Yes, even if he's dripping cool right now, I think it's important to clear something up.
Before Yoo Joonghyuk skewers me like a kebab, I should probably explain why the hell I know his name, his face, his sword techniques, his favorite shade of grim silence—everything.
So I opened my big mouth.
"I… uh. I'm a fan."
His eyebrow twitched.
"A what."
"A fan. You know—someone who admires you. Respects you. Thinks you're, uh… great?" My laugh cracked like glass. "Okay, more like 'insane but sexy in a horrifying way,' but semantics."
Yoo Joonghyuk blinked at me like I'd just confessed to being a cockroach with opinions.
"You expect me to believe this."
"No. I expect you to stab me. Which is why I'm talking very fast before you do it."
The air shimmered again. The system wasn't done tormenting me.
[Clarification: The anomaly originates outside the narrative.]
[The anomaly possesses 'knowledge of the story.']
[New Sub-Scenario: Determine the worth of the anomaly.]
The worth of the anomaly. That'd be me.
Lovely.
At least he won't be killing me anytime soon.
However, Joonghyuk's blade didn't lower.
His expression was carved in suspicion, but there was the tiniest fracture there—the way his eyes narrowed, weighing the system's words against mine.
I swallowed and kept digging my grave.
"Look, I know this sounds insane, but I… I read about you. Your life. Your regressions. Every blood-soaked choice you've made, every betrayal, every time you picked yourself up when you should've just stayed down. I know all of it."
He stared. I could almost hear his thoughts: Kill. Kill. Kill.
But I pushed anyway.
"You're my favorite character."
There. I said it. The truth, stupid and naked and begging to be killed.
The silence was unbearable. The world itself seemed to hold its breath.
Then the system chimed again, mocking my entire existence.
[Alternative Option Progression: 0%.]
[Protect the anomaly to unlock further stages.]
His sword lowered an inch. Not because he trusted me. No, Yoo Joonghyuk didn't know the meaning of trust. It was because the scenario gave him no choice.
"Prove it," he said. His voice could've flayed skin from bone. "If you know my life… prove it. Like any prophet would. Are you a prophet, too?"
I almost laughed. I still don't know what he meant by being a prophet... but—Prove it? I could recite his life like gospel. But somehow, saying it aloud, with the man himself standing in front of me, felt blasphemous.
So I whispered instead, eyes locked on his, "You've died 1,863 times. You'll die again, and again, and again. Until there's nothing left of you but the sword in your hand. And yet you'll still get up."
His eyes darkened.
[Progression 5%.]
[The Constellations remain silent.]
Yeah. Silent, but watching. Always watching.
I wonder what a certain Constellation must be feeling now to put me in this situation.
But suddenly, I heard another voice, pitching from the corner of the broken buildings.
"Woah, woah, woah. What is this? Yoo Joonghyuk, did you finally pick up a stray?"
My blood turned to ice. I didn't need to look to know who that was.
Han. Fucking. Sooyoung.
She strolled out of the dust clouds like the apocalypse was her runway, eyes sparkling with the kind of trouble that could bankrupt civilizations. She gave me one long look, then smirked.
"Oh, this is hilarious. Where'd you find him? Don't tell me he's a new sponsor quest?"
"I'm not—" I started, then promptly shut up when Yoo Joonghyuk's sword twitched.
Behind her, Lee Hyunsung appeared, carrying a terrified Yoo Sangah like a princess.
"Joonghyuk-ssi!" Hyunsung called out, earnest as always. Then he spotted me. His brow furrowed. "Who's… this?"
Sangah peeked from behind Hyunsung's shoulder, wide-eyed and worried. She gave me a small, polite smile, as if we weren't all standing in the middle of a scenario where my head could roll any second. "Um… hello?"
I wanted to dig a hole and die in it.
"Everyone shut up," Yoo Joonghyuk said, but naturally, no one listened.
Sooyoung grinned wider, circling me like a hyena. "No, but really. Who is this guy? He looks like he crawled out from a beauty palour. Don't tell me you've started… dating?"
I choked on air. "D-dating?!"
Her grin sharpened. "Look at you, already stuttering."
Joonghyuk's glare could've leveled mountains. "He's an anomaly."
That shut them up for a moment.
Then Hyunsung cleared his throat. "An… anomaly?"
I sighed.
Guess the truth was out anyway.
"Yes, I'm not from here.My name is Kim Dokja. I know you all. I know your names, your fates, the choices you'll make. Because… I read it. All of it. And somehow, I ended up here."
Dead silence.
Then Sooyoung burst out laughing.
"Oh my god. This is priceless." She slapped her thigh, tears at the corners of her eyes. "You're telling me… you're a fanboy? Making up weird stories. How should we believe you?!"
I stared at her. "Yes? And your choice?"
Her laughter doubled. "Joonghyuk, you poor bastard! You've attracted a stalker with a crush!"
"I don't have a crush!" I snapped, face burning.
[Progression 10%.]
Oh, please, give me a break.
Joonghyuk's eyes narrowed even further. And I realized the scenario wasn't about survival.
It was about me proving my worth.
To him.
And if I failed… we'd both be erased.
Suddenly, my eyes widened in shock as a monster emerged from the ground.