I’m an Infinite Regressor, But I’ve Got Stories to Tell

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◈ I’m an Infinite Regressor, But I’ve Got Stories to Tell

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The Hypocrite IV

“Well, at first, it was just a suspicion...”

“Team Leader Yu. You know how elusive she is—always quick, always thorough with cleanup. Most importantly, they can track Awakeners’ routes in real-time with her Mini-Map.”

“It’s almost impossible to catch someone like that by the tail...”

I stared blankly at the ceiling.

Thanks to my Complete Memory, what Do-hwa told me yesterday replayed in perfect detail on the dark ceiling above me. In my mind’s eye, it was recreated with such clarity that it felt indistinguishable from reality.

“So, I nurtured her...”

Nurtured? I had asked, puzzled.

“Not as an Awakener, but an ordinary troop member.”

Do-hwa’s half-lidded eyes gleamed.

“You see, even if someone lacks Awakening abilities, they can still master stealth and tracking skills...”

“Why are you so surprised? Surely, you know this. Plenty of civilians join the National Road Management Corps with aspirations to serve humanity and slay Anomalies.”

“After training them for two years on the field, they became reasonably competent. I filtered and refined them, then assigned them to track Team Leader Yu. I deliberately recruited civilians whom that person wouldn’t recognize, so they wouldn’t appear on the Mini-Map.”

“Wouldn’t you know it? Reports came in of Team Leader Yu dragging helpless civilians late at night toward the entrance of the Inunaki Tunnel. Covertly.”

Evidence?

“Here, I’ve got photos.”

Do-hwa’s white lab coat billowed loosely as she handed me the evidence.

“Remember when I asked to borrow that spirit camera? I rented it just to take these photos. The quality isn’t the best, but...”

“......”

“You trust that device implicitly, don’t you? I figured this would be the fastest way to convince you.”

“......”

“So.”

Do-hwa interlocked her fingers and rested her chin on them. Despite the gravity of our discussion, amusement seemed to dance within her eyes.

“Did you know?”

Her pitch-black eyes gazed at me—a void of flowing emotions, a dark pit waiting for me to fall into it. Her eyes made no pretense of hiding their intent: to topple me and trap me in the abyss of her stare.

“Ah, so you didn’t...”

“I suppose even someone like you can’t know or predict everything. Was it a few years ago? Like you said yourself, regression isn’t about limiting possibilities but rather about blooming all of them.”

“The fact that you were unaware of something—even about a colleague so close to you—makes today worthwhile.”

Do-hwa stood up. Even though the coffee she had asked me to make sat untouched on the table, she didn’t so much as glance at it. Only the faint steam from the now-cold cup lingered, existing halfway between presence and absence.

“Your Excellency?”

The illusion shattered.

When I lowered my gaze, I saw Ji-won placing a coffee cup on the table.

“You seemed deep in thought, so I brought some coffee. It can’t compare to Your Excellency’s barista skills, but I hope it lightens the weight of your concerns.”

For a moment, I only stared at the cup. “Thank you.”

“It’s my pleasure.”

I sipped the coffee Ji-won had prepared. It was delicious—perfectly suited to my taste. Uncannily so. “It’s very good...”

“Thank you.”

As I let the café au lait linger on my tongue, I glanced at Ji-won. She had always had a keen appreciation for coffee. After discovering my passion for being a barista, she had transitioned from a mere admirer of coffee to a creator herself.

Ji-won was, at her core, capable.

Had she chosen to be a politician, artist, entrepreneur, NGO activist, stock trader, journalist, cocktail bartender, or chef, she would still have risen to the top 0.1%. While others stumbled through failures and groped toward success by converting those failures into experiences, Ji-won always calculated the optimal route. She distinguished who to ally with and who to discard, pouring her full effort into building networks and seizing power with earnest dedication.

“But I still have much to learn. I’ve only mastered the basics of making café au lait. I can’t yet create the variety of coffees Your Excellency can. Your guidance will be invaluable.”

Behold. Despite her natural inclination toward malice, she had successfully positioned herself as the ally of a regressor like me.

Once again, I’ll say this seriously: If I hadn’t been the protagonist of this regression, Ji-won would have made for a far more fitting lead.

“Yesterday.”

“Hm?” I hummed, still deep in thought.

“I heard you met with Do-hwa, the Corps leader. You seem particularly deep in thought today, did your conversation touch on anything serious?”

She had already deduced my movements.

It was to be expected. If I were her, I too would have made monitoring a regressor’s route my top priority.

Setting my coffee cup down, I donned a casual expression. “We discussed a few topics. Among them was you, Ji-won.”

“Me, Your Excellency?”

“Indeed. She said she’s confused about whether you’re the Operations Team Leader for the National Road Management Corps or my personal secretary. She asked how long I plan to keep you detained.”

“Ah.” Ji-won blinked slowly. “I’ve handed over most duties to the deputy team leader. While I must occasionally use my Mini-Map to assist with special operations, for the majority of tasks, administrative efficiency remains at about 60% of its usual level.”

“Do you think Do-hwa would be satisfied with 60%?”

“Probably not. But right now, working closely with Your Excellency is far more efficient.”

“Oh? Are you planning to change jobs outright?”

“If Your Excellency permits, I would gladly do so.” When I didn’t respond, she continued, saying, “I genuinely believe this place is humanity’s final line of defense.”

It had been nearly four years since we established the Inunaki Tunnel as our home base, and Ji-won’s attire had changed significantly since then. In the early days, she exclusively wore the National Road Management Corps’ uniform. Over time, her outfits became more relaxed. First, she abandoned the cloak, then transitioned from a formal uniform to business attire, from business attire to casual business wear, then to sportswear. Eventually, she began dressing in what could only be described as loungewear when in private spaces.

At this moment, the clothes she wore while serving me coffee were practically indistinguishable from pajamas—loose sweatpants paired with an oversized long-sleeved shirt.

‘Have I made her too comfortable?’

I wondered whether this newfound “comfort” between us stemmed from her experiencing a genuinely relaxed relationship for the first time, or whether she had misinterpreted my preference for “ease” as a directive to diminish her individuality, leaving her a hollowed-out shell.

For Ji-won, would there even be a difference between the two?

“Thank you for the coffee.”

“It’s an honor, Your Excellency.”

“Ji-won.”

“Yes, Your Excellency?”

“Why did you kidnap those people?”

The question was undoubtedly a sudden ambush from her perspective.

In moments of such surprise, people’s reactions usually fell into predictable categories: denial, outrage, counter-questioning, or demands for proof.

“I deemed it necessary.”

Ji-won’s response fell into none of the above.

After dismembering her family and abandoning the remains in the Minari Pond of Seoul’s Dobong Mountain as a middle schooler at the age of 14, Ji-won had always prepared for the possibility of her actions being discovered. Thus, when confronted with a situation she had invariably already anticipated, she never faltered.

This moment was no exception.

Ji-won had already pieced together all the relevant information:

♙ Yesterday, the Undertaker met with Noh Do-hwa.

♟ Noh Do-hwa likely shared information about the “kidnappings” with the Undertaker.

♙ Noh Do-hwa, being the methodical type, would have used irrefutable evidence rather than subjective reasoning to convince the Undertaker.

♟ The Undertaker therefore likely possesses undeniable proof.

♙ Denying the allegations would be an act of foolishness.

Just as one would move pieces on a chessboard, Ji-won treated my sudden question as just another move in the game. Her response was calculated, part of the ongoing exchange.

“Necessary?” I echoed. “For what purpose?”

“Seeing is believing, Your Excellency. Could you wait for a moment?”

Had I been an ordinary investigator, allowing a suspect who had just admitted to their crime to leave would have been unthinkable.

“Fine. I’ll wait here.”

“Thank you, Your Excellency.”

But my relationship with Ji-won was neither that of a criminal and a cop nor a counselor and a patient. Her being a psychopath and serial killer, devoid of human emotion, was irrelevant.

We walked the thin line separating life and death together in many a situation. We had stumbled and risen together.

That was all that mattered.

“Thank you for waiting, Your Excellency.”

I drained the last of my coffee as I waited, and Ji-won eventually returned, dressed in her full National Road Management Corps uniform.

It had been years since I’d seen her in it. The black-and-white attire symbolized paving paths through the Void. It was clear she had maintained it meticulously, always ready for reuse.

“Allow me to escort you.”

“To where?”

“To the location where the abducted individuals are being held.”

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We exited the café base through the emergency door, which led directly into the dark expanse of the original Inunaki Tunnel.

Though I had transformed it into the “Underwater Tunnel,” Inunaki Tunnel remained, at its core, an Anomaly that had once severed the Japanese archipelago. Beneath the veneer of my modifications lay its true, ominous form.

“It’s been quite some time. I still vividly remember watching Your Excellency tame the Inunaki Tunnel and reshape it at will.”

Ji-won’s footsteps echoed loudly in the tunnel.

Mud splashed as we walked, but somehow her shoes and trousers remained pristine.

Even on battlefields, she had been like this. No matter the filth around her, she always maintained her immaculate appearance, earning both mockery and fear from others. While some dismissed her as if she were on a fashion runway rather than a battlefield, deep down, they were terrified of her precise Aura manipulation.

“Anomalies and Voids can be altered by human will—or at least, the Inunaki Tunnel can. That’s why Your Excellency chose this as your stronghold, is it not?”

I didn’t respond.

“That’s what I thought. If Your Excellency can do it, then surely I can too.”

We came to a fork in the tunnel. Ji-won didn’t take either path. Instead, she pressed against a section of the wall, knocking on it lightly.

Suddenly, without sound or warning, a staircase appeared.

“Of course, I wouldn’t dare place my abilities on the same level as yours. It’s simply a matter of potential.”

Ji-won descended the emergency stairs as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I followed silently.

“It wasn’t difficult. Thanks to Your Excellency’s prior work taming this place, all I had to do was add a little DLC.”

The staircase was pitch dark, but Ji-won moved with unwavering confidence, as though she had memorized every step.

“Did you know, Your Excellency? When constructing underwater tunnels, emergency spaces are always built below to prepare for flooding.”

“I did.”

“As expected of Your Excellency. Yes. The moment you gave the Inunaki Tunnel its new identity as the ‘Underwater Tunnel,’ it opened up the potential to insert such emergency spaces.” She paused briefly before adding, “The most challenging part was designing the space itself. It made me marvel once again at Your Excellency’s skill in transforming this tunnel into a café.”

Again, she waited to see if I would respond.

“I don’t have such artistic talent, but after a year of work, I managed to create something passable.”

Ji-won reached the bottom of the stairs.

In the depths of this underwater abyss, dim lights flickered to life, illuminating the scene before us.

“Allow me to introduce it to you, though it is an embarrassing effort.”

The yellow-tinged light revealed an unmistakable sight—a prison. Iron bars lined the space, holding countless people.

However, even “prison” felt inadequate to describe what I saw. Inside each cell, an array of torture devices was on display, with people restrained in grotesque positions.

“This is a laboratory designed to artificially create Awakeners from ordinary civilians.”

As groans of half-dead souls echoed around us, Ji-won turned toward me with her expression as cold as ever.

“I call it the ‘Misfortune Workshop.’”

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