Prologue - Dusky Reminiscence

In the twilight of Seoul, as the light of the day waning. Sun Daegok-su1 enters his newly founded establishment with his hard-earned effort and countless support from his extended family. It wasn't the most beautiful place in the land of cutthroat real estate that is Seoul but at least it is his.

With the light turns on, revealed a not-too glamorous interiors. He didn't question it much because it is a place he belong to that he took part in no less of its design. The orange light makes it felt nostalgic of the old time that never existed.

His appearance was as generic as it can be. The black spiky hair, the perpetual angry frown face, he would often be called an 'edgelord' that he doesn't even respond to it anymore.

Back during school, he would be called a generic edgy MC of those Tower Novels that was the rage at the time. But on further interaction, it turns out that he was more of anxious and neurotic wreck that the edgelord appearance hide that aspect very well.

Fear and angers bleed into each other seamlessly as his expression switched between two without a trace in-between. People often gets confused as to what he actually felt at the time and only long-time friends of his even get a grasp on which is which.

Happy isn't a natural expression to him as the amount of time he even displayed that in public doesn't exceed the fingers on his two hands. Hardly can he display that genuinely without making it uncanny and psychotic in the process. The fact that he could maintain any form of relationship with that face is miraculous on its own.

He lies himself on the wooden chair of the customer table. Tomorrow will be a new chapter in his life, no more of that oppressive feeling and the comically tragic past of his.

"I wonder when will they arrive?" Daegok-su thought to himself as he gazes toward the crimson twilight outside.

And speak of them, they moved through the main entrance and reveal toward him. A man of the same height and looks of his but looks a lot more cheerful to the point it become distinctive, a man with smooth hair and a stoic look on his face and a shorter one who looks like fatter than average but not to the point of crippling.

Those three are all his friends that he said. Their name are the following Sung Ansa-um2, Hoe Gwi-jum, Jiang Hyeongsa3. The three are also as generic as him for entirely different reasons.

Sung Ansa-um is a special force soldier and the one that stays in military service when the rest discharged. Yet despite all of that, he still somehow remains bubbly as if he is still a teenager. But he still is one and an effective one at that.

Spiky black hair like Deagok-su, but his expression is much more happy and talkative than him thus making it impossible to confuse with the two. Much like him however, what makes him generic is that he is so overly positive vibes make it felt excessive at a time.

Like a goddamn Romance Novel MC who can't help but be flowery at all the times. His voice oozes of such thing that he probably could capture the hearts of many FMCs of those same kind of novels. Ironically, he doesn't get any girl at all because real girls aren't as 1-dimensional like those girls on those novels.

"Hey, how do you feel now? Must be anxious because tomorrow is this place's grand opening, isn't it?" Ansa-um said as his voice alone caused people's heart to stir.

"Quite right. How about you? Annoyed that you still get no bitches?" Daegok-su said jokingly because he is also partially envious because of how he is basically cursed to live like an edgelord.

"Yeah... At this point, if there's a girl who would date me if our constellation align, I would fucking take it as a yes". Ansa-um said as he scratches his hair while having that shameful smile on his face.

The four of them would make verbal jabs at each other in good nature. You only have true friend if you both willing to insult one another for the sake of it and come out unaffected by them.

"How about you, Gwi-jum? Anything caught your attention today?" Gok-su said as he asks the stoic and silent man. Surprisingly, he talked.

"Not much, if there's anything then I'm just anxious as you right now about what's coming after". Gwi-jum said as his facial expression completely contradicts the words he spoken.

Hoe Gwi-jum. Smooth hair, stoic, the generic MC of those Regression Action Novels that Daegok-su could make comparison to. The four of them knew each other since they were children and yet Gwi-jum is the most unchanged in personality or lack-there-of of it.

If there's any positive grace to his stone-walled personality then it would be him being smart and wise. When any of them asks for anything, then Gwi-jum would give them the answer straight-laced and to the point. The perfect academic record of his certainly didn't take the nation by storm by the way.

Smart, strong, handsome, all of the traits that make literally anyone green with envy and yet he is content by being friends with them. The fact that Daegok-su even managed to make friend with this Moai statue of a human being is the next miracle beside him actually having friends.

If it weren't for that, Gwi-jum would be swarmed in women and even if anyone stick, it would be one-sided at the end of the day.

"You certainly do need to brush up on the social skill, ain't anyone fail flat on that like you for sure." Jiang said that remark to Gwi-jum but with positive reasons in mind".

Jiang Hyeongsa, the residential's supportive fat friend who is there for your sake regardless of what happens. Certainly didn't bite him in the ass before but it didn't matter to him.

Built literally like the fat friend of those Wuxia Novel before any of them learn of it. Even if he's not the most healthiest amongst them, he can still certainly keep up despite his appearance otherwise.

The reason he is here? Because he wants to check up on this restaurant that he no doubt invested significantly into it and to have the taste of its culinary products. There's no more significant reason to it. Just a fatass who wants eat but supportive nonetheless. It's the rules by this point that any friend group that worth its salt must have at least one.

"The pot calls the kettle black, don't speak like you are better than me in that department either". Gwi-jum spoke to Jiang in condescending tone, any instance of him make a conversation is rare that they took thorough observation if possible.

"Hey, you actually speak! Keep it up, buddy!" Jiang said as he congratulates Gwi-jum on that. He isn't actually that unsociable like how his friends making him out to be but they certainly do love inflating any of his social achievement.

"Hahaha... That's what I like about all of you. So what do you guys want to have now that the kitchen and supplies are prepared? Consider it like an early access.". Daegok-su said as he stood up to head toward the kitchen.

Just like that, the twilight curtain slowly closes itself. And just as the four thought that tomorrow will came peacefully, reality started to shift at its very core.

The ground beneath them trembles. Suddenly fears for the worst, the four of them quickly rushes outside as they see something suddenly rising up from the distance. A sensation of worry and fear lapsed over them as its tremendous size continues to dwarf nearly everything manmade so far.

Anxiety visibly appears on Daegok-su as he worries about what may happen next. Ansa-um worries that the government may recall him from his vacation break in the worst-case event. Jiang doesn't understand any of what will happen but all he knew that it is bad.

Gwi-jum continues to be stone-faced but that is just him at this point. Then he steps forward and turn around before announcing the wildest phrase impossible known so far.

"Everyone, if you wish to make it out through this predicament then follow my words because all of you are my few and close confidants and I can't reveal what I'm going to say to anyone else. I'm... a Regressor". Hoe Gwi-jum4 said with the straightest face possible but inside, he made a herculean effort to overcome that mental block that nearly all regressors in novels don't even do so.

"Fuck, I was just joking that you are a Regressor like those action novels because of how expressionless you are all the times like them. But fuck me". Ansa-um spoke in completely flabbergasted manner that words that a Romance Novel MC not supposed to have spoke through his vocal chord.

Jiang is also as confused like Ansa-um but when he turned toward Daegok-su, he saw that thousand-yard stare within his eyes as he continues to gaze at the gigantic Tower at the distance. As if the distinction of reality and fiction blurs entirely, the world that they know have become nonsensical like those subpar novels that ended up becoming prophecy on its own.

He gazed somewhere for any unseen audience that is observing this world that has become a stage for their amusement but this is reality for him now and he has no choice but to accept them. Breaking the fourth wall didn't get him access to plot armor like he thought and he has no way tell if he did anything.

Within Deagok-su's eyes, turbulences thoughts whirled in his mind. As the disparate dots connect together once more, he realized one thing that all Tower novels tend to involve.

Destruction of the world if they fail to conquer it.

And that includes his newly-founded business.

His anxiety reached its peak and so too the rage that follows. With the two being no more than two sides of the same coins, he screamed loudly in a yell that seemingly reached the heaven itself.

"YEEEEEEEEEEEEOOOOOOOUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"