Theatrical Regression Life

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Whenever you watch a novel or a movie, there’s always that kind of character.

‘A character that awakens the protagonist through death.’

Depending on how good and pitiful this character is, the degree of awakening of the protagonist varies.

If this character is kind, the more kind they are, the more cowardly they are, the more pitiful and tearful their death is. In the 19-rated gritty survival novel that Lee Jaehun read, such a character appeared.

Her name is Kim Yeonwoo. Her profession is a police officer, with the rank of constable. She was eaten alive in the underworld while chasing criminals in the vicinity with another detective, and she managed to survive for quite a long time even in the park with a lighter in her pocket. Literally, ‘quite a long time’, that’s why.

She is a good person. She’s not like the heroes in typical myths, but when someone was beaten in a secluded place during her school days, she would secretly report it to the teacher. It’s said that she became a police officer because she was worried about people suffering quietly in secluded places.

Of course, it’s not something she said herself; it’s what the detective who was eaten alive with her in the underworld said. Ironically, although she pretends not to care when she receives such positive evaluations, she is extremely embarrassed.

The protagonist described her as a candlelight. Because the description was so delicate and affectionate, many readers judged it as love, and thanks to that, they thought constable Kim would become the protagonist’s lover.

Why is it that in many fantasy novels, there’s a lack of a small romance subplot?

‘Just when the protagonist’s mental state could use some healing and you think their relationship might progress…’

They die.

‘They died in a very miserable way.’

The park episode is at the very beginning of the novel. Since I didn’t want to think there would be a love line among the troublemakers at work, readers also considered constable Kim as a suitable support for the protagonist.

And then they got blindsided. Even though she was not brave and had no beliefs, constable Kim, who ultimately had kindness, died at the hands of someone who wasn’t even a monster, and as a result, the protagonist loses about 70% of their mental fortitude. At least that’s what Lee Jaehun, who was a reader of the novel, thought.

Of course, with companions to protect, decisions must be made rationally, but judgment and mental strength are separate issues. While they may influence each other, they are not the same, and even with sound judgment, mental fortitude can wane. They may not have been in love, but the fact that someone who was at least intended to be a mental anchor ends up dying at the hands of the same species is what happened.

This incident causes the protagonist to completely lose trust in humanity during the park episode.

Already traumatized by a weekend traffic accident regarding the good and evil of humanity, losing even the remaining hope in such a way only adds disgust beyond the trauma.

‘That’s why most of the companions were weak.’

The siblings I first met in the park. Next, an elderly person I met while meeting new survivors. And finally, the flower shop owner who was accepted into the group because of their usefulness.

Regarding Florist Yoon, it was a matter of efficiency, so practically speaking, he only accepted minors and the elderly.

While they had given up trust in humanity, they still tried to preserve individual kindness. For Jung Inho, who had a shallow obsession with goodness, it was at least a rule, a shield to stand and walk on. That’s how it was described in the novel. He protected himself by upholding goodness.

But constable Kim left a deep impression on the protagonist, to the point of being recalled later in the story.

It was precisely trauma, and some of the actions to protect the weak in the face of a subject where humanity was not preserved might have come from this trauma to some extent. Lee Jaehun judged this as a kind of awakening.

Of course, it was not a healthy awakening at all.

‘You can grow quickly, but your mental strength deteriorates even faster.’

Lee Jaehun may have been a grumpy character, but he knew right from wrong.

Just like how pushing students too hard in academies can lead to them becoming twisted or burnt out, pushing for an awakening too early only drains precious mental strength.

He wanted the protagonist to awaken in a somewhat healthier way. While Lee Jaehun himself might not feel any particular problem since he’s been living in that weird world since he was born, he doesn’t have the common sense of the present.

Originally, to extract labor, you needed to manage physical strength. Just like money that drains away just by breathing, mental strength is the same. So, Lee Jaehun tried to grow the group as much as possible while preserving their mental strength.

So, the place he ran to like a maniac was where the sacrificial character who awakened the protagonist was.

‘He won’t leave me behind.’

Even thinking about Deputy Jung’s mental state, Lee Jaehun couldn’t die.

But with his stamina dwindling, Lee Jaehun needed help, and yet there was no one to help him. Would anyone try to help others when it’s difficult enough to save their own lives by chance? That’s unlikely.

So Lee Jaehun went to find constable Kim. Of course, this is information from the novel, so constable Kim wouldn’t know this, and she might feel wary seeing someone covered in blood. So, Lee Jaehun offered his leg to the monster himself and saved constable Kim first.

“……”

Actually, calling it saving is a bit ambiguous.

‘Because it was induced to happen from the start.’

The moss monster narrows its encirclement when you enter a certain range.

If you go further in, it sends tentacles to catch prey with teeth-like vines, and he expected it to grab the prey, Jung Jaehun himself, who had the most blood scent. That’s how his already injured leg got caught.

But in front of such dying prey, there’s another prey?

‘This one needs to be caught.’

Constable Kim , who was helping the main character, Grandma, and got a small wound, still patrolled the area and came across Lee Jaehun. Naturally, since there would be a smell of blood, the moss monster would perceive them both as prey, and he thought another toothed vine would target her.

In that case, how would Lee Jaehun appear in constable Kim’s eyes?

‘He’ll seem like someone who tries to save others first even in harsh situations.’

Lee Jaehun was in a terrible state.

Actually, his mind was so hazy that he didn’t remember well, but he seemed to have stumbled a few times while running, and it seemed like the teeth of the vine brushed past his body several times without him noticing. One thing for sure is that he wouldn’t have looked like a person who was alive.

Such a person, even in a bad state already, chose to save others first rather than pulling out their own leg caught by the vine. Lee Jaehun tore the vine after rescuing constable Kim, so it was clear how she would perceive him.

He helped constable Kim, and she would have recognized it.

Moreover, since he didn’t deliberately hide his confused state of mind, she would have judged that he wasn’t in his right mind.

‘Well, that’s even more touching.’

A person who isn’t even in their right mind prioritizing saving a stranger over themselves on their first encounter, isn’t it?

Of course, Lee Jaehun was in his right mind.

Perhaps he was experiencing some trauma due to the threat to his life after a long time, but it wasn’t severe, and even if there was some impact from the trauma, he still had that level of judgment. So, it’s likely he didn’t come looking for Kim the constable based on the novel’s description.

Ultimately, Lee Jaehun’s judgment was correct. As he expected, constable Kim treated the stranger, Lee Jaehun, who she picked up, and thanks to her, he could wake up with his limb still intact.

The problem was that the second impression, which was close to the first impression, didn’t go well.

“Um, you… you were sleeping… and then, you started choking me, so I rushed.”

“…”

“My wrists, um, and… the cuts on my arm and wrist, I’m really sorry about that. I was so startled, I couldn’t control myself. I accidentally pressed on the wounds with my shoes…”

“No, I’m the one who should apologize for startling you.”

Rarely, it was sincere.

While soothing his tingling wrists pressed by the shoe heel, Lee Jaehun muttered inwardly.

‘… Who wouldn’t be startled if the brat you just saved suddenly tries to off themselves.’

Actually, it was surprising that the injuries were only this bad. If such a thing had happened in front of Lee Jaehun himself, he would’ve grabbed the kid by the collar, alive or dead. How dare that bastard show any kindness.

But honestly, Lee Jaehun himself had a lot to say. It’s not like cases of suicide to wake up from a dream were unheard of.

Of course, it could be his own thoughts, but above all, there had never been a case where he had carried that nonsense from a dream to reality.

From the start, he was someone who went through several validations to distinguish between dreams and reality. Even now, he confirmed each sensation or situation one by one and established the certainty that ‘Oh, this is a dream’ and in that process, choking to the extent he did was unprecedented. But there had never been a case where actions taken in dreams manifested in reality.

No matter how many times he reiterated it, Lee Jaehun wasn’t a suicide hopeful, but rather someone filled with dreams of survival and prosperity. Choking himself was simply to wake up from the dream, not because he wanted to die or was under excessive stress.

The problem was that no matter how he expressed it, it all sounded like the words of a madman. If it had been a world from a past life, maybe they could have understood each other to some extent.

Lee Jaehun gently touched his wrist dripping with blood and struggled to articulate his thoughts.

“I don’t usually… um…”

“…Yes.”

“It’s just that the dream, um, trying to wake up… no, that…”

“…”

“I didn’t mean to startle you… I’m sorry.”

Why were the right words so hard to find?

Lee Jaehun felt a strange dejavu. It was the same awkwardness he felt when the roles of perpetrator and victim were reversed just before the protagonist left them alone before regression.

Even the statement that he committed suicide to wake up from a dream left room for misunderstanding. Occasionally having lucid dreams was from his past life, and there was a big difference in common sense between past and present, as he had experienced firsthand.

Lee Jaehun instinctively felt that the current situation wasn’t much different.

Yeah, he was already a bit of a lunatic, but did he have to make himself seem like he was losing it?

Lee Jaehun realized that someone who casually asks ‘Why did you do that?’ after doing something crazy seemed more sane than someone who excuses themselves with ‘But I had no choice!’ He really tried to reflect common sense from the present.

However, even being the latter didn’t make him seem entirely normal.

Lee Jaehun desperately wanted to justify his actions somehow, but he couldn’t grasp the cause of this situation, and he had even less to say because he seemed to be accustomed to such behavior.

As he rinsed his face, he muttered to himself as if cursing inwardly.

‘If only I hadn’t asked such a stupid question right after waking up from the dream, things might have been better now…’

Just a moment ago, Lee Jaehun had asked constable Kim if he had choked himself to try to understand the situation. He had asked to confirm the connection between the dream and reality, but to someone like constable Kim, who was completely clueless about the situation, it must have seemed absurd.

Half-dead and barely saved, suddenly choking himself while sleeping, and in the midst of trying to stop it with all his might, Lee Jaehun had asked the question with only half certainty after waking up. How much like a depressed patient or a suicide hopeful he must have seemed. To anyone, it would have seemed like ‘This kind of thing happens often, so he must have grasped the situation quickly.’

However, Lee Jaehun wasn’t the type of mentally ill person who would self-harm if it wasn’t necessary. The first instance of self-harm was to confirm his abilities from his past life, but this time, it was a genuine mistake. In fact, Lee Jaehun himself didn’t know what had happened.

If I had known it would turn out like this, would I have tried to die in my dream? Well, of course, I didn’t know any other way to wake up…

“…”

After a moment of contemplation, Lee Jaehun admitted to himself that the situation was out of his control.

‘Let’s give up.’

After all, even protagonist Jung was already labeled as mentally ill, and after joking about hanging himself, he was perceived by doctors as an irredeemable patient. He probably wouldn’t forget behaving like a suicidal person to check his abilities before regression.

But now, being labeled as a habitual self-harmer would neither improve nor worsen his situation. He was someone who could distinguish very well between what he could and couldn’t salvage, no matter how hard he tried.

Lee Jaehun decided to focus on what he could do.

“I apologize for the delay. My name is Lee Jaehun.”

“Uh, uh… Yes, I’m Kim Yeonwoo.”

“It must have been sudden, so thank you for helping me.”

He nodded slightly in gratitude, and constable Kim accepted the thanks with a collected expression. Lee Jaehun sensed that she didn’t want to talk about the subject any further.

“I’m the one who should be grateful. You saved me from almost being killed by that green monster.”

“I’m glad I could help.”

He thought he should be grateful, but who saved him?

While he thought so inwardly, Lee Jaehun made an effort to show a humble and composed response. It was an attempt to salvage his tarnished image as much as possible.

‘I can’t afford to be misunderstood as a completely incomprehensible lunatic.’

Not all mentally ill people are the same as being crazy.

Lee Jaehun considered himself quite convincingly crazy in his own thoughts, but that was a judgment made based on the common sense of his present life, not on what was normal in his past life. Even though he had heard some harsh comments about it, there had been no problem in his daily life.

This meant that as long as he was careful in his present life, there would be no problem living, but unfortunately, due to the influence of the otherworldly realm on his mental state, that ship had sailed. Both his existing companions and the newly met constable Kim were unlikely to see him as sane.

Even if he had to give up on that point, Lee Jaehun still had a chance to salvage his image.

‘I’ve done enough to not appear too extreme.’

In his past life, he had encountered many crazy people due to his profession, as well as numerous mentally ill individuals with whom communication was nearly impossible.

Honestly, just dealing with those kinds of people was irritating and frustrating, and even just observing their actions made him sigh involuntarily. Of course, Lee Jaehun himself wasn’t that crazy, but according to the norms here, he wasn’t far off.

Since appearing completely sane was out of the question now, he had to at least look like a harmless lunatic. It would be even better if he seemed to have no problems in daily life.

It was somewhat amusing to see his honed acting skills shine in situations like this, but for his own sake, Lee Jaehun projected an image that would make him seem as mature and socially adept as possible.

“By the way… how did you get hurt like that?”

“Oh… if it’s an intrusive question, I apologize.”

As expected, the policewoman inquired about Lee Jaehun’s condition, appearing as though she saw him as a victim. Seeing Lee Jaehun face monsters and still manage to carry out his duties in this otherworldly realm was somewhat reassuring, almost like something out of a novel.

Since the image was already ruined, Lee Jaehun felt the need to salvage some credibility, so he put on the expression he typically used in his past life, the one he used when addressing Deputy Jung as ‘Jung Inho-ssi.’

‘At the very least, this should provide some consistency.’

“… There’s no need to apologize. You may not have seen it then, but I was being chased by the green monster Yeonwoo-ssi mentioned.”

“Ah, yes, I saw it. It was covered in algae-like stuff…”

“I refer to it as the algae monster for convenience, but it wasn’t easy to escape after being injured by other monsters in the past.”

Lee Jaehun unfolded the scenario he had in mind while running to meet constable Kim.

Though she had limited practical experience, she was a police officer with a keen ability to grasp situations. While she wasn’t on the protagonist’s level, Lee Jaehun didn’t want unnecessary suspicion falling on her, as she was the sacrificial character.

‘Regardless, I need to gain her favor.’

Lee Jaehun muttered the prepared story while discreetly scanning his surroundings.

Although it was dark like a cave, it wasn’t actually one. It was a dome with thick and thin trees intertwined like mangroves, revealing intricate patterns and rules upon closer inspection.

This was a distorted gazebo where the process of sublimation was underway. It was a shelter installed in the park.

Lee Jaehun, who had examined the map of the park before being devoured by the other world, knew the location of this gazebo. While the influence of sublimation had caused significant changes, the basic layout remained similar, and this was also where the main characters, including constable Kim in the novel, were situated.

Even while fleeing from the algae monster, Lee Jaehun had been examining the surrounding structures, leading him to the gazebo.

“…Are there any other companions with you?”

“Oh, there were, but one of them momentarily vacated their spot, and the other… I’m not quite sure.”

“Given the circumstances, it’s understandable.”

The one who vacated their spot was probably the old man, likely a main character, and the other person was likely the detective who entered the other world with her.

Incidentally, the reason Lee Jaehun sought constable Kim’s favor was precisely because of this detective.

Though it seemed deserted now, having only been a day since they arrived in the other world, this place would become a hub due to the detective leading other survivors here.

And that detective was a really bad guy.

‘At least, in my mind.’

More precisely, it was bad for my survival and prosperity.

The detective himself was more righteous than anyone when it came to distinguishing between good and evil. He had a strong sense of duty as a detective and made efforts to ensure the safety of ordinary citizens. If his superiors were corrupt, he would turn a blind eye but plot meticulously behind the scenes to bring them down.

“As for Jaehun-ssi…?

“I also have companions.”

However, the issue lay in the fact that the detective had an intuition for identifying criminals.

“Thanks to getting tripped by the monster, we got separated briefly.”

Of course, it was an intuition without any evidence, and it couldn’t be used in court.

Yet, the detective was a talented individual who had arrested numerous criminals based on that remarkable intuition. While not relying blindly on it, he had enough flexibility to utilize it effectively.

Thanks to that, Lee Jaehun was bound to fall under his intuition. It was highly likely.

“But it should be fine. They’re smart people; they’ll be there when we return.”

“…Jaehun-ssi is protecting those people even though he’s not in the best condition himself…”

“It’s only natural for the healthiest person to take responsibility for those who aren’t doing well.”

He said with a faint smile.

“So, there shouldn’t be any problems.”

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