episode_0166

It’s a tense moment.

The moment I come face to face with the women I casually discarded.

The moment my past actions come back to haunt me.

The reason I gathered all three of them in one place is simple.

It’s to ensure my safety.

If I were to meet them one by one, there would be a 100% chance of being defeated and game over.

But with all three of them in one place, I can reduce the risk.

With each of them keeping each other in check, there’s no need to worry about being captured and kidnapped by any one of them.

Of course, after they subdue everyone, it’s possible that Yerina might come after me… but I believe that won’t happen.

The Mind Control Law has shown enough effect to suppress Yerina’s madness, so I just have to hope that it continues to work.

“Are there any barriers or trap spells…”

Before entering the room, I check for any traces of magic or spells.

I don’t want to do this, but I have no choice.

After all, they have had multiple encounters with me in previous chapters.

Even if they don’t remember, I do.

I still remain cautious of them.

I need to confirm whether this is just paranoia or not.

“I… am here.”

Mijung whispers, holding onto my pants hem from the side.

Hearing her words, I feel a bit relieved.

Having a companion who won’t betray me no matter what happens gives me courage.

I take a deep breath and exhale.

I grab the doorknob and turn it.

With a creak, a large round table is revealed.

Sitting around the table are familiar faces, and I feel breathless.

Contrary to my reaction, they are surprised and dumbfounded, staring at me with wide eyes.

Mijung stands firmly by my side.

Mia, who followed behind, stands on the opposite side.

The women in front of me can’t seem to close their mouths or stop their eyes from widening.

“…”

What should I bring up first?

Why did you do that to me, you bitches?

I want to say it out loud, but I hold back.

The first thing that comes to mind is being locked out of the dungeon.

I suppress that thought as well.

Instead, the words that come out of my mouth are as follows:

“How did we end up like this?”

As if there’s a line drawn in the middle.

I can’t approach them, and they can’t come over to this side either.

There are many stories we want to tell each other.

Many misunderstandings we want to clear up.

My mind becomes a jumble of thoughts, not knowing which one to bring up first.

“No one wished for things to turn out this way.”

“Yujin…”

“Wait. There’s something I need to explain first.”

As Ji interrupts me, I immediately stop talking.

There’s something that needs to be said first.

Everything else should come after that.

If it was going to be a mess, I wouldn’t have gathered these three people here in the first place.

“As you may have guessed, I am cursed. I carry the burden of repeating the same time, faking emotions, deceiving people, and betraying them. I have no excuses, but by doing so, I have hurt all three of you. Ji, you left a note and never returned after leaving.”

“Yeah…”

“Yuria, you returned to the ruins of the bombing and left immediately after reuniting.”

“Ah, yeah…”

“Yerina, you deceived me for a long time and left right after we got engaged.”

“Huh?!”

First chapter, sixth chapter, and twelfth chapter.

Although they are from different timelines, the women I met were all one person.

Perhaps all three of them only had a vague idea about regression and weren’t fully aware of it.

I was the same.

I only expected to regain my memories after confirming the changes in the main heroines’ actions.

Upon my clear explanation, they finally widen their eyes and freeze.

They had only guessed, but they weren’t fully prepared for it yet.

Alas, who could have anticipated and prepared for this?

The cruel truth that my beloved lover had crossed timelines and cheated with other women······.

“I have two missions to carry out. Either conquer all of you at once, or destroy the formidable enemy, Draken. But now, the first one seems impossible.”

“Ah, no, Eugene! It’s still okay! I understand! So, if you just come back······!”

“It’s impossible. It’s just wishful thinking.”

“······.”

Desperate to argue back, Jill was silenced by my firm response once again.

I tried.

Even after all the cheating was exposed, I still tried to raise the conquest rate of the three main heroines to over 95 percent.

But it was a futile effort.

Even Yerina, who flawlessly conquered without any slip-ups, couldn’t surpass 95 percent, let alone Jill and Julia, who remained at 94 percent.

The remaining 6 percent could only be filled by satisfying their desire for exclusivity.

I attempted but failed.

The all-conquering ending was already out of reach once the cheating was revealed.

“And even if it were possible, I have no intention of ending my mission that way.”

“Why, why? Weren’t you, weren’t you repeating the cycle of regression until now, for that purpose······?”

“Yes. By ending my mission, I can return to my original world. I’ve been regressing to escape. To leave this place. To leave you all behind······.”

“Huh?”

As the truth was revealed, faces turned pale one by one.

Before speaking, lips trembled, and throats felt choked.

But once the words started flowing, they came out calmly and smoothly.

I regressed to leave you all behind.

Everything I said about loving you was a lie.

That’s what I’m saying.

If there were real-time conquest rates visible, by now, the numbers would probably be plunging into the negatives.

“And this is the final round. The last chance. There’s no more opportunity. And in this round, I’ve given up on conquering you all and set out to end my second mission. Originally, there shouldn’t have been any connection with you, but you all regaining memories from the previous rounds was never my intention······.”

The atmosphere suddenly turned tense.

As if pleading to be told it was a lie, Yerina shook her head.

Julia seemed somewhat calm, but inwardly, she must be thinking the same.

And Jill······ seemed like she might burst into tears any moment.

“So, I desperately ran away. Because I didn’t know how to face you. Because I didn’t know how to treat you, who I thought had disappeared along with the erased timeline. So, I kept avoiding you.”

There was also fear of what punishment I might face.

I did face punishment.

I was cursed and the dungeon was sealed off.

But after observing the reactions of the main heroines, I gained certainty.

That curse was not their intention.

It must have been an unfortunate accident or a distortion caused by ‘someone.’

“But now, I’ve decided to stop running away. I won’t flee anymore. Even if my curse disappears after completing my mission, I won’t run away from here. This is my homeland now. Whether it’s a good memory or a bad memory, they’ve all become memories now······.”

“······.”

After seeing the ending, could I make the choice to leave this place?

I imagined it once.

No matter how many times I imagined it, my answer remained the same.

I can’t leave.

I can’t leave without settling the score with Mijung, without resolving the unfinished business, without leaving my debt unpaid.

It’s not a matter of liking or disliking.

I’m already deeply entangled in this world.

Too much regret has taken root within me.

I am now a person of this place.

This place is my hometown, where I belong.

It has become an undeniable fact.

“So I’ve decided. I will capture Draken at the cost of my life. There’s no other way to protect the world I’ve promised to safeguard. And to seek revenge for being burdened with this fate…”

My teeth grind together.

Although it was once just a vague suspicion, now I can confidently say it.

Draken is behind all of this.

From trapping me in the cycle of regression.

To turning this round into the final round.

To sealing off the dungeon by weaving a curse around the main heroines.

“The messages that appear when there’s an error in the system… They seemed similar to what Draken would say.”

In hindsight, I should have been suspicious much earlier.

The connections were too obvious.

Perhaps I had been hoping for someone to notice and give me a clue.

Draken’s antics led me down a single path.

Draken’s strategy.

Guided me towards killing him in the parallel world.

If that’s what he wants, then so be it.

Whether he desires revenge or simply seeks death, it doesn’t matter to me.

I will kill him for my sake, and for the women I have hurt.

No more running away.

I will face him head-on.

I will risk my life to survive.

“If there’s one thing you all must be curious about…”

I say, reaching for my hip.

As if this is its rightful place, I draw a dagger from its sheath and place it on the table.

This dagger was a gift from Jill in the first round.

It’s too ornate, and I’ve never used it properly.

But I’ve kept it with me all this time.

And in this round, I’ve stolen it once again.

“Jill.”

Next is the hip flask.

Containing whiskey that I drink every day, ever since I acquired a taste for it because of Yulia.

My taste for alcohol seems to have been permanently fixed.

“Yulia…”

Lastly, I remove the two thick steel rings from my left hand.

Armor that I wore like knuckles, following Yerina.

I didn’t use it often, but it saved my life a few times.

“And Yerina.”

Symbols of my regrets.

I lay down the traces of the three people who clawed at me from within.

And finally, I cast off the shackles.

For the first time.

I speak sincerely.

“I loved you.”

“…!”

The expressions of the three change to sadness.

I have put an end to my relationships with them.

I have left the events of the past rounds behind.

Even if they have returned, I cannot revive the feelings that have long since disappeared.

The passionate love of the past is no more.

The impression I had of them when I first met them has changed significantly.

Purely loving them is now impossible.

“When I look at you, it’s not just one person. You will continue to overlap in the timelines that have disappeared through regression. There’s no way to avoid that… But if you wish. After I fulfill my fate and break the curse…”

Even if it’s a tainted love stained with suspicion and possessiveness.

Even if it’s an imperfect love that remains at a conquest rate of 94 percent.

“I want to have all three of you.”

I want to love all three of them.

That’s my choice.

After tormenting me throughout the 12 rounds, at least seeing the three of them in bed together might satisfy my curiosity.

Their vile desires.

And my own dirty greed intertwined.