Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1448. Continental War (28) [Illustration]

The faint smell of tobacco tickled my nose.

‘Lady Palette?’

“...”

“...”

“Is it really Lady Palette?’

The same scent as the tobacco she used to smoke filled the area. As a long exhalation sounded from somewhere, more smoke filled the surroundings.

The sight reminded me of a certain mist summoner. The fact that she could manifest mana on this scale without even summoning real mist proved how much she had grown over the past four years. Of course, this smoke felt thinner in density than Cheon Kwan-Wi's mist, but having seen Palette’s unique magic four years ago, I knew all too well how dangerous this smoke was.

The smoke created by Lady Palette’s tobacco possessed limited but very real physical power. The mana contained within it was on a level that couldn’t even be compared to four years ago, and the memory of how she had snapped the bodies of the dead and the enemies with this smoke was still vivid in my mind.

I clearly remembered them dying with their bodies twisted.

My instinctive reaction to the smell of her tobacco only lasted a moment. Once the smoke completely filled the area, I started feeling nervous. I realized that our allied soldiers were trapped. It wasn’t as if we had no mages on our side, but we had no one capable of nullifying magic on this scale.

If Lady Palette were one of the noble ladies who had defected to the Republic and was working with the ones chasing us right now, then...

‘There’s no fighting or anything like that at all.’

We had fallen completely into a trap.

‘Damn it. Is she trying to help us, or is she just planning to bury us here?’

“W-what is this fog?”

“Sir!”

‘Damn it, there’s no other way.’

“For now, we keep moving forward. Don’t stop moving,” I commanded.

“Yes, sir!”

“Mr. Ji-Hoon!” I called out.

“Huh? Oh. I’m coming!” Sung Ji-Hoon shouted.

Whether it was luck or not, the enemy forces seemed to have lost track of us, blocked off by the smoke. In the haze where one couldn’t see even a step ahead, the Holy Sword Hero and Alps gripped my hands tightly on either side in case I lost my way, while the other soldiers were barely pushing through by holding onto one another’s hands or shoulders.

An ordinary soldier couldn't see anything at all, and they had to keep shouting at the top of their lungs to confirm each other’s positions. Whether we were lucky or not, there were no screams, but it was obvious that everyone felt something was off.

What exactly was this fog that appeared out of nowhere, and where were we even going? The only thing guiding us was a single light spell flickering far ahead, and just as that light began to fade... I saw several figures in the distance.

‘Ah... damn it.’

It felt like the smoke had thinned a little. Visibility was still poor, but it was clear they were wearing the Republic’s uniforms.

“J-Jin Yoo.”

“Sir.”

‘Alps, you need to stay a bit farther away, and I told you to stop whispering my real position all the time.’

The familiar faces I expected revealed themselves once more. It seemed they really were the noble ladies who had defected to the Republic. They were figures I recognized from before. I even saw some fresh faces. Still, the first to catch my eye was the one leading them, Lady Palette.

Just like four years ago, she had long hair, a tall frame, and a slender build. What set her apart this time was the stylish long coat she was wearing. Her expression was slightly stiff as always, likely because she recognized us.

Anyone would think of Aina Peneloti in this situation, so that reaction was only natural. She wasn’t someone who could easily be rattled, yet she still looked visibly shaken. She was so shaken that I felt like we'd gain the upper hand if a fight were to break out.

‘In truth, we're the ones being cornered.’

I briefly considered using a light bomb potion to blow away the smoke, but clashing with her didn’t feel particularly appealing. I was about to suggest talking things out when Palette spoke first.

“We haven’t shaken them all off yet," she said.

“Pardon?” I asked.

“The Republic’s troops,” she clarified.

“Then what you’re saying is...” I paused.

“...”

“...”

“We came to help at Brush’s request,” she continued.

“...”

“You may call me Palette,” she said.

“...”

‘Wow... really?’

It seemed like I wasn't the only one feeling doubtful.

A moment later, Sung Ji-Hoon shouted, “And how are we supposed to believe that?!”

Of course, his reaction was only natural. If a mage were to appear out of nowhere and claim to be here to help, how could anyone believe that? Since that mage was wearing the Republic’s uniform, it was even more suspicious.

I myself couldn’t help but question Palette’s intentions.

‘There aren’t many people in this world you can truly trust.’

Seeing the countless medals pinned to her uniform only reinforced that thought.

‘She climbed that high because she had the ability.’

For all I knew, Lady Palette had already secured a solid position within the Republic. It was clichéd, but she probably had a bright future waiting for her. The girl who would have been sent off into a marriage alliance by the Union of Kingdoms wasn’t standing here.

She had carved out her place in the Republic through her own ability, and once the war was over, she would likely walk away with both wealth and honor. In a society like the Republic that valued competence above all else, she would surely receive far better treatment than she would ever receive elsewhere.

‘But dropping everything she has just because of a single word from Brush feels a bit...’

I suspected that she had another motive, as abandoning everything she had built was never easy.

“Answer me! I asked how we’re supposed to believe that!” Sung Ji-Hoon shouted.

“Because I’m not harming you,” Lady Palette answered.

“Ah...”

She seemed to think that showing us was faster than explaining it in words. Lady Palette took a deep breath on her cigarette and slowly exhaled. Sung Ji-Hoon finally realized that the smoke around us was coming from her.

The tension in his posture eased slightly.

“B-but...” he stammered

“...”

“An old friend asked me to,” she added.

“...”

“I understand if you can’t accept that... but there's no other reason,” she added.

‘Palette noona, please take me.’

Even the way she extinguished the cigarette with a soft hiss looked stylish. She was so stylish that I felt like becoming her subordinate holding an ashtray next to her.

‘Damn it, I could do better than that. I could even light it for her...’

'Why on earth did those idiots above not choose a woman like her as the Hero?'

“So, does that answer your question?” she asked.

The Holy Sword Hero still looked unconvinced. Then, he turned his gaze toward me. At this point, I had no choice but to speak.

“Mr. Ji-Hoon, we should trust her.”

“Y-yeah...”

“We don’t really have another option anyway, and I trust her. She fought alongside Brush four years ago,” I told him.

“Ah... the name on the memorial stone...” he mumbled.

“Yes, I think I have seen the name Palette before,” I said.

“I-I see.”

I nodded to show that I would go with them.

Palette nodded in response. That was enough to signal that, for now, we were choosing to trust her.

“Then I’ll guide you,” Palette offered.

“W-wait, but... where are we headed?” Sung Ji-Hoon asked.

“Before deciding our next move, it would be best to leave this place first,” she answered.

“...”

“A large force is moving across the nearby front lines,” she added.

“What?”

“That’s actually why we were able to come here. There has been a major shift in their operations,” she answered.

“So they decided to separate the troops from the front,” I commented.

She looked genuinely surprised, and it was probably because I seemed to know about the Republic’s circumstances.

‘I had been keeping an eye on them the whole time anyway.’

Commander Jin’s original plan had been to fight a full-scale battle on the Fourth Front, but things changed once First Ki-Young and First Ji-Hye began splitting their forces and trying to cut the front in two.

Calling it a strange decision wouldn’t be wrong. In fact, it raised even more questions precisely because Commander Jin had other options available.

If First Ki-Young and First Ji-Hye truly wanted to sever the front completely, Commander Jin could simply refuse to play along.

There would be some losses, sure, but by reinforcing and reorganizing the split fronts, it could be managed.

First Ki-Young and First Ji-Hye would harass and chew away at enemy troops throughout that process, but the cost on both sides would be comparable, making it a trade where neither side gained much.

In the end, a head-on confrontation favored Commander Jin’s side, so there was no real need to dance to the masked duo’s tune. With that being said, it wasn’t hard to understand why he agreed to create a new 4-2 Front.

‘He might simply want to separate First Ki-Young and First Ji-Hye.’

From experience, he knew how much more troublesome they were when they were working together, and if I were in his position, I'd make the same call. There was no reason to stop them from splitting up, and he likely had the confidence that he could win on both divided battlefields anyway.

Of course, there was a chance that he just wanted a more entertaining game. Whether it was mere personal amusement or some plausible strategic reason, I wasn't sure.

However, there was one more variable that could explain why he chose not to drag the masked duo into his own battlefield and instead agreed to move toward theirs. The variable was none other than...

‘Ryu Han. He must be on the 4-2 Front.’

There was no way he hadn’t received reports about it.

Second Commander Jin didn’t even treat Ryu Han as a human being, but was First Commander Jin thinking the same way? Or perhaps Second Commander Jin never truly regarded Ryu Han as a person in the first place.

I was already suspecting that there was some story between the two of them, so the idea that Ryu Han’s presence on the 4-2 Front had influenced Commander Jin’s decision didn’t feel all that far-fetched.

If one had a weapon like Tactical Kim Hyun-Sung, wasn’t it only natural to set the stage around Tactical Kim Hyun-Sung? While I was contemplating and absently tapping my thigh, a voice echoed.

“Within about a week, the front will split, and fighting will break out simultaneously on the Fourth Front and the 4-2 Front,” Palette said.

“...”

“...”

“Whoo... so we were just unlucky,” I commented.

“Yes. the Keepers of the Moonlight are positioned along the newly forming 4-2 Front—the route where the Republic’s forces are gathering. Troops will be pressing in from both sides, so we have to move quickly or...” she trailed off.

‘Who would’ve thought this place would turn into the 4-2 Front? Damn it. After all that amoeba-like splitting and merging... why did it have to be here of all places?’

“Everything around us is...” I paused.

“Republic forces. Their primary objective is to engage the enemies on the 4-2 Front, or so it seems, but...” she said.

“So we’re not their top priority. Still, no commander would be foolish enough to completely ignore irregulars roaming around their own sector,” I said.

“Correct.”

At Palette’s words, I raised my Telescope.

‘Haaa, damn it.’

As if they had taken some kind of stimulant, a massive number of troops were pouring toward the 4-2 Front at absurd speeds. There was no way this was a normal march. Without some kind of ability in play, troop movement this abnormal was simply impossible.

On top of that, the Republic soldiers were advancing in organized formations.

The very first thought that crossed my mind was...

‘Chang-Ryeol... damn it. He should be able to get out, right?’

He was out there somewhere, drifting in that sea of soldiers.

‘H-he should be able to get out, right?’

“...”

“...”

‘He can get out, right?’