The Tales of an Infinite Regressor

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The Pursuer IX

17

After patrolling around the school with Cheon Yohwa, we reached a conclusion.

“This place… seems like a peaceful world.”

A world where humanity has not perished.

Void areas, called ‘Gates’, were appearing sporadically, but they weren’t as serious as in reality.

True to their name, these voids looked like gates everywhere. If left alone, monsters would slowly begin to emerge.

Conversely, successfully sealing these Gates minimized the damage.

– Remember when the Gate appeared around Sinsa Station in Seoul? Due to the rush hour, there were fears of significant casualties.

– This time, the Fourth Expedition finally succeeded in clearing the Gate at Sinsa Station. The leader of the expedition, Tang Seorin, who rescued most of the missing, …

– Meanwhile, demanding government responsibility for this incident, which updated the historical figure of Gate victims to 212 deaths, …

In newspapers, news, YouTube, and SNS, stories related to Gates have been flooding the media.

Civilization did not collapse.

Since ancient times, humanity has endured disasters such as typhoons, floods, earthquakes, famines, and pandemics, with ‘Gates’ being a brief addition to the list of calamities.

Humanity still proclaimed itself the ruler of all things.

While some feared Gates and monsters as signs of the apocalypse, our experience of returning from the brink of ‘the end’ was inevitably different.

“…I envy them. If only our world were at this level.”

“In showing us a world that isn’t completely peaceful, Endless’s cunning is evident.”

“Huh? Why?”

“We already have traumas from creatures in our heads. In an overly peaceful world, we would only be conscious of our abnormality. Captured by the obsession that the world could end at any moment. …But here, monsters appear at a manageable level. In this world, you and I can live as ‘normal’ people.”

“Ah… wow, even that detail?”

“Yeah. Because they’re overlooked outsiders. Not just anyone.”

Where else would it be?

In a completely peaceful world where no creatures exist, Cheon Yohwa’s awakening ability and mine are like alien tumors.

But what if it’s a world where monsters exist?

In that case, our accumulated abilities, knowledge, instincts would all translate directly into achievements. Guilds from all over would flood us with countless requests to recruit us.

“A world where you can climb to the top of the pyramid without denying yourself and endlessly affirming positivity. Yet, our success is not due to the grace of Endless Hell, the outsider, but to our own talents, efforts, and free will. This is a model garden designed solely for the two of us.”

“…”

Cheon Yohwa’s shoulders sagged.

“…It’s scary. These creatures.”

“It is. But conversely, we’re the ones who have pushed back against Endless Hell to this extent.”

Four steps. A distance from Pian to Cha. Our footsteps resonated with the infinite moment, never useless.

Endless was undoubtedly collapsing.

Tang Seorin’s journey. Noh Doha’s refuge. The observation of the Saintess. Routes containing each eternity were tread upon.

The fantasies selected by Endless were denied by our will to return to reality, no matter how sweet they may have been.

“Yohwaaaa!”

“Let’s play basketball together!”

Far away, students waved at us from the playground.

Pause. Cheon Yohwa held her breath for a moment. After about three seconds, she made a horn and shouted, “Sorry! I’m skipping todayyy-”

Eh, eh, eh-

Wings sprouted on the bark of summer tree trunks, wailing fiercely. Leaves rustled in the wind. Laughter of children and cicadas echoed through the school playground, the makeshift sand dune.

“Friends, I guess.”

“…Yes. Same class. Roommates.”

A sigh drifted downward. It was a faint breath, barely reaching the desert.

“They both died in the school ghost story in just a week.”

Cheon Yohwa tapped the ground with the tip of her shoe. Tock, tock. The weight of a single human knocked on the earth.

“Ughhh. Sir. I suddenly thought, well, actually, I’ve been hearing it since before, but I’m asking now.”

“You can tell me.”

“Why shouldn’t we stay here? No, it’s not that I want to. I’m really curious, so I’m asking. Just… isn’t there nothing special about going back?”

“…”

“Every time I go to the bathroom, I have to check for ghosts. If I don’t want to eat human flesh, I have to pick out each piece of meat. When I sleep and wake up, someone always disappears. According to you, it’s not just our school that’s ruined, but the whole world is ruined… How can I confidently say we need to go back to reality?”

“Hmm.”

“For example… what if we invited not only us but everyone else to Endless? Then, wouldn’t this place become reality? Or is it that there’s no value in an unreal world…?”

“No. It’s not for that reason.”

“Then why?”

“My pseudonym is Undertaker.”

Cheon Yohwa turned this way.

“Just as you have the ability to brainwash targets, I have several abilities myself. Among them is the ability to seal time… Personally, it’s an ability I call a funeral.”

“A funeral.”

“I can make the day that a person feels happiest last forever.”

“…”

“To be precise, it’s not even repetition. That person doesn’t realize that their day is endlessly replaying. The reason I gained the name ‘Undertaker’ is precisely because of this ability.”

The sound of cicadas in the trees and the sound of a basketball bouncing on the court, beyond the school wall, a truck honked loudly.

“Yohwa, do you think there’s no unhappiness in this world?”

“…No.”

“Yeah. There must be. Just yesterday, during the sealing of the gate, 212 people died. No matter how optimized the settings are by the realm, it’s still far from achieving happiness for all humans.”

The traffic light in front of the school gate blinked steadily on the crosswalk.

“Why doesn’t the realm entrust life? It’s a very simple reason. It’s an issue of comparative advantage. This world, to accept it simply as the last hell, lacks persuasiveness.”

“…”

If this world were hell, people would eventually live to find as much hell as they can accept. Until then, people can defer their lives.

After a long silence, Cheon Yohwa nodded.

“…Yes, I understand. Sir, you are like the terminal station where people can return anytime.”

“That’s how it turned out.”

“So eventually, the only question I should ask myself is whether I give up now and just rest… Yeah. It’s okay. I’m not tired yet.”

Our gazes crossed.

The sunset enveloped the desert. The orange hue was a mixture of sand and redness. Cheon Yohwa’s hair also carried the scent of the desert and the fragrance of oranges in equal parts.

“Please tell me what I should do next, sir.”

18

“I faithfully followed the strategy presented by the Saintess on the surface of the moon.”

―― Seize control of the Hundred Ghosts’ Night Journey, consisting of a hundred spirits from the realm, known as the Baekgwi Yahaeng.

If I could execute this strategy, undoubtedly, the power of the realm that descended as a hundred ghosts would greatly weaken.

“For this operation, Yohwa, you must indoctrinate each and every spirit of the Hundred Ghosts.”

“Indoctrinate the monsters.”

“Yes. It doesn’t matter how long it takes. Ultimately, make the spirits follow you rather than the realm.”

“Yes, I’ll try.”

I captured and threw a ghost “konkonkon,” ensuring it hung from the ceiling with a rope around its neck to prevent it from banging its head on the ground.

Cheon Yohwa secluded herself in the student council room, starting to spend time alone with the ghosts, much like closed-door training.

It’s not indoctrinating humans, but monsters.

Although it had never happened in all the sessions so far, I was confident. If it’s Cheon Yohwa, it might be possible.

Days, weeks passed, but Cheon Yohwa couldn’t indoctrinate the ghosts.

The stench emanating from the ghosts permeated the student council room. Cup noodles, cans, and trash discarded after Cheon Yohwa’s disappearance piled up in one corner.

“It’s okay.”

Cheon Yohwa’s eyes sparkled like madness.

“I think I can do it, sir. It’s summer vacation, and… I want to concentrate alone for a while, so you don’t have to clean up.”

While the Necromancer of the Korean Peninsula continued her closed-door training, I briefly traveled around the country.

In Busan, the pro-nation seller Jung was nonchalantly handling affairs.

The mayor’s hidden daughter, Lee Hayul, had graduated early and joined a large guild.

Tang Seorin led an exploration team with three younger siblings. It was a rare sight to see Tang Seorin’s family face, which had always been talked about in stories.

At Hongik University, Sim Aryeon was ordering extra bean sprout ramen alone because she had no friends to eat with.

At the rehabilitation hospital’s orthotics center, Noh Doha walked out exactly at quitting time.

In Yongsan, the saintess stayed home all the time except for an evening stroll once a day.

A German old man who came to Korea to visit his wife’s academic lecture was also well.

“Sorry. Do you happen to know where the auditorium listed here is?”

“Old Scho.”

A casually dressed old man approached me in English at Seoul National University.

It was a long time since I saw a healthy head on top of the beard and mustache, which I wanted to cut off and wanted to hug shoulders.

“…You can ask in German, sir.”

“Oh? This is really. I didn’t know that you spoke German so fluently as a young man! Did my English show signs of German?”

“I majored in German studies and have some German friends. I was just heading to this auditorium, so why don’t you come with me?”

“Oh, thank you. My wife is giving a lecture here today. Do you happen to know Adele Schopenhauer?”

“Wow. I was actually on my way to attend her lecture.”

“Wow! This must be fate!”

That day, I met Adele Schopenhauer’s face at the Cultural Center of Seoul National University. I had seen her several times in photos, but this was my first time seeing her in person.

The face of old Scho, who warmly embraced his wife after the lecture, was also, of course, the first thing I saw.

Such a person.

When creating an illusion, it was good evidence that not only my personal memories but also my accumulated data about the world were used.

“Oh, Adele. I’m wandering around here. A young man kindly guided me… Hmm? That’s weird. He was just here with me a minute ago.”

I left one root there and returned to school without saying a word.

No one suspected my entrance and exit. Thanks to Cheon Yohwa’s “settings,” a security guard who had worked at Baekhwa Girls’ School for a long time.

Thus, as soon as I stepped into the costume of the former teacher, the world was turned upside down without any warning.

“…!”

Midair. Location, the top of the former teacher’s hallway.

Immediately, I spread out in all directions. If another awakened person had seen it, they would have been amazed at what a waste it was, but for a former support specialist without combat skills, it was a very reasonable tactic to fill it with an aura.

Gray waves struck from midair.

Echolocation.

My senses were specialized to perceive the contours of objects with echolocation after hundreds of years of experience as an ora. Like a dolphin that detects the topography with ultrasound.

Something strange was detected by my senses. In midair, while falling, I met Cheon Yohwa standing by the window of the building.

Cheon Yohwa was smiling.

“――.”

Cheon Yohwa’s lips moved.

‘Establish.’

Once again, the sky was turned upside down. Immediately after the sense of floating evaporated, I found myself stepping into the corridor of the former teacher.

Cheon Yohwa smiled brightly in front of me. She held an hourglass in both hands, and something was inside the glass made of glass.

Wiggle-

It was a ghost. A tiny ghost was hanging from a rope around its neck, swinging back and forth inside the hourglass.

An hourglass, huh. I secretly admired it.

Is there a more appropriate ritual than sealing and imprisoning ghosts as a prison, swirling the whirlpool of time in a vast desert wasteland, and completely capturing it within one’s control?

The sunset shining through the corridor window hit the glass of the hourglass.

Like showing off a newly introduced pet or abusing it, the student council president of the school ghost story playfully shook the hourglass.

“How about it? Sir.”

“The clock is cool. Can I touch it once?”

“Ahaha- Yes!”

The first monster’s work in history.

By the end of summer vacation, Cheon Yohwa succeeded in subduing a total of 43 ghosts.