WeTried Translations

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ I'm an Infinite Regressor, But I've Got Stories to Tell

Chapter 399

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The Bereaved VII

A Heart-pounding ☆ Private Tutoring session with Teacher Go Yuri!

A scenario straight out of an old dating sim had become my reality. And my heart, both its left and right ventricles, were genuinely pounding in response.

And so, after spending thirty minutes reading scriptures with Go Yuri, feeling like a spy who had infiltrated the heart of an enemy nation's intelligence agency, the result was in.

‘What is this?’

I was bewildered.

‘This is... a remarkably normal lesson, isn't it?’

Ah, the reason my inner monologue was so formal was that I was doing my absolute best to emotionally immerse myself in the character of 'Cheon-hwa', a young Miss from a prestigious family.

Putting aside my soul-baring method acting, Go Yuri's private lesson was... truly 'normal'.

My fears about what sort of bizarre heresies she would try to brainwash into the soft, developing minds of the twin sisters were proving to be entirely unfounded.

“Therefore, Miss Cheon-hwa.”

“Yes?”

“Just because your own name feels empty and void, there is no need to forcibly empty out your own identity as well.”

“…”

“Parents hold absolute power over a child. But you, Miss Cheon-hwa, are a wise person. You not only know how to think for yourself but can also take responsibility for your actions, so you are already no different from a respectable adult.”

“Is that… so? Teacher?”

“Yes!”

Go Yuri beamed.

“Honestly, I’ve never met someone your age who is as brilliant as you are, Miss Yo-hwa. I believe you have more than enough reason to be proud of yourself. Ah. Of course.”

Shhh, Go Yuri playfully crossed her index finger over her smiling lips.

“It would be troublesome if the leader were to find out just how clever you are.”

“…”

“Freedom is power. It is a natural right given to all humans from the very beginning. So, until you have gained sufficient power, Miss Cheon-hwa, I would be grateful, though I'm sorry to ask, if you would keep that freedom suppressed.”

Go Yuri’s advice.

The private tutor’s counsel was utterly appropriate.

I forced the facial muscles of Cheon-hwa to move. Without betraying any of that forced effort, I managed to shape it into a natural smile.

“Thank you, Teacher. I will keep that in mind.”

‘This isn't brainwashing.’

My thoughts proceeded on two separate tracks.

While my face and my tongue were wholly engaged with the 'Teacher' before me, the angle of my thoughts continued to delve deeper inward.

“However, this mansion is no different from my father's fortress. The helpers, too, only appear to be maids on the surface, but in reality, they are followers more ardent than anyone. In a place like this, how can a mere young girl like me possibly build up any strength?”

“Oh my. But I’m here, am I not! My Miss!”

‘If it's not brainwashing. This feels almost like…’

It seemed to be the exact opposite, as if she were trying to liberate the twin sisters, Cheon-hwa and Yo-hwa, from the chains of this pseudo-religious cult.

“Are you saying you will be on my side, Teacher?”

“Yes, haha. With such adorable girls like you, and as twin sisters no less. As a responsible adult, how could I possibly not help?”

“…”

I turned my head slightly.

“Nyaa…. Unni, I don’t like green chocolate….”

Beside me, my lovely sister, Yo-hwa, was drooling on my arm as she dozed off.

It couldn’t be helped. How many children at that age could genuinely focus while reading the Tao Te Ching together?

After stroking my sister's soft hair once, I turned my gaze back.

“Teacher. I have also heard many rumors about you.”

“Oh my. What kind of rumors are you referring to?”

“That you are a self-made woman who, despite being an Oechul, captivated Father’s heart in an instant and rose to the very cusp of an executive position.”

Oechul. Naechul.

These were slang terms used only within this time-honored pseudo-religious cult. Followers who were born into the cult and raised for generations were called Naechul, while those who had just recently joined were referred to as Oechul.

The cult's history dated back to the time of the Imjin War. I didn't know if it was fact or propaganda, but there was even an executive who had supposedly served the cult for twelve generations.

Perverts existed in this world. They possessed a disposition to value the times they had not lived in more than the times they had.

And into this fortress of time, built by such perverts, an Oechul had unexpectedly seeped in.

The being before me was clearly strange.

Just as it had always been.

“Is it your intention to steal the cult’s power and wealth by stealing my father's heart?”

“Oh, my my.”

“And by securing the trust of me, the successor, you plan to enjoy power for the next half-century?”

“Ahaha.”

It wouldn't be strange for her to falter at least a little when faced with such sharp animosity.

But Go Yuri’s lips, on the contrary, softened.

“Power. Authority. Ahh, what sweet words those are.”

“…?”

“Never mind half a century, it would be quite nice if it could be maintained for even twenty years, hmm, or maybe even ten years.”

“…”

A chill shot straight up my spine.

‘She knows.’

At this time. At this very moment.

At a point in time when modern civilization so casually holds firm its love and trust in the laws of physics, the being before me already knew.

‘This being knows that the world is going to end. She knows. Already.’

How?

‘Is she really the main culprit behind the arrival of the void? A prophetic ability? No. If she were a prophet, why is only Go Yuri's mind intact?’

‘Let's assume she knows the future. Then every single second of this present time would be incredibly precious. Just look at me! Just look at Old Man Scho. Haven't we lamented countless times how wonderful it would have been if we could have regressed just a little bit earlier before the arrival of the void!’

‘A time limit precious as gold.’

‘Why is she investing such time in something like giving private lessons to the twin sisters of a pseudo-religious cult? Why?’

“Oh my.”

Steadily.

Go Yuri’s eyes half-opened and stared directly at me.

“Why do you look so flustered? My Miss?”

“…”

“I believe I said something quite ordinary.”

The clockwork of my thoughts accelerated desperately.

I removed the grime from between the gears that I, as the ‘Undertaker’, had created. I eliminated the noise.

The oil of acting was hastily injected, and the cogs that made up the current marionette, the one named ‘Cheon-hwa’, began to creak and turn.

“What do you mean, an ordinary story?”

I acted, with the resolve to deceive not just humans but even gods.

“Just now, Teacher, it was as if you declared it. That our family’s glory, our cult's future, will last for 10 years at most.”

“Aha?”

“Of course, I dislike my father. But that absolutely does not mean I hate everyone who has come under the protection of our cult.”

“Hmm.”

Go Yuri’s eyes narrowed.

“—Certainly. Yes. From your position, my Miss, it could have sounded that way. I'm sorry! I spoke too carelessly.”

“...”

“When you become an adult, you sometimes pick up a habit of pretending to know things. For me to do that in front of someone as smart as you, my Miss. I am truly lacking. Will you forgive me?”

“…Yes.”

“Thank you. I always feel nothing but sorry towards you, my Miss.”

Bzzt, the smartphone buzzed for a moment.

It was Go Yuri’s phone. As if she had known a message would arrive at this exact moment, she picked up the smartphone with a casual motion and looked down at it.

Glance.

“Hmm, oh dear. It seems it’s already that time.”

Go Yuri clapped her hands together.

Clap!

“Hwek?!”

At that, Yo-hwa, who had been in a deep slumber, shot her eyes open. Go Yuri smiled gently and took out a handkerchief.

With a different handkerchief from the one she used to wipe the chocolate from Yo-hwa's mouth before the lesson, she gently dabbed at the drool marks.

“Heup. Ah, aht, aht….”

“Well then, shall we review the last passage from the Tao Te Ching we studied today?”

Go Yuri whispered.

“The Way follows what is natural. How about it? It's a familiar phrase, isn't it? It's the one our Reverend recites the most, after all.”

“Yes, yees! Teacher.”

“All things in the world are imitations. Ah, saying it like that might get it confused with Plato, so…. it might be better to call them ‘incomplete works’.”

Nod-nod, Go Yuri bobbed her head.

Yo-hwa, with a face that knew nothing of the world, mimicked the teacher’s gesture.

“Why are they incomplete works? Because the very act of humans giving names to things is imperfect.”

“…”

“Man follows the Earth. Humans are imperfectly given their names from the environment of the current era. You are a student. You are the child of certain parents…. The Earth follows Heaven. The environment of the current era reflects a fragment of the flow of all ages, of destiny. And Heaven follows the Way. Even destiny itself stems from a single path.”

“…The Way follows what is natural.”

“Yes. Only the path itself proceeds as a path, without relying on anything.”

Go Yuri let out a small laugh.

“Your father, my ladies, seems to believe that by casting away his name, he can become one with that path completely…. but I, I interpret that passage in the opposite way.”

“The opposite?”

“Even a single path ultimately culminates in a single person. If that is the case, then I ask you, for what reason can a single person not change that path?”

“…”

The Tao. The Path.

The Route.

As ‘Cheon-hwa’, I tilted my head as if I half-understood, but as the ‘Undertaker’, I was thrilled.

Go Yuri. Why, and how she had infiltrated this place, this pseudo-religious cult, I could not know.

But I was certain of one thing.

This mansion was an indispensable stepping stone in the ‘Route’ she had drawn in her mind.

“There is only one way to reach that point. It is to become a human as vast as the path of nature, as vast as the universe.”

Slide.

Go Yuri stood up.

“To put it another way, perhaps the Way follows Man. Man-as-is, and at the same time, destiny? Ahaha. Really, it's a problem how much I like this kind of old-fashioned way of speaking.”

“…”

“Well then, I will see you again next time. Miss Cheon-hwa, Miss Yo-hwa.”

Yo-hwa shot up to her feet and bowed her head deeply.

“Uung! Teacher! Goodbye!”

“…Goodbye. Teacher.”

I, too, went to the doorway to see the teacher off and bowed my head.

Step, step, step.

The sound of Go Yuri’s footsteps grew distant.

Down the long wooden hallway, befitting a grand mansion, the weight of Go Yuri’s presence grew fainter and fainter.

‘Is it finally over?’

The me inside heaved a sigh of relief.

Since I was still bowing my head to see the private tutor off, there was comparatively less need to pour my mental energy into maintaining my expression.

‘Still, the guide on SG Net was a huge help. By empathizing with Cheon-hwa's ego, with someone else’s ego, I was really able to deal with Go Yuri normally. Yes. Just proving this fact makes this cycle an unparalleled success…’

“Oh, by the way.”

Thud.

The footsteps stopped.

Her gaze latched onto the crown of my head.

I could feel it.

Even though she had already left the room, even though she had walked down the hallway, I could feel Go Yuri's eyes looking ‘this way’.

The gaze of her smiling eyes.

“Come to think of it, you haven't called me by my name even once today, Miss Cheon-hwa.”

“…”

“You used to say it so affectionately every day, so it feels a little empty now that you've suddenly stopped. Hehe. The title 'Teacher' is nice too, of course. But I really, really love the sound of your voice saying my name, Miss Cheon-hwa.”

“…”

“My name.”

Whisper.

“Could you say it for me just once?”

My heart pounded.

‘I’m under suspicion.’

Countless answers formed routes and branching points in my mind, only to be blocked. Go Yuri? Wrong answer. ■■■? Wrong answer.

Because.

“Pardon?”

I lifted the head I had kept bowed for so long. And, just like Cheon-hwa would, I smiled sweetly and tilted my head.

“I’m sorry, Teacher! I think you just said something. What was it you said?”

“…”

The correct answer was, ‘I couldn’t hear you’.

I wasn't suddenly acting out a hard-of-hearing character. As I said, Go Yuri had walked a fair distance from the room down the hallway.

And just a moment ago, Go Yuri had 'whispered' in an endlessly low voice.

There was no way I could have heard it.

A voice whispered by someone from that far away.

It would be impossible for the childhood 'Cheon-hwa', who had yet to awaken any aura or anything of the sort, to have heard it clearly.

“Ah. It’s nothing.”

Wave!

Go Yuri waved her left arm back and forth and said in a slightly louder voice.

“It’s nothing at all! My Miss! Well then, I’ll see you again next week-!”

“Yes! Teacher! Goodbye!”

Only then did Go Yuri’s back completely disappear around the corner of the hallway.

I lowered the hand I had been waving back.

‘…If I had panicked just now and answered rashly.’

What would have happened, I wonder.

“…”

I didn't even want to think about it.

Ignoring the maids, the shadow aberrations that began to roam the hallway again, I went back into the room and hugged Yo-hwa tightly.

“Woong? Unni?”

“…”

“What’s wrong, Unni?”

Yo-hwa reached out her small hand and stroked my head. It should have been the exact same size as my own palm, and yet, why did it feel so small?

I murmured.

“I’ll protect you, Yo-hwa.”

“Huh?”

“From Father. From the cultists. From the inscrutable Oechul. Even if the world becomes strange. No matter what, your big sister will protect you.”

“…”

Please, hurry and come, Sunbae (—me—).

To the 'me' (Cheon-hwa) right now, this world is far too vast, and far too dark.

Footnotes:

[1] Near the end of her lesson, Go Yuri makes a pun. She suggests a new interpretation of the Taoist principles, 도법인연 (道法人然), which phonetically sounds like "The Way follows Man." This is a play on the common word 인연 (因緣), which has the same pronunciation (In-yeon) and means "karma," "destiny," or "connection." She is essentially saying the path of destiny is ultimately shaped by individual people.

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