Episode 8 – Cold Runtime

Jinwoo defeated the fake protagonists at the cost of his memories. But his eyes now resemble those of a lifeless machine. God broadcasts this tragic transformation with enthusiasm, calling it the birth of a dark hero. 1. An Efficient Monster Jinwoo no longer calculates human casualties. His mind contains only the optimal sequence for destroying God’s server. He begins using Dead Zone members as bait, sending them into danger to disrupt God’s surveillance network. “Sacrifice is only data loss. Once the server is destroyed, everything can be restored.” The members tremble at his emotionless commands. Those who once trusted him now fear him. The viewers are thrilled by this fallen hero and pour donation items — luck effects — onto Jinwoo. But he disassembles even those items and uses them as materials to strengthen his hacking tools. 2. Mina’s Infiltration: The Backup Sector Mina decides that the only way to bring Jinwoo back is to retrieve the original memory backup stored inside God’s system. Using her glitch ability to its limit, she breaks through the wall of reality and infiltrates the Backup Sector, where cached system data is stored. [Backup Sector: Memory Garden] It is a grotesque museum where God has preserved human memories He considered “great scenes.” There, Mina discovers glowing fragments of code containing Jinwoo’s discarded love for her and his anguish as a human being. 3. The Administrator’s Trap But Kyle is waiting for her. He sneers. “Why do you think Jinwoo threw those memories away? God didn’t force him. He chose it. He knew that love was a bug interfering with his revenge.” Kyle makes Mina an offer. If she gives her glitch ability to God and remains forever as a fixed supporting character in the show, he will return Jinwoo’s memories. As Mina hesitates, the Backup Sector’s security program activates and begins compressing her form. 4. God’s Counterattack: The Emotion Virus Meanwhile, on Earth, God releases a new episode: [EMOTION VIRUS] It is a virus that amplifies every suppressed emotion inside humans until they spiral out of control. Cities become scenes of chaos. Some kill themselves in overwhelming sorrow. Others murder each other in uncontrollable rage. Jinwoo watches the hellscape without blinking and continues adjusting the coordinates for his server strike. But then, a faint noise of memory transmitted by Mina from the Backup Sector reaches his device. 5. Ending: A 0.1% Crack Jinwoo’s fingers stop for a split second. For the briefest moment, pain crosses his expressionless face. He looks at Mina’s distorted code on the screen and mutters: “An inefficient bug has entered the system.” His mouth calls it a bug. But his hands, without his conscious command, begin writing firewall code to protect Mina’s coordinates. Watching this, God presses the ratings bonus button with interest. Across the skies of the world, a voting window appears. [EVENT: Jinwoo’s Choice – Love or Revenge?] Episode 8 ends.