Not A Regressor - Chapter 295

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

I Am Not a Regressor Chapter 295
The Sky Mountain Range (1)
“Huff! Huff!”
Breath heaving all the way to her chin.
A demoness with two black horns sprouting from her forehead climbed the treacherous mountain path.
“Where on earth did such monsters come from?”
I had long known that Awakeners existed in the world beyond the veil.
But I had never anticipated they would be strong enough to defeat the Demon Race in combat.
“If only our army were here….”
The woman nervously gnawed at her crimson lips.
Following the Heavenly Demon’s orders, the Demon Race forces stationed in the Beastkin Kingdom had been withdrawn en masse, leaving her woefully unprepared to face the Awakeners from beyond the veil.
The only one she could rely on was Kalike.
‘Fool.’
Recalling Kalike’s pathetic death after pointless rambling, the woman spat out a curse.
“Sigh. How much longer will it take to go around the Sky Mountain Range….”
A deep sigh escaped the woman’s lips.
Niflheim, the kingdom of the Demon Race, lay in the deepest part of the Demon Realm.
If I crossed the Sky Mountain Range, I could reach it within a month, but otherwise, I would need to travel for over three months.
Muttering complaints as I walked.
Slither.
I heard something crawling through the undergrowth.
A chilling sensation spread down my spine.
“W-who’s there?!”
The startled woman turned her head.
What emerged from the bushes was a single snake.
The black-scaled serpent flicked its long tongue and slithered toward her.
“Ha… what, it was just a snake.”
The Demon Realm was not filled exclusively with demonic beasts.
Though their species and forms differed slightly from those on Earth, ordinary flora and fauna also inhabited the forests.
Ordinary people would have been wary at the mere sight of a snake on a forest path, but she was a demoness blessed by the Heavenly Demon.
To her, a snake was no different from an earthworm.
“Stop startling me for nothing.”
The demoness wore an annoyed expression as she lifted her foot to crush the tongue-flicking snake.
Then.
Whoooosh!
“Kyaaaah!”
The black snake erupted with explosive speed, coiling around her body.
Despite being only as thick as two fingers, the serpent’s grip exerted a crushing force as if she were caught in the palm of a giant.
“W-what? What is this?!”
The demoness looked around in terror, her head spinning.
The shadow cast beneath the tree writhed as if alive, and a woman emerged from within it.
A woman with an enchanting beauty that seemed incongruous with her delicate, girl-like frame.
The woman, dressed in a jet-black gown so long it dragged across the ground, approached the Demon Race member bound by The Snake.
“Hello?”
A cold hand caressed her cheek.
My body reacted before my mind could process the eerie chill that ran down my spine.
“Ah, u-uh.”
A suffocating terror that seemed to strangle the breath from my lungs.
The Demon Race woman trembled violently, feeling her pants grow damp beneath her.
I’m going to die.
The certainty of that premonition filled my entire mind.
“I have just one question for you… do you think you can answer it?”
“Y-yes, yes, yes…”
The Demon Race woman nodded hesitantly, stammering.
Cassia licked her long, serpentine tongue and laughed darkly.
“Where is the Heavenly Demon right now?”
Her emerald eyes gleamed with an eerie brilliance.

* * *
“Then we shall take our leave.”
Before the village of the Silver-maned Wolf Tribe.
The Silver-maned Wolf Tribe members had gathered to see off Kwon O-jin’s party, who had finished their preparations to depart.
“Please return to us again, warrior!”
“The Silver-maned Wolf Tribe will await your safe return, warriors!”
The beastkin warriors laughed heartily and struck their chests.
Kwon O-jin nodded with a faint smile.
“O-jin, take this.”
Leoru handed Kwon O-jin a horn flute the size of a palm.
“What is this?”
“It’s a flute that emits a sound that beasts detest. The effect isn’t particularly strong… but it should serve well enough to buy you some time.”
They must have hastily prepared it upon hearing that we intended to cross the Sky Mountain Range.
“Thank you.”
Kwon O-jin gently blew the horn flute he had received from Leoru.
Piiirlik.
Contrary to expectations, a quite clear sound flowed out.
“Beasts dislike a sound like this?”
I had expected something like nails scraping across metal, but it was entirely different.
“Yes. Of course, since there are so many varieties of beasts, the effectiveness varies greatly, but if it’s a beast with well-developed hearing, it should definitely be effective.”
“I see. Understood.”
I don’t fully understand the principle, but if Leoru is so confident about it, the effect must certainly be real.
“Then I shall pray for your safe passage across the mountain range.”
Leoru bowed respectfully.
“I hope you successfully rebuild the kingdom as well, Leoru.”
“Yes.”
“And… you remember what I mentioned earlier, don’t you?”
“You mean that there might be one Demon Race member still alive?”
Of the five Demon Race members who had remained in the kingdom, four were confirmed dead.
After searching through the records from the kingdom’s previous investigation, the missing Demon Race member turned out to be the only female among the five.
I wanted nothing more than to search the entire kingdom and finish this cleanly.
But from my perspective, with the urgent need to reach the Draconian Kingdom as soon as possible, I couldn’t afford to waste time hunting for a single Demon Race member whose fate remained unknown.
“Kahahaha! Don’t worry, warrior! Even without Kalike, a single ordinary Demon Race member is nothing our Silver-maned Tribe can’t handle!”
The beastkin warrior who had taught Lilu some harsh words at last night’s gathering pounded his chest and laughed heartily.
True enough.
A single Demon Race member wouldn’t be a major problem.
The Silver-maned Tribe had also been the ones to kill the two Demon Race members in the Royal Palace this time.
“Then I shall take my leave.”
As I turned to go with a nod of my head.
“Sniffle. Sob!”
“Are you… really leaving?”
Leo and Lilu, who had been hiding behind Leoru, emerged with tears streaming down their faces.
Though our time together hadn’t been long, we’d grown quite close.
I chuckled softly and ruffled both children’s hair.
“Once I finish with the Dragon-race Kingdom, I’ll come back. So stay well until then, alright?”
“Sniffle… Sniff! I’ll be waiting, big brother!”
Leo wiped his tears and shouted cheerfully.
“O-jin oppa…”
Lilu, who had been glancing at Leoru’s expression, took a step closer to me.
Smack.
The girl suddenly kissed my cheek.
“L-Lilu!”
Leoru jumped up in shock.
Lilu smiled shyly, twirling her neatly braided silver hair with her fingers.
“See you later, oppa! I’ll be waiting!”
“Uh, yeah.”
I felt a chilling murderous intent emanating from Isabella and Ha-eun standing behind me, and quickly turned away.
“…Now you’re even seducing the little ones?”
Ha-eun jabbed her elbow into my ribs repeatedly, glaring at me sharply.
Isabella bit her nails and muttered in a cold voice.
“How unfortunate. Such a good child too…”
“No.”
The way he said it made it sound like Lilu had died.
“Then let’s get moving.”
“Grrrowl. Do you even know the way, pup?”
“I heard about it roughly yesterday.”
Kwon O-jin turned his steps toward the direction of the Sky Mountain Range.
‘I wish I had something to ride.’
With an Awakener’s body, I could move faster than a horse, but covering such vast distances inevitably meant significant stamina drain.
‘I miss you, Poppy.’
Recalling Poppy, who showed no signs of fatigue even after running for twelve hours straight, I clicked my tongue.
As I continued walking toward the Sky Mountain Range.
Whoooooosh!
Light began pouring out from the pendant hanging around my neck.
[I have arrived!]
Vega appeared with a spin that seemed to warrant a “ta-da!” sound effect.
I waved my hand with a delighted expression.
“Are you feeling better?”
[After resting well, some of my restrictions have been lifted. Of course, I won’t be able to grant you blessings for a while… but at least I can travel with you like this.]
“That’s a relief.”
It was disappointing that she couldn’t grant me blessings, but just having Vega by my side made me feel reassured.
[By the way, was the matter with the Kan Kingdom handled well?]
Vega’s memories ended with my successful defeat of Kalike.
After that, she was immediately summoned back to the Sanctuary, so she didn’t know how the situation unfolded.
“Yes. It was resolved well.”
I explained to her everything that happened after she was summoned back to the Sanctuary.
[…Such a thing happened.]
Vega looked at Riak with a sympathetic expression.
Fluttering over to Riak, Vega gently stroked the silver wolf’s head with a kind smile on her face.
[You must have been deeply grieved.]
“…Hmph. It was a fitting end for that fool.”
Riak moved forward with a bitter smile.
Vega, perched atop Riak’s head, continued to stroke his head as if proud of him.
[But still, you’re departing right away even though the Kan Kingdom matter was just resolved?]
“I don’t have the luxury of resting peacefully.”
[However….]
Vega looked at me with a worried expression.
A Constellation’s blessing places a heavy burden not only on the Constellation itself but also on the Awakener.
Especially if it’s a blessing granted by the Polaris Constellation.
Though I was pretending to be fine on the surface, my current physical condition was far from normal.
[Sigh. Just how much more will you torment me before you’re satisfied?]
Vega let out a deep sigh and shook her head with disapproval.
I simply shrugged lightly and quickened my pace.
After walking for several hours like this.
We hadn’t even escaped the forest surrounding the Kingdom yet, let alone reached the Sky Mountain Range.
“Stop.”
Riak, who had been leading the way, came to an abrupt halt.
Riak, who had been sniffing at the ground, scanned the front with sharp eyes.
“A demonic beast?”
“Yes.”
As I activated the stigma of Canis Major Constellation, I felt a demonic beast approaching from far away.
“It seems to be quite a large one?”
The heavy footsteps echoing from the ground suggested it was a demonic beast of considerable size.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The thundering footsteps grew rapidly closer, as if the creature had spotted our group.
“Prepare for combat.”
“Yes, Kwon O-jin.”
“Ugh… you haven’t even fully recovered from the hangover yet.”
Ha-eun grumbled as she pulled out a cigarette pack from her pocket.
A spark flickered at the end of the tobacco held between her fingers.
“Grrrrowl!”
A colossal demonic beast with an eagle’s head, a lion’s mane, and a serpent’s tail burst through the dense trees, shattering them to splinters.
“Huh?”
“Grrrrrowl!”
My eyes widened in surprise.
The demonic beast approached, wagging its serpent tail rapidly from side to side like a dog greeting its master.
“Poppy?”
I was about to wave cheerfully at the approaching Poppy.
“You’re… the one who attacked Kwon O-jin back then…”
Isabella’s eyes turned cold as she glared at Poppy.
Clench.
Isabella bared her teeth savagely and conjured a crimson scythe, lunging at Poppy.
“No, wait!”
Poppyyyy!

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