In a dark alleyway consumed by shadows—
Crack!
A group of teens tore open cans of beer and gulped them down.
"We can legally drink beer now!"
"Not yet, we still have thirty minutes until the new year!"
"Seriously? When do we stop hiding in alleys like rats to drink?"
"You're the rat. Why are you dragging us into it?"
"Because it's frustrating. Don't you guys feel frustrated too?"
Hwang Yongmin, who had chugged his beer in one go, nervously tossed the empty can aside.
"Do you have a lighter?"
"Here, Yongmin."
He exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, and the wrinkles on his forehead finally relaxed.
"Why do old people have to ruin everything good?"
"Because they're old, duh."
"Hahahahaha."
Hwang Yongmin and his friends laughed together.
If anyone passed by their alley, they would immediately stop laughing and shoot them a cold glare, as if warning them to pretend they hadn't seen anything. Most people would quickly hurry away without looking back.
And that was exactly what happened now.
"Hey, did you see that? She ran away because of my glare."
"What glare? Do your eyes have night vision or something? It was too dark to see anything except the cigarette."
"But that girl who just passed by—wasn't she pretty? She had a sweet, innocent vibe."
"Sweet and innocent? Really?"
"Ah, I want to hug her in my arms and never let go."
"Haha, you're crazy."
"Hahaha!"
Hwang Yongmin made an exaggerated face, and his friends burst out laughing.
"Hey, if you like her, go get her number."
"But I'm underage. Will she even give me her number?"
"Why be afraid? Soon enough, we'll all be legal adults."
When the clock struck midnight, their status as high school students would officially come to an end.
"When summer vacation ends, we'll finally graduate from this boring school life."
"What are you going to do after graduation?"
"I'll ask my dad to buy me a motorcycle and maybe become a delivery driver. I heard it pays well these days."
"Really? What about Tae-sik?"
"I'm going to work in a factory that provides dorms until I have to enlist. My parents keep nagging me at home—I need to get away from them." Ṟ𝐚ŊỖ𝖇ЁS̩
Hwang Yongmin chuckled as he watched his friend exhale cigarette smoke with a tired sigh.
"Yongmin, what about you?"
"Me? Didn't I already tell you guys I'm going to become a gangster?"
"Whoa, were you serious about that?"
"Wasn't it just a joke?"
Hwang Yongmin scoffed at their shocked reactions.
"I gave a pretty serious answer, and you thought it was a joke?"
"Of course. Who in this day and age would aspire to become a gangster?"
"A gangster… aren't you scared? You might end up getting stabbed and dying."
Despite their concerns, Hwang Yongmin merely chuckled.
"Damn, you only live once. Why not live it up?"
"This guy is crazy, seriously."
"Ha ha ha."
They laughed and joked around, but in truth, they all shared the same thought.
This guy is insane.
Although they were considered troublemakers at school, they paled in comparison to Hwang Yongmin.
"Right… just do whatever you want."
"When we graduate, I'm cutting ties with this guy."
"What a lunatic…"
Even friends who had known him since middle school couldn't stand being around him anymore.
"By the way, what's going to happen to the shuttle you've been bullying once you graduate?"
"What shuttle?"
"You know, that weird kid in our class."
"Oh, the motherless kid?"
One corner of Hwang Yongmin's mouth curled upward in satisfaction.
"Even if I graduate, I won't let him go."
"Ha ha ha, you're still going to bully him even after graduation?"
"Of course. He's my personal shuttle, after all."
"Wow… I feel sorry for the poor bastard. He probably thinks it'll end after graduation."
"Who said it ends just because he wants it to? We should make the most of it."
"Seriously, you're evil. Even Satan would bow to you, ha ha ha."
Laughing and joking, they finished their beer.
Suddenly, one of them checked his phone.
"Hey, it's almost New Year's."
"Oh, really?"
"Should we go watch the bell-ringing ceremony? It's right in front of us."
"Okay, let's go."
They headed toward Bosingak Pavilion.
"Wow, there are so many people."
"It's like a swarm of ants."
"Find me a pretty girl."
While taking in the bustling crowd, one of his friends tapped Hwang Yongmin's arm.
"Hey, Yongmin. Look over there."
He pointed off to the side.
"Isn't that the guy you bully on the shuttle?"
Yongmin's gaze landed on Ryu Min.
"Oh. My shuttle buddy."
Seeing him outside of school gave Yongmin a strange sense of satisfaction.
"Did you come to watch us bully the geek?"
"I came to beg you not to bully Yongmin in the new year," Ryu Min's friend interjected.
"Haha, that's an impossible wish."
"You said it," Yongmin laughed.
But as he moved closer, something felt off.
"Hmm… that guy…"
Ryu Min stood quietly, lost in thought.
He looked like the same introverted shuttle as always, yet—
"What's with him? He feels… different."
At that moment, the emcee's voice boomed.
"Finally, it's time! Let's count down together!"
The crowd erupted into cheers.
Yongmin and his group joined in.
I'll spare you today, geek, he thought. No bullying to start the new year.
"Three, two, one! Happy New Year 2022!"
The crowd went wild.
"Happy New Year!"
"Happy New Year!"
"Finally, we're adults now! Let's make our dreams come true!"
"Ha ha ha!"
Yongmin was about to crack a joke—
"Kyo-ho-ho-ho. You look like trapped monkeys."
The voice wiped the smiles from their faces.
"Is this a joke?"
Then, a flash of light split the sky.
An angel descended.
"This… this is real."
Before he could process it—
Pop!
The head of a man who spoke rudely to the angel exploded.
"Kyaaah!"
"Cough!"
Hwang Yongmin froze.
"A damn beheading… what kind of bullshit is this on New Year's Day?!"
He had never seen death before—especially not something this grotesque.
Turning his head, he saw his friends trembling as well.
"But…"
His gaze shifted to Ryu Min.
"Why doesn't that shuttle bastard look scared?"
Ryu Min was calm.
Too calm.
Then their eyes met.
Ryu Min's lips curled upward slightly.
"…That bastard."
Yongmin swallowed his anger.
This isn't the time.
He finally understood—
He was trapped in a hellish survival game spanning twenty rounds. ṚАΝộВË𝙨
"Well then, since the explanation is mostly done, shall we go? Kyo-ho-ho-ho."
Darkness swallowed his vision.
"Of course, Hwang Yongmin was watching."
Ryu Min had been a quiet student in high school.
Plain. Unremarkable.
"I thought everything would be fine as long as I didn't bother anyone."
He was wrong.
Just sitting near Hwang Yongmin made him a target.
During breaks, he was mocked.
When bored, they dragged him behind the school and beat him.
He became a Bread Shuttle—forced to buy bread, alcohol, and cigarettes.
When the police were called and his parents summoned, he could only reply:
"My parents… aren't here."
They had died in a car accident during middle school.
The cycle repeated endlessly.
Until—
"But not anymore."
Ninety-nine regressions had changed him.
The weak boy was gone.
He felt nothing when he saw Hwang Yongmin now.
"I already avenged myself until it became meaningless."
He had killed him.
Again and again.
Until the hatred ran dry.
"This time, he'll be used first."
The white space appeared.
"Kyohoho. Before soul transfer, you'll create a physical body—an avatar."
"A customization," Ryu Min murmured.
A familiar process.
Soon, an identical avatar appeared.
"Now choose a nickname."
A mechanical voice followed.
[Please state your nickname within 30 seconds.]
"My nickname is…"
Ryu Min spoke without hesitation.