What the hell happened?

Why on earth is Yoo Joonghyuk inside the time stratum of the “40th round”?

No matter how much I thought about it, there was no reason for that. The last time I parted ways with him was at the entrance of the Horror Realm. I fell into the Horror Realm after leaving the guy—who still hadn’t finished recovering—in the care of the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint.

But then he came into the Horror Realm after me, our paths crossed, he arrived at this “Transcendent Alliance” even before I did.

And he went into the time stratum of the “40th round.” Why?

「Yoo Joonghyuk lost the memories of what happened in the 40th round.」

At the thought that suddenly came to me, I opened my mouth. Come to think of it, due to the side effects of “fable imprinting,” Yoo Joonghyuk forgot most of what happened in the 40th round.

What if he came to this “stratum” to get that back?

My chest felt tight.

Damn it. Joonghyuk. Even so, what are you trying to do, challenging this place?

In scenario 99 of the 40th round, there naturally wouldn’t be an “incarnation body” for Yoo Joonghyuk.

According to what I saw in Anna’s [Past Vision], Yoo Joonghyuk’s incarnation body got taken out by Cheon Inho before the final scenario arrived.

If that’s the case, there was a high chance Yoo Joonghyuk possessed some random incarnation body and carried out the time stratum’s mission.

That bastard—he should’ve challenged that “stratum” up there instead.

[1863-99th round].

Even looking at it again, it was a dizzying number, but for the current Yoo Joonghyuk, challenging that side would rather have had a higher survival rate.

If it was scenario 99 of the 1,863rd round, then if he was lucky, he might even have been able to possess Yoo Joonghyuk of the 1,863rd round.

“It looks like you can see that ‘stratum,’” Cheongheo said.

“Pardon?”

Old Man Cheongheo, who had appeared beside me before I knew it, stroked his beard as he muttered.

“Ah, didn’t Ryu-nad tell you? Not just anyone can see that stratum.”

Cheongheo continued in a strangely alien voice.

“It’s a stratum only those like me, who came from the ‘outside’ of this world, or Recorders who watch the worldline, can see. How interesting. Until now, there hasn’t been a single rookie who discovered that ‘stratum.’”

Only then, after hearing that, did I think that maybe Yoo Joonghyuk couldn’t have discovered that stratum.

Maybe, for incarnations who came from the 41st round’s worldline, the types of strata they can “use” are fixed.

Some strata can be seen, and some strata cannot be seen.

Like how you can’t experience events you haven’t experienced yet in advance.

Even so, all of those events are clearly existing “together”……

“I’ll say it again, you don’t need to feel burdened. After everything ends, there’s also the method where I press the reset button. I’ve done it several times up to now, too.”

“I don’t want that. That’s basically the same as ‘regression.’”

“Regression?”

“I don’t want to save my companions that way.”

“Your companions are—”

“They’re definitely still alive.”

Nothing was being displayed on the time stratum monitor. But I trust Yoo Joonghyuk.

He isn’t just anyone—he’s Yoo Joonghyuk of the “41st round.” There’s no way that guy possessed the 40th round without thinking.

“And I’m not going in alone, either. Ms. Kim Anna.”

At my call, Anna Croft, who had been quietly trying to run away from behind us, turned around.

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Are you saying you won’t come with me?”

“I don’t have an ‘incarnation body’ in that ‘stratum.’ If we go in together—”

“Just possess any incarnation body and use it.”

“That might not work! Didn’t you hear the seniors explain it? If you recklessly enter a time stratum that doesn’t have a suitable body to possess……”

“Your soul might not settle and you could end up becoming an Outer God.”

I know.

If we messed up, both I and Ms. Kim Anna really could end up preserved as a genuine “disaster-class horror.”

But she won’t be able to refuse this proposal.

“Aren’t you curious about the ending of scenario 99?”

“……”

“I’m asking if you aren’t curious what I—what Cheon Inho—saw at the end of that damn 40th round.”

“You really are……”

“A coward, right. So please fall for that cowardice one more time. Somehow, I have a feeling I’ll need you if we’re going to see the ending of that ‘time stratum.’”

“……”

“If we’re going to see the end in this round, we absolutely have to know what happened in the 40th round.”

Without a word, I grabbed Anna’s wrist. Anna Croft, after letting out a deep sigh, looked at Cheongheo with pitiful eyes, like she was asking him to save her.

Facing Cheongheo head-on together, I said.

“Please delay the end of the world until I return. I’m asking you.”

“Wait! Just—wait! Cheon Inho! Aah—”

[Entering ‘40-99th round’.]
[This ‘time stratum’ is owned by the Recorder of Horror, ‘Evil Sophist’.]
……
[■■-grade horror, ‘Evil Sophist’, permits entry for you and 1 other person.]
[The ‘time stratum’ opens.]

*

Beyond the swirling door, two people disappeared. Someone approached Cheongheo, who was silently watching the door close in an instant.

“Old man.”

“Carlton.”

Carlton, who had threaded the heads of Outer Gods one after another on a silver chain, was standing behind him.

“It looks like the rookies went in.”

“They did.”

“Why didn’t you stop them? That isn’t a time stratum two rookies can handle.”

“Even if they stay here, does anything really change?”

“That stratum is owned by the ‘Recorder of Horror.’ If they get trapped in there, even if you press the ‘reset’ button, they can’t come back.”

“They said they don’t like regression.”

“Pardon?”

Cheongheo smiled without speaking, then looked up into the air and said again.

“Jaehwan, that guy, also hated ‘regression’ to death.”

At the name Jaehwan, Carlton also flinched.

Cheongheo continued.

“That guy also climbed that high tower just to save a single friend.”

Carlton also knew exactly what that “tower” was. The tower and the world they once knew were already gone, but even so, the back of someone climbing that tower remained vivid in their memories.

“He was the kind of guy who kept climbing and climbing the hard path that nobody would take, even though there was an easy path.”

Carlton let out a bitter smile.

Longing. In this Horror Realm, it was an endlessly faint feeling, and above all, a feeling with tremendous power.

“It reminds me of old times. Do you think the rookie will succeed?”

“In the ‘apocalypse region’ where everything is futile, does success or failure have much meaning?”

In the sky, waves of Outer Gods gathered like clouds and were surging toward the Transcendent Seats.

Cheongheo silently drew his sword, then smiled faintly and began slashing toward the air.

“I only hope he finds a ‘good story’ within this stale end of the world.”

The moment he finished saying that, the Outer Gods’ heads all moved in unison toward somewhere.

[The ‘King of Horror’’s gaze is moving.]

The Outer Gods that followed their master were looking together in the direction their master was looking. That direction, of course, was where the time stratum of the “40th round” was.

Cheongheo smiled and added.

“Maybe he’s already found it.”

*

[You have possessed a suitable ‘incarnation body’.]

It was a familiar sensation. The same sensation as when I entered “horror” through the light doze of the “Subway Ride Home.”

[The final chapter of the ■■-grade horror, ‘Evil Sophist’, has begun.]

Back then, I was disguised as a masked man of the Blood Cult who was chasing Yoo Joonghyuk.

But what is this now?

[Warning! Your incarnation body is in a highly unstable state!]

I thought I’d possessed Kim Dokja.

On top of that, whatever the hell had happened, the incarnation body’s fables were completely smashed, to the point where it wouldn’t have been strange if I collapsed on the spot.

“Ms. Kim Anna.”

I quietly called for Anna Croft, but Anna didn’t respond.

After briefly mourning her—who might, by now, have become “disaster-class horror Anna Croft”—I slowly stood up.

In that instant, with a fwoosh sound, something brushed past above my head.

An arrow.

And it was an arrow carrying an unusual “rank.”

“He’s nearby! That bastard is nearby!”

Judging from the roar I heard, they were incarnations with tremendous energy.

Obviously, they were in the middle of chasing Cheon Inho.

I had to run somehow.

Even if the incarnation body was in this state, running away is nothing. No matter what, this body is Cheon Inho who survived all the way to the “final scenario”……

Creak.

I almost twisted my ankle and fell over.

Why is this bastard’s physical stamina still this low? Is he really some kind of Kim Dokja VER.2 bastard?

No, even so, it’s scenario 99—how can his physical stamina be this low?

[Due to the influence of the exclusive attribute ‘Sickness Acceleration’, your frailty has increased.]

Even compared to the last time I possessed someone, it felt like the overall stats were even lower.

[Due to the influence of the exclusive attribute ‘Weakling Tongue’, your overall stats are greatly decreased.]

My head got complicated.

No—his base overall stats are already low, and then he picked the trait-tree combination of 「Sickness Acceleration」 and 「Weakling Tongue」?

Is this guy actually insane?

[Find him! Around here—]

Wait. 「Sickness Acceleration」 and 「Weakling Tongue」. Thinking about it carefully, I can understand why he took this tree.

「Sickness Acceleration」 is an attribute that, at the cost of extremely worsening your own status ailments, makes the “repeat cooldown” of all attributes zero.

And 「Weakling Tongue」 is an attribute that, at the cost of dropping your overall stats to less than half, increases the speed and power of “incantation” related skills.

Combine those two, and you can do what people call 「Rapid-Fire Magic」.

But Cheon Inho wasn’t a mage—he was an “inciter.”

Meaning, this was a trait combination made with the idea of landing [Incitement] first, before the opponent could do anything.

I was impressed by Cheon Inho’s boldness.

In the final scenario, where a single hit could send you to the afterlife, he was using a “trait combination” like this.

No matter how I thought about it, this was a method you couldn’t possibly use unless you were someone as out of your mind as Kim Dokja.

[There! That way!]

And I was that out-of-his-mind Kim Dokja.

“Yeah. It’s here.”

Even if I was in tatters, even if the incarnation body was a mess, even if my physical stamina was at Kim Dokja’s level—this was the body of Cheon Inho of the 40th round, “The One Who Deceived the Stars” and “Evil Sophist.”

I have [Incitement].

If it’s Cheon Inho’s [Incitement], who reached the very end of the scenario, what can’t it do?

Like I did to the Blood Demon, I just have to make them all kneel with mysterious gaslighting and then smash the back of their heads.

Thinking that, I started to rise, when—

“So you finally found him, Cheon Inho.”

What the hell—standing there again was the Blood Demon I met the last time I possessed this body.

This bastard was still alive?

Of course, I didn’t listen to his words at all and immediately activated [Incitement].

[Exclusive skill, ‘Incitement Lv.???’ is activated!]

Incitement, with its level displayed as “???” Now, just as I was about to marvel at that ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) tremendous proficiency—

[Your incarnation body’s durability has reached its limit.]
[Your incarnation body cannot use this skill.]

I forced a smile and backed away.

Damn it. I should’ve tested this first.

So that’s why the incarnation body ended up like this—looks like he’d already been running around using [Incitement] like crazy somewhere.

I waved a hand, like I was greeting a friend I hadn’t seen in a long time.

“Ah, nice to see you, Blood Demon.”

“Nice to see you?”

The Blood Demon said with a grin.

“Yeah. Nice to see you. Cheon Inho, I’m grateful to you for what happened back then.”

“I don’t know what you’re grateful for, but I’m glad. Then could you maybe toss me some leftover medicinal ingredients? Even better if it’s the Blood Spirit Pill you gifted me last time.”

At my words, the Blood Demon’s eyebrows twisted.

“Damn blabbermouth. Anyway, thanks to you, I’ve finally taken one more step toward the [Great Regression Art].”

“Ah, that pathetic Great Regression Art. Don’t tell me you’re still researching it.”

I slowly backed away, watching his mood. But no matter where I looked—left, right, front, back—the Blood Demon’s subordinates had already surrounded me.

This was bad.

To think I’d die to some Blood Demon in the final scenario, not Zeus or Poseidon.

“Yeah, it’s all thanks to you for taking down Poseidon.”

“You’re saying I took down who?”

The Blood Demon looked at me like I was insane.

Only then did I understand how my incarnation body ended up like this.

Don’t tell me he’d already gone a round with Poseidon of <Olympus> in the meantime?

And he even took that bastard down?

“I don’t know what kind of scheme you’re plotting again, but it won’t work this time. So leave behind that thing you stole from <Olympus> and get lost.”

That thing? Only then did I notice the thing swaying at my coat’s waist.

“If you hand that over, I really will spare you this time.”

Blankly, I looked down at the object in question.

I wondered if it was some secret trump card pouch Cheon Inho left behind, but the moment I confirmed it, a curse burst out of me before I could stop it.

“You damn piece of—”

Yoo Joonghyuk’s head was hanging from my waist.