Chapter 75

Gwanghwamun Plaza, known as a sacred place, was crowded with numerous people as always. There were children on picnics, civic groups protesting, and couples dating. Among them, there was a group of people gathered together. A woman wearing a baseball cap backwards looked at a list floating from a UFO-shaped smart pet and called out names one by one.

“Mr. Steven.”

“Yes.”

“Mr. Wang.”

“Yes.”

“Huh? There are many foreigners among the additional members. Let’s see… Ah! Ms. Han Jae-yeon?”

I raised my right hand at her words. “It is me.”

“Yes, you’ve come… Uh. What, uncle, what are those pickles on your face?”

“Hey, aren’t you being rude to someone who came for filming? Sorry.”

I had been unconscious for the night with my bloodied body. I woke up early morning and rushed to work. I chose the best clothes from amongst what I owned.

‘This suit is unparalleled.’

The chairman of Bae Sarang gave me this suit. It was made from high quality material. The lines were clean, and it possessed auto-repair function. However, for some reason, when I saw myself reflected on the building’s glass window, I looked like a hitman straight out of a movie.

“Ahjussi…are you not affiliated with gangsters?”

“Oh please. Ah Young…”

“I’m asking because there have been cases where it happened.”

It seemed two twins, who shared the same face, were having a spat.

‘Affiliated with gangsters…’

For some reason, I felt nostalgic, so I answered her question.

“If they are gang members working for a corporation, they would wear something called ‘Judgment Delayed’ around their necks.”

If they didn’t have it on, they could be killed by the priest of justice at any time. Of course, even if one wore Judgment Delayed, meeting with the priest of justice wasn’t good news.

“Above all else, those nasty guys wouldn’t show up in Gwanghwamun Plaza. If you want to see gangsters, it is better to volunteer your services amongst charitable organizations.”

The 34th district was close to being Utopia, yet shadows and darkness existed here too.

‘There are always the fallen ones.’

Currently, the immigration laws had become stringent. One needed great talent or ability to enter the 34th district. However, things were different in the past. There was a time when there weren’t enough humans living within the 34th district.

During the cosmic wars, people lost their homes and were captured by pirates, forced to live as slaves. Others survived planets ravaged by grotesque alien creatures only to be rescued by elderly space mercenaries who brought them to Earth. Naturally, this created problems.

While grateful for being saved by District 34, these individuals couldn’t abandon their previous ways of life easily.

‘This isn’t unique to refugees.’

Many immigrants struggled to let go of habits from their homeland despite possessing exceptional talents and abilities that should have allowed them to rise through the ranks in District 34. However, not long after settling there, they realized the truth:

‘They realized they were at the bottom of society… and it was nearly impossible to climb up.’

Undoubtedly, District 34 was a great place to live. It had near-perfect law enforcement, welfare policies that ensured no one was left behind, and such transparency that corruption was only known from textbooks. Even the unemployed in District 34 lived more comfortably than the king of Ardenia.

Everyone received a minimum basic income without needing to work, and with just a part-time job, one could afford a decent cultural lifestyle.

‘However, being able to merely survive doesn’t equate to living a happy life.’

This might sound trivial compared to people in Ardenia who risked their lives daily to attack soldiers for their next meal… but humans inherently compare themselves to others.

I didn’t have to look far… My own father was one such person. Born as part of the royal family back home, he ultimately failed to adapt to his role as a ‘citizen.’

“Okay! I’m done checking! Let’s move!”

My thoughts organized themselves as we followed our guide.

‘It really came out of nowhere…’

As I focused my consciousness, I could sense the flow of Inner Force within me. Yes, I could feel it - Inner Force, the lifelong dream that had consumed and driven me. How many times had I desperately tried, despite possessing only an Initiator-level Inner Force, to overcome both Mana Users and Experts? With countless sleepless nights due to injuries sustained in those attempts, how fervently had I wished for this ability?

Despite praying for this power every night, I unexpectedly obtained it out of nowhere. Of course, there is a reason behind it.

It’s thanks to the castles I’ve conquered.

Whenever I conquer a castle in Ardenia, they become a sort of ‘auxiliary capacity,’ allowing me to enhance my elements without any burden.

Still… acquiring Martial Arts?

Indeed, users of chakra often possess multiple abilities. Unlike Inner Force or Martial Arts, chakra accumulates mana and frequently enhances other elemental powers. However… even so, having another ability itself transform into an element is truly unprecedented.

Moreover, although it feels like enlightenment…there’s something distinctly different about it.

I could feel my inner force within my body and control it. I could accumulate energy through breathing or move it with Qi Control. However…

There was no perception of energy.

‘My energy is increasing. Despite being able to sense and manipulate Inner Force, there still isn’t any perception.’

The only energy I could recognize was my own Inner Force. It was still impossible for me to detect surroundings, see ghosts, or perceive opponents.

“Come on! Please wear these identification tags around your necks! If you don’t manage them properly, you might get lost in the Dreamworld!”

Amongst a mixed crowd consisting of stunt actors, extras, film crews, lighting teams, and more, I moved as instructed. Transitioning to another dimension wasn’t complicated at all.

Walk when told to walk, stand when required to stand. Raise your hand when called by name, and carry what’s given to you.

After walking and answering for about an hour, I was able to arrive at a new world through the gate located inside a building.

[Hii-! Hihiii!]

A woman dressed in white flew up into the sky. It was truly amazing.

“I’m seeing ghosts.”

However, one of the twin staff members leading us shook her head at my words. “It isn’t a ghost. Someone is having a scary dream. If you look around aimlessly, you might fall asleep so just follow the person ahead.”

We moved again under her guidance.

“To Iron with my life!”

“O God of Dwarves!”

“Well. Let’s start the game…”

“Ahh! Ahh! This is my first time…”

Various things passed by on both sides. Interesting dreams, grand dreams, scary dreams, even erotic dreams…

If we had fallen here without any countermeasures, quite a few people would’ve been swept away. However, protected by various abilities including barriers, we arrived at our destination without problems. It was a village-sized base camp set up by the film company within the Dreamworld.

“Come on! Put down your luggage and move to the waiting rooms indicated on your tags! There you will meet the team leaders who will give instructions!”

We moved according to her words. At the place where I arrived, there were around eight men and women waiting.

“Ah, he has come. Now it is nine people!”

“Hrmm… Is this okay?”

“He looks well-trained.”

I could feel their eyes probing me. Well, since I suddenly joined just one day before filming, it wasn’t surprising that the existing stunt actors wouldn’t view me favorably.

“Hey, hyung.” As expected, the biggest man among them stood up and spoke. “I heard you were suddenly parachuted in here? There is no information about you anywhere. Are you from an academy? I haven’t seen or heard of your face before.”

Despite his brusque tone, these were reasonable questions so I answered straightforwardly.

“I’m not from any academy.”

“What? Then perhaps from a sect?”

“Nope. Self-taught.”

My response caused both the man and the others to stir with surprise.

“Huh, what’s going on? Did they just randomly insert anyone at this crucial time?”

“Regardless of being the lead actor, aren’t they crazy for casting a complete newbie?”

Instantly, discontent erupted among them. However, a woman in her early thirties, who had remained quiet until now, raised her hand to calm them down.

“Stop it! We had no problems with these scenes before, so why all the fuss?”

“But unni. He is self-taught. A guy who learned Quick Advances or Completion Formula won’t be useful.”

“Moreover, Dreamworld filming involves many injury risks and this staff…”

“Ah, stop! Let’s hear his story first. Hey newbie, what abilities do you have and at what level?”

A woman with healthy physique and her hair tied up tightly exuded quite a strong presence. She managed to calm down the other stunt actors but would likely react most fiercely if she didn’t like my answer. That’s why I grabbed a ballpoint pen from a nearby desk.

‘Will it work?’

For a moment, doubts arose, but then I realized that I could confidently answer them myself.

‘It will work.’

The certainty filled me instantly.

Woooom!

A blue sword aura surged from the ballpoint pen.

Blue sword energy surged from the pen.

“What…?”

“No way, it is sword energy.”

“A Sword Master…”

The waiting room was filled with silence. Everyone stared at the sword energy with their minds blown away.

“Wow, I thought you were just parachuting without any context.” The woman with the ponytail spoke with wide eyes. “Now I see that you are part of the airborne forces. It’s nice to meet you. My name is Jiyoon Han.”

“I am Han Jae-yeon.”

As we shook hands, the silence disappeared from the waiting room, and it became noisy again. Their gazes changed from being guarded to one filled with goodwill and admiration. In District 34, which was dominated by mages, martial artists were a distinct minority. Naturally, stunt actors would be happy to see a sword master.

“A Sword Master! I’ve been doing stunts for quite awhile now, but this is my first time seeing a Sword Master.”

“You look so young yet you already are a Sword Master…”

“Sigh, I was worried but now I’m relieved. You will be carrying us hard, right? Won’t you cut down any high-level nightmares that appear with your sword?”

“With this level of sword energy… Even a bombardment can be endured using Hoshin-ki. Wow. It seems filming will become easier in many ways?”

“Hello! My name is Kim Yongjun and I am training in Arahan.”

“I am Heo Daewang, currently cultivating Kyuncheonchilseok. Wow, I thought you were a biological energy cultivator, not someone practicing martial arts. How do you exercise? Can I call you ‘boss’?”

The atmosphere instantly relaxed as people approached to talk. I responded appropriately while dealing with them. During my time working here, I would continually see these people, so there was no reason to maintain uncomfortable relationships.

In the meantime, someone asked, “By the way, why did a sword master apply for stunts? With this level of skill, you can be a bodyguard even without a giant…”

“Jae-yeon-ssi!”

At that moment, the door to the waiting room opened and someone rushed inside. I turned my head to see a woman standing there with her hair neatly braided down and wearing traditional Korean clothes in dark colours.

“Ah, Scarlet-ssi.”

It was completely different from her usual flashy coordination. Maybe it was due to the role she had taken on.

“Here, please call me Hye-young. Ah, no, thank you for coming! You must’ve gone through a lot of trouble…” She expressed gratitude.

“Not at all.”

After all, I was doing this job for money so there wasn’t much need to express great thanks. However, suddenly, I became curious and sought permission from the other stunt actors before stepping out into the corridor with her.

“By the way, will they understand just because I accompanied you?”

Scarlet was from a family with elders. In other words, she belonged to a household that served elders. For people of such status, conducting background checks would be trivial. It seemed strange for them to change their minds solely based on her accompanying me.

“Yes! They said they could trust you if Jae-yeon-ssi came along!”

“What do they believe about me?”

“They mentioned you were previously tested? And they believed Jae-yeon-ssi would know…”

“Oh…really?”

I responded calmly, but my mind was filled with questions.

‘A test? What kind of test?’

Unaware or perhaps aware of my confusion, Scarlet smiled broadly.

“Grandmother said you were the first person to overcome her murderous intent so easily!”

”…Ah, yes.”

I finally understood the situation.

‘Oh no.’

As expected, there seemed to be a big misunderstanding on their side.

‘The Elder has come and gone.’