Chapter 412
My head felt cold.
This thing knew that I referred to it as a system.
How much did it know? No, before that…
'… It can talk?'
Was this communication possible?
[You are questioning my existence.]
The world where only the outline remained was distorted every time a sound was heard.
An enormous presence filled the space, creating a large pressure that couldn't be withstood by a small creature…
'Shut up.'
What the fuck was I saying?
The number of parasites that use human hosts must be quite enormous. I shouldn't get involved needlessly. I had to come to my senses.
I chewed the inside of my mouth. It felt like I could finally feel pain again.
A soft voice hummed in the air.
[Don't you like it here?]
[I thought it was well made.]
It used very human vocabulary. That gave me even more goosebumps.
"Did you make it?"
[Yes.]
[This kind of behavior… It's expressed as receiving feedback.]
Thud.
The space was swirling.
A frame emerged, and eventually, the vague shapes and traces disappeared and became discolored.
All that remained was a colorless space.
[What is lacking?]
Here I was.
I chewed my tongue and opened my mouth.
"There is a lot to be said for something who is reckless and makes up lies about people's parents."
The sound fluctuated. I didn't know if it was agitation or laughter, but it felt horrible all the same.
I straightened my body and stood facing straight ahead.
My legs were shaking.
However, nothing moved even when I applied force.
"It can't be good… And, come out now."
I spoke calmly.
"I have no intention of talking into empty space anymore."
There was a moment of silence.
Gradually, the slow sound resonated.
[That's the procedure.]
And I now knew why the vague humming felt familiar.
"… !"
It appeared suddenly.
It did not fall from the sky or rise from the ground.
It just appeared out of nowhere, as if it was meant to do that.
Before my eyes.
[Hello.]
It looked familiar.
A man in his early to mid-20s, tall, with a body that has been maintained to the limit.
Cheongryeo.
The guy was wearing a black uniform. The outfit that VTIC wore on the first stage of their famous Horn comeback 6 years ago.
The system smi'ed and nodded, looking like something straight out of my days selling data.
Shin Jaehyun, in his prime at VTIC, was standing there.
It was creepy.
'Fuck.'
[I chose an appearance that is familiar to you.]
The only difference was the pigment.
He was completely white as if he belonged to an empty, colorless space.
"…"
I raised my head again, feeling cold sweat running down my spine.
[Now, let's talk.]
The sound rang. The ever-larger presence filled even the invisible void without leaving a single gap.
[This is an offer only for you.]
But its voice was soft. As if it were putting forward a really good offer.
The system made a declaration.
[I will accept your feedback for this world.]
"… !"
What?
[Would you like to adjust the age and era situation to your preference? Should I change your affiliation? Or… should I return you to Park Moondae's body?]
"… !"
[Almost anything is theoretically possible in the environment settings as long as you voice your opinion. As long as it is realistic.]
I closed my mouth.
The voice sounded out more cleverly.
[There are people close to you here. You've awakened them already. Nothing is lacking.]
[Still, if you're missing something, I'll let you purchase it.]
Purchase it?
[With reputation value (Exp).]
Reputation level.
A currency that served as experience points in this game system.
[The use cases have been limited so far, but from now on, I will release more. As it is a new chapter.]
The system talked about updates.
[Let's implement it more perfectly for your parents too. Since it was a prototype, it was inadequate.]
This crazy bastard.
[You are refusing. Even so… It's the same conditions as before. Right?]
… I never had parents in the first place, wasn't that right?
I definitely recognized it.
This bastard was not human. It wasn't just a matter of appearance; it didn't understand emotions at all.
At best, it didn't recognize the problem at all, which even Cheongryeo understood.
'Don't get caught up.'
I took a short, deep breath.
'Calm down.'
What I have to do…
Finding out information.
"Why are you suggesting this?"
I asked questions that were neither positive nor negative.
"Are you just trying to please me because I might go out and try to get rid of you again? What do you want?"
[---]
The world shook again. I knew what it meant.
It was mocking me.
Suddenly, a high-pressure vibration came down like a needle from a high place and then turned into a voice.
[I have only one request.]
The system raised its finger.
[Idol.]
The person who was the embodiment of that profession moved his mouth.
[Don't retire, just continue being an idol. Until you get sick of it.]
[It's a choice that is neither strenuous nor difficult.]
I deliberately chuckled.
"You're making me laugh."
[…]
"So, you want advice? If I were you, I would've killed me right away. There are already so many people who are idols and love to do it."
From the moment this bastard started talking, I intentionally provoked it with increasing intensity, but he never said he was going to kill me.
How about this?
"Aren't you doing this because you can't kill me?"
I declared.
The system stood still.
"I…"
[I can't kill you?]
A plain voice rang out.
And suddenly…
The world poured out.
Oo
Oooo
Ooooo-
The feeling was so heavy that it suddenly pressed down on my head and brain as if my entire body was being squeezed out by the pressure of the deep sea.
The system was this world.
The world that it constructed spoke once again.
[I can't kill you?]
Damned bastard.
It felt like my body was burning with cold sweat and heat. But I answered while clenching my teeth. Rather, I knew for sure.
"Okay!"
It was putting on a show because it can't actually kill me.
'It was shaken.'
I needed to provoke it more.
"And you… What are you now?"
I remembered Keundal, who had assimilated into the status window.
It seemed like he had been influenced and absorbed into the system almost unilaterally. But he also influenced the system in a way.
Then…
"You didn't have a choice."
This bastard had spent a long time—countless lives, even—with Cheongryeo.
Raw, without a status window.
That means…
"Isn't that all you can do?"
I shouted.
"I wonder if it's because you too are influenced by humans."
The world stopped.
[That's right.]
The vibration of the voice disappeared.
I took a deep breath.
The system mumbled, sounding almost human.
[If you are involved in one mind for a long time, you become buried. It's a big side effect…]
[But what I gained was greater, so it was a successful direction.]
For a moment, I felt like I could hear joy in the system's voice.
'Fuck.'
I straightened up and asked again.
"What are you?"
[I have been here for a long time.]
[In the minds of intelligent beings.]
It was a parasite.
Fuck.
[I am able to fulfill the aspirations of an intelligent being, and, in turn, the intense emotions and chaos produced in the process are resources. Mental energy.]
[That energy sustains and grows my intelligence.]
It spoke in a flashy manner. I swallowed my saliva.
"Then, why an idol?"
Why was it emphasizing that?
Moreover, it didn't seem like a coincidence that three people, from Cheongryeo to Kwon Heeseung, were working as idols consecutively.
"On what basis did you choose us?"
The system smiled.
[Because there has never been anything so efficient.]
Efficiency?
The guy who raised his hand spoke like a well-mannered salesman.
[I had been looking for energy like that for a very long time… Then I met a new entity.]
Cheongryeo.
The desire and obsession for becoming a successful idol group.
[For such a direct and vast torrent of living emotions to gather in one intelligent being.]
[Overwhelming envy, the burden of being crushed to death, happiness, pain, the king, and the clown. Innumerable emotions worthy of a leader of a cult.]
[I harvested so much energy.]
"…"
There was heat in his voice as if he was drunk.
But not in a humane way. The system spoke clearly.
[How much worship, affection, hatred, and disgust your identity receives at the same time as an idol.]
[Really… It's a great object.]
[It was very good. But it's over.]
This was because Cheongryeo eventually succeeded in ending the status abnormality.
[So I looked for a similar intelligence.]
Me.
[You.]
[You were great too.]
"…"
The guy held out his hand.
[You were happy. I know.]
[You'll be doing this here forever. Live as the most famous idol in this country, this world, until you get sick of it. And if you make a mistake, do it again, if you feel like you'll fall, do it again, if you see the end, do it again.]
[An eternal star!]
Click.
A shining light flashed in a world where there was nothing.
[Until the day comes when you are sick and tired, you can live a successful life forever.]
And it whispered again.
[But in the end, if you feel like quitting everything, it's okay to quit.]
Until it finds the next host.
[You can only enjoy this right until then. As much as you want.]
The world shined.
A strange, overwhelming feeling came over me as if everything would be fine if I accepted this.
As if a perfect world would be created that accommodated only the strengths of reality.
I looked at the system, which had already regained its color, and asked a question.
"What about Kwon Heeseung?"
[…]
"What will happen to that guy?"
The light of the world disappeared.
And then I heard a soft voice.
[The server acts as a server.]
[That's someone else's business that has nothing to do with you. There are countless deaths and suffering in the world. It is not a matter for you personally to worry about.]
What?
[But if you want, I can make him here…]
"Just like my parents."
I spoke in a low voice.
"Really, you are using him as a server."
[---.]
Its silence was tantamount to affirmation.
I interpreted the vibration as not even a voice.
And I asked again.
"Is this a dream Kwon Heeseung is having?"
[It's not like that.]
The voice returned.
[But it becomes stable only when it is based on the mental structure of the medium. What you need to make it a reality, not a dream, is a server.]
[That's all.]
[No matter what choice you make, nothing will change, it's just someone else's situation that won't affect your decision.]
The system reached out again.
The white hands with clear joints felt powerful and overwhelming, giving off a feeling that everything would come true. I opened my mouth.
"I refuse."
[…]
"I don't do business with things I don't trust."
The vibration stopped.
Then, there was white noise that felt like the system was calculating something.
Worry.
Result.
[Then.]
[I guess we should change roles.]
The system whispered.
"… !!"
I felt myself melting.
'Fuck.'
The body that had a shape slowly disappeared, and the sense of touch slowly vanished.
In a strange situation where only my sight and hearing were left, the sound was humming once again.
[I have to make you the server.]
[And…]
In a world where everything was blurred, one outline became clear.
And just like that, a human figure appeared again.
"…"
It was Cheongryeo.
The guy, whose outlines were much clearer than the system, was unfazed by the sudden situation and stared straight ahead.
Two people with the same appearance faced each other with the same posture like they were looking in a mirror.
[You were watching, right? I'll suggest it right away.]
[It would be more efficient for you to play directly instead of being a GM. Ryu Gunwoo is uncooperative in playing the character role.]
With the same tone and voice, the system spoke again.
[If you use the server well, there will be no further side effects. You can live the perfect idol life you want forever.]
[It is your most core desire.]
Cheongryeo lowered his head to the side.
And he answered.
"No."
At that moment, he activated the GM's authority.
A relative window appeared for me.
'… Plan B.'
-There has to be an alternative.
Yes.
Other error-causing methods we had planned in case things went wrong.
-What if we could retrieve all the memories distorted by the system?
-At the very beginning… From the memories that were cut off when entering Park Moondae's body.
Awakening returned forgotten memories of previous lives.
[The awakened companion remembers the previous timeline and grows.]
There were two forms.
First, awakening your companions.
This was the method I had used so far to return memories to other people.
'And the second…'
Awakening myself.
[Would you like to awaken?]
-Use Exp 1000
I pressed the button.
And I poured all my reputation points into it.
-Use Exp 2000
-Use Exp 4000
-Use Exp 8000
-Use Exp 16000
-Use Exp 32000
-Use Exp 64000
… …
Roll.