Dream Breaker - Chapter 0

I am a bad adult

On a terrace of an extravagant palace that looked like it came out of a surreal dream, a man wearing luxurious golden armor that was impractical to find a use for, looked down upon the world.

"It is finally over"

He had defeated countless enemies, grew in strength, and finally brought down the dark overlord that had been ruling the world from behind the scenes.

Of course, there was no shortage of difficulties and hardships along the way.

The death of a friend, betrayal of a lover, the King's restrictions, and assassins of darkness...

But he overcame all of it and finally reached the top.

And now?

"Hoho!"

"Hehehe!"

Beautiful women gazed at him with eyes filled with admiration.

On their backs were three pairs of pure white wings that symbolized "Angel".

Their appearances and behaviors were those of fragile women, but they possessed individual strength that could rival that of a powerful country.

"Who am I going to spend time with today... Hehehehe!"

A man with a perverted imagination looked at the angels, who flaunted their figures in provocative outfits.

In this world without rivals, it was no exaggeration to say that everything revolved around him.

Tomorrow and the day after that...

It will be filled with dreams and hope.

Clang!

"What...?"

The man made a puzzled expression as the palace shook violently from a deafening sound.

"Are there still enemies left?"

Whoosh!

Summoning his weapon out of thin air, the man's face showed no tension or worry.

He was just delighted!

He had grown tired of his free life without any enemies or rivals, as they could not pose a threat to him.

"I wish I had someone to fight against."

He desired to become stronger, but after becoming stronger, everything became mundane as there were no enemies.

Kukukukuk-

The palace was rattled by an earthquake of such intensity that it caused civilians to stumble and fall, while a section of the man's own grand residence, built to withstand even the most formidable forces, crumbled.

"My love!"

"Master!"

"Your Majesty!"

The angels called him by different titles due to the different stories and connections they had with him, but their voices and gazes were full of infinite trust.

"Don't worry."

With a relieved smile, the man, who had taken up his weapon after a long time, looked at the scene.

Clang~!

Kwooong!

Despite the palace guards' swift response to contain the situation, their efforts only resulted in further chaos and additional damage.

"It's surprising."

The man was purely amazed. The guards who protected this place were not just anyone.

Magic, weapons, armor, skills...

These were the strong ones that he had personally trained. That's why everything had been under control until now.

"Eek?!"

"Ahh?!"

"Snap?!"

However, that defense line was crumbling easily and quickly.

Suddenly,

Clang!

The intruder's thrown rock flew like a bomb and destroyed the terrace.

"How interesting."

Fluttering through the air, the man, holding onto the magnificent angels with outstretched wings, gently descended to the ground.

"Hello."

Surrounded by the guards, the intruder casually greeted them while brushing off the dirt from his clothes.

But the man was not in a mood to receive his greeting kindly.

Was it because the intruder was an obvious enemy?

No.

"A suit...?"

Because it was a black suit that did not exist in this world!

The intruder, who noticed that the man's gaze and interest were focused on his attire, replied in a cool tone.

"I'm on duty. I can't wear comfortable clothes."

"On duty? Did you receive an assassination mission?"

"No."

"Everyone denies it at first. They can't willingly reveal the identity of their client. But let me ask you one thing. Where did you acquire that outfit?"

"It's mine. Although I didn't buy it"

"...Did you come from Earth too?"

"I know it may sound strange, but your question is wrong from the beginning. We are still on Earth."

"Earth...?"

"Yes."

"......"

The man didn't understand the intruder's statement. This world, where magic and monsters existed, couldn't be Earth.

However, the intruder's unwavering confidence made it difficult to dismiss his words as mere nonsense.

"Honey."

"Yeah?"

"This is not the time for a peaceful conversation. He's an intruder, an obvious enemy."

"...You're right."

He should have been angry, but he was more excited by the appearance of a strong enemy after a long time. His peaceful life was just too boring.

But still,

"Intruder. If it's not an assassination, why did you come here?"

He decided to side with his angry wives now.

"To meet you, naturally," the intruder responded.

"And in doing so, you destroy someone else's property and act so recklessly?"

"It's not recklessness. Your mother hired me."

“Lies! My mother died after giving birth to me!”

“I'm talking about the real mother who gave birth to you.”

“I told you! My mother died after giving birth to me-”

“Kim Young-hee.”

“How do you know that name?!”

"I am the associate of the person who hired me to come here. She is anxiously awaiting her son."

“...Lies.”

“It's the truth.”

“Lies! It's all lies! My name is Kaiser! I'm the man chosen by God...!”

“Mr. Kang Cheol-soo.”

“No! Kang Cheol-soo is dead...!”

"You've been in a coma for six years."

"Nonsense! I was reborn in this world...!"

Thump-

The agitated man leaped forcefully to cover the intruder's mouth.

"Good grief..."

As if he had anticipated this, the young man in a black suit pulled out a green metal bar from inside his suit.

Swoosh-

A bronze sword with a striped pattern, thick enough to be used for ceremonial purposes.

The young man holding the flawed weapon for lethal use did not avoid the fierce offensive emanating from the ruler of the world but took it head-on.

Clang!

"Kang Cheol-soo."

"Shut up!"

At the moment when the swords collided, the palace built upon the clouds was destroyed.

What about the people who were there? The lives?

"Kang Cheol-soo."

"I am Kaiser!"

"Did you come up with that name yourself? Kaiser is a title of German emperors, derived from the Roman general Caesar-"

"Shut up~!"

Bang! Boom!

Despite possessing immense power that could single handedly defeat the world,

'Why on earth!'

He couldn't silence the 'impurity-like existence' that shouldn't be there.

"Kang Cheol-soo."

"Shut up!"

"...Just one last thing."

"Don't say it!"

"There's a saying that when whales fight, shrimps' backs are broken. The women who supported you got caught in the crossfire and seem to have died-"

"Gasp!"

Swallowing a dry breath, the man retreated and looked around.

"Ah... "

"Ugh..."

The angels, so battered that they couldn't even spread their wings.

"......"

"......"

And some of them would never be able to spread their wings again.

"H-How can this be... It can't be..."

Thud.

Realizing that his own recklessness had caused his wives to be hurt or killed, the man collapsed in despair.

"Kang Cheol-soo, don't be sad."

“You're saying strange things...!”

“In the book of Ezekiel, chapter 1, verse 5, it says that the appearance of living creatures was like this: they looked like humans, but their feet were like those of a calf and they had wings.”

“What?”

Suddenly quoting the Bible? Is he trying to offer condolences for the deceased wives?

Listening closely, that wasn't it.

“Their feet were like those of a calf, shining like polished bronze, and they had wings under their feet.”

“Cherub?”

“Cherubim are heavenly beings created by God, superior to angels in creation.”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Calm down and listen. It will be comforting.”

“...”

“All angels described in the Bible are androgynous young men without wings. Angels with wings, females, and baby angels are products of the imaginations of artists. This includes the women who were cheering for you.”

“What...”

“Beings with wings are not angels, they are cherubim. They are perfect creations made by God, with the head of an animal instead of a human-”

“Shut up!”

The man covered his ears with both hands and shouted in a frightened voice.

“Kang Cheol-soo”

“Shut up! Please...!”

It was no longer anger but more like a plea.

But the young man was ruthless.

“The existence of female angels is clear evidence that this world is fiction.”

“No way!”

“Admit it.”

“That's impossible! The Bible is wrong! Female angels exist!”

“Your mother, Kim Yeong-hee, is eagerly waiting for you.”

“No, she's not...”

The man's voice denying it gradually weakened.

“Kang Cheol-soo.”

“Please say it's not true...”

“I'm sorry.”

“Sob...”

Kang Cheol-soo began to cry like a crying child.

“It's not true. Do you want to die from malnutrition? You're still only a skeleton. When you were hospitalized after the accident, you were a minor of 15 years, but now you're a mature adult. Accept reality like an adult.”

“...Okay.”

The man bowed his head in resignation.

But...

“You still don't admit it. I'll tell you again. Female angels with wings do not exist.”

“Cherubs are-”

“They have animal heads. Beautiful women are non-existent and they are not even human. Give up.”

“Who are you anyway...?”

“Oh right! I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Kang Moon-soo. I'm doing this kind of work.”

“This kind of work?”

“The role of a bad adult.”

“What does that mean?”

“I'll explain it to you later.”

The young man stretched his arms as he watched the crumbling world.

“Cheol-soo! Do you recognize me?”

“Oh, Mom...”

“Yes, it's me! Oh my God! Thank you! Sir, thank you! Honey, come to the hospital quickly! Your son Cheol-soo has woken up!”

“It was all just a dream...”

“Son?! Why are you crying?! Are you hurting somewhere?! Did you have a nightmare?!”

“Oh, no. Sniffle, sniffle!”

I took out the IV from my wrist and changed from hospital clothes to a black suit, then quietly slipped out of the weeping room.

And then I immediately checked the date and time on my smartphone.

“...Not bad.”

If I hadn't studied theology occasionally, it would have taken much longer.

Still, I couldn't say that it was fast enough.

53 missed calls!

Between real estate and insurance ads, the same contact kept repeating.

“Hm...”

It was a contact that wasn't saved on my smartphone, but I didn't hesitate to make the call.

Ring-♬

Did a second pass?

The call was connected even before the melody ended.

“This is Kang Moon-soo. How can I help you?”

“Please help me! My daughter has been unconscious for ten days!”

“I see. How old is your daughter?”

“She's 18.”

"Did you see a subway advertisement? Or is it a referral? There's a 20% discount for referrals."

“The hospital director...”

"Aha! Which hospital is your daughter admitted to? If you make a reservation now, I'll crush love, friendship, dreams, and hope at a very low price."

My job is a bad adult.

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