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**Kim Dokja’s POV**
'Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World'—a feature-length fantasy novel spanning 3,149 chapters. Its shorthand name was *Ways of Survival*.
I had been reading this novel consistently since my third year of middle school. It stayed with me through everything: the bullying I endured from school delinquents, my failure at the entrance exams that landed me in a third-rate local university, my deployment to a frontline military unit thanks to a messed-up draft lottery, and even now—working as a contractor for a large company, still without a permanent position. Damn it, enough about that. Anyway...
「Author's words: Thank you so much for reading 'Ways of Survival' up to here. I will come back to you with an epilogue!」
"Ah… There's still the epilogue. The next chapter is really the last one."
It was a story that spanned from the end of my childhood into my adulthood—a journey of more than ten years. As I reached the conclusion of that world, a mix of desolation and fulfillment settled inside me. I opened the comment box on the last chapter and rewrote my message several times.
–Kim Dokja: Writer, thank you for everything in the meantime. I am looking forward to the epilogue.
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*Kiiiiiiiik-!*
The subway train jolted, the metallic screech reverberating through the cars. Yoo Sangah, who was seated beside me, screamed and grabbed my arm. Around us, the sound of panic began to rise, people shifting and muttering nervously. Yoo Sangah's grip on my arm tightened, the pressure making me more aware of the pain in my arm than the sudden stop of the train. It took several seconds for the vehicle to come to a complete halt.
Voices filled the darkness, anxious and confused. Here and there, the glow of smartphone lights cut through the shadows. Yoo Sangah clutched my arm even tighter, her voice trembling. "W-What is going on?"
I forced a calm expression. "Don't worry. It’s probably nothing serious."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, it’s likely just a disturbance—a suicide maybe. The engineer will make an announcement soon." No sooner had the words left my mouth when the broadcast crackled to life.
"Attention all passengers. Attention all passengers."
The voices around us quieted. I let out a breath, about to reassure her again. "See, it's nothing serious. They’ll apologize, the power will come back on..."
–E-Everyone, run away… Run…!
'What?'
A beep cut off the message, plunging the train into chaos.
"D-Dokja-ssi? What is this…?"
A flash of light burst from the front of the subway car, followed by a loud drumming noise and a pop. Something began moving toward us through the dark. I glanced at the clock above the doors—7:00 PM.
For a moment, time seemed to slow. A voice echoed through the air:
[The free service of planetary system 8612 has been terminated.] [The main scenario has started.]
And just like that, the genre of my life changed.
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「Dokkaebi¹. The first time he appeared, someone called him that.」
Why did that phrase suddenly come to mind? The stopped subway, the darkness enveloping us... It all felt strangely familiar. The train had halted before, sure, but not like this. Yet something lingered in my mind—words from a novel I had read so often. It couldn’t be real… could it?
At that moment, the door to car 3807 slid open, and the lights snapped back on. Yoo Sangah, her grip still tight on my arm, murmured, "…Dokkaebi?"
A shiver ran down my spine, reality and fiction blurring in my mind.
「With two small horns and draped in a straw mat, the peculiar, fluffy creature hovered in the air.」
「Too strange to be called a fairy, too sinister to be an angel, and too serene to be a demon.」
「Thus, it was known as a 'dokkaebi'.」 I already knew the first words it would say.
「&아#@!&아#@! …」
[&아#@!&아#@!…]
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Fiction and reality intertwined perfectly.
There was a presence now, one with a power that made all else seem insignificant.
[I told you to be quiet.]
I shut my eyes tightly as the dokkaebi's eyes glowed a chilling red. A sharp crack rang out, and silence fell over the subway.
"Uh, uh… Uh…" A man—someone who had spoken out—collapsed to the floor, a gaping hole in his forehead.
[This isn't a movie shoot.]
Another crack split the air. This time, it was the person who had mentioned the train conductor.
[It isn't a dream. It isn't a novel either.]
One by one, blood sprayed as the heads of the protesting passengers burst open. Those who had dared to cry out, or scream, or panic—each met the same fate. The subway turned into a slaughterhouse.
[This isn't the 'reality' you know. Understand? Now, everyone shut up and listen to me.]
More than half the people in the train were dead. Blood and torn bodies littered the floor. No one screamed now. Like primitive creatures before an apex predator, they watched the dokkaebi with terror in their eyes. I clutched tightly to Yoo Sangah's shaking shoulders, trying to steady my own breathing.
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869wordscount
YOU ARE READING
APOCALYPSE AGAIN.
Fiksi PenggemarKim Rok Soo almost start to believe god again, key word "ALMOST", they most be "Love" him so much, so much that they can't leave him alone. FOR GOD-DAMNED LEMONADE SAKE CAN THEY LEAVE HIM, KIM ROK SOO ALONE. YOU MOTHER FUCKER GOD'S
