Kaaang!
The axe and sword collided.
An axe is naturally heavier than a sword, making it impossible to wield with one hand or swing with lightness.
At least, that was the case before "stats" entered the equation.
My stats had already reached the scenario limit.
Combined with the ampoule that temporarily shattered that limit, my strength allowed me to swing the heavy axe as if it were lighter than a dagger.
Kkagagak!
Bwoong!!
As I swung the axe, gouging the earth, countless rock fragments flew toward Yoo Joonghyuk.
But who was Yoo Joonghyuk?
The Regressor of the 3rd Regression.
Chaeng-chaeng-chaeng-chaeng-chaeng!
She blocked the fragments with effortless ease.
That was fine.
That wasn't my real target.
Tadat!
Because right now, I wasn't fighting alone.
Shuuuuk!!
Seizing the opening, Dokja's sword lunged toward Yoo Joonghyuk.
Kaaang!
And, as expected, Yoo Joonghyuk blocked it.
Bwoong!
Ppaaaak!!
However, by focusing on Dokja, Yoo Joonghyuk left herself wide open to my attack.
[The Constellation 'Secretive Plotter' is startled by your perfect teamwork!]
[The Constellation 'Goddess of Love and Beauty' is drooling over your sibling bond.]
[The Demon King 'Demon King of Wrath and Lust' smacks his lips at the sight of your beads of sweat.]
Some weird messages were popping up, but I decided to ignore them.
Still, Dokja's expression looked strange.
"Is something wrong?"
"..."
I see. The problem is Yoo Joonghyuk.
It wasn't the fight itself.
There was something only Dokja had noticed.
"How can I help?"
"Just keep creating openings like you are now. More of them."
That much is easy.
"Order received."
Kwaang!
I didn't know what Dokja had seen in those hollow eyes.
But there was no need—nor time—to question it.
That was how we had always lived.
Even a slight glance was enough for us to instinctively know what the other needed.
Long before "skills" ever existed.
So, I just had to trust her and silently do my part, just as we always had.
Kaaang!
"You might block the axe, but my strength is still overwhelmingly superior to yours!"
Kuuuuk!
As I pressed down on the axe with both hands, Yoo Joonghyuk's face contorted.
Unable to withstand the pressure, she began to slide backward.
Kuung!
The sheer force caused the ground to crack, pinning Yoo Joonghyuk into the fissure.
But Yoo Joonghyuk wasn't the type to just take it.
Bwoong!
Kujik!
In a desperate struggle, Yoo Joonghyuk lashed out with a kick.
The problem was that Yoo Joonghyuk was wearing high heels, and the sharp stiletto heel drove straight into the wound where my skin had been pierced by a sword.
Hwik.
Hwik.
The sharp heel stirred inside the wound.
Since the heel was covered in grit and stone dust, the debris embedded itself in the flesh, amplifying the agony.
"So? What about it?"
Kwaaaak!!!
"!!!"
Did you really think I'd scream and let go of my grip?
Tuk.
I simply let go of the axe.
Yoo Joonghyuk, who had been using all her strength to resist, was propelled forward by the sudden loss of tension, following the laws of physics.
"Wake up, you idiot!"
Chwawak!
"You... you moron!"
And that created the perfect opening for Dokja.
"...Are you okay?"
Kuuuk.
"...What are you doing?!"
[Many Constellations are appalled by your actions!]
Kwaduk.
Tuduk.
"You really shoved a lot of stone dust in here."
[The Constellation 'Thunder of Thursday' praises you as a true warrior.]
[You have received 300 coins.]
"Oh, coins."
"Forget the coins! What kind of lunatic digs into their own wound with their bare hands to tear out pieces of flesh just to remove some grit?!"
"Me."
"Aaaaargh!!!"
I feel like Dokja is more stressed by me than by Yoo Joonghyuk.
"Let's focus on Yoo Joonghyuk first."
"...I'll deal with you later."
Yoo Joonghyuk remained motionless.
What had allowed the simulation to interfere with her mind?
The three regressions?
Or simply the lack of a necessary skill?
"Huh. Are you really the protagonist? You're in this state after only three regressions?"
Regression is grueling.
Those you built memories with will die over and over.
The guilt of failing to protect what is precious.
And with that guilt, you cannot even find the peace of death.
There is no guarantee that the cycle ends with this scenario.
Even if you die of old age, you might just regress to the past once more.
That is how humanity is eroded.
Despite knowing this, Dokja continued to speak.
"Do you really think that? Have you already forgotten the resolve you had when you first regressed?"
3,149 regressions.
The number of turns in 'Ways of Survival' that Dokja had told me about.
Because within that epic tale, Dokja had found salvation.
"We decided not to indulge in those kinds of sentiments!!"
I looked into Dokja's eyes.
I could tell.
It was the look of someone determined to solve this herself.
This is so cringey. I wonder how she'll react once the fight is over.
I should tease her about this for a long time.
It's a shame I don't have a voice recorder.
"You decided that even if you couldn't find meaning in life before your eyes, you would live on for the sake of the greater cause!!"
Kang.
Kakakaang.
Yoo Joonghyuk simply parried the blows without a word.
"...Alone? After everything we did to get here, you think you're alone?!"
Yoo Joonghyuk's lips remained sealed.
Yet, Dokja reacted with indignation, as if she had heard words that should never have been spoken.
Now it was certain.
Dokja possesses a skill that allows her to read the other person's mind.
I don't know if it only activates under specific conditions, but it's there.
"Why are you alone? When you died like an idiot in the 'Theater Dungeon,' when you wailed while holding your dead sister, when you were stabbed in the back by the Prophet and died!"
This is getting dangerous.
If the Constellations hear this, something is bound to happen.
And whenever Constellations are involved, it's usually something bad.
[All Constellations in the channel express dissatisfaction with the excessive filtering.]
Filtering?
Thank goodness.
Still, Yoo Joonghyuk must have caught on to some extent now.
A Dokja who knows more about Yoo Joonghyuk than she knows about herself.
I wonder what Joonghyuk thinks of her.
"Fighting Demon Kings, opposing Returnees! Helping outsiders, and battling those damn Reincarnators!"
What does it feel like when a being that existed only as text suddenly breathes and lives before your eyes?
And how does it feel for the person who knows the future that awaits them?
I don't know, but Dokja does.
"Even when you finally stood before the Constellations! While watching you struggle just to survive!!"
"I also...!"
Dokja, who had seen the entire story.
And I, who had heard that story.
At least in the moments we shared those stories, we were no different from a normal family.
Because those are memories we can never return to,
they are all the more precious.
Bwoong!
"Ah...!"
A powerful sword swung by Dokja.
Dokja let out a small gasp.
But Dokja has someone she can rely on.
Someone other than anyone else—me.
Kaaaaang!
"Nice cringey speech, Dokja."
Brute force is my specialty.
Huk.
Kuung!
Why does it keep making these sounds just from a sword and axe colliding?
Kwaaaaaaaaaang!
"Kugh!"
A shockwave.
It was a simple shockwave created by the collision of my axe and Yoo Joonghyuk's sword.
That shockwave alone was enough to push Dokja back.
Kigik!
Kigigik!
"The look in your eyes is back, huh? But how dare you show off your strength in front of me!!!"
Bwoong!
"Kuh-hek!"
"Stop exaggerating. Can't you see my stomach? You're the one who turned me into a donut."
Kwaang!
Yoo Joonghyuk kicked off the ground and lunged at me.
"You...!"
Tup!
Too easy.
She was actually stronger when she was being controlled.
Since she surrendered herself to rage and charged in a straight line, she was caught easily.
Kwang!
I slammed Yoo Joonghyuk straight down.
Kung.
"Now that you're awake, stay put. Move again and I'll crush you."
"Who on earth is your sibling?!"
Is this really the first thing she asks the moment she snaps out of it?
"Who else? Just as the name suggests, the Reader who read to survive."
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