The sky was bleeding.
Above Seoul, the Final Gate tore through the clouds like a jagged wound in the world. It pulsed with interdimensional pressure, vomiting storms of fire and arcane lightning. The entire world watched, helpless. The era of Gates had always been madness—but this was the end.
And at the heart of the carnage stood Lee Jungho.
SSS-Rank Hunter. Korea's final line of defense. The man who should've died five times already today.
His armor was in tatters, steam rising from shattered mana cores embedded in his chestplate. His left arm hung uselessly by his side, a fractured bone jutting beneath the skin. Blood soaked his boots. But he stood tall, sword buried in the charred corpse of a Fourth-Tier Rift Drake, while dozens of lesser monsters circled above.
[System Alert: Final Gate stability: 2%]
[Warning: Dimensional Collapse Imminent]
Jungho spat blood onto the burning concrete. The remains of his raid team were scattered around him. Top-tier Hunters, wiped out in minutes.
And yet… he was still breathing.
"You just couldn't make it easy, huh?" he muttered, staring into the swirling Gate above.
His legs trembled. His mana was gone. But deep in his chest, the core of his being—the part forged in thousands of battles—held steady.
He raised his right hand, activating the last artifact still intact on his body.
[Skill: Null Anchor - Activated]
A pulse of void energy slammed into the Gate's perimeter, halting its expansion for a moment. Just one moment.
It was enough.
Enough to delay. Enough to make sure the evac transports got away. Enough to die standing, instead of kneeling.
As the dimensional pressure screamed around him, his vision blurred. His thoughts scattered.
And then something strange happened.
[Unknown System Detected]
[You have fulfilled the conditions for Unique Dimensional Transfer]
[Legacy Detected: Final Gate Slayer]
[Title Overwritten by Higher Authority]
[New Class Assigned: "Fool"]
"What kind of joke is this—?"
Before he could finish the thought, the Gate pulsed violently.
Not out. In.
The world turned inside out.
He landed face-first into something cold. Not cement.
Marble.
Laughter echoed all around him.
"What an entrance! He even dives like a dog!"
"Is this the new fool? He's filthy."
Jungho groaned, blinking through the haze. His armor was gone. His body was clean—unscarred, unmarred, and somehow younger. Bells jingled from his wrists. Colorful patchwork fabric covered his limbs.
He sat up slowly.
A hand slapped a pie into his face.
The crowd roared with laughter.
Through blurry vision, he saw chandeliers. A throne. Gold. Velvet. Nobles dressed in absurd finery, toasting wine while pointing at him like a circus animal.
A woman giggled. "Make him dance again!"
A disinterested man in a crown muttered, "Let the jester amuse us. We've had enough talk of war."
[System Rebooting…]
[New World Detected: Realm ID #Aurum/312-F]
[Class Assigned: Fool]
[Passive Skill Unlocked: Fool's Mask]
You are not considered a threat. Enemies underestimate you. Bonus EXP when mocked: +30%.
Jungho's jaw clenched.
This wasn't a battlefield. This was a stage.
A court.
A trap.
He rose to his feet—slowly, deliberately.
The bells on his costume jingled mockingly.
The nobles laughed harder.
His eyes swept the room. Fifty targets, no armor. Only a few guards. He could end this.
He called out instinctively:
"Skill: [Flash Cut]."
Nothing happened.
[Skill Denied. Class: Fool.]
He gritted his teeth.
"[Void Step]!"
[Invalid Command. Fools cannot evade.]
"Inventory—give me my sword. Give me anything."
[Inventory Locked. Role not compliant with weapon privileges.]
Jungho took a shaky step forward. A noble flinched, then laughed louder. He raised his hand in warning.
"I swear, if you touch me again—"
[Warning: Class Behavior Divergence Detected.]
[Debuff Applied: Slapstick Recoil]
A pulse of mana jolted through his limbs. His knees buckled. He fell flat on his face.
The room exploded in applause.
"Ha! Did you see that? He tripped without being touched!"
"Best fool we've ever had!"
He lay there, shaking.
Not from pain.
From humiliation.
They took everything.
They even took my dignity.
And now they want me to smile.
Jungho turned his face to the side and saw a large mirror on a pillar beside the throne.
His reflection grinned back at him—wide, clownish, mockingly bright. His lips weren't even moving.
You'll survive, the reflection seemed to say, but only if you play along.
He rose.
This time slower.
He bent into a bow, eyes burning behind the greasepaint.
"Your Majesties," he said, tone polished and theatrical, "what a tragedy it is to be ugly in a world that values appearance. But worry not. I am the answer to your boredom."
The crowd laughed again.
But his voice inside whispered:
You want a fool? Fine.
Let me show you what kind of kingdom a jester can build.