The Reader's Fight (2)

A magic bullet wreathed in blue flame tore through space at a velocity far beyond any ordinary gunshot, streaking straight toward Myeong Ilsang.

A sharp crack rang out.

Only after the bullet had already passed did the sonic boom catch up, shattering every window in the nearby buildings and raining glass down onto the cold, empty gray asphalt.

The magic bullet found the one leg Myeong Ilsang still had left intact and punched clean through the back of his knee. Bright red blood poured from the hole.

With the hamstring of his last good leg blown out, Myeong Ilsang crumpled to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

"AAAAAARGH…!!"

His scream of pure agony carried all the way from the distance. At the sound of it, I lowered my holy relic — Der Freischütz.

And then—

"Pffhk…?!"

Blood sprayed from my nose and mouth. I clamped one hand over both, trying to stem the endless flow as I bowed my head.

What the actual hell…?! The mana cost…!!

It felt like I'd just fired Flame of Ruin three times in a row. All of that mana, drained in a single shot.

"Hah…! Hah…!!"

Burning through more than fifty percent of my mana in one go made my heart feel like it was about to explode. A crushing wave of dizziness followed right behind.

At my current level, there's no way I can fire more than two of those…

I'd need to raise the skill level to cut the mana cost, or push my overall stats higher, before this thing would be practical to use.

I lifted my head and glared at Myeong Ilsang, still sprawled on the ground far ahead.

Dumping that much mana at once had left my body completely drained of strength — but this was no time to stand around.

"A-Activate Hiraishin no Jutsu."

The moment the technique fired, my body was already standing over Myeong Ilsang's back.

Thud!

"Ghk…!"

I drove my knee into his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠spine on landing, then looked down at him and let my thoughts settle.

…With this, both of Myeong Ilsang's legs are completely finished. He'll never walk again.

I had successfully subdued the infamous Disaster of Questions. That left only one thing to do — kill him, and claim the SSS-grade item and the Story for myself.

But still.

It's a little disappointing, honestly.

Me getting the Story all alone felt like a waste. From what I remembered of the Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint webtoon, when they took down the Disaster of Questions, both of the main contributors — Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk — had earned Stories of their own.

A spark lit up in my head.

…Right. Why didn't I think of that sooner?

I could leave the finishing blow on this crawling Disaster of Questions bastard to the party, and we'd all walk away with Stories and SSS-grade items together.

The party's specs go up, the dokkaebis get screwed over. Two birds with one stone.

"Executing immediately."

With my body still reeling from the dizziness, I opened a door to My Room and stepped inside.

Once I was in, I looked at my companions staring back at me with blank faces and opened my mouth.

"Everybody out."

"Huh?"

"What?"

I pointed at Myeong Ilsang, who was still lying on the ground with no intention of moving, and said,

"We're shaking those dokkaebi bastards down for SSS-grade items. Everyone come out and beat the hell out of that guy."

My companions just stared at me in total confusion. Frustrated, I grabbed the hand of the person closest to me — Yoo Sangah — and pulled her toward the door.

"Come with me."

"W-Wait a second! J-Jinwoo!"

I ignored her flustered protests and turned my head toward Shin Yooseung.

"Yooseung. You come too. I'll get you a good item."

"Y-Yes!"

Shin Yooseung glanced nervously at Kim Dokja, Han Sooyoung, and Yoo Joonghyuk — who were all still staring at me in a daze — then scrambled over to my side.

Once I'd brought Yoo Sangah and Shin Yooseung out of My Room, I pointed at the collapsed Myeong Ilsang again.

"You all saw the sub-scenario, right? Kill that guy and you get an SSS-grade item. Hit him with everything you've got."

"Uh… uh… okay…"

Yoo Sangah still looked completely lost, but she clenched her fists, set her stance, and started pounding the man lying on the ground with everything she had.

"Ugh… ahh…"

The occasional pained groan slipped from Myeong Ilsang's mouth. I ignored them.

I looked down at Shin Yooseung, who had glued herself to my side, and spoke.

"Perfect timing, Yooseung. This oppa's gonna teach you how to fight."

"How to fight?"

"Yeah. Stuff that'll help you survive."

I took her hand and stood her opposite Yoo Sangah. Looking down at the girl gazing up at me, I pointed at Myeong Ilsang.

"Watch carefully. People have all kinds of weak points."

I lightly clenched my fist and threw a punch at Myeong Ilsang's temple.

Thud!

"First, the temple. This is one of the classic vital spots. Get hit wrong here and you're done, so be careful."

"Yes, yes."

Seeing how intently Shin Yooseung was watching me, I couldn't help but look proud. Then I went on to teach her the rest of the human body's weak points.

"Alright, last one. This weak point specifically only applies to men."

"Only to men?"

I pointed at Myeong Ilsang's crotch with my index finger and continued.

"This is where a man's reproductive organs are. If you punch it, or just kick it — bam! — a man will, from that alone…"

SMACK!!

"Ack?!"

Someone slammed me hard across the back. It was a blow with enough raw power to actually register on someone with 63 Constitution.

Clutching my stinging back, I slowly turned my head.

Standing there were Kim Dokja, Han Sooyoung, and Yoo Sangah.

Under the three women's piercing glares, I flailed and spat out an excuse that even I knew sounded wrong.

"…W-What?! I was just giving our Yooseung some useful information…"

SMACK! SMACK! SMACK!

"GYAAAAAH!!"

Three palms crashed down on my back in rapid succession. Honestly, Yoo Sangah's and Han Sooyoung's hands didn't hurt much — but Kim Dokja's stung like hell.

She alone had a Strength of 60.

Kim Dokja glared at me sharply, then raised one hand high and shouted in a vicious voice,

"Teaching a kid that kind of crap — real classy of you, you bastard!!"

SMACK!!

"…………?!!"

Kim Dokja's devastating back-smack dropped me flat on the ground. The spot she'd hit burned like a branding iron, searing with heat and pain.

I frantically waved my hands at the three women slowly approaching my collapsed form and yelled,

"W-Wait! I'm a patient right now?! You're gonna actually kill me!!"

"A few smacks to the back won't kill you, idiot."

"Shit…"

Slap! SMACK! SMACK! Slap!

It only lasted about a minute, but after getting thoroughly worked over by the three of them, I pressed my throbbing back against the cool asphalt, trying to bleed the heat out of it.

…Shit. How the hell are those three women stronger than the Disaster of Questions?

Reading the cold, unsympathetic indirect messages from the Constellations — not a single one of them on my side — I turned my head and shed a tear.

It only works on men, sure, but I was just teaching her a genuine ultimate-technique-tier weakness… This is so unfair. So unfair…

Then a system message appeared before my eyes.

Ding!

I stared at the system message filling my vision for a long time. A complicated feeling settled over me.

……………….

It had been a long time, and yet also a short one.

An ordinary civil service exam student had stumbled into the world of Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint by chance, cleared scenarios, killed people, slaughtered monsters, and talked back to Constellations.

And in return, I had piled up an enormous fortune in coins, grown stronger faster than anyone else, and accumulated Stories faster than anyone else.

I shifted from where I lay on the ground and looked up at the night sky glittering with constellations.

A Con…stellation, huh…

Soon, a being who had been an ordinary human would become a Constellation.

I would finally stand on the same starting line as those stars shining in the night sky above.

Thinking about it left me feeling a little… no, a lot complicated.

……Keep it simple.

Everything for a happy ending. Everything for building my delightful harem! That's why I was becoming a Constellation!

I pushed myself up off the ground and got to my feet. Then I turned my head to look at where Myeong Ilsang still lay.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

There, five people — Shin Yooseung, Yoo Joonghyuk, Kim Dokja, Yoo Sangah, and Han Sooyoung — were still beating the hell out of Myeong Ilsang.

No sign of Lee Seolhwa. She must still be out cold inside My Room. If she'd regained consciousness earlier, she could have earned a Story and an item too. A little disappointing.

"Damn, though. He looks seriously pathetic…"

I'd set this whole scene up myself, but I almost felt a little sorry for Myeong Ilsang.

Well, whatever. He was getting beaten to death by beautiful girls and gorgeous women, so maybe it was a kind of reward for the guy. I turned my head away.

From the window of My Room, Lycaon was watching Myeong Ilsang get pummeled by the five of them with a complicated look in his eyes.

From his perspective, that reaction was only natural.

Myeong Ilsang was the one who had massacred Lycaon's own people — the Imuntar tribe — and murdered his father.

I pulled my gaze away from Lycaon and walked over to the party still thrashing Myeong Ilsang.

More precisely, I walked over to Kim Dokja. It was time to teach her the Path of the Wind using Bookmark.

"Alright, alright. Everybody stop!"

"What? Why? I was finally working off some stress."

"…If you hit him any more, he's going to die. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ease up."

I flinched at the sight of Han Sooyoung, smiling with pure, sunny joy, her fists covered in blood.

Apparently Han Sooyoung was the type who bottled up stress and then let it all out at once.

I looked at Kim Dokja and continued.

"I need a second — I've got a skill to teach Dokja."

"Me?"

"Yeah. You."

I purchased Midday Tryst from the Dokkaebi Bag and used it on Kim Dokja.

The moment I activated Midday Tryst on Kim Dokja, she looked at me with a startled expression. I shrugged at her.

Kim Dokja narrowed her eyes at me, then let out a small sigh and nodded.

Once Kim Dokja accepted the Midday Tryst, I thought of her and sent a message. A small messenger window appeared before my eyes.

I looked at Kim Dokja and sent another message.

Kim Dokja tilted her head, clearly not following what I was getting at.

A spark of realization lit up in Kim Dokja's eyes. She'd finally understood what I meant.

The moment I asked for 10,000 coins, Kim Dokja narrowed both eyes and glared at me. I raised both hands slightly and sent another message.

Kim Dokja shot me one last look, then closed her eyes and activated the Bookmark skill.

A great book unfurled above Kim Dokja's head. Its pages flipped at high speed before stopping on a particular one.

A breeze began to stir around her body. Then the wind grew, swelling until a powerful current of air was flowing around her.

Han Sooyoung realized Kim Dokja was using the Path of the Wind and shouted in shock.

"What the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hell?! You said only someone who owns the Imuntar Talisman can learn that!"

Kim Dokja looked at Han Sooyoung with a smug little smirk.

"I just found a way around it, that's all."

"What do you mean… T-Teach me too!"

"Even if I taught you, you couldn't learn it."

"You little… How is that fair…!"

Having stolen Lycaon's Path of the Wind through Bookmark, Kim Dokja spent a while practicing the technique, getting a feel for how it worked.

Watching her, I walked over and said,

"Congrats on learning the Path of the Wind."

"Jinwoo. If you hadn't told me, I probably never would have thought of it. Thank you for teaching me."

"Don't mention it. We're past that kind of thing. More importantly—"

I looked down at Myeong Ilsang, whose limbs were completely shattered, and said,

"You said you could beat this guy with the Path of the Wind. Show me that technique."

"Didn't you learn it from me back then?"

"I did, but I figured I could use a little more practice getting the feel for it."

Kim Dokja gave a look that said there was no helping it, waved the others back, and raised both hands to begin manipulating the atmosphere around Myeong Ilsang.

Whoooooosh!

At Kim Dokja's will, the air formed a mysterious wall following the shape of the Eight Trigrams. Then the atmosphere around that wall began to whirl, wrapping it completely.

Myeong Ilsang was sealed inside a small dome of space.

Watching it, a passage Kim Dokja had once recited in the Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint webtoon — the one that had given Lycaon his enlightenment — rose naturally in my mind.

Four winds meet to form the cardinal directions, and four more winds join them to complete the mystery of the Eight Trigrams. Thus the wind exists everywhere, and exists nowhere.

The name of this technique was none other than — Vacuum Prison.

It had originally been the optimal counter for the Disaster of Questions.

Well, thanks to my performance, we didn't end up needing it this time.

The first seal I'd released earlier had locked back into place. No matter what he tried now, that bastard would never escape this prison alive.

Then, as Kim Dokja finished forming the Vacuum Prison around Myeong Ilsang, blood began streaming from her nose. She'd clearly overexerted herself — too much mana, too much concentration.

Watching her, I stepped closer.

Originally this would be Yoo Joonghyuk's line, but it doesn't really matter right now.

I placed a hand on Kim Dokja's back and began channeling mana into her as I spoke.

"Dokja. You can't force the wind under control. Guide it — lead the wind toward where you want it to go."

Cough…

Maybe because I was pouring what little mana I had left into her, blood started welling at the corner of my mouth again.

Dammit… I should've chugged a mana potion first before transferring any.

But I couldn't stop halfway. That would completely kill the cool factor.

I forced the strain off my face and continued slowly.

"You're not building a 'wall.' You need to remove the medium from around his body."

Kim Dokja gave a small nod. She closed her eyes and focused, and the Vacuum Prison that had been expanding around Myeong Ilsang dissolved its walls and began wrapping tightly around his physical form instead.

Then Myeong Ilsang — who should have been slowly suffocating inside the Vacuum Prison — trembled as he raised a broken arm.

Dark purple flames bloomed from his hand.

The target was the people charging toward us from the opposite side.

"Those fucking crazy troll bastards…"

I spat a curse at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the trolls racing this way with greed written all over their faces.

People with high overall stats like me, Kim Dokja, and Yoo Joonghyuk could take a hit from Myeong Ilsang's Red Flame Cannon and be fine. It'd just feel a little hot.

But the trolls charging from across the way? Not so much. If that Red Flame Cannon hit them, there wouldn't even be ash left.

Kim Dokja's expression hardened as she registered them. Yoo Joonghyuk, who had somehow already moved to her side, grabbed her shoulder and said,

"Kim Dokja. Don't get any stupid ideas. They're people who can die for all it matters."

"I'm sure some of them are. But not all of them."

Kim Dokja roughly wiped the blood streaming from her nose and sprinted toward the people on the other side.

The ones who finally noticed Myeong Ilsang's Red Flame Cannon began fleeing in terror.

Kim Dokja planted herself behind them in an instant and started intercepting the incoming Red Flame Cannon with the Path of the Wind.

Whooosh!

Fortunately, she blocked it with ease. Myeong Ilsang still had every seal in place — the result was only natural.

That Red Flame Cannon must have been his final thrash of desperation. The arm he'd barely managed to raise dropped limply back to the ground.

"Hell yeah! That's what I'm talking about!"

With this, we could finally shake those dokkaebi bastards down for a pile of SSS-grade items.

This was the first real payback against the dokkaebis who'd done nothing but screw me over.

Then the system message I'd been waiting for appeared.

Ding!

And the system messages that followed rang out across the entire Seoul Dome.

I grinned, raised one hand high toward the fiercely glittering constellations in the night sky above, and flipped them off as I opened my mouth.

"Nice to meet you, seniors."

Looking forward to working with you.