Chapter 297: Episode 56 – Reader and Writer (3)
I couldn’t find an answer to Yoo Jonghyuk’s question. I didn’t understand exactly what he meant. Then I heard it once again through Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint.
「 Does the world where you live really exist? 」
Then I realized what Yoo Jonghyuk was talking about. He had seen the world I lived.
「 Hi hi. 」
The Fourth Wall was laughing mischievously. The moment I was going to open my mouth, Han Sooyoung ran and struck my back, pressing me against the ground. “Yoo Jonghyuk! Didn’t you promise me?”
Anger was contained in Han Sooyoung’s voice. “You will die here and I will get a new world. That was the condition of our exchange. Why did you do this?”
I could feel the taste of the soil as my lips touched the ground.
「 Kim Dokja was thinking about his future plans. 」
Once again, I didn’t know what Yoo Jonghyuk felt through my memories. However, looking at his att.i.tude, I didn’t think he would give up on this life. A terrible cry came from the top of the sealing sphere.
[Uwaaaah…]
[Everyone flee! Quickly escape from this scenario!]
The astonished constellations were escaping one by one from the scenario. Even the nebulae in the sky were being bitten by the dragon. The apocalypse was indeed such an existence. The decisive cause of Eden’s destruction, the worst disaster of the Star Stream.
In the midst of this, Han Sooyoung shouted at Yoo Jonghyuk. “Is it because of this guy?”
Han Sooyoung grabbed my head and screamed. “Did this guy do something to your spirit? Didn’t you want to die so badly? Aren’t you tired? Don’t you want to stop performing scenarios?”
Every word spoken by Han Sooyoung seemed to pierce my chest. Yoo Jonghyuk had no expression but I knew the life he lived. Yoo Jonghyuk of the 1863rd round was the Yoo Jonghyuk of the original novel that I knew.
When my mother was locked up in prison, when I was bullied, when I sat the CSATs, when I went to the army and when I joined the company. It was the Yoo Jonghyuk I had always been watching. The Yoo Jonghyuk who was cold, calculating and never gave up.
I have lived watching such a Yoo Jonghyuk. I could live because of him. Thus, I didn’t want to let him die.
If Yoo Jonghyuk died here, the Ways of Survival that I knew would disappear forever.
Yoo Jonghyuk slowly opened his mouth.
“I want to die.”
It was a clear voice but there was a voice only clear to me.
「 I want to live. 」
My hand tightly gripped the ground. Han Sooyoung shouted, “Then why did you do this? s.h.i.+t, why are you still alive?”
“…”
“Somehow replace the apocalypse dragon’s seal. Draw the sword and do it somehow!”
Han Sooyoung knew there was no possibility. Han Sooyoung was collapsing. Her world that she expected through the ‘Antic.i.p.ation Plagarism’ was collapsing for the first time.
Yoo Jonghyuk didn’t answer. Han Sooyoung couldn’t overcome her emotions as she threw me away and ran towards Yoo Jonghyuk.
The blade of Unbroken Faith moved to Yoo Jonghyuk’s neck. In the end, Han Sooyoung couldn’t cut Yoo Jonghyuk.
“Dammit…!” Han Sooyoung’s blade stopped as it touched Yoo Jonghyuk’s neck.
Han Sooyoung also knew. If she killed Yoo Jonghyuk, he would only regress. I stood up and told her, “Give up, Han Sooyoung
“Shut up!”
“You have failed. Now you need to find a new way.”
“Shut up! What do you know? The things I did to get this far―”
Yoo Jonghyuk looked at the blade touching his neck and spoke. “I want to die.”
「 I want to live. 」
“I want to finish it here.”
「 If there is a chance, like the world I saw… 」
Yoo Jonghyuk’s body shook. It was shaking violently from two different egos clas.h.i.+ng. The pain seemed to be getting worse as Yoo Jonghyuk grabbed his head and slowly sank down. The surprised Han Sooyoung stepped back as a powerful shock wave burst from Yoo Jonghyuk’s body.
Han Sooyoung’s body flew towards me and I rolled across the ground.
Stories were flowing from Yoo Jonghyuk’s body. The memories of the 1863rd Yoo Jonghyuk revolved in the air, floating past me and Han Sooyoung. In the memories, Yoo Jonghyuk spoke.
「 Han Sooyoung, find a way to kill me.” 」
Then the Han Sooyoung in the memory nodded.
「 “Okay. Instead, promise me. You will help me.” 」
The promise between the two people that I didn’t know about before. The seemingly perfect 1863rd turn was based on the sacrifice of a single person. In this round, Yoo Jonghyuk lost everything.
「 “If you carry out my plan, I can’t save your sister.” 」
He lost his sister.
「 “I can’t save the Breaking the Sky Sword Saint and Breaking the Sky Master. There is no time for the First Murim.” 」
He lost his teacher.
「 “Become the enemy of the world. That way, all who are hostile to you can unite.” 」
Through his own will, he became the evil of this world. In the 1863rd round, Yoo Jonghyuk was unhappy. He was more unfortunate than any round.
I shouted through clenched teeth, “Yoo Jonghyuk!”
I didn’t know what to say. I could understand the mind of Yoo Jonghyuk who wanted to die but I still forced him to live. It was just because of my words.
Then what was right?
Yoo Jonghyuk asked,「 The world that you showed, does it really exist? 」
I didn’t know if saying this would be comforting to Yoo Jonghyuk. I cried out with all my strength.
[It exists.]
This was the only thing I could convey to him. It was in a place that he couldn’t see or hear but it definitely existed. Then Yoo Jonghyuk answered, 「 …I see. 」
Strangely, at this moment, Yoo Jonghyuk’s expression looked comfortable.
「 You can go back to that world if I die? 」
“No, that isn’t it. Somehow, I’ll find a way. You don’t have to die. It might take some time but somehow…!”
I quickly summarized the information in his head. The best possible future was drawn in my head. The world of the third round had Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung and would be safe until I returned. In the 1863rd round, the 95th scenario was already cleared. There were plenty of people who survived so if I struggled for three or five years here…
I looked up and saw Yoo Jonghyuk looking this way.
「 Then it is late. 」
It was as if he knew everything.
「If you are here, you can’t save that world. 」
The moment I wanted to refute it, Yoo Jonghyuk stood up. The vibrations from Yoo Jonghyuk were becoming bigger and more than one of him seemed to be seen.
[The character ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ has reached the moment of attribute evolution!]
[The character ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ has received a new attribute!]
Yoo Jonghyuk split apart with a bright light and glanced at me.
「 I was curious about the world’s ■■. 」
A story overflowed and Yoo Jonghyuk was split into two people. I knew this skill.
Avatar. A skill that only a person with the ‘author’ attribute could use. Until recently, it was Han Sooyoung’s exclusive skill.
“Yoo Jonghyuk! Y-You…!” Han Sooyoung’s shoulders shook as she opened her mouth. Her real confusion was conveyed through Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint.
「 What if a person’s presence could be divided exactly in half? 」
Tens of thousands of Han Sooyoungs were talking.
「 If one ent.i.ty is divided into two exact and separate ent.i.ties, which one of them can be called real? 」
A chill went down my spine. The memories of Han Sooyoung in the 1863rd round. Her figure, which was precisely divided into two, crossed my head like a panorama. It was Han Sooyoung’s experience and also Yoo Jonghyuk’s experience.
Yoo Jonghyuk split into two in a brilliant manner and faced each other. Yoo Jonghyuk said, “I want to die.”
Then the other Yoo Jonghyuk opened his mouth. “I…”
The other Yoo Jonghyuk didn’t talk but looked down at his ragged black coat. He threw his coat to the ground.
“I want to live.”
The white coat worn by the collapsed Kim Namwoon had fallen to the ground. It was the Infinite Dimension s.p.a.ce Coat I lent him. Yoo Jonghyuk picked it up and wore it. The white coat fitted to his body like it was made for him from the beginning.
The Yoo Jonghyuk in a white coat confronted the one in a black coat.
“There is only one way.”
The two Yoo Jonghyuks pointed their Heaven Shaking Swords at each other.
[The sponsor of incarnation ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ is looking at his incarnation.]
The party members were shouting in a confused manner.
“W-What are you doing?”
“Why did you suddenly become two?”
In the air, the energy of Breaking the Sky Swordsmans.h.i.+p and Breaking the Sky Swordsmans.h.i.+p hit each other.
“Oh my G.o.d, that guy…”
Only Han Sooyoung had the same thoughts as me.
「 One being becomes two. 」
「 However, there is only one sponsor behind the two of them. 」
This was the answer that Yoo Jonghyuk found. I shouted at him. “Stop, Yoo Jonghyuk! I said stop!”
The method to send me back to the third round and clear this scenario. How to die yet continue living at the same time.
“No matter which one survives, the other will regress!”
The two Yoo Jonghyuks ignored my call.
「 I will die. 」
「 I will regress. 」
Yoo Jonghyuk knew it. He knew it very well yet he chose this method.
「 The story ends here. 」
「 Once again, everything will start from the beginning. 」
There was an end to this world that neither Han Sooyoung or I knew. The black coat was pierced by the Heaven Shaking Sword. It was exactly half his memories. The numerous memories acc.u.mulated by Yoo Jonghyuk scattered in the air.
The stigma ‘regression’ could only be activated on one side. Thus, I could see it. The black coat Yoo Jonghyuk was the one who chose to die.
[The incarnation ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ has died.]
On the opposite side was the Yoo Jonghyuk in the white coat. Yoo Jonghyuk killed himself with his own hands. However, he was also stabbed. The Heaven Shaking Sword pierced his belly. The speed was slow but he was also dying.
[The sponsor of incarnation ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ is looking at his incarnation.]
[The stigma ‘Regression Lv. ???’ has been activated!]
[Incarnation ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ has accepted the intention of his sponsor.]
Even so Yoo Jonghyuk didn’t die. He would open his eyes in the darkness and appear in the subway of the 1864th round, starting everything once again.
「 This is a reward for showing your world. 」
Some stories flowed from the fingertips of Yoo Jonghyuk in the white coat and reached me.
[The stories of the character ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ have been given to you.]
I approached Yoo Jonghyuk. The person who protected my youth was disappearing into a world I didn’t know.
「 The next round… 」
Yoo Jonghyuk’s figure started to scatter. I didn’t hear any more of Yoo Jonghyuk’s thoughts through Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint. Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint no longer worked for him.
[This person isn’t a ‘character.’]
Yoo Jonghyuk’s appearance was fading into the light of this world. By the time I staggered towards him, Yoo Jonghyuk had already disappeared from the world. I looked back and saw Han Sooyoung sitting down with a despairing face.
[You have cleared the criteria of the Outer World Covenant.]
The dazzling light filled the air like ashes, revealing a pale reality. In it, Yoo Jonghyuk was walking towards a world we didn’t know.