[many constellations are flabbergasted.]
"A sword just came out of the booze," Han Sooyoung muttered, shooting him a baffled look, "what the actual fuck, Kim Dokja?"
He just grinned smugly. "The things you know when you pay attention."
"That's so cool, hyung!" Lee Gilyoung cheered, looking very excited by the sudden appearance of the sword. "You're going to have another awesome sword."
Hell yeah he would!
[The fable of 'Amano-Murakumo-No-Tsurugi' has been manifested.]
According to legend, Amano-Murakumo-No-Tsurugi was a sword that came into existence when they cut off the drunken Yamata no Orochi's tail.
Dokja grasps the sword and lets the remaining alcohol drip off of it while he muses that just dunking it in liquor worked, but he's admittedly a little sad about the damage to the fable. Before it can fully dry off, Joonghyuk snatches it and states that the sword is his since he did most of the work, even though he and Dokja technically worked together to defeat the constellation.
Dokja is a little miffed about the loss of the Star Relic that Joonghyuk is currently holding up to examine with a discerning eye, despite the sword not being his ultimate goal, but his attention is quickly captured when the barrel of mixed spirits bubbles once more. From within, another sword appears with a notification labeling it as the
What…? Another sword…?
"Oh, so because you didn't cut off the constellation's tail while it was drunk, the story isn't fully complete. Is that right?" Yoo Sangah wondered, easily putting the pieces together. "Well, this was much simpler than trying to get it drunk in the middle of a battle…"
That was absolutely true—it would have been impossible to do a full retelling of the fable, especially under the time constraints. Kim Dokja would just have to settle for a slightly weaker sword, but it would do anyway.
[a few constellations are shocked by the actions of the incarnation 'yoo joonghyuk'.]
"You sooty bastard," Shin Yoosung growled, turning to glare at the protagonist as viciously as she could. "That was ahjussi's sword!"
Yoo Joonghyuk raised a challenging brow. "I did most of the work; it's only fair."
Okay, so maybe Kim Dokja should have divided the work a bit more equally in the first place, but even that sunfish bastard had to have realized that he was only able to manage those two strikes. Even if he had wanted to, there was no way he could have actually helped more than that!
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is hoping that the incarnation 'yoo joonghyuk' will be a bit more considerate of his companion.]
"Wait, it's still bubbling?" Lee Jihye shrieked nervously, gritting her teeth. "It's not about to revive the monster, right?"
"That would be really bad…" Lee Hyunsung muttered and Kim Dokja wanted to sigh. That wouldn't happen, even if he wasn't completely certain about what exactly was going on.
[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is shocked by the appearance of another sword.]
A second one…? Where did that even come from? Kim Dokja felt absolutely baffled for a moment, trying to wrack his memory for how this could have been possible.
Dokja looks at the sword in surprise before his eyes glaze over and words flash past on the screen, rushing through his head as he recalls a scene from the novel.
Names give birth to Fables, and Fables give birth to reality. Amano-Murakumo-No-Tsurugi has five different names in the world of the Star Stream. In other words, there was more than one 'Amano-Murakumo-No-Tsurugi'.
Looking at the new sword in his hands, Dokja now realizes that it must be one of the other four that were hinted at in TWSA despite never appearing. Turning to look at Joonghyuk over his shoulder while hugging the blade close, Dokja declares that this sword is his, and demands to know if Joonghyuk has any complaints about that. Joonghyuk just tells him to do as he'd like, and nothing more.
Grass-Cutting Sword. This is the second Amano-Murakumo-No-Tsurugi.
Huh, is that really what he looked like whenever his attribute activated? Thankfully it wasn't too noticeable, but it could be worse.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is confirming the thoughts of the incarnation 'kim dokja'.]
"So basically, if something has many names, there can be more than one of it?" Yoo Mia wondered, looking confused. "That's weird."
Maybe it was a bit weird, but it was also super convenient for Kim Dokja in this instance. With this second sword, he wouldn't need to be too put out that the protagonist had snagged the other one for himself. Though he wasn't likely to need a sword for killing dragons anytime soon, you could never be absolutely certain in the apocalypse. It was better to have something like that sword around just in case.
"If only you had that one earlier," Jung Heewon sighed, clearly thinking of their previous encounter with a dragon. Yeah… having a sword meant for dragon killing would have been very nice back then, but it had also been a bit too early for weapons with fables to be getting handed out. (Technically, his own sword also shouldn't have shown up that early, but that's what loopholes—and Bihyung's stupidity, apparently—were for.)
"Wow, thanks for allowing me to have this one, Joonghyuk-ah," Kim Dokja drawled sarcastically, wondering why his future self even bothered asking whether or not the protagonist had any issues with it. It's not like he would give the sword up even if he did.
Yoo Joonghyuk scoffed, though it had less venom than usual. "A sword is nothing more than a dangerous toy in the hands of someone who doesn't know how to use it properly."
Han Sooyoung snorted and let out a peal of laughter as Kim Dokja gasped in affront. "My future self trained pretty extensively in stabbing, you know."
Raising a brow again, the protagonist looked almost amused as he looked at Kim Dokja with his full attention. "Your point being?"
"That I'll just stab you for that comment, dammit," Kim Dokja hissed, though even he could realize that it was just bluster at this point. But still, why the fuck did that bastard look even more amused than before!? That was just crushing Kim Dokja's ego!
[the constellation 'abyssal black flame dragon' is doubting that the incarnation 'kim dokja' would be able to hit the incarnation 'yoo joonghyuk'.]
Oh shut it.
Dokja looks at the sword once Joonghyuk walks away, thinking about how he no longer needs to fear any dragon species since this sword contains the power to slay them. Seeing that their petty squabble over swords is done, Jihye enthusiastically asks if they can take a sip of the booze now.
"But you're a minor," Dokja states before Jihye and a horde of excited soldiers all give him Hyunsung-level puppy eyes. Pausing for a moment and enduring their eager stares, Dokja sighs and gives in, telling them to have a taste as he remembers that the liquor can raise stats a little and likely tastes good since it was made using parts of a constellation.
Like a gremlin, Jihye jumps up onto the railing to take the role of scooping the liquor with tankards. As they begin tasting it, people praise the taste of the alcohol through their cheers and laughter.
Han Sooyoung was still snickering, and he shot her a dark look. It was true that Yoo Joonghyuk had so much more stabbing experience—both in training and in combat, if you took his past regressions into account—but Kim Dokja just rolled his eyes.
Whatever, he couldn't sulk for long because he had to stare at Lee Jihye in disbelief. She hadn't really just asked for alcohol again, right?
[the constellation 'maritime war god' is frowning at his incarnation.]
[the constellation 'god of wine and ecstasy' is laughing joyously.]
Lee Jihye laughed awkwardly, pointedly looking away from Yoo Joonghyuk in particular. She was in deep trouble and she knew it. Unfortunately for her, Yoo Mia was doing an excellent impression of her brother's face of disappointment, and that was unavoidable when the girl was sitting in her lap.
"Jihye-yah, you remember what we told you last time, yes?" Lee Seolhwa asked firmly, and Lee Jihye nodded after a moment.
"I just want to take a sip… just one…" she muttered sadly. "When else am I going to get to taste constellation-sword booze?"
Han Sooyoung paused for a moment and cocked her head to the side. "Yeah, she's got a point. And where the fuck am I? I totally would have been down to try that."
Actually, that was a good question—where was Han Sooyoung?
Before he could come up with an answer, Kim Dokja cringed as he let her have a drink, and everyone's stares of disappointment were turned onto him.
"Dokja-ssi…" Yoo Sangah said with a frown, looking rather troubled. Ah shit, she was so mad.
[the constellation 'god of wine and ecstasy' is reminding the incarnations that drinking is required at a banquet.]
"As my future self said, uh, it's not too strong and it raises stats, so it's actually a good thing that she gets a little bit…?" Kim Dokja protested weakly, trying to force a shaky smile onto his face.
"Yeah, yeah!" Lee Jihye agreed while nodding her head vehemently. "It was always for the stat boost."
The stat boost that she absolutely hadn't known about a minute ago, but whatever.
After staring at Kim Dokja silently for another moment, Yoo Sangah sighed. "One sip, that's it. Yoosung-ie and Gilyoung-ie aren't getting any, though, they're too young."
"Thank you unnie, you're the best!" Lee Jihye cheered excitedly while the two younger kids looked disgusted at the very idea of tasting alcohol. They had good heads on their shoulders, honestly.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is sighing in exasperation.]
Dokja watches the drunk crowd with an unreadable expression as he slowly walks between the tables. Noticing Joonghyuk preparing skewers off to the side with Seolhwa's help, Dokja walks up and asks if he's going to drink the liquor too. Joonghyuk frankly replies that he never eats anything that others have made. When Dokja asks if it's about poisoning, Joonghyuk turns to him, the skewer in his hand gleaming from the juiciness or just the pure skill put into making it as he declares, "It's because they have no taste."
Well, at least he was missing the rest of that mess. Kim Dokja sighed in relief as soon as the attention was off of the teenager because he had told her to only have a small taste. If she got herself drunk (again), then that would be entirely on her.
"Oh, oppa is cooking!" Yoo Mia exclaimed gleefully, and Kim Dokja instantly paid attention to the way the protagonist was expertly assembling the skewers. Fuck, that looked so good.
[many constellations are salivating over the delicious-looking skewers.]
Every piece of meat was sliced to a perfect size, somehow all exactly the same—definitely the result of some kind of protagonist level 10 cooking bullshit, he just knew it—and they were interspersed with vegetables on long wooden skewers. Though Lee Seolhwa seemed to be assisting somewhat in putting them together as well, Kim Dokja noticed that all the meat and vegetables had already been cut, and that all the supplies were gathered around Yoo Joonghyuk.
That had meant that he had expertly cut not only the vegetables, which wasn't any kind of impressive feat or anything, but also the meat. If Kim Dokja was correct in his assessment, then it was probably from some tougher cut of some local game. In that case, then that meant that his muscles had likely flexed attractively as he had slid his blade through the flesh, treating it with care. Kim Dokja could almost imagine it if he let his thoughts drift for a moment—a sharp blade gliding smoothly through the muscle, a firm hand holding onto the meat to keep it trapped in place, and an intense expression of pure concentration, focused entirely on his task.
Ugh, why had he gotten so distracted by Lee Jihye when he could have been observing the protagonist's godly cooking skills from the start?
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is wondering what the incarnation 'kim dokja' is thinking about.]
What? Kim Dokja zoned back in and blinked away his minor daydream and swallowed to get rid of his oddly dry throat.
"You filthy degenerate," Han Sooyoung hissed under her breath, looking extremely judgemental. "I saw that look on your face."
What look on his face? "You don't know what you're talking about."
She grimaced more. "I sure as fuck do."
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is screaming.]
Ugh, that was a pointless conversation. Kim Dokja turned to Yoo Joonghyuk a moment later, his eyes only drifting down to the protagonist's biceps and forearms for a split second before going back to his face. "Is everything else really that tasteless to you?"
"Yes," Yoo Joonghyuk replied firmly, crossing his arms over his chest.
Kim Dokja's gaze dropped again, following the movement, and he forced himself to look away once more with an awkward cough. Ignoring Han Sooyoung's extremely loud groan and Lee Jihye's snickering, he sighed. "I guess I'll just have to test that theory, right?"
The protagonist once again looked vaguely amused. "You'll like it."
He couldn't guarantee that, the bastard.
[constellations who like gourmet food are eagerly awaiting the verdict on the cooking of the incarnation 'yoo joonghyuk'.]
[the constellation 'queen of the darkest spring' is curious about the taste.]
Dokja looks unamused, wondering just how good Joonghyuk's cooking could possibly be, and snatches a finished skewer from the platter to put it to the test as Joonghyuk looks at him with a frown. As soon as Dokja bites into the flesh of the meat, the stars in his eyes glimmer as he savours it. When Seolhwa giggles and asks if it's delicious, Dokja pouts and hesitantly agrees that it is. Between them, a barely noticeable smile spreads across the protagonist's face at his admission.
Damn it. I know he's a regressor, but that still doesn't explain how he cooks so well. It might be the best thing I've ever tasted in my entire life.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is eagerly leaning forward in his seat.]
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is screaming excitedly.]
Fuck, was it possible to be jealous of your future self? He might have been talking nonsense earlier—there was no way Yoo Joonghyuk's cooking wasn't phenomenal, considering how it was described in the novel—but god that looked amazing.
"That looks so good…" Lee Hyunsung said in awe, a slight bit of drool escaping from his mouth before he quickly wiped it away and hurried to glance around in the hopes that no one had noticed.
Jung Heewon nodded along with him. "Yeah, it's just a skewer! How the hell does it look perfect!?"
Because Yoo Joonghyuk was the protagonist, that's why.
And then Kim Dokja bit into the meat, and it looked like he had some kind of transcendental experience with that simple action. It looked too good to be real, and though he had never experienced a so-called 'foodgasm' before, Kim Dokja would eat his boot if that wasn't one right there.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is clenching his hand into a fist.]
[the constellation 'abyssal black flame dragon' does not believe that the food can be that good.]
"Dokja-ssi, you…" Yoo Sangah began awkwardly but trailed off, unsure of how to proceed. "That looks a bit…"
A bit what?
Han Sooyoung nodded sagely. "You look like you've just discovered something better than s—"
And then Yoo Sangah desperately reached over and covered her mouth. "What Sooyoung-ssi means is that you look like you enjoyed it!"
You know what? Kim Dokja really didn't want to know what she was trying to say there.
Both Shin Yoosung and Lee Gilyoung grumbled as Kim Dokja admitted that the food was good, even as Yoo Mia looked exceptionally proud. She was one lucky kid, getting to eat food like that all the time before the apocalypse.
[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is drooling.]
As Kim Dokja's thoughts ratted him out and confirmed that it might be the best thing he had ever tasted—even though it was just a simple skewer—Kim Dokja had to fight to keep his jaw from dropping when a small, satisfied smile curved up the future protagonist's lips. Yoo Joonghyuk was… smiling? Like, genuinely, actually smiling? And it wasn't just Kim Dokja seeing things?
Kim Dokja would wonder if the world was ending, but that had happened a month or so ago so that saying didn't really work anymore. Turning rapidly, he was absolutely astounded to see that the regressor next to him had an identical look on his face, as unlikely as it was. His entire aura seemed to be one of intense pride, and his back straightened as though he was preening. It was such a gentle expression that didn't seem like it should fit on his normally stern features, but it only accentuated the classically handsome face that he was blessed with.
"Well, damn," Jung Heewon muttered before calling out to him. "Hey, Dokja-ssi, do that eyelash thing again except ask him to cook for all of us later."
What?
There was no way that would actually work, right? Plus, even though it was funny, it was also a bit humiliating, so he'd rather not.
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is feeling lightheaded.]
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is still insisting that he can cook better.]
Suddenly, the sound of a calm yet somber viola fills the air, pulling Dokja's attention away from the skewers, and that seems to cause Joonghyuk's eyes to narrow. The crowd stops to listen, including Hyunsung—who has confiscated Jihye's tankard—and the teenager—who is trying to get it back from him.
Following the music, Dokja walks outside, only to find Kyrgios standing atop one of the ramparts and playing his viola, his eyes closed as he immerses himself in the tune. Inside, people begin to tear up as the emotional melody penetrates their core and brings catharsis.
As the music finishes, Asuka walks outside to join Dokja. As he asks her how she feels, Kyrgios looks up at the moon with an unreadable expression. Asuka smiles as she states she shouldn't have given up her passion project and wonders if her readers could have ever imagined the current situation. When Dokja states that surely someone has, her eyes well up with emotions.
[the constellation 'bald general of the peasant's army' is disappointed by the change of subject.]
Kim Dokja was glad for it, even if that did mean that the mesmerizing smile dropped off of Yoo Joonghyuk's face. It was a bit funny that his expression was once again mirroring his future self, but it was also confusing. Why would he suddenly be so upset over some music?
Lee Seolhwa laughed a bit and exchanged a knowing look with the other women, but she shook it off and smiled at Lee Hyunsung. "Thank you for ensuring she doesn't drink too much."
[the constellation 'maritime war god' is thanking the incarnation 'lee hyunsung'.]
Kim Dokja's eyes widened as soon as he realized that it was Kyrgios playing the music, having not known that he even knew how. It was strange, in a way—just how many small details of a character were lost in the words left unsaid? Without this single moment, he may have gone on believing that the tiny, stern man didn't have a musical bone in his body. Instead, it was so poignant that it was bringing people to tears.
[constellations who like music are enjoying the playing of the returnee 'kyrgios rodgraim'.]
Ah, so he was going to have a conversation with Asuka Ren. She was fairly nice, and she had probably been struggling a bit with communication before coming out to find him. Maybe his words could only bring her a small amount of comfort, but at least he was trying.
"Those are very kind words, Dokja-ssi," Yoo Sangah told him with a gentle smile, looking pleased.
Dokja then changes the subject to ask where Sooyoung went since she's not at the party, and Asuka admits to telling the author about 'Peace Land', which led to her saying she had somewhere to be.
As Dokja looks unimpressed at the fact that she's run off to find a hidden piece, a chibi of Sooyoung appears. The chibi winks while giving a two fingered salute and declares that she's off, calling Dokja a chump.
"This suddenly came to my mind. Maybe I'm also part of a world someone created," Asuka states with a smile as she watches the soldiers chatting happily or beginning to pass out from drinking too much.
"Maybe things like that aren't important in this world we live in now," Dokja admits, and when Asuka asks for clarification, he responds that even if someone made this world, they wouldn't tell anyone of that fact. Asuka then declares that she's jealous of the writer who has Dokja as their reader, even as he muses that he doesn't even know who that writer actually is.
"Ooh, we'll find out where the fuck I actually am!" Han Sooyoung cheered, but then those cheers turned into boisterous laughs as Kim Dokja's imagination popped up on the screen.
"Yeah, that sounds like ahjumma," Lee Gilyoung muttered bluntly.
It really was pretty on-brand for her, wasn't it?
[the constellation 'abyssal black flame dragon' is declaring that the incarnation 'han sooyoung' will get all the hidden pieces.]
Well… not all of them. There was one that even the protagonist wouldn't know about for now, after all, and there was no way that Han Sooyoung—who had only read 100 chapters—would know either.
"Oh that's uh… an awkward question," Lee Jihye muttered with a grimace. "Considering she was in the book too, and all."
Yeah… technically, she was a character, going off of that. Although, as Kim Dokja glanced around at the people surrounding him, he wondered if that really mattered much anymore. At least, his future self seemed to be on the same page, but the mangaka expressing her jealousy was unexpected.
Kim Dokja was so confused that he didn't realized that Han Sooyoung was oddly quiet, looking upset by something or other. Instead, he was too busy once again wondering about the utter mystery that was tls123.
[the constellation 'scribe of heaven' is curious about 'tls123'.]
Suddenly, Dokja changes the subject to ask about how she stated that she was the creator of 'Peace Land' but not the one who called the people here by making a deal with the dokkaebi. Tapping her cheek as she thinks, Asuka tells Dokja that she remembers receiving an email asking to borrow the world from her story.
This wasn't mentioned anywhere in TWSA!
Dokja latches onto those words as Asuka continues, explaining that she thought nothing of it at the time, but that the apocalypse happened soon after. Dokja quickly asks for details in an urgent tone, especially asking about the email of the sender. Asuka shakes her head lightly, explaining that all emails were deleted once she replied, and that she only remembered that it started with a 'T'.
"Oh right, how did that even happen?" Shin Yoosung asked curiously. "If she made it, then how did the dokkaebi use it?"
That was a good question, and Kim Dokja knew that several of them were leaning forward a bit, as though it would give them the answers just a second sooner.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is narrowing his eyes pensively at the words of the incarnation 'asuka ren'.]
"An email…?" Yoo Sangah mused, and Kim Dokja instantly looked over at her. Had she figured something out so quickly?
Jung Heewon stared at her eagerly. "Come on, out with it! What did you think of?"
Yoo Sangah flushed a bit, and smiled awkwardly. "Well, I can't be certain of anything, of course, since Asuka Ren-ssi was technically in TWSA too. However… I can't help but feel like something is strange. She said that she got an email asking to use the world that she had created, and TWSA's author-nim said something about winning a contest in their email to Dokja-ssi."
Wait, she couldn't be thinking—
"You think that's connected somehow," Han Sooyoung muttered, her eyes widening drastically.
[many constellations are feeling uncomfortable.]
[several constellations are urgently discussing the hypothesis of the incarnation 'yoo sangah'.]
Kim Dokja only stiffened further when Asuka Ren mentioned that the email address started with a T. What did that mean? Could it have really been…
Dokja's eyes widen and the screen flashes to show the email that Dokja received exactly 5 minutes before the apocalypse began. It focuses on the top of the screen, where the email address spells out 'tls123@naver.com'.
T?
As the text message and text file flash by, Dokja feels like he's in a daze as he asks if the sender was tls123. Asuka looks pensive as Dokja presses on, desperately wanting to know if she remembers anything. When she seems to recall something, Asuka suddenly pauses and blinks slowly. Red probability sparks crackle around her as she opens her eyes—now a solid black—as all emotions drain from her face. "███…. ██."
"Wait, if it was tls123 who sent her the email, then does that mean that Asuka Ren-ssi existed in the 'real' world before the apocalypse started?" Lee Hyunsung wondered anxiously. "Maybe tls123-nim wanted to ask for permission to borrow Peace Land…?"
Kim Dokja just felt confused. That couldn't be right. "Peace Land has been in TWSA for over ten years, but she said that the apocalypse started soon after getting the email. It couldn't have been tls123 asking for permission to use Peace Land in TWSA."
The timeline didn't match up at all, so who was it?
[many constellations are exceptionally confused.]
[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is getting annoyed by complicated things.]
Maybe she would remember something… anything would be useful at this point! And then Asuka Ren opened her mouth and said something that Kim Dokja couldn't understand, and his heart dropped. That couldn't be right. Why now?
[the constellation 'scribe of heaven' is deeply alarmed by the censorship.]
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is lost for words.]
[many constellations are frantically trying to see if anyone could understand those words.]
Fuck, was that censored for the constellations too? All of them? Not even Metatron or the mysterious Secretive Plotter seemed to be able to understand what was said, and the mere fact that it was censored meant that it was important somehow.
"Ugh, all of this is giving me a fucking headache," Han Sooyoung groaned, rubbing her fingers on her temples. "What the fuck is even going on?"
Kim Dokja didn't know, and that was terrifying.
Dokja looks slightly terrified by the sudden censorship before he asks what she just said, and Asuka only replies with even more confusion, even asking what he's talking about while looking totally clueless. As a sense of foreboding overcomes him, Dokja quickly activates [Character List].
[Name: Asuka Ren
Age: 31
Constellation Sponsor: Master of the Niten Ichi-Ryu
Personal Attributes: Creator of Peace Land (Legendary), Mangaka (Rare)
Exclusive Skills: Kendo lvl. 7, Pen as the Sword lvl. 4, Passible Footwork lvl. 5, Imagination Simulation lvl. 4…
Stigma: Niten Ichi-Ryu lvl.3
Overall Stats: Stamina lvl. 55 (Currently lvl. 17), Strength lvl.55 (Currently lvl. 17), Agility lvl. 49 (Currently lvl. 11), Mana lvl 54 (Currently lvl. 16)
Overall Evaluation: Being revised at the moment.]
Dokja's eyes zero in on the fact that the evaluation is being revised, clearly confused by that fact, before the screen starts to spark violently and glitch. Right before his eyes, the attribute [Creator of Peace Land] starts to break apart and vanish. Looking him in the eyes, Asuka sounds confused as she says, "I'm sorry, but what were we talking about?"
"She forgot?" Yoo Joonghyuk said suddenly, looking extremely concerned when Asuka Ren couldn't remember what she had just said.
Fuck, that was so creepy.
"I really don't like this…" Shin Yoosung muttered anxiously, clutching to Kim Dokja as she did. He held the kids closer, trying to comfort them despite the anxieties and half-baked theories whirling in his head.
[the constellation 'queen of the darkest spring' is narrowing her eyes suspiciously at the profile of the incarnation 'asuka ren'.]
"It's being revised?" Lee Seolhwa gasped, looking nervous. Kim Dokja tensed up further, not sure how to feel about this.
"Maybe it will give us more clues—" Lee Hyunsung began before he suddenly cut himself off, his eyes going wide in shock and fear as the screen began to spark.
[many constellations are freaking out.]
Kim Dokja felt all the breath leave his lungs. "Her attribute… it's—"
It was breaking apart, fading away like it had never been there to begin with.
"Hey, Kim Dokja," Han Sooyoung said, sounding genuinely afraid. She had even said his real name, so it was clearly serious. "Did something like this ever…"
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is urging the incarnation 'kim dokja' to answer the question of the incarnation 'han sooyoung'.]
"No," he replied quietly. "Attributes can change and evolve, but I've never seen one of them just… vanish."
This was horrifying, and when she seemingly had no knowledge of their entire conversation, Kim Dokja felt a cold sweat break out on his back. Had her memories been erased along with the attribute!?