Turns Out To Be a Genius Duelist

—Did you know who I was after I bumped into you? Or was it before that?

Yoon-seok understood why she used the opportunity to ask that question. She went back in time, and she wondered if he had as well.

—It felt like that. I was far from being sure; there was no basis.

It was just an unfounded suspicion. Therefore, through two questions, she determined that Yoon-seok hadn’t rewound time.

—I’ve solved all my problems now. So ask your questions carefully

However, Yoon-seok’s question threw a wrench in her work.

—The fact that your mother liked grape jam. Is that the only reason why you set it as your nickname?

Immediately after being convinced that he hadn’t, Yoon-seok asked a question he couldn’t unless he had memories of that future. Lee Su-yeon became confused.

Strong Trust was still invoked, so there was no way he lied. But how did this happen?

—I mean, you said you knew after I bumped into you?

Her mind combed quickly through the previous conversation, but it only added more confusion. Knowing that she couldn’t find an answer independently, she asked.

“But how…?”

Yoon-seok thought for a while. Should he use his opponent’s illusion to gain the upper hand or have an honest talk? Emotionally, he was more attracted to the latter, but rationally, the former choice was more reasonable. After concluding that Yoon-seok hadn’t traveled back, she might decide there was nothing more to find out and try to end the conversation.

“Didn’t you say this was the last question?”

Yoon-seok spoke playfully. Lee Su-yeon, who was eagerly waiting for his answer, bit her lip.

“…Do it. Let’s continue. I’m sure you have more questions for me, too.”

That was true. However, a dire need would only risk loss.

“That’s true, but the important part has just been solved.”

“Don’t just talk about it vaguely and say it clearly. What do you want?”

It was a little rough, but Yoon-seok welcomed it. He shed all useless vanity and got to the main point.

“Instead of continuing to answer questions, let’s adjust the ratio.”

“…Ratio?”

“Yes. When I ask three questions, you ask one question. How about that? Of course, I’ll go first.”

“What the…”

Lee Su-yeon began to curse without realizing it. However, as if she thought there was no other way, she quickly changed her attitude.

“Okay. One to three. Let’s do that.”

It was unexpected that she didn’t try to bargain. Was it so important if he had rewound time or not? Even if there was a limit to being at a disadvantage, it appeared that she wanted to check it out through her questions. Well, that wasn’t bad for him either.

With the deal finalized, Yoon-seok immediately asked the next question he had prepared.

“How did you come back to the past?”

She expected him to notice it already, but did she feel strange when it was said aloud? Lee Su-yeon wore a bitter smile and replied with a sigh of resignation.

“I got a Unique Skill through an imprinting statement from an exploration mission. The name of the skill was {Time Control}, and regression was the effect chosen for its Rank S ability. For reference, it was chosen at random, so I can’t get it again even if I want to. Does that answer your question?”

It was a detailed answer and an unspoken request to answer in like when it was her turn.

‘It’s not like she can come back several times anyway….’

Yoon-seok moved on to his second question.

“What’s your ultimate goal in this life?”

The goal for her regression. Why did she have to kill him in her past life? Who was this person who knew him, and what kind of life were they living at the time? He had a lot of questions, but personally, Yoon-seok thought this was the most important. Lee Su-yeon hesitated for a moment.

That was expected. Once she answered this question, he would be able to infer a lot.

“To end everything by killing the being called the Queen. That’s all I want.”

The Queen. An unexpected keyword appeared, and killing the Queen to end everything? Then, was the queen a must-kill being? To the point where this time traveler felt like it was destiny? He didn’t know. Nothing was certain yet.

Yoon-seok threw away the list of questions he had prepared and moved to his last.

“Why do you want to kill the Queen?”

“I guess you already know what the Queen is.”

Lee Su-yeon pretended to mutter to herself and looked up at Yoon-seok, but he didn’t react.

“I don’t know where the Queen and the Tower come from. But the Tower is bringing in challengers from various dimensions to make them stronger to kill the Queen.”

This was what he learned from the last mission. As there was no change in Yoon-seok’s expression this time, Lee Su-yeon continued to explain.

“In other words, if I kill the Queen, everything will be over. That way, the Tower no longer needs challengers. As time goes by, everything will return to its original state.”

To save the world, she had to rewind time? It felt like the motivation of a typical novel protagonist. However, he could only think that this was a waste of time.

‘This woman doesn’t know much either.’

Yoon-seok asked again to confirm if killing the Queen was the final goal of her life. Lee Su-yeon firmly replied yes.

“Of course, there are things I want, too. But yes, that’s right. For that goal, I can give up even a few hopeful things.”

Thus, his questions reached an end. Now, it was time for Lee Su-yeon to ask Yoon-seok a question.

“Have you experienced time regression before?”

A question that could only be answered with yes or no. Yoon-seok smiled.

“Yes.”

Time regression? He wasn’t lying. He experienced it.

“Although it’s was only 5 minutes.”

Yoon-seok’s additional explanation made Lee Su-yeon, who was momentarily delighted, feeling dazed. Instead of a long explanation, Yoon-seok took out his pocket watch. Lee Su-yeon checked the item’s information with Appraisal and stiffened.

“That’s it? Really? Don’t try to fool me. Then, how did you…”

A light flashed as she asked again. The 10-minute limit finished, and Strong Trust ended. It was all pointless now.

But why did he show her the watch in the first place? It was simple. He didn’t have to do that, but he could use it to get more information. Yet, there was no need for that now. If her purpose was to kill the Queen, then he couldn’t help but be tangled up in this noose.

“…!”

When Yoon-seok took out a small ticket that shone blue from his subspace bag, Lee Su-yeon’s jaw dropped.

“The, the Last Fortress? It’s something that the woman of Moorim has, but how can you…?”

Fortunately, she seemed to already know what this was.

“If you answer my questions from now on, I’ll let you come with me when I use this ticket.”

Yoon-seok kept it short. He firmly presented the terms of the deal with no uncertainty.

“Okay. If I knew you had this, I would’ve revealed everything and asked for help honestly.”

There was a small issue since they didn’t know each other, but it was finally resolved. There was no longer a limit to the number of questions and answers. Yoon-seok asked after everything he was curious about.

“When did you return?”

“11th August 2020. I was betrayed by a colleague I trusted during my mission trial.”

She came from the future about a year later. Unlike now, she couldn’t become a ranker, and as the duel Tower was closed, she was transferred to the mission. Also, the Earth before her regression was different than now. The only duel ranker was Fahrini, who went to Seheranbad, and more than half of Earth had turned into a wasteland due to invaders.

Rather than asking questions, Yoon-seok asked her to tell him what happened after she rewound time.

“When I opened my eyes, I was having my second duel.”

At that time, her opponent was a devil. Because her opponent used an unusual talent, she was defeated since she couldn’t find a way to respond to it. But she returned with dignity as a challenger, so she easily targeted their weaknesses and won the duel.

“If I think about it now, I think that’s probably the start. The fact that the future can change. You know what the butterfly effect means, right?”

He knew because it was a famous theory. It was often used to mean that small changes could cause enormous differences.

“I didn’t lose and won. That’s why your fate also changed.”

“What does that mean?”

“Because when I lost, you were my next duel opponent.”

Lee Su-yeon met Yoon-seok in the third duel. While using the fact that he was from Earth to chat, she stabbed him and won the duel. It wasn’t an appropriate strategy now, but as soon as he heard it, he thought it was possible then.

Then was a time of confusion when he had no information about the Tower. If it was an Earth challenger and even a Korean student, he would have been careless and responded.

‘Hang on. If it’s the third duel when was it?’

Yoon-seok recalled his early memories. At first, he met an Orc, and then he had a battle with that man Cheon-ho. The next person he met was an unknown suicide applicant. Yoon-seok had obtained b Non-verbal Magic}, the basis of {Bloodseeker Ultimatum}, from him.

‘Was that the first change?’

It was understandable. If the opportunity to receive {Non-verbal Magic} disappeared, and he had lost on the third duel, he would have lost either b Weapon Enhancement} or b Flash} due to {Predation}’s penalty.

‘I’m sure all the duel opponents I met would’ve all changed.’

It was highly likely that he would meet neither Cheon-ma nor King of Steel. That was the butterfly effect. He was going to ask other questions after listening to her story, but at this point, he couldn’t help but wonder.

“What kind of life did I live?”

“Do you want to hear that?”

“Yes. All I remember was the fragmentary scene when you killed me. Why did you have to kill me? And who was that person that took advantage of me?”

Lee Su-yeon replied after a moment’s hesitation.

“It was Kang Hyung-woo.”

“…?”

“Because you were being used as a tool by Kang Hyung-woo, I had to kill you.”

It was an unexpected answer. Aside from it not being the Heavenly Warrior, it was Kang Hyung-woo?

“Why are you bringing him up? He’s not even a duel challenger, and he came into the Tower way after me….”

“It’s meaningless to say who came in first because you signed the subsidiary contract in the 6th-floor plaza.”

Subsidiary contract. Yoon-seok flinched and froze at the word. He didn’t know which manager he signed within his pre-regression life. Even if he signed a contract with Elle, he wouldn’t have received {Bloodseeker Ultimatum}. Of course, he wouldn’t have met Cheon-ma as well.

‘Is that the result…?’

Yoon-seok, who was powerless, became a slave on the 6th-floor plaza. His mouth tasted bitter, but the cause itself was convincing. However, the question remained the same.

What does this have to do with Kang Hyung-woo?

“Do you remember Eld Carta?”

When Yoon-seok couldn’t hide his interest and asked, Lee Su-yeon asked back.

Eld Carta. At first, he wondered who it was, but he quickly remembered. He was the one who made the 6th-floor plaza that way and was the first and last great evil defined by the Judgment Sword.

“He signed a contract with the same manager as Kang Hyung-woo. After he left, Kang Hyung-woo remained and managed the people. I heard you were one of them.”

Lee Su-yeon explained what happened after the duel Tower collapsed. Kang Hyung-woo transferred to adventure and quickly climbed the Tower with his several slaves. She even told him that Yoon-seok was the most threatening in the group.

“…”

It couldn’t happen in this life. Kang Hyung-woo had already died by his hands. Nevertheless, just imagining it suffocated him.

How could there be such a bad relationship?