Regressor Instruction Manual - Chapter 416. A Great World to Live In (1)

– The war… the war is over. Yes, it’s over. There’s no reason for us to point our swords at each other anymore. There have been many misunderstandings, and we have been hostile toward each other for a long time. It’s not limited to just this incident. The history of fighting between us has come to an end. I know how difficult it is to let go of hatred, revenge, and rage. After all, everyone lost someone dear to them during all this.

– …

– Regardless of which side you’re standing, everyone lost someone precious to them. It could be a lover, a close comrade, or a family member. However, this is something that all of us have to overcome. It’s everyone’s homework. I know how hard it is to join hands when you have been pointing your swords at each other up until now, but we must move forward for the greater good. We must mature a bit more to overcome the pain and move forward.

– …

– Lift your heads, people of the Republic. It’s not your fault. People of the Democratic Country, reach out your hand. It’s not their fault. We know better than anyone how small our existence is when we’re in front of a truly large being. We have to forgive each other before we can move forward. Lift your heads. There’s no need to cry or be in despair. Let’s move together. We must move together to put an end to this history of hatred. You have different values from each other—yes, but we have a large task in front of us. The continent is at risk because there are people threatening the safety of the continent. They’re still hidden all over the continent, and they are after this land the gods had created for us. That’s the message the Goddess of Benigoa left for all of you today. We must become one to overcome the upcoming hardships and trials. Lift your heads! It’ll be difficult to heal the wound of today, but your wounds shall scab and heal. Just like how the dark clouds have cleared and the sun is shining on us right now—a new era is about to begin. Flowers will soon bloom on this blood-soaked land.

– …

– Let’s unite. We can become one under the will of the gods.

Silence descended, and I[1] could understand why everyone was so grim and solemn. Normally, I would hear the sound of glass drinkware clinking in this place because it normally had a boisterous atmosphere. But now? There were none of those. Even this place became enveloped with silence and solemnity.

Nick, standing next to me, started talking. I didn’t really like his voice, but I decided to put up with him today. He knew a lot of things, and it had already been a week since the war ended, so I knew I could extract some information from him.

“He’s a really amazing person.”

“I agree. I never get tired of watching it. That’s probably the reason why he appears in the goddess’ mirrors every day.”

“Of course, he’s amazing. He’s extraordinary. I’m sure it’s difficult to be in his shoes. He’s the one who suffered the most in the recent war, and he almost died during the Laios incident as well. They said that he had to go to the Everia Kingdom for treatment. In some ways, he experienced the biggest ordeal. Honestly, it was amazing how he offered to help the Republican soldiers without any conditions. He’s very generous.”

“I agree. I was there, and he was really amazing. I started crying without realizing it. The Republican soldiers cried as well, but I’m sure they cried more than I did. I even saw the Goddess of Benigoa descending into Father Lee Ki-Young’s body.”

“Really?”

“Of course! Words aren’t enough to describe how amazing it was! He did this with his hand, and just like that, the undead crumbled! And when he waved his left hand once, he became completely enveloped in light and then pewpewpewpew! Before the Goddess of Benigoa descended into his body, he wielded a spear and fought on the battlefield. Can you believe it?”

“Wow…”

“I’m sure there aren’t a lot of people who can do that. That demon summoner ended up being dragged out after hiding for so long. Tsk. I don’t even want to think about what would have happened if it weren’t for Father Lee Ki-Young. After fighting the Republican soldiers, we would have eventually…”

“It’d be nice if it would end there. There was no way we could have retreated alive from that battlefield if it weren’t for Father Lee Ki-Young. Anyway… does anyone know what Father Lee Ki-Young has been up to recently?”

Obviously, everyone looked at Nick. Nick drank a cup of water and judging from his confident demeanor, I was sure that he knew the answer to that question.

“It’s honestly kind of difficult for me to say this, but…”

“Come on, just tell us. Your meal for today will be on me.”

“You’ll hear the official announcement through the goddess’ mirror soon. Actually, this isn’t something you’ll hear through the goddess’ mirror…”

“Nick, you know we’ve been friends for the longest time now, right?”

“Ahem, it’s really hard for me to tell you this… If you promise not to tell anyone, I’ll tell you, but you really have to promise. It was a special order from Miss Kim Mi-Young of the Blue Guild, so it was hard for me to get this information.”

“Yes, of course. I’ll keep my lips sealed. So please…” I said and filled his empty cup with beer.

Nick looked around before speaking, “He’s apparently… in bad health.”

“What?!”

“Shhh!”

“Be quiet, Michael! Shit.”

“Ah, I’m sorry. Sorry. It was so surprising…”

“It’s not surprising at all if you think about it. Do you really think it’s easy for a human’s body to become a god’s vessel? Even if he’s the envoy of the Goddess of Benigoa, it seemed like there are some side effects. He’s not in the hospital anymore, but he’s still in bad health. His recovery is fast, but…”

“Is that true?”

“Of course it is. He probably wants to hide his condition because he’s worried that a lot of people would gather in front of where he’s staying again, just like what happened in Laios. He has sacrificed a lot for us, but he’s still worried about people like us.”

“Wow…”

“Of course, there are some foreign affairs as well.”

“Foreign affairs?”

“Right now, he’s like a symbol of peace. He played the biggest role in ending the war completely, and if people heard that he was in bad condition, what would they think? I’m sure he’s worried that the international discussions would fall apart.”

“You mean the discussion about completely combining the tutorial dungeons and operating a unified educational institute?”

“That’s not all. There’s also the issue regarding the alliance with the Republic, the Declaration of the End of the Continental War, the Continental Peace Agreement, and the proposal for the revised Anti-Race Discrimination Act…”

“Politics, economics, and even military matters are involved. I don’t know the details, but they are sensitive topics. They’re the reasons why he has been attending international meetings despite being in bad health. It’s really heartbreaking.

“His close associates are helping him, but he seems like he prefers to get things down by himself. Miss Kim Mi-Young seemed really worried about him as well. The members of the Blue Guild wanted to stop him, but no one can quell his passion so far.”

“In fact, the only reason he recently took a break was that Mr. Kim Hyun-Sung asked him to do so…”

“He’s a war hero.”

“Now that I think about it, Mr. Kim Hyun-Sung is amazing as well. It’s truly a blessing to have not one but two of such extraordinary people on the Sacred Democratic Country’s side. The Goddess of Benigoa has truly blessed us.”

“This is a different topic, but… have you received any news regarding Jin Cheong?”

“That bastard… The matters about him hadn’t changed that much. I wouldn’t be satisfied even if we were to cut his head off, and I don’t really understand why they’re letting him stand trial. He’s still crying out loud that he’s not a demon summoner. Oh, look, it’s on! Look at the goddess’ mirror.”

– The trial of the demon summoner Jin Cheong, who caused chaos throughout the Republic, is fast approaching. Everyone is paying attention to the trial. Reporter Kim Sung-Kyeong of Lindel News shall share the details with everyone. Reporter Kim Sung-Kyeong?

– This is Reporter Kim Sung-Kyeong of Lindel News! On the 2nd, Helena, the heretic inquisitor of the Democratic Country, extradited the demon summoner Jin Cheong and she arrived at the capital along with Senator Marilyn. The entire continent is paying attention to the trial, so the atmosphere of this place is tenser than ever before. The proud Holy Knights of the Sacred Democratic Country are attending the trial along with His Holiness and Miss Oscar.

– I’m not a demon summoner. I’m telling you that I’m not. Grrrr. Lee Ki-Young, that bastard! Lee Ki-Young! Lee Ki-Youuuuuung! I’m not a demon summoner! Cough! All of you are being tricked! He’s the real demon! He’s the real demon!

– Cover his mouth!

– I’m not a demon summoner! I have never summoned a demon, and I have never animated any undead creatures… It wasn’t me! Cough! Cough!

– There are some arguments about how it wouldn’t be good for him to be executed right away because the safety of the continent is at stake. The heretic inquisitors are saying that they could extract information about the dark forces that are taking root in the continent and find out the truth behind the incident.

– The situation involves the safety of the continent, so many agencies are opening their own investigation into the matter. The Republic has promised to provide as much support as they could toward the investigation, and the entire continent has all eyes on the upcoming trial. This is Reporter Kim Sung-Kyeong.

– Next, this is to lift the hearts of those who are being affected by the serious news. The bestselling novel, How the Alchemist and the Genius Swordsman Loves…

“That demon summoner bastard…!”

“That worthless scum! Ptui!”

Before the reporter could deliver the next news, the people around were already shouting and cursing. I was sure everyone felt the same. They thought it was absurd how the demon summoner could lie with such a straight face.

“That scummy bastard. What’s there to investigate? He needs to die by the guillotine.”

“Tsk, did you see his face in the goddess’ mirror? His eyes were completely red. He looked as if he was ready to beat someone to death! He was like that when he was captured. He emerged after being captured by his own Republican soldiers, and he was screaming so much I actually got scared of him.”

“The problem is that it isn’t just him. It was mentioned that the forces of darkness are hiding everywhere. If I could, I would support them in executing him right away, but if we think about the possibility of obtaining information from him, we can’t just act rashly and execute him directly. The Sacred Democratic Country also expressed that the proper protocols should be followed. They did the same during the Holy Democratic Revolution. Father Lee Ki-Young wants even the scummiest person out there to receive a fair trial, so I can’t believe that they’re making a big fuss about it as if they had no idea about Father Lee Ki-Young’s personality…”

“There’s a reason why he’s called the demon summoner. Anyway, about tomorrow…”

“Ah, I’m thinking about hunting. We shouldn’t be lazy when it comes to monster hunting, and the population of monsters increased because the war lasted for such a long time.”

“But you’re not really in the condition to hunt, Saul. Your wounds are still…”

I nodded slowly.

“That’s true. To be honest, even if I do my best, I’m sure I still won’t be of much help Still, I’m sure I’ll be useful someday. I want to rest a bit longer, but just like what the Goddess of Benigoa and Father Lee Ki-Young said, we have to move forward. Father Lee Ki-Young is still working despite his injuries, so I can’t just sit around like this. Anyway, I’ll be heading out first. Thanks for the interesting stories, Nick.”

“Don’t overdo it, Saul.”

“I won’t.”

I slowly opened the door of the pub and saw a familiar yet unfamiliar sight. It hadn’t even been a month since the war ended, but I could already see the difference between prior to the war and postwar. Honestly, I still hadn’t gotten used to seeing elves and dwarves walking around. There were many buildings being built as well, and even the overall atmosphere of this place had changed.

‘It’s a brand-new world.’

“And it’s a great world to live in.”

I smiled to myself.

***

“It’s such a great world to live in.”

“R-Right?”

“The rump steak is melting in my mouth.”

“I-It’s m-melting. Hehehe.”