Chapter 119

 

“Ugh… seriously… I told you, I have ADHD…”

 

“At least we’re getting food, thank goodness…”

 

“Alright, shhh. Let’s focus and get this done quickly.”

 

On the third floor, Choi Ji-won and Park Cheol-jin were in the middle of putting together a 4000-piece puzzle when…

 

“Kyaaaa!!!”

 

Suddenly, Choi Ji-won clutched her head and rolled on the floor.

 

“J-Ji-won!!”

 

Firefighter Park Cheol-jin, startled, rushed toward her in a panic.

 

“The puzzle, the puzzle! Mister!”

 

“Nooo!!!”

 

As the pieces scattered everywhere, the two others watching were horrified.

 

“Ah…”

 

With tears streaming down her face, Choi Ji-won slowly stood up, touching her lips.

 

“Ahhh…”

 

Tutorial. Goblin Shaman. Betrayal. Despair. Kim Jun-ho’s declaration as a regressor. Darkness.

 

The devastating failure on the fourth floor. Finally finding Kim Jun-ho. The time spent with him.

 

Roughly two cycles’ worth of memories were lodged firmly in Choi Ji-won’s mind.

 

“…”

 

It was too vivid, too clear to be just a simple misunderstanding.

 

‘Ji-won, what is this memory? No, wait…’

 

Even Bung-bung seemed to sense something, speaking in a voice full of concern.

 

“Ji-won, are you alright?”

 

“One moment.”

 

Firefighter Park Cheol-jin tried to support her, but Choi Ji-won refused, getting up on her own.

 

Was it the tower’s trickery? Or had knowledge from the future—or perhaps the past—truly flowed into her? There was only one way to find out.

 

“The puzzle.”

 

“…What?”

 

“Where’s the puzzle?”

 

They had to check the fourth floor.

 

***

​​

“…Ugh.”

 

Morning sunlight slipped through the blinds, casting a warm glow. Rubbing my eyes, I slowly lifted myself, feeling groggy.

 

“…What’s going on.”

 

My mind felt foggy as if it was still wandering between the edges of a dream and reality. I slapped my face a bit to shake myself awake.

 

“Right, so…”

 

Last night.

 

Choi Ji-won had shown up at my apartment, saying it’d been a while.

 

Once I got over the shock, I hugged her tightly, and we stood there, locked in that embrace for quite a while.

 

After we finally pulled apart, we started talking. I told her everything—how I’d felt completely hopeless, how I’d resented her in secret, how I wasted time like a recluse.

 

And then she shared her own story—how she regained her memories from the tutorial and the previous cycle. How she’d quickly solved the puzzle and made it to the fourth floor. How, like me, she’d fled the castle and managed to save everyone.

 

When I asked how she’d pulled it off without any relevant abilities, she told me of her admission to everyone that she was ‘the Choi Ji-won who changed the second floor,’ and got everyone’s full cooperation. Well, that made sense—Choi Ji-won was already a national celebrity whose life was widely publicized.

 

Of course, we had a mountain of things to say beyond just the tower, and we talked nonstop until nightfall. We sifted through memories only I had held onto, bringing them to life together, reliving each moment.

 

But even superhumans get thirsty eventually, and naturally, my place was out of water.

 

Drinking tap water didn’t feel right, so we headed to the convenience store nearby. While we were there, we picked up a few beers and snacks, and back at my place, we had a little celebration, toasting to our reunion.

 

“…”

 

The mood was light, pure, and genuinely fun.

 

“Heyyy… Kim Jun-hooo… don’t you have a girlfriend…?”

 

“No, I don’t.”

 

“That’s surprising…”

 

At least, it was, until a tipsy Choi Ji-won started leaning on me. Who could’ve guessed a 20-year-old girl had never drunk before?

 

I’d always thought of Choi Ji-won as a friend, a partner. Sure, we kissed when we parted ways in the last cycle… but people do things like that when emotions run high, right?

 

But as the alcohol flowed, and my tiny apartment slowly filled with her scent, and Choi Ji-won started to cling to me…

 

“Uh, could you… back up a bit?”

 

She was beginning to look like… a woman.

 

I’m a healthy guy, and Choi Ji-won is, well, breathtaking. She’s got the figure of someone who’s done martial arts—strong and toned. Keeping myself in check was incredibly challenging.

 

“Heyyy… Kim Jun-hoooo…”

 

“Just stay still.”

 

But I managed. I tucked the drunken Choi Ji-won into bed, tidied up, turned off the lights, and lay down.

 

I’m a regressor. Suppressing physical desires with mental willpower is hard, but it’s doable.

 

Just as I was about to drift off, proud of my self-control…

 

“Huff.”

 

It happened. I felt it. Her chest against my arm.

 

Choi Ji-won had shifted in her sleep, and now her chest was pressing against my arm.

 

“…”

 

Should I just stay like this? What if she woke up and got mad?

 

My heart was pounding, and my face was burning up. After much internal debate, I decided, as a mature adult, to carefully adjust her position.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

But I hadn’t expected to meet her eyes, staring right back at me.

 

“…You weren’t sleeping?”

 

“…I couldn’t fall asleep.”

 

The room was dark, with only a faint sliver of moonlight seeping in. My heartbeat echoed loudly in my ears.

 

“…Why are you staring at me like that?”

 

Her lips looked unusually tempting. Her shy expression shook my composure. This was it. My limit.

 

“…Ji-won.”

 

“…Yes?”

 

Even a regressor’s iron will couldn’t hold up against such overwhelming temptation. Like the walls of the fourth-floor fortress, it crumbled completely.

 

And then, and then…

 

Last night. It happened. With Choi Ji-won.

 

“Huff…”

 

As my memories come flooding back, my face instantly flushed red.

 

How am I supposed to process this? How should I act around her from now on?

 

Lost in a whirlwind of thoughts, I scratched the back of my head.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

Beside me, I locked eyes with Choi Ji-won, who had her blanket pulled up to her nose. Her face was just as red as mine.

 

“Uh, well, um…”

 

Flustered, I stammer, trying to say anything, but…

 

“…”

 

The smooth curves, her pale skin peeking out, and that sweet scent…

 

My mind went blank again.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

The tension in the room flared up, thickening the air between us.

 

***

 

After gathering our wits and composing ourselves, we sat on the edge of the bed, both a bit awkward.

 

“That… was my first time.”

 

“Oh, yeah… same for me…”

 

“If I had your powers, I’d have regressed after that—it was pretty intense.”

 

“…”

 

Was it because she was too embarrassed? She went from one topic to another.

 

“…Take responsibility.”

 

“…Alright.”

 

That’s all I could say.

 

Both of us sit in silence, staring at the floor, our faces flushed as red as tomatoes.

 

Well, I suppose that’s understandable for me. But Ji-won? The ever-confident Choi Ji-won, acting so shy… It’s surprising.

 

“So, uh… should we eat something?”

 

“…Yeah.”

 

We managed to get through lunch in silence. Even though I could feel a newfound closeness between us, it was still a little awkward looking directly at each other.

 

“So, um…”

 

We can’t just sit here wasting time, saying nothing. To break the silence and shift the mood, I finally brought up something that’s been on my mind.

 

“What do you think the conditions are for keeping our memories?”

 

Choi Ji-won doesn’t remember every cycle. Just the tutorial and the previous one.

 

What sets those apart from all the other cycles? What sets her apart from everyone else?

 

“I… think it’s probably tied to ‘emotion.’”

 

The keyword that the tower constantly emphasizes—emotion. I suspected it was related, and Ji-won nodded slightly as if she thought the same.

 

“In the tutorial, and in the last cycle too… I was with you, and I was really emotional. Maybe that’s the condition.”

 

Throughout my journey up the tower, although I was often disgusted by the unfair systems, there were only a few times when I felt truly strong emotions toward someone.

 

In the tutorial, when I was with Choi Ji-won…

 

When I was betrayed by Dok Su-hee…

 

And when I parted ways with Choi Ji-won this time.

 

Apart from those instances, I hadn’t really harbored intense feelings toward anyone. So, it must be about emotions.

 

“But here’s the part that doesn’t quite add up…”

 

If emotions are the trigger, why didn’t her memories return during the tutorial? Why did they return this time, along with her memories from the tutorial?

 

There must be some other trigger besides my emotions. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense.

 

“Maybe… my emotions are part of the conditions too?” Ji-won suggested quietly. “Actually… back in the tutorial, I’d half given up. I’d considered the possibility that I might be left behind if you regressed. So, the encouragement I gave you at the end… wasn’t entirely sincere…”

 

“And last time was different?”

 

“That’s right.”

 

That makes sense. My emotions. And the emotions of the person involved. When the two align, it triggers the return of memories. It’s a plausible theory.

 

“The problem is…”

 

This is all just a hypothesis. There’s no guarantee it’s true.

 

What if Ji-won’s memories returning were just a one-time thing? What if I regressed right now, and she looked at me like a stranger?

 

That would be a catastrophe like no other. Sure, I’m smiling now, but if her memories suddenly vanished, I’d probably lose it.

 

But to understand the conditions clearly, I need to regress. So, what should I do in this situation?

 

“Jun-ho.”

 

Choi Ji-won looked at me, furrowing her brows, but then smiled shyly.

 

“What’s the point of stressing over something with no answer?”

 

“…But still.”

 

“Let’s just go to the fifth floor together?”

 

“…The fifth floor?”

 

She’s right… Going to the fifth floor is the best choice right now.

 

If we go to the fifth floor, the return point will be updated. That means ‘the Ji-won who regained her memories’ will be saved, and I won’t have to worry about losing her as she is now.

 

“…”

 

More importantly, if we go together, we can prevent a disaster like the one on the fourth floor. The more I think about it, the more this plan seems like the best option.

 

“Let’s do it.”

 

With our goal set, all that’s left is to carry it out. Awkwardly, we changed into our gear, got ourselves ready, and opened the portal to the first floor.

 

“Hey, Kim Jun-ho.”

 

“…Yeah?”

 

Her face flushed, Ji-won avoided my gaze as she spoke.

 

“See you soon.”

 

With those words, she immediately dived into the portal.

 

“…Alright.”

 

Once inside, I, too, stepped straight onto the fifth floor... Ready to move forward.

 

– – – End of Chapter – – -

 

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