Not A Regressor - Chapter 68

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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 68
Heart, Breath, Body (1)
It hurts.
It hurts like hell.
To exaggerate a bit, it’s the kind of pain you’d feel if you took a full-force soccer ball square in the groin.
But at least that pain would end quickly.
This shit never stops.
“Gaaaahhhhh.”
A pitiful moan escaped my lips—the kind a last surviving member of an ancient vampire clan might make after being hunted down relentlessly and thrown into sunlight by hunters.
[Hmph. You foolish creature.]
Huh?
I lifted my head at the familiar voice coming from above me.
“Ve… Vega?”
Silver hair as beautiful as starlight woven together, and golden eyes.
A goddess of breathtaking beauty gazed down at me with a gentle expression.
[Are you coming to your senses?]
Her tender hand stroked my forehead.
Not the small doll-sized hand, but her true form’s touch.
‘What is this?’
I glanced around, wondering if I was in the Star Palace, but the place where I lay was the New House that Song Ha-eun had found for me.
“How are you in that form….”
[We can discuss that later.]
She gently pressed down on my forehead as I tried to sit up.
[Rest now.]
I lay back down, feeling the soft sensation at the back of my neck.
‘Wait.’
I’d only just regained consciousness and hadn’t noticed until now.
Come to think of it, what I’d been resting my head on wasn’t a pillow—it was Vega’s thigh.
‘What kind of situation is this?’
My last memory was barely making it home after the battle with Ashad Khan and collapsing.
I had no idea how much time had passed since then.
I never imagined I’d wake up with my head resting on Vega’s thigh.
“What happened—”
[Tsk. Didn’t I tell you to rest?]
Vega lightly pinched my cheek with the tone of someone scolding a mischievous child.
[Really….]
Her voice grew softer.
[Even when I asked so earnestly, you always push yourself too hard.]
“….”
Honestly, I had nothing to say about this situation.
My life had genuinely hung by a thread, after all.
[Ugh. You troublesome child.]
“Ahhh.”
Stretch.
Vega pinched my cheek and pulled it taut.
[Sigh.]
A deep sigh escaped her lips.
She ruffled my hair gently, a faint smile playing at the corners of her mouth.
[Even after causing such trouble, seeing you awake like this… my urge to scold you has vanished. What spell have you cast upon me?]
She continued stroking my head with a tender smile, her touch endless and soothing.
“Mm, yes.”
Lying still under Vega’s motherly touch, I felt like I’d truly become a three-year-old child.
‘Is this… a mother’s hand?’
Vega as mother.
‘Ugh.’
The word that suddenly flashed through my mind made my stomach churn.
Regardless, her touch was pleasant enough to make me forget the terrible pain entirely.
“This should be enough… Ugh!”
But it seemed my body still wasn’t ready to move.
The moment I tensed my waist to sit up, a sharp, dizzy pain shot through me.
[Now, now. You mustn’t move.]
Vega pulled my shoulder and laid me back down.
[Is there anything you need?]
“Huh? No, not really.”
I just felt like if I stayed lying here, I’d lose something important as a human being.
[Ah, come to think of it, you must be thirsty.]
Vega picked up a glass of water from the table beside the bed and brought it to my lips.
[It is my holy water. Drink freely.]
Wait.
That phrasing sounds really weird, Goddess.
[Hehe. I jest. It is merely ordinary water.]
“…”
She cradled the back of my head slightly and tilted the cup.
Cool water flowed down my throat.
“Ahh.”
I must have been unconscious for quite a long time.
The water flowing down my throat felt refreshing, as if seeping into every single cell of my body.
[Have you finished?]
Vega took out a tissue and carefully wiped my mouth clean.
“…”
There’s nothing left to say.
“…What happened?”
I lay with my head resting on Vega’s thigh, demanding an explanation of the situation.
[You have been unconscious for four days, I must tell you.]
“Huh.”
Four days of being knocked out.
Well.
Last time I used Exceed and woke up after three days, so four days might actually be on the lighter side.
[Since you would not wake, Ha-eun sought me out and came directly to the Star Palace herself… and it just so happened that my period of ‘restriction’ had ended, so we returned home like this.]
Ah.
So that’s how it happened.
“But how are you able to maintain this form?”
Due to the restriction, she had been living outside the Star Palace in a diminished form, roughly thirty centimeters in size.
Even doing that, she could only remain active for about three hours a day, yet here she was in her true form.
[Hmm. Truth be told, even I don’t fully understand the precise reason.]
“You don’t know?”
[A few days ago… yes, from the very day you lost consciousness, the restrictions of the Divine Law have weakened.]
Vega lifted her hand lightly.
-Crackle!
Blue lightning danced at her fingertips.
[Manifesting power as easily as this now carries no restrictions whatsoever. The hours I can remain manifested in a day have increased to six… and while I cannot sustain my true form for extended periods, I have become capable of manifesting in this appearance.]
“Huh.”
So the Divine Law’s restrictions had suddenly weakened.
‘What could be the cause?’
If it started from the day I fought Ashad Khan, then the cause must lie with me.
‘I rose to five-star, the Black Heaven underwent its fourth bloom, and this Quest thing appeared.’
So much had been accomplished in a single day that I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was responsible.
‘It’s possible the timing merely coincided and the cause stems from something entirely different.’
For now, I lacked sufficient evidence to determine the cause.
In any case.
“If the restrictions have weakened, does that mean you can freely bestow blessings from now on?”
If so, I was confident enough to do cartwheels in nothing but my underwear.
I had felt firsthand just how formidable the power of a Constellation’s blessing was during my battle with Ashad Khan.
[It’s not quite at that level.]
“Ah.”
What a shame.
[Huff! Still, I can now provide simple support beyond merely watching while you fight!]
Crackle!
Vega transformed the blue lightning she conjured at her fingertips into various shapes, puffing out her chest with pride.
A dragon, a cat, a dog, a wolf, intricate and bizarre patterns I’d never seen before—and even my own face.
The lightning transformed freely like a liquid slime, shifting its shape at will.
‘What the hell. What is this?’
Kwon O-jin’s jaw dropped.
I couldn’t even fathom how high one had to ascend to manipulate lightning with such freedom.
‘Well, for a Constellation, this much is naturally expected.’
Still, watching her handle lightning so effortlessly sent shivers down my spine.
“Hehe. I’m looking forward to what comes next.”
[Hehe. Rely on me a bit more, little one.]
Vega puffed out her chest with pride, stretching her shoulders.
“Haha! I’ll keep that in mind, Goddess.”
I let out a light laugh and pushed myself up.
There was a slight ache, but it was bearable.
[You could rest a bit longer if you’d like….]
Vega gently stroked the thigh I’d been resting my head on, as if disappointed.
“I’m fine now.”
[Very well.]
Vega’s body was enveloped in silver light, shrinking back to her usual small size.
Whoosh.
She flew through the air and landed on my shoulder, clapping her paws together.
[Ah, that’s right—be careful.]
“Huh?”
Be careful about what?
[Hehe. There’s someone even more upset than me, isn’t there?]
Ah.
Right.
“Where’s my sister….”
—Crash!
Before I could finish speaking, the door burst open violently.
“O-jin woke up?!”
I wasn’t sure when she’d been notified.
Song Ha-eun rushed in through the door, looking like she’d come running frantically from outside.
Upon entering the room, she fixed her gaze on me with sharp eyes.
“You, you bastard!!!”
She grabbed my collar and shook me roughly.
“Do you have any idea how worried I was, you damn fool?!”
Tears glistened at the corner of her right eye.
“I’m sorry, sis.”
“Sorry doesn’t cut it….”
“Quiet, lizard woman.”
A silver wolf walked into the room, cutting off Song Ha-eun’s words.
“Riak?”
“A true warrior grows by risking their life in battle. One who shrinks away from such trials can never become a genuine warrior.”
Grrrr.
Riak exhaled a fierce snort through his nostrils.
“…What do you mean by ‘lizard woman’?”
Song Ha-eun furrowed her brow and turned to face Riak.
“Grrr. Are you not an Apostle of Polaris? Therefore, you are a lizard woman.”
“I have a perfectly good name: Song Ha-eun.”
“Hmph! I have no intention of memorizing the names of human females!”
Riak snorted and whipped his head away.
“Cup noodles confiscated for a week.”
“Song Ha-eun, you must have suffered greatly because of this ignorant creature. I understand completely.”
What is this bastard doing?
“Why is Riak here?”
I turned to look at Vega and asked.
[Did I not tell you the constraints have weakened? Thanks to that, my spirit can now leave the Star Palace and act freely like this.]
“Ah.”
[Of course, my power remains heavily restricted… but as a combatant, I should be able to contribute sufficiently.]
I didn’t know exactly how restricted her power was.
But having a powerhouse like Riak around would be invaluable in itself.
“Hmph. Even with my power restricted, I could handle the likes of you with just one foreleg!”
Riak growled and swung his front legs back and forth.
Watching a wolf-like creature perform such antics made it look like a large dog playing affectionately with its master—quite endearing, actually.
[By the way.]
Vega narrowed her eyes and grabbed Kwon O-jin’s earlobe, pulling it sharply.
[Can you now tell me what happened that day?]
“Not until I’ve told you everything from start to finish.”
Song Ha-eun pressed herself against my side and gripped my arm tightly.
“Ha! Fine, fine. I’ll explain everything, so stop pestering me.”
I recounted what had happened that day, carefully omitting only what concerned Huk-cheon.
[What a tragic turn of events….]
“Mm. So that’s why the atmosphere was so dark?”
Upon hearing about Jang Seok-ho, both women released brief sighs and their expressions hardened.
“But did you really defeat a 7-Star Awakener?”
“Yeah.”
“Even if you are an Apostle of Polaris… is the stigma of Lyra Constellation really that powerful?”
Song Ha-eun turned to Vega with an expression of disbelief.
[Hehehehe! With my stigma, one can easily transcend differences in ‘rank’!!]
Vega proclaimed this with her arms crossed proudly, but then suddenly released a deep sigh.
[━That’s what I’d like to say. But honestly, even for me, it’s hard to believe that you defeated an Awakener with a ‘rank’ three stages higher than yours.]
For a Constellation to say such a thing directly.
‘In reality, it was an 8-star level, not 7-star.’
Kwon O-jin let out a soft chuckle.
“Well, honestly it was pretty close.”
If the rain hadn’t come at that moment, I wouldn’t have won.
[Phew. Hearing the situation, I can’t fault you for using Exceed.]
Vega exhaled deeply and shook her head in disbelief.
[But did you really ascend to 5-star? I simply can’t believe it.]
Vega said so and lifted herself from his shoulder, slipping entirely into his t-shirt.
“Ahhh! What, what are you doing!”
Song Ha-eun yelped and pulled Vega out from inside Kwon O-jin’s clothes.
[How rude. Such disrespectful language toward a Constellation.]
“You’re the one being rude!!”
[Kwon O-jin is my cherished child. It is my duty to inspect that body.]
“Stop spouting nonsense!”
Song Ha-eun snarled, baring her teeth as she shouted.
[…Anyway.]
Vega turned to look at Kwon O-jin and stuck out her tongue.
[So it’s true that you’ve ascended to 5-star.]
She shook her head in disbelief.
“Hmm. By the way, kid. Your Thunder Spear skill rose to level 9 this time?”
“Yeah. That’s right.”
While maintaining mana in an extreme state and whatnot, the Thunder Spear skill’s level shot up explosively all at once.
“Ha. This crazy monster of a kid.”
Riak clicked his tongue with an exasperated expression.
The news that the Thunder Spear skill had reached level 9 seemed quite shocking.
“Anyway. Keep training the Thunder Spear skill steadily. It’s the core skill of the Lyra Constellation stigma.”
“I know.”
Just from watching other skills rise steadily due to the Thunder Spear skill’s influence, it wasn’t hard to tell.
“And when it reaches level 10.”
A grin spread across his face.
Riak’s lips curved upward.
“An entirely different world will unfold before you.”
“A different world?”
Kwon O-jin looked at Riak with interest.
“Is there really that much difference between level 9 and level 10?”
“Of course. When a skill reaches level 10, it ‘evolves.’ The rewards that follow are truly extraordinary.”
“Interesting.”
So something like that existed.
“Since the rewards are substantial, rising from level 9 to level 10 won’t be as easy as it has been until now.”
“What do you get when you reach level 10?”
“Heh heh. I’ll show you something special this time.”
Riak stepped back a couple of paces with a sly grin spreading across his face.
“Now then. Watch closely, you brat.”
Crack! Crackle!!
Azure lightning coiled around Riak’s body.
“This is the formidable secret technique you can obtain when the Lightning skill reaches level 10.”
The azure lightning wrapping around Riak’s body began to concentrate at the corners of his mouth.
And then.
“━It’s Lightning Flame!”
Whoosh!
Azure flames erupted fiercely from his mouth.
“Huh?”
Lightning Flame?
“I can do that too, you know?”
Kwon O-jin casually raised his hand.
Whoosh!
Azure flames gathered in his palm.
“…What?”
Riak’s mouth fell open in shock.

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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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