The Regressor Only Protects Me [EN]: Chapter 193

193. Farewell and Reunion (1)

Kim Kang-suk watched the archers of Mangyeong firing arrows from the building towards the street.

The archers’ arrows flew weakly and mostly landed on the ground.

However, even those weak arrows managed to kill some hunters.

The conflict had been ongoing for several days, and the Mangyeong defense forces were united in defending their territory.

Kim Kang-suk turned to Woo Ji-hye and asked,

“It seems like Kang Si-on has more subordinates in Mangyeong than just Jeong Hyun-soo. Someone is single-handedly blocking our offensive near Bisan-dong. Ji-hye, be careful. According to our intel, this person is supposed to be very strong.”

Bang-! Bang-!

Woo Ji-hye, expressionless, continued to shoot and kill the rushing Mangyeong soldiers, barely acknowledging Kim Kang-suk’s warning.

She was firing the pistol with only one hand, yet her aim was impeccable.

The Mangyeong soldiers struck by the bullets could only accept their fate and pray for a swift end.

Her eyes, visible behind the gas mask, shifted from the sight of the bleeding Mangyeong soldiers to Kim Kang-suk.

Woo Ji-hye looked at him and reloaded her pistol magazine.

As she looked back at him, Kim Kang-suk asked,

“Are you leaving today?”

Woo Ji-hye nodded in response to Kim Kang-suk’s question, confirming his suspicion.

The day Mangyeong would fall was drawing near.

For Metro’s victory, the two were tasked with eliminating all the Artifact Players remaining in Mangyeong.

The player information they had gathered in advance pointed to Jeong Hyun-soo, who possessed the ability to create lightning arrows, and Choi Hyun-ji, who could manipulate black matter.

Jeong Hyun-soo was currently injured from his battle with the Red Devil and had retreated. It was highly likely that Choi Hyun-ji was the one currently holding the line in Bisan-dong.

Regardless, Woo Ji-hye and Kim Kang-suk’s primary target was Jin Jae-hee. However, some preliminary work was necessary before engaging him.

The preliminary work was simple: eliminate any players who could potentially aid Jin Jae-hee.

In terms of raw player power, the Metro forces were at a disadvantage, so they opted for a strategy of individual elimination.

Woo Ji-hye’s next target was Choi Hyun-ji.

The two headed straight to Bisan-dong.

* * *

Chureureuk-. Chureureuk-.

The black matter snaked between buildings, hunting down hunters.

The black matter, spread across the intersection, extended tentacles in multiple directions, their ends sharpened to points like awls.

Some hunters fired bullets at the tentacles, but the projectiles had little effect on the substance.

A hunter hurled a Molotov cocktail at the black matter.

The Molotov cocktail struck the black matter, shattered, and erupted in flames.

Jjaenggeurang-. Hwareureuk!

The black matter recoiled in response to the sudden flames and writhed, quickly eliminating the nearby hunters to escape the fire.

Woo Ji-hye observed the scene with unwavering focus.

“……”

Woo Ji-hye ascended to the roof of a building and gazed down at the black matter.

There was no doubt. It was Choi Hyun-ji.

She was effectively blockading the street.

She was a player who could pose a significant challenge to the hunters.

Her power was especially suited for defense.

Kim Kang-suk, observing the same scene as Woo Ji-hye, asked,

“Ji-hye, should I assist you this time?”

“It’s okay, Uncle.”

Woo Ji-hye slowly unwound the scarf she was wearing and handed it to Kim Kang-suk.

Then she said softly,

“Please keep the scarf safe.”

Kim Kang-suk frowned as he accepted the scarf from Woo Ji-hye.

“Are you planning to do this alone again?”

“It’s easier to work alone. Just provide cover.”

With those words, Woo Ji-hye leaped off the roof.

She landed lightly on the road, as graceful as a feather.

Then, she slowly approached the black matter.

At that moment, a black tentacle sliced through the air and lunged towards Woo Ji-hye.

But the tentacle was met with a burst of flame.

Hwirik- hwirik-!

Upon contact with the flame, the tentacle thrashed wildly, like an octopus in agony.

Simultaneously, Choi Hyun-ji, concealed within the black matter, detected Woo Ji-hye’s presence.

Chureureureuk-.

The black matter parted slightly, revealing the right side of Choi Hyun-ji’s face.

Choi Hyun-ji looked noticeably haggard from days of constant fighting.

Only her eyes were visible from within the black matter as she spoke,

“You know what…? Today is Saturday. Don’t you guys… don’t you even rest on weekends? Please, I’m begging you. Let’s just rest a little. Aren’t you guys… tired too? Let’s just take a good rest for one day and do it tomorrow. How about tomorrow?”

She pleaded with Woo Ji-hye, who was approaching to kill her.

Choi Hyun-ji was utterly exhausted.

So much so that she had lost track of how many days the long battle had been raging.

The black matter gradually filled the space again, slowly encroaching on Woo Ji-hye.

But Woo Ji-hye remained unfazed.

She pulled back the pistol slide and fired at Choi Hyun-ji’s slightly exposed face.

Tang-! Tang-!

The bullets accurately targeted Choi Hyun-ji’s face but were intercepted by the black matter.

Choi Hyun-ji retreated back into the black matter and muttered.

“I see… that’s what it is. I understand. It’s the same. Yeah…….”

The black matter that had been struck began to expand.

The matter grew larger and larger, taking on the form of a grotesque demon.

The demon towered to the height of a two-story building and glared down at the approaching Woo Ji-hye.

Choi Hyun-ji, still inside, muttered.

“…I need to kill them quickly and rest. Right.”

Choi Hyun-ji’s voice cracked and echoed through the street.

Woo Ji-hye emptied the remaining bullets into the demon.

Tang, tang, tang, tang!

Of course, the bullets had no effect on Choi Hyun-ji.

Woo Ji-hye tossed the pistol aside and removed her military gloves.

Choi Hyun-ji shouted.

“Leave me alone-!”

Buung-!

The giant demon’s fist hurtled towards Woo Ji-hye.

The blow possessed enough force to kill even an ogre in a single strike.

But a pillar of fire intercepted the demon’s fist.

Peoeong-! Hwareureureureuk…….

“?!”

Choi Hyun-ji was startled and retracted her fist, but flames had already engulfed it.

Choi Hyun-ji tried to extinguish the flames.

“Fire……?!”

Fire was a relatively rare artifact ability.

It possessed the destructive power to consume and incinerate everything.

And it was also Choi Hyun-ji’s natural weakness.

The black matter, resistant to most substances, was vulnerable to fire.

It melted upon contact.

‘The compatibility is bad…….’

From that moment on, Choi Hyun-ji contemplated fleeing.

Pillars of fire erupted around Woo Ji-hye, reaching high into the sky.

Pareureureureureuk-!

Sparks from the pillars of fire rained down across the street.

The pillars of fire consumed the road and rapidly spread, turning the corpses of the fallen hunters into ashes.

Woo Ji-hye emerged from the pillars of fire.

Then, she pointed her finger at Choi Hyun-ji’s heart.

Instantly, a massive fire sword materialized in the demon’s chest and impaled it.

Hwareuk-! Peobeoeong-!

Choi Hyun-ji screamed in agony.

“Kkyaaaaahak! Uaaaaah……! Aak!”

Choi Hyun-ji attempted to pull out the fire sword lodged in her heart, but it was too hot to even touch.

The demon collapsed backward.

The fire sword melted the black matter and slowly incinerated Choi Hyun-ji.

Woo Ji-hye didn’t relent.

As she forcefully lowered her hand to the right, flames traced a diagonal path, slicing through Choi Hyun-ji.

Hwiing-! Hwareureureureureuk!

Even more intense flames began to consume Choi Hyun-ji’s body.

Choi Hyun-ji screamed in the searing pain.

She covered her head and desperately tried to extinguish the fire, even destroying the surrounding buildings in her panic.

Ultimately, she chose to abandon the black matter.

Chureureureureuk-.

The black matter detached from its master and began to burn in a corner of the street.

Choi Hyun-ji, having escaped from the black matter, stumbled towards the opposite street, her entire body ablaze.

Choi Hyun-ji was powerless.

She was surprised by her own weakness.

‘Am I this… powerless…? Damn it. If I wasn’t so exhausted…….’

The black matter could be manipulated to be either solid or fluid.

But when it came into contact with fire, it simply evaporated.

That’s because slime is, by nature, a liquid monster.

Choi Hyun-ji realized she couldn’t defeat Woo Ji-hye.

She needed to call for help.

‘I have to run away… First… I’ll go to the soccer field and ask for help……!’

Choi Hyun-ji walked wearily.

The thick black smoke generated by the burning black matter provided some cover for her escape.

But running away didn’t mean she could move quickly.

The skin seared by the fire throbbed with pain, even when exposed to the wind.

“Heueueue…… Heueueueue……!”

Choi Hyun-ji clutched her arms and trembled.

It wasn’t cold, but the itching and stinging sensations all over her body were unbearable.

Choi Hyun-ji wept as she fled.

She felt overwhelmed by her current situation.

She wondered.

‘Why am I here?’

She couldn’t understand.

Why she had to remain here and endure this burning pain was beyond her comprehension.

She had always been a free spirit.

She could sleep soundly anytime, anywhere, and she enjoyed discovering new places, new environments, and new people.

She hadn’t lived her life to be confined somewhere like this, experiencing this agonizing pain.

She had only intended to fulfill Kang Si-on’s request, leave Mangyeong, and live a quiet life.

Why was fate so cruel to her?

She felt so sorry for herself that she began to cry.

“Cough! Cough……!”

Choi Hyun-ji entered a narrow alleyway and continued walking.

She nearly fell several times, forcing her to lean against the exterior walls of the buildings for support.

At that moment, the faded sign of an old pork restaurant caught her eye, and Choi Hyun-ji’s reflection in the glass window revealed her truly wretched state.

Her hair was singed, and her clothes were in tatters.

Hideous burn marks covered her face and every inch of her body.

She was a pitiful sight.

“……Water.”

In her miserable condition, she craved water.

She was desperately thirsty.

Though there was no one around, she pleaded sadly.

“…Someone, water, please. Please give me some water.”

But no matter how much she begged, the only response was the caw of a crow perched on a nearby street lamp.

The crow was patiently waiting for Choi Hyun-ji to die.

Choi Hyun-ji stumbled forward and tripped over the corpse of a Mangyeong soldier.

Kudang-! Cheolpudeok.

She fell face down on the ground, gasping for breath.

“……Mom.”

She called out to her mother, who had died long ago.

She didn’t know why.

She was simply too exhausted, so she called out to her non-existent parents.

Choi Hyun-ji had been an orphan since birth.

When she was born, she was found wrapped in a cloth and abandoned in front of a cathedral.

It was winter, and snow was falling heavily.

She grew up in the cathedral’s orphanage.

Despite her circumstances, Choi Hyun-ji was a cheerful child.

She embraced everything with a positive attitude and got along well with the other children.

However, unlike the other children, she would often disappear without a word.

The nuns would search the neighborhood for Choi Hyun-ji, who had vanished without a trace.

Choi Hyun-ji was always in a different place.

A playground, the roof of an apartment building, a mountain, a river.

Anywhere was fine.

‘……When was it.’

Choi Hyun-ji recalled a memory from her distant past.

It was a waterfall, a majestic cascade of water that filled the air with mist.

A waterfall where the immense volume of spray created by the falling water filled the sky. What was its name?

The waterfall on the television screen was breathtaking and beautiful.

‘Nigeria……. Ah, is that a country? Niagaria……? Niagara.’

Choi Hyun-ji longed to visit that waterfall.

The immense waterfall had captured her heart.

But now, everything had become a distant dream.

Tears welled up in Choi Hyun-ji’s eyes and streamed down her cheeks.

* * *

Hwareureuk-.

Woo Ji-hye followed Choi Hyun-ji, never losing sight of her.

In truth, she didn’t even need to pursue her.

Because Choi Hyun-ji had collapsed before long.

Woo Ji-hye approached the fallen Choi Hyun-ji.

Dried black matter clung to Choi Hyun-ji’s body.

She was mumbling, her lips moving like a dying fish on a deck.

“Water……. Water……. Please give me some water……. Water……. Water……. Water……. Water…….”

Choi Hyun-ji instinctively craved water because of the burning pain consuming her body.

But there was no one there to offer her a sip of water.

Woo Ji-hye gazed at Choi Hyun-ji, who was dying of thirst, and removed her gas mask.

She inhaled the outside air, tainted with the scent of blood.

The air, mixed with the odors of blood and burnt flesh, was preferable to the stale air inside the gas mask.

With this, Metro’s first Mangyeong player hunt was complete.

Woo Ji-hye pulled back the pistol slide without hesitation.

Cheolkeok-.

And she immediately fired a bullet into Choi Hyun-ji’s head.

Taang-!

(To be continued in the next episode)