D.I.O

Chapter 198

Oh, youre here. Did you enjoy the concert?

After the concert, the waiting room was cluttered. Frigid air poured out from the air conditioner installed on one of the walls, but it couldnt completely cool the singers who had performed on the stage just moments ago.

It was nice. Though, it was a bit noisy.

Yongno answered in a calm, or some would even say inconsiderate, tone. Soon, others in the waiting room started turning their heads toward him.

Leaf, who is that? Your boyfriend?

Dont start circulating unfound rumors. Youll start a s-scandal.

One of the members of the Bubble Girls, Elli, narrowed her eyes after asking her question. She was surprised to see Leaf vigorously shaking her head. Unexpectedly, Elli noticed that Leafs response had a sense of shame rather than denial.

Wait, is she really dating someone?

Yet, at that moment, one of the girls was fixing her makeup when she saw Yongnos face and shouted in surprise.

Oh! Arent you Merlin?!

What really?

With a twinkle in their eyes, many of the singers turned their attention to Yongno. Most, if not all, young Koreans played DIO, especially those in their teens or twenties. As celebrities were in their cars for a great deal of time, they usually logged into DIO to relieve some stress and boredom. As such, theyd obviously recognize one of the more famous users of the Heaven above the Heavens, the Outer Gods.

Merlin was primarily known for producing reinforced weapons and wasnt consistently active in public, but his face was well-known because of the occasional videos that showed him hunting or performing missions.

Hello! Im Jiyeon of the Bubble Girls! I trained in the Seven Jewels school of magic after watching oppas videos.

Did you truly reach Class 7? Many people have speculated that even a world-renowned scholar cant achieve a Class 7 rating. How were you able to do so at such a young age?

Idiot. There are no Classes in the Seven Jewel School. The highest rating is Five Star, not Class 7.

A clamor soon formed in the waiting room as idols rushed in to see Merlin. Most of the celebrities werent making a significant fuss, but those who practiced magic in DIO as mages, like Jiyeon and a few others, looked upon Merlin with bright eyes.

Ugh. I made a mistake. I expected that Masters would be treated like celebrities in real life, but I never thought it would be like this.

With his superpower-like cognition, Yongno had a quicker mind than anyone else. However, if there was something even he found difficult to assess and comprehend, it was peoples psychology. This was due to the difference in how Yongno viewed and thought about things compared to ordinary people.

Yongno understood peoples psychology on a theoretical basis, and he used that knowledge to imitate what was expected of him. This was just like how zoologists observed an animals behavior throughout its life and gained comprehension of its habits. Though Yongno was a rational, cool-headed adult at times, he also had a sort of childlike innocence. While his assessments and analysis were incredibly insightful, his overall comprehension lacked depth when it came to humans.

This is amazing. Its my first time seeing a Master.

Ah, I once did a commercial with Hanma oppa. His physique was incredible.

Yongno was surprised to see the girls talk about him as they chattered. Leaf soon spoke.

Yongno, do you want to come to our afterparty? Many celebrities will be there.

Yongno looked at Eunhye, who was standing behind him.

Uhm.

Eunhye made a troubled expression. Although her facial expression was difficult to judge, Yongno could easily guess her inner thoughts.

She wants to go.

Of course, it was difficult for anyone to reject an invitation made by a popular idol, but if Eunhye didnt like something, she would promptly and directly answer in the negative. Eunhyes hesitation meant that she wanted to take up Leafs offer. Although Eunhye had lived a turbulent and fierce life, she was still just a young lady. It was impossible not to have fantasies about parties.

Okay. If you dont mind, wed like to.

Bang!

Just then, the door to the waiting room opened violently, and a young man covered in dust entered and collapsed. This was so out of the blue that people panicked and screamed.

W-what is this? Is this a hidden camera prank? Ew, what happened to that guy?

Is he okay? Hes hes covered in scars!

The waiting room was protected by a layer of tight security. It was obviously strange that a stranger could barge in like this, as security was deployed to prevent the intrusion of avid fans or assailants.

Youngmin?

Phew I finally found you.

The high school-aged dimensional teleporter, Kwan Youngmin, struggled to get up, and he leaned against a wall. His hair, which was quite long for a man, flowed down both sides of his head, revealing a brilliant, handsome face. Though Yongno and Eunhye didnt much care about his appearance, he was a dashing young man that could even make idols blush.

Have you been attacked?

Attacked? Hahaha. No way. If I were attacked by what just appeared, theres no way a fledgling like me would still be alive.

Despite smiling, Youngmins body was littered with scars. However, Youngmin only lost a minuscule amount of blood, perhaps because of his bodys characteristics.

Should we take you to the hospital?

No. My body will regenerate automatically after some time passes. I came here to ask if theres any way to connect with another organization of mages.

Yongno looked around. As he saw numerous gazes and quizzical looks, Yongno sighed. He then replied to Youngmin.

Please keep your voice down. Theres no such thing as an organization of mages in this world. Im the only human mage here.

Hahaha is that so?

Yongno made a puzzled expression after seeing Youngmin weakly lower his head.

Have you finally realized the situation youre in? Yongno asked.

I sensed something off with this world, but I never thought there was absolutely no one who could use supernatural abilities.

In fact, Youngmin had felt an oddity from the moment he crossed space and arrived on Earth. Yet, he thought there was a problem with his body. Youngmin didnt want to recognize or believe in the apparent truth because he didnt want to accept that he was alone in a world completely unrelated to him.

This [Earth] looked similar to his home planet. They were so alike that he initially thought he had arrived at a different version of his home planet. However, there was a stark distinction.

I have something to ask you, inquired Youngmin.

Go ahead, Yongno replied.

Do you know about Differentiation?

At this unfamiliar term, Yongno cocked his head to one side.

Whats that?

***

It was said that Earth used to be the home of Sindroia, the origin of the universe, also called the Original Blooming Flower. In the beginning, the Creation God conceived the four great dimensions before making Sindroia and imbuing it with omnipotent power to maintain the four great dimensions. Sindroia, which controlled time, space, life, and matter, was an all-powerful being that could be considered a fragment of the Creation God.

Hence, every being wanted Sindroia. A legend states the Celestials and the Demons fought over Sindroia. This even includes the super-high-ranking beings, the Archangel and the Demon King.

Sindroia was the source that maintained and ruled the various dimensions, so when entire dimensions imploded and perished, theyd bloom again and regenerate into a world once more through Sindroias hand. Knowing this, the Celestials and Demons planned to lure out Sindroia by blocking its senses towards a single planet, annihilating all life present, and then releasing the barrier, which would make Sindroia react and appear before them.

When was that done?

Im not exactly certain. I only know that it was a long time ago. Anyway, the problem didnt arise during that time, but from what happened after. When that occurred, there was an issue because various beings coveted Sindroia. That incident served as the starting point. Soon afterward, the representatives of the physical world, along with the legendary Great Hero, annihilated Asura, the being who suppressed all transcendents and represented another image of the Creation God. The Earth as we know it was [Differentiated] at that time.

Youngmins voice was low yet clear and persuasive. His tone of voice was so convincing that, if he were a scammer, he could swindle an entire countrys populace of their fortunes and skin them dry.

A legendary Great Hero?

An existence called the All Master, or so Ive heard. It seems hes a being that has mastered all the superpowers in the world. Other than the fact that hes human, any information about him is kept top-secret. A mid-level fighter like me has no way to learn more about the All Master.

As he gave a self-deprecating smile, Youngmin continued.

Similarly, the exact reason behind the Differentiation isnt clear. Its said that this is a matter involving the highest-level gods, so its not information that can be accessed and known by a mere human. Yet, the vital factor is that the number of [Earths] increased to 100.

Youngmin continued his explanation. Since that fateful event, which happened hundreds of years ago, the Earth [Differentiated] into as many as 100 different dimensions. This number wasnt simply from copying and pasting Earth; subtle variables were implemented into each Differentiation, and each Differentiations era was adjusted.

Like parallel universes, Yongno commented.

Similar. However, the important thing is that all Differentiated Earths are based on the solar system standard. Thus, when civilizations exceed a certain scientific advancement and space travel becomes possible, they may meet each other. Hence, I could have moved into one of these parallel universes.

No, that isnt correct, Yongno denied.

Youngmin expressed his doubts.

How can you be so sure? In my civilization, the story about parallel universes is hypothetical, but theres no other reasonable explanation, right?

No, there must be another reason. Traveling between parallel universes is vastly more difficult than dimensional teleportation. Its challenging to interfere with set laws and rules even if one develops a special ability and reaches the transcendent level, at the least. In addition, all beings in the material world have a fixed address. Even if someone moves to a parallel universe from an accident, they will return to their original world in an instant. This is the same as a person jumping with all their might; they will eventually fall back to the ground.

The more Yongno learned about DIO, the more he researched and understood dimensional movement. This was because, in DIO, he was a mighty mage who surpassed the level of an archmage, but in reality, Yongnos abilities were minimal.

Yongno had always thought, I have to somehow bring the items I have in DIO to this reality!

As he knew that Dynamic Island and the space where his recent mission took place were real worlds, Yongno felt the urge to somehow summon the items he possessed in DIO into reality. Barring his equipment, if he could get his hands on his magic stones and continuously replenish his supply, he could achieve many things in reality. This was why Yongno worked tirelessly on the metal plate with magic circuitry drawn on it, a summoning device that Yongno named [Recaller].

However, only strange things have appeared from that device.

Still, the evil spirit from that summoning circle device was useful since Yongno could extract something from it. Yongno looked at Youngmin, who was deep in thought. Youngmin soon let out a sigh.

This is driving me crazy. Im in another version of Earth Ive only read about such fantastical things from old records.

Is there any way for you to go back?

If space travel were possible But this Earth hasnt reached the level of civilization needed to conduct proper space travel. There is no contact with the outer world.

This realization drove Youngmin to the brink of despair. The reality that it may be impossible for him to return home was sinking in. While his real body was still residing in his reality, it was essentially a vegetable, as he was never going to wake up.

There might be an overlapping point.

Hmm?

Youngmin was taken aback. He knew that this Earth had no superpowers whatsoever, and science wasnt too advanced, so it couldnt communicate with outside beings. Yet, Yongno continued.

You know of the Union, right?

Ah, of course! Ah! That organization can communicate with outside worlds! Is it here too?

While he shouted with delight, Youngmin seemed to have forgotten that Yongno could use his abilities to speak non-verbally. Though Youngmin wasnt dumb, he must have been quite unsettled to react in such a deafening manner.

First of all, I need to give you an explanation of a game called DIO.

Yongno calmly started explaining. For now, this world, this version of Earth, existed in a form in which no supernatural ability users could exist. Yongno then described the virtual reality game that suddenly appeared and the people who ran it. That is, the [Noblesse], who wielded great power within the [Union].

The explanation was lengthy. As Yongno explained, Eunhye sat beside him and listened carefully to his theory. She was quite intelligent and had no problem following and understanding what Yongno was saying.

Yet, after hearing the story, Youngmin didnt appear convinced.

Thats strange.

Hmm? What do you mean?

Why only this Earth?

It was an offhand statement, but Yongno immediately understood the point Youngmin was making. As far as Yongno knew, the only universe where the Noblesse created a virtual world like DIO and nurtured users was Yongnos version of Earth. Undoubtedly, DIOs management might be trying to trick him, but there was no sign of such deceit.

Why only this Earth? The planet Ayan I visited on the last mission was strangely similar to Earth, but its inhabitants didnt seem to know anything about the concept of users. The same goes for where Youngmin lives. It would be better to cast a wide net and select people carefully amongst a greater number of higher-quality users, but why is DIO only present for us? Whats the difference between their Earth and mine?

Yongno fell into thought. However, without having to consider this extensively, Yongno reached a conclusion.

It might be because this planet is inhabited by humans who cant use supernatural powers at all.

Hmm.

Youngmin fell deep in thought as he mulled over this plausible scenario. Certainly, in his view, the spiritual structure of this version of Earth was abnormal. He never thought there would be a material world without spiritual pathways. Unless there was a transcendent being capable of transforming the spiritual power of the world through their own power, it was impossible to properly exert ones spiritual power on Earth.

For people who were born and raised with no exposure to magic, what kind of power would they have when using mana?

If you want to return, contacting the Noblesse is one option, but you must be careful. Theres no guarantee that theyll act in good faith.

Youngmins expression turned solemn as he contemplated and felt increasingly troubled. He knew that the Noblesse, with their value of noble lineage, looked down on other species. In particular, those who referred to themselves as pure-bloods discriminated against lower species to such a degree that they ridiculed all other species as tribal country bumpkins.

Of course, dragons, a transcendent species, possessed outstanding intelligence and noble spirits, but even so, when their numbers increased, all sorts of psychopaths would inevitably pop out, and even wise beings may become foolish once they grouped together. Since their average level of intelligence was so high, they didnt stoop to the individual egotistic motives and lowly nature of human beings, but that didnt mean dragons were altruists.

What would you like to do?

Id like some more time to think. Maybe things will get worse if I act rashly. Yet, theres something more urgent than that.

Yongno tilted his head after hearing Youngmins words.

Something more urgent?

Yes. If Im to remain here, Id like to make things clear. Im younger than you, so may I call you hyung?

Yongno laughed as he shook off his serious expression and smiled kindly.

Well, that works. Speak comfortably. To be honest, until just a while ago, we were talking like office workers, werent we?

Yeah.

Youngmin laughed jovially as he smiled. At that moment.

Beep~

Eunhyes smartphone rang and gave off its monotonous melody, causing Eunhye to become nervous. She didnt receive calls too often.

Yes? Ah, yes. Alright.

After talking on the phone for a while, Eunhye put her phone down. Yongno asked.

Whats up?

Ah, that Do you know a user called Scorpion?

Yes, of course. We were sent on a mission and hunted together just yesterday. Well, to be exact, I dont know if you can say we were both hunted. Anyway, whats up with Scorpion?

Eunhye answered Yongno, who appeared puzzled.

Hes dead.