[Someone Who Remembers You]

Remark: this story happens in the 3 year period when Kim Dokja disappeared due to the deal with the Secretive Plotter. This story is basically a side story written by Han Sooyoung to Kim Dokja in order not to forget about him. Therefore,whenever she says "you" she's referring to the reader-us/Kim Dokja.

Have a nice read!

This story is for you who have nothing more to read at the end of the world.

One year and 364 days ago.

On the day you were not with us, something strange happened in Seoul.

Seoul, which had been designated as a scenario closed space, was reopened, and an area with castle larger than Yeouido appeared in the place where the original Gwanghwamun was.

The 73rd Demon Realm.

People still call the land like that. Even though the demon king is no longer there, they are still like imagining that the demon king is here.

―Recover Seoul from the demon king who colluded with the dokkaebi!

Someone called you the devil

―In honor of the savior who saved the Korean Peninsula.

Someone admires you as a savior.

But to some people, you were neither a savior nor a demon king.

But, they remembered you.

“How old am I now?”

Jihye Lee muttered as she looked up at the sky where the rain was pouring down.

“How old are you Sung-yi?”

Shin Yoosung looked at the sea in front of Haeundae, where the wet wind was blowing.

"I don't know. But one thing is for sure, I’m two years older.”

The two girls looked at the sea and fell into long contemplation.

If you think about someone too long, everything in the world looks like a trace of that person.

“Have you not contacted the Constellations?”

"No. How about you?”

"No."

Seagulls passing by, seashells lying on the beach, and even that squid sea creature was washed up in the foam. A small sea species that had lost several legs was flapping along the shore, breathing heavily.

Grade 9 marine species Little Cuttlefish.

Shin Yoosung, who reached out to creature, used [Advanced Multi-species Communion] to finish the rapport, and then completed the taming with [Tame]. The squid quickly clung to Shin Yoosung's palm and wrapped around her leg.

"That's not ahjussi."

Since you had already disappeared and returned twice, the company still believed that you might come back as if nothing had happened.

“So what? He was here, and I saw it.”

“Then I am going to collect all the monsters I see.”

The man who raised a "calamity".

Shin Yoosung thought about you. She thought again and again about the first time she met you.

“Oh, I got a call from Sang-ah yesterday.”

“Oh, me too.”

“Are you going?”

"Yes."

A swarm of insects flew in from afar with a rumbling sound.

The boy who followed you like a god was riding a huge golden scarab and posing like a Greek hero.

Shin Yoosung, who was looking up at the boy, asked.

“Where did you get that again?”

“Isn’t it cool?”

Lee Gilyeong smiled triumphantly and said while stroking the beetle's horn.

“I evolved it with the factors I got this time. ‘The Horn of Unbreakable Faith’.”

Lee Jihye clicked her tongue. Shin Yoosung asked, narrowing her eyes.

"That's not the original name, did you give it to it?"

“What is that squid?”

“Tentacle calamity Kim Dokja.”

“Where did you get that monster?”

Lee Jihye, who had been listening to the conversation from afar, lay down on the shore with an expression like "It starts again."

She saw something like a shooting star falling in the distance.

Since meteorites often fell after the fifth scenario, Lee Jihye didn't care much. Given its size, it didn't seem to have any great items in it, and even if a meteorite did contain monster species, it wouldn't be a big deal.

After you disappeared, the incarnations of the Korean peninsula became quite strong. Now, if even the civilian incarnations join forces, they can overcome most of the sub-scenarios.

So, if you leave it alone, someone will figure it out.

For today, even Lee Jihye was tired of fighting, and rather enjoyed watching the kids fight.

Shin Yoosung and Lee Gilyoung took something like a smartphone out of their pockets and were bickering.

“Hey, Shin Yoosung. What level are you?”

"37."

"I'm 38."

"Actually, it's 39."

“Oh, I leveled up on the way. I am 40.”

It was pretty obvious what he was talking about.

They must be playing the new game 'King of the Monster Collector'.

‘King of Monster Collectors’ was a game created by ‘Mass-producer’, the constellation of . A real-time collection RPG that raises the level by registering various monsters in the encyclopedia.

What was interesting is that you could only register information on the monsters you actually met, and if the collection rate of the encyclopedia satisfies a certain level, you could receive a reward from the desired constellation.

―You have already collected 150 species! Well done.

Your voice shyly gives compliments while wearing the white coat you wore every day.

Shin Yoosung, who was staring at you in the game, gave a sharp tone.

"It's different from his voice."

“Who did the dubbing?”

"I don't know."

Anyway, the sales of this weird game made by the Constellation were better than expected, so the guaranteed flow of coins into the corporation was quite good. So, if the citizens didn't starve while you were away, it might be because of that stupid game.

The children who were quarreling with each other laid side by side with Lee Jihye and were looking up at the sky.

To be precise, most of them were looking up at the stars.

It was a habit the children developed after you disappeared. Looking up at the sky whenever possible and counting the stars in the sky. Finding a star which light is so dazzling, so bright in the sky that you can't even see it.

"It's falling a lot today."

Something that is not found in the sky.

"Right"

Only then did Lee Jihye realize that something was wrong.

Falling meteorites were a common occurrence, but this time there were a few more.

Especially that black meteorite.

“Is this your first time seeing that color?”

Lee Jihye remembered the story you told her a long time ago.

There are various meteorites in this . There're meteorites with an item in them. There're meteorites containing monster species.

And… … What was the black meteorite?

The meteorite drew a long tail and moved away quickly.

"Seoul… … No, it’s from Gyeonggi-do.”

I had a bad feeling.

When Lee Jihye and Shin Yoosung jumped up from their seats, Lee Gilyoung called three giant scarabs as if he had been waiting for them.

"Let's go."

After you disappeared, there are people who became sensitive.

Of course, I was sensitive before, but I became more sensitive anyway.

Gong Pildoo, who had eaten a whole hamburger, put on a thick bread hat. The woman sitting across asked.

“Is there any hair loss medicine in the dokkaebi’s bundle?”

Gong Pildoo was startled, but he tried to answer calmly.

“There are, but they are too expensive. And you have to keep taking it.”

“Rumor has it that Jecheon Daeseong-nim also suffers from hair loss.”

“Are you making a fuss?”

The woman smiled brightly. To borrow your words, a woman who feels like ‘the main character in a novel’. She is popular wherever she goes and people follow her.

I don't know about other areas, but people in Seoul call her the Moon Goddess.

Such a weird nickname… it must have been given by the constellations who are crazy about Murim

“Are you not coming back to the industrial complex?”

“Hey, what will I do if I go? I'm sure i'll be made a gatekeeper again anyway.”.

“It’s our second anniversary soon. We decided to get together every year. He might really come back this time.”

Gong Pildoo was silent for a moment.

“Do you really think he will come back?”

“He will be back.”

"He didn't come back last year, did he?"

“We don’t know about this year.”

“Let’s get up.”

Gong Pildoo, approaching the counter, looked at the owner of the hamburger shop and asked.

“Is business going well?”

“It goes better than before. All other stores are out of business. You can give money in coins. Please give me 10 coins in particular.”

Gong Pildoo paid without saying anything. He was grateful just to be able to eat a hamburger in this day and age.

The name of the shop is ‘Paewang Hamburger’. It was the only restaurant opened in the area.

After staring at the name of the store for a while, Gong Pildoo complained to the owner.

“What is the King of Kings Hamburger? The king of burgers.”

“He is the most popular incarnation in Korea.”

“You should have said it was a ball-headed burger.”

The boss, who smiled modestly, looked at Yoo Sang-ah.

“Yoo Sang-ah, we are going to launch a set menu next month, so can we borrow Sang-ah’s name?”

"Of course."

"Thank you!"

The owner bowed his head to see them off.

Gong Pildoo licked his lips and came out.

“Did he get your permission for the menu?”

“It didn’t taste that good.”

The two of them walked and exchanged nonsensical jokes. In the past, it was good because it was like this, but these days, it is uncomfortable because it is not the past anymore.

"It's the first time since then that we've talked so long."

He didn't say when, but it was clear of what Gong Pildoo was reminiscing about. The past days they went through are still vivid in their memories.

At that time, Yoo Sang-ah was weak, and Gong Pil-du was fierce. The two enemies joined forces to fight the apostles and defeat the monsters. Protected Chungmuro.

Just because it was a passing time, they couldn’t beautify those days as ‘enjoyable’. Still, one thing was certain.

Gong Pil-du and Yoo Sang-ah then became colleagues.

"That's when I met that guy."

There was a statue of you where Gong Pildu's gaze reached.

The Demon King of the 73rd Demon Realm, holding the ‘Unbreakable Faith’ in one hand.

There are statues of you everywhere these days. Usually, there are many cases where a strange laurel crown is placed on it but it is often damaged by forces that hate you, but fortunately the statue here was intact.

But Gong Pildoo didn't seem to like the fact that you looked fine.

“No matter how you look at it, they made a mistake. He wasn't that handsome.”

“It looks fine to me.”

“I don’t have eyes for men.”

Yoo Sang-ah smiled quietly. From a distance, she saw the ‘S-Class Ferrar Guinea’ that Yoo Sang-ah had ridden on.

"Anyway, then you're coming for the second anniversary, right?"

“Where are you going? I will live here in the future. I bought the land too.”

“The land here?”

Yoo Sang-ah looked back at the street as if it was new.

A street swept away by monsters. The word ‘Seongnam’ was written on the broken sign.

Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do. Come to think of it, this place was once called that.

Gong Pildoo looked back at the ruined city and said proudly.

“It has not yet been restored, but it will be a big city soon. The number of incarnations migrating is also increasing. Above all, since I have my [Armed Fortress], there is no problem with the siege.”

“You speak like a father who returned to farming.”

"Do I look like a father who returned to farming?"

"No."

Yoo Sang-ah smiled at the bewildered Gong Pildoo.

Perhaps this is the new Chungmuro of land rich man Gong Pil-du.

It's not Seoul, but it's the closest metropolitan area to Seoul.

This position Gong Pil-doo chose may be the distance between Gong Pildoo and others.

“You must be healthy.”

"Okay. Next time I come to play-”

It was then that Gong Pil-du's complexion changed. He thought the magic waves around him were distorting, and he heard a warning from a constellation in the air.

Gong Pildu's armed fort, which unfolded in an instant to protect the two.

But the timing was a bit late.

Along with a terrifying explosion, a merciless aftershock swept across the area.

If it was a normal explosion, there was no way the walls of the fort would have been breached. But...

The fort, pierced by the flying debris, collapsed. It was impossible. No matter how hastily a fort was deployed, it was Gong Pil-doo's armed fort that was unmatched in terms of his defense.

"Pildoo!"

Yoo Sangah laid Gong PilDoo behind a nearby cover and pulled out the fragments stuck in Gong Pil-Doo's body. It took less than 3 minutes for her to spray the first aid treatment she had received from Lee Seolhwa and use [Arachne's spider web] to instantly close his wounds.

Yoo Sang-ah, who managed to breathe a sigh, held a fragment that emitted strange magic power in her hand.

Yoo Sang-ah had seen a magical wave similar to this before.

Yoo Sang-ah, whose expression hardened, immediately stood up from her seat.

“Stay here.”

“Don’t go. Don't move alone.”

Pildu Gong instinctively stretched out his hand.

Yoo Sang-ah looked down at Gongpil-du for a moment.

Yoo Sang-ah knew why Gong Pil-doo was talking like that.

However, Yoo Sang-ah is someone who remembers you.

"It's okay. I'll be back soon."

Yoo Sang-ah, smiling brightly, headed for the explosion with quick steps.

It wasn't difficult to find the place in question. A black hemisphere with a radius of 500 meters centered at the point of explosion

The way it was created…

It was the same dome in which Seoul was closed.

Yoo Sang-ah confirmed the ominous magic rising from the top of the hemisphere. Looking closely, she could feel the power of the giant story between the spells.

Yoo Sang-ah took a deep breath and stretched out her hand toward the hemisphere without hesitation…and…

“Weren't you told not to ‘act as a Dokja’?”

There was someone holding Yoo Sang-ah's wrist.

Yoo Sang-ah, who knew the owner of the hand, asked with a light smile.

“What kind of Dokja behavior?”

“No Dokja, please.”

Yoo Sang-ah, who was irritated with calm eyes, slowly blinked her big eyes and said.

“It’s easy to joke like that.”

“Does this sound like a joke?”

Han Sooyng with a displeased face was there.

Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah analyzed the shape and material of the hemisphere. From the sensitivity and intensity of the magic wave to its opacity.

Even when the analysis was finished a long time ago, the rest of the company still hadn't arrived. It was strange. When this happens, Yoo Joonghyuk usually appears first.

“The material is almost the same as the dome that closed Seoul.”

“Do you know why it appeared?”

“I think a meteorite fell.”

“I wonder if that was the sound of a meteorite?”

Han Sooyoung had also come to hear the roar. There were also reports of black meteorite appearing.

Han Sooyoung put her hand on the hemisphere.

“It’s also a scenario.”

5 minutes.

Few incarnations had flocked around.

Yoo Sang-ah, who was looking for something through the connection with Sungwoon, said.

“Most of the black meteorites are summon stones.”

In other words, this incident was the work of someone living in the vicinity.

Han Sooyoung thought of some prophets who would be hiding like rats, but there was no one that came to mind.

“Are there any guys left who can summon something like this?”

“As far as I know, no.”

"What about the federation? Do you have the jurisdiction of the federation?"

“I contacted the head of the match association, but he is not answering the phone.”

“I told you before. Cho Jincheol, that son of a bitch, should have been beaten up a long time ago.”

Maybe it's because an unusual event has taken place in a long time? I heard messages from the Constellations that secretly revealed their presence.

Han Sooyoung looked up at the top of the hemisphere. Haze rising constantly from the top. It seemed to look dangerous. A place she would never have entered if it were her usual.

Han Sooyoung looked at Yoo Sang-ah. The moment eyes met, they knew. Both were thinking the same thing.

“It is similar to the magic wave I saw then. And those fables.”

An Indescribable Distance.

The last day of the 73rd Pandemonium when ‘The Nameless Mist’ appeared. The day when the constellations in the sky fled and only one constellation prevented the disaster.

The two of them felt a magical wave similar to the haze that had just appeared in front of them.

It was a moment I never want to go through again. If such a cataclysm strikes again, no one can protect the Korean Peninsula.

However.

Han Sooyoung was thinking. Maybe this is an opportunity.

“He must have made a deal with one of the ‘outer gods’.”

As expected, the quick-witted Yoo Sang-ah was thinking the same thing.

“I guess so.”

“The one that appeared inside is one of those ‘outer gods’.”

"Right."

You don't know. Perhaps the existence that appeared inside this might know about the disappeared Kim Dokja. They may know why Kim Dokja evaporated from , or how to get Kim Dokja back.

Considering that there was a limit on the number of additional entries, it was clear that the reward was high. It is also related to the ‘outer gods’.

There was no point in further worrying.

“Let’s go at the same time.”

"Great."

“Aren't we acting like Dokja?”

Han Sooyoung thought for a while before answering.

“In a sense.”

The two entered the scenario at the same time.

And 30 minutes later. A woman,who swore that when you return, she will cut you in half with the sword you gave her, arrives on the scene.

"You two really…"

Jeong Heewon struck the sword several times at the opaque hemisphere and let out a deep sigh. Who comforted her was the man who came with her.

“Still, I’m glad that they went in together.”

“Are you happy with that?”

"Yes."

A man who mistook you for a lost shell thought hard with a big, dull head.

“Still, wouldn’t it be better to move in groups of comrades?”

“Do they look like comrades?”

“Come to think of it, hasn’t Uriel contacted you yet?”

“I think something is wrong with Eden.”

After you disappeared, Jeong Heewon lost contact with Uriel.

In other words, if a large-scale scenario occurred in Seongnam, she would have to fight without the help of a sponsor. In preparation for such a situation, she received guidance from the Transcendents, but it was not a situation where she could feel safe.

A large scarab flew in with a hissing sound in the distance.

“Heewon-oni!”

“Oh, are you here?”

Lee Jihye, Lee Gilyoung, and even Shin Yoosung. The members of gathered after a long time.

As Lee Hyunseong held out his inflated biceps, Lee Gilyoung threw a punch. It seemed to be their greeting. After they greeted each other, they simultaneously took out their smartphones and turned on the 'King of Monster Collectors'.

“Hyung, did you fill up the encyclopedia?”

“About twenty species. you?"

“I have 150 species.”

“Wow. Can you show me?”

Jeong Heewon whispered to Lee Jihye.

"It's the first time I've seen them talk."

“Since the Dokja's left, we’ve been distant. You look lonely. By the way, the master hasn’t come yet?”

"I don't know. I thought he would be there, but he wasn't."

There was a rattling sound somewhere. When Lee Jihye, who thought it was a master, turned her head, she saw Lee Seolhwa waving her hand as she pushed her sleeper from the side of the road. There was a bald head in the sleeper car, but it looked like a baby in a stroller, perhaps because of the missing hat.

Lee Jihye smirked.

“Oh, there is a hole in Pildu’s stomach.”

“Don’t talk to me.”

“Who hurt you? I will avenge you.”

“I was just hit by a meteorite fragment.”

Gong Pil-doo took out a fragment from his chest.

A fragment of an unsettling demon.

Lee Jihye opened her eyes wide.

"What is this?"

Lee Seol-hwa said while looking at the fragments.

“I did an ingredient analysis earlier, but there are fables from the other world.”

"The other world?"

It was only for a moment, but there was a cold silence.

The party looked back to the hemisphere at the same time.

Jihye Lee asked first.

“What about Sang-a and Sooyoung?”

"They entered first."

"No…why…"

The faces of the group darkened.

Among the party gathered here, there was no one who did not know the fear of the ‘outer gods’. Because they already had the experience of dealing with them twice.

The first time was when they dealt with the ‘Dream Eater’ in ‘Dark Castle’, and the next time was when they dealt with ‘Indescribable Distance’ in the Industrial Complex.

The first one was managed somehow because of you and Yoo Joonghyuk, but the second one couldn't honestly be called a fight. How could you say 'fought' with the disaster that even the constellations left the channel and fled?

“Could that ‘mist’ appear again?”

Shin Yoosung's voice trembled with anxiety.

The mist of death that took you from them.

A cataclysm that eats up entire planets, ‘

Indescribable Distance’.

Jeong Hee-won spoke in a friendly voice as if reassuring a child.

“It won’t be that god. The atmosphere is a bit different.”

Lee Hyunseong also nodded as if agreeing.

They don't know, but what appeared in this hemisphere is not 'indescribable distance'. However, it is true that it is related to the ‘outer god’.

Jung Heewon, thinking about something, shook her head.

“I think I know why the two entered first.”

"Why?"

Lee Jihye asked, but no one answered.

Everyone in the party was lost in their own thoughts in silence. Everyone seemed to realize something.

Except for Lee Jihye.

"What? What? Let me know too!”

Shin Yoosung raised her head and asked Jeong Heewon.

"Are you going to enter right now?"

“If possible, I would like to wait for Joonghyuk but I think it would be better to go to the application quickly just in case. Because the opponent won't wait.”

If the ‘outer god' did not descend properly, there was a good chance of winning.

“I can’t get in.”

The one who poured cold water on the atmosphere was Lee Gilyoung, who had been pounding on the dome since earlier.

“There is still a queue.”

“Queue?”

When Lee Gilyeong pressed the dome hard, a message came to mind with a tsutsutsutsu sound.

“Is there any way to break it?”

“An unbreakable horn of faith.”

A gigantic scarab that flashed behind Lee Gilyoung rammed the outer wall of the dome with its golden horn.

Quaang! Kwaaang!

Lee Hyeonsong then tried [Creating Mount Tae] and Shin Yoosung fired a breath with the Chimera Dragon, but the outer wall of the dome was still intact.

Lee Jihye, who was wielding a sword, grumbled.

“It’s difficult to summon a fleet here… … Heewon unnie hasn’t regained her strength yet, right?”

The most powerful destructive skill the group possessed was Jung Heewon's [Hell Flame]. However, now that Uriel's power could not be borrowed, Jeong Heewon's stigmata was not in a state where it could not fully demonstrated.

“Damn it, where did the master go at a time like this? How about asking the Grandpa Kyrgios?"

“Went to training together with Hayoung.”

“How about Goriye”

“This is not a high-level scenario area, so he won’t be able to come. At that time, he used a lot of probability to help us.”

In the end, there was nowhere to turn for help. They don't know if a miracle happens and a large number of snow-level constellations appear and lend probability, but

Of course they don't have the guts to do that.

Shin Yoosung muttered as she looked up at the sky where the dark clouds were creeping in.

“It’s time for him to come out soon.”

As if waiting, a message came through the air.

Echoing test broadcast. The group sighed lightly.

Jeong Hewon shook her head.

“Again, that repertoire. Is there a manual somewhere?”

“It definitely seems like an intro based on the manual.”

“The games made by grandpa Mass-producer are even better than those.”

“I don’t think the scenario was intended by the dokkaebi, but what happened?”

When they heard his voice, it wasn't Bihyeong or moreover Biyou. She couldn't even make a sound beyond Baaat.

Where did the new dokkaebi come from?

The dokkaebi was slightly taken aback by the company's sullen reaction, but somehow continued to speak.

The incarnations who noticed the abnormal situation in Seongnam City had already gathered around the dome.

The incarnations who read the message grumbled.

“So if you can’t go in, you won’t be able to participate.”

“Are you asking people outside to suck their fingers and watch?”

Then the dokkaebi smiled.

“A constellation? What does that mean?"

Even while listening to the dokkaebi's long nonsense, the company did not appear to be very nervous.

When looking at the trend of scenarios, there have been only a handful of cases where the difficulty of the 'sub-scenario' is abnormally high. Most of the catastrophic or genocidal scenarios that have occurred so far belonged to the 'main scenario'.

It should have been.

Class: S

Difficulty: ???

Stop the deity from descending into Seongnam City's closed area.

Reward: Preservation of the Korean Peninsula Scenario Area. 100,000 coins, additional compensation paid to one person with the highest contribution

Failure: The rise of the "new world" in the metropolitan area.

* This scenario has a limit on the number of people(400).

* Incarnations outside the confined area can cheer incarnations in the confined area to obtain cheering rewards.

“Does this make sense? Is this a sub-scenario?”

Lee Jihye raised a voice saying it was absurd. Other members of the company had same absurd expressions

No matter how weak a deity from the other world is, it is a ‘divine deity’.

Foreign gods from another world that even those constellations fear.

If such an existence descended on the metropolitan area, the entire Korean Peninsula could have been annihilated.

After a while, the incarnations in the closed area began to appear on the empty screen.

Lee Jihye, who was looking at the screen with anxious eyes, bit her nails and asked.

“What did ahjussi tell you to do in a situation like this?”

Jeong Heewon licked her lips and murmured.

"Well. If that person... … .”

“Wow, that’s crazy.”

Han Sooyoung, who received the sub-scenario, opened her mouth.

“Now you are telling me openly. ‘Here is the deity of the other world’.”

“You came in knowing this.”

“If you were really sure that was the case, would you have come in alone?”

Looking at the messages that popped up one after another, Han Sooyoung clicked her tongue.

“It sucks.”

“Try using [Avatar].”

"I'm already using."

Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah were approaching the epicenter, taking cover behind large and small buildings around them. The concentration of magical power increased as they entered the central area of ​​the closed area. On the way, they found several fallen incarnations, but all of them died.

“There it is.”

After about ten minutes or so, the bombing site appeared. Judging from the fact that there were meteorite fragments in the vicinity, there was no doubt that the main meteorite had fallen nearby.

“The avatars I sent earlier were killed around here.”

Cries could be heard from between the ruined buildings.

Yoo Sang-ah and Han Sooyoung looked at the scenery in front of them while holding their breath.

Fifty meters ahead, groans came from the half-destroyed church. Erosion had already begun, and the outer walls of the church were covered with strange tentacle plants.

After a while, monsters broke through the floor and came up.

Its appearance is too deformed to be a monster species in the scenario.

A monster in the form of a tiger with clusters of tentacles instead of a mane.

Undoubtedly. It was an 'outer god'.

However, Yoo Sang-ah's complexion was not that bad.

“I think it will be fine.”

"What's the basis for this?"

“I saw it on 「Hermes Network」.

“Did you use that stigma again?”

“The gods of the other world are scary, but not everyone is a ‘god’. Those are not the ‘outer gods’, but fragments of them . Among them, very small fragments.”

Certainly, if it were not for the body of the 'outer god', there was nothing that they could not fight. Anyway, they've already fought the 'outer god' twice.

"Still, it's probably a 4th or 5th class monster."

“There are some guys who look like they are in the 2nd or 3rd grade. Let's go.”

Having found the source, there was no longer any hesitation. The two jumped out of the building's outer wall at the same time.

Oh oh oh!

The monsters that discovered the two threw their heads back and cried out in unison.

About 10 beings can be seen in front.

The [Black Flame] that rose from Han Sooyoung's fist crushed the first monster that rushed at her.

Han Sooyoung's black dye formed a unique pattern and took the shape of a knuckle on her fist. The regime that stretched out one after another hit the faces of the monsters. Indeed, the punch imbued with the power of Fable was extraordinary, and the monsters that had rushed at it collapsed with merciless screams.

Subsequently, [Arachne's spider web] stretched out by Yoo Sang-ah tied the feet of the entities in front.

Then, two blades extended from her hands and blew off the neck of the bound monster. Black blood spurted out with the sound of push-shu-shu.

Han Sooyoung applauded.

“Oh, that’s scary.”

“You got a strange tale.”

Suddenly, the only target left is a monster the size of a house.

Tentacles protruding from the monster's mane flew like whips, turning the entire ground upside down.

An ominous fable of another world contained in each tentacle. It was the story that pierced Gong PilDoo's stomach.

"I'll lure it in, so let's finish it off."

"I see."

Han Sooyoung ran up the outer wall of the building on the right.

Crash!

The tentacles collapsed the lower part of the building and chased after them in an instant.

Using the destructive power of [Black Flame], Han Sooyoung pierced a hole in the side of the building and climbed up the building in a spiral. The tentacles followed Han Sooyoung by a narrow margin.

After running around several buildings like that, the length of the tentacles reached the limit before it knew it. The moment the monster tried to retrieve the tentacle with a gurgling sound, Yoo Sang-ah cut off the lower end of the tentacle.

But in the first place, the spider web was bait.

"Aaaaa!"

Han Soo-young, who fell straight from the air, inserted an iron fist into the head of the monster wrapped in a cocoon. [Black Flame] exploded like a whirlwind with a booming sound and burned the monster.

During the last time without you, no one had an idle time. They relived the day they lost you every day.

If I had the strength back then, if I had a stronger fables.

They tried hard not to repeat the same mistake twice.

When Han Sooyoung blew her fists and extinguished [Black Flame], Yoo Sang-ah said with a faint smile.

“It reminds me of the old days.”

In the first place, there weren't many times when the two of them had put together like this, so the two of them were recalling the same memories at the same time.

Around the time you were still in Seoul, when the 'fifth scenario' was in progress.

“We didn’t get along well at this time.”

"And do we now?"

"At least we're not trying to kill each other."

Seeing Yoo Sang-ah smiling brightly, Han Sooyoung stroked her neck with a disgusted expression.

"Anyway, I'm tired of that bastard's curse."

“Who was the curse from then?”

“Andras. Of course, I fell for Kim Dokja's scheme... … .”

It happened while dealing with Song Minwoo on behalf of Kim Dokja. Han Sooyoung inevitably gnashed her teeth and swallowed the words behind her back.

“Seeing as you haven’t had any problems after that, it must not have been a great curse.”

“Anything would be better than the curse of the ‘Demon King of Salvation’.”

Han Sooyoung said while collecting the items dropped by 'nameless things'. Still, they were quite strong, so there were many useful items. Some of them looked like fragments of a tale.

At first I thought I was looking at it wrong. Han Sooyoung glared at the fragment of the story with a sidelong glance, and deliberately collected other items near the fragment first. And Yoo Sangah asked, looking at Han Sooyoung quietly.

"Are you going to take it?"

"Well…no."

"Then I'll take it."

The moment Yoo Sangah stretched out her hand toward the fragment of the tale, Han Sooyoung grabbed her hand at the same time.

“I have changed my mind. I'll take it.”

In an instant, a strange war of nerves ensued.

The moment my fingers touched the fragments, I remembered your bewildered face.

This convinced two of them.

This must be a memory about you, or a memory you had. I don't know why this is here, but it must be.

“I really need this.”

"Okay? What are you going to do with it?"

I said that out of the blue, but the answer was lacking. Han Sooyoung, who had been washing her hair for a while, said.

“I’ll keep it and threaten him later. I thought there would be a lot to be gained by threatening him.”

"I can't give it to you if it's such an impure intention."

"And for what do you need the fragment?"

“It can be a precious memory for the Dokja. We need to keep it and return.”

“It might not be a big memory, right?”

“Then I just have it.”

"Hey."

It was then that a tentacle crawled out of nowhere and shot like a wedge. Surprised, Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sang-ah simultaneously grabbed weapons.

However, the tentacles were not aimed at the two of them.

"Uh?"

The shards of tales snatched by the tentacles quickly moved to the church.

And after a while, the outer wall swayed like an organ of an animal with an unpleasant sound of “Oooh” from the church.

Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sang-ah looked at each other blankly, then, as if they had promised, they spurred on the door of a large church.

As expected, the interior of the church was in the process of being eroded by a deity from another world. A landscape as if entering the intestines of a strange creature.

“Who, who are you?”

There was still a living person in the lobby of the church. It was a middle-aged man dressed like a shepherd.

A normal human being inside a monster's intestines was suspicious to anyone.

“What is this, what about the fragments of Kim Dokja?”

The middle-aged man took four or five steps back with a hee-ik sound, but he couldn't handle Han Sooyoung's speed. When Han Sooyoung approached him in an instant and grabbed the man by the collar, he also recognized Han Sooyoung.

“Huh, Black Flame Empress?”

"That's my nickname. Where is the fragment of Kim Dokja?”

The middle-aged man's body shook helplessly at Han Sooyoung's threat. At first, the middle-aged man's face, which seemed bewildered, gradually grew into a cruel smile.

“You are now finished. Even if the proud ‘demon king of salvation’ returns, this advent cannot be stopped.”

"Come. He rises again!”

Han Sooyoung slapped the middle-aged man's cheek with all his might. The man slumped to the floor with a sound like that of an outer god .

“Who is he?”

“Geuh uh uh.”

“Hey,idiot, who are you saying?”

“Gaaaaa.”

Tears welled up in the eyes of the man who was slapped on the cheek while his hair was grabbed. It wasn't a normal slapping, it was a slapping with the energy of [Black Flame]. In the end, man, who could not stand the pain, muttered with a whining sound.

“You, Nirvana… … .”

"Nirvana?"

Han Sooyoung also remembered the name. She couldn't forget that as soon as she went to ‘Peace Land’, he occupied Seoul, so the memories of her hardships are still good.

Yoo Sang-ah over there was almost mentally controlled by Nirvana. That monstrous Yoo Joonghyuk was at the point of having to give up on Nirvana at the time. Of course, that was the story at the time.

“Nirvana was killed by Kim Dokja. Why did you do this again when the church was ruined?”

“If it weren’t for you..you.”

“I get pissed when I think about it. Why do you keep inviting disasters with your own hands when it's daunting to just stay calm and carry out the scenario? Do you know what kind of shit this is? Is it fun because monsters appear? Are you lucky enough to survive this far and still don't know? At best, you were saved by Kim Dokja from getting killed several times—"

"Who… … Did you ask for help?”

"What?"

The bloody eyes of the man were burning with rage.

The moment she looked into those eyes, Han Soo-young realized something.

The man's stuttering voice became clear for the first time.

“I hate ‘The Demon King of Salvation’. And everyone here hates the damn ‘demon king of salvation’.”

Everyone here.

At those words, Han Sooyoung sent a signal to Yoo Sang-ah. Taking out her dagger, Yoo Sang-ah headed for the chapel of the church. The man followed her with a fishy smile.

“We lost our familiey because of him. I lost my precious comrades. If only the Demon King of Salvation, if it wasn’t just him—”

Of course, it wasn't because of you that they lost their family.

However, Han Soo-young did not rebuke the man for such an attitude. Because the man who said it would actually know.

They just needed a hole to relieve their emotions right away. And in the absence you were a very suitable target to become a trash can of anger.

Han Sooyoung let out a light sigh and let go of the man's hair.

“Kim Dokja couldn’t save them all. So what. Did Nirvana save you? Nirvana is also just a chess piece in the scenario after all. What do you think will change if you become a parasite to him?”

“Ni.. Lord Nirvana always said. There are beings greater than the constellations in the sky. If we borrow the power of those beings, we might be able to find a way to escape the scenarios.”

How to escape the scenarios.

It was only then that Han Sooyoung seemed to know their purpose.

“So you summoned the ‘outer god'?”

“Kuh, keuh… … .”

"There's no way the summoning could have been successful with your strength. Who helped you?”

The man's lips seemed to quiver steeply, and then his eyes slowly turned back.

The moment Han Sooyoung, surprised, activated [Black Flame], tentacles flew from somewhere and wrapped around the middle-aged man's body.

"What-"

Yoo Sang-ah's voice came from the exact direction from which the tentacles flew.

"This way!"

Han Sooyoung ran in the direction the voice came from.

1st chapel. It was probably the largest chapel in the church.

"What is this?"

The chapel floor was littered with coffins covered in unpleasant entrails. Incarnations were lying in the coffin, but all were alive, judging by the groans that were often heard. They were twitching, exposing their whites, with sucker-like tentacles attached to their heads.

“What kind of crazy bastard is like this—”

Han Sooyoung immediately pulled out a dagger. As you can see, the incarnations were still breathing. So if you remove the tentacles even now... … .

"Wait!"

Yoo Sang-ah pointed to the message in front of her and shouted.

After reading the explanation over and over again, Han Sooyoung frowned. She has done many kinds of scenarios so far, but she has never seen a scenario with such difficult conditions.

In this way, even if you save the person who was used as a sacrifice, it will be of no use. Even if you save him, if there is no other sacrifice,death would be the same thing for him.

“Damn it. What should we do?”

Then, a voice came from the last coffin.

“This, this is the path you guys have chosen.”

As if cursing, the middle-aged man kept talking.

“If you save someone, someone will die. What you do doesn't mean anything-"

The middle-aged man's words were cut off as a sucker got stuck in his head. Something was being pulled out of the middle-aged man's head with a groan.

The memories of 398 servings were flowing into a huge cocoon located in the center of the chapel.

Han Sooyoung approached the cocoon. At first glance, it was a solid exterior that did not seem to be easily destroyed. Countless fables engraved on the surface of the cocoon. This cocoon was in a state where all kinds of fables were poured into defense only.

After a moment of hesitation, Yoo Sang-ah said.

“Wouldn’t it be better to let it descend?”

“The goal of the scenario is to stop the god of the other world, right?”

"It's okay to stop it after it descends."

Han Sooyoung frowned.

I didn't like it. If the Salvationists who talked about themselves earlier were correct, all the incarnations captured here were Salvationists. Those who hated you so much that they wanted to destroy this world and belong to the 'outer god'.

Should I risk to save them?

“There is even a coffin with a child in it.”

Han Sooyoung sighed lightly and said.

“First of all, let’s check what kind of deity will descend.”

Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sang-ah simultaneously stretched out their hands toward the cocoon. And almost at the same time, they withdrew their hands as if frightened. It was because the tentacle suckers protruding from the cocoon were aiming for the two.

Han Sooyoung lightly moved the dagger and slashed the tentacle. The tentacles shrunk with a gurrurreuk sound, but Han Sooyoung's expression was serious.

It only took a moment, and the satisfaction rate increased by 1 percent.

“I think I just forgot something.”

At that moment, it seemed that some memory had been sucked out, but I couldn't figure out what kind of memory I had forgotten.

Besides, there was a bigger problem.

“Did you just see that?”

“… I … saw."

An infinitely ominous aura felt inside the cocoon.

It clearly saw Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sang-ah.

Inside the cocoon, there was a foreign god of the distant universe, to be exact, the seed of that foreign god. A divinity in the other world that far surpasses the status of a snowy-class constellation, whose mind collapses just by facing it.

If this is released, Seoul will surely perish.

If the cocoon containing the deity of the other world could not be destroyed, there was only one way to stop the descent. Cutting off the nutrients that go into hatching.

Yoo Sang-ah, whose complexion had turned pale, just opened her mouth a few times and then bit her lip.

“I don’t mean to kill all 398 people.”

“If we don’t kill them, Seoul will perish.”

“I became strong not to sacrifice anyone. If the deity of the other world descends, I will stop it.”

"You? By what means.”

"Somehow."

A blue light flashed in Yoo Sang-ah's eyes. The power of the nebula flowed behind her back.

Realizing what Yoo Sang-ah was about to do, Han Sooyoung stopped her.

“Are you kidding me? Are you willing to give your life to save these guys?”

Yoo Sang-ah looked at Han Sooyoung without a word. Han Sooyoung looked at the shadow of someone familiar in Yoo Sang-ah's eyes.

“If you were a Dokja, you would have done this.”

"No. Kim Dokja would never do that.”

"No, he would."

“He wouldn't. What a selfish bastard he is. Do you know how much I messed with that bastard?”

“Why did Sooyoung stay with such a selfish person?”

Han Sooyoung shut her mouth for a moment. Yoo Sang-ah followed her words.

“Dokja is someone who has power and won’t turn away if there is someone in front of him who he can save. He is the one who must choose the third option in front of two options that require someone to sacrifice.”

“That’s because the third option has the best reward.”

“I am saying that because I am ashamed. You can't choose the third option without saying that.”

Han Sooyoung slowly closed her eyes. Numerous developments that were possible in the future appeared and disappeared on Han Sooyoung's retina.

If she follows Yoo Sang-ah's words and if Han Sooyoung sticks to her own opinion.

The last sentence that came to mind was:

“Why did Kim Dokja entrust Seoul to Han Sooyoung?”

There was a cold energy in Han Sooyoung's eyes as she slowly opened her eyes.

“Then cooperation ends here.”

The two daggers pulled from the waist belt emitted black flames. The spirit of the 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon’ emanated from her back.

“I have to kill all these guys.”

Then, Yoo Sang-ah's expression also became cold.

“Sooyoung, why do you always do that? Why don't you always think of the ways to save more people.”

“I'm mean unlike everyone else. In a world where Kim Dokja is called the ‘Demon King’, I have to do something befitting a 'Demon King',too."

Seeing Han Sooyoung like that, Yoo Sang-ah also took a fighting stance. At the same time, the stigma of began to dwell all over her body.

“Then I will kill you and save the people.”

The two figures disappeared at the same time.

"Both of them are crazy."

Jung Heewon muttered.

Watching the battle between Yoo Sang-ah and Han Sooyoung reflected on the screen, the incarnations were enthusiastic everywhere.

“As expected, the Black Flame Empress! You have to have that kind of determination.”

“No, what kind of determination is it to kill 398 people!”

Before one knew it, one incarnation was a composition supporting Han Sooyoung and the other incarnation supporting Yoo Sang-ah.

“Even the Empress is frustrated. If we can kill them and protect Seoul, of course we should.”

“Since when did it become natural to sacrifice the few for the many?"

Some of them seemed to want to ask something, but they seemed to be unable to talk because Jeong Heewon's atmosphere was so bloody.

In the meantime, the dokkaebi, ignorant of speed, was chattering freely in the air.

It was at that moment that they heard a chow-a-aah in the air. A tentacle that suddenly rose from the top of the confined space grabbed the dokkaebi.

The tentacles dragged the dokkaebi into the confined space.

And after a while.

The dokkaebi was kidnapped by tentacles right in front of people's eyes, and the channel was closed.

Everyone was stunned by the shocking performance they encountered for the first time in their lives.

The first to come to her senses was Jeong Heewon.

“Everyone, run to the back!”

The size of the confined space gradually increased, and before anyone noticed, tentacles began to crawl out of the confined space one by one.

Hyunseong Lee said in a hard voice.

“There seems to be no limit to coming out of the dome.”

“Hyeonseong-san, stop that side!”

To make matters worse, even the screen transmission was cut off.

After Shin Yoosung and Lee Gilyeong evacuated the incarnations around them, they opened the [Monster Gate].

"The north has been attacked!"

A cluster of tentacles extending northward caught the fleeing incarnations and sucked them into the dome.

It was then that the sound of bullets was heard from somewhere.

"Dooo dooo!"

The bullets fired by Gongpildu's [Armed Fortress] held the northern tentacles in check.

“It’s been a while since we all got together.”

It was an uninvited guest who said so.

A middle-aged man with an all-back hair in a neat suit and a pale look.

He was the man who was the villain in your life before the scenario started.

Lee Jihye pursed her lips.

“You said you were going to North Korea, so why are you here?”

“I went and nothing was there.”

“I’m backing away because it won’t help anyway.”

"Even if you look at it like this, I'm also a person of the level of the Count of the Demons- Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

When the tentacles snatched Han Myung-oh's leg, Lee Hyunseong grabbed the tentacles with both hands and cut them off with force.

"Heewon, it's too much for us to stop. The damage will increase over time.”

Even the dokkaebi who was relaying it was beaten. Lee Gilyeong, who was especially excited, was defeating the tentacles with a scarab bag, but it was clear that his magic power would run out as time passed.

“How about asking for help from other regions?”

“We don't have much time. The Drifters will come to support, but the other side—”

Jeong Heewon shook her head.

“Heewon noona! Wouldn’t that allow us to enter the dome?”

Lee Gilyoung, who came down from the back of the scarab, pointed at the tentacles.

Come to think of it, the incarnations kidnapped by the tentacles were being dragged into the closed area. If you use that reversely, it's not impossible to enter the dome.

Hyunsung said.

“You can't fit in all of them. We need troops to guard the outside.”

So, who should go in?

Then, someone stepped forward.

The stone walls of the church collapsed, leaving large and small pits in various places on the floor.

Traces of stigma competition between the ‘Abyssal Black Flame Dragon’ and the gods of .

When the white dust disappeared, Yoo Sang-ah was standing there.

Yoo Sang-ah looked at the other side with blank eyes, then lost her strength and fell forward.

“I told you. You can't.”

Han Sooyoung muttered as she caught Yoo Sang-ah who was falling forward.

It was a battle that was decided from the beginning.

It wasn't anyone else, it was Yoo Sang-ah. There was no way she could truly fight against .

“After all, I’m more ruthless.”

Han Sooyoung, with Yoo Sang-ah lying on the floor, stared at the cocoon containing the deity of the other world.

I wondered what it would be like to explode that with [Black Flame].

If it fails, the results will be dire. The sacrificial offerings here will be annihilated, and Seoul will be hit hard by the ‘outer god’ that hatched with a half satisfaction rate.

If so, what should I do?

Han Sooyoung looked up at the sky through a crack in the broken ceiling of the church.

“There is no way there are no loopholes in this ridiculous scenario.”

That's what you always said

“Kim Dokja. I'm really having a hard time.”

Even though she knew you couldn't hear her, Han Sooyoung tried to say that.

She takes a deep breath and grins as usual.

I think of you, who never once said that it was difficult even as you died alone several times.

“I'm getting angry.”

The moment she slowly closed and opened her eyes, the magical energy flowing from her body began to take shape.

Magical power soon took on a human form.

The figure of a person resembling Han Sooyoung soon exceeded 10, then over 100, and soon approached 400.

Avatar exactly equals to the number of ‘offerings’.

I don't know if this will work or not.

However, the moment she realized the principle of this scenario, Han Sooyoung thought that there was no other way.

This time, the ‘outer god’ is a deity that absorbs human memories and hatches.

Then, what a godhead needs is not '398 humans', but '398 memories'.

“Start.”

Simultaneously with the command, Han Sooyoung's avatars all took off the suction cups of the sacrifice and put them on their heads.

Intense sparks electrocuted the entire church, and the memories of the avatars began to be sucked out.

“Quit-”

A premonition of a probabilistic aftermath surged through Han Sooyoung's body. She was a master of handling as many as 398 avatars at once.

However, Han Sooyoung did not let go of her concentration. After lightly spitting out the blood pooling in her mouth, she focused her mind and adjusted the avatar's memory.

She splits again and again into smaller memories as much as possible.

“What are you doing?”

“Are you awake?”

Yoo Sang-ah, who staggered up, was looking at Han Sooyoung. Yoo Sang-ah, who soon grasped her situation, asked with her blanked face.

“What are you thinking? You can’t last forever as an avatar.”

“You know I have to do that. There is no time limit for this scenario. Even the dokkaebi in charge was eaten by him.”

Han Sooyoung looked at the hatching gauge pointing to 78% and continued.

“If I could release my memory as slowly as possible, I might be able to stay in this state for a very long time.”

It was nonsense. No matter how strong Han Sooyoung was, there was no jaw to sustain such a crazy thing for a long time. And that while maintaining close to 400 avatars.

Yoo Sang-ah did not like Han Sooyoung.

Because now, the way Han Sooyoung is trying to solve the problem is,

Because it was the same way you solved the scenario a long time ago.

“Then you die.”

"I won't die."

“Even if your stamina holds out, your memories will one day be exhausted. If you forget-”

“You will remember it well. My great work.”

Yoo Sang-ah narrowed her eyes and said.

"I'd rather-"

"You think it's better to wake up the deity of the other world and make a deal with him?"

"What?"

"That's the way you were going to do it. Did you think I wouldn't know?"

No matter how strong the Constellations of were, there was no way they would take risks for Yoo Sang-ah and confront the divinity of the other world. If they had been like that, they would have helped even when 'indescribable distance' appeared.

So, there was only one way Yoo Sang-ah could try.

“He must have tried to make a deal with the ‘outer god’ in return for protecting Seoul. With his life as collateral.”

Kim Dokja must have moved the Industrial Complex to this place using a similar method. Then there was no law saying they couldn't.

Yoo Sang-ah shook her head.

"It's true that I was trying to make a deal with a deity from the other world, but I'm not such a nice person."

"Then?"

“To be honest, I am not interested in saving Seoul.”

Then, what did she want? Han Soo-young did not ask.

“I will help too.”

“What can you do to help? Hurry up and let the incarnations escape.”

“You can't do it alone.”

"If you keep pushing, we'll both be locked up."

“Better than being locked up alone.”

It was at that time that the cocoon reacted abnormally with the sound of tsutsutsutsutsu.

Come to think of it, the memory fulfillment rate gauge had not risen at all.

The ominous magic that flowed out of the cocoon began to oppress Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sang-ah.

“No, you’re giving it! What is a proper memory!”

“So what is it!”

Han Sooyoung knelt down, pouring blood from the striking spark.

It was then that Yoo Sang-ah stepped forward. Thinking over something, Yoo Sang-ah clenched her fists tightly.

After a while, a small piece of a story appeared in Yoo Sang-ah's hand. Yoo Sang-ah threw a piece at the cocoon.

Then, the cocoon glowed white and absorbed Yoo Sang-ah's memories.

The pressure in the area gradually subsided. Whatever it is, the divinity of the other world is satisfied.

Surprised, Han Soo-young asked.

“What did you give it?”

“A fragment of a fable.”

“What fable fragment?”

Yoo Sang-ah, whose complexion was paler than before, looked back at Han Sooyoung and said,

“That godhead, He's only picking and eating ‘memories related to Kim Dok-ja.’”

It's not another memory, but it's a memory related to you.

Han Sooyoung, who was thinking hard, asked.

“Does he know anything about Kim Dokja?”

The deity of the other world did not answer. Well, it would be strange if he answered meekly.

“I don’t think it would want to remember Dokja, if it already knew.”

"Then?"

"Maybe it's rumored that it's a delicious fable among the deities of the other world... … .”

“Is that why it stole the fragments of Kim Dokja’s fable earlier?”

As if a conclusion had been reached, Han Sooyoung let out a deep sigh.

Even in the meantime, the cocoon was eagerly sucking the memories.

“I can't help it. Tell me later who Kim Dokja was.”

Then, Yoo Sang-ah, who was by her side, also threw fragments of her story like firewood.

“If I have any memories left.”

"Stop. Someone will have to remember him when he comes back.”

“Others will remember.”

“Then do you want to put only your memories? I don't really remember much. I didn't think much of him.”

“I don’t have much either”

The two were silent for a moment.

“It has been two years already.”

Already 2 years ago. Right. The time has already become that way.

The time after you left passed faster than before.

“Sooyoung, you didn’t even come to the first anniversary last year.”

“What were you doing there?”

“On the first anniversary, we all got together and talked a lot about the Dokja. Even Joonghyuk came. Although he does nothing but cook.”

"..."

“I want to hear about Dokja, Sooyoung.”

Han Sooyoung lowered her eyes without saying a word.

After you disappeared, Han Sooyoung had never seriously talked about you with anyone else. Han Sooyoung, who was worried, opened her mouth slowly.

“Kim Dokja… … .”

Han Sooyoung's lips moved slightly.

It wasn't much of a story. Just one day's story. A common impression of one day when you and Han Soo-young were together.

Yoo Sang-ah nodded.

“Did you?”

"At that time."

"Really?"

"Really."

Very slowly, the two talked about you. When Han Sooyoung spoke, Yoo Sang-ah listened, and when Yoo Sang-ah spoke, Han Sooyoung listened again. As stories came and went, forgotten memories came to life. A clear line was engraved on your mushy body, where only a half outline remained.

“You really only went to a beef dinner?”

"Yes."

“I feel sorry for you.”

Everyone has a moment when they become a writer and that's when we talk about precious things.

“Did you fight in the comments?”

"He didn't know it was me."

A story about you.

Is that really you? What does it mean to remember someone?

What is the purpose of repeating memories over and over again that will disappear someday?

“What else did he like?”

“He used to enjoy food made by Joonghyuk before.”

“He also enjoyed the grilled janaspreta stems I made.”

“Then I guess he can eat anything.”

And the deity of the other world who greedily accepts and eats their stories.

Watching the cocoon red hot like a bonfire, the two talked about you again and again.

To remember you is to talk about you.

Something I can't bear not to talk about.

As the story continued, the memories faded, but the two felt that you were becoming more vivid.

As if each other's stories become new memories for each other. As if you would really walk out in such a living story.

"We are here!"

Shin Yoosung was standing at the entrance of the chapel.

Shin Yoosung, who discovered the two, shot at them with excitement. Han Sooyoung scratched her cheek with her troubled face and covered it.

“As you can see, I was holding on to this monster. If it gets released outside, it's all over.”

“Outside is already closing. This is not the time to be idle here. What are the people lying here?”

Yoo Sang-ah soothed Shin Yoosung and explained the situation. What were they dealing with and why were they talking about you.

Even Shin Yoosung, who was spirited at first, became quite bizarre after hearing the story.

“This is because there is no way to do anything before Advent. That's why we're delaying the advent as much as possible.”

"Right."

“But this monster only eats memories of Dokja?”

"I think so."

“You have to take the time by throwing in stories as much as possible.”

"Right."

“But isn’t Advent going to start someday?”

“Instead, it will take a very long time. By that time, Kyrgios and the giant swordsman will be back.”

Shin Yoosung looked dumbfounded at Han Sooyoung's enormous plan.

“Is there any other way?”

Han Sooyoung looked back at her suffering avatars with a sucker attached to their heads.

“Well, there is a way to kill all of my avatars.”

The condition for clearing the scenario is to prevent the advent of the ‘outer god’. Therefore, if all the offerings were removed, Advent could be prevented.

“But I don’t know if the incarnations that were previously sacrificed will be safe if I kill all the avatars. There is no way to know if those who were once sacrificed and released are safe from the restrictions of the scenario.”

"Besides, if 400 avatars disappear at once, Sooyoung won't be safe either."

"I don't know because I've never had so many avatars die at once, but the recoil must be great."

Han Sooyoung's [Avatar] are dolls made by sharing Han Sooyoung's memories. If so many avatars disappear at once, Han Sooyoung's body will also receive a huge blow.

"That's why you've been talking about pathetic things since earlier."

In the end, the situation came to a head.

Shin Yoosung groaned at the two of them like a chicken with the flu, then sat down.

"I'll send the incarnations out for now."

The monsters summoned through [Monster Gate] started taking the incarnations and sending them out one by one. Perhaps because Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sang-ah are constantly supplying memories, the deity of the other world doesn't seem to care much about the escape of other incarnations.

“Can I talk about the Dokja too?”

“It will help me remember.”

Shin Yoosung muttered while thinking deeply.

“It feels like I’m at a very quiet funeral home.”

“Is Kim Dokja a merchant?”

“Can’t that gauge fill up too fast?”

“So, try to recall as many useless memories as possible.”

“Useless memories… … .”

All three were silent. It was brief, but it was a long silence.

Han Sooyoung, who had been absent-minded for a while, jumped up from her seat.

“As expected, let’s just kill it. We have saved incarnations.”

“Shall we break the cocoon? If we all hit it at the same time, it might break.”

Yoo Sang-ah also muttered with slightly tasted eyes. It was an unexpectedly fast tone.

It was then that Shin Yoo-seung opened her mouth.

“What is ahjussi doing now?”

Shin Yoo-seung lowered her head and looked down at her smartphone. Just like you did one day, with endless eyes.

―You have already collected 150 species!Well done.

‘King of Monster Collectors’.

Kim Dok-ja was there in a game made by a Mass-producer.

-Well done.

Shin Yoosung heard the voice over and over again.

-Well done.

A voice very similar to Kim Dokja, but not his own.

At one point, Shin Yoosung raised her head, clenched her fists, and created a small fragment of a fable.

“Ahjussi… … Sometimes I look at the wall and dance alone!”

Shin Yoosung threw the fragment toward the cocoon. He took a bite of the fixing fragment and smacked his lips.

Yoo Sang-ah, whose complexion had deteriorated a little, asked.

"Have you ever…"

"No."

"What?Then…"

“I just said it. I think it will be fun.”

The cocoon, heated like a pot of boiling water, began to make a popping sound as it repeatedly expanded and contracted.

Han Sooyoung shouted.

“What have you done! What if you feed the wrong thing!”

"Uh…"

Shin Yoosung looked up at the sky with suspicious eyes and said.

“The gauge has decreased.”

It clearly exceeded 78 percent earlier, but the memory satisfaction rate actually decreased.

Han Sooyoung's eyebrows twitched.

“Wait, this.”

What you always said came to mind again.

In any scenario, there is always a way to clear it.

Maybe that wasn't exactly what you meant, but it didn't matter anyway. Since you were always cheating the Constellations with outright lies, you must have said similar things anyway.

“Make up any memory related to Kim Dokja.”

Yoo Sang-ah opened her mouth as if she had been waiting.

“Dokja was a diligent office worker.”

“He copied Joonghyuk's hairstyle once!”

The gauge that had been shrinking suddenly and filled up a little.

"Uh?"

The three of them looked at gauge suspiciously and started making up memories again.

“Dokja told Jihye that she was really pretty.”

Han Sooyoung combined the memories they created into 'fake memories' and scattered them in the heads of the avatars.

And

The cocoon began to convulse again with a pop-push-push sound.

Han Sooyoung looked at the condition of the cocoon and said,

“If you talk too much nonsense, he might go crazy, so let’s mix it with something real!”

As if trying to give an example, Han Sooyoung looked at Yoo Sang-ah and asked.

“Actually, you had a fling with Kim Dokja when you were at work, right?”

"Yes?"

“Dokja fed dirt to Joonghyuk!”

“It’s plausible.”

“Dokja said he wanted to quickly finish the scenario and go to work.”

"It's a lie that's too obvious."

How many more fake memories did it has to eat like that? The cocoon, which had been red and green, suddenly began to vomit the things it had eaten. Seeing the memory fulfillment rate drop in an instant, the three of them started talking at once.

“What Dokja likes is—”

“『SSSSS-Class Infinite Regressor』.”

“Anna Croft.”

“Intermediate Dokkaebi Paul.”

"Tomatoes?"

Aaaa

As if to strike a blow of conversion, Shin Yoosung opened her mouth.

“Dokja will come back to us today.”

The cocoon exploded before my eyes and something awakened within.

Fables of the infinitely ominous and insidious other world. However, compared to the beginning, its power has become absurdly small.

“It” resembled a giant maggot.

Guaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

The 'memory seeker', who cried out into the air, took a glance at Han Sooyoung, Yoo Sang-ah, and Shin Yoosung, and soared into the air. It seemed that it was trying to gather memories somewhere other than here.

"Catch it!"

Han Sooyoung tried to heat up [Black Flame], but she had almost no magic power left. Looking at the avatars disappearing one by one, Han Sooyoung exclaimed.

“Damn it, Shin Yoosung!”

And Shin Yoosung moved. The monsters caught in [Tame] all at once rushed towards the maggots. However, the resistance of the maggot was stubborn.

No matter how weak he is, he is an existence imbued with the power of a godhead from another world. It was an enemy that was only a medium-level monster and could not do anything about it.

Yoo Sang-ah shot the spider's web again and again until all her remaining magic power was used up.

A magical wave swirled around the maggot. Maggots were swelling as if it was going to blow everything out of this place.

Yoo Sang-ah bit her lip and glared at the maggot.

One last move was missing.

His movements were blocked, and his strength was drained, but there was no one to feed him the last blow.

Anybody is fine. It's fine if anyone can finish that monster raised with their memories.

I saw the dome ceiling collapsing with a gurgling sound.

Screws of dazzling light pierced the ceiling and fell toward the maggots.

Two black wings.

Then, a blade covered in brilliance cut the maggot in half.

No matter how weak it is, it is an overwhelming power that can defeat the 'outer god ' in one blow.

Surprised, Shin Yoosung murmured.

"....Ahjussi?"

Shin Yoosung stumbled and approached the shadow. Then, the wings that had spread out like an illusion disappeared, and a black coat appeared instead.

The man looked down at the tales spread on the floor as if they were getting in the way, and stepped on one of them.

The main character of the novel you've been reading for a long time was there.

"Eyewitnesses of the Demon Realm Punisher"

As if such memories were not needed in this world.

Yoo Sang-ah laughed bitterly.

“You are late.”

Yoo Joonghyuk nodded.

Yoo Sang-ah limped out of the church with Han Sooyoung supporting her.

Shin Yoosung stood in the forefront to prepare for an unexpected surprise attack, and Yoo Joonghyuk protected them from the rear.

How long did we walk?In the distance, I saw a group of people running. Jeong Heewon, Lee Hyeonseong, Lee Gilyoung, Lee Seolhwa, Gong Pildoo, and even Han Myeongoh.

Yoo Sang-ah laughed and said,

“They said they were busy, but everyone came.”

There was a statue of the ‘Demon of Salvation’ whose wings were broken in the shock at the spot where the boundary of the dome disappeared.

Yoo Joonghyuk silently looked up at the statue.

“It was reckless.”

"I know."

“If I hadn’t come, you would all be dead.”

“I knew you would come.”

Yoo Sang-ah was also looking at your statue.

A system message was heard in the air.

These were messages that she would normally have paid close attention to.

But why? Today, Yoo Sang-ah did not show much interest in the 'compensation'.

Does it really matter who is the top contributor?

Han Sooyoung's small shoulders twitched. Han Sooyoung raised her head and looked around hurriedly and asked.

“What about the deity of the other world?”

“I dealt with it.”

"How?"

"Yoo Joonghyuk."

"Damn that son of a bitch."

Han Sooyoyng looked back to pour out a curse, but Yoo Joonghyuk was already gone.

"Quick bastard."

In the distance, the group could be seen tidying up the surroundings.

Shin Yoosung, who boasts that she has collected ‘outer god’ in the encyclopedia, and Lee Gilyoung, who is envious of it. Lee Hyeonseong, Jeong Heewon, and Lee Seolhwa send the injured incarnations to the medical school. Han Myeongoh and Gong Pildoo eagerly pick up fallen items. Even Lee Jihye wanders around looking for Yoo Joonghyuk, who has disappeared.

Exhausted Han Sooyoung and Yu Sang-ah looked at the scenery for a while, then sat down on the broken wing fragment of Kim Dokja as if they had made an appointment.

It was a deep night well past midnight.

City streets in ruins and incarnations writhing in pain. A scenery she saw many times,but still not accustomed to.

Sitting on the wing of Kim Dokja and looking at the scenery, Han Sooyoung thought.

You didn't come back this time either.

Far from coming back, you've disappeared even more from this world. The more time passes, the more I'll forget you. How many more scenarios would I have to carry out to forget that fact?

“… … would you?”

"What?"

“Shall we all live together?”

For a moment, Han Sooyoung did not understand what that meant.

"Why?"

“I also live with Sukyung. There are many troublesome things when you live alone, right?”

Han Sooyoung, who had been absent-minded for a moment, muttered with a smile.

“Well, it’s annoying having to get together every year.”

“If you don’t like it, you can just continue living alone.”

“Is your house food good?”

"Not bad."

“I tend to work day and night.”

“If you live with us, things will go back to normal. People who work hard during the day tend to fall asleep at night.”

Han Sooyoung looked at Yoo Sang-ah as if she was dumbfounded. Then Yoo Sang-ah smiled.

"Just now."

"Just now?"

“That bastard took 1% of my memories with me.”

“Ah, it was.”

“I think I forgot something then.”

"Forgot what?"

“If you know what it is, you haven’t forgotten it.”

“That too.”

“But I think I know.”

“What do you want to say?”

“There was a novel I wanted to write.”

Yoo Sang-ah tilted her head.

"Novel? What novel is it?”

“I don’t know. Because I forgot the first sentence. After all, he only eats memories of Kim Dokja—”

“It must be about Dokja.”

"No, I'm not necessarily going to write about him."

The two looked up at the sky with the same expression.

It was a night where you can see the stars very well. Even so, there were still invisible stars.

Yoo Sangah said.

“If you can't see the stars well, you can look in the dark space next to them. Then, there are times when you can see the invisible stars you couldn't see.”

“Um, I can’t see anything.”

“If you forgot the contents of the main story, you can start writing the side story.”

At Yoo Sang-ah's words, Han Sooyoung blinked quietly, and smiled faintly.

It's a prequel that comes out before the main story.

"That's funny."

Certainly, somewhere in the faraway night sky, there might be a story of the 'main story' that a damn god from another world fled with.

But I've already forgotten that story, so I can't help it.

So the only story she could write now would be a story about a story she had already forgotten.

Han Sooyoung glared at the darkness next to the disappeared star for a long time.

A very long and dark side story. The story of the day that is longer than the main story, it was written and rewritten like that and one day the side story will finally disappear.

I imagined that moment when you finally returned and read this story with an absurd expression.

One by one, the starlight faded through the twilight dawn that was brightening in the distance. Han Sooyoung looked at the light and licked her lips several times.

“I remembered the first sentence.”

“What is it?”

If you really are reading this sentence and the next sentence. Then the sentence that I wrote will finally find its meaning.

Han Sooyoung took a deep breath and started a long story.

“This story is for you, who have nothing more to read at the end of the world.”