The Regressor Is Mentally Weak (2)
The Regressor Is Mentally Weak (2)
"Miss Su-hee's whereabouts were supposed to be strictly confidential... May I ask where you obtained that information?"
Michael Jeter's voice was stiff. An unmistakable mistake. Right now, I wasn't supposed to know where Dok Su-hee was. In my moment of panic, the blood drained from my head, and my vision spun for no reason. A so-called brain freeze had hit me.
"Oh? It was a secret? Strange."
Yet contrary to my state, my mouth was already moving on its own. More precisely, it was buying time for my brain to pull itself together.
"No, but... hmm..."
"Go on."
"Well, you see..."
Think. What's a plausible excuse? In this situation, I had no choice but to sell out Dok Su-hee. I had to say Su-hee told me. But what if Michael Jeter knew about my relationship with Dok Su-hee? What if he knew we had bad blood?
In that case, well, I'd just regress.
"Su-hee told me. We were allies on Floor 3, you see."
The quick deliberation was over. I bet on the possibility that Dok Su-hee hadn't spilled everything to Michael Jeter. We were, in fact, allies on Floor 3. It had been a good connection, and we'd stayed in touch ever since.
"...I see. If Miss Su-hee told you directly, then I believe she must have had her reasons."
Whether my excuse actually worked or he was simply letting it slide, Michael Jeter accepted it without any particular reaction. He definitely seemed to trust Dok Su-hee.
"Then, let's get back on track. You were asking about Miss Su-hee's whereabouts?"
"Yes. I haven't been able to reach her."
"Miss Su-hee has entered the Tower."
"...The Tower?"
If she'd entered the Tower, then she'd clear a floor and come back out soon enough.
"Because of that, she may be unreachable for quite a while."
"...Pardon?"
Seeing my dazed reaction, Michael Jeter frowned as if to say, 'You didn't even know that much?'
"Miss Su-hee is the type who climbs without rest once she enters the Tower. She packs all the necessities—including daily supplies—into her ability 'Inventory,' and then devotes herself entirely to climbing without ever returning to reality."
"..."
"Once, I told her that wasn't efficient... and she said she had her reasons. That there was someone she absolutely had to grow stronger for. Someone she wanted to prove herself to."
I don't care for it, but everyone has their own way of doing things, don't they?—Michael Jeter added. Listening to him, I felt a strange tightness in my throat.
What are you supposed to do when someone you genuinely hated, someone who betrayed you... keeps showing you consistent goodwill? When she insists that she's changed, how am I supposed to react?
Truthfully, I could just let it go. Just think, oh, I see~ and accept it as fact. Coldly. As if it meant nothing to me.
But unrequited goodwill is a pitiful thing, and I'm not the kind of person who can callously reject it. Above all, humans are wired to like people who like them. Maybe the faint goodwill budding toward Dok Su-hee was simply a natural biological response.
"More importantly, didn't you say you had a favor to ask?"
Of course, not wanting to admit that I'd developed any goodwill toward her, I hastily changed the subject.
"A favor. Then I'll get straight to it."
Michael Jeter casually opened the refrigerator, downed an entire bottle of water, and finally got to the point.
"Do you remember? A month ago, I said I would bring about the Age of Players."
"Yes. I remember."
"My reason for saying that is simple. Because I thought it was the most efficient path. I believed that strengthening the position of players was the fastest way to save people. I always prioritize efficiency above all else."
"Efficiency, you say."
"Yes. I enlisted in the military the moment my birthday passed, and I became a member of a special forces unit as the youngest in history. Ever since, I've only chosen the most efficient options to serve my country. The Tower was no different. My goal wasn't to grow stronger—it was to climb faster. I believed that was the most efficient way to conquer the Tower. Accepting the position of Association Chairman was in the same vein."
Michael Jeter, who kept emphasizing that he always prioritized efficiency, pulled a gleaming medal from his chest and placed it on the table.
"Thanks to living so efficiently, I was always the most exceptional person wherever I went. In school, in the military, in the Tower—it was all the same."
"Isn't that at least partly true?"
"I'll concede it's partially true. Most players, not just me, tend to think of themselves as special. It's not an absurd thought. There aren't many players. But if even ordinary players develop a sense of entitlement... what about the people who are special among the special?"
"..."
"Perhaps that's why... they often end up going down the wrong path. If not me, it won't work. I'm special—I have to prove it now. I am the chosen one—I have to solve the problem."
He didn't point to anyone in particular, but the sincerity in his voice was easy to read. Probably because he was talking about himself.
Michael Jeter's words hit home for me as well. Because what he said actually aligned, to some degree, with thoughts I'd harbored myself.
The regressor—me—has to do it. I have to change things. Only I can.
Me, Dok Su-hee, Michael Jeter... maybe even Choi Ji-won.
Precisely because we think we're special, we push ourselves to achieve something beyond our means. Our essence is merely human, but this is what happens when we mistake ourselves for something more.
"But now I understand. There are many people in this world more exceptional and more special than me. I don't have to shoulder everything alone. If there's something I can't do by myself, I can lean on someone more special."
Michael Jeter fiddled with the medal on the table.
"So my favor is just two things. First, please continue climbing the Tower as fiercely as you have been. Grow even stronger, and when the time of invasion comes someday, protect humanity. Is that possible?"
"That's... you didn't even need to ask. It was our goal from the start."
"I truly think we're fortunate to have outstanding players like you. Then, the second favor."
Jeter pushed the medal on the table toward us.
"Please, take this medal."
"...What kind of medal is it?"
"Proof that I lived my younger days fiercely."
"...That's a lot of weight to carry."
"...Haha."
A small laugh escaped Michael Jeter. It might have been the first time in my life I'd ever seen this man smile.
"I'm... going to try to change history now. There are kind people helping me, but things may not go as planned. Honestly, I'm afraid. I'm nervous. It's just that, soldier that I am, I don't let it show."
"..."
"Even if everything goes wrong... I wanted at least this medal to remain. If it's too much of a burden, you don't have to take it."
"No, no... I'll take it."
Right, I'd briefly forgotten. Michael Jeter was about to go up against the U.S. government. He intended to fight and win against people who could foresee the future through the Book of Truth.
When you're fighting people like that, you can't guarantee you'll come out unscathed. He... even if he died, he wanted to leave some trace of himself behind in the world.
-Beep-beep. Beep-beep.
An electronic tone rang from Michael Jeter's chest.
"Time's up."
Michael Jeter rose from his seat and walked over to the spacious, uncluttered living room.
"For the time being, I won't be in a position to climb the Tower. I'll be staying on Floor 29. People like you will catch up to me in an instant."
"...Of course."
"When you clear Floor 29—at that moment, I'll see you again."
With those final words, Michael Jeter vanished.
To wage a war that would change the fate of the world.
**
"Honestly, saying he was nervous might have been a little dramatic, don't you think? His expression never changed."
"No? According to Boongboong-yi, Michael Jeter was genuinely nervous."
"...That's kind of cool."
After Michael Jeter left, I was feeling a warm, wholesome emotion for the first time in a while.
'The most famous player,' Michael Jeter, had admitted that he couldn't accomplish everything alone. He had realized that even if he failed, there were others who would strive for humanity.
It wasn't just me or Choi Ji-won. The world truly had many admirable players working hard to climb the Tower. I didn't have to do it all by myself. If I couldn't do it alone, we could combine our strength. We could be pillars of support for one another.
While I was at it, I reached out to the acquaintances I knew.
-Doing fine. More importantly, any interest in joining our guild?
The gruff man, Kang Chan.
-We're doing great! How about you, Jun-ho?
The brothers Ahn Gyeong-jun and Ahn Gyeong-nam, who'd recently been immersed in training to control their abilities.
-Me? I'm always the same. Come visit sometime. I'll treat you to some meat.
Firefighter Park Cheol-jin, who'd recently been so busy saving people he barely had time to blink.
-Just getting by, I guess. Why, is there a reason I shouldn't be?
-What's with you? Something happen? I'm always fine, man.
Even friends who'd adapted well to the age of the Tower.
Right now, I couldn't send my regards to the American healer William Smith, or Dok Su-hee, who were out of reach... but they were each doing their best in their own places.
All of them were good, admirable people. People you enjoyed being around.
The Tower—the thing that drove good people like this into anguish, that pushed them to fight—was what was wrong.
The Tower, built to judge humanity, incited evil. It incited conflict between people. It incited despair.
And the most revolting part was that it wore a mask of virtue on the surface.
On the outside, the Tower took the stance of: "Isn't it just a matter of you being good people? Aren't your problems caused by the fact that you're trash?" As if humanity really were the problem.
People weren't the problem. There was no reason for us to fight each other in the first place. With our true enemy glaring at us with wide-open eyes, what could be more disgraceful than infighting?
If conflict arose among people, I would mediate. For the greater goal, I would gladly sacrifice myself.
We could do this. We would not yield. We would not give up.
Humanity would survive the Tower.
"You're okay with not regressing?"
"Yeah. It's not like we wasted that much time anyway, and more than anything... I received this medal."
After placing Michael Jeter's medal somewhere visible.
"Let's go."
With my resolve hardened, I headed toward the Tower with Choi Ji-won. Not just to climb a single floor, but for the victory of all humanity.
-Entered Floor 23.
**
That determination of mine, that warm heart yearning for love of humanity...
"No, I'm telling you, it wasn't me!"
"You got proof? I said, do you have proof?!"
"Do you even know who I am? In Turkey, people can't even look me in the face, you bastard!"
"...Ah."
The moment we entered Floor 23, it was smashed to pieces.