825 Episode 42 Destination (1)

—Shin Yoosoung, <Kim Dokja Company>.

What kind of scenery comes to mind when you hear the words 'big house'?

I think of a living room.

In that living room, there is a large fireplace (not a real fireplace), a chandelier that swings slightly overhead, and several long tables and sofas.

People are sitting at the table reading books or sitting on the sofa chatting away.

And in the middle of them is Kim Dokja, holding a smartphone.

He is holding a smartphone, but it is hard to tell whether he is reading a novel or not.

His expression is not very visible. He seems to be smiling, or he seems absorbed in something.

But he looks stable. He looks more comfortable than ever before.

Recalling that comfort, I mustered up the courage to open my mouth.

"Yes. I want to go to a Big House."

The 'big house' I had in mind and the 'big house' Kim Dokja had in mind were definitely different. The 'big house' that I could imagine was <Kim Dokja Company>’s—a somewhat artificial, modern-style living room.

"Can I go?"

I don't know what that place was like. However, I had to go to the 'Big House'.

That's because I heard that 'Second Kim Dokja' was there.

The Fearsome Engineer stared into the darkness of space for a moment at my answer.

"Then…"

The Engineer added, placing a special emphasis on the word 'station'.

I understood what the Engineer said.

That was certainly the law of this <Star Stream>. The reason why Prisoner of the Golden Headband, who was able to bring the scriptures from Cheonchuk in one go by riding the Somersault cloud, had to go through all kinds of hardships with his party.

The reason why Kim Dokja, who was able to debut in the <Star Stream> in one breath by choosing a strong sponsor, had to become a Constellation himself instead of choosing a sponsor.

"Just getting to the station is enough."

That's because this world needs stories.

"As long as that station is close to the destination."

The Engineer continued, tapping the instrument panel with his finger.

I thought for a moment about who the 'Constellation' he was talking about was.

The Engineer's questioning lips formed a small smile as he looked at me.

"Did I pay the fare?"

I belatedly remembered that he too was once a Constellation.

The voice of the Engineer mumbling like that contained a strange longing and passion.

At least for that moment, he was not the 'Chief Engineer of Fear' but the 'Final Chief Engineer' Surya who had seen his own fate.

I stood next to him and stared into the vast universe of Fear.

Where is his Destination?

Is he challenging the [Last Wall] with <Kim Dokja Company> once again? Or is he continuing to replay the ending of an event that has already happened?

Or is this eternal journey in Fear itself his Destination?

A life where the story itself is the purpose.

When I think about it, Kim Dokja was the same.

The ◼️◼️ that 51% of Kim Dokja reached was 'Eternity'. The ending that he chose, who was more curious about the ending than anyone else, was a story that never ends. Instead, he left the 'End' to the other Kim Dokja. And in a sense, his end has not yet been realized.

If the 'End' is completely written, will Kim Dokja be happy?

I don't know. The essence of my soul is a fragment of Kim Dokja, which is less than 0.1% of the content.

I, who am like that, have no right to decide Kim Dokja's happiness.

But maybe I, who am like that, can help Kim Dokja choose happiness.

That's when the smile disappeared from the conductor's expression.

The subway shook dully with a thud. Something was biting and shaking the tail car of the subway. At first, I thought it was a 'Tooth Fin,' but upon closer inspection, it wasn't.

The area beyond the tail car was being eaten by something.

An unprecedented fog covered the back of the train.

I realized what had been chasing me.

The cleaner of the <Star Stream> that devours everything that goes against probability.

It was definitely it. It was the powder of the 'Nameless Mist' that Jaehwan-nim had stabbed and disintegrated. It had somehow recovered its strength and crossed over to this 'Fear'.

The Engineer's lips twisted into a question mark as if it was quite unpleasant.

If I think about it, Surya's train was eaten by Outer Gods in the main story as well.

As if he couldn't let it go like that this time, the Engineer increased the train's speed.

My body trembled and I shook anxiously. The scenery around me began to quickly flow by.

Suddenly, I thought that this might be the last time I would see him.

I wanted to ask him something as I looked at his large back guiding the way. But no appropriate question came to mind.

Why did I end up crying without realizing it? Do I have the right to be crying at those words?

"You should come with me."

Only after saying that did I realize that was what I really wanted to say.

The director paused for a moment and then said without looking back at me.

"I’m nothing. I’m nothing compared to the Kim Dokja you remember."

I didn’t intend to say that.

Even so, the moment I heard him say that, I let out a weak sound.

Maybe it was because of Fear.

While experiencing the 40th Round of Fear, 「The Evil Sophist」, something in my heart might have broken down.

I felt anxious that I wouldn’t be able to do things like Kim Dokja or Cheon Inho. Maybe it was because of that weak heart that I asked Surya to go with me.

I know. He is not a character of this world line. His ending has already ended.

"Can I go all the way?"

I didn't want to ask that question. I wanted to ask how to reach the 'Big House'.

And the Fearsome Engineer told the passenger who had said the wrong destination the correct location of the destination.

"Huh?"

I suddenly thought I knew what he was talking about.

The origin of this universe is text, and what is not recorded does not exist 'yet'.

And what does not exist cannot change the world.

The train shook even more violently.

I instinctively grabbed Anna Croft's arm and reached out to the Engineer.

The scenery disappeared.

When I blinked again, Anna Croft and I were outside the train. The cold air brushed against my nose. Surya's train, shining like a star across a distant galaxy, was leaving with a particle of 'Indescribable Distance.'

Will we ever meet again?

I carried the unconscious Anna Croft on my back and looked up at the long tail of the train for a moment.

—Youngest.

The phone call connected again.

It was Kim Dokja.

—There is no time to be absentminded like that. Open the guide quickly. It seems that the additional descriptions of the guide written by Han Sooyoung were unlocked at the same time as the interpretation of 'Subway on the Way Home from Work'.

I quickly turned on my smartphone and checked the contents.

And I found a strange description.

It was an additional description related to the Disaster-level Fear 'Tooth Fin'. There was another additional description.

The Fear I encountered along the way, about 'Alien Traffic Lights'. And.

Including 'Subway on the Way Home from Work'.

All three of the Fears I encountered so far had descriptions of the same content added.

So the difficulty of the Fears was extremely high.

No, wait a minute. Then this.

Kim Dokja's voice was heard along with the fear that was slowly rising.

—Remember when you first read the rules?

I checked the 'Fear Exploration Guidelines' again. Then, the damn rule I had forgotten came to mind clearly.

It clearly said so in the Exploration Guidelines.

At first, I was wondering what the heck was false in the guidelines, but now I think I know.

"This was a lie."

If this was a false guideline, then everything I've experienced is explained.

Not only that, but it also makes sense that there were no survivors from the 'Fear Expedition' for the past three rounds.

They all started their exploration in the 'Middle Area' like me, and were wiped out by an unexpected Fear.

Even this 'Exploration Guideline' was scary.

I expected it.

The problem is that you can't defend against everything just because you expected it.

Gooooooo.

The place I fell was the ruins of a city center.

My desire to ask where this place was and my desire not to know where this place was clashed.

A thick white fog covered the ground. The torn arms, legs, and torsos of the incarnations were scattered here and there. Some were of a martial artist, and some looked like the incarnations of Constellations.

Beyond the fog, I saw a strange creature with eight long legs walking. The creature slowly moved its head as if searching for prey, and then started moving its legs again.

I asked, holding my breath.

"What on earth is that?"

There wasn't just one creature.

A creature with a long, thorn-like head that wiggled.

A giant boar-like appearance. A creature with twelve horns growing out of its body that carried corpses in a row. A giant baby that pushes everything in sight like a bulldozer.

—Divine beings of another world.

That’s right. Those were definitely 'Divine beings of another world'.

But why are there other-worldly beings wandering around here?

— Doesn’t that sound familiar?

"I wish you hadn’t said that."

— But this is my Second taste. I can’t help it.

"Damn it."

I knew a similar scene.

Foreign reporters and nameless things wandering around. Familiar signboard letters rolling on the floor. A statue of Yi Sunsin split in half and a broken throne.

Beyond the distant fog, the outline of the 'Industrial Complex' where <Kim Dokja Company> lived was vaguely visible.

Maybe the 'Big House' of the Second Kim Dokja might be a little different from the place I imagined.

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