Etranger

San kept his eyes on the emperor. San’s mouth was stubbornly closed as if it would never open again unless he received the desired answer… The emperor looked at San and then Biyeon.

How could the atmosphere that they exuded be so similar? It was like seeing a single person rather than two people. The emperor lowered the hand that was stroking his beard.

Was he able to assure people of their safety as a ‘representative of people’? The emperor also fell silent for a while.

“You should be safe. Now and in the future, you will be safe. I promise in the name of the empire’s emperor, as the representative of humankind,” the emperor said softly. 

He seemed to understand their meaning and thus, verbalized their guarantee of safety. At the same time, all the energy and aura that was dispersed around him suddenly disappeared. There was no point in testing San and Biyeon any further.

The emperor now understood that he couldn’t change San and Biyeon’s mind through a small threat. If he pushed them further into a corner, he wouldn’t be surprised if the two got up and took off.

That was not a situation the emperor wanted. The emperor waved his hand in the air.

“Everyone in the secret security detail, you may all leave. Don’t let anyone in here until my conversation with these two are over. No exceptions.”

A moment of palatable, heavy silence lingered in the space. Only the clicking sounds of the teacups being raised up and back down onto their holders spread through the space. Hanyoung broke the silence.

“Your majesty, now that the cumbersome process of verification is over, it would be good to get to the main point.”

“I shall. The four of you come out as well. I believe it’s time that we all talk together…”

As soon as the emperor finished speaking, one person from each of the four directions of the cylindrical room walked out. It seemed that there was enough space to hide a person in each part of the cylindrical wall.

The emperor and the two leaders of the Han-Sung Clan carefully looked at San and Biyeon. San and Biyeon’s eyes were wide open. San took Biyeon’s hand with a stiff expression.

“These are the four who make up the Outsiders. If the Han-Sung Clan is the axis that supports the imperial family in the light, the Outsiders are the true force that preserves the imperial family in the dark. It’s something very different from what is known to the public, right?”

The emperor introduced the members of the Outsiders. Even San and Biyeon were taken aback this time around. It wasn’t because they were meeting the Outsiders for the first time… their dress, their look…

‘Episode 285! They’re people from the same episode, world, as us…’

‘Does this mean the reason that we were summoned has something to do with the imperial family and the human world…?’

Things were developing in a much more complicated and wide-reaching fashion than they had imagined. They had expected, to some extent, that the Creator would not leave this world unattended.

As the sage Dam said, if humans were the axis that allowed the ‘Creator’ to exist, it was also predicted that humans would have been given the power to protect themselves.

San and Biyeon felt that they finally found a clue to the abstract conjectures that they made about humanity and their roles within it. Indeed, the royal family also played a part. The fact that the emperor pushed for a huge reform out of the blue, and that Hanyoung ‘found’ and sought them…

Furthermore, through their struggles and toils in this world, San and Biyeon had reached a level of physical strength and power that bordered on the transcendent.

Three things now became certain. 

First, they may now be able to access the information that they wanted. This was good news.

Second, unfortunately, the gods and sages… the various enemies, who were tracking San and Biyeon and observing this whole situation, would be notified of what was happening at this moment. With their access into San and Biyeon’s mind and vision, they’d be observing something that they had longed for.

That was very bad news. 

One last thing… was that San and Biyeon knew all of this.

The reality was that if they mutated and transcended, their very existence may become the most dangerous event for humans as the gods, sages, and all the other existences of this world would not let them be.

“Man, we just found you guys, but to meet each other in this way, what kind of stupid situation is this…”

What choice should San and Biyeon make now?

Winds of Fortune – Chapter 6

Biyeon blinked towards the San. San nodded.

“Excuse us for a moment.”

Biyeon stood up. The emperor looked at her with a puzzled expression. The others in the room hardened their expressions. The behavior and the atmosphere that the two were exhibiting were strange and confusing for everyone.

The two only glanced at the clothes the Outsiders were wearing and did other things. Biyeon looked towards the door. San had his head bowed slightly and concentrated his focus to stare down at the table.

They were actively ignoring or consciously avoiding the newcomers. It was all too blatant.

“Don’t say anything, I want you to hear what we have to say first,” Biyeon calmly stated.

“Your actions are too severe! This is so rude,” Hanhyuk, the head of the most powerful clan in the world, the Han-Sung Clan, shouted out.

Clearly, Biyeon’s behavior in front of the emperor was beyond what would be forgiven in any other normal circumstance. However, Biyeon looked at the busts of the past emperors aligning the curved walls of the room without flinching.

“Don’t you think we have a good reason for doing what we’re doing? This is a situation we never even thought of. It’s very frustrating for us as well…” San added on with his head still bowed down.  

With a rather interested expression, Hanyoung brought his hand up in front of Hanhyuk to signal that they should wait and observe a little longer.

Hanyoung knew that San and Biyeon were relatively young, but he also knew that they were very considerate people. There must be a reason for them acting so strange in this situation.

“I feel like we’re from the same hometown, but this… isn’t really a good first impression from the start…”

“Are you two implying that you don’t even want to see our faces? Is that so?”

“It’s been two hundred and forty-two years since I’ve met others from my hometown world, so I ran over here in excitement. I’m starting to regret getting my hopes up.”

Comments and jeers were heard everywhere. Some were even clicking their tongues.

“Please stop and listen to what we have to say. You may not understand, but you must know before saying or doing anything further! It is very important,” Biyeon said in a whisper. In such a tense and complicated situation like this, low sounds were much more effective than high-pitched sounds.

The feeling of importance was always better conveyed in a low tone. Suddenly, the comments and jeers died down.

“Someone is eavesdropping on us,” Biyeon calmly stated. Now, there was only the sound of breathing left in the room.

“Who are you talking about?” the emperor asked, his face hardened. 

His secret security detail should have completely retreated. Did these two doubt the emperor’s words?

“Having come to this unknown world and finding a way to survive, we’ve collected quite a few things in our bodies. One is a detection device installed by a being called a dragon, and the other is a tracking and recording device placed by a god for our ‘own protection’. Among the various things in our bodies, the one installed by the dragon precisely tracks the state of our bodies. You may not believe it, but…”

The emperor and the two leaders of the Han-Sung Clan all looked at each other. They all had a bewildered look plastered on their faces. To them, the dragon was a mythical creature.

In this unusual world filled with a variety of intelligent beings, these three were human beings who fought wars against over 50,000 different races, but none of them had ever faced or come across the existence of a dragon.

The emperor knew about the existence of sages, but he only knew them as special Awakened Warriors. He was unaware of the sage’s relationship with the dragons.

However, in contrast, the four people of the Outsiders had crumpled expressions.

“It doesn’t end there. The gods of this world are able to feel our emotions and our senses,” San, still staring at the table, muttered bitterly. The emperor’s eyes widened.

‘God? There are real gods? Are these two… joking right now?’ 

On the other hand, the facial expressions of the Outsiders were rapidly changing.

“So… you may conclude that what we see and hear here is being seen and heard by all these presences as well. Furthermore, if I’m right, everything that’s going on here will be known to them. Therefore…”

San stood up and took Biyeon’s hand.

“I don't know what your majesty planned to discuss with us here, but we’re not going to listen to anything or see anything right now. Please be considerate and understand our actions.”

“Can the sages see and hear us right now?” a voice of one of the members of the Outsiders rang out.

“The sages will only track our consciousness and sense our physical state. However, if the gods relay the information that they’re gathering and piece everything together, they should be able to see and hear us. If you’re a member of the Outsiders, you must know and understand what we’re talking about, right?” Biyeon asked.

“Then, all we need to do is block the gods, right? Since the dragons can only record your state of consciousness and physical status.”

“That should be the case. We’re not 100% sure, but…”

“Alright, no problem. That’s what I specialize in… wait a minute. Where are the gods... flower gods, rubber gods, imbecile gods, worthless gods…” a member of the Outsiders said cheerfully. He was a middle-aged man with a short haircut and wore tight-fitting jeans. He pulled out triangular pyramid-shaped items from his bag.

In a hexagonal orientation, the man started placing the triangular items around the gathered people. Then he took out another device, manipulated it, and placed it on the round table in the middle.

Afterward, wiping his hand, he said, “Done. Even if we talk now, they won’t be able to listen.”

“Is it a type of frequency jammer?”

“It’s similar. Even though this setup looks sloppy, it’s effective. I hope the gods like rock music… if they don’t, then whatever…”

“How are you sure that this is effective?” Biyeon asked bluntly as she stared at the ceiling. However, her previously concerned face had disappeared as a smile was forming across her mouth. The members of the Outsiders were a lot more interesting and fun than she had imagined.

She was excited to learn from them about the secrets of this absurd world. With their help…

“Because it’s not something we’ve done once or twice… We know how the gods operate here, and they know about us well. We have a working relationship with them where we help each other live. However, there are many times when we regret having a relationship at all…”

“The gods are friendly with the dragons. Did you know?”

“The dragons? Ah! Those tainted lizards? The gods are on their side? Well… that’s probably not the case… it’s a bit more complicated and less straightforward than that.”

This time someone else spoke up. He was a man in his fifties with long white hair that was tied back and wore a light blue shirt with René Magritte’s ‘Unmasked Universe’ printed on the front.

“You say that even though we’ve confirmed it ourselves?”

“Well, it doesn’t matter. The gods are very similar to journalists by the standards of our previous world.”

“Journalists?”

“They’re creatures of information. They want to know anything and everything. Reporters pretend to be friendly to anyone, right? Sometimes they even resort to threatening others so they can obtain the information that they want. Furthermore, there’s always an instinct to protect reporters because they possess or can obtain necessary information. Furthermore, they don’t sell information easily. It’s funny to think of these beings as being really friendly with the dragons, is it not?”

“Based on your assessment, it seems so…” San murmured.

“They use the information they gathered and use it to their liking. Then they can control the narrative of the information to change minds and do as they wish. Even if hundreds of millions of incidents and accidents overflow every day, if they turn off their attention, the world will never know of those incidents and accidents since they’ll never be communicated and conveyed to the masses. People are living under the illusion that only what they see and hear is everything in the world, right? That’s what the gods have been able to control in this world, what people see and hear.”

“That seems true,” Biyeon commented.

“Well, the same goes for the gods here. The gods here are also living their lives by taking the interest of the people here and controlling their macro behavior through information. However, they know that this mode of life is not going to last long.”

“I can see where this is heading.”