It took less than 30 seconds for the nine people to be lying on the ground.
“Kuock…”
I ignored the groan and wiped the blood off my hands. I used Character List but the answer came out without having to look.
“The Gyeonggi Alliance. Why did you come here?”
One of the bleeding bodies started melting down. It seemed to be a technique.
[The constellation ‘Black Sword Assassin’ is wary of you!]
[The constellation ‘Hunter of the Dark Moon’ questions the fairness of the scenario.]
I frowned towards the air as the messages died down. I thoroughly checked the routes of their movements. I saw someone flying and fleeing through a broken window. I saw the method of running through the air and knew who it was.
I thought they were mere members of the alliance but one of the 10 Evils was among them. The leader of the Gyeonggi Alliance, one of the 10 Evils Cho Jinchul. The guy who had a sponsor from Murim and was one of the problems of the original 45th scenario.
Of course, that was according to the original story. The person in front of me right now wasn’t worth caring about. There were ranks among the 10 Evils and Cho Jinchul was one of the small fries. For the current party members, there were no incarnations on the Korean Peninsula who could be a match against them. Perhaps if it was the United States or India…
“This guy! Chase him!”
I saw some people chasing after the distant Cho Jinchul. Among them was the returnee Flying Fox who I brought with me. As the fugitive and pursuer engaged in a cat and mouse chase, the panoramic view of Seoul entered my vision.
I knew it was Seoul. In addition, it was the centre of the industrial complex. Through a contract with Secretive Plotter, the Industrial Complex was transferred to empty Seoul. As if the reality and fiction are combined and he realised that the world is watching, the landscape has changed and realized that. The bottom of the fortress had ‘Yoo Jonghyuk – Kim Dokja Industrial Complex’ engraved.
…Why was Yoo Jonghyuk first? I would change it later.
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ is looking at you.]
I looked up at the air. Guardian of Youths and Travel. I knew the owner of the modifier.
“Raphael.”
An archangel of Eden, Raphael. Sparks flew in the air like Raphael was reacting. I thought I would hear from Eden soon. “I was just going to find you. I will give back…”
I remembered that I still had the symbolic body of Gabriel. Jophiel’s confinement effect was over and it was time for Gabriel to wake up. By the way…
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ says that Gabriel has already been recovered.]
The lily had disappeared. Come to think of it, I remembered an archangel’s hand passing over me when I was sleeping. Maybe one of the constellations of Eden had visited at that time. Since Jung Heewon’s sponsor was Uriel then it was likely to be Uriel.
…By the way, what happened to Uriel? Why wasn’t there an indirect message from her?
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ says that Uriel doesn’t yet have authorization to speak in the channel.]
Ah, I see.
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ is curious about you.]
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ says that the red cosmos hasn’t returned.]
At Raphael’s message, I hesitated for a moment and opened my mouth. “The Commander of the Red Cosmos didn’t come back with me.”
Commander of the Red Cosmos, Jophiel. I wouldn’t have been able to return to the third round without her help. “She wanted to remain in the other world line out of her own will.”
There was a wild gust of wind.
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ distrusts your words!]
Raphael was furious. I calmly continued speaking. “If you use your ability, you know that I’m not a lie.”
Not long after, the winds sweeping around slowly eased.
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ is looking at you.]
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ is asking you for clarification.]
“I will go there. The 46th scenario is ahead… we’ll be able to talk soon.”
I felt a strange change in Raphael’s gaze on me. The archangel knew the contents of the scenario.
“I will go to Eden as soon as the scenario is over.”
[The constellation ‘Guardian of Youths and Travel’ will wait for your answer.]
After the message, Raphael’s energy in the area completely disappeared. The status flooding the area was gone and I felt bitter. In the meantime, I had accumulated many stories and became quite strong. I could suppress low to mid-grade constellations and it was almost impossible to find a stronger presence among the constellations. Yet the archangel’s status was still too high.
Guardian of Youths and Travel, Raphael. A powerful adversary who took down Demon King Asmodeus.
「 Kim Dokja quietly clenched his fists and repeated. 」
I still had a long way to go. However, I didn’t have to rush. I was doing well enough right now. That reminded me of Asmodeus… no, Department Head Han. So many things had happened when I was gone. There weren’t only one or two things to wonder about. I checked the system messages first.
[You have missed the dokkaebi communication.]
[Sender: Senior Dokkaebi Bihyung.]
There was a message from Bihyung. I thought it was strange that Bihyung hadn’t made a fuss when I came back… he expressed his concerns in this message. I opened the screen and manipulated the message window. The message was long but the contents itself was simple.
-I’m sorry that I couldn’t come. I am busy with some things. I will go see you once things are over.
These were roughly the contents of the long message.
-By the way, don’t you care about your baby?
The news I was curious about appeared at the end of the message.
-I have Biyoo. Well, she is also my child. You left her in front of the portal and she was almost taken away by the wenny people.
I had been worried because Biyoo didn’t appear.
-You will be a bit surprised when she comes back. Look forward to it.
Bihyung’s message was over. I felt a bit uncomfortable but I was relieved that Biyoo was with Bihyung.
Then let’s move. I piled up the bodies in one place and decided to find the party members.
.
.
.
Dozens of minutes passed. I was wandering along the road. Why was this factory so wide? I scratched my head and looked around but I couldn’t tell where I was located. It wasn’t too late but I should purchase the Reading Map or Pathfinding skill.
“Excuse me, is anybody there?”
I had a tendency to get lost in the ‘first building I visited.’ When I entered elementary school and middle school for the first time, when I got my first placement and when I joined Mino Soft…
Thinking about it, this was the reason why I first spoke to Yoo Sangah.
「 Kim Dokja thought, ‘Where is the emergency exit?’ 」
I had never been inside the Factory properly and had no idea where I was. In addition, the structure seemed changed from back then. I decided to open suspicious doors one by one.
The moment I opened a door, a small tentacled monster and frog stared at me. Some objects were inside test tubes while others were freely roaming the room.
[Frog Who Could’ve Been Dokja Ahjussi]
[Elephant Monster Who Was Almost Dokja Ahjussi]
[Tentacle Monster Who Unfortunately Wasn’t Dokja Ahjussi]
The frog gazed at me and shot out its tongue. I closed the door with surprise. Wait, this room
perhaps…
I wanted to check the nameplate when I heard a voice nearby.
“…Hey! How did you get out?”
“Dokja-ssi?”
It was Han Sooyoung and Lee Hyunsung.
***
“I mean, Dokja-ssi. In the 35th scenario…”
Lee Hyunsung was talking about the scenarios he experienced. I silently listened to the story while examining Lee Hyunsung’s body. His pectoral muscles were more developed than before. The magic power of steel was connecting muscle fibres.
Now Lee Hyunsung’s Steel Transformation had reached the edge of mastery. It wasn’t unreasonable if the 46th scenario started right now. It was a bit impressive. While I was away, the party members faithfully trained while following the guidelines I gave them.
Of course, I wasn’t just listening to Lee Hyunsung.
[Midday Tryst has been activated.]
[Incarnation ‘Han Sooyoung’ is currently participating in the conversation.]
I was fortunate to have met Han Sooyoung first. Preparing for a scenario was always late. For quick preparations, I needed someone who could provide the most accurate information efficiently and there was only one person best suited for it.
-Where is Jang Hayoung and the Breaking the Sky Master?
-He went to other scenario areas with the Breaking the Sky Sword Saint and Kyrgios. It seemed to be a scenario only for transcendents.
-What about Han Myungoh and Gong Pildu?
-They are currently in North Korea. Gong Pildu has gone to carry out the North Korean scenario. Han Myungoh was dragged away as an extra.
…North Korea. By the way, now was the time for North Korean incarnations. There were a few prominent constellations to be found in North Korea. Of course, most of them were great-grade but there were some comparable to narrative-grade. For example, the Great King…
-Where have you been so far?
-The 1863rd round of Ways of Survival.
Han Sooyoung’s eyes widened.
-What? Really?
-Ah, you were there. I don’t know if it was a true self or not.
-…True self? What is this bullshit?
I tried to answer when someone stood in our way.
“…Dokja-ssi.” It was Jung Heewon.
“I slept well thanks to you.”
Jung Heewon stared at me with a complicated gaze. It seemed that she wanted to say something but she also wanted to hear my story. Jung Heewon’s gaze slowly moved towards Han Sooyoung.
For a moment, sharp currents flowed between Han Sooyoung and Jung Heewon. Jung Heewon stared at Han Sooyoung with cold eyes before turning her head. In this awkward atmosphere, I opened my mouth first. “Yes, there were intruders in front of my room…”
“I gave orders to handle it. If you have woken up then go see Sangah-ssi. We can talk about the details next time.” Her voice was much colder than usual. It was different from the Jung Heewon I knew. Lee Hyunsung, standing beside me, gazed after Jung Heewon with sad eyes.
Once Jung Heewon disappeared around the corner, I asked Han Sooyoung. “What is this?”
“What?”
“What’s going on between you and Jung Heewon?” I gazed at Han Sooyoung’s pout and felt a bit anxious. I didn’t know what happened but it wasn’t the time for them to be fighting. “Have you forgotten the 46th scenario? You now…”
“You haven’t been here for three years. You don’t know anything so shut up.”
Han Sooyoung also turned away and left at these words. Only Lee Hyunsung remained. I saw Lee Hyunsung’s sagging shoulders and felt depressed. It seemed this had happened more than once.
During the three years I was away, a rift that I didn’t know about formed between the party members. It was clear without asking Lee Hyunsung about the shape of the group.
I lightly patted Lee Hyunsung’s shoulders. I didn’t know what happened but it was obvious what I had to do to grasp the situation. “Hyunsung-ssi, where is Yoo Sangah-ssi?”
“This way.”
It was very brief but I didn’t miss Lee Hyunsung’s darkening expression. I followed Lee Hyunsung’s big back and we arrived at a small door covered with simple white paint. Unexpected, Jung Heewon and Han Sooyoung who left earlier were standing in front of the door.
…What was with these people? I was about to speak to them but their expressions were a bit strange. It was the first time I had seen Han Sooyoung and Jung Heewon making this expression.
「 Kim Dokja thought, ‘There isn’t any easy task.’ 」
Shut up. I sighed lightly and placed my hand on the door handle. Things would be resolved once I met Yoo Sangah. I briefly knocked on the door and heard Yoo Sangah’s voice from inside.
-Who is it?
“Kim Dokja.”
The answer was unexpected.
-Go back.
TL: Rainbow Turtle
