Translator: Rainbow Turtle
At the beginning of the Story Succession, six small rooms were created at the end of the stage. The number of rooms was exactly equal to the number of incarnations partic.i.p.ating in the Story Succession.
-All incarnations, please move immediately to the Room of Secrets!
The system of the Story Succession was simple. The incarnations would communicate with the constellations through the Room of Secrets and hear all their conditions. Later, they would go up on the stage and announce the story they would receive.
There was a nameplate that said "Incarnation Kim Dokja." I said towards Yoo Jonghyuk, "I"ll see you later."
Yoo Jonghyuk didn"t respond and disappeared into his room. I entered the room and sat at a table, while the sounds from outside were completely cut off. It felt like the s.p.a.ce was distorted.
[The Room of Secrets.]
It was one of the most confidential places in the Star Stream. The things that happened here couldn"t be seen by even the dokkaebis of the channel.
[You have become the master of the Room of Secrets for one hour.]
[You have been given the administrative rights of the Room of Secrets.]
[The maximum time you can use the Room of Secrets is one hour.]
[Please make contact with as many constellations as possible in this time.]
I looked at the door with antic.i.p.ation. Okay, who would be the first guest? Someone came through the door at this time. It was a floating yellow book with sacred scripture.
[Incarnation Kim Dokja. Select the Feast of Resurrection.]
...The first batter was Indian mythology.
***
[The constellation "Founder of Humanity" is looking at you.]
The negotiator from Vedas was the constellation "Manu", who had the modifier of Founder of Humanity." I also knew Manu"s story. Of course, it wasn"t because I knew Indian myths but because of Ways of Survival.
「 According to the Indian epic, Manu was the survivor of the great flood. In exchange for saving a fish, he was able to escape to the top of the Malaya Mountains in a s.h.i.+p prepared by the fish... 」
...I recalled this story and knew why Manu had come to negotiate. Manu was a constellation who frequently argued over the copyright for the "Ark"s Master" narrative with the constellations from Eden. In other words, this Manu was a specialist in copyright disputes among the constellations of Vedas.
"...The Master of December 25th didn"t come directly?"
[Do you think he is that free? Answer simply. Will you accept the Feast of Resurrection?]
He was coming out with this att.i.tude? In addition, the person in charge of the story, Mitra didn"t come.
[If you have ears, you will know that Vedas is one of the biggest nebula. A myriad of myths are born in Vedas and many nebulae plagiarize our myths. Especially those Eden guys...]
"That is a personal story. If I accept the Feast of Resurrection, what can Vedas give me?"
[The protection of the sun G.o.d will be with you.]
"What is the blessing of the sun G.o.d?"
[Do I have to explain everything to you? Insignificant mortal...!]
"I have one question."
[What?]
"Calling me an insignificant mortal, don"t you think it is an antiquated cliche? How long will the constellations who love to tell different stories despite humans with such cliches?"
Manu"s eyes widened and he glared at me.
[How dare you talk such nonsense...!]
"It is what I think."
[You have used the administrative rights of the Room of Secrets.]
[The constellation "Founder of Humanity" has been expelled from the room!]
At my command, the Founder of Humanity was surrounded with a pale light and disappeared with a shout. He should"ve done well when he had the chance.
I wouldn"t be suppressed by force, even if the other person was a narrative-grade constellation. It might be different after the Story Succession but now I was the one with the advantage.
"Next." I just finished speaking when someone else opened the door. It was a wanderer with an old crown. Who was this?
[Incarnation Kim Dokja, join Olympus.]
These jerks, did they read an "Incarnation Kim Dokja" manual or something?
[The constellation "Poked Out His Eyes" is laughing at you.]
....Poked Out His Eyes?
[It looks like you know me.]
"I heard your story when I was a university student."
[Is that so? How unexpected. A small Oriental country...!]
"Poked Out His Eyes." He was King Oedipus who was taught in liberal arts cla.s.ses. A person hated by Sophocles.
"By the way, I"ve already heard the proposal from the G.o.d of Wine and Ecstasy. You are here to tell me to join the Bacchus sect?"
[Bacchus? It seems that he has already approached.]
Something felt strange. Persephone attended the banquet for "Olympus" while Dionysus told me not to believe anyone. Both of them didn"t tell me to join Olympus. Yet King Oedipus opened this door from the very beginning.
[I"m not here about Bacchus. I didn"t even come to exercise the copyright for the resurrection story.]
In other words, King Oedipus visited me for a reason that was completely different from the other constellations.
...Maybe this might be the representative of the "real" Olympus?
[The story that Olympus will present to you is Lightning Carnival.]
"Huh?"
I was shocked. Lightning Carnival was the story of Zeus, one of the three leaders. Oedipus saw my expression and smiled strangely.
[It looks like you also know this story. Yes, you are right. The story we are suggesting is different from the resurrection stories of other nebulae.
"...Why are you offering me this?"
[It is because the three G.o.ddesses of fate have caught a glimpse of your fate.]
...My fate.
[Sooner or later, you will be eligible to inherit the Lightning Carnival. Of course, you could inherit my story and take the "Blind Prophet" but... you are already rumoured to be a prophet and won"t inherit my story.]
"Wait a minute. What do you mean? Why is my fate..."
[The decision is yours. However, you will definitely need Olympus. Well, until we meet again.]
Oedipus disappeared from the room. My heart was a bit disturbed. I didn"t know what the "fate" Oedipus mentioned was like but if the three G.o.ddesses of fate were involved, something similar to what they saw would happen in the future.
By the way, why was I suitable for inheriting the story of a Greek G.o.d? Their stories were inevitably...
[h.e.l.lo?]
Something was about to flash through my head when a person entered my room. There was a fresh and sweet scent. A beautiful angel"s face appeared in front of me. The female angel resembled a small demon.
It seemed to be Eden"s turn.
"...I thought the Master of the Ark would come but you came personally."
[Are you upset that I came?]
My heart thumped after I heard the voice.
...Uriel was so cute.
"Nope, it is nice."
[I wanted to see you! Kim Dokja.]
Uriel pulled me into a surprise embrace. Our arms touched and I could feel her skin through the thin silk she was wearing. A demon... this was a demon"s touch. It was an open back dress, meaning there was nowhere to place my hands. Uriel rubbed my face like I was a lovely doll and I sighed.
"I also... wanted to see you."
[Yes yes!]
It was a bit embarra.s.sing but I was glad to meet her. Uriel was a constellation who had been with me since the beginning of the scenario.
"You are here to offer me the Messiah"s Path?"
[...Ah, right! I came because of it!]
Uriel raised her head with surprise. It was an expression that showed she didn"t remember why she came here. It seemed she was quite pleased to meet me.
[It must be because you are too handsome.]
"Your words are convincing."
Uriel smiled and said. [Kim Dokja, will you accept Eden"s story?]
"That... I need to think a bit."
[Why? Our story is the best! It isn"t comparable to other places!]
This was certainly true. The Messiah"s Path was the best story in the resurrection system. There was one problem.
"I will lose something precious if I accept that story."
[Eh? Ah. T-That"s right. If you choose our story, you"ll become an eunuch... That can"t be.]
I expected to be persuaded but unexpectedly, Uriel shook with agitation. Was it such a big deal for Uriel that I would become en eunuch? Why?
[W-What to do? If I don"t bring Kim Dokja to Metatron, he won"t let me use the Internet for a month... but if he accepts, Kim Dokja will become an eunuch... when that happens... oh, wait a minute. Perhaps if his position changes...?]
...What position?
[O-Okay! Kim Dokja! Don"t worry too much about this problem. One way or another...!]
Uriel seemed to be filled with great determination on her own. I firmly shook my head. "I don"t want it."
[Yes! It is okay if you are an eunuch...!]
"Next."
***
After that, many constellations visited me. There were places like Tamna and Guiok, as well as independent constellations.
In particular, the upper grade constellations of the Korean Peninsula gave me a lot of encouragement and didn"t want me to establish a relations.h.i.+p with a particular nebula.
[You are the hope of our world.]
[Please don"t bend your will.]
Their hearts were understanding. The upper grade constellations who had been suffering from the narrative-grade constellations were envious of me.
The negotiation time soon ended. The incarnations went up to the stage one by one. It was time to review the proposed stories and determine which ones they would inherit.
-Now, let"s announce the result of the Story Succession! First, Selena Kim from the United States!
The dokkaebi on the stage had the atmosphere of a home shopping host. It was natural. Through this banquet, the bureau would make a huge amount of coins.
-Selena Kim has decided to inherit the Indomitable Aegis" story given by the "Last Conscience" constellation!
Selena Kim has chosen Olympus... "Indomitable Aegis" was a story appropriate for her as the King"s Guardian.
My brain became more complicated as time pa.s.sed. No matter what I chose, someone would become an enemy. If I chose no one, there would be even more enemies.
"Think carefully. The question is who exactly I should turn into an enemy."
Persephone said so. I faintly understood her meaning. Maybe Persephone"s words were meant for all the resurrection stories.
I didn"t have only one life and there were those who would want me to succeed their story in the next resurrection.
There was still a problem. Eden and Vedas definitely wouldn"t yield the "first resurrection" and even if I inherited their story, there would surely be subordinate constraints on them.
It was unavoidable. From the very beginning, the relations.h.i.+p between incarnation and constellation was unfair. Wait a minute, "fairness"...?
It was finally Yoo Jonghyuk"s turn to get on stage.
-The next person is the Supreme King of Seoul...
The audience gulped as Yoo Jonghyuk moved. In particular the eyes of the narrative-grade constellations were strange. They were those who wanted to gain Yoo Jonghyuk. On the other hand, there were those who showed fear...
At this moment, a thought occurred. Then Yoo Jonghyuk opened his mouth. "I..."
Dionysus had told me not to trust anyone. However, that was only if the opponent was a constellation. I had at least one person in this place who I could believe in.
I jumped up towards the stage. I grabbed the confused Yoo Jonghyuk"s hand and raised it high into the sky.
"I have something to say to you."
I said while looking at the audience. The constellations looked astonished. I was able to see Uriel"s expression, who seemed on the verge of fainting. I quickly glanced over the faces of the constellations.
The reason why the Story Succession wasn"t fair was because the succession of a story was done in the form of one-sided "sponsors.h.i.+p". The relations.h.i.+p between constellation and incarnation was never equal.
[The constellation "Maritime War G.o.d" is focused on your words!]
The strength of the narrative-grade constellations differed from the upper grade ones. Those who were in a nebulae looked down on others.
[The nebula "Vedas" is focused on your words!]
"We have decided not to inherit your stories."
An enormous silence descended on the audience. Many eyeb.a.l.l.s popped out as pressure poured towards Yoo Jonghyuk. Yoo Jonghyuk stared at me as I held his hand.
I grinned at him and told the constellations. "We will "buy" your stories."
In order to make an unfair game fair, I had to first make the opponents equal.
"If you want to sell your stories to Yoo Jonghyuk and I, please make a deal with our nebula."
(TL: Mitra/Mithra/Mithras is a G.o.d with many different origins (Indo, Persian, Roman etc). The Vedic version, Mitra is part of the Vedas so I will be keeping that spelling from now on. It is also said that Mithras was born on December 25th, which is why he is the Master of December 25th in this story
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