"Dokja."

When I lifted my head, Jung Heewon was shaking her head while gripping my wrist.

"No matter if it’s you, Dokja, this much is not allowed."

Resolve was filled in Jung Heewon’s eyes. She had already noticed what I was thinking.

"If we leave this tree alone, Murim will be destroyed."

The core objective of the sub scenario was to subjugate the end-of-the-world-grade horror, "Impossible Chivalry". And to subjugate it, we had no choice but to cut down this giant tree in front of us.

"It’s Master."

As if responding to Jung Heewon’s words, the tree spat out a tale.

「"Will you become my disciple? If so, then grasp this sword."」

Jung Heewon grasped her sword. Inside her trembling grip, the sword radiance of "Crescent Moon Munechika" wavered.

A blade sharpened keenly while containing the power of D-coins.

With that blade that had protected me until now, Jung Heewon aimed at me.

[The end-of-the-world-grade horror, 'Impossible Chivalry', smiles brightly at you.]

I calmly met her two eyes that were wavering anxiously.

「This was Jung Heewon’s chivalry.」

Was her chivalry something forced by this forest, or something she realized on her own?

"Heewon."

When I took one step toward her, she also took one step back.

"Don’t come closer."

"This ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) tree is not the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint."

I looked up at the tree. I stared at the branches that stretched toward the sky, so distant I couldn’t know their end.

"This tree is—"

The Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint’s history was clearly embedded in this tree.

But could you say that the sum of history was that existence itself?

Her soul had fully bloomed into horror, and it wasn’t here.

What remained here now was the sorrow that all the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saints of every world line had endured—Yoo Joonghyuk’s history that she learned and mastered through the Bright Mirror Tree over long years.

[Fable, 'Friend of All Narratives', trembles in pain.]

Along with dizziness, the tales she had gone through were messed together chaotically at my ear.

Some knowing is hell.

Forest, human, Murim, disciple, Yoo Joonghyuk.

In terror that felt like my head would burst in an instant, I panted and barely finished my words.

"It’s me."

Maybe my brother had already expected this moment.

That man in the snowfield, who hated me becoming "Kim Dokja", who wanted me to be reborn as some other existence that wasn’t Kim Dokja, might have been preparing this space—this horror—for me.

My brother was speaking.

That the ending we were trying to reach through such a horrific struggle was, at most, something like this giant tree.

「Can you cut down this time?」

The history of the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint fighting to protect her disciple was there.

Time of a master who couldn’t regress together with the disciple, but still struggled to lighten that disciple’s burden even a little.

「"Next time, try using this method."」

As the rounds repeated, the master’s words continued.

「"You don’t necessarily have to cling to the sword. You have your speed, so training other martial arts can also become a method. In that sense, in this round……."」

She shaved down her own life.

「"Based on the enlightenment you delivered, I changed the sword forms of [Heaven-Breaking Sword Art]."」

And she made the Yoo Joonghyuk of the next, and the next round stronger.

But even that help had its limits. At some point, the disciple’s growth speed surpassed her capabilities.

The Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint finally realized that what she could give wasn’t her talent, or the martial arts she possessed.

"Impossible Chivalry".

That was her mind.

A will that didn’t break no matter how many times it was shattered.

Pride that, even amid humans’ persecution, didn’t kneel and looked up at the sky, and in the end challenged the authority of the stars.

「"Disciple. Don’t lose your conviction."」

How many percent of Kim Dokja have to gather for a complete Kim Dokja to be formed?

I don’t know the answer. The Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint probably didn’t know either.

「"I will die again. The things precious to you will leave your side over and over."」

Instead, the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint silently measured the time her disciple had lived through.

「"Don’t lose how to smile. Don’t forget the taste of Murim dumplings."」

My brother must have read this story before I did.

「"That in every round there were people who loved you. Even if one day you forget everything, even if you despair at the scenario and give up on life, don’t forget the fact that there definitely existed people who loved even you."」

He would have been sad at this story, despaired, and lamented.

「"When it’s too hard and you collapse, it’s fine to give up. You can set down the things precious to you for a while, throw everything away, and run. That’s fine. You have the right to do that. Because only you have the possibility of saving this world, only you have the right to give up this world as well."」

And he handed this story to me.

「"When that wandering ends, come find me in the next round. Then I will take you as my disciple. As if nothing happened, as if no tragedy happened, life will begin once again. And so spring will pass, and summer will pass, and autumn will pass, and then winter will pass again. Disciple, you can live like that. Even if the scenario never ends forever, even if you can never escape that curse forever—"」

Kim Dokja in the snowfield was asking.

Whether you could break this, and come to the ending of the scenario carrying your own flesh and blood embedded in this story.

「"Just by being alive, you are someone’s hope."」

It felt like blood would run down from the skin touching the tree.

"I don’t know what you mean."

Jung Heewon said. Looking at Jung Heewon like that, I answered.

"Yes. I’m not confident I can explain it either."

Right now, I think of this tree as "me". How could I fully convey such a crazy thought to Jung Heewon?

"You don’t have to try to explain. I won’t understand anyway. Because I’m not you, Dokja."

[Fable, 'Disciple of the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint', begins its story.]

"So I’m going to stop you, Dokja."

The rank blooming up from her entire body was growing stronger and stronger.

This was the true effect of this "forest". A forest that gives power to the one who carries through their chivalry.

Jung Heewon’s [Heaven-Breaking Sword Art] was evolving in real time.

"Heewon, you’re being consumed by the effect of 'horror' right now."

"I’m just trying to protect my Master."

"That tree is not the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint."

"I can feel my Master’s tale. This tree is Master."

"If you protect that tree, people will die."

"They’re people who can die."

"I know you don’t mean that sincerely."

"No, I do mean it."

With a voice filled with firm resolve, Jung Heewon continued.

"Dokja, I’m not someone who moves for grand ethics or morality. Of course, I don’t want to become a crazy murderer either. But……."

Not every chivalry can be as fair and upright as the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint’s. No, maybe chivalry that is that fair and upright is, instead, far from human chivalry.

"There are things more precious to me than those nameless people. The people precious to me. Protecting those people is more important to me."

In that sense, Jung Heewon’s chivalry right now was more human than anyone’s.

Protecting the precious people right in front of her.

That chivalry also resembled Kim Dokja’s chivalry. To carry through that small chivalry, Kim Dokja ultimately had to become countless fragments.

If so, then as one member of that Kim Dokja, shouldn’t I also have something to say?

"Is that so."

This chivalry is firm. So this chivalry must never be shaken with a cowardly method like [Incite].

"Dokja?"

"If that really is your resolve."

Each time I took a step closer, Jung Heewon’s sword radiance shook.

"I will accept it too."

At my footsteps that came closer without hesitation, she flinched and stepped back as she asked.

"If you come any closer—"

I wrapped my hand around her cold blade. And just like that, I drove it in toward my heart.

"No!"

Jung Heewon shouted reflexively and belatedly withdrew her sword radiance.

[The character 'Jung Heewon’s' trait effect is activated.]

[The character, 'Jung Heewon', is consumed by 'Madness'.]

Tales were leaking out from my chest where I had been stabbed by the sword radiance. Jung Heewon, who had been staring blankly at that, screamed and ran up.

"Dokja! Are you okay? Are you okay, okay? Are you okay?"

Jung Heewon asked over and over whether I was okay like a crazy person. I grabbed her shoulders and calmed her down.

"Heewon."

"Blood. There’s blood. There’s blood, it keeps…."

The tip of my chest had been pricked a little, but since I retrieved the sword quickly, it wasn’t that deep of a wound.

With both hands, I held her shoulders even more firmly and reassured her.

"I’m fine."

Jung Heewon’s eyes kept wavering.

"I, I…."

"Heewon, you didn’t stab me."

「"There are things more precious to me than those nameless people. The people precious to me. Protecting those people is more important to me."」

That was Jung Heewon’s chivalry.

And I truly believed those words.

"And I won’t cut down this tree."

"…Pardon?"

"Actually, I think you’re right, Heewon."

This tree was clearly not the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint. Even so, it was clearly a part of the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint.

"There’s someone who has to see this tree."

The only existence in this universe that goes against time. The Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint’s memories had to be delivered to that guy. He had to know what time she endured and what life she endured, and thus what she wanted to give him.

[The end-of-the-world-grade horror, 'Impossible Chivalry', responds to your chivalry.]

"But before that, there’s something we need to deal with first."

I spoke as I scattered the tales flowing out of my chest into the air.

"Why don’t you stop watching and come out. My head’s been noisy because of the sound of you drooling for a while now."

With my words, light flashed at the end of the distant branches of the tree.

Along with the sensation of my body hair standing on end, there were a dozen or so stars slowly descending from the sky.

[Unbelievable. There really is a tale with such a scent?]

[That person’s words were right. To think you’d come here on your own feet.]

[Is that bastard really that 'existence'?]

Oracles murmured in low voices. At the center of those oracles, there were two powerful stars maintaining silence.

One was a constellation with a tall face, with a brightly shining artificial sun floating above its head, and the other was a constellation wearing rough wolf pelts.

Two stars that ate my brother’s flesh and blood, and at last stood on the verge of the realm of a myth-grade constellation.

"Almighty Sun Apollo. Vidar, Terminator of War."

Apollo, facing me like that, opened its mouth.

[We finally meet. 'Fragment of the discarded dream.']

"Are you the ones who made the 'Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint' like this?"

[The one who chose was that person. We merely granted the wish of a mortal who wanted to form a forest alone.]

The Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint’s tree would still be growing in real time. The tree that swallowed "Tamra Heavy Industries" would soon eat even the incarnations as well and then form a single forest on its own.

And thus this tree would become "Murim" all by itself.

"Are you thinking of collecting all the D-coins scattered through the city at once through the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint?"

The stars did not answer and only maintained an incomprehensible silence. As I examined the expressions of those guys, I asked again.

"Did my brother tell you to have me wait here?"

[Brother?]

A strange sneer flickered across Apollo’s expression.

[You insignificant bastard, do you think you dare to claim to be that person’s brother?]

"For that, you can’t take your eyes off the tales I’ve been spilling since earlier."

I’m still in a state where the power of the "King of Terror" hasn’t fully recovered. To contend with them using only "Demon King of Salvation" mode right now, the number on their side was too many.

That was also why I deliberately got stabbed by Jung Heewon’s sword radiance to spill tales.

If I could divert the stars’ gaze even for a moment longer.

"Answer my question. Then I’m willing to let you cut off about one finger."

[An impudent bastard.]

"Why did you turn the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint into a 'tree' right now? Was this also something my brother ordered?"

['Fragment of the discarded dream.' It is something you cannot measure with your imagination.]

But perhaps the constellations had no intention of giving me time—they no longer answered and began to surround us.

[Suppress them.]

After pushing Jung Heewon, who was still half out of her mind, behind me, I drew up my rank.

「Why did they turn the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint into a 'tree' right now?」

It could really have been something done simply to gather up the city’s D-coins, or something they did to lure me in. But with only that, there was a part that didn’t sit right.

「Why did it have to be 'now'?」

If they were simply aiming for me, or planning to sweep up the D-coins, there were plenty of chances even before.

But they deliberately waited eight years, and only executed the plan after I appeared.

Eight years.

Something came to mind in an instant.

「"You will make the city prosper until my brother arrives here. And thus you will prepare the final story of <Star Stream>."」

Kim Dokja in the snowfield said that through this city, the final story of <Star Stream> would be completed.

What came to mind next was the words of the Horse of Morality I met at the "Records Repository".

「【Soon, 'Ragnarok' will begin.】」

I knew what kind of scenario "Ragnarok" was.

A giant tale of <Asgard> and a great destruction scenario. A fated twilight meaning the end of the gods.

「The world tree will be shaken, all trees will scream, and the twilight serpent will gnaw away the roots.」

Once "Ragnarok" begins, all of Asgard will burn in Muspelheim’s flames. Then Yggdrasil, the world tree that forms Asgard’s foundation, would also meet its end.

"You guys, could it be—"

And yet, in front of that great end, a new "tree" was growing here. A tree made of the Heaven-Breaking Sword Saint’s memories, a tree that forces the dream called chivalry onto all worlds.

"Are you planning to make the next 'world tree' here?"

The stars stopped smiling.