642 Episode 17 A Storm in a Teacup (3)

The next morning, I called the people of Seoul Station together.

In a cluttered atmosphere, people were looking up at me as I stood on the stage.

The beggars who followed the ark, and the soldiers who followed Sergeant Jung Moonho.

The spotted boy and the boy's father, Myung Sewoon, were also seen.

Myung Sewoon was now completely freed from the restraints of the ark.

—Thank you very much, Inseok-ah. How should I repay this favor?

—Thank you, brother.

They were greeted early in the morning.

The Dragon Head Ark was still behind him, but he wouldn't abuse him as a possessed body like before.

Because he saw the story he wanted here.

Looking around, the overall number of people was much lower than yesterday.

I didn't bother punishing the fugitives. It was because I wondered what would be the point of holding on to people who would leave anyway.

I looked around at each of the people gathered and slowly opened my mouth.

"I'll tell you frankly."

There were still around two hundred incarnations left here.

I gave a plausible answer to the Ark, but honestly, I didn't have the confidence to lead them all.

"I can't be responsible for all of you. I can't even tell you that it's safe to stay with my group. If you want to leave, you can go. There will be no separate [punishment]. If you wish, please leave the station right now."

People were very upset by my remarks. I could hear the beggars openly giggling.

"Let's go. I don't think it's here."

"I heard that there are good groups in Dongdaemun and Dobong Station right now. All the beggars in that area have fallen for Dobonggu."

I don't know about Dongdaemun, but if it's Dobonggu, I can guess.

That is where the tyrant king is.

"The new ark is pretty strong too."

"It was just luck. My sponsor said that the skill he saw was just like that."

"Wasn't the woman with the sword quite strong then? That person seemed like an underling."

Jung Heewon, who had not yet regained consciousness, was asleep in the tent provided by Sergeant Kim.

Fortunately, Jung Heewon's internal injuries were not serious. Rather, since she absorbed the energy of the elixir, she will be much stronger than before when she wakes up.

Jung Eunho, who woke up earlier than his sister, could be seen sticking his head out of the tent.

"Even if you stay here, you'll just die like a dog. Leaders are more important in an era like this."

"That's right. You have to be under someone who is strong and has leadership. That young man... Honestly, he looks a bit like a cheater."

Public opinion at Seoul Station was gradually divided. About half of the total number of beggars decided to leave.

Among them, their representative smiled and bowed her head.

"Representative, then we're done..."

I nodded lightly and let them go.

Most of them were middle-aged men. The incarnations with the strongest fighting power at the present time. It was a power that could be regretted if it was regrettable.

On the other hand, those who remained were mostly young people or old people who had no place to rely on.

In a sense, these were the real 'Beggar Sect'.

"What about the remaining people...?"

It was the girl who was with Jung Eunho who raised her hand and asked.

Children who plundered adults.

Kids with nowhere to go were watching me.

"The remaining people will become members of my group. The name of Seoul Station group was originally the Beggar Sect, so those who are here can continue to work under the Beggar Sect."

The Beggar Sect created by the ark will continue to exist in this scenario.

A faint look of disappointment spread in the children's eyes.

"Then, again we—"

"However, the new Beggar Sect will no longer turn children into predators."

At my words, the children's eyes widened.

"The new Beggar Sect will not continue the old way. The Beggar Sect is no longer a beggar's organization. If there are people who remain thinking about the old Beggar Sect, I hope they will leave the station immediately."

Another dozen people left the station.

I opened my mouth to the rest.

"As you are probably aware, you cannot survive by begging in this new world. The constellations do not give anything away for free."

"So, what do we do now?"

"Build your own story."

The group members looked puzzled, as if asking what that meant.

Well, these people still don't even know what a 'story' is. In the meantime, building a 'story' would be no different from advising young children who don't know anything to 'have your own dream big'.

They need to slowly learn what it means to build a story and what it means to have your own story.

What I can do now is teach them how to hold a pen so they can write their first sentence.

"Let's start by eating rice."

At my signal, Sergeant Kim and the soldiers appeared at the entrance of Seoul Station. They were carrying food made outside. It was 'Tangkangju Barbecue' and 'Soup' made with the heat of the magic furnace.

Fascinated by the smell, people flocked with exclamations. Everyone probably hadn't had a proper meal since the beginning of the scenario.

"We'll distribute meals, so everyone line up at the front!"

Under the direction of Sergeant Kim, the cooks began distributing rations.

I also received a barbecue and a plate of soup from Sergeant Kim.

"You're good at it."

"No. Originally, I did some cooking."

Sergeant Kim laughed as if he was embarrassed, and he also picked up a piece of meat and mumbled.

It was this morning that I asked Sergeant Kim to cook.

As soon as I woke up, I bought monster parts that were on the market at a low price through the exchange, and asked Sergeant Kim and the cooks to make breakfast for people.

"Rather than that, how did you know this recipe?"

"A kid I know told me."

The recipe for the monster followed the recipe of Yoo Jonghyuk, the best cook in 'Ways of Survival'. Indeed, like Yoo Jonghyuk, who was sincere in cooking, a great dish was born with only the basic ingredients.

"Jam, did you put the elixir I gave you in the cooking?"

"Yes, of course."

The peculiarity of this dish is that the sauce is mixed with Murim's Elixir.

"But those elixirs... are they left by the ark?"

"Yes that's right."

Myung Sewoon is the father of the spotted boy who came to visit me early in the morning.

'100 Years of Roots' was handed over.

I recognized right away that this was the elixir the ark originally intended to give me.

However, Jung Eunho's internal injuries have already been cured.

After thinking about it for a while, I decided to put all three roots of the 100-year-old sewage plant in a dish and feed it to the group members.

"Wow, it's really good. Can I have another bowl?"

"President Park. It seems that your biceps suddenly got bigger."

“Heh heh, I’m kidding."

The faces of the chattering people were much brighter than before.

'100 Years Old Root' is the elixir that the ark left for the Beggar Sect. I also had two summoning pills left, so I wanted to use these elixirs to improve the survivability of the group members.

The group members who ate a hearty breakfast after a long time looked more comfortable than before.

When everyone had properly emptied their bowls, I opened my mouth again.

"To all of you who are left here, I will teach you the skills and hunting methods necessary for survival."

Of course, I didn't mean to teach my skills. I had no skills to teach in the first place.

Fortunately, the Beggar Sect possesses skills at Seoul Station.

The room's skills were stockpiled in large quantities.

It seems that he tried to teach it in earnest when the degree of the Beggar Sect grew a little more.

Although the Beggar Sect’s martial arts were a few steps behind Kyrgios's [All-In-One] or the Impenetrable Swordsman's [Pajeon-Geomdoe], they were still skills that could reach the pinnacle of <Murim> with constant training.

"Sergeant Kim."

"Yes."

Sergeant Kim, who learned martial arts from the skill book given to me in advance, showed a light demonstration of martial arts while holding a baton.

Then, the people sitting in the front row vomited exclamations.

The martial art used only by the Ark.

Now everyone can learn that martial art.

Sergeant Kim cleared his throat lightly and opened his mouth.

"From now on, I will become a martial arts instructor and teach you skills, or help you learn skills."

People looked at each other in disbelief. It was a look that somehow lacked confidence.

"We… Can we really learn something like that?"

"No problem. I got used to it in one day."

Both children and the elderly can become strong in this world if they set their minds to it.

The beggars, who have lived their lives entrusted to a group, needed the conviction that they could change themselves if they worked hard.

When the time comes, they must be at the forefront of the scenario, whether they like it or not.

I don't know how many of them will be able to live in that world, but I still wanted to leave a little spark here.

Of course, this story won't change much if there is one Beggar Sect.

Just because a few of these people practice martial arts, learn skills, and gain mastery, there is no way that an impossible scenario will suddenly become possible.

Everything is just a storm in a teacup, and the ending of the 41st turn may not change.

"One! Two! One! Two!"

Nonetheless, watching the children imitate the moves, I thought for a long time about the waves swirling in the empty teacup and Yoo Jonghyuk who had repeated his life over 1,863 times.

Obviously, the lives of the characters in the story may not ultimately change.

But anyone who reads their story will have their world changed.

At least I believe so.

"For the time being, I will leave Seoul Station to Sergeant Kim."

"Are you sure you're okay with me?"

I nodded.

"Sergeant Kim also trusted me and entrusted his flag to me."

Sergeant Kim handed over the 'red flag' he had to me.

From the purple flag, you can appoint as many deputy representatives as you want.

If Sergeant Jung Moonho were alive, he would have been entrusted with the role, but for now, this person was the best.

Righteous soldier. Somehow, that characteristic reminded me of Lee Hyunsung, which made me choose this person as the vice-president.

Sergeant Kim should be able to manage the station well until Jung Heewon wakes up.

"Are you really going to leave like this? Wouldn't it be nice to go with Heewon-ssi when she wakes up?"

Originally, I waited a bit before moving on.

However, the delay near Seoul Station was long, and above all, the hidden scenario had already arrived.

The content of the scenario are slightly different from the main story of 'Omniscient Reader'.

To be precise, I would say that the difficulty has become higher than it was then.

From now on, not only my life but also the lives of my group members were on my shoulders.

Fortunately, the number of stations occupied by the ark and those occupied by Sergeant Kim were quite large.

It has already occupied as many as 12 stations.

And yet, the color of my flag was still purple.

How many more flags must be acquired in the future to create a 'black flag'?

I do not know either.

In any case, I now have to contend with the role of a representative.

And for me, the final destination was decided.

I'll have to go quickly.

Above all, there was someone who I was supposed to meet there.

"Hyung."

When I turned around, Jung Heewon's younger brother Jung Eunho was looking up at me.

I lightly tapped Jung Eunho on the shoulder and said, "Take good care of your sister."

The point is, Jung Eunho looked at me with an expression that he didn't know what to do, then silently nodded and let go of his hand. Behind him I could see the spotted boy and other children coming out to see me off.

I waved lightly at the children.

Jung Eunho and the children will be the protagonists of future scenarios.

I just hope that the aspirations of this world will be delayed even a little so that they can explore their own stories for a little longer.

After saying goodbye like that, I was walking around Seoul Station when the cell phone in my arms suddenly rang.

—Inho-ssi. Where are you?

When I opened my phone, I saw Ye Hyunwoo's name. We exchanged numbers when we parted just in case, but it seemed that the Internet had somehow stopped working.

Just as I was about to reply, I heard an explosion from afar.

A roar like a huge building collapsing.

I quickly jumped up to a nearby high-rise building to assess the situation. Smoke was billowing in the distance.

Gwanghwamun’s side. To be precise, it was in the direction of the National Palace Museum of Korea.

—Failed to secure the 'Sword of Death'. Probably no one will be able to use the sword this time.

I blankly looked down at Ye Hyunwoo's text message.

'Failed to secure the sword of death.'

The sword of death is the sword that Kim Dokja used to destroy the 'Absolute Throne'.

Kim Dokja knew that, using the 'Absolute Throne', he would not be able to reach the correct ending. So he broke the 'absolute throne' and became himself the 'King of the Kingless World'.

However, in this turn, there is no weapon that can break the 'Absolute Throne'.

When I raised my head, the stars in the sky were swirling and brightening.

This story wanted the birth of a king.