The Tales of an Infinite Regressor

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 122

──────

Dreamer II

4

It’s been so long that I can hardly remember, but I must have been quite a decent young man before becoming an awakened being in my first turn.

Smoking? I didn’t. Drinking? Not really.

Of course, I was never addicted to gambling either. Except for the fact that I did a reset marathon over a thousand times to achieve the best ending in my life.

- Brother, I'm curious. I want to go inside.

“Wait a moment.”

So, even though Hayul was tugging at my sleeve as soon as she saw the casino, my moral and upright self didn’t give in easily.

Instead, I drew my sword first.

One Slash.

With a sudden swing, my dedicated gear, the cane sword Doha, sliced the world diagonally.

Rumble-

Dust rose from all directions. A part of the casino building, operating illegally in the void, collapsed helplessly.

“……! ……!”

Hayul jumped up and down next to me, but it was nothing more than a silent outcry.

No matter how curious she was, it was very important to test whether physical force worked on the opponent, like now.

It wasn’t just because I was the type of player who, upon participating in a TRPG, would coolly and scientifically suggest to the master, ‘Can I get some gasoline and burn down the mansion from the outside?’ before entering some ominous house.

By merely testing whether physical force was effective, I could somewhat gauge the danger level of the void and the level of the monster.

I leisurely observed the reaction of that 'casino monster.'

“Heeeek!”

And then, I witnessed a surprising sight.

Little creatures came rushing out of the casino entrance, panicking and flailing.

“The base is collapsing!”

“Heeeek! An earthquake? Is it an earthquake?”

“That’s impossible...! Our revolutionary front base was built in the safest area in Korea, considering all possible natural disasters.”

“But an earthquake is happening!”

“Comrade 107! When disaster strikes right in front of you, a small-bourgeois fairy denying reality must be executed! Executed!”

“I cannot endure self-criticism.”

“Heek! Comrades! Please spare me from the purge!”

They were none other than the tutorial fairies.

They were the doppelgangers of the Fairy Lord, a subordinate of the Alien God Endless Hell. In other words, these monsters were nothing more than imitations of imitations, and they swarmed out and started to restore the building.

‘…Why are these guys here again?’

In my 205th turn, I was dumbfounded. I sheathed my cane sword and walked towards the fairies.

Tap tap. I tapped the shoulder of the closest fairy.

“Hey.”

“Huh? A human guest? Sorry, but the store is temporarily closed due to a sudden earthquake heeeeek? Doctor Jang!”

The fairy fell flat on its back. The other fairies, who were on ladders holding hammers and tools, also turned to look at me.

“D-Doctor Jang? Why? Why Doctor Jang?”

“The nightmare of Busan Station!”

“The tyrant of Baekhwa Girls’ High School!”

“Comrade 107! W-what’s going on? Didn’t you assure us that this place would never be discovered?”

“Hiiiyaaaak! Run! Run away! Our clan will be annihilated if we get caught by that guy again!”

The fairies scattered in all directions, but it wasn’t a very wise move. Sometimes in RPG battles, there were situations where the ‘flee’ command simply didn’t work, and this was one of those times.

“Hayul.”

- Yes.

From Hayul’s fingertips, spider silk shot out swiftly.

A moment later, all 27 fairies were wrapped in the spider silk and presented before me.

“Heek, heeeek…”

“Hey. Didn’t you all get wiped out along with the Fairy Lord when Endless Hell was sealed? What are you doing hiding out in this backwater?”

The fairies trembled.

“T-the Fairy Lord was nothing more than our oppressor...! We never truly submitted to that guy!”

“Oh. So, what is it, the Royalists and the Revolutionaries? It’s all part of your roleplay settings anyway. Are you still living talking about revolution?”

“Roleplay settings? No! We are very serious!”

The fairy’s next words were quite shocking.

“We lived just fine without the Fairy Lord in the first place! But that terrifying being created the Fairy Lord and oppressed us!”

“…What?”

“At last, with the demise of the Fairy Lord, our long-awaited liberation came to us fairies! But due to long-term oppression, our national capital is very low...! So, we tearfully jumped into the gambling business to raise revolutionary funds...!”

“Revolution is innocent!”

As I collected testimonies and information from the suspects, I arrived at an astonishing truth.

“Oh, so. You were actually monsters that had nothing to do with the Alien God Endless Hell, but Endless Hell just created the Fairy Lord and was oppressively ruling over you all?”

"Exactly!"

"So, the division between those who follow the Fairy Lord and those who don't... Was the existence of the Royalists and the Republicans actually true?"

"Have you been listening with your ears or a toilet, human?"

Unbelievable.

Indeed, the "tutorial fairies" had nothing to do with Endless Hell. Endless Hell created the puppet dictator, the Fairy Lord, and oppressed the fairies.

It was a kind of colonial rule.

However, when I and Cheon Yohwa subjugated Endless Hell, the situation drastically changed. The fairies were suddenly liberated and scattered everywhere, transforming into guerrillas with a vow never to be swayed by a giant monster again.

The so-called "Dream Entertainment Hall" casino established here was a business run by these guerrilla fairies.

Why were they operating it? To build a fairy community, by fairies, for fairies, once again!

‘Come to think of it, the monsters at Baekhwa Girls' High School were all ghosts, but the tutorial fairies did feel somewhat out of place.’

Who would have thought such a secret was hidden?

As I marveled at how much information I still didn’t know about the world, Ihayul jumped up and down next to me.

- Brother. Brother.

“Yes?”

- Over there. I want to look around.

It seemed Hayul had been deeply interested in the casino since earlier. Well, it was confirmed to be almost risk-free.

"Hey, you little guys. Show us how you operate this casino."

“Heek. That’s ridiculous! We can’t reveal the insides of our revolutionary base to a bourgeois oppressor….”

“Should I call Cheon Yohwa and ask her to put you in the hourglass where Endless Hell is sealed?”

“A step back for two steps forward is something even proletarian comrades can understand…!”

We entered the casino.

Fortunately or unfortunately, the missing management personnel from the caravan were found inside. To be precise, they were not in the casino but in the hotel built above the casino, all three sound asleep, completely unaware of the world.

“What? Why are they all sleeping? Did you guys do this?”

“Heeeek…! T-this was done consensually! In our casino, we exchange the chips won by our customers not for money, but for dreams!”

“Exchange for dreams?”

“Yes! Here, look at our menu...!”

The fairy took something out from its bosom. It was a large menu. It was certainly not a size that could fit into the fairy’s body, but instead of nitpicking, I decided to read it.

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]

――――――――――

♪♫*♪~Feeling like walking in a dream~♪♫*♪

Welcome to our 『DREAM』 Casino ٩(♡ε♡ )۶! We sincerely welcome you!◕‿◕)丿

――――――――――

Riiiip.

I instinctively tore up the menu.

“Heeeek? What are you doing!”

“Sorry, it was my instinct….”

“Is tearing up the menu upon entering a store your instinct? That’s scary! This paper was made with great effort, so don’t waste it!”

Hmm.

I calmly took the menu again and read it. This time, for my mental well-being, I omitted all the emojis and described only the content of the menu plainly.

――――――――――

[Dream Casino Guide]

*Welcome!

*Here at 'Dream Entertainment Hall,' you can enjoy various games using Fairy Coins. Fairy Coins can be purchased with your 'time.'

*Exchange rate: 1 hour = 1 Fairy Coin.

*To use the entertainment facilities in this casino, you must bet at least 1 Fairy Coin.

*Fairy Coins can be exchanged for the following rewards:

-10 Fairy Coins: You can have a comfortable dream for one night. Guaranteed deep sleep. The content of the dream is undetermined. You can freely set the time from a minimum of 2 hours to a maximum of 24 hours.

-50 Fairy Coins: You can enhance a specific sense in your dream. Sight, smell, taste, etc. The memory of the sense will likely remain relatively vivid even after the dream ends.

-100 Fairy Coins: You can choose the location in your dream. Any space within 100 square meters is possible (e.g., a top-notch restaurant from before the end of the century).

However, moving beyond the set range is impossible. The scenery outside the windows, etc., can be decorated with 10 Fairy Coins. Please consult with a staff member for detailed settings!

-1,000 Fairy Coins: You can choose a person to appear in your dream. Even someone who no longer exists in reality.

-2,000 Fairy Coins: You can set what kind of relationship you have with the person in your dream. Please consult with a staff member for detailed settings!

-3,000 Fairy Coins: You can set yourself as the character in your dream. Appearance change, social status modification, resume falsification, gender transition, age change are possible. Please consult with a staff member for detailed settings!

·

·

·

-10,000,000,000 Fairy Coins: Guaranteed perfect lucid dream. We promise sensations and intelligence exactly the same as reality!

This item is a membership. Customers who exchange for this item will be immediately upgraded to 'VVIP' status and will continue to be guaranteed 'lucid dreams' when using other products.

-100,000,000,000 Fairy Coins: You can freely set the flow of time felt in the dream. Do you wish for eternal life? Live 100 years in a dream during just 1 second in reality! If you get tired of the life in the dream, you can wake up immediately.

This item is a membership. Customers who exchange for this item will be immediately upgraded to 'VVVIP' status and will continue to be guaranteed 'time flow adjustment' when using other products.

*Note: The maximum number of Fairy Coins that can be exchanged at one time in this casino is 9,000 Fairy Coins.

*Note: At this casino, we may require repayment of the principal amount at midnight every day. If you cannot repay the principal amount, the number of insufficient coins will be confiscated from your time.

How the confiscated time is used is entirely up to this casino. Please enjoy gambling safely and responsibly.

――――――――――

“…….”

I was momentarily at a loss for words.

There were so many issues to point out that I didn’t know where to start. But first, as a regressor, I decided to ask the question that I was naturally curious about.

“Hey, you guys... do you have the ability to control dreams?”

“Huh? Of course.”

“We are dream fairies, after all.”

“We couldn’t perform our main job because we were oppressed by the Fairy Lord, but our true name is actually Dream Demons.”

Shocking! The truth was revealed after 205 regressions!

The tutorial fairies' true identity was Dream Demons, i.e., Succubi and Incubi!

- Fairy Coins. 9000 coins, exchange desired. Exciting.

Next to me, Hayul, true to her Japanese-influenced nature, was burning with the spirit of pachinko. I flicked her forehead and looked at the fairies.

“What happens to human customers whose time you confiscate?”

“Huh. They end up like this.”

Suddenly, one of the management staff lying on the hotel bed stood up. Hayul flinched in surprise.

The staff member was a middle-aged man. His beard was already scruffy, having been trapped in the void for several days.

With a blank, almost brainless look, he muttered.

“Hueee….”

“…….”

“Huee, huee, fairy number 5000... reporting in….”

“…….”

Silence.

Both Hayul and I turned to the fairies, demanding an explanation.

The tutorial fairies, no, the Dream Demons, tilted their heads with clueless expressions, not understanding what they did wrong.

“Huh. That customer took out a full loan of 9000 coins and lost it all at baccarat in just one day. Now, for the next 10 years, he has no choice but to work as a comrade of our Fairy Revolution Club!”

“That’s right!”

“Hueee! Forward without stopping until the day of the revolution!”

This is insane.

This place is a breeding ground for monsters.

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]