A day passed since I arrived in the 1863rd round.
The Gwanghwamun area was wet from the dark rain that had been falling since last night. Soon after the rain started, the monsters crouching between the ruins woke up one by one. There was the monster that looked like an elephant that I saw when I first got here and one that reminded me of a huge octopus. The most frightening thing was the baby that was the size of a huge building.
There were many types of outer gods but not all of them were named âEater of Dreamsâ or âIndescribable Distance.â Most of them were âunnamedâ and existed without a proper ego.
I watched the baby in a diaper pushing through the city like a bulldozer and hid while holding my breath.
...To be honest, I probably needed the diaper more than the baby.
[The constellation âLily Pin of Aquariusâ is looking at you.]
It had been a few hours since the archangels fell asleep, stating that they would save their energy.
The white lily in my coat trembled as if it had regained power. Gabriel.
âHave you woken up?â
[Why did you make that choice?]
âWhat choice?â
[Do you need to ask?]
âThere was no other way.â
I heard a creaking and crushing sound in the distance. The moment I thought something else had happened, I saw the torn off leg of the elephant monster. There were signs that it was torn off by a powerful force. Someone dragged the severed leg and approached this way. It was the real monster of this scenario, Yoo Jonghyuk.
Like a sigh, the petals shook again. [I thought he would die... why is he holding a sword?]
âHe couldâve committed suicide. Well, I donât think that will happen now.â
I spoke while swinging Yoo Jonghyukâs Heaven Shaking Sword through the air. It wasnât surprising but I didnât kill Yoo Jonghyuk.
Gabriel was silent for a moment before muttering in a small voice. [What does Uriel like about this guy...?]
âUriel? Ah, is Uriel well?â
[How should I know?]
It was a reaction that seemed a bit excessive. The moment I was about to ask, another indirect message came.
[The constellation âCommander of the Red Cosmosâ is looking at you.]
The difficult angel had also woken up. Jophiel woke up and got straight to the point. [Did you decide to keep him alive?]
I accepted the elephantâs leg that Yoo Jonghyuk had brought instead of answering. It was a leg that was very fleshy. It gave off a very rich and clear story. I faced Yoo Jonghyuk who stared at me with empty eyes. Jophiel opened her mouth again.
[Donât you know that you shouldnât keep him alive? The scenario you received is...]
âYoo Jonghyukâs death.â
It wouldâve been nice if I could lie but it was too late to deceive the archangels. They wouldâve seen the scenario window that I saw.
-Yoo Jonghyukâs death.
It was the scenario that Secretive Plotter gave me. I had to kill him in order to return to the original third round.
âAs Iâve already mentioned, it is difficult to interpret this scenario as it is.â The death proposed by Secretive Plotter might not be the âdeathâ we thought about.
The archangels were silent. They didnât seem to understand my words. I flipped the elephantâs leg and calmly declared. âYoo Jonghyuk canât âdie.â As archangels, you should already know this?â
I could feel the gazes of the two angels on me.
[What does that mean?]
âThis guy is a regressor.â
In the early scenarios, the information I just mentioned wouldâve been filtered but now it was different. The scenario was a scenario but by now, rumours about the âregressorâ shouldâve spread quite a bit. Thus, the high-ranking constellations of Eden would know it.
The red cosmos leaves shook uneasily. [...Donât tell me?]
I nodded. âHe is a being who repeats his life forever. No one can kill him. If he dies, he will just move onto another round.â
[How do you know this?]
âWhy was Uriel keeping an eye on me?â
It was best to respond to questions that couldnât be answered was with more questions. Jophiel trembled as if controlling his anger.
[Then... what are you going to do now? If you canât kill him, you canât return to your original round.]
I shrugged and placed the roasted meat into my mouth. âI have to think about a way. There is plenty of time.â
At my calm response, an unusual air flowed around the two flowers. I was nervous because I thought they wanted to express their âstatusâ, only to suddenly hear a strange sound.
It was a growl that wasnât coming from my stomach. It didnât seem to be Yoo Jonghyuk either.
...Then? I bowed my head and saw the two flowers looking away.
âAre you hungry?â
***
[Gabriel, how long are you going to stand by?]
[Iâm not standing by. Iâm just watching. If it wasnât for Uriel, I wouldâve killed him...]
Gabriel, who was stuck in a plastic bottle, answered while sucking up water through his stem. Beside her, the cosmos of Jophiel was likewise inserted into a bottle of water.
In the distance, Kim Dokja was saying something to Yoo Jonghyuk. Gabriel stared at him blankly and asked,
[That Uriel, is she well?]
[Focus on the mission, Gabriel.]
[No, Iâm worried. Uriel always gets into trouble when she is left alone.]
[...I see. Do you actually like Uriel?]
[What nonsense! Have you found a way to go back yet? How long are we supposed to stay with them?]
Gabrielâs petals fluttered and Jophiel replied, [Iâm looking for a way but it seems hard.]
[Why? No matter how different the world line, there must be Eden here. If you ask the scribe here for help...]
[There is no reply from the scribe.]
[What?]
[It isnât just the scribe. I canât contact anyone from Eden.]
Eden couldnât be contacted? It was strange, no matter how much the world had changed. Due to the constraints of the scenario, it was impossible to return to their original âconstellation context.â It was frustrating.
Gabriel sighed and sucked up water again. [What? They were fighting and holding each other by the collar a few hours ago...]
In the distant place, Kim Dokja seemed to be stroking Yoo Jonghyukâs head. Looking at this scene, Gabriel was reminded of Uriel and herself. It was different but there was some resemblance.
...Comradeship?
For a very short time, Gabriel seemed to understand why Uriel liked them.
***
âEat the soil, Yoo Jonghyuk.â
Yoo Jonghyuk started to silently eat the soil. I was startled and smacked him in the back of the head. âWhy are you really eating it?!â
I wanted to test it but I didnât know he would actually follow my order. The Yoo Jonghyuk I knew wouldâve never done this. However, the regression depression had completely devoured his ego and for the time being, Yoo Jonghyuk was in a stupid state. Yoo Jonghyuk looked up at me blankly.
I sighed with some compassion. âHow good would it be if the usual you was so calm? You are better than the third round bastard.â
â...â
â...Spit it out.â
I watched Yoo Jonghyuk spitting out the soil and remembered another Yoo Jonghyuk that I knew. I didnât know if he was okay. It would be nice if he hadnât lost his mind by the time I came back. I entrusted it to Yoo Sangah so I hoped things would turn out well.
âNow lie down there and get some rest, 1863rd Yoo Jonghyuk.â
At my words, Yoo Jonghyuk trudged towards the ruined building. I could see the sun setting in the distance. The sunset of the 95th scenario was still glowing. I looked at the haze and felt strangely peaceful. It was strange. In this horrible scenario, I could indulge in this appreciation.
ã Kim Dok ja needs to kill Yoo Jong hyuk. ã
...No, I didnât. Fortunately, there was no deadline for the scenario that Secretive Plotter gave me. I turned my head and saw Yoo Jonghyuk curled up with a foolish expression as he waited for my orders.
âSleep.â
Yoo Jonghyuk understood my words and closed his eyes. Since the scenario started, Yoo Jonghyuk had never slept properly. Maybe this was the âfirst sleepâ for Yoo Jonghyuk. It was the first sleep where he was freed from all his memories.
Once Yoo Jonghyuk was completely asleep, I turned on my smartphone. The phone desktop contained the text of Ways of Survival as usual. However, there was something different this time.
-Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World.txt
...What? Wasnât it the âthird revision?â I suddenly got goosebumps. Was it because I came back to the original round? Then it changed back to the original text, not the revised one?
I opened the file with a confused mind. The file was the original Ways of Survival that I knew. Maybe this was better. It was important to obtain information about this round if I wanted to think properly about the future. I quickly moved the screen to the 1863rd round and read all the information thoroughly.
ã I lost Lee Hyunsung in the 54th scenario. ã
I read the story, read it and read it again.
ã In the 67th scenario, Lee Seolhwa was killed. ã
He lost, lost and lost more people.
ã Lee Jihye died in the 78th scenario. ã
The Yoo Jonghyuk of this round was completely alone. In fact, it wasnât only this round. In all of Yoo Jonghyukâs rounds, he had to leave alone. It was the same life even until the end.
â...Poor guy.â
I didnât know the epilogue of Ways of Survival. The one thing I could be sure of was that Ways of Survival didnât have a happy ending.
...What if I didnât go back to the third round? What if I stayed here and helped Yoo Jonghyuk of the last round clear the scenario?
ã The Fourth Wall says, âKim Dok ja, that...â ã
I know.
ã Ye s. ã
This was the trick hidden in Secretive Plotterâs scheme. Perhaps Secretive Plotter expected this and gave me a scenario. It was why the scenario had no time limit.
Kill Yoo Jonghyuk here and return to the original world. Or see the conclusion of the scenario with Yoo Jonghyuk here.
This was the idea of the âouter god.â The laughable thing was that I was really shaken by the proposal. If I looked at the person here... I wouldnât see the ending I really wanted. But if I killed him here, the original âYoo Jonghyukâ would disappear forever.
My head hurt as I thought about it. If I wanted to kill Yoo Jonghyuk, I had to end Yoo Jonghyukâs regressions. However, his sponsor didnât speak and I didnât know the identity. I didnât know if it was fortunate or not.
I sighed and scrolled through Ways of Survival again. Then I felt a cold feeling down my spine.
[The constellation âLily Pin of Aquariusâ is warning you!]
In the distance, the two flowers in the plastic bottles were shaking. It was a strong alarm. Was it an outer god?
âYouâve been hiding here, Yoo Jonghyuk.â
The moment I reflexively tried to turn around, I felt an eerie prediction. If I turned around now, I would die. I clearly had this feeling. It was a degree of stealth that could fool my constellation senses. It was clearly an unquantifiable existence. The presence was nearby?
âWhat are you? Are you Yoo Jonghyukâs companion?â
I got a sense of deja vu from the voice. It was clearly a voice I knew. I turned my head slowly enough so that the enemy wouldnât feel threatened. Behind me was a woman with a familiar appearance. For a moment, my mind was awash with panic.
...How on earth? I hadnât thought about it. It was because this person was already dead in this âround.â
âWell, there is no need to know. Iâll kill him anyway.â
The smiling Admiral Lee Jihye smiled as she pointed the Double Dragon Swords towards me.