Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 1396. Crimson Ball (6)

It wasn’t because I liked the young ladies of the Black Rose Salon, nor because I was moved by their stories. It wasn’t simply because of their potential either.

This conclusion came to me suddenly and naturally. I thought about my final memories inside that gate. When I recalled the moment the Outer Gods descended, I could only nod in agreement.

The people from the First Life were too weak to stop them. Jung Ha-Yan was already dead, and Kim Hyun-Sung didn’t really grow strong, so he couldn’t be expected to do anything. They were not at a level where they could fight those creatures for long.

For the story to continue past that point, the growth of the first life’s people was absolutely essential. Those capable of supporting named individuals like Kim Hyun-Sung or Cha Hee-Ra had to grow as well and strengthen the front lines.

A war would take place in just one region.

Castle Rock, Lindel, and the World Tree of the Kingdom of Everia... these places were merely the final strongholds of humanity’s resistance. The war lasted a long time, and both sides gnawed away at each other’s power.

I knew that the Union of Kingdoms fell not long after the Outer Gods War began, but I was sure there were some people here who sparked the flames of resistance. There had to have been people who led survivors and fought together in the final stand.

They were likely the ones who died before making a name for themselves or before leaving any traces behind. These people showed how strong humans could be when they had something to protect. Even if no one could remember them, they had influenced the history of the war in many ways.

“...”

“...”

I realized that those people were perhaps standing before me. The ones who raised their swords to defend the Union of Kingdoms to the end, who held desperately onto the enemy’s wings and slowed their advance.

The young ladies before me were probably those unsung heroes.

Would it be too much to think that they were the heroes who had protected this fallen kingdom? Of course, there was no evidence to support my claim, and Kim Hyun-Sung had never really talked about them.

This was only a personal interpretation on my end, something like an inexplicable intuition, but the thought wouldn't leave my mind. I couldn't stop thinking that they were the reason the hexagram gate brought me here.

“We must fulfill our duty and responsibility...”

The young ladies gathered in a circle beneath the flickering night pearl. They were looking at Lady Paint. The speech felt a little cheesy to me, but I believed some of the ladies were influenced by it.

Even if her words didn’t resonate with them, they would at least know that sitting here doing nothing was no different from waiting for their deaths. Among the people sitting here, not a single one was foolish. They knew better than anyone which choice was reasonable.

They simply lacked courage.

Naturally, I rose quietly to my feet and asked, "What should we do, Lady Paint?"

All eyes immediately focused on me.

"I-I don’t really know how to fight. I haven’t learned magic like Lady Palette, either. B-but, I don’t think we should stay still here. I didn’t fully understand everything you said, but I want to fulfill my duty and responsibility," I added.

‘What are you doing, damn it. You should all be standing up one by one in a moment like this. That’s what you’re supposed to do in this kind of atmosphere.’

When I quietly looked at Pastel, she nodded and stood up. "I’ll fight too. My reason is different from Paint’s, of course... but I found something I want to protect even if it costs me my life."

‘Yeah, that’s how you should act. Stand up one by one and say something to build the atmosphere.’

"Of course I’ll fight as well. This is a small revolution. We’re going to start a revolution here!"

‘Yeah, Brush, you seemed like the type who would do that even alone.’

There was no need to mention Lady Cigarette, and she calmly said, "I will join."

And that was it...

Lady Paint looked quite moved, as though she hadn’t expected all the young ladies of the Black Rose Salon to participate. Naturally, we weren’t the only ones saying we would join. The young ladies already knew the Black Rose Salon acted as one, but the drama of the moment had to have influenced them, too.

In the end, one young lady suddenly sprang to her feet.

"Don’t look down on me! I-I’ll join, too!"

‘No one looked down on you.’

"It cannot be helped. I have no choice but to join. If I stay here crying like this, I’ll have no face to show the elders of my family. I’ll accept your apology for insulting my family after this is over, Lady Paint."

‘You're still holding onto that family insult?’

"Fine. Let us do this. We might as well try since we’re as good as dead anyway."

‘We’re not dead.’

Seeing all the young ladies standing up with tears in their eyes and making themselves known one after another really made me think that they were young ladies indeed.

As if they were entering a ballroom, they rose in turn, delivering lines that weren’t exactly famous quotes but close enough.

Now that I was looking at them, the ones standing up later didn't seem to be hesitating but rather taking their time to prepare their lines. The later they stood up, the more extravagant and flashy their lines were.

Their tendency to demand attention seemed unchanged even in a place like this.

Each young lady insisted on saying their line, which meant we were wasting time. Perhaps Paint lacked the courage to stop this event, as she simply nodded, looking deeply moved. Eventually, all the young ladies put their hands together.

"Shall we at least leave our names on the wall?"

‘Yeah, we should do that. The thirty-one young ladies.’

It would feel disappointing if an event like this were left out. Of course, Lady Paint, who probably wants to drop the whole idea of leaving names or anything else and just get on with it, as we didn't really have the luxury of time to do this. However, this kind of thing was part of boosting morale.

They were about to be sent on a mission where they could die at any moment, so an event like this was necessary. In the end, one of the young ladies took the lead and began writing her name on the wall.

She seemed to like the line about fulfilling the duty and responsibility of a noble young lady, as she carved that phrase, too. Somehow, the result ended up looking quite impressive. At first glance, it felt like a useless ritual, but once that useless ritual was over, everyone’s expression changed. They finally steeled themselves to risk their lives.

“So what should we do now, Lady Paint?”

‘No need for me to step in, right?’

As expected, Lady Paint said, “First, we will establish a safe zone and a command headquarters inside this salon. We don’t know when the enemy might rush in, so we need to create walls and traps with magic."

Starting with the safe zone, the way she gave orders sounded surprisingly familiar.

“Those of you who have deep knowledge in defensive magic, please come this way,” Lady Paint requested.

“Yes, Lady Paint.”

“Okay, Lady Paint.”

Soon, the young ladies chanted spells, and earthen walls rose immediately afterward. I could also see some young ladies choosing to save their mana and stacking stones by hand to build the walls.

They layered defensive magic on top and added detection-type alarm spells. Just like that, a safe zone was complete.

Of course, if a monster like Jung Jin-Ho tried to break through, this safe zone could collapse easily, but the chance that an enemy assigned a special mission would reach this place was close to zero.

“We’ll begin by searching the surrounding area. Our first objective will be to find those who are injured or isolated, bring them here, and protect them. It’s also important to find young ladies who can join us,” Lady Paint instructed.

“Okay.”

“The enemies will be strong. Even if most of us have been trained, we still lack experience. If we face them head-on, we’ll surely be defeated. But even the minority can destroy the majority if united. If we do our best, I believe we'll survive this,” Lady Paint continued.

“Okay, Lady Paint.”

“We will reclaim the light,” she added.

It wasn’t some grand dramatic line. She meant they would literally brighten this dark castle.

‘That’s a good idea.’

For those struggling inside the royal castle right now, this darkness had to be the most troublesome obstacle. The enemies probably came prepared with professional training or magic spells for the situation, but the guards and those able to fight here wouldn’t have had that kind of preparation.

Most of the allied forces were fighting both the enemy and the darkness itself.

“But is that even possible, Paint? In such a wide and complex castle, finding every isolated young lady while lighting up the place will require at least ten people. And if we spread out, we’ll be in danger,” a lady argued.

This was my moment to shine.

“There’s no need for us to spread out.”

‘I’m just as much of an attention seeker as you all are.’

I took a step forward and began drawing a map of the royal castle on the large table. I noticed the surprised faces of the young ladies, but it didn’t take long before they all began nodding.

Everyone knew I had played blind chess against five people at once. It was common knowledge at this debutante ball that Aina Peneloti had an exceptional mind, but perhaps accepting that I had memorized the entire layout of the castle was another matter.

The young ladies watched with their mouths wide open as the map slowly took shape in the middle of the salon. This was a rare skill. Some of them looked even more astonished than they were during the blind chess.

“We just need to defend our territory and expand it.”

“...”

“With the salon as our center, Lady Palette. If possible, could you send out smoke around the area? As far as you can,” I requested.

“Yes, I can,” Lady Palette answered.

“Please don’t overdo it. There’s also the chance that our location could be exposed,” I warned her.

“Yes, Lady Peneloti,” she said.

“How is it, Lady Palette? Around the salon...” I asked.

“...”

“...”

“I don’t sense anything,” she answered.

‘So Marquis Jayce is keeping his promise.’

“What did you mean, Peneloti? We don’t need to split up? We should just protect our territory and expand it?”

I touched the map.

“This is our land. We must protect it. After that, all of us need to think of extending the range of this safe zone,” I answered.

“What exactly do you mean, Lady Peneloti?”

“It might be easier to think of it as a game of claiming land,” I said.

“Ah...”

“What we must protect isn’t people but space. Finding people isn’t the goal; securing territory must come first. What we need will naturally follow,” I added.

“So by securing space, we can protect lives and obtain what is necessary.”

“That’s right. We must turn this salon and any places we take afterward into something like a fortress. We must make it feel like a place they cannot easily enter. Defense is always more advantageous than offense. We will defend this salon and gradually expand our area,” I explained.

‘You get it, right, Paint?’

“Is this okay, Lady Paint?”

“Yes. I think it is best if we follow Lady Peneloti’s plan,” Lady Paint answered, nodding with a serious face.

“They say even a long journey begins with a single step,” she commented.

“...”

“With that as our first step... let us make restoring the salon’s light our top priority,” she added.

“You mean...”

“We’ll create light starting from where we stand.”

“...”

“...”

It meant it was time to prepare for battle.

“...”

“...”

The young ladies exchanged glances and nodded.

“By lighting up this place, we will be revealing our position. In other words, the enemies will come here,” she warned.

“Yes. We’re ready.”

“Many of you may get hurt. There will surely be young ladies who return to the embrace of the gods,” she added.

“We’re prepared for that.”

“...”

Without needing anyone to start, all of them summoned light above their hands. The spell for producing light was one of the most basic spells out there, and it was something anyone who learned magic would know to cast.

I imagined that most of the young ladies here were recalling the moment they first learned the light spell.

They were stepping into an unknown world here. The small, candlelike lights soon gathered into a single brilliant glow that illuminated the entire salon.

Just like that, the very first light in the darkened castle was born.