Chapter 1222. The Demon King of Sunset’s Castle, the Final Story (15)

I tried not to think so hard about it, but I was finding it difficult to ignore it, as I couldn’t understand his reason for saying that.

Of course, it was possible that there was no reason behind it in the first place, and he said it simply because it was related to our contract.

If I had to choose the easiest or the most desirable answer, going back to the Dummy World was the best choice. The most important place for me was the Dummy World, and that was what I would choose for myself.

[Of course, I’ll continue updating Dummy World, like I had promised.]

After hearing him say that, perhaps going back there was the most reasonable choice.

Flower Ki-Young’s role was going to end here. Many things had happened, but his role was going to end here.

Once that happened...

‘What would happen to this place?’

What would happen to everyone, including Woo Hyo-Yeol, Lim Chae-Ryeong, Raymond Bolt, Nam Goong-Seon, and No Dam-Hye?

“What will happen to... Rohen?” I asked.

[Do you really need to know that? You've already achieved your goal. I’m really grateful for everything you did. You must think that the fake contract is the end of my job, but that’s not really the case.

[I carried out everything you’re capable of doing, such as the trial in Rohen. You evaluated the potential of this place, and summoning Kim Hyun-Sung here was all thanks to you.]

“Are you planning on wiping out the continent?” I asked.

[I’m not sure...]

‘Shit.’

Lee Ki-Young looked like he was being indecisive, but his face told me the answer. The cold-hearted god had already made up his mind.

‘What do I do?’

I told myself that I needed to keep buying time until I could sort out my thoughts.

With that in mind, I decided to ask a stupid question first.

“Why did you appear so late? You didn’t really need to appear...”

[I thought you already knew the answer to that...

Hm... hmm...

Kim Hyun-Sung must be perfect.]

“...”

[Defeat and failure don't suit the Sword of Sunset at all. Of course, matters outside combat are a different issue... and the fact that he often doubts his own strength isn't really helping. He can’t lose. Defeat can be a good lesson, but only up to a certain point. He realized that when you and Woo Hyo-Yeol finally became a threat to him.]

“...”

[Of course, Hyun-Sung was at a huge disadvantage, but you did put up a good fight. The fact that I came here to talk to you and gave you a choice... You can take it as a compliment. It's unlike me to be considerate of others...]

“If I... decide to choose Rohen...” I mumbled.

[Well, I don’t really want to tell you that either... I won’t criticize you for trying to buy time because at the end of the day, you’re the one who’s making the choice here.]

Perhaps all of this was a test.

The thought that perhaps my choice could decide the fate of Rohen popped into my head.

‘This place...’

This place needed an administrator. Rohen could either be wiped out or fixed, but regardless of the final decision, it needed an administrator. Lee Ji-Hye could become the administrator, but I was sure he disliked sending away

his

people.

Long story short, he was probably pressuring me to give up on the Dummy World. It was like he was asking me whether I had the courage to really give up on the Dummy World. I was sure he didn’t want me to stay on the fence.

‘Lee Ki-Young...’

He was probably trying to appoint me as the Administrator of Rohen.

He probably believed that he could control me, as twenty percent of him was inside me, but if I were to get appointed as the Administrator of Rohen, his ego would disappear.

He was demanding an answer from me. He wanted to know whether he could let Dummy Ki-Young handle Rohen.

‘If I became Rohen's administrator...'

It wouldn't be perfect, but I could probably set some sort of boundary.

If I get really lucky, I could start fixing errors rather than resetting and rebuilding everything. I was sure there would be many restrictions, but it was better than letting that crazy kid handle everything.

The biggest problem was that I would have to give up on the Dummy World.

“I’ll come back.”

“I’ll come back no matter what.”

It felt like I was hearing voices or something.

The blurry memories were becoming clearer.

Everything was uncertain, and it made me feel anxious.

The fact that he was forcing me to make a choice was extremely oppressive. Forcing me to make a choice without giving me enough information was basically telling me to go die.

I was sure other people would feel the same way if they were in my shoes, but overall, I felt bad.

Meanwhile, Mini Lee Ki-Young was playing with a Rubik’s Cube in midair. It was like he couldn't care less about my decision. He hadn't shown any signs of regret or satisfaction about any of the choices.

‘That asshole.’

I really wanted to hit him, and I couldn’t hold in the desire to flick his forehead. My head was throbbing in pain, and I really wanted to crush that innocent-looking face of his.

‘What does he want?’

Perhaps it was just my imagination, but it felt like he was acting.

‘What the hell does he want?’

I was probably overreacting when I thought that all of his actions were calculated.

Lee Ki-Young was someone who would never make a move without any clear intentions, especially when it came to negotiating.

Those exaggerated gestures and actions of his could be a part of some scheme, couldn't they? Bluffing was that jerk’s weapon, so he probably tried to make himself look important for this negotiation. Even though I was overwhelmingly weaker than him, would that control freak really come here without making any preparations?

‘The Boy Adorned With Earrings of Truth, my ass.’

Was there really any truth in that guy's words to begin with?

His comments about having only eighty percent of the original and that he only cared about practicality and efficiency could be a lie.

There was a chance that his gestures and child-like behavior were planned beforehand as if he were some kind of actor about to go on stage. His overly chatty and erratic behavior all seemed suspicious.

He was acting like that to show me that negotiating with him was impossible.

It was all for the sake of throwing me off.

[So? What are you going to do? Also... why would I bother acting that way when I’m just talking to a mere program...?]

“...”

[I’m your creator. Although we don’t have the greatest relationship... it’s an undeniable fact that I have complete control over you.]

“Well, I don’t know about that since you’re the only one who knows the answer,” I said.

Mini Lee Ki-Young continued the conversation while spinning again.

[I might be kind of upset if you interpret my kindness in a different way.

Pft.

]

‘Does kindness even exist in your dictionary?’

[I told you that it’s up to you to decide, and I'm just saying this, but being calculative like that won’t put you at an advantage. Sure, there are plenty of possibilities, but there might be a special clause like we can’t harm each other until the end of our contract or something.

[Like you said, it’s also possible that I’m acting so that I can have the upper hand in this ridiculous negotiation.]

‘...’

[You’re right. I normally don’t make a move without any clear intentions. You’re free to think that way. Yeah, yeah. Just like now.]

‘...’

[You can think of my current actions as being part of my plan.

Pft

. Including the words I’m saying now. It’s all part of my plan. Yup. You can think whatever you want, but so what?]

‘...’

[There’s a reason behind all of my actions, but do you really think there’s a reason I’m going this far to behave this way? I won’t deny that bluffing is my specialty, but I’m not the type to do things randomly.]

‘...’

[You must be thinking that there’s a reason I made myself look more important than I really am just for this meeting. You must be thinking that there's some kind of ulterior motive behind why I'm acting like a transcendent being with all my might, but why? Why must I go that far? The game is already over, so why? Wake up before I flip a table.]

Just then, I noticed that the Earrings of Truth were sparkling.

It was invisible until now.

Actually, I probably hadn't noticed it until now, as I was focused on his actions rather than his earrings. The light of sunset was reflecting off of it, and it was shining so brightly that it was hard to miss.

‘Lies?’

“Were you telling the truth when you said that you'd restore the Dummy World?” I asked.

[That’s right. You don’t need to question that since it’s written in the contract. To be honest, I have no reason

not

to do that, as it won't really require a lot of resources. It can be done with a few movements of my finger, so there’s no reason to avoid it.]

The earrings stopped sparkling.

“Were you being honest when you said that you turned into a child?” I questioned.

[...]

“...”

[I don’t want to answer that.]

“Is there a special clause in our contract stating that you must wear the Earrings of Truth?" I asked.

[No comment.]

“In that case...”

[I’m not going to answer all of your questions. None of it. This isn’t the place to answer your questions.]

He didn’t answer, and I was sure it was because he realized that I had finally caught on to the Earrings of Truth. Now that I thought about it, it was an unexpected piece of information.

Mini Lee Ki-Young’s title was "The Boy Adorned With Earrings of Truth." It sort of answered my question about why the Earrings of Truth became his title. Out of all the words I knew, the word "truth" was the one that least suited Lee Ki-Young.

‘It’s understandable.’

After all, everyone knew that this asshole was a fraud. There was nothing odd about Dummy Ki-Young making requests to Lee Ki-Young. From the contract details to its execution, he wouldn’t want any tricks to corrupt the contract in any way at all.

He was right. Updating the Dummy World was easier than waving his finger, but the scammer before me would have no issues telling lies even for something as easy as that, especially when his opponent was a program instead of a human being.

I had no idea why, and I wasn’t sure of it, but Lee Ki-Young probably had...

‘He probably has a reason for coming here.’

There was a reason he came here to argue with me.

I couldn’t figure it out right now... Actually, I couldn't really say that he was being cornered, but whatever it was, something was making him feel uncomfortable.

There was a reason, and we were at the point where I could have the upper hand in this negotiation. With utmost caution, I observed his reaction before saying, “I’m hoping that we can reach a new agreement. Would that be possible?”

[...]

“Please...” I added.

[...]

“...”

[

Whoo...

]

[Fine, I’ll hear you out, but don’t you dare cross the line.]

“In that case...” I paused.

[Not that.]

“But...”

[I’ll consider it.]

“This...”

[No.]

“...”

[Fine.]

A negotiation that was neither long nor short finally ended. The light of sunset engulfing my line of sight finally faded away, and I understood everything, including why Mini Ki-Young appeared before me.

I also discovered what was making him feel uncomfortable and why he was trying to confuse me.

“...”

“...”

“

Ha... haha...

shit...” I mumbled.

He won.

“Shit...

you won... Hyo-Yeol. You... won,” I said.

Woo Hyo-Yeol was sprawled out on the ground, and I could see a large hole across from him.

The hole was even bigger than the one Kim Hyun-Sung had made.

Obviously, he hadn't actually won the entire thing.

The most reasonable assumption to make here would be that Kim Hyun-Sung couldn't handle the amount of power that Woo Hyo-Yeol had unleashed, forcing him to muster as much strength as Woo Hyo-Yeol, which triggered a recall.

If that was the case, this wasn't a "true" victory.

“You... won. The stubborn fool did it,” I said.

He had achieved something so great that mere words couldn’t describe it. It was a success not just for him, but for me as well. It was liberating. If I had known from the beginning that this was going to happen, all this could have had a better ending.

Still, the negotiations ended satisfactorily.

Instead of feeling cheated by the scammer, an odd sense of satisfaction spread through me.

I had no regrets.

Woo Hyo-Yeol was unconscious, but when I realized that we were still connected, I became sure that he could hear my voice.

“Take care, punk,” I said.

Flower Ki-Young’s story was over.

***

“You were surprisingly... generous,” Lee Ji-Hye said.

“Well... It’s not like I'm going to lose anything,” I said.

“Yeah, right...”

“By the way, can you get me a cup of coffee...” I asked.

“Stop changing the subject and keep watching. We still need to see the aftermath,” Lee Ji-Hye replied.