I'm not the main character of the original story.

The Kang Yun-ho I've reincarnated into is barely even a background character.

He only exists as a footnote, just a name in the lore, to justify giving the heroine Murong Sang-ah her widow and villainess traits.

The protagonist of this martial arts visual novel is clearly defined in the original game, right from the dialogue.

[That red hair... you're from Mount Hua, aren't you?]

Red hair means Mount Hua? Sure.

In a world where the Red Forest bandits have green hair and the Tang Clan in Sichuan has purple hair, this still somehow manages to sound ridiculous.

I guess they figured the most famous sword technique from Mount Hua is the Plum Blossom Sword Art, so they went with red hair. And the protagonist's hair being crimson plum blossom red? Makes sense.

"A red-haired disciple of Mount Hua's outer sect."

I muttered that absurdly memorable line to myself.

He was the kind of guy who spent money he didn’t have to buy the Royal Princess a bowl of somyeon the first time they met, just to be nice. Even got side-eyed for not going the extra mile and buying her carbonara or something. That kind-hearted, justice-obsessed protagonist.

I can’t get him out of my head.

"A wanderer from Mount Hua, getting dragged into all sorts of messes, and eventually reaching the ending."

That's the gist of the protagonist’s storyline, as far as I saw it. Sure, I had tons of notes on how to improve it, but if you boiled it down, that’s about it.

Honestly, I don’t want anything to do with him.

If I were a martial artist or even some random extra from Mount Hua, fine—but I’m Kang Yun-ho, the black-haired barbarian from Joseon.

I can barely manage my own life, and the lives of the women who trust me. I’ve got no time or energy to worry about some protagonist I don’t even know.

Unless there’s one little problem.

"The fact that he plays a huge role when the Demonic Sect rises... that’s the issue."

In the original story, when the Demonic Sect starts shaking the world, the protagonist is crucial. If this world was still on track with the game’s timeline, his fate wouldn’t have changed.

If everything went according to the script, that is.

"But I broke the story."

It’s been two years since I landed in this world. The signs were there.

I looked up at the ceiling, thinking about the first heroine I ever met in this world.

"Murong Sang-ah probably doesn’t need money anymore."

When I escaped the Murong family estate, I thought I hadn’t messed up the main plot too much. But later, when I really sat down and thought about it, I realized I’d screwed it up badly.

In the original game, the stat you needed to win over Murong Sang-ah was wealth.

I didn’t play through her entire route, so I don’t know all the details, but at some point, she must’ve needed a ton of money. But now? She doesn’t need the protagonist’s money at all.

Because when I left the Murong family, I handed her every last bit of wealth the Kang family had in the Central Plains.

I thought maybe she wouldn’t be able to cash in on it that easily—but that was wishful thinking. The shipment of Joseon ginseng from the Murong family that made it to the Tang Clan in Sichuan? It was definitely hers.

Compared to what I gave her, the cash the original protagonist scraped together would’ve been pocket change.

Murong Sang-ah’s entire storyline with the protagonist? Yeah, that’s gone now. Completely.

"The Heavenly Killing Star arc probably isn’t deleted, but I’ll make damn sure it is."

The Heavenly Killing Star. A killer who roams the Central Plains, slaughtering indiscriminately.

So-hee, devoured by that killing instinct, doesn’t exist right now.

Of course, it’s not gone for good. Just delayed. If I don’t do something, she’ll still meet her fate.

But it doesn’t matter. I’ll stop So-hee’s tragic future with my own hands.

"The biggest issue is that the Deadly Poison arc is gone."

Even with Murong Sang-ah’s storyline gone, even with the Heavenly Killing Star arc messed up, I wasn’t too worried about the protagonist.

But the Deadly Poison Tang Hwa-rin arc? That’s different.

The Heavenly Killing Star thing was mid-game. The Deadly Poison arc? That was the start.

It’s what made the protagonist famous, what kicked off his bond with the Royal Princess, and what showed off her insane power.

Without Deadly Poison Tang Hwa-rin, the entire intro to the game’s plot doesn’t work.

"Now I’ve basically erased two of the protagonist’s heroines."

Deadly Poison Tang Hwa-rin is gone for good, which means the protagonist has no way to shoot his Fame stat up right out of the gate.

Sure, he can still wander around as a hero, but he’ll just be that weird guy from Mount Hua doing some chivalrous stuff here and there. Nothing special.

"I’m an extra, but now I’ve turned the protagonist into one too."

Fine by me. If the original heroines were the true heroines, then now I’ve got a shot.

The protagonist can go find someone else, have his little romance, and live happily ever after. He’s got talent, he’ll probably settle down somewhere just fine.

Two extras living happily ever after. That’d be nice.

"The problem is, now the world has to fight off the Demonic Sect without the protagonist."

Is that even possible?

Can they really stop the apocalypse without the protagonist—and without the one woman he could barely control?

"True heroines are a damn headache."

Is Tang Hwa-rin the true heroine? Cheon So-hee? Or maybe it’s someone else? Maybe Murong Sang-ah will show up again one day, and it’ll be her.

I’m not planning to stop chasing fame. I’m not about to give up on the heroine who’s destined to fall for me.

But if that catastrophe really does come, the Demonic Sect might just end up kicking down the doors of my bookstore.

I’ve got time. But this feels like one of those impossible summer homework assignments looming over me.

What the hell am I supposed to do?

-----------

“Young Master Kang. Shall we head to the Western Sichuan Escort Bureau together?”

I snapped out of it when Dang-Pae’s voice came from outside the door.

Guess I’d fallen asleep at some point. My head was still full of problems, but at least I felt better after crashing from travel exhaustion. My body felt light, like I’d finally gotten real rest.

“We’re heading straight to Yichang?”

“No, sir. The boat won’t arrive today. The Western Sichuan Escort Bureau’s Wusan branch has invited you. We should head over together.”

“Alright.”

The Western Sichuan Escort Bureau? Sure, they’re run by the Tang Clan, but why would they go out of their way to invite me?

I wasn’t sure, but I went along with the group toward the bureau.

“My apologies. A rush of customers came all at once. Please wait just a moment, honored guests. I’m very sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

A guy drenched in sweat came rushing out of the bureau and showed us to a guest room.

Sweating like that in this weather? Must be really slammed.

“Why not? If the boat’s here, why can’t we just get on?”

“Young lady, there’s a limit to how many people can board. You can’t just hop on at the last minute.”

“What’s the big deal about one or two more people?!”

“Only those with verified identities are allowed on the boat.”

“Who here has a more verified identity than me?”

“Heh. Only those with reservations, I’m afraid.”

“Ugh!”

“Hey, Bureau Chief! Didn’t I say I’ve got enough money?”

“This isn’t about money!”

“Are you seriously doing this to me?!”

“The next boat, the one after the next, I can help you then. But this one? It’s not happening.”

“Heh. Fine, then. I’ll take that one.”

Is it that hard to get a boat now? There were arguments breaking out all over the place.

“Looks like everyone’s in a hurry today.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

The walls here really suck at keeping sound out.

“My apologies! As soon as the winter weather cleared, ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) everyone rushed to board ships on the Yangtze, and now we’re in this mess.”

The man who introduced himself as the Wusan Branch Head came into the guest room with a friendly smile.

He gave a small sigh, saying that since the Western Sichuan Escort Bureau, run by the Tang Clan, had such large ships, it attracted more customers than they could handle.

“I hope we’re not causing trouble by showing up in the middle of all this,” I said.

“Not at all! What are you saying? This is an establishment under the Tang Clan, sir. If anything, I should apologize for not having enough space and making you stay at a guesthouse.”

Yeah, I wasn’t actually sorry. Honestly, I was thrilled about the guesthouse, but we both knew the drill—exchange the usual polite bullshit.

“We’re just grateful you’re lending us a ship.”

“Heh. Such a well-mannered young man. Then I can give this to you without concern.”

The branch head pulled something from his robe, about the size of a finger, and held it out to me.

“A jade token?”

What he held was a finely carved jade token.

“This is actually the reason I invited you here. If you ever need to request something from the Western Sichuan Escort Bureau, just show them this. They’ll fulfill most requests.”

A free pass for the Western Sichuan Escort Bureau, huh?

This wasn’t just a coupon for free shipping or whatever. Sure, escort bureaus mainly handled deliveries, but they also did jobs that needed some muscle.

This was an insanely good item. But—

“Thanks, but I’ll have to refuse.”

I handed the jade token back.

“Why would you refuse?”

“Young Master Kang, this is a valuable gift. Please reconsider.”

Dang-Pae, watching from the side, jumped in to stop me.

Yeah, I probably looked like a lunatic turning down free delivery services.

“Now that the Young Lord has regained his senses, I think I’ve already taken enough from the Tang Clan. It wouldn’t sit well with them if I kept taking more.”

This thing? It’s poison. Take a bite and you're dead.

“That’s a respectable stance. But I think there’s something you’ve misunderstood.”

Dang-Pae seemed to get where I was coming from, nodded, and said I had it wrong.

“Misunderstood?”

“This token isn’t a gift from the Tang Clan. It’s from Tang Hwa-rin herself, specifically for you.”

“Hwa-rin? What do you mean?”

“You’ll be exchanging letters, won’t you? You’ll need to use the escort bureau for that.”

“Ah.”

“The Western Sichuan Escort Bureau has branches spread across Hubei, Shaanxi, and the surrounding provinces. Of course, the main headquarters is in Sichuan where the Tang Clan is based. When you send letters to Miss Tang Hwa-rin, no courier will deliver them to the capital faster.”

So Dang-Pae knew the reason for the jade token and laid it all out for me.

“I’m not sure why exactly, but Miss Tang Hwa-rin specifically instructed us to give this to you, Young Master Kang Yun-ho.”

“So, it’s for letters.”

Come to think of it, I did tell Hwa-rin I’d write to her, but I never said how.

Maybe she thought of that too, and decided to make things easier for me. I wasn’t exactly moved to tears, but it did hit me, just a little.

“You can send letters, or visit for other matters if you need to. For some reason, the head of the bureau ordered us to expand our Yichang branch significantly, so don’t hesitate to drop by whenever you like.”

Is that... because of me? I should be glad that the escort bureau is becoming more convenient for me to use, but I can’t help feeling uneasy about it.

The expansion of the bureau probably came straight from the Tang Clan leader. And too much attention from him? That could get me killed.

I shot Dang-Pae a look—like, "If I take this, am I dead?"

“That token belongs to Miss Tang Hwa-rin. You don’t need to worry about anything else,” Dang-Pae nodded, as if to say everything was perfectly fine.

So even if something happens, Hwa-rin’s going to take responsibility?

I felt a little bad about it, but as a Poisoned One, her position in the Tang Clan should be solid enough for me to lean on her this much.

“I’ll use it well.”

Just don’t abuse it. I took the jade token in the end.

“This belongs to Miss Tang Hwa-rin, so you can’t give it to anyone else. Also, while you can send letters to anyone, if someone else wants to send you a letter through the bureau, they’ll have to pay.”

“I wasn’t expecting that much, honestly.”

Besides sending letters to Hwa-rin, I’m not sure I’d even have much use for—...

Wait.

Hold on a second.

Letters?

“Young Master Kang? Is something wrong?”

Dang-Pae asked, looking worried as I froze with a serious look.

Oh, something’s definitely up.

I just had a hell of an idea.

----------

“That’s it!”

I rushed back to my room and grabbed the brush, paper, and ink Hwa-rin gave me.

There’s something I can do.

The story’s a mess.

The protagonist’s growth? Stalled.

I might not be able to revive the heroine routes, but I can still make the protagonist grow.

There’s one way. Something only I can do in this world.

“I’ll write him a letter.”

Not to Hwa-rin.

To the original protagonist.

From now on—

“I’ll be the protagonist’s mysterious benefactor.”