Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 208

208―――――

I’m sorry.

Something came up at home, so I must leave!

“Hmm.”

Kim Yu-hyun watched Rishikida, who was in the middle of a fierce battle with a woman Zion called a dove, and others referred to as a celestial being.

The first time he encountered her was probably at the battle between the Count of Klausen’s Frontier and Nudia, less than half a year ago.

At that time, Rishikida was definitely skilled, and he remembered her sword being quite sharp.

However, she seemed to be driven by something, preventing her from unleashing her full potential, and her sword was filled with the aura of death rather than victory.

And the moment Kim Yu-hyun faced Rishikida’s sword, he instinctively knew.

‘Ah, this woman isn’t on this battlefield to win, but merely a living ghost looking for a place to die honorably.’

So, Kim Yu-hyun didn’t fight her with all his heart.

Even though he could have cut her down many times, he just humored her and tested the difference between himself, whose body wasn’t in normal condition, and the strong people of this continent.

‘The result was as expected, though.’

In the beginning, his body couldn’t adapt because the world itself had changed, so his recovery was very slow.

Because of that, he was far from being able to fight on par with Raido and was only pushed into a defensive position.

However, his body had recently started to recover faster, and he could tell from fighting Rishikida that his strength had finally recovered to more than half.

Therefore, as a reward for that, and thinking of it as the first and last lesson to a foolish woman swinging her sword to die, he didn’t use lethal moves.

Because he thought that even if she didn’t die by his hand, she would soon jump into a place where she could die on her own.

Clang! Clang!

The emotion of surprise briefly flickered across the celestial woman’s face before disappearing.

It seemed she hadn’t imagined that Rishikida would push her this far.

It was a natural result, considering that the woman had shown a surprisingly rapid rate of improvement, even to Kim Yu-hyun.

“…Geez.

She was definitely a woman trying to find a place to die back then.”

Zion Klausen.

After meeting that man and going under his command, she completely changed.

The woman who was full of the desire to die and floundering in despair was no longer there.

Instead, there was a genius female knight who tried her best to help Zion while suppressing her ticklish smile, and a tender-hearted woman.

“…Heh!

Not bad.

Human woman!”

Even though Shayella’s spearhead was flying straight for her heart, Rishikida didn’t waver in the slightest.

She knew that swords were much more advantageous in such close combat, and she was confident that even if she were injured by the spearhead, her blade would pierce the opponent’s heart first.

Even though she had tried to create an opening by making threatening attacks, it didn’t work, so Shayella decided to re-evaluate the human woman in front of her.

She was still not as strong as that man, but she was definitely an opponent who could harm her body.

Swish―.

A slightly different kind of mana than usual, a hazy and white energy, rippled around her.

Rishikida took a defensive stance, looking wary at the sight of the unfamiliar scene, and Shayella smiled as if it were natural.

‘Because divine power is only allowed to us celestial beings.’

Whoosh!

A strike that was much faster and much more threatening than before flew in.

Rishikida instinctively felt that she didn’t even have enough time to defend and hurriedly twisted her body, but the speed was too fast, and she couldn’t completely avoid the attack.

Slice!―

If she had been just a little bit slower, her stomach would have been pierced straight through.

She was wearing sturdy leather armor that could block not only stray blades but also direct attacks to some extent, but the spear easily cut through it.

Rishikida stepped back and wiped her side.

The leather armor was torn open, and the bright red blood soaking through it showed that it wasn’t just a graze, and her intestines could have been cut if it had been just a little deeper.

“Not bad.

Even demons usually die with holes in them, but you managed to avoid it.”

“…I’m not a demon, celestial being.”

“Oh my?

You know I’m a celestial being?

But that’s strange.

Even though you know that, you’re pointing your sword at me and showing hostility.

Shouldn’t you be doing that to the demons, who are a threat to you humans and all beings on the continent?”

“…My master said that the enemy always hides in the safest place and waits for the best time.”

“Is that the celestial beings?”

“That’s what my master said.”

“Hmm.

I wonder what kind of being that master is to spout such nonsense.

He’s someone who shouldn’t be let off with just a simple punishment.

Who is he?

Who is that master?”

At Shayella’s words, Rishikida raised her sword as if it were impossible.

The celestial woman sighed and twirled her spear.

“Humans are all the same.

They only come to their senses when they’re punished.

They only tell the truth when they’re beaten.”

As she said that, Shayella once again flew in like a streak of light.

The wound on her side was quite deep, but Rishikida ignored it and focused all her attention on the terrifying streak of light flying towards her.

‘A simple thrusting attack that’s nothing special.

But just like Sir Yu-hyun, that one simple thrust is like thousands and tens of thousands of arrows to me, and like sunlight that I can’t escape no matter where I run!’

If she tried to avoid it this time, she would only suffer a bigger injury and fall into a state of combat disability.

Through all kinds of sparring with Kim Yu-hyun, Rishikida had improved in many ways.

In particular, the most useful part was how to land a blow against someone much stronger than herself.

Rishikida slightly turned her wounded side and accepted the spear flying towards her without avoiding it, and at the same time, she crouched down as if she was going to aim for the opponent’s neck in reverse.

―You must be able to regard your life as worthless.

Only then can you live.

If you have regrets, you will get hurt, and the person you have to protect will get hurt.

―

As she repeated Kim Yu-hyun’s words, Rishikida shouted inwardly to Zion, who had ordered her, ‘Never die!’ Don’t worry!

She accepted the streak of light flying towards her without avoiding it.

‘As expected!’

As expected, the opponent instinctively aimed for her injured right side again.

It flew in as if to pierce her neck, but at the last moment, it twisted its trajectory and thrust the spear into Rishikida’s right side, which was relatively behind.

Rishikida instinctively realized at that moment.

If she tried to avoid it here again, she would be injured somewhere else.

The opponent was clearly aiming for that and digging into her right side.

Then, in order to overcome this, she had to enter that death trap herself!

‘Huh?’

The moment Shayella thrust her spear, she doubted her eyes.

In her thrust, which would have been avoided or blocked under normal circumstances, this human woman threw her body forward as if she was going to be stabbed herself.

Others might have shouted that Rishikida was crazy, but for Shayella, who had other intentions, it was a surprising attack.

‘Not bad, human woman.’

Before the spearhead could even touch Rishikida’s body, Shayella quickly twisted her body, judging that she would definitely take fatal damage the moment her sword flew towards Shayella’s neck.

Thanks to that, her attack completely missed, and her body’s balance was disrupted, putting her in a situation where she could fall or stumble at any moment.

‘Now!’

In order not to miss the offensive she had seized, Rishikida quickly retrieved her sword and tried to switch to the next attack.

However, she soon realized that the opponent she was fighting was a completely different being from ordinary humans.

Flap!

In a situation where it wouldn’t be strange for her to fall, Shayella lightly used her wings as a support and flew up, then roughly struck Rishikida’s back with the shaft of her spear.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

Rishikida gritted her teeth and tried to suppress the scream that was about to burst out due to the tremendous pain from the unexpected attack.

It felt like something was about to flow back up her throat and spill out, but Rishikida swallowed it forcibly and turned her body around without letting go of her sword.

“Not bad!

To be able to twist your body in that instant to reduce the impact even a little.”

If it had been an ordinary human, their spine would have been broken.

But that human woman almost instinctively twisted her body and succeeded in reducing the impact.

It wasn’t a conclusion that came from seeing her attack, thinking, making a decision, and judging.

That was really a case where her body made the decision first, either instinctively or after tremendous training.

“Humans are really amazing.

To think that you would try to avoid it somehow.

I want to applaud you!

Ah, can I really applaud you?”

Shayella smiled brightly and started clapping, as if she were a teacher who was so moved by her student’s success that she didn’t know what to do.

At first glance, it looked very bright, but from another perspective, it was an action with a striking fanatic element.

Rishikida sighed as if she was dumbfounded and smiled.

“Oh my, is the situation so unrealistic that you’re laughing?

To laugh like that even though the situation is the worst, are you out of your mind?”

Blood was flowing from her side, and her back was perfectly hit, so even though her bones weren’t damaged, Rishikida was quite uncomfortable to move.

In contrast, Shayella was so calm that the celestial woman’s composure was perhaps natural.

“It’s just like my master said.”

But Rishikida wasn’t just laughing because the situation itself was absurd, as Shayella said.

“Dove.”

“…Yes?”

“Birdbrains.”

“…What did you say, human woman?”

“Didn’t you hear me?

I said dove.

Coo.

Coo.

Coo.”

Rishikida was calling her a dove, a birdbrain, and even making cooing sounds.

Even though the situation was the worst for her, she wasn’t losing her composure.

It wasn’t a look of trying to maintain her composure, but a reaction as if she really didn’t have any worries even though she was injured like this.

‘…What is this human woman?

Is she crazy or something?’

She can’t be reacting so calmly when the situation is like this.

Unless she’s crazy, or she has something to rely on.

‘Could it be?’

Only then did Shayella suddenly come to her senses and hurriedly turn her body around.

And almost at the same time, Kim Yu-hyun’s sword with a blue light grazed her cheek.

“Oh.

A quick-witted dove.”

“You!”

“I could have pierced you from the back of your neck to your beak.”

Shayella stepped back and wiped her cheek.

Bright red blood was묻어 나오는 동시에 쓰린 감각이 확 찾아온다. [The original text is Korean, but it seems to be an artifact from translation. I will translate it to English] Bright red blood was smeared, and at the same time, a stinging sensation quickly came over her.

“The people of the continent say that the celestial beings are so great, I thought their blood color would be different, but in the end, it’s like humans.

Even like monsters, it’s red?”

“Shut up!

Are you cowardly aiming for the back!

Do humans have no honor!”

“Of course, I value honor.

But aren’t you in a position to say that?”

“What?”

“What was your purpose in coming here in the first place?”

At Kim Yu-hyun’s question, Shayella reflexively tried to answer, but then she closed her mouth, saying, ‘Ah!’

Like that human man said, she was here to ‘persuade’ or ‘threaten’ a human woman.

It was a reason that was far from the honor she had spoken of.

“The man who asked me a favor said this.

There’s no need to be polite to those who talk nonsense and do stupid things.

So that’s how I’m treating you.

If you feel wronged, you should have come to me with dignity.”

“Ugh!

How dare a human like you!”

“Yes.

As you said, I am, and the woman behind me is just a human ‘like you’.

Because I’m human, I can act without hesitation to win and survive.”

At those words, Shayella felt a creepy energy again and hurriedly lowered her body.

Almost at the same time as she lowered her body and rolled on the floor, Rishikida’s sword was slashing through the air where her head had been, spewing out flashes of light.

“Too bad.”

“Too slow.”

“I couldn’t help it.

This was the best I could do because of my injury, Sir Yu-hyun.”

“…Well.

If you had tried to increase your speed there and twisted your body, more blood might have spilled out.”

Rishikida and Kim Yu-hyun were talking very casually, as if they were having a conversation.

One might mistake them for having come out for tea or something.

Meanwhile, Shayella, who had barely escaped Rishikida’s attack by rolling on the dirt floor, bit her lip and hurriedly tried to regain her composure and launch a counterattack.

However, as if she had no intention of letting go of the prey she had caught, Rishikida’s sword appeared in front of her again.

‘Tch!’

Shayella hurriedly raised her body and avoided the sword.

But at that very moment, a tremendous impact was transmitted to her face.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

As if this was the plan from the beginning, Kim Yu-hyun and Rishikida were very diligently gnawing away at her.

A 1:1 battle?

It was as if they were shouting that it was nonsense that would only appear in novels.

“Did you really think I would honorably deal with a dove who was trying to run away after shitting in her head?”

Before Shayella could even react, this time Kim Yu-hyun’s kick landed directly on her stomach.

The blow was so powerful that she vomited blood on the spot and fell backwards.

When the opponent was perfectly hit by the attack, Kim Yu-hyun began to move with the intention of finishing it.

As he had seen in the battle with Rishikida, the celestial woman was definitely strong.

She was strong, had combat experience, and above all, had instantaneous acceleration using her wings, the advantage of being able to freely occupy the air, and a mysterious energy that was hard to explain.

Kim Yu-hyun could understand why Zion had asked him to protect Princess Vanessa so well.

“…Ha.”

Shayella, who had been hit by Kim Yu-hyun’s blow and was lying on the floor with blood on her lips.

She seemed to have received a tremendous shock, but she suddenly burst out laughing and slowly got up from her seat.

“Hahaha!

Hahaha!

Wow… that’s amazing.

The pain is even worse than my brother’s, it’s really the first time.”

Her appearance was a mess in an instant, but somehow the smile on the opponent’s face was getting thicker and thicker.

As if she was so amused and excited by this situation that she was going crazy.

Kim Yu-hyun stared at Shayella for a moment and sighed, ‘Hoo.’

‘Yu-hyun.

Don’t spare the rod for a crazy person.’

Remembering what his senior had said to him one day.

Kim Yu-hyun slowly took a stance and pondered whether to rush in first or accept the opponent’s attack.

Shayella grabbed her spear and flew in with explosive speed, as she had done to Rishikida, as if to solve that problem for him.

‘…It’s definitely fast, but.’

It was definitely enough to be called a race that the people of the continent revered so much.

Kim Yu-hyun smacked his lips as if he was a little disappointed.

“Slow, dove.”

And blood splattered in all directions.

―――――――Author’s Note―――――――

Actually, it’s a pigeon.