The Regressor Can Make Them All

Chapter 505

Waking up on his first day as the Inoue family’s new research director, Se-Hoon naturally opened his eyes.

“…”

“…”

Instead of a ceiling, he was greeted by a curtain of hair and Erika’s face, which hung over his.

The two locked eyes in silence. Erika looked down at him steadily; Se-Hoon stared back without a word. Like that, the peculiar silence lingered all the way until Erika eventually turned her head slightly away.

“Good morning.”

“…Yeah. Good morning.”

He considered asking why she’d been staring at him, but knowing Erika’s personality, he knew she’d just reply with something like “just because” or “I wanted to see you.” So instead of wasting his breath, Se-Hoon got up from the bed.

Immediately after, Erika’s winged robe—the Bound Celestial Garment—began tidying up.

Swish- Flap!

The robe swiftly folded the blankets and even squared off the corners. It was moving far more delicately than before, prompting Se-Hoon to raise an intrigued eyebrow.

“Seems like you’ve gotten the hang of it.”

“Of course. It’s practically a part of my body now,” Erika remarked, twitching the robe’s wingtips like fingers.

Looking between the two, Se-Hoon observed the robe in detail.

It really has become part of herself.

What was once a stand-alone Legendary-tier artifact now emitted Erika’s own presence—evidence of nearly complete assimilation. It had to be close to ninety… or maybe even over one hundred already while maintaining its full capabilities.

Considering the uniqueness of her nature, that might really be possible.

After all, Erika was a synthetic lifeform whose genetic information had been replaced by spell formulas.

Lingering on those thoughts, Se-Hoon put the thoughts away after a while and asked, “Where’s Ren?”

“He’s waiting outside.”

Taking those words as her cue, Erika neatly placed the folded bedding next to her own before handing Se-Hoon a freshly folded outfit.

“Your change of clothes.”

“Oh, thanks.”

Taking the clothes, Se-Hoon headed to the bathroom to take a quick shower and got dressed. For the finishing touches, Erika held out a white robe for him, helping him into it naturally and then fixing the slightly rumpled edges with practiced hands.

“What about breakfast?”

“Hmm… let’s finish the inspection first, then eat.”

“Okay.”

With that trivial exchange done—which somehow felt oddly intimate—Erika stood next to Se-Hoon and flicked her robe forward to slide open the traditional paper doors.

Rustle-

The protective spells Se-Hoon deployed the night before dissipated quietly, revealing Ren and several executives waiting just outside.

“Good morning, Director Akasha,” Ren greeted with a soft smile as the executives bowed slightly.

They were very formal, but there was an undercurrent of tension in the air. Sensing their discomfort, Se-Hoon chuckled faintly through the distortion hiding his identity.

“I thought my title was just for show, but I guess not.”

Was he truly receiving full authority instead of a title?

To answer that, Ren responded without hesitation. “Since the head of the family appointed you personally, it’s only natural. From now on, all research facilities of the clan will operate under your command.”

Ren was overly submissive, drawing Se-Hoon’s suspicion. Was he being sincere, or did he have a hidden agenda? Regardless of which, Se-Hoon nodded anyway.

“Better that than leaving things to idiots who don’t even know what they’re making. The head of the family is at least somewhat wise.”

“…”

Among the bowing executives, one of them—the previous director—trembled with humiliation but dared not voice his displeasure. He had already been warned by Ren, who was in charge of the inspection.

“Anyone who forgets their place again, like during the meeting, will be punished immediately. This is a direct order from the family head—do not forget it.”

Before the family head’s command and the overwhelming power of someone that practically stood on the same level as the Perfect Ones, those of the Inoue family who had ruled others like slaves under the family’s name now found themselves in those same shoes. The reminder had then hammered it in, making the executives bow even deeper.

“Well, let’s talk as we go. Lead the way,” Se-Hoon remarked, waving his hand dismissively upon noticing the executives.

“Yes. This way…”

Wasting no time, the executives quickly guided the two. Ren, Se-Hoon, and Erika walked side by side, exiting the guesthouse to head into the underground research facility beneath the main estate.

Previously, when Se-Hoon had visited, he’d been too busy suppressing the Heaven’s Well runaway energy to observe the facility properly. Only now did he see that the secret lab was far more structured—and dangerous—than he’d imagined.

Bubble-

They passed by one area where they were conducting various spell experiments on demons and monsters they secretly obtained, using them to develop new shikigami. What caught Se-Hoon’s attention, though, was the shikigami transformation process—more specifically, the black sludge used for it.

The researchers dropped a demon, restrained with magic, into a pit filled with the black sludge, then poured in a materialized curse. The demon was only pulled out after a fermentation period, and its body would be etched with spell patterns like tattoos.

Having observed the process, Se-Hoon narrowed his eyes at the result.

Its demonic aura has reduced…

They had neutralized the demonic aura with curses and then processed the body into a shikigami using the black sludge, the Heaven’s Well—which was the same method used to transform humans corrupted by demonic aura into something new.

“What’s the success rate of that transformation process?” Se-Hoon asked, turning to Ren.

“It used to be around thirty percent, but it’s now up to ninety.”

“What changed?”

“There were improvements to the ritual formulas and other factors… but the biggest reason would be Lee Se-Hoon.”

“Him?”

Why was he suddenly brought up? Seeing the puzzled look on Se-Hoon, Ren responded with a smile.

“Ever since that friend adjusted Erika’s power, the controllability has increased exponentially. That caused the success rate of experiments involving Heaven’s Well—including this transformation process—to skyrocket.”

Hearing that, Se-Hoon glanced sideways at Erika, who stood quietly to his right. The body modifications Erika had undergone to stabilize Heaven’s Well had created a cascade of unforeseen effects within the Inoue family.

I thought they were just reacting to an urgent crisis at the time… but maybe they had everything prepared well in advance.

Taking in the situation, Se-Hoon gave the transforming demons and monsters one more look.

“Okay. Take me to the next area.”

“Understood.”

Thoroughly inspecting the rest of the upper layer of the underground facility—built almost like an inverted mirror of the estate above—Se-Hoon proceeded to the middle layer below.

Rumble-

The middle level centered around power systems that harnessed energy from the ley lines to refine the Heaven’s Well. At the heart, a project to revive bioweapons was underway.

Crunch- Snap-

A demon that had failed the transformation process lay on an operating table, dissected by the researchers to implant bioweapons made long ago. The demon’s body had mutated from head to toe, morphed into something wholly different from what it once was.

“Pass. Move it to recovery.”

“Understood.”

Following the demon being moved, Se-Hoon looked into the recovery room to observe.

“This is…”

There were people lying still as if dead, while multicolored flames flickered near their hearts: the Blessing of the Sacred Lantern. Recognizing the flames on sight, Se-Hoon’s eyes widened.

If the Blessing is working on them… does that mean they really have turned back into… humans?

Se-Hoon stared blankly, unable to look away.

Walking up beside him, Ren calmly explained. “This is a project to resurrect the heroes from the past sealed within the bioweapons. It was originally abandoned at the planning stage, deemed impossible, but…”

“…the Blessing of the Sacred Lantern has made it possible.”

The shikigami transformation process involved using a demon—its demonic aura purified—as a vessel to implant a bioweapon containing a soul into it. And now, with the Blessing of the Sacred Lantern, the ensuing surge of synesthetic mindscape could be calmed, thus reviving—or reconstructing—a hero of the past.

“Have you managed to awaken any successfully so far?”

“Thirteen. We initially planned to persuade them to work as researchers… but there were slight issues with their mana usage, so they’re currently undergoing rehabilitation at the training facility.”

To think they had successfully brought humans who had been overtaken by bioweapons back to life…. Discovering an unexpected project, Se-Hoon looked over the people in the room.

“This is quite intriguing. Send me all the data regarding this project by tonight.”

“I’ll have it ready.”

“Then I guess it’s time to head to the core facility.”

Wrapping up his inspection of the middle layer, Se-Hoon proceeded down to the lowest level: the laboratory where the Inoue clan’s core project, Heaven Reversal, was underway.

Woong-

The lower level had a strange, unique structure that was unlike the more conventional layout of the upper levels. The massive underground chamber was filled with darkness, but it wasn’t quite the same as the Heaven’s Well’s typical black sludge. It was clear and translucent, even somehow familiar to Se-Hoon.

“…Space?”

Modeled after the vast darkness beyond the planet’s atmosphere, the barrier formation simulated the universe itself. Studying the barrier formation that created it, Se-Hoon quickly understood its purpose.

“I see… so that’s how they increased assimilation rates.”

The end goal of the Inoue family was but one: harnessing the power of Perfect Ones without conquering the Tower of Heroes through spells to induce the assimilation. By replicating the upper world in the upper layer and placing the Heaven’s Well in the deepest location, they created a counterpart to the summit of the Towers. The idea was to use the symbolic symmetry to deceive the Golden Ring into recognizing someone as having achieved ascension—but they failed.

The old facilities couldn’t support that at all.

Far from synchronization, they could barely even suppress Heaven’s Well. Once Se-Hoon strengthened Erika’s abilities, however, countless resources had been freed that could put the facilities through a major overhaul. New areas, mirroring the heavens and space, were constructed to boost synchronization and stabilize the Heaven’s Well and allow for a smoother supply of power.

At this point, I suppose I’ve earned the title of research director myself.

What had been an attempt to save Erika had unexpectedly pushed the long-stalled Heaven Reversal project far, far forward. With a faint, crooked smile hidden behind the distortion on his face, Se-Hoon looked over the virtual universe that filled the lowest level.

“From the looks of it, you’re only using this as a control chamber for the Heaven’s Well. Are there no ongoing experiments here?”

“There was an attempt to observe space using the synchronization effect, but since nothing significant was detected, it was scrapped.”

“I see.”

Taking in the information, Se-Hoon recalled everything he had seen during the inspection so far.

While the facilities might have changed a lot, the overall plan remains the same.

Knowing that, Se-Hoon now needed to understand two things: what they intended to do with producing their own artificial Perfect One, and what would happen to Erika in that process.

I remember they answered the first with some nonsense about world peace… and the answer to the second one was hinted at long ago.

Se-Hoon recalled early last year, at the Noblesse event where he first met Ren. Back then, in his annoyance, he had stolen a glimpse of Ren’s past while Ren was distracted by a spell. In that memory, he had overheard a conversation between Ryuuma and Ren about Erika’s fate.

“If you wish to become the head of the family, you must discard even trivial emotions like familial love.”

“If it’s really necessary… I can discard it.”

“Then kill Erika. That will be the day you become the head.”

“I will definitely prove it to you.”

What Se-Hoon had always thought was merely a matter of succession was now painted in a new light with some deeper context.

They must need to kill Erika to complete the spell and become a Perfect One…

Of course, his guess raised several questions. Why would killing Erika—who was needed to control the Heaven’s Well—be necessary to complete the spell? And why was Ryuuma so insistent on the title of family head?

It might be related to how he perfectly neutralized the Open Gate spell I triggered yesterday.

Even though he had learned more about the Heaven-Reversal project during the inspection, the true aims of Ryuuma and Ren remained elusive. Determined to dig deeper, Se-Hoon turned away from the darkness filling the lowest level.

“That’ll be it for this inspection.”

“You won’t be looking at the innermost core?” Ren asked, surprised.

Though the other areas were important, the innermost core—where the Heaven’s Well itself was located—was unquestionably the most critical.

Glancing downward briefly, Se-Hoon replied, “I don’t see a point in going down now.”

“…What do you mean?”

“Since the death of the Phantomind, the link between the Seeker’s Eye and the Heaven’s Well must’ve been disrupted. You’re probably still recalibrating it, right? Am I wrong?”

With just one statement, Ren and the other executives froze. The current state of the innermost core that hadn’t even been disclosed to Erika… had been deduced by the man before them without so much as a glance?

“I could help you guys out for a bit, but if I mess with it the wrong way, your entire plan could collapse. You get what I’m saying, right?”

If anything went wrong during the calibration of the Seeker’s Eye and Heaven’s Well’s ownership, there truly was no telling what could happen. Understanding the implications, Ren erased his smile and bowed with a solemn expression.

“We appreciate your consideration.”

“It was my fault, so this much is fair. But…”—pausing, Se-Hoon calmly grabbed a lock of Erika’s hair—“I’d prefer it if you finished the work within two days. Otherwise, I might start doubting your intentions… and who knows what I might do to this ‘toy’ of yours.”

“…”

Remaining silent at the obvious threat for a moment, Ren raised his head and with his usual expression.

“I understand, Director. However… you should refrain from calling a blood relative of the family head such things.”

“Blood relative? Heh.”

Se-Hoon looked at Ren.

“You’re playing house with a half-finished product like this and calling it ‘family.’ That’s exactly why I say it’s a toy.”

“…”

“Both you and your father have such twisted tastes. Well, I suppose it’s a private matter… so I suppose I’ll respect that.” Releasing Erika’s hair, Se-Hoon smirked and added, “Anyway, if you want your so-called ‘little sister’ to stay in one piece, finish the job quickly. If not, I’ll speak to Ryuuma and have her removed.”

Leaving those words in the air, Se-Hoon turned and walked off with Erika following quietly, without a word.

“…”

“…”

The air was thick with tension; even breathing felt like a risk. Not wanting to be the one, the executives glanced at one another, silently urging each other to speak up. Before anyone did, though, Ren removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes.

“…Never thought I’d meet someone more insufferable than that bastard.”

With that mutter under his breath, Ren put his glasses back on and addressed the nervous executives.

“Tell the family head that we’ll focus on recalibrating the Heaven’s Well according to Director Akasha’s instructions.”

The executives quickly bowed and withdrew, leaving Ren alone in the dark chamber.

No moonlight. No stars. A virtual universe devoid of even starlight. Standing in that abyss-like darkness, a face came to Ren’s mind: a woman with black hair and violet eyes, bearing an emptiness not unlike Erika’s.

“Ren.”

Recalling the woman gently calling his name, Ren closed his eyes, a migraine setting in.

“…Mother.”

The whisper carried a murky mix of emotions.

***

Upon returning to the guesthouse from the underground facility, a sudden white ring spun in front of Se-Hoon’s eyes and began projecting the scene of Ren muttering to himself in the darkness.

Reading his lips, Se-Hoon tilted his head.

…Mother?

He’d only intended to test whether the Seeker’s Eye could pick up anything interesting by using the space-synchronized facility. In truth, he hadn’t been expecting to find out anything.

Guess that throwaway provocation actually worked.

Reviewing what he knew about Ryuuma’s wife—Ren’s mother—Se-Hoon went through the rest of his memories.

If my suspicions are right, she’s probably related to Succession.

The noble Inoue family hadn’t stood out during the early days of the war, yet they had shot straight to prominence later on. It was almost certain that the key to that shift lay in Ryuuma’s wife.

Might be worth digging into that lead.

He’d thought she was long dead and irrelevant, but Ren’s reaction suggested otherwise. Noting that he needed to contact Amir, Se-Hoon walked into the guesthouse.

Once inside, Erika naturally took his robe and began folding it neatly.

“Should I bring you breakfast?”

“Yeah… actually, wait. Hold on.”

Stopping Erika just as she was about to leave, Se-Hoon strengthened the security around the guesthouse and sat down.

“Before that, there’s something I want to check.”

“Check what?”

“There’s someone who’s an expert on this sort of thing. I want to ask them.”

As Erika watched curiously, Se-Hoon activated the power of Omniscience and connected with a bead bracelet deep within the planet.

“Oh, come on. That bastard’s off having fun again without even calling me—”

“That bastard?”

“…”

“…”

A few seconds of silence passed before Se-Hoon spoke again.

“Come on. Start explaining.”

Deep within the planet, the Seeker, faced with Se-Hoon’s cold demand—caught talking behind his back—scrambled to form a plan.

“…Can you make me a head and some knees real quick? So I can kneel right away…?”