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Chapter 197

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Investors VI

12

Now, some of you might expect a sudden twist where a terrifying virtual reality simulation anomaly appears and the world ends...! And, indeed, there have been instances of such things, but that\'s not the subject of today\'s story.

As I\'ve mentioned before, this episode is about ordinary people. I want to address a part that I\'ve somewhat neglected until now. If an anomaly suddenly appeared and stole the spotlight, wouldn\'t it just turn into another tale of Doctor Jang\'s rampage? That\'s something I could tell you about any time, 365 days a year, whether I like it or not, so let\'s leave that for another time.

"You are the heroes who have advanced the world."

I wasn\'t the type of NBA star who would have a congenital fit if I didn\'t get treated like the main character in every game. Rather, I was the player who definitely passed when it was time to make a pass. And apparently, my \'passes\' were quite overwhelming from the perspective of the Dungeon Masters (DMs).

"Uh, uhh..."

In front of the National Road Management Headquarters, at the Babel Tower Square. The DMs were invited to the podium set up there. And below the square, team leaders of the management unit were all standing at attention.

"On behalf of the citizens of Busan who were too busy with their livelihoods to attend the square, and others, we dare to offer our gratitude to you."

Bow.

As I bowed my head, the team leaders of the management unit bowed deeply and gracefully. Of course, Yoo Jiwon was among them. In other words, powerful figures who wouldn\'t be embarrassed anywhere were formally greeting the DMs.

I quickly raised my head, but the other Awakened ones couldn\'t do so. While I talked to the DMs, the Awakened had to stay bent over, showcasing their flexibility.

"No... Doctor Jang, you didn\'t have to go this far..."

"The Kingdom Project has achieved unprecedented success. We\'re receiving highly satisfactory feedback from the guilds participating in this year\'s rookie draft. Your project has raised the level of the Awakened on the Korean Peninsula by a notch."

"Uh, hmm..."

The DMs looked incredibly burdened, but I personally didn\'t trust their facial expressions. I trusted their lives instead.

To those who lacked money, give money. To those who lacked friends, give friendship. To those who lacked power, give power. To those who lacked honor, give honor. This was the most basic principle of \'rewards.\' Why do soldiers love getting vacations as a reward?

It was the same for the DMs. The people standing before me earned a decent amount of money before and now. But what about power and honor? Have they ever experienced the powerful figures of society lining up to greet them like gangsters bowing to their boss?

They hadn\'t. And they likely never would in the future.

This kind of \'treatment\' was a rare commodity only I could provide them. Naturally, in their hearts, the figure of Doctor Jang would hold a unique value. Through these rewards, the bond between the DMs and me grew stronger.

\'And if they get too swayed by this trickle of power, it means they aren\'t the kind of people I can use for long.\'

After the ceremony ended, I clapped. The Awakened, who had been bowing until the end, also stood up and joined in the applause. The DMs, looking flustered and embarrassed, awkwardly left the event.

They seemed relieved that it was finally over, but from the perspective of a regressor, this was only the beginning.

\'I wonder how many will remain.\'

Time passed. Some of the DMs became increasingly addicted to the sweet nectar of power and gradually lost interest in the Kingdom Project. They started teaching the general public how to become successful DMs and began showing up at the office less and less. They only occasionally took on high-paying jobs as private DMs, drifting further away from making the Kingdom Project more intricate and entertaining.

As the DM profession began to gain immense popularity among the general public, DMs with achievements and fame were quickly recruited as instructors. It didn\'t take long for them to retire from active duty. Four out of the eight were eliminated.

Of course, from my perspective, they were eliminated, but to them, it was a wise and successful life.

On the contrary, those who remained in the company and continued working on the kingdom simulation were, in my view, the true passers—the ones who hadn\'t been led astray and kept their focus.

\'Half remain.\'

The turns progressed. This time, I approached writer A first and proposed the Kingdom Project. Writer A was astonished as they listened to my blueprint.

"This... You\'re saying you\'re entrusting me with such an incredible project?"

"Yes. We\'ve already completed about 20% of it at the National Road Management."

I handed writer A part of the world-building settings that had been created by the four who were eliminated in the previous turn. Writer A was impressed as they reviewed the materials.

"…Amazing. This really feels like it was written by a pro... Ah, but the main NPCs, main events, and fortuitous encounters aren\'t done at all. It\'s basically just a well-structured world..."

"Yes. That\'s why we\'re reaching out to those who were involved in writing before civilization was destroyed, offering them this proposal. Would you like to participate?"

"…Yes, yes. I would love to participate!"

Time passed. Writer A didn\'t have to go through the trouble of gathering colleagues themselves. I personally found and brought in the colleagues who had remained with the company until the end in the previous turn.

And then temptation came knocking.

- Hello. I\'m here secretly on behalf of the Guild Leader of the Three Worlds.

- Could you create a super account for the project you\'re working on?

- We\'ve come from Baekhwa Girls\' High School. Could you create an item for our student council president...?

- We will ensure the compensation is generous.

The \'generous compensation\' amounted to 60 billion won.

At a time when the Kingdom Project was not yet complete, when there was no certainty of unprecedented success, this was a huge sum of money.

Out of the four, two were eliminated.

\'Half of half again.\'

The turns progressed. Writer A, who had initially started the project with seven colleagues, was now left with only one.

But there wasn\'t much work to be done.

"Ah... This is, if we just complete the settings for the main NPCs and main events, we\'ll be done quickly."

This was because the National Road Management had already completed a significant portion.

"Hmm. The other parts are really flawless... No, there\'s really almost nothing wrong with them. Who made this?"

"I can\'t disclose that."

"Ah, I see... I have a few writer friends, and I wondered if it might have been them..."

Time passed. The Kingdom Project, which started from a more comfortable starting point, became even more polished. Writer A refined and refined the work they had created in the previous turn.

It was a process of revising and improving over several turns.

In the midst of it all, one of my fellow DMs flooded his account with unreasonable equipment and items.

He crossed the line as a game master, acting like he was the true protagonist of this world, moving around like a player.

Why hadn’t he done that in previous turns, but did so this time? It was difficult to pinpoint the exact reason.

One person eliminated.

“Wow! This, this is amazing!”

And so, on to the next. The 208th turn.

Writer A, who received the blueprint for the “Kingdom Project,” trembled with excitement.

“This is really incredible! Truly, I had been thinking of something similar, but… No! It’s even more brilliant than what I had in mind… How could they manage such a project from the control center…?”

There were all kinds of temptations and traps.

There were countless tests that an ordinary person couldn’t endure and had no reason to endure.

Despite all that, Writer A never abandoned the “Kingdom Project” even once. He didn’t betray the players either.

He was the kind of talent needed by a regressor.

“Writer.”

“Truly, this is, wow. Ah. Yes?”

“I want to entrust this project to you.”

“What? What? Really? Wow, truly! Thank you so much! I only read two pages, and my hands are already itching to work on it…!”

“And I am a regressor.”

“…What?”

13

We had a drink together.

Writer A’s eyes, glazed from the makgeolli, stared blankly at the ceiling.

“This is ridiculous. How could this be the work I created with those guys…?”

“Why is it ridiculous?”

“Well, it’s too well-made. Damn. Ah, I’m sorry for cursing…”

“It’s okay. We’re drinking, after all. By the way, don’t worry about the other colleagues. A mysterious donation is being deposited into their accounts like a pension every turn, thanks to the merits of their past lives, so they’ll be able to live leisurely for hundreds of lives.”

“Thank you…”

Writer A’s expression was complex after hearing the whole story. He seemed both proud and amazed, and it also looked like his competitive spirit had been sparked.

“Writer, the reason I’m revealing this information to you is that I have an extraordinary interest in the ‘Kingdom Project.’”

“Ah… By interest, do you mean…?”

“I want people to grow through the dream simulation of the ‘Kingdom Project.’”

“Oh. You mean by copying the bizarre elements of reality to elevate people’s overall level? That seems definitely possible…”

“Yes, but it’s not just that.”

I got to the point.

It took four turns to reveal my true intentions. Regressors usually chose their confidants carefully.

“As you know, the problems weighing down our reality are not just Void and anomalies. There are absurd ideologies like Awakener Supremacy as well.”

“Ah, yes…”

“The reason people get swept up in such ideologies is that the reality divided between Awakeners and ordinary people feels too close. I want people to take a step back, view the situation calmly, and have the distance to embrace others.”

A question mark appeared over Writer A’s head.

He seemed to like the idea but couldn’t understand why I was telling him this now.

“Being able to observe one’s life from a distance is not a perspective easily gained. But what if a person could live multiple lives?”

“Um, I’m not sure what you mean…”

“Implant intense ideological conflicts into the world of the ‘Kingdom Project.’”

Writer A’s eyes widened.

“There are pure-bloods and subhumans in the Kingdom. Intensify the conflict between them. Make the racial and religious conflicts of our world seem trivial in comparison, spreading intense hatred and animosity throughout the Kingdom. Terrorism. Rebellion. Violence. Make sure all forms of evil are realized.”

“Uh. Uh. Uh…?”

“And then make people who dream feel this: Ah, compared to the Kingdom, conflicts among people in this reality are really nothing.”

“…”

Writer A closed his lips.

Inside his eyes, intellect and imagination that the alcohol couldn’t completely cloud were sparking.

“Uh-. But. Dreaming people would just think it’s someone else’s story, right? We, too, don’t really feel that something like, you know, white people and black people fighting a lot in America is our story.”

“Yes, that’s a valid point.”

I nodded.

“So, ‘during the dream, they must not realize it’s a dream.’”

“...!”

“Until now, the Kingdom simulation operated like an online MMORPG. But from now on, it will be different. It will become a solo RPG, and the participants will completely ‘forget’ that they were ever different people in the real world.”

“To forget their real life and truly become a part of the Kingdom…?”

“Yes.”

Snap.

I snapped my fingers. Then, a tutorial fairy poked its head out from under the table.

“Eek!”

Writer A was startled, but the fairy didn’t pose any threat. It just sat on my lap like a well-behaved cat.

“This is my dream.”

“…”

“From now on, we will advertise that by using the ‘Kingdom Project,’ people can dream an entire lifetime in just one night. With the fairy’s ability, ‘time acceleration’ can be applied within the dream. They can literally live 70 or 90 years in a dream.”

“One lifetime per night’s sleep…”

“Yes. It will certainly sound like an enticing idea to people. And we will tell them this:

While you are dreaming—living in the ‘Kingdom’—you will not realize it’s a dream—.

“But.”

When you wake up, you will remember the life you lived in the dream—.

“…Ah.”

“Each time they dream of the Kingdom, people will become a subhuman terrorist, a pure-blood shopkeeper who curses subhumans daily, a slave swinging a pickaxe until death in a mine, or a noble lady who has never even heard of beings like the insane.

“…”

“And each time they wake up, they will collect the memories of the lives they lived. They will be able to think from the perspectives of a terrorist, a merchant, a slave, and a noble. Surely, it will lead to a better world than now, don’t you think?”

“…”

“In a way, not just me, but everyone will become a regressor. Writer, this is my dream. I want to invest my dream in your dream.”

Writer A slightly opened his lips.

“The kingdom I built, it’s….”

“Huh? Are you saying that the memories we provide aren’t that clear?”

At that moment, the tutorial fairy bounced on my knee and said, “From a human’s perspective, it might only maintain the clarity of memories from over a decade ago! Huhuhu, human memories are excessively unstable!”

“…….”

Writer A was silent. For a long time.

But their eyes kept whispering nonstop.

“I’ll do it. No, please allow me to do it. If my work can become someone’s dream, that would be the ultimate ending for me as a writer.”

But, Writer A added, “After hearing what Doctor Jang said, the name ‘Kingdom Project’ doesn’t seem to fit anymore. It needs a new title.”

“What title are you considering?”

“Reincarnation Project.”

“I also want to invest my dream into Doctor Jang’s dream. A world where everyone can be reincarnated repeatedly…. I’ll dedicate my life to creating a world that is both loved and hated.”

14

There’s a brief epilogue.

The stories related to the Reincarnation Project are countless, and someday I’ll slowly share them with you all.

In fact, you might have already guessed why the Awakeners\' abilities improved more and more as the early episodes passed.

And why I specifically created the Canned Hotel in the 555th turn to train writers.

That’s right. Half the reason for establishing the hotel was to enhance the writers’ skills and later incorporate them into the Reincarnation Project.

(The other half was, of course, my pure desire to read entertaining web novels.)

Putting aside those stories, let’s focus on the now-ordinary Writer A.

“I also want to live in my kingdom.”

One day, Writer A said that.

“Pardon?”

“No, it’s just that… While everyone else spends their daily lives in the kingdom, I, the creator, am the only one living in reality…. I feel a bit unfair.”

“Didn’t you say last time that if the creator and operator themselves live in the kingdom, they risk losing their objectivity, which could be dangerous?”

“Ah, yes, I did. So… um.”

Writer A fidgeted.

“Could I create an avatar of myself in case I die?”

“Sorry?”

“I mean, I want to create an NPC that mirrors my personality and way of thinking. So that if I die…. You could tell the fairies to add that NPC to the kingdom’s settings…. Ah! Of course, I’m not saying I want to reincarnate as an NPC with my memories from reality. I just want to be a different being in the kingdom, with the same personality.”

That was a request I could grant anytime.

“Understood. But we are taking great care to ensure your safety, so you likely won’t have any reason to pass away.”

“Haha…. Still, if we meet again in the next turn, just tell me how I lived and died in the kingdom.”

There were instances during the over 1,000 turns of the Regressor’s life where Writer A met an untimely death.

At those times, I would log into the ‘Kingdom’ and search for Writer A’s avatar.

Surprisingly, or perhaps unsurprisingly, the NPC that closely mirrored Writer A’s personality was also working as a writer in the kingdom.

I even had a brief conversation with the NPC, but of course, they knew nothing about ‘reality.’

The NPC was born in the kingdom, believing it to be the only world, and grew up as a regular citizen of the kingdom.

Then I happened to obtain a paper book that the NPC had published in the kingdom and read it.

The novel contained the following passage:

――――――――――――

…In that world, unlike ours, there was no such thing as magic.

Ships made of steel sailed the seas, mysterious gears turned endlessly, iron fragments shot from sticks took people’s lives, and the spires of cities were always shrouded in thick clouds and air.

There were no races either. When you think about how we’ve slaughtered and retaliated against each other for thousands of years based on the number of legs we had, whether we had horns, or if our skin was covered in snake scales―― this was the magic of that world.

I want to tell you all about my visit to that world filled with magic….

――――――――――――

I chuckled.

‘Indeed. Perhaps my reality is also someone else’s simulation.’

Of course, the chances of that were extremely low.

What kind of world would be so amazing that it would make someone like me live the same life 1,000 times in a row?

After finishing the NPC’s paper book in the bookstore, I finally looked at the genre classification of the bookshelf where the book was placed.

The paper book was classified as follows:

Fantasy

- The Investor. The End.