The condition of the slaves, including Rita, could not be described as good—even as a lie.
She was tall, but had no muscles.
She was, quite literally, skin and bones. You could’ve mistaken her for a skeleton with human skin stretched over it.
Yet ironically, the exposed muscles on some of the others seemed almost proud to flaunt their state.
Their skin had peeled away, leaving raw muscle tissue in plain view.
There was no blood, but the twitching of their facial muscles moved constantly, as if they were desperately trying to maintain a neutral expression.
I quickly realized that’s exactly what they were doing—forcing a blank face, no matter how much it hurt.
Thankfully, Rita’s skin was mostly intact. Though dried blood clung thickly in places, none of it had peeled away completely. Her cheeks were sunken, making her head look like an inverted triangle.
Even that small detail was enough to make something boil within me.
The same feeling I’d experienced every time I encountered her across repeated regressions.
A pure and unmistakable fire.
Anger.
But I didn’t show it. I’d been through enough masquerade balls in my time to master hiding my emotions—and even bury my subconscious ones. My rage simmered deep within, never surfacing, circulating like a slow poison inside my veins.
“Are you perhaps climbers?”
That was the only reason Oren dared to speak to me. I made a guarded expression and subtly stepped in front of Yuhana, shielding her.
“…Who are you?”
“Ah, apologies. I’m Oren from the Credit Guild. Might I ask your names?”
“Park Yunseo,” I replied casually, offering up a false name without a second thought.
I glanced at Yuhana, who caught my signal and clumsily followed suit.
“H-Ha Yuna.”
Seriously, Hana? That’s just your name with the first two syllables swapped…
“Ah, Koreans, I see. So you must be climbers, then?”
Thankfully, Oren didn’t seem suspicious. The fact that he wasn’t startled by our Korean names meant he’d probably been in the Tower for quite a while.
Didn’t matter to me.
“Yes, we are.”
I hardened my expression and tried to project the image of an easy target—a newbie climber from Korea. In the Tower, that was the fastest way to get yourself killed. With no sign of strength or confidence, Oren would likely size us up as helpless prey.
And that was exactly what he did. I noticed the subtle shift in his gaze, a flash of predatory sharpness. Internally, I smiled.
Outwardly, Oren kept his friendly facade, extending his hand.
“So, you’re here to tackle the dungeon too, huh? What a coincidence. How about we team up?”
His smile was the kind that could make people think, “Wow, what a great guy!”
But even with that ability, he couldn’t break through the mental barriers I’d forged over 99 regressions. In my eyes, he was still scum.
Let’s be real—no decent person drags around seven emaciated slaves. Sure, Oren’s skills made the impossible seem normal, but none of that worked on me. Not anymore.
Still, I smiled back at him like I was genuinely touched.
“That’d be great! The more people, the easier it is to clear, right?”
“Yes, indeed. Then let’s quickly form a temporary party.”
“Ahh, that might be tricky. I just formed a party with Ha Yuna here. As you know, once a party is formed, you can’t disband it until a day has passed. A temporary party isn’t possible. And since the party cap is five, we can’t invite anyone else.”
“Oh, no worries. Then let’s just hold hands and enter together.”
“Perfect! I like how you think. Haha.”
“Likewise. Haha.”
Oren and I laughed as we shook hands. But our thoughts couldn’t have been more different.
He was probably thinking:
These idiots. I’m gonna turn them into slaves. Climber slaves go for a ridiculous price.
Ah yes. After 99 regressions, one naturally develops the ability to read minds.
I laughed to myself as I released his hand.
It was a beautifully twisted moment.
***
The first time I met Rita was during the very first round of regressions when I started managing the Regressor Club.
Specifically, it was on Round 81. The one where Yuhana locked me up and the Tower collapsed on us both. Natural death, courtesy of her.
Back then, Rita wasn’t part of my guild.
She was a professional killer belonging to an assassin’s guild—a hitwoman who had taken countless lives for money. She taught me the importance of guild security the hard way. One night, she decapitated dozens in a single massacre.
That was Rita. But when she came to assassinate me, I caught her on the spot.
That was our first meeting.
And I wasn’t the kind of guy to let an assassin walk free just because she failed. So I did her the kindness of separating her head from her body. She cried blood-red tears and thanked me before she died.
Then came the next round.
This time, our meeting was pure coincidence. I’d raided a guild that had picked a fight without knowing their place. In their basement, they’d just purchased a batch of slaves.
Among them, I spotted a familiar face. Curious, I decided to recruit Rita into my guild.
That was when I first gave her the name Rita.
It had no meaning. I just blurted out whatever name came to mind.
But Rita accepted it, and like a child receiving a gift, she was overjoyed and swore her loyalty to me.
“I’ll stay by your side until I die.”
And she really did.
In the 82nd round, she died in my arms.
Then came the next round.
Using what I’d learned from her past, I entered the second floor with Yoo Hana and immediately made contact with the group of Orens. We succeeded in killing Oren and freeing Rita.
But unlike the 82nd round, she didn’t show me unconditional loyalty this time.
That was because I hadn’t comforted the wounds of a stray dog abandoned by its owner.
Instead, I treated her like a hunting hound from the start.
As a result, in the 83rd round, my relationship with her was strictly hierarchical—mechanical, even.
She behaved like an emotionless doll, and eventually died in the dungeon.
It wasn’t a good ending for her.
As I recalled the memories we had made in the 82nd round, I vowed to give her a happy life. I waited eagerly for the regression to begin again.
Then came the 84th round.
And this time, I discovered the strategy to win Rita over.
The key was simple:
Pretend to be a kind, good person. Ease her suspicions. “Save” her.
It was an easy task for me. I was, by default, a kind and good person.
And since ancient times, the easiest way to win someone’s favor was to buy them a meal.
“You all look hungry,” I said, just before entering the dungeon, gazing at the slaves.
“Let’s eat before we start conquering the dungeon.”
“Huh?”
“There’s a saying from my hometown: ‘Even the sights of Mount Geumgang are best enjoyed after a meal.’ Another one goes, ‘Even a ghost looks better-fed if it dies full.’
My hometown really values meals. So do I.”
“Ah, I-I see.”
Oren answered while glancing at the slaves.
But the slaves didn’t even look at Oren.
The moment I pulled bread out of my subspace pouch, all their eyes were fixed on me.
“So let’s eat first, and then head into the dungeon. I’ll distribute the food.”
“Are you serious?”
Oren asked in excitement.
I smiled warmly and nodded.
“Of course. It must be fate that we’ve met here—consider this my treat. Here, take some bread.”
“Ah, thank you so much.”
Oren took the large loaf.
I then beckoned to the slaves standing behind him with a smile.
“You folks over there, come too. I’ll share with all of you.”
“……! C-Can we really eat it too?”
A young man with a spear on his back asked.
I approached him directly, placed the bread in his hands, and smiled kindly.
“Of course. Let me know if you need more. I’ve got plenty.”
“Sniff…! Thank you! Thank you so much!”
The young man burst into tears and started tearing into the bread.
That was the signal.
The other slaves rushed over and pleaded with me for bread.
Smiling like a saint, I handed out loaves thicker than their thighs.
“Th-Thank you so much.”
“Eat up.”
Last came Rita, her voice timid—more precisely, hoarse like a rusted metal edge.
She quietly said:
“Th-thank you.”
I gently patted her head and smiled.
Rita bowed deeply, then returned to the group and devoured the bread ravenously.
30 minutes passed.
The slaves came back for two more refills of bread.
1 hour passed.
Rita timidly approached and asked if she could have just one more.
I gave her a piece of bread and a bottle of milk that guaranteed no upset stomach—and I gave her a hug.
Then Rita smiled with blood-stained lips. A twisted, unnatural smile.
It was a forced smile.
2 hours passed.
The slaves, having finished their meal, nodded with much brighter expressions than before.
Feeling a deeper connection with them, I downed a glass of cold water. Then, I threw an arm around the shoulder of the young man I had first given bread to and laughed brightly.
“You must’ve been starving. I’ve never seen anyone eat that much before.”
“H-ha ha… W-well, I had my reasons…”
“What kind of reasons?”
“That, uh…”
The young man trailed off while glancing nervously at Oren.
Oren cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention, and spoke in a rather grave tone.
“Mr. Park Yunseo. These people all committed heinous crimes, which is why they became slaves. I suggest you don’t get too close to them.”
It was a lie.
All the slaves handled by the Credit Guild were either kidnapped or sold off—none of them were criminals.
They were all innocent citizens. Pure victims.
Knowing the truth, Oren’s words made me sick to my stomach.
“Oh, is that so?”
I held it in.
I suppressed the murderous intent rising to my throat and let out a bitter smile as I released my arm from the young man’s shoulders.
Then I looked at the slaves who were now avoiding my gaze, and murmured quietly.
“But to my eyes, they don’t look like criminals at all. So I’ll decide how to treat them, if you don’t mind.”
“……”
“And also…”
I looked down at Rita, who was standing beside me, trailing off.
The moment our eyes met, Rita immediately turned her head away like a guilty child.
I crouched slightly to meet her eye level and continued speaking.
“I doubt a fragile girl like her could have committed a crime serious enough to become a slave.”
“……!”
Rita’s body flinched.
“She should have grown up surrounded by love from her parents… I don’t know what led her to this state, but… I can’t help but feel sorry.
Personally, I’d like to show her some care.”
“……”
Rita turned her head toward me.
I smiled gently as I met her blurry gaze.
“She’s at the age where she should be loved.
Even if I’m just a fleeting passerby in her life, I should at least give her a bit of that love.”
“……”
“If that made you uncomfortable, I apologize. That wasn’t my intention.”
“……No, not at all.”
Oren gave a strained smile and adjusted his glasses.
“Do as you wish.”
“Thank you.”
I replied, then stood up while patting Rita’s head.
I nodded toward Yoo Hana, whose expression was as unreadable as ever.
The moment we made eye contact, Yoo Hana awkwardly giggled and walked over to grab my hand tightly.
“Well then, let’s get going. Is there anything else you need to prepare?”
“No. Let’s enter right away.”
Oren placed a hand on my shoulder and spoke.
Rita grabbed my empty right hand, and the other slaves followed, hand in hand.
It looked as though we had become a single train.
At the very front, Yoo Hana met my gaze and stepped toward the cave.
That’s when the guide window appeared.
[You have discovered a low-difficulty dungeon: The Thousand Spider Eyes Dungeon. Would you like to enter?]
“Yes, yes!”
Yoo Hana answered for the group.
At the same time, a pitch-black shadow began to envelop everyone’s bodies.
Voices of confusion rose from every direction.
I could feel the grip on my hands from Yoo Hana and Rita tighten in real time.
Leaning slightly toward Rita, I whispered gently.
“It’s okay. Just trust me.”
“……!”
Rita quickly turned to look at me.
Then, ever so slightly, she nodded.
“……Yes.”
I replied with a smile.
And then, darkness.
When color returned to our vision, we found ourselves standing inside a pitch-black cave.
[You have entered the low-difficulty dungeon: The Thousand Spider Eyes.]
[Party Members]
[1. Baek Siyoon]
[2. Yoo Hana]
Only the names of those officially in the party appeared on the window.
I dismissed it and glared at the countless glowing eyes beyond the darkness, shouting:
“Prepare for battle!”
In other words—
You’re all dead.
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