Fiction in Fiction – V
The Spirit Realm, in front of the long withered World Tree.
Seol let out a deep sigh as he stared at the husk of the towering tree and said, "Looks like even now is too late, huh?"
Sung Shihyun absently glanced over and said, "What'd you expect? There were already rumors that it was withered away when I was partying with your ex."
Seol leaned against his spear and said, "Yeah, but I was still hoping it wasn't. Would speed things up a lot if we could just mobilize all the fairies in one big clash."
Sung Shihyun rolled his eyes and pointed at a giant dragon corpse with his sword. "We took out Twisted Kindness and Raging Temperance already. How much more do you want to speed this up?"
"As fast as possible. The sooner Paradise is cleared up, the sooner I can drag Jihu over to my timeline to knock some sense into my past self."
Sung Shihyun blinked and said, "Didn't you call that crazy bastard dense? How is he going to help?"
Seol nodded and said, "Yes. He was dense. But emphasis on 'was'. At this point he's more of a flat-out womanizing scumbag, but that's better than an herbivore who can't even snatch the meat laying in front of him."
"...Didn't you have problems because you had too many women chasing after you?"
Seol pointed at him and said, "Too many women chasing after me who were stronger willed and determined. If the past me had at least a bit of conviction to turn things around, things with Yuhui and Seonhwa wouldn't have exploded like that."
"...Still not buying it. But whatever." Sung Shihyun looked away from Seol and then stared at a floating window in front of him.
Seol noticed and said, "What are you doing?"
"Getting achievement points. Gula sent a message saying that they needed some good prizes, so- Oho?" Sung Shihyun smirked and said, "Looks like we've got a buyer."
Seol walked over and peered at the screen. "...That Crazy Bastard's Trove?"
"Yeah. It's apparently an interface for the Tutorial that we can use since we're linked up to that Crazy Bastard Jihu." Sung Shihyun pointed at the message request and said, "What do you think? Should we sell this chick the spark?"
Seol glanced at the message request.
[Jinhee]
> I noticed that you have something incredible on sale.
> I currently do not have enough coins, but my older brother is stupid rich.
> His alias is 'Doting Big Brother', so you can send the tab to him.
"Pft." Seol shook his head.
"What?" Sung Shihyun frowned. "You know this chick?"
"Yeah. She's my... Well, she's really different, so I guess I can't call her my baby sister. But she's Jihu's sister." Seol reread the message and said, "And it looks like she's a master of guilt-tripping."
Sung Shihyun blinked. And then he smirked. "Wait. So you mean..."
Seol grinned and said, "We can charge whatever the hell we want."
Sung Shihyun cackled and then opened up the exchange menu. After running through the menus and hooking 'Doting Big Brother' on as the cosigner for the exchange, he glanced over at Seol and said, "What should we ask for?"
"Well..."
xxx
[Black Wolf]
> Offer accepted. We will take the price from <Doting Big Brother>
> Enjoy breaking the world in half with ungodly power.
> From <Black Bunny>: Make sure to digest it slowly. Don't be like this idiot.
> Hey! I was the only human to properly assimilate a divine spark!
> That Crazy Bastard managed to recreate one from fragments.
> He doesn't count! And he's a blatant-
> <The connection has been terminated>
Jinhee stared at the message before shaking her head. "Constellations really are weirdos, huh?"
[The constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' gives a sage nod.]
[The constellation 'Demon-Like Judge of Fire' slowly tucks away a certain notebook.]
[The Grand Architect agrees and sponsors 100 gold coins.]
Jinhee swiped the messages away and then glanced in her Item Box window.
It was a floating giftbox icon that was always in the corner of her vision. And right now, it had a red '1' next to it.
'...Well, at least the game design is being done right. Can't say anything about the plot though.'
[Many constellations are curious about your transaction.]
[Many constellations question the status of the broadcast.]
[Supervising Dokkaebi Bihyung lets out a bitter smile and says it is out of his hands.]
[Numerous constellations are joining the channel.]
[The constellation 'Gracious Rose Witch' is fascinated at the seamless blend of reality, dream, and fiction.]
[The Emperor's Saintess warns her daughter to not spend so frivolously.]
"...Yeah. Plot's fucked." Jinhee grumbled, feeling upset that her carefully crafted webnovel was being so casually ripped apart.
This was supposed to be a story about an omniscient reader's viewpoint, not about the author becoming the novel's extra.
That was a story for later.
...And come to think of it, that probably would have been a better world setting for this Tutorial.
Hah... you live and learn...
Jinhee tapped on her item box icon and then on the surprisingly not ominous item placed within it.
[Many constellations are trying to peer into your inventory.]
[Many constellations are surprised at the high encryption status of your personal details.]
[The divine being 'Embodiment of Gluttony' lets out a relieved sigh.]
[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' sponsors 1337 coins.]
[<Secretive Plotter>: If you reveal what you purchased, I will sponsor 10,000 coins.]
Jinhee blinked.
Secretive Plotter... that guy was 'him,' right?
It was a giant spoiler, but Jinhee guessed that it made sense for him to be curious. After all, this was the first drastic shift in over a thousand regressions.
But...
Jinhee took a look around.
It was safe. The Demonic Humans were all wiped out. There weren't any other people walking over or running around like madmen.
Even the towering monsters in the distance had stopped after Oppa did whatever he did to stop the Disaster of Floods.
And since it looked like passing through the Tutorial was set at this point...
'Might as well earn a bit of pocket cash while I'm at it, right?'
Jinhee looked up at the sky and said, "I see that there are a lot of curious people out there wondering what I bought."
[Many constellations agree.]
[Many constellations rummage through their wallets.]
Seeing that last message, Jinhee nodded. "Alright. I'm not a stingy person. But... this is premium content, you know?" She held up her hand and rubbed her fingers together. "Let's say... 10,000 coins. If enough kind viewers donate that many coins in the next ten minutes, I-"
[The constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' has donated 1000 coins.]
[The constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' has grudgingly donated 1000 coins.]
[The constellation 'Demon-Like Judge of Fire' pouts and says she will be right back.]
[The constellation 'Expert at Playing Both Sides' is impressed and donates 100 coins.]
[The constellation 'Flame of Deceit' applauds your cunning and donates 100 coins.]
[The constellation ...]
.
.
.
Before Jinhee could finish speaking, the coins were already rolling in. Even so, she didn't skip a beat and kept talking.
"...Will not only reveal the item I purchased, but will choose a sponsor among the top three donators."
That was a lie. But this whole world would vanish when they left because it was a simulation anyway, so why not, right?
[The Foxy Wife is astounded at your cunning.]
[The Foxy Wife suddenly understands why her husband insisted on bringing you into the loop.]
[The Emperor's Saintess looks forward to your cooperation.]
xxx
"Thank you for your help, Unni."
Seonhwa glanced at the younger woman and smiled. "It's no trouble, Sang-Ah."
Yoo Sang-Ah smiled back and then took a look around, a worried expression on her face. "Still, where should we go? Won't it be dangerous for the others?"
They were standing at Oksu station. Apparently, it was the destination for the people inhabiting the Tutorial and the way for them to clear the 'scenario.'
Seonhwa didn't know exactly what was going on, but she did know that the Tutorial was almost over now after seeing the latest message from the Guide.
And speaking of the Guide, Phi Sora must be pulling her hair out right now out of how chaotic things had gotten.
Well, serves her right for being so casual with Jihu all the time.
But in any case...
Seonhwa turned towards Sang-Ah and said, "Others?"
Sang-Ah nodded and said, "I have a friend- No, a coworker who helped me out when all of this started. I think he'll be fine, but I can't help but be worried..."
"Mm." Seonhwa nodded. "I'm worried about my sister too."
Sang-Ah's eyes lit up and said, "Then should we go search for them?"
"We could... but if this is the destination, then-"
*BOOM*
An explosion in the distance. One followed by glistening shards of ice flying through the air.
Seonhwa narrowed her eyes.
That wasn't Jihu. And that level of magic was more than any ordinary person in the Tutorial should have.
Was it the result of a Necessary Box?
Seonhwa didn't know, but odds were high that at least one of the girls was at the center of that, so...
"Stay here."
"Y-Yes? Wait, Unni-"
Before Sang-Ah could finish, Seonhwa had already left.
With her skills and stats, it only took her a second to reach the source of the explosion. And when she did...
"Huh?"
Yuri shot a flurry of ice shards to distract her attacker and then glanced over at Seonhwa. "Oh thank god! Miss Seonhwa! Convince your sister and her boyfriend to stop attacking us!"
Seunghae puffed her cheeks and said, "He's not my boyfriend!"
The plain-looking young man standing behind Yuri called out. "Yoo Junhyuk! I'm telling you, we aren't your enemy!"
At that time, the person attacking Yuri came to a stop. And when he did, Seonhwa could make out his features.
...But that was impossible.
"Dad?"
The man froze and turned to look at Seonhwa. When he did, his eyes widened. "Seolhwa? No, you're not her. But... Wait." He paused and glanced back at Seunghae before looking at Seonhwa. "Sister...?"
Seonhwa groaned and covered her face. "Jihu. Why is EVERYTHING complicated when you're involved?"
xxx
"Achoo!" I wiped my nose and frowned. "Someone's talking about me again..."
[The Foxy Wife says people are always talking about you.]
[The Emperor's Saintess says it's expected of her husband.]
I glanced at the messages and shook my head. "You guys are having way too much fun with this system."
[The Grand Architect says that he wouldn't miss the chance to enjoy something like this.]
I shook my head and then swept my eyes across Seoul. Now... since we're at the finish line, I just have to make sure nothing crazy happens to the girls at this last stretch-
[Sender: The Guide]
[Due to events breaking the probability of the setting's current scenario, additional parameters will be added.]
[1. From now on, 100 coins will be deducted every hour for the 'survival cost.' Failure to pay will result in immediate death.]
[2. From now on, parasitized monsters will spawn everywhere except subway stations, which have been deemed safe zones. Killing monsters will grant coins. The safe house may still be purchased for 777 coins, but will last only 7 hours.]
[3. Safe zones may be captured to gain the coins of every person registered inside, along with an additional bonus of 2000 coins per surviving member. This is done by replacing or seizing the flag at the center of the safe zone.]
[4. Outer Gods have begun spawning.]
...Son of a-