Surviving Every Worldview

Chapter 31: Serial Murder in the Middle of the Night (1)

The world quickly returned to its normal self.

Christmas lights twinkled again in the holiday spirit, and stores that were spared reopened early.

Big events like Christmas celebrations were eventually canceled, but people could still go out and enjoy the atmosphere.

That’s what Do-yeon was hoping for.

However, I couldn’t bring myself to go out first.

It was because of the news I saw yesterday.

Toward the end of the afternoon, Seol Do-yeon burst through the door.

“It’s almost 12 o’clock, let’s stop sleeping and go get something to eat!”

Seol Do-yeon looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“What, you’re not sleeping? Why aren’t you out?”

“Oh…sorry. I’m trying to figure out what we talked about yesterday.”

Seol Do-yeon stretched forward and peeked at my monitor.

It was filled with searches about the airport incident, when it happened, and what else was happening around it.

Looking at a photo of the cratered airport from multiple angles, she sighed.

“Why is it that you seem to care more about this than me not being able to go home?”

“Because it couldn’t have happened as far as I know.”

“Maybe it didn’t happen before the regression. You look so surprised.”

“I haven’t regressed, but I think the feeling would be similar to that…”

I don’t even have the energy to respond to Do-yeon’s nonsense.

I’ve been researching the airport tragedy ever since I heard about it.

Most of them were conspiracy theories, which didn’t help.

The good news is that there were no other similar incidents anywhere, let alone near the airport.

I’ll just have to wait and see, and if all goes well, I’ll be able to send her home.

“So, what’s bothering you so much?”

“The possibility that the person who did this is still alive.”

“That it could happen again?”

“That’s one thing, but it’s how much stronger the perpetrator would have gotten, because he’d have gotten much publicity as this happened.”

The most interesting and tricky rule of the world right now is that whatever you get recognized for, you get stronger.

Right now, if someone commits a murder on a busy street, they get stronger and stronger as word of mouth, social media, news articles, etc. spreads.

What if someone commits a crime that will spread across the country or around the world?

The balance of power can change as easily as the flip of a palm.

“So that’s why you had that look on your face the whole time?”

“Yeah, although judging by the photo, I’m guessing the killer disappeared with the airport…but you never know.”

“Hmm.”

Seol Do-yeon exaggeratedly nodded twice.

Then she grabbed me by the arm from my chair and pulled me outside.

“Okay! Come out! I have to be the person who has a friend to meet on Christmas like I promised last time!”

“Why are you so carefree? You should be worried about everyone around you!”

“Well, worrying doesn’t make me go home early. You’re not going to go and investigate that yourself, are you?”

That’s right.

“Besides, there are a lot of famous people in Songdo! Something could happen to me or not once the episode is over.”

…That’s true, too.

In the end, I stayed out late into the night, led by Do-yeon.

There was a report of a murder today.

The killer had a story, but was caught.

* * *

Since the end of the episode, I’ve continued to create situations for Seol Do-Yeon and Seorin to get close enough.

I know they’re awkward with each other but they need to be together for the next episode, and the next, and the next.

I can’t let them be at a reasonable distance until then.

“Didn’t you say there’s another episode coming out in a month?”

“Yeah, I don’t know the specifics.”

“Then how about we get together before that and set a date to go somewhere? Is there a time that works for you?”

I could see Do-yeon’s pupils darting back and forth the moment Seorin suggested it.

Since she didn’t seem to want to answer first, I opened my mouth.

“I’m fine, but where do you want to go?”

“We’ll decide that when we talk. Are you free…No, are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah!”

When the question was directed at her, Seol Do-yeon clenched her fists with both hands and averted her eyes.

She didn’t just avert her eyes, but seemed to be pleading with me to tell something.

“Well, the time is…but…….”

“So, is there anywhere you want to go, or do you usually go for a day trip in the winter?”

“Oh… I don’t usually go far…….”

Seol Do-yeon was visibly having a hard time understanding Seorin.

First of all, they have opposite hobbies.

Their personalities are opposite, and their activities are so different that they would never naturally run into each other.

One of their hobbies is gaming, but even then, they have different favorite games.

One only plays games that everyone knows, and the other plays games that she doesn’t want anyone to know about.

“Let’s take it slow. I’m sure the best places to hang out haven’t reopened yet, they’re still making sure everything’s in order.”

“Oh, right. I’ll check it out next time!”

“Okay…….”

As the conversation drifted away from traveling, Seol Do-yeon couldn’t help the corners of her mouth turning up, and she squinted at me.

She’s thanking me for letting her out but it wasn’t just for Do-yeon’s sake that I broke my promise.

The episode ended, and I had a brief moment of silence that felt like a peaceful return to normalcy.

It’s at times like these that I know I must never let my guard down.

……Today, two assaults were reported.

One of them turned out to be a two-way assault between people with a story.

There was also news of a spike in crime reports over the past week.

* * *

[Your story begins.]

Time flies, it’s the middle of the night on December 31st.

I’m out in the bustling city center, keeping an eye on the late-night crowd ahead of the New Year.

With the recent spike in story-related incidents, the news is getting louder and louder as the authorities discussed how to respond.

What I needed to prepare for now wasn’t so far in the future.

I needed to prepare for something closer to home, something that could happen today.

“Should I go somewhere more expansive?”

I know what’s coming.

I may not be a regressor, but I know the order of things.

There’s no fixed storyline in Dreams game, but there is an overarching plot.

When an episode ends, I can roughly tell how the world will flow and what kind of organization will appear…that much.

It’s like pundits analyzing the future.

I can make predictions like, “By episode 3, the Awakened will create an organizational structure called guild!” because it’s in the game story.

That’s the flow in the game story.

So one of the flows I knew was this.

‘There’s always a big crime right after the end of Episode 1.’

Who, when, and where are not necessarily set in stone. But it usually happens.

Especially on New Year’s Day, right after a major crisis and the return to normalcy.

It’s a day that the unwritten rules seem to want to touch.

That’s why I forced myself to come out on this cold day even though there’s no guarantee it’s going to happen right in front of me.

“11:57.”

I scrambled up the wall, grabbed a window frame, and climbed up to the roof of a six-story building in one fell swoop.

I didn’t see anyone, and since the building was one of the tallest in the neighborhood, I had a clear view of everyone around me.

It was thanks to the two stories that my physical abilities also doubled.

“……if everything is okay.”

I put my phone away and started people-watching in earnest.

The alley was filled with people celebrating the end of the year and students about to become adults.

No one seemed to be acting suspiciously, so I switched places and looked toward the main street.

A murmur of small talk. The sound of passing cars and horns. Music from the street vendors.

My heightened hearing picked up all of it, but I didn’t sense any signs of disturbance or discomfort.

But now it was night, a night that would be raucous until dawn.

Even if nothing happened right now, it was only just beginning.

“One minute left!”

“It’s so cold today, can we stay inside?”

“Can we? We’re only 19!”

The students got loud.

I didn’t know because I never really thought about what I wanted to do when I became an adult, but I wonder if this kind of scene unfolds every year around this time.

If nothing else, I wanted them to get home safely.

“Huh?”

……It was then.

A drunken man staggered by, dressed as thickly as anyone else on the street.

As he pulled his hands out of his pockets, his blackened hands transformed into sharp awls.

He stabbed it into the abdomen of a passerby who stood still in front of a closed restaurant.

Not many people noticed at first since the crowd was too large to see.

Even if they did, they were too busy taking in the situation to react.

Soon, however, the innocent man’s body was riddled with holes.

That was the catalyst that broke the mood.

“Run! Run! Run!!!”

“What, what, what happened-”

“Run!!!”

The scene quickly became chaotic, and people trying to enjoy the holiday spirit quickly panicked and scattered away.

The party that created the situation, on the other hand, remained silent.

Even after the people inside the bar had safely fled, he simply stood still, looking at his hands and the dead body alternately.

He wondered if what he had done was too unbelievable for him to even reflect on.

……It’s a good situation.

I leaped off the building, trampled on the thug’s arm, and struck him in the head with my baton.

The thug immediately fought back, but his outstretched right hand is that of a normal person.

Unlike the other hand, it could be easily subdued with a light grip and a bend.

“You, you, what are you, let go of me!”

“Stop struggling and surrender, I have a lot to ask you…who you are, what you want, and why you did this.”

“Ask me……? Ha, uh… I don’t know where you’ve been looking, but… what kind of a good guy is this who waits until after one person is dead before he starts playing nice……?”

I glanced at the fallen corpse.

[Doll damage: 78%]

[Recommend dismantling the doll.]

Then, the corpse… the doll… got up, straightened itself out, and slumped back down.

There are no victims in this one.

I can’t even call it a case, because a deranged person took the bait I had prepared.

“Didn’t you ever think it was weird that you didn’t have blood on your hands?”

“Uh, ah…….”

“Don’t be mistaken, I would have stopped you if you hadn’t jumped on my doll.”

He shook his head as he checked his trampled hand.

After that, no matter how many times he was called, he didn’t answer.

But I need to find out why he did this.

I powered up the baton and swung it around, knocking him out.

And just like that, what should have been a murderous killing spree was reduced to a mere misadventure.

[Text Thief Proficiency is now Lv. 6]

After the situation was resolved, I pulled out my phone and sure enough, it was 12 o’clock and the New Year.

What a rainy start to the New Year.

Still, I should be happy that I prevented a major incident.

“And this guy…….”

I turned to the fallen thug and the doll.

I couldn’t leave it to the police this time.

I left the guy I tossed out on the first day to the police because I was confident he’d reform once he cooled off.

On the other hand, how can I leave the police with an Awakened who tried to kill people purely out of his own will?

I should never do what I did last time.

“……Where should I keep him?”

So I had to keep him, at least until I could investigate.