Chapter Text
As he desperately flails in the rather dirty river, trying his best to both bring himself back to land all while making sure the book in his hand doesn’t get wet, Kim Dokja wonders how he even got himself into this situation.
= = =
If he were to trace everything back to the beginning, it probably began with his mother killing his father, forever labeling him as ‘son of a murderer’ and leaving him with nothing else but his beloved webnovels.
It was probably when he found a certain novel and fell in love with it, only for the author to one day delete it without a trace and then rewrite a new version that he hated.
It was probably when said new version he hated became a total hit with plenty of adaptations from video games to anime, pushing the original version into even further obscurity than it once was (and considering that the original version literally had only one reader, that’s really saying something).
It was probably when Yoon Sihoon, his sorry excuse of a department head, made up some bullshit excuses to pressure him into quitting the company - which he gladly did, considering his life then had reached a point where he no longer cared if he lived or died. Not even when Yoo Sangah, the only person who was kind to him at the company, sadly asked him to stay.
Or, most accurately, it was probably when he went to a bridge, head filled with intrusive thoughts about jumping off of it; and accidentally caught wind of a heated argument between a beautiful blonde in a black dress and a… mysterious hooded figure?
“Fuck you and the fucking hole you crawled out from!!” Dokja winced at the unexpectedly crass words from such a… delicate-looking young woman. “Do you have such a boner for that sorry excuse of a rewrite that you would blackmail me for it to be adapted instead of just using the original novel?!”
“The original version… that the author themself had erased from earth. Surely your opinion can’t be prioritized over the author’s own feelings?” Although Dokja couldn’t see what the mysterious hooded figure looked like, his voice (which sounded weirdly modified) gave him the impression of an eye-rolling. “Besides, you’ve been the unreasonable one here - to think that you would even use Metatron’s influence to force the crew to use the original script.”
“Because doesn’t the rewrite version have too many adaptations already?! How many more times do they want to promote that emotionless-ass with too many sticks up his ass protagonist?! The Yoo Jaehyun with actual emotions of the original version deserves to be more known!! Not to mention the duo chemistry that the author somehow found a good idea to omit!!”
Dokja blinked as he caught the familiar names from the blonde woman’s angry rantings. She couldn’t be talking about that same Yoo Jaehyun he’d known for thirteen years, could she? The Yoo Jaehyun that had been unceremoniously ‘erased from earth’ in favor of a more… ‘traditional’ male fantasy protagonist? But he thought that no one else but him read the original novel…
“Enough. Uriel, do you think I have time to listen to your worthless rambles? The revised version is the one chosen for the live-action drama, no arguments. In fact…” The hooded figure suddenly slapped her hand, causing the book she was holding to fall into the water. “It’s best to get rid of this, so you will never have anything to bother others with again.”
Dokja didn’t know what possessed him to do it, but at that moment, he found himself also jumping off of the bridge. With a loud splash and more than a few mouthfuls of dirty water, he thankfully caught the book in his hand, but then got swept away by the river flow.
Between the woman’s shrieks, water getting inside his mouth and nose, and desperately flailing to keep himself alive (ironic considering his thoughts regarding life and death up until then); Dokja somehow still has the time to scorn himself for doing something so stupid.
= = =
When he regains consciousness, Dokja finds himself in a hospital, an IV in his arm and accompanied by the black-clad blonde woman who glomped him and screamed tearfully about how sorry and thankful she was.
“... Excuse me, uhm…” Dokja weakly interrupts because her voice is currently too loud for his aching head. “The book… Is it okay?”
“It’s wet but intact, and there’s nothing a hairdryer can’t fix!! It’s all thanks to you jumping into the water just to get it back for me in the first place!!” She sniffs into his shoulders and only gets louder when he awkwardly pats her back. “You’re so kind, just like that self-sacrificial bastard Kim Daeyoon!! I’ve decided, you’re going to be his actor and I’m going to bully Metatron into this so much, he has no choice but to agree!!”
There are too many names thrown around for him to understand and he feels a little concerned about what she said regarding bullying someone into something, so he decides to first latch onto the one name that he does recognize. “Kim Daeyoon? Do you mean, the viewpoint protagonist of ‘Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse,’ later becoming ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor’?”
She had been arguing with the hooded figure about an ‘original’ and a ‘revised’ something, so Dokja assumed that she would recognize the names. And, to his astonishment, she does, eyes widening as if seeing her soulmate. “... You… You’ve read the original version before?! K-Kim Dokja, you…” She then suddenly kneels down in a knight’s position, ignoring his flustered protests. “I swear my loyalty to you. I swear that no matter what, I’ll make you Kim Daeyoon’s actor.”
“W-Wait, please!! Never mind the whole loyalty thing - what’s that about acting as Kim Daeyoon?! I was just asking to confirm if you’re also a reader…”
“My loyalty is with you forever - and Yoo Joonghyuk, too, but that’s another story. Anyway…” She loudly changes the subject, firmly shutting down whatever protests he still has. “As you might’ve heard from that bastard earlier, they’re planning for a live-action adaptation of ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor.’ Every other actor has already been chosen, but not Kim Daeyoon, because I’ve been trying to pressure them into putting that on hold until they agree to adapt the original version, ‘Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse,’ rather than the rewrite.”
Dokja can only blink at her. “... If I may ask, and forgive my ignorance, who are you? Because you sound like someone with a lot of influence…”
The girl blinks back before blushing. “My, sorry!! I’ve been talking your ears off without even introducing myself - forgive me, it’s not every day I find someone who also knows the original version… Anyway, my name is Uriel. I’m the Managing Vice President of Eden.”
He gapes slightly in recognition at the name. ‘Eden’ is such a famous film production studio that she can just drop the name without any more explanation, even if he initially doesn’t recognize her considering that their companies never worked together before. This also explains why she can put an entire production on hold just because she doesn’t agree with the chosen script.
And considering the other very familiar name that she dropped earlier… “I see. And, Uriel-nim, what’s that about Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi? He’s the most famous gamer in Korea right now so I can understand the decision to choose him for popularity; but in the end, he’s still a gamer, not a professional actor.”
“Well, his background kind of fits Yoo Jaehyun’s lore itself, don’t you agree? Also a famous streamer/gamer that gets thrust into crazy scenarios that no one could’ve been prepared for. Besides,” her voice suddenly takes a vicious tone, “who cares about whether he has acting experience or not, anyway? It’s not like ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor’ is anything more than a trashy male power fantasy novel, written to appeal to the most toxic straight male audience possible.”
Harsh as her words are, Dokja can’t bring himself to disagree. The revised version was written nearly ten years ago, when there was a massive trend of OP, untouchable protagonists who could handle everything by themselves. ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor’ had managed to become even more popular than anything else of that genre at the time due to utilizing Kim Daeyoon as the much more pathetic viewpoint character, boosting Yoo Jaehyun’s image beyond belief and making him the ultimate wet dream for fans of the male power fantasy genre.
However, popular as it was, it was also no question that there was little, if any, depth in the story or between the characters. Every named character - whether Yoo Jaehyun’s love interest and eventual wife Lee Seohee, his disciples Kim Namjung and Lee Jihae, his followers Lee Hyunsuk, Jung Hyowon, and Shin Yooseon; or the ‘pathetic’ viewpoint character Kim Daeyoon - only existed to make Yoo Jaehyun look better by being damsels in distress that he had to save, especially Kim Daeyoon, who was twisted into someone with so much jealousy and insecurity that he kept diving head-first into dangerous problems just to prove himself, yet always needed to be rescued by Yoo Jaehyun anyway.
This problem didn’t exist in the original novel. In fact, whatever else the original version might be lacking, character chemistry wasn’t one of them. All the named characters were fleshed out with their own personalities and goals that didn’t revolve around Yoo Jaehyun; and just to add insult to injury, the original version of the relationship between Kim Daeyoon and Yoo Jaehyun are ‘life-and-death companions’ in equal standings, not that between a bitter yet useless self-proclaimed rival and an asshole protagonist who doesn’t care.
Dokja swallows down the bitterness that has never failed to overcome him whenever he thinks of how, despite being so well-written, the original version never became popular while that terrible rewrite is so liked.
Instead, he chooses to nod at Uriel’s words. “It’s true that the plot ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor’ is quite… simple, so Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi shouldn’t have much difficulty playing Yoo Jaehyun - especially not when Yoo Jaehyun doesn’t have… much to his character in the first place.”
Uriel scrunches her nose bitterly in agreement. “Yeah… much as I love Yoo Joonghyuk, that guy is a brick wall so he’ll be perfect for the sorry excuse of a protagonist. What I’m worrying about is how they may also butcher Kim Daeyoon’s character just to milk the so-called ‘rivalry’...” She suddenly whips her head back toward him again. “Which is exactly why I’ll make sure that you become Kim Daeyoon’s actor!!”
He barely stops himself from sighing. “Uriel-nim, I’m also not a professional actor. In fact, my profession was that of a game QA, nothing to do with acting or production. It’s one thing for Joonghyuk-ssi to be chosen to attract attention, but for me…”
“But you read the original novel!! You’ll be the only one who knows how Kim Daeyoon and Yoo Jaehyun’s relationship is supposed to be, thus being able to convey that love even with the terrible script that those damn scriptwriters will write!!”
Uriel is now kneeling down on the ground again (much to Dokja’s mortification) and staring at him with wide, teary, pleading eyes. Having seen her cursing at the mysterious hooded figure before, Dokja is almost sure that she’s just faking this to guilt him… and it’s working. Damn it.
“... Alright, I’ll try my best if Uriel-nim insists. But, once again, please keep in mind that I’m not a professional actor.”
“Wonderful!!” Her face immediately brightens up, and for a second, Dokja wonders if he should regret knowingly letting himself be fooled. “And as I said, don’t care about not having acting expertise, not with a bad story like this. Besides, pretty much everyone else aside from Lee Hyunsung and Shin Yoobi has no acting history anyway.”
Before Dokja can voice out his concern about how the production crew seems to care so little about this (in)famous novel that they would hire people without acting experience, Uriel has already grinned at him again. “I’ll pay for all of your hospital bills and arrange everything with the production crew, so don’t worry about anything and just do your best!! I have to go now and might not be able to see you again for a long time, but be assured that I’ll always be your loyal knight!!”
She then proceeds to run out of the room at the speed of light - literally, Dokja can’t even register anything but a flash of light and… is that… feathers?
A nurse comes in, his face tired and exasperated as he apologizes to Dokja for Uriel’s antic, assures him that she has indeed already paid for all the hospital bills, and tells him to get some rest as he changes his IV. Too stunned from all these revelations and his still ringing headache, Dokja decides to do as the nurse says and closes his eyes.
= = =
Five hours of bad sleep later (because Dokja has been through that much overtime and nights without sleep), he finds himself staring at the various notifications on his phone.
From his email, he received one email about the names, address, and contact person for the studio; another email containing the script for the first season of ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor’s live-action adaptation; and a final email attached with a recommendation letter signed by the Chairman of Eden, Metatron. From his messages, there is a message from an unfamiliar number saying ‘hi, this is Uriel, love u <333’.
And from his very old account on that webnovel site where tls123 once uploaded the original version, a user named ‘Demon-like Judge of Fire’ sent him a private message, saying that she’s also Uriel and she was apparently too busy to comment on the original version but was still reading everything and had always paid attention to him as the only commenter of that story.
Dokja rubs the space between his eyebrows. Apparently, five hours of sleep is too little to process all of this; and for a moment, he almost wants to believe that it’s all just a dream. Yet, the emails, messages, and PM are all still there, and a quick Google search shows that the ‘Uriel’ who swore loyalty to him earlier looks exactly like the Managing Vice Chairman Uriel on the Internet.
So, all of this is real, somehow. Who could’ve known that trying to get back a book for a stranger would result in this?
Letting out a resigned sigh, Dokja opens the email containing the script, and finds himself scowling in disgust. Much as he hates the revised version compared to the original novel, he had still read it up to at least chapter 300; and he is absolutely sure that Kim Daeyoon wasn’t half as pathetic in the webnovel as he is in this damned script. Similarly, there were not nearly as many moments shilling Yoo Jaehyun’s ass as there are here.
He looks up Yoo Joonghyuk, the person who apparently will be playing Yoo Jaehyun, which only sours his mood further as he remembers why he doesn’t like this guy very much in the first place.
Yoo Joonghyuk is admittedly extremely handsome, very good at gaming and streaming, and has certainly worked hard to get himself where he is - if the story about being abandoned by his parents at a young age and having to raise his sister himself is true. However, he’s also an infamous jerkass who looks down on anyone who isn’t his sister or his girlfriend Lee Seolhwa. And there isn’t a single emotion on this guy’s face, no matter how many photos Dokja tries to dig out from the Internet.
He doesn’t trust someone like this to play Yoo Jaehyun. Even as the shallow version he is in ‘SSSSS-grade Regressor,’ Yoo Jaehyun still has some very rare vulnerable moments that allow the readers to see his depths. He would, though very infrequently, smile or cry a little in heartwarming moments with his love interest. And yet, all he can see from Yoo Joonghyuk is that this guy will turn Yoo Jaehyun into even more of a shallow brick wall than he already is.
But then again, bitterly laughs Dokja as he remembers his situation, it’s not like he has any moral ground to speak when he doesn’t even have the popularity advantage Yoo Joonghyuk does. At least Yoo Joonghyuk can charm his fans into watching. Dokja has nothing, not when he’s only an ex-QA tester and once upon a time, a son of a murderer.
He lies back on the bed tiredly and takes another look at the recommendation letter. Apparently, the first shooting will be in three days, just enough time for Dokja to heal and then come play the role of a useless viewpoint character who always needs to be saved.
On another day, Dokja would’ve elected to forget all about this nonsense. Yet, he finds himself already decided to come to the shooting. After all, it’s not like he can just brush off the favor of Uriel paying his hospital bills and going out of her way that much.
And…
He’s very much looking forward to how he and Yoo Joonghyuk can ruin Kim Daeyoon and Yoo Jaehyun’s images more than they already are.