986 Episode 59 What Kind of Ending (7)

Moments later, the trio stepped onto the platform at Oksu Station. Heewon blinked again, her eyes slowly scanning the familiar surroundings. A cool wind swept past them. The scenery of the Han River stretched out before them, carrying a faint, metallic scent of water. Pausing near Dongho Bridge, which led toward Apgujeong, the three allowed themselves a moment of reminiscence.

Heewon was the first to speak.

"Something feels... off."

Wukong pursed his lips and responded.

"It shouldn't be strange, considering this isn't 'that world'."

"But the location is exactly the same."

Heewon was well aware. This world was not the one they had lived in. Still, the moment she saw the open bridge, she remembered the day the scenarios began. She knew full well this wasn't her world, but she couldn't suppress the memories.

The three of them gazed at the bridge in silence for a long while. Here, no dokkaebis appeared, the subway didn't stop, no monsters gave chase, and no dragons tore the bridge asunder. In the absence of such chaos, only their memories remained as proof that the story had existed.

Heewon bit her lip in silence. It had been a truly horrific time. Yet, she wondered why she looked back on this memory with such fondness.

A slight wave of dizziness made Heewon stumble once more, prompting Hyunsung to quickly grab her shoulder. Watching them, Wukong spoke up.

"Wait here for a bit while I take a look around."

"I'll come with you."

"It's easier if I go alone."

Wukong glanced at Heewon and Hyunsung before adding in a low voice.

"This probably won't be a very pleasant memory for you."

With those words, Wukong's figure quickly pulled away.

Watching him go, Heewon was reminded that he had once been a star in the sky. He was a constellation that had once enjoyed watching their tragedy. Wukong must have decided he didn't deserve to share the same memories as them.

"I wonder if he's being considerate or just aloof."

"That's right."

Wukong was clearly a constellation. A star that had witnessed their tragedy. But now, to them, Wukong was more than just a constellation.

Hyunsung hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

"I know this sounds strange, but... I'm often grateful that star watched our story to the end."

"…"

"I don't know if this is the right place to talk about this, but…"

"No, I know what you mean."

In that desperate scenario, if not for that single sliver of starlight before their eyes, they wouldn't have seen the end.

"It's infuriating that he enjoyed seeing me suffer, but that person sacrificed everything to protect us in the final chapter."

"…"

"It's not a matter of simply forgiving him; after all, we shared every moment."

They experienced that story together and survived to the end. So here they were now.

"Do you remember the initial scenario?"

Hyunsung smiled wryly at Heewon's question and looked at the bridge.

"How could I forget?"

"Everyone almost died here, right?"

"Heewon-ssi wasn't at Dongho Bridge then, so how do you know?"

"I've heard it countless times."

Heewon had begun the scenario elsewhere. But she, too, had read Han Sooyoung's story and knew well how Kim Dokja survived the initial scenario.

Trying to remember that time, Heewon extended her finger and asked.

"The bridge collapsed around there, right?"

"Yes."

"I heard there was an even-numbered bridge, a bridge only two people could cross."

Hyunsung nodded. His eyes were strangely focused, as if recalling the scene from that day.

"Gilyoung and I crossed the bridge together."

"I heard Myungoh Ahjussi carried Sangah-ssi and ran away."

"I really wanted to throw him into the river back then, but I held back."

The two chuckled at the mention of Han Myungoh's name, a name they hadn't heard in a long time.

Looking at the intact bridge, the two continued their conversation. About Yoo Sangah, about Lee Gilyoung, about Han Myungoh.

"And…"

Then, the scenes they remembered seemed to overlap over the intact bridge. The collapsed bridge. The menacing roar of an ichthyosaur. A man in a coat stood beside the precariously broken railing. Knowing it was a hallucination, the two held their breath and focused on the scene. Now, they desperately sketched out the story that only the three of them remembered in this world.

"The two were fighting over there, right?"

"They didn't fight, they just got hit."

"I wonder if Joonghyuk-ssi is doing well."

"I'm sure he's doing well. He's a strong man, isn't he?"

The two thought about a man. A regressor, stronger than anyone else in this world, and that's why he couldn't give up on this story until the very end.

"I wonder if he found him."

The wind blew again, and the scenery they'd remembered scattered. Countless cars honked their horns as they passed over the intact Dongho Bridge.

Hyunsung licked his lips.

"I hope he finds him."

"You really think so?"

Hyunsung hesitated, then nodded. Then Heewon spoke.

"Then what becomes of us who chose this ending?"

Perhaps it was a question she'd been holding back all along.

"Hyunsung-ssi, do you actually think we were wrong?"

Did the group who chose the ending where they didn't find Kim Dokja make it safely?

Hyunsung was about to say something when a booming voice came from afar. It was Wukong's.

"Youngest—where are you—!"

Hyunsung and Heewon smiled bitterly, looked at each other, and ran toward Oksu Station.

Finding Wukong wasn't difficult. He stood at the station entrance, loudly searching for Kim Dokja. Heewon scolded him.

"A kid who left home on his own won't come running if you call him that way."

"What are you talking about? There's no way he wouldn't come if I called him."

Heewon shook her head.

"I don't think he's here. Did he go to another area?"

"No, he's here."

"How would you know?"

"I smell the youngest."

Wukong calmly surveyed the area and said.

"He walked over there."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"How can you be sure when you can't use skills or stigmata anymore?"

"…"

"We're just ordinary people now. You're no longer a myth-grade constellation."

"Just trust me."

Despite Heewon's rebuke, Wukong remained firmly convinced. With no other options, the group followed Wukong past Oksu Station and into the Geumho Station area. Wukong, who had been sniffing, said.

"This way."

"Exactly the direction of the scenario."

If Wukong's judgment was correct, Kim Dokja was currently moving precisely along the area where the scenario occurred.

It was then that Heewon, who had stopped dead in her tracks, spoke.

"Great Sage, Heaven's Equal."

Wukong's ears twitched slightly as he walked ahead. Heewon, looking at the back of Wukong's head, asked.

"You said this world was created by Dokja-ssi's imagination?"

"Yes."

"Then what would happen if Dokja-ssi really yearned for that 'world' again?"

Wukong stopped.

"That couldn't be."

"How could you know?"

"It was a difficult ending; there's no way he would want to relive that story again."

"Is this world really the ending Dokja-ssi wanted to see? Do you truly believe that?"

Wukong slowly turned around. The moment she saw Wukong's distorted expression, Heewon was momentarily speechless.

Wukong asked.

"Why are you asking that now?"

His distorted face seemed both filled with rage and boundless sorrow.

*Tsutsutsu.*

And then, from somewhere, a familiar sound came. The three, their faces pale, turned to each other.

"No way, that was it."

Perhaps they misheard. But what if they heard correctly?

"We have to find Dokja-ssi, immediately."

Heewon, who had taken a hasty step ahead, stumbled violently.

"Heewon-ssi!"

Startled, Hyunsung supported Heewon. Feeling severely dizzy, Heewon frowned and leaned against him.

"It's okay."

Hyunsung, as if remembering something, looked around. This was Geumho Station. This was where Heewon had begun her full-scale scenario.

"We shouldn't have come here after all."

"No. That's not it…"

The tragedies of Geumho Station had long since faded from her mind. Sure, memories of this place had once tormented her, but now, long enough to let all those emotions flow with time, the dizziness she felt now wasn't due to those memories.

"Something feels off."

The moment she entered Geumho Station, a strange hallucination invaded Heewon's mind. The image of a blond man, faintly white, floated before her eyes.

Heewon knew who he was. But why was his face popping up now?

Wukong, watching Heewon, said.

"The youngest is nearby."

"Wait—"

Wukong ignored Heewon's words and started running. As he entered the station platform, a crowd of people awaited him.

Cameras were waiting everywhere. Staff members were bustling about.

"Uh, uh, you can't come in!"

Someone approached and stopped Wukong.

"We're filming! Please step back!"

"Filming?"

"Yes. We're filming a movie."

Why now, here? A strange feeling came over him.

"The youngest is in here."

As Wukong recklessly entered the scene, a staff member, lost in thought, shouted.

"Stop that guy!"

The staff rushed to stop Wukong. But Wukong swiftly dodged them all and sniffed again. The youngest's scent lingered.

Wukong frowned as he checked the empty underpass. It was a subway track. They were filming, but how could they possibly stop the subway for that reason?

*Tsutsutsu.*

Without hesitation, Wukong jumped down onto the tracks.

"What the heck, how did this guy get in?"

Even inside the tunnel, filming continued. People who looked like extras were strewn throughout the tunnel. They were covered in blood. Their makeup was so convincing that some of them looked like their limbs had been torn apart.

"Youngest!"

Walking through the eerie set, Wukong searched for the youngest.

"Where are you! Youngest!"

I knew he wouldn't come out if he called him. That's just the kind of guy the youngest is.

"Youngest!"

"Kim Dokja!"

"Dokja! I'm here!"

Every time he saw his back, he wanted to be his guardian angel. He wanted to light his path with starlight. He wanted to let him know what lay ahead, what obstacles he had to avoid.

"Block him!"

A crowd of people burst out of nowhere, blocking his path. With nowhere left to run in the narrow tunnel, Wukong had no choice but to use his strength.

"Get out of the way."

A thud, a crushing sound echoed from his swinging fist. A terrified scream. The camera shutter sounded. Wukong continued to run through the tunnel, knocking down every man who charged at him. Wukong gradually lost track of who was a character in a movie and who was an outsider. It was as if he couldn't tell how much of this world was fiction and how much was fact.

Running along that dark road, Wukong imagined the Geumho Station tunnel where Kim Dokja would have run.

Kim Dokja, who had taken down gophers alongside his companions. Kim Dokja, who had risked his life to execute the scenario. Kim Dokja, who had fought to save his companions and received the support of the constellations. Kim Dokja, who had coughed up blood and spilled stories, yet never gave up.

"Youngest."

His breath caught in his throat. As he raced through the tunnel in his human form, Wukong began to understand Kim Dokja's feelings.

And the closer he got to that feeling, the more he realized.

Even though he had been watching Kim Dokja for so long, he still didn't quite know who Kim Dokja was.

The youngest's scent was growing stronger. Across the pitch-black tunnel, he saw someone standing.

"That's incredible. I really didn't think you'd come this far."

A face he recognized appeared in the pale darkness.

Wukong gasped, glaring at the man before asking,

"What are you?"

"You already knew, didn't you?"

He was an interviewer for a security firm.

He'd thought something was off from the moment he first saw him. But since the youngest was such a strange person, he'd been complacent, assuming such a person could exist in his imagination.

But now he saw it wasn't. All his senses were ringing with a strong alarm.

The man before him—

The interviewer shrugged.

"You can't go any further. This isn't your authorized record."

"Where's the youngest?"

"He wants to go outside this 'world'."

"I can't allow that."

"You have no right to stop him."

"Yes. I'm his older brother."

For a moment, a faint pity flashed across the interviewer's eyes.

"That's why you couldn't be his 'sponsor'. You still have no idea what he's thinking."

"Shut up. If you don't hand over the youngest immediately—"

"Oldest Liberator."

A crash, like a large building collapsing somewhere, was heard. People screamed from afar. A subway horn honked. An ominous feeling filled him.

"How long do you think you can keep him trapped in your 'prison'?"

Someone was trying to create a 'scenario' in this world.