Chapter 320
Chapter 320
The moment I hear the confirmation, all the questions I’ve had about the Status Window flash through my mind like a montage.
‘…Park Moon-dae is the Status Window.’
And before I can even reach a conclusion...
The original Park Moon-dae, ‘Keun-dal,’ began to speak, retracing his experiences as the Status Window.
“I wasn't conscious at all at first. But… when you called for the Status Window, Hyung, my consciousness suddenly flickered to life.”
Those were the last words I posted when I closed ‘gun1234,’ the WeTube account I used to upload fancams.
“Since you liked games, Hyung, I thought it would be helpful….”
“Maybe it was because the last shock I experienced as a human was realizing that the person behind that account was you.”
I barely managed to open my mouth.
“Then the level-ups and the Trait Gacha, too?”
“Yes. Mobile games were the only ones I’d ever played… so I guess that was the only way I could make it look somewhat plausible. I’m sorry.”
It wasn't something he needed to be sorry for.
the special privilege I’d received, the Status Window that only I possessed… it hadn't appeared to maintain ‘balance’ as Cheong-ryeo had thought.
It was entirely this guy’s doing.
“After that, I assimilated back into the system… and mostly just played the role of presenting what the system was trying to do in an easy-to-read way.”
I cut him off.
“No, thank you.”
“…! Th-that… it’s nothing….”
Sitting across from me, he didn't know what to do with himself and bowed his head deeply.
“Actually, strange things started happening from that point on.”
Strange things?
“I told you that the version of me who prepared for the civil service exam in your body synchronized with the version of me that lived as the Status Window.”
“Right.”
“Well… it seems the Status Window version of me was also influenced by the version of me preparing for the exam.”
“…!”
“So… even when I was the Status Window, I had a vague idea of what would happen to you in the future. Because I’d watched all your activities since Idol Inc.”
I see.
I recalled the Status Window’s Gacha, which had provided the exact traits I needed at the exact right moments, as if it were predicting the future.
It hadn't been predicting the future. It was because a version of him who had actually lived through that future had been mixed in.
I pressed my hand to my forehead.
‘There’s no beginning or end.’
If I hadn't set ‘Conversation with Park Moon-dae’ as a mission after clearing all the Status Effects, this version of him who prepared for the civil service exam wouldn't exist.
But this version of him had to exist for me to clear the Status Effects using the Status Window’s ‘predictive shots.’
“The cause and effect are all tangled up, right? Haha… I’m a bit confused too.”
“I can see why.”
Since time didn't reset but coexisted even after returning to the past, there was no chronological order.
Just as I had intervened in TeSTAR’s activities while helping this guy with his exams.
“Hmm.”
In the midst of this, Keun-dal cautiously spoke up again.
“Um, so… my consciousness as the Status Window truly woke up when I realized your car accident wasn't far off.”
“…!”
I suddenly remembered the peculiar choice I’d been given as a reward for clearing the ‘200,000 Audience Members Status Effect.’
[Choice]
: Check ‘Truth’ ☜ Click!
: Acquire ‘Coin’ ☜ Click! !
※ Multiple selections not allowed.
“……The Coin.”
Keun-dal gave a faint smile.
“That’s right. That choice wasn't from the system; it was my doing.”
Good grief.
“And the error that happened afterward?”
Immediately after, when the next Status Effect appeared, lines of text were crossed out and updated repeatedly.
‘Death if Not 1st Place’ triggered!
‘Death if Not an Award’ triggered!
‘Death if Not a Performance’ triggered!
I had thought it felt like someone was hacking the system, and my intuition had been spot on.
“Yes… fortunately, you chose the Coin, Hyung, but an error occurred there as well.”
I spoke without thinking.
“Was it because the ‘Truth’ wasn't verified?”
The error occurred because the final condition hadn't been cleared.
“…! Exactly. That’s why a Status Effect that should have ended there triggered one more time….”
“…….”
“Ugh, I think it happened because I kept interfering. I tried to change it to something as easy as possible or cancel it… but it didn't work.”
He lowered his head with an embarrassed expression.
But in reality, the burden of that Status Effect had fallen entirely on him.
“So the target of the death penalty changed to you, too.”
Keun-dal nodded.
“…Yes. For you, Hyung, the Status Effects had actually ended just before that. The person who creates the penalty has to bear it.”
I murmured calmly.
“I don't understand one thing, though.”
“Yes, yes?”
“The number of my Status Effects.”
I folded my fingers.
“In the end, even if I don't remember it, it’s true that I lived for several more years before coming back.”
The future where I had a job at that company… the one where he said he’d cleared out my belongings. The future I saw during the final Truth Verification.
“Why was the number of Status Effects based on my memories and not on that reality?”
“That’s… because before you went back to the past, Hyung, preliminary work was done to grant my wish.”
His wish was….
It was an absurdly selfless wish, but there was something even more ridiculous.
“Are you saying that for me to live, those memories had to be gone?”
“Yes.”
The guy across from me looked a bit pale, but he was firm.
“The system judged that your heart was in so much pain during those years that you wouldn't be able to accept a new body.”
“…….”
“And when it calculated how far back you traveled based on your deleted memories, the number of Status Effects decreased accordingly.”
I was speechless.
I gritted my teeth against a sudden surge of emotion before slowly responding.
“Even the memories of meeting you are gone.”
From buying him soup to the occasional contact we had—I had no memory of it at all.
“That was the same. It seems the system thought… you would have an adverse reaction if you entered the body of someone you knew.”
This is crazy.
‘They really set it up so that one wish would be granted thoroughly.’
Wiping someone’s memories wasn't exactly a humane method—it was the kind of judgment an AI would make—but still.
Come to think of it, there was another peculiarity of mine that naturally came to mind.
“Don't tell me the Truth Verifications were too?”
The Status Effect clear rewards that were given only to me.
“Yes.”
The guy across from me squeezed his eyes shut.
“When the system analyzed you, it judged that you could only overcome your trauma by facing it directly… I think.”
Isn't that just insane?
“So it used the Status Window that had already been created to carry that out.”
“The system used the Status Window?”
“Yes. From that point on, it wasn't just me using the system; the system started using me too. …We began to influence each other.”
“…….”
I suddenly looked at the guy across from me intently.
Keun-dal, sitting in this mental world, looked like a blend of ‘Park Moon-dae’ and ‘Ryu Gun-woo,’ but looking again… something felt off.
Static.
At that moment, a flicker of noise, like a glitch, sparked along his outline.
‘Damn it.’
“Actually, I’m still a bit confused. I think I’ve merged with the system a little.”
It was a strange situation. I frowned.
“The system should have moved on to someone else.”
Gold 2, Kwon Hee-seung.
“You remained as the Status Window. But you’re still merged?”
“Um… as you got closer to finishing the Status Effects, Hyung, my ego became clearer. So when the system moved, I was able to remain behind on my own.”
He clenched and unclenched his hands.
“But… I found I could still use some of the same abilities as before.”
I automatically thought of the last thing I’d pulled from the Trait Gacha.
[Trait: ‘Mission Constitution (S)’ acquired!]
An ability that traded rewards and penalties in a format similar to Status Effects.
“You were the one who gave me Mission Constitution.”
“Yes.”
In the end, this guy had essentially saved himself.
‘Hmm.’
I almost felt a bit amused for a moment.
“So… I think we’re still a bit connected. Although we can't interfere with each other.”
“I see.”
This… might be useful for something. I nodded and relaxed my posture.
“Phew….”
The guy across from me let out a small sigh of relief, as if he’d finished a monumental task.
‘I guess he’s said everything he wanted to say.’
I smirked. Then it was my turn to talk.
“I enjoyed the story. All my questions have been answered.”
“Yes!”
This was the main point. I wiped the expression from my face and spoke again.
“And… thank you for saving me.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ve lived well, thanks to you.”
I thought back on the years I’d spent in ‘Park Moon-dae’s’ body.
There were plenty of shitty moments, but looking back… the ending was always good.
Every single experience felt vivid. To think… I would end up saying these words out loud.
“Being an idol was fun.”
I could do it all over again if I had to.
Of course….
“I didn't know I wanted to be an idol either, but I guess I did.”
Suddenly, the guy in front of me started tearing up.
“…??”
What are you doing?
“I-I’m sorry. That was really touching…. I really hope you say that at your concert, Hyung…”
“……”
It was absurd, but I just ended up laughing. It didn't feel bad.
Then I spoke jokingly.
“Your civil service exam was a surprise, though.”
Did he really want a job like that?
“…!”
At that moment, he looked guilty.
What is it?
“Um, Hyung, th-that.”
“What.”
“Actually… I think the Status Window version of me just picked that randomly because it reminded me of you.”
“….”
You should have picked the 9th grade then, you brat.
Well, he passed in the end, so I can't really complain, but I have no idea why he pushed himself into such a pit of hell.
After muttering a few words of excuse about ‘not knowing much about the civil service exam,’ he quickly returned to the main point.
“You helped me so much there, Hyung. Honestly, from the missions onward, you saved my life several times….”
“Then let’s just say we helped each other.”
“Yes…….”
The tension in our conversation began to fade, giving way to a moment of reflection.
As if reflecting my state of mind, the sunset outside the window had ended, and a few stars were beginning to appear.
At that moment, the lounging guy jumped up.
“Gasp! Time is almost up!”
“Time?”
Do you even care about that in a mental world?
“Yes! It’s because I used a bit of a trick just before you left the body that passed the exam, Hyung….”
Come to think of it, that was the most important thing. His future whereabouts.
“Then what happens to you now?”
“I… might go back to being the Status Window!”
He was talking nonsense.
“Have you never thought about wanting to use your original body?”
“Uh… to be honest, maybe because I spent so long as the Status Window, it doesn't really feel like my body anymore…. I’m not drawn to it.”
“……Is that so.”
It was a situation that benefited me, but for some reason, it left a bitter taste in my mouth… or so I thought.
Then came the additional explanation.
“And if I go back to my body, TeSTAR will disband. I can't let that happen, seriously… after everything we’ve been through.”
“…….”
Why do you care about that?
I didn't know if he was overly immersed because he’d been the Status Window for so long, or if he’d found comfort in them during his studies, but this didn't seem right.
“You could do it. Since the body is the same, the stats should be the same too.”
In the Daydream, I had used it as ‘Ryu Gun-woo,’ but that wasn't reality.
However, the guy across from me grinned.
“Hyung, there was something I wanted to say about that….”
“…?”
“Do you remember the trait you had from the very beginning? Even before the Trait Gacha appeared.”
The one I had before pulling from the Gacha….
“Infinite Potential?”
“Yes!”
Right. That ridiculously broken trait that allowed all stats to grow to their limit….
“That was originally yours.”
“…!”
What?
“So the traits you pulled, the stats you raised… they were all just your original talents coming to light.”
“…….”
“There was nothing you achieved that you weren't already capable of.”
Keun-dal nodded brightly.
“I really wanted you to know that.”
“…….”
I stared at him blankly, feeling as if I’d been struck on the back of the head.
‘It was mine.’
Slowly, a strange sense of elation rose within me.
The name for it was… fulfillment.
His voice continued.
“So, please keep showing us amazing performances.”
I nodded reflexively. My mind wasn't working properly because of the sense of stability filling my head.
The guy across from me mumbled.
“I really want to keep cheering for you as an idol in the future….”
“……!”
At that moment, I snapped out of it.
Now wasn't the time to get lost in sentiment; it was time to sort things out.
Starting with where he would stay.
‘If he’s not interested in his original body….’
“Then are you not interested in the body that passed the exam?”
He wouldn't just throw away a 7th-grade position after working so hard for it, would he?
“Oh, oh, oh!”
Fortunately, this time I got a positive reaction. Since he’d poured four years into it, he must have wanted to do it deep down.
“Gasp, b-but would that be okay? It’s your body, Hyung!”
“I’m using your body, so what does it matter?”
It’s not like I was going to keep a spare body around to make soup with. I looked at him with an expression that said I wouldn't take no for an answer.
Then, his face turning quite red, he gave a deep bow.
“Then… I’ll make good use of it for a while.”
For a while?
Just as I was about to ask about his unsettling choice of words.
“Hyung, time’s up! It’s about to start flowing again. Hurry and lie down!”
“Ah.”
At his fussing, I turned to lie back down on the sofa. It was then.
The reflection in the dark window, now fully night, caught my image.
“…!”
The person I saw there… wasn't completely ‘Ryu Gun-woo.’ But if you asked if it was only ‘TeSTAR’s Park Moon-dae,’ I wouldn't know either.
It was both.
I don't know how it was possible, but it felt like no matter which version of me someone knew, they would be able to recognize that as me.
Unlike Keun-dal’s appearance, which still seemed unrefined and mixed, mine was a solid, fully settled form.
As if I were already certain of who I was.
‘Good grief.’
After all that denial, I guess I did think of both as me in the end.
I let out a hollow laugh as I lay down with an indescribable feeling.
Somehow, it felt refreshing.
“Um, Hyung, if there’s a chance….”
I answered the cautious voice firmly.
“Let’s meet again.”
“…! Yes!”
And then, I closed my eyes as sleep washed over me once more.
This time, it was a complete blackout, as all five senses vanished.
A dormancy where consciousness and thought disappeared.
Dong—.
The moment I thought I heard a bell.
“Park Moon-dae…!”
When I came to, I realized I was standing on a platform.
The smell of stage equipment and air conditioning.
“……Ha.”
It was the day TeSTAR won the Grand Prize.