Not A Regressor - Chapter 299

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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 299
Sky Mountain Range (5)
[Hey, it’s not an illusion!]
Vega cried out indignantly as Kwon O-jin walked past her toward the sleeping bag, completely ignoring her.
Kwon O-jin’s head turned to the side with a rusty, mechanical creak.
“…You’re really Vega?”
His wide eyes gleamed with shock.
Vega hiccupped and frantically shook her head.
[N-No! It is an illusion! You’re dreaming right now!]
What was I supposed to do about that?
“Where in the world did you get these clothes…?”
Baek Moo-gang’s house had dog and cat ears and such, but nothing as niche as a bunny girl costume.
Actually, looking more closely, the rabbit ear headband on her head was nothing like the intricate replica in Baek Moo-gang’s collection—it was obviously a cheap cosplay accessory that screamed fake at first glance.
[T-That’s….]
Vega lowered her head, her cheeks burning crimson.
[I-I borrowed it from Spica.]
“…From the Virgo Constellation?”
Why in the world would a goddess of the Virgo Constellation possess such a dangerously revealing outfit that left nothing to the imagination?
‘Was it Virgo or something else entirely?’
No, wait.
Even if I stretched my imagination and assumed Spica actually owned a bunny girl outfit, what possible reason could Vega have for borrowing and wearing it?
[I wanted to… um, encourage you.]
“Encourage me?”
[S-Spica said so! She said if you wore this outfit, your strength would double, maybe even triple!]
“….”
What kind of nonsensical drivel had this deranged constellation been spouting to our goddess?
That seeing a bunny girl outfit would double or triple your strength?
Hah.
I was genuinely dumbfounded.
No matter how beautiful our goddess is, are men really that simple-minded? Do you really think you’d gain strength just from seeing a bunny girl outfit?
Just from a costume like that?
[S-So… how is it? Do you feel stronger?]
“Yeah. I feel incredibly strong.”
I think I could even shatter Kalike’s skull right now.
[Thank goodness.]
Vega exhaled in relief, her hand pressed to her chest.
When she’d first received the outfit from Spica, she’d wondered if wearing it would really strengthen Kwon O-jin.
But seeing his eyes gleaming so brightly, it seemed the effect was real after all.
“But why the sudden encouragement?”
Even so, waiting inside a tent in a bunny girl outfit in the dead of night seemed rather unexpected, didn’t it?
[I… I just suddenly felt like doing it.]
How could I possibly tell her that she’d caught wind of the emotions I’d been harboring alone in my heart?
‘Still, this is ultimately for supporting my child.’
I absolutely wasn’t wearing this shameless outfit to seduce him.
Hadn’t Kwon O-jin himself said that it gave him strength?
‘Come to think of it, he seemed quite pleased when Ha-eun and Isabella disguised themselves as Beast-human Tribe members too.’
Surely not.
A dizzying imagination flashed through Vega’s mind.
[My child.]
“Huh?”
[You don’t… perhaps… feel excitement toward animals, do you?]
“What?”
What are you talking about?
[There’s no need to hide it!]
“Hide what are you even talking about.”
[I can understand and accept everything about you!]
“No.”
What is this goddess even saying.
[But didn’t you say you felt strength when you saw my rabbit form!]
“That’s… that’s not what it is.”
I had no idea where to even begin unraveling Vega’s misunderstanding.
[And before, didn’t you stare intently at Ha-eun and Isabella when they were disguised as Beast-human Tribe members, just like now!]
“That’s because it’s Ha-eun and Isabella.”
[Now that I think about it, I once heard on television that there exists a being with a twisted desire called a ‘fur enthusiast’!]
What kind of lunatic was spouting that nonsense on television.
“It’s not that I like animals, it’s… how do I put this. I like the imitation of animals, no, I’m not saying you should imitate them right now.”
I grabbed Vega’s shoulders as she tried to bounce up and down like a rabbit again.
“So… it’s…”
How could I possibly wash away this terrible stigma that had been attached to me?
I lacked the confidence to logically explain the niche appeal of animal ears and tails to someone whose knowledge of human society was desperately insufficient.
Kwon O-jin gave up on detailed explanations and continued speaking with a deep sigh.
“It’s not the rabbit—it’s you, Vega, that gives me strength.”
[…W-what?]
Vega’s shoulders trembled slightly as her eyes widened in surprise.
She avoided his gaze, her lips moving uncertainly.
[Is… is that so?]
“Yeah. So I don’t have any weird tastes like that.”
[Ahem! I’ll believe you since you say so!]
The goddess kept clearing her throat, her face flushing red.
As her excitement faded and she regained some composure, she let out a deep sigh and quietly clenched her fist.
[…Truly pathetic.]
“No, I’m telling you, that’s not my taste at all.”
This was so unfair.
[No, no! I wasn’t calling you pathetic!]
“Huh?”
Then who was pathetic?
[I meant that I’m pathetic for being able to offer you nothing more than this.]
Vega shook her head with a bitter smile.
The atmosphere was certainly serious.
But hearing her say that dressed in that bunny outfit, all she could offer was something like this—it filled my head with all sorts of inappropriate thoughts.
“Don’t say that.”
[But….]
“Without your blessing this time, I never could have defeated Kalike.”
I had learned that painfully through the image training with Kalike.
“And even if it weren’t a blessing, you’re always helping me.”
[…]
Vega smiled faintly and placed her hand on my cheek.
[You truly are kind.]
Vega caressed my cheek carefully, as if stroking a precious treasure.
Along with the soft sensation came a drowsy fatigue that weighed down on me.
“Yawn.”
[Ah, I see you’re quite exhausted.]
“No, I’m fine.”
[Fine? What do you mean fine?]
My eyes were already half-closed, as if I might collapse and fall asleep at any moment.
[Lie down here.]
Vega patted her lap.
“That’s a bit….”
[Hmm? Did I not tell you to lie down? Or are you thinking of defying a Constellation?]
Vega pulled me toward her with a stern expression.
Overwhelmed by the fatigue crushing my body, I couldn’t resist her strength.
As I rested my head on Vega’s thigh, the soft sensation of her skin came through clearly beneath the thin stockings.
This would probably keep me awake instead.
As I was thinking this and tried to lift my head.
[Stay still.]
Vega gently pressed down on my head.
She couldn’t use “commands” like Isabella could.
Yet somehow, all the strength drained from my body.
[You’ve pushed yourself hard all day today.]
Her gentle hand stroked my hair.
A comfort like a spring day when birds fly in and chirp.
Without taking any sedative, my eyes naturally closed gently.
Vega pressed a light kiss to Kwon O-jin’s forehead as his eyes shut.
[Have sweet dreams, my child.]
That night, a rabbit appeared in my dream.

* * *
“Is that the Sky Mountain Range?”
Thanks to Poppy, Kwon O-jin’s party emerged from the Forest far faster than anticipated, and a colossal mountain range sprawled before them.
Or rather, what appeared to be a mountain range.
“I wondered why it’s called the Sky Mountain Range when we couldn’t even catch a glimpse of it from the Forest.”
Ha-eun clicked her tongue as she gazed up at the form presumed to be a mountain range.
Though even looking up, she couldn’t see it properly.
“The entire mountain range is covered in incredibly thick fog.”
Isabella squinted, surveying the area around the Sky Mountain Range.
Dense fog blanketing the entire mountain range.
Like stepping into clouds from an airplane, a hazy mist enveloped the surroundings of the mountain range.
When I first heard the name “Sky Mountain Range,” I vaguely assumed it was called that because of absurdly tall peaks clustered together.
But it seemed the reason this place was called the “Sky Mountain Range” was precisely because of this fog-like mist blanketing everything.
[I’m worried whether we’ll be able to find our way properly like this.]
“Well, we have Riak for that.”
With his beast-like developed sense of smell and perception, Riak should be able to find the path accurately even in a place where visibility was blocked like this.
“…No, this isn’t ordinary fog, kid.”
“Not ordinary fog?”
“Activate your sensory perception.”
There was no way to expand sensory perception as skillfully as a martial artist from a wuxia novel.
But there was something that could produce a similar effect.
Kwon O-jin activated the Canis Major Constellation stigma.
My senses sharpened across my entire body, and the surrounding terrain formed in my mind.
Or rather, to be precise.
It should have.
“What is this?”
Even with the Canis Major Constellation stigma activated and my senses heightened, nothing changed.
Visibility was at most twenty to thirty meters.
There was no scent of grass or trees that should naturally exist in a mountain range, nor the cries of insects or birds.
A sensation like drifting through clouds with nothing at all, just as the words described.
Kwon O-jin furrowed his brow, staring at the thick fog blanketing the surroundings.
“Is this fog blocking our senses?”
“It seems so.”
“Hm.”
The environment was so dire that hollow laughter threatened to escape.
“A hundred years ago, this place didn’t exist… I have no idea when it appeared.”
Riak squinted as he surveyed the surroundings.
“Kid, you don’t know anything about the Sky Mountain Range either?”
“Everything I know came from Leoru.”
Kwon O-jin clicked his tongue and lifted his gaze.
Despite the thick fog blanketing the area, the outline of the mountain range was somewhat visible from a distance.
True to its name, the Sky Mountain Range had lower peaks arranged like steps alongside the towering ones.
Since the goal was to cross the Sky Mountain Range and reach the Draconian Kingdom, choosing the lowest peak would make the crossing quick.
‘The problem is, I can’t tell which peak is the lowest just by looking.’
As I squinted up at the mountain range.
Scratch, scratch, scratch!
The sound of something crawling rapidly across the ground grazed my ears.
A dark shape lunged at me like an arrow.
“Kwon O-jin!”
Isabella swiftly swung her hand, and a blood-red blade pierced through the dark shape.
“This is….”
About a meter in size.
A demonic beast with a form resembling a spider, grotesquely protruding jaws.
The peculiar thing was that it had no eyes at all.
Where spider eyes should have been, hideous tentacles like those of a snail sprouted instead.
Scratch! Scratch! Scratch, scratch, scratch!
Sounds echoed from all directions, indicating this was far from just one creature.
The thick fog made it impossible to determine how many demonic beasts surrounded us.
“This is troublesome.”
A mysterious fog that dulled the senses.
Peaks so towering they seemed to touch the sky, and demonic beasts swarming from the entrance as if they’d been waiting for our arrival.
And the Behemoth dwelling in this place.
Now I finally understood why the Sky Mountain Range was called the “Forbidden Zone.”
“…Can’t we just turn back?”
I couldn’t agree more.

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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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