Chapter 93

I Am Not a Regressor Chapter 93

Ancient Constellations (4)

“What do you want to eat?”

Haeun asked, pulling on his arm.

“I don’t know.”

There wasn’t anything he particularly craved.

“How about tteokbokki?”

He had once seen a news article stating that tteokbokki was the favorite food of women in their 20s.

‘But my sister isn’t in her 20s.’

Though her age had changed to start with a 3 when the year changed,

Judging by her appearance, she could easily pass for her early 20s.

‘The higher the rank, the slower the aging process, right?’

He had also heard that high-ranking Awakened individuals above 9th rank don’t age at all.

‘Well, it’s not really relevant anyway.’

After all, even if she became a hunched old lady, nothing would change.

“Tteokbokki? We could go for something more expensive, you know.”

“Just because I want to.”

“Hehe. Okay! Let’s go for tteokbokki then!”

Haeun and he headed to a nearby snack shop.

While eating tteokbokki, sundae, and fried food,

“Did you hear? They opened a Non-Awakened Security Center in Daerim-dong too.”

“Really? The Association built it?”

“Yeah. The guilds don’t care about areas outside their territory.”

“True.”

He overheard two men sitting next to them chatting.

“Seeing this, it seems like only the Association cares about Non-Awakened people.”

“But… it’s not that simple.”

“Huh? Why?”

The man with dark skin sighed and continued.

“The executives are managing the centers now, but the Association President said the budget is too high and wants to reduce the number of Security Centers.”

“What?”

“Originally, they were supposed to open a center to manage both Guro-dong and Daerim-dong, but the President opposed it, so the executives had to use their own money to set up the center.”

“Damn. We’re not even human to them?”

“Seriously, they’re so focused on the large guilds and don’t even know who pays their taxes.”

The two men continued to curse the Association President.

‘…The President opposed the expansion of the centers?’

He hadn’t heard this from any of the directors.

‘I should ask about it later.’

Whether it was just a rumor or if there was a real reason behind it, he needed to verify.

‘Anyway… the President’s image among Non-Awakened people is really bad.’

It was inevitable, given the Black Star Society’s nature of continuously implementing policies for Non-Awakened people.

‘The problem is that it’s not out of pure intentions.’

He recalled the document he received from Jang Seok-ho.

Non-Awakened people who received the ‘Black Star’s Mark’ to become Awakened have a significantly reduced lifespan.

‘At least they’re just living shorter lives.’

Oh Jin frowned.

The document from Jang Seok-ho was filled with information about Black Star Society members who couldn’t adapt to the Black Star’s Mark, turning into madmen or grotesque, melted creatures.

‘It’s a structure that inevitably has side effects.’

Each person has a mark that suits them.

If they forcibly accept a different mark, their entire body’s energy and blood flow will twist, leading to instant death.

‘Like Lee Shin-hyuk.’

Especially for Non-Awakened people, many of them were cases where the mark didn’t suit their bodies and they weren’t chosen by the constellations.

Forcing them to accept a mark would naturally lead to side effects.

“Ugh? What are you doing?”

Haeun asked, dipping a hot fried food into the tteokbokki sauce and taking a bite.

“Nothing.”

Oh Jin followed her and put the remaining tteokbokki in his mouth.

“Phew! That was delicious!”

After finishing the meal,

Haeun stretched and patted her stomach as they stepped outside.

“What should we do now?”

“What else? We should go home and practice.”

He hadn’t practiced satisfactorily today because of the visit to the Association.

“Come on, it’s a waste to go home right after coming out.”

Haeun pouted and pinched his side.

“Let’s go for a drive!”

“Hmm.”

Well, since he usually focuses intensely on practice, taking a break once in a while might not be bad.

“Then let’s call Vega and Reak too.”

“Huh? Why them?”

“We haven’t shown them around Seoul properly. They must be bored always staying at the sanctuary. It would be good to take them out now.”

“Ugh.”

Haeun puffed her cheeks, clearly not happy.

“I wanted to go around with just the two of us.”

“What? I didn’t hear you clearly.”

Obviously a lie.

Thanks to his enhanced hearing from reaching 5th rank, he heard her clearly.

“Ahem! Never mind!”

Oh, why is my sister so cute?

“Hehe. Should I call them then?”

Oh Jin got into the car parked in the lot and touched his necklace.

-Hum!

A light emitted from the silver necklace, and Vega and Reak appeared.

[Is something wrong?]

“No, not really.”

Oh Jin started the car and continued.

“I thought we could go for a drive with my sister, so I called you along.”

[Drive…?]

“It means going out in the car to enjoy the scenery or visit places.”

[Oh! That sounds great! I’ve been wanting to see the human world leisurely!]

Vega’s eyes sparkled as she stuck to Oh Jin’s head.

[But… are you the one driving?]

She asked with a worried look, perhaps remembering a past nightmare.

“I drive well now, don’t worry.”

[Hmm. I’ll trust you.]

Vega swallowed and nodded.

“Grr. I thought you’d call for something important, but it’s just this?”

Reak clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“A true warrior should never neglect training! How can you have time for sightseeing?!”

Click.

Saying that, he quickly opened the car door, sat in the back seat, and stuck his head out the window.

“Pretending you don’t like it when you clearly do.”

“L-like it? A true warrior wouldn’t get excited about sightseeing!”

-Swish.

No.

Swinging his tail enthusiastically while saying that.

“Ahem! Just a little! I’m just a little curious about the human world!”

Reak quickly lowered his tail and shouted.

“Still, you and Vega often watch TV at home, right?”

Recently, Vega and Reak had been sitting in front of the TV, studying the human world by watching dramas, news, and movies.

Especially Reak, who seemed to like sports channels, had spent days binge-watching baseball and soccer, which were popular before the gates appeared.

‘He talks about the warrior’s spirit, but does he even understand the rules?’

[Hehe. Still, watching TV and seeing things in person are different, right?]

Vega pulled on his hair and blew a raspberry.

“Haha! That’s true.”

Oh Jin slowly drove around Seoul.

The densely packed high-rise buildings and the busy people on the streets.

[…So many people live here.]

Vega, sitting on Oh Jin’s head, looked at the streets with a wistful gaze.

“Is this your first time seeing it?”

[This is the first time I’ve observed it so leisurely.]

“Hmm. But didn’t the constellations say they were the guardians of Earth?”

Shouldn’t they know the Earth better than ordinary people?

[The constellations can only know the fate, existence, and crises of stars. They can’t know how each being on a star lives.]

Ah.

[Well… in the case of constellations with many apostles, some have extensive knowledge of the human world. But I didn’t have apostles before you… so this is the first time I’ve observed human life up close.]

“I should have shown you earlier.”

If he had known, he would have taken her out more often.

[Hehe. Don’t think that. I’m happy just to be with you.]

Vega patted his forehead and smiled warmly.

[Let’s go out and see the world together more often.]

“Of course, my lady.”

In the past, he avoided spending time with her due to the pressure of pretending to be a regressor.

But after gaining a solid trust, that pressure had significantly decreased.

He even felt guilty for how easily she believed his lies.

‘Maybe… I should reveal everything?’

That he’s not a regressor.

That he’s the master of the Black Heaven.

‘…No.’

It was too late to turn back.

The deeper the trust, the greater the betrayal would be.

Even if they became closer, he couldn’t reveal all the truths to her.

[Oh! My child! What is that place called a PC room?]

Well, let’s forget the complicated stuff and enjoy the drive for now.

“It’s a place where people play computer games.”

[Computer? Games?]

“Hmm.”

Explaining this would take forever.

“Grr! Kid! What’s that place called Ramen Paradise?!”

“A ramen shop that sells various types of ramen.”

“Valhalla!”

“No, it’s not.”

When did this guy become a ramen villain?

He looks like he could eat a whole raw chicken.

[My child! What about that place called ‘Go Go Bang’?]

“It’s a kalguksu restaurant.”

What’s with the name, damn it.

[Then what about ‘Flower Chue’?]

“It sells flower tea and churros.”

No.

[Hmm. Then what does that place called ‘Adult Goods Store’ sell?]

I want to know too.

What could they possibly sell to have such a name?

[There are many interesting shops!]

Indeed.

I’m especially curious about the Adult Goods Store.

“…Why do you only find these kinds of places?”

Haeun, sitting next to him, rubbed her forehead as if it hurt.

I agree.

[My child! My child! Over there…]

Vega’s excited voice suddenly cut off as she stared at something with a frown.

[My child. Smoke is rising from over there.]

“Huh?”

Following her gaze, he saw black smoke rising.

“Is there a fire?”

“That’s Guro-dong, right?”

Haeun lowered the window and stuck her head out.

Then,

-Bang!

“What, what is it?”

With a loud screech, cars started reversing from the direction of the smoke.

Boom! Bang! Crash!

The road turned into chaos in an instant.

“What the hell are you doing, you lunatics!”

Drivers from the crashed cars burst out with curses.

“S-save me.”

“What?”

“Save meeeeeee!”

A young man, pale with fear, started running from a reversing car.

“Get that guy!!”

The driver chased after him urgently, but

-Bang!

“Move! Damn it, move!”

“Don’t block the road, you bastard!”

The cars following in reverse hit the driver and sped down the road.

“Oh Jin, this.”

“……”

Oh Jin parked the car on the shoulder with a stiff expression.

“Let’s go.”

“Y-yes!”

[Understood!]

Haeun, Reak, and Vega ran toward the source of the smoke with him.

There,

“Screaaaaam!”

“S-save me!!!”

“Aaaaah! M-monster!! Why is there a monster here!!”

“There’s no gate nearby!!!”

People were screaming and running away.

Hundreds, thousands of monsters were rampaging, chasing after them.

“Crazy! Where did so many monsters come from…!”

Haeun stared at the swarm of monsters covering the entire street with her mouth agape.

“No.”

Oh Jin shook his head and his eyes sharpened.

“Not monsters… they’re demons.”

Feeling the distinct ‘Black Star’ aura emanating from the monsters,

Oh Jin’s expression twisted savagely.