Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint Novel MTL - Chapter 561

Chapter 561

A massive holographic screen materialized in the middle of the subway station.

People cried out in shock.

Displayed on the screen was a classroom.

Trembling girls dressed in navy blue school uniforms.

It was a familiar scene.

「 Daepong Girls’ High School. 」

The girls on the screen were desperately trying to break down the classroom door.

Naturally, their struggle would be in vain, because that was the nature of this tale.

A sinister beeping sound began to echoᅳ

The girls shrieked.

[The allotted time has expired.]

[Paid settlement will now commence.]

Following the announcement, the girls’ heads started to explode, one after another.

I kept my eyes open, fixed on the scene. I felt a duty to witness this story to its conclusion.

On the screen, the last girl standing seized her friend by the throat.

A choked, guttural sound escaped.

Then, the sole survivor left on the screen scanned her surroundings.

[#Bay23515 channel. Daepong Girls’ High School, Year 2 Class B Survivor: Lee Jihye.]

It was the exact same progression as in ‘Omniscient Reader’.

Lee Jihye, who was glowering at the screen, vanished, and Bihyung let out a laugh.

[Isn’t it amusing?]

«H-how can this—»

The people in the room were frozen in terror.

Even the large man was visibly startled, and the eyes of the reader ahjussi, who presumably already knew the story, were wide with disbelief.

I was the sole person who remained calm.

[The character ‘Lee Hyunjoo’ is experiencing a panic!]

[The character ‘Yeom Baekhoon’ is experiencing a panic!]

Psychological messages from various characters flooded in from all directions.

Bihyung, having precisely tapped into the source of everyone’s fear, vanished once more.

«That girl who lived till the end… she must have murdered someone.»

Someone mumbled as if in a trance.

A chorus of voices quickly spread through the crowd like wildfire.

«Were we mistaken? What if the germs aren’t the solution?»
«Are you certain about your information? Are you positive we can make it through this?»

I needed to calm them down.

«Please, everyone. Just try to stay calm.»
«How can we possibly stay calm now?»

The agitated people turned their shouts toward me.

The reader ahjussi, who had been observing from the sidelines, moved forward to try and reason with them.

«We don’t know the final outcome yet, right? This person wants to save all of you too, so please—»
«The problem is that we don’t know! If we’re wrong, we’re finished!»
«You’re both in this together! You two are companions, aren’t you?»
«We’re all going to die because of you! What do we do now!»

In a flash, the crowd surrounding us was on the verge of turning into a mob. The large man stood among them, wearing a smirk of satisfaction.

When I first devised this plan, I knew this moment would be a critical point.

I had even prepared a strategy for it.

[9 minutes remain.]

But then, a wave of exhaustion hit me.

Perhaps it would be smarter to just flee with the ahjussi and simply wait out the remaining nine minutes.

As these defeatist thoughts crossed my mind, I began scanning the subway for a potential place to hide.

The moment I did.

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ is watching you.]

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ desires to perform an unexpected action.]

A message chimed inside my head.

[The activation conditions for the exclusive skill ‘⬜⬜’ have been satisfied.]

[The exclusive skill ‘⬜⬜’ has been activated.]

……⬜⬜?

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’s attribute is preparing to bloom.]

[You may interfere with the blooming of character ‘Kim Cheolyang’s attribute.]

[The exclusive skill ‘⬜⬜’ is activated!]

The surroundings drained of color, and everyone’s movements slowed to a crawl.

I, too, became rigid and motionless.

In this world of suspended time, only text floated against a colorless backdrop.

「 Lee Hyekyung thought, ‘This is all his fault.’ 」
「 Kim Haemoon thought, ‘This is divine punishment for killing that insect.’ 」
「 Ji Hyungdong had disliked those narrow eyes from the very start. 」

When I looked more closely, I saw another sentence hovering above my own head.

「 And Lee Hakhyun understood what this skill was. 」

Then, a new message appeared in the white void before me.

[You have entered the ‘Snowfield’.]

[Describe the next action of ‘Kim Cheolyang’.]

# Kim Cheolyang’s Awakening

Cheolyang⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜

* At your current skill level, you may write a total of 150 additional characters.

Blanks emerged like an incomplete manuscript.

It wasn’t difficult to comprehend what those empty spaces represented.

[You may remain in the ‘Snowfield (雪源)’ for a total of 3 minutes.]

Just as Kim Dokja possessed a ‘reader’ skill, I had a ‘writer’ skill.

Skill ‘⬜⬜’.

Would whatever I wrote become reality?

Short on time, I decided to compose a sentence in the blank first. My goal was clear.

Use Kim Cheolyang to rescue me and the ahjussi from this predicament.

As I concentrated, sentences formed in my mind.

It felt natural.

After all, I am the author of Omniscient Reader.

「In that instant, a mysterious sense of loyalty for the man with narrow eyes¹ welled up within Kim Cheolyang. This loyalty promptly awakened him.]
[1] This refers to Lee Hakhyun, though Kim Cheolyang did not yet know his name.

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ is evolving into ‘Judge of Destruction’.]

«Stop. Do not lay a hand on him.» (149 characters total)」

Perfect.

Leveraging his ‘Crouching Figure’ attribute, I had evolved Kim Cheolyang into a ‘Judge of Destruction’ like Jung Heewon.
From my perspective, it was a brilliant play on words.

[This story is absurd.]

[This story’s reproduction success rate is 1%.]

[You are exhausting the probability.]

Huh?

[Do you wish to review the reader’s feedback?]

I nodded in agreement.

rlaehrwk37: I’m leaving

I stood bewildered for a second, then quickly pulled myself together. This was no time for shock.

I started writing again.

「In that instant, Kim Cheolyang remembered he was a martial arts master in a past life…….. (147 characters total)」

[This story is implausible.]

[This story’s reproduction success rate is 0.1%.]

[You are exhausting the probability.]

[Do you wish to review the reader’s feedback?]

rlaehrwk37: I’m leaving

「In that instant, Kim Cheolyang realized he was Kim Namwoon’s cousin. A strange affection for his own kin flowed through him……. (143 characters total)」

[This story is peculiar.]

[This story’s reproduction success rate is 3%.]

[You are exhausting the probability.]

[Do you wish to review the reader’s feedback?]

rlaehrwk37: Do you have a death wish?

I made several more attempts, all with the same lack of success.

After absorbing one critical comment after another, I felt mentally drained.

[30 seconds remain.]

A sense of self-derision washed over me. I couldn’t conceive of anything to write or how to phrase it.

I closed my eyes, watching the seconds count down in real time.

In moments like these, one must return to the fundamentals.

「 «Author.» 」

Then, I heard the voice of the dokkaebi Ji Eunyoo in my mind.

「 «What does this character want?» 」

Ah.

[20 seconds remain.]

[Your exclusive attribute is in effect!]

I contemplated Kim Cheolyang, a character who existed only as a basic setting.

[15 seconds remain.]

How he would behave in this situation, what he would say, what he would aspire to be.

Just as I had when I first wrote ‘Omniscient Reader’, I began to write frantically.

I spoke as Kim Cheolyang and I acted as Kim Cheolyang.

In that moment, I became Kim Cheolyang.

The instant I typed the final word.

[The time limit has been reached.]

[This story is credible.]

[This story’s reproduction success rate is 90%.]

[There is sufficient probability.]

[Do you wish to review the reader’s feedback?]

rlaehrwk37: Oh

I wasn’t sure what that «oh» signified, but it had at least surprised the reader.

And by the way, you jerk, I’ve memorized your ID.

[Successfully recreating the scene.]

[Exiting the ‘Snowfield’.]

I felt energy draining from my body as color returned to the world around me.

The enraged crowd surged toward me and the reader ahjussi, and I saw the large man advancing.

Then.

«Everyone.»

「 At that moment, Kim Cheolyang stepped forward. 」

The sentence I had written began to unfold in reality.

«Our faith is being tested at this very moment.»

「It wasn’t an action just anyone could take. Yet, the moment he stepped forward, he was gripped by a powerful conviction that he had been selected by a higher power.」

«Faith?»

「 Perhaps it was the fire. He could see flames flickering deep within their pupils. 」

That was all I had written. However, it was sufficient for an introduction.

According to the [Character List], Kim Cheolyang interprets this scenario as a trial of faith.

«I am certain you have all sensed it by now—that someone is observing us from the heavens above.»

[The interest of a few constellations sparks.]

The crowd erupted at the perfectly timed message.

Emboldened, Kim Cheolyang grew more resolute and raised his voice.

«The ‘gods’ are watching our choices, judging whether we select the path of righteousness or wickedness.»

[The evolution of character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ is imminent!]

[The words of the character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ are stirring the hearts of the people.]

«Think logically. Who would the gods favor? The one who murdered a person to clear the scenario, or the one who cleared it without any bloodshed? Which path is truly just?»

The listeners began to nod. Some muttered, ‘He’s right,’ and ‘taking a life is a grave sin.’

Kim Cheolyang pressed on.

«The answer is predetermined. We have chosen the righteous path. Now, all that remains is our faith in that choice. We have even been blessed with a ‘Messenger of God’ who knows what is to come.»

A Messenger of God?

Kim Cheolyang, who had suddenly risen, pointed directly at me over the campfire.

«We heeded his words and discovered a way to overcome this challenge without a single death. We have already passed the test.»

That was a line I hadn’t intended for him to say?

The moment Kim Cheolyang looked at me with fervent eyes, the others turned to look at me as well.

And then.

«Perhaps the deacon is correct. They would never demand we kill another human.»

People began to converse among themselves.

«Look at those students in the video. They all died because they turned on each other.»
«Human life is sacred!»

A life-or-death situation within an unbelievable scenario.
A god observing them.
A religious figure validating and bolstering their decisions.
The fear of killing was overwhelming, but faith felt accessible.
The survival they all believed in was intoxicating.
Hope, which was feeble when they were isolated, coalesced into a religion the moment a single event united them.

«Kim Cheolyang! Kim Cheolyang!»
«We have been chosen, we have been chosen…….»

Someone wept with exhilaration.

I noticed the reader ahjussi letting out a soft sigh beside me.

Anyway, thanks to the remarkable efforts of the awakened Kim Cheolyang, the immediate danger to me and the ahjussi appeared to be over.

But that was not the conclusion of the story.

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ has awakened the new attribute ‘Cult Leader’.]

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ has acquired a new religious viewpoint.]

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ has acquired the basic doctrine of the ‘Life’s Teachings’.]

Life’s Teachings (生命敎).

The moment I heard the name, a cold shiver traveled down my spine.

One of the countless notes stored in my memory returned to me with perfect clarity.

「 In that moment, Lee Hakhyun recalled exactly who ‘Kim Cheolyang’ was. 」

[The character ‘Kim Cheolyang’ has accepted your ‘view of life’.]

[You have exerted a significant influence on the establishment of this religious view.]

I realized what I had done.

The character Kim Cheolyang.

My initial notes concerning him read as follows.

「 From the Ten Evils, the Life Leader Kim Cheolyang. 」

The Ten Evils, the most notorious villains in all of Omniscient Reader.

I had just personally raised one of them.