Chapter 488 — Omniscient Author’s Viewpoint (1)

“I’m a writer.”

Not too long after her novel got published, Han Su-Yeong began introducing herself like that.

It was the same story during the blind dates she begrudgingly attended after her friend pleaded her to go.

“Ah! You’re a writer!”

Her date must’ve heard about it before showing up here, so what was up with this fuss? The man quickly rolled his eyes around a little before asking her with a smile.

“Did you start your career through something like the annual literary contest in spring?”

“No.”

“Pardon? In that case....?”

“I write FreeNovelFires.”

“FreeWebNovels?”

The problem always came after this bit.

She spotted the man’s eyes sneakily scanning her worn, cheap-looking T-shirt.

“Aha, so, like... It’s that, isn’t it? Internet novels? Those with a lot of emojis in them....?”

“Ah, yes~. Exactly like that.”

“You know, there are lots of strange jobs to be found these days. Youtubers, internet authors....”

The man grinned and sipped the Americano resting right before himself. The watch attached to his wrist came from a pretty high-end brand.

....Hadn’t she experienced a similar situation to this one plenty of times before?

“It’s like everyone is trying to make easy money nowadays. Don’t you think so?” said the man.

“Is there anyone who’d want to make money the hard way deliberately?”

“I make about ₩100,000,000 a year, but it’s just not easy. So, like, whenever I see those types of people, I can only sigh, you know? Trying to pilfer other people’s money the easy way....”

He must’ve already forgotten that this was a blind date judging from the tone of his voice. With just a hint of anger in his eyes, his gaze shifted over to the car keys resting on the table. Looked like they belonged to a foreign brand, perhaps a bit too expensive considering his age.

While letting the man’s words go straight out of one ear, Han Su-Yeong switched on her smartphone. Alerts for new comments were clogging her inbox.

– Dear author-nim, isn’t this too sweet-potato-like?

– Hmm.... The next chapter will start with a cider moment, right? If not, I’ll be exiting right about now.

“People who never studied hard once when they were young, just stumbled into some random luck....” said the man.

Suddenly, it felt as if she could figure out why people read FreeWebNovels.

And she could also figure out why her friend introduced this sort of jerk-off to her, too. Apparently, she’d find out once she got here, and now, she could clearly see what that friend of hers was thinking about when setting her up with this ‘meeting’.

Now normally, she’d let this slide because it was just too bothersome, but...

“So, like.... Were you listening?”

“Ah, yes, of course. Your annual salary was...?”

Only then did the man’s eyes sparkle. His shoulders perked up as if he just knew she’d ask him about that subject again.

“It’s ₩100,000,000 after tax.”

“Hmm. It’s similar to mine.”

“Pardon?” The man smirked. “You’re a writer, but your annual salary is ₩100,000,000?”

Han Su-Yeong shrugged her shoulders and pulled out her own car keys. It was the newest model from Porsche. More specifically, it was exactly three times more expensive than the man’s own ride. Although, since she couldn’t be bothered to, she rarely drove around in it.

The man’s eyes shook in sync with the shaking keys. And an awkward smile floated up on his face next.

“Haha, but, uh.... a writer’s income is inconsistent so it can’t really be called ‘annual salary’, am I right? I mean, your wage can’t be fixed, right?”

The man’s lips ceaselessly bobbed up and down to yap on about the cliched stuff. It was just about adequate enough to be used as some line muttered out by a throwaway villain during the next chapter or some such. In that case, the protagonist would reply like this.

“But, I never said it’s the annual salary?”

“Pardon? Ah, in that case, is it what you amassed so far?”

“No, I made ₩100,000,000 for the first half of this month, and hmm.... since there are two more weeks left in this month....”

“.....Excuse me?”

Only then the man seemed to have realised something, because his expression had changed quite drastically.

In the end, this whole thing had unfolded in the way her friend wanted to. If this was a novel, it’d have been a cider moment, but in reality, she didn’t feel all that good about it.

The man was now hurriedly sending messages to someone. He was probably asking her friend that set this blind date up all sorts of questions.

“Excuse me, can you tell me the name of the novel you wrote....?”

Just as she began thinking that she didn’t want this guy to know the title, Han Su-Yeong’s smartphone issued an alarm tone.

– Hello there, author-nim. I’m just a reader who enjoys reading FreeWebNovels. I coincidentally ran across your novel and got to read it....

She wondered what sort of a long-winded message this was. She then tapped on the message without thinking too much about it. The tone of it was polite but old-fashioned, and on top of that, she felt just a tiny hint of naivete, too.

– The novel you have written is far too similar to a novel that I really treasure, the ‘Three Ways of Surviving a Destroyed World’.

.....What the hell was up with this bastard??

⸢And that was Han Su-Yeong’s first encounter with Kim Dok-Ja.⸥

Kim Dok-Ja.

⸢Han Su-Yeong watched the spectacle unfold before her eyes and ruminated on the memories of that time.⸥

She lost a portion of her memories while creating avatars and she couldn’t clearly remember what happened back then. What was certain, though, was that she had indeed read the novel called the ‘Ways of Survival’.

All because of a fool with a username Kim ‘Dok-Ja’, no less.

– Author-nim! It was also a very enjoyable read today as well.

Someone on the level of Han Su-Yeong could tell whether the novel would do well or not after reading only a couple of chapters. However, in her eyes, this ‘Ways of Survival’ would never make it even if the sky collapsed on itself.

– This, it’s a really interesting beginning.

From the beginning, it was definitely dogshit.

– Author-nim, does this mean Yu Jung-Hyeok remembers all those things? Then, back in the 72th regression turn...

It was far too obsessed with lengthy expositions, and...

– Keuh, how unfortunate! I hope Jung-Hyeok-ee will get his act together in the next regression. Today was another honey jam of a work, too.

As for its protagonist, it was just a pretty boy devoid of personality that seemingly wasted all of his available skill points on his outer appearance. Not only that....

– Author-nim! Congratulations on reaching the 2000th chapter! Since you’ve come this far, how about another 1000 chapters....

Its chapter count was excessive, as well.

‘....This is entertaining? Seriously? Is he a nutcase?”

She got royally irritated and began following after this fool’s comments. She even clicked on ‘downvote’ too. Like a bewitched person, Han Su-Yeong read only Kim Dok-Ja’s comments and not the novel itself.

– Will Ji-Hye finally awaken next chapter?

– Author-nim! I’ve discovered a typo on page 7! With my lacking opinion, I think the spelling here should be... Ah, I looked into it and it’s actually my mistake. My apologies. I’ve learned something new today.

– Please, just smack that fool Jung-Hyeok-ee in the back of his head....

This guy, he never once missed writing a comment on all those thousands of chapters. And every single one contained understanding and love for the world created by this author.

⸢Han Su-Yeong was envious of that.⸥

She believed that there was simply no way anyone would be reading a novel as bad as this, that it had to be the author himself busy blowing his own trumpet. She thought that the author had created two separate IDs and wrote the novel with one while with the other one, wrote all those comments and uploaded recommendations, too.

– Isn’t recommending one’s own work prohibited?

⸢Just like how Yu Jung-Hyeok was an imagined character to Kim Dok-Ja, Kim Dok-Ja was exactly like that to Han Su-Yeong.⸥

She thought that such a person wouldn’t be real, but...

That very person within the texts was standing right before Han Su-Yeong’s eyes.

“Dok-Ja-ssi!!”

A loud ringing in the ear rang out, accompanied by explosions going off in all directions.

Han Su-Yeong could see Kim Dok-Ja in the centre of the battlefield swirling like a thunderstorm, busy breaking past the intense outpourings from the stars. Incarnations were screaming out while the stars were roaring loudly. And in the meantime, Dokkaebis in the sky were laughing.

[[■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■!!]]

Kim Dok-Ja was shouting out. However, Han Su-Yeong couldn’t tell whether he was screaming, proclaiming, or even crying in sorrow. Now that he had been transformed into an Outer God, even his voice had been completely excluded from the scenarios. Didn’t matter what he said, the contents were deemed unimportant now.

Gyah-aaaaah!

However, there were more Outer Gods following him now. Vestiges cast away by the innumerable world-lines were now gathering near Kim Dok-Ja’s side. And then, there were Myth-grade Constellations waiting for him above the skies of the scenario.

[So, it has finally begun.]

The king of and the ruler of the 12 gods, the ‘Lightning Throne’, Zeus was there.

[This world-line’s ‘Final Scenario’ has begun!]

[Every existence has acquired the scenario entry qualification for the Final Scenario!]

[Please kill the ‘Enemy of the Story’, Kim Dok-Ja.]

The scenario messages popped up soon afterwards. Everyone present understood the current situation. Zeus was the first to open his mouth.

[Sweep them away.]

Along with heaven-collapsing noises, arcs of lightning belonging to Zeus rained down. With a ‘pow!’ noise of something exploding, blood splat onto Han Su-Yeong’s cheek. The Nameless Ones were dying as black blood spurted out from them.

[Sparemesparemesparemesparemespareme.....]

Even the frightening ‘Outer Gods’ came across as mere water balloons in front of the combined Status emitted by the Myth-grade Constellations. The ‘Outer Gods’ vomited out discarded Fables as they exploded en masse.

Blindingly brilliant shower of lightning rained down. And in the centre of the devastated landscape, Kim Dok-Ja was enduring against Zeus’s electrical attacks.

Why did he make that kind of a choice?

[Tear his wings off! Surround him from all sides!]

Along with the roars from the Constellations, a massive army rushed in. Incarnations and Constellations that had broken past the hellish scenarios to get this far, were flooding in, all of them united as one under the single goal of eliminating ‘Kim Dok-Ja’.

The one to come to his aid was the Great Sage, now one soul and body with him.

[Constellation, ‘Most Ancient Liberator’, is unveiling his Status!]

Another electrical arc haughtily flowed in the air. The Great Sage’s own lightning pushed away Zeus’, and tore through the sky as if it was paper.

For a moment there, the Constellations’ spirit seemed to wane, but a voice of encouragement resounded out next.

[It’s the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal!]

[Do not back away! Kill him, and the scenario will end!]

[This is the Final Scenario of this world-line!]

This expectation that they would finally be freed from everything. Among them were faces of Constellations and Incarnations she had seen in passing before.

“No need to feel guilty here! He chose this for himself!”

, , , , , .....

Constellations and Incarnations from those Nebulas she had heard of at least once before were all here now. Every one of them knew who Kim Dok-Ja was.

⸢Every single one of them raised their swords in order to kill Kim Dok-Ja.⸥

Through the torn black coat, the white coat underneath could be seen. Kim Dok-Ja taking on a role that didn’t suit him was there.

The tattered Kim Dok-Ja with a demon king’s horn, and his black and white wings spread open wide.

Kim Dok-Ja standing in front of the Outer Gods and swinging his sword towards the enemies.

She thought that her vision suddenly grew blurry, then Kim Dok-Ja’s figure began ‘erasing’.

The strange light in the eye unique to the cephalopod, and the exterior giving off the dark, damp impression; where Kim Dok-Ja used to stand was now dominated by a giant Outer God King that seemed to be a mixture of all the traits found in every monster of this world.

⸢The Enemy of the Story.⸥

As a writer herself, Han Su-Yeong could instinctively tell. If this world was a novel, then Kim Dok-Ja was the ‘final boss’. And this story would only end with the death of that ‘Kim Dok-Ja’.

“Han Su-Yeong!”

Someone pulled her back. Almost right away, a rapid arc of electricity flew past in front of her nose.

“Step back! Hurry!”

It was Yu Sang-Ah. Only she seemed to have maintained her wits within this scene of pure anarchy and confusion. But, how could she?

“Everyone, you must regain yourselves! Dok-Ja-ssi is, right now...!”

Kim Dok-Ja would die at this rate.

“We made a promise with Dok-Ja-ssi! Have you all forgotten it?!”

Kim Dok-Ja was a liar.

“Dok-Ja-ssi really wouldn’t do the same thing again.....!”

Always believing in the goodness of a person – that was Yu Sang-Ah. And because she was like that, because she could believe in the others, she managed to be not shaken up by this situation. And that was precisely why she always clashed with Han Su-Yeong until now.

Even with Yu Sang-Ah’s shouts, the companions still carried empty expressions. With dazed eyes, they were each submerged in their own thoughts. The same question was grabbing hold of them.

⸢Why did Kim Dok-Ja make that kind of choice?⸥

But, they made a promise; he swore that he’d not sacrifice himself in this manner ever again.

⸢Just why?⸥

“This story is not over yet.”

Yu Sang-Ah was wrong, though. The direction of this story had been chosen already. Kim Dok-Ja had become the ‘Enemy of the Story’, and this stinking scenario would end only when he was dead. The author responsible for writing this tragedy had chosen it that way.

.....The author?

[[■■■■■■■■■!!]]

Kim Dok-Ja’s voice sorrowfully reverberated out. That voice returned to her as memories from a certain moment in the past.

– Han Su-Yeong, you’re a writer, right?

Her brain kicked into gear.

– What are you going to piss me off with this time?

– I wanted to ask you about something.

– What is it?

– Are writers truly omniscient within the stories they write?

– What’s up with this totally out of the blue utterance?

– No, well, it’s just that I’m kinda curious. While you were writing, were you in control of everything? Like, this person would act like this, and that person would behave in this way...

– That, obviously...

Han Su-Yeong oh-so-confidently made her declaration.

– Can’t be controlled.

– Why not? Aren’t you the author?

– You think an author is a real god or something?

– Doesn’t the author create everything within a story? Situations, characters...

Han Su-Yeong muttered, you don’t know anything, and carried on.

– All the characters would start acting on their own the moment they are created. Authors simply provide them with stages, that’s all. It’s all up to the characters themselves on how they would respond to the situation and make their moves.

– Not as a figure of speech, but for real?

– Yeah, really.

– You know, that’s a really lazy way to write, don’t you agree?

– Wanna die?!

Kim Dok-Ja got bent in half when she punched him in the guts.

What was he thinking about back then?

– Interesting. Even an author isn’t the god of the stories.... In that case, just who determines the ‘scenarios’, then?

From the tip of her toes, this incredible chill crept up all over her body. Maybe, just maybe, Kim Dok-Ja over there right now was the answer to that exact question.

Tsu-chuchuchut!

Perhaps, he was thinking about that one method to change the conclusion of this stubborn world of scenarios.

[Great Dokkaebis are panicking from the deluge of the Probability!]

[ is paying attention at the course of the shaking Probability!]

‘Scenario’ wasn’t perfect.

[‘Final Scenario’ is going through a rapid change!]

It was definitely the author who created the story. However, it was the characters that lived within that very story. And the one that determined their fate was...

[Korean Peninsula’s Constellations are cheering on the ‘Demon King of Salvation!]

[’s Constellations are cheering on the ‘Demon King of Salvation!]

[’s Constellations are cheering on the ‘Demon King of Salvation!]

[Constellations of planets with unknown names are cheering on the ‘Demon King of Salvation’!]

[Countless Constellations are donating Coins!]

[The absolute majority of the Constellations are watching the ‘Demon King of Salvation’s’ last battle!]

....The ones watching that story.

Tsu-chuchuchuchut!

[Many Constellations don’t wish for the ‘Demon King of Salvation’s’ death!]

The only beings that could change the ‘scenarios’.

Kim Dok-Ja hadn’t become the ‘Enemy of the Story’ to die. And he certainly didn’t choose sacrifice in order to betray his companions, either.

⸢The ‘Ways of Survival’ was Yu Jung-Hyeok’s story. In that case, whose story was this world?⸥

Han Su-Yeong watched the world’s Probability shake unsteadily and bitterly muttered to herself. “....That’s right. No reader would want to see the protagonist get killed.”

Kim Dok-Ja’s and ’s influence had grown incredibly in this world. The proof of that was him becoming the subject of the Final Scenario.

Constellations, whether they liked it or not, all watched Kim Dok-Ja’s Fable, and they either sympathised with it or were jealous of him. Every star in this world was watching his story regardless of whether he wanted it or not. And most likely, Kim Dok-Ja himself was aware of that.

Perhaps, he could’ve been thinking about it for a long time.

⸢This was the last gamble Kim Dok-Ja made after becoming the ‘Character’.⸥

She sensed Kim Dok-Ja glancing in her direction from afar. As if to say, she should be able to understand since it was her. As if to say, she should be able to start a brand new story that no one knew from this moment on.

⸢He was sacrificing himself not to sacrifice himself.⸥

It could very much be an impossible task. The conclusion could be forever out of their reach. However, this was the only ‘no one will be sacrificed’ method Kim Dok-Ja could come up with.

So, the things Han Su-Yeong had to do now was pretty clear.

‘That guy alone can’t do it.’

Han Su-Yeong looked behind her. She needed to let her companions know what exactly Kim Dok-Ja wanted to achieve here.

Unfortunately, there was something that Han Su-Yeong, absorbed in her own attempt at understanding, failed to realise.

[Fable, ‘Predictive Plagiarism’, is predicting the character’s mentality.]

And that was the fact that not everyone here was an author. Meaning, not everyone could see this situation in an objective manner like her.

Even before Han Su-Yeong could open her mouth, someone among the companions dashed forward first.

The clear-cut animosity was permeating within the unsheathed blade. Han Su-Yeong realised the direction this sword light was aimed at and cried out in pure shock. “Wait!! Hold on!! That guy, he’s trying to-!!”

She knew whose sword it was, and that’s why she couldn’t believe it.

⸢Right in this moment, this one person grew to deeply resent Kim Dok-Ja.⸥

The strongest sword of Kim Dok-Ja that had been protecting him for a very long time. And that sword was making a move to end this scenario.

Fin.