Bang!
The sharp crack of the gunshot echoed.
Before Shin Jinhyuk could even process what had happened, he staggered back, his hand instinctively clutching the wound on his side. At the same time, the woman he had held hostage crumpled to the floor as soon as she was released.
From the lifeless gaze in her eyes, there was no doubt that the woman was dead
[You have slain a Seeker.]
[400 coins has been given as additional compensation.]
[You have fulfilled the conditions to pass the Narrative.]
I hadn't wanted it to come to this, but Shin Jinhyuk had forced my hand. To deliver a critical blow to him, the woman had to be sacrificed.
Under normal circumstances, the bullet would never have passed through the woman's stomach to hit Shin Jinhyuk, thanks to the laws of physics and inertia. But the introduction of mana into the equation changed everything, turning an impossibility into a plausibility.
Even so, it wasn't enough.
'As expected, it's weak. But still... better than I anticipated.'
I remembered that my spirit power was at Lv. 10.
It wasn't particularly high, but compared to my other physical stats, it stood out.
For a starting point, it was surprisingly decent. While it wasn't magic power, it was still enough to deal damage to the enemy.
Thanks to that, I could just manage mana reinforcement, barely.
Still, despite my spiritual energy enhancing the bullet, it hadn't pierced Shin Jinhyuk as deeply as I'd hoped.
'It can't be helped. My mana reinforcement is far from perfect, but it should be enough to kill that son of a bitch.'
I quickly glanced at the woman's lifeless body, blood spreading across the floor in a crimson pool.
A helpless sigh escaped.
This wasn't what I wanted. Shin Jinhyuk was the one at fault. If he hadn't used her as a human shield, she wouldn't have had to die so senselessly.
That's right. This wasn't my fault.
"Cough.... Cough...."
Shin Jinhyuk wheezed, blood spilling from his mouth as he struggled to crawl, pressing his hand to the wound, desperate to stop the bleeding.
The audacity of this man... Did he think he could survive after all the suffering he caused?
I approached him slowly, reloading the pistol as I slid fresh bullets into the chamber, each click cutting through the silence like a sharp sword.
Shin Jinhyuk suddenly noticed my approach and turned his head toward me. Desperation flooded his voice as he shifted into the familiar role of a scumbag cornered by his own actions, begging for mercy.
"Mister, I think we got off on the wrong foot. Let's talk things through."
Click!
"C'mon, there's no need for violence. Let's talk like reasonable adults."
Click!
"Please respectful Mister, spare my life, Okay?!"
Click!
"Please! I don't want to die, I don't want to die! I don't want to die!"
Click!
"Damnit! Say something already!!"
By the time I had finished reloading the pistol, I was already standing infront of Shin Jinhyuk. His eyes were filled with desperation and despair.
"I would consider sparing your life if you answer this question."
"Really, you will spare my life?"
"Only if you answer this question correctly."
Shin Jinhyuk's eyes became filled with a sense of hope. Looking at him, I truly felt disgusted.
I smiled cruelly and asked, "Tell me, do you think you deserve to live?"
".....!!"
"What's the matter, can't answer? Why so quiet? Could it be that you heard a question you asked your last victim?"
"W-what? H-How did you know?!"
Shin Jinhyuk trembled in fear. It was as if he had heard an ominous word.
This wasn't the first time he had killed someone. He was a serial killer that had already claimed the lives of women. I had no intentions of sparring the life of such a coward.
With a final, resolute click, I aimed the pistol directly at his head.
Inside the clamber was a bullet labelled with the name "Shin Jinhyuk." It was a surprise gift from hell.
Bang!
With a sharp sound, Shin Jinhyuk's head exploded, and blood, along with brain matter, splattered across the floor. His body twitched once, then went limp, like a broken lily.
At the same time, something appeared infront of me.
[You have killed one of your own species.]
[200 coins has been given as additional compensation.]
I stared at Shin Jinhyuk's lifeless body.
His head was a mangled mess, but I felt no guilt. Just a hollow sense of satisfaction. I had just killed a man, yet there was no remorse, no regret.
Even though the system forced my hand, even though I had no choice but to kill Shin Jinhyuk, why did I feel... nothing?
[The time limit has been reached...]
That message drove the rest of the survivors into despair. It was always those who couldn't bring themselves to kill their opponents who failed the Story.
[Those unable to pass the Story will face the failure penalty.]
"Please wait... No!!"
"Someone help me!"
The people screamed in horror, but it was too late.
Their fate had already been sealed.
There was no blood, no explosion, no dramatic flourish. They simply collapsed, without a single sound or scream.
Like drained batteries, their lifespans were spent. If souls had been present, they would have been extracted from their bodies.
Like forgotten background characters, they died pitifully, without meaning or worth. This was the inevitable fate of such figures.
And, like that, everyone was dead.
How would anyone react to such a sight?
I watched it all with a calm, unflinching expression, as if it were nothing more than a cruel joke. But it wasn't.
This was reality.
In the end, the ground floor of the hospital was nothing but corpses and blood.
At the same time, a silent whisper echoed from beyond. It was the voice of the world beyond.
The otherworldly voice of «Soul Link». It said:
[First Narrative – Crown of Sacrifice has ended.]
[Congratulations, Seeker. You have survived your first story...]
The messages didn't stop.
[500 coins have been acquired as the clearance reward.]
[The shop function has been unlocked.]
[You can purchase items and power cards from the Shop.]
The story I knew has now become reality. A world was destroyed and a new one was born.
[Welcome to the Soul Link.]
The tragedies were just beginning. This was the beginning of my suffering and my Stories.
†
†
[The healing effect will now take place.]
A soft green glow enveloped my body, and one by one, my wounds closed, knitting together as if following the commands of an unseen hand.
'So, this is the script's effect... experiencing it firsthand is certainly different from reading about it.'
The automatic healing mechanism had activated, something only accessible to those who passed the First Story.
The rules were brutally straightforward.
Fail, and you face the penalty. Succeed, and you receive the reward of life and healing. As long as you survived the ordeal, you would be restored to full health.
Even then, this boon would vanish after the Fifth Story, and the suffering would truly begin.
For now, everything was going according to plan.
I opened the system window and checked my rewards.
[Coins Possessed: 1100 C]
Coins.
A currency used in the Song of Darkness, just like in the real world. Money had the same purpose here: it could buy anything. Weapons, artifacts, skill cards, magic spells—the list was endless.
It was the ultimate measure of a person's worth.
'1100 coins, huh?'
500 coins for completing the First Story, 200 for killing the woman used as a hostage, and 200 more for killing Shin Jinhyuk.
It wasn't much, but it would suffice for now.
'Hmm? Huh? What's this?'
I frowned.
500 coins, 200 for the woman, and 200 for Jinhyuk. That should add up to 900 coins, but the system was showing 1100. Something didn't add up.
Was there an error in the system?
'Could it be...?'
I felt a chill run down my spine.
Slowly, I turned toward the woman, the one Shin Jinhyuk had used as a shield.
If I had an extra 200 coins, it meant I had killed another person. But that would only be possible if... she was...
The realization hit me, absurd as it seemed.
Had the world really become this twisted?
I shook my head, pushing the thought aside, and focused on the system interface.
Becoming a murderer had become inevitable. I couldn't afford to be weighed down by morals or trauma at this stage.
To shut out the overwhelming thoughts, I delved into my Sea of Memories, using the knowledge stored within to analyze the system interface.
Unlike the typical RPG, where leveling up came from defeating monsters, here, progress could only be made by investing hard-earned coins into one's stats.
Now, the question was, which stat should I increase?
I rubbed my chin, scrutinizing my soul information.
With the coins I had, I could only increase a single stat five times, so I had to make every point count.
After carefully considering my options, I made my choice and clicked on the system interface.
[1000 coins has been invested into Agility.]
[Agility Lv. 1 –> Agility Lv. 5.]
[Your body agility and speed has increased.]
To be honest, I was planning on saving my coins and observe the situation but I needed to raise my agility levels because of the next story.
I wonder when she will show up.
That girl should be making an announcement anytime soon. But strangely, something strange happened.
[Conditions has been met.]
... What?
[Personal skill, 'Black Box' has activated.]
[The Authority of Gluttony has been unlocked.]
[Broken Fragments of Shin Jinhyuk has been absorbed.]
[You have acquired the skill card 'Blood Demon Aura']
«Black Box»
A skill with no description or known purpose—had activated on its own.
What was this? A skill that steals other skills?
Was there a skill like this in Song of Nightmares? What exactly was the Black Box?
Before I could reflect further, a familiar voice dragged me back into reality.
[Oh, it seems alot of you managed to survive. Hehe! It must really suck to you right now.]
A transparent window appeared and a familiar face appeared on the screen.
It was a person everybody knew. It was the same person that appeared in Hongdae and caused the tragedies.
Her name was Aurora, the same cheeky fairy from before.
"...."
The surroundings became quiet like a graveyard. No one had the courage to speak. Maybe they were afraid their heads will explode.
More importantly, no one seem to have noticed she was currently inside the president office.
Was this enough to confirm the president's death status?
[Anyways, Let's see now, there are currently 207,910 survivors in Seoul. Now isn't that a big number? I was honestly expecting more people to die.]
She spoke so nonchalantly but the remaining survivors didn't take the news pleasantly.
"What? What are you saying?"
"Impossible!"
"Is that all the people left? What about the military?"
They reacted negatively as they should. More than half of Seoul's entire population were wiped out and this was just the first scenario.
The First Fable had two objectives. The first was to get rid of those unqualified to move onto the next Story. The second was to test those qualified to move on.
The people that died were just those were unqualified. And those who survived were the people who quickly adapted to the new world.
The worst part was yet to come.
With each story we pass, the next stories would get progressively harder, and the death count would increase continuously. This wasn't just happening in South Korea; it was a global nightmare.
Suddenly, Aurora's expression shifted, and her lips curled into a frown.
[Huh? What's this?]
Her tone changed, becoming more serious.
[There seems to be a problem. The next Fable will be delayed for the time being so you can use this time to catch your breath. I'll see you all in 10 minutes.]
I narrowed my eyes. A delay? That shouldn't have happened. The Second Fable was supposed to begin immediately, yet now there was a delay.
I glanced down at the headless body besides me.
Shin Jinhyuk.
According to the original timeline, he was supposed to kill everyone here and proceed to the next Fables but now he was dead. Because of that, the plot will change.
[You have permanently changed the fate of a certain character.]
[You have accumulated karma.]
[You have attracted the attention of the constellations.]
[The Gods of the Heavenly Plane are looking at you.]
Constellations (신들)
That was what the system called them. But in the ancient times, during the Age of Gods, they referred to themselves as Gods.
They were mysterious entities that watched the Stories through the world channel and broadcast stream, selecting a few mortals to share their stories. At times, they would choose their agents of divinity to act out as their vessel.
For most actors, their performances were too insignificant to draw their attention. Only a select few could meet their standards.
It was iconic. I once stood above, watching over the story as a higher power. But now, the roles had completely reversed. I had become a player on the Game Board (게임 보드).
Was this karma?
[A handful of constellations admire your story.]
[The constellations has donated you 500 coins.]
Despite their immense status, the constellations were fickle, like an audience that could cheer or jeer depending on the spectacle. It was unsettling, but there was no avoiding them right now.
Let them watch. The position of hierarchy will change eventually. I'll make sure to see to that.
".... Jakga. Are you okay?"
I discarded those thoughts as Angelica approached me.
"Angelica, you also survived?"
"Yes, I survived by killing a cockroach."
"A cockroach?"
I tilted my head. Did she really kill survive but killing a cockroach.
The condition of the First Fable was to kill a living being, not a human. Meaning, bugs and insects can be killed to pass the story. But I found that to be a little suspicious.
I lowered my gaze and noticed she was gripped her right arm that was shaking uncontrollably. It was here, I realised what truly happened.
"Angelica, did you..."
"That person, did you kill him?"
She looked between the headless corpse of Shin Jinhyuk and the firearm I was holding in my right hand.
I answered with an indifferent expression. "Yes. I killed him."
"I see."
She sighed and then looked at me.
"It can't be helped. If you didn't kill him, you would have died. Besides..."
She looked at the headless corpse once more with a strange look.
"That man also killed someone as well. So he got what was coming to him."
I was surprised. I honestly didn't Angelica to say those words. She was already adapting to the new world.
I looked over at the remaining survivors and began to count. One, two, three... There were five survivors in total in the hospital. Three males including me and two women.
"Alright, Everyone gather around."
The survivors gathered at my words and I looked at them one by one.