Regressor of Yandere Academy – Chapter 16

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Stuck between Spenny and Horfin, Egenir couldn’t decide. His best option?

[Sample both.]

He’d try both and choose later. This resulted in a 3-point affinity decrease with both Spenny and Horfin, but it was the lesser of two evils.

Or rather, it was a greater evil. Horfin, brimming with enthusiasm…

“More! Harder! A swordsman never yields, even in the face of adversity!”

‘Please yield!’

Egenir ran laps around the training grounds with sandbags strapped to his limbs. Even more brutal than the previous day.

Horfin’s booming voice, amplified by his enthusiasm, was driving him insane.

“Faster! Push forward!”

Horfin, limping slightly, ran alongside him, shouting encouragement.

“Left foot! Sing the marching song! A marching song for a magnificent knight!”

‘How the hell would I know that song?!’

He’d only been at the academy for three days. No one had taught him any marching songs.

“Sing after me! Everything! Respond with spirit!”

“Gasp…Gasp…”

“Respond!”

“Aaaaagh!”

[Horfin’s affinity increased by 1.]

“Yes! Now! Sing along! Magnificent knight!”

“Gasp…Gasp…”

“Magnificent knight!”

“Mag…ni…fi…cent…knight!”

“Begin!”

“Magnificent!”

“Mag…ni…fi…cent!”

He ran, singing the ridiculous knightly marching song. Students, drawn by the rumors, gathered to watch.

“He’s relentless.”

“That’s why he’s the talk of the freshman class.”

“How long can he last?”

Even the second and third-years found the training brutal. Some secret ability to endure?

There was none. He was driven by a single thing,

[Horfin’s affinity increased by 1.]

[Probability of acquiring Iron Heart increased.]

This notification.

This damn system alert was the only thing keeping him going. One more lap, and maybe it would increase again.

Having yearned for a trait for eight regressions, even this torture felt like a blessing. He was determined to escape this hellhole, no matter the cost.

Driven by this unwavering resolve, he listened to Horfin’s shouts, even as his heart felt like it would explode.

“Don’t die! Push!”

“Aaaaagh!”

“Good! Again! Push!”

“Aaaaagh!”

Horfin, the relentless bastard, was wringing him dry, pushing him to the brink of death.

“He’s…passed out.”

Horfin caught Egenir as he collapsed.

“Hmm, afternoon training sessions are less effective…Ha! I’ll have to adjust his schedule!”

Horfin chuckled, while Egenir’s future looked even bleaker. Once again, Horfin carried him back to the low-ranking dormitory, laying him gently on his bed.

‘He’ll be a great knight.’

This spirit…He didn’t know where it came from, but Egenir’s unwavering acceptance of his brutal training was a testament to his potential.

Horfin was convinced Egenir would surpass him, becoming a stronger, braver knight.

‘He’s still young, just going through a rebellious phase! A good teacher should guide him, not scold him!’

It had been declared that mana circuit methods didn’t directly affect swordsmanship, but rumors of its benefits persisted. Many knights had started practicing mana circuit methods.

This meant there was no harm in learning them, even for aspiring knights.

‘I’ll just have to train him harder!’

Since swordsmanship was usually scheduled for the morning, Horfin could dedicate his afternoons to Egenir.

He hummed cheerfully, anticipating tomorrow’s training, and headed home.

“Ugh…”

Not a human sound, but the groan of a dying man. Egenir lay in his bed, barely alive.

“Whoa…”

Shelton, who had initially been impressed, had witnessed Egenir’s training session. The sight of him running with heavy sandbags strapped to his limbs, stumbling and swaying, had been pathetic.

‘He’s not human.’

He’d been envious of Horfin’s personal training, but now he was grateful he wasn’t the chosen one. The death rattle emanating from Egenir confirmed it.

‘I’ll have to train on my own.’

Shelton was a realist. All he could do was cover Egenir with a blanket, hoping he wouldn’t freeze to death.

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“Ugh…”

The groaning corpse dragged itself to the dining hall, its head lolling. As the center of recent events, he drew whispers and stares.

“Ugh…”

His trembling arms barely held the tray as he shuffled towards the food line. Many looked at him with pity.

“Just sit down.”

“Ugh…No…”

“No, seriously, sit down and rest. You look terrible.”

Shelton, his roommate, felt a pang of sympathy and fussed over him like a mother hen.

“Didn’t you have magic training with Spenny this morning?”

The news had spread. Spenny and Horfin, fired up by Egenir’s desire to learn everything, had agreed to split his training, Spenny in the mornings and Horfin in the afternoons.

Egenir, in zombie mode, listlessly scooped soup into his mouth with a shaky hand. It looked more like he was dumping something into a bottomless pit.

Soup dribbled down his chin, but no one commented.

‘Is he even human?’

The handsome young noble had become a walking corpse in just a few days.

Many had assumed that becoming Horfin’s disciple guaranteed a spot in the Royal Knights. But after witnessing Egenir’s training, they realized…

‘The Royal Knights are no joke.’

Horfin’s extreme training regimen was even more brutal than the actual Royal Knights’ training.

It was a custom-made torture program designed specifically for the resilient, venom-filled Egenir.

Unaware of this, the students were terrified by what they perceived as the murderous training of the Royal Knights.

‘I’ll have to avoid the Royal Knights, even if they offer a sponsorship…’

“Shouldn’t you go to the infirmary?”

He couldn’t miss another appointment. That would ruin his chances with the Elemental trait and Spenny’s event.

“Screech!”

He pushed himself away from the table, his chair scraping against the floor, and shuffled away.

He’d barely managed to eat a few bites of potato salad and half a bowl of soup before giving up. He cleared his tray and walked, the other students in the low-ranking dormitory parting like the Red Sea.

“Hang in there!”

“Yeah! You can do it! Royal Knights! Yeah!”

“You got this!”

“Go! Go!”

The bastards, oblivious to his suffering, were inspired by his determination and started cheering. Like spectators encouraging a marathon runner on the verge of collapse.

“You’re the pride of our dormitory!”

“Fight! Don’t give up!”

‘I wish you’d all disappear.’

His popularity was skyrocketing. He considered his options, then decided to respond. He raised his middle finger behind his back.

A silent plea for them to shut up. But his trembling hand couldn’t form the gesture properly, and the pain in his arm made him clench his fist involuntarily.

“Woo!”

“He’s fighting through the pain!”

“That’s a real man!”

“Go!”

He’d inadvertently struck a victorious pose.

‘Damn it.’

Nothing was going his way. He’d been excited about acquiring a trait in his 8th turn, but everything was going wrong.

He’d planned for a quick, efficient, loner build-up, but now he’d become the hero of the low-ranking dormitory.

The bastards, worried he’d collapse, continued to cheer, ready to catch him if he fell.

“Egenir! Egenir! Egenir!”

“Go! Go! Fight!”

“Fight!”

‘You clueless idiots, just leave me alone.’

After a day of listening to Horfin’s shouting, the cheering was driving him insane.

“We’re rooting for you!”

Most of the low-ranking dormitory students aspired to be swordsmen or fighters. Mages required extensive early training and financial support, which was usually beyond the reach of commoners.

‘Click!’

The basic magic classroom.

Spenny, having canceled her morning classes, waited for him.

“You’re here.”

She watched as he crawled into her empty classroom, a half-dead husk.

“Oh my…”

Yesterday, he’d been like a tired, dirty puppy.

Today, he was a walking corpse.

She was shocked.

“How could he…”

Finally, a face filled with concern, not annoying cheers and slogans. This warmth…Egenir felt tears welling up.

“E-Egenir.”

“T-Teacher.”

“Horfin…he…”

She embraced him, her concern evident. His head rested against her soft breasts, and he thought,

‘I wish I could just die.’

The thought of a potential 9th regression jolted him back to reality. But he continued to “cry,” enjoying the moment.

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