Episode 162
“so?”
“At first, I just didn’t like it. When we were at the Awakening Academy, Jinsong was always first. I was second. I would occasionally take first place away from her, but that was only when Jinsong failed to control her condition. To be exact, it was only twice out of a total of thirty-eight tests.”
“… … .”
“I found out that Jinsong’s mother had passed away at that time. I took advantage of that time to take first place from her only twice. I didn’t understand it at the time. Our family wasn’t rich, and we weren’t particularly pretty.”
At this point, Jin Shi-hoo, who had been crouching, furrowed his brows.
“Wait a minute. Isn’t my older sister pretty?”
“… … She wasn’t ugly. But I’ve never been interested in her looks. I’m sorry to say this, but there are so many beauties around me that it’s hard to count them on one hand, even more beautiful than Jin Song-i.”
“And in the meantime, you’re bragging about yourself.”
“It’s not bragging, it’s a fact. Jin Song-i and I naturally entered Ragnarok. Jin Song-i represented South Korea, and I represented the United States. I came in second both times. I knew it from the beginning. It was impossible for me to surpass Jin Song-i.”
“why?”
“She and I had fundamental differences.”
“What’s the difference?”
“Ever since she lived as an Awakened One, she had the will to shoulder the fate of humanity, and I.”
“you?”
“I just wanted to see beyond Jinsong.”
Jin Shihou shrugged. He wanted to keep listening.
“To be honest, I didn’t care whether I won or came in second place at Ragnarok. But when I actually got there, I felt a huge burden. I was overwhelmed by the burden. That’s the difference between Jinsong, who was already prepared, and me, who wasn’t prepared.”
“Isn’t it just a difference in strength?”
“What I’m saying is that while strength is strength, there is a difference in fundamental mindset.”
He lit a cigarette and burst into laughter.
“You want to protect your pride, kid, is that it?”
“What pride do I have to protect? I’m just telling the truth.”
“Is that so?”
Nodding, Jamie continues.
“Belatedly, I was able to realize the true nature of my feelings.”
“What is that feeling?”
“I was in love with a woman named Jinsong.”
Jin Shihou’s expression distorted as if he was looking at a disgusting bug.
“I realized it too late. Do you regret it? I regret it. From the day Jinsong died until today, I haven’t slept comfortably even for a moment. I’ve been plagued by nightmares every single day. All I wanted was to die. But I couldn’t die. Because there was something I had to do without dying.”
“What is that?”
“What Jin Song-i wanted to do, to protect the future of humanity. I will do it. However, this is all I can do. So, Jin Shi-hou, who came from another star.”
“why?”
“Isn’t this enough of a whiner? This isn’t the planet you were on. So stop being a jerk and kill the guy you want to kill before you get out.”
Jamie closes his eyes after saying everything he wanted to say. It’s dark.
From the day Jinsong died, Jamie’s future was always like this.
Jamie, who was prepared to die, did not see it.
Jin Shihou was looking down at himself with a strange smile.
Now Jin Shihou has decided.
“Don’t kill me, Inma. Open your eyes.”
Jamie opens his eyes. His eyes meet Jin Shi-hoo’s, who is looking down.
“As you said, I’m from another planet. The older sister here has nothing to do with me. I just felt dirty and did something, but I still have to clean up.”
The aftercare we’re talking about here was simple.
“Just keep doing what you were doing. I’ve seen kids like you before, and I know you’re the best.”
Jamie couldn’t understand.
Why on earth?
Then something occurred to me.
“… … Are you saying I should die with a sense of guilt for the rest of my life?”
“That’s not it. If I tell you not to feel guilty, you won’t feel guilty, right? No. Just do what you’ve been doing. There’s no way this planet will be ‘reset’ anymore.”
It was another topic of discussion.
What is reset?
Jin Shi-hoo did not answer Jamie’s questions.
Solve it yourself or not.
“I’m asking just in case, but when Ragnarok happens, will the ruler of this star reveal himself?”
“Reveal.”
“Have you seen it?”
“there is.”
“That’s good. What does that kid look like?”
“He always wears a mask. He may be small in stature, but his every word is full of power.”
“A mask… … . I guess he likes to hide his identity. When will he appear? As soon as Ragnarok opens? Or in the middle?”
Jamie looked at Han Jeong-ah for a moment and answered.
“Sometimes he appears at the moment the winner is decided, and sometimes he shows up from the beginning. The winner of Ragnarok fights a ‘constellation’ invited directly by the ruler, and it’s like an event match. He shows up in some way, if only to see that.”
“I see. So this time you and them were going to go out?”
“Not many, but roughly correct.”
I got it. I understood.
Jin Shihou thought.
First, we must defeat the ruler of this star.
If you defeat him, you will have the opportunity to meet an ascendant named [Plati].
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
But in order to meet the ruler, Ragnarok must end.
It’s funny to watch them one by one.
An interesting thought occurred to me.
He pointed at Jamie with his index finger.
“You don’t go out.”
“……what?”
After that, Han Jeong-ah was also pointed out.
“You don’t go out either.”
“……yes?”
Jin Shihou pointed with his index finger at Zhou Shengchul, who was standing blankly in the corner.
“Seongcheol, you go out. No, you go out.”
Joo Sung-cheol’s eyebrows furrow.
This happened on the third day after arriving at Star #12.
* * *
The summit of Mount Fuji, Japan.
There was a man there.
He was looking towards Tokyo, carrying his luggage on his back.
He was wearing a white mask on his face, a polo shirt that covered his entire neck, and loose-fitting cotton trousers.
The shoes he was wearing were completely out of place for him, but they didn’t look ordinary.
He slowly turned his head.
Behind him, a man wearing a black mask was kneeling.
It wasn’t like that the whole time.
They just arrived without a trace.
The masked man asks.
“They said star #875 was pierced. What happened?”
“… … Ifcalypto and the Heavenly Sword Emperor were defeated. Jin Shihou has the moving stone that comes from this star in his hand, and now.”
“Are you here?”
“Yes, it has been confirmed that it is in South Korea.”
The masked man turned his head again and looked at Tokyo.
Tokyo Tower, quite a distance away, but to this man it was almost within touching distance.
He continued speaking, looking at the top of the mountain.
“They said they were targeting the ascended ones, and it really was.”
“… … Wouldn’t it be better to prepare?”
It’s simple.
The ascendants are thoroughly ‘secluded’.
Yet their influence extends across the entire planet. Is that simply because of the power they possess? No.
Because there are those who represent their will and act accordingly.
Although we talk about them all together as subordinates, these subordinates aren’t just anyone you pick.
Cheonma Ju Seong-cheol, who is with Jin Shi-hoo now.
He is the hunting dog that eight ascenders were simultaneously leading.
The highest constellation is the one that is not the property of an individual among the ascenders, but is the common property of the ascenders.
[One who stands in the sky of the devil], as far as the masked man knows, there are only about 500 constellations that surpass that name.
Among them, there are about 400 people who can beat Joo Sung-cheol 1:1.
Because Joo Sung-cheol was difficult to control and had a sword hidden in his bosom, all the ascended men were on guard, but in the end, he ended up causing trouble.
That was it.
The masked man is one of those who surpasses Joo Sung-cheol. The problem is Jin Shi-hoo.
It is certainly right to prepare as the masked man said. But is it really necessary to do so?
It is also true that there was no tension in the world of the constellations.
The same goes for ascenders.
From the perspective of the masked man who served [Plati], this situation was quite impressive.
So he said this.
“Just leave it.”
“… … Your name.”
I was really looking forward to what would happen.
The masked man looked at Tokyo Tower in silence.
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
‘It’s today.’
The day before Ragnarok begins, something happens that always seems to be an annual event.
It’s the Abyss.
A typical Abyss occurs at an unspecified time.
It is different from those in phase 1 that appeared in Star #2403, where the story of the star is in progress.
The story of the stars is not a ‘single entity’. It is a ‘confederation’.
It is one and yet ten, ten and yet a hundred and more.
It’s huge and tangled like a spider’s web.
What happens here is also a story of stars.
That’s true too, it’s a story of stars.
Things like the Gate are practice, and the Abyss is real.
today.
The time is noon.
The abyss begins.
The masked man just sat there silently.
* * *
Jamie Wilson was left behind in the United States, while Han Jeong-ah, Jin Si-hoo, and Cheon Ma returned to Korea.
The three arrived in Korea leisurely on a private plane, enjoying the surrounding scenery and having a pleasant meal.
No.
I was eating.
Han Jeong-ah raised her head and looked at the sky.
There was a chandelier there. Han Jeong-ah wasn’t looking at the chandelier. She was looking at something in the air.
A ringing notification sound and a message displayed in the air.
Han Jeong-ah frowns for a moment.
[The Abyss opens.]
[You are player #12 of the star.]
[Players who are ready, please come in.]
Entry into the Abyss is not optional.
It’s forced.
You must enter, and to refuse entry you must use an item called the ‘Voice of Refusal’.
Of course, you don’t suddenly enter the Abyss unprepared.
A message will appear exactly 10 hours before the Abyss opens.
I received that message around the time I left for the United States.
From what happened in America to this moment of eating, Han Jeong-ah had forgotten every moment as if it were a dream.
That was the reason I couldn’t help but frown.
Jin Shi-hoo asked Han Jeong-ah, who had that kind of expression.
“Is the Abyss the same as the Gate?”
“… … If it’s a gate… … The star #2403 you mentioned earlier is clearly still in its early stages. The gate is only at stage 1. It’s like a single form.”
“Step? Was this some kind of evolution?”
“Yes. It’s called stage 1. The gate is like a tutorial. The gate opens, you go inside, kill monsters, clear the level, and that’s the tutorial. The Abyss is stage 2. In the Abyss, we have to prevent ‘destruction.’”
Jin Shihou looks very interested.
“Prevent destruction?”
“Yes. If you’re curious… … Would you like to go together?”
He looked at Han Jeong-ah with strange eyes. Han Jeong-ah was sincere.
“Is there a way to go together? I’m from a different star.”
“Yes. When entering the Abyss, you can use exactly two items. [Rejection Ticket], which allows you to refuse entry, and [Companion Ticket], which allows you to bring an unawakened person with you.”
