Regressor Instruction Manual
Chapter 1197. The Demon King of Sunset’s Castle (17)

Chapter 1197. The Demon King of Sunset’s Castle (17)

‘What the hell does that jerk want me to do?’

It was such a baffling hit-and-run that I couldn’t understand his intentions at all. I knew he lacked communication skills, but I couldn’t help but think it was worse than I thought.

‘What was I supposed to do when you left just like that...’

Naturally, I recalled his behavior last night.

I shouted, “What?” and tried to grab him, but the lonely march of the embodiment of pride was unstoppable. He walked so fast that he literally disappeared in the blink of an eye. No matter how hard I thought about it, his actions were beyond his normal behavior, so it was really shocking.

That was not all.

What was even more absurd than last night was—

‘This jerk is seriously...’

—the fact that he pretended like nothing had happened the next day.

“Is there something on my face?” Woo Hyo-Yeol asked.

‘No, you jerk.’

“Hmph.”

‘What on earth is wrong with him?’

'What is causing Woo Hyo-Yeol to turn into a monster obsessed with pride?'

I woke up a little earlier than usual and ate breakfast. Normally, I would wake up a bit late and eat a light meal on my own, but everyone ended up gathering in the morning thanks to the influence of last night's events.

Some were suffering from a hangover, so Nam Goong-Seon cast a spell to help them feel better, but despite that, No Dam-Hye and Lim Chae-Ryeong still didn’t look so good.

“Ack... I think I drank way too much. I shouldn’t have done that... If something happens...” Lim Chae-Ryeong mumbled.

“I’m... kind of worried as well. I shouldn’t have done that...” I said.

“You shouldn’t say that, Mr. Lee Ki-Young. It already happened... so it’s not good to regret it. Think of it as a small escape after a long time and just enjoy it. Anyway, those who have done rebellious things before do it better... You were the type who only studied even back on Earth, right?” Lim Chae-Ryeong asked.

“Ah... well, yes...” I answered.

“I’m sure all you did was study... You seem like that type of person,” Lim Chae-Ryeong said.

“Haha...” I laughed.

“Living too strictly is bad. You need to have events like last night to refresh and improve your work efficiency. Sometimes, you need to postpone today's work and do it tomorrow,” Lim Chae-Ryeong continued.

“Don’t act like you’re an expert at becoming a piece of trash, kid,” Woo Hyo-Yeol chimed in.

“Ah... are you serious, Hyo-Yeol oppa?!” Lim Chae-Ryeong yelled.

Woo Hyo-Yeol was the only person who looked fine, and perhaps he couldn't remember what had happened last night, as he was bantering with Lim Chae-Ryeong as usual.

Even when I stared at him, his expression remained unchanged.

Instead, he looked at me straight with a sense of superiority. I even thought...

‘Is he Dumb Hyo-Yeol?’

Was he thinking the same thing? Was he drunk last night? Had something else happened last night? Or had he erased the things he said last night from his mind?

I looked at him using Mind’s Eye, but I couldn't see any brainwashing debuffs. Perhaps he thought he had made a mistake because he looked like he wanted to erase his confession about being a regressor.

‘Why are you acting like nothing happened?’

I felt like he was feeling embarrassed because the other party members were here. This was the thought I had, but when the other party members were gone, his attitude didn’t change.

“Are you going to rest today, Mr. Lee Ki-Young?” Lim Chae-Ryeong asked.

“No, I... need to check the status of the side quest... and encourage the troops like I normally do. I’m also getting tired of lying in bed all day...” I answered.

“What about Hyo-Yeol oppa?” Lim Chae-Ryeong asked.

“I don’t think he has any other plans... so I think it might be best if he accompanies me...” I replied.

‘You’ll go with me, right?’

He wasn’t saying anything, so he had to have agreed to accompany me, but...

“Mr. Hyo-Yeol... about yesterday...” I said.

“Hmph.”

If I showed even the slightest hint of bringing up what happened last night, he wouldn't say anything. There was this unspoken pressure not to mention it. My plan to increase our synchronization rate with his regression confession event had gone down the drain.

‘Actually, maybe there is some progress.’

The method was kind of strange, but the fact that he brought it up first was progress.

In addition...

‘What the? I think... our synchronization has improved.’

I wasn’t mistaken. When I quietly triggered a fake story, I felt something a bit different from before. Unlike before, when I could only see fragmented scenes, I could clearly feel his senses.

He had to have felt that something was off because he examined himself.

“What did you do?” Woo Hyo-Yeol asked.

“I think our bond has strengthened a bit,” I answered.

“Hmm... come to think of it, I never asked about that power of yours. What is it?” Woo Hyo-Yeol asked.

“I don’t really know either, and it doesn’t show on my status window. Considering the circumstances, I think it’s probably a power above the law of the system, but...” I paused.

“Is this something you can do with others?” Woo Hyo-Yeol questioned.

“No, you’re the only person I can do this with. As you already know, I did something similar to Mr. William, but that was different from this. I never imagined that I could do something like this. Ah! Also... I decided to call it Soul Binding,” I replied.

“Soul Binding?” he asked.

“Yes. I mean, it’s not wrong,” I said.

‘The wording is important.’

The words "Soul Binding" suggested that there was a special bond between us.

“I’m sure you’ll understand it. It's like you instantly understand what I want and the path I’m looking at. It's like our souls are connected... It’s not just for you, but for me as well. At first, we could only share fragmented scenes from our point of view, but...” I paused.

“Hmph.”

“I think we can finally share our senses as well. I can’t help but think it’s a gift from the will that led me to Rohen—”

“Wait. You said you came here to help me, right?” Woo Hyo-Yeol interrupted me.

“That’s right,” I answered.

‘I’m the only one who’s been talking. He’s starting to make me feel really angry.’

“I don’t... really know the details either, and I can’t really remember much... but I know it’s something I must do,” I told him.

“What did you say?” Woo Hyo-Yeol questioned.

“I knew from the beginning that I had to help you. I knew instinctively that was the reason I was brought here. Despite the fact that no one taught me... or informed me about it... I even thought maybe the GENIUSES were behind it, but...” I paused.

“...”

“I have a feeling... that might not be the case. Come to think of it... Mr. Hyo-Yeol... last night, you said something important—”

“I don’t want to talk about me,” Woo Hyo-Yeol interrupted.

‘This jerk is the biggest asshole.’

It was like he was ignoring me.

He kept ending the conversation, so the topic had to be a difficult one for him to discuss.

He wasn’t as bad as Kim Hyun-Sung, who constantly apologized, but there were parts he definitely didn't want to talk about because he continued behaving that way.

I felt like he was worried that he would hear something he never wanted to hear, but it was unlike him to act that way.

Perhaps he was trying to make sure that our bond wouldn't break.

‘If that’s not the case, there’s no reason for him to avoid it like this.’

He was drawn in by the words like "trust and faith." It was to the extent that he revealed a part of himself, but there was still a part of him that subconsciously felt that something was off.

In short, the reason he wanted to avoid talking about it was that he didn’t want to know the truth. It was like he wanted to completely block out the possibility of reaching the bad ending.

However, this was the best-case scenario for me. From a less generous angle, it could be nothing more than Woo Hyo-Yeol being fickle, which, of course, made me feel uncomfortable.

‘Actually, the latter seems more likely.’

Based on his actions so far...

‘Maybe he’s just too lazy to explain it.’

Since he had never really been good at explaining himself.

Anyway, Woo Hyo-Yeol and I were carrying out tasks that weren’t really considered tasks. It was time to encourage the troops or discuss the plans for the next step.

As soon as I came back to my senses, I heard a voice. “Miss Jung Ha-Yan and Miss Han Sora are almost done removing the barrier to the Cursed Elf Queen’s Garden. They’ll probably be done in the afternoon or tomorrow...”

“I see,” I said.

“We received news that the reconnaissance team has found a new path, but...”

“If the report is accurate, does that mean we can pass through the Shadow Corridor?” I asked.

“That’s right.”

“All right. What does everyone else think about this? Passing through the Shadow Corridor...” I asked.

“May we first ask for your opinion, Saint Lee Ki-Young?”

‘Honestly...’

If the expedition team had formidable stats, then there was no reason for us to avoid it.

‘It is dangerous to take on the corridor that branches out into hundreds of paths...’

“...”

‘I don’t think the rewards are going to be good either...’

We successfully made a safe zone in the lower floors... but there was no guarantee that we could create a camp like this in the upper floors. The right decision was to save as much energy as possible before heading up there.

Moreover, Shadow Assassin Lian sounded like a weak named NPC.

It was the perfect place for a messy, chaotic fight, and like any weak named NPC, Lian probably had an annoying mechanic. It was probably best to say that it’d be tiring rather than difficult.

From the way the detour was set up, the Demon King’s Castle had named beings we didn’t necessarily have to fight, but...

‘We still need more experience.’

“It’s not something that can be easily decided... unless we can confirm that the detour is safe. Even if we have to go around, I think passing the Shadow Corridor is the right choice,” I told them.

“Understood.”

“Then what is our next destination?”

“It’ll probably be the Cursed Elf Queen Elena’s Inner Garden. I’ll need to take a closer look, but I believe it’ll be easier to clear than the Collection Manager,” I answered.

“I see.”

“The next part is the issue. It’s the Mad Council where we have to face the remaining three at once. They are going to be the hardest named beings to tackle before we face the Demon King,” I told them.

‘That’s why we need to raise our stats...’

That was the reason I accepted the side quest.

“Then, when are you planning on leaving?”

“I’m coordinating the departure to match the opening of the barrier. Unless something unexpected happens, I’m planning on leaving in two days, so please ready the troops by then,” I ordered.

“Okay.”

“Understood.”

The slightly longer meeting finally ended later that night. The expedition team, which had left to rescue Lee Chang-Ryeol, returned the next morning.

‘I wonder if this jerk is going to pretend not to know anything today, too.’

Just then, I felt pain in one of my eyes.

I checked the mirror and saw that my eye was gleaming with a golden light.

And then...

“What the hell... Shit... What the heck...”

All I did was blink, but it was nighttime again.

To my disbelief... an entire day’s worth of memories had inexplicably vanished.

“What the hell is going on...” I mumbled.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.