2. Not the MC

Two days after the incident, Cha Kwan was still processing this new reality.

Right now, he was at the family-owned noodle shop, watching people enter and leave from behind the counter.

Two older men entered with slightly displeased expressions. The one in the front asked the other in disbelief and dismay. "How could a swordsman ranker only have 32 Strength?"

The other heavily shook his head. "What a national embarrassment…"

If this was before, Cha Kwan would've thought they were talking about pro gamers. Now though, he wasn't sure. In fact, he was quite confused! Because pro-gaming was big in Korea. At least, as far as he could tell anyway…

His father was at the back, and his mother was busy tending to the upstairs group. So Cha Kwan jumped down from his seat and climbed the big wooden stool to greet the newcomers. "Welcome!"

The man in the front's expression relaxed. "Ohho, I didn't know little Kwan had grown up so much that he started working!"

"I'm old enough to help now!" Said Cha Kwan with a little bit of an exaggerated tone. For some reason, adults seemed to find this type of behavior cute. Since this was the family business, he had to take all the advantage he could take! "We have all kinds of noodles! What would you like?"

Both of them smiled and replied the same way. ""Today's special, extra spicy.""

"Coming right up!" Cha Kwan immediately jumped down and started running toward the back. "Daaad!"

Behind, he could hear concerned voices. "Hey, hey, careful little boy!"

In the end, though this was a fantasy world, his life hadn't changed. The sky didn't fall.

At least not yet!

* * *

That day, "Little Kwan's Supper-Awesome Noodle House!" closed up at 7pm, when the last few stragglers had gone home.

Cha Kwan observed his parents' struggle with the shutters with strange feelings.

"Honey, I'll handle it. I just need to…" Cha Kang-Dae resorted to using his body weight to no avail. This has been the daily ritual for as long as Cha Kwan remembered. A few seconds later his mother was holding his hands, and both of them silently watched the battle between man and steel.

Learning this was a world with fantasy elements had subtle effects on Cha Kwan's point of view.

The simple act of holding hands with his parents was something that he took for granted. He never even gave it a second thought in this life.

In his previous life though, he could only watch other kids with envy when they were with their parents. Growing up in the orphanage wasn't an unpleasant experience, but one could not help but wonder at the same time. What if?

Cha Kwan was now living in that what-if scenario.

Finally, after heroic amounts of effort, Cha Kang-Dae managed to subdue the great steel shutter once more. He grabbed Cha Kwan's other hand and the family started heading home.

In his previous life, Cha Kwan never went to South Korea, nor did he watch any South Korean shows. His superficial-at-best knowledge was a product of his time with web novels. Did real South Korea look like the united Korea? Did real Old Seoul resemble the one in his previous life, with rows and rows of hastily built concrete structures with fake brick facades?

This was a new question for Cha Kwan's 4-year-old brain. Adult thoughts tended to leave him exhausted, so he learned to avoid them whenever he could. Now though, he couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

Of course, his silence was noticed by both Cha Kang-Dae and Shin Soo-Yun. They shared a look of concern with each other. Cha Kwan was often a lot more sensible than other kids his age. A simple bad memory like yesterday's dungeon break could turn into anxiety because of his thoughtful temperament. As parents, how could they not be concerned?

Shin Soo-Yun carefully adjusted her voice to sound casual. "Shoot! I forgot! I was going to bring some kimchi to Uncle Hyun-Ki for him to taste…"

Cha Kang-Dae first stared at his wife with surprise, but upon seeing her expression he understood. "…We should have some at home, I'll bring him a jar after I rest a little. Or… maybe tomorrow…"

"I'll help!" Despite being in deep thought, Cha Kwan didn't even think before uttering those words. His life here… was exceedingly ordinary. And perhaps that was the most extraordinary thing of all.

* * *

Cha Kwan rushed into his room once they arrived at their apartment. His parents didn't explain the dungeon break in detail, which was a wise choice when it came to a 4-year-old, but they did mention Uncle Min Hyun-Ki was the one who "handled" it.

"Uncle" Min Hyun-Ki treated them like family even though they had no blood relations. On top of that, from Cha Kwan's perspective, he saved everyone! His respect for the 60-something-year-old uncle had never been higher. That's why he wanted to give him a thank-you gift.

"Where is it? Where did I put it?!"

A year ago, Cha Kwan "bought" three wooden charms with the word Longevity written on them. Of course, it was his mother that bought the items, but he was the one that had chosen them!

Well, at the time he was 4 years old and not completely lucid, but even in child mode, he was still himself! Less knowledgeable and more scared, but his identity was the same! Probably!

"Found it!"

Two for his parents, and one for himself.

Though the charms themselves looked cheap -and they really were cheap- this final one was the most important possession of Cha Kwan. Giving it to Uncle Hyun-Ki made more sense than keeping one for himself.

"Kwan, where are you? Let's go."

"Coming!"

Cha Kwan put the charm in his pocket and came to a stop once he saw the jar in his father's hand.

"That's… kimchi?" As far as Cha Kwan knew, kimchi was supposed to be red. He had no idea what was in it apart from cabbage and radish, but he knew that if it wasn't red, it wasn't kimchi!

"This is white kimchi, it's not spicy and better for older people."

Cha Kwan's mouth dropped, but his dad smiled in response. "Come, let's bring it to the uncle."

On the way, Cha Kwan became uneasy.

'Wait, if he can't even handle spicy food, how is he still defending people?! Shouldn't he just retire as a hunter?!'

Then his uneasiness turned into concern.

'Wait, we're bringing him kimchi? He… can't even make his own? Is he injured?!'

Soon his concern transformed into full-blown anxiety. With a stiff face unfitting of his age, Cha Kwan followed his father from behind, not noticing the two silhouettes near the stairs.

"Ah, uncle, we were just coming over… to give you that… uh… kimchi that you wanted." Cha Kang-Dae pointed toward his son with his eyes.

Min Hyun-Ki was taken aback at first, but he quickly understood the situation thanks to his level 10 Common Sense skill. "Aigoo… Little Kang-Dae you're a lifesaver. I ran out a week ago. I can't stomach the processed stuff, you know…"

Cha Kang-Dae handed over the football-sized jar with a smile. "Soo-Yun used to make this for her grandmother. It's very good for digestion and not even a little bit spicy!"

This was news for Cha Kwan. In fact, now that he thought about it, his parents didn't talk about their family at all. Did he have a great-grandmother somewhere? What about aunts, uncles, or cousins? They should exist, right?

Min Hyun-Ki nodded with a slightly bitter smile. "Mm. This must be good stuff then. Shin Jin-Ae would've starved herself than eat subpar kimchi. Kekeke." His eyes wandered around, then landed on Cha Kwan as if he just thought of something. "I just remembered! I had a bottle of All-Rest laying around forever. Little Kwan why don't you come and help this old man huh?"

Cha Kang-Dae's eyes went wide as he tried to reject in a hurry. "No, we can't accept uncl-"

"Shush now!" Min Hyun-Ki's voice became serious as he frowned. "Its efficacy is too low to be useful for other hunters. It'll be good for you and little Soo-Yun." When he turned around his usually lively attitude returned. "Plus, it's a good trade for Jin-Ae grade kimchi. Come, little Kwan, come come!"

Seeing Min Hyun-Ki's matter-of-fact attitude, Cha Kang-Dae sighed, then gently pushed Cha Kwan. "Do as uncle says."

This was the first time Cha Kwan saw his father struggle between embarrassment and gratefulness. He nodded blankly and followed after Min Hyun-Ki. Neither him nor his father noticed the curious pair of eyes, watching them right beside Min Hyun-Ki.

As he climbed the stairs, Cha Kwan remembered the concerningly white apartment from before. That was actually Min Hyun-Ki's home, where Cha Kwan thought he saw a replica sword.

'Sh*t… That wasn't a replica. A blade that worn out must've seen some real battles…'

And its user was right in front of Cha Kwan. A kind, lively old man from upstairs. A geezer that couldn't even make his own kimchi, was defending the neighborhood from a dungeon break by himself!

"Uncle…" Cha Kwan couldn't help but ask with a frown. Because the world seemed unfair to his 4-year-old brain at that moment. "Can't you… retire? Isn't going to dungeon break dangerous?" His voice gave out before he could finish. "What if… something…"

Min Hyun-Ki stopped. He glanced at the silhouette behind Cha Kwan, then sighed while tussling the boy's hair.

"This old man still has a lot of power in his bones. Besides, kekeke…" It seemed as if he was enjoying the thought. "I'm already retired. I just help around on occasion. This dungeon break was more than a full class below me, do you know what that means?"

Cha Kwan shook his head. Until very recently, he did not pay any attention to so-called hunters, thinking that they were just pro-gamers! Moreover, he was only four! Most of the time he watched cartoons or animal documentaries!

"I am a mid B-Rank Spearman. Which means I can slap hundreds of C-Rank monsters. The recent break was only at low C-Rank. The monsters of that day? Total pushovers! Not even worth mentioning!" Min Hyun-Ki exaggerated confidence somehow made Cha Kwan more at ease. Though, not completely!

"You should still take care of yourself." Cha Kwan spoke with utter seriousness despite the widening smile of Min Hyun-Ki. "Look, you can't even eat spicy food!" He started rummaging his pocket and missed how the old man's smile froze. Neither did he notice the giggling of the silhouette behind him. "Uncle, you must be at least 60… No, 70…"

Cha Kwan paused. 'He… can't be over 80, right?'

While he was in a conundrum, he finally heard a melodious outburst from behind.

"Pffhahahahahaha…"

With the wooden charm in his hand, Cha Kwan turned towards the obviously female voice. When did this person clad in black arrive? He looked back at Min Hyun-Ki in confusion. The 90?-plus years old hunter seemed to be baffled as well.

The woman in black spoke softly between giggling. "How astonishing that human children are always so ferociously honest! Hehehe…"

She didn't have an accent, but somehow her wording seemed off. "…Human?" Asked a curious Cha Kwan.

The woman approached him and kneeled before removing the black velvet hood. "Well met, young one. I, am Elizabeth. An old…" She glanced at Min Hyun-Ki "… very old, friend of little Hyun-Ki." She smiled. "From a human viewpoint, that is."

It took Cha Kwan a few seconds to process what had happened.

Out of nowhere, an incredibly beautiful woman appeared! And she was… talking…? To him?

Since he had no idea what she had just said, the only thing Cha Kwan could do was nod as he looked at her.

When did his mouth drop? He had no idea. In fact, it didn't matter at all, because he couldn't close it even if he wanted to. He had only one thought at that moment.

'How could such a beautiful… -being- exist?!'

Elizabeth's smile widened. "This child's insight is quite extraordinary."

'This is definitely a dream. It must be.' Thought Cha Kwan.

But reality begged to differ.

Min Hyun-Ki's low voice filled the empty space. "You should'a kept hiding with your f*cking chopstick ears. Stop doing that with your acorn brain you're gonna give the kid a weird fetish." He lifted Cha Kwan from behind and continued speaking without missing a single beat. "Listen little Kwan. If you ever see encounter one of those knife-eared b*st*rds, or worse those f*cking fur-for-brains dipsh*ts, don't ever pay them any attention, just shove-"

Min Hyun-Ki stopped himself after noticing how stiff the little boy's body became. It was at that moment, he realized he messed up. He cleared his throat. "Ehm, old habits. Don't mind this old man. Or that green-eyed f*cker- Ehm." He paused for a moment, seemingly having difficulty swallowing his annoyance. "Don't mind the elf."

Cha Kwan couldn't help but look back, but the elf in question had already disappeared. As they climbed the stairs, he thought he heard her giggle a few times, but it was so faint that he was convinced that he was imagining things.

"Little Kwan, uncle used some bad words just then, let's keep that a secret between us, alright? If you promise not to use any bad words like this silly uncle, I'll give you a signed Cheon Ma item, how about that?"

'S-Signed?!'

Cha Kwan's body acted on its own and he fiercely nodded. "Promise!" Not using bad words? That made sense. Of course!

But frankly speaking, the important part was the Cheon Ma item. Signed, Cheon Ma item.

What about the elf? Unfortunately, bribes seemed to work very well against Cha Kwan's 4-year-old brain! A surprising fact that he just found out! The elf was already forgotten!

With Cha Kwan on one arm, and a jar full of white kimchi on the other, they entered Min Hyun-Ki's home.

"Sit down, I'll be right back." Min Hyun-Ki disappeared somewhere.

The place was spotless and white, just like before. Though now the worn-out blade was nowhere to be seen.

A few seconds later Min Hyun-Ki came back. "You see this?" He was holding a green and slightly glowing vial in his hand. "This is an All-Rest potion. For the awakened, it just removes fatigue. For the regular folk though, it cleanses and improves the body." Min Hyun-Ki sat and continued in a nostalgic tone. "Dungeons brought many disasters upon our world, but not everything turned out for the worse. We've learned to adapt; we became strong."

He looked at Cha Kwan. "I saw it all. I was older than your parents before the first break. Back then, I had nothing but a stick in my hands, so I awakened to an ordinary talent and became a spearman. Kekeke, I was a moping mess for a long while."

Min Hyun-Ki put his hand on Cha Kwan's shoulder. "I survived for more than a hundred years. I'm not the strongest, nor the oldest hunter. I'm nothing but ordinary compared to someone like senior Cheon Ma. And you know what?" He got closer to Cha Kwan and whispered. "I'm absolutely fine with it."

Cha Kwan somewhat understood Min Hyun-Ki's point. He read many web novels in his previous life; only the protagonist (and to a lesser degree, their spouse/harem) could enjoy the benefits of plot armor.

'Could I be in a web novel?' He thought. But now wasn't the time to dwell. He continued to listen as Min Hyun-Ki continued with a calm and confident voice.

"After a hundred years, ordinary folk doesn't have to live in fear anymore. You watch Cheon Ma's Adventures, don't you? Doesn't he split space when dealing with his enemies? We do something similar when there's a break. The elf you saw…" Min Hyun-Ki's looked as if he swallowed a fly, just for a moment. "… She's… a strong space mage, working for the Seoul Hunters Association. Like Senior Cheon Ma, she locked up the monsters before they even came out."

Cha Kwan's eyes widened in surprise. Neither his 27-year-old paper salesman, nor his 4-year-old child mind even considered the possibility! A throwaway element he saw in fantasy cartoons… was actually real?!

Obvious in hindsight, especially since he already knew dungeons and monsters were real… But still rather shocking when he thought about it.

All sorts of other cartoon elements came to his mind in an instant!

Cheon Ma cutting through a forest. Cheon Ma cutting through a mountain. Cheon Ma cutting through the fabric of space. Cheon Ma cutting through combined armies of the fiend alliance, killing 67 million warriors with just one move…

'F*ck me…'

"Hahahaha… This kid's quite amusing. Why don't you take him as your successor?" The voice belonged to the elf woman, but this time she spoke in English. Cha Kwan looked around and "acted" as if he didn't understand a word.

Even if this was a fantasy world, a regular 4-year-old Korean child shouldn't be able to understand English. Though his common sense had failed him before, Cha Kwan was sure that this time would be different!

Probably.

Unsurprisingly, Min Hyun-Ki responded in English.

"Shut your f*cking mouth talking about sh*t you know nothing about you damn seed-brained hollow b*tch with your clueless yapping…"

As words continued to come out from Min Hyun-Ki's mouth, Cha Kwan found it harder and harder to maintain his poker face.

The elven woman spoke once more, her voice seemed apologetic and tired. "Little Hyun-Ki, when will you finally let that go?" It was as if she gave up and tried to change the subject. "His temperament is quite good, if you don't want to name a successor, I don't mind taking him myself."

Min Hyun-Ki averted his gaze from Cha Kwan and stayed silent.

'… Hold up, what's going on…'

Didn't this look like a development that a main character would go through? Finding an elusive (super-hot) mentor at a young age was definitely an MC-like development! Could he really be inside a novel? Could he really be the MC?! Like Cheon Ma?!

Unfortunately, Min Hyun-Ki sighed. And it wasn't a shallow sigh either, rather a sigh loaded with emotion. "His mana is below the minimum levels. He won't be able to awaken even if he eats high-quality elixirs for breakfast."

Min Hyun-Ki's voice regained its confidence and continued speaking in English. "It's a good thing. Being ordinary." Then he switched to Korean. "I promised you a sighed item from senior Cheon Ma, didn't I? Wait here." He made a shh gesture with a wink and stood up.

Once he was out of sight, the elf sighed. "He could still awaken without a mana crystal…"

But an answer came from another room, also in English. "Eat sh*t and die."

* * *

What would a 4-year-old do if they heard they had no talent?

From Cha Kwan's personal experience, the correct answer could range from anywhere to crying, to crying their eyes out.

Unexpectedly, Cha Kwan didn't cry!

He gave Min Hyun-Ki his gift, accepted the signed limited edition replica space ring, and delivered the All-Rest potion to his parents, who were very obviously torn between gratitude and guilt towards the uncle in question.

The Cha family had dinner and watched TV. The night passed in a blur. Soon Cha Kwan found himself on the bed, staring at the ceiling well past his bedtime.

He wasn't thinking of anything in particular, or perhaps he couldn't think of anything. He couldn't tell which was which.

The last thing he remembered before falling asleep was his eyes getting watery for some reason.