The Regressor Only Protects Me [EN]: Chapter 135

135. Traces (1)

“We welcome you as our guests. Please, make yourselves at home.”

Chae smiled warmly, as if washing away all past resentments.

Chae immediately took the lead.

“Come on in. I’ll show you around.”

I obediently followed Chae.

However, I never let my guard down.

New environment and new people.

I absorbed everything around me, taking it all in.

‘They’re like primitive people.’

That was my impression.

And I summarized the characteristics of the villagers once again.

First, they all maintained disheveled long hair.

And they all had bright smiles on their faces.

As if they had no worries or concerns.

At that moment, children playing in the trees in the distance spotted Zion and his group and approached.

“Giggle! Come here! Come and eat this!”

“What’s this? New people. Welcome.”

Each of them held tree fruits or ornaments made from unidentified bone fragments in their hands.

I carefully examined them.

‘We’ve only strayed a little from Anyang, but these are plants I’ve never seen before.’

It was true that it had become difficult to see familiar plants because most of the plants that grew in the original world had become extinct.

But what the children were offering now were plants I had never seen even after the world had changed.

When I first entered the forest, I was told to look for traces of the witch.

It would be good to find the connection between the witch and this village.

In any case, staying in this village seemed like a good idea for now.

The expedition team’s stamina was greatly reduced, and it was also possible to find traces of the witch, and furthermore, traces of Junho.

Of course.

If they treat us ‘kindly’.

“Chae. Give this to the new people. Can we give it to them?”

“Wait a moment, kids. I’m guiding the guests right now.”

The children retreated with sullen faces.

Chae seemed to be a person who wielded great influence over the children here.

Like the only kindergarten teacher in this village.

I was not in the mental state to walk around on my own two feet.

Before I knew it, the expedition team, Chae, and the children had gathered around them.

One thing that was unique.

These children, regardless of gender, also had long hair.

“Hyung-nim [term of respect for an older brother or male friend]. If we call the kids and cut down these trees, we can use them effectively, right? Especially since we don’t have the trees needed for the walls.”

Choi Myung-joon looked at me and said with an excited face.

In fact, the trees here were different from ordinary trees.

Their depth and width were enormous.

Most of the huts in this village were made by digging out tree trunks.

Inside, some people were making food by lighting fires, or making clothes by weaving leaves.

At some point, I was habitually looking around and evaluating everything.

I followed closely behind Chae, pinching my temples.

‘……I need to stop thinking so much too. My head.’

Whether it was because of frequent thoughts.

Or because of this forest.

In any case, I really wanted to rest.

“Ah, the village chief is coming over there.”

Chae bowed his head.

In the direction he bowed, an old man was standing.

He was clearly called the village chief, but his attire was no different from the other residents.

As expected, his hair was long and he was wearing clothes made by roughly weaving grass.

“Hehe, young guests have arrived. Welcome. This place is Bitnam. The forest of peace and healing.”

The village chief smiled kindly and approached us.

“Chae. Where are these guests from?”

“I met them in the forest.”

“From the forest? You’ve come a difficult way. I see.”

“That’s right. So…….”

At that moment, Choi Myung-joon interrupted Chae and stepped forward.

“Hey. Forget all that, just tell us how to get out of this forest.”

Choi Myung-joon glared at the village chief with a scowling face.

Then, Jin Jae-hee pulled Choi Myung-joon’s shoulder and said.

“Just be quiet.”

The village chief, who was watching the scene, laughed it off as if it was okay.

“Hehe, the forest outside the village is very dangerous. Let’s rest here for a while. After you’ve rested comfortably, I’ll assign you a guide.”

I felt Jin Jae-hee’s gaze on me.

A gaze that seemed uneasy.

It was because I had never received such unconditional hospitality since the world had turned upside down.

“Heueung, let’s take a break! I’m so tired!”

Choi Hyun-ji plopped down on the floor and whined.

Choi Myung-joon glared at Choi Hyun-ji.

“That rude bitch again. Hyung-nim, this girl. Let’s just abandon her here! She’s been chattering since earlier.”

“…….”

“Hyung-nim?”

I ignored Myung-joon’s words and looked at the village chief standing in front of me.

That village chief who was constantly wearing a kind smile.

Trusting someone who approaches with a smile was never a good thing.

Especially in this world.

However, in order to escape the forest and go to Suwon, I still needed their help, so it was difficult to refuse their offer.

Besides, it wasn’t a bad idea to investigate the villagers who lived primitively in this strange forest.

You never knew when it might be useful again.

As I had originally concluded, I looked at the village chief and nodded.

“Then I’ll accept your kindness.”

“You’ve made a good decision. Hehe. Chae. Take good care of these people.”

“Yes, Village Chief.”

Chae smiled brightly and took the lead.

“Let’s go eat. We’ll provide the best food in Bitnam.”

* * *

Chae bustled between the kitchen and the living room with excited steps.

After receiving a brief tour of the village from Chae, Kang Zion and his group sat around in Chae’s house.

His house was a giant tree that seemed to have grown into the shape of a house.

It was a house that matched the picturesque scenery here.

“Okay, everyone, I’ve brought out the food. It’s not much, but please enjoy it.”

“Wow! It looks delicious!”

Choi Hyun-ji smacked her lips as she looked at the dishes that were being placed on the table in the living room one by one.

Seasoned dishes made with uniquely shaped leaves and meats with a mysterious dark red color.

Everything from start to finish was food that the group had never encountered before.

Unlike Choi Hyun-ji, who was already glaring and reaching out for the food, Kang Zion and the rest of the group hesitated to eat the food.

“Haha, there’s no need to be wary. We wouldn’t put poison in it or anything like that.”

Chae, who was watching them, picked up a piece of meat from the table and put it in his mouth first.

Choi Myung-joon, who saw this, immediately reached for the food as well.

Myung-joon took a big bite of the meat and widened his eyes.

“Woah- Fucking delicious. Hyung-nim! Try it.”

Kang Zion slowly reached out and grabbed the food in his hand.

“Eat it. They wouldn’t play tricks with something like this.”

Zion said to Jae-hee, who was hesitating to eat.

Only then did Jae-hee follow Zion and take a bite.

Zion looked at Jae-hee.

She seemed to like the food, as she took two or three more bites.

Chae looked at the group and smiled contentedly.

“Wow, it’s rewarding to serve you when the guests enjoy it so much.”

“Hey, Chae, was it? Do you have any alcohol? It makes me want to drink when I eat something delicious.”

Choi Myung-joon looked at Chae with expectant eyes.

“Alcohol? Of course, we do. We have another thing to be proud of in Bitnam. Please wait a moment.”

Chae got up from his seat for a moment and soon brought a large gourd.

It was a classic gourd with a design decorated with woven branches.

Chae took out cups made of carved wood and poured alcohol for the group one by one.

“This is alcohol made from star tree fruits that only grow here. I can confidently say that it is a well-received alcohol no matter where you take it.”

Choi Myung-joon poured the contents of the glass into his mouth in one gulp as if he had been waiting for it.

“Kua! Awesome! Hey. Give me another glass. Hyung-nim! Try it. It’s amazing! Wow! I don’t know when was the last time I had such alcohol!”

Myung-joon exclaimed repeatedly.

The taste of fragrant fruit and the rich aroma of alcohol.

Even before the world turned upside down, it was definitely something that would be considered a masterpiece.

“Haha! It’s our pride, ‘Star Cluster’. It’s called Star Cluster because it’s so delicious that you keep eating it and a cluster of stars flickers in front of your eyes.”

Choi Hyun-ji had already taken out a cola and was mixing it into her glass.

Kang Zion was a little surprised after only lightly touching the alcohol to the tip of his tongue.

‘It’s delicious. It’s a decent alcohol.’

Even if you can make alcohol itself in this world, it was quite difficult to make such high-quality alcohol.

If I could find out how, it would definitely be beneficial.

If there is alcohol, it will be of great help in raising the morale of the workers.

Even in modern times, alcohol and cigarettes were important consumer goods that could be satisfied at a low price.

“Can you teach me how to make this alcohol?”

A new technology encountered in a new environment.

It was something Kang Zion could covet.

“Haha. It’s not a difficult task. I’ll introduce you to the brewers later.”

The dinner with good alcohol slowly ripened.

When the meal was coming to an end, Zion judged that now was the right time to bring up the main point.

“Chae. The village chief said he would assign us a guide earlier. Do you know all the geography of this forest?”

Chae sat up straight and answered.

“That’s right. We know everything except for a few places where dangerous monsters live.”

“Then you must know the fastest way to Suwon.”

Kang Zion wanted to slowly devise a way to utilize all the resources of this forest if possible, but it was not the time yet.

Finding his brother was still the top priority.

“Suwon? Where is this place called Suwon?”

At that moment, Chae’s answer surprised everyone gathered here.

The group stopped eating and froze in their seats.

While the group exchanged glances, only Chae had a puzzled expression.

“Oh, is it a region name? Is it nearby? Maybe I’m the only one who doesn’t know?”

Choi Hyun-ji, with a mouthful of food, mumbled without even chewing at Chae’s awkward smile.

“You don’t know Suwon? It’s right below here?”

“I don’t…… know. I don’t know. Ah, maybe? The village chief might know.”

Chae stuck his head out the door.

“Is anyone there! Can someone come here?”

After a moment of silence, the sound of a child running quickly was heard, and the door burst open.

“You called!?”

“Yes. I called you.”

It was the child who had given Choi Hyun-ji the ‘water-drinking hippo’ in the forest.

“Hana-ya [term of endearment]. Can you bring the village chief here? The guests said they have something they want to ask the village chief.”

“I’ll ask! I’ll bring him!”

Hana left the house in a flash before Chae could answer.

It was a childlike vigor.

Not long after, a presence was heard outside the door.

“Yes. Come in.”

The door opened and a familiar white-haired old man entered the house.

It was the village chief.

“Village Chief. I’m sorry to bother you while you’re busy. The guests said they have something urgent they want to ask you.”

“Hehe, no. It’s okay. Young and vibrant guests have come, and I was wondering if there was anything else this old man could do for them. So, you’re going to Suwon?”

Choi Myung-joon, drunk on alcohol, spoke in front of the kindly smiling old man.

True to the name of the alcohol, Choi Myung-joon was already staggering as if he was seeing a cluster of stars.

“Yeah. Old man. Where do I have to go to get to Suwon?”

“What? Old man……? What is an old man?”

“Don’t mind this idiot. We need to go to Suwon, can you tell us the way?”

Jin Jae-hee intervened and asked.

The old man was so small that his eye level was similar to that of Kang Zion, who was short.

“Ah, yes. I also recently learned where Suwon is. This is something. Our residents only live in the forest, so they are not familiar with the geography outside the forest. I also heard about where Suwon was for the first time while talking to a guest from outside a while ago.”

The old man looked at the air with eyes that seemed to be wandering in his hazy memories.

“Let’s see……. I definitely guided a wanderer with the surname Kang to the Dragon’s Lair a while ago because he said he was going to Suwon. He said that catching the dragon was their quest. That’s right. That’s right. The name is…….”

The attention of the group was entirely focused on the old man.

And the village chief stroked his thick mustache with his hand and continued.

“Kang Junho……. He was a really small child. That child said he was going to Suwon. Yes.”

At that moment, Zion’s eyes shook.

(Continued in the next episode)