Chapter 32: Serialization Begins!
Tap tap tap tap! Tap tap!
Diverse sentences were coming to mind more than usual, and the narrative was taking shape. His fingers tapping on the keyboard seemed to be moving at least twice as fast as they normally did.
'Let me organize the plot first while serializing. I already have a rough plot and settings in mind, so I'll refine them more...'
The Blessing of Focus not only boosted concentration but also enhanced thinking ability. For a creator, it was an invaluable blessing. Seo Juhwan's thoughts were activated like never before, filling in gaps in the settings and bringing out the variety in his sentences.
'That was the part readers raised issues about before, right? If I change it like this... perfect. It feels natural now.'
The piece Seo Juhwan was currently writing was a work he had been serializing in the world before his regression. The title was "The Possession Master is the Martial World's Greatest Criminal."
"The Possession Master is the Martial World's Greatest Criminal" was the work that had achieved the best results among all his writings. However, due to his death, it was the only serialized work he had never been able to complete. In this life, he wanted to finish this piece no matter what. It was his responsibility as a writer.
'No one would know since it hasn't been serialized yet...'
Still, that didn't make the responsibility disappear. Either way, in this world after regression, there existed readers who had read his work. They wouldn't remember this piece, but if fate allowed it, they would surely enjoy reading it again.
Seo Juhwan lost track of time, immersed in writing.
*
[00:10.09]
[00:06.04]
[00:03.02]
...
...
Ding!
[00:00.00]
[The effect of Blessing of Focus disappears.]
"Ah...!"
When one achieves such intense concentration, they say one falls into a sort of trance state. As the blessing effect disappeared, Seo Juhwan felt like he was waking up from a dream.
Drip drip.
"Huff, gasp. Why am I sweating so much...?"
Despite only writing, sweat was dripping down as if he had just done intense exercise.
"The stamina consumption is severe."
It was just a blessing he used to concentrate a bit more, but the stamina consumption was quite unexpected. He felt the fatigue of having done a workout rather than just written. Seo Juhwan wiped away his sweat and checked the writing he had completed over the past four hours.
"How much did I write?"
Normally, he would save after each episode and open a new page. But this time, he had written straight through without even these intermediate tasks, so he couldn't gauge how many episodes he had completed. If it were his usual pace, he would have written about 16 pages in four hours. And that would only be assuming the plot was already planned. Usually, it took him about six hours total to complete one episode, including proofreading.
"...34 pages?"
Seo Juhwan let out a surprised voice.
"Haha..."
A bewildered laugh escaped his lips. Based on font size 10.5pt in the document program, 34 pages meant a whopping two episodes. And it wasn't just the minimum character count—it was what you'd call a generous amount.
"The effect is incredible."
He had thought the fatigue was too much, but the effect turned out to be beyond his imagination. Two episodes in four hours. One episode in two hours!
Even considering that he already had rough settings and plots, it was an enormous speed.
'I didn't get distracted even once in the middle.'
Normally, there's a limit to human concentration, so people end up doing other things in between. However, this time he had used the Blessing of Focus, and thanks to the blessing's effect, he was able to invest all four pure hours into writing. That's why he got this result.
'If I use it properly, it will be incredibly helpful for serialization.'
It wasn't just serialization either. The blessing had such broad applicability that it would help in all aspects of daily life. However, to make proper use of this, considerable stamina and LP would have to support it. Especially with LP, he was worried that if he used the blessing recklessly like water, it would run out.
That's when Lucy reassured him.
[There are many ways to obtain LP. Fundamentally, the Desire System was created for user convenience, so with just a little effort, it's possible to obtain sufficient LP.]
"Hmm. Really? Come to think of it, the system gave me points just for trying to lose weight. Will it give me more if I get out of obesity?"
[I'm sorry. I cannot answer that.]
"Tch."
Seo Juhwan clicked his tongue in disappointment.
*
Seo Juhwan's daily routine during his vacation was monotonous. In the morning, he went to the gym on an empty stomach to receive personal training. At lunch, he stopped by a tteokbokki shop to eat. After that, he returned home to write for serialization. Such repetitive, ordinary daily life was incredibly enjoyable to him.
Perhaps it was unexpected to see Seo Juhwan constantly smiling. Han Soo-ah spoke to him as she watched.
"Brother Juhwan."
"Hm?"
"Is there something good happening with you these days?"
"Hm? Why do you ask?"
"Your face looks really good. You look like the old you."
"The old me?"
"Yeah! When we were little!"
Han Soo-ah nodded vigorously. While Seo Juhwan inwardly agreed with what she said, he let out a hollow laugh. It felt unnatural for Han Soo-ah to use the word "little" like that.
"You're still little now though?"
"...I'm talking about when we were really, really little, not now."
"At 149cm, you're still really little..."
"Ugh! Seriously! Are you really going to do this?"
"Puhaha. Sorry, sorry."
Seo Juhwan burst out laughing and apologized to Han Soo-ah. Either way, she was the type to react bountifully, so she was fun to tease. Han Soo-ah, who had been angry, looked at the laughing Seo Juhwan with a peculiar gaze.
'Something definitely changed.'
She could confirm this with the honor of a childhood friend of 19 years. The Seo Juhwan who had taken his vacation was definitely different. This could be seen just from how he treated her and Juhui. Little by little, she could glimpse the playful and energetic older brother from back then.
What good thing had happened for his gloomy face to brighten up again? In that moment, a certain suspicion suddenly flashed through Han Soo-ah's mind. She opened her characteristic puppy-like eyes wide and spoke.
"Brother Juhwan, did you maybe get a girlfriend?"
"Huh?"
"You got a girlfriend! That's why you're in such a good mood, right? Auntie! Brother Juhwan got a girlfriend!"
"What? Really, son?!"
"My son got a girlfriend?"
- 175 Advanced Chapters of {The Desire System: Reincarnated with a Demon God's Gift}: patreon.com/aristo0_0