Regression Guidelines For the Supporting Character

After a brief meeting with the representatives, Park Minhyuk addressed everyone.
“We’re moving straight to Zone 2. There may be another monster wave along the way, and the layout might change again, so please refrain from moving independently.”

I moved with the other Supporters. Most of the S-ranks had taken positions at the front, and Cha Sahyeon was stationed on the far right, so I was currently alone.
‘It’s nice not having someone nagging me.’
Relishing the peace, I glanced off toward Cha Sahyeon in the distance. That guy J was standing next to him.

Through the shifting crowd, I could see Cha Sahyeon, clearly sulking from being separated from me.
Still, he wasn’t acting out and was staying in place, which was a relief. Teaching him how to function in a group had paid off.
I smiled in satisfaction. Just then, Cha Sahyeon seemed to sense my gaze and turned his head in my direction. When he spotted me, his face crumpled into a pout.

I gave him a thumbs-up as a sign he was doing well, and his eyes sparkled. Meanwhile, J glanced between the two of us, his expression souring.
‘Like frowning is gonna change anything.’
I made sure to beam at him extra sweetly. Feeling fucked? Then feel even more fucked.
In that moment—while Cha Sahyeon enjoyed my attention and J seethed in silence—

Rumble—!
Once again, the walls began to shift. We had just entered Zone 2.
“Move!”

Having experienced this before, everyone stayed calm. Just as planned, the dealers assigned to the Support team began carrying their Supporters to safety.
One of the dealers quickly approached me as well.
‘What the hell?’

Instead of carrying me on his back like everyone else, this one just scooped me up in a princess carry like it was nothing. I looked up reflexively—only to see a familiar face.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me…”
Hearing the low curse, Kang Haeil smirked.

“Use prettier words.”
Kiss my ass.
“Cut the bullshit and get lost.”

“Why? Want to get crushed to death between moving walls?”
Kang Haeil answered lazily, running at a steady pace in sync with the other dealers.
The way he approached the moment there was an opening was so calculated it made me want to puke. If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve kept Cha Sahyeon next to me, group life be damned.

I let my rising irritation seep into my voice.
“So much for just monitoring. You’re surprisingly dedicated.”
“Can’t be helped. My little brother keeps causing trouble.”

“Hmm. As a Buffer, I was just doing my job. Maybe focus on your own instead of worrying about others.”
“How are we ‘others’? I’m taking care of my brother.”
Suddenly, a sharp pain stabbed into my side. Right where Kang Haeil had grabbed me.
It hurt too much to ignore. A groan escaped me involuntarily. I tried to push him off by grabbing his arm, but he only tightened his grip.

“Urgh… stop it…!”
“I warned you, didn’t I, Seohu?”
His whisper at my ear was soft and gentle.

“Be more careful with yourself.”
“Let go of me…”
“You’ve always been like this, haven’t you? Throwing yourself around like a whore, not knowing your place.”

Kang Haeil sighed as if he pitied me. Even through the pain, I was stunned.
“Great. Getting recognized by the district’s resident slut. Fuck off and let go of me!”
I yanked on his hair and thrashed with everything I had. But Kang Haeil ignored it and kept running.

Thud, thud!
After thundering forward for a while, the walls finally stopped moving once we were deep inside Zone 2.
From the entirety of Zone 1 to the entrance of Zone 2, the entire layout had shifted. Even the numbered markers on the walls had disappeared, so if anyone turned back recklessly, they’d get lost.

Once the noise ceased, Kang Haeil finally set me down.
Clutching my aching side and groaning, I looked up as he leaned in and muttered,
“Think of that as my warning… not that you’ll take it.”

“…”
“Do what you want.”
With a dry chuckle, Kang Haeil turned away without a second thought.

“The result’ll be the same either way.”
He mumbled something cryptic and disappeared before I could demand an explanation. What the hell was that psycho’s deal?
‘The result’ll be the same?’

What’s that supposed to mean?
Was he talking about the dungeon? There’s no way Kang Haeil is a regressor like me. He couldn’t possibly know how the dungeon plays out.
But then a thought hit me.

‘Wait. There is exactly one way he could know the outcome of the Great Dungeon.’
If that kid gave him advice, then Kang Haeil acting all smug suddenly made sense.
The real question was—what exactly was this ‘result’?

‘As if it’s not enough that I don’t know what the cult bastards have done to this dungeon…’
And now Kang Haeil was getting under my skin too.
Growing anxious, I bit my lip and began brainstorming countermeasures.

***
Not long after entering Zone 2, the second monster wave arrived.
This time, the monsters were massive flying creatures with centipede-like bodies and bat wings. Dozens swarmed in, but since they were only A-rank, the fight wasn’t too difficult.

Having been properly scolded by Cha Seohu, Kwon Taehyuk, Ryu Sunghyun, and Song Jiwoon took a much calmer approach to combat.
This time, Cha Sahyeon and J joined the battle.
Fortunately, the enemies were only A-rank and the raid team had plenty of members, so even just pretending to fight was enough.

“Can I talk to you for a moment?”
J, who had been hovering near Cha Sahyeon throughout the fight, seized the chaos to dart in.
Cha Sahyeon casually flicked the monster blood off his shadow-forged blade and replied dryly.

“Piss off. My brother doesn’t like it when I hang around you.”
J knew full well by now that the “brother” Cha Sahyeon mentioned was Cha Seohu. His eyes twisted with frustration.
“I didn’t do anything wrong! You’re the one who’s clueless. I really don’t get why you stick to that guy and defend him.”

“Shut it.”
Cutting J off, Cha Sahyeon went straight to the point.
“Tell me if someone infiltrated before you. And who it was.”

“…Hah.”
J scoffed, giving a look of disbelief.
“And why would you want to know that? What are you planning to do if there is another cultist in here?”

“…”
“Take them out in advance? So that Cha Seohu can get out of this dungeon safely?”
Even as he argued, he couldn’t believe it.

Cha Sahyeon caring about someone else was utterly foreign.
J had been watching him since the lab experiments, through hundreds of repeated lives. In all that time, this was the first time Cha Sahyeon had cherished someone like this.
And of all people—it had to be Cha Sahyeon.

This wasn’t a good development. Not at all.
“…There’s nothing you can do.”
J clenched his teeth and glared.

“You already know, don’t you? I’m just the observer. The real work’s already done. I’m only here to take you back once every human is dead.”
“You…”
“Everyone’s going to die. Starting with your precious Cha Seohu—every last person here. So just give it up.”

J exhaled a long, weary breath. He wasn’t lying—he didn’t look like he was.
Cha Sahyeon had already made his own plan: once they got out of the maze, he would sneak away to destroy the ‘Source of Energy’ or kill any cultist who had infiltrated the dungeon.
That was the only way to keep Cha Seohu safe.

It was the first thought he’d had after deciding to follow his brother into the dungeon.
But now he was being told it was all pointless.
‘Unless the “Source of Energy” was implemented in a different form…’

A chill ran through Cha Sahyeon’s eyes as an ominous feeling settled over him.
***
After surviving the second monster wave, numbers appeared on the wall again.

The raid team identified the path to Zone 3 through the marker ‘03’ and began to get a feel for how the maze operated.
“Looks like the monster waves trigger after entering a new zone.”
“And the maze shifts right after we enter that zone, too.”

“Let’s take a break before heading into Zone 3. Some dealers are injured, and our Supporters look worn out.”
“Agreed. We don’t know how much farther we have to go—let’s not burn out early.”
And so, their first rest since entering the dungeon was approved.

Everyone cheered as they pulled out the items they’d brought. From camping vans like Kwon Taehyuk’s to tents, beds, and cooking gear—thanks to shrinkable items, the Great Dungeon quickly turned cozy.
“Hm…”
Kwon Taehyuk hesitated to pull out his camper.

He kept thinking about Cha Seohu saying he’d hand out buffs inside it. It wasn’t like he brought the camper for that purpose, but he still felt weirdly self-conscious.
While he stood there awkwardly, Cha Seohu came walking up.
“Guildmaster, did you set up the camper?”

“Not yet…”
“Then hurry up.”
Cha Seohu looked even more motivated than earlier as he urged Kwon Taehyuk to get the camper ready.

Ryu Sunghyun and Song Jiwoon were beside him. Apparently, they’d gone straight to find Cha Seohu after the battle ended.
Feeling betrayed that he’d been dragged to a strategy meeting while they’d gone to him, Kwon Taehyuk reluctantly tossed his palm-sized camper into the air, where it instantly expanded.
Thud!

The camper returned to its full form. Much taller and larger than expected, it left Cha Seohu wide-eyed.
“Wow, this is huge!”
It looked more like a bus than a camper.

Cha Seohu had only ever seen campers briefly on TV, so this oversized model felt almost alien to him. He peeked around curiously, and Kwon Taehyuk opened the door.
“Would you like to come inside? It’s a state-of-the-art model with all the usual facilities.”
As Kwon Taehyuk guided him in, Cha Seohu’s eyes widened again.

Sofa, TV, kitchen, bathroom, even a bedroom. The soft mat underfoot and the glowing lights made it feel like a luxury hotel suite.
‘This is seriously a camper?’
Is this what rich people drive around in? Ryu Sunghyun and Song Jiwoon also looked impressed by the massive scale.

What Cha Seohu liked most was that even with four adult men inside, it still felt spacious.
After looking around, he nodded in approval.
“Alright, sightseeing’s over. Time to get your buffs.”

“…What?”
Kwon Taehyuk, who’d started to relax thinking Cha Seohu was too distracted, flinched at the reminder.
“Why so surprised? I told you—I’d be giving buffs in the camper.”

“B-but we’re going to rest for at least five hours now. There’s no need for buffs…”
“I’m increasing physical contact this time. I need to test it out. It’s my first time doing this, so I want to understand it better.”
The timing was also perfect. Cha Sahyeon had just been called away for sentry duty, so now was the ideal chance to check the effects.

‘I can’t show this level of contact in front of him…’
Even if he’d regained his memories and wasn’t a kid anymore, Seohu still felt guilty.
Suppressing a sigh, he looked around at the three men.

“Of course, you can refuse. If you’re uncomfortable, feel free to step out.”
The three S-ranks, who’d been staring blankly like their souls had left their bodies, instantly snapped to attention and shouted over each other.
“No, I’ll help!”

“Please don’t say things like that, Cha Seohu Hunter.”
“I’m fine with it anytime.”
Cha Seohu nodded, unsurprised by their eagerness.

“Alright, then let’s begin.”
He grabbed the hem of his hoodie with both hands—and without hesitation, lifted it up and off.
…!

In an instant, his pale upper body was exposed. He turned to the three men, who were frozen in shock, and grinned brightly.
“Strip.”