Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint Novel MTL - Chapter 657

Chapter 657

Of course. Here is the paraphrased chapter:

657 Episode 19 People of the Past (9)
[Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint was a skill that belonged primarily to Kim Dokja. This ability was divided into three distinct tiers, each one granting a different power.]

The initial stage allowed one to perceive ‘basic actions and feelings of the characters’.

The second stage made it possible to hear a character’s internal monologue.

The ultimate, third stage involved sharing a character’s sight or even becoming one with them.

This was a skill I understood intimately. The issue was why it had only activated after the ‘record repairer’ had fixed my records.

「 It is impossible for Cheon Inho to possess [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint]. 」

Therefore, the skill must have been generated during the restoration of my history.

When I considered it, this wasn’t completely unbelievable.

It was plausible that I held at least one such shard, just as Dansu ahjussi and the other readers possessed a ‘fragment of Kim Dokja’.

In a way, a writer is also a ‘reader’ who interprets their own story.

If I have a piece of the Kim Dokja who mastered [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint], then I should consider myself fortunate.

I should not overcomplicate this.

My immediate concern was how to utilize this ability.

«Shin Yoosoung.»

I called out to Shin Yoosoung, who stood nearby.

From what I recalled, three requirements were necessary to use [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint].

First, the target must be a ‘character’.

Second, my ‘comprehension’ of the target must reach a specific threshold.

Third, the target and I must be consciously thinking of one another simultaneously.

By speaking to Shin Yoosoung now, all three conditions were likely to be met.

At my call, Shin Yoosoung lifted her head to look at me. I watched her small eyes shift back and forth.

But why was nothing happening?

No matter how long I waited, [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint] refused to activate.

Was my understanding insufficient?

Or was Shin Yoosung not thinking about me at this moment?

Shin Yoosoung, who had been staring, finally spoke.

«You called me something else before.»

Something else?

A memory surfaced.

「 «Get down, Yoosoung.» 」

Earlier, when I had [incited] myself into becoming Yoo Jonghyuk, I had certainly said that to Shin Yoosoung.

It wasn’t deliberate.

In that moment, I had genuinely believed I was Yoo Jonghyuk, and that is the nature of the [Incite] skill.

«You didn’t use formal speech.»

«That… I apologize, it is a side effect of the ability.»

«You can call me without honorifics.»

Hearing the child’s voice, filled with anticipation, I was briefly at a loss for words.

«I will try.»

«Really?»

It was merely a matter of dropping formalities. Simply calling the child by her name.

Although it was a simple thing, it felt unexpectedly difficult for me.

I knew the reason. It was because seeing the Shin Yoosoung before me brought a flood of overwhelming memories.

The Shin Yoosoung of the 41st round.

To me, this was the Shin Yoosoung who had wandered for millennia within the labyrinth of the world line. The Shin Yoosung who descended as the Disaster of Floods and was later reborn as a dokkaebi.

What I saw was a grand tragedy that had not yet befallen this child.

Did that mean I was failing to see the Shin Yoosoung who existed here and now?

«Did you discover a method?»

It was Literature Girl 64 who asked.

«Not yet. Yerin-ssi.»

After a pause, I used her real name.

Literature Girl 64 was the only reader whose real name I knew.

The person who had read the books of the writer ‘Lee Hakhyun’.

Even though she was unaware I was Lee Hakhyun, I still felt a connection when I saw her.

Shin Yoosoung tugged on my sleeve.

«Is she your friend?»

«Yes.»

«Are you close?»

Why did Shin Yoosoung ask this about everyone?

Perhaps it was a trait of her personality.

«Yes. We’re close.»

That reply came from Literature Girl 64, not from me.

When Shin Yoosung looked at her with curiosity, Literature Girl 64 returned the gaze with a strange expression.

Literary Girl 64 spoke again.

«We both enjoy books.»

«Books.»

Shin Yoosoung’s golden eyes blinked rapidly.

I saw the expression on Literature Girl 64’s face harden. And in the next instant.

「 Strange. 」

A faint sound reached my ears, followed by a soft, tingling sensation.

「 Shin Yoosoung in the third round did not have golden eyes. The 41st round would be the same. That’s correct, this Shin Yoosoung now— 」
«Yerin.»

«Yes.»

[‘Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint’ has been unlocked.]

As Literature Girl 64 looked at me, her inner voice cut off.

What I had just heard was the literary girl’s private thoughts.

But how was this possible?

「 ‘Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint’ is a skill that can only be used on ‘characters’. 」

However, Literature Girl 64 was a reader, not a character.

This cool realization formed into a clear sentence in my mind.

「 [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint] could also be used on ‘readers’. 」

I immediately turned to look at Killer King. By chance, Killer King was also watching me.

「 Why are you staring at me? 」

A voice that seemed to have been waiting for this.

[Among the apostles, Cheon Inho is now closer to ‘Kim Dokja’ than anyone else.」]

「 If I defeat that guy, does that mean I will become the one closest to Yoo Jonghyuk? 」

Seeing him entertain such a ridiculous delusion, this had to be Killer King’s inner monologue.

I then turned my thoughts to Dansu ahjussi.

However, the old man’s thoughts remained silent.

It could have been because his mind was too frozen, or because Dansu ahjussi was not thinking of me.

If only Dansu ahjussi would think of me.

If that happened, I could pinpoint the ahjussi’s location within the labyrinth.

I quickly retrieved an item that did not reflect the wind speed.

‘The horn of provocation.’

A spoil acquired from slaying an ancient Nagak.

Using this item, I could project my voice throughout the entire labyrinth.

If the ahjussi heard my voice, wouldn’t he think of me, even for a second?

It was a gamble worth attempting.

The problem was that the ahjussi was much farther away than I thought, so the second stage of [Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint] did not activate.

«Yerin.»

«Yes.»

«You still have that iron fist technique you used earlier.»

The question mark was left unspoken.

Killer King, who was polishing his sword while mimicking Yoo Jonghyuk, answered.

«It sounds like you’re referring to Vision Oh’s Dark Spinning Breaker.»

I supposed that was its name.

Anyway.

«Use it on me. Now.»

If the second stage wouldn’t work, I would force the third.

In the darkness, the man was thinking.
«Who am I?»

The man was contemplating his own existence.

Who am I.

The man believed this was the ultimate philosophical question.

No human truly knows what they are. From birth, they are only known by a name.

He pondered what he was called.

「 Lee Dansu. 」

Correct.

Lee Dansu was called that.

That was his name.

«No.»

No. In truth, that was not his name. That name belonged to another.

It was the name of the one who had once been the master of this body.

He was merely borrowing the name.

So what was his name?

His name is.

«Noh Jiyoon. Noh Jiyoon.»

Memories returned to him, one by one, triggered by the name he spoke.

Right. He is the father of Noh Jiyoon.

「 Noh Gyeonghwan. 」

That was his name.

「 My father gave me this name so I would live vigilantly, wary of even the smallest trouble. Thanks to the name my father gave me, I managed to live a life largely free of difficulty. 」

Reflecting on it, Noh Gyeonghwan’s life had been smooth and peaceful.

It had always been that way.

Noh Gyeonghwan was born with a handsome face.

He never caught the flu that went around, he excelled in his studies, and he maintained good friendships.

He was fortunate to get into a prestigious university, and his military draft lottery placed him in a comfortable assignment.

Using subscription savings accounts he had kept since he was young, he acquired a small but cozy home, and he met his beautiful and wise wife as if by destiny.

The daughter they had together was also incredibly lovely.

Because he was so fortunate in life, Noh Gyeonghwan often wondered if he was borrowing luck from someone else.

Perhaps the reason for his happiness in this world was that someone, in a distant universe, was suffering misfortune.

Noh Gyeonghwan often imagined that unknown person who might be unhappy because of him, and he would sing a short song for them every time he came home from work.

His wife loved his songs.

「 Then one day, misfortune came to him as well. 」

Perhaps it wasn’t even a significant event. A tragedy that happens to everyone. It was simply that the tragedy had chosen him.

「 His wife was dead. 」

The cause was the problem.

If it had been a traffic accident or a heart attack, he might have been able to comprehend it, however painful. His luck had run out, and he might have let his beloved wife go, weeping with frustration.

But his wife had been killed.

「 This is a stone. 」

It was a stone. A very small stone that even a child could carry.

「 «It appears to have fallen from the sky. There was a meteor warning the day before, but this is an extremely rare occurrence. Our country wasn’t even in the alert zone…» 」

It was a meteorite that had journeyed from the far reaches of the universe.

A small rock that had traveled through the darkness for hundreds of thousands of light years, burning with atmospheric heat. The stone pierced his wife’s body, killing her instantly.

「 «It is a disaster. Truly, the worst luck—» 」

Could it truly be explained away as ‘bad luck’? Noh Gyeonghwan could not understand.

He suddenly thought of that ‘someone’ living in misfortune beyond the universe.

Was this truly a random disaster?

Was it possible that someone, from far beyond the universe, envious of his happiness, had thrown a stone at him?

「 From that day on, Noh Gyeonghwan often looked up at the sky. 」

He thought about that unprecedented meteorite that had flown in from beyond the heavens.

His father had been right.

One must be vigilant against even the smallest troubles. He had to live up to his name, now more than ever.

From then on, Noh Gyeonghwan lived solely for his daughter’s survival.

He personally took his young daughter to school. Fearing that he too might die in a sudden accident, he even wrote a flexible will for her.

He always kept his daughter close, shielding her from any potential danger.

His young daughter both loved and understood Noh Gyeonghwan.

And after understanding too much, she began to resent him.

「 «Can you please stop?» 」

At some point, his daughter stopped eating properly. She refused to go to school.

But that was fine.

She could study later.

At least the house was safe.

If she was at home, she would never be killed by a falling meteorite.

However, Noh Gyeonghwan did not know that one could be struck by a meteorite even at home.

「 «Yoo Jonghyuk.» 」

It was a name like a meteorite, arriving from an unknown place.

「 «I will marry Yoo Jonghyuk.» 」

[‘Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint’ has been unlocked!]

«Ugh!»

I jolted upright, a nauseous feeling overwhelming me.

Checking the timer in the air, I saw I had only been unconscious for about ten minutes.

Killer King supported me and asked.

«Did you locate him?»

«I found him.»

«How?»

[Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint had indeed activated.]

A short while ago, I had become Dansu ahjussi and glimpsed into his memories.

I explained the approximate location of Dansu ahjussi to Killer King and Literature Girl 64, then added:

«There’s no time for a detailed explanation. Since we used ‘Devaal’s Fire Flute’ earlier, our enemies must have detected our presence.»

Hurried footsteps echoed through the dungeon. The other members of the Misreading association were undoubtedly also searching for Dansu ahjussi.

«We have to find the ahjussi first.»

There was only one way to do that.

I swallowed back blood and looked at Literature Girl 64 once more.

«Hit me again. This time, hit me hard enough that I might actually die.»