The Diver VII
RUUUMMMBLLLLLE!
With a twitch of my fingers, the ark fleet cut through the currents and surged forward and a tingling sensation buzzed in my skull, making me feel like both a pianist and a conductor. The aura I had spent thousands of years cultivating was now powering these arks.
'Even Old Man Scho's ridicule about my martial arts being third-rate and aura being first-rate is something I can laugh off now.'
Despite Scho's mastery of swordsmanship, all he could do was wield a sword and grab objects from the air. In contrast, I was maneuvering twelve ships. With one more, I could debut as the Joseon Navy's Admiral of the Three Provinces.[1]
Yu Ji-won approached stealthily, sensing my good mood. "Your piloting skills are remarkable, sir."
I snapped back to reality at her presence, which brought with it the faint scent of strawberries, the same perfume I once complimented her on. Her meticulous flattery towards authority chilled my guts. Truly, she was the greatest psychopath of the Three Han.
"...Thank you, Ji-won. But please, keep your distance. I won't hold a grudge for cutting off my fingers, so there's no need to flatter me so desperately."
"Flattery? Absolutely not. I always present my true self to you, Your Excellency, even if it means exposing my very heart."
"If you keep spouting nonsense, I'll break your fingers. Now, let's focus on the mini-map."
"Yes, sir."
With a balance of omnipotence and reality, the navigation proceeded smoothly. Of course, finding the 'core' of the super monsoon was easier said than done. At an altitude of about 10,000 meters, the storm was no joke. Any submarine crew would know that 99% of underwater chases are battles with oneself—boredom was the enemy of patience, after all. Yet despite scanning every corner of the typhoon with Mini-Map, the enemy remained elusive.
-Kieeeek!
-Kyaaaaah...
Three hours into the search, the ancient marine creatures like Megalodon faced extinction for the second time. The web of twelve arks sliced through sharks and whales, turning them into cubed steak.
"Quite the romantic aquarium date, huh..." Noah grimaced, watching shark meat float by the window.
The rough currents prevented the crew from unbuckling their belts, and sitting for hours on end had naturally made them restless.
"Does the typhoon's core even exist?" she wondered. "If it were a tangible entity like the Ten Legs, it would make sense. But isn't the super monsoon more like a weather phenomenon?"
"It exists."
It wasn't me who answered.
Thump, thump.
The ark shook as if hit by turbulence. All eyes turned towards Go Yuri, who smiled serenely.
"And it's getting closer."
The control room fell silent, the only sound being the waves crashing against the bulkheads. No one here was familiar with Go Yuri, but they all remembered my warnings about her. Avoid her at all costs. If you must encounter her, never engage in conversation. Treat her as if she doesn't exist. This was my protocol for dealing with Go Yuri. The command center staff's collective silence was a testament to their adherence to this rule.
Go Yuri smiled awkwardly at the blatant ostracism. "Haha... You all are so interesting."
Ignoring Go Yuri's reaction, I spoke. "Anyone needing the restroom, please go now." With Noah in the command center, I used polite language as we usually did. "We've scanned the upper and middle sections of the typhoon. The core seems to be located in the lower section, at about 2,000 meters above sea level. We should find it soon."
"Alright then, hyung. I'll be right b— Whooooa?"
Seo Gyu had just unbuckled his belt when the ark abruptly veered—something massive had tangled in the web of puppet strings stretched outside. As the only one to have stood, he was flung around like a ping pong ball. He careened past me, Yu Ji-won, Lee Ha-yul, Noah, Dang Seo-rin, Sim Ah-ryeon, and Go Yuri, before crashing into the bulkhead.
Ignoring him, we focused on the mission.
"Found it! Ha-yul, send the Morse code!"
"Roger."
"It's gigantic! Seo-rin, reinforce the puppet strings with magic!"
"Got it."
"Everyone, brace yourselves for impact! It's moving!"
RUUUMMMBLLLLLE!
The massive entity tangled in the puppet strings thrashed. I could feel its immense power through my fingers, like a fisherman reeling in a giant catch. The ark shuddered, and the crew gasped in shock.
-Aaaargh!
-What's happening?
-It's coming! It's starting!
Beep-beep-beep-beep.
Ha-yul's emergency sirens blared throughout the ark. People screamed, hands flying to their belts to check them.
"Begin charging!"
A rainbow of color danced along the puppet strings, powered by the aura of the Awakeners onboard. Not just on Ark No. 1, but across all twelve arks, thousands of awakened ones poured their aura into the strings, illuminating the web like a galaxy.
RUUUMMMBLLLLLE!
The entity's movements slowed. Despite its struggles, the strings, fortified with Dang Seo-rin's magic and thousands of auras, held firm. The more it fought, the more the strings tightened around it.
ROARRRRRRRR!
From a distance, we heard the monster's thunderous cry. The puppet strings dug into its flesh, signaling its immense size.
'This thing is unbelievably huge!'
The ark lurched closer to the entity, pulled by its thrashing. The overwhelming acceleration pressed us into our seats.
I instinctively looked out the reinforced window and locked eyes with the entity.
It was an eye. An eye so large it was hard to believe it belonged to a living creature. Even the ark was a mere speck compared to its iris. The super monsoon, this void and anomaly, had an 'eye' that stared directly at us—at me.
RUUUMMMBLLLLLE!
Though brief, the eye contact was intense. The entity thrashed again, its massive body moving with surprising speed. Outside the window, its body replaced the eye. This colossal entity was more ecosystem than creature, more landscape than being.
Someone muttered, "A dragon..."
It was an apt description, and so everyone began to view the entity as a dragon. Its gigantic eye, its enormous body, and its tail that stretched beyond our sight. Even I, a regressor, had never seen the true form of the super monsoon. Now, witnessing it for the first time, I realized it embodied the most mythical creature of the East.
"Leviathan!"
It was the name of a sea dragon mentioned in the documents of truth, Sifrei Emet, a monster only the omnipotent God could defeat. In other words, an entity that mere mortals couldn't hope to kill.[2]
"The super monsoon isn't just a weather phenomenon!" I shouted to be heard over the shaking ark. "The massive typhoon we saw was actually the body of Leviathan!"
"...!"
"The typhoon itself is Leviathan. The water droplets that looked like bugs are parasites living inside Leviathan! That's why people infected with these parasites melted away. Naturally, any foreign substance inside its body would be digested!"
Thinking back, the clues were there. When the super monsoon approached Busan from the North Pacific, the Saintess had described it in vivid detail.
[The typhoon has made landfall in Busan. Now, oh, the storm waters are rapidly converging on the population center.]
[No way, the typhoon… It's transforming from a giant spiral into a long, thin tube like a straw, oh. The water■, a tsunami on the horizon, it's all all converging on ■. Everyone, evac■―]
The typhoon, once a giant spiral, had transformed into a long straw that targeted Busan. That shape was the very form of a dragon.
In the East, water was often symbolized as a dragon. Controlling a fierce dragon was considered an imperial achievement. And in Norse mythology, the mere presence of Jörmungandr poisoned the world's atmosphere and waters, leading to floods. Thus, this entity was both Leviathan and a dragon, embodying the boundless terror of the sea and water.
ROAAARRRRR!
Unable to shake off the puppet strings, Leviathan changed its strategy. The storm engulfing Busan began to contract rapidly.
[Mr. ■taker, Mr. Undertaker!]
Simultaneously, our communication with the Saintess resumed as Telepathy, previously refracted by the void's thick veil, was restored.
[Are you alright, ■dertaker?]
"Yes. Still holding on!"
[The super monso■n is changing shape! A giant drag■ is wrapping around the arks, ■ into the sky!]
The glass that had been submerged for nearly ten days suddenly cleared of water. We were no longer underwater.
We were in the sky.
Leviathan, with the arks in tow, soared to an altitude of 5,000 meters.
Footnotes:
[1] The Korean naval admiral Yu Sun-sin once famously led a single fleet of 13 ships to victory against 333 Japanese ships.
[2] A Creator deity fighting a dragon of the sea, a manifestation of primordial chaos, is a myth meant to represent the battle said God must overcome to create and control the universe.
-x-X-x-
The Diver VIII
Screams rang through the command center. The loudest of them came from Seo Gyu, who was quite unfortunately still folded in half, his life resembling a pinball game.
Even when ignoring such collateral damage, terror remained with the gravitational acceleration that struck the ark fleet.
"Oppa! The people here can't hold on!" Ha-yul shouted, but it was really the voice of the maid doll kneeling beside her. "They'll burst! Their bodies can't take it!"
"Got it!"
I immediately summoned my aura. It felt as if the deep water source, bottomless just moments before, had suddenly dropped to half-capacity. Even for someone like me, who prided himself on being an aura monster, the loss was palpable.
'At this rate, I won't have enough ammunition left to deal with Leviathan!'
My aura alone wasn't enough to protect the regular citizenry aboard. With urgent-softened-to-delicate strokes of my fingers, I distributed the aura sent by the Awakeners from the twelve arks. Most of the Unawakened had already fainted due to Leviathan's tortuous movements.
There was no choice. To lure the super monsoon anomaly's focus to Busan, we needed as many people as possible aboard the ark. In present-day East Asia, Busan was the most prosperous human fortress.
Rumble!
The mythical storm dragon seemed determined to punish humanity's arrogance, thrashing even more violently.
[Mr. Undertaker! The dragon is plunging toward the sea surface again!]
The ark shook violently, sent diving into a freefall for the surface. Despite simply streaming from above to below, the excessively high drop and speed were cataclysmic. The ark shuddered like a small boat drifting in the Pacific.
Outside the command center window, the sky, clouds, and sea whizzed past like a revolving lantern. We were plummeting, from sky to sea.
"Saintess! Give us the timing!"
[Three seconds, two seconds, one second—brace yourselves!]
Wham!
Even though I squeezed out my aura to protect the ship as much as possible, the enormous shock couldn't be fully absorbed.
"Gasp."
"...!"
People in the command center fainted one after another. Sim Ah-ryeon and Noah, less adept at aura, lost consciousness. Other isolation areas were in even worse shape. Inexperienced Awakeners foamed at the mouth and blacked out.
Leviathan had simply leapt into the sky like a dolphin and then plunged back into the sea, and yet, half of the Awakeners aboard the ark were knocked out of the fight.
'Is this the power of the super monsoon anomaly?'
I gritted my teeth against my heightened senses as the screams and scent of blood from the ark's passengers overwhelmed me.
"Ah――ah――ah――"
Dang Seo-rin's song bloomed. It was an unplanned fifth verse. We had agreed to sing only up to the fourth verse before the operation, but recognizing the enemy's extraordinary power, Dang Seo-rin pushed herself further.
The melody reinforced the ark's structure itself, easing the burden on my aura considerably.
Rumble!
However, Leviathan's violence stemmed not just from its enormous size.
Swoosh.
Not long after Leviathan reentered the sea, water began to flood the command center again. It was the original weapon Leviathan possessed, attacking once more.
"Damn it. Ha-yul!"
"Yes!"
Ha-yul unbuckled her belt and grabbed a bucket, furiously scooping and dumping water.
"...! ...!"
Leviathan wasn't swimming lazily at 30 knots. Thousands of puppet strings bound its main body as it thrashed in agony and fury, sending waves 20 meters high to devastate Busan.
Inside the ship, Ha-yul slipped several times as she desperately bailed water, gasping for breath.
"I'll help you." Go Yuri grabbed Ha-yul's hand.
"...!"
"Heave-ho, heave-ho."
Ha-yul instinctively tried to pull her hand away, but Go Yuri's grip was stronger than expected. Undeterred, Go Yuri helped with the bucket. Ha-yul looked at me, her eyes asking, What should I do, Oppa?
I nodded. We needed every available hand, including Go Yuri's.
"Saintess!" I called. "How are the other areas?"
[They're fine. I'm directing them with constant communication and movement from the constellations. Don't worry about the other isolation areas, Mr. Undertaker!]
Indeed, the situation was dire, but there was no time for tears or despair. The world had always been harsh to us.
I wasn't an omnipotent regressor. I was merely a supporter, burdened with tasks originally meant for the old man Scho. It was why I had painstakingly nurtured party members through countless trials and errors. In this 'Typhoon Hunt' operation, there was hardly anyone useless (except perhaps Seo Gyu, who was still floating around unconscious).
[The water levels in all isolation areas are stabilizing.]
[No drowning casualties.]
[Some people have been contaminated by water bugs, but the surrounding Awakeners are handling it.]
[Those who fainted from the impact with the water's surface are quickly regaining consciousness... Ah, Mr. Undertaker, the dragon is rising again!]
I cursed. Was it planning to keep repeating this?
'A long battle doesn't necessarily mean I'll lose.'
The problem was the damage to our side. The 60,000 people aboard the ark fleet represented invaluable human resources, the last remaining assets in this apocalyptic era.
The resilience. The vitality. The dedication.
None of these lives were expendable.
'Should I cut the strings now and let the other eleven arks escape? No, that would weaken the puppet strings holding Leviathan. We might end up losing it. Should I wait for the next summer or the next cycle?'
Then, it happened.
-GWAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHHH!
A powerful roar echoed from outside the ark, shaking the command center. It was a deliberate shout, infused with aura, aimed at the Awakeners in despair.
My mind lit with recognition. I knew that voice. Even before the shout ended, I knew its owner.
"Yo-hwa!"
Baekhwa Girls' High School's student council president. The only necromancer in the Korean Peninsula. The shrine maiden who sealed the outcast gods in her hourglass. Cheon Yo-hwa had arrived.
-Sink back down!
Leviathan extended its head, poised to soar skyward again, and Cheon Yo-hwa, once the basketball team's ace, struck it down.
Boom!
The enormous impact forced Leviathan's head back into the sea. The wave generated by its plunge damaged the beach, and the last intact building in Busan, the National Road Management headquarters, was engulfed.
-ROAAARRRRRRR!
-Baekhwa High! Jump! Don't tremble like cowards! No matter what, don't let this snake rise again!
I couldn't see them, not from the limited view from the command center window.
The Saintess spoke in a hurried admission. [I did it.]
"Saintess..."
[Yes. After communication was cut off, I requested reinforcements from Cheon Yo-hwa. I judged that we must prioritize the eradication of the super monsoon, even if it meant risking the northern front. When persuading her, I claimed it was your request, Mr. Undertaker. I apologize for making a unilateral decision.]
"No, you did well!"
[Thank you,] the Saintess replied, as if she had expected my forgiveness. Her voice was much calmer than before.
"How did Yo-hwa manage to stop Leviathan?"
[She bombed it.]
"Bombed?"
[Originally, Samcheon World guild members were scouting the super monsoon's approach. Now, they're carrying Baekhwa High Guild members on broomsticks.]
[When Samcheon World Guild members approach Leviathan with flight magic, Baekhwa High Guild members drop from thousands of meters high and strike the dragon directly.]
"They're using themselves as missiles..."
[Yes, it was Ms. Cheon Yo-hwa's plan.]
It was a crude but effective method. Leviathan's own tactics were equally brutal, so we responded in kind. Yu Ji-won, the least affected by the turmoil, reported, "Sir, Baekhwa High Awakeners are appearing on the mini-map. Some are already drifting in the sea."
Boom! Ba-boom!
Following Cheon Yo-hwa's lead, dozens, even hundreds of impact sounds resonated on the battlefield.
Though it was hard to see through the window, Baekhwa High Guild members were bombarding Leviathan in continuous waves, their bodies wrapped in aura.
-ROAAARRRRRRR!
-Teacher!
Cheon Yo-hwa's voice rang out, desperate.
-We don't have much time left! Do it now, before thathappens!
I immediately left my seat, opening the hatch prepared for diving to a blustering wind.
For the first time, I took in the full view of the battlefield, not just the restricted view from the window. The first thing I saw was Leviathan's massive body, stretching to the horizon.
"Teacher!"
Then I saw Cheon Yo-hwa struggling, her body half-buried in Leviathan's eye. She unleashed a fierce aura, furiously attacking the monster's eye with flailing limbs.
Only then did I understand how Cheon Yo-hwa had grounded Leviathan. This crazy student had jumped from thousands of meters high and stabbed Leviathan's eye in one fell swoop!
"Yo-hwa!"
"Yes!"
"Well done!"
"Yes! Please save me!"
-ROAAARRRRRRR!
Leviathan went berserk with a mosquito-like intruder sucking its blood. Tsunamis continuously battered Busan's coastline. Even the National Road Management headquarters began to sway dangerously, and the sight of it inspired a thought.
'Noah would be happy about the savings on city redevelopment costs.'
-x-X-x-
The Diver IX
"Wait."
I paused. A strange realization, almost like a premonition, brushed my awareness.
'From Leviathan's perspective... Yo-hwa is just a bug, like a mosquito, in its eye, right?'
Eye. Bug. Mosquito. These keywords were oddly familiar. I felt like I was on the verge of a great idea. If only I could sit quietly in a café and have a cup of Americano, I would surely catch it, but this was not the time to find a nice café with a good view.
"Ah, all my fingers have turned into bugs... Teacher, I feel like I'm slipping inside its eye. See you in the next life."
"No, Yo-hwa!"
With a leap, I dashed forward and grabbed Cheon Yo-hwa's hand. She grabbed my hand tightly with both of hers and pulled, yet it felt like her body was stuck in a crevice, completely immobile.
"Ouch! Teacher, my arm! It's going to come off!"
"What the hell are you caught on? What's in there?"
"Bugs! Millions of water bugs are clinging to my calves and thighs, pulling me down!"
It was true.
Squirm, squirm.
Transparent bugs the size of a human arm were wriggling, pulling Cheon Yo-hwa downward. Leviathan's body, including its eyes, was entirely made of water-shaped bugs. Inside its eye was a pit filled with these bugs, unrelinquishing of any and all intruders.
"Release the seal of Infinite Void!"
"I'm trying! But Infinite Void demands six hours of my time every day in return for lending its power!"
"No, we can't! Last time, six hours turned into twelve, and twelve turned into twenty-three hours and fifty-nine minutes!"
"Right... Ah, I'm really getting pulled in. My aura is being devoured. Maybe we should just let this be a double suicide..."
"You're not Infinite Void, are you?"
"Not yet!"
Boom!
I stomped my foot onto the surface, using my aura to turn Leviathan's eye into an actual hole.
-ROARRRR!
Leviathan writhed in pain, but my initial goal of rescuing Cheon Yo-hwa failed. As soon as the water bugs evaporated from my aura, they were immediately replaced by new ones. There were simply too many water bugs composing Leviathan's massive body, like it was the ocean itself.
"Damn." I drew my cane sword, Do-hwa, and sliced at Leviathan's neck.
Slash!
Even then, bugs swarmed the slashed surface, reconnecting the severed parts. There seemed to be no end to them.
To save Cheon Yo-hwa, I might have to burn Leviathan in its entirety.
"Teacher, maybe we should just give Infinite Void six hours..."
I grabbed Cheon Yo-hwa's hand firmly instead of answering. The intense grip silenced her.
We couldn't let Infinite Void take over. In a previous cycle, Infinite Void had deceptively taken over Cheon Yo-hwa's body and manipulated her friends, colleagues, and subordinates. Yo-hwa, trapped in her own consciousness, had to watch helplessly.
I couldn't let that happen again.
'Think, Undertaker.'
While desperately burning the never-ending water bugs with my aura, I tried to think of a way to save Cheon Yo-hwa from the eye of the storm.
'Why is Leviathan so desperately protecting its eye?'
'Did it sense Infinite Void within Cheon Yo-hwa and is trying to digest it?'
'Does Leviathan have the power to devour even Outer Gods? No, that can't be true. If it were, Infinite Void wouldn't have been so relaxed about raising the stakes...'
At that moment,
Thud.
however strange,
Thud.
the sound of footsteps echoed, cutting through the tsunamis and chaos brought about by Leviathan's thrashing.
Thud, thud, thud.
Everything around me froze. Cheon Yo-hwa holding my hand, the guild members bombarding Leviathan, the foam from the waves—it all stopped.
"―――"
I also froze, my consciousness and thoughts unaffected yet unable to even blink.
No matter how I tried to focus, this situation was beyond odd.
Thud, thud.
Thud.
Only the sound of footsteps approaching from behind reached my ears.
Thud.
The footsteps stopped right beside me as a smaller shadow blanketed me.
『Guild leader.』
The sickeningly sweet scent of rotting apples filled the air. It was Go Yuri's scent.
『I told you, didn't I?』
Arms came on either side of me to wrap around my face, fingers intertwining like a spider's web across my vision. Beyond the mesh of fingers, I glimpsed Leviathan's eye.
The scent grew closer, whispering directly into my ear.
『That's a dragon, you know?』
As soon as she whispered, the world resumed.
Cheon Yo-hwa thrashed. The Baekhwa High School guild members fought. The waves pummeled the ark's deck.
Splash!
A wave drenched me.
I turned to look behind me. Go Yuri was gone.
Maybe she was never there.
Slowly, I mumbled, "The eye."
"What? Teacher?"
"Yes, the eye!" I shouted, struck by inspiration. "Leviathan, this monstrous sea dragon, must protect its eyes because it's a dragon!"
A legendary painter had once drawn four white dragons in a temple. Despite the praise, he left the eyes unfinished. When asked why, he replied:
"If I draw the eyes, the dragons will fly away."
Skeptics demanded proof, so the painter added eyes to two dragons. The dragons broke free from the temple walls and flew into the sky.[1]
From a modern perspective, this "Dragon's Eye" concept was like a seal binding the anomaly breaking.
'A blind dragon can't fly!'
The eyes represented awareness, identity. Without sight, a being couldn't recognize itself or its surroundings, remaining earthbound.
If this story applied to the dragon before us, then blinding it might render it powerless.
"Saintess!"
[Yes?]
"Are you in the study in Yongsan? Do you have Kafka's The Metamorphosis?"
[Yes? Oh, I have it...]
"Don't ask why! Just bring out The Metamorphosisand read it to Yo-hwa! Every word!"
[Got it,] the Saintess replied less than a second later. She had likely paused time to act.
My instructions weren't finished. I looked at Cheon Yo-hwa. "Yo-hwa! The Saintess will read something to you. Repeat every word."
Despite the dire situation, Cheon Yo-hwa remained calm. Her expression and voice turned cold.
"Loudly?"
"Volume doesn't matter. Just keep reading without stopping."
"Understood, Teacher."
While the Saintess and Cheon Yo-hwa prepared, I raised my left hand to the sky and unleashed my dark aura. Instead of attacking Leviathan's eye, I used my aura to shield it, covering the entire eye like an eyelid.
-...!
My dark aura encased both of Leviathan's eyes. It was as if I had put blindfolds on the dragon, cutting off its vision entirely.
-ROARRRRRR!
Leviathan howled in agony. Its struggling began to sputter out.
[...!]
[The enemy's movements have slowed!]
The once-rampaging beast rapidly calmed.
Squirm, squirm.
The bugs clinging to Cheon Yo-hwa's legs surged, trying to bite through the protective aura. But just as I couldn't burn all of Leviathan, Leviathan couldn't consume my aura, not immediately at least.
"Ugh."
The bugs attacked me, crawling into my eyes, mouth, and fingers, biting wherever they found a gap. I used my defensive aura to fend them off, repelling their disgusting advances.
[As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning...]
"As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning..."
Then.
[...from uneasy dreams...]
"...from uneasy dreams..."
The synchronized voices of the Saintess and Cheon Yo-hwa echoed through the bug-infested pit.
Growl!
The bugs biting me all turned toward Cheon Yo-hwa, charging at her en masse.
I couldn't let them pass. I raised my aura to dangerous levels, burning them away.
Growl! Growl!
Despite my efforts, the swarm of bugs kept attacking Cheon Yo-hwa. In the darkness of its creation, my black aura shone faintly, continuously blocking the suicidal onslaught of the bug army.
'If this super monsoon anomaly is related to bugs...'
My aura reserves dwindled rapidly.
'Then the same thing that happened to the Saintess must happen to this anomaly.'
The Saintess had turned into a potato just because a bug entered her eye. The nature of these bug-related anomalies wasn't fully understood, but one thing was certain.
'Anomalies can't deny their essence.'
An anomaly couldn't escape its own nature. If it had the power to transform humans, it would face the same fate under similar conditions.
Super monsoon, Leviathan, Jörmungandr.
This ruthless white dragon treated humans as mere parasites. If a parasite entered its eye...
'Leviathan must transform into something close to a bug, just like the Saintess!'
The bugs desperately tried to silence Cheon Yo-hwa. I protected her with all my might.
As the unbreakable spear clashed with the unpierceable shield, the incantation was completed.
[...he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.]
"—transformed in his bed into a gigantic—"
At that moment,
"―insect."
the world shook.
Footnotes:
[1] This is the painter Zhang Sengyao, whose paintings were said to be inhumanly realistic and life-like sans the absent eyes that he refused to complete. The story is meant to convey the importance of adding the final touches or a work of art, or more simply, "the devil is in the details."
-x-X-x-
The Diver X
Let's have a brief chat about bugs.
Insects.
The term for bugs and derision.
When you think about it, isn't it quite odd? Throughout history, people have constructed a pyramid of life with plants at the bottom, animals in the middle, and humans at the top. The further down you go, the lower the level in the ecosystem. However, there's never been a history of terms like "tree brat" or "such a seed" being used as insults. At most, "weed" might be a candidate, but even that word carries a hint of admiration for resilience.
If you're skeptical, consider the difference between saying, "You're as tenacious as a weed!" and, "You're as tenacious as a cockroach!" The nuance changes significantly. The lowest form of life, reserved for the most despicable entities, has always been bugs. The long history of contempt and persecution against bugs is well-documented even in dictionaries.
A harmful creature? Yes, a pest.
A lazy bum who eats and shits? Yes, a parasite.
Indecisive and lacking a backbone? A spineless worm.
A psychopath like Yu Ji-won? An emotional leech on society.
A nymph following others' words in the forest? A bug that echoes others.
Such a dazzling lineup of derogatory terms. Even the tiger was nicknamed 'big bug' (大蟲). This term was created when the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, whose name included the character for tiger (虎), ascended the throne, forcing the creation of a new term to avoid the emperor's name taboo.
In essence, people of old simply appended "bug" to any beast with legs. It wasn't that they lacked the biological know-how to differentiate between insects and mammals. They simply understood, as well as modern people, that adding "bug" to the end of a word was enough to express disdain.
The most despised existence. A life detested and scorned.
The easiest metaphor and symbol humans used to curse something was a "bug." Therefore, it was the most basic magic. Anything or anyone could become a bug.
And with the arrival of anomalies, humankind fell to the level of bugs. Just as a dragonfly in graceful flight could be ensnared for a child's summer homework only to have its wings torn off, a human walking by the river could lose their limbs and face, turning into a potato. The elegance of the dragonfly's flight and the nobility of the human didn't matter to the anomaly.
To regard something as an "insignificant existence," it first had to be turned into a "bug."
Indeed. If the rule among anomalies was that when you gaze into the void, the void gazes back, then the human rule was when you treat someone like a bug, be prepared to be treated like a bug yourself.
-GRRRRAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!
Leviathan roared.
As the strongest of dragons, Leviathan's body was invisible. It was the mightiest of dragons. However, what Leviathan faced now was not gods, demons, or the Balrogs, which couldn't be used due to copyright laws.[2] They were mere extras destined to lose in any Kamen Rider tokusatsushow.[3]
The enemy of the anomaly—it was always humanity, the exterminators of Earth's ecosystems.
-GRAAAAAHHH!
Leviathan's roar, apart from rupturing the eardrums and corneas of some Awakeners, achieved nothing. For prominent Awakeners like Cheon Yo-hwa and myself, there was no damage at all.
The water bugs that had been rushing to bite off our limbs stopped and began to scream. The roar wasn't coming from Leviathan's mouth but was instead a cacophony emitted by the countless water bugs composing its body.
"Ugh, it's so loud...!"
"Don't stop! Keep reading The Metamorphosis, Yo-hwa! It's working!"
"Okay, got it!"
"Saintess! Read it in the original German too!"
[Understood.]
"Yo-hwa, just mimic the Saintess's pronunciation even if you don't understand it!"
"Okay!"
The Saintess didn't originally know German, but after years of study sessions with me, she mastered it. Reading Kant's Critique of Pure Reason in German was a breeze for her; Kafka's The Metamorphosiswas nothing.[4]
She and Cheon Yo-hwa continued chanting the powerful 'bug spell.'
-GRRRRAAAAAAAHHH!
The force holding the H₂O molecules and swarms of bugs together in the form of a dragon weakened rapidly, and Leviathan's body began to disintegrate. Cheon Yo-hwa and I couldn't quite wrap our minds around the situation under the aura-made eyelid barrier, but seeing the water bugs convulse, we knew we had found an effective strategy.
[Mr. Undertaker! It's working!]
Plop.
Rain fell.
[The dragon's scales are falling off!]
The rain wasn't from the sky.
Dragon scales, flesh, organs, and cells—all the water bugs composing Leviathan were bursting, falling like rain.
- Croak.
- Croak, croak.
- Croak, croak, croak.
The water bugs croaked.
Frogs are heralds of rain, forecasting and summoning its presence. Thus, the frogs declared this rain was their domain and not an unexpected event. Yet even if their croaking drowned skulls and minds, they couldn't stop the collapse already in motion.
- Croak.
Plop. Plop.
I looked up. A few drops of rain hit my cheeks.
As always, a light drizzle foreshadowed a downpour.
- Croak, croak.
Thud, thud, thud.
Countless bugs burst open.
Once a super typhoon reaching 10 kilometers in height and 1,200 kilometers in diameter, this anomaly and terror of East Asia spewed rain over Busan.
This rain was Leviathan's hemorrhage, the sea dragon's corpse.
'We did it.'
There was no need to keep the aura blindfold on the anomaly. Even the dragon's eyes were draining away, sinking into a whirlpool.
'We did it! We defeated the super monsoon with minimal casualties and found an effective strategy!'
I wasn't the only one cheering. In fact, I was quite restrained in comparison.
"It's falling! That bastard is falling!"
"Rescue the people in the sea! If they get caught in the rain, they'll drown!"
"We did it! We won!"
The Samcheon World guild members circling on broomsticks, Baekhwa Girls' High School guild members fighting on the dragon's body, and Awakeners infusing aura from within the ark—they all exhaled in victory.
"Teacher!" Cheon Yo-hwa, now confident of our victory, hugged me, soaked in fatigue. "We survived!"
Despite joking about a double suicide, Cheon Yo-hwa's relief and joy were palpable.
I gave her a few energetic pats on the back. "You did great! Thanks to you striking the eye of the storm, everything worked out!"
"Oh, oh, oh— Hehe. Yes!" Cheon Yo-hwa laughed gleefully as I patted her back. Even the orange strand of hair clinging to her cheek seemed endearing.
Thus, we entered the happy ending epilogue—
If only it were that simple. There's still a scene I needed to describe before moving on. A scene I have never shared with anyone until now.
Everyone except me and the one who would later eavesdrop on this secret believed the super monsoon was defeated.
With Noah's Ark, Ha-yul's puppet strings, the Awakeners' aura support, and Cheon Yo-hwa's assistance; with the miracle of 'Dragon's Eye' and Metamorphosis magic, orchestrated by me, the Undertaker; finally, by all appearances, we had defeated Leviathan.
But I saw it.
Step.
While being hugged by Cheon Yo-hwa, I witnessed a strange sight.
There where Leviathan fell into the sea, Go Yuri walked toward its splashdown.
No one noticed.
It was as if time had stopped, leaving everyone motionless.
"..."
I couldn't even move my lips, let alone tell if this was a dream or reality.
Step. Step.
In the frozen world, with only my eyes as her witness, Go Yuri gracefully walked. She stepped on the water as if it were solid ground, and with each step, her lips moved softly.
"You shouldn't do this."
Her whisper seemed to resonate not from afar but right beside my ear, or maybe even inside my head.
But the whisper wasn't directed at me.
Go Yuri smiled at Leviathan dissolving into raindrops. "Respect each other's territories. That was our agreement, wasn't it? At least, that's how I understood it..."
Then something astonishing happened. In that frozen world, or rather in the air separated from reality, Leviathan responded.
-GWAAAAARRRGHHHH!
Leviathan answered not with human language but with the gestures of an anomaly. The scales that had been falling off suddenly sharpened again.
Blink. Blink.
Countless scales turned into 'eyes.'
"...!"
I silently gasped.
Leviathan's body was no longer covered in beautiful, transparent scales. Like Argos from Greek mythology, its entire body, from head to tail, was now covered in eyes.[5] It was as if defeating the dragon by covering its eyes led it to produce hundreds, thousands, millions of eyes instead.
Indeed, bosses always had multiple transformation phases. The typhoon form was Phase 1. The sea dragon form was Phase 2. Now, the super monsoon anomaly was initiating Phase 3.
'Do we have to defeat it again?'
A profound dread gripped my consciousness.
Go Yuri, with a slightly troubled smile, closed one eye gently. "Really. You shouldn't do this." Those thousands of eyes watched her place a finger to her lips. "Shh. You failed the gamble. You couldn't accept everyone. So, you must accept the result. Actually, there's no reason to even call you 'you' anymore."
- KIIIEEEEERGHHHHHHH!
"Be quiet."
A strange sound echoed in this surreal world. It was like a beast's growl, a tiger's roar, and the innocent laughter of countless children mixed together, creating an eerie echo.
'This...'
Déjà vu washed over me.
That cycle long ago. The cycle where I experimented by pairing Yu Ji-won and Go Yuri, leading to the disappearance of all Daejeon citizens.
It was the same sound I heard that night.
Go Yuri whispered.
"Become one."
And Leviathan's millions of eyes melted.
No embellishments were needed. Leviathan, revealing its true form for the final time, didn't struggle. It melted away as if it had always been nothing more than droplets of water.
The melted eyes mixed with the falling rain and disappeared.
It was dead.
"...?"
Go Yuri turned toward me. When our eyes met, she widened her eyes in surprise. She began walking toward me, but then hesitated.
"..."
She looked down at her feet for a long time, and I sensed that she was somehow uncomfortable. After a moment, a fresh smile was painted across her lips. "Indeed. This too is a territory."
What did she mean?
Go Yuri lifted the side of her long skirt with a light touch, bowing elegantly like a noble at a ball. "Please be at ease."
"..."
"I won't touch you."
Drip, drip, drip.
As soon as Go Yuri finished speaking, the rain that had been suspended in the air poured down. The last rain of the super monsoon was so thick it obscured Go Yuri's form as if it were veiled in fog.
The time that had been paused and overlaid with an illusion resumed its flow.
"―Wow!"
"It's really dead!"
"We did it!"
The cheers of the Awakeners, momentarily halted, echoed over the sea off Busan. To them, Leviathan had never entered Phase 3. There were no thousands of eyes. The sea dragon simply turned into ordinary rain.
To them, no strange phenomena occurred in the in between.
"Long live Baekhwa Girls' High School! Long live Cheon Yo-hwa!"
"Long live Dang Seo-rin!"
"Thank you, Constellations!"
"Undertaker! Undertaker! Undertaker!"
"..."
While everyone praised the heroes of the operation, I gazed silently at the fading rain.
The endless downpour finally subsided. The sea fog lifted. The sea dragon's corpse had been buried in the water.
Go Yuri was nowhere to be seen.
"Saintess."
[Yes.]
"Did you see anything just now?"
[What do you mean by 'anything?']
"...Nothing. You did a great job." I patted the back of Cheon Yo-hwa, who was still clinging to me like a koala.
When the ark's deck opened, people who had been confined for nearly ten days emerged. The cheers grew louder.
But the scent of apples lingered in my nostrils longer than the smell of the sea.
Anomaly: Super Monsoon
Aliases: Leviathan, Water Bugs, Sea Dragon, White Dragon, Frog Dragon, Frog Rain, Jörmungandr, Eye of the Storm, Argos.
Threat Level: Lv.4 Oceanic-class
Patterns: Phase 1 'Typhoon', Phase 2 'Sea Dragon', Phase 3 'Awakened Eyes'
Estimated Damage if Not Defeated: Submersion of Japanese Archipelago, Inundation of the Korean Peninsula, Flooding of the Chinese Continent.
Subjugation complete.
There's an epilogue.
Having discovered an effective strategy to defeat the super monsoon, I prepared even more thoroughly for the next summer cycle.
"From now on, your name is Noah."
"Is this for real...?"
Naturally, I renamed Noh Do-hwa as Noah in this cycle too.
The ark was fortified. This time, I didn't need to free dive with Ha-yul into the typhoon; the ark fleet was securely bound with puppet strings from the start.
I made the Saintess and Cheon Yo-hwa memorize the original German text of The Metamorphosis.
The preparations were perfect.
'This time, I'll defeat it in a day! Come on, super monsoon!'
It didn't come.
"...?"
No matter how long we waited, the super monsoon did not arrive, nor did even a regular monsoon. The sea off Busan remained peaceful, filled with the aria of seagulls.
"What?"
Everyone stared at me with narrowed eyes.
Noh Do-hwa, who had invested money and manpower to build the ark on Geumjeongsan, the passengers who boarded with solemn determination, and Cheon Yo-hwa, who struggled to memorize German—they all looked at me like the Korean Meteorological Administration. Their eyes reflected the crashing value of the regressor coin.
"Well... let's wait a few more days?"
But it didn't come.
"..."
"Hey, regressor. Do you wanna die...?"
Noh Do-hwa tore off the nameplate with "Noah" written on it and threw it at me. It hit me right in the heart.
'No, this can't be...'
But really, the super monsoon had vanished without a trace.
Even when I flew to the North Pacific, there were no signs of an anomaly forming. Not only in this cycle but in future cycles, the super monsoon never reappeared. Busan never faced another tsunami leading to reconstruction. It was inexplicable.
[Mr. Undertaker.]
But.
Instead, every summer, another presence appeared off the coast of Busan.
[The 'pink entity' you warned me about last time has appeared in Haeundae.]
"What?"
[Don't worry. I didn't use Clairvoyance on it. I'm observing it cautiously through another Awakener in Haeundae.]
Go Yuri.
Every monsoon season, she appeared in the sea off Busan.
"What is she doing there?"
[No unusual signs. She's taking off her shoes, splashing in the water, and strolling alone on the beach.]
[Oh, now she's squatting and playing in the sand.]
I frowned. "...Playing in the sand?"
[Yes. She's singing the nursery rhyme 'Froggie, Froggie, I'll give you a new house' and building sandcastles only to destroy them. She seems very happy.]
[What should we do, Mr. Undertaker? Leave her be? Or intervene using other Awakeners?]
I was silent for a long time. My neck still ached from Noh Do-hwa's grip. "...No. Leave her alone."
[Are you sure?]
"Yes. There's no need to poke a sleeping tiger."
According to the Saintess, Go Yuri spent about an hour at Haeundae before returning to Daejeon. After she left, I immediately visited Haeundae. I checked the exact spot where Go Yuri had played with the sand. On the delicate boundary between land and sea, where the waves barely reached, the wet sand had writing on it.
-Rawwwr!
What did it mean?
Maybe it was a prank she left, knowing I'd find it. I shook my head, puzzled.
Then, suddenly, I noticed something under the waves. There were 'letters' inscribed on the seabed.
虎.
The character for tiger.
"..."
Even if something had been written there, the waves should have washed away the sand long ago. Yet, for some reason, the seabed letters remained untouched by the waves. It wasn't just a few letters by chance. Tiny characters stretched endlessly toward the horizon.
虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎虎
"..."
When I tried to open my mouth, a wave gently washed over the beach, and the letters that had covered the seabed disappeared.
-Rawwwr!
Only the playful scribble Go Yuri left at my feet remained.
"..."
Hmm.
...It was autumn.
Footnotes:
[1] A reference to this quote from Chairman Netero when facing the King Meruem of the Chimera Ants of HunterXHunter: "You know nothing of the bottomless malice within the human heart."
[2] Invisible Dragon is a spoof web novel of the "so bad, it's good" variety that features a roaring invisible dragon that is the mightiest of dragons, gods, demons, and Balrogs that infringe on the copyright of The Lord of the Rings series.
[3] Kamen Rider is a TV program in the tokusatsu genre, which features a wide plethora of special effects and, oftentimes, a large monstrous enemy such as Godzilla.
[4] Critique of Pure Reason is a philosophical text by Immanuel Kant that explores the application and limitations of metaphysics. Because understanding it requires a certain mastery of centuries of philosophy, it's generally seen as inaccessible to most readers, even when read in one's native language.
[5] Argos the many-eyed giant was used as an ever-vigilant, all-seeing watchdog for the queen of the gods, Hera, and slain when tricked into closing all of his eyes.
-x-X-x-
The Existentialist I
Since the Ark was featured in the previous chapter, I thought I'd continue discussing 'ships' this time as well. Of course, there aren't many ships that boast worldwide fame like the Ark. (If we limit it to the Korean Peninsula, the Turtle Ship is one that can compete.)
The ship I'm covering this time is both famous and not so famous. It's called 'Theseus's Ship.'[1]
Before diving into the main story,
Astute readers might have noticed that I haven't included the introduction "This chapter happened in the XXX cycle" for a while. To clarify, the story of the Super Monsoon anomaly leading the redevelopment of Busan was from the 664th cycle. In other words, it took place while the regressor called the Undertaker was evolving from an experienced player to a fossil fuel. Calling him a 'munchkin' then would not have been an exaggeration.[2]
However, today's story will focus on a much earlier time.
[Mr. Undertaker, while you took a brief visit to Okinawa last time, I saw with Clairvoyance a massive typhoon moving toward the Philippines.]
"A massive typhoon?"
[Yes. It seemed to be at least 1,000 kilometers in diameter and reached the boundary of the troposphere.]
"What is that? How terrifying..."
One of the taboos in subculture plots is having a strong protagonist become weak again. In the past, martial arts stories often featured protagonists falling off cliffs, losing their memories, or having their energy cores shattered. Such lazy plots cannot survive in today's wild subculture market.
But in my story, it's entirely possible. Like now, I can talk about cycle 664 and then "regress" to cycle 239, making my character legitimately weaker.
At that time, I didn't have the ability to cross the Pacific Ocean with my bare body (people would call me crazy if I did), I had no idea about the Super Monsoon anomaly, and of course, I couldn't have imagined that the Saintess would suddenly transform into a potato while out for a walk.
Even for a regressor, imagining that was difficult.
However, strange events at a similar level kept intruding upon my life, both then and now.
"Master Noh Do-hwa! It's an emergency! Please quickly make a prosthetic!"
"Damn it..."
Of course, from Noh Do-hwa's perspective, I must have been the uninvited guest in her life. One must always adopt a relativistic perspective to maintain stable human relationships.
"This isn't just a patient, this person is on the verge of death. Damn it, how am I supposed to meet this deadline...?"
One day in the 239th cycle. I went to see Noh Do-hwa, who was carrying a severely injured person. From now on, let's call this patient Patient A. Noh Do-hwa grumbled but immediately halted her duties as the National Road Management Corps Leader and began to save Patient A.
In the post-apocalyptic world, the President of the Korean Peninsula also served as the 24-hour emergency room duty officer.
"..., ..."
As Noh Do-hwa said, the patient was in a quantum state between life and death. Their entire body was covered in blood, with limbs having flown away in search of freedom and a heart that was thoroughly pierced. You could almost call it a miracle that death had not yet been confirmed.
Of course, it wasn't a miracle from the heavens. The apocalyptic world was basically like a yandere character with a favorability rating of -100 towards humanity. What's the point of a yandere without favorability? Exactly. It's no different from a common murderer.
"How did this happen?"
"They are from a small guild. They were exploring the Void near Gimhae and encountered the 'Code of Hammurabi' anomaly. This person killed the anomaly's heart in exchange for losing their own."
"Huh. Such sacrifice... They're lucky to be alive."
"The other guild members performed CPR for an hour. The training was tough, but it paid off. I received the distress call and brought them here because it was closer than Pyongyang."
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
It was always important, but after the Aura Healing Technique became essential knowledge for Awakeners, it became even more crucial. Now, Awakeners didn't just rely on weak palm-pumping to save a heart. They used the mystic aura of the apocalypse.
Even in extreme cases such as when the heart stopped—or like now, was missing—emergency treatment was possible. Awakeners could use aura to forcibly regulate oxygen and carbon dioxide and circulate blood and, in turn, keep someone alive for hours.
How long? Until aura ran out.
Of course, circulating human blood throughout the body wasn't as easy as it sounded. It required very precise aura control.
These days, job markets didn't favor those who just piled up aura indiscriminately. In critical situations (which happened 90% of the time in the Void), guilds wanted people whose aura control was delicate enough to take responsibility for their own lives and the lives of their teammates.
And who developed and introduced this comprehensive Aura Healing Technique into the job market as a required subject?
Who else but me, the Undertaker.
It's no wonder I was respected by most Awakeners in most cycles. If I suggested establishing the National Road Management Corps, all the guild leaders across the country would agree. They were practically my external disciples.
Anyway.
"Arms, legs, and heart. Master, please make the heart first, and the limbs later. Meanwhile, I'll keep the patient alive."
Sighing, Noh Do-hwa adjusted her monocle and took out her tools. "Hang in there for 60 more minutes..."
Noh Do-hwa's awakening ability—[Prosthetic Creation]. An ability that made the prosthetics work 'as if they were part of the original body'.
Initially used mainly to make artificial legs and arms, it was gradually applied to more "sophisticated" body parts as the cycles progressed.
Now, when Awakeners joined a guild, they almost always took 'body photos'. These body photos captured not only the external appearance but also the internal organs like the brain, heart, lungs, and other internal organs. Guilds sent these body photos to the National Road Management Corps for registration, and for a simple reason: so that in emergencies, like now, Noh Do-hwa could make body parts as close to the original as possible. A kind of insurance, in a way.
Needless to say, Noh Do-hwa was very busy.
It was easier to find a healer than to request a prosthetic from her, who had a workload like that of Zhuge Liang. But what if the heart was gone? There were very few healers who could treat that. At best, the Saintess villain from the north.
Severely injured patients—practically dead but barely kept alive by their comrades' aura—had a chance of survival only with Sim Ah-ryeon or Noh Do-hwa.
Just like this case.
"I've made it. Cut the chest open."
"Done."
As you might expect, I had to commend Noh Do-hwa. For the apocalyptic Korean Peninsula, she acted as a pseudo-government leader, took care of the elderly, and treated emergency patients who lost their hearts every few days. What couldn't she do?
"Fortunately, the blood vessels are relatively intact. No, they're too intact..."
"That's because the Code of Hammurabi only exchanged the heart. It's not an external injury."
"I see. Then, I'll attach it..." Noh Do-hwa transplanted the artificial heart. Sweat dripped from her chin, a sign of how focused she was on Patient A.
"The heart is properly positioned," I said.
"Attach it with aura."
"Okay. I'll keep circulating blood with aura until the heartbeat returns. One, two, three."
Thump!
Patient A's body jolted.
Noh Do-hwa and I, used to such procedures, continued the surgery smoothly.
"Reduce the aura bit by bit."
"70% reduced. Respiratory rate is normal. Heartbeat has a regular rhythm. No issues."
"Reduce more."
"50% reduced. No issues. The patient's Aura is faintly returning. It's repelling my aura."
"Reduce significantly. Slowly..."
"Yes. 30%, 20%, 10%, 1%. No issues. Repelling stopped. Stopping aura infusion."
I gently stopped the Aura connection I had maintained for nearly two hours.
"..."
"..."
Noh Do-hwa and I quietly watched over the patient on the bed.
We didn't use the commonly seen vital sign monitors, the so-called beep-beep-beep patient monitoring devices. Absolutely not. Never.
As mentioned before, electronic devices were dangerous in today's world. They were all contaminated when the Void came. If we used a vital sign monitor, no matter how good the patient's condition was, soon it would be this:
Beep-beep-beep-beep— Beeeeeeeep—
And the heart would stop.
They were no longer treatment tools but killing machines.
It's absurd, but what can we do? That's the state of our world. Even in such a world, those who could be saved had to be saved.
"One minute passed. No issues."
"..."
"Three minutes passed. No issues. Pulse, pupil constriction, all normal. Checking consciousness."
My dark aura forcibly raised the patient's consciousness.
Huff— the patient took a deep breath.
"Huff, huff... Where, where am I...?"
"Can you hear me, patient?"
"Yes, I can... I can hear you..."
"What's your name?"
"Ah... Reom..."
I nodded. "Consciousness is clear. No contamination from the Void detected. You can rest assured now, Master Noh Do-hwa."
"Whew..." Noh Do-hwa slumped into a chair. She looked too exhausted to speak.
I tactfully went outside, made iced coffee, and handed it to her. For a moment, she seemed to consider pouring it over me but then just drank it.
"I'm going to die at this rate..." she complained.
"It's okay. Everyone is like that."
"Damn it, it's work overload. I'm serious. We need to delegate more authority to Manager Yu Ji-won or something to reduce the workload..."
"Master Noh Do-hwa. Do you know what we call Ji-won if she has more authority than she does now?"
"I don't know, a monster? A dictator? Is this the start of your 'I've seen this happen before in a previous cycle' speech?"
"What if it is?"
Splash!
Even as an experienced regressor, there were a few things I hadn't anticipated.
First, coffee could be poured even when half-drunk.
Second was Patient A, whom we had saved.
"Thank you! Corps Leader! Undertaker!"
By the way, this person's real name was Ah Reum. Their given name was 'Reum' and the surname was 'Ah'. Quite rare on the Korean Peninsula.
"I'll live harder for the life you saved! Thank you so much!"
Patient A thanked us, but none of us took it to heart. Usually, Awakeners who lost their hearts would retreat. The Void was too terrifying.
No one blamed them. Losing limbs was nothing to the heroes, but when it came to the heart or brain, they acknowledged retirement.
But Patient A was extremely dedicated.
One month later.
"Master Noh Do-hwa! It's an emergency! Please quickly make a prosthetic!"
"Damn it..."
I kicked open the door of the National Road Management Corps main office meeting room.
Noh Do-hwa, who was in the middle of a meeting with other managers, cursed. She inspected the patient and cursed even more.
"Wait a minute. Damn it. This face looks familiar. Isn't this the person who lost all their limbs and their heart last month...?"
"Yes, it's them."
"After such injuries, they went into the Void again? And now their head is half gone...?"
"Surviving this would be a miracle. They encountered a Basilisk. We have their brain photos. Please make it as similar as possible."
"Damn it..."
Surprisingly, Noh Do-hwa could even make an 'artificial brain'—but only one hemisphere at a time. As long as one hemisphere was intact, the artificial one could work normally. If the entire brain was gone, even her S-class prosthetics were useless.
We didn't know why, nor did we want to. In this era, ignorance was power. Francis Bacon wasn't a name but a misprint of 'France is Bacon'.[3]
"Thank you! Corps Leader! Undertaker! I'll live harder for the life you saved! Thank you so much!"
"Oh, yes. Just live safely..."
Once again, Noh Do-hwa saved Patient A, who had lost their left brain.
Now, Patient A had a prosthetic for the left brain, heart, left arm, right arm, left leg, and right leg. At this point, one would be hard-pressed to call them a Homo sapien. But, well, sometimes you see people with sunflowers for heads on the road. Artificial humans were relatively acceptable.
The problem was what happened next.
"Master Noh Do-hwa! It's an emergency! Please quickly make a prosthetic!"
"..."
Two months later.
Noh Do-hwa, who was enjoying her privacy in the basement wine cellar, made a sour face at the sight of the patient I brought.
"Damn it, are you kidding me? It's that person again...?"
Our Patient A was missing their right brain this time. What a coincidence.
In my long life, this was a first. Who loses all limbs and their heart, goes back to the Void, loses the left brain, goes back again, and loses the right brain?
But a regressor's life is not arithmetic but statistics. Madmen existed, and such insane scenarios occurred.
"So, are you going to save them or not?"
"Damn it, I'll save them. But... this means alternating the left and right brains with prosthetics. What will happen? This is my first time doing this..."
"Relax. It's my first time too."
"Wow. That reassures me so much, you damned regressor..."
Anyway, Noh Do-hwa made the right brain, and successfully attached it to Patient A.
It almost had us thinking our job was being Patient A's personal doctors.
Eventually, we became the first medical team in history to replace an entire human brain with an artificial one.
"Patient, can you hear me?"
"..."
"What's your name?"
"..."
Blink, blink.
Patient A opened their eyes. Their heartbeat was normal, and intelligence was evident in their eyes.
"My name is Ah Reum."
I patted Noh Do-hwa's shoulder, celebrating the success of this absurd surgery.
But then.
"But, what exactly is 'Ah Reum'?"
In hindsight, it might have been better if the surgery had failed.
"Pardon?"
"I have the name Ah Reum. But is the Ah Reum of 10 years ago the same person as the Ah Reum now?"
Patient A spoke methodically with a strangely foreign voice.
"What about the Ah Reum of 10 seconds ago? The Ah Reum of 1 second ago? The Ah Reum of 1 second later? Who am I? What am I?"
"..."
Yes.
At that moment, a new anomaly was born in the world.
Footnotes:
[1] The Ship of Theseus is a thought experiment that asks whether an object is the same object after all its components have been replaced over time.
[2] Munchkin refers to an OP character, and often one who is cliché.
[3] Francis Bacon coined the phrase "knowledge is power."
-x-X-x-
The Existentialist II
Although discovering anomalies already existing in the world was common, witnessing the moment an anomaly was 'created' was rare. To be honest, it was so rare you could count the instances on one hand. The probability was lower than getting an SSR in a gacha game. In other words, the moment Patient A's brain changed from natural to artificial, it became one of those rare SSSR-grade cases.
"It's an anomaly called Theseus's Ship."
"Theseus's Ship? What is that...?" Noh Do-hwa, who had very little knowledge in certain fields, asked. The reason for that was simple: the Korean civil service exam did not include philosophy. It was a backlash from the Joseon Dynasty, where only philosophy was tested.
"There was a hero named Theseus who had a ship. Since it was a precious item like the Turtle Ship, they must have preserved it, right?"
"Hmm..."
"But over time, the ship's planks rotted, so they replaced them with new ones. If this continued, eventually none of the original planks would remain, and everything would be new―"
"Ah. So the question is whether it can still be called Theseus's Ship. If you only consider the materials, hasn't the entire content changed? Is that what you're saying...?"
"Exactly."
Up to what point is it Theseus's Ship, and from where is it not? What exactly is Theseus' Ship in the first place?
It's a dilemma related to identity.
Why did it have to be Theseus's Ship?
No particular reason. He was just the most famous hero in Athens. It's similar to how people would be more eager to repair Yi Sun-sin's Ship rather than Won Gyun's Ship, even if they were both under the same naval command.
In fact, there were many dilemmas with different names but similar content. Scholars, both past and present, needed to find ways to package the same product in a captivating manner to make a living. That's why a scientist's brain goes into a jar and Schrödinger's cat goes into a box—to support their owners.
"Well, I understand..." Noh Do-hwa glanced at Patient A, or rather, the anomaly that had once been Patient A, now bound motionlessly to the operating table. If Noh Do-hwa were a mad scientist or the executive of an evil organization, this would look like a scene where something significant was about to happen. "I get the gist of the anomaly. It's one that confuses its own identity, constantly questioning who it is and where it is, right...?"
"Probably?"
"Why do you end your sentence with a question mark, making people anxious...?"
"Because this is my first time witnessing such a phenomenon. We often use the term identity... But there's no point in explaining it since you wouldn't understand anyway."
"Ah, you want to die, don't you...?"
"Anyway, it seems clear that this anomaly has an identity crisis."
Even now, Patient A, isolated in the laboratory, was constantly mumbling.
"Even a speck of dust falling on a table changes the table from an atomic perspective. How about humans? Am I Ah Reum? What is Ah Reum? What determines Ah Reum's essence, Ah Reum-ness, and beauty?"
Noh Do-hwa massaged her temples. "This is maddening..."
"Hmm. Maybe the fact that the patient's name is 'Ah Reum' was a trigger point. If you remove a stroke from how you write it, it becomes 'name.'[1] Names are the closest terms to identity."
"Why would you remove a stroke...?"
"How should I know? That's just what anomalies often do."
Noh Do-hwa cursed. You can fill in the blanks with the highest level of profanity you can imagine.
"Hah, anyway, the good thing is that there's no other issue apart from the nonsensical babbling. Let's just keep this anomaly locked up forever..."
"I agree."
~And so, the new anomaly was isolated in the Impel Down of the National Road Management Corps and lived a happy life~. END.
―If that were the end, I wouldn't have mentioned the story at all.
Anomalies begin to "grow" from the moment they are born and inevitably affect the world. The purpose of this particular story is to show you the aftermath.
[Mr. Undertaker.]
From that day onward, the day the anomaly of Patient A was born and isolated, strange phenomena began to occur.
"Yes, Saintess. What's the matter?"
[Currently, some Awakeners exploring the Void in the Korean Peninsula are experiencing mental breakdowns.]
"What?"
[The afflicted started asking questions about their own existence and then fainted within five minutes. Their fellow guild members are moving them to the rear.]
A chill ran down my spine. "Please provide the coordinates of the nearest afflicted person."
[Sure. Near Gimhae...]
I immediately headed to the indicated location.
The guild members were already transporting the injured to the hospital, so I helped them carry the patient. The building was more like a pharmacy or a clinic than a hospital, but these days, all hospitals were like that. Even the apocalypse couldn't withstand the separation of medicine and pharmacy.
"He suddenly lost consciousness. We didn't do anything wrong!" a guild member from the same guild as the afflicted testified. They seemed slightly intimidated by the sudden appearance of someone like me. "We followed the protocol for mental contamination during the exploration. Really, we prepared thoroughly. There was no sign, but suddenly, when he got on the boat, he lost his mind and... "
"Boat?" I snapped to attention. "Wait. He got on a boat in the Void?"
"Yes? Ah, yes... It's much faster to use the waterway near the Jomangang River. But really, we didn't go through any dangerous routes! It was the path we always took, honest!"
While the Awakeners desperately tried to defend themselves, I sighed deep within my heart.
'That anomaly has already started consuming the concept of [ship] since its birth!'
There was no time to waste. I immediately left the hospital room and contacted the control tower in Yongsan.
"Saintess. Are you watching me now?"
[Yes.]
"Please check if all the afflicted Awakeners recently boarded or have even seen a ship in the Void."
[...I can't confirm them all, but it seems likely. All the afflicted groups were near water.]
I sighed.
The hesitation was slim.
The face of an Awakener who had ventured into the Void, even after losing his entire body, to fight an anomaly. His smile. His words of gratitude.
But determination was always stronger than hesitation.
"Saintess."
[Yes.]
"Please contact Noh Do-hwa and tell her to eliminate Isolation-239-430-1-A. Just call it Ah Reum, and she'll know."
[Understood.]
Silence ensued. Two minutes later.
[It's done.]
I immediately asked, "Physical destruction?"
[In progress. It doesn't seem to resist aura, so physical destruction should be possible.]
"Thank you for your hard work."
[No problem.]
"Please tell Noh Do-hwa that it's not her fault. I agreed to it, and anomalies can arise anytime."
[...Yes, I'll tell her.]
My mind raced.
'Is this the end? Or is it too late to prevent the contamination?'
There were various ways anomalies could grow their power. One of the most representative methods was contaminating a specific 'concept.'
For example, let's say an anomaly contaminated 'the lilies in my backyard.' That wasn't too dangerous, as I just had to stop growing lilies. But what if 'all lilies' were contaminated? It would be a bit more dangerous, but still, not something to be overly paranoid about. If it seemed too dangerous, I could simply post on SG Net, "Everyone, be cautious of lilies."
But what if it went beyond 'lilies' to 'plants'?
Or even beyond plants to 'life' itself?
Yes.
Astute readers would have already realized this, but the higher up you go from a 'small concept' to a 'broader concept,' the more dangerous the anomaly becomes.
Let me draw a simple diagram as an example.
[Existence]
/ \
[Living Things] [Non-living Things]
/ \
[Cellular Organisms] [Acellular Organisms]
Imagine the world as being made of concepts rather than space. Anomalies climb the ladders of this conceptual map, spreading their cells. Sometimes upwards. Sometimes sideways. Sometimes downwards. Steadily, or by leaping. Occasionally through logic. But mostly through illogic.
Anomalies' insidious dialectics existed to contaminate our world's pyramid, to contaminate the pyramid of existence itself. Therefore, to become a competent 'anomaly virus containment specialist,' you must quickly identify where the contamination starts and how it spreads.
As a Regressor, my task was essentially the same.
At that time, my brain was churning over the following:
'The concept of the ship is contaminated. What's next? All vehicles? Bicycles or trains? That would be troublesome. Or will it expand to water-related concepts because it's a ship? Or is it completely eradicated due to physical destruction?'
It was then.
- U-uh? Huh? What's wrong with you?!
- Wait! Hey! Stop! Stop!
The hospital room door swung open with a bang.
When I turned around, the mentally disturbed patient who had been transported earlier was standing there, his mouth agape. Words spilled out from his mouth.
"Ship..."
"Hey, hey! Lee Geum-seon! What are you doing?!"
His companions rushed out after him, shouting.
"He suddenly started saying strange things! Ah, Undertaker, sorry. He woke up, but then suddenly got out of bed!"
"We must fix the ship..."
Mumble.
The patient staggered.
"We must fix the ship. The existence crumbles, and only those who fix the ship will be saved. It is the ark for all of us..."
His companions shouted, "Hey! Hey!" and tried to hold him back, but it was useless. Somehow, the patient exhibited superhuman strength and moved steadily. His companions were dragged along, exclaiming, "What? What?"
That wasn't all.
[Mr. Undertaker!]
The urgency in the Saintess's voice shook my heart.
[It's serious. Many Awakeners on SG Net are showing symptoms of Theseus' Ship!]
"SG Net? Suddenly, why?" Even as I responded, my mind immediately conjured the worst hypothesis. Could it be? "Did someone upload pictures or images related to ships?"
[I don't know. I had the same hypothesis, so I haven't used Clairvoyance on the intentionally infected.]
"You did well. If you get infected, it will be a disaster. For now, ask Seo Gyu to suspend the board..."
[Sorry.]
My breath caught.
[Seo Gyu is infected. Probably the first one too.]
I held my breath for a moment, catching and suppressing it between my teeth and tongue the moment just before it escaped.
"Activate the emergency protocol."
[Yes, it's activated. All Awakeners have been warned 'SG Net entry is prohibited' under the Constellations' names.]
It was true.
The Awakener dragged by their companions suddenly looked up. "What? A Constellation just..."
"Did you get the message too?"
"Yeah. But what does [Beware of the ship] mean?"
"Wait. There are more messages. [Avoid water bodies], [Do not observe any images or drawings resembling ships]..."
Their voices grew lower.
"Damn. What is this? Why so suddenly? It's scary."
"Wait. Come to think of it, when we went there today... Hey! Hey! Stop! Why is this guy so strong?"
I tackled the mentally disturbed patient and subdued him. Fortunately, those infected by this anomaly could be knocked out.
"Ah, thank you, Undertaker!"
"..."
I noticed something 'abnormal' about the patient. Two of his fingers, the index and middle fingers, were cut off. Scissors were slanted and stuck into the severed ends.
I looked at his companions. "What is this?"
"We didn't do it! Geum-seon did it himself..."
"Did he cut off his fingers and stab the scissors in himself?"
"Yes, yes! It's true, Undertaker! It may be hard to believe, but we didn't do this!"
The Awakeners didn't need to plead so desperately. I believed them.
And the thought struck me:
The Awakeners who were just on SG Net, including the administrator, Seo Gyu, and other Awakeners on the Korean Peninsula who were likely just browsing internet boards and had seen 'ship images'... What had happened to them?
The aftermath could ensue just a day after an anomaly outbreak.
The world we lived in was as such.
"Saintess, connect me to Yu Ji-won."
[Okay. Connected.]
"Relay my message. Ask Dang Seo-rin and Cheon Yo-hwa for their cooperation. Assemble all National Road Management Corps members under the Command Center. Prepare for containment procedures."
Yes.
It's nothing new, but we humans live in a world that despises us.
Footnotes:
[1] Ah Reum (아름) is one stroke away from the Korean word for name (이름).
-x-X-x-
The Existentialist III
Have you ever thought about which jobs would survive even if the world ended?
Soldiers? Most would perish because of Chekhov's Gun.
Artists? They were virtually exterminated by regressors who favored only writers.
"Your Excellency, Section 2 of the Command Center has assembled."
The surprising answer was civil servants.
"Good work."
"Not at all, Your Excellency."
Boom!
The autumn rain thunder crackled in the night sky. As Yu Ji-won's silver hair elegantly absorbed the rainwater, the members of the National Road Management Corps stood in line behind her. The task force from the command center consisted of 108 members in total. They were the civil servants and elite who maintained public order in today's Korea, where the national army had vanished. There was not a single person here who hadn't received Aura from me or learned how to develop their awakening abilities.
"..."
"..."
Naturally, their discipline was strict. The eyes that looked at me were filled with almost infinite respect.
I clasped my hands behind my back. "A mysterious anomaly has spread like a virus. As of now, there are 504 infected individuals in Korea, with the highest affected in Busan alone at 311."
"..."
"The condition for being infected by the anomaly is to see a 'boat.' Fortunately, it's nighttime, not dawn, otherwise fishermen would have been decimated. Most of the infected were engaged in night fishing."
A deadly tension flowed from the eyes of the members. It wasn't just because they had trauma from experiencing COVID-19 as children. In this era where food was scarce, fish were almost a staple diet. Except for the fact that every fish was now as dangerous as pufferfish, fish were still nutritious dishes. In other words, tomorrow's meals were now at risk.
"The official name for this anomaly is Theseus's Ship, but during the operation, we will refer to it as T. T is growing at a terrifying rate. In some cases, you can get infected not just by the image of a boat but by the sound of the word 'boat.' From now on, any words related to boats are forbidden. Understood?"
"Yes, Your Excellency!" the combat unit of the National Road Management Corps answered in unison.
They called me Your Excellency because their boss, the silver-haired psychopath standing next to me, instructed them to.
"T-infected individuals are running around the city indiscriminately, luring uninfected citizens near water and boats."
"..."
"Although the National Road Management Corps has taken precautionary measures, unexpected damage could occur. The infected may be carrying pictures of boats, so always be ready to wear blindfolds. That is all."
The members saluted. Their precise movements could make Mussolini jealous.
I rubbed my forehead. I had warned them numerous times not to do that, but they didn't listen. However, their skills were undeniable. Mussolini should have envied not their salutes but their combat abilities.
"Your Excellency. We've captured them all."
Before the night was over, all the infected in the Busan area were captured.
"Casualties?"
"Two. Based on your information, we formed teams of three, ensuring at least one person wore a blindfold, minimizing the damage."
The members wore blindfolds because the infected would show boat images whenever they could. Some infected even tattooed boats on their bodies. One criminal was knocked out, and while lowering their guard, they saw a boat tattooed on their scalp and got infected. The anomaly made alopecia patients tattoo boats on their scalps.
Now do you understand why I firmly reject the coexistence of anomalies and humanity? Anomalies. You should not exist.
"Saintess, how are the other regions?"
[Mostly fine. Incheon has the highest number of cases, but almost all the infected are captured there as well. There are no cases in Daejeon and Sejong.]
"Indeed, inland areas have fewer cases."
[Yes. At this rate, we should be able to block the route of infection before dawn.]
I sighed in relief. "Then the next issue is..."
[Yes. SG Net.]
I felt a tightness in my chest.
In reality, isolating infected individuals would suffice, but the internet was the problem. Even now, SG Net was flooded with all sorts of posts and comments.
- Picture of the beautiful Ark.jpg
- Click this post to get 3 million won
- Scared, want someone to talk to??
- No boat pictures here, feel free to enter
- [MUST READ] Tips for boarding the Ark!!
These were all bait posts. Most contained boat pictures. You couldn't even trust posts without images because they had ASCII art drawn in text. Four awakener individuals ignored the constellation warnings to [Do not access SG Net for a while] and got infected. Fools.
"Saintess, are you sure all the awakeners posting now are captured?"
[Of course. We've confiscated all their smartphones. It's not a macro running somewhere.]
"But posts are still being uploaded under their nicknames..."
[Yes. It seems not only real people but also internet 'nicknames' are infected by T.]
This was what's known as Persona. Many believed the real world actually existed within their monitors, creating an 'internet persona' separate 'real-world self,' however slight the distinction may be. Theseus's Ship exploited that gap.
- Am I real on the internet? Am I real in reality? What is the true self? Does the concept of 'self' truly exist?
Like so.
Eventually, not only the 'me living in reality' but also the 'me roaming the internet' got infected by the anomaly. They became literal internet ghosts. While we succeeded in capturing the infected, we had no way to deal with the virus carriers within SG Net. What could we do? The admin of SG Net, Seo Gyu, had already lost his mind.
"Your Excellency, I have a plan," Yu Ji-won said.
"What is it?"
"SG Net is a virtual space that cannot function without Seo Gyu. Therefore—"
"If your plan is to kill Seo Gyu, don't even mention it."
Yu Ji-won closed her mouth without another word.
'What should I do?'
Theseus's Ship was evolving in real-time.
The title 'SG Net' on the main page began to distort eerily, changing to 'EsZ Net' and '$& Net.' Though it was just warping letters now, it wouldn't be long before it freely altered image files, parasitizing Seo Gyu's awakening ability. If an image of a boat appeared on the site's main page, it would be the end. An internet anomaly that humanity must never access would be born, especially when other sites were down.
'I can't lose Seo Gyu so easily.'
I pondered.
'Boat. Boat. Boat. Charon's boatman. A tool that carries people to another world. What is the boat's weakness? Water? A typhoon?'
Then, I heard a strange sound from afar.
- Ah...
A song.
A song was coming from the direction of downtown Busan.
"Hmm?"
Yu Ji-won and I turned our heads simultaneously.
The melody resonated from speakers installed all over Busan. Miraculously, just listening to the song eased the fatigue from my entire body.
"Oh. The Great Witch is singing."
"At this late hour?"
"Yes. The National Road Management Corps, the Samcheon World guild members, and the citizens of Busan have been working hard all night. The Great Witch is probably singing the Cursed Song Incantation to soothe their insomnia."
"Oh... I see. I didn't consider that."
I admired Dang Seo-rin's thoughtfulness, but Yu Ji-won smirked indifferently. "She's singing to gain favor during such moments, subtly earning the people's hearts. Typical of the Great Witch of Busan."
"Hey, Ji-won. As I've said many times, you need to curb that nasty temper. I know you only act like this around me, but if others find out―"
At that moment, a bolt of inspiration struck me.
'Wait. A song? A boat that starts with T?'
As I mentioned, my neck possessed a sixth sense that other Homo sapiens lacked. Another term for it was goosebumps. These goosebumps were collectively singing, Eureka!
"A song," I muttered to myself. "Yes, a song!"
"Your Excellency? I didn't catch that?"
"Ji-won! Grab recording equipment and let's go to Dang Seo-rin! I've figured out the real trick to defeat T!"
The expressionless psychopath tilted her head in confusion.
In fact, there was another ship as famous as Noah's Ark: the Titanic.
In 1912, when it departed from England, it was the largest passenger ship in the world. The press dubbed it unsinkable because of its luxurious grandeur, a clear indication that it would never sink.
Naturally, in subcultures, if anyone other than the protagonist holds titles like "undefeated" or "invincible," it merely means "they will inevitably lose someday" or "they will inevitably be defeated by the enemy someday." Truly, it was a subtle way of expression in Eastern cultures.
In 1912, England was the main character on the global stage, but America was rising rapidly across the Atlantic. In this situation, the so-called "unsinkable" ship set sail between England and America, leading to an inevitable tragedy. It was the prelude to the change of protagonists on the global stage.
The movie Titanic, directed by James Cameron, was based on this true story. It became famous for dazzling audiences with its visual and auditory spectacle. First, Leonardo DiCaprio's incredible looks captivated the eyes, and then―
"Oh... Undertaker. You want me to sing?"
"Yes."
"That song, 'My Heart Will Go On?'"
"Precisely."
That's right.
"My Heart Will Go On." Composed by James Horner. Sung by Celine Dion.
One of the most successful songs in movie history.
"Why suddenly?" Dang Seo-rin asked. "That's your favorite song, not mine."
"Because we're going to play it through the speakers, and your voice is far better than mine."
"But your English pronunciation is better..."
"Don't worry. Just think of it as Latin, and you'll be fine."
"Oh?"
Dang Seo-rin, the idol with the highest TOEIC score in the Three Han States (560 points), perfectly sang the English pop song.
I took the recording and went straight to Seo Gyu.
"Seo Gyu."
"Yes, hyung. But what is Seo Gyu? Is it a term for SG Net's administrator? Or, as you claim, does it refer to the human who is doomed to be the first to die at Busan Station if neglected? If so, can we say that Seo Gyu of the first death iteration at Busan Station and the current Seo Gyu are different individuals..."
"Enough of that. Listen to the song."
"Arghhhhh!" Seo Gyu, tied up with ropes, struggled. "Get out! The wall is closing! Get out! Throw away your baggage! Descend! Lower the boat! Descend! Ahhhhh!"
"..."
Seo Gyu screamed desperately, as if the Titanic were sinking before his very eyes.
Noh Do-hwa, who was also working tirelessly on the night's quarantine, muttered in disbelief, "No way, it's actually working...?"
"We were lucky. Theseus's Ship and Titanic both start with T, and the anomaly didn't stop at reality but expanded into the virtual space. So, sinking the ship in the movie would inevitably sink the anomaly."
This was the tragic end of an anomaly that recklessly tried to level up. The more concepts it contaminated, the more powerful it became, and yet at the same time, the more its weaknesses became clearer. Expanding its influence recklessly could lead to a swift downfall.
Anomalies that wanted to avoid being easily hunted had to conceal their true identity. That's why the Outer Gods are in hiding.
"U-ugh... Huh? Hyung?"
"Yes, Seo Gyu. Who are you?"
"Huh? What do you mean, who am I...? I'm Seo Gyu, of course?"
I nodded. The method worked.
After verifying the strategy, I played "My Heart Will Go On" for all the infected. Oh, I also set it as the background music on SG Net.
-Ahhhhh!
-It's sinking! The ship is sinking!
-Everyone, run away!
But there was nowhere to escape on SG Net. The anomalies turned into internet ghosts and sank helplessly.
I patted Noh Do-hwa's shoulder, who was exhausted from working through the night. "Good work, Chief."
"..."
"No need to thank me. Even though a new anomaly was born from your fingertips, causing casualties, and only my competence as a regressor allowed for early suppression, there's no reason for you to be grateful to me."
"Damn it..."
As I was about to savor an overwhelming superiority over Noh Do-hwa for the first time in a long while, a groundbreaking event occurred.
"Thank you, Regressor Undertaker..." Noh Do-hwa muttered in a very small voice, with her back turned.
I was so surprised that I momentarily froze. Noh Do-hwa expressing gratitude honestly? Could she be an anomaly?
"..."
Even then, Noh Do-hwa stood still with her back to me.
I shrugged. "Hmm."
"..."
"You're welcome. Yu Ji-won will handle the follow-up work. Take the day off."
Then I left the command center.
The anomaly that could have threatened the entire Korean Peninsula by infecting anyone who saw an image of a boat was eradicated in one night.
There is an epilogue.
"By the way, Ah-ryeon."
"Yes?"
"How did you avoid getting infected by Theseus's Ship? You always spend your nights on SG Net. Did you just happen to avoid posts with boat images?"
"No? Ah, no."
"Then?"
"I saw them. The boat pictures..."
What?
"But I was fine after seeing them. Sure, I had moments where I wondered, Who am I? Where am I? But I always think about that. Hehe. There's no way someone like me has any value, right? It's a worthless worry..."
"..."
"Posting a comment on SG Net is much more important than that...! I was playing on the board, then suddenly felt weird, and then it was normal again. When the guild master said it was because of the anomaly, I was really surprised... Did that really happen?"
"..."