Chapter 236

I reflexively raised my head at Yoo Jonghyuk’s decisive words . “…Is it okay?”

“The scenario we are facing right now isn’t the Demon King Selection but the Martial Arts Competition . ”

I had been thinking this but once I heard Yoo Jonghyuk say it, I felt a strange sense of relief and pride . “You… have really become a person . At the very least, I won’t die for the time being . ”

Yoo Jonghyuk ignored my words and continued, “The only thing that can be obtained from the competition is the Black Demon Sword . Getting the Black Demon Sword doesn’t mean we can win the Demon King Selection . ”

Yoo Jonghyuk was right . Winning the Murim competition didn’t mean we could win the Demon King Selection .

“That’s why you have to go to the Gourmet Association . We need colleagues for our nebula . You might be able to gain allies if you go to the Gourmet Association . ”

I understood what he was saying . Go to the Gourmet Association and come back with some usable constellations . There was one worrisome point .

“…Our nebula?”

“Didn’t you say you would make one last time?”

“Kim Dokja’s Company?”

“I’ll quit right away if it is really named that . ”

Yoo Jonghyuk turned his head away with a frown . I felt pleasantly surprised .

[The constellation Demon-like Judge of Fire’ is wiping her tears with a handkerchief . ]

It was something that was unthinkable when he first grabbed me by the neck . Yoo Jonghyuk and I really became colleagues . In any case, it was funny that I was hesitating when Yoo Jonghyuk told me this .

I stood up and declared, “I’ll go . ”

***

That night, I was greeted by a Gourmet Association Guide who flew through the portal . The guide drove a small carriage with a black horse, while dressed in a western cowboy costume . He seemed to be one of the subordinates of the owner of Oro Castle .

The guide descended from the carriage and bowed politely to me .

[Are you the Demon King of Salvation?]

“That’s right . ”

[Take the carriage . The journey is quite long and you can rest . ]

The guide didn’t show any particular surprise or responses towards me . Was it because he was a guide of the Gourmet Association that he wasn’t surprised by ‘Demon King of Salvation’? The guide got on the carriage and turned to ask me .

[I will pick up some passengers along the way . Do you mind?]

“Uh, that’s okay . ”

Some passengers… who? I missed the opportunity to ask as the guide immediately started the carriage .

The interior of the carriage was spacious and comfortable . There was no shaking at all and it was like I wasn’t moving . It was great . I could read Ways of Survival on the journey .

I read Ways of Survival during these few hours . Maybe it wasn’t a few hours but a few days . It was difficult to measure the time because I didn’t know how fast the carriage was moving .

「…Thus, the 15th regression Yoo Jonghyuk thought as he died, ‘I wasn’t lucky . ’ 」

「 …At the end of the 19th round, Yoo Jonghyuk thought, ‘Next time . ’ 」

「 …Yoo Jonghyuk finished his 25th life and murmured, “It really will be next time . ” 」

…I had to cancel calling him a person . This jerk, he was still a sunfish in the first revision . It was the same whether I helped him or not .

I didn’t forget to find the information I needed on Yoo Jonghyuk’s death . There weren’t many details about the Gourmet Association . Yoo Jonghyuk visited the Gourmet Association in the later stages but it was to kill them, not get along with them . Those sections were mostly filled with “Kuaaaack!”

「 The Flying Fox said, “Constellations are all bad . However, the Gourmet Association are the worst among them . ” 」

It was also impossible to find any favourable contents about them . The more I read, the more I was uncertain that going to the Gourmet Association was the right thing to do . Anyway, I continued reading Ways of Survival .

「 Yoo Jonghyuk was thinking, “It would’ve been nice if he had come with me . ’ 」

If there was a difference in taste between the original and the revision, it was the moment these words came out . They were traces of when I intervened in the original work . I paid particular attention whenever these lines appeared . It was because there were only a few scenes where the ‘third regression’ was mentioned .

「 ‘You must do this . He said this is the right way . ’ 」

…The right way? What did this mean?

[It is time to eat . If you don’t mind, I’ve prepared something simple . ]

“Thank you . ”

The carriage stopped and the guide provided me with a meal . It was a type of in-flight meal . It resembled high-quality ham and smelled very fragrant . Of course, it wasn’t really ham .

[The Last Gladiator of Planet Selegedon . ]

It was a story meal typical of the Gourmet Association . It seemed to be a pretty strong story based on the concentration that I could feel…

I touched the soft ham with a fork that the guide gave me . At this moment, some of the story contents flowed into my head .

-S-Spare me . Please spare me…!

A city that crumbled in a horrible manner due to the turmoil of the constellations . The appearance of incarnations bursting under huge pressure . The dying gladiator who lost all dignity…

The bodies of torn incarnations pouring into the mouths of wickedly smiling constellations . The last scene of the world that had already disappeared . The screams and despair of the incarnations gathered together at the end of my nose .

I looked down at the ham and quietly put down the fork .

[…The food doesn’t suit your taste?]

“I’m not hungry right now . ” I answered with a calm smile .

[I’m sorry . I didn’t account for your taste as a constellation . New food…]

“No, I’ll eat what I brought . ”

The guide took away the plates in a regretful manner and sat back down on the driver’s seat . Once he was completely gone, I barely relaxed my expression . It felt like I was going to vomit .

A sentence I had just read in Ways of Survival passed through my head .

「 “it is a nightmare for the incarnations . ” 」

Once again, I realized where I was going and who I was dealing with . I foolishly acted like I was going on a picnic .

I touched some of the stories that were in my pocket . Compared to the stories they ate, the stories abandoned in the ‘Story Horizon’ were almost colourless and odourless . They were the plain stories of ordinary incarnations living and dying in a normal way, just like trash . There was a reason why the Gourmet Association abandoned them .

I absorbed the story fragments using Lamarck Kirin and quietly closed my eyes . Somehow, I felt like I was going to have a nightmare .

***

The trip continued for a few days and I used the interlude to look at some of the things I hadn’t maintained .

[Coins Possessed: 1,252,353 C . ]

First, I checked the coins that I hadn’t paid attention to lately . It was a really huge amount of money .

1 . 2 million was enough to buy the Great Demon’s Eyes . However, Anna Croft had already obtained it . I had a better skill so I didn’t need it . But…

I wondered how to use the remaining coins . It wasn’t bad to increase my overall stats but the efficiency of the stats started to fall once the average exceeded 100 . From then on, investing in skills was much better than investing in stats .

Of course, there were times when the accumulated overall stats were overwhelming . Once I convinced the Fourth Wall, I should properly check my Attributes Window .

[A new passenger is going to enter . It is okay?]

I was so immersed in my thoughts that I wasn’t aware the carriage stopped . “Yes, I”m fine . ”

The left door of the carriage opened at my reply . I was a bit nervous as I looked at the people who were going to join me through the cracks in the door . The possibility of it being a constellation was high .

“Ah! I’ve been waiting a long time . Why are you so late?”

[I’m sorry . The road was a bit rougher than I thought…]

A voice that was somewhat familiar entered my ears . It was a high female voice mixed with a Russian accent .

I could see three people through the cracks in the door .

[There is someone who has already boarded . I hope you have a pleasant journey . ]

Whether it was lucky or unlucky, I didn’t feel any constellations . In other words, they were all incarnations with stories .

A woman with a gentle smile boarded the carriage first . “Excuse me .

The woman who greeted me politely had brown hair that fluttered in the wind . The moment the woman raised her head, I reflexively asked, “Selena Kim?”

Selena Kim . She was one of the American representatives at the constellation banquet . Perhaps it was due to my changed face but the woman was confused for a while before exclaiming,

“Ah, you…?”

“Do you remember who I am?”

“Of course! Kim Dokja! It’s been a while! Were you invited?”

“Yes, that’s what happened . ”

I shook hands with Selena and studied the rest of the group . The person who followed with a girl with twin ponytails .

“What are you… eh?”

As expected, I had seen this person before . It was the Russian girl I met at the constellation banquet .

Her name… what was it? I remember her having the nickname of Red something .

I ignored the girl and checked the remaining person . At this moment, I got goose bumps .

“This is the first time we’ve actually met . ”

There was an immeasurable depth in the calm and relaxed voice . I knew this person well . One of the strongest incarnations in Ways of Survival along with Yoo Jonghyuk . I had even met this person before .

“I saw you in a dream one day . I don’t remember since it was too long ago . At that time, you said we would meet…”

I remembered . In the Green Zone scenario, I saw her after eating the Specter’s Stone . I told her, “I remember . ”

“I’ll formally greet you . It is nice to meet you, Kim Dokja . No… Demon King of Salvation . ”

She smiled while a yellow demon eye flew above her blond hair . It was a very beautiful smile but I couldn’t accept it . It was because I knew better than anyone the disturbing thoughts behind the smile . “I am Anna Croft . ”

Asgard’s prophet . The head of the Zarathustra, Anna Croft was here .

TL: Rainbow Turtle