Chapter 71
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: The Regressor Makes Everything
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“……”
A heavy silence hung over the banquet hall.
Pierre, whose ace in the hole had fallen flat, stared blankly ahead, while the cadets, startled by the sudden explosion, could only roll their eyes in shock.
And as the golden-haired woman who had orchestrated the whole scene—Aria—waited for a response, Lee Se-hun wore a troubled expression.
'Should I call this a blessing...?'
It was good that things had resolved cleanly without him needing to step in, but running into Aria like this wasn't ideal.
To Lee Se-hun right now, Aria was the last person he wanted to see at Babel Academy.
'That bastard Jake. If you knew you'd show up, you should've warned me...'
As he inwardly cursed Jake, who had left first,
"Hmm..."
Aria, who had approached right in front of him before he knew it, looked up at him with a puzzled expression.
"Did you not hear me, by any chance?"
Her voice was soft yet edged like a blade. Lee Se-hun let out an internal sigh and replied.
"No, I heard you. I was just a bit startled by what happened, so my response was delayed."
"Ah, right. You nearly got seriously hurt..."
Aria smiled as if understanding, scanning Lee Se-hun's body. Her eyes suddenly lit up.
"No, actually. You might not have been hurt at all."
"……."
Her meaningful mutter made the hairs on Lee Se-hun's body stand on end.
He felt like she'd read at least seventy percent of him with that casual glance.
'She probably didn't detect the Eternal Divine Magic... but she must've seen I'm perfectly fine.'
Faking injuries wouldn't work against Aria, unlike with others. Confirming that, Lee Se-hun slowly opened his mouth.
"Thank you for your help."
"It was nothing. More importantly, your answer?"
"……Aren't we talking right now?"
Aria smiled softly at Lee Se-hun's attempt to slip away.
"I meant the two of us alone, quietly. Not indoors... the garden should be nice. It's quite beautifully arranged. What do you think?"
Aria made it clear she had no intention of letting him go. Though Lee Se-hun sighed inwardly, he decided to view it positively.
'I can't avoid her forever, so this might be for the best.'
His evaluation had improved thanks to the sword-qi armament he'd just made, so if he handled this well, he could minimize unnecessary contact with Aria.
Having decided, Lee Se-hun nodded to Aria, who was awaiting his response.
"Very well."
"Great. Shall we go?"
Aria naturally grabbed his wrist and started leading him out. As everyone panicked at the sudden turn,
"Why..."
Pierre blocked their path, his face twisted viciously.
"Why that guy of all people...!"
Boiling with emotion, Pierre could barely string words together. Lee Se-hun gave him a puzzled look at the intense reaction.
'What's wrong with the kid all of a sudden?'
The guy who had been so composed and capable just moments ago was now unraveling. As Lee Se-hun eyed the situation curiously,
"Hmm..."
Aria, watching calmly, responded flatly.
"Still pathetic."
As if it wasn't worth saying more, she resumed walking. Lee Se-hun, being dragged along by his gripped wrist, naturally met Pierre's eyes.
Grind.
Pierre bared his intense emotions, looking ready to lunge. Spotting the 'raw gem' in his fully ripened state, Lee Se-hun halted.
"Hold on a moment."
"Hm?"
Stopping Aria, Lee Se-hun approached Pierre and, before he could react, naturally placed a hand on his shoulder.
Extracting bond from target 'Bier Valmut'.
Bond with creator 'Lee Se-hun' is Lv. 1.
The bond seeped in like a stinging thorn.
Having clearly grasped Pierre's emotions toward him, Lee Se-hun gently patted his shoulder.
"Practice harder. Stop wasting your time."
He left sincere advice loud enough for all to hear.
"Now, let's go."
Wrapping up, Lee Se-hun headed out to the garden with Aria, leaving a heavy silence in the banquet hall.
A freshman telling off a third-year about his skills was unheard of normally, but after witnessing Lee Se-hun's prowess firsthand, everyone felt it was justified.
"……."
Pierre, feeling the atmosphere on his skin, stared blankly at his shoulder with an expressionless face.
Crack.
A chilling sound echoed in his mouth. Feeling his teeth shatter and blood trickle out, Pierre silently wiped his lips.
And without flinching through the excruciating pain, he walked out of the exchange hall and the banquet hall.
Bond level with target 'Bier Valmut' has risen to Lv. 2.
As bond level rises, relationship is established. Relationship with target 'Bier Valmut' is 'Jealousy'.
[Relationship: Jealousy]
Selfish and arrogant people resent and envy those superior to them rather than admire them.
They seek problems in others rather than themselves and will try to eliminate this relationship somehow.
* Bond stone generated every time target feels jealousy.
* Bond stone maturation speed increases while target is jealous.
* Currently generated bond stone: None.
'Yes!'
Out in the garden, Lee Se-hun inwardly cheered.
He'd prodded lightly, seeing the dissatisfied glares, and as expected, the bond level had risen.
'Jealousy... Didn't expect a malicious bond this quickly.'
Unlike favorable or neutral bonds, relationships harboring malice toward him were what he classified as 'malicious bonds.' They required caution when handling the resulting bond stones.
Normal bond stones amplified abilities, but those from malicious bonds were curses that weakened or destabilized them.
'Too risky for Bond Engraving... Maybe use it for a cursed item later.'
As Lee Se-hun pondered how to use Pierre's bond stone,
"This should do."
Aria, who had been walking for a while, slowly turned around.
The garden, beautifully adorned under the moonlight, with fountains spraying water in the lamplight. And against that backdrop, Aria seemed to glow on her own.
It was a scene like a painting, worthy of admiration, but Lee Se-hun felt little and recalled the recent events as he asked,
"What happened between you and Bier Valmut in the past?"
"Happened... It wasn't that big a deal. Two years ago, he showed me a sword he'd made for me and asked for my thoughts."
Lee Se-hun immediately guessed her response from Aria's story.
"'Pathetic,' right?"
"Exactly. It really was."
Aria smiled softly. Feeling no malice in her words, Lee Se-hun finally understood why the bond level had spiked so dramatically.
'I unintentionally poked at his past trauma.'
This might even lead to assassins. As Lee Se-hun thought that,
"More importantly, since when?"
"Pardon?"
"When did you start being able to use sword-qi?"
"What do you... Ah."
Puzzled by the sudden question at first, Lee Se-hun quickly caught on.
'Because of the iron staff I showed earlier.'
To make sword-qi armaments, one needed a hero who could wield sword-qi. That was common knowledge now, so Aria had assumed he could use it.
"You've misunderstood. I can't use sword-qi."
"Then the sword-qi armament you just made?"
At Aria's puzzled question, Lee Se-hun calmly replied.
"Sword-qi is just compressed mana, right? So I added a compression formula."
It's said that to wield sword-qi, one must compress their swordsmanship into a single mental sword—a so-called 'enlightenment.'
But that's purely mental. In reality, if the mana on the blade compresses into a stable form, it can become sword-qi anytime.
'Of course, easier said than done.'
A sword-qi compression formula combined mana properties, swordsmanship traits, and mental sword form—a culmination of know-how.
Formalizing it was akin to turning part of a living person's essence into a mana circuit.
That's why mass-producing sword-qi had failed before.
'But it's not impossible.'
For Lee Se-hun, who had remodeled his body and mana circuits with Eternal Divine Magic, it was familiar territory.
"Compression formula..."
Aria pondered his explanation before asking,
"It seemed pretty inefficient, though. Any improvements planned?"
"Adding the auxiliary enchantment I'm developing now should make it viable for D-rank heroes a few times."
Heroes who could wield sword-qi barehanded were typically C-rank elites—effectively B-rank overall.
The goal of mass-producing sword-qi was to empower lower heroes sooner, so D-rank usability was sufficient.
'The power was decent too.'
Recalling the sword-qi quality she'd felt earlier, Aria quickly concluded and looked at Lee Se-hun.
"Anywhere contracted for sword-qi mass production yet?"
"Not yet."
"How about partnering with us?"
Half-expecting the offer, Lee Se-hun countered,
"What are the terms?"
"Production and sales handled in consultation with our family. And for the next two years, mass-produced sword-qi armaments limited to 'swords.' That covers it."
Lee Se-hun looked intrigued at her conditions.
Limiting mass-produced armaments to swords was inefficient for pure profit, but different for the swordsmanship-renowned Myers family.
'Myers gets invited as sword consultants often, so more sword-wielding heroes boosts their influence.'
Plus, using priority supply rights as leverage could dominate government units or large guilds.
Calculating if it disadvantaged him, Lee Se-hun soon decided.
"Not bad, but no prototype yet. Better to discuss details after more progress."
"Sounds good. Contact Jake when it's ready."
"Is that all, then?"
Aria smiled and nodded at his question.
"Yeah. That's it."
"Then..."
"And from here, it's personal business."
Seeing Aria's gleaming eyes fixed on him, Lee Se-hun sighed inwardly and reluctantly asked,
"What is it?"
"I hear you're making a sword for Jake? Using a unique blood-based method."
Sitting on the fountain's edge, Aria looked intrigued.
"As far as I know, that's only used in legally banned 'bio-armaments'... Am I wrong?"
Pressuring by pretending ignorance despite knowing. Same as before his regression, Lee Se-hun replied calmly.
"Full use would be, yes. But for engraving, it's fine."
Unlike pre-regression when bio-armaments were legalized amid crisis, they were fully banned now.
Lee Se-hun had been cautious, so he wouldn't be wrongly branded a criminal like before.
"Good to hear. Wouldn't want Jake implicated in illegal armament crafting."
"We're handling that properly, so no worries."
"Great. Hope it turns out well."
Aria smiled, her words subtly barbed despite seeming supportive. Lee Se-hun pretended not to notice and continued,
"Anything else?"
"No."
"Then..."
As Lee Se-hun nodded and turned to head back,
"Why won't you make a sword for me?"
Her soft voice from behind carried an eerie chill. Lee Se-hun sensed her face had gone expressionless.
'As expected, she won't let it slide.'
Avoiding her after making one for Jake would look suspicious to anyone.
'No choice. Can't refuse forever...'
Deciding to lay some groundwork, Lee Se-hun replied without turning.
"I believe armaments only have meaning when given to those who need them."
"……."
"So what's the point in giving an ordinary sword to someone who wields twigs as masterfully as famed blades?"
There could be meaning, of course. Even a master prefers steel over twigs.
But that wasn't his point.
'What's the use of a mediocre sword for someone who treats famed blades and twigs the same?'
Whether exquisite master sword or roadside twig, they meant nothing in her hands.
A abnormal severance between self and weapon. That was the sensation of '0% Synchronization Rate,' unique to Aria Myers.
"I can't make a sword you need right now. Nor do I want to hand over something subpar and be treated as junk."
"……."
"So please drop the commission talk."
With his firm words ended, only the fountain's murmur filled the space between them.
As the silence stretched, a gentler voice came from behind.
"Got it. If it's that burdensome, no choice. I won't bring it up again."
"Thank you for understanding."
Lee Se-hun replied curtly and headed back before she could say more. Aria watched his retreating figure from the fountain's edge.
"'Right now'... huh."
From anyone else, it'd be an evasion, but from him, it felt laced with strange confidence.
As if he already knew her issue and its solution.
"Interesting..."
She'd worried about disappointment upon meeting, but now the wait felt thrilling—and irritating.
Feeling unfamiliar emotional stirrings, Aria tried suppressing them, then let go.
'No need to.'
Whatever the end, she wanted to savor this anticipation now. Thinking that, she recalled Jake's sword Lee Se-hun was making.
'He thinks solving Jake's ability is enough... but the real issue is the succession ritual.'
A ritual of bestowing a sword in recognition of one's swordsmanship. Known publicly as tradition, it was anything but ordinary.
'How far can he go...?'
This outcome would drastically alter her view of him.
Feeling her heart race, Aria smiled and watched Lee Se-hun enter the banquet hall.
"I'll be waiting."
She murmured softly and vanished from the garden.