Not A Regressor - Chapter 54

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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 54
A Game I Have No Choice But to Win (1)
One week had passed since the demonic beast subjugation operation concluded.
It was only natural, but all of South Korea was in an uproar over the demonic beast subjugation.
The emergence of a demonic beast that transformed humans into monsters—it would have been strange if this hadn’t become a major issue.
Even foreign nations were paying careful attention to the incident, heightening their vigilance.
And.
Interest also concentrated on the hero who had prevented an irreversible catastrophe.
━Nae-rang Kwon O-jin.
The story of the man who discovered the situation first and single-handedly eliminated the demonic beast’s boss spread like wildfire, becoming a headline across dozens of media outlets.
‘Thanks to that, it’s become difficult to move around freely outside.’
Currently, I was semi-secluded at home under the pretext of treating my wounds.
I had actually lost consciousness for about three days due to the aftereffects of using Exceed.
‘Let’s see.’
I picked up my smartphone and accessed a popular community website.
The best posts were naturally filled with talk about Nae-rang.
I clicked on one of them.
[Puppy Kim: Isn’t Nae-rang seriously insane~!]
┗Jerry M: He’s only been awakened for half a year now, and this is possible? It’s like he really is the Apostle of Polaris;
┗Butterfly Valley: Lol
┗Puppy Kim: Honestly, at this rate, isn’t he Seven Stars level??
┗Hey-eung Gwang-nun-na: Nah, no matter what, he’s not Seven Stars level.
┗Puppy Kim: But I feel like he’ll just become Seven Stars later?
┗Butterfly Valley: Lol
┗Jerry M: Wouldn’t Black Lion reach it first?
┗Hey-eung Gwang-nun-na: No;; guys, what is Seven Stars, some random person’s dog name? Even if Black Lion and Nae-rang came in a whole truck, they’d be wiped out in 1 second;
┗Puppy Kim: That seems a bit much; they’d probably get stomped, but not in 1 second;
┗Butterfly Valley: Lol
┗Puppy Kim: A guy who’s never even tried it, always leaving comments like that lol
┗Butterfly Valley: Fuck off
It was quite chaotic, but.
‘The evaluations are getting crazy, at least.’
The mere fact that I, who had only been awakened for barely half a year, was being mentioned alongside the Seven Stars was absurd.
‘Most people still say I’m far below the Seven Stars.’
And that was only natural.
I still had a long way to go before I could stand on equal footing with the actual Seven Stars.
“But I should be able to reach that level soon enough.”
Would I merely stand on equal footing with them?
I had absolute confidence that I could reach an even higher realm than they could.
‘To maintain the Regressor title, I need to at least accomplish that much.’
The Lyra Constellation’s stigma and Black Heaven.
Honestly, with just these two, the Seven Stars would be child’s play.
The only question is how much time it will take.
“Since I’ve seized this opportunity, I should do it properly.”
My target isn’t merely the level of the Seven Stars.
Far, far beyond that.
The Constellations called Transcendents, and even higher than them.
‘A realm even our goddess wouldn’t dare to covet.’
If I reach that level.
“Then….”
Kwon O-jin wore a grim smile.
By then, I wouldn’t need to keep deceiving others just to survive.
‘Well, I’ll think about that when the time comes.’
For now, there’s something else that demands my attention.
“…The Black Star Society.”
As this incident became a major issue, the name of Choi Jong-chul, who could be called the mastermind, spread far and wide.
Naturally, the name of the Pandinius Guild he belonged to was mentioned as well.
“Choi Jong-chul is not an Awakener affiliated with the Pandinius Guild.”
According to the Pandinius Guild’s official statement, Choi Jong-chul had never been a member and had no contact with them whatsoever.
‘Of course it’s a lie.’
Indeed, Choi Jong-chul’s name didn’t appear on the official roster they released.
In other words.
‘They planned to use him and discard him from the start.’
It was blatant tail-cutting.
But since there was no concrete evidence linking the Pandinius Guild to Choi Jong-chul, it was difficult to refute their claims.
Instead, the Pandinius Guild turned their arrows toward the Starlight Lake Guild, where Choi Jong-chul had belonged, denouncing them as the true masterminds and accusing them of trying to pin the blame on the Pandinius Guild.
And they didn’t just denounce them with words.
They pressured the Starlight Lake Guild by presenting concrete evidence that they had continued to meet with Choi Jong-chul even after his withdrawal.
‘They took the bait perfectly.’
The Starlight Lake Guild claimed they only met a few times during the process of seizing Choi Jong-chul’s assets and had no connection to this incident.
But public opinion turned against the Starlight Lake Guild.
‘As a result, other major guilds among the top ten began getting dragged in as well.’
The Starlight Lake Guild was a gathering place for the finest “Healer-class” Awakeners.
Naturally, it was rare for a Healer-class Awakener to enter and exit Gates alone.
Due to this characteristic, the Starlight Lake Guild inevitably had many connections with other guilds, and among them were famous major guilds belonging to the top ten.
No.
In fact, a guild of the Starlight Lake Guild’s caliber barely worked with anyone outside the famous major guilds.
Given the situation, the arrows of criticism poured down on all the top ten guilds connected to the Starlight Lake Guild.
“Was this their target from the beginning?”
As Kwon O-jin reviewed several news articles, he clicked his tongue in disapproval.
The articles were filled with conspiracy theories about Starlight Lake Guild, with barely any mention of Pandinius, who should have been the true target of criticism.
“Those bastards actually used their heads.”
Pfft.
Kwon O-jin laughed as if it were pathetic.
“Didn’t you say you were going to Star Palace earlier?”
“Oh, right. I should go.”
Kwon O-jin, who had been staring at his smartphone, stood up from his seat.
The situation had been roughly sorted out anyway.
I needed to go report the situation to Vega.
“Then I’ll be back soon, sister.”
“Okay.”
Ha-eun waved her hand to see me off.
‘Let me head out.’
My goddess must be worried sick—I need to hurry.
* * *
[M-my child!!]
Upon arriving at Vega’s Temple, Vega rushed out urgently.
The aftereffects of the restriction seemed severe, as she remained in a small form about 30 centimeters in size even within Star Palace.
[Are you hurt? Is your body alright? Is anything wrong internally? What happened to that vile beast?]
A barrage of questions poured out.
“Don’t worry—you can see I’m fine.”
[B-but!]
Vega’s eyes glistened as she bounced on her feet.
Why is my goddess so adorable, really.
“Why did you arrive so late, human! Do you have any idea how much Lady Vega worried?”
Riak approached with a furrowed brow.
“I know.”
“Every five minutes, she’d pluck out my fur while crying profusely.”
[I-it wasn’t quite that severe.]
“That’s all she did! She carved your face into the temple wall and spent days and nights praying for your safety!!”
I turned my head to look at the temple wall, and sure enough, my face was carved there.
[N-no! That never happened!!]
“Moreover, she even secretly kissed the carved image while praying for your wellbeing!! How could you be so late…!”
[Kyaaaaaaah!!!]
Crackle! Boom!
“Ugh!!”
Riak, struck by a blue lightning bolt, was sent flying and tumbled across the ground.
Gray smoke drifted from Riak’s mouth as his body trembled.
He’s not dead, is he?
[C-cough!]
Vega smoothed down her disheveled hair with a soft cough.
[It seems Riak saw something that wasn’t there.]
But the testimony was far too specific to dismiss as mere illusion.
[W-well, anyway!]
Vega continued speaking while hiding her flushed cheeks.
[What happened after that…?]
“I’ll explain slowly.”
Vega gave a detailed account of what transpired after she vanished, unable to bear the restraints.
Of course, she deliberately omitted the part about absorbing the sacred relic’s power and the Aquarius stigma through the Black Heaven.
[E-Exceed? You used Exceed just now?]
“Yeah.”
I had thought it was a technique I’d improvised on the spot, but it seemed she recognized it as an actual skill.
[That’s… i-impossible.]
Vega’s expression hardened as her jaw dropped.
Was it really something to be that shocked about?
[Hah….]
Vega pressed her forehead as if her head ached.
[Even accounting for having experienced it once before, this is….]
“Is it really that surprising?”
I naturally knew Exceed was a formidable skill since I’d used it.
But I wasn’t entirely certain whether, even considering I was a ‘regressor,’ it made sense to master it at my current stage.
[Of course it’s shocking. ‘Exceed’ requires reaching at least the 7th Star… no, the 8th Star to learn.]
What?
‘Wait, it’s that high-tier?’
The 8th Star placed one among the strongest of awakeners.
Though admittedly, they paled in comparison to the 9th Star, which was classified as a true ‘high-tier awakener.’
Regardless, it was absolutely certain that a mere fledgling at the 4th Star had no business learning such a skill.
‘Then it really is shocking.’
Imagine a game with an extraordinarily complex and difficult difficulty level.
Would that difficult game suddenly become child’s play just because you cleared it once?
Even if you played it dozens or hundreds of times repeatedly, a single playthrough would be woefully insufficient.
‘But from Vega’s perspective, I’m like someone who cleared it once and is now running through a high-level boss zone as a low-level character, dominating everything.’
That explained to some degree why she was so astonished.
However.
There was one fact she didn’t know.
‘The truth is, I’ve never actually cleared the game even once.’
How could someone at merely the 4th Star learn a skill that required reaching the 8th Star?
[You must possess an innate talent for controlling stigma’s mana that I can only describe as extraordinary.]
Talent, she said.
Yes.
In truth, it’s difficult to find any reason other than talent.
“I’ve done it once, so naturally I’m good at it.”
[No, that alone cannot explain it.]
Vega shook her head firmly and continued.
[It’s as if…
you were born specifically to dominate
all stigmas.]
“….”
My expression stiffened slightly.
“Come on, it’s not that serious. Besides, there’s nothing wrong with learning quickly, right?”
[Hmm. No. In this case, it is not good.]
“Not good?”
Vega’s eyes sharpened.
[Exceed is a technique that places extreme strain on the body. One must reach at least Six-Star for the body to withstand it to any degree.]
“Ah.”
That’s true.
When I used it against Choi Jong-chul, I entered some kind of overload state.
I was even unconscious for three days because of it.
[I would prefer you not use Exceed going forward.]
Pwoosh.
Vega flew over and perched on my head as she spoke.
“Got it. I’ll be careful.”
Unless it’s a critical situation, there’s no reason to use a technique that damages my body.
[Ugh! I don’t mean be careful—I mean never use it at all!]
Vega pulled my hair in frustration.
It hurt.
“Ha ha ha! I said I got it.”
[Sigh. This is precisely when I should be watching over you carefully from beside you.]
“When do you think you’ll be able to manifest again?”
[It seems I’ll need to remain in the Star Palace for about three weeks.]
So a month total then.
Vega did overexert herself quite a bit back then.
[Sigh. If I had my way, I’d bind you inside the Divine Temple for that entire duration.]
That’s terrifying, Vega.
[…It doesn’t seem like the situation allows for that.]
Vega’s eyes narrowed.
[Those wicked Scorpio apostles seem to have joined hands with the Black Star Society.]
“Probably.”
They deny it, but the connection between the Black Star Society and Pandinius Guild was undeniable.
The evidence was mounting.
[You wicked creatures! After committing such heinous acts that even heaven and earth condemn, you dare pin the blame on others?!]
Vega’s voice trembled with fury as she recalled Choi Jong-chul.
[It is truly maddening that there exists no way to stop their vile machinations.]
“No way to stop them? What are you talking about?”
Vega’s eyes widened in surprise.
[But did you not just say there is no evidence to prove their connection?]
“That’s right.”
Undeniably so.
There was no evidence to redirect the arrows of blame now aimed at Starlight Lake Guild toward Pandinius Guild instead.
But.
As always.
━What doesn’t exist can simply be created.
Kwon O-jin’s lips curved upward with a sinister smile.
“I’ll handle this myself. Don’t worry.”
[But how could you possibly….]
“It’s fine, really.”
It wasn’t a difficult task anyway.
There was no need to rack my brains or devise elaborate schemes.
‘After all, this is’
a game I
could only win.
It was.
‘Well then.’
Kwon O-jin extended his tongue and licked his lips slowly.
‘Shall I return to my true calling for once?’
I could overlook many things.
But fraud committed right before me—that was a mistake they should never have made.

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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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