Regressor Instruction Manual-Chapter 1191. The Demon King of Sunset’s Castle (11)

Since I was going to act like I had fallen unconscious, I decided to actually fall asleep.

Truth be told, I was utterly exhausted. The schedule itself was quite grueling... I was drained after emitting the light... not to mention the quick conversation I had with Woo Hyo-Yeol.

My eyes were feeling heavy despite the loud noises, so I realized that my body had actually reached its limits.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young! Mr. Lee Ki-Young!”

“You... are you...”

“Priest! Come here right now!”

‘Yeah, I was waiting for you guys to cheer.’

“Ah! Mr. Lee Ki-Young!”

‘Your cheers were music to my ears.’

The way I staggered and collapsed had to have looked like something out of a painting.

It was a perfect angle and movement.

After staggering toward a location where everyone could see me, I grabbed my hand and fell to the ground. It was imperative that I fall in a way that would let them catch me so that I wouldn't hurt my head.

William, who was spacing out, snapped back to reality and caught me as I collapsed.

As expected, people looked at me from all directions.

It was like their cheer was signaling the climax of a solo concert. Even Woo Hyo-Yeol, who was famous for his poker face, couldn’t hide his disbelief, so the reaction of the other people was easy to deduce.

‘Everyone is panicking.’

“O-Oppa!” Jung Ha-Yan shouted.

I was worried about Jung Ha-Yan, but... I was sure she realized that there was nothing wrong with me. In other words, she wasn't panicking.

‘Not only that...’

I had no idea why, but Jung Ha-Yan was one of the people who knew about the strange phenomena that were happening to me and Kim Hyun-Sung.

If I were a fake, it would be like breaking a treasured doll, but even if I were real, she would be notified before all this, so there was no need for me to worry about her reaction.

As expected, she approached me quickly and examined my condition. I was worried that she was going to drop a meteor on the Demon King of Sunset’s Castle, but I was glad that she decided not to do something like that.

‘Holy power... it’s warm...’

Obviously, my holy power was draining away.

Lim Chae-Ryeong was crying, and I heard the furious William spitting out strange words.

“Shit! What have you people been doing all this time?! How did he... end up like this?”

‘Why are you so upset?’

It wasn’t like him to yell at innocent people.

“Lee Ki-Young... Lee Ki-Young!” Woo Hyo-Yeol shouted.

To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if I just died here.

If I were to die here, I'd be an enhancer for my comrades. My death would make them grow stronger, but these rookies looked like they still needed me.

Based on the lore, I had already exhausted my life force, but the gods' greed as well as my own will was keeping me bound to Rohen—this was a hidden part of my lore. Of course, I wasn't exactly aware of the complete truth.

“...”

“Mr... Ki-Young...”

“Hurry...”

“Ah... let go... of me!”

And as soon as I opened my eyes, I found myself on a comfortable bed.

‘My condition is great.’

It seemed that they had decided to set up camp, and it was understandable, as they needed to take a break anyway. After arriving at the Demon King of Sunset’s Castle, they fought about four named bosses, so this was the perfect time for a break. I had lost consciousness as well, so they had a good reason to take a break.

When I looked around in a daze, I heard voices outside.

“It's over?”

“They've already reached their limits. The next priest is—”

“There aren’t any more priests... What should we do?”

“Then we should bring in a backup healer. We have no other choice.”

“He’s showing no signs of waking up... and you want them to just use their holy power? He's breathing... but he's probably dead.”

'Looks like I really slept as if I were dead.'

“Hey, shut up. What if Mr. William hears you?”

“Shit... I have my reasons. It’s because I’m frustrated, okay...”

‘You guys... were rotating the healers.’

They had no idea why I lost consciousness, but they believed using holy power on me would be effective.

‘What if holy power affected me negatively?’

“...”

‘Just as I expected, they're so primitive.’

I saw magic circles on the ground and the walls. It seemed like they were used to amplify the healers’ holy power, but this was primitive as well. A sigh escaped my mouth, and it was because of their inefficiency.

I made a slight noise, and just as I expected, they immediately entered the room.

“Commander.”

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young?”

“He’s awake...”

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young... is awake... Hey, notify Mr. William right now.”

“No, there’s no need for that,” I told them.

‘I’m going outside anyway.’

“What?”

“I can move. I’m... okay now,” I reassured them.

“What do you mean? You shouldn’t be up, Commander. Mr. William ordered that you rest as much as possible—”

“I’m the commander and... I know my body better than anyone,” I interrupted them.

I would always say that line in a situation like this.

Few people would survive after saying those words, but that was exactly why it was meaningful. Naturally, I got up without a second thought. I heard noises outside, so I pushed the priests aside and headed outside...

‘What the?’

I saw the troops preparing to retreat.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young?”

“The commander has woken up.”

“Notify the others!”

‘Wait, what’s going on?’

Notifying others about me was one thing... but why were they preparing to go home? I slept like a log, so I couldn’t figure out what was going on, forcing me to ask the soldier nearest to me.

“Excuse me, what’s going on? And where’s the Flower and Fertility Familia...”

“The Flower and Fertility Familia are doing a pre-check on the retreat path-”

“What? Who made that decision...” I asked.

“When you were unconscious, Mr. William made that decision by himself. More importantly, you should be resting right now, sir. If you stay here...” the soldier said.

‘Forget about me resting, damn it.’

“I’m fine. I was just tired. Could you tell Mr. William to return right now? And Mr. Woo Hyo-Yeol...” I asked.

“I believe he went out with them,” the soldier answered.

‘They’re really taking this too far.’

“Now that I’m awake, I’m going to change the plan,” I announced.

I stumbled, and the soldiers rushed forward to support me. I wasn’t sure whether it was because they were impressed by my acting skills or because I looked really sick right now, but they were watching my every move.

I wanted them to do that, but I wouldn't be happy if I was the reason behind their retreat.

“But—”

“I’m the commander of this expedition team. Do you need more reasons? Looks like you created a safe zone, so I’ll rest here for a bit. Also...” I paused.

“...”

“Where are the items?” I asked.

This was important.

“They’re stored separately—”

“I want to see them,” I interrupted them.

It could be the key for future raids, and I had to see who would be fit to use those items.

I was in pain, but I walked with a bolder stride than usual and with more confidence.

The people around me were anxious, as if they were taking care of a bird with broken bones, but my gait was so steady that it was hard to believe I had just gotten out of bed.

At least, that was what it looked like on the outside.

There were strange symptoms, like a pale face and uneven breathing. I looked fine to ordinary people, but for those sensitive to changes in people, they could easily see how unstable I was at the moment.

“Whoo...”

“Excuse me... Mr. Lee Ki-Young. I think you should rest—”

“I already told you... several times... that I’m fine,” I interrupted them.

“But—”

A loud voice echoed from the side. “Mr. Lee Ki-Young!”

“Sir!”

The people who gathered were none other than the members of the Flower and Fertility Familia. They looked like they had decided to run over here upon hearing the news.

“I’m glad you’re okay. Whoo... I’m really... really glad you’re okay...” one of them muttered and grabbed my hand.

“What the hell are you doing?! Didn’t I tell you several times that Mr. Lee Ki-Young has to rest?!” William yelled.

William's yelling made the innocent priests look around nervously.

The way they were getting yelled at made it look like it was my fault.

“You don’t need to yell at them, Mr William. I told them that I was fine,” I told him.

“There’s no need for you to be outside. Leave organizing the items... and the other tasks to us,” he said.

'I’ll make a small remark.'

“Leave it to you? Leave what?” I asked.

“Pardon?”

“I-I don’t remember announcing the end of the raid. I don’t understand why you ordered the troops to retreat... Could you explain in a way I can understand?” I requested.

“We believed it was impossible to continue the raid. We didn’t know when you were going to wake up—”

“I was simply taking a break. It’s not something you should’ve decided so quickly. Do you not understand how many things are at stake in this expedition, Mr William?

"Do you even understand what kind of sacrifice we’ll have to make to return to this place—no, do you know how difficult it is to make all these troops go back?” I questioned.

“But...”

“There’s no retreat. Since a safe zone was created, everyone will rest here and we’ll resume the raid afterward. I’m certain you gave me full authority. We only retreat when our allied forces have sustained a near-annihilation level of damage,” I explained to him.

“...”

“Even in situations where I can't communicate, you must follow the manual. The command center exists to follow that manual,” I added.

'How dare you exercise authority?'

“That’s not the problem, Mr. Lee Ki-Young. I’m not sure if you’re aware, but it was determined that your condition was very critical...” William said.

“Excuse me?”

“If you’re with us, I’m sure we’ll get another chance. Please think about the future. Clearing the Demon King of Sunset’s Castle dungeon is important, and I also understand how important this expedition is for Rohen.

"However, we can’t... lose you just because of that,” William explained.

“Just because of what?” I questioned.

“Humanity will unite again as long as they have a reason to do so. You may not be happy about us retreating right now, but as long as we have you, I believe Rohen will be able to overcome this crisis again,” William said.

“...”

‘What the hell? You want me to go through this again?’

'I’m not going to do this again even if they beat me to death.'

“Follow me,” I ordered.

At this point, I thought we needed to have a deeper conversation.

I took bold strides toward my sick room, and I saw William following me.

As soon as I sat on the bed, I saw him looking at me again while standing awkwardly.

He had to have realized that he had done something wrong because his gaze was darting around, but... he believed that he had made the correct choice. There was no need to hesitate or second-guess because, in the end, facts would decide everything.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young, I ask you to reconsider. Rushing into the Demon King of Sunset’s Castle raid is—”

“I’m going to die soon,” I interrupted him.

“Excuse me?” William asked.

“I’m telling you that I don’t have much time left,” I clarified.

“...”

“...”

“W-What are you... saying right now?” William asked, frowning as if he couldn’t understand me—no, it was more like he didn’t want to understand me.

“I’m. Going. To. Die. Soon,” I said, enunciating each word slowly.