The Regressor Only Protects Me [EN]: Chapter 206

206. The Last Beginning (1)

From Suwon to Mangyeong (formerly Anyang) isn’t far on the map.

Yet, Suwon and Mangyeong had no interaction during the last round because of the ‘Lush Forest’.

A forest of death where life force is taken away with the slightest touch. A dense, lush forest where even the most skilled wanderers get lost.

Neither Mangyeong nor Suwon had any reason to risk crossing the Lush Forest.

For that reason, it had been a neglected area until now, but the situation has changed.

Mangyeong and Suwon now have a deep relationship.

Since the top leaders of each force were blood brothers, vigorous exchanges were needed between the states.

Mangyeong did not have the technology to break through the Lush Forest, but Suwon did.

That was Kang Junho.

Hovering in the sky, Kang Junho looked down at the Lush Forest.

He recalled what had happened in this forest long ago.

After gathering his thoughts for a moment, Kang Junho unleashed the power of his artifact.

Whoosh-.

In an instant, a black space cut across the Lush Forest.

Kang Junho’s artifact ability is gravity.

And what that gravity creates at its strongest point is a black hole.

Kang Junho’s ‘Black Space’ became a black hole, sucking in everything around it.

From contaminated soil to trees, rocks, and monsters.

Everything returns to nothing before Kang Junho’s power.

The black hole devoured everything as if it had never been there in the first place, and a deep, wide canyon was created in its place.

“Cough……!”

Kang Junho coughed once.

He had a very powerful artifact ability, but he was also human.

He could exert near-infinite power, but it wasn’t infinite.

But for his brother, Kang Junho was also capable of exerting infinite power.

Kang Junho wiped the saliva from his chin and looked back at his brother’s procession.

They began to move again along the canyon that Kang Junho had created towards Mangyeong.

Thus, a passage between Mangyeong and Suwon was created.

* * *

The sun was setting.

The returning procession was snaking its way out of the canyon.

The carriage carrying Kang Si-On was surrounded and guarded by Suwon soldiers.

Si-On tried to dissuade them, saying they didn’t have to go this far, but Junho was adamant.

He insisted that he couldn’t let him go without doing this, so Kang Si-On had no choice but to agree.

Si-On sat at the end of the carriage, slightly lifting the covered awning to look outside.

Even though it was a deep canyon, sunlight was pouring in.

Then, he looked at Jin Jaehee, who was sitting on the opposite side, after hearing a small groan.

Jin Jaehee was wrapped in a blanket, not saying a word.

“Are you cold?”

“No.”

She deliberately straightened her hunched body and said she was okay.

Si-On looked at her and nodded.

“Okay.”

Then he looked out at the scenery again.

Some time passed.

Jin Jaehee carefully called out to Kang Si-On, who had his eyes on the outside of the carriage.

“Hey.”

When Jin Jaehee called, Kang Si-On looked at her.

She said immediately.

“……Thank you.”

“For what?”

Jin Jaehee swallowed her words.

There was definitely a reason to be grateful, it should have come out right away. But it didn’t come out right away.

This was a matter of personality.

From a long time ago, Jin Jaehee wasn’t good at expressing personal feelings like gratitude or apology to anyone.

In simple terms, it felt cringey, but in fact, she was just embarrassed.

But she realized through Kang Junho that she had to say it when she needed to.

The human heart is so fickle that if you don’t express something in words, the other person won’t know. So she had to say it.

“……For saying I’m a precious person. Thank you.”

“…….”

Kang Si-On thought about those words, chuckled, and said.

“What’s with you? You’re not acting like yourself. Forget it.”

“……And I’m sorry.”

Jin Jaehee had to say sorry as well as thank you.

In fact, there were still unresolved feelings between them.

During the war, and when dealing with Woo Jihye, the two of them were somehow out of sync.

Jin Jaehee thought that the reason for such misalignment was all because of her unchanging heart.

She had to apologize for that.

“I was going to do anything for my goal. We each had our own purposes. I thought saving you would get me closer to my goal because you’re a great person. You’re incomparable to me.”

“…….”

“But I think you thought differently. You heard the story of the past life. I was a subordinate of your subordinate. We weren’t even equal, and we weren’t even in a position to make eye contact easily. So I was in a position to serve you, and I was someone to protect. The person I serve, I…… I…… didn’t think of you as a friend.”

She stammered the last words and barely managed to say them.

From Jin Jaehee’s point of view, she had mustered a lot of courage to say that.

She put her nose in the blanket.

Even inside the carriage, it was chilly.

It felt like winter was coming again.

“……But you think of me as a friend. And because you think that way, I was grateful, and I was sorry. So……. So, you see…….”

But Jin Jaehee couldn’t finish her sentence.

“We promised. On the rooftop.”

Kang Si-On turned his head again and looked at the procession outside the carriage.

“…….”

Jin Jaehee still had her nose buried in the blanket, only turning her eyes to look at his face, which was dyed in the sunset.

“……We had the same dream. To go back.”

Kang Si-On had only one purpose from beginning to end.

That was to find his sister.

And he found his sister.

Jin Jaehee was with him on that arduous path.

This was ‘creating a future’ that didn’t exist even in the previous life.

“We haven’t achieved our goal yet. Your dream remains. Even I can’t be sure that the end of this story will be a return. As promised, I will send you back, even if I stay in this world and you go alone.”

“Don’t say that.”

This time, Jin Jaehee interrupted him.

“It’s a dream we had together……? So we have to go back together.”

“The Administrator won’t let that happen.”

“I’ll make sure he does. And if that happens, I won’t go either. You must be with me too.”

Kang Si-On raised his head and met her eyes.

The two of them stared into each other’s eyes for a while.

What broke the silence was Jin Jaehee sniffing.

Kang Si-On chuckled and said.

“I hope so. Me too.”

“I’ll make it happen.”

“You’re pretty stubborn too?”

“This…… No, I’ll be a little stubborn about this.”

Jin Jaehee lowered her head and mumbled.

“Okay.”

Kang Si-On chuckled and turned his head again.

The reason why he had to keep watching the situation outside the carriage might be something like fate. Or maybe he just wanted to think about it.

Kang Si-On was certain in the steadily swaying carriage.

That the last story would begin now.

Whether that ending is death, or our dream comes true.

Or, we face another ending.

It will definitely end.

* * *

When Kang Si-On returned with a tremendous gift, the citizens cheered.

“Hooray-!”

“Hooray-!!!”

The citizens of Mangyeong poured out onto the streets where the carriage procession continued, worshiping Kang Si-On.

In this round, Mangyeong’s strategic position was not good compared to other forces, and it lacked food and troops.

But Kang Si-On managed to do it again.

Creating something out of nothing, he once again gave the force a great advantage.

The approval rating of the victorious monarch soared to the point where the number ‘100’ was not enough.

And.

The news that Kang Si-On had returned was also conveyed to Ha Yunha and Jeong Hyunsoo, who were receiving treatment.

Ha Yunha, who was spoon-feeding Jeong Hyunsoo porridge, spilled the porridge and jumped out when he discovered Kang Si-On entering the door.

“Hero!”

Thanks to him, Jeong Hyunsoo had hot porridge poured all over his face.

Crash-!

But even Jeong Hyunsoo endured the heat and welcomed the monarch.

“H, H, Hero. ……Sir. Ouch. Hot.”

Ha Yunha immediately ran out and stood next to Si-On, and Jeong Hyunsoo seemed to have difficulty moving because he was wrapped in bandages all over his body.

Kang Si-On told Jeong Hyunsoo to stay seated and sat down with Ha Yunha in front of Jeong Hyunsoo’s bed.

“You’ve been through a lot. How’s your body?”

At Kang Si-On’s question, Jeong Hyunsoo wiped the porridge that had been spilled on his face with his hand and clenched his fist.

“If you just give the order, I can sortie [military term for ‘go out on a mission’] right now. You’re short on troops to subjugate the remnants of the Metro Ant bastards, right? Send me!”

“Really?”

Kang Si-On, who asked that, pressed his finger on the bandage added to Jeong Hyunsoo’s wound.

Then Jeong Hyunsoo screamed momentarily.

“Agh! Aah!”

“Looks like your body isn’t up to it?”

“……Ah, no. This is…….”

Jeong Hyunsoo quickly became sullen and lowered his tail.

“……I’m sorry. Actually, I can’t even move.”

“Rest well when you can. ……Yunha, let’s talk for a bit. How’s your body?”

“Ah, yes! I’m fine. I didn’t fight in the first place.”

“M, Me too! Can’t I follow you too?”

When Jeong Hyunsoo tried to get up from the bed with difficulty, Kang Si-On stopped him with a stern expression.

“Rest. That’s an order.”

“……Yes.”

Jeong Hyunsoo lowered his tail again.

Kang Si-On took Ha Yunha and went outside.

This was originally the place where the monster was.

But when Round 2.5 ended, the monster disappeared, and all that remained were the filth and garbage it had left behind.

A large number of people were投入 [tōurù – invested/put into] into the restoration of Mangyeong.

Moreover, the number of people still receiving treatment was too high.

Through this war, Kang Si-On lost a lot, but he also gained a lot.

Above all, he acquired vast territory, population, and the center of Seoul.

He came to occupy an overwhelming numerical and resource advantage over other forces.

Kang Si-On walked side by side with Ha Yunha through the downtown streets of Mangyeong, which were being rebuilt, and said.

“We’re going to be very busy from now on. We’ll have to put effort into rebuilding the force. Above all, we’ll have to gather technicians to control the red ore. Think about it slowly in relation to that. The important thing is to revive Mangyeong’s market structure before the war breaks out.”

“Don’t worry. That’s my specialty. But what are your plans for the future, Hero?”

“We have to move on to the next stage right away. Where’s the time to rest?”

“Are you okay? Aren’t you overdoing it? I heard you fought a big battle…….”

Ha Yunha gently grabbed Kang Si-On’s sleeve.

His worried heart was reflected in his actions.

Kang Si-On shook his head slightly and said.

“I’m fine. I feel lighter than ever. Oh, and there will be workers coming up from Suwon. You should manage those people as well. If you say I ordered it, they’ll all follow you.”

“From Suwon……?”

The two came out of the narrow road and entered the wide road.

At that time, Ha Yunha couldn’t help but be surprised.

A huge number of people were working hard to rebuild the city with tools and materials.

Not only that, but a large number of pigs were gathered together.

Ha Yunha covered his mouth and asked.

“……Those people and pigs are?”

“My brother gave them as a gift.”

At that sound, Ha Yunha was startled and asked back.

“Yes?! Your brother? Your real brother?”

“Yeah.”

Ha Yunha was as happy as if it were his own business that Kang Si-On had found his brother.

“Oh, that’s really good! I really…… really congratulate you. Hahaha. Oh, I’m really happy.”

“That’s just my personal business. But the important thing is the reconstruction of the city. I need your strength. I’ll give you all the authority over post-war processing from now on. So I’m asking you.”

Ha Yunha clenched his fist and nodded.

“Don’t worry. I’ll definitely do it. Can I make the environment much better than before the war?”

“If you do that.”

Kang Si-On laughed.

In fact, returning to the previous state will not be easy at all.

Because both the victorious and defeated countries suffer tremendous damage after the war.

Moreover, Mangyeong currently has several times more territory than its existing territory.

It will be up to Ha Yunha to utilize these territories as well.

For now, since the bridge has collapsed, he plans to manage only the territory south of the Han River.

Kang Si-On asked Ha Yunha that way, had a few conversations, and was about to leave.

But Ha Yunha grabbed Kang Si-On, who was returning.

“Why? Do you have anything else to say?”

At Kang Si-On’s question, Ha Yunha carefully brought up the story.

“……I have a personal request to make.”

“Tell me anything.”

Kang Si-On was willing to listen to any request from Ha Yunha.

Ha Yunha was an indispensable talent for the force.

Moreover, everything Ha Yunha has done for Mangyeong so far has been of great merit.

“…….”

Ha Yunha maintained a little silence, took a breath, and barely said.

“Can you hold a national funeral? ……Not exactly to commemorate Hyunji unni [older sister – term of endearment]. Many citizens lost their families or friends in this war as well…… I’m worried that the approval rating of the national leadership will fall…….”

“You don’t have to say that.”

At that time, Kang Si-On put his hands on both of Ha Yunha’s shoulders.

And he said, looking into Ha Yunha’s eyes.

“It’s because of Choi Hyunji……, isn’t it?”

“…….”

“Do as you wish. I want to commemorate her too. You can handle it as a national project. I’ll join you in your intention. Oh, yeah. You said it well. Prepare a joint funeral before the reconstruction. I’ll help too.”

Kang Si-On put his hand on Ha Yunha’s head.

Ha Yunha nodded silently.

(Continued in the next episode)