Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint - Chapter 359

WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 359: Episode 67: The scenario's deceaseds (3)

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Lee Hyeongseong thought.

Was this how his maternal grandfather, who had supposedly fought in the Vietnam War, had felt?

A dense forest thick with lush leaves. As he hid between trees with abnormally massive trunks, Hyeongseong recalled the survival training he had undergone.

‘Move to the reed field in the nearby area using a low crawl.’

Alternating between low and high crawls, Hyeongseong slowly made his way through the forest. He wanted to run toward the field immediately, but quite a few groups of Constellations were heading that way.

At the sudden sound of something pushing through the grass, Hyeongseong quickly hid beneath a tree trunk and held his breath.

[I definitely saw the Demon King of Salvation choose this Island...]

[How will we divide the spoils if we hunt him?]

[Whoever takes his head gets half.]

The murmuring Constellations were all enemies targeting Kim Dokja. Hyeongseong wanted to leap out at once and put their heads on pikes.

―Head for the center of the Island no matter what.

But Dokja had said that. It was the only way to survive this damned survival. It was advice from someone who knew this world's future.

For a moment, Hyeongseong wondered if he should have asked Dokja more about TWSA. The more information he had about the manual, the better.

What would happen to his future self? What kind of life would he live?

‘This isn't the time for useless thoughts.’

Hyeongseong raised both hands and pinched his cheeks.

If Dokja had not told him, there had to be a reason.

Now was the time to focus on the situation.

Rustle.

Something moved nearby again. There were no voices. Someone was approaching this way. Their movements were cautious. They knew the basics of cover and concealment. The sound gradually drew closer.

Rustle.

If the other person did not turn away first, Hyeongseong would inevitably be discovered.

Tense, Hyeongseong drew a dagger from his clothes.

Dokja had told him to avoid battle at all costs, but that was not always possible.

‘If I can't avoid them, I strike first.’

After years of training harsh enough to make him cough blood, Hyeongseong had grown far stronger than before. He was no longer the “Soldier Who Turned a Blind Eye to Injustice” from the first Scenario.

At last, the presence came right up to him. Then something felt strange.

The pattern of a special forces uniform, briefly visible through the sparse reeds.

Hyeongseong muttered reflexively.

“Huiwon-ssi?”

“Waaah!”

The Sword of Judgement suddenly shot out of the grass. Hyeongseong instinctively bent at the waist and avoided the blade.

A moment later, Jeong Huiwon poked her head through the grass.

“Hyeongseong-ssi? Oh, I'm sorry.”

“No. It's all right. Are you okay?”

They were already in a desperate situation, so meeting a Companion was an immense relief. Once he caught his breath, Hyeongseong saw two children clinging tightly to Huiwon's waist.

Shin Yuseong and Lee Gilyeong.

Hyeongseong looked at the pale faces of the two children and asked, “Why are the children like this?”

“I don't know for certain. I only just met them. I think they saw something shocking.”

Something shocking.

This Island certainly did have something strange about it.

For some time now, Heracles' Shield on Hyeongseong's back had felt incredibly heavy. Normally, it was an item whose weight he would not even notice...

Hyeongseong carried Yuseong on his back with one hand and said, “I think we should first head for the center of the Island and meet Dokja-ssi.”

“Where is the center?”

“I heard it was in the direction the smoke is rising from, so...”

He raised his head slightly to check their bearings. Smoke drifted up between the massive trees. It was not too far away.

Hyeongseong began crawling with Huiwon. Perhaps because he was with a reliable Companion, the heartbeat he felt through his dog tags seemed to beat to a different rhythm than before.

After crawling for some time, they soon reached the edge of the forest. A vast field spread out before them. There was not much distance left to the source of the smoke.

The problem was the groups blocking their way across the field.

Huiwon frowned.

“Do you think those are the ones who followed us?”

Constellations armed with weapons and constellation artifacts prowled around the field, searching the area. Among them was the group Hyeongseong had spotted earlier.

“He told us to run instead of fight, so I think it would be best to avoid them...”

If they entered the field like this, they would definitely catch their attention. They could go around the forest, but there was no telling how long that would take.

That was when Yuseong, riding on his back, spoke.

“Mister. Over there.”

Yuseong's trembling finger pointed at the forest on the other side of the field.

Something was running out.

A savage, violent cry. The beast species that burst out of the forest was a monster Hyeongseong knew well. After all, it was a familiar monster in countless Fantasy comics and novels.

Huiwon asked, “Isn't that an Orc? It is far too weak to be in a Scenario in the eighties...”

An Orc.

A monster known as the representative “early-game monster” in countless Fantasy genres.

“Come to think of it, we've never fought an Orc before.”

It was strange when he thought about it. Orcs were so famous that even ordinary people knew them. Yet despite reaching the eightieth Scenario, they had never encountered one.

The Constellations in the field shouted.

[There is a limit to how much you can ignore us!]

[You only released trash like that?]

The Constellations seemed just as dumbfounded.

As though there was no need to use a weapon, one Constellation punched at the approaching Orc with an annoyed expression.

Normally, a single blow from that fist should have burst the monster's entire body apart.

Yet something strange happened the next moment.

Crack!

The Constellation's fist shattered beneath the stone axe swung by the Orc.

As the startled Constellation tried to shout something, another stone axe flew in from somewhere.

Crunch!

The Constellation's head burst apart. The Constellation's Incarnation body collapsed blankly, as though it had not even realized what had happened.

The Orcs gave unpleasant laughs and roared. The field became a horrifying slaughterhouse.

[Aaaah!]

Constellations said to crush mountains and split seas. Those Constellations were having their heads burst and bodies torn apart by only two Orcs.

Huiwon and Hyeongseong were both stunned. The sight did not feel real.

They died that easily? Constellations?

To Orcs?

“Run!”

The Orcs, who had torn apart roughly fifteen Constellations in moments, were approaching the forest where they hid.

* * *

Please, not Orcs.

I repeated that thought in my head as I pushed through the dense forest.

The heat made me increasingly short of breath, and my steps grew heavy. I had not even walked that long, but the sweat pouring from my whole body made me feel as though I would collapse from exhaustion.

I had not realized the absence of my overall abilities would make such a difference.

There was no helping an innate Constitution of one. To make matters worse, my shoulders even felt narrower. I wanted to believe it was my imagination, but this was the reality of the Island.

The Island of Reincarnators.

A place where the oldest stories of the Star Stream gathered.

Here, every ability buff accumulated as data outside was removed.

In other words, this was a place where the body's innate abilities mattered most.

That was why I could defeat the sixty-fifth-ranked demon king so easily.

Most Constellations who ascended to their positions neglected physical training. Because of that, when they first entered this Island, they made the mistake of misjudging their exact combat ability.

At least Andrealphus was not the physical type...

[You have killed 1 competitor so far.]

[You can receive an additional reward upon entering the safe zone.]

Trying not to miss the messages that appeared from time to time, I continued moving through the shade cast by the dense trees. Whenever I found a stream, I buried my face in it and gulped down water to prevent dehydration. The water was so clear and cold that it felt as though my soul was being purified.

“First Generation water sure is clear.”

It was not as though I hated old stories without exception.

As a reader, I actually preferred older stories. Stories of heroes filled with dreams and adventure. Fighting dragons in forgotten mountain ranges, or setting out to find a legendary sword with beautiful elves and brave dwarves...

The problem was that I had entered one of those “old stories.”

A world where I could not use the power of the Attributes Window and had none of its convenient functions.

The dangers here were not limited to beasts. Since I could not receive the effects of skills, my immunity naturally weakened, so I had to be wary of cold and disease as well. In the original story, there were even cases where Constellations caught infectious diseases and were wiped out.

In fact, the following sentence appeared in TWSA.

「Constellations accustomed to the conveniences provided by the Attributes Window and system faced a world their sensibilities could not read, then died helplessly without even putting up a proper fight.」

Constellations who had shone with powerful Status while reigning over the thrones of the Star Stream died because they could not overcome infectious diseases or Orcs. Some Constellations could not endure the humiliation and took their own lives.

It was ridiculous.

[The participants of Island 861 have been wiped out.]

[The participants of Island 1,896 have been wiped out.]

It had begun.

By now, the entire Small Island was probably gripped by a terrible tragedy.

Constellations dying at the hands of low-grade beast species they had ignored until now...

[Many Constellations are greatly shocked by the difficulty of the Island of Reincarnators.]

[Many Constellations are sending protest messages to the Administration Bureau!]

There was no use protesting.

This Island had always been that kind of Island.

A place where anyone, whether a demon king or an Archangel, would lose their head if they let their guard down for even a moment.

Krrruk.

At the cry from the nearby brush, I instinctively held my breath.

As far as I knew, there was only one beast species on this Island that cried like that. A dwarf-like monster with pale green skin, about half my height.

...A Goblin?

I barely let out a breath of relief.

If it was a Goblin rather than an Orc, I could handle it as long as I stayed alert.

Kieeeek!

At the ear-splitting shriek, I instinctively swung my sword toward the sound. Perhaps because my Strength was so pathetic, my body was dragged along in the direction Unbreakable Faith swung.

Whoosh!

Fortunately, the first one to leap at me was struck by my blind swing and rolled across the ground.

The problem came after that.

「One law of the First Generation. Goblins never move alone.」

Two Goblins leaped over their injured companion, closed the distance in an instant, and swung their spiked clubs at me.

Riiip!

One of their clubs left a long scrape along the outside of my thigh.

Damn it. They said Goblins were scarier than demon kings here.

[The Exclusive Skill, The Fourth Wall, has activated!]

If not for The Fourth Wall, I might have been overwhelmed by the Goblins' barrage and died like the other Constellations.

That was when an ominous voice spoke.

[The Island's Overseer is concerned about the unfairness of the skill you are using.]