but I got to the online communities.
—Guys, the Fire Emperor is talking shit again!
It was the same here.
—Would it kill him to watch his words? The whole world is watching this interview
It was also the same here.
—WTF?! The Fucker has a girlfriend now! He’s dating the Saintess!
The websites, communities, SNS… everything was the same. The posts I saw yesterday were being posted in real-time. I swore that I had seen those posts yesterday, but people acted like it was their first time.
“Ha…”
Nevertheless, there was one difference.
—I want to become like the Fire Emperor.
The comments I had written weren’t there. It was only natural—around this time yesterday, I had been busy writing comments on every post, but right now I was zoning out after I realized that I really had returned to yesterday.
“...Show me my Skill Card.”
I Want To Be Like You (S+)
The golden Skill Card appeared in front of me. I had read it several times since yesterday, so I remembered every word in the description. It was supposed to be a Class S Skill, but it was trash of the century because it cost me my life to use it. But…
“Oh my god.”
…there were two glittering cards shining in front of me right now.
I Want To Be Like You (S+)
Returner’s Clockwork (EX)
How?
I stared at the two floating golden Skill Cards, my heart pounding. The Skill I had was the one I would never get to use, but that was all. I…. wasn’t supposed to have a Skill named Returner’s Clockwork , especially if its Skill Card was golden. It was my first time seeing this Skill Card; I hadn’t had it until the Fire Emperor had killed me yesterday
How did it happen?
I didn’t know how the Returner’s Clockwork became mine. I couldn’t understand it yet. However, I could tell that this card was mine.
It’s mine.
Mine.
And I also had a feeling that it might change my life. I reached out for the card and grabbed it, flipping it around.
Returner’s Clockwork
Class: EX
Effect: It is activated automatically upon your death. You will return to twenty-four hours before your death. Your memory and abilities will be preserved even after your return.
※ You will receive a penalty after the Skill activation.
※ The higher your Class is, the stronger the penalty is.
※ This Skill has been copied from Hunter Yoo Soo-Ha.
Return. He returned to twenty-four hours before his death.
“Ah…” Goosebumps spread over my skin as realization sank in. “Th-this is the Fire Emperor’s secret…”
The Fire Emperor was the world’s Rank 1 Hunter. The boss monster in the Tower’s tenth floor had previously thought to be undefeatable, but he had taken it down on his own. And for some reason, he was so certain that the Saintess was going to kill him.
I finally understood the truth behind everything he’d said and done.
“The Saintess actually tried to kill me. If I hadn’t killed her first, she would have poisoned me to death tomorrow.”
“I just know. I have a way, but it’s none of your business.”
That was what the Fire Emperor had told me. The Saintess had actually killed the Fire Emperor. Just like he had said, she had poisoned him, causing him to return twenty-four hours before his last death. That was why he had a vendetta against the Saintess.
And he also killed me. I clenched my fists. I didn’t do anything wrong, but he killed me just because I got in the way of covering up his murder!
He had toyed with me like a bug before he killed me. My feet had been severed, and my head had been burned.
The TV interview was still ongoing.
「 But before we finish the interview, can you say something to our viewers out there?」
The Fire Emperor scratched the back of his head in annoyance. 「 Phew. 」
The man I had seen yesterday was a hero, but all I saw today was a psychopath. It didn’t matter if he was the world’s Rank 1 Hunter or a renowned hero. He was my enemy now.
The Fire Emperor scowled at the camera. 「Those who are destined to succeed will be successful no matter what. 」
I glared back at him.
「But don’t get cocky with me even if you do.」
I clutched the golden Skill Card. I had copied this Skill from the Fire Emperor, so he would have the same card. The Fire Emperor was the first place in the official Hunter ranking, and I wasn’t even on the ranking. However, our start would always be the same from now on.
「I’ll crush you.」
It was my turn for revenge.
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1. The raw is 누가 씨발놈들 아니랄까 봐 대가리 숫자도 맞춰서… 씨발(Sibal) means fuck in Korean, and it sounds incredibly similar to the number eighteen(Sibpal). ☜
2. Confucius’s Korean name is Gongja. ☜
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Translator's Thoughts