# Chapter 112
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**The One Who Was a Companion IV**
**Shin No-ah**
How much time had passed?
In the night sky without the ticking of clocks, only the brilliant explosions of fireworks ringing out periodically measured the length of silence.
"A monster... me? Me, Dang Seo-rin?"
Only after four fireworks dyed the sky red did Dang Seo-rin open her lips.
"That can't be right. What are you saying, Undertaker? I'm the same. Same as before, nothing has changed. I can't be a monster..."
"That's right. Nothing has changed. But our abilities themselves are a kind of monster. Awakening, transcendence, ascension—no matter how you dress them up with plausible words, they're nothing more than infinitely alien phenomena in the original world of reality. You were guessing this to some extent too, weren't you?"
"...."
I sipped my coffee. After giving Dang Seo-rin an affogato, I made myself a café au lait.
"I don't particularly favor the custom of likening humans to a microcosm, but humans are indeed small spaces. Simply awakening an ability doesn't transform you into a complete monster. Slowly. Like the void eroding the earth, the process of monsterfication progresses through various procedures and stages."
"...What procedures and stages?"
"I don't know all the knowledge either. But Dang Seo-rin, your case is clear. Your golden scales started governing other people's personalities as well, and the monsterfication progressed rapidly."
"So what does that mean..."
"Let me tell you a somewhat difficult story."
Let's compare monsters to a force.
Water falling downward, coffee cans spilling on the ground, balls dropping from the Leaning Tower of Pisa—for all these events, we point to 'gravity' as the cause.
Monsters or the void are the same.
'Why does one drown if they walk to the right in Inunaki Tunnel?' 'Why does the area where meteor showers fell become scorched into ashen territory?' 'Why do all objects and spaces lose their boundaries in Avici Hell and degenerate into mere qualia?'
The answers to these questions are clear.
'Because it is Inunaki Tunnel.'
'Because it is the Meteor Shower.'
'Because it is Avici.'
Each monster possesses the power to create their own unique events.
Just as objects are drawn to gravity, the meteor shower simply has the property of reducing its surroundings to ashes.
Monsters each become causes, bringing about bizarre results in this world.
Things you can only say 'the reason this strange event occurred is because of that monster'—things you have no choice but to point to.
Conversely—the method of subjugating monsters also follows the logic of this analysis.
'The reason parts of Inunaki Tunnel are flooded is because Inunaki Tunnel became mixed with the Sanzu River legend.'
'The myth of a river flowing in the underworld is found not only in the Sanzu River but also in the River Styx.'
'Therefore, the inference holds that if one carries gold or silver coins as ferry fare for the underworld boatman, one would not drown in Inunaki Tunnel.'
Analyze the monster.
Dismantle the monster that was designated as the ultimate cause of the event, interpreting it as 'in fact, the monster too is merely a result established by other causes.'
Reduce the cause from the otherworld of monsters back into the causal relationships of reality.
This is the method of conquering monsters that I declared certain starting around the 100th iteration.
Returning this world to a pure land of proper causal chains. And thereby eliminating the voids that have pierced through the world here and there like holes.
That was the essence of the 'method of fighting monsters' that I, the Undertaker, had established.
"Dang Seo-rin. In this city, on this land, is there even a single person among those living who doesn't owe you a debt?"
"...."
"On the top of that four-story villa lives a young man named Yu Cheol-won. Someone who suffered from insomnia. Five years ago he received a witch's judgment from you, and thanks to that, every night, every morning, and thus every day, he spends his daily life refreshed. The cause of the event called 'Yu Cheol-won's daily life' is you, Dang Seo-rin."
"...."
"What is the cause that made a psychopath named Yu Ji-won able to genuinely worry about others, to like them, and thus hold small parties with friends every week in the evening? Dang Seo-rin. It's you."
"...."
"That every human in this city wakes up happily in the morning, devotes themselves to their work with fulfillment throughout the day, spends time happily with family and friends in the evening, and goes to sleep at night without any worries—that not just one or two people but all the citizens of the city became this way, Dang Seo-rin, is solely because of you."
"...."
"Simply ruling the city doesn't progress monsterfication. But this city can no longer even be distinguished from you, Dang Seo-rin."
Why is this city so happy?
Why do these events, those events, occur in this city?
The answer to this question.
——It is because it is Dang Seo-rin.
"This place is a utopia."
"...."
"A land ruled by a witch who can render perfect verdicts in any trial and eternally send beautiful songs throughout the city. The void most favorable to humans in the world. If my words aren't trustworthy... you can test it. Your equivalent exchange magic will now work on monsters too."
"No way."
"You'll be able to grant self-awareness to monsters, plant pasts in them, gift them human forms. Of course, it will require much trial and error and even more time... but if luck follows, you might be able to dye the entire world into your territory, into the void called utopia."
"...."
Silence settled.
The fireworks no longer burst.
It became quiet as if the entire city had held its breath. The pleasant humming of drunks in the distance and the cackling laughter of witches also died down.
Every time Dang Seo-rin breathed, lights throughout the city flickered. When the yellow lights all blinked at once, Dang Seo-rin smiled a strange smile.
"Then, will I now... be subjugated by you too?"
"...."
"It's a common story. The hero defeats the demon king, but actually the mastermind was the king who had been supporting the hero all along, so the hero rushes into the true final stage... The greatest ally was actually the final last boss. Isn't that a worn-out cliché?"
"...."
"Right. Undertaker. Come to think of it, I don't remember you ever properly calling Busan by its name lately. You always called it 'this city' or 'here.' You had already guessed it from before, hadn't you? That I would become a monster, that Busan would fall into the void."
"Yes."
"You really are a bad person. But—that's right. You warned me from the beginning. That you couldn't predict what would happen. I'm the one who brought about this situation."
Dang Seo-rin stood up. Kkamang-i leaped down below.
Tap—a broom flew from one side of the terrace and settled into her grip. Dang Seo-rin put on the cone hat she had placed on the table.
"Splendid. If word is fabricated that the Monster Wave has been subjugated, naturally a festival will break out across the city. I'll even take time off to drink with you. My personal guard has all scattered, and most of them are probably drunk by now. Isn't it the perfect timing? Have you already won over Cheon Yo-hwa to your side? ...Ah. I see. I wondered why she quietly withdrew from today's gathering."
"...."
"Still, Undertaker. I cannot abandon my city. It's an oasis I barely created in this damned world. No matter what anyone says, my citizens are human. No, from now on I'll make them the only human race. So if you intend to subjugate me and this place—you'd better be prepared for death."
I also stood up.
"No."
Unlike Dang Seo-rin, I had no weapon in my hand. The sword-cane made by a blacksmith who no longer exists in this world remained simply propped beside me.
Because this story doesn't end that way.
"I won't subjugate you."
"...What?"
I lightly took Dang Seo-rin's hand.
There was a slight vibration, but I pulled her toward me without minding it.
In the opposite direction from a thousand years ago.
---
8
-You have murder in your eyes.
-.......
-You're that one, right? Almost the only survivor at Busan Station. An eccentric who goes around asking people strange questions all the time.
Long ago. The events of the 4th iteration.
My first meeting with Dang Seo-rin was in the past before I gained the [Complete Memory Ability].
Whether our meeting was really like that, whether rain was falling around us, whether we actually exchanged this conversation—none of it could be guaranteed.
-Your name?
-...Undertaker. It's a title.
-So you're someone who goes around burying people? Not bad. A person's depth depends on how many corpses they've buried in their own heart.
But one thing was certain, a truth I would remember even if the light faded.
-How about it?
At that time, Dang Seo-rin extended her hand to me.
Should I call it the intuition built up as a regressor. With a broom in one hand and a cone hat on her head, a black-haired witch. The moment I looked up at her, I already knew that a single unbroken thread had become tangled in my endless life.
-Won't you join our guild?
I took that hand.
Just like now.
Only the direction had changed.
"I will absolutely, no matter what happens, not harm you."
"......."
"Even if you become a monster, I don't care. Even if you dye this city, beyond the city, even the entire world into void. Even if you burn the whole world down, Dang Seo-rin. I am still on your side."
"...Ah."
We were similar.
My ability that made me called Undertaker, [Time Seal], also ultimately just gave people eternally happy days.
Even if it was a fake, a counterfeit, if no one could notice, it was no different from the real thing.
The utopia Dang Seo-rin achieved was the same. Even if the happiness people obtained was through transactions with a witch, perhaps that was the best happy ending this world could achieve.
This route was by no means a bad ending.
A world where Dang Seo-rin remained alive until the end, a city where her dream was realized—how could that be recorded as a bad ending for me?
"If you ever get tired of ruling the city and want to quit, we can leave together anytime."
"......."
"If you want to make the entire world your utopia, I will gladly become your sword and lead the way."
Her hand trembled.
Dang Seo-rin.
My guild master.
"Even after becoming a monster, you allowed me to remain by your side. Whether it was done consciously or unconsciously doesn't matter. It doesn't matter at all. You are the reason I live."
You are the cause of my existence.
That we can still be together even after exchanging our places with each other. That was the only difference between monsters and humans.
No matter how deeply we fall into the void, that place does not transform into hell.
"So, don't worry."
"......."
"We can go anywhere."
Dang Seo-rin nestled into my arms.
Lights came on in the city. In the night sky, witches crossed here and there. The noise of drunks and the sound of songs from speakers mingled together.
Fireworks burst.
"...I want to go on a trip."
"Yeah."
"I probably shouldn't have given up on national roads. No, railways. The Railway Management Corps or something. Instead of staying shut in Busan, I should have just made a train fortress like Snowpiercer and kept going around the whole country. That would have been much more fun."
"Yeah."
I hugged Dang Seo-rin's shoulder. I stroked her back.
"Dang Seo-rin."
"Yeah...?"
"I'm actually a regressor."
Dang Seo-rin looked up at me.
"A regressor...?"
"Yeah. I'm actually endlessly repeating the world. My life has already met its end over a hundred times. When I open my eyes, it's always the Busan Station tutorial dungeon."
"......."
I told her.
The magic called Principal Song means burning one's life to spread song, but in fact, that lifespan is being accumulated with each iteration.
"But in my tenth life, you told me. Never to reveal the secret of being a regressor to yourself. That you're greedy, so if you learned that secret, you'd always use up all your remaining lifespan to create a happy ending in the current iteration."
"Ah... I see. That's true."
Even knowing I was a regressor, Dang Seo-rin quickly wore an expression of understanding. She probably had her own thoughts about my identity.
Soon, Dang Seo-rin smiled.
"You're an idiot."
"Who? You in the 10th iteration?"
"No, you are."
When I looked at her with a puzzled face, Dang Seo-rin's smile deepened a bit more.
"Why didn't you kill me right away at the start of each iteration?"
"...What?"
"Idiot. The earlier I die, the longer the 'original lifespan' that gets carried over to the next iteration's me. If my original lifespan was 60 years remaining, you could have passed those 60 years to the next iteration every time... Why didn't you kill me?"
"Wait, what. How can you say that—"
I couldn't continue my rebuttal.
Dang Seo-rin's eyebrows were right in front of my nose. A slight breath. The taste of the coffee I had made for her a moment ago and the scent of ice cream.
The smell of grass freshly wet by a sudden summer shower.
Dang Seo-rin slowly pulled away.
"......."
"Was that your first kiss in your life just now?"
"That's...."
"Ah. Never mind. Don't answer."
Dang Seo-rin opened her lips and let out a song. A small golden scale hung above us.
Dang Seo-rin whispered playfully.
"Undertaker. Put all the memories of your kisses on the scale. Whether you have such memories or not. Not just this iteration, but counting all iterations."
"......."
"Hurry."
I did so.
I couldn't know what Dang Seo-rin placed on the right scale in exchange for placing my memories on the left.
I could no longer mention what memories I had lost either. Whether she judged the balance was achieved, the golden scale emitted bright light in the air.
"Yes. Then close your eyes."
The old night sky. Amidst golden light embroidering patterns like fireworks, Dang Seo-rin pulled my arm.
"—Now this is, our first kiss."
Our two shadows overlapped.
While fireworks scattered in the distance, I suddenly thought.
Just as the cause of my existence was Dang Seo-rin, perhaps the cause of the existence called Dang Seo-rin too might have returned to me.
If so, then tonight was the moment when the gentlest 'conquest method' for monsters briefly existed.
And.
Though I can no longer remember forever, those memories of some kind that Dang Seo-rin erased with her golden scales were probably no different from the person now before my eyes.
---
9
There is an afterword.
When I opened my eyes and woke up, I was not on the terrace of the utopia but looking at the ceiling of the Busan Station tutorial dungeon.
The 173rd iteration had ended.
"......."
I wonder why.
What led me to death?
Regarding the reason for my death, I surmise as follows.
The first hypothesis. That is, upon hearing the information that her lifespan accumulates across iterations, Dang Seo-rin decided to die together with me.
'Utopia' Busan was not established without any cost. The songs ringing from speakers, the equivalent exchange of golden scales, everything originated from Dang Seo-rin's 'Principal Song.'
The price of Principal Song is lifespan.
No matter how small, the magic of utopia operated by burning Dang Seo-rin's life as fuel.
Of course, that resource had secured thousands of years. But it was also certain that an end would inevitably come someday.
Did Dang Seo-rin decide to save that fuel?
For me, no less.
For some final destination we haven't yet reached, for a true ending a little better than now.
...But there is also a second hypothesis entirely different from this.
Actually, Dang Seo-rin might not have died with me right after ending the kiss.
We might have lived through the 173rd iteration's world as if nothing had happened, and spread 'utopia' not just through Busan but through the entire Korean Peninsula, through the entire world.
After sending countless happiness and misfortune, luck and bad luck—after completing a grand epic and finally when all of Dang Seo-rin's lifespan had burned away.
For some reason I can't imagine now, perhaps Dang Seo-rin asked me to forget 'the memories from the moment of the kiss until now.'
As a result, I regressed with only the memories up to the moment of kissing Dang Seo-rin.
Both interpretations can hold simultaneously.
I have no intention of digging into which hypothesis is correct. Actually, neither is a bad ending from my position.
I intend to gladly leave that moment of blankness, that blank page of 'incomplete memory,' that night sky of fireworks—as a single space of void for Dang Seo-rin within me.
Forever.
- The One Who Was a Companion. End.
A regressor telling stories.