Prologue

"Wow―!"

Cheers erupt from under the stage.

A myriad of lights blink, and colorful illuminations swirl above my head.

"Welcome to the final stage of !"

I smiled confidently as I listened to the MC's booming voice.

On the stage, where everyone's eyes were focused, I waved my hands while feeling the cheers that were like a beautiful melody.

'Yes. I've been through so much trouble to see this sight.'

Just thinking about the past makes my blood boil.

There was a time when I was locked in the practice room day and night, trying to become an idol.

There was a time when I and the others went to war, deploying all our wisdom and force to save the country.

The reason I am standing here again with these absurd memories is simple.

"Karis!"

"Just look here once!"

To see those people calling my name.

Now that I stand here again with that mindset, my goal is clear.

"Who will be the protagonist who will ascend to the throne of number one? Join us from now on!"

I closed my eyes and looked at the splendid throne perched atop the highest point of the set.

It's truly an overwhelming time.

It's time to crush it so much that no one dares to step over me.

[The final linked quest, 'Become the final #1 in ' begins! ]

Adore it.

Everyone, kneel down and look up at me.

I will show you a stage that suits you.

Chapter 1

A snow storm raged.

Even though the weather was so violent that I couldn't even see my nose in the cave of Gwangryongdo in the north, I couldn't rest.

"Crown Prince Karis! Crown Prince Karis!"

With a voice calling me from afar, the entrance to the leather tent opened wide.

The soldier, whose black helmet was completely covered with white snow, kneeled before me, breathing heavily.

"Reporting! General Grant's detachment has just broken through the western wall and successfully opened the eastern gate!"

"The news I was most looking forward to has finally arrived."

I checked the map once and then spoke to the knight standing next to me.

"Hugo. Are all the troops currently at the main base ready to deploy?"

"Yes, Your Highness. We are ready to move at any time."

"Then let's go out immediately. Grant led half of the soldiers to the eastern gate. I will personally take charge of the western gate."

"I will obey your command!"

Hugo quickly put on his armor and went out of the tent.

As I covered the map with my sword at my side, the notification that had been waiting for me popped up before my eyes.

[ Final Chapter: 'Conquest of Demon King' has begun. Time remaining: 2 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes]

'Once this final battle is over, the game will be cleared.'

With such excitement, I mobilized all my troops and advanced toward the western wall of the Demon King's Castle.

After this... there are only memories filled with snow, blood, and the excitement of battle.

As I looked at my white breath spreading through the cold air and thrust my sword down, the status window appeared again with a refreshing sound.

[Congratulations! The character 'Karis von Walden', has defeated the Demon King.]

[The possessor, 'Han Ji-hyeok', has cleared the final chapter of .]

[You can have an interview with god as a reward for clearing the level. Would you like to move on immediately?]

[Yes∥No]

"... Yes."

I pressed the Yes button with my bloodied hands.

Then, in an instant, my body, which had been in the middle of the battlefield, was teleported to the dark interior of the temple.

"Congratulations. I never thought someone would make it this far. For the first time in my life, I had the pleasure of inviting someone from another world to this world."

A message of tremendous power was heard from the front.

My body, exhausted from the hours-long battle, reacted with difficulty.

As I finally raised my head and looked ahead, the figure of an old man appeared, along with a golden light.

"You... are the god of this world?"

"That's right. Karis von Walden-no, player Han Ji-hyeok. The achievements you've made will be remembered for a long time. Not only did you break through the Demon King's Castle that no one had been able to conquer before, but you even cut off the head of Demon King Balderich."

"Enough with all those sugar-coated compliments; I want you to quickly explain the reason."

Even as I entered the temple, pressure was still being applied to my grip on the Holy Sword Durandal.

The reason for being so openly indignant before the god of this world was simple.

"There must be a purpose for suddenly dragging me into this world and throwing me into a war zone for ten whole years. Isn't that right?"

"Ah, I see you were wondering why I chose you, Han Ji-hyeok, as the perfect possessor candidate. Unfortunately, my answer is very simple."

The god chuckled, stroking his extensive beard.

"Well, you're the one who's played the longest on Earth. I figured you'd adapt to this world much better than other individuals."

"Just... that's all?"

"As the god who oversees this continent of Arcadia, I was simply wondering whether the Demon King could be defeated."

The person who has played the longest.

When I heard that, no words came to mind to refute it.

As the god said, I played , which was called a'messy game' in the real world, almost every day.

I was originally an idol trainee, but I didn't see any results from my six years of hard work.

If it were a large agency, I would have had enough time to debut with the right trainees, but the limitations of a small agency with so few trainees were clear. On top of that, there were always issues with the agency and the trainees' personalities. There was nothing I could do.

It's not that I didn't try hard myself.

Although I was evaluated as having outstanding talent and was praised for musical talent from a young age, I did not rest and practiced like everyone else, shedding blood, sweat, and tears.

So, as a last gamble, I participated in the idol survival program hosted by KNet.

It was a survival show that I participated in with the mindset of starting over from the beginning, but as if it were a twist of fate, I fell down right before debuting. I ended up in 8th place, just one spot short of the 7 total members who were supposed to debut.

So I gave up my dream of becoming an idol that I had nurtured for a long time and faced reality.

It was important to earn enough money to live off of right away.

During the day I worked part-time, and at night I stayed in my room and played games.

Then, naturally, I came to know about the strategy RPG game , which boasts the highest difficulty level.

I had been playing the game every day with a challenging mind, hearing that no one had yet seen the ending to subjugating the Demon King.

What happened after that...? It was like a typical fantasy novel.

The order given to me by the status window that suddenly appeared before my eyes was simple.

If I break through the Demon King's castle in the body of the game character, Crown Prince Karis von Walden, and kill the Demon King, they will allow me to return to my original world.

I took a deep breath and brought up the most important agenda item.

"I don't care why you brought me here. Anyway, haven't I fulfilled the conditions you set? Then I hope you can quickly send me back to my original world."

"A promise is a promise. I am very grateful to you for showing me a sight I have never seen before. Still, I think you have adapted well to the position of crown prince, but you have no intention of staying here―"

"Not a single one."

"It's a shame; it's a shame."

No matter how frustrated I've been, it's better to go back to reality than to be stuck in the game world.

News spreads that I am the one who killed the Demon King, and the forces of the Demon World may come to assassinate me at any moment, anywhere.

I had no desire to follow the words of the god who had suddenly transferred me into the .

God stretched his hand forward, and several system windows made of particles of light appeared.

"Where did I put the function to return to the real world... Ah, here it is."

[Return to original body]

I can finally get out of Karis von Walden's body and return to my original body.

I took a deep breath, looking at the status window sent to me.

Well, it was a pretty good 10 years.

Of course, as the crown prince, I had to continue to plan and carry out operations to conquer the Demon King's Castle. I had to learn basic things like weapon and magic training and even military management skills, which was a huge headache.

But when and where can I receive royal treatment?

I pressed the Yes button and closed my eyes for a moment.

I waited for the feeling of my body being teleported as time and space were distorted like before.

'hmm?'

Why don't I feel anything?

When I opened my eyes because something felt strange, there before me was god with his beard, waving his hands.

This isn't some kind of surprise gag.

"Oh, oh, why is it like this? I'm sure the system is set up properly."

"What the heck... what's going on?"

"There's an error in the function to return to reality. No matter how many times I press it, nothing happens. I've put a lot of effort into this system, and it's showing me such an embarrassing sight!"

How can there be no answer to this question?

I sat down on the floor, leaving the seemingly shabby god to wrestle with the system he had created.

While watching the silver beard fly, I used recovery magic to heal the wounds all over my body, and during the break, I used creation magic to make bread to eat.

But even after finishing the bread and shaking off the sweat, god was still struggling to hold on to the system.

When I see the god lowering his head, I can't help but sigh.

"Um, I'm sorry. I don't have the face to see you."

"So does that mean I can't return to the real world?"

"Um, it's not like you can't go back at all. It just means you can't go back to your original body, Han Ji-hyeok. You can go to the real world in other ways."

"What other way?"

"The body you are using now. If it is the body of Karis von Walden, you can go to the real world."

For a moment, the temple became quiet.

I slowly considered the options before me in my head.

Am I going to continue living in like this?

Or will I return to the real world in the body of Karis von Walden?

Surprisingly, it didn't take long to decide.

"Okay. I'll return to the real world with this body."

"Then, my system right now-!"

"But there is a condition."

I smiled as I recalled the idea that had occurred to me in a flash.

"I cleared the quest you gave me under fair conditions. So now I want a reward. I don't think it would matter if I demanded a price that was proportional to the unreasonableness."

"Ah, ahem! I guess the systematic error is my fault, so I have nothing to say. Is there a different compensation plan you want?"

"Simple."

This is an opportunity.

If I were to return to the real world right now, there would be little I could do.

Just like when I was living in Han Ji-hyeok's body, I would work part-time and stay home at night.

But now, there is a god right before my eyes. No matter how shabby and unsightly it may seem, there is a god who truly controls the system he created.

It means that I can reassemble the life I have lived.

"When I go back, I would like to have time turned back as well. The time is.... Yes, it would be perfect if we could turn back about 12 years."

"I guess there was something you didn't finish? That wouldn't be difficult at all."

"In addition, can you let me use that system you're dealing with back in the real world?"

If we simply regress, it's too easy a deal.

If I go back exactly 12 years, it means going back to the time when I had my last chance as an idol.

Back to the time when there was a survival audition that made me fall on the threshold of debut.

This time, no matter what, I have to succeed.

By receiving help without regard to means and methods.

"As you said, I had a dream that I couldn't achieve. I'm turning back time to challenge it again, and I want to use the power of that system to make that dream come true."

"It's not that hard to split the core of the system... This is implemented in a way that helps players who have been possessed by . Even if you were to use it, it would only be able to give out quests and create a status window in a similar way."

"That alone is enough."

I stared at the Holy Sword Durandal for a moment.

Then slowly headed towards the center of the temple and stabbed the sword into the floor.

Thud-!

"I've achieved my goal in this world, so now I'm going to achieve it in the other world too."

"Is this really enough? Any other compensation―"

"I do not need."

When I answered briefly and bluntly, god eventually nodded.

A golden light swirled around his fingertips.

"Good. Then I will now begin the transfer and system integration process of the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Walden, Karis von Walden. I hope that good luck will be with you in the other world."

I closed my eyes and welcomed the waterfall of light.

I felt the thrill of time and space being distorted with my whole body, and I strengthened my resolve again.

'This time, I will definitely succeed.'

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