Regression Guidelines For the Supporting Character-Chapter 3

From what I remembered, Sector B of the facility consisted of two floors above ground and three floors below. The second floor was connected to Sector A via a hallway, but most Awakeners used in experiments were locked up in the basement levels.

Which meant the villain implanted with the so-called Seed of Catastrophe, the one the system wanted me to find and meet, was most likely somewhere underground.

The problem is, I’ve only got an hour to find them.

Sure, even if the system hadn’t slapped a time limit on me, I’d still need to find the target before the Hunters arrived—but an hour? I could’ve used a bit more breathing room.

Clicking my tongue, I decided to start with the floor I was already on. A sign posted along the corridor told me I was on B3—the lowest basement level.

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Thanks to the alarm that went off earlier, and with the guards likely rushing to Sector A, the corridor was practically deserted. I occasionally spotted other Awakeners locked up like I had been, but I left them alone. They’d be rescued soon enough when the Hunters arrived.

“Dunno if I’ll actually find them in time, though.”

If the so-called villain was locked up in a solitary cell like the rest, I had no way of identifying them. I’d never be able to open every door and check inside each one in just an hour.

If the system wants me to find the guy with the Seed of Catastrophe, it should at least give me a damn clue or something.

Just as I grumbled silently in frustration—

Ding!

《Sub-quest has arrived!》

Sub-quest: Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast (A-rank)

Find the storage room on Basement Level 3 and retrieve a weapon.

Reward: The villain’s location will be revealed.

“...What the hell?”

I frowned at the sub-quest that popped up with a cheerful chime.

“Why couldn’t you give me this earlier?”

I quickly checked how much time I had left on the main quest. 1 hour, 12 minutes.

Not a lot—but still, it’d be better to complete this sub-quest and get a clear lead than run around blindly looking for someone with zero intel.

Besides, the sub-quest said the storage room was right here on B3. If I searched a bit, I should find it quickly. It would look different from the solitary cells anyway.

I continued walking in the same direction. The hallway was straight, so I only had two options: go forward or back.

After about ten minutes, just as I’d predicted, I found an automatic door made of frosted glass at the end of the hall. A card key reader was mounted beside it—guess that meant access was restricted to authorized personnel.

“This has to be the storage room.”

Of course, I needed a key card to get in—but finding one now would be a waste of time. I couldn’t afford to go looking for a staff member just to borrow their ID.

Could I break it down? I still wasn’t fully used to the hidden skill, so it was hard to gauge my strength.

But I’m technically an S-rank dealer now. If the door isn’t made of top-grade materials, it should break just fine.

I took a deep breath, lifted one foot, and kicked the glass door with all my strength.

Crash!

The glass cracked with a loud bang and toppled backward. It shattered against the floor in an explosive crash that echoed down the corridor.

“Oh.”

Guess it was just regular glass. I barely even put in much force. That was loud, though. Might as well have shouted “Hey everyone! Intruder here!”

“W-what the—?!”

“Who the hell is that?!”

As expected, two administrators who’d ignored the recall orders and stayed behind to guard the storage room came rushing toward me.

The moment I saw one of them reaching for a pistol, I bolted forward. With a powerful spring from my legs, I closed the distance in a flash. The one holding the gun yelped in panic.

“W-wait—!”

Bang! A wild shot flew past me and lodged itself in the floor.

In the blink of an eye, I was in front of him. I grabbed the wrist holding the gun and slammed my other hand into his face.

“Guh!”

With a short cry, the man collapsed.

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This was only possible because every one of my physical stats had reached S-rank—not just strength, but reflexes and coordination, too. Real hand-to-hand combat.

I tossed aside his unconscious body and stomped down on the gun, shattering the weapon made from monster materials. I did need a weapon, sure—but a gun wasn’t much use to someone with S-rank physical strength like me.

“U-uh...”

The other guy turned pale after watching his buddy get knocked out in under ten seconds. He took a few steps back, his legs shaking, then met my eyes—and bolted like he’d seen a ghost.

Boom!

“Khuh!”

I grabbed his shoulder from behind mid-run and slammed him to the ground. Then I drove my fist into his temple. He groaned and passed out just like his partner.

Honestly, I felt a little bad. Part of me wanted to let him go. But if he ran off and brought back reinforcements, things would’ve gotten complicated. It was safer to knock him out.

What can I say? That’s just how fate played out for you guys. At least I didn’t kill you. That’s me being merciful.

Next time, maybe don’t work in illegal human experiment labs. Then again, you’ll be spending the rest of your lives in prison once the Hunters get here anyway.

I rummaged through the second guy’s pockets and smashed his pistol, too. Then I strolled into the storage room, light on my feet.

The storage room had a high ceiling and a wide interior, like a full-on logistics warehouse. Tall shelves lined the space, each one stacked with boxes filled with all kinds of items.

“Damn, this is insane.”

I grabbed a box from the nearest shelf and opened it. It was packed full of all sorts of gems.

“These are all artifacts and magic stones, huh?”

Embed these into rings or necklaces and you could craft some seriously powerful gear. The stones with strong magical energy? Practically priceless.

Not bad. I should definitely take some of this.

If I was going to take on the guy with the Seed of Catastrophe all by myself, I’d need funds. It’s all for world peace, so people would understand. Obviously.

First things first, I needed a bag to carry all these stones—and a weapon. So I started rummaging through the other boxes.

Eventually, deep in the back of the room, I found a box filled with clothes.

“...A robe?”

No matter how many times I looked, the garment in my hands was definitely a robe.

Made of a flowing, light fabric, the pristine white robe deepened into a dark navy blue toward the bottom. The sleeves were wide and roomy.

Judging by the aura it gives off, this has to be at least A-rank.

There’s ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) no way a normal robe would be stored in a place like this. It had to be Hunter-grade gear. The fact that it was tucked away in the back probably meant it was high-quality, too.

Satisfied, I slid my arms into the sleeves. It draped around me like a coat. Then I went to check the rest of the shelf.

Just as I suspected—this section was packed with high-tier items and gear. Naturally, there were also weapons. After looking through them all, I picked up a longsword.

“This one will do.”

It came in a jet-black scabbard, and the handle was wrapped in gold thread, adorned with a tassel.

Out of all the weapons—guns, bows, daggers—I chose a longsword because it was the one I was most familiar with. Before I regressed, I’d learned to use a longsword, even if only a little. The person who taught me had used one, too.

If I’m going to keep fighting, it makes sense to stick with something I know.

Wearing the robe and gripping the longsword in one hand, I finally found an inventory pouch in one of the boxes and dumped the gemstones into it.

The pouch was a hip bag that could be fastened to my waist. It had an artifact gem embedded in it that converted it into an inventory item, meaning it could hold way more than its size suggested.

With gear, weapons, and precious loot in tow—the things that would keep me alive from now on—I stepped out of the storage room, humming a little tune.

The moment I stepped past the shattered glass door and into the corridor, a new system message popped up in front of me.

Ding!

《Sub-quest: Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast (A-rank) – Cleared!》

《Sub-quest clear reward has been granted.》

《The villain’s location will now be displayed.》

“Oh.”

A green dot appeared in my vision, floating up from the map like a hologram. The dot twinkled above me, and next to it, text appeared:

Villain's current location: Central Lab, Basement Level 1

“...What the—he was all the way up there?”

No wonder I couldn’t find him. If I hadn’t done the sub-quest, I would’ve wasted the whole hour checking empty cells.

Central Lab, huh... That’s not exactly a friendly place.

I narrowed my eyes and picked up the pace, recalling what that place was used for.

Main Quest: Meet the villain implanted with the ‘Seed of Catastrophe.’ (Time remaining: 48 minutes)