“Two Whopper sets~ The total comes out to $15.80! Do you want it to go?”
“Yes. I’ll have it to go.”
He ordered dinner from a nearby burger store on his way back home.
‘Fucking hell, why are burgers this expensive.’
The hands that took out the dollar bills from his wallet started to shake like an alcoholic patient.
Buying something that cost three times the price of $2 frozen burgers made him want to throw up his intestines.
“Here are the two Whopper sets you ordered~!”
Leaving behind the clerk, who had a bright smile, he started to move his feet.
He moved towards a narrow alley filled with old and crumbling homes.
The sharp smell of mold and damp humidity entered his nose.
“…haa”
Looking up to the dark sky, he threw up a short sigh.
‘Ultimately, is it back to lying?’
Suddenly, old memories started to surface in his head.
Memories from when he was young, over 15 years ago.
Fragments of memories that now felt unfamiliar started to float around his head.
-Lies? Did you say you were lying?
Was it when he was around eight or nine years old?
There was a time when he pranked the director by lying about the kitchen being on fire.
He could see the bald director’s beet-red face.
Throwing up the middle finger towards the director, Ohjin let out cackling laughter.
-You goddamn little bastard!!
The director’s steaming face distorted as he headed towards Ohjin with clenched fists.
He was an average male in his forties, possessing the ultimate trinity force known as high blood pressure, diabetes, and balding.
He had a surprising talent of holding back just enough to not leave any scars; even professionals would have been shocked to see it.
Fists rained down on top of Ohjin’s crouched body.
-Don’t hit our Ohjin, you bald bitch!!
With red hair that waved like fire, a young girl took off.
In contrast to her sweet, doll-like face, the girl’s movements were nimble and ferocious like that of a savage beast.
However, even if that was the case, a mere 10-year-old girl couldn’t stop the force of an adult.
-You two!!!
The bald director violently swung his fists around.
Ohjin and the girl embraced each other, enduring the assault of the director.
“Nothing’s changed from when we were young.”
Laughing bitterly, he walked through a path so desolate that it looked as if it had been assaulted by monsters and arrived at his home.
Creaaak—
After opening the worn-out door, he could see the insides of his cramped house—it didn’t even total 355 square feet.
“Arghh.”
Did they awaken from the sound of the door opening?
Together with the sound of light groan, the shabby bed wailed out creaking noises.
“I’m home.”
He roughly placed the burgers on the ground and took off his shoes.
“……”
Folding back the blankets, a woman sat up.
Red hair, reminiscent of fire.
Akin to a ruby in mud, inside of the run-down house that reeked of mold, was a woman that shone out beautifully.
She, who had just woken from sleep, slowly focused her eyes on Ohjin.
No.
The expression ‘focused her eyes’ wasn’t appropriate.
Because—
“…you’re here?”
—on the surface of her faded white pupils, no reflection could be seen.
Fold—
She clumsily folded the blankets back.
Inside of the folded blankets, her pure white legs were exposed.
Where there should have been two, only her left leg remained.
“Yes, I’m here.
He smirked while nodding his head.
The red-haired woman gazed upward towards Ohjin.
“If you're here— hurry up and give me a cig.”
She stuck out two fingers with a grin.
The appearance of her nonchalantly sticking out her hand like he was a servant made Ohjin chuckle.
“Back with the bullshit as soon as I’m here?”
“Oh~ Bullshit? Is that something you would say to this sister that’s akin to the sky?”
“Fuck off with the sister.”
“I heard that was a trend nowadays.”
‘Is it?’
“Sister Ha-eun…”
“Urrghh. Stop. My insides are curling.”
“But you're the one who told me to.”
“Kyahaha!! It sounds weird after hearing it.”
Looking at her acting like normal, Ohjin’s lips secretly curled into a smile.
‘It looks like nothing bad happened.’
Song Ha-eun.
A woman two years older than him. She had become Ohjin’s one and only crutch throughout the hell-like orphanage.
The tenacious relation from the orphanage days continued even after they came out of the orphanage.
Although, it was shaky and slobby.
Clearly.
“Here.”
He rolled up the receipt he received after buying the burgers and placed them in between her fingers.
Click!—
He lit up his lighter.
“Sssptt… Kek! Cough! W-What is this?!
“Cigarette.”
“No it isn’t, you bastard!” Ha-eun shouted out while violently throwing the burning receipt onto the ground.
He picked up the receipt and extinguished the fire with his fingers.
“Smoke in moderation. What if you get sick on top of your situation.”
“Heh. Even if I look like this, I’m still way healthier than you.”
Shrugging her shoulders, Ha-eun smirked.
She wasn’t bluffing.
In reality, she possessed a body several times healthier than him.
Because she was an ‘Awakener’.
‘Though she’s only a half-Awakener that can’t use her stigma’s mana.’
But it didn’t change the fact that she possessed body specs miles superior to him.
No, to be more accurate…
She had possessed.
‘It’s different now.
‘Since I have also become an Awakener.’
“I’ve bought some food for us to eat.”
“Oh, thanks. What’s on the menu?”
“Burgers.”
“Hehe! Nice! You have some good tastes!” Ha-eun snickered in satisfaction.
She liked burgers.
Not because she thought the taste was special, but because they were easy to hold and eat.
For her who couldn’t see, using cutlery was no easy task.
Rustle—
He removed the wrapping and handed the burger over to her.
Nom.
She chewed on the hamburger with her small mouth.
“…Huh?”
Her eyes opened wide.
She ripped more bites off of the burger like she couldn’t believe it.
“W-What is this? Why is it so tasty?”
“It’s because it isn’t frozen; I bought it from the restaurant.”
“…What?”
Ha-eun’s mouth opened wide.
“A-Are you sick somewhere? Did you get hit on the head by a monster?”
Her voice faintly trembled; she couldn’t possibly believe what she was hearing.
Ohjin
He wondered for a moment about why she was making such a big deal out of a burger set that wasn’t even $10, but looking back at his past actions, he could understand her reaction.
“I got some money.”
“…It’s not like you weren’t buying them because you didn’t have the money to.”
As she said, even if it was a little extreme, the reason why he saved living expenses wasn’t because he didn’t have money.
Though it was true that he wasn’t earning a lot considering that it was a job risking his life, he had still earned over ten thousand in a month before.
He could have bought a burger set that wasn’t even a mere $10 any time they wanted.
‘Though we’ve never eaten it until now.’
Even so.
The reason why he was so persistent in saving money was to save up a little faster.
‘Since there’s something I need to buy at all costs.’
* * *
* * *
Ohjin staringly gazed at Ha-eun, who had been stuffing down the burger.
“There’s sauce on your lips.”
“Ah, really?”
Ha-eun turned her head and stuck out her chin.
“Here, I’ll give you the honor of being able to touch my lips.”
“You’re driving me nuts.”
He wiped off her lips with tissues.
“Hehe! Hey, what’s this called?”
“Whopper set.”
“Kya! As expected of the king of burgers!”
Ha-eun smirked in satisfaction.
“Then I’ll buy this instead of frozen burgers from now on.”
Ohjin took a bite of his burger as well.
‘How disgustingly delicious.’
It was in a different realm from the frozen burgers he usually ate.
The taste was so good it made him want to shove his fist up his mouth and cry out.
“……”
There was an awkward silence.
Ha-eun’s blank white sight headed towards Ohjin.
“You… something happened today, didn’t it?
“Yeah.”
Ohjin calmly nodded his head.
“I became an Awakener.”
“……!”
—Splash
Ha-eun spilled the cola she was holding all over the floor.
* * *
Late at night.
A delicate moonlight seeped through the window frame.
“Phew. I finally have some time.”
After explaining this and that to the freaked out Ha-eun, it became night before he knew it.
‘Well, it was only natural to be that surprised.’
Since he had suddenly become an Awakener and an apostle of one of the ‘North Stars’ at that, it would be rather strange to not be astonished by that fact.
Naturally, he couldn’t immediately tell her all of the complicated story.
‘…How do I explain that I scammed a celestial into thinking I’m a Regressor.’
After the situation was a bit organized, his splitting headache started once again.
Ohjin, who had gone to the nearby playground, closed his eyes while sitting on the squeaking swing.
‘First of all, this Black Heaven.’
An unknown power that ate up the stigma of Lyra that was engraved on the left chest of Lee Shinhyuk.
‘…this is something that I’ve always had with me.’
He couldn’t understand why on earth that unknown power was with him, but he was certain of one thing; whatever this Black Heaven was, it was something that he had originally possessed and was unrelated to ‘Lee Shinhyuk’s regression.
There was no way Vega would have mistaken him as a Regressor if it wasn’t for the Black Heaven absorbing the stigma of Lyra in the first place.
‘And Vega believes that the existence that carries the Black Heaven will destroy the world in the future.’
If that was true, it would mean that he was the one that would destroy the world in the future.
Every time he thought about it, it just didn’t make any sense to him.
‘Just what happened to me during the first round.’
He always thought it was a fucked up world, but he had never thought that it would be nice to destroy the entire world.
‘This is… something I can’t figure out, so let’s move on.’
The problem was the fact that he was carrying the Black Heaven.
‘I need to hide this at all costs.’
Whatever happened, he couldn’t let it be discovered.
The moment the Black Heaven’s existence was discovered, the truth that he was not a Regressor but a third party that had absorbed the stigma of a Regressor would be exposed.
‘Wait, but what is this Black Heaven thing anyway?’
The power to absorb stigmas and make them his own.
Although he had participated in a lot of parties with diverse Awakeners until now, he had never heard of a power like this before.
Ohjin confirmed the system window that only Awakeners could see and clicked where the ‘Black Heaven’ was displayed.
-Ring!
The blue message box appeared in front of his eyes.
[Innate Ability List]
[Black Heaven]
1. State: First awakening
2. Trait
① Stigma Absorption : Absorbs the mana of stigmas and stores them within the Black Heaven.
② Black Curtain : Completely shrouds the Black Heaven’s presence.
This trait can also be used on possessed stigmas.
③ Transmission : Reads the records contained in stigmas.
This trait is influenced according to the awakening stage.
3. Possessed Stigma
① Stigma of Lyra : Currently designated as the main stigma.
“…uh”
Ohjin, who had confirmed the message box, let out a low-pitched mumble.
‘There’s nothing I can figure out with this.’
It was just a summary of what features the ‘Black Heaven’ had. It didn’t explain what it was and why it was with him.
“Then, let’s also move over this.”
Eventually, he temporarily put aside thinking ‘why is this happening to me’.
Since it wasn’t like he would find new information by sitting there contemplating.
‘If that’s the case.’
‘What I need to start thinking about is ‘what should I do from now on.’
“A Regressor…”
‘The most important thing right now is how to look a little more ‘regressful’ in the meeting with Vega in a week’s time.’
‘There’s a limit with just words.’
No matter how much he used his words, if he didn’t get recognition for his ability and skills, Vega would start to have some doubts.
‘To receive Vega’s recognition…’
There was a need to raise the stigma of Lyra’s ‘star’ as fast as possible.
‘At the minimum, I need to reach 2-Star by next week.’
Awakeners needed to achieve two requirements in order to promote.
‘The amount of mana stored in the stigma and the proficiency of the stigma.’
There was no need to think about the former.
‘I have overwhelming amounts of mana.’
He was in a situation where he had been granted stigmas by both the Vega of the ‘First Round’ and the ‘Second Round’.
Rather, he was in a situation where he had so much mana that it could become a problem.
“If that’s the case…”
It meant that if he could increase his proficiency in handling his stigma, he could ‘promote’ much faster compared to other Awakeners.
“Looks like I’ll have to visit the dungeon tomorrow.”
Was it two or three years ago?
One Awakener that he had partied with said that there was nothing better at raising a stigma’s proficiency in a short time than fighting in real combat.
In reality, all high-ranked Awakeners that had explosive growth went looking for dungeons.
‘Should I go to sleep?’
Creak—
He got up from the swing and started to exit the gloomy playground.
“Hmm?”
Taking a look at his smartphone on the way home, a news article caught his attention.
[Inside a 1-Star dungeon located in Incheon, Sinheung-dong, a phenomenon where Ant-horns traveled in herds of over 20 occurred… victims ‘one after another’.]
It was the dungeon he went to earlier that day.
[As the association believes that this phenomenon could mean the appearance of a ‘mutant’, they request that you refrain from entering for the time being.]
“…A mutant.”
Ohjin narrowed his eyes.
‘I didn’t see a mutant back then, but…’
It could be that he missed it since he wasn’t in a situation where he could care about if there was a mutant or not.
‘…can I take it on?
A monster’s mutation emerged extremely rarely.
According to the situation, there were times when mutants were weaker than normal, but they normally possessed more power compared to the original species.
It was a monster that no newborn 1-Star Awakeners could possibly overcome.
However.
He wasn’t your average 1-Star Awakener.
Just being a 1-Star apostle of the 12 Zodiacs would give you several times more prestige than other apostles, but he was an apostle of one of the ‘North Stars’ that even the 12 Zodiacs wouldn't dare compare to.
Truthfully, he had also slaughtered herds of Ant-horns that numbered dozens earlier that day.
Of course, he did receive the help of Vega in the middle, but—
‘It was manageable even before receiving the blessing.’
—he actually thought it was rather too easy.
And that was when he only possessed Lee Shinhyuk’s stigma of Lyra from the ‘First Round’.
He didn’t even have to think of how much easier it would be with the added stigma of Lyra from the ‘Second Round’.
“Alright.”
Ohjin finished his thoughts and calmly nodded his head.
His destination for the next day was set.
* * *
The next day.
Ohjin headed to the location he had first met Lee Shinhyuk.
“I’m a 2-Star Awakener of Fornax! Does anyone want to party?!”
“2-Star Awakener of the Greater Dog here! Looking to hunt for the mutant!”
Arriving In front of the gate, the rowdy shouts entered his ears.
‘There’s quite a lot of people.’
Even though the association had requested them to refrain from entering, there were more Awakeners gathered in front of the gate.
‘I think I heard that the starstones of mutants were much more expensive?’
It appeared that they gathered for the same reason of hunting the mutant that he had.
“Hmm…”
Ohjin stopped his feet and was temporarily lost in thought.
‘Should I join a party?’
He no longer had the need to perform a shit show now that he had become a real Awakener.
‘…No’
Ohjin, who had been temporarily in thought, slowly shook his head.
He had the confidence to face the mutant alone anyway.
In addition to having to divide the profits, it would also make it harder for him to experience proper ‘real combat’.
“Well then, should I go?”
He headed inside the dungeon, towards the location of where he had met the Ant-horn herd.
The sticky humidity made the dark forest road even more unpleasant.
Rustle—
The sound of bushes shaking.
‘They’re coming.’
He grasped the spear slung on his back and lowered his posture.
T/n: Constellation ‘the Greater Dog’ is the ‘Canis Major’ which is Latin for ‘greater dog’, which is also the constellation that contains Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky known as the ‘dog star’.
Incheon → City in South Korea
Sinheung-dong → Administrative neighborhood in South Korea ☺
