There was an awkward silence. Soo Jinyoung stared at me with great intent as if she was examining my very body. I knew everything about her yet I was someone she didn't know.
Meeting a favorite character from fiction? It felt surreal, even unsettling. As much as meeting a celebrity might feel like a dream come true, this was far stranger. The boundary between fiction and reality had been shattered, and with it, anything was possible.
Even meeting characters that could only exist within the fiction.
There were alot of things I wanted to say but my mouth did not move. I wanted to say I was her biggest supporter. I wanted to say she was not alone. But this was not the right time or the place.
Finally, Soo Jinyoung broke the silence. She shifted her gaze shifting to Lee Suhye and asked. "Who's he?"
Lee Suhye shot me a wary look. "He's got information about the next Fable… says he wanted to talk to you specifically."
Soo Jinyoung's attention snapped back to me. "Name?"
"Kim Jakga."
"Huh?" Soo Jinyoung's eyes seemed confused. "Is that your real name?"
I sighed. "Believe me, I've heard that before."
"It's a... strange name."
Why does this have to happen every single time? I understand that my name was a little unique, but does everyone have to comment on it.
"Why did you come here?"
"Didn't you hear from her? I came here because of the next Fable."
"So you're saying you have information about the next Fable. Yes? How did you acquire that information? From what I remember, acquiring information about the Stories is not cheap."
"I made a deal with a constellation."
"You mean a star contract?"
Soo Jinyoung narrowed my eyes. It was obvious she was skeptical of my words.
This person possessed knowledge surpassing even that of most incarnations blessed by great star constellations. Beyond that, she was remarkably cautious—more so than anyone I'd encountered in Song of Nightmares, perhaps with the sole exception of the regressor.
Numerous stimulations were formed inside my head— many things that could go wrong here if I was not careful.
[The requirements has been met.]
Huh? What's going on?
[The conditions have been met!]
[You have unlocked the second stage of the 'Black Box'.]
In the next moment, several words appeared above Soo Jinyoung's head.
「 Who the hell is this person?
「 Is he the person from that time? 」
「 That can't be right. How did he survive? 」
「 He's definitely suspicious. He said he signed a contract with a constellation to get information, which would mean he's the incarnation of the Sisters 」
「 But that is impossible. 」
A dense flow of thoughts appeared before me, as if I were reading lines straight from a novel.
Soo Jinyoung showed no sign of moving but all her thoughts pointed towards one direction.
Damn. As I suspected, convincing the protagonist with just a few vague words wasn't going to work.
I became nervous when Soo Jinyoung's eyes began to glow with a golden. It was a bad sign.
[The character 'Soo Jinyoung' has activated Demon Dragon Eyes.]
This person... she was activating a very troublesome skill.
Demon Dragon Eyes. It was a SSS-grade skill that showed the target's attributes window and expose hidden truths. It also allowed the user to see into the future once per day.
The SSSSS (SSS or Ex) rank were the pinnacle of the grading system, above even heroic grade. Even if I had a mental barrier skill, it would be penetrated without resistance and my identity would be exposed.
What should I do? I truly began to panic. But while I was despairing?..
[Due to the blessing of your attribute, your information cannot be viewed.]
[Personal skill, Black Box has activated.]
Crack!
Sparks flew in the air and Soo Jinyoung's groaned.
「... Kuk! 」
Soo Jinyoung staggered before falling to the floor.
My eyes widened. The Demon Dragon Eyes was overwhelmed?
To be able to able to counter the Demon Dragon Eyes... What exactly was my aspect?
"Boss!"
Lee Suhye rushed towards the collapsed Jinyoung and then glared at me.
"You bastard, what did you do?!"
She raised her gun at me as if threatening to shoot.
[The character 'Lee Suhye' has used the skill Execution Zone Lv. 3]
[The Mark of the Target has been placed on you.]
Mark of the Target. It was a dangerous skill Lee Suhye uses to mark her targets and then use the stigma 'Homing' to lock on the target, creating an unavoidable attack.
It seems fighting was unavoidable now.
As I was able to pull the Iron-cutting sword, Soo Jinyoung raised her hand and stopped Lee Suhye.
"Wait... Stand down!"
"But boss..."
"Lower your gun! I'm fine."
Lee Suhye reluctantly lowered her weapon and Soo Jinyoung slowly stood up.
[Execution Zone has been disabled.]
[You are no longer marked as a target.]
"You... What are you?"
"Haven't I told you already? This person, do you like it when someone repeats themselves?"
Soo Jinyoung's eyes slowly opened.
「 It can't be. 」
Priest.
It was the only attribute that could accurately predict future events and had the absolute effect of 'nullifying detection skills regardless of their ranking'
I was lucky that she could not use 'Truth'. Otherwise, she would have discovered my act.
She dropped her guard a little and asked me a few questions.
"Are you a priest?"
"Something similar."
"Does that mean you can see the future?"
"Something similar."
"Did you come here because of me."
"Yes."
「 I see. If he's truly a priest, then all previous his actions are convincing 」
The atmosphere was changing. The heated tension was slowly disappearing. Good, let's continue at a steady pace.
However, Soo Jinyoung wouldn't be Soo Jinyoung if she gave up easily.
Her stubborness and willingness to survive was one of the few traits I liked about her. This was Soo Jinyoung who had already experienced nine lives.
But at this moment, I was starting to find it troublesome.
「 Everything he said has been convincing so far 」
「 But that doesn't mean I can trust him 」
「 Why did he come here? Does he know I'm a reincarnator? 」
「 If so, then I'll have to kill him right here 」
「 Destory the body and erase all evidence 」
A series of disturbing thoughts. Indeed, this was the Yoo Jinyoung I knew.
"Sorry, I don't need a priest. Seeing the future is not necessarily hard."
"You're too arrogant. Is it because you can see the future once per day? You underestimate the importance of a priest. Do you think you can defeat Fate with such a narrow mindset?"
"..."
"Soo Jinyoung. I know you have great strength but you lack a reliable source of information."
Reincarnators were different from Regressors.
Reincarnators can't regress back to a certain point in the past or change the future with their presence. Instead they start all over from the very beginning in another worldline.
However, the worldlines can be different from the previous one. In other words, reincarnators would leave their 'own world' and enter a 'world that they don't know.'
This was the only weakness of a reincarnator.
Soo Jinyoung finally opened her mouth.
"What do you want? You must surely want something in return."
"It's a simple story. I just want to work together to ensure our survival. The next Fable is a scenario that requires our full cooperation to survive. You must already know that much. Yes?"
"..."
Her eyes shook slightly. It was a sign that my words were getting through. But she still wasn't convinced.
I decided to hit the final nail, "Don't you want to create a new world?"
"!"
Upon my words, Soo Jinyoung's eyes widened to the maximum.
"You! How did you..."
"Is that really important?"
Then suddenly, system messages popped up infront of me. It was the words of the stars watching from above.
[A few constellations scoffs at the arrogance of a certain someone.]
I smiled. I knew they would react this way. To create a world is to destory 'Fate'. It was something even the almighty constellations who cannot do even if they tried. Rather, the constellations didn't wish for a new world.
Yet a certain someone was trying to do just that. To create a new world, the old world must be condemned. The gods didn't like that and made Soo Jinyoung their enemy. They were the main reason why she had a hard time.
"So what do you say? Let's create a new world together."
[The constellations are shocked by your words.]
[The constellations questions your true intentions.]
[A few constellations are looking at you with hostility.]
It was inevitable. If I teamed up with someone who wanted to destory the world, I would also receive the resentment of the constellations.
Even so, I couldn't condemn this person infront of me.
Soo Jinyoung lowered her head and began to think. Yes, this was a good sign.
「 The knowledge about the future will be useful. And it would make up for the Dragon Demon Eyes' weakness 」
「 He could be valuable in the upcoming Fables, especially in the Sea of Time and even during the confrontation with the Gods within the Ragnarok Story. But can I truly trust him? 」
「 Companion, huh? Will it be different from those other times? 」
Soo Jinyoung closed her eyes, feeling a series of emotions and memories. I was the reader of her story so I knew her pain and suffering.
Sometimes, being a reincarnator was not a good thing and the story of Yoo Jinyoung proved this.
She slowly raised her head and looked at me with a different expression. Looks like she has finally made her decision.
"Fine. I will make you my companion."
Somehow, I managed to convince the stubborn reincarnator. I was finally in a good position. Now I can proceed with my next course of action.
"Alright then. Tell me about the next Fable."
It was time for me to keep my end of the bargain. But before that, I needed to establish the nature of our relationship.
I said with a soft, calm smile, "Of course. But there are a few things I need to say."
* * *
Once I came out from the office and entered the open area, I released an exhausted breath.
[Personal skill, Black Box had activated.]
[Excessive immersion has severely worn out your mental strength.]
Talking to that damn reincarnator took out a chunk of mental health. If possible, I don't want to do that again.
"Excuse me, Mister."
"Hmm."
I turned my head and saw a boy looking at me. It was a boy that looked around 10 or 11. Where did this boy come from? Did somebody lose their child?
"You saw the boss, right? I saw you enter her office."
Was this child Yoo Jinyoung's fan?
Unfortunately, the boy's voice was louder than I thought and the people slowly looked my way. At this rate, I'll draw in more attention to myself.
"Are you Soo Jinyoung's friend?"
The child was looking at me with shining eyes.
I sighed. I was truly powerless against childs. Perhaps it was one of my weak points.
"She's a good friend."
In the next moment, I suddenly thought of an amazing story and a smile formed on my lips.
"Hey, do you want to hear a story? It's about how me and Soo Jinyoung met?"
"Really? Is that true!?"
The boy became more excited. Even in an apocalyptic world, a child will still be a child. Who wouldn't like to hear a good story?
I sat down with the boy and began to tell a fake story.