<Amkena Gaiden Episode 18>
* * *
Again, Amkena opened her eyes.
The fantasy library and the stories in it disappeared like bubbles.
A cold reality lay before her.
The scenery of Seoul that has become hell.
Here she is alone.
It is neither a dream nor a fantasy.
Although it was not the place where she lived, it was a stark reality.
or the story of the game.
or something in a dream.
Pick me up is just a setting in a mobile game.
It’s not like that.
here’s reality.
A world different from Earth, created by the chaos of the abyss.
‘because.’
I can tell.
Because I saw it.
because I felt
‘I wanted to know.’
The lives of the heroes he has watched as a master,
Because I didn’t want to pass it off as clumsy hypotheses or excuses like ‘it seems to be alive’ or ‘they do the same thing as humans’.
‘I wanted to admit it.’
It was a real thing, not a game.
All of their heroes were human,
The fact that he, the Master, had a profound influence on their lives.
However, it is impossible to know by guess alone.
It is impossible to deny the slightest possibility that everything is just Amkena’s delusion.
In fact, the possibility that Pick Me Up is just a game, the hero in it is a highly advanced artificial intelligence, and that the hero Han Israat came to her is nothing but a delusion and fantasy in a dream.
Because I didn’t want to deny it.
Because I wanted to be sure.
Thus, Amkena stands here.
After encountering all the truths and mysteries, I stand here with my own will.
Here, chaos chaos.
I see a burning sky and gray clouds.
You can know the identity of that sky.
‘The scenery the heroes saw right before destruction.’
The world of Mobius.
Even though the dimensions they belonged to were different, the blazing sky would have been the same.
If so, where is this place?
Is it the scenery when the earth perishes?
Even Amkena, who realized the truth behind Pick Me Up, is not fully aware.
Just one thing.
What you can be sure of is… … .
‘It’s just a future that hasn’t come yet.’
‘reality’, but
It’s not ‘truth’.
“I told you on the subway, sister?”
across the street.
On top of the sunken wreckage.
A boy appeared with a red light.
“We will meet again.”
Amkenna looked back.
Yes too.
The heroes who stood by his side reassuringly until just a moment ago are nowhere to be found.
Now, here, Amkena was alone.
“It’s just my sister and me here.”
“… … .”
“Where, shout for help. No one will come.”
Niall’s smile deepened.
“What can a single sister do? Of course, you can’t do anything. incompetent. Ordinary people with no abilities. The weak who only cling to the strong. Garbage that can’t achieve anything on its own. chump chump, chump chump… … .”
Whenever Nial laughed, the black chaos next to him swayed as if dancing.
Although that expression must have belonged to that of an innocent child, an unknown madness flashed through it.
“no!”
Niall spread his hands.
“Even if you are strong! Even if he is a hero of a thousand years or ten thousand years, who has left his mark on the history of mankind! Same thing with bugs! nobody! no one can escape It’s a futile fuss! The king of borders is the same!”
Niall’s voice rang out loud.
He was no longer a boy.
A huge, pitch-black, chaotic figure whose identity could not be guessed at all spread out like a curtain.
“What on earth did you guys achieve! Ancient Sumer, the royal road of half-human, half-god recorded in the first epic!」
The hero called Gilgamesh realized the fear of death,
He struggled to live his whole life, but he died without fulfilling his will.
He left nothing behind.
“Even the one called the god of war who conquered all the worlds that could run on horseback!”
The man who was called the god of war with a human body,
He had all the lands and territories he could see under him.
But it was a mere fever that killed the man.
The man called Alexander the Great died miserably after a week of fever, unable to speak properly.
After his death, his empire was divided,
He left nothing behind.
「The first Shi Huangdo that unified the world in China!」
Above all people.
An absolute being that stands above all visible humans.
With hundreds of concubines, thousands of subjects, and an army of tens of thousands, the man who called himself the lord of lords, the emperor, couldn’t overcome the fear of death and searched for all kinds of absurd rumors about immortality, and finally died of mercury poisoning. His brain was damaged and he died.
After his death, his empire was divided,
He left nothing behind.
“No one can stand against nothingness.”
Niall declared.
No king with any power, no king and emperor who accomplished countless feats could escape it.
The same goes for sages and scholars who have realized the truth at the end of enlightenment.
No matter what you do, you can’t avoid it.
Humans cannot avoid it.
If you are born, you cannot run away.
Life cannot escape.
Death, the end, comes equally to everyone.
midway between life and death.
What humans could do was repeat meaningless struggles and escapes.
“Do you think it would be different just because he was that man? Same. same! He is late and early, but in the end I will go to him too. As with all kings in history, the futility will eventually come! And the chaos and futility that will go to that king is the owner of this body.”
softly.
Suddenly, the shape of chaos disappeared, and Niall became a young and innocent boy again.
“Okay, sister? What a ridiculous fight that guy named Loki is fighting. It’s a fight you can’t win from the start. He said he was fighting a fight in which defeat was certain.”
Niall said with a bright smile.
“So, let’s make it easy for you.”
“… … .”
“Living is suffering. it’s painful Human life is a process in which we are born with the destiny of death from the beginning and only run away from it.”
“… … .”
“Everything is useless, everything is worthless. Honor, feat, money, affection, good and evil, belief. In the first place, none of these things existed. Didn’t you guys forcefully create things that didn’t exist before?”
Niall laughed.
“Because I want to run away. I want to run away from the futile truth. In the end there is nothing. that nothing is left You humans forcibly created values and gave them concepts because you wanted to run away from the truth that nothing has meaning.”
does not exist from the beginning.
Nothing existed.
I just forcibly gave it a meaning.
what is honor
what is a feat
what is a belief
It is an unknown concept arbitrarily determined by humans.
Scientifically unproven, so, all lies.
even love.
Even friendship.
even affection.
All of them are just a kind of program and code of conduct created by the electrical signals of the brain and the commands of genes.
There is nothing of real value in it.
The essence of the world is futility and chaos.
“So, we are not fighting.”
Niall said.
“I accept it. that fate. Then you can be comfortable. you can be saved If you think it can’t be helped from the start, there’s no need to worry.”
Niall said.
“Is your sister like that too? Have you lived like that? You haven’t lived a great life, have you? You lived as you were given. You lived while you were born, right?”
I lived because I was born.
I lived my life as I was born.
I couldn’t deny it.
Because, it’s not wrong.
There were very few people who set a great goal as a milestone in their life and live with their will on it.
The remaining 99.9% of people live while they are born.
Live life with the flow.
If the former is called a hero, Amkena is not.
He was just an ordinary person.
“Can you handle that man’s fate, sister?”
“I am… … .”
“Are you really ready?”
Images of family and friends flashed in Amkena’s mind.
Resolution.
ready to fight
To fight means to be hurt.
You have to sacrifice something to move forward.
either yourself or someone else.
Niall was talking.
Really, are you going to take one more step there?
It’s no joke.
It’s no joke.
With only a slight entanglement, Amkena was drawn into an extraordinary world.
I had to face various incidents that I could not have imagined before.
If things went a little wrong, it might have involved not only herself, but also her family and friends.
‘You’re threatening me.’
If you behave more arrogantly, I will show you the bitter taste.
And the aftermath could be directed not only to himself, but also to his family, relatives, and friends.
“are you okay. If my sister stops here, I’ll take care of it without any trouble. I’ll erase your memory too. I won’t let you recall anything about him. Oh, I’ll give you a lot of service. I can let you play with life however you want. How much do you want? ten billion? 100 billion?”
“If I accept your offer, will you do that?”
“of course. What are you cheating for?”
the boy laughed
“The money in the human world is useless to me. It doesn’t matter how much you spread.”
“… … I see.”
“So sister, have you decided?”
“I have nothing to decide. Because the answer was decided from the beginning.”
“under? Then why did you listen to me?”
Amkena said.
“Mom said so. When it comes to covering up the wrongs, she should listen to everything.”
“what?”
“Which one is lying, and which one is the bad boy.”
“Sister, what nonsense are you talking about? If you decided on the answer from the beginning, there would be no reason to listen to the other person. The answer has been decided.”
“Oh, yes!”
Amkena replied with a bright smile.
“You call this kind of situation the answer.”
“what? Are you even playing with me?”
“I was curious about something funny.”
Niall’s expression, which had been smiling, hardened coldly.
“Sorry, but I have a bad head. I don’t know what Sumer is like, what the god of war is like, and what Shi Huang is like. Living is pain or what, just thinking about it gives me headaches. It’s the philosopher who argues about that, not me. If you want to ask questions and answers like that, go to the philosophy professor.”
“… … .”
“Still, I think I only know one thing. To live while you were born.”
Can not help it.
I was born, so what should I do?
You can’t just joke around saying it’s not my will or that you’ll die later anyway.
You should do as much as you can.
that’s life
Even if it is not the life of a brilliant and great hero.
that’s my life
“So, I am.”
Amkena said.
“I will do it my way.”
I raised my voice and shouted.
“I will do anything!”
She took out her smartphone with her right hand.
An old model that I don’t know when it came out.
It has been dropped several times and is broken and broken here and there.
However, it comes with an app that doesn’t exist on other modern smartphones.
A game app named ‘Pick Me Up’.
Several years after the game service ended, it was the only remaining smartphone with Pick Me Up installed.
it was in her hand.
[alarm!]
[Pick Me Up!]
[Update has been completed.]
Amkena clicked on the icon at the top.
Now that there is no server, it is normal to stop at a black screen.
[Now Loading… … !]
[Master Amkenna, welcome to Pick Me Up!]
Right here, a miracle happened.
White light leaking from the cracked liquid crystal here and there.
Through that light, I can see the start screen of Pick Me Up, which I have been drawing for years.
“stop!”
Niall noticed what Amkena was up to.
The boy’s shape disappeared for a moment, and in its place procrastinating chaos appeared.
Charleureuk!
Dozens of tentacles stretched out from behind the chaos.
It was a sharp and hard tentacle that could tear a thousand pieces of human flesh.
but.
Sareung!
A translucent silver membrane appeared in front of Amkena to block the attack.
Kagagak!
Kagagagak!
The bundle of tentacles gathered like a drill to break through the shield, but the silver shield did not easily pass the attack.
‘I’m not alone.’
He said he would help me.
He said that he would protect me even if he was not here or from a distance.
The light of that shield is what they are using their strength for.
‘scared.’
see.
In fact, it has been visible ever since.
Behind Niall, beyond the dark curtain, the ‘pupil’ glowing.
It might have been better if I didn’t know.
But now, after going to the library and knowing all the truth, Amkena realized what that gaze was and what fear was in it.
You can feel it just by looking at it.
That was natural.
Because it already existed.
I just haven’t seen it in a while.
From the beginning, Amkena, nay, that which existed by itself from the time all things were born into the world.
‘death.’
extinction.
nothingness.
chaos.
fate.
You can call it anything.
something you can never escape.
great hero,
Even losers of the times,
Even the strong who will go down in history,
In the end, you can’t escape those gazes.
Anybody.
So long as it exists in the world.
Even if it’s not life.
From stars, planets, galaxies to the universe.
Nothing escapes those gazes.
The game called ‘Pick Me Up’… … It was made to fight against that.’
I know the moment we meet.
that it was made unwinnable.
that defeat is certain.
In the first place, you don’t even know if the match will be established.
Just as humans cannot fight the sea.
Just as humans cannot fight the sun and win.
It is not possible to fight from the beginning.
That’s it.
That was the true identity of the owner who created that boy.
Over the darkness, staring at her.
Like a rabbit before a lion, Amkena instinctively shrank.
A cold sweat broke out and my feet trembled.
To the point where it would collapse right away if you let go of the power.
Since she was born, she has never had an argument with anyone.
For her, that pressure was too harsh.
‘Was it the same feeling as me?’
Reminds me of Amkena.
Reminds me of the scenery in the book.
When I learned the truth of despair, I remembered the man’s expression.
would have known
You should know that you can never win.
Even so.
‘I didn’t stop.’
Didn’t give up.
He took a step.
‘It’s not that I wasn’t scared.’
I realize now.
In the game I’ve seen before, Han Israt’s appearance was so perfect, as if he knew everything and knew no fear.
But no.
It can’t be.
He is neither a hero nor a superman.
just one human
Looking at it from the perspective of a human, not from the Master’s, Amkena was able to realize.
In every battle, every time he swung his sword and bleed, he was in pain and afraid.
Han Israt is not an immortal hero,
Same as Amkena,
hurt, hurt, hurt,
He was just one human being.
What he went on was
In the despair of absurdity and irrationality, it is none other than the one that did not stop.
‘courage.’
One step forward, knowing the fear.
That one step came together and made it all happen.
so he,
He rose from the past of despair and headed for the future.
「Kkeuk! Ha ha ha ha!」
Chaos laughed.
「Are you saying that you are a master? Are you the master of Loki? The dog is barking!”
“… … .”
“okay! the man admits He was truly worthy of being called a king. But, what are you? What kind of help did you add to that man’s path?”
Kagagagak!
The intensity of the tentacles increased.
“You did nothing as Master! I was just looking forward to seeing the man’s performance! Ha ha ha! Yes, you were a hindrance to Loki. It was a hindrance! If it weren’t for you, if it were another Master, that man could have accomplished the feat much easier, much easier!”
okay.
At first, I had no intention of working hard.
That’s what games are all about.
mind-blowing.
It was entertainment to kill time.
No matter how much a character in the game dies, it’s data.
Nothing happened.
So, Amkena… … .
“Do you know what you have done? Do you know how many ‘humans’ you killed? Do you know how many people died in despair at one of your careless gestures?”
know.
Because I saw it.
With human eyes, not with the master’s eyes.
I saw their despair and death.
i killed it
I synthesized them in the name of ‘game’ and pushed them into the battlefield of death.
but.
but!
“What about that?”
Amkenna replied.
“It can’t be helped! I didn’t know! How do I know there are people in the game!”
“Do you think your sins will disappear just because you didn’t know!”
“So I reflected heartily! I knew it couldn’t! Then, isn’t that what happened?”
“what?”
“Then tell me straight from the start! This game uses real people as heroes! Wouldn’t that be enough to let you know! I said AI!”
“Because I didn’t know!”
“Repentance! I’m sorry. Are you done now?”
“… … .」
“And my apologies are not for you!”
Light began to emanate from the screen of the smartphone.
[master!]
[Start summoning!]
All other menus are closed.
only one open.
Summons.
“This, shameless bastard… … !”
Kwajik.
Kwajijik.
The screen of my cell phone started to crack.
The brilliance leaking through the cracks deepened.
I can tell.
This is the final summons.
I am, I Amkenaga, Master Amkenaga.
Lastly, lastly.
“Don’t you know? Do you really not know what the end of those who fought against the master of chaos was!”
know.
Amkena saw.
I watched closely what was happening in the dimension called Mobius.
Everyone is broken.
The prince of the golden lineage, Prios all Ragnado.
His younger brother and another hero, the Pillar of the Taoni, Priasis All Ragnado.
Transcending the limits of species, even those who were called ancient species.
The other dimensions were the same.
The adventure king, El Cid, who conquered all the secret wishes and treasures of Dorado in the Golden Land and unified thousands of islands.
Muryeonjudo who saw the end of martial arts.
In addition, numerous heroes who fought against destruction with talent and will that Amkena couldn’t even imagine.
So did the gods.
Even the twin goddesses, who were widely worshiped in all dimensions, could not withstand the wave of chaos.
Lecadis, who was called the sage who enlightened the world, also lost his mind.
Hegrian, who was called Shin Shin, thought of running away.
entire.
same here.
but.
‘It’s not over.’
just because they’re broken
because I fell
Not everything is gone.
‘It’s still going on.’
as one.
to only one future.
To our bright future that has yet to come.
The one who can open that door is me standing here.
So, I will say
Although I am an ordinary person with no powers or talents,
I’ll tell you on their behalf.
“As long as it exists!”
Master Amkena shouted.
“I struggle.”
What she spat out was not her own voice.
It was the last words they uttered even as they died, and it was the will of life that would continue endlessly into the future.
“As long as you live!”
Like that, Master of Taoni.
Amkena shouted again.
“Go ahead!”
So, the master of pick me up.
Amkena shouted one last time.
“So, the grade of the hero I will summon is… … .”
Amkena pressed the summon button that was emitting a brilliant light between the broken liquid crystals.
“It’s infinity!”
[Tack, dururu!]
Inside the screen, the roulette wheel of summoning is spinning.
and.
[Common!]
1 star.
[Uncommon!]
2 stars.
[Rare!]
3 stars.
‘no.’
It doesn’t end here.
going further
Going all the way!
[Slide here!]
[Show the master’s will!]
Pajijijijik!
Black and red lightning flashed from the screen.
Amkena touched it without hesitation and cut it with all her might.
Through the cracks in the liquid crystal, the skin is cut and blood flows.
The high-temperature lightning began to heat the skin.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t draw it all the way.
A strong sense of resistance reached my fingertips.
But the hands do not stop.
Continue,
Continue.
[Too kwa kwa kwa kwa!]
[Isell: No? What is this feeling?!]
[!★!Super!★!Rare!★!]
4 stars.
Dark red lightning bolted between the smartphones.
here again.
[Quaaaaaang!]
Whoops!
My phone started to vibrate like crazy.
[The Summoning Station begins to stir up with the appearance of a true hero!]
[Isel: Wow! Dazzling!]
[A hero among heroes!]
[Meet the great man who made a mark in history!]
[“Hyper Rare!”
[Master ‘Amkena’… … .]
As usual, the summoning level ends here.
Last 5 stars of birth.
Grades after that cannot be summoned and must be cultivated directly.
However, such limitations are not allowed for Amkena, who has now become a true pick me up master.
[※? Giggles △!]
[This grade cannot be summoned!]
[This grade cannot be summoned!]
[Rating that cannot be summoned… … .]
The red message window was shattered.
[Pajijijik!]
[The ultimate in evolution!]
[Hero’s limit!]
[Final evolution hero!]
[■!ULTRA RARE!■]
The message window dances.
dizzy, dizzy.
“This cheeky… … ! I will kill you… … !”
The momentum of the tentacles increases several times.
The silvery curtain that was barely holding on was quickly dissipated and extinguished.
Black tentacles rushed at Amkena.
Paperweight!
However, dark red lightning flashed from the screen.
A red and black thunderbolt burned a bunch of tentacles that were trying to attack Amkena.
The summoning is not over yet.
[Isel: Born 7th? No, did this really exist?]
[Isel: No, this is a bug.]
[Isell: Is this enough nuclear? Wouldn’t it be nice to secretly make and sell it?]
[Isell: What? But wasn’t this game ruined? how did you connect? No way, the free server… … .]
Isel’s dialog was skipped.
[thud!]
one oscillation.
This time, instead of the smartphone, the entire ground she stood on shook.
The aftermath of the summoning is spreading not only to the cell phone, but also to the dimension itself.
[Combine!]
[Be reborn!]
[Change your destiny!]
[You, infinite cup!]
[GOD Rare!]
7 stars.
The highest rating in the setting of Pick Me Up.
But it’s still not over.
Rather, this is where it started.
Pajijijijik!
The momentum of the dark red lightning is added.
Amkena had seen the brilliance of this lightning many times.
Red lightning rode and circled Amkena.
The tentacles that pierced countless times were extinguished without leaving ashes.
However, the bursting lightning did not hurt her in the slightest.
「Hehehehehehe, hahahahahahaha! iced coffee! Is it finally like this! Is it like this! Kyahahahaha!”
Leaving Niall’s lightsaber behind, Amkenna added strength to her right hand.
The bar on the slide that seemed to never move finally went up all the way.
pop!
Finally, the smartphone that had reached its limit was shattered and scattered.
Liquid crystals and various fragments break and fall.
The only thing intact was a ring-shaped accessory, a worn-out war horse statue.
The summoning never ends.
A rainbow of light shines from her fingertips.
The light was gradually increasing in heat.
The master of Pick Me Up, Amkena smiled.
yes i could
It was like that too.
only me
only me
I’m the master of Pick Me Up.
“Open!”
Amkenna stretched out her glowing hand.
What that hand points to is the fiery sky and a harbinger of destruction.
Before long, the pillar of light that extended from her fingertips pierced the sky at once.
“A gap in space!”
* * *
Kwareung!
burning sky.
Suddenly, dark clouds gather.
Quarreung!
Lightning strikes again.
A red thunderbolt spread through the clouds.
The more lightning strikes.
The more the lightning stretches out like a spider’s web.
The flames of destruction that spread across the sky are gradually extinguished, and darkness takes its place.
The master of that lightning,
Darkness, but not chaos.
Darkness, but not destruction.
If the universe wants to destroy itself,
Interlocked with it, it turns infinitely like a cartwheel.
That which never backs down even in the futility of eternity.
the king of borders,
It is an infinite vessel,
traitor of fate.
and.
was a human being.
‘ah.’
Amkena felt it.
‘at las… … .’
bang!
Between the clouds that gather and rotate,
Lightning struck again.
There was a flash of light that made the world lose its light for an instant.
In that flash of lightning, Amkena saw someone’s back.
“… … .”
the man looks back
Two eyes catch her.
mouth opened immediately.
“Was it you?”
The man’s name was Han Israt.
“You were calling me.”
Han smiled.
