The Tales of an Infinite Regressor

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 123

──────

Dreamer III

"But before the first shovel of the revolution was even lifted, we were caught by the notorious reactionary, Doctor Jang..."

"Hoeeek. Tears, tears..."

Plop.

The fairies' bodies drooped.

To reiterate, fairies were anomalies that directly contradicted human physics.

Not just in the way their shoulders drooped like humans, but their entire bodies melted like slime, oozing onto the ground.

"Why do the attempts of those who dream of world revolution always end in tragedy?"

"Failure, another failure..."

"We gave up wealth and honor the moment we left our homeland, but seeing all the seeds of revolution turn to ashes is truly exhausting..."

A cloud of gloom began to form over the fairies' slime bodies.

Hmm.

There were countless points I wanted to tackle, but it seemed I needed to clear up a major misunderstanding first.

"Excuse me. I don't understand, so let me ask one thing."

"Hoe...?"

"Why am I a reactionary?"

Blink, blink.

The fairies tilted their heads in confusion.

"Well, because you caused chaos at Busan Station and wreaked havoc at Baekhwa High School, making you our enemy. And our enemy is the enemy of the revolution."

"That binary way of thinking certainly fits revolutionaries, but haven't you considered that I might have been helping you?"

"Hoeek?"

At that moment, I sensed an opportunity.

I felt the potential for something great.

The first material humans used to create swords wasn't stone, but their tongues. I wielded my intangible sword.

"At Busan Station, you oppressed humans first, so you should thank me for stopping you before you committed any more misdeeds. Isn't that right?"

"...Is that so?"

"Of course. And at Baekhwa High School, I defeated the Endless Hell and killed the Fairy Lord. Thanks to that, you were freed from your shackles. In fact, I'm practically your liberator, aren't I?"

"..."

"..."

The fairies looked at each other.

"Hoeee?"

"Now that you mention it, it does make sense..."

"If self-liberation is impossible, external liberation is acceptable. This can be recognized as a revolutionary methodology."

"But that would only be accepting a new oppressor, wouldn't it?"

Whisper, whisper.

Suddenly, a revolutionary debate broke out. For revolutionaries, the debate is a kind of coliseum. Those who lose have nothing but purges awaiting them. I also jumped into the heated debate.

"No, that's not true. After I defeated the Endless Hell, did I try to control you fairies? I left you alone, didn't I?"

"Hoeee."

In truth, I thought they were wiped out along with the Endless Hell and left them alone, but in the grand scheme of the revolution, minor details didn't matter. Only the linear progression of history was important.

"Even when you gathered and built a casino, I didn't interfere. How does that make me a reactionary and an oppressor?"

"Certainly..."

"That makes sense!"

"Wait! Then why did you destroy our casino with your sword just now?"

It was a sharp question, but too weak to damage my thick-skinned face.

"That's because you kidnapped one of our agents first."

"Hoeek, kidnapping... We didn't..."

"Moreover, no matter how much the ends justify the means, how can you call yourselves revolutionaries when you run an illegal gambling den? Why not sell drugs, too, while you're at it? You look like a fine mafia cartel."

"Hoeeeeek..."

"Then... Were you really the savior of our kind?"

Twinkle, twinkle.

The fairies looked up at me with sparkling eyes. Doubt. Expectation. The mixed emotions in their gaze proved that now was the time for the finishing blow.

I smiled with utmost benevolence.

"Don't call me that. Such a distant title doesn't suit us, comrades. We may have been born on different days, but aren't we revolutionaries who have sworn to die together?"

"Heoooook!"

"Comrade Doctor Jang!"

The fairies sprang to their feet.

"Unbelievable! We've misunderstood Comrade Doctor Jang's true intentions all this time!"

"Now that I think about it, not a single word he said was wrong! The comrade eliminated the Fairy Lord and his despicable master, and he didn't demand anything from us afterwards!"

"Liberator!"

"Beacon of freedom! Our savior!"

"Oh, revolution! The vanguard who leads the foolish masses! Comrade Doctor Jang is the avant-garde of this world!"

It's over.

What’s there to hide? From this point, I used the excuse of subjugating the Endless Hell to ascend as the secretary-general of the fairies.

When I established the "Canned Hotel" to train writers on my 560th turn, I could mobilize a large number of fairies thanks to my position.

"But no matter how much the incident was caused by mutual misunderstanding, I apologize for destroying your hideout, comrades."

"It's all right, Comrade Doctor Jang!"

"We're the ones who should apologize for luring your subordinates to the baccarat table!"

"Hmm. No, no. As someone who knows how earnest your revolutionary spirit is, I can't just overlook this. So, I have a suggestion..."

I smiled brightly.

"If you truly want to complete the revolution, you shouldn't just linger in a rural area like this. You should head to the city. What do you think, comrades? How about coming with me and getting a taste of city life?"

"...Hoee?"

5

One month later.

A colorful banner was hung at the entrance of the Inunaki Tunnel, which opened into the sea off the coast of Busan.

[Cafe Hideout Event!]

[New Entertainment Facility 'Dream Casino' Opens!]

[A grand entertainment venue run by dream demons! Welcome to the Dream Paradise!]

In this modern era, aptly called the age of advertising, simply hanging a banner wasn't enough to appeal to customers.

"Huh? What's this?"

"Did we have such an advertisement before...?"

For the first time, an "advertisement" appeared on SG Net. Whether surfing the web or posting articles, a 'Dream Casino' ad continued to flash on one side of the screen.

It was practically a monopoly.

Those who clicked on the ad received 100 coins as a first-time gift. While it might not be as fun as visiting the casino in person, a simple online game was also established as an 'Internet Casino.'

Of course, it was just a minor pastime, a kind of bait product.

This would naturally make people curious enough to visit the main branch, the 'real casino' in Busan.

But that wasn’t all.

"Doctor Jang, do we really have to go this far?"

"Trust me, Saintess. This casino business will be a huge hit."

"...Okay."

Despite her sigh, the saintess reluctantly agreed with my assertion.

Soon, a message from Constellation was delivered to all awakened beings active on the Korean Peninsula.

['Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue' manages the casino.]

That's right.

A new Constellation debut!

Previously, I created a new Constellation called 'Librarian of the Grand Library' when I set up the 'Library Association’s Anomaly Encyclopedia' board. I then put Shin Ahryun in charge of it.

This time, by establishing a casino at the Inunaki Tunnel, I forged another Constellation, the 'Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue.'

['Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue' is the lord ruling over all fairies.]

['Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue' wishes for you to be intoxicated with dreams. Amusement. That is how you can praise and worship the 'Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue.']

[The deeper your faith in the 'Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue,' the more diverse the entertainment you can enjoy at the casino will be.]

Librarian of the Grand Library. Dream Demon of the Grand Entertainment Venue.

Gradually, the scale of the website, fittingly named 'SG Net,' or 'Constellation Net,' was expanding.

The Constellations, which initially borrowed names from historical figures, were beginning to take on real substance and approach the awakened beings with more concrete content.

Noh Doha, who had been informed of my plan in advance, furrowed his brow.

"Doctor Jang. Is there a particular reason we need to proceed with this casino business? No matter if the only currencies exchanged are 'time' and 'dreams,' a casino is still a casino. Won't it have some adverse effects...?"

"It will."

I didn’t deny it.

"Some awakened beings might end up living their lives addicted to gambling. Consequently, they might end up mortgaging their entire lives to the fairies."

"Even so...?"

"Even so, we must proceed. It's not merely because there are too few entertainment facilities these days. Chief Administrator Noh Doha. Take a look at this."

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]

"Hmm...?"

I lifted a transparent box. Inside the glass case were objects resembling coins.

They were casino chips.

"We've finally discovered this. What do you see, Chief Administrator?"

"Uh, aren't those casino chips...?"

"Yes. Money."

Clink.

I grabbed a handful of casino chips and dropped them onto the table.

"Currency. Exchange medium. Chief Administrator, think about it. If we make Dream Casino a success, we can finally circulate 'safe money' even in this wretched post-apocalyptic world."

"...!"

Noh Doha's eyes widened behind his glasses.

Our gazes sparked like an electric shock.

"Until now, we could only maintain exchange rights in very limited ways, backed by food. But this is different. Fairy Coins, the casino chips usable at Dream Casino, can literally be exchanged for 'any goods' by people."

"In dreams..."

"Yes, in dreams. But the dreams people can set are not very different from reality. Look at the last item. You can turn all those dreams into perfect lucid dreams with a hundred billion coins. With a trillion coins? You can even control the time in the dreams."

"Aha. Aha..."

"There will be very few people who actually grab one billion or ten billion coins. But it doesn’t matter. Currency is essentially an illusion, a fantasy, a ghost. But the difference from an individual’s mere delusion is――."

"A dream shared by all humans, not just a single person’s dream… Therefore, a fantasy that ends up having the same weight as material reality…"

"Exactly."

"Hooh. Truly, Dream Casino. The amusement of dream demons..."

Noh Doha picked up the casino chip I had dropped on the table with his fingers.

"Interesting…"

His glasses glinted. Breath slipped from his slightly parted lips.

"A currency not based on gold, the petrodollar, or Bitcoin but on dreams… Ah, the paradox of currency, which began as the dream of civilization, returning to its original form at the end…"

"What do you think?"

"Hooh…"

Noh Doha adjusted his glasses and looked straight at me.

"It suits you…"

"Excuse me?"

"I said, it suits you. This is ultimately an advanced form of your ability, isn't it? The Time Seal or whatever it is…"

"…"

"I know you view the Time Seal as a curse rather than an ability. But from my perspective, you are also a kind of dream demon. Doctor Jang. And you could say that you have just brought in subordinates to make your forces even stronger…"

Noh Doha pressed the casino chip with his fingertip.

"I’ve heard there are many ways for an Awakened to develop their abilities. So, isn’t it possible that you’ve become stronger by subjugating anomalies this time? Hooh, congratulations. What do you call this, an ability upgrade…?"

"I merely perpetuate a day that actually existed infinitely. The dreams of the fairies are just simulations. No matter how much power the fairies exert, they can’t create dreams that account for all the variables in reality."

I, too, looked at Noh Doha.

We searched each other’s gazes.

"Workshop Master Noh Doha. Just as the sword you created, Doha, was something that the alien-god Endless Hell couldn’t anticipate."

"…"

"I will aim for reality. Just as I have so far. And I will continue to do so, forever."

A silence fell.

With a long, humming breath, Noh Doha nodded.

"…Fine. Then there’s nothing to worry about. It’s a brilliantly fine plan, so let’s proceed with the currency reform immediately…"

That was the highest praise that could come from a person like Noh Doha.

"Oh, by the way. What do you want to call this new key currency that will be circulated in our world? Fairy Coin…?"

"No. Although I also considered the name Dream Currency, I think it’s better to call it 'Won’'."

"Oh? And why is that…?"

"It will be easier for people to accept because of the familiarity."

I picked up the casino chip… no, the money that would become the new world's currency, and flicked it to Noh Doha.

Noh Doha deftly caught my money.

"Because it’s a currency that flows in this endlessly repeating circular world, it’s Won. Because it’s money that feeds on human hopes and dreams, it’s Won. And because it will be an object of curses and lamentations, it’s also Won. Coincidentally, Japan and China also use the characters Yen and Yuan. It can be interpreted in any way. Strong sorceries originally have many names to conceal themselves."

[PR/N: Won (圓), Won (願), Won (怨), Yen (円), Yuan (元). Words with their characters, respectively in order, just for better understanding.]

"Hmm… well."

With his usual twisted smile, Noh Doha pocketed the money.

"Not bad. Since sorcery is your specialty, Doctor Jang, I’ll leave it to you…"

6

There is an epilogue.

Not long after, the National Road Management Department began performing as a 'bank'.

And they supplied 9 billion worth of 'Won' to the major guilds in various cities, free of charge. Without any interest.

When the guild leaders visited Busan, each of them used the casino. And they left excellent reviews both in reality and on SG Net.

- [Three Thousand] Witch Trials Judge: It was like a midsummer night’s dream. How long has it been since I’ve tasted a premium omakase restaurant? A glass of wine. A warm partner. It was a time that reaffirmed the truth that life is enough with just that… Although I couldn’t capture it in photos, that itself is also a kind of beauty, isn't it? Today's remark: Moment, you are so beautiful that you should stay still.

- [Baekhwa] High School 7th Grade: Totally recommended!! I could enjoy an ordinary school life! I achieved my bucket list of holding hands and walking home under the cherry blossom trees! 🙂‍↔️;;

Truly rave reviews.

Naturally, the guild leaders’ reviews stimulated other guild members, and further piqued the interest of awakened beings all over the Korean Peninsula.

In the end, within less than two years, the Won was circulated as the official key currency.

Initially, there were no major obstacles to exchanging goods with just Won in the regions of the Korean Peninsula, the Japanese Archipelago, and the Chinese mainland.

They even paid equal attention to the arrangement of the names of the fallen countries to avoid offending anyone by using each order: Korean Peninsula-Japanese Archipelago-Chinese Mainland, Japanese Archipelago-Chinese Mainland-Korean Peninsula, and Chinese Mainland-Korean Peninsula-Japanese Archipelago.

In some sense, the 205th turn might have been a very significant turning point.

Of course, numerous incidents would occur because of this Dream Casino and the Won… But that can be unraveled slowly later.

So let’s end this episode with a brief glimpse into a dream I bought at the casino.

"Brother Hyunduk!"

"Oh! Brother Doctor! You, my brother, have done a great job!"

"How can this be solely my credit? It’s thanks to Brother Woonjang who led the soldiers, and further, it’s due to the treacherous Jojeok who lost the people's hearts, and ultimately, it’s the merit of Brother Hyunduk who gathered the people scattered across the world."

"Hohoho. I can't match Brother Doctor’s eloquence."

In the dream, we – Yubi, Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, and the Doctor Jang – founded the Shu Han. Naturally, we chopped off Cao Cao’s head and threw it into the river of Xu Province.

This is the realization of justice. The proper history. Truly a touching Romance of the Three Kingdoms that you can’t watch without tears.

It was overwhelming.

How could I hog this thrill all to myself?

As soon as I woke from the dream, I pounded on the keyboard (the reincarnation laptop given by the alien-god).

A lengthy Romance of the Three Kingdoms novel was completed within a few days.

I handed this 'masterpiece' to the so-called editor.

"Reader. Make sure to include this novel in the main text. I think it’s a masterpiece. A monumental work in the genre of Romance of the Three Kingdoms parodies! I plan to serialize it on SG Net too. So in the main text as well…"

"Wait. In the main text, you want to insert a 600-episode Romance of the Three Kingdoms parody into the middle of the novel I’m editing?"

"Exactly. That will perfectly solve the issue of volume you mentioned. The readers will shed tears of joy."

"Are you seriously crazy?"

"…?"

…Unfortunately, it seemed my masterpiece wouldn’t be included in the main text due to some uncultured individual. The end.

- The Dreamer. End.

[Translator - Jjescus]

[Proofreader - Gun]