Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
The Majesty of Another World (1)
At that, Ilya looked at the cup ramen and snorted.
"...Well, I guess the real problem is that a certain someone has become emergency rations."
"But at least the Captain isn't dead."
"Good thing it was Yu Jae-ha."
[Stop saying thattttt!!!]
The cup ramen shouted furiously as the team breathed sighs of relief.
"It's a Divine-grade relic anyway. Just deal with it."
[Hey, wait! What did you all just say?! Hey! Hey! Hold on! This isn't right!]
[Cup Ramen Yu Jae-ha (SS-Rank / Consumable Relic)]
Julian adjusted his glasses.
"I'm curious what kind of Divine-grade effect a cup ramen could possibly have."
"As long as the Majesty is alive, relics can still be used."
"And those idiots think the Majesty is dead."
"It's the perfect opportunity to catch them off guard."
Ju-Heon, however, simply tapped his forearm with his fingers while waiting for Doctor Chloe's diagnosis.
After examining Yu Jae-ha's body—with a hole where his heart should have been—Chloe spoke.
Majesty Yu Jae-ha shrugged.
"See?"
"Saving the Majesty is humanity's only hope."
"...He's still alive even without a heart."
"Right? I told you."
Veins bulged on Ju-Heon's forehead.
Hearing Majesty Yu Jae-ha say that only made them stand out even more.
Well...
It was fortunate that Yu Jae-ha was still alive.
But—
[WITHOUT MY HEART I'M STUCK AS CUP RAMEN FOREVERRRRR!!!]
Yu Jae-ha screamed.
Ju-Heon raised an eyebrow.
"Because we need someone who can use relics?"
"No."
"That's not even the main issue."
"...?"
"Among all Majesties..."
"You're the only one who completely dominated the relics."
"You even shattered my trial with ease..."
"...and outsmarted the Rulebook's catastrophes."
"...Did you plan this from the very beginning?"
Majesty Yu Jae-ha slowly raised his head.
There wasn't a trace of hesitation in his eyes.
They were cold...
And shone with a certainty bordering on madness.
"The Rulebook always appears."
"You can't avoid it."
"But look."
"You defeated the catastrophes."
"That's why I chose to bet on hope."
"If it's you..."
"...you'll be able to dominate the Divine-grade relics inside Amaterasu's realm."
He stretched out a hand toward the sky.
This crazy bastard...
A vein twitched across Ju-Heon's forehead.
"You laid a hand on my subordinate without my permission..."
"...and now you think calling it 'hope' excuses everything?"
"If you had died..."
"...this world would already have been destroyed."
Majesty Yu Jae-ha took a step closer.
"And yet..."
"You turned this into a world where relics can still be used."
"That's incredible."
"Because across every dimension..."
"...the only worlds where relics remain usable are the ones that compromised with the Divine-grade relics."
"...!"
Majesty Yu Jae-ha continued.
"Once you become a Majesty..."
"...you have only two choices."
"Submit to the relics in exchange for using them..."
"...or let your world be destroyed."
"But you escaped both."
Not only had Ju-Heon survived...
He had even overcome the catastrophes and earned rewards.
Even so—
Ju-Heon summoned Gungnir and pointed it directly at Majesty Yu Jae-ha.
BOOM!!
Instead of throwing the spear...
His fist slammed into Yu Jae-ha's ribs.
The other Majesty was launched through the air before crashing violently onto the ground.
"Don't stand there acting so self-righteous."
"It's irritating."
"You probably thought I'd go easy on you because your name is Yu Jae-ha."
"But you're just a stranger..."
"...from another worldline."
"...That really is exactly what the me from my world would've said."
"Not even close."
Whatever relationship the Yu Jae-ha and Seo Ju-Heon of that world might have shared...
This man was nothing more than an unfamiliar visitor.
Majesty Yu Jae-ha clutched his side where he'd been kicked.
He coughed up blood.
Even so...
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
"As expected..."
Ju-Heon cut him off.
"How do we turn Jae-ha back?"
"It's simple."
"Take back the heart they stole."
"...!"
"You said the supreme gods of the Four Great Civilizations collect the hearts of Majesties."
"I'm planning to gather them..."
"...and reverse the Curse of Relicification."
The declaration caused even the team members to stir.
From inside the cup ramen came a tearful voice.
[Wait... What? I'm alive? I can actually be saved?!]
Handing Ju-Heon the red cup ramen, Yu Jae-ha continued,
"To recover your subordinate's heart..."
"...follow the Rulebook."
"And more importantly..."
"...your daughter."
"You said she was taken by relics belonging to the Four Great Civilizations, didn't you?"
"...!"
"The location of those supreme relics of the Four Great Civilizations..."
"...is known only to the Rulebook."
"And since the Rulebook serves as their representative..."
"...it'll eventually return to report to them."
"But..."
"Wouldn't we need a dimensional-travel relic to get there in the first place?"
"...Because I have one. I told you I'd help."
"And then what? You expect me to become the subordinate of a jerk like you?"
"...Well, we can put that aside for now."
As he brushed back his bangs, Ju-Heon looked at Majesty Yu Jae-ha suspiciously.
Which means...
"Why are you helping me?"
"I've got business at the Four Great Civilizations' stronghold too. Sneaking in alone would be impossible."
"You'll rescue your daughter and your subordinate."
"I have the same destination."
"So let's go together."
Majesty Yu Jae-ha smiled smugly and jerked his chin.
"How long are you going to spend reading those tiny letters?"
"Anyway, you earned three special rewards."
"Check them first."
"Check them?"
"They should've fallen somewhere around here."
At those words, the crow spread its wings and activated its power.
Something astonishing happened.
Majesty Yu Jae-ha searched the place where the Rulebook had disappeared.
Soon, he returned carrying something.
It was a miniature book.
Ding!
The crow's status window organized the information in place of the Rulebook.
[Mini Rulebook (SSS-Rank / Bound Relic)]
[Worldline B-187487]
The tiny book was already filled with records.
Ju-Heon frowned.
"I'm going to need a magnifying glass just to read this."
Just as a person's life could become a relic through its story...
Perhaps the events of an entire worldline also possessed value as a story.
Everything that had happened in this world had been recorded inside.
But the important part wasn't the records.
It was the rewards.
[Special Reward 3 – Rule Revision Authority]
- You may freely alter one rule governing a worldline.
[Special Reward 1 – Absolute Edict]
- You may make one wish for the sake of victory.
Restrictions:
- Dead worlds and the dead cannot be revived.
- Something cannot be created from nothing.
- Once declared, the wish cannot be revoked.
- Can only be used once per Majesty.
As expected of the crow. Much more convenient.
Ju-Heon still wasn't entirely sure about the first reward.
But the second and third were fairly obvious.
One of them basically allows time regression.
[Special Reward 2 – Future Regression Save Point]
- Allows creation of Time Save / Load Points.
The team members exchanged uneasy glances as they read the rewards in the Mini Rulebook.
Just from their names...
...they sounded terrifying.
Honestly...
It's unsettling knowing the Captain is the one who's going to use these.
Just then, Ilya asked,
"More importantly..."
"That rude book we saw earlier..."
"What exactly is the Rulebook?"
Majesty Yu Jae-ha shrugged.
"Its official name is the Rulebook."
"It originally belonged to the Majesty of another world."
"But now..."
"...it's attached itself to one of the Supreme God Relics."
"Judging by how confident you are..."
"You can track that book, can't you?"
"Yeah."
"I can follow the Rulebook's aura."
"But..."
"I think we've got another problem."
"What?"
"What problem?"
At that moment—
A door suddenly appeared in the empty sky.
Then...
A gigantic arch materialized.
Piercing the heavens...
The massive structure radiated overwhelming majesty, like a triumphal arch built by the gods themselves.
[Arch of Victory (SS-Rank / Intervention-Type · Invasion-Type Relic)]
- Its rank increases according to the accumulated historical record.
"...!"
Yu Jae-ha sighed and pointed upward.
"Look."
Ju-Heon's eyes widened.
A metallic bell rang across the heavens, its sound echoing throughout the entire world.
[This world has lost its Majesty.]
"It becomes an empty world."
"And naturally..."
"...other Majesties come to steal the relics that remain here."
[Conditions for invasion have been met.]
[Initiating World Subjugation Scenario.]
The team flinched.
At that instant...
A sharp light flashed in Ju-Heon's eyes.
"...An invasion?"
"Wait..."
"Don't tell me that's...!"
"Yeah."
"It's the problem we need to worry about right now."
At Majesty Yu Jae-ha's words, Cup Ramen Yu Jae-ha shrieked,
"...Then that bastard is here because—!"
"Exactly."
"He came while you're supposedly dead."
"To steal this world's relics."
"Didn't the Rulebook say it earlier?"
"'The catastrophes have only just begun.'"
"It's the same for every other world."
"They're trying to stop the catastrophes threatening their own worlds..."
"...by plundering relics from other worldlines."
[What?! What does that mean?!]
Majesty Yu Jae-ha clenched his teeth.
"Seo Ju-Heon..."
"...word has already spread throughout the worlds that you died."
"...What?"
"The Rulebook must've spread the rumor."
"And a world whose Majesty dies..."
"...becomes an empty world."
"We call this..."
"...a Raid War Between Majesties."
"If a world is judged to be weak..."
"...relic thieves swarm in like this."
Seol-ah stared in disbelief.
"Who the hell died?"
"The only dead ones are the people in your world, you bastards!"
"So Majesties rob each other?"
"I thought they were supposed to protect humanity."
"There isn't any loyalty between Majesties."
"To them..."
"This is simply an abandoned world whose king has disappeared."
"Their logic is simple."
"'First come, first served.'"
"Hah."
CRACK!
The earth split apart beneath Ju-Heon's feet...
...as he launched himself into the sky.