“This is as much as your body can handle, Dad. The Fog’s power is gone now too....” Gyeol glanced at Chatterbox and whispered softly. It was a huge burden for me to draw on S-rank abilities. I had already wielded the Harmless King’s power to the fullest, so I must have reached my limit. But. “F-rank is okay, right?” His golden eyes flickered. “I mean, before the regression.” “Uh, yeah. I’m fine up to Intermediate rank!” “Somehow I never got used to Intermediate Hunter abilities.” There were almost none at C, B rank, and barely any at A either. I’d only used a teacher skill once on Seong Hyunjae and Soyeong. Even if my body could endure it, that little experience would still make handling them difficult. “But I’m fine with my own power.” I’d lived hard for five years. Even as an F-rank, I was still a Hunter, and I survived to the end. I was stronger in level and stats than this body that had been awakened for less than a year. And most of all, these were the familiar abilities of Han Yujin. “...Even if you’ve temporarily suppressed my power, that’s all.” Chatterbox twisted his lips and said, “The essence remains unchanged, so it’s impossible for you to kill me with your own strength.” “We’ll see about that.” So much talk. I remembered the power I’d had before regression. I’d spent the last half year avoiding that version of myself, but the sensation still spread vividly through my whole body. The strength in my grip had grown. Arms and legs were undeniably more sturdy. By comparison to the S-rank powers I usually borrowed, it was pitiful. But it was enough. “Why don’t you try crawling on the ground a bit yourself!” I stomped the earth. Chatterbox glared at me with annoyance as I charged him. He drew his staff as if to lightly block my attack—only for the instant before sword met staff. I planted my feet and stopped. The tip of my shoe dragging along the floor halted, and instead of swinging the blade I detonated a bomb. “You expect me to face you head-on, crazy?” The difference in power was that great. Even if the Overlord’s Sword permitted me, this was F-rank Han Yujin, not S-rank Han Yuhyun. My brother’s leftover strength had been consumed and was gone, so it had to be far weaker than when Yuhyun used it. Another ka-bang rumbled. Chatterbox’s upper-rank hunter body was caught in the explosion but only pushed back slightly. I wasn’t expecting to hurt him anyway. As smoke thickly blurred my vision, I used Stealth skill. Then I pulled out a water bottle and a glass vial from my inventory. ‘Evelyn gave me a nice gift.’ Eggs of insects that hatch on contact with water. I opened the bottle, poured in the eggs, and threw it. Crackling, the bottle shattered and tiny flying larvae poured out. Dungeon creatures too weak to classify as true monsters. I cast Teacher’s Skill on a few of them. The larvae’s senses reached me: heat and animal scent detection. Through the smoke I sensed Chatterbox’s position. I approached quietly and— A staff struck me. How? He shouldn’t have seen me... Ah! The Harmless King floating around me looked at me as if to say Why? I’d forgotten about it! Enveloped in smoke, Chatterbox surged forward and stabbed me in the chest with the staff’s end. Thanks to the blessing I didn’t feel pain, but I was propelled hard backward. A wire shot toward my stumbling form. He still couldn’t see me, so he probably planned to snare me and strip away the blessing. “Go over there and watch!” Ruga shouted to Peya as I threw myself to the ground. My chest nearly hit the floor as I crouched, bracing with my hands to avoid collapsing. The wire sliced the air above me. As soon as I dodged, I bounced up, leveled my gun, and fired. The bullet grazed Chatterbox’s shoulder. He guessed my position from the shot’s direction and charged again, terrifyingly fast and powerful. But. I dropped Stealth. Clang, the Overlord’s Sword curved in front of me. Tang! Blade met staff, and unable to withstand the force came another ziiik—my foot scraped the floor. My arm went numb and I dropped the sword. Clang, it sank into the earth as Chatterbox kicked me in the gut. I fired off a shot as I flew back. Chatterbox, nimbly avoiding falling, stared at me. A smile tugged at my lips. For more chapters visıt 𝖓𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖑~𝖋𝖎𝖗𝖾~𝖓𝖊𝖙 “There’s nothing there.” “Just that body moving, nothing else.” No Gios Sanus, no unnamed Hunter. A laugh escaped me. Look at you. “You call yourself the Maze Mage. And yet you can only waggle a staff. And what about that Hunter skill of yours! Chatterbox, you have no past.” The mage had discarded himself. The original owner of that body had vanished. The newly reborn party host lost everything now. “That’s right. That’s nothing.” The Harmless King said. As she said, the one standing before me was nobody. “...Only for a moment.” Clap! Chatterbox charged me, unskilled, with bare flesh. I detonated a smoke bomb and slipped into Stealth again. The larvae’s senses pierced the smoke, I closed in on the faltering Chatterbox, and boom! Another bomb exploded between us. Screech, Chatterbox’s shoes scratched the earth. I fired slugs as he was pushed back, then pulled the Overlord’s Sword from where it was embedded. “So, Han Yujin, haven’t you shed your past?” Chatterbox’s hawkish eyes glared at my invisibility as if to ask how I differed from him. That’s what regression was: discarding the self you’d built. Even if that five-year self remained intact somewhere, the me who decided to regress had to abandon those five years. That was an unavoidable fact. “I still haven’t fully accepted myself now.” I aimed the muzzle at a tree as Chatterbox charged toward the sound of my voice. “Because I couldn’t protect and I lost everything.” Bang! The tree’s base exploded, its trunk splintered. I fired continuously, leapt onto the stump, and Chatterbox’s staff-swinging branch I sliced through in one stroke. Thud, thoom! Massive trees fell in succession, sending dust skyward. His staff smashed through one fallen tree in irritation, but far more lay prone. I hurled the trap item Myeong-woo gave me toward the pile. Sticky, web-like strands spread like a net. Chatterbox tried to avoid it, but the fallen trees blocked him. He could shatter wood easily, but as he paused, the trap engulfed him. No space warp, no blink, no flight—this former Transcendent was tangled in webbing, frowning. I couldn’t help hating it. Worried about Gyeol clinging to me, I swallowed my words and swung at Chatterbox. Crack, the blade grazed his arm as he twisted. But my strength wasn’t enough to sever it completely. “An S-rank? You’re disgustingly tough!” Chatterbox yanked his arm hard. The web-laden trees quivered. Damn, what strength. I retreated quickly and shot precisely at the wound. Blood spattered, the cut deepened. Scree, a dozen thick trees were dragged across the ground as webs tightened. He wouldn’t hold out long. As he struggled to break free, I closed in and detonated a poison bomb near his wound. “That body—got a poison resistance skill? Oh, even if you do, you can’t use it, right? Different mana pattern.” “Right, Han Yujin! Unlike some people, I’m still me!” Whether he hated or loved himself, trembled in disgust, I’d still become who I was. Crack, the web strands around Chatterbox frayed one by one as the trees shook violently. He twisted his face into a snarl and swung his staff. Crack! Crash! The piled wood splintered, fragments flew. “You’ll never stand side by side with S-ranks and my brother!” “Looks like you’re pissed—dropping your formal speech.” Thud! Chatterbox kicked a tree toward me. I lightly hopped away as he smirked in succession. “Your tone was honestly annoying!” “I’ll keep crawling at the bottom just as you said!” Chatterbox jerked his head toward the tree where my voice came from. Then— A mana-charged bullet smashed into Chatterbox’s back. As he staggered, I kicked his leg with all my strength. My foot hurt too, but Chatterbox was hurled face-first into the ground. Seeing him crash felt so good. “Gee, you crawl so well. Better than F-rank!” My voice echoed again from the tree via the comms I’d used on Seong Hyunjae. The Harmless King who’d been watching applauded. Gyeol pressed a paw over his mouth to stop himself from laughing. “I know I’m really lacking. But, so what?” I’ll likely never be S-rank again. Even if F-rank growth were possible, my lifespan would end first. At best I might reach Mid-rank. “My arms are already full. I’m holding on tight now, and I’ll keep holding on.” I don’t think Han Yujin is lacking compared to S-ranks. But the world, the gaze, reality—they won’t change easily. It’s true I’m weak, and my weakness will keep becoming an obstacle. “Standing perfectly alongside my brother and those around me... will be hard. I know that.” Chatterbox rose. The poison must be taking effect; his face was pale, teeth clenched through the grime—almost human, and oddly pleasing. “I might be disregarded or pushed aside. Sure, but I won’t let go. Rank means nothing to me. It’s just—” Whether S-rank, F-rank, or any rank. “They’re the people I love, the people I want to protect, the people I want to keep with me. That’s all.” I just wanted to be together, to keep loving them. So I wanted to become stronger. I felt I had to reach at least equal to S-ranks. Certainly S-ranks had the advantage over F-ranks. But anyway. Whatever my power. “So I won’t give up until the end.” Even if I ended up alone again. No matter what anyone says, I’ll hold on and hold them close. I gripped the Overlord’s Sword in both hands. The mana imprint felt weaker, but I focused on the Black Dragon’s mana stone. Maybe because it was already activated, I felt the heat of its power. ‘Just once. Don’t you find him annoying too?’ I glanced at Gyeol, who’d been clinging to my shoulder. He caught my eye and lowered his ears. “Just five seconds—no, three seconds.” Gyeol nodded, though reluctantly. Then he whispered, “Really three seconds. No pre-regression uncle.” At Chatterbox’s state, three seconds were more than enough. I wanted to beat him myself, but he wouldn’t even bruise. I stepped forward toward the panting Chatterbox. As I wrapped in Stealth, I drew on Yuhyun’s power. Chatterbox tried to dodge, but I moved faster. The jet-black blade pierced Chatterbox’s chest, flames roared along the blade. All his blood vaporized—nothing left but a mouthful of choking smoke, no iron scent at all. “It’s... useless......” Perhaps I’d pierced a lung, as Chatterbox groaned, lifting one corner of his mouth. ...He really couldn’t die. Gasping as if his life would end any moment, he still endured. Damn, even weakened, his true body was so strong that S-rank power couldn’t kill him? Then what? Suddenly a sword appeared at °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° Chatterbox’s throat. The Overlord’s Sword trembled lightly. Reacting, the blade embedded in Chatterbox’s chest shone brightly. What was that? Gyeol cried out as if telling me to dodge. Three seconds had long passed. I reflexively stepped back. Chatterbox staggered with the sword still in his throat. The shining blade blurred and vanished, and he collapsed to his knees. “Eh? He’s kinda weird now?” Ruga and Peya tilted their heads. Gyeol tapped my shoulder. “Dad, I think he’s weaker.” Chatterbox, gasping, looked as if— “He’s become kind of like me?” He felt like F-rank. I didn’t know what happened but. “Hey, can you die now?” I stowed the Overlord’s Sword in my inventory and rolled up my sleeves. Time to find out.