< Episode 11. Night of the Prophets (3) >
I slept deeply for the first time in a while.
It was a rare, full rest.
[Due to deep sleep, your mental strength has fully recovered.]
[Some of your possessed 'Exclusive Skills' have been updated.]
Looking at the clock, it was already four in the afternoon.
After spending last night going around the areas surrounding Dongmyo-ap Station, which had been under occupation, planting flags, it seemed my fatigue had accumulated considerably.
[Currently occupied areas: Chungmuro (Headquarters), Myeongdong, Dongdaemun History & Culture Park, Dongdaemun, Dongmyo-ap, Sindang, Cheonggu, Yaksu, Sinseol-dong]
Thanks to taking over the Dongmyo-ap Group, I now controlled nine stations.
If I secured just one more, the 'King's Path' scenario would be complete.
Soon, I could achieve one of the key early scenario objectives—the 'Non-lethal King.'
Stepping outside, Jeong Hee-won and Lee Hyun-sung were waiting for me.
"We're ready to go. When shall we leave?"
"Wait a little."
I held back my companions for a moment and turned to the men nearby.
"Did you sleep well?"
Last night, I had determined the fate of all the members belonging to the Dongmyo-ap Group.
And the two men before me were the results of that 'decision.'
Jeong Min-seop, prostrated before me, spoke.
"…Please, just spare our lives."
"Me too, me too. Sob!"
Normally, I would have just killed Seong-guk and Jeong Min-seop, but I didn't. These two still had some use until I completely wiped out the
I added them to the 'Chungmuro Group' and evolved the flag's color to 'Brown.'
From the Brown Flag onward, it becomes possible to impose action restrictions on group members.
[Exercising the rights of the leader.]
[Forcing action restrictions on group members 'Seong-guk' and 'Jeong Min-seop.']
At the system message, Seong-guk and Jeong Min-seop's expressions changed.
"First, from now on, you cannot reveal my identity to anyone else."
"Yes, sir."
"Second, you must unconditionally obey my orders. Individual actions without my permission are prohibited."
"Of course."
[Group members 'Seong-guk' and 'Jeong Min-seop' willingly accept the restrictions.]
[This restriction is a 'life-bound restriction.']
[If the restriction is violated, group members 'Seong-guk' and 'Jeong Min-seop' will die.]
I nodded.
"Alright… I don't know when my mind might change, but do your best. I'll decide based on what you do."
Swallowing hard, the two of them somehow looked excited.
I can't figure out what kind of people they are.
Maybe they figured that if they couldn't stick to Yoo Jung-hyuk, it was better to stick with me.
"By the way, Leader, how should we address you from now on…?"
"Call me as you do now. In front of other
"Yes, sir."
"Hand over your [Fugitive's Mask]."
Jeong Min-seop pouted, but eventually gave me the mask.
After all, I had to continue pretending to be Yoo Joong-hyuk to attend the 'Night of the Prophets,' and this mask would serve as a precaution just in case.
Bulging and shifting…
Soon, the muscles of my face under the mask began to change shape unnaturally, gradually forming a new appearance. It felt a bit strange at first, but I got used to it quickly.
"Huh… so this really is Yoo Joong-hyuk's appearance, huh?"
"Handsome… as the prophecy said."
These guys…
I was about to make a sarcastic remark, but I held my tongue.
No need to be petty even in this part.
Now that I think about it, it would be wise to also learn detailed information about these guys, just in case.
"Jeong Min-seop, by the way, what's your trait…?"
As I opened my mouth, a system message popped up.
[Updates are available for these characters.]
…What?
I decided to test the 'Character List' function.
Name: Jeong Min-seop
Age: 25
Affiliation Star: Cursed Gladiator
Exclusive Traits: Light Projector (Rare), 1089th Dropout (Normal)
Exclusive Skills: [Swordsmanship Training Lv.2], [Power Strike Lv.2], [Berserk Lv.3], [Memory Enhancement Lv.5]…
Stigmata: [Vengeance Lv.1]
Overall Stats: [Stamina Lv.18], [Strength Lv.16], [Agility Lv.12], [Magic Lv.10]
Overall Assessment: Possesses excellent overall stats and traits as a Manifestation. The support from the affiliation star is a little lacking, but as a warrior, his abilities are quite impressive. Had he had a little more patience, he could have been one of the 12 Apostles. A real shame.
…So that's what the system meant by the 'Character List' update.
Until yesterday, their trait window wasn't visible, and now suddenly they became part of the 'characters.'
They are
Why did they suddenly become listed as 'characters'?
"My trait is…"
"No need."
"Yes, sir."
I also checked Seong-guk's traits.
Thankfully, his traits were exactly as he had confessed: [Hypnotist] and [9th Dropout]… The latter is trash, but the former is quite useful.
"Give me your smartphones."
"Yes! Here they are."
I took their smartphones and logged into the group chat.
Ah… but the internet wouldn't work with these. It had been cut off yesterday…
[Character 'Han Dong-hoon' used 'Wide-Area Internet Lv.5.']
[Internet access on this device is now enabled.]
Before I could even think, the internet was connected.
I glanced at the tent where Han Dong-hoon was.
A faint vibration buzzed, and when I opened my smartphone, a message had arrived.
—I'll trust you, just this once.
Perhaps something had changed in Han Dong-hoon last night as well.
I had been a little worried, but thankfully, that wasn't the case.
I sent a reply to Han Dong-hoon.
—Thank you.
Soon, there would be a chance to talk with him properly.
For now, I opened the group chat using Seong-guk's smartphone.
[Chat Room]
[Participants: 9th Dropout, 15th Suicide Angle, 124th Dropout, 763, 887th Dropout, 645th Dropout… total 36 members.]
Seeing the IDs with their numbers, I could roughly guess who was who.
But something felt off.
"…36 people in total?"
Jeong Min-seop spoke defensively in response to my question.
"All the in that chat room are early dropouts. None of them are Apostles."
I see.
"But, Leader, didn't you say yesterday, 'You should have read until the end'…? Could it be that you also know the Revelation?"
Looking at Jeong Min-seop's expectant eyes, I let out a small laugh.
Of course I know. But do I just know?
"You won't regret siding with me instead of Yoo Joong-hyuk."
A little later, we headed toward Anguk Station, avoiding the surrounding conflict zones as best as we could.
The was scheduled to be held there.
Through Seong-guk's smartphone, I was eavesdropping on their group chat.
519th: Seriously?? Yoo Joong-hyuk is coming tonight, right?
67th: No doubt. Yesterday the 9th and 1089th assured us.
887th Dropout: The 9th is just an idiot, but maybe I can trust the 1089th…
124th Dropout: If we mess up this time, we're all dead.
887th Dropout: 124th, you're not even in Seoul lol. What do you mean "we're dead"? Ah, I'm so pissed.
124th Dropout: Of course I'm excluded. Victory for the provincials ^ ^v
887th Dropout: I also wish I could redo like our Jung-hyuk… If only I had read that novel… Or even just up to volume 50… Those Apostles are so damn lucky…
15th Suicide Angle: But honestly, isn't it crazy to have read over 50 volumes?? How the hell do you even read that much lol
124th Dropout: Seriously, they're lunatics lol
As I read, memories of reading The Annihilation Law resurfaced.
So these guys… were the same ones who had read it alongside me back then.
Life is unpredictable; truly, you never know what will happen.
"We've arrived."
"What, already?" I was about to say, but the Anguk Station platform appeared right before my eyes. I also saw who had arrived early.
But something was strange.
"No one seems to have occupied this station?"
"Yes. It's an agreement among the . If we meet at an occupied station, it could be dangerous. It's like a sort of DMZ."
At that moment, one waved toward us as he approached.
"Hey, 1089th!"
"Oh, Brother 763."
Jeong Min-seop waved cheerfully.
"How have you been? You look good."
"I'm good, damn it. Thanks to the 'Tyrant King,' I'm about to die."
"You were told not to advance toward Dobong-gu. Why didn't you listen…?"
763, who had been chatting loudly, glanced at me and suddenly stiffened.
"H-Huh… Could it be… that he's…?"
Jeong Min-seop nodded.
763's eyes widened in shock.
"It's… truly an honor to meet you, Yoo Joong-hyuk!"
The sudden commotion caused the scattered to start gathering one by one.
"No way, is that really him?"
The who had all rushed over peered at me curiously.
There were a few female as well, though they were very few.
"Much more handsome than I imagined! I'm the 998th!"
"Nice to meet you, Yoo Joong-hyuk! I'm the 1055th!"
This… feels like being treated as a real king.
Their shining eyes clearly trying to win my favor.
I wonder what faces they would make if they realized I wasn't the real Yoo Joong-hyuk.
Most of them seemed insignificant just from a glance.
They knew some of the future, but their abilities were mediocre too.
Yet, among them, there were some who stood out.
"Your confrontation with the Demon King Asmodeus in the 2nd cycle was truly impressive."
Oh?
"In the Revelation, it was only mentioned as a 'flashback,' which was disappointing… but I always wanted to hear about it in person someday."
Indeed, since The Annihilation Law begins with Yoo Joong-hyuk's '3rd cycle' regression, all of the 2nd cycle's story is only handled as flashbacks.
If someone knows about Asmodeus, they must know quite a bit.
Then why didn't that impressive guy finish reading all the volumes?
"How many are you, by the way?"
"I'm the 1168th."
Ah, so this guy has read almost up to the 50 volumes.
He might be the one who's read the most among them.
The 1168th asked me,
"Excuse me, but… Yoo Joong-hyuk, is this really your 3rd cycle?"
"Yes, it is."
"Ah… I thought so…"
The expressions of a few darkened.
Well, that's understandable.
Since The Annihilation Law is an infinite loop story, anyone who realizes that Yoo Joong-hyuk is still in an early cycle would be rather disappointed.
These guys… early cycles have their own charm… yet they're making a fuss without even finishing the story.
At that moment, a commotion started from the back.
"Lee Hyun-sung!"
"Is that really the Steel Sword Master, Lee Hyun-sung?"
Surrounded by people, Lee Hyun-sung's face flushed red.
"W-Why are you all acting like this? I'm not some Steel… thing!"
"Whoa, he really looks exactly like in the prophecy. Look at those arms!"
"Whoa! So toned!"
Lee Hyun-sung's handsome face made him quite popular with the female . Just then, a passing showed interest in Jeong Hee-won.
"Um… are you Admiral Lee Ji-hye?"
"No, I'm not."
"Then your name is…?"
"Jeong Hee-won. Why?"
"Ah, I see."
The disappointed passed by and went to check out Lee Hyun-sung instead.
Watching this, Jeong Hee-won quietly sent me a [Group Chat] message.
—Why… does no one seem interested in me?
—Hee-won, you're not that famous in the future.
—Tch.
—So you'd better work on that from now on.
I ignored Jeong Hee-won's pitiful look.
The so-called felt more like a flea market.
We couldn't waste time chatting like this.
"Where's the ?"
"Huh?"
"The one you guys hid. Let's check that first."
"Ah, that… yes."
The excited 763rd moved to the center of the platform and suddenly pulled away the cloth covering something. There, a large stone was revealed.
For a moment, memories of watching a meteor shower from the theater rooftop came flooding back.
Wait a minute.
"Is that… a meteorite?"
"Haha, yes. You probably don't know yet, Yoo Joong-hyuk… but according to the hard-to-get 'revelation' we obtained, there's a powerful 'weapon' inside."
"A weapon?"
"Yes! It's expected to be on par with top-grade holy relics."
"Meteorites need incubation time, so it shouldn't be usable right now?"
"Haha, we've been supplying it with magic in turns. By tonight at the latest, it should be ready. We've been preparing it for days…"
The more the guy bragged, the colder I felt.
A red meteorite.
This doesn't make sense.
Only someone who's seen at least the 4th cycle could know that.
"Who gave you that information?"
"Huh?"
"Who brought that meteorite?"
"Ah… that… I think it was the 1124th…"
1124th?
An early dropout like that knows this kind of info?
"Where is he?"
Just then, Jeong Min-seop, who was scanning the area, muttered,
"Uh… I don't think he's here yet."
The one who gave the info hasn't arrived.
I stood there for a moment, dumbfounded, before speaking.
"We need to leave."
"Huh?"
"Right now."
Since The Annihilation Law became reality and after meeting Yoo Joong-hyuk for the first time, I was finally starting to sweat cold down my back.
They're planning to use that as a ?
What kind of insane idiot came up with that idea…?
I glared at the staring at me with innocent eyes and gritted my teeth.
As if on cue, the stage started to vibrate.
Kugugugu…
I trembled as I looked at the 'meteorite' and took cautious steps backward.
I had come to wipe out the , but I was in danger of being wiped out myself.
"What… what's happening all of a sudden?"
Jeong Min-seop muttered something foolish.
Damn it. The 4th cycle scenario isn't even over yet, and the 'disaster' of the 5th cycle was already about to appear.
I shouted toward the approaching Jeong Hee-won and Lee Hyun-sung.
"Everyone, run!"
This is why you don't trust the words of early dropouts.
Because of these damned early-cycle dropouts, we could all die if we're not careful.