958 Episode 57 Twilight of the Gods (1)

—The Wenny King

Ragnarok, the twilight of the gods, was one of the representative 'giant stories' of the Star Stream, along with Olympus's 'Gigantomachia', Emperor's 'Journey to the West', and Eden's 'Great War of Good and Evil'.

Nevertheless, Ragnarok was never described in detail in the main story, in fact, because it was excluded from the scenario strategy route chosen by Kim Dokja.

What would the original 41st round have been like? Did Yoo Joonghyuk experience Ragnarok? Or did he die before? Or if not—

"Dokja-ssi."

Jung Heewon's voice brought me to my senses. The universe was rippling like waves, starlight shining down on me. The Orbital Elevator swayed precariously, as if it might explode at any moment.

At the same time, the Wenny King's words rang in my ears.

I cursed inwardly.

That's right. There's no way that Wenny King could safely take us to the 'higher scenario'.

I wondered what he was talking about, but I didn't have time to think about it in detail.

I don't know why, but it seemed like there had been a misunderstanding.

No. Maybe it wasn't a misunderstanding. After all, things haven't been so good with the <Asgard> since the 'Star Ladder' incident.

"Hold on tight, Heewon-ssi."

I held my breath, staring at the lightning bolts flying toward the 'Orbital Elevator'.

In any case, the scenario area would be reached in a single breath.

The moment Thor's lightning struck the Orbital Elevator, I manifested the power of the 'Demon King of Salvation'. [Way of the Wind] was imbued in my outstretched wings.

I grabbed Jung Heewon's wrist and launched myself upward. As the Constellations' quest for me rapidly retreated, I felt a rippling void curtain brush past us.

A system message echoed in my head. I slowly closed my eyes, the weight of the 'Giant Story' weighing down my voice. I looked around and saw Jung Heewon lightly releasing her hand.

"This is an unexpected turn of events. I knew you'd start fighting right away."

Jung Heewon must have felt the story's pressure grow even stronger, but her expression remained composed. She must have been delighted that Jung Heewon had grown enough to withstand the story's thunderous, higher scenario.

"You shouldn't let your guard down."

"That's right. But where is this place?"

I looked around with Jung Heewon. We had landed on a somewhat desolate entrance. After walking a short distance along the entrance, a small holographic sign appeared.

Ticket booth. Jung Heewon glared at it for a moment, as if grasping the hidden meaning of the word, and then asked,

"Are they selling tickets?"

"I suppose so."

"A 'Ragnarok' scenario, huh? Selling tickets when the world is on the brink of destruction?"

"The Constellations enjoy even their longing as a story."

They revel in the stories of the incarnations, and even their own demise is a show.

It's likely they were so obsessed with stories that they burned everything they had to become Constellations.

"Let's go."

Since we'd passed through the void veil, there had been no sign of the Constellations approaching, so we proceeded along the access road at a leisurely pace.

Footprints, large and small, were imprinted throughout the access road. Some appeared human, others like those of giants or benevolent beings.

I recalled the mention of this access road in 'Ways of Survival'.

I walked among the jumbled mass of footprints, searching for those I recognized. The footprints of those who had walked this path before me. Suddenly, I could hear the voices of my companions, looming over the two hundred feet between those footprints.

Those footsteps, slightly gloomy yet resolute, seemed to belong to Dansu ahjussi.

The confident and strangely arrogant footsteps seemed to belong to Ye Hyunwoo.

The footsteps, with their precise strides, seemed to belong to Ji Eunyu.

Some of the footsteps, hesitating and turning back every now and then, seemed to belong to Cha Yerin.

Of course, all these thoughts could just be my delusions. The group might have already forgotten me. Eight years may have changed them, and 'Kim Dokja' might already have a different meaning for them.

Nevertheless.

I looked back and saw the footprints of me and Jung Heewon. Although they were clearly ours, they were also imprinted with the footprints of others, not just ours.

Kyung Sein.

Jung Jaewoo.

Goo Seonah.

I walked, and walked again, engraving the names of the readers I'd met. How far had I walked?

When we finally stood before the tactile marker that seemed to belong to Killer King, a building reminiscent of the Colosseum stood before us.

It was strange. A building this massive should have been visible from afar. Perhaps there was some special story concealing the building itself.

There was a short line in front of the ticket booth. There were about five or six customers waiting. It seemed like I had to buy a ticket here to enter 'Ragnarok'.

"Why am I of this rank!? What criteria—"

Judging by the slight scuffle in the front row, it was going to take some time.

Jung Heewon, somewhat relaxed, let out a dejected voice.

"It's like entering an amusement park."

"You know how scary movies that start like that are."

"Stop scaring me."

Seeing that we could chat like this over a doomsday scenario made me think we weren't in our right minds. Anyway, as we waited in line, exchanging light banter, a man standing in a corner of the ticket booth caught my eye.

Wrapped in a thick black cape, he looked around suspiciously.

I averted my gaze, feeling it wouldn't be good to get involved, but sure enough, the man spotted us and approached us.

"Are you guys planning to enter the battlefield?"

His voice was gravelly, as if he'd smoked several packs of cigarettes a day.

I briefly met Jung Heewon's eyes and nodded slightly, and the man smirked, as if he'd expected me to. He smiled.

"You look like newcomers. You don't have to get tickets at the ticket booth. I just happen to have tickets for two people."

I replied, looking at the man's blackened front teeth.

"We'll just buy them at the ticket booth."

"It'll be expensive, right?"

"It's okay. I have some coins."

"It's not just the price. You know what happens if you enter through the official route, don't you? If you're unlucky enough to get a wrong grade and end up in a strange place..."

The man stopped talking and glanced at me, then beamed.

"You guys. You came all this way without knowing anything, huh?"

"In any case, I have no intention of buying tickets on the black market."

"Don't worry about the price. I'll give you the tickets for free."

"Free?"

Jung Heewon beamed, and the man nodded vigorously, holding out two tickets from his pocket.

"Yes. Even if I'm a merchant, I can't charge you the same price as someone who is new here. Here."

I stared down at the ticket the man offered me and said,

"No, I won't take it."

"What? Why?"

"We want to enter with dignity."

The man's expression changed at my answer.

"You know what this ticket is, don't you?"

For a moment, I felt ominous. The man took a step closer and asked,

"Shouldn't you be entering through that 'ticket booth'?"

The air in the area slowly shifted. The man's distorted expression darkened, and his lips moved. It was [Transmission].

—I can sense it. You have a contract with an Outer God, right? Who? Who did you contact? ■■■■? Or ■■■■■■■? The man with the forked tongue took a step closer to me.

Jung Heewon, her expression hardened, placed her hand on the hilt of her sword.

—You must come here. The army of hell awaits you.

I stopped her and asked the man,

"What are you talking about?"

"Are you planning to pretend you don't know?"

The man glared at me with frustration, then spat out.

"Think carefully. You don't have to side with the Constellations and see the world's ■■. Don't you know? How insignificant the ideals of those cowardly Constellations are. What meaning does the end of everything hold for this universe?"

The man, having spoken passionately, took another step closer. He then held my wrist with one hand, trying to hand me the ticket.

"Hurry up and win. This battlefield needs you. A talent like yours, I'll have to write a letter of recommendation myself, even if it means—"

At that moment, something strange happened. The hand that had grabbed my wrist began to turn a bright red.

The man, who had hurriedly grabbed my wrist as if burned by a hot fire, screamed. The ticket he'd dropped fluttered and fell to the floor.

The man, who had been staring blankly down at his hand, suddenly raised his head and looked up at me.

"See…"

I felt something stirring inside me.

<1>[The story, 'King of Fear', shows signs of discomfort.]

The pale man suddenly fell to the floor and muttered.

"See you."

"What…"

"Oh great master. Oh King of Fear. The final coordinates of the distant Apocalypse Record..."

"Excuse me."

"Ugh, ugh. Ugh—!"

As I approached, the man who had started the fight trembled and began to run away in a hurry.

As the sound barrier he had deployed disappeared, the noise of the area returned to my ears.

Jung Heewon asked, dumbfounded.

"What just happened? Do you know the way?"

"It seems similar."

I gave Jung Heewon a vague explanation, but I knew which group the man who had spoken to us was a member of.

The man who had just disappeared was a member of the 'Seeker of the End', the core force behind this grand narrative, 'Ragnarok'.

I looked down at the two tickets that had fallen to the floor and tried to pick them up.

Jung Heewon asked,

"Are you going to use them?"

In the meantime, the line had thinned considerably, and it was soon our turn.

Somehow, the very beginning of this grand narrative scenario felt unusual.

Pay the fair entrance fee to enter the battlefield, or use the black market ticket you happened to get?

I slowly opened my mouth.