I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 112

112.

A dark basement where not a single ray of sunlight penetrated. A monochrome black round table stood in the center.

In the silence, three men sat, positioned in a triangular formation.

They were silently watching a screen displaying a broadcast on the TV.

It was.

“Enhancement Potions, Identification Glasses.

For these two manufactured items, we plan to open dedicated counters starting March 1st.”

It was the scene where Shin Hwa was promoting his products in a broadcast interview.

“This confirms it. Kang Shin-hwa possesses exceptional talent in crafting,” the first to speak among the three was Jin Geuk-myeong, the head of Ohsung Group.

He was also a victim who had lost his trusted aide, Joo Young-saeng, to Shin-hwa—at least from Jin Geuk-myeong’s perspective.

“For something made individually, the items he produces are all extraordinary.”

The bald man sitting in the middle of the round table stroked his chin. He was Won Kang-woo, the head of the Triad.

“Does he have a sponsor?”

Next, the man sitting on the far right broke the silence.

He was a man with long black hair reaching his shoulders, covering half of his face with his bangs.

People called him Black Demon, the leader of the Black Society. No one knew his real name.

“No. He’s completely independent. Even the KSA [Korean Special Ability Association] and Yanghwa Guild, with whom he has a close relationship, are recent connections.”

“Alone… Alone, yet he’s churning out products that even major research institutes or skilled Awakeners can’t make?”

Black Demon’s gaze turned to Shin-hwa on the screen, who was calmly saying what he had to say.

Considering he started as a porter, his growth and actions, as well as all the developments he presented, were quite unconventional.

In the vast land of China, more Awakened talents emerge like comets than in Korea.

So, they weren’t easily surprised by ordinary events, but Shin-hwa was an exception.

“If we can utilize his talent, our operation in April could become much smoother, or even be expanded.”

“With that level of exceptional crafting talent, broadening the scope of our plans is a piece of cake.”

“That’s right. We might need to bring him in at all costs.”

“Should we send more elites?”

Discussions buzzed busily among the three.

The ‘operation’ they were talking about was a very secretive and cruel plan scheduled for the upcoming April.

The method was to inject ‘parasites’ into the products of China Huagwang Industry, which had a global distribution network.

The low-grade magic potions produced by Huagwang Industry accounted for 70% of the world’s demand, making their production volume enormous.

They were planning to inject a parasite called Daegwangchung, which they had secretly developed, into those potions.

The preliminary testing was complete.

In the stabilized concentration unique to magic potions, it would assimilate and go undetected.

But once ingested and combined with the magic power in the body, the parasite would begin to activate.

The host would then consume magic power abnormally until entering a state of frenzy.

This process would take about a week, and the current result was a 5% chance of death upon entering the frenzy.

They were currently spurring on the final research to accelerate the onset of the frenzy and increase the fatality rate.

The purpose of the operation was simple and clear.

The goal was to harm an unspecified number of Awakeners by utilizing the global distribution network. Additionally, they aimed to weaken competitors and rival forces, as well as drive them into a pit of distrust.

They were convinced that having Shin-hwa would amplify the explosive power of this ‘murderous research.’

“Should we mobilize as many operatives as possible from the Korean side in Dark Forest?”

“That’s not enough. How about sending reliable enforcers from each organization?”

“It would be better to have a manager who can move organizationally. Our Ohsung Group will send Lee Yeon.”

“The Triad will send Kang Ja-hee. She can torture him painfully without killing him.”

“Black Death is suitable for giving him a taste of hell.”

Each guild mentioned experts specialized in such tasks.

They were skilled individuals in their respective fields who could enter the country with forged passports since their faces were not publicly known.

They were capable of making Shin-hwa as painful as possible without killing him, to induce cooperation.

“Those damn KSA bastards, they’re moderately lax, but they mobilize large-scale forces without hesitation for this kind of thing……”

“We’re already sponsoring the two major guilds in Korea, so there’s no problem. The downfall of the KSA is only a matter of time.”

“Anyway, let’s proceed like that. Kang Shin-hwa seems to be quite a strategically necessary guy for us.”

“Taking Joo Young-saeng’s death as a lesson, let’s handle this perfectly this time.”

“No objection.”

“No objection.”

Thus, a quiet and secretive resolution was made in the darkness.

* * *

“Done!”

-What is it?

“Shami, a necklace for you to wear.”

-Necklace?

“It’s not an ordinary necklace.”

I checked the ‘Flower of Divinity’ safely placed inside the rose-shaped pendant and smiled contentedly.

There was no need to expose the precious flower to the outside, so the exterior was covered with a rose decoration.

The platinum pendant blended well with Shami’s ivory fur, so it wasn’t very noticeable.

-I feel a strange energy!

Shami stepped back in surprise as I brought the pendant slightly closer.

“Is it painful?”

-No, it’s not that… It feels like it’s reacting with some energy inside me and pushing it away.

“The Flower of Divinity must be reacting to the Seed of Curse.”

-Flower of Divinity?

“Yes. This artifact can drive out the Seed of Curse deeply embedded in your body.”

I said emphatically.

It was only a matter of time when the Seed of Curse would be purified, so there was no need to question whether it was possible or not.

It wasn’t called harder to obtain than winning the lottery for nothing.

As far as I knew, only four Flowers of Divinity had been discovered in decades, making it a very rare flower.

-Really? Shin-hwa, you got this for me?

Since when, Shami had stopped calling me with vague words like ‘Hey, you know, um…’.

It seemed she had opened her heart since she felt that I was taking care of her and being considerate.

I had volunteered to be Shami’s guardian, but I didn’t restrict her freedom or force her to extract information.

“It might be a little painful at first because the Seed of Curse will react. But trust me and endure it. There will be good results.”

-Okay. I trust you!

Shami gently lowered her head.

So, I immediately put the pendant on her, and at that moment, Shami shuddered and began to tremble.

It was probably an unconscious reaction of a body accustomed to the curse feeling considerable discomfort.

-It hurts.

Shami complained of pain.

If she couldn’t bear it, I was ready to take off the pendant right away.

As I was about to put my hand on the pendant, Shami shook her head.

-It’s okay. I can endure it! It’s very unpleasant, but it feels like something inside me is enduring it, not me.

Shami’s expression made me realize that this artifact was definitely doing its job.

-I see the appearance of a demon. It’s whispering in my head that I should take off the pendant before it kills me!

“Shami, come here.”

-Shin-hwa, stay with me. I’m scared, but I’ll try to endure it…!

Seeing Shami gritting her teeth and trying to endure, I held her tightly and stayed with her.

In my head, I cursed ‘Lechero, you son of a bitch’ hundreds of times.

What on earth is he dreaming of that he creates innocent victims like Shami?

“I’ll keep staying by your side. Let’s endure it together. If you really can’t bear it, tell me anytime.”

-Okay…….

Soon, silence fell.

Amidst Shami’s occasional shallow groans, our time passed quickly.

2 hours… 3 hours… and more.

It was past late evening and nearing midnight.

Shami, who had fallen asleep in my arms, stretched vigorously and got up.

-Shin-hwa! Shin-hwa!

“Huh?”

Shami touched my cheek with her soft paws, which had been nodding off, and woke me up diligently.

-I just woke up from a nap, and I didn’t have a nightmare for the first time!

“Really?”

-Yes! It’s the first time since I came to this world! The demon didn’t appear in my dream!

Shami’s emotions were highly agitated.

It was as if I was watching a patient whose body had suddenly recovered completely, she looked so happy.

“Let’s watch a little longer for now. The Seed of Curse inside you won’t disappear in just a few hours.”

-I guess so. But anyway, I’m happy! Shin-hwa, thank you so much for getting me this artifact!

“No thanks needed. I just picked it up on the way.”

-Did you really pick it up on the way?

“Yeah, I picked it up in the dungeon.”

I stroked Shami’s head, who was shining with bright eyes.

Seeing Shami’s eyes drawn in a crescent shape, my mood also improved.

“Okay, let’s eat this to celebrate waking up in a good mood.”

I took out the ‘secret weapon’ I had bought on the way home earlier.

-What is this?

“It’s a treat called Churu.”

-Dr, treat? Are you telling me to eat and die?

“It’s not that, it’s just that once you taste it, it’s an essential item for cats that you can never quit.”

-There’s no such thing.

I could definitely tell that Shami wasn’t a cat that had been touched by someone’s hand.

She doesn’t know Churu.

Isn’t it a special snack for the cat ‘lord’ that every cat butler must have?

“Just try it once.”

I immediately tore open the package and squeezed the Churu straight into her mouth, which was already open.

-Oh! Oh! Ah!

Shami reflexively licked her tongue and began to eat the Churu.

It seemed that the first taste on her tongue wasn’t too bad.

I was worried that she wouldn’t like it because she was such a picky cat.

-Haaa…….

Like Marina’s expression when she was heavily intoxicated with the Enhancement Potion, Shami’s eyes began to glaze over.

After tasting the forbidden Churu, she was awakening (?) in a different sense.

-It’s so delicious…….

It seems that I have gained one more way to tame Shami for sure.

* * *

1 hour later.

‘There’s still about 30 minutes left.’

Shin-hwa looked at his watch.

The current time was 1 AM.

2 AM was the time Yoon-byeol and Choi Ji-hyuk had promised to come for a meeting regarding team formation.

‘Shami is asleep… I’ve finished making the Top-Grade Magic Potion. Is it time to upgrade Wilson now?’

Shin-hwa was holding Wilson in one hand and the Supreme-Grade Dimensional Stone he had taken out of his subspace pocket in the other.

It was a Dimensional Stone that had not yet appeared in the Awakened world, and Shin-hwa was the first in the world to obtain it.

“I definitely need to reinforce his long-range attack ability. I can’t keep running around like a dog chasing a chicken every time.”

Shin-hwa felt a lot from this battle with Joo Cheon-ho.

It was his ‘weakness’ against skilled opponents who blocked variables like Blink from the start and persistently kept their distance.

Magic power emission using his left arm is powerful, but its firepower decreases exponentially as the distance increases.

Therefore, Wilson’s existence, which can instantly strike long distances, was very important to Shin-hwa.

“Wilson, are you ready? If you get stronger, I’ll get stronger here too.”

Ting! Ting!

Wilson bounced up to Shin-hwa’s eye level, showing more enthusiasm than ever.

“Then.”

Shin-hwa immediately brought the Dimensional Stone close to Wilson’s body.

The next moment!

Kwaaa!

In the blink of an eye, Wilson, who resonated with the Supreme-Grade Dimensional Stone, opened a mouth he had never seen before and swallowed the Dimensional Stone in one gulp.

Kooong! Kooong! Kooong!

He began to emit intense heat and transform. It was the beginning of a rampage.