Kugugugugung.

At the activation request for [Time of Judgment], I could hear Plausibility gathering. But it wasn’t the stage to relax.

The core activation condition of [Time of Judgment] requested by the ‘Judge of Demon-Slaying’ was “the consent of a constellation within the channel.”

If even a single constellation consented to activation, [Time of Judgment] would activate.

【Heewon. From now on, repeat exactly what I say.】

Watching Jung Heewon nod beyond the screen, I checked the constellations’ reactions.

[Some constellations shake their heads no.]
[An extremely small number of constellations question whether it is appropriate to view ‘Flame of Purification’ as a ‘giant monster’.]

They were reactions I expected.

[Constellation, ‘Bald Militia Commander,’ asks if that isn’t a giant monster if it’s that much.]

Of course, there were hero-grade constellations favorable to us, including ‘Bald Militia Commander,’ but even they weren’t likely to consent to [Time of Judgment].

For a hero-grade constellation that wasn’t even fable-grade to oppose a Great Nebula was a road to inviting annihilation.

Thinking we were cornered, Agni laughed.

「[It was an interesting plan, but do you think there is a star that dares oppose <Veda>?]」

As Agni said, the sky was quiet to the point of indifference. It was only natural.

None of the constellations here would think Jung Heewon could defeat Agni.

But I didn’t panic.

「“There may be no star, but there is an incarnation.”」

Jung Heewon calmly recited the line I had given.

「“If the Tyrant King were here, you wouldn’t be able to spit out words like that.”」

Agni looked down at Jung Heewon with an expression like it was asking what nonsense that was. In truth, even Jung Heewon, saying it, had a somewhat worried gaze.

You wouldn’t be able to understand why I made her say that.

I didn’t explain.

Because—

「“Tyrant King? Did you just say Tyrant King?”」

The reason I made her say that was revealing itself right now from between the abandoned buildings.

「“Radiant Sword Emperor! I knew it! As expected, you knew something about the Tyrant King!”」

Nirvana, Salvation Cult Leader who had been chasing the Radiant Sword Emperor. He finally appeared on the battlefield.

「“Tell me! What do you know? Why are you using the Tyrant King’s swordsmanship!”」

At the unexpected intruder, Agni’s expression twisted as Agni spoke.

「[Was there a child who still didn’t run away?]」

「“Impudent star. Isn’t this body speaking right now!”」

As expected of someone crazy °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° about Yoo Joonghyuk, Nirvana didn’t shrink even before that fable-grade constellation.

Agni swept a strange gaze over Nirvana and muttered.

「[Is it the World Honored One’s pet.]」

Maybe rumors about Nirvana had already spread to <Veda>. Agni let out a light sigh and said,

「[For that one, I’ll close my eyes once. Get lost.]」

As Agni manifested presence, a heavy pressure fell over the surrounding area once again.

Nirvana’s expression stiffened for an instant as Nirvana reacted.

「“Are you commanding this body right now?”」

No matter how much Nirvana was a Salvation Cult Leader, the opponent was a constellation in the “late fable-grade.” Even running wouldn’t be shameful. Yet Nirvana showed no sign of backing down.

Then it was time for someone to light the fire.

【Salvation Cult Leader. If you help me here, I’ll give you what you want.】

When Jung Heewon repeated my words, Nirvana brightened and shouted.

「“Good. Radiant Sword Emperor! Then become one with me and that bastard—”」

「“The Tyrant King’s regression ends in this round.”」

Nirvana’s eyes slowly widened.

「“If you want to hear more, keep me alive.”」

The next moment, Agni’s blazing heat covered my vision.

Thankfully, there was a palm that protected the two of them while pushing through the rough flames. Nirvana’s [Thousand Hands Avalokitesvara] activated.

「“What does that mean? This round ends? Where did you hear something like that?”」

Nirvana, glaring, added in a subtly dazed voice.

「“And…… why does your brat smell like my ‘believer’?”」

I gave a bitter smile.

As expected of a reincarnator, the senses were sharp.

「[Foolish mortals…….]」

Agni’s blazing heat was growing fiercer.

But Nirvana wasn’t an easy opponent either.

「“I’m not a mortal, I’m a reincarnator, stupid star.”」

[Thousand Hands Avalokitesvara], surging with desperate resolve, blocked the blazing heat.

Of course, no matter how much it was Nirvana, it wouldn’t be able to bring down Agni. At best, holding out for a few minutes would be all.

I had to use the precious time that bastard bought well.

【Are you planning to use that ‘method’ from before?】

The Heavenly Flying Fox already looked like it knew what I was plotting.

【That method?】
【The method of temporarily becoming a constellation.】
【What you said is a fine method, but.】

If I manifested ‘Demon King of Salvation Mode,’ I could exercise authority comparable to a “constellation” for a short time. Then, for a moment, it might be possible to consent to [Time of Judgment]. But.

「In the far-off tales Agni had lived through, a deep scent of blood was burning.」
「The blood of living things it had killed by swinging an axe with its own hands filled the surroundings like fog.」
「The blazing heat that constantly vibrated burned the fog like waves…….」

Sentences of Recorders flowing in real time. The sentences were moving so fast that grabbing them one by one and erasing them seemed impossible.

Then, one peculiar sentence flashed before my eyes.

「Agni often swept a wary glance across the sky, as if uneasy about someone intruding into this battlefield.」

【If I’m right, there will be at least one star that will help us.】
【Are you waiting for <Kim Dokja Company> or constellations from other world lines?】

If only that were the case.

I shook my head with a bitter smile.

【This time, it’s a different star.】
【There’s no way there’s a star that would oppose Agni.】

「“Gyaaaaaaak!”」

In the end, [Thousand Hands Avalokitesvara], unable to endure Agni’s blazing heat, melted away.

【No, there is.】

[The activation conditions of ‘Time of Judgment’ have been fulfilled.]

With the message, a terrifying energy burst from Jung Heewon’s entire body. Jung Heewon leaped up in one breath, activated [Vermilion Bird Divine Steps], and struck like a flash.

The black goat Agni was riding let out a convulsive cry. Pitch-black tales leapt into the air. Agni, shocked, muttered.

「[No way—]」

When Agni raised the head, a single shining star could be seen in the sky.

[Constellation, ‘God of Wine and Ecstasy,’ consents to the activation of ‘Time of Judgment’.]

God of Wine and Ecstasy, Dionysus.

Dionysus had consented to Jung Heewon’s [Time of Judgment].

Agni glared and spat out a mantra.

「[Foolish wastrel of <Olympus>! You dare take that incarnation’s side?]」

At that terrifying mantra, Dionysus also released an indirect message.

[Constellation, ‘God of Wine and Ecstasy,’ plays dumb.]

No matter that Dionysus was one of <Olympus>’s Twelve Divine Seats, directly opposing <Veda>’s Lokapala carried a huge risk.

Even so, Dionysus chose the ‘Radiant Sword Emperor.’

【Dionysus, all of a sudden?】

When I smiled faintly, the Heavenly Flying Fox pressed as if urging.

【Was it your scheme? Since when?】
【Since I heard information from ‘Morals.’】

Morals said it.

That Dionysus was currently independent from <Olympus>. In that situation, I was certain it would take a clearly different line from the existing <Olympus>.

【Don’t tell me you used [Fate] on Dionysus?】
【Something like that.】
【No matter that it’s [Fate], you can’t force a fable-grade constellation’s choice.】

That was right. Placing [Fate] on a fable-grade existence and controlling it was close to impossible, no matter that you were a Recorder. There was also a limit to [Fate] you could bestow in a way that lacked Plausibility, and above all, every character had “free will.”

【I didn’t force it.】

I shrugged and showed the sentence I had written.

「Dionysus thought. ‘The Radiant Sword Emperor. A Transcendent who chooses a frontal clash with Agni, a Lokapala?’」

The Heavenly Flying Fox stared hard at the sentence I had written.

As if trying to read some hidden interpretation contained on the other side of that sentence.

【That’s all of the [Fate] you wrote?】

What I did was simple.

Make Dionysus take interest in the Radiant Sword Emperor.

【Dionysus should be in a state of needing a new ‘base force’ after separating from <Olympus>.】

I thought that alone was enough right now.

Just by making Dionysus conscious of the Radiant Sword Emperor, Dionysus would have judged she would be useful in the “next scenario.”

The Heavenly Flying Fox said in admiration,

【You’re really insane.】
【Thanks for the compliment. Why don’t you sponsor me with some coins.】

With Dionysus’s intervention, the battlefield’s mood changed.

Kugugugugung.

A body strengthened to the extreme by the authority of [Time of Judgment]. Jung Heewon’s sword began to move like a dance.

「Still not enough.」

The trajectory of [Heaven-Breaking Sword Art], swung tens of thousands of times every day, was growing denser.

「Faster, stronger.」

Listening to her mental image, I slowly closed my eyes. The stage was prepared, so now it was my turn.

「What is needed to bring out the full strength a character possesses.」

The Heavenly Flying Fox said,

【I can’t give coins, but I can lend you a line or two.】

Along with those words, a sentence rose in my head. A sentence left by the Heavenly Flying Fox, who wrote 『Top 100 Strongest』.

「“You can’t always say life is better than death.”」

A line from Jung Heewon, who in the main story couldn’t even find her own name, and was only called the “Mad Butcher.”

「“If it’s a life with nothing to protect, even more so.”」

Her tale, of suffering because she couldn’t protect something precious, crossed world lines and was being delivered here.

「Have to protect have to protect have to protect have to protect have to protect have to protect…….」

A refrain that went on like eternity. Beyond the lingering thoughts, the years she had lived felt like I could grasp them in my hand.

The Heavenly Flying Fox added with a satisfied smile,

【As expected, strengthening the stage is ‘repetition’ and ‘utilization.’】

Over the prologue of madness the Heavenly Flying Fox had laid down, the history she and I had piled up began to flow.

「“Heewon... I love you... I’m serious...”
“Why are you doing this right now?”」

The moment I met her for the first time at Geumho Station.

「“Can you cover me from behind?”
“I want to, but my arm’s like this.”
“Support me with your back. Like this.”」

The time we got eaten by the Ichthyosaur and escaped together after many twists and turns.

「“Good job, Heewon.”」

And even the time we watched the death of Warrant Officer Jeong Munho together at Seoul Station.

「Jung Heewon became the ‘Radiant Sword Emperor’ like that.」

I intervened in her life, and she willingly became my story. She became a single sword that wouldn’t break no matter what tragedy.

Therefore, right now, she and I were thinking the exact same thing.

「I will never let you die.」

We would not let each other die.

「The god’s axe and the human’s sword collided in midair.」

The surrounding scenery twisted, and violent lightning struck in the sky.

[Constellation, ‘God of Wine and Ecstasy,’ cannot take eyes off the battle.]
[Constellation, ‘Bald Militia Commander,’ stops wiping the head.]
[Constellation, ‘Reclining Dragon,’ closes the book it was reading.]
[Constellation, ‘Lord of the Rabble,’ opens the eyes wide.]

As if they hadn’t expected to see such a bloody battle in a mere scenario in the 70s, all the constellations in the channel were focused on the fight.

[Constellation, ‘Owner of Baekrokdam,’ cannot take eyes off the battle between god and human.]

The pure power of a story that neither constellations of Great Nebulae nor constellations of small and medium nebulae could take their eyes off.

[Constellation, ‘War God of the Seas,’ has entered the channel.]
[Constellation, ‘War God of the Seas,’ feels a strange sense of déjà vu in your battle.]
[In <Star Stream>, the presence of this region begins to grow.]

As the stage grew, the density of Plausibility filling Agni’s whole body also began to rise.

「[With only that kind of history.]」

A god’s blow that peeks at the seat of myth-grade. An axe wrapped in the flames of blazing heat struck the ground. Nirvana, swept up in the crimson gale, sprawled on the floor without even managing to scream.

A god’s shadow fell over Nirvana’s incarnation body.

「[Do you truly believe you can oppose a ‘god’?]」

Nirvana, trampled by Agni, struggling.

The unfathomably long history lying between god and human was unfolding before our eyes.

「When flames covered the earth, the mountain range turned black like a gigantic altar, and the river water evaporated and rose into the sky. Countless starlights were sucked into the fire and scattered, and even the sun shook like a feeble lamp before it.」
「What could be heard was the language of fire, the heartbeat of the universe made as flames collided.」
「Purification was Agni’s declaration of liberation. The order of nature: be purified by fire and be reborn.」

A violence that becomes [Fate] just by repeating history.

I could see the Heavenly Flying Fox shaking the head.

【It was an interesting fight, but it was a matchup that could never be成立 from the start.】

「There was a god of flames there.」

Even I, beyond the screen, felt like my body would tremble. An enemy that couldn’t be cut even with Transcendent-type Stage 4 [Heaven-Breaking Sword Art].

I could see Jung Heewon, face darkening, bite her lip hard.

【You provoked the constellations too much. Flame of Purification is a ‘Lokapala.’ Did you really think a mere incarnation could bring down someone on the verge of myth-grade promotion?】

It was something that maybe the me until now wouldn’t have done. Putting Jung Heewon forward, provoking constellations, and making the stage bigger. There was absolutely nothing good to be gained by doing that right away.

【What on earth were you thinking…….】

But right now, this was the only way to save Jung Heewon.

【This is what I’m thinking.】

[The Backlash of Plausibility is surging!]

From the excessive abuse of Plausibility, the Backlash of Plausibility finally began to blow.

Agni furrowed the brow and stared up at the sky.

[The ‘scale beam of Plausibility’ begins to tilt!]

Because of the intervention of Recorders and Great Nebulae, Agni used more Plausibility in ‘New Murim Earth’ than was allowed.

「Because the scale of Plausibility is fair, if one side of the scale beam tilts, it necessarily opens the other side to a corresponding ‘possibility.’」

In other words, the conditions had just been satisfied for an existence comparable to ‘Agni’ to descend into this city.

[A ‘Great Hole’ is generated!]

The scenario’s sky turned pitch-black, and the ‘Great Hole’ revealed itself.

I said,

【A ‘Great Hole’ has the characteristic of calling an ‘Otherworldly Divinity’ that is deeply tied to this region, spatiotemporally, or in terms of tales.】

「And right now, the ‘Otherworldly Divinity’ most deeply connected to this ‘city’ is…….」

With a tssst sound, there was a portal swirling open before my eyes.

[Tale, ‘King of Terror’ is with you.]

The scenario was calling me.

【Watch closely, Heavenly Flying Fox.】

Glancing at the Heavenly Flying Fox staring at me with wide-open eyes, I stepped into the portal.

【Because the ending I will write starts from here.】

It was time to begin hunting stars.