In a foggy void where nothing could be seen, a place devoid of life—something far worse than hell—a man with long black hair and golden eyes stood shackled in heavy chains. Surrounded by suffocating darkness, he stared directly at him. His voice, cracked with desperation, echoed through the emptiness:
"Jin… Jin… Jin…"
Destroy the final chapter, and be ready for what will come.
You will need to survive.
Jin jolted awake, gasping for breath, drenched in sweat.
"Damn… not again. That dream… always the same."
But what did he mean by destroying the last chapter?
He rubbed his face with frustration. "Ten years. It's haunted me for ten damn years."
Dragging himself to the mirror, he stared at the stranger looking back. Messy brown hair clung to a pale, sleep-starved face. Hollow brown eyes, sunken and ringed with exhaustion, blinked back at him like two dying stars. Once, his 1.78-meter frame carried confidence—now, it sagged under the weight of ten silent years. He wasn't just tired. He was unraveling
Tears streamed down his face without warning.
"Why… why the hell am I crying?"
He splashed cold water on his face, dressed quickly in his brown school uniform, and rushed out. He was already late.
On the crowded streets of Seoul, the city buzzed with life—towering skyscrapers, flashing ads, honking cars, and packed sidewalks. Yet nearly everyone had their eyes glued to a massive screen mounted on a building, broadcasting breaking news.
The final chapter of the world's most popular webtoon, "Shoujo Multiverse" , will be released today.
The screen blurred colorful ads and dramatic trailers. It consumed the skyline, the air, the people.
Jin walked through the sea of bodies, his mind still fogged from the dream.
"What the hell does it mean?" he muttered. "The same damn dream. Every single day."
All around him, the crowd buzzed with excitement—adults, teens, even little kids.
"Did you hear?" one boy exclaimed. "It's ending! "Shoujo Multiverse" is finally ending!"
"Yeah! We'll get the full wrap-up! The greatest webtoon of all time!"
Jin gritted his teeth.
"Same crap… different day," he mumbled. "Nine years of this garbage. Nine years."
He scoffed. "Greatest webtoon"? It's the only one left. The rest vanished. Their authors were found dead. No explanations. Just... gone.
A child pointed at him. "Dad! That guy said bad things about "Shoujo Multiverse" !
The crowd turned, glaring at Jin like he'd blasphemed.
Jin slipped away, muttering, "This damn thing has brainwashed everyone…"
At school, it was always the same argument.
"Frosita is the best character!" one student yelled.
"Get real! Luna wipes the floor with her!"
"Nefertiti solos," someone muttered confidently.
"They're both garbage," another chimed in. "Seo-Rin Serika is the only real queen."
Suddenly, the teacher burst into the room, slamming a book on the desk. "Enough! Everyone knows Chunma the Heavenly Demon is the best—he's too damn handsome!"
"Please," someone in the back scoffed. "Immortal Ling Tian makes them all look like side characters."
Jin muttered under his breath, "Another day in the same fucking loop."
The teacher clapped her hands. "Good news! Only one month left until the final chapter! To celebrate, every student must participate in the cosplay event. Refusal… will result in a severe punishment!"
That was the final straw.
Jin stood up, sending his chair and desk crashing to the floor. "Enough! I've tolerated this crap for nine years. I'm not dressing up. I'm not playing along with this insanity!"
The classroom went dead silent.
"Did… did he just insult the webtoon?" someone whispered.
The teacher calmly pressed a red button.
Two massive men in black suits burst into the room, grabbed Jin, and dragged him to the principal's office.
The principal stared coldly at him. "Do you understand what you've done?"
"Yeah. I refused to play along with your delusion."
The principal's eyes narrowed. "We'll let your parents deal with this."
Soon, his parents arrived. Their expressions were blank. Unreadable.
"Your son has refused to participate in the event," the principal said. "And he insulted shoujo Multiverse ."
His parents exchanged a look.
"He's not our son," his father said flatly. "He's adopted."
Jin froze. "What…?"
His father turned to him, disgust etched into every word. "We would never raise a rat like you. You're not one of us."
The principal opened his drawer, pulled out a form.
"Rehabilitation Order," he said. "Please sign."
Without hesitation, they signed.
"He's not our son. Do whatever you want."
The bodyguards dragged Jin down into the underground.
A prison. Beneath the school.
"How the hell is there a place like this under a school?" he muttered, struggling against their grip.
They tossed him into a cold, empty cell. In the center stood a massive pink book titled A Self Narrative.
A voice crackled from a speaker overhead:
"No food. No air. No rest. No bathroom. You will summarize this novel. Attempt to destroy the book, and you will be electrocuted."
Rewards:
30 chapters = food
20 chapters = bathroom
30 chapters = silence
10 chapters = fan
10 chapters = sunlight
Target: 100 chapters per day.
You have 10 hours. Points are valid only after chapter review.
Didn't write anything?
"You're gonna get your back whipped."
"Fuck off," Jin snapped.
Then silence. He ignored the voice, did nothing.
Just sat on the bed, numb and frozen.
Ten hours passed.
Two tall men in black entered the cell, one of them holding a lash.
One grabbed Jin. The other raised the whip.
Jin bit the man's arm out of desperation, but the man didn't even flinch.
Then came the strike.
The lash tore across his back.
Jin screamed.
He collapsed onto the bed, shaking, pain blooming like fire in his spine.
They're actually going to kill me, he thought, dazed.
His mind began to drift—to something his father once said.
Adopted…? Then why don't I remember any of it?
The word echoed in his head.
Why is my brain… broken?
He clutched his skull.
"What's wrong with me?!"
But rage quickly gave way to something more primal—hunger.
With a grimace, he reached for the pink book and accepted his fate.
"…Why the hell is the cover pink?"
He opened the first volume.
"Frosita, the Beloved Flower of Winter."
He began to read.
Seriously? A girl with abandonment issues, a possessive streak, and two split personalities fighting over a guy with dead eyes?
"Absolute trash," he muttered.
He didn't stop.
Next volume:
"Liora, the Lustborne Flame."
A woman who seduced kings, sold her body, and toppled an empire—because, apparently, trauma equals power.
"She's definitely going to die tragically," Jin scoffed.
"And they'll call it empowering. Total bitch."
With a sigh of disgust, he scribbled a rough summary, merged her arc with Frosita's, and slammed the book shut.
"I shouldn't have touched this crap in the first place…"
He lay down, turning his back on the cursed thing.
"This all feels like a dream… like none of it's real."
Maybe if I sleep, I'll wake up, and everything will be normal again.
But sleep crept in slowly, like a shadow crawling through the cracks.
Better to live a lie, he thought, than face a truth that shatters your sanity.