Chapter Text
"Being an author really isn't for the weak, huh...."
Ting!!
Kim Hajin's depressed muttering was interrupted by a loud notification sound. As he turned around to check for the source of it, he sighed and opened the link that was sent to him, realizing that it was yet another hate comment posted under the latest chapter of his novel.
A chapter that was released six months ago.
It wasn't his intention to go on hiatus, not really. But under the constant stress of weekly chapter releases, the ideas and inspiration that were slowly slipping away from him and the constant bashing on his writing skills by his 'dear' readers, Hajin was not in a state to continue writing. Hence why he decided to pause his novel indefinitely.
-Post comment-
User_(Arinb7261) : THAT'S IT?!? This novel was trash already, but the author's lazy ass decided to take a break too?? Figures, he's as lazy as his writing. No wonder the plot is full of inconsistencies and plot holes.
User_(Kimbaplover69) : This novel is pretty bad, but it was at least entertaining. What am I supposed to read now everyday on my train ride home.....?
User_(Underdashade) replied to User_(Kimbaplover69) : Yo!! I have some reccs that might interest you. They're basically like this novel but if it was ACTUALLY good (I mean the bar is already in hell, but trust me these are at least halfway decent....
User_(Notyourmommy) : I DEMAND A NEW CHAPTER ASAP!!! Bring back my entertaining trash (TT) Kim Suho we love u
User_(Boothillsfeetmassager) : Boothill best most handsome character ever KIM SUHO IS TRASH IN COMPARISON!! Anyways glad this novel is not releasing shit, it better have been axed already.
"Entertaining trash... It's not like they're wrong.."
"The otherworldly hero" was the title of Hajin's novel and the story that sparked so much controversy (or rather hate) from it's readers. It was a typical "dungeon and towers appear suddenly one day" type of story, bringing forth terrifying monsters that loomed over the earth as a threat to humanity and throwing the world into chaos. The korean peninsula was particularly affected by this phenomenon, the dungeons and towers in it being much harder than other regions on earth, and the monsters much more vicious and unforgiving. But with the appearance of a catastrophe, the eventual presence of a ray of light amidst the darkness was inevitable. The said light being 'Heroes', humans who, during the calamity, obtained superhuman strengh and abilities to combat and defeat monsters. With their appearance, the dungeons in korea were slowly put under control, and the country emerged victorious from the crisis, eventually becoming one of the world's strongest nations and creating humanities best hero-training facility, "Cube", where cadets from all over the world gathered to train under the best, with the most advanced technology and thriving competition to determine the next generation of 'Heroes'.
Like in all good web-novel fashion, there was a "picture perfect" protagonist, Kim Suho, who's fate was to save the world from doom, and his 'rival', Shin Jonghak, who's only goal was to defeat the main character and assert himself as the strongest.
Now, admittedly, Hajin understood the criticism that his novel was subjected to. Despite it's rising popularity on the webnovel site, "The otherworldly hero" was considered as nothing more than a 'pass the time' read by most of it's viewers. The begining of the novel, while interesting at first, slowly began to fall under the cliches that most action webnovels were a victim to. Kim Suho was 'too strong', 'too perfect' in the readers eyes, which Hajin could agree on, but this picture-perfect protagonist was also a reflection of what Hajin wished he could be, so he inherently couldn't, or didn't want to change Suho's nature. Most of the other characters other than the 'rival' were sidelined, even ones that at first were deemed essential for the progression of the plotline. And the story was full of neglected plot points and inconsistent writing, courtesy of Hajin being unable to detail anything that was consequential but detailed too much world-building that was trivial in the long run.
'All in all', Kim Hajin admitted to himself bitterly, 'I'm a shit author'
Looking back distractedly at his computer screen, Hajin noticed a single email notification popping up on his feed. He never received emails unless it was a spam or a promotional offer, but he decided, in his boredom, to check it out anyways. He would gladly read through a shampoo discount if it would distract him from his thoughts.
Inbox :
Remake Proposal
Sender : [email protected]
To me :
Dear Mr. Kim
I am writing to propose a remake of your webnovel, "The otherworldly hero".
I would like to rework the story, purely as a passion project.
There are a few parts of the novel that I think could use some adjustments, and I hope you will provide your agreement on this proposal so I can properly dedicate my time to rewriting this masterpiece.
Thank you for reading
Unknown
_
Hajin stared blankly at his screen, an expression of disbelief etching his features.
"A remake of a novel on hiatus?! Who even does that??"
But despite his surprise, Hajin couldn't help considering the proposal. As much as he wanted to finish writing his novel, as he knew the story was in it's final stretch, he couldn't deny that he was being hit by a writing block so fierce that he wondered if he would ever be able to continue it at all.
All in all, he had walked away from concluding his own story.
And the guilt was slowly eating away at him. This project, despite it's poor receival and reluctant approval, was a passion project that Hajin had started to distract himself from his grim reality. It didn't feel right to leave it unfinished, and if he couldn't do it himself, why not give it to some weirdo who wanted to do it in his stead? He didn't even know he had such a dedicated fan in the first place.
So, without thinking more of it, Hajin sent a reply, confirming that he was indeed in agreement with a fan-remake, and thanking this person for taking the time to read and appreciate "The otherworldly hero". Upon making sure that his message was coherent, he hit the 'send' button and closed the tab, expecting a reply in the next couple of days, but not necessarily anticipating it.
But what he couldn't predict was that the response would be immediate.
Because the moment Kim Hajin got up from his desk to fetch himself a glass of water, a sudden wave of dizziness hit him like a crashing wave, making him stumble so suddenly that he fell on the floor, unable to move a limb. His head was spinning, eyes closing against his will as he panicked, not understanding why his body was shutting down. He looked around as much as he could : his desk, his room, his computer, that was now alight with a strange blue glow, but his head stopped cooperating, lying limply on the floor, unresponsive, just as was the rest of his body.
'Am I...am I dying?'
Perhaps that was the case. No, that was most definitely what was happening. He couldn't understand how, or why, but all he knew was that he was being taken from this world right at that very moment, and that his parents, being in the next room, were oblivious to the events currently transpiring in their own home. He tried to scream, shout "Mom!! Dad!!" or even "Help me...Please.." but it was to no avail, as his vocal cords slowly failed him, the sound emmited starting from a weak wail and slowly amounting to nothingness.
It was at that moment that he resigned himself.
Kim Hajin was truly dying, and he had no way to stop it, nor anybody to help him.
But he accepted it. Closing his eyes willingly as he hoped that wherever he went would be a good place. Not a better one, as no place without his family and loved ones ever would be. But he still hoped.
And it was on that note that Kim Hajin, author of the webnovel "The otherworldly Hero", drew his final breath in this world and took his first one in a completely different one.
A world of his own making.