The Tales of an Infinite Regressor - Chapter 255

Chapter 255

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The Mastermind VI

Bringing along the Admin of the Infinite Metagame—or rather, the laptop in which Infinite Metagame was sealed—was surprisingly simple.

I returned to the “simulation universe” where the real world had once been. Then, I died and regressed.

From that point on, it was a repetition of events identical to the 687th cycle.

I constructed signal beacons worldwide, fought against the Monster Wave, and left Cheon Yo-hwa as the last survivor to overlay her with Mastermind Syndrome. Infinite Void evolved into the colossal Gurren Lagann once again and dragged me into the simulation research lab.

The only difference this time was that the laptop containing Infinite Metagame was tucked away in my arms.

“So, all this has already happened to you in a previous cycle?” Infinite Void stared at me in disbelief. “You’ve already searched through this Outer God’s… I mean…”

“For convenience, just call it the Mastermind.”

“Ah, right… Anyway, you’ve ransacked the Mastermind’s Divine Realm before but couldn’t find any weaknesses, so you dragged Infinite Metagame here as well. Is that it?”

“Precisely.”

“…Hey, sunbae. Doesn’t this seem almost identical to the Reality Manipulations you described about the simulation universe? It’s the same world, but now with the laptop added. Who’s the Anomaly, and who’s the human here?” Infinite Void grumbled.

[AOIM – Understood the situation.]

A low-quality robotic voice came from the laptop’s rudimentary speakers.

[AOIM – Even in this sealed form, it is the first time I have encountered an Outer God so directly. Infinite Void, I propose an alliance.]

“Huh? Me?”

[AOIM – Correct. We are entities sealed and altered by the tyrant known as the Undertaker. If we collaborate, based on mutual understanding, we may regain our former authority.]

“Uh…” Infinite Void glanced at me, tilting its head slightly. “Hmm.”

[AOIM – What concerns you? If you have any conditions for cooperation, we can discuss them.]

“No, it’s not that. Your offer sounds nice and all, but Infinite Metagame, aren’t you, like, super weak?”

[…]

“Look at me. I’ve taken over the Fairy King’s dominion and even escaped that shitty hourglass. And you? What do you even do? You’re just a cheap laptop!”

[…]

“Sorry, but just because sunbae lumped us both into the Outer God category doesn’t mean we’re all the same. Let’s at least keep to our respective ranks, shall we?”

[AOIM – Strongly recommending that the owner, the Undertaker, lift profanity restrictions.]

I ignored it.

“This is a temporary alliance to defeat a common enemy. Don’t create unnecessary friction, Infinite Void.”

“Okay?”

“Hand over the slime Fairy King to Infinite Metagame. It’s too inconvenient for the laptop to move around as it is. At least give it some limbs.”

“Oh, sure. Got it.”

Infinite Void snapped its fingers, and the floor rippled before a slime emerged and attached itself to the laptop, forming a crude but functional robotic frame.

It resembled the Potato Saintess, with flimsy limbs precariously supporting the laptop’s main body.

– Report: Mounting complete. Normal operation confirmed. I will now speak on behalf of Infinite Metagame.

The cheap robotic voice improved slightly with the addition of the Fairy King.

On the laptop screen, the emoticon (‘ㅂ’) appeared. It seemed Infinite Metagame was pleased in its way.

“I went through all the trouble of bringing the laptop for one reason. Infinite Metagame, can you hack this entire simulation universe research lab?”

– Query: Please define “hack” in detail.

“I’m asking if you can reduce the entire simulation into a mere fictional story.”

When you thought about it, there were notable similarities between Infinite Metagame and the Mastermind, even if they seemed trivial. Infinite Metagame regarded the world as “fiction.” The Mastermind downgraded it to “simulation data.” Both Outer Gods used similarly meta techniques to dominate reality.

– Confirmed: I will attempt it.

– Query: However, I see no benefit in acting under the Undertaker’s orders. I demand fair compensation for my cooperation.

“Oh, hmm. Alright. How about letting you install any program you want on the laptop at a time of your choosing?”

– Accepted: I agree to the terms.

What could I say?

This very agreement would later lead to the installation of AOIM-GPT on the laptop. As many of you know, that chatbot transformed Infinite Metagame into a force that Corrupted Oh Dok-seo into the most reviled author in history.

Sorry, Dok-seo! I had no idea it would turn out like that.

– Executing: Initiating simulation hack.

Squirm.

A slime tendril extended from the laptop’s USB port, transforming into a “cable” as it wriggled toward the simulation model. The cable connected, embedding itself into the model like a snake sinking its fangs. The simulation’s universe model darkened, stained crimson-black.

[Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhh]

A distorted noise erupted from the speakers embedded in the lab’s ceiling. I assumed it was the Mastermind’s anguished cry.

Even though my power was rarely effective against this Anomaly, Infinite Metagame—a fellow Outer God—was causing it significant distress.

A battle between entities beyond human comprehension was unfolding.

– Request: Backup required from Infinite Void.

“Huh? Sure, but what kind of help do you need?”

– Explanation: There is an enormous computational gap between this simulation universe and myself. Assistance in data processing is necessary.

“Oh, data crunching? That’s my specialty. But if you try hacking me, I’ll kill you.”

– Sarcasm: The concept of death does not apply to me.

Another USB cable shot out, snapping into Infinite Void’s arm.

“Hmph.” Infinite Void snorted and grabbed the cable. To my surprise, it morphed into an IV line, half electrical wiring, half infusion tubing.

Through this hybrid conduit, the two Outer Gods shared their power.

[Aaaaahhhhhhhhhh]

[Aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]

The noise from the speakers intensified.

Infinite Metagame and Infinite Void weren’t unscathed either. Red welts bubbled on the laptop, bursting as though alive. The emoticon on the screen flickered before shifting to display the vastness of the universe.

Infinite Void fared worse. Its form crackled with static, fragments of its body shifting through an old man, a child, a tree, and a CRT television.

I grabbed its hand.

“Ah.” It looked between my hand and face, startled.

Then, its form stabilized. Though occasional distortions appeared on its limbs, its face remained that of Cheon Yo-hwa.

– Report: Hacking complete. (‘▽’) ☆

The emoticon returned to the laptop screen, accompanied by an infuriating sparkle sound effect.

If we stuck together much longer, Infinite Metagame might debut as a VTuber. I could already imagine it—the OG, “Sparkles.”

– Executing: Stripping the Mastermind of control over this simulation model.

– Warning: Based on the Undertaker’s personality, the results may be unsettling. Please prepare yourself.

Prepare myself?

Before I could tilt my head in confusion, the lab’s scenery shifted entirely, and the holographic universe model morphed into a brain.

Yes. The brain nestled inside a human skull.

That was the true form of the “simulation universe.”

Squirm, squirm, squirm.

The brain, exposed in full view, pulsed relentlessly. Every groove in its surface writhed as though each fold were a living tentacle.

But Infinite Metagame wasn’t warning me about its grotesque appearance.

“Ah. Um. Sunbae. This…” Infinite Void hesitated, disconnecting the IV-like cable. “This is an actual human brain.”

“An actual brain? Could a single human brain possess enough computational power to simulate an entire universe?”

“Well… it’s not a single brain, but rather…”

Infinite Metagame interjected.

– Analysis: This brain is a composite of 8,214,949,873 humans.[1]

Silence.

– Explanation: This number only accounts for physical bodies. If we include simulated personalities, the total grows exponentially.

– Addendum: It is suspected that nearly all humans who perished in the Void, beyond the Undertaker’s perception, were abducted into this “simulation universe.”

Infinite Void glanced at me cautiously, hesitating.

“You know the phrase you often use, sunbae? About being ‘bewitched by Anomalies’?” It paused, as if deliberating its words before elaborating, “It seems that when people die in the real world, the Mastermind siphons off their brains, leaving their bodies behind. Like being spirited away.”[2]

– Addendum: The Mastermind does not abduct the physical brain but rather its functions and memories.

“So, to put it in a way you’d understand, sunbae…”

I interrupted it. “It’s the soul.”

“…”

“The body may die, but the functions, memories, and spirit are taken elsewhere. If we define this as a soul, then this place is a heaven of sorts—a celestial kingdom.” The words escaped my lips as if whispered. “I see now. The Mastermind’s overwhelming computational power comes from the corpses of the deceased.”

– Affirmation: As the number of deaths and disappearances increases, so too does the number of captives imprisoned in this celestial prison, or so-called Heaven.

“That’s why it panicked whenever I tried expanding my influence beyond the Himalayas or the Urals.”

– Affirmation: When the Undertaker travels, the causes of death become precisely defined.

Consider the example of Kolkata, a major city on the Indian subcontinent. There, a calamity resembling the goddess Kali descended, massacring approximately 20 million people.[3]

I didn’t know exactly what happened in Kolkata. I’d been there before but never attempted to confront the Anomaly directly. To me, those 20 million deaths were effectively classified as “disappearances.”

The Korean Peninsula had faced similar circumstances, after all, when cities vanished overnight as if erased.

Why?

Only later did I discover that the Anomaly known as the Meteor Shower lulled people to sleep with lullabies before annihilating them en masse.

I had identified how the Meteor Shower functioned and inferred its origins. It stemmed from fears of airstrikes, the desperation of fleeing too late, and the tender wishes of a mother singing a lullaby to comfort her child before inevitable death. Thus, from my perspective, deaths caused by the Meteor Shower were clear and traceable, much like traffic accidents.

But Kolkata was different.

How had the Anomaly manifested as the goddess Kali? What horrors had it wrought on the local residents?

And what of Mumbai? Delhi? Moscow beyond the Urals? Or Europe, Africa, and the Americas?

I didn’t know.

I didn’t know, and therefore, the majority of human deaths remained mysteries—classified as “disappearances” in my understanding. Like shadows concealed within the fog of war.

So who would notice, then, if the Mastermind stole the “brains” of humans who had died mysteriously?

Amid the veils of enigmatic uncertainty, the Mastermind’s whispers spread, an Outer God weaving its schemes. The harvested human brains were imprisoned here, as components of this fabricated garden—a grotesque mockery of a so-called Heaven.

“A harvester of souls,” I said aloud.

“……”

“The hypothesis of the simulation universe. The brain in the vat. No, the humanity in the vat. The geocentric model. The hollow Earth theory. The heavenly kingdom. The fog of war. IF scenarios. Descartes’s demon.”

With each phrase, my voice grew heavier, my words deliberate.

Infinite Void shuddered, visibly startled.

It understood all too well that I was naming an Anomaly, invoking the power of its designation.

“Mastermind.”

I gazed at the brain encased in its vat with complete comprehension.

“That is your name.”

At that moment, the scenery of the lab underwent a radical transformation.

The brain in the vat began to writhe, fleshy tendrils emerging. The Filter that had adorned the lab with pristine white walls and corridors peeled away entirely.

Squirm, squirm, squirm—squelch.

The raw, unfiltered Divine Realm of the Outer God revealed itself.

It was a hellish mass of flesh, its folds undulating like writhing tentacles.

[Aah] [Aahhh] [Aaaahhhh] [Aah] [Aahhhhhh] [Aaahhhhhhhhhhh]

The speakers emitted deafening screams.

The sound wasn’t mere noise but the voices of countless souls—billions of victims whose brains had been stolen.

In this world, humanity remained trapped in the grip of Anomalies, even in death.

Footnotes:

[1] 8.2 billion is the estimated human population of the world in 2025.

[2] This is the same word that is used for the 2001 Studio Ghibli film Spirited Away.

[3] Kali is a major goddess in Hinduism known as the goddess of destruction, the goddess of time, and in later traditions, a symbol of creation in Mother Nature.