The Tales of an Infinite Regressor

Now, the appearance of void became poignant.

Once, the graphic of flowing rivers was beautifully rendered in “virtual reality games,” elevated to “AAA games,” then downgraded to ordinary “3D games,” and further regressed to “90s console games.”

Ultimately, it degraded to the level of “dot games.”

Here in this void, no seas, no rivers flowed. Shades of blue, sky blue, and white dots remained fixed.

Hillsides were adorned with modest shades of green and deep green. Trees were hues of dark brown and amber. Rocks were grey. Clouds were white.

Players, now, had transformed into mere dots of flesh color with slight decorations.

“…”

Every 1 year, 3 years, 9 years, 20 years, 50 years when Sim Aryeon logged in, her ‘graphics’ had deteriorated.

From a character that seemed painstakingly crafted by a graphic designer in AAA games, to one that could appear in any typical 3D game, and finally resembling designs from low-resolution games of the 90s.

By the last encounter, if one didn’t know her as Sim Aryeon, she would have appeared as nothing more than a polygonal figure with ‘green hair,’ ‘long hair,’ and ‘a large wooden peg leg (easel).’

SGnet also met its end.

-KoreanVillage: Today, the guild leader NPC enjoyed a mocha.jpeg

-KoreanVillage: Today, the guild leader NPC enjoyed a mocha.png

-KoreanVillage: Today, the guild leader NPC enjoyed a mocha.jpg

-KoreanVillage: Today, the guild leader NPC enjoyed a mocha.jpeg

On the first page of the bulletin board, there was only one post left.

Even that was an old post from quite some time ago.

In the past 100 years, Sim Aryeon had not logged in. Perhaps she too had thought she couldn’t endure this “dying game” any longer.

Seo Gyu had become a player hundreds of years ago, yet SGNet still persisted. This suggested that those “logged out” awakeners hadn’t simply died; they might have been drawn into the realm of the isolated god.

[Service Closure Notice]

Finally.

[Hello, players. This is the Administrator of “Metaphysical Play.”]

[Unfortunately, we have decided to end the service for “Reality Online.”]

[We sincerely thank all players who have enjoyed and loved “Reality Online” up until now.]

[The server for “Reality Online” will shut down in 72 hours.]

Three days.

Until now, it had been an eerie being, concealing its true form for centuries, but now it would emerge from its sanctuary at the moment of global destruction.

I had waited. For over two hundred years, I had clung to the undamaged Dao sword, crossing the river.

And exactly 72 hours later,

[Hello, everyone. This is the Administrator of “Metaphysical Play.”]

Suddenly, in the mosaic sky made of dots, a vivid blue butterfly appeared.

The butterfly had a distinctly different “resolution” compared to its surroundings.

I tried to strike at the being as soon as it came into view, but unfortunately, it didn’t reach the sky. Perhaps that mosaic sky didn’t occupy space at all.

Without concern for my attack, messages continued to appear before me.

[We are considering embarking on a new journey.]

[It may take a very long time to reach a new destination, but we hope to meet you again somewhere at the twisted end of the Möbius strip.]

[Thank you.]

[I really hope to see you again.]

Then.

“Ah, ah, ah, ah!”

From behind, a mechanical sound was heard. It was strangely unfamiliar yet somehow familiar.

With a chill of resentment, I gazed up at the alien-grade being and couldn’t help but turn around in surprise.

There.

“Guild Leader!”

Green dots for hair.

A flesh-colored dot for a face. Eyes and mouth made of black dots.

A dot mass much smaller than myself stood there.

“I’ve come!”

Dot by dot, with exaggerated movements of its arms back and forth, it walked towards me. Step by step. Step by step. Each time its shoes touched the ground, a faint sound effect of footsteps echoed.

The mass of dots embraced my waist tightly. But it was just a sound effect. I felt no sensation on my waist.

I hesitated for a moment before speaking. It had been so long since I conversed with a person that my tongue moved awkwardly.

“…Aryeon?”

“Yes!”

Dot smiled. Perhaps broadly.

Each time it spoke, there followed a digital, buzzing sound effect. The mechanical tones, barely mimicking human voices, rose and fell.

“How did you, no. Why are you here…?”

“Why not! The server’s closing notice came out! I hurriedly logged in! And, well, I wanted to see Guild Leader one last time with you!”

“…”

“Sorry for being late, Guild Leader. Hehe.”

I…

[Notification.]

[The server will automatically shut down in 30 seconds.]

I hugged Aryeon tightly.

There was no sensation as if embracing empty space. I stroked the perpetually unruly hair that stuck out unevenly. Still, there was no sensation.

“Guild Leader?”

“No. There’s nothing to apologize for. You have nothing to apologize for. Aryeon. If anything, I’m sorry as the Guild Leader. I… for what’s next. Trying to gather information somehow. So, I didn’t expect you to end up like this.”

“Guild Leader.”

Aryeon reached out a hand.

[The server will shut down in 20 seconds.]

“Don’t be sad, Guild Leader.”

[The server will shut down in 10 seconds.]

“I… Guild Leader, I really like the caramel macchiato from that café.”

[The server will shut down in 3 seconds.]

[The server will shut down in 2 seconds.]

[The server will shut down in 1 second.]

“So, next time…”

As the countdown ended, Dot’s world abruptly faded into 16-bit colors.

And without a moment’s wait, it transitioned to 8-bit, then 4-bit, a landscape composed solely of black and white.

Our world’s nutrients, reality, essence, were all being swallowed rudely by that empty butterfly above.

Aryeon’s lips trembled, but “Ah, ah, ah,” only the electronic sounds that were increasingly difficult to interpret as human voices echoed.

At that moment, I felt that the outcast was exerting all its power to “bless” me. I also intuited that if I were enchanted by it, even the opportunity to end my own life would vanish.

I raised the last aura. Holding Aryeon a little tighter.

“········”

Now, Aryeon’s voice, descending beyond even 1-bit, was completely incomprehensible, but I was certain it was the sound of a smile.

Blackout.

My reality faced “server shutdown.”

9

There’s an afterword.

Quite a lot of it.

I’d like to swiftly reach the happy ending where I, Doctor Jang, begin my counterattack and crush the Outsider who dared to meddle with our world—unfortunately, attempting that is something for much later.

As the “Manager of Infinite Amusements” or the “Logout Game” surpassed the 555th turn, strategies began to emerge.

So, in this episode, instead of skipping straight to the 555th, let’s unravel some minor afterstories.

First, the first afterstory.

“What, where am I?”

“Huh? Busan Station? I was just at the park a moment ago…”

“Guild Leader? Guild Leader, where are you?”

Rustling.

Immediately after being killed by the Outsider, I woke up to familiar murmurs.

Busan Station’s main hall.

It couldn’t be called my hometown, but it could be called the homeland of the regressors. People trapped by void were bewildered.

“Ah.”

I felt a temporary disconnection.

No matter how much of a genius I was at mental management, returning right after such a bad ending wasn’t easy.

At times like this, I relied on my own return routine. Quickly getting up, walking to the vending machine to get a Shirley Temple, suppressing the tutorial fairy to save Seo Gyu’s life, and then picking up a silver droplet from the souvenir shop. Habit. Suggestion. Consciousness.

Isn’t it interesting?

In a world where everything endlessly repeats in a circle, it was about drawing a slightly smaller circle than the world. Thus, the world became the clock of hours and minutes, and Naite danced the rhythm of time, becoming an eternal cycle.

I raised my upper body. Once again, I pushed my weight to turn over the leaf of life. And then.

Plop—

“….?”

Something entered my life.

A very light laptop lay on my thigh.

“A laptop?”

It was an unfamiliar object. Here, “unfamiliar” means that I had never witnessed such a sight in all the turns.

My eyes widened.

I immediately turned on the laptop.

Bzzt, ziiing…

The boot-up time was slow.

My heart pounded. People murmured around me, but I ignored them all.

The important thing now was that this unidentified object had suddenly intruded into my return, into the eternal cycle.

Soon, the desktop unfolded. A background as white as a blank canvas. There were no miscellaneous icons.

Just one untitled Notepad file lay at the top right of the screen.

“….”

Click.

I clicked on the file, and a Notepad appeared on the laptop screen.

[ What is this world? ]

One sentence.

At that moment, I sensed it. This laptop and the Notepad file were nothing other than a supernatural entity left behind by the Outsider, the “Manager of Infinite Amusements,” to me.

Was it a reward for the winner who survived to the end in the game he hosted? Or was this enigmatic Q&A itself another game?

As the 135th version of me, I couldn’t judge.

It was clear, however, that another item was being allocated to my return, following the staff and the staff sword Doha.

“Hmm.”

I typed a response in the Outsider’s Notepad without hesitation.

[ F U C K Y O U ]

….

There was no response from the laptop.

What was the problem?

After a moment’s thought, I realized it was my mistake. The question was in Korean, and I answered in English.

Clearly my fault. I quickly deleted the response and banged the keyboard again.

[좆 이 나 까 잡 수 세 요 개 씨 발 새 끼 야]

[PR/N: ‘F U C K Y O U’ is what the text says, not me tho, im a good person ]

Tick—

The laptop went black. It had turned off on its own.

After that, the laptop remained inactive until it moved on to the next turn, where it turned on again.

It seemed that I only had two chances per turn to answer questions.

10

Here’s the second afterstory.

As I mentioned earlier, even though I obtained the item known as the laptop, I hadn’t succeeded in subduing the Outsider.

Therefore, a temporary solution was necessary.

I gathered Noh Doha and the Saintess and issued a solemn directive.

“If the status window appears, under no circumstances should you ever open it. We must now proceed with the groundwork to ensure this.”

“Hmm…”

“We must be decisive in our means and methods. Under the authority of the Highway Control Bureau and the whispers of the Constellations, continually indoctrinate how harmful the ‘status window’ is.”

“Alright, understood…”

“If the Saintess detects any awakened individuals obsessed with the status window, notify us immediately. The Highway Control Bureau will step in to arrest and imprison these awakened individuals.”

“Yes, Doctor Jang.”

“Those arrested should be sentenced to lifelong imprisonment at hard labor. If necessary, they can even be treated as capital offenders. Creating rumors that they spread like a virus due to mental anomaly should minimize backlash.”

Seventy-two death-row inmates mobilized to eradicate the Inunaki Tunnel. Many of them were awakened individuals imprisoned for the crime of ‘status window viewing.’

My strategy didn’t end there.

“The power of the Logout Game ultimately stems from the fulfillment of rising desires. Inflicting damage visible in numbers, gaining experience points, and leveling up.”

Simply suppressing awakened individuals wasn’t enough to prevent the spread of the ‘status window.’ Where there’s demand, supply inevitably follows.

An alternative was needed to somewhat satisfy people’s desires.

That was the ‘Cafe Hideout.’

-KoreanVillage: (1000m) This gentleman likes quiet cafes but doesn’t dislike bustling ones either. However, the lack of customers at the cafe left him reluctantly renting the place. Come down quickly since you’re bored.

└Baekhwa High School 9th grade: (1200m) ;;

└KoreanVillage: Idiotㅋㅋ Whether it’s 1000 meters or 1200 meters, there’s not much differenceㅋㅋㅋ

└Baekhwa High School 9th grade: (1200m) The fish is pretty ;;

└KoreanVillage: Fish? What fish?

└Baekhwa High School 9th grade: (1200m) ㅋ ;;

└KoreanVillage: ???

Depth system.

I quantified each awakened individual’s grade.

The difference between Level 10 and Level 11 was difficult to discern. However, I clearly designed the depths of 100 meters and 200 meters in the Cafe Hideout, again 300 meters and 400 meters, so everyone could easily see ‘how luxurious the interior and service were.’

That was my strategy.

Establishing a hideout in the Undersea Tunnel to prevent mental aberrations from invading.

Designing the depth system and cafe to fulfill the rising desires of awakened individuals.

Continually spreading awareness about the ‘status window’ through the Highway Control Bureau’s laws and the Constellations’ warnings.

This rigorous defense succeeded, and after completing all precautions by Turn 197, we never faced annihilation by the Logout Game again.

Now, as a regressor, my task is to wait until the exact strategy is developed.

There were no significant problems. As proven in this turn, I was very accustomed to waiting.

Therefore.

“Aryeon-ah.”

“Yes, heh? What’s the matter…?”

“I found a slime on my walk, so I brought it. It’s yours now.”

“Wha-at? I was just feeling like looking for a slime, how did you know…?”

“And this is a donut from your favorite Haeundae bakery. Here.”

“Ho-at? Huh? Is today my birthday? Guild Leader, you’re so kind! A miracle that might last one day out of 700 days…”

Today’s afterstory concludes with us watching over our troublemaker happily eating a donut after playfully bopping a slime with a bat.

“Hehe… Thank you, Guild Leader!”