The Main Characters That Only I Know

Yu-hyun had a chance to make a choice.

No, should he even call this an opportunity?

‘After all, there's only one path I need to take.'

He could have aligned with Logos, wielding the power of this Fragment, and become a usurper to prepare for the next universe.

Perhaps he could have lived a far more stable life, built in the next universe.

But Yu-hyun didn’t want that.

‘I am only me. The human Kang Yu-hyun can’t be replaced by anyone else, nor can he become someone else.’

What meaning is there in living with a false shell covering oneself?

And even if he survived in the next universe, then what? And what about the one after that?

Yu-hyun didn’t want that.

“Let’s fight. Together.”

As those words left his mouth,

Praytion beamed with a smile, and the Bookworms in the gaps between the bookshelves trembled with excitement.

“As expected, my eyes weren’t wrong.”

“Just don’t try to manipulate or use me recklessly like before.”

“Not anymore. I don’t intend to. Back then, I had no choice but to make that decision.”

Praytion, in fact, wanted to approach Yu-hyun before anyone else and reveal the truth of this world.

But at that time, Yu-hyun was in the lower world, and Praytion, living in hiding, couldn’t reach out easily.

Besides, even if he had tried to tell Jin Cheong-woon and asked him to convey the truth to Yu-hyun, the wall between the upper and lower realms was simply too thick.

So Praytion was grateful to have been able to reveal the truth now and felt that he had fulfilled a long-held wish.

“So, what will you do from here on?”

“We’ll have to prepare for war. With the Shrine making moves, the harvest season is near.”

“Was it the same in the previous universe?”

“I don’t know the details. I only know of it indirectly through the Codex.”

Praytion gave a brief explanation about the history of his origin.

“I don’t know what number this universe is, but from some of the Codex’s contents, I’d guess that in the early universe, Logos handled everything himself—collecting and creating all stories personally. But as time went on, he created beings to help with his work.” ȑα

“That’s what you mean by the Kings of Stories.”

“The background that led to our existence isn’t that old. It’s been over a thousand cycles, if I had to guess.”

“……So even the Kings of Stories were created and destroyed repeatedly.”

“Exactly.”

Praytion knew well what had happened to the previous Praytion.

In the end, they didn’t defy their creator’s will and willingly accepted death. They silently walked the path to become the fertilizer for the next world.

Praytion couldn’t understand that.

Even if one were created by someone else, any being born into this world carried the duty of living out life.

Simply bowing one’s head and submitting to the command to die wasn’t the right thing.

Continuing life—that was the destiny and purpose of all living beings.

Therefore,

Now that he had learned of his predecessor’s death through the Codex, he intended to defy his fate.

He didn’t want to end his life as just a tool to collect and gather stories under Logos.

‘Perhaps… all of this, even my own choices, are what Logos intended.’

Certainly, he had such anxieties. But even if Logos had granted him this free will, it was his own choice to feel it and rebel against his creator.

That was enough for Praytion to dismiss his worries.

“Is there anything else you’re curious about?”

“What is the Bookmark?”

“Ah. Now that I think about it, you’ve been living with the Bookmark holder.”

Yu-hyun nodded.

Though he was the owner of the last Fragment of the Codex, Kwon Jia was the owner of the Bookmark that had been with the Codex.

“The Bookmark… is a being that can start from a fixed point alone, while all universes end and begin in cycles.”

“Why did Logos create it?”

“To observe changes in eras.”

“Changes?”

“As you know, this universe has gone through countless cycles. Do you think the flow of this repeated universe is exactly the same every time?”

Yu-hyun shook his head. If it was a major flow, it would likely be similar, but the finer details would never be the same.

And, along with those minor differences, the subsequent chain reactions would also follow.

“The Bookmark exists to monitor those changes effectively.”

About ten years before the harvest season.

That’s the point where a new Bookmark begins. Five years from that point, the apocalypse unfolded, and another five years later, the final trial ended.

“So, what was the purpose of confirming these changes?”

“I don’t know. But Logos didn’t seem to care much about the Bookmark. Originally, it was humans who held the Bookmark, being the ones most sensitive to the smallest changes.”

Broadly, the Bookmark was only given to humans.

Why?

Because humans, among all beings, most intensely felt the currents of a turbulent world.

Even small events that Divine Spirits would ignore and pass by came across entirely differently to humans.

In the end, these countless repetitions were nothing more than a small laboratory Logos used to gauge the level of the lower world.

Kwon Jia was the new experimental subject who inherited such a Bookmark.

Realizing what the Bookmark truly was, Yu-hyun’s expression was understandably grim.

Kwon Jia, who had cursed her life yet never gave up, clinging desperately to it.

He had witnessed it up close and knew the reason.

And to think all of that was the result of just one being’s experiment.

She had lived with the belief that at the end of a life of repeated effort, there would be salvation.

But could that really be true?

“You don’t look happy.”

Yu-hyun nodded heavily. After learning the truth, he felt pity for Kwon Jia’s life.

He even wondered if the salvation she sought truly existed.

“How can the Bookmark be removed?”

“Remove the Bookmark? The Bookmark is one with the Codex. There’s no way to remove it, except by passing it on…”

“But that would just create another victim.”

“Yes, that’s how it is. To change it, the usage of the Bookmark would have to be different. The original owner of the Bookmark is Logos, and Logos used it as an experimental tool. He hardly seems to care about it now, but that’s how it started.”

“…If we could just get rid of Logos.”

“Yes. In the end, everything comes down to that single goal.”

The method itself was extremely simple. But if that meant the death of Logos, who was essentially this world’s creator, it was a different story.

“That’s truly madness.”

“Yes. It’s absolutely impossible to do alone. Even with our current forces, it’s not enough.”

The Bookworms gathered among the piles of books. Once key figures in myth, they now hid in the world’s shadows, pushed aside by the usurpers.

Though their inherent power was not something to underestimate, it alone wasn’t sufficient.

That’s why Praytion had also planted seeds of rebellion among other Divine Spirits.

“You were the one who told Arthur the truth as well, weren’t you?”

“Not just Arthur. I planted seeds in all those in the Great Armies.”

“What was their response?”

“They reacted in various ways.”

Some Divine Spirits harbored anger toward this unjust world, while others chose to ignore the truth just to maintain their own status.

“There were even some who sided with the Shrine.”

“Where are those?”

“Olympus, Asgard, Anunnaki, Avesta, Rigveda, and Hermopolis.”

“The Great Armies… a whole six of them.”

The sight of one Great Army alone was overwhelming, but that was truly an astounding number.

“They’ve survived by usurping others, hoping to live again in the next universe just as they do now.”

“Then, are the remaining Great Armies… on the side opposing the Shrine?”

“No. They’re still hesitating to make a choice. While the recent Camelot incident seems to have made them realize the severity, it’s not enough yet. A proper blow is still needed.”

“And how will you do that…?”

“I don’t know. I planted the seeds, but whether those seeds will sprout in the soil they were sown has nothing to do with my will.”

“What about revealing the Shrine’s atrocities?”

“I thought of that too.”

Praytion shook his head bitterly.

“There’s no way to inform the entire world, including the Hybrid World, of this truth.”

“What?”

“Did you forget? All Divine Spirits receiving a unified story was solely possible through the Genesis Network. But now, the three organizations that used to relay such stories have closed their doors.”

“……Information control.”

“Exactly. Perfect control is impossible, but at least it will delay the spread of news significantly. The Great Armies near Camelot must have already analyzed the situation, but what about those farther away?”

This world was not solely dominated by the Great Armies.

There were also normal Divine Armies smaller than the Great Armies, and in their midst were lords considered powerful, ruling lands.

The recent Camelot incident would likely not have reached those people’s ears.

“For someone called the Supreme Being, he acts very shrewdly. That’s Logos.”

Yu-hyun shared the same thoughts as Praytion.

Though Logos held the power to reset the universe, his actions were exceedingly cunning.

Trying to control the flow of stories in a world entirely built upon them?

‘Yes. From the beginning, organizations like the Heavenly Stock Company, Exodus, and the

Comedy Troupe were nothing more than tools to assist Logos in his work.'

The fact that the Kings of Stories simultaneously stopped broadcasting stories was also because the harvest season was approaching.

If stories continued to circulate freely in the Hybrid World beyond this point, there was a heightened risk that unwanted truths might spread.

This led to another question. Although it was shocking for Logos to act this way, did he really need to go to such lengths?

“Perhaps…”

“Hmm?”

“Logos might not be as omniscient as we think.”

“…Why do you think that?”

“Though this method is effective, if he were truly a creator who could make and destroy this world on repeat, would he even need to do this? An omniscient being capable of anything wouldn’t avoid the most efficient route and take a roundabout way.”

“

Even Praytion hadn’t considered this, and his eyes widened as if surprised.

Now that he thought about it, it was strange. If he could do anything, he could simply snap his fingers and wipe out all those who opposed him.

Didn’t do it?

That’s not it.

Couldn’t do it—those words were more accurate.

To the Divine Spirits and humanity, Logos was regarded as a true god… but even he had limits.

“He needed to control information, and he also needed the help of usurpers who would follow him. Why?”

“…Even for Logos, it would be troublesome if every Divine Spirit, desperate not to die, were to resist.”

“The existence of usurpers is like an internal spy that prevents this side from uniting its forces. The fact that anyone can become a usurper serves to prevent Divine Spirits from coming together.”

“And there’s also the existence of Bookworms, which could be called a public enemy.”

“Divine Spirits see Bookworms as enemies and seek to exterminate them.”

To go to such lengths emphasized the limitations of Logos’ power.

“Perhaps he chose this method because, in a cycle long ago… he suffered a major setback.”

“That’s highly likely. That’s why he divided the tasks, set clear boundaries, and implemented strict control, unlike before.”

The only lingering question was why Logos was doing all this while repeating this cycle.

However, Yu-hyun and Praytion quickly suppressed their curiosity. It wasn’t important at the moment.

“I understand that if we could somehow unite the remaining forces, there’s a possibility. But… the problem is still grave. Time is running short, and now there’s no way to spread this news.”

“Because all the Libraries have shut their doors.”

“Yes, exactly. The libraries operated by the Tellers’ organizations have all disappeared as they closed down.”

“No.”

Yu-hyun shook his head, denying Praytion’s words.

“Not all of them have disappeared.”

There was still one.

One that remained.

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