Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint Novel MTL - Chapter 554

Chapter 554

554 Episode 1. The World After The End (1)
「 This is a story of a despair that went unread. 」

Yesterday, I received a curious message, and then something astonishing occurred.

I wrote the opening line of the side story.

I can’t reveal what that first sentence is. It would be a spoiler, and it isn’t particularly remarkable on its own.

Yet, someday, it might hold a significant meaning. It was like that when I wrote the first sentence of ORV, too.

The entire sequence of events began with Ji Eunyu’s unexpected arrival around noon today.

“Author-nim, let’s go somewhere.”

I was practically dragged out by the collar, put into a taxi, and we reached our destination in under an hour.

Our final stop was a theater in Chungmuro. It was a location that had once served as a setting in “ORV.”

I stared at the signboard mounted at the theater’s entrance. From the name alone, it was clearly an event for “ORV.”

I suddenly recalled the message from “RepresentativeKimDokja” that I got yesterday.

―There’s a small fan event tomorrow at 7 PM. Please feel free to come if you’re available.

Could this be it?

I asked Ji Eunyu.

“How did you find out about this?”

“The event organizer reached out. They asked for permission to hold a paid event. In exchange, they promised to donate all the proceeds to an orphanage in Kim Dokja’s name. I’m just here to observe.”

So that’s what the paid admission was for.

I gave an exaggerated nod and said.

“That’s a good cause. But why am I—”

“The readers. You asked where they were.”

I finally remembered my phone conversation with Ji Eunyu from the day before. Ji Eunyu had said there were readers waiting for my novel, and I had asked her where they could be found.

I turned back to look at the theater again.

Inside were the readers Ji Eunyu had spoken of.

Abruptly, I felt a surge of blood to my head and my heart began to race.

“But is it alright for me to go inside?”

Ji Eunyu tilted her head at my reluctance.

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

“I’m the author.”

“It’s fine, Han Sooyoung wrote it.”

Seeing Ji Eunyu’s playful retort, I could only offer a wry smile.

“I suppose so.”

Well, what kind of author hasn’t written a word in three years?

For today, I decided to shift all my burdens onto Han Sooyoung, whom I’d never even met. The reason I couldn’t write the side story was because, in some far-off universe, Han Sooyoung hadn’t written the manuscript and Yoo Joonghyuk hadn’t delivered it.

I chose to believe that.

At the theater entrance, life-sized figures of the ORV characters were exhibited. Judging by their design, they seemed to be based on the art style of the webtoon adaptation that was once published. I was genuinely impressed by their high quality.

As I admired the artwork, I recalled each character’s name.

The Demon King of Salvation Kim Dokja, the Supreme King Yoo Joonghyuk, the Black Flames Empress Han Sooyoung, the Moonlight Empress Yoo Sangah, the Judge of Destruction Jung Heewon, the Steel Sword Emperor Lee Hyunsung, the Beast Lord Shin Yoosoung, the Insect Lord Lee Gilyoung, and the Otaku Kim Namwoon… Even supporting characters with less screen time were present, like the bald Gong Pildu, the doctor Lee Seolhwa, and the fake protagonist Jang Hayoung…

“Honestly, these are better than the ones we produced.”

Ji Eunyu agreed with that sentiment.

It wasn’t just the quality that was impressive, but the clear dedication that had gone into making them.

I gave a faint smile and added,

“I’d believe it if you told me the actual webtoon artists drew these.”

“Maybe they did?”

“No, that’s not possible. They all left after that incident.”

There was a time when “Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint” was adapted into a webtoon.

It began promisingly. Talented artists handled the storyboarding and illustration.

But unfortunately, before even ten chapters were published, lightning struck the studio, causing a major fire. The company, overwhelmed by the fallout, went bankrupt. Compounded by the management’s financial troubles, the “Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint” webtoon vanished from the world after just 11 chapters.

“We can’t be sure, author-nim. If the side story does well, the webtoon might make a comeback.”

It was just like Ji Eunyu to remain so optimistic.

“I let go of those hopes long ago.”

After the webtoon’s failure, a strange streak of misfortune seemed to follow me, with odd accidents plaguing every secondary project related to “Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint.” Movie deals fell through when production companies went under, and figure or merchandise production halted when factories bankrupted.

After this happened multiple times, all offers stopped coming.

I hesitated for a moment before saying,

“There must be some worldline where ORV didn’t fail.”

In that worldline, the webtoon would have been successful, and there might have been movies, dramas, and perhaps even an anime. It isn’t this worldline, but I still dream of that sometimes.

“I told you, we haven’t failed yet.”

I continued looking at the remaining life-sized figures with a grumbling Ji Eunyu. The lineup was extensive, featuring characters from Uriel and the Great Sage Heaven’s Equal to less prominent ones like Han Myungoh.

But at the very end of the display stood an unfamiliar figure.

Who is that?

It was a man with narrow eyes, but I couldn’t place him.

Did a squint-eyed character appear in ORV?

If only his name was listed, I might remember…

I considered asking Ji Eunyu, but then held back.

A writer has his pride.

“Two tickets, please.”

“Please write your nickname on this name tag and pin it to your left chest.”

We took the name tags from the staff and entered the theater.

Fortunately, no one recognized me as ORV’s author. Of course they didn’t—my name tag didn’t announce it. I glanced at Ji Eunyu’s name tag.

[Genius Editor]

“Ji Eunyu-ssi.”

I sat down in the back next to Ji Eunyu, who was pretending not to hear me. I could see the fans who had already taken their seats scattered in front of us.

I was taken aback once more. All these people are our readers. Or are they actually people Ji Eunyu paid to be here?

When I looked over, Ji Eunyu’s eyes were wide with surprise.

“A rough count puts it at over thirty people?”

Thirty. It might seem like a small number, but it meant thirty dedicated fans had taken time out of their day to come here.

I nodded, trying to contain the emotions rising within me.

Kim Dokja, you’re truly something.

Since the event hadn’t started yet, I could hear the readers in front chatting.

“Do you have an ‘NEP’? They’re really hard to find now.”
“Oh, I have that one.”
“Amazing. What about the ‘BE’?”
“I bought it as soon as it came out.”
“Then, do you also have a ‘DF’?”
“I do… but weirdly, my ‘DF’ is starting to act up.”

NEP = New Employee Package, (BE) = (Black Edition), (DF) = (Reader/Dokja Figure)

I couldn’t quite follow their conversation. They seemed to be trading jargon only long-time fans would know.

We sat together, listening in on the veterans’ talk.
“This is already the twelfth time.”
“Didn’t the host say today is the last?”
“Yes.”
“There used to be so many people before. It’s really shrunk.”
“That’s true. Everyone’s been leaving, one by one.”

It appeared this so-called Kim Dokja’s banquet was already on its twelfth iteration. They said there used to be even more attendees.

I thought the current turnout was impressive enough…
“Excuse me, is this seat taken?”

I turned at the sudden question. A large man, reminiscent of Lee Hyunsung, was standing shyly and pointing to the seat beside me.

I nodded.
“Oh, yes. Go ahead.”
“Thank you…”

As expected, the man who bowed his head had a name tag on his chest.

[Judge Heewon]

He must be a fan of the Judge of Destruction, Jung Heewon.

It had been a long time since I’d sat next to a stranger, and I felt a little tense.

Ji Eunyu, noticing the awkward silence, spoke up first.
“I take it you’re a fan of Jung Heewon.”

Judge Heewon gave a slight nod.
“Yes…”

Then silence fell again.

Ji Eunyu nudged my arm, signaling me to say something. Normally, she would initiate conversation at times like these. But it had been so long since I’d spoken to someone new, I couldn’t think of a thing to say.

I finally opened my mouth, wondering what Kim Dokja would talk about here.
“I’m a fan of Heewon, too.”
“Oh, really!”

It wasn’t a profound statement, but seeing the man’s bright smile, I felt we’d formed a significant bond. We nodded repeatedly like brothers who had sworn an oath of loyalty, united in our thoughts of Jung Heewon.

Judge Heewon looked at the nickname on my name tag for a while and asked.
“You have an interesting nickname.”
“Thank you.”
“Do you have a favorite…”

“Well, I…”

I thought for a moment, but it was difficult to pick just one.

As the silence stretched, Judge Heewon quickly added, seeming to think he’d misspoken.
“Oh, you could be an all-chara, my mistake…”

I wasn’t entirely sure what ‘all-chara’ meant, but I had a general idea.

I gave a light nod and replied.
“They’re all good, except for characters like Cheon Inho.”

In case you’ve forgotten, Cheon Inho is the name of the minor villain who dies early in ORV.

Judge Heewon’s expression also darkened, as if he knew exactly who Cheon Inho was.
“Cheon Inho, that scoundrel.”
“A real villain.”
“That guy deserves to be ripped apart.”
“Uh… right?”
“He should burn forever in hellfire.”

And that concluded our conversation.

The host appeared on the theater stage. He was dressed in a black suit with a white coat.
“Hello, I’m your host, Kim Dokja.”

A light cheer came from the audience. Despite the sunglasses hiding his eyes, his outfit was a close match to Kim Dokja’s.

Is it handmade? The quality is quite good.

Soon, the theater screen lit up and the event began.

Soft background music played, followed by the distinctive font of the [Fourth Wall].

「 And everything was recorded upon the Fourth Wall. 」

Then, slowly, comments left by readers began to appear on the screen.

From the prologue all the way to chapter 551, comments written by the readers themselves.

“Ah, I wrote that one!”

A young fan in the front row whispered excitedly. Everyone in the theater watched the comments together.

There were comments that had received many ‘likes,’ some that were humorous or unique. Others held touching sentiments.

“That was when Kim Dokja died for the first time, right?”
“Ugh, don’t look at my comments! Take them down!”
“This is just a collection of my embarrassing past.”

My heart fluttered as well, reading those old comments.

ORV was serialized for two years, and three years have passed since it ended.

The history built by the readers of this world over five years.

I watched for a long time, without words.

It was like listening to a myth from a distant era.

Memories surfaced of fan-organized exhibitions and subway ads celebrating character birthdays.

Someone murmured softly while looking at an illustration of Kim Dokja on screen.
“It’s Kim Dokja’s birthday.”
“It actually snowed in Seoul that day.”

On the pristine white screen, the readers’ comments continued to pile up. Between the lines, I could see the footprints of the path we had walked together.
“You’re glad you came, aren’t you?”

At Ji Eunyu’s words, I nodded without thinking.

「 Maybe I wrote so many sentences just to witness this sight. 」

My heart raced once more.

If I had the right, I wanted to say something to these people. I wanted to write for them without retreating or surrendering.

I wanted to take on this story again.

「 But am I capable of it? 」

That was when I heard the host’s voice.
“Now, we have a few words from the author-nim who has joined us for this event!”

The readers in the audience looked around at each other, murmuring.

I was stunned for a moment before regaining my senses.
“The author?” Ji Eunyu whispered to me, equally surprised.

For a second, my thoughts were in turmoil.

Did Ji Eunyu secretly arrange a fan meeting?

However, the look in Ji Eunyu’s eyes showed she was just as unaware.

When I glanced toward the stage, the host was smiling in our direction.

Should I stand up?

Just as I cleared my throat with a ‘what can you do’ feeling and began to rise, a person’s face suddenly filled the screen.

―Ah, ah.

A tear mole on pale skin. Jet-black bob hair pulled back.

Even without an introduction, everyone here knew who she was.

The actual author of 『Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint』 was there.