Kim Dokja's mind buzzed with the weight of his new power, like a sudden influx of knowledge he wasn't yet ready to comprehend. The narrative threads were there, stretching out across time and space, yet he could only feel their existence faintly, like the hum of an electrical current running just beneath his skin.
The moment he sat in that chair — the chair of authorship — the world shifted. His surroundings were the same, the skyline of ruined buildings and smoldering streets, but there was something else. Something he couldn't quite grasp.
Sooyoung was still staring at him, her face a mixture of confusion and concern. She had seen the change, the way the world around him had rippled, but she had no idea what it meant.
"What the hell happened?" she demanded again, her voice sharper this time.
Dokja felt the urge to speak, to explain, but how could he? How could he put into words what he had just experienced? The weight of the chair, the quill floating beside him, the soft, insistent voice whispering in his ear. He was now one of the final candidates for something far bigger than he could have ever imagined. And more than that, the story was his now. Or at least, a part of it. He had tasted the power, felt it curl around his thoughts.
"I don't know," he said finally, his voice low, unsure. "But I think… I think I've just been chosen."
"Chosen for what?" Sooyoung asked, her brow furrowing in confusion.
"Audition," he replied, his mind still racing. "It's an audition to become the Author. The one who writes the reality we live in. The one who controls everything."
The words hit her like a physical blow. Sooyoung stepped back, looking at him with disbelief, then slowly taking a few steps forward. "You're saying you're supposed to be the one who controls the entire world? Like, literally everything?"
Dokja nodded. "Not just everything — but the story. The narrative itself. And I'm not the only one being tested. There are others, but…" He trailed off, his thoughts lingering on the girl he had met in the previous timeline. "But I'm the only one who's read the whole thing."
She looked at him like he was insane, and maybe he was. After all, the world they had lived in had long since broken down into a chaotic mess of apocalyptic trials and battles for survival. The idea of controlling such a world seemed insane, but Dokja now knew that was what the audition was about. It was a test of power, of perception, of storytelling. And he had been chosen as one of the candidates.
He felt a twinge in the back of his mind. The world was no longer simply a backdrop to his survival; it had become a canvas, and he was the one holding the brush.
"So, what now?" Sooyoung's voice cut through his thoughts, bringing him back to the present.
"I don't know," he admitted. "But I'm not going to sit around and wait for the world to fall apart again."
Sooyoung crossed her arms, eyes narrowing. "You're already thinking about what to do next, aren't you?"
Dokja looked down at his hands. They were still trembling, but it wasn't fear. It was anticipation. He could feel the threads again, stretching out in all directions, waiting for him to pull. To make a choice.
A flash of light caught his attention. A system message, popping up in front of him, was blinking with a message:
[You have unlocked the ability to alter the narrative.]
[You may begin by altering minor threads. Use this power wisely.]
He didn't have to think twice. The message was clear. This was the first step — to learn how to use the power he had been given.
He reached out, and for the first time, he pulled.
A single thread appeared before him, hanging like a delicate strand of spider silk. He could see it clearly, like a ribbon of light, stretching out across the landscape. The thread was attached to the memory of an innocent survivor from the district they had left behind. Her name was Han Mina, a young woman who had been left behind during the chaos.
Dokja knew her fate. She was going to be caught in a trap, a trap set by the monster factions that were hunting survivors. Her death would serve as a catalyst for a new wave of terror. But what if he could change that? What if he could prevent it?
He concentrated, pulling the thread just a little. The light shimmered as the thread stretched and twisted in his mind. His fingers tingled as he shaped it, crafting a new reality.
No. She won't die today.
The thread shifted, and the world responded. A faint pulse of energy rippled through the air, and then — nothing.
Sooyoung, who had been watching him intently, raised an eyebrow. "Did you just—?"
But before she could finish, the sky above them flickered. A swirl of colors, like the fabric of the universe itself being turned inside out, appeared. The world seemed to pause.
And then, as though nothing had happened, the scene around them resumed. But there was a difference.
Dokja could sense it. Han Mina was alive.
He could feel the change, the thread he had tugged now solidified into a new course. The survivor would escape her death and, with luck, find her way to a safer place. She wouldn't die in the trap, and that would be enough to shift the balance, to create another ripple in the narrative.
"Did it work?" Sooyoung asked, her voice full of disbelief.
Dokja nodded, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I think so."
The world hadn't ended. It hadn't collapsed under the weight of his decision. In fact, nothing had changed outwardly. But in his heart, he knew it had.
The first thread had been pulled.
And the world had shifted.
The air around them began to crackle. The reality they were in felt different, thinner somehow. There was a strange sense of being watched, and a subtle, oppressive pressure pressing down from all sides.
Dokja felt the tension coil inside him. He was no longer just a passive player in this scenario. He was the one shaping it.
Sooyoung noticed his shift in mood. "You're really going to do this, aren't you?" she asked, her voice quiet.
"I have no choice," he replied, his eyes flickering with determination. "The audition is in full swing. I have to take control now."
Another system message appeared, this time with a subtle change in the tone:
[Sub-Scenario: The Threads of Fate are now in motion.]
[Phase Two has begun.]
[You must alter at least five major narrative threads within the next twenty-four hours to prove your worth as the Author.]
[Failure to meet this requirement will result in the termination of your audition.]
Dokja's heart sank. The pressure was on now. There was no turning back.
But he couldn't stop. Not now. Not when he had the power to change everything.
End of Chapter 11