Chapter 7 of the Regressor of the Fallen World

For a moment, everything went pitch black.

But my vision quickly returned.

Where am I? It feels like I just blinked, but the place has changed. I was in a laboratory just a moment ago, and now I'm outdoors.

In front of me, a vast hill stretched out, and to the left, dilapidated buildings were visible.

The paint was slightly peeling, but on one side of the building, it was clearly written.

It seems to be somewhere in Korea.

'What is this...?'

Kang Yebin recalled the system message she had just seen.

Memory output.

She distinctly remembered it being written that way. Perhaps because of that, the current situation felt like watching a first-person movie.

She didn't turn her head to confirm the Taegwang Apartments herself.

It was as if a camera was turning, and when someone turned their head in that direction, Kang Yebin's field of vision naturally followed.

When someone saw or heard something, it was like being an audience member in a first-person movie, where only that thing was visible or audible.

Thus, her field of vision also rose. It seemed her height had increased by a couple of heads.

In short, here, Kang Yebin had become someone else.

Without a mirror to reflect her face, she didn't know who she was, but she could tell that the person in her memory was a man.

"Combat formation—!"

The voice speaking was that of a man. Though it was hoarse, making it hard to distinguish the tone, it was definitely a man's voice.

And it seemed to be someone in a fairly high position.

The authority of a leader is often reflected in the scale and excellence of their subordinates...

The aura I felt from behind was not ordinary.

'Awakeners...?'

That thought was correct.

The moment he turned around.

Following the words he had just spoken in his memory.

"Combat formation—!"

"Combat formation—!"

...

"Combat formation—!"

"Combat formation—!"

The thousands of Awakeners lined up behind him repeated the command loudly.

In response to her order, thousands of Awakeners simultaneously drew their weapons and looked at her.

'...'

All of them were looking at her.

Even in reality, where there were only five, here, there were countless A-rank Hunters and Awakeners from the outer realms, whose auras were so strong that they couldn't be measured by the current Kang Yebin.

All of them were looking at her with eyes full of trust, waiting for her command.

'What is this...?'

She was puzzled.

Who is this person? Who is leading so many Awakeners?

And combat preparation? Are Awakeners fighting a war in Korea?

At that moment.

Boom—

The ground shook violently as if an earthquake had struck, and something appeared on the hill where the sunset was setting, casting a long shadow.

The shadow covered more than half of the ground. It was that big. Even from the distant horizon, it could easily cover half the sun.

It wasn't a building.

Roar—

A building couldn't roar and shake the air.

'There was such a thing...?'

It was a monster that Kang Yebin had never seen before.

And it wasn't just one large one.

Thud, thud, thud—

The ground shook again.

The rumbling came from one direction. The hill in front. What appeared there were more monsters.

Monsters kept joining, lining up side by side until they filled the horizon.

They completely covered the hill in black. The ground they stood on couldn't even be seen due to their sheer numbers.

Had the number of monsters killed by humans through the Gates over the past five years been more than this? She couldn't be sure.

"..."

The silence of thousands of Awakeners.

To Kang Yebin, it seemed natural.

And the end of the world.

The word came to mind.

However.

Roar—

The person in her memory faced it boldly.

Emitting an overwhelming aura, he displayed his presence.

With thousands of eyes on his back, he stared at the horde of monsters.

With his excellent vision, he could see far into the distance.

Thus, Kang Yebin could see it clearly too.

"Damn turncoats."

At that moment, someone muttered from behind.

'Turncoats?'

Thanks to her excellent vision, it didn't take long to understand the meaning of the word.

Among the house-sized monsters—

'Humans?'

Half of their bodies were no different from monsters, but the other half was just like 'humans.'

Kekekekekeke.

Even with half of their face covered in plants, they were grinning grotesquely.

The smile was disgustingly repulsive, but it clearly contained some emotion. They were probably human. So, they were probably turncoats.

'How many are there...?'

Their exact number was unknown due to the monsters blocking the view, but the visible number alone seemed several times more than the Awakeners gathered here.

Had so many people joined forces with the monsters?

Looking at them, the person in her memory bit her lip and clenched her fists tightly.

Then, he roared as loudly as the giant monsters.

"Charge! Absolutely don't let them into the city!"

With those words, Kang Yebin's vision went dark again.

That was all the memory output.

* * *

Kang Yebin returned to reality.

Her legs gave out, and she collapsed, but I caught her.

Given that the memory was recalled calmly, it probably only shared the five senses.

Still, she must have grasped the situation to some extent. She's smart, after all.

She trembled and nearly fainted. I carried her and laid her on the sofa in one corner of the lab.

I pulled a chair over and sat next to her as she slowly took deep breaths. She asked in a trembling voice.

"What is this?"

"I don't know exactly. It's an artifact called the Memory Vault, obtained from the Gate... As you experienced, it shows a certain memory."

"But why?"

I lied, coming up with a reason she could accept.

"I also saw a memory from the artifact and followed what I saw."

"Followed what you saw?"

"Today, I came here to show you the magic circuit and to use the artifact on you."

"Seeing a part of the future memory in the artifact and acting accordingly? Just like you came to me?"

"Yes."

I had no intention of revealing everything to her.

I didn't want to implant the memories of a man who had lived for over 40 years into a 24-year-old woman.

-Or, do you want to be pampered? Since I trust you, Shin Hyuk, there's no need for you to know everything, right?

I hoped the future her would do the same. Knowing a bleak future would make her feel like she was living on borrowed time.

However, she needed to do a lot for me, regardless of that.

"I'll ask again. I want to recruit you into the clan."

Another recruitment offer.

"What else did you see in the memory?"

And her counter-question.

"What...?"

It was an understandable question.

If the memory seen through the artifact was the future, then my current story would mean I saw a different future from the one I showed her.

She would naturally be curious about that.

Some explanation would be necessary for recruitment, but I lied again.

"You said, 'You'll find out later.' That's what you said in the memory I saw."

I would gradually reveal parts of the future to her.

Through her as a clan member, I would release the information I wanted, just to the extent I wanted.

This was also what the future her had hoped for.

"Then, all the conversations we've had so far were...?"

I nodded, giving a false answer.

"If you saw the future, then you must know what I'm going to say now, right?"

She looked at me with a probing gaze, trying to understand my intentions. I met her eyes without flinching.

"Of course."

"Then, in the memory you saw, what did I say—"

I cut her off.

-If I did this, she would definitely go along with it. If I were in her shoes, I would.

With strong confidence, I answered.

"Welcome, clan member Kang Yebin."

"..."

The sudden appearance of a complete magic circuit.

Knowing that she was researching it and finding her precisely, the man named Park Shin Hyuk.

The strange phenomenon of hearing her thoughts from someone else's mouth.

The plausibility of my lies.

The future memory she saw with her own eyes. The monsters and turncoats she saw there.

The establishment of the clan to stop them and the recruitment offer to her.

As a reason for her to accept the offer, having lived for the sake of humanity until her death, it was sufficient.

Add to that the technology of the magic circuit, and the current Kang Yebin would be swayed by the future Kang Yebin's plan.

"..."

She nodded slightly.

"Then, do you have any other clan members in mind besides me?"

"I saw the memory yesterday and came to you today. You are the first."

"What are your future plans?"

"The memory I saw was about two hours long, and I plan to prepare and continue modifying it accordingly."

"Hmm..."

She quietly expressed her acceptance.

"I'll take a short nap, so don't go anywhere. When I wake up, you must tell me about the magic circuit and breaking the mana stone."

"Of course."

"And I hope we can work well together."

"Me too."

I answered happily.

Six days before the first Gate Break, she had something to do right away.

* * *

"Haaa. Is this right...?"

Kang Yebin was getting her makeup done. She rarely did it, so she came to a shop because she wasn't confident in her skills.

"Oh, customer. Is there something you don't like?"

"No, it's not about the makeup."

She looked in the mirror. Her appearance was perfect.

She was known as a goddess in the engineering department. The early admission and early entry into university made her hear that from a young age, and now at 24—

"Ahem."

Anyway, the person in the mirror was beautiful.

She asked Park Shin Hyuk, who was waiting in a chair behind her.

"How does it look?"

"It's not bad. You didn't need to, but now that you did—"

"Now that I did?"

Now that I did?

Who is he trying to help?

"Hmm—"

Hold it.

He is now the clan leader.

She was doing this for him. Not to look good for him, but because he asked her to make a video.

She was convinced by his argument that making a video was the most effective way to promote the clan.

What could she do?

She agreed to join the clan, and the clan leader was an E-rank Hunter, and she, the only clan member, was only a D-rank.

Moreover, her abilities were inventory and time slip, both non-combat abilities, so they needed promotion...

"Hmm... If this fails, I'll hate you for the rest of my life. Remember that."

"I already saw it in the artifact. It will definitely succeed."

Yes, that was the decisive factor. He saw in the future memory that the promotional video would be a huge success.

Judging from what has happened so far... Since none of his words have been wrong, she had no choice but to accept it, even if it meant being deceived.

That's why she was getting her makeup done.

Anyway, whether it fails or not, she was putting her face on the line to make a promotional video, so it was better to look good.

"Can you make the eyeliner a bit darker?"

"It looks good now. Your features are already distinct, so—"

"It's for the broadcast lights. Make it like stage makeup, please."

"Okay... Sir."

Even if it's just a rough job.

She heard Park Shin Hyuk muttering behind her, but Kang Yebin didn't back down. What did someone who used such a face know?

She scanned Park Shin Hyuk from head to toe.

Even if he was a porter and wore work clothes... Wasn't the military uniform a bit much?

"Hey."

Does he even know the word 'dress up'?