Not A Regressor - Chapter 278

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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 278
Dog and Wolf (3)
“Ahem. Will… will this do?”
Ha-eun, adorned with black cat ears and a tail, approached Kwon O-jin.
The accessories suited her naturally feline features perfectly, and Kwon O-jin found himself swallowing hard.
“Well? How is it? Does it look okay?”
Ha-eun struck a tentative pose, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
The cat tail swaying from her prominent rear stirred something deep within Kwon O-jin’s heart.
He spoke his honest impression aloud.
“This doesn’t seem like something a man over thirty should be doing… Ugh!”
Ha-eun’s fist, moving with blinding speed, struck Kwon O-jin’s solar plexus.
“I-I didn’t want to wear this either, you know?!”
Ha-eun glared at him fiercely, her anger evident.
Since becoming Kwon O-jin’s lover, she had grown bolder in her affections, yet even she had no tolerance for such peculiar roleplay.
“But it’s surprisingly well-crafted. If you channel mana into it, the movements become more fluid.”
Isabella, wearing brown dog ears and a tail, wagged her tail like a dog greeting its master returning home.
Every time he saw her like this, he recalled the whispered “woof” sounds she had made, and his cheeks warmed involuntarily.
‘I should take a few of these with me later.’
He made a firm mental note and turned toward Isabella.
“By the way, are you sure black isn’t necessary?”
“Yes. If rank is determined by fur color, it would be wise to disguise ourselves as the brown-maned tribe—essentially the commoner class.”
Fair point.
Just as the wealthy rarely understand the lives of the common people, higher rank doesn’t necessarily grant greater knowledge.
“And brown is rather cute, don’t you think?”
Isabella smiled warmly and pressed herself closer.
With her characteristic resourcefulness, she had already mastered the manipulation of the accessories, moving her ears and tail with the grace of a true beast-human.
The soft dog tail brushed against Kwon O-jin’s thigh.
Ahem.
Kwon O-jin cleared his throat awkwardly and averted his gaze from Isabella.
A cheerful laugh echoed from beside him.
“As for Vega…”
[There’s simply no size that fits me.]
Vega pouted with a dejected expression.
Naturally, there were no accessories small enough for someone the size of a palm.
Even if there were, she couldn’t pass herself off as a beast-human anyway.
“Then Vega, you hide in my jacket pocket.”
[Is that acceptable?]
“If it gets too cramped, you can always return to the Sanctuary for a while.”
[How could I abandon my child and return alone?]
Vega swiftly nestled into Kwon O-jin’s jacket pocket, concealing herself.
She poked just her face out, her eyes sparkling with delight at the sensation of riding, as she swiveled her head around curiously.
“What about Riak….”
Kwon O-jin frowned as he watched Riak, who had shifted back into wolf form.
Originally, as a beastkin, Riak didn’t need any special disguise.
The problem was his brilliantly luminous silver fur.
“What do you want to do? Just go as you are?”
“….”
Riak, who had been contemplating with his mouth firmly shut, shook his head slowly.
“No, if possible, I’ll dye it.”
“Dye, I have materials.”
Baek Moo-gang rummaged through the closet again with rustling sounds and produced black hair dye.
“But, can’t change body form.”
According to what I’d heard from Riak, beastkin could transform their bodies into three different forms.
There was the form of a complete beast like Riak was now, the form of a human with only ears and a tail, and finally the hybrid form like a werewolf.
The hybrid form consumed the most stamina.
Since it allowed for explosive bursts of power in an instant, it was primarily used only in combat.
Normally, they existed in either beast or human form, but since the human form was more convenient in many ways, most took on that appearance.
“Beastkin. Change body, fur grows back. Dye disappears.”
“I know.”
Riak nodded as if he already knew this fact well.
It seemed that because their society was divided by fur color into castes, dyeing had been done occasionally in the past to change color.
‘So by just changing fur color, one could become a noble, a commoner, or even a slave?’
It seemed like a remarkably flawed system.
But thinking about it, human society wasn’t much different.
Why else would there be such a thing as Kappa?
Wasn’t it about dragging around expensive foreign cars beyond one’s means to make one’s social status appear higher?
Of course, dyeing fur was far more convenient than driving a foreign car, but it carried the risk of being discovered just as easily.
‘One just has to ask them to change their appearance and it’s over.’
In any case.
Dyeing would be better than walking around with silver fur.
“Dye, I’ll help. I’m good at it.”
Baek Moo-gang, who had mixed the black dye with water, approached Riak.
And he tilted the container as if about to dump the dye solution all over him.
Just before the dye cascaded down like a waterfall onto Riak’s head, Isabella barely managed to grab Baek Moo-gang’s arm.
“W-wait a moment!”
“Huh? Why?”
“I-I’ll do it.”
Isabella offered an awkward smile as she snatched the dye container from Baek Moo-gang’s hands.
“But I’m good at it….”
Baek Moo-gang muttered with a dejected expression.
“Let’s head outside, Riak. I’ll help you.”
“…I’m counting on you, Leech Queen.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“What, should I call you earthworm instead?”
“My, shall I hand you back over to Baek Moo-gang? He seemed quite confident.”
“Ahem. Let’s get outside, now.”
Riak, apparently unwilling to be doused in hair dye, spun around urgently and rushed outside.
Isabella followed Riak out.
Kwon O-jin approached Baek Moo-gang, who was gazing toward the door with a regretful expression.
“Sir.”
“Hmm?”
“Would you be willing to help me meet Horus?”
At first, I was taken aback—he was nothing like I’d imagined.
But once we actually talked, I realized Baek Moo-gang possessed quite extensive knowledge about the ecology of the Demon Realm.
If Baek Moo-gang cooperated, making contact with the Demon Realm’s king would become far easier.
“No.”
The answer came back sharp as a blade—a flat refusal.
Baek Moo-gang shook his head firmly, wearing an innocent smile.
“I have to go find treasure.”
What could be so remarkable that Baek Moo-gang remained so fixated on it?
“What treasure are you searching for?”
“Treasure is treasure.”
It was the same answer as before.
“It’s precious, so I have to find it.”
Baek Moo-gang smiled brightly, like a child.
“Do you have any leads?”
“A bad man stole my treasure. I have to find the bad man.”
“…A bad man, you say.”
“A bad man is a bad man.”
The conversation wasn’t flowing well.
Still, from this brief exchange, I gleaned one thing.
Someone had stolen Baek Moo-gang’s treasure, and he had been pursuing them.
Here, in this distant Demon Realm.
For five long years.
Alone.
“….”
I grew curious about what the treasure actually was, but judging by Baek Moo-gang’s state, obtaining a proper answer seemed unlikely.
“Well, thank you for your help, sir.”
It was unfortunate that I couldn’t secure Baek Moo-gang’s cooperation.
Still, I had managed to gather considerable information about the Kan Kingdom.
It would be faster for me to find out the rest on my own.
“Hm? You’re leaving already?”
“Yes. I lost quite a bit of time getting out of the Forest.”
“Hehe. It was nice meeting you.”
Baek Moo-gang extended his hand with an innocent smile.
Kwon O-jin grasped the weathered hand in return.
Though skeletal and gaunt, there was an undeniable strength emanating from it.
“Grandfather, are you going to search for that treasure?”
Ha-eun asked from beside him.
“Yep! I’m going treasure hunting!”
“…I hope you find it.”
Perhaps it was something about his radiant smile, bright as starlight.
Ha-eun offered her encouragement with genuine sincerity in her voice.
“Thanks! I’ll definitely find it!”
Baek Moo-gang clenched both fists tightly.
“Oh right, you have the compass, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do.”
“If you follow that, you can find me. Come back if you have more questions.”
“Understood.”
Kwon O-jin exchanged brief farewells with Baek Moo-gang and stepped outside.
Riak was waiting outside, his fur dyed black.
“That strange fellow isn’t coming with us?”
“He said he had other matters to attend to.”
Kwon O-jin turned to Riak and asked.
“By the way, how long does it take from here to the Kan Kingdom?”
“Half a day’s journey. Follow me.”
Riak turned and walked briskly ahead.
Kwon O-jin’s group followed in Riak’s footsteps.
“What could that treasure grandfather is looking for possibly be?”
“Who knows?”
“Hmm.”
Ha-eun tilted her head with narrowed eyes, clearly bewildered.
“Still, it’s quite shocking. He’s so different from what I imagined….”
Who would have imagined that Cheon Gwon-seong Baek Moo-gang was an elderly man with dementia?
[Now I understand why Deneb held his tongue. That child is overly concerned with others’ perceptions.]
Vega shook her head with a disapproving tsk.
“No matter what, isn’t it too much? He’s your apostle, and grandfather hasn’t done anything wrong.”
[He speaks little, yet helps in many ways. Didn’t he send Allen on an errand to the Demon Realm to procure necessary supplies?]
Fair point.
If Deneb had truly disowned Baek Moo-gang like a wayward child, there would have been no reason to send Allen all the way to the Demon Realm with those supplies.
“Anyway, that kid’s got a weird personality too. If we’re going to help, we might as well do it properly.”
Ha-eun furrowed her brow as she spoke, feeling a pang of sympathy for Baek Moo-gang wandering alone through the Demon Realm for years in search of treasure.
Kwon O-jin let out a soft chuckle and gently patted Ha-eun’s back.
“Anyway, let’s focus on our task for now.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
Kwon O-jin’s party followed Riak back into the densely overgrown Forest.
Unlike when they had traversed the Forest of Mahae, demonic beasts weren’t launching attacks from all sides.
If anything, the oppressive silence itself felt more unsettling.
Kwon O-jin activated the stigma of the Canis Major Constellation to survey his surroundings as he advanced cautiously.
As they progressed slowly through the Forest.
“Big brother!”
A scream tore through the air.
The metallic stench of blood tickled his nostrils.
“….”
“….”
Kwon O-jin’s party exchanged glances without a word.
Without hesitation, they kicked off toward the direction of the scream.

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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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