Not A Regressor - Chapter 329

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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 329
Treasure Hunt (8)
“There! Over there!”
Following Baek Moo-gang, I spotted the entrance to a mine tunnel nestled between towering rock formations.
“If we go in that direction… wait!”
“Please wait a moment.”
I grabbed Baek Moo-gang, who was about to charge forward recklessly, and crouched behind a boulder to examine the mine entrance.
‘Are there any guards stationed here?’
Despite enduring the headache and activating the Canis Major Constellation stigma, I detected no demons that resembled guards.
“What should we do, Kwon O-jin?”
“We’ll have to go in and check.”
There was no other way to confirm whether Deimos’s Domain existed within the mountain besides entering directly.
“It looks like an ant colony entrance.”
“The interior will be just as complicated, I’m sure.”
Though I hadn’t entered yet.
A mine tunnel carved through such a massive mountain couldn’t possibly be simple inside.
“Poppy, keep watch around here and alert us if anyone approaches.”
“Grrrowl!”
Given Poppy’s size, I left him outside since the narrow tunnel wouldn’t accommodate him.
I carefully entered the mine entrance, lowering my voice.
“From here on, no one uses mana.”
There could be mana-detection artifacts installed.
Ha-eun and Isabella nodded in acknowledgment rather than speaking.
“Huh?”
“Shh. Just follow me quietly.”
As for Baek Moo-gang, who couldn’t be controlled, Isabella took on the responsibility of keeping him in check.
Splash, splash.
I walked through the damp interior of the mine tunnel.
I considered crafting a simple torch since I couldn’t use mana, but the tunnel had lighting fixtures installed, so visibility wasn’t an issue.
Clang! Bang! Clang!
After advancing deeper for about ten more minutes.
A faint pickaxe sound echoed from far ahead.
“….”
I raised my hand to halt the group and knelt on one knee.
As I examined the soil on the tunnel floor, a smile crept across my face.
“This tunnel definitely leads to Deimos’s Domain.”
I murmured softly.
“Huh? How can you tell?”
“Because they’re still actively mining ore here, not abandoned.”
“…So?”
“They’re still mining ore, but there’s no sign of it being taken outside.”
Gold wasn’t deposited as solid ingots in the earth.
You had to break gold veins with a pickaxe, then process the gold-mixed soil through multiple refinement stages to create the gleaming gold we knew.
But here, there was no trace of the gold-mixed soil being carried out of the mine tunnel.
In other words.
The gold was being taken inward, not outward from the mine.
“Oh, now that you mention it, that’s true.”
Ha-eun nodded, releasing a soft exclamation.
She swallowed hard as she looked down at Kwon O-jin, who was crouched on the ground like a detective from some mystery manga, examining the traces.
“W-why does our O-jin suddenly look so sexy?”
What are you talking about?
“Would you do a Detective Conan cosplay for me later?”
“If you cosplay as that, I feel like everyone around us would start dropping dead.”
And the culprit must be in here.
“It’s not like I made some brilliant deduction—why are you making such a fuss?”
“No, I just want to see you in that cosplay.”
Why would you want to see that?
“Stop talking and let’s head over there.”
I cautiously approached the direction from which the sound of pickaxes echoed.
Walking through the winding mine tunnel, I spotted a group of creatures busily swinging pickaxes.
‘Lizardmen?’
Of course not.
The valuable Demon Race members weren’t doing the pickaxe work themselves.
Creatures resembling lizardmen were chained up, silently continuing their pickaxe work.
“They appear to be Salamanders.”
A minority race that originally settled in the Black Rock Mine.
Unlike the Beast-human Tribe and Dragon-race, they weren’t particularly intelligent, but they possessed enough intellect to form a primitive tribal society—and now they were being enslaved as miners by Deimos.
‘It’s like the old colonial era.’
Watching the Salamanders chained up and continuing their pickaxe work, my mouth felt bitter for some reason.
But this wasn’t the time to concern myself with their lives.
“Krrk! Kir-ruk!”
Two Salamanders were dragging a mine cart filled with soil somewhere.
Kwon O-jin’s party followed the Salamanders while suppressing their presence.
Whether the Salamanders lacked the ability to sense presence or simply didn’t have the leisure to notice anyone else, they didn’t detect our group.
Following the mine cart through the long tunnel, we continued forward.
‘This is… Deimos’s Domain.’
Beyond a sign reading “Glory to Gold,” the form of an Underground City came into view.
Just as Isabella had speculated, beneath the Black Rock Mine lay several structures within the mountain.
‘The scale itself isn’t that large.’
Perhaps because the Demon Race population was so small, Deimos’s Domain built underground wasn’t particularly expansive.
Only the magnificent castle presumed to be Deimos’s Domain displayed any semblance of grandeur, while the remaining structures were constructed with rather modest exteriors.
‘Perhaps he wished to make his own castle stand out.’
It was a city that perfectly matched the greedy nature attributed to Deimos.
“…He’s actually made the entire castle out of gold.”
Ha-eun clicked her tongue as she gazed upon the golden castle bathed in brilliant illumination.
Just by looking at that castle alone, one could instantly understand why Deimos was called the Golden Daemon.
“Bad person! The bad person is inside that castle, right?!”
Baek Moo-gang’s eyes sparkled as he gripped a single rusty iron sword and attempted to charge toward the castle.
Kwon O-jin quickly grabbed the back of Baek Moo-gang’s neck and concealed himself in a crevice between rocks.
“Wait.”
“Why? You said the bad person is over there?”
Baek Moo-gang tilted his head, unable to comprehend the reason for being held back.
“A direct assault on the castle is too dangerous.”
Without information about how powerful Deimos was or the extent of his direct knights’ forces, I couldn’t recklessly charge into the castle.
“Okay. Got it. I’ll listen to what you say, Kwon O-jin.”
Baek Moo-gang, whom I had expected to throw a tantrum without rhyme or reason at the thought of finding treasure, unexpectedly complied with my words obediently.
“My Grandmother told me I should always listen to good people.”
Baek Moo-gang smiled sheepishly and sat down quietly on the ground.
I surveyed the panorama of the Underground City once more, leaving Baek Moo-gang behind.
‘There’s no need to fight Deimos directly.’
My objective was ultimately to recover Baek Moo-gang’s stolen treasure.
‘First, I need information.’
I couldn’t possibly steal the treasure without any information.
As I was examining my surroundings for anything that might provide useful intelligence.
“Kwon O-jin. That appears to be a gold refining facility.”
Two Salamanders pulling mining carts were seen entering what looked like a massive factory.
“Let’s follow them.”
Given that he was obsessed with gold, he must have invested considerable effort into the gold refining facility.
“Why aren’t these things moving faster?!”
Upon entering the factory, unlike the mine tunnels that had no surveillance forces, several Demon Race members were seen urging on the Salamanders.
“The delivery date is today!”
“Move quickly!”
Crack!
The whip-wielding Demon Race members struck the Salamanders’ backs.
The enslaved Salamander, with an expression twisted in pain, dumped the pile of earth from the cart into the mechanical apparatus.
I slowly examined the appearance of the Demon Race members overseeing the Salamanders.
Most of them emanated an aura inferior to the Golden Knights I had faced before.
But among them.
There was one Demon Race member who stood with arms crossed, coldly observing the Salamanders from above.
‘Is he the manager of this factory.’
The armor worn by the Demon Race soldier gleamed with the same ornate gold plating as Jackal’s had.
This appeared to be a Demon Race executive or higher.
“Hmm?”
Indeed, unlike Salamander, the moment my group entered the factory, the executive sensed our presence.
The Demon Race soldier’s gaze, which had been looking down at Salamander with arms crossed, shifted toward us.
“Isabella, older sister.”
“Yes, Kwon O-jin.”
“Got it.”
Without needing to say more, the two women prepared for combat.
Before the full engagement began.
“Vega, can you block out the surrounding sounds?”
[If I unfold a Sacred Domain, it should be possible.]
Using a Sacred Domain in the material world placed a heavy burden on a Constellation.
However, a Sacred Domain that only blocked sound—such a minimal effect—could be managed with some restraint.
[Then I shall unfold the Sacred Domain first.]
Vega soared high into the air and spread both arms wide.
A silvery luminescence rippled outward, enveloping the entire factory.
“Intruders!”
“Humans? How did humans get here…?”
The Demon Race soldiers guarding the factory hastily drew their weapons.
“So we just need to teach these guys a lesson?”
“Yes, feel free to teach them as harshly as you wish.”
“Hehe! Got it!”
Baek Moo-gang charged at the Demon Race soldiers with a bright smile.
Thus began the engagement.
“Cough!”
“Aaaahhh!”
The battle itself didn’t last long.
Though the factory was guarded by a considerable force due to the importance of the facilities, they were woefully insufficient to stop my group, who possessed the martial prowess of a hundred warriors each.
“Tch! So you’ve finally come, you old fox…!”
The captured executive-level Demon Race soldier, recognizing Baek Moo-gang, gnashed his teeth and glared fiercely.
He pulled out a communication relic from his pocket and desperately tried to send an urgent message to the main base.
“That won’t do.”
“Cough!”
Crack!
I brought my spear down, shattering both of the Demon Race soldier’s arms.
“Here, bite down on this.”
I shoved a cloth into his mouth to prevent him from committing suicide like Jackal had.
“Mmph! Mmmph!”
The Demon Race soldier writhed like an insect.
“Kwon O-jin.”
After subduing all the Demon Race creatures and venturing outside to survey the surroundings, Isabella returned into the factory.
“Fortunately, it seems they haven’t noticed the situation here yet. However….”
For now, the fact that Kwon O-jin’s group had infiltrated the domain remained undiscovered.
“But it’s only a matter of time before we’re exposed.”
“That’s true.”
Once communications from the factory ceased, word of the intruders would spread within hours.
‘Then.’
Kwon O-jin’s eyes gleamed with sharp intent.
“We need to raid the warehouse before we’re discovered.”
“…You’re saying you’ll raid the warehouse?”
“Yeah.”
Given how obsessively he coveted treasures, the quantity of valuables he’d accumulated thus far would be substantial.
Unless he carried them bundled in sacks wherever he went, there had to be a storage location for his treasures within the domain.
“But that place will have the tightest security.”
Raiding the treasure warehouse was far more dangerous than sneaking into Deimos’s bedroom.
“It’s fine.”
Kwon O-jin chuckled softly and turned his head toward Isabella.
“Do you know when people are easiest to deceive?”
“…Pardon?”
Isabella tilted her head at the sudden question.
Without answering, Kwon O-jin gave a light shrug and approached the Demon Race creature lying collapsed with both arms broken.
“Hey.”
“Ugh…!”
The fallen creature looked up at Kwon O-jin with a pale, terrified face.
Kwon O-jin crouched before him and tapped his shoulder in a friendly manner.
“Can you help me out?”
Hic.
A frightened hiccup escaped from the creature’s lips.

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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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