I Regressed After Getting Tired of Their Obsession – Chapter 36

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Yoo-cheong.

I’d met her during Choi Ah-hyun’s equipment strengthening project.

She’d tried to screw me over, but it backfired spectacularly.

And next to her…

‘Yoo-cheol.’

Yoo-cheong’s mother.

She had the same golden hair as Yoo-cheong, a voluptuous figure, and especially… an impressive bust.

Bigger than any woman I’d ever seen.

But her eyes were soft and gentle, giving her a kind appearance.

‘Shit. This is bad.’

Had they come looking for me because of that incident?

No.

If that were the case, they would have come sooner.

Why wait so long?

As my mind raced, Yoo-cheong approached me and bowed.

“Oppa! Hello!”

“Uh… hi…”

“Hyeon-ah, who is this?”

“Well…”

“She’s a close friend. Her name is Yoo-cheong. She’s 12!”

“Is that so? Don’t just stand there, have a seat.”

“Thank you!”

Yoo-cheong and Yoo-cheol sat down where Lee Seol had been sitting.

“Hyeon-ah, keep them company. I’ll get us something to eat.”

“Okay…”

Yoo-cheong beamed at me, while Yoo-cheol quietly watched Lee Seol with an unreadable expression.

I felt like I was sitting on pins and needles.

“Oppa, you’ve changed girls again? Is she your second?”

“She has no filter.”

“Ow!”

Yoo-cheol flicked Yoo-cheong on the forehead.

“I apologize. She has a loose tongue…”

“No, it’s fine.”

“Excuse me… I know this is a bit forward, but are you close with that girl?”

Lee Seol.

Yoo-cheol continued to watch her intently.

I gave a noncommittal answer.

“We get along.”

“I see…”

As if sensing my evasiveness, Yoo-cheol turned her attention to me.

She bowed slightly.

“I should have introduced myself earlier. I’m Yoo-cheol, Cheong-ah’s mother.”

“Ah, yes. I’m Lee Seong-hyun, first-year Class A. But what brings you here…?”

“I heard you visited our shop?”

Damn it.

So it was because of that.

“Yes, I went there once.”

“My daughter hasn’t stopped talking about you since then. It’s the first time she’s been like this, so we came to the festival to see you.”

“Ah… I see…”

What the hell did I say to make a gold dragon, who usually couldn’t care less about other beings, come all the way here?

As I pondered this, Yoo-cheong spoke, her voice tinged with disappointment.

“Oppa, why haven’t you come back to the shop? I’ve been waiting for you.”

Anyone would think we were close.

We’d only met once, and it wasn’t even under pleasant circumstances.

I couldn’t figure out Yoo-cheong’s motive, so I answered cautiously.

“I’ve been busy lately. It’s been hard to find the time.”

“Hmm. Oh, right, Oppa, I heard you reached D-rank?”

“Yeah… that’s right.”

“Then it’s time to upgrade your weapon, isn’t it?”

A weapon…

It was indeed time for an upgrade.

I was a tank.

A specialized evasion tank, so I wasn’t restricted by weapon type.

As long as I could hold aggro, anything would do.

But now that I was aiming for C-rank… I needed something better.

I knew I did, but…

‘My standards were too high.’

Eve.

A sword forged from the soul of a Vampire Queen.

It looked like an ordinary sword, but its true power would awaken after its activation.

‘Bloodsucking.’

It enhanced the sword’s cutting power in exchange for the user’s blood.

A cursed sword for others, but a perfect match for me.

[Equivalent Exchange]

The synergy was perfect.

The problem was…

‘I didn’t know where it was.’

It would appear at an auction in two months, but I had no way of knowing where it was before then.

“Come to our shop and find what you’re looking for. I’ll give you a discount.”

“Okay, I’ll go when I have time.”

My noncommittal answer seemed to displease Yoo-cheong.

She pressed further.

“Oppa, do you not like our weapons?”

“No, they’re good, but… I need to find a weapon that suits me.”

“Is that so?”

The corners of her lips twitched, as if her pride was slightly wounded.

She grabbed my hand and started examining it with her small hands.

From my hand, to my arm, to my shoulder.

She stood up and continued her examination, her small face tilted in concentration.

“Oppa, do you have money?”

“Why?”

“We met for a reason. I’ll ask my mom to make a custom weapon for you.”

A custom-made weapon from the God of Blacksmiths.

A tempting offer.

But…

‘I doubt she could make anything better than Eve.’

Eve, with its special ability, was the perfect sword for Equivalent Exchange in this world.

“Sorry, I can’t afford that…”

“…I see.”

She’d clearly expected me to jump at the offer.

She looked disappointed.

But what could I do?

I already had my heart set on a specific sword.

Seeing my predicament, Yoo-cheol intervened.

“Cheong-ah, don’t pressure him. It’s making him uncomfortable. That’s enough.”

“Okay…”

Dejected, she returned to her seat.

“So, Seong-hyun-ssi, do you have a specific weapon in mind?”

“Yes. A long sword called Eve.”

“Ah… is that the sword made from a vampire?”

“Yes.”

We continued chatting about trivial things while eating.

Lee Seol occasionally chimed in or simply sat quietly, keeping a low profile.

“Mister! Thank you for the food!”

“You’re welcome! Come again!”

After finishing our meal, we headed to the vending machine for drinks.

“Oh! Oppa, look at this!”

“Fortune telling?”

“That looks fun! Can we try it?”

“Sure.”

The dejected little dragon from earlier was gone, replaced by an excited little chick.

I chuckled at her dramatic change in mood and approached the counter.

“Four, please.”

“Thank you!”

I paid the clerk, and we stood in front of the board.

Dozens of Post-it notes were stuck to a large board.

It seemed we were supposed to choose one.

“Hmm…”

Should I just pick one at random?

I didn’t believe in superstitions anyway.

I reached out and grabbed a Post-it note.

[Don’t turn away from reality.]

“…”

A cryptic message.

I felt a pang of guilt.

I quietly put it in my pocket.

“Mom, is this a good one?”

“Hmm… I’d say it’s pretty good.”

The dragon mother and daughter were discussing their fortunes.

What about Lee Seol?

“…”

She was crumpling up her Post-it note with a smile.

“Seol-ah, what did you get?”

“‘Laugh long, laugh loud, and laugh often.’ What about you, Hyeon-ah?”

A typical Lee Seol message.

I smiled wryly and replied,

“Mine says ‘The answer is closer than you think.’”

“Hmm. That’s vague.”

“Right?”

We continued chatting for a while longer, and then it was time to part ways.

“Oppa! Let’s hang out again next time!”

“Sure.”

“Seong-hyun-ssi, thank you for today. I enjoyed seeing the Academy.”

“I had fun too. See you next time.”

“Yes, let’s meet again if fate allows. Oh!”

She leaned closer and whispered,

“Lee Seol’s fortune… It said ‘Discard the self that is stained with lies.’”

“What?”

Yoo-cheol gave me a knowing smile and stepped back.

“Bye bye, Oppa!”

“Goodbye.”

“Take care!”

As I watched Lee Seol wave goodbye to Yoo-cheong and Yoo-cheol, I thought,

‘A self stained with lies…’

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I returned to the dorm after parting ways with the three of them.

As soon as I opened the door, I heard loud footsteps.

“Lee. Seong. Hyun!”

Choi Ah-hyun stormed towards the entrance.

I quickly closed the door.

Slam!

I heard a thud against the door.

I carefully opened it again and saw Choi Ah-hyun clutching her forehead, tears welling up in her eyes.

“Why are you doing this again?”

“I heard you met with Yoo-cheong without me!”

“Yeah.”

“You should have invited me! Are we not friends?!”

“We’re not.”

I chuckled and walked past her into the living room.

Han Yuri was sitting there, looking through a booklet.

I was about to go to my room when she looked up.

“You’re back?”

“Yeah.”

“Did you eat?”

“I ate already.”

“Is that so? Here.”

She tossed the booklet at me.

‘What’s this?’

An artifact catalog.

From the Blacksmith’s shop, where craftsmen produced limited-edition weapons.

The prices started in the hundreds of millions of won.

“Pick one. I’ll buy it for you.”

“…Are you drunk? Are you sick?”

“Just pick one. You’re taking on C-rank assignments now, right? You won’t be able to tank properly with those cheap weapons. I want to live a long life.”

Her usual blunt tone, but the barbs were less sharp than before.

‘This isn’t good.’

This wasn’t good at all.

I gave the catalog back to her.

“I’m fine. I’ll take care of my own weapon. Don’t worry about it.”

“…”

Han Yuri glared at me with her lips pressed into a thin line.

She slammed her bedroom door shut.

‘Sigh.’

This wasn’t good. Not good at all. I sighed and went to my room.

The eventful festival ended, and classes resumed as normal.

And the Hall of Challenges?

[Closed]

Still under maintenance.

‘That bitch…’

Couldn’t even be helpful in her final moments.

“It’s been a while since we had class. Feels like the start of a new semester.”

“Yeah…”

Class… sucked.

I replied in a half-dead voice, and Choi Ah-hyun let out a sigh before rummaging through her tote bag.

“Ta-da! A gift for you, suffering from post-vacation blues!”

“What’s this? Sol’s Eye? How did you know this is my favorite?”

“Hehe. I have my ways!”

Had Ji-hoon told her?

It was my favorite drink after Zico.

It lifted my spirits a little.

We entered our classroom, and the atmosphere was unusually chaotic.

Most of the students were gathered at the back, whispering amongst themselves.

“What is this? It looks expensive…”

“Don’t touch it. You don’t want to cause trouble.”

“I’m not going to touch it. But it looks really cool.”

It was the seat I usually sat in.

I walked towards it, and Kim Ji-hoon waved at me.

“Hey! Lee Seong-hyun! Come here!”

“What is it now?”

“Just get your ass over here!”

I approached him, and saw a case sitting on the desk.

“This is…”

Eve.

My sword from the first timeline.

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[T/N: In case you missed it in the previous chapter —
Yoo Chung → Yoo-cheong]

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