Chapter 749 – First Escape, Meeting (1)
—
User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 40
Current Location: Floor 3, Corridor
Sage’s Advice: 0
—
– Han Kain
Barely managed to escape.
While it’s a bummer that it’s not a resolution, my comrades are breathing a sigh of relief, thinking we’ve passed the immediate crisis.
There were also some comrades experiencing subtle aftershocks.
“Ahri, are you okay?”
“…I think I might be okay, or maybe not.”
“What do you mean?”
“My last memory in the cinema is a bit hazy. It seems the hotel edited it.”
“Huh? The hotel? Why?”
“It was… well…”
“Well?”
“It was probably a very… painful memory. It’s left only a blurred impression. So maybe they erased it.”
Ahri’s words cast a slight shadow over the atmosphere.
Soon, several comrades began to awkwardly lift the mood.
“Ugh! Great job, everyone!”
“Thanks for your hard work.”
“How about we grab some food?”
“Sis, let’s go!”
At that moment, I too let out a relieved sigh and patted my chest.
“Phew…”
Looking back, the final piece of our escape puzzle seemed to lie not in our hands but in those of our opponent.
The reason we succeeded in escaping.
The hotel probably knows the exact conditions, but I can only guess.
Because of the backlash from the creation of paradise, the Son of Dawn couldn’t intervene directly.
The six-winged angels were mostly defeated, and the eight-winged angel lost its former self.
Therefore, I escaped the current threat, and Ahri secured her survival in this brave new world.
With the two of us guaranteed short-term survival, our escape was acknowledged.
The key here is the loss of confidence in the eight-winged angel, Soyeon.
If she had been hellbent on killing me and Ahri, we would have been toast.
Right before the escape, my greatest concern was the possibility that the Son of Dawn would erase Soyeon’s ego and forcefully control her.
It seemed quite plausible.
Because ‘the power to impose the world through words’ could only be used with direct assistance from a great being.
If the Son of Dawn was indeed lending his power, it would make sense that control and management would follow suit.
However, the Son of Dawn chose not to do that.
“Do as you wish.”
He would rather accept one failure than break his own laws.
This truly exemplified greatness.
“Oppa? What are you doing? Let’s hit the restaurant!”
*
After finishing our meal and chatting about various topics, an annoying thing happened.
“Ugh!”
“…”
“Get hit! Get hit!”
Miro brought a bucket of snow from the tundra and began pelting me with snowballs.
“I really hate Kain!”
“…Sorry.”
Miro’s reason for being upset was quite simple.
“Ahri! That jerk killed me!”
“R-really? What do you want me to do? Should Kain hit him a few times?”
Ahri awkwardly chuckled, unsure how to react, before starting to throw snowballs alongside Miro.
In times like this, it was clear Ahri was definitely on Miro’s side.
I, too, had a hunch that my summoned body had killed Miro.
It was evident because of the status window showing the situation at the time and the word ‘euthanize.’
The reason I had no choice but to kill him was clear, and I had explained adequately to prevent any unnecessary misunderstandings.
“Miro, to explain again—”
“Ugh! Just get hit!”
“You were probably changing into an angel thanks to the Son of Dawn. At that time, I probably thought that if you turned into an angel, there’d be no going back. If you even moved a finger, the summoned body would be immediately recalled.”
If Miro had been loyal to the Son of Dawn after becoming an angel, there would be no hope.
The summoned Kain would vanish with just one gesture from Miro, and the remaining comrades might have had to fight Miro in the post-apocalyptic world.
In my past thought process, I would have immediately ended Miro at that point.
“That’s wrong! That’s wrong!”
An incorrect judgment.
Because the Son of Dawn respects the free will of the angels.
“Do as you wish.”
This principle isn’t one to be broken; rather, it’s one that prefers to admit to a single defeat.
Such a being showing this tendency makes it seem unlikely they’d forcibly dominate Miro’s mind.
“…At the time, I didn’t know what kind of disposition the Son of Dawn had. Therefore, in that situation, my best choice—”
At this point, Ahri let out a deep sigh.
“Kain.”
“Yeah?”
“Can’t we just get hit by some snowballs and maybe kick a few times to end this?”
“….”
“Do you have to win a verbal battle with him? You can beat a god with words, but you can’t beat Miro.”
“A-Ahri, what do you mean by that?”
“Look at his face. Is he even the type that you can reason with? He’s worse than that Perro!”
— Beep! Beep!
“So just get hit by snowballs already!”
Eventually, I only ended the situation after getting a bucketful of snow dumped on me.
*
Sitting around the table, various discussions began.
The first topic naturally revolved around Sanghyun.
“Since we explained it frequently in Room 302, I believe everyone is familiar with the general outline.”
As expected, the major flow of events was known to all.
How Sanghyun went into space with the agents.
Realizing the danger while trying to awaken the Son of Dawn, and how he messed up his consciousness and died.
“You can guess, but at the time I messed with my consciousness, I was already like a regressor.”
The grandfather nodded.
“That would make sense. To awaken a great being’s consciousness! Such an event happens maybe once every thousands or even tens of thousands of years. Just dipping your toes in such a thing elevates your soul tremendously.”
Ahri also nodded.
“Perhaps if you had participated normally until the end of the ceremony, you’d have become a complete regressor. Since you dropped out midway, you seem to have become an incomplete regressor.”
Sanghyun’s arrival at the hotel seemed to have occurred one day during the second life he was living.
Upon realizing this, old memories unexpectedly flashed through my mind.
‘Can you hear me? You better hear this. I’ve fixed about half of it.’
‘I’ve been superb at studying since I was young; I was a source of pride for the family. I hit the medical school and scored well! My father was busy bragging about me to everyone he met.’
‘Ahh… Both of you should be doing well.’
Before the resurrection, Sanghyun’s references to family during his NPC days were completely different afterward.
Since it had been so long ago, I had forgotten it, but hearing that Sanghyun was an incomplete regressor struck a chord.
“This is why.”
“Is there something, Kain?”
The reason for the discrepancy is simple.
They weren’t referring to the same father from the get-go.
Just as I had mixed memories of multiple families during my repeated lives, it seemed Sanghyun did too.
Circumstantially, the current Sanghyun likely has absolutely no memories of the parents he met in his second life.
No need for me to inform him about it.
“Not at all.”
“Ahem, it sounds like we’ve covered the general story. Let’s revisit details when planning the next meeting. How about you all?”
As Sanghyun passed the ball back to us, pandemonium ensued.
Several comrades felt bewildered by it.
Like Songyi.
“What else is there to do? I was told to go to the tree, and then that’s where my memory ends!”
“That’s it? You just forgot everything there?”
“Yeah, really. It ended there. I think I died instantly. Perro also seems to have died with me, right?”
— Beep! Beep!
“Don’t take it out on me. It’s the hotel’s fault.”
Songyi woke up at the start point, wondering, ‘Where am I and who am I?’ and suddenly got attacked by a four-winged angel, dying instantly.
With that, she wouldn’t have had time to even use her inheritance or blessings.
“Looks like the Affinity was useless.”
“Ugh…”
“Kill all the serpents.”
This was the divine mandate, or rather, the command of the Son of Dawn, issued on the creation of paradise.
The angels likely felt a sense of familiarity with Songyi, but that command from the god took precedence.
Neither Eunsol nor Mooksung had it any different.
They too had allegedly been ambushed and killed before they could react.
I couldn’t help but think how incredible my danger alert ability was.
Had there been a danger notification, even someone like Songyi might have put up a decent fight, right?
“So, did Jinchul and Elena manage to hold on?”
“Well, for a bit…”
“Guess they were lucky.”
“Wow~! They both did great!”
Jinchul sported an awkward expression.
“Just holding on doesn’t mean much. We were up against those six-winged beasts; they were just overwhelming.”
Elena nodded repeatedly, as both seemed somewhat intimidated by the shocking combat strength of the six-winged angels.
“Seriously, it was absurd. Just a clap of their hands shook the building!”
“I thought a typhoon was happening every time they flapped their wings!”
All of this was true.
I too felt that the earth was weak in comparison when grappling with the six-winged angels.
“It’s insane that Kain took down those kinds of things all by himself…”
“Indeed, Kain!”
This kind of reaction was slightly burdensome.
Also, I wasn’t exactly overpowering them through physical strength.
The six-winged angels’ abilities were somewhat specialized.
Those strong in physical power could surpass the Duke, but couldn’t properly counter the Doctrine of Incarnation.
Conversely, those strong in magical power could suppress the Doctrine of Incarnation, but could have their wings torn off in a matter of five seconds if they got too close.
They felt exceptionally strong when their strengths didn’t clash, but when their weaknesses were targeted, they crumbled more easily than expected.
In summary, they weren’t on the level of the Duke in Room 301.
However…
“Ultimately, it’s just that strength alone won’t help us escape any differently than in other rooms.”
The final guardian that appears after defeating the six-winged angels.
“The eight-winged angel is simply unbeatable by strength.”
“Ugh! Is Kain’s standard really that high?”
“It’s not just a matter of being stronger; even if all the six-winged angels piled in, it wouldn’t do.”
“Is that how strong it was?”
“Even those unborn beings would struggle to take it on.”
Ahri clicked her tongue in contemplation.
“At that level, they’re more than just mortals. They’re like 70% gods.”
“Hmm, I don’t think Soyeon herself felt like that level.”
The eight-winged angel’s own standing equated to a god?
Better than those unborn beings?
That didn’t seem right.
However, she did possess an invincible divine sword.
One that could not be defended against unless you were a god.
“The power given to the final guardian by the Son of Dawn is the real issue. That’s a true dead-end.”
“Hmm…”
Eunsol, looking inquisitively, asked, “How did you escape against such a monster?”
At this, I turned to today’s protagonist.
It was none other than Park Seungyub.
“Hyung.”
“Gah! Wha- Hyung!”
“Why not share some secrets with us?”
“W-wait! Why do you keep playing around with me?”
“I’m really asking out of curiosity.”
Playing around? That’s a misunderstanding.
I genuinely thought Seungyub was impressive.
He charmed a destined girl to become an invincible angel while still being merely a normal human? Is this really happening?
As I got blocked by Kaeyoung – no, let’s forget that memory again.
“C’mon, Hyung Seungyub, spill the beans.”
All eyes turned to Seungyub. Since we couldn’t observe him through a telescope, everything was a complete question mark.
Then, ‘Brother Park Seungyub’ finally spoke up.
*
– Park Seungyub
“…”
Ugh… what’s with this look?
Why is everyone staring at me like that?
I barely did anything to get knocked out, right?
I thought everyone would say something like, ‘Didn’t you realize your initial wish?’
On top of that, what was that?
Soyeon loved me?
Not just loved, but waited for over 50 years?
Honestly, didn’t I feel a hint of that vibe?
I never thought she liked me like that.
“… I-I think that…”
“Hyung? What do you think?”
Oh boy!
“Uh, I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”
This time Ahri tilted her head.
“A misunderstanding?”
“Honestly, we weren’t really at that point. We didn’t even kiss, just held hands a bit and that’s it…”
“Oh… so this is what a magic boy looks like, huh? Just one look and he can charm angels.”
“Gah!”
Everyone teasing me isn’t the real issue; even I can’t wrap my head around all this.
So I thought about what happened just before I died.
So…
“Maybe I get it now?”
“… Han Nam Dongi Jon Jead.”
“What?”
“I mean—”
“Seungyub, I wish you’d say it in a way that preserves your image. Hearing that just flipped my mood.”
“…”
That idiot who got into a keyboard brawl in LoL suddenly burst in with a knife, storming through the school.
He was already infected with the anger virus – precisely, the influence of the prisoner, all because of me.
Thanks to that, even the teachers trying to subdue him lost their heads in chaos, and a ruckus broke out at school.
At that moment, while I was frantically running for my life…
“Fortune.”
“Fortune? You mean you triggered your luck?”
It worked.
Fortune is one of the mightiest powers in the hotel.
So long as it’s used once, it takes an exorbitantly long time to trigger again.
I might not be able to use it again before 302 ends.
So back then, I didn’t understand why my luck had activated.
I thought I was dead regardless.
Would I really use the most precious ability of my life just to extend my lifespan by a minute or two?
It didn’t make sense without a solid reason.
At that moment, I thought.
Soyeon was the beginning of all infections.
The start and source of the anger plague.
To make me realize this, my luck must have been used.
But it wasn’t that simple.
“… No way.”
“What? Don’t keep it to yourself; say something!”
I didn’t need to discover that Soyeon was special.
Ultimately, when we enter the world after the apocalypse, Kain or Ahri will find out about it anyway.
In fact, both of them realized, without me needing to inform them, that Soyeon was the eight-winged angel and a disciple of the prisoner.
The reason behind the activation of luck was something else.
“…”
“Seungyub? Why do you look like that?”
Let’s consider Soyeon’s perspective during that time.
A world plunged into chaos for unknown reasons.
People being brutally murdered left and right.
Friends disappearing without a trace.
A girl constantly crying in fear and despair.
In that moment, someone rushed to her rescue with a lightning-like motion.
It may not have been literally, but it certainly felt that way to Soyeon.
That person acted as a bulwark, protecting the scared girl, and disappeared.
It felt like that person died in sacrifice while trying to protect Soyeon.
In that moment, I was genuinely shocked!
Realizing the effect of Fortune which I hadn’t grasped even at the moment of death.
“Ah…”
“Why are you gaping?”
Fortune left such an unforgettable memory for Soyeon, making her fall in love with me.
“My ability is truly overpowered.”
—
I bought airline stocks, but within a minute, I lost 2.5 million won…
I thought the plane had crashed or something.
…
In times like this, I need to focus more on writing.
*
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