The city skyline was bathed in ash and red, a quiet aftershock of the last scenario's chaos. The Safe Zone was holding, for now. It wasn't perfect—patched together with barricades, watchmen, and distrust—but it was enough.
Ryeok had been skeptical when Hyunwoo first told him about a secure area, but once the gang leader stepped foot inside, he shut his mouth and stayed close. Survival changed people like that.
Now, Hyunwoo was out on patrol. Alone. Ji-ah was resting. Han Jinho had fallen asleep curled up next to a barricade, the rusted metal pipe still clutched in his small hands.
The streets beyond the Safe Zone were quiet. Too quiet.
And then—
He saw him.
A silhouette stood atop a broken rooftop, coat fluttering in the wind like a banner of war. He was tall, broad-shouldered, his hand gripping a longsword that shimmered faintly in the crimson light. The wind didn't touch him. The world didn't breathe around him. He was meant to be there.
But not now.
Hyunwoo's breath caught. "That's..."
He instinctively activated his ability.
[Activating — Narrative Sense: The Reader's Script]
[Scanning Character Profile...]
A deep hum rattled through his bones, the blue screen flickering violently.
There is a lot of information on this character. Would you like to view the description on this character?]
[YES] / [NO]
His thumb hovered, hesitated, then pressed [YES].
The screen bloomed.
🗡️ Name: Sung Jinhyuk
📘 Role: Original Protagonist of The Final Apocalypse Chronicles
🩸 Titles:
– The Sword That Cleaves Fate
– Choice of the System
– Regressor (Hidden)
– One Who Walks the Timeline
– Hero of the Seventy-Second War
– ??? (Locked)
🧠 Narrative Weight: [Overloaded]
⚔️ Current Status: Far ahead of schedule
🕒 Timeline Alignment: Error Detected – Timeline Fracture
Hyunwoo stared at the final line. The glowing sentence pulsed like a heartbeat.
Timeline Fracture.
"This isn't right," Hyunwoo's mind was reeling with thoughts of all the possibilities of how this would affect his knowledge of the future. "He's... ahead of schedule?"
Jinhyuk looked down from the rooftop, though there was no way he could've seen Hyunwoo from that distance.
But he moved.
His head tilted slightly. Just enough to acknowledge. Just enough to make Hyunwoo freeze.
He knows I'm here.
And then Sung Jinhyuk turned and walked away, vanishing into the shadows of the crumbling skyline like a ghost out of order.
Hyunwoo took a step back, heart pounding. He didn't know how, but everything had just changed.
The story wasn't following the script anymore.
The figure in the distance—Sung Jinhyuk—faded into the crowd, his outline vanishing behind a collapsed storefront like a mirage. Yet the blue screen lingering in Hyunwoo's vision confirmed what his gut had already told him.
Hyunwoo leaned back against the cold wall, scanning the words before him, his mind going over the familiar plot of The First Apocalypse Chronicles. He had already read about Sung Jinhyuk in the novel, though it was difficult to shake the feeling that things weren't exactly as they should be. His ability, Narrative Sense – The Reader's Script, allowed him to glimpse the core of the story—what should happen next, what had already happened—but this... This felt different.
In the novel, Sung Jinhyuk's first appearance was dramatic, marking a turning point in the narrative. Hyunwoo couldn't help but marvel at the significance of the scene as he recalled it in his mind.
His first appearance in the novel was in chapter 22. At that point in the story, the protagonist, who had been fighting tooth and nail to survive the apocalypse, was on the brink of collapse. The protagonist, battered and nearly broken, was facing overwhelming odds: a pack of powerful monsters, or perhaps a group of ruthless survivors with no intention of letting them escape. With all their strength drained, they had nothing left to give. It was a desperate moment, the kind where any other survivor would have given in to despair.
That was when Sung Jinhyuk made his entrance.
He remembered how Jinhyuk appeared. Sung Jinhyuk didn't rush into the scene like a hero charging headfirst into battle. No, he appeared almost casually, as if the chaos around him was nothing more than background noise. At first, he was just a figure in the distance—barely visible, barely noticed—but his presence was undeniable. Calm. Unhurried. Unfazed.
The way he handled that situation was revealing, even if it was brief. There was no grand speech. No emotional plea. Just a clean, decisive strike and an offer of help. That was Sung Jinhyuk's first major appearance in the story. It was the moment when his role shifted from being a mere background figure to something much more important.
Hyunwoo's jaw tightened. This wasn't just a deviation.
This is the chapter where the Mythkeeper returns...
He didn't say it aloud. He didn't need to. The chill in the wind confirmed it for him—this was the part of the novel he'd long dreaded and anticipated. The moment when things stopped following the script entirely.
He turned sharply and made his way back to the Safe Zone. Ji-ah stood by the corner of a burned-out building, arms crossed and eyes scanning the perimeter. Han Jinho crouched near her, drawing imaginary monsters in the dust with a stick. Ryeok was off to the side, fiddling with a rifle and swearing under his breath about the chamber being jammed.
Hyunwoo stepped into the clearing and spoke calmly.
"Hey, Mythkeeper... I know you're here."
The world hushed.
And then, with a sound like a thousand whispered stories turning their first page, the Mythkeeper emerged.
Ink-stained parchment folded in on itself, and a figure cloaked in script drifted down from an unseen tear in reality. The golden quill spun like a compass needle above its hooded form.
"Good day to you, mortals," the Mythkeeper said, its voice dry and resonant, as though echoing from the spine of an ancient tome. "I've come here to make an announcement."
Hyunwoo shifted his weight, placing one hand on his hip and resting the fire axe across his shoulder.
"And what's the announcement about?"
The Mythkeeper gave a delighted hum.
"Glad you asked."
It raised its ink-drenched quill and dramatically cleared its throat.
"The Collapse of this world has been set in motion. In five years, this world will fall."
Ji-ah flinched. Jinho froze mid-doodle. Even Ryeok straightened.
Hyunwoo narrowed his eyes. "By whom?"
The Mythkeeper's grin could be heard in its voice, even if no face was visible.
"Why, by the Celestial Patrons, of course. Observers beyond this world, rulers of realms unseen. They have set the end—and now they will intervene. For the scenarios will grow... increasingly cruel."
As if on cue, blue screens unfolded in the air before them.
One each for Han Ji-ah, Han Jinho, and Kang Hyunwoo.
[A Celestial Patron has taken interest in you.]
[Would you like to become an Incarnation?]
[Your journey will change.]
Hyunwoo didn't hesitate.
He tapped the X at the top of his screen, dismissing it without reading further.
The system dissolved his choice in silence.
The Mythkeeper tilted its head.
"Interesting."
Ji-ah and Jinho glanced at each other, eyes reflecting the glow of their screens, unsure, yet tempted. But they couldn't see Hyunwoo's decision. Just as he couldn't see theirs.
No one said a word.
The moment the last echo of the Mythkeeper's voice faded into the cold air, a tense silence settled over them. Not because the being had vanished.
It was still there.
Floating just above the cracked pavement, arms folded neatly behind its back, the Mythkeeper's luminous eyes watched with unblinking interest. Its presence felt like both a judge and a librarian—recording every breath they took, every reaction, every choice.
Blue screens appeared before each of them, shining like invitations sent by the heavens.
All except Hyunwoo.
He had already rejected his.
No one said a word.
And yet... everything changed.
Ji-ah's breath fogged in the cold air as her eyes narrowed at the screen in front of her.
[A Celestial Patron has chosen you. Would you like to form a Contract?]
She didn't flinch.
Her fingers hovered, then tapped [ACCEPT].
A low gust stirred the debris at her feet, brushing her coat like invisible fingers.
[You have accepted the Celestial Patron — 'The Crimson Star that Hunts Unseen'.]
[The Crimson Star watches you from a bleeding moon.]
[Blessing Acquired: Predator's Intuition – Lv. 1]
[You now walk the path of a silent hunter.]
Something changed in her posture—sharpened, precise.
Her hand drifted to her blade, and her eyes flicked sideways for the briefest moment—not to Hyunwoo, not to Ryeok or Jinho, but to the horizon, as though she'd heard something none of them could.
The Mythkeeper tilted its head slightly, watching her in amusement.
The boy stared at the floating screen, his small hands trembling as he held the pipe Hyunwoo had given him.
[A Celestial Patron extends its hand. Will you take it?]
His lip quivered. Then he looked at Hyunwoo—not for comfort, but courage.
He clicked [ACCEPT].
A soft, near-silent howl echoed through the stillness, heard only by him.
[You have accepted the Celestial Patron — 'The Wandering Beast Beneath the Moon'.]
[The Patron hears your heartbeat. It will answer your fear.]
[Blessing Acquired: Beast Whisper – Lv. 1]
[You now walk beside the feral silence beneath the silver sky.]
Jinho blinked. His grip on the pipe tightened—not from fear, but resolve. His small shoulders squared ever so slightly.
The Mythkeeper leaned forward, as if sniffing the air, intrigued.
The gang leader chuckled under his breath.
His screen glowed ominously red, as if sensing the fury boiling beneath his calm face.
You have been chosen by a Celestial Patron. Will you accept their power?]
His eyes gleamed. "Of course I will."
He accepted.
The ground under his boots seemed to shift, ever so slightly, like something below acknowledged his will.
[You have accepted the Celestial Patron — 'The Ashen Thorn of Ruined Thrones'.]
[The Patron feeds on your defiance.]
[Blessing Acquired: Bloodbound Pact – Lv. 1]
[You walk the road paved with broken crowns.]
Ryeok rolled his neck, a wicked smile curling on his lips. His aura changed. He didn't gain bulk or flash or flame—but something in him now demanded reverence.
The Mythkeeper let out a soft chuckle.
Hyunwoo watched in silence. He didn't ask who chose what. He didn't need to.
He could already feel it.
Ji-ah's eyes had shifted—quieter, watchful, predator-like.
Jinho stood taller, his hands no longer trembling.
And Ryeok... well, Ryeok now felt like a man with nothing to lose and something dark to gain.
And yet...
He alone had chosen to reject the call. He hadn't even read the offer.
Just clicked the ❌ the moment it appeared.