< Episode 15. A World Without a King (2) >
Just as thunder rumbled in the sky, rain began to fall.
The light rising from the Absolute Throne reached the heavens.
Thick storm clouds swirled around that light.
It was the omen of the Fifth Scenario, the Great Hall.
As drizzle soaked the ground, the intermediate dokkaebi opened its mouth.
[······What did you just say?]
"I said I won't take the throne."
[I don't understand why you're being so obstinate. Wouldn't it be more beneficial to earn even one more coin with this time? You must have spent a tremendous amount of coins earlier as well. Accept the reward willingly. Without the power of that'Absolute Throne,' the Seoul Dome will never survive the Fifth Scenario.]
Perhaps frightened by the dokkaebi's words, the people gathered around Gwanghwamun began shouting at me.
"What the hell is he thinking?"
"Stop talking and just sit down already!"
"Damn it—if only I had been the one to sit there…!"
Thinking everything was going according to its will, the dokkaebi continued.
[That throne can give you far more than you desire. Simply sitting upon it will cause your 'fable' to accumulate, and the constellations contracted to you will rise in status. You don't seem to understand what that means.]
Indeed, I had been hearing the constellations' clamor in my ears since earlier.
[Constellation, 'The Adventurer Who Stood an Egg Upright,' wishes to become your supporting constellation.]
[Constellation, 'Seoae Ilpil,' wishes to become your supporting constellation.]
...
[You have received a sponsorship of 500 coins.]
The intermediate dokkaebi continued in a cold voice.
[I'll warn you in advance—I'm not like the lower dokkaebis. Don't think some half-baked trick will work on me.]
I looked down at the Absolute Throne.
As the dokkaebi said, if I didn't obtain the Absolute Throne here, clearing the Fifth Scenario would become difficult.
But I also knew what the dokkaebi had not said.
If I used this Absolute Throne even once, I would never be able to reach the ending of the scenario.
Even Yoo Joonghyuk in the original work only barely realized this in his 14th regression.
That's because this Absolute Throne was an object born that way from the start.
"Then why the hell won't you become king?!"
An excited man burst out from the crowd, panting heavily, pointing at me as if his very life had been insulted.
I asked him back,
"That's what I want to ask. What about me do you trust enough to try to make me a 'king'?"
"What?"
"What if, after becoming king, I decide to kill you?"
The man's open mouth froze instantly.
Looking at the others around me, I continued.
"You're all the same. Have you already forgotten? We didn't originally live in a kingdom. So why are you already acting like subjects of one?"
The reason I don't want to be king?
It's simple.
"I don't want to be a king who represents ugly humans like you."
I looked up at the sky and went on.
"And I don't want to have filthy constellations like you as my supporting patrons either."
Then I looked back at the throne.
"So I won't sit on the Absolute Throne. However—"
Almost simultaneously, I drew my sword.
"I also won't allow anyone else to sit on it."
For someone to sit, someone else must be denied.
Cold flames flickered in the intermediate dokkaebi's eyes.
[That would be wise. My patience isn't very good…]
I stared straight back at the dokkaebi and continued speaking.
"How long are you going to keep letting yourselves be dragged around helplessly by the dokkaebis' 'scenarios'? Do you even understand what it means for someone to sit on the Absolute Throne?"
I knew how much it cost for people once trained into 'submission' to break free from it.
"Constellations of the Korean Peninsula—you're the same. I know that not all constellations are equal. Some are low-ranked, and some are high-ranked."
There exists an invisible hierarchy even among constellations.
Just as constellations watch incarnations, some constellations watch other constellations.
More precisely, they watch the low-ranked ones.
"But isn't this enough now? How long do you plan to keep turning this land into an arena for the struggle of unfortunate heroes?"
[Constellation, 'One-Eyed Maitreya,' is pondering.]
"You struggle through history to become a hero-grade constellation, then pile up fables to become a myth-grade constellation… and then what? After becoming a brighter star in a higher sky—how many more descendants of this land must you exploit to satisfy your selfish desires?"
[Constellation, 'Plum-Blossom Sword Sovereign,' falls silent.]
It was then that the intermediate dokkaebi, which had remained quiet, moved.
[I can no longer stand by and watch.]
At the same time, a system message arrived.
[A new 'Sub Scenario' has arrived.]
Category: SubDifficulty: B
Clear Condition: Subdue the incarnation 'Kim Dokja,' who refuses to sit on the throne, and force him onto it.
Time Limit: 30 minutes
Reward: 6,000 coins
Failure: —
Right. I knew it would come to this eventually.
People who had wavered after briefly listening to my words were now approaching me.
In the end, the dokkaebi was right. Those people—and I—no matter how eloquently we spoke, were nothing more than worms selling our conscience for a handful of coins.
Of course, not everyone was like that.
"If you think you can pass, then try."
A woman stood blocking my path.
At her growling voice, people hesitated.
It was Jeong Heewon.
"No matter what happens to the world, there's something you mustn't forget."
Before I knew it, Yoo Sangah had also approached. Lee Gilyoung, holding a hammer, stood behind me as if he had been waiting for this moment. Jung Minseop and Lee Seongguk, who had been on standby, also came forward.
"······Sometimes, I feel like you're more of a protagonist than Yoo Joonghyuk, sir."
"Even Yoo Joonghyuk doesn't pull crazy stunts like this······."
Unexpected figures appeared as well.
"I'll help you—just this once."
"Judging by my Insight Technique, that was a rather persuasive argument."
The Beauty King, Min Jiwon, and even the Maitreya King, Cha Sangkyung.
I don't know what it was in my words that moved their hearts.
But something had definitely changed.
Even if that possibility was no more than a handful in this world.
[The worms are having quite the party······ What are you all doing? Drag him down at once!]
People rushed toward the throne.
Pushing back the oncoming crowd at my side, Jeong Heewon asked,
"Dokja-ssi, you have a plan, right?"
"Yes."
"What do you want us to do?"
"Buy me time—until I destroy this 'throne.'"
The path of the new scenario lay inside this throne.
I pulled a sword from within my coat.
Someone among the crowd shouted,
"It's the Four Yin Slaughtering Sword!"
The Four Yin Slaughtering Sword was an S+–grade item.
However, if certain conditions were met, it could be converted into a 'Divine Relic' in an instant—because this sword had been forged with the very souls of hero-grade constellations.
[Activating the special option of 'Ganpyeongui,' 'Echo of the Stars.']
[Through 'Echo of the Stars,' you may request the aid of hero-grade constellations.]
"I will call upon the constellations."
[Within the flow of the stars, hero-grade constellations hear your voice.]
As if reciting an incantation, I called out the epithets of the constellations.
"I call upon the 'First Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of Greed—Tamlang.
"I call upon the 'Second Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of Giants—Geomun.
"I call upon the 'Third Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of Prosperity—Nokjon.
"I call upon the 'Fourth Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of Literature—Mungok.
"I call upon the 'Fifth Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of Integrity—Yeomjeong.
"I call upon the 'Sixth Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of War—Mugok.
[The course of the stars begins.]
[Six constellations are watching you.]
As every constellation in the celestial chart vanished, my head grew as stifling as a packed subway car. I staggered with dizziness, blood flowing from both my nose and ears. Even thinking became difficult. Contacting six constellations at once had overloaded my brain.
The Star Lords of the Big Dipper spoke.
[What exactly are you thinking?]
[To summon all of us at once—]
[Your mind will be completely destroyed.]
[Why did you call us?]
[Why not choose the easier path······]
[Why deliberately walk a path of thorns?]
But I didn't stop. To use the Four Yin Slaughtering Sword, I still needed to call one more constellation. Yet there were no constellations left in the celestial chart.
[All uses of 'Ganpyeongui' have been exhausted.]
I took out the jar I had obtained earlier from the Tyrant King—[Dragon Vessel].
The reward from the seven-person dungeon, [Hall of the Dragon Lord].
Then I placed two items inside the jar.
"I offer the S-rank item [Three-Wheeled Ring] as a sacrifice to restore the usage count of the S-rank item [Ganpyeongui]."
['Dragon Vessel' manifests its mysterious regenerative power.]
[S-rank item 'Three-Wheeled Ring' has been consumed as a sacrifice.]
[The usage count of the S-rank item 'Ganpyeongui' has been restored.]
I used [Ganpyeongui] once more.
And then I called the final remaining constellation.
"I call upon the 'Seventh Star Lord of the Big Dipper.'"
The Star Lord of Destruction—Pagun.
Seven stars embroidered into the void.
At last, all seven seats forming the Big Dipper were assembled.
The seven stars spoke to me at once.
[What do you desire from us?]
"Star Lords of the Big Dipper, I wish to sever the bonds of the constellations. Lend me your swords."
[······Do you understand what that means?]
"I do."
Precisely because I understood, I was risking everything to do this.
The final reward of the Fourth Scenario—the [Absolute Throne].
That throne was an item that borrowed the power of one of the 'Outer Gods.'
If I obtained the throne, things would become easy for a while. I could place restrictions on Yoo Joonghyuk, and the internal enemies threatening me would disappear.
But Seoul would inevitably be destroyed.
Complete annihilation—without salvation or miracle of any kind.
That was the price of recklessly borrowing the power of the 'absolute.'
To reach the ending I envisioned, no one could be allowed to take that throne.
[Even the constellations of this sky avoid the creator of the throne.]
[And yet a mere human dares to challenge the master of that object?]
"If you help me, it's possible. And I'm not fighting the master—just cutting the constellation-thread that connects the master and the object."
[That is a plausibility you cannot bear.]
[You will certainly die.]
"That's for me to decide. Let's begin."
The seven constellations fell silent.
How much time passed? The Big Dipper blazed brightly in the sky, and the star patterns engraved on the sword ignited in brilliant light.
[We respect your will.]
[Even if you die here.]
[We will remember you.]
Dazzling rays of light wrapped around the Four Yin Slaughtering Sword, and its white blade began to burn with radiant flames.
[S+–grade item 'Four Yin Slaughtering Sword' has evolved into the Divine Relic 'Four Yin Slaughtering Sword.']
The Divine Relic Four Yin Slaughtering Sword was originally a ritual blade created for sacrifices.
A sword that severs evil auras and blocks calamities.
I swung the blade straight toward the Absolute Throne.
With a clang, sparks exploded.
The Four Yin Slaughtering Sword was one of the few items capable of severing the bonds of constellations connected to a Divine Relic.
Crack.
From the invisible void, something sounded as if it were being torn apart.
As if it had begun to realize what was happening, ominous black light swirled around the Absolute Throne. After striking it several more times, the blade of the sword began to chip away.
From this point on, all I could do was trust the Star Lords of the Big Dipper.
Yoo Sangah shouted,
"Dokja-ssi! Hurry!"
Like a madman, I swung the sword.
Ignoring the breaking blade, I continued to strike the throne.
Exploding sparks, shattering steel—
And finally.
[The protection connected to the Divine Relic 'Absolute Throne' has disappeared.]
[An 'Unknown Divinity' has noticed the anomaly in this world.]
The Absolute Throne lost its light and became nothing more than an ordinary chair.
From the flustered intermediate dokkaebi came a shrill cry of rage.
[You ignorant worm who doesn't know his place······!]
[The sub-scenario has been forcibly terminated.]
The movements of the people also came to a halt. With the scenario over, there was no longer any need for them to continue acting. The Star Lords of the Big Dipper spoke to me.
[Incarnation, prepare yourself for the coming overflow of plausibility.]
The moment I heard their voices, my stomach lurched and blood poured from my mouth.
It felt as though someone were stretching and pulling my very existence. A vast power, one that seemed capable of tearing my body apart, circled around me with eerie innocence. I struggled to steady my mind. It would be fine.
'Plausibility' was, in the end, simply 'believability.'
To make all of this seem believable, I had done everything I possibly could up to this point. So I could endure it.
Repeating that to myself, I barely managed to cling to my fading consciousness.
It was then that a single star quietly twinkled in the distant night sky.
[Constellation, 'War God of the Sea,' is watching you.]
A gaze that was silent and lonely, yet profoundly gentle.
[Constellation, 'The Bald Righteous Army Commander,' is watching you.]
Then two.
[Constellation, 'The Last Hero of Hwangsanbeol,' is watching you.]
Three.
[Constellation, 'Plum-Blossom Sword Sovereign,' is watching you.]
...
Amid the pouring messages from the constellations, the intermediate dokkaebi shouted,
[Why in the world······?]
With each additional star, my pain eased little by little. I realized that the constellations were each taking on a portion of the 'plausibility' I had to bear. A story that had once been 'unbelievable' was becoming a 'believable story' through the consent of countless stars.
Innumerable stars were enveloping me in their light. Among them were even the Star Lords of the Big Dipper, who had lent me their strength.
[Is this the story you wished to show us?]
I wanted to answer, but I no longer had the strength to do so.
[We will watch over you, O 'King of a World Without a King.']
The chaotic night sky over Seoul.
I looked back at the stars that were sending me their light.
[Constellation, 'Great King Heungmu,' is watching you.]
[Constellation, 'One-Eyed Maitreya,' is watching you.]
...
All hero-grade constellations of Seoul were radiating their light toward me.
And yet, despite so many stars—
It was still not enough to fully illuminate the dark night sky.
I quietly looked up at the Great Hall, raging together with the storm clouds.
[The Fourth Scenario has been forcibly terminated.]
[An unscheduled branch has occurred. Scenario settlement will require additional time.]
As I wiped the blood flowing from my nose, the intermediate dokkaebi strode toward me.
[You have ultimately made the worst possible choice. You will regret today for the rest of your life. I swear on my honor, I will make sure of it.]
Even through my blurring vision, I couldn't help but smile. For the dokkaebi to say something like that meant I had won this contest.
[You have achieved a non-existent accomplishment.]
[A new fable has been created.]
[Fable, 'King of a World Without a King,' has been born.]
[You have acquired the possibility of a stigma.]
There is no next 'regression' for me.
In this world, I will reach the ending of the story.