Chapter 239 - Episode 31. Big Brother (4)
Chapter 239: Episode 31. Big Brother (4)
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A noisy voice echoed through the darkness.
It came pouring out like a waterfall, as if it were spilling words it had held back for thousands of years.
Remarkably, that voice was oozing from the mouth of a blackened sword.
[If you'd listened to me from the beginning, none of this would've happened.]
“...”
[What do you mean, Big Brother this and Big Brother that? What are you planning to do by smashing the System? Will anything come of it for you, Jaehwan-ssi? Will your lost youth return? It would be one thing if everyone desperately wanted it, but you saw their faces too, didn't you? Every last one of them looked uneasy. They aren't saying it, but by now, they're probably terrified out of their minds. That martial world fanatic old man and that Celestial pretty boy too, they must be losing sleep because they're afraid Jaehwan-ssi will really destroy this world. Well, not that world destruction is the issue at the moment. At this rate, Jaehwan-ssi is more likely to wither away first.]
It had been like this then, and it was like this now. The sword certainly had a way with words.
Jaehwan regretted speaking to it for no reason.
[Anyway, I feel so sorry for Jaehwan-ssi that I could cry.]
“You don't have eyes.”
[That's a figure of speech. How could a sword shed tears?]
A loud growling sound rang out, then the voice continued.
[Anyway, to continue, how is it that everyone knows this except Jaehwan-ssi? If you'd advanced into the 《Great Realm》 as I told you to back then, you would have become the strongest Great Lord by now. You could've ended the wars of the 《Great Realm》 and lived with absolute power at your command. But look at the state you're in. Right now, Jaehwan-ssi is...]
As he blankly listened to the lecture, Jaehwan recalled the sword's name.
Beastrein.
That was right. It definitely had a name like that.
The Cultivator he had met on the hundredth floor of the Tower of Nightmares. The one with a lion's head, dressed in a black suit, with some grand nickname like Gentleman of Mockery.
Thinking back on it now, it was ridiculous. Judging by its combat strength at the time, it had only been about as strong as a Third Adapter, yet it had carried such an extravagant title.
[What is it? Why are you suddenly laughing?]
“Nothing.”
When the sword had suddenly begun evolving right after he destroyed the Tower, and when Meikal at the workshop 〈Twilight Dusk〉 had said it seemed to contain the soul of a higher species, Jaehwan had vaguely expected something like this.
Both the fact that the ordinary sword had suddenly undergone a Great Evolution and that it had happened precisely as he left the Tower had been suspicious.
Still, all Jaehwan had possessed then was suspicion, and Dokbul could only express itself by humming and whining.
Jaehwan had fought every battle alongside this sword.
It had been with him when he first left the Tower, and now it was with him as he faced 《Big Brother》. Even Jaehwan, who was not one for sentiment, felt something strange at that.
“You haven't changed at all.”
[What do you mean, I haven't changed? How can you say that to someone whose entire demon life was ruined because of you? Look at the state I'm in!]
Had he heard something like that right after leaving the Tower, he would have snapped the sword in half on the spot.
But Jaehwan had changed a little since then, and Dokbul was still a useful sword.
[What are you smiling about? Huh?]
Jaehwan knew now.
This demon had paid for some of its sins. Trapped within that stifling hunk of metal, it had come this far with him despite nearly breaking countless times, despite becoming chipped and worn.
“You've been through a lot.”
Dokbul's voice quieted with a low growl.
[It has been...]
The sword's mouth moved uncertainly. Had it been human, one might have described it as its lips twitching.
[It has been a lot.]
Because it was Beastrein, Jaehwan could keenly feel the weight in those words.
Everything since meeting Jaehwan had been a chain of astonishing events for Beastrein.
Before coiling within the Ice Dragon Sword and before gaining the name Dokbul, it had been no more than an ordinary Cultivator.
A powerless mid-level demon, oppressed by Lords who were harvesters.
Beastrein, Gentleman of Mockery, ranked 8,152nd among demons.
At most, Beastrein had hoped to become an official cultivator, or accumulate enough merit through endless cultivation and Molts to become a god.
That was only if luck was on its side. No one knew when or how an accident might happen and kill it.
Yet Beastrein had become Jaehwan's sword and confronted those terrifying transcendent beings. It had killed Lords whose names alone were frightening to utter, and slaughtered gods it had once feared even speaking with.
It was a pleasure it could never have known while living under the 《System》.
Defeating Great Lord Jerome had been the best of all.
The moment it ripped apart the mouth of Jerome, who had ignored and oppressed Cultivators, was something Beastrein would never forget until its soul extinction...
“Hey.”
[Y-yes?]
Beastrein, deep in thought, made the blade tremble.
“Do you still think I should've joined the Main Game?”
Beastrein remained silent for a long time at the unexpected question.
Dokbul only gave off a low hum, as though it refused to admit the answer.
Listening to it, Jaehwan remembered Maiad's warning to be wary of time. Even this demon had changed so much. Time truly was frightening.
Nothing in the world remained unchanged.
Whether the change was for better or worse.
* * *
Never mind.
Perhaps there were things that did not change after all.
[But why are you trying to meet 《Big Brother》, Jaehwan-nim? Justice? Conscience? Don't tell me it's for such a stale reason.]
As he listened to Beastrein's lecture, which had already continued for five hours, Jaehwan kept his eyes shut and frowned.
[What does justice give you? Conscience? Those things exist to be sold. To begin with, justice and conscience can be changed to suit anyone's tastes. In one world, abandoning your parents before they grow old and die is justice. In another, lending your wife to a friend is conscience. So what justice or conscience is there? They're all illusions. They are concepts created by human standards.]
According to Beastrein, it had gained the ability to speak during the year Jaehwan had spent in the 《Abyss》.
As World Force accumulated, Dokbul underwent repeated Great Evolutions. Its mouth could now be used not only for devouring, but also for speech.
The problem was that the timing had never felt right.
It would have been strange for it to suddenly begin talking after staying silent all that time. It was also afraid that Jaehwan might split it in two if it opened its mouth carelessly.
While it watched for an opportunity and let time pass, Jaehwan entered the darkness of time and space, and another fifty years went by.
Beastrein had even forgotten that it could speak again. If Jaehwan had not spoken to it first, it said it might have forgotten how to answer forever.
After hearing all that, Jaehwan felt a little sorry for Beastrein and allowed it to talk as much as it liked.
This was the result.
“Have you talked through fifty years' worth yet?”
[Not even close.]
The stories were tedious, but Beastrein's presence still helped Jaehwan.
At least Jaehwan was no longer alone.
Whether it was pointless chatter or the demon's hastily made-up nonsense philosophy, it was certainly better than silence.
Of course, some of that nonsense was difficult to endure.
[This world is simple. As long as you eat well and live well on your own, you've won. Why not go back even now? You could reign as the King of the 《Abyss》.]
“You're still saying that?”
[W-well, isn't it because I'm worried about you, Jaehwan-ssi? We've grown close over all this time, and you're someone who can easily take the comfortable path, so why...]
Jaehwan thought that was utter nonsense.
“You're afraid you'll break while fighting 《Big Brother》.”
[...]
At times, it was so simple that Jaehwan could see straight through it.
“No one knows what 《Big Brother》 is, right? Then why are you so afraid?”
[Isn't that precisely why I'm afraid? It has an Unique World this vast, yet its identity is unclear, and we don't even know what it looks like.]
Jaehwan silently listened to Beastrein. He was curious what 《Big Brother》 looked like through the eyes of Cultivators.
[The group that manages the cultivation of all 「Peripheral Worlds」. That is what Cultivators believe 《Big Brother》 to be.]
“A group?”
[That is what I thought. Managing dimensions in such enormous numbers and approving cultivation would be impossible unless it were a massive organization. The gods of the 《Abyss》 seemed to think differently, though...]
“I heard there are also people among you called official cultivators. Don't they know about 《Big Brother》 either?”
[Official cultivators are still only Cultivators. They are said to belong to 《Big Brother》, but they only receive subcontracted work. They don't know what 《Big Brother》 is either.]
“If they receive subcontracted work, they must be able to contact 《Big Brother》.”
Jaehwan wondered why he had not thought of that until now.
If demons could contact 《Big Brother》 for cultivation, could he not use that in reverse to learn information about 《Big Brother》?
[Subcontracted work simply comes through the 《Little Brother》 System. Even if I send a message, I won't receive a private reply. To begin with, calling it a message is not quite accurate.]
“What do you mean?”
[You don't send a message to a particular person. You select a cultivation Area and request approval, then only receive an answer on whether it is approved. Private messages cannot be written at all.]
“Is it the same for official cultivators?”
[It is. I heard they are assigned cultivation sites in the form of quests.]
Jaehwan thought he understood.
In the end, 《Big Brother》 blocked every means of communication.
It was not a great discovery, but it was still better than knowing nothing. At least it proved that what Jaehwan had done so far had not been pointless.
There was definitely something above, and it was managing cultivation.
That alone was enough reason for Jaehwan to continue climbing.
After watching him for a while, Beastrein made the blade growl and asked,
[I am more curious about what you think, Jaehwan-ssi. Don't you have any guesses about 《Big Brother》? As an Awakened One, you are in a better position than I am to gather information. You also know about the Three Ancient Gods...]
“I have a guess.”
[Really? Could you perhaps tell me...]
“For now, it is only a guess. And in my current situation, 《Big Brother》's identity is not particularly important.”
[What? Why not?]
“The important thing right now is whether I can escape this space.”
Beastrein understood.
They had been trapped in this space for fifty years already.
It was a space presumed to have been made by 《Big Brother》. No matter who or what 《Big Brother》 was, they could not confront or defeat it until they escaped.
“There is still plenty of time. So I'm not worried.”
Jaehwan rolled his shoulders once, picked up Dokbul, and began practicing Stabs into the empty air.
[Could you at least swing me a little more gently? I'm dizzy. I've always wanted to say...]
Ignoring it, Jaehwan repeated the Stabs. Dokbul's mouth jutted out in a pout.
Stabbing, stabbing, and stabbing again.
The movements repeated as if he could keep stabbing forever. Or as if he meant to pierce through all this darkness one day.
Dokbul's mouth made a grating sound. In human terms, it might have been described as Beastrein curling its lips into a faint smile.
Feeling the trails of darkness wrapping around its whole body, Beastrein thought,
This human would never give up.
He had been the same in the Tower. Even when everyone gave up on clearing it, even when every being abandoned the present, Jaehwan did not retreat.
As though the ground beneath his feet was the whole world, he did not take even one step back.
But this time, his opponent was not a Cultivator of the Tower. It was the ruler of this world.
Could he protect his convictions this time as well?
Beastrein shivered lightly, and black flames dripped from its mouth.
[A demon only gets one life. Can a demon die once, then die again? Let's do this.]
Beastrein would come to regret that resolve after an unimaginably long time had passed.
At that moment, Beastrein did not know that this world held something more terrifying than death.
Nor did it know that the trial before Jaehwan could not be overcome through effort alone.
* * *
Stabbing and stabbing again.
Talking.
Then stabbing again.
Talking once more.
Jaehwan's Stabs continued to improve, while Dokbul grew sharper.
They spoke of many things. So many things that the divide between their species, and the hatred between Cultivator and Product, gradually began to fade.
They rejoiced over trivial things and quarreled over small ones.
They endured the passage of time.
And nothing changed.
Even so, they repeated that routine.
They told the same stories again and performed the same Stabs again.
The days when they said nothing at all grew more frequent, but they still did not give up.
And two hundred thousand years passed.
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