#same with both og! and krs! Cales

[forgetme-eternally-blissfully]

Taking them apart is the best!! It's easy for me to look back at them with context now but I still love analyzing... just prepare for all your expectations to be rocked at some point.

Ehhh I think you should be fine even though you read that. Usually fics tend to get Cale's inner dialogue wrong (bc he's so.................). And the whole self-sacrifice thing... you'll understand as the novel progresses. Let's just say that, well, it's complicated? It's the reason behind why Cale is so...... hard to write.

OK. The reason I decided to finally read TCF was that someone promised me the main character wasn't actually a typical "blank slate for the reader, doesn't acknowledge their past or personality, no real connection to their original world" isekai protagonist.

Because that's the thing I dislike the most about a lot of isekai stories! And part of why I got hooked on ORV was the hints we got early on that Kim Dokja had his own traumatic history that would be explored in the story! (Though I know you can argue ORV isn't a true isekai, it's close enough for my point). The main reason I end up losing interest in a lot of isekai stories I start is that I get so frustrated with the blank slate protagonist.

So I was promised Kim Rok Soo/Cale Henituse wasn't that kind of protagonist, but uhhh. This. Is not very promising.

But!! It's only chapter one! Kim Dokja started looking like a blank slate at first too! I have been promised! I will hold on to hope!

On another note, very interesting to have a protagonist that has a core trait being avoiding pain and death. Maybe we can have a sensible protagonist that isn't self-sacrificing for once?

(Doubt doubt doubt doubt doubt)

[blueteller]

in the battle at the empire, they said that the white star was 20 years old but with old eyes (or sumn) doesnt that mean that krs was supposed to be cale henituse’s age if his body wasnt stolen ???

Ah, I see what the issue is... it's the timeline, right? How could Kim Rok Soo's original body be only 20, when he himself is already 36 years old?

(Unless you just mean, "wow they were peers!" To that I say: well... yeah. That's why my main theory is that OG KRS's body and OG Cale were meant to be 1st cousins on Jour Thames' side of the family.)

Here's how I understand it. There are two separate timelines we need to consider: Nameless 1, and Earth 1.

First, we have the date when KRS!Cale transmigrated: 29th of March ("third month of the year", to be exact, but unless we're told otherwise, that just means March) in year 781 of Felix Calendar. Since OG Cale's body is eighteen at this point, and him and OG KRS's body are the same age (20 years old 2 years in the future), let's assume that means they were both born in 763. Since we don't know the timeline on Earth 1, let's make the date of KRS's birth year X.

So, it looks like KRS was meant to be born in 763 on Nameless 1, same as Cale. Then he transmigrated 36 years later, on date X+36 according to Earth 1, yet only 18 years passed on Nameless 1. How is that possible? There are 2 reasons why the timelines don't match.

Reason number 1: time canonically passes differently between some worlds. When Cale was forced into the Sealed God's Test on Earth 2, time passed faster on Nameless 1 (and Alberu made that even more confusing by spending more time on Earth 2 than should be possible via dream logic). So we can't assume time passes at the same in different worlds rate at all

Yes, I know that in the side-stories, OG Cale implied that 2 years passed on both Nameless 1 and Earth 1. But that doesn't meat it was always that way: time is weird where multiverse is concerned. Think of Narnia rules; you never know just how much time passed on the other side. There is no reason to assume it would always need to follow the same rate.

And reason number 2: OG Cale messed up the timeline even more by time-traveling. If we do the math, it would mean that it was year 803 when OG Cale almost died on a battlefield at 40 years old, making KRS's age of 36 even more confusing, because that would make him still 4 years younger than OG Cale, instead of the same age.

It could also be that KRS did not get immediately re-born after being kicked out from his previous body by the White Star. So maybe he "died" on Nameless 1 on year X-4, according to Earth 1's calendar, spent 4 years in limbo, and then was finally born in Korea. And then OG Cale rewound time from on Nameless 1 from year 803 to 781 again.

Conclusion: TIME IN MULTIVERSE IS WEIRD (ESPECIALLY WITH TIME TRAVEL MIXED INTO IT), DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT 😂

[slackerlifewhere]

Cale Henituse and Kim Rok Soo

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

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 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

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.

Conclusion

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.

[weirdmultishipper]

Unpopular opinion(?): Deruth Henituse

Let's all face it: Deuth wasn't a bad father to Og!Cale. He was millions of times better than a lot of fictional fathers and I wholeheartedly agree with that. ദ്ദി（• ˕ •マ.ᐟ

Unpopular opinion: That's doesn't mean I have to like him. (¬⤙¬ )

And I'm all for different opinions. People can view one thing in various different ways, and that's perfectly understandable! I don't like Deruth and that's mine.

Deruth was-no, is a coward. The lovely author of the novel has made it pretty clear. And I don't hate him for it. Being a coward is not a sin, but neglecting your son is.

Like b*tch, most fanfictions make you a better father than you are just because your wife was dead like WTF?!?! Your son's mom was dead too REMEMBER THAT?!?! 눈_눈

And I'm not against Cale and Deruth having a good relationship or those fanfics that basically erase Deruth's wrongdoing because to be honest, I enjoy them too. It's much easier to pretend Deruth was a good father and that our lovely little Og!Cale had a wonderful life than look at canon. o(TヘTo)

Let's recap: Deruth was a decent father until Jour died. Then he went into a deep depression of which Cale tried his bestest to pull his father out of. We know Cale basically ignored his own sorrow just to take care of his father AND the count duties his father was ignoring at the same time. While there is nothing wrong with grieving as losing Jour was very hard for Deruth, couldn't he have at least put SOME effort into assigning someone efficient to handle his duties so 7-year-old Cale didn't have to?

While on the topic of grieving, Deruth not only failed his duties as a count but as a father. I personally have no experience with this, but I had a friend with a dead mother. Even though her father must've been sad too, he put in effort to take care of her and her sister, send them to school, make money, manage the household and everything. Fathers and mothers push aside their sorrow every day to do the bast they can for their children. Deruth, on the other hand, was too much of a fool to do any of that.

Deruth wasn't the only one who lost Jour, after all. Cale lost his mother. The one who gave birth to him, raised him, hugged him, told her all his secrets, whom did the same in return, and was the only other person with the same bright and beautiful hair that he had.

And he could've turned around after a few weeks and fixed everything up and let both him and Cale heal with each other. But NOOOO~ He had to leave his only cute, lovely, wonderful, but most of all GRIEVING son all alone in a cold and lonely mansion for vacation. Like he could've at least taken him along so they could grieve together? But NOOOO~ Cale looks too much like his dead wife and that's so iMpOsSiBle~ ～(　TロT)σ

But he fixed that? How? By marrying the woman on the spot! Bringing in a new countess when no one but him got over the old one and turning up all the dark shades of sorrow into wedding curtains before Cale even knew what was happening! (°ロ°)

But I also know he had good intentions. Being the count and all, he probably knew marrying Violan would mean she could help her with the household. Maybe he also thought that Cale would immediately think of her as his mother.

Now, him falling in love wasn't a sin and Violan is an amazing woman😍, but I think he undermined his son's sorrow just because he found a reason to move on from Jour.😔

BTW, Violan, Basen, and Lily are amazing. They're one of my most fave fictional families and no one can tell me otherwise. Go them! q(≧▽≦q)

And as the years go by, our smart Cale realizes that the vassals and the collateral family are coming after Violan and Basen and decided to throw away his life and soul all for his father's picturesque perfect family; just so that coward can be happy.

And then KRS!Cale comes along (also love him, go my baby make fires 🔥 and steal MONAH!!! 🫰💰💵) and suddenly, Deruth thinks Cale is all "fixed" and "not broken" so he can finally reach out to his son, only it's NOT HIS SON ANYMORE!!! Like, he had over 10 years even after marrying Violan to reach out to him but ?????

But since there are no implications of him raising a hand against Cale, I don't hate him and wish for his death like another certain protagonist's father (I'm looking at you, Kim Dokja's 'father'), but that doesn't mean I can just forgive and forget all of this, okay?

Yes, he let Cale waste his life away because he couldn't even protect the new family member that he brought into the family HIMSELF as the count, so Cale had to do it himself. And from what I can infer, when the Choi Han incident happened in TBoaH, he didn't even show up or visit him even though we know Cale would fight the damn gods if it were the other way around. He did provide Cale with the best treatment and kept an eye on him, but couldn't bear to face him.

So in conclusion: I don't really hate Deruth, but please for the love of peace, family, and chaos DON'T convince me to like him one bit.

[sadlynotthevoid]

I was thinking on how obsessed I am with this side character (Og!Cale, my beloved) who is so interesting but has so little appearances that, if not for the role he plays on the plot, he could be classified as an extra—

But then that reminded me about Miss Not So Sidekick, and now I want a crossover with this two.

I mean, og!Cale in that crack fantasy world. I mean, an AU where both Tboah and Mnss worlds are the same. I mean, an AU where Lcf is kind of happening but Krs in his og boddy and og Cale is still around.

I don't really care. I just need og!Cale to interact with this bunch of absolute weirdos.

I need him to meet Latte and befriend her. To eat popcorn together and witness whatever mayhem the main cast is going through.

I need him to meet Ibelin and call her out on her bs. Just after he had messed with her, of course.

I need him to meet that bl loving princess and become secret book buddies. So what if she has her genre preferences? He finally has someone to talk with about the books he reads without ruining his act.

I need Arwin to find Latte and Og!Cale trying to be the peanut gallery and not getting jealous because the first thing he hears him say is something like "the duke's looks are most of my appeal, but his personality is so bad I just want to smash his face with a chair". Okay, so Latte's friend is not a rival. Got it.

I want Og!Cale to compete against Peridot in every chance he gets. And win. Just because he doesn't like her and sje gives him the jibbies. Trying to make her break character is his new hobby. Then she pisses him off.

I want both casts to clash together for a bit and Og!Cale pretending it has nothing to do with him.

I want Choi Han and Kenneth to meet each other and have mutual hate at first sight.

I want Og!Cale to end either with Rondemio or his sister. The princess wins in both cases.

[unluckycactus]

Hey Cacti, who do you think wears it better? Soohyun or OgCale (og body)?

1) glasses

2) braid

3) fox spirit/youkai make up

Oh god, that's such an interesting question. Thank you‼️

I would say it kind of depends on which state OgCale's body is. Like. Whether or not it is in the build/shape it originally was before KRS!Cale turned it into this willowy, frail-looking and androgynous man.

I will answer based on both scenarios 💕 and elaborate on why below.

If ogCale's body is in the current shape KRS!Cale turned it into

1) Glasses - Former Body Wins

Reasons: matter of preferences, but I believe men with long hair wear glasses better. A slender young-man with long hair and glasses is the best 🤌🏻 bonus point if they wear a ponytail, side ponytail or a rat tail.

2) Braid - Former Body Wins

Reasons: more hair, therefore more variety of braids and hairstyles to try.

3) Fox spirit makeup - Soohyun

Reasons: whether it is art, make-up, fashion, etc. contrast is the most important thing!

Kitsune makeup is mostly red, so there's barely contrast with the og body, especially the long-haired version.

Soohyun would wear it better because of his soft color palette. Plus, his shade of brown rocks colors like red way better.

If ogCale's body is in its original shape:

1) Glasses - Former body

Reasons: I'll be real, the original body still has a fair shot even if he doesn't have long hair. Imagine his short hair swept back with the glasses, ugh 😩 totally its win. And sunglasses would look great on it too. Tinted shades... omg

Soohyun would look great too, ofc. But i think he'd give off this... idol photocard vibe. Like, people know these aren't prescription glasses lolol

2) Braid

Reasons: the only advantage the og body could have is now lost. ogCale's body hair is even shorter than KSH's, so it can (realistically) only wear two, maybe three types of braids at best.

Soohyun has the ethereal looks cheat, and I think hair accessories would overall be better on him too.

3) Fox make-up

Reasons: same as the ones explained for the former scenario

And yeah, that'd be it!

This was so fun, thank you sm for the ask‼️ 💕

[youngyoo-apologist]

I really like it when OG!Cale fanfics are about him in Earth 1, and fanfics where both he and KRS get to be happy

Cause like I think it’s really important that KRS is still in the Roan Kingdom. Being in the Roan kingdom was good for him, he got family, he got friends, he was happy there. Same thing with OG!Cale and Earth One, they’re both the happiest they can be.

I personally don’t really enjoy when OG!Cale’s achievements are all the same as KRS’s, simply cause I don’t think that would happen! At most I think Cale would get his mother’s ancient power, but when it comes to the other ancient powers I don’t even think he’d try and get them. If anything, I believe he would be more focused on protecting his family and territory + preparing for the war and making connections with people who could help him.

I think with OG!Cale, he’d be a lot more straightforward with things especially depending on the information he knows. Unlike KRS who doesn’t plan to get involved(but does anyway, because he’s that kind of foolish(affectionate) man who thinks he will actually have a slacker life), I think he would involve himself to an extent and where he sees necessary, but his priorities are with protecting his home.

Also, I dont like it when KRS completely disappears! He’s so important to this story no matter what !!! It makes me sad when I see OG Cale fics and they don’t talk abt KRS like I know no one is obligated to write abt him but I can’t help but wonder about Kim Roksoo, he would be unhappy as team leader on earth one… no matter how much I think about it, he’s lost his hyungs and that experience stuck with him FOREVER. He won’t get close to anyone again and it’s really sad:(

Being Cale Henituse was a new chance for Kim Roksoo to love again, to be happy again, and I think that even if he can’t be Cale Henituse, he also deserve to find happiness one way or another.

Idk I just really like it when TCF fanfics talk about both earth one and roan, cause I think both worlds are so important. For my fanfic specifically I wanted to create a scenario where both KRS and OG!Cale could go to the other world, but still have a chance in their own since that’s something I always wanted.

KRS being able to save his friends on earth, and meet the people he cares about in Cale’s world, and Cale being able to meet Team One and see his reincarnated mother while also being with the rest of his family and friends in his world. That’s what I had in mind while writing my fic, they both deserve happiness and to have their own achievements and stories I think

[i-might-be-a-simp]

I need your opinion, do you think Ron knew that Cale was no longer the same person?

I was stalking the fandom (as usual) and I saw a comment, by who I assume to be a new reader, wondering how Ron would react finding out Cale was actually KRS, that the child he watched grow wasn't actually the man he believes and it made me think a bit.

When I read tcf the first time, one of the things I was most curious about was all the odd looks Cale got in the first few chapters, and my biggest question was, surely a very sharp and experienced assassin who knew the know-hows of blending into different crowds would have immediately noticed that "Young master" was no longer the same person.

I'm sure you caught this too when reading, but there were many moments when Ron's expression turned odd after Cale did or said something.

Ron the whole first chapter:

It starts by something he dismisses, such as Cale waking up immediately after Ron calls out to him, on the very first attempt. But as the chapter progresses, Ron gets more and more intrigued.

He notices how Cale says thanks after he receives water and when servants dress him. Along with his other odd actions, asking the date, repeating his own name, asking to go to the study, not breaking things etc.

And then finally, Ron gives him the ultimate test, the lemon tea. I think this was his way of confirming that Cale had changed. It proved to me Ron was definitely onto something.

Now this is where I need your opinion. From my interpretation of Ron's character, yes he "loved" ogCale or held at least a bit of affection for him. Let me pull up some receipts:

^(sorry for light mode)

Although Ron treated him like his grandson he did not think Cale had a soft spot for him nor that he treated him like a person and never really took much interest in him aside from his duties.

And while I was doing a deep-dive I went on the wiki and saw this.

So Ron saw ogCale, his situation and therefore pitied him, yet he thought of him as a helpless impertinent puppy, which is why he did not have much issue with following Beacrox who wished to leave with Choi Han in BOAH. But only after Cale changed is when he begin to be interested.

Now the question is, was the lemon tea experiment he did, just to test whether Cale had become aware of Ron's true identity, or was it to confirm Cale was a changed person entirely???

Personally I think it was both, and that Ron was aware from the very beginning. However this is where I am conflicted, because the idea of Ron watching that small boy become so big and smart is so satisfying to me, because the author wanted to paint this as a "cale finally stopped pretending to be a dumb oblivious trash and started to take matters into his hand" like it was all a plan cale had to hide his powers and get stronger in secret while acting unsuspecting. This is what the public believes and it sounds very cool but... hmm I wish we got a chapter focusing more on Ron's feelings.

Like I am aware he loves Cale very much and especially after getting the new arm he started to feel a sense of loyalty for Cale he didn't have before but the fact that he was one of the few people og Cale was very close with since he was very young, the fact that a whole new person was in the body is kind of not addressed in its full concept, this transition from no interest to loyalty was also a transition from og cale to krs cale so I wish we got more on it.

Thanks for reading my ramble. I love them.

[thegradus2]

Im having modern day au alver x ogcale thoughts :,)

The setting is sort of like a earth 1’s korea except the catalysm happened waaaaay before like decades before, so fighting the monsters is way easier and more normal tho its still considered really hard and dangerous work (barely any deaths anymore but injuries are p common)

The soos all work at the company together. Cale (22 yrs old) is estranged from his family and also works at the company (hes happy to watch his little brother and little sister succeed from afar). Cale and kim rok soo constantly get compared bc theyre both serious and hard workers who tell people all the time that they wanna quit/slack off (they will never actually quit or slack off). Bc cale isnt actually in his familys life anymore he doesnt need to pretend to be trash and hes smiley like when hes krs in canon

Bc kim rok soo isnt as traumatized as in canon from losing his only friends he manages to make more friends (taylor sten, cage, eruhaben, he obvs manages to find his kids, choi han is also here and not as traumatized he just got kidnapped by monsters for like 10 years and is back home now, the whale tribe the wolf tribe the jungle queen the- you get the point. Kim rok soo is basically the companys information network at this point)

Idk if i should make krs and the other soos 36 etc still or if i should make them younger? (Like in late twenties, just a little older than when the soos minus krs died in the og timeline). In any case somehow its still cale nagging krs abt staying healthy and eating well and exercising, not the other way around

Maybe cale still has his adopted niece (aka reincarnated mom but ig he doesnt know that in this au)??

Alver (27 yrs old) has inherited his fathers trillion won company and is a repressed workaholic CEO (or maybe his father has a rlly succesful company and alver has become rlly succesful in politics instead?? Tho what ive seen the rlly succesful companies’ heirs in korea are lowkey treated with the same importance as a politician so it doesnt rlly matter)

Tasha pressures alver into taking 1 single day off. He obliges and almost gets assassinated by the mob (the white stars gang, and yes they do have powers). They decide to hire alver a specialized bodyguard. Cue the company: cale gets chosen as a guard while a few others (including kim rok soo) work on figuring out how to take out the white stars little group

Idk what power to give cale yet 👀 i wanna say either smth to do with time or smth to do with plants BUT i can also just give him both?? Or a power that combines the two?? I will look up symbolism to decide later lol

ANYWAY smiley bodyguard cale x repressed ceo alver. Cale falls first alver falls harder. Cale surprising alver with loyalty and cunning and with how he goes out of his way to take hits meant for alver. Alver being perfect and cale doing his best to goad alver into letting go of that mask every moment theyre alone

Multiple specific scenes im thinking:

- alver is goaded into taking a day off by tasha again a few months after the assassination attempt, this time with cale. They go to a café and have cutesy talks together (cale is just constantly being glib trying to trip alver up while alver is annoyed and into it)

- alver has to go to a high-end event. Cale comes with as his bodyguard/date (the date part is just a cover but they both wish it was real). They meet basen who is in complete and utter shock trying to hide it (he will do a full report back to the henituse family later)

- i need the company to go to a karaoke bar every friday bc i love karaoke. Cale sort of likes it and puts up minimal resistance every time. Kim rok soo does NOT want to go but he ends up napping the whole time every friday so its not that bad. During his bodyguard job with alver cale has to decline a few times. The company manages to wrangle cale into just bringing alver with him to karaoke (the repressed ceo of a trillion won company going to a shitty karaoke bar with a bunch of rowdy office workers/sort-of-soldiers is funny to me)

- at some point it gets serious and cale takes a bullet or otherwise rlly damaging attack that was meant for alver. He has to go to the hospital and alver realizes that oh shit its not a good idea to develop feelings for someone whos job it is to take bullets for you. And then he realizes of shit i developed feelings wtf??? And then he thinks i should stop feeling this way. And then he looks at cale again, whos passed out in the hospital bed and hes like im not gonna be able to stop feeling this way, am i. Fuck. Shit. Damnit

- they have a summer wedding 🥰

- neither of them are even involved w the white star mob. They just suddenly get a call from krs like “hi. I did the job. The others want me to tell you that im in the hospital btw.” Cale and alver visit him in the hospital and cale comforts krs by saying “dw, one day youll have your farm with the other two idiots. One day. Maybe.”

- that one scene in adventure time with bonnie and marcy and bonnie leans against marcy and closes her eyes and is like “wake me up in like 20 minutes.” Them. Them. Them. Them-

- cale slowly connecting with his family after him and alver met basen at that one event. First its deruth just calling (most painful and awkward phone call in the world where deruth very obviously avoids talking abt anything important and cale is just too confused abt why hes calling to pick up on any of it.) Then basen and lily start texting him. Then lily just shows up at his house to visit. It all snowballs from there with just little awkward moments of the family trying to rebuild a bridge with cale and cale just being confused abt what they want from him and why theyd wanna see him (its bc they love him bc hes family and theyre worried abt him)

- eventually deruth visits his house in person. This is also the moment where they finally actually have The Emotions and deruth acknowledges the abandonment and emotional neglect and cale confesses it was all an act but that he also actually thought they really didnt want him and that he thought he was ruining his fathers perfect new family with his presence and that he got rid of himself bc he thought it would make them happier

- cale goes to therapy.png. The family rejoices. The company also rejoices. The company stops rejoicing when he starts badgering everyone else to also get therapy (they really really all need it)

- the confession happens after cale isnt alvers bodyguards anymore. Cale has managed to talk alver into meeting every week at alvers place and just talking or playing chess or whatever they feel like doing. Theyre just doing their weekly catching up and cale is being especially wonderful talking abt his kid and alver being especially sleepdeprived just kisses him right on the mouth. He immediately backtracks and tries to be glib abt it like “im so sorry i dont know what came over me-“ but cale just kisses him back and then the next scene they wake up no clothes in bed together. They have been pining for at least a year by this point they deserve this

- alver goes to therapy after they officially get together bc cale pushed him to. It actually helps a little??? He is absolute shit abt opening up but the therapist has some generic tips abt managing his overworking problem

- most of the groomsmen/bridesmaids (or groomsmaids??) are part of the company. Tasha is alvers maid of honor. Basen is cales groomsman or honor or however the hell thats called lol. Cales niece is the flower girl and raon is the ringbearer. Cales family is there and robbit and his wife are there too + obvs alvers maternal family.

- summer wedding

Ok this is all for now

[vinesandbones]

Meta: Og!Cale's Power

My headcanons/theories about the powers that previously Cale, currently Kim Rok Soo possibly have.

Warning: Spoilers

***

After our MC, Kim Rok Soo transmigrated into Cale Henituse's body, he found that he still have Record, but not Instant.

Both are brain-related abilities, so why did TCF!Cale only retains Record?

Headcanon: Cale Henituse's body already have Record (if not, something similar)

The novel repeatedly stated that Kim Rok Soo and Cale Henituse have the same eye colour. On the other hand, one of the first descriptions we have of White Star is that his eyes are different from TCF!Cale.

As a story, it would be more satisfying to tell the readers that WS and Cale have the same eyes, to later reveal that WS is possessing TCF!Cale's original body, but that was not done here.

So this repeated reminders about KRS and Cale's eyes might be leading to something else.

Later in the novel, they met Sheritt and this happened:

It might be just the novels' redundant writing style, but after Sheritt recognised Cale's ability, the next paragraph is about how old Sheritt is compared to Eruhaben. This could imply that this ability does exist a long time ago in that world.

Maybe, just like Drew/Jour who somehow developed her own Ancient Power-a power that disappeared from that world a long time ago-the same thing happened with Og!Cale.

At first, I thought Drew/Jour just picked up the Ancient Power somewhere, but then I realized the implication of TCF!Cale hearing her voice as the Annual Rings of Life.

The voices TCF!Cale hear from the Ancient Powers are the original owners instead of the last person who possessed it. I came to that conclusion because Choi Jung Gun is the voice that speak through the Dominating Aura, instead of the White Star who is the last person to possess it.

Skip ahead to the meeting between TCF!Cale and Og!Cale/KRS, and we have this passage of KRS reminiscing about his mother.

Draw a parallel between TCF!Cale in Chapter 2:

"Somehow, I remember this thing that I should have forgotten if I was normal!" Both those paragraphs read like the same thing to me.

That might mean that Og!Cale has Record(or something similar) since he was very young, perhaps he was even born with it.

Now, let's go back to the first time TCF!Cale let his allies know about Record, this is Ron's reaction.

Bud could tell that Record is not an Ancient Power because of his wind-attribute Ancient Power, but he never told anyone about this fact.

I might be reading too much into this, but Ron sounded like he did not think Record is an Ancient Power. So why didn't he make that completely reasonable but wrong assumption?

Maybe he remembered Og!Cale showing signs of having extraordinary memories since he was very young, young enough that he couldn't have possibly picked up an Ancient Power.

Bonus: Og!Cale is the one who turned back time, not the God of Death

I might be wrong, but nowhere did the novel specifies that the one who turned back time was the God of Death.

I've got nothing more to add to this, which is why this is in the bonus section.

***

Screenshots and all informations used are taken from the novel (eatapplepies version).

Screenshots taken from Chapter 358: Records (3) / Chapter 368: Night Has Arrived (1) / Chapter 657: Everything can be connected (7) / Chapter 2: When I Opened My Eyes (1) / Chapter 359: No, then whatever (1) / Side Story 6-3: The God of Death's Observation Journal (3)

[idontknowmyownmind]

There are three types of AU I dislike and have a very low chance for me in LCF fandom

1. OG!Cale is KRS

They are similar, yes, but they are very much different people.

It's just weird, in my opinion, to have them as 'one.'

Having ogCale as KRS is like telling ogKRS never exist.

I don't really know how to explain it but what make lcfCale more charming is his life as KRS and having him as ogCale also take away that charm.

2. Whatever the name where it's just ogCale with lcfCale's achievements

As much as I love Raon to meet ogCale, it's only make sense IF lcfCale/ogKRS is there too.

I hate it when they just copy-paste lcfCale achievements and dump them to ogCale.

I will give it a chance if the word-building is actually make sense but most, if not all, is just a copy.

Without lcfCale, many who died still have to die.

Cale is smart, i know, but he will not in lcfCale level, with him with more experience and ogCale is just a teenager who never actually experience the hard of life that involved many deaths beside his mother's death and his trash persona.

It doesn't make sense he know about lcfCale's APs.

IF by some miracle he know the future, it will be not in detail like how lcfCale read the novel.

IF by some miracle Raon is alive and follow ogCale, he will not be Raon.

And even if he did heard about Raon, I don't think he will know that he is a baby dragon, a tortured baby at that.

3. Modern LCF AU

This is an AU I hate the most.

Having this is erased BOTH ogCale and ogKRS.

Because transmigration is so damn impossible, like, why would that happened?

You can't make modern lcfCale lcfCale because by that their entire lore will be VERY MUCH different.

Abuse will not adding up here because I don't think Deruth will stop that low.

What make lcfCale lcfCale is him as ogKRS and when you take that away, lcfCale will not be lcfCale.

Actually, modern lcfCale is probably the most healthiest mentaly among all Cale and KRS.

The only big misfortune is probably the same as ogCale and he will surely not going ogCale's path if his personality is anything to goes by.

The curse will not exist because if it is than I don't think deruth, hell, maybe Ron too, will not last that long.

[vibingncrying]

Hear me out, hear me out:

LCF/TCF Miraculous AU

Warning: a bit of yapping

So, first of, I think it's important to mention that they wouldn't be highschoolers or whatever they are in miraculous ladybug but older

And some things are changed for convenience

Okay, with that out of the way-

Backstory stuff:

The Thames family was in charge of holding and taking care of the miraculouses but then, Jour Thames, the last active member of the family line died in 'an accident'.

She left behind a box of possessions for her twin sons (og Cale and krs Cale - idk, name them whatever) to find. The boys did not know about this until they already became young adults.

At that point their father, Deruth Henituse, had already remarried and so they were living together with Violan, Basen and Lily too.

In the box they found a bunch of odd trinkets. When krs Cale tried on a black ribbon, suddenly a small black dragon appeared before their eyes. They later went on to call him Raon Miru. He was a so called 'kwami'.

Og Cale choose a bracelet, that had the kwami that make you able to reverse time a couple minutes, the snake one. Also put on a collar necklace that happens to be the dog miraculous.

So,both of them end up with kwamis. They try out all of them eventually for research purposes. Though, their first reaction might have been locking away that box very very well and ignoring it for quite some time after. Well, until someone showed up to wreak havock in the land and their lives. Yup, the white star and arm.

Basen and Lily don't get miraculouses because they're underage. Same with Ohn and Hong after they get adopted into the family.

They all become aware of the miraculouses or just generally the kwamis in one way or another though. Deruth doesn't know, just sees that something has changed. Violan suspects what's up but won't mention it unless necessary. Ron would know, Beacrox would first suspect but then get confirmation looking at his father.

There are times when they (who am I kidding it's mostly just krs Cale-) ends up putting on multiple miraculouses at once, resulting in 7+ voices talking to him. Og Cale usually wears two from the get go.

The twins gather together multiple people to fight alongside them against the ws and his forces. Sometimes they give out miraculouses to others for extra help, usually temporarily. There are also some people who have miraculouses of their own from the start and also some who live in different countries/cities and use miraculouses.

Another important thing, they wouldn't make it a big thing hiding their identity from their allies. If they trust them they'll tell them, if they don't trust them enough, they won't. Or if they feel like it's irrelevant to know/ would cause danger to the other or themselves.

Ideas for miraculouses or kwamis and characters:

KRS Cale:

-> as I said before, no, he would not have the ladybug one, at least definitely not as his main one

-> he would have the dragon miraculous (wind, water, lightning)

-> the kwami would most likely be Raon himself

-> the form of the miraculous would be a black ribbon he uses to tie his hair up with because I think it would fit

-> he often uses multiple miraculouses despite it not being the best for his body and general health

OG Cale:

-> he would have the snake miraculous because I heard that can rewind time a couple of minutes, it's a bracelet

-> can be changed into a different animal for plot conveniences

-> he'd also have the dog miraculous (teleports to you items you marked)

-> I got that off off the wiki btw, I only watched like first two seasons of miraculous so don't come after me if that's not what the snake/doggo does

-> also, it's an au so who cares about accuracy

-> he's most likely the one keeping the box safe with the other miraculouses so Krs Cale doesn't use too much at once

-> he could also have the ladybug one if you want, one of the Cales shall get it

Alberu:

-> fox miraculous (illusions), it's a necklace, a necklace that he got from his late mother, dun dun dunnnn

-> he was told by her what it does, how it works but only on a basic level

-> it brought him great comfort to have something to remember her by

-> Tasha knows about it and helps, supports him to the best of her abilities, Zed is also aware of it but doesn't mention it nor does he show to care all that much

Choi han:

-> I'm aware that he's literally the human version of both a puppy and a guard dog, but he'd have the cat miraculous (destruction)

-> here it wouldn't be a ring probably but either a cape or a belt, some article of clothing I think

the shamans/illusionists would all have one (Gashan, Jopis, Elisneh, ...)

Cale Barrow:

-> yes I'm using the full government name out of sheer spite, his villain name is the White Star

-> he'd have the butterfly one (transformation), does a little evil laugh every couple episodes but ends up coughing at the end of each attempt ha

Dorph and Sayeru:

-> a lion and bear one, I know, very unexpected (the miraculouses might do something different than in canon)

-> they both got it from the ws

Other people that would have miraculouses but I'm not sure what:

Bud and Glenn:

-> they would not even be in the same city or county as them at all, but!! If I can give my guys a miraculous, then I'm gonna

Jack and Hannah:

-> they would also be in a different city/country

-> Jack would have a healing one while Hannah has two different ones she uses together

Eruhaben:

-> he would be a retired hero/vigilante

-> would be if not for the ws hanging around

Cage:

-> she had a miraculous since she was little (7 years old or so) and the kwami is none other than GoD because I find that ridiculously funny

-> can be other too tho xdd

Mary:

-> I'm not sure... Bones??

Rosalyn:

-> something something probably fire powers

Witira:

-> something something probably water powers

-> my creative juices are used up, okay, it's showing I know

Now, those who get miraculouses but are not full time owners:

Lock:

-> if there's a wolf one, then he'd get that

Ohn and Hong:

-> yes, despite being not of age yet, they sometimes get to use some miraculouses

-> if it happened once, it happened multiple times after much to the Cales exasperation

So,

This all I have for now but I might think up more for it later because I find it interesting

You can expand on it if you'd like, this is just an idea I had

You're more than welcome to adopt this into a fic, please send me a link if you do though so I can read it and please mention me somewhere :D

But yup

[blueteller]

Thanks for answering! If I can ask more but what made og!Cale (and also KRS) not like their previous life? And is the novel not still complete?

Of course you can! I'll answer each topic in this order, as it will make the most sense:

the current state of the novel

why OG Cale did not like his previous life

why Kim Rok Soo did not like his previous life

how transmigration happened, and why it was good for both of them

First topic: is the novel complete?

At this moment, the novel is still in the works: more precisely, Part 2 is still in the works. Part 1 of "Trash of the Count's Family" (title from "Eat Apple Pies" English translation; the manhwa title translation is "Lout of the Count's Family" due to convoluted legality reasons) had been been completed in year 2022, with 776 chapters.

While I considered Part 1's ending a satisfying conclusion of the main story arc, it still left a lot of unanswered questions – and I do mean a LOT. It felt less like the end of a book, and more like an end of a season. So Part 2 is really the continuation of the same story.

Between Part 1 and 2, there were additional "extras" published, which were numbered as chapters 777-799. So that when the prologue for Part 2 came out, it was numbered 800, and everything from 801 up was Part 2. Yesterday on Munpia, where I read the novel in Korean (through an automatic translator of course, since I don't know any Korean. Let me tell you, it's a pain...) came out chapter 1006, which makes TCF Part 2 currently 206 chapters long.

The author originally predicted that Part 2 to be 300 chapters long. No one believed that, myself included: because the author is one of those writers who always end up writing much more than they intended, hahaha! I know that feeling well. I'm estimating Part 2 to be at least 500 chapters long by the end it's done, probably around 600.

...I know that the length of this novel might seem unreasonable, but it's really not being stretched for content or money purposes: it's truly Plot all the way through. It's all story. There really is just that much story to tell, and it would not be as satisfying if you cut any of it out.

I admire this writer a lot. TCF is so much fun. I freaking love this novel.

Second topic: why the Original Cale Henituse did not like his life?

We have to go back to the very beginning: the marriage of Count Deruth Henituse, and Jour Thames. (You might have seen the name "Drew" being used sometimes, but it's really just the matter of translation. I'm sticking with "Jour".)

Jour had a very complicated background, but I won't dive into all of that here – what matters is that Jour had a very special power. It was a Wood Ancient Power called "The Annual Rings of Life", and it allowed her to see the "annual rings" of all living things: past, present and future. Meaning she could see the fate of a person, including how many years they had to live.

And when she looked at her young son, Cale, with that power, she saw something very unusual. His "annual rings of life" were "warped". Meaning, he would experience an unusual fate in the future, and in result become a Variable: either a regressor, a transmigrator, or a reincarnator. Or, more than one at once. So she told Cale:

"You are someone who will have an unusual experience with time."

Basically, she saw OG Cale's future fate and realized that the world is going to be in Big Trouble, because gods only make Variables like that happen when something really big and really bad is going down.

Now, it's just my speculation – but on top of it, I think Jour could see her own "annual rings". Meaning, she knew she would die young, and that by the time Cale became a Variable, she would no longer be around. So, knowing all this, she decided she needed to help out as much as she could: she wrote down a journal for "the person who would possess her son's body" in the future.... and commited suicide.

Why? Because it allowed her to split the power in 2 pieces. But that is a much longer story, and we're here to talk about OG Cale.

But it all starts right here: with Jour committing suicide, although no one knew that was the case at the time. All they knew was that Jour went on a short trip to Harris Village for some reason, had a carriage accident on the way back, and then died soon after, despite her injuries not seeming very serious.

That unexpected death devastated both Deruth and Cale, who loved her very much. Deruth was emotionally broken and Cale reminded him much of his dead wife, because they both had red hair and looked very similar. I imagine he started avoiding Cale for that reason, although it wasn't at all mean-spirited: Deruth was simply depressed over his beloved wife. To cope with his broken heart (and possibly to give Cale a new mother figure), he soon chose to remarry rather quickly, to a woman named Violan, who already had a son named Basen. Basen was 3 years younger than Cale.

Basen's existence is the reason why Cale chose to become "trash". You see, while on the outside people thought that Cale was outraged at his father "replacing" his mother so soon, or that he resented Violan... that wasn't the case at all. Cale quickly grew to accept them both as family. However, unlike Jour (who was from a small noble family), Violan was descended from a merchant family. She and her son were not nobility. Because of this, Basen faced discrimination from their relatives, who did not approve of Deruth's second marriage.

Young Cale, seeing Basen insulted and belittled by other nobles, created a plan. He told Basen to lie to everyone that he was Deruth's biological son, and that he was a Henituse by blood. Then he began acting like a completely spoiled brat. He complained, he yelled, he threw things. At the age of 15, he started drinking. He did everything in his power to completely ruin his reputation.

Why? All for Basen, Violan, and later Lily. Because he wanted them to be accepted by noble society. If he, Deruth's firstborn, was removed from succession, that would make Basen the next Count. And then no one would be able to disrespect them.

While it might seem like a crazy plan (and let's be fair: he came up with it as a child), it was actually surprisingly effective. No one saw through his act: not even his butler Ron, who was a trained assassin by trade. Cale's acting abilities were flawless. He played the drunk, spoiled noble with a trash reputation perfectly. Basen was quickly accepted as the heir by the public; although nothing in the family had been formally decided. While this was going on, Deruth did not know why his son was acting like this, but he never really lost faith in him; he probably thought it was all about Jour's death, and Cale would mature in time. It was also said that despite everything, Cale still acted respectfully towards his father, and was distant but still respectful towards his step family. Their family were thus strained, but not broken.

When Kim Rok Soo transmigrated, he was under the impression that OG Cale was deliberately shunned by the rest of the family. But that distance was purely artificial, but OG Cale's own design. When KRS!Cale "stopped" acting distant towards the rest of the family, the Henituses happily embraced the change. They likely thought that he finally allowed himself to heal from Jour's death and move on. That's why no one questioned him about the "change of personality", even though they all noticed it immediately.

Now, we have to talk about the TBOAH ("The Birth of a Hero") timeline. What happened before OG Cale regressed, and transmigrated into KRS's body.

In the TBOAH timeline, when OG Cale was 18, he met Choi Han on a rainy day. OG Cale was "drunk" (actually just pretending to be, as his alcohol torelance was secretly super strong), and Choi Han mentioned being from Harris Village, which had just been all massacred by assassins.

Now OG Cale, full in his "drunk trash noble" personna, probably had his own reasons for provoking Choi Han. He likely thought that getting into a fight would prevent him from getting sent to the Capital for an important celebration, and letting Basen shine. But he also honestly hated Harris Village, which was the place where his mother died. So he insulted the dead villagers to Choi Han's face. Choi Han took it personally and beat him up quite a bit for it. That incident was what inspired KRS!Cale to change the events from the TBOAH timeline, despite his lack of desire to get involved with the "plot of the story".

What exactly happened between this point and OG Cale's transmigration 22 years later is mostly speculation, but we do know some things from the TBOAH timeline thanks to KRS!Cale.

Firstly, soon afterwards Basen went to the Capital, and it was attacked with bombs. Basen either got lucky, got injured, or died in the incident. Whichever actually happened then, Basen certainly could not remain alive for long; 2 years later, the Henituse territory was attacked by the Indomitable Alliance, as their first act of war. We know that the territory was unprepared, and suffered countless casualties. Among them, the entire Henituse family died, except for OG Cale.

So we have a clear order of events for OG Cale in the TBOAH timeline: his happy early childhood, his mother's death at 8, soon followed by his father's second marriage and the appearance of his step family, OG Cale sacrificing his heir position for Basen's sake, a terrible adolescence focused entirely on ruining his own reputation and acoholism (the latter which followed him into adulthood, and no wonder), and finally losing his home and his entire family at the age of 20.

Not to mention, the 20 years of war which followed afterwards. The TBOAH timeline sucked for absolutely everyone.

When soldier Cale was 40, during the "final battle" of all the allied forces against their enemy, he got trapped under his allies' corpses. As he laid there, he witnessed Choi Han facing the White Star, the mysterious enemy leader. OG Cale saw as White Star suddenly grabbed Choi Han and declared:

"Time is warped oddly for you."

The words made him recall what Jour told him years ago. In that moment, OG Cale realized: the White Star had his mother's power. Then the White Star shoot a stream of fire at OG Cale, intending to casually finish him off.

...but OG Cale did not die, because at that exact moment, the God of Death offered him a deal.

What kind of deal? And why? Let's get back to that in a bit.

Third topic: why Kim Rok Soo did not like his life?

First of all: from the very beginning, KRS was screwed. Why? Because he was born with a curse.

What curse? And why? I'll get back to that bit later, too. But what matters is: it was a curse of bad luck, which made KRS loose every single person he cared about sooner or later.

KRS started off not too differently from OG Cale – he wasn't a noble, but he had two loving parents. However, a tragedy struck early on, and both died in a car accident. As a young boy, KRS got adopted by a distant relative named Kim Seung Jong, his uncle.

KRS's uncle, who turned out to be a gambling addict and an alcoholic. He took KRS in only to use what little money his parents left for him, starving and abusing him. Eventually, KRS ran away.

What happened to him shortly afterwards is a bit unclear. It's possible he lived on the streets for a bit. But eventually, he had to have landed in an orphanage, because he went to high school like a normal teenager with an ordinary life.

...Except that one incident with some evil dimension travellers noticing his curse, mistaking it for something else, and trying to kill KRS. And also someone else using him as live bait. But hey, KRS got his memory erased afterwards, so it's not like the trauma of those events affected him or anything, right?? :')

Soooo anyway, all was going well for KRS. At the age of 20, he got into a university and had a part time job as a waiter. All was good!

...Except then the Monster Invasion started. That's right! You read it right! You thought KRS was from a normal modern Korea?? SIKE, he was from a post-apocalyptic world all along!! KRS spent 3 days under building debris, drinking rain water and slowly starving, until he was rescued by a young hero named Lee Soo Hyuk. LSH lead KRS into a nearby Shelter – a place with supernatural properties which were immune to monster attacks – and left. All was good!! ...Except then the leader of the Shelter turned out to be a huge jerk and started bossing KRS around and beat him up on occassion. Luckily, the Shelters failed 10 months later and everybody at the Shelter died, including that jerk!! ....Wait.

So KRS survived not just one, but 2 incidents where everybody around him died. But that's ok, because he joined the organization lead by LSH and another cool dude named Choi Jung Soo. Sure, they risked their lives every day by fighting monsters and rescuing people and fighting organized crime on the side – but hey, at least KRS had friends now, for the first time in his life! So that's good, right?

....Except, several years later – around time when KRS was 26 – a super powerful monster called an Unranked Monster killed everyone in KRS's team. But it was fine! Totally fine! He just survived everybody dying around him for the 3rd time in his life, and everybody kept talking about him behind his back how he's an unfeeling bastard because he's unable to cry anymore... but who cares! KRS became Team Leader now, and he was determined to have zero casualties from now on.

That's right! ZERO. CASUALTIES. Because he's the most stubborn person alive, and also insane. So of course, he managed to actually pull it off.

So KRS spent the next 10 years being an absolute bada**, taking down mob bosses, fighting monsters and keeping all his team members alive, but also keeping distant from everybody and not having any friends because hey – if you notice a suspicious pattern of all your friends either vanishing or dying since you were a kid, you'd probably stop trying to make friends too.

36-year-old KRS was totally fine, and emotionally stable, and absolutely-not-at-all traumatized by all the deaths he's witnessed so many times. Just like OG Cale was probably-not-at-all traumatized by how his entire family died, or the next 20 years of war witnessing people brutally dying everywhere and an evil overlord taking over the world. They were both totally fine, I assure you!!

...Anyway, what was that 4th topic again??

Fourth topic: how and why the transmigration happened, and why was it good for both of them?

Right, let's start with OG Cale's deal.

The God of Death is able to make deals with people in life threatening situations. When the White Star attacked OG Cale, it allowed the God of Death to offer him to regress back in time and then switch places with one Kim Rok Soo. But why OG Cale? Obviously KRS had the qualifications to avert the events of the TBOAH timeline and the End of the World, being an experienced leader of an apocalyptic world – but what made OG Cale so special?

Well, there could be several reasons. One of which was how despite all their differences, their lives were similar in many ways. Both OG Cale and KRS lost family when they were young, experienced rejection from society, and had military experience. Not to mention the acting skills. OG Cale was able to successfully take over KRS's job, and that was no easy feat. KRS's team noticed the change of course, but they were much more happy about their totally-not-depressed-and-potentially-suicidal Team Leader was finally starting to open up, than the fact that he apparently went "crazy" one day and decided he suddenly liked alcohol now.

Another reason, perhaps, was how OG Cale's mom had the Annual Rings of Life power. It was quite important for defeating the White Star, and the way Jour set it up, only her son – or at least, the person in her son's body – would be able to find the Ancient Power; specifically the part which was able to see fate, aka. the future. The White Star got his hands on the "weaker" half of the Annual Rings, so he was only able to see the past: which saved OG Cale, as during the confrontation where the White Star tried to kill him, he wasn't able to recognize him as a future regressor & transmigrator.

...There's also Jour's Thames heritage, but that's a a whooole other topic. (Also the possible connection between Cale Barrow's last body and the Thames, but that's just a theory right now so it doesn't really matter.)

So, that covers the part of "why OG Cale". What about KRS? He couldn't be the only person capable of defeating a final boss like the White Star, right?

Well, remember how I mentioned that KRS was cursed since birth? Well, turns out that it was all the White Star's fault! Apparently KRS was meant to be born in the fantasy TCF world. Except the White Star was a reincarnator, who reincarnated using an ancient curse. To be reborn, the White Star stole bodies from other people, like KRS. Those unfortunate souls would then pass on and reincarnate in a different dimension, except bearing a part of the very same curse. The curse which makes sure that "you can never cherish anyone ever again". While the curse was weaker in the victims of the White Star than the guy himself, it still affected people like KRS. Because the God of Death was the one who originally created the curse, he felt really guilty about it. He tried to remove it from KRS, but was unable to.

...until the transmigration, that is! So, part of the reason why KRS was chosen for the transmigration (or rather, to be the "victim" of OG Cale's own transmigration) was that it allowed the God of Death remove the curse from him. Which allowed him to FINALLY make friends and be happy.

OG Cale, in return for this deal, got: a time regression which saves his family and the entire world, the truth behind his mother's death, a new environment to live in unrelated to his traumas where he could heal, and most importantly, a young reincarnation of his birth mother, whom he got to adopt as an uncle.

KRS, on the other hand, got: a blood family that cares about him, a free luxurious lifestyle with lack of responsibilities, new environment to live in unrelated to his traumas where he could heal, a detailed guide about closest future tragedies to prevent, and most importantly, a life free of the curse he unknowingly suffered from his entire life and the ability to keep all his new family and friends close to him.

....Phew. I hope you don't mind my explanation being so long.

To sum it all up:

the novel has two parts, Part 1 is finished, Part 2 is in progress

OG Cale lived in a lie and then through a war and got to start over

KRS lived through constant suffering and trauma and got to start over

their positions in life made it perfect for a transmigration switch with no loose ends

I hope this explanation helped!

[slackerlifewhere]

What Kim Rok Soo probably thinks about Cale Henituse

Okay, so I mentioned that I'm rereading the first part now so I can finally read the second part of the novel.

While reading, I noticed how calm and normal Kim Rok Soo is about Cale. Like yeah, he finds him amusing and interesting, but coming from a man who has read five volumes and notices (and remembers) every little detail about it, it makes me wonder what he truly thinks about Cale Henituse.

[✋Possible SPOILERS for the first part of TCF ✋]

As I reread the story in the first few chapters, despite how little Cale Henituse's importance is in The Birth of a Hero or how few his appearances are since it focuses on Choi Han's adventure, Kim Rok Soo somehow describes moments that make Cale look like trash but it's like he understands why the noble was like that before they switched bodies (except for the Harris village since he didn't know about that until OG Cale mentions it).

Like think about it. We all know KRS grew up with his abusive uncle. He knows how bad it is to live with an alcoholic but he doesn't judge Cale's antics when he's "drunk". We also know that he's been alone most of his life so he probably thinks that Cale is just a lonely person because of his reputation.

Guessing that there are some assholes during the apocalypse (I haven't read the side stories yet but I can guess), he probably thinks that Cale is more complex than what he shows in the books because he has seen the worst kind of people that makes Cale look like a normal person. After switching bodies, Venion, White Star, Arm, and Adin are definitely 1000% worse than Cale.

Kim Rok Soo is very sharp when it comes to understanding people. He understands Choi Han and Alberu's problems and understands the trauma the kids went through. He also understands how corrupt nobles and priests are and doesn't judge Mary and the Dark Elves all because of a stupid religion. He understands how hard it was for Lock during the war and was comforting about it his own weird way.

He's a perceptive and understanding person.

Although he's incredibly bad at judging himself, he's good at judging a person through their motives and actions. It's why he somehow befriends Toonka and Bud. It's why he became allies with Hannah and Fredo. It's why he quietly listens to DHB later on. He understands people and it's why people like and trust him.

In short, he knows that there's something more than what the books say about Cale Henituse.

It's kind of the reason why it made me pause a bit when he finally meets OG Cale.

Their conversation was so calm, it's as if they knew each other for a very long time instead of just literally a few minutes ago. He easily accepted what OG Cale has to say about his mother and his new life as Kim Rok Soo and he trusts him with his former team. Like I've mentioned before in my other post, he's happy for both of them because they're both content with their new lives despite their regrets in their last lives.

Cale looked at Kim Rok Soo, who was laughing and making gestures that he would never have made, and nonchalantly added on.

“I guess you’ve really been happy.”

He recalled the moment he met with Lee Soo Hyuk and got the ‘Embrace’ ability.

Lee Soo Hyuk had handed Cale the ability and told him about the real Cale Henituse as he disappeared.

‘Oh, by the way, the original owner of your body is living well too. He’s happy. That is why Jung Soo, I, and everybody is happy.’

Kim Rok Soo had a bright smile that suited a twenty-year-old person and not someone in his mid-thirties.

- Chapter 656: Everything can be connected

I'm guessing that when he read the parts about Cale throwing bottles at a random asshole in the books, he probably thought that he might do the same thing. Remember how badly he reacted when he learned about the slaves being sent to the Empire? He basically used the same tactic but instead of throwing the bottle at someone, he drank a lot because of how pissed he was and made it look like the "trash" he is while waiting for everyone's signal.

He even has some thoughts about how annoyed he is whenever the knights or butlers would flinch away since he knows Cale never tried to actually harm them. And he knows about Cale's troubles with the staff back home in the Henituse territory.

So yeah, it's pretty sweet in a way that Cale Henituse has someone who kind of understands him and won't judge him for his actions even though Kim Rok Soo doesn't know everything about him because of the books (like his conversation with Basen).

“It looks like you will need to struggle a little longer, but anyway, live well. Please take care of my family.”

“Please take care of my team members.”

Both men let go of each other’s hand with a small amount of sorrow visible in their eyes.

- Chapter 657: Everything can be connected

[calethescammer]

Tcf prompt :)

So there's the well known scars AU in tcf right? Like where Krs!Cale gets his old scars and chaos ensues.

But what if, instead of any random day, Cale gets back his scars after using Instant? Like Mila has healed his scars completely, the ones he got after using Instant, but his old scars are somehow back on his body.

Like when he gets to meet with og!cale, some soul merging stuff happens and rok soo's scars are back on krs!cale's body.

And now imagine, Mila just doubting her ability because Cale's scars didn't heal (they actually did). And Cale just waking up and blankly staring at his body now 'ugly' with the scars he always hated.

And his family seeing him littered with so many wounds that he never had?? (Did they not even notice such a thing?)

And then his kids see him, especially Raon who first hand experienced it, and the young dragon just breaks down sobbing in his human's arms, blaming himself for the pain he had let his human go through.

Choi Han stands shocked, the image of Kim Rok Soo of his memories and the Cale in front of him overlapping, both looking too full of pain.

Maybe they don't comment on it due to the final battle, or maybe they feel like they shouldn't comment on it.

But then after the war, they finally notice how Cale has changed. How he furrows his brows whenever he looks at his scars, as if in disgust, and how he avoids looking at any and all mirrors, afraid to see himself. How he tries to slid his arms further into the long sleeves of his clothes, and how hard he tries to act nonchalant as if nothing is wrong.

And maybe he heard it once, the comments about his scars, but instead of noticing their worried and sorrowful tones he only saw mockery and laughter in it. He knew from experience to never expect from people, but sometimes, it hurt. And from then, he refused to go to any parties whatsoever, even at the cost of golden plaques.

And it got to a point that regular people, citizens of Roan noticed it too, how badly the war had affected their beloved young master. And how badly scarred both his body and mind were. But what could they do, expect send wishes of love and gratitude, in a hope that the person who saved them all may be saved too.

And now to his family. They try to bring out the redhead, taking him to small walks and picnics, and looking at him with so much love that Cale cannot help but feel a sting in his chest, wanting to stay in that warmth forever.

Lock and the wolf children come to him, shouting about how cool he looked in all those scars, how he looked so much like a 'warrior'. But Cale sees their eyes, eyes that seem so genuine and full of admiration, eyes that hold no mockery or any hint of evil. And for the next few hours, their shouts echo in his ears, a faint blush forming on his face.

Raon, On and Hong bring him flowers and decorate his hair with it, and Cale finally smiles seeing himself in the mirror. He suddenly recalls how in his past, his hyungs did the same. How they only worried for him. And once, when Team Leader was complaining about how he'll go bald due to his dongsaeng, Krs stood lost in thought, his gaze fixated on the way Team Leader's hands shook, his worried eyes looking over the scars in a way that said 'sorry'.

"Human!"

Cale's eyes snapped and he looked towards his family, all smiling and laughing together. And for a moment, he forgot all the flaws he held, and he rushed towards the kids, all the while smiling along.

[accenderesposts]

FGO Transmigration AU

TBOAH/TCF Story

OG!Cale sometimes gets visions of the events of TBOAH, which includes the 20 year war. He usually sees these future events when he's dreaming in his sleep. Whether he's simply seeing the future or he regressed is up for speculation.

Unfortunately, the first few visions he gets are a bit far into the future. He never knew that Harris Village would be attacked until it was too late.

The visions/dreams of the ruined future really stressed Cale out, causing him to stay out and drink more often to clear his mind.

He hangs out at the hill where the Man-Eating Tree is because people stayed away from the area due to the rumors of the tree, allowing him a brief moment of respite away from harsh comments and whispers.

Cale meets a pair of siblings who keep warning him to stay away from the tree (even though he's making sure to keep a distance from the tree). He gives them tons of coins (not gold because giving one would paint a target on these kids' back) so they leave him alone (and buy food).

Soon after that, he meets a pair of cats whose colors are suspiciously the same as the hair of the siblings. He instantly connects the dots and just adopts them.

Here, OG!Cale adopts On and Hong.

The Soos transmigrate to TBOAH, just the outskirts of the Henituse County. They encounter Cale when he was hanging out by the Man-Eating Tree with the cats.

There was a language barrier and Cale, while justifiably suspicious of these strangers, decided to teach them the language since it seemed like they meant no harm.

Here, only Choi Jung Soo read TBOAH. He recognizes Cale as the minor villain of the first volume of the novel and found it strange when Cale didn't act like the trashy character he read. However, since the Koreans didn't want to encounter any knight that might apprehend them, being with Cale is a better option.

KRS still gets the Ancient Powers at CJS's insistence to protect himself. While Cale gets the other half of Jour's AP.

Because CJS doesn't have Record like KRS, some information and events can sometimes slip from his mind. Thankfully, this is helped by Cale's future visions.

CJS informs KRS, LSH and Cale about the events in the future. In return, Cale also reveals his own future visions.

Unfortunately, the day the Koreans transmigrate is the same day Harris Village is destroyed.

The Soos grew closer to Cale after they decided to work together. KRS, CJS and especially LSH are upset and worried whenever they see Cale, an 18-year-old, drink multiple bottles of wine in one go. It doesn't help that they knew that he began drinking when he was only 15. They vow to one day give the Count a piece of their mind over neglecting his first son.

Henituse Family and Molan Duo are very sus of these Koreans.

Cale becomes the Soos' new dongsaeng. And Cale eventually starts calling all three of them "hyung".

Lots of competition over being Cale's "best hyung". There is a similar competition among the father figures.

Cale is "Naru" because he's a more experienced actor.

Cale and KRS are the group's self-sacrificial idiots. And they are both loved by everyone of their found family and get adopted by many parental figures.

KRS adopts Raon.

Cale, KRS and Raon are tsunderes and everyone finds it endearing. They become less tsun as time passes while Cale and KRS begin to finally openly express their true selves without fear.

Hinted possible Cale harem (such as Choi Han, Alberu, Paseton, etc.). Only if you wish to see it as romantic.

Cale is drinking buddies with Taylor, Cage and Bud.

Cale's relationship with the Henituse Family is still distant, especially compared to his new family. They don't get many chances to properly talk due to the war. Though, there are promises of getting much needed discussions after everything is over.

Unfortunately, it may never happen.

During the final battle with the White Star, the leader of Arm uses a strange magic that is foreign to this world just before KRS could stab him with the bloodied branch. Cale sacrifices himself by taking the branch and pushes his hyung out of the way, stabbing the WS while getting hit by the strange magic.

A bright light blinds everyone, but KRS who is the closest to the two redheads, sees his dongsaeng give him one last smile as Cale fades into particles of light. WS's body falls for the last time, finally dead after so many years, as Cale Henituse disappears.

Everyone remained in shock over the conclusion of the battle. CJS and LSH rushed over to KRS, who still didn't respond to anyone's voices and just continued to stoically stare at the spot where his dongsaeng disappeared. For the first time in many years, a single tear fell from his eye.

Thanks to Cale, he and the Soos actually managed to hide most of their involvement from the public (which is mostly the Roan Kingdom) for the majority of their adventures, so Cale was still known as trash and the Soos' were still mysterious and unknown to others. Their involvement was only revealed when the war was nearing its end, with the Roan public viewing Cale as a reformed trash who redeemed himself by sacrificing his life for the greater good. This public perception naturally enraged his found family and even when they and most of the foreign royals tried to boost Cale's reputation, the public remained skeptical.

Meanwhile, the GoD tries to find Cale's soul. If Cale is truly dead, then GoD should have already found him. The strange magic the WS used was more akin to teleportation. He tried to check on Earth but for some reason, something is preventing him from being able to connect to Earth.

In the middle of a burning city, three individuals find an unconscious red-haired man.

He wakes up, remembering nothing but his name, "Cale".

Currently making the next part. Who should I make Cale's main Servant? In all honesty, if Cale were a Servant, I think he'd be a Pretender.