The Regressor Only Protects Me [EN]: Chapter 22

#22. Unfit to be Human (1)

I cautiously opened my eyes.

The first things I saw were, as expected, Lee Ju-yeon and Lee Se-beom.

It was a familiar scene now.

I had already experienced this twice here.

“Ah, you’re awake. That’s a relief.”

Lee Ju-yeon smiled, pleased.

I slowly raised my upper body.

It felt like déjà vu, but it was definitely the second time I was experiencing this.

I had collapsed twice since coming here.

And woke up again like a zombie.

My thigh was covered with blood-soaked cloth, and a bandage was wrapped over it.

Looking at the wound, I asked,

“What’s the situation?”

Ju-yeon, who was next to me, spoke as if she was fed up.

“Wow… you’re asking about the situation first thing? Worry about yourself first.”

Then Se-beom cut her off and answered instead.

“You’ve been unconscious for about 10 hours. It’s the 6th day. The wound hasn’t completely healed. And Team Blue is finished.”

“Finished as in?”

I touched the wounded area with my hand and asked again.

It still throbbed.

“Everyone in Team Blue is dead except for the King, and there are twelve survivors left in Team Red. Everyone is resting now. Some have gone out to get food.”

“King?”

“Yeah, the King of Team Blue is still alive.”

That meant the King of Team Blue wasn’t Kim Dong-gil after all.

And it also meant that Kim Dong-gil had his own insurance [a backup plan or hidden asset].

Frankly, one person from Team Blue isn’t a threat anymore.

No matter what he does, he won’t be able to stand against Team Red now.

I looked around.

Most of the survivors had their heads down, and some were chain-smoking.

Some were drinking alcohol from who knows where.

I was familiar enough now to tell who was on Team Red just by looking at their faces.

Now the only problem was Team Black.

“…Recon?”

“We’re rotating shifts to find the remaining King of Team Blue.”

So that’s why there weren’t many people left here.

Then, seeing that I had woken up, some people from Team Red approached.

“Mr. Sion, you’re awake?”

“Th-thank goodness… Ah…”

“What should we do now?”

The people from Team Red gathered around me.

They were asking me what they should do next.

Seeking my advice.

“I don’t know.”

But I didn’t know either.

It was something I had to figure out now.

I tried to get up.

Then, a small force was felt from my forearm.

Swoosh-, Thud.

Even though it was a really small force, I slumped back down because of it.

I turned my head and looked at her.

“No.”

Lee Ju-yeon was holding my sleeve and made me lie down again.

She said firmly.

“You have to rest today.”

“…?”

When I gave her a look that I couldn’t understand, Lee Ju-yeon said even more strongly.

“Your wound hasn’t healed properly. If it opens up again, it’ll be a real problem. You can’t move until you see a doctor. You have to rest today.”

“…I can’t. I need to hurry.”

When I raised my upper body again, Ju-yeon poked my forehead with her finger this time.

My body collapsed powerlessly even with the force of that finger poke.

Lying down again and looking at the ceiling of the theater, I could tell that my body was really exhausted.

To collapse from just a finger.

Suddenly, the faces of the two siblings appeared in my view again.

“If you absolutely have to rest, but you absolutely have to work, then I have no choice but to stop you.”

Ju-yeon said, emphasizing ‘absolutely’.

Something soft was under my head, a pillow made by rolling up thick padding.

Ju-yeon continued, leaving me behind.

“And you also had a tear in the back of your head? It wasn’t deep enough to need stitches, but… Anyway, your body is not in good condition right now.”

“Okay.”

I shook my body a little and closed my eyes.

“Okay, I’ll rest.”

I definitely needed rest, and if it was hard to move even a finger, walking would be even more difficult.

If I wandered around the mall like this, I would just be easy prey for ‘Team Black’.

‘…’

When I closed my eyes, I naturally thought of my younger brother, Jun-ho.

What is my brother doing right now?

I tried to think only positive thoughts as much as possible.

If only my brother is alive and we meet, everything will be resolved.

After meeting my brother, I’ll have to figure out how to live in the future.

Jun-ho used to whine about not wanting to go to school, but now that the school is gone, what should I do?

Should I create a school in this destroyed world?

If possible, I hope my brother goes into science and becomes a respectable engineer.

Or even if he goes into humanities, law or business would be better.

I endured while thinking about my brother’s future every day I spent on the construction site.

That was my only hope.

Jun-ho had to succeed, unlike me.

A moderate drowsiness came over me.

I always enjoyed this moment when I closed my eyes.

Since I didn’t have any decent hobbies, sleeping had become my only enjoyment.

Only at this time could I forget everything and melt away the fatigue in my body.

After some time passed with my eyes closed, someone approached, and I tried to open my eyes.

But that someone said.

“Just listen while you’re sleeping.”

It was Lee Se-beom.

Se-beom placed a gun under my hand.

The gun disappeared as soon as it touched my hand.

It probably went into my inventory.

Se-beom said.

“When you were unconscious, Kwon Kyung-soo told me to hand that gun over to him.”

I was a little surprised and almost opened my eyes, but I held back.

And I couldn’t help but be surprised by his following words.

Calm words continued.

I calmed my emotions while listening to those words.

Se-beom urged me one last time.

“So, your body’s recovery comes first. Jae-hee told me that players selected as ‘King’ recover faster than others. So it’s better to rest today.”

Lee Se-beom stopped talking.

He’s probably glancing around.

He continued.

“My sister, Jae-hee, and I will take turns guarding you… If you understand, just move your pinky finger slightly. Don’t answer. We’re being watched.”

I moved my pinky finger a little.

Soon his voice faded away.

I clenched my fist without anyone knowing.

I felt like I was letting go of some string I had barely been holding onto.

Anger.

No, it was just a sense of futility.

* * *

Sion was closing his eyes.

To be exact, he had been pretending to be asleep for about 7 hours.

And Lee Se-beom, Lee Ju-yeon, and Jin Jae-hee were taking turns guarding him.

Some of the surviving members of Team Red approached Se-beom, who was awake.

“Student… take this. Aren’t you tired?”

A middle-aged woman handed Se-beom a can of food and a bottle of water.

It was probably food they had obtained during several reconnaissance missions.

Most of them were preserved foods that Team Blue had hoarded.

People each had a few cans of food and other items.

Se-beom accepted the can.

“Thank you.”

There was no possibility of poison in the can, so Se-beom accepted it.

And silently opened the can of peaches in front of the woman.

Slurp, slurp.

The woman said, leaving Se-beom, who was drinking from the can with his lips without a spoon.

“Why don’t you get some sleep? I’ll take care of Sion now.”

“It’s okay. Thank you for your concern.”

Se-beom finished the can of peaches in one go and put it on the ground.

When Se-beom refused, the woman smiled amiably and reached out her hand.

The woman tried to grab Se-beom’s arm.

“Oh, don’t do that. Get some rest. Okay?”

At that moment.

Slap-!

Se-beom brushed off the woman’s hand.

The woman looked at Se-beom in surprise.

Se-beom said coldly to the woman.

“Don’t touch my body.”

“Ah… yes. Sorry.”

The woman was flustered and went back.

Then she walked over and sat down among the group gathered on one side.

They were whispering and glancing at Se-beom, then talking among themselves.

They kept stuffing preserved foods like canned goods or goblin jerky into their mouths.

Se-beom clicked his tongue as he watched them.

“Tch.”

Se-beom clicked his tongue and turned back to Sion.

He was definitely closing his eyes and had a peaceful expression, but he was definitely awake.

Se-beom said quietly.

In a voice too small for them to hear.

“You don’t know me, but I know you. We were in the same class in the same middle school [junior high].”

Se-beom continued, looking at the people gathered.

To be exact, he was watching them.

“When you disappeared after middle school, I honestly couldn’t understand why you had to make that choice. Looking at your clothes… it looks like you came from working on a construction site.”

Se-beom clenched his fist.

Soon, emotions surged.

“You were my goal and my only hope. In my life, which was full of nothing but boredom, you were the only person who was better than me.”

Se-beom turned to Sion.

There was still no change in his expression.

Lee Se-beom was a genius.

Not just empty words, but a real genius.

With a prosecutor father and a university hospital professor mother.

Lee Se-beom, who grew up in a wealthy environment, was good at everything since he was young.

Instruments, sports, studies, even drawing.

Se-beom showed genius in everything he did in life.

When he entered middle school, he was already over 170cm tall and had outstanding looks.

Already, the people around him called Se-beom the ultimate ‘mom’s friend’s son’ [a Korean phrase for someone who is perfect in every way], a genius among geniuses.

He even showed off his talents by appearing on some entertainment programs.

Because he received everyone’s respect and expectations, Se-beom inevitably grew up arrogant.

Life was just a trivial existence for Se-beom.

Without challenges or goals, life tends to feel boring.

But there was someone who made Se-beom feel a wall.

It was Kang Sion, whom he met in middle school.

On the day the school rankings were announced, Se-beom couldn’t believe his eyes.

[1st place, Kang Sion]

[1st place, Lee Se-beom]

It was the first time he had lost something to someone else.

Of course, they were both tied for first place with perfect scores, but it was different.

Se-beom had private tutoring, a good study environment, and all the academic elements, but Sion only focused on school classes.

He lost to such a guy.

Sion wasn’t just good at studying.

First place in the middle school gifted competition he went to as a school representative.

Always first place in the sports day at school.

He was a being from another dimension.

Se-beom was jealous of him and even felt respect.

When he heard the news that Sion had suddenly dropped out around the third grade of middle school, Se-beom couldn’t escape the shock.

Because the boy he thought was his only friend had disappeared.

Se-beom was the type to chase after infinitely superior things, but when someone with such outstanding talent gave up on academics.

The young Se-beom felt like even his life goals were collapsing.

And Sion’s news was unknown.

In a boring life, Se-beom smoothly ranked first in high school and smoothly entered Seoul National University’s law school as the top student.

And only after the world was destroyed could he meet him again.

But Kang Sion, whom he met again, had changed.

He wasn’t the Sion he used to be.

The Sion in front of him now was just a monster chasing only goals, perhaps similar to Se-beom in his childhood.

‘Damn it.’

Gnaw!

Se-beom bit his nails.

He kept biting his nails and looked down at Sion again.

Admiration and goal.

He didn’t want to admit it, but Sion was such an existence to Se-beom.

Se-beom sighed briefly and looked around.

Everyone inside the theater was talking in hushed tones or sleeping.

It was when Se-beom was looking at them and falling back into his past thoughts.

Thump!

Suddenly, the lights in the movie theater turned on.

Some people, surprised, tilted their heads and looked around.

Only then did Sion slightly open his eyes.

And a blue hologram appeared on the movie theater screen.

[The King of Team Blue is dead.]

[There are now only two Kings left.]

“What…? No.”

Se-beom frowned.

There were 10 people gathered here now, excluding Jin Jae-hee and Kwon Kyung-soo.

There was no one left in the mall.

Not a single person.

That much was certain.

Because Team Red had conducted a massive search for survivors for several hours.

But clearly, the King of Team Blue was dead.

Right now.

It was an unbelievable result.

Lee Ju-yeon, who was sleeping lightly next to him, drooled and woke up in surprise.

“Uh, uh? What, what.”

Ju-yeon wiped the drool off her hand and looked around.

Everyone was flustered and didn’t know what to do.

Then, Sion raised his upper body again.

He was holding his head as if he was a little dizzy, then said calmly.

“I don’t keep friends.”

That was said about Lee Se-beom.

Se-beom looked at Sion, who said those words.

Sion held his head for a while, then turned to Se-beom and said.

“So I don’t trust people either.”

Sion got up from his seat.

He was still limping, but his condition seemed to have improved a lot.

Sion looked around at the people from Team Red who were here.

And muttered as if to himself.

“I’m tired of it. Let’s end it now.”

Sion’s words were so cold and sharp.

When he said he would end it, Se-beom felt like he knew how cruel an ending he would create.

The Kang Sion until now, and the Kang Sion from now on.

Se-beom felt goosebumps all over his body for a moment.

Sion approached Team Red.

(To be continued in the next episode)