'[There are three ways to survive in a ruined world. Now, I have forgotten a few, but one thing is certain. The fact that you who are reading these words will survive for sure. –Three ways to survive in a ruined world]"
— Chapter 1- Prologue- Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World'
— Chapter 1- Prologue- Three Ways to Survive in a Ruined World'
"The flow was changing. Yoo Joonghyuk's fluctuation was conveyed straight away. This was the only chance.
"I know that Yoo Joonghyuk has special powers. You also know things about the future. Isn't that right?"
"…"
"But that knowledge is never perfect." The only weakness of a regressor was that the future changed when they used their information of the future. In other words, all those who regressed would eventually live in a world they don't know.
"Make me your companion. I can fill in the parts you are missing"
"I know that Yoo Joonghyuk has special powers. You also know things about the future. Isn't that right?"
"…"
"But that knowledge is never perfect." The only weakness of a regressor was that the future changed when they used their information of the future. In other words, all those who regressed would eventually live in a world they don't know.
"Make me your companion. I can fill in the parts you are missing"
— Chapter 11- Protagonist (2)
"On the other side of my field of view was Lee Gilyoung. The young boy looked at me with awed eyes. Unfortunately, unlike his wishes, I wasn't the main character in this world. Still, I was confident of at least one thing.
"Kar. Mien. Der." The dark keeper muttered as it barely managed to pull itself together from its shock.
I didn't ask but Yoo Sangah muttered from behind me in a quivering voice, "How do you know all my weaknesses…?"
This was what it meant. I gave an answer in a light manner.
"I usually read a lot of books."
I knew more about this world than anyone else"
— Kim Dokja against The Dark Keeper -Chapter 22- Episode 5- Dark Keeper (3)
"Kar. Mien. Der." The dark keeper muttered as it barely managed to pull itself together from its shock.
I didn't ask but Yoo Sangah muttered from behind me in a quivering voice, "How do you know all my weaknesses…?"
This was what it meant. I gave an answer in a light manner.
"I usually read a lot of books."
I knew more about this world than anyone else"
— Kim Dokja against The Dark Keeper -Chapter 22- Episode 5- Dark Keeper (3)
"We are companions separated by life and death."
— Kim Dokja regarding his relationship with Yoo Joonghyuk - Chapter 29- Episode 7- Landlord(1)
"If I was really a god, then I was the most incompetent god in the world. The most helpless god in the world who knew everything but couldn’t explain anything."
— Kim Dokja talking to the 41st Regression version of Shin Yoosung while retrieving her from the Underworld -Chapter 116- Episode 23- Abandoned World, I
"It was my story. I laughed as Yoo Joonghyuk’s sword pierced my heart.
<Your fate has been realized.>
My body slowly sank down and Yoo Joonghyuk held onto me.
“Kim Dokja.”
“It was a really great story. Isn’t that right?"
— Kim Dokja to Yoo Joonghyuk after the events of the 73rd Demon King Selection - Chapter 188- Episode 35- The 73rd Demon King, VIII
<Your fate has been realized.>
My body slowly sank down and Yoo Joonghyuk held onto me.
“Kim Dokja.”
“It was a really great story. Isn’t that right?"
— Kim Dokja to Yoo Joonghyuk after the events of the 73rd Demon King Selection - Chapter 188- Episode 35- The 73rd Demon King, VIII
"In fact, Yoo Joonghyuk couldn’t know. He was a person who only filled his head with the scenarios. Such a person wouldn’t care about what other people were doing. I deliberately wanted to nag at him. Please don’t live your life alone."
— Kim Dokja while asking about the other members of Kim Dokja's company to Yoo Joonghyuk during their stay in the 73rd demon realm -Chapter 226- Episode 42- Asmodeus, VI
"Nevertheless, she still begged. Please, someone, change this story. Even a very small salvation was okay, please. Please.
[The constellation ‘Demon King of Salvation’ is looking at you.]
To her surprise, salvation faced her.
[The constellation 'Demon King of Salvation’ wants to establish a 'Sponsor Contract’ with you.]"
— Iris Rebezova after being being betrayed by Anna Croft during the Gourmet Association event and forced to fight during the sub scenario - Chapter 240- Episode 45- Gourmet Association, V
[The constellation ‘Demon King of Salvation’ is looking at you.]
To her surprise, salvation faced her.
[The constellation 'Demon King of Salvation’ wants to establish a 'Sponsor Contract’ with you.]"
— Iris Rebezova after being being betrayed by Anna Croft during the Gourmet Association event and forced to fight during the sub scenario - Chapter 240- Episode 45- Gourmet Association, V
"[The constellation 'Demon King of Salvation' is looking at you.]
It was a star that never appeared in the last two rounds. Then why? Yoo Joonghyuk felt like the star had been there for a long time.
Yoo Joonghyuk declared, "Get lost, Kim Dokja."
Then one of the stars in the sky really went out.
“...Kim Dokja?"
There was no answer from Kim Dokja."
It was a star that never appeared in the last two rounds. Then why? Yoo Joonghyuk felt like the star had been there for a long time.
Yoo Joonghyuk declared, "Get lost, Kim Dokja."
Then one of the stars in the sky really went out.
“...Kim Dokja?"
There was no answer from Kim Dokja."
— Yoo Junghyuk after rescuing Biyoo from one of the Wenny Men - Chapter 256- Episode 48- Entrance as a Character, II
"Yoo Joonghyuk slowly opened his mouth.
“I want to die.”
It was a clear voice but there was a voice only clear to me.
「 I want to live. 」"
— Kim Dokja talking about the 1863rd regression of Yoo Joonghyuk during the Apocalypse Dragon scenario - Chapter 297- Episode 56- Reader and Writer, III
“I want to die.”
It was a clear voice but there was a voice only clear to me.
「 I want to live. 」"
— Kim Dokja talking about the 1863rd regression of Yoo Joonghyuk during the Apocalypse Dragon scenario - Chapter 297- Episode 56- Reader and Writer, III
Answer me! if we are really characters in a fictional novel, why did you die for us over and over?
— Lee Jihye when Kim Dokja reveals they are in a fictional world - Chapter 355 - Episode 66- Beyond Good and Evil (5)
"You're our son. That is all that matters."
— Persephone to Kim Dokja - Chapter 389
"[Constellation, 'Demon King of Salvation', is currently activating 'Will to Live Lv. 1'.]"
— Kim Dokja during the return of the Apocalypse Dragon scenario -Chapter 414- Episode 78- Twist, V
[It is the beginning of this universe and the master of the gigantic cogwheel. My oldest mortal enemy and my parent. And the one who decides the end of everything.]
— Secretive Plotter about the Oldest Dream - Chapter 421 - Episode 79- The Secretive Plotter (6)
"⸢That Library was recording everything about Kim Dokja, even in this very moment.⸥
⸢Kim Dokja's breaths, his appearance, his laughter, and his manner of speech.⸥
⸢The food Kim Dokja likes and the ones he dislikes. Songs he hummed occasionally. Expressions he makes when he's sad or happy. His habit of muttering to himself when he's not feeling confident, and the ensuing self deprecation.⸥
⸢His habit of leaning his head slightly when worrying about the kids. The slight twitch of his eyelids as he closes his eyes after thinking about his mother. The smile he makes whenever he's talking to Yoo Sangah. His arcing eyebrows and naughty smile whenever he's making fun of Han Sooyoung. The guilt when he thinks about Lee Hyunsung. And…⸥
⸢The glint in his eyes when he recalls the story he loves.⸥
That was why I could say it openly like this.
'I can just read from the beginning again'.
⸢B u t⸥
'From the moment the subway arrived, all the way up to when I arrived here in the Journey to the West. I can just read them all again.'
...
<Because I Iove reading the most in this world, after all>"
⸢Kim Dokja's breaths, his appearance, his laughter, and his manner of speech.⸥
⸢The food Kim Dokja likes and the ones he dislikes. Songs he hummed occasionally. Expressions he makes when he's sad or happy. His habit of muttering to himself when he's not feeling confident, and the ensuing self deprecation.⸥
⸢His habit of leaning his head slightly when worrying about the kids. The slight twitch of his eyelids as he closes his eyes after thinking about his mother. The smile he makes whenever he's talking to Yoo Sangah. His arcing eyebrows and naughty smile whenever he's making fun of Han Sooyoung. The guilt when he thinks about Lee Hyunsung. And…⸥
⸢The glint in his eyes when he recalls the story he loves.⸥
That was why I could say it openly like this.
'I can just read from the beginning again'.
⸢B u t⸥
'From the moment the subway arrived, all the way up to when I arrived here in the Journey to the West. I can just read them all again.'
...
<Because I Iove reading the most in this world, after all>"
— Kim Dokja's thoughts towards The Fourth Wall as he undergoes Outer God Transformation during the Journey to the West Remake scenario- Chapter 438- Episode 82- Outer God, VII
'"I mean, you can just say, there it is, so deal with it. It’s not the issue with understanding it, but rather, accepting it." ’
— Han Sooyoung - Chapter 454, Episode 86, The Square Circle (1)
I want to buy a really big house and live together with everyone.
— Kim Dokja - Chapter 456 - Episode 86- The Square Circle (3)
"My mother once told me this. A person who watched a certain story for a long time would eventually grow to resemble that story."
— Chapter 466, Episode 88, "Mythical-grade Constellation (4)
That child is everything I've earned in this world.
— Han Myungoh about Han Dareum - Chapter 467- Episode 89- Great Apocalypse (1)
Some words were quite convenient to use. And those words usually couldn't explain anything because of that convenience.
— Kim Dokja - 482- Episode 92- Final Scenario (1)
Kim Dokja's salvation was cruel. Like rescuing a drowning person with a blade, those saved by him were inflicted with an unhealable wound.
— Jung Heewon about Kim Dokja becoming the 'Enemy of the Story' - Chapter 488- Episode 93- Omniscient Author's Viewpoint (2)
"This wall existed in order to let others know that someone was beyond it. To let them know there was a person requiring a wall in this world. To let them know one could converse with another without hurting each other."
— Jang Hayoung's Wall of Impossible Communication being revealed to the Great Dokkaebis during the Final Scenario - Chapter 490- Episode 93- Omniscient Author's Viewpoint, IV
"As the child's face grew closer, I got to see so many other things. Such as the notebook the boy was scribbling on. There was a chart recording the power balance of the 'Ways of Survival'; it was the very same chart that I compiled once upon a time.
Yoo Joonghyuk, Lee Hyunsung, Shin Yoosung, Lee Jihye, Lee Seolhwa, Kim Namwoon, Anna Croft… Next to the densely packed names, their Stigmata and Skills were recorded. And finally, even the bruising on the back of the boy's hand covering up his own untidy handwriting.
I knew the history this boy had survived, and the future he'd get to live out; what would happen to this child in the future, and what sort of misery lay in wait for him.
⸢All of those years, just how much of a meaning was in them?⸥
He'd get targetted by the school gang and suffer serious bullying.
He'd get abandoned by his relatives and start living alone far too soon. And wherever he went, he'd be pursued by the reporters hunting him down.
He'd make a mistake during the university entrance exam and end up in a third-rate school.
He'd get unlucky and pull the shortest straw during the boot camp, and get assigned to the front lines.
He'd fill himself up everyday with triangular-shaped kimbap bought from the local convenience store.
And eventually, stumble into a job with some no-name company by the skin of his teeth and eke out a living that way.
During the period of ten years, he'd get to finish reading a certain novel, and after surviving by reading that novel, he'd drive everyone he loved to utter misery.
That boy would grow up to become Kim Dokja."
Yoo Joonghyuk, Lee Hyunsung, Shin Yoosung, Lee Jihye, Lee Seolhwa, Kim Namwoon, Anna Croft… Next to the densely packed names, their Stigmata and Skills were recorded. And finally, even the bruising on the back of the boy's hand covering up his own untidy handwriting.
I knew the history this boy had survived, and the future he'd get to live out; what would happen to this child in the future, and what sort of misery lay in wait for him.
⸢All of those years, just how much of a meaning was in them?⸥
He'd get targetted by the school gang and suffer serious bullying.
He'd get abandoned by his relatives and start living alone far too soon. And wherever he went, he'd be pursued by the reporters hunting him down.
He'd make a mistake during the university entrance exam and end up in a third-rate school.
He'd get unlucky and pull the shortest straw during the boot camp, and get assigned to the front lines.
He'd fill himself up everyday with triangular-shaped kimbap bought from the local convenience store.
And eventually, stumble into a job with some no-name company by the skin of his teeth and eke out a living that way.
During the period of ten years, he'd get to finish reading a certain novel, and after surviving by reading that novel, he'd drive everyone he loved to utter misery.
That boy would grow up to become Kim Dokja."
— Kim Dokja's thoughts upon meeting the Oldest Dream, his younger self and everything that would happen to the child's future.- Chapter 514- Episode 99- The Oldest Dream, III
Tell me, you fool. If I continue to regress, will I ever get to meet you again?
— 0th Regression Yoo Joonghyuk to the Oldest Dream - Chapter 525- Epilogue 1- The World of Zero (9)
"The man who came to her 1863rd regression turn. The man who she wanted to see again. The detestable man with his own brand of ass-kissing. The man who lied really easily. The man who she enjoyed being around, since they could lie about something together and snicker among themselves...The man, who didn't remember her."
— "Han Sooyoung seeing Kim Dokja after releasing the final chapter of TWAS -Chapter 535- Epilogue 3 -Author's Words,IV'''
"She spotted Kim Dokja standing on the platform, waiting for the next train to arrive. A person hiding within the small world crafted out of letters to protect himself was standing right there.
Kim Dokja, who didn't know anything about the apocalypse about to happen.
Kim Dokja, who'd get to live on the expansive world of the 'Ways of Survival'.
Kim Dokja, who'd get to meet the protagonist he so longed to become.
Kim Dokja, who'd become the 'Demon King of Salvation'.
Kim Dokja, who'd sacrifice himself multiple times for the sake of his companions, and as a result, came to the 1863rd turn and met her.
Kim Dokja, who was destined to become the 'Oldest Dream', the price he paid for loving a certain story too much"
Kim Dokja, who didn't know anything about the apocalypse about to happen.
Kim Dokja, who'd get to live on the expansive world of the 'Ways of Survival'.
Kim Dokja, who'd get to meet the protagonist he so longed to become.
Kim Dokja, who'd become the 'Demon King of Salvation'.
Kim Dokja, who'd sacrifice himself multiple times for the sake of his companions, and as a result, came to the 1863rd turn and met her.
Kim Dokja, who was destined to become the 'Oldest Dream', the price he paid for loving a certain story too much"
— Han Sooyoung's thoughts on Kim Dokja before her past self fully takes control of her body after writing the last chapter of TWAS- Chapter 535- Epilogue 3 -Author's Words, IV
"Even then, Han Sooyoung wanted to tell him. ⸢To tell him that he was definitely not at fault for this story being born. And to tell him that the things he was about to experience were not his sins.⸥ Because her past 13 years existed solely to say those words to him."
— Han Sooyoung seeing Kim Dokja for the first time since realizing she was the author of TWAS - Chapter 535- Epilogue 3 -Author's Words, IV
"Han Sooyoung wrote the story. Yoo Joonghyuk lived that story. And, I read that very story. And that’s how this world barely managed to reach its completion."
— Dokja as the Oldest Dream thinking about the events of how TWAS came to be - Chapter 536- Epilogue 4- The Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, I
I always hated you. And regretted it, too. Why did I write the story of someone like you with my own hands?
— Han Sooyoung to Yoo Joonghyuk - Chapter 545- Epilogue 4- The Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint (10)
"An existence who had never imagined his own happiness. The ‘Kim Dokja’ they knew was such a person."
—Kim Dokja's Company during their reunion with Kim Dokja -Chapter 551- Epilogue 5- The Eternity and Epilogue (Complete)
