It wasn’t a particularly lucky day.

In fact, Han Yooil’s life had always been that way. It wasn’t a complaint, but Yooil’s life was far from fortunate.

Yes, if you think about it, today wasn’t especially bad.

Yooil reassured himself as he looked at his shirt, thoroughly soaked with coffee.

“Oh no, what should we do! I’m really sorry… It’s a white shirt… I’ll cover the cleaning costs.”

“No, it’s okay.”

The smell of coffee seeping from the damp shirt could have been unpleasant, but Yooil managed a faint smile. His clear eyes made his smile seem all the more wistful.

The woman who had spilled the coffee stopped her flustered movements and stared blankly at his face.

“I live nearby. Don’t worry too much.”

“Ah, yes… Yes? Wait a minute…”

 

Yooil bowed his head and then left the café, thinking that the very idea of studying there might have been a mistake.

‘I’ll sign up for a reading room tomorrow. And pay for some online courses…’

A sigh naturally escaped him. It was a world where you spent money just by breathing.

People were gathering under the cherry blossom trees, taking photos. The sight of the pink petals fluttering like snow somehow made his heart flutter.

Freshly discharged from the military, a slightly different reality awaited him compared to his peers. He had no parents, no siblings, and no money. Nor did he have the luxury to envy others.

At that moment, someone bumped into Yooil’s chest forcefully.

Yooil instinctively bowed and apologized. But as he was about to lift his head, he felt a strange chill.

…Was it suddenly windy?

Yooil thought, hunching over.

“Excuse me, are you Han Yooil?”

 

He looked up at the unfamiliar voice, only to see sparkling eyes.

More precisely, only the eyes were visible. A man wearing a unique design white hood and a thin mask covering his mouth. Yooil watched him cautiously.

“Yes, that’s me… Who are you?”

“Whoa! Wow! Amazing!”

The hooded man jumped on the spot and then abruptly grabbed Yooil’s hand.

Caught without a chance to evade, Yooil flinched for a moment. The man’s hand was cold. Despite it being mid-April spring, the man seemed to emit a chill as if he had been walking outside for 30 minutes in mid-winter.

He said excitedly.

“Can I, can I try it just once?”

“What?”

“A handshake! Oh, this is a handshake, right?”

 

“Uh?”

Yooil’s hand was already being moved up and down several times. It was an awkward action to be called a handshake.

The man’s eyes sparkled as he shouted.

“Thank you so much, really, thank you!”

“…!”

Before Yooil could say anything, the strange man vanished in an instant.

He literally disappeared. Blinking just a few times, the man had blended into the crowd and was no longer visible.

“What was that, really?”

Yooil looked down at his hand.

‘Living life, you encounter such things.’ Muttering to himself, Yooil put his hand in his pocket. It might have been his imagination, but the tips of his fingers felt tingly.

* * *

【…Neural network secured. Heart rate normal. Body temperature normal. Oxygen saturation normal.】

Yooil opened his eyes to an unfamiliar voice. It was a smooth and gender-neutral voice.

Blinking several times in a drowsy state, he heard the voice again.

【Good morning, Mr. Han Yooil.】

Yooil rubbed his eyes and looked around the house, unable to pinpoint the source of the sound.

His phone was off, having run out of battery. His laptop and TV were off as well. Plus, his aunt had been at work for a long time.

‘Did I hear wrong?’

Maybe it was the stress he had been unconsciously accumulating. Yooil shook his head and sat down. At that moment, the neutral voice resonated in his head again.

【AI Nano Dictionary, Brion V.15, is now analyzing your aptitudes and talents comprehensively.】

Yooil was so startled that he sprang up, forgetting even to scream.

‘AI… Nano?’

【Yes, Brion V.15 is an AI dictionary in the form of nanorobots, currently connected to the neural network of your cerebral cortex. It is now analyzing your aptitudes and talents.】

The ‘voice’ echoed again, as if responding to Yooil’s thoughts.

Yooil’s mouth fell open. He ruffled his hair in front of the mirror. His scalp looked unnervingly normal.

His heart began to race uncontrollably.

‘Am I going crazy?’

While Yooil was pulling at his hair, the uninvited guest in his brain spoke to him in a monotone voice.

【Congratulations. Your destined career is ‘actor’!】

What…?

When Yooil asked back in a daze, the voice posed a question.

【Would you like to choose the career of ‘actor’?】

In the midst of overwhelming confusion, Han Yooil’s rational self spoke up.

“…But I need to prepare for the civil service exam?”

 

【Do you choose not to pursue the career of ‘actor’?】

Despite the emotionless tone, Yooil felt as if the question was criticizing him.

But he had no choice. He was a poor man in his twenties dreaming of a stable future.

【Are you sure you won’t regret this?】

“Why would I regret…”

【…In 30 seconds, the device connected to your cerebral cortex will explode. If the device explodes, there is a 99.8% probability that you will lose some brain functions or potentially die.】

“What?”

【30, 29, 28…】

“This is insane, damn it! Fine, I’ll do it, I’ll become an actor!”

After a brief silence, the flowing voice resonated in his head.

【Understood. Starting now, Brion V.15 will guide you on the optimal path towards your destined career as an actor.】

…It was unmistakably clear that something had gone terribly wrong.

* * *

Han Yooil had never been particularly lucky in life, nor had he lived a dramatic existence. Since losing his parents in an accident at a young age, he had lived life as a perfect stability-seeker. He was always quiet, spent his school years studying, and did nothing else.

Of course, he quite liked dramatic content. He enjoyed movies and books, and his passion for literature led him to major in Korean literature. He did end up joining the military after pondering over his career path for a semester.

【Mr. Han Yooil, you’re awake.】

Yooil clenched his eyes shut as he was greeted by the voice the moment he woke up.

Despite hearing it every morning, he couldn’t get used to it.

【Good morning. It would be good for your condition to drink some warm tea.】

It had already been a month since this unidentified AI nanorobot had clung to his brain. Despite claiming to be merely a dictionary, the nanorobot kept trying to train him.

【You need to project your voice using your diaphragm. Take a deep breath and project your voice as if you are throwing it 5 meters ahead. Ah, Eh, Ee, Oh, Oo… Yes, well done. Repeat five times.】

“Enough already…”

【…In 40 seconds, the device connected to your cerebral cortex will explode. If the device explodes, there is a 99.8% probability that…】

…This was how it threatened him.

Damn it.

Thanks to this, he hadn’t even started his civil service exam preparation. Yooil did aerobic exercises every day, practiced diaphragmatic breathing and voice projection, and had to memorize and recite a few lines of dialogue naturally.

That’s not to say he didn’t try anything to remove the nanorobot. Despite being financially strapped, he had gone as far as to get an X-ray, but the doctor shook his head, finding nothing unusual, and cautiously recommended seeing a psychiatrist.

“That’s… not necessary. Thank you.”

As Yooil trudged out of the hospital, the AI nanorobot spoke.

【Mr. Yooil, I am the Brion series Nano Dictionary, the latest beta test version V.15. Therefore, it’s impossible to be fully retrieved by anyone other than the developer.】

‘So who is this developer?’

【…Currently does not exist.】

It was a meaningful answer. After that, no matter how much Yooil inquired, Brion refused to give a proper response.

Suddenly, Yooil remembered the strange man with the weird hood.

The odd person who suddenly grabbed his hand and shook it.

‘…Could that man be the developer?’

【I cannot answer that question.】

After a moment of thought, Yooil nodded and asked.

‘You can answer anything about the past, right?’

【Correct.】

‘So, you can’t freely answer about things that exist in the future?’

【•••.】

Yooil bit his lip in thought.

‘Answers anything about the past, but remains silent about things happening after the current moment.’

‘…I get it. That, AI Nano Dictionary…’

【Please call me Brion, Mr. Han Yooil.】

Although Yooil didn’t know why the developer targeted him, he was certain that the crazed AI nanorobot’s owner was from the future.

‘…But was I really the target in the first place?’

Maybe the developer had left his robot behind by mistake. Considering it was a beta test version, the developer might come back to retrieve it.

“Should I just hang on until then?”

Yooil knew it was not the most rational thought. Maybe after living with the AI robot in his head for a month, he had gone a bit mad.

As Yooil sipped the coffee he bought from a convenience store near the school, pondering various thoughts, Brion spoke up.

【…Currently, the Moonmyung University Theater Arts Society is urgently recruiting one male actor for a play scheduled for the end of September.】

‘So what?’

【I recommend you apply for the audition.】

‘…Why should I?’

【Probability of positive outcomes in the future, 80.5%…】

‘Enough. Got it.’

From experience, he knew that if he continued asking, his head would throb from the lengthy explanations.

‘…A theater society’s performance.’

Theater Arts Society.

Yooil had seen a performance by Moonmyung University’s theater society once. Not long after his admission, an outgoing classmate, fond of socializing, had taken a few friends to the small theater at school.

‘Our school’s theater society is really famous. The plays they put up every year are so interesting!’

The classmate, who loved theater, would excitedly share such information. Thanks to that, Yooil was quite informed about Moonmyung University’s theater society. They usually performed original plays or adaptations, and occasionally participated in theater festivals for college students. Most of the actors were also selected from within the society.

‘I want to join too… but I heard it’s really strict. Maybe one out of ten applicants get in.’

Two years ago, that’s what Yooil’s classmate had said before he was rejected.

【You are more than capable, Mr. Han Yooil. Believe in yourself.】

‘…Please only answer when I ask.’

Yooil shook his head and took a sip of his coffee.

He had a foreboding feeling that his life, which had never been smooth, wouldn’t be trouble-free in the future either.

* * *

At the same time, about 10km away from Yooil, in the Moonmyung University Theater Arts Society’s club room, a frantic scream was escaping.

“Sssshhhh! How can we not have a lead actor for a play that’s in a month?!”

It was a desperate and rough cry.