Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1016: You Reap What You Sow (23)

“I don’t approve of him,” I said.

“W-What makes you think you have the right to say that?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.

“Hye-Jin, do you know how old he is?” I questioned.

“He’s an elf… so he’s…”

“The problem isn’t that he’s old because he’s an elf. The problem is that he’s been alone for that long. The dating market doesn’t lie. No one has ever purchased him since he was put up for sale, and it's all because there's something wrong with him. And he’s been in that state for hundreds of years,” I explained.

“...”

“Objectively speaking, the guy doesn’t look bad. He's not as handsome as Hyun-Sung, but he doesn’t look so bad. But Hye-Jin. That’s why it’s even more suspicious. Even the kingdom is begging him to get married.

"Have you considered the possibility that maybe there’s something wrong with him, and that’s why he’s been on the market for so long? Why would a man with power, a nice face, and a good background still remain single for such a long time?” I questioned.

Of course, there could have been unavoidable and special circumstances, but my instincts were telling me that it wasn't the case for Elias. I was definitely judging the situation objectively here.

Just as I expected, Jo Hye-Jin had no choice but to remain quiet. She couldn’t help but question why he was on the dating market for so long and how someone as perfect as him was being neglected for so long.

‘It’s because he’s scum. He might be a notorious playboy in the Elf Kingdom.’

I finished changing clothes, and Jo Hye-Jin started rambling on.

“Anyway, let’s talk more about this later,” I suggested.

“Y-Yeah. That’s a good idea. O-Of course, I’m not trying to have a serious conversation about this. I’m too busy to be dating… and when I was back on Earth, I dated so many people. It’s funny to even be obsessed with it now… I was just asking for your opinion…” she rambled on.

‘Yes, yes, I know, Hye-Jin. I’m sure you were popular at your school for a reason.’

If Elias were to pass all the tests, I would consider it, but for now, I couldn’t approve of him.

I had some plans related to that, but I could only proceed with them once we were done here. Things unrelated to the plan could come up if I were to refrain from executing the plan until then, so there was no need for me to think about it for now, but…

‘Hye-Jin is special. If I ask Ji-Hye noona for help, I’m sure she’ll come up with a great story.’

Jo Hye-Jin and I started walking away while talking to each other.

‘This is more important right now.’

“So, how do you clear the dungeon? Is this uniform necessary?” Jo Hye-Jin asked.

“It’s like a religious ceremony. It also means that I’m meeting someone formally…” I answered.

'People’s perspective changes a lot depending on how people look at me.’

I also needed to wash away the image Light Ki-Young had damaged.

The dungeon would be cleared as soon as I opened the iron maiden.

It was a simple action, but I didn’t want to miss out on an important event like this.

This was the first time an unranked dungeon was cleared, and it was a victory for the continent as well as for the expedition members. Everyone here had basically accomplished a mythical achievement.

There had to be a story about this, and the story would be passed down from generation to generation, so it needed an ending that would fit that legendary story.

“No matter what happens, don’t come close,” I warned her.

“What?”

“It’s nothing big, so don’t worry… I’m just telling you to watch what I do,” I told her.

I walked barefoot. The news about how the dungeon would soon be cleared had to have spread like wildfire, as the majority of the expedition members were already outside.

I wouldn’t be surprised if they started cheering, but they remained quiet.

It was all because of the mood…

The honorary cardinal of the continent and the incarnation of light looked extremely solemn, so everyone stayed quiet. They felt like they were witnessing a religious ceremony, so they dared not speak and simply stared at the sidelines.

The entire Blue Guild wasn't any different. Jo Hye-Jin had conveyed my message to everyone, but I was sure that wasn't the only reason they were silent. It would be more fitting to say that the atmosphere had overwhelmed them.

The others were here as well. The higher-ups who had witnessed the descent of the Monarch of Lust and Eternal Sleep were staring at me anxiously. Was it because they had witnessed a sight that they couldn't believe, even though they had seen it with their own eyes?

However, the confused and fearful gleam in their eyes soon changed. I looked unstable as I walked, and everyone could tell that I was exhausted. I was having a hard time walking, which was in stark contrast to the Monarch of Lust and Eternal Sleep.

When I stumbled, some of them flinched.

‘They were pitying me.’

Rather than fear, they felt bad for the pitiful human who represented the words "sacrifice" and "holiness."

They thought my fate was cruel and that my role was too difficult.

They had all seen the hardships I had to go through in the past, but there were still stories and epic adventures unknown to them. This was not enough to make people stop being suspicious of Light Ki-Young, but emotions were affecting some people.

“O Benigoa!”

“O Saint of Sacrifice and Light…!”

“O Son of Light!”

The chanting of those titles signaled the start of the ceremony.

‘The pilgrim of penance.’

I took a step outside of the camp and instantly felt a burning pain under my feet.

There were many stone fragments stuck to the soles of my feet, and it couldn't be helped, as the dungeon was basically in ruins. There were glass shards, broken marble, sharp weapon fragments, and debris from the buildings.

My feet were in burning pain.

“Ah…”

“Ahhh…”

‘Shit, it really hurts.’

It hurt so much I wanted to shed a tear—no, it was so painful that I wanted to cry out, but I couldn’t stop moving here.

Naturally, I heard groans everywhere, but I was more worried about the reaction of the Blue Guild members. Kim Hyun-Sung gnashed his teeth while Jung Ha-Yan and Park Deok-Gu looked at me anxiously. To add to this, Belier, the new guild member, was angry, and her face turned red from the fury.

My holy blood dripping to the ground surely wasn’t a pretty sight.

‘Damn it, damn it, damn it…’

Tears welled up in my eyes without realizing it, but I didn’t bother holding back my tears, as this was the perfect time to start crying.

‘No one would think that these are tears of pain.’

I was definitely crying for the people who died here and for the people in pain. The priests didn’t stay still. They formed their own line and volunteered to be extras for the honorary cardinal's ceremony.

‘Yeah, that’s right. That’s how you do it.’

The priests unleashed their holy power while walking behind me, and they raised their voices, singing a hymn for the ceremony. Their devotion was indescribable.

Each verse contained holy power, and the Underground Temple became filled with their sincerity and wishes. Some of the religious believers and adventurers lowered their heads and kneeled to show respect to the god who was leaving His footsteps of light on the pilgrim of penance.

But that wasn't the end of it…

‘What the heck?’

Spirits of priests manifested from all over the place and walked behind me. The march of penance held in a place sun-kissed by holy light resembled a scene straight out of a legend.

‘The ones following us are too busy crying.’

The guild members were dumbfounded by the scene, and the expedition members offered prayers of gratitude for the light. They felt proud that they were walking this path together with me, and they were grateful for witnessing this miraculous sight.

“...”

“...”

‘Honestly…’

I thought of this march as just a way to show off, but I shed more blood as I walked farther and farther away. The ceremony was slowly but surely taking shape, and it was all because of the march, so I thought that it wasn’t so bad.

‘It depends on how you see it.’

I was sure Altanus was in more pain than me.

It was impossible for me to sympathize with her pain, even though my feet were being torn apart. However, this was a religious act to console the goddess who had died a miserable death.

I realized that this desolate place was truly her grave.

‘I honestly still don’t understand why Benigoa brought me here.’

It was so incomprehensible that I felt like Benigoa was the éminence grise. I seriously felt like she had a wicked plan of backstabbing me to be reborn as the only god in this world.

It was an idea that came naturally to me when I thought about the difficulty and the time dilation in this dungeon.

“O Benigoa…”

“Ah…!”

After thinking about it for a bit, I realized that my reasoning wasn’t wrong.

The first reason was that this place had become a dungeon, and the second reason was that the history of the past needed the Priest of Prophecy for it to work properly.

Whether it was intentional or not, Benigoa had to have realized that instinctively.

If Benigoa was enlightened to even a crumb of Altanus' will and empathized with her, then…

‘She probably wants to comfort her.’

I was sure she wanted to liberate Altanus personally from the iron maiden and comfort her. After all, Altanus had been in pain for a long time. It was a reasonable assumption on my end, as it was the most Benigoa-esque thing to do.

‘Of course, I’m sure she's uneasy at the thought that Altanus was her other self.’

“...”

“...”

I was walking while having many different thoughts. Eventually, the distant destination came into view.

‘What the? Was this path always blocked? It wasn’t like this back then.’

As soon as that thought popped into my head, the wall was destroyed. It was a type of barrier that couldn’t be detected using magic or spells. I finally knew why the expedition members hadn't found this space until now.

‘It had been waiting for me.’

Altanus was waiting for me to open the door.

I looked around quietly and saw the iron maiden standing tall in the ancient ruins.

‘It’s been a while.’

After a short prayer, I extended my hand out toward the iron maiden.

At the moment, I had no other feelings whatsoever. I was kind of worried a skull was going to pop out or something, but what I saw was the same Altanus I saw tens of thousands of years ago.

I finally saw her… with her eyes closed and hands held together.

Boom!

A massive pillar of light fell, and everything turned white.

I also felt like I was whisked away to an empty space.

Actually, it wasn't just "felt" I was actually whisked away.

I had no idea if I was whisked away mentally or if I was imagining things, but I knew that my surroundings had changed. The priests performing the ceremony with me, the guild members, and the expedition members were nowhere to be seen.

The only thing I could confirm was that Altanus was before me in this white space.

She opened her mouth slowly, "Y-You scared me. Uh? Huh? What’s this?! What’s going on?! Where am I? Uh? Huh?"

“...”

"What’s… going on all of a sudden?!"

“...”

"I-It can’t be… I'm sorry. I-I’m sorry. I-I’ll make sure to pay you back with full interest! So…"

'Why are you here?'

"Huh? L-Lee Ki-Young?"

The person before me was Benigoa, not Altanus.