The Monad III
The third and final fragment of the Monad.
[Mr. Undertaker. I apologize for contacting you so late. Yu Ji-won just passed away.]
Thunk.
My steps through the night froze. It was a day when the full moon, tainted red by the Void, spilled crimson vapor across the sky.
Now, even my breath was mingling with that vapor.
"What was the cause of death?"
[It's hard to say for sure. She was resting in her personal quarters when there was a sudden sound of glass shattering.]
[It was the full-length mirror you referred to as the Magic Mirror.]
[The mirror broke on its own, without any apparent cause. Ji-won tilted her head in confusion, then at that moment, someone knocked on her door.]
[She asked for the passphrase. The person outside responded correctly. But the instant she opened the door, her vision went dark.]
[I immediately sent a message through the Constellation system, instructing a nearby Awakener to check on Yu Ji-won.]
[That's when they found her dead, with the door still open.]
There was a moment of silence.
[Mr. Undertaker, do you have any idea what kind of Anomaly this could be?]
I didn't.
This sort of thing had been happening more frequently lately.
"There's no telling right now. Did it happen at the National Road Management Corps' headquarters?"
[Yes.]
"Inform Captain Noh Do-hwa as well. I will go and prepare Ji-won's body."
[Understood.]
Yu Ji-won had died a sudden death.
Hers wasn't the first. Though she was the person who had just informed me, the Saintess wasn't aware that she too had also been experiencing a sudden increase in fatalities lately.
'Again. Ji-won died in another absurd manner.'
It all started from the 669th cycle. That was when I met Nenet at Naryanmar, received the Sacred Fire from him, and began constructing signal towers across the world. Ever since then, the death toll of Yu Ji-won and the Saintess had inexplicably started to rise.
670th cycle.
While walking across the Seongsu Bridge, the Saintess slipped and fell, plummeting to her death in the Han River.
Considering the Saintess's abilities, it was an absurd way to die. Most of all, she normally used the Jamsu Bridge for her walks, never the Seongsu Bridge.
Even so, at that time, I dismissed it as an unfortunate coincidence.
'The Saintess shares her vision with Awakeners, so she encounters Anomalies far more frequently than others. Her chances of taking mental damage are higher as well. Maybe she was bewitched by an Anomaly associated with bridges.'
But as if mocking my judgment, suspiciously frequent and unusual deaths continued to occur around both Yu Ji-won and the Saintess.
Accidental falls. Freezing to death in the middle of summer. Heatstroke in winter. Friendly fire. Ridiculous deaths, like getting hit by a stray arrow on the battlefield―
Beginning in the 683rd cycle, when I first launched my proper investigation into Mastermind Syndrome, these incidents hit a peak. Almost as if...
'Almost as if the world itself held a grudge against Ji-won and the Saintess.'
Why?
Why the two of them, in particular?
The thought consumed me, even during Ji-won's funeral.
Instead of a photo, a portrait painted by Ah-ryeon was hung as the memorial image. In the portrait, Ji-won looked straight at me with an expression that said, "We both know there's always the next cycle, don't we?"
'The signal towers built across the world. And this Mastermind Syndrome. My actions must have triggered something dormant, something that had been asleep until now.'
What was it? Why?
I couldn't find the answer.
'So, conversely... If I don't build the signal towers, will this phenomenon cease?'
A plausible hypothesis.
I put it to the test in the next cycle.
I didn't seek out Nenet, nor did I accept the Sacred Fire from him. Naturally, I didn't construct any signal towers around the world.
"Saintess."
[Yes.]
"Has there been any sign of abnormalities near Ji-won?"
[No, everything is normal.]
And just like that, the sudden deaths that had been plaguing Yu Ji-won and the Saintess disappeared, almost as if by magic.
Near the very end of that cycle, both of them experienced understandable deaths, not the absurdities they had before.
I rubbed my face with a dry hand.
'...Alright. At least the trigger is identified.'
The identity of the Anomaly remained elusive. It could be an Outer God-class Anomaly, or perhaps even something absurdly weak but that activated only under specific conditions.
For reasons still unknown, as long as I didn't build signal towers across the world, the mysterious Anomaly didn't seem to have any intention of erasing Ji-won and the Saintess.
It felt like I'd finally grabbed a loose end.
I decided to challenge this mystery head-on.
'Fine. I won't dare to spread it across the world, but how about the entire Korean Peninsula? Can we agree on that?'
In the next cycle, I received the Sacred Fire from Nenet and constructed signal towers all over the Korean Peninsula. I referenced locations of signal towers from the Joseon era, taking every precaution to avoid suspicion.
"We're just restoring history," was the pretext I used to mask my intentions from the Anomaly.
To my surprise, even in this cycle, both Ji-won and the Saintess met normal, legitimate ends. The absurd hand of death did not touch either of them.
'So, the Korean Peninsula is acceptable. Fine. What about East Asia? The Japanese archipelago, Taiwan, mainland China, and the Mongolian plains? Is that acceptable too?'
It was.
Signal towers were constructed at key points throughout East Asia.
Whenever reinforcements were needed, the towers would urgently send up signals. If I saw columns of smoke rising high into the sky from afar, I would rush to rescue the survivors.
'So, East Asia is alright. It's surprisingly lenient, I appreciate that. Then, for the last attempt, how about the Indian subcontinent and Eastern Europe―?'
The Saintess died.
A magnitude 9 earthquake struck Seoul overnight. It wasn't just a magnitude 9—a massive chasm, like the gaping maw of hell, tore through the ground and swallowed everything.
[I'm sorry, Mr. Undertaker.]
[I've used Time Stop, and I'm still using it, but it's impossible to escape the earthquake's grasp.]
[Until next time.]
That was the message the Saintess wrote, in less than a second, before her communication was cut off.
With the disappearance of her Clairvoyance and Telepathy, the Constellations under her care also perished. Even before the disaster, however, the failure to predict the Seoul Earthquake had already shattered the unshakeable trust the Awakeners held in the Constellations.
The social safety network I had meticulously built across the Korean Peninsula was on the brink of collapse, and it wouldn't take more than a few days for it to fall apart.
After accepting the Saintess' death, I immediately went to find Ji-won.
Busan was still intact. Ji-won wasn't.
That day, on her way to the café base, she mistook the safe path through the Inunaki Tunnel and ended up with her limbs torn apart, scattered across the Japanese archipelago.
The one who had the Mini-Map ability,the one who could read maps better than anyone,that Yu Ji-won,lost her way and died.
Ji-won's head was rolling at the entrance of the café base. Even in death, her face remained unnaturally serene.
I gritted my teeth.
"So... the signal towers are allowed only up to East Asia. Anything beyond the Indian subcontinent is out of the question, is it?"
Both the Saintess and Ji-won died. The National Road Management Corps was barely able to monitor the areas around Busan. This cycle was rapidly approaching its end.
And yet, I still had tasks to complete.
There was still a counselor in this world with whom I could discuss matters like these.
"Why don't you just give up, sunbae?"
A girl with an orange ponytail giggled as she spoke.
Infinite Void. An Outer God sealed within Cheon Yo-hwa's soul, lingering on as a split personality or a turned ally. Most of its former power had been lost, but it still had the keen insight of an ex-Outer God.
I had asked Cheon Yo-hwa to summon Infinite Void, and the moment it heard my story, it burst into laughter.
"It's obviously an Outer God-class Anomaly."
"So that's how it is..."
"Yep. To put it in your terms, sunbae, it seems the Korean Peninsula to East Asia has been somewhat recognized as yourdomain."
"..."
"That means the other Outer God has no intention of recklessly invading your territory. It doesn't want to, or rather, it's become incapable of doing so. After all, you've laid such solid groundwork."
But then, Infinite Void grinned slyly.
"If, however, you're genuinely planning to save the entire world, not just the people around you, then the other side will get desperate. So don't worry too much, sunbae. 'They' were just offering a diplomatic deal of sorts."
"A deal?"
"Yep. A deal. Like, 'Let's stop this, Undertaker. We'll concede East Asia and other regions, so be content with that. But anything south of the Himalayas and west of the Urals is mine. I've already called dibs. Deal?'"
"..."
Infinite Void cackled. "Hahaha! To be honest, I think it's something to be proud of. I mean, after looping hundreds of times, you finally managed it, right? Wow― I don't know which Outer God it is, but getting them to acknowledge boundaries up to the Urals and the Himalayas is like a feat not seen since Genghis Khan, isn't it?"
"You don't have any guesses as to why it's targeting Yu Ji-won and the Saintess, do you?"
Infinite Void shrugged, its lips curving into a pout. "Hmm, who knows?"
"..."
"There was a time, you know. When I commanded all the nightmares and opened tutorial dungeons worldwide. I began the invasion of the Void earlier than any other Anomaly, faster and ahead of everyone else. Ah, those were the days! The nights of the Hundred Tales! Back then, I shined like a star. Little me declared herself the Akashic Record of all existence... But alas. Then certain someone had to come at me with a time-looping cheat, determined to take me down first. What choice did I have? I became a pitiful Anomaly trapped in a mere monkey's body, and here I am..."
I kept my mouth shut. There was no need to respond to its provocations.
Sensing my indifference, Infinite Void chuckled to itself. Its crimson eyes narrowed, gleaming mischievously.
"I'm just a shadow of my former self. I can't give you any big secrets. But if you're willing to pay the proper 'consultation fee,' I could support you in your quest to hunt down this Outer God."
"State your terms."
"Call me by my name. Cheon Yo-hwa."
"..."
The air around us stilled.
The sunlight streaming through the window dimmed abruptly, as if the day had instantly turned to night.
"Please, sunbae. Just once. Just call me Cheon Yo-hwa, even if it's only this one time... Please, just say it. With your voice. Yo-hwa, my dear. Just once, won't you call me that?"
Infinite Void tilted its head like a snake, leaning in close as it softly pleaded, looking up at me with an innocent gaze.
"If you do, I'll gladly cooperate. Use me however you like, sunbae."
"Not that damned name."
A distorted, mechanical sound came from Infinite Void's lips.
"Why are you pretending not to understand? Sunbae. Cheon Yo-hwa. Cheon Yo-hwa. The human who dared to declare she would sing a thousand songs to seal a being of a hundred tales. She became my vessel long ago, a part of me, my possession. Give her back. Give her back, give her back, give her back."
It seemed unaware of how twisted its voice had become. The next moment, it spoke as if nothing had happened.
"Just once is enough. You can loop infinitely, can't you, sunbae? Calling me that just once in this cycle won't affect the next version of me. Think of it as one step back for two steps forward. Doesn't it fit nicely into your grand strategy?"
"That makes sense."
I pushed Infinite Void away.
"If I weren't a Complete Memory user, that is."
"..."
"The moment I call you Cheon Yo-hwa, even if only once, that memory will be embedded in me like a nail, regardless of the cycle. Ultimately, the seal on you would weaken. I can't allow that."
"Huh. So?" Infinite Void smirked. "You're really going to mess with that Outer God hiding beyond the mountain ranges? Without my advice, all on your own, from scratch? Hah. Maybe if you loop 2,000 more times, you'll have a chance. But can your sanity hold out until then?"
"..."
"Oh, that's right! Isn't it thanks to that Saintess that you keep your sanity intact? She's lived just as long as you, right? But ooooh, sunbae, if you go up against this Outer God, she'll just keep dying over and over again. What happens if your mind can't handle it...?"
"That's none of your concern."
"Why not? I always have your best interests at heart, sunbae."
I allowed a faint smile to curl my lips. "But there was one thing among your blabbering that was worth considering."
"Oh, really? What is it?"
"That I should use you."
I took hold of its hand. Infinite Void's eyes lit up, a bright expression spreading across its face as it assumed I had finally given in.
What a predictable misunderstanding. Of course, there was no way a regressor would fall for the tricks spun by an Outer God's tongue.
I softly spoke to the true owner of the hand I was holding.
"Yo-hwa."
"――"
Blink.
The red light flickered, and in its place were eyes full of trust, as usual.
"Yes, teacher?"
The girl whose name I had granted. My disciple.
"I have a favor to ask. I'm sorry, but could you entrust this life to me?"
"..."
"Seoul is falling, the Constellation system is collapsing, and soon even the northern regions will be swallowed by the tide of Anomalies. But there's still something I need to confirm here."
"You need my help, don't you?"
"It must be you. No one else."
"Yes."
Cheon Yo-hwa smiled brightly.
"Of course I'll help! Oh, but I am a bit worried about my friends. If possible, could you make sure they don't suffer when they die?"
"Alright. I truly appreciate it."
"So do I."
Yo-hwa placed her hands over my left hand. Gently, passing to me a slight pressure and warmth.
"Always, and forever—thank you, teacher."
There was a moment of silence.
The next time the crimson eyes flickered, her hands abruptly pulled away from mine.
"What are you scheming, you?"
The gaze now carried an edge of caution, wary of the unknown. It was Infinite Void. The entity had been called forth from within Cheon Yo-hwa's consciousness once more.
"Not even calling me sunbae anymore?"
"Answer me. What kind of ridiculous plan are you hatching now?"
"Like I said, I intend to use you." I stood up. "Soon, the world will end. Up until that very moment, I will survive, and so will you."
"What?"
"We'll be the last two standing."
Infinite Void looked confused. But the moment it grasped my intention, its expression morphed into one of horror.
"The last one standing. Whoever is next to me will inevitably be infected by Mastermind Syndrome."
"...!"
"If, as I suspect, this Outer God controls the Mastermind Syndrome, Infinite Void, then its influence will reach out to you this time."
"You, you―! How dare you...?"
I smiled. "While human minds may be easily ensnared by an Outer God, do you really think the mind of an Anomaly that was once an Outer God itself can be corrupted so easily by Mastermind Syndrome?"
No.
A collision was inevitable.
Of course, there was a vast difference in power between the unknown adversary and Infinite Void. But even the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs was insignificant compared to the Earth.
The fact that a collision would occur—that alone was vital. Even a weakened Infinite Void wouldn't fall helplessly to another Outer God. There would be a gap, however slight.
And that gap would be more than enough for me.
"Infinite Void. While you resist the Outer God with all your strength, I will seize its tail."
To subdue one beyond your reach, you used another outside your bounds.[2]
Be it Infinite Void or the mysterious Outer God, from humanity's perspective, they were nothing but troublesome outsiders.
"The lands west of the Urals? South of the Himalayas? And you expect me to agree to that?"
"..."
"Don't make me laugh. Not a single blade of grass, a speck of dust, or a breath of air from this land will be handed over to you."
Thus, as previously mentioned, this story serves as an epilogue to the epilogue, so there's no additional epilogue to add here.
The puzzle pieces are in place.
Now, it's time to hunt the enemies of humanity.
Footnotes:
[1] Back in chapter 97, Cheon Yo-hwa's name is revealed to have multiple possible meanings. Infinite Void is restricted to the hanja definition of 天寥化, meaning serene heavens both boundless and formless, infinite and void. Cheon Yo-hwa, Undertaker's comrade, takes the name of 千謠話, which literally means a thousand folk tales but can be interpreted as an endless abundance of stories passed along through human connection.
[2] Literally, "to subdue a barbarian, use another barbarian." A saying meant to advise letting outsiders do the dirty work and fight it out amongst themselves.
-x-X-x-
The Experimenter I
"Nooo! No way! I'm not fighting an Outer God with a weak body like this! At the very least, let me regain control over the nightmares! Otherwise, I'll never cooperate—never!"
"To put it plainly, no matter how much you throw a tantrum, it won't change a thing."
"You bastard! You regressor! Devil!"
"My ears aren't bleeding."
687th cycle.
The world was already falling apart at full speed. Amid this chaos, I chose not to exit early and instead kept Infinite Void as my partner.
Perhaps it's time to share the strategy I, the Undertaker, employ when the end of the world draws near.
"Ah-ryeon, abandon the Saintess work and then retreat."
"Uh, excuse me? But, Guild Leader, if we do that, the Manchurian Defense Line will collapse, and New York will fall soon after, leading to the downfall of the Eastern Holy State...?"
"Yes, precisely. Soon, the Monster Wave will grow out of control. Let's retreat to Busan with only your devoted fanatics."
"Aha! Got it!"
With that, the Eastern Holy State was effectively closed for business.
Without Seoul's true Saintess, who had already died, it was impossible to continue the brainwashing operations that involved sending fanatics messages under the alias [Morning Star of the Second Coming].
- Oh, my Lord Mo Gwang-seo Christ!
- Are you truly abandoning us?
- The end has come upon us!
Mo Gwang-seo was still very much alive. Even so, the mere cessation of the Constellation's messages convinced many fanatics that their apparent "connection to God" had been severed, leading them to fall into hysteria.
I didn't blame them. For those who had lost family, friends, homelands, countries, and ethnic ties, the so-called "heavenly voice" that always responded to their prayers had been their last pillar of support.
Collapse was inevitable.
Not long ago, the Eastern Holy State Crusaders had been a well-organized force, repelling Anomalies as one, and yet they were dismantled in an instant.
"How many are following us?"
"Hehe. I scraped together the strongest Awakeners. If I bring too many, it'll be hard for grandpa Sword Marquess to feed them all... Around, uh, six hundred...!"
Not all fanatics worshiped Mo Gwang-seo.
In her role as the Saintess of the North and the Healing Angel, Sim Ah-ryeon was able to save most of the wounded on the battlefield, so long as the injuries weren't fatal. Naturally, the combat units frequently engaged with Anomalies had immense faith in her, as she had saved their lives countless times.
These units were called the "Saintess's Guard."
The name sounded silly, but they were the elite forces of northern Korea. If their mistress commanded them to die, they would obey. If she asked them to survive, they would return even from hell itself as the fierce revenants of Ah-ryeon.
With the northern front withdrawn, the next step was...
"Yo-hwa. Baekhwa Girls' High School is now officially a branch campus in Sejong, with its main campus in Busan."
"Oh, well... I'm a bit sad to leave behind all the kids buried on the school grounds here, but it can't be helped!"
Even Cheon Yo-hwa, as herself rather than as Infinite Void, received her orders.
With New York and Pyongyang about to fall, there was no longer any reason to defend Sejong.
Northern Seoul? As mentioned in the previous story, a massive earthquake had struck, reducing it to rubble. Incheon also suffered devastating damage.
The central front was withdrawn.
Retreat, retreat. Endless retreat.
Until the Nakdong River became the final defense line.
The Librarian of the Great Library: Announcing on SG Net.
An Outer God-class Anomaly has appeared, severing the voices of the constellations. Until we eliminate this Anomaly, it will be impossible for the Constellations to assist you.
Awakeners residing on the Korean Peninsula are requested to retreat southward and form the final line of defense.
The current status of the refugee zones, centered around Busan, is as follows...
The retreat wasn't easy.
As you well know, no matter how often the National Road Management Corps sent caravans to clear paths, the world was fundamentally tainted by the Void. If one misstepped while walking on a road under broad daylight, they might stumble into a 'strange place.'
Answering the wrong voice or looking at forbidden objects yielded the same effect.
- Lee_Hyun-su: We're stranded halfway between Iksan and Jeonju. There are 16 of us. We'll offer 50% of our supplies in exchange for rescue. Please, save us.
- Parl_Ha-byul: We were moving along the coast from Gangneung, but now we're on a snowy mountain. Location unknown. We're marking our position with regular Aura signals. We'll definitely repay you if you help us. Here's our supply list...
- Anonymous: I think I'm the only one left alive.
Casualties were mounting everywhere.
The National Road Management Corps was going all out to send rescue teams in every direction, and both Samcheon World and Baekhwa Girls' High School offered their support. I too did my utmost. Yet countless people were left behind.
There was no other choice.
'The Saintess's death was a severe blow.'
If Ji-won had survived, she could've tracked the stranded individuals using Mini-Map. But in this cycle, Ji-won had died in the Inunaki Tunnel.
Both the right and left eyes that had once observed the Korean Peninsula on my behalf had essentially gone blind.
Even so, would I give up?
"Captain Noh Do-hwa. How's the refugee intake going?"
"Somehow, it's holding up. At this point, just reaching us alive is enough to put these folks in the top 1% of humanity..."
In Busan, we had always prepared for such endgame scenarios.
The shantytowns had rapidly expanded, but each village was organized with strict planning and zoning.
Samcheon World's witches, capable of aerial movement, patrolled the skies to maintain security. The rights to judge and enforce laws were exclusively held by Samcheon World.
Naturally, there were frequent conflicts between the original residents and the refugees, but―
"Yo-hwa, if you would."
"Yes."
In case it's slipped your mind, Cheon Yo-hwa's original profession was a necromancer. She had a brainwashing skill called NPC Creation. This forbidden technique controlled people's thought patterns and behavior, turning them into zombies who could only think and act according to set instructions.
"Oh, huh? What are you doing to me―?"
"Shush."
"―For the survival of humanity, everyone must unite! Yes, indeed! Naturally!"
Yo-hwa purified the few troublemakers, turning them docile. To avoid being reassembled into an NPC, those who caused problems would have to keep a low profile. Fortunately, this level of tact was already present in most survivors of the apocalypse.
Through blood and sweat, we imposed order.
In the areas surrounding Busan, fortifications went up quickly and efficiently.
"Pyongyang refugees have been accepted."
"Refugees from Nampo, Sariwon, Kaesong, and Wonsan—all who made it have arrived!"
"There's no one left to come from Sejong."
"From Iksan, Jeonju, Gwangju, Mokpo, Haenam, and Suncheon—those who wanted to stay did, and the rest have crossed over."
"There are still two guilds from Gangneung we haven't heard from."
"We estimate that the first line of defense along the Nakdong River will be complete within a week!"
The National Road Management Corps worked through countless all-nighters, spearheading the coordination of every operation.
"Hmm..."
At headquarters, Noh Do-hwa was practically always present, making it doubtful if she ever slept. Same face as always, same exhausted look in her eyes, sipping coffee with a deadpan expression.
"I'd say we've saved all those we could. It's a relief that the Sword Marquess rejuvenated, otherwise, he'd have collapsed while stomping through fields..."
"The Magical Girls also promised to send reinforcements if necessary."
"Huh. I used to wonder why you always mingled with that bunch, but now I see they're proving quite useful..."
I nodded. Then, I turned to a member of the National Road Management Corps and asked, "Still no response from Daejeon?"
"Oh, no, sir. They only said they would manage their refugees independently and asked us not to worry."
Go Yuri.
In this cycle, as in others, Daejeon had remained outside the flow of refugees. The Anomalies likely wouldn't touch Daejeon either.
I nodded slowly. "Alright. Moving on to the next phase of the operation."
That day, SG Net was hacked.
――――――――――
Author: Collector of All Anomalies
Greetings to all human Awakeners active on the Korean Peninsula. Hehe.
――――――――――
The website turned a deep shade of red, cracks running across it like shattered glass.
An unprecedented event.
The Awakeners were all shocked.
――――――――――
Author: Collector of All Anomalies
Watching you all struggle to survive warms some desolate corner of my heart.
How does it feel to have your days of leeching off the kindness of other constellations abruptly cut off?
The constellations you adored and revered are now all in my grasp. While there are still a few I haven't captured, they can no longer interfere with you in any way.
Can you survive even through this hardship?
――――――――――
Announcements like these appeared everywhere, and general Awakeners couldn't post or comment.
Naturally, this was our handiwork.
The one behind the Collector of All Anomalies notice was Ah-ryeon. As expected, it immediately captured everyone's attention and drew countless people's resentment her way.
"...I'm sorry, Ah-ryeon. I'm always forcing you into the villain's role."
"Hmm? Haha, no, no! I'm totally fine with it! Actually, I'm thrilled to be such a big target!"
The problem was that she was drawing too much attention. If a situation like this dragged on for too long, Ah-ryeon would undoubtedly become a Corrupted. That's why the tactic of painting Ah-ryeon as the source of all the world's evils was only used right before humanity was truly on the brink of extinction.
Just like now.
"Oh, mister!"
Bang.
Oh Dok-seo burst through my door. Being the youngest in our guild, along with Lee Ha-yul, she seemed to have completely forgotten the concept of knocking.
Since I had just gotten out of the shower, Dok-seo ended up staring right at my bare torso. She froze for a second.
"Oh. Wow. Those abs are insane..."
"Is this harassment?"
"You should walk around shirtless more often. Normally, I can't stand the muscle-man type, but for you, I'd make an exception and let you wear a tank top. Oh, but not too often, or it wouldn't fit your image."
"Definitely harassment."
"In this messed-up world, who cares about manners... Ah! Anyway! Mister! Come out to the terrace!"
I sighed.
'Usually, the Saintess would telepathically tell Dok-seo, [Wait a bit, Undertaker just got out of the shower,] to tip her off.'
Even in these small, everyday moments, the Saintess' absence was painfully clear.
I donned my barista attire and stepped outside. I wasn't in the Inunaki Tunnel anymore—my current lodging was at the National Road Management Corps headquarters.
Stepping out onto the communal terrace, I took in the view beyond Busan.
Already on the terrace were Dok-seo, Ha-yul, Yo-hwa, Ah-ryeon, Seo-rin, and Do-hwa, all waiting for me.
"You're here..." Noh Do-hwa murmured, sipping her coffee.
Following her gaze, I looked up at the sky.
"..."
Smoke signals.
Dark pillars of smoke were rising in the distance. Those vertical smoke columns were the very triggers that had incited the 'mysterious Outer God.'
The columns rose, reaching straight for the sky. This wasn't ordinary smoke. It was a Sacred Fire, designed to be visible from up to a 1,000-kilometer radius.
And now that Sacred Fire was blazing.
From the horizon―
One, two, three, four.
Five, six, seven, eight.
Nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen.
Fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen.
From the horizon―
Nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-four, thirty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty, forty-one, forty-two, forty-three, forty-four.
The witches monitoring the skies, the refugees working tirelessly to establish settlements, and the citizens faithfully carrying out their tasks—all of them stopped to gaze at the sky.
Silently. Unendingly.
From every direction, columns of smoke rose, one after another, into the heavens.
"..."
"..."
The entire leadership team gathered on the terrace held their tongues.
The only sounds were of Do-hwa sipping her coffee, and Ha-yul clutching my sleeve tightly.
This was the scene that marked the end of our era.
-x-X-x-
The Experimenter II
The smoke pillars stretched across the sky for half a day before they began to disappear. One by one, they faded, starting with those farthest in the distance. It signified that the cities or strongholds where signal towers had been set were now completely destroyed.
One, two, three...
They extinguished quietly, like candles going out.
When only five columns of smoke remained in the sky,
"Great Witch!"
One of Samcheon World's guild members, riding a broom to scout overhead, approached us. Our leadership gathered on the terrace of the National Road Management Corps headquarters to receive the scout's report.
"Yes. What is it?"
"A Monster Wave has been detected! It appears that Sejong and Daejeon have already fallen!"
"I see. Well done. Recon squads one through five, return immediately."
"Yes, ma'am!"
The guild member flew back beyond Busan. With the Saintess's Telepathy gone, all these reports had to be delivered manually. We still had radios, but they were single-use items—using them even once risked contamination by an Anomaly. It was wise to reserve them only for the most critical battles.
Soon, the smoke columns in the sky dwindled to four. That meant Jeonju had also fallen.
"Everyone, take a final break. Once the fighting starts, you won't get a chance to rest your eyes."
There was little response. Most of them were far, far too tense to muster anything to say.
For me, a regressor, this was merely the 687th time facing the world's end, but for my comrades, it was their first and final apocalypse.
Seoul had been razed in seconds, families and friends killed, human life trampled like a plaything... Somehow, they'd clung to survival and rebuilt a semblance of a city. Yet, deep down, they had all wondered it.
"How much longer can we hold out?"
"Isn't all this just a futile struggle?"
And now, the answer to that question was descending from the heavens. The smoke pillars marking humanity's survival ticked down from four to three, three to two, and from two to one. When it finally fell from one to zero,
Dooooong!
a bell's toll rang out from the sky.
Dooooooong! Doooong!
It wasn't a melody conjured by Seo-rin's magic, nor a sound produced by some skilled Awakener.
The sound of the bell itself was an Anomaly.
Whenever humanity's strongholds were annihilated and only one place remained to make a final stand, when the Monster Wave's forces loomed just before them, without fail, the "bell" appeared and resounded ominously across the sky.
Dooooooong! Doooooong!
With each toll of the invisible bell, bright red streaks spread across the sky, as if spilled paint were being smeared over it. The sky succumbed not to the barren space beyond its atmosphere but instead to its final form, transforming into a canvas. Before the bell had cried its twelfth toll, the heavens were thoroughly painted in crimson.
Doooooooong!
The bell tolled precisely thirteen times, then fell silent.
But what it left behind wasn't merely a painted red sky.
Another witch who had been scouting from high above hurriedly descended.
"Great Witch! Th-the Earth has flattened!"
In the span of just thirteen tolls, the Earth's geography—or rather, the very laws of the solar system—had been altered. It was proof that humanity no longer had any authority to assert reason or order over the world.
I took a deep breath and roared out in a commanding voice.
"Do not look at the sky!"
My voice rang out.
"Don't let the sun, the moon, or the stars into your sight! They're no longer celestial bodies—they're simply parts of an Anomaly, only a Void! Don't look at them!"
Although it was something every survivor already knew, I emphasized it anyway.
Humanity had trained relentlessly up to this point, in the dream-space simulation known as Project Kingdom, a collaborative creation of tutorial fairies and writers. This was how, even after the Saintess's death, humanity could still muster its final stand.
Unlike the confused and scattered efforts in the early Ten Legs Extermination War or the Meteor Shower Suppression Battle, every member here had died countless times in simulation and was a pseudo-regressor in their own right.
My army.
The essence of regression.
"They're here!"
The faction in charge of sensory organs and blood flow in the army, the witches of Samcheon World, launched screaming flares into the sky, which burst like fireworks.
"It's the Monster Wave!"
The army of Anomalies spilled across the horizon.
-Woo҉ O҉ ҉ Hu҉ U҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ U҉ Woo҉ ҉ Hu҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ U҉ ҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ O҉ !
Until now, I hadn't described the Monster Wave in much detail.
This was because the Monster Wave was simply the gathering and surging forward of every Anomaly, a mixture of all aberrations.
But even amidst this black mass of tactical horror, the most distinct Anomaly was something I could describe.
-Wi҉ ҉ O҉ ҉ Woo҉ U҉ ҉ U҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ Hu҉ U҉ Hoo҉ U҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ U҉ !
The Hollow.
In this world, corpses left without proper burials would transform into Anomalies.
The bodies of children abandoned in the rush to evacuate, elderly people killed to reduce the number of mouths to feed and then discarded unceremoniously.
Every corpse left unburied returned without exception. And they clawed at the world that had forsaken them.
The Anomaly that reached Busan's final line of defense first was one of those Hollow.
It was a mountainous figure. Towering like a seventy-story building, this massive Anomaly was a body overgrown with limbs and lips sprouting like dense fur. Its lips and teeth muttered incessantly, producing a chaotic noise incomprehensible to the human ear.
But if you broke down that noise, it would sound something like this:
- Oh, Mr. Sang-gyu, look at the baby!
- MomDadMomDadMomDad.
- The child has grown up so beautifully.
- Aaaaahhhhhh.
- Oh, don't even get me started. The kid's been acting out lately, and it's such a worry. I thought I'd feel more secure once they turned four...
The head of a newborn, a mother's fingers, a father's calf muscles, a relative's hair—all of them were fused together, dragging intestines as they advanced, this seventy-story monstrosity composed of flesh and bones fused into a single abomination.
And yet, they didn't hurl curses at "us," the humans. They didn't explicitly express murderous intent. It was as if they were merely saying hello.
Look upon us—are we not human?
As though this, indeed, was what humanity had been, these Anomalies, like innocent children, were replicating "human society."
And the Hollow Anomaly wasn't alone. Countless others were approaching from beyond the horizon—at a rough estimate, thousands. Considering the distant shadows drawing nearer, this was an army of Hollow formed from billions of corpses.
To be honest, even the Ten Legs that I once mistook for the final boss at the beginning of my regression belonged to the category of Hollow.
In other words, the Monster Wave contained tens of thousands Anomalies who were at the same level of the Ten Legs, and even that was only a fraction of its total force.
"Urgh..."
"..."
No matter how much they had trained, the Awakeners froze before the tangible reality of a world-ending force bearing down on them.
And as always in such moments,
"――――Ah――――"
a witch's song resounded.
Seo-rin stepped onto the terrace, taking a position where everyone could see her, and began to sing the Primary Melody.
The meaningless noise emitted by the Anomalies was drowned out by the sound of a single witch's song, reduced to nothing more than white noise.
But that wasn't all.
"G-Guild Leader."
"..."
"I'll... I'll pray too."
Ah-ryeon wore clothes she normally didn't, at least not in front of me.
The Saintess's robes. A black and white dress.
It was the outfit Ah-ryeon wore when she acted as the Saintess of the Eastern Holy State. It didn't hold profound religious meaning, but it exuded an aura of sanctity.
Ah-ryeon's personal attire covered every inch of her skin, its generous folds concealing her entirely.
It's often said that clothing defines a person's aura, and dressed as a Saintess, Sim Ah-ryeon looked worlds apart from her usual ditzy self, her face lighting up with an "ehehe" as she encouraged me.
"Guild Leader... B-best of luck!"
She assumed a prayerful stance.
Suddenly, green grass and flowers began to sprout from the cracks in the concrete terrace floor in a dazzling array of blossoms. The vines quickly climbed up the tower of the National Road Management Corps' headquarters and spread through the alleyways of Busan, pulsing like a network of veins.
Waves of flowers and grass washed over the final defense line.
"What... is this?"
"My legs... My legs are moving again!"
Flowers bloomed over the wounds of the injured lying in the shantytown's clinics.
Thin leaves and petals bound their wounds, closing scars, and then fell away in silence.
It was as if spring had descended over all of Busan, scattering petals in every direction.
The petals over amputees' wounds were red; over organ-damaged areas, they were yellow; for brain injuries, blue petals; and over the sorrowful ones mourning loved ones, white.
A Hundred Blooming Blossoms.
The power of Sim Ah-ryeon, Saintess of the Eastern Holy State.
A wide-ranging skill that endlessly healed any ally recognized within her reach.
A garden flourishing on malice as its nourishment.
Wherever Ah-ryeon summoned her true power on the battlefield, a wave of petals would bloom, painting the sky.
"Wah-wah-whooooa!"
"The Saintess is watching over us!"
"The Saintess has cleared our path, blessing us with the glory of her love! All will be saved by her merciful grace!"
It was only natural that people would be captivated by such a spectacular sight.
"In the name of Mo Gwang-seo Christ!"
With a wild roar, the Saintess's Guard of six hundred charged at the Hollow.
The sight of a paladin squad attacking a seventy-story Anomaly resembled something out of Don Quixote, except that these warriors were far more competent.[1]
Boom!
The Saintess's Guard's coordinated assault demolished the closest Hollow completely.
They hacked away at the monstrous flesh, causing the enormous Anomaly to lose balance and topple forward, shaking the entire city of Busan as it fell.
"Kill it! Kill it all!"
"Let's go too! Let's join in!"
"Uwoooo!"
Then, guild members who had fled from across the Korean Peninsula joined in.
Blood splattered everywhere. The fallen Anomaly, massive as it was, was no match for the skilled Awakeners, who sliced through it with ease.
- AAAAAAAAAAAAH.
- Please, don't hurt my child!
- MomDadMomDadMomDad.
- It hurts! It hurts! Please, save me!
- Why are you doing this? Why kill us? And you still call yourselves human?
As they died, the Hollow mimicked human expressions, voices, and gestures, clinging to the Awakeners. Each voice carried the weight of a curse. Even seasoned warriors who had undergone rigorous training flinched in response.
"Ah――Ah――"
But Seo-rin's song, now entering the Third Melody, spread mental fortitude across the entire battlefield.
This song of empowerment, which I developed in collaboration with her, was a remnant of the countless struggles we had waged against Go Yuri. Its primary effect was simple: to reinforce the warriors with constant feedback of a singular memory and emotion.
A surge of conviction overwhelmed the fighters: "I will defeat these monsters" and "I will show the final resolve of humanity."
"Fucking Anomalies...!"
"Don't you dare imitate humans!"
Their hesitation vanished, and they butchered the Hollow as they had been trained to do.
The Anomaly didn't go down without a fight. The Hollow, formed from thousands of corpses, clawed, bit, and exploded its entrails like bombs.
Casualties were inevitable. Blood from both the dead and the living stained the ground red.
But Ah-ryeon was there.
Silently, she prayed. Repenting for every hurt she had caused, humbling herself for all her sins, and healing others in proportion to the pain she had once inflicted.
Even if the Anomalies tore into human flesh, vines would wrap around the wounds, flowers blooming and withering within seconds.
And when the giant Hollow was finally annihilated—
Under the crimson sky, a million petals scattered over the area where the battle had taken place.
Injuries: 0. Deaths: 0.
The opening battle had ended in humanity's overwhelming victory.
"Uwoooo!"
"Bring on those goddamn monsters! Let 'em all come!"
"Long live Samcheon World! Long live the Great Witch!"
Cheering erupted from every corner.
But with my vision enhanced by aura, I could see the unending wave of Anomalies advancing from beyond the horizon.
The Hollow we had just defeated was merely a fragment of the Monster Wave's force—roughly one ten-billionth.
One out of ten billion.
"..."
I looked at Seo-rin, who was singing and burning through her lifespan, and at Ah-ryeon, who was gradually edging toward corruption in real time. I tightened my grip on Do-hwa's sword hilt.
This was just the beginning.
Footnotes:
[1] In the comedic novel Don Quixote, the protagonist and his one man team up to fight against a ferocious giant, which is actually just a windmill.
-x-X-x-
The Experimenter III
In the Final Defense War, my role was always as the "firefighter" on the front lines.
And that was precisely what I intended to demonstrate.
- Wooo҉ Hoo҉ ҉ ҉ U҉ ҉ ҉ Hoo҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ O҉ Woo҉ ҉ O҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ !
The thrill of our opening victory was short-lived.
In no time, a tsunami of Anomalies began to surge from every direction, hitting us in one fell swoop.
These towering Hollow Anomalies varied from 30 stories to 80 stories tall. Each step they took sent tremors rippling across the horizon. As they collided, they crumbled, intermingled, and fell again, shifting the terrain in real time, with layers of bedrock rippling beneath them as if merely oil.
Without formation or order, relying solely on overwhelming mass, these Anomalies relentlessly pushed against the Final Defense Line.
"Hold the line! Don't back down!"
"Didn't I say not to look up at the sky during training? Is no one listening―"
"Fire!"
The red wave surged forward at the moment of impact—a crimson tide whose true identity was a spray of blood from the Awakeners standing on the defense line.
Just then, the flower petals from Ah-ryeon's prayer scattered over the Awakeners like confetti, wrapping around them. An Awakener crushed under the foot of a 40-story Hollow Anomaly was instantly healed as the petals swirled around him. Ah-ryeon's petals gently encased their wounds, healing them completely—even pierced abdomens, severed limbs, torn flesh.
"We can win! We can hold them off!"
"Raaaah!"
"It doesn't hurt...! Hah! I'm really not dying! This is even easier than the simulation!"
The front line trembled like it would collapse, but the Awakeners held their ground to the very end. In fact, on some fronts, they even managed to push back, hacking down the Hollow Anomalies until they toppled.
Was this what it meant to be evenly matched?
Their mass seemed infinite, but our health points were also effectively boundless.
"Hyaaaa! Charge! Keep charging!"
"Hail the Saintess! All hail the Saintess!"
"Damn it, did the Holy State hoard such an amazing ability all this time?"
It was an immortal army. An ocean of blackness, made up of billions of Anomalies, was being driven back by the wave of humanity.
Watching from the terrace, a wide-eyed Dok-seo muttered, "Incredible... So this is Ah-ryeon unnie's true Awakening..."
This sort of scene was routine in the Eastern Holy State, but even there, it had never reached such a massive scale. Ah-ryeon was now channeling her life force directly—essentially tapping into her innate qi, as martial artists would put it.
As I looked down at her, kneeling on the terrace floor with her eyes closed, silently praying, a thought crossed my mind.
'Now that she's activated that mode, there's no going back.'
The countdown had begun. Ah-ryeon was already past the point of no return as a human.
The impressive performance humanity was putting on at the Final Defense Line relied solely on her sacrifice.
'I'm sorry, Ah-ryeon. I'll work quickly to stabilize the front while you hold on.'
Static crackled from my radio. We had refrained from using radios earlier due to contamination concerns, but now that the battle was in full swing, we had activated the comms.
-This is Point C3! Cr҉kk҉ ҉ ҉ , this is Point C3! The Hollow is massive! We can't hold out much longer!
It was one of the areas I had been monitoring closely.
I turned to Do-hwa. "While I'm away, I'll leave you in charge, Commander. Anomalies could emerge from the shoreline at any moment, so keep at least one trump card in reserve."
"Have you told me that a hundred times already? Just go already..."
"Understood. If things go south, fall back on the Sword Marquess. I'm off."
Exchanging quick glances with Seo-rin, Yo-hwa, Ha-yul, and Dok-seo, I pushed off the terrace and leaped into the fray.
Whoooosh.
The sticky, lukewarm air clung to my face. Though we were in the beginnings of winter, the air was disgustingly humid outside, and even carried a faintly sweet, sickening scent and an altered texture ever since the sky had turned red.
Tap, tap, tap.
I darted through the city, stepping along the tops of streetlamps set up along the alleyways. There was no need to waste Aura by hovering pointlessly in mid air.
In no time, I reached the area where our allies had called for reinforcements.
"This damn Anomaly is too tough!"
"Don't charge it! Maintain distance! It's slow, so focus on clearing the minions around it and fall back!"
- Gru҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ Hoo҉ ҉ Gu҉ ҉ ҉ U҉ Gu҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ Roo҉ ҉ O҉ ҉ Gu҉ Goo҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ Ho҉ !
The Anomaly assaulting this front could be described in one phrase: a medieval knight. And yet, it was enormous. Towering at 100 meters, with a width of nearly 300 meters, it was like a moving fortress.
- Gro҉ Ou҉ ҉ La҉ ҉ Cu҉ A҉ ҉ Hu҉ Hoo҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ !
This medieval knight was covered head to toe in thick, overlapping plates of metal.
Thick, endlessly squirming blood oozed from between the plates, while tangled blood vessels and muscles stretched across the gaps.
Embedded in a dense array into the waist of this massive, mobile fortress were numerous flags, each one bearing an incomprehensible symbol. Except on closer inspection, these flags were actually tongues, alive and writhing.
The tongues flapped violently in the wind, producing an endless chorus of uncanny wails.
Pheeuuuuw...
A sound like the whistle of a steam engine or perhaps mocking laughter—the "chanting" of these flags reverberated across the front line. The Awakeners directly exposed to it immediately began bleeding from their ears.
"Ahhhhhh!"
"Ugh, my... my ears! Ahhh!"
It wasn't just their ears—eyeballs rolled out of sockets, teeth crumbled, and blood spewed from every orifice of their faces.
Screams echoed all around.
Had it not been for the Saintess's AOE healing, that single blast of noise from the medieval knight would have obliterated this entire section of the front line.
But humanity still had Ah-ryeon.
And it also had me, the Undertaker.
"A-aha! That thing! It's that thing, Your Excellency the Undertaker!"
The leader of a minor guild defending the front saw me approach, his mouth agape. One of his eyes had just been healed, thanks to Ah-ryeon's power.
"Stand back." I brushed past the guild leader and stepped forward.
"Oh, um, please, be care―"
One step, two steps, three steps.
The guild leader's voice faded behind me.
On my last step, I launched off the ground.
A weightless sensation filled me.
In an instant, the massive front face of the "medieval knight," a towering steel fortress, was in full view.
- O҉ Goo҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ Cro҉ Gro҉ ҉ ҉ Hu҉ ҉ !
It noticed me, too.
Spiked lances sprouted from the gaps between its armor plates, sharp and deadly. They resembled the lances wielded by mounted knights. Oddly, these spikes had horse legs attached to them and produced a clopping sound as they moved. They neighed like horses too.
- Neeeiiigh!
Roughly 3,000 spiked lances.
A single defensive maneuver from the Anomaly was like 3,000 knights charging at once.
"―――"
I drew Do-hwa from its sheath and focused all my Aura into the blade. Wisps of dark Aura streamed from my body, coalescing into a wave around the sword.
I sent the wave surging forward.
A dark surge swept out in front of me.
Bam! Bam-bam-bam!
The spiked lances charging at me shattered like toothpicks under the wave's impact.
My strike didn't dissipate there.
The gust charged forward, slicing cleanly through the flags embedded like porcupine quills into the "medieval knight's" back.
- O҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ O҉ O҉ ҉ O҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ ҉ O҉ O҉ O҉ ҉ ҉ !
The Anomaly shrieked.
Thousands of tongues twitched in agony, letting out dying gasps. Severed from the poles, the tongues writhed helplessly.
Using my full strength, I kicked at the massive creature's body.
Boom!
The shockwave reverberated across the field.
Those flags were the core of the medieval knight. As long as the flags remained intact, this armored monster was essentially invulnerable.
'Unless all the flags are taken down in a single blow, they'll keep regenerating. It's an incredibly tricky condition.'
However, once the requirement was met, the creature's armor could be broken with a single strike.
Crack! Craaack!
The armor plating of the medieval knight shattered like an eggshell.
Soon after, the severed tongues gave their final death rattles before disintegrating.
The monster burst, releasing a torrent of blood. It splattered across me, causing its iron stench to fill my nose as it clung to my lips.
I turned back to the Awakeners.
"Reform your lines!"
At that moment, the Awakeners' senses returned. They looked up at me, dazed.
I could read a multitude of emotions in their eyes: fear, awe, relief, admiration, excitement, and elation.
Their reaction made sense. In all the battles we had fought together, I had never fully revealed my strength—not even once. I only used my full power in the final battle, and for this cycle, that time had arrived.
"Do not lose hope!"
"Ah―――"
As I issued my command, Seo-rin's song resounded from the distant Babel Tower.
"The Primary Melody." The Fourth Movement, "Transmission."
The effect was straightforward. Seo-rin could designate a specific individual to project onto a hologram, broadcasting their image live across the battlefield.
"The Great Witch of Samcheon World is singing for us! The Saintess of the Eastern Holy State is praying for us!"
-The Great Witch of Samcheon World is singing for us! The Saintess of the Eastern Holy State is praying for us!
My voice echoed across the entire Final Defense Line.
In the hologram projected throughout the battlefield, the Undertaker—an exact replica of myself in both stance and voice—was shouting the same words.
When fighting in the trenches, a warrior's field of vision narrows drastically. Likewise, facing the relentless onslaught of the Anomaly army, time and senses both began to break down.
So, what did the fighters need in this moment?
[You're not fighting alone.]
[Allied forces are triumphing on other fronts.]
[Comrades are fighting and sacrificing themselves in just as fierce a battle.]
They needed faith in their comrades. The certainty that humanity was united.
As long as they felt this assurance, the warriors never let go of their weapons.
This was why we sacrificed one of the precious movements of The Primary Melody just to project this "transmission" across the field.
'Though the distraction of the hologram could risk breaking their combat focus―'
Ah-ryeon's AOE healing was there to compensate for that. With her support, we minimized the impact of any momentary lapse in focus, while at the same time maximizing the morale across the battlefield.
I raised my voice again.
"We are humanity!"
-As long as you do not fall, humanity will not perish!
"Stand up and fight to the last moment of extinction! Comrades! Allies! Brothers and sisters in arms!"
-Stand up and fight to the last moment of extinction! Comrades! Allies! Brothers and sisters in arms...
Seo-rin's voice rang out, standing alone, bright and beautiful. Flower petals filled the sky over the battlefield.
The Great Witch, the Saintess, and the Undertaker—all were here, side by side with everyone on the field.
"We are humanity!"
Without hesitation, the Awakeners echoed the cry.
"We are humanity!"
I quickly dashed toward the next front.
Overwhelming numbers. Every part of the defense line was gradually being pushed back by the tide of Anomalies. No casualties or injuries had been reported yet, but sheer numbers alone threatened to overwhelm us.
There were simply too many, an endless barrage.
"We are humanity!"
But each time I arrived at a section of the front, the United Front Forces pushed back the Anomalies just a little, driving them off bit by bit.
One front, then the next, then the one beyond that, and then back again.
Before long, a day had passed. Then two days.
Thanks to Ah-ryeon, the Awakeners were able to keep fighting, almost forgetting fatigue. But the mental strain remained, so the Final Defense Line continued rotating its forward and rear ranks without rest.
Despite everything, I didn't stop.
I rushed to the most critical fronts, cutting down the most vicious leaders of the Anomalies. The remaining minions were then slaughtered by the Awakeners.
Overall, it was a stalemate. Although we couldn't fully push the Anomalies back, neither could the Monster Wave breach the Final Defense Line.
A deadlock.
The waltz of carnage seemed as though it could go on forever.
- Mister!
Then again... There's no such thing as an endless ball.
- By the sea! Battleships!
Dok-seo's urgent voice came through the radio.
Hearing her words, I immediately climbed a partially ruined building, looking out toward the coast. Sure enough, just as Dok-seo had said, the battleships were approaching. But not from the sea, no.
They were descending from the sky.
Parting the clouds like waves, hundreds of thousands of enormous "aerial warships" were heading straight for the city.
They resembled massive leviathans, soaring across the heavens.
They were angels of death, descending to obliterate humanity's last sanctuary.
-x-X-x-
The Experimenter IV
The aerial battleships cast their shadows across the skies above the waters off Busan. Like most Anomalies, their forms were deeply alien.
Clank.
Screeee!
Clink, clank! Clank.
Countless gears and steam engines churned noisily across the hulls of the warships, each one devoid of any crew. This absence of life rendered distinctions like "exoskeleton" or "endoskeleton" irrelevant. Exposed here and there along the keels—essentially their backbones—were vertebrae encased in metal, with gears turning endlessly between the ribs, filling the air with a cacophony of grinding sounds.
A true fleet of iron.
Even if Admiral Yi Sun-sin[1] himself had returned to lead a defense, he would have likely remarked with chilling honesty, "This is beyond the capabilities of a mere twelve ships."
"Hey, mister!"
Upon returning to the National Road Management Corps headquarters, I found only three people on the terrace: Do-hwa, Ah-ryeon, and Dok-seo. Do-hwa was busy giving orders to the units on the front line via radio and didn't even glance in my direction. And Ah-ryeon...
For a different reason entirely, Ah-ryeon couldn't look at me. The veil of her Saintess robes hung down like a curtain, completely obscuring her face. She didn't move a muscle.
"Ugh, you're totally drenched in blood!" Dok-seo grimaced, tossing me a towel. It was already used—grimy, in fact—but at least it was cleaner than my own skin.
I wiped my face with it, then asked, "Where are the others?"
"They're all at the front line! Yo-hwa unnie is out there too, but don't worry, we sent her to the safer areas since she has to survive until the very end." Dok-seo sent a fleeting glance toward Ah-ryeon, who was kneeling in the middle of the terrace. "Well, not that she looks like she'd die even if we threw her somewhere dangerous—"
"Nya! Undateikeo!"
Just then, a blonde Magical Girl landed gracefully nearby. It was Manyo Neko, an Awakener cursed to end every sentence with "nya" or "nyang." She was also a prominent pro-Undateikeo faction member in the Magical Girl Association.
"Wha-what in the world is going on here-nya?! I came because Undateikeo called for reinforcements, and the world's ending!"
"Exactly what it looks like. End of the world. The Japanese archipelago has probably already been blown to smithereens by those aerial battleships, so don't even think about going back."
"Ahhhhh! Shi-ba-ru! We're so screwed-nya...!"
Oddly, the only curse she spat out was shibal, pronounced with a near-perfect Korean accent, courtesy of her time spent around Koreans.[1]
"W-wait! Did you know this would happen and call for us as reinforcements on purpose, Undertaker?"
"Hardly. Pure coincidence. Do you think I could have known that the finale of the world's end would happen this week?"
"Nya. That sounds suspicious-nya..."
I was lying, of course.
Most Magical Girls had a few screws loose, but they did have a deep-seated sense of loyalty to their homelands. If I had sent a letter saying, "It seems the world will soon end, so why not gather in Busan, the best-defended city, for a final stand?" the Magical Girl Association would have never accepted. In fact, they would likely have chosen to die defending their own lands.
So I changed tactics.
Busan is at risk of falling. Forgive me for asking, but could you send us reinforcements?
Requests like that prompted the loyal Magical Girls to mobilize their forces and come to our aid. Typically, Manyo Neko or Phantom Blade would lead these reinforcements. It might have been just a few dozen fighters, but even a small squad of Magical Girls could hold down an entire front.
"So, what exactly are those things up there-nya?"
"They're airborne warships, as you can see. You could also call them the remnants of civilization."
"Remnants of civilization?"
I glared up at the sky. "Just looking at them might make you worry about environmental destruction, but surprisingly, those things are all made from recycled materials."
"Nyanya?"
"New York, London, La Défense in Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo... The construction materials that once formed the skyscrapers and factories of the world's great cities are now the raw materials for those aerial warships."
"...!"
Remnants of civilization. The Fleet of the Void. City-devouring ships.
If the Hollow Anomalies were created from corpses of human beings, then the millions of aerial warships hovering above us were built from the corpses of their cities.
I raised my finger and pointed to the sky. "See that sharp spire on the bow of that one? That's Tokyo Tower."
"Wha— What the heck?! Shibaru! Who the hell let them just steal Tokyo Tower like that-nya?!" Manyo Neko's tail puffed up, and she hissed indignantly—her Korean cursing impressively fluent. "I'll lead my unit and tear those rusty heaps apart for recycling-nya!"
"No. Wait." I placed a hand on her shoulder. "You won't be able to take them down by normal means. You can't see it from here, but those things number over a million."
"Wh-what...?"
"Dok-seo, did you call Seo-rin?"
"Oh, yeah! I called her before you even got here, so she should be on her way. I think she's wrapping things up on the front line. Should I call her again?"
"No need. She'll come. You join us soon, too."
"O-okay!"
I took a deep breath. A faint wave of fatigue washed over me.
Not surprising—I'd been fighting non-stop on the battlefield for nearly 60 hours. On top of that, I had only been intervening at the most critical front lines. One could say the burden I bore was somewhat heavier than that of the other Awakeners. But compared to the fight that lay ahead, this was nothing.
'All right, come at me, city-devourers.'
The regressor was ready to face them.
Ooooooo.
Ooooooo.
As if answering my silent challenge, the aerial battleships began to radiate a blood-red, ominous light. The scarlet glow spread like an electric current or a bloody fluid along the spines of the lead ships.
One, two, three, four...
Five of the ships at the forefront of the grand fleet lit up in crimson as the gears ground and squealed.
Weeeeeoooooo.
And then came the beams of annihilation.
The moment I saw the beams charging from the warships' bows, I dashed in their direction. I timed it perfectly, moving as fast as possible. Just as the five beams converged, about to crash down on Yeongdo in Busan, I reached them.
BOOM!
Channeling all my strength, I swung Do-hwa, deflecting the beams. A weighty tremor reverberated through my hand.
'The first time I encountered these things, all I felt was utter despair.'
I took a step forward.
'Now, they feel unbelievably light.'
With all my strength, I redirected the beams. The deadly rays of red light veered off course and plunged into the sea, sending a towering column of water into the air, shrouding all of Yeongdo in a mist of steam.
Drip, drip, drip.
Rain poured down around me, though my body was already drenched in sweat. The downpour washed over me, bringing with it a brief, welcome coolness.
I raised my sword toward the aerial battleships above.
"That's one strike dealt."
-.......
The attack those warships had just unleashed would have easily obliterated an entire city district. In fact, they had already reduced countless cities to ruins with similar attacks.
But look—the Final Defense Line remained intact.
A small tsunami swept over the harbor, but we had evacuated all civilians from the coastal areas. The aerial battleships' attack had been utterly neutralized.
For this Anomaly, it was a first.
Ooooooo.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Ooooooo.
The gaze of the "beast" turned sharply toward me.
Its appearance might have been that of an inert mass of junk, but the fleet of over a million warships was a single Anomaly. This was the first time any human had survived an assault from it, let alone deflected one with ease.
Those countless, machine-like eyes focused on me.
Weeooo-weeooo.
Weeeeeoooooo.
A strange wail filled the air, screeching like the blare of an air raid siren as the metal spine of the aerial battleships twisted.
Long, loud, and unrelenting, the sirens rang out over Haeundae's sandy shore.
"Hm."
I had their attention.
This time, not just five, but a thousand times that number—five thousand aerial battleships—all began to glow crimson, charging their beams.
I landed on Haeundae beach. Countless gun barrels on the fleet turned to face me.
Standing alone on the shore beneath the mass of Anomalies, I took a deep breath. Just as I exhaled, five thousand beams of scarlet light shot toward me.
SHOOM!
I swung Do-hwa to intercept.
The combined weight of five thousand beams could have wiped out all of Haeundae Beach, not to mention everything within miles. To match that, I flared my Aura out wide from my sword, creating a massive shield in front of me.
"Haaah!"
The muscles in my arms burned, threatening to tear. Even though only a fraction of the millions-strong fleet had attacked, the sheer force pressing into my hands was almost unbearable.
Tsss! Tsst-tssst!
The muscles of my arm were fraying. The nerves and joints screamed in agony, and tiny capillaries burst in my eyes.
But I didn't falter.
Every Awakener across the battlefield was watching me live on the hologram, each one relying on my strength to keep going.
"Aaaaagh!"
With a final shout, I swung my sword to deflect the entire onslaught of five thousand beams.
KABOOM!
The redirected beams skidded across the sea, brushing the water's surface before continuing out beyond the horizon.
Once again, the Grand Fleet's attack had been deflected.
"Haa... Haa... Haaa..."
My breathing grew labored.
My once seemingly limitless Aura had been severely depleted after sixty hours of continuous fighting and this latest confrontation.
But I wasn't alone.
Shhhhh.
From the torn muscles in my arms, green leaves sprouted, wrapping around the wounds. Vines as delicate as veins coiled up my arm—a gentle touch from Ah-ryeon mending my injuries. Flowers bloomed briefly on the vines and then drifted away. In that quiet fall of petals, I felt as if I could hear Ah-ryeon's whisper.
Are... Are you alright?
'Yes, Guild Leader is still holding strong.'
A faint smile crossed my lips.
Feeling my strength return, I lifted my arm and aimed my sword once more at the aerial warships in the sky.
"That's two strikes."
-....
The red sky burned even brighter.
Five thousand beams, then ten thousand, then thirty thousand, fifty thousand.
The aerial fleet continued its relentless barrage, one beam after the other. Though I couldn't completely block every attack, each time a wave hit the coast, it crashed harmlessly, thanks to the strength of the Final Defense Line.
But my own body couldn't withstand it forever.
My right arm, my legs, my side, and even my right eye had all suffered. With each blast of red light laser-focused on me, another piece of my flesh was torn away.
Yet I continued forward, swinging my sword with unwavering determination.
Humanity's final city stood behind me. I knew every pair of eyes on the battlefield was watching me.
One step forward.
-...
I refused to cry out in pain.
For those who had survived this apocalyptic cycle and others, those who had managed to remain human even in a time when humanity was trampled underfoot, I would show them that I, too, was still standing.
One more step.
-...
Even though I knew that this cycle, like all others, would end in failure, it didn't matter. After all, humanity has always known its days were numbered and yet chose to live.
With each step I took on the sand, blood pooled at my feet. But a certain someone scattered flower petals in its wake, reminding me that life was still worth cherishing.
My grief could wait an eternity.
One more step.
-..., ...!
-....
My ears rang, almost as if I'd gone deaf, yet I could still feel the Awakeners' cheers echoing through me from that distant battlefield. Even though they were miles away, each of us fighting on separate fronts, my stride and their cheers resonated as one unified heartbeat.
-...
In contrast, the monstrous fleet in the sky seemed to grow more discordant. At last, it appeared they realized that weaker attacks could never bring me down.
The entire armada—three million ships in total—began to glow, each one emitting a piercing, ominous siren.
The city-devourers. The very ships that had destroyed countless cities across the world were now gathering their full power, preparing to deliver a final, decisive blow.
"Haa... haa..."
My breath came heavy, nearly ragged.
Ah-ryeon's plants wrapped around my body, healing me as best they could, but they couldn't keep up with the damage. Blood trickled down the vines.
I was already on the brink.
'There's no way I can block this next attack.'
Honestly, the fact that I'd lasted this long was a miracle.
'This next blow... won't just obliterate Busan. It could wipe out what little remains of humanity itself.'
My vision blurred. Briefly, everything blinked in and out as if my brain was running out of oxygen.
But before I could fall, something kept me standing.
Someone grasped my left arm in a firm grip, and someone else took hold of my right, each one bracing me up.
A flash of red hair on one side, dark hair on the other. Two people held me, keeping me upright.
It was Oh Dok-seo and Dang Seo-rin.
"Sorry we're late," Dang Seo-rin said first.
"Things got dicey when you left, so I had to rush through my part. Still, we weren't too late, right?" Oh Dok-seo added, grinning. "From here on, leave it to us, mister! Wow, I've always wanted to say that line! Bucket list, checked!"
I managed a faint smile.
The attention of the monstrous fleet was focused solely on me, the lone regressor. They were preparing to unleash their entire arsenal.
This was exactly the moment we'd been waiting for.
Weeeooooo...
The aerial battleships disregarded the city of Busan and the defense line entirely, zeroing in on me alone as they fired millions of beams.
The sky and the sea reflected each other in crimson light as a deadly brilliance raced toward us.
"Dok-seo."
"Got it."
Dok-seo took off her cap. With a determined stride, she stepped forward, placing herself in front of me, spreading her arms wide to shield me.
"Absolute Defense."
A barrier, redder than the beams of annihilation, unfolded around her like wings.
Absolute Defense. The so-called "AT Field."
Dok-seo's unique Awakener ability.
According to the Infinite Metagame, the very Outer God that had chosen her as his priestess, the power of her ability was simple:
AT Field (S-Rank): A power that rejects any external interference.
It grants an absolute barrier against all physical forces attempting to harm or impact you. However, it can only be used once per day, with a one-minute time limit.
No matter how powerful the attack, the AT Field would nullify anything it deemed an "inferior existence."
Dok-seo's translucent shield spread across the entirety of Haeundae, like wings unfurling in preparation for humanity's final stand. And then...
KABOOM!
The deadly red beams clashed against her shield, a wall of annihilation colliding with her field of absolute defense.
Footnotes:
[1] Shibal is the Korean word for "fuck" or "shit."
-x-X-x-
The Experimenter V
The Awakeners battling on the last line of defense—and even the survivors still living in Busan—were all gazing blankly in this direction.
Wooooooong!
On one side was the Spear of Death. The red beam of destruction launched by the Anomaly that had devoured every city on the planet except for Busan.
"Hahaha! It doesn't even tickle!"
On the other side was the Absolute Shield. While its mental fortitude was mediocre, its physical defense would block anything—the last shield humanity possessed.
"Look at this! The Anomaly is nothing but trash!"
Was she intoxicated by the thrill of single-handedly enduring an attack capable of destroying the world? Today again, Dok-seo's chuunibyou was at its peak, perhaps even touching a new realm of delusion.
But that wasn't all.
"Seo-rin."
"Yes, I know."
With a loud "Ahhh—," Seo-rin began to sing.
As the relentless attacks from the aerial warships pounded on the shield, her voice broke through the noise. It was a melody everyone knew well.
The Fifth Melody, Mirror of All Creation.
An exceptional composition, combining Focus, Absorb, Reflect, and Amplify into one.
If you're wondering when such a song was added to her playlist, it happened during the Meteor Shower Extermination Operation.
Yes.
In the Meteor Shower Operation, 700 Awakeners each gathered and compressed their Aura, forging it into the first and last ultimate strike. I, the Undertaker, took the final baton and unleashed the beam at Meteor Shower.
"Aaah—aaaah—ahhh――"
That Cursed Song Incantation descended once more upon this battlefield, stained in crimson. But there was a distinct difference from the operation against Meteor Shower.
Back then, hundreds of Awakeners painstakingly pooled together their Aura, layer by layer, to gather enough power. This time, that wasn't necessary.
Wooooooong!
Thankfully, we had someone else up there gathering the beam on behalf of humanity.
"Dok-seo! Spread your wings!"
"Aye aye, sir!"
Dok-seo stretched out her fingers on both hands. With her gestures, the shield bent. The beams from the aerial warships refracted off its surface, redirecting them. Where the beam was directed, it struck the mirrors conjured by Seo-rin's incantation.
Chaaang!
Although the beam was powerful enough to shatter the mirrors quickly, it didn't matter.
Before breaking, each mirror reflected the beam to another, and again, from mirror to mirror, the red light continued to bounce.
"Ah――"
Long ago, in the 42nd cycle, Seo-rin could only manifest about 700 mirrors. She couldn't summon more due to her limitations, which also limited the number of allied forces.
"AH――aah――aah――"
Now, in the 687th cycle, Seo-rin and I had refined her incantation through extensive trials and training, hiring dream-writers early on and practicing simulations repeatedly.
Now, the number of mirrors she conjured in Samcheon World reached no less than 12,000.
Chaaang—chaaang—chaang, chaaang!
The refracted beams split into countless fragments, reflecting endlessly off the mirrors, each of their paths precisely calculated. The vivid red lasers traced innumerable routes across the sky, forming a spiderweb over Busan.
Chaaang!
Starting from Haeundae, the beams soon spread across the entire sky, as if the heavens themselves were a shattered glass pane.
The sky, painted red by the Anomaly's intrusion, was now overlaid with humanity's fireworks, streaking across as red lines. At the beam's origin, Dok-seo shouted, "Hey, mister! Time's almost up!"
Her shield could only hold for 60 seconds. We had to finish this within that time—and so we did.
Eight seconds, seven seconds, six seconds, five, four.
"Seo-rin!"
Relying on my precise sense of time, I gave the signal. In a world where every clock, whether digital or mechanical, could be corrupted by the Anomaly, only my internal time remained sharp.
"Blow them away!"
The Great Witch sang.
All 12,000 mirrors shifted their angles in perfect alignment. Their target was obvious: the sky.
The aerial warships numbering in the millions.
The beam of death, unleashed by the Anomaly to annihilate the world.
Reversed, stolen by humanity, and redirected skyward to deliver death back to the Anomaly!
Ruuuuumble!
12,000 beams, fired by Seo-rin, swept over the warships. Red lines carved into the bodies of the ships, slicing them into two, three, four pieces. And then, they began to fall apart.
Whirr, clank, clang.
The warships, desperate to stay afloat, frantically turned their gears. Only now did they cease firing and switch to self-repair.
But the attack the Anomaly unleashed to engulf every city on Earth had indeed been deadly. The retaliatory strike by Seo-rin left countless ships split with hairline fractures. The Anomaly that had always scoffed at humanity's feeble attacks could not escape death from its own ultimate weapon.
Clank, whirr, whirr, whirr.
In the end, scrap metal rained down.
The spire of Tokyo Tower, the tip of Burj Khalifa, the iron framework of the Eiffel Tower, the hands of Big Ben, the antenna of the Empire State Building, countless factory chimneys, concrete—
Humanity's monuments, once gleaming achievements, now peeled away from the ships like the outer wall of a building―and fell.
Clank, clank, whirr.
Waves splashed.
These were waves from the remains of civilization crashing down. Just as life had once originated in the sea, humanity's landmark creations now returned to the ocean. The grandest burial at sea.
But the scraps weren't alone, the Anomaly that dared to consume them was also sinking.
Wooooooong.
One last remaining warship staggered in the sky, stripped of its skin, skeleton, outer shell, and inner frame. Its true form was nothing but a Paper Airplane. It bore scorch marks from Seo-rin's attack, charred edges on its once-white paper.
The plane tottered before falling into the sea, hovering briefly on the water's surface before sinking forever beneath the waves.
"...Ah."
As the waves rocked her from the debris of civilization, Seo-rin's body wavered. I reached out and steadied her by the shoulder. Wrapping her in my Aura to prevent her from being swept away by the waves. I included Dok-seo as well.
"...Undertaker."
Leaning her weight on me, Seo-rin turned her head my way, revealing a face marked with deep fatigue, as was to be expected. She had fought tirelessly alongside me these past days, moving ceaselessly across battlefields.
A faint smile graced her face. "We... really... did it. We killed such an impossible Anomaly... we did it."
"Yes."
"All that training in the Kingdom Project... all that practice in the simulated dream... it wasn't for nothing. Hahaha. This isn't a dream, right?"
I held her hands and shoulders tightly instead of replying. She closed her eyes as though she'd received enough of an answer.
Waaaahhh!
In the distance, cheers rang out.
- Seo-rin! Seo-rin! Seo-rin!
- Long live the Undertaker!
- Literary Girl! We believed in you!
The battle's mood shifted from grim determination to dragging another Anomaly into hell if necessary.
We could do this. We might actually win.
They defeated the Hollow, the city-devourer, and the rest of the Anomalies. They were still fighting and winning.
Meanwhile, humanity's final stronghold remained steadfast.
Though exhausted, not a single Awakened warrior had perished. Not one was injured! The civilians in the rear continued supplying materials. So―
Tick.
At exactly 61 hours, 11 minutes, and 32 seconds since the Final Defense War began, people came to realize.
The miracles and comebacks that had unfolded like a dream had all stemmed, from the start, from the sacrifice of a single girl.
The countdown reached its end.