Gakseong High School, Principal’s Office.
Lee Si-hyeon tilted her head when she saw her son suddenly visiting her.
“So, have you talked to those traitors?”
“yes. Did they apologize to their father?”
“Why all of a sudden? I apologized. But apologizing doesn’t mean the years I couldn’t meet you will come back, right?”
My expression hardened at my father’s words.
The father had no intention of forgiving the Seven Heroes.
Actually, it seemed like that to me too.
Rather, it was fortunate that he didn’t rush at them to seek revenge.
“I asked because I thought I would have to join a guild when I graduate. As he is the disciple of the strongest guild leader, there is a high possibility that he will join the strongest guild, but his father may be against it. So, your father has no intention of reconciling with the Seven Heroes?”
Lee Si-hyeon, who had not expected her son to talk about the future, began to clear her throat.
Certainly, the son who became one of the seven stars was the successor to the strongest guild.
“Okay, I don’t want to be a father who gets in the way of your future. “I will try to reconcile.”
I nodded to my father’s words.
Judging from that attitude, it seemed like my father had no intention of making peace with the Seven Heroes if it weren’t for me.
“If only, the day the first final gate closed. “What would have happened if my father hadn’t created the barrier?”
Lee Si-hyeon responded without being embarrassed by my sudden words.
“If I hadn’t deployed the barrier, you might not be safe now.”
‘It could have been’ was a matter of possibility.
A predictable statement that also has the opposite possibility.
“You could have been safe.”
“huh?”
“Even if my father didn’t maintain the barrier for the rest of his life, wouldn’t it be possible for the seven heroes to fight again, and for the awakened members from the Death Squad to gather their strength again?”
At those words, my father stared into my eyes.
It seemed like it was to examine the meaning of what I wanted to say.
“Are you saying this father didn’t have to sacrifice?”
“yes. “My father thinks that if he doesn’t sacrifice himself, the world will end.”
That was a bad idea.
No, Lee Si-hyeon would have been set up to think that way by the author’s settings.
Perhaps, this could be a denial of the character of Lee Si-hyun itself.
But it was necessary.
“Are you saying I’ve been thinking wrong all this time?”
“No, it’s not like that. “If I were to find myself in that situation again, there would be no need for my father to sacrifice himself.”
Sihyeon Lee tilted his head at my words.
He looked like he didn’t want to even imagine being in that situation again.
“Ugh, I don’t want to even imagine it, so don’t even say that.”
“Haha, yes. Of course that won’t happen.”
To my father.
But I was different.
“I think I understand your father’s thoughts.”
“huh? “Okay, I’m glad it helped.”
I said hello to my father and walked out of the principal’s office.
Now that my curiosity was satisfied, it was time to meet the guys.
9.
There was one more person left to meet before that.
When I returned to the dormitory, I found Jeong Ju-won.
Jeong Ju-won was sitting on the bed in the dormitory and tapping on something.
“Why are you back already?”
“I have a question before I meet them.”
“What?”
“If I head to the 4th round, will you still be ‘Jeong Joo-won’ then?”
Jeong Joo-won smiled strangely at those words.
“Roommate, I have no idea what you’re talking about? “I was Jeong Joo-won from the beginning.”
Understanding what he meant, I nodded and said as I left.
“Then I’ll come back.”
Jeong Ju-won, who heard me, tilted his head.
“… “You want to go and come back?”
***
After leaving the dormitory and arriving at an empty auditorium, I shouted into the air.
“Hey, readers. “I know you’re watching, so come out quickly.”
As if in response to my words, a space opened up in the air, and seven readers of ‘Ise’ appeared there.
“I’ve always wondered, why are there seven of you? “Is it true that ‘Ise’ only has seven readers?”
-Hmph, we are seven readers who represent all readers.
Seven heroes, seven sons following Chilseong.
Writers and readers alike seem to really like the number 7.
-But what about the author?
“doesn’t exist.”
Their expressions distorted when they heard that there was no writer.
-No?
“uh.”
-Do you want to go back again?
“uh.”
-?!
“I think that’s the only way to correct the ambiguous ending.”
-… … Your attitude is different from Jeon’s.
-What happened?
I grinned at what they said.
“I found out why the ending was ambiguous.”
-?!?!
Many readers looked surprised at my words.
-What does that mean?
From the looks of it, the so-called ‘readers’ didn’t seem to realize it either.
Well, it was worth it.
Because the current ‘Ise’ was part 2.
I forgot it because I repeated it three times, but I was also a reader of ‘Ise’ like them.
That’s why I was able to realize it from my conversation with Yoo Ah-ram.
“you. The world after the apocalypse. “Since when did you start reading?”
-Of course, from the beginning.
-You don’t think readers who haven’t seen episode 1 will be able to see the ending, right?
“that’s right. If so, let me ask you. Was Yoon Mir the main character in episode 1 that you guys saw? Or was she the strongest?”
-… … .
The readers could not even reply to that statement.
“Of course, for you guys, the current protagonist of ‘Ise’ is me. “Because the story changes depending on my choices.”
However, I would not have been the main character of ‘Ise’ that they first read.
They must have seen the main character of Part 1, Choi Kang, and Yoon Mir, the main character of Part 2, and they didn’t like the ending, so they used me to change the story here and there.
As I repeated my life three times, I was able to figure out why they didn’t like the ending.
“The reason you guys didn’t like the ending. That’s because the protagonist’s ending wasn’t as happy as you thought.”
This novel was a novel that ended in two parts, with the main characters in Part 1 and the main characters in Part 2 divided into two parts.
There are readers who like both Part 1 and Part 2, but there are readers who only like Part 1 and find Part 2 boring, while there are also readers who find Part 2 interesting even though Part 1 was boring.
But basically, because there was part 1, there was part 2, and it can be said that it is a characteristic of readers to empathize with the characters that appear in the beginning.
Therefore, even if the main characters and supporting characters in Part 2 had a happy ending, readers could not watch as the main characters in Part 1 became villains.
-So, the reason we thought the ending was ambiguous… … .
-You’re saying it’s because the Seven Heroes weren’t happy?
-Oh, that’s right. When I think about it, I was the strongest fan, but I didn’t like the idea of Choikang getting trampled by a guy like this and being confined to the corner of the room.
-I didn’t like the fact that Lee Si-hyeon came out of the barrier and became a criminal.
As I began to speak, points that the readers thought were not good began to appear one by one.
Once the waterfall burst, it continued to explode without stopping.
I was able to hear directly from readers what they felt was fatigued, stressed, and what they thought were sweet potatoes.
Most of it was consistent with what I had thought before, and it fit the reason why they thought it was an ambiguous ending.
-Wait a minute, so you’re saying we all thought the seven heroes were ambiguous because they didn’t end up happy?
“That’s right.”
-So, you’re saying that you can only get a truly perfect ending if the guys are happy too. Is that possible?
Basically, the reason the Seven Heroes became unhappy is because they entrusted the maintenance of the barrier to Lee Si-hyeon.
The main point of transition from part 1 to part 2. It was impossible to change that large stem.
“So, I said I wanted something from you guys.”
-no way… … .
“Send it to round 4. You guys said you were looking for a writer, right? I am the author who is currently writing this novel. I accepted the ghostwriting offer. So if you want to see a happy ending for the author, the readers, and the world, send me back.”
At those words, a representative of the readers took a step forward and asked me:
-If you go back for round 4, you may have to repeat the hell you went through once again. Does that mean it’s okay though?
I grinned at his words.
“Three or four times, that’s it. “Nothing changes.”
10.
Of course it was a lie.
There were many things that changed. I wouldn’t know if I didn’t have any memories.
It was hard to bear losing the memories I had with my friends.
But there was nothing I could do to make everyone happy.
And I was thinking of preparing another method just in case.
The guys prepared to turn me back on my answer.
I saw the guys preparing a system message and approached them.
“But where on earth do you guys come from?”
-Oh, what a surprise!
Wow.
Suddenly, I came up behind one of the readers who was paying close attention, and when I spoke up, the startled person hit me with his elbow.
One reader made an annoyed expression as he watched me fall.
-What are you going to do with that?
-Okay, you don’t need to know about us. So, go back and make some moves so that the main characters of Part 1 can have a happy ending.
At those words, I grinned and muttered.
“don’t worry. “Because the story you want is the story the writer wants.”
Jiyiing.
[Readers don’t like the ambiguous ending. Reset begins.]
The moment I finished speaking, a system message appeared in front of my eyes.
I smiled and closed my eyes at the message on the status window that I hadn’t seen in a long time.
Flashing.
“Whoa.”
When I came to my senses, it was home.
The first thing I did was open the status window.
This is because in order to move as I planned, I had to have that ‘talent’.
Sigh.
[Lee Si-woo (Lee Do-yoon)]
-Title: 4th Returner (Possessor)
-Talent: Vision, transference
-Grade: F grade, EX grade
-Characteristic: Quick judgment.
The title in the status window was changed to 4th returner.
And there were several system messages floating below it.
[I was physically attacked by a ‘reader.’ Talent ‘transfer’ is activated. The talent of the ‘reader’ is transferred. Add ‘Reader’s’ talent ‘Revert’ to the slot.]
As expected, my EX-level talent also had an effect on readers.
I thought what would happen if I didn’t get it, but I was fortunate.
“For now, the first goal has been achieved.”
Next, it was my turn to persuade my mother.
In the 4th round, I will not go to the entrance ceremony.
