[How have you been doing in the meantime?] asked Vega, who had moved her seat over to Ohjin’s shoulders from his palm.
“Well, various things happened.”
Dramatizing the incidents that had happened during the past three weeks in moderation, he explained them to Vega.
[Mmh. The Black Star Organization… they truly are a profane group of beings.]
Vega, who had heard the stories about the Black Star Organization, furrowed her brow in displeasure.
“Although it’s not for certain yet, that organization could be connected to the Heavenly Demon.”
[W-What?]
Vega’s eyes opened wide.
[Are you saying the Black Heaven’s owner was hiding in that place?!] asked Vega with a voice filled with excitement.
“I told you I’m not certain yet. Since the Heavenly Demon acts in the dark with his identity thoroughly hidden, there's nearly no information regarding his past. But one thing I’m certain about is that the Black Star Organization is extremelysuspicious.”
[Have you not heard about the Black Star Organization in your past life?] asked Vega while furrowing her beautiful brows.
“Not at all,” he answered firmly.
Acting like he knew about the Black Star Organization here could come back to bite him at a later date.
‘Well. Since knowing nothing would make no sense…’
“There were forces led by the Heavenly Demon… but I’m not sure if that was the Black Star Organization.”
He finished the story off with a buffer since there wasn’t enough evidence to outright say ‘The Heavenly Demon was a member of the Black Star Organization!’.
[Hmm. It seems that he was really thorough in hiding his identity.]
Vega, who took a moment to think, looked at Ohjin with a concerned expression.
[Will you be alright? Getting involved with those ominous beings already… This lady believes that you should take more time to harness your power.]
“Don’t worry; I already have a plan thought out.”
He didn’t have a plan thought out.
In a state where he couldn’t even face a single low-rank Templar, what kind of plan could he have?
‘What do you expect when I'm in a situation where I’m forced to brag like a know-it-all?’
[Fufu, as expected from my child.]
Vega looked towards Ohjin with a delighted expression.
“But just what are the identities of the Black Star’s celestials? And what about the time when all-stars were swallowed by darkness?”
[Black Star’s celestials…]
Vega shook her head with an awkward expression.
[Sorry. This lady doesn’t know either.]
“You don’t know?”
‘I thought that she would know for sure, being one of the same celestials.’
[Hmm.]
Vega swept her hair back in an embarrassed manner.
[Being this lady doesn’t mean knowing all the secrets related to the birth of stars.]
“……”
Ohjin was speechless from the unexpected answer.
‘I didn't expect Vega to be clueless.’
If even the celestial known as a North Star didn’t know, there were no other methods.
‘I’ll have no choice but to find out from those Black Star Organization bastards.’
He had already prepared measures.
Since, even in this moment, his loyal hound was collecting the information of his opponents.
[We should pay attention to this matter as it could possibly be connected to the Heavenly Demon.]
“Yeah.”
‘Well, there’s no way that’s the case, though.’
[Anyway, this lady’s curious as to how much you’ve changed during these past three weeks.]
Vega’s eyes sparkled as she floated up towards the sky.
“Nothing much has changed from back then,” answered Ohjin while clicking his tongue like he was unsatisfied.
Although his Black Heaven had gone through its third awakening, and he had obtained the stigma of the Owl Nebula, the stigma of Lyra itself was in the same state.
‘I didn’t obtain any new skills, nor did my lightning skills level up.’
Even when he spent most of his day raising his proficiency in the stigma of Lyra, he was still in the same state.
[Let this lady see.]
“Okay.”
He raised his spear while nodding his head.
“Sspt.”
Breathing in low and steady.
He focused mana onto the stigma.
Bzzt! Bzzzzzzt!!—
Lightning blazed naturally like breathing.
Sending blue lightning onto his spear, he simultaneously coursed it into his legs.
[…Huh?]
He could hear Vega’s voice filled with astonishment.
Paying it no mind, he continued his movements.
Bzzzzzzzzzt!!—
One step. Two step.
Every time he moved his feet, footsteps made of blue lightning would be left burning on the ground.
He sprinted across the rooftop with explosive speed.
“Fuu!”
Exhaling the deep breath he held in all at once, he thrusted his spear.
Crackleeeeee!!—
A blue lightning naturally spread out in a cone shape, sweeping out in front of him.
‘Still. Stopping here leaves too much of an opening.’
Bzzt! Bzzzzzzt!!—
Taking steps with his legs covered in lightning, he instantly crossed a large distance.
Footsteps made up of blue lightning stretched out.
‘I can definitely minimize the opening created after using Blue Lightning by focusing lightning onto my legs.’
Blue Lightning originally focused on one spot.
However, as a result of trying various types of training, he came to the conclusion that it was better to spread out power in several places rather than focusing it all on one.
‘The physical capabilities of my body parts imbued with lightning increases by leaps and bounds.’
Although blue lightning being left on the ground every time he ran was appealing, being able to move at a much quicker speed was even more so.
‘I also want to focus on my arms or hips, but…’
That was still impossible for him, as his current limit was focusing lightning into a total of three places.
“—Fuu.”
After thrusting his spear into the air a couple more times, he stopped.
The sweat building around his forehead dripped down.
“How was it?”
* * *
[……]
Vega stared at him with shaking eyes.
[J-Just how did you… even if you’re a Regressor, grasping the basics of Exceed already…]
‘Huh? Did I do something wrong?’
“Is there a problem?”
[Can this be considered a problem… just how did you simultaneously focus lightning on three separate places?]
“Hmm?”
‘What does she mean by that?’
“It worked once I tried it out, though I did go through some trouble at the start.”
[……]
Vega’s mouth opened wide.
[My child… D-Didn’t you say that your memories of the stigma of Lyra’s skills were blurry??]
“I did.”
Though the truth was that he didn't possess any memories at all.
He had just said that he couldn’t remember back then in order to avoid the awkward situation at the time.
[…Then how.]
Vega placed her hands on her forehead with a puzzled expression. Soon after, she snapped her fingers and nodded as she came to a conclusion.
[Even if your memories are blurry, it appears that you have unconsciously recalled the technique! Mhm, I’m certain that’s the case. Becoming this proficient in this short amount of time would be unexplainable if that wasn’t the case.]
It seemed like Vega had convinced herself that he had become proficient by using the nonexistent memories of the 1st round.
‘Well, it’s only better for me if she has that kind of misunderstanding.’
Was it fast to the extent of her having that kind of reaction?
‘To be honest, I’m not sure.’
Even if he succeeded in focusing lightning in three places, the Thunder & Lightning skill didn’t level up. He couldn’t understand why she was so astonished when it wasn’t like he obtained a new skill.
“Is this something to be so surprised about?”
[What are you talking about!!]
“I mean. The skill is still level three.”
[Even if it’s the same level, a level three close to level two and a level three close to level four are completely different matters!]
‘Hearing it that way, I guess it does make sense.’
[And why do you think this lady was unable to make an apostle to this date? This lady’s stigma is close to impossible for humans to handle.]
‘So she’s that surprised because I’m getting proficient in the stigma of Lyra as if it’s from some half-rate celestial. But why is it so easy for me anyways?’
It didn’t seem like it was in the category of simply ‘talent’.
‘Is it because of Lee Shinhyuk’s memories?’
‘Eh.’
Lee Shinhyuk’s stigma in the 1st Round was not the stigma of Lyra, but the stigma of Pyxis.
Would that memory be connected to the reason he was so quick in becoming accustomed to the stigma of Lyra?
‘I’m not sure.’
He couldn’t come up with an answer on the spot.
‘Well, I guess it is better than it being slow.’
Currently, he could just leave it as a misunderstanding of ‘He’s quick to learn because he’s a Regressor’, but if he was as hopeless as a liberal arts student who had distanced himself from math for the entirety of high school who was trying to cram two weeks before the SAT, then he would have been doubted with the question, ‘Why is a Regressor bastard like this?’.
[Your skills in handling the spear are also quite astonishing. If this continues, you could reach the peak of spearmanship…]
“No, I don’t plan on doing that.”
[Hmm?]
“I’m going to continue using the spear, but with other weapons as well.”
[What weapons do you have in mind?]
“That’s—”
When he was about to explain the wire shooter—
Ring!—
—the sound of a brief alarm rang out from his smartphone.
Turning on the display, he saw that Team Leader Han had sent a message.
‘Whew, look at this timing.’
Ohjin smirked after seeing the message and turned his head towards Vega.
“Let’s go.”
[Mh? Where are we going all of a sudden?]
“The weapons I’m going to be using together. I’ll show you directly.”
Ohjin turned his body and headed towards the Association.
* * *
“First of all, take this spear.”
As he arrived at the Association, Team Leader Han was standing outside like he had been waiting all along.
Ohjin grasped the silver spear Team Leader Han had held out.
Owooong!!—
“Ooh.”
Subtle blue lights flowed out of the spear as he grasped it.
You could tell it was a great product mixed with high-quality starstones with a glance.
Swoosh!—
He lightly swung the spear around.
‘It’s slightly heavier than the one I used before.’
But that amount of weight was nothing, as he possessed such a monstrous body.
‘No, this’ll be much better once I get a little used to it.’
Force increasing with the amount of mass was natural, after all.
Crack!! Crackle!!—
And as expected, the greatest strength of the silver spear was that it had extraordinary electric conductivity.
When he sent the blue lightning into the spear, the lightning’s movement felt as natural as moving lightning around his body.
“It’s good.”
A satisfied smile formed on Ohjin’s mouth.
It was a weapon so good that it made him feel sorry for receiving it for free.
“And next… is this.”
Click—
Team Leader Han cautiously took two bracelets out of a square case.
No, rather than a bracelet, it was closer to that of a gaudy bracer.
“That kid was so excited to make it… the kid completed it using personal money after going way over the budget.”
“Kid?”
“Ah, I’ll introduce you at a later date. Should I call them one of the few talented people we have…? Well, we have one kid that’s exceptional in crafting.”
‘It’ll come in handy if I get close with the kid.’
It was hard to come by a talented individual associated with equipment production.
“Try it out.”
“Alright.”
Click—
He equipped a wire shooter on each arm.
‘It’s more comfortable than I thought.’
It was quite hefty, but it didn’t feel uncomfortable or stuffy at all.
“How do I use this?”
“Hold out your arms and try copying my hand gestures. Kind of like grabbing the air.”
He took the stance Team Leader Han instructed.
“Yes, it should shoot out once you flick your wrist in that state. Do be careful, as the recoil is quite strong.”
Nodding his head, he flicked his wrist in a snapping motion towards a nearby wall.
And then—
Click!—
BA—NG!!!!!!!—
—with powerful recoil, it shot out a wire with a ♠️ shaped weight tied at its end.
Crush!—
A silver line was created between the wire shooter and the spade-shaped weight stuck to the wall.
“Wow… this is.”
A short exclamation flowed out of Ohjin’s mouth.
If you took out the ‘wire’ from ‘wire shooter’, it’d be no different from a gun.
‘Although normal guns are naturally useless against monsters.’
What would the result be if he sent an electrical current through the wires? Not a normal current, but the stigma of Lyra’s.
“Huhuhuhu!”
Laughter unconsciously flowed out as he looked at the wire shooter that ended up being completed with a better quality than he expected.
“Haha. It seems like it is to your liking.”
“Yes. I like it very much.”
“This isn’t the end.”
“Hmm?”
“Try sending mana into the wire shooter.”
As Team Leader Han instructed, he directed mana into the wire shooter—
Click—
Whirrrrrrrr!!!!—
“H-Huh?”
—the wire connected to the weight returned with a strong metallic sound.
Clack!—
With the clear sound of gears interlocking, it returned back to the state before it was fired.
Exclamation flowed out of Ohin’s mouth.
“I did say to include a returning feature, but… I didn’t imagine that it would be this good.”
It was something he said half as a joke, but with this wire shooter, he started to believe that he could truly soar through the skies like using an omni-directional mobility gear.
“You can control the returning speed depending on how much mana you flow in.”
“This is incredible.”
An item just as he designed, no, an item even more extraordinary than that had been made.
“Ah right, you can fire up to three wires on the right, and three on the left, which means a total of up to six wires can be fired.”
“What?”
‘You can fire something like this six times?’
“Haha. Didn’t I say so? That we went over our budget.”
Team Leader Han smiled while shrugging his shoulders.
‘Holy shit.’
If a contest for picking the most handsome gorilla in the world was held, it felt obvious that Team Leader Han Joonman would be the champion.
“Joonman…!”
“You’re embarrassing me again…’
Team Leader Han went over it with a light chuckle like he had become accustomed to that response.
“Instead, could you help us when an urgent matter occurs on our side?”
“Of course.”
It was truly an item outstanding to the point where it wouldn’t matter even if he helped without receiving payment.
“Then, I’ll take my leave for today, as there is a meeting I have to attend.” Team Leader Han bowed his head and returned back inside the Association.
“Fuu.” Ohjin looked over the wire shooter equipped on his arms and the beautifully shining silver spear.
‘Joining the Association was seriously the best choice.’
Although they did get disrespected here and there these days, they were still competent in many areas, as they were an organization directly under the government.
‘I’ll crush the skulls of the bastards that disrespect the Association from now on.’
He felt a nonexistent sense of belonging raging up.
Dazzle—
[Is that the new weapon you have spoken of?]
Vega, who had appeared out of the necklace, tilted her head.
“Yep.”
[Indeed. It appears that it’ll be a menacing weapon once you flow electrical currents into foes tied up by that rope.]
“That’s not all.”
[Hmm?]
Ohjin raised his arms up high and aimed at a rooftop fence on a nearby building.
“I can also use it in this way.”
Bang!—
The spade-shaped weight blasted towards the fence.
‘If I send in electricity now…’
Bam!—
A powerful magnetic field appeared as he channeled electricity into the wire composed of electromagnets, causing it to stick to the fence.
“Hold tight, Vega.”
[Hm? What are you planning to do?]
Vega climbed up on his head while tilting her head and then held onto his hair like holding a horse’s reins.
“Alright.”
Smirking, he focused mana onto his wrists.
Whirrrrrrrr—
Ohjin’s body surged into the air as a metallic sound rang out of the wire shooter.
[O-Ooh?]
“Let’s go!”
Ohjin cheered out loud and discharged the lightning flowing through the wire. Once the wire was discharged, the wire stuck to the fence fell off and returned to the shooter.
Bang! Bang!!—
Repeatedly using that method to shoot and return wires in succession, he could fly from building to building like he had really become spiderman.
[Indeed!! So you have thought of this method, as you cannot fly yet!]
“Hahaha! That’s right! Since I can’t fly yet—”
‘Yet?’
“You could use the stigma of Lyra to fly?”
[Although it’s currently impossible, you will be able to in the future.]
‘What the fuck? Why am I being told this now?’
‘Are you telling me I went through this dumbfuckery for nothing?’
[Fufufu! Do not worry as the ‘Lightning Shadow Step’ skill is impossible for you to learn right now anyways!]
“Sigh.”
Ohjin did feel like he had somewhat worked in vain, but he decided to accept it, as Vega said that the skill was currently impossible to learn.
[Are you returning home now?]
“No.”
Smirk—
The tip of his lips rose up as he shook his head.
[Then?]
Vega had returned, and he had equipped himself with new equipment.
There was no reason to stay dormant any longer.
“—Let’s go to Seoul Station.”
The flesh monster sealed underneath Seoul Station.
It was time to deal with it.
