WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 95: Episode 19 — Singularity (3)

When I opened my eyes, it was already morning.

Suyeong, watching me suddenly bolt upright, smirked. It seemed she had been on the last watch.

“Did you have a nightmare or something?”

“Something like that.”

The embers of the fire that had burned through the night had turned to pale ashes. As I idly stirred the embers, I rubbed my throbbing forehead.

The scene I had unconsciously witnessed using [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint] lingered in my mind.

I wondered if Gilyeong was alright.

“Where’s Sangah?”

“She went scouting.”

Suyeong answered distractedly, fiddling with her smartphone.

“What are you looking at?”

“A novel.”

“Your own?”

“Whose else would it be?”

It was true, it would indeed be strange to read someone else’s novel in this situation.

“Do authors find their own works fun to read?”

“I do.”

“Even though you already know what happens next?”

It was a thoughtless comment, but Suyeong, rubbing her temples, gave an unexpected reply.

“Even if it’s the same content, the story can feel different when I read it again.”

“What do you mean?”

“Authors don’t completely control their own novels. When you look back, you notice holes everywhere. Reading is ultimately about connecting those irregular gaps in your own way.”

“I don’t get it.”

“…What I mean is, with time, even what I wrote can feel like it was written by someone else. In the end, every human is a stranger to themselves.”

Her unexpected words left me a little impressed. I didn’t think Suyeong could express herself so thoughtfully.

“Now that I think about it, you’re even more like that. You’re literally writing someone else’s novel.”

Suyeong let out a sharp yell, prompting me to cover my ears. Turning off her smartphone, she glared at me and asked,

“So, what’s the plan?”

“What do you mean? We wait until the scenario starts.”

“Who wants to hear such a half-baked answer? Surely you’ve got a real plan.”

Sensing she had more to say, I deliberately let her keep talking. As expected, she went on.

“The west is under Joonghyuk’s control, and the north is supposedly being handled by that so-called ‘Monarch of the Wanderers.’ What about the center?”

“We’ll handle it together.”

“There’s an easier way, isn’t there? Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten?”

I hesitated for a moment, then turned to glare at her.

“Don’t tell me you plagiarized that too?”

“…I didn’t. It just came to me while reading my own novel.”

She averted her gaze, pursing her lips.

“Anyway, I’m right, aren’t I? As far as I know, there’s a simple way to deal with the ‘Catastrophe of the Center.’”

She was right. If we followed her idea, we could clear the fifth scenario and stop all the disasters without too much trouble. She looked at me expectantly.

“You’ll take the easy route, right?”

“Well… I’ll think about it as we go.”

At that moment, Sangah waved at us from a distance, returning from her reconnaissance. Han Suyeong grumbled,

“You seem to be in a better mood since she arrived.”

“She’s someone I can trust.”

“Ugh. What a shame for those of us who don’t earn your trust.”

We finished preparing for our journey. Five days remained until the scenario began. Following the Han River westward, we slowly moved forward.

Our objectives were twofold: to find Gong Pildu, who had gone missing around the Han River area, and to hunt nearby monsters to gather coins. With the ongoing ‘Coin Event,’ we needed to maximize its benefits.

“Sangah-ssi, take the left! Suyeong, cover the rear!”

We hunted every tier-7 monster we encountered along the way.

With Sangah joining the fray, even tier-6 monsters became manageable. Watching her, I thought to myself.

The Olympus bastards probably didn’t realize that my summoning them was entirely intentional.

Having used up their allocated plausibility, Olympus’ constellations wouldn’t be able to interfere with Sangah for a while. After a battle, I addressed her.

“Sangah-ssi, try to use only one stigma at a time whenever possible.”

“Ah… I’m sorry. I caused trouble last time, didn’t I?”

“No, that’s not the reason.”

A being supported by a Nebula is special. Even if not all of a Nebula’s constellations sponsor the incarnation, the Star Stream’s rules establish that each incarnation is paired with one patron constellation.

Violating that rule would only bring harm to both the constellations and the incarnation. While the constellations might find ways to mitigate the effects among themselves, the Incarnation would bear the brunt of the repercussions.

“Using multiple stigmas simultaneously will put a heavy burden on your body.”

The damned Olympus constellations probably hadn’t warned her, but there were limits to how much narrative a human could withstand.

Each stigma carries the history of its constellation, and when densely packed tales are forced into a single being, they damage the spirit and body.

If Sangah continued to use multiple stigmas recklessly, her lifespan would rapidly diminish. At this rate, she wouldn’t last long…

Sangah smiled faintly.

“Thank you for worrying about me.”

I paused, realizing something, and asked,

“Did you know this and still do it, Sangha-ssi?”

Sangah lowered her eyes briefly before replying,

“Do I still look like a competent office worker to you?”

She continued speaking.

“I’m not like you, Dokja-ssi. I can’t do anything in this changed world. TOEIC scores, certifications, volunteer hours… none of that matters here.”

“Did you think getting stronger would solve everything?”

“Partly.”

She wasn’t wrong. Strength could solve some of the world’s problems, but those were few.

“I decided to build skills useful in this world. That’s all.”

Her hands bore countless scars, which to me felt like gaping holes.

Suyeong had said that reading was about connecting irregular gaps. If that was the reader’s task, then perhaps I was still far too inadequate to fully comprehend anything.

Suddenly, I felt a vibration from my pocket. Taking out my smartphone, I saw a yellow notification message.

[Hyung, are you okay?]

It was Han Donghoon, the King of the Hidden Shadows.

I stared blankly at the message for a moment.

[The internet has been unstable lately, so my messages got delayed. Even my skill can’t handle it…]

Several messages had piled up, likely delivered all at once when the internet connection stabilized.

To lighten the mood, I showed Sangah the messages. Her gentle smile reminded me that perhaps I wasn’t entirely a useless reader after all.

Through the messages, I managed to reconnect with Han Donghoon, and through him, I learned about the others.

[We’re around Yongsan District. Gilyeong is with us too.]

[Gilyeong is there?]

[Yes.]

I had a rough idea of where my key allies were located.

With Hyeonseong and Huiwon’s positions confirmed through [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint], the next step was to regroup.

I was somewhat curious about what happened to characters like Jeong Minseop or Lee Seongguk, but there wasn’t much I could do. They had some knowledge of the scenarios, so they’d probably manage to get by.

As for Lee Jihye… well, Joonghyuk would handle her.

[Stay in Yongsan for now. I’ll come to you soon. Try reaching out to others if you can.]

No reply came. It seemed the connection had dropped again. I turned to the group and said,

“It looks like we’ll need to cross the river soon.”

We were currently south of the Han River, while Yongsan District was to the north.

“You’re saying we have to cross that?”

Suyeong looked at me incredulously.

It wasn’t an unreasonable reaction. Together, we stared at the Han River.

Kyaooo.

Dark shadows moved through the surging waters. The Sea Dragons, which used to linger near Dongho Bridge, had reclaimed the river as their domain now that the water level had risen. While traveling along the river, we hadn’t seriously considered crossing it, those creatures were the reason why.

“You saw Cheonho Bridge, right? All the bridges are broken.”

Sea Dragons were tier-7 monsters. While we could kill one or two, their sheer numbers posed a problem. Taking them all on would take days. Swimming across while they were around? Out of the question.

“For now, let’s move downstream. There might still be an intact bridge.”

We spent hours moving along the riverbank, but no usable bridge could be found.

Instead, we came across a group of wanderers.

Suyeong instinctively reached for her weapon, but Sangah stepped forward first. She pulled some meat from her pack, prompting Suyeong to step back,

“What are you doing?”

“They’re starving.”

“So what? You’re just going to hand it over? Are you out of your mind? Don’t you know people are the most dangerous thing in an apocalypse?”

“If I wanted, I could kill all of them.”

The cold, murderous aura in Sangah’s voice silenced Suyeong.

“Alternatively, I could save them all, if I wanted.”

Sangah quietly distributed monster meat to the group. Some of the wanderers bowed their heads in gratitude.

“Hey, what’s she—?”

“It’s surplus. It doesn’t matter if we give it away.”

Ignoring Suyeong’s grumbling, I pulled out a stalk of ‘Yanaspleta.’

Not everyone in this world could hunt. Across the globe, people were likely conducting research on all sorts of monsters right now.

The man who received the stalk bowed repeatedly.

“Ah! Thank you, thank you so much…”

“It’s nothing. Times like these call for sharing.”

Of course, Sangah and I were fundamentally different. My acts of kindness were all calculated economic activity.

[A few people harbor deep goodwill toward you.]

[Your understanding of the character Shin Yuin has increased.]

[Your understanding of the character Ma Gangcheol has increased.]

[New characters have been added to the Bookmark list.]

Han Suyeong sneered.

“Wow, aren’t you saintly?”

“…Even I do nice things sometimes.”

[The constellation Demonic Judge of Fire is moved by your good deed.]

[You have received 400 coins.]

Suyeong muttered irritably as she glanced at Sangah.

“Damn, I thought people like her only existed in novels.”

I couldn’t disagree. Even before the apocalypse, Sangah had seemed more like a protagonist from a story than a real person. Now that reality had become a novel, it didn’t feel so unusual.

Just then, a girl stepped out of the group of wanderers and approached me. She seemed about Gilyeong’s age.

“What’s wrong?”

She had chubby cheeks, slightly western-looking eyes, and gleaming crimson irises. Her face radiated exotic charm. She walked straight up to me and bowed deeply.

“Thank you.”

The girl was polite. I looked around for her parents, but she seemed to be alone. Sensing my unspoken question, she said,

“They’re gone now.”

“Both of them?”

She nodded slightly.

I was taken aback. For a child to survive the fifth scenario alone, without guardians… it was almost impossible unless she had fallen into this world.

…Wait, fallen?

The moment I activated Character Profile, the girl spoke again.

“Well then, goodbye.”

Had she really come just to say thank you? I hesitated to stop her, glancing at Suyeong. She was looking elsewhere.

“…Take care.”

Night soon fell. After some deliberation, I gathered the group.

“Let’s rest here for tonight.”

We scouted for a suitable place to sleep. The Han River area was cold, even with a fire, so we decided to stay in a partially collapsed building. Suyeong, who had been itching to speak, warned Sangah,

“Just wait. Those people from earlier will come back. Didn’t you see how they eyed our weapons? They’ll repay kindness with betrayal.”

Suyeong was convinced that all humans were evil, bound to return malice for good. Watching Sangah’s expression, I added cautiously,

“Not everyone in an apocalypse is bad.”

“No, they are. Almost all of them.”

An hour passed.

“They’ll come soon. Probably drooling over our stuff.”

Two hours passed.

“Wow, they’re really patient.”

Three hours passed.

“…This doesn’t make sense.”

Finally, after four hours, we heard movement outside. Yu Sangah’s expression darkened, while Han Suyeong grinned triumphantly.

“See? What did I tell you?”

Suyeong growled as she grabbed her weapon. But when someone entered the building, she froze mid-action.

It was the girl from earlier. Her cheeks were flushed as she held something out.

“Um, here…”

She had brought a bundle of blankets. It seemed she’d gone out to find them because she thought we might be cold. Suyeong looked shocked, and Sangah stared blankly. Even in the apocalypse, not every act of kindness was repaid with betrayal.

[The constellation Demonic Judge of Fire smiles benevolently.]

[You have received 2,000 coins.]

Representing the group, Sangah stepped forward.

“Thank you. We’ll use them well.”

“You’re welcome…”

“But are you alone? It’s dangerous to wander at night.”

“It’s the same everywhere.”

Her tone suggested she didn’t think it mattered. Sangah’s expression darkened.

“Why don’t you stay with us?”

“What?”

“If you stay with us, you’ll be safer.”

Sangah looked to me for approval, but the girl answered first.

“I don’t want to be a burden.”

She bowed politely and began to leave. Just then, a projectile flew through the air and landed at her feet. Startled, she fell back, and Suyeong’s menacing voice followed.

“Hold it. You’re not going anywhere.”

“What do you think you’re doing?” Sangah asked, her voice cold as ice. But Suyeong was looking at me.

“Dokja, you know what to do, right? This is why you suggested staying here.”

I closed my eyes slowly.

Damn it. I had hoped she wouldn’t notice, but that was naive. Of course, someone like her, who used [Attribute Detection] at every opportunity, wouldn’t miss this.

Suyeong’s lips twisted into a sneer.

“Oh, are you going to play the saint again? Just because she’s a kid?”

“…”

“Planning to stick to the good guy act? Fine, I guess I’ll be the villain again.”

As Suyeong advanced, twisting her hands ominously, Yu Sangah stepped in her way.

“Stop.”

“Move. Are you going to kill her?”

“Kill her? Why would we—”

“A normal kid?” Suyeong chuckled bitterly before raising a hand toward the girl.

“I said stop.”

Sangah’s dagger pressed against Han Suyeong’s neck. In response, Han Suyeong summoned a dozen Avatars. Glaring, she growled,

“Dokja, explain. Before I lose my temper and kill them both.”

…So it had come to this. I sighed and spoke.

“That child…”

I looked down at the girl’s innocent eyes and felt an indescribable sorrow.

“…will destroy Seoul in five days.”

Yu Sangah’s gaze wavered. If we hadn’t noticed her presence, perhaps we could have moved on, but now it was too late.

This damned scenario would never lead us to a happy ending.

[The constellation Abyssal Black Flame Dragon smiles.]

[Many constellations show interest in the development of this scenario.]

It had been a long time since I felt such hatred toward the constellations’ messages.

“That child is the final catastrophe of the fifth scenario.”

Footnotes:

[1]

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