Thankfully, before Kim Dokja could get too caught up in his thoughts, the screen continued playing the next scene. Instantly, they were thrown right back into the action that had begun as soon as the explosion went off in the neighboring cabin.
Mid-dash, Dokja shoulder checks Namwoon and sends him flying using all his body weight and momentum. The teenager crashes into the ground and starts yelling angrily, demanding to know what his problem is.
It may have seemed like I had pushed Kim Namwoon to save the old lady, but that wasn't the only thing I had been aiming for.
Amidst the jeers of the people still trying to kill the old lady, Dokja glances around frantically while trying to catch his breath. 'Where is it? It must be around here somewhere.'
Suddenly, he catches sight of the young boy with the bug cage again. 'Found it.'
He hurries over and places a hand on the boy's shoulder, crouching down to speak with him face-to-face.
"Excuse me," Dokja says as he takes the cage from the boy who still hasn't said anything. It's likely that he's in shock. Despite his disgust, Dokja reaches into the cage and pulls out a grasshopper, leaving it in the kid's hands with the instructions to hold onto it.
"Thank you for that, hyung," Lee Gilyoung said with a smile, pressing himself to Kim Dokja's side. "It really means a lot that you thought I deserved to live."
Kim Dokja managed to smile in return and gently patted the boy's head. "Your grasshoppers saved us all, so of course you deserved one. It was your choice to kill it, though."
If Lee Gilyoung hadn't been on the train at that time, maybe Kim Dokja would have had to kill someone to live, and he wasn't sure he would have been able to live with himself after that. Thankfully, his hands were still clean.
Yoo Sangah also shot Lee Gilyoung a grateful smile, and then she giggled when she saw how he was half sitting in Kim Dokja's lap, just in an effort to have more of the man to himself than Shin Yoosung.
Hm, that could be a problem later, if the two of them wouldn't get along. Considering how Shin Yoosung was already getting attached to him, and how he had been attached to the tragedy of her character for a while, he definitely wanted to bring her along with them
[Some constellations think you look like a cute family.]
Oh.
Kim Dokja had never considered that before, but the two kids seemed delighted at the idea, if the way they both looked up at him with shining, hopeful eyes was any indication.
He was weak to puppy eyes, dammit.
Thankfully, the next part of the scene beginning to play saved him from whatever request they surely had for him.
He stands up and yells to get the attention of the entire subway cabin. "Please stop what you're doing! Killing that old lady doesn't mean you're going to live!"
Everyone stops to look at him, and Dokja exhales in relief now that he has their attention. He reminds them that even if the old lady dies, that will only buy everyone else some time. Everyone who wants to survive has to kill someone, so who will they kill next?
At that, Namwoon laughs. "Isn't it obvious? We'll kill losers like you next! No need to worry about your turn beforehand. The chances are fifty-fifty anyways."
Yes, I knew you would say that.
Dokja smirks. "Why gamble with our lives when there's a way to survive without becoming a murderer?"
Naturally, everyone is curious. Few people actually want to have blood on their hands, after all.
"Have you forgotten?" Dokja asks, glancing around at the others. "The scenario didn't say we have to kill a human being. It said we have to kill one or more living organisms."
In one of Dokja's hands is a grasshopper, and he's carrying the cage with the rest in his other. When they realize that he holds the solution, the people rush towards him, clamouring to be given one of the few bugs left in the cage. The madness that had driven them to almost kill the old lady now came hurtling towards him instead.
But why? Why is my heart beating with such joy in this precarious situation? Why am I smiling? Was I always this kind of person?
[The constellation 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' is surprised by the thoughts of incarnation 'Kim Dokja'.]
It still wasn't comfortable to think about, even several scenarios later. Kim Dokja knew he had to change somewhat from before the apocalypse, but—
Yoo Joonghyuk glanced over at Kim Dokja with a serious gaze. "It's just the adrenaline."
Somehow, even though that statement was probably meant to indirectly call him a fool for even considering anything else, Kim Dokja felt relief wash over him. If it was just adrenaline, then it meant he wasn't an awful person who delighted in the suffering of others. Maybe it even meant that he didn't enjoy becoming the target of their attention.
For a moment, reflecting on what had happened then, Kim Dokja had wondered if it was just the urge to cling to something familiar. Hatred-filled eyes aimed at him, the overwhelming pressure of being backed into a corner…
The only things missing were blows that rained down from above and faces that haunted his nightmares.
Without wasting another second, in the face of the nearly feral passengers, Dokja closes his fist and crushes the grasshopper without another second of thought. Immediately after, he throws the cage, setting the remaining grasshoppers free.
[The First Kill mission has been accomplished.]
[You will receive 100 coins as a bonus.]
Everyone rushes to find grasshoppers, on their hands and knees and getting blood all over their clothes. There are only three minutes left.
"Hey you, why did you do that?" Namwoon asks as he stretches and cracks his neck. "You could've just handed over the bugs."
He couldn't. "There were only three left in the box."
After a moment of shock, Namwoon laughs. "So you threw them since not all of us can live?"
"Yes."
"Don't be ridiculous," Namwoon says. "No one in their right mind would pull a stunt like this for that kind of stupid reason."
Namwoon's face darkens until he has a truly terrifying expression on his face as he grins hysterically. "Be honest. You just wanted to watch them fight for their lives, didn't you?"
No. No, that's not what he wanted. It was just because he wanted to give everyone a chance to live without blood on their hands at that point. Even so, if someone other than Kim Namwoon had decided to kill another person in that cabin during all of that chaos, would he have tried to stop it? Would he have even noticed?
[The constellation 'Lily Blooming in Aquarius' is frowning at incarnation 'Kim Namwoon'.]
Still, he never wanted to create chaos for the sake of chaos itself. Kim Dokja knew he wasn't like the constellations who just watched tragedies happen for their own amusement and benefit. He didn't enjoy it, and he wouldn't go out of his way to instigate it if he had a choice.
'But still,' he thought to himself with a frown, 'isn't that exactly what I did with all of Yoo Joonghyuk's suffering and that of his companions? I lived and breathed his pain and determination like it was my oxygen.'
"Hey," Jung Heewon said, reaching over to poke him on the shoulder. "You have a look on your face that tells me you're thinking something stupid again."
[The constellation 'Secretive Plotter' agrees with incarnation 'Jung Heewon', and wishes for incarnation 'Kim Dokja' to share his thoughts.]
Kim Dokja sighed. "It's nothing important. Just some things I need to sort through, that's all."
She didn't look like she believed him as she sat back down, albeit closer than before. "If you say so."
Kim Dokja was grateful to her, but he couldn't help mulling the question over in his mind.
Yes, Kim Namwoon is that kind of guy. He's cruel and rampant and enjoys situations like this.
[The exclusive skill 'Character Profile' has activated.]
[Name: Kim Namwoon
Age: 19
Constellation sponsor: None (Two constellations are currently interested in this individual)
Personal attribute: Edgelord (generic)
Exclusive skills: Exceptional Adaptability lvl. 3, Knife Fighting lvl.1, Grimdark Awakening lvl. 1
Overall stats: Stamina lvl. 3, Strength lvl. 4, Agility lvl. 6, Mana lvl. 4
General evaluation: A teenage edgelord whose dark side has awakened due to an extraneous event. It's best to not get involved with him.]
'Huh?' Dokja thinks in confusion as he reads over the stats that appeared in front of him. 'I see… I think I know what my attributes are.'
Most teen edgelords in TWSA couldn't handle the nightmare that became reality and committed suicide, but Kim Namwoon was different. This boy, who would later be bestowed with the fitting nickname of 'Delusional Demon' was no ordinary edgelord. He had been waiting for the apocalypse for a long time, and he adapted to this world at an unusual speed. And right now, that delusional demon…
"Team up with me," Namwoon demands, a grin curling at the corners of his mouth. "What do you say?"
[Kim Namwoon has expressed interest in you.]
[Your understanding of Kim Namwoon has increased.]
... wants to join forces with me.
"Character profile, huh," Han Sooyoung mused, pulling a lemon-flavoured candy out of her pocket and popping it into her mouth. "Makes sense, considering that your attribute is probably some bullshit like [Last Reader of the Most Boring Novel in the World]."
Kim Dokja shot her a quick glare. "That 'boring novel' was, and still is, my favourite thing in this world."
Lee Jihye cocked her head to the side as she thought. "Wow, ahjussi. That's actually a super useful skill."
Didn't he know it. The skill allowed him to judge people's threat level at a glance, and it had definitely saved his life indirectly on more than one occasion.
[Many constellations are curious about the skill 'Character Profile'.]
"It's somewhat similar to my skill," Yoo Joonghyuk remarked, seemingly mentally comparing it to [Eye of the Sage]. Both skills allowed the user to see stats, but admittedly, [Eye of the Sage] was probably more useful since it could be used on more people in this world. Protagonists always got everything good, didn't they?
Shin Yoosung tugged on Kim Dokja's robe slightly. "Ahjussi, you didn't team up with the mean guy, right?"
He shook his head. Sure, it would be revealed shortly anyway, but at the very least, he could reassure the somewhat nervous girl.
"Don't worry, Yoosung-ah. I teamed up with much better people."
Out of the corner of his eye, Kim Dokja noticed Lee Hyunsung send him a strange look. After a moment, it softened into something resembling acceptance.
Maybe things would be okay, after all.