The Regressor Can Make Them All

Chapter 243

“...”

Se-Hoon was in disbelief. All he could do was stare at the massive water column, one far larger than the one created by his shot into the Celestial Lake of Mount Baekdu, spouting hundreds of kilometers away.

However, despite the power of the shot, it was unlikely that Tuner had died. Regardless, he had secured his immediate safety. Now, all that remained was to retreat into the Netherworld and then everything would be over.

But unfortunately, Se-Hoon very quickly discovered that he couldn’t move a single inch.

Woong-

A faint golden aura was still surrounding his entire body. It seemed the power within the Hero's Ring was still sustaining the White Night Bow, which should have gone silent long ago.

My vision keeps expanding...

His field of view, which once spanned only hundreds of kilometers, now caught sight of a certain place—a dark, sticky swamp so deep that the bottom was impossible to see. The source of demonic aura, which had swallowed up the once pristine white Antarctic continent, filled his view.

The Abyss of Demons...

Alongside the Towers of Heroes, it was one of the main catalysts that enabled the transformation of the entire world. And before he regressed... it was also the primary factor that led to the world's downfall.

Se-Hoon’s eyes involuntarily twisted in discomfort. The cursed sight of the black swamp felt like it was about to surge and engulf him; it was by no means just something he was seeing from afar.

Gurgle-

Feeling a rising unease, Se-Hoon instinctively shifted his gaze to the sky and his eyes instantly widened in astonishment.

There was a massive stream of... something intangible covering the heavens. At first glance, it looked like ordinary clouds, but each was actually an amalgamation of countless possibilities.

Is this how Ha Baek-Yeon sees the world...?

Understanding that Baek-Yeon was likely using those amalgamations of possibilities to move the world in the direction she wanted, Se-Hoon felt that he now understood the power of Perception on a deeper level.

Intrigued, Se-Hoon naturally wanted to see where it led.

His eyes followed the stream of possibilities high up into the sky, far beyond the stars. Making its way into the vast universe, massive celestial bodies that were previously seen only as twinkling lights on its path soon came into sharp focus, becoming clear.

However, the stream hadn’t ended, so Se-Hoon expanded his vision further, almost reaching the end of the cosmos. But his eyes never made it there.

Drip-

His vision returned to normal in the blink of an eye, blood trickling from his mouth.

Thud!

Losing consciousness, Se-Hoon collapsed as the golden pillar descending from the heavens dissipated and the White Night Bow crumbled into dust. Following suit, the Destroyer of Fragmentation’s army and the legions of undead all disappeared without a trace, leaving the battlefield barren.

In the desolate landscape, the only sound that could be heard now was the faint echo of Se-Hoon’s breathing.

Creak-

But then a jarring metallic sound suddenly destroyed the serenity.

Puppeteer, who had remained hidden throughout the battle, approached Se-Hoon as pieces of machinery fell from her body. Stopping before him, she gazed down with her single remaining eye and slowly reached out her hand.

Then, right before contact—

“How about you stop right there?”

A gentle voice made her freeze in place.

Creak.

Hearing a voice she didn’t expect here, Puppeteer slowly turned her creaking head.

Standing behind her was a man, who appeared to be in his mid-thirties with shimmering gold hair, radiating a soft, luminous glow from his body. Wearing a pristine white robe, its color reminiscent of a bridegroom's attire, the man exuded both benevolence and divinity.

And upon meeting the man’s eyes, which were a mix of gold and white, Puppeteer narrowed her own upon confirming who he was.

“You made it here after all.”

“It’s all thanks to some very capable individuals,” replied the man calmly.

Briefly glancing at Se-Hoon, the man—Pilgrim Karl Andersen—returned his gaze to Puppeteer.

“So, what will you do now?”

“I’d like to tell you to get lost, but... I suppose it’s pointless in this state.”

Even at full strength, Puppeteer was aware she couldn’t face the Pilgrim alone. So in her current injured state? She stood absolutely no chance.

And with Abgrund no longer affecting her, Puppeteer was able to think clearly again. She stared at the Pilgrim who could finish her off at any moment.

Then, in the end, she said, “Tell him I want to have a nice little conversation the next time we meet.”

“I’ll pass along the message.”

“Make sure to fix him up well.”

Crash!

Leaving behind those words, Puppeteer’s body collapsed and crumbled into pieces. Now alone, Karl confirmed that her presence was no longer around before approaching Se-Hoon and checking his condition.

Se-Hoon’s injuries were severe, so much so that it was a wonder how he was even alive. As he was, any attempt to heal him would likely leave him crippled due to his internal mana circuits being beyond repair.

“This should do...”

Yet Karl nonchalantly placed his hand on Se-Hoon's body and drew upon his divine mana.

Woong-

Descending from the sky a moment later, a golden pillar of light enveloped both of them, and Se-Hoon’s body began healing rapidly as if time itself were reversing. His muscles and bones snapped back into place, his mana circuits realigned, and the blood surged through his body, revitalizing him.

In just a split second, Karl had completely healed Se-Hoon. With the treatment complete, Karl briefly examined Se-Hoon’s body, curious about his condition, and noticed something unusual.

Is he absorbing divine mana?

It was a phenomenon he had never heard of—one not experienced by Jane or anyone else. Observing it, Karl soon smiled.

He’s truly a man of many secrets.

Thinking there would be plenty of time to talk about it later, Karl finished up the emergency treatment and invoked Divine Magic once more.

Whoosh!

The two vanished from the corrupted land.

***

“...?”

Se-Hoon slowly opened his eyes and looked around. The ceiling was transparent glass, and he was surrounded by large bookshelves and various papers and books messily scattered across a luxurious red carpet.

Why am I here... Ugh!

Realizing he was in the Frost Dog’s familiar study, Se-Hoon attempted to recall his memories. However, he was immediately assaulted by a crushing headache.

It’s not that I don’t remember... I just can’t recall them for some reason.

Feeling like someone had placed a restriction on his memories, Se-Hoon was about to gently probe deeper into his mind when he suddenly heard a voice.

“You’re going to split your head open like that, Se-Hoon.”

The voice, dripping with exasperation, accompanied the clink of a coffee cup being placed on a table.

This voice is...

Seeing Se-Hoon turn his attention to the cup next to him, the voice called out to him again.

“Where are you looking?”

Sitting leisurely on the sofa facing Se-Hoon, the Frost Dog sipped his coffee with a teasing smile. His playful grin, reminiscent of a child’s after they played a prank, made Se-Hoon squint.

Is this... a playback of a pre-regression memory?

Considering he occasionally tapped into his memories using the Phantasmal Spyblade, he wondered if he had somehow projected himself into a past moment.

“If you’re thinking this is a memory from the past, it isn’t.” After those sudden words, the Frost Dog calmly sipped his coffee before continuing. “Think of it as a remnant... or, simply put, a dream.”

“Wait... are you?”

Se-Hoon blinked in surprise. His voice had come out normally?

What in the world...?

Whether it was his missing memories, the dream fashioned after the Frost Dog’s study, or that the Frost Dog seemed to be reading his mind, he didn't understand anything. Overwhelmed, Se-Hoon tried to calm himself.

Stay focused.

Even if he had been kidnapped, the first thing he had to do was gather his thoughts. Believing that was the right action, Se-Hoon regained his composure and tried recalling his memories again.

Throb-

Focusing on memories that caused less pain, Se-Hoon roughly pieced together the picture of what happened before long. With a clearer picture, Se-Hoon raised his head to look at the Frost Dog, who had been leisurely waiting.

“Are you a projection of Amir’s synesthetic mindscape?” Se-Hoon asked.

Smiling at Se-Hoon’s answer, the Frost Dog put down his cup.

“Something like that. To be more precise, my identity is partially derived from your synesthetic mindscape. That’s why I’m appearing as the older Amir you knew before regressing, not the immature one.”

Se-Hoon blankly stared at the Frost Dog in surprise. He had never thought using Bond Recreate on Amir’s Fatestone would have such a side effect. He had just thought he would be provided temporary access to Amir's memory and skills, never anticipating that the Frost Dog would be recreated in his dreams.

Noticing the intrigue in Se-Hoon’s gaze, the Frost Dog sighed.

“Honestly, you got lucky this time. It’s only because you used Bond Recreate on my Fatestone that we’re having this casual conversation.”

“What could have happened?”

“For example... if you used Aria Myers’s, the most vivid memory you have of the Destroyer of Light would have been recreated. I think you can pretty much imagine what would have happened then, right?”

“...That would’ve been a real disaster.”

If that had happened, he would’ve been repeatedly murdered in his dream by the Destroyer of Light, possibly causing serious issues during the piecing together of his fractured synesthetic image that naturally happened after.

“Well, that’s the worst case. You wouldn’t run into that problem as long as you’re in your normal state,” the Frost Dog added.

“Really? Then—”

“However... the problem is that you’ve never been in your normal state.”

Se-Hoon frowned. “...Never?”

Sure, his body had been a wreck right after regressing, but as he grew stronger, he thought he had gotten back on track.

Could there still be something wrong with me...?

Reassessing his condition, Se-Hoon quickly remembered the one key difference between his body before and after regressing.

“Is it my soul?”

“I see you’ve known about it for a while.”

The Frost Dog looked at Se-Hoon with his silver eyes.

“The Soul Honing you’re currently using is a skill made on the basis of having a pure soul, right? Yet now you’re using it with a tainted soul, so, of course, things aren’t normal.”

“Hm. You do have a point.”

“On top of that, you’ve developed a warped synesthetic mindscape that can’t fully accept reality because of your regression. It’s only because it’s you that you’re still able to walk around normally like this. Anyone else would’ve already gone mad.”

Recalling the multitude of skills that he hadn’t been able to acquire prior to regressing, Se-Hoon fell into thought. Even though those skills had allowed him to accomplish numerous things, he seemed to be reaching his limits now that his body’s growth was stabilizing.

“Damn... I guess nothing comes for free.”

“Well, as long as you avoid using Soul Honing and the Demonic Blood Art, you should be fine. Also...”

With a gesture of the Frost Dog’s hand, a few documents from a towering pile floated over and landed on the table.

“These are some documents related to the person who can help solve your problem.”

“...”

Picking up the documents, Se-Hoon began reading them carefully.

“...the Blood Master has been involved in numerous incidents, both legal and illegal, involving forging equipment—with stolen rare materials—that violate international law and unlawfully distributing them.

Consequently, the Heroes Association and numerous underground organizations are pursuing her. However, as she used various aliases to cover her tracks, it’s difficult to ascertain her true identity.”

“Isn’t this about...”

Se-Hoon stared in stunned silence at documents about the Blood Master, his master before the regression. She was a master craftsman who was as skilled as the Sacred Craftsman and was notorious for her eccentric behavior and the wariness she inspired in others.

“There’s not much information I could find about her, since she has always been very elusive, but because she hadn’t become officially wanted yet, you might be able to find her,” the Frost Dog explained matter-of-factly.

Se-Hoon scanned the documents again, slightly confused.

Where did he even find the exact information I was looking for...?

If the Frost Dog in front of him was a fusion of Amir’s and his own synesthetic mindscapes, how did the documents come to exist? Se-Hoon frowned in deep thought.

I can’t figure it out. My cognition feels strangely slow for some reason...

Feeling like his brain was more sluggish than usual, he rubbed his temple.

“It’s probably because of me.” Sipping his coffee, the Frost Dog looked at Se-Hoon.

“What?”

“You’re using your brain to project me, aren’t you? Trying to recreate a true genius with your self-proclaimed genius brain is bound to cause some overload...”

Smack!

Effortlessly catching the documents Se-Hoon threw at him, the Frost Dog placed them back on the table and took another sip of his coffee.

“I know it’s tough, but try your best to memorize all the information there.”

“...Why not just leave the information in my memory?”

“If I did that, the information would become too faint to be of any use. You’re in a safe place anyway, so just think of it as study time and relax while you read through it all.”

Although Se-Hoon’s mind wasn’t working as quickly as usual, the connection between their synesthetic mindscape ensured that the Frost Dog wasn’t lying.

Sighing at the sight of the Frost Dog leisurely enjoying his coffee, Se-Hoon picked up the documents.

“Fine, fine. I’ll memorize it.”

For a while, Se-Hoon meticulously read through the materials while the Frost Dog busied himself bringing snacks and drinks, idly lounging about. It was a surreal scene compared to the past when the Frost Dog was always overworking himself. And that fact helped remind Se-Hoon that he was in a dream.

If this were reality, there’s no way he’d be relaxing like that.

“Exactly. Dying does have its perks,” the Frost Dog said with a smirk.

“Stop reading my mind, you bastard.”

“It’s your fault for letting me in your head. Now focus.”

In the end, Se-Hoon memorized every detail about his master’s past actions, despite the Frost Dog’s occasional teasing. And it only took a total of twenty-five cups of coffee.

“Hm. This should do. Well done.”

Confirming that Se-Hoon properly memorized it all through their connection, the Frost Dog gathered the documents and stood up. Seeing that, Se-Hoon, now exhausted, glanced up at him.

“Are you leaving?”

“It's more like I'm being kicked out. Your heart is hard at work erasing the remnants of Amir’s synesthetic mindscape, so...”

According to the Frost Dog’s words, Se-Hoon was using Soul Honing in his sleep to separate Amir’s synesthetic mindscape from his own.

“Even though I helped you so much, I’m about to disappear just like this.... Really, it’s so tragic. I almost feel like crying,” the Frost Dog mocked, a grin on his face.

“...”

Thinking he was being ridiculous, Se-Hoon just looked at him incredulously.

“Anyway, I had a nice break. Let’s meet again in a more human state next time.”

“Yeah, yeah. Get lost already.”

There was no need for more goodbyes, so Se-Hoon waved his hand dismissively and the Frost Dog turned to leave. But just as the dream began collapsing, the Frost Dog stopped, seemingly recalling something.

“Oh, right.”

With a smile, the Frost Dog gave him a light-hearted warning, “You’ll want to be careful with your words when you wake up. The person outside has a temper as bad as ours.”

“What do you—”

But before Se-Hoon could ask what he meant, his vision went black. And a moment later, he felt a completely different sensation—the soft embrace of a bed and blankets.

Figuring he had ended up in the hospital as usual, Se-Hoon slowly opened his eyes.

“...”

And the first thing he saw was a woman with red hair staring down at him intently, with a gaze as fiery as molten lava. Under it, Se-Hoon found himself speechless.

“Lee Se-Hoon.”

Eun-Ha’s voice was chilling.

“I am very angry at you right now.”