Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint (Web Novel KR)

The Paradox’s disciple will gladly be defeated by the Gaebang here today.
That single sentence brought a heavy silence to the concourse.
The Thousand Eyes of the Dragon-Head Bangju stirred with deep agitation, and the beggars guarding behind him widened their eyes as well.
The spotted boy sitting nearby, holding his breath, looked up at me as if wondering what was going on.
I still do not acknowledge the “Gaebang.”
Even so, my heart wavered at their story.
From this material that had never been properly read and was discarded, I felt some kind of charm.
At the very least, as a writer who had once read, written, and meddled in the sentences of this world, I wanted to try recording their story, even if it was just a single line.
The Dragon-Head Bangju, chewing over my words for a long while, finally asked.
“Gladly be defeated? What do you mean by that?”
“Let us have a biwu.”
“A biwu?”
“Yes. In the martial world’s fashion.”
The Dragon-Head Bangju’s head tilted slowly.
“Are you saying you’ll let us win in a biwu?”
“I didn’t go as far as to say that.”
At my grinning answer, the Dragon-Head Bangju narrowed his eyes.
But no matter how he looked, he wouldn’t be able to see through me.
Because that is the advantage of a slit-eyed character.
“You are truly…”
Just as the Dragon-Head Bangju bit his lip and tried once more to speak—
[Constellation, ‘Prisoner of the Golden Headband’ says it is an amusing thought.]
The stars of Seoul glittered.
[Constellation, ‘Expert of Two-Timing’ sneers, asking if the mighty Gaebang will actually refuse such a proposal.]
[Constellation, ‘Goryeo’s First Sword’ takes interest.]
[Constellation, ‘Messenger of the Seas’ feels nostalgia for old martial arts.]
[Constellation, ‘Bald Militia Captain’ delights, saying he’ll get to see the Taegubong Method again after so long.]
[Constellation, ‘Rice-Cake-Eating Tiger’ says he too was fond of wuxia in his younger days.]
[The few constellations who remember the Martial World yearn for a biwu between the Gaebang and the Baekcheongmun.]
[A Bounty Scenario has arrived.]
+

Category: Sub
Difficulty: C+
Clear Condition: Engage the ‘Gaebang’ appearing in System 8612 in a biwu and achieve victory.
Time Limit: 3 hours
Reward: Low-grade martial elixir
Failure: —
+
I saw the scattering emotions plain on the Bangju’s face.
Once again, the sense of returning to this dreadful game board. The helplessness of becoming nothing more than a spectacle for the stars. And a tattered longing rooted in the old tradition of biwu.
The board was laid. What remained was his decision. Like counting the stars in the sky, the Bangju raised his head in a daze, and at last, he spoke.
***
To cut to the conclusion, the Dragon-Head Bangju Cheongae accepted the proposal of a biwu.
Since the constellations had even laid a bounty scenario on it, he had no excuse to refuse.
“It will begin in five minutes.”
As the beggars pushed all the tables and chairs of the concourse to one side, I was rereading the bounty scenario I had just received.
Normally it would be something I wouldn’t care much about, but this time the reward attached to the scenario was the issue.
The bounty scenario’s completion reward was a “low-grade elixir.”
The problem was—how low is this “low-grade”?
If it was something like a shoddy magic pill mixed with all sorts of impurities, it would be useless for restoring Jeong Eunho no matter if we received it.
「The Gaebang Bangju will surely have a hidden stock of proper elixirs.」
Because taking an elixir at the start of a match to secure a certain level of internal power is an old cliché of wuxia.
The problem was that getting that elixir out of him would be much harder than simply defeating the Gaebang.
What would Kim Dokja have done?
No doubt he’d have spouted some plausible nonsense, gotten the benefit anyway, and made the Gaebang Bangju stumble into ruin and self-destruction.
[Constellation, ‘Sneaking Schemer’ awaits your stratagem.]
But I am not Kim Dokja, and I don’t have the confidence to pull it off that way.
I am writer Lee Hakhyeon, and in the end, I must resolve this matter in Lee Hakhyeon’s own way.
“Well done. Well done.”
Startled, I turned around. Venerable Jeong Munho was still pacing and repeating those same words.
“Reader-nim.”
Just in time, I called out to Venerable Jeong Munho.
Startled, Venerable Jeong Munho looked at me.
“Yes, sir.”
He looked like a private soldier stiff with military discipline.
“I think I’ll need your help, Reader-nim.”

“You mean the father role, right?”
“Keep doing that too. But this time, I’m asking something else.”
“What…?”
“Are you good at fighting?”
Sensing something ominous, Venerable Jeong Munho shook his head quickly.
“I am not. I’m honestly pathetic at it.”
“That’s perfect.”
“Excuse me?”
“There will soon be a biwu with the Gaebang.”
“And?”
“I want you to be our first contestant.”
“What? I just said I can’t fight!”
I lightly rested a hand on the shoulders of the flustered Venerable Jeong Munho.
“It’s fine. You won’t die. It’s not a fight to the death. Just relax and do your best not to get hurt too much.”
“But what if I lose—”
“You must lose. Please lose.”
“…What?”
From afar, I saw Jung Heewon, Jeong Eunho, and Sergeant Kim’s group approaching.
After exchanging a brief look with Jung Heewon, I glanced around the concourse.
The beggars, having caught wind of the matter, were gathering one by one as well.
The Dragon-Head Bangju Cheongae stepped forward and said.
“Let us begin.”
At last, the preparations of the beggars were complete. A makeshift biwu stage was set in the center of the concourse. A beggar taking the role of referee climbed to the middle. The biwu was really about to begin.
“Each side will field three contestants. Best two out of three wins. Any objections?”
“None.”
“You will regret this.”
I merely smiled.
The Gaebang would give it their all.
To topple the disciple of Kirios, and to avenge their past.
“You’ll see soon enough.”
“Our first contestant is one of the Sagol.”
The Sagol. So the beggars behind the Bangju were the “Sagol.”
“He doesn’t seem to be the real Sagol.”
“Indeed. Sharp-eyed child.”
As one of them stepped onto the stage, Cheongae spoke.
“He carries a fragment of my legend. I gave him the memory of Heopung Gae, one of the Sagol.”
“You do know he isn’t the real Heopung Gae.”
“I know.”
The Dragon-Head Bangju nodded, then added after a moment’s pause:
“But if I believe it, then he is the real Heopung Gae.”
When the referee raised his hand, our side’s first pick, Venerable Jeong Munho, shuffled awkwardly onto the stage.
“The first match, begin!”
I had been curious what skill Jeong Munho might have.
After all, he was Jung Heewon’s father.
If he had survived this long, he must have at least one decent skill.
“W-wait a moment. I # Nоvеlight # sincerely don’t intend to fight—”
The beggar bearing Heopung Gae’s memory paid no heed to his frantic waving, charging in with quick strides.
“Wait! Time out!”
The staff he swung in an instant went straight for Jeong Munho’s head. Panicking, Jeong Munho staggered back, flailing his hands.
Perhaps realizing his opponent’s level, the beggar did not unleash lethal strikes.
He merely toyed with him overwhelmingly, picking out only the most painful spots to strike.
“Argh! Uwaaaah!”
Every blow sent Jeong Munho hopping like a rabbit. The beggars cackled as they watched him get beaten unilaterally.
When Sergeant Kim shouted curses at them, the opposing beggars responded with mocking gestures.
I glanced briefly toward Jung Heewon.
She was watching her father’s biwu in silence, her hand resting on her sword hilt, ready to draw at any moment, her face betraying no particular emotion.
“I—I surrender! I give up!”
Not even a minute in, Jeong Munho’s body was covered in bruises as he declared surrender.
The referee raised his hand.
“Match over! First biwu goes to the Gaebang!”
The beggar smirked and twirled his staff toward the spectators, drawing cheers from the watching beggars.
I jumped onto the stage and helped up the collapsed Jeong Munho.
“Are you all right?”
“Ugh…”
“I know you’re not hurt.”
Jeong Munho looked at me resentfully. But he couldn’t hide it from my eyes. In truth, he had hardly taken any real damage.
From the information of the “Annihilation Law,” I could estimate what traits and skills he had.
「Trait [Strong Bones], with the skill [Iron Frame].」
So that was why this Reader-nim had survived until now.
Though his combat ability itself wasn’t impressive, his toughness was at a level that could rival Lee Hyunsung’s.
As expected of Jung Heewon’s father. Yet suddenly, a passage of the “Annihilation Law” resurfaced before my eyes.
「84th regression. Yoo Joonghyuk muttered as he watched the “Butcher of Madness” who did not fall even after receiving his sword strike.
“You look bigger than last round. Could you be someone else?”
But he couldn’t be sure. Strangely, Yoo Joonghyuk’s [Eye of the Sage] had failed to work on that “Butcher of Madness.”」
Sensing my gaze, Jeong Munho asked.
“Wh-why are you looking at me like that?”
“No reason.”
I supported him to the bench, then returned to the stage.
Already, the second contestant was waiting there.
“You’re the second?”
“Is the Bangju the second?”
The second contestant was the Dragon-Head Bangju himself.
Naturally, he was the opponent I least wanted to face. By mere estimation, his incarnation body was stronger than mine.
And from the look of it, he had even powered up before the fight—his average overall stats had risen sharply.
I forced myself not to show tension as I asked.
“What did you think of the first match?”
From the very start, I had not taken my eyes off the Dragon-Head Bangju’s every movement.
“You must be disappointed. This wasn’t the kind of biwu you were expecting.”
To a master of the Martial World, it must have looked like nothing more than child’s play.
“It was wrong to expect anything in the first place.”
But the Dragon-Head Bangju did not know.
That even that disappointment was an emotion intended in this “story.”
“It can’t be helped. With incarnation bodies this weak in the early scenario, we cannot fully reproduce the form of martial arts.”
“Of course.”
“Which is why, for the second biwu, how about we change the rules altogether?”
“Change the rules? How?”
“In olden times, there was a biwu where no internal energy was used at all. A contest purely of martial forms.”
[Constellation, ‘Lying-Down Dragon’ pricks up their ears at your story.]
As if surprised I’d suggest such a thing, the Dragon-Head Bangju widened his eyes.
“You’re rather well-versed in biwu. Did the Paradox teach you?”
“I didn’t hear it from Master, but I’ve heard it was a format often favored by masters.”
Of course, it was nonsense.
If I were some munchkin incarnation who had gulped down elixirs from the start of the scenario, I would have chosen an internal-energy duel too.
“Well? With this type of match, even ‘weak incarnation bodies’ of the early scenarios can still contest the depth of martial arts.”
I even dropped a line to stir the Bangju’s nostalgia.
After a brief thought, the Dragon-Head Bangju nodded.
“Very well. I accept. In this bout, no internal energy shall be used.”
As the referee’s hand slowly rose, I finished my preparations within.
The real reason I had chosen an external-arts biwu was simple.
If it came to internal energy, I wouldn’t last a few exchanges against the Bangju before going down.
[Strength Lv.25 → Strength Lv.40]
[Strength has greatly increased!]
[Agility Lv.25 → Agility Lv.40]
[Agility has greatly increased!]
[Stamina Lv.25 → Stamina Lv.40]
[Stamina has greatly increased!]
[Magic Power Lv.20 → Magic Power Lv.40]
[Magic Power has greatly increased!]
[A total of 36,500 coins has been spent.]
[An achievement has been attained for extraordinary coin usage!]
[5,000 coins refunded.]
But if it was a contest of pure physical ability, then it was a different story.
As if aware of my intent, the Dragon-Head Bangju sneered.
“Do you think raising your stats a little will let you defeat me?”
“I know. This much isn’t enough.”
Even with [Baekcheongganggi], my skill was still only level 1.
But if this wasn’t an internal-energy fight, then I had a chance.
Without the barrier of magic power manipulation, I could far more convincingly mimic the “depth” of the figure I desired.
[Exclusive Skill, ‘Incitement Lv.6’ activates to the limit!]
I closed my eyes, slowly envisioning the person I wanted.
In the next instant, my awareness spread outward rapidly.
I perceived Seoul Station, then Yongsan District, then Seoul itself, then the Korean Peninsula, then the planet Earth.
I perceived the solar system, the galaxy, and dreamed of the infinite universe beyond comprehension.
Within that pale blue dot smaller than a speck, I imagined myself imagining the infinite universe.
「The smallest is the greatest.」
When I opened my eyes, the darkness of space had receded.
The Dragon-Head Bangju stared at me with a strange expression.
“You—surely not—”
Perhaps at this moment, he was seeing a vision of a familiar man in me.
「That day, before the signboard of the Gaebang, a man of very small stature appeared.」
“Is this the Gaebang of the Nine Schools?”
「As if appraising a shabby old tree, the man spoke in a flat, toneless voice.」
“It looks far more paltry than I heard.”
From this moment on, I was Kirios Lordgrime, the Baekcheong of the Paradox.