Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 1

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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01. Who the hell just regressed?
On a day when the sky seemed unusually high, Kang Ha-jin found himself thinking.
“Damn it. Life is utterly meaningless.”
And not even entertaining.
Wedged into bed with his large frame, I scrolled mindlessly through the sensational thumbnails on YouTube, clicking on anything that looked remotely interesting but never actually watching the videos.
Eventually, I closed the app and rolled over to face the wall. And there I was, thinking again.
“This is seriously so damn boring….”
I suspected I was currently experiencing the steepest downward trajectory of my entire life graph.
Twenty-nine years old. Unemployed, masquerading as a job seeker. The eldest son of the family.
I turned my gaze around the corner of my room. What do I have left?
‘…I thought I’d been living diligently enough, though.’
Ever since I’d quit my job unexpectedly, I couldn’t muster the motivation for anything. A friend who knew me well suggested I probably just needed some time to rest.
Following that advice, I’d been resting continuously for months now, but while my body felt at ease, my mind never did. As if time itself had frozen.
On days like this, I often found myself contemplating a life reset. Once I had nothing to do, I started reading web novels, and apparently plenty of people harbored the same thoughts—nowadays these stories were constantly featuring reincarnations, regressions, and possessions. In truth, it was the most thrilling and desperate fantasy one could indulge in while living.
So, what’s the key point here?
The word “imagination.” IF, what if, perhaps, maybe.
A reality-escape fantasy that most people desired but everyone knew had a zero point zero zero zero percent chance of actually happening.
Kang Ha-jin experienced his first regression on that very clear, blue day.
* * *
When I first regressed, I thought I’d finally been given a chance to change my life.
Of course, when I opened my eyes to find a familiar gray exam paper right in front of me, I was a bit panicked.
“No cheating, and you know that cheating gets you a zero, right?”
I’d been lying in bed just moments ago, and the moment I closed and opened my eyes, I was transported twelve years into the past—and not just anywhere, but to the second period of the midterm exam? Whoever orchestrated this timeline, if I ever caught them, I’d want nothing more than to give the OMR card and the computer scoring machine one good punch each.
‘What nonsense. I thought my last experience with group settings would be the hazing at university….’
And a math exam on top of that? Are you serious?
“You all learned this in class.”
The problem is, I took that class twelve years ago, teacher.
And that also meant I was far too old to look at the exam paper and think, ‘Heh, I’ve already solved all these problems,’ and scribble out answers carelessly.
I’d seen web novels where people memorized lottery numbers and such, but clearly real life was different. At twenty-nine, I should have at least considered the possibility of regressing.
My first regression began haphazardly. It was a classic repertoire.
I returned to the Semi-basement House where my Father had lived before his job transition, gained some tearful motivation, clenched my fists with determination to live a different life this time, and threw myself into studying with everything I had.
The Military…having to go back there felt somewhat hellish, but I’d figure out some way around it over the next few years. After all, if I could rebuild my life from scratch…
‘This is my chance!’
That’s what I thought.
Right up until I experienced my second regression in the middle of the third period English listening comprehension section of the college entrance exam.
* * *
Is this seriously real?
I’d heard that phrase wasn’t used by kids these days. But I couldn’t think of any other way to express it.
Is this seriously real?
“Ha-jin. Is the Military a joke to you?”
Is regression a joke to you?
‘Timeline, what the hell kind of bastard are you?’
I was in the middle of choosing an appropriate response to what Tom had just said.
“Ha-jin, if your senior asked you a question, you should answer.”
“Lance Corporal Kang Ha-jin.”
“What? A puppy? Are you a son of a bitch? From now on, instead of Lance Corporal, you’ll be called Woof-woof.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Your character is that of a son of a bitch.
It was absurd and childish how, despite his age, he resorted not to personal attacks but to attacking my name. This was utterly ridiculous.
I had said I was scared of going to the military, and now this insane Regression System had sent me back as a soldier. I desperately pondered how I could possibly screw over this system. As I half-listened to my senior’s words—the kind of unremarkable person I’d never care about once I left the service—I thought to myself.
‘I need to find the pattern.’
A full two years. Two years had passed since the regression, flowing smoothly without incident.
But suddenly? You’re sending me away like this on the day of the college entrance exam?
I’d read practically every fantasy novel out there except romance ones (well, some romance too), so I knew there had to be some algorithm at work here.
“Hey, Kang Ha-jin.”
“Lance Corporal Kang Ha-jin.”
“Wow, you just completely ignored what I just said? I told you to use Woof-woof instead of Lance Corporal?”
“….”
I’d just play dumb and leave it at that.
I was trying to think about my brother, but this senior just kept talking. Maybe this would have scared me when I was a clueless twenty-year-old, but I had just been South Korea’s number-one ranked test-taker, fresh off the college entrance exam. Bring it on, world.
Whether it was good or bad, my senior lost interest when I showed no reaction and returned to his seat, saying it was time for the music broadcast. Next to me, the Peer Soldier who had volunteered to be my senior’s lackey was reciting the schedule, mentioning some girl group comeback stage today, and yeah, I could roughly estimate what time it was. Wondering what the hell this situation even was, I blinked slowly, and suddenly an ominous premonition crept up the back of my neck.
‘What if I regress again on the day I’m discharged?’
“Damn it!”
And that became reality.
The third regression happened two weeks after discharge. It meant I had regressed before my buzz cut even fully grew back. And this time, at twenty-four, it was the season when I was desperately trying to make up for the regret of not being able to grow out my hair, covering my bangs down to my eyes. The timeline was beginning to spiral out of control.
“What is this, exactly!”
At this point, wasn’t it… hell? Was I actually going insane? Or had I been eliminated in my first life and was now drifting in a coma? The hypotheses I’d been considering since the first regression began creeping back into my head.
“There’s definitely something, something that—”
Even as I was saying that, I experienced the fourth regression, and in that moment, a hypothesis suddenly struck me like a blow to the back of my head.
The subject of this regression is not me!
* * *
The fourth regression occurred in the winter when I was nineteen.
“Whoever it is, I’m definitely getting caught up in someone else’s timeline.”
Fortunately, it was the weekend, so I could think things through quietly at home. It felt strange since I hadn’t escaped the Semi-basement House yet, but since I’d lived here since childhood, I adapted quickly.
If I just endured it respectfully for about four years, my Mother would open her eyes to economic studies, and with Father’s help in finding new employment, she would begin investing in real estate, and the whole family would move into our first Apartment.
After regressing about four times, I realized that certain futures always remained fixed and unchanging.
“Brother, I need to use the computer.”
“Go ahead.”
“Brother, you have to move so I can use it.”
My one-year-younger Younger Sibling, who was cheeky but cute enough that I always gave in, waved his hand at me to get up, so I obediently moved. Anyway, if I wanted to sort through this miserable Regression System, I needed a quiet place to think alone.
I headed straight to a quiet Cafe near my house, pulled out a notebook and pen I’d brought from home, and carefully organized the timeline up to this point, jotting down every clue I’d discovered.

The thought of potentially having to go to the military three times made my appetite vanish, and a surge of violent impulses washed over me—I wanted to punch whoever was responsible, just once. I clenched my teeth and took a moment to calm myself, then slowly reviewed the information I’d listed before writing down what was probably the most certain hypothesis at the very bottom.
【The one progressing the regression isn’t me. It seems I’m getting caught up in someone else’s regression.】
“Yeah, usually regression games come with a tutorial guide package as standard.”
If the regressor isn’t me, then it makes sense that I have no information like this. Systems usually only show up for the protagonist anyway. Setting aside the fact that I’m not the protagonist, I’m mostly just at a loss. I mean, out of seven billion people on Earth, how would I know which one is the protagonist?
“Ah, seriously. I can’t live like this.”
Not knowing when I’d reset again, each day was an endless cycle of anxiety and helplessness. Even if I memorized lottery numbers, I’d have to wait for Saturday for the draw, and Monday to claim the prize! This won’t do. Whether it takes meeting all seventy million people in South Korea, or eighty billion people worldwide, I absolutely had to stop this regression.
[Really?]
And in that moment, ‘the Entity’ responded to my words.
[Can you stop that one?]
“…I’m not actually losing my mind, am I?”
I could feel it in my skin without even seeing that all spacetime except mine had frozen. ‘That’ wasn’t sound or sight—if I had to describe it, it was closer to a resonance, a vibration. In other web novels, they usually show up as cute fairies or system windows perfect for webtoon adaptations, but my life doesn’t even get those kinds of details.
But what does that matter now? Whatever this voice is, I’ve lost all fear—not when I’m desperate enough to do anything to escape retaking exams, re-enlisting, and resetting my entire life.
[I asked if you could stop that one.]
“That one, whatever—there’s nothing I can’t do right now except re-enlist.”
[Haha, interesting.]
You’re laughing? Laughing right now? At the distinctly hearty laughter, my brows furrowed involuntarily. The voice fell silent for a moment, then resonated again.
[Alright, then let me try this thing called betting too.]
“What are you talking about? Speak clearly.”
[I’ll give you a chance too. To set everything right.]
“What?”
Along with a brief phrase—you’d probably prefer a method more familiar to you—a blue light flickered and bloomed before my eyes.
[Kang Ha-jin (Fixed Regression)]
Modifier: Unable to view (Insufficient authority)
Trait: Unable to view (Insufficient authority)
Special Status: ‘Wandering and Drifting’ mode ON
※Currently, the Mental Care System is operating to prevent confusion from regression.※
“Ah. Finally…!”
Was this the system window I’d only heard about in stories? I threw a punch at the empty air without hesitation. Of course, since it was a virtual window only I could see, there was no physical impact—but there was a certain psychological satisfaction to it.
[From now on, that will help you. There will be limitations, but… I’m counting on you.]
With those words, the resonance faded and spacetime returned to its original state. I exhaled the breath I’d been holding and carefully read through the system window still floating before my eyes, again and again.
“Mental Care System, huh….”
I’d already found it strange how coolly I was accepting this whole regression and system business, but it seemed the Mental Care System was responsible for that. Right, that made sense. The fact that I’d survived retaking the entrance exam, reenlisting in the military, and infinite regression without dying yet added credibility to it all.
To calm my excitement, I rushed to the counter and returned the empty iced tea cup, then ordered an iced chocolate. When my head was this cluttered, nothing beat something sweet.
“Um, excuse me.”
“Yes?”
“The owner said to give you this for free… and wanted to know if you’d be interested in working part-time here.”
“Ah, I’m a test-prep student, so I’ll contact you later if I need to.”
As I turned to head back to my table with the drink, the Cafe Employee shyly called me back and offered a cookie and business card. I quickly declined and returned to my seat. I was standing at a crossroads in life that would define my entire existence (literally my entire existence), so there was no way I was thinking about part-time work right now.
I spread out a problem set I’d brought as cover and stared intently at the system window. Most of it was question marks, but there was one word that stood out immediately.
Unable to view (Insufficient authority)
Insufficient authority. So this was help text, but I didn’t have the right to see it. Based on my experience with regression, that ‘authority’ probably belonged to the one actually repeating this insane regression—The One.
What, so there’s nothing I can actually see?
“If you’re going to give hints, give more of them…. Hey. You said you’d help. Don’t you have anything else? Is this all there is?”
Getting frustrated, complaints kept spilling out of my mouth. These bastards—if they’re going to regress the wrong person, they should take responsibility.
And in that moment, as if signaling that loading was complete, the screen flashed brilliantly and new notification windows appeared, floating gently in the air.
[‘Fixed Regressor’s Life’ Reading Complete!]
[※You have been designated as mentor to the Selective Regressor.※]
[Basic Quest: ‘Find the Regressor!’ has been registered. (New!)]
[Single Quest: Finding the Lost Dream has been registered. (New!)]
[Will you accept the Quests?]
Why hesitate? I mashed the accept all button without a second thought.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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