Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1400. Crimson Ball (10)

“Where is that bastard Song Jung-Wook?” I asked.

When I slightly turned my head, I saw Ha Yeon-Soo in a dress. She had to have disguised herself to blend in with the group that had just entered the shelter with Alps and Belier. The dress suited her quite well, but she seemed uncomfortable in it.

It was evidenced by her frown and the way she twisted around.

“We know he’s fighting enemy forces on the fifth floor of the royal castle,” Ha Yeon-Soo answered.

‘So he’s still resisting for now.’

“What about Hyun-Sung?” I asked.

“Mr. Kim Hyun-Sung is still on the fourth floor,” she replied.

“He made it up to the fourth floor? But he’s not moving and just staying there?” I questioned.

“Yes. The fourth floor is an area where distinguishing friends from foes is difficult. The Empire, the Union of Kingdoms, the Republic, and the Brigade members have been fighting each other there. It seems Mr. Kim Hyuns-Sung judged that it would be better to remain in a safe area until the situation has settled down to some extent,” she explained.

‘Ah... so he’s not alone.’

“After being chased by enemy forces from the ballroom, he seems to be thinking that he and the Empire’s personnel are the targets, so he moved straight to the upper floor. It looks like he noticed nobles from the Union of Kingdoms who couldn’t escape to safety, and he has been rescuing them...” she added.

It seemed safe to assume that the fourth floor was a battlefield. The expendables of the Brigade were most likely there as well, as the Brigade needed them to prevent any other variables from climbing to the fifth floor for the sake of achieving their goal.

Naturally, it became clear that the Brigade members considered Kim Hyun-Sung a secondary target. It was still unknown what they would do next, but at this point, in First Ki-Young's eyes, Hyun-Sung was nothing more than a variable.

Throwing expendables everywhere to create confusion was likely done to buy time. The royal guards of the Union of Kingdoms or the Empire’s soldiers wouldn’t be able to easily ignore the injured and isolated nobles.

‘We could expand the shelter more aggressively.’

After taking the ballroom, it felt like going straight up to the upper floors wouldn’t be too difficult. This force was growing, and we were pushing back the darkness. It was probably a variable First Ki-Young hadn’t anticipated at all.

How could he have predicted the young ladies' sudden rise? He wasn't feeling any threat right now, but it wouldn’t last.

He knew that well, too. The value of the shelter expanding its domain wasn’t just about lighting up the area. This light was practically giving a clear path amidst the fabricated confusion.

They were focused on stabilizing the area around the ballroom, but imagining what would happen once the group established itself on the third floor and even the fourth floor.

If that were to happen, this group would suddenly become impactful. I was sure he had heard that the young ladies were bringing light to this place, so I felt like he was rushing things in response. If it looked like things were becoming complicated, he could focus on achieving only the highest priority objective before running away. The situation seemed to be turning in our favor at first glance, but in reality, it wasn’t really the case.

‘This bastard is completely out of his mind.’

The problem was that there was no way to know what choice he would make. After all, those who had nothing to lose were the scariest. Right now, First Ki-Young had nothing left to lose, and he was at a point where nothing mattered to him except the original goal of revenge.

Once he realized that the young ladies’ meaningful struggle was getting in the way of his objective, I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried to pull something.

‘Who knows?’

He could try to blow up the entire castle, or he could try to use it as a sacrifice. Whether this was before or after his contract with Belial was impossible to know, but it also wasn’t possible to say that he wouldn’t unleash a plague.

‘He has nothing to lose. It wouldn’t be strange for him to do anything.’

“...”

“...”

‘There’s also a high chance he’s already putting something into action.’

While I was tapping my thigh and thinking over the many possible variables, I heard Ha Yeon-Soo’s voice again.

“What will you do?” she asked me.

‘The answer is obvious.’

“I think we need to move. Are you detecting any mana fluctuations around the castle?” I asked.

“Uh... that...” she mumbled.

“You must’ve had a lot on your plate. It can’t be helped. Let’s head up for now. We should meet up with Mr. Chang-Ryeol and Miss Hee-Young on the way. Then, we'll go to the fifth floor. Do you know the way?” I asked.

“Yes. I’ve already secured the way up to the fourth floor,” she replied.

‘How did you secure it?’

“It’s the passage the workers used to move around...” she added.

I couldn’t help but nod at that.

‘So you’ve already cleared everything out, huh?’

Of course, before leaving, I handed a potion to Lady Brush. She happily ran toward Lady Rainelpia, allowing me to follow behind Ha Yeon-Soo, who led the way in her dress.

In addition to the paths used by the workers, large castles like this always had at least one secret space unbeknownst even to the owner. When Ha Yeon-Soo pressed against the wall with practiced ease, a grating sound echoed, and a small passage appeared.

‘This is why people with ranger-type jobs are everywhere.’

It was pitch-black inside, but Ha Yeon-Soo moved through the complicated path as if she had a cat's eyes.

“Would it be alright if I carried you?” Ha Yeon-Soo asked.

‘I won’t refuse something like that.’

I had to move while slightly crouched, so my back was starting to hurt. When I leaned into Ha Yeon-Soo a little, she lifted me off the floor. She was so good at carrying me that I almost gasped at how smooth the ride was.

Perhaps it was the result of carrying or piggybacking Ji-Hye noona every single day.

Anyway, the ceiling was low, so she couldn’t straighten her back, and even though the passage sloped upward, she kept the ride steady with her incredible core strength. Of course, I couldn't stay in her arms for long.

“From here, you’ll need to walk. We might have to fight,” she warned.

We passed through the secret passage and reached the corridor used by the workers. I saw a tall man with black hair clad in a priest's robe. At first, I wondered about his identity, but it didn’t take me long to realize that he was Sun Hee-Young.

‘Ah. She transformed, too.’

“I’ve been waiting for you, Mr. Ki-Young.”

“...”

“...”

‘When the foundation is good, you'd end up handsome even as a man.’

Her voice had changed, but her unique demeanor and bearing told me that the man in front of me was Sun Hee-Young. It was obvious why she appeared to me like this. She was probably on a mission.

Honestly, it was better this way. It helped distinguish this Hee-Young from the other one.

“You look handsome, Miss Hee-Young,” I commented.

“Thank you,” Sun Hee-Young said.

“You’ve got a certain air about you,” I added.

Of course, the scene around her had nothing in common with that refined aura. Corpses here, corpses there, and the floor was soaked with warm blood, eliciting squelching noises with every step.

She had taken control of one of the passages leading upward.

Ha Yeon-Soo had to have helped, but judging from the stains all over the priest’s robe, Sun Hee-Young had done the majority of the job by herself. I knew she wasn’t just a simple cleric like Elena, but it seemed her combat prowess was far higher than I had imagined.

‘She’s really got a striking vibe.’

It felt like she had become a little colder somehow. With her larger build and taller height, I couldn’t help but feel slightly intimidated.

When I looked up, I saw the familiar emotionless expression on her face. She and Ha Yeon-Soo were murmuring back and forth about matters related to my safety, and her face looked more serious than ever.

“It will be dangerous, so please stay a bit closer while we move, Mr. Ki-Young,” Sun Hee-Young warned.

“I’ve heard,” I said.

“If Chang-Ryeol were here, we could have escorted you with greater security, but...” she paused.

“No, we can’t pull him away. Someone has to stay with that group. Same for Alps and Belier. They need to stay with the young ladies. Is the fourth floor that dangerous?” I asked.

“With only one vanguard... Of course, it’s not that I doubt Miss Ha Yeon-Soo’s abilities, but...” Sun Hee-Young trailed off.

“Let’s just go. You’re here too, Miss Hee-Young. Miss Yeon-Soo, could you lead the way?” I asked.

“Sure,” Ha Yeon-Soo answered.

‘It shouldn’t be that dangerous that she needs to worry.’

Of course, no one understood how serious things were better than them, but they weren’t helpless rookies like Alps or Belier. With someone like Sun Hee-Young accompanying us, there was nothing to be scared of.

At this point, a fully developed Sun Hee-Young was basically a cheat in the system. No, calling her a cheat wouldn’t even be enough. If I were to exaggerate just a little, I would say Jung Jin-Ho and Kim Hyun-Sung couldn't defeat her, even if they charged at her at the same time.

Regardless of whatever was on the fourth floor, no one could stand against her.

“Aaaaargh!”

“Kill them! Kill them!”

“Hold the line! Push them back! Damn it!”

“Die! All of you bastards!”

‘The atmosphere is seriously brutal.’

Distinguishing friends from foes was nearly impossible; blind swords and blind arrows flew everywhere, and the only thing visible was the occasional flickers of stray spells.

There was a real chance people were cutting down their own allies, and on top of that...

‘They're mixed together.’

Layers of curses like Confusion, Frenzy, and Madness were stacked all over this floor.

“Heh... hehehehehehe!”

A man with an axe buried in his chest rolled across the ground, letting out a deranged peal of laughter.

“Kill me! Kill me! Kill me!!!”

“Yaaaaaaaah! Hahaha! Hahahahahaha!”

A lunatic nearby was walking around carrying his own severed limbs. For anyone with low magic resistance, this place would drive them completely insane.

I was sure this wasn’t the scene the Republic forces had hoped to see. This had the Brigade’s fingerprints all over it. It became obvious why Kim Hyun-Sung and so many others were stuck on this floor. They had to have decided that they couldn’t push any farther. If they had anyone to protect, they wouldn't be able to move forward at all.

Of course, none of that applied to us.

‘Damn...’

Sun Hee-Young simply walked forward, holding the rosario hanging from her neck, but she wasn’t alone. She had her monsters with her. A crazed attacker thrust his sword toward us, only for them to scream, “Urgh... uaaagh! Uaaaaagh!” before being dragged somewhere else.

Moments later, the sound of flesh and bone being crunched echoed out, followed by a wet, sticky noise as something spat something back out. An archer firing from far away met the same fate, swallowed whole by some twisted beast leaping out of the darkness.

Whoosh!

Crack!

Crunch!

“Aagh! Aaaaagh!”

“What the hell?! What the hell was that?!”

“...”

“Aaaaaaaah!”

“Something bit me! Damn it! Aagh! Don’t pull me! Don’t pull me!”

“What is this—aaagh!”

“Something’s chewing me alive... Help me... Someone hel—ah!”

A monster covered in dozens of eyeballs opened its huge mouth and devoured them. Its shape and texture looked a bit like slime, but it was stickier, nastier, and far more disgusting than that.

“Oh god...”

They were neither liquid nor solid, and they generated wet, squelching noises as they hopped forward, blocking anything that tried to approach us.

Honestly, it felt like Ha Yeon-Soo didn’t even need to lift a finger.

Speaking of Ha Yeon-Soo, I saw her gulping nervously as she looked at Sun Hee-Young. As someone considered part of the cream of the crop throughout the continent, she probably wasn’t afraid of the dark priest’s creatures, as they were considered rearguard summons, but the visuals were another story entirely.

Watching Hee-Young walk forward, murmuring things like “Grant them rest...” was enough to make anyone uneasy.

Ha Yeon-Soo looked a little shaken; I couldn’t tell if I was reading her right, but her face basically said, “Is everyone in that guild insane?”

The moment we stepped onto the fifth floor, she frowned. Lying ahead was a body that looked brutally mangled; no, the word “mangled” wasn’t nearly enough to describe it. It was destroyed to the point where one could barely believe it had ever been human.

And this wasn’t Jung Jin-Ho’s work; he wasn't like this. Only the emblem embedded in the lump of ruined flesh told us what faction it belonged to.

‘Castle Rock.’

I instinctively turned toward the source of a faint sound. The corridor ahead looked empty, but my sight kept extending forward like a telescope. It passed through walls, then through another, and then another.

Along the way, more scenes slid into view—imperial soldiers busy fighting, Jung Jin-Ho driving a sword into one of their throats, fallen corpses, the twins cackling, nobles running for their lives, a body pinned to a wall, an old man trembling in fear, and a smiling woman.

My line of sight pierced the doors, the holes created by arrows and spells, the hole in a dying knight's body, and the blood spraying from him. It pierced through every single thing before me until...

“...”

“...”

— It’s been a while, hasn’t it, Mr. Jung-Wook?

I saw First Ki-Young. He had no mask on as he smiled straight at Song Jung-Wook.