The Regressor Only Protects Me [EN]: Chapter 5

#5. Killing (2)

A one-sided battle ensued.

Some people, knowing how to deal with the green monsters, took the lead in the fight.

The green monsters before them were not difficult opponents at all.

And soon, as the green monsters fled, they were finally able to calm their racing hearts.

After the battle, the store was filled only with the groans of panting people.

Smartphones illuminated the surroundings, and those who had fought sat down, panting.

I also sat down, gasping for breath.

“Haa… haa…”

It felt like my lungs would burst.

At the same time, my heart was pounding like crazy.

Adrenaline surged uncontrollably, making the hairs on my body stand on end.

I looked at my hands.

Red blood and green blood.

The two were mixed together.

Just a few hours ago, these hands were covered in dirt.

Hands that shoveled cement, pulled carts, and held up A-frames full of bricks.

But now, they were covered in blood.

I could feel that the world had changed.

“U-um, excuse me…!”

Just then, a man panting behind me called out to me.

The man had a thick beard, but it didn’t look unkempt; it was a well-maintained beard.

He looked to be in his early 30s.

And he was tall, and judging by his broad shoulders, he was quite muscular.

He was covered in blood and holding a mop in his hand.

He said to me.

“Thank you so much… you saved us all.”

“…”

I looked at the man and turned around.

There, people holding weapons were looking at me.

Behind them, old people and children stood holding smartphones.

Their eyes were tearful but full of determination.

Their voices began to be heard one by one.

“Thank you so much… really.”

“Thank you. Student…”

“Thank you. I really lived…!”

I took a breath and bowed my head slightly.

It wasn’t for them.

It was just for me.

Perhaps without the strength of these people, no matter how much I knew the monsters’ weaknesses, I wouldn’t have been able to handle so many monsters.

No matter what happens, I have to go to my brother.

And I would do anything for that.

Anything.

And the strength of the people here was still necessary for me.

There was no time to delay.

The tutorial wasn’t over yet.

“Then help me. All of you.”

I got up from my seat and headed to the disarranged display stand.

The man followed me and asked.

“What should we do? Just tell me.”

“Move the display stands.”

“Display… stands?”

The man tried to say something but stopped.

The man came to me and started pulling the display stand together.

“Everyone! Listen to this student! Hurry! We all lived thanks to this student! There must be a plan…!”

The man began to gather people without me even saying anything.

People who heard the man’s words flocked to the display stand one by one.

“Y-yes! Let’s help quickly!”

“We have to listen to that student to survive!”

“Mom…”

“It’s okay, stay close to Mom.”

Adults, children, and the elderly all clung to the display stand.

I said to the people.

“We are going to set up a makeshift barricade. Since the entrances are scattered, I’m thinking of creating a fortress. Grandfathers and grandmothers, please gather any long poles you can find.”

“Ah, I understand!”

“Yes, yes…”

The middle-aged woman pushed the barricade and asked worriedly.

“Student, but will this be enough…? To stop those monsters, I mean.”

“It’s enough.”

They can’t get over the ledge.

I knew this from the previous battle.

I examined the monster’s physical characteristics.

Big head.

Long, pointed nose.

Green skin.

The muscles in their arms were well-developed, but the muscles in their legs were weak.

A monster with this appearance… I felt like I had seen it in a movie somewhere, but the name didn’t come to mind.

That didn’t matter.

What mattered was that these monsters were now running at us, trying to take our lives.

“Make it double layered. Hurry.”

Before I knew it, people were moving in an orderly fashion according to my words.

The monster cannot get over even a slightly high ledge.

I briefly saw them trying to climb, but that could be taken care of by the people on the display stand pushing them away with mop handles.

It was a really simple tactic.

The elderly came into the barricade with their arms full of mop handles.

The barricade was soon completed.

It was fortunate that this was a shopping mall.

The display stands had wheels so they could be moved, and the height was just right.

A man was stacking the display stands as they were.

I said to the man.

“Don’t put the side with the wheels on the ground, turn it upside down.”

“Ah… ah. That’s right. I wasn’t thinking. I understand.”

If there were wheels, the monsters could push them away.

But if the flat part of the display stand was placed on the ground, the monsters would not be able to move the display stand easily.

And the mop handles.

Mop handles were important.

They had to push the monsters over and shine light on them.

The monsters would freeze the moment they saw the light.

So if the light could be focused in one place, it would be even more effective.

‘Flashlight. That’s right, there was a flashlight.’

In preparation for disasters, there were red flashlights placed on the walls of the shopping mall.

I grabbed a random woman passing by and said.

“Please bring the flashlights in the emergency exit. All the ones you see. There should be many placed in the restrooms or emergency stairs. Don’t leave the floor.”

“Ah… yes! I understand.”

The woman rushed through the busy people to get the flashlight.

Light, barricade, mop handle.

I had roughly prepared the defense force.

It was definitely more stable than when I blocked the first monster.

People were completing the tasks I had assigned them one after another.

It was a contrasting sight to the beginning when they didn’t know what to do and were sitting down.

“I’ve collected all the flashlights!”

“I’ve stacked all the barricades!”

“I’ve stacked this side too!”

When everything was ready, I placed people starting from the area closest to the escalator.

It was preparation for a siege.

People were holding mop handles inside the makeshift barricade, and the elderly and children were holding lights.

I said to the people.

“Get ready. When the monsters come, push them away with the mop handles.”

They swallowed hard and nodded.

I looked at the ceiling.

I could occasionally hear the strange cries of monsters from the upper floor.

I didn’t know what was happening on the lower floor.

All that was certain was that the ‘tutorial’ was not over yet.

If the tutorial was over, K would come out again and greet us.

At that moment, the store was filled with strange cries.

-Gyaaaaaaak! Eeeeeeek!!

It was like an unidentified cry coming from deep inside a cave.

A girl who looked like a granddaughter and her grandmother hugged each other and trembled.

“Oh my goodness… what in the world is going on…”

“Grandma, it’ll be okay. Just bear with it. The police… the police will come to rescue us soon.”

The granddaughter held her grandmother’s hand tightly.

Police, there it is again.

It was necessary to give them a little sense of urgency.

After a little thought, I looked at the escalator and said.

“The police won’t come. Of course, neither will firefighters nor soldiers.”

“Ah… but.”

The girl’s voice was heard.

I couldn’t see her expression.

“Don’t believe in people who won’t come; believe in the mop handle you’re holding now.”

I finally glanced back at the child.

The child was holding her grandmother’s hand with her right hand and a mop handle with her left hand.

Her eyes were moist, as if she was about to cry at any moment.

If she cried, it would be difficult.

Tears, like laughter, are contagious.

Once emotions collapsed, it was over.

But the child was more steadfast and strong than I thought.

She seemed to bite her lower lip, then quickly hid her emotions.

“Yes… thank you. Thank you.”

The child bowed her head twice and thanked me.

I was a little surprised.

She looked like she was in the third year of middle school at most [approximately 15 years old].

I thought she would cry no matter what.

Squeeze…

I gripped the mop handle tightly.

It was hopeless, but it was much better than having impossible expectations.

I thought about a bigger future.

It would be a waste to liquidate the relationship with the people here by simply finishing the tutorial.

Gaining people’s trust is a very difficult thing.

Unintentionally, I gained trust from them, and I need to use that trust.

For my brother.

Even now, my brother is alone in a dark studio apartment, shivering.

The thought alone made my head spin.

As if that weren’t enough, today was my brother’s birthday.

The worst birthday.

The man next to me, holding a pole and aiming at the front, looked back at me a little while ago.

And he asked me.

“Student, please don’t misunderstand me. I trust you completely. But can I ask you just one thing?”

“Go ahead.”

I didn’t make eye contact with him and answered while staring at the front.

“How can you make such quick decisions? It’s the first time I’ve seen it. Even though the situation has gotten this bad, you’re not flustered… I’m older, but I think you’re more mature.”

I listened to his voice quietly.

The low-pitched voice rang out softly.

“May I ask what your job is?”

“…I’m a day laborer.”

I answered without hesitation.

Because it was true.

But the man asked back as if he couldn’t believe it.

“N-no way. I definitely thought you were from the Special Forces…”

“I’m sorry for not meeting your expectations.”

“Ah, ah, no! There’s nothing to be sorry about. I thought you were my junior [someone who served in the same military unit after you].”

I turned to look at the man after hearing those words.

A sturdy physique, in his early 30s.

His muscles were generally well-defined, as if he took good care of himself.

Judging by the fact that he said junior, the man was probably from the Special Forces.

This man was someone I had to keep by my side.

He would be useful in many ways.

The man reached out his hand first.

“Kwon Kyung-soo. I’m 33 years old.”

“Kang Si-on. I’m 20 years old.”

“You have a very pretty name.”

I ignored his words and stared at the front again.

There was no need to talk more than necessary.

Then Kwon Kyung-soo asked again.

“Do you have a plan?”

“Not yet. First of all, dealing with the rushing monsters is the priority.”

I deliberately didn’t say that I had to go meet my brother.

Kwon Kyung-soo thought for a moment and continued.

“What on earth happened? Suddenly something like this happened…”

To me, that sound felt strange.

When a meteorite collides, can you ask why this happened?

When you get into a car accident today and break your ribs, can you ask why this happened?

That’s something only God can know.

Both the meteorite colliding and meeting a drunk driver on that day.

What happened is what happened.

And the world we have to face is the world after the event has happened.

The fact that Kwon Kyung-soo said I was quick to adapt may be due to my personality.

“Let’s focus on the present. What’s important is now.”

“Okay. Si-on. I understand.”

Thud-.

At that moment, Kwon Kyung-soo put his hand on my shoulder.

And he smiled.

“Hang in there a little longer. We’ll be able to overcome it.”

Slide-.

His hand slipped off my shoulder.

I stared at him blankly, then turned my head back to the front and thought about what he had just done.

It was the first time I had felt comfort from an adult.

I thought about when I had last received comfort, then stopped.

A slight vibration was felt from my toes.

“They’re coming…!”

“Get ready.”

The people inside the barricade gripped their mop handles and tensed up.

Now the second battle was about to begin.

If things go according to plan, none of the people here will be hurt and we will be able to finish the tutorial.

Thud thud thud.

It was like the sound of hail falling.

Then, a monster rushed out of the escalator.

“Kieeeeeek-! Eeeeeeek!!”

A monster screamed and came up, then crashed into an obstacle in front of it without avoiding it.

“Wh-what is that?”

“…Wait.”

When Kwon Kyung-soo raised his upper body, I stopped him.

The monster had been frightened by something and had run away.

I swallowed hard and looked at the escalator.

And I heard a sound.

Thud, thud, thud…

Slow but surely, footsteps were coming up this way.

It wasn’t the sound of a monster’s footsteps.

It was the sound of a person’s footsteps.

And when I looked at the owner of those footsteps, I frowned.

“…”

It was a woman holding a sword.

Her whole body was covered in green blood.

And I made eye contact with her.

(To be continued in the next episode)