Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1298. The Magic Tower (11)

Some would probably criticize the director and say that this was too much like a fairy tale, but the truth was that cold, apocalyptic, and hopeless worlds were the best for fairy-tale-like stories. They often worked very well in such worlds.

When one considered that the target audience was none other than Kim Hyun-Sung, who had grown up as a dream-filled young man in his twenties, it'd become even clearer that this story was bound to hit the mark.

‘My kid always liked stuff like this. He’s into the blatantly bright and hopeful kind of thing.’

Sure, the shonen manga protagonist cliche was overused, but it always worked.

I already had a rough outline of how the story would flow from here, and now that I managed to plant the most difficult flag, my head nodded on its own.

It had been exactly three days since our first meeting, but Kim Hyun-Sung was still staring blankly at the sky and living on nothing but a single loaf of bread brought to him once a day by a kid who somehow managed to find his hut.

Was he under the impression that bread would just magically appear in my pocket? The sight of him loafing around and mooching off my bread was ridiculous.

I didn’t exactly look well off. Was that one loaf of bread really so tempting? Granted, he was a man in despair, so perhaps there was some room for sympathy, but still, that fact didn’t make him any less of a thug.

"It tastes good..."

‘Of course it tastes good, damn it. How could it not? Can’t you give a slightly better review? And you always eat it after I’m gone, too.’

"..."

This guy was clearly thinking of nothing except for eating some bread; he didn't even spare a thought for the long journey I had to go through just to get that decent loaf of bread. Perhaps it was because he had been raised in a comfortable environment, but he lacked the imagination to picture how harsh my life was here.

Even here, he was living a comfortable life, skimming the surface without understanding the details. If only he could imagine, even just a little, the hardships and struggles I had to deal with every day to steal some bread for him...

"It’s good."

Even his line was often the same as three days ago. Getting beaten up by the shop owner while stealing bread, wandering the streets of Heren while being called disgusting or plague-ridden... Just imagining me soaked in the rain, doing my best to bring back a single loaf could bring tears to anyone's eyes.

‘Did I misjudge this guy...’

“...”

‘Does he really think I have an actual infinite bread pouch or something?’

Well... I did have one.

“Hehehe... So, you want bread again tomorrow, huh? You like bread that much?” Big Boy said.

‘He’s my infinite bread pouch.’

“Heh... hehe...” I laughed.

“Ever since he came here, he’s done nothing but stuff his face with bread. This little brat... I couldn't believe my ears when he suddenly asked me to buy some bread for him, but I’m glad I bought some for him.

"Hehehe... I told him to make it last, and he actually finished it in just a few days. Hehe. And look at him hiding the hambier away in the corner, trying to save it... Carlton,” Big Boy continued.

“Why are you giving him that look, Big Boy? He’s already skin and bones...” Carlton said.

“No, I wasn’t giving him a look. I’m just saying. I-If what I said sounded like I was judging you, you don’t need to think that way. It’s fine if you eat more. R-Right, Yoojin?” Big Boy stuttered.

“He’s right, kid. Business has been pretty good lately. Our pockets are so full we could fill this room with bread, and we’d still have money left over. You’re a lucky charm, kid. Hahaha.” Yoojin laughed.

“Huh?”

“Believe it or not, since you showed up, things have been going strangely well... More than anything, it’s important that Big Boy here actually started thinking about doing real work for once,” Yoojin added.

“What?”

“That guy’s... the type with hidden talent but no drive, you know? The moment he started taking responsibility for someone, he finally started thinking about taking things seriously. Thanks to you, things have gotten a bit busier, but...” Yoojin paused.

“So... you’re going out tomorrow too, hyung?” I asked.

“Yeah, kid,” Big Boy answered.

“Ah...”

“Tsk. It’s work, so it can’t be helped,” Big Boy said.

“B-But... isn’t it too exhausting to go every single day? And also—”

“Try to understand, kid. It’s not for any other reason... Big Boy’s doing it to get your brand removed,” Yoojin revealed.

“Stop talking nonsense, Yoojin! You think I’d spend the money I earn just to remove that kid’s brand? I’ve got other places to use it,” Big Boy argued.

“...”

“...”

“Um... I don’t really... mind if it doesn’t get removed... It’s fine, Big Boy hyung. You said it would cost a lot... and it’s not even certain that it can be erased easily. And I feel like it’s too much trouble...” I muttered.

“What?!”

“I’m fine with it. Really,” I said.

“J-Just go to bed already! What kind of brat talks like that...” Big Boy complained.

‘This guy immediately gets mad whenever he gets embarrassed.’

After that, it became noisy. They were saying things like, “Why’d you suddenly get mad?” and “The kid must’ve been scared.” The next part was obvious. They’d start bickering, and then sympathy for the kid would blossom in their hearts. In the chaos, they’d shove that disgusting hambier into my mouth.

I couldn't help but wonder where on earth they got the idea that shoving hambier into a poor kid’s mouth was somehow a good thing.

“Anyway, we’ve got to head out at dawn tomorrow,” Big Boy said.

“D-Dawn?” I questioned.

“Yeah. We probably won’t get back to Heren until late evening... We’re going to be traveling a bit,” Big Boy answered.

“Then... would it be okay if I came along too?” I asked.

Big Boy inhaled sharply.

“I-I’m sorry,” I stuttered.

“No, you’ve got nothing to apologize for. I know staying cooped up in this room can feel a bit suffocating... but... this isn’t going to last forever. Just hold out a little longer. It’ll be fine,” Big Boy reassured me.

“It’s not dangerous, is it?” I asked.

“If it were dangerous, would we really accept it? Hehe... I can’t say there’s zero risk, but compared to what we usually do, it’s pretty safe. So relax. It’s nothing big. It’s just like what we did in Lindel last time. We’re just delivering a few stolen goods,” Big Boy answered.

“...”

“They seemed to like us and asked if we’d be interested in doing more work for them... Oh, did I tell you that already?” Big Boy asked.

“...”

“Anyway, it’s not dangerous, so stop worrying. We’re not going all the way to Lindel. We’re just picking something up midway,” Big Boy said.

“Big Boy, keep it down. The kid’s trying to sleep,” Carlton told him.

“Hehe... Looks like the little brat got tired waiting up for us so late, Carlton,” Big Boy chuckled.

“He already looked tired. Didn’t you see his eyelids drooping? You should get some sleep, too, Big Boy. We have to wake up early tomorrow,” Carlton suggested.

“Yeah.”

After feeling a rough hand ruffle my hair, the sound of snoring echoed from all directions.

‘Damn, I’d wake up even if I were already asleep.’

I couldn’t help but wonder how these guys could possibly fall asleep amidst the loud snoring, but perhaps their work really was just that exhausting. Sure, it looked like all they did was deliver stolen goods, but the moment they left the city, there were bound to be many things to watch out for.

They had to be ready for any sudden fights, and the loot itself wasn’t exactly light.

Physically, they could probably handle it, as they carried the "adventurer" title, but the real issue was the amount they had to move. The workload had to have been bad enough for them to split the job between the people involved.

It was almost like watching a professional delivery company in action; there were plenty of people tied up in their operation. In Heren, huge wagons came and went dozens of times a day, and the things they called "loot" were constantly being shipped to various places in and around the city.

‘And they don’t even know what kind of work they’re actually doing.’

Wasn't it obvious?

‘Anyone can see it’s really shady.’

Even from a hundred meters away, it looks really suspicious. I already knew Heren had a black market and that all kinds of illegal things went on there like it was nothing, but ever since that first delivery run from Lindel to Heren, the sights I’d been seeing were honestly strange enough to feel out of place.

Chances were, most of the people involved in this knew that this was unusual.

It made sense, as everyone was split into strict, specialized roles.

Some would secure the goods, some would transport them halfway, some would receive them halfway, and some would pick them up again and bring them to Heren. Then, someone would slip past security to carry the goods into the city.

There were so many people involved, and there were even guys tasked with delivering fake goods to perhaps throw off the pursuers.

Every one of them moved like cogs in a machine, without knowing exactly what they were delivering, where it was coming from, where it was going, how many people were involved, and why it even needed to reach Heren in the first place

At first, even I didn't think much of it. Up close, there didn’t seem to be anything off. The system was that flawless, using ordinary adventurers like paid hands with gold as bait.

To sum it up, what they were delivering wasn’t ordinary goods. I couldn’t say for sure yet, but the fact that this whole operation was happening right when Kim Hyun-Sung was stuck in Heren was too strange to ignore.

‘It has to be the masked hero.’

I still wasn’t sure whether the Masked Hero’s goal was simply to torment Kim Hyun-Sung or to somehow push him toward awakening, but either way, if he were to go too far, his actions could become poisonous.

‘What, you think just tormenting him will lead him to some grand awakening? No, that’s just harassment, damn it.’

In the end, Heren was falling into chaos, and it was inevitable. I didn’t even need to make a mess myself. It would collapse on its own, so the best choice was to wait for the right timing while keeping an eye on Hyun-Sung.

The bread given by the mysterious, sickly boy wasn’t just bread...

“It tastes good...”

...It was like a potion keeping him from losing it completely.

An hour after Big Boy and his party left me behind to go on a delivery run, and four days since I first met Kim Hyun-Sung, he finally said something. His eyes still seemed lifeless, but the fact that he spoke right in front of me was incredibly encouraging.

“...”

“Thanks,” Kim Hyun-Sung said.

Perhaps he still had a shred of conscience left, as he started rummaging through his pocket. Even in the rush to get to Heren, he hadn’t let go of his coin pouch, and he had just handed me a single gold coin.

‘This idiot... does he have any idea what happens if someone from the very bottom, like a sickly street kid, walks around with gold? You think I could actually spend this? Seriously?’

Of course, I could only shake my head. A gold coin wasn’t what the sickly boy wanted.

“You can take it. It’s just to show my thanks. And you don’t need to come again from now on,” Kim Hyun-Sung said.

‘Oh, so you think you can cut me off after tossing me a single gold coin?’

I shook my head again.

“Are you not able to speak?” Kim Hyun-Sung asked.

“...”

Slowly, I nodded.

“Can you write?” Kim Hyun-Sung asked.

At that, I nodded and scratched letters into the dirt.

[A little.]

“What’s your name?” Kim Hyun-Sung asked.

[Don’t have one.]

Not having a name was basically the rule. Regardless of what anyone was going to say, the one who ought to name the sickly boy was this guy before me.