Regressor Instruction Manual - Chapter 428. She’s Still the Scariest (1)

My offer to Jin Cheong was basically insurance.

Even for me, it would be difficult to convince people that he was brainwashed because I had a lot of things to worry about. I had many things to handle other than this insurance, but it was obvious why I wanted to use the keywords ‘brainwash’ and ‘used.’

‘It’ll help me as well.’

It would be a beautiful story for him, but it could also be a beautiful story for me as well.

Kim Hyun-Sung was the reason why I had a lot on my mind recently.

Personally, I thought he was no longer suspicious of me being the masked scum—no, it was more like he wasn’t suspicious of me in the first place, but no one could say for sure about what would happen in the future.

Our lovely regressor could suddenly misunderstand me one day, so I needed as much insurance as possible.

‘If…’

If Kim Hyun-Sung mistook me for the villain of his past life, I would have excuses to use against such allegations.

‘I think it’ll be good if I make him think that the masked scum was brainwashed…’

The masked scum of his past life didn’t perform those evil deeds because he wanted to do them. He was more like a tragic character constantly fighting the demon inside him.

He was a lonely man in pain who would harm himself every night because he was being tormented by the sins he had committed without his consent. I thought about telling him that the mask was used to hide his crying face, but it definitely wasn’t a good idea.

‘Still, this isn’t bad…’

It wasn’t perfect, but making my move with this plan in mind could help me avoid the worst-case scenario. Some people would ridicule me by asking about what was the point of thinking about useless situations when it was all over for Jin Cheong.

I knew it was over for Jin Cheong, but I couldn’t let my guard down because one wrong move could be the end of me. It was better to have as much insurance as possible, but it was still a surprise how Jin Cheong accepted my offer without much hesitation.

‘Maybe it’s a given…’

He had no reason to live aside from getting revenge, and since there was no way he could get revenge, he probably thought about making an honorable exit. He looked so pathetic that I was shocked when I saw him. He had always been a prideful person, so I was sure that his defeat and imprisonment tormented him a lot.

‘Anyway, I think this worked out well…’

The process was short, but it worked out.

The pause on quests and dungeons could be resolved through Rift Land and the dungeons where the demon servants were living. Max was doing well on the former method, and if I let Lee Ji-Hye take care of the latter, it should be resolved sooner rather than later. Of course, I had to lead the Rift Museum by creating a business plan.

The ridiculous situation caused my heart to drop for a moment. The sudden appearance of the perfect solution made me want to dance, and the idea that popped into my head made me feel better amidst this uncomfortable meal.

However, Cha Hee-Ra interrupted my train of thought.

“You seem like you’re in a good mood, darling. How’s the food?”

“This is delicious. It’s melting in my mouth,” I replied.

“I can’t believe you’re leaving when we have just arrived at the capital. How boring. I thought you were going to stay for a while, so I was looking forward to it. Many things changed after the revolution, so there are a lot of things to visit here, darling,” she said.

“I’d like to take a look around if possible, but… an urgent matter came up. As I said before, Quest Creation will be on pause for a while, so this isn’t the situation to just sit by and wait. I was honestly going to eat dinner at the guild, but… I agreed to eat here since we traveled all this way,” I explained.

“Have you taken care of Jin Cheong?” she asked.

“Yeah, it ended pretty well,” I answered.

All of a sudden, Elf Princess Elena joined the conversation.

“Excuse me… Mr. Lee Ki-Young. I’m sorry for asking again, but is it really true?”

“Yes, Miss Elena. It’s a message I received directly from the Goddess of Benigoa, so I’m sure it’s true. Are you able to communicate with Elune, Miss Elena?” I asked.

“Now that I think about it, It’s been a while since I felt him…” she replied.

‘It’s because you have been abandoned…’

Of course, I couldn’t tell her that.

“According to the Goddess of Benigoa, something big happened in the heavens. She said that the demons on the continent are starting to affect them,” I told her.

“T-Then what…”

“I’m sure we can take care of it without much issue. After we drive out the demons using the power of light and prove our firm belief in the gods, I’m sure Benigoa, Elune, and the other gods will pour their blessings on us again,” I informed her.

“I should do my best then,” she commented.

“Yes, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done. Most of the dungeons the gods were managing for the foreigners have become inaccessible, so I’m sure that it’ll cause a lot of chaos.”

”We need to do what we can to reduce the inevitable chaos because dealing with monsters or hunting requests has long become deeply ingrained in our society…”

”I think the east side of Castle Rock will be fine since a monster forest is located there, but Celia will be in trouble because there aren’t really any massive forests around Celia. Miss Kasugano Yuno, have you…” I paused.

“I haven’t thought of a solution yet, Father Lee Ki-Young. However, if you provide a guideline, I’ll follow it,” Yuno replied.

“Okay…”

“Of course, it’s only right for you to say that we need to prepare for the confusion the foreigners will inevitably experience. I completely agree. I’m sure it won’t take long for all the foreigners to realize that there’s something wrong with the system that’s maintaining and balancing this continent…”

”However, we must make an official announcement and prepare a harsh punishment for those who dare to threaten the honorary cardinal in these trying times,” Yuno suggested.

“I appreciate that,” I said.

“Please don’t worry…”

Kasugano Yuno smiled faintly, but the problem was that she wasn’t the only one who was smiling…

Cha Hee-Ra and Jung Ha-Yan were sitting beside me. Kasugano Yuno and Elena were beside them, while Jo Hye-Jin was sitting beside Elena.

I didn’t regret bringing them with me because it was for safety reasons, but right now, I couldn’t help but start regretting it.

My regret was even stronger because nothing happened in the end.

‘I feel like I’m walking on thin ice rather—sitting on a bed of nails. Shit…’

Sitting here was tantamount to torture, and even though they weren’t fighting or screaming at each other, no one was looking at each other. They were looking at me while saying what was on their minds. It was ridiculous how they treated each other as if they weren’t there. If there were a guy who wouldn’t feel the same way I was feeling right now if they were in my shoes, then I would definitely applaud him.

Our conversations had a set cycle as well. Whenever I was about done speaking with one of them, someone else would pull me into a conversation. Once I was done speaking to that person, then someone else would drag me into another conversation.

I enjoyed talking, but this was a bit difficult for me to endure. This wasn’t the ideal description, but I felt like I was a piece of cake and the girls were taking away pieces of me to eat.

I also felt like I was in an extremely technical interview with them, where they were actively pressuring me.

The conversations were about work, so Jung Ha-Yan still hadn’t found an opportunity to join the conversation. It obviously made her feel a bit despondent, which worried me.

I knew that she wouldn’t explode, but she was still Jung Ha-Yan, so I had no idea when she would cause trouble.

I personally hoped that everything would end this way without any issues, but the person whom I thought would never cause me trouble was the one who threw the curveball at me this time.

It was none other than Jo Hye-Jin, who had been eating quietly.

“By the way…”

“Yes?”

“There’s something on Miss Ha-Yan’s hand, and I’ve never seen that before. I thought it was an artifact, but I don’t think it’s an artifact. Did you give it to her as a gift?” she asked.

‘Shit…!’

Her words were more painful than getting routed by Jin Cheong and Charlotte.

‘Why did she come here wearing that?’

Everyone immediately looked at Jung Ha-Yan’s left hand. I was sure they had an idea what it was, but this was the first time that someone brought it up.

The depressed Jung Ha-Yan, who hadn’t been able to join the conversation since we started eating, discreetly covered her precious wedding ring. This wasn’t a great analogy, but she looked like Gollum trying to hide the ring.

Unfortunately, even a child would see that she wasn’t really trying to hide the ring.

Even though she was covering it, she was trying to show it off. Her prideful and confident look was proof of that. She was trying to tell the women here that she was different from them.

“Ah… I-It’s nothing…” Jung Ha-Yan stuttered.

‘Shit.’

Her acting was so awkward…

The way Jung Ha-Ya ridiculed the other women here made her look sassy, and I could guarantee that it was hard to act spiteful when faced with such a cute face like hers.

She said that it was nothing, but anyone could tell that it was definitely something.

The other girls flinched as if they realized that they had been staring at the One Ring all this while.

The issue I buried suddenly rose to the surface. Jung Ha-Yan even took off her precious ring as if she got caught red-handed, and she quietly placed it in her pocket. Kasugano Yuno stared at the ring all the way until it disappeared into Jung Ha-Yan’s pocket.

Elena already knew about the ring, so she stared at Jung Ha-Yan bitterly.

“What kind of ring was that?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“I-It’s nothing. O-Oppa gave it to me as a gift,” Jung Ha-Yan replied.

“Okay, but what is it supposed to be?” she asked again.

“I-It’s a secret. A-A secret between us. Hehe,” she stuttered.

“…”

“I-It’s a secret between us, so I can’t tell anyone,” she added.

The way Jung Ha-Yan answered Cha Hee-Ra with a bright smile was overwhelmingly provocative. Her reply was also more infuriating than the words I had used on my enemies. It was cheap and absurd, but it was an effective provocation.

However, Cha Hee-Ra was surprisingly calm, and it made her look like an adult who wouldn’t play along with Jung Ha-Yan’s provocation.

‘I’d expect nothing less from our Hee-Ra noona!’

Kasugano Yuno and Elena looked a bit envious, but…

‘I did tell them before.’

I couldn’t remember the details, but I could remember telling them that there was someone precious to me or that there was someone I wanted to spend my life with, so I was sure that they were currently thinking about what I said.

They were definitely envious, but I could see that they were trying their best to comfort themselves.

‘I-I think they’re okay…?’

Jo Hye-Jin had just dropped a massive bomb, but things hadn’t gone wrong.

The rest of the dinner was uneventful, and the situation was resolved just like that.

“Shall we get going?” I suggested.

“Okay…”

“Are you heading straight to Lindel?” Elena asked.

“I’ll be heading to Celia, Miss Elena,” I replied.

“It was nice to meet you, Miss Kasugano Yuno. Please be careful on your way back,” she said.

“Darling and second girlfriend. Hurry up. Aren’t you in a hurry?” Cha Hee-Ra asked with a smile.

When I saw her smile, I was convinced that the situation was finally over. However, I was forced to think otherwise when I saw how a part of the table on Cha Hee-Ra’s side, just right behind her plate, had basically been squeezed until it crumpled up.

‘That table is made out of steel. Shit…!’

I immediately realized that Cha Hee-Ra’s smile wasn’t genuine.