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How long did he wander those worlds alone? A constellation has the right to see the scenarios from an outsider's perspective, from the viewpoint of a "reader".
The Demon King of Salvation was the oldest of many siblings, he knew this in his very soul. The only way to reach those siblings was the small black device in his hand, the item that had gotten him through many trials alone.
How long was he alone? He was with them, once. They were one.
There were so many new stories, so many things to read and yet the Demon King of Salvation remained alone in that world, separated from it and doomed to be an outsider until someone let him get closer.
It was expensive to send messages, but he couldn't help it. He managed to find one of his brothers, his youngest. He could tell that the Youngest didn't know much and couldn't make sense of his own being, and so the Demon King of Salvation came alongside him to teach him.
He was the Youngest's older brother, after all. How could he leave him alone?
Second was quiet and reclusive, and Third was blocked from him... And the "snowfield" Kim Dokja seemed to despise him.
And so all he could do was focus on his Youngest and the fragments around him.
There were so many stories, so many trials that his Youngest went through and so the Demon King of Salvation did what he did best: he read them all. He related them all to himself and soon he found that he could not leave this story behind, he could not let himself be so detached from it for long.
So he entered a sponsorship contract with what few coins he had that remained. He had spent so much trying to contact his other brothers that all he could do was ask for his Youngest to lend him some.
It was shameful, but he could not let this story slip away from him. He had to stay close, he had to do everything he could to support his Youngest brother.
And in the end, he only ended up causing more and more trouble for him.
He did not carry very many memories, only his stories that gave him the modifier "Demon King of Salvation". But he knew enough to know just how painful it must have been to return to that setting.
The battle against the 73rd Demon King, the one that originally separated him from his companions so many scenarios ago. In a different worldline, in a different universe entirely perhaps he would not have to sacrifice so much.
Because he knew better than anyone what happened to the ones the sacrifice was made for.
A sacrifice was always a gift, a wish at the cost of something precious. A wish for reconciliation, for power, for the safety of someone dear. As for the Demon King of Salvation, his wish was very simple.
Let this story continue.
The world they had read was never easy for the "characters" inside of it. But if there was one thing that the Demon King of Salvation could give his Youngest brother now, he would give it willingly for his sake.
Because he was the oldest, he was the one who could sacrifice the most. It was his privilege, as he had already been given so many blessings by his Youngest (coins, he was given coins. We don't talk about the small details).
It was such a familiar scene that as it happened, the Demon King of Salvation was certain that his Second brother would have appreciated it. It was a setting that had become familiar, a painful experience that would be the final time.
Because he had nothing else to give after this.
He could remember their eyes, the pain in them as they watched him sacrifice himself again. It was all for their sake, for the hope that finally that "Kim Dokja" would reach the ending he hopes for.
The Youngest would continue writing a story of his own creation, and the Demon King of Salvation would watch on in pride. This was more than he could have hoped for. It was more than he could have asked for.
But strangely enough, his own story was not yet over. He was still separate, still himself. He was placed in a familiar library, one where the other fragments would also be eventually gathered if the Youngest continued on this path.
It was a small, and horribly messy, but it was where he would be able to continue watching this beloved story.
He set to work organizing the many books on the shelves and took the time to read what the Youngest had written during his time.
His stories were wonderful, takes that the Demon King of Salvation could never have created in his lifetime. So he read, and he read..
He would sometimes talk to the other Kim Dokjas, to the Second Kim Dokja in particular as he was the only one who seemed to be able and willing to listen from time to time.
This was his new life, his new way of being able to watch the story and support it.
"Big brother" is what the kkomas who came in would call him. Some of them would use other names for a time, but in the end it always came down to this title.
Indeed, in the life of Kim Dokja and with that title, there was no such thing as this kind of relationship. Kim Dokja was alone, he was always meant to be lonely. So to have so many younger siblings now, to be asked to read stories by them and stroke their heads before bed...
"Big brother" was his favorite title.
Now, there was a book in his hand. A small leather bound story with words that were soothing to the younger souls around him.
These kkomas, they all had their own lives at one point. They were their own people, with their own stories. They wanted more than anything for those stories to continue.
But they were cut short, and as the oldest the Demon King of Salvation took responsibility for it. So whatever he could do for them, whatever they asked would be given to them.
They were not frightened by his horns or his wings, they did not ask questions for they already knew who he was. If anything, he would be given a scolding through tears whenever a new kkoma arrived in the library.
They didn't speak much, and many of their memories had faded in their own minds. But the Demon King of Salvation could read their stories and hearts, and so he continued to read for them.
They watched the Youngest together, although sometimes he would have to crane his neck to see over the many black haired heads hogging the newspapers and books they would receive.
Being an older brother was definitely not easy. In moments of exasperation he would often liken the experience to attempting to herd cats.
Of course, this was his punishment as much as it was his salvation.
When the world within the library fell silent with the dimming of the lights and the artificial feeling of nightfall, the Demon King of Salvation would often sit awake and watch over the small sleeping forms around him. Sometimes they would fall asleep on him, others would pile in corners or slump against bookshelves alone..
But each one of these stories were still precious and invaluable to the library. It was a perfect collection, incomplete but comforting in its peacefulness.
Could he say that these stories were safer in this place? Could he dare claim that even though to the outside world these stories had all been cut short that in spite of everything they were safer in this library?
Could he be selfish enough to utter these thoughts?
He was no longer alone, and the siblings around him were all dear to him even though they caused him many troubles in the library. But in the end, they really had been stories that were cut too short and dreams that had come to an abrupt end.
But the alternative was even more frightening, because if they could return to that scenario zone and eventually to the lives they left behind... He would be left alone again.
Indeed, it was selfish, but he did not wish to be alone again. He was originally born out of a story of sacrifice, a story that was laid down for the sake of other people.
As long as he kept watching this story, he would not be left alone.
There were still stories being written, and lives that were being lost. His Youngest brother's journey would continue, and he and his siblings would continue to desire to see the ending he designed.
It was a wish that had been fulfilled through sacrifice.