Chapter Text
Averaging 1.8 out of 5 stars with over three thousand votes, ‘Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World’ was widely considered a mediocre web novel. The most common criticisms were that it spent too much time describing the setting, was overly repetitive, and felt generally unrewarding as even a hundred chapters in the protagonist didn’t seem any closer to reaching the end than he did at the very start. Some would even go so far as to accuse it of being unoriginal as by the time it had come out, its core concepts of ‘apocalypse’, ‘reincarnation’, and ‘time loop’ had already become so popular they became tags leading back to at least a thousand other works.
And that wasn’t even getting started with the protagonist, Yoo Joonghyuk, who could best be described as a psychopathic regressor whose first answer to a problem was to kill and, if that didn’t work out, whose second answer was to regress. Awful personality, unable to compromise, stupid sunfish who wouldn’t stop for one second and just listen , and completely, utterly unrelatable.
...Why did it feel like I slipped something unnecessary in there?
Ignoring that. That was just the popular opinion. To me, this novel was my life. And I mean my life even before the Star Stream had descended and made that statement quite literal. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that I could only live to see today because of that novel. Reading and rereading, my dull life was sustained by this single novel.
I could understand where they were coming from, but I disagreed with them on two points.
For one, being too detailed with the setting was only a matter of opinion. After all, who could really say was too much or too little? Personally, I thought the novel had it just right. From the exact nonsense ingredients that went to curing Thousand Spirit Poison to the habits of 9th grade, ground rats that Yoo Joonghyuk usually dispatched in an instant. Growing up, I’d frequently lose myself in these ‘excessive’ details.
As for the second point...
For all that he was a psychopathic, sunfish regressor, Yoo Joonghyuk wasn’t entirely unrelatable. Occasionally there were moments in the novel where the reader could sympathize with him. When he cheered on Lee Jihye when he sent her off to get her diploma in the 173rd round. When he broke down after losing Lee Seolwha to Gong Pildu early on in the next round.
Better yet, take this passage for example:
[
When Yoo Joonghyuk found himself once again waking up in subway car 3707, he thought, ‘How many more times must I endure this hell?’
]
This passage resonated with me quite well. For as the length of the 43rd regression Yoo Joonghyuk’s Heaven Shaking Sword bore down towards my neck, my thoughts ran similarly.
[
How many more times would I have to deal with this damn psychopath, sunfish regressor trying to kill me and why was it always the neck?
]
[■■■■■]
It started like this.
One moment I was going to sleep in the middle of a mountain side forest with Shin Yoosung and Lee Gilyoung latched onto each side. The next moment...
[The Star Stream has noticed your presence.]
[You have entered the new scenario area!]
[The dokkaebis of the bureau have doubts about your existence.]
...I was waking up alone in the midst of a brewing Probability Storm with stone instead of dirt digging into my back and the Star Stream questioning my very existence.
It was a familiar string of messages, but I couldn’t place when I’d heard them before. Mind unusually slow to catch up, it took some time before I figured I should pick myself up and evaluate my situation. However, when I did...
[The Star Stream is questioning your existence.]
Sparks started permeating my body and the pain finally set in. My whole body seized and suddenly I found my arms could no longer support my weight, planting me straight back to the ground as a chill I never wanted to feel again began to creep into my bones.
[The Star Stream is questioning your existence.]
[The Star Stream is rejecting your existence from the scenario zone.]
Yes, it was coming back to me. While the first set of messages from my memory didn’t line up with what I was experiencing right now, I did at least recognize this pain. This was the feeling of being exiled from the scenario. A loathsome feeling I hadn’t experienced since I’d been first exiled after failing the 10th scenario.
But why? Why now? And where were the others? I grit my teeth and struggled to recall what I’d been doing up to this point. Preparing for the Final Scenario, getting tied up and kidnapped by the members of my own nebula, being threatened into taking a break at some random mountainside, and then...
[The Star Stream is rejecting your existence from the scenario zone.]
It wasn’t just sparks now. A portal was steadily forming before me and - again just like at the damned end of the 10th scenario - began to pull at me. Looking down at my hands, I saw the ends of my fingertips had already begun to turn to dust and get swept up in the steadily increasing wind current.
Shit. I didn’t have the leisure to think about that. I’d reason it out later. For now, I had to focus on not getting sucked up by that portal. In order to buy some time, I began calling my fables out to protect myself.
[Great Fable, ‘Torch that Swallowed the Myth’, has begun its storytelling]
[Great Fable, ‘Liberator of the Forgotten Ones’, has begun its storytelling]
However, as soon as I did, another series of messages followed.
[An error has occurred in the operation of the fables.]
[The Star Stream can’t find the origin of the fables owned by you.]
[The power of the fables are sharply reduced.]
That wasn’t the problem. I’d called up my fables half expecting this result, and they did the job of helping me resist the pull into exile. No, what I didn’t expect was how much the Star Stream would amp up the pressure in response.
[Great Fable, ‘Season of Light and Darkness’, has begun its storytelling.]
[Great Fable, Demon World’s Spr-]
[The Star Stream is strongly rejecting your existence from the scenario zone!]
Probability sparks filled my vision and the pain continued to wrack up into unimaginable heights to the point that I could barely think.
...It wasn’t like I remembered this exact situation before, but was it my imagination or was this worse than it should be? Right. Where was that brat anyways? He was usually so helpful in baring situations like this that it was strange he hadn’t come out now. I tried calling out to him.
“Hey...what’s taking you so long? It’s not like you to...to leave me hanging here. Help me out already!” If a Constellation were watching right now, they’d probably think I had gone mad with the pain, talking to the air or worse, maybe they’d think I was begging one of them for help. “I know you can hear me... Wake up!”
But I hadn’t gone crazy and neither had I fallen so low that I’d beg a random Constellation for help. This was for the sole existence that had accompanied me from the start of the scenarios at the subway to now. Fortunately, it worked after calling out to him a few more times.
[Sl ee py]
Was all I got him before the next message I wanted appeared.
[The exclusive skill ‘Fourth Wall’ has offset some of the pain.]
“Ugh...”
As if on a switch, the pain immediately reduced to manageable levels allowing me to clear my mind and think this through.
If the last thing I remembered was preparing for the Final Scenario with the party then perhaps this was the Final Scenario? It was different from what I had read in the novel, but we’d deviated so far off the course that it wouldn’t be too unreasonable to say that this was the result. Then following that line of thinking that this was still a ‘scenario’, shouldn’t there be a clue in the task prompt? Thinking this, I tried bringing up the Scenario Window.
[
[■■■■■ Sce■■■ #9 – ■■■■■’s Proof]
Category: M■■■
Difficulty level: ■■■
Clear Conditions: Ac■■■ ■■■■■■ ■■■■■ in the Dark ■■■■■
Time Limit: ■■ days.
Compensation: ■■■■■■ coins, Rec■■■ion ■■■■■
Failure: ■■■■■■
]
It was a relief to see that at least this much worked.
Most of it was a garbled mess, but I roughly understood the key points. This was the Dark Castle during what was supposedly the 9th Main Scenario. If I’d received the Scenario properly, likely the description would say something along the lines of killing demons to obtain Demon’s Proofs. What the significance of the 9th Scenario had over any of the other 96 my companions and I’d passed, I couldn’t say. However, I had a feeling this would be convenient for me.
The key issue here was that the Star Stream wasn’t recognizing me as an Incarnation of this scenario. Therefore, the solution to my current dilemma was to figure out a way to force myself back in. After reading the task, I had a good idea how. I should have finished calling my Fables.
There were two types of Incarnations that could enter this scenario: human and demonic. If I couldn’t enter as one, then why shouldn’t I try entering from the other side?
[Great Fable, Demon World’s Spring, has begun it’s storytelling.]
[‘Demon King Transformation’ is activating.]
Pitch-black wings tore out my shoulders as horns grew from my head.
[The Star Stream is strongly rejecting your-]
[ . . . ]
[The Star Stream is deliberating on your existence.]
It was a tense, spark-filled, few seconds as I waited for the Star Stream’s judgement.
[The Star Stream is continuing to deliberate on your existence.]
Until finally...
[The Star Stream accepts your existence.]
The sparks surrounding me died out alongside the portal that had been trying to suck me out of existence. Pain alleviated and the warmth of existence returning to me, I let out a sigh of relief.
[The Star Stream has recognized your modifier.]
[Your position in the night sky will be refreshed!]
[The bureau is wary of your presence.]
[A few Constellations have noticed your presence.]
[The Main Scenario has been updated accordingly.]
As I thought, the requirements to enter the demons’ side were more lenient than entering the humans’ side. The Dark Castle was the territory of the demons and it wasn’t uncommon for a demon to spawn spontaneously or another species to be converted into one in its midst. I know I’d reasoned it out but I still couldn’t help being surprised that things worked in my favor. Finally with some room to breath, I took a few seconds to calm my actual breathing before moving onto assessing my situation.
Looking around it appeared I was in what used to be an armoury room based on the empty wall mountings and weapon racks. However, where exactly in the castle it was, I couldn’t say. What this did tell me though was I was probably on the first floor as the second floor was a whole world entirely unto itself and the third floor only contained the throne room. Then the next step was...
[Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint isn’t available in this area.]
Too many things happening now were reminding me of that unpleasant time I’d been banished from the scenario.
[You can’t communicate with your incarnation.]
And just like that time, this didn’t work either.
Damn it. Were the others unable to make it into the Final Scenario or were we separated by the Scenario’s design? Was this even the Final Scenario? A dozen possibilities flashed by in my mind.
My last resort was to use the channel system and attempt to reach one of the Constellations I knew. It was a little strange they hadn’t messaged me yet, but this wouldn’t be the first time they’d lost track of what channel I was in or turned their attention elsewhere. If they weren’t watching me now, I’d have to take the initiative and grab their attention myself. That was my plan least. Only, when I went to use the channel system...
[Constellation, ‘Demon-King of Salvation’, is greeting the ‘Demon-like Judge of Fire’.]
... an unbelievable problem occurred.
[Unable to send indirect message. Insufficient funds.]
What bullshit was this? Insufficient funds? Was there a penalty cost to send indirect messages for this scenario? Whatever it cost, it couldn’t possibly be more than I could afford. I didn’t mean to brag but even by the standards of a world that reached the Final Scenario, our nebula [Kim Dokja’s Company] was considered filthy rich. I checked the cost to make sure.
[Indirect Messages cost 100C]
No penalty cost. Then the issue was...
[Current Coin balance: 0C]
It was an amount I hadn’t seen since the very start of the scenarios. What a rare feeling being this poor. I could almost call it refreshing. Would I have to sell the clothes on my back just to get by? I looked consideringly at the Infinite Dimension Space Coat. Certainly, I could get a good price for it and live on comfortably for a few months, but it was irreplaceable in its utility. Plus, it was a rare gift given to me by the alternate Han Sooyoung and I was reluctant to part with it.
I turned over my pockets, but there was no luck there either. They were almost as empty as my saving with the exception of a few broken items. Perhaps, it wasn’t that I had been sent to the Final Scenario zone and had been mugged and ditched in a random side of town instead.
I’d almost say this was something Han Sooyoung could do as a practical joke. However, seeing the items that were missing and the ones that were broken... It was fair to say this was going too far for just a prank.
I shook my head to myself. There was no use worrying about. Besides, there would be plenty of opportunities to earn coins. Thinking this, I checked the updated scenario window.
[
[Main Scenario #9 – Demon’s Proof of Value]
Category: Main
Difficulty level: B
Clear Conditions: Eliminate 100 human Incarnations trespassing in the Dark Castle
Time Limit: 27 days.
Compensation: 50,000 coins, Recognition from a Demon King
Failure: ―
]
[■■■■■]
“Man, this sucks. You sure more people will come this way? It’s been hours already.”
“Yeah, leader. I think if anyone else was going to come, they’d be here already.”
“Relax, this is only the first day,” said the leader, waving his teammate off back to their corner of the hall. “And get back into position. Have neither of you two ever heard of ‘camping’ before? It takes time. No wonder you two never made it past ‘Silver’."
“Well, sorry, ‘Grandmaster’, but some of us had a life before the apocalypse started.
The leader only gave a sarcastic laugh before replying, “Well you might not have one much longer if you don’t listen to me. You wanna try leading then.”
“Ehh, too much thinking. That’s what we have you for, Yongjae.”
“I thought as much,” replied Park Yongjae before resuming his lookout down the hall. Coincidently, it was much longer after that before their next victim finally showed up.
“Ah, wait, I think I spotted someone, leader! Behind us!”
It was a man in a white coat.
“Yo guys see anyone else coming over?” asked the leader, looking around.
“No. Just the one guy.”
“Same.”
Alone? Stange. It’d be a rare fool who could survive up to here yet choose to act independently. Maybe he was bait and his friends were hiding? The hall was dark enough for it. Just to be sure, he activated [Far-Sight Lv. 2]. Only to find that no, there was no one else. While the darkness of the castle was a bit strange so even his skill couldn’t see clearly past it sometimes, he could at least make out rough shapes.
Average height and average build. When the man passed under the torchlight, he saw a forgettable face coupled with an unfortunate looking smile. Honestly, judging by looks alone, he looked like an ahjussi that was easily bullied. No weapons in sight.
Really, the only thing of value on him looked to be the elaborate white coat he wore that stood out even in the unnatural darkness. There might have been a weapon hidden under the coat, but all that meant was it’d be that much harder for the man to reach it when they ambushed him. Based on previous experiences, the man should be an easy target. However, even then...
“Isn’t there something weird though? Like shouldn’t he be coming from in front of us, not behind us?”
It was a rare show of insight from Park Youngjae’s companion, and it seemed to touch on that sense of wrongness that was building inside him. The man was coming from the wrong direction - from further in the castle, not the entrance. To have come from deeper in the castle he must have survived the demons within. Not to mention to do that alone...
[The Constellation ‘Shooter of the Black Desert’ is looking forward to a good show.]
“I dunno. Looks kinda wimpy doesn’t he? Like washed up, salaryman ahjussi if anything.”
“Yeah,” agreed Park Youngjae. He was overthinking it. Even his sponsor didn’t seem all that worried. Most likely, it wasn’t that the man chose not to have companions but rather he didn’t have a choice. They’d likely died to the demons, and he was the lone survivor. The leader said as much out loud. “His team’s probably dead. If anything, he’s just running back now with his tail tucked between his legs.” The others chuckled cruelly at that before settling down for the ambush.
It’d feel bad robbing a guy already down on his luck, but if they stopped doing these things just because they felt a little bad, they’d have long since died already. Anyways, looking closely, for having likely just escaped from a fight, the coat was in pretty pristine condition. It either had a self repair function or was a surprisingly decent piece of armor. It’d be too eye catching for ambushes like this, but it would probably do well for a scenario where they’d be forced into a direct combat situation.
Hiding behind a pillar, careful to hide his shadow from the torchlight that dimly lit the hallway, Park Youngjae waited until he heard the approach of the man’s footsteps around the corner before jumping out with the rest of his teammates, weapons drawn. Except, as it was...
“Uwaak-!”
“Keh?!”
It was already over before it had even begun.
“Sorry, did I use too much strength?” asked the smiling man, fist still held out from when he’d punched out his teammates. With a single motion, the wind pressure created by the man’s fist managed to blow both of them clear across the end of the hallway. He’d only been spared the same fate by coming out from the pillar a second too late.
So stunned was Park Youngjae, it wasn’t until the man turned to face him and stepped into the light that he finally noticed the things he’d missed before. Pitch-black wings flaring up from where the man had originally tucked behind his back and the matching pair of horns resting on the man’s head. It must have been the castle’s strange darkness that hid them earlier as they blended into so well that it was hard to tell where they ended and the darkness began. It was as if the man’s presence covered the entire corridor.
Suddenly, the man’s unfortunate looking smile started to look quite sinister.
“D-D-Demon!” Park Youngjae yelped as he backed up in a rush. Quickly. Quickly. He had to do something quickly. He still had coins, right? Normally, he’d want to save them for an emergency but he was pretty sure this situation qualified. He hurriedly invested everything he had into his Strength and Stamina.
“Calm down. I’m not here to kill you,” said the smiling man - no, the smiling demon! -, putting his hands up placatingly as he matched each of Park Youngjae’s steps back with step forward. “I just ask that you hear me out and no one else has to get hurt.” But far far from comforting him, it only made his terror grow.
“N-No!!”
Park Youngjae shook his head as if denying the demon’s existence might make him go away. He didn’t though and each echoed step sent his heart pounding even faster. It didn’t take long before he finally couldn’t take it anymore and snapped, charging forward with a desperate cry.
Maybe, just maybe with this much stats he could take him if he dedicated everything into this one blow? He aimed his sword for the demon’s heart as time seemed to slow. In fact, the demon didn’t even appear to react. Perhaps the enemy’s Agility stat was too low? Whatever the case, it gave Park Youngjae some hope.
Only to have it cruelly taken away.
[Some constellations are questioning the Probability of this scenario]
[The Constellation ‘Shooter of the Black Desert’ is panicking at the unexpected turn of events]
“Aghh!”
While his aim was true and his sword successfully struck the demon’s chest, what broke was not the other but Park Youngjae’s wrist and sword. It was as if he directly stabbed into a brick wall. He stumbled back, grasping at his arm with his only good one remaining and cursed out frantically in his mind.
“It was a good strike. I'd even say it almost hurt.”
It didn’t work! In his rush to get away, Park Youngjae ended up tripping over his own feet and falling on his ass. Shit. Shit shit shit! He was so dead!
“Shit! P-Please! I’m sorry! Let me go! I-I-I’ll-just--just - anything! I’ll do anything! What is it that you want?!”
The man finally frowned. “Don’t be like that. You're making me feel like the villain here. Don’t forget it’s you guys who attacked me first.” Contrary to the frown though, his wings seemed to flutter in amusement. “Like I said before, if you’d hear me out, no one else has to be hurt.” The demon then eyed Park Youngjae’s wrist. “Well, no more than you already are at least.”
“R-R-Really?”
Of course, Park Youngjae didn’t actually believe him. Everyone knew the stories of demons, but he could work with this. He wasn’t the leader for nothing after all. If he could distract the demon long enough to make it to the [Ancient Barrier] room just a little ways down the hall, he could probably hold on until some other Incarnation arrived to distract the demon or the demon went away on his own. With that room, not only would it keep the demon out, but it would also hide him from the demon’s sight. He just had to get around the demon and it looked like he’d have a clear shot to it.
As if reading his thoughts however, the demon replied, “Young people sure are impatient these days. Can’t even wait a moment to hear their elders out. I know I’m apologizing a lot, but again I really am sorry. You hiding there would be inconvenient for me.”
Grinning with a crooked smile, the devil crouched low in front of him, wings spread out wide and horns gleaming like hellfire under the dim torchlight. “Besides, I have a better idea. Let’s make a deal.”
[■■■■■]
Watching the guy opposite of me quiver from his spot on the ground, I once again couldn’t help but feel like the villain. It was actually a familiar feeling. Not too far off from pretending to be Yoo Joonghyuk, now that I thought about it.
I shifted one of my wings down in order to block my victim’s line of sight from the spot he’d been eying on a far wall in case he got any other ideas. As far as I could see, it was a solid wall, but I didn’t need to use [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint] to make an educated guess at what he was looking at.
Last time I’d seen one, I’d been freshly resurrected and found Lee Jihye using it as refuge from the demons. That was while I was a human Incarnation. This time around I was considered a ‘demon’ in this scenario so it made sense that the [Ancient Barrier] now worked against me.
Reminded of this, I checked the scenario window again.
[
[Main Scenario #9 – Demon’s Proof of Value]
Category: Main
Difficulty level: B
Clear Conditions: Eliminate 100 human Incarnations trespassing in the Dark Castle
Time Limit: 27 days.
Compensation: 50,000 coins, Recognition from a Demon King
Failure: ―
]
While I wasn’t against killing other humans, and I did need the coin, one hundred was a rather large number. And if I was being perfectly honest, it’d feel a bit unpleasant to kill people who hadn’t done me personal harm. So I wanted to avoid it if I could especially since I wasn’t sure if that was the real ‘Clear Condition’ of this scenario.
After all, it was still up in the air whether I was actually in the 9th Scenario or a simulation of it within the Final Scenario. Though I had half-hoped knocking people out would be considered ‘Elimination’. If that didn’t work, would throwing them directly out the Dark Castle through a window count instead?
“Wh-What sort of deal? What do you want from me? Whatever it is just please, please don’t eat me!”
Certainly, there were some perverted demons with that predilection in ‘Ways of Survival’, but I who was only a demon through [Demon Transformation] couldn’t help my face twisting in disgust at the thought. “Of course. I have something much more practical in mind.”
[The exclusive skill, Character List is activated.]
[
[Character Summary]
Name: Park Youngjae
Exclusive Skills: Far Sight Lv. 2, Weapons Training Lv. 3, Hand to Hand Combat Lv. 3, Amatuer Gamer Lv. 4, Charisma Lv. 1
Stigmata: [Perfect Aim Lv. 2]
Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 33, Strength Lv. 36, Agility Lv. 25, Magic Power Lv. 6.
Overall Evaluation: Not too weak but not too strong either. Nothing to write home about but can come up with a decent plan once in a while.
]
It took some time to recall his character, but it eventually came to me. It was a small role, but in the original novel, he’d acted as a minor foil to Yoo Joonghyuk. As a fellow gamer and holder of a Stigmata that was mostly useless for combat, his relative mediocrity made Yoo Joonghyuk look even cooler in contrast.
While [Perfect Aim] sounded nice in theory, it was only good for the earliest of scenarios. Someone who couldn’t hit a target with a gun could suddenly get a headshot 10 out of 10 times. However, by the time one survived up to the 5th scenario - let alone the 9th - such skills quickly lost their advantage as by that point they were easily replicated with a little coin and some training. It really was an unfortunate choice of sponsorship on his part.
“Your name is Park Youngjae, isn’t it?”
“Y-You- How do you know my name?”
“I have my ways.” I replied vaguely. It was a good thing the other party instigated this conflict. Otherwise, I might have felt guilty for bullying this guy so much. “Your hobby is robbery, is it not? What a coincidence, I was thinking of making that my hobby as well.”
“W-What?”
“My deal is this. You give me all the coins currently in your possession and I’ll let you let you leave here to live to see another day.”
“But-but you said you weren’t going to kill me!”
“True, but that was then and this is now. Now that you’ve made me put up with so much trouble, don’t you think I should be compensated?” I was like a yakuza who’d bumped shoulders with an innocent bystander and was now asking for his compensation fee. Threatening people for coins was a little crass for my taste, but this was the fastest method to obtain coins with the current options I had.
Human Incarnations could kill other human Incarnations in order to receive their victim’s coins but that only applied to humans. Right now I was a demon and just like with the [Ancient Barrier] the same rules didn’t apply. Unless there was a special drop event, coins could not be transferred between demons and humans. Otherwise, I could easily imagine the tragedies happening in the Dark Castle being repeated endlessly outside of it.
Looking for a hidden piece and auctioning it off was an option, but the process of finding and selling one would take some time, and I really did want to get in contact with my nebula as soon as possible. As for getting sponsored, well...
[Some Constellations are yawning at the expected turn of events]
[The Constellation ‘Shooter of the Black Desert’ is warning you!]
[The constellations of Absolute Good frown at your cruelty.]
I think it was safe to say I shouldn’t be expecting funding from them anytime soon.
The first message was expected. Demons were barely considered above dragons under the Star Stream with dragons viewed as tools to highlight the skills of the story’s protagonist and demons being not much better. They were also very well known for their violence, cruelty, and acting out unreasonably so performing in such a way wouldn’t garner much interest. The second message was also predictable seeing as it was coming from this guy’s sponsor.
However, the third message was a little concerning.
‘Absolute Good’ could only be referring to Eden’s nebula and of its members I’d like to think I was friendly with at least three. By now, Gabriel, Jophiel, or Uriel should have recognized and messaged me, but they hadn’t. Even discounting that this might be the past, from what I remembered at least Uriel should have still favored me.
It’s possible the timing of my arrival at this time may have put me right when she was in the middle of dealing with the Outer Gods descending at the Constellation Banquet, but...even if that was the case, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t the 9th Scenario I’d come to know. Whatever the case, in regards to sponsoring, if I wanted coins that way I’d have to build up my reputation all over again - assuming I’d even be here that long.
“So what’s it going to be?” I asked.
“I-I-I-”
I tapped a finger on my leg impatiently as I waited for a proper response. This level of fear was beginning to be a bit too much for my taste. I should have held back more.
“I spent...I spent them all.”
“What?”
“My coins. When you attacked- I mean when we tried to ambush you. I spent them all investing them into my stats.”
I couldn’t blame him. That was actually a good move if only the difference in our stats wasn’t so high. “A good strategy,” I commended him. “Then how about your friends? Surely, they have some coins left?”
“I was the one in charge of managing all of our coins,” he admitted.
“Then your Sponsor?”
“He...He’s also short on funds.”
I forgot. Also like Yoo Joonghyuk’s mysterious sponsor, this guy’s sponsor never gave out any coins in the novel. Originally I thought it was because he was too stingy. Now I knew it was simply because he was too broke. Damn. Then was this a waste of time? Something must have shown on my face at that moment because he scrambled to appease me.
“But I could offer something else! Anything else! We have a ton of loot!”
He started rifling through his pockets and tossing elixirs, monster parts, hidden daggers, the jacket on his back - pretty much everything he owned on his person - on the ground between us.
I looked around, but from what I could see...
“These items are all worthless.” Perhaps, they’d be useful in helping some weak Incarnations to survive, but to me they’d be nothing more than useless trinkets. On top of that, their value was all such that I’d have a hard time selling them on the market. I sighed. I couldn’t expect to get lucky the first time. I’d just have to go look around for the next victim. I stood to leave.
Likely misunderstanding this motion as one to kill though, Park Youngjae called out to me. “Wait! We have something else!”
[The Constellation ‘Shooter of the Black Desert’ would like to make a deal.]
I stopped, curious about what else they could possibly offer me.
“My sponsor said he’s willing to have you co-sponsor me! You wanted to make a deal already. How about a contract? Demons like making contracts, right? That’s what all the stories say! As long as you spare me now, whatever you want me to do from here on out, I’m willing to obey.”
[The Incarnation Park Youngjae would like you to be his sponsor.]
This Constellation must care for his Incarnation a lot. I’d forgotten since I hadn't had much use for it after contracting Gong Pildu even before I was a Demon King, but there was such a setting for demon’s wasn’t there? It was to the point that making contracts was built into their character. To confirm this, I looked into the Dokkaebi Bag and found the item.
Behind the Scenes Contract - 10,000 0 C [Special Discount for Demons Only]
It wasn’t like I was actually planning to kill him, but seeing as they were already willing to go this far, I didn’t see the harm in playing along. I bought the contract. “Interesting. All right, then let’s see your terms.” Normally I should be the one setting up the terms in this situation, but I wanted to see how much they were willing to put out.
[The Constellation ‘Shooter of the Black Desert’ asks to please review his terms]
I read the terms.
- The [Demon] will not kill Park Youngjae as long as he is serving him under this contract
- The [Demon] has command authority over ‘Park Youngjae’, the private property of Constellation ‘Shooter of the Black Desert’ (Up to 30 times a day)
- ...
Those were the most important ones. The rest of the terms simply detailed restrictions of what would be considered too unreasonable to ask for with my authority. In summary, it was a contract even more biased towards me than the one I’d given Gong Pildu. With this, I didn’t even have to be held responsible for Park Youngjae’s life or death. With a deal like this, how could I not accept it?
“I will sign the contract.”
[The duration of the contract is five years and it won’t be automatically renewed.]
This wasn’t part of my plan, but there was nothing wrong with having more cards to play in my hand.
Visibly relieved, Park Youngjae asked, “So what is it you’d like me to do, erm, Mr. Demon Sir?”
“Looks like I’ve been rude, forgetting to introduce myself. My modifier is Demon-King of Salvation, but you can call me Kim Dokja.”
“A-A c-c-constellation?!”
Ignoring his surprised exclamation, I thought of what he could for me. “As for what I want you to do for me right now...just tell me if you run into a guy named Yoo Joonghyuk. He’ll be a swordsman with a long, black coat.”
“Is he your enemy? If he is, we can deal with him for you, Salvation-nim!” He said as he scrambled to his feet.
His tune sure changed. If there is one thing that Park Youngjae had over Yoo Joonghyuk, it was his ability to suck up. I shook my head. “Worse. He is my companion. If you do see him, don’t bother engaging him if you can. You will definitely die.”
“Understood, Salvation-nim! Then how will I contact you if we do find him?”
“If it’s before this scenario ends, you can probably meet me on the next floor at a place called Paradise. If you can’t find it or can’t reach it, just think of me and I’ll know. If there are other instructions, I’ll seek you out.”
Between threatening him and the contract just now, I probably left quite the impression on him so if I really needed to, I could use my skill to find him through his thoughts of me. Though in all likelihood I'd sooner find Yoo Joonghyuk than this guy did.
With the deal completed, I helped bring over his friends just outside this hallway's [Ancient Barrier] room to recuperate before moving along. However, I did stick around long enough to notice one strange thing.
The commotion I caused was enough to bring some lesser demons sniffing around for scraps. And while I expected them to avoid me due to some combination of me being a demon and my status, what I didn't expect was for them to do the same for Park Youngjae's group. I figure they might try finishing them off, but far from that they took to warily circling the perimeter instead. Even when I put a good distance between myself and the group, they continued this behavior.
It wasn't the barrier as Park Youngjae purposely set his group outside it to preserve the barrier’s effective time and I was a ways away from them so it wasn't my presence either.
An idea occurred to me and I opened the Scenario Window.
[
[Main Scenario #9 – Demon’s Proof of Value]
Category: Main
Difficulty level: B
Clear Conditions: Eliminate 99 human Incarnations trespassing in the Dark Castle
Time Limit: 27 days.
Compensation: 50,000 coins, Recognition from a Demon King
Failure: ―
]
The ‘Elimination’ count had gone down by one.
[■■■■■]
Tossing Incarnations out the castle windows did not in fact count towards ‘Elimination’s.
“Nooo-!”
“Wahhh?!”
“Save meeeee!!”
How did I know this? Just now I’d clearly blown out at least a dozen of them but the count had only gone down by five.
[
[Main Scenario #9 – Demon’s Proof of Value]
Category: Main
Difficulty level: B
Clear Conditions: Eliminate 94 human Incarnations trespassing in the Dark Castle
Time Limit: 27 days.
Compensation: 50,000 coins, Recognition from a Demon King
Failure: ―
]
No, wait. Six. One ‘elimination’ had taken longer than the rest.
[
[Main Scenario #9 – Demon’s Proof of Value]
Category: Main
Difficulty level: B
Clear Conditions: Eliminate 93 human Incarnations trespassing in the Dark Castle
Time Limit: 27 days.
Compensation: 50,000 coins, Recognition from a Demon King
Failure: ―
]
I know it was cold blooded of me to say, but if I was to guess what caused the discrepancy, it was likely I killed five instantly on impact while the last one had been unfortunate enough to hold on until he finally landed from the several stories’ worth drop. Actually, I hadn’t meant to use that much force, but in the end I also couldn’t say I regretted it either considering what I walked into them doing. At least with this, I confirmed there were two methods to clear the scenario.
With the Incarnations gone, I stopped to consider what to do now. I wasn’t particularly religious, especially seeing as I personally met and fought a decent amount of religious figureheads, but it seemed wrong to leave the naked bodies laying haphazardly around the floor. Would it be better to burn them or to not bother and let the demons feast on them?
There was also the pile of clothes and items that probably belonged to them on the side to think about. I should look through them, I knew, but even though I’d done it before, the thought still left a bad taste in my mouth.
...I really didn’t want to but I needed the coins.
“It’s for the kids,” I told myself. The sooner I got coins the closer I might be to finding them and the others.
For all my trouble however, there wasn’t much here of value. Like with Park Youngjae, the items would be hard to sell, but I supposed it was better than nothing. I pocketed the more useful elixirs I found before putting up the rest of the items for auction. Once I was sure I’d gone through everything, I paid my respect by setting the bodies alight, before picking a random direction and walking away.
I checked my balance again.
[Current Coin balance: 0C]
Had it always been this hard to farm coins?
I knew the system was biased against demons, but wasn’t this too unfair? Even when I was a beginner without a name, Constellations would at least sponsor me every now and then! I sighed in regret. I should have shaken down those guys I’d thrown out the windows while I still had the chance.
The best I could do for now was comfort myself with the fact that even if I didn’t find anymore Incarnations, I’d get back coins from the auctions eventually. I had a small hope I could run into my companions before that in which case I wouldn’t need the coins, but if not it was fine. They were strong. They could survive a few days without me. They’d already done so for 5 years after all.
Unfortunately, the same could not be said for me.
For as I was thinking as I was walking down the corridor, a sword had already sliced cleanly through my neck.
[■■■■■]
It started like this.
One moment I was going to sleep in the middle of a mountain side forest with Shin Yoosung and Lee Gilyoung latched onto each side. The next moment...
[The Star Stream has noticed your presence.]
[You have entered the new scenario area!]
[The dokkaebis of the bureau have doubts about your existence.]
...I was waking up in the midst of a brewing Probability Storm with stone instead of dirt digging into my back and the Star Stream questioning my very existence.
It was a familiar string of messages, and while I couldn’t place when I’d first heard them, I could definitely remember when I last heard them.
As I found myself once again waking up in the middle of the Dark Castle's armoury, I thought:
[ Shit. ]