Chapter 3
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The Watcher I
Shin Noah
1
The cafe where I frequently meet Old Man Sho... No, let me correct myself.
The cafe where I frequently meet Old Man Sho's 'corpse' has small fish tanks placed here and there. I suspect it's the barista's personal taste.
There aren't any particularly rare species, but the fish tails possess a certain magic that calms the heart just by watching them quietly.
Perhaps it's because the flow of time gets caught in those fins and moves a little more slowly.
Or maybe it's simply because those fish eyes look like thoughtless fools.
Whenever I drink my cafe au lait and watch those blue tropical fish dancing their underwater ballet through time over there, one person always comes to mind.
The Saintess.
I'd like to talk about her today.
2
When the Gate crisis erupted worldwide, Korea unexpectedly held its ground.
Not at the government level.
Initially, half of Seoul was devastated, and that half included the National Assembly building in Yeouido. On that day, over a hundred gold badges evaporated into thin air.
Whether this was fortunate or unfortunate is a matter of personal opinion, but at the very least, Korea's political leadership was temporarily paralyzed in the early days.
Nevertheless, the reason Korea's Awakened managed to navigate through the crisis was none other than the translucent 'Messages' that floated before their eyes like holograms.
['The Saintess of National Salvation' shows interest in your heroic achievements.]
For instance, in my case, such a message appeared when I led the subjugation of the Busan Station Gate.
I wasn't the only one who experienced this phenomenon.
"Huh? What's this?"
"...The Chancellor of the Red Cloak? Says he's interested in me?"
Awakened individuals began making names for themselves across the country. Without fail, 'Messages' found their way to them.
The names of the senders varied among Awakened, but the fact that someone was observing their actions was a common thread.
"Constellations!"
And someone named this phenomenon 'Constellations.'
It seemed that Awakened who enjoyed reading web novels were quite familiar with these kinds of messages.
On the other hand, those far removed from web novels—someone like me, for instance—could only be bewildered. Eventually, I approached someone who radiated the distinct aura of 'I know what this is! Have you seen this!' and asked them directly.
"Sir, excuse my intrusion. I apologize, but what exactly are Constellations?"
"Ah, you don't know Constellation novels!"
The Awakened who received my question explained enthusiastically.
"It's where transcendental beings watch us Awakened like an audience, show interest, and provide support! You know internet broadcasting, right? It's similar to that! We're the streamers and Constellations are the viewers who donate!"
"Hmm."
"Constellations are incredibly powerful. There are terrifying beings like Cthulhu, and deities friendly to humans like us... Anyway, it's a good thing! You should definitely try to get on the Constellations' good side. Ah, which Constellation should I choose? Is the [Choose None] option the trend?"
After that, the Awakened continued prattling on with explanations for quite a while.
I too ended up just nodding and thinking, 'Is that so?'
It was a time when monsters roamed through Gates. The existence of transcendental beings watching the human world while munching on popcorn wasn't particularly surprising.
['The Conqueror of the Alps' marvels at your exploits!]
['The Chancellor of the Red Cloak' pays tribute to your schemes.]
As the turns repeated, I grew accustomed to the existence of Constellations.
They seemed to follow my trail throughout the day, praising me or encouraging me whenever I displayed unique behavior.
['The Saintess of National Salvation' praises your great achievement.]
I was secretly proud that the Constellation supporting me was 'The Saintess of National Salvation.'
This Constellation was famous for cherishing Awakened with good alignments, and she definitely seemed to favor me the most.
If not for the Constellations, my life as an Awakened might have felt quite dry.
The true identities of the Constellations remained a mystery, but I, along with most Awakened, held goodwill toward them.
"...This is strange."
Old Man Sho thought differently.
Before Old Man Sho left on his long 'vacation'—around the 10th turn—he had been suspicious of the Constellations' existence.
"Excuse me? What's strange?"
"I contacted some friends abroad a while back. Most of them died, but some survived. And they told me... they don't see such things in their countries."
"Such things?"
"Tch. The Constellations' messages, messages! My German friends have never seen or heard of such things."
Old Man Sho frowned, scrunching his nose.
"I asked a few other friends from different countries, and they said they've never experienced messages either."
"......"
"Then this means it's a bizarre phenomenon occurring only in Korea... Isn't that too strange? Why do Constellations only operate in Korea? Aren't they transcendental beings? What reason could they have to favor Korea specifically?"
"Well... maybe they like K-pop?"
"Stop talking nonsense. Doctor."
That was the moment.
['The Saintess of National Salvation' is disheartened hearing your conversation.]
['The Conqueror of the Alps' asks you to set aside your doubts.]
['The Chancellor of the Red Cloak' mocks your shallow insight.]
Messages appeared as if they had been waiting.
By this time, Old Man Sho and I were already persons of interest receiving plenty of attention from the Constellations. Naturally. Old Man Sho was the undisputed strongest Sword Master, and I... well, anyway, I was an irreplaceable resource.
I glanced sideways. Old Man Sho was narrowing his brows, apparently seeing something before his eyes as well.
"You too, old man?"
"Yes. These things are watching our every move."
Old Man Sho grumbled. He waved his hand through the air as if shooing away an annoying fly.
"Anyway, there's more than one suspicious point. They never sent me messages until I learned Korean. But the moment I started using Korean, they started sending messages like ghosts, didn't they?"
"......"
"Unless you're saying they've inhaled some serious K-national pride, there's no explanation. Doctor. Don't trust these Constellation or whatever they call themselves too much."
Unfortunately, Old Man Sho couldn't uncover the secret of the Constellations.
Starting from the 26th turn, the old man went on a long vacation with his wife. There wasn't enough time to explore the secret.
But I was different.
An infinite regressor is, by nature, a time billionaire. It would be no exaggeration to say that time was all I had.
'Why do Constellations only appear in Korea?'
I rested my chin on my hand.
Amid countless regressions, it was a mystery interesting enough to warrant investing at least one turn.
First, Old Man Sho's observation was correct.
Not only Awakened operating abroad, but even those active domestically who hadn't learned Korean never received 'Messages.'
'Thanks to that, Korea's Awakened quality—or should I say, their consciousness—remains relatively intact.'
In other countries, Awakened committed terrorism, massacred civilians, and various crimes occurred several times a day.
Uniquely in Korea, the crime rate among Awakened was low.
Why did this phenomenon occur?
I thought there were two possible answers.
First, the Constellations were truly addicted to K-national pride and only paid attention to Korean Awakened.
And second——
'Constellations only know Korean...?'
If this were true, it would cause enormous repercussions.
Think about it. Even that thick-headed Old Man Sho mastered a foreign language after just a few turns.
Yet beings calling themselves Constellations only know Korean?
What kind of transcendental beings are those?
'In other words, Constellations are not transcendental beings.'
I formulated a hypothesis.
'But if they're not transcendental beings, it would be difficult to monitor all Awakened in Korea and send messages to each one. There must be some secret hidden here.'
Starting from the 35th turn, I began seriously investigating the Constellations.
I decided to finally identify what kind of beings these friends were who had marveled at and been appalled by my exploits.
'First, draw the Constellations' attention.'
The method was simple. Constellations had a tendency to show interest in outstanding Awakened.
Starting the 35th turn, I used all my abilities even if it meant pushing myself. I cleared the Gate that erupted at Busan Station within 20 minutes.
In the 1st turn, I died without being able to close this Gate.
Only in the 3rd turn did I conquer it after a week.
I finished such a Gate in less than 20 minutes. Moreover, except for one person among the 399 humans summoned to the Busan Station concourse, no one lost their life.
I only farmed silver bells from the souvenir shop in the concourse, so there was no time wasted.
It was literally a speedrun.
A record that would surely appall the Constellations.
['The Saintess of National Salvation' is appalled by your exploits!]
['The Lord of Red Horses' feels competitive toward your power.]
['The Conqueror of the Alps' pays attention to your actions.]
['The Chancellor of the Red Cloak' is wary of your skills.]
Just as expected. The Constellations took the bait.
Successively, 4, then 7, then 11 Constellations continuously displayed messages.
I ignored the messages for now.
Only after exiting Busan Station and reaching an empty parking lot did I speak.
"Constellations, I know that you are Korean."
Silence.
The messages that had been flying in like Hogwarts acceptance letters until just before stopped all at once.
As the messages covering my eyes disappeared, the sky turned blue. I looked up at the empty air.
"I also know that you are not transcendental beings. I could disclose this fact to the Awakened... but I am more curious about your true identities. Please tell me what kind of beings you are."
-......
There was no answer.
To be honest, I was quite nervous at this moment.
There was a slim possibility—what if, perhaps, really, the Constellations were transcendental beings who ate kimchi wrapped in seaweed at every meal, listened to K-pop during tea time, and watched national pride TV in the evening?
What if they were sending mysterious nationalist favor only to Awakened who used Korean?
'They might be angered by my insolent proposal and all the Constellations could attack at once.'
I took a combat stance.
My awakening ability wasn't combat-oriented, but like a village dog reciting poetry after three years, having rolled around with Old Man Sho, the strongest Sword Master in history, my combat power had grown considerably.
Just as I was preparing for a desperate fight, thinking I could just move on to the next turn if I died here——
['The Saintess of National Salvation' invites you.]
A message appeared.
Fortunately, a development where Constellations appeared to punish the rude mortal didn't happen.
Instead, dozens of Constellations fell silent, and only one Constellation conveyed her intention to me.
That Constellation was coincidentally 'The Saintess of National Salvation,' the first to show interest in me.
I asked cautiously.
"An invitation? What kind of invitation?"
After a moment, a message returned.
['The Saintess of National Salvation' invites you to the Hangang Submerged Bridge.]
Seoul.
The hell on earth where Old Man Sho lost his wife and countless gold badges were buried.
'Ah.'
...It was only then that I newly realized the Constellations had never once used dialect.
3
I've probably mentioned several times that a Gate erupted in the middle of Gangnam, turning the area into ruins.
However, places beyond the Gate's range remained surprisingly intact. The Submerged Bridge preserved its original appearance from before the world changed.
The place where 'The Saintess of National Salvation' promised to meet me was a sky-blue convenience store near the Submerged Bridge. A surprisingly working-class location for a Constellation's invitation.
A woman with her hair tied back was sitting under the convenience store parasol.
Her appearance was ordinary. Her water-colored hair was peculiar, but it was fairly common for an Awakened's hair color to change when they awakened.
At the very least, she didn't feel like a being who had transcended humanity.
"Hello. Are you the Saintess of National Salvation?"
"......"
The other person looked at me. Her gaze swept over my entire body in an instant.
Those eyes were just like a fish's—rather than being lost in thought, they seemed submerged underwater.
"Busan Station Gate?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"...I never imagined you'd arrive from Busan to here in less than a day."
As half of Seoul fell away, most of the transportation network leading to the capital was instantly incapacitated. Roads, railways, everything was destroyed.
Conversely, this meant there were still some usable transportation options remaining.
Old Man Sho wanted to reach Seoul before his wife disappeared, so countless studies were conducted on 'the fastest way to get from Busan to Seoul.'
...No matter how fast, it was impossible to arrive within 1 minute, so it ended up being completely useless research. Well, thanks to that, I was able to meet 'The Saintess of National Salvation' this quickly.
"I go by the codename Undertaker. Nice to meet you."
"Ah, yes... But Undertaker?"
"It's a nickname with a story. You can just call me Doctor for convenience."
I shook hands with her and sat across from her.
Far in the distance, Seoul's skyscraper—also called 'Sauron's Tower'—loomed like a shadow.
"But first, I'd like to ask this."
"......"
"Are you the Saintess of National Salvation? Or her proxy? What are Constellations? Are you truly transcendental beings?"
The other person fell silent. Countless thoughts seemed to flash through her eyes.
After a moment, she pursed her lips and clenched her fist tightly.
Then she let out a small sigh.
"...Yes. I am the Saintess of National Salvation."
As expected.
Just as I was about to nod, thinking I knew it, she looked straight at me.
"Then aren't you a regressor?"