WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈
Chapter 561: Episode 2: Rewrite (6)
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A wide holographic screen appeared in the center of the subway station.
Startled, people cried out.
The place shown on the screen was a classroom.
Girls in dark blue uniforms trembled.
It was a sight I knew well.
「Typhoon High.」
The girls on the screen had joined forces and were desperately trying to break down the classroom door.
Of course, their efforts would fail because this was that kind of story.
Beep, beep, beep, beep.
An ominous alarm rang out.
The girls screamed.
[The time limit has elapsed.]
[Paid Settlement has begun.]
Alongside the notification, the girls' heads began exploding one by one.
I watched the scene with my eyes wide open. I had a responsibility to see that story through to the end.
On the screen, the last girl standing gripped her friend's neck.
A choking groan.
Then, the sole survivor on the screen raised her head.
[#Bay23515 Channel. Typhoon High, Class 2-B survivor: Lee Jihye]
It had unfolded exactly as it did in Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.
Jihye, who had been glaring at the screen, disappeared, and Bihyeong smiled.
[What do you think? Fun, isn't it?]
"H-how..."
Overcome by fear, people collapsed where they stood.
Even the big guy seemed shaken, his cheek twitching. Reader Uncle, who should already have known about this, had an unsteady look in his eyes as well.
I was the only one who remained calm.
[The character Lee Hyeonju is overcome by Fear!]
[The character Yeom Baekhun is overcome by Fear!]
Character emotion messages could be heard from all around us.
Bihyeong had precisely struck at the root of the people's anxiety before disappearing again.
"Th-the girl who survived at the end. She definitely killed someone."
Someone murmured as though possessed.
Starting with that person, voices spread through the crowd like wildfire.
"Didn't we get it wrong? What if bacteria aren't the answer?"
"You knew what you were talking about when you told us this, right? Can we really survive?"
I had to calm them down somehow.
"Wait. Everyone, please calm down..."
"How are we supposed to calm down right now?"
The agitated people pointed at me as they approached.
Reader Uncle, who had been watching from beside me, stepped in to dissuade them.
"We still don't know the result. This kid only wanted to save all of you..."
"That's the problem. We don't know the result! If we're wrong, we're dead!"
"You're the same! You two are in this together, aren't you?"
"Because of you, we're all going to die now. What are you going to do about it?"
In an instant, the people surrounding us looked ready to lynch us.
I even saw the big guy slipping into the crowd with a smug smile.
When I first came up with this plan, I knew this moment would be a crisis.
I had prepared a strategy for this situation, too.
[Current remaining time: 9 minutes.]
Still, I was getting tired, too.
Did I really need to go this far to save these people? Wouldn't it be wiser to run off with Reader Uncle and kill time for nine minutes?
With such cowardly thoughts in mind, I began looking for a suitable place to hide in the subway.
[The character Kim Cheolyang is looking at you.]
[The character Kim Cheolyang wants to take an unexpected action.]
A message rang in my head.
[The activation conditions for the Exclusive Skill □□ have been fulfilled.]
[The Exclusive Skill □□ has been activated.]
...□□?
[The character Kim Cheolyang is preparing for his Attribute to blossom.]
[You can intervene in the Attribute blossoming of the character Kim Cheolyang.]
[The Exclusive Skill □□ has activated!]
The scenery around me turned monochrome, and people's movements rapidly slowed.
My body stiffened as well, leaving me unable to move.
In a world where time had stopped, only letters floated against the colorless backdrop.
「Lee Hye-gyeong thought, 'It's all because of that person.'」
「Kim Haemun thought, 'Are we being punished by heaven for killing bugs?'」
「Ji Hyeongdong had disliked that squinty-eyed bastard from the start.」
Looking closer, I found a line floating above my own head as well.
「And Lee Hakhyun realized what that skill was.」
A message appeared in the blank space before me.
[You have entered the Snowfield.]
[Describe Kim Cheolyang's next action.]
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# Kim Cheolyang's Awakening
「At that moment, Kim Cheolyang□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□□...」
* You can add up to 150 characters based on your current proficiency.
+
Blanks floated there like an unfinished manuscript.
It wasn't hard to understand what they were.
[You can remain in the Snowfield for a total of 3 minutes.]
Just as Kim Dokja had an Exclusive Skill for a Reader, I had an Exclusive Skill for a Writer.
The skill, □□.
Could reality become what I wrote?
There wasn't much time, so I decided to write a sentence in the blank first.
My goal was clear.
I would use Cheolyang to get Reader Uncle and myself out of this crisis.
When I focused, sentences began flowing through my mind.
Of course they did.
I was the writer of Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.
「At that moment, an inexplicable Loyalty toward the squinty-eyed man, meaning Lee Hakhyun, though Cheolyang did not yet know his name, rose within Cheolyang. That Loyalty soon awakened Cheolyang.
[The character Kim Cheolyang has evolved into the Judge of Evil.]
"Stop. Don't touch him." (149 characters total)」
This should be enough.
It was a perfect development at a glance.
It used his Attribute, Crouching Figure, to evolve Cheolyang into a Judge of Evil like Jeong Huiwon.
Even I thought it was an excellent payoff of foreshadowing.
[You have described an absurd development.]
[The chance of successfully reproducing this description is 1%.]
[You lack the permitted Plausibility.]
Huh?
[Would you like to check reader feedback?]
I agreed without thinking.
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rlaehrwk37 : I'm dropping this
+
I blanked out for a moment before coming to my senses.
This wasn't the time to be shocked.
I wrote another sentence.
「At that moment, Cheolyang realized that he had actually been a master of the martial arts world in his previous life... (147 characters total)」
[You have described an impossible development.]
[The chance of successfully reproducing this description is 0.1%.]
[You lack the permitted Plausibility.]
[Would you like to check reader feedback?]
+
rlaehrwk37 : I'm dropping this
+
「At that moment, Cheolyang realized that he was Kim Namwoon's older cousin. The inexplicable familial affection flowing from him... (143 characters total)」
[You have described a bizarre development.]
[The chance of successfully reproducing this description is 3%.]
[You lack the permitted Plausibility.]
[Would you like to check reader feedback?]
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rlaehrwk37 : Do you want to die?
+
I tried writing a couple more times like that, but the results were failures as expected.
After being hit by reader comments in succession, my mental state was in tatters.
[30 seconds remain.]
Self-loathing began to set in.
I couldn't think of what or how I was supposed to write.
Watching the time tick down in real time, I closed my eyes.
At times like this, I had to return to my beginnings.
「"Writer."」
Then I heard the voice of the dokkaebi Ji Eunyeu in my head.
「"What does this character want?"」
Ah.
[20 seconds remain.]
[Your Exclusive Attribute is taking effect!]
I thought about Cheolyang, a character who had existed only in the setting.
[15 seconds remain.]
How would he act in this situation? How would he speak, and what did he want to become?
As if I were writing Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint for the first time, I frantically wrote sentence after sentence.
I spoke as Cheolyang and acted as Cheolyang.
At that moment, I was Cheolyang.
The instant I entered the final word.
[The time limit has elapsed.]
[You have described a plausible development.]
[The chance of successfully reproducing this description is 90%.]
[You have sufficient permitted Plausibility.]
[Would you like to check reader feedback?]
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rlaehrwk37 : Oh
+
I didn't know what that "Oh" meant, but I had definitely surprised the reader.
Besides, I remembered that bastard's ID.
[You have succeeded in scene recreation.]
[You are leaving the Snowfield.]
Strength drained from my entire body, and color returned to the world around me.
The agitated people approached Reader Uncle and me, while the big guy rolled up his sleeves.
Then.
"Everyone."
「At that moment, Cheolyang stepped forward.」
The sentence I had written began to manifest in reality.
"Our faith is being tested."
「It wasn't for anyone else. But the moment he stepped forward, Cheolyang was seized by the intense belief that he had been chosen by God.」
"Faith?"
「Perhaps it was because of the campfire. It felt as though fire had spread beyond the people's eyes.」
That was as far as my writing went.
Still, that was enough of an opening.
According to [Character Profile], Cheolyang considered this Scenario a trial of faith.
"By now, you've all realized it. Someone is watching us from the sky."
[Few Constellations' eyes shine.]
At the timely message from the Constellations, people began murmuring.
Encouraged, Cheolyang raised his voice with even greater confidence.
"The 'gods' are watching our choices. Whether we make righteous choices or evil ones."
[The Attribute evolution of the character Kim Cheolyang is imminent!]
[The character Kim Cheolyang's words move people's hearts.]
"Think about it rationally. The side that clears the Scenario by killing people, and the side that clears it without killing anyone. Which side is more righteous? Who will the gods support?"
The people listening nodded.
"That's right," some said. "Murder is a terrible sin."
Cheolyang continued speaking.
"The answer has already been decided. We chose the right side, and all that remains is faith in ourselves. We have even met a 'messenger of God' who knows the future."
A messenger of God?
Cheolyang had risen to his feet. With the campfire between us, he pointed at me.
"Following that person's words, we found a way to complete the task without anyone dying. We have already passed the trial."
That wasn't a line I had intended.
As Cheolyang looked at me with passionate eyes, the people turned to look at me, too.
Then.
"I think the deacon is right. There can't be a trial telling us to kill other human beings."
The people began talking.
"Look at those girls in the video earlier. They got greedy and tried to kill one another, so they all died."
"Human lives are precious!"
They were facing death in an unreal Scenario.
A god watching over them had appeared, followed by a religious man who affirmed and encouraged their choice.
Murder was frightening, and faith was close at hand.
The survival everyone believed in was sweet.
Hope, which had been powerless while separated, had encountered a catalyst and become a religion.
"Cheolyang! Cheolyang!"
"We've been chosen. We've been chosen..."
Someone cried out in excitement, weeping.
Beside me, I saw Reader Uncle let out a soft sigh.
In any case, thanks to Cheolyang's great performance after awakening, it seemed Reader Uncle and I had safely escaped our crisis.
But that wasn't the end of it.
[The character Kim Cheolyang has awakened the new Attribute Heretic Cult Leader.]
[The character Kim Cheolyang has acquired a new religious worldview.]
[The character Kim Cheolyang has acquired the basic doctrine of the Life Church.]
Life Church.
The instant I heard that name, chills ran down my spine.
One of the ten thousand notes buried in my mind surfaced clearly.
「At that moment, Lee Hakhyun remembered exactly who Cheolyang was.」
[The character Kim Cheolyang has accepted your view of life.]
[You have exerted a profound influence on the formation of that religious worldview.]
I realized what I had done.
The character Cheolyang.
My first note about him read as follows.
「Ten Evils, Life Church Leader Kim Cheolyang.」
Ten evildoers regarded as the worst enemies in Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.
I had just brought one of them into existence with my own hands.
Footnotes:
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