Chapter 68

I Am Not a Reincarnator Chapter 68

Mind, Spirit, Body (1)

It hurts.

It hurts so much.

If I exaggerate a bit, it feels like I got hit right in the testicles with a fully charged soccer ball.

But the pain doesn’t last long.

This is fucking endless.

“Gaaaah.”

A miserable groan, as if the last surviving member of an ancient vampire clan had been caught by hunters after a relentless chase and thrown into the sunlight, escaped his lips.

[Hmph. You fool.]

Huh?

He lifted his head at the familiar voice coming from beside him.

“V… Vega?”

Silver hair, as beautiful as if made of starlight, and golden eyes.

A goddess of breathtaking beauty gazed down at him intently.

[Are you feeling better?]

Her gentle hand stroked his forehead.

It wasn’t the small hand of a doll, but the touch of her true form.

‘What’s going on?’

He looked around, wondering if he was in the sanctuary, but he was lying in the new house that Haeun had saved him in.

“How can you be in this form….”

[We’ll talk about it later.]

She pressed Ojin’s forehead, preventing him from sitting up.

[Rest now.]

Ojin lay back down, feeling the warm touch on the back of his neck.

‘No.’

He had just regained consciousness and hadn’t noticed.

Thinking about it, he realized he was lying on Vega’s thigh, not a pillow.

‘What kind of situation is this?’

His last memory was of barely making it home after the battle with Ashad Khan and collapsing.

He didn’t know how much time had passed since then.

“Why is this happening?”

[Shh. Didn’t I tell you to rest?]

Vega pinched his cheek lightly, as if scolding a misbehaving child.

[Really….]

Her voice softened.

[Even though I asked you not to, you always push yourself too hard.]

“……”

Honestly, there’s nothing to say this time.

He really was on the brink of death.

[Oh, you naughty child.]

“Aaaah.”

She pulled his cheek, stretching it.

[Ha.]

A deep sigh escaped her lips.

She tousled Ojin’s hair and smiled faintly.

[Even after causing so much trouble, seeing you awake makes me forget to scold you… Have you cast some spell on me?]

She continued to stroke his hair with a caring smile.

“Eh, um.”

Receiving Vega’s motherly touch, he felt like a three-year-old child.

‘Is this… a mother’s touch?’

Vega Maman.

‘Ugh.’

The word that suddenly popped into his head made his stomach churn.

Still, the touch was so comforting that he completely forgot about the terrible pain.

“This much should be enough… Gah!”

But it was still too early to move.

As soon as he tried to sit up, a sharp pain shot through his body.

[Oh no. You shouldn’t move.]

Vega pulled Ojin’s shoulder, laying him back down.

[Do you need something?]

“Eh? No, not really.”

He felt like he would lose something important as a human if he just lay there.

[Oh, right. You must be thirsty.]

Vega picked up a glass of water from the bedside table and brought it to his lips.

[This is my holy water. Drink it freely.]

No.

Lady, that sounds really weird.

[Hehe. Just a joke. It’s just regular water.]

“……”

She propped up the back of his head slightly and tilted the cup.

The cold water slid down his throat.

“Ha.”

It must have been a long time since he passed out.

The refreshing sensation of the water seeping into each cell was invigorating.

[Have you finished?]

Vega wiped his mouth carefully with a tissue.

“……”

There’s nothing to say now.

“…What happened?”

Lying on Vega’s thigh, he demanded an explanation of the situation.

[You were unconscious for four days.]

“Huh.”

Four days?

Well, considering he woke up three days after using Excid, four days might not be too long.

[Since you didn’t wake up, Haeun came to the sanctuary to find me… and coincidentally, the period of my ‘restriction’ had just ended, so I came here.]

Ah.

That’s how it happened.

“But how can you be in this form?”

She usually lived outside the sanctuary as a small figure, about 30 cm tall, and could only be active for about three hours a day.

[Hmm. To be honest, I’m not sure why.]

“Not sure?”

[For a few days now… yes, since the day you passed out, the ‘Law’’s restriction has weakened.]

Vega raised her hand lightly.

-Zap!

Blue lightning sparked from her fingertips.

[Now I can use my power freely, without any restrictions. I can manifest for up to six hours a day… and although I can’t maintain it for long, I can appear in my true form.]

“Huh.”

The restriction of the Law suddenly weakened?

‘What’s the cause?’

If it started the day he fought Ashad Khan, could it be related to him?

‘I reached the 5th rank, the Black Heaven’s fourth blossoming, and a new quest appeared.’

He accomplished a lot that day, so it was hard to pinpoint the exact cause.

‘It could just be a coincidence, or there might be a different reason.’

There wasn’t enough evidence to determine the cause right now.

Anyway.

“If the restriction is weaker, can you freely bestow blessings now?”

If so, he would be willing to do cartwheels in his underwear.

He had felt the immense power of the sanctuary’s blessings during his battle with Ashad Khan.

[Not quite.]

“Ah.”

What a shame.

[Hmm! But during your battles, I can provide simple support instead of just watching.]

Zap!

Vega changed the blue lightning from her fingertips into various shapes, raising her nose.

A dragon, a cat, a dog, a wolf, a complex and strange pattern, and even Ojin’s face.

The lightning changed shape freely, like liquid slime.

‘Wow. What is this?’

Ojin’s mouth dropped open.

He couldn’t even imagine the level of mastery required to control lightning so freely.

‘For a sanctuary, this might be normal, but…’

Still, seeing her handle lightning so effortlessly was awe-inspiring.

“Hehe. I’ll look forward to it.”

[Hehe. Expect more from me.]

Vega puffed out her chest.

“Haha! I will, Lady.”

He laughed and sat up.

He felt a slight pain, but it was bearable.

[You can stay in bed a bit longer, you know….]

Vega stroked her thigh, where Ojin had been lying, with a disappointed look.

“I’m fine now.”

[Alright.]

Vega’s body was enveloped in silver light and returned to its usual small size.

Pew.

She flew through the air and landed on his shoulder, clapping her hands.

[Oh, by the way, be careful.]

“Huh?”

Be careful of what?

[Hehe. Isn’t there someone even more angry than me?]

Ah.

Now that he thought about it.

“Where is my sister….”

-Bang!

The door was roughly opened before he could finish.

“Oh, Ojin is awake?!”

Haeun burst in, looking like she had rushed over.

She entered the room and glared sharply at Ojin.

“You, you little brat!!!”

She grabbed his collar and shook him roughly.

“Do you know how worried I was, you bad kid?!”

Tears welled up in the corner of her right eye.

“Sorry, sister.”

“This isn’t going to end with just an apology….”

“Quiet, lizard woman.”

A silver wolf walked into the room, cutting off Haeun’s words.

“Riaq?”

“Warriors grow by risking their lives in battle. If you keep coddling him, he won’t become a true warrior.”

Grr.

Riaq snorted.

“…What do you mean by ‘lizard woman’?”

Haeun frowned and looked at Riaq.

“Grr. You are the apostle of the Dragon constellation. Therefore, you are a lizard woman.”

“I have a proper name, Song Haeun.”

“Hmph! I have no intention of remembering the name of a human female!”

Riaq snorted and turned her head.

“No cup ramen for a week.”

“Haeun. I understand your frustration because of that ignorant human. I empathize with you.”

What is this kid doing?

“Why is Riaq here?”

He asked Vega.

[Didn’t I say the restriction has weakened? Thanks to that, my spirit can now leave the sanctuary and be active like this.]

“Wow.”

[Of course, my power is still greatly restricted… but I can still contribute significantly.]

He didn’t know how much her power was restricted.

But with a strong being like Riaq, just her presence would be a great help.

“Hmph. Even with my power restricted, I can handle a weakling like you with one paw!”

Riaq snarled and swiped her front paw.

Seeing her act like a large dog playing with its owner was quite cute.

[Anyway.]

Vega narrowed her eyes and pulled Ojin’s ear.

[Can you tell me what happened that day now?]

“I won’t let you go until you tell me everything from start to finish.”

Haeun stuck to his side and grabbed his arm tightly.

“Phew! Fine. I’ll explain, so stop nagging.”

Ojin explained everything that happened that day, except for the Black Heaven.

[Such a tragic event….]

“Hmm. So that’s why the atmosphere was so gloomy?”

Hearing about Jang Seokho, they sighed and their expressions hardened.

“But did you really defeat a 7th rank Awakened?”

“Huh.”

“Even as the apostle of the North Star, that’s hard to believe… Is the Lyra constellation’s scar that powerful?”

Haeun looked at Vega, disbelieving.

[Hehe! With the scar of the sanctuary, the difference in ‘ranks’ can be easily ignored!!]

Vega, who had been boasting with her arms crossed, suddenly sighed deeply.

[That’s what I’d like to say, but honestly, defeating an Awakened three ranks higher is hard to believe even for me.]

For the sanctuary to say it directly.

‘Actually, it was an 8th rank, not a 7th rank.’

Ojin chuckled.

“Well, to be honest, it was a close call.”

If it hadn’t rained, he wouldn’t have won.

[Phew. Given the situation, I can’t blame you for using Excid.]

Vega sighed deeply and shook her head.

[Anyway, did you really reach the 5th rank? I find it hard to believe.]

Vega said this while getting up from his shoulder and slipping into his T-shirt.

“Aaaah! What is this woman doing?!”

Haeun panicked and pulled Vega out of Ojin’s shirt.

[Oh, that’s disrespectful to the sanctuary.]

“That’s disrespectful, you!”

[Ojin is my proud child. Examining his body is my duty.]

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

Haeun snarled.

[…Anyway.]

Vega stuck out her tongue at Ojin.

[You really did reach the 5th rank.]

She shook her head, disbelieving.

“Hmm. Anyway, brat. Did you say your lightning skill reached level 9?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

In an extreme state, maintaining mana and other factors led to a sudden and explosive increase in the lightning skill’s level.

“Ha. You crazy monster.”

Riaq whistled, clearly impressed.

The news that the lightning skill had reached level 9 was quite shocking.

“Anyway, keep practicing your lightning skill. It’s a core skill of the Lyra constellation.”

“I know.”

The rise in levels of other skills due to the lightning skill’s influence was easy to see.

“And when it reaches level 10.”

Snick.

Riaq smiled.

“A whole new world will open up.”

“A new world?”

Ojin looked at Riaq with interest.

“Is there that much difference between level 9 and level 10?”

“Of course. When a skill reaches level 10, it ‘evolves.’ The rewards are immense.”

“Wow.”

Is that so?

“The rewards are great, but reaching level 10 from level 9 won’t be easy.”

“What do you get when you reach level 10?”

“Hehe. I’ll show you once.”

Riaq smiled and took a few steps back.

“Watch closely, brat.”

Zap! Zap!!

Blue lightning enveloped Riaq’s body.

“This is the powerful secret technique you can obtain when your lightning skill reaches level 10.”

The blue lightning gathered at the corner of Riaq’s mouth.

And then.

“─Light Flame!”

Whoosh!

Blue flames fiercely erupted from the corner of her mouth.

“Huh?”

Light Flame?

“I can do that too.”

Ojin raised his hand lightly.

Whoosh!

Blue flames formed in his palm.

“…Huh?”

Riaq’s mouth dropped open.