Find your tribe in a Sea of Creativity
Cale as Naru
(^〃^)
Just come and scam me as much as you want you two handsome (unlucky) bastards.
Although he get the idea from Jung Soo…
“What is the name of that thing?” Lee Soo Hyuk was asking about the monster’s name. Cale pulled its name out from his memories. “Electric Eel.” “…Ho.” Lee Soo Hyuk let out a short gasp. “A scary monster that is unranked has such a stupid name?” “Yes, sir. That’s its name.” “Did you give it that name?” ‘No. Team leader, you came up with the name later after you survived the attack.’ Cale held back those words. Lee Soo Hyuk interpreted that short duration of silence as he pleased. “You must have come up with that name since your foresight probably only let you see or hear the monster. Your naming sense is terrible.” “No-” “I understand.” Cale felt wronged.
Lol, Cale feels wronged because Lee Soo Hyuk told him that his sense of naming is terrible. But I mean, Lee Soo Hyuk is right - who the fuck would name an inn "Hope and adventure loving Inn"? Both of them have a terrible sense of naming. :)
In the translation I read the joke was explained, but I didn't understand it well.
I do it now (─‿‿─)
Warning: Laws of Hunting spoilers
Okay so I know Cale's name got mistranslated to "Gae-il Henidukes" in Central Plains, which later on became "Kim Gae-il" before becoming "Kim Hae-il".
What you don't understand is why "Gae-il" is so funny.
Raon said he dislikes "Gae-il" with a burning passion for a reason he doesn't know; Choi Han nearly bursts out laughing right then and there; Sui Khan was holding on for dear life.
Here's why.
I read the Chinese translation of this chapter (chapter 85) first, and in Chinese, "Gae-il" is "狗日", which can colloquially be translated to "Dog Fuck."
Literally.
The Emperor is literally calling this audacious tiny ass man "Dog Fuck" to his face, and Cale couldn't do anything about it because he literally brought this upon himself.
Yes people, we were robbed of "Kim Dog Fuck", and damn do I wonder what other jokes might have been lost in translation.
The best formula for each plan d(¬‿¬)
Scam
Loot
Corner (rat in jar)
Beat the s*** out of 'em
❤ (ɔˆз(ˆ⌣ˆc) <- Cale
Now I want someone to write a fanfic about a concubine of King Zed trying to survive the intrigues of the harem. ( ̄ω ̄')
Now that I think about it, doesn't Alberu have like, a bunch of brothers and sisters? Then like, Zed had a lot of partners, though I suppose he only officially married the third prince's mother and the rest are concubines like Alberu's mother. So like, didn't Zed kill his siblings in the fight for throne? Or was it in another story? Did he like, ever think that his successor might choose his path and kill the rest of his kids and perhaps his own father too to sit on the throne?
And this third prince whom Zed favored, I was like, dying to know his name in the beginning. And Alberu's mothers name too. Then I just went like, if the third prince's name was like something long, complicated and hard to pronounce, wouldn't it be hilarious. I can imagine Cale's and Choi Han's reaction when they hear the name for the first time. Cake would just give up cuz it's too hard to say and he couldn't be bothered lol.
Back to the Crossman family. There are so many members there. Like damn. Wouldn't the tea within the family be quite juicy? Like, I can imagine all the family drama behind the doors? The public might not be aware of it, because they like to keep a good image and all. But I am very curious of all the sh*t happening within the palace. I've always thought about it from the day I've heard Zed have multiple kids from multiple women. When Cale hears all the drama, he'd be like, damn, I was right in thinking that nothing would do good if I get involved with you. He might enjoy the tea, but he'd be too scared to get his slacker life dream ruined.
Alberu: Are you sure they will be okay? Cale: The children are going to be fine, the one you have to worry about is the lunatic. Alberu:??? Cale: Hopefully he'll be alive when we get back.
Clopeh: Children, people will criticize your dreams. 'You can’t just secretly film every single battle of Cale-nim and broadcast it to the world'. 'Being a devoted Cale-nim follower is not a real job'. 'Stop trying to register Caleism as an actual religion'.
Clopeh: Ignore them. Be real. Be yourself. Start a Cale-nim cult.
On, Hong, Raon, Lock and all the wolf children:...........
On: Who though it was a good idea to let him babysit us today?
What memories…
When I first found this deck online I spent hours searching for it to download.
I have it ready to print if one day I get the paper they use to make the cards for the decks (*¯︶¯*)
Found the Cards
KRS: *Gremlin Mode On* LSH: *Holding KRS like a little child* Look at this cuteness… ( ◕▿◕ )
I know I have previously said how I want Cale to use his combat skills he learned as Kim Rok Soo but now I have a different idea. I want Cale to pull out the skills he had to have had as 20 year old Kim Rok Soo. The skills I speak of are being a downright feral gremlin. I want him to claw at eyes and bite. Because he had to have survived as tiny 20 year old Rok Soo somehow and it wouldn't have been with his combat prowess or strength. I mean im sure he had to fight for food before shelters were found and he had to have been attacked on his own by monsters so I just imagine he went for the eyes and throat instantly. Lee Soo Hyuk would think of it as very funny and cute
I feel like if this game existed all the players would go crazy trying to figure out why Cale changed so much after the update… and there may or may not be a secret route where OgCale's time travel and his switch of bodies with KimCale are discovered. but no one would ever find out because they don't know how to activate it. ┐( ̄∀ ̄)┌
Okay, so you know the like Otome game au for TCF? I wanted to draw something based around that.
So what I imagine here, is that Birth of a Hero is a popular Otome game that suddenly gets a sudden update after a year or two of nothing from the game. The update completely changes one character, Cale. He went from a romanceable minor villain to an un-romanceable mysterious character who actively avoids the player.
If players chose a route in which bad things would happen, Cale would step in and solve the issue and cause one of the hearts Cale has to go black which stands for dislike or hate. Even if Cale should have no way of knowing the player made something happen it would still happen.
The only way to even raise his affection stat would be to mainly leave him alone but if you chose to follow him around than the scene I drew would be prompted to start.
Cale and Choi Han's friendship truly moves you to the core, their camaraderie and unconditional loyalty are enviable ♡(。- ω -)
I was thinking a bit about character development.
Like, Cale, Choi Han, and Alberu have a beautiful friendship - and it grew over the course of the entire story.
I'm probably going to talk about later parts of the story, so Imma put the rest behind a divider so you can avoid spoilers
In the beginning, Choi Han was loyal to Cale but .. it was kind of shallow.
Choi Han didn't understand why they had to wear those shitty Arm robes, was shocked when Cale created his alibi by drinking, and so on and so forth.
He followed Cale, but he didn't really know Cale that well yet and that was clear.
Oh, and it was much more of a hierarchical relationship. Cale as his legs, Choi Han as Cale's knight.
This slowly began to change, though I think there were a couple of key turning points.
Cale almost dying after the Battle of the Gorge was one of them.
I think that's when Choi Han truly realized he couldn't trust Cale when it came to his health. Not that he hadn't seen signs before, but Cale always brushed things off and I think this was when Choi Han realized that no, it's really not okay, no matter what Cale says.
After that, we see Choi Han start asking more questions...
And Cale (with a clear flashback to his time as a team leader, where his people desperately wanted to help more) actually answered them.
The relationship started to shift, and become less liege and knight, and more colleagues. (This, btw, came from both of them. Choi Han asking more, and Cale telling more. Somewhat. A little bit.)
They definitely grow closer in other ways - Choi Han telling them about his long life after they found the Dragon Village, for example. (Though Cale already knew it, so you also see just how much Cale is still keeping his secrets).
And then...
We get Choi Han receiving Choi Jung Soo's memories.
That causes the biggest shift yet.
Now they aren't just liege and knight.
Now we have Cale thinking of Choi Han as his best friend's elder (even if Choi Han doesn't feel a need for that).
Also, Choi Han now knows. Not just that Cale is a transmigrator, not just about his life as Kim Rok Soo, not just about the cataclysm (and what happened to the Choi family).
He also knows about the tragedy that has pretty much defined Cale. He may not know about the aftermath, or Cale's time as team leader, but he knows that Cale was devastated after losing everyone.
We also see Choi Han (who got Syrem's ancient powers and now knows what it's like to use them) insist that Cale shouldn't absorb the Blood-drenched Rock power, a potential standoff that ended when Cale found another way and used Embrace instead.
They are no longer liege and obedient knight.
And then came the sealed god's test, where Choi Han gave up quite a lot of his potential lifespan, just to join Cale in one of the worst times of Cale's life.
And he was happy for it.
We see Cale truly overcome with emotion. The trust and friendship between the two of them is just beautiful.
And I truly meant to talk about Alberu as well (him joining them also adding to this) but I only realized when writing this just how much I had to say about Cale and Choi Han, so maybe I'll do that another time.
Anyways.
That still wasn't everything. Because we also had the indignity test...
And while I think the author didn't fully finish everything Choi Han saw because it'll probably come up in part 2 (it hasn't yet, but I think I see the author building up to something. Because so far they've all been too busy to really address a few things, plus apparently there's dragons dealing with time? Anyways, I suspect we'll get more on Cale's childhood, and what Choi Han knows, and some other things, but we'll see. It took almost 300 chapters in part 1 before we got all the amazing scenes with Cale and Choi Han and the sealed god's test and instant so I'm willing to let the author build things up again.)
Oh, sorry. What was I saying? Right.
Even though we don't have the full story, we know that Choi Han knows.
And in one of the side stories, he says this:
He didn’t know at first, but that person’s days of rest that Choi Han saw was more of a period of recovery than days of rest. Of course, the person himself thought that he was playing around, but it did not seem like that to Choi Han at all. That was why his people, who at some point realized the meaning of this rest day, tried their best not to bother his recovery.
And again, in the same side story but referring to a moment later in part 1
Cale was mumbling. “Haaaa. It’d be great to be a slacker.” Choi Han knew the meaning of those words. ‘I want to rest. I need to heal.’ That should be the meaning. However, he now knew what Cale would say after that.
And skipping the specific details, what Choi Han probably meant when he said he knew what Cale would say after that
Cale looked toward the east and calmly commented. “There are too many things to do, so I can’t rest.”
Choi Han understands Cale 1000x more than he did when they started.
And Cale understands Choi Han better, too.
Which is probably a topic for a whole other post, considering Cale initially almost seemed to put Choi Han on a pedestal as the hero and protagonist of the story.
It's true when they say that clothes show a lot about a person…
Choi Han uses a lot of furs and leather because that's what she learned to wear in the forest of darkness and they are perfect for his active lifestyle.
Rosalyn wears a lot of stereotypical wizard clothing because she identifies more with them than royalty even though she still wears a lot of fancy clothes since that's what she's used to.
Ron wears a butler's suit not only because that's his job but because it's the perfect disguise for an assassin, after all, how many daggers and poison can he hide in a suit with lots of pockets?
In short, your clothes say a lot about you, your social status, your habits, your way of life, your economic level, etc. ╮( ̄ω ̄)╭
random thought #5: clothes
I only noticed this after remembering what he went through as Kim Rok Soo but I think Cale actually likes or prefers to wear dark-colored clothes. That, or there's another reason why he wears them.
It's not as obvious in the manhwa because the artist probably wants him to have bright colored clothes (fair) but it's been mentioned a few times in the beginning of the novel.
Cale, who used to enjoy wearing fancy clothes and showing off until just two years ago, was suddenly only wearing dark clothes, and had a completely different demeanor about him.
Chapter 43: Somehow
I'm not completely sure if he likes the color (shade?) but I remembered seeing Kim Rok Soo wearing them behind Cale Henituse in a cover.
[SPOILER for the first part of TCF]
Dark clothes could mean a person wants to look cool and stylish or it could mean a person is boring. And in some ways, the person wearing black is grieving.
I looked it up because I wasn't too sure (and I don't want to offend anyone) but Koreans apparently wear black clothes at funerals.
And knowing his past, it could be that he never stopped grieving even as Cale Henituse.
Like I've mentioned before, and what most readers know about him after reading the novel, there are a lot of funerals back in Korea and he attended some of them.
People die everyday in his world and some of them don't have anyone to grieve for them. It's why he's the one who showed up in Lee Soo Hyuk and Choi Jung Soo's funeral.
One of the things that changed the most was the funeral tradition. The reason was simple.
Too many people had died.
And even more continued to die every day and will die in the future.
- Chapter 719
Him constantly grieving for those he lost could appear in what he's wearing.
Yes, there are moments when he wears them to look intimidating in front of the nobles or his enemies but there was this one scene after the Plaza Terror Incident when he actually wears dark clothes, albeit more luxurious.
“It is a beautiful day today. Probably because we are here to respect the fallen.”
Cale’s red hair fluttered in the wind and created a stark comparison to his black outfit.
- Chapter 48: Somehow
It's a sad thing to think about if this is actually the reason why he wears them.
Another preference that was briefly mentioned before is him liking simple clothes. It could mean several things for him.
Simple clothes could mean he's lazy (which is debatable but probably true). Simple clothes could mean he's a guy with simple tastes (also debatable). Simple clothes could mean he's poor or doesn't have the more luxurious type of clothes. Or simple clothes could mean he's used to wearing them in a world where the apocalypse is real and he needs to move comfortably to survive.
I'm thinking he's so used to getting too injured, he never allows himself to wear something different. Like if you're gonna get cuts all over your body after using an ability, I doubt you'll bother wearing something nice.
It's intriguing how a simple mention of his clothes can mean several things.
I really didn't consider the possibility of something more just judging by what he wears.
From his words, to his actions, and even to his clothes, you can make different opinions and theories about him and that's why I'm having so much fun reading this novel.
The cultural differences really are incredible, literally Cale was going crazy for having disrespected an "elder" of his sworn brother's family regardless of the fact that there are no consequences for it in his new world (that and no one knows about it...(´-ω-`)) when we could confront the intolerant grandparents in our friends' families without conseqences.
Both alies and enemies, watching conserned Cale during Northern Alchemists' tower battle: he might be planning something
Meanwhile Cale: shit fuck Choi Han is Choi Jung Soo uncle should i talk respectfully to him now because he is my friend's close relative i can't still call him a punk and bastard i might be trash but we should draw a line somwhere and this is TALKING DISRESPECTFULLY TO ELDERS
I understand you, I almost always try to think about what our hero would do if he were in my place…
The conclusion is almost always that I am not good at making plans (。T ω T。)
I've been noticing that I'm starting to pick up Cale's vibe. I catch myself acting and talking like him. I never used to swear that much before I read TCF, but now it's just a normal part of how I talk. Also, I find myself thinking, "If Cale was in my place, what would he do?" I don't know if this is a good thing or not, but I'm kind of into it ^^
Why this remenber me to TCF? (•ิ_•ิ)?
Forget my question… (||| ̄ω ̄)
I think it was something that happened to all of us, after all I discovered TCF thanks to a gacha club video ┐( ̄ヮ ̄)┌
I don't know if I like it or not, but at least now I can stop dying of frustration every time I read "Alver" ( ̄▽ ̄)
I've had this HC for maybe over 2 years now n I've never heard of anyone talking about it here so:
I've always called Alberu Alberu in my head but when I read the manhua, it changed his name to alver so I made this up in my mind to make sense of that.
Alver: name he uses in public, this is what he goes by when he's doing prince stuff. It's formal and it's probably what his father/brothers refer to him as
Alberu: name he uses almost exclusively when he's in his bark elf from. It's the name his mother gave him at birth. I'd imagine this being the name the people closest to him call him! (Like cale, Tasha, choi Han ect.)
Got this because so many people around me have a name in their traditional language and another English name, so it just got stuck in my mind lol
I agree with you, there is a reason why I like fics where Kim Rok Soo doesn't transmigrate to Cale, so they can both be present and contribute significantly to the plot in their own way.
It's the best of both worlds (⌒ω⌒)
After I posted yesterday, I saw an opinion that I kind of agree with about the difference between Cale Henituse and Kim Rok Soo.
I'm gonna say my opinion without trying to offend the whole fandom. Again, you can read fics about OG Cale as MC. I will not stop you just because I have my own opinion. You are free to read whatever you want. If you don't agree with this, it's fine and if you do, don't antagonize or attack the fanfiction authors who made these fics. Let them do their own thing, okay?
This post is not a rant but me sharing my own thoughts and opinions about this topic.
To make this easier, I'll call OG Cale as Cale and OG KRS as KRS.
[✋SPOILERS for the first part of the novel✋]
Some say that Cale Henituse and Kim Rok Soo are the same person. While I don't know if this is true because I haven't read the second part of the novel yet, in my opinion, they are not the same.
Again, I repeat, I like Cale Henituse. He's very intelligent and kind to Basen to the point of destroying his own reputation, he targets thugs and scammers whenever he's "drunk", he's willing to sacrifice his whole identity in order to save his world after surviving for twenty years by himself. He's a complex character and in another world, if given the chance, he would've been a great MC.
But that's the thing, he is not the MC of TCF, Kim Rok Soo is. And I think some fans forget the reason why Kim Rok Soo became the MC and not Cale Henituse. Because in some fics that I see whenever I scroll down to look for something to read, Cale completely replaces KRS' presence in the story, to the point that he doesn't exist anymore.
Let me explain.
Kim Rok Soo is a very integral part of the story. You can't easily replace him with another person, normal or otherwise, and expect the story to go the same way it did in the novel. He did things his way because he's a chaotic little shit. He's a different person from Cale, no matter how many or few similarities they both have.
It's not because he's simply smart or OP (as some would say) that he won a war that ended in only two years, but it's also because of his past and the bonds he made as himself.
He's a person full of empathy for these people that he meets wherever he goes, regardless whether he knows them from a book or not, because he understands them and their pain. He does not hide his personality and in a way, his charisma attracts these people who see him for who he is, a kind person.
Kim Rok Soo is different because he survived in an apocalypse by himself until he meets Lee Soo Hyuk and Choi Jung Soo. Plus, he did not have a great childhood. He was abused and lived by himself for the rest of his childhood and teenage years because of a curse (or maybe because his uncle is just a shitty person, who knows).
The opinions he has and the way he thinks are shaped by his own experiences. He is the Kim Rok Soo we see in the novel because he grew up under these circumstances.
To say that he's easily replaceable would be too disrespectful to the sacrifices he made as both Kim Rok Soo and Cale Henituse.
Cale, on the other hand, is different. He lived alone for how many years because he deliberately pushed everyone away because of his grief and after what Jour told him. It's not because of a curse that he became this way but because he chose to.
Yes, everyone he knows should've tried to make an effort by comforting him or talking with him (his family, the nobles he's close to, Ron and Beacrox) but that did not happen because he's the one who chose to live like this. I've mentioned it in my post about Deruth but if a person doesn't want comfort or doesn't want to talk, they will not talk, especially someone as stubborn as Cale. To blame all these people (including the kids) and the rest of the world because of his own choice is simply not right or fair since the only one responsible to actually help him is Deruth. Violan is not given this chance nor did she try as his stepmother but it all comes down to Deruth. But of course, he did not get any help nor did he seek any.
He lived his years shrouded in grief until the very end. He's a kind person but unfortunately, life is not kind to him.
Later, he survives in the war until the White Star kills him. What did he choose to do in the end when he made that deal with the God of Death? To return to the past so he can save everyone? No. Instead, he chose to go to KRS' world to find his mother. If CJS were given the chance to decline a proposal, why didn't Cale? He could've said he'll do it himself but instead, he left it to KRS. We all know he's stubborn enough to ruin his reputation, is he not stubborn enough to make a deal to save his world as himself?
You can argue it's maybe because the God of Death didn't give him the chance to argue with it but there are other ways the god could've sent KRS to this world. Like Choi Han or Choi Jung Soo.
Choi Jung Soo is a prime example of what could've and couldn't have happened if he agreed with the God of Death's proposal. He is not KRS. He has his own opinions and experiences that make him unique. He is not like Choi Han who drowned in his despair in TBoaH but instead, is a man who wants to survive with his friends (brothers) and smile with them despite the pain he suffers in.
If he were to replace KRS, the story would've gone differently. He might find Choi Han and they would do their best to survive in this new world together. He may or may not find Raon and the kittens, depending on the time and location when he arrives in this world. Alberu may or may not completely trust him like how he didn't completely trust Choi Han in TBoaH because unlike KRS who is too similar with Alberu, CJS is different. He might not look for the ancient powers since he has his own ability, leaving some that the White Star could've taken like the Sky Eating Water and Super Rock. In fact, the shield could've been left at the tree unless CJS knows about it and takes it. (Let me remind you that no one in this world knows there's an ancient power in that tree in the Henituse territory.)
I can list down things he could've or couldn't have done but it might be too long.
But my point is, it could've been Cale, Alberu, or Choi Han who were sent to the past but the story would've gone differently because these people are all different in their own ways. Heck, if the God of Death truly wants to save this world, he could've sent back Choi Han or Alberu instead of Cale. Because these two are also powerful in their own ways that do not need the help of ancient powers. Just give them enough information and they could've ended the war faster than twenty years.
So, yeah. Kim Rok Soo became the main character for several reasons. He was an ability user and team leader back in his world, he has the curse attached to him because of the White Star, he was an abused kid who had a sad childhood.
And I think there are other reasons why, if KRS is not the MC, that the story could've ended differently. Put aside Raon who is powerful and has a connection to Sheritt and the Dragon Slayers and would be integral to the story, On and Hong could've died with no one knowing about them because they were barely mentioned in the books. Mary could've stayed in the City of Life because no one would need her to help Ron. Hannah and Jack could've died because no one would've known that they were killed. Paseton has a chance to live but no one knows where he is.
Some characters would live and some would die if Kim Rok Soo is not the main character. That's basically what I think about all of this.
The reason why they survived, aside from the books, is because Kim Rok Soo's heart is so big that he wants to help people or give them the chance to survive. Some people would ignore or not notice these people because they have their own problems to deal with.
But Kim Rok Soo just wants to live. And I think that's why the story went the way it did.
Kim Rok Soo, the man who became Cale. His life motto was pretty simple.
Living long without pain. Enjoying the small joys of life.
Living a peaceful life.
- Chapter 2: When I Opened My Eyes
Again, I'm not stopping you from reading these fics nor am I telling you to attack fanfic authors because of what they write. This whole post is just me sharing my opinion.
You don't have to agree with anything I said. You can ignore this and read whatever you want to read.
This is not a post undermining or disrespecting what Cale sacrificed and felt as a person. This is a post to share my opinion that Cale and Kim Rok Soo both deserve the respect that they should get for everything they did and to not completely erase a character for the other. But if someone does it, then I can't do anything about it.
As a Mob Psycho 100 fan, I will end this with one line that perfectly summarizes what I think about this topic.
Your life is your own.
The Soos embody that "childhood friends who have witnessed every embarrassing moment in each other's life and are so used to each other's bullshit they don't question any of the actions the other does anymore" energy
And I have receipts for this:
Cale: *stops the Plaza Terror Invident and coughs up blood for the first time*
Choi Jung Soo and Sui Khan: *pops party poppers* congrats to our dongsaeng he did it! Now let's cut the cake
God of Death to Choi Jung Gun: they prepared the "Congrats Cale on Fucking Up Your Slacker Life Again" banner 3 weeks ago. Cale hadn't even planned on going to the plazza yet
_______
God of Death: Lee Soo Hyuk reincarnated and Choi Jung Soo became a wanderer
Cale: of course they did I should have foreseen this
_______
Sui appears as a hawk beastman: sup
Cale: ........ damn it I thought you were gonna be a baby
Sui: missed you too <3
_______
Choi Jung Soo: *crashes from the ceiling right in front of his friends who have been looking for his fugitive ass for weeks*
Cale: oh we found him
Sui: *mild annoyance but not surprised*
Choi Jung Soo: hi guys
A master of deception? (¯ ¯٥)
Only for himself ( ̄。 ̄ノ)
What Cale thinks of himself vs. Everyone
Cale: I'm a shrimp compared to them
Everyone: You are my king/Leige/lord, your not anything like that
Cale: I'll only do a little bit of work then rest
Everyone: Please leave some work to us, stop doing everything by yourself
Cale: Self sacrificing, what are you talking about.
Everyone: Are you kidding me!
Cale: Don't be like me
Raon: But I want to be just like you
Minus the self sacrificing part
Cale: I don't deserve this
Everyone: WHAATT, young master-nim who told you that
LOL ( ˙꒳˙ )
Poor Cale, he could never be a slacker
Cale: “And this, is how I am going to become a slacker” *proud cale*
Everyone else but Cale: *don’t laugh don’t laugh….*
I need Cale-nim in Naru form and team leader Sui Khan to act and scam the world together. The master and his top student, two master scammers, the whole ordeal is gonna be so beautifully done.
woah pause ✋
‘I am very old now too.’ The old man accepted that he was getting older. Just like how tree rings don’t grow all at once, the effects of time did not avoid him as well. He then started to speak.
- Ron Molan
Chapter 34: Being Still
I know it's just a metaphor but WHAT?!
I was just reading his conversation with Cale and was surprised by the sudden jumpscare those words gave me. The sentence doesn't help either. 😭
The author is so good at hiding things so early in the story. I didn't even notice it before when I was rereading this novel several times. Either that or I'm just so dumb.
Cale is ultimately the unluckiest person in every world he visits, isn't he? (ᓀ ᓀ)
Unlucky Bastard - 39
Unlucky Human - 5
Unlucky Punk - 2
Unlucky - 3
163 - “Tsk, tsk, what an unlucky human.”
167 - “The unlucky punk is quite ballsy.”
199 - "Well, you have the unlucky punk by your side, so you’ll probably be fine growing up slowly."
224 - ‘You unlucky human, tsk tsk.’
226 - “You really are extremely unlucky. You always bring back such useless things.”
230 - “…Why is the unlucky human laughing like that?”
230 - “…Now I know how you end up being so unlucky.”
257 - “Fine, you unlucky bastard."
267 - “…This unlucky bastard, huuuu.”
274 - “You unlucky bastard.”
276 - “You unlucky bastard!”
315 - “Get some rest. You unlucky bastard.”
319 - “Sigh, you unlucky bastard.”
340 - “Tsk tsk. You unlucky bastard.”
356 - ‘Shut up, you unlucky bastard.’
357 - “You’re saying something I agree with for the first time in a long while, you unlucky bastard."
372 - ‘T, this unlucky bastard!’
372 - “Aigoo, little kid. You should have done as that unlucky bastard told you to do.”
373 - “You unlucky bastard.”
450 - – You unlucky bastard.
479 - 'Well, you have the unlucky bastard by your side, so you’ll probably be fine growing up slowly.’ (it's the same as the one from chap 199, except 'bastard' is replaced by 'punk')
541 - – Tsk. You unlucky bastard.
546 - – You unlucky bastard, it must be hard acting like a little kid.
623 - “You unlucky bastard."
623 - The unlucky bastard must have received nutrients inside the black orb somehow since he is still alive after a few months but he doesn’t look good at all.
632 - – You unlucky bastard.
633 - “Then let me start with how I first met this unlucky bastard and the little kid.”
633 - – You unlucky bastard.
687 - "I’m not used to you saying that you are going to sit out, you unlucky bastard.”
696 - “You unlucky bastard."
697 - “Are you trying to be like this unlucky bastard?!”
755 - Eruhaben said that this was an opportunity that the unlucky bastard made.
757 - “Aigoo. T-that unlucky bastard!”
758 - “That unlucky bastard again…!”
154 - He could then see Eruhaben giving him a, ‘what is this unlucky human saying now?’ type of gaze.
231 - The unlucky human was screwing up his life again.
249 - ‘This unlucky bastard shouldn’t know about that.’
250 - ‘This unlucky bastard truly is different.’
252 - Eruhaben looked toward the unlucky bastard.
254 - However, some of the ancient powers that this unlucky Cale Henituse had in his possession were as strong as, if not stronger, than most strong individuals’ strengths.
256 - ‘Both the little kid and this unlucky bastard.’
267 - This unlucky and sly bastard was also a genuinely good person.
274 - It was hard to figure out what this unlucky bastard was thinking.
472 - That unlucky bastard is always wearing himself out.
473 - ‘The Caro Kingdom should give that unlucky bastard at least something now.’
604 - 'That unlucky bastard has no problem saying such disrespectful things to a Dragon.’
684 - ‘Can Cale, can that unlucky bastard control such a power?’
723 - ‘Did something happen to that unlucky bastard to the point that he needed to use so much of his powers that Raon could feel it from outside the orb?’
756 - He wondered what in the world was the unlucky bastard doing inside, and if he was destroying everything because it was a test about anger.
150 - “Yes, I can understand how unlucky you are. So just trust me, the great and mighty Raon.”
318 - He then mumbled, ‘what an unlucky final year for me,’ before channeling his white gold aura.
347 - “…Cale-nim?” “Unlucky bastard.”
347 – You unlucky bastard.
611 - 'That unlucky bastard. I can at least do that much for him.’
It's the stuff of nightmares to think about having an ever-growing population of dragons (;;;*_*)
In the best situation, humans and all other races would be slaves to the whims of the dragons, dying one after another.
In the worst case it is the end of the world.
Wait! (◎ ◎) That doesn't sound like…
I always thought the reason Dragons only lay one egg in TCF (being Sherritt the only exception) was a bit obvious, and then realized I'm stupid for thinking it was obvious, so I'll share my thoughts.
It's a way to avoid overpopulation.
Think about it, each ecosystem has its own rules and there is a reason why invasor species (animals that were thoughlessly released in an ecosystem they didn't belong to) are considered invasors.
They tilt the whole balance within, they eat other species that eat plagues or help pollination, and end up becoming a plague.
What do you think would happen if Dragons were social creatures? What do you think would happen if they reproduced like humans or could lay more eggs like, say, snakes?
Dragons are the Apex Predator of Apex Predators. Just one of them can destroy a whole country, the ecosystem would collapse if too many inhabit the world, it's not like Dragons would hesitate to get rid of anything inconveniencing them
So yeah, nature has to have a way to keep them in check
My God! Like never before, no one thought about how useless the poor soldiers felt every time Cale and his group were present (っ˘̩╭╮˘̩)っ
They surely work to the bone to overcome their own "uselessness" and be able to protect their commander when not even a dragon can do so.
LOL (o´▽`o)
Today's battle might be my last day. I don't know if I'm going to make it back home to my family. The enemy has mages , bear tribe , lion tribe and even many others dressed in black in their army. It feels like we're going to have a hard time. Well fortunately, our side has the greatest commander who uses his shield and strategies to win the battles; our hero the young master silver shield, Cale Henituse.
He's now standing straight facing the enemy while giving us his back, and he's..... holding a wip? And talking to himself ?? is that ok? Well what do I know I'm just a soldier..... Anyway, the enemy started firing at us and the commander has immediately activated his sheild and water ancient ... Wait a minute since when did he have a water ancient power like that!? AND NOW HE'S ATTACKING THEM WITH THUNDER BOLTS!!! WHAT IS THIS?!! A GOLDEN DRAGON!! WHERE DID HE COME FROM !? WAIT ISN'T COMMANDER CALE COUGHING BLOOD? HE'S DYING!! NOW HIS PEOPLE ARE GOING CRAZY AND DESTROYING EVERYTHING!! WHAT IS GOING ON!?
..................
And the battle is over, the commander has fainted, the enemy retreated and we won .. why am I even here ?
A list that every TCF fan needs (@^◡^)
Note: someone originally created this list (it was only 1-650 though) but they deactivated so I'm reposting it after adding a few of my favorite scenes
CALE GETTING HURT:
•Chapter 45 : Magical Bombs [Spat Blood]
•Chapter 55 : Protect Knights From Toonka [Buckling knee, Drenched]
•Chapter 80 Giant Wave + Dragon Drying [Headache, Drenched] Chapter
•112 Red Thunderbolt [Spat Blood (A Copious Amount)]
•Chapter 162 Falling Tower [Spat Blood]
•Chapter 177 Eating Pies After Lightning [Spat Blood]
•Chapter 183 Destroying Houses [Spat Blood]
•Chapter 198 First Line Of War Defense [Blood Coming Out Of All Orifices]
•Chapter 215 ~ 225 War On Dessert & At Sea [Spat Blood]
•Chapter 238 Death Gorge [Blood]
•Chapter 244 "Are you trying to sacrifice yourself?" "Yes"
•Chapter 251 Prince + Raon Introduction [3 Days Left To Live]
•Chapter 257-259 Receiving Sky Eating
•Chapter 295 Putting Out Dragon's Fire [Blood]
•Chapter 302-306 Rose Gold Fire [Blood, Fainted] "Slap me"
•Chapter 339 Vs White Star [Fainted] •Chapter 354 The Wind Whip Trial [Fainted]
•Chapter 384 After Using All 5 + Crown [Shaky]
•Chapter 421 "He is writing a legend :"[Blood]
•Chapter 448 Earth + Water vs WS [Blood]
•Chapter 570 In The Sealed God's Test [Blood]
•Chapter 602 Sealed God's Bullshit [Blood]
•Chapter 607 Using The Shield In SG's Test [Blood, Collapsed]
•Chapter 646 'Instant Skill [Blood, Scars, Fainted]
•Chapter 6 Cale and Choi Han first meet
Other cute stuffs that happens along the way :
•Chapter 53 Saving Paseton's Life and Himbo Bob's first apperance.
•Chapter 58 Offering Dragon a house
•Chapter 59 Return home to worried! fam
•Chapter 66 Yandere eyes! Choi Han
•Chapter 67 Concerned! fam about visit to Whipper Kingdom + Dragon Name
•Chapter 71 Pre-battle trash talk
•Chapter 76 Heading into No-Return Path
•Chapter 85 venuon tortute
•Chapter 89 Ron comes back heavily injured.
•Chapter 91 "My Blood Would Be Very Effective."
•Chapter 96 Cale treats Ron from the mermaid poison.
•Chapter 97 Laziness Raises Concern •Chapter 101 Raon Reveal To Dark Elves
•Chapter 124 "Shouldn't You Blow Up?"
•Chapter 130 Asian Parent! Raon
•Chapter 133 Everyone In The New Villa
•Chapter 140 Big Shots Meeting
•Chapter 147 "Pretended to be trash"
•Chapter 163 Sleeping with Raon
•Chapter 168 Sick Raon!
•Chapter 170 Meeting World Tree Elves
•Chapter 174-175 Cale messing with Clopeh
•Chapter 176 Cale, whose favorite way of working out was breathing.
•Chapter 177 EAT APPLE PIES
•Chapter 178 “I told you I'm okay.”
“I will guard you.”
“I will protect you!”
“I'm going to surround the enemies with poison.”
“I'm going to cover their sights with fog.”
•Chapter 185 Worried Prince
•Chapter 190 Shopping Spree
•Chapter 195 Cale vs Old Nobles
•Chapter 196 Holding Up Shield For 3 Days
•Chapter 197 HUG (Choi + Cale)
•Chapter 198 “You are not the one who will create a legend. That role is already reserved for someone else.”
•Chapter 206 “If I make a mistake, it will be that I accidentally killed them. There will be no other types of mistakes.”
•Chapter 207 “Please just make it so I can make sure the soldiers have time to eat.”
•Chapter 208 Clopeh's New Religion •Chapter 209 Every1 trynna feed Cale •Chapter 232 “You seem to be someone who is quite loved.
•Chapter 235 Adressing Insecurities •Chapter 252 Ron Hearing About 3 Days
•Chapter 258 Immobilized In Bed
•Chapter 259 “Goldie! Why are you saying something that’ll make me want to destroy the world?”
•Chapter 262" Well, you can say that he l almost died but came back to life."
•Chapter 264 HUG (Cale + Alberu)
‘Both you and I have experienced it once. That is why we cannot let it happen again. This is our last house. You know that, right?’ -Ron Molan
•Chapter 285" Human! Didn't you say that you would only use a little bit of your power? Are you trying to collapse again ?!"
•Chapter 269 The reason Cale never explains anything
•Chapter 291 Raon Meet Sr Rex + Billos •Chapter 292" Imma go put out the fire i made "+ Two-man Sick Patient Act
•Chapter 306 Sleep Talking
•Chapter 309" You fucking moron: "
•Chapter 310 Gluttony
•Chapter 320" That can't all be possibly true, right?” “Mhm, that's true. ""Excuse me? "+ Hide And Seek
•Chapter 333 WS Meeting
•Chapter 335 “Don’t you dare touch my children.”
•Chapter 346 Bud Ilis, barely a day after knowing Cale, "My friend, you're such a good person :"
•Chapter 353 FEELS
•Chapter 354 "Why is only one day's worth of food gone?"
•Chapter 359 "Cale Henituse, this-" "it's fine for me."
•Chapter 362 Taking a call looking drunk
•Chapter 368 Cale Feeding Raon + CHOI HAN'S PAST REVEAL
•Chapter 391 Bud Meets Cloph
•Chapter 394-395 ‘Kim Rok Soo, it’s not your fault.’ <You were the one who was supposed to die.>
•Chapter 402 "Because I think you will use the power if things look bad : "We've had to watch you be in pain like that over and over!"
•Chapter 414 "Apparently, Choi Han woke up while shouting, 'Kim Rok Soo!' Human, do you know who Kim Rok Soo is? "
•Chapter 423 "..Why am I crying? I'm not sad."
•Chapter 424 Kim Rok Soo Meet Choi Han
•Chapter 425 "Oh, by the way, the original owner of your body is living well too. He said he is happy."
•Chapter 432 "It looks like the Henituse household will become at least a Marquis and at maximum a Duke household." + "Do you want to become thw territory lord?"
•Chapter 433 Clopeh + Witira vs Farmer! Cale & Territory Lord Hot Potato
•Chapter 434 Parental Concern
•Chapter 435 Sworn Brotherhood
•Chapter 437 Trash of The Duke's Family
•Chapter 447 Breaking out of illusion
•Chapter 456 Ron + Beacrox Homecoming
•Chapter 460 “It is not the Henituse County anymore. It is the Henituse Duchy now."
•Chapter 463 “Cale-nim, are you planning on sacrificing yourself again? "
•Chapter 470" LaNgUaGe, siX-yEaR oLd "
•Chapter 475" Honestly speaking, Alberu Crossman cherished the current Cale Henituse .. "
•Chapter 478 DHB Joins The Party •Chapter 481" The God of Death cherishes heroes, but is willing to sacrifice a few to save the masses. ""It looks like it is you this time. “
•Chapter 483 “Cale-nim ,. Did the God of Death do something?”
•Chapter 485 think your ancestor was a criminal?"
•Chapter 487 Concerned! Alberu on Cale's involvement with GoD
•Chapter 490 Meet Princess Jopis
•Chapter 494 “really seemed to have made a deal with Someone who is worse than the Demonic race.”
•Chapter 500 Guardian Knight fanboys
•Chapter 501 Back To The Other World + Cale faints after getting captured by Fake World Tree
•Chapter 502 Choi + Raon goes feral •Chapter 503-505 Aluding to 💖🔪
•Chapter 507“You showed our young master-nim despair. You shouldn't have done that."
•Chapter 515" Hand your blood over to us. No, serve it to us."
•Chapter 524".You are someone who has received the will of a god"
•Chapter 525 Conspiracy Theorist! WS •Chapter 527"Do you have any intentions of making the White Star's comments come true?"
•Chapter 528 GoD better watch out for one" innocent "swordsman + baby dragon lord" Cale Henituse, what do you think? Have you thought about it yet? I want to quickly drink your blood."
•Chapter 530 Best Actor goes to.Naru! Cale
•Chapter 535"Please give the order to kill Cale Henituse right away :, Cale Henituse said.
•Chapter 540 Choi + Raon vs WS's first name + face
•Chapter 554 "Cale had instantly fallen into darkness." "There's only one reason that a VoW of death would be cut. "That means that the other person is dead"
•Chapter 555 Sealed God's test start
•Chapter 556 "Cale's eyes teared up at that moment"
•Chapter 580 Cloppeh Sekka 2.0
•Chapter 582 Lee Soo Hyuk Reunion •Chapter 587 Ron continue to scare Alberu
•Chapter 589 <Become the sun.>
•Chapter 603 “It feels like someone is trying to pull my heart out.”
•Chapter 605 "Are you still thinking about protecting others in your current situation?"
•Chapter 615 Beacrox switches to black gloves
•Chapter 616 Caleism spreads to Earth 2
•Chapter 618 Truth Revealed to LSH
•Chapter 620 Thanking SG
•Chapter 622 SG's Test Completed
•Chapter 623 Visiting The Henituse Duchy
•Chapter 624 Basen thinks Cale wants him to become the territory lord because he thinks he's gonna die.
•Chapter 627 Reuniting with dad
•Chapter 628 Cale Fanbois
•Chapter 630 Cale in the capital + Cale fanclub
•Chapter 631 Dragon Master Cale
•Chapter 634 Motherhens about Cale's health
•Chapter 637 "Dragons." "..Ah. They're Dragons." "Nod nod. Bud just decided not to think about Cale's group anymore."
•Chapter 640 "We need to destroy everyone who messes with our kids." “I’m not going to let you mess with my noona and my hyung. I will destroy everything.”
•Chapter 646 Cale uses "Instant" (REALLY EMOTIONAL)
•Chapter 647 "Raon could never forget the arms that carried him and took him out of that cave."
•Chapter 648 "In the future, the person who gathered all these different races together would be called the beginning and the end of everything. But that person, Cale Henituse, was currently lying on a bed unable to open his eyes."
•Chapter 649 The dragon half-blood <\\3...
•Chapter 635 alternative world KRS meets Choi Han
•Chapter 655-657 The OG Cale
•Chapter 658 "Goldie gramps! Pretend to be dead!"
•Chapter 660-661 Repairing Cale's plate
•Chapter 661 Everyone thinks Cale is visiting his "mother's" grave cause he might die
•Chapter 662 Drew's diary
•Chapter 664 The red tree and young drew
•Chapter 665 “Choi Han, do you want to try dying once?”
•Chapter 670-671 Cale finds out he has to stab himself in the heart aka meeting with the world tree
•Chapter 676 "Alberu was saying that the thief who stole Taerang was named ‘Choi Jung Gun.’"
•Chapter 678 Hilsman is sus
•Chapter 679 “Capture Deruth Henituse!”
•Chapter 681 CALE BITCH SLAPPED WHITE STAR
•Chapter 683 Cale uses Blood-Drenched rock
•Chapter 685 Cale tells White Star he's only been in that world for 2 years + Cale imprisoned white thing
•Chapter 687 “I finally think that my life is a bit precious.”
•Chapter 693 < The great and mighty hero did not die even when his heart was stabbed. >
•Chapter 695 "Why the hell would Alberu faint?" -bastard who always faints + they beat unranked monster
•Chapter 696-697 Cale gets interrogated
•Chapter 699 Entering the Sealed God's Temple
•Chapter 704 "Cale is saying that he is currently a ghost."
•Chapter 707 Clopeh's crazy talk ensues misunderstandings
•Chapter 710 Test Eruhaben thinks Cale and Alberu are part of the divine race
•Chapter 713 Cute Mary only believes it's actually Cale when he talks about his slacker life
•Chapter 715 SG Pretends to be Cale and makes it look like the others are ganging up on Cale
•Chapter 716 SEALED GOD WAS THE FIRST HUNTER??
•Chapter 718 "He had lost his family at a young age, but the day that he had lost his second family had returned as an illusion."
•Chapter 719 seventeen year old KRS
•Chapter 720 younger KRS's home life <\\3
•Chapter 726 the hunter targeting KRS is revealed
•Chapter 727 Choi Jung Gun finds out about Cale
•Chapter 730 "Find the Red Blood"???
•Chapter 739 ALBERU'S MOM WAS KILLED BY A HUNTER???
•Chapter 744 'Dodam Miru" <\3
Actually, this is something that makes the novel attractive in the first place. After all, in every isekai I’ve read, the protagonist already knows everything.
While there are plot twists and all, usually they’ve already read the entire novel, played the complete game, etc.
TCF is special in that regard ♡( ◡‿◡ )
Why did anyone think he did?
[Note: There will be SPOILERS about the first part of TCF so if you haven't finished the first part or you don't want spoilers, I suggest you don't continue. Thanks!]
When I first read the novel, the most common mistake new readers often make was they all thought that Cale is omniscient. Yeah, I saw the comments. There were a lot.
I think, once again, it's because of how in most KR novels and manhwa, the main character usually knows the whole story of a novel they read or a game they played before they transmigrate to another world. They don't have all the details but it's more than what Kim Rok Soo knows.
Because that's the thing. The difference is that Kim Rok Soo doesn't know the whole story. In fact, he only read up until five volumes of "The Birth of a Hero" before he transmigrated in another world.
He, like us, doesn't know how the story ends.
I might be getting repetitive but the reason why I love TCF is because the author, Yoo Ryeo Han, doesn't share everything to us right off the bat.
They never info dump us with the whole story about how OG Cale actually made a deal with the God of Death, about Kim Rok Soo's past as an ability user, about Choi Jung Soo, and about the existence of the White Star. Instead, all these plot points are gradually revealed later in the story.
And I honestly prefer it like this. This way, we can only guess what will happen next. It's not a boring story but a mysterious one because there's something we won't expect.
The story starts with Kim Rok Soo opening his eyes in another world.
We are never completely told what Kim Rok Soo read before he transmigrated. The most he tells us is a summary and a few details here and there at the start of the novel.
We only find out more by experiencing it through Cale's point of view. We read his thoughts about the novel. And we follow him in his journey around the Eastern and Western continents.
But as mentioned at the beginning, he doesn't know how The Birth of a Hero ends. His knowledge stops at the end of volume five. Everything else depends on him.
But even before the war happens, there are already some hints that Cale doesn't actually have all the information he needs. He is not fully equipped with everything about the book. He, like us, is in the dark about certain factors that can affect his goals.
When the shield was first mentioned, Cale questioned why no one took it.
'No wonder nobody ended up taking control of it. But then why would the author mention something that could be useful but was never actually taken by anybody?’
- Chapter 11: Picked It Up
It's odd because it's found in the territory where Choi Han appears in the beginning of the story. Yet from volume one to volume five, not a single soul knew of its existence.
It's the first ancient power he gets that he finds out because he read the book and he's the only one who knows about it. He doesn't know why it's there nor does he question it any further. His only goal was to get it.
It's only when the Glutton Priestess told him about her past that he finally gets the bigger picture.
The fact that this tidbit was shrugged off by Cale, and probably some readers, as something unimportant only to find out later in the story about its huge connection to the original White Star is just insane. And it's the reason why the books he read aren't informative at all. Because why did it leave out this piece of information if they want him to use it to save their world?
He didn't even know a single thing about the current White Star at the start of the story and here is a random ancient power sitting prettily in the Henituse territory that actually has a connection to the same guy Cale Barrow wants to imitate. He was utterly clueless like the rest of us.
I'm not gonna lie, I was shaking my head by how dumbfounded I was when I first read the novel. I was questioning everything I read in the early chapters, thinking if there's something else that I didn't notice (there were a lot actually).
The fact that the author gives us only a little info about the tree where the shield was found and its connection to the other ancient powers only solidified my respect by how good the author is at hiding this plot until the big reveal.
‘The novel didn’t say which of the divine items they brought.’
If Cale knew what the divine item was, he would be able to get one step closer to the identity of the secret organization. Unfortunately, the novel only described how the Wolf Tribe became weak because of the divine item. He had no way to determine the identity of the secret organization.
- Chapter 32: You
When Cale sends Choi Han to find Rosalyn and Lock, Choi Han returns with Lock who was about to transform into his berserk mode.
Later, Choi Han explains what happened and Cale realizes that a lot of things changed compared to what happened in the book. For one, Lock did not hide and fought back against Arm. Another is instead of assassins, the ones that appeared are official members.
For some, including me, this can be excused because of Cale's actions. He's a new variable to the story and thus, he ends up changing a lot of scenarios that happened in the story.
But, thinking about it, this is the only thing that is completely different from what happened in the books. Everything else is the same aside from when Cale is actively doing something like becoming a guardian to three kids or getting the ancient powers that originally belongs to someone else. Unless Cale acts, nothing actually changes.
There's the bombing at the plaza that also changed but that can still be excused as Cale ruining Arm's movements early on and them revising their plans.
Lock however, is not influenced by Cale. He could've stayed hidden just like in the book but in this case, he didn't. Arm could've sent assassins but they didn't. There is no reason for them to change from assassins to official members. Plus, instead of killing all of them, the wolf children survived.
This is not because of Cale.
So...does that mean that the book he read is not completely reliable?
Pretty much, yeah. Which already answers the question if he knows everything like a cliche main character does. No, he doesn't know everything. And the books he read can be taken as a guidebook but an incomplete one with a few mistakes here and there.
Let me remind you that this happened before the war started and there's already something Cale doesn't know or expect.
[Side note: I only realized this whole bit about the Wolf Tribe while reading a freaking reaction fic. If I had not read that fic, I wouldn't even realize how weird this one is. Am I dumb? Don't answer that.]
Another reason why Cale is not omniscient even though he looks and acts like it, is because he didn't find out about the White Star until the war against Arm and the Indomitable Alliance.
This man is like a god to his followers and allies and not a single person in Cale's group and even outside of it knows about him. Not even Ron, who has his whole family annihilated and later loses his arm in the process, knows about him.
Again, the five volumes of The Birth of a Hero never mentions this elusive White Star. The only reason he knows about this guy is through interrogation and torture. So when he finally appears in the Mogoru Empire, all Cale felt was anger and fear.
Because this unexpected factor is dangerous.
Cale knows they're completely unprepared to face this new player in the game. Eruhaben, an ancient dragon, was getting his ass kicked by this man who suddenly appeared out of nowhere and the dragon even told them to run. What everyone considers a very strong existence in this world is telling them that there's no hope in defeating him.
And the most shocking out of all this is that Cale never expected how the White Star knows that Cale and Choi Han have their "time warped for them". He knows something about Cale just by looking at him.
So the books by this point are basically useless and he has to rely on himself and others to plan ahead of time. He works extremely hard for it.
He has to dig information using his Record to find out about White Star. He has to talk to the World Tree to get the weapon to use against the White Star. He has to talk to Sheritt to know more about the White Star and his curse. And he has to find out from OG Cale himself on how to finally kill the White Star.
It took the whole book to finally defeat him.
And none of these are mentioned in the books he read.
So Cale, in conclusion, does not know everything like what some readers once complained about. He has some pieces of the puzzle but it's like if he needs a hundred pieces to complete the puzzle and he only has ten, then he's never gonna complete it.
He knew about the first five volumes and the rest were just him and his allies' hard work. It's pretty much why he's so stressed in the whole book, zooming around the two continents just to look for the White Star's weakness while also juggling different problems like more wars or the God of Despair or finding the earth attribute the White Star needs.
So yeah. Don't judge a book by the first few chapters and expect to know everything.
end notes:
Alberu better give him his slacker life when this story ends.
Nelan Barrow and the God of Death really made him work for it.
I'm not gonna lie, I want someone (Cale) to kidnap Choi Jung Gun and interrogate him about why the heck he didn't explain the important bits in his "guidebook" and why the whole thing about the wolf tribe became different from what was written. He could've at least mentioned what the secret organization's name is but he left it to Cale instead. It's just the name, CJG. Why are you hiding it? Is Choi Han in the books really that slow or what? If you want someone to save your world, at least send more information like the name of the secret organization. You talked about the Indestructible Shield's location but can't spell Arm? Shame on you, CJG.
If it wasn't KRS that was transmigrated and it's just a random normal person, that person would've died even before meeting the White Star.
Or maybe Nelan Barrow just wants to be an author like Yoo Ryeo Han and be all mysterious about it.