Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint Novel MTL - Chapter 680

Chapter 680

680 Episode 22 Name (2)
Hello, everyone.

This is Lee Hakhyun.

A lot has happened since we last spoke.

By now, you’ve probably all forgotten my name. And honestly, I can’t blame you. It’s not exactly the most impressive name, is it?

If I were the main character, I’d probably be named something like Yoo Jonghyuk.

That’s the kind of name you’d expect, right? But instead, it’s just Lee Hakhyun.

To put it plainly, it feels like someone from the real world suddenly found themselves possessing a character in a web novel.

But as all of you are aware, that’s exactly what happened to me—I really did possess a character from a web novel.

And not just any character, but a pathetic villain—

—Cheon Inho.

Yes, that’s the one.

Cheon Inho.

That’s the name of the villain I ended up inhabiting.

—I’ve been unconscious for quite some time.

—They told me it was a miracle I survived.

Whoever you are, you’re speaking the words I wish I could say.

That pretty much sums up my life ever since becoming Cheon Inho.

Staying alive feels nothing short of miraculous.

Back at Geumho Station.

Then in Chungmuro.

Inside the theater dungeon.

At Seoul Station and Gwanghwamun.

Each time, I genuinely came close to death.

Lately, I’ve started to feel like all these near-death experiences have left me a little unhinged.

More than anything, I’ve begun to question who I really am.

It sounds like the kind of angst you’d expect from a middle-schooler, but I mean it.

Maybe I overused [Incite]? Or perhaps I never really figured out my own identity back when I was in second year of middle school?

Then again, maybe it’s—

【How long do you plan to keep talking like this?】

Ah, that’s right.

I can’t afford to be so indecisive anymore.

Let’s just forget everything I’ve said up to now.

I’ll start over properly.

Hello, everyone.

My name is Kim Dokja.

It feels strange to say it out loud, but I’m being completely serious.

I am the reincarnation of 49% of Kim Dokja.

But, everyone…

I have to admit, I’m a little frightened.

Just think about it for a moment.

One day, you suddenly find yourself possessing a character in a novel, only to realize that ‘the main character’s reincarnation is actually you.’

Does that kind of light novel trope even make sense?

If my editor, Ji Eunyu, heard about this, she’d never let me live it down.

I can already hear her saying:

“Wow, author! Readers always joked that Kim Dokja was a self-insert character, but it turns out he wasn’t just a character—he was actually you. Incredible.”

Ji Eunyu.

This feels so unfair.

First, let me be clear about one thing: I didn’t actually write that novel.

The person who wrote that story was Han Sooyoung…

Han Sooyoung?

…

I shot up from where I was sitting with a choked cry.

My heart was hammering wildly in my chest, and my breath came out in ragged gasps.

Through my blurred vision, I could make out the faint outline of a figure.

“Inho-ssi?”

Sensation gradually returned to my fingertips. I felt the softness of the bed and blanket beneath me. The distinct smell of hospital disinfectant hung in the air.

My thoughts were a tangled mess.

What happened?

What about Han Sooyoung?

What became of the Outer God?

And Yoo Joonghyuk?

Did we succeed?

When I finally managed to open my eyes, I saw a familiar face.

Beneath a pair of earnest eyebrows, kind eyes looked back at me.

“Inho-ssi!”

It was Lee Dansu, who had long since stopped calling me his friend. He held me in a tight embrace.

I’m not sure why, but as Lee Dansu held me, my strength drained away and tears began to fall without warning.

“Thank goodness. I’m so relieved.”

It was surprising that even a villain could have so many tears stored up.

Hearing him repeat how fortunate it was, I found myself thinking once more that yes, this really was a miracle.

“Ahjussi.”

Once again, I had survived.

And once again, someone had paid a price for my survival.

There were people who rushed here the moment they heard I was awake.

People I knew well.

Since it feels like it’s been a while, let me reintroduce them.

“Aaaah! Inho-ssi!”

The girl running toward me is Kyung Sein.

Though she appears female on the outside, she’s actually a reader with the soul of a man.

“You’re awake, Kim Dokja.”

The man standing solemnly in the hospital room doorway, wearing a black coat, is the second apostle, ‘Killer King’.

Despite his outward appearance, he’s a fanatic who has read ‘Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint’ more than a hundred times.

He has a habit of calling me ‘Kim Dokja’ constantly, though I can’t tell if he does it intentionally or not.

For the record, he has a younger sister who uses the ID ‘Literature Girl 64’. Unlike her brother, Yerin is perfectly normal.

“Inho-ssi, how are you feeling? How many fingers do you see? What’s this animal? Can you tell me your name? How old are you? What was your name in your previous life?”

The boy taking advantage of my confusion to extract information is ‘Ye Hyunwoo’.

He looks every bit the gifted student from a special program, and he serves as the commander of the Chungmuro Group, the strategic mind leading the readers.

“Yes. I’m alright.”

“You still have a slight fever, so it might be best to rest a bit more.”

Finally, the handsome man checking my temperature is ‘Lee Dansu’.

He was the first reader I ever met, a man living in this world with the hope of being reunited with his daughter.

The rest of the group… haven’t arrived yet.

I tried to list their names silently in my mind.

Jung Heewon, Cha Yerin, Ji Eunyu, Koo Seonah…

“Inho-ssi.”

Amid the quiet, Lee Dansu was the one who spoke again.

For some reason, the way everyone was looking at me had changed.

They seemed to be hesitating, unsure of what to ask or how to begin.

I offered a faint smile and spoke first.

“Could you tell me what’s happened since then?”

“I was out for 45 days?”

As Kyung Sein’s exclamation echoed, I tried to process how long 45 days really was.

Wait, hold on.

What scenario are we in now?

“The seventh scenario is currently underway on the Korean Peninsula.”

I could hardly believe what I was hearing.

“Not the fifth?”

“Hey, when did the fifth scenario even end?”

The last scenario I remembered was the fourth, ‘the King’s Qualifications’.

“Wait a minute.”

I took a moment to collect my thoughts, recalling the plot of ‘Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint’.

In the original, the fifth scenario was the ‘Disaster of Floods’.

That scenario required defeating four disasters in addition to the main Disaster of Floods.

Even if I eliminated one at the National Palace Museum, had they really taken care of the other four?

“Yoo Jung-hyuk handled the fifth scenario on his own. And he lived up to his role as the protagonist.”

“How did he manage it? He didn’t kill Shin Yoosoung—?”

“Have you forgotten this is the 41st turn?”

A cold realization washed over me.

Right.

This is the 41st turn of ‘Ways of Survival’.

This is also the worldline before ‘Shin Yoosoung’ returned to the second round to become the ‘Disaster of Floods’.

In other words, the ‘Disaster of Floods’ doesn’t exist in this turn.

But the disasters weren’t limited to just that.

“The Disaster of Questions was quite formidable. But we handled it easily thanks to this guy.”

“The 2nd Apostle didn’t get involved. Yoo Jonghyuk took care of it.”

I began to grasp the situation.

Whatever disaster occurred, it seems Yoo Jonghyuk of the 41st turn suppressed it with overwhelming force.

“Speaking of the fifth… What about the sixth scenario? That one’s tricky too.”

The sixth scenario is ‘Peace Land’, which involves Japanese incarnations.

In some ways, it could be even more challenging than the ‘Disaster of Floods’.

“Yoo Jonghyuk went and finished it himself.”

“Yoo Jung-hyuk?”

I couldn’t keep the doubt from my voice.

Unlike other scenarios, ‘Peace Land’ is a scenario where you must choose a side between Disasters and Inhabitants.

“Don’t tell me Yoo Jonghyuk became a disaster?”

I asked, bracing for the worst.

If in the 41st turn, ‘Yoo Jonghyuk’ had chosen the side of disasters, ‘Peace Land’ would have been—

“Don’t worry. Yoo Jonghyuk sided with the inhabitants.”

Yoo Jonghyuk? Really?

“We arrived earlier than expected, so casualties were minimal. We collaborated well with the Japanese incarnations. Both Asuka Ren and Izumi are safe! Pretty surprising, right?”

Asuka Ren and Izumi, the king of Japan, are both unharmed…

From the sound of it, the situation wasn’t as bad as it could have been.

“What about Kyrgios?”

“We didn’t meet Kyrgios. I suppose the events in this turn branched differently.”

It seems that for every gain, there’s a loss.

My original plan was to meet Kyrgios Roadgrim in Peace Land and train to become a Transcendent.

But I was unconscious, and Kyrgios never even appeared in ‘Peace Land’.

“The seventh scenario is still ongoing. Actually, Yerin and Heewon are in the scenario area because of that. Oh, and Jiwon is there too…”

Perhaps because of the shocking news I’d just heard, I found it hard to focus on the rest.

During the 45 days I was asleep, the world of the 41st turn had veered off the course of the ‘Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint’ I knew.

But if you were to ask whether it was all bad, not necessarily.

Both the ‘Disaster Scenario’ and ‘Peace Land’ are difficult to clear even with my participation.

Yet Yoo Jonghyuk managed to clear both flawlessly on his own.

Is this something that also happened in the original 41st turn?

Or is this a ripple effect caused by Han Sooyoung and me eliminating the founder of the Absolute Throne?

Noticing my serious expression, Kyung Sein added:

“Anyway, don’t worry. The 41st turn hasn’t been as bad as we feared. The ‘Absolute Throne’ seems to be working in our favor.”

“Absolute Throne?”

I asked, my voice blank with confusion.

Kyung Sein nodded.

“Yes. The Absolute Throne.”

“You still have it?”

“Huh? Well… It wasn’t destroyed in this turn.”

That shouldn’t be possible.

I saw it with my own eyes—the ‘founder of the absolute throne’ is dead.

“Who is the king now? Is it one of you?”

At my question, my companions exchanged glances.

Kyung Sein gave a weak smile, and Lee Dansu shook his head.

Killer King looked proud, and Ye Hyunwoo let out a short laugh.

“That’s not possible, Inho-ssi. How could any of us become kings? The real king is still alive and well.”

I slowly pushed myself up from the bed. My legs trembled unsteadily from lack of use.

Staggering to my feet, I looked out the hospital room window.

Then it hit me.

「 The tragedy of the 41st turn begins with the ‘absolute throne’. 」

The view of Gwanghwamun stretched out beyond the glass.

An absolute throne stood at the center of the square. Who could possibly have claimed that throne amid all the chaos?

No matter how I thought about it, only one person came to mind.

“Is it Yoo Jonghyuk?”

“Yes. He has taken the ‘absolute throne’.”

As Ye Hyunwoo answered in a low voice, I felt something within me break apart.

Where did things go wrong?

Did Han Sooyoung and I ultimately fail to alter this world’s course?

“Fortunately.”

Ye Hyunwoo placed a hand on my shoulder, as if to offer reassurance.

“It’s not exactly the same as the 41st turn we expected. Although Yoo Jonghyuk claimed the ‘Absolute Throne’, he hasn’t been able to wield its power.”

He couldn’t use the throne’s power?

I turned sharply, my eyes meeting Ye Hyunwoo’s.

The calm in his gaze made me understand why he was here.

“So… that’s what we need to know. Inho-ssi, what really happened that day?”

Kyung Sein, Killer King, and Dansu ahjussi—all were watching me intently, as if they’d planned this.

“On the day the ‘Great Hall’ opened, it was Yoo Jonghyuk who brought you back. But even when we asked him what occurred, he wouldn’t answer.”

Of course he wouldn’t.

He doesn’t truly know what took place that day.

“That day, you were wielding the ‘Death Sword’. Did you sever the link to the ‘Absolute Throne’?”

“I—”

I tried to speak.

It wasn’t me who did it.

There was someone else with us that day, someone you all know.

“It wasn’t me, it was Han Soo—”

[You can no longer use the ‘Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World’.]

The moment I heard that message, my tongue went numb.

『Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World.』

The skill that had protected me since I entered this world, the novel that forms the foundation of this reality.

The story Kim Dokja loved most.

[You can no longer use ‘Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World’.]

There was someone who gave me this skill.

Someone who felt responsible for me.

The person who sacrificed all of her stories to save me.

I tried activating the skill again and again.

[You can no longer use ‘Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World’.]

The skill remained silent.

[You can no longer use ‘Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World’.]

The story that once shielded Kim Dokja had now abandoned me.

Most likely, it had returned to the author who tried to give it to me.

“Inho-ssi?”

Lee Dansu, noticing my distress, placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Everyone, Inho-ssi doesn’t seem well. Maybe we should ask later—”

“No, we need to know now. We’ve already waited too long. ‘That phenomenon’ has been going on for 45 days.”

I could hear Ye Hyunwoo and Killer King talking over the ringing in my ears.

“Dansu ahjussi, you know how serious things are right now. The only lead we have is Inho-ssi.”

“It’s an anomaly even I can’t explain, and I’ve read Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint a hundred times. The only one I can rely on is him.”

I didn’t understand what was happening. But I had no answers to give.

“I…”

The story I know is just the same one all of you know.

I’m not the incredible person you all believe me to be.

Though I am the reincarnation of Kim Dokja, I’m not the true Kim Dokja who read ‘Ways of Survival’.

The real Kim Dokja.

Memories slowly resurfaced, bringing with them a dull headache.

Memories of the day I killed the ‘God of Another World’.

The reason I’m still here now.

「 «I will make a contract.» 」

It slowly became clear.

To defeat the ‘God of the Other World’, I entered a sponsorship contract with that Constellation.

Yet, I could barely sense his presence.

Even when I gazed up at the sky or clenched my fists, nothing felt different.

*Tsutsutsutsu.*

Just then, the smartphone on the table buzzed.

A message appeared on the screen.

[Someone requested a ‘midday secret meeting’.]

In that moment, I understood.

This wasn’t my smartphone.

But I knew exactly who it belonged to.

[Applicant: Demon King of Salvation]

This was likely a relic from my time in the inner city.