Chapter 418: 418

Han Su-Yeong’s demanding tone prompted Yu Jung-Hyeok to start with his story . However, his tale sounded incoherent and he repeated himself over and over again . Ten minutes passed by like that – she eventually stopped listening quietly and spoke up .

“Okay, that’s enough . I think you’re not in the right frame of mind here, so let me organise everything you said for you . You just indicate to me if I got it right . “

Now normally, such a one-sided declaration would’ve elicited a strong reaction from him, but Yu Jung-Hyeok simply chose to nod his head, his expression dark, gloomy .

Han Su-Yeong immediately began her job . “You went to rescue Kim Dok-Ja . But then, someone else showed up first to snatch him up . And that someone was whom we all know, the ‘Secretive Plotter’ . “

Yu Jung-Hyeok nodded again .

“However, that guy had the exact same face as you and was wearing a white coat . “

“Correct . “

“What are the odds of that being a fake? I mean, that guy’s so hard to believe, right? It’s possible that the ‘Secretive Plotter’ disguised himself to look like you . “

“No, it couldn’t have been a fake . “

“How come?”

“He used the Fable that the me from the 1863rd regression turn possessed . “

” . . . . You mean, that Immortal whatever chuuni-sounding Fable?”

Han Su-Yeong went “Thought as much,” and nodded her head . Her irises expanded ever so slightly as her Fable kicked into gear once more .

[Fable, ‘Predictive Plagiarism’, has begun its storytelling!]

The only one left out of the loop, Jeong Hui-Won, tried to say something, her voice sounding confused . “What are you two talking about? Are you saying that the ‘Secretive Plotter’ looks like Jung-Hyeok-ssi?”

Han Su-Yeong glanced at her for a bit, before replying with a long sigh . “Simply put, there are two Yu Jung-Hyeoks in this world-line . “

” . . . . Is that even possible?”

“No reason why it can’t be, if Yu Jung-Hyeok from another world-line has crossed over to this one . “

“You can do that?”

“Well, Kim Dok-Ja went to another world-line through a similar method, didn’t he? Now, the problem here is, just how powerful a being is he, when he’s capable of doing something like this . . . . ?”

Even the highest-ranked Constellations from either or couldn’t cross to another world-line with their own powers . However, this ‘Secretive Plotter’ was powerful enough to deal with the requisite Probability all by himself .

Jeong Hui-Won’s jaw dropped slightly as she muttered . “Just from which world-line could he . . . . “

“There is only one with the highest possibility, actually . The one Kim Dok-Ja went to, the 1863rd world-line . “

The 1863rd regression turn . The final world-line for Yu Jung-Hyeok as it was written in the ‘Three Ways to Survive a Ruined World’ .

Yu Jung-Hyeok looked at Han Su-Yeong and asked a question . “How much do you know about that world-line?”

“A bit . “

“At the end of that world, the me of the 1863rd turn divided into two and fought against each other . One of them died, and the other regressed . “

“I know . I saw it in my dreams several times already . “

” . . . . Your dream?”

As if she was sick and tired of the whole thing, she vigorously waved her hands about . “We don’t have the time to get into the details . In any case, you think the current ‘Secretive Plotter’ is you from the 1863rd regression turn . Am I right?”

Yu Jung-Hyeok spoke up, his face full of dissatisfaction . “It’s not a definite thing . There are a few points that don’t add up . “

“Such as?”

“The strength of the ‘Secretive Plotter’ far exceeded that of ‘me from the 1863rd turn’ that I read about . “

“And then?”

“Then . . . . ” Yu Jung-Hyeok chewed on his lips for a while . ” . . . . I also got the feeling that he was hiding something from me . Such as, his white coat . “

“The white coat?”

“My Stigma, ‘Regression’, doesn’t send the items I possess alongside me when I regress . Meaning, there’s no reason for him to be wearing that coat . “

“Maybe, he likes the white colour?”

“I detest the colour white . “

“Isn’t it possible that your taste might change?”

“This matter can’t be answered as easily as that . This . . . . “

“Are you saying that it’s an issue with your gut feeling?”

Yu Jung-Hyeok nodded his head . “It was as if that bastard was mocking me . “

“Mocking you?”

“It was as if he deliberately wore that coat . “

He massaged his forehead and the words left behind by the ‘Secretive Plotter’ flitted in and out of his mind .

[ . . . . The 3rd turn . You don’t remember anyth . . . . ]

A weighty silence descended in the room .

Han Su-Yeong was deeply immersed in her thoughts as she rubbed her chin, while Jeong Hui-Won could only smack her lips, not fully getting what was going on .

A while later, the former opened her lips to speak . “Alright, fine . Let’s sum it all up . Logically speaking, the ‘Secretive Plotter’ must be the ‘Yu Jung-Hyeok from the 1863rd turn’, but your gut feeling says otherwise . That’s it, right?”

” . . . . “

“In that case, let’s begin with this assumption first . ‘The Yu Jung-Hyeok from the 1863rd turn is not the Secretive Plotter’ . Meaning, the Plotter is lying to you . “

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Yu Jung-Hyeok’s eyes trembled . ” . . . . It’s just my feeling, yet you are willing to believe it?”

“It’s not just anyone’s gut but yours . Isn’t it supposed to be, you know yourself the best?”

Han Su-Yeong grinned refreshingly . He then addressed her with a suspicion-filled expression . “Speak your hypothesis, Han Su-Yeong . “

“Mm? What do you mean?”

“You already suspect who the ‘Secretive Plotter’ might be . Am I wrong?”

This time, it was Han-Su-Yeong’s eyes to narrow to a slit . “Hmm, since when did you become this quick on the uptake?”

” . . . . It’s impossible for you to believe what I say, that’s why . “

For a short moment there, their glares collided in mid-air . And through that exchange, both of them came to realise just what kind of images were floating up in the heads of the other .

Not too long ago, they had discussed the possible identity of the ‘Secretive Plotter’ . Back then, Yu Jung-Hyeok opined that the Plotter was ‘Kim Dok-Ja from the future’, while Han Su-Yeong, she… .

“Argh, just how long are you two going to talk among yourselves?! Just who is this ‘Secretive Plotter’??”

Jeong Hui-Won’s pressing words prompted Han Su-Yeong to cautiously open her lips . “What I’m about to say is just a hypothesis, nothing more . “

“I don’t care whether it’s a hypothesis or not . I just want to know!”

“I have been curious about something for a really long time, you know?”

“Curious about what?”

“What if, the novel ‘Ways of Survival’ didn’t become reality?”

” . . . . What are you talking about out of the blue?”

“So, like, what if, somewhere out there in the universe, there is a world of ‘Ways of Survival’, as pure as intended and not been affected by either me or Kim Dok-Ja?” Han Su-Yeong continued on with her explanation . “In that world where neither nor exist, let’s say there is this dumbass ‘Yu Jung-Hyeok’ who repeatedly goes through countless regressions while losing his comrades over and over again . “

” . . . . . Wait, you bastard . . . “

“What if that Yu Jung-Hyeok managed to reach the Conclusion (結) through innumerable losses… . What if a version of Yu Jung-Hyeok that saw the end of through his own powers alone existed somewhere in the universe?”

Han Su-Yeong waited for a beat before shifting her gaze over to Yu Jung-Hyeok .

In his violently-rocking eyes, her reflection could be seen .

“And what would a guy like that be thinking about when he’s looking at the current ‘3rd turn’?”

*

The ‘Secretive Plotter’ .

The Constellation that didn’t appear within the original ‘Ways of Survival’ . Even then, a being that possessed more power than any other Constellations I’ve met so far .

– ‘Secretive Plotter’ . Are you someone who knows the epilogue of that novel?

That was the reason why I decided to ask this question . I was sure of guessing the Plotter’s true identity correctly as long as he provided me with the ‘right’ answer .

Eventually, the Secretive Plotter opened his lips . [I am refusing to answer that question . ]

“What? No, hang on . . . . “

– Constellation, ‘Secretive Plotter’, has used the ‘right to refuse’ on the third question .

God damn it, I forgot about that . Both sides could exercise the ‘right to refuse’ once during this ‘Three Divine Questions and Answers’ .

The Plotter was looking down at me with a pair of eyes that couldn’t be read . For a brief moment there, I witnessed the Probability’s sparks envelop his coat .

[I feel tired . Enough . Now, go back . ]

“Hang on! The Q&A isn’t ove . . . . . “

Before I could finish, I was overcome with the sensation of space folding around me, and soon, found myself standing outside the hall .

The sense of dejection rushed in as I stared at the firmly-shut door to the hall .

– ‘Three Divine Questions and Answers’ has been temporarily suspended .

– You still have one more right to ask a question remaining .

Normally, the ‘Three Divine Questions and Answers’ wasn’t a ceremony that one side could wilfully delay like this . However, this ‘Secretive Plotter’ managed to do exactly that . I couldn’t even estimate how powerful a Status he must’ve possessed in order to make something this unbelievable happen .

I pounded on the hall’s door and shouted out . “Open the door! This is not what we agreed upon! I need to get back to my comrades!”

In that instant, a powerful Status rocked the door and my Incarnation Body was flung away . I staggered back up to my feet and got ready to unleash my own Status .

Unexpectedly, it was the kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeok number [999] who dissuaded me from doing that . “It’ll be better if you don’t . “

I sensed the ominous flow of air beyond the doorway and urgently withdrew my Status . Indeed, this kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeok was right . My Incarnation Body was still gravely injured, and the other party was a being so strong that the current me couldn’t even guess his actual power level .

“You’ll have another chance, Kim Dok-Ja . “

” . . . . And when will that be?”

Kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeoks began looking at me with eyes reserved for when looking at a dumb fool, before one of them spoke up . “Follow us . We’re going back to your lodging . “

I felt hopelessly lost by the prospect of returning to that circular room again, but as I was now, I didn’t have much of a choice .

I could sense the multiple presences of ‘Outer Gods’ looking at this way from all corners of the corridor . Thankfully, I was a guest of the ‘Secretive Plotter’ .

It was all too clear to see what would happen if I try to escape and become an ‘uninvited guest’ in the process .

Go-ooooh . . . . .

… . Yup, not making a rash decision would be for the best, after all .

Also, it wasn’t as if I walked away with nothing from the current situation, anyway .

[‘The 4th Wall’ is faintly vibrating . ]

⸢(There are quite a few faces I haven’t seen in awhile . Looks like a group of Shantaks . )⸥

I was startled by the sudden voice coming from my inside . It was coming through the [The 4th Wall]’s messaging system .

Judging from the way it spoke . . .

‘… . The Devourer of Dreams?’

⸢(It is indeed I . )⸥

Now that I thought about it, I had an ‘Outer God’ residing inside me, didn’t I? I completely forgot about it somehow . I began thinking that maybe I could ask for his help in my current predicament .

⸢(Looks like they are being friendly towards you . )⸥

‘Being friendly? You mean, that?!’

I stared at the ‘Outer Gods’ raising their tentacles up threateningly in my direction . The moment our gazes met, the end of one of the tentacles suddenly bloomed open to resemble a horrifying-looking flower .

⸢(They are curious about you . Now that is a rather uncommon event among Outer Gods . )⸥

I looked at that ‘flower’ bud swaying this way and that as if to win me over and shook my head in helplessness .

‘… . It’ll be hard to become friends with those guys . ‘

⸢(Hard? Why?)⸥

‘You must know why by now after reading this and that in the Library . ‘

I walked past the Outer Gods emitting gloomy, foreboding aura and began recalling the final episode of the ‘Ways of Survival’ .

⸢(The final battle of the is related to those ‘Outer Gods’ . )⸥

In the original story, Yu Jung-Hyeok lost everything still remaining with him by that point . Every single Incarnation that helped him up until then all died in that war . Died, because of those monsters of Chaos that brought the destruction of the world .

But then, the ‘Devourer of Dreams’ said something rather unexpected to me . ⸢(Do you know why Outer Gods have become the Calamities?)⸥

‘That is . . . . ‘

I seriously pondered it for a moment, only to fall into this strange, inexplicable chain of thoughts .

Indeed, it sure was a strange thing; even a novel as brimming-full of detailed explanations as the ‘Ways of Survival’ failed to mention the origins of the Outer Gods .

It was at that moment a certain theory popped up in my head .

The true identity of the ‘Secretive Plotter’ and the origins of the ‘Outer Gods’ . Could there be some kind of a connection between the two?

Before I could throw out a question regarding that theory, someone engaged me for a chat first .

“I heard that you like reading novels . “

It was the kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeok number [999] .

I nodded my head . “Sure, I do . What about it?”

“If you want, I can tell you a short story . “

“A story?”

It was then the kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeoks number [666], [777], and [888] all looked at [999] with baffled expressions . It seemed that this wasn’t a part of the plan .

Not even waiting for my reply, the kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeok number [999] began telling his story . “There was a wolf that continued to fight a lonely battle for a very long time . He had a goal he was chasing after, and there was a question he wanted to ask . For the answer to that question, he continued to fight . “

“Is it an allegory?”

“The wolf kept fighting . Hundreds of years, thousands, and maybe even for tens of thousands of years . “

I wanted to say that a wolf couldn’t possibly live for that long, but regardless, the story continued on .

“The wolf eventually reached the end of the battle and became the ‘wolf king’ . And he managed to find the answer in his own way . He had to pay the price of losing his entire pack in the process, but in the end, he came to accept that answer . Because, it was the best possible answer that the world could provide him with . Now with that answer, the king began roaming the world . “

This was a rather vaguely abstract story, yet . . . .

“But then, one day, the king learned that there was yet another ‘pack’ existing somewhere . “

… . Even then, this story sounded undoubtedly familiar, too .

“In that pack, he found the exact same wolf as himself . That wolf possessed the exact same goal as him, and was surviving for the same purpose as him, as well . “

I listened to the tale as if I had been entranced by it .

“But then, something was different . The ‘wolf’ of this pack hadn’t lost anything . “

Right now, this guy was telling me the story that the ‘Secretive Plotter’ didn’t want to tell me earlier .

“Finding his prey, protecting his pack, the distant goals he longed for – this wolf was achieving all those with the minimal amount of pain . Without losing anything in the process . The king watched this spectacle, and suddenly thought to himself . “

Slowly, so very slowly, a chill crept down on my back .

“If this story is brought to its conclusion as it was, then what was the purpose of the life I’ve lived so far?”

Yu Jung-Hyeok was now asking straight at me .

“Kim Dok-Ja . Have you ever thought about a life like that before?”

Fin .

TL: Since the TL note section isn’t working, I’ll revert to leaving the notes here . The ‘Conclusion/結’ is the last letter of the ‘kishotenketsu/gi-seung-jeon-gyeol’ that I mentioned in the chapter 409 .