[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is cheering excitedly.]
Kim Dokja took a deep breath, readying himself for the fight that would follow. This wasn't going to be easy, but with any luck, he'd be able to get the upper hand shortly and turn the situation around.
Seeing that Nirvana is only ranked second, the incarnations outside the arena begin to panic, wondering what's going to happen to them. As if to answer, a large insect-like monster makes its way into the square, piercing through the defenses and beginning to attack the incarnations.
The number of remaining incarnations is quickly flashed across the screen before Hyunsung is seen holding back one of the monsters with his bare hands. Quickly, Heewon and Jihye rush to aid him, giving him a chance to breathe and wipe the sweat from his brow. Jihye seems panicked though, worrying about what they should do since Nirvana isn't the strongest either, and that means that Dokja's predictions were off. Hyunsung stares blankly at the dome for a moment before he has a thought and his face pales as he comes to a realization.
Back inside the dome, Nirvana spits up blood after being thrown back once more. Sounding as though they're on the verge of madness, they cackle as they state they won't die or experience true death. "If I could have died that easily, then I wouldn't have suffered this much!"
Shin Yoosung let out a soft sigh. "I'd be panicking too, I think. Everyone thinks that this fight will save them, and now they know it won't."
Yeah, that was the one downside to this plan. All the incarnations who had no idea what was happening would be panicking somewhat, and there was nothing he could do to fix it. On the other hand, they'd be distracted soon enough by the monsters finally breaking through into Gwanghwamun.
"Eighty-nine thousand…" Lee Seolhwa murmured. "Since a tenth already died, then the number would likely have needed to drop down to somewhere around fifty thousand for the scenario to end the other way."
[some constellations are disappointed that they can't see a massacre.]
[the constellation 'lily blooming in aquarius' is approving of saving as many incarnations as possible.]
Lee Hyunsung shot a quick smile at Lee Jihye before turning to Jung Heewon. "Thank you for the backup!"
"It's no trouble at all," Jung Heewon laughed in response. She looked genuinely pleased that she had been able to help him like that, and it made the man's cheeks redden slightly.
Lee Jihye, on the other hand, let out a long sigh. "Ugh, I should have realized that ahjussi was scamming us."
To be fair, he had straight-up suggested that he could be the strongest, and she had laughed in his face. If that wasn't blatant enough, then Kim Dokja wasn't sure what was. It did seem that Lee Hyunsung got an inkling of what the plan could be, especially since he knew very well what Kim Dokja's skill was capable of. Even though he had figured it out, there wasn't anything that could be done now.
[the constellation 'queen of the darkest spring' is sighing while shaking her head.]
"They really do want to die properly, don't they?" Yoo Sangah murmured with a pitying tone as she looked at Nirvana. "Joonghyuk-ssi struggles enough with his regressions, but at least he knows who he is. Nirvana doesn't keep the same identity throughout their lifetimes, and they don't have consistent companions to rely on either. I can't imagine how lonely and torturous that truly is."
She was always so nice, even to people who likely didn't deserve it; however, even Kim Dokja could admit that Nirvana's life was a tragedy in the making.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is looking away.]
With a calm voice, Dokja guesses that Nirvana truly wants to die. As they go quiet at his words, Dokja continues, concluding that they preach the words of salvation to others in order to find comfort in their deaths since Nirvana couldn't die. Pressing further, Dokja states that that's why Nirvana wished to become 'one' with them—to share their emotions and feel what they feel so Nirvana can vicariously experience death through them.
As Dokja gets the notification that his understanding of 'Nirvana' as a character has increased, the reincarnator glares and tells him not to think that he knows everything. However, Dokja truly knows Nirvana because he understands that Nirvana simply yearns for something they could never be. Deep down, Dokja knows that Nirvana resembles him.
Dokja asks if that's why they wanted to become 'one' with Joonghyuk, since they thought that by doing that, they would be able to erase their existence once and for all. Nirvana's eyes widen before their expression turns stiff.
"[Reincarnation] is a stigma of the highest-grade constellation. You'd need to rely on the power of a higher grade constellation in order to erase that," Dokja states. As he does, cogs seem to manifest behind the regressor's body, symbolizing his own stigma.
"It feels weird hearing that they find death comforting," Lee Gilyoung admitted after a moment, leaning his weight onto Kim Dokja a bit more.
It might seem strange, but after so many years of suffering, the oblivion of death would be a comfort. Even Yoo Joonghyuk had begun to long for the silence and emptiness after so many regressions, and the fact that neither he nor Nirvana could truly die the way that others could was only fuelling the desire to rest.
[the constellation 'abyssal black flame dragon' thinks that this idea sounds stupid.]
[a few constellations are sympathizing with the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
"Wow, so that's really all their motivations are?" Han Sooyoung scoffed, tossing a judgemental stare at the screen. "Fucking pathetic."
Was it pathetic to want to understand how that feels, or was it just sad? Kim Dokja honestly couldn't be sure.
"So they want to be like my oppa?" Yoo Mia muttered quietly, scrunching up her forehead in confusion. "That's not gonna work."
For an instant, Kim Dokja wasn't sure what to think. Who wouldn't want to be like Yoo Joonghyuk? Though their desires took different forms and intensities, Kim Dokja viscerally understood what it felt like to want to become like Yoo Joonghyuk. He had always wanted to have everything that Yoo Joonghyuk had—his confidence, his strength, and his determination. He had wanted to read it over and over until he had engraved all of these things into his soul.
Unlike Nirvana though, Kim Dokja didn't want to literally be Yoo Joonghyuk in every sense of the word, but he could still understand the inherent magnetism of the protagonist that drew everyone in. Once you truly looked at him, it was hard to look away.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is looking curiously at the incarnation 'kim dokja'.]
Yoo Joonghyuk was also looking at him strangely, likely trying to parse what he had thought when comparing himself to the reincarnator. In the end, Kim Dokja said nothing, not wanting to elaborate further.
"You think that my constellation would outweigh theirs," Yoo Joonghyuk said flatly, keeping his emotions tightly under wraps. Despite that, his voice trembled ever-so-slightly, betraying his discomfort with that idea.
Kim Dokja looked at him for a moment before allowing his gaze to slide back to the screen. "Joonghyuk-ah, your sponsor is able to bypass probability in a way that no other constellation—including 'Mandala's Guardian'—could ever dream of. Of course I think that's a possibility."
Yoo Joonghyuk looked down at the floor for a moment, tensely letting out a breath. Maybe this concept was distressing to him too, in a way. Even if he somehow 'became one' with Nirvana, the likelihood was that Nirvana would merely be consumed by [Regression] and Yoo Joonghyuk would be unable to escape it once more.
[a few constellations are looking sadly at the incarnation 'yoo joonghyuk'.]
Glaring once more, Nirvana states that Dokja is beyond their imagination, telling him to just kill them already. They then double down, passionately declaring that they'll revive again and again, even going so far as to say, "And when I do, I will kill each and every one of your companions and have them suffer the greatest pain known to mankind. Just as I did to your mother."
When Nirvana states this, 'Joonghyuk's' eyes widen, as does the Dokja's ghostly form just behind him. As Dokja asks if they really met his mother, [The Fourth Wall] begins to shake. Spotting the weakness, Nirvana grins maliciously as they call Sookyoung a splendid mother and declare that they took great joy in forcing her to submit, as well as proclaiming their enjoyment of corrupting the hearts of honourable people.
An image of Sookyung smiling appears on the screen before it shatters and Dokja looks like he's lost everything. Nirvana lets out a victorious cackle, activating [108 Afflictions] as they maniacally declare that they've caught him.
As they attack, they keep laying the taunts surrounding his mother on thick, pressing all of Dokja's repressed trauma. Though Dokja knows it's a provocation, he gets hooked before he can stop himself because of Nirvana declaring that they can still clearly remember Sookyung struggling and begging them to spare her life.
Even though I know my mother wouldn't have done that…
As the beads encircle the regressor's body once again, Dokja closes his eyes in a slight acceptance.
"What the fuck are you waiting for?" Han Sooyoung muttered, narrowing her eyes at Kim Dokja. "Stab them already or something—why the hell are you just letting them monologue?"
Probably because he had a plan, but still, she should have realized already that Kim Dokja didn't particularly care about tropes or genre conventions that declared that you couldn't attack during a transformation sequence or a villain monologue. If it would help him win, he'd go for the throat mid-speech.
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is glaring at the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
Kim Dokja held the kids closer upon hearing Nirvana start threatening his companions, knowing that he wouldn't hesitate to tear them limb from limb if they dared to even lay a finger on any of the children. They'd never get to do any of the things that they were threatening so long as he—
… what? Kim Dokja's eyes widened as his thoughts stalled in his mind. His mother had… huh?
[the constellation 'founder's mother' is aghast.]
[many constellations are horrified by the implication of the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
Kim Dokja's vision swam before his eyes, and he felt completely detached from everything as he stared straight ahead. That couldn't be right. She wouldn't have…
Yoo Sangah gasped in a horrified tone and she covered her mouth with her hands as she trembled, clearly remembering that she had given in to Nirvana's threats because her life had been on the line. She shouldn't feel bad for that. No, it wasn't Yoo Sangah's fault that everything had gone to shit.
Everything had happened because she had the misfortune of being related to him. If Kim Dokja had never been born, or if he had died back then instead, then none of this would be happening right now. Kim Dokja hated her, but the thought of Nirvana tormenting her made him want to throw up.
A dry laugh cut through his thoughts, and Kim Dokja barely processed as he turned around mechanically to look at her.
"Dokja-yah, you can't actually believe this nonsense," she drawled, narrowing her eyes threateningly at the screen. "Me, begging for my life? Don't make me laugh."
[the constellation 'queen of the darkest spring' is watching the current events silently.]
A smile curved up her lips, but it wasn't joyous at all. "If that person truly did kill me, then I would have stared into their eyes spitefully until the end."
Kim Dokja could barely hear anything, but he knew that the words rang true. Even back then, when things had been horrible, but not yet past the point of no return, she had never once faltered. The only begging she had done had been on his behalf, and never on hers.
"They are lying, Kim Dokja. Do not fall for it," Yoo Joonghyuk told him firmly. It looked as though he had eaten something sour, clearly displeased to be agreeing with her on anything, but now wasn't the time for petty squabbles.
[a few constellations are wondering about the fate of the incarnation 'lee sookyung'.]
[the constellation 'abyssal black flame dragon' is tired of depression and wants the fight to start again already.]
"Ahjussi!" Shin Yoosung yelped as Kim Dokja got hit by Nirvana's skill while the wall was shaking from all the provocation. She was worried, and Kim Dokja felt barely present, but there was nothing he could do.
Han Sooyoung groaned. "See? I told you to stab them when you had the chance."
Maybe she was right, but he couldn't change it now. All he could hope was that his future self had planned for this and that he hadn't just fucked everything over by letting Nirvana talk.
[the constellation 'maritime war god' is greatly alarmed by the current events.]
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is tugging on her hair in despair.]
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is glaring and clenching his hands into fists.]
Garbled voices from Joonghyuk's memories call out through a watery environment as he sinks deeper and deeper, each voice one he knows well. Hearing them, Dokja seems to have guesses as to the speakers' identities, but is interrupted by Nirvana's overjoyed call of Joonghyuk's name. "Yoo Joonghyuk! You've finally accepted me! Now… you will be one with me."
Then, the reincarnator then grimaces when Dokja's form also becomes visible. "And I see that you're here too."
Dokja immediately recognizes that this must be inside Joonghyuk's soul, and that the reincarnator must have snuck in when [The Fourth Wall] was trembling. Sounding confident, a mandala forms under Nirvana's feet as they declare that Dokja coming here was a mistake.
The inner space of a soul is the place least affected by plausibility. In other words, it means that Nirvana is able to freely use the power of the stories they've accumulated.
Yoo Joonghyuk stiffened up immediately as voices from his memories began speaking out loud, and he held onto his sister tightly. The situation was horrible, and he must have felt like he was drowning in all of these awful memories barraging his mind. However, when Nirvana suddenly showed up and declared their intention to 'become one', he immediately started glaring with a paralyzing intensity.
[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is threatening the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
"Get out of my oppa's head!" Yoo Mia hissed at Nirvana, clutching tightly onto her brother's arm as she did. "He doesn't want you there!"
Jung Heewon's eyes went wide. "How the hell did they even get into Joonghyuk-ssi's head in the first place? Isn't he technically protected by Dokja-ssi's skill right now?"
Slowly trying to regulate his breathing with the kids' help, Kim Dokja's eyes fluttered closed and then opened again as he let out a sigh. "It looks like all of us are in Joonghyuk-ie's head right now."
That wasn't a particularly pleasant place to be, but at least with him there, Yoo Joonghyuk wouldn't be entirely vulnerable. Still, it likely felt uncomfortable and invasive for Yoo Joonghyuk to have this happen, even if the circumstances were at fault for everything.
[the constellation 'scribe of heaven' is narrowing his eyes contemplatively.]
"You're… inside his soul?" Lee Hyunsung gasped in shock, looking between the two of them quickly.
Lee Seolhwa frowned intensely, clearly nervous. "Please be careful. I don't know if any fighting could have a negative effect on either or both of you if your souls get injured."
That was true, but it was a chance they'd have to take. In this place, where probability was enforced far less, they might have a chance to turn this fight around.
"Hey, isn't that a super fucking bad thing!?" Han Sooyoung said in a bewildered tone as she pointed at the screen. "You let them get a fucking power up!?"
Kim Dokja was at least 85% certain that it wasn't intentional, but something about that felt wrong too. He had to have a plan… right?
Countless translucent arms emerge from the reincarnator's back as scales form on their legs and their feet become an eagle's talons. Horns burst from their temple as their face turns into a gross amalgamation of different animals. As they now tower over Dokja, forced to bend in order to look at him, they speak. "I am Nirvana Moebius. I am the one who guides lost souls to the state of Nirvana."
Dokja looks at them in awe for a brief moment upon the reveal of their true form before an evil grin takes over. There's something that Nirvana doesn't know—Dokja let himself get hit by [108 Afflictions] on purpose. In a tone barely containing the irony, Dokja asks if Nirvana knows the principle of 'reincarnation', answering his own question by explaining that by binding their soul to 'Mandala's Guardian', they've lost the chance to go to the Underworld when they die, forcing them to continue to settle into newly born bodies instead.
When Nirvana asks for clarification, Dokja only has a simple declaration. "You are not immortal. It means that even if your body revives, your 'soul' won't."
Refusing to believe him, a wave of hands rush from Nirvana's back heading straight for Dokja.
Lee Gilyoung clung to him tightly, refusing to look away from the screen even as he bit his lip nervously. His grip only tightened further as Nirvana transformed into a hideous chimaera of creatures, unleashing the form that was likely as close as could be portrayed to their 'true' self.
[the constellation 'lily blooming in aquarius' is decrying the existence of the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
[the constellation 'abyssal black flame dragon' is thinking that the transformation looks cool.]
Sure, their transformation was intimidating and their power was impressive, but it was Kim Dokja's evil smirk that made everyone freeze.
"Huh?" Lee Jihye said, sounding completely dumbfounded. "Ahjussi, are you stupid? Why would you get hit by that intentionally?"
She seriously had no faith in his plans, did she?
"It's the only way I can win," he admitted, trying to sound more confident than he felt. His mind was still dealing with the aftereffects of Nirvana's provocations, having been hit by them worse than his future self, and he hadn't even had the guarantee of knowing what his plan had been in advance.
"So instead of looping like Joonghyuk-ssi, their life seems to continues in a straight line while changing bodies," Yoo Sangah mused. "What Dokja-ssi is saying makes sense."
[the constellation 'queen of the darkest spring' is agreeing with the observation of the incarnation 'kim dokja'.]
[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is scoffing at the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
Suddenly, all goes quiet as a book flips open, only staying on screen for a brief moment.
Just when the hands are about to reach Dokja, they all seem to crash into an unseen barrier only inches from the man's face. Eyes widening in confusion, the reincarnator watches in bafflement. For a moment, a translucent wall made of countless parts stands between them before going invisible once more.
If this was reality, I would've died from that attack tearing my whole body to pieces. But here, it's different. I've possessed Yoo Joonghyuk—in other words, this place is Yoo Joonghyuk's 'soul', as well as my own.
As the pages of a book flipped open suddenly, Kim Dokja's eyes widened. Just what was going on?
Despite Nirvana's attempt to attack him with the same skill that even Yoo Joonghyuk had struggled to handle, the hands couldn't even reach him.
[many constellations are confused about how the attack didn't work.]
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is sighing in relief.]
"Wait, fuck, were those pages?" Han Sooyoung gasped as the wall seemed to solidify for only a moment.
It seemed like it, and Kim Dokja found himself in awe as he realized just what was standing in between him and the reincarnator. His skill had never physically manifested like this before, but it was undeniable now.
"Thank goodness that this isn't reality," Lee Seolhwa sighed, looking much less stressed once it was obvious that Kim Dokja could actually defend himself better here than before. Maybe it was a cop-out, but Kim Dokja would take any advantage he could get.
However, when Kim Dokja mentally remarked that this was simultaneously both his own soul and Yoo Joonghyuk's, Jung Heewon snorted. He looked over at her in confusion, but she looked like she was trying way too hard to hold in a laugh.
"Noona? What's so funny?" Lee Gilyoung asked with a frown on his face, looking incredibly confused.
"Oh, nothing," Jung Heewon snickered, "it's just that since their souls are kinda, you know…"
She waved her hand haphazardly in the air, and Kim Dokja had no idea what she was trying to imply with that. At least Lee Hyunsung looked confused too, so it wasn't just him who didn't get it.
[the constellation 'demon-like judge of fire' is shrieking as she realizes what her incarnation is thinking.]
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is glaring intensely at the incarnation 'yoo joonghyuk'.]
Kim Dokja sighed, "And? I'm just possessing him."
"No, no, unnie is right," Lee Jihye said manically, a large grin spreading on her face. "Ahjussi, you just 'became one' with Master right in front of Nirvana's face! This is amazing!"
Ah. Shit.
At least Yoo Joonghyuk didn't seem like he was anywhere near as pissed off about that as Kim Dokja had expected. His brow was twitching, but it seemed to be mostly caused by the laughing as Han Sooyoung also joined in, wheezing and cackling at both of them. Honestly, Kim Dokja was pretty exasperated too. It's not like this had been done intentionally or anything, but if it pissed Nirvana off further, he couldn't even be upset about it.
She, however, seemed so intensely displeased about the situation that her aura was making him shiver.
[the constellation 'scribe of heaven' is letting out a long-suffering sigh while covering his ears.]
[the constellation 'bald leader of the peasant's army' is waving his stick in excitement.]
[the constellation 'prisoner of the golden headband' is cackling at the misfortune of the incarnation 'nirvana moebius'.]
The open book is seen in a room full of books and manuscripts. One by one, the pages rip themselves from their bindings and fly out. As the pages materialize in the blank space, a few float past Dokja's face. As they do, they seem to form a dividing line. On one side are Joonghyuk's sharp features, and on the other, Dokja's softer ones. However, for a moment, they look like one being in this place that is both of their souls at once.
The hands scrape against the wall of papers that keep stacking up, the layers making it hard to make out what is written upon them. On the other side, Dokja looks up at the monumental wall completely obscuring his vision of his opponent as papers continue to drift aimlessly around him.
[The exclusive skill 'The Fourth Wall' has been activated.]
"Ahjussi, wasn't the novel inside the wall before?" Shin Yoosung asked innocently, thankfully drawing Kim Dokja's attention away from the mess that Jung Heewon had started.
Now that he remembered it, the words of TWSA had been what had repelled both King Heungmu the Great and Simulacrum when [The Fourth Wall] had activated back then. Maybe this was its true form—a massive wall of pages that kept him protected from things he didn't perceive as reality.
[several constellations are impressed by the current events.]
When the screen showed both his and Yoo Joonghyuk's faces next to each other, though, Kim Dokja could only scrutinize the differences for a moment. He thought that he didn't look too bad, of course, but putting them side-by-side like that really emphasized just how much more handsome Yoo Joonghyuk was.
And then he remembered what everyone else was seeing and wanted to hide away. Fuck, if Yoo Joonghyuk was staring at his half of the image and seeing Kim Dokja looking wobbly as hell with a derpy expression, he would actually dig himself a grave and willingly lie down in it. That would be so beyond humiliating that it wasn't even funny.
"You're not as handsome as my oppa, but that looks kinda cool," Yoo Mia admitted, and despite the fact that it was extremely backhanded, Kim Dokja would take it as a compliment.
[the constellation 'secretive plotter' is very intrigued by the skill 'the fourth wall'.]
As the wall finally fully formed, completely shutting Kim Dokja off from Nirvana's reach, he had to suck in an awed breath. It was beyond anything he had ever imagined, and it seemed to stretch forever in every direction. Surrounded by the pages like this, Kim Dokja truly felt like he was within the grasp of the story he loved so much, protected much like it had protected him for all those years.
Somehow, just like he had felt whenever he had opened TWSA, he was certain that everything would turn out okay.