Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1280. Betrayal (3)

‘What the hell is going on?’

Hee-Ra noona's entrance was pretty cool, but what really bothered me was Kim Hyun-Sung’s eyes, which quietly depicted his rage. He looked calm as if he were observing the situation, but I could see just how much anger he was holding back.

Perhaps others wouldn’t notice it, but I knew that look because I had seen it before. His hand gripping the sword was trembling. His face was exactly what he looked like right before he stabbed a certain someone in the gut.

If Cha Hee-Ra hadn't been standing next to him, he would have already exploded. Moreover, he couldn’t exactly ignore how he’d look in front of others.

‘Wait... did those two... make up?’

How come they suddenly showed up all cool with each other just like that? At the very least, Hee-Ra noona didn’t seem too angry. She looked a little uncomfortable, but her hostility was clearly aimed more at Jung Jin-Ho and the other brigade members than at Hyun-Sung.

It was the same for Kim Hyun-Sung. Actually, there was no need for me to explain. He’d always been the one trying to make peace with Cha Hee-Ra, and more than anything, his hatred for the brigade ran deep like tree roots in the dirt.

‘They’re cool now, aren't they?’

"Ah, did I make a mistake? Should I have just let him die?"

"..."

"Judging by your face, it looks like not killing him was the better move. So? Want to finish him off yourself?"

"..."

‘Hyun-Sung, relax, man...’

" mean, I do owe that bastard a little something... but thinking about what he did to you... hmm... yeah, I’m torn."

"..."

"What should I do... I’ve still got business with others, too. And you... you fat bastard.

"Ch-Cha Hee-Ra... no... please. I-I’m scared," stammered the dumb pig.

"And you..."

"G-Guild master... I mean, unni... how have you been?" the masked bastard said.

"Why the hell would I be your unni?"

"Ha... haha..."

"So... you killed off your whole party, ran off to the brigade... and had some fun there, huh? Lucky you. We fed you, raised you, pulled you off the damn streets, and this is how you thank us? By stabbing us in the back? Can’t believe it’s been five years already. You’ve done a good job staying off the radar."

"Ha... hahahaha... but I had no choice. Let’s be honest. You profited from me as well. I was the only decent mage in the Red Mercenary Guild back then..."

"Exactly, that’s why I trained you. And then you betrayed me..."

"But it was a sacrifice... for the greater good... You do understand that, right?"

"What?

"I know it probably seems unnecessary, but sacrifices are vital for the advancement of magic. If it weren’t for my research... you and the others would lose even more people... You do understand that much, right? I know you would."

"Would you be able to understand it? Knowing there’s some filthy underground lab, and that you were experimenting on my people down there... Would you be able to understand it?"

"..."

Cha Hee-Ra’s Intelligence was slowly going down.

"Hey."

"It was all for the advancement of magic and for the Red Mercenary Guild's sake as well. That’s all it was.

"Just shut up."

The full backstory was unknown to me, but I had a general idea.

‘No wonder that mask freak isn’t around in the second round.’

Back then, the Red Mercenary Guild was desperate for mages, and I brought them a few decent mages, addressing the shortage. In the first life, however, it seemed that they hadn't been able to address the shortage.

Desperate to find anyone capable of wielding magic, they eventually picked up that masked woman, and then, she stabbed them in the back. Whether it was betrayal, twisted experiments, or whatever, the one thing I could say for sure was that Hee-Ra noona wanted her dead.

"Ah... damn it... I really didn’t expect to run into you here, unni..."

"We just need to kill her."

"Shut up. The Mercenary Queen’s not human. She’s a monster."

"We’re... monsters, too."

"..."

"..."

"Think we can... take her?"

"I’ll kill you... every last one of you," Cha Hee-Ra chimed in.

"That won’t be easy, Master."

"Don’t... call me that."

Cha Hee-Ra lunged at the masked woman. With a thunderous boom, the beast took a step forward only to have her path blocked by the pig.

‘I thought he would run away.’

The pig had to have realized that if the masked woman were to go down, he’d be the next to go down. As a sly pig, he blocked Cha Hee-Ra’s advance. The tall, lanky guy also swung his weapon at her, but...

‘Can they really stop Hee-Ra noona at this point?’

Cha Hee-Ra was under a massive penalty, but she was definitely stronger than Kim Hyun-Sung. Her Intelligence stat had dropped to a mere 7, but her Strength had surpassed the threshold of Semi-Mythic.

If the Cha Hee-Ra of the second life was the Crimson God of War, then the Cha Hee-Ra before me was the Crimson Beast. Her instincts and senses were even more honed than her second-life self; she was also immersed in her raw instinct.

With a single attack, the tall guy’s arm was twisted into an incomprehensible shape. The fat bastard barely dodged her attacks, but his face made it clear that he was ready to run away.

The masked woman was the same.

The other brigade members had surrounded Cha Hee-Ra as well.

‘How... did it come to this...’

“Pretty strong, right?” I said.

With one swing of her arm, she sent a brigade member flying away. They spun several times in midair before crashing into the ground.

"Damn it! I think everything’s broken this time! Damn, it hurts!"

"Quit whining and get up. This is life or death right now."

A kick to one guy bent that guy's body in an unnatural way, folding him up like a chair.

"Ugh!"

Cha Hee-Ra didn't even need a weapon. Actually, was there even a weapon out there that could withstand her level of strength? It’d probably shatter the moment she grabbed it.

"You’ll die, Master."

"Grrrr."

She swatted away the masked woman’s spell, redirecting it toward the pig. Then, she tore an arm from one attacker. The pig's expressionless face began to distort. Several attacks flew at Cha Hee-Ra from all sides, but she stayed in place, ripping off arms, legs, and finally tearing off a head to finish them off.

At this point, I couldn’t even tell who was on our side anymore.

"I told that useless bastard to avoid getting caught!"

"Keep your distance. She’s a beast, nothing more. As long as we stall her, we win. Think of her as a monster, not a human."

"Monster hunting? How’s that supposed to work? Is it different from fighting people?"

"You idiot... damn it... never mind. The only ones I could talk to were that trashy duo. Just don’t let that monster get close to me! Protecting the mage is common sense!"

"Why is that common sense?"

Even the fat bastard looked at the hothead as if he were pathetic.

"Anyway, just surround her and stall for time! Got it?! Her Intelligence stat has dropped significantly, so she’ll eventually self-destruct!"

"What about the captain?"

‘Yeah, that’s what I wanted to know. What about Jung Jin-Ho and Hyun-Sung?’

"Think about that later!"

I looked around, but I didn’t see Jung Jin-Ho. And of course, Kim Hyun-Sung wasn’t there, either. Naturally, I turned on my Telescope and saw Kim Hyun-Sung. His face was twisted like a demon, and he bit his lips hard enough that they wouldn't stop bleeding,

The killing intent in the air and within his bloodshot eyes made it clear that Kim Hyun-Sung wanted Jung Jin-Ho dead.

"Bastard... bastard..."

Now that he was away from Cha Hee-Ra, he probably felt like he didn’t have to hold back anymore. He shouted curses and chased after Jung Jin-Ho.

"You bastard!"

"Aaaah! Help..."

"Two seventy-one! Two seventy-two! Haha! Two seventy-three!"

"Jung Jin-Ho! Jung Jin-Ho!"

"Ah... hahaha!"

"Jung Jin-Ho! You asshole!"

Kim Hyun-Sung made a beeline for Jung Jin-Ho at breakneck speed. The killing intent emanating from him was so intense it made my knees go weak, but Kim Hyun-Sung seemed like he hadn't noticed any of that at all.

He was radiating so much presence that a surprise attack would be pointless.

"You’re here! Hero of the continent!"

"I’ll kill you. Slowly and painfully. You worthless piece of trash."

"Can you see this light, too?"

"Shut up!"

"I’m finally complete. You used to say I was broken, but you were wrong. I was never broken! It was here all along. God was here!"

"I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about... but cut the crap and die already!"

‘Damn... this is a showdown between rivals...’

“...”

‘My chest is swelling with emotions.’

Clearly, Jung Jin-Ho was Kim Hyun-Sung’s nemesis in the first life.

This wasn’t their first clash. One could tell how familiar they were with each other’s blades. The occasional lines they threw at each other, and the weight behind their attacks, made it obvious that there was a long, tangled history between them.

‘Ki-Young and Ji-Hye stepped only onto the stage after Jung Jin-Ho's demise...’

In other words, he believed that the brigade orchestrated everything that had happened up until now. And it was probably much easier to direct his rage at the Jung Jin-Ho standing right in front of him, rather than the masked duo who were nowhere to be seen.

The problem was that this Jung Jin-Ho wasn’t the same one that Kim Hyun-Sung was familiar with. Jung Jin-Ho wasn't in perfect condition either, but it was still clear that he held the advantage.

Kim Hyun-Sung had to have realized it as well. If he looked at the situation rationally, he would know that losing control and fighting emotionally would only put him at a disadvantage.

However, there was no way that he could stay calm.

‘How could anyone stay calm with their enemy right in front of them?’

"Hahahahaha!

"You bastard! Die!"

This wasn’t some sloppy defensive strategy like what Rafael had shown. This was a real fight between two warriors. Compared to Hee-Ra noona, Kim Hyun-Sung seemed more consumed by rage. His emotions were clearly driving his sword.

Jung Jin-Ho cackled loudly, and Kim Hyun-Sung gnashed his teeth as he swung his sword at the former. Whenever spells erupted from Jung Jin-Ho’s hands, Kim Hyun-Sung would shatter them and close the gap. Every time the two clashed, heavy explosions would reverberate, and the ground beneath them would cave in.

Booooooooom!

"You asshole!"

Crack!

A massive shockwave rippled in all directions.

If Kim Hyun-Sung was fighting by the book with a single sword, Jung Jin-Ho was making use of everything he had, including Juliena, other swords, and even powerful spells. His style was unpredictable. Their personalities and techniques were completely different, but they had one thing in common—the absolute desire to kill each other.

They exceeded their limits as they fought, and the result quickly became clear.

I saw Jung Jin-Ho’s sword slicing across Kim Hyung-Sung’s chest.

“Damn it!” I shouted.

Kim Hyun-Sung threw off his cloak as if he couldn't care less and gripped his sword again, but unfortunately, Jung Jin-Ho had already disappeared.

"How much time do I have left? How much longer?"

I turned my Telescope again, and through the lens, I saw Jung Jin-Ho coughing up blood as he ran away. After hurriedly wiping his mouth clean, he grabbed his sword and moved out, looking for his next prey.

The brilliant light around him was fading away.

As expected, the side effects were finally here.

"How much time do I have left to bring you joy, O Young Death?!"

“...”

"How much longer can I swing this sword?! Haha! Hahahaha! Hahahahahaha! Cough! Cough! Heh... heh... cough!"

He was at death’s door, but at that moment, he looked happier than ever as if he were a giddy child. I clearly betrayed him, but Jung Jin-Ho didn’t look like someone who got stabbed in the back.