Those Who Face the Gods (10)
In the front courtyard of a royal castle that looked like something straight out of the Middle Ages, a seven-headed serpent and a single human were locked in combat.
A woman of goddess-like beauty, wielding a striking azure sword aura as she slashed at the serpent, had her face twisted into a murderous scowl. A low mutter drifted over on the wind.
"I'll kill him… I'll kill him… I'll kill him…."
…And knowing full well exactly who that death threat was aimed at, I broke into a cold sweat and managed a bitter smile.
"Guess I'll have to name-drop Secretive Plotter this time."
Constellation, 'Secretive Plotter', glares at you and says this is absurd.
"Aw, come on. Between us, I can borrow your name a little, right?"
Constellation, 'Secretive Plotter', asks you just what kind of relationship 'us' is supposed to be.
"A special one, obviously."
He was the very first Constellation whose modifier I'd ever impersonated, after all!
Constellation, 'Secretive Plotter', scrunches up his face.
I snickered on the outside, but inwardly I stared at Secretive Plotter's indirect messages and sank into thought.
Secretive Plotter.
I still had no idea what his true name was behind that modifier. Even so, he was a Constellation I was genuinely grateful for.
Despite the fact that I'd impersonated his modifier back at Geumho Station, the Plotter had never raised any major protest or turned hostile. He was a Constellation who almost always sponsored me.
But the flip side of that was a curiosity that only kept growing.
Just who the hell are you?
Judging by the scale of his sponsorship, he was at least Fable Grade. True to the nickname "Loyal Viewer," he was one of the Four Heavenly Kings who watched us consistently — right up there with Uriel, the Great Sage Heaven's Equal, and the Abyssal Black Flame Dragon.
I'd known him for over a month, and still I couldn't even begin to guess at his identity.
An unidentified Constellation whose true nature even Kim Dokja — the protagonist of Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint and the walking encyclopedia of Ways of Survival — didn't know.
…This has to be foreshadowing too.
Thinking back on how other novels and webtoons tended to unfold, everything pointed to one conclusion.
That the identity of 'Secretive Plotter' was foreshadowing for something extremely important.
If I'd known it would come to this, I should've actually checked the wiki properly.
I'd been spoiled a few times on the community boards, so I'd never gone deep into the wiki. Right now, I was starting to regret that a little.
No — if I'd known I was going to end up in the world of Omniscient Reader, I should've just finished the original novel ages ago.
"…Well, what's done is done."
"Jinwoo, what was that?"
"Hmm? Nothing, never mind."
Kim Dokja, perched on my shoulder, tilted her head at the mutter that had slipped out of my mouth. I brushed it off with a vague excuse and turned my gaze toward Yoo Joonghyuk, who was still struggling to sever Orochi's second head.
Originally, Yoo Joonghyuk had activated Gigantification — which only lasted about five minutes — cut down four of Orochi's heads, then taken a hit from its tail and been forced to retire.
But this time, with nearly five minutes already gone, she'd only managed to cut off a single head.
A variable had appeared.
And the cause of that variable was none other than me.
GROOOOOOOOAAAR—!!!
All seven serpent heads roared in unison, spewing deadly venom and crimson hellfire toward Yoo Joonghyuk.
"Hah… hah…."
Yoo Joonghyuk dodged the venom and red flames with agile movements, but her stamina was clearly hitting its limit. Her breathing had grown ragged as she tried to steady herself.
Watching quietly, I turned my attention to Kim Dokja, who was stretching out on my shoulder.
"Dokja."
"Hm?"
"I get that you want the last hit on that thing. But let me play with it for a bit first."
"……You're the only person alive who would call 'playing with a Constellation's shadow' a casual pastime."
"Isn't that part of my charm?"
A considerable number of Constellations hear your words and are left speechless.
Ignoring Kim Dokja and the Constellations' collective disbelief, I turned my head forward. Right on cue, Gigantification must have worn off — Yoo Joonghyuk, back in her miniature form, took a hit from Orochi's tail and came flying in our direction.
I set Kim Dokja down on the ramparts of Castle Veronica and sprinted toward Yoo Joonghyuk.
Exclusive Skill, Miniaturization Lv.10, has been activated.
Exclusive Skill, Path of Wind Lv.10, has been activated.
Wrapping her entire body in the winds of Path of Wind so she wouldn't get hurt, I slowed her incoming velocity, activated Miniaturization, and caught her safely — then snatched the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi from her hand.
"Good work. Take a breather."
"…Give it back. That's the sword I obtained."
"Just borrowing it for a second."
She must have taken that tail swipe pretty hard — her body hung limp as she growled at me. I set her down next to Kim Dokja and walked over toward Asuka Ren.
"Hey, Asuka."
"P-Park-san?"
"I know things are pretty tense right now, but there's something I want to ask you."
"Something you want to ask? Of me?"
"Yeah. Of you."
With a rare seriousness on my face, I put the question to Asuka Ren.
"Is your Japanese King, 'Izumi Hiroki,' a good king?"
"…And what exactly is the intent behind that question?"
For the first time since we'd met, the usually mild-mannered Asuka Ren slightly scrunched up her face and glared at me.
"Exactly what it sounds like. Is he a good king? Preferably an honest answer, and a quick one."
I waved a hand, brushing off whatever insult or implication she seemed to have read into it, and pressed her for her honest impression. Asuka Ren closed her eyes for a moment, then looked at me with a solemn gaze and opened her mouth.
"Yes. He is a good person."
"Yeah? That's all I needed."
That single sentence from Asuka Ren settled my resolve.
"I'll save him."
"…What?"
I spoke again to Asuka Ren, who was staring at me blankly.
"I said I'll save your king, Izumi Hiroki."
"…H-how?! He's already had his body stolen by his Sponsor Constellation — he's basically a puppet at this point…!"
"I've already got every plan I need to save Izumi lined up."
The only issue was timing, but it should be possible. No — it would be possible, no question.
"I'll help you just this once. In exchange, if I do manage to save Izumi, you can at least smack a kiss on my cheek."
"W-wait a second!"
Just as I was about to charge toward Orochi, who was starting to slither its way over in our direction, Asuka Ren grabbed my arm with a desperate look on her face.
"Hm? What is it?"
"W-why are you trying to save him?"
Asuka Ren met my eyes with trembling pupils.
"He's not even from the same country as you. If anything, Izumi was the King of Disaster who stood against you and your companions…."
Her voice rang hollow.
I waited calmly, letting Asuka Ren continue.
"…The truth is, all of this is my fault. Because of my own greed, Izumi killed the little people and sided with Disaster. And that became the trigger — his body was stolen by his Sponsor, that serpent."
Asuka Ren lowered her head, her eyes empty.
"…You were about to go face that serpent alone just now, weren't you? It's dangerous. R-rather than that, take your companions and run. Even if you flee, no one — no one at all — would blame you."
Even through the grief and despair woven into that hollow cry, muttered with her head bowed, I listened to every last word.
"…………."
Her shoulders trembled faintly. Head hung low, her grip on my arm tightened. Slowly, I opened my mouth.
"Asuka. No — Ren."
"………!"
Calling her by name seemed to snap her back a little. She slowly lifted her head and met my eyes.
"I just don't like that bastard, that's all. Saving Izumi is just a side benefit."
The reason I'd stolen the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi from Yoo Joonghyuk's hand was extremely simple.
To cut off that thing's tail and a few of its heads.
That was all.
"I'm no grand hero. I'm just a simple hedonist. Not good, not evil — a neutral human being."
Really, truly, all I'd done was join the protagonist party's group because I wanted the main cast of a webtoon I'd loved to suffer a little less, live a little more comfortably, and draw out a happier story.
"But there are people who get in the way of that goal. For example — that snake bastard right there."
I pointed the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi at Yamata no Orochi and continued.
"Just because it lent a little power, it steals its own Incarnation's soul and body and starts wrecking house in the newbie zone. I really, genuinely cannot stand that snake bastard."
So I was going to thrash it thoroughly. I'd carve into it exactly what its place was — by cutting off the head and tail of a creature that deluded itself into thinking everything would go its way.
I slowly turned my head and locked eyes with Asuka Ren.
"Your comrades got hurt or killed because of that thing too, right? So I'll take revenge for you. And I'll show those yokai bastards up in the sky what happens when some punk starts a riot in a veteran's turf."
"Ah…."
Faced with my confident smile, Asuka Ren slowly released the hand that had been gripping my arm.
I didn't look away from her dazed stare. Instead, I brought my face even closer to hers.
"See this confident look on my face?"
Close enough that our noses nearly touched, I whispered the question.
"Trust me. I'll save Izumi and come back in one piece. And I'll show you. The power of a real Dragon."
I flashed a grin and held her gaze.
Asuka Ren's eyes slowly widened. The brown irises within them grew larger and larger.
And into those once-hollow eyes, a spark of light returned. She slowly nodded her head.
I slowly curled up the corners of my mouth and spoke.
"Nice. So like I said earlier — once I bring Izumi back, I get a cheek kiss from a beauty named Asuka Ren, right?"
"W-what on earth are you even—?!"
"I'm kidding! Kidding!"
She flushed red with flustered panic and tried to say something. Seeing Asuka Ren finally make an expression that looked properly human, I let out a small laugh, waved my hand, and walked toward where Yamata no Orochi waited.
Atop the castle walls, something like a tiny starlight flickered for an instant.
KRA-BOOOOM!
A small explosion erupted before the shadow of the Constellation, 'Lord of Eight Heads,' and a cloud of dust billowed up in its wake.
Thud. Thud.
"Yo, snake bastard. Kept you waiting, huh?"
A human figure pushed through the dust cloud and revealed himself.
Having released Miniaturization, Totsuka-no-Tsurugi resting on his shoulder, Park Jinwoo looked up at the seven-headed serpent with a delinquent smirk.
"Laying a hand on the beauties in our party is already a capital offense. And when some punk starts a riot in a veteran's turf, eventually I've got no choice but to step in."
Park Jinwoo slowly removed the iron bracelet and anklet, tossing them into My Room as he continued.
"Just what kind of confidence makes a snake bastard think it can raid a dragon's front yard?"
「Insolent… little… thing….」
"Can't even talk properly, huh, snake bastard."
The probability storm generated by Yamata no Orochi's True Voice scorched the grass and weeds across the wide clearing with crackling sparks.
「As if… a mere… Water-Calming… Blade… could… defeat… me!」
"Says the one who already lost."
KRAAAAAAAAAAAAH——!!
All seven heads howled at once, vomiting a blood-red cry.
"Constellation 'Lord of Eight Heads.' True Name: 'Yamata no Orochi.'"
Park Jinwoo glared up at the great yokai from Japanese mythology and spoke.
"Some call you a serpent, a imugi, a dragon. But to my eyes, you look like nothing more than a plain old snake. A slightly unusually shaped one, at that."
RUMBLE! RUMBLE-RUMBLE!
Thunder cracked across the darkened sky from Park Jinwoo's exclusive skill, Snow Dragon Formation.
"I'll show you the power of a real Dragon."
The water filling the drainage channels surrounding Castle Veronica began to churn and sway like rising waves.
「All waters, come to me.」
SHHHHHHAAAK!
At Park Jinwoo's signal, the water from the drainage channels surged up into the air and gathered above his head.
ZZZT! ZZZZZZT!
Sparks similar to a probability storm rippled across Park Jinwoo's entire body.
「Awaken at last, Water-Calming Pearl.」
The moment he called the name of the dragon's relic, golden sparks erupted from where his heart was.
Fable, 'One Who Became a Dragon from a Human', begins its storytelling.
The Water-Calming Pearl casts off its final husk.
Blue sparks and golden sparks swirled around Park Jinwoo's entire body.
The blue sparks tried to wrap around him and impose restrictions, while the golden sparks held those blue sparks at bay.
Even as the blue sparks lacerated his whole body and his skin burned away, Park Jinwoo looked completely unbothered. He gazed up at the waters gathered above his head and spoke.
「Let's begin.」
SHHHHHHHHHAAAAA—!!
At his signal, the waters above Park Jinwoo's head cascaded down like a waterfall.
Grrrrrk……!!
Yamata no Orochi glanced at the waters crashing over Park Jinwoo — and then froze in shock.
The waters that had engulfed him should have scattered in every direction. Instead, they held the shape of a single sphere and began to coalesce around Park Jinwoo as their center.
Kim Dokja, Yoo Joonghyuk, their companions, and the little people of Castle Veronica who had been resisting the Disaster all stared blankly as the clear, transparent waters gradually dyed themselves gold.
Incarnation 'Park Jinwoo' sprouts a new bud of possibility.
Incarnation 'Park Jinwoo''s Attribute prepares to bloom.
And then, once every drop of water enveloping Park Jinwoo had turned gold, its outer surface rapidly blackened and hardened solid.
Dangerous.
Sensing the wrongness radiating from that thing — which had taken on the appearance of an 'egg' — Yamata no Orochi glared at it with wary eyes and began gathering its magical power into one place.
I cannot allow that thing to hatch.
The Eight-Headed Dragon concentrated power into its remaining seven heads and ignited a massive flame far larger than before.
KRA-GAGAGAGAGAGA——!!!
Having received probability from the yokai-origin Constellations, Yamata no Orochi's crimson hellfire — stronger than before — poured all at once toward the thing before its eyes.
KAHAHAHAHAHAAAK————!!!!!
Hellfire meant solely to destroy the unidentified object before it crashed into its very center. Judging that it could now destroy the thing, Yamata no Orochi roared with great joy.
But then Yamata no Orochi went completely rigid.
Sssssssss…….
Even under the hellfire Yamata no Orochi had unleashed, only the outer surface glowed red-hot. Not so much as a single crack appeared.
Steam rose from the heated surface, but not a single wound had been inflicted.
GROOOOOOAAAAAR……!!!
Constellation, 'Lord of Eight Heads', howls in rage.
THUMP!
In that moment, every being gathered at Castle Veronica heard a sound.
THUMP! THUMP!
A sound like a heartbeat. Every gaze locked onto the black 'egg.'
FLASH!
In the pitch-black sky, a brilliantly shining star revealed itself.
The Constellations within the channel gaze upon Constellation, 'Apostle of Pleasure'.
<Star Stream> is astonished by the achievements of Constellation 'Apostle of Pleasure'.
And then the brilliantly shining starlight from the pitch-black sky illuminated the black egg.
CRACK.
Where the starlight touched, fissures began to spread across the shell's surface.
Constellation, 'Apostle of Pleasure', awakens from slumber.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
With the heartbeat echoing from within, the cracks spread wider and wider.
<Star Stream> contemplates a second modifier for Constellation, 'Apostle of Pleasure'.
CRUNCH!
The section of shell that had taken Yamata no Orochi's concentrated hellfire shattered outward.
And the massive body of Yamata no Orochi, coming face-to-face with it, froze as though it had met its natural predator.
From inside the egg, something with a massive vertical pupil was visible.
It was unmistakably a dragon's eye.
「Impo…ssible…! How… could a mere… hu…man… become… a great… dragon…!!」
KRAAAAAAAAAAAAAH——!!!
Constellation, 'Lord of Eight Heads', flies into a great rage!
『Shut up.』
From the broken section of the egg, a hand covered in black scales thrust outward.
『Well done. You may stop now.』
The black shell that had enveloped Park Jinwoo shattered into pieces, transforming back into the golden waters from before.
"Park Jinwoo…?"
Everyone atop Castle Veronica's walls who knew him stared as one.
Park Jinwoo's appearance had completely changed.
Antlers like a deer's crowned his head.
His once-black eyes had become the golden pupils of a dragon.
Black scales had sprouted across his body.
And from the base of his spine, a dragon's tail had emerged.
Park Jinwoo had taken on the form of a Dragonoid.
Park Jinwoo looked quietly up at Yamata no Orochi with an arrogant expression unlike his usual self.
He gazed at Yamata no Orochi, then looked up at the pitch-black sky and waved his hand.
At his gesture, the dark clouds that had blackened the heavens vanished in an instant, and soon a sky full of brilliantly shining stars revealed itself.
Park Jinwoo quietly looked up at the star-strewn sky.
Beyond the heavens, a tiny starlight twinkled among the stars. Park Jinwoo gazed at that starlight for a long time, then slowly turned his head back to Yamata no Orochi right in front of him.
I rolled my eyes and examined my body.
ZZZT! ZZZT!
Blue sparks crackled endlessly across my entire body. As if trying to suppress my movements, my power. I tilted my head at them.
Staring blankly at the sparks, I slowly clenched my right fist.
Just clenching a fist — and I could feel a terrifying power thrashing inside me.
A sense of omnipotence wrapped around my body, as though I could do anything.
It felt like if I wanted the dark clouds blanketing the sky to retreat with a single gesture, they would. If I wanted to erase the shadow of Yamata no Orochi before my eyes, it would be so.
The horns sprouting from my head itched. The tail that had emerged from my tailbone thrashed wildly.
『I don't know.』
I had absolutely no idea what the limits of my current power were.
The omnipotence wrapping my entire body in a tingling haze made me feel like my head might come undone.
I stopped examining myself and lifted my head again to look up at Yamata no Orochi before me.
Just moments ago, the sheer magnitude of power radiating from that thing had made me a little tense.
Tense at a power that matched its enormous body.
But not anymore.
『You're not nearly as impressive as I thought, huh?』
GROOOOOAAAAAR——!!!
The instant the words left my mouth, crimson hellfire erupted from all seven of Yamata no Orochi's heads.
KRA-GAGAGAGAGA!!
A tidal wave of hellfire poured from the mouths of Yamata no Orochi — reduced from an Eight-Headed Dragon to a Seven-Headed one — and crashed over my body.
With the exception of one person currently in Peace Land, no one would be able to withstand this wave of hellfire.
A force that would burn skin, burn muscle, burn bone — erasing a life in an instant.
Fable, 'Return of the Black Dragon', begins its storytelling.
But.
Strangely enough, I was enduring it.
BOOM!
I took just a single step forward, and a thunderous roar rang out as the ground caved deeply beneath me.
Shiiing.
Golden sparks leapt from the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi gripped in my right hand.
Parting the wave of hellfire, I took one step, then another, advancing slowly toward Yamata no Orochi.
A considerable number of Constellations are shocked by the 'Status' they sense from you!
Exclusive Skill, Path of Wind Lv.10, has been activated!
Under the influence of the Sacred Relic, 'Water-Calming Pearl', the power of Path of Wind is enhanced!
WHOOOOOOSH!!
From the very center of the hellfire wave, a massive whirlwind like a waterspout split the flames apart.
Constellation, 'Lord of Eight Heads', is greatly alarmed by your combat power!
Constellation, 'Lord of Eight Heads', raises an objection regarding scenario fairness!
Yamata no Orochi's seven heads howled up at the sky.
『You know full well how pathetically weak you yourself are, if you're the one raising fairness complaints.』
Boosting my speed with Path of Wind, I arrived at its rear where the tails were and spoke toward the creature.
Shiiing.
『Your body is far too large to fit inside a sake bottle. So instead, I'll cut off your tails and heads.』
SHHHHHAAAK!
GROOOOOAAAAAAAAR……!!
With a sword stroke delivered with only moderate force, all eight of Yamata no Orochi's tails were severed.
In a single instant, its tails cut away, Yamata no Orochi roared with a voice full of rage and agony.
The creature that had been slaughtering the little people now found itself the prey instead — and it glared at me with eyes that simply could not comprehend what had happened.
『Looks like you can't accept it at all.』
Being a serpent's face, its expression was completely unreadable. But looking into the one thing that let me understand its emotions — Yamata no Orochi's eyes — I slowly opened my mouth.
Exclusive Skill, Advanced Extraction Lv.1, has been activated.
Proceeding with extraction from the tails of Constellation, 'Lord of Eight Heads'.
『Who told you to act tough in my turf?』
ZZZT! ZZZZT!!
「Impo…ssible…. You… how do you have… that kind of… proba…bility…?!」
I glanced at the blue sparks trying to bind my body even more tightly than before, then looked up at the creature before me.
『That looks like an unfair expression.』
I planted the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi into the ground and slowly spoke toward it.
『Is it that unfair? Even if you descended as a mere shadow — you're still a Fable Grade Constellation. Shouldn't you be trying a little harder?』
KRAAAAAAAAH——!!!
As I needled it with a mocking tone, Yamata no Orochi glared at me with eyes full of killing intent and murderous will. I smirked and gently closed both eyes.
『Right, so you're unhappy that I'm fighting with a dragon's power? Fine.』
Dark crimson magical power began surging violently from my entire body, and the flow of mana in the surroundings started to shift.
Exclusive Skill, Incarnation of Disaster Lv.10, has been activated.
Special ability of Exclusive Skill, Incarnation of Disaster Lv.10, has been activated!
ZZZZZT!! ZZZT!!
The blue sparks binding my entire body began to increase in both size and density.
Disasterization has been activated.
From deep within my body came a sound like something bursting open. And when I opened my eyes, dark crimson magical power was swirling around my entire form.
You have temporarily become a 'Disaster'.
<Star Stream> grants a scenario buff effect to Disaster 'Black Dragon of Disaster'.
The probability restrictions on Constellation, 'Black Dragon of Disaster', are partially lifted.
『Well? Is this fair enough for you now?』
Slash!
I gave Yamata no Orochi — staring at me in a daze — a smile full of genuine sincerity, and severed three of its necks.