Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 522

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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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522. Finding the Lost Comrade (2)
I wasn’t scared.
Sure, before the man in the black suit suddenly appeared and showed me a business card emblazoned with the ‘JDZ’ logo, I’d been genuinely torn between calling 112 or my father first, but regardless—I wasn’t scared.
[System Alert: You’re totally scared lol]
This bastard.
As I shot a glance at Thirteen, whose nerve was growing by the day, an absurdly luxurious foreign car pulled up to its destination. Following the man in the black suit’s guidance, I rode up an impressively sleek elevator in some high-end building, and that’s when I realized this was the same structure that housed Joo Eun-seok’s private office from my previous visit.
Back then, it seemed like he only used a single room, but judging by how things operated now, it was clear the entire building belonged to Joo Eun-seok.
‘His economic growth over ten years is absolutely insane.’
Even though the Returner had mixed timelines so that reality had subtly shifted in places, there were apparently unchangeable elements he couldn’t touch—and this seemed to be one of them.
“This way, please. Let’s go in.”
While entertaining these trivial thoughts, I found myself standing before a firmly sealed iron door. At the invitation to enter, I took a moment to steady my breathing before carefully pushing it open.
And what awaited me beyond this door was probably….
“Ha-jin hyung―!”
…naturally, this guy.
Ju Eun-chan, the precious youngest son of the historically wealthy Joo family, spotted me and came barreling over with sparkling eyes, his feet thundering against the floor.
It had been so long since I’d seen him, and I’d anticipated that at least one or two of the members might have awakened, so I opened my arms without much surprise—but then….
‘Wait, that guy’s size…?’
Was he always that big?
He’d never had poor physique or proportions to begin with, but somehow his eye level seemed significantly higher than I remembered, and I instinctively shrank back. But Eun-chan paid no mind to my reaction and came charging like a puppy who’d finally found his owner after years away, moving with absolute madness.
No matter how I looked at it, if I took the full brunt of Eun-chan charging at me in his current state, the impact would be catastrophic!
“Hey, hey, Eun-chan, wait a second…!”
Think about your body size, you bastard!
“Ugh, Chan―.”
…Just as I was about to shout that, someone appeared from behind and stopped the charging Eun-chan, positioning himself in front of me.
Or more precisely, he stood protectively in front of me, shielding Eun-chan.
And at this point, I didn’t even need to see who it was to guess.
“Charging like that is dangerous.”
“Ah, I’m just so happy I couldn’t help myself. Ha-jin hyung!”
“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you two can talk plenty. Calm down. You’re getting worked up.”
Joo Eun-seok, who clearly viewed his younger brother as roughly seven years old, calmed Eun-chan down with a composure and skill far greater than what I remembered. Even as Eun-chan came to realize just how excited he’d been, he didn’t forget to wave at me over Eun-seok’s shoulder.
I waved back at Eun-chan with equal warmth, but suddenly, an unmistakably sharp and vigilant aura pierced through my entire body.
“…?”
“Hello, Kang Ha-jin. I’m Joo Eun-seok, Eun-chan’s older brother.”
His demeanor was gentlemanly but decidedly unkind.
Eyes completely different from the “past”—eyes that had once gleamed with goodwill and curiosity.
“We’ve met before, haven’t we? It’s been a while.”
Joo Eun-seok, whose face was plastered with an unmistakable expression of ‘who the hell are you that my brother is so excited to see you,’ extended his hand for a handshake.
Only then did I recall that in this timeline, I was to Eun-seok nothing more than ‘that incompetent, shameless leader who neglected my brother’s trauma.’
‘Eun-chan’s “worst timeline” was undoubtedly when he was holed up in his room, so Eun-seok’s current overprotectiveness of his younger brother has probably pierced through Earth’s ozone layer….’
So then, what was the appropriate way for me to conduct myself right now?
“Hello, Hyung. It’s been so long. I’m truly grateful that you invited me to meet Eun-chan like this today.”
“…No, well. My younger brother kept saying he wanted to see Ha-jin so badly.”
“When I heard that Eun-chan was looking for me, I dropped everything and rushed over. To be honest, I wanted to reach out first…. But I was worried that it might negatively affect Eun-chan’s recovery, so I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
I grasped Joo Eun-seok’s hands respectfully with both of mine, adding a tremor of emotion glistening in my eyes. As genuine feeling welled up from within and my voice emerged slightly strained, Joo Eun-seok, startled by my grip, took a step backward.
I seized the moment and stepped forward instead, gripping Joo Eun-seok’s right hand even more firmly.
“Though it’s late… I’ve wanted to apologize for not taking better care of Eun-chan during our Group activities back then. I was so young then…. The fact that I can see Eun-chan again and have this chance to talk, even now… it’s truly something I’m grateful for.”
In moments like this, ‘restraint’ was the key.
I couldn’t appear too theatrical, nor could I seem overly emotional.
This Joo Eun-seok wasn’t the one from the real timeline—he was a seasoned professional who’d already encountered roughly three thousand cunning individuals. Clumsy attempts at appearing virtuous would only heighten his wariness.
[System Alert: The System marvels at your acting ability every time.]
[System Alert: Anyone watching would think you two were truly reuniting after ten years….]
Leaving Thirteen behind as he produced strange applause sound effects and continued his praise, I gracefully released Joo Eun-seok’s hand while he stared at me in considerable bewilderment. Though he hadn’t entirely lowered his guard, my excessively courteous demeanor seemed to have left him somewhat flustered.
I decided this was the moment to deploy my final trump card.
“Chan.”
I angled my eyebrows into a gentle slope and drew the world’s warmest smile across my lips, filling my eyes with a complex blend of longing, joy, remorse, and tenderness.
Then, toward our Eun-chan, who still stood behind Joo Eun-seok wearing a bewildered expression—’Why is Hyung acting like that?’—I spoke in a trembling voice.
“Have… you been well?”
Before speaking, I made sure to steady my breath as if holding back tears and swallow hard.
For a moment, Joo Eun-chan’s eyes flickered with confusion—’What? Could this really be the old Kairos leader Ha-jin from ten years ago, not the Ha-jin I know? No, it can’t be… but why does his expression look so genuine?’—and he trembled like a man possessed for about thirty seconds, but—
“…Yes. Let’s come inside and talk.”
“Yes, thank you, Hyung.”
Either way, it seemed to have worked on the person it needed to, so it hardly mattered.
* * *
After that, I endured roughly thirty minutes of what Joo Eun-seok disguised as casual conversation but was actually an in-depth interrogation before finally getting the chance to speak with Eun-chan alone.
I regretted not being able to tell Eun-chan immediately—who still regarded me with uncertain eyes no matter what I answered—’Yes, I’m the Hyung you know.’ But at least I’d managed to earn Joo Eun-seok’s assessment that I was ‘someone trustworthy enough to leave alone with my younger brother,’ which was fortunate.
“Eun-chan.”
“Yes, yes?”
At my call, Eun-chan jumped like a startled rabbit and turned to face me.
How on earth did someone so oblivious that he still hadn’t noticed I was acting manage to be the first to awaken besides me, and even think to search for me directly? I pondered this mystery while casually pointing at the camera blatantly affixed to the ceiling.
“Would you mind telling your Hyung that I really won’t do anything dangerous, so he doesn’t need to watch me this closely…?”
“…Ah! Oh, yes. Just a moment!”
Upon spotting the camera, Eun-chan’s face flushed crimson and he quickly poked his head out the door. As he babbled complaints to his Hyung outside, the men in black suits I’d seen earlier soon sauntered in and wordlessly began collecting the installed cameras.
I added another remark to Eun-chan, who now sat across from me with curious eyes, as if asking if that was enough.
“And I’m truly sorry, but I should also mention that recording conversations without the consent of those involved is a crime. If you’re worried to that extent, wouldn’t it be better if your Hyung simply sat with us and listened to the conversation….”
“…Ah! Oh, I’m sorry! Just a moment!”
This time, Eun-chan’s ears turned bright red as well, and he thrashed about before rushing out of the room again. After a while of muffled chatter, the men in black entered once more and retrieved the recording device that had been sitting plainly on the table.
They cast one wary glance in my direction before leaving—a bonus observation.
“I’m, I’m really sorry. There were a few people who came claiming to be acquaintances and tried to gaslight me while extorting money…. Even my therapist mentioned it, so after that, my Hyung got into the habit of monitoring whoever I talk to like this….”
“Yeah, I figured as much.”
“Yeah, that must have been it.”
It was painfully obvious what would happen.
Honestly, if I were in Ha-won’s shoes and ended up with social anxiety, depression, and panic disorder from being so genuinely pure-hearted, I would’ve gotten off lighter than this.
[System Alert: Confirmed! No suspicious objects in the vicinity, and your conversation is being filtered so others won’t hear it!]
[System Alert: ( •̀ω•́ )و✧]
‘Thanks.’
Only after receiving confirmation from Thirteen that this place was completely safe did I finally get a proper look at Eun-chan sitting across from me.
He definitely seemed much taller now, and with the baby fat gone from his face, he carried himself with a distinctly adult air—though it felt a bit strange, if I’m honest.
“Hey, Silver Kick.”
“…?”
Despite his thick brows and pitch-black eyes, despite the sharp, cold edge to his features, his expression was innocent. Yet his firmly pressed lips betrayed a quiet stubbornness, and his posture remained perfectly upright and composed.
“We got tangled up in this fantasy world somehow, and we’ve seen all kinds of crazy things, haven’t we?”
There was no doubt about it—this was our group’s little tyrant cat.
At my playful smile, Eun-chan finally seemed certain that I was really me. He broke into a wide grin, leaped from his seat, and rushed toward me.
“Ha-jin! You’re really Ha-jin, right?”
“Of course I’m your older brother—what, you think I’m your younger sibling? Come on, stop clinging to me, you’re heavy!”
“Ha-jin! I was really… really shocked!”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I reluctantly accepted his embrace, as if I were finally getting around to the hug I’d missed earlier. Eun-chan crumpled his large frame against me, burying his eyes in my shoulder and exhaling deeply.
“…Really, really glad.”
“…?”
Then he began murmuring quietly to himself, his voice seeming to carry a hint of moisture.
“Because it wasn’t all just a dream… I’m really glad.”
“….”
Instead of answering him with words, I patted the back of the person I held close a couple of times. I knew better than anyone that there was no greater joy, no warmer reunion, than when someone who had been lost in a butterfly’s dream finally touched a petal again.
“…Yeah, it’s a relief.”
The truth is, because you remembered me.
Because you didn’t stay trapped in that darkness—you climbed out and found me first, I’m the one who should be relieved.
Swallowing words I might be too embarrassed to ever tell Eun-chan directly, we held each other close for a long, long time.

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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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