Exactly one week ago, the final chapter of Never Ending Story, a fantasy novel set in an apocalyptic world, was finally released. It was one of the most popular novels in South Korea. But that day quickly turned into a nightmare.
Most of its female fans simply couldn't accept the ending.
In an attempt to calm the uproar, the publisher eventually announced a special event. Selected fans would have the chance to choose their own desired ending for the story and receive a special reward. And today was the day the winner would be announced.
"I seriously can't wait!"
A young woman with long hair stood at the edge of a pedestrian crossing, her eyes glued to her phone as she nervously bit her lip.
The traffic light turned red. Pedestrians began crossing the street, including the young woman, who never once took her eyes off her phone.
-Check the event results?-
Click!
-Congratulations! You are the only participant to have won the 'Best Ending' event!-
Her footsteps came to an abrupt halt. For several seconds, she stood frozen, staring at her phone as if her brain had stopped functioning. Her hands trembled as she rubbed her eyes, making sure she hadn't imagined what she'd just read.
"I... won?"
Her entire body went stiff. Out of thousands of fans who had entered the event, she was the only one who had been selected.
"Hey, Kim Sohyun! What are you doing?!"
Another young woman shouted at her from nearby. Sohyun looked up, her face breaking into a tearful smile.
"Kang Luna! I won the event!"
Luna stared at her in disbelief. Her eyes widened so much they looked ready to pop out of their sockets, and her jaw practically hit the floor.
"WHAT?!"
"I WON THE EVENT!" Sohyun shouted again.
Laughing with pure joy, she sprinted toward Luna. There was just one important thing she'd failed to notice.
The traffic light had turned green. The vehicles that had been waiting at the intersection were now moving again.
HOOOOONK!
Sohyun was almost at the other side of the road when the deafening sound of a truck's horn made her instinctively turn her head.
CRASH!
Everything went dark.
Her head burned with pain. Dizziness overwhelmed her, and the sounds around her gradually faded away. The pain wracking her body slowly began to disappear.
Huh? What's happening? Did I just get hit by a truck? Am I going to die? Right here?
Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier. Through her fading vision, she could vaguely make out Luna running toward her, screaming her name.
The noise ringing in her ears gradually faded until, at last, her entire world turned completely black.
Yet her consciousness remained, as though her soul had been trapped in an endless void.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"
Ding! A blue holographic screen suddenly appeared right in front of her eyes.
[Spirit Synchronization Complete!]
[Activating the Space-Time System.]
"What is this?"
[Preparation: 97%]
[Preparation: 98%]
[Preparation: 99%]
[Preparation Complete!]
[Selected World: 'Never Ending Story']
[Beginning Interdimensional Transfer.]
"What the hell—?!"
Her body felt as though it were plummeting at an incredible speed. The wind seemed to tear through her, and the pain was so intense she wanted to scream.
But no sound came out.
Ding!
[Transfer Complete!]
[Welcome, Reader.]
"Huh?"
[You have been selected as a reader who will create the ending you desire!]
[The System will always be here to assist you! May you find the ending you wish to see!]
"What exactly is that supposed to mean?"
[Good luck.]
The blue holographic screen disappeared. The darkness surrounding Sohyun was replaced by an overwhelmingly bright white light, forcing her to squeeze her eyes shut. After what felt like an eternity, she finally opened them.
The first thing she saw was destruction. It was a horrific sight, one that made her feel as though her sanity might crumble at any moment.
Human corpses littered the ground like discarded trash. Some were missing limbs, as though something had bitten them off or torn them apart. The ground had turned crimson, resembling a vast sea of blood. The stench of blood was so overpowering that it made her nauseous. She doubled over and vomited several times.
"What... is this?"
Sohyun instinctively clapped both hands over her mouth when she realized she could speak again.
"Where am I?"
The chaos unfolding before her was so horrifying that she could barely think straight. Then, without warning, the ground began to tremble. But it didn't feel like an earthquake. It felt as though something was approaching, its footsteps shaking the very earth beneath her.
A thunderous roar rang out, reaching deep into Sohyun's ears. The pressure was so overwhelming that her entire body began to tremble. Slowly, she turned around and looked up. A gigantic beast stood before her.
Its massive body was a dark crimson, with two horns protruding from its head and enormous fangs jutting from its mouth. And yet, to Sohyun, the creature looked strangely familiar.
"Isn't that... an orc?"
The orc let out another deafening roar before swinging its right arm at her. Whether through sheer luck or some inexplicable instinct, Sohyun managed to leap backward just before the beast's hand crushed her head.
"YOU BASTARD! DYING TWICE IS NOT FUNNY, YOU KNOW!"
The orc roared furiously and charged toward her. Every instinct in her body screamed at her to run. Her leg muscles worked overtime as she desperately tried to escape the enormous orc.
"WHY AM I SO UNLUCKY?! AAAAAARGH!"
Sohyun's breathing grew ragged. She was already exhausted.
"STOP CHASING ME, YOU STUPID ORC!"
She kept running, fear flooding her body with enough adrenaline to keep her moving. The entire time, all she could do was curse under her breath in frustration.
Ding!
[Would you like our help?]
"Huh?"
[I'll ask you one more time. Do you require our help to escape that monster?]
"YES! PLEASE HELP ME! I'M ABOUT TO DROP DEAD FROM EXHAUSTION!"
Sohyun screamed at the top of her lungs, her heart pounding as though it were about to explode.
[I don't believe our assistance is necessary at the moment.]
"Huh? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?! DO YOU WANT ME TO DIE?!"
Her jaw clenched, and the veins on her forehead nearly bulged.
[That's not what I meant.]
"THEN WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN, YOU BASTARD?!"
[Just see.]
"What—? HEY! DON'T YOU DARE DISAPPEAR ON ME, YOU LITTLE—!"
The blue screen suddenly vanished, sending her already-frayed nerves into overdrive. But instead of continuing to yell, she found herself struggling just to breathe.
"ARGH! SOMEBODY, PLEASE HELP MEEEE—!"
Suddenly, someone appeared in front of her. The figure shot past her like a gust of wind. Sohyun instinctively stopped and spun around. Her eyes widened as she watched a man fighting an orc all by himself.
"Liam!"
Two more people appeared out of nowhere, joining the battle to take down the other orcs that had rushed toward them.
"You there, young lady. Are you all right?"
A beautiful woman approached from behind and crouched down to help Sohyun to her feet.
"You must have been terrified. Don't worry. We'll take care of all of them."
For some reason, the scene unfolding before her felt strangely unreal. But one thing was certain. Judging by the blue holographic screen that had appeared before her, Sohyun was absolutely convinced that she'd somehow ended up inside the very novel she'd loved so much.
[Welcome to the world of the novel, Player Kim Sohyun!]