"Hey, why are you talking to Heewon-ssi but ignoring me?" Kim Dokja complained.
"Uh… that, I'm a bit weak to older females."
Lee Jihye responded with a quivering voice and Jung Heewon gave her a headlock, as if Lee Jihye was cute.
"…"
On the side, Van—who had been addressed to many times by Lee Jihye—heard the exchange.
'…Why did you talk to me then?'
He didn't want to acknowledge the possibility that came to mind that he had been treated as an 'older female'.
She probably just didn't like Kim Dokja.
"Come to think of it, I'm curious too," Jung Heewon recalled, staring at Kim Dokja.
"About what?"
"Before, you said you had a skill that lets you understand people well, that you only use on men."
Kim Dokja understood that she referred to their conversation about his Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint skill.
Back then, she had asked if he had ever used it on her, and he had reassured her by saying that he only used it on men.
Lee Jihye eyed the reader, remembering the incident earlier.
'Only… on men…?'
She covered her mouth, completely misinterpreting the meaning.
Recalling her sponsor's messages, Jung Heewon finished her question, "So, what was Gehrman-ssi thinking when you kissed him?"
Kim Dokja was stunned.
"I-"
Lee Gilyoung innocently looked up at him, giving him even more pressure. Gazes poured on him from all sides.
Kim Dokja steeled himself.
"I didn't use my skill on him."
"Oh…"
Did he just hear someone clicking their tongue?
[The constellation, 'Demon-like Judge of Fire', is disappointed.]
[The constellation, 'Secretive Plotter', finds this debate pointless.]
Reaching the Theater Dungeon, they then spied on the conversation of people calling themselves 'prophets' before completing a movie.
Although some mishaps happened in between, everyone stayed alive.
The group headed to the laboratory in the center of the island.
There were many flasks and ampoules in the laboratory, along with small incubators containing dinosaur embryos and blood samples collected.
[Stamina Enhancing Ampoule]
[Magic Power Enhancing Ampoule]
[Agility Enhancing Ampoule]
[Strength Enhancing Ampoule]
Van stared at the ampoules, tilting his head.
'…I have a bad feeling about this.'
Finding what he had been looking for, Kim Dokja packed the ampoules.
"Ahjussi, what did you find now? What? Stamina Enhancement Ampoule?"
Lee Jihye's eyes shone as she grabbed one ampoule.
"Are you trying to eat these alone?"
"Eat them all? Of course I will share it."
"Unni, look at this! Ahjussi…!"
The other people in the party came closer due to the turmoil. Jung Heewon was shocked when she checked the item information.
"Oh my god… what are these items?"
"…This is a hidden scenario."
Lee Jihye looked at the Strength Enhancement Ampoule and opened her mouth.
"Can you give me the Strength Enhancement Ampoule? I am a bit lacking in strength."
After deliberating, Kim Dokja smiled.
"How about rock paper scissors?"
Using his Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint skill, Kim Dokja easily won the most ampoules.
[The constellation Secretive Plotter is curious about your scam.]
[The constellations have sponsored you 200 coins.]
Unexpectedly, Van won all his matches against Kim Dokja, racking in at least half of the ampoules the reader still had.
Kim Dokja frowned and Lee Jihye laughed, saying this was karma, before flopping to the ground with a devastated expression.
"…This is ridiculous!"
Only Lee Jihye didn't obtain any ampoules.
Van picked up one of the ampoules in his arms and used it.
[Stamina Enhancing Ampoule]
Notifications popped up in front of him.
[You have used the Tyrant T-Rex's DNA Ampoule.]
[Due to your private attribute ???, your stats are converted into magic power.]
[As your Magic Power stat is above Lv. 30, the ampoule doesn't work.]
"…"
He turned to the student complaining on the floor.
"…Do you want mine?"
Lee Jihye's eyes lit up. Now in a better mood, she excitedly started to take the ones she wanted.
As Van proposed the remaining ampoules to Jung Heewon and Lee Gilyoung, Jung Heewon questioned, "Is it really okay to give us all your ampoules? Shouldn't you keep some?"
Van shook his head.
Then, Kim Dokja also approached to take one.
Van glanced at him.
"500 coins."
Kim Dokja was stunned.
"What?"
"For you, it's 500 coins the ampoule."
Why was it free for others and not him?
Lee Jihye burst out laughing as she saw Kim Dokja's expression.
After clearing a few more movies, they reached the last floor.
"Everyone, get ready."
[You have entered the eighth floor, the Heavenly Garden.]
The eighth floor of the theatre was a rooftop. It was a small dome reminiscent of an opera house. As soon as they stepped on the green grass of the rooftop, they found Yoo Joonghyuk.
"Hey Yoo Joonghyuk!"
Kim Dokja ran toward the regressor and hit him in the back of the head.
However, the person in question didn't turn back.
"…Yoo Joonghyuk?"
A grey-white aura was flowing from Yoo Joonghyuk's body. The aura felt ominous and made the reader instinctively take a step back. It was connected to an old man sitting on a chair on the eighth floor.
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' has been revealed.]
Yoo Joonghyuk slowly turned toward Kim Dokja.
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' has controlled the character 'Yoo Joonghyuk'.]
Goosebumps covered his entire body. A formidable killing intent was rising from the regressor, having lost all sense of reason.
「There was no 'character' in the world who could stop this guy now.」
[The character 'Yoo Joonghyuk' has used Force Palm Lv. 4!]
Kim Dokja barely managed to open his mouth.
"W-Wait a minute!"
Kwaaaang!
Suddenly, a multi-layered shield appeared between the two, blocking the attack.
…Actually, there was indeed someone who could stop the regressor in this room. He even had the experience of knocking him out multiple times before.
Kim Dokja belatedly remembered Van's existence.
Yoo Joonghyuk directed his attention toward the mage. In response, Van raised his mana and addressed Kim Dokja.
"I'll hold him back. I only need to distract while you get rid of the guy over there, right?"
Van gestured toward the old man sitting on the chair, seemingly having understood the current situation.
Kim Dokja was about to nod when his Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint skill showed him Yoo Joonghyuk's current thoughts.
"It's fine. It would be more efficient for you to take care of the theater master with the others."
Van accepted and faced the theater master. Then, Kim Dokja's words resounded throughout the room as background noise.
"Wake up you jerk! You idiot! Aren't you a real protagonist? Haven't you only regressed three times?"
Regressed?
Van kept a small part of his attention directed toward the conversation behind him.
"Do you really think so? You have already forgotten the determination of your first attempt."
Sounds of fighting echoed throughout the room.
"You bastard… don't fall into those sentiments."
Lee Jihye turned her head and glanced toward the reader.
Kim Dokja shouted, "If you can't find the meaning of life in front of you, didn't you decide to live for the greater cause?"
Nobody else spoke. Lee Jihye seemed to realize something and covered her mouth.
"Alone?"
Despite not receiving any answers, Kim Dokja continued talking to the regressor.
"What did I come here for if you are alone?"
Van's expression became strange. Beside him, Jung Heewon also stumbled a little in surprise.
"Why are you alone? When you died like a fool in the Theatre Dungeon, when you cried over your dead little sister, when the prophet stabbed you in the back! When your loved one gave birth to a child…!"
Thankfully, the words soon went back to something more normal. Still, how was Kim Dokja so informed about Yoo Joonghyuk's life?
"You went crazy after your child died!"
Van decided to focus on defeating the theater master in front of him.
"Fighting against the demon kings and the returnees! Helping people and fighting against the damn reincarnators! When you finally stood before the constellations! Look around you and try to live somehow! I… What?"
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' is embarrassed.]
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' has strengthened his control on the character 'Yoo Joonghyuk'.]
While the theater master seemed distracted, Van took the opportunity to strike.
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' is extremely alert to you.]
Yoo Joonghyuk pushed back Kim Dokja and rushed toward Van, but Van was stronger.
The theater master thus changed his strategy.
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' has triggered 'Simulacra'.]
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' has triggered 'Mental Erosion'.]
However, the theater master failed to enter Van's mind.
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' is embarrassed.
During that brief moment, lightning pierced his body, killing him on the spot.
[The 'Theatre Master's Simulacrum' has been killed for the first time.]
[You have obtained 9,000 coins as compensation.]
[You have met the conditions to clear the hidden scenario!]
[You have obtained 4,000 coins as compensation.]
Behind him, Jung Heewon remarked, "Huh, was it so easy? That's a little anticlimactic."
On the side, Yoo Joonghyuk collapsed after being released from the theatre master's control.
[The barrier surrounding the Theater Dungeon has disappeared.]
It was over.
[The ending time for the third main scenario is approaching!]
Kim Dokja looked around the rooftop and saw that dawn was coming, making the day brighter.
The ruined city area was illuminated by faint sunlight and intermittent explosions could be heard from far away. Now there was no more poisonous fog.
"Ah… Seoul." Jung Heewon groaned.
People could be seen fighting among themselves. They were probably a group that ended the scenario before them. The entire landscape was trapped inside a huge dome.
It was a large barrier that seemed to be breaking.
Jung Heewon said, "Really… it is all ending."