Not A Regressor - Chapter 358

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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 358
A Third of a Vacation (4)
After that bittersweet dinner came to an end.
Kwon O-jin and Isabella made their way to the Seoul Tower observation deck.
Beyond the windows stretched Seoul’s night sky.
As if the night itself had been inverted, brilliant clusters of light filled the streets in dazzling splendor.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Yeah, it really is.”
Did any particular observation really need to be made?
In truth, a city’s night view was much the same whether seen from Seoul or Italy, leaving no room for commentary beyond acknowledging its beauty.
Kwon O-jin and Isabella sat on a nearby bench, silently gazing down at the night view visible through the expansive window.
There was no particular conversation between them, yet it didn’t feel awkward in the slightest.
Rather, this quiet silence felt pleasant.
The warmth of the other person transmitted through their gently clasped hands created an indescribable, drowsy happiness.
“…Kwon O-jin.”
Isabella broke the serene silence, opening her mouth to speak.
She turned to look at him with a smile as warm as a spring breeze.
“Today was so much fun.”
“…Today?”
The memories that surfaced were of Isabella’s eyes stained crimson as she gazed at him with raw hunger, and her fierce expression as she regarded the iced Americano and Hawaiian pizza.
“Was it really… fun?”
If one were to judge the success or failure of the date, it would lean heavily toward complete failure.
“Ah, please forget about what happened earlier.”
Isabella pouted her lips and gently pinched his side.
“Well… it wasn’t a date that went as smoothly as I’d hoped, but I still enjoyed it.”
It had been an unremarkable day.
No, rather, it had been a day filled with mistakes and regrets.
Yet precisely because of that, this moment now—holding hands with Kwon O-jin—felt all the more precious.
Nothing special, nothing unusual.
An utterly ordinary everyday life.
“Before I met you, I couldn’t have even imagined this in my dreams.”
From her days as the heir to the Colgrand Family to her time as an executive of the Black Star Society.
Until now, her life had been far removed from anything ordinary.
Days tormented by crushing pressure that threatened to pulverize her entire being and bloodlust that drained her soul like a vampire’s thirst.
A life that felt like walking eternally through an endless, barren desert.
“It’s… all thanks to you, Kwon O-jin.”
In that parched existence, Kwon O-jin appeared like an oasis.
He moistened the withered earth and bloomed vibrant flowers.
“Because I met you, I was saved.”
Like a prince on a white horse stepping out of a fairy tale.
He had effortlessly resolved every problem that had been tearing apart her life.
“That’s why it frightens me, in a way.”
“Frightens you?”
“Because I’ve only ever received from Kwon O-jin, never given anything in return.”
Isabella turned to look at Kwon O-jin with a faint smile playing at her lips.
I felt her hand trembling delicately within mine.
“I envy Ha-eun.”
“…Why suddenly bring up your elder sister?”
“Because you and she were irreplaceable to each other.”
Unlike herself, who had only ever received.
Ha-eun had become the very purpose of his life.
“That’s not….”
“You said the Heavenly Demon didn’t know me in his past life, didn’t you?”
“That’s… true.”
The Heavenly Demon knew nothing of Isabella.
In his past life, she had succumbed to her bloodlust and become The Witch.
“Which makes me think—perhaps I was someone who didn’t need to exist at all in your eyes.”
Just as Isabella had been so worthless to the Heavenly Demon of the past that he couldn’t even remember her.
Perhaps she was truly useless to Kwon O-jin now as well.
No—in fact, she had become a hindrance to his life.
The reason Kwon O-jin had rejected the Heavenly Demon’s proposal wasn’t solely to save Vega, but also to protect her, knowing that if Heukcheon vanished, she would disappear with it.
“If you had never met me… you might be even slightly more at ease than you are now.”
The terror that she might be nothing but a burden to him gnawed at her like a worm, consuming her from within.
That was why she envied Ha-eun.
She had been irreplaceable to him—both in his past life and in this one.
“That’s not true.”
Even as Kwon O-jin denied it with firm conviction, Isabella’s expression refused to soften.
“How can you say that when I’ve only caused you trouble?”
Even today was proof of it.
To satisfy the burning hunger born from her bloodlust, Kwon O-jin had to endure eight grueling hours of exertion.
No matter how necessary it was to reach the eleventh star.
I had burdened him with yet another weight, forcing him to repeat training that bordered on ascetic torment every single day.
‘Like this….’
Wasn’t that exactly what a leech was?
A creature that lived by draining the blood of others.
A parasite that offered no benefit whatsoever, only exploitation.
The thought that she had become such a parasitic existence to him was unbearably terrifying.
Gulp.
A dry swallow traveled down Isabella’s throat.
A sudden thirst clawed at her throat.
“I… is there anything you need? Anything I can do for you…?”
Isabella gripped my arm tightly, pressing her body close to mine.
I gazed at her trembling eyes—anxious as though someone were chasing her—and my expression grew bitter.
It wasn’t difficult to discern what emotion she was experiencing.
‘My Elder Sister said something similar once.’
A sense of debt that weighed down her entire being.
She must have felt a parching thirst in her throat—the realization that she had nothing to repay the benefactor who had saved her life.
While the timing felt somewhat abrupt, it was far more likely that emotions accumulated over time had simply erupted now.
Given the nature of our relationship with Isabella, such a sense of indebtedness was nearly inevitable.
‘One side provides blood endlessly, while the other drinks it.’
As long as the act of blood-drinking existed, our relationship resembled that of predator and prey.
The problem, however, was that romantic feelings existed between predator and prey.
In such circumstances, the predator—the one in the exploitative position—could only feel indebted in return.
It was like the feeling a jobless husband might experience watching his wife work herself to the bone.
Had Isabella possessed the kind of shameless personality to callously ignore such debt, it might have been different.
But with her tender heart, a relationship where one side had to make unilateral sacrifices could only become a gnawing pain that consumed her.
“I… I’ll do anything. Whatever you want, I’ll do it.”
Isabella gazed at me with burning eyes.
Despite the ups and downs, after what had been a heartwarming date, I had no idea how things had shifted so suddenly.
There was only one thing I could say—only one thing I had to say.
“Then I’d like to touch your chest….”
No. Not that. Damn it.
Ahem.
I swallowed my cough and continued.
“There’s one thing you’re misunderstanding, Bella.”
“…A misunderstanding?”
“The Heavenly Demon and I are different.”
For the Heavenly Demon, Ha-eun was the sole purpose of life.
“My Elder Sister is precious, of course, but you and Vega are precious to me too.”
So much so that I couldn’t even entertain the thought of substitution.
Both women had already taken root far too deeply within my life.
“So don’t ever say again that things would have been easier if you hadn’t met me.”
My relationship with Isabella wasn’t a matter of convenience or inconvenience.
There was no need to measure who gave or received more.
Her very existence alone—
—was nothing but boundless happiness for me.
“…Kwon O-jin.”
Isabella bit her lip gently, gazing at me.
Tightly.
Clinging to my arm, Isabella rested her head on my shoulder, her shoulders trembling as she began to weep softly.
“Look over there.”
“Did they fight?”
“Tsk, tsk. This is exactly why couples are such a problem.”
I heard whispers from the surrounding crowd as they watched Isabella sobbing.
Though I’d hidden my face with an illusion, I couldn’t completely conceal my actions.
“Let’s head down.”
I descended the Tower with the sniffling Isabella in tow.
The cool night air tickled my cheeks.
After bringing Isabella to a nearby Park, I gently wiped away the tears glistening at the corners of her eyes and asked, “Feeling better now?”
“Sniff… Yes, I’ve calmed down a bit.”
Isabella nodded and smiled brightly.
“I didn’t realize my emotions would get so heated. I’m sorry for the trouble.”
“It’s fine.”
Likely, emotions she’d been holding back for a long time had erupted tonight.
‘She’s strangely vulnerable in moments like these.’
Isabella always carried herself with the composed air of a queen.
But beneath that facade, she was nothing more than a tender girl.
“…By the way, Kwon O-jin.”
After wiping away her tears, Isabella opened her eyes mischievously and clung to me.
“Hmm?”
“What exactly did you want to touch earlier?”
“….”
Let me correct myself.
‘Girl’ was far too pure a word for her.
“Hmm, let me see… It’s only 9 PM.”
The day was still young.
“I’ve arranged a nice Hotel nearby… Would you like to go?”
Isabella’s eyes gleamed with subtle intent.
I shook my head with a pale, exhausted expression.
“No. We already did plenty earlier….”
“I wasn’t in my right mind then.”
That had been less about confirming our love and more like a ravenous beast devouring its prey.
“You said I was just as precious as my Elder Sister, didn’t you? You haven’t forgotten that, have you?”
“….”
At the sight of Isabella sticking out her tongue and smiling cutely, I let out a deep sigh.
As I nodded, a radiant smile bloomed across Isabella’s face.
“We’re switching with Vega at 7 AM… so we still have 10 hours left!”
“…Sleep?”
You’re not sleeping?
Aren’t you sleeping?
“A single day won’t hurt even if we stay up all night!”
Isabella’s eyes sparkled like stars scattered across the night sky.
Kwon O-jin found himself unable to do anything but clamp his mouth shut at the sight of such pure, radiant desire gleaming in her gaze.
‘This is supposed to be a vacation!’
You said you’d let me rest…!
“Come on, let’s go, Kwon O-jin.”
Kwon O-jin was dragged toward the hotel, firmly held by Isabella.

* * *
And the next morning.
[I have arrived!]
A fanfare-like sound effect echoed as Vega appeared with both arms raised triumphantly.
[Did you enjoy your vacation yesterday… hm?]
Vega tilted her head in confusion as she gazed at Kwon O-jin sprawled across the bed like dried squid.
[What on earth happened to you yesterday?]
“…I have no idea.”
Kwon O-jin turned to look at Vega with hollow eyes shadowed by deep dark circles.
For some reason, he felt far more exhausted than when he had been devoted to training.
Yet he couldn’t remain sprawled on the bed, leaving his time with Vega behind.
“So where would you like to go today?”
Kwon O-jin asked as he groggily pulled himself up from the bed.
Vega placed her hands firmly on her hips and declared:
[The Star Palace!]
“….”
Why there again?

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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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