Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint (Web Novel KR)

【Hm? You…】
Kim Dokja Representative gripped the back of my neck, staring into my face for a long time.

A strange tension filled the air.
Now that I thought about it, this wasn’t my first time facing “Kim Dokja Representative.” I had met him before at Chungmuro Theater.
At that time, he had seen my face, even checked my nametag.

More than that—
He had given me perks to adapt to this world, and he had read my serialized ORV to the very end, even leaving comments and impressions.
I wondered.

Would “Kim Dokja Representative” recognize me?
【Hmmm.】
Or, as I suspected, would he fail to recognize me?
【Strange. How is it that you still haven’t returned?】

Like a cat dangling a fish out of a bowl, Kim Dokja Representative carried me by the scruff, swaying, as he walked out of the screening room.
Yoo Joonghyuk did this too—why the hell did everyone I met insist on carrying me around like this?
Anyway… so he really didn’t recognize me?

I hesitated briefly, then decided to try the plan I’d only kept in my head until now.
‘Sangnyeom.’
As I called the name in my mind, the bracelet around my wrist trembled.

For reasons I didn’t know, unlike other items, the Sangnyeom of Almost Everything had been summoned here with me.
At least, for me right now, that was a good thing.
“Excuse me. Hanging like this isn’t very comfortable.”

With the hand wearing Sangnyeom, I grabbed Kim Dokja Representative’s wrist that held me by the neck. As the bracelet’s surface touched his skin, I felt resonance.
[‘Sangnyeom’ has come into contact with an unidentified item.]
Well, well.

It clearly touched skin, but it was recognized as an “item”?
[Beginning target analysis.]
[Target analysis will take 5 minutes.]

[Maintain contact until analysis is complete.]
Lost in thought, Kim Dokja Representative seemed not to notice Sangnyeom’s presence.
I opened my mouth again, feigning an aggrieved tone.

“I didn’t come in there because I wanted to. I was just trying to find a way out.”
【What did you see inside?】
“Some little kids…”
[Someone is activating ‘Lie Detection’.]

Of course. Kim Dokja Representative must be a “Divinity of Another World,” and a divinity of that level would obviously have [Lie Detection].
That worked in my favor.
[Activating exclusive skill, ‘Incitement Lv.4’!]

「I saw some little kids watching a movie inside the theater. But it was too dark to see clearly.」
[You have incited yourself.]
I spoke at once.

“They seemed to be watching some kind of movie?”
【What kind of movie?】
“It was too dark to make it out.”

[Someone has confirmed your words as true.]
【Hmmm…】
Kim Dokja Representative glared at me suspiciously, then slowly released his grip on my neck.

But I didn’t let go of his wrist.
[Continuing target analysis.]
“Wait. What were those kids? Why are little children in there?”

【Do you really want to know?】
I couldn’t see his eyes behind the sunglasses, but the killing intent radiating from them was unmistakable.
“Well, it’s not like I’m that curious.”
【Wise of you. Stories get boring once you already know the ending.】

Satisfied, Kim Dokja Representative nodded.
【Anyway, release my wrist now. I need to figure out why you haven’t returned.】
That won’t do.

The analysis wasn’t finished yet.
“I still have one more question.”
【And must you hold my wrist to ask it?】

Again, I felt a surge of malice behind those lenses.
But this time, I didn’t back down.
“Who are you?”

【Hmm? As I said, I am—】
“You’re not the ‘Kim Dokja Representative’ I know. I met him before I came here.”
In truth, it had only been once face-to-face, but I had known “Kim Dokja Representative” for a long time.

Because throughout the serialization, he had sent me messages every single day.
The “Kim Dokja Representative” I knew had been earnest, and loved the story.
But the one before me now?

【Impressive insight. My appearance should be perfectly identical, and yet…】
Unexpectedly, Kim Dokja Representative admitted it without resistance.
【You’re right. The one who brought you here was a different being. Is that answer enough?】

There were two Kim Dokja Representatives. Perhaps even more.
A collective?
Then what was the purpose of such a group?

[Analysis 80% complete.]
【Now it’s my turn to ask. You are—】
“Why Kim Dokja?”

【…What?】
“If you wanted to disguise yourself, you could have chosen Yoo Joonghyuk, or any other figure.”
【No, this is just—】

“Don’t you hate Kim Dokja?”
For the first time, Kim Dokja Representative’s expression shifted.
【Why would you think that?】

“In truth, you were envious, weren’t you? That’s why you wear his face. That’s why you imitate him.”
His features slowly hardened.
It felt like the vague threads of deduction were falling into place.

[Your exclusive attribute activates!]
In a flash, fragments of clues from the earlier banquet unraveled in my head.
「Kim Dokja, Kim Dokja, Kim Dokja. So noisy. Why do you all like him so much?」

He harbored hostility toward Kim Dokja.
「Those who weren’t chosen by Kim Dokja—what kind of lives did they live?」
He empathized with those never saved by Kim Dokja.

「Don’t tell me you plan to rely on here too?」
He wanted to complete this world’s end without .
Thus, my conclusion was this:

“Kim Dokja… ruined your story, didn’t he?”
This was a character who had failed to build the myth he wanted because of Kim Dokja.
And so, he had abducted ORV’s Readers into this world—

「To create the story he wanted.」
Who could he be?
Several faces floated through my mind, but no single name I could be sure of.

【You… who are you?】
A ferocious aura surged from his body.
Damn.

Had I dug too deep?
Bzzzzzt!
Sparks crackled violently all around.

I weighed the sparks against my life in my mind.
How much plausibility would it cost him to kill me?
And how much plausibility did he have left to spare?

[Item analysis complete!]
[Item identified: ‘Thousandfold Disguise Stealth Robe (Cheonbyeonmanhwa Jamhengbok).’]
[Item Rank: S]

[To obtain the mimic form of this item, you must be struck at least 10 times by its user.]
Perfect timing. Sangnyeom’s analysis was done.
「Thousandfold Disguise Stealth Robe.」

An outfit item that consumed magic to transform its wearer into any form desired.
In other words—he was using the item’s power to conceal his true self.
‘Sangnyeom.’

I immediately altered the bracelet’s form.
[Activating exclusive skill, ‘Incitement Lv.4’!]
“Transform into the Broken Staff of Missionary Samyeong.”

I swung the “Broken Staff of Missionary Samyeong” with all my strength at Kim Dokja Representative.
He smirked, easily catching the staff in one hand.
Of course, I never expected to hurt him. The strike itself wasn’t the goal.

At once, light burst from the tip of the staff.
[Hidden option of ‘Broken Staff of Missionary Samyeong’ has activated!]
Though it was damaged and couldn’t unleash its full power, triggering the hidden option was no problem.

[Stigma, ‘Turns Out It Was Skeletal Water’, has activated!]
If he wore the “Thousandfold Disguise Stealth Robe,” he couldn’t hide his true form before this stigma.
Crack!

[‘Turns Out It Was Skeletal Water’ is influenced by the target’s Fable rank.]
[Your rank is insufficient to reveal the target’s true identity.]
Damn, too much for me to handle?

Still, for the briefest instant, I saw a part of his cheek crack open.
From the fissure spilled an unprecedented aura, a tide of perilous mythic power. A suffocatingly ominous sensation lurked behind it.
Demonic energy?

Then his fist slammed into my abdomen.
【You think I can’t kill you, don’t you?】
The sensation of my stomach tearing open, pierced through.

Even as a soul, I couldn’t breathe.
【You’re right. I can’t kill you directly. Certain restrictions bind me.】
Agonizing pain ripped through me as both arms twisted in opposite directions, as though both legs were torn off.

I gasped desperately—only to be struck in the solar plexus again.
Consciousness blurred, then snapped back.
【But I can give you pain worse than death.】

He pinned my arms against the wall, manifesting spikes of magic that drove into my wrists and ankles one after another.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
In an instant, half a dozen spikes skewered my limbs.

Just before the pain could consume me, I triggered a skill.
[Your exclusive skill, ‘Incitement’, has gained proficiency!]
「I am Kim Dokja, who possesses the [Fourth Wall].」

【Indeed… you’re different from the other Readers. To endure pain like this.】
He lightly tilted my chin with long fingers, speaking with interest.
【Come to think of it, I heard another ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) Representative had sent a special friend here…】

“If you’ve got a special guest, you should treat him specially.”
I had to provoke him.
Drive him further, until his plausibility collapsed.

“This is all you’ve got? No wonder you lost to Kim Dokja.”
The sparks coursing over his body were growing ever stronger. Soon, he wouldn’t be able to withstand the backlash.
【The more I look at you, the more curious I get. Who are you, really?】

Yet Kim Dokja Representative was smiling faintly at me.
It seemed like joy, or perhaps fury.
【Suddenly… I feel a great longing.】

His head twisted slowly, at a grotesque angle.
【Because right now, you resemble the one I hated most, and at the same time, the one I wanted most to devour.】
Stab.

Something drove deep into my belly—and in the next instant, he was holding a piece of my stomach in his palm.
Even with [Incitement Lv.5], the pain was unbearable.
Bzzzzzt!

From the hole in my abdomen, something began to pour out.
Golden letters, gleaming.
A Fable.

Kim Dokja Representative’s eyes flew wide.
【This… impossible. You are…】
As he reached for the Fable spilling onto the floor—

「■■■ ■■■ ■■」
The Fable began to speak.
The space around us shuddered, as though tearing apart. The roar of a storm filled my ears.

And then, a clear voice.
「I told you… not to touch… what is mine.」
Kim Dokja Representative’s face hardened. His eyes locked onto mine, wide with shock.

Something was speaking through my mouth.
「They are coming.」
At those words, the theater ceiling split apart.

Through the dimming haze of my consciousness, I saw Kim Dokja Representative lift his head.
A shout rang out, and from the broken ceiling, something flew down.
Threads of radiant light.

They hooked into me, pulling me free.
As my awareness faded, I heard Kim Dokja Representative’s furious voice.
It sounded like—

「…Kim Dokja Company!」
Yes, that’s what he said.