Chapter 124: Episode 24 – Things that Can Be Changed (4)
[The Star Stream has detected anomalies from you.]
I hadn’t fought yet but my body was already showing subtle signs of shrinking. If I received the penalty then I would be like my other companions in a flash.
I deliberately approached them slowly and asked. “Why are you hostile to Koreans?”
There was a fight against the Japanese in the original novel but it hadn’t started so early. Besides, I destroyed the Absolute Throne and South Korea’s entry into the scenario was slower. That’s why this unfolded...
“Do you have to ask? You were hostile to us first.”
“...Are you talking about nationalist sentiment? I don’t have any anti-Japanese feelings.”
“You Josenjings killed us first.”
I looked at Lee Hyunsung and asked, “Really?”
“No! It is true that we fought to defend the small people but we didn’t kill the Japanese.”
“You didn’t?”
The samurai gritted his teeth. “I’m not talking about you. If you’re going to feign innocence then stop.”
Weren’t we the first ones to enter?
...Wait. Somehow I knew why the Japanese incarnations felt like this.
The samurai cried out, “Don’t make a fuss...!”
Yes, this was it.
[The exclusive skill ‘Bookmark’ can now be activated.]
[The number four bookmark has been activated.]
[Way of the Wind Lv. 8 has been activated.]
A gust of wind blew my way. The Japanese screamed as they were pushed back by the wind pressure and I rescued my party members in this short gap.
“Everybody grab onto me.”
Lee Hyunsung and Lee Jihye hung onto my shoulders while Lee Gilyoung slipped into my pocket with Shin Yoosung.
“This is my spot!”
“You can go to the other pocket!”
As the children were fighting, I grabbed onto grandmother no. 406 with both hands.
“Then I’m going.”
I started running through the forest. There was no need to deal with all the Japanese people here. If I killed anyone then my plan would be a failure.
[Hostile acts against a disaster have been detected.]
[You have been given a first scenario penalty.]
[Your body size has reduced.]
[Your total stats have decreased.]
Due to magnitude of the battle, the penalty already started. My body size was reduced by approximately 5 cm. Fortunately, my coat was decreased along with my body. As expected from the SSS-grade item, it changed shape with the user. I wondered how small it could become.
“Catch him!”
I saw the Japanese people running behind me.
[Some constellations want to pay back the nation’s humiliating history.]
[2,000 coins have been sponsored.]
The messages from the Korean constellations rang in my ears. In fact, it wasn’t strange for them to be angry. At first glance, some of the Japanese had constellations that would provoke anger.
I asked Lee Jihye who was clinging to my shoulder. “Why did you get captured already when your sponsor is Duke of Loyalty and Warfare?”
“...There isn’t any water around here.”
The Duke of Loyalty and Warfare was useless without water until he got the Two Dragon Sword. Lee Hyunsung would’ve been penalized while protecting the small children and Lee Gilyoung... he was currently having a conversation with Shin Yoosung.
“You should cherish insects. Don’t just kill them.”
“...The small people aren’t insects.”
“They are as small as insects.”
Yes, I knew what happened. Sometimes I was afraid that Lee Gilyoung would become a psychopath.
“He is going in the prime minister’s direction!”
“Contact the prime minister!”
Thanks to the penalty and the colony effect, the Japanese people were catching up to me despite Way of the Wind. I told Lee Hyunsung and the others.
“There is a person I have to catch before the snake hunt.”
“You have to catch the prime minister?”
“He is someone who leads the Japanese fighters and the disasters will pause for a bit after his death.”
Once the small person transformation began, the gap with the disasters was too big. If I didn’t catch the prime minister now then he would be the hardest to deal with later on.
Grandmother no. 406, who was sitting on my hand, asked me. “Young man, am I heavy?”
“It is heavy.”
The grandmother was heavy. It wasn’t became my body size had been reduced.
“Do you understand? There is only one chance.”
The grandmother laughed. “Yes, yes.”
The core of this mission was the grandmother No. 406. It might be fortunate that I found the prime minister, even if I missed the snake. The prime minister was strong but as long as this grandmother existed, the prime minister would surely be killed.
Then a man appeared from the bushes in front of me. “My sponsor is clamouring... what is the fuss?”
The man wore a gold armband and looked like a yakuza. Needless to say, he was the person I was looking for. He was ‘Prime Minister’ Yamamoto.
“...A Josenjing?” The prime minister was holding an iron cage with a female small person trapped inside.
Lee Jihye screamed furiously. “This person...!”
The girl in the cage was probably ‘Asuka Ren’ of the first group. She was the first person from Japan who refused to be a ‘disaster.’ Just like not all Koreans were good people, not all Japanese were bad. Good and bad were just determined by accident according to the circumstances.
The prime minister asked, “Hey, who are you?”
[The exclusive skill, Character List is activated.]
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[Character Information]
Name: Yamamoto Hajime
Age: 64 years old
Constellation Support: Korean Empire Invader
Private Attribute: Colonialist (Hero), Lustful Person (Hero), fear of a Ron (rare), Anti-Korean (Rare)
Exclusive Skills: Hand to Hand Combat Lv. 7, Advanced Weapons Training Lv. 4, Japanese Kendo Lv. 8, Mental Focus Lv. 3, Crowd Command Lv.4...
Stigma: Colonization Lv. 7, Spirit Concentration Lv. 5
Overall Stats: Physique Lv. 60 (+10), Strength Lv. 60 (+10), Agility Lv. 60 (+10), Magic Power Lv. 60 (+10).
Overall Evaluation: This is Yamamoto Hajime, who leads one of the four major groups in Japan. He can use ‘colonization’ to exert a powerful influence on people from a particular nation. If you are Korean or Chinese, it is recommended not to confront this person.
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“Why did the colonial slaves come here?”
Just as there were the three kings in South Korea, Japan had this person. Every country had those who lost sense of what era this was.
[Yamamoto Hajime’s synchro rate has risen due to the scenario buff.]
Korean Empire Invader. The sponsor behind Yamato was Ito Hirobumi, the first prime minister of Japan.
[The effect of ‘Colonization’ has made your movements dull.]
[The effect of ‘Colonization’ weakens your mind.]
Yamamoto’s stigma Colonization gave a powerful debuff to people who had experienced domination by Japan in history. The mental debuff was offset by Fourth Wall but the constraints on my movements were quite large.
I tried to resist capture as I said, “Don’t try to pretend to be a great person.”
“Trivial person...!”
Perhaps the Korean Empire Invader was trying to accumulate stories in this scenario. However, it wouldn’t work.
[The constellation who longs for the independence of his nation is looking at you.]
[The great independence fighter promises to kill him if you give the constellation three bullets.]
I ran straight towards Yamamoto. I put away Unbroken Faith and pulled out Ganpyeongui.
“Kill him!”
The clever Yamamoto used his men as a meat shield. It was an act that he did because he knew I would become a small person the moment I killed one person.
Killing Yamamoto himself wasn’t a problem. The problem was that after I killed, the damage I would receive wasn’t just the small person transformation.
If I killed someone then I would lose the effect of King of No Killing. Of course, I would give up the King of No Killing in this scenario.
However, not right now. I couldn’t afford to kill the prime minister. Thus, I wouldn’t be the one fighting here.
[Ganpyeongui’s special option ‘Echo of the Stars’ has been activated.]
[‘Echo of the Stars’ allows you to ask for the help of a constellation.]
[The constellation can refuse your request and the number of times Ganpyeongui can be used is reduced when the constellation responds to the request.]
I turned the Earth Disc and the constellations on the Sky Disc flashed brightly.
[The great constellations hear your voice flowing through the stars.]
I didn’t hesitate to call one constellation. “I want the Nation’s Independence Activist.”
In the long history of invasions on the Korean peninsula, there were a myriad of people who received the title of independence activist. Among them, there was only one person with the modifier of Nation’s Independence Activist.
It was because all the other constellations of the Korean Peninsula gave her this modifier.
[The constellation ‘Nation’s Independence Activist’ has responded to your call.]
A calm and clear energy penetrated my mind and the constellation’s image surfaced. She wore black mourning clothes and a white skirt. A girl who was too young to climb to the throne of a constellation.
I opened my mouth but the constellation shook her head. It was as if there was no need to say thank you. I nodded. If Japan had Ito then South Korea had this constellation.
“What? Who is his sponsor?”
The confused Japanese incarnations yelled. However, there were no signs of abnormalities from me and the Japanese regained their spirit.
[The stigma ‘Declaration of Independence Lv. 1’ has excluded the energy of Colonization.]
They were unaware that my strike had already begun.
[The stigma ‘Non-Violent Zone’ blocks the movement of you and people from certain countries..]
Suddenly, all the Japanese people in the vicinity froze.
“My body...?”
If Colonization was a stigma exclusively for Koreans, Non-Violent Zone was a stigma exclusively for the Japanese. Once this stigma was used, all Japanese people in the area would be unable to move one step. It would last for one minute.
“Move! Move now!”
Among the confused Japanese people, only Yamamoto laughed like it was interesting. He was also trapped by my stigma. “The power of this constellation... how interesting. My sponsor is going crazy.”
“...”
“However, you also can’t move. How will you kill me?”
I smiled. “I’m not going to kill you.”
It was natural. The person who would kill Yamamoto had been decided from the beginning.
“Grandmother, now!”
The person sitting on my left hand, prisoner no. 406 moved. Like magic, the grandmother’s body started to grow rapidly.
“W-What is that?”
In fact, the grandmother had never been affected by the small person transformation. It was because she was a ‘small person’ from the beginning. It was thanks to the magic that my mother’s subordinate, Jeon Woochi placed on her.
“Don’t panic! She is just a grandmother!”
The Japanese staggered due to the binding force as they tried to stop the grandmother. The grandmother just approached them with a smile.
[The character ‘Lee Boksoon’ has activated the skill ‘Elderly Person Lv. 7’.]
[Characters younger than ‘Lee Boksoon’ will feel respect for her.]
“Shit, what is this?”
The Japanese people retreated like they were conceding seats on the subway. Of course, it wasn’t intentional.
“Huhu, thanks for letting me pass. In fact, there is no need to make concessions.”
[The character ‘Lee Boksoon’ has activated the skill ‘Old Strength Lv. 6’.]
“This grandmother is strong.”
The Japanese people pushed by the grandmother screamed and fell down. Their arms were swollen like they would burst. Her appearance had transformed into a muscular body. Lee Hyunsung gaped over the wonderful muscles.
“...B-Block! Block her!” Prime Minister Yamamoto realized something was wrong and screamed.
I opened my mouth. “Grandmother, do it quickly.”
Lee Boksoon nodded. It might be a favourable situation but she would become a small person if she killed even one person. The important thing was killing the target before becoming a small person. The energy of Lee Boksoon’s sponsor emerged.
[The constellation ‘Nation’s Independence Activist’ and ‘Harbin Sniper’ has created an ensemble effect.]
[The Harbin Sniper will gain a 100% hit rate.]
[The Harbin Sniper’s bullet damage will increase by 150%.]
Now Lee Boksoon looked more like a fighter than an old person. A fighter who dedicated his life for only one purpose.
“How long have you been sitting in the elderly seats? This isn’t the Korean Empire. I tried to get along with the young people but they should know when to move out of the way.”
[The character ‘Lee Boksoon’ has activated the skill ‘Three Shots Lv. 1’.]
Lee Boksoon made a gun shape by stretching out her index finger and thumb to a 90 degree angle. Magic power formed at the tip of her index finger. Most incarnations were hardly ever damaged by magic power bullets. Except for one person.
The prime minister was shocked. “T-That ability? Your sponsor is...!”
「 Stage Transformation. 」
The phenomenon that occurred when constellations related to each other met was activated.
The surrounding scenery distorted and I seemed to hear the engine of a steam locomotive. It became an old train platform. It was my first time seeing it but I knew where this place was.
The year 1909, Harbin, China.
“Aaaaah...!” It was the place where Ito Hirobumi had died. “N-No! Dammit! Stop her!”
Yamamoto shouted with fright. For Stage Transformation to occur, the synchronization with the constellation had to be absolute.
[Specialized damage of ‘Three Shots’ is applied due to the influence of Stage Transformation.]
[The bullets’ damage will increase by 2000%.]
The bullets made to kill only one person burned at Lee Boksoon’s fingertip.
[The constellation Korean Empire Invader is requesting help from the other constellations of Japan!]
[The constellation Korean Empire Invader is screaming and staring at incarnation ‘Lee Boksoon’.]
Prisoner number 406, Lee Boksoon. The sponsor behind here was the righteous An Junggeun. (TL: Person who assassinated Ito Hirobumi)
“Farewell, Japanese lord.”
The three shots fired and Yamamoto stared blankly at his chest as he fell backwards.