I shouted valiantly.
"How could you do this to me…!"
"There must be hundreds of reasons I could do this, you bastard."
Yoo Soo-ha didn't even flutter his eyelashes once.
I shuddered. Is this guy, by any chance, a person without blood, tears, or conscience?
In other words, Yoo Soo-ha?
"Yoo Soo-ha. I found you a job at Cafe Planetarium...."
"Uh, I'm so overwhelmingly grateful, touched even, but I've never held any grudge?"
"I gifted you the position of disciple to the Master of Chen Mu-mun...."
"Thanks to you, every muscle in my body is grinning ear to ear, tearing apart with joy every dawn and night. Thank you so much."
"I gave you back your life...! Snap out of it! Open your eyes!"
"And if my memory hasn't degraded, the one who originally killed me was you. Fucking bastard. You heartless, tearless, conscienceless fuck. Right now, my mental state couldn't be clearer, and my eyes are damn bright and alert."
If you argue that way, you were the one who first tried to kill me at the second-floor hunting ground! No, before I regressed, I was actually murdered! If we went to court, the judge, the court clerks, the jurors, and the news reporters would all stand up to acknowledge my innocence and your brutality!
"Change…."
I wrapped my hands around my head. And moaned toward [The Wand Of Ages].
"Judge change, please…!"
"No."
Only a cold reply seeped into my ears.
"It won't happen. Death King. The fates of this tower favor you, but sometimes they want to screw you over as well. Even if I didn't intend it. Well, think of it as the price for the mess you made on the 75th floor."
Impossible.
"There's no way Yoo Soo-ha is the person I have the deepest connection with! What about Uburka! Logically, it should be my son's turn first!"
"Isn't it? [The Musclehead Who Dreams of Sinning Against Heaven] doesn't go to the afterlife."
"Why not! Is it discrimination against Goblins!? The Tower, even the Tower Master who vowed to give everyone a second chance, are you ignoring and looking down on our Goblin children!"
"No.... It's just that [Musclehead] thinks it's cool to end when they die… what's the need for an afterlife…."
Damn it, Uburka!
Who raised you to become such a cool! Uburka! Your father is here, crying out your name in agony, can't you hear it!
"Ra, Raviel. Yes. I have my love."
I hung onto the last hope.
"It makes no sense for Raviel not to be the judge. This is invalid! Bring me my Duke at once!"
"[The Silver-plated Heart] is... ah, that name was stripped, wasn't it? Right. Anyway, [Duke Ivansia] doesn't want the afterlife unless it's with you. Memories with you are far more important than any afterlife."
Ah, Raviel! I feel the same!
How delightful!
But... considering that delight results in the psychopathic ponytail male jerk jibber-jabbering right in front of me within a 2m range, why does my heart feel so terribly troubled…!
"Are we done talking? So, when will you dance?"
Shut upppp.
"...Fine. I'll accept the judge selection as is."
I lifted my head. My face was as solid as a rock.
"But I will never dance. Yoo Soo-ha."
"Huh? Didn't you hear what I said? If you don't dance, I will never stamp the approval. Never, ever."
"Don't stamp it."
"What?"
"Do whatever you want. You'll end up stamping it anyway."
Yoo Soo-ha wore a look of disbelief.
"Hey, this is a funny. Do you think you're so special that I'd stamp the approval for you?"
"Because at first, you watch me with the thought of 'Let's see how far you can go' and soon get bored, speeding things up, but seeing that I remain unchanged, you feel that the boredom and dullness of this moment far outweigh any desire for revenge on me, so about 2 days later, you'll have a moment of realization, 'Ah, what kind of idiotic thing am I doing, let's just go back,' and decide to cut off your interest with a 'Pass, pass, whether you pass or screw around, I don't care.'"
"Uh…."
Yoo Soo-ha blinked his eyes.
"…That's exactly me."
"Right. So, there will never be a day when I dance. Wake up from your dream."
"No. Why do you know my inner thoughts so well, in such an unpleasant way?"
"Who knows? Maybe it's because I once thoroughly stirred your guts. In some ways, I have to be more familiar with your inner thoughts than you are."
"You fucking bastard."
There was no more business with the ponytail man who wasn't complete without cursing at the end of every sentence. I turned my head and looked at [The Wand Of Ages].
"Please send me to the next stage as soon as possible. After all, I'm just going to kill time there. Did you say this judge would be tricky? You're mistaken. I'll just go to the 76th floor and numb my sense of time. Making a week feel like a second, and a year feel like a minute. Before I know it, the stage will be cleared. How about that? Wizard. My victory is now clear."
"Remarkable."
The wizard said to me, either in admiration or in horror.
"You really are amazing…."
I'll take that as a compliment.
['The Wand Of Ages' transports you.]
Receiving a chilly gaze from the two, I was moved to the next floor.
3.
[You have entered the 76th stage.]
[You step into a place where you originally could not enter.]
What I said to the wizard wasn't a lie. It was true.
As soon as the white light vanished and my toes touched the ground of the new stage, I thought to numb my sense of time. Isn't it obvious? I knew exactly what kind of person Yoo Soo-ha was and how to get past his temper without trouble.
"Snake."
Before getting into the serious business of playing with time, I wanted to find out what kind of heaven this was.
"Let's start with gathering information."
"Sss."
The faithful strategy guide, Snake, flicked its tongue.
['The Eye Living in the Labyrinth' exerts its authority.]
[Information on the current stage is revealed to you.]
Texts curled up before my eyes.
+
[View Heaven World]
Floor: 76th
Constellation: 'The Lotus Reflected on the Water'
Difficulty: C+
Explanation (Lv.1): Everyone in this world sees you just as you wish to be seen!
You control everyone's gaze. Want to be seen as an attractive beauty? So you shall. Want to appear as a wealthy individual with vast fortunes? That's how you will be seen.
All you need is to wish how you want to be perceived by others. No further effort is required on your part. You gain infinite freedom regarding yourself.
However, you gain not a single right concerning others. You cannot decide how to view others. You can only see them as they wish to be seen….
+
The texts continued downwards.
I read the information and couldn't help but chuckle.
"Looks like a heaven Yoo Soo-ha would enjoy."
The first thought that came to mind was that. If I had to pick one heaven that suited Yoo Soo-ha, this place wouldn't be too bad.
"Okay, Snake. Hurry and unveil the rest of the hidden information...."
But the moment I was about to command Hishmith Kritz, a completely different idea from my first thought flashed through my mind. It was a kind of suspicion.
'—Wait a minute.'
I paused.
'Heaven? A heaven that suits Yoo Soo-ha?'
Something bothered me. It felt as if I had suddenly bitten into an eggshell in my well-enjoyed egg rice, an uncomfortable feeling.
"Kkiek?"
Hishmith Kritz tilted its head, seeing me suddenly stop talking.
"...."
However, my mouth remained silent. Opposite to my sealed lips and halted tongue, my doubts were spinning faster and faster.
Suddenly, I remembered what the Alchemist had said before leaving the 70th floor.
「That's exactly the standard of judgment.」
「What kind of heaven you will go to after death, you see.」
That's correct.
Meaning, if Yoo Soo-ha were to die, he would reincarnate considering this world as heaven, hence this stage's judge role went to Yoo Soo-ha.
There's nothing strange so far. What exactly is bothering me? Why does my instinct feel so uncomfortable?
「What about Uburka?」
「The Musclehead Who Dreams of Sinning Against Heaven doesn't go to the afterlife.」
The conversation I had jokingly shared with the wizard just before snapped in my head.
「Why?」
「No.... It's just that [Musclehead] thinks it's cool to end when they die… what's the need for an afterlife….」
I could feel my eyes narrowing. By narrowing the field of view, I reduced external stimuli. With unnecessary information blocked, my thoughts in my head soared even more.
「Raviel not being the judge doesn't make sense.」
Suddenly.
「Duke Ivansia doesn't desire the afterlife unless it's with you.」
I murmured unknowingly.
"…This can't be Yoo Soo-ha's heaven."
"Kii?"
The Snake lifted its chin to look up at me. It seemed to have misunderstood that I was speaking to it.
Instead of correcting Hishmith Kritz's misunderstanding, I let out the conclusions that were silently flowing in my mind.
"According to what [The Wand Of Ages] said, not everyone is led to heaven upon death. If, like Uburka, one has no lingering attachment to the afterlife, or like Raviel, refuses to let go of the memories of their current life no matter what, they simply embrace death instead of reincarnating in heaven."
The more I verbalized it, the more solid my thoughts became.
Maybe it's because the inside of the mouth is hot and the outside is cold? The thoughts that were mushy and melting on the tongue also cooled down and solidified as they squeezed past the lips.
"Then, Yoo Soo-ha must accept the concept of [the world after death] to eventually go to the heaven floor. Otherwise, like Uburka or Raviel, he would be categorized as one who simply accepts death when it comes, and he wouldn't meet the qualifications to be selected as the judge for the 76th floor."
"...."
Snake looked at me. Fox also turned her head to look at me. Bae Hu-ryeong's gaze as well.
There might be more gazes looking down at me now, unseen by my eyes.
"That's exactly the problem."
I said.
"Yoo Soo-ha would never consider this place heaven."
Asserting with certainty.
"Because even if he dies, he would wish to be reborn in [the same world]."
Not because he likes the world he was born into.
Quite the opposite.
"He doesn't even like other worlds. He doesn't think that if he changes, or the world changes, he'll become a better person. Just. What's precious to him is only his body that he has owned so far, his life, his memories. As long as he can protect them, it doesn't matter what becomes of the world...."
I looked up at the sky.
The clear blue sky.
"If he cannot protect them, no world can satisfy him."
I said this towards [The Wand Of Ages], which would be observing my every move from the lobby.
"I object to your selection of the judge."
There was no answer.
"If Uburka and Raviel were excluded from being judges, then by the same standards, Yoo Soo-ha cannot be a judge either. The reasons may be different, but the outcome is the same: he absolutely cannot accept a future where [he reincarnates in heaven having lost his memories]. Isn't that so?"
There was no answer.
"If I'm mistaken, please tell me. However, you won't be able to refute it."
There was no answer.
"As Yoo Soo-ha himself said, I know him better than he knows himself."
And then.
['The Wand Of Ages' closes its eyes.]
['The Wand Of Ages' fully accepts your objection.]
Buzzzz-.
[The 76th floor stage is forcibly terminated.]
The world of blue sky, split apart.