WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 335: The past (14)

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The Tower had appeared, and the world had been thrown into upheaval, but the leaders of every nation were still, at their core, people of extremely ordinary common sense.

"What... is a regressor?"

At first, they didn't understand.

"Are you saying this person can go back in time?"

"Mr. President. That is not a joke to make lightly."

Then they denied it.

"Is this... really true?"

"This is, this is just... unbelievable."

In the end, they accepted it. Was it really true that a time traveler existed in this world? Was this really happening?

"Mr. President. I don't mean to doubt you, but... I simply don't understand something."

The German Chancellor raised a hand and asked.

"If there truly, truly is a time traveler, why have you chosen to share this fact with us?"

It was a genuinely fair question. Anyone who gave it even a little thought would realize this information's value was enormous. Why share something like this when you could just as easily keep it to yourself?

"Well, that's..."

The US President answered, his face pale. Michael Zetter had actually opposed holding this meeting, but it was the President who pushed forward with it anyway.

There could be several reasons behind this, but the most essential one was, above all, a sense of responsibility.

Between the uncontrollable crime rate, the shaking global order, and now the regressor problem piled on top of everything, the pressure had grown to a size the President could no longer bear alone. He hadn't slept properly at night from the stress, and he was already taking sleeping pills from his doctor right up to the maximum dose.

Responsibility shrinks when it's shared. In a sense, the President was seeking an escape.

Of course, the President wasn't a fool, and he hadn't made this decision purely to lighten his own burden. Naturally, there was another motive behind it.

"I don't want other nations coming into conflict with the regressor."

First, the President wanted to make Kim Jun-ho untouchable. Right now the regressor was just quietly climbing the Tower, but a 'collision' could happen at any moment—that was the President's considered opinion. Whether by accident or by inevitability, it was a disaster that must never be allowed to happen.

"I don't want political forces touching the regressor. I don't want a situation to arise where he might come to view our existing social order negatively. I believe he should be left independent. Especially in Korea."

"...I didn't know he was the regressor, but I've already been blocking access to Miss Choi Ji-won."

The Korean President answered, his voice trembling. The fact that Choi Ji-won had been able to climb the Tower with peace of mind up to now was largely thanks to his efforts. It was the Korean President who had been doing everything he could to keep lawmakers and corporate figures from bothering Choi Ji-won.

This had partly been done so he could later cash it in with some line like "I was the one who protected you, you know," at a decisive moment, but either way, it was true that he had blocked access to her.

"Well. If that's the case, that's fortunate."

Eliminate the possibility that resentment toward the existing social order might form. Delete every last chance of collision, and plant the idea in the regressor's mind that things were fine as they were now—that was the President's goal. And this wasn't the end of it, either.

"Everyone. Do you know what this is?"

"Paper?"

"...An Escape Contract."

"So some of you do know. This is a contract that can be obtained inside the Tower."

A contract purchased by players belonging to Team Alpha. The President handed a copy to everyone in the room.

"The contents of the contract are simple. You may not tell anyone what you hear here, and you may not take any action that could have a direct impact on the regressor. It simply prohibits all interference with a person named Kim Jun-ho."

Control. The President's other goal was control.

The President had obtained his clue about the regressor through the transcendent means of the Book, but according to Zetter, the regressor might be able to give his memories to someone else. It really was only the faintest of possibilities, but it meant someone else out there might notice the regressor's existence.

If some other government happened to realize what the regressor was and decided to harbor ill intentions, ruin might follow. So the President's aim was to put a leash on everyone beforehand.

"My opinion is that it's better to know and be careful on your own, rather than step on a landmine in ignorance. I already know that elected officials are going to declare states of emergency and extend their own terms anyway. If it's necessary, I'm prepared to run for a third term, or even further."

"..."

"So, allow me to propose something."

The US President spoke, his face still pale.

"From this moment on, we will not use the Book of Truth. We will not use it for personal purposes until enough sacrifice has been gathered to properly assist the regressor. Stabilizing the social order matters, but I believe what matters most, above everything, is climbing the Tower as quickly as possible."

His final move: securing legitimacy for no longer using the Book for personal purposes going forward. Up until now, the President's overwhelming authority had stemmed from the prophecies granted by the Book. The prophecies would stop for the time being, but by opening up information about the regressor, the President could maintain his influence all the same.

"Let's agree that no one touches the regressor. When it comes time to intervene, I will call another meeting. I will share every fact with all of you. So please, do not try anything foolish. Do we have agreement? If anyone has questions, ask them now."

A flood of questions poured out. A heated debate followed, more intense than one would expect from members of the upper class. But the longer the exchange went on and the louder their voices rose, the more they found themselves agreeing with the US President's position.

The regressor was a bomb. A bomb that could bring ruin down on anyone who touched it carelessly. There was a return on the risk—the possibility of taking the world into your own hands if you managed things skillfully—but the risk itself was simply too great.

To put it bluntly, these were people who already had almost everything they wanted. They were the leaders of society. People already living lives of abundance.

Rather than risk losing that life over some unnecessary gamble, they chose to maintain the status quo. They weren't going to climb the Tower themselves anyway, and if all they had to do was sit still while the regressor cleared it for them, there was no reason to refuse.

"When support is eventually given to the regressor, the fact that all of us agreed to this will also be..."

"Of course it will be conveyed. My goal, I'll say it again, is to show that the current order benefits the regressor. None of you want an overwhelmingly powerful regressor to overturn everything and rule over us all, do you?"

"Hm..."

"That's true."

"The Association President and I will handle this well. We'll approach it as carefully as possible. So please, leave it to us. We will support the regressor with everything we have, and we will prevent humanity's ruin."

The President pressed a button, and a serving robot appeared to set the prepared food down on the table.

The excitement of learning the world's secret. The relief of knowing that someone with such tremendous power stood on the side of order. The joy of no longer having to worry about ruin. And underneath it all, a lingering greed, wondering if there might be some way to use this to their own advantage.

Each emotion swirled together, and the leaders swallowed hard, stealing glances at one another.

"Then... I'll take it that everyone agrees. We knew nothing about any of this. We're simply going to forget everything and return to our daily lives. As for the Book of Truth... let's not touch it anymore."

"..."

"Those who agree, please begin eating."

The sound of utensils moving in unison broke the silence. The leaders had made their choice. To maintain the status quo. To entrust the regressor issue to the United States. And if a connection with the regressor ever arose, even by pure coincidence, to handle it with as much goodwill as possible.

"I'll hand out the contracts when you leave this room. For reference, the penalty is... death."

Even after hearing the word "death," the reaction was relatively calm. Everyone agreed that a matter of this magnitude warranted exactly that.

With this, Kim Jun-ho would be able to focus solely on climbing the Tower. No one would pick a fight with Choi Ji-won or Kim Jun-ho. Even the usual offers of recruitment, immigration, or honey traps that talented players tended to receive would stop.

But.

"...You're just going to let this go?"

The thoughts of the primate species called humanity were genuinely so varied that beings could absorb the exact same information and still arrive at entirely different conclusions.

"That's not going to fly with me."

And sometimes, everything gets turned on its head by a variable that seems trivial at first glance.

* * *

"Thank you for indulging my stubbornness."

"Not at all."

Zetter and the President, back once more in the familiar secret laboratory.

Honestly, the Zetter from before his fight with Dok Su-hee would have fought tooth and nail to stop a meeting like this. He would have believed that hoarding the information was better than sharing it with world leaders.

But after the fight with Dok Su-hee, Zetter had come to consider that he might have been wrong, and he found himself agreeing with the President's position. The idea of taking preventive measures in advance wasn't entirely without merit.

Of course, there was still a part Zetter couldn't quite agree with—the part about "maintaining the existing social order." He had already been saying openly that an order led by players ought to arrive, and he genuinely believed that would be the more efficient system. His position was that strong players should be given preferential treatment, and that a nation's entire resources ought to be spent primarily on players.

The President probably didn't know that much about him, but Zetter had no intention of bringing it up himself. There was something more important to settle right now.

"So then... let's hear your plan this time. Just how exactly are you thinking of supporting the regressor?"

"Yes. My plan is simple."

The conclusion Zetter and Team Alpha had finally arrived at was genuinely simple and clear.

"We ask the Book for the fastest way the regressor can climb the Tower. Then we let the regressor know about it. Minimal intervention, maximum effect. That's the plan."

Simply asking the Book for the answer. Anyone could think of it, but not just anyone could actually pull it off.

"Can you gather enough sacrifice? And even if you can... what do you plan to do afterward?"

The reason this method was difficult was obvious. To begin with, gathering enough sacrifice was hard enough on its own, and the aftermath afterward would be even harder to withstand.

"No. It's possible."

But it was possible. If it was Zetter, it was possible. Except one condition had to be met first.

"If a regression happens, it will be undone. As if it never occurred."

Regression. Time would have to flow backward, all the way to before the sacrifice had been offered. A question of this magnitude would surely require an enormous amount of sacrifice. And if time didn't flow backward afterward, the United States would collapse just like that.

"Naturally, a mark has to be left in the Book. Our team has already prepared an encoding system for this purpose. It can hold a short English sentence within a single tiny dot."

The details of the plan diverged from here—whether to inform the regressor in advance and secure his cooperation, or to ask about other information regarding the regressor instead. But either way, the core of it stayed the same.

"We have to time it for when the regressor 'definitely' regresses."

Zetter's plan bore an eerie resemblance to the decision Zetter himself had made back in that bunker. Yes, as if it were something destined to happen.

A river always gathers downstream. A leaf always falls to the ground. Winter passes and spring comes, birds return to their nests, and even a full moon wanes when its time comes. What is meant to happen will happen.

Today was the day all that causality converged.

"Association President!"

"I'm speaking with the President right now, so—"

"Su-hee has appeared on Floor 26."

"...Mr. President."

"Go. I'll keep thinking a little more about the Book."

In terms of timing, this was roughly the moment the regressor had just entered Floor 20. The moment he'd be furious at the angels' tyranny. Five months since the First Tutorial.

No one imagined that today, so many things would be decided. But it was bound to happen, regardless.

In other words.

It was fate.

Footnotes:

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