Past Life Returner - Side Story 45: New Year(1) - Chief Mourner Kim Jin-Cheol

Some crowns are forged in blood. Others are drowned beneath it.In a city strangled by smoke and silence, where children are shackled to machines and shadows rule behind gilded masks, Keiran is just another forgotten soul—until the mark appears.Buried beneath the factory’s foundations lies a world long erased from history. Ancient oaths whisper through stone and water, and something older than memory begins to stir. As Keiran is drawn deeper into the abyss, he uncovers a legacy not meant for mortal hands—a crown shattered in defiance, a flood sealed by sacrifice, and a power that demands a price.Hunted by tyrants, haunted by echoes, and bound to secrets he never asked for, Keiran must choose: drown in the tide of what came before, or rise against the current and reclaim what the world was forced to forget.But the deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels…And beneath it all, something still breathes.

‘I want to travel to a place unknown to the many…’

It was a passing wish to the weary and tired Eugene and she’d not think it’d ever come to pass… but it did.

She opened her eyes and found she was sent to a novel-like world she wrote in passing and became Jin Anika, the scorned queen notorious for her ruthlessness and undeserving of her status.

Queen Jin only sought and desired to see the destruction of this world — the villainess who met her untimely and miserable end at the hands of her husband, Kasser, the reigning king of the Fourth Kingdom.

While struggling to survive in the unknown world, King Kasser visited Eugene and demanded that a contract be fulfilled and come to fruition.

“Three years ago, we made a deal.”

It turns out the Queen was under a contractual marriage with King Kasser. The ultimate price? To bear him a child.

“A… a child?”

“Yes, my successor.”

I am a princess, moreover, I am a fool of a princess.

Born in the imperial palace, my appearance is as average as that of the white radish and cabbages in the fields. Throughout the four seasons of the year, my face is always displaying a dull expression, eyes forever shrouded in haze.

But in reality, I know of the secrets within this palace.

Including hers, his, and theirs.

Just leisurely living my days comfortably in the palace like this, I firmly believe I can continue to play dumb to the end.

Taking your hand, dragging you away. Not leaving you say? Very well, close the doors and release the hounds. (Expressionless face)