Episode 167
The ‘things like this’ that Jin Shihou was talking about were Ragnarok itself.
The masked man answered.
“Do I really need a reason?”
“If it’s something that you can’t even give a proper answer to, then there’s no reason for it to continue, right?”
The man flinched for a moment at the unexpected deep question and answer.
Does this seemingly infinitely easygoing man even know how to ask and answer questions like this?
I ended up laughing again.
This man is clearly trying to make others see him as a light person. If that makes others let their guard down, then that in itself is no different from a weapon.
I think I need to get a little more serious.
“What do you think are the virtues a leader should have?”
Jin Shi-hoo answered the masked man’s question as if there was no need to think about it.
“It’s strength.”
“……strength?”
“Why? Isn’t this the answer you were hoping for?”
It was definitely not the answer I was hoping for.
“I’d like to hear why that virtue is ‘strength’.”
“It’s nothing special. You need to be strong to stand on someone’s head. If you don’t have the strength, they’ll crawl up from below. If you prevent that from happening in advance, the people you assign work to will work more comfortably and you’ll be able to manage them better.”
“… … .”
“A ruler without power is not a ruler at all. He is merely a lackey wearing the mask of a ruler.”
“That seems closer to a qualification than a virtue as a ruler.”
“Either that or that.”
Strictly speaking, it was different, but the general meaning was understood. The masked man said.
“The ruler needs to provide stability to the land he rules over.”
“so?”
“Power is not the wrong answer, but there will be many opinions on what to do with that power. The important thing is the stability I mentioned earlier. A stable world, guaranteeing safety to the ruled, that is what I think a ruler should be.”
“Is that why this star resets periodically?”
“It’s possible.”
Jin Shihou burst into laughter.
“That sounds like real sophistry.”
“Why do you think it’s sophistry?”
“Why do you think not?”
“You don’t know.”
“So what?”
The masked man looked straight ahead. Thor had fallen, and he could see Cheonma Ju Seong-cheol stepping on Thor’s chin with his foot. He continued speaking slowly.
“It is the year 2037. Do you know what will happen 100 years from now?”
“I don’t know.”
“Human civilization is developing rapidly. The temperature of the Earth, which was constantly rising due to carbon emissions, can now be stabilized through technology, and the cities that were sinking due to rising sea levels are being restored without exception. Also, with the advancement of science, interplanetary travel is no longer a story from a novel.”
“It’s a beautiful world.”
“It may seem like a good world on the outside. Technology has advanced, but the human race, no, the intelligent race, is not as rational as you might think. By 2180, the precarious peace of the world will be rapidly broken, and by 2220, humanity will begin the ‘Fourth World War,’ and by 2235, the Fourth World War will end. At that time, all living beings on Earth will be on the verge of extinction due to limited resources. By 2300, even that will be gone. This means that the destruction of humanity has come. Some people have fled to other planets in the meantime, but their future is bleak. The world is harsh. By 2320, there will be no more traces of humanity. That is the destined future. That is the end of the Earth-type planet.”
Jin Shihou blinked.
“I feel like my life has been spoiled. But there’s something I don’t understand.”
“What is that?”
“Is that future set?”
“… … As far as I know, it is decided.”
“There’s some hesitation in your words. Is it really decided?”
“At least for ‘Earth-type stars’, the flow is the same whether the ruler intervenes or not. The years may be different, but the events that occur are the same. Destruction is planned.”
Jin Shihou, who had been thinking for a moment, suddenly asked.
“Is the history of this star what you intended?”
“The big stories were intentional, but the details were not.”
“For example, the American Revolutionary War, the emergence of Jesus, the Crusades, things like that?”
“Yes.”
“Then I don’t understand it even more. If that is the kind of history you intended, then what kind of history would there be without any intervention?”
“Although the direction is different, humanity will eventually become extinct in 2320.”
“That’s been decided?”
“It is cause and effect and flow. It is a law that can never be denied. Why would the story of the stars be like that?”
I stared blankly at the man. He continued.
“A determined history, a desperate struggle to prevent destruction in 2320, that is the story of the stars.”
Jin Shihou felt that the situation was becoming truly strange.
“While we’re on the subject, let me tell you. Previous history wasn’t like this.”
“What history?”
“Magic appears, transcends species, the Abyss appears, gates appear, these are things that have never been seen before in history.”
Jin Shihou listened to the story silently.
“We tried to make it flow as close to the ‘original history’ as possible, but we added magic, superhumans, and huge variables like the Abyss and Gates. That world is the world we live in now.”
“The reason you included that variable is to prevent the extinction of humanity?”
“Yes. Of course, even if you include magic, superhumans, players, internal energy, martial arts, and such, it will be destroyed in 2320. That is a fixed history, a perfect causality that cannot be twisted, and an immutable result that no one can interfere with. In order to prevent that, we are creating numerous variables and trying to create a new fate due to those variables. Let me emphasize this once again, the Earth-type planet will be destroyed in 2320. Do you think your actions will be justified in such a world?”
“I heard something and it sounds like I’m the villain.”
“You’re not the same. You’re a villain. So now, go back to 2403. This is not your place.”
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Jin Shihou was lost in thought for a moment.
He took another bite of the cigarette and lit it.
Jin Shi-hoo thought about it for about five minutes and then asked.
“What if the story of the stars was one in which their extinction was determined by intervention?”
“… … You’re talking out of the blue.”
Jin Shihou shook his head.
It wasn’t a random comment.
“Everything must have a beginning. The history of that beginning is the same as the current history? So in the end, the Earth will definitely be destroyed in 2320? I feel bad for you, but when you reach my level, you will know. The flow can be twisted.”
“… … .”
“Everyone has their own personal microcosm. That microcosm has infinite possibilities. Some people realize it, while others don’t.”
“… … So what are you trying to say?”
“What he’s saying is that what you know now might not be true.”
“… …That’s bullshit.”
“No way. History is fixed? There is a perfectly flowing history and the characters that lead that history appear? Don’t make me laugh. It’s not fixed, so you or the editors or whatever are intervening. Think about it the other way. The reason why they choose a suitable star and make that star into Earth, or make it into a star called Varga or a star called Jungwon, although I haven’t been there, is it really to prevent extinction?”
The masked man looked at Jin Shi-hoo without saying a word.
“It’s like deciding on a title before even filling in the blank space with a picture. The history of the original stream went extinct in 2320, and the story of the star is to make it ‘definitely’ destroyed in 2320 to best match that history, and then profit from something that comes out of the process. Aren’t you being used right now?”
The masked man’s eyebrows furrowed. He had never thought about it, but it made sense.
“Looking at those bastards, if they could have twisted the law of causality, they would have done so a long time ago, but they couldn’t prevent the extinction of humanity in 2320? Are you kidding me? It’s not that they couldn’t stop it, it’s that they won’t stop it. The history that will unfold from that point on is not ‘tolerance.’”
“… …Whose tolerance are we talking about?”
“I don’t know. Either the ascendants or the ones who made up the story of the stars. Or maybe both. And isn’t there such a perspective? Like, after using the reset right or something over and over again, you lose your sense of alertness.”
The silent masked man did not hear anyone calling him from his surroundings.
I was that focused.
Cheonma Ju Seong-cheol has already become the winner. As the winner, he spoke to the host about his greatest wish, and the content of that wish is to bring the current ruler of this Earth before his eyes.
Here, Joo Sung-cheol was calling out to the silent, masked man.
Jin Shi-hoo and the masked man ignored him. Jin Shi-hoo spoke in that small space, as if they were the only two people in this world.
“Whatever the truth is, it just gives me more reasons to meet them.”
“… … Certainly, you can’t tell a person by their appearance.”
“What are you talking about out of the blue?”
“How cunning. How truly cunning.”
Jin Shi-hoo tilted his head with an expression that said he really didn’t know.
“It plants the seeds of doubt in belief… … It is an effective means of propaganda. There is no better way to make someone let down their guard and deceive them.”
What the hell is this?
“I am not fooled. The story of the stars is a way to prevent the destruction of humanity. The reason Jinmyeong is a correction is because he changes and erases the paths that lead to destruction. I will not be fooled by your words that do not know anything.”
Even though he felt very bewitched by that, Jin Shihou didn’t show it.
He raised his hand quietly and said.
“Seongcheol-ah.”
It was a small voice, but Joo Sung-chul, who was in the Colosseum, thought it was as loud as thunder.
He knelt down on one knee and waited for Jin Shihou to speak next.
Jin Shihou said.
“Thank you for your hard work. I’m going to cut the neck of the young Platy today.”
“Your name-!”
Jin Shihou smiled and said to the masked man.
“I have a rough idea of who you are, so could you please take off your mask?”
The masked man silently raised his hand, slowly took off the mask that was on his face, and put it down.
Behind the mask, the hidden face was one that Jin Shihou was very familiar with.
A huge burn scar on his neck, and dark double eyelids and large eyes.
I already guessed it when I heard the voice.
Jin Shihou smiles brightly.
“Nice to meet you, Hyuna.”
Hong Hyun, the ruler of Star #12, who has the nickname [The Man Who Killed God with His Fists], said.
“I am not the Hong Hyun you know.”
“I know that too.”
Jin Shi-hoo burst into laughter and got straight to the point.
“There are two options. My brother got an interesting item, but it can’t go to the underworld, so I guess I have no choice but to get a moving stone from you. My brother needs a moving stone to Hancheon where [Plati] is now. Just give it to me easily, without pats and all. That’s the first option, and the second option is to get hit hard and hand it over. Which one do you like better?”
