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“What are those? Angels?”

Myohail was catching his breath while fiddling with his staff.

The angels that descended from the sky… the Valkyries immediately attacked us. Beams of light magic poured down like rain. Myohail quickly deployed a barrier and intercepted the angels in the air.

At first, Myohail had the upper hand. The Sage’s precise and delicate magic neutralized the Valkyries’ attacks and steadily reduced their numbers. In this world, few beings could face a Sage head-on, aside from gods, demon lords, or demons.

However, the Valkyries, resembling angels, overwhelmed Myohail. The combat power of a single Valkyrie was comparable to a high-level mage or a low-tier demon, but the problem was their numbers. As soon as one was taken down, another was summoned. The more we defeated, the more they multiplied. Even though I joined the fight, the exponentially increasing numbers were too much to handle.

Realizing that a war of attrition would be disadvantageous, Sage Myohail quickly abandoned the fight and retreated outside of paradise.

Michaela, who fled with us, didn’t look too good.

“…They’re the guardians of paradise.”

“If they’re the guardians of paradise, shouldn’t they protect you, the god of paradise? Why did they attack us against your will?”

Myohail’s question was valid. Just as Lukaela, the ruler of hell, commands demons, it would be natural for Michaela, the absolute god of paradise, to command angels.

But these weren’t the angels Myohail imagined. Their design was inspired by the warrior maidens of Norse mythology, their attitude of wanting to eliminate us, and their utterly inhuman demeanor made me realize what they were.

‘The Milky Way’s security program… Valkyries.’

I remembered seeing them during game testing at Stella. Since the Milky Way was a revolutionary machine in the industry, information security had to be thorough. The security program created to protect the Milky Way from hackers and viruses was called ‘Valkyries.’

Michaela’s words confirmed my suspicions.

“Let me make this clear. The guardians weren’t targeting me; they were after you. They have no interest in anything other than protecting paradise.”

“Hmm… So, you’re an absolute god who can’t even control your own subordinates? Not a very respected god, are you?”

“Shut up! If you think about it, it’s your fault! If you hadn’t posed a threat to paradise, they wouldn’t have appeared!”

The guardians protect paradise, and the security program, Valkyries, protect the system. These two facts led me to one conclusion.

‘If the guardians are the Valkyries I know, then paradise… might be closely connected to the Milky Way’s system.’

We planned to install a gate in paradise to escape the world created by the Milky Way. If the security program, Valkyries, tried to stop us, it meant our actions violated the system.

“Haha. All this just to avoid some rain?”

“You don’t tear the sky apart just to avoid rain!”

Michaela, who had shouted, glared at me.

“You. The gate you’re planning to install in paradise… was it something dangerous?”

“No. But someone might have thought it was dangerous.”

“What?”

At first glance, it seemed like Myohail’s forced weather manipulation had triggered the Valkyries’ appearance. But I thought differently. Their appearance was likely preordained. The only person who would consider my gate installation dangerous was one person.

‘Director Park…’

Michaela said paradise rejected us. It was highly likely that Director Park, who controlled the Milky Way’s system, was trying to stop me.

This was the first time Director Park had intervened since I became Tristan. He hadn’t interfered no matter what I did before. Not when I realized ‘patience’ through trials, not when I struggled to survive constant death flags, not even when I became a demon lord and saved the hero.

Perhaps he found everything I did trivial. Or maybe it was all within his control.

Director Park had told me when he trapped me in this world:

-“You can never die. No matter how many times you die, you’ll just revive and start over. Your only option is to become the ‘perfect’ Tristan. There’s no other choice.”

As he said, I became Tristan. I fought desperately to survive as Tristan in this world. I turned hostile people into allies and even succeeded in making this world my ally. I even succeeded in creating a gate to the outside world.

The current me is the ‘perfect’ Tristan I envisioned. I had no doubt that what I wanted to do was the most Tristan-like thing. That’s why I…

“Let’s retreat for now.”

“Count… Are you planning to retreat?”

I shook my head in response to Myohail’s question. Instead…

“Michaela.”

“Huh?”

“Can you call your sister, Lukaela?”

I stared at the cloudy sky of paradise. The sky guarded by Valkyries, the place that would become the gateway connecting the two worlds. I opened my mouth.

“We need to start a war.”

*

[Did the connection succeed?]

[Yes.]

[Good. Excellent.]

Park Se-hee checked the message log sent by Director Choi Jae-man and looked up. Before her was a wall made of countless numbers. The numbers kept changing, pulsating like the arteries of a living being.

What Park Se-hee was looking at was the Milky Way’s system itself. With the access rights given by Director Choi, she could access the system.

‘It’s been a while…’

It had been almost a year since Jeong Ji-hwan disappeared. After he vanished, Park Se-hee was transferred to another department, so she hadn’t accessed the system since. This world of numbers evoked a sense of nostalgia in her.

‘Whenever I accessed the system, Ji-hwan was always there…’

Jeong Ji-hwan was that kind of person. He spent most of his time in this world after coming to work. A man more dedicated to his work than Park Se-hee. But it was inevitable. This world created by the Milky Way was born from his younger sister’s imagination, and the only time he could feel her presence was when he was here.

Now, Jeong Ji-hwan lives in the ‘Another World’ beyond these numbers, a world more real than reality, as the villain Tristan.

Park Se-hee felt the weight on her shoulders. What she did next would determine the future of Jeong Ji-hwan and Jeong So-ra.

“Alright…”

She loosened her stiff body. Waves of numbers kept surging towards her. Park Se-hee focused, reading the numbers swept in by the waves, and moved her fingers as if playing an invisible instrument. The numbers scattered around began to glow one by one. The shimmering numbers resonated with each other in a specific pattern.

Soon, a figure made of numbers appeared before her. A female figure with wings made of numbers spread behind her.

-‘Valkyrie’ is requesting an administrator identification code from you.

“Got it…”

It had been a while, but she succeeded on the first try.

[What’s the situation?]

[I just encountered the security program.]

[Good. Let me know once the security program is deactivated.]

[Yes.]

Now was the real deal. Before deactivating the security program and Director Choi taking over the system, Park Se-hee planned to leave a trace in the system that only she could recognize.

Though not as skilled as a programmer or hacker, she had some knowledge of programming. Especially regarding the Milky Way’s system, she had an edge over others.

-Administrator code ‘Temporary 09323’ identified.

After entering the code, the Valkyrie bowed. It was a sign that she was recognized as an administrator.

“Valkyrie, change me to the highest administrator authority.”

-That is not possible. The authority of ‘Temporary 09323’ cannot be changed to ‘Highest Administrator.’

The higher the authority, the fewer restrictions there were on accessing the system. She had expected this, but it was still disappointing. However, she had anticipated this much.

“Valkyrie, then create a new administrator.”

-Confirmed. Administrator code ‘General 17356’ has been created.

“Valkyrie, designate ‘General 17356’ as a special administrator.”

If the highest administrator wasn’t possible, then a special administrator would do. The special administrator was one of the hidden ranks in the system she knew about. Separate from the general ranks, a special administrator had significant authority over the system, though not as much as the highest administrator.

Park Se-hee planned to secretly create a new administrator account without Director Choi’s knowledge. This way, she could help Jeong Ji-hwan and Jeong So-ra after Director Choi took over the system.

‘Of course, there’s a possibility that Director Park, realizing the system’s vulnerability, might have changed things…’

With a desperate hope, Park Se-hee waited for Valkyrie’s message. Then, Valkyrie, who had been silent, finally spoke.

-Command to change ‘General 17356’ to ‘Special 17356’ confirmed. Changing to a special administrator requires a highest administrator-level code.

“Got it!”

While high authority was needed, what was required for a special administrator designation wasn’t authority but a code. That code was known only by three people: Director Park, Jeong Ji-hwan, and herself, from a previous access.

With a light heart, Park Se-hee entered the code. Then…

-An error has occurred.

“Huh?”

Did she make a mistake? She moved her fingers to input the value again.

-An error has occurred.

“What…? This can’t be…”

No matter how many times she tried, Valkyrie kept returning an error and rejecting her request. It was strange. If the code was wrong, it wouldn’t return this message… An error?

Then it happened.

Zzzzt-!

“Ahhh!”

A chilling mechanical sound echoed in Park Se-hee’s ears. A noise so loud she instinctively covered her ears. She sensed something was terribly wrong.

[Director Choi, there seems to be a problem.]

[……]

[Director Choi?]

The message log, which had been responding immediately, fell silent. The communication was cut off. And the anomaly didn’t stop there.

-You will be forcibly logged out.

“W-wait…!”

Her vision darkened as if a blackout had occurred, and after about five seconds, a bright light poured in.

“Ugh…”

Dazzled, Park Se-hee covered her eyes with her hand. As her vision gradually recovered, a familiar ceiling came into view. She had been forcibly ejected from the system.

“Director Choi??”

Removing the machine from her head, Park Se-hee staggered out of bed. It was the room she had accessed the system from.

“Director Choi?? Where are you?”

Only a laptop sat on the desk where Director Choi had been sitting. Had he stepped out for a moment? Park Se-hee opened the door to look for him.

“What… is this?”

Beyond the door was a dark space. Had it been like this before…?

She was in the room next to the underground where the Milky Way’s main body was located… but it was eerily quiet. The unsettling silence sent shivers down her spine. To shake off the feeling, Park Se-hee fumbled along the wall for a switch.

Click.

The light turned on, and the sight that greeted her made her gasp.

The room contained six beds. Like a hospital ward, men with oxygen masks lay on the beds. And the man lying closest to her was someone she knew well.

“Ji-hwan…?!”

It was Jeong Ji-hwan. Though much thinner, it was unmistakably the body of Jeong Ji-hwan, whose whereabouts had been unknown since he became Tristan. He lay with his eyes closed, relying on an oxygen mask, with the Milky Way attached to his head.

She had finally found Jeong Ji-hwan’s physical body. That alone was shocking enough, but…

“Director Choi…?!”

Next to Jeong Ji-hwan’s bed lay Director Choi Jae-man. He too was asleep with an oxygen mask and the Milky Way attached.

No, everyone in this ward was the same. All were asleep with oxygen masks and the Milky Way.

“Ah…”

Park Se-hee’s legs gave out, and she collapsed. Her body felt weak. No matter how shocking the scene was, she felt unnaturally drained. Her eyelids felt heavy as lead.

“I need to get up…”

“Stay there. The drug is taking effect.”

Who… was that? The voice wasn’t unfamiliar. Unable to hold on any longer, Park Se-hee slumped to the floor. Still, she managed to squeeze out a question.

“…Drug… you say?”

“Yes. I administered it when you accessed the system earlier.”

In her fading consciousness, Park Se-hee saw a man looking down at her.

“Director… Park…”

The man who shouldn’t be here, Stella’s Director Park Joon-hyuk, smiled angelically and said,

“Have a good dream.”

 

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