My heart pounded roughly.

I’m going to die. I’m ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ really going to die here.

In the oncoming blade, I could see my death.

It was exactly the scene where Jung Heewon executed Cheon Inho. The incident that had shocked every constellation of Geumho Station was about to be reenacted before my eyes.

「Because Jung Heewon pierced through Cheon Inho’s face from the crown straight down.」

And beyond that incident, the Demon King of Salvation was watching me.

[Constellations of nebula <Olympus> immerse themselves in the stage!]
[Constellations of nebula <Veda> immerse themselves in the stage!]
[Constellations of nebula <Asgard> immerse themselves in the stage!]

The staging power of a tale that could engross even hostile nebulae.

I muttered in pure admiration of that ability.

I knew that he, too, didn’t want to kill me. Even so, he had to act that way. Because this was the scenario. Because this was a game where only a single Kim Dokja could survive.

「That fact made my heart race.」

I swung Unbreakable Conviction and blocked the charging blade. But even with [Agitation], [Sentence Amplification], and [Bookmark] all used to activate [Time of Judgment], I couldn’t stop the flow of the predetermined stage.

Blood burst from the corner of my mouth, and shallow sword wounds remained on my waist and shoulder.

「This was the power of the history Kim Dokja had lived with all his strength.」

The Demon King of Salvation’s sword strikes grew faster and faster, and I kept getting pushed back.

Then, in one instant, the Demon King of Salvation’s blade dug into an opening.

At the moment I thought I really couldn’t dodge this one—

“Kim Dokja!”

Someone shoved me aside, and a small explosion bloomed in midair.

“What do you think you’re doing. Get a grip.”

If you only heard the way of speaking, it was easy to confuse him with Yu Joonghyuk. But that no longer happened. I knew very well now who he was.

“Combine attacks!”

The Seventh Apostle, Killer King, had finally made it here. And he wasn’t the only one.

“We’re here, friend.”

Uncle Dansoo, who appeared leading a whole swarm of low-rank Insect King species, sent the insect army charging at the Demon King of Salvation.

“I’m here too! Uwaaaah! I’m so scared I could die!”

Using [Average Correction] to raise their health to the limit, Gyeong Sein crashed into the Demon King of Salvation.

The moment that brute-force charge made the Demon King of Salvation’s body sway, a brilliant sword-light flashed from the sky.

A Baekcheong Qi far more proficient than mine embroidered the air, holding the Demon King of Salvation in check.

“Go, Yerin!”

LiteratureGirl64, Cha Yerin, spun like a swallow in midair and fell downward like a top. Killer King and Cha Yerin’s joint attack, the ultimate command of [Versus Action Mode], had activated.

Kwakwakwakwakwa!

A strike that could even break Lee Hyunsung’s Steel Transformation.

Even so, the Demon King of Salvation didn’t fall. He merely swung his sword silently, parrying Cha Yerin’s attack.

With a massive shockwave, Cha Yerin’s body was flung back toward the group.

“He’s strong.”

The back of Cha Yerin’s hand, which had collided with the Demon King of Salvation, was swollen red.

“Absurdly strong.”

“Because he’s Kim Dokja.”

I spoke to Cha Yerin like that.

“And we’re Kim Dokja too.”

With these people, I could fight no matter how much he was my backer constellation. We might not have lived as long and distant a history as the Demon King of Salvation, but we had also done our best to reach this point.

「The 41st round is our world.」

The tales we had shared together all began to boil and surge at once.

Perhaps knowing that as well, the Demon King of Salvation lightly snapped his fingers toward the air.

[‘High-grade demons’ appear!]

‘High-grade demons’ rose all at once from within the bushes.

“Be careful!”

As the high-grade demons surrounded the forest in an instant, the group gathered around Killer King.

“Formation A. Everyone gather up!”

“There’s no such thing!”

“Kim Dokja! Get a grip! We’ll take care of these guys!”

Sounds of hits and things breaking rang out from all around. Gyeong Sein’s scream and Uncle Dansoo’s groan. Killer King’s shout mixed in to create pandemonium.

The Demon King of Salvation muttered as if dumbfounded.

“You really are a complete mess.”

Right. We had lived a history that was a complete mess. Imitating the actions of the characters, reenacting the story we loved, we endured life. That was how we got here.

“You can’t kill me with a story like that.”

The combined attack of high-grade demons that would have been hard to handle in the past. Even so, the group was holding out well. They were enduring for me.

“Yes. I hope it stays a complete mess and becomes a story where no one dies.”

At my answer, the Demon King of Salvation’s eyes wavered. Not missing that brief instant, I rushed toward him.

Once more, sword strikes sparked in the air.

“You know how that story ends.”

“I do.”

“Even so, you’ll keep telling that story?”

“Yes.”

I nodded firmly as I spoke.

“Because that’s our story.”

The Demon King of Salvation’s blade wavered faintly.

I threw down another gambit.

[Fable, ‘Persistent Martial Arts Master’, begins its story!]

Without rest, I pressed my sword forward.

The tale I had received from Yongdu Ark Master Cheonga.

Every story I had learned and honed lodged itself in my blade.

“Do you remember. When we first met. Back then, you gave me all kinds of advice.”

Even now, if I closed my eyes, a vivid voice rose up.

—Do you know what kind of trait Circulation Physique is?
—Why do you only use [Agitation] like that?
—Do you know how to operate other fables besides 「Persistent Martial Arts Master」?
—And that’s not all the skills you obtained, right. Why don’t you use [Nagak Breathing]? Do you even practice skill linkage?

These were the assignments that remained with me after the Demon King of Salvation disappeared.

The whole time I stayed in the Recycling Center, I trained fables and skills day and night. I knew that such a short period of practice wouldn’t raise my proficiency enough, but even so, I didn’t stop.

Just like the day I first started writing a novel, just like back then when I wrote and erased countless sentences, I tempered every possibility I had.

[Exclusive trait, ‘Circulation Physique’’s proficiency has reached great mastery!]
[Exclusive trait, ‘Circulation Physique’, links with exclusive skill ‘Nagak Breathing’.]

With a single breath, magic power swelled like a wildfire. The linkage of Circulation Physique’s trait with [Nagak Breathing].

The long breath I drew in circulated the magic power of my whole body, making possible a fearsome chain of skills.

[Baekcheong Qi] and 「Persistent Martial Arts Master」.

Martial arts and a tale that were natural opposites formed a harmony, and an ether blade blossomed from my sword technique.

Holding in a pure white breath, I swung my sword. I swung and swung again until that handful of breath ran out. Blood splashed across my cheek and shattered fables scattered. My breath clogged up to my chin.

The Demon King of Salvation was watching me as I struggled so desperately.

「You’ve grown a lot, youngest.」

Hiding the swell of emotion, I kept swinging my sword.

We were backer constellation and incarnation.

「It’s still not enough.」

「Yeah, it’s still not enough.」

A star and a human who shared their true thoughts without speaking.

「We can become stronger.」

「We have to become stronger.」

「So please teach me.」

The moment the flow of Circulation Physique ended and the breath of [Nagak Breathing] ran out, the Demon King of Salvation, who had been pushed back the whole time, changed his weapon. The mimicked form of ‘Thought’ had transformed into the Mole Cricket Knife.

The weapon Jung Heewon of the 1,864th round used when she killed Cheon Inho.

[The reproduction effect of ‘Temporary Staging’ rises!]

The Demon King of Salvation was saying this.

That if I wanted to change this story, I had to prove it myself.

That I had to utterly overturn the past history he had built up.

“I am—”

Watching Jung Heewon’s blade fly in to finish Cheon Inho, I opened my mouth with all my strength.

“I am not Cheon Inho!”

[Exclusive skill, ‘Agitation Lv.10’, activates!]

With a spark falling from midair, the Demon King of Salvation’s sword path twisted.

[The reproduction power of ‘Temporary Staging’ decreases!]

The blow that would originally have killed me without fail missed.

Because [Agitation] had weakened the influence of the Staging.

But even such [Agitation] couldn’t cancel the Staging itself.

The Demon King of Salvation shook his head from side to side as he spoke.

“Amazing. So now you can use [Agitation] properly. But…”

He already possessed the strength to resist my [Agitation].

Well, if I had been able to agitate the Demon King of Salvation in the first place, this fight never would have happened.

I thought it would have been nice to have just a little more time.

Time to examine one by one the fables I had piled up.

But I had no time, and the Demon King of Salvation’s blade was far too close. A lump of blood surged up from inside me. From the moment I absorbed Gu Seonah, the incarnation body I had been forcing beyond its limits had finally reached its end.

I admitted it. That no matter what capability I exerted right now, I couldn’t defeat the ‘Demon King of Salvation’.

He was my backer constellation. Anything I could do, he could do as well.

He was this world’s first Kim Dokja.

The eldest of all Kim Dokjas, the star who had taught me what “Kim Dokja” was.

“The match isn’t over yet. Don’t look at me like that.”

“Youngest.”

The eyes of the approaching Demon King of Salvation were wavering. The fear that I really might die.

Facing that fear head-on, I laughed.

“I already told you. I said I’d become the first Kim Dokja who absolutely doesn’t die. Because—”

From the beginning, I knew very well that I couldn’t beat him. He had long been a tale-grade constellation, and I was nothing more than an Incarnation who had only just become able to act on his behalf.

That was why I waited.

I bought time until the being who could truly defeat him appeared.

“I have absolutely no intention of ever playing the protagonist.”

The Demon King of Salvation’s charging blade was knocked away. A power that repelled the strikes of that mighty tale-grade constellation.

While the astonished Demon King of Salvation’s eyes widened, a man with a black coat fluttering gave an order.

“Lee Hyunsung! Lee Jihye! Shin Yuseung! Kim Namwoon!”

At his command, four people burst out from the underbrush. With the four’s combined attack, I could see the high-grade demons’ forces being pushed back bit by bit.

「There stood Yu Joonghyuk, Tyrant, wielding the Moon Halberd.」

All that had happened was the protagonist’s appearance, yet the sentences that had been jumbled into a complete mess felt like they were returning to their proper places. A sigh escaped me on its own. Once again, I realized whose “story” this world was.

Yu Joonghyuk, who had cleared the surroundings in an instant, stood by my side and spoke.

“A pathetic sight.”

When I looked forward with a wry smile, the Demon King of Salvation was likewise facing this way.

The Demon King of Salvation standing alone without any party. In that moment, his bright starlight looked a little lonely.

「So that’s how it is.」

The starlight seemed to be counting a very long span of years, and also seemed to be reminiscing about the tale of a scenario that had now grown old.

「That guy was the Yu Joonghyuk you found, wasn’t he.」

I couldn’t even imagine the state of mind of the Demon King of Salvation. All I could do was nod.

Then the Demon King of Salvation faintly smiled. That smile was the only thing we could share between us right now.

「You really do mean to kill me.」

As expected, he had seen straight through my plan. To oppose the Staging on that side, we had to use Staging on this side as well.

We had to reenact the only stage in this universe where the ‘Demon King of Salvation’ could be killed.

He and I both knew very well what that ‘stage’ was.

[Fable, ‘Demon King of Salvation’, begins its story.]