< Episode 25. Those Who Face the Gods (3) >
From atop Veronica's towering ramparts, the view of the plains below revealed countless giants filling the landscape. Once human, now transformed into calamities.
Gong Pildu activated every turret of the armed fortress and roared.
"Damn bastards! This is my land!"
The number of Japanese charging across the plains, smashing everything in their path, reached nearly fifty.
At a guess, that was probably more than half of all the calamities in [Peace Land].
Dududududu!
"Get lost—!"
Gong Pildu, firing relentlessly, looked slightly unhinged.
No one knew exactly why he'd ended up like that.
But Lee Jihye couldn't help thinking—
Maybe it was a lingering aftereffect of having his 'Green Zone' destroyed by Kim Dokja.
Watching the advancing army of calamities, Lee Jihye's fingertips trembled.
"Damn it. If only there were a lake or something…"
"Let's do what we can."
Lee Hyunsung walked over from the watchtower and stood beside her. Turning around, she saw Lee Boksoon loosening up as well. Lee Jihye's eyes sparkled.
"Grandma, do you think you can borrow the power of the Rear Sponsor again?"
"Heh heh, should one keep relying on the virtue of one's ancestors?"
"Oh, what are you even saying? Mr. Soldier—are Heewon unni and the others still not here?"
Lee Hyunsung nodded heavily.
"There's no word from the next wave of entrants. Dokja-ssi said before going in that they'd probably be doing a bonus scenario too…"
"Damn it. So it's really just us holding the line."
That was when dark shadows began to gather overhead.
Seeing the sky blackened by swarms of tiny insects, Lee Jihye yelped.
"Wha—?!"
Looking closer, she saw that flying types were mixed in among them.
Lee Gilyoung and Shin Yoosung army of monsters had completed their defensive preparations.
Riding atop an insect king species that resembled a hornet, Lee Gilyoung blew a hand horn.
Buuuuuh—!
The calamities, now right up against the ramparts, finally began smashing into the castle walls.
Lee Hyunsung spoke in a tense voice.
"…They're coming."
The full-scale siege had begun.
Dududududu!
On one side was the thunder of Gong Pildu's artillery; on the other, the war cries of the Small Folk.
"Fight!"
"Protect Veronica!"
Explosions echoed across the fortress, and the ramparts gradually crumbled under the kicks and blows of the calamities. At this point, humans truly looked deserving of the name 'calamity.'
'If I'd chosen to become a calamity too… would I have ended up like that?'
Biting her lip, Lee Jihye recalled Kim Dokja's words.
She didn't know the answer.
The group held out better than expected.
There was Gong Pildu's armed fortress, Lee Hyunsung's 'Mount Taesan Splitter' steadily landing solid blows, and the swarms of insects and monsters buying them precious time.
If things continued like this, maybe—just maybe—they could hold the line.
That was what Lee Jihye thought—
Until pitch-black storm clouds rolled in from the horizon of the plains.
"…What the hell is that now?"
Lee Jihye doubted her eyes.
[The King of Calamity receives a scenario buff effect.]
[Constellation 'Eight-Headed Sovereign' has its plausibility restrictions partially lifted.]
"You've got to be kidding—how are we supposed to stop that…?"
Something the size of a massive fortress was advancing toward them. Eight grotesquely swollen heads and tails, glowing crimson.
'Mister! Hurry up and get here!'
Screaming inwardly, Lee Jihye drew her saber.
Having left Kyrios' domain, we crossed the land of bizarre rock formations and headed straight for the plains.
"It looks like the 'Eight-Headed Sovereign' has already departed. I can't feel his summons anywhere near here."
"Are you all right, Ms. Ren?"
"I can resist it to some extent with my Rear Sponsor's protection. But incarnations with weaker sponsors seem to have already been drawn to the plains…"
Even if it was called the [Absolute Throne], the strength of its command apparently varied depending on distance. After all, even with the modifier 'absolute,' there was nothing in the Star Stream that could truly be called absolute.
Along the way, we found the corpses of Small Folk scattered about. Asuka Ren spoke with a bitter expression.
"…Not all Japanese chose to become 'calamities.'"
"I know."
Because I had read the original story, I could say this with certainty.
The reason no Japanese Small Folk besides Asuka Ren could be seen was likely because they had either already died—or gone into hiding somewhere in the world.
"Honestly, I don't think the Japanese who chose to become 'calamities' are necessarily bad people either. They're just… ordinary."
In fact, in the original story, a considerable number of the Korean side's first-wave entrants had also chosen to become 'calamities.'
And perhaps that, too, was the choice of ordinary people.
Han Sooyoung chimed in.
"Let's be honest—choosing 'Small Folk' doesn't make you righteous. Kim Dokja, you didn't choose it to protect the Small Folk either."
As expected of Han Sooyoung—sharp to the point.
[The Small Constellation of a Small Planet looks at you with wounded eyes.]
Whether one sides with the Small Folk or with the calamities—
In the end, the battle here becomes a spectacle.
Maybe people immerse themselves more deeply into their roles in order to forget that fact.
They sell their lives to earn money.
Then use that money to buy other stories.
Perhaps that's how humans have always lived.
Kugugugugu!
From the land of bizarre rock formations we had left behind, a massive surge of energy erupted. Despite the distance, its terrifying momentum could still be felt here.
"Looks like Kyrios has noticed. Let's hurry."
After begging him to teach us martial arts only to run away, getting caught would not end well.
We began sprinting across the plains toward Royal Castle Veronica.
Even as we ran, Asuka Ren frequently glanced back toward the rocky wasteland.
Han Sooyoung looked at her and asked,
"Regret it?"
"Huh? No."
"Well, I get it. It must feel weird, right? Seeing a character you created in the flesh for the first time."
"…Yes."
"And he was handsome, too."
She didn't say it out loud, but Kyrios was good-looking.
In Ways of Survival, when describing a handsome man, the standard comparison was often "on Yoo Joonghyuk's level"—and Kyrios fit that description perfectly.
He was just very short, and his personality was a bit… old-fashioned.
What would it feel like to see a character you created breathing, speaking, and walking around?
If the author of Ways of Survival were alive somewhere, wouldn't they feel the same way upon seeing Yoo Joonghyuk?
"Oh, right—Dokja-ssi. There's something I've been wondering."
"Yes?"
"How did you get on Kyrios' good side?"
"Good side?"
"From what I saw, it seemed like Kyrios liked you."
"…What?"
"When Kyrios likes someone, he acts like that—snappy and prickly."
[Constellation 'The Devil-like Judge of Fire' listens intently.]
Come to think of it, for someone supposedly disappointed in my lack of talent, Kyrios had treated me fairly well. For all the times he cursed me out for being 'big,' it was… comparatively gentle.
"Dokja-ssi."
At Ren's voice, I turned around.
Both women's expressions had stiffened.
Following their gaze, I saw black smoke rising into the sky—from the direction of Castle Veronica.
Without exchanging another word, we all broke into a run.
Before long, the ramparts of Castle Veronica came into view.
The corpses of beast-type monsters strewn across the ground.
The bodies of Small Folk, crushed or torn apart.
There were also humans with shattered skulls—
Likely Lee Hyunsung's handiwork.
The deeper we went into the inner castle, the more Small Folk corpses we saw—and the fewer Japanese bodies.
…Don't tell me we're too late.
Then, behind the shattered rear palace, we finally witnessed a horrifying scene.
Dududududu!
Gong Pildu's cannon fire.
Thankfully, our companions were still alive. Lee Hyunsung looked severely injured, and Lee Jihye and the children were utterly exhausted, but none of them appeared to be in immediate danger.
But they were all in the same precarious state.
And what they were fighting—
"…This is insane."
Even the tough-as-nails Han Sooyoung recoiled a few steps.
"Ah… Izumi…"
Muttering the name, Asuka Ren clutched her temple as if in pain, let out a groan, and collapsed to the ground.
Goooooo—
Twenty Japanese people were gathered around a single existence.
Above the body of a man whose pupils had turned pitch black, the shadow of a colossal monster flickered, covering the entire sky.
Heads and tails like a blood-soaked valley.
The King of Calamity had coiled its sleek, massive body in place.
One of its heads suddenly lowered, gazing down at the nearby Small Folk.
The moment their terrified faces drained of color—
The serpent smiled at them.
Kwa-jijik!
As if playing a game, the serpent's snout brushed past them, leaving behind only the crushed lower halves of their bodies.
"P-please! Spare us! Please!"
Ujeojeok! Kkwadeudeuk!
The mangled flesh of the Small Folk was sucked wholesale into the red serpent's maw.
Yet there was no one who could stop it.
The party—and every other Small Folk present—could only watch the scene like frozen mannequins.
Only then did I realize.
The reason our companions were still alive wasn't because they had fought well.
Though the cannon fire continued, what filled Gong Pildu's face wasn't killing intent—but resignation.
Lee Hyunsung.
Lee Jihye.
All of them.
The reason they were still alive—
Was because they were a single meal reserved for a narrative-grade Constellation.
Each time one of the serpent's heads opened its jaws, several Small Folk vanished, reduced to chunks of meat.
[The Small Constellation of a Small Planet writhes in agony.]
[The Small Constellation of a Small Planet screams.]
Han Sooyoung muttered,
"Fuck… what the hell is that?"
The father of Shuten-dōji—one of Japan's Three Great Evil Oni—and a monster born from flood-control mythology.
That creature was none other than Yamata no Orochi, the Eight-Headed Lord.
If I were to confront that thing, I'd be torn to shreds even if just its teeth brushed past me.
"W-We can't fight it. There's no way we can win."
At Asuka Ren's muttering, even the dazed Han Sooyoung grabbed hold of me.
"Kim Dokja. You're not seriously thinking of fighting that, are you? Let's run. Please?"
I didn't answer.
The massive head swept through the crowd of small folk once more.
It moved as naturally as scooping fish out of a glass tank.
"It's not too late. If it's now, we can still save the kids. Hurry and get them—"
Kwa-drdrk!
"Hey! At this rate, they're all going to die!"
I shook Han Sooyoung off and said,
"Wait a little longer."
If I jumped in now, that thing could never be slain.
I had to wait just a bit longer...
The snake's maw finally turned toward Lee Jihye.
Damn it.
I sprang up and ran toward her on reflex, but the snake's head moved even faster.
Then, at that moment—
Something moved faster than I did.
KWA—AAANG!
With a thunderous roar, one of the snake's heads slammed into the ground, screaming in agony.
As the dust cloud cleared, a man stood there, crushing the snake's head beneath his foot.
His cold, arrogant eyes were fixed on me.
"…Kim Dokja."
Yeah. I was wondering why you were so late.
I grinned.
"You're late, Yoo Joonghyuk."
Even though he had become a small folk just like me, an overwhelming fighting spirit radiated from him. In his hand was a longsword gleaming with a violet sheen.
So he really did get that sword.
We exchanged a brief glance, then simultaneously turned toward the calamity.
[Constellation, 'Eight-Headed Lord,' reveals its killing intent toward you.]
Angered at having its meal interrupted, Yamata no Orochi began to swell its massive body.
Kugugugugu!
"Move aside, Kim Dokja. I'll take this one."
"No. This time, that won't work."
I stepped in front of Yoo Joonghyuk and said,
[Exclusive Skill, 'Bookmark,' has been activated.]
Feeling the powerful aura of Baekcheong surge violently within my heart, I slowly blinked.
"This time, I'm the one who has to kill it."
In this scenario, I would break the principle of non-killing that I had upheld until now.
< Episode 25. Those Who Face the Gods (3) >
End