"Ahjussi, how many movies did you have to clear?" Shin Yoosung asked curiously, and Kim Dokja grimaced.
"Not that many, but still more than I hoped for," he replied. It was just his luck that Yoo Joonghyuk had left behind some of the worst possible options for movies, after all.
At the very least, Yoo Joonghyuk had managed to solo some of the more troublesome ones. Probably through sheer force of will and protagonist powers or something.
The girl nodded and cuddled up to his side with a small smile, ready to continue watching.
In front of the now ripped Jurassic Park poster, the group returns to the real world in another flash of a spotlight. As they prepare to move ahead, Jihye wonders how many floors are left. Dokja notes that some have likely been cleared by Joonghyuk, which will make it easier for them to reach the end. Heewon and Jihye also notice that the ripped posters they saw before were all signs that the movie has already been cleared, while Dokja hurries them on.
This 'Theatre Dungeon' was created when the movie theatre at exit 1 of Chungmuro Station became a dungeon, and is composed of the entire building—from the basement to the 8th floor, and its rooftop garden. Fortunately, all the posters on the 2nd and 3rd floors were already ripped.
As they pass more ripped posters, Dokja is relieved that Inception has been completed and wonders how Joonghyuk beat Fighting Destination.
This is the 4th floor… and we're in our second movie.
"All of them!?" Yoo Mia exclaimed as she turned to look at her brother. "You did so many more than that ugly ahjussi."
Yoo Joonghyuk just hummed slightly in agreement, but oddly enough, he didn't seem to feel like commenting on Kim Dokja's general incompetence, or whatever else might have been on his mind.
Lee Hyunsung fidgeted slightly. "Um, Joonghyuk-ssi, what would you say was the worst movie to clear?"
At that, the protagonist frowned deeply. "Inception."
Yeah, that was definitely a movie that Kim Dokja was glad they hadn't needed to face.
[The constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' thinks those types of movies are boring.]
[A constellation who likes movies says that the constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' would like them more if he had a bigger brain.]
Okay, Kim Dokja had to suppress a laugh at that one, and it seemed that Han Sooyoung and Jung Heewon were in the same boat. Huh. He'd have expected the plagiarist to be laughing out loud, so why was she trying her best to keep a straight face?
Did she want to avoid insulting the chuuni dragon for some reason? Weird choice, but okay.
[The constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' is laughing at the constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon'.]
[The constellation 'Abyssal Black Flame Dragon' is baring his teeth at the other constellations.]
The entire floor turns into an endless ocean of rolling waves once they enter their next movie. Jihye, currently in the process of heaving over the side of the largest ship in 1912, comes into view as Heewon pats her back. Dokja watches on, wondering why the Maritime War God chose her if she gets that seasick.
As Jihye attempts to recover, she realizes that this is the movie where the ship sinks and asks if they need to sink the ship themselves. Looking at everyone else, Jihye shakily points out that Heewon is likely taking the place of the female lead. Heewon, who is wearing a stunning black and red gown, wonders if that's the case before immediately moving to pat Jihye's back again as she throws up in the middle of asking if Dokja is the male lead.
Jihye is immediately proven wrong as a man approaches Gilyoung and calls him Jack Dawson. The boy looks confused, pointing at himself with a frown as the other three seem amused by this development.
Yoo Sangah's eyes widened as she recognized the ship by appearance alone. "Titanic!? Oh dear, that must have been difficult…"
Kim Dokja could only shrug while laughing awkwardly. They had really messed up this movie, but at least it had been quick.
Lee Hyunsung's cheeks were tinged slightly pink as he shot Jung Heewon a flustered glance. "Um, Heewon-ssi, you look really nice in that dress."
Was he trying to flirt? He was, wasn't he?
Jung Heewon shrugged. "It was fine, I guess. Inconvenient as fuck to fight in, though."
"A-ah, I see," Lee Hyunsung mumbled as he looked away.
Oh, the poor, poor man.
Kim Dokja could feel the second-hand embarrassment already, and Lee Jihye looked to be about three seconds from bursting into tears or laughter. Kim Dokja honestly couldn't be sure, considering just how weird her behaviour had been so far.
[The constellation 'Master of Steel' is consoling the incarnation 'Lee Hyunsung'.]
"Still," Han Sooyoung cut in with an amused tone, "can I just say that I love how they passed over the one adult man in the group and made a kid the male lead?"
Lee Gilyoung shot her a weird glance. "I don't really care about what you think, but hyung would definitely make a better one than me."
At that, she looked almost constipated as she tried to hold back her laughter. She glanced at Kim Dokja, and then her eyes slid past him to land on Yoo Joonghyuk (for some reason).
"Trust me, kiddo. No, no he would not."
Hey, what was that supposed to mean?
[The constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' wishes to defend the honour of the incarnation 'Kim Dokja'.]
[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' begrudgingly admits that the incarnation 'Han Sooyoung' is correct.]
Well, the only way that Han Sooyoung's baffling statement would make sense is if she was comparing him to Yoo Joonghyuk. Of course Yoo Joonghyuk would make a better male lead than him—he was the goddamn protagonist!
[The constellation 'Maritime War God' is distressed by the earlier discussion about sinking ships.]
After they've gathered the rest of the cast, they all discuss what to do as they look down at the villain of the movie who is on the floor in front of them, bound and gagged. Since clearly kidnapping is not enough for the Theatre Master to consider the movie completed, Jihye pulls out her sword as she says she'll kill him. "You said the Theatre Master's a psychopath. Then the solution must be killing him, right?"
Heewon, however, is hesitant. She points out that he looks and acts just like a real person, and doesn't feel comfortable deciding his fate that way.
"Unnie, now's not the time to be emotional," Jihye says in exasperation. "If we don't kill this guy, we'll die instead. We're real people, and this guy's a 'Character'. He's a villain as well; even if he was a real person, he's still a bad person!"
Next to her, Dokja's eyes widen as he flinches.
Once Heewon reluctantly agrees, Jihye stabs her sword into his chest, killing him and pleasing the Theatre Master. As Jihye gives a thumbs up and says they'll speedrun the rest of the movies, anxious to get to Joonghyuk in case he's in trouble, Dokja looks away, conflicted.
'Characters. Real People….' His thoughts are cut off by their return to the theatre.
Lee Jihye fidgeted uncomfortably, not wanting to look in Kim Dokja's direction, before curling in on herself a bit. "Wow, um, that's a lot more uncomfortable in hindsight, huh?"
[Several constellations shuffle nervously.]
Jung Heewon nodded, more subdued than usual. She had been hesitant in the first place, but she had eventually gone along with it too. Then, she glanced over at Han Sooyoung and Kim Dokja nervously.
"Is this how everything looks to the two of you?"
Kim Dokja frowned slightly. He hadn't considered killing recklessly like that, but it was true that he didn't particularly value characters who didn't have a major part to play in TWSA. This dilemma had hit him hard the first time, but now… it was even more difficult to think about when the 'characters' of his favourite story were aware of the fact that their lives were just words on a page for the longest time.
"To be honest, yes," Han Sooyoung admitted with a sigh. "At least, that was how it was for most people who had read even a bit of the novel. I don't know about this asshole, but I don't care if you're a character or a real person. I'm going to ensure I live either way."
Shin Yoosung shuddered slightly and clutched Kim Dokja's sleeve tightly in her hands. "Ahjussi, what if the world in those movies was the 'real world' for them? Just like how our world is real to us?"
[The constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' is confused after thinking too hard.]
[Constellations who like philosophy are intrigued by this question.]
Kim Dokja didn't know what to say to comfort her. Her question only brought up more, and some of them were things that he didn't want to think about. Maybe he was just reading into it too much, but the idea that this world, too, was merely something fictional to some other person a world away… it was distinctly uncomfortable.
"I don't know," he admitted quietly. "I don't have those answers, Yoosung-ah."
He wished he did, but right now he was trying not to fall into a spiral of existentialism. Could it be that there was someone else out there just like him—a reader who read the story of 'Kim Dokja' and thought of it as merely something fictional?
No, that wasn't the right question. That was already his reality. Because of her, there were already far too many people who had read the story of Kim Dokja-who-was. To them, whether or not her story was the truth didn't matter—all that mattered was that it was entertaining. Kim Dokja already knew what it felt like to be turned into a product, to be examined under a metaphorical microscope until it felt like all his layers were stripped away.
It hadn't been comfortable then, and it still wasn't now.
On the fifth floor, they are greeted by a window telling them it's the Rewards Room. Before them lies a sprawling collection of movie-related items, and they're told they can only pick 2 rewards per person. Curious, the group begins examining the different items available as rewards.
They're equipment and costumes, as well as props, used for various movies. But, these aren't mere props now. They're not at the level of Star Relics, but they're A-grade replicas with the characteristics of the originals. These rewards were the main reason for clearing the Theatre Dungeon.
Heewon's eyes are drawn to the
Meanwhile, Jihye is absolutely failing at picking up the
Gilyoung, having picked up a snapback for himself, walks over and immediately manages to lift the replica of the legendary hammer with no trouble. Jihye looks absolutely dumbfounded as Gilyoung sweetly asks Dokja, who takes it all in stride, if he can keep it. Jihye turns and looks at the weapons the other two picked out before mumbling that she's the only unlucky one.
Dokja then picks out the
Time to pay back our beloved regressor.
"Those are all very good weapons!" Yoo Sangah exclaimed with a large smile, looking impressed. "I honestly don't know what I would have chosen for myself."
Jung Heewon grinned. "Finally having a proper sword was such a game changer! Maybe I'll have to replace it eventually, but I think this one will always be special to me."
[A constellation who likes swords is satisfied by seeing an excellent weapon.]
"When it comes to excellent weapons, we can't forget Gilyoungie," Kim Dokja said as he ruffled the boy's hair. Not just anyone could pick up even a replica of the legendary norse hammer. Lee Gilyoung looked slightly flustered, but he accepted the praise gleefully.
[The constellation 'Thursday's Thunder' congratulates the incarnation 'Lee Gilyoung' on his worthiness.]
Lee Jihye rolled her eyes dramatically. "Ugh, who needs worthiness anyway?"
It sounded like someone was still salty that she wasn't worthy.
Suddenly, Jung Heewon piped up again. "I don't know why I didn't realize this before, but Dokja-ssi… how is your waist so slim? I think it might be thinner than mine!"
What? No, that couldn't be true. There was no way, right?
[Several constellations are curious about the truthfulness of that statement.]
[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' is intrigued.]
"What are you talking about, Heewon-ssi?" Kim Dokja laughed awkwardly, trying and failing to angle himself in such a way that his waist wouldn't be as pronounced. Damn this robe for being cinched so tight—!
The fact that Yoo Joonghyuk's staring was burning into his back did not help the situation.
[The constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is gasping in shock.]
Suddenly, Lee Jihye stared at him—specifically at his waist—for a moment, as if she was trying to measure it with her mind. Then, without saying a word, she stood and hurried over to where Yoo Joonghyuk and Yoo Mia were sitting.
"What are you doing, unnie?" Yoo Mia asked, confused.
Lee Jihye didn't respond, instead declaring, "Master, let me see your hands for a moment."
What a weird question…
Glancing over his shoulder, Kim Dokja watched as Yoo Joonghyuk raised one hand for her to inspect, despite his suspicion. After a moment, she looked back at Kim Dokja with a shocked expression.
[The constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is realizing what the incarnation 'Lee Jihye' is doing.]
[The constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is eagerly awaiting her assessment.]
"Oh my god, ahjussi," Lee Jihye gasped, and Kim Dokja had the sinking feeling that whatever she was about to say would be something mortifying. "It would take less than three of Master's hands to wrap entirely around your waist!"
[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' is choking.]
[The constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is crying tears of joy.]
[Several constellations are confused about the odd choice of measurement units.]
[The constellation 'Prisoner of the Golden Headband' is curious about where the incarnation 'Yoo Joonghyuk' is hiding a third hand.]
That was it. Kim Dokja was dead.
Yoo Sangah's eyes widened, but he could see a small smile barely hidden by the hand over her mouth. "Oh my."
Han Sooyoung and Jung Heewon burst out laughing, and Lee Hyunsung looked as mortified as Kim Dokja felt. The kids just looked confused, which was probably for the best.
Still, it was Yoo Joonghyuk's reaction that confused Kim Dokja the most. For some reason, he seemed to be staring incredibly intently down at his palm, and the tips of his ears looked slightly red. Probably in anger.
His head lifted and he stared at Kim Dokja with something burning and intense in his gaze. Scratch that—definitely in anger.
The scene shifts to Joonghyuk for a moment as he stands alone in the rooftop garden, his eyes blank and lifeless.
Unfortunately, Yoo Joonghyuk was not on the 6th floor either.
As they run up the stairs, Jihye discusses a movie spoiler, much to the disdain of the Secretive Plotter.
Luckily, we managed to clear the remaining movie on the 6th floor. And, maybe because it was a plot-twist-thriller, the item we were rewarded was also unique.
The skill book for the [Calm Observation] skill appears as Dokja notes that it's useful for gaining stat info on people he can't use [Character List] on. Unfortunately, his good mood is ruined as he notices that there are ripped posters on the 7th floor. Dokja knows that this means that Joonghyuk is in the boss room, and that's exactly what he was afraid of. Just as he hopes that all the posters have been ripped so they can rush straight ahead, a spotlight turns on suddenly and they vanish into yet another movie.
'Damn it,' Dokja thinks as he grits his teeth. 'There's one last poster left.'
As soon as her brother appeared on the screen, looking uncomfortably like he had lost his will to live, Yoo Mia whimpered and clung to him. It seemed she still wasn't entirely over what they had learned about the 8th regression, and Kim Dokja couldn't blame her.
Lee Jihye also fell eerily silent as soon as she recognized what was about to happen. Kim Dokja knew that this would be hard for her, and he hoped that Yoo Joonghyuk would be able to help somewhat since she had plopped down closer to him after her outburst earlier. If he was being honest, Kim Dokja was worried. Yoo Joonghyuk wasn't exactly the most… ah, empathetic of people on the best of days, and this clearly wasn't a particularly good day to begin with.
[The constellation 'Maritime War God' is worried for his incarnation.]
Everyone seemed to have felt the change in atmosphere, and the tension was steadily rising as people shuffled uncomfortably. Shaky glances were exchanged, and Kim Dokja placed what he hoped was a comforting hand on the kids' heads.
Everything was okay in the end. He just had to hope that it would be the same this time.
Once again, they find themselves on the deck of a ship sailing through turbulent waters. The only difference is that this time they appear to be in a historical setting, and before they have the chance to get their bearings, they're immediately under fire from an enemy ship.
'Damn it! This is a movie every Korean knows. Yoo Joonghyuk, that bastard. Of all movies to leave us…' Dokja thinks as he blocks the gunshots aimed at their group with the shield. Heewon, looking incredibly concerned, immediately points at the horizon and wonders how they'll possibly deal with the multitude of advancing ships. They're completely outnumbered.
'Damn it, I've got to stay calm! We're outnumbered, but this movie's historically accurate. There's gotta be hope!'
However, as Dokja desperately casts a glance behind them, his eyes widen in horror as the twelve ships he expects to see are nowhere to be found. He runs up to a soldier and asks about the location of the admiral, but the man doesn't seem to understand, even when he asks for the admiral by name. Dokja anxiously wonders if the Theatre Master has changed the plot, worrying about how they'll win without the admiral.
He looks around at the ship—at the panicked soldiers rushing to defend the vessel, at Gilyoung and Heewon still kneeling on the ground—and he knows they only have once choice. Gritting his teeth, Dokja makes a difficult decision and yells.
"Lee Jihye!"
[The constellation 'Maritime War God' is anticipating the retelling of his story.]
Her breath hitched as soon as her name was called by the Kim Dokja on the screen, and Lee Jihye inhaled deeply to calm herself as much as possible.
Kim Dokja sent her a concerned glance, a frown painting his features. With a shake of her head, she waved away his worry as best as she could. Yoo Joonghyuk was even glancing at her, but she didn't seem to pay him any mind, or she just hadn't noticed.
Though Kim Dokja wasn't entirely confident, he didn't want to make her feel worse by pitying her either. Lee Jihye had decided to stand up strong and face her trauma with confidence this time around, even if she still felt uncertain about it.
Honestly, Kim Dokja couldn't help but find that admirable. He was certain then of one thing—out of the two of them, despite being over a decade younger than him, Lee Jihye was still the stronger one.