The Regressor Can Make Them All

Chapter 563

“Remodel the Ring?”

Se-Hoon blinked in surprise. Of all things, she wanted to alter the Golden Ring, the very origin of the world itself?

Is she just throwing out an idea? No, if that were the case…

He looked at Lea, who didn’t have the slightest doubt on her face as she waited for him to process her words. Because of that, Se-Hoon began seriously considering it and only opened his mouth afterwards.

“Keep going.”

“The biggest problem right now is the uncertainty of the point of regression. If we can fix that, I think everything else will fall into place.”

If, for example, they designated the time for the regression to be right after Lunatic was destroyed, then Tuner keeping his memories wouldn’t matter. At that point in time, Tuner would have already lost all of his cards and would be unable to create new variables.

“But there’s no guarantee that the future you, a Perfect One, will return to that point. And even if you do, it’s highly likely new problems will crop up.”

“Hm…”

“In enchanting terms, it’s like choosing the wrong base material. So, if that’s the case, the solution is simple, isn’t it?”

Instead of stubbornly clinging to the unstable base material called ‘Lee Se-Hoon,’ they should just switch to something better: the Golden Ring.

“Then what makes you think the Golden Ring is a better material than me?” Se-Hoon asked, growing more and more intrigued as she explained.

“You said it yourself, remember? Rather than some kind of god, the Golden Ring is more like a machine that possesses omnipotent power.”

Back when they were preparing the Planetary Reinforcement Plan, Se-Hoon had indeed explained to her the true nature of the Golden Ring.

The essence of the Golden Ring was that it moved only according to fixed laws despite its near-divine, omnipotent power—exactly like a machine.

“A Perfect One’s rampage only happens when their ever-changing synesthetic mindscape gets forced into an immutable law. That mismatch causes the breakdown. Meaning, if the base is something immutable from the start, that mismatch wouldn’t exist.”

“…”

“I’ll enchant the Golden Ring with the power of Regression—well, an enchantment formula that imitates it—and force the world to regress to the exact point we want. That’s my plan.”

With Lea finally ending her long explanation, Se-Hoon began assessing just how realistic it actually was.

If this really works, it’s the optimal option.

He wouldn’t need to become a Perfect One himself, and Tuner’s trap would naturally be nullified. While he couldn’t avoid being flagged as a regressor, he could live with that much.

The question is feasibility… but considering it’s Lea that designed the plan, she’ll find a way somehow.

The current world, simply put, was Lea’s world. Regardless of whether she wanted it, everything revolved around her. That meant nothing would stop her, even if her actions led to the world’s destruction. In fact, Puppeteer had tampered with the Golden Ring specifically to make that kind of thing a law.

Actually, that also worries me… but I’ll figure it out when we get there.

Worrying now would only end up making the Golden Ring wary for no reason. Putting his thoughts in order, Se-Hoon then looked at Lea, who was quietly awaiting his judgment.

“Let’s start right away.”

Thus began their research within this strange world.

***

With a plan now set, the two immediately agreed that they needed to build a research facility. To systematize the research on the enchantment formula mimicking the power of Regression and to inscribe it onto the Golden Ring, their current equipment was nowhere near enough.

“Hmm, how should we explain the situation to everyone else?”

Lea fell into thought. To them, the modification of the Golden Ring was a perfectly reasonable goal, but to the rest of their current world, surely it would seem absurd. Should they hide their goal under a different pretext?

However, just as she began considering it, she looked up to see Se-Hoon open his mouth calmly. “That’s what you were worrying about the whole time? There really is no need, you know.”

“Huh?”

“No one in this world is going to oppose us.”

Not understanding, Lea blinked in confusion. However, that confusion‌ didn’t last very long.

“You guys are going to start a new research project? Of course we’ll support you! Who wouldn’t when you are leading it personally? Hahaha!”

“We’ve coordinated with various governments to allocate contingency funds. The Pioneer Corps is also willing to help secure any materials you may need as top priority.”

“Just send us the location and the blueprints for the facility, and construction will begin immediately.”

The Heroes Association, governments, corporations—every major institution across the world accepted Lea’s request without resistance. Within days, bills were passed and support poured in.

In a world where Puppeteer controlled the strings, where all conflicts were erased from the decision-making process, such was simply the natural outcome.

“All the bills have been passed unanimously…?”

People around the world synchronized legislation to establish the Claudel Research Institute, celebrating the news as if it held significance for their futures. It was uncanny, yet such things were only the beginning.

「Dr. Isaac Williams has announced a new theory of temporal variability. Experts believe it may provide the first scientific foundation for time travel…」

「Aria Myers, leading the expansion into the Pleiades Cluster, reports the discovery of a new elemental mana called ‘Aether,’ confirmed to influence spacetime.」

「Unidentified spacetime disturbances detected near the Towers of Heroes. No casualties reported so far, but investigations continue…」

“What in the world?”

Having woken up late, Lea stared at the breaking news with her toothbrush still in hand. Just last night, when she was touring the nearly completed research facility, she had briefly thought that it would have been nice if those really existed.

And now, within a single night, every scenario she imagined had manifested?

So this is what the Golden Ring is capable of…

The term “luck” only applied to miracles that occurred when the flow of the world and one’s personal desires aligned. Normally, the greater one’s desire, the lower the chance of a miracle. For Lea, however, things were different.

She, being the protagonist of the world, was the center of everything. Every living being moved for her sake, every physical law bent to her will, and even the concept of “luck” existed simply as a tool for her use.

“…”

Such was the endpoint Puppeteer had reached: a world on its “Final Act,” where free will no longer existed, where the world was controlled entirely by the immutable machine-god.

Experiencing the reality of that world, Lea was once again reminded of how dangerous it was.

“…It’s going to be fine.”

Lea calmed herself. If the world moved at her will, then by the same token, her attempt at altering the Golden Ring would succeed without fail. Strengthening her resolve, Lea finished up and joined Se-Hoon at the research facility built within Babel to begin full-scale work.

“Before refining the enchantment formula, we need to inscribe it onto the Golden Ring directly somehow…. Direct interference should be out of the question, right?”

“Unless one of us is an actual Perfect One or a Harbinger of Destruction, yeah. We need to resort to an indirect route.”

“Hmm… we should probably look into you and Terra for references first.”

Even with the world showering them with support, remodeling the Golden Ring was no trivial task. If beings like the Perfect Ones and Harbingers of Destruction existed in the same 3D plane as the Golden Ring, ordinary humans existed one dimension lower—it was a situation akin to drawings on paper trying to tinker with the real world.

“Since the Towers are connected to the Golden Ring, if we use that… wait, what? The connection isn’t perfect? Then this whole idea is… argh!”

As they worked, new theories and technologies kept appearing, forcing them to revise and rebuild their models again and again. Progress into setbacks was repeated constantly throughout the first month.

I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but…

Sitting alone in her private lab, Lea stared at a blank diagram.

Objectively speaking, her achievements over the last month were enormous. The Spacetime Preservation Formula allowed objects to be maintained semi-permanently. The Voidspace Junction Formula was incorporated into terraforming, massively expanding habitable land. And aside from those two, she had come up with so many other innovations that helped advance human civilization.

Alas, her core goal—remodeling the Golden Ring—remained frustratingly stagnant.

It’s not like there hasn’t been any progress… but it’s just… too slow.

It was as if their current technology had just taught them how to walk, while interfacing with the Golden Ring was like reaching the moon. Whether they ran, sailed, flew, or made it past the planet, it remained impossibly far.

Sure, they would reach it. Just at the current pace, that someday would be hundreds—no, thousands of years later.

Maybe we’ll suddenly hit an explosive breakthrough…? If that never comes, though… then what happens to me? To him?

Her thoughts spiraled—

Swish-

The curtains flew open, flooding the room with sunlight.

“Ugh…”

Squinting at her first sunlight in a week, Lea looked toward the one who was now opening the window to let fresh air in: Se-Hoon.

“I knew it… tsk. You’re spiraling downward endlessly.”

Following his gaze to the sight of the trashed room, Lea, startled by his unexpected appearance, instinctively tried to cover the mess.

“I-I was just about to clean this all up! More importantly, when did you—”

“Lea. Do you know how long it’s been since we last saw each other?”

“Huh?”

“Stop. Try not to think too hard. Just answer my question.”

Confused by the random question, Lea tried to recall the details.

“We had dinner yesterday, so… maybe eight hours?”

“It’s been a year.”

“What?”

“We’re seeing each other for the first time in a year.”

Her eyes widened. Then, seemingly realizing something, she spoke again with a trembling voice. “Are you serious…?”

“You can check for yourself. Everything should’ve been ‘edited’ by now.”

Following his gesture, she hurriedly picked up her phone and opened the calendar.

“…!”

Exactly one year had passed since the date she last remembered. A cold shiver went down her spine.

“What… happened…?”

“The spacetime inside the lab warped and twisted time. Officially, the facility malfunctioned… but yeah.”

“…It was my fault.”

She remembered. She had casually wondered if they could simply step outside the facility to return to the normal flow of time if the research required long periods. It was supposed to be just an idle thought, though…. To think she had lost an entire year without realizing it.

“Then what happened to you…?”

“I had to make a tool called a Spacetime Cutter to slice my way through the distortion. I tried to use my power of Regression to get you out, but the Golden Ring blocked me.”

“…”

Lea clenched her fists, her head dropping. While she sat in comfort inside the warped space, Se-Hoon had been struggling for a year alone.

She couldn’t even look at him. The guilt made it too hard.

How pathetic can I get from here…

She knew how urgent the situation was, yet she had made such a stupid mistake. Where was the confidence she had when she proposed the plan?

She trembled in self-reproach—

“Anyway, from now on, you’re limited to eight hours of research a day.”

Se-Hoon’s relaxed voice reached her.

“I forbid you to work on weekends. Also, don’t just hole up in her; go out and take a walk occasionally. Spend your breaks searching for places you want to visit. I’ll also keep my schedule open just in case.”

“…?”

“For your meals… we should eat together. If you eat alone, you’re just going to think about work again. For your vacations—”

“W-wait!”

Lea jerked her head up, bewildered.

“Are you… serious?”

They were even more pressed for time because of her, and he wanted to reduce the research hours? Unable to understand, she stared at him in disbelief. However, he simply stared back in return.

“How many hours did you work each day?”

“Um, nineteen hours… no, maybe twenty…”

“How much time did that save you? Exactly?”

“That’s… I…”

She lowered her head again. She had worked obsessively for a month, cutting sleep and meals—and still lost a year. If things had gone slightly differently, she could’ve lost decades.

“I’m not blaming you for trying your best. If the deadline were near or if there were urgency, pushing yourself would be fine. Both of us have done that plenty of times.”

“…”

“But the situation is different this time. Remodeling the Golden Ring is something no one has ever done. In some ways, it’s harder than conquering a Tower of Heroes.”

Discouraged, her shoulders drooped further. So, at that moment, Se-Hoon gently placed his hands on her shoulders and guided her upright.

“That’s why you don’t need to rush. We’ll take it slow.”

His eyes held no criticism, no disappointment—only warmth.

“No matter how long it takes, if we’re doing it together, we’ll be fine.”

His comfort was impossibly light, yet deeply resonant. It had a presence that treated her mistake as nothing more than a small misstep.

“…”

The world was definitely fake, a mere stage crafted by the Golden Ring. Every day in the puppet-world suffocated her, making her want to escape as quickly as possible. To achieve that, she had forced herself, knowing it was impossible.

But now—

No.

She couldn’t allow herself to think that. The thought rising in her heart was crushed down.

She took a slow, steady breath.

“Then… am I allowed to sleep in?”

“I’ll wake you up every morning.”

“How about skipping work?”

“It’s fine. Just don’t get caught by me.”

Lea pouted.

“So nothing changes at all, basically.”

“That’s part of the charm, isn’t it?”

“Hm…” Lea paused, looking at him, then at last let out a small giggle. “Yeah, that might be true.”