Not A Regressor - Chapter 405

—————
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 405
Interlude – Summons (5)
“…What do you mean by that right now?”
Allen’s voice fell cold and sharp as a winter frost.
He fixed Alina Vladimir with an icy glare and continued.
“You’re well aware of how many people are currently being held captive by Mobius.”
It was information that hadn’t appeared in the footage Olivia had shown.
Yet everyone gathered here—indeed, people across the entire world—had witnessed the hostages in Mobius’s grasp through vivid live broadcasts.
“Most of them are ordinary civilians who haven’t even been granted stigmas.”
That wasn’t all.
Among the captives in the footage were children who appeared to be less than ten years old.
How could anyone speak of “no intervention whatsoever” after witnessing such horrifying images filled with screams and wails of despair?
“Perhaps you didn’t see the footage?”
“No. Of course I saw it.”
“Then how could you possibly…!”
“Because I saw the footage, I’m saying this.”
Alina Vladimir continued with an expressionless face.
“Mobius is holding hostages and demanding that if we want to save them, we come to Rome. By any measure, this is clearly an enemy trap, is it not?”
“That’s…”
“I cannot send our precious soldiers into a battlefield where the trap is so obvious.”
She shook her head with an unwavering resolve that brooked no compromise.
“Just as the lives of the captive hostages are precious, so too are the lives of my soldiers precious to me. I cannot force them into meaningless deaths.”
“Meaningless deaths? Is saving people a meaningless act?”
“I’m saying that we cannot demand sacrifice in the face of humanity and morality.”
We cannot demand sacrifice in the face of humanity and morality.
Alina Vladimir’s argument held its own logic.
An entity that had obliterated an entire city in the blink of an eye was now brazenly challenging the entire world—accepting such a challenge without hesitation would be nothing short of reckless.
“…Would you say the same if this were happening within Russia or China?”
Allen shot her a piercing look as he posed the question.
Alina Vladimir shook her head with no change in her expression, her demeanor remaining stolid.
“If it were happening within the alliance, it would be proper to dispatch troops.”
“So you’re saying that because this incident occurred in Italy, the alliance will not intervene?”
“On the contrary, what reason is there for us to intervene? This is a matter that must be resolved within the European Union.”
“Ha.”
Allen regarded Alina Vladimir with contemptuous eyes.
Despite the emergence of clear enemies to humanity—the Demonic Beasts and the Black Star Constellation.
Humans remained confined within the framework of nations, dismissing the crisis as “someone else’s problem.”
As it had always been in the past.
The common good forever bows before individual desire.
[How pathetic.]
The final voice echoed through the Conference Room.
A boy’s voice, carrying an unmistakable youthful quality, resonated directly in the minds of the Awakeners.
Beyond the perimeter of the conference hall where a circular table stood.
A boy emerged from behind one of the pillars supporting the Divine Temple.
Treasures of incalculable worth adorned his entire body as if they were mere garments.
Deneb, the Constellation of the Cygnus Constellation, fixed Alina Vladimir with a cold gaze.
[Do you think I granted you humans stigmas for no reason?]
Deneb swept his eyes across the Awakeners seated at the round table and continued.
[I bestowed stigmas upon you so that you would save humanity and protect the world on behalf of us, who are bound by the constraints of Divine Law and cannot move freely.]
And yet.
[What are you doing gathered here now, spouting nonsense about not involving yourselves in other nations’ affairs? Hmm?]
Drawn by the Constellation’s emotions, the stigma’s mana spread throughout the Conference Room.
Where gentle spring warmth had filled the space moments before, a biting frost wind now swept through.
The pink walls froze solid, and white frost settled upon the floor.
An extreme cold so intense that even exhaled breath seemed to crystallize pressed down upon the Awakeners.
“Ugh….”
Olivia clutched at her throat in evident agony, overwhelmed by the oppressive presence emanating from Deneb.
Deneb took a step toward Alina Vladimir without sparing Olivia a glance, dismissing her suffering.
[Is this the time to be dividing yourselves into factions?!]
As the enraged Constellation’s rebuke rang out, a wave of white frost began to surge outward in all directions.
[Enough.]
A silver aura rose to block the frost.
Vega’s power swept through the Conference Room, subduing the biting wind that had been raging within.
Deneb’s face twisted savagely as he glared at Vega.
[Why are you stopping me?!]
[Is our role not to watch quietly and allow the children to find their own path?]
[This is not the time for…!]
[Or do you intend to force them to obey, disregarding their will?]
Vega regarded Deneb with eyes that burned with profound intensity.
Deneb’s body trembled slightly.
[A Constellation is a guide like a parent—one who nurtures children and directs them toward the righteous path. They are not a tyrant who seizes the children by the head and coerces obedience.]
[I… I understand that, but….]
[Then trust the children a little longer and watch over them quietly.]
[….]
Deneb bit his lip firmly.
[I agree with what you say, Vega.]
[Hahahaha! Have no fear—our children will surely find the wise answer!]
Regulus, the Constellation of Leo, and Aldebaran, the Constellation of Taurus, both concurred.
[I believe this is not a place where Constellations should intervene.]
[Right! I lent my Divine Temple on the promise that I wouldn’t participate directly in the conference!]
Aries from the Aries Constellation and Spica from the Virgo Constellation also chimed in from the side.
[Ugh. Fine.]
Deneb let out an exasperated sigh and stepped back.
“…Then, shall we continue with the meeting?”
Olivia, who had been clutching her throat in pain, caught her breath and looked around at the Constellations.
The Constellations nodded and exchanged glances toward Alina Vladimir and Allen.
Alina Vladimir let out a short sigh and opened her mouth.
“It’s not as though we don’t care about the people being held by Mobius.”
However.
“That said, I cannot send my subordinates into a battlefield where the enemy’s trap is so obvious.”
“I share her sentiment.”
A dignified blond man sitting beside her raised his hand.
Edward Walton, the Sagittarius Awakener.
He was also a businessman ranked within the top five global tycoons.
“We could manage sending relief supplies, but dispatching mercenaries seems difficult. Even mercenaries who follow money won’t go to certain death, no matter how much you pay them.”
“Even Edward…”
Allen bit his lip with an anxious expression.
“I’m voting with Allen.”
A woman with green hair, who had been listening to the meeting with her arms crossed, raised her hand.
Rebecca Bell, the Green Star Awakener.
An Awakener bearing the Gemini constellation mark and the second fastest to reach the 9-Star rank after Kwon O-jin.
“When we selected the Seven Stars candidates, what did we emphasize most? Wasn’t it the heart to extend a hand to the powerless?”
The name “Seven Stars” wasn’t something you could obtain simply by possessing great power.
Those capable of bearing responsibility commensurate with their strength.
Hadn’t the rigorous testing of the distinguished candidates who participated in the Seven Stars selection—testing them even through deception—been to find such talented individuals capable of bearing that responsibility?
“Even if everyone else turns their backs on them, those of you bearing the name of the Seven Stars must not do the same.”
Rebecca cast aside her usual playful expression and bright smile, regarding Alina Vladimir and Edward with serious eyes.
“Me too! I want to help Allen!”
Baek Moo-gang from the Heavenly Authority raised his hand brightly with an innocent smile.
“Hmm, I’m against it. That military lady is literally advertising it as a trap, and if we just charge in and a bunch of Awakeners die? What happens after that?”
Bianca Bennett, the Scorpio Awakener, shrugged and shook her head dismissively.
Allen glared sharply at Bianca and opened his mouth.
“…Aren’t you from the United Kingdom as well?”
“Heh, when did you say nationality doesn’t matter?”
Bianca twirled her coarse blonde hair around her finger and shrugged indifferently.
Kwon O-jin frowned as he observed the meeting, which proceeded like parallel lines that would never intersect.
‘Three to three, then.’
If he sided with Allen here, it would become four to three and secure a majority, but this wasn’t some class president election, and even with a majority, he couldn’t forcibly drag Alina Vladimir and the opposition into war.
‘Neither side lacks logic, though.’
Allen, who emphasized the responsibility of the Seven Stars by invoking humanity and morality.
On the other hand, Alina Vladimir emphasized rational choice by citing danger and practical benefits.
Neither side could simply declare the other “wrong” in this situation.
‘That’s precisely why their opinions split down the middle, as if they had coordinated it beforehand.’
I narrowed my eyes as I watched the Seven Stars, now divided in half, begin raising their voices against one another.
A chilling thought flickered through my mind.
‘Was this what he was aiming for all along?’
The Seven Stars and other Awakeners dividing and opposing each other.
Conflicting over humanity and pragmatism, morality and self-interest.
Just as it had always been.
Just as it had continued to be.
Constantly clashing, opposing, hating, and resenting one another.
“…Ha.”
A bitter laugh escaped my lips.
Not a single word about Mobius, the true architect of this catastrophe, had come from any Awakener’s mouth.
They were too busy hiding behind the fortress of logic, pushing each other away.
‘If this is the world you desired.’
Then I would have to tear down that wall of logic.
With my own hands.
“Two days after the assault on Italy, Awakeners from the European Union, gathered around Mugokeseong, will march toward the battlefield to reclaim Rome.”
The Seven Stars, who had been raising their voices moments before, turned their gaze toward me.
“What do you mean by—”
“The reclamation operation will fail due to an overwhelming disparity in power, and Mobius will vanish without a trace.”
“What are you saying right now?”
“Exactly thirty-six days after the operation’s failure, a similar incident will occur in Moscow.”
I continued speaking, ignoring the Awakeners who stared at me as if I were spouting nonsense.
“The Awakeners of the European Union will condemn them, saying they should have known better, while China will dissolve its alliance with Russia and deploy military units composed of Awakeners to each city.”
“Are you writing a novel?”
Alina Vladimir let out a hollow laugh, glaring at me.
“Japan will be attacked after sixty-seven days, and South Korea on the hundredth day. The Seven Stars will gather once more, proposing to settle old grievances and form a World Alliance, but the plan will fall through.”
“….”
“On the one hundred fifty-second day, the United States will fall. On the two hundred eighteenth day, the United Kingdom will crumble. The casualties will become incalculable, and Mobius will create a new army using the corpses of fallen Awakeners.”
And then.
“Exactly one year after the assault on Rome, there will no longer be any nations on this Earth that deserve to be called ‘countries.'”
With those words, I fell silent, having said all that needed to be said.
An awkward silence filled the conference room.
“…I have heard your words.”
It was Alina Vladimir who broke the silence.
Her blue eyes, fixed upon me, had grown as cold as ice.
“Before any other question, I find I must ask this one first.”
Alina glared at me, her gaze tinged with barely restrained fury.
“Why do you speak as though you know everything that will happen in the future?”
“Because I do know.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Kwon O-jin drew a deep breath, his gaze sweeping across each Awakener seated around the round table.
A long exhale.
He released the breath that had filled his lungs.
“I am a Regressor.”
The ‘truth’ I had concealed until now finally left my lips.

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