The Regressor Is Convinced (1)
Regression. And the 'Center of the World.' What relationship do they share, and how do they influence each other?
"...Ugh."
Even within SF, the most headache-inducing descriptions always revolve around 'time.' Parallel universes, multiple dimensions, the time differential between black holes and white holes... You read about them and still think, 'What does any of this even mean?'
Let me try to organize what I do know for certain. When something in the 'Center of the World' is destroyed, it cannot be restored, not even through regression. It's as though it permanently vanishes, regardless of the flow of time.
"...I think I've read something similar. Was it the fourth dimension?"
I once read an article that went like this. The first dimension is a line, the second is a plane, the third is space, and the fourth is time. A two-dimensional being can perceive the entirety of a one-dimensional existence; a three-dimensional being can perceive everything about a two-dimensional one. So a fourth-dimensional being should be able to look at the entire past, present, and future of a third-dimensional existence—that was the gist.
If the 'Center of the World' were the fourth dimension, then it would make sense that anything erased there would disappear from the past, the present, and the future...
"My head hurts."
I'm no expert on this stuff, so I can't take the idea any further. When I used to read SF novels, if an unfamiliar term popped up, I'd just go 'Ah, okay,' and move on without trying to understand it in detail.
But I do understand this one thing.
Regression stands above the Tower and the Archangels. And regression and the 'Center of the World' are on equal footing. The two share some kind of connection.
Regression sits above the Tower. On Floor 17, the Tower mistakenly believed I had never entered, but regression continued to function normally. That proves their rulings differ, if only slightly.
The Archangels cannot easily detect my regression either. Otherwise, I would have been exposed on Floor 2.
If that's the case, then the power of regression comes from something higher than the Archangels...
Only one being comes to mind.
"...God."
God, the one said to have built this Tower. If it's that entity, it's possible. The Center of the World must also be linked to God in some way.
Though one small doubt remains. If regression is God's work and the Tower is also God's work, then why does regression behave like a higher-level power? I still don't know the answer to that. There isn't enough information.
Another puzzle is the fact that the Archangels can access the 'Center of the World.' If they can store the strange entities there, that suggests a degree of access, so why can't they detect my regression? That secret remains unsolved for now.
"Ughhh..."
Forget it. My head feels ready to explode.
First... let me just do what needs to be done. Floor 24's clear is already certain.
**
-Death God. There's something I need you to do.
-Only speak the word.
-I want you to investigate the conflict between the U.S. government and Association Chairman Michael Jeter.
-Yes.
-I left a useful item in a Korean subway locker. It's a notebook that catches fire on its own whenever someone tells a lie. You can tear out and use each page individually. Put it to good use.
-Yes.
The notebook I gave Death God was the one I had chosen as my reward during this cycle. I had planned to regress after gathering information anyway, so I'd picked it out from the start intending to give it to him. (Choi Ji-won, for reference, chose the mask.)
"I'm starting to think reality might end up more of a mess than I'd imagined."
"Tell me about it."
It only just occurred to me, but Floor 24 rewards are all items that can heavily influence the real world. They let you disguise yourself as someone else, catch liars, or monitor intruders.
Right now, the number of players who've cleared Floor 24 is still small, so it's manageable. But when the vast majority of players eventually reach that floor in the distant future... won't things get extremely chaotic?
"How long are you going to wait this time?"
"About two weeks?"
"Is two weeks enough?"
"Yeah. Just have him check whether Michael Jeter's holding his own. We'll go all the way... after clearing Floor 30. Let's leave it at that."
Once I've cleared Floor 30, I'll be even stronger than I am now. At that level... I should be able to secure enough force to change the future. Michael Jeter has reportedly cleared up to Floor 29 as of now. I'll stay exactly one step ahead of him as I advance toward the future.
"By then, tigers... even dragons... we'll beat them easily, right?"
"Your first time was on Floor 15. Of course we can win. Look at how much stronger you've already become."
We may not have gained levels, but technically and mentally, we've achieved enormous growth.
Floor 30. I settled on Floor 30 as my goal. Once I break through that far, I'll stop climbing and wait for the future.
"Then should we... rest a bit until then? How about Japan? Japan."
"...Jun-ho, if I want to leave the country, I have to contact the government."
"...Ah."
While I waited for Death God's report, I reached out to people I knew. I had meals with players I was close to, including Kang Chan and firefighter Park Cheol-jin (I also got acquainted with Choi Ji-won's Tutorial Fellowship), and I talked on the phone with old acquaintances from before the Tower appeared, swapping stories from the old days.
-Hey, you remember that time back then? That was seriously hilarious.
"Uh, yeah. I know, I know."
During those calls, I realized how much my past memories had faded. Perhaps because of the sheer volume of information accumulating in my brain, the things that ought to be called 'memories' felt as though their color had leached away. Would my memories with Choi Ji-won also end up like this someday? That thought scared me a little.
"Dok Su-hee..."
Dok Su-hee still wasn't reachable. I'd need to meet her in person to know whether she'd really reformed, was just putting on an act, or had some other motive. But with no way to contact her, there was no way to check.
Could I have remembered the number wrong? No, that couldn't be it.
Dok Su-hee... she didn't die while climbing the Tower, did she? No, that couldn't be it either. I met and spoke with her in the far future, perfectly fine.
I sent one last text and, just in case, also reached out to Michael Jeter's side. Thinking Jeter himself might be too busy to check, I even messaged a man named Martin I'd met before...
"What about Michael Jeter?"
"No response."
Michael Jeter was probably too tied up to answer.
"And Martin?"
"That person... says he doesn't know. He claims he's never even heard the name 'Dok Su-hee'."
Martin said he didn't know anyone named Dok Su-hee at all. Dok Su-hee herself had claimed she 'works with Michael Jeter,' and Jeter confirmed it, so they're definitely on the same side. Then why didn't Martin, who works for the Association, know about her?
The reason was revealed two weeks later, by Death God.
-The investigation is complete. The notebook was a tremendous help.
-Good work. Put the information on a USB and leave it somewhere in Korea.
-Yes. However, the situation itself is so chaotic and everyone's story differs, so the quality of the information is low. Please take it with a grain of salt.
-Understood.
-This means we've taken one step closer toward a better future for humanity. Call on me at any time.
"Good grief, that made me cringe."
I told Choi Ji-won, 'I received some intelligence from an anonymous collaborator,' and brought back the USB Death God had left.
"This one?"
"Yeah. Let's look at it together."
The information on the USB was genuinely shocking.
"Michael Jeter's side and the government are in a deadlock... The fighting itself has reached a lull, and now they're in a staring contest?"
"...So that's why he wasn't answering."
At first, Michael Jeter tried to retake the Association through political means. That attempt failed, and armed conflict had broken out.
According to the report, Michael Jeter and the U.S. government were fighting on surprisingly even terms. I'd assumed he would crush them completely.
First, Michael Jeter's private organization surfaced for all to see. Its name was 'Alpha,' and even players with information-type traits apparently hadn't known it existed—that's how well-cloaked it was. Once the group began operating openly, a number of bizarre ability users who'd never been revealed before also came to light.
From a long-distance teleportation ability user (I'd seen that one myself multiple times), to an animal-shapeshifting ability user, to someone who could transform their body into electrical signals and infiltrate a computer. All sorts of other ability users were exposed during the conflict, and the common thread among them was that their abilities were more useful in modern society than for climbing the Tower.
They openly revealed themselves and struck major U.S. government facilities, and most players speculated that there were far more ability users still hidden. (For example, there was no mention of the prophet player who had accurately predicted the monster invasions.) The deep web was exploding with every sort of speculation, and the volume of information had grown so huge that separating the truth from it was becoming nearly impossible.
There was even a claim that Choi Ji-won belonged to this Alpha organization. I ignored it. What kind of nonsense did they write into that report?
Also, there was no mention of Dok Su-hee at all. But the unit Dok Su-hee belongs to is definitely this 'Alpha.' Is this why I couldn't get any information on Dok Su-hee no matter how many times I regressed? Because this 'Alpha' is skilled at information control and remains concealed.
"She really went completely off the grid, huh."
If even Michael Jeter, who is in the middle of a war, can't mobilize her, it seems Dok Su-hee truly isn't coming out of the Tower. I won't be able to contact her for the time being. Figuring out whether she's turned over a new leaf will have to be postponed a little longer.
Next was the U.S. government's power. Their strength mostly consisted of the anti-Michael Jeter faction's top-tier players, players dispatched by various national governments, military forces, and the media. Since so many governments pooled their efforts, they were exceptionally good at media manipulation. (And once again, a rumor claimed Choi Ji-won was on that side. Choi Ji-won really is everywhere, isn't she.)
The reason this conflict only circulated in places like the deep web and never reached the surface was entirely because the government had a tight grip on the media.
But everyone mentioned so far was just window dressing. The real core was a man called 'Mister X.'
This man was said to be both a core member of the 'experiment' the U.S. had been pushing and a top-ranking player. Whenever the government seemed to be getting pushed back, Mister X would appear and settle the battlefield. Michael Jeter's forces had always been a small elite, but now the government also had a substantial powerhouse, so Jeter's side was avoiding a full-scale confrontation and dragging things out with guerrilla warfare.
The report had been annotated with a note advising me to take everything with a grain of salt. It's best to treat it as reference material rather than absolute truth.
"All this mess just because of that book?"
Why were the two sides waging war over the 'Book of Truth'? And what should we do about it?
"Hmm..."
"Should we decide what to do after we clear Floor 30?"
"That would be for the best."
We'll decide after clearing Floor 30. If Michael Jeter ends up losing, we'll help at that point. The moment Choi Ji-won and I get involved, things become politically complicated, and I don't want to just swoop in and claim an easy victory in a fight he could have won on his own.
"So, what are you going to do now?"
"I'll regress."
I can collect more detailed information once I jump into the situation myself. The priority now is climbing the Tower quickly. I decided to gain strength first, then handle all of reality's problems at once. Dok Su-hee, the U.S. government, the people around me, the healer William Smith, who is probably agonizing somewhere in America.
If I combine sufficient force with regression, I can do anything.
[You have taken damage.]
[Regressing to the moment you first entered Floor 24.]
***
Floor 24 was just as desolate as before. The number of strange entities had noticeably decreased, and as a result, the difficulty had become extremely easy.
"It's already over?"
"Yeah. I ran like crazy."
Maybe it was because I'd really pushed myself to sprint through it this time. I cleared it even faster than Choi Ji-won, who also had her memories. It took barely over an hour. Considering we spent an entire week on Floor 23, we're climbing at an absurd pace.
Ah, and this time I chose the mask as my reward.
After that, I rested for about a day to manage my physical condition.
"We have all the equipment, right?"
"Of course."
Preparations complete.
"Shall we go?"
We entered Floor 25.
-Girl's Cheer [A]
-5 seconds before a threat arrives, you will perceive a certain ominous feeling.
-The trait activates and is removed from the Status Window.
"Aagh..."
"J-Jun-ho? What's wrong?"
Right before we entered, a sharp, stinging pain shot through my head, and I couldn't step through the portal.
"G-Girl's Cheer?"
That was definitely the trait I'd gotten from clearing Floor 21. It was an A-rank trait, so I'd been thrilled when I received it, but since it had never once triggered until now, I'd practically forgotten about it...
Why did it activate now?