Not A Regressor-Chapter 295: Sky Mountains (1)

She struggled to catch her breath. “Haa! Haa!”

A female demonkin with two black horns sprouting from her forehead went up the rugged mountain path.

“W-Where the hell did those monsters come from?!”

She knew about the so-called Awakeners from the world beyond the rift, but had never imagined they’d be strong enough to actually fight and defeat the demonkin.

“If only we had our army...” The woman bit her red lips in frustration.

Following the Heavenly Demon’s orders, they had withdrawn most of their forces stationed in the beastkin kingdom. This left them with far too little strength to face the Awakeners from beyond the rift. She could only rely on Kalike.

That idiot...

Recalling the fool who had blabbered too much and died pathetically, she spat a curse under her breath.

She deeply sighed. “Haaa... How long is it going to take to go around the Sky Mountains...”

The demonkin kingdom, Niflheim, was located in the deepest part of the Demonic District. If she crossed the Sky Mountains, she could make it within a month. Going around it would take at least three months.

Grumbling to herself as she trudged forward, she heard something slithering through the bushes.

Rustle.

A chill ran down her spine.

“W-Who’s there?!” The flustered woman turned around.

A single snake, covered in black scales, slithered out from between the bushes. It slowly approached her while flicking its long tongue.

“Haaa... Seriously, it’s just a snake.”

The Demonic District wasn’t only filled with demonic beasts. Though the species and forms slightly differed from those on Earth, ordinary animals and plants lived here too.

Seeing a snake on a forest path would alarm most people, but not her. She was a demonkin blessed by the Heavenly Demon. To her, a snake was no less threatening than an earthworm.

“Scaring me for nothing.”

Frowning in annoyance, the demonkin woman lifted her foot to stomp on the black snake, but it launched up with explosive speed and coiled around her.

Fwoosh!

“Kyaaah!”

Though it was only as thick as two fingers, the pressure it exerted felt like a giant crushing her.

“W-What the hell is this?!” Terrified, her eyes darted around.

The shadow beneath a nearby tree rippled as if alive. From its depths emerged an alluring woman with a slender, girlish frame. She wore a jet-black dress that dragged along the ground, and slowly approached the demonkin bound by the snake.

“Hello there.”

A cold hand gently caressed the demonkin’s cheek, and a chilling shiver ran down her spine. Her body reacted before her mind could.

“Ah... uh.” Pure terror suffocated her.

The demonkin felt warmth flowing down her pants as she trembled. The thought that she would die completely overtook her mind.

“I just have one question. Do you think you can answer it for me?”

The demonkin woman nodded and stuttered. “Y-Yes...”

Cassia deeply smiled and flicked her long, snakelike tongue. “Where is the Heavenly Demon right now?”

Her emerald eyes gleamed eerily.

***

The Silver Mane tribe members gathered in front of the village to send off Kwon Oh-Jin’s group, who had all packed up and prepared to leave.

“Then, we’ll be off now,” Kwon Oh-Jin said.

“Come back anytime, warrior!”

“We of the Silver Mane Tribe will await your safe return!”

Beastkin warriors pounded their chests with hearty laughter. Kwon Oh-Jin faintly smiled and nodded.

“Mr. Oh-Jin, take this.” Leoru held out a shofar about the size of a palm.

“What is it?”

“It’s a horn that emits a sound that demonic beasts hate. It’s not very powerful, but it should be enough to buy you a bit of time.”

Leoru had probably quickly prepared it after hearing that they would cross the Sky Mountains.

“Thank you.” Kwon Oh-Jin lightly blew into the shofar.

Preeeet.

Contrary to his expectations, a pleasant sound came out.

“Do demonic beasts really hate this sound?”

He had expected something truly unpleasant like nails scraping against a chalkboard, but it didn’t sound anything like that.

“Of course, the effect varies since there are so many types of demonic beasts. If it’s one with developed hearing, it should definitely have an effect.”

“Hmm. I see.”

He didn’t understand the exact mechanism, but the shofar likely worked since Leoru sounded so confident.

“Then, I’ll pray for your safe journey across the mountains.” Leoru deeply bowed in respect.

“I hope you’ll safely rebuild your kingdom as well, Mr. Leoru.”

“Thank you.”

“And... you remember what I told you, right?”

“You mean the possibility that one demonkin may still be alive?”

Of the five demonkin who remained in the kingdom, they had only confirmed the death of four. When they looked into the previous investigation records, the whereabouts of the only female demonkin remained unknown.

Kwon Oh-Jin wanted to search the entire kingdom for her to neatly wrap things up, but he didn’t have the time to spare on something uncertain. He had to get to the Dragonian Kingdom as soon as possible.

The beastkin, who had drunkenly taught Riru a strange phrase the night before, laughed heartily and pounded his chest. “Haha! Don’t worry, warrior! If it’s not Kalike, a single ordinary demonkin is no problem for us Silver Mane Tribe warriors!”

Well, he wasn’t wrong. They didn’t need to worry about a lone demonkin. After all, the Silver Mane Tribe had recently killed the two stationed at the castle.

“Well then, we’ll be off.” Kwon Oh-Jin bowed his head and turned to leave.

Leo and Riru came out from behind Leoru, sniffling and teary-eyed.

Sniffle. Snort!

“You’re... really leaving?”

Though their time together hadn’t been long, the children had clearly grown attached.

Kwon Oh-Jin gently smiled and patted the two kids on their heads. “I’ll come back after I finish my business in the Dragonian Kingdom. Be good until then, okay?”

“Sniff... We’ll wait for you!” Leo shouted with determination and wiped away his tears.

“Oh-Jin oppa...” Riru glanced nervously at Leoru before stepping forward and suddenly kissing Kwon Oh-Jin on the cheek.

Leoru jumped up in alarm, his eyes wide in shock. “R-Riru!”

Riru shyly twisted her neatly braided silver hair between her fingers and smiled bashfully. “See you again, oppa! I’ll be waiting!”

“Uh, yeah.” Kwon Oh-Jin quickly turned away as he felt a cold, murderous aura coming from Isabella and Song Ha-Eun behind him.

“So, now you’re even flirting with little girls?” Song Ha-Eun stabbed her elbow into Kwon Oh-Jin’s ribs and gave him a sharp glare.

Isabella bit her nail with a chilling expression and muttered coldly, “Hehe. She was a good kid... Such a shame.”

“C’mon.”

You’re making it sound like Riru’s dead or something.

“Let’s get going,” he said.

“Grrr. Do you even know the way, kid?” Riarc asked.

“I got the gist of it yesterday.” Kwon Oh-Jin started walking toward the direction of the Sky Mountains.

Wish I had something to ride on or something.

He could move faster than a horse thanks to an Awakener’s physique, but his stamina would inevitably take a hit over such a long distance.

I miss you, Boppy.

Thinking back to Boppy, who could run for twelve hours straight without getting tired, he clicked his tongue.

While they headed toward the Sky Mountains, the pendant hanging around his neck began to glow.

Woong!

With a spin worthy of a “ba-bam” sound effect, Vega appeared before him.

“It is I!”

Kwon Oh-Jin waved with a welcoming expression. “Are you feeling better now?”

“After resting well, some of the restrictions have lifted. Of course, I won’t be able to grant you a blessing for a while, but I can at least accompany you again.”

“That’s good.”

It was a shame she couldn’t grant him a blessing, but just having Vega around again made him feel more secure.

“By the way, did things go well with the Khan Kingdom?”

The last thing Vega remembered was Kwon Oh-Jin successfully defeating Kalike. After that, she had been forcibly summoned back to the Sanctum and didn’t know what happened next.

“Yeah, everything went well.”

He explained what happened after she returned to the Sanctum.

“I see, so that’s what happened.” Vega looked at Riarc sympathetically.

She fluttered over to him and gently stroked his head with a warm smile. “You must’ve been heartbroken.”

“Hmph. It was a fitting end for a fool.” Riarc walked on with a bitter smile.

She perched on top of his head and continued stroking his silver fur with a proud look.

“By the way, it hasn’t been long since the Khan Kingdom matter was resolved. You’re already setting out again?” Vega asked.

“There’s no time to sit around and relax.”

“But still...” Vega worriedly looked at Kwon Oh-Jin.

A Celestial’s blessing didn’t only burden the Celestial. It also weighed heavily on the Awakener who received it, especially if the blessing came from a North Star Celestial. Even if Kwon Oh-Jin looked fine on the outside, Vega knew he couldn’t possibly be in normal condition.

She deeply sighed and shook her head. “Haaa. How much more do you plan on making me worry before you're satisfied?”

Kwon Oh-Jin didn’t answer and simply shrugged, quickening his pace.

After hours of walking, they hadn’t even exited the forest surrounding the kingdom, let alone reached the Sky Mountains.

Riarc, who had been walking at the very front, suddenly halted. “Stop.”

He sniffed the ground and narrowed his eyes toward the front.

“Is there a demonic beast?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.

“Yes.”

Activating the Stigma of Canes Venatici, Kwon Oh-Jin sensed a demonic beast approaching from a distance.

“It seems like a big one.”

The heavy, echoing footsteps hinted at the creature’s size.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Perhaps the demonic beast had spotted them. The heavy steps shaking the ground clearly headed toward them.

“Prepare for battle.”

“Yes, Mr. Oh-Jin.”

“Ugh... My hangover isn’t even gone yet.” Grumbling, Song Ha-Eun pulled out a cigarette pack.

The tip of the cigarette between her fingers flickered with a flame when a massive demonic beast burst through the dense trees.

“Grrrrr!”

It had an eagle’s head, a lion’s mane, and a serpent’s tail.

“Huh?” Kwon Oh-Jin’s eyes widened.

“Grrrrrr!” The demonic beast came running toward them with its tail wagging side to side like an excited puppy.

“Boppy?” Kwon Oh-Jin happily waved at the charging beast.

However, Isabella coldly glared at Boppy. “You’re... the one that attacked Mr. Oh-Jin back then.”

Gritting her teeth, Isabella materialized a blood-red scythe and dashed toward Boppy.

“No, s-stop!”

Boppyyyyyyy!