Only I Am A Reader

Woooo…

As the wind whistled through the vast flat plains, it silenced a set of steps that could be considered the heaviest in Murim within the current Era.

Metaphorical as that was, the one accompanying the owner of these steps couldn't help seeing it this way. No matter how Leo looked at it, the burden on Yeon's shoulder was heavy enough to crush mountains!

Whether it was on this iteration of the novel or how it would have originally gone, the unfortunate Heavenly Demoness was suddenly forced to decide the fate of not only her Society but also the entirety of Murim at the mere age of 20. It was a nonsensical situation on so many levels.

One could argue that the situation before Leo's interference was much worse than what it currently was. However, the detailed reality of it all wasn't so simple. At the very least, Yeon barely had any choice other than going with the trend.

While most would say that having no freedom of choice was atrocious, too much freedom with too many stakes could throw a weak-minded individual into oblivion. Unless one really had what it took to make decisions, being pressured by the circumstances in a certain direction was usually more reassuring.

Taking that into consideration, Yeon's burden could only be said to have increased. With the Heavenly Strength Society's undamaged strength, the level of bloodshed that could ensue when they would come to meet Geochin's army would be quite sizable…

Since all of that pain and death could be put away simply by accepting the protagonist's demand, Leo knew that he for one would be weighed down by the consequences of ignoring that route even if he was resolved not to take it, so he could only imagine what was going on Yeon's mind ever since she assumed responsibility of the Society.

With that in mind, Leo always made sure to accompany Yeon on these silent relaxing walks out of Mount Heaven. The date of their separation was coming closer, so he especially had to set aside a portion of his fleeting time for this no matter how much of a training maniac he was.

"Say… Is this going to be the last one?"

On this rare occasion where they communicated through words, Yeon let out a weird question that only Leo could understand. She hoped to confirm the conclusion of the never-ending events!

Such a line of questioning made absolute sense. After all, even in the bustling Murim, the chances that world-level conflicts would go back to back like this were almost null.

In fact, aside from the few major upheavals in the course of its long history, Murim maintained quite a few long periods of relative peace.

This troubling timeline had only come to be because this was a novel, and as a result of it, Leo, Yeon, Sohee, and Yong had to run around chasing opportunities, strength, and experience without a break, so it was only normal for Yeon to be sick of the continuous development.

However, despite that, Yeon's voice didn't sound tired. Rather, it carried a hint of curious anticipation. Unlike how Leo imagined he would handle the situation, it seemed like Yeon was unphased by the pressure, only seeking to get rid of it so she could finally 'settle down'.

"It should be… No, it will be."

To answer with such certainty was the same as confessing his identity, but Leo no longer cared for such formalities when it was between Yeon and him.

While it was true that he had no way of knowing which direction this world would head after the Epilogue, the disappearance of both the reader and the protagonist had to return everything to its peaceful normal course, no?

"That's a relief then."

With words full of trust, Yeon resumed her stroll, leaving Leo to fall into the spiral of thoughts once more.

'A month or two, that's the limit.'

Considering that three months had already passed since they emerged from their final seclusion, and taking into mind the occasional reports, Leo estimated that the time left before the finale was no longer than two months. The distance couldn't delay this any longer than that.

No matter how vast the central continent was, the main headquarters of the Great Sects were all set in the areas surrounding the Murim Alliance at the center of Zhongyang. They were a fair distance apart to stop territorial conflict, but their locations greatly coincided with Geochin's plans.

According to the reports, Geochin had taken the unconventional route of bringing along a group of elites to blitz the first third of his targets.

Rather than opting for wars of attrition that would be more to his favor with the large numbers that he had gathered, he wasted no time and killed the powerful and authoritative figures, taking them by surprise before harvesting the powerless forces that could no longer defend themselves.

Through this tactic, not only did he buy time for his initial army to steadily make its way to the second of their following targets, but he also utilized the forces that he collected from his lightning raids to stomp the first on his way, leaving only half of the Great Sects left!

Before they could even panic, the first Great Sect to confront the full army, the Wudang, should have already suffered a crushing defeat. If it wasn't for the distance between the central area and the flat plains, Geochin wouldn't even need two months to set the finale in motion…

'I need to hurry up and finish my preparations.'

While Leo's personal strength didn't mean much on its own in a battle of this scale, he knew one thing. He had to be the one to kill the protagonist in order to fulfill his quest! This was the one duty that Leo could never dump on someone other than himself!

"Should we head back?"

"...Let's go on for a little longer."

Wishing that he had the current Yeon's mental fortitude, Leo could only procrastinate a little bit further in hope of easing his worrywart of a brain.