Not A Regressor - Chapter 73

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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 73
The Genius Awakener’s Stream (2)
“Wow.”
An exclamation burst from Ha-eun’s lips.
Though not quite as much as her, Kwon O-jin also seemed quite surprised, glancing around with wide eyes.
“The interior is incredibly beautiful.”
A massive Underwater Tunnel.
Though it was an Underwater Tunnel, the ceiling was constructed from something like translucent glass, allowing the beautiful underwater scenery to be seen clearly.
Above the ceiling, fish I’d never seen before swam freely through the waters.
“It feels like we’ve walked into some kind of aquarium.”
If you enlarged an aquarium by several hundred or thousand times over, exactly as Ha-eun described, it would feel just like this.
“Sniff sniff. There don’t seem to be any monsters around here.”
Riak brought his nose close to the ground, sniffing intently.
“There are many Awakeners near the entrance.”
“Are we going deeper inside?”
“Of course.”
The objective was to farm enough Constellation Stones to complete Black Star’s Quest.
I hadn’t come here to leisurely sightsee inside the Gate.
[Then let’s head in.]
Thump.
Vega settled onto my head as if it were her designated seat.
She gripped my slightly frizzy hair in both hands as if it were reins.
“I shall carry you comfortably, Goddess.”
[Hehe. The ride is quite pleasant.]
Vega accepted my jest lightly and gently stroked my forehead.
-Thud, thud.
And so we ventured deeper, surveying the beautiful interior of the Gate.
Perhaps because it was a Gate of considerable difficulty.
As we progressed deeper inside, the signs of human presence gradually vanished.
And then.
“ROOOAAARRRRR!!!”
With a bizarre cry, the ground trembled with heavy thuds.
What emerged from the far end of the tunnel was a massive fish-like creature roughly two meters tall.
Though called a fish, only its head resembled one—below the neck, it was similar to a human.
“…A fish-man?”
“It’s called a Neglish, apparently.”
“At least it’s not called a mermaid.”
Ha-eun stared at the Neglish with a look of disgust.
The Neglish’s body was packed with violent musculature like a bodybuilder on excessive steroids.
With a fish head atop such a muscular frame, nothing could have looked more grotesque.
-Whoooosh!!
“If we roast it whole, we’ll get plenty of protein.”
Ha-eun chuckled and conjured flames in both hands.
“Sister, wait.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Let me try fighting it alone first.”
I was curious how long I could hold my own against a 5-star monster.
‘The demonic beast that appeared in Sokcho was exactly 5-star.’
How much had I grown since then?
The urge to find out burned within me.
“Okay. Got it.”
Ha-eun extinguished her flames and stepped back a few paces.
-Click, click!
I channeled mana into the metal rod.
I grasped the silver spear in my hand as it transformed into the shape of a crescent halberd.
‘Three of them.’
The one in the middle was the largest.
‘That one first.’
Grip.
I tightened my hold on the spear shaft.
-Crash!
I drove it downward toward the ground with brutal force.
Whoosh.
Using the spear like a pole vault, I launched myself into the air.
“Roooaaarrr!!!”
Neglish reacted swiftly, creating distance and moving away from my landing point.
As it descended, it surrounded me from three directions, ready to attack.
“Not happening.”
Twang!
I fired the wire shooter.
The improved wire shooter released the wire at a far greater speed than before.
-Whirrrrr!
“Roooaaa?”
The wire wrapped around Neglish’s neck.
‘Explosion charge.’
Crackle-crackle-crackle!!
Powerful blue lightning surged through the wire, striking Neglish’s head.
“Roooaaarrrrr!!!”
Indeed.
So this is what a 5-star monster is like.
I writhed in agony, but the cerebral electricity coursing through the wire wasn’t enough to kill me.
But.
“That’s all there is.”
Whirrrrr!!
The wire cable snapped taut with a deafening roar of the motor spinning to life.
-Shhwaaaack!
The silver spear, drawn down in a long arc, cleaved Neglish’s body in two.
“Arrghhh!”
“Awooooogh!”
The other two rushed forward in panic.
They were fast.
The air itself seemed to tear apart from the sheer force of their assault.
“This is rather disappointing.”
Of course.
They weren’t a threat to me.
-Whoooosh whoooosh!!
I lifted the spear overhead and spun it like a propeller.
Crackle!
Blue flames erupted savagely at the spear’s tip.
“Hm!”
I seized the shaft’s end and swung it with tremendous force, timing it perfectly with Neglish’s charge.
Whoosh!
For an instant, it felt as though the spear’s length had extended,
-Splurt!
“Arrghhh!!”
The upper and lower halves of the two Neglish separated.
Viscera spilled forth in a torrent of crimson blood.
‘About five seconds.’
Kwon O-jin let out a hollow laugh and shrugged his shoulders.
I’d anticipated it wouldn’t be difficult.
But I never expected to overwhelm them this completely.
“What the… does this even make sense?”
Han Manager approached with his mouth agape in disbelief.
“Are you really a 5-Star? No, forget that—how did you become this strong in just two months?”
The Kwon O-jin I’d seen during the Sokcho subjugation and the one before me now were worlds apart.
I’d thought he was strong compared to the Constellation then, but this was beyond reason.
“At this rate, you could beat a 6-Star… no, even a 7-Star Awakener, couldn’t you?”
“I told you. I fought a 7-Star Awakener recently and won.”
“Oh, right.”
Han Manager scratched the back of his neck and pouted his lips.
“Even so, it’s frustrating that I’m being caught up to in just half a year of awakening.”
“You still can’t beat me, right? Your body’s fully recovered now anyway.”
Ha-eun was once a formidable awakener, ranking among the strongest of the 7-Star tier.
With the new power of Yong-an, I couldn’t guarantee victory in a direct confrontation.
“Heh! Of course I’d still win in a one-on-one!”
It wasn’t mere bravado.
To face her in her fully recovered state, I’d still need to rely on Exceed or Vega’s blessing.
“And.”
A sly smile spread across her face.
Ha-eun’s lips curled upward.
Click.
She reached behind her head and untied the eye patch that had been covering her left eye.
“Did you think your sister was just sitting idle?”
Snap!
She flicked her fingers lightly.
-Whoooosh!
A chain of flames materialized in an instant, extending toward the corner of the tunnel.
Crackle, crackle, crackle!
“Screeeee!!!!”
“Screee! Screee!”
Two Neglish creatures that had been hiding secretly in the corner were bound by the flaming chain and dragged out.
Smaller than the three Kwon O-jin had dealt with, these Neglish were covered entirely in menacing spikes.
“So there’s an assassin type too.”
“Screeeee!!”
Ha-eun examined the two Neglish bound by the flaming chain slowly.
Purple venom dripped steadily from the tips of the spikes, which stood sharp and rigid like an inflated pufferfish.
-Snap!
“Ah, screee….”
Whoooosh!
With another flick of her fingers, the flaming chain reduced the Neglish’s body to ash.
“…How did you know?”
Kwon O-jin’s eyes widened in surprise.
I never expected two more to be hiding.
“Well, that’s simple.”
Ha-eun smiled slyly and placed her hand near her left eye, now freed from the eye patch.
The eye had a grotesque appearance.
Yet she caressed it with infinite affection.
“Someone gave me this eye, so I should use it to see everything worth seeing.”
“….”
What was that supposed to mean.
Why does my sister suddenly look so cute?
[Ahem!]
Vega cleared her throat as if uncomfortable.
[So five-star monsters pose no real threat, then.]
“That’s right.”
Kwon O-jin nodded and harvested the constellation stones.
True to the rumors, two constellation stones dropped from each creature.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve seen blue constellation stones.’
With monsters swarming so frequently lately, the sight felt almost welcoming.
‘So the Black Star’s influence didn’t cause this Gate anomaly?’
Until now, Black Star’s power had always been involved wherever monsters appeared.
The appearance of blue constellation stones meant these weren’t monsters created by them.
The Gate’s anomaly likely stemmed from a different cause entirely.
‘I’ll investigate that later.’
For now, it was time to savor this unexpected experience point windfall.
“Grrr. To think weaklings like these would appear in a Gate. How disappointing.”
Riak snorted in dissatisfaction.
“So you’re saying even with your power restricted, you handle monsters of this caliber with ease?”
“Of course! What do you take Riak for!”
Riak bellowed loudly.
“Then let’s use this chance to see exactly how much power you two can exert.”
I turned to look at Vega and Riak as I spoke.
[Ho. So you wish to verify how useful this one truly is?]
“Checking our full capabilities is important.”
[Heheheh. How audacious to wish to test a Constellation’s power… but very well.]
Whoosh.
Vega soared into the air.
[I too am curious how much strength I can muster in this state.]
“Good.”
I ventured deeper into the Underwater Tunnel.
“Roooaaarrr!!”
“Four this time.”
“No assassin types.”
I glanced briefly toward Vega and Riak.
“Grrr! Stand back and watch, human!”
[I shall demonstrate my power.]
Riak and Vega charged toward the Neglish.
-Whoosh! Crack! Slash!!!
“Roooaaarrr!!!”
The silver wolf bounded off the tunnel walls as if they were flat ground, weaving between the Neglish.
—Crackle!
[How dare you thrash about so disrespectfully before me?]
Blue lightning serpentined across the ground like a living thing, coiling around Neglish.
In the blink of an eye, the blue lightning crawled up Neglish’s body and burrowed into the gills at its neck.
“Screeeech!!”
The Neglish creatures collapsed to the ground, their bodies trembling violently as the lightning surged through their gills.
“Wow.”
Kwon O-jin’s eyes gleamed at the breathtaking control—a display that never failed to impress.
But the moment was fleeting.
As I calmly observed the battle, I clicked my tongue in disappointment.
‘The output is too weak.’
The lightning Vega could wield with her power constrained maxed out at around 2 to 3-star level.
Though her extraordinary control had subdued the Neglish, the output fell far short of delivering a killing blow.
‘Riak’s in the same boat.’
Riak too seemed to be barely covering his pathetically weakened strength and speed with overwhelming technique.
‘Can’t ride the bus, then.’
It didn’t matter.
From the start, I had no intention of relying on their strength for growth anyway.
“Grrgh! This is infuriating!”
Riak shouted in frustration.
Fair enough.
Without the constraints, just unleashing lightning would reduce the monster to ash—so naturally he’d be frustrated having to dart around and fight at full power.
“Hehe! Big talk for nothing, huh?”
“What, what did you say?”
“Hehe. Looks like I’ll have to help whether I like it or not~”
“Not necessary!”
Han Manager giggled and joined the battle.
[Sigh. Already growing weary.]
Vega exhaled deeply and settled onto my shoulder.
“You did well, Vega.”
[With this level of power, I fear I cannot be of great help to you.]
Vega lowered her head regretfully.
“Actually, I prefer it this way.”
[Prefer it? How so?]
“If I relied solely on your strength, I’d grow complacent. This level is just right.”
I comforted the dejected Vega.
[Hehe. Are you consoling me?]
She gently stroked my forehead, a faint smile playing at her lips.
[Truly a remarkable child. Now I understand why my past self became… that sort of thing with you.]
She smiled knowingly and whispered the rest so softly that Han Manager couldn’t hear.
Tug, tug.
Embarrassed by her own words, Vega playfully pulled at Kwon O-jin’s earlobe.
“Yeah, okay.”
In truth, in my past life, I had never been in “that kind of relationship” with Vega.
“I told you.”
I turned to look at her perched on my shoulder, offering a faint smile.
“You don’t have to remember. You don’t have to cherish those memories.”
Just as closing your eyes doesn’t make the world disappear.
“Even if you forget, I will remember. All of it—the happy memories and the sorrowful ones alike.”
[My child….]
Vega’s eyes trembled.
‘I think that’s enough.’
It was time to stop.
“Let’s go. Your sister will hear us.”
[…I see.]
When I approached Riak, the battle had already ended.
“Grab Sung Yu-seok and let’s go deeper inside.”
“Grrr! This time I’ll fight alone!”
As we continued deeper into the Gate.
“Hm?”
Three Neglish lay collapsed on the ground, their bodies riddled with holes.
“Phew. Yeah, fighting three at once is pretty rough!”
Beside them, the Orange-haired Youth I’d seen at the entrance was resting while drinking a potion.
A round orb floated near him.
“Huh? You’re….”
The youth’s gaze turned toward me.
What was he thinking in that brief moment?
His expression shifted rapidly, and gradually his lips curved upward into a grin.
“Brain Wave! You’re Brain Wave, right?”
“Yes.”
It wasn’t a nickname I particularly liked.
But after hearing it so often from everyone around me, I’d grown somewhat accustomed to it.
“Haha! Wow! Meeting Brain Wave here of all places! I’m a fan, a huge fan!”
The youth extended his hand.
“Well… what is this? If you call it fate, then I suppose it is.”
He pointed his thumb at the orb floating in the air and chuckled.
“Would you be interested in appearing as a guest on my broadcast?”
“Huh?”
Broadcast?

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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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