Cale and his 2 fathers in the Apocalypse

by Huntresspop

Summary:

He just wants to be a slacker, is that too much to ask for?

Apparently yes according to the God of Death.

Now Cale has to survive through another apocalypse with an ancient dragon and a vampire, both of which see him as their child.

Doesn't help that he’s in a child’s body and the protagonists keep asking him to join them!

Notes:

This is my first work on this site so I'm still working out the kinks with everything. Lets hope this goes well! Will probably edit it somewhere down the line...

Chapter 1: New world who dis?

   Cale thought that he was finally free to be a slacker after the defeat of the idiot White radish, he could just sit back in his villa with his kids and live out his days in peace. To just relax with his family after all the fighting they’ve had to do in these past few years.

 

   Too bad that dream died the moment he opened his eyes to the inky, black void around him. 

 

   The redhead had been in his rocking chair in the Super Rock Villa with the children and definitely didn’t expect to wake up here after falling asleep. It had been a lovely warm afternoon, the sun already high in the sky sending warm rays down on the retired commander.

 

   He had been watching Choi Han who had taken to training the wolf tribe children. They had asked him to watch as they wanted his opinion on how their training was going, to which he really didn’t understand why. He had started humming to himself and his children when he had felt himself growing tired, unable to stop his eyes from falling shut as he drifted to sleep.

 

   Now waking up in a void was not the strangest thing to happen to the redhead but it was certainly near the top of the list. He was just about to question it when he heard a painfully familiar voice.

 

   [Hello my child! I’m so glad to see you again!] 

 

   There right before his eyes was the white haired man he had come to despise anytime he so much as heard his name. He frowns as he sits up, glaring daggers at the man who was the only other source of color in the void surrounding him.

 

   “God of Death, you have five seconds to explain why you’re interrupting my peaceful life before I find a way to kill you myself .” 

 

   His eye twitched as he expressed his anger at seeing the god again which turned into pride seeing the god actually flinch at his statement. It then turned into annoyance as he heard more voices enter the darkness around them. Interestingly though he can't see them like he can the God of death in front of him.

 

   {Oh good he’s here! Hello Cale, it's good to see you!}

 

   He heard a female voice to the right of the god before him. 

 

   |It took you a while to wake up! Have you been sleeping properly?| 

 

   A male’s voice this time came from the left of the god. 

 

   The God of Death just smiles awkwardly as the other two gods make their presence known to the young noble before them. Cale’s frown just gets deeper and his glare harder at the voices showing it was multiple gods fucking up his life this time.

 

   [Cale I know you’re upset right now but we have very good reason to bring you here and interrupt your life. We know you did a lot for us already by killing the White Star but we need your help.]

 

   {Yes we would choose someone else for this but you’re the best option.}

 

   |We were going to send the swordsman but we don't think he would do as well as you and you have the best skills and experience for this mission.| 

 

   The gods really were trying to placate the human in front of them, to be honest all of them would rather not get on the bad side of this man but they really have no choice in the matter.

 

   Cale sighs before looking at them with an annoyed expression on his usually stoic face. He brushes the long red locks from his calculating eyes, sitting cross legged and crossing his arms as he moves to get more comfortable.

 

   “Ok I’m listening, what is it you need me to do this time? Is it another god wanna-be radish or something?” 

 

   The gods gulp before they each take turns explaining what they need from the red haired man.

.

.

.

.

.

 

   “Hell no! No, I'm not living through another apocalypse! Listen to yourselves! You want me to go to another world again so you can spread your stories!” 

 

   The absolute disgust on his face at the idea of spreading the story of these god bastards would have been humorous in any other situation. 

 

   “What about my life with the kids? What about the other’s in my family who will definitely come after you if I just disappear into a dangerous world?”

 

   Cale wasn't stupid he knows how his family is and how dangerous they can be, especially when it comes to his well being. 

 

   The Female voice who he learned belongs to the Sun God speaks up at this moment. Even the gods know how vicious this person’s family is, they still can’t understand how he’s gathered so many powerful and crazy people together.

 

   {We have already informed my saint and God of Death’s holy maiden to inform your family and have a system set up for them to watch your time there. We even agreed to send you with two of your allies so you aren’t there alone without protection!} 

 

   ‘Damn these bastards are thorough’ 

 

   Cale thought as he heard the Sun God explain.

 

   |Your ancient powers as well as your allies' powers will be sealed until the start of the apocalypse. We’ll be sending you with spacial bags with anything you all may need for it as well!| 

 

   The male who he learned was the God of War’s voice explained this time.

 

   {We had your family pack everything for you! It was a compromise so that they don’t destroy our temples in your absence. Especially that young dragon and swordsman.} 

 

   “OK you all planned this out way too well for this to be a new development. Also you keep saying ‘Allies’ but who exactly are you sending with me?” 

 

   He questions, immediately catching the God of Death’s flinch at the question.

 

   [You see we can only do so much to influence that world for your arrival there and well….we don’t have enough power to send you all there without taking a few…liberties. You’ll be sent in a body a lot younger so we needed allies who wouldn't be very affected by the de-aging. We really don’t have much more time so you’ll see when you wake up there ok?]

 

   Before Cale could protest the void around him started to crack and the god disappeared as well as the other two who were with him. After cursing the God of Death as much as he could his world went dark as he lost consciousness.

 

   The first thing the red haired youth hears as he wakes up was an argument in the other room, he almost can’t believe it when he hears the two voices before sighing and sitting up in the room.

 

   ‘Of all the people they sent me it had to be these two?’ 

 

   Thoughts like these run through the young man’s mind as he takes in the room around him. He could feel himself heating up meaning at least he still had access to his Record ability. 

 

   The room around him was smaller than his room at home but was still a good size. The walls were bare save for some shelves with different books and figures with one wall entirely made of bookshelves. In the center was a window with a seat to read in natural light, which was nice. He gets off the fairly large, comfortable canopy bed to find he was a lot shorter than he was used to. 

 

   Finding a mirror he saw he was still Cale Henituse so that was good, he seemed to be around 8-9 years old based on his height and still having a bit of baby fat in his cheeks. His hair was the same length too, a bit past his shoulders. He had to admit though…as a child it made him more androgynous than usual, not that he really cared about his looks in the first place.

 

   The red haired child moved around the room, trying to ignore the growing noises from his arguing allies, and looked out the window to see the lights and buildings of a very familiar sight.

 

   “I'm back in Korea?”

 

   He was surprised and a bit delighted at the sight of the familiar language covering the signs of the businesses around the building they were in. The sight of people going about their day as usual, small in his eyes as he seemed to be in an apartment high in the air. Judging by the other buildings around them he seemed to be on the 10th floor of an apartment building near the center of Seoul, South Korea.

 

   Finally, having had enough of the argument he was hearing, he leaves his room, not caring that he was in adorable cat pajamas as he goes to the source of the noise. He enters the living room to see the two the gods had decided would join him in this world.

 

   “Would you two stop being so loud!”

 

   He yells, finally getting tired of the noise. The two beautiful adults stop almost as if frozen before turning to look at their young commander, seeing a boy who couldn’t be older than 9. The first to understand the situation was the man who’s beauty could slap the whales and elves into the ground with his long white, gold hair and eyes.

 

   The ancient dragon seemed to only need a second to realize that the child was indeed Cale before trying to hide his amusement. The other man followed soon after, his sharp fangs showing in the smile as he rushed over. The silver haired man stopped in front of him to scoop him up into his arms.

 

   “Oh look at you my cute little Naru! You’re absolutely adorable, my beautiful child!” 

   “You unlucky bastard, you were quite the adorable brat I see.” 

 

   The two seemed to be enjoying the fact he was small, ignoring the other as they surrounded Cale. 

 

   Cale sighs at this, after the end of the war he had told the others of his past as Kim Rok Soo and while everyone had accepted him there was an element that had caused a bit of a predicament. Since he wasn’t the real Cale Henituse despite taking the name as his own the older people of the group had been in a battle of who was the best father figure for him.

 

   Deruth, the original Cale’s father, had argued since he’s Cale’s biological father that he obviously deserved the title. 

 

   Ron had argued since he practically raised the original Cale that he was the better father figure.

 

   Eruhaben argued that both didn’t notice the switch so they didn't deserve the title. He had been there to protect him and was already the gramps to Cale’s adopted children thanks to the little black dragon.

 

   Duke Fredo had learned about the argument and joined himself saying that he was the better father for Cale. Cale had already been his fake son in the form of Naru Von Ejellan during the war to trick the White Star and he would care for him better than the others. He could support the young red haired man financially and was strong enough to protect him as well.

 

   They had been elated, not at the fact that they were being sent to another world, but that they were being sent to be a protector and guardian for their trouble magnet young master. Arriving only to see each other had been a surprise and a source of annoyance for each other as they argued about who would be the better guardian and protector for him. 

 

   Seeing the man they both thought of as their child in the body of a little boy had been shocking but they weren’t complaining at seeing the adorable boy they would be caring for in this world. He was just so small and helpless and just so cute! A cough brings them back to reality quickly enough as they look at their shrunken young master, instantly checking him over for injuries or blood.

 

   Finally calming down after seeing he was fine he manages to wiggle out of Duke Fredo’s arms to look at the both of them. Instead of their normal attire they were now dressed in modern t-shirts and pajama pants similar to himself but without the cats on them.

 

   “Why is it the first thing I hear when I'm back in Korea the sound of you two arguing!?” 

 

   The red headed boy asks, annoyance clear on his usually expressionless face as he stares at the two men in front of him. He can see them look away from him to each other and back to him before Eruhaben speaks up.

 

   “We were not aware of each other being present. We knew we were being sent here with you but thought we would be the only ones to join you on this mission.”

 

   So they both thought they were getting a leg up on the ‘Becoming Cale’s father’ competition that he still doesn’t understand. Cale sighs and just ignores it like every other annoying thing in his life as he starts explaining how this world works.

 

   Duke Fredo seemed interested to learn about elected democracy and Eruhaben was fascinated that dragons were only legends and that beast people didn’t exist. Explaining that both their races as well as the races they were familiar with only exist in fairy tales was an interesting experience.

 

   For the next few weeks Cale taught them about Earth and the modern world. He had found the guide book to this world’s apocalypse as well as necessities like money in a drawer in his room. He had taken to buying everything they needed as the other two learned everything they could. 

 

   They learned fast and after a month they were able to speak, read, and write in fluent Korean. Cale had decided they were good enough to leave the apartment, having mainly gotten food and other items by delivery.

 

   The red headed boy sighs as they finally finish getting ready to go out, apparently they were still having trouble adjusting to modern fashion. The red head’s hair was pulled up in a half-up, half down style tied up with a black ribbon. He was wearing a dark blue sweater vest over a white button up with khakis.

 

   Eruhaben, who was wearing a simple white button up shirt with nice jeans, walks over to Cale and resists the urge to pick him up. They both had grown into a habit of carrying him and it continued to cause arguments until Cale put a rule they would switch every day.

 

   Duke Fredo bounds over, His hair pulled back into a neat low ponytail. He was wearing a black button up with dark jeans and a dark blue overcoat, the dark colors showing off his pale skin and silver hair.

 

   He immediately picks up Cale as they leave the apartment they had been in for the last month and heads to the elevator, the boy explaining how it works the entire way down. Exiting the building Cale points them in the direction of the mall they were headed to.

 

   Reason being that while food and other necessities were easy to order online, clothing and tools for the apocalypse were less easy. That was the only reason Cale was willing to let these two out of the apartment in the first place.

 

   People stopped to stare as the two beautiful foreign adults walked through the mall with an adorable child, many believing they were probably a famous same sex family from Europe based on the strange hair colors and beauty that would put any woman to shame. The sight was beautiful of the two walking down the street, one holding the child in their arms as if they were a precious treasure.

 

   Cale sighs at the attention they were receiving and hurries them along to the mall. He had already recorded half the guide book left to them by the God of Death and was fairly certain he knew what they needed for now, not that there was much rush as they still had a year to prepare for it all.  

 

   Arriving at their destination they were greeted to the sight of a very large building, bigger than even the main Henituse residence. In front of the three was a revolving door flowing with people moving in and out of the building. The two adults stand there, not really understanding how the door works with Cale looking at the two with pity. He sighs as he wiggles himself free out of his father-for-the-day’s hold before walking up to the revolving door.

 

   “You walk through on the right side and it’ll bring you to the inside. It’s as simple as that.”

 

   Cale moves through the door slowly enough as a demonstration before the two follow after him. While their young master made it through the door with little difficulty, the other two got stuck going in a circle before Cale pulled them out. He pulls Eruhaben out first, the ancient dragon stopping to fix his hair that had gotten a bit out of place. 

 

   The vampire proved to be more difficult, his overcoat getting stuck in the door on his way out. It took a bit to get it unstuck but at least they were in the mall now. The two had to stop to take in the sight of the different stores around them, two floors above them full of different stores ranging from clothing to electronics. There was a food court near the entrance with many different options to choose from.

 

   Cale quickly herded the two to a nice clothing store on the second floor, having to explain the escalators to the two ancient beings as the vampire had quickly pulled him back into his arms to carry him around on his hip. He moves out of his hold again as soon as they arrive at the store, taking their hands to lead them around so they wouldn’t wander off.

 

   He takes them over to an attendant who was putting clothes back on the display, the attendant smiling and waving at the adorable child with his two parents.

 

   “Hello, is there anything I can do to help you?” “Hello there Hyung my dads don’t really know their sizes here, can you help us?”

 

   Cale had a big smile on his face as he spoke with a childlike voice, seemingly innocent to the attendant in front of him. The two adults had to hide their grins at their young master’s acting. It was impressive to them how he could switch his entire personality in an instant to fit any situation. They could see how Cale was not a fan of being treated like a child unless it benefited him be it underestimating him or giving him free things.

 

   The attendant leads them over to the fitting rooms and takes out a measuring tape, measuring the two adults to figure out their sizes. The two were patient with this, not really thinking anything wrong as they were used to getting clothes tailor made to their body shapes. After telling them their sizes Cale thanked the young man before leading them over to the clothing racks.

 

   “Cale what is this? Why are there so many identical copies of the same garments? Are we picking designs for them to tailor?” 

 

   The red haired child takes a deep breath before he starts to explain to them how clothing stores work in the modern world. It took a bit for the two to understand before Cale started grabbing clothes for them to try on. He wanted them to get used to modern fashion and not look like the medieval nobility that they were used to.

 

   After visiting more stores they finally get to the thing Cale was dreading the most, the children's clothes. The two adults looked way too pleased as he was forced into different outfits like some kind of dress up doll for their amusement. It took half an hour for them to finally finish buying the clothing they needed.

 

   Now other than clothes they needed some other items for the apocalypse. From what they read so far they had a lot of things that they would need already, their family had been thorough with the packing of whatever they felt was needed. The main things they had packed had been clothing like Cale’s commander uniform, weaponry, and food. 

 

   Beacrox seemed to have spent an entire week cooking with the amount of food found in one of the bags. That bag had probably been designated just for food and drinks seeing as it also contained a horrifying amount of apple pies and lemonade. Hell the amount of lemon related beverages made Cale shiver even though the butler wasn’t even near him.

 

   No, the tools they needed weren’t weapons or anything like that but more items that people don’t really notice they need until after it’s gone. Buying a sewing kit, personal hygiene products, good shoes, a large amount of different types of rope, duck tape, and many other things that would be good in the long run to have.

 

   Finally the last item on their list to get were cell phones for the three of them. It would be good for them to have a means of communication before the apocalypse starts and give the two access to the internet so they can study this world on their own without Cale. He goes ahead and buys them the latest model and while eating in the food court he explains how to use them. 

 

   They leave the mall afterwards finally heading home to continue learning and preparing for what lay ahead of them. Cale could only hope that they would be ready when the day finally arrives. 

Chapter 2: Why Me?

Notes:

Wow trying to get used to this website is strange, especially the publication dates. Well enjoy! Me and my editor are having a blast writing this.

   It’s been about a year since they had been taken from their world and dumped into a new one about to be taken over by an apocalypse. In all honesty it hasn’t been too bad of an experience for them. 

 

   Eruhaben had been studying as much about modern facilities and technology as they possibly could to see what they could recreate with magic back home. Duke Fredo as well has been studying about government, politics, laws, and many other concepts to see what could be brought over back to their world.

 

   Cale has been taking the opportunity to slack off as much as possible before the apocalypse. Knowing how the world would end was a weird experience in his opinion, seeing people live their lives while knowing that soon their peaceful lives would be over. He didn’t try to warn anyone, I mean who would believe a child about the end of the world?

 

   They had just finished buying 3 1 lb bags of mealworms from a local pet shop as they made their way down into the subway. Eruhaben held onto Cale tightly in his arms as the crowd of people moved around them, the group sticking close together as they made their way to the train car they needed. 

 

   Now this wasn’t the first time Eruhaben and Duke Fredo had experienced the subway, no. Cale had made sure they knew how it all worked in preparation for this day. They were not a fan of the crowds of people getting on and off the metal carriages, especially how they would bump and shove their way on and off the damned things.

 

   Entering the train car they made their way to a seat near one end of the car, right across from the man Cale had been looking for. The man was 28 years old standing between 176 cm and 184 cm, with short black hair and a fair complexion. He wasn’t muscular, more on the lean side with a thin waist and an arguably pretty face.

 

   He was wearing a gray business suit over a white button up with a muted blue tie. He looked a bit tired as he was hunched over reading on his phone, not really noticing the woman next to him who seemed to be trying to get his attention. This was him, the protagonist of the guide book given to Cale a year ago, Kim Dokja.

 

   Cale and his ‘parents’ sit across from the man who would someday challenge the gods themselves and sacrifice himself at every opportunity possible, The two adults pointing out that they were similar in that aspect had Cale annoyed for the better part of a week. 

 

   Kim Dokja looked up from his phone, he had finally finished reading the story that had taken up over 10 years of his life. This story that had gotten him through a lot in his life was finally over, he having been it's only reader to the end. It truly was a story dedicated to him after all these years reading it. 

 

   After finally noticing the woman next to him was his colleague, Yoo Sangah, he started talking to her before something catches his attention. In front of the two was the most beautiful family he’s ever seen, hell even the child’s looks could slap Yoo Joonghyuk into the ground. They seemed to be on their way home from a pet store judging from the bags in their hands, maybe they owned or bred lizards?

 

   He didn’t have time to question it as he heard a notification from his phone, checking it to see he had a message from the author of the story he loved! Meanwhile Cale was on his phone, checking the time as it slowly but surely moved closer to 7pm. Eruhaben had the bag with their weapons, tools, and other items they thought were important while Duke Fredo held the bag of Clothes, medicine, first aid supplies and other things in case of emergency medical treatment including potions made by Saint Jack.

 

   Cale held on to the bag with the food and drinks as well as the spacial bag that was full of Cale’s piles and piles of gold, jewels, and magic stones. His family thought it would be good to send him a good portion of his accumulated wealth in case he needed them. Cale held his breath and counted down as the clock neared 7pm..

 

‘5’

 

‘4’

 

‘3’

 

‘2’

 

“1”

 

   As soon as the number left his mouth the train they were on screeched to a violent halt, sending passengers falling to the floor or over each other. Eruhaben and Duke Fredo quickly move Cale between them as everyone started to get up, the train had stopped moving. As everyone started to pick themselves back up there was a loud noise that filled the train car, the voice of the conductor came over the loudspeaker.

 

   “ANNOUNCEMENT TO ALL PASSENGERS! EV-EVERYONE…RUN AWAY…!”

 

   As soon as the announcement was over sparks filled the front of the train car, a violent display that had many covering their eyes.

 

[The free service of Planetary System 8612 has been Terminated.]

 

[The Main Scenario starts now.]

 

   The lights of the train went out, nobody daring to say a word in the silence that was the stopped train car. People started to move about trying to contact their family and friends, meanwhile Cale and the others watched on with calm expressions. 

 

   “Dokkaebi?”

 

   Cale could hear someone say this as the creature soon appeared before them. The dokkaebi was small, maybe the size of Raon, with fluffy white fur and small horns. He was wearing a torn cloth seeming to be made of a burlap sack or something similar with only one sleeve similar to a toga. He was actually pretty cute if he didn’t promise death and suffering just by appearing before them.

 

   Eruhaben and Duke Fredo looked at the creature with interest, probably seeing if they were stronger than the dokkaebi in front of them. The white creature was floating near the front of the car, many not knowing what to do at the sight of the dokkaebi that just appeared before them. It smiled as it opened its mouth.

 

   “&A#@!&#!...&A#@!&A#@!...”

 

   The words that came out of the mouth of the creature had everyone confused, nobody understood what the hell it was saying. That is except for the two adults and child in the back of the car.

 

   “Isn’t that the language of the Eastern continent?”

 

   Eruhaben whispers to the other two as they nod their heads. It was very similar to the eastern continent’s language though not an exact match, enough to be understandable though. The creature seems to stop for a moment before trying again.

 

   “Ah, ah. Can you hear me? How annoying the Korean patch didn’t work. Everyone, can you hear me?”

 

   The words that left the creature now were perfect Korean, seeming pleased that he was finally understood. The dokkaebi opened its mouth to continue when he was interrupted by a voice. Cale immediately tried to distract the two ancient beings with him as he knew what was coming.

 

   “Hey, what do you think you are doing?”

 

   The voice came from a young man in a tan v-neck with a backpack on. He was standing right in front of the dokkaebi with an annoyed look on his face.

 

   “Sorry?”

 

   “Is this for a movie? I have an audition to attend, so I'm short on time.”

 

   The creature seemed dumbfounded as well as the two next to Cale. They couldn’t believe someone would act like this to a creature who was definitely stronger than him.

 

   “Ooh, an audition. I see. Attending an audition even at this hour. Haha.”

 

   Even though the creature was laughing and acting like this, Cale knew better, this wasn’t a creature who would accommodate them. Cale knew from his time as both Kim Rok Soo and as Cale Henituse to never underestimate a creature just because it looked or acted weak.

 

   “The research wasn't quite right. They said that most people would go along if the paid service began at 7pm in the evening.”

 

   “Huh? What are you saying?”

 

   “Now, Now, Everyone. Please calm down. Have a seat and listen to me. I have to tell you some very important things.” 

 

   Chaos erupted at that point, people arguing with the Dokkaebi in front of them. Cale had to hold back a sigh as the moment would soon arrive. He takes a peak over to Kim Dokja, the man who knew the story of this world as everything around them devolved into yelling. He could see the panic in his eyes as he watched them all. He knew their fates were sealed.

 

   He watched as he whispered to his companion, the woman next to him. She seemed confused by the words he whispered to her. That confusion wouldn’t last long though as a noise filled the car, the sound of the Dokkaebi laughing.

 

   “Haha. So damn noisy! I said… BE QUIET!”

 

   The rage in the Dokkaebi’s voice was obvious, the signal Cale and his companions needed to know it was starting. The two adults covered Cale’s eyes and ears in seconds, knowing that if they didn’t Cale’s Record ability would never let him forget.

 

   Even then Cale knew what was happening as the first head exploded, the head of the wannabe actor in the front. Screams of terror filled the car as heads started exploding one by one.

 

   “This is not a movie scene.”

 

   Another explosion.

 

   “Nor a dream.”

 

   More explosions as blood and screams filled the car, Cale’s group and Kim Dokja watching it all unfold.

 

   “Not a novel.”

 

   The floor and walls were covered in the blood and brain matter from the explosions, This creature killing everyone that had dared to argue with it.

 

   “Or even the ‘reality’ you knew of! Do you understand?!”

 

   The adult’s covering Cale didn’t dare move their hands away from their young master’s face. The scene before them would forever be ingrained in his memory if they do. They looked over to the man in front of them, seeing him with a complicated look on his face. He had just watched those people die right in front of him, the poor unlucky bastard.

 

   The car went quiet after a while, the exploding finally stopping. Fredo finally moved his hands from Cale’s ears after they finally stopped.

 

   “Now, I'm sure you’ve all lived great lives so far, right? Sleeping, Breathing, Eating, Shitting, Breeding since you were all born, without any reparation! Ha! You’ve been living in a wonderful world!”

 

   ‘What is this crazy bastard talking about?’

 

   Cale could hear him now and he wasn’t a fan of what he was saying. 

 

   ‘Living without reparations is he serious?’

 

   “But those good times are over now. Nothing’s free forever you know?”

 

   Cale had to take a deep breath to stop himself from trying to argue how wrong that statement was to the Dokkaebi. Though it didn’t take long for someone to misinterpret his actions, The two adults took him into their arms as if to comfort the scared child. After a year the two ancient beings seemed to sometimes forget that Cale was an adult that rarely if ever showed fear.

 

   Kim Dokja had turned his head at the sound of Cale’s deep breath and suddenly felt sad seeing the small child being comforted by his parents. This poor child was being subjected to this horrible situation. He must be terrified.

 

   “Is it money that you want?”

 

   The focus instantly went away from the red-haired youth at the sound of a male’s voice speaking up. Up at the front of the car a man walked up to the dokkaebi. He was wearing a dark striped suit that looked to be pretty expensive with a dark blue undershirt and white tie. The man wore a pair of glasses and his hair was slicked back as if he was trying to impress someone.

 

   “Yoo Sangah-ssi, isn’t that manager Han from finance? He pulled some strings to get that position ”

 

   “You’re right…”

 

   Duke Fredo quietly chuckled a bit hearing the muttered words Kim Dokja said, Cale felt uncomfortable hearing the vampire chuckling in this situation. Even though they were in another world it didn’t change their physical bodies much past keeping Eruhaben in his elven appearance.

 

   Even if their power was sealed they were still a vampire and an ancient dragon. The dragon was not very affected by the seal but the vampire was a bit different with his need to drink blood every so often. The gods had warned that his thirst would be muted but noticeable, with it going back to normal as soon as their powers were back.

 

   They had told him to drink blood quickly after his power returned or else the thirst might be too much for him. Cale was thinking about how the blood around them might look like wasted food to the vampire.

 

   “I’ll give you as much as you want. Oh, and this is who I am.”

 

   The man looked like an idiot holding up his business card to the floating creature.

 

   “How much do you want? A million? Two million?

 

   “Mm, so you’re going to give me your money?”

 

   Cale just started to toon this display out as he went through his records of the coming scenario. He knew everything that was going to happen down to the last detail. He ignored the sounds around him as the money the man was holding burst into flames in his hands. He ignored the yelling of the Dokkaebi yelling how the money was useless, pushing Eruhaben’s hands away as the scenario was about to start.

 

   The horns on the Dokkaebi grew as he flew over their heads, smiling wide as an announcement sounded around them.

 

[Channel #BI-7623 has opened.]

 

[The Constellations will enter]

 

   Confusion spread around the car as a light blue screen appeared in front of each of them, all reading the same message.

 

[The main scenario has arrived.]

 

[Proof of Value]

Kill one or more living beings.

Type: Main

Difficulty: F

Time Limit: 30 Minutes

Reward: 300 coins

Upon Failure: Death

 

   “I wish you all the best of luck. PLEASE KEEP IT INTERESTING.”

 

   With that the Dokkaebi disappeared in a burst of light leaving everyone alone in the car. Silence was hanging in the air, nobody knowing what to do.

Chapter 3: Money, Money, Money, Must be funny, In a rich man's world.

Notes:

I'm actually surprised at the amount of people who have read this so far, It's a bit intimidating but im having a lot of fun with this. Thank you all for the support!

   The car was silent around them as everyone thought about their situations, the screens having disappeared from their view unless actively looking for it. People around them were calling people be it the authorities or their loved ones, though it was hopeless as nobody was answering.

 

   Cale watched as Kim Dokja was trying to calm his friend when it happened, his head having gone a year being silent finally being bombarded with noise.

 

   🌪️-Cale can you hear us?-

 

   ❤️‍🩹- sob… He hasn't been responding for a year now!-

 

   🪨- He’s alive we would know if he wasn’t. Something has made it where he can’t hear us.-

 

   Cale sighs as he hears the voices come flooding into his head, secretly glad to be able to hear the voices of his ancient powers again. It had been far too quiet without them. 

 

   “Oi can you all quiet down you’re gonna give me a headache”

 

   He was quiet so as to not let anyone know but the effect was instant.

 

   🛡️- Cale!!-

 

   🌪️- Cale you can finally hear us!-

 

   ❤️‍🩹- sob.. Finally! Cale, we missed you! Sob, sob..-

 

   🔥- Cale this world is so interesting! I don’t like that flying creature though. Let’s burn it to death!-

 

   🌊- Cale XXX Finally! I XXX Missed you!-

 

   🪨- Good to have you back Cale, we indeed missed you very much.-

 

   Cale smiled at hearing the voices of the original owners of his powers. That smile went away quickly as he remembered Duke Fredo next to him, the vampire looking around with hunger clear in his eyes.  He quickly looked around the car before pulling him and Eruhaben to a back corner, not knowing someone saw them moving.

 

   Kim Dokja had noticed that everyone was still trying to wrap their heads around the scenario when he saw the child across from him drag their parents to a back corner of the car. He smiled a bit thinking the kid was trying to keep out of sight for safety with their parents, that thought left his head instantly when the child pulled a knife from somewhere and cut his hand. 

 

   He felt horrified when he saw the child who couldn't be older than 10 offer his bleeding hand to the silver haired man, the blonde keeping hold of the silver as he practically lunged for the bloody hand. He watched the man licking the blood off before drinking from the wound, what have these people done to this child for him to not even flinch at this behavior. 

 

   Before he could go over he watched as the man pulled away and looked.. relieved? Satisfied? He wasn’t sure but he looked grateful to the kid, even more confused as he saw the kid’s hand fall with the wound gone like it never existed. Before he could watch or question it anymore there was a commotion that ripped his attention away from the family.

 

   Cale smiles as he looks at his hand, completely healed with no sign of a wound in the first place thanks to the crybaby. It had been a bit of a shock when he got a cut over the year and it wouldn’t heal instantly.

 

   “Feeling better?”

 

   Duke Fredo looked up at the words, the ancient dragon letting him go since he wasn’t going to go crazy from hunger anymore.

 

   “Yes, much better now, thank you.”

 

   The vampire smiled as he picked up the redhead before watching the commotion in the car. A soldier that Cale recognized from the book was trying to take control over the situation, trying to calm the crowd around him. They got back to their seats just as someone yelled about a speech from the prime minister.

 

   They watched as everyone took out their phones to watch the speech, not following as they knew what would happen and didn’t want Cale to watch it. As everyone talked about what was happening Eruhaben covered Cale’s ears just as the explosion rang out from everyone’s phones. The explosion signaling the death of the prime minister.

 

   Eruhaben moved his hands as the voice of the Dokkaebi rang out in anger through the phones.

 

   “Like I said..This is not some horseplay LIKE TERRORISM! 

 

   His voice echoed as it rang from multiple phones at once before it turned calm, scarily so.

 

   “You still don’t understand, hm? That won’t do. Does this feel like a game to you? Alright, according to research, the people of this country are good at video games. So why don’t we… Increase the difficulty level?”

 

   Everyone watched as the counter above them, the one showing how much time they had left to complete the scenario, quickly started to lose more and more time.

 

  [Time limit has been shortened.]

 

[Time remaining. 10 minutes]

 

[As a bonus penalty, upon the ‘First Murder’ not taking place in the next five minutes.]

 

[All Organisms in the respective zones will be annihilated.]

 

   Chaos rang out through the crowd as everyone started to panic, more so as the door to the car behind them became splattered in blood. People quickly found out about the barriers keeping them locked in the car as they tried to touch the door, the voice ringing out how they were locked in for the rest of the scenario 

 

   Cale honestly just stopped paying attention to everything around him as the ancient powers rang out in their confusion and outrage at the situation. Cale could agree that it was awful and cruel but he had no control over this world, so he was stuck here like everyone else. He couldn’t protect these people as they would only die later, he wasn’t a hero or a protagonist, he was just a human who needed to survive.

 

   They waited for their moment, Cale finally coming back to watch the events, watching as Kim Dokja protected the elderly woman and took the grasshoppers from the kid. Cale had really not liked the white haired youth in the story’s beginning, Kim Namwoon was a character ready to kill without a second thought if it meant he lived.

 

   Normally he could respect his readiness to survive but this character rubbed him the wrong way for targeting weaker people who couldn’t protect themselves. He was glad Kim Dokja took care of him quickly instead of keeping him alive.

 

   As soon as they saw Kim Dokja crush the grasshopper and throw the case they got to work with their bags, killing the insects inside. 

 

[You have killed a living being.]

 

[300 coins have been awarded]

 

[You have killed a living being]

 

[100 coins have been awarded as a bonus reward]

 

   These messages flood out in front of Cale and the others as they kill all the bugs in their bags. Cale’s smile turned into something more at the money rolling in, his greedy little money loving heart pounding at the sight of all the coins. Soon the time ran out and the two adults quickly covered Cale’s eyes and ears as those who couldn’t get the insects died, including Kim Namwoon.

 

[You have obtained coins. Would you like to listen to the tutorial for coin usage?]

 

   Cale watches the coins roll in with a large smile that would make Raon ask if he was about to scam someone. He ignores the tutorial, having memorized how to use them from the book. Yeah he won’t be touching those just yet but at least he was still rich.

 

[You slaughtered 5000 living organisms]

Slaughter details:

-5000 mealworms

 

   Wow Cale wasn’t expecting that many worms, he thought there would be less but he wasn’t complaining…. Wait a minute…. He does the math quickly in his head, his smile turning more towards the evil side as the number goes up.

 

[Due to killing Non-resistant organisms, the number of coins you obtained has been halved]

 

[You have obtained 250,100 coins]

 

[You have obtained the achievement “Mass Murder” due to excessive slaughtering.]

 

   Cale was just going to ignore that achievement as he started laughing at the amount of coins, his companions looking at him like this was normal for his money loving self. The cheapskate laughed right along with him in his head.

 

   🔥- Look at all those coins! We will be the richest in the world! Hahahaha!-

 

   🪨- I….would ask you both to calm down before people start looking at us.-

 

   The red haired youth nods, taking a breath to calm himself as his ears and eyes were covered yet again by his companions. Soon the hands were removed revealing the death around them and the only survivors of the car, 5 people aside from Cale and his 2 companions.

 

   “Now this is fascinating.”

 

   The air crackled around the front of the car as the Dokkaebi came into existence before them.  

 

   “What in the world happened in here? I was only gone for a minute… but look at this mess!”

 

[Main scenario #1- Prove your value has ended.]

Number of survivors in cabin number 2807 

of train number 3434 to Bulgwang: 8

 

[Survivors Lee Hyunsung, Yoo Sangha, Lee Gilyoung, Han Myungoh, Kim Dokja, Fredo Von Ejellan, Eruhaben, Cale Henituse]

 

   Soon the train was back in motion, moving along the tracks as the survivors stood in a car filled with blood and death. They looked out the windows as the sun set in Seoul, moving over a bridge across the river. Cale was almost shocked as a monster came into view, a giant sea serpent called an Ichthyosaur that he remembered was a grade-7 monster.

 

   Eruhaben was fascinated at the size of the monster as the normal people in the car panicked a bit at the sight of it. Cale couldn’t help but compare it to the Electric Eel he saw on Earth 2, though it was definitely smaller than the eel. 

 

   Cale looked over at Dokja who was counting the number of sparkles surrounding the Dokkaebi, counting himself. He sees the confusion come to Dokja’s face at the number, what was supposed to be 21 was now 25. At least this means the gods kept their word that his family would be able to see them.

 

[A few constellations are smiling and waving at you]

 

[A few constellations are delighted to see you safe]

 

[One constellation is in shock at your appearance]

 

[One constellation exclaims “How did you get so small?!”] 

 

[The constellations have gifted you 10,000 coins]

 

   Cale went from just happy his family was here to complete shock at the amount of coins they sent him. He gives them a big smile, not realizing that multiple constellations other than the 4 were looking at him.

 

[Many constellations squeal at the adorable smile]

 

[Many constellations think you look adorable]

 

[The constellations have gifted you 1000 coins]

 

   Cale was in shock but that quickly changed, he was going to milk these gods dry.

Chapter 4: Meet the Protagonist

Notes:

I will say I do read the comments for you all, I have fun reading them with my editor. Have fun with this information!

   Cale was sitting with Eruhaben and Duke Fredo as he watched the others start winding down in the few seconds they had to gather themselves. He was currently listening to Yu Sangha talk to Dokja when the Dokkaebi claimed his attention again.

 

   “Wow! So, did you all prove your worth? I see there are many survivors….Oh my! Thank you for the sponsorship, dear constellations! I can’t believe there are 25 constellations watching.. Oh 26 now! Welcome new constellation!”

 

   Cale was confused at the entrance of another constellation joining, that hadn't happened in the story and the ones he was expecting were already present. 

 

[A constellation greets you]

 

[A few constellations yell at the new constellation to leave]

 

[Many constellations are confused]

 

   Cale was in agreement with those constellations, not really understanding what was happening. Cale decides to just ignore the gods as he watches Dokja walk over to the child who had owned the case of grasshoppers Lee Gilyoung.

 

   “A lot of interesting things happened today. The guy in the next cabin was also a total nutcase.”

 

   “T-then are you going to let us go?”

 

   The voice almost sounded pitiful if it wasn’t for the human the voice came from. Han Myungoh looked like he was hit by a bus before running a 20k marathon, his hair was all over the place and looking pissed.

 

   “We did everything you asked for!”

 

   Cale and Dokja were both looking at this pathetic man as he stood there yelling, Dokja taking a quick glance over to the redhead and his 2 guardians who had yet to move from their seats.

 

   “Hmm… Let you go? Haven’t you seen what’s going on outside? Are you sure you want me to let you go?”

 

   The fluffy creature just grinned down at them as he spoke, an ichthyosaur roaring from the water below them. Cale almost started laughing as the disheveled man went white at the sound of the monster that could tear him apart in seconds.

 

   "Anyways, I’m impressed. I didn’t have any expectations for this cabin, but you all survived the first scenario. You have proven that even bugs deserve to live.”

 

   Eruhaben and Duke Fredo were not fans of what this creature was trying to imply, leading to Cale having to grab their hands to distract them from attempting to murder the Dokkaebi.

 

[A few constellations coo at the sight of you holding hands with your parents]

 

[A constellation is making multiple noises of displeasure at the words of the other constellations]

 

[The constellations have gifted you 300 coins] 

 

[A constellation finds this amusing]

 

[A few constellations say to “Shut up and go away!”]

 

   Cale was just going to ignore that again as he looked at the people around him before his eyes moved back to the Dokkaebi.

 

   “Of course, every hardship deserves a reward. The reward for the first scenario is that you are now qualified to be sponsored by Constellations. Exciting, right?”

 

   By the number of confused faces around them it wasn’t that exciting, Cale almost felt bad for the Dokkaebi and his tough crowd.  

 

   “What’s this? None of you seem excited at all. This is a pretty big deal, you know. Let me break this down for you. All of you are terribly weak right now.”

 

   Cale had to actually pull his guardians back at the implication that they were weak. He actually had to smack Eruhaben before he could use his dragon rage, he was not in the mood for a fight right now.

 

   “If you were to move onto the next scenario in this state, you would be killed by a weak Ground Rat, let alone a Kurk. But there are great beings in this world who pity you and wish to sponsor you. Do you understand?”

 

   Cale chokes down a laugh at the Dokkaebi calling those bastard gods ‘Great beings’. Eruhaben and Duke Fredo having to cover their mouths to hide their amusement. Cale just ignored the rest as he had to calm himself, the voices in similar agreement with him.

 

   🌊- XXX those XXX Gods and XXX this XXX.-

 

   🔥- Burn all the gods! I’ll help you burn them all with my flames!-

 

   Before he could voice his agreement there was a snap and soon a blue screen appeared in front of him. He didn’t see anyone else get one but that was probably for privacy reasons. Everyone looked down at the screen in contemplation while Cale looked 3 seconds away from setting the carriage on fire.

 

<Sponsor Selection>

-Select a constellation.

-The selected constellation will be your reliable sponsor.

 

 

Rest Without End

 

Ruler of Light

Warrior Without Rest

Laughing at Pain

Army Without a Commander

 

 

 

   Cale could feel his eye twitching at the list in front of him. He knew from the faces of his companions that they had offers unfamiliar to them but he got these bastards. Also what the actual fuck is he doing here?!

 

    “OH HELL NO I’D MUCH RATHER JUMP OF THIS BRIDGE THAN DEAL WITH THIS BULLSHIT!! First off what makes you think I would pick any of you fuckers over my family! Second off what the hell are you doing here you fucking bastard I sealed you away! I’m not playing into your sick games you dickhead I won’t be picking anyone except for my family.”

 

   Everyone who had already made their choices were staring at this child who was cursing the gods with such fire it felt almost personal. His guardians were just nodding their heads like this was normal behavior and even seemed to agree with him!

 

   Dokja was confused beyond belief as he watched this all happen, who just lets their kid curse gods like that? Even the Dokkaebi looked confused and even a bit offended at the reaction of this human child.

 

[Rest Without End gifted you 10,000 coins]

 

   That shut him up quickly, he just stared at the coins with a slight sparkle in his eyes.

 

   “Thank you for the generous gift.”

 

   Now that gave everyone severe whiplash as the child went from cursing the gods to thanking them with a smile.

 

[Ruler of Light gifted you 15,000 coins]

 

[Warrior Without Rest gifted you 20,000 coins]

 

[Laughing at Pain gifted you 30,000 coins]

 

[Army Without a Commander gifted you 50,000 coins]

 

[Rest Without End gifted you 60,000 coins]

 

[Multiple constellations are mad at this display of wealth]

 

[Multiple poorer constellations are asking for some spare coins]

 

[Rest Without end says “Cale my child I have more coins where that came from”]

 

[Army Without a Commander says “Cale isn’t your child! Cale, come on, you know you should pick us!”]

 

   Dokja had his jaw on the ground at the bidding war going on for this child. Who was this kid that had not only multiple constellations wanting him as their incarnation but to have an actual bidding war to bribe him! Let alone one of them calling this kid his CHILD ! 

 

   He didn’t recognize any of these constellations from the book or anyone with their descriptions being in the car. Well he knew that he and Sangah weren’t in the book either but to gather that much attention?

 

   Cale was thinking long and hard about what he should do. He should choose his family but he could drain that bastard God of Death of his money. His family would understand he was doing it for the money right?

 

[Army Without a Commander says “Surely the young master will pick us yes? Have you had your lemonade I made for you today?”]

 

   The shiver that ran up Cale’s spine was visible to all of them, clearly some part of that sentence scared the child. His guardians just looked amused as Cale looked like the grim reaper was coming for him.

 

   Cale quickly picks his family before shakily giving a smile, pulling an expensive looking tea cup from his pocket that definitely wasn’t big enough for it and filling it with lemonade from a pitcher he also pulled out of there. 

 

   Putting the pitcher back somehow he takes a sip from the cup, looking like a noble as he had such grace while doing it even though he looked like he was forcing it down his throat. Dokja almost felt bad for the kid had his parents not looked seconds away from laughing.

 

   The Dokkaebi actually had to take a minute from the confusion of where the hell this child pulled lemonade from and why he drank it from a tea cup of all things?

 

   “What just….you know what I’m not gonna ask… Wow, someone has made a very interesting choice. Well there will be many more opportunities to come. Well, since everyone is done selecting their sponsors, let’s take a short break. I have to go prepare for the next scenario. I’ll see you in ten minutes.”

 

   With that the Dokkaebi vanished, though not without giving Cale and his guardians a curious look. As soon as he disappeared Dokja was calling them over to the center of the car. He was looking at Cale curiously before turning his attention to the rest of the group.

 

   Cale looked up at Eruhaben as he was picked up from his spot by his side as they moved closer to the center, Duke Fredo right next to them. They watched as Dokja introduced himself to Lee Hyunsung, the latter thanking him for the idea for the bugs. 

 

   Cale could understand that killing people to survive was not a good option, killing each other would have made them less than human even if it was for their own survival. Cale had been lucky as Kim Rok Soo that while he had to fight for survival there hadn't been an apocalypse like this, he probably would have died back then if that was the case.

 

   “Haha, you did it Rookie!”

 

   Han Myungoh was standing there behind Dokja, grabbing his shoulder as he talked. Dokja had jumped a bit before looking to see the man behind him, Cale was just looking at him as if weighing the decision to punch him or not. He had to stop himself from giggling like an actual child when Dokja told him to shut up after his idiodic rant about work.

 

[Army Without a Commander finds incarnation Han Myungoh annoying]

 

   Cale nodded his head in agreement as well as his guardians as he watched this all go down. Dokja looked over to the family as they finally moved to be with the others.

 

   “Hello I’m Kim Dokja, nice to meet you.”

   Dokja reached his hand out to the silver haired man who had drunk the blood of the red haired child, shaking his hand as he looked over them all.

 

   “Fredo Von Ejellan, pleasure to meet you as well. The blonde man is Eruhaben, and that is my-I mean our son Cale Henituse.”

 

   Dokja nods his head as he finally knows the names of this strange family, though he felt uncomfortable with what he saw earlier. He moves on from that thought by making sure everyone had at least a sense of what was going on before telling them his plan to leave.

 

   As expected everyone immediately went silent at the suggestion of leaving the car, quickly followed by a roar and disagreement. That ended quickly enough from a large bang and the sound of metal buckling from the car behind them.

 

   “We have to get out of here.”

 

   “What? But..”

 

   “If we don’t leave right now we’re all going to die before the next scenario.”

 

   SLAM .

 

   The door sparked as something banged on the barrier between cars.

 

   “D-Dokja, we can’t be sure that whatever is  on the other side of that door is our enemy.”

 

   “He’s the survivor that killed all those people in his cabin. Do you really want to meet him?”

 

   That got everyone in agreement as they all moved to find an exit. They all moved the doors of the train car, looking desperately for a door that worked. Eruhaben and Duke Fredo moved with Cale to the door that had parted only slightly as the slamming from the door got louder and more violent.

 

   “This door could work.”

 

   Eruhaben called out to the others, drawing their attention to the door. Out of everyone in the group these people were probably the calmest. The group rushes over, Dokja trying to open it only for it to creak and opening a small amount. It was not even wide enough for Cale and Gilyoung to fit through being the smallest of the group.

 

   “Hyunsung, use your skill.”

 

   “What?”

 

   Cale saw the confusion appear on everyone as he looked back over to Dokja, his mind working to figure out something that he was curious about. He knew that Dokja could read the stats for characters from the novel, but what would happen if he looked at them? They were not from that story but were technically characters from a novel. Cale had looked for ‘Birth of a hero’ when they had arrived but hadn’t found anything.

 

   He knew that the other person who could see stats was just beyond the door they were trying to break but he had no doubts that they would be able to see his stats. He actually hadn’t even looked at his stats yet, he needed to remember to look at that later and ask about the other two’s. 

 

   🌪️- Skills? Would we count as those skills?-

 

   🪨- I wonder if it’s like those abilities from Cale’s old world?-

 

   🔥- None of those are as powerful as us though! We’d burn them in a sea of fire!-

 

   ❤️‍🩹- Please don’t hurt yourself sob…I can only heal you so quickly sob..-

 

   Cale jumps as he was pulled from listening to that conversation by the sound of screeching metal as Hyunsung pulls the doors apart with his hands. Well at least he missed that pep talk and explanation on skill use, it honestly wasn’t that different from abilities or his ancient powers.

 

   Hyunsung looked like an excited puppy as he looked at Dokja after opening the door, he kind of reminded Cale of his own personal knight. He chuckles at the reminder as they all got out of the car to run down the bridge towards the nearest station. They made it a good way before a familiar voice sounded out above them.

 

   “...Gosh. I knew this would happen. I told you earlier…to stay put. Damn it! I'm not done preparing the next scenario.”

 

   “Ahh! I knew it! I told you we should stay inside!”

 

   Cale looked back at the man freaking out, judging him clearly as this was just a sad excuse of not only a man but an adult. He was an adult looking like a child, being carried by another adult and he was acting more mature than this man. Even the actual child being carried by Hyunsung was acting more mature than him.

 

   “ Sigh …Well, I guess I have no choice. You’re very lucky human beings.”

 

   With a snap of the creature’s…fingers? Claws? Cale didn’t know and he wasn’t curious enough to ask, just with a snap a new blue screen appeared in front of them.

 

[The second scenario has arrived.]

 

[Sub scenario-Escape]

 

Category: Sub

 

Difficulty: E

 

Clear conditions:

Get across the collapsed bridge and enter the Oksu station.

 

Time limit: 20 minutes

 

Reward: 200 coins

 

Penalty for failure: ???

 

   Yoo Sangah looked back from the screen, looking towards Dokja who was ready to book it.

 

   “Dokja, something doesn’t feel right…”

 

   “Don’t question, just run!”

 

   Cale cut her off as Cale’s group was running after Dokja, they did not want to get caught on the bridge. They ran fast, actually having to pace themselves to stay within the group. They ran as a group as fast as the others, Cale going through his mental map of the bridge from his spot in Eruhaben’s arms.

 

   “We need to move faster to get across the bridge in time…”

 

   He was quick in his thoughts, whispering so only his companions could hear him. Eruhaben and Duke Fredo understood what he was saying immediately as they quickly sped up. They easily passed the humans running until they safely made it to the station, stopping just before entering to watch the others.

 

   “How did they run so fast? Did they use some of their coins?”

 

   Dokja muttered to himself, he saw them running past but never saw them stop to put coins into their stats or anything? Were they just naturally that fast? Something was strange about this family.

 

   “Ah! What the hell is that?”

 

   Over to the side of the bridge there was a loud churning sound, a large whirlpool raging, that is until something sprang out of the water to stare down at them. A sea commander Ichthyosaur towered over the group before roaring and swimming towards the station where Cale and his guardians were standing. They only had 200 yards left to go before they were safe.

 

   “It’s no fun if the game is too easy, is it?”

 

   The Dokkaebi looked evil as he looked down on the group who was running for their lives to get to the end of the bridge.

 

   “What’s the fun in you all getting away safely? Let’s shake things up a bit!”

 

   With a snap the blue screen was back, though it brought only bad news for the group.

 

[The difficulty of the scenario has been adjusted.]

 

Difficulty: E -> D

 

[The evil thoughts of the dead have returned.]

 

[Black ether is rising from the surrounding earth.]

 

   “Z-zombies?”

 

[Demonic beings have been resurrected!]

 

   “Ahh! Y-you bastards!”

 

   “Dokja!”

 

   Cale looked over to the adult and child who made it to the station where they had been standing, looking at the scene before them with fear. I mean who wouldn’t be scared of the dead rising if you weren’t powerful or had knowledge of it beforehand.

 

   Soon Dokja, Sangah, and Myungoh’s situation got worse when the sea commander chomped down on the bridge, now broken with no way to get to the other side. They were stranded, those at the station watching them without being able to do anything… well not really. Cale could help easily but he was not going to interfere with such an important event in the progression of the story.

Chapter 5: Why are you looking at me like that?

Notes:

New chapter for you all! so far I'm keeping up with my scheduled updates so I'm proud of myself there.

   Being a spectator to this situation was much different from reading it. Reading it meant Cale didn’t see the scared faces or the injuries of the people on the other side. It meant that he didn’t see the worry on Hyunsung’s and Gilyoung’s faces as they watched their companions   

 

   Cale and his Guardians soon moved away from the others, further into the station where a barrier separated them from viewing the rest of the situation. Cale needed to get a read on his and his group’s stats to better plan their next moves, especially with people around that can view them.

 

   “Eruhaben, Fredo, I want you to look at your stats and tell me what it says. I'm going to look at mine. We need to get a better understanding of what we can or can’t do here.”

 

   He watched them nod before thinking about opening his stats, a screen opening up in front of him. 

 

[Attribute Window]

Name: Cale Henituse

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: Army Without a Commander

Personal Attribute(s): Commander (Rare), Loved by nature (Legend), Loved by the gods (Myth), Loved by Dragons (Legend), Easy to Love (Rare), Hero (Legend), Greedy (Common)

Personal Skills: Incite Lv. 8, Indestructible Shield Lv.???, Vitality of the Heart Lv.???, Sound of the Wind Lv.???, Dominant Aura Lv.???, Fire of Destruction Lv.???, Super Rock Lv.???, Sky Eating Water Lv.???, Blood-drenched Rock Lv.???, Annual Rings of Life Lv.??? Record Lv.???, Instant Lv.???, Embrace Lv.???, Acting Lv.10

Stigma: Help from Family (Myth)

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 3, Strength Lv. 3, Agility Lv. 4, Mana Lv. 20    

 

   Cale immediately closed the screen but it was burned into his memory thanks to his record ability. Who the fuck made this?! What the hell were they thinking when they made this?! The redhead was trying to calm down but this was ridiculous, he was not a hero. 

 

   Taking deep breaths he looked over to Eruhaben, the dragon looking at him with pity in his eyes as he told the two what it said.

 

   “You poor unlucky bastard.”

 

   “I mean it’s not wrong my son but what is with your physical stats? Why are you so weak?”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander laughs and agrees.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says you need to put coins into your stats.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End agrees with Constellation Army Without a Commander.]

 

   Cale sighs as he is ganged up on and starts investing coins into his stats. He knew this was necessary for survival so it wasn’t that bad.

 

[Investing 810 coins in “Strength”]

 

[Strength Lv.3 -> Strength Lv.6]

 

[Investing 810 coins in “Stamina”]

 

[Stamina Lv.3 -> Stamina Lv.6]

 

   Cale continued to invest until his stats except mana were at level 6, He could already feel his body become stronger and faster than before. He would never have to work out! He could just invest coins without doing any work!

 

   Breaking from his happy thoughts he looked towards Eruhaben and Duke Fredo to give him their stats and abilities. He was right that they didn’t pick any sponsors though it looked like they didn’t really need one.

 

[Attribute Window]

Name: Eruhaben

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: None

Personal Attribute(s): Ancient Dragon (Myth), Guardian of a Hero (Legend), Master of Magic (Legend), SwordMaster (Legend), Alchemist (Rare)

Personal Skills: Polymorph Lv.???, Dragon Fear Lv.???, Dragon Affinity Lv.???, Dragon’s Breath Lv.???, Telepathy Lv.???, Spellcasting Lv.???, Sword Aura Lv.???, Acting Lv.3

Stigma: None

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 50, Strength Lv. 50, Agility Lv. 50, Mana Lv. 70

 

[Attribute Window]

Name: Fredo Von Ejellan

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: None

Personal Attribute: Ruler of Vampires (Legend), Guardian of a Hero (Legend), Trickster (Rare)

Personal Skills: Bird Shifting Lv.???, Restoration Lv.???, Camouflage Lv.???, Stealth Lv.???, Escape Lv.???, Acting Lv.12

Stigma: None

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 30, Strength Lv. 25, Agility Lv. 35, Mana Lv. 45

 

   Cale was not too surprised by the stats of the two long lived creatures but they definitely broke a lot of rules with their base stats alone. He saved all of the information for later use and calculated how much money he had left after spending.

 

   As they were talking and confirming information he noticed that everyone other than Dokja were behind the barrier, unable to see Dokja fight or the arrival of Yoo Joonghyuk. Eruhaben, who had put him down during the information sharing and planning, picked him back up to move back over to the group with Duke Fredo.

 

   He was watching with some satisfaction as Yu Sangah and the others were screaming at Han Myungoh for leaving Dokja behind. Myungoh was trying to defend his actions but the others weren’t listening to his excuses. As soon as he goes to sulk in a corner they move to the barrier, hoping to catch a glimpse of Dokja.

 

   Cale knew though how this was going to go. He knew who was going to walk past that barrier and it wasn’t Dokja. His thoughts were proven right as a man walked through the barrier, Yoo Joonghyuk. He was a tall man, fairly muscular with black hair and wearing a black coat. He walked with purpose, as if he hadn’t just tossed a man into the mouth of a monster.

 

   His gaze moved over everyone in the group starting with Lee Hyunsung and moving onward. His gaze skipped over the Gilyoung and Sangah as he moved down the line until his eyes landed on Eruhaben with Cale still in his arms. Cale watched as the protagonist’s eyes widened as he read through the ancient dragon’s attribute window and stats.

 

   The black haired man’s gaze finally moved over to Duke Fredo and widened again in shock. This man was in the presence of 2 very powerful creatures with abilities he had no way of understanding the power of. Finally his eyes moved to Cale, the child in the arms of the powerful dragon. He looked about ready to fall over at the sight of the red headed child’s abilities and didn’t seem to know what to do with the information he’s gathered. 

 

   Should he kill them? Could he kill them? Should he bring them along for the other scenarios? Where were they during his other regressions? There was no way they could have died in the other regressions so how were they standing here now?

 

   Joonghyuk looked conflicted as his hand moved to and from his sword in thought. He didn’t know what to think but he knew this was a fight he couldn’t win right now.

 

   “Kim Dokja’s group? Follow me.”

 

   “Where’s Dokja?”

 

   “He’s probably still alive.”

 

   Cale watches as he takes one last look at the monster swimming away with Dokja in it’s belly before leading them out of the station. He was ignoring every question thrown at him as they walked towards the city.

 

[You have entered the region of the second main scenario.]

 

[The land in the scenario area is quickly being polluted.]

 

[Hold your breath and go underground as quickly as possible]

 

   The group follows quickly as they move through the streets, Joonghyuk taking care of monsters that get too close as they run to the next station. They soon reach the entrance to Geumho station and make their way down to the safety of the underground.

 

   They could see people trying to close the gate to the station, the swordsman making quick work of stopping them to get the group inside. He mainly seemed focused on Cale and his Guardians as they made their way down the stairs to see a large amount of people taking refuge there. A lot of them were sitting against the walls covered in injuries and many still have blood on their clothes from the first scenario.

 

   Joonghyuk led the group over to a seating area before looking back over to Cale and the others again. As the rest sit down to relax after everything they’ve gone through, a man walks over to them. He was a decent height, not very muscular build with brown hair in a very unflattering haircut.

 

   He walked over to the group with a smile that screamed deceitful as he looked them over.

 

   “Hello there, welcome to Geumho station. My name is Cheon Inho and I run this station. Right now we’re working on teams to go out to gather food and we would like for some of you to join those teams.”

 

   Cheon Inho, the man who would use others and kill innocent people for coins. He’s a slimy, lying, manipulative man who would have them killed without hesitation, a man who uses others’ despair as fertilizer for power. It looks like he’s trying to recruit stronger people to his side to profit from power and fear even if he was weak himself.

 

   “We would offer you high positions in our group with the ability to help lead this station to survive.”

 

   ‘What utter bullshit.’

 

   Cale knew this guy was full of shit in his quest for power so it was no surprise Myungoh joined without hesitation. He looked at the others as they sat looking at him before shaking their heads, they were smart not to trust him. Eruhaben and Fredo turn their backs to this guy and walk over to sit with Cale, though what they didn’t expect was for Joonghyuk to follow them.

 

   “Um..can I help you?”

 

   Cale sighs as Fredo looks over the swordsman, looking him up and down before shrugging.

 

   “Who are you? What are you?”

 

   Well at least he was asking instead of trying to pick a fight. His face stayed stoic as he looked them over, though his eyes seemed drawn to Cale more than anyone.  

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander laughs at the incarnation Yoo Joonghyuk.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End laughs and shakes his head.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander tells their incarnation to ignore him and eat something.]

 

   Cale looked towards his phone to see it had been a bit since he ate last. They had gotten lunch before going to the pet store that day but he hadn’t had the chance to eat since.

 

   “I’ll eat later…”

 

[Constellation Army without a Commander gives a benign smile and cleans a dagger.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Surely the young master is not avoiding meals?]

 

   The color seemed to drain from Cale’s already pale features as he quickly made work of pulling out different dining utensils, tea cups, a pitcher of lemonade, and an entire plate of food from his spaciel bag in his pocket. The swordsman was in disbelief at the sight as the food still had steam coming off it.

 

   His guardians helped set him up and poured his lemonade before putting it back, Joonghyuk just standing there in shock. He wasn’t alone too in his disbelief.

 

[Many constellations are shocked.]

 

[Many constellations want to know where you pulled that from.]

 

[Some constellations that love food are drooling at the sight.]

 

   Cale ate his food gracefully, a habit he had yet to break from his time as a noble. He wasn’t arguing about eating though as Beacrox was an amazing chef and he would always enjoy his cooking. He had even pulled out meals for Eruhaben and Duke Fredo to eat since they had yet to do so as well.

 

   As the family ate Cale looked to the swordsman before sighing and pulling a meal out for him as well.

 

   “Sit and eat, we can continue this after.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander smiles at their dongsaeng’s kindness towards others.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “You are truly the shining star of our family. A kind and caring leader who brings light to us all.”]

 

   ‘This bastard.’  

 

   “Hyung you must be mistaken for I’m simply a lowly noble. You are truly the shining sun in our family who guides us to a better future…”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Enough.”]

 

[Many constellations are confused.]

 

   Eruhaben and Duke Fredo just shake their heads at these two before returning to their meal, meanwhile Joonghyuk was watching speechless. He had no clue what was happening as he just watched and ate the admittedly delicious food. Damn didn’t that just hurt his pride as a cook.

 

   The peace didn’t last long as they were close to finishing their meal when a large number of people began to surround them. They all had hunger in their eyes like a pack of hungry wolves, the group splitting as a man approached them.  

 

   “Hmm you seem to be having a picnic..where did you get that food?”

 

   Cheon Inho was back again to bother them. Cale was not in the mood to deal with this man but if he ignored him they would probably escalate the situation. Cale calmed the smirk that threatened to make its appearance on his face as he looked at the group. 

 

[Cale Henituse activated the skill ‘Acting Lv.10’]

 

   Cale’s face brightened like that of a child on Christmas as he looked up at the group around them. His eyes were shining and he didn’t look like he was fully understanding the situation. 

 

   “My sponsor gave it to me! They had asked if me and my family were hungry and gave us food! Aren’t they so nice?”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander smiles and nods at their cute incarnation.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End agrees that incarnation Cale Henituse is cute.]

 

   The group seemed floored as they didn’t know what to do with the sight of such a happy child. He didn’t seem to be lying and his guardians were nodding their heads as if to confirm their child’s words. 

 

   Joonghyuk seemed taken aback as the child he was eating with seemed to switch personalities on a dime and lie through his teeth without batting an eye. He was actually impressed that this kid was good enough to trick an entire group of people. Not only that his sponsor had helped him lie. Who are these people?

 

   “Wow little boy, your sponsor really likes you huh?”

 

   Cheon Inho got on one knee to be eye level with the seemingly happy, innocent child in front of him. Eruhaben and Fredo were quick to stand up behind Cale, eyes boring into the man as if to dare him to attempt anything with their kid. Though it seems he has no self preservation skills as he continued to talk to Cale.

 

   “Do you think you can ask your sponsor to give us some food too? Wouldn’t that be nice?”

 

   Cale was 3 seconds away from setting this man on fire but he knew he wasn’t the one who would kill him, that right was reserved for someone else. So Cale just frowned and tilted his head, his long hair flopping into his face a bit.

 

   “Wouldn’t that be bad to keep asking them for stuff? I don’t wanna use the nice constellation.”

 

   His voice was dripping with innocence as he looked him in the eye. He never flinched under his gaze like any other child would, no he would never give him that kind of satisfaction even if he was acting. He just had to wait.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander asks incarnation Cheon Inho what he thinks he’s doing.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End asks incarnation Cheon Inho if he’s really trying to use a child.]

 

[Many constellations who love children are disgusted with the incarnation Cheon Inho.]

 

[Many constellations are outraged that incarnation Cheon Inho would dare try to use a child.]

 

   Cale smiled at the growing storm as constellations continued to send message after message, feeling proud that he didn’t have to get his hands dirty. That was until Cheon Inho grabbed his shoulders while trying to appeal to the constellations that he would never try to manipulate a kid.

 

[Incarnation Cale Henituse activated the skill ‘Dominate Aura Lv.???’]

 

[Incarnation Cale Henituse activated the skill ‘Blood-drenched Rock Lv.???’]

 

   Cale’s smile stayed as Inho’s face paled. He watched as the man jumped away from him as if he had been burned, shaking in fear as his eyes followed him. To everyone else he looked like an innocent confused child but to Inho he felt as if he was drenched in blood staring at death itself. This was no child, this was a devil.

 

   Inho ran away like the devil was at his heels, everyone watching in confusion except for those who knew of Cale’s abilities. Cale just sat back down to finish his meal, unbothered by the eyes on him as the group went away to find their cowering leader. While the red head would love to cause chaos in this station he knew how bad it could turn out to change the story too much.

 

   ‘Hmm I wonder how well mana bombs would work in this world? Also it’s weird that I could use that power, I shouldn't be able to without holding the item.’

 

   “What did you do?”

 

   Cale was pulled from his thoughts as he heard the man behind him. Well he did promise answers after eating. After packing away the dishes to be washed later Cale sat up against his guardians, eyes never leaving the raven haired swordsman.

 

   “Ask your questions, we get the right to not answer and ask questions ourselves. Sound fair?”

 

   “I also get the right to not answer any questions as well. Deal?”

 

   “Deal.”

 

   “Then ask your questions.”

 

[Multiple constellations are curious as well.]

 

   “Eruhaben-nim could you soundproof the area please? We don’t want people overhearing.”

 

   “Of course.”

 

[Incarnation Eruhaben activated the skill ‘Spellcasting Lv.???’]

 

[The area is now soundproof]

 

[Multiple constellations are upset with the soundproofing]

 

   ‘Serves those nosey bastards right, as if I’d let them listen in when I don’t know how much will be censored.’

 

   Joonghyuk was surprised a bit that the one leading this discussion as well as giving commands was the child, but with what he saw in their attribute window it wasn’t too shocking. He already had many questions for the group, just needed to know where to start. 

Chapter 6: Cale can be kinda scary

Notes:

Sorry guys I have decided to be a bit evil. Enjoy the Chapter!

   ‘I thought he would never shut up’

 

   Cale was tired after having to deal with Joonghyuk’s questions for the last hour or so. Every time he thought it was over he would ask something else that was none of his business. How was he supposed to know why his attribute window says he’s a hero? He’s not and whoever made that list needs to fix it.

 

   He felt so tired but he has a job to do if he ever wants to get back home, he has to spread the stories of the gods. How the fuck is he going to do that? Is he just supposed to talk about them or something? They didn’t give him instructions, he would remember if they did! 

 

   He sighs before looking towards the ceiling of the underground station. It was already late and Eruhaben had already taken down the soundproofing to a bunch of annoyed or concerned constellations.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Cale go to bed I can see you’re tired.”]

 

[Multiple constellations agree.]

 

[Many constellations that love children are looking at the incarnation Cale Henituse’s parents.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander frowns.]

 

   Cale had to hide the growing smirk with a yawn as he climbed into Eruhaben’s lap, hugging him as he curled up to look smaller. Cale hides his face in his chest as Eruhaben wraps his arms around his young charge.

 

[Many constellations coo at the adorable sight.]

 

[Many constellations think incarnation Cale Henituse is precious.]

 

[Many constellations Gifted you 200 coins]

 

[Total coins gifted 2000 coins]

 

   Eruhaben just chuckles seeing the results of Cale’s little performance for coins, this unlucky bastard was playing these constellations for fools for a bit of coin. Duke Fredo had left for a moment to clean up in the bathroom, finally returning to the show they were putting on. 

 

   “He finally fall asleep?”

 

   Eruhaben checks and finds Cale actually had fallen asleep on top of him, he must have been tired from all that happened.

 

   “Yeah he’s out cold, don’t blame him though that guy was relentless in his questioning.”

 

   The fake little family lay back, Eruhaben putting a shield around them since he didn’t trust any of these people as far as he could throw them. They wrap the sleeping Cale in a blanket and fall asleep with him in between them.

 

   It was morning, everyone milling around while trying to separate themselves from others. Nobody trusted the others around them, hoping for the army or something to come save them. Cale had gone to the bathroom to clean himself and change into fresh clothing as his others were still bloody.

 

   As he walked out he was met with the arms of Duke Fredo lifting him up, he hadn’t expected that arrangement to still be going on. He sighs but stays calm as they move over to Dokja’s group who were still sitting near the center. They meet his gaze and smile at the cute child coming closer to the group, though looked hesitant as they remembered the incident the day before. 

 

   “Good morning Cale-ya, did you sleep ok?”

 

   Always count on Sangah to be the nicest of the group, even when the others didn’t know what to say.

 

   “I slept well Sangah-shi thank you for asking.”

 

   Cale smiles as he looks at the group in front of him. He had given it a lot of thought about how he was supposed to spread the stories of the gods to others, especially since nobody would believe a child’s stories.

 

   “I'm happy the gods are real, it means that they are looking after us!”

 

   The group seemed stunned for a bit at his words, it’s not too surprising after what they all experienced.

 

   “What do you mean Cale-ya?”

 

   “I mean the gods that watch over us. Where I lived before moving here we learned about the gods who would send blessings and curses to protect their followers.”

 

   The group had sat at this point to listen to the child, probably to indulge in the story telling. It wasn’t too unbelievable of a story as Cale’s name was more European. They probably think this was just the religion he grew up under before moving to Korea.

 

   “Where I lived we had multiple gods, the ones in our region were the Sun God, the God of War, and the God of Death. The one that I know the least about is the God of War, he would bless his churches that during times of war they would protect people from attacks from enemies.”

 

   They nod their head, indulging in what he was saying only for Eruhaben and Duke Fredo to nod in agreement. At some point in the story Joonghyuk had walked over only to stop to listen to the child’s words.

 

   “He’s right. During a battle we were protected from attacks made while in the building. Saved us from the enemy for months.

 

[Incarnation Yoo Joonghyuk activates ‘Lie Detection’]

 

[The skill ‘Lie Detection’ has confirmed that incarnation Eruhaben’s words are the truth.]

 

   Joonghyuk was stunned, this god was powerful enough to protect against attacks that could have killed a powerful dragon! So these stories Cale is telling are of actual powerful gods. The group was also a bit shocked that Cale’s guardians were actually confirming the story to be true.

 

[Constellation Warrior Without Rest thinks incarnation Cale Henituse tells the story well.]

 

   ‘Bastard.’

 

   By this point a few others had tuned in to listen to the stories of the 10 year old child.

 

   “The next god is the Sun God who would bless her priests in the art of healing, and though they made mistakes they worked on fixing them. Their saint is a powerful healer and their holy maiden is powerful with a sword.”

 

   “What mistakes?”

 

   “They caused an event that had their followers hunt down a group of people to a point they had to escape to the desert to survive. They were being accepted back into the region when we came here.”

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light still feels guilt for their past mistakes.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Speaking of, Aunt Tasha says they’re too busy to be here but said to tell you hello from them.”]

 

   “Oh hyung, tell her I appreciate her greeting.”

 

   People were watching the interaction in silence as the child called the constellation in a familial way. How close was this kid to their constellation already?

 

   “Anyways the last god is the God of Death.”

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is excited to listen to the story.]

 

   Cale had a smirk on his face for only a split second, a blink and you’ll miss it moment before the childish smile came back to his face.

 

   “He is the God that watches over all creatures in life and in death, ready to guide them to the next life. If you make a vow to him you must keep it or he will take your life as compensation… Daddy says he’s a bastard though and that he needs to stop dragging people into his bullshit!”

 

[Constellation Rest Without End sputters in disbelief.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is laughing.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is crying.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End says “My own child..”]

 

   Immediately all eyes went to Eruhaben and Duke Fredo. Cale had to force himself to keep looking innocent and not laugh at the situation, unfortunately for Cale he was trapped as Fredo grabbed him. 

 

   “Now Cale, that was very naughty, you know better than to say those words at your age.”

 

   “Yes, not to mention you forgot the story of the man loved by the gods.”

 

   That got everyone’s attention and had Cale grow pale, surely he wasn’t going to…

 

   “There is the legend of the hero loved not only by gods but every race and even nature itself. He was a commander who led his people to victory without a single casualty, always sacrificing his health to protect others. This young man never wanted awards or recognition as a hero for his deeds and just wanted a quiet life with his family.”

 

   Joonghyuk immediately remembered Cale’s personal attributes and put two and two together. 

 

   “Cale actually shares a name with the hero. Our little Cale takes after him a lot too. He is a man with hair as red as blood, eyes like a fox and skin as pale as snow.”

 

   Cale was ready to set something on fire if the look on his face was any indication. He looked ready to lunge at the blonde if the silver haired man hadn’t been holding him.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander misses their Commander.]

 

    Cale looks at the message and mutters something, if he hadn’t been moving closer he probably wouldn’t have heard him.

 

   “I’m not a commander, I retired.”

 

   🪨- Once a commander always a commander Cale.-

 

   🌪️- You need to get used to people calling you a hero, you know they won’t stop.-

 

   “I’m not a hero.”

 

   He sighs but looks at his two guardians, swearing revenge for telling them that dumb story Clophe was spreading around the continent. He had nearly fainted when he learned about the Cale Henituse museum being built with his father’s support. It had taken both Choi Han and Eruhaben to stop him from burning it to the ground.

 

   Cale took a deep breath as he calmed down, trying to get himself in a more comfortable position in the Duke’s arms. They still had 3 days till Dokja would escape the monster’s stomach. Looking at the group in the station he knew that the numbers would lower with that bastard Inho in command. Oh how he wanted to destroy that man.

 

   ‘Speak of the devil and he shall appear.’

 

   The redhead noticed immediately when that slimy man came over to the group that had formed during his storytelling. Seems he was still trying to get people to join his group to rule the station, recruiting for the scouting trips to the surface to gather food. He nearly laughed when Inho avoided his gaze and moved to be as far as possible from the young boy.

 

   “We're creating teams to go up and gather food, we need supplies if we want to survive. Unless the young one over there reconsidered asking his sponsor to help us?”

 

   “Not a chance, stay away from my child.”

 

   Eruhaben, while beautiful, was scary when he was protecting something. He had moved to break Inho’s line of sight and to protect Cale while Duke Fredo moved them back towards the area they had stayed before. Eruhaben’s eyes were slitted, more reptilian than human, as he glared at the man bothering his kid, if looks could kill Inho would be 6ft under.

 

   Inho jumps back a bit in fear of the inhuman man in front of him. He felt like pray in front of a predator, daring him to move closer for the kill. He shakes his head to try and clear his thoughts. This man was human…right? Plus he wouldn’t try to kill someone in front of his kid right? 

 

   Though they did pass the first scenario so they must have killed already. That kid killed someone too if they’re still alive, did his parents help him? The kid seemed fine for someone who killed another person to survive, all the other children around the station have been crying or traumatized.

 

   “Ok fine but we still need people to go up looking for food, we need volunteers for the different teams.”

 

   Most of the group who had gathered around for Cale’s stories were looking at each other before splitting up into different groups. Kim Dokja’s group, Joonghyuk, Eruhaben, and a few others stayed put while others moved to volunteer to gather food. Cale looked at the group, His record remembering the faces of the group as they were led away by Inho.

 

   Cale wasn’t worried about Inho targeting him with his skill, for all appearances he was just an innocent child who was lucky enough to get a generous sponsor. It wasn’t like it would work anyways since Cale had the same skill at a much higher level, he could very easily twist it around on him.

   It’s been 4 days since the world ended, 4 days since they arrived at the station. They had watched as the numbers started to decrease as some people never came back from scouting for food. Cale, Eruhaben, And Duke Fredo tried to help where they could but sadly they couldn’t do much without changing the story.

 

   During those first 3 days Joonghyuk had asked multiple times for the family to join him, as well as asking Hyunsung with the promise to make him stronger. They had all declined for multiple reasons but Cale’s was simple, he was not a hero nor did he want to be one. He was just trying to go home and that didn’t require joining the swordsman on his mission.

 

   It was the day that Kim Dokja would arrive at the station with an injured Jung Heewon, the powerful swordswoman that would join Dokja’s group. Joonghyuk had left the day before on schedule after hunting a lot of the monsters in the subway. Cale had actually gotten to talk to the woman, she was kind and seemed to have a soft spot for kids when he talked to her.

 

   It was also during this time that Cale got to know the rest of Dokja’s group, Gilyoung seemed to take a liking to him quickly while Sangah and Hyunsung warmed up to him within the next day. Well he didn’t really try to get them to like him, he mainly just talked to them about how they were coping with the apocalypse and gave them some food.

 

   Cale and his guardians were sitting in their normal area, people had stopped trying to get close to the spot after an incident with one of Inho's men trying to threaten Cale with a knife for food. The redhead had felt so satisfied to see the man crawl away with a stone spear piercing through his right knee and his jaw broken and arm gone courtesy of Eruhaben and Duke Fredo. They were currently eating as his family had threatened to let Clophe use the orb if he didn’t eat 3 meals a day.

 

   That was another thing, he had talked to his family about how they were communicating with him and events going on there. Apparently time was faster on this Earth compared to their world, it had been 3 months for them instead of a year. After the activation of the star stream however it seemed as if it had slowed down to match them, almost like they had synced so that they could watch in real time.

 

   That had been an interesting development and they still had no idea how that worked but they didn’t question it, they were just happy to see their young master was ok. It turns out most of their family was there to watch with the exception of those whose territories were too far away or were too busy. The Henituse family were too busy to stay long term and Alberu had his paperwork sent from the palace in the capital.

 

   They were all staying in the Black Castle where the orb was located and had agreed to take turns using it. Well except when it came time to eat and Cale would try to skip resulting in Ron taking the orb, Cale stopped trying to skip after that.

 

   Cale was pulled from his thoughts after hearing a commotion coming from the entrance of the station, it seemed he had arrived. It didn’t take long for them to finish their meal and clean up before Dokja made his way down the steps into the underground with Heewon on his back. It looks like the peace is over now and time for the story to continue on. 

Chapter 7: The Story Marches on

Notes:

Hey everyone I got Tears of the Kingdom on release day and I'm having a blast! Enjoy the chapter

   Kim Dokja thought of a lot of things while waiting for the monster to die, the people he had survived in the train with, how they were holding up, what Joonghyuk had said or did after throwing him off the bridge. The thing that continued to get his attention however was the little family that had been with them. 

 

   He couldn’t rationalize what he had seen on the train, the fact that the silver haired man had cut and drank the blood of his young child. The child had been so calm about it too, he didn’t flinch or act as if it was weird, like it was normal. Well for the kid it might be, he couldn’t even blame the star stream as the kid never acted like it was weird. 

 

   What had this child been through for this all to be normal? He never even acted like the apocalypse was scaring him, he was completely calm. The child was a mystery as well as the constellations that had interacted with him. He had never seen or heard of these constellations in ‘Ways of Survival’ nor the family of foreigners.

 

   This was what was running through his head as he walked down the steps into the station with a woman he found in a convenience store. He looked around the station to take note of the people around him when he soon heard his name being called. He looked up to see Sangah rushing towards him with the group, but he didn’t see the foreign family with them.

 

   Dokja had already put the woman down when Gilyoung barreled into his stomach, hugging him tight which surprised him.

 

   “Dokja-ssi!! You’re safe! I’m so glad, really so glad!”

 

   “Dokja-ssi! I’m really sorry for back then… for leaving Dokja-ssi behind…”

 

   “No it’s okay. It was a situation that couldn’t be helped.”

 

   Dokja was a bit surprised at the reunion as he never expected them to be so glad to see him. He looked away to hand Gilyoung some food, still thinking about the other child he couldn’t see. 

 

   “I’m so thankful that Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi was right.”

 

   “Yoo Jooghyuk?”

 

   “Well, he said that Kim Dokja-ssi would probably be alive…”

 

   “So where is Yoo Joonghyuk?”

 

   “Actually he’s not here right now. He left the station yesterday.”

 

   Kim Dokja looks around after having confirmation on Joonghyuk’s whereabouts before looking back at Hyunsung.

 

   “Where is the family from the train?”

 

   Hyunsung seemed to freeze a bit before looking away, almost like he was trying to find the words he needed. Did something happen to the family? Is the child ok? Did Yoo Joongyhuk do something to them? These thoughts were interrupted by a yell from a painfully familiar voice.

 

   “Everyone move aside!!”

 

   It wasn’t long before Dokja and his group were surrounded by people holding weapons, and there in the groups is a shaking Han Myungoh holding a weapon himself. He was pointing at him as if he was seeing a ghost.

 

   “Get rid of that guy!! He’s a very deceitful man! He’s not supposed to be here!!”

 

   Dokja didn’t know if he should be insulted or impressed with the bullshit that came from Myungoh as soon as he showed his face. He didn’t have long to think about it though as a man came up, placing a hand on Myungoh’s shoulder.

 

   “Haha, Han-hyung. That kind of attitude is wrong when all the survivors need to be getting along with each other.”

 

   There standing in all his scummy glory was a man wearing a black turtleneck with his smile plastered on his face as if he was a good man.

 

   “It’s nice to meet you. I see you are the new arrival today. May I ask for your name? My name is Cheon Inho.

 

   So this is Cheon Inho, He certainly looks the part of a slimy bastard who uses others for his own gain. 

 

   “I’m Kim Dokja.”

 

   Kim Dokja was a bit nervous if Inho would act in retaliation for his group members he fought to get down here. He held out his hand to shake as his mind ran through what could happen.

 

    “I’ve heard of you from the people here with me. You’ve fought the monsters and saved the people of our group.”

 

   ‘What?’

 

   Of all the things to say that had definitely thrown Dokja for a loop. What was this bastard planning?

 

   “Everyone, please assemble here! Here’s a brave new member of our group who has brought food for us all!”

 

   The crowd started to gather at the prospect of food, moving to surround the group as Cheon Inho stood there with his scamming smile.

 

   “Welcome to Geumho station, Kim Dokja-ssi.”

   Cale was watching this all from his spot with Eruhaben and Duke Fredo, it was interesting to watch the interaction right in front of him compared to just reading about it. He watched it all as Hyunsung led Dokja away to their spot to explain what had been happening in the station.

 

   Well that was until Cheon Inho made his way to their group and Dokja rejected his proposal to join Cheon Inho’s group. It was time to make his appearance, it seems. He stood up with his guardians right behind him as he moved over to the action, making it in time as Dokja tried to give his group food before getting mobbed.

 

   “Are you really Monopolizing the food?!”

 

   “You don’t have enough to share with everyone, so you’re just going to survive by yourselves?!”

 

   They continued to hound him as Cheon Inho smiled, this bastard was less than human to use people like this. Well the smile didn’t last long and soon turned to a look of horror as he saw who was walking up to Dokja through the crowd. Dokja seemed confused as he turned around to see Cale and his guardians walking towards him.

 

   The crowd seemed to move back at his appearance, one man even flinched. He was the one who had carried away the man that they had injured days ago. Dokja noticed how people seemed to move away from the family in fear, he was the only one who didn’t know why. 

 

   “Dokja-Hyung! You’re finally back!”

 

   Cale seemed to light up like a child seeing their brother again after a long time. He ran over, hugging Dokja which honestly was really cute. Dokja just froze, not really knowing what was happening, but slowly pats the red haired child on the head.

 

[Constellation Demon-like Judge of Fire squeals at the adorable child.]

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband drops his staff in shock.]

 

[Constellation Abyssal Black Flame Dragon senses another dragon close to this child.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter is looking on in shock.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is upset that Incarnation Cale Henituse never looks that happy to see him.]

 

   Cale moves his head to look at the mob, not letting go of Dokja as he lets a confused look appear on his face.

 

   “Are you all bullying Dokja-Hyung? Why should he give you all the food when you all are just being mean? Did you do anything to earn the food or are you just demanding it?”

 

   The crowd seemed to look ashamed to be scolded by a 10 year old. They looked from the child to Dokja before apologizing for their behavior.

 

   “I don’t need an apology, I wasn’t planning on keeping all the food to myself. I plan to pass out food, just not for free.”

 

   “That’s… What’s that supposed to mean?”

 

   “It’s not free?”

 

   “Don’t tell me you are selling the food?”

 

[A few Constellations’ eyes are sparkling.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter snorts.]

 

   Cale seems to smirk before fixing his expression and moving away from Dokja. He nods his head as he agrees with his decision to sell the food.

 

   “You guys should pay for your food, you don’t get to bully someone and expect something for free. Someone bullied me for food and.. Well you all saw what happened to the bully…”

 

   That caused Dokja confusion as people moved away from Cale more, had someone tried to attack the kid because he had food? What happened to cause people to be scared of the kid?

 

   “S-so uh… how much?”

 

   “How much money is enough?”

 

   “No, I will only accept coins.”

 

   Everyone seemed to pause at that before asking his prices, after telling them all it would be 50 coins each they seemed to disburse rather quickly. Some moved more quickly than others to get away from the kid and his parents, Cheon Inho being one of the quickest to get away from the family.

 

   [Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Human look it’s my turn now!”]

 

   This seemed to catch Cale’s attention fast as he looked over at Eruhaben and Duke Fredo. He quickly pulls them back to their spot before looking at them.

 

   “Raon has the orb right now.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Hi Goldie Gramps! Hi Vampire Duke!]

 

[Many Constellations are confused.]

 

[Many Constellations are asking what their fellow Constellation is talking about?]

 

   Cale puts his head in his hands and groans as the two powerful beings just chuckle a bit. They didn’t care if they were found out but Cale didn’t know what would happen if they were revealed.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Human you haven’t gotten hurt yet right? Don’t get hurt or the great and mighty me will destroy everything!”]

 

[Many Constellations are very concerned about their fellow Constellation’s shift in behavior and wording.]

 

   Cale just sighs again as this was going to be a headache to deal with.

 

   “I’m fine, why would I try anything that could get me hurt? I hate pain.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander has multiple sighs coming from it.]

 

[Many Constellations are even more confused.]

 

   Eruhaben and Duke Fredo join the sighs as they look towards their young commander with sympathy, this kid was so clueless to his own nature it was ridiculous. 

 

   “We've been keeping an eye on the unlucky bastard, he hasn’t gotten hurt.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Make sure the weak human doesn’t get hurt. If he does I will destroy that bastard ◼️ ◼️◼️ ◼️◼️◼ ◼️◼️◼️◼️◼️!”]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End feels nervous.]

 

[Many Constellations are annoyed at the censorship.]

 

   Even Cale was a little surprised to see that the message was censored, was it forbidden for other constellations to reveal themselves or others? When he had told the group the god’s stories had those been censored too? This was interesting, he knew some information was censored by the Star Stream but this was something he didn’t expect.

 

   He didn’t have too long to think about it though since he saw Kim Dokja walking over to them, he could think about it more later. 

 

   Dokja was deep in thought as he walked over to the family, he was still thinking back on what Lee Hyunsung and the others had told him. After giving them food and gettin his coins he had asked why everyone seemed to avoid the small family.

 

   He had not been expecting the group to tell him that Cale had somehow scared Cheon Inho so badly the man had run away shaking. Or that someone had threatened Cale at knife point for the food his sponsor gave them only to lose an arm and was lucky to still be alive. 

 

   They had also told him how strange Cale’s Constellation was, seeming to switch personalities and had a very close relationship to the child. That they referred to each other in almost a familial way and how Cale seemed to know when the personality was shifted.

 

   The last thing they had told him before he decided to come over to the group was the stories Cale had told them about the gods from where he was from. He had grown pretty interested after the last story Cale’s parents had told them about a commander loved by the gods. He found it interesting that Cale supposedly shared not only a name but his appearance with the commander.

 

   He found it more interesting when he paid attention to the names of the Constellations around the family, especially the constellation Army Without a Commander that had become Cale’s sponsor.

 

   It was just strange, the entire situation was strange to him and he didn’t know why. This was what was going through his head as he approached the family. As soon as he was close to the group he could see that Cale had his head in his hands with his parents trying not to laugh. 

 

   He didn’t know what possessed him to want to see if he could see their attribute windows but he was curious. From what he had heard he knew they couldn’t be normal but he didn’t remember ever hearing about them in the novel. So with hesitance he tried it on the silver haired man first. He couldn’t believe his eyes when something popped up, but what appeared was surprising.

 

[Character profile]

Name: Fredo Von Ejellan

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: None

Personal Attribute: Ruler of Vampires (Legend), Guardian of a Hero (Legend), Trickster (Rare)

Personal Skills: Bird Shifting Lv.???, Restoration Lv.???, Camouflage Lv.???, Stealth Lv.???, Escape Lv.???, Acting Lv.12

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 30, Strength Lv. 25, Agility Lv. 35, Mana Lv. 45

General Evaluation: Fredo Von Ejellan is a mystery that feels unnatural with a strange foreign beauty to him. Only things known is he is a parent to Cale Henituse and drank Cale’s blood.

 

   Well that wasn’t at all what he was expecting and now Dokja just had even more questions. What was he looking at right now? He’s a vampire?! Does his family know? Are they vampires too? He looks over to Eruhaben to see but nearly passes out at what he sees.

 

[Character profile]

Name: Eruhaben

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: None

Personal Attribute(s): Ancient Dragon (Myth), Guardian of a Hero (Legend), Master of Magic (Legend), SwordMaster (Legend), Alchemist (Rare)

Personal Skills: Polymorph Lv.???, Dragon Fear Lv.???, Dragon Affinity Lv.???, Dragon’s Breath Lv.???, Telepathy Lv.???, Spellcasting Lv.???, Sword Aura Lv.???, Acting Lv.3

Stigma: None

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 50, Strength Lv. 50, Agility Lv. 50, Mana Lv. 70

General Evaluation: Eruhaben is very beautiful and seems to have no family name. Is the other parent to Cale Henituse. 

 

   He’s a Dragon?! What is he doing here?! There is no way a dragon can be walking around the scenarios this early! What is happening this wasn’t in the novel!

Chapter 8: What is Happening?

Notes:

Just want everyone to know if you spot any errors my editor missed be it spelling, punctuation, or anything please let me know in the comments so I can get those fixed. Me and my editor work late to get these chapters ready for our scheduled days so some things do slip past us on occasion.

[Exclusive Skill ‘Fourth Wall’ offsets some of the shock]

 

   You know out of all the things he could have learned he had never expected anything like this. Did Yoo Joonghyuk know? He had to have seen their Attribute Windows so there is no way he couldn’t know. How are they here then? Joonghyuk would have either tried to kill them or recruit them because of their strength.

  

   Now this just begged the question about the kid. He had seen Fredo drink his blood so this made him curious. Did they adopt Cale to actually be their kid or was he just a food source to them? They seemed way too protective for it to be the latter but the former was just as weird.

 

   It finally made him look at Cale, the small red haired child who couldn’t be older than 10. The kid who looked so small and weak for his age. Dokja felt a bit bad for invading the kid’s privacy as he finally looked at his stats.

 

   Dokja nearly fainted on the spot.

 

[Character profile]

Name: Cale Henituse

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: Army Without a Commander

Personal Attribute(s): Commander (Rare), Loved by nature (Legend), Loved by the gods (Myth), Loved by Dragons (Legend), Hero (Legend), Greedy (Common)

Personal Skills: Incite Lv. 8, Indestructible Shield Lv.???, Vitality of the Heart Lv.???, Sound of the Wind Lv. ???, Dominant Aura Lv.???, Fire of Destruction Lv.???, Super Rock Lv. ???, Sky Eating Water Lv.???, Blood-drenched Rock Lv.???, Annual Rings of Life Lv.??? Record Lv. ???, Instant Lv.???, Embrace Lv.???, Acting Lv.10

Stigma: Help from Family (Myth)

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 6, Strength Lv. 6, Agility Lv. 6, Mana Lv. 20

General Evaluation: A beautiful androgynous child who looks no older than 10 years of age. Weak in appearance but probably the most mysterious and intelligent child to exist.

 

   Dokja didn’t know what concerned him the most, the fact that his age was an error like the vampire and dragon, the fact that two of his attributes were Hero and Loved by the Gods, or the large amount of skills with unknown levels?!

 

   He was definitely the commander from the story Eruhaben had told but he was younger than what they had said. In the story; they had said that the commander was a young man, not a child. None of this was making any sense.

 

  Throughout it all Cale was watching as the reader seemed close to having a panic attack after looking at them. He had definitely used his skill to look at their Attribute Windows, no wonder he looked close to collapsing, He had probably seen Eruhaben’s and Fredo’s secrets ( Ignoring that his own stats were terrifying too. If he ignored it long enough it would probably go away ).

 

   The two ‘adults’ were just looking at Dokja as he seemed to be trying to rationalize what he saw and doing a bad job if his expression was anything to go by. You’d think a man who spent 10 years reading a book wouldn’t freak out as much but here they were. 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Human Lemon Gramps says it’s time for you to eat dinner.”]

 

   That got Cale moving, setting up the area with his guardians while ignoring the frozen reader. This kinda reminded Cale of when he was being interrogated by Joonghyuk. He turned his head to look at the reader again before sighing and setting out another plate for the man. This seemed to finally bring the reader out of his thoughts as Cale just motioned for him to sit down with them.

 

   “I know you saw it. I’m not mad, just a bit confused as to how. You can ask your questions after we eat. No questions before then because I refuse to deal with Clophe because you delayed our meal.”

 

   Dokja just blinked, taking a bit to comprehend what Cale just said before sitting down. Cale passes him a plate and begins eating with more elegance than usual, he didn’t want to set a bad example for Raon. Dokja just ate his food while his eyes flicked between the three of them, as if they were gonna bite his head off.

 

   It was only after they had finished their meal and had put everything away did Cale turn to look at Dokja.

 

   “Eruhaben-nim.”

 

   “On it.”

 

[Incarnation Eruhaben activated the skill ‘Spellcasting Lv.???’]

 

[The area is now soundproof]

 

[Multiple Constellations are complaining ‘not again’]

 

   “Ok now those bastards can’t listen in, now ask your questions. I already did this once before with Yoo Joonghyuk so I will offer the same courtesy I did for him. We both will ask questions and both have the right to refuse to answer, deal?”

 

   Dokja just sat there for a moment, thinking about the offer before nodding his head. 

 

   “That sounds fair, Deal.”

 

   “Ask your questions.”

---

Cale and Dokja’s Q&A

(Experimental may change later)

Format for Reader's convenience

Due to the large amount of dialogue this section will be formatted differently to avoid confusion for readers and help keep track of everything.

C: Cale

D: Dokja

F: Fredo

E: Eruhaben

---

   D: ”Where do I even start? The other’s told me about the stories you all told, from what I heard and saw you are definitely the commander from the story. The question is how? Eruhaben-nim had said the commander was a young man but you don’t look older than 10.”

 

   C: “Interesting first question, better than Joonghyuk’s though. The answer is both simple and not at the same time. I am 20 years old though thanks to some bastard gods I was brought here in the body of a young child.”

 

   E: “What was your intention in coming over here, I doubt it was for a simple chat.”

 

   D: “The others had been telling me about what had happened while I was gone and what they told me had me curious.”

 

   C: “It’s because we never showed up in the book right? We didn’t seem normal and we weren’t in the book so it confused you.”

 

   D: “How did you…how do you know about the book?”

 

   C: “3 gods who need to learn to leave me alone. When I was sent here i was given a story, that's all I'm gonna say.”

 

   D: “You sound like you weren’t surprised that a book came into reality.”

 

   F: “Oh this is new for some of us~.”

 

   C: “Kinda hard to be surprised when this isn’t my first time for both an apocalypse and being put into a book.”

 

   D: “What on earth does that mean?”

 

   C: “I’m not the original Cale Henituse. What are you planning to do now that you know about us?”

 

   D: “Wait back up, what do you mean you aren’t the original Cale Henituse? What do you mean that this isn’t your first time with an apocalypse?”

 

   C: “It’s a long story I don’t want to get into right now. Just answer me, what are you planning to do now that you know?”

 

   D: “I would hope you would come with me to beat the scenarios, free ourselves from the Star Stream.”

 

   F: “You don’t need us to help you accomplish that.”

 

   D: ”What do you mean? With your abilities and stats you could help us easily.”

 

   C: “What he means is that when those with the potential to be strong use those who are already strong they become weak. Relying on us instead of growing yourselves will only set you back in the long run. I will tell you the same thing I told your swordsman friend, we will help but only when necessary. Breaking events will change the story so much that it would be impossible to predict what will happen next.”  

 

   D: “You know this from experience?”

 

   C: “I changed everything from the very beginning, I only knew half of the story I was thrust into. Some things happened earlier than expected and now I’m seen as a hero when I wanted nothing but a life as a slacker.”

 

   D: “A slacker? You became a commander in war.”

 

   C: “I only wanted the title for a few battles, I retired soon after but nobody listened that I was retired. How’s the contract with Bihyung doing?”

 

   D: “How did you know about that?”

 

   C: “Who said the story I read for this was Ways of Survival? Eruhaben-nim this is over, drop the soundproofing.”

 

   D: “Wait…”

---

Q&A Over

Back to our originally scheduled program!

---

[Eruhaben has ended the skill ‘Spellcasting Lv.???’]

 

[Area is no longer soundproof]

 

[Many Constellations are curious about what you all discussed.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter wants to know what was said.] 

 

   Cale’s smile as he looked at Dokja had shifted to something that wouldn’t look out of place on a scammer as he moved closer to Eruhaben and Fredo. Dokja’s face however was that of confusion and concern as he sat frozen in place. He had no idea what Cale had meant but he didn’t like the implications of it all.

 

   Cale just sat down between the adults without ever taking his eyes off Dokja, the reader was so lost in thought that he never noticed Hyunsung come to get him. He had only noticed when the man had waved a hand in front of his face to get his attention.

 

   The questioning hadn’t been too long, barely half an hour and neither had gotten into much of their questions. Cale had stopped the questioning because there was a lot more Dokja had to do that night before the events of the next day, though part of him did feel good messing with the man.

 

   Soon enough Hyunsung was taking Dokja away to their group to talk and get some sleep. Even the reader knew he had a few things to do before he could sleep that night.

 

   “Have a good night Dokja-Hyung!”

 

   Dokja almost fell over as the voice that had been so mature in their conversation before changed so much in such little time. The man in a child’s body was a terrifying sort, someone who could switch how they present themselves so quickly with no hesitation. He was someone who could manipulate a situation with their skill alone, it would be in his best interest to be an ally with this person instead of an enemy.

 

   “Yeah.. goodnight Cale-ya…”

 

   Cale started chuckling to himself at how awkward Dokja had sounded, almost as if he didn’t know in what way to refer to the red head. It was getting late though and the lights of the station were off so it was time to sleep. Fredo had taken the opportunity to wrap cale up in a blanket and soon the family was laying in a barrier created by Eruhaben to sleep.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Sleep well human!”]

 

   “Night Raon…”

 

   Cale fell asleep quickly that night, in complete honesty he had missed his kids so hearing from Raon had been a nice surprise. He missed the little dragon, so glad he had not left his kids to live without him for year like it had been for him. On and Hong should be getting a turn eventually too so he would get to hear from them as well.

 

   He was almost concerned who might get the orb next. Would it be Deruth and the rest of Cale’s original family? Would it be Roselyn or maybe one of the dragons? Hell it could even be someone he wouldn’t expect like Saint Jack and Hannah.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Good morning Cale-nim!”]

 

[Many Constellations are very confused.]

 

   Cale regretted thinking about who would get the orb that day. He had honestly expected the others not to give Choi Han the orb, the man couldn’t act to save his life much less act like a Constellation. What were they thinking, giving him the orb when they still haven’t gotten him to stop calling him ‘Cale-nim’.

 

   Cale just sat with his head in his hands after he saw the message. He had just finished cleaning up and getting dressed for the day when it had appeared. He still had to eat breakfast and this was what he had to deal with.

 

   “Haven’t we been talking about this? It’s still wrong for you to call me that when you’re my hyung’s elder.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “That doesn’t matter to me you are still Cale-nim.”]

 

   After the battle with the White Star Cale had been trying to get Choi Han to stop calling him ‘Cale-nim’, especially since he still had contact with the Choi Jung Soo of Earth 2. He had tried to get Choi Jung Soo to help him but the other had simply started laughing at him. Lee Soo Hyuk had walked in to see why and had started laughing at him too when he learned of the situation.

 

   Cale just sighs and turns his attention to Dokja’s group, Heewon was shaking out an empty bag that used to contain the food that Dokja had brought to the station. The reader had sold everything in the bag to get extra coins. Honestly selling food wasn’t a bad idea to earn coins but Beacrox would kill him if he tried.

 

   ‘Well, time for the show to start.’

 

   Cale was watching as the tent near the front of the station opened up to reveal Cheon Inho. He was calling for people’s attention with that ever present smile on his face, some of his group members standing behind him.

 

   “Listen~! Starting from today, I am limiting the food rations. The distribution is one pack of biscuits per person.”

 

   “What? Three biscuits per person?!”

 

   “How are we supposed to survive on just that much, Huh?!”

 

   “Don’t the scouts get to eat more than our allotted rations?! You think we don’t know?!”

 

   Cale just shakes his head, these were the same people who had told Dokja just the day before that Cheon Inho would divide the food equally. These people were demanding food and got mad when the man who got it didn’t share it like they thought he would.

 

   “That’s right. If you want more food, why don’t you join the scouts’ teams?”

 

   “Hardly any scouts return after applying for reconnaissance. The ones who come back are almost always from the Cheoldu group!”

 

   “YOU WANT US TO DIE NOW?!”

 

   “If you’re dissatisfied with the arrangements, why don’t you hunt for food yourselves?”

 

   Cale couldn’t wait for the moment to arrive, it wasn’t time yet but the moment they could shut this bastard up will be blissful. Seriously, does this guy have a god complex or something?

 

   “T-that’s…”

 

   “Ah, you don’t have to become a scout, there are more ways to get food. I also don’t want to do this, But…”

 

   ‘And here it comes.’

 

   “Yesterday, Kim Dokja-ssi over there said something quite good. Kim Dokja-ssi is right, everyone. Just what comes free in this world? Even our young Cale-ya agreed with Kim Dokja-ssi.”

 

   Cale was now mad, how dare this bastard drag him into this? Even Cale’s guardians looked mad. This man did not know who he just irritated, his death will be slow and painful.

 

   “If you want food, you have to prove your own worth. We will exchange food with whatever we judge as valuable.”

 

[Cheon Inho has used the skill ‘Incite Lv.2’]

 

   ‘Wait what?’

 

   You see, Cale had been seeing these messages for skill usage a lot. He hadn’t really questioned it much as he had more important things to think about. Now though it finally dawned on him that not everyone can see it, he figures Dokja might but he wasn’t the protagonist so what's going on? Why can he see skill usage? He’d definitely need to ask the God of Death later.

 

   “Because that is how it naturally works. Thank you for saying some good things, Kim Dokja-ssi and Cale-ya.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander asks “Is this guy serious?”

 

   Cale just sighs and nods his head, he’s been doing that a lot lately. Probably because the stupid come out during apocalyptic situations to try and become bigshots. Cale just ignores the stares of the crowd as he looks to his guardians.

 

   “Eruhaben-nim, Duke Fredo, I need to talk to the God of death for a moment. Eruhaben-nim can you set up a soundproof area for me?”

 

   “Of course.”

 

   The redhead walks away to a corner of the station so that he is far from the others. Eruhaben started the spell while Duke Fredo made sure nobody followed him.

 

[Eruhaben used the skill ‘Spellcasting Lv.???’]

 

[The area is now soundproof]

 

   “God of Death, can you hear me?” 

 

[Constellation Rest without End is happy you called for them]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is curious why you need them]

 

   “Can the other Constellations hear me?”

 

[Constellation Rest Without End says “Nobody can hear us right now other than your sponsor, I would have you sleep to talk face to face but that would cost too much.”]

 

   “Good now what I wanted you for is to answer a question. Why can I see skill usage messages? I shouldn’t be able to.”

 

[Constellation Rest Without End says “It’s due to your attribute ‘Loved by the Gods’. It lets you see things we see like Attribute Windows and Skill usage. It also endears other higher beings to you, making them like you a lot faster.”]

 

   “You gave me an attribute that does what now?”

 

[Constellation Rest Without End says “Your personal attributes mean a lot of things.”

 

   “Tell me what they all mean…”

Chapter 9: Time to Hunt

Notes:

You know the funny part of posting is that it's signaled by a D&D game.

   Cale has had a lot of things happen to him, he knew that his life had gone downhill a long time ago. From living through an apocalypse fighting monsters to becoming a completely new person and fighting a war. He was cursed to never have his dream slacker life no matter what he tried. 

 

   He already wasn’t a fan of how powerful he seemed to be. He never wanted to be powerful, he just needed power to stay safe and protect his family. It made him nauseous at times thinking about how the powers he needed to get to keep alive and end the war were almost worshiped. People saw him as a powerful leader or even a god because of these abilities and he hated it, hated how they called him a hero and praised him as a legend.

 

   All this to say when the God of Death told him what his personal attributes meant, he nearly passed out. This was not what he wanted! He just wanted to pass on the stupid stories and just go home!

 

[Constellation Rest Without End sends a list of what they mean.]

 

Commander (Rare): Allies are more likely to listen to you in combat or when discussing strategies.

 

 Loved by nature (Legend): Nature will protect you and refuse to do you harm.

 

 Loved by the gods (Myth): Constellations will endear to you faster and want to keep you safe, more likely to gift you coins. Allows you to see Attribute Windows and Skill usage similar to the constellations.

 

 Loved by Dragons (Legend): Creatures such as dragons or in the dragon family will refuse to do you harm and wish to protect you.

 

 Hero (Legend): Other incarnations are more likely to trust you unless the incarnation is judged as evil, making them more likely to hate you.

 

 Greedy (Common): More likely to earn things you find valuable be it money, goods, ect…

 

   Cale is going to strangle the God of Death with his own two hands after this is over. He had been reading and rereading this message over and over again but couldn’t believe what it was saying. He was in a daze as he moved away from the corner, Eruhaben dropping the spell as the two adults walked over to their young charge.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is worried about their incarnation.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander asks “Cale-nim are you ok?”]

 

   🛡️- Well hey think about it, it said nature refuses to harm you. Maybe that means you won’t cough up blood and faint so much anymore!

 

   🪨- It would definitely make your family less worried about your condition if that were the case…

 

   From his limited information, personal attributes describe the incarnation in terms of personality, occupation, and how people view the person. While he wasn’t certain of it, that is what he gathered from his own observation. So whoever made his Attribute Window was crazy to think Cale was a hero.

 

   Eruhaben and Fredo could tell there was something going on in the head of their young commander. Something from his chat with the God of Death had done something to make him act like this. Eruhaben wasted no time in scooping the shrunken redhead into his arms to take him back to their spot. 

 

   Cale was pulled away from his thoughts about his personal attributes and how badly this messed with his slacker dreams by the crackle of electricity. A bright flashing of lightning appeared in the middle of the station, and there in the light was the silhouette of a Dokkaebi.

 

   “A-a Dokkaebi.”

 

   “Um… H-how has everyone been? You’ve been bored haven’t you? T-the friend who’s usually in charge of this channel was disciplined. T-that’s why for this scenario I-I’ll be in charge.”

 

   There in the middle of the station was a Dokkaebi, but it wasn't the Dokkaebi from before. Unlike Bihyung who had white fur and a toga this Dokkaebi has black fur with what looked to be a tiger print cloth around the waist.

 

   ‘Looks like our rest is over.’

 

   “B-by the way everyone… y-you all look very peaceful. That Bi-Bihyung, acting all cocky and then leaving the scenario difficulty this low…”

 

   With that the creature snapped their fingers, sparks flying as they did so. Soon new light blue windows popped into view with a ping.

 

[A scenario penalty has been added.]

 

[Food reserves will be restricted from now on.]

 

[The existing stockpiles of food will disappear.]

 

   It didn’t take long after the messages for a lot of the food to start floating into the air in a golden light. It kinda reminded Cale of Eruhaben’s magic with the similar color.

 

   “H-huh…?”

 

   “What…? The food is…!”

 

   “H-hehe… I-if you start the scenario you should be thinking about how to clear the scenario, everyone. I-it’s not right to just think about eating, right?”

 

   Everyone was looking into the air, staring at the floating food in horror as they all moved towards the Dokkaebi. Looking closely Cale noticed that the eyes of the Dokkaebi were glowing the same color as the magic surrounding the food.

 

   “A-anyway this p-planet Earth IS FULL OF TRASH…”

 

   With another snap of his fingers the Dokkaebi destroyed the food, leaving only ash and smoke where it once was in the air. The horror and panic in the faces of those around them was quickly spreading to nearly everyone in the station.

 

   Of those who were not panicking was one Cale Henituse, he had been curious if the food in his spacial bag would be affected by the penalty. As it turns out no, since his bags were provided by gods he doubted the Dokkaebi could touch them.

 

   “T-then, let’s have fun from now on, everyone.”

 

   A new screen appears in front of everyone, it was what Cale was waiting for. The reason Cale didn’t want to touch the coins he possessed. Sure he had a lot of coins and could easily upgrade his stats to close to superhuman levels, but that would cause him more problems than they would solve. 

 

[A scenario penalty has been added.]

 

[‘Cost of Survival’ clause has been added.]

 

From now on, 100 coins will be deducted as a ‘Cost of Survival’ at midnight. If you fail to pay the ‘Cost of Survival’, you will die.

 

[The ‘Cost of Survival’ penalty will remain until the second main scenario is cleared.]

 

[You are in the area of the second main scenario. Frequently move to places where the main scenario is active.]

 

   Everyone was stunned, too in shock to even speak as the Dokkaebi disappeared from the station. Cale and his guardians didn’t care about the silence as they moved over to Dokja’s group. It wouldn’t be long till it was time to move and it would be more convenient to move with the reader.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander despises the Dokkaebi.]

 

   ‘Choi Han would dislike the Dokkaebi. He is a pure sort and wouldn’t like to see these people suffer for their entertainment.’

 

   After a little bit for people to calm themselves, it didn’t take long for Cheon Inho to try and take control of the situation.

 

   “Everyone please gather. We have an important announcement. “

 

   Cheon Inho was back standing near his tents, a few members of his group standing behind him as people gathered. Cale just checked the time and nearly hissed, it was almost time for his next meal and he knew chaos would spread if people saw the redhead with food.

 

   He was quiet, nearly a whisper but he needed to make sure Choi Han got the message.

 

   “Choi Han, is everyone watching? Specifically Ron and Beacrox?”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander nods his head.]

 

   “Listen with the penalty it would be bad if someone here saw me pull out food, I need to miss a meal at least for now until we move to a new location.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander doesn’t like it but agrees with the statement.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander will allow it this once.]

 

   ‘I shouldn’t need permission to miss a meal but I refuse to let them give Clopeh that orb.’

 

   “... Far-fetched when you think of what Dokkeabi’s might do to harass humans.”

 

   Cale had finally gotten close enough to hear their conversation. Looks like Dokja was looking over the penalty, understandable as Dokja hadn’t known about this. He had only learned about it from the guidebook so it was understandable.

 

   “Dokja-ssi!”

 

   ‘Ah there he is.’

 

   “What should we do now? Do you think we should join the reconnaissance team?”

 

   “Nope, we won’t go above ground. If we go up there, we will definitely die.”

 

   Cale had finally arrived at the group, though they didn’t seem to notice his arrival. 

 

   “But to get food we must go above ground-”

 

   “Not necessarily, the world has changed so we need to change some things too. The food we eat is one of those things we need to change.”

 

   Dokja’s group jumped a bit before turning to see the small redhead and his guardians. Dokja seemed a bit on edge at their arrival, they had left so many questions in the mind of the reader. However he needed to focus on one thing at a time, the small family would be very useful for what they need to do.

 

   “Cale-ya is right, the world has changed so you have to change the food you eat.”

 

   “Huh?”

 

   It took a second for the realization to dawn on the group before they turned their heads to the entrance to the railroad tracks.

 

   “Wait a minute, Dokja-ssi. Don’t tell me…”

 

   “That’s right!”

 

   Cale had put on his childish smile as he looked up to the group.”

 

   “We will hunt monsters.”

 

   “We’re going to hunt the monsters roaming the railroad tracks? Well looking at it in the long run, a team dedicated to tackling the scenario is important.”

 

   The group was standing on the tracks, they had said they would volunteer to hunt the monsters on the railway. Above them on the platform was one Cheon Inho looking down at them. After everything the man seemed more than glad to let the group leave the station to their possible deaths. 

 

   “While you are away, can one of my members join you? We would also like to get some information about your strategy.”

 

   Cale had to keep his face neutral as he knew who was going to be sent in, inside though Cale was cackling like a mad man. A dose of karma was coming for one unfortunate bastard.

 

   ‘Ah here he comes.’

 

   “Eeeek!!! A-a corpse….!! Y-Yu Sangah-ssi! Hold my hand, you must be scared!

 

   “....I think you might be more afraid than I am?”

 

   “N-no of course not.”

 

[Constellation Rest Without End finds this man pathetic.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander hesitantly agrees.]

 

   ‘Damn he even got Choi Han to agree that he’s pathetic.’

 

   The group were walking down the railway, Kim Dokja’s group taking up the front while Cale, Eruhaben, and Duke Fredo took up the rear. After they had started walking Eruhaben had reached into his bag and pulled out 2 swords for both him and Fredo to use. When questioned about it they had just said Cale’s sponsor had given them the items to protect Cale with.

 

   “...Will he be ok?”

 

   “He is neither a threat nor a help, so you can leave him alone.”

 

   “More importantly, is it really okay for you to come with us, Jung Heewon? You haven’t fully recovered yet….”

 

   “I’m more worried about Gilyoung-ee and Cale-ee than about myself. It’s really dangerous beyond this point. Are you really going to let them come with us?”

 

   “In fact, even I was bothered about this from the start. It isn’t too late, so how about we send back the women and children…”

 

   Cale had just started to ignore them at this point, the conversation was pointless anyways. Just because they were women or children doesn’t mean they were less capable in a fight. Some of the strongest fighters he knew were women like the mage Rosalyn and the necromancer Mary. Even On and Hong the cat tribe children were useful in combat with their mastery over fog and poisons.

 

   Cale finally just looked over to Eruhaben and Fredo who were walking by his side, almost as if they were his guards. It brought back memories of hiding Eruhaben’s identity as a dragon by saying he was one of Cale’s knights. The dragon must have known what Cale was thinking since he quickly took the opportunity to pick up the young commander.

 

   “Gilyoung-ah, show them.”

 

   Cale finally tuned back into the conversation, looks like they were having Gilyoung show his skill. The redhead watched from Eruhaben’s arms as the young boy crouched down, his hands on the ground and he focused on his skill. It wasn’t long before a green light started to appear where his fingers met the ground. The light turned into a line as it started to snake its way down the tunnel until it finally reached it’s target

 

   There at the end of the glowing line was a cockroach.

 

   “Oh my god,what is that?”

 

   “S-shit! That’s a cockroach isn’t it?!”

 

   “My attribute is ‘Insect Collector’. I can have basic conversations with insects..”

 

[Incarnation Lee Gilyoung activated the skill ‘Diverse Communication’.]

 

   “There is no living creature beyond this point. It’s safe for the next hundred steps forward.”

 

   The kid turned around to look at the group behind him, Cale was impressed with the kid and how mature he acted in these situations. Eruhaben seemed impressed too, the kid was similar to the shamans of their world except with bugs. 

 

   “Thank you for worrying about me, but I didn’t come along with you hyungs and noonas just to be pampered.”

 

   “Ah, right.”

 

   With that they continued on their way, though Cale could still see Hyunsung looking over his shoulder in his direction. Gilyoung may have shown his use but Cale was a problem for an entirely separate reason. That reason being that he had seen Cale use his skill to put a spear through a man’s knee, Cale had no hesitation when he did it. 

 

   “By the way, I don’t think there are just human bodies here.”

 

   “I can’t see anything because of this darkness, It’s as if someone draped a black curtain over this tunnel.”

 

   Hyunsung had taken the lead at this point, reaching his hand out to the wall of darkness that had covered the tunnel. As soon as his hand made contact the darkness broke, the light blue screens appearing in front of them with a ping.

 

[A new sub-scenario has arrived.]

 

[Second scenario- Food Acquisition]

 

Category: Sub

 

Difficulty: E

 

Clear conditions: Directly hunt the monsters that can be used as food and cook them.

 

Time limit: None

 

Compensation: 5oo coins

 

Failure: ???

 

   “It’s a m-monster…!”

 

   There on the ground in front of them were monsters a bit larger than a human. They were dead, lying in pools of their own blood that seemed to be days old maybe. Cale recognized them from the descriptions he was given in the book. These were ground rats, they were grade 4 monsters that lived underground and hunted in groups. Ground rats are persistent when hunting for their prey and make it difficult to move between stations.

 

   “Dokja-ssi, can’t we use these creatures as food and clear the scenario?”

 

   “They said we had to hunt for food ‘directly’ so probably not.”

 

   “Huh, that makes things messy.”

 

   At this point Dokja was kneeling down in front of the corpses as he talked to them.

 

   “By the way, Heewon-ssi… didn’t you say you were good at kendo?”

 

   “Ah. To say I’m very good is stretching it a little…”

 

   Dokja didn’t waste anymore time as he worked on getting the bones from the dead ground rats in front of them. The reader was using the spike that he carried like a sword to open the monsters, cleaning the bones of their meat until he had a decent pile. After that it didn’t take him long to make weapons for the group, skipping the small family that was traveling with them.

 

   He had seen the swords the two men carried and had offered to make a small dagger for Cale but the looks the two gave him could have killed him on the spot. Even Cale’s sponsor had chimed in to tell him no. Seems like Cale was not allowed near daggers if their reactions were any indication. Now he was just curious why the word dagger set them off but he was not about to ask in that moment.

 

   “It feels as if we’ve traveled back in time to the stone age.”

 

   “They’ll need to be sharper, so try sharpening them on a rock lying around nearby.”

 

[A few constellations are interested in this primitiveness of humans.]

 

   Cale was a bit upset that his family had denied him a weapon, even if he barely used one it would still have been a good tool in an emergency. It seemed his family was still on edge after having to stab his heart with the world tree root dagger to kill the White Star. He was fine, it didn’t even hurt much plus he was healthier from it.

 

   “All of you still have some coins left, right? Invest all the coins you have into strength, stamina, and agility, only leaving behind enough to pay the survival fee. This may sound cruel, but I don’t expect all of you to survive.”

 

   Cale had to hide his smirk behind his usual expressionless look. He knew that everyone here would survive and become some of the strongest incarnations in the world. Plus the idea of him using all his coins to raise his stats was funny, if he did he would surpass the strength limit in the scenario.

 

   “But, still… try to keep yourselves alive.”

 

   There was a noise, the sound of a hoard moving towards them quickly. The growls from the beasts as they moved ever closer to the group.

 

   “Please.”

 

[Sub scenario- Hunting for Food has begun.]

Chapter 10: The Hunt

Notes:

Hey guys early update because I'm going on Vacation so I'll miss my update time, so here you all go!

   Everyone moved as if a switch had been flipped, they moved quickly to the closest ground rat and started the battle. Well everyone besides Han Myungoh who ran to hide behind a pillar. From his pitch in Eruhaben’s arms he could see how precise they were in their movements, they moved well for their first time in combat against monsters.

 

   Though Cale noticed that there were more ground rats than what he had read, almost as if compensating for the amount of people fighting. Duke Fredo moved swiftly befitting a vampire as he cut down the monsters that managed to get to close. 

 

   🌊- I wanna fight these XXX!

 

   🔥- Let's burn these monsters! Let's create a sea of fire!

 

   Cale sighs as the voices of probably his two most vicious powers rang in his head. He was not about to bring them out in such a small enclosed area, there was not enough space to do it without hurting anyone in the group. Cale was not planning on using any of his ancient powers at the moment, he did not want the constellations to see the extent of his abilities just yet.

 

   It didn’t take long for all the ground rats to fall, they had worked quickly despite their inexperience.

 

   “My gosh… how many did you kill, Dokja?”

 

   “Four.”

 

   “Darn it. I only got two”

 

   “I killed three of them.”

 

   ‘Hm?’

 

   Looks like despite the fact that they had more ground rats the numbers they killed remained consistent? The extra must have been taken care of by Duke Fredo. Well this is interesting, it’s like the world was making sure things remained consistent with the guidebook. This will be interesting to look into.

 

   “So, how are we supposed to cook these? I don’t think we can eat them raw.”

 

   “We can’t eat them now, but I’m sure we’ll find a way.”

 

   Everyone looked at Dokja at that statement, this reader was really bad at hiding how much he knew about this world. Cale could understand somewhat of knowing events before they happened but comments like that were just going to draw unwanted attention.

 

   “Hey, do you think your fire can be used to cook these?”

 

   Cale was quiet, only a whisper as he asked the question.

 

   🔥- If I can see the fire used to purify and cook the meat I’m sure I could replicate it.

 

   Cale nods his head, he would need to go to get the stove to try and mimic the flame, it would be useful to be able to cook on the move without relying on Dokja. Speaking of the reader the group was hounding him on if he knew anything about their situation.

 

   Well at least until they hear a scream from Han Myungoh.

 

   “H-help me…!!”

 

   The pathetic man was being dragged away by a still alive ground rat.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander shakes his head in disappointment.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End sighs.]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain finds this situation amusing.]

 

   Oh yeah Cale almost forgot this motherfucker was here too. How was he even here anyways he was sealed in the God of Death’s domain. He’ll just ignore him for now as this was not the time to ask questions.

 

   “Here! G-Grab on to this! Aaah!!!”

 

   “Sangah!”

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband, is upset by the near certain cliffhanger.]

 

   Myungoh and Sangah were dragged away quickly, dragged underground by the ground rat. Hyunsung was stuck in place, his arm still pointed out as if he could have grabbed the two that had been taken. Heewon just put her face in her hand and sighed.

 

   “Ugh, damn it I knew he’d get us into trouble…”

---

   You know when Cale had offered to go with Dokja he wasn’t expecting Eruhaben and Duke Fredo to be so against it. They were currently by the hole leading to the lair of the ground rats talking about who would go down the hole to rescue Sangah (and Myungoh). Cale needed to go to see if he could mimic the fire from the stove but his guardians were not making it easy. 

 

   “Cale you are not going down there without us.”

 

   “I already explained why I need to go.”

 

   It’s not like Cale would have to fight when they get down there, Dokja would take care of that. He needed Eruhaben and Duke Fredo to stay up so that the creature didn’t do anything unexpected in the presence of two powerful individuals. He did not need to deal with more than he was already planning to do, he wanted to be a slacker not have more work. Finally after explaining this fact they relented but it seriously tired the redhead out. 

 

   It would be Dokja, Gilyoung, and Cale going down while the rest stayed up top.

 

   “You’re only going to take Gilyoung and Cale with you?!”

 

   “Gilyoung’s ability will help me track the monster down-”

 

   “But..!”

 

   “-and Cale volunteered and I believe will be very helpful. Everyone please take care of Heewon. She’s not doing so well.”

 

   Quickly after that they started making their way down the tunnel to the monster’s lair. 

 

[Incarnation Eruhaben activated the skill 'Telepathy Lv.???']

 

   -’If you overuse your powers and cough up blood or faint I will make sure you are never allowed away from us.’

 

   ‘Vicious bastard.’

 

   It wasn’t too far in their travel that it started to get dark, the light around them vanishing to be an inky void. The only way to know what direction to go was Gilyoung who was in the front to guide them. Gilyoung had grabbed Dokja’s hand and Dokja had grabbed Cale’s so they wouldn’t get separated in the dark.

 

   “This way…Dokja.”

 

   “Huh?”

 

   “You let it go on purpose, didn’t you?”

 

   “Huh? W-what do you mean?”

 

   “When the monster took away that man and Sangah…You intentionally let it go. I was watching you. Why did you do that?”

 

   When reading the guidebook Cale found that he liked Gilyoung a lot, he kinda reminded him of Raon. He was a smart kid who was observant and learned quickly. It was something he liked when reading that the kid adjusted so quickly and learned just as fast while still remaining an innocent child. Also anyone that can call Dokja out on his actions was good in his opinion.

 

   “It was because of the ground rats’ habit. They have a habit of storing anything they hunt in their lair. They sometimes store rare or precious items, but getting to the lair is difficult. The only way to get there is to follow the tunnels they dig. I knew it’d take Mr.Han, but I didn’t expect Sangah to get dragged along with him.”

 

   “So you’re after the items then?”

 

   “Yes. Are you disappointed?”

 

   “No. You’re a bad liar. If it was just the items you were after, you wouldn’t have saved me in the subway. I believe in you.”

 

   Well that was just cute. Cale had to admit that this kid has his cute moments similar to his own children.

 

   “What about you Cale-ya? Disappointed in me for letting them be taken?”

 

   “Why would it matter to me? I agree that looting the enemy is a good choice. As long as you aren’t leaving them to die I don’t mind it.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “That’s our Cale-nim.”

 

   Cale was not the one to judge someone about the things they do like looting as he was just as guilty of it. He was not a good person so he wasn’t going to pretend to be one. Cale looted his enemies a lot when fighting the White Star. Luckily it was too dark to see Dokja’s confusion at Cale’s statement, this person who has ‘Hero’ as one of his personal attributes was condoning stealing.

 

   “We’re almost there.”

 

[A few constellations hold their breath in anticipation.]

 

   “Dokja. Are you a god? Or perhaps a protagonist?”

 

   Cale actually has to cover his mouth to keep from laughing, damn this kid is great. When he had read the guidebook he had felt bad when Gilyoung had asked that question. Though now knowing what will become of them all he found a lot of humor in the question. 

 

   “I’m neither a god nor a protagonist. In fact, I’ve always been envious of protagonists.”

 

   “But you do know something about this world, right?”

 

   “Yes…I do.”

 

   “Then will we be granted a wish… after we clear all the scenarios? In stories like these, there’s usually a reward at the very end. Right?”

 

   “Yes, you’re right.”

 

   Soon they reach the end, the dark void bleeding out into a large cave lit by blue flames.

 

[The sub scenario has been updated.]

 

[You have entered the ground rats’ treasure trove.]

 

   “Dokja! This is-”

 

   Dokja quickly covers Gilyoung’s mouth as they hide to stay out of sight. This wasn’t just a treasure trove but a monster lair too so they needed to be careful to stay hidden.

 

   “Shush. Wait. Treasure’s not the only thing they store in there.”

 

   Scratching and growling filled Cale’s ears as they echoed in the large space. There on the other side of the cave was a chest with unusual coloring to it, black with purple outlining every detail. 

 

   “This is your fault, Sangah!

 

   Looking out from where they were hidden they could see Sangah and Myungoh tied up in some tree roots.

 

   “My fault? What do you mean by that?”

 

   “I-if you hadn’t gotten on the subway, I wouldn’t have been dragged into any of this!”

 

   “What does me getting on the subway have to do with anything?”

 

   “T-that’s… because you always commute on your bicycle…”

 

   “Wait. Are you the one who stole my bike?!”

 

   “D-didn’t I say I would give you a ride home?! You should learn to accept the kindness of others for once!”

 

   “Answer me. Did you steal my bike?”

 

   Cale sighs, this was just sad and gross on so many levels. It kinda reminded Cale of the nobles after the war was over. Many would act like this while trying to get Cale’s attention for either courtship or alliances. 

 

[Constellation Demonic Judge of Fire, Despises incarnation Han Myungoh.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander agrees with Constellation Demonic Judge of Fire.]

 

   Cale was really tempted to just tune the rest of this stupid argument out as it was just getting on his nerves at this point. This man was just gross and he was tempted to throw a stone spear through his knee just to shut him up. He could already see Dokja with his head in his hands as this stupid argument continued on.

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband has grown tired of this petty argument.]

 

[Incarnation Cale Henituse activated the skill ‘Super Rock Lv.???’]

 

   Cale is just done as he pulls a stone spear from the earth, tapping Dokja on the arm to get his attention. When he turned his eyes were wide seeing the large stone spear in the hands of the small redhead.  

 

   “Throw this.”

 

   Cale was quiet in his demand, handing the stone weapon over to the reader.

 

[Multiple constellations are surprised by the appearance of the weapon]

 

[Many constellations are happy with the return of the spear.]

 

   Dokja looked like he had many questions but saved them for later with the rest of them, taking the spear into his hand. If he was at all surprised by the power in the spear he didn’t show it as he wound back and threw it. Cale was right to give the reader the spear as it sailed through the air like a bullet into the wall right by Myungoh’s head.

 

   “Aaaaah!”

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband is pleased.]

 

[You have been gifted 100 coins]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is hesitant to agree.]

 

   “W-what was that?”

 

   “Dokja!”

 

   While the others had their brief reunion Cale’s eyes never left the wall where the spear was. The sound of cracking stone filled the cave as spider web like cracks moved over the wall, stones falling to the ground. The ground rats that had been in the cave were shaking and moving as if in fear of whatever was breaking from the wall. 

 

   There where the wall once stood was a towering figure in a dark hood, their features under the hood were almost skeletal in appearance. From their back were large tentacle like appendages, and all around the creature was a dark energy that reminded the redhead of dead mana. 

 

[The ‘Warden of the Dark’ has appeared!]

 

[Sub scenario has been updated!]

 

[The sub scenario, Defeat the Warden, has begun!]

 

   So this was the Warden of the dark, it was a lot more disgusting than Cale was expecting. This is the creature Dokja has to fight down here. Well better get to a safe area since there was no way he was going to try and interfere.

 

   “Ugh. Dokja, I…”

 

   “It’s okay. Go ahead.”

 

   Gilyoung was doubled over since the crumbling rocks killed the insects that he had been connected to, making the young boy ill. He would need to get the boy to a safe place to avoid letting him get hurt.

 

   “Gilyoung, how many more times can you use ‘Interspecies Communication’?”

 

   “Maybe…once or twice more.”

 

   “All right. Rest here for a while then.”

 

   At that Dokja rushed to get the other two who were still tangled in roots. Cale, however, didn’t follow and instead grabbed Gilyoung. He was not letting this kid stay close to the open area where he could easily end up in the crosshairs of the battle. So while Dokja cut the roots Cale was dragging the child to a hiding spot to keep him safe.

 

   “I-I’m fine…”

 

   “Just sit here and keep quiet. You’re not fine and you could get hurt if you stayed there. So sit tight, I’ll keep an eye on Dokja ok?”

 

   Gilyoung nods his head, though reluctantly, and agrees to stay put. With that Cale moves back to see Dokja holding an almost useless knife after cutting the roots, the reader dropping it in favor of using a sword made of the ground rat bones. 

 

   “Stay back.”

 

   Cale goes over to stand behind the others, while he knew what was going to happen he needed to get ready if anything unexpected happens. Besides it wasn’t like he was necessary, he was just going to grab Sangah to pull her away when the fight started.

 

[The ‘Warden of the Dark’ has received the demon king’s blessing.]

   “Kamun, der, ethur.”

 

[The ‘Warden of the Dark’ spews  an aura of ‘Fear’.]

 

[Incarnation Cale Henituse activated the skill ‘Dominant Aura Lv.???’]

 

[The ‘Warden of the Dark’s aura of fear has been overshadowed.]

 

   Everyone watched as the young redhead stood there strong with no fear, almost as if this wasn't a creature that could kill him. He stood tall as the air around him became almost suffocating before seeming to settle on a target. Dokja almost couldn’t breath from the amount of pressure that was surrounding the young boy, yet he could almost tell that it wasn't the full extent of the ability. This kid was dominating the aura the warden released with his own, making the monster shake slightly without even using the full might of the skill.

 

[Many constellations are in shock at the aura released by incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’.] 

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter is surprised by the powerful aura.]

 

   ‘Damn this power still activates automatically. I’m drawing too much attention.’

 

   Cale, for the most part, could control when he used the Dominant Aura but there were times it would activate on its own. When he first had met Eruhaben and the dragon used his dragon fear on him was a prime example of when it would activate on its own. 

 

   “Gaaaw… Etur…! Etur!”

 

   “M-Mother?”

 

   ‘Oh here it is!’

 

   Cale was laughing in his head as this event was finally happening, the dose of karma was finally here. Sangah made her way close to Dokja while Cale moved closer to the reader as well; he did not want to be within the creature’s line of sight.

 

   “I told you to get back, Sangah!”

 

   “Well, it’s just that the monster said mother…so… k-kardu, emiren? Maybe this isn’t how it’s pronounced…akedu?”

 

   “Kalidu! Kalidu!”

 

[Incarnation ‘Yoo Sangah’ has activated the skill ‘Interpretation Lv.3’]

 

   “What is it saying anyway?”

 

   “Well… It’s asking us… to be a mother.”

 

   “Kalidu!”

 

   The monster, who had just been standing there, was pointing down at them as he yelled again. Cale was trying very hard not to start laughing as he stood behind the reader.

 

   “A m-mother? I’m not even married yet!”

 

   “Kalidu!”

 

   The monster seemed to clarify by moving their hand up, pointing directly at one person. That person was Han Myungoh.

 

   “W-why should I be a mother?! I should be the father!”

 

   Cale almost breaks as a tentacle shoots out towards Han Myungoh, laughing in his head as the appendage makes its way into the man’s mouth. They looked on in horror (And amusement from Cale) as something forces its way down the man’s throat, Standing there before Dokja starts running over. 

 

   “You don’t have plans to give birth anytime soon do you?”

 

   “Of course not!”

 

   Cale watched the reader as he sliced through the tentacle, the monster rearing back and shouting as a black liquid burst out like blood. Another tentacle shot towards the reader as he blocked, swinging his sword as the appendages attacked him.

 

   It was only a few hits in when the sword in Dokja’s hands broke apart, going flying in several pieces as the monster continued to attack. The reader had no choice but to move quickly, dodging as best he could as the creature lashed out at him.

 

   Cale watched on, leading the two others to a safer area away from the fight. He made sure they were fine before moving back to watch as Dokja yelled out for the Dokkaebi, the creature who was watching it all. Cale wasn’t close enough to hear the reader, he was not going near that monster, but it was funny to see the Dokkaebi try to deny what the reader wanted before being scolded by both Dokja and the Constellations.

 

   ‘Wow that mood change was quick. These vicious bastards.’

 

   Cale watched it all as the Dokkaebi tapped on a blue screen, seeing sparks appear around Dokja’s hand as a broken sword appeared in the reader’s hands. Cale didn’t even need to watch anymore to know what was happening, he was a reader too after all. 

 

   He knew exactly how this was going to play out.

Chapter 11: Unexpected Develpoment

Notes:

Back from Vacation! You all miss me?

   Cale had seen a lot of battles in his life both as Kim Rok Soo and as Cale Henituse, all of those battles had lives on the line be it his own or others. He’s seen so many different fighting styles and preferences that have been recorded in his memory over the years. After a while it was easy to see the similarities and differences in fighting with your life on the line.

 

   Dokja’s fighting was something that was both similar and different in a lot of ways to Kim Rok Soo when he was learning, taking things he recorded to recreate different styles. This probably meant that the reader was using his ‘Bookmark’ skill. The skill in a weird way was like a weaker yet stronger version of Kim Rok Soo’s ‘Record’ ability, only keeping records of skills to recreate them.

 

   Another thing Cale noticed is that he couldn’t see Dokja’s skill usage, probably due to the skill 'Fourth wall’ that not even the Constellations have access to the reader’s stuff. Well that is going to make things interesting but it wasn’t unexpected.

 

   All this was going through the redhead’s mind as he watched the reader’s battle with the monster becoming more fierce. The man was doing very well, moving quickly as he fought and using his information to take advantage of the creature’s openings. He watched on as Dokja slashed through the monster, the movements so swift it was as if he didn’t slash at all. 

 

   “K-kardu……men. Dero…”

 

   [Incarnation ‘Yoo Sangah’ is using the skill ‘Interpretation Lv.3]

 

   "H-how did you know where I’d attack…?” Is what it said…”

 

   “You just… have to read a lot..”

 

   Cale shakes his head as he moves closer to the reader, holding out a water bottle he had pulled out from his pouch.

 

   “Trying to be cool doesn’t suit you, here drink.”

 

   Cale tossed the bottle to Dokja who fumbled a bit but caught it. The confusion of where Cale got the bottle was clear on his face but he still drank it. 

 

   “D-Dear Constellations… Did you see that? Or am I seeing things?”

 

   The young commander had to chuckle as he watched the constellations go nuts about what they had just witnessed. Good, Cale had made sure to stay away from the fight and avoided attention. He watched as Dokja talked to the Dokkaebi before making his way over to the others he had hidden away to keep them safe from the fight. 

 

 [Constellation Army Without a Commander is proud of their Incarnation for staying out of the fight.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander sponsors 1,000 coins.]

 

   ‘...I'm happy about the coins but why do I feel offended?’

 

   Cale just shakes his head as he moves over to the reader along with Sangah and Gilyoung. He knew what Myungoh was attempting but, well he never said he was a good person. His thoughts were proven right when he heard the sound of a sharp object piercing flesh. 

 

   “H-Haha.”

 

[The tier 7 demonic species ‘Warden of the Dark’ has been slain.]

 

   “Hahaha! I-I can become strong as well! Dokja you son of a bitch! You didn't see this coming did you?! You idiot! Not killing? In a world like this?!”

 

[Contributors: Kim Dokja, Han Myungoh]

 

   The crazed look on Myungoh’s face when paired with the look on Dokja’s face almost made Cale start laughing again at the sheer idiocy of this man.

 

   “This is exactly why people like you always end up on bottom! You understand?!”

 

[The Demon King ‘God of Wrath and Lust’ has been notified of an existence because they killed the tier 7 demonic species monster ‘Warden of the Dark’]

 

[The Demon King ‘God of Wrath and Lust’ will hunt the incarnation that delivered the final blow until the incarnation dies.]

 

[The Demon King ‘God of Wrath and Lust’ will lay a terrible curse on the incarnation that delivered the final blow.]

 

   “Huh?”

 

[Final Blow: Han Myungoh]

 

   “W-what?! What’s with this message?!”

 

   “Oh… Didn’t I tell you? I didn’t finish it off on purpose.”

 

   “Pfft…”

 

   Cale finally broke and started laughing, this man was so stupid. He knew he was getting some weird looks but he had cackled in this part of the story when Myungoh got cursed.

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is laughing.]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain is laughing.]

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light is laughing.]

 

[Constellation Warrior Without Rest is laughing.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander has multiple sounds of Laughter coming from it.]

 

   Dokja takes a second to see the commander laughing along with multiple constellations just laughing at Myungoh, damn what did this man do to get Cale to laugh at his suffering? 

 

   “Let’s open up the treasure chest, shall we?’

---

 

   Cale stood next to the chest as Gilyoung and Sangah both grabbed something from the chest. It wasn’t anything fancy, just a shield and bracelet like in the story. Dokja was looking at Cale as he had moved to get his item, opening the chest and getting the reader his portable cooker meaning Cale could finally study the flame. 

 

   However as Dokja was talking about his item there was something drawing him to try opening the chest despite knowing there wasn’t anything else in it. Cale just shrugged before trying. The shock must have shown on his face as the others moved towards him.

 

   “Wait there was something else in there?! What did you get?”

 

   There in the chest was an item that should not be here, it wasn’t supposed to exist anymore. It turned to dust after his fight with the White Star. How was it here?! Cale swallowed as he pulled out the item that was the cause of the only scar on his body, the one scar that Vitality of the Heart couldn’t stop.

 

   There in Cale’s small hands was a black and white dagger, it sparkled in the light of the fire, it was activated just like how it had been after stabbing it through his heart during the battle. His hands were shaking as he held the item in full view of the others. 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is looking at the dagger in horror.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is shocked.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander has multiple voices yelling out at the sight of the dagger.]

 

   Dokja was looking at Cale then the messages in shock, what’s wrong with the dagger? Cale’s face was pale looking at it.

 

   “Cale-ya what is that?”

 

[World Tree Root Dagger]

 

Grade: Constellation Artifact

 

Lore: This dagger was wielded by a hero chosen by gods with the power over nature. Used to kill a man trying to become a god above all, believing him and the hero were fated enemies. 

 

This dagger was activated by being stabbed into the Hero’s heart which was overflowing with vitality. 

 

   Cale was completely silent while looking at the dagger in his hands. He put the dagger into his pouch of riches before looking at Dokja and the others.

 

   “It’s a dagger, nothing more.”

 

   Gilyoung and Sangah seemed to accept that but Dokja moved Cale away from them with the excuse of gathering ground rat meat. He dragged the redhead to a corner of the cave away from the other two and kneeled down to be face to face with the commander.

 

   “That would be more convincing if you weren’t pale and your sponsor wasn’t freaking out. Now what was it?”

 

   “I can’t say.”

 

   Cale was motioning with his eyes to the air, he refused to talk about the item where the constellations could hear him. Dokja sighs and nods his head.

 

   “We’ll talk about it later, get it? And I’m telling Eruhaben and Fredo about you getting it.”

 

   “No, don't you dare tell them.”

 

   “I’m not hiding something like this from them, besides I doubt your sponsor will keep quiet about it either.”

 

   Cale sighs but relents, he knows his family and they would absolutely tell Eruhaben and Duke Fredo about this if they haven’t already. Great he was never going to be let out of their sights again.

---

 

   It didn’t take them long to get the meat and go to the others, Dokja activating the item to cook a large slab similar to a giant drumstick. Cale was studying the flame as he cooked from the color to the temperature.

 

   “Think you can copy it?”

 

   He was being as quiet as possible as he kept his eyes on the flame.

 

   🔥-... hmm I think I can copy it, it doesn’t seem too hard to mimic it. My flame can purify dead mana so it wouldn’t be difficult to remove toxins from the meat when cooking it. We should try!

 

   Cale nods and moves a bit before focusing on using his ancient power. He wasn’t going to put a lot of power in it as he just wanted to mimic the flame.

 

   “Cale-ya what are you do-”

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activates the skill ‘Fire of Destruction Lv.???’

 

   There in Cale’s hand was a flame, the fire was moving as it slowly started to shift in color. The temperature fluctuated before finally settling as it mimicked the flame coming from the item. The group was in shock as the small redhead moved his hand to compare the flames, they were identical.

 

   “H-how did you?”

 

[Many constellations are staring in disbelief.]

 

[Many constellations are asking how this is possible.]

 

   Cale just ignores them as he moves to where the ground rat meat was, moving his hand to the meat. The reader couldn’t take his eyes away as he watched the commander cook the meat with his mimicked flame, surely it wouldn’t work right? 

 

   Except the meat smelled delicious, it was a golden brown and looked perfectly done. He watched as Cale took a bite in horror as he had no clue if it would work, except it did. Cale smiled wide as he canceled the flame from his hand and looked over to the group, tilting his head when he saw them looking at him. 

 

   “What?”

 

   “How did you do that?!”

 

   “I just copied the flame, my fire already has purifying properties so it wasn’t a stretch to think it could copy the flame.”

 

   Dokja was just stunned into silence as he watched Cale eat the ground rat meat. His sponsor didn’t seem to like him eating it with his hands but didn’t tell him to stop as they were just happy he was eating something. Despite eating with his hands though he still ate with the grace of a nobleman, how they had no idea.

 

   They all just moved on to eat their food, Han Myungoh moving up to the group as well to cook his own meat. Myungoh had been watching them and had smartly decided to move far away from Cale after seeing the boy recreate the blue flame. 

 

   “L-listen, Dokja… I know I stepped out of line for a moment, but-”

 

   “Dig in. Don’t mind me.”

 

   “Thank you!”

 

   “You’ve got to eat to store up the energy to fight that curse of yours.” 

 

   “Pfft.”

 

   Everyone turns to look at Cale as he eats, hiding his amusement behind the large piece of meat in his hands. If they hadn’t heard him laugh before they would have thought they were hearing things with how he was behaving.

 

   “Why have you been laughing when something happens to me you little brat?”

 

   “You’re allied with the group that held a knife to me because I had food. I’m allowed to enjoy when you get karma for your actions.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “They did what?!”]

 

   ‘...Oh no, did they not tell Choi Han?’

---

 

   The group seemed stunned as they watched the little redhead try to calm their sponsor while Myungoh tried to hide behind Dokja. Didn’t his sponsor see it happen? Why was it acting like it had no knowledge of the event? Was it due to it seeming to have multiple personalities? Either way they just decided to let the boy do his own thing. 

 

   “So.. How do you know all this, Dokja? You even know how to cook a monster we’ve never seen before.”

 

   “Oh, that-”

 

   “It’s probably because you’ve read a lot of fantasy web novels, right? All I can do is stuff my face with this food that you risked your life for. I couldn’t even be of any help to you…”

 

   “That’s bullshit.”

 

   “Cale-ya!”

 

   Dokja turns his head to look at the young commander, he must be done placating his sponsor. He watches as the redhead walks back to the group and sits right in front of Sangah. What is this guy planning?

 

   “Sangah-shi because of things you did you can understand a language we couldn’t make heads or tails of. You may think you have nothing to offer but everyone has different skill sets that can be useful in a world like this. Also just because you couldn’t fight now doesn’t mean you can’t learn later, this world was peaceful not even a week ago so it isn’t something people are going to inherently know.”

 

   ‘Damn.’

 

   Sangha was smiling as she looked at the kid who just gave some actual good advice, how was he so good at that? Dokja knows from everything that Cale was a commander of an army but he spoke as if he had first hand experience with an apocalypse. Add on his guardians and how he behaves with his sponsor it's almost as if he was from another world.

 

   But that begged a lot of questions. He talked like he knew what it was like not having the skills to fight but he had a lot of skills geared towards combat. He had said he wasn’t originally Cale Henituse and that he had been sucked into a book before but for what reason? And why was he here now?

 

   Saving his questions for later he finally refocused onto what was happening around him. After the talk with Cale he noticed that Sangah’s eyes kept flicking between Dokja and the chest, it was as if she was looking for something. 

 

   “You’ve been staring at that box for some time now. Are you going to use that for something later?”

 

   ‘Oh she noticed me looking?’

 

   “Huh? There are some writings on the surface…”

 

   ‘Could it be that she can even read the language?’

 

   “Random item box?”

---

 

   Cale was sitting back as he watched the others crowd around the black box. He knew what would happen so his mind wandered back to the item he had pulled out from there. There was no way this item was real, there was just no way. The dagger had disintegrated and flowed into his heart after he killed the White Star. It strengthened his heart and maybe extended his life though that was unconfirmed.

 

   So all that was left was the question of how the item that no longer existed was here in a random box in another world. According to the (Incredibly wrong he was not a hero) lore of the item it was the same dagger but it just made no sense.

 

   He was pulled from his thoughts by the chaos going on around him as Dokja puts a monster core and his broken sword into the box. It was as if there was a light show happening inside the box as the Dokkaebi panicked behind him.

 

   “D-dear constellations. I don’t know what this box is doing here! H-hehehe! End stream!”

 

[#BI-7623 has been temporarily shut down.]

 

   A beam of light was shining from the box as it worked with what it was given to turn it into something more. It really was interesting to give the main character such an interesting sword so early in the story but Cale really couldn’t complain.

 

   “Shall we open it?”

 

   Sangah and Gilyoung seemed excited by the idea of what could be in there after the light show that it produced, Cale would think they would die from the anticipation alone with how they looked. There from the box was a very nice looking sword, it was very well made and seemed to glow with energy in the reader’s hands.

 

   “It’s okay if I keep this right?”

 

   “Of course. It’s all yours, Dokja.”

 

   Cale sighs and stands up, they need to get moving back to the others before Eruhaben and Duke Fredo get any ideas on coming to get him. He watched them try to make a plan to get back through the darkness but that was quickly stomped out as Gilyoung says there were no more insects around them.

 

   Well there was one but Cale nipped that in the bud real quick after Gilyoung started chanting and the ground shook around them. He pulled the boy from his trance quickly before he could hurt himself.

 

   “You shouldn’t use that skill for a bit, got it?”

 

   “Cale-ya is right. Don’t use it ever again until I say so, all right?”

 

   “Okay…”

 

   Cale sighs, what's with kids trying to push themselves? Kids shouldn’t push themselves when an adult could do the hard things for them. He really was getting reminded of his own kids who pushed themselves to be stronger during the war with the White Star.

 

   “We’ll get lost if we enter the black tide right now. We should wait a little and move on when a small insect appears in the area.”

 

   Cale almost smirked as he saw Sangah raise her hand a bit as she looked at Dokja. 

 

   “Um…If all we need to do is find our way back, I think I can help. I have a skill similar to Gilyoung’s.”

 

   It was finally time to leave the cave.

Chapter 12: Fight! Fight! Fight!

Notes:

Remember everyone I love reading your comments! They make me happy with all the support you have for my story!

   You know, out of all the things Kim Rok Soo thought he would do with his life, he never expected anything that happened to him. From fighting monsters in an apocalypse, becoming a character in a book, saving that world, and being put in another book world.

 

   So out of everything he had thought about, moving through a pitch black tunnel back to the surface thanks to magic rope was not there until a year ago. That’s the interesting part about being in a story and knowing everything you can about it. He knew from reading this would be something he would have to do, but experiencing it will always feel different.

 

   Cale was currently walking between Gilyoung and Dokja as they made their way back to the others in the subway tunnel. He was going to be in the back but Dokja wasn’t really letting him out of his sights.

 

   ‘Damn reader and his stupid curiosity.’

 

   After the whole dagger incident Dokja hasn’t stopped looking at him. He could understand a bit but it was getting ridiculous at this point, he was a grown man and the reader damn well knows that. He can handle a stupid dagger even if his family thinks otherwise.

   🪨- Well can you really blame them for being worried? This is the dagger that you used to stab your own heart…-

 

   🔥- Even you have to admit they are overreacting a bit. It’s not like he’s going to do it again…..right?-

 

   ❤️‍🩹- Please for my sake not again..sob…-

 

   Cale just sighs, his ancient powers weren’t really helping. Well it’s not like he’ll ever need to use it so it doesn’t matter anyways. All he needed to do was stay back with Eruhaben and Fredo and just let the protagonists handle everything. He wasn’t here to help, he was just here to spread a few stories, that’s it.

 

[Channel #BI-7623 has reopened.]

 

   “Damn it! That bastard has messed with my channel…. Hahaha! Everyone! Have you been well while I was away?”

 

   Well at least Bihyung was back…did he always pose like that? Cale highly doubted it. He highly doubted the Dokkaebi posed with a hand on his hip and a wink. Well it was kinda nice to see the small fluffy creature again after being around that other one for a bit.

 

   -‘Choi Han just told us something very interesting. Care to explain when you get here?’-

 

   ‘Choi Han that snitch.’

---

 

   Cale really wanted to run, maybe if he ran Dokja could deal with the two ancient beings instead of him. When the group had finally arrived back at the subway tunnel he had immediately been cornered by his guardians and herded to the back of the group. He’d never been as scared of these two more than he was in that moment.

 

   “So…Care to explain what happened down there?”

 

   ‘Is this what a parent's anger feels like?’

 

   “We were getting items from the random box down there like I told you about. They had me take a turn to pull something out, I wasn't expecting a dagger that shouldn’t even exist anymore to come out.”

 

   Cale watched as his two guardians looked at each other, as if having a silent conversation, before looking back at him.

 

   “Cale, give us the dagger.”

 

   ‘What?’

 

   “What?”

 

   “We are not letting you keep the dagger that you stabbed yourself with.”

 

   “I was fine! It didn’t even hurt.”

 

[Multiple constellations are in shock.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter is surprised]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander sighs and shakes their head.]

 

   This was not going well, why did these two have to be so overprotective? They weren’t even this overprotective back in their own world. It’s as if they become complete mother hens the moment they arrive in this world. 

 

   What Cale failed to realize was that because of his new small size and cute appearance he activated the parental instincts in the two non-humans. While the two had felt parental and protective instincts before with the male, his new appearance made it even worse. 

 

   The look his guardians were giving him made the instinct to run grow as he felt them both put a hand on his shoulders.

 

   “You are not allowed to leave our sight with that dagger in your possession, we are not making that same mistake twice.”

 

   “It’s not like I’m gonna need it. I highly doubt I’m gonna fight another reincarnator.”

 

   He won’t tell them that there is a reincarnator here, he doesn’t need the headache. Besides, it's not his job to fight them. They do just fine without his dagger so it wasn’t necessary. To be honest he would rather not deal with another reincarnator at all, one was enough. Hopefully they will be gone before they get to that point.

 

[Many constellations are curious because of the censorship.]

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband is interested in you.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter is interested in you.]

 

   ‘Well that’s just great.’

 

   Cale sighs, just great now he has two of the constellations that follow Dokja interested in him.

---

 

   It didn’t take them long to get back to the station, though Eruhaben was quick to take Cale into his arms before they arrived. The redhead was starting to get annoyed with all the carrying, he wanted to slack but this was getting to be a bit much.

 

   They were finally at the doors of the platform, though the mumbling and shuffling wasn’t exactly a welcoming sight. It was like everyone was possessed, all agitated and twitchy. They look like a bunch of anxious wild animals trapped in a cage and ready to pounce at the slightest of sounds.

 

[20 minutes remaining until checkout.]

 

[Please have your survival fee ready.]

 

[100 coins will be withdrawn daily at midnight as a survival fee.

 

You will die if you have insufficient funds to pay the survival fee.]

 

[The survival fee will be collected until the second main scenario is cleared.]

 

   ‘Oh it’s because of the survival fee.’

 

   Almost everyone in the station was running around in a panic, they didn’t have enough coins and needed them fast. The group was quick to get up on the platform, watching everyone run around in a panic.

 

   “Please, spare us some coins! My child doesn’t have enough coins!!”

 

   Cale looked at Eruhaben before motioning the woman and her child over. He looked around to make sure nobody was watching before he touched the both of them.

 

[You have paid 1000 coins]

 

[you have paid 1000 coins]

 

   “Ah, are you sure? What about you? No I…we can't accept this much.”

 

   “It’s fine ma,am I have plenty of coins!”

 

   The woman was dumbfounded before bowing her head, thanking him over and over. Even the child was bowing and thanking the redhead before they looked up to see the smiling child. They quickly moved away after thanking him again.

 

[Constellations of the Pure Good Alignment are very proud of incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’]

 

[Constellations of the Pure Good Alignment gifted you 200 coins]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is very proud of their incarnation.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander sponsored you 2000 coins.]

 

   Cale just sighs, it’s not like he did some great thing. Even with those coins it’s still up to them to survive the next scenarios. All he did was just extend their life for a while longer. 

 

   “Dokja! Cale! I’m so glad to see you.”

 

   ‘Oh it’s that bastard, and he’s pulling me into his bull again.’

 

   “Dokja, if I remember correctly, you had the most coins, didn’t you? Also Cale-ya, your sponsor is very generous, yes? I bet you could spare a few coins.”

 

[Incarnation Cheon Inho has activated the skill ‘Incite Lv.2’]

 

   Cale is gonna put a spear through his arm, and from the look on his guardians faces they were gonna do much worse.

 

   “C-coins?!”

 

   “Who’s got a lot of coins?!”

 

   The group was being surrounded by people trying to get to the redhead and the reader. A woman grabbed onto Dokja’s arm to beg while a man was on his knees in front of Cale and his guardians.

 

   “Please little boy, I just need 100 coins! Please ask your sponsor to help us!”

 

   Cale sighs as he looks around, 20 people had gathered around the reader and child. He had enough coins so he could help them, but that's the thing with helping. He certainly could but there was just no way to keep them safe forever. These people needed to help themselves to keep safe in the long run.

 

   It was different from saving people during the war, those people had knights and soldiers of the country to help them after it was over, these people had nobody but themselves. This wasn’t as simple as going to fight a big bad while knights kept the citizens safe, these people are in an apocalypse with no law enforcement or governing bodies to protect them. 

 

   Cale helping them would just make them dependent on others in the short term and weak in the long term. Weakness means death in an apocalypse, he was just lucky to develop an ability and survive. Unless these people learn to do these things themselves they wouldn’t survive. 

 

   “Hahaha! This is turning out to be quite interesting. You have ten minutes remaining!”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is curious about what you’ll decide to do.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is curious about what you’ll decide to do.]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain is enjoying the show]

 

   The redhead doesn't have to think about his choice much longer, Dokja’s plan is about to start. Cale doesn’t exactly agree with it, he would prefer an option that would mean more survivors. Well, he knew what he could do to change the outcome.

 

   “I see. So you want coins? But… why should I give you any?”

 

   “Aha… I knew you would say that!”

 

   “W-what do you mean why?! You have a lot of coins don’t you?!”

 

   “Can’t you share some with us?!”

 

   “You’ve been like this since the moment you arrived, even selling the food you brought here for coins. Do you know how many people here could survive if they hadn’t bought food from you?”

 

   ‘Well this is chaos… this bastard just keeps talking doesn’t he?’

 

   The closer to the time the more desperate and crazy these people act, the better they could be manipulated by Cheon Inho. They seemed to be forgetting that they made the choice to buy the food, it wasn’t like Dokja robbed them. He made the offer and these people took it.

 

   “Dokja I’m gonna give you a last chance. Return the coins to these people.”

 

   “And if I refuse?”

 

   “Then… Things will get ugly very quickly.”

 

   “Y-you prick… give me back my coins!”

 

   “Kill him! Let’s kill him and get our coins back!”

 

   “Die, bastard!”

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activated the skill ‘Indestructible Shield Lv.???]

 

   Before the swings could connect something appeared in front of their very eyes, their attacks bouncing off the new object. There in front of them stood a holy looking silver shield, two white wings unfolding before them. The shield seemed to be protecting Dokja, a dome of silver light around him with the shield standing front. 

 

   It wasn’t big, only surrounding the reader as it stood strong. There was however a strand of light connected to the dome. Following the light people saw that the owner of the shield was one child, Cale Henituse. The same child they were begging not even minutes prior to ask their sponsor for coins.

 

   “Are all of you just murder happy?”

 

   People seemed to freeze as a new voice joined in the chaos, the voice of the red haired child. Cale was looking at everyone from Eruhaben’s arms, his face pale yet not betraying any emotion as he looked them all over.

 

   “Why are you people acting like he robbed you? Like you had no choice but to buy the food from him? You had the option to ignore him, to wait for Cheon Inho to give you rations, but you didn’t. You made the choice so why are you behaving like children when it didn’t go your way?”

 

   People seem to calm themselves after being scolded by a child for their behavior. They were all standing, facing the red-haired child as he looked at all of them like they were nothing but toddlers. 

 

   “You’re all pathetic. Trying to blame him for your situation, begging a child to save you, and listening to someone who wishes for your downfall.”

 

   With those words Cale dismissed the shield, watching as the reader looked back at him with wide eyes. He wasn’t the only one looking at Cale with wide eyes though, Lee Hyunsung was looking at him too. The shield of Kim Dokja’s group seemed to be staring at him with sparkling eyes from witnessing his silver shield, not too surprising to be honest. 

 

   Dokja was forced from looking at him as a person moved to attack the reader, a man with a pipe held like a bat. Dokja moved quickly, faster than the human eye could follow as he unsheathed his sword and sliced through the man’s hands. The man cried out as he fell to the floor, his hands completely gone in one swing from the reader’s sword.

 

   Everyone moved back in fear of the man, Cale however continued to talk as if he hadn’t witnessed a man losing his arms.

 

   “You all move and act like this because you're scared of them. Dokja did nothing to you, you just listened and attack a man because you fear the consequences.”

 

   Cale nods to Dokja, telling him to take over. Dokja takes the que and continues on.

 

   “You know exactly what’s wrong, and that your lives are at stake, but they’re stronger than you are. You’re afraid of them because they have more coins and higher stats than you…”

 

   “Haha. Look now you two, what are you trying to say-?”

 

   “But why is it that they have more coins than you and higher stats?”

 

   Cale smirked as he watched Inho flinch, this pathetic man’s secret was going to be revealed. 

 

   “Because they’re gangsters? No.”

 

[The incarnations around you are starting to get agitated.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander finds this kinda familiar.]

 

   Choi Han wasn’t wrong, this reminded Cale a lot of Imperial Prince Adin killing people to get dead mana to get stronger and work for the White Star. Adin learned well what happens to people who kill others for their own personal gain. Just remembering that beating made Cale smile.

 

   “C-come to think of it, how did you get so many coins…?”

 

   “Haha, you all know very well. I sold many things and-”

 

   “When I arrived in Geumho a few days ago, there were 87 people here. But right now… there are only 50 people here at the most.”

 

   “B-but that’s because the monsters got them while they were on patrol-”

 

   “Monsters? Do you still believe that? You idiots. Why don’t you think for yourselves for once? Then why hasn’t anyone from the Cheoldu gang died?”

 

   Now everyone was looking at Inho and his group, the group that was causing the problem, the group that was leading the people out of the station in the first place saying it was to search for food.

 

   “And why is it… that they’re always stronger when they return? They said it earlier. That you will receive coins when you kill me. How did they know that you receive coins when you kill someone?”

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband is pulling his hair in excitement.]

 

   “Y-you…”

 

   “Inho! Did you…?”

 

   “Shut it! It’s a lie!”

 

   “Hahaha! There’s only seven minutes left!”

 

   Finally backed into a corner, Inho’s group finally pulled their weapons. Moving closer made the others in the station move back; these people were ready and willing to attack them. 

 

   “I-Inho.”

 

   “How could you…?

 

   “If you have even an ounce of pride left inside you, fight them yourselves! Take back what was taken from you…using your own hands!”

 

[The constellations of the Pure Good Alignment have deemed Cheon Inho to be an Evildoer.]

 

   “This is just… how it is in this world.”

 

   Cale smiled as he watched chaos erupt around them, the fighting had begun. He watched as people beat others with their fists, pipes, and pieces of wood. He saw a woman hand her child a hammer and had them do as she told them. He watched it all as Dokja’s group fought off attackers and Dokja himself sliced through people with ease.

 

   All the while Eruhaben and Fredo sliced through anyone who tried to attack the family. Cale watched the battle and used his shield to protect anyone who needed it, saving an elderly woman as well as the mother and child he gave coins to earlier. Slowly Cale was able to move the group he protected behind Eruhaben and Fredo, keeping them safe so he didn’t have to use his shield.

 

   It was a good thing too, being in this new world at such a low level in the scenarios meant his ancient powers were weaker than before. He was reaching his limits. All this to say he was glad that not too far away, Jung Heewon had finally evolved her attribute. 

 

   She was a monster, fighting through every gangster she could see and killing them with ease. She moved quickly as everyone watched her fight through hordes of gangsters with the ease of a trained soldier. She fought until finally reaching Cheon Inho sitting amongst the bodies of his fallen men, her sword pointed right at him.

 

   Cale moved away from Eruhaben and Fredo, he wanted to be the one to kill this bastard. Moving through the bodies on the ground around him until he was finally next to Heewon.

 

   “Dokja, Heewon… I wanna finish him off.”

 

   People were surprised, though anyone would if a child said something like Cale just did. Dokja seemed hesitant, before looking at Eruhaben and Fredo to see if they had anything to say.

 

   The guardians didn’t seem to be against it, they knew how much this bastard angered Cale. It wasn’t too surprising that the commander wanted to end the man who dragged him into their plans.

 

   Finally Dokja nods at Heewon, letting her know to let Cale do what he wants. She seemed surprised and wanted to argue but relented. She moved her sword away and moved back to Dokja, all eyes on the small child standing in front of Cheon Inho.

 

   Inho started laughing, they were letting a child kill him? Cale just stood there, his face showing no emotion, but his eyes held a fire that threatened to swallow him whole. 

 

   “Let me tell you something Cheon Inho, you think that just because I’m a child I can't kill you right?”

 

   He moved closer and whispered, that whisper made Inho’s eyes widen and his face go pale.

 

   “I’m 20 years old and have killed people worse than you.”

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activated the skill ‘Fire of Destruction Lv.???’]

 

   Fire in the shape of rose gold lightning bolts gathered in the hands of the red haired child, people watching with mixed emotions. Cheon Inho could only scream as a pillar of fire engulfed the man, burning him alive in mere seconds. All that was left was ash as the fire dissipated

 

   🔥- Uh.. Cale… I think I may have overdid it..-

 

   ‘Oh no..’

 

   Everyone watched in horror as the child doubled over coughing, blood flying out onto the floor.

Chapter 13: Unconscious Travels.

Notes:

Hey everyone thinking of making a social media account in cases of people doing fan art of stuff I write in the future. Who knows maybe it will happen maybe it won't. I never expected or even imagined all the support I'd be getting for this story.

   When Dokja first met Cale and his Guardians he didn’t think too much about them, thinking they were just a homosexual tourist couple with their adopted child. It wasn’t the strangest thing to see as Seoul was a popular tourist destination in South Korea. After the Apocalypse started though his thoughts started to change gradually.

 

   The first time his thoughts changed was seeing Fredo drink Cale’s blood, it horrified the reader that the man would do that to his kid while Eruhaben held him back. Seeing that the man needed to be restrained while doing it implied the possibility of him hurting the kid. Dokja could admit that he had a bit of a soft spot for children so he was tempted to get the kid away from the two.

 

   The next time the group changed his thoughts was the speed they exhibited on the bridge, running faster than anything Dokja had ever seen to get off and keep their child safe. It was only after he had been thrown into the belly of the beast that the thought they weren’t normal surfaced. It hadn’t even crossed his mind at first they could be characters because of how well he knew the story, he even checked to make sure he wasn’t mistaken.

 

   Throughout the entire book there had been no mention of a foreign couple, especially ones with hair colors like the ones the group had. There was the option of dye but it was too good to be fake and their features were too European to be anything else. 

 

   After leaving the beast he had resolved to try and solve the mystery of the couple and their child. Cale was his main focus, after thinking about it he was just too calm for someone his age. He had seen the death and bodies around him and never even blinked, didn’t flinch, cry, or even show anything but acceptance that they were gone from this world. No child should be that calm about death.

 

   When he had learned of the stories the child and his guardians told was a major hint that they were not right, especially the story of the commander loved by all including the gods. The man in the story being described to look exactly like the child, including sharing his name was a bit too coincidental. That was what made him finally see if they had Character Profiles, the story of gods he’s never heard of and more just made him feel off. 

 

   Learning the adults were not even human had scared the shit out of the reader, though it explained so much from the blood drinking and speed. What it didn’t explain was their protectiveness towards the redhead or why they were even working together when their species were not really compatible. Looking at Cale’s profile though was what really sealed the deal.

 

   Even talking to the group had done nothing but give him more questions than answers. Why was the redhead 10 and not 20? Why was he traveling with a vampire and a dragon? Just how powerful was the group? Finally hearing that the commander had experience being sucked into stories had been…almost comforting. Well before he said he wasn’t talking about Ways of Survival and implying that he knew more than he was telling was terrifying.

 

   After that he decided to keep a close eye on the group. He saw with his own eyes that Cale had a lot of skills, skills the system couldn’t even level properly. He reasoned they were probably abilities he had before being brought here. He saw Cale let out a pressure that even canceled out fear from a tier 7 monster, made a stone spear appear from nowhere, mimicked magic fire, and even protected the reader with a holy looking shield.

 

   All to say that he never expected the man in the body of a child to cough out blood and fall to the ground unconscious. He first thought it was because there was a toll for using skills not of this world, though seeing Eruhaben and Fredo made that thought leave as soon as it entered. They looked worried but seemed to be used to this for it to be anything new.

 

   And wasn’t that a horrifying thought, that these powers the man possessed actually hurt him to use. He had seemed to be paler after protecting him with the shield, but seeing blood run down his chin and from his nose as he laid there after burning Cheon Inho didn’t seem worth it. Why would he use these abilities if they caused him so much pain?

---

 

   Currently the group was walking through the subway again, after the fight they had agreed they needed to get to the next station where the scenario was going on. Nobody seemed too keen on going with Cale still out of commission, he had stopped bleeding, thank god, but he was still out cold.

 

   Eruhaben was the one carrying Cale as they all walked, though they all seemed to be taking turns looking at the redhead as if hoping he would wake up as they moved. The constellations even seemed to be concerned, well who wouldn’t after seeing what they all saw?

 

   Cale’s constellation seemed to be the most concerned, messaging constantly to ask Fredo and Eruhaben about his condition and how much power he used. Dokja wasn’t even trying to spy on the group but overheard nonetheless. Though what he was hearing wasn’t exactly comforting.

 

   “He didn’t even use that much, I think this world is putting harsh limits on him.”

 

   “He isn't in danger of breaking his plate again, he was careful in not using much since he got them back.” 

 

   “I estimate he’ll wake up later today at the earliest or early tomorrow at the latest. So at least it isn't weeks like it normally would be.”

 

   They were so used to this man being in this condition, no they were used to it being worse. Dokja doesn’t even know what a ‘plate’ meant but from the way he said it it probably was related to his powers. He was curious now, another question he knew he probably won’t get answered.

---

 

   When Cale woke up the first thing he noticed was that he was laying on something soft, not bed soft but it wasn’t hard like the ground. He was tucked tight under a blanket making it difficult to move around except to turn his head. The commander was quick to take in his surroundings, wondering a bit how long he was out for this time.

 

   They were in another underground station, he knew it was different from the lack of people and signs of a battle. They must have continued to move to the next scenario after he fainted, good it would have been bad if they had waited for him to wake up.

 

   He was a bit surprised they hadn’t arrived yet, he knew that it wouldn’t take them all that long to arrive which means he wasn’t out for too long. This must be the station they took a rest in before arriving at the station for the scenario. From his memory Dokja should be out on his mission to get the items and skill from the monk statue.

 

   His thoughts were interrupted when the thing under his head moved, startling the man into turning his head. There looking down at him was Duke Fredo, his head was in the vampire’s lap. Cale actually settled a bit after figuring it out, he was too lazy and comfortable to move out of the embarrassing position.

 

   “Our sleeping commander finally wakes… you woke up earlier than expected.”

 

   “You overdid it, you unlucky bastard” 

 

   Eruhaben had been walking over carrying a handful of clothing, he must have been washing them as they did have a bit of a pile from the last few days. Cale was glad he thought to teach them stuff like that before everything started. He could see from behind Eruhaben the others aside from Dokja were near the restrooms. They probably hadn’t been at the station that long. 

 

   “Did they ask a lot of questions?”

 

   “Oh they were panicking, this was their first encounter with your bad habit. We managed to avoid the questions for now due to your condition but we won’t be able to keep that up for long.”

 

   “I’m guessing Dokja left on his “pilgrimage” already? How long has he been gone?”

 

   “He left a little while ago, I would guess he will be back in a few minutes.”

 

   “Good to know.”

 

   At this point Cale was already trying to sit up, he needed to start preparing for the inevitable. This was stopped quickly by Duke Fredo pushing him back down and back under the blanket.

 

   “You still need to rest, you may heal fast but you still need time to recover.”

 

   “I’m fine.”

 

   “Cale!”

 

   Cale almost jumped at the appearance of a new voice, it seems that the others had finally noticed he was awake. They were rushing over to the small group with relief clear on their faces as they saw the redhead awake and talking. Even the constellations who hadn’t noticed were coming forward.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is relieved to see their incarnation is awake.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is crying with relief.]

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light lets out a sigh of relief.]

 

[Constellation Warrior Without Rest is glad to see you’re awake.]

 

[Constellation Demon-like Judge of fire is happy to see you’re awake.]

 

   It was all a blur of concerned voices and messages as everyone moved to the man, all asking questions on his condition. Gilyoung even hugged the redhead in relief to see that his friend was ok. Sangah had given him a cooked leg to eat since he had been out for a few hours by that point.

 

   It wasn’t long after eating that Cale excused himself to change his clothes and clean up, there was still blood on him after all. He grabbed a fresh set of clothes from Duke Fredo and some soap before entering the restroom. While he’s off the others were sitting around, looking at the parents who just let their child go alone after being injured.

 

   “What was that all anyway? Why did he cough up blood and collapse?”

 

   Heewon seemed to break the tension with that question, the others following after her. It had been a terrifying experience to see someone so young cough up blood after killing a man right in front of them.

 

   Eruhaben and Duke Fredo seemed to think for a moment, looking at each other before responding. They needed to think of a reason that wouldn’t make them ask too many questions. It needed to be believable though, they had already shown they were used to seeing it meaning they can’t say it was from overusing his new abilities. 

 

   “Cale has always been a weak child since we first met him, his physical body is frail and he never has the energy to run around and play.”

 

   “He has a condition that when he overworks himself his body will start to break down, causing him fatigue at best or to bleed heavily and collapse at worst. This is not the worst we’ve seen him so we’re at least grateful for that.”

 

   “Using these new abilities must have caused his condition to act up.”

 

   The group seemed to freeze in place after hearing this, saddened by the new information they were given. This poor child has to deal with such an awful medical condition, he never got the chance to live as a normal child. Even now his abilities made his condition act up, using his power was hurting him.

 

   It wasn’t long after this revelation that Cale returned, clean but glaring daggers at the silver haired man. He was wearing a white dress shirt with a purple sweater vest, dark gray shorts, matching long socks, with black shoes and a little black bow around his neck. His shoulder length red hair was pulled into a small ponytail.

 

   “Ah look at you! You look so adorable, my little Naru!”

 

   Cale just sighs while the others are in deep confusion. Why was the man calling the redhead Naru? It was like physical question marks were appearing above their heads as they looked at the two. Fredo had hugged the boy, nuzzling his hair with his cheek while the redhead looked to be trying to escape his hold. Thankfully Eruhaben helps them out.

 

   “Fredo has a habit of calling Cale Naru as a nickname of sorts. It’s a joke that just never stopped.”

 

   “But why Naru?”

 

   “Fredo always wanted a child, a mini him of sorts. He would even dream of having a son that he named Naru. Cale is that son he desired so he called him Naru by accident and it just stuck as a nickname.”

 

   The group seems to nod in understanding as they watch Cale trying to escape the man. Dokja seemed to arrive during this, stopping at the entrance just to watch the vampire trying to keep a struggling Cale in his hold while continuously calling him cute.

 

   “What about you Eruhaben-ssi? Did you ever think about kids?”

 

   “No, I never had the desire to have children myself, I was just focused on myself until I was too old to even think about it. Cale was the first child I ever developed a parental attachment to.”

 

   Dokja had been walking over to the group when he heard that. So the dragon actually saw Cale as his child? It made him wonder about how they even got acquainted with each other. The same for the vampire as well, just how were they able to form a connection like this?

 

   “But Eruhaben-ssi, you don’t even look that old? How old are you and Fredo-ssi?”

 

   That seemed to be the que as Fredo walked back to the group holding Cale. The child looked like a man who had accepted and embraced his fate as he just relaxed in his hold. Did the commander tire himself out in the struggle? Or was he just too lazy to fight anymore?

 

   “What are you all talking about?”

 

   “Oh Cale-ya, we were asking about you, Eruhaben-ssi, and Fredo-ssi. We haven't really talked to you all much after arriving at the station. We were asking about age right now…actually now that I think about it, how old are you Cale-ya?”

 

   Cale seems to pause at the question, he wasn’t expecting these people to try and get to know them after the scene they made at the station. Them asking about their ages wasn’t too big an issue. When they had first arrived Cale had checked for everything, including I.Ds since they were important for living before the apocalypse. A year had passed so he just needed to adjust the ages.

 

   “Just call me Cale, I’m 10 years old. Abba is 32 and Abeoji is 34.”

 

   Cale was smiling sweetly even though he knew his guardians were staring at him. The entire time they’ve been in this world he’s only continued to call them by name. They knew what the words meant and seemed to pause at hearing the young redhead refer to the two as his fathers. Fredo seemed to light up as he hugged Cale tight and Eruhaben seemed to be pleased hearing himself be called father in Cale’s native language.

 

   “Ahh my adorable son finally called me Abba! I’m so happy.”

 

   Fredo was acting in his normal dramatic self as he cried happily, Eruhaben just shook his head at his antics.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander has unintelligible sobbing from the background.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander has “He’s my son!” coming from the background.]

 

[Many constellations are confused.]

 

   “Haha not anymore! You lost that privilege long ago, he’s my son now!”

 

   Cale just sighs as everyone was watching them in pure confusion. What on earth was happening? Cale was not looking forward to trying to fix this mess, how is he supposed to explain this? He glared at Fredo as if that would solve his problem, how dare this man give him more work. He could already see the theories running through the reader's head.

 

   “What does he mean-”

 

   “It doesn’t matter, shouldn’t we be leaving now?”

 

   It was very obvious Cale was trying to avoid the question but he had no ideas yet to explain what they just said. Why did that orb have to project background noise too? He’s gonna strangle that idiot god when he sees them.

Chapter 14: Trauma

Notes:

TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter involves depictions of child abuse. I will be putting a warning before and after for those who do not feel comfortable reading said content.

   The walk through the tunnels was a bit awkward after that, they were all still looking towards Cale with that same look that showed they had questions. Dokja had helped a bit in distracting them with items from the statue but after that it was back to those looks. 

 

   Cale was still refusing to look at Fredo, standing on the other side of Eruhaben to separate himself from the vampire. Said vampire didn’t even have the courtesy p to look guilty for the trouble he just caused for the redhead. He was even ignoring the messages from his family.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is sad that their incarnation is ignoring them.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is begging for their incarnation’s forgiveness.]

 

   Cale just sighs as he continues forward, he was really not looking forward to what was coming for them. Illusory Prison is a skill that monsters will be using to trap them all in their greatest traumas to drive them insane. Cale had no way of knowing what would be shown, he did not like the idea of his trauma being out for the constellations to see.

 

   His trauma could be anything, including things he had yet to tell his family about. It could show his experience getting the Top’s Whip from the island or even show things from his childhood, he was not ready to talk about them yet. Choi Han had confided in him after the war was over that he’d seen a young Kim Rok Soo during his trials but he didn’t know the extent of what he experienced.

 

   Well he didn’t get much time to fret over what would appear as they soon arrived to where it would begin. Before his eyes was the window that he dreaded.

 

[A new sub scenario has arrived!]  

 

   “Stand back, everyone.”

 

[Sub scenario- Illusory Prison]

 

Category: Sub

 

Difficulty: D-F

 

Clear Conditions: Escape the Illusory Prison within the given time limit.

 

Time Limit: 1 Hour

 

Reward: 300 coins

 

Penalty For Failure: ???

 

   “Illusory Prison? What could that be?”

 

[Sub scenario- Illusory Prison has begun!]

---

 

   Cale barely had time to think before he was thrust into the past, he could feel the skill pulling on the memories in his brain. It was searching, looking for the worst thing they could show him. His record made it easy for the skill to look into his mind for the memories, except that isn’t where it stopped. 

 

   Instead it dug deeper, to the time before he got his ability. It dug deeper and deeper till it found exactly what it wanted to show him. Right before his eyes he saw the small apartment covered in liquor bottles and old gambling tickets . He could see the worn flooring and old furniture that made up the interior of the place he had once feared to step foot into.

 

   And there amidst the empty bottles, at a small table in the middle of the room, was his uncle. The man who had adopted Rok Soo a while after his parents died, leaving the poor child an orphan. The man who was always more drunk than sober the entire time Rok Soo lived with him.

 

   Kim Seung Jong was a large man compared to how small and skinny Rok Soo was at the time, his body malnourished as it was. Looking around the room he found a mirror, showing he was back in his childhood body, his hair a deep black and wearing an oversized shirt that fully engulfed his small body.

 

   His musings were cut short as a bottle flew towards his head, barely able to dodge in time as it shattered against the wall. He looked over to see his uncle looking right at him with a flushed face indicating he was completely drunk. He could feel his body freeze in place from fear as he looked into his eyes.

 

   Those eyes showed no familial love an uncle should have for his nephew, the only thing he could see in his eyes was anger and hate. He barely had time to think before the man started moving towards him. He tried to run but his body was frozen, the fear was the only thing he could feel as he closed in on him. 

 

   He could feel the hands grabbing his shirt, feel the tears run down his face as the man yelled in his face, could feel it all as he was thrown to the floor like trash. 

 

   “You’re nothing but a burden! All you do is eat my food and take up space! If your parents hadn’t died I would never have had to deal with a brat like you!”

---

TRIGGER WARNING PLEASE SKIP IF YOU DON'T WISH TO READ! TRIGGER WARNING PLEASE SKIP IF YOU DON'T WISH TO READ! 

---

 

   The first kick brought with it pain that he never thought he would have to feel again. He had been so young when his uncle first hit him, it had left him confused and scared as he never knew what he did wrong. After growing up he realized no matter if he did anything or not he never deserved what that man put him through. 

 

   The second kick was harder, driving his small body back into the wall as pain bloomed in his ribs. He had burns on his arms from being dragged along the carpet from the force of the kick. Tears were streaming down his face against his will as his hair was grabbed by the man who once dared to call himself his family.

 

   “Rok Soo you never should have existed! You’re lucky I even let you live in my house instead of leaving you in that orphanage! I should have just left you there to suffer!”

 

   There was a stinging pain in his cheek after he was punched, his head slamming against an old cabinet. His body slumped down against it as the man kicked him again and again. He could feel his arm break as he used it to shield his ribs, blood trickling from the back of his head onto the floor below him.

 

   Time held no meaning as his uncle finally walked away, leaving his little body broken on the floor sobbing. He curled up as tight as his body was able with a broken arm and leg, looking for comfort wherever he could get it. 

 

   “I’m not a burden…I don’t deserve this. I didn’t do anything wrong….why does he hurt me? He’s my uncle, he should love me….why does he hurt me? What did I do to deserve this?...It’s not my fault….It’s not my fault…”

---

TRIGGER WARNING OVER IT IS SAFE TO READ BEYOND THIS POINT! TRIGGER WARNING OVER IT IS SAFE TO READ BEYOND THIS POINT!

---

 

   Cale jolted up, his brain running at full speed as he looked around at his surroundings. He was back in the subway tunnel, the illusion was over. It had felt so real, he could feel the pain as if it was real. He had tried to block those memories from his mind after he ran away, he never wanted to live through those ever again.

 

   Now he no longer had a choice, Record was a passive ability after all. It recorded everything from the pain he felt to his uncle’s face as he looked at him like he was nothing. He snapped himself out of those thoughts as he looked over to Fredo and Eruhaben who were looking towards him with concern. It seemed he was the last to wake besides Heewon who had to be knocked out.

 

   He could see tears running down Sangah’s face as he remembered, in the illusory prison they could hear you when you speak. They could hear his screams of pain, hear his words as he comforted himself, could see the tears as they ran down his face.

 

[Many constellations are looking at incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ with pity.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is exuding a large amount of blood lust.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is ready to drag a soul to his realm.]

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light wishes to join.]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain is in shock.]

 

[Constellations who love children are furious]

 

[you have been gifted 20,000 coins]

 

   Cale lets out a shaky sigh, he could still feel the tears running down his face as Fredo and Eruhaben rush over to hug him. He could see the others in the group as they looked at him with sadness, many were crying as they looked at him. He was surprised as he felt something wet hit his back before he realized…Eruhaben and Fredo were crying as well.

---

 

   Dokja didn’t know what to say, could he say anything at all? He knew what it was like to live in an abusive house, his father had abused him and his mother when he was young. However at least he had his mother to comfort him afterwards, from what he heard Cale had to comfort himself.

 

   There was a lot he could infer from the little information he heard. Cale was abused badly by his uncle, where were his parents? They were likely out of the picture, meaning Cale was an orphan who was taken in by an abusive uncle. He could hear the screams and saw him protecting his chest meaning the abuse was very bad, most likely breaking his bones.

 

   How he spoke was another hint, he spoke in Korean meaning this was likely before he became Cale as his name was very European meaning a separate language. Just how bad was his life before he became Cale? 

 

   As he watched Cale being hugged by the dragon and vampire he found he really didn’t want to know. The trauma this man must have gone through was not something he ever needed to learn, for both his and Cale’s sake.

 

   He had been lucky that Eruhaben had managed to snap out of that prison early, he did not need to deal with a dragon on a rampage this early on. Though from what Eruhaben did it was most likely about Cale too. He hadn’t even been angry in it or tried to attack, he had been standing there with a broken look as if watching someone he loved in deep pain.

 

   Fredo was similar, no attacks, no words, just standing there as if broken. Tears had been running down the vampire's face as he looked at something he couldn’t see. It made him wonder what the man was seeing to react like that.

 

   Well he didn’t have to think about it long, they needed to keep moving forward to the next station. They needed to move quickly as nobody was ready to fight in their condition. 

 

   “Who are you people?”

---

 

   Here it was, the time was getting close. There in front of the group was a young woman, only a highschooler still wearing her uniform only with track pants and a gray jacket. She pulled back the hood, revealing long black hair pulled back in a high ponytail. She seemed tough as she stood in front of them with a sword in her hands. That tough exterior shifted though upon seeing the crystals in Dokja’s hand, a trophy received after killing the creatures responsible for the Illusory Prison that had trapped them all. 

 

   Cale was looking at her while still in Eruhaben’s arms, the dragon had refused to set him down for even a second. Even Duke Fredo refused to move too far from them as they stayed near the back of the group. Cale could tell they had been affected by what they had seen (he had to admit even he was shaken from the experience) as they kept close, though he could tell that they were still worried about him. 

 

   “Huh? Did you… arrive here after defeating the specters?”

 

   Oh right, the highschooler. Cale remembered how she was described in the story, a girl thrown into the deep end and followed Yoo Joonghyuk like a lost puppy. Lee Jihye was known to be loyal but Cale found her to be easily confused, there were a lot of misunderstandings in this story with her contributing to them. 

 

   “How…? Only the Master knows how to defeat them!”

 

   Another thing Cale noticed about her was that she thought that Yoo Joonghyuk was the strongest, who held the most knowledge about this new world. She never thought that others could be just as strong or as knowledgeable about this new normal they had been thrust into. She was smart though, she followed the strongest and smartest she could to survive this apocalypse.

 

   “Follow me. I’ll take you to the station.”

 

   Nobody had to say a word for her to start leading them to the station where the next scenario was taking place. She never hesitated to bring them or questioned why they were here, she just did what she had to do and Cale could respect that.

 

[Main scenario #2- The Encounter]

 

Category: Main

 

Difficulty: E

 

Clear Conditions: Get through the tunnel and meet with the survivor of the first shelter zone

 

Time Limit: None

 

Reward: 500 coins

 

Penalty for Failure: ???

 

[Main Scenario #2- The Encounter has been Completed.]

 

[Rewards will be calculated.]

---

 

   It didn’t take the group long before they finally reached the station, the place where the third scenario was active. It was a much larger station, one consisting of multiple floors and even connected to a movie theater. They walk slowly as they take in the surroundings around them.

 

[You have entered Chungmuro.]

 

   “This place is eerie.”

 

[#GIR-8761 Channel is live.]

 

[#BIR-3642 Channel is live.]

 

   Cale needed to be careful not to use too many of his ancient powers here, more Dokkaebi means new Constellations that he doesn’t need the attention of. He only needs to milk these bastards of their coins and that was it. He was only going to do what he needed to do and that was it.

 

[The third main scenario is currently in progress]

 

   “Hey, little samurai. You’ve brought newbies.”

 

   “Yeah… Have you been drinking again?”

 

   “Hahaha, what else is there to do when the world is in ruins?”

 

   Cale just shook his head, these guys would get along great with Bud. Though he was curious if he could loot some of that booze from them himself. Being stuck in this small body and being treated like a child wasn’t exactly a picnic after all and he could use the drink.

 

   “Did your friends come from Dongguk University? I’m impressed. You must have earned a few coins along the way. What’s your name, little miss? I know a cheap room. Do you want it?”

 

   “Sorry? A room?”

 

   Cale just sighs, these people were disgusting to target Sangah with their bull. People will do anything to scam people of their money, including himself. He never said he was a good person either. This apocalypse revealed his past abuse; he might as well milk it for all its worth.

 

   “Ahjussi, why are you looking at Noona like that?”

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activates the skill ‘Acting Lv.10’]

 

   The redhead was deliberate in his movements, tilting his head like a confused child and pitching up his voice to sound younger. He made it look like he was realizing something and had his lips tremble as he looked at the two.

 

   “Wait…is that alcohol?”

 

   His little voice was shaky and quickly hid his face in Eruhaben’s neck, making his body shake violently. He could practically hear the glaring being thrown towards the two as the group circled around the commander who looked like he was having a panic attack.

 

[Many constellations feel a hatred towards alcoholics]

 

[Constellations who love children feel sad for incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’.]

 

[Constellation God of Wine and Ecstasy feels sad.]

 

   ‘When did Dionysus get here?’

 

   That message nearly shocked Cale right out of his act. Wait can’t the constellations see skill usage? Could they just not see his skill usage? He was very confused. He was definitely asking about that later.

 

[You have been gifted 200 coins.]

 

[Constellation God of Wine and Ecstasy gifted you 2000 coins.]

 

   “...If you value your life.”

 

   Cale moves his head to see Jihye threatening the men with her sword, he could see she seemed to be more pissed than what he remembered in the story. Was she affected by his acting too? Either way the men ran away quickly. He watched, still getting the fake tears out of his eyes as she walked towards him.

 

   “You ok kid?”

 

   This was weird, so she had definitely tricked too. He shouldn’t be surprised he was a strange child to her and she was fairly gullible.

 

   “Y-yeah I..I’m ok.”

 

   She seemed to take his answer and looked towards Dokja and the others.

 

   “I’ve done my part. You’re on your own from now on. I don’t wanna have to babysit you. I’m off.”

 

   “Yoo Joonghyuk is here too, right?”

 

   Cale nearly laughs, though he was still cleaning his face after the fake crying. She had stopped in her tracks the moment Dokja asked that question. It was like advertising that he was indeed here which would be bad if they had been an enemy.

 

   “Who are you?”

 

   “I’m Yoo Joonghyuk’s companion who returned alive.”

 

   “A companion? I don’t believe you.”

 

   “He’ll know who I am if you tell him that.”

 

   Cale just stopped listening at this point, he had more important things to think about. There was just no way he, Eruhaben, and Fredo could do anything without a room to avoid attention. He wasn’t going to kill anyone so that meant paying for one. He just hoped Dokja doesn’t make a big deal out of it, while he was fully capable it would change a lot if he paid for them all to stay in the room.

 

   ‘What to do?’

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander wishes to remind their incarnation to eat.]

 

   ‘Shit’

 

   He sighs, well he needed the food anyways and he knew if he ignored them it would only be trouble for him.

Chapter 15: Troublesome Events

Notes:

Hey everyone! I had to scramble for this chapter, I didn't like my first attempt and had to rewrite it just in time to post!

Big News! I've finally decided to make a Tumbler account! There I will post notifications on chapters, Updates in case of not being able to post that week, and if I ever get art or anything I'll have a place to see it!

If you wanna be a part of that my Tumbler name is the same as it is here! Hope to see you there!

   Cale was quick to decide that he needed to listen to his family, he knew that the eating was just an excuse to get them away from the group. He knew this, but he was not looking forward to it. Talking about his experiences has never been something he was comfortable with. He wasn’t against talking about it but trying to explain would just trigger his record making it something he had to relive if it was after the ability manifested.

 

   “Dokja hyung, my constellation says we need to go eat.”

 

   “Oh, right now?”

 

   “Yep, meet up again later?”

 

   “Yeah sure, go enjoy your meal and meet up again before the scenario starts ok?”

 

   “Ok.”

 

   The redhead had figured it would be for the best to tell Dokja they needed to move instead of just disappearing on him. If they had just left without a word he figured Dokja would come looking for them which would not be good if what he figures is about to happen happens. This was a private thing that the reader didn’t need to know about or listen to.

 

   They moved quickly up the stairs, getting looks as they moved up the floors of the station until they reached a quiet spot with not a lot of people around them. They didn’t go too far, just a floor up to be in a more private area. He could see people with their weapons raised at the sight of them, all of them huddled in a glowing green square. Cale raised his hands to show they mean no harm as they move through to avoid unnecessary confrontation. They just need to go to the area near the corner that was away from people to set up a private area.

 

   It didn’t take long to set up the area, having already done it multiple times and being used to this procedure. Though there was a difference, his guardians didn’t let him help set it up. Fredo had taken the food bag as they set up and brought out Korean meals they had stored in the bag instead of the normal Roan meals they had been eating. 

 

   The meal in front of Cale was a nice bowl of Tteokbokki with cheese, spring onion, and a boiled egg with a side of kimchi and fried pork dumplings. They had packed a lot of Korean dishes after trying them and even gathered recipes to share with Beacrox when they return, a nice surprise for the family and especially Choi Han. Speaking of the other Korean, Cale wondered if he could send some of the food through the system for Choi Han, could you even send gifts to constellations?

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ activates the skill ‘Spellcasting Lv.???’]

 

[Area is now soundproof to unauthorized personnel.]

 

   “Cale.”

 

   ‘Shit…’

 

   Cale had been distracted by the Korean food in front of him; he hadn't noticed the two adults were looking at him with pain in their eyes. He hated that look, it was one of the reasons he never talked about his childhood or his time before becoming Cale. 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says that his highness is on his way to the villa.]

 

   “You told him?! No, I never said you could tell him!”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “He has his own personal viewing orb in his office.”

 

   “So he saw that…damn it.”

 

   Cale did not like this at all, He didn’t want them to know. He didn’t want to remember and now thanks to record he will never be able to forget. He had just wanted to forget it happened and move on with his life with his new family. He knew they would want to talk about it and he just… he just wasn’t prepared for it.

 

   “Cale… Please talk to us?”

 

   “When Alberu arrives…I don’t wanna have to repeat the story.”

 

   They seemed to respect his wishes as they ate in silence, Cale enjoying the nice spice of the kimchi and the softness of the Tteokbokki. He accepts the distraction for what it is, he just didn’t even know where to start with talking about what they wanted to ask him. How was he supposed to tell them about how different a life he lived, how much he went through when he was still so young? It was only too soon when he saw the message in front of him. 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says softly “Cale… Dongsaeng please talk to me.”]

 

   “Cale…”

 

   “What do you want me to say? I already told you I was an orphan I just… I didn’t want you to know how bad it got.”

 

   “Cale please just tell us what happened…please?”

 

   Cale felt like something was trapped in his throat, the words he knew were there but couldn’t get out. This was something new for all of them, the redhead they had spent the war looking at his back looking so vulnerable in front of them. They had seen and heard the horror that he had been through at such a young age, what that man did to their family member. If they could they would kill that man for what he did to their commander, their friend, their family. 

 

   “After my parents died I was sent to an orphanage, that I told you all about before. What I didn’t tell you was that during that time they had found my uncle who came and took me in. He… He was a gambler and an alcoholic who was always more drunk than he was sober. He never gave me new clothes and I was rarely given food, he didn’t have money to waste on a poor orphan I guess.”

 

   They could tell this was hard for Cale to talk about, he took breaks during his sentences as if to find the words or get his thoughts in order. It explained a bit about his love of money and his reactions towards abuse, especially towards the children he called his own. He was a great parent and now they were learning he was just being what he needed all those years ago.

 

   “He didn’t hit me at first, would usually ignore me or scream at me. It actually shocked me the first time he did it, I was so young I had thought I did something to deserve it. I quickly learned that wasn’t the case. It was only after I was admitted to the hospital with broken bones and barely breathing that I was placed back in the orphanage.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “The scene we were shown?”]

 

   “Yep, that was the last day I was in his care. A neighbor heard the bangs and when I didn’t leave the house the next day they called the authorities. I was told I was lucky to be alive, that if I hadn’t protected my ribs like I did I could have died that day.”

 

   Cale looked up to his guardians, he needed to see their reactions. What he saw was shocking though. There was no pity, no disappointment or anything he was used to seeing after someone finds out about his abuse. No, instead there was only anger in their eyes. Anger that wasn’t directed at him but to his uncle Kim Seung Jong. Eruhaben’s eyes were slits and he was unconsciously gathering dust around them. Fredo wasn’t much better, he looked ready to throw grace out the window to kill someone. 

 

   Speaking of Fredo, he wasn't looking too well. His eyes were dilated and he seemed to be unconsciously tracking people around them as if looking at a walking meal. It had been a while since Fredo had blood, the vampire never telling them when he was thirsty. 

 

   “Eruhaben-nim, grab Fredo.”

 

   Cale’s words were clear in the silence that was the bubble around them, everyone having gone quiet to process what they had been told by the redhead. Still Eruhaben was quick to comply with the commander’s words as he grabbed the vampire quickly. Cale took out a dagger, just a normal dagger as he cut his hand to feed Fredo just like he did days ago on the subway. The vampire was quick to drink the blood flowing from the redhead’s wound, slowly calming as he did so.

 

   “We really need to work out a schedule for feeding you blood, it could have been bad if we didn’t notice and you attacked someone due to your thirst.”

 

   “Ah..yes I apologize… I didn’t know how to bring it up I guess.”

 

   “It’s fine but for now we will handle it every 3-5 days depending on the situation.”

 

   At least with this they were finally off the topic they had been on before, anything to get it to stop was a blessing for Cale. However they needed to get a plan for the scenario. They needed a safe space for the day, they could just kill for a spot but Cale didn’t like that idea so they needed the next best thing.

 

   “I’m planning to rent a room from Gong Pildu, we need a safe area so we don’t draw attention to ourselves. Dokja’s plan for the others doesn’t have enough for the 3 of us so we need to do what we can.”

 

   “Do you really think we can? I thought he charged high amounts to people outside his group?”

 

   “I have a plan.”

 

   People were crowded around, all trying to make their way to plead their case to the landlords for a room. They were scared and weak and that is exactly what those landlords wanted. They wanted to prey on those weak people who would do anything to stay alive but couldn’t fight others for a space to call their own. So they would promise them protection, promise them safety, and charge ridiculous amounts just to get it. These people put a price on human life and never looked back on their actions since to them all that mattered was coins. 

 

   Cale watched this all from Eruhaben’s arms as they made their way towards the crowd. This was a situation that couldn’t be solved with a riot or an uprising due to the threat to human life. Gong Pildu’s skill made it impossible to get in unnoticed and would fire on anyone he thought would harm his life. The only way to get in was to be willing to pay or to kill Gong Pildu, and Cale couldn’t do that without messing up the story.

 

   This was their only option to survive without drawing attention, they needed a green space and he was not about to abandon his morals just to hide from the eyes of the constellations and Dokkeabi alike. Now they just needed a way to get Gong Pildu’s attention, how to do it though would be tricky. Something caught Cale’s eye as he was thinking of a plan, the brown hair of one Gilyoung moving through the crowd with Dokja and the others farther behind. 

 

   Cale was quick to get Eruhaben’s attention, he needed to get to Gilyoung before he could fall into the barrier. They moved through the crowd to get to the kid as he pushed his way through, grabbing him just as he tripped. The last thing they needed was to antagonize the man in that moment….though it did give Cale an idea. 

 

   The plan quickly formed in his head as they moved Gilyoung back to where Dokja was, grabbing the reader as they went. 

---

 

   The Landlords were busy as usual, they had people crowding around begging for shelter from the approaching wave of monsters. These scenarios were deadly but they had a business to run and they were not about to let people into the space for free. Sure to some it seemed like they were profiting from the death but honestly they made more money if people survived, it’s not their fault some people just refused to pay the fee.

 

   They were so busy they almost missed the flash of yellow, white, and red rushing past until the green around them became red to signal someone trespassing on Gong Pildu’s private property. 

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ has trespassed onto private property!]

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ has trespassed onto private property!]

 

[Incarnation ‘Fredo Von Ejellan’ has trespassed onto private property!]

 

   There, stopped in place after the light turned red and being surrounded by the men were three people that were definitely new to the station. They seemed to be foreigners, probably tourists or the like who had been trapped in Korea when the scenarios started. They were very beautiful with strange hair colors and wearing very nice clothes so they were probably rich before everything started and their money became useless. 

 

   The group was two adults with a child who couldn’t be older than 10 in their arms, probably a family in this case. The one not holding the child was a man who was the pinnacle of what you would imagine a vampire to look like, his skin was very pale with violet eyes and long pure white hair that seemed to shine like silver tied in a low ponytail with a black ribbon. He was a very attractive man wearing a black and white collared shirt with a black leather jacket and dark slacks with black boots.

 

   The other adult was a beauty that was very difficult to tell if they were a man or a woman. They were like an elf from a fantasy with their beautiful long blonde hair that flowed down to their back and shining golden eyes, their ears even seemed to be pointed just like an elf. They were wearing a black turtleneck undershirt with a loose white long sleeve shirt over top. Around their waist was a white sweater over a pair of jeans and white shoes.

 

   In the elven beauty’s arms was a child that was also pretty tricky to tell the gender of. They had hair as red as fresh blood that reached a bit past their shoulders pulled in a small ponytail with a black ribbon and reddish-gray eyes that were akin to a fox. They were wearing a white dress shirt with a purple sweater vest, dark gray shorts, matching long socks, with black shoes and a little black bow around his neck. They 

 

   “Oi you’re trespassing on private property you know!”

 

   “They look like foreigners, do they even know what we’re saying?”

 

   Cale frowns, though in his head he’s smirking as the plan was going well, after they had grabbed the reader he had told his plan to the group. Cale was gonna have Eruhaben and Fredo pretend not to know any Korean, if they needed to talk they needed to speak in the Roan language. Cale would pretend to still be learning and do the talking as if he was translating. They would pretend they had an emergency with Cale’s ‘illness’ that they needed to get him to a safe place to care for him.

 

   Dokja would act from the side saying they were friends of Yoo Joonghyuk and that the reader and others could vouch for Cale having a serious illness that had flared earlier and needed to be checked over. What they didn’t need to know was that Cale would subtly be using his abilities to get it to be more authentic.

 

   “Before any of this though, Cale I would feel better if you upgraded some of your stats.”

 

   ‘What?’

 

   “You haven’t upgraded them since the bridge and it would be best to do so now before we go into the area.”

 

   Cale couldn’t argue with them, there was some truth to their words after all. This area was one where if something went wrong Gong Pildu could open fire on them, it would be best to be as prepared as possible for that outcome. He also knew that he had the coins to do it so there was no reason not to do it, so he relented and nodded his head.

 

[Investing 1,080 coins into ‘Strength’]

 

[Strength Lv.6 -> Strength Lv.10]

 

[Investing 1,080 coins into ‘Agility’]

 

[Agility Lv.6 -> Agility Lv.10]

 

[Investing 1,080 coins into ‘Stamina’]

 

[Stamina Lv.6 -> Stamina Lv.10]

 

   He had already decided not to touch his mana stat just yet as he was unsure about the level restrictions and wasn’t planning to draw attention to himself because of it. Though it’s funny to the redhead that upgrading his stats barely did anything to his large amount of coins he had saved.

 

   Back to the present Cale was looking at the men around them while Eruhaben and Fredo acted like they were confused and in a rush.

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ activated the skill ‘Acting Lv.3’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Fredo Von Ejellan’ activated the skill ‘Acting Lv.12’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activated the skill ‘Acting Lv.10’]

 

   “ These men are very annoying, do they seriously think they could stop us?”

 

   “They are not very smart and seems like they cant determine strength very well.”

 

   “Looks like they can’t understand a thing. Damn foreigners.”

 

   “Um…Hello?”

 

   There from the group came a young voice, they seemed shaky in their words as if they were unsure if they were saying the words correctly. It seemed the child knew Korean, if only a bit.

 

   “Oi brat, can you understand us?”

 

   “Y-yes sir…I’m..still learning…speaking but can understand.”

 

   “Good, tell your parents that they are trespassing and that they better pay a fee, or well-”

 

[Incarnation ‘Gong Pildu’ has activated the stigma ‘Militarized Zone Lv.3’]

 

   After those words large turrets materialized around the family, aiming right for them as if threatening to shoot. They weren't too big, seemingly about the height of Fredo’s waist but that didn’t mean they were weak. These guns could easily kill a normal man in a matter of seconds at the command of their owner.

 

   “ They are demanding the money like planned, keep it up you two.”

 

   “Good, lets just hope nothing goes wrong.”

 

   “Are you sure he’ll listen?”

 

   “Oh that’s not what I'm worried about, trust me on this.”

Chapter 16: Scamming

Notes:

Hey everyone here's yall's food for the week! Eat up!

I almost forgot **Trigger Warning** this chapter has a Korean word that is used as a slur for gay people, the Korean equivalent for the term "Fag or Faggot"

Thank you to Astrid_Evelynn and Zanithas in the comments! Their comments reminded me that I had used this word and that some people would be confused about it's meaning.

   Cale was known for a lot of things back in the Roan kingdom, a son of a duke, a commander, the ex trash, and being the king’s sworn brother are a few of the things he was known as. The one thing the people close to him could agree on though is that he was a scammer. His acting skills were on a level none of them could hope to reach and if he wanted to scam someone he would do it without a hitch. His plans were always flawless and he could scam his way into anything and out of anything in equal measure. 

 

   So after all they had witnessed, it was a relief to Cale’s family to see their young commander pulling yet another scam on someone. He was flawless, as always, acting fully as a child that could barely speak the language that they didn’t question him in the slightest. Hell if none of them knew better they would think he really was just a struggling child trying to be an interpreter, though the commentary only they could understand was very funny. 

 

[Gong Pildu is demanding a sum payment of 1,500 coins for trespassing.]

 

[All turrets in the area will initiate fire if his demands are not met.]

 

   “I’m sorry sir…they don’t understand…they said they thought this way was the bathroom?”

 

   “Not anymore it ain’t kid. Now tell your parents to pay up if you don’t wanna get shot.”

 

   “O-Ok..”

 

   Cale sighs, this guy was getting on his nerves a bit. He was seriously trying to scam money out of people they thought couldn’t understand them and threatening them with something they thought could kill them. He needed to relax, they just needed to continue with the plan. Dokja should be joining the conversation very soon anyways.

 

   “ These guys are stupid, they are buying this hook, line, and sinker. I swear how they survived this long I will never understand. ”

 

   “ Some of these guys keep looking at me strangely? What is with them? ”

 

   “T-they asked if we could pay it later?....I’m very sick and on the way here my illness flared up so they need to check on me.”

 

   The guys around them seemed to pause a bit at Cale’s words, thinking about what their response should be. Cale noticed this and did a small hand signal towards the reader who had been watching from the crowd. Dokja noticed the signal and nodded his head as he remembered his part in the plan.

 

   “Sir? Excuse me sir! I was traveling with these people and they’re not lying! The kid’s illness caused him to cough up blood and pass out, he only woke up a little bit ago!”

 

   That seemed to get the desired reaction judging from the quiet from the crowd around them, what once was people yelling about needing shelter was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Soon the crowd began to yell again, only this time it was at the men for a very different reason.

 

   “Are you seriously harassing a poor foreign family for money?!”

 

   “One that has a sick kid they need to check on?!”

 

   “How heartless are you fuckers!?”

 

   The yelling continued to get stronger as the people shouted their outrage at the men inside the green space. All the while Cale looked towards the one man who was controlling the very thing trying to threaten them. He was staring right at Gong Pildu who had looked up from his magazine towards the raging people. Now they just needed to ride the chaos.

 

   “Um..where is mister Gong Pildu so we could pay him?”

 

   As soon as the words left his mouth there was a trickle as something warm dripped from his nose. There for them to see was blood running down the face of a small child as these people threatened the small family. Cale had been constantly going through his records causing his body to heat up and finally his nose to start bleeding. It was the best he could think of without getting attention since Record was an ability that was always active, and with that it wouldn’t send a message to the constellations that he was using it. 

 

   Everyone except those who knew Cale well would think the child with the very bad illness was having a flare up. The sight caused the crowds yells to get louder as they reprimanded the men in the green space, screaming about how horrible they were to harass them. All the while they saw Eruhaben and Fredo kneel down to check him with concern.

 

   "What did you do? You unlucky bastard, why are you bleeding again?”

 

   “Did you use your ancient powers again? What are you doing?”

 

   Cale’s face looked red, sweat starting to form even though he had already stopped overworking his Record. His body was still hot and needed a bit before it would cool off again. Still Cale never stopped watching as the people around them started to throw things into the space and towards the people in the green space.

 

   Cale honestly wasn’t expecting that big of a reaction towards what they were doing. Yes he was expecting and fully trying to get the crowd to turn on Gong Pildu and his group but they were a lot more passionate than he thought. Now he just needed to talk to the man that led it all, he needed to talk with the owner of the turrets.

 

   “Wh-where is mister Gong Pildu? I know you aren’t him..”

 

   “Wait what?”

 

   “Mister Gong Pildu, we have the money to pay the fine..”

 

   Cale was smirking inside as his eyes met the man, he never looked away as the man stopped in surprise. He didn’t understand how the child knew he was Gong Pildu and it was written all over his face. Cale moved towards the man, some of the turrets following his movements until he stood right in front of the man.

 

   “Mister Gong Pildu? I have the coins…also could you please..tell your men to stop looking at Abeoji like that?”

 

   “Wait what?”

 

   The men seemed to realize very quickly what Cale meant with his words, the ones staring at Eruhaben immediately taking steps back in shock. The elven-like beauty they had been looking at was a man! Wait then who was the white haired man in the group?

 

   “Appa doesn’t like that you’re all staring at Abeoji either.”

 

   Now Cale was expecting a reaction from someone, it wasn’t like that type of thing was unknown in Korea but it wasn’t exactly widely accepted. He didn’t, however, expect one of the men to fully recoil in disgust before yelling at the group.

 

   “Gross it’s two dongkochung-”

 

   That man did not get to speak anymore, as soon as that word left his mouth he was dead on his feet. The screen for skill activation didn’t even have time to pop up before the man fell to the ground dead, a spear of stone having flown through his head.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activated the skill ‘Super Rock Lv.???’]

 

   It had been entirely a rage filled instinct that he had killed that man, he was already very familiar with that word and it never should have reappeared in front of him again. Cale was not about to let that word anywhere near his family, whether they knew what the word meant or not. He had been lucky that it was more widely accepted in the Roan kingdom, he hadn’t had to remember that word in the years he spent there with his family.

 

   Everyone was beyond just quiet as they stared at the scene before them. To them the spear had come out of nowhere as it struck the man down, they didn’t even realize it was the child that had done it. However the few that knew, the few that had seen the spear before, knew exactly who had killed the man who had just said such a hateful slur towards his family. 

 

   They weren’t the only ones who knew Cale had been the one to kill the man, multiple constellations were going nuts after witnessing it. To the ones watching through the star streams knew that what was said was a slur, one that should never be repeated. They had felt anger towards the man but it had left as soon as it started from the instant kill from the redheaded child. 

 

   “W-what the hell?!”

 

   “What just happened?”

 

   “Who…How?”

 

   Cale could feel the eyes of his guardians and Dokja’s group boring into him but he never stops looking at Gong Pildu. He was not about to let this ruin what he had planned. He knew that Yoo Joonghyuk would be there any minute so he needed to finish this up now.

 

   “Gong Pildu-ssi.”

 

   He wasn’t even trying to hide his ability to speak well anymore, everyone was too distracted and he was talking only for the older man to hear him in the first place. He could honestly use this entire situation to his advantage if he played his cards right.

 

   “How much for three people to stay in the green space? And I would hurry if you want to conduct business before Yoo Joonghyuk arrives.”

 

   “What are you talking about brat?”

 

   “I just mean if he arrives before we finish our transaction you will lose your chance to earn coins.”

 

   “...You had something to do with the spear didn’t you?”

 

   “You wanna test that hypothesis or do you wanna earn some coins?”

 

   Gong Pildu seemed to be at a loss of what to do, he knew this kid in front of him had something to do with the death of one of his members. If this kid was capable of killing a man in seconds he may be too dangerous to mess with. The kid had also mentioned that if Yoo Joonghyuk showed up then there would be no chance for business, what did he mean by that? This was not an ideal situation but he was also curious about the kid in front of him.

 

   “I usually don’t rent to those outside the landlord association.”

 

   “But will you really pass up the money?”

 

   [Incarnation ‘Gong Pildu’ activated the skill ‘Calculate Profit Lv.2]

 

   “500 coins each daily plus you need to pay the trespassing fee. 3,000 total coins here and now.”

 

   “Discount.”

 

   “... Excuse me?”

 

   “Your group not only threatened me and my family but stared at my Abeoji and called them a slur after learning he was a man. Even if he’s dead you as the leader are to be held responsible for the actions of your members. Or else you want to lose the deal entirely?”

 

   This brat was interesting, he knew business well and talked with a purpose that was not even found in most adults. Just who the heck is this kid and how did he learn to do something like this?

 

   “2,500 total.”

 

   “1,000.”

 

   “Hell no, I’m already lowering the price by 500.”

 

   “950.”

 

   “You little punk, 2,000.”

 

   “850.”

 

   “1,500, I’ll waive the trespassing fee. Take it or get out.”

 

   The smile that appeared on the little redhead’s face could make a weaker man feel shivers up their spine. This kid was born to be a scammer with a smile like that appearing so naturally on his face like that.

 

   “Pleasure doing business with you Gong Pildu-ssi!”

 

[You have paid 1,500 coins]

 

   The kid smirks as the red faded and the turrets disappeared, turning it into a childish smile as he walked back over to his guardians. The group was staring in confusion as the child stopped in front of them, seeming to be trying to hold back a laugh.

 

   “Spots secured, come on, let's go set up over by the wall.”

 

   “Oh I’m so proud of you.”

 

   The group could feel their eyes grow wide and jaws drop as the two adults smiled at the young redhead, speaking and understanding Korean as if they weren’t just looking confused minutes prior. These people tricked them! The kid didn’t even seem guilty as they split again, the guardians moving to the wall to set up their arrangements while the kid moved over to the black haired man who had yelled at them earlier.

 

   Cale was smiling as he walked over to Dokja, the reader was still looking at him with the same look he'd been giving him since he killed the man. However instead of it being horrified or disappointed he seemed more confused about his actions. It was understandable really, Cale wasn’t exactly the type to act violently if he didn’t have to. Dokja had only ever seen him act violently once and it led to Cale passing out in his own blood.

 

   “Can I ask why you did it?”

 

   “Before we continue I wanna try something.”

 

   Cale knew that the conversation they were about to have was one he didn’t need other people hearing. Even so Eruhaben was in the green space to set up the area so he wasn’t here to cast a soundproofing spell. Cale had seen it when he looked at his stats earlier, he had a stigma from his constellation and he had a good idea about what it could do.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activated his stigma ‘Help from Family’]

 

[please state the name of the family member and what you need help with.]

 

   “Raon, I need you to soundproof the area for everyone except me, Dokja, Yoo Joonghyuk when he arrives, and you guys.”

 

[Family member agrees to help.]

 

[Area is now soundproof.]

 

   The two had walked away from the crowd for a small talk, they still needed to meet up with Yoo Joonghyuk after all. They had moved to be closer to the stairs for the talk without the others. Cale smiles a bit, feeling the familiar feeling of his child’s magic surrounding the area around him, he had missed it more than he realized.

 

   “I don’t like that word… They were technically wrong in their target since they aren’t…. Right now I guess they would be considered platonic partners.”

 

   “Wait a second, they’re your parents but they aren’t together?”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is laughing while another is pouting.]

 

   “Cale-ya don’t take this the wrong way but your constellation confuses me.”

 

   “Yeah I get that, lets just say they are sharing right now.”

 

   “Wait what?”

 

   “Anyways back to the topic, they had the wrong target for that word but… we’ll say the right target heard it and reacted.”

 

   Cale could see the gears turning in Dokja’s head as he thought over the information Cale gave him. While he waited for a response from the reader he looked around to see if Yoo Joonghyuk was getting close, he needed to talk with both of them after all.

 

   “Cale…are you?”

 

   “Yep, he finally asked me in the stupidest way possible.”

 

   Before Dokja could ask anymore questions about the redhead’s confession they were interrupted by someone walking over to the group. There in front of them, frozen in place at the sight of the reader still alive, was Yoo Joonghyuk. The swordsman was looking at Dokja with pure confusion as if he had no idea how the reader could possibly be alive in front of him at that moment.

 

   “Hey, Joonghyuk. How are you? Looks like you’ve been doing good.”

 

   Cale watched in amusement as Yoo Joonghyuk looked at the reader before his attention was drawn down to where Cale was standing. As much as Cale had wanted to avoid the swordsman he knew they needed to talk while he was here, these were the only two people who knew he was from another world after all.

 

   Yoo Joonghyuk seemed even more confused at seeing the redhead with the reader, looking between the two of them. Cale knew that Dokja would have activated that weird mind reading ability of his so he looked over at the reader, seeing Dokja looking down at him with a confused face. 

 

   ‘This is going to be a long conversation.’

 

   ‘I was right.’

 

   Cale sighs into his hands as he looks between the two in front of him, he had already explained the area was soundproof but he wasn’t expecting to get asked a lot of questions as soon as the swordsman got over his shock.

 

   “Why are you with him?”

 

   “We met at the station after you left and we went with him to come here.”

 

   “Why didn’t you just come with me?”

 

   “Because you attract a lot of attention and I don’t need the headache.”

 

   “But why him?”

 

   “Because reasons, I don’t need to tell you anything.”

 

   Cale could feel Dokja staring at him as he navigated the questions given to him by the swordsman, the confusion clear on his face. He could already feel the headache coming as the reader moved closer to where Yoo Joonghyuk was interrogating him. 

 

   “So you two know each other?”

 

   “He brought us to the station, he left the day before you arrived.”

 

   “I know that, but why is he acting like this?”

 

   “He found out about me, Eruhaben, and Fredo pretty quickly, tried to get us to go with him but we refused. Going with him would ruin my dream.”

 

   “Your dream? What is your dream?”

 

   “To leave and go back home to my long overdue slacker life.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander sighs and looks at their poor commander.]

 

   “Your highness, shining sun of our kingdom, when I get home if I am not allowed my rest there will be hell to pay.”

 

[Army Without a Commander says “Cale Henituse, our shining star and guiding light in our darkest hour, that was not directed at you. Clopeh seems to have learned of your…situation.”]

 

   Both men watched the commander turned child as his smile turned into a menacing expression, now they were curious as to who this man was to cause such an intense reaction from the redhead.

 

   ‘Oh no…”

 

   “How did he find out?”

Chapter 17: Chaos is truly beautiful

Notes:

Guess who's back? Back again! There will be a note from me at the end of the chapter.

   Cale had such a big headache right now. Hearing that Clopeh found out about this was a shock to be sure and he had no way of dealing with the situation at the moment. It turned out that Cage had decided to go drinking in the Henituse territory after dealing with the God of Death and in her drunken haze she told someone. From there word spread around the kingdom until finally it was too much of a problem to contain. Of all the people to let it slip he was not expecting Cage to be the one who leaked it.

 

 

 

 

   The redhead was back in the green zone with Eruhaben and Fredo, the monsters were due to break in any minute now. Cale had spent the time talking to the regressor and the reader, they needed to get them out of the way or communications with them would end up confusing at best or disastrous at worse.

 

 

 

 

   Cale never thought he’d be in this position again, staring up at two Korean men as they questioned him. The last time was with Lee Soo Hyuk and Choi Jung Soo after he asked about his birthday a month after it passed. He can still hear them yelling at him for not telling them as his hyungs despite Choi Jung Soo being the same age as him. 

 

 

 

 

   Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk were both just staring at the young commander, as if trying to figure out how to ask him. Joonghyuk, not one to beat around the bush, is the one to ask the question. 

 

 

 

 

   “Who’s Clopeh?”

 

 

 

 

   ‘Huh?’

 

 

 

 

   “Why is that your question?”

 

 

 

 

   “Because we had to witness you cursing a god with every swear under the sun for the last 10 minutes. Then had to witness you being scolded by your sponsor for another 5 while the god you cursed at cried.”

 

 

 

 

   Cale’s eye twitches at the reminder, he had not taken the news of how Clopeh learned about his situation well and had cursed at the god with every swear he knew for causing this problem in the first place. He had actually asked Raon to let the God of Death have permission to hear him just so he could curse at him. After he was scolded by his father and Ron for cursing in front of the children (And earning Bud’s and Cage’s respect for how many swears he knew) his family had strangely gone quiet.

 

 

 

 

   “Clopeh was a useful tool I got during the war, the Guardian knight from the north that was obsessed with legends and wanted to become a living legend himself. Now though he is a crazy bastard that started a cult to worship me as well as published books and built a museum dedicated to my actions during the war.”

 

 

 

 

   Cale had never seen two grown men go from questioning to absolutely dumbstruck so fast before, it was impressive. 

 

 

 

 

   “You have a cult dedicated to you?”

 

 

 

 

   “Not of my free will.”

 

 

 

 

   “I could guess as much.” 

 

 

 

 

   Cale just sighs as he remembers it, leaning back against Eruhaben as he waits for the monsters to break in. He was curious what his family was doing to be so quiet after everything, they still haven’t returned yet and he was starting to get a bit curious. Did something happen over there that required them all to go deal with it?

 

 

 

 

   🌪️- I’m sure it’s fine Cale.-

 

 

 

 

   🛡️- Yeah maybe they just left to take a break or something?-

 

 

 

 

   🔥- Not even Raon is messaging him, do you really think he would leave Cale without a reason?-

 

 

 

 

   🪨- Do you think this is their form of a punishment?-

 

 

 

 

   🔥- No way. This is too tame to be a punishment from them. If this was a punishment then they’d do something more drastic like bring in…-

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is smiling like a maniac.]

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander yells “My legend! Cale-nim!”]

 

 

 

 

[Many constellations are confused by their fellow constellation’s behavior.]

 

 

 

 

   Cale nearly falls over as the messages suddenly appear in front of him, he almost looks paler than normal as he rereads what it says. The redhead knew that they were upset with him, but would they actually do this to him? They wouldn’t actually throw him to the wolves like this would they? Cale sat up as he looked at the message and looked around him, hoping others couldn’t see this. 

 

 

 

 

    Eruhaben, noticing the redhead sitting up, looks over to check on him. The ancient dragon seemed confused as he looked at his young charge. As soon as he sees the message though, he understands completely why the redhead looks paler than usual. The man’s face nearly splits into a grin as he looks between the message and the young commander in front of him.

 

 

 

 

   “Oh you poor unlucky bastard. What did you do away from us that they would punish you like this?”

 

 

 

 

   🔥- I knew it!-

 

 

 

 

   🛡️- Oh poor Cale..-

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says “Oh Cale-nim you truly are a legend worth following! To go on a mission like this!”]

 

 

 

 

   Cale sighs and puts his face in his hands, now finally regretting his earlier outburst of anger towards the gods. To his credit he had a right to be angry, but for them to actually punish him by giving the orb to Clopeh is just cruel. Cale would prefer drinking the lemonade and lemon tea than to deal with Clopeh right now. He just hoped they confiscated all his video and audio recording devices before letting him have it. 

 

 

 

 

   “Clopeh, this is not a place to act like this. You are a constellation now, so behave like one.”

 

 

 

 

   There was a reason the young commander kept this crazy bastard around during the war with the White Star, he may be crazy but he was also smart. Give him a task and he will complete it without incidents. He knew how to hide his crazy from people, it was one of the things that scared Cale so much. He was a good actor, and that made him dangerous. So he knew if he ordered the crazy bastard to do something, he'd do it.

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander nods their head in understanding.]

 

 

 

 

[Many Constellations are confused by this interaction.]

 

 

 

 

   Cale couldn't afford to focus on Clopeh at the moment. He had other things to worry about, he knew he would do his task correctly, so there was no need to worry. Right now Cale needed to worry about what he would do after this monster attack. Cale knew this couldn't continue the way that things are. He knew they had to do Dokja's plan to finish the scenario quickly. Cale will help the reader this one time, just this once to get this over with.

 

 

 

 

[1 Hour remaining until the Third scenario is activated]

 

 

 

 

   The time is getting closer, Dokja’s group would have learned about the green spaces by now and have probably received the scenario update by now. Actually Cale hasn’t even received that window yet despite getting this far, he’d need to talk to the Dokkaebi about that.

 

 

 

 

   “Oi Bihyung, are you listening?”

 

 

 

 

   Cale didn’t know what he was expecting from the white fuzzball, he seemed to be the dramatic type but the lights and crackling were starting to get old. 

 

 

 

 

   “How did you-?”

 

 

 

 

   “Doesn’t matter. Aren’t you supposed to give us something?”

 

 

 

 

   Watching the Dokkaebi deflate was kinda entertaining if Cale was being honest. He probably forgot all about the redhead and his guardians in his attempt to follow the reader. Bihyung sighs in front of him, looking both deflated and annoyed as he snaps his fingers. Right on que the blue screens appeared in front of Cale and the long lived beings next to him.

 

 

 

 

[Main Scenario #3- Green Zone (Day 3)]

 

 

 

 

Category: Main

 

 

 

 

Difficulty: C

 

 

 

 

Clear conditions: Occupy a green zone in the station and survive the monsters that emerge each night at midnight. This scenario will last for 7 days.

 

 

 

 

Duration: 8 Hours

 

 

 

 

Reward: 1,000 coins

 

 

 

 

Penalty for Failure:-

 

 

 

 

   “How did you know?”

 

 

 

 

   “Took a wild guess.”

 

 

 

 

   “And my name? Did he-”

 

 

 

 

   “He didn’t, and you don’t need that answer. Now go back to following Dokja or something, I’m taking a nap.”

 

 

 

 

   Cale has probably never seen a creature more powerful than him look so offended before. He didn’t really care though as he settled himself against the wall to take a nap, he needed the energy for what Dokja is gonna put him through later. As he settles, Bihyung disappears in a flash of sparks, seeming to want to get away from the redhead as quickly as possible. For some reason he feels an aura of death and danger whenever he gets close to the child and his parents, he just didn’t understand why that is. They were only humans, they were no match for a Dokkaebi. Right?

 

 

 

 

   Cale was a bit tempted to kill these monsters himself for interrupting his nap. After dealing with all the bullshit he had to that day he deserved that nap, only to be awoken by the growls and screams as the monsters swarmed the station. However, even though he was awake, he didn’t open his eyes. He knows well the consequence that would follow if he dared to open them, his record able to take in every detail as monsters ripped people unfortunate enough not to get a green space.

 

 

 

 

   Could Cale have helped these people, paid for them to gain a safe spot in Gong Pildu’s green space? Yes he could have, but that would never have worked in the long run. Soon this space would be no more and these people needed more than kindness to survive. Cale is not a good person, he will never call himself a good person. A good person would help these people without hesitation, would fight without looking at the fact that these people would die without their protection. The truth of the matter is that Cale is not a good person and that saving these people would not be beneficial in the long run. 

 

 

 

 

   And so he lays there with his head on Eruhaben’s lap, his eyes shut to the horrors of the monsters ripping apart flesh and bone while the ancient dragon covers them in a soundproof barrier. Soon the sounds of screams and snapping of bone fades away, blocked by magic, and yet still he keeps his eyes shut. His record has worked differently since the scenarios started, he will remember even when he wishes to forget. Usually Cale could control if he wished to remember or not as his ability was selective. This wasn’t the case in this world, always running, always recording, never to forget the horrors he may accidentally witness if he fails to cover his eyes and ears in time. 

 

 

 

 

   By the time it was over and done with, Cale had no desire to look. Even as the sounds faded away, the remains of those who hadn’t made it would haunt him. It wasn’t until Eruhaben dropped the barrier that Cale dared to open his eyes, knowing that the ancient dragon wouldn’t have dropped the soundproofing unless it was truly safe to do so. The sight he met when he opened his eyes was the station, the green of the safe spaces already dimming as the monsters had retreated with their meals. As horrible as that may be, the most important part was survival. Nothing else was more important in this world than that. 

 

 

 

 

   Sitting up, Cale took the opportunity to see where the spaces were and how many had disappeared. Fredo and Eruhaben seem to have the same idea as him as they look around at the survivors with similar looks to their young commander.

 

 

 

 

   “Hard to know the exact number of survivors and how many spaces remain from here.”

 

 

 

 

   “From this position there is a visible decline in survivors and green spaces. The dokkaebi took the opportunity to get rid of some of the spaces during the attack.”

 

 

 

 

   “What’s our next move?”

 

 

 

 

   The two look to Cale, the young redhead thinking and searching through his records for what will happen next. A lot of important events will happen quickly, one after the other and they need to be ready for each and every one of them. There was no telling what their involvement may change or what difficulties could arise during the events. Still it was impossible to sit them out when Cale had to make sure nothing goes wrong with the story. 

 

 

 

 

   Reluctantly he knew what they had to do next, though Cale didn’t want to get involved he had to for the future of their survival and to spread the stories without issues. He already had an idea that he needed to talk to the reader about anyways to spread them with more efficiency. Cale wasn’t going to forget their mission, their reason for being here in the first place. He just had to spread the gods' stories enough and then they could go home, back to his villa with his family and children. Yet he knew he would be unable to do so unless he made sure these scenarios go the way they are supposed to. 

 

 

 

 

   With a sigh Cale stood up, looking at the two adults he called his guardians. The ancient dragon and the vampire duke both looking to him for a plan, what was his life? He didn’t have the time to go over that right now though, he had things to do and people to meet. Specifically one sacrificial reader.

 

 

 

 

   “I need to go talk to Dokja. Right now he’s the one that guides the story, so we just need to work with him to get through everything and do our own mission as we can. A lot is about to happen very quickly and it would be safer to be on his side when it does.”

 

 

 

 

   Cale could do a lot of things with the information at his disposal, from knowing the story of this world he could have worked to avoid the main character and his companions pretty easily. The reasons he didn’t was simple really, he didn’t want to make this harder on himself and his guardians to survive. Going along with Dokja made it so he didn’t have to do as much as he would have if they were left to themselves. Going with Dokja just meant it was easier to slack off as the reader did most of the work. Besides they had their own jobs to focus on, speaking of which…

 

 

 

 

   “I’ll go talk to Dokja tomorrow, I’ll need you both to spread those dumbass stories for those bastard gods.”

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Rest Without End feels upset from your words.]

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light feels a bit offended to be put in the same category as Constellation Rest Without End.]

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Warrior Without Rest agrees with Constellation Ruler of Light.]

 

 

 

 

[Constellation Rest Without End says he’s better than Constellation Laughing at Pain.]

 

 

 

 

   That sentence gave Cale pause. For a while now Cale has been trying to figure out how the God of Despair got here when he was supposed to be sealed under the God of Death’s jurisdiction. Maybe it was because the God of Death could join so by association so could the God of Despair? There were a lot of questions for that specifically that Cale was too lazy to ask, he’ll figure it out later. For now he needed to  get some rest before they split up to get this done and figure out if he should go to the movie dungeon or not later with Dokja.

 

 

 

 

   It was a challenge to get to sleep that night, yet all too easy to sleep through the night. It probably wasn’t too difficult for Eruhaben to keep the soundproof barrier up but they would need rest after everything they experienced that day. It took Cale the longest to fall asleep, his mind still thinking about what he should do when it was time. Should he enter the movie dungeon with Dokja? The rewards he could receive from there could actually make it worth the trip. But who should he bring with him? Eruhaben seemed like a good choice but Fredo was a strong fighter and hasn’t gotten to prove himself as much as the ancient dragon has. He’ll need to sleep on it, and sleep on it he did.

 

 

 

 

   Splitting from Eruhaben and Fredo in the morning so they could do their jobs, the redhead started making his way down the steps deeper into the station. It wasn’t long until Cale spotted the group, the girls giggling to themselves a bit as Dokja’s head was on Hyunsung’s thigh. Good thing was that he was at least awake, so Cale didn’t have to wait for the reader to regain consciousness. The young redhead walks over to the group as the reader gets up to start planning.

 

 

 

 

   “ Yawn What are the plans for tonight? We could always do what we did yesterday…”

 

 

 

 

   “No. That was a one-time thing. We will put an end to the third scenario today.”

 

 

 

 

   “What? How?”

 

 

 

 

   Looks like Cale arrived at the perfect time as he makes it to the group. It seems the reader hasn’t noticed his arrival quite yet, nor has the rest of the group as he walks right past them towards Dokja.

 

 

 

 

   “First of all, Let’s go hunt down the landlord.”

 

 

 

 

   “Oh, Cale-ah.”

 

 

 

 

   Leave it to Sangah to notice the redhead, not that Cale was complaining as it honestly saved him time on trying to get their attention. Seeing the Reader whip around in confusion to the young commander, he could see the plans forming behind his eyes. Cale didn’t hesitate.

 

 

 

 

   “Whatever you’re planning, me and my guardians will assist you.”

 

 

 

 

   Dokja’s surprise faded into a smirk.

Notes:

Thank you all so much for all the love and support for my Hiatus. While I never wanted to do that to you all I am so happy for all the comments I got wishing me well. While my issue is not completely back to normal it has improved quite a bit. This will mean, however, that updates to this story will be posted irregularly and may take more time to write than before. This is so I do not have the pressure of maintaining a schedule while I monitor my health for any relapses or signs of decline. Thank you for your understanding and patience these last couple months.

Chapter 18: Ending the Third Scenario (Pt.1)

Notes:

Time for the monthly update!

   ‘Maybe it had been a bad idea to offer our services to the reader.’

 

   Cale was starting to regret his decisions as he sat down, waiting for Dokja and his group to finish encouraging Hyunsung so that his attribute would blossom. Watching Heewon of all people during her try was like watching a car crash, it was so bad but he just couldn’t look away from the sheer stupidity that was her attempt. Even Dokja facepalmed at how bad her attempt was. Sangah’s and Gilyoung’s attempts were more successful at least so that was good for them, however Cale was contemplating if he should say anything to the shield carrying soldier. Even though it wasn’t necessary, it was something Cale wanted to say to the man who would act as the group's shield during hard moments.

 

   Dokja was a bit surprised to see the redheaded commander stand up and walk over to Hyunsung, who was holding his shield while in thought. The soldier seemed to notice Cale approaching and sat up in surprise as he wasn’t expecting the child. 

 

   “Hmm, do you need something Cale-ah?”

 

   Cale stopped in front of the man and just stared at him for a moment, looking into his eyes as if searching for something. After a moment Cale turned around with his back to the soldier, holding his hand out in front of him. 

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ activated the skill 'Indestructible Shield Lv.???’]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is ecstatic to see this skill again.] 

 

[Constellations of absolute good are happy to see this skill again.] 

 

   Hyunsung watched in astonishment as a glowing silver shield appeared in front of the child, a faint trail of light attaching it to the young redhead. It was beautiful as white wings sprouted from the shield as if to protect the owner from any threats. Even Dokja and his group who had been watching from the sidelines were in awe at the return of the holy looking silver shield. 

 

   “Lee Hyunsung…”

 

   The soldier was quick to take his eyes off the shield, instead looking at its owner as he called his name. 

 

   “Listen well and remember it. You carry a shield, and while your strength is great you must remember what a shield is meant to do. Your most important job is to protect your people, to keep them from harm and to never waver. The shield must not break, lest those you wish to protect get hurt.”

 

   There was something so powerful in those words, as if this child knows from experience what would happen if the shield fell. This boy talked like a leader with people to protect, and though he was small, his back looked so large. Hyunsung saw behind the child in that brief moment. He could see the strong leader this boy was, how he would do anything to protect those he cared about. It was inspiring.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ deactivates the skill ‘Indestructible Shield Lv.???’]

 

   With the shield fading from view, Cale turned around to face the soldier. He smiled at the man who would be Dokja’s shield, the man whose strength and drive to protect would lead him well. Hyunsung smiled back at the redhead who’s shield was holy and showed his will to protect all he cared for. With a simple nod Cale turned and walked away back to Dokja and his group, leaving the soldier to think about this interaction with a fellow shield user. When Cale arrived back to where Dokja and his group were waiting for him, he was a bit surprised by the way they were looking at him. It wasn’t as if he did anything grand or said anything huge to the soldier, just a reminder of what it means to be a shield for others. Yet these people were looking at the redhead as if he said something so profound and amazing.

 

   “That was amazing Cale-ah!”

 

   “Your shield ability is so pretty!”

 

   “I know right?! It looked so holy too!”

 

[Multiple Constellations are in awe of Incarnation Cale Henituse’s words.]

 

[You have been gifted 1500 coins]

 

   Cale was dumbfounded at the attention he was receiving from the group and the Constellations as it really wasn’t anything that special. Sure he knew how his shield ancient power looked and how holy it appeared but it truly wasn’t as big a deal as they're making it out to be. Gilyoung seemed to be the one to remember what happened the last time he used his ancient powers as he slowly approached the redhead as if he was a feral cat ready to run away at the slightest noise.

 

   “Cale, are you feeling ok? You don’t feel faint do you?”

 

   That seemed to reign everyone back in, but only for a moment as they surrounded the redhead with concern on their faces. Cale couldn’t even get away before he was cornered by the girls and child who were concerned for his health. Even Dokja seemed a bit concerned for the young commander in a child’s body.

 

   “Cale-ah are you ok? You didn’t hurt yourself just to encourage Hyunsung did you?”

 

   “Do you feel dizzy? Do you need to lie down?”

 

   Cale was reminded a bit of his family at this moment, their concern for him each time he used his ancient powers during the war and how they would hound him on if he was ok. It was almost sweet in a way if it weren’t for the fact they didn’t really have time to do this right now. Cale just wanted to get this scenario over and done with so he wanted to move past this quickly.

 

   “Ah..I’m fine. It’s only really if I use too much at once. Small displays like that are completely fine so don't worry.”

 

   Moving away from them and dismissing that there was anything wrong was the best he could do at this moment if he wanted to keep up the act that he was a kid with an illness. Thankfully most of them seemed to buy it and move on, though Dokja seemed to see past his lie but was willing to move past it for the sake of the mission at hand. Soon enough found Cale moving through the crowds to his guardians as Dokja went to go check in on one of the key players for this plan of his.

 

   Though what Cale was not expecting was to have Gong Pildu send his men to intercept the young redhead and drag him towards the man still on his bench. Luckily his guardians had been watching him as he entered so were already on their way over. Cale didn’t even put up a fight as he was dragged over, just going limp like a sack of rice as they brought him in front of the landlord. 

 

   “Brat.”

 

   The landlord looked a little smug as his men brought him the young tenant that was the redhead, his guardians following close behind. Gong Pildu didn’t know what to make of the young redhead and the strange things that follow him. He actually could appreciate the brat’s skill in being able to lower the price for the room with him and scamming them by pretending they didn’t speak Korean well. It was good work and impressive for the child to pull off the way he did. He also knew not to underestimate the brat or make him mad after what the kid did to one of his men after insulting his family the way he did.

 

   “Gong Pildu.”

 

   The brat was cheeky and seemed to have been expecting something like this to happen if he was looking at him with that calm look on his face. Nothing seemed to faze this kid as he pulled his limbs free from the grips of his men, standing there with his back straight to look him in the eye. This kid acted more like an adult than a child and was not intimidated by them despite their height and age differences. 

 

   “Your rent is due for the space. You got the coins to pay for you and your parents, or do we need to force you out of the room?”

 

   Said parents arrived quickly as he spoke, standing next to the young redhead protectively. These foreigners caught onto the situation quickly as they let the youngest do all the talking, a strange decision for some but Gong Pildu understood the kid seemed to be the brains behind the operation. 

 

   “Also, kid, you seem to be buddies with that Dokja guy and Yoo Joonghyuk. You hear they survived without a room right?-”

 

   “I’m not buddies with them, they’re just useful.”

 

   “-So I decided to…wait what?” 

 

   “I’m not buddies with those two, they’re just useful tools for survival and making my life just a bit easier.”

 

   Cale watched as the man known as Gong Pildu went quiet as he processed what the redhead had just said to him. He seemed to be so confused by the statement made and needed a moment to think. 

 

   “Cale…I think you broke him.”

 

   “How? I barely said anything.”  

 

   It was almost instinctual for Cale to respond to Duke Fredo in the Roan language when the vampire spoke it to him. He didn't understand what about what he just said was shocking for the landlord, it wasn’t as if he said something unbelievable or strange. He had just told him he wasn’t buddies with the reader and regressor. He didn’t want to be friends with those two reckless idiots, he didn’t need any more of those types of people then he already had.

 

   “Unlucky Bastard.”

 

   “I didn’t even do anything this time.”

 

   Cale turns around to see Eruhaben just shaking his head even though his face gave away he was amused by the situation at hand. He was just confused why everyone was looking at him weird for what he said. Gong Pildu seemed to finally recover from his shock as he looked at the child, ready to make his pitch to the powerful boy and his guardians.

 

   “Anyways, I sent some men to give Dojka the same offer I’m about to give you. Here’s the deal, being a lackey of Yoo Joonghyuk must not be great right? And you’re too strong to be under his rule, so why don’t you join us? You and your parents here wouldn’t need to pay rent on the room and you can stick a middle finger to Yoo Joonghyuk. What do you say?”

 

   The young redhead let the offer stay out in the open for a while, as if considering the offer made by the landlord. Cale needed to buy some time before the chaos started and get away from Gong Pildu when it’s time to flip the scenario upside-down. He had just been planning to grab Duke Fredo and Eruhaben and stay with Dokja’s group until it’s time to cause a shit show, but with Gong Pildu having dragged him into this conversation he might as well use it to his advantage. 

 

   “Hmm, doesn’t that work more in your favor than in mine? You get a lot more out of this deal than I do. So lets say I take the deal, you would get me and my parents in your group and we get a room. That doesn’t seem like a fair deal don’t you think?”

 

   Cale’s smile grew as he saw the gears turning in Gong Pildu’s head. Eruhaben, having seen the scamming smile on the face of their young commander, could only smile as this would not end well for the landlord.

 

   “Well well, not bad for a brat. Fine, what is it you want in exchange?”

 

   “How much money do you think I can get out of him?”

 

   “Oh definitely 20,000 or so. Bleed him dry, my little Naru.”

 

   Cale’s smile only widens as Fredo leans over his shoulder to talk to him. He enjoys the look on the faces of the people around him as he and his guardians speak in what he considers their native tongue. He could always count on Fredo to go along with scamming people, the vampire probably enjoyed it as much as Cale himself did. There was no way Gong Pildue would agree to the deal that quickly though, no he would think that they are asking too much for their services, even if said services will never be fulfilled. No, what Cale needed to do was make him think he was getting a good deal from them.

 

   “60,000 total, 20,000 each for me, appa, and abeoji.”

 

   Cale wished he could take a picture as the color seemed to drain from the landlord's face at the amount. It took everything within Cale not to smirk, after all he didn’t want to give away that he had raised the price he wanted from him. 

 

   “You little brat, no way in hell. Nobody in their right mind has that kind of coin to burn.”

 

   “So you don’t want our services? Understandable. We’re more than happy to leave.”

 

   Cale shrugged his shoulders, turning his back on the landlord. It was no skin off his back if Gong Pildu refused the deal, It just meant that Cale wouldn't get a payout from the scummy man. Cale had coins to burn so the amount he wanted was nothing to him. This entire deal was about the principle of the matter, though having more coins to line his pockets never hurt anybody. 

 

   Before Cale could get anywhere though he felt the landlord grab his shoulder and spin him around. This was an aspect of being in a child’s body that Cale wasn’t a fan of, being easily manhandled was not fun. 

 

   “Listen, I’ll do half. 30,000 split into 15,000. The first 15 as a downpayment and the rest after green zones disappear. That sound good to you, brat?”

 

   “Hmm.”

 

   It’s a bit less than what he wanted, but it was as good as he could get from the landlord in front of him. He wasn’t expecting anyone to have too many coins this early in the scenarios anyways and it's not like he’s gonna get the other 15,000 coins. Cale had no intentions of keeping his end of the deal no matter what so it would work out just fine for the redhead.

 

   “Good enough for me, you have a deal Gong Pildu.”

 

   Cale smiled at the landlord, not caring about the frown he got in return. This was the aspect Cale did like about being in the body of a child. He was easy to underestimate and if Gong Pildu had been thinking and using his risk calculation skill he’d know it was a bad idea to make deals with the redhead. Even if people didn’t fully trust his judgment at this size he was confident he could breeze through this mission while just helping Dokja off to the side. 

 

   With a handshake between the two and a quick transfer the strenuous deal was made. Cale could only smirk when he saw the amount of coins he had to his name, a large amount that will be very useful to him down the line. As he backed away from the landlord and back to his guardians he knew what was coming. Though he'd rather not participate in what was to come. He could just head to the area before them, to let them do their thing and avoid the fight together. To just watch from the sidelines would be ideal for the redhead so he could avoid doing any of the work.

 

   Yet sadly for him, he knows he can't do that as he had agreed to help in order to end the scenario. As much as he wanted to avoid getting involved he has no choice but to do so in order to get this over and done with. He just has to stay put and wait for Dokja to start the plan. 

 

   “You both know what you need to do right?”

 

   Cale didn’t even need to face them to know they had identical smirks on their faces.

 

   “Of course.”

 

   “At your command.”

 

   Turning around to face the two, the redheaded commander gave his order.

 

   “Get into position and wait for the signal. When you’re done head to the meeting place and wait for me there.”

 

   “You got it.”

 

   With that they dispersed, Cale staying close to Gong Pildu while the ancient dragon and vampire split to go to their positions. The redhead needed to at least keep up appearances that he would keep his end of the deal. After all, it wouldn’t be long until chaos would fill the entire station. It’s time to end the third scenario and get this story moving and Cale moving with it. 

Chapter 19: Ending the Third Scenario (2)

Notes:

Happy new year everyone, Here's the newest chapter for you all to enjoy! I hope you all had a great holiday season!

   It was when Cale heard yelling that he knew it was time. Pildu had been keeping his eye on the redhead and Cale knew it, purposely keeping himself close to the landlord after Eruhaben and Fredo went to do their jobs. He didn’t want the man to start questioning the validity of the deal before the chaos could begin. When The young commander saw Dokja and Hyunsung rushing towards the space he couldn’t help but smirk as it meant it had begun, it was time to end the scenario. 

 

   “P-Pildu-ssi, there’s..”

 

   Cale hid the smirk he felt behind a frown as he saw Gong Pildu’s men start to rush towards the edge of the green space in a pointless attempt to stop them. Nothing was gonna stop the protagonist and his group, that's just how the story works after all. 

 

   “Stop!!”

 

   “Surround them!”

 

   Cale shivered at the sight of Hyunsung’s eyes as he readied his shield. This was a man on a mission and nothing was gonna get in his way.

 

   ‘Vicious bastard…’ 

 

   It was scary but amazing to see Hyunsung barrel his way into a group of grown men and watch them go down from his power and the strength of his shield. Meanwhile Dokja ran right past them, dashing towards them with determination as he stepped right into Gong Pildu’s land claim. As the area went red Cale stayed where he was, right beside Pildu, as there was no need for him to act at this moment. As the turrets rose up and charged, Cale could only watch, seeing the actions he once read happen before his eyes. It was an experience he would probably never get used to, and hopefully he’d never have to experience again after this was all over.

 

   “Dokja-sii!”

 

   Cale watched as Hyunsung threw his shield towards the reader as the turrets prepared to fire, Dokja catching it just as they fired. He held his ground as smoke engulfed his form from the powerful blasts from the turrets. As it dispersed there stood Dokja, unharmed with his sword in his hand and the shield having protected him from the blast. Cale moved a bit as Gong Pildu stood up, looking a bit smug as he faced the reader with his hand holding the brim on his hat

 

   “A bold tenant is here. You clearly don’t want to pay rent if you came armed. What’s the meaning of this?”

 

   Cale watched the interaction, standing behind Pildu and in line of sight to the reader. It hadn’t been part of the plan to make a deal with the landlord; it wasn't something that would cause any problems to Dokja’s plan. 

 

   “I’m quitting as a tenant.”

 

   “Amusing, are you after my land?”

 

   As the turrets charged up for another blast, Cale was pulled away from watching it all as a message popped up in front of his eyes. 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander finds this situation very thrilling.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander wishes to remind their incarnation not to do anything too dangerous to cause themself to cough up blood.]

 

   ‘Hmm, Clopeh is good at pretending not to be a crazy bastard. If only he could behave like this all the time.’

 

   “I’m not planning on it.”

 

   Cale watched, pushing the concern away as he watched with amusement as Gong Pildu’s men surrounded him, telling him the news that their land was being destroyed. It was already too late for the landlord to do anything to stop it, and as Cale watched Hyunsung power up for the smash he moved quickly as well.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ has activated the skill ‘Sound of the Wind Lv.???’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’s’ Agility has temporarily increased from Lv. 10 to Lv. 15]

 

   As Hyunsung’s punch connected with the ground, wind gathered under Cale’s feet, stepping on air as he ran from the area towards the reader and the soldier. It was incredible to see the destructive force come from Hyunsung, it almost reminded Cale of the time he watched Choi Han punch and shatter the stone wall when he rescued Raon. 

 

[‘Green Zones’ have been destroyed.]

 

[Multiple constellations are impressed by Incarnation Cale Henituse’s skill]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is proud of Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’s timing]

 

   Cale rolled his eyes as he ran on air up and towards Dokja and Hyunsung, giving them a bit to have their moment together before landing next to them. 

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ deactivated the skill ‘Sound of the Wind Lv.???’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’s’ Agility increase has disappeared.]

 

   As the wind dissipated from beneath his feet he didn’t miss a step as he stood next to the reader and the soldier, looking toward the hole where the others in the zone had landed. Cale could feel the concern coming from Hyunsung as they noticed his presence next to them, the soldier getting at his level to check him for any injuries. Even the reader was giving him a once over to check on him.

 

   “Oh, Cale-ya, you get hurt anywhere?”

 

   “Nope, got out of range before you destroyed the floor.”

 

   “How did you do that?”

 

   “Skill.”

 

   Cale was not going to elaborate any further than that and they didn’t push for it either as their attention was pulled away from the young redhead.

 

   “U-ugh… get me out of here…”

 

   “Let’s finish what we started.”

 

   Going to the hole made by the soldier, there among the rubble lay Gong Pildu bleeding from the head and glaring up at them. He seemed especially pissed at Cale, who was standing next to the man who destroyed his land.

 

   “Y-You bastards…”

 

   “We should go back to the times when no one owned any land, right?”

 

   The former landlord seemed to ignore Dokja, focusing on Cale who stood next to him. 

 

   “You little bastard, we had a deal.”

 

   Cale laughed as Dokja and Hyunsung focused their attention on the redhead now as well, confused about what Pildu was talking about. With a smirk on his face the young commander met the former landlord’s eyes and shrugs his shoulders.

 

   “Our deal didn’t specify what it would mean to join up, you just said to join and we would get a free room. Sadly with the room gone you can no longer keep up your end, so our deal is null and void. Thanks for the down payment, no refunds but you can keep the remaining 15,000.”

 

   With a wink and a bow Cale moved away from the hole, smirking as he did so. As he met the reader’s eyes he knew what he was thinking, he was impressed by Cale’s ability to scam someone like Gong Pildu. 

 

   “You had no intention of fulfilling that deal, did you?”

 

   “Oh, never, I'm nobody's muscle for hire.”  

 

   “Dokja-ssi!”

 

   Cale steps back as Dokja’s group runs to him with Heewon in the lead. While they talked, the redhead turned his attention to start heading towards the safe point. He doesn’t want to be here when the chaos starts. He didn’t get the chance though as Sangah notices him trying to leave.

 

   “Cale-ya? Where’s Eruhaben-ssi and Fredo-ssi?”

 

   ‘Shit, why does she always point me out?’

 

   Cale turns around, putting on a small smile as he puts on his childish front. He was not looking forward to where this was going.

 

   “Abeoji and Appa went to break other green spaces earlier to help you guys, they should be back soon.”

 

   This wasn’t exactly a lie, but Cale knew they weren’t coming back to this location. He had told them to meet at the stairs since he was planning to go there and avoid the chaos he helped create, but seeing Dokja from the corner of his eye turning to look at an approaching Jihye he knew it was too late.

 

   “Oh, they’re here.”

 

   “There he is! Get him!”

 

   “Kill him!”

 

   “Pildu-ssi!”

 

   Cale sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose as it was too late to get through the angry mob and to the stairs. He could use Sound of the Wind again but he didn’t want to risk overusing an ancient power right now with how everything is going to play out. He needed the chance to invest in his stats to lessen the backlash and now was not the time for that. 

 

[A bounty scenario has occurred!]

 

[Bounty Scenario - Assassination Commission

 

Category: Sub

 

Difficulty: C

 

Clear Conditions: The Constellations of Channel #BIR-3642 has requested to kill a certain person. Please kill ‘Kim Dokja’ of Chungmuro station.

 

Time limit: 10 Minutes.

 

Compensation: 2,000 Coins.

 

Failure: None]

 

   Cale could feel the annoyance at being dragged into this fill his body as he moves closer to the reader’s group. He had to at least look like he was willing to help Dokja even if he didn’t want to get involved. 

 

   “I’m not going to help you on this one.”

 

   “I don’t need it.”

 

   ‘Wish I could say the same.’

 

   The redhead sighs as he watches Jihye leave, wanting to do the same but he had an obligation to keep the reader alive so the story would continue as normal. Though as he looked at the cocky man next to him the 2,000 coins were starting to get more and more tempting by the second. As the group forms around Dokja with their weapons ready Cale is pushed closer to the reader in a tight circle of protection.

 

   “If I kill you, do I get 2,000 coins?”

 

   “Yes, will you kill me though?”

 

   “No way, maybe if the reward was 200,000 coins I might've considered it.”

 

   Cale sighs, yet fully agrees that he’d kill the reader too for that kind of money. He’d kill the reader for the 2,000 coins if he wasn’t useful to him and the protagonist of the story. The young redhead raised his eyebrow as Dokja turned to look at him with a cocky look in his eyes.

 

   “Would you kill me Cale-ya?”

 

   “Do you want an honest answer to that question?”

 

   “Probably not.” 

 

   Cale didn’t have to turn around to know the reader was a bit unnerved by that response, but truly the reason Cale wouldn’t kill him is because, useful or not, he was not interested in the effort it would take to kill him. Besides, it’s not like the redhead needed the money anyways, it would only be a drop in the bucket with how much he has anyways.

 

   The redheaded commander just tuned out the rest as he thought of what he was going to do. He didn’t wanna risk using another ancient power right now before he could upgrade his stats so he’d need to fight or stand clear of the fighting to get a good head-start on what's about to happen.

 

[All the green spaces in this region have been destroyed and the main scenario has collapsed.]

 

[The difficulty is automatically adjusted according to the remaining time of the scenario.]

 

[The scenario content will be updated!] 

 

[Main Scenario #3- Emergency Defense.]

 

Category: Main

 

Difficulty: B

 

Clear conditions: All green zones in this region were destroyed and the monsters that were to be created in the remaining days are suddenly starting to run wild. Survive against the flood of the monsters for the remaining time.

 

Duration: 8 Hours

 

Reward: 1,000 coins

 

Penalty for Failure:-

 

[Emergency defense has begun!] 

 

   “Crazy! What the hell is this?”

 

   Cale didn’t even hear the reader speak, focused on the monsters flooding the station as the barrier came crashing down. The screams and the sights as monsters tore through leaving blood and mangled bodies behind. It was as if Cale was Kim Rok Soo again, watching the monsters break into their safe house to rip everyone to shreds. He could see his old friends, old acquaintances dying left and right as he ran to escape the massacre. He was so stuck in his records from back then that he didn’t even register someone grabbing him until they covered his eyes.

 

   The young redhead wasn’t even sure who grabbed him, just that one hand supported him while the other pushed his head into their shoulder so he’d stop watching the chaos unfold. 

 

   “Cale-ya?”

 

   ‘Of course it was Sangah.’

 

   He was honestly grateful that she did grab him, as it is difficult to get out of his records once he’s stuck in the memories. A blessing and a curse, now more than ever as he can’t figure out how to turn it off. As she and the others ran for the stairs, Fredo and Eruhaben were there waiting for them. They were quick to take Cale from her as soon as he was within arms reach and carry him to a more private area.

 

   “Are you ok?

 

   “Why did you freeze up?”

 

   Cale sighs, just planning to stay out of the next bit since he had other things to focus on. Dokja can handle what he needs to do by himself right now.

 

   “Memories, not important. I just didn’t have time to close my eyes before it started.”

 

   The two long lived beings seemed to understand what he was talking about immediately, Fredo grabbing a blanket from one of their bags to wrap him in. Cale could appreciate that they didn’t ask any questions about it, though it seemed the constellations didn’t get the memo.

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is yelling in the background.]

 

[Many Constellations have learned to ignore Constellation ‘Army Without a Commander’.]

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband is curious what memories Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ is talking about.]

 

   “I'm not gonna talk about it so don’t ask.”

 

   Cale was not in the mood to deal with nosey constellations digging into his private business, he was not about to get chummy with this world’s version of gods. He had enough gods to deal with and he didn’t even want those ones near him. He was too tired for this shit.

 

   “I’m taking a nap, wake me up when Dokja starts setting up that rescue party later.”

 

   Curling the blanket around himself, the young redhead laid down and closed his eyes, trying to ignore the sounds of fighting that reached this far. He needed this nap, he’ll focus on upgrading his stats afterwards. With that decided he let his mind drift and fell into blissful unconsciousness, as limited as it may be.

Chapter 20: Notice

Notice

I'm still on hiatus as I'm dealing with a family thing, long story short my Grandmother broke her hip so I have to help around the house.

I will continue this story as soon as possible, the next chapter is slow going but it's going none the less.

 

This notice is about something that someone brought to my attention in the comments and I am fully grateful to that person for informing me.

It was brought to my attention that someone on Wattpad had been copy-pasting my story and claiming it as theirs the month I went on hiatus.

 

I DO NOT CROSS PLATFORM POST!

 

THERE IS ONLY ONE PERSON WHO HAS MY PERMISSION TO USE MY STORY AND THEY ARE TRANSLATING IT WITH FULL CREDIT TO ME.

 

IF YOU SEE MY STORY ON ANY OTHER SITE THAT ISN'T AO3 OR IN RUSSIAN REPORT THEM IMMEDIATELY!

 

I have already reported the person on Wattpad and my story was removed from there.

 

I Promise to update soon with the next chapter but I felt this was important to share and warn you all about.

 

Thank you again to the person who commented to tell me about the person stealing my work.

Chapter 21: Trip to the Cinema!

Notes:

Guess who's back! Sorry it's been so long!

   Eruhaben has been alive a very long time, longer than most would think with his appearance. An ancient dragon who has no issue with strength and a willingness to survive. He has lived for centuries and when he had been brought into a war greater than he could have ever known he never thought he would see a human as his own the way he does now. A young human who has been through hell and back, and possibly even further still.

 

   He can still remember the look in Cale’s eyes when he had been roused from the illusory prison, the haunted look on his face and how he tried to act as if he was ok afterwards even though he had been crying. The redhead was many things, but a person willing to show their emotions was not one of them. It was rare to ever see him cry, hell only knows how they would tear apart the person to make him cry. 

 

   Now he sits with Fredo, a man who knows his feelings on the matter more than anyone. They both have been with Cale in this new world for a year before this all started, and while they can both agree they would have rather not been with the other to play the role of family in the beginning they were both glad to have the other around. They both could understand that dealing with Cale Henituse can be a trip with how the man didn’t know how to keep himself out of trouble. They both knew the other was ready and willing to do what it took to keep the redhead safe.

 

   They both knew this to be the case since they both experienced first hand how hard it was to protect him before the apocalypse had even started, how it felt to feel that without their abilities they couldn’t protect him as well as they could have. In the beginning they would often forget they didn’t have their magic, their abilities, their extraordinary strengths and speeds, that even Cale himself didn’t have his ancient powers. The day that something happened to Cale was the day they both had reality crash into them hard. (But that's a story for another day.)

 

   They sat side by side, their eyes switching from keeping watch over their young charge and watching the events happening around them. It’s been an hour since Cale started his nap, and to be honest with how his physical appearance was of a child so young it looked more precious than he’d like to admit. With his and Fredo’s powers back they knew another incident wouldn’t happen again, that they would protect this youngster with everything they have. It’s why they would always insist on carrying him around, they never wanted another incident to happen again.

 

   “Throw him a potion every 40 minutes…”

 

   Eruhaben lifted his head, hearing the words he needed to. He nodded to Fredo, the vampire understanding immediately as they separated. Eruhaben moved towards Dokja as Fredo moved to wake Cale up. It was time to move.

 

---

 

   When Dokja turned around after instructing Yoo Sangah and Lee Hyunsung what to do with Pildu and the potions he had been surprised to see Eruhaben approaching him. He hasn’t had much interaction with the ancient dragon without Cale around, and from what Dokja had seen the young redhead was taking a nap. 

 

   “Dokja-ssi, We are coming as well.”

 

   Where he was going was going to be difficult and he had been planning to ask the commander to join him if he had been awake, but it seemed as if they knew what he was planning without the reader even needing to ask. He wasn’t too surprised, as he was told before that Cale also knew the story of this world, meaning so did the Vampire and the Dragon. They probably had a hunch of what was happening just like he did. (He could never imagine that it was his story they knew, not Yoo Joonghyuk’s)

 

   “Ok, that works great.”

 

   After getting ready to head off for the Cinema dungeon the group of Dokja, Jung Heewon, Lee Gilyoung, Erhuhaben, Fredo, and a half asleep Cale headed forward. After a quick check to his phone he knew his worries were relevant, but it should only be the 3rd regression so why was that pain of a regressor not playing it safe?

 

   “What are you looking at, Dokja?”

 

   “I’m just checking the calendar, with so many things happening I’ve lost track of time.”

 

   Dokja was finally broken from his thoughts by Heewon who was seemingly trying to look over his shoulder. He stood up straight, focused back on the task at hand and they made their way through the abandoned station on their way to the dungeon.

 

   “Hmm…So, who’s this Bastard you mentioned? Is he worse than Pildu?”

 

   “Of course he is.”

 

   “Is Pildu going to be fine?”

 

   “Yes.”

 

   Pildu was the least of his concerns at the moment. Right now he was more worried about other things. One of those things being the group of powerful individuals with them. He unconsciously looked behind him to see Fredo carrying Cale, who seemed to still be half asleep. He can admit, if he didn’t know that the redhead was actually 20 years old he would think he was pretty cute. 

 

---

 

   Cale was still trying to wake up as they walked through, barely acknowledging when Lee Jihye came running after them to join in going after Yoo Joonghyuk. The redhead is just exhausted and the nap only helped a bit. 

 

   “Cale, you really could have stayed behind. Me or Eruhaben could have gone ourselves and you could have kept napping.”

 

   The young commander knew that Fredo was right, he or Eruhaben alone could have easily handled this mission without him around. Yet the redhead could admit that he was doing this for a more selfish reason. He wanted the rewards from the Cinema dungeon. Since each person could take 2 items each it would be better for all three of them to go that way they could get more for their efforts. If only one of them were to go then it would mean only getting 2 items. 

 

   Besides, he was curious about the movies they would be facing as the story didn’t go into that much detail of just what all they faced.

 

[Constellation Rest Without End finds incarnation Cale Henituse’s sleepiness adorable.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander thinks that incarnation Cale Henituse will never change.]

 

   Cale looked on as the messages came in, his face blank as he expected this kind of bullshit from the God of Death but from his family now too? He wasn’t adorable, sure he had a nice looking face but he wasn’t adorable. He was trash, that was all. 

 

   “What are you all going on about? I’m not cute, I’m trash.”

 

   Cale was too tired for this, he was barely awake as it was and he needed to get himself ready for what was about to happen. This dungeon is dangerous and he needs to be awake and alert for it. If he was more awake he would have known how his family would react to him calling himself trash. He also would have noticed the others turning to look at the young commander with confusion and concern at him calling himself trash. 

 

   ‘What has this kid gone through to call himself trash without hesitation?’

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says if their Young Master needs they should have some lemon tea to wake themselves.]

 

   Cale felt himself shoot into wakefulness as soon as the message popped up, as if he could hear Ron’s benign voice through the message. Eruhaben didn’t even need to know what the message said, he knew just from Cale’s actions alone what it said and reached into his left pocket for his spacial bag with the food and drinks in it. It wasn’t long that the walk continued with a now awake Cale sipping on lemon tea and holding a chicken skewer with a frown on his face. Best to be safe as Eruhaben knew that Cale would only stiffen up like that when he was being threatened with lemon tea or being threatened into eating.

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband is still very curious about where these incarnations are getting the food and drinks.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter is also curious.]

 

[Many Constellations agree and ask for Incarnation Cale Henituse to tell them.] 

 

   Cale sighs and just shakes his head as he’s not going to explain anything to these constellations. Despite what his family thinks he does still have some self preservation instincts and he wasn’t about to show or explain the magic of his world to these beings. Instead he decided to focus on his stats as he needed to make himself stronger to handle his ancient powers better in this new body. He wouldn’t put much, he still needed to stay weak for his own safety after all.

 

[Investing 2,000 coins in “Strength”]

 

[Strength Lv.10 -> Strength Lv.15]

 

[Investing 2,000 coins in “Stamina”]

 

[Stamina Lv.10 -> Stamina Lv.15]

 

[Investing 2,000 coins in “Agility”]

 

[Agility Lv.10 -> Agility Lv.15]

 

[Investing 3250 coins in “Mana”]

 

[Mana Lv.20 -> Mana Lv.25]

 

   With that out of the way he could already feel his body getting stronger and faster, as well as feeling the capabilities for his powers increase. He kinda felt jealous over the fact that Eruhaben and Fredo haven’t had to touch their stats yet. He was satisfied with these numbers as they’ll be fine for what was ahead. He wouldn’t need to touch them again until later as long as he stayed out of the fight to come.

 

[You have discovered a Hidden Dungeon!]

 

[This dungeon has already been discovered. The Discovery Achievement cannot be obtained.]

 

   They’ve finally arrived, the doors connecting the station to Daehan Cinema right before their eyes. The door was a simple double door yet it leaked such an ominous aura that leaked through the gaps to them. The danger was there, licking at the forms of the people standing before it to challenge its depths. Cale could only shiver at the vicious aura as they headed up the steps and into the dungeon.

 

[A new Hidden Scenario has arrived!]

 

[Hidden Scenario- Cinema Dungeon]

Category: Hidden

 

Difficulty: A-

 

Clear Conditions: Defeat the Master of the Cinema Dungeon.

 

Time Limit: None

 

Reward: 4,000 coins

 

[Penalty for failure: -] 

 

[You have entered the Cinema Dungeon]

 

   As they entered the dungeons area, they looked at the doors of the cinema with determination. Cale could hear the sound of sparks around him, but ignored it in favor of looking around at their surroundings. The abandoned cinema was a bit ominous without the usual sights of people that would usually flood its halls, not even a body in sight from the scenarios before it. They walked through, passed a ticket counter devoid of life and screens which used to show movie times all black without the power. 

 

   “Are you sure about this old man? Is Master really in danger?”

 

   Cale turned his head as he watched Jihye start to question the reader, though Cale couldn’t stop the smirk that rose onto his face as he knew the misunderstandings that would arise due to his words. He tuned out the conversation as he turned his focus to Eruhaben and Fredo. 

 

   “Remember to keep your strengths down, we don’t want their attention on us. We’re gonna help them, but we don’t want to make ourselves into something to focus on.”

 

   He kept his voice down to a whisper to the two long lived beings, though he seemed to underestimate just how much they like to pay attention to the young commander. His powers, his tragic background, and his cute appearance made him one that the Constellations would pay close attention to. Add to it how cute he looks with Eruhaben and Fredo who are both very beautiful individuals and they make a very striking family to look at.

 

[Constellation Demon-like Judge of Fire finds you clinging and whispering to your parents to be very cute.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End brags that their child is adorable!]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says that Cale is their child, not Constellation Rest Without End’s child.]

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light offers Constellation Warrior Without Rest some popcorn.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End argues that Cale is their child.]

 

[Constellation Warrior Without Rest thanks Ruler of Light for the popcorn.]

 

[Many Constellations ask for some of the popcorn.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander yells that Constellation Rest Without End has no claim to their Incarnation.]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain finds this very amusing.]

 

   Cale watched as his family argued with the God of Death. He couldn’t even pay attention to what was going on as he was faced with so many blue screens. He had honestly tried to forget that half of these bastards were even here watching him. 

 

   “A little help please?”

 

[Constellation Ruler of Light says sorry but she’s on her way to try and stop him.]

 

[Constellation Warrior Without Rest looks at you with pity and amusement.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End says they claimed him first as their Saint so Cale is their child.]

 

[Many Constellations are shocked by this statement.]

 

[Constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband drops his staff in shock.]

 

[Constellation Secretive Plotter’s eyes widen in surprise.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander yells that Cale is not their Saint!]

 

[Many constellations are asking incarnation Cale Henituse to explain.]

 

   Cale could feel his eye twitch and could only sigh as he was bombarded by not only messages, the voices in his head seemed to have things to say to him as well. 

 

   ‘Why is everyone so talkative today?’ 

 

   🔥- ‘Damn that Bastard god is really running his mouth today isn’t he?

 

   🌊- ‘Agreed, that XXX needs to shut his XXX mouth!’

 

   🪨- ‘Calm yourselves, if you yell too much it may give Cale a headache’

 

   ‘Super rock is now my favorite ancient power’

 

   “Can everyone be quiet? You Bastard God of Death who is your saint because it certainly isn’t me! I am nobody's saint and I refuse to be one!”

 

   It was a rare occasion when Cale would raise his voice, but he needed them to stop before any misunderstandings could be made. He was already having to deal with these figures watching him 24/7; he did not need them to pay even more attention to him. He could see Dokja and his group staring at him with wide eyes, there was no way they weren’t going to ask him about this. He’s in the body of a child for heaven’s sake it just makes it worse to try and explain constellations claiming him as their child and claiming he's a saint. 

 

   ‘Cale you poor unlucky bastard.’

 

   Cale refused to admit he was pouting as he heard Eruhaben’s voice in his head, he was a full adult he doesn’t pout. He will just ignore the cooing noises coming from Fredo as he looks over to Dokja and makes a hand motion for him to keep moving. They already wasted enough time as it is with this bullshit.

 

   Dokja seemed to take pity on the young commander and quickly moved them back on track, though he isn’t going to forget this. He quickly filed that in his list of questions about the commander to ask later, it was a pretty long list. Continuing through the halls of the cinema, it didn’t take them long to come across the first of many movie posters lining the halls, all ripped through with long gashes from one corner to another. 

 

   “Dokja, all the posters have been ripped. I wonder who did it?”

 

   “Beats me. Let’s head upstairs.”

 

   As they made their way up the steps of the stalled escalator Cale ignored the conversation about swords from the two women in front of them, instead signaling to Eruhaben and Fredo that it would be best to get their weapons out now. They had put them away when they had scammed Gong Pildu for spots in his green room to make themselves seem weaker. 

 

   Eruhaben was quick to pull out their weapons, though none for Cale which he was fine with. Now that both Eruhaben and Fredo had their swords on their hips they were prepared for what lay ahead. Just in time too as Gilyoung grabbed Dokja by the shirt to stop them in their tracks.

 

   “Shush, Someone’s here.”

 

   There, from the room at the top of the escalator was the sound of unfamiliar voices, a group that didn’t belong in the station meaning they had to have traveled through the poison mist on the surface. 

 

   ‘It’s begun.’

Chapter 22: Jurassic Cale

   Cale could admit while being carried is very convenient as it means he gets to be lazy and not walk, It does have its downsides. Like right now, as the others are looking towards the people who have gotten to the dungeon his face is getting pushed into Fredo’s chest as they stay crouched down to avoid detection. He wasn’t an actual child Fredo didn’t have to hold him as if these guys would steal him if detected, he wanted to see them too!

 

   “What? It’s all been ripped. Is there any left?”

 

   “There’s one here!”

 

   Cale sighs quietly as he goes through his recording of this event in the guide book. There should be 4 men there standing near the poster of this world's version of the movie Jurassic Park. Why it's called something different in this world Cale has no idea. (It would have made more sense to call it Cretaceous Park or something if they wanted to call it something as that was the era the T-rex lived mostly. (Is this a criticism of the webcomic? Yes.))

 

   “You’re sure right? This place is full of that…”

 

   “I told you, didn’t I? I paid 1,000 coins to <The Prophets> for this info. Although they’re creepy, they seem reliable.”

 

   ‘Ha, rookie numbers honestly.’

 

   Cale could respect the hustle of the leader of these “Prophets” as he would have done the same thing in her position, but he would have charged more. Selling a dungeon location like this for only 1,000 coins is a steal, he would have charged at least 2,500 or more if he didn’t want to take it for himself. From the smothered laugh he could feel from Fredo and the look he could feel Eruhaben was directing towards him they knew what he was thinking and agreed. 

 

   “Who’s that? I’ve never seen them in Chungmuro.”

 

   The sound of Jihye whispering brought Cale out of his thoughts and back to the situation at hand. Cale had to tap multiple times to get Fredo to loosen his grip enough for Cale to turn his head, though the grip returned as soon as he was in a position to see what was happening. 

 

   “They must have entered through the ground floor entrance.”

 

   “Through the ground floor? What about the poison gas? And the Scenario…”

 

   “Each station has a different scenario of varying durations. They must have completed theirs before we did. And as for the poison, the meat of a subterranean monster will take care of that.”

 

   Cale could see Dokja thinking, in the story this was his first time learning about others who knew the story of this place, though from the look Dokja turns to give him he could tell what the reader was thinking. The fact is this wasn’t really his first time learning of people who knew the story, Cale and his Guardians also knew the story. 

 

---

 

   Dokja was indeed thinking along these lines, as Cale and the two long lived being caring for him also knew the story just as he did. His mind was racing as the Prophets were something unfamiliar to Dokja, but from Cale’s face he wasn’t the least bit shocked. Was he also part of these Prophets? Or did he know that this was going to happen? Did he know a version of the story that not even Dokja was aware of?

 

   ‘Just what does he know? Can he be someone to help me see this story’s ending?’

 

   “Let’s head in then.”

 

   Dokja was so lost in his thoughts that he almost missed when the leader of the small group led them to the intact movie poster. A flash of blue like a spotlight burst from above the poster, landing on the men and leaving again as the men disappeared before their very eyes. He needed to focus, he could question Cale later on if he knew anything about the prophets. Just another on the long list of questions he had for the redheaded man in the body of a child. 

 

   There were just so many mysteries surrounding the redhead and his guardians, mysteries he wanted to solve if he was going to continue being around. The problem was how to get the redhead man in a child’s body to answer his questions and not just dance around it to give him more questions.

 

   “W-What just happened?!”

 

   Dokja pushed his thoughts away from the redheaded commander for now as he moved forward. He made his way to the wall of movie posters, looking through them until he stood before the one poster that was unlike the others. This was the only one that hadn’t been torn on this wall, the only one left untouched.

 

   ‘The torn posters…and this is the only one left untouched. “A time forgotten by mankind…recreated…” 

 

   ‘Damn you, Yoo Joonghyuk… of all the posters to leave behind, this…?!’

 

   The reader’s thoughts were interrupted as the same blue light from earlier appeared, shining down as everyone came into range of the spotlight as if characters on a stage. Some panicked, others seemed confused, and those of Cale’s group seemed to have no reaction at all.

 

   “Whoa! What’s this?!”

 

   “Ugh!”

 

   Jihye and Gilyoung waved their arms about as they felt the pull of the light, being watched by Cale with a small hint of amusement in his eyes at the display. Their bodies began to become transparent as the light pulled at them to wherever it desired to take them.

 

   “Heewon-ssi, Do you like movies?”

 

   “Of course, Doesn’t everyone?

 

   “You might begin to hate them from now on.”

 

   “Sorry? What are you–”

 

[You have been shot by the Projection Beam.]

 

[The screening will now begin for your floor.]

 

   Before she could finish her sentence they were pulled in, disappearing with the blue light and pulled out of the theater to somewhere new.

 

---

 

   Cale had to take a moment as his eyes adjusted to the light, after spending so long underground and enclosed. It had been a while since the redhead had seen the sun. Once his eyes finally adjusted he looked out to the world that was now before his eyes, seeing the lush green of a jungle and the vast blue sky. The breeze felt nice as he felt the warmth of the sun on his face. They had arrived, the world of the movie from the poster. 

 

   “Just where…are we?!”

 

   “We’re inside a movie.”

 

   The movie world was amazing, from the sights, the sounds, the smells, and the feel of the things around them felt so real. The heat of the sun, the sound of wind through the trees, it reminded Cale of the jungle back home when he would visit Queen Litana. That reminds him he was supposed to talk to her about construction of his vacation home before he was brought to this world, hopefully that's going well without him there. He was going to use it to hide from Clopeh whenever he gets in a kidnappy mood.

 

   “Things keep getting more and more complicated…”

 

   “What movie is this supposed to be?”

 

   “You’ll find out soon.”

 

   “Can’t you just tell me? Wait, what are you…?”

 

   Cale looked away from the scene as Gilyoung moved to some bushes, turning to his guardians instead as he wanted to speak with them about something quickly as there isn’t much time until they encounter it. He had been concerned about something ever since he learned what his attributes meant as he was unsure how it would affect the story going forward. 

 

   “Listen, the creature we’re about to encounter is classified as a dragon, it's weird but it is and due to one of my attributes I'm not sure how it will react to me. Be on your guard.”

 

   There was no time to elaborate, though he shouldn’t really have to. Eruhaben and Fredo had also read the story, though if they remember such details he was unsure, but they should be aware of what he was talking about. The reason he couldn’t elaborate? Well the ground shaking thuds of a massive creature making its way towards them was a good indication they didn’t have the time to go through it in more detail.

 

   “Dokja…!”

 

   THUD

 

   “W-What? The ground is…!”

 

   THUD

 

   THUD

 

   “Aaaah!”

 

   “H-Help!”

 

   There in the direction of the crashing footsteps of a beast were the men from before in the theater, injured and bloody as they ran for their lives. There were only two of the men instead of the 4 that they had seen, painting a chilling image for why they were missing.

 

   “T-They’re the men from earlier…!”

 

   THUD

 

   THUD

 

   THUD

 

   “I think I know what movie this is.”

 

   From the shadows of the trees in this jungle environment they finally caught a glimpse of the beast that was making its way towards them. Its eyes seemed to glow as it let out a low growl that sent a shiver down most of their spines. The scaley green hide of the monster showing as it made its way out of the shadows and into the light.

 

   “Me too.”

 

   There was no time to think, no time to do anything other than prepare to run as the monster burst its head above the trees and roared, ready to hunt them down for its meal. Cale watched over Fredo’s shoulder as Dokja scooped up Gilyoung to run from the monster that is the T-Rex, one of history’s most famous apex predators. 

 

   “Aaaaaah!”

 

   Cale watched as the T-rex ran after them and the two remaining men of the first group as they tried to escape it, the T-rex spinning to sweep its tail to crash into those two remaining men and send them flying into nearby trees. The power of this beast was on display as it growled, looking right at them. 

 

[Tier 7 Land Dragon species ‘Tyrannosaurus Rex’ has become aware of your presence.]

 

   Cale could feel the danger and hostility of this creature as its gaze swept over them all, until it finally settled on looking at Cale and his Guardians. Even as Dokja prepared to fight it the T-rex seemed focused on the little family group, specifically on one Cale Henituse.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’s’ attribute ‘Loved by Dragons’ has targeted Tier 7 Land Dragon ‘Tyrannosaurus Rex’.]

 

[Tyrannosaurus Rex feels protective of incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’.]

 

   Cale could feel the eyes on him as the reader looked in complete shock. Cale himself was also shocked as he had not activated the attribute himself. Cale had noticed for a bit that some of his skills and attributes appeared to activate without his input as if they had a mind of their own. Like how he couldn’t turn his record off or how his Dominate aura would activate with outside stimuli and how apparently his attribute loved by the gods was passively making the constellations around him like him more.

 

   All this to say that when he saw the giant beast that was the T-rex bounding towards him he could only feel he should curse whoever made his stupid system. Cale could feel the grip on him tighten as Fredo stepped back behind Eruhaben who seemed to be ready to fight the beast. This was not good as if Eruhaben shows his skills then they would be exposed. He didn’t get the time to say anything though as the T-rex bound into the group, sweeping its tail into the ancient dragon and Fredo. 

 

   “Cale-ah run!”

 

   Cale tried to get up, slightly dazed as the attack had knocked him out of Fredo’s arms and rolling across the ground. Eruhaben was already getting up, though there seemed to be a gash in his arm and Fredo seemed a bit dazed after the attack after getting slammed into a tree. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck raise as a large shadow blocked the sun from him. The redhead quickly tried to get up only to feel a breath from the beast hit his body and something scraped against the back of his neck. 

 

   The others watched on in horror as the T-rex lifted its head, holding Cale by the back of his clothes with its teeth. However instead of moving to eat the red headed commander it seemed pleased to have the boy in its possession. 

 

   “Cale!”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is yelling for their incarnation.]

 

   “Let him go, you overgrown lizard!”

 

   “Cale!”

 

   Cale was too dazed to do anything to escape the beast, blood dripping down onto his face. When he had been knocked from Fredo’s arms during that attack he had hit his head when he rolled. The last thing Cale saw was Eruhaben with dust flying around him in a rage before it all went dark. 

 

---

 

   The others were worried, scared, and pissed as the T-rex started to run away holding the commander in its jaws, kidnapping the child. Dokja was worried, he didn’t know what to do as this was something he’d never seen before in the story. He remembers seeing the message of the T-rex seeming to get interested in Cale but other than that he didn’t know what to do. Why would the T-rex kidnap the redhead? Why Cale? This was far outside its normal behavior.

 

   Dokja had to think, he couldn’t lose the redhead when he still has so many questions. There was no way he could handle the Ancient Dragon or the Vampire who looked far from pleased that their young charge was taken by the monster. Eruhaben looked to be close to a rage while Fredo seemed to be coming out of his daze and entering close to a panic. 

 

   “It…It took him.”

 

   Fredo’s voice, the panicked tone, seemed to pull Eruhaben out of his state and move to his side. This was the closest interaction the reader had seen from the two long lived beings without Cale being around. It was actually surprising as the two didn’t seem to be that close in his opinion. Watching the ancient dragon fix the vampire’s hair and attempt to calm him was almost sweet in a platonic way.

 

   “Hey, we’ll get him back. He has his abilities and so do we, we’re not powerless like last time.”

 

   “And you have help.”

 

   Dokja didn’t know what to say as Heewon moved to join the two, offering their assistance in finding Cale. 

 

[Many Constellations are worried about Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain begrudgingly admits to being worried about Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’.]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End is surprised by Constellation Laughing at Pain.]

 

[Constellation Laughing at Pain says it’s only because they find him entertaining to watch suffer.]

 

[Many Constellations don’t believe their fellow Constellation.]  

 

   Dokja shakes his head and ignores the messages, trying to think of a plan to find Cale. He couldn’t understand why it would kidnap him though instead of just trying to eat him.

 

   “Eruhaben-nim, Fredo-nim, do you know why the T-rex kidnapped Cale? Why didn’t it try to eat him or go for any of us?”

 

   The other’s nodded their heads in agreement as that was strange. The T-rex is a vicious predator yet it seemed dead set on getting Cale from them. The way it zeroed in on him to the point it even showed a message that Cale had its full attention. They watched as the two looked at each other, a silent conversation and they had no way of knowing what was going on inside their minds. They finally seemed to agree as Fredo turns his head to face the group, Eruhaben grabbing a bag from Fredo. 

 

   “Cale has a problem with his stats, some of his skills and attributes have been activating without his consent or just won’t turn off. One of his attributes is called Loved by Dragons, meaning anything in the dragon category will endear to him and wish to protect him. It must have activated without his consent and with all of us being ready to fight that creature it could have decided to just grab him and run.”

 

   Well that explains so much yet explains so little, why did the redhead have to be so unlucky?! First with the fact he coughs blood when he uses his skills too much and now he has skills he can’t even control?! Do the gods love or hate this kid? Why does this kind of thing happen to the kid? It should not be possible for a guy who is loved by gods to have this much misfortune.

 

   “Ok…well that’s important information for later I guess? As unfortunate as he is, we need to find him. Do you guys have a way to track him down?”

 

   Eruhaben nods, handing Fredo back his bag after taking a roll of bandages from its depths to wrap his bleeding arm. Dokja didn’t even know the dragon could be hurt, let alone bleed after getting hit by a t-rex. Maybe because his body is human and so not as durable? Fredo had also taken a good hit to the head and back earlier but he seemed to be doing better, is it because of a skill? He still did seem a bit out of it, most likely from the head wound and the panic of losing Cale.

 

   “I can track him, I keep a tracking spell on him at all times. I will not let him be kept from us, even if I have to destroy this entire dungeon to get to him. And if that creature hurt him…”

 

[Constellations who love children admire Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’s’ protectiveness.] 

 

   Dokja didn’t need to be told what the ancient dragon would do, he already had a good idea. Cale better be alive and uninjured when they find him because if not the reader is going to stay far away from that fight. After this is over Dokja needs to find some bubble wrap and bundle the redhead in it just to make sure the two long lived beings didn’t go on a rampage.

 

   “Ok, let’s make a plan.”

Chapter 23: To save a Noble from a Dragon

Notes:

Sorry I'm a bit late! usually I try to post more in the middle of the month but I did my best!

   The first thing Cale noticed when he woke up was that it was too bright and humid, his body sore as he was laying on something uncomfortable. He kept his eyes shut as an instinct from his times being kidnapped by Clopeh as he tried to remember where he was and what happened before he blacked out. Memories flood back as he opens his eyes, remembering the T-rex and the attribute usage against his will causing it to come flying at him and his guardian like a living tank. He can only be thankful for his Vitality of the Heart as he feels around his head where he hit it earlier, only the vague remnants of a headache as it had knitted the flesh back together. His head was still sticky from the blood and he definitely needed to wash it off before it dries in his hair or it would be more difficult to clean later.

 

   The redhead doesn’t waste much time in sitting up to get an understanding of his surroundings. The sun in the sky hasn’t moved far so that means he wasn’t out for long, maybe half an hour at most taking into account how the blood in his hair wasn’t wet but wasn’t dry either. He knows from experience and reading studies that blood drying depends on different factors from temperature to humidity and being in a humid jungle environment it would take half an hour to get to the tacky state that it’s in now. He seemed to be laying in a large nest made of large leaves, twigs, and other such items that would be laying around a jungle environment. However he could also see torn fabrics with blood stains, no doubt from the members of the group that entered the dungeon before them.

 

   Setting aside that horrifying discovery and putting it away to process later like he does with most trauma in his life he takes the chance with the Dinosaur currently away to try and get a better understanding of where he is. There was a distinct lack of trees surrounding the nest with a river flowing close by, a good area to build a nest with the access to clean water and space to move around. Cale pulls himself out of the nest, careful to keep an eye and ear out for any sign of the beast returning as he goes to the river to clean up. Without the bag of cleaning supplies he was limited to just rubbing the water into his red locks to clean the blood away as best he could. It was better to get that over with now before it could dry completely and become uncomfortable. 

 

   🪨- ‘Cale, are you ok? Feeling any better?’

 

   ❤️‍🩹- ‘I healed him so he should be fine *Sob* but it took a while for him to wake up.’

 

   🔥- ‘He’s awake and walking so I’m sure he’s fine!’

 

   🌪️- ‘Cale they’ve been like this since you passed out.’

 

   “I’m fine just needing to clean up then I'll start finding my way back to the others. Knowing them, if I don’t they’ll cause a mess.”

 

   Cale was quick in his cleaning, scrubbing at his head to get the blood off and watching the red tinted water flow down the river. His hair was wet and sticking to his face but at least he was clean enough to start moving. It would be best to go now before the T-rex came bac-

 

   Thud

 

   Thud

 

   Thud

 

   Just his luck that the moment he tries to leave is when the monster who was labeled a dragon returns. Cale would really like to talk with whoever decided a T-rex should be labeled a land dragon instead of literally anything else. Or who made it so Cale has no control over his attributes and can’t even figure out how to turn them off. There in the trees was the Dinosaur, moving towards the clearing where the nest resides and dragging along what appears to be half a corpse of its prey. Thankfully it isn’t a human corpse, just half of what may have once been an ancient crocodile species or something. It only has the bottom half of the torso so there is no way of knowing for sure what it is.

 

   Cale inches himself towards the river, trying to make it towards the nearby trees and tall grass to hide from the beast. He watched it carefully as it made its way towards the nest only to stop when it didn’t see a head of red hair laying inside. Said redhead saw the moment it realized he was gone and turned, running for the trees just as it turned its head to look around for him. A roar was heard and the thuds from its footfalls as it ran after him. He could see the trees only a meter away before he felt a gentle bite to the back of his shirt and was lifted into the air. 

 

   ‘What am I a kitten?!’

 

   This was probably one of the most humiliating parts of this mission hands down. He was used to throwing his shame away for one reason or the other to trick the enemy or make some money, but to be carried by a dinosaur like a kitten sounds like the start of a dream you'd never tell anyone about. The worst part is he couldn’t even complain as the massive beast was honestly being very gentle with him. It was careful as it set him down back in the nest it made, probably as he was passed out as there are no eggs so it has no reason to have a nest. 

 

   Cale could only hope his guardians and Dokja’s party find him soon as he is not eating that carcass it keeps nudging towards him. Even with his fire at his command he doubted that thing was sanitary and he was pretty sure he could see maggots crawling around on the meat. He didn’t even want his fire touching it and he’s been around many gross things in his lives.

 

   “-ale! Cale! Can you hear me?”

 

   “Cale-ya!”

 

   “Cale!”

 

   And his luck is finally turning around for once! He sat up straight as he heard the call of his name by the group, hearing them moving closer. He can feel them before he even sees them, the pure dragon rage hitting him as Eruhaben moves into the clearing at speeds Cale hadn’t seen since the war and the one time Choi Han tried to use the kitchen in the villa. Before he could even yell out to the others he saw the look in Eruhaben’s eyes, already bleeding into their more draconic look as his pupils turned to vertical slits in his golden irises and he could see the start of his horns growing out of his head. Cale’s blood runs cold as the angry dragon is throwing everything out the window too early in the mission. This isn’t going to be good.

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ activates the skill ‘Polymorph’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ activates the skill ‘Dragon Fear’]

 

[Tier 7 Land dragon species ‘Tyrannosaurus Rex’ is now frightened on incarnation ‘Eruhaben’]

 

   The others had just breached the tree line and it was already too late as they all witnessed the man they had been traveling with turn into something far bigger than any human. It happened so fast, too fast as the man running towards the T-rex turned into a Dragon with sleek golden scales traveling over the expanse of the ancient and powerful force of nature. He was big, big enough to be on par with that of the T-rex, if not more so, as he barreled into the beast with the force of a wrecking ball. Cale watched as the two rolled across the ground as he was lifted from the nest and pulled into someone's arms.  

 

   “Cale, are you ok? Did it hurt you?”

 

   ‘Of course it would be Fredo.’

 

   Nobody else would be stupid enough to get this close to two massive creatures fighting except the vampire coming to get him. It was a blur as Cale was pulled from the nest to be taken back to the safe distance of Dokja’s group as the fight rages. The roars of the T-rex fill the clearing, Eruhaben responding in kind as he takes to the air, diving through it like a bullet to drive the beast into the dirt. There was no elegance, no magic, just a battle of brute strength between the two as Cale takes in the reactions from Dokja and his companions. 

 

   And he was not disappointed by the range of reactions he could see on their faces. Gilyoung was more fascinated, the youth’s eyes sparkling as he watched the two battle it out. On the complete opposite of the spectrum was Lee Jihye who looked as if she saw a ghost. The horror and fear on her face was made even better as she turned to look at him and Fredo as if they would suddenly turn into dragons as well, slowly moving away from the two. 

 

[Many Constellations are in complete shock.]

 

[Some Dragon Constellations are surprised to see one of their own as an incarnation.]

 

[Many are asking if this is allowed?]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End cheers on Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander yells “For once I agree with the Bastard god, Get it’s ass Eruhaben-nim!’]

 

   ‘Since when did they let Cage near the orb?’

 

   Dokja was the calmest on the outside, he had known the truth about Eruhaben being a dragon after all, but even he wasn’t immune to the small amount of fear from seeing him completely. Eruhaben was intimidating in his dragon form after all so it was a reasonable fear to have. The ancient dragon was huge with sleek golden scales over his body, on his head a large set of horns that add to his intimidating nature. His golden eyes were focused on the T-rex as he fought it using his raw strength alone, the snapping of teeth and the dragging of claws tearing into the dinosaur's flesh. 

 

   The T-rex was a good opponent for the ancient being, Cale knew he was getting antsy for a good fight. The old man may always say he's too old for it, but Cale knows he’s just as crazy as the rest of his family when it comes to getting to beat someone or something up. He craves a good battle, and here he can get one.

 

   ‘Vicious bastard.’

 

   The two massive creatures separated, circling as they kept their eyes on their opponents. Eruhaben moved sharply, launching himself forward to seize the opening to the T-rex’s throat. The beast screams out with a sharp roar as it buries its claws into the dragon's hide with its little arms. Eruhaben was quick to respond in kind, his own massive claws digging into the beast and ripping through the tough scales. 

 

   They were at each other’s throats more literally than Cale was expecting, their viciousness shown in a terrifying display of sharp teeth breaking through hard scales and claws tearing through flesh. The ancient dragon showed no mercy as he locked his claws into the beast and took to the air. He dangled the creature in the air as the T-rex bit at one of his legs, its teeth sinking into the dragon’s flesh. Eruhaben was quick to throw the T-rex after the bite, sending it plummeting to the ground with a loud and heavy thud within a cloud of dirt from the impact. The ground shook from the force of the fall, nearly knocking Cale off his feet despite being far from the fight. 

 

   It was a quick battle, both creatures attacking with the intent to kill as only one would survive. There was no mercy in Eruhaben as he dove in from the air and sunk his teeth into the T-rex’s throat and tore it open, no way would he lose in a battle of raw strength against the lesser creature. It was a bloody end with a muted roar signaling the creature’s demise as it collapsed at the dragon’s feet. With it bleeding out and dying a slow and painful death, Eruhaben turned his back to the lesser creature that dared to steal his child from him; nobody takes his children. 

 

[Tier 7 Land Dragon species ‘Tyrannosaurus Rex’ has been killed by Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ Activates the skill ‘Polymorph’]

 

   It didn’t take long for Eruhaben to return to Cale’s side, his body becoming smaller until he was walking forward in his more Elven appearance. Cale noted that his ears, which had once been more rounded when they had arrived to this world, were now pointed again as he moved to scoop the redhead into his hold. Both he and Fredo have been looking him over, checking him for injuries despite knowing Cale would heal just fine because of his ancient power Vitality of the Heart. 

 

   “Are you ok? Did it hurt you?”

 

   “No, I’m perfectly fine.” 

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander shakes their head and says their dongsang has been known to lie about injuries.]

 

   “He is right, you know. Don’t lie to us, I can smell the blood you tried to wash off.”

 

   ‘Damn bastards.’

 

   “Hyung, the brightest sun of the kingdom, please don’t encourage them. I’m perfectly fine. It healed quickly and it wasn’t that big a deal.”

 

   It was only after Cale relented to their persistent search for any injuries that haven’t healed or trauma to his body that Cale noticed just how quiet Dokja and his group have been. Turning his head he saw them all staring at the small family with eyes wide and questions they want answered. Eruhaben, Seeming to notice Cale’s new focus of attention, turns his head to look at the group with Fredo also focusing his attention on them. They still had to explain this without telling the group everything. It was one thing to inform Dokja who already knew more about this world than anyone, but to tell someone like Jihye could mean information getting out they don’t want.

 

   The two groups look back and forth after the spectacle, trying to figure out what should be said first and who should say it. There was so much to say on the matter but the silence still hung in the air before Cale finally coughed and nudged Eruhaben. It was best to get this over with now rather than wait. Eruhaben sighs but nods his head, standing to face them before rubbing the back of his neck rather sheepishly. At least he had the decency to look embarrassed by his display of strength and revealing one of their secrets to the reader’s group.

 

   “Hehe, my apologies for that display. I know we had a plan but…well I saw that creature pushing a carcass towards my boy and I just saw red..”

 

   ‘Either he’s way too proud of himself to act like he’s sorry or Choi han is rubbing off on him…I don’t know which is worse’

 

   Cale could only sigh as that apology was far from a real apology, He could see the smug bastard was proud of that kill when it would have been better to let Dokja take it like in the story. He could only hope Eruhaben and Fredo had at least had him run into that dying man to learn a bit about the prophets. They needed to keep those points consistent for their own sakes. 

 

   “You’re a fucking Dragon?!”

 

   ‘Leave it to Lee Jihye to just rip the bandage off.’

 

   Cale could only sigh as this wasn’t going well and he'd really prefer to keep moving as they’ve already stayed here too long. They didn’t have all the time in the world to just stand here talking. Moving forward Cale grabbed Eruhaben’s hand and looked at the group, speaking up with a more pointed look to Dokja to get his group together.

 

   “Abeoji can explain, but can we please start leaving now? I don’t want to be taken by another dinosaur.”

 

   Dokja, seeming to pick up the hint that they need to get moving, nods his head and turns his attention to the next steps they need to take.

 

   “We need to get moving, Cale-ya is probably in the most amount of danger in this dungeon so let’s talk about this on the way?”

 

   This finally seemed to get them focused, though it may just be the promise of answers more than anything that got them moving. Dokja was right though, with Cale’s inability to turn off his attributes he was in the most danger in this environment. They didn’t even make it a few minutes of walking, Cale getting scooped up into a carry immediately, that the first questions flew at the small group.

 

   “So you’re a Dragon? Since when was this a thing?”

 

   “I saw it when I was comparing my Status window to Cale’s and Fredo’s. Skills such as ‘Polymorph’ and attributes calling me such. Even I was surprised but I have always held a fascination with them in fiction.”

 

   It was a good thing Eruhaben was smart and quick when it came to lying. They hadn’t had much chance to talk about if it was revealed that Eruhaben and Fredo were not human. Saying he got it as a skill was smart and a good way to avoid the truth. It was a more believable explanation than just a dragon showing up on a subway before the scenarios even began with a child and ‘husband’. 

 

   Attention was turned from Eruhaben over to Fredo and Cale, the redhead just sighing as it was a reasonable thing to check if they were similar in turning into dragons. Though Cale highly doubts it works that way.

 

   “No, I’m human.”

 

   “What about you Fredo-ssi?”

 

   “No, I am not a Dragon.”

 

   Cale could feel their sighs of relief at that reassurance.

 

   “I am a vampire though.”

Chapter 24: Back on Track

Notes:

Before this chapter I wanna just shout out to two awesome people.

First is Ruri_Sayoko who's comment gave me such a great idea I went back and changed a scene because of a fun idea I got after reading it.

The second is ri_hazbinhotel_fan for giving me my first ever piece of fan art! I love it so much and it made me so happy when I saw it! I will be linking to it at the end of the fic if anyone wants to see it!

Please remember if you make art and want me to see it please see me at Huntresspop on Tumblr!

   The silence would be almost deafening if not for the fact they were traveling through a jungle, The ambient noise of birds and the dull hum of wind through the leaves of the trees filling the void. Cale could only sigh and put his head in his hands as this is just a mess, and he didn’t appreciate that he could physically hear Eruhaben trying not to laugh next to him. Why did the gods have to put him in this world with these two proud individuals that have long since lost the ability to be ashamed of their antics? When Cale dared to look through his fingers at the other party he saw the looks of confusion, surprise, horror, and exasperation from Dokja. At least someone else is there he can commiserate with. 

 

   “A V-Vampire?!”

 

[Many Constellations are speechless at Incarnations ‘Fredo Von Ejellan’s’ confession.]

 

[A few Constellations laugh out loud at how the Incarnation revealed this information.]

 

[Many Constellations are confused as to how two strong beings are Incarnations.]

 

[Some Constellations are curious as to how they became connected to Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’]  

 

   “Y-you mean the blood sucking, burning in the sun, that turns into bats, monster?!”

 

   Now that comment from Jihye got a small laugh from Cale as he remembered the rant Fredo went on when they first arrived and he learned how vampires are portrayed in fiction. It had been a long rant. The vampire duke had been utterly disappointed with what he saw and downright horrified at some of the depictions that made him go on an hours long tirade while Eruhaben had watched with glee at his frustrations. Eruhaben had his own opinions on how dragons were portrayed in the media and fascinated on the differences he’d seen in eastern and western depictions. 

 

   “Now I wouldn’t say monster. There are so many things wrong with what you just said I cannot even articulate how disappointed I am with you.”

 

   “Appa is like Abeoji, he got the vampire abilities just like Abeoji did with dragons.”

 

   Cale smiled, using his childish voice to get everyone to finally settle down. They should really focus and move on from this point. There are so many strange things in this world that this shouldn’t be what they focus on. 

 

   “O-oh… I guess that makes sense. I mean it isn’t like he’s gonna drink our blood right?”

 

   Fredo huffs as he resettles Cale in his hold, moving towards the front of the group to get them moving along. 

 

   “Goodness no, I don’t need to drink any for at least 2 more days. I know how to control my thirst, thank you very much.”

 

   The sigh that comes out of Cale’s mouth could be felt as well as heard as he was making things worse on purpose. It has to be on purpose, he knows the vampire is a better actor than this. Is this punishment for something? This has to be right? Is he in trouble or something? Why are they acting like they got acting lessons from Choi Han and Alberu at the same time? The redhead looks to Eruhaben for help, he doesn’t need these types of questions. The smug look on Eruhabens face when he sees Cale’s misery is the only response he gets.

 

   ‘Ah, This is a punishment. Fantastic.’

 

   “Wait, Wait, back up a moment. Fredo-ssi just said he does drink blood and nobody is gonna comment on that?”

 

   Dokja sighs, maybe to give Cale a break or he too wants them to move along, and speaks up from his position in the front of the group. They needed to get to their next destination quickly before some new dinosaur sees Cale as a potential child. They do not have time for another rescue mission. He looks to Heewon who had asked the question as he pushes through a patch of tall grass.

 

   “Well I’d imagine getting the powers of a vampire would have drawbacks like that.”

 

   “Well yeah obviously but what I mean is where is he getting the blood? Fredo-ssi are you drinking from Eruhaben-nim?”

 

   ‘Ah, learned he's a dragon and switched the honorific. A reasonable reaction honestly.’

 

   The look of disgust that passed onto Fredo’s face was honestly impressive. The redhead hasn’t seen him look this grossed out and offended in a while. Not since he saw an online debate on if rats were the juice boxes of the vampire world.

 

   “Uhhh no, no offense but his blood would be awful. No, I drink from Cale.”

 

   It took everything in his body not to facepalm at just how badly that sounds in this situation. He’s admitting to a group of people that he drinks blood from, what is in their understanding, his 10 year old child. Choosing this over drinking from, what again is their understanding, his partner and an adult. Cale immediately spoke up before one of them decided to try and take him away from his guardians. Dokja knew this wasn’t the case but the others weren’t as aware of everything as Dokja is and Cale wants to keep it that way.

 

   “Appa tried to drink from Abeoji when he first learned he had too, but he couldn’t because it was bad. So I offered instead. He’s not making me do it- oh look, a building!”

 

   Cale could kiss someone for the fact they finally arrived at their destination, an abandoned visitors center from the movie. Finally a distraction! If Cale had to speak in this childish voice just to dig them out of a hole any more he was gonna start exploding something. Making their way inside the building was a simple thing, Cale forcing himself from Fredo’s hold as soon as they were safe inside the building where there were no dinosaurs to kidnap him again. 

 

   Cale, feeling generous and knowing the others are hungry as they should have eaten by this point in the story, pulls out some food from his bag as they are in a safe location. He was already upset by how much the story had changed at this point as Eruhaben had gotten the kill on the T-rex and so Dokja didn’t get the achievement and they didn’t get the dinosaur meat. He pauses for a moment before he could say anything, a small smirk sliding onto his face. Checking to make sure he's far enough away from Eruhaben and Fredo, who were too busy looking at a dinosaur skeleton they found, He slips over to where Dokja and the others were. He speaks up to draw the attention of Dokja’s group from the abandoned laboratory they were moving towards, holding some tteokkochi, ddakkochi, and some corn dogs in his small hands. 

 

   “Ahjussi! Heewon-unnie!”

 

   Cale puts on a childish smile as he runs over with the food, getting their attention as the redhead gets closer. He could see when they focus in on the food in his hands with looks of confusion, everyone except Dokja who knows of Cale’s food supply. He stops in front of them, holding out the food with an innocent smile as he speaks in the sweetest voice he can manage.

 

   “Appa and Abeoji sent me over since nobody has eaten yet! They said I should do it because you all might be scared of them now that you know they aren’t really human now.”

 

   He could see the emotions fly across Dokja’s face as he looked at the small redhead, the confusion, realization, and acceptance of Cale’s little scheme in that order as he walked over to him. At first the commander was wondering if Dokja would call him out, but the reader seemed to find the scam too amusing as he ruffles his hair and takes the bribe of free food. 

 

   “Aww, don’t worry Cale-ya. We aren’t scared of your parents.”

 

   Heewon smiled sweetly at him as she spoke, taking one of the offered ddakkochi. Jihye seemed to follow right after, ruffling his red hair as she took one of the corn dogs and took a bite. The only one who seemed to be more hesitant about it is Gilyoung, the boy walking over to Cale and looking at him. Cale hadn’t noticed before but Gilyoung was a bit taller than him, and wasn’t that just a blow to the fact he’s stuck in such a small body. Why did Cale Henituse have to be so short at the age of ten? 

 

   “He doesn’t hurt you when he takes your blood right?”

 

   ‘Huh, I wasn't expecting that.’

 

   Cale was surprised for a moment by that question, though looking at Gilyoung he was being serious. He couldn’t help but smile though as he was reminded of his family doing the exact same thing whenever he got pulled into situations. He was reminded of his own children and their protectiveness whenever he got so much as a papercut. It was sweet that the child was so worried about his safety, even if the concern isn’t necessary.

 

   “No, it doesn’t hurt. I heal fast anyways and he needs the blood. He wouldn’t drink from me if he thought it would hurt me.”

 

   This seemed to calm the kid down, returning the redhead’s smile as he took one of the tteokkochi from his hands. Though he couldn’t help but be a bit surprised when Gilyoung took a page out of Dokja’s book in ruffling his hair.

 

   “Ok then they’re fine with me. But tell me if they ever do hurt you.”

 

   ‘He’d get along well with the kids.’

 

   With that he saw Dokja eyeing up something near the back, seeing bottles of glowing liquids, and decided he did his job planting the seeds. He leaves them as quickly as he can to respect Dokja not messing with his little scam and pays that respect back by not messing with his. 

 

   Besides, from the sparks he can see starting to form over Eruhaben and Fredo he needed to handle something he had been dreading. He hated the idea of dealing with the Dokkaebi right now but looks like he had no choice. He arrives just as the sparks fade and a Dokkaebi appears before them, different from Bihyung and the other smaller Dokkaebi they had been dealing with before. A character Cale hated the idea of interacting with.

 

   The Dokkaebi was taller, less like a blob of fur and more humanoid shaped with a suit and tie on. Rectangular wire frame glasses sat on the creature’s face with his horns having a slight curve to them. He was glad the others were distracted by something else right now as he didn’t need any spoilers for what was to come leaking out.

 

   “Hmm, well isn’t this a rare occasion. When we had connected Earth to the star stream we hadn’t expected two beings such as yourselves to be mixed in with the rest. And with a human no less. How curious.”

 

   Paul, an Intermediate level Dokkaebi who is supposed to manage the scenarios and keep things balanced or adjust them to entertain the constellations if they will it. A bureaucratic asshole really who liked the idea of trying to mess with humans as if they were insignificant. 

 

   “Well this is certainly a new situation for us, we had never expected such powerful people so early in the scenarios. And with so many coins you truly could become too much for such early events.”

 

   At this point Cale knew that there were no constellations watching them right now, he wouldn’t be this upfront about their coins or stats if the constellations were able to see them right now. No, he turned them away on purpose for some reason. One Cale knew he wasn’t gonna like.

 

   Eruhaben and Fredo moved forward, the latter taking Cale into his arms as they both looked at the higher level Dokkaebi. They had a bad feeling about this guy, and they were not going to let him anywhere near Cale.

 

   “And you are? It’s rude to speak to us like this without at least an introduction don’t you think?”

 

   Cale, never one to let others do the talking for him in important matters, spoke up from Fredo’s arms. If the constellations weren’t watching there wasn’t much point of hiding his intellect or anything. It doesn’t matter because this Dokkaebi won’t be able to prove it anyways. Paul seemed confused for only a moment, before realization and interest crossed his face.

 

   “You, a little human, are the one running this little group? To get beings of much higher level to follow you, interesting indeed. Well, incarnation Cale Henituse, I am Paul, an Intermediate level Dokkaebi. Your little group has caught a lot of attention and was reported to us.”

 

   ‘I knew we would, there’s no way they would like such high leveled individuals running around this early. The question is, what are they gonna do about it?’

 

   Cale and Paul held eye contact for a moment, and in that moment they both got a read of each other. Cale knew a bastard when he saw one and Paul could tell Cale was a complex individual, both strong and weak and that made him difficult to handle. Paul was here for one reason only, to make sure the scenarios are balanced, and Cale knew that.

 

   “You’re here because the balance is off right? We’re too overleveled for the scenarios right?”

 

   This seemed to surprise Paul, the fact Cale would admit that out loud. This incarnation is really something strange.

 

   “Well yes in a sense, though you are not in the case that your stats are fine. With the Dragon and Vampire here your stats exceed what they should be this early in the scenarios. This is a unique situation where we will be placing a penalty, temporary as it is that these stats are your base skills. This penalty will be lifted in later scenarios in order to keep it balanced.”

 

   “Penalty, what kind of Penalty?”

 

   The Dokkaebi smirks a bit at the question, not answering the redhead as he focuses on Eruhaben and Fredo. Sparks fly as he snaps his fingers, a gasp coming from both as they double over in pain. Cale is startled by this, falling from Fredo’s arms as the two fall to the ground.

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ has been hit with a Penalty.]

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’s’ stats have been temporarily reduced.]

 

[Incarnation ‘ Fredo Von Ejellan’ has been hit with a Penalty.]

 

[Incarnation ‘Fredo Von Ejellan’s’ stats have been temporarily reduced.]

 

   Cale’s eyes widen at what he sees before turning to glare at Paul, the Dokkaebi looking on apathetically as the two long lived creatures slowly get back up. Cale could tell they were both in pain, he could see it on their faces as their physical and magical abilities were blocked off from them. It wasn’t like they had increased their stats with coins, this was their base stats, their power that had been intrinsically them. It wasn’t like when they had been blocked by the gods when first arriving, this was invasive, painful, with no care for their well-being, and it made Cale angry.

 

   “Ah, and just so you don’t think about using coins to get around the penalty.”

 

[Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’s’ coins have been reduced by half temporarily]

 

[Incarnation ‘ Fredo Von Ejellan’s’ coins have been reduced by half temporarily]

 

   “Oh, and just in case you think about helping them.”

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’s’ coins have been reduced by half temporarily]

 

   “Your coins will be held by me until the penalty is lifted. If you do attempt to fix your stats with what remains you will only receive an error.”

 

   If Cale had been angry already, now he was pissed. If their coins would have been blocked from raising their stats already there was no reason to take them away. No, this wasn’t about using them, this was a display of power. He has no authority to keep them, but he was proving his superiority by showing he can block access to what they were given.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ has activated the skill ‘Dominant Aura Lv.???’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ has activated the skill ‘Blood-drenched Rock Lv.???’]

 

   The world seemed to grow dim around Paul, a heavy weight hitting him in waves as the world was bathed in crimson. Cale’s rage activated his skills without even thinking, stepping forward to the creature that just pushed his limits. Hurt his family? Take his money? Oh no, you don’t do that and expect no consequences. Paul felt like he was choking, like death itself was wrapped bearing down on him as he was drenched in blood. He could feel it soak through his suit, sticking to his fur as he fell to his knees. All he could do was look up at the boy with blood red hair stepping towards him.

 

   “You will learn pain soon enough. It is not my job to show it to you, but know I will be watching with joy when the day arrives.”

 

   Cale knew he had made it painful for them on purpose, that this creature liked to watch incarnations suffer. Making it hurt was unnecessary, taking their coins was unnecessary, and he will learn what it means to do that to Cale’s people. But not today.

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ has deactivated the skill ‘Dominant Aura Lv.???’]

 

[Incarnation ‘Cale Henituse’ has deactivated the skill ‘Blood-drenched Rock Lv.???’]

   It ended as quickly as it appeared, the pressure gone from the Dokkaebi’s body as if it was never there. Looking down at himself there was no blood in sight, but it had felt so real. He looked up at the redhead, the boy who’s pressure was like nothing he had ever felt before, and his instincts knew to fear him. With a snap he was gone, nothing but sparks where he had been, running like a coward from a weak incarnation. He did know one thing though, he would be looking into this incarnation. This was far from the last time he would see that boy, and next time he would have more information to know just who this boy really is.

Notes:

First ever fanart!

Chapter 25: Ocean breeze

Notes:

I actually watched the Titanic for this with my editor. Also have fun with the side story I'm making for you guys! Have a happy Halloween everyone!

   Cale was quick to get to Eruhaben and Fredo as soon as the Dokkaebi had left, cursing his name as he rushed to check on them. This was his family and they were hurt, and seeing his family hurt was something that he will never be used to or wants to get used to. They looked physically fine, no signs of bleeding or wounds other than what they got from the T-Rex today that were still healing. Luckily when they fell to the ground nothing had reopened or knocked any bandages loose.

 

   No, but they did look awful. Pale and sweaty as if they were ill, twitching limbs as if they had electricity running through their bodies. They may be on their feet but they were unsteady and trying to hide just how bad it was from Cale. He was quick to force them back down as they looked close to collapse.

 

   “Stay down, take a moment. You’re both staying still until the pain eases ok?”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander is surprised and worried.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander asks their incarnation what’s wrong with Incarnation ‘Eruhaben’ and Incarnation ‘Fredo Von Ejellan’]

 

[Constellation Rest Without End asks what happened after the screen went dark.]

 

   Cale didn’t respond to the messages he was getting, though at least he knew that the interference with their viewing was gone now. He’d explain later but for now his focus was on Eruhaben and Fredo. If something was wrong with them he needed to know. He phrased what he had said as a question, but it was far from one with how tight his fists were, the nails digging into his palms. He was quick to grab them both some water, they looked like they needed it. He frowned as he noticed just how shaky his hands were himself but just chalked it up to overuse of his ancient powers as he handed over the bottles. He needed to assess the situation and see just how much damage the Dokkaebi did.

 

   “I need you both to drink then tell me how bad the penalty is. Plans may have to change depending on how bad it is.”

 

   “Sorry Cale, this is our-”

 

   “-No, this is not your fault. Neither of you could have anticipated this reaction from them to finding out the truth.”

 

   Cale was quick to shut down the notion that either of them were to blame for the fact they had to change the plan. They revealed themselves early but what’s done is done and there was no changing it. Now was not the time for self blame when they had plans to make. 

 

[Character profile]

Name: Eruhaben

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: None

Personal Attribute(s): Ancient Dragon (Myth), Guardian of a Hero (Legend), Master of Magic (Legend), SwordMaster (Legend), Alchemist (Rare)

Personal Skills: (Blocked), Dragon Fear Lv.???, Dragon Affinity Lv.???, (Blocked), Telepathy Lv.???, Spellcasting Lv.???, (Blocked), Acting Lv.3

Stigma: None

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 25, Strength Lv. 25, Agility Lv. 25, Mana Lv. 35

 

[Character profile]

Name: Fredo Von Ejellan

Age: (Error)

Supporting Constellation: None

Personal Attribute: Ruler of Vampires (Legend), Guardian of a Hero (Legend), Trickster (Rare)

Personal Skills: Bird Shifting Lv.???, Restoration Lv.???, (Blocked), (Blocked), Escape Lv.???, Acting Lv.12

Stigma: None

Overall Stats: Stamina Lv. 20, Strength Lv. 15, Agility Lv. 25, Mana Lv. 25

 

   The redheaded commander had to take a deep breath as he thought over the shared stats from his guardians. Not only were their stats reduced but a few of their powers were blocked off to them. It could be worse but it’s not great either. They were at least strong enough to fight in the scenarios but their powers had already been reduced and adjusted to fit this world from the very beginning. They didn’t have full access to their abilities like they would at home and now they would have to adjust to being even weaker for the time being. At least until the scenarios allowed them back their strength. 

 

   “We’re about as strong as the humans here, not too bad at least.”

 

   As much as Fredo was making light of the situation Cale was busy having to rework the plans he had for the future. Eruhaben losing access to his dragon form, dragon breath, and sword aura were bound to be difficult. Fredo losing his abilities of Stealth and Camouflage would make some of the things he had planned that much harder too. The penalty also hit the ancient dragon harder than the vampire, maybe for how easily he fought the T-rex was a deciding factor in that. In a sense Cale could understand why a penalty was given, but the pain it caused his family would never be forgiven. 

 

   “I’m sure it will be fine. Just need to get ourselves together and we’ll be ready to go.”

 

   Eruhaben had a point that they couldn’t dwell on this forever, but this wasn’t fine at all. However, Cale had to focus on the future and would have to warn Dokja that any plans he had been forming involving his family’s strength were out the window for the time being. 

   Eruhaben, seeming to sense Cale’s worries, nudged him to get his attention out of his own head and focus on him again.

 

   “Stop worrying, as if I need extra abilities to kill something.”

 

   ‘Crazy bastard.’

 

   Joining back with the others after everything took them a minute, Eruhaben and Fredo needing time after the pain they felt when getting their power lowered by the Dokkaebi. Cale held onto them both as they made their way over, all of them with their winnings after rounds of scissors, rock, paper. (A.N: This is not a typo. I looked it up and that's the order they say in Korea.) Dokja, noticing them coming, smiles as he holds his winnings. He seemed to know by Cale’s face that something happened, or it could be because of how close he’s holding onto his two guardians. In the amount of time he’s known Cale he’s never seen the de-aged commander look so much like a child. The only other time was immediately after the illusory prison. 

 

   While Dokja knows something happened he’s not about to ask with Cale in this state, his decision solidified looking and Eruhaben and Fredo. While they were acting like they’re just fine, Dokja sees the truth. They both look paler than normal, Eruhaben’s hands are twitching, and Fredo is breathing heavier. It’s like they’re in pain, but what could have caused such pain to the two powerful beings? What could have happened in such a short amount of time to do that much damage? He’ll ask later, when they’ve calmed down and don’t look like they’ll collapse.

 

   Without a word Dokja hangs back as they make their way out to where they’ll ride a helicopter out of here. He sticks close to the family and notices when Cale comes back to himself.

 

   “You ok?”

 

   “Yeah, the effects of being younger I guess.”

 

   Cale could only sigh as he got his head on straight. The effects of being younger have made themselves more clear the longer he stays in this body. One of those behaviors being his clinging to his guardians after incidents like this. He can still remember clearly when he first noticed this behavior extended more to just being picked up and carried around. Try all he likes to say it's just easier he knows that it’s this new body that makes him more comfortable with it. Luckily as his body aged a bit in the year they’ve been there the behaviors have lessened for only very distressing situations. 

 

   “I won’t ask what happened right now, but here. You all deserve at least something for the trouble with that T-Rex.”

 

   Cale was honestly a bit surprised as the reader handed him and his family each an ampule even though they are not strictly part of his team. They haven't actually talked about it but the reader should understand that they work with him not out of loyalty but out of necessity of survival right? Shaking his head he focused instead on the ampules given to him and his guardians. It was one for each stat except for mana which was the highest stat for all three of them. Strength, stamina, and agility, Cale couldn’t help but tilt his head to look at the reader.

 

   "Eruhaben, hand it over.”

 

   The ancient dragon didn’t need to ask to know what Cale was talking about, his reward for killing the T-rex had honestly slipped his mind as he was just glad to have his child safe with them again. With a nod he reached into his inventory, spaces they didn’t trust to keep their more important items as it was controlled by the star stream. It’s why they trusted their spacial bags instead as it couldn’t be viewed or tampered with by the bastard dokkaebi.

 

   Grabbing the vial, Cale rushed over to Dokja who was already making his way to the helicopter to leave this movie. He grabbed the back of his black collared shirt to get his attention. Cale wasn’t one to just accept when given something, it could be used to get something from him later. He doesn’t like owing people anything and he already owed the reader for taking his kill.

 

   “Hm? Cale?”

 

   “Here, for the ampules.”

 

[You have paid 3,000 coins]

 

   Cale could almost laugh at the face the reader gives him, not for just handing over such a valuable item but for the coins too. With this Cale had paid his debt to the reader in his eyes. They were now even. Besides, for Cale this was nothing and the reader was going to need the coins later anyways. 

 

   “You..you didn’t have to-”

 

   “Save it. I did it because I owe you and it’s not like we needed it anyways.”

 

   Cale didn’t wait for a reply as he went back to Eruhaben and Fredo to get in the helicopter. As much as the jungle kinda reminds him of things back home he was ready to leave and move on. As soon as everyone was in, the helicopter took off, flying away and out of the first movie.

 

[You have reached the first Ending Credit.]

 

[Cast: Kim Dokja, Jung Heewon, Lee Jihye, Lee Gilyoung, Cale Henituse, Eruhaben, Fredo Von Ejellan]

 

[You have each received 500 coins for your performance.]

 

   The jungle soon disappeared, swallowed in blue light as their bodies faded from the realm that hosted the movie world they had been in. Their feet soon hit the floor of the abandoned theater once again, standing in front of a now torn poster of the area they just beat. Cale had almost been worried the Cinema’s master wouldn’t have liked the ending they gave, but he must have liked the twist of a dragon fighting the T-rex enough to let them pass. 

 

   “How many more floors do we have to clear?”

 

   “Yoo Joonghyuk should’ve cleared some already, so it shouldn’t take too long.”

 

   Cale took a breath of the air in the theater, almost sad it wasn’t the fresh air they had been breathing in the jungle. He moved forward away from the ruined poster and looked towards where they were heading next. The redhead was walking for this, not letting his guardians carry him while they were still recovering. As much as they enjoyed it, now was not the time. He looked to see the others looking at the torn poster, realizing the pattern of what movies had and hadn’t been done yet.

 

   “Can we only enter the movies where the poster hasn’t been ripped?”

 

   “Looks like it. The poster seems to have ripped after we cleared it.”

 

   “Let’s hurry. We don’t know how many movies we have left.”

 

   They moved quickly up through the floors of the theater, Cale knowing that they didn’t have another movie to beat until the 4th floor. As they moved forward Cale was the first to spot the poster for the classic film. He couldn’t help but be curious about if their presence there would affect who got which character when they materialize into the movie. Would it affect who got sorted into the different characters? To be honest Cale wasn’t a big fan of this part of the book or the movie in general as he had watched it with Eruhaben and Fredo to prepare them. Fredo wouldn’t stop crying for half an hour. He didn’t like a lot of the rich characters as they reminded him of the slimy nobles back home who now try to buddy up to him after he went from trash to war hero. 

 

   Arriving in front of the movie poster Cale could only take a deep breath to steady his nerves at the image of the ship’s bow with the images of the two main characters holding each other above it. It is a beautiful movie even if he can say it made him mad or remind him of the unsavory people of his world. 

 

   “This is it, this one hasn’t been torn yet.”

 

   The other’s rush over, but unlike Cale they didn’t get a look at the movie poster like he did. To be fair Cale had known where to look while the others didn’t. He and his guardians had been a bit ahead of the others when going up as they didn’t bother looking through the already torn movie posters. Cale looked to see Heewon clutching her hands as if in a prayer as the blue lights engulfed them for transport.

 

   “Please don’t be a ghost movie…”

 

   Dokja turned his head to look at her as she spoke, an understandable thing as ghosts would be difficult to deal with. Though technically Cale could be considered haunted by the past owners of his ancient powers. Would those be considered ghosts though?

 

   “Ghosts can’t be killed with a sword.”

 

   Cale shrugs at the reasoning as the sound of a projector filled the silence that followed. Cale felt his body dematerialize and closed his eyes, as ready as he’ll ever be for this. The redhead was already tired even though he had taken a nap before they came to the cinema dungeon.

 

   ‘Well, this is gonna be interesting.’

 

   When Cale opened his eyes again it was to the sight of a lavish parlor, confusion setting in as he was sure he would have been on the deck with the others like in the story. Looking around he quickly noticed Eruhaben trying to keep a straight face as he was looking behind Cale. Eruhaben was dressed in a well tailored blue striped suit with a white undershirt and matching blue vest. Around his collar is a blue tie with white polka dots and in his pocket is a white pocket square, his long hair tied back in a ponytail to give a more elegant appearance. Cale pegs him instantly for Mr. Andrews who built the ship they are currently in.

 

   Turning around, the redheaded commander immediately realized why Eruhaben had been struggling not to laugh. Cale could honestly say he was not expecting but also not that surprised to see Fredo in a long modest black dress under a puffy fur coat that wrapped around his upper body. His hair, usually tied in a low ponytail, was curled and styled in an updo that seemed to be held up by a lot of hairspray, his hands were covered in black gloves that seemed itching to grab the laughing ancient dragon by the neck.

 

   “Huh, I’m honestly not as surprised as I should be that you got Molly Brown.”

 

   “This is humiliating.”

 

   “It’s fine, you don’t look that bad.”

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander has multiple snickering voices.]

 

[Constellation Army Without a Commander says, while they don’t understand what’s going on, that Incarnation ‘Fredo Von Ejellan’ looks great.]

 

   Looking around the parlor Cale finally locates a mirror, frowning as he doesn’t recognize the character he’s dressed as really. He was dressed as most of the rich people in the movie with a black tailored suit with a white button up shirt and a white bow tie around his collar. His red hair was slicked back on his head but nothing in particular stood out to him at first glance. Did he get a nameless character?

 

   Setting that aside for now Cale knew they needed to get moving. He was surprised they had been separated from Dokja’s group when spawning into the movie world but they should head up to meet with the others. They didn’t have a lot of time.

 

   Rushing through the stairways and halls of the ship they made it to the deck just in time to see Caldon Hockley getting tied up by the others and being dragged into the ship. They made it just in time before Jihye could actually kill him. He’d worried he would be too late since they had to stop so Fredo could get the heels off his feet. Running in heels would be a nightmare and would only slow them down. Cale did have to help though as they were a laced up black leather boot with a 4 inch heel, hard to take off by himself in the dress he was wearing.

 

   “Oh, there you guys are. You weren’t here when we arrived so we were…”

 

   They all at once seemed to realize what Fredo was wearing, Jihye’s plans momentarily forgotten in favor of laughing at Fredo in a dress. They all seemed to stop in amusement seeing the vampire dressed so pretty. Cale could appreciate at least Dokja, Gilyoung, and Heewon having the decency to hide it though. Cale simply thinks it’s probably warmer than what he has on with the fur. It’s really cold out on the deck.

 

   “H-help these people are trying to-”

 

   Oh, Cale had almost forgotten about him. Looks like he finally noticed they had arrived. 

 

   “-Mr. Astor?”

 

   ‘Oh, so that’s who I am?’

Chapter 26: Hiatus (yes again I'm so sorry)

(Hiatus, yes again I'm so sorry guys)

 

My grandmother is in the hospital and it's really difficult here. It's back and forth on her health and I'm not sure if she'll be ok.

I know I just took one not that long ago, I'm so sorry.

I know you guys will understand and won't be mad, but I still feel really bad for doing it again.

I promise to be back as soon as possible, thanks again for understanding.

 

Love you guys!

Chapter 27: Update (will delete later)

Summary:

Hello

Update on what has happened:

 

Hello everyone, guess who's back from the dead! 

 

Hehe... In all seriousness I'm so sorry that I've been away for so long. My absence was only supposed to be for a couple months. However a lot has happened that kept me away.

So as I've finally gotten the opportunity to breath in this hectic life of mine I decided to inform you all of where I've been.

The good:

I have a new little nephew now! He's the cutest little thing!

I've started making some money out of my hobby, though not much it's still very exciting if a bit exhausting

I've started going to the gym again which has been very fun!

The bad:

My grandfather on my father's side had a stroke, it was a scary time for all of us but he's making a full recovery!

I had been recently hospitalized after a heart attack scare. I'm fine really but as I live in America dealing with healthcare is a nightmare.

My grandmother has passed away, it's been devastating for all of us and I've been taking care of my mother in her grief.

 

As I am continuing to navigate through all this I feel the need to let you all know I'm not going anywhere! I will continue this story and it has not been abandoned!

I am going to be removing the side story though, as it is going under a revision as I am no longer happy with it. It will be back after I have remade it into something I can be proud of.

Please continue to be patient with me and I will be back very soon!

Bye!

Chapter 28: This sucks

Hey everyone I'm doing this from my phone as my computer is broken and is being repaired.

I know you all are looking forward to the next chapter but sadly that will have to wait.

I will be completely honest that writers block has hit me full force and I just need time to get myself back on track. I'm not sure how long that will take though...

Sorry everyone but know that I will come back fully one of these days when my mental health is better and I can actually focus on writing again.

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 1 of Trash of Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint