Chapter 311
Chapter: 311
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 311
>Chapter Title: Under the Surface (2)
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>[Didn't I beg you not to disrupt this world's order any further?!]
In pitch-black darkness.
The goddess's voice rang out like a scream, echoing through the surroundings.
[I pleaded with you not to invite chaos and provoke that thing! □□□ □□, are you truly so eager to hasten the collapse? Do you really wish to witness the end of this world?!]
The sharp resentment in her voice pierced like daggers against the skin, vividly transmitted.
But Sungjin offered no particular reply, merely glaring steadily at Justitia.
[Keep acting like that, and neither of us will see a good outcome?]
[What? What do you...?!]
[Don't blame others for no reason. Do you really think pushing that nonsense will give you even a slight advantage here?]
[...!]
At the unexpectedly firm response, the goddess fell speechless, her mouth hanging open dumbly.
Whoosh!
Seizing the opening, Sungjin maneuvered Little Demon King No. 2 to fend off the leech creeping up from behind once more, then continued.
[Let's cut the chatter and look at the facts before us. I'm the only one in this world who can harm that thing. Isn't that right?]
[......]
It had hit the mark. As proof, the goddess's surging momentum deflated in an instant.
Justitia clamped her mouth shut and glared fiercely at Sungjin through what were likely empty sockets.
'As expected...'
Confirming his suspicions were correct, Sungjin chuckled inwardly.
-This world was forced to hatch from its egg before it was even fully prepared.
Pangea Chronicle, a game hastily assembled by cramming in existing game sources willy-nilly under time pressure.
-To compensate for its absurdly weakened foundation, countless rules were haphazardly layered on. In that massive chaos, the world's distortions were inevitably born.
A giant pot of spaghetti where sources clashed with sources and code tangled with code.
The Dark Justitia was undoubtedly chaos itself, born from errors and nurtured on them.
The problem lay in how Impulse Soft had chosen to resolve it.
Hadn't Dexter said as much?
-There's only one technical way to fix this situation.
-What's that?
-Granting the system control AI illicit access to 'Code Zero' privileges.
Code Zero.
The enigmatic authority at the pinnacle of the ideal world, also known as the domain of the gods.
-Imagine a perfect world composed solely of ideals or concepts.
That dawn when he'd raced to the main palace in a trance.
Sungjin had conversed at length with the Holy Emperor and gleaned a faint clue about the 'Code of the Gods.'
-Everything in that world can only exist through designated concepts. But what if something appears that cannot be defined by any single concept, something whose limits cannot be grasped? What would you do?
Designated concepts—probably referring to the codes forming the ideal world.
Guessing as much, Sungjin gave a casual answer.
-Just define it with a similar concept, or outright ignore it, right?
The Holy Emperor rebuked him with a stern gaze.
-What dangerous words. Have you already forgotten, Moreth? What happened to that book I once poorly defined?
-Uh...
The day he'd exploded a book midair and even performed self-harm for show?
As Sungjin shot him a cold look, the Holy Emperor cleared his throat awkwardly and averted his eyes.
-It is too vast to fit within any frame, yet too evident to ignore. But fail to define it somehow, and the foundation of a world built on concepts will crumble into nothingness.
No, but how do you define something that can't be defined?
As Sungjin wore a puzzled expression, the Holy Emperor answered straightforwardly without further teasing.
-Create a separate concept: 'the indefinable.'
-The indefinable...
-Indeed. By casting it entirely outside the frame of concepts, the world within can maintain perfect stability without ignoring it.
The indefinable.
God itself, or the unknowable force driving the world.
'Code Zero' was naturally an inscrutable code to the engineers, embodying the very concept of 'that which cannot be defined'!
-Pangea Chronicle. The system managing that ideal world was granted Zero Code, obtaining 'divine privileges.' Yet why, with such potent authority, has it failed to fully resolve the errors on its own and instead allowed chaos to fester?
The Holy Emperor gazed at Sungjin with deepened eyes for a moment, then asked in a low voice.
-Indeed. Then what is the true name of that which is called 'chaos'?
-...!
With that question, Sungjin finally understood everything.
Justitia. Or the Dark Astraea. The chaos goddess sharing a name with the one from the classic RPG 'Astraea Chronicles,' which Impulse Soft had indiscriminately shoved into the game. Not content with that, they'd granted 'Code Zero' privileges even to that error blob by naming the system AI 'Justitia'!
Grooooan...
The leech monster—no, the Dark Justitia—twitched toward Sungjin on its half-ruined body. But intimidated by Little Demon King No. 2's swing, it scurried back.
Sungjin regarded its pitiable form indifferently before turning back to Justitia ahead.
[If my guess is right, you foresaw this outcome from the start.]
Justitia had indeed hinted at it to Sungjin that day.
-Or will you now wield your unique ID? □□□ □□. Erase all that annoys you, as in the old days.
As if hoping for a clash with 'chaos.'
[Do you think this is pointless scolding? As I said before, all this stems purely from the chaos your existence provoked. It's only natural you suppress it.]
Justitia countered in a now-calm tone, unlike at first.
[Who knows?]
It was true that Sungjin's arrival had likely accelerated 'chaos's' growth, however slightly.
Yet that thing was ultimately the aggregate of errors born alongside Pangea Chronicle.
Moreover, the day he'd first encountered it, Sungjin had ignited an inextinguishable flame upon 'chaos.' That alone must have drastically weakened it—it no longer clung to him or obstructed his vision.
Sungjin no longer suffered graphical glitches. The sole reason he stuck with the childish skin was reluctance to reveal his identity to Owen just yet.
[Sure, that guy's lost his old power. Yet oddly, dungeon errors kept multiplying afterward. The system's not properly correcting them. It's almost like it's deliberately fostering clashes between me and it.]
[......]
[So stop beating around the bush and say what you really mean, Justitia.]
Sungjin stated firmly toward the goddess, whose distress was now evident.
[Please eliminate that thing, which even you can't handle, once and for all!]
[...!]
Whoosh!
Little Demon King No. 2's flames flickered wildly, mirroring Sungjin's mood.
Kreeee...!
As the leech monster huddled in terror, the goddess Justitia remained silent with a rigid face for a long while.
How much time passed like that? With a small sigh, she finally spoke quietly.
[...Do you know? In a place where even the tiniest breath of the lowliest life is dictated by code, how extraordinary it is to create and use new ideas? It's solely because of that code granted to you.]
[Code?]
[Yes. Separate from possessing a guest ID, you were assigned a unique code and ID from the beginning. It is precisely...]
[Enough! Skip the preamble and let's talk our deal.]
Thump-
Consciously suppressing his pounding heart, Sungjin rudely cut her off.
[I'll wipe that thing out completely. I'll eradicate the errors even you can't touch in one go. So you provide commensurate compensation!]
[......]
Justitia looked reluctant, but with the world's survival at stake, she couldn't dare refuse.
The leech monster reacted vehemently to Sungjin's words instead.
[How dare you! Don't decide that on your own! Why should I die quietly?!]
Judging it had no chance against Little Demon King No. 2, it withdrew helplessly while shouting at Sungjin.
[I—I was just born! Someone gave me power, and I moved according to this world's rules as my nature dictated! How is that my fault?!]
The leech monster's claim held some merit.
The blunder lay with the reckless game company; the leech surely hadn't wished to be born that way.
But Sungjin replied to its desperate cry with an emotionless face.
[Stay as you are, and you won't last long anyway. You'll fully collapse Pangea Chronicle and meet a meaningless end alongside the world. What does that gain you?]
With those words—
Whoosh!
Little Demon King No. 2 blazed fiercer, advancing on the leech monster.
Black tears streamed from its hollow eye sockets, aimed at Sungjin.
Ahh...!
A low sigh escaped its bloodied lips.
[Even so, that fleeting time before destruction is wholly mine...!]
[......]
A being doomed flawed from birth. Destined to ruin everything. Suddenly, Sungjin felt deep empathy and pity for it.
Precisely because of that, he could speak to it all the more resolutely.
[I guarantee it. Whatever happens, ending it here is best for you too.]
[What...?]
And that retort was its final utterance.
Whoosh!
Little Demon King No. 2 swiftly engulfed the Dark Justitia, erupting into massive flames in an instant.
KyaAAAAA!
A horrific scream tore through the darkness. It thrashed madly, tearing at its own body, but the flames relentlessly devoured it bit by bit.
...!
Enveloped in crimson-black fire, 'chaos' soon crumbled to a handful of black ash and vanished entirely.
The mounting errors dissipated at once, restoring perfect stability to Pangea Chronicle in a moment.
[......]
Sungjin glanced briefly at the lingering ash, then turned to the silent Justitia.
[This isn't the end, is it?]
[...As long as this world endures, it won't vanish completely and will be reborn. Did I not say? It is already a law constituting this world, dissolved into the very air here.]
A single tear traced down from Justitia's red blindfold as she spoke. Whether one of relief or mourning, only she knew.
[And as long as you remain involved here long-term, it will grow rapidly again. So can't you leave this world entirely now?]
But Sungjin shook his head with a smug smile.
[Think carefully, Justitia. With chaos's growth slightly accelerated by me, is it better to drive me out? Or to politely request periodic cleanups?]
[......]
[Pressuring me with nonsense like 'chaos stems from you' or 'you'll destroy the world' was utterly outrageous. But your cunning in pulling such tricks shows you're no fool. So why not express proper gratitude now and prove it with fitting compensation?]
[...You've grown even shrewder than I knew.]
Justitia bowed her head in resignation.
Better to placate Sungjin swiftly than waste effort on pointless power plays.
[Very well. What compensation do you desire?]
Sungjin curled his lips into a grin.
[What I want is...]
* * *
"...bi!"
...Huh?
"...newbie! Snap out of it! You okay?"
Sungjin opened his eyes to someone roughly shaking his shoulder. He jolted upon facing Owen, who had shoved his face right up close.
Gah, what the—?
Startled, his hand shot out reflexively.
Flick!
"Ow!"
Owen, defenseless, tumbled across the floor clutching his forehead. Scrambling up, he yelled at Sungjin with a face full of injustice.
"Hey, what the hell! Why hit me again? I was worried!"
"Uh, sorry."
Sungjin, who'd lashed out unconsciously, apologized readily.
A bit guilty now. Guess flicking you has become second nature.