[The Horror Recorder, ‘……’, cannot endure the shock of recording suspension…….]
[The Horror Recorder, ‘……’, lets out a dreadful scream…….]

……

It was my first time seeing such a violent storm of messages.

The sentences that had been strengthening Agni shattered into pieces so thoroughly that their shapes could no longer be made out, and Agni’s tales, which had filled the inside of his incarnation body, swelled and burst out.

[Graaaaaaaah!]

In a scene like a volcano erupting in a cataclysmic explosion, Agni’s shriek rang out.

[Most of the constellations in the channel fall into great shock!]

<Olympus>, <Veda>, and the other constellations of ‘New Murim Earth’ all fell silent.

A moment later, a staggering shadow of a god appeared through the acrid smoke.

[I, cannot, forgive…….]

So a constellation that had reached ‘Lokapala’ really was something different.

Even after taking that horrific backlash head-on, Agni was still alive. He had taken a huge hit and shrunk to less than half his previous size, but he was still radiating a rank comparable to a great figure.

Staggering, Agni swung his broken axe at me.

[At least you—]

Even if his rank had fallen, to me—someone who still couldn’t fully handle the power of the ‘King of Terror’—it was still a blow more than threatening enough. But I didn’t panic.

「There, the ‘warrior’ who protects the King of Terror will be.」

A mad sword that had endured years to accomplish vengeance for its teacher was charging this way.

「A sword aura dyed in twilight severed the god’s waist.」

The trajectory of [Heaven-Breaking Sword Art] that Jung Heewon swung cut Agni. The hornless goat collapsed with a groan, and the god’s massive body pitched down to the ground.

Jung Heewon, who had exhausted all the power of a Transcendent-type, dropped down onto the ground as if entrusting the rest to me.

Agni, split into upper and lower body by the Heaven-Breaking Sword. From the cracks of his shattered tales, a voice spilled out.

"Don’t, don’t, don’t……."

Even the mantra that was his last pride collapsed, and the vile innards of a great star were exposed to the whole world.

"Don’t look at me! I said don’t look!"

A star you couldn’t even dare glance at because of its glare. In the place where that star’s radiance went out, a bizarre shape lay.

It was a tiny baby.

Skin burned as if scorched by flames. A pitch-black torso soaked in grease. From a small head, eyeballs that had long ago rotted and decayed were leaking out.

It was such a wretched, paltry substance that it was absurd to call it the true body of a star that had lived by feasting on tales while lodged in the throne of the great sky.

[You have achieved a wondrous feat!]
[A new ‘tale’ is sprouting within you!]
[Due to the wondrous feat, the growth response of tales accelerates!]
[A new tale has been born!]

‘Lokapala’ hunting. The reward for that feat was appearing in real time before my eyes.

[A tale, ‘One Who Witnessed the Truth of a Star,’ has been acquired.]
[The grade of this tale is ‘quasi-myth-grade’.]
[Another tale for this feat is sprouting.]

Feeling the surging tale, I approached Agni.

Agni was crawling desperately. To survive somehow, to get even a little farther away from me, he was struggling with everything he had.

【Flame of Purification.】

I called his modifier. I dug precisely into the context of the constellation and pulled out his true name, gripping it.

【One of the eight directions of <Veda>. The divine seat of the southeast. Agni who eats oil.】

As if he already knew the [Fate] that had been given to him, his face, drenched in terror, trembled.

【I understand your sorrow.】

Another authority of the King of Terror was 「collection」. Every existence that submitted to him and became “terror” was preserved in the “time stratum” he created.

【I hate sad things. So—】

With my hand, Agni’s tale began to be sucked in.

Flame of Purification Agni. His brilliant history, lived as <Veda>’s Lokapala, tangled around my fingertips.

【You can stop the story there.】

A shadow rose over Agni’s face. The shadow of a wall filled with distant strings began to cover his soul.

「There, his ■■ was written.」

"Ah, ahh. Aaaah—"

Like a child just born into the world, the star wailed. His trembling body looked like it was rejecting his own ■■, and also like it was finally accepting it.

The soul of the star, on the verge of eternal sleep, was scattering. All his records were seeping into that distant “time stratum.”

And then, at that moment—

[Stop.]

Someone held me back.

Not hot like Agni’s flames, but a star emitting a far more sacred light was there.

[It would be better to stop there. Exercising that ‘authority’ will be a heavy burden even for you.]

It felt like I could hear a train horn from somewhere.

A rank high enough to face me while I was manifesting the King of Terror mode. The dazzling light flowing from his entire body was proving who he was.

「[Foolish human, you do not know how lofty the throne of god is.]」

A constellation of <Veda> that had blocked Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk in the Demon Realm.

【Supreme Light God.】

The strongest Lokapala on par with Agni. The Supreme Light God, ‘Surya,’ had descended directly into ‘New Murim Earth.’

[Constellation, ‘Supreme Light God,’ is staring at you.]

In the tremendous gale of Plausibility, I was realizing again what had happened.

「I did think it was strange.」

The moment Agni was swept up in the Backlash of Plausibility and exploded, the scale beam of Plausibility should have tilted back toward my side. The opponent suitable to my “rank” had disappeared from the other side of the scale beam.

But the scale beam didn’t tilt, and the backlash didn’t blow.

「Because in front of me was a sun god with Plausibility heavier than Agni’s, a god of the sun who could burn a planet by himself.」

The fact that he had descended here meant <Veda> had decided not to sit and watch this situation.

Tense, I asked.

【Did you come to fight me?】

No matter how much stronger I had become, I wasn’t in a state where I could wage all-out war with a Great Nebula.

「Had my calculation been wrong.」

According to the information I’d heard from Morals, the Great Nebulae of the upper scenarios were all focused on ‘Ragnarok,’ so they were in a state where they had no Plausibility to drop into this side. But I hadn’t expected them to spend Plausibility large enough to have Surya descend after Agni.

If I fought Surya now, could I win?

Even if the situation was different from when Kim Dokja fought in the “Demon King Selection,” if I could use the tale of the ‘Demon King of Salvation’ now, it wasn’t like I had no chance at all.

The problem was buying time to switch “modes.”

[You have proven yourself sufficiently. I have no intention of continuing a war of attrition any further.]

The light of Surya that had been pressing down on the area was growing noticeably thinner. Did that mean he had no hostility?

【Why are you stopping me?】

[I will take Agni’s soul.]

Surya slowly bent at the waist and picked up the halved soul of Agni. Agni, eyes closed and trembling, was drooling in his arms.

[Have you not already received sufficient reward? Grant mercy to that foolish star.]

【And what do I gain in exchange for that mercy?】

If I could take a Lokapala’s soul here, I could use it as leverage in a deal, one way or another.

If it wasn’t just any constellation but a Lokapala-grade constellation’s soul, there would be plenty of stars that would drool over it.

[I will remember that mercy.]

I stared quietly at Surya and asked.

【You will? Not <Veda>?】

[<Veda> has nothing to do with this matter.]

As if proving those words, no longer could <Veda>’s Plausibility be felt in the sky.

[What descended here is my will. Agni was once my close friend.]

The light flowing from his entire body was testifying that his words were true.

「Agni is the god of flames. Strictly speaking, the source of those flames was that supreme sun, ‘Surya.’」

In a sense, “Agni” was a kind of medium that carried Surya’s light down to the ground.

Thinking that way, it felt like I understood why Surya had come here.

【I will remember your oath.】

Slowly withdrawing my hand, I said it. Since Surya was blocking me, there was no reason to forcefully seize Agni’s soul. I had already subdued Agni and gained a tale.

As Surya bowed his head to me in thanks, he said,

[The sun will remember your mercy. Great Star’s Recorder.]

A heavy horn resounded in the heavens, and Surya and Agni’s bodies instantly left the scenario.

Constellations that had been looking for an opening to interfere in the sudden incident began to spill out bright light.

[Some constellations are enraged at the ‘Supreme Light God’ intruding on the scenario…….]
[Constellations of small and medium nebulae are shocked at <Veda>’s judgment…….]

I looked up at the sky. Sorry for the constellations, but this stage ended here.

When I called Bihyung in my mind, sparks flew in the sky, and Bihyung appeared.

[Alright, alright, constellations. For Plausibility fitness assessment, we’ll be doing a brief channel inspection.]

This was a contract between the Administration Bureau and me.

「"When I give the signal, shut the channel off for a bit."」

If I gave Bihyung the signal, Bihyung had promised to shut the channel off briefly under the pretext of an inspection.

It was the benefit I received in exchange for dealing with the Recorders of this region.

—This time, I truly admired you. Maybe, if it’s really you….

Along with Bihyung’s voice coming through “dokkaebi communication,” I heard the sound of the channel closing.

[The channel operation of this region is temporarily suspended!]

Feeling the stars’ gaze go out, I released the King of Terror mode. It was to prevent the backlash of the tilted scale beam from covering me after Surya disappeared.

[A tale, ‘King of Terror,’ stops its story.]

The Great Hole closed, and my body, having lost the Outer God’s power, fell down to the ground. After burning through most of my strength bearing the tale of the King of Terror, my incarnation body didn’t even have the leeway to activate [Wind’s Path].

But—

「There was someone here who uses [Wind’s Path] better than anyone.」

From afar, a woman was running this way while calling my name. She, who had inherited the tale of the “flying squirrel” at the ‘Recycling Center,’ was activating [Wind’s Path] at full power and running to me.

"……ssi."

Gyeong Sein, who caught me as I was falling through the air, called me.

"Dokja ssi."

Holding my incarnation body scorched by Plausibility, Gyeong Sein was calling me Kim Dokja again.

Lightly wrapping an arm around her shoulders as she held back tears, I said,

"I told you. I’m pretty strong now."

From afar, Jung Heewon, staggering as she got her body up, was looking this way.

For a moment, we looked at each other.

Just by crossing gazes, we could tell what the other was thinking.

The one who spoke first was Jung Heewon.

"You were alive."

I nodded and answered.

"Yes."

Without asking anything more, Jung Heewon silently approached and supported me. There were a lot of things to say and a lot of things to hear, but for now, it was time to simply savor this quiet reunion.

The sky, where the constellations had vanished and the lights had gone out, was brightening again. The long night passed, and dawn was coming to ‘New Murim Earth.’

Even though one star had disappeared tonight, the scenario still continued.

"Let’s go see the end of this world together."

Soon, rumors among the stars would spread.

The fact that an Outer God who annihilated one of <Veda>’s Lokapalas existed in the 70s scenarios would spread throughout <Star Stream>.

The battle with Agni was only the skirmish before the great war that would soon begin.

[Your tale is resonating.]

As if proving that fact, the tale surging in my heart began to pound violently.

By now, on the other side of that sky, that bastard was probably thinking the same thing as me.

[Someone in an upper scenario has noticed your return.]

Thinking of him, I grinned.

「So wait at the ■■ of all these worlds, my brother.」

Soon, the “last record” of this world line would begin.