Chapter 02
Once I confirmed my lower body, all the inspections would be complete.
Just then, something fell to the floor from between my flat stomach.
A single notebook landed on top of the mirror shards.
“What?”
I picked it up.
It looked familiar. I definitely remembered it.
‘The damn notebook Jjong brought?’
I opened the notebook again.
The words I had seen earlier were still written there, just as blunt and awkward as before.
Looking at it again… yeah, that was definitely a curse word.
While I was wondering again what exactly Jjong had brought me, the letters suddenly changed.
<Correction. This body is the starting point.>
A fairy? And what did it mean by a language patch?
I blinked, wondering if I was seeing things.
New words appeared.
<You are quite an interesting existence. Among the countless humans in this world, you are the first perfect gray molecule I’ve seen. You performed good deeds and bad deeds in exactly equal amounts. The number of people who treat you as their lifelong enemy is the same as those who see you as their lifelong benefactor.>
Hmm.
So I lived quite well.
“Thanks for the compliment.”
<That’s not a compliment! Why would someone build schools in poor areas and dig wells for thirsty people, yet make another person soil himself in front of five hundred people?!>
Ah.
Well, that guy deserved it.
“He threatened me to go entertain some Hong Kong tycoon. He even cut off my work for six months.”
Even thinking about it now made my teeth grind.
“I lost a role because of him and suffered a lot. Look at this, sir. Doesn’t that show how kind I am? Even though he was such a jerk, there were only about five hundred people present.”
Hmm.
That was true.
It was probably immortalized forever on the internet.
<See! That’s what I mean! I’m saying this because it’s unfortunate. You did far too many pointless bad things. That’s probably why you died like that. Oh, you foolish worm-like human!>
Sir… that’s a bit harsh.
“First of all, calm down, and…”
I tapped the notebook lightly and grinned.
“Thanks for the compliment.”
<I said it’s not a compliment!>
“You called me a worm.”
Worms are cute. They’re good for the soil too.
The notebook scribbled black lines furiously before erasing them again.
I shrugged. This was actually a little fun.
***
<Anyway, you lived a life with no regrets yet full of regrets. That’s why I came to you. Of course, I was guided here by the one who waited for you.>
The one who waited… was that Jjong?
<Chanran. I, the Fairy of the Starting Point, will guide you to the land of true success where milk and honey flow. Accept me. Be grateful for this honor, and write your name in this notebook.>
The notebook flipped shut with a rustle, showing a blank space for a name.
Hmm. I’d seen stories like this before.
But still.
“I don’t want to.”
In life, even a stone bridge should be tested before crossing.
The notebook flinched and opened again in a hurry.
The words appeared in large font, as if shouting.
<Wh-what did you say?>
I smiled brightly.
“You shouldn’t write your name carelessly. Especially on contracts.”
People say life is all the same, and living is just the difference of one sheet of paper.
But I always thought that sheet meant something like a contract, a deed, or a check.
‘In other words, that one sheet is extremely important.’
If you write your name carelessly on something important like that, the only place left to go is the Han River, dear Fairy.
The notebook stayed silent for a moment before slowly writing again.
<I cannot understand this. I am personally offering to guide you, and you refuse?>
I shrugged.
“I don’t really need it. I’m good on my own. Kim Chanran is a superstar, and a superstar is Kim Chanran.”
<You speak boldly for someone who died the way you did. Have you already forgotten? Your confidence is impressive. You really are something else.>
“Thanks for the compliment?”
<It’s not a compliment!>
***
I exhaled slowly and smiled.
‘Just as planned.’
I waited calmly.
In any negotiation, the desperate side is always the impatient one.
After negotiating pay for countless projects, I knew that very well.
The notebook wrote “……” for quite a while.
Finally, the text changed.
<What do you want?>
At last.
The answer I wanted.
‘What do I want?’
My wish wasn’t complicated.
‘Maybe paralyze the guy who shot me?’
But that felt too small.
Like winning the fifth prize in the lottery.
I smiled brightly.
What would be the best thing to ask from this Fairy Notebook?
“I’m actually not that greedy.”
<You expect me to believe that?>
Hmm. Why not?
“Really. There’s only one thing I want from you.”
The fairy responded immediately.
<One thing is easy. Very well. I accept. However, the law of causality will adjust accordingly. Speak. What do you want?>
The fairy was surprisingly naive.
Still smiling, I whispered:
“My wish is for the great Fairy of the Starting Point to grant this humble person’s wishes in the tens of billions.”
<!!!!!!!!!!!!!!>
The page filled entirely with exclamation marks.
I crossed my arms and watched.
The exclamation marks finally stopped after a long time.
But then the text froze, as if the notebook was buffering.
‘Did it break?’
Just as I tilted my head in confusion, the fairy finally recovered.
<Y-you crazy bastard. No wonder you’re a gray molecule.>
“You okay? You look like you’re struggling.”
<Don’t pretend to worry when you’re the one who caused this, you worm-like human!>
I smiled.
Honestly, compared to the countless hateful comments I received in life, being called a worm was pretty mild.
The notebook kept writing.
<Because you performed many great good deeds despite being gray, the request has been approved. However, the law of causality has been heavily adjusted.>
Oh.
“Wait, you’re really granting wishes worth tens of billions?”
<You asked for it!>
“Then do it. Just put two billion won in my bank account.”
<Is that truly what you want? I can grant it, but your life will be shortened.>
Oh?
<If I put two billion won in your account, you will die two minutes later.>
Impressive.
So nothing comes easily.
I thought about it and shrugged.
In life, sometimes you throw a fastball, sometimes a curveball.
Shaking dried blood from my fingers, I spoke.
“Then can I wish for a wish where none of my wishes have a price?”
<Is that truly your desire? If you choose that, you will never receive salvation.>
Salvation.
I ignored that cheerfully.
But the fairy’s next words were impossible to ignore.
<Also, in five minutes you will begin to lose your hair. In fifteen minutes, kidney stones will begin forming, and five minutes later the pain of urinary stones will follow. Around thirty minutes later, gout will be added. The pain will last until the day you die.>
‘Yeah… definitely no salvation.’
For a moment I felt dizzy.
The smile disappeared from my face.
“Wow. That’s intense.”
<Causality is tighter than a spider’s web and looser than the personal data of Korean citizens.>
Was that strict or not?
This situation was becoming more entertaining.
I laughed, though the muscles of this body trembled awkwardly.
“Alright.”
<Alright about what?>
“That I returned to the past and have to live in this body.”
I accepted it rather quickly, but honestly it wasn’t bad.
“With this face, I can just walk the same path I did before.”
The boy in the broken mirror forced a wide smile.
The muscles still trembled, but it looked decent.
I felt good.
“This time I’ll reach my original position more efficiently.”
Worldwide superstar.
Kim Chanran.
No.
Now I was Oh Chanran.
‘That award was supposed to be mine.’
I would reach that glorious peak again.
That was where I belonged.
‘And before that, I’ll find the guy who blew my head open.’
When I do, I’ll rip his limbs off.
The messy-haired, blood-covered boy in the broken mirror stared back at me.
I crossed my arms.
“Dream big. Though for me, that dream was already reality. Anyway, Fairy of the Starting Point.”
I touched the back of my head.
“My first wish. Fix my head. Perfectly. No scars.”
This was a brand-new body.
I should take good care of it.
‘But can it really do that?’
<Oh Chanran. Do you doubt my power? Of course I can. The price is that in two seconds, a starting point will appear near your eye for twenty years.>
Wait.
What point?
I frowned.
“A… starting point?”
<Just a dot. Of course, all things follow the delicate law of causality. For a starting point to be a starting point, it must be a starting point. If that starting point becomes something else, that will be your choice.>
That sounded like nonsense.
What did that even mean?
<Do not worry. On the outside, it will simply look like a beauty mark near your eye.>
I would need my face to make a living.
I couldn’t decide lightly.
I examined Oh Chanran’s face carefully in the broken mirror.
‘A beauty mark near the eye on this face…’
Actually, it might work.
His features were almost too perfect.
A small mark might even add charm.
‘Besides, it removes the wound and scar.’
Even if the causality thing was strange, it wasn’t a bad deal.
“Grant that wish.”
I touched the back of my head.
The dried blood was still there on my fingers.
But the wound itself had vanished.
“Wow. Your power is amazing. If I get two beauty marks later, maybe you can cure a heart attack too.”
<Praise my power. Do you want that? At this moment, curing a heart attack would only cost three strands of your hair.>
That was even cheaper.
“The economy is strange.”
<Chanran. Adding one thread to an already heavy scale is different from placing a mustard seed on a perfectly balanced one.>
Oh.
Now I understood.
“So since my heart is healthy, the cost is low. But if it were actually failing, the cost would be huge.”
<Usually, yes. But let me warn you. Be careful about having wishes granted.>
So… I shouldn’t overuse them?
I see.
Not really my problem though.
Ignoring that cheerfully, I stood up.
Conclusion reached.
“My body’s healed, so shall we go?”
I brushed dust off myself one last time.
The result was clear.
Handsome face. Decent body.
A wish-granting fairy.
I wanted to leave this filthy place.
As I stretched and stood up, the notebook’s text changed again.
<What will you do?>
“Well, lots of things. But Fairy, are you always going to stay as a notebook?”
<?>
“If you’re going to follow me around, carrying a notebook everywhere will be annoying.”
“Into something smaller? Not bad… but flipping pages to talk still sounds annoying.”
<If our skins are touching, we can communicate without speaking.>
The notebook suddenly disappeared.
Something slowly crawled onto my arm.
‘A sticker?’
A sparkling pink heart-shaped sticker wriggled slightly.
The fairy’s voice echoed in my head.
<What do you think, Chanran? Praise my abilities.>
I burst out laughing.
Not exactly praise, but…
‘So it’s like a wired connection. Bluetooth would’ve been nicer.’
<Do not compare my divine power to your electronic devices! You should praise me more!>
Well… this was workable.
Though I had no idea why it had to be a pink heart sticker.
Connected to the notebook, I slowly walked forward.
Light began to seep in.
Each step crushed shards of mirror.
They glittered faintly in the dim light.
‘Huh.’
I suddenly smiled.
<Why are you smiling?>
“Did you know stars are born from dust?”
I had only gotten up and moved, but light came in and everything started sparkling.
In the dusty hallway, I muttered:
“I feel like a superstar being reborn like a star.”
A scientist would probably laugh at that.
But I’m an arts guy.
I walked down the stairs lightly.
After a moment of silence, the fairy spoke again.
<You’re not wrong about being reborn. You’re no longer Kim Chanran. You are Oh Chanran now.>
Is that so?
I smiled and tapped the sticker on my arm.
When I reached the first floor, a maze of narrow alleyways appeared.
I shrugged and walked forward.
Maybe because I had been reborn like a star—
I had a lot of things to do.
