Hidden Scenario - Escape from the Ichthyosaur's Stomach (7)

Was it because she possessed the natural talent of a born con artist, or was it simply that as the protagonist, she came pre-loaded with a silver-tongue skill?

Kim Dokja kept driving Bihyung back with nothing but words, and Bihyung could do nothing but take the beating. Whenever Bihyung found himself completely speechless, she would switch to kindness, playing a careful push-and-pull that guided the conversation exactly where she wanted it. And Bihyung, thoroughly reeled in, kept nodding along without even realizing it.

Watching the whole thing, Park Jinwoo couldn't shake the feeling that Bihyung looked like a pitiful mark being hooked by a professional scammer. Why that thought kept occurring to him, he couldn't quite say.

Anyway.

"You could stand to be that nice to me, too."

"Shut your mouth."

"Yes, ma'am."

Cutting off the muttering of the lunatic pervert behind her, Kim Dokja pressed on with Bihyung.

"If you want a famous channel, you have to fully satisfy one of two groups — the ones hunting for entertainment, or the ones hunting for Incarnations. Either commit to pure spectacle, or deliver a sponsor-worthy prospect."

"You're surprisingly well-informed. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"I hand you a hint and you still don't get it. No wonder you can't crack three digits on subscribers."

"…Just shut up and spit it out already."

Bihyung's face crumpled under her sarcasm. He crossed his arms and demanded an answer.

"What if there were a channel that could satisfy both the entertainment-seekers and the Incarnation-hunters at the same time?"

"There's no way something like that could—"

"Constellations whose only goal is finding Incarnations hop channels the moment Sponsor Selection ends, no matter how interesting the Incarnation was. But what if there was an Incarnation who never contracted with anyone at all?"

"You—you…!"

The implication finally hit him. Cold sweat beaded on Bihyung's fur as he stared at Kim Dokja in pure horror.

Kim Dokja flashed a handsome, confident smile.

"And what if that Incarnation demonstrated power that surpassed other Incarnations even without a Sponsor?"

"D-don't tell me the reason you skipped Sponsor Selection was—?!"

"That's right."

Bihyung jolted in shock, then stroked his fluffy little chin with a tiny hand, eyeing Kim Dokja with open suspicion.

"The Constellations must already be losing their minds by now. Open the channel already."

"……!!"

She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠really reeled him in properly.

Park Jinwoo watched Bihyung get thoroughly dismantled by Kim Dokja's verbal fireworks over the long exchange, looking at the Dokkaebi with the pity reserved for a born sucker, and munched on rice crackers he'd bought from the general shop.

Every time he tried to say anything, Kim Dokja shut him down with a "Shut up" or "Close your trap," so a thoroughly bored Park Jinwoo had stretched out on a brand-new blanket purchased from the general shop — as if this were his living room and not the stomach of an ichthyosaur — and was watching Kim Dokja ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and Bihyung go at it like a TV channel, crunching away on his snacks.

Somewhere in the middle of the conversation, the rustling from behind finally got on Kim Dokja's nerves. She turned around.

"………."

"What? Keep going. You're doing great."

There he was, sprawled out in the ichthyosaur's stomach like it was his own bedroom, snacking and watching the two of them. Kim Dokja's face went blank with sheer disbelief.

Seeing that expression, Park Jinwoo thought to himself that Dokja really did have excellent hit feedback. Which only made him want to needle her more.

"…What exactly are you doing right now?"

"Watching."

"Watching whom?"

"You and that Dokkaebi over there, obviously."

The look on his face — as if the answer should have been self-evident — nearly made Kim Dokja grab the back of her own neck as her blood pressure spiked.

Should I just kill him?

Crrrk—

Her right hand clenched into a fist of its own accord, knuckles whitening. Here she was, working her mouth raw negotiating with a Dokkaebi, and this guy was lounging around like he was home, watching the show — on a blanket, eating snacks?

"Here."

"……?"

Something arced through the air toward her. Mid-fury, Kim Dokja flinched and caught it on reflex.

"Water?"

A standard 500ml bottle of water — the kind you'd buy at any convenience store or supermarket.

"…I've been wondering for a while now. Where exactly are you getting all these things?"

She'd asked him about the items that kept materializing out of thin air, but Park Jinwoo just laughed in her face, tipped his chin toward Bihyung, and looked back at her.

"…Haa. Fine."

Kim Dokja caught the meaning in his glance and let out a long sigh. Finish the conversation with Bihyung first, that look said.

"But once this wraps up cleanly, you have to tell me."

"Haha, of cour— ghhk!"

"That said, treating other people like a spectator sport still has a price."

Separate issues, separate payments. Kim Dokja drove a kick straight into the stomach of the man who'd been so comfortably stretched out watching them.

Great hit feedback.

She watched Park Jinwoo clutch the impact site with both hands, trembling, and felt the stress he'd been stacking on her drain away at last.

"Haa… what, you still haven't finished setting up the channel? Everyone out there must be dying of curiosity. Wondering who the lunatic is that's going up against that 'Regressor.'"

And why they'd been swallowed by an ichthyosaur. Whether she was a real 'Prophet.'

Her exchange with Park Jinwoo had burned several minutes, and Bihyung was still frantically tweaking channel settings. Kim Dokja turned back to him with a leisurely voice and an easy expression.

"S-stop! ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠What even are you…! Don't make me laugh! An ordinary human can never defeat an Incarnation with a Sponsor. That's the law of this world!"

"Which is exactly why I'm about to prove it is possible. You just shut up and do what I tell you. I'll make you the Dokkaebi King."

Bihyung propped a tiny hand under his chin and eyed Kim Dokja with a look that said, Should I really trust this one? Kim Dokja met that stare with unbroken composure.

"F-fine, let's settle the failed scenario first. If the two of you just hand over 5,850 coins each…"

"What are you talking about? We didn't fail."

"What…?"

"The conditions should be met by now."

Finally.

Kim Dokja kept her balance on the concrete debris swaying with the ichthyosaur's movement. Bihyung stared at her like he couldn't make sense of anything. Park Jinwoo's expression tightened slightly at the scenario about to begin; he rubbed the spot she'd kicked and pushed himself up from the floor.

Ding!

"Aigoo, my dear Constellations—! Please, I beg you, calm down a little—."

"It was just a simple server error that knocked the broadcast offline for a moment! I swear I didn't cut it on purpose!"

Bihyung clasped both hands toward the chat window floating in front of him, cooing apologies and explanations at the Constellations raging over the blackout.

"Favoritism? Absolutely not! Constellations, I'm a Dokkaebi. You know doing something like that would get me erased on the spot, right?"

"Hey, are these the only products available for purchase right now? There's a search function, isn't there?"

"The little magnifying glass ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠icon in the bottom right is the product search button, Dokja-ssi."

"……!!"

"……?!"

The question had been aimed at Bihyung, but the answer came from somewhere else entirely. Both Bihyung and Kim Dokja's eyes went wide as they whipped their heads toward the voice.

Park Jinwoo was standing right beside Kim Dokja — when he'd gotten there, neither of them knew — grinning ear to ear.

"…Park Jinwoo-ssi. How do you know about that?"

"Ah, that's actually really simple."

He murmured something under his breath, and two windows popped open right in front of Kim Dokja's nose.

"What is this…?"

"Earlier, Dokja-ssi asked me where I was getting all those items, right?"

This is the answer. Has that cleared up your curiosity a little?