Pick Me Up!

I took a deep breath.

My temples throbbed as if they were being stabbed, and my stomach churned, but I forcibly swallowed it down.

The 7-Star Promotion Ceremony was still ongoing.

“…At this point.”

No matter how calmly I tried to think it through, it was hard to accept.

Of course, the idea that Han Israt was a member of the royal family of Townia wasn’t entirely impossible.

Hints had been dropped in the middle of missions, and considering the scenes I had seen during past promotion ceremonies or Pria’s behavior and words, it was a predictable conclusion.

‘But this…’

I stepped out onto the terrace.

At that moment, a brisk breeze blew across the terrace.

I sat down on an iron chair next to a table and began to carefully retrace my thoughts.

‘If I assume that what I just saw is true…’

Then it means I was from Townia and was sent to Earth by Pria. It would explain why I grew up as an orphan, unable to find my parents or family. They never existed in the first place.

“Good grief.”

A hollow laugh escaped me.

It felt like watching a poorly written movie—there wasn’t even a shred of realism to it.

Now that I was being told, “This is who you are,” it felt empty. Just utterly absurd.

“Unbelievable.”

Was I deceived from start to finish?

Scratching the back of my head with a frown, I struggled to figure out what to do next. Leaves from the garden, carried by the wind, were piling up on the terrace floor.

“Pria.”

I turned my head to the side.

Beyond the terrace in the corridor, Pria, dressed formally, was walking somewhere.

She was probably heading to the meeting hall. Inside, the crown prince and leaders of the various races would be engaged in heated debates.

“You knew, didn’t you?”

Before she died, she had asked me to smile at her just once.

There was no way she would have said something like that if she hadn’t known everything.

“When did you find out?”

It wasn’t hard to figure out.

The 76th floor. Back when Phryos was strutting around the imperial palace, acting all high and mighty.

He had tampered with Pria, forcing her to recall her memories from when she was alive.

‘That was the moment.’

She had realized it back then.

I had wondered why she was suddenly dressing up, but it must have been because she wanted to tell me that.

And then, out of nowhere, she declared she wanted to cancel our contract.

‘If I hadn’t sold out Townia, we wouldn’t have met, would we?’

The image of Pria smiling playfully came to mind.@@novelbin@@

Well, thinking about it now, she wasn’t entirely wrong.

‘Forget the promises we made in the past. Do only what your mission permits, and return to your homeland. Find your own happiness there.’

Like a playlist on an MP3 player, Pria’s voice replayed in my mind one line at a time.

‘I have no regrets. My battles weren’t meaningless. From the beginning to the end—from the moment I met you until now—everything had meaning.’

Even her final words.

‘Just once, please smile for me.’

I had wondered why her attitude suddenly changed, but now it all made sense.

What a sly woman.

Han Israt, Townia’s 1-Star Hero, had been nothing more than a pitiful ten-year-old kid.

And me, the one from Earth? I was a young man in his mid-to-late twenties who had grown up in an orphanage.

The combination made no sense. My height and build didn’t match in the slightest. No one would think we were the same person. It was no wonder Iselle had been mistaken. ℟𝐚ɴȏβΕs̩

“This is driving me insane.”

Even so, I couldn’t accept it.

I let out a series of deep sighs.

What was I supposed to do?

Even if I was originally from Townia, even if everything I believed in was a lie, it didn’t change anything.

When the promotion ceremony ended, I would have no choice but to return to Earth. Outside, preparations for the dimensional gate to Earth were probably underway.

It was all in the past.

It had nothing to do with me. I wasn’t Han Israt. Maybe that had been my name in the past, but Han Israt had already died. And now, I was…

‘Han Seojin.’

In Möbius, they called me Loki.

I rose from my chair.

‘Nothing changes.’

No matter what my true identity was, no matter who I had been.

Whoever orchestrated this scene probably thought I would break down and cry upon learning the truth, but they couldn’t have been more wrong.

“It was an amusing play.”

I let out a faint laugh.

“Out of 10, I’d give it a 1.”

I had no more business here.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

And when I opened them again—

Thud!

A massive vibration shook my entire body.

Familiar metallic walls and tiles greeted my eyes. I had returned to the promotion chamber’s waiting room. The magical pattern that had been glowing brightly on the floor was now fading.

“Master, congratulations on your promotion.”

Suddenly, Nisled appeared like a shadow, bowing before me.

Behind her, a distorted space swirled like a vortex.

“The dimensional gate to Earth, with the coordinates already input, has been completed. Once you’re ready, you may proceed.”

“What kind of preparation do I need to do?”

“You must first harness the power of a 7-Star…”

“I don’t think I’ve reached 7-Star yet.”

I shrugged my shoulders.

Nisled hesitated.

“What… do you mean by that?”

“The promotion failed. Looks like Yurnet has made defective goods.”

“Deception will not work, Master.”

Nisled’s gaze grew cold.

Her right hand was already reaching for the dagger strapped to her belt.

“According to Lord Yurnet’s calculations, you should have gained the interference power necessary to withstand dimensional pressure through this ceremony…”

“Do I look like I’m lying?”

I glanced to the side.

Although the promotion procedure had ended, no success message had appeared.

[For Dimension 1035, ‘Townia,’ the following effects apply to all ‘Heroes’!]

[Effect: Deactivation of the Waiting Room’s ‘Sustained Recovery.’]

[Effect: All heroes’ stats -50%.]

[Effect: Status Resistance -50%.]

[Effect: Mana Reduction -50%.]

[Effect: All NPCs affiliated with ‘Möbius’ receive +200% to all stats.]

[Effect: All NPCs affiliated with ‘Möbius’ gain +800% regeneration.]

[Effect: All NPCs affiliated with… ]

Meanwhile, Tel’s interference seemed to have intensified.

At this point, she was blatantly using cheats. Heroes were slapped with crippling penalties while Möbius-affiliated combatants were granted outrageous buffs.

‘…Pathetic.’

Her greed was on full display.

It wasn’t enough that she had forcibly banned Anytng’s account and intervened directly—now she was even rewriting internal code. How badly did she want to control me?

I'm currently Translating the following novels: Pick Me Up! | A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War! | The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player. If you want to support me and read more chapters please subscribe to my Patreon!