WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 286: Episode 53: Demon King of Salvation (6)

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[Baat, baaat!]

"No."

[Baaat!]

"Go back."

I couldn't clearly see the world beyond the wide-open dimensional gate.

Still, one thing was certain. It was dangerous.

"Take care of everyone."

Perhaps this moment had been inevitable from the moment I found traces of Indescribable Distance in the fragments of Surya's train. The place I was heading to now might be somewhere I could receive almost no help from TWSA.

Even so, I had to go.

If I could endure this just once, I could return to my companions. Together with them, I could reach the end of all Scenarios.

As I slowly stepped forward, Biyoo cried out.

[Baat, baat...! Baaat...! Ah, ba, at...]

The moment I crossed the dimensional gate's boundary, Biyoo's voice rapidly faded.

Facing Biyoo's blurring face, I spoke words she couldn't hear.

「I'll definitely come back.」

[Otherworld Covenant has activated!]

[You have been banished beyond the Star Stream.]

[Your constellation has disappeared from the Star Stream.]

* * *

Even after Kim Dokja disappeared into the portal, Secretive Plotter stared at the place where it had been for a long time. An old man with two abnormally large humps stood beside him.

[Great Plot, has that brat already left?]

【He just left.】

[That's a shame. I wanted to see what kind of brat he was... Still, you must have liked him quite a lot. To think you sacrificed three fingers.]

Three fingers were missing from Secretive Plotter's left hand. It was the price of Plausibility.

[Even for you, directly borrowing Father's Dimensional Gate must have been burdensome. Why didn't you ask us instead?]

【It required more Plausibility than the Hunchback's method of trade could handle.】

The old man clicked his tongue.

[I can't understand it at all. No matter how hungry I was for fables, I would never do something like that.]

【You wouldn't understand.】

White eyes wandered through the air from Secretive Plotter's shadow. The old man followed that gaze, as if he had found something in the empty air.

[There were some troublesome bastards mixed in. Did you send them on purpose?]

【They cannot affect anything anyway.】

The old man snorted.

[Well, I suppose it doesn't matter. As long as we can strike a blow against that damned Star Stream. But does he stand a chance?]

【If he succeeds safely, he will become closer to the conclusion than anyone else.】

[...Closer than anyone? That's funny, coming from someone who has already seen the conclusion.]

The old man continued grumbling.

[Whether he succeeds or fails, it will be a loss for you either way.]

Secretive Plotter shook his head.

【I am not the one who decides that.】

* * *

[The Fourth Wall shakes violently.]

A chill ran down my spine as my consciousness flickered.

[Otherworld Covenant protects your existence.]

As I drifted somewhere, I dreamed several times.

They were dreams about my companions.

"Dokja-ssi, you're always looking at your smartphone. What's your number?"

"...What's the point of knowing it when phones don't work anyway?"

"Just so I know it. Then I can send you game invites later."

A game invite.

It would be nice if I could really receive one.

"Dokja-ssi, you seem to smile more often after the apocalypse."

"But when you smile, Mister, you look a little smug."

"Wouldn't it be more bearable if he changed the shape of his mouth?"

"I wish Dokja-ssi had been my senior."

The ticking of a clock echoed somewhere.

"I've never hated you as much as I do today, Dokja-ssi. Come back. Please."

The current of a story with no known beginning or end was pushing me away.

I moved through that boundless current, relying on memories like a small raft. In the endless void of the universe, only my memories drifted along.

Perhaps Biyoo... Perhaps Shin Yuseong of the forty-first round had felt this way too.

Tststststst...!

A message came not long after.

[Father's Dimensional Gate has closed.]

[Star Stream has noticed your existence.]

When I came to my senses, I was curled up on the ground, dry heaving.

Feeling the hard floor beneath me, I slowly opened my eyes.

[You have entered a new Scenario Area!]

[The dokkaebis of the Administration Bureau are suspicious of your existence.]

Every joint in my stiff Incarnation body screamed. I used [Pressure Point] to loosen up as quickly as possible.

I didn't know where I was, but I needed to stay alert from now on.

Secretive Plotter himself didn't exist in the original work, so TWSA wouldn't be able to help with what happened here.

"Urgh..."

The spot where Indescribable Distance had bitten into me hurt, but I thought I could recover somehow with a spare Greater Restoration Pill. Since [Demon King Transformation] had ended, my horns and wings had disappeared.

[Demon King Transformation is currently unavailable.]

I carefully checked my equipment and placed the necessary items where I could use them immediately. Once I was ready, the first thing I checked was my personal Scenario window.

[You cannot open the Sub Scenario window.]

[The information for the relevant Scenario has not been updated yet.]

...The Scenario still hadn't updated.

I looked around at the remains of the ruined buildings. Collapsed skyscrapers and fragments of signs scattered between them. The letters forming the signs' logos were familiar.

There was Hangul and English. Some signs were written in the languages of otherworldly species. I stopped for a moment and read them.

A strange sense of discomfort slowly rose from my toes.

Where the hell was this?

[Star Stream has recognized your modifier.]

[A new place has been prepared for you in the night sky!]

[Administration Bureau is wary of your existence.]

[A Hidden Scenario has been assigned to you!]

[You have acquired Hidden Scenario - World Adaptation!]

[You have acquired a new fable!]

...No way.

I started running down the street.

The city was ruined beyond recognition. Still, I recognized this place. It would have been stranger not to.

After all, every one of my nightmares had begun in this city.

The statue of Yi Sun-sin with only its legs remaining, and the destroyed Absolute Throne.

The corpses of monsters scattered everywhere and the remains of enormous tentacles gave off a terrible stench.

"...Seoul?"

There was no time to think.

An explosion sounded nearby. I concealed my presence and hid among the ruins. Loud shouts followed. People were running from something.

No, looking closer, they weren't people.

They were the Incarnation bodies of Constellations.

Constellations with considerable Status shouted as they unleashed their constellation's declarations.

[Run!]

[Goddammit...!]

They couldn't finish speaking.

An elephant-like foot descended from the sky, bursting the Incarnation bodies like insects. I watched without even breathing.

The elephant's forefoot, carrying irresistible Status, dragged along the fables of the dead Incarnation bodies as it moved elsewhere.

...What the hell was that?

Only after the elephant's presence had completely disappeared did I carefully emerge from the ruins and approach the corpses. A few items worth collecting had fallen to the ground. I examined them one by one, trying to calm myself.

Calm down.

No matter how dangerous this place was, I had a chance if I had information.

If this was still a Scenario Area, TWSA would still work.

[The effect of your Attribute improves your memory of pages you have already read.]

Which Scenario was this?

Constellation Incarnation bodies were running rampant, and fragments of an Outer God were scattered about. At the very least...

[The ninety-fifth Main Scenario is currently in progress.]

Tststststst!

[Otherworld Covenant replaces your insufficient Plausibility.]

[You are not an official participant in this Scenario.]

[Star Stream doubts your qualifications.]

Every hair on my arms stood on end.

...Which Scenario did it say?

[You have acquired the item Arondight.]

I blankly looked down at the item I had collected. A constellation artifact belonging to a fabled-grade Constellation was rolling around on the street.

How many years had I crossed?

What had happened to my companions?

[Exclusive Skill, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, has activated!]

Huiwon.

Hyeongseong.

Yuseong.

[The activation of Exclusive Skill, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, has been cancelled.]

[You cannot currently connect to the target.]

[You cannot find the relevant Character.]

I tried to calm my trembling heart.

I had to stay calm. Nothing was certain yet.

Taking deep breaths, I manifested the power of a Constellation.

If there was a channel nearby, I intended to use it to look around.

Then I sensed someone nearby.

The disciplined sound of sword strikes mixed with the screams of Constellations.

Just as I instinctively tried to hide between the buildings, I saw the hem of a black coat fluttering in the wind beyond them.

For an instant, it felt as if my heart had stopped.

His scar-covered muscles showed through the torn sleeve of his coat. Seeing the domineering path his sword carved across the ground, my chest swelled with emotion.

He was alive.

He didn't look exactly as I remembered. His build had grown larger, his features sharper, and a large scar marked his cheek. Still, there was no way I wouldn't recognize him.

"Yu-!"

The moment I opened my mouth, something faster than sound flew toward me.

If not for [Way of the Wind], activated through [Bookmark], I would have died on the spot. Even though I dodged, a deep gash opened along my side. Holding the wound shut, I looked at him in shock.

When I raised my head, he was already standing before me.

Crack!

The grip crushing my throat cut off my breath.

I couldn't speak, so I struggled and unleashed a constellation's declaration.

[Hey! It's me, Yu Junghyeok!]

Maybe too much time had passed. Maybe it had taken far longer than I thought, and he had forgotten me.

[Let go. It's me! Have you already forgotten...!]

Thud!

The terrible pain that struck my stomach nearly made me lose consciousness.

I thought he was taking the joke too far.

Or perhaps he was incredibly angry at me.

Junghyeok's cold voice reached me.

"Where is Arondight? Do you have it?"

At that moment, a cold sensation brushed the back of my neck.

I remembered the first time I met Junghyeok on Dongho Bridge.

He had looked at me with similar eyes then.

The eyes of someone who truly didn't know me.

"If you don't answer within five seconds, I'll kill you."

His eyes were those of someone who could really kill me.

[Exclusive Skill, Character Profile, has activated!]

[There is too much information related to this individual. Character Profile converts into Summary Profile.]

[A system error has occurred.]

"Four."

[You cannot summarize this Character's information!]

[You cannot summarize this Character's information!]

An enormous amount of information began pouring in alongside a horrible headache.

"Three."

Groaning, I changed the settings of Character Profile.

[Only the minimum categories designated by the user will be displayed.]

I went blank as I read the information floating before me.

I thought I knew every round of TWSA, every ending.

+

Name: Yu Junghyeok

Patron: ???

Exclusive Attributes: the regressor <1,863rd round> (Mythical), Master of Play (Legendary), Steel-Blooded Monarch (Legendary), Demon King Slayer (Mythical), Eternal Lonely One (Semi-Mythical), Fear of the Stars (Mythical)...

Exclusive Skills: [Sage's Eye Lv.???], [Close Quarters Combat Lv.???], [Thought Vaccine Lv.???], [hundred-step godly fists Lv.???], [phoenix walk Lv.???], [Sky Splitter Sword Art Lv.???]...(Omitted)...

Stigmas: [Regression Lv.???], [transmission Lv.???]

...

* This Character's skill proficiency cannot be converted into level values!

* This Character's Stigma proficiency cannot be converted into level values!

...

+

But there was one round.

One round whose ending I didn't know.

A man who had lost every Companion and finally stood before the last chapter of the story.

"Two."

A monster whose emotions had worn away through countless betrayals and endless regressions was looking at me. As a pain stabbed deep into my chest, Secretive Plotter's words rang chaotically in my ears.

【Suppose you reach the end of everything your way and save the world. What will you do about the other worlds?】

【What will happen to all the worlds you failed to save?】

Dying stars shone in the sky above ruined Gwanghwamun.

This wasn't the Star Stream of the third round I had changed.

It was a world abandoned in the original work's worldline because of the future I had changed.

Junghyeok's blade rose into the air.

"It seems you won't answer. Die."

TWSA, 1,863rd round.

This world was the final round of the Yu Junghyeok I knew.

Footnotes:

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