Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1519. Extinction (29) [Illustration]

‘That is Kim Hyun-Sung.’

“...”

“...”

‘That’s totally Kim Hyun-Sung.’

He had his face covered with some cheap blanket and a ragged mask, but there was no mistaking it—he looked exactly like Kim Hyun-Sung.

‘Seriously, what kind of disguise is that? You call that a disguise?’

Obviously, it wasn’t First Life Hyun-Sung. Right now, First Life Hyun-Sung was in the middle of the defense of Lindel, so there was no way he could be here. The one in my sights right now was definitely Second Life Hyun-Sung, unless it was Third Life Hyun-Sung?

Naturally, I glanced at him while I was still being comforted by Mikael. His trembling eyes, rough breathing, and shaking arms told me that he was definitely Kim Hyun-Sung.

The sword in his hand had also come from me, which made it even harder for me to understand why he had even decided to assume a disguise.

‘At least ditch the sword first.’

It didn’t take long for me to realize that the reason he hadn’t stood out until now wasn’t that he had been blending into the crowd. It was all because he had just revealed himself. As for why he came here and sought me out? It was pretty obvious.

‘Looks like this guy saw the ark crashing into the nest, too.’

Heading toward the nest had always been part of his plan, but there was no way he could have expected to see Nice Boat piercing the pigeon's nest. It wasn't even mentioned in the official history of the first life, so there was no doubt that the sight had caught him completely off guard.

There was no way Kim Hyun-Sung could know why the ark from the second life was summoned into the first life to crash straight into the pigeon nest, but there was probably one thing he was certain of—I was the one behind all of this.

‘Otherwise, why would he come running all the way here like that?’

It was the same reason Mikael had rushed over here. He had to have sensed that something had gone wrong and became worried that I could be in danger. It was a reckless plan, after all, reckless enough to look insane.

The fact that Kim Hyun-Sung still cared about my safety was something to be glad about, but...

‘Man, his timing is really bad...’

“Heuk... I... heuk... can’t... remember anything...” I said.

‘Seriously, if only he’d shown up a little earlier...’

“I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do... It’s not like I wanted things to turn out like this...” I said.

‘Then I wouldn’t be stuck here like this, would I?’

Honestly, this was a pretty awkward situation. If it were up to me, I’d shove Mikael aside right now and run straight to Kim Hyun-Sung. At this point, I couldn't help but think that it would have been better if I had met him first instead of this guy.

“It’s alright. Everything... everything will be okay,” Mikael assured me.

‘No, none of this is okay. Not right now, damn it.’

“Heuk... hic...” I sobbed.

“Mr. Ki-Young...” he muttered.

“Waaah...” I cried.

‘Just gotta keep the tears coming.’

Of all times, he had to show up right when I confessed I’d lost my memories. Judging by how his pupils were shaking like crazy, he looked seriously shaken, but with me in Mikael’s arms, there was no way I could just call out Kim Hyun-Sung’s name at the top of my lungs. It’d probably be better to get him to speak to me first, so...

“Hyun-Sung... heuk... my memories with Hyun-Sung... they’re all...” I mumbled.

“...”

“They’re fading... I don’t want to forget... I don’t want to forget...” I continued.

I squeezed out every last tear I had in my tank before saying whatever I could say to provoke him into action, but the idiot refused to move.

'Is it really that hard to just call out “Ki-Young”? And Mikael’s just as clueless...'

I was hoping he’d take the hint and back off by now, but perhaps he had yet to notice Kim Hyun-Sung, as he tightened his grip around me.

'No, fine, Mikael being like this is one thing, but Kim Hyun-Sung...'

‘Wow... what a pathetic idiot. Seriously.’

'Has that guy never seen a single drama in his life? Does he seriously not get what this character, Lee Ki-Young, actually wants right now? Does he really not understand that what I need isn’t Mikael’s comfort? No, maybe he does know that.'

I felt like he simply did not have the courage to step up, or perhaps he was afraid that he’d lose his resolve upon doing that.

He came running all the way here, sure, but his original goal wasn’t to secure Second Life Ki-Young, it was to meet First Life Ki-Young. Still, regardless of his objectives, Kim Hyun-Sung was swallowing his grief.

Of course, he would do that. The one person who truly understood him, the only one whose soul was connected to his, had just said that he had forgotten him.

For someone like Kim Hyun-Sung, who only ever had that one person in his life, it brought him unbearable agony.

‘Look at him, acting like he’s the tragic lead.’

He looked like he was carrying all the pain in the world by himself. It was like he was the saddest guy on the continent. His eyes welled up with tears, and he was not even trying to hide it.

‘This guy’s really filming a drama right now.’

Watching him stand there, swallowing it all down alone, made me want to punch him. In the end, he squeezed his eyes shut and turned away as if he couldn't bear to watch us any longer. The whole thing felt so scripted that it was almost absurd. At this point, I wondered if he actually knew everything. He was following every cliché perfectly.

Right on cue, Kim Hyun-Sung’s youth drama sprint began. Wiping his tears away with one hand, Kim Hyun-Sung ran away without any clear destination while full-on sobbing as if he were in a J-pop music video.

“Ugh...”

“...”

“Ugh... aaaaah!”

‘Come on, don’t start yelling, too. I can’t watch this.’

'But I’ll admit, it’s kind of good...'

I wasn't sure whether he was venting or just did not want anyone to interrupt his little drama, but the poor pigeons in his way were all cut down.'

His aimless running slowed down, but it wasn't because he was tired. I believed he finally realized that running away was meaningless.

While the battle was still raging on one side, Kim Hyun-Sung slipped into an empty room to swallow his loneliness. The next moment, he collapsed.

“Heuk... heeeuk...”

“...”

“Heeeuk... heeeeeeuk...”

‘Man’s got every hardship in the world dumped on him. Seriously, what a drama king.’

It was not an exaggeration to say that he looked like he was asking why the world was putting him, Kim Hyun-Sung, through something like this, and why he could never be happy.

“Aaaaargh!”

He slammed his fists into the ground so hard that I got worried that the pigeon nest could end up collapsing.

‘Come on... Hyun-Sung... stop being so pathetic... Just forget about the fate of the continent or whatever and do what you actually want. What are you even doing over there, putting on a whole solo act...’

He was going at it longer than I expected to the point that it was making me feel uncomfortable. It felt wrong to watch him wipe his tears away while putting on a full-blown one-man drama inside that room.

Regret over his original sin, uncertainty about the future, fear of growing distant from the one friend he shared a bond with, and above all, the biggest reason for this whole melodrama was probably the fear that Lee Ki-Young could completely forget him.

He already knew things could turn out like this, and he had made up his mind to endure it all, but actually facing it was a different matter entirely. He saw it with his own eyes, after all. He saw what was unfolding right now.

‘Fine. If it’s come to this, then go ahead. Sit there and overthink as much as you want. Make a whole show out of it.’

I could track him down, anyway.

‘Good, good, good.’

As long as my Telescope remained fixed on him, I would not lose his position. More than anything else, just knowing where he was made me feel at ease. The anxiety I’d been carrying around was no more. At this point, I finally understood why Ha-Yan was always so obsessed with tracking my location.

‘Bottom line, I just have to move before Kim Hyun-Sung does.’

There wasn't just one path forward, as I actually got options to choose from. For now, the top priority was making sure that Kim Hyun-Sung would not run into First Life Ki-Young. Honestly, I was having trouble finding him myself, so the chances of Kim Hyun-Sung getting to him before I did were basically nonexistent.

Moreover, he was still over there, putting on that whole performance.

‘I just need to find First Life Ki-Young before Kim Hyun-Sung does.’

“...”

“...”

‘If possible, I need to get rid of Mikael.’

That was why I didn’t ditch Mikael and go after Kim Hyun-Sung.

“...”

Whatever decision Kim Hyun-Sung was going to make, it didn't really matter. I just had to deal with Mikael before Kim Hyun-Sung stumbled upon First Life Ki-Young, and everything would work out. I just had to get ahead of him.

I could then tell Kim Hyun-Sung that Mikael was the miracle that the continent had bestowed upon us. Afterward, I could wrap it all up by honoring Mikael’s sacrifice.

This guy...

‘...Is practically ready to sacrifice himself, anyway.’

“I’ll do whatever it takes...” Mikael mumbled.

“Mr. Mikael?” I said.

“Even if it costs me everything, I’ll protect you, Mr. Lee Ki-Young. I swear it,” he said.

“Mr. M-Mikael?”

Sniff.

Ki-Young sniffles.

‘I mean... I kinda feel bad asking this, but when you say protect... you mean sacrificing yourself for me... right?’

“Mr. Mi... kael...” I mumbled.

‘Right? You’re saying you’ll get yourself killed for me, right? I didn’t mishear that, did I? You don’t just mean keeping me safe, right?’

There was something particularly resolute about his face. He always had that serious, no-nonsense look, but this time, it was on a different level. He had the face of someone who looked like he couldn't care less about what was going to happen to Michele.

He looked like someone prepared to die if his death was going to matter.

‘Man... that look makes me want to pull the trigger right now. It’s almost tempting.’

The problem was that I couldn't be sure whether this was the right moment to press the button. I had yet to obtain the authorization. It did not feel like the system had judged that the continent was broken enough to warrant a full reset.

Castle Rock was still holding on, the World Tree front was still putting up a fight, and Lindel was even pushing back the enemy forces under the leadership of First Life Hyun-Sung.

Of course, Castle Rock was on the verge of collapse, and the World Tree front was destined to fall sooner or later. From an administrator’s perspective, it was hard not to question whether this situation was even sustainable, but I could accept that the system could be evaluating things in a different way. Besides...

‘The process only starts once the final defensive lines are no more.’

It would all begin upon the fall of Castle Rock, the World Tree, and Lindel...

It seemed like there was still time left, but...

‘Once things start collapsing, they won't stop collapsing. They'll actually crumble all at once.’

Lindel could still be managed depending on the timing, so what really mattered was Castle Rock and the World Tree front.

Right then, almost as if on cue, the mist around Castle Rock cleared up. The last line of defense at Castle Rock was collapsing right before my eyes.

“...”

The man who lived by the motto of "survival first," Cheon Kwan-Wi, was dead.