Not A Regressor - Chapter 177

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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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I Am Not a Regressor Chapter 177
Living Armor (2)
“Could it have been done by a Demonic Beast…?”
Isabella examined Jegal So-young’s corpse with cautious precision.
Kwon O-jin, who had been lost in thought for a moment, suddenly snapped back to awareness and shook his head.
‘Get a grip.’
Yet in that instant, my gaze drifted toward Isabella without my consent.
Logically speaking, there was no way she could have killed Jegal So-young.
‘She’s been right beside me the whole time.’
No matter how far beyond my comprehension her abilities lay, there was no conceivable method for her to kill Jegal So-young from a distance while standing at my side without my noticing.
And even if such a method existed, she had no reason to kill Jegal So-young.
‘Thinking she killed her out of jealous rage is too much of a stretch.’
If jealousy were the motive, her first target would have been Ha-eun, not Jegal So-young.
I met Isabella’s cold, penetrating gaze once more.
The look in her eyes was not that of a psychopath committing brutal murder, but rather the sharp, analytical gaze of a veteran detective investigating a crime scene.
In other words.
‘This situation was unexpected for Isabella as well.’
I examined Jegal So-young’s corpse—split cleanly in half, pale brain matter oozing from the wound.
Half her head, gone as if bitten away like an apple.
‘It was torn off whole.’
I narrowed my eyes, methodically inspecting the wound.
One of Jegal So-young’s wide-open eyes was filled with shock and terror.
“She didn’t even have time to react before she died.”
In the blink of an eye.
Her life was stolen.
“Then what about Choi Yu-mi, who was with So-young…?”
“Wait.”
I poured mana into the communication crystal.
The sphere glimmered with blue light, but.
No response came back.
“Can’t you reach her?”
“No.”
There was no choice but to move myself.
“This way.”
“P-please be careful, Kwon O-jin.”
As I moved to follow the trail of blood, I felt Isabella’s rigid grip on my sleeve, her face tense with worry.
Her gaze mingled concern and dread.
I gave a small nod and moved forward slowly.
Droplets of blood spaced at regular intervals, like breadcrumbs from Hansel and Gretel.
“Damn it.”
As I followed the trail of blood, it suddenly vanished without a trace.
‘Am I chasing a ghost?’
It felt like I was pursuing a phantom.
“This way, Kwon O-jin. I’m picking up the scent of blood over there.”
Isabella pointed toward one direction.
I activated Canis Major Constellation and caught the scent she was indicating.
Even with Canis Major Constellation activated, I couldn’t detect the blood scent she mentioned.
‘So this is what it means to be the Leech Queen.’
At least when it came to detecting blood, I couldn’t match her ability.
“Let’s head that way.”
“Yes.”
I moved in the direction Isabella indicated.
After walking cautiously for a while, I began to sense the metallic stench of blood growing stronger, just as she’d said.
‘How did she detect blood from such a distance?’
I clicked my tongue softly and arrived at the location reeking of blood.
“…Damn it.”
Crimson blood painted the wall like graffiti art.
I could see Jegal So-young’s headless corpse sprawled on the ground.
It wasn’t just Jegal So-young’s body.
‘Choi Yu-mi.’
Choi Yu-mi, a high-ranking awakener of the Phoenix Constellation, lay severed at the waist.
Viscera spilled out grotesquely.
Her lifeless eyes stared vacantly down the alley.
“Huh.”
My eyes narrowed as I examined the corpses still warm with residual heat.
The brutally murdered bodies of Choi Yu-mi and Jegal So-young shared one thing in common.
‘Their hearts are missing.’
All other organs remained intact, but only the hearts were absent.
I examined the torn chests of both women.
A hand had smashed through the ribs and ripped out the hearts entirely.
The fact that the extracted hearts weren’t visible meant one thing.
‘They were eaten.’
I recalled Jegal So-young’s corpse with her head crushed like an apple logo.
‘The head was only half-consumed, but the heart was devoured completely.’
For an awakener, the heart means far more than a mere organ.
The stigma bestowed by a Constellation takes root in the heart.
Even my Heukcheon was fundamentally rooted in my heart.
In other words, the killer had selectively hunted and consumed only the awakeners’ hearts.
‘They’re hunting awakeners to consume the magical power of their stigmas.’
My eyes gleamed with sharp intensity.
“Kwon O-jin. There are signs of a struggle over here.”
I checked the direction Isabella was pointing toward.
A large hole appeared on the wall, seemingly made not long ago, with no blood spatter around it.
Beneath it were footprints pressed deep as if hammered down by a sledgehammer.
‘Lyra Constellation’s hound.’
I activated my skill and examined the surrounding traces.
“Ugh.”
A tidal wave of information flooded my mind.
Blood, a decapitated corpse, a massive hole punched through the wall, and deeply indented footprints.
From the small traces carved into the alley alone, I could vividly reconstruct what had happened here.
‘Jegal So-young struck first.’
A sharp magical arrow shot from outside my field of vision.
The beast lightly twisted its body to evade the arrow fired at supersonic speed.
‘And then Choi Yu-mi charged in.’
She drew her sword while delivering a powerful stomp that cracked the ground beneath her feet.
And then.
‘Roughly one minute… no, about two minutes of close combat.’
Battle traces remained scattered across the walls and floor.
Choi Yu-mi had unleashed a relentless barrage of sword strikes, with Jegal So-young supporting from behind.
‘And they lost.’
It wasn’t an unexpected ambush, nor was it carelessness.
Rather, they had discovered the beast first and struck preemptively, only to be overwhelmed in return.
Overwhelmingly, without even mounting a proper resistance.
“Let’s go back.”
I spoke with a firm voice.
Isabella’s eyes widened in surprise.
“What about the beast?”
“It’s not something we can handle.”
Of course, if Isabella revealed her true power, or if my body were in perfect condition, I might have considered observing the situation further.
But in my current state, pursuing the beast was far too dangerous.
“…Yes, I understand.”
Isabella, who had been pondering for a moment, nodded in agreement.
As we turned to leave together, she suddenly tugged gently at my sleeve as if remembering something.
“Kwon O-jin, shouldn’t we contact Lee Woo-hyuk as well?”
“Ah, right.”
I nodded and pulled out a communication crystal.
As I channeled mana into it, the crystal began to glow with a blue light.
The flickering glow of the crystal, like a broken lamp, soon brightened steadily.
-Huff, huff!
The screen shook violently and roughly.
Lee Woo-hyuk’s ragged breathing came through the orb.
-Oh, Kwon O-jin?
“What’s the matter?”
-Ugh!
Clang! Clang clang!
The screen flickered again, revealing Lee Woo-hyuk wielding his blade with brutal intensity.
Oh Hyun-bin hung limply across Lee Woo-hyuk’s back.
‘Damn it.’
Kwon O-jin, watching the situation unfold through the orb, bit his lip.
Could the demon beast that vanished earlier have gone after Lee Woo-hyuk?
-The Toad Faction! It’s the Toad Faction!
“What?”
But what came from Lee Woo-hyuk’s mouth was entirely unexpected.
-The Toad Faction attacked us!
The Toad Faction.
The Toad Faction that had allegedly smuggled into South Korea not long ago had attacked Lee Woo-hyuk.
‘So there really was a connection between the demon beast in Yonghyun-dong and the Toad Faction.’
Kwon O-jin squinted as if his head ached.
“Where are you located?”
-Ugh! W-we’re near the harbor!
“I’m heading there now.”
I had planned to flee from the demon beast.
But now that I knew Lee Woo-hyuk was under attack, I couldn’t simply abandon him.
“Isabella, let’s head to the harbor.”
“Yes! I’ll cast a speed buff for you!”
“No, that won’t be necessary.”
“Huh?”
I pulled Isabella into my embrace.
“Kyaa?!”
“Stay still.”
With one arm wrapped around her, I fired my wire shooter toward the building rooftop.
Twang!
My body soared high, riding the wire that coiled around the protruding rebar.
Unless I needed to carefully scout the surroundings, traveling via wire was far faster.
-Crack!
Using Lightning Step to propel myself through the air, I rocketed toward the harbor at tremendous speed.
-Boom! Crash!
A deafening roar erupted from the dock area stacked high with containers.
I flew toward the source of the sound.
“Damn it! Hurry, kill that bastard!”
“Before they realize we’re here, hurry!”
I could see dozens of Awakeners, apparently from Southeast Asia, unleashing a barrage of attacks toward Lee Woo-hyuk, who had Oh Hyun-bin on his back.
Kwon O-jin used Mind Step to pivot mid-air and soared higher, changing direction.
He gripped a spear in one hand and drew forth his mana.
‘Lightning Strike.’
Crackle crackle crackle!!
Kwon O-jin descended like a meteor.
A storm of azure lightning erupted around the spot where Kwon O-jin landed.
“Aaaahhh!”
“W-what the hell is this guy?!”
“Damn it!”
The Toad Faction Awakeners fell into chaos at Kwon O-jin’s sudden appearance.
“Kwon O-jin!”
“Are you alright?”
“Yes. I’m fine, but Hyun-bin…”
Oh Hyun-bin, clinging to Lee Woo-hyuk’s back, was breathing heavily with cold sweat dripping down his face.
A long, vicious wound ran across Oh Hyun-bin’s back, impossible to miss.
“I apologize. I was ambushed by their Executive.”
“…An Executive?”
“Yes.”
So the Black Star Society’s Executive had come here too.
I didn’t know what rank the Toad Faction Executive held in their hierarchy.
But considering that Cheon Do-yoon, who ranked sixth, was at least equal in power to this Executive, or possibly even weaker, surviving an ambush from an Executive was nothing short of a miracle.
“Where is that Executive now?”
“I-I’m not sure. After the initial ambush, they haven’t pursued us.”
Haven’t pursued us, huh.
‘Did they dump the troublesome work on their subordinates?’
Well. For someone acting so leisurely…
“Damn it! What are you doing? Kill them quickly!!”
“We don’t have time!!”
The expressions of the Toad Faction Awakeners surrounding us were desperate beyond measure.
They were rushing toward Kwon O-jin and Lee Woo-hyuk as if fleeing from something.
“Let’s escape for now.”
Now that I knew the Toad Faction Executive was here, I couldn’t afford to waste time fighting these subordinates.
-Crackle crackle crackle!
Kwon O-jin fired lightning at the charging Toad Faction Awakeners while moving toward Downtown.
As we gradually widened the distance.
-A chilling sound echoed once more.
That eerie noise rang out again.
“K-Kwon O-jin.”
Isabella’s expression hardened into a rigid mask as she maintained the buff on Kwon O-jin.
The direction Kwon O-jin was attempting to flee.
An ominous cry echoing from the direction of the Harbor toward Downtown.
‘Damn it.’
Kwon O-jin’s face twisted into a grimace.
The thought that everything had gone wrong flashed through my mind.
Awakeners from the Toad Faction ahead, and an unidentified demonic beast behind.
There was no worse situation than this worst of situations.
“Shhhiiieeeek, shhhiiieeeek.”
What emerged, radiating an ominous aura, was a monster clad entirely in black armor.
Between the seams of the armor, a sickly blue-green flame flickered with an eerie glow.
The armored beast, gripping a long spear wreathed in blue-green flames in one hand, rushed toward us at terrifying speed.
“Ugh!”
Kwon O-jin swallowed hard and hastily raised his spear.
The black-armored monstrosity, wielding a blue-green spear, charged forward at a horrifying velocity.
The distance between them closed rapidly—
The black-armored beast simply rushed past Kwon O-jin.
“Huh?”
Kwon O-jin turned his head in confusion as the creature continued onward.
—Crunch!!
“Gack!! Cough!”
The spear brutally pierced through an Awakener from the Toad Faction who had been encircling the area.
“Shhhiiieeeeeek!!”
The helmet of the black-armored beast split open with a sickening crack, and it devoured the Toad Faction Awakener skewered on the spear whole, as if gnawing on a chicken skewer.
“Ahhh!! P-please! Save me!!”
“It’s him!! He’s here!!”
“Run!! Hurry!!!”
The Black Star Society members of the Toad Faction screamed with faces drained of all color.
“…What the hell is this?”
Kwon O-jin stared blankly at the backs of the Black Star Society members fleeing in panic.

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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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