Chapter 725

Of course. Here is the paraphrased chapter, adhering to all your conditions.

***

I studied the faces and demeanors of my companions intently.

There were four of them without masks now.

Kyung Sein, Dansu ahjussi, Ye Hyunwoo, and Cha Yerin. It was difficult to describe, but beyond their appearances, it felt as if something fundamental had shifted. It was as if the very ‘narrative’ that composed their core being had been altered.

[An incarnation that loses its ‘mask’ will become a beast.]

In the simplest terms, it would mean they had turned into ‘animals’.

Yet, when I heard that, the word ‘beast’ seemed to carry a slightly different connotation.

—These individuals are now captives of the story.

Captives.

—Come outside with me for a moment.

Killer King’s tone was grave. It reminded me that this person was capable of speaking normally.

Using the need for fresh air as an excuse, I followed Killer King outside. The younger Yoo Jonghyuk was with us.

A steady rain was falling outside the wooden cabin. In the distance, I could hear the sound of a structure collapsing.

[The ‘event scenario’ is currently in progress.]

Screams from other incarnations echoed one after another. A horrifying, spreading hiss. The sound of tough flesh being ripped apart.

Killer King appeared accustomed to it all, calmly retrieving a cigarette from his chest as he spoke.

Had this person always smoked?

«We were genuinely confident when we first arrived, because it was us, not just any other incarnations.»

Killer King’s confidence wasn’t misplaced.

These individuals were all ‘complete readers’—survivors of seven full scenarios. Even facing an unfamiliar scenario, they now possessed the strength to overcome it.

Some had powerful sponsors, and those who didn’t had their own unique specialties.

«The roles were a perfect fit, too. Kyung Sein as Lee Hyunsung. Lee Dansu as Lee Gilyoung. Cha Yerin as Lee Jihye. And for me, Yoo Jonghyuk.»

Even if the last one was a bit unusual, it was a group composition that would be formidable anywhere.

But that’s what happened to them.

«It might have turned out differently if you had been with us, but that’s irrelevant now.»

«What exactly happened?»

«It’s a straightforward story. We let our guard down and were caught in a disastrous event scenario.»

Hazy smoke dissolved into the damp air.

«We had no idea what losing one’s mask truly meant. Kyung Sein was the first to fall. Next was Lee Dansu. Then Ye Hyunwoo. And finally, my own sister.»

With each name, Killer King’s voice grew more weighted.

«They lost the ability to live as humans.»

«What does that mean?»

«I’ll show you.»

Killer King took the lead, starting down the alley and signaling for me to follow.

Why?

The sight of him walking ahead felt foreign. In just over a month, Killer King seemed to have become someone else entirely.

It was then that the details of the event scenario arrived.

<Sub-scenario — The Three Little Pigs>

Category: Sub

Difficulty: B

Clear conditions: Locate a ‘safe house’ to evade the wolves and avoid being ‘hunted’.

Time limit: 8 hours

Reward: 500 Recycled Coins

Failure: Loss of ‘mask’ and progression toward dehumanization.

As expected, the scenario was about finding a secure shelter to hide from the ‘wolves’.

[The area you are located in is Zone 13, District 64.]

[You can proceed with the scenario by selecting the ‘Pig’ faction.]

[Find a safe home and avoid the ‘wolf’.]

[If hunted by a wolf, you will lose your ‘mask’.]

[The event scenario in this area concludes once a victim is claimed.]

According to the explanation, this district would not be safe until a ‘hunt’ was successfully completed.

But Killer King spoke with unsettling calm.

«Don’t worry. The wolf has already selected its prey.»

Killer King led us to an old, shabby tent a block away from the guesthouse, a structure barely worthy of the name.

He rang a small bell installed at the tent’s entrance.

«Who is it?»

Killer King answered the voice from within.

«The wolf.»

I stared at Killer King in shock. Immediately after, a system message chimed in my ear.

[A ‘wolf’ has appeared in this district.]

A frightened gasp came from inside the tent. A pale prairie dog poked its head out.

«Y-you’re here?»

«Yes.»

«Everything is ready.»

«Good.»

Inside the tent were several small animals, including prairie dogs, and a hippopotaurus chained to a chair.

The prairie dog gestured toward the hippopotamus.

«This is the volunteer ‘prey’ for this round.»

The hippopotamus wept, its shoulders shaking. Killer King moved slowly toward it.

«Let’s begin.»

Begin what?

A savage energy emanated from Killer King’s right hand as he removed his half-mask.

A sense of dread made me grab his shoulder.

«Wait.»

Killer King’s eyes glinted as he looked back at me.

At the same moment, someone seized my hand. It was the younger Yoo Jonghyuk.

«Don’t interfere.»

He was the one speaking.

«This is not your concern.»

In fact, the prisoners inside the tent didn’t seem pleased with my intervention either.

«I don’t know who you are…»

As the prairie dog began to speak, a meerkat beast beside it interjected.

«Please, stay out of this.»

«Please.»

Looking at the trembling beast people, I released my grip on Killer King’s shoulder.

Killer King then spoke.

«Don’t worry. I’ll be quick.»

With those words, he stood before the hippopotamus. As it shut its eyes tightly, Killer King released a long, mournful howl into the air, reminiscent of a genuine wolf.

[The wolf confirms the ‘prey’.]

In the same instant, Killer King seized one of the hippopotamus’s arms. With a sickening crunch, the arm was torn off, blood spraying out.

The other prisoners swiftly grabbed the writhing hippopotamus and began administering first aid.

Killer King placed the severed arm at his side, pulled a jingling sack from his chest, and handed it to the prairie dog.

The prairie dog, peering inside, became elated and muttered.

«Thank you. Thank you.»

«This should cover another week…»

The bag was filled with recycled coins.

After a moment watching the prisoners crowd around the coin bag, Killer King turned and walked out of the tent.

The younger Yoo Jonghyuk and I hurried after him.

[‘Hunt’ has occurred in Zone 13, District 64.]

[The ‘sacrifice’ conditions for this district have been met.]

The belated message arrived.

Only then did I understand what Killer King had done.

«This is the core mechanic of this scenario. If the wolf hunts prey, the event conditions are satisfied, and the remaining beasts get to survive.»

«Are you telling me you’ve been surviving by doing this?»

«Yes.»

This was how the group had managed to endure in the old wooden villa—because Killer King had been acting as the ‘wolf’, hunting other prey.

«The others chose the pig faction. Their plan was to form a community with the beast people and fight back against the wolves.»

It made sense.

The group had read Kim Dokja’s story, and above all, they had sided with the ‘small people’ in Peace Land. Naturally, they would take the pigs’ side in ‘The Three Little Pigs’.

After all, ‘The Three Little Pigs’ is a story where the pig ultimately wins.

«They failed.»

«Correct. And their masks were taken.»

«And you?»

«I chose the wolf.»

«But there was only one choice presented to me.»

I had only received the message stating I ‘could choose the pig side’.

«The wolf faction is a hidden option. You can only join by harming other ‘beasts’.»

In other words, Killer King had chosen the ‘wolf faction’ by injuring other prisoners.

«Why would you do that?»

«Because this is a scenario the pigs cannot win.»

I never expected to hear such a thing from Killer King, of all people. I felt both bewildered and disappointed. Was it because I had believed in him so much?

«You don’t understand what Zone 13 is.»

«I asked you why you did it.»

Killer King’s eyes, visible through his mask, widened slightly. He spoke as if he hadn’t heard a question like that in a long time.

«Right, you would say that. You truly are Kim Dokja.»

«Every scenario has a strategy. You know that.»

Even choosing the pig camp, there were numerous ways to proceed by utilizing the original story.

There were plenty of clever people in the group. Neither Ye Hyunwoo nor Cha Yerin were individuals to be underestimated. So why—

«I know what you’re thinking. I’m also familiar with the original story of this scenario.»

«Then why—»

«I assume you observed the other houses on your way here. Did you notice anything unusual?»

I glanced around.

The street I had walked down with the younger Yoo Jonghyuk. The inn we first warped into, the wooden villa where the group lived, and this old tent. And then…

«It can’t be.»

A cold realization prickled my skin.

A cigarette butt fell to the ground. Killer King lit a second one and said.

«There are no brick houses here.»

The original plot of 『The Three Little Pigs』 is unambiguous.

It is the tale of the youngest pig who builds a sturdy ‘brick house’ to prepare for the wolf and ultimately thwarts its attacks.

«But for some reason, no matter what I do, I can’t find any bricks in this entire area.»

Zone 13 contained no ‘bricks’ to construct a ‘brick house’.

In other words, it was impossible to follow the original story here.

«So you chose ‘Wolf’?»

Killer King nodded.

«Zone 13 is divided into 64 districts. Once a hunt is confirmed in one district, no further ‘event scenarios’ will occur there that night.»

By ‘hunting’ different prey, he had been meeting the scenario’s clearance conditions for this area each time.

For an entire month, Killer King had protected his companions in this way.

«This is the solution I chose.»

Killer King, who had been staring at the distant sky, looked at me, then at the younger Yoo Jonghyuk, and offered a bitter smile.

«If this were Yoo Jonghyuk, it’s a choice he would never have made.»

Explosive noises echoed again through the rain. The sound of a tent collapsing and flesh being torn. Ominous footsteps drew nearer.

«Wolf Harvest House. We’re here to collect today’s tribute.»

Killer King said, shaking the hippopotamus arm in his hand.

«It shouldn’t matter since the hunt here is done, but just in case, take him and hide.»

I hid behind the tent with the younger Yoo Jonghyuk.

Shortly after, harvesters wearing wolf masks appeared one by one. They were incarnations with formidable physical strength, evident at a glance.

I could sense it from the stories they emanated. They were incarnations who had dominated this area for a long time and survived.

«Newcomer. What’s the harvest for today?»

«Here.»

Killer King snapped and tossed the hippopotamus paw forward.

After inspecting it, one wolf harvester took a bite of the flesh and chewed lightly.

«A cheap cut. Doesn’t this one have a decent story to it?»

«If you have it, leave.»

The wolf harvester spat on the ground and laughed coldly.

«You still have no manners. Getting cocky about your strength?»

«If you want to test it, I’m ready.»

The wolf harvesters flinched and stepped back at the growl in Killer King’s voice.

One of the harvest officers spoke, his expression hardening.

«Ever since you took over this district, the harvests have been getting smaller.»

«So?»

«There’s a rumor you’ve been hoarding skins in secret.»

«It’s a rumor.»

«We’ll see if it’s a rumor or not after we check.»

With that, the Wolf Harvester glanced toward the wooden villa. Only then did Killer King understand their true intention and frown.

«The beast people of this district belong to me.»

«Newly arrived skins are assigned by the central district. You can’t claim them for yourself until then.»

«This is my district. I decide that.»

The stories flowing from Killer King’s body were extraordinary; he had clearly amassed a significant number. At that level, he was comparable to the top-tier incarnations I’d encountered at the Washington Dome.

A strange thought occurred to me then.

Even with that level of power, why had he felt forced to choose the ‘wolf camp’?

The answer was simple.

An entity he dared not confront belonged to the ‘wolf camp’.

From behind the wolf harvesters, a figure a full two heads taller than the others slowly emerged.

[How amusing, little wolf.]

The moment I heard the constellation’s message, the hair on my arms stood on end.

[You possess no authority to decide.]

According to the ‘Ways of Survival’ explanation, the ‘Recycling Center’ was supposed to be a gathering place for incarnations.

So why did a being like this exist here?

[The constellation ‘The Wolf Who Covets Little Red Riding Hood’ smiles with wicked intent.]

A ‘constellation’ was present in Zone 13.