Episode 3 The Black Snake Biting Its Tail (2)
Episode 3 The Black Snake Biting Its Tail (2)
The dokkaebi's eyes narrowed. [... You.]
The small dokkaebi floating in midair scanned Hyeonmu up and down. [What on earth are you?]
When the dokkaebi asked, the child stopped laughing and tilted her head. Her bright, clear eyes directed themselves at the dokkaebi scanning her up and down. "Me?"
Her face showed not a single moment of hesitation. "I'm Hyeonmu though?"
Several people inside the train car looked at each other. Yoo Sangah-ssi looked at me as well. Hyeonmu. Is it a name? One couldn't learn anything from that alone. But the Constellations were different. Though they were equally unable to discern her identity, they seemed to find it amusing. [The Constellation, 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' displays interest while looking at Incarnation 'Hyeonmu'!]
Upon seeing that message, the doubt and sense of incongruity floating in the dokkaebi's eyes vanished all at once. It was because she had drawn a Constellation's interest. My guess was that the dokkaebi's name was 'Bihyung'. I recalled that in Ways of Survival, Bihyung only managed unpopular backwater channels among low-grade dokkaebi. To such a being, the subscriber Constellations were bound to be absolute superiors, so with a Constellation showing interest, it was only natural for whatever questions he harbored to disappear. [What a fast-adapting Incarnation!]
His tone of voice had returned to its original state. [Good! Very excellent. Drawing the interest of a Constellation-nim already. Just keep doing that!]
Though he harbored doubts, for now he seemed intent on refraining from stopping Hyeonmu, who had drawn the Constellation's interest. Bihyung took his eyes off Hyeonmu and spread both arms toward the entire train car. [Now then, anyway! That's enough small talk.]
Bihyung snapped his fingers. Then, a timer appeared. It was a timer announcing the time limit of the damn proof of value scenario. It felt like we had hardly spoken a few words, yet over a minute had already passed. [Time Limit: 28 minutes 35 seconds]
"Uh, u-uh...?"
However, the fact that time had been wasted on his small talk mattered little to the host, and the Constellations didn't raise any objections either. [Everyone! Over a minute has passed already! Wouldn't it be better to get on with the scenario quickly?]
[Unless you want to die, that is!]
Bihyung vanished after saying those words. Whether he went to the next car or somewhere else was unknown, but such things weren't what was important. The important thing was that the dokkaebi had disappeared. First of all, we could move. Unless it was an extraordinarily shit-tier host, they wouldn't interfere with every little thing the Incarnations doing the scenario did, but since Bihyung was famous even in Ways of Survival for being a trash-tier dokkaebi, I couldn't let my guard down. People exhibited different reactions. Some tried to open the emergency release handle to escape out of the subway, while a few were urgently making calls somewhere. Yoo Sangah-ssi was among the latter. "The police, the police aren't picking up... What do we do, Dokja-ssi?"
"Calm down, Sangah-ssi."
I spoke while looking straight into Yoo Sangah-ssi's endlessly trembling pupils. "Sangah-ssi. We both work at Minosoft. It's a game company. So you're familiar with games, right?"
"Yes...? What all of a sudden..."
"You've probably played the game the development team newly made this time. You know, that apocalypse game where the world is destroyed and the protagonist tries to survive."
"I... have tried it."
"Think of it like that. That the world has become a game."
Yoo Sangah-ssi closed her eyes tightly and gave a small nod. "Yes... I understand. I'll think of it that way."
What a relief. While it was impossible to shake off her frightened demeanor, she seemed at least to have succeeded in pulling herself together. "For now, just do as I tell you. Don't try to do anything else."
"A-Ah, okay. What should I do?"
"Don't move and stay still."
Let's think. What must I do to survive in this world? Kim Dokja. Think. You've read Ways of Survival for over ten years. In the process, you've imagined countless times what you'd do if you went inside the novel. That has simply become reality now. I observed the situation. First off, people were merely tapping away on their cell phones, showing no signs of taking any particular action. Even though messages floated in midair and the dokkaebi had explained while going so far as to kill someone, they still didn't seem to have a sense of reality. Not bad. I observed the people. A girl wearing a black robe that looked like something out of a martial arts novel, with her hair in a ponytail and bare feet. No, Hyeonmu. Nothing could be known. I wanted to know. I wanted to ask. Do you know something about this situation? But doing that right now wasn't wise. Doing what I could right this instant took priority. I opened my eyes wide and looked around. The inside of the carriage turned into a bloodbath made me want to close my eyes, but I couldn't. I clenched my teeth, pressed down on my trembling right hand with my left, and began observing the interior more closely. A male student closing his eyes and pondering something deeply. A little boy holding an insect collecting container and anxiously looking around. A burly man with short-cropped hair reading something displayed on his cell phone. Looking at that face, a name naturally came to mind. It was Ways of Survival. Before the question 'Could it be?' could grow any larger, he slipped his cell phone into his pocket and spoke loudly. "Everyone, please calm down!"
The eyes of the people shifted to one side. They looked at the stern-faced man standing in the middle of the aisle. A sturdy build. A rigid posture like a soldier's. Shoulders excessively straight even amidst the commotion. 'It's certain. That person is Lee Hyunsung.'
Lee Hyunsung. One of the main supporting characters of 『Ways to Survive in a Ruined World』. Lee Hyunsung looked at the corpses on the floor first. He didn't look for long. After firmly pressing his lips together once, he turned his gaze to the living people. "I am Lee Hyunsung, an Army Lieutenant currently serving in Unit 6502."
People seemed relieved at the word soldier, but I was thinking of something else. The soldier Lee Hyunsung. The Lee Hyunsung of Ways of Survival. So that 'Lee Hyunsung' had a face like that. I knew him. Though it was my first time seeing him in person, when reading Ways of Survival, his name had felt vivid enough to reach out and touch. "Shouting at each other right now won't solve anything. In a situation where communications are unstable, calling all at once will only increase the chaos."
"Then what are we supposed to do?"
"What is that monster!"
"If you're a soldier, shouldn't you know something?!"
Questions poured out all at once. Lee Hyunsung raised a hand toward the people. "Just a moment ago, a Level 1 National Disaster state was declared."
Watching Lee Hyunsung speak calmly amidst the barrage of questions, I was thinking once again that the description in the novel wasn't wrong. However, something was strange. Was Lee Hyunsung's entrance like this? There was a subtle gap between the scene in my memory and the scene before my eyes right now. It was such a small difference that it could easily be overlooked, but it was a story I had read for thirteen years. To me, such a discrepancy was actually even clearer. Naturally, I turned my eyes to the opposite side. Hyeonmu was still sitting there. Looking around, she was watching the conversation between Lee Hyunsung and the people. Traces of laughter still remained on her face, and her toes moved leisurely. A presence that didn't exist in the original work, and a presence that did. And a changed scene. Whether there was a relationship between the two was something I couldn't know yet. I didn't rush to conclusions. Right then, Bihyung, who had disappeared, re-appeared. [Everyone, aren't you going to move? Have you still not grasped the situation?]
The people who had lost their words merely opened and closed their mouths like goldfish. [Haha, according to data research, people in this country are good at games... Then I'll raise the difficulty a bit.]
Along with a Beep. sound, the timer's time rapidly decreased. [The time limit decreases by 15 minutes.]
[Remaining Time: 10 minutes 00 seconds]
[If the first act of murder does not occur within the next 5 minutes, all living beings in this car will be wiped out.]
"W-What kind of bullshit is this!"
"Y-You're joking, right? You're playing a prank right now, right?"
"Mister Soldier! Do something!"
The dokkaebi's single remark drove the train car's atmosphere, which Lee Hyunsung had barely managed to stabilize, down into the abyss. Even Lee Hyunsung seemed to lack the confidence to salvage it, his gritted teeth vividly coming into view. And I couldn't resolve the rising sense of incongruity no matter what. Lee Hyunsung, who was called the 'Steel Sword Emperor', had appeared. But why hadn't the protagonist appeared? If it were according to the original work I knew, that guy should have appeared by now. Overcome with terror, people crowded toward the door. Some even bled from their fingers from turning the manual release handle and gripping the door—which lacked any proper handle—so hard, but to them, that seemed to mean nothing. They had judged that escaping this crazy place took priority over immediate pain. However, as if mocking their efforts, the door didn't budge at all. It was then. Once more, the uninvited guest's voice echoed. [Haha. While there are places that have gotten quite interesting, there's truly nothing here. Good. It's a special service. Take a good look at what happens if nothing occurs within the next 5 minutes.]
Something like a massive screen appeared inside the train car. Subsequently, the place shown on the screen was a classroom. Female students, without exception, held mechanical pencils or scissors in their trembling hands, on guard against one another. And soon, a Beep-beep-beep— signal echoed out. The high school girls began screaming. [The time limit has expired.]
[Paid settlement will begin.]
As soon as the announcement ended, large holes were punched into the high school girls' heads. One, one, and another one. Large holes opening up one by one. Everyone inside the screen wailed. Watching that sight, we could only fall silent as if forgetting even to breathe. It was then that a female student on the screen rushed forward with scissors in hand. Puk! Sharp scissors pierced into the carotid artery, and the high school girl died. And a short moment later. All that remained on the screen was the last high school girl slumping onto the floor with hollow, empty eyes. [#Bay23515 Channel. Taepung Girls High School 2nd Year Class B Survivor: Lee Jihye]
Hope completely vanished from the people's faces. The system was clearly stating death. People had definitely held on to a small hope. Having seen the dokkaebi's murder, they knew at least that it viewed humans as beings less than bugs, and they knew that if they got on its nerves, they could die without even uttering a word of resistance. But if all the beings in this train car did nothing, surely it wouldn't kill everyone. A few might die as an example, but the thought that it might not be oneself was enough to turn into hope. When I had that thought, somehow it felt as though Hyeonmu's eyebrows twitched, but I ignored it. "Everyone really died... They all died..."
"Is it real? Is it real that if I don't kill a person, I die?"
The short, tens-of-seconds video shown by the dokkaebi was long enough to trample the people's hearts and turn them into despair. I was observing all of it. 'Think, Kim Dokja. The message was clearly forcing murder. If killing a person is the only way to overcome this situation, what should I do?'
Taking a deep breath, I looked back at the message. [Clear Condition: Kill one or more living beings.]
'I must kill a living being. A living being, a living being...'
First off, I turned on my cell phone. The only way to break through this situation was to read Ways of Survival once more. My trembling hand pressed the screen. I clearly remembered receiving the txt file directly from the author earlier. [1 Attached File.]
[Ways to Survive in a Ruined World.TXT]
'It's here. It hasn't disappeared yet.'
[Exclusive attribute acquired.]
[Exclusive skill slot activated.]
As I executed the file, a message rang in my ears. If the world had turned into that of 'Ways of Survival', it was no surprising matter. Because characters in Ways of Survival each obtained their own unique attributes and skills. Inside my mind, I repeated 'Attribute Window'. I didn't know if it would help in this situation, but if I had acquired an attribute, I needed to know what it was. [Unable to activate Attribute Window.]
'What?'
I tried shouting 'Attribute Window' once more, but all that returned was a single line of a cold message. It was absurd. If I couldn't view the Attribute Window, I couldn't confirm my unique attribute and skills. Staring into midair for a moment, I let out a sigh and decided to read the txt file first. [Reading speed increases due to the effect of your exclusive attribute.]
Whether it helped me read books faster or whatever, thanks to the attribute's effect, it took less than a minute to read the early part of Ways of Survival. Found it. The subway car number the protagonist boarded was 3707. This place was 3807. "In the original work, 3807 was..."
[He glared through the hazy window at Car 3807, which had turned into a living hell. Is that side already too late? It can't be helped. After all, the only people who survive in that car are two.]
Except for those two, everyone is fated to die. Wait. It's happening again. This time it was even worse. As the thought [Except for those two, everyone is fated to die.] continued...
...Hyeonmu's eyebrows twitched yet again. 'I want to ask.'
Whether she knew something about this situation. Who she was. Why she was in the subway looking like that—everything. But at least, now was not the time. "Dokja-ssi, shouldn't we stop that?"
In the direction Yoo Sangah-ssi pointed, the slaughter had already begun. "Fuck, shut your mouth! I already feel shitty enough, why does this old hag keep fuckin' crying and throwing a fit? Won't you zip it?"
It was the male high school student who had been leaning against the entrance looking at his cell phone. He was stepping on a grey-haired old woman crouching on the floor. Profanities followed from behind his back, but he showed no sign of caring. On his thin frame and face that still had a student vibe, an strangely excited look floated up. 'That guy is...'
I recognized that face. Namwoon. The person scheduled to become Yoo Junghyeok's companion in Ways of Survival. And the only other person along with Lee Hyunsung who would survive in Car 3807. "S-Save me, save me...!"
The sound of frail skin breaking under solid fists could be heard. The men nearby flinched, but none readily stepped forward. Surprisingly, the one who took the first step was Han Myeongoh. "Has this young brat gone crazy?! What are you doing to an elder!"
However, what returned to him after stepping forward forcefully as if to teach a lesson was a sneer. Namwoon stared at Han Myeongoh's stiffened face for a moment, smirked, and addressed the passengers. "Why is everyone acting like this? Do you wanna die?"
Pausing his beating for a moment, he looked around the train car. Someone avoided his gaze when their eyes met, and someone stepped back a pace. Ever since the video of Taepung Girls High School ended, people were no longer able to view each other in the same way as before. Now, there was no guarantee anywhere that the person next to them wouldn't attack them first. Namwoon raised the corners of his mouth as if finding those gazes amusing. "You just have to kill."
Someone gasped. "What?"
"It's written in the scenario."
He mimed tapping the blue window in midair with his finger. "To kill one living being."
Han Myeongoh couldn't answer, merely opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish. "Of course I know what you're thinking, Ahjussi. Killing a person. That's something only crazy bastards do. But think about it. If I don't kill, I die. Are you gonna die talking about morality and shit until the end, Ahjussi?"
"T-That's..."
"So think carefully. I don't know what this is either, but one thing is certain. The world we knew up until just now is over."
Han Myeongoh's mouth remained tightly shut, unable to open. It wasn't just Han Myeongoh. The power called law that sustained the nation collapsed like a sandcastle the moment a greater power appeared and people recognized that that power harbored malice toward us. Build, age, the number of companions, the items inside pockets—things that were nothing out of the ordinary usually—now began to feel like survival conditions. Now, no one stopped Namwoon. Not Han Myeongoh, not the other men... not even Lee Hyunsung. The mute old woman's incessantly trembling eyes turned toward Lee Hyunsung. The soldier's tightly clenched fist wandered, having lost its destination. Perhaps he, too, had just chosen something. "Ah, seriously, it's fucking frustrating! Does everyone just wanna fucking die?!"
At Namwoon's subsequent urging, the bodies of the people shook. That excessively crude expression became a sharp dagger that lodged into people's hearts. Piercing through the shell of law, piercing through the shell of morality, that dagger reached the deepest recesses of their minds. The look in people's eyes began to change. The eyes of rational, intelligent beings changed to resemble those of beasts instead. "Yeah... that little brat is right. At this rate, everyone dies."
A man who had been contemplating whether to stop Namwoon's actions rushed forward. He showered kicks onto the grandmother's body, which was trembling like an aspen leaf. "Move, fucker! Move!"
Not stopping at kicks, he shoved Namwoon as if eliminating a competitor. "Why is everyone standing around staring like dopes?! Someone has to die! That's the only way I live!"
Two, three, four. The people who had been standing awkwardly rushed toward the old woman. People who had been wandering around with conflicted faces. People who had been calling the police like machines as if denying reality. Parents who abandoned their children and Han Myeongoh, who had preached morality. Everyone was lynching the old woman, dragging her toward her death. "Fuck, just die already!"
That old woman likely had nothing to do with them. Among the subway passengers used by countless people every day, she was just an ordinary old person who was nothing special. Had they met her an hour ago, they might have yielded their seat or carried her heavy luggage. However, the dagger lodged in their hearts effortlessly turned them from humans into beasts. To divide victims from beasts, two things were enough: age and the magnitude of power. I was watching that entire scene. It was then that Yoo Sangah-ssi made up her mind. "Dokja-ssi. I'm going to go stop them."
I reflexively grabbed her wrist. "I told you not to move recklessly."
"I know, but...!"
"If you go now, Sangah-ssi, you'll die."
Yoo Sangah-ssi was this kind of person. Her eyes were trembling incessantly with fear, but even so, she couldn't leave the old woman be. "Yoo Sangah-ssi. Sit down."
"But..."
She shone brightly. But this damned world couldn't be changed by light alone. Nor could one become the protagonist. "Just do as I say this one time. Please."
After forcibly seating Yoo Sangah-ssi, I took a deep breath and turned around. "Dokja-ssi...?"
I began to run. The condition demanded by the scenario was one. [Kill one or more living beings.]
There was no need to kill a human. A living being was enough. And the scope of living beings was very broad. My not stepping forward wasn't out of fear of people, nor because I was convinced by Namwoon's logic. I had simply been waiting. For the opportune moment to push through the beasts and get my hands on the target. Kwaaaaang! The moment the protagonist in the next car moved! I channeled all the force and speed of my running into my shoulder and slammed into Namwoon. "Move!"
If an outsider saw it, they might guess it was to stop him, but they would be wrong. My objective was one from the start. The insect collecting container held by a child. "I'm borrowing this for a second."
I snatched the collecting container from the crying child's hands. Opening the lid and shoving my hand inside, I squished a grasshopper just like that. [You have cleared Main Scenario #1.]
[You have acquired 300 Coins as a basic reward.]
"Everyone, stop. Even if you kill that old woman, you won't be able to live anyway."
Into the temporary silence created after the aftermath of the protagonist going wild, the sound from my throat cut in. Was it because they snapped to their senses from the shock? People turn their eyes toward me one by one. "Let's say you kill the old woman. Then what comes next?"
Flinch! "In the end, the one who kills her will only be the last single person, so what about the people who aren't that person?"
"Ah..."
"Look at the message. It's not telling us to kill one person. It's telling us to kill one living being per person."
The one who stopped the people about to turn back into beasts was Namwoon. "What? Why make such a fuss? It's fifty-fifty anyway."
Right. If you were someone who had read Ways of Survival, that guy talking like that wouldn't be very surprising. But I had no intention of playing a fifty-fifty gamble. "Look again. It's not people. It's living beings."
"What...?"
"W-Wait a second."
The people's gazes directed to my hand. As if the insect collecting container had become their very lives, the sound of them gulping down saliva sounded exceptionally loud. "Insects! They're insects!"
Grasshoppers and crickets hopping inside the collecting container. Wearing an inexplicable smile, I placed three of them along with an egg sac into my pocket and zipped it closed. Why was I like this? In the middle of people dying. Why was my heart beating this fast, and why was my brain pumping out dopamine like crazy? The madness of beasts was directing toward me. Normally, if confronted with a situation like this, I would have been terrified, but now was different. The ecstasy stemming from the fact that I was controlling the situation transcended fear. People began rushing toward me. Smiling, I shouted. "If you want them... take them!"
Explosive madness directed toward the small container. People surged toward the exact opposite side of the aisle from where the old woman was. Calming my rapidly beating heart, I handed one insect to the child who had held the collecting container, one to Yoo Sangah-ssi, and approached Hyeonmu. Hyeonmu looked up at me holding a long pipe she had brought out from somewhere unknown. "Your name was... Hyeonmu, right?"
"Hm? That's right. Ahahaha."
Hyeonmu laughed. In that laugh, there was neither tension nor bravado. She was truly just enjoying it. This situation. Even while people deliberated whether to kill each other, searched around for grasshoppers, while the scenario time ticked down, and while someone was crying somewhere in the carriage. "Hyeonmu-ya."
"Hm?"
"Aren't you scared?"
Hyeonmu simply smiled. "Scared of what?"
The reply was light. It wasn't the voice of someone smiling to hide fear, nor was it a reaction coming from an inability to understand the situation. Hyeonmu was genuinely asking. What is there to be scared of? I pondered an answer for a moment before turning my gaze away. The carriage was still in pandemonium with people trying to catch grasshoppers. There were many things I could explain. "That dokkaebi."
"Yeah."
"It killed a person, too."
"Yeah."
"And now it's telling us to kill people too."
"Yeah."
Yoo Sangah-ssi, having killed the grasshopper handed to her, approached. "He's asking if you're not scared of that."
Hyeonmu looked into Yoo Sangah-ssi's eyes. Looking at those pupils utterly filled with terror, she spoke as if unable to comprehend. "I'm not scared though?"
Yoo Sangah-ssi's mouth parted halfway. "Even though people died?"
"They died, yeah."
The answer was so calm that we couldn't immediately continue speaking. Hyeonmu took a puff from her long pipe. Slender smoke slowly passed before her small face. "But what does that have to do with me?"
"..."
Laughing like a child, talking like a child, yet the sensibility inside was not a child's. "Then."
The conversation started to resolve confusion only served to add to it instead. "Even if someone dies right in front of you, you feel nothing?"
"Yeah."
"What if it's someone you know?"
Hyeonmu didn't answer right away this time. She merely tilted her head. "Depends on which person I know."
Those words were strangely natural. We looked at each other, but no one could provide an answer. Letting out a sigh, words blurted out of me unwittingly. "I don't know what kind of things I'm listening to from a kid."
"I'm not a kid."
Yoo Sangah-ssi asked. "Hyeonmu-ya, then how old are you?"
Her small head tilted. The tip of her ponytail shook slightly, brushing against her neck. "Mmm... secret!"
As expected, she had no intention of telling us. Just then, someone shouted loudly from the opposite side of the car. "The time is dropping!"
[Remaining Time: 02:48]
The terror that had briefly scattered elsewhere a moment ago returned to its place. People now brandished violence against one another to seize grasshoppers. After checking the scenario window, I asked again. "What are you going to do about this?"
Hyeonmu looked up at the blue window as well. "About what?"
"The scenario."
"Ah."
Only then did she nod. Her small head moved nonchalantly amidst the violence rampant all around. We all awaited an answer. Hyeonmu touched the tip of her long pipe with her finger as if thinking for a moment, then spoke as though it were no big deal. "You just don't have to do it."
"It says if you don't do it, you die."
"Yeah."
"And?"
Hyeonmu smiled brightly. "So?"
Neither I nor Yoo Sangah-ssi could possibly answer. It was while we were unable to choose an answer. Something small moved at the edge of the window. A single black dot. Along the glass reflecting the setting sun, a bug smaller than a fingernail was slowly crawling. Amidst the screams of the people, the grasshoppers massive compared to an unknown bug, and the dwindling time, it was a motion so trivial that no one could care about it. Her small head turned toward that place. "Oh."
The hand holding the long pipe stopped. The bug was climbing up the window frame. Hyeonmu looked at it for a moment, then leaned her body slightly forward. Her bare feet swung once in the air, and the tip of the long pipe in her hand slowly aimed toward the window. "You..."
Hyeonmu lightly pressed down on the bug with the tip of her long pipe. The bug stopped moving. [You have cleared Main Scenario #1.]
[You have acquired 300 Coins as a basic reward.]
The message floated up. The calamity that had cast the passengers into hell easily collapsed before a small child. Seeing that sight, Namwoon stopped his beating and approached. "Ahjussi. Why'd you do that?
"You could have just given us the insects."
I said while protecting Yoo Sangah and Hyeonmu, "The number of people left in this train car is twelve."
"...So?"
"There were seven insects in the collection box. Subtracting the one I killed first, the ones belonging to the box's owner, and my party's share, there aren't many insects left."
A moment of realization dawns on his stunned face. "What...? Hahaha! Ah, right. It was impossible for everyone to survive anyway? Is that why you threw it?"
"Yeah."
"Bullshit."
"...?"
"No sane human would pull a stunt like that. Speak truthfully. Didn't you just want to see that scene?"
It was the moment I was choosing my words, wondering what answer to give to that question. [Exclusive skill, 'Character List' is activated.]
<Character Information>
Name: Kim Namwoon
Age: 18 years old
Backer: None (Currently, two Constellations are showing interest in this person.)
Exclusive Attribute: Chuunibyou (Normal)
Exclusive Skill: [Abnormal Adaptability Lv. 3], [Knife Fighting Lv. 1], [Blackening Lv. 1]
Overall Stats: [Stamina Lv. 3], [Strength Lv. 4], [Agility Lv. 6], [Magic Power Lv. 4]
Overall Evaluation: A chuunibyou who has undergone blackening due to a special trigger. It is recommended not to get involved with him. The person whom the skill advised me not to get involved with reached out a hand to me. "Let's form a team together."
[The character 'Kim Namwoon' expresses favorable feelings toward you.]
[Your understanding of the character 'Kim Namwoon' increases.]
If I hadn't known Ways of Survival, my choice might have been a bit different. "Sorry, but I prefer being alone."
"Is that so? Hm, well, that's a shame."
Shaking his head lightly, Kim Namwoon headed behind me. "Then step aside now. I have business with the old hag behind you."
Behind me, the grandmother was still barely breathing. "What business? There are insects over there."
"Insects? Why the fuck would I catch something like that?"
Kim Namwoon smirked sickeningly. "There's a bug right in front of me that's already caught."
Bloodlust was felt right in front of my nose. Was it because a character who had only existed as text was now alive and moving? I couldn't help but be impressed. Kim Namwoon was truly a literal human being of text. [The favorable feeling of the character 'Kim Namwoon' slightly decreases.]
"What are you looking at? I told you to step aside."
"I'm sorry, but I can't do that."
"Seriously driving me crazy. Are you trying to play hero of justice too, ajusshi?"
As I remained silent, a shadow slowly fell over Kim Namwoon's face. His eyes, which had been shining as if looking at a friend, cooled down coldly. "Hold on, was throwing the collecting box in the opposite direction also to save the old hag?"
"..."
"Seriously? Ha... fucking hell, I'm going crazy."
I still didn't answer. Because suddenly, an old memory crossed my mind. "This bastard, turns out he was a disgusting hypocritical bastard all along? As expected, you're all the fucking same."
All throughout reading Ways of Survival, how frustrating had this guy's behavior been to watch? [The character 'Kim Namwoon' despises you.]
"I told you to move."
Recalling his attack characteristics that I had read in Ways of Survival, I ducked my head. Huu-ung. With that sound, a fist brushed over my hair. "What the, you dodged it?"
I definitely dodged it, but a stinging sensation like a paper cut remained. It was a skill. [Blackening Lv. 1]
A black aura slowly rose from his entire body. It was an exclusive skill of the 'Chuunibyou' attribute. Considering that in Ways of Survival all beings with the 'Chuunibyou' attribute failed to survive the early stages and died off, it wouldn't be wrong to consider it Kim Namwoon's exclusive skill. The timing to awaken this skill is usually during the second scenario, but that guy was flauntingly using it right now. There was a reason he was able to accompany the protagonist despite his trashy personality. Peo-eok! As his fist struck my shoulder, power momentarily drained from my arm. I didn't know when the strength would return. That guy had awakened his skill. He was someone with abnormal adaptability. If I fought like this, I would unconditionally lose. ...Should I use 'that'? The moment I was calculating rapidly, a message rang out. [Your understanding of the character 'Kim Namwoon' increases.]
[You have approached the condition to activate Stage 1 of the exclusive skill 'Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint'.]
Kwa-ang! When Kim Namwoon's fist struck the iron handle, the thick iron bent like taffy. If I took a hit from that, my bones would break effortlessly. "Haha, what's this? Is this a skill?"
He too was now realizing his own power. However, I barely dodged his attacks while continuing my thought process. This was only possible because Ways of Survival, which I had read inside out, was showing me the way to dodge the attacks. Ddiring! [You have reached the condition to activate Stage 1 of the exclusive skill 'Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint'.]
Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint? What's that? '...Fine, let's use it!'
Either way, excluding 'that', this was a situation with no answer. If I obtained a skill, it was wise to use it. [Activating Stage 1 of the exclusive skill, 'Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint'!]
The moment I activated the skill, I could read Kim Namwoon's thoughts. Truly an ability worthy of its name. 『Strike the right flank, then low kick with the left foot.』
I took a step back and raised my leg to prepare for the low kick. 『Chin.』
I ducked my upper body deeply while shoving him away. "Khk!"
With the specs of an exercise-deprived modern human, landing blows was out of the question, but I could evade most attacks. Smirking at that fact, I pointed to the clock. "I just need to hold out a little longer."
"Fuck!"
Kim Namwoon glared at me with eyes that looked ready to chew me alive, then charged toward the grandmother. I rushed to the grandmother as well. If the grandmother died here, that guy would clear the scenario. Even for my own sake, I couldn't let that guy pass to the next scenario. "Haha, I knew you'd come here, ajusshi."
Kim Namwoon smirked and pulled something out of his bag. A portable Swiss Army knife. [Knife Fighting Lv. 1] is activated. 『Heart.』
I couldn't dodge it. Evading the combination of Blackening and Knife Fighting was impossible, at least for now. I clenched my teeth and twisted my upper body sharply. Jji-ik! I gave up my shoulder as the price for avoiding a vital spot. "Argh!"
It hurt. It really fucking hurt. Thoughts about skills and scenarios all flew out the window in front of the pain. "Just die!"
1 minute until termination. I internally apologized to the grandmother. '...I am sorry.'
I'm using 'that'. "Kim Namwoon. I'll ask you one question, so answer it."
"What...?"
"Are insect eggs 'living creatures' or not?"
I reached my hand into my pocket and grasped the egg sack. "The answer is... living creatures!"
"Wait... Don't tell me you...!"
Ppu-deu-deuk. [You have killed a living organism.]
[You have obtained an additional reward of 100 Coins.]
... [You have obtained an additional reward of 100 Coins.]
Countless messages colored one side of my field of vision. Kim Namwoon charged forward while clenching his teeth. It seemed his attribute was signaling that something was wrong. "Dieeeee!"
"No, I'm not going to die."
Smirking at him, I muttered internally. [Invest 2,700 Coins into 'Stamina'.]
[Stamina Lv. 1 -> Stamina Lv. 10]
[Stamina level increases significantly!]
[Physical durability increases significantly!]
And I prepared to block his Swiss Army knife. No, I was about to. Hyeonmu, who had approached without me noticing, raised her smoking pipe and blocked the blade. Ka-ang! "...!"
Hyeonmu turned her head slightly toward me with a subtle smile. Her swishing ponytail followed a moment later. "Sorry, but I think going with this guy looks like it'll be more fun."
"What the...!"
"I won't kill you with my own hands."
Because in the end, I heard his answer. Dimly, it felt like I heard a voice like that. Hyeonmu's right hand holding the smoking pipe rose slowly. And then she swung it lightly. Chwahaaaak! "Kuaaaaaak!"
"...!"
"...!"
"...!"
A chilling sound followed by a scream. All eyes of the people on the train gathered at that sound. Kim Namwoon was collapsing, bleeding from his entire body. 20 seconds. Just now... what on earth happened? "Huaaaah! Aaaaaah!"
It was literally as she said. Hyeonmu didn't kill him. However, the condition of the scenario was cruel. Full of bravado as a chuunibyou, Kim Namwoon sensed death in the terrible pain covering his body and the remaining time. "No, save me! I don't want to die! Huaaaah!"
10 seconds.
I unconsciously used the skill on Hyeonmu.
[Exclusive skill, 'Character List' has been activated.]
<Character Information>
Name: Hong ⬛⬛ju (⬛⬛⬛⬛), Hyeonmu (⬛Martial)... [Error]
Title: ⬛⬛⬛⬛ (⬛⬛⬛⬛), ⬛⬛'s ⬛⬛ (⬛⬛'s ⬛⬛)... [Error]
Backer: None
Exclusive Attribute: Fate ⬛'s ⬛ Person (Fate ⬛'s ⬛ Person)....... [Warning, the target's attribute cannot be translated into the language of the Star Stream.]
Exclusive Skill: ?? ..... [Warning, the target's skill cannot be translated into the language of the Star Stream.]
[Void ⬛ Sword ??], [Fervor ⬛ ⬛ Words ??], [Immortal ⬛ Hand ⬛ ??], [Radiance ⬛⬛ ??] ............... [Error]......
Overall Stats: [Error]
My thought process ground to a halt.
Like someone who had seen the sun rise in the west.
Like someone who had seen something they shouldn't have seen.
...What?
What in the world is this?
'What on earth is this? And what are those black squares...'
The Constellations' reactions were much the same.
Of course, they couldn't see my system messages. However, they could at least figure out that I had used a skill and seen something utterly unbelievable.
Inferring that from my stiffening expression, my silent gasp of horror, and my hands hovering aimlessly was hardly a difficult task for the Constellations.
[Constellation, 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' is watching your reaction with interest.]
[Constellation, 'Secretive Plotter' is curious about the contents of the message you saw.]
[Constellation, .... is .....ing.]
While I was frozen in shock, a childlike voice flowed out from Hyeonmu's mouth.
"Mmmmmm..."
️☯︎
[Not a 'Character'. Cannot be viewed.]
'...As expected, it doesn't work on someone who isn't a character from Ways of Survival.'
I tried using it just in case, but no information came up. There was something I had instinctively realized after obtaining the skill.
This skill can only be used on characters from Ways of Survival.
Since Hyeonmu does not appear in Ways of Survival, it was natural that the skill would not apply to her.
The Constellations paid no attention to me using my skill and were instead marvelling at Hyeonmu's skill.
[Constellation, 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' is watching Incarnation 'Hyeonmu's' movements with interest.]
[Constellation, 'Secretive Plotter' is analyzing Incarnation 'Hyeonmu's' smoking pipe.]
And then, the first scenario ended.
[Main Scenario #1 - Proof of Value has ended!]