Surviving Every Worldview

Chapter 6: First Incident (1)

The truth is, Do-yeon’s play could never go on.

Writing a story is also exhausting.

It may feel different from physical strength, but it’s the same thing: you eventually run into your limits.

What happened to Seol Do-yeon, who plucked random objects without realizing it?

“My head hurts…….”

“I definitely told you to stop halfway through.”

“Help me…….My head is ringing every time I speak…….”

She lost all her strength and laid down with a cushion under her head and didn’t get up for a long time.

She was having fun, and then she just collapsed with a fever and a headache.

I should have seen it coming.

It’s also a common cliché that when you run out of mana, you get dizzy.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine in no time.”

“Yeah……”

Like that, Seol Do-yeon was silent again for a while.

She must be resting until her condition improves.

Until then, I decided to think about what I saw earlier.

Story completion.

No matter how I think about it, it’s a term I’ve never seen before today.

Clearly, there was only awareness and proficiency, but there were no strange numbers like that.

Is this a way to get out of the ‘undecided’ state?

Maybe a new title will be created when the completion level is reached?

…I don’t think so.

If he was going to include such a convenient feature, he would have done it a year ago.

I don’t think he would have added such trivial things in the process of making the game world a reality.

After [NEW GAME], the mystery just got bigger.

At least this time, it was something I could figure out if I kept watching.

“Oh, right.”

I concluded.

Do-yeon turned her face from the cushion to look at me.

She hadn’t woken up yet, and her eyes were lifeless and black.

“Buy me some rice. I think I’ll be fine if I eat.”

Suddenly?

“You said you’d buy me food if I came out earlier, ah-”

“Ah…oh, I remember.”

“You can have it delivered or something, just buy it quickly-”

“Okay.”

I said it myself, so I’ll honor it.

But it can’t be franchise delivery food for dinner when we’re all the way up in the metropolitan area.

I didn’t want to do that.

“Then get up so we can go outside.”

I grabbed Do-yeon’s arm and pulled her up quickly.

Her body sagged like a doll, as if she really didn’t want to move.

“Ugh…….”

“There’s a Japanese restaurant nearby, let’s go there.”

Do-yeon’s eyes lit up for a moment.

“Oh, no, there’s my favorite restaurant a little further down the street.”

“Then show me.”

Do-yeon’s eyes lost their shine again.

At the same time, she glared at me as if she really didn’t want to go out, but I didn’t care.

“…I can’t be bothered.”

Eventually, I succeeded in carrying a sobbing Do-yeon outside.

* * *

Seol Do-yeon pushed through the throbbing in her head as best she could.

Even if she kept her head down, even if she turned to look at the side, a pounding headache would come.

It’s barely six o’clock and the winter evening streets are as dark as night.

The best she can do is walk side by side with Seon-woo, looking straight ahead.

To be honest, she didn’t even want to speak to him for a moment, even if it did make things awkward.

“Doesn’t it feel real?”

…But before Do-yeon could say anything, Yoo Seon-woo spoke up.

“You’re suddenly wondering what’s going on, aren’t you?”

“…I know.”

Seol Do-yeon felt a pang in her chest as she listened to Yoo Seon-woo’s words.

It was similar to the way her heart used to ache with excitement the night before a picnic as a child.

Now she was in a world where when she shouted ‘status window’ for fun, a status window might actually appear in front of her.

Seol Do-yeon continued to speak without turning around.

Each time she spoke, she exhaled a cold breath.

“But are you sure you’re not just freaking out?”

“…Me?”

“You seem to know everything, but aren’t you actually acting without any emotion?”

At Seol Do-yeon’s question, Yoo Seon-woo replied with half-open eyes.

“It’s not what you think, it’s all new to me too.”

“Hmm.”

Seol Do-yeon tilted her head.

“Are you sure it’s real?”

“Hmph.”

She tilted her head more, but then felt a headache coming on, and she walked straight ahead again.

Yoo Seon-woo repeatedly emphasized that she had never experienced this sequence of events.

But Seol Do-yeon doesn’t believe him for a second.

She’s sure he’s already experienced what’s about to happen, or something like it, at least once before.

Still, she’s convinced that Seon-woo is hiding the truth.

Like, for example, what he was doing right now.

“Hey.”

“Huh?”

“Why did you put your coat in your bag? It’s cold.”

Seol Do-yeon pointed to the bag Yoo Seon-woo was carrying.

There wasn’t enough room for all the equipment she’d made for him, and he’d stuffed his coat inside, bulging to the point of bursting.

If he moved vigorously, the zipper would come down and the contents would fall out.

It was a behavior that made little sense on such a cold day.

But there must be a special reason.

“…Just, like, testing something?”

“Is it some kind of trick that only you know?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re already playing the protagonist so thoroughly…….”

She’s not surprised.

It’s said that fantasy nowadays starts with having or knowing everything from the beginning.

So it wouldn’t be strange if Yoo Seon-woo got a ‘story’ with such a character as the main character, or became such a person.

For example…’The Regressor’.

She didn’t say it, but she’s sure he already has the ability to be many times more advanced than everyone else.

Seol Do-yeon was sure of that.

“You’re aiming for ‘cold resistance’ like in the game Fantasy, right?”

“Something like that, but not cold resistance.”

Seol Do-yeon quickly looked up and down Yoo Seon-woo’s figure.

She decided to try to copy him later, when no one was around.

When it was less cold and no one was watching.

“But, do you really have to do that?”

“Huh?”

“It’s cold and there’s a lot of people, do you really have to do it now? Aren’t you embarrassed?”

“I have to.”

Yoo Seon-woo replied.

“I have an urgent matter.”

“…… Really?”

It hadn’t sunk in yet.

She didn’t understand him yet.

She doesn’t know what’s going to happen next.

In fact, the ability she’s gained now seems like a ‘fun toy’ to her.

Is there really a need to hone and strengthen this ability?

‘He should have an S-class ability or something anyway.’

So, what is Yoo Seon-woo looking at and why is he preparing?

No matter how much she thought about it, Seol Do-yeon couldn’t guess yet.

It was then.

“…Do-yeon.”

“Yes?”

Seol Do-yeon looked up in surprise at the voice calling her.

She was staring at the floor, which was especially disconcerting.

“Am I the only one who sees that?”

The moment Seol Do-yeon looked up, her vision was colored red.

It wasn’t her eyes. When she lowered her head again, she could see the floor, and when she looked to the side, she could see a panicked Yoo Seon-woo.

In front of her eyes, something red and large had appeared, filling her entire field of vision.

“…What is this?”

“I don’t know. It just appeared.”

“Really…?”

Seol Do-yeon followed behind Yoo Seon-woo and cautiously approached the wall.

Upon closer inspection, it looked more like a continuous stream of water than a wall.

The closer they got, the more they could hear the sound of a waterfall, and they could see ripples and drops splashing up and onto their clothes.

Only in hindsight did they realize that what they were smelling was blood.

“……!!”

Yoo Seon-woo stumbled backward, covering his mouth and nose with his hands.

He held out his palm, telling Seol Do-yeon to stay away from him, and slowly moved away from the wall.

As he backed away, he checked his body, which was already covered in blood droplets and stained his clothes.

Even Seol Do-yeon could see what had happened.

“…So this is a story?”

“That’s right.”

Looking around in the distance, the blood was gathering in a dome, blocking the area.

There is only one reason for such an unrealistic phenomenon.

Stories.

Someone was wielding a story against people like a terrorist.

I don’t know who would do such a thing, but…….

In Seol Do-yeon’s eyes, Yoo Seon-woo seemed to have a clue.

Did ……he really regress?

* * *

‘Was that him?’

I thought back to the man in the alley.

It could have been someone else, but I couldn’t help but immediately suspect him.

Luckily, the alley where I met him was inside the dome, so I could go there.

‘But how?’

This wasn’t the kind of power you just awakened.

Even if you’re an SSR or 5-star character in a game, you’re still weak at level 1.

No matter how good their abilities are, it’s impossible for them to use an ability of that magnitude already, except for a few exceptions.

…Maybe that’s why [Choice] recommended that I leave first?

[Choices are presented].

[You are given two good choices and one bad choice.]

As if it had been waiting for this moment, the second choice appeared in front of me.

—

PAGE 2

Along the way, you encountered a mysterious phenomenon that could not possibly be real.

You still don’t know who or why it’s happening, but if left unchecked, it could endanger your innocent friends and passersby – not to mention delay your return home!

Luckily, you have a clue, and you have the ability to fix it.

What would you do?

Investigate the alley.
Stay hidden and monitor the situation.
Provoke and lure the culprit out.

—

The difficulty level has increased since last time.

Whereas the wrong answer seemed obvious at first, all three now seem plausible.

It will get harder as [Choice] is triggered in the future.

But for now, I was able to make a quick decision.

If you remember that Text Thief is about infiltration, it’s easy to see that Taunt is a ridiculous option.

“Do-yeon, I need you to hide at home for a while.”

“Why, solve it all by yourself in 30 minutes, level up, and come back?”

“Yes. Now hide quickly.”

“You don’t deny it…?”

Do-yeon looked up at me in confusion.

But I’m the only one who got involved with the man in the alley.

I can’t ask her to follow me, because I only met her to get what I needed.

“I’ll call you when I’m done, so come out then.”

“Uh, yeah…….”

I left the barrier behind and moved toward the alley.

The people inside the building slowly realized what had happened and closed the door, and passersby banged on the locked door, begging to be let in.

I hurried into the alley, knowing no one would care about the blood on my clothes.

“Whoa.”

I caught my breath.

Running was uncomfortable, especially with a full bag on my back.

It would only get in the way of whatever was ahead, so maybe I should just put it down.

“…No.”

I decided to stand still and wait, just a little longer.

If nothing comes up in a minute, I’ll just leave it behind.

1.

2.

3…….

[Inventory is active.]

[This is a basic feature of stories with game tags, and is not treated as a trait.]

…Faster than I thought.

The phrase I’d been waiting for finally appeared in front of me.

Just as I instinctively knew how to open the status window, the use of the inventory came to me quickly.

I immediately grabbed my coat and baton from the bag and tossed the rest of the stuff out.

The flying bag disappeared as it was sucked into my inventory.

This was a basic ability for someone who had awakened a story with a game.

The ability to directly utilize the game’s convenient unwritten rules, such as the status window.

Because of this, when touching things like the inventory or options window in the game, the Awakened characters often say lines that break the fourth wall.

Like, “I need this, so take it out.”

Okay. Anyway, ready to go.

I turned my attention back to the alley.

If the choice suggested returning to the alley, there must be a trail here.

As expected, it didn’t take me long to find something suspicious.

When I got to the spot where I’d seen the man, there was a straight line of blood on the ground.

It couldn’t be a coincidence.

I have no choice this time.

I’ve already come this far, and I’m not going to ignore that.

Slowly, I began to follow the bloodstains.

The first one I found was black and hardened, but the further I went, the lighter it became, as if it had just been made.

The trail led to the interior of a nearby building under construction.

[You have increased your proficiency with Text Thief by choosing the correct option. +7.5%]

I continued on and climbed the stairs inside the construction site.

There were no walls in the construction site, so everywhere I turned I could see nothing but the bright red sky.

By the time I reached the stairs to the fifth floor, a trail of blood was running down the stairs as if it had just been created.

“…….”

I clutched the baton tightly in my hand and slowly ascended the stairs, keeping my posture low.

With each step, I reminded myself not to make a sound and to be careful not to step on the blood.

When I reached the top of the stairs, I looked up and scanned the fifth floor.

I found it.

At the end of the blood trail was a man I recognized, standing still and staring at the sky.

He even smiled faintly, as if he wasn’t scared at all, despite the blood covering the entire area.

For some reason, coming this far has put me at ease.

Maybe it was because I had a chance to settle something that had been bothering me.

“…Ehh.”

It’ll work out.

It wouldn’t do any good to take something out of my control.

Once again, I lifted my finger to my lips.

[Your story begins.]