Beyond the Eternity

By the time Angelica regained consciousness, the enemies had already been defeated.

She only saw Yoo Rin and Yoo Jinsung sitting besides her, looking at her with a worried expression on their faces.

Yoo Rin asked politely. "Angelica-nim, are you alright? How are you feeling?"

"Ughh... I'm fine, I suppose. What happened? Wait...!"

Panic surged as she recalled the chaos. With a sudden jolt, Angelica shot upright and scanned the room.

"?"

To her dismay, the room was empty—no sign of the crow-masked man or the zombies. Just the three of them in the blood-stained room.

This only made Angelica even more confused.

She looked back at the twins in shock and asked. "What happened to that man and the zombies? Did you two defeat them on your own?"

This time, It was Yoo Jinsung who answered, surprised by her question.

"What? No way. We were barely hanging on as it was. The moment that man was defeated, the zombies vanished instantly. Don't you remember? You were the one who took him down."

"Huh? I remember passing out as something hit me, so it couldn't have been me."

"So you don't know?"

"I don't know, really. Everything else became blurry the moment I passed out."

"Ah, I remember now!" Yoo Rin's eyes lit up as the memory returned. "After you passed out, the sorcerer tried to cast some kind of spell. But it completely backfired, and his own dark magic swallowed him whole before vanishing."

She had summaried the entire event exactly as it played out, but Yoo Jinsung and Angelica found it hard to believe her. With Angelica unconscious and Jinsung busy battling zombies, neither had the chance to notice the strange turn of events for themselves, so her story sounded somewhat unbelievable.

Yoo Rin noticed their gazes that screamed 'I don't believe you' and immediately spoke out.

"Why are you all looking at me like that? That's literally what happened. I'm definitely not making this up. I'm definitely not crazy, okay?"

"It's not like I don't believe you, but why would that person's magic backfire on him?"

"I don't know. He just died on his own."

"Well, that's certainly weird."

Angelica immediately frowned upon that suspended mystery.

Yoo Rin had claimed that the black sorcerer was defeated by his own spell, but she found that hard to believe. The person in question was a cunning and unpredictable fellow who always had tricks up his sleeve such as summoning the dead when Void Magic failed, wielding an immortal body immune to death, and harboring a mysterious, nameless attack within that undying vessel that had knocked her unconscious. He wasn't the type to make a careless mistake that would lead to his own downfall.

It was possible that Yoo Rin had seen something different since she was under stress. But if that was the case, then what actually happened to the black sorcerer? Was he truly defeated by his own spell? But that didn't make any sense.

She couldn't accept that they'd simply gotten lucky at the perfect moment. Perhaps there had been some supernatural or external intervention. But then she recalled abruptly that all skills, divine authorities, and anything of the sort had been sealed away because of the Fable.

Angelica rubbed her temple in irritation. The fact that she was knocked unconsious during an important development really rubbed her the wrong way. In addition, there was this throbbing headache that had been assaulting her temple since the moment she woke up from her slumber.

Was it because she slammed her head against the ceiling? The impact must have really been hard if she was still feeling the effects now.

Even though the enemy has already been defeated, she couldn't shake the suspicion that something crucial had slipped through her fingers in that instant.

Maybe I'm just overthinking things. If the enemy defeated himself, then it was just our luck then. There's no reason for me complain since all of us survived in that crucial moment.

Angelica let a sigh, and tried to place her uncontrollable wave of thoughts under control.

At that moment

[The master of the Fifth Fable has been killed.]

[All skills, stats and divine authorities restrictions has been lifted.]

[Many of the constellations are impressed by your performance.]

[You have received coins from donations.]

A list of system messages appeared.

Angelica felt her strength slowly returning to her bones and muscles. Even the connection to her chosen star constellation was restored. The twins also experienced the same phenomenon, and looked down at their own bodies.

Wait a minute... If the restrictions on powers was lifted, then that means...

With that in mind, Angelica turned her head towards the spot where Kim Jakga was last seen.

If the restrictions placed on the Fifth Fable was lifted then surely, that would mean Kim Jakga who had died would would be able to resurrect using his power. Or so she thought he would revive.

"...."

Disregarding her thoughts, Kim Jakga had not magically appeared out of thin air like some sort of spirit. He did not appear even after several minutes had passed. Was he going to even appear at all? It was possible that his resurrection was a one-time use ability. It was possible that he would remain dead permanently. It was truly possible that his soul was crushed along with his body. Despite all that countless negative possibilities she didn't consider before flowing into her head, Angelica who wanted Kim Jakga to appear continued to hope for his resurrection.

Yoo Rin and Yoo Jinsung glanced at each other, and then glanced back at Angelica, who seemed lost in her thoughts, with her eyes fixed on the empty spot where Kim Jakga had vanished.

Concerned, they both approached and Yoo Rin was the one to speak up first. "Angelica-nim, do you think that he's really gone?"

"No, please don't say such words. He has resurrected once before. Why won't he do it again? There's no way he would die like this. There's no way this is the end."

"Angelica-nim."

"Don't worry. He's going to resurrect at any moment now. I'm sure of it."

"...."

She truly seemed like she was trying to convince herself that Kim Jakga was going to return back from nothingness by some unknown miracle.

How much time has passed?

There was no change in the environment or some kind of supernatural phenomenon.

Kim Jakga was dead.

Even Angelica who was trapped within her delusions was slowly beginning to realise that harsh truth.

"Angelica-nim."

"Please don't say it. I already know what you're going to say, but I can't accept such a cruel reality. This whole disaster… it's my fault. If only I were more useful, if only I were stronger—none of this tragedy would've happened. Jakga would still be alive and... I... Damnit!"

Tears began pouring down from Angelica's cheeks. It was as if all her bottled emotions were finally spiralling out of control.

She couldn't hold it back any longer. Anyone had their own breaking point, and Angelica has finally reached hers.

She had only managed to survive this long by clinging to the hope that, if she endured, the world she knew might somehow be restored. But now, her final link to that peaceful life, which was Kim Jakga, was gone.

There was nothing stopping her from falling into despair. And even if she did, nobody would blame her.

It felt utterly unfair and unreasonable that Kim Jakga, who had been with her from the very start of the horrors known as the Fables, could die so easily.

It was definitely an unreasonable outcome that the universe had decided. Despite that,

"Please... Come back to me, Kim Jakga."

Just this once, she hoped for a miracle—one that would defy all logic, all rules, and bring him back to her.

It was then...

"?!"

An unexplainable phenomenon occurred the moment she wished for the existence known as Kim Jakga to appear back into this world from the bottom of her heart.

[The conditions has been met!]

[Someone has summoned a miracle!]

[The privilege of The Joker has activated!]

Something began to take form at the spot where Kim Jakga had disappeared from. At first, it was only a dim spark, but it quickly grew brighter, casting eerie shadows across the blood-stained room. Angelica stumbled backwards and fell on her butt, looking at the scene with shock.

Yoo Rin and Yoo Jinsung watched in stunned silence, sensing that something beyond their understanding was taking place.

A translucent figure began to materialize, coalescing from the scattered particles of light. The hazy outline gradually solidified, until it took on the unmistakable form of a human body— raven black hair, pale skin, handsome features, mostly black clothing, a deep crimson coat and a lean figure with both arms and legs containing a little bit of muscle.

"... Jakga?"

Angelica took a shaky step forward, unable to believe her own eyes.

It was unmistakable. No matter how she looked at it, the person infront of her was undoubtedly Kim Jakga.

Thump! Thump!

The sound of heartbeats was heard, and sealed eyes were slowly opened.

* * *

The moment I opened my eyes, I was immediately assaulted by a stream of system messages.

[The privilege of 'The Joker' has been completed.]

[One turn has been consumed as a cost of resurrection.]

[You have Five out of Seven turns left for the resurrection privilege.]

[Your previous body privilege 'Antimatter Resistance' has been reset.]

[Your new body has gained resistance to Nothingness.]

[Due to the destruction of your old body, the Witch's curse has been lifted.]

[You managed to come back from non-existence.]

[You have achieved an impossible accomplishment.]

[You have received 50,000 coins as a bonus reward.]

[A new fragment has been added to your Soul record.]

[The Fragment

'The One Who Escaped the Void'

has been added.]

The flood of system messages was overwhelming, so much so that I felt a headache coming on.

It was understandable.

My Body (세계) and Soul (우주) were both teleported to the realm of nothingness and was thoroughly erased with no delay. But I was able to survive due to the Joker card resetting my death.

In other words, I had accomplished something that even the mightiest constellations could not achieve. Of course, there were a few exceptions.

Regardless, the fact that I'm alive means everything went according to plan just as I had foreseen.

I felt guilty for using Zero One on Angelica, but It was unavoidable. If I hadn't used that skill, then all of us would have killed by the black sorcerer.

It was also a relief that I'd secured the second fragment needed to build my 'Theme.' Now, all that remained were the Frost ■■ Story, the ■■ King Story, and the ■■ Story.

[Many Gods of Death and Demons are looking at you with interest.]

[Many of the constellations are looking at you with newfound interest.]

[The constellations of the Korea Peninsula wants to make you to give you the seat of First Apostle.]

[The constellation, Celestial Sage of Heaven, congratulates you on your resurrection.]

[The constellation, Architect of Destruction, congratulates you on your resurrection.]

[The constellation, Judge of War and Wisdom, congratulates you on your resurrection.]

[The constellation, Great Ruler of the East, is silently looking at you.]

[You have received 20,000 coins from donations.]

The messages of the constellations along with their donations was also seen, but I ignored them for the moment. It was because three familiar faces were looking at me.

Yoo Rin, Yoo Jinsung and more importantly...

I smiled at Angelica and said in a joking manned to calm the awkward atmosphere. "Missed me?"

She remained frozen. It was as if she was too overwhelmed to move or speak.

It seemed something within her finally reached its limit, and her composure completely shattered into bits. Tears spilled down her face, and she threw herself on me, ignoring any sense of restraint.

"You idiot!" she sobbed. "Don't… don't ever scare me like that again…"

I gently rested my hand on her back. "Don't worry, I'm not planning on dying again."

But as if doubting my words, she tightened her arms around me, holding me as if I might vanish any second. It was sweet, really. But there was a problem.

"Uh, Angell, do you think you could ease up a little?"

Her grip was surprisingly strong, and with all my stats still sitting at Level 1, I was at serious risk of getting crushed.

Yet Angelica only held me tighter.

Panic rose in my chest. "Seriously, Angell, I can't breathe!"

"...."

"Angelica, please answer me! I'm not joking right now."

"...."

Angelica did not move. It was like she had suddenly gone deaf. Was she doing this on purpose to punish me?

Maybe I should raise my stats with coins. But what if I died in the next Fable? Then wouldn't raising my stats unnecessary be a total waste of coins?

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I decided it'd be smarter to hold off unless I absolutely needed it, but unfortunately, that wasn't helping me survive her hug.

I glanced at the Yoo Rin and Yoo Jinsung, hoping for a lifeline, but the twins quickly looked away and pretended to find something incredibly interesting across the room.

God Damn it.

[A few constellations are looking at you in disappointment.]

Wait... What?

[Several constellations murmur that they've never encountered anyone quite this oblivious.]

[The constellations who favor love and relationships remark that you could at least manage this much.]

[The constellation, Architect of Destruction, shakes their head.]

The constellations... were they being serious right now?

"Ha ha!"

A humorless laugh escaped from the corners of my mouth.

It was ridiculous.

To think I was about to face death once more after my resurrection, and Angelica's bear hug was the thing that threatened to send me to the Styx river.