Reincarnator’s Stream

Gulp—

It felt like his insides were turning. He now understood how the video he watched and this memorial came to be.

“But don’t be too regretful. Even in death, you’ll be remembered as a hero.”

Damn it.

‘Is that what he meant by those words?’

Suhyuk had a sudden realization that his being commemorated as a hero might be Kim Ilsoo’s doing. Suhyuk was Blue Eyes itself. And Blue Zone had been an ally guild, a shadow of Blue Eyes.

With Blue Eyes gone, Blue Zone’s future had two directions. They could either fall or rise in place of Blue Eyes to the forefront.

For Blue Zone to rise, Kim Ilsoo needed the name and halo of Blue Eyes. And this was the method.

The heroization of Lee Suhyuk.

Preserving the privilege that only the dead could enjoy.

“Fucking bastard…”

Muttering under his breath, a few people around Suhyuk turned to look at him. Those odd glances didn’t bother him this time, his insides felt like they were boiling.

Swoosh—

Before the video was even over, Suhyuk turned away. There was no reason to keep watching it. The more he saw Kim Ilsoo’s face, the more his discomfort grew.

Step, step—

His chest burned with anger. He couldn’t hear anything besides the sound of his own footsteps.

The memorial had various photos, artifacts, and videos related to Suhyuk, but he only skimmed through them. As he continued to walk deeper inside the memorial, something caught Suhyuk’s eye.

A particular photo of himself.

‘Flowers?’

Flowers left by visitors were piled high in front of it. Apparently, most visitors didn’t come empty-handed.

The chrysanthemum he bought on the way seemed insignificant amidst the abundance of flowers already placed there.

It was a strange feeling. So many people remembering him.

Swoosh—

Placing his flower in front of his photo, Suhyuk felt a renewed sense of reality. Lee Suhyuk was dead. And twenty years had passed.

Yet, everyone here still remembered him. While Suhyuk was engrossed in this peculiar feeling for some time,

“…?”

Amid the piles of flowers, he sensed a familiar aura. Reaching out, he rummaged through the flowers. He felt the stares of others on his back, but it wasn’t the time to worry about that.

Among the piled-up chrysanthemums, Suhyuk found a uniquely transparent ice flower.

‘No way…’

Reaching out, he picked up the ice flower. It felt chillingly cold. An ice-made chrysanthemum. As soon as he held the flower, Suhyuk’s eyes widened in realization.

‘Siu. That was made by him.’

Snap—

Suhyuk turned around. He searched the inner part of the memorial and its surrounding areas thoroughly.

His heart pounded. Seeing that the ice hadn’t completely melted, it meant Siu hadn’t gone far.

***

On top of the clock tower overlooking the memorial, an elderly man with a hunched back was observing the memorial.

“This year too, we somehow managed to get through it safely.”

“Indeed. It was nerve-wracking again this time.”

Behind the old man, a woman in a robe appeared from the shadows below the clock tower. Her full and red lips pursed in dissatisfaction as she spoke.

“Do you really have to bring that? I told you just chrysanthemums would be enough.”

Rustle-

The old man’s skin flaked off, revealing the young face of a man.

Kim Shiwoo.

He was a member of Blue Eyes who was believed to have died 20 years ago.

“You never know. That guy might come back and find the flower I left.”

“Do you still think he’s alive?”

“We didn’t see him die with our own eyes, did we?”

The woman fell silent at Kim Shiwoo’s words. Such conversations were not new. She had already been convinced by Kim Shiwoo’s response several times.

There was only one problem.

“What’s more likely is that Kim Ilsoo might find our location rather than us finding that guy.”

This would be the outcome if Blue Zone discovered the ice left by Kim Shiwoo first. The probability favored this side significantly.

Kim Ilsoo’s survival was certain, while the likelihood of Suhyuk being alive was nearly zero.

But.

“You never know.”

Kim Shiwoo bet everything on that ‘what if’ and visited this place annually on this day.

If.

If he was truly alive, he would see this ice flower and seek them out.

Step, step-

Kim Shiwoo walked past the woman into the shadows. Watching him disappear quickly, the woman sighed deeply.

“If he were really alive, we wouldn’t be hiding like this, you fool…”

Once again, she thought to herself that she had failed to dissuade him this year.

***

Suhyuk searched around the memorial for hours, but he didn’t find Kim Shiwoo. It was only when evening came that Suhyuk gave up and returned to his dorm.

A small room no bigger than 4 pyeong. A tiny room barely big enough for a single bed, desk, and chair was all Suhyuk called home.

Swoosh-

Too exhausted to even think about washing up, Suhyuk threw himself onto the bed. The ice flower he brought back from the memorial.

Magic, like fingerprints, had subtle color differences depending on the person. Regardless of size, the color didn’t change.

And no matter how much time passed, he couldn’t fail to recognize the magic of his longtime friend.

‘He’s alive.’

He thought they were all dead, but it wasn’t true.

Kim Shiwoo.

A Blue Eyes player believed to be dead. But this flower was the most concrete evidence that he was alive.

Beep-

Still lying in bed, Suhyuk activated the player kit once more. The kit, with not a single contact saved in it.

For now, its only use for Suhyuk was to search.

『Would you like to search for ‘Kim Shiwoo’?』

The search term was “Kim Shiwoo”. He wanted to see if there was any news about him.

But.

‘Nothing.’

There was no information about him being alive.

Swoosh-

Suhyuk tossed the kit onto the head of the bed and turned his attention back to the half-melted ice flower.

A living person hiding for twenty years. The only trace was the single flower now in his hand.

“What are you up to, you…”

Whether Kim Shiwoo was the only one alive, or if it was all four members he had sent flying with the Pacho Fan, or maybe only a few, Suhyuk couldn’t be certain.

Even if he wanted to reach out, he couldn’t. To contact someone through the player kit, he needed their fingerprint registered.

But one thing was certain. Now, besides seeking revenge against Kim Ilsoo and the allied guilds, he had another reason to climb.

“No, it doesn’t matter what you’re doing.”

For the first time today, Suhyuk smiled broadly. The comrades who felt like family were all dead, and he had been reborn in a world filled with people who deserved to die.

That loneliness and chest-burning rage seemed to melt away a little.

Yes.

What they were doing didn’t matter.

What mattered was that they were alive somewhere—

‘If they’re alive, we can meet again someday.’

Right now, the only thing Suhyuk could do for them was pray. Pray that not only Kim Shiwoo but also the others were alive.

‘It’s too risky to try to contact them now.’

Back at his dorm, having calmed down, Suhyuk assessed his situation.

‘There must be a reason they’re hiding. If I approach them now, it’ll only draw more attention to them.’

Suhyuk planned to climb the tower. He knew his skills well. Starting to climb the tower again would undoubtedly attract attention.

And in that scenario, trying to contact Kim Shiwoo?

They would definitely catch the eye of Blue Zone and other guilds.

‘First, I need to regain my strength.’

The tutorial to regain player qualifications would begin in two days. Suhyuk got up from his bed and sat on its edge.

Thinking about what he needed to do next. The answer was clear.

‘If I had controlled the lightning better, things wouldn’t have gone that far.’

Lightning. Suhyuk’s strongest weapon.

The stronger the lightning, the more damage it inflicted on the user’s body. The lightning was the sharpest and toughest double-edged sword there was.

Of course.

That sword was the sharpest and most powerful in the tower.

“…Maybe the only solution is to build stamina.”

To withstand the damage inflicted by the lightning on his body, Suhyuk surrounded himself with skills and items that boosted his stamina.

But.

It wasn’t a problem he could solve right now just by working his brain, given it wasn’t resolved even up to the 8th floor.

“Tutorial, huh…”

Suhyuk looked up at the ceiling. The initial examination that evaluated a player’s capabilities, the most basic trial.

Thinking about the tutorial, Suhyuk muttered.

“How many stages will I be able to clear?”

Every player wondered at least once.

The tutorial.

If they returned there now, how far could they go?

Usually, an impossible little fantasy for players. But Suhyuk’s current situation fit that scenario perfectly.

‘It was 25 stages back then.’

Even 25 stages was a record-breaking achievement. Even after all this time and considerable information becoming available about the tutorial, only two players had managed to exceed that score.

But.

‘Climbing again won’t be difficult.’

That alone wouldn’t be enough.

‘I need to do even better.’

Suhyuk’s gaze fell on a sword lying in the corner of the room. With the tutorial around the corner, he had apparently already secured the weapon he would use.

He reached out and grasped the sword. A familiar feeling spread through his body.

Scuffling-

Drawing the sword smoothly. While it wasn’t a particularly good weapon, it made him feel like he was starting anew.

“I need to do well…”

Just a tutorial. But he had to be desperate in every single trial from now on. Simply climbing up wasn’t enough. From the tutorial onward, through all subsequent challenges, he had to pass with nearly perfect scores.

Swoosh-

Suhyuk’s eyes turned to the mask lying on the desk. The opponent he would be facing, from now on, was none other than that mask.

***

For two days, Suhyuk spent time getting accustomed to his body. A body that had suddenly become heavy. His steps were heavy, and the sword in his hand felt heavy.

Two days were enough to adapt to the stats.

“Hmm…”

During those two days, Suhyuk repeatedly swung his sword and moved his body in the hunting grounds near the village. In the process, he encountered several low-level monsters that appeared around the village.

And as a result,

“Why did you get beaten up so much with a body like this?”

Indeed, this body wasn’t bad. All the stats were above 10. Among them, his concentration was a whopping 14, and he had already awakened his magic even before taking the tutorial.

Judging by stats alone, he was undoubtedly a talented individual. It was just that he hadn’t been using it properly.

“Nice.”

Compared to his past self, this body was as good, if not better. It was no wonder, given that there were player training institutions offering professional training before starting the tutorial.

Initially discontent, he could now objectively appreciate it. This new body was quite remarkable.

Tweet, tweet-

Birds chirped around Suhyuk’s ears early in the morning. Lifting his head after sweating adequately, Suhyuk felt his body just right—not exhausted, but well-warmed up.

His senses were keen from the early morning.

‘It’s time.’

The day when the tutorial would start had dawned.

Lee Suhyuk.

The day he would make his comeback.