Chapter 4: Prologue: Prelude With The Devil (3)
"Are you a devil?"
Jin-Chae's question left the child momentarily speechless.
"Oh? What made you think I am?"
"Well... the horns and wings you had?"
Confused, the child began touching their forehead. And sure enough, they could feel his horns over it.
"Oh this, yeah, I forgot to hide it."
They replied before both their horns and wings disappeared like a mist.
"So... are you here to escort me down to the afterlife?"
"Afterlife?" The child tilted their head. "Oh, you mean all that human religion stuff. Yeah, Nah. That's not a thing."
Jin-Chae frowned. "What do you mean? This doesn't look like heaven or hell, so… are you, like, an angel of death? Here to, uh… collect my soul or something?"
The child groaned and waved their hands dismissively. "Soul? What's with humans and their 'soul' nonsense? Hate to break it to you, buddy, but souls don't exist. Neither does heaven, hell, or reincarnation. When you die, you're done. Consciousness? Poof. Body? Back to dirt. End of story."
"So... What is this then?"
The child shrugged casually. "This is different. You're lucky, actually! I never showed this to any mortals. This is my domain — where time just sorta… stops. You're not dead-dead. More like, uh… half-dead?"
Jin-Chae glanced at the clock on the wall. Sure enough, the hands weren't moving.
"So are you a God... or something?"
"No, I am a devil." The child replied. "More exactly, I am the devil Gaia."
The name hit Jin-Chae like a slap.
"Wait. That's familiar…"
"Hehehe, knew you'd recognize it." The child happily replied. "Yup, I'm your very first reader! Remember me? The one who stuck around for ages... and then totally trashed your story in the reviews?"
"IT WAS YOU???!!"
"That's right~!" Gaia happily replied with a beam written on their face. "Congratulations on meeting your first fan, who happens to be, a devil. Are you happy?"
"Well... no... that doesn't seem like something to brag."
"What do you mean no?! Ehem..." Gaia pauses, clearing their throat. "Anyways, I just wanted to ask. Why did you rush the ending of your novel?"
"Ah... the ending?"
"Yes!" The devil's voice cracked with a sudden passion. "I liked that story, you bastard! You had a solid story, and then you threw it all away!"
"Didn't you say from your review, it's cliche?"
"Don't get a big head. I only checked it out because I was bored" Gaia huffed, before adding in a quieter tone, "but yeah, the first version is definitely better."
"The first version?" Jin-Chae scoffed. "You mean the one no one cared about? Figures you'd have bad taste."
"You rewrote it into garbage!"
"Garbage sells," Jin-Chae shot back. "You wouldn't understand. Writing isn't about passion. It's about algorithms, trends, and giving people what they want. You think I enjoyed it? I did it because it worked."
Silence remained in the place.
Until...
Gaia let out a small chuckle.
"Interesting. So, what if you had to write something you did care about? What if something very important depended on it?"
Jin-Chae frowned. "Stop the nonsense and let me die."
"Let's find out, shall we?"
Before Jin-Chae could respond, the moment Gaia cut the rope hanging above him. Light beneath him gave way, and he plunged into the abyss.
"YOU DEVIL!"
Gaia's voice echoed, as they watched his body fall down tremendously.
"Let's see what kind of story you'll write this time."
*****
Year 1019. January 3.
Underneath the shade of an oak tree, a young woman sat with a worn, tattered book in her hands.
It was upside down, but that didn't seem to bother her as she continued flipping through the pages absentmindedly, her eyes remained unfocused.
The peaceful moment shattered when a voice echoed from the distance.
"M'lady! The young master has awakened!"
The words jolted her from her trance. She jumped to her feet, the book slipped from her hands and landed forgotten in the grass.
Without a second thought, she sprinted down the hallways of the grand estate, with her heart refusing to calm down.
When she reached the door, she didn't bother knocking. Instead, she shoved it open with enough force to make it slam against the wall.
"Brother!"
Her voice filled the room, but what greeted her wasn't the sight she had hoped for.
A young man, likely in his twenties, sat on the edge of the bed. His dark blue hair clung to his forehead, damp with sweat. Pale white skin, as if he just slept for eternity.
His knuckles were bloodied, tiny shards of glass clinging to his skin. The broken remains of a mirror lay scattered at his feet.
He turned his gaze towards her, looking completely confused.
"Who?"