< Episode 16. The Fifth Scenario (1) >
Drops of Song Minwoo's blood splattered onto the ground.The sensation in my fists—soaked in blood—had grown dull. Song Minwoo only occasionally spat up bloody foam, neither opening his eyes nor speaking. His shattered body seemed to have given up on regeneration altogether.
Han Sooyoung muttered,
"Scary bastard… you beat a werewolf to death with your bare hands?"
Most of the nearby werewolves had already fled or had their heads taken by Han Sooyoung. Looking down at Song Minwoo, I said,
"He's not dead yet."
Even when I looked at him now, the [Fourth Wall] didn't shake. I didn't know if my trauma had truly been resolved, but at least I'd developed some resistance to those memories.
[Constellation, 'Late-Blooming Overcomer of Trials', sends encouragement at your.]
[Constellation, 'Late-Blooming Overcomer of Trials', wishes to bestow their Stigma upon you.]
A stigma? Seriously?
Since this bounty scenario wasn't even a single-constellation request, receiving a stigma as a reward was completely unexpected.
Of course, I wasn't about to complain.
[You have acquired the Stigma 'Self-Rationalization.]
[Constellation, 'Late-Blooming Overcomer of Trials', smiles contentedly upon you, having passed on their stigma.]
[You have now obtained a defense mechanism that will not yield to any trauma.]
…Thanks.
I stood there blankly for a moment, dumbfounded.
[Constellation, 'Prisoner of the Golden Child', clutches their stomach and laughs.]
Self-rationalization?
Why does it even have the Chinese characters spelled out?
Who exactly are you mocking right now?
Han Sooyoung asked,
"Hey. You're not killing him?"
"Huh?"
"That thing."
Only then did I look down at Song Minwoo, dangling limply in my grip.
Should I kill him?
He was a demihuman anyway, so there was no burden from a non-lethal restriction.
[The sponsor of 'Vagabond Song Minwoo' glares at you.]
If I killed him, the constellations watching through the Bihyung Channel would probably love it.
[A significant number of constellations desire your revenge.]
I stared at Song Minwoo for a moment—then let go of his collar.
"Let's go."
"What? Seriously?"
"Yeah."
[Some constellations are disappointed by your hypocrisy.]
[A significant number of constellations question your judgment.]
[Constellation, 'The Secretive Plotter', observes your decision.]
"You're really not killing him? That bastard's probably carrying a decent amount of coins."
"Yeah."
"Then can I kill him?"
"Go ahead. But you'll regret it."
"Regret?"
I merely shrugged and walked past her.
Straight toward the direction the werewolves had come from.
At the end of that path would be their base. And if my memory was right, that place would also contain the [Meteorite] that had helped transform them into werewolves. To prepare for the disaster scenario, collecting meteorites was essential.
Han Sooyoung, following a bit behind, shot me a sidelong glance, her expression uneasy.
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps multiplied—then all of them rushed away from us.
Straight toward the direction where Song Minwoo lay.
An avatar…
Right.
I figured you'd do that, Han Sooyoung.
I let her desire run its course.
As repayment for turning a blind eye to my hypocrisy.
And then, shortly after—
"FUCK! What the hell is this?!"
Han Sooyoung screamed in agony, her body convulsing.
I could easily imagine what kind of message was flashing in her head.
It was probably something like this:
[By killing the 6th-Grade Demihuman 'Vagabond Song Minwoo', the Demon King 'Andras' has noticed the existence of the killer.]
[Demon King 'Andras' will remember the incarnation who dealt the final blow to his vassal.]
[Demon King 'Andras' will place a bounty on the incarnation who struck the final blow.]
[Final Striker: Han Sooyoung]
Looking at Han Sooyoung, who was staring at me with a stunned expression, I smiled brightly.
"I told you you'd regret it."
Song Minwoo had been a vassal of 'Andras', one of the 72 Demon Kings.
The 72 Demon Kings.
Among the powerful beings of the Star Stream, constellations are not the only ones.
Some refuse to become "subscribers in the sky," choosing instead to roam the planets with their physical bodies intact. Among such supreme beings are the Demon Kings.
"You really are a bastard."
Demon Kings, like Constellations creating incarnations, preserve their "vassals," usually fallen incarnations who have taken the path of demihumans or demons.
Andras, a Demon King ranked low among the 72, was one such being.
One of his symbols was the wolf.
The reason Song Minwoo possessed such exceptional [Physical Regeneration] was because of Andras's blessing.
Han Sooyoung stammered,
"How… how did he… to me…?"
"Don't worry. I've known people who were cursed by a Demon King like you, and they didn't die immediately either."
"Is that supposed to be comforting right now?"
Come to think of it, there was someone cursed by the Demon King Asmodeus… I wonder how they're doing now. Hopefully, they're still alive.
"Look at it positively. Andras isn't exactly a high-ranking Demon King. Being enemies with a Demon King earns you favor from the 'absolute good' faction, which means more patronage. So it's a good thing overall."
"I don't care about those archangels. Besides, the patron I'm choosing isn't on good terms with the angels!"
Wait—are you even picking a Demon King?
I almost asked aloud but stopped myself when a strange feeling hit me.
…Did she just say that?
"You're choosing a patron who isn't on good terms with the angels?"
Noticing my gaze, Han Sooyoung touched her mouth.
"Damn it, this mouth of mine…"
"You're telling me you still don't have a patron?"
It wasn't impossible. I was also without a patron at that time.
In fact, most of the people who survived the first scenario haphazardly probably didn't have patrons. More accurately, they "didn't have the option to choose."
But the fact that someone as strong as Han Sooyoung still didn't have a patron was unexpected information.
"I didn't fail to choose; I just didn't choose. Isn't it stranger to pick a patron right away? You only get one chance."
"Well, that's true."
It's generally better to postpone the
There are plenty of good Constellations, and depending on how you perform in scenarios, a "trash goes away, Mercedes comes" situation can easily happen.
The
The fifth scenario is a "Disaster Scenario," so Han Sooyoung would probably get to participate in the second round of
I pretended to be casual and asked,
"So, who are you planning to choose? Got a Constellation in mind?"
Han Sooyoung smiled confidently.
"If you knew, you'd be surprised. They've already shown interest in me."
"Who?"
Could it be the 'Heavenly Grand Sage'?
"Have you heard of the 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon'?"
…Black Flame Dragon?
[Constellation, 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon', observes your reaction.]
I hesitated for a moment, then answered,
"Ah, yes. Good thinking. That's a solid patron choice."
In some iterations of the original work, the one who claimed patronage over 'Delusional Evil Spirit Kim Namwoon' was that very 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon.' Being a delusional evil spirit, he competed with the Steel Sword Master as one of the top supporting characters—so it really wasn't a bad choice.
[Constellation, 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon', looks at you with a complex expression.]
He said he wasn't interested in me before—strange guy.
Han Sooyoung raised an eyebrow at my indifferent tone.
"You look a little unsettled. Who's your patron that you're so touchy about?"
"No, nothing. Just jealous, that's all."
"Really?"
"Really."
[Character 'Han Sooyoung' activates 'Lie Detection Lv.1'.]
[Character 'Han Sooyoung' has confirmed that the statement is false.]
"You want to die, seriously?"
The Abyssal Black Flame Dragon, of all beings…
I sincerely hoped she would get that patron.
They'd match perfectly.
[A Constellation who loves harems supports the chemistry between you and 'Han Sooyoung'.]
[Received 500 coins in support.]
Han Sooyoung's face twisted, apparently hearing the same message as I did.
"What the hell is this now…"
Unfortunately, the harem-loving Constellation's wish wouldn't come true.
My cooperation with Han Sooyoung is limited to the next ten days.
We work together briefly, but she remains a dangerous opponent.
"Looks like we've arrived."
After a short while, we reached what appeared to be the werewolves' base.
Near Bangbae Station. Between narrow, tightly packed buildings, the stench of blood lingered. Sounds of battle reached us: the howls of werewolves and human screams in the distance.
Han Sooyoung said,
"Seems we're a bit late. Looks like there are guests already?"
No sentries were visible, as the werewolves had all moved elsewhere.
Further in, a far larger farm appeared than the one set up by Assistant Yoon.
The 'Coin Farm' was a relic of the ruined world.
I would be facing such sights over and over again.
It seemed that the coin harvest was already complete; no survivors remained in the cages.
Han Sooyoung, leading slightly ahead, suddenly pinched her nose.
"Ugh… what the hell is that?"
As we passed the cages and approached the werewolves' living area, an even more horrifying sight awaited: human thighs had been severed and hung from rubber bands—like pork displayed in a butcher shop, with their purpose painfully obvious.
[Special Skill, 'Fourth Wall', offsets your mental shock.]
I had read scenes like this in texts before, but seeing it in person was new.
There's a defined method for ordinary humans to evolve into demihumans.
Cannibalism.
That is, devouring one's own kind.
Han Sooyoung cursed loudly.
"Goddamn bastards…"
Most demihumans evolve accidentally. Usually, those who fail to clear "Food Search" sub-scenarios end up walking this path, and once someone takes the demihuman route, no one can stop them.
Once transformed, they no longer feel guilt for killing humans.
"You seem angry seeing something like this, huh?"
"Of course. Who wouldn't be?"
"Other prophets said you only think about using the knowledge you have to dominate the world."
"Who said that?"
Han Sooyoung snorted and added,
"That's just as ridiculous as when the plagiarism controversy happened."
"······"
"World domination? Sure, that'd be nice. But first, the goal is to prevent destruction. You think I gathered the
"Those
"They were trash from the start! How is that my fault?"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
We instinctively held our breath. Thunderous sounds erupted ahead. We could hear flesh tearing as if it were soft meat.
Taang!
No matter how I thought about it, that sound was gunfire.
The army should have already been wiped out…
We ran around the buildings toward the direction of the gunfire.
Even if some soldiers remained, using guns against werewolves? Ridiculous. Yet the scene that unfolded before our eyes made that impossible scenario suddenly make sense.
A mountain of werewolf corpses lay before us.
The skin of the bodies hit by bullets had all turned pitch black. Han Sooyoung and I spoke almost simultaneously,
"Attribute bullets."
"Imbuing bullets with sacred power…?"
In the distance, we could see people aiming guns in our direction.
They were all armed with modern rifles, but curiously, all of them wore prison uniforms.
Han Sooyoung grabbed my collar nervously.
"Remember when I told you there was someone like you over near Seodaemun Prison?"
"Yeah."
"That's their faction."
Where she pointed, a woman wearing a mask stood.
Her face and most of her body were covered, so much so that, without the long hair falling past her shoulders, it would have been hard to even tell her gender.
"She's the leader. Judging by her growth and actions, there are definitely deserters, but I can't get any info on her."
I see. So these are the ones Han Sooyoung mentioned from 'Seodaemun Prison'…
But then, why didn't such a faction show up during the throne struggle?
Han Sooyoung looked at the pile of werewolf corpses and spoke.
"They're also wanderers. Pretty strong ones, too… and now they've become the strongest wanderers I know."
From the opposite side, a woman with a gun began approaching us directly.
She wasn't the leader Han Sooyoung mentioned.
I drew [Unbreakable Conviction], and Han Sooyoung prepared [Avatar]. The moment the approaching woman aimed her gun at us was the moment…
Instinctively, I ducked, but her gun moved toward the pile of werewolf corpses instead.
Tududududu!
The corpses collapsed under the gunfire.
And then, something hidden beneath them was revealed.
"What's that?"
A glowing stone, about two meters in both width and height.
One of the meteorites we had been searching for to prevent the 'Disaster.'
[A yellow meteorite] was there.
So that 'meteorite' was indeed the source of the werewolves' power.
The woman watching the meteorite with us slowly turned toward me and spoke,
"You're Kim Dokja, right?"