WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Editor: smol_anon

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 37: Episode 9 - Omniscient Sunfish (1)

We headed straight to the entrance of the "Hidden Dungeon" on the first basement level. I was following behind the group with Lee Gilyeong, while Lee Jihye and Jeong Huiwon led the way, and I checked my smartphone as we walked.

「...With a splitting headache, Yu Junghyeok lost consciousness.

‘This life is over.’

That was Yu Junghyeok’s 8th regression.」

No way, it couldn’t be. It couldn’t have come to this yet. Damn it, why was a guy in only his third regression acting up like this? If he had moved as cautiously as he did in the second regression, he could have coasted smoothly through the mid-to-late scenarios.

When I looked up, Huiwon was staring at me.

“Dokja-ssi, what are you looking at so intently?”

“Oh, just checking the calendar... Things are so chaotic that I’ve lost track of the days.”

Honestly, checking a calendar seemed more interesting. Sometimes I wondered how I managed to finish reading this novel in the first place.

Huiwon glanced at me suspiciously before turning to Jihye.

“By the way, Jihye, was it? Do you use a sword too?”

“Yes. I like swords.”

“Right? Swords really are the best. They have a satisfying feel when you slash with them.”

“You know that feeling too, unnie[1]?”

Huiwon smiled and glanced at Jihye’s long sword. Even at a glance, it was a high-quality, gleaming blade. It was probably given to her by Junghyeok.

“Your sword looks pretty good.”

“Oh, my master gave it to me. What about yours?”

“Mine is... well, mine’s good too.”

Huiwon looked down at her somewhat plain horned sword, then subtly tried to hide it on the other side of her waist. I felt a pang of guilt, even though I hadn’t done anything wrong.

I decided to pick on Jihye a little.

“Hey, why do you speak politely to Huiwon-ssi but use informal speech with me?”

“Uh... well, I’m kind of weak when it comes to cool older women.”

Jihye answered sheepishly, and Huiwon playfully put her in a headlock. It seemed those with [Demon Slaying] shared a certain connection.

As Jihye barely escaped the headlock, she asked,

“But why are you trying to save my master, old man?”

“He’s an ally.”

“Stop joking around.”

“Because he’s useful.”

“...That sounds just like my master.”

[The constellation Secretive Plotter is curious about your intentions.]

Come to think of it, it wasn’t just Lee Jihye. Even from the constellations’ perspective, my actions probably seemed strange. Here I was, running to save someone who would kill me the moment he got the chance.

[The constellation Demonic Judge of Fire is pleased by your desire to guide back a close comrade gone astray.]

[You have received 100 coins.]

Of course, some misunderstood entirely. But contrary to the hopes of the Demonic Judge of Fire—the Archangel Uriel—I had a purely personal reason for saving Yu Junghyeok.

I needed to prevent his death from regression. Yu Junghyeok’s ability, [Regression], a stigma that allowed him to return to the past whenever he died, was an incredibly overpowered ability, fitting for a protagonist. The problem was that this ability created complicated feelings for the supporting characters around him.

「But what happens to the world after the captain regresses?」

At some point, when Junghyeok’s number of regressions surpassed two digits, one of the supporting characters had asked him that question. I had forgotten the name, but I remembered Junghyeok’s answer clearly.

「...I don’t know. I always choose the world where more people can live.」

It sounded noble, but it really meant that he didn’t care about the worlds he abandoned. There was no clear theory about what happened to the world after he regressed, not in science, magic, or anything else. That’s what made me anxious.

What happens to a world once the regressor leaves it? Does it reset along with the regressor? Or does it split off into another parallel universe?

The latter would be a relief, but if it was the former, then my existence would...

“Hyung?”

“Huh?”

Gilyeong, who had been holding onto my sleeve, looked up at me with a worried expression.

“I think we’re here.”

[You are approaching a boundary zone. Be careful not to leave the scenario area.]

A warning message popped up. It didn’t matter. The Hidden Dungeon at Chungmuro was still within the scenario’s boundaries.

We rounded the corner and found ourselves in front of Exit 1. Next to it, the entrance to the dungeon loomed, shrouded in an ominous shadow.

[You have discovered a Hidden Dungeon!]

[This dungeon has already been discovered by someone else. You cannot obtain the achievement for the first discovery.]

[A new Hidden Scenario has arrived!]

+

<Hidden Scenario – Cinema Dungeon>

Category: Hidden

Difficulty: A-

Clear conditions: Defeat the master of the Cinema Dungeon.

Time limit: None

Rewards: 4,000 coins

Penalty for failure: —

+

Jihye recoiled in surprise.

“...What is this? A Cinema Dungeon?”

Gilyeong looked equally shocked. It was probably the first time any of them had received a Hidden Scenario. Even Huiwon had to comment.

“A dungeon in a movie Cinema... It’s kind of romantic.”

Romantic? That’s the kind of thing you say when you don’t realize how terrifying it is.

We proceeded straight into the Cinema. Despite our tension, the dungeon’s interior was eerily quiet. A nine-story multiplex, from basement level one up to the eighth floor.

“Hyung, all the posters are torn. Who did this?”

“Who knows?”

I said that, but I knew the reason.

The key to this Cinema Dungeon lay in the posters on the walls. Yu Junghyeok must have destroyed the posters to clear the gates and moved to the upper floors. He was probably planning to sweep up all the gate rewards.

Apart from the torn posters, there was nothing unusual on the first basement level. No items, no monsters—just an elevator in one corner, its doors dented and smashed.

Jihye asked,

“Is this really a dungeon? Why is there nothing here?”

“There’ll be something if we go up.”

“How do you know, old man? You’re acting suspicious. Are you a second-life regressor or something?”

That would be your master, and not just his second life... Huiwon cut in.

“Dokja-ssi’s patron is Gung Ye.”

“Seriously?”

Ignoring their banter, I moved to head up to the first floor, but suddenly Gilyeong grabbed my arm. The antennae on the cockroach perched on his head twitched furiously. Almost simultaneously, Jihye drew her sword, and I raised my hand to my lips.

“Shh, there’s someone else here.”

When we fell silent, we could hear faint movements. From above. For a moment, I thought it might be Junghyeok, but the voice wasn’t his.

“...So, it’s confirmed? There’s a ton of them here?”

“Yeah, I bought the info for 1,000 coins.”

“From the <Prophets>?”

“That’s right. Creepy, but their info is solid.”

We approached the voices cautiously, stepping up the escalator. Four men were gathered in the first-floor lobby. Jihye whispered,

“Who are they? I’ve never seen them at Chungmuro.”

“They must have entered from the aboveground entrance.”

“The aboveground? But it’s covered in poisonous fog, and the scenario—”

“Each station has different scenarios and progression speeds. They must have finished their scenario faster than we did. They probably ate underground creatures to build resistance to the poison.”

I said it, but I was just as surprised.

...The Prophets?

In none of Junghyeok’s previous regressions had there ever been information about such a group. Only Junghyeok and I should have known about the Hidden Dungeon at this point.

What kind of unexpected variable was this? I needed to find out.

“Alright, let’s go in.”

As they spoke, a blue spotlight flickered on above them. The bright light enveloped the men, and then they vanished from sight.

“What just happened?”

Huiwon asked, but I didn’t answer. Instead, I scanned the posters on the walls. This one was torn, and that one too... At the end of the wall, I finally found one intact poster. I read the text aloud.

—The era forgotten by humanity is now reborn.

Yu Junghyeok, you bastard... Of course, he left this one alone. Typical 3rd round behavior.

Suddenly, the light flickered back on. A buzzing sound followed, and the spotlight shone on us. Startled, Jihye and Gilyeong stepped back, but there was no escaping it. We were meant to be caught in its beam.

I turned to Huiwon just before the light enveloped us.

“Huiwon-ssi, do you like movies?”

“Of course. Doesn’t everyone?”

“Well, you might end up hating them after this.”

“What? What are you talking about—”

[You have been struck by the projector beam.]

[The screening for this floor has begun.]

The surroundings began to change. Since it wasn’t a simple illusion, [The Fourth Wall] didn’t respond this time. The worn linoleum floor transformed into lush green foliage, and the ticket counters and popcorn stands turned into dense rainforests. The ceiling morphed into a bright, cloudless blue sky.

Jihye looked around, bewildered.

“Where the hell are we?”

She shouted as she slashed at the nearby trees and bushes, but nothing changed. Gilyeong calmly started searching for insects.

I touched a nearby tree to test it. The texture was rough and humid. It was a real tropical rainforest, like something straight out of the Mesozoic era. Unlike the Illusory Prison of the specters, this felt far more realistic. It had to be the power of the Cinema Dungeon’s master on the eighth floor.

“We’re inside a movie.”

“This is just getting ridiculous...”

If a novel could become reality, why not a movie? Huiwon, who adapted quickly, seemed to accept it.

“Old man, which movie is this?”

“You’ll find out soon.”

“Can’t you just tell us? Wait, kid, what are you—”

Suddenly, the bushes rustled, and something darted out toward Gilyeong. It was an insect, resembling a giant praying mantis, about 40 centimeters long. Startled, Jihye readied her sword.

“Hey, kid! Step back, quick!”

But Gilyeong just looked at her as if she was overreacting.

“This is a Titanopteran, an insect from the Triassic period.”

“What?”

Gilyeong reached out to the creature, and it didn’t shy away. Soon, a blue light enveloped both him and the insect.

Jihye glanced at me, her face blank.

“What’s with him?”

“He’s like Fabre[2].”

Bringing Gilyeong along had been a good idea. With his abilities, we might pass through the gates more easily than expected. The giant mantis twitched its massive mandibles, and Gilyeong nodded repeatedly. I didn’t understand, but it seemed they were communicating. However, soon Lee Gilyeong’s expression turned pale.

...What’s wrong with him?

Gilyeong quickly turned to me.

“Hyung!”

The moment he spoke, the ground began to shake. Something enormous was barreling toward us, crushing entire palm trees in its path.

Grrraaaah!

Emerging from the jungle was a massive reptilian snout, drenched in blood. In front of it, several blood-soaked men were running in our direction. The same men who had entered before us.

“Aaaaah!”

“Help, please!”

Jihye, who had been stepping back cautiously, turned to Huiwon.

“I think I know which movie this is.”

“Yeah, me too.”

Standing over ten meters tall, with a rock-hard shell and rippling muscles, the ultimate predator of the Mesozoic era appeared before us. Judging by its size, it was a creature comparable to a tier-7 monster. The fact that this was only the first floor of the dungeon made it absurdly difficult, but I felt a thrill. After all, the harder the Hidden Dungeon, the better the rewards. Drawing my sword, I said,

“Get ready, everyone.”

Junghyeok probably skipped this movie based on its theme. Since the main rewards of the Cinema Dungeon were tied to the movie’s theme, he must have thought there wouldn’t be any worthwhile rewards in a movie full of dinosaurs. But he wouldn’t know. There was a hidden reward here, one that was extremely important.

Jihye asked in a shaky voice,

“You’re serious? You’re going to fight that thing?”

“If you want to find the exit, we have to take it down.”

“What do you mean, find the exit?”

“Don’t forget, we’re inside a movie.”

The massive T. rex advanced, and in the distance, the central research facility of the island came into view. Atop the building was an escape helicopter.

We were inside a movie, brought to life by the Cinema Dungeon’s master.

Therefore, there was only one way to escape.

“Let’s create a perfect ending.”

Footnotes:

[1] Unnie (언니) is a Korean honorific term used by females to address older sisters or older female friends. It conveys respect and affection, and is similar to the term “oppa” which is used by girls to address older men.

[2] Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre was a French naturalist, entomologist, and author known for the lively style of his popular books on the lives of insects.

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