The Seven Nights. Words that were inscribed in the sky at the time of the Great Cataclysm.

[The population of Earth's humanity has reached 10 billion. From this moment, Earth becomes the stage of a trial. Humanity must overcome the Seven Nights that will come. Before the nights arrive, a preparation period begins. May blessings be upon the future of humanity.]

Initially, most people interpreted this message to mean that the Seven Nights referred to major disasters that would befall humanity. However, as time passed, as the abilities of the superhumans grew stronger and as monsters beyond the gates were eradicated, humanity began to grow complacent.

“The Seven Nights? Well, honestly, looking at the strength of the current rankers, I don’t think there’s much to worry about.”

“The Seven Nights… Could it be that we’ve already unknowingly passed them?”

Now, five years after the Great Cataclysm, the number of people who dismissed the Seven Nights as insignificant gradually increased. This was because new orders and rules had taken root as time passed, bringing stability and peace.

And that stability and peace were a poisoned chalice for humanity.

‘At a time when unity was crucial, they were fighting among themselves.’

Indeed, as humanity found stability, guilds, regions, and nations began engaging in conflicts of varying scales, driven by their respective interests and greed. During this time of petty disputes among a well-fed humanity, the Gate Break occurred, tearing apart the foundation of humanity.

‘If they had handled the Gate Break properly from the start, they could’ve faced the subsequent trials of the nights much more easily.’

But for now, there was nothing Sungshik could do.

‘The Gate Break will occur in two years. I can’t prevent the Gate Break. Even if I cry out about it, there’s no way my voice will reach the entire world.’

When the best option isn’t feasible, one must settle for the next best. Sungshik decided to come up with ways to warn people as much as possible near the time of the Gate Break. Moreover, he intended to personally take advantage of whatever benefits could be gleaned in the aftermath of the Gate Break.

Ultimately, what needed to be prevented were the trials of the nights. To prevent the trials of the nights, Sungshik resolved to maximize his own strength.

As Sungshik visualized the future ahead, his gaze grew heavy. He finally opened his mouth to answer Yun Gardes, who had been waiting for his reply.

“Yes. I believe it refers to ‘seven trials beyond humanity’s ability to endure.’”

“Hmm.”

Yun Gardes let out a murmur, as if Sungshik’s answer had taken him by surprise.

“As expected… Someone foretold by the Ark’s messenger would naturally have some grasp of the meaning of the Seven Nights.”

“The Ark’s messenger?”

“Sigh.”

At Sungshik’s question, Yun Gardes let out a brief sigh and continued speaking.

“Indeed. I am actually a member of a secret organization called ‘Noah’s Ark.’”

“Hmm…”

“It must be unfamiliar to you. Our organization, Noah’s Ark, was founded to protect humanity from the Seven Nights.”

At Yun Gardes’ words, faint memories from the past surfaced in Sungshik’s mind.

When the trial of the first night began, the ruler of the night did not immediately appear. Humanity, fragmented and chaotic, lacked the time to unite and consolidate their strength.

Fortunately, before the ruler of the first night fully emerged, humanity had managed to consolidate and begin responding to the trials.

Later, as the trials of the other nights unfolded, humanity came to realize that the ruler of the first night had appeared much later than the rulers of the subsequent nights.

‘Back then, there were rumors that it was the sacrifice of a secret organization called Noah’s Ark that delayed the ruler’s emergence during the first night.’

The trial of the first night was perhaps the most devastating of all the trials humanity had endured. In the early stages, humanity suffered heavy losses, and many promising superhumans were wiped out before they could fully awaken their potential. It was only thanks to the delayed emergence of the ruler of the first night that the damage was mitigated, allowing humanity to somehow endure until the sixth night.

‘If the rumors were true and Noah’s Ark really did delay the ruler’s appearance during the first night, humanity likely would’ve faced extinction during the second or third trial without their intervention.’

Indeed, if the rumors were true, the organization Noah’s Ark had essentially provided artificial respiration to a humanity on the verge of suffocation. For this reason, Sungshik was quick to accept Yun Gardes’ current explanation.

“I see. So your organization is working covertly to prepare for the upcoming seven nights, correct?”

“Oh, exactly. You grasp it quickly.”

Seeing Sungshik immediately comprehend his words, Yun Gardes’ eyes widened in mild surprise. With a pleased smile, he continued.

“Since you understand, I’ll get straight to the point. As you might have guessed from the name of our organization, our leader is someone linked to the transcendent being known as ‘Noah.’”

‘As expected, the leader is Noah’s Linker.’

Nodding as if he had anticipated this, Sungshik listened as Yun Gardes delved into a longer explanation.

“Our first leader intended to use Noah’s power to construct our own Ark once the trials of the nights began. But soon, they realized this was not the way forward for humanity. From that point, we sought to determine what the true path for humanity was. Yet, Noah told us that none of the options we considered would provide the answer.”

Yun Gardes’ eyes darkened, as if recalling the struggles of that time.

“In the midst of such uncertainty, we too were growing weary. It was then that my transcendent being, Saint Peter, revealed that a person who resonated with the Key of Heaven had appeared.”

Indeed, a glimmer of possibility in a time of hopeless wandering.

“That person was you, Sungshik.”

Steam rose from a piping hot bowl of ramen.

Slurp―

After taking a bite of ramen, Sungshik picked up a piece of fiery red kimchi and popped it into his mouth.

Crunch, crunch―

“Ah, ramen just isn’t complete without kimchi.”

Draining the broth to the last drop, Sungshik leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach contentedly.

‘Things are going better than I expected.’

A faint smile played on his lips as he recalled his conversation with Yun Gardes earlier that day.

“Actively supporting me, huh―”

It was good. A very favorable flow.

Yun Gardes, who revealed himself to be a member of "Noah's Ark" and the linker of "Saint Peter." His transcendent being claimed that Sungshik would serve as the "key" in this situation.

Sungshik promptly retrieved a small, golden key, roughly the size of an adult’s palm, from his inventory.

“This is the Key of Heaven.”

[Key of Heaven]
Grade: ?
Category: ?

Even attempting to analyze it revealed nothing but the name. Everything else about the item was marked as "?". Its purpose remained a mystery.

Yun Gardes also confessed he didn’t know what the key was for. He merely mentioned that "Saint Peter" had said there would come a day when the key would be absolutely necessary.

It didn’t seem like something that would be immediately useful. However, since Sungshik had been identified as the "possibility," the group decided to provide as much support as they could.

“Well, that’s a win for me.”

The size and influence of the Noah’s Ark organization were unclear, but it didn’t seem to be a group of amateurs. While not immediately relevant, they appeared likely to provide significant help when Sungshik began executing his long-term plans.

“At least, I might finally put an end to the Japanese exchange student selection process.”

Although he thought he’d taken a major step forward through the hearing, there was still some lingering anxiety about the student selection process. Now, it seemed possible to firmly sway the outcome.

The unexpected positive turn of events brought a smile to his lips.

“Still, there weren’t events like this in the past. Is my being a regressor affecting fate? And did these so-called transcendent beings detect that?”

In the past, no one had approached Sungshik with such claims. The very premise of investing this much effort into someone like Sungshik, who was a nobody at the time, would have been absurd. Still, he reminded himself to remain cautious about excessive goodwill.

“It doesn’t seem like a cult, at least.”

But even if it were a cult or they had ulterior motives for using him, it didn’t matter. Whoever tried to manipulate him, Sungshik would simply crush them. Having returned from the future, he possessed both the ability and the confidence to handle such matters.

Leaning back further in his chair, Sungshik let himself relax.

“Well, if they help me access ancient ruins or national museum treasures, I wouldn’t mind walking into the lion’s den.”

When he had broached the subject during their earlier meeting, Yun Gardes had given a positive response. Despite the difficulty for ordinary people to access such places, their attitude suggested that the organization wielded considerable power.

It felt as though fortune had rolled into his lap. After the hardships of the future, life post-regression seemed to spoon-feed him opportunities.

“Whi-ew―”

Sungshik whistled contentedly as the night quietly descended.

“That’s him, isn’t it?”

Whisper, whisper.

“He looks even better in person.”

“Right?”

Overnight, people who recognized Sungshik had drastically increased. And for good reason. Yesterday’s hearing had already been a notable issue, but Yun Gardes’ appearance had poured oil on the flames of attention.

The hearing, restricted to students of the Superhuman Academy, achieved a peak viewership of an astonishing 42%. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that over a third of the academy students had seen Sungshik’s face.

“This is… kind of nice, actually.”

It was the sort of attention someone with a slight streak of showmanship might enjoy. Of course, Sungshik didn’t consider himself to be one of those people.

“No way. I’m definitely not a show-off.”

“Wow, you’re Sungshik, right? You were amazing yesterday. I’ll be cheering for you. Good luck!”

A first-year girl passing by shouted her encouragement, causing Sungshik’s lips to involuntarily curl upward. At moments like this, he thought, maybe being a show-off wouldn’t be so bad.

“Hmm, this kind of life isn’t bad at all.”

Each time a student passing by recognized him, his grin grew wider and wider.

“What’s got you grinning so much?”

The voice from beside him broke his reverie. He quickly masked his expression and turned to see Jihwan standing there with a teasing smirk.

“Your smile’s practically reaching your ears.”

“Ahem, I don’t know what you’re talking about. You must be imagining things.”

Despite his older mental age, he felt a twinge of embarrassment at being caught enjoying the attention from younger students.

“Wow, blushing a bit, aren’t you? Cute. Anyway, I’m just glad the charges got cleared. I knew you’d be fine!”

“…You believed in me?”

Sungshik squinted skeptically at Jihwan.

“Hey, you can’t seriously think you’d score a perfect score. Is this real? Come on, be honest. You cheated, right? Huh? This makes no sense!”

As soon as news of Sungshik’s perfect score had spread, Jihwan had cornered him, demanding the truth. The memory of Jihwan lying on the ground in disbelief, lamenting, “Is this even my country?” was still fresh in his mind.

“Hahaha. Of course! I totally believed in you, Sungshik!”

“……”

“Ha… ha…”

“……”

Sungshik stared at Jihwan with a deadpan expression while Jihwan avoided his gaze, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Eventually, their eyes met in mid-air.

“……”

After a brief pause, both of them broke into a chuckle.

“Hey, seriously, congratulations on clearing your name. I was honestly worried for you.”

“Thanks.”

“Sungshik, congratulations!”

This was the phrase he had heard most often since the hearing ended.

“Did your traits awaken this time?”

Questions about his traits were nearly as frequent.

“Thanks, yeah, you could say that. But the details are a secret.”

Despite not being naturally outgoing, Sungshik answered every question with a smile, remaining courteous.

‘Building a good reputation won’t hurt.’

His smile was calculated to lay the groundwork for positive impressions, even if it was a little tedious.

‘Especially since it might affect the Japanese exchange student selection.’

“Sungshik~! You were so cool yesterday. Here, a little gift to celebrate your perfect score.”

A cute girl with a ponytail handed him a candy before walking off.

“Hehehe—”

He quickly adjusted his face to suppress the grin that threatened to stretch across his cheeks.

“Oh, look at you. You’re loving this, aren’t you?”

Jihwan, who had been observing from the side, spoke with an envious, mocking tone.

“If you’re jealous, why don’t you score a perfect score yourself?”

“Ugh… I’ll admit, I’m jealous.”

Unable to come up with a rebuttal, Jihwan grumbled before reluctantly acknowledging his envy.

The two continued their playful banter until a sharp voice cut through their conversation.

“Look at you two, wasting time.”