RUINED I

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The subway lights went out at that point, and the inside of the train went dark.

Kiiiiiiiik-! The subway train shook loudly and let out a metallic sound.

Yoo Junghyuk opened his eyes to see the same scenario that he had seen before.

The subway.

He stood up due to the rattling sound and movements.

In this third regression, he encountered that companion in the same scenario, at the same time.

People screamed, but he remained unmoved as he stood in the middle of this scene. The sound of people getting agitated seems natural. He felt someone grab his arms but didn't pay attention. He paid more attention to the next cart—where that man had started in this ruined world.

Then he heard confused voices coming from everywhere.

"Uh, what?"

"W-What is this?"

He chose to open the next carriage while standing by the doors, but the dokkaebi appear to have taken control of the train. He raised his head, but his gaze was drawn to the man's silhouette. He was dissatisfied and unsure how he would proceed. He was unable to complete anything.

His 2000th regression was meaningless if he couldn't meet that person again.

He wants to continue to fight.

He wants to fight alongside him.

He wants to continue his adventures with that man.

[Note: he has memories of all his regression, so he would be confused about the scenarios knocking in his head in the future chapters.]

He pretended to be unconcerned. He couldn't care less about what happened next. He would fight again and regress if he was forced to do so soon.

He just wanted to meet that man once again.

The reader.

The sole spectator to his blood-soaked endless cycle of life.

The loud surroundings became calm.

He let out a sigh and opted to open his mouth when the familiar warning echoed.

–E-Everyone run away...Run...!

There was a beeping sound, and the broadcast turned off. The inside of the train became a mess.

"It has begun again," he murmured breathlessly, cracking his hand.

A bright light flashed from the front of the subway train. There was a loud drumming sound followed by a pop.

Something was heading this way in the darkness. It was just a coincidence that I saw the clock at this moment—7:00 p.m.

The time when everything started

The beginning of his never-ending cycle of misery

Tick, tick, tick, the world seemed to come to a halt.

Then I heard a voice say to me:

[The planetary system 8612's free service has been discontinued.]

[The main scenario has begun.]

This was a watershed moment in their lives.

Even before the dokkaebi could say anything. He burned everything inside the carriage.

Make it quick. It makes no difference if the dokkaebi happen to enter the fray. It made no difference whether people fled or stayed.

He'll burn everything down.

It happened in a matter of seconds. Except for the carriage that may or may not have that 'man,' he burned the rest of the carriages.

Finally, he controlled his breathing by looking out the window. He, too, required time to properly accept everything. He braced himself for the possibility of being disappointed after regressing for the 2000th time.

Laughter emerged. He had to clear his eyes and look again to see if it was a lie.

There stood the man in the boring suit, surrounded by people.

But the moment he blinked, everything turned sour. The carriage was empty. The people in that carriage were nowhere to be found. His heart sank in deep disappointment.

He should not have expected that.

He should not have pretended that he would be given another chance.

That regression could be the only time he ever sees that man.

Devastated, he had fallen to his knees and stared at the empty carriage surrounded by dead people. He buried his face in his palms and exhaled heavily as he prepared for another pointless fight.

It's time for the bridge to give way.

No, not yet.

He can't give up just yet.

He met him not in this carriage, but on the bridge.

Several survivors stood up and looked around at the scene outside. Seoul's devastation and collapsed buildings. Monsters resembling colossal snakes ate the wreckage of a fighter jet that had crashed into the Han River.

The broken bridge gradually collapsed, but Yoo Junghyuk walked into the fray calmly, as if taking a stroll in the park.

His instincts gradually awakened his guts.

This momentum.

This feeling.

That glorious anticipation jolted his soul awake.

"Dokja-ssi!!"

When that familiar name was mentioned, he raised his head. The undead swarm on someone.

He can't stop himself from burning the undead and demonic beings. The crackling sound permeated the air, echoing the horrifying sound of ripping bodies. The sound of flesh colliding with flesh sounded more like a mace crushing flesh.

He looked at the man who was struggling, almost on the verge of giving up because he knew he couldn't do it all.

He vanquished all the demonic beings who were threatening that man and appeared in front of him. An overwhelming force with no weapons. He beat the demonic people with only two fists.

Yoo Junghyuk had mentally prepared himself, but sweat still ran down his back.

Finally!

Finally!

He couldn't contain his emotions, and soon he offered his hand to him.

We met again.

Kim Dokja.

His hand was resting on Kim Dokja's collar began, loosening it.

"We meet once more," he said, smiling.

A genuine smile that perplexed the other person.

"My Dearest Companion."

TBC

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