Lee Ji-Hoon was never the kind of guy who drew attention.
He was just… another one.
Another face in the university crowd, another student dragging himself to class half-asleep, another young man telling his parents he was "fine," even when he wasn't.
His life was made of dull, grey routines.
Wake up, mess with his hair a bit, pretend he studied, pretend he talked to someone, pretend his dormmates weren't giving him weird looks.
Pretend.
That's all he ever did.
Inside the dorm, things got worse.
Some guys messed with him on purpose.
Shoved him around, mocked him, called him useless, weak, dead weight.
Some gave him "playful" slaps, "playful" laughs, "playful" comments… everything always "just a joke."
Ji-Hoon pretended he didn't care but he cared.
A lot.
He didn't have the strength to fight back.
Didn't have the courage to report anyone.
Didn't have anyone to open up to.
It was just him and that crushing weight inside, like he was carrying a backpack full of invisible stones.
It hurt.
Way more than he admitted.
Because of that… he created his own refuge:
novels.
They weren't just stories.
They were places where he could breathe.
Where there was always a chance at victory.
Where characters fell but got back up stronger.
Where there was destiny, purpose, growth.
Things he didn't feel in real life.
And that's why he read so much.
Dozens and dozens of novels.
Sometimes three or four at once.
It was the only moment of the day where he could forget people hated him for no reason.
Until one day, after finishing yet another story, a new recommendation popped up on the site he used:
"THE BATTLEFIELDS WHERE THE STRONGEST RULE!"
A dramatic title, but catchy.
The cover had a stylish protagonist, a glowing sword, and a background full of destruction.
It looked exactly like the kind of world Ji-Hoon loved: full of action and cool characters.
He clicked without thinking twice.
And that's when everything changed.
The story was incredible.
The protagonist was a guy who was born weak but had iron determination.
He suffered, got beaten, lost, came back, grew… and kept getting stronger.
The continent where the story took place was huge, full of massive empires, legendary monsters, endless wars.
Ji-Hoon completely lost himself in that universe.
He read late at night, during class breaks, on the way home.
He laughed at the dialogues, cheered for the victories, felt tense during the tough scenes.
It was like that story was the only good thing in his life.
Two weeks later, he finally reached the end.
The final chapter.
The last.
The epic conclusion.
He opened the chapter with his heart pounding.
He wanted to see the protagonist reach glory, defeat the final enemy, get a worthy ending.
But what he got was…
Nothing.
Emptiness.
A slap in the face.
An ending so bad it felt like a joke.
After 500 chapters of overcoming everything, the protagonist died tripping on a rock.
Just like that.
No explanation.
No message.
No meaning.
As if the author had given up halfway through.
Ji-Hoon stared at the screen in disbelief.
He reread the ending three times, thinking he misunderstood something.
But no.
It was exactly that.
The worst conclusion in human history.
He felt betrayed.
A mix of anger, disappointment, and frustration he couldn't even describe.
That story had been the only reason he woke up with a little bit of hope these past weeks.
And the author just… ruined everything.
Ji-Hoon fell back onto his bed, the room spinning slightly.
He felt like screaming but had no energy.
He wanted to cry but no tears came out.
So what did he do?
The stupidest thing possible: he went out to drink.
He never drank, but that day he did.
He walked into a cheap bar near the university, ordered whatever they had, and downed it.
One bitter sip to swallow the anger.
Another to forget the stupid ending.
Another to forget his whole life.
With each drink, he got looser, lighter, goofier.
But also sadder.
On the way back, he stumbled down the street, talking to himself, complaining about the incompetent author, complaining about life, complaining about everything.
The world was swaying.
The lights felt too bright.
Cars zoomed by too fast.
But he didn't notice the most important thing:
he didn't look both ways before crossing.
He was so lost in his own frustration he didn't hear the bus speeding toward him.
It was quick.
Very quick.
All he felt was a huge impact.
A flash.
A metallic crash tearing everything apart.
And then…
silence.
A strange, deep silence.
Not meant for human ears.
Ji-Hoon opened his eyes.
But he wasn't on the street.
He wasn't in his world.
He wasn't in the life he knew.
The ceiling above was golden, covered in strange symbols.
The air smelled like incense and something metallic.
The walls had black banners with an unfamiliar emblem.
And near him stood an elegant woman in noble clothing, holding a baby.
The baby…
was him.
He looked at the tiny body he now inhabited.
The tiny hands.
The fragile fingers.
The short, soft breaths.
And then, like he was reading text inside his own head, a clear message appeared:
"Welcome to the continente of Mare Bellōrum."
"You are Theodor Umbralis.
First son of the Duchy of Umbralis.
The child destined to change the fate of this world."
Ji-Hoon… no,
Theodor,
tried to speak, but only baby sounds came out.
He was confused, lost, unsure if this was a dream, a hallucination, or the afterlife.
But one thing was certain:
He had been reborn inside a novel.
Not just any novel.
But the exact world he spent two weeks reading about.
The same world the author ruined with a horrible ending.
And now…
he was part of it.
As the woman — his new mother — smiled and held him gently, Theodor realized something:
The protagonist's fate had been destroyed by an incompetent author.
But now?
Now he had a real chance.
A chance to do something better.
A chance to take control of his own ending.
A chance to rewrite everything.
He didn't know how, didn't have a plan, didn't have strength… nothing.
He only had one simple, childish, but honest thought:
"I want to grow.
Get stronger.
Become so strong no one can ruin my ending again."
It was childish, almost ridiculous but it was what he had.
Because for the first time in his life, he had a second life.
And he wasn't going to waste it.
Not this time.