WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈
Chapter 611: Episode 12: □□ (2)
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I continued speaking to Suyeong, who refused to answer.
"You plan to keep Yu Junghyeok bound here and trap him in an eternally repeating 'movie,' don't you?"
Then only a small portion of the tragedies Junghyeok would cause in this world would occur. Suyeong had likely already sent her [Avatar] outside.
Under her plan, the world would quietly perish, and Shin Yuseong would become a lost child of the worldline and set off on her journey to become a 'Calamity.'
That was the complete conclusion Suyeong had designed for this '41st round.'
After thinking for a moment, Suyeong spoke.
"Yeah. That's right."
"Why do you have to go this far?"
"If the world's going to perish anyway, it's better to lessen the pain until it does."
Suyeong continued as if she were deciding to euthanize an entire world.
"You know what kind of person Yu Junghyeok in this world is, too."
Suyeong was looking at Junghyeok.
"Not every Yu Junghyeok is a good guy. Yu Junghyeok is human, and he makes mistakes. The Yu Junghyeok of the 41st round is the kind who'll make a lot of them."
Yet perhaps she wasn't looking at this world's Junghyeok at all. Shadows of distant fables drifted through her gaze.
From the 0th round to the 1,865th round.
To Suyeong, who had written the 'Yu Junghyeok' of every world, 'Yu Junghyeok' might not have been a character at all. He might have been a phenomenon, a concept.
"They're mistakes that haven't happened yet."
I remembered the Junghyeok who had spoken to me, the Junghyeok who had opened up to Inho Cheon of the 40th round.
The Junghyeok who wanted to see this world's end, even if he had to enlist an evildoer's help.
The Junghyeok who had tried to teach the people of Geumho Station how to hunt.
The Junghyeok who had left Ellain Forest Essence behind for me.
Was this Junghyeok really a bad person?
"We can change it."
"If you do that, something even more terrible will happen."
Something even more terrible.
"If you change the story, other worldlines will be born from this round onward. Countless more Scenario universes will come into existence."
It felt as if my heart were tightening.
"You asked me earlier why I came here, didn't you?"
Quiet anger filled Suyeong's voice.
"I came to bring this entire story to its conclusion. To stop this goddamn tragedy that doesn't end no matter how many times I close it."
For some reason, hearing that made me sad. Perhaps it was because I remembered Suyeong's sentence.
「I will write the Final Chapter for you, forever and ever.」
Suyeong, who had once written those words for Kim Dokja, was now trying to write the final sentence that would end all these worlds.
Maybe that was possible.
I understood her.
There was only one thing I wanted to know.
"I..."
Why did the face of the woman trying to write that final sentence look so sad?
"I can't accept a conclusion like this."
"Who are you to say that?"
"I am..."
Who was I?
"I'm someone still writing the 'Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint' you began."
Suyeong fell silent for a moment, as if weighing the meaning of those words. Then she asked,
"Are you confident?"
"I'm not."
There had never been a story I wrote because I was confident.
"Even so, there are stories that have to be written."
The moment Suyeong tried to say something, I kicked off the ground and ran at her.
No matter what Suyeong's goal was, I couldn't stand by and watch this happen.
「The 'Theater Dungeon' must be cleared.」
Only then could I save Killer King.
Only then could I free the other readers who might be in danger.
Only then could I save Yu Junghyeok.
Szzzt.
Suyeong's left hand moved. Flames of [Black Flame] gathered in her hand, burning across the rooftop floor as they flew toward me.
I drew in a deep breath and shouted.
"Transform into Heracles' Shield."
[Exclusive Skill, Incitement Lv.6 has activated!]
Thought shone, then transformed into the replica version of Heracles' Shield I had obtained from the [Reward Floor].
[Special Skill, Area Defense has activated!]
A translucent barrier spread out from the shield.
Suyeong's [Black Flame] melted more than half the barrier before scattering. My hands and feet burned, and the heat scorching everything around me made it hard to breathe.
I endured the scorching wind and spoke.
"Huiwon-ssi. Are you there?"
A voice came from directly behind me.
"How did you know?"
Jeong Huiwon stood behind me, holding Mikazuki Munechika in her left hand and outfitted in Impossible Mission from head to toe.
Without turning around, I said, "I figured it was about time you woke up. When did you regain consciousness?"
"Back in the white room."
Huiwon hesitated briefly, then stepped beside me.
"You seemed to be talking about something important. I didn't think I should interrupt."
"And now?"
"It looks like you'll die if I don't."
We smiled at each other for a moment. She seemed to have fully recovered, because dense waves of Mana writhed all over her body.
"That person is very strong."
Huiwon glanced at Suyeong and nodded.
"It looks that way."
I pointed at the Simulacrum before Suyeong.
"Our target isn't her. It's the old man in front of her."
"If we get rid of that, this dungeon ends, right?"
I nodded.
Suyeong silently listened to our conversation from afar. Her expression showed complete confidence that nothing would change no matter what we did.
Huiwon seemed displeased by that attitude and stepped in front of me.
"You know what you said to me before I passed out? Say it again."
I thought for a moment about what she meant, then said, "You might pass out again."
"It's frustrating, but I don't think I can win unless I hear it now."
Flames flickered in Huiwon's eyes.
Her voice showed that she had already made up her mind.
If we were going to use that, now was the only time. We had to play our strongest card while Suyeong still had her guard down.
I opened my mouth.
"From now on, every 'enemy' in front of you..."
It was time to show our story.
[Exclusive Skill, Incitement Lv.6 has activated!]
"...is a 'monster.'"
At those words, waves of Mana exploded from Huiwon's entire body.
[The character Jeong Huiwon is requesting the activation of Hour of Judgement.]
Indirect messages from the Constellations echoed in my head.
[The Constellation Rice Cake-Eating Tiger agrees with the will of Incarnation Jeong Huiwon.]
[The Constellation Monarch of the Small Fries agrees with the will of Incarnation Jeong Huiwon.]
[The Constellation Pig Living in a Brick House agrees with the will of Incarnation Jeong Huiwon.]
[The Constellation Primeval Ox agrees with the will of Incarnation Jeong Huiwon.]
And then.
[Hour of Judgement has been activated.]
Huiwon charged across the rooftop with a roar.
The acceleration was enough to make even Suyeong's eyes widen.
Suyeong hurriedly moved her left hand and unleashed [Black Flame].
[The special option Demon's Footsteps of Mikazuki Munechika has activated!]
Moving like a shadow, Huiwon's figure evaded the flames of [Black Flame] and reached directly in front of Suyeong.
There wasn't a trace of hesitation in her steps.
Mana gathered in Huiwon's right hand and stained Mikazuki Munechika's blade.
It was a perfect draw.
Huiwon's [Swordsmanship], carrying deep blue sword aura, flew straight for Simulacrum's neck.
"That's strange. This isn't the [Hour of Judgement] I know."
With those words, Huiwon's sword stopped.
As if an invisible repulsive force existed between Suyeong and Huiwon, her blade trembled in midair and was pushed away.
Only then did I realize what had happened.
[The Cinema Master Simulacrum is attempting Mental Erosion!]
In that brief moment, Suyeong had borrowed Simulacrum's skill to attack Huiwon.
Goddammit.
"Huiwon-ssi! Fall back!"
Huiwon's eyes slowly clouded over.
Among the members of Kim Dokja Company, Huiwon was especially vulnerable to mental attacks.
There was no way she could withstand Simulacrum's attack unharmed this early on.
The moment I rushed forward and reached for Huiwon,
"Stay down there."
My vision flipped at Suyeong's words.
Suyeong grabbed my wrist, flipped me over, and slammed me into the ground. Intense pain surged through my back, choking off my breath. I felt fables flowing in through my fingertips and overturning my vital energy.
The difference in strength was too great to call this a fight.
Blood burst from my mouth with a cough. The fuse of my consciousness blew for an instant before returning.
Then.
"Something like this..."
I heard Huiwon's voice.
As I slowly opened my eyes, I saw Huiwon staggering forward.
"Something like this..."
Blood vessels burst in her eyes. Blood ran from her tightly bitten lips as she took one step after another.
Suyeong looked impressed.
"You. You're a little different from the Jeong Huiwon I know. Something..."
Something occurred to me.
Come to think of it, something similar had happened in the [Illusory Prison].
Even with an item's equip effect, Huiwon had defeated the specters without suffering from any trauma.
「Jeong Huiwon of this world has no trauma connected to the villains of Geumho Station.」
What awakened her wasn't hatred for evildoers.
The Jeong Huiwon of the 41st round had become a 'Judge' solely to save me.
Suyeong muttered in a low voice.
"It's surprising enough that this Jeong Huiwon is still alive... The 41st round is pretty interesting."
After only a momentary encounter, Suyeong seemed to have grasped Huiwon's entire new history.
"But taking Inho Cheon's side? The Jeong Huiwon I know would be sad to see that."
"Wha-what?"
"Jeong Huiwon. Don't you want to know what the 'original story' was like?"
The tip of her pale finger drew a magical trail through the air before touching Huiwon's forehead.
[The Great Fable Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint begins its story.]
Huiwon's eyes widened. Goosebumps rose along my arms as well.
I didn't know exactly what Huiwon was seeing, but it wasn't hard to imagine.
"Can you see it? That's the true nature of the 'person' you believe in."
Huiwon was now seeing the story of the third round.
「"My name is Inho Cheon."」
More precisely, she was seeing the 'Inho Cheon' of that world.
「"That's right. Search Party members receive more rations. So if you want Food, please apply to the Search Party."」
The villain of Geumho Station. The leader of the Ironhead Gang, Inho Cheon, who had tormented people and driven Huiwon to the brink of death.
「He couldn't finish speaking because Huiwon appeared behind him and pierced Inho Cheon's face from the crown of his head downward.」
In that world, Huiwon reclaimed her life by killing Inho Cheon.
The story didn't end there.
As she watched the fables of the third round flow past like a panorama, blood ran from Huiwon's nose and mouth.
"Th-this..."
Suyeong wore an unreadable expression as she watched Huiwon.
At that moment, Suyeong seemed like a demon king, a dokkaebi, and a Constellation.
That was why Suyeong looked like a god.
The story she had lived explained her.
The fables she had gathered, letter by letter, while surviving countless brushes with death.
She stood atop the text at the dizzying height formed from the days of Kim Dokja Company and Han Suyeong.
I couldn't reach her.
Just looking at her inspired awe.
At the peak of fables, Suyeong was omniscient and omnipotent.
Like a child easily knocking down a poorly stacked tower of Jenga blocks, she was destroying Huiwon with an indifferent finger.
It felt as though all strength was leaving my body.
"Take a good look at what you're trying to be loyal to. Look at the life you were originally meant to have."
The history of this world I had built from my crude sentences, our lives, were collapsing.
"Illu... sion."
"It's not an illusion."
"Even if... this... is true..."
Huiwon spoke haltingly.
Desperate light shone in her eyes.
"This world... isn't... that world."
The moment I heard those words, my mind cleared as if cold water had been poured over me.
Strength returned to my fingertips. My spinning vision steadied.
I felt along the ground and stood up.
「This world isn't 『Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint』.」
Huiwon was right.
「Because this world has never once been properly written.」
I staggered one step forward, then another.
Suyeong turned toward me as if warning me.
"Come any closer and you'll die."
I asked her, "Were you planning to let me live otherwise?"
Suyeong's hand, wrapped in [Black Flame], slowly aimed at me.
As I looked at her, I thought,
「If this world truly isn't 『Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint』.」
What I could and couldn't do now. The sentences I could and couldn't write.
「This world now needs a new sentence.」
And to write that sentence, I needed a single 'blank page.'
The instant Suyeong's [Black Flame] shot toward me,
[You want to take an unexpected action.]
I decided to write a 'sentence' against her.
[You describe your own actions.]
[5 points of Plausibility have been consumed.]
[The activation conditions for Exclusive Skill □□ have been fulfilled.]
The world's colors turned monochrome, and time stopped.
[You have entered Snowfield.]
Then, something that had never happened before occurred.
[An error has occurred in Snowfield!]
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# □□
「□□?□□?□?□□?□□□?□□□□□□□?□□□?□□□?□□?□□□□□?□□□?□□□?□□······.」
* Based on your current proficiency, you can add a total of ? characters.
+
[You can remain in Snowfield for a total of ? minutes.]
Every manuscript page before me was broken.
Neither the remaining time nor the character limit was displayed.
I stared blankly at the empty spaces, then suddenly smiled.
「Lee Hakhyun suddenly felt that everything was free.」
As if defying time's rule, I alone was awake in a world where everything had stopped.
It felt as if any sentence I wrote would come true.
As if I could write whatever sentence I wanted.
I thought of my first sentence.
「Lee Hakhyun moved his hand.」
This 'Snowfield' was a world between the lines where all space and time had frozen. Therefore, I shouldn't have been physically free either.
「Then his hand moved.」
Yet strangely, my hand moved.
「When he took a step, his foot came down. When he clenched his fist, his fist clenched.」
I didn't know why this was happening, but perhaps this was an opportunity.
If I could use this situation to kill Simulacrum.
This world was a space between the lines where only I could remain. If that were possible, then without anyone interfering, I could...
Szzzt.
Intense sparks burst through the air at that moment.
Beyond the brilliant light of the sparks, someone was looking this way.
"Interesting. This works?"
The moment I heard that voice, it felt as if my heart dropped.
Han Suyeong was there.
"Is this your ability?"
Letters flowed around her, spiraling as if to protect her. Like me, she stood freely at the center of Snowfield, defying time's restraints.
「In the space between lines, only two writers had escaped time's rule.」
At that moment, I felt the gaze of a star shining faintly from beyond the distant Snowfield.
「And one reader watched it.」
I stared blankly up at the sky, then lowered my head to look at Suyeong again.
The stage had been set, and what I had to do was clear.
There were two writers here now.
But what would ultimately be recorded here was:
「Only one story.」
Footnotes:
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