WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈
Chapter 793: Episode 37: Graduation Ceremony (9)
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A long silence passed. Yu Junghyeok was the first to break it.
“Why are you laughing?”
―Just because.
Junghyeok glared at me as if I were some kind of weirdo.
Honestly, it wasn't a situation to laugh in.
「Odin's direct Night Raven legion, which ruled the skies of Asgard.」
In the distance, I could see the ravens charging Mana for their cannons. Once they began firing, we'd become a beehive in an instant.
Even so, I felt all right.
「“That pathetic fable was the first story I had ever seen.”」
I felt as if I had been acknowledged by those words. That the way I had lived wasn't wrong. That all that time had been meaningful enough.
―You said you can't undergo Regression anymore.
Junghyeok nodded.
―Does that still hold true?
Junghyeok lightly looked up at the sky as he replied.
“Probably.”
―And you still don't intend to run away?
Junghyeok answered with silence.
As expected, whether he could undergo Regression or not, Junghyeok was still Junghyeok.
Then I had to play Kim Dokja's role too.
―All right. Let's fight.
The hand holding me tightened, as though he was wondering what nonsense I was spouting now.
“If we fight them head-on, you...”
―They can't kill me.
Odin's Night Ravens weren't the only ones approaching.
Enemies were closing in from every direction. Constellations from Veda. On top of that, pursuers from Olympus aboard the Argo.
The nets cast by nebulae from all over had surrounded us without a single gap.
―Because they need me.
I had now become one of the largest Kim Dokja Fragments in this worldline.
From now on, those bastards would fight over me.
―When I give the signal, throw me. You have to throw me exactly where I tell you to.
Junghyeok seemed to understand what I meant right away.
“It might not go as planned.”
―When does anything go as planned in the Star Stream?
Junghyeok frowned and muttered.
“Damn it.”
―Now!
At my signal, Junghyeok threw me.
I shot rapidly through space, heading straight for the point between Veda and Olympus.
[It's him! Capture him!]
Greek heroes aboard the Argo surrounded me. At a glance, they were formidable Historical-grade Constellations.
Orpheus, Theseus, Castor, and even Oedipus King, who had nothing to do with the ship.
Rumbblee!
That was when a thunderous roar rang out through the void.
[What...]
Oedipus King turned to the side and cried out in horror. At the same time, the Argo collided with something.
Amid the massive explosion, I witnessed the astounding sight of a giant ship crashing into a train.
[Exalted God of Light!]
The ship's crew charged at Surya's Sun Chariot.
The brightly shining Surya responded by unleashing his own Status.
[The Constellation Exalted God of Light reveals his Status.]
One of Veda's Lokapalas.
Surya, the Exalted God of Light.
The fabled-grade Constellation from Veda, who had appeared in the main story's Demon King Selection, was revealing his power.
[Aaaargh!]
Historical-grade Constellations unable to withstand Surya's light melted away with screams.
As if he had no interest in the small fry, the great Constellation turned proudly and looked at me.
[Are you Kim Dokja?]
It was a strange feeling. Who would have thought I would meet Surya like this?
I answered in my barely recovered voice.
“So what if I am?”
For a moment, I hoped this Surya might have come from the 1,864th round like Uriel. However, that didn't seem to be the case.
He looked down at me with curious eyes and spoke.
[If you come quietly, I won't harm you.]
“You're awfully polite.”
Instead of replying, Surya summoned a massive palm from thin air.
A palm made of fables seized my entire body.
I frowned and asked, “A Constellation like you wouldn't move so easily. Is this Veda's order?”
[I have no obligation to answer you.]
“You oppose Veda's will. Why do you keep acting as that nebula's lackey?”
Surya's brow arched at my words.
[What is the purpose of such outrageous nonsense?]
“Do you know? The Surya I knew pulled a truly incredible train.”
Surya, the Last Engineer, who had led Kim Dokja Company's train. Without him, the characters of the main story could never have crossed the Final Wall.
“Want me to show you a little?”
I carefully recalled the sentences I had written.
Then the sentences rose up as Fable Fragments.
「Surya's entire body, seated in the locomotive cab, shone as brilliantly as a white-hot sun.」
Surya's eyes widened when he touched the Fable Fragment.
「Without showing any sign of it, he used his own body as fuel to drive the [Sun Chariot]. As though it had been his duty all along, living as the Exalted God of Light.」
Surya's grip loosened.
It was only for an instant, but that was enough of an opening for me.
“Junghyeok!”
At my signal, Junghyeok rushed over and caught me.
Surya shouted.
Phoenix walk, pushed to its limit, crossed the boundaries of the Scenario.
We barely broke through the encirclement, but it wasn't over yet. In the distance, I heard the sound of trains starting again, followed by the clamor of the stars pursuing us.
“We can't keep running away like this forever.”
―It's all right.
I watched the stars chasing us.
―Those things will start gathering soon.
This wasn't merely an area outside the Scenario's jurisdiction.
This was the edge of the Void Curtain, and the outer rim of the Star Stream.
In other words, it was a place where the boundary with the Outer World grew thin.
Crackle.
As if they had been waiting, sparks rang out all around us. Amid the aftermath, portals began opening one by one.
Black hounds emerged from beyond them.
「Hounds Chasing the Abyss.」
The hounds of the Outer World, who upheld the Star Stream's rules, had arrived.
[The hounds are coming!]
The Constellations cried out frantically.
Odin's Night Ravens, wandering nearby, had their wings torn off by the hounds' teeth, while Constellations screamed.
Stars exploded everywhere, and hounds were trampled beneath trains.
Within my shaking vision, the pursuing nebulae and Outer Gods became tangled together, forming a vast hellscape.
「It felt as if the entire universe were chasing us.」
Junghyeok and I were in the middle of that hellscape.
Maybe because the situation was so unreal, I kept letting out weak laughter as I repeatedly lost consciousness and woke again.
[There is currently no Scenario assigned to you!]
[Your Incarnation body is in critical condition!]
My body shook as if electrocuted several times.
Then, my consciousness went black, and I found myself in a snowy landscape.
「Kim Dokja.」
Without realizing it, I called that name.
Then, amid the icy chill, I saw someone's shadow.
A coat fluttering lightly in the wind.
I instinctively reached out toward him.
Who was that Dokja?
Was he the Demon King of Salvation? Kim Dokja of 49%? Or another Kim Dokja I had yet to meet?
The moment I thought that far, I realized his coat wasn't white.
Terrifying demon king wings stretched out behind a red coat.
He wasn't Kim Dokja.
「Are you still searching for that name?」
A familiar face turned toward me.
It was a face I knew well.
「Inho Cheon.」
A chill ran down my spine.
Inho Cheon had never appeared in the Snowfield before. Nevertheless, the being before my eyes was undoubtedly Inho Cheon.
He slowly crouched down and looked at me.
「You've truly taken on a different face now.」
A voice suddenly came to mind.
【Do you truly wish to know? Even if that truth might destroy you forever?】
A voice I had heard once while my consciousness faded.
I was certain.
It had undoubtedly been Inho Cheon's voice.
As if answering my question, Inho Cheon nodded.
「You've truly reached the end of the Recycling Center. Excellent. You must know who you are now, too.」
Who was I?
I had clearly come all this way because I wanted to know the answer to that question.
So, did I know it now?
「Save Yu Junghyeok.」
Perhaps my request amused him, because Inho Cheon smiled with his eyes.
「That guy hates me.」
「If I die here, you die too, you bastard.」
I was currently possessing Inho Cheon's body. If I died, Inho Cheon's body would perish too.
「I won't die. More importantly, aren't you Dokja now, rather than Inho Cheon?」
「I'm not in the mood for word games.」
「Could it be that you still don't know who you are?」
「I...」
I recalled the memory I had seen through Gu Seona at the Recycling Center.
A confrontation between two Dokjas.
Kim Dokja of 49%, trying to protect the worldline of the 41st round, and the Demon King of Salvation, who fought against him.
I hesitated before asking.
「Am I... Kim Dokja of 49%?」
Inho Cheon looked at me for a moment, then asked back.
「What exactly is Kim Dokja of 49%?」
「What?」
「There could be a Kim Dokja who holds 49% of Memory A, and another Kim Dokja who holds 49% of Memory B. Can you say that those two 49%s are the same 49%?」
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
Inho Cheon was telling me that the total amount of memories meant nothing when proving a person's identity.
As if satisfied by my expression, Inho Cheon nodded.
「It seems you've finally found the answer.」
「I am...」
「Kim Dokja, who didn't want to remain Kim Dokja.」
Inho Cheon's bright eyes questioned me.
「Do you want to save Yu Junghyeok?」
I nodded.
「Then do what you do best.」
What I did best.
「Isn't that why you came to this world? Didn't you want to change this world's conclusion?」
The wide Snowfield was reflected in Inho Cheon's opened eyes.
「Write it yourself. Convince all the rest of the world with your dream.」
Gasp.
I regained consciousness.
My vision shook intermittently. The screaming stars churned around us.
I was still on Junghyeok's back.
How long had I been asleep?
My Incarnation body seemed a little more recovered than before. Had I taken an elixir while asleep? Or perhaps...
[Exclusive Skill The Fourth Wall is strongly active!]
Was it thanks to the Fourth Wall?
“You're awake.”
Junghyeok's voice was exhausted.
The moment I checked his condition, my heart turned cold.
Limbs torn away by the hounds. His whole body covered in blood.
In that state, Junghyeok limped forward.
“How much time has passed?”
“Three days.”
I swallowed a breath.
Junghyeok had fled from Constellations and Outer Gods for three whole days while carrying my unconscious body on his back.
“Why...”
He could have escaped alone. If he had been alone, he surely would have found a way to survive.
Yet Junghyeok hadn't run.
Pop.
Junghyeok's knee gave way.
Looking down at his protruding kneecap, he slowly set me on the ground, then collapsed forward.
“...Run away.”
Watching him mutter that, I took a Lesser Restoration Pill from my pocket. It was an elixir I had prepared for a moment like this.
I crushed the elixir into small pieces and poured them into Junghyeok's mouth.
Even while barely conscious, Junghyeok glared at me.
[Exclusive Skill The Fourth Wall has strongly activated!]
I slowly closed my eyes.
Beyond the wall, there were gazes watching over us.
My Patron constellation. And readers whose names and faces I didn't know, but who had once been Kim Dokja.
I thought of them.
“Thank you, Yu Junghyeok. You've done more than enough.”
Just as they were Kim Dokja, I was Kim Dokja too.
And any Kim Dokja would have no choice but to make the same decision as me now.
“No matter what happens, you have to survive.”
At those words, Junghyeok's eyes widened, and he rose as if by a miracle.
He had activated [Recovery].
However, I didn't give him the chance.
I released my Status.
As Junghyeok lost his grip on me from the sudden shock and grew distant, I shouted toward the void.
“Demonic Judge of Fire!”
At my call, a bright star twinkled in the distant universe.
“Uriel! Send Yu Junghyeok back to Earth right now!”
Footnotes:
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