Chapter 450: 450

Bihyung was in a very good mood . It couldn’t be helped, since the Dokkaebi had witnessed the scenario playing out in the panel right before his eyes .

– Every time that happens, I’ll do my best to fight back .

Accompanying Kim Dok-Ja’s voice was the scenario conclusion notice . Indirect messages from innumerable Constellations flooded in, and the whole of was trembling grandly .

A new owner of the Great Fable ⸢Journey to the West⸥ had been decided .

‘He did it . That Kim Dok-Ja, he really pulled it off . ‘

A storyteller was supposed to remain neutral . The thing was, though, all judges secretly rooted for a team they liked . This was true for Bihyung as well .

Like a parent looking at his wonderfully-matured children, Bihyung stroked the faces appearing on the screen with a deeply moved expression .

[Congratulations, Bihyung Director-nim . ]

The subordinate Dokkaebis around him offered their congratulations . They all knew that Bihyung had been watching for a long time .

[I just knew they would pull through . ]

[M-me too . Me too . . . !]

Not only that, some of them had been cheering on the alongside him, too . Several carried expressions just as excited as Bihyung’s .

For these Dokkaebis that only sought out new, potential stimulations in order to find the next story’s objective, being this earnest about something was indeed an exceedingly rare thing .

[These kids are mine . Stop drooling over them . ]

[Hahat! Of course we wouldn’t . . . . ]

It was then an urgent piece of news arrived for him .

[Director . The Great Dokkaebi, ‘Baram’ is . . . . ]

[You’ve been promoted!]

… . A promotion?

[Bihyung Director-nim, truly, honestly, congratulations!]

[Looks like the Bureau is doing its job properly for once!]

Bihyung couldn’t make heads nor tails while subjected to the outpouring of messages .

He was an ‘upper-rank Dokkaebi’, not to mention the director of the Seoul branch . He had already climbed to the highest-possible position through one’s hard work alone .

However, getting a promotion here could only mean . . . .

[… . Director-nim?]

Without a doubt, this should be a good thing .

But why was he overcome with this ominous foreboding?

[Great Dokkaebi is waiting for you . ]

Bihyung was guided by lower-ranked Dokkaebis to a portal, and entered it . Soon, the thick fog receded away to reveal the figure of a Great Dokkaebi waiting for him at the end of a grey-coloured passage .

[You’ve come, Bihyung . ]

[Baram-nim . ]

As if to imply that Bihyung had worked hard, Baram patted him on the shoulder and spoke up . [Congratulations . Your promotion has been decided . ]

[… . Pardon me?]

[We need to do something about your dazed expression . Don’t you understand? It’s been decided that you’ll be chosen as the last one to become the ‘Great Dokkaebi’ . ]

The Great Dokkaebi . The highest honour that all storytellers dreamed of reaching . Something that he only daydreamed about had now become a reality, leaving Bihyung utterly bewildered and lost .

[… . Great Dokkaebi? You mean, I am?]

[That’s right . This promotion is unprecedented in the history of . ]

Baran chuckled contently and took the lead . Bihyung didn’t even know where they were going and simply chased after him . He had so many things he wanted to ask .

Just where was this place, and also . . . . .

[You’ll soon become a Great Dokkaebi, so it’s about time that you meet that ‘person’, no?]

Baram smiled as if he could see through Bihyung’s thoughts .

[When you say ‘that person’, could you be . . . . . ]

Even though he did ask, Bihyung could already guess the answer .

The surrounding air seemed to distort and faint traces of sparks bounced around in the atmosphere . When he took a closer look, those sparks were taking on the shapes of letters . Something was before him, a being that he had never seen before .

[We’ve arrived . ]

They circled around the gallery and went past the fog-covered passageway to reach a massive hall .

No, could this place even be called a ‘hall’?

It was so humongous that its dimensions couldn’t even be estimated . And inside this place, there was a wide wall spanning across it . The length of this mysterious wall could also not be measured due to its sheer, immense size .

Letters engraved on the surface of the wall seemed to be burning; many cracks and various damages, both large and small, could be seen on its surface .

In that moment, Bihyung got the feeling that he had seen that wall from somewhere .

[… . The Plate of Revelation?]

It was undoubtedly the Plate of Revelation . Although its shape was different, that ‘wall’ the Constellations received their revelations from possessed the similar overall vibe .

However, why was another ‘Plate of Revelation’ here? And also, what was up with its humongous size . . . . ?

[Everyone has gathered, I see . ]

The moment he heard that voice, Bihyung prostrated on the floor even before he realised it . He might have dealt with countless Constellations until now, but at least this time, he couldn’t control his nervousness .

He couldn’t even guess the vastness of the Status felt from that voice .

He glanced to his side and saw that all the Great Dokkaebis, including Baram, were prostrating towards the front as well .

Someone was standing in front of the ‘Plate of Revelation’ .

Bihyung hid his shivering and slowly raised his head . And that’s when he realised it .

So, that was it, then . . . . Now, he understood it .

That creature was the absolute being that ruled the and controlled the .

The ‘King of Stories’ .

The King extended his lengthy and pale hand to stroke the wall while slowly opening its mouth .

[The ‘One Fable’ that decides the next world will now be chosen . ]

*

“You saying that I have the last fragment of the ‘Final Wall’?”

“That’s right . “

[41]’s words made me frown deeply .

I could guess more or less on what they were talking about . The ‘Final Wall’ – I tried to gather information on that thing during this regression turn, too . It was one of the things that never got fully explained in the original ‘Ways of Survival’ . I was pretty sure of this ‘Wall’ being the clue that would determine the end of this regression turn .

And as for this ‘last fragment’ thing they were talking about . . . .

[Exclusive skill, ‘The 4th Wall’, is powerfully activating!]

⸢Kim Dok Ja⸥

Don’t worry . I’ll never hand you over to them .

I slowly blinked my eyes and focused . The ‘Secretive Plotter’ was staring at me . He might have lost a lot of his Status, but he was still the strongest Constellation I knew, and he was an ‘Outer God’ to boot .

I recalled the first day I arrived at the N’Gai’s Forest and opened my mouth . “We talked about this before, didn’t we . You said that I need to figure out why I had to be brought here before the ‘Three Divine Questions and Answer’ came to an end . “

[[I did . ]]

“You actually want to see the end of this world, don’t you? You might be saying this and that, but you too have placed your hope on this world-line . “

The Plotter’s brows quivered ever so slightly .

No matter how hard he denied being Yu Jung-Hyeok, he still failed to get rid of his old habits .

“And for that purpose, you need [the 4th Wall] that I possess . That’s why you’re keeping me alive . Am I right?”

He didn’t answer me . If he was planning to behave like that, I could think of a way to get him to talk .

Tsu-chuchuchut .

“I didn’t get to hear that final answer to the Three Divine Questions . “

[‘Three Divine Questions and Answers’ has resumed!]

[You have one more right to ask a question . ]

Back then, I asked the ‘Secretive Plotter’ this .

The ⸢Three Ways to Survive a Ruined World . ⸥

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

“‘Secretive Plotter’ . Just what did you see at the ‘conclusion’?”

The ‘Ways of Survival’ I read ended with the 3149th chapter . However, the Plotter lived on past that, even though I didn’t get to see it . He survived that unrecorded history and reached the conclusion reserved only for him .

Just what did he see in that place?

What was there that it prompted him to become an ‘Outer God’ and appear in this world-line?

[41] stepped forward first to answer my question . He shouted at me with a slightly angry face . “That question is . . . . . !!”

[[41st . ]]

Kkoma Yu Jung-Hyeoks all shut their mouths up after the Plotter stopped them . The ‘Yu Jung-Hyeok’ currently in the shape of a boy – the ‘Secretive Plotter’ – was looking straight at me .

For a moment there, I felt a bit weirded out . Yu Jung-Hyeok’s childhood years had never been fully explained in the ‘Ways of Survival’ . No, it just got a few brief passing mentions in the form of reminiscence .

Of course, not getting a proper explanation didn’t mean he had no childhood to begin with .

It was kind of similar to the 3150th chapter of the ‘Ways of Survival’ . Yu Jung-Hyeok was born in a place I didn’t know of, and managed to survive until he became the story’s protagonist .

[[Just how much of my journey was described in that novel you read?]]

The protagonist with a face I didn’t know was asking me .

I hesitated slightly before replying . ” . . . . Up until when you were about to reach the Dokkaebi King . “

I recalled the final moments of the ‘Ways of Survival’ .

He journeyed to kill the Dokkaebi King; wading past the ‘Final Fog’, Yu Jung-Hyeok rushed into the final phase of the story . There was no further explanation on what happened afterwards or what he saw there .

That was also the reason why I got flustered back then while reading the last released chapter . I grew scared, wondering if it really was the end .

[[What was I like during those last moments?]]

Now that unexpected question got me truly flustered .

I didn’t think he’d ask me about something like that .

“Why would you . . . . . ?”

[[Did it look like I succeeded? Did it look like I’d get to achieve my goal at the end of it all?]]

The moment I heard his question, I was overcome with this unexplainable stifling feeling . I couldn’t understand why the ‘Secretive Plotter’ asked me that . My thoughts regarding that were not important at all . Not even by a small speck . . . .

… . Wait, was it really not as important?

“You . . . . “

My lips barely managed to bob up and down .

I wasn’t prepared for that question . However, I still needed to answer it regardless of whether I was ready or not .

⸢In that very moment, she realised that this world had completely left her hands . ⸥

Memories from [Peaceland] came bubbling up – the mangaka Asuka Ren’s expression as she let go of the world she had created . The duty of the person who had created a new world . . . .

I wasn’t like her . I didn’t write the ‘Ways of Survival’, but I was . . . .

⸢This story was able to see the light of the world all thanks to you, Dok-Ja-nim . ⸥

… . I was someone who had witnessed the story’s end .

“You did succeed . Because, you gave it your all . “

Answering him was the duty of the one who had seen the story until its conclusion . I carefully and slowly recalled all the sentences I still remembered .

“Didn’t matter which regression it was, you always made the best choice you could’ve made . I don’t know what kind of a conclusion you reached, but you were not wrong . “

All of Yu Jung-Hyeok’s regression turns brushed past my mind . Everything he earned, and then, all the things he had lost during them . . . .

“I’m sure that your comrades thought the same, too . “

… . And also, his lonely back as he reached the final page by himself .

“However . . . . “

Did I possess the qualification to say this, though?

I couldn’t tell .

“You didn’t look all that happy for some reason during your final moments . “

Even now, the scenes I read didn’t want to leave my mind .

⸢Finally, Yu Jung-Hyeok who had lost everything was looking at the fog . The hollow answer he’d been searching for was just beyond that fog . ⸥

The face of the ‘Secretive Plotter’ that exactly matched the description from that scene, was now looking at me .

[[I see . ]]

” . . . . Why did you suddenly ask me that?”

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[[I was merely curious . You’re the only one who had seen ‘that’ from the beginning until the end, after all . ]]

I couldn’t say anything back to him .

[[I was curious about what my life meant through the eyes of someone other than mine . That’s all . ]]

Fin .