#0. Into the Novel
#0. Into the Novel
I died, and the World met The End. (完)
"What the hell..."
I stubbed out the cigarette I'd just lit. What absolute garbage. I'd followed this thing all the way to the finish, and it ended by flat-out saying everything fell apart. Over four hundred chapters of serialization, and I'd kept reading because the dark atmosphere and detailed descriptions were good — then out of nowhere, the author slapped up a notice today saying it was the finale.
It felt a little rushed, but these days, writing an epilogue disguised as a side story was practically a trend, so I shrugged and paid to unlock the chapter. That was the entire update.
"What happened to beating the final boss and getting a happy ending?"
I'd been genuinely looking forward to it, and instead they'd scribbled out a bad ending worse than leaving things open. The kind of terse line you'd see in some trash game after picking the wrong dialogue option. While I was still trying to figure out where my common sense had gone, I jabbed the comment button.
[If you are not satisfied with the ending, please leave a comment.]
"You're dead meat. Seriously."
That note, practically begging for it, made my vision go red. I hammered at the keyboard, fuming. After a long, furious typing session, I'd posted a sprawling comment clocking in at a whopping 5,700 characters.
"There's no one crazier than that bastard. Can I get a refund on this?"
Honestly, at this point, I deserved a refund. I poked around the site for a while, but it was barely 200 won, so I let out a deep sigh and queued up a ranked game. My golden weekend Saturday was already ruined.
'Wait. Did that bastard pull this to swindle settlement money?'
I'd written every curse word I could think of. Now that I considered it, it felt like a lawsuit waiting to happen. He deserved it — but still. Was it a bit — just a tiny bit — too harsh? A sudden chill ran down my spine.
[The Person Who Eats Tangerine Peels(뉴뉴와월람쓰): Sorry, delivery's here, brb]
[KST P1 Carry(마오까이): Butcher, where do you think you're going mid-game? Top lane's free as hell now lol. No gank in ten seconds and I'm inting.]
[The Dog That Barks When It Sees Itachi(트위찌): Woof woof! Woof woof woof!]
Ignoring my teammates' insults, I rushed to delete the comment, only to find a bell icon with a "1" notification badge.
"No way."
I clicked it. The author had replied to my comment.
At least it wasn't a private message.
[Thank you. I'll be in your care.]
"Thank you?"
I was still trying to figure out what that meant when light began to spill from the computer screen.
"...Huh?"