The Regressors are Trying to Kill Me

[Translator - Hestia]

[Proofreader - Kaya]

Chapter 48

Among Awakened, there were those specialized in one-on-one combat and those specialized in one-versus-many combat.

There were examples like Baekya in his prime who excelled at both, but high-ranking Awakened tended to choose one side eventually.

'Sword Saint' Cheong Siyeol was a typical example of a Hunter specialized in one-on-one combat.

And 'Fairy King' Na Jeongwon was a typical example of a Hunter specialized in one-versus-many combat.

Na Jeongwon lightly tapped his staff on the ground.

Tap.

The sound itself was small, but the ripple that spread from it seemed to resonate with one's soul.

【World Tree】

Rustle. Rustle. Rustle!

Behind Na Jeongwon, the illusion of a giant tree that seemed to reach the sky unfolded.

Its circumference seemed impossible to grasp even if a thousand people held hands, its countless branches seemed to cover the whole world, and even its smallest branch had more than a thousand spirits perched on it.

Summoner and Mage-type Hunters gasped in shock.

"He's manifesting Yggdrasil in reality?"

"Is… is that even something a human can do?"

"...Oh my god."

Na Jeongwon gracefully waved his hand and chanted.

A deep yellow-green light overflowed from one of his eyes.

["Obey the King's command. Always, and as many times as needed."]

His voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to echo in everyone's ears.

Tap.

His slender, white finger pointed forward.

Countless spirits soared, following his gesture.

["Salamanders of fire obey the King's command."]

The flames on the demons' longswords dimmed.

["Undines of water obey the King's command."]

The wounds of the injured began to heal.

["Sylphs of wind obey the King's command."]

The bodies of those fighting became lighter.

["Gnomes of earth obey the King's command."]

Walls made of earth and rock rose up.

Awakened cheered from all over.

"This is it!"

"We're saved."

"We can fight more!"

"Don't back down!"

Lee Eunwoo breathed a sigh of relief.

"Retract the previous order. We can hold them off now. Na Jeongwon and I will take care of this place, so you two form an infiltration team."

Cheong Siyeol bowed his head slightly towards Na Jeongwon.

"Thank you for coming."

Ryu Haneul discreetly tugged at Baekya.

"Senior, let's go now. If we stay any longer, we'll definitely get caught."

Baekya shook his head.

"I want to, but I'm still worried. I know Jeongwon is strong, but he can't win against a horde with sheer numbers."

Ryu Haneul heard the conflict between his emotions and rationality.

'Senior is right. Even with all the spirits combined, they can't compare to that army. And most importantly... I'm not even sure if that army is actually decreasing in size.'

'Senior, can't you just do as I say this time?'

At that moment, Baekya opened his inventory and took out the Ghost Princess's scepter.

"Haneul."

"Yes?"

"Let's go. I want to consume this Gate's core. Can you help me?"

He glanced at Ryu Haneul, making a suggestion in a tone that didn't sound like a request at all.

'Are you serious?! Can't you see Cheong Siyeol right there? Do you want to die again?'

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'As expected, you need me! Your good boy Ryu Haneul is on it!'

Ryu Haneul felt the urge to scream and grin at the same time.

He shrugged and twirled his Dark Heavenly Demon Sword.

Click.

"Alright, Senior. Let's go."

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it. I told you, I'll follow you to the ends of the earth. I even turned back time for that, so why wouldn't I follow you into a single Gate?"

At that moment, Cheong Siyeol also transferred command of his disciples to the Vice-Leader and approached them.

"Ryu Haneul?"

"Yes, Cheong Siyeol."

Although they already knew each other well, they maintained an attitude as if they were meeting for the first time.

Blue eyes held contempt, while purple eyes held anger.

"Are you going in?"

"Yes."

"And the person next to you is also joining?"

"Yes. He's a member of my direct subordinate team."

"I see. I've been keeping an eye on him."

"Stop looking at him, he might get worn out."

"...Excuse me?"

"Everything you cherish breaks before it even gets old, doesn't it?"

Ryu Haneul glared.

Cheong Siyeol gripped his sword hilt tightly.

He glanced to the side and asked a question.

His blue eyes held a hint of longing.

"He resembles someone I know."

"I'm honored, Siyeol-nim."

Baekya replied with an uncharacteristically sly smile.

"I've heard that a lot. Our abilities are both flame-based, so it makes sense. I even copied his fashion out of respect, but I couldn't give up the armor."

"He also wanted to wear armor. He just couldn't find one that suited his status. If he knew you found such good armor, he would definitely praise you."

"I hope so."

Contrary to Ryu Haneul's worries, Cheong Siyeol didn't even consider the possibility that Baekya might be standing next to him.

'I can't completely trust what Lee Baejeong said.'

Even though he wrote that in the chatroom, he was still half-convinced about Baekya's resurrection.

Moreover, Cheong Siyeol was certain that Ryu Haneul was practically keeping Baekya locked up somewhere.

The contempt in his eyes deepened as he looked at the Heavenly Demon's halo.

'You know nothing and don't even try to understand. You just blindly follow what you see. He has plenty of followers like you.'

Ryu Haneul read his gaze but didn't react.

'Idiot. I ride in the same car as Senior. I let Senior live in my house. I eat with Senior every day. And you killed Senior, didn't you?'

Baekya read the unspoken exchange between the two.

'If this goes on, they might start fighting each other before we even reach the Mountain of Fire.'

"Shall we go?"

At his suggestion, the two nodded.

"Yes."

"Let's."

The three Hunters leaped over the wall created by the earth spirits.

Tap!

The two Hunters, who were once the right and left arms of a great Hunter.

'I'll charge, and you guys cover me. That's a great plan, right?'

'Yes, Senior! It's a truly brilliant plan.'

'Wouldn't it be better to reconsider?'

Now, they were once again plunging into the enemy lines with that Hunter.

The Awakened, gathering from the Azure Sky Sword Sect, Sun-Moon Divine Sect, Iron Blood Legion, and other guilds big and small, cheered loudly.

"Be careful out there! Leader!"

"Heavenly Demon's Advent, All Demons Submit!"

"Go, Pyromancer! You're the best!"

"We'll hold out until they bring back some information! If we fall, Seoul falls! Don't retreat, even if it means death!"

* * *

The moment the three of them landed beyond the wall.

【Mid-Rank Demon ... is gazing at you!】

Countless warning notifications filled their vision.

"We'll break through! Follow me closely!"

Cheong Siyeol raised his longsword, surrounding himself with a blue sword aura.

Baekya stopped him—

"Wait a moment."

Baekya stopped him.

"Both of you, conserve your mana. I'll clear the path."

Half of it was genuine concern, and the other half was to create an army to protect himself from Cheong Siyeol's potential surprise attack.

"Excuse me?"

He swung the scepter he was holding in his left hand.

["Serve the King. Even in death, even after death!"]

Fwoosh—!

【A large number of Ghosts (C) are being summoned!】

Countless burning ghosts poured out.

Cheong Siyeol and Ryu Haneul flinched simultaneously.

Baekya improvised an explanation.

"My abilities are specialized in this area. I couldn't show you earlier because I was worried you'd be too wary of me."

There were many ways to refute that statement, but one of them wouldn't bother, and the other wouldn't have the mind to.

His prediction was accurate.

Cheong Siyeol was speechless, unable to say anything.

"What is this..."

【A large number of Ghosts (C) are possessing!】

Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!

The dead demons, engulfed in flames, rose again.

The demons, whose only flames were their swords in life, were now ablaze from head to toe.

From above, it would have looked like countless candles being lit in succession.

'These demonic bastards dare to play with fire in front of me.'

Baekya focused on mana recovery during the time Na Jeongwon had bought them.

Thanks to the Mantle of the Demon Marquis, his maximum mana capacity had increased significantly.

There was also a mountain of demon corpses that his allies had slain.

This was the result.

'I'm not the type to run around trying to put out fires once they're lit.'

Baekya set a counter-fire against the burning legion.

A fire several times hotter.

Sunny burst into laughter and began mana support.

【"This is it. Yes, this is it."】

【"You've always shown me what I wanted to see. As expected of my contractor, the Sun of Humanity!】

【Your Constellation 'Sunny' bursts into a hearty laugh. She will share 40% of the mana cost.】

"Let's go."

Baekya gestured towards the mountain on the horizon.

"Forward, further forward."

Cheong Siyeol flinched and looked back at Baekya.

'Let's go. Onward, to greater heights.'

The shadow of his revered master overlapped with Baekya.

Among Awakened, especially Pyromancers, it was common to find people literally cosplaying as Baekya.

They imitated not only his fashion but even his minor mannerisms.

Baekya had even appeared on YouTube with a few such Awakened, making a video where he distinguished himself from the imitators.

Cheong Siyeol had picked out the real Baekya with an accuracy that was almost boring.

'But why?'

Yet now.

To that nameless Pyromancer, with even his halo being an ordinary white ring—

The image of Baekya, his idol, hero, and sun, overlapped.

The Pyromancer, unaware or uncaring, charged forward.

Leading a legion of burning demons, big and small.

* * *

Right after summoning the burning legion, I was ecstatic.

Laughter threatened to burst out, and it took considerable effort to suppress it.

【Mana has increased '1'.】

【Mana has increased '1'.】

【Mana has increased '1'.】

【Mana... is soaring. A breakthrough is imminent.】

Success.

Success.

It worked.

The more mana I used, the more mana I gained.

The concept was simple.

Minimize the mana going out, maximize the mana coming in.

Of course, the concept was simple, but the execution was difficult.

From the moment I summoned the Ghosts, I mixed pure flames, hellfire, and the light of Law of Light in an appropriate ratio.

After long experimentation, I found that the 3:6.45:0.55 ratio was optimal.

The Law of Light within the Ghosts slowly incinerates the possessed body.

In return, it boosts the possessed's combat capabilities, driving them into a frenzied state.

That's an advantage too, but the key point is that the mana the consumed body had also flows into me.

I used a skill, and my mana is recharging instead of depleting.

Of course, that alone isn't enough.

When a demon possessed by a Ghost fights a normal demon, the fire naturally spreads.

If the fire imbued with the power of Law of Light spreads, that demon also slowly burns and dies.

Then, that mana is also absorbed by me.

In this state, if my Constellation's mana support reaches 25%, the mana I expend and the mana I get back are perfectly balanced in real-time.

If the support goes above 25%, all the incoming mana is absorbed by me.

Right now, my Constellation's mana support is about 40%.

15% of the mana I use every 10 seconds accumulates, increasing my maximum mana and rank.

Since my Ascension Level is at the 7th Stage, direct sponsorship isn't even possible right now.

I was worried about how to bypass the Aitel system's restrictions, but I never thought there would be a way like this.

Genuine joy erupted.

What a fucking time to be alive.

It doesn't seem like it will last long.

I can feel the light flowing back into my heart.

It's a feeling of omnipotence I haven't felt in a long time.

"Ha… hahahaha!"

【Trait: 'Radiant Laughter' is upgraded.】

【You have acquired the trait: 'Smile that Transcends the Stars'.】

【Mana... is soaring. A breakthrough is imminent.】

Excited voices filled my ears incessantly.

【"Cheers! I never thought you'd break through the system like that."】

【"I wish I could show you my expression right now. At this rate, your Ascension Level might recover soon."】

【"I've always loved stories of victory. Show me more. Try to take it all."】

【Your Constellation 'Sunny' is thrilled with anticipation for you.】

Oh, Constellation.

Thank you, always.

I looked down at my army and shouted—

"Burn them all!"

* * *

Breaking through wasn't difficult.

This was because my burning legion was indeed a legion, and Ryu Haneul and Cheong Siyeol were top-tier hunters.

The mountain came into view ahead.

"It seems like we're almost there!"

Thump!

"What are we supposed to do with that thing?"

Thump!

"We have to smash it to pieces!"

But why is the ground shaking?

[Translator - Hestia

[Proofreader - Kaya]