The first "favor" I will request is that you interact or do something to spend time until their're here. Try to meet each others, remembering that the most important things will be censored.]
After those words, everyone started to look around and even at their faces, new or not, but no one dared to speak.
First of all, it was a simple request in general, but still no one semed able to break the cold silence. The atmosphere was easily understandable, once that force someone to talk would only result in shared anxiety.
Not even the most audacity's constellations had said anything for now.
[Oh right, the rules. I almost forgot this detail.]
Another system's message appeard in front ot those anxious eyes.
+
[Rules - "Request" #1]
It is important that the rules be followed. The break of one or more rules will result in a punishment provided by the "puppet".
1. The skills and stigmas can't be used while inside this room.
2. No violence of any kind between the ones inside this room.
3. The weapons had been forced to the inventory. Don't open it inside this room.
4. Don't hurt the "Oldest Dream", it includes all types of violence.
+
Looking at those rules, the first thing that passed at Kim Dokja's mind was...
'Fourth Wall??'
But for his happiness or sadness, he received an answer. And this somehow didn't violated the rules..?
[K im Do kj a.]
'You can act normally? Or at least know what is going on?'
[I ca n us e ev e ryt hi ng no r ma l ly, bu t I do n't th i nk th a t's a g ood id ea.]
'That definilly wasn't-'
「In the novel? I was thinking your alredy understood that.」
The voice echoed inside the room and now there was a figure at the floating laptop's side. No one was fully sure, but it looks like that was the "puppet" mencioned at the rules.
Or better, at the punishment.
「Forgive me for being late, my master was giving me some guidance.」
The puppet turned around and looked at the people direction. The puppet had long white hair that was in a low ponytail, a black suit that helped to hide itself in the darkness of the room.
At its head, what called more attention was the hat with a red stripe. Besides being called a puppet, the figure doesn't had an appearance that would be considered anormal for a human being.
Human being.
As if it had the obligation to give the first step at the mission, he started a talk.
「What were your opinions about the first scenario? "Proof of value" or something like this, right?」
The puppet talked and started to walk close to the participants.
Some gave steps back, while some just stayed still.
The Constellations didn't seemed to show interest to talk about their personal experiences, or maybe they couldn't remember it anymore.
Kim Dokja had a weird feeling.
Metraton was the only one to break the ice, maybe trying to show that he wasn't disturbed by this holy trio of two¹ ."Among all the scenarios we saw, Kim Dokja presented the most peaceful and pleasing solution to Eden in the first scenario."
[Smash ins ets.]
The fourth wall line could sound like a reinforcement of what was said by Metatron, but deep down Kim Dokja knew that the crushed "insects" in the phrase referred to people whose lives are worth less than insect eggs.
「Everyone dealt with the scenario the best way they thought, despite that... 」
The puppet's gaze wandered back and forth across the incarnations as its expression seemed to twitch slightly.
「...The conclusion proposed by Incarnation Han Soyoong scares me a little².」
___________________
¹ Holy trio are Tls123, Oldest Dream and the Puppet
But since the Oldest Dream isn't here yet, it's the holy trio of two. Idk.
² Open the Orv webtoon at the webtoon site/app, go to chapter 230 and read the comment at the Top from "RepresentativeDokja".
Good luck.
Notes:Well, it's true that my master guided the completion of this and other scenarios for some incarnations, but this one specifically I couldn't let see, it was just too inappropriate.」
'Inappropriate' Han Soyoong thought the same thing. Your suggestion for completing the initial scenario was discovered in the trust and recruitment of several people, which was
essential to his role as "Apostle 1". Of course, other methods were probably less disruptive, but still, everyone makes do as they can in the apocalypse.
"Now I would like to know" Yoo Sangah began, approaching her. "How did you complete the first scenario, Han Soyoong?"
"That's right," said little Shin Yosung, as he held the left end of Kim Dokja's coat. "How did you do it, Noona?"
'...They have no idea that I was the first apostle and attacked their base. I mean, Kim Dokja has a lot of ideas.' His thoughts made the noise that his lips refused to let go.
'「Like that's the worst problem.」'
The puppet thought to himself and to the other entity that could hear him.
'[You'll see worse things.]'
The recent fourth wall with the observation made, since both were aware of the sins of the world.
"I had to take my best friend's life with my own hands." Lee Jihye spoke without caring about what others would think, but letting the look he received from his other version coming from turn 0 go unnoticed.
[Well, this is definitely going to take a disturbing turn if we continue. How about we talk about something else?]
"Haah, it would be less disturbing if you hadn't created that story!" Jung Heewon's voice could be heard throughout the room, making everyone present there become silent. It was the truth.
[Honey, you would thank me if you knew why this story was created.]
Tls123 spoke while his virtual eyes blinked a few times on the notebook screen, which obviously did not go unnoticed by any regressor.
"Thank you?! You put us in this infinite cycle of regression for pure entertainment and now you want to hide?" Despite being aggressive words, SP was right. No one chooses to return out of sheer will. (.....Right? Hmm?)
[(Oh, looks like I arrived at a bad time.)]
Now, next to the Puppet, there was another incarnation body used by the newly arrived constellation. This time, the object in question was a book.
To most, it was just a book like any other, but to Kimcom in general, it sounded strange, it was
something they have heard about before in the scenarios. In particular for Lee Sookyung, Yoo Sangah and Kim Dokja, that was an insult.
The book, that damn book that haunted Kim Dokja's no longer very healthy mind:
"Murder's notes from underground."
The book that her mother published and received money for lies, was now being used as a simple body of incarnation.
Notes:The first thing that could be taken away from that situation was that it was an insult. Personally directed at him.
[(By gods, what did you do while I was gone, Tls123?)]
[(These people shouldn't be here.)]
[(Only you for me to do all this work.)]
After hearing these words, some particles rotated the oldest dream incarnation body and soon after, a system notification window appeared.
+
[Main Scenario - Part #1] has been completed. The next part will begin after 10 minutes of rest.
+
"Great" Gong Pildu said wryly, looking at the message. "We've barely finished one and there's going to be another one right away. But why don't these scenarios make any sense at all?"
「Are you bored? We can increase the difficulty and even give a secondary scenario if necessary.」The puppet-
[Muahahaha! We insist!] -And then the author.
In a matter of seconds, the expression on everyone's faces - everyone, including constellations and the Dokkaebis - turned pale from end to end. The cruelty that could
being felt through their intense laughter and lack of empathy was frightening. Kim Dokja immediately had the thought that he would have to die again to save those he cared about.
Accompanied by a finger snapping sound, a new message can be heard.
+
[Secondary scenario #1- Back to origins]
Category: Secondary, duh
Difficulty: A, or maybe S, hm?
Completion conditions: Tls123 couldn't bear to see the boredom of his honored guests and decided to give them a new mission! To complete, eliminate 1 or more life forms.
Time: 10 minutes~
Reward: Live
Penalty: Goes F in chat.
+
"T-That's ridiculous!" Only one person spoke, but it was clear that everyone thought the same way. Kim Namwoon, who had already passed - and failed - in this scenario didn't even move, his choice was to wait for death to catch him again, although he laughed at the way the message was written.
"Master, what do we do?!" It was possible to hear both Lee Jihye(s) from the turns 0 and 1864 speak at the same time, not knowing how to react, especially without having their weapon in hand.
[There is.]
'My sponsor isn't responding, is it because I asked about him and he was offended? Demon King of Salvation, what should I do?'
Unfortunately she did not have an answer, as her master (0th turn Yoo Joonghyuk) was already busy with other, possibly more urgent, problems.
Inside his private message chat with Demon King of Salvation, 0th turn Yoo Joonghyuk could only stare at the screen with some fear inside his mind.
-Hey.
-Do you know anything by any chance?
-There are a lot of people I know but they also are different.
-Demon King of Salvation?
-There is a scenario window in front of us. It says that we should talk.
-There is this `Tls123` and some kind of `puppet from the most ancient dream` that are saying some weird stuff.
-Why are you not saying anything?
-Is it because I was curious about you?
-The one called 'Most Ancient Dream' seems to have arrived.
-A new scenario saying to kill. What we do?
-Please, Salvation-nim.
Of course, still has no anwser. It was a shame. Looking up, he saw a timer passing by. What started at 10 minutes were now 7 minutes that would eventually became 6 minutes and 59,58,57 seconds.
His eyes focused again at the figure of the skinny man using a white coat. It was the person he fisrt met inside this weird room. He wasn't going to help originally but he felt something warm inside his chest once they were close. It was a feeling he was used to feel when near his dear - not yet - sponsor.
The only reason he wasn't exacly close to him was because of his companions (and the fact that the skinny mas was surrounded by other versions of Yoo Joonghyuk.) Without any explanations and his sponsor out of view, his only option was to be careful for now.
「What's wrong, now? If you keep this way, the penality will catch you all!」
With a smile in his face being the only thing visible for now, the puppet started to look more and more excited for the bloodbath of failures.
Of course, to reach this far they were, the first scenario was a joke (and a bad one) but that didn't mean they were willing to do it again, even more without any weapons. To make things worse, Tls123 was watching everything with a sure smile at it face and putting more pressure to the ones stuck.
[Come on, ya lazy asses are really going to make it boring after every death you caused? Hipocryts.]
The timer once more was going down and down, they had 4 minutes and 30 seconds left and not even a single trace of hope would appear. They were alredy affected by the sins of being alive but now the sins of having killed one person in vain?
[You have your own hands, don't you? Use it for something at once!] The notebook was movinh up and down in the air while the book was almost not moving. The puppet seems to like violence too.
***
[(.....)]
At this exact moment, the Most Ancient Dream had opened his message box. Since the last time he could see it he was being dragged around by Tls123, he couldn't properly talk to his incarnations.
---
You have 11 messages not readed.
It started with "Hey" and ended up with "Please, salvation-nim". It made him a little scared. This guy never asked things in such a nicely way because Yoo Joonghyuk is Yoo Joonghyuk in every turn.
But now, what was that?
---
After looking the message box, he lifted up his gaze from the sceen and looked at the incarnations in front of him. Even the incarnation body being there, there was no time for rest and he was there using his skill, [Omniscient reader's viewpoint 3].
It was alredy a disaster. There were some people really afraid of the situation while there were some desesperated. Han Soyoong was talking things like, "Good job, stupid" while looking at Gong Pildu, and the last one was touching his hat like there was no tomorrow.
There was a person trying to suffocate a Dokkaebi to death once they were not humans. Once it was a low level dokkaebi, the affords done showed low to no result once their physic was more rounded.
Some time later, there were people screaming everywere once someone was approaching a child with murderous intention. Disgusting.
Kim Namwoom was the one who approached this person. Being his plastic otaku knife being considered a weapon or not, he took it in hands and stared at the eyes of the criminal, covering the children with his free arm.
"You shouldn't be such an asshole in situations like these" It could sound a little too ironic coming from the person who spanked an old lady until (nearly) death, but after dying, he indeed changed somehow.
The person stared Kim Namwoon's eyes and clenched his hand, starting to move himself in order to hit the new target he got. Before the hand could reach Kim Namwoon's face, the person head was quickly covered in blood, while the now dead body fell to the cold ground.
「Interesting, really. This is too good to be true.」
The never ending smile was scary and now full of murderous intentions. Only a red glowing light from one of it's eyes could be seen. Another window popped up.
+
[The scenario rules are still on! Incarnation number #345 had broken the previous rule number #3 and received a punishment by the 'puppet'.]
+
"So it was all a trap..." Kim Namwoon said while still holding the plastic knife, looking at it covered in blood even after not using it.
"This is so cruel!" Said Lee Hyunsung from the 0th turn from behind his team leader.
[I don't know what you are all talking on, there is still 10 seconds left till the end of the scenario!]
The person choking the dokkaebi in vain was now also collapsaded on the ground while a blood pool was made. Everyone was now scared again, since it was a total loss.
"But that's unfair! If we kill we die and if we don't we also die!"
"What kind of logic is even this?!"
9, 8, 7, 6 seconds
5, 4, 3 seconds
2-
[( That's enough. )]
The only voice that was quiet until now finally spoke. With some probabily particules around everyone, a sudden message come instead of the expected pain.
+
[The scenario is over. Calculating the penality-]
[Someone using the autority of "Overwriting" is affecting the scene!]
[The Star Stream is dubious of such an amout of probabily being used.]
[The scenario had been forced to its conclusion.]
[The sub scenario had been completed. Calculating rewards.]
+
Everyone was so shoked wen they saw these notifications. Someone saved them.
And now, while being relieved, the 0th turn Yoo Joonghyuk received some notifications from his message private chat.
---
[(Hello dear. I'm so sorry for not anwsering it sooner I was dealing with an Idiot.)]
[(I read ur notifications as soon as I could and dealt with the scenario you had talked about. Are you ok.)]
[(*?)]
[(I'm doing the best I can to take u guys out of this place but 4 now stay near the white coat man if u can.)]
[(Gonna be back soon. Be safe.)]
---
Looking at those messages, one thing was clear. His sponsor saved they -no, him- once more, his belove sponsor.
The non common writing style was probably because of a rush, he suppose to himself.
[( B■■■, what the fuck were you doing? )]
The calm voice was now more rigid, the book facing the puppet with an unsatisfaded face. It seemed like everytime this being made an expression, the book would open with a page alredy draw with some face emotion.
「My dear god, I-I'm so sorry for the misunderstanding!」
[Geez, you're not funny at all.]
[( This is something serious. Stop doing unecessary stuff. )]
[Alright, alright. Let's see what we can do for our guests.]
Once done, they could hear a sound similar to fingers and then the surrounding started to change. Slowly, some chairs, tables with food, puffs and sofas started to emerge from the dark ground, as if it was an amount of ink trying to form something.
In a reality that everything is about stories, you shouldn't be surprised to discover everything you eat are not different from letters that just lefted a pen.
Notes: