Chapter 3

#3. Back to the Stream (3)

While climbing the steep hill of the slum, he casually opened the laptop he was carrying. The background was empty, as if it had been formatted.

“...Let’s try to hold on? Don’t break.”

It would be troublesome if it broke quickly. After the paid subscription, it would take at least a month or two for the first settlement.

‘Should I continue working during this time?’

There was no clear end date.

To take care of his siblings, he needed a job that allowed flexible scheduling, so part-time work seemed impossible.

‘Then, would the day shift at the logistics center be the best option? Or delivery?’

He had done both before, so they would be familiar jobs.

‘I can be careful with my body. I’m still young, after all.’

Seobum rotated his wrist a couple of times.

Actually, he used to have a much better laptop back then.

‘My parents bought it for me.’

- Our Seobum, you really like this laptop, don’t you?

- Yes! I’ll write with this.

- Good choice. Show your writing to Mom, okay?

- Of course. I’ll show my first novel to Mom and Dad!

But that promise was never fulfilled,

and the laptop broke quickly.

‘How strange.’

Just like the laptop followed its owner’s fate and broke,

the ordinary family crumbled quickly and pointlessly after his parents’ accident. In the end, he kept putting off repairs and eventually sold it.

“Hmm?”

Seobum’s back stiffened as he arrived in front of his house.

He sensed something was off.

“...?”

He had clearly told them to stay home.

“...Why are all the lights off?”

Feeling uneasy, Seobum walked briskly.

What if something happened to his siblings while he was out?

If something did happen, what could he do?

‘I was too complacent.’

Hoping nothing had happened, he opened the iron gate with a heart full of anxiety.

“Yuna! Yoochan! Yudal...!”

In the darkness, a small flame appeared in the air.

“Happy birthday, happy birthday-!”

“...!”

“Dear big brother-,”

“...Hyeong-.”

Yuna’s cheerful voice was occasionally mixed with Yoochan’s.

“...”

“Happy birthday!!!”

Seobum stood there, staring at the candles.

What day was it today? Right, September 20th.

‘It was my birthday.’

Blowing out the candles, the entrance light turned on.

Nara, who had prepared a small pie with three candles, smiled brightly.

“Big brother, it’s your birthday today. Happy birthday!”

Ah, in the past, he wouldn’t have received such a celebration.

‘After all, I left these kids behind and ran away.’

Seobum muttered bitterly.

“Hey, you guys, you scared me.”

“Eh, big brother was scared...? Sorry...! But I wanted to celebrate. It felt a bit wrong to just let it pass, and since you were out...”

“...”

Standing by the shoe rack, Seobum traced the source of the emotion that suddenly welled up.

‘I said I would write a web novel about family, but I hadn’t decided on the exact content yet.’

At that moment, Seobum realized what he wanted to write.

‘Things like this.’

The miraculous and precious moments that had returned.

He wanted to leave these moments behind.

If he were to write, he should write about these things. The new life he gained after a regret-filled life, and the many stories that would unfold in the future.

‘I should write about the life I aimed for.’

It was a meaningful task.

Seobum put the laptop down by the shoe rack and opened his arms.

“Come here.”

Waving his outstretched hands, Yoochan and Nara, and even Yudal, hesitantly came over and hugged him.

Seobum patted them.

Nara and Yoochan blinked, surprised by the unexpected reaction.

He had expected to be scolded for causing trouble or for doing something unnecessary.

‘Did you see that?’

‘He doesn’t seem angry.’

Whether they understood or not, it didn’t matter.

“Kya!”

Yudal also giggled.

***

That night at 3 AM.

Seobum was alone in the living room, looking at his laptop.

“...I’ve never written this fast before.”

It was astonishing.

Seobum stopped the stopwatch and checked the time.

“One chapter per hour.”

In just three hours of work, he had already completed three episodes.

He used to write quickly, but he didn’t expect to write this fast. The writing speed was one of the best talents a web novel author could have.

‘If I do well, I can start posting tomorrow.’

Assuming he posts two episodes a day, considering the paid subscription,

‘In a month, Yudal can register for kindergarten.’

He had set his priorities.

Sending Yudal to kindergarten would allow Nara and Yoochan to have more free time.

‘Please, I hope everyone can become happy slowly.’

Seobum closed the laptop and was about to go to sleep when he mindlessly accessed the [Utopia] site.

A large banner popped up, taking over the screen.

“...This is...”

“A contest?”

In his previous life, he hadn’t participated in any contests. The timing didn’t align, and he thought it wouldn’t be beneficial with so many participants.

‘But this time is different.’

He had changed his genre, drawing on his experience as a published author.

Most importantly, his work would be well-received at this time.

Moreover...

‘The grand prize is 100 million won, second place is 70 million won, and third place is 30 million won.’

It was a tempting offer.

He found that the contest announcement had been up for almost a month.

‘It was a close call.’

If he had thought about writing web novels a bit later, he might have missed the opportunity.

Most importantly, the number of participants wasn’t as high as before, which was fortunate.

“I can’t not participate.”

Listing the things he could do with the prize money, his mind started to get pleasantly busy.

***

Time passed steadily.

During the day, he went out for deliveries, and occasionally worked at the logistics center when he needed daily wages. The money was small, but it accumulated, and the dinner table for the four siblings started to have more nutritious side dishes.

...One day before the contest started.

“How much longer until the kids come home?”

Seobum muttered, looking around the clean house.

“It’s 1 PM now, so Yoochan should be home in about two hours.”

“Big brother, big brother...”

“Yeah, what is it?”

Yudal, who had been staring at him, suddenly started to explain something with her hands.

“That, that! Where is it?”

“Which one?”

Yudal, frustrated, started jumping around, shaking her head, and drawing something in the air.

“Clouds?”

“Eh?”

“Aah, clouds, whoosh, ha!”

“...?”

What are you saying?

Seobum, standing awkwardly, watched Yudal, who got up as if she was frustrated.

“Look. Look.”

Yudal sat down, mimicking someone. She sat with one knee up, like an uncle with his arm resting on it.

“Whoosh, ha!”

“...!”

“Hoo~! Snack! Cloud snack!”

The next moment.

-Big brother, what’s that?

-Snack.

-It looks like a cloud!

-Yudal, aren’t you going to your room?

Seobum’s face turned red instantly.

‘Oh, she’s mimicking smoking.’

The slouching posture, the knee raised on one side.

The annoyed expression and the detail of holding a cigarette.

Embarrassingly... how did she capture it so well?

“...!”

“Hoo~! Where did it go?”

He couldn’t let this continue. Seobum quickly pulled Yudal into his arms.

“I’m sorry...”

“Eh? Why? Why aren’t we eating snacks today?”

Yudal’s innocent actions made him even more embarrassed.

‘I need to quit.’

He had dropped out of school, and his life had been ruined.

In the past, he had twisted further due to rebellion and couldn’t quit smoking for a long time. But Seobum wanted to make up for all the bad things he had done.

“Ha.”

Seobum shook his head with Yudal on his lap.

“I won’t eat that anymore.”

“No more cloud snacks?!”

“Yes. I’ve thrown them away. Or I will.”

This was a close call.

Seobum opened his laptop, and Yudal curiously peered over.

“So, what are you doing, big brother?”

“Hmm. Working?”

“Work?”

Yudal nodded.

“Then I’ll play alone.”

“Huh?”

“Nara and Yoochan said not to bother you.”

“...?”

“While you’re working!”

They must have had a conversation while doing the dishes yesterday. That... and the palm-sized pie cake.

“Okay, then play alone. But stay here.”

“Okay! I’ll play in front of big brother.”

Smiling at the well-behaved Yudal, he focused on writing.

‘It feels strange to write about things that actually happened, but... whatever.’

No one would know anyway.

Even if Nara, Yoochan, or Yudal read it in the future, no one would believe he had really regressed.

‘Ah. The title.’

He realized he hadn’t set a title. Without much thought, he entered one.

“Hmm. Done.”

Now, he just needed to build up a stock of chapters comfortably.

He would check the results later and either be happy or sad, and then plan the next steps.

***

The next noon.

“Oh, it’s open!”

One of the readers who frequently visited the web novel site cheered.

While the start of a contest might be stressful for authors, it was good for readers. After all, there would be more to read.

‘I was getting tired of the works I was reading... Maybe I’ll explore a bit.’

It was a holiday morning, and he didn’t have to go to work, so he lounged on the sofa, fiddling with his phone.

“Hmm. Ahem...”

He scrolled through the participating works. This one was a hunter story, that one was a hunter story. This one was an apocalypse story, and that one was a post-apocalypse story. Occasionally, an academy story appeared.

“Well, they’re interesting.”

While there was comfort in reading familiar flavors, humans always crave something new. Something that feels familiar yet new.

‘Not like traffic light chicken. More like garlic chicken...’

Exciting,

spicy,

and touching stories.

“Hmm?”

His thumb stopped, drawn by an unfamiliar title.

“Author?”

There were author works, too.

He had heard that there were already famous author works, but on this platform, fantasy, including hunter stories, was currently dominant.

“Should I give it a try?”

The synopsis was ordinary. A story about an author who regresses and lives a second life with his family.

“Might as well give it a shot.”

Since it was a holiday, he had plenty of time, and his eagle eyes as a reader were even sharper. If it wasn’t interesting, he could just stop reading, so he pressed the first chapter with his thumb.

“...”

Click on the second chapter.

“...”

Click on the third chapter.

The protagonist wasn’t betrayed, didn’t lose his head, and didn’t become an artificial human (?). It was a world that felt natural, not one that required imagination. The story flowed smoothly, connected to reality, and he found himself nodding.

“It’s already over?!”

There was no next chapter.

...It was more interesting than he thought.

“Tsk, I should have saved it.”

He automatically clicked the follow button and, without realizing it, left a comment out of disappointment.

I really hope it continues.

If possible, can you post two a day? I found a good work, and his smile, which had risen without him noticing, showed no sign of fading.

Oh.