Chapter 1 - Chapter 1

Translator: Nox

Ch#1

“Just two more months, and this life is finally over.”

I stretched and flopped down onto the grass.

My body was utterly exhausted from wrestling with laundry all day, but my mind was light.

It had been a long four years and ten months.

Having entered the fortress as a maid at the age of thirteen, I had somehow already turned seventeen.

Talk about terrible luck. Of all times, why did I have to transmigrate right when I had just gotten hired as a maid?

If it had been just one day earlier, I would never have made this choice.

For someone like me with no education or special skills, this was the only way to make the most money in the shortest amount of time—but nothing in this world is more important than one’s life.

To even think of working in a den of demons like this… the original owner of this body must have completely lacked fear. Or she was the world’s biggest fool.

What should I do first once I leave?

Even though I still had two months left, I was already imagining a brilliant future.

Since I had saved up a decent amount of money by being frugal, maybe I should go on a sightseeing trip to some scenic place with Grandmother?

“Hey, you thoughtless brat! What about the noodle shop? Why are you talking about sightseeing! Stop talking nonsense and get to folding dumplings, quick!”

I could immediately picture Grandmother flying into a rage.

While others occasionally closed their shops for a vacation or something, our Madam Sin-geum had never rested for a single day.

To drag Grandmother out of this devil’s den, I knew it would take an immense amount of effort.

If she absolutely couldn’t be persuaded, I would have to leave by myself, but because of the affection we had built up, I didn’t feel like doing that.

At any rate, the fact that I was living so decently now was largely thanks to Madam Sin-geum.

I, an ordinary office worker in South Korea, had entered a martial arts novel overnight.

I had simply fallen asleep while reading a novel, but when I opened my eyes, I had become someone else.

How I felt when I, a twenty-five-year-old adult, was transformed into a thirteen-year-old girl… there were no words.

Now I knew that this world was the setting of the novel I had read, but in the beginning, I hadn’t had the slightest clue.

That was because I was someone who had never been mentioned as a supporting character, let alone an extra, in the novel.

It was entirely thanks to our Madam Sin-geum that I finally realized the true nature of this world.

In the face of such a sudden change in environment, I had been in a state of utter panic.

Thinking back, it was almost admirable that I had managed to pull off my maid duties in the midst of it all.

My mind was gone, but someone assigned me tasks, and my gut instinct whispered that I should just quietly do my work without causing a scene.

Fortunately, since I was a new hire, my clumsiness was overlooked without any major scoldings.

Then, about a week later, was it?

Madam Sin-geum came looking for me. The moment she saw me, she smacked my back with her toad-like hand.

“You brat! Did this granny tell you to drop by the house every five days, or did she not? Just because you became a fortress maid, are you already ignoring your granny’s words? Is this how I raised you!”

“…G-Grandmother?”

“What’s with that look? Did you already forget your granny’s face in that short time?”

Seeing my shocked expression, Madam Sin-geum clutched the back of her neck in disbelief. Right then and there, she grabbed me by the earlobe and dragged me away.

Whether there had been some prior arrangement or not, no one stopped us at the time.

Grandmother, who had acted terrifyingly as if she were going to beat me once we got home, boiled some meat for me, saying my face had half-shrunk in just a few days.

She went on to ask if I really had to work as a maid, asserting that her body was still strong enough to easily feed and support me, and tried to persuade me to quit even now.

I roughly pieced things together.

The original owner of this body had taken a job as a maid to help the grandmother who had suffered so much to raise her.

And because of my transmigration, she hadn’t been able to keep her promise to come home.

“Yes, I suppose you can’t just quit your job right away now. Since you signed a contract, you have to keep it.”

Since I, having just transmigrated, had nothing to say and could only hang my head, she spoke with emphasis, as if telling me to keep her words in mind.

“Still, you must be careful, and careful again. It’s almost impossible for you to ever meet the Cult Leader, but just in case. You must never cross paths with the young masters either. Especially beware of the First Young Master, Jeok Wi-baek. If you catch his eye for no reason and get hurt, your granny won’t be able to go on living. You must keep this in mind!”

Before I could deeply ponder what she meant by getting hurt, my mouth was already asking something else.

“Jeok Wi-baek?”

It was because the name was all too familiar. He was one of the characters in the martial arts novel I had been reading up until the night before I opened my eyes in this world.

Coincidentally, the owner of that name was also called the First Young Master.

“Don’t tell me you’ve already seen him?”

“N-No.”

When I shook my head reflexively, Grandmother emphasized once more.

“He is famous for his ruthless methods. Though he hasn’t officially become the successor yet, he is currently the strongest candidate for Young Cult Leader. What good could possibly come from people like us catching the eye of the next Heavenly Demon? If you ever happen to run into him, you must lower yourself unconditionally. You understand what your granny is saying, right?”

It wasn’t hard to understand. However, my mind instantly went blank, as if struck by lightning.

First Young Master Jeok Wi-baek.

Candidate for Young Cult Leader.

The next Heavenly Demon(天魔).

With just these few facts, I had a very clear grasp of the world I had fallen into.

Yet, in the face of a reality I desperately wanted to deny, I clasped my hands together and asked.

“By any chance…… do you also know the Second Young Master’s name?”

“Are you talking about Jeok I-geon?”

Fuck.

A curse slipped out of my mouth automatically.

“…Then the Third Young Master is Jeok Hwigyeom…….”

“Did you memorize all the young masters’ names just because you became a fortress maid?”

No. Of course not. It’s just that I read it in a book last week, so I happened to remember. I really enjoyed reading it…….

So this is what it feels like when your world turns upside down.

Even when I suddenly woke up in the body of a young girl, I hadn’t been this terrified.

Of all the many novels, why this one of all things!

I had to summon superhuman strength to keep myself from collapsing.

I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t shake off the shock.

Could I be dreaming right now?

I harbored that hope, but the surroundings were far too realistic.

The clean but worn-out shop, the subtle aroma of meat wafting through the air, the pork being swallowed down my throat.

Saying that eating well was the most important thing for a person no matter what, Grandmother kept stuffing pieces of meat into my mouth.

Unable to spit it out, I chewed through it and recalled the title of the novel.

Descent of the Heavenly Demon(天魔降臨錄).

The plot was simple to summarize.

The birth of the strongest Heavenly Demon in the history of the Demonic Cult(魔敎).

As is typical of the Demonic Cult, the new Heavenly Demon sets his sights on the Central Plains and, surprisingly, succeeds in unifying the Murim.

The Orthodox faction, the Unorthodox faction, and the Demonic Cult. While there had always been armed conflicts, they had never been subjugated under a single power.

The one who achieved this for the first time was the Second Young Master, Jeok I-geon.

Jeok I-geon, the protagonist of the original novel.

In a word, he was a demon. Jeok Wi-baek, whom Grandmother had warned me to be careful of, was equally evil, but compared to Jeok I-geon, he was practically cute.

A legendary, insane psychopath who would tear a subordinate to death just because they caught his eye when he was in a bad mood, and strangle a woman carrying his child to death for being “insolent.”

The novel opens with him slaughtering his brothers and father to ascend as the Heavenly Demon.

I recalled a brief description stating that until then, he had hidden his true nature and bided his time.

Demonic practitioners naturally swear loyalty to the strong.

Though he had committed such extreme familial betrayal, no one dared to rebel against Jeok I-geon once he became the Heavenly Demon. In fact, many praised his choices.

At any rate, the novel, which opened with such violence, made the Kunlun Sect(崑崙派) its first victim and advanced into the Central Plains.

Having long since surpassed the realm of mortals through innate talent and effort, Jeok I-geon swept through the Murim with unstoppable force.

Descent of the Heavenly Demon was a popular novel, loved for its protagonist’s overwhelming martial prowess and its thrilling, fast-paced development.

It proved that the story of a villain, rather than a good man, could be plenty entertaining.

But that was only because it was a novel.

If such a situation became reality, the judgment would be entirely different. Who could even breathe properly out of sheer terror?

‘I must stay as invisible as possible.’

Fortunately, the point in time I transmigrated into was long before the novel began.

The contract period for a fortress maid was five years. My goal was to somehow endure that period and leave the Demonic Cult.

Since there was no way to return home, I had to keep living here, but I absolutely had to avoid Jeok I-geon.

Because I didn’t want to die a dog’s death.

Just two months left.

‘If I can just endure for two months, I can escape!’

Looking up at the blue sky, I steeled my resolve once more. It was then that I heard So-ok’s voice.

“Seol-ha! What are you doing here! Do you know how long I’ve been looking for you?”

“Why me? Is something wrong?”

So-ok was a friend of the same age whom I had met here. Although she was clumsy and required a lot of looking after, she was a kind and soft-hearted girl.

“What kind of blessing were you born with, really?”

“Blessing?”

“I just heard a moment ago that you’ve been assigned as the Second Young Master’s personal maid! Right now, all the girls are going crazy with envy!”

“W-What kind of bullshit is that! Me, the Second Young Master’s personal maid! Why me!”

I jumped up and screamed. My heart pounded like crazy. My mind went completely blank at the sudden news.

“Well, isn’t it because you do your work so meticulously and well? It might be a bit early for our seniority, but it’s not unheard of. But Seol-ha, do you not want to be the Second Young Master’s personal maid? What’s with your face?”

Her expression asked what on earth my problem was when others were dying to have the position.

Of course I don’t want to!

Do you have any idea how much agonizing effort I put into avoiding that place!

The cleaning duties in the fortress were rotated on a regular basis.

Naturally, there were days when I was supposed to be in charge of the Second Young Master’s residence. But every single time, I traded shifts with other maids and absolutely refused to set foot there. I didn’t want to allow even the slightest variable.

Back then, because Jeok I-geon was still hiding his true nature, there were plenty of maids willing to swap shifts.

The fact that he was an extraordinary beauty also played a part in that.

I had never actually seen him myself, but according to the maids who had run into him, the finest handsome man in the entire Cult was definitely the Second Young Master.

‘Even in the original novel, descriptions of his good looks appeared every time he showed up. Even his enemies were said to admire his appearance.’

Since I personally took on their grueling laundry duties in exchange for swapping shifts, not a single person had ever rejected my offer.

I thought I had slipped away as cleanly as an eel, but a personal maid?

I would rather take my own life; there was absolutely no way I could do this.

“I have to see Madam Gwak!”

Madam Gwak was, so to speak, the Head Maid.

I ran like mad toward her quarters.

Raindrops began to patter down from the sky that had been bright and sunny just moments ago.

It felt as if it were foretelling a miserable future, and an ominous feeling washed over me.