Ghost | ORV

all I know since yesterday (is everything has changed)

Dokja's face would always turn sad whenever he read that sentence the author writes over and over: "[Name] had sacrificed their own life to ensure Joohyuk's survival once more." That line carried a heavy weight, filled with emotions that tugged at Dokja's heart in ways he couldn't ignore. Even though he openly admitted that Joonghyuk was his favorite character in the Three Ways to Survive series (TWAS), the story involving [Name] struck a deep chord within him. It stirred a longing within Dokja—a yearning for a companion who might show him the same kind of loyalty and companionship (maybe something more but the two are just fiction. Plus why would the two like someone like him?).

Sometimes, he even questioned whether Joonghyuk truly deserved such unwavering devotion from [Name] even if he is the main character.

In the midst of these swirling emotions, Dokja's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a notification popping up at the top of his smartphone screen. It was an alert about a new update to the web novel he was rereading just now, a series he knew so well. The familiar chime snapped him out of his thoughts, and without hesitation, he tapped on the notification, bringing up the web novel platform he frequented. His heart quickened with a mix of anticipation and curiosity as he prepared to dive into the latest chapter—knowing that this was the final chapter of the story. He wanted to know that Joonghyuk and [Name] have finally ended up together in their own happily ever after.

[There are three ways to survive in a ruined world. Now, I have forgotten a few, but one thing is certain. The fact you who are reading this now will survive.

-Three ways to survive in a ruined world.]

Dokja grew clueless. Is that it? He thought as he scrolled up and down. Refreshing it every second for only the paragraph to pop up. Did he really spend all his years reading this web novel to end just like that? He couldn't help but feel like he deserved more.

"This really can't be the end..." Dokja mummer to himself as he clicks back to see the word 'complete'. There is no mistaking it. It is really the end of the story.

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[Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World]

Author: tls123

3,149 chapters

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With a total of 3,149 chapters, the novel had finally come to an end. Dokja wasn't sure how to feel about it. He had been hoping to see his favorite characters, [Name] and Joonghyuk, find their own happily ever after—a life where they lived together, raised children, and grew old side by side, passing away peacefully as an elderly couple. But that was not the ending he got. In fact, he wasn't even sure this ending could be called an ending. It felt incomplete, leaving him with a sense of longing and dissatisfaction.

Dokja had been reading this novel since his third year of middle school. It had been with him through everything: the bullying he endured, his years in university, and even his time in the military. He knew that if this novel had never existed, he might not have made it through those difficult years. It had been his constant companion, a source of comfort and escape when he needed it most.

His eyes scanned over the final Author's Note, a message he knew he would never see again.

[Author's words: Thank you so much for reading 'Ways of Survival' up to here. I will come back to you with an epilogue!]

Dokja reread that sentence several times, trying to process it. He needed to know what happened to Joonghyuk and [Name]. Did they finally end up together? Their relationship had been the slowest burn he had ever read, but it was that very slow burn that had kept him hooked, page after page. He had stuck with the novel all this time, mostly because of his attachment to those two characters. He couldn't deny that if [Name] and Joonghyuk were real, he might do anything for them.