The Tales of an Infinite Regressor

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 120

──────

The Brainwasher II

3

Thus, two black holes collided, ending the solar system... was unfortunately not the conclusion. The world remained intact. The meeting between Koyori and Yoo Jiwon caused no storm in the macrocosm.

Despite being colonized by numerous anomalies, the universe proved to be surprisingly resilient, enduring for decades.

“....... …….”

“……? ……. …….”

From a distance, I observed the two conversing. They were too far away for me to overhear their conversation, and Koyori's [Cognitive Manipulation] would likely distort it anyway.

Koyori bowed slightly and handed something over—a business card or letter, perhaps. Yoo Jiwon received it and nodded.

Shortly after, Yoo Jiwon returned as if nothing had happened.

I hurriedly approached her.

“What did you talk about? What was your impression of Koyori? Did you feel any inexplicable fondness or a desire to comply with her requests?”

“Pardon? No?”

Yoo Jiwon responded with a sentence that perfectly encapsulated the subtleties of the Korean language.

“We just had a conversation. It went very smoothly.”

“Ah…!”

I lamented. Was it indeed impossible for a psychopath to resist Koyori’s powers?

“…I see. You did well. Still, I think this must have been a very special experience for you. It must be the first time you’ve felt even a tiny bit of positive emotion towards a human, no? When else would you get to experience this?”

“Hm?”

Yoo Jiwon tilted her head.

“Excuse me, sir, but I don’t understand what you’re saying. I didn’t feel any affection towards the target.”

Now it was my turn to tilt my head.

“What are you talking about? You just said the conversation went very smoothly.”

“Yes? It did, indeed.”

Then, Yoo Jiwon, in a completely unemotional tone, began explaining as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Why should a smooth conversation necessarily lead to affection for the other person?”

?

“Sir, a smooth conversation results in comfort. To be more precise, it brings satisfaction from not having to waste unnecessary conversation to enhance mutual understanding. It’s like using the subway instead of walking to school—much faster and more convenient. But you wouldn’t feel human affection towards a subway train, would you?”

“……”

“Oh, my apologies, sir. Everyone’s preferences are different. Do you perhaps feel affection for subway trains?”

Of course, I didn’t. One person with a peculiar attachment to railways was more than enough.

Listening to Yoo Jiwon’s lengthy explanation, I had an epiphany.

‘This might work! With Koyori! If this unparalleled psychopath can, a miracle might happen where she escapes [Cognitive Manipulation]!’

I grabbed Yoo Jiwon’s shoulder, unable to contain my excitement.

“Yoo Jiwon.”

“Yes, sir.”

“From now on, by any means necessary, get close to 'the one who must not be named.' Become friends or whatever it takes to establish a special relationship. Observe her every move and report back to me. Can you do that?”

“Of course, sir. Leave it to me. But...”

“Ah, don’t worry. I will certainly deliver your will to you in the next turn.”

“I pledge my loyalty, sir.”

A look of mutual understanding passed between us.

At that moment, the Saintess who had been silently observing muttered.

[Doctor Jang, I’ve been debating whether to point this out, but right now… isn’t it obvious to anyone that you’re stalking Koyori?]

It was an observation not even worth considering.

As if someone were crazy enough to run a soup kitchen for free, wearing a green ‘Records of the Three Kingdoms’ apron, and politely smiling at everyone, stalking that someone? Did I look like the kind of person to do that? Ridiculous.

From that day, I immediately launched Operation “Contradiction.”

The greatest shield of the Korean Peninsula, a character that any story would label with [※This character is a secondary, secondary, secondary heroine and can never be conquered], was now stationed in the heart of Daejeon.

That’s right. Yoo Jiwon stayed in Daejeon, making daily contact with Koyori. After all, Koyori had to report to the soup kitchen every morning and evening, and Yoo Jiwon approached her without fail.

On the second day, nothing unusual happened. They exchanged what seemed like pleasant small talk.

On the third day, the same.

On the fourth day, too.

Finally, on the fifth day.

[Doctor Jang, something strange seems to be happening to Yoo Jiwon.]

I sensed a nibble.

“What kind of strange phenomenon?”

[…It's hard to explain, but it’s bizarre. Whenever Yoo Jiwon leaves her quarters and starts walking, strangers approach and start conversations.]

“Hm. Yoo Jiwon has a Hermes-quality face. Maybe people are just entranced by her looks?”

[You’re the first person to describe someone’s attractiveness like that... Hmm, no. It’s really strange. It’s better if you come and see for yourself.]

So, I did.

I trailed behind Yoo Jiwon, ensuring no one noticed.

“Oh my, Yoo Jiwon! I was lucky enough to get some honey apples this time. Here, take one. No, no money needed. Just take it! I feel so happy whenever I see you!”

“Thank you. I will enjoy it.”

“Wow! It's Yoo Jiwon! Big sister, let's play together again today! Come swing with us in the playground!”

“Yes. If I have time this evening.”

…As the Saintess had said, it was a strange sight.

Every time Yoo Jiwon walked down the street, people of all kinds approached her and struck up conversations.

As I had mentioned multiple times, Yoo Jiwon was as beautiful as a crystal sculpture carved from eternal ice. Her constant lack of expression gave the impression of perpetual permafrost.

Would it be easy to approach such a person and strike up a friendly conversation?

Even if someone did, they would only be met with a flat, emotionless voice and the cold gaze behind her glasses in return.

In short, there was no reward for being kind to her.

Yet, the townspeople seemed to enjoy engaging with Yoo Jiwon, approaching her eagerly.

“Saintess, please connect me telepathically with Yoo Jiwon. I need to check her mental state.”

[Understood. ...Connected. I will relay Yoo Jiwon’s words, so please speak comfortably.]

“Thank you. Hey, Yoo Jiwon. Are you okay?”

[I’m fine.]

The Saintess’s voice, replicating Yoo Jiwon's, was completely calm.

“From what I see, Daejeon has already fallen under Voldemort’s control. At least the people talking to you are clearly enthralled by Voldemort. They are flattering you to draw out your favor and keep you in this city.”

[Hmm. I also thought it was strange. But if they’re trying to win my favor, it’s a very shallow attempt.]

“What?”

[It’s annoying.]

“……”

[When I go to a restaurant and the owner recognizes me and starts chatting, I find it bothersome even if I don’t show it. The street now feels like one giant neighborhood restaurant.]

The next day.

The city of Daejeon itself fell silent.

“……”

Yoo Jiwon left her lodging, but no one approached her.

The woman who had given her a basket of apples the day before, the neighborhood kids who begged to play with her—everyone passed by with blank expressions, ignoring her as if they didn’t know her.

I couldn’t help but feel a chill of fear.

[It’s a bit more comfortable now.]

Yoo Jiwon was unfazed.

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Her thoughts seemed akin to finding a vacant seat by the window in a café—good luck, nothing more.

Despite the sudden cold shoulder from the townspeople who had been obsessing over her the day before, she showed no signs of anxiety or confusion.

But this, of course, meant... this was Yoo Jiwon’s victory.

After all, without any interaction, there was no way to enchant someone!

From that moment, the city started to spiral into chaos.

“Aaaaaaah!”

A resident, running, collided with Yoo Jiwon. The resident lost their balance and fell.

At that moment, screeeech—bang! A truck narrowly missed them, crashing into a building. The resident stood up abruptly and grabbed Yoo Jiwon’s hand.

“Ah, thank you! Really, thank you! If I hadn’t bumped into you, I would’ve been hit by the truck and died! You’re my lifesaver!”

“Yes. Take care of your life.”

“……”

When Yoo Jiwon entered a bakery, the employees lined up and set off fireworks.

“Congratulations! You’re the 100,000th customer since we opened! As a special event, we’ll give you any five items for free every day starting today...”

“Oh, sorry, I’m not interested in such events. Please pass it on to the next customer. I’ll just take a baguette if you have any.”

“……”

Everywhere Yoo Jiwon went, she was saved from 'accidental mishaps' and encountered 'incredible luck.'

Yoo Jiwon ignored all these encounters.

[Why did I ignore them? Well, because following Doctor Jang’s orders benefits me far more than establishing friendly relations with those people.]

[They won’t take care of my next turn, will they?]

Yoo Jiwon, using the funds I provided, ate what she wanted and bought what she liked, simply going to the plaza twice a day to chat briefly with Koyori.

In essence, she lived a prosperous life in this dystopia, doing whatever she wanted.

Conversely, the city residents' faces seemed to grow more haggard by the day.

Bang! Bang, bang, bang!

Around the 30th day, a gunfight broke out near Yoo Jiwon’s lodging.

What follows is a reconstruction based on Yoo Jiwon’s later testimony.

Right after the gunshots rang out, a man with a gunshot wound to his arm banged on Yoo Jiwon’s door.

“P-Please help! Please open the door! I’ll repay you!”

Yoo Jiwon, who was reading a book in Latin by the window, raised an eyebrow in annoyance.

“What is it now?”

“Ah. I’m the leader of the top guild in this city. My subordinate just backstabbed me. But… even though he ambushed me, he couldn’t kill me. My brothers will come and avenge me soon.”

“Hah.”

“If you hadn’t opened the door, I would’ve died in the hallway. Thank you. If you want, I can give you everything in this city…”

Yoo Jiwon put down her book and walked over.

By the way, Yoo Jiwon was the operations commander of the national highway management team and had led one of the twelve squads during the Meteor Shower subjugation.

In other words, Yoo Jiwon was second only to me in aura manipulation.

Naturally, a warlord with a bullet hole in his arm was no match for her. Yoo Jiwon effortlessly lifted the guild leader with one hand, as if picking up a chicken.

“Huh?”

Then, she opened the door and tossed him into the hallway. The guild members playing the role of traitors flinched as they found their target.

Yoo Jiwon addressed the assassins.

“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to kill him?”

“……”

“Then I’ll go back to my reading. Do not disturb me.”

Thud.

The door closed.

This was the scene reconstructed from Yoo Jiwon’s memory.

No gunshots were heard in the hallway.

That night.

A strange sound echoed through the dark skies of Daejeon.

-Ohhh... Ohhh…

-Hehehe, hehehe! Hehehe!

It sounded like the cries of beasts, the growls of tigers, and the laughter of countless children all mixed together, reverberating simultaneously.

Even I was experiencing this bizarre phenomenon for the first time.

“Saintess, can you observe what’s happening in the city?”

[I’m sorry. I can’t see anything. Whether it’s because all the awakened in Daejeon have fallen asleep, or for some other reason, all I see is darkness.]

“……”

[If you permit, I can contact Koyori.]

“No.”

I replied immediately.

I had a gut feeling.

This situation was not the result of a ‘correct strategy.’

It felt like opening an ending using some kind of cheat code, in game terms.

The problem was, this was far from a happy ending. Whatever had been forcibly awakened was undoubtedly furious.

“Koyori, or the anomaly surrounding Koyori, can enthrall and control the entire city’s residents. Just confirming this information is a great achievement. Any further contact is dangerous.”

[Understood.]

“What about Yoo Jiwon?”

[She’s the same—pitch black, like the other awakened ones.]

The eerie wails continued throughout the night.

Yoo Jiwon’s whereabouts were revealed the next morning. At 7 AM, she woke up and walked out of her lodging as if nothing had happened.

I immediately entered Daejeon and contacted Yoo Jiwon, asking if she had heard the strange sounds the previous night.

“Sounds?”

Yoo Jiwon tilted her head.

“I’m not sure, sir. Since fourth grade, I’ve always worn a sleep mask and earplugs to bed.”

With the dawn, not only had the wails disappeared, but so had the city’s residents.

Even the Saintess’s [Clairvoyance] couldn’t observe anything. The only person detected was Yoo Jiwon.

I immediately activated Yoo Jiwon’s [Minimap], but the result was the same. Neither Koyori nor any other awakened in Daejeon responded.

It was as if they had evaporated in an instant.

From that day until the end of this turn, Koyori and the residents of Daejeon never reappeared.

“By the way.”

Yoo Jiwon took something out of her pocket. It was a letter.

It served as an epilogue to this episode.

“Sir. Please accept this.”

“What is it?”

“It’s a letter from Ms. Koyori to you.”

“……”

“She asked me to deliver it to [the first person she meets upon waking up] if she could no longer run the canteen.”

I hesitated before accepting the letter.

I opened the envelope. A sweet apple scent wafted from the paper.

-Man proposes, God disposes.

-Planning is done by humans, but success is determined by the heavens.

“……”

Mou Shi Zai Ren, Cheng Shi Zai Tian. A phrase from Romance of the Three Kingdoms. It’s similar to the idiom "Man proposes, God disposes," seemingly a general saying one could tell anyone.

But the fact that she quoted the Romance of the Three Kingdoms made my heart uneasy.

‘Doesn’t it seem like she knew I was the one who sent Yoo Jiwon?’

…Moreover, I recognized Koyori’s handwriting. I had once accepted her into my guild, so it was natural.

The handwriting on the letter was distinctly different from Koyori’s writing back then.

Perhaps this letter contained the first genuine glimpse of Koyori I had ever seen.

The first trace not filtered by [Perception Manipulation].

I turned the letter over.

-The butterfly of the typhoon and the butterfly in the dream are different beings.

A shiver ran through me as if struck by static electricity.

The blue morpho butterfly of the anomaly ‘Butterfly Effect,’ and the butterfly that appeared at the end of the ‘Logout Game.’

The phrase hinted at the existence of both.

It was a message only I could decipher… and it addressed one of the questions I was most curious about at the time.

How much does Koyori know? Or is this, too, merely reflecting the information I wish to see?

From where did I begin to be enthralled?

“…Yoo Jiwon, when did you receive this letter?”

“Oh. I got it when we met on the first day, just before we parted.”

“……”

“She promised that if I fulfilled her request to deliver the letter, she wouldn’t cause me any direct harm. It was an offer worth accepting.”

Yoo Jiwon tilted her head.

“Is there something strange in the letter, sir?”

“……”

I kept my mouth shut.

As I folded the letter, still carrying the scent of apples, I couldn’t help but think anew.

――After all, if you pit the strongest spear against the strongest shield, the result is a draw.

- The Brainwasher. End.

[PR/N: im actually scared of her bro.]

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]