The Tutorial (1)
“Dahui, you’re a regressor?”
“Honestly, I don’t even know what a regressor is. I couldn’t understand, so she explained. She said she’s done the tutorial many times. She’s already experienced it all—when she dies, she restarts from the beginning. That’s what she told me…”
“…”
Kang Hana still looked dazed, her face awkward as she continued. “It’s touching that you told me what’s inside. For me it’s way too hard… What happened inside the room with you? You were only gone for a little while.”
“Really?”
At her question I realized I had a problem. The joke I’d thrown out half-seriously—“the memories of a previous loop are coming back”—had completely scrambled Yoo Dahui’s complicated mind. At first she probably thought it was just a good thing. Saying “regressor” meant she was done. And dying soon after? That was weird.
How do I handle this?
I had no idea what Yoo Dahui was thinking when she spoke to Hana. I was half-regressor myself; what would I say if it were me? What did she expect…? Aigo, I don’t know. I’d never admit I’m a regressor. Even if I’m confident I know the novel inside out, I can’t figure out where current Dahui stands. This is all because of the mask man.
“Let’s head back. We’ve already eaten the kimbap, and we’ve found out everything we needed.”
“Yeah…? Okay, then let’s go back. Today we rest, and tomorrow we’ll work hard.”
We returned to the inn Rest Area. As the sun was setting, returning players filled the streets. The moonlight and streetlights lit the road. The different shapes of the streetlights made it clear this was the Tower of Struggle where countless dimensions mixed together.
Ding—
We opened the door of the inn Rest Area and stepped inside. Why did they even run this empty inn? Residents didn’t need much money, but they still needed some motivation to work, right? Yoo Dahui was sitting alone at a table. She turned her head toward us, her face slightly hazy and dumb-looking as she greeted us.
“Where did you go?”
“Over there, there’s a park.”
“West? The park’s nice. Pretty, right?”
Her weak words made my heart ache. It looked like the mess I’d caused was making the regressor Yoo Dahui suffer. I felt sorry. Be careful with your mouth, be careful with your mouth again.
“Jinwoo, can I talk to you for a sec?”
“Um, yeah.”
“Unnie, there’s something I want to do with Jinwoo.”
Hana shook her head. Our business was already finished. Yoo Dahui pulled my wrist, giving Hana a look that said there was nothing left to talk about inside the inn. Hana headed upstairs to her room, and I followed Yoo Dahui out of the inn.
I relaxed my grip and let her lead me. “Why the gate?”
“I needed to confirm something. It probably wouldn’t work inside.”
Everyone else was going inside, but we were the only ones coming out. I only felt like I’d screwed up. Why were we leaving through the northern gate? It was dark, cold, and eerie, but I wasn’t scared. The dead man was our friend. Just crack his skull and start the loop. Simple.
“Jinwoo.”
“What?”
“You said you went out with Hana-unnie, right? Then you probably heard what she said.”
“…”
“What did she say?”
I pretended to be clueless. Yoo Dahui opened her mouth like she already knew everything.
“The regression. I’m a regressor, right? Hana-unnie probably heard it from me.”
“That’s right. She did. She said you said something like that. Hana-noona looked really troubled. She said she didn’t understand what you were talking about.”
“Do you understand?”
“Understand what?”
Yoo Dahui’s eyes weren’t normal. She was staring at me like she was about to catch me once.
“The regression thing. I’m regressing. When I die I wake up in the Colosseum square. I restart from the beginning. I’ve done this how many times now? Because I’m weak.”
“Ah…”
Shit, I still couldn’t figure it out. In the novel I’d read, Yoo Dahui never confessed to being a regressor. There wasn’t even a crazy bastard with previous-loop memories in the first place. How was I supposed to respond smoothly? No matter how hard I thought, nothing came. I forced out a rough reply.
“The regression… so that’s why you adapted so quickly at the start?”
“Yeah. But do you understand regression?”
“Uh, yeah. I don’t see why not. We were summoned to this weird world, so of course there could be regression. It feels a bit unfair, though.”
“Haha. Hahaha.”
Yoo Dahui started laughing dangerously. Her eyes were blank, like her soul had left her body. She wiped the sharp expression from her face and stared at me with empty eyes. Then she pulled something from her inventory.
“This. Try it.”
It was a white mask.
“W-what? Why?”
“Just try it once. Please. Haven’t I asked you this before? You should remember.”
“No, I don’t.”
“It’s okay if you don’t remember. What matters is that you’re the only one who understands regression.”
“What?”
“No matter how much I explain regression, Hana-unnie can’t understand it. She keeps asking how it works and says that if you know what regression is you’re not allowed to tell anyone. So I’ve been telling every player I see. I’m a regressor.”
Her pace had sped up a lot. Because you’re a regressor, there’s no one behind you? Even if she wasn’t scared, she was too fearless. I wasn’t supposed to do this. “But everyone couldn’t understand. It seemed like they didn’t even want to understand. They said they couldn’t figure it out no matter how I explained it. They’re all idiots. But you… you’re different. You understood.”
“I-I’m just a special case…”
“No. Thinking about it, it’s insanely weird. Insanely weird from the very first loop.”
Yoo Dahui covered her forehead and let it all spill out. She didn’t stop, dumping out everything she’d been holding back all day.
“I’ve been thinking about you all day. Come to think of it, it’s way too strange. Why did you adapt so fast? Why do you know so much?”
“…”
“I’m just a bit better than everyone else…”
“That bastard did the same. Like he already knew everything…”
“That bastard?”
“The one wearing the mask.”
Yoo Dahui waved the mask in her hand while speaking.
“I don’t know if I’ll remember this later, but the second I confirm it, I’m regressing. This loop ends today. Here’s where it stops. And next loop I’m going to clear the tutorial and climb up.”
“Why are you telling me this…”
“The reason I didn’t go up and keep holding on was that damn mask bastard! I think that bastard is you! Now I’m going to confirm and end this.”
Yoo Dahui couldn’t hold back her anger and shouted. Her voice cracked loudly, and I snapped back to my senses. Up until now I hadn’t felt anything suspicious, but the keywords “previous-loop memories” and “regressor” made me almost certain.
How do I dodge this?
I couldn’t think of a way. No matter how I thought, Yoo Dahui was completely certain. Her eyes, her expression, the emotions inside—it was like she was double-checking the answers she already knew.
“Why? You’re not going to wear it? Then I’ll force it, right? You’re weaker than me right now, aren’t you?”
“Eh?”
“Why don’t you want to wear it? Like it’s nothing to you being the mask man.”
Yoo Dahui narrowed her eyes. The hatred in her voice made me instinctively take two steps back.
The corners of Yoo Dahui’s mouth lifted. It was mockery.
“Put it on quick. And take your clothes off. I need to check your body too.”
Yoo Dahui waddled over and placed the mask in my hand. The cold sensation traveled up my arm. Shit. There was no way to escape.
“Before I force you, I’ll rip your clothes off.”
Should I run? If I ran, would I be able to hold on? But the moment I ran, next loop Yoo Dahui would attack me. Was it okay to keep wearing the mask and overpowering her?
“Stop thinking and just put on the mask!”
But what if I fought? If I fought, could I win and run away? Recently Yoo Dahui’s level had surpassed mine. Strength over level 4, agility easily crushing level 2, and even magic. My heart was pounding wildly.
Yoo Dahui’s gaze grew colder.
“I don’t know why you’re suspicious, but since you asked me to wear it, I’ll wear it.”
“Why are you suspicious? You seem to know exactly. You’re pretending not to.”
I pressed the white mask against my face. Yoo Dahui continued speaking cheerfully.
“Why like this? Why force it? Why…!”
Once the mask was on, Yoo Dahui poured out her frustration even more. She pushed me aside, declaring that her plan was correct, and knocked me down.
“Shit! Clothes! Take them off! I need to check right now!”
“Wait…!”
“Shut up! Close your mouth! You stupid bastard!”
Yoo Dahui didn’t even bother hiding her flushed face and ripped my clothes with her hands. The flimsy fabric tore apart in seconds. Pants, underwear, everything… I felt as pathetic as if I was being raped.
Yoo Dahui’s eyes swept over my entire body. The gaze felt like she was evaluating me, and I almost got hard without realizing it. I barely held back, remembering only the day I joined the army.
“Eh…?”
When Yoo Dahui saw my upper body she let out a surprised sound. “That guy didn’t have scars like this back then…”
On my upper body, right over the heart, was a scratch mark. A scar I didn’t even know I had was on my body.
Ah, shit, what is this?
Seeing her expression, it was clear she hadn’t expected it and was completely stunned. The fire Yoo Dahui had been stoking all along started to cool.
This is my chance.
The confident Yoo Dahui hesitated. The scar had made her think it might not be true.
“…Is it okay now?”
I gave her a look full of disappointment.