Regressor Instruction Manual

Harizel had many similarities to other cities, and there wasn't really anything special about it. If it had been a carefully designed big city, it would have landmarks, a unique atmosphere, or unique features, but Harizel was just a small city that adventurers visited briefly before going to their destination.

There were people looking for parties and merchants selling items in the large square; corpses of monsters were hanging on hooks everywhere. I couldn’t find any fancy restaurants or convenient facilities for the denizens. In addition…

‘There aren’t any cafes.’

All I could find in this small place was a pub, an inn for the adventurers, a blacksmith for item repairs, and shops that sold general goods. Clearly, this small city was created as a place to find jobs and a market for services rather than a place to live. The people walking on the streets were either adventurers or merchants. I couldn’t find children running around or people sitting outside and enjoying a cup of coffee.

“I’m an experienced vanguard! I have a goblin hunting commission, and the reward is three gold! We can leave as soon as a mage joins. A Level 2 swordsman and archer are waiting here!”

“A Level 4 party is recruiting a melee adventurer to fill in for the day. We’ll be checking your experience, equipment, job, and level!”

“We’re looking for a priest! We welcome any level! We’ll give you all the loot from the monster!”

“A Level 3 warrior is looking for a priest! You only need to be a Level 2 priest! I’ll be glad to answer any questions, so please come!”

“The Humble Rogue Familia is looking for people to join us! We’re still a small familia, but our GENIUS is generous and will not hesitate to offer support. We offer membership consultation, so let us know if you’re interested!”

The one thing that comforted me was that all of this was brand-new to me. Obviously, the architecture on the Rohen Continent and the architecture on our continent were different. The same went for the equipment and the monsters' appearance.

Overall, the Rohen Continent’s architecture was similar to Roman architecture. Stone buildings were everywhere, and since there were a lot of GENIUSES, large and small temples were everywhere as well. Familia Houses looked similar to those temples.

The wooden buildings blended well with the surroundings, which meant that they didn't look out of place.

‘There’s a lot of statues as well.’

Of course, I didn’t have the time to look around the city.

“Hey, hey! Take a look at our equipment! I’ll give you a good price!”

“Are you in a party? If you don’t, how about we talk…”

“Excuse me, could I ask which god you’re serving?”

‘Ah, why are there so many annoying people?’

The crowd rushed toward me as soon as I entered the square.

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“...”

“Excuse me,” I said.

The unique stench of the adventurers and the stench from monster by-products made it worse. I looked around to find a place to drink coffee, but I couldn't find any cafes. I only had that cheap coffee that came with my breakfast at the inn…

‘I’d rather not drink anything.’

The Adventurer Guild was my destination anyway, so when I pushed myself through the square full of people, I soon found myself staring at a pretty plain Adventurer Guild.

There were many people here as well.

There were players trying to grab requests handled by the Adventurer Guild and players trying to find a party at the square. The only difference between the guild and the square was that the Adventurer Guild would make a party for you, which made things a lot more organized.

‘I can finally breathe.’

“Excuse me…” I said.

“Who’s this pale nerd?”

“What?” I asked.

“If you don’t want to get into any trouble, stop hanging around this place and leave. We’re not here to buy items,” a man warned.

‘What the hell is wrong with hairy over here? Move out of the way.’

“Oh no, I”m sorry. It sounds interesting, but I don’t know about this expedition. It seems kind of dangerous to take Nam Chang… Where are you from?” an adventurer asked.

‘Who the hell are you?’

“I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before… You’re new, right? I’d like to visit you later. Where do you—”

“It’s not like that,” I interrupted them.

“Oh! Oh my… I’m sorry.”

This was it.

There were many types of people here, so I ended up finding myself in many different situations. Some people were singing, while some were sitting on one side of the guild and were already drinking even though it was still early in the morning.

One thing they all had in common was that they were looking down on me.

There were many people laughing at me.

‘Is there something wrong with my outfit?’

I thought my outfit was pretty nice, but I seemed out of place compared to the other adventurers. This probably wouldn’t have happened if I had been wearing my priest outfit or something.

I was kind of upset, but it didn’t long for all of them to look my way.

They looked at me seriously when they heard someone calling out my name.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young?”

“Ah!”

“You’re here early. I’m sorry I couldn’t greet you earlier.”

“Are you… Miss Equia?” I asked.

“Yes, it’s nice to meet you,” Equia greeted.

“You really didn’t need to come all this way…” I told her.

“I received many things from the Flower and Fertility Familia. How could I neglect Mr. William’s family?” she replied.

‘Jealous of my connections?’

Obviously, I heard people talking about me. If they were the types of people who enjoyed listening to rumors, I was sure they had already heard of my name.

'Have all of you already heard my name? I'm just that great. I even know the manager of the Adventurer Guild.'

“Please follow me,” Equia said.

“Thank you for your help,” I said.

I was soon led into a room used exclusively by Level 4 players. At least this place was a lot better than outside. It looked like a bar, and I saw a staff member looking like a bartender. Those looking at the bulletin board were taking their time reading the commissions, and unlike the people downstairs, these people easily formed parties.

Of course, the quality of the commissions here was different compared to the commissions downstairs.

The commissions were mostly about familias hiring an outsider before going on expeditions, dungeon investigations that people downstairs couldn’t even dream of obtaining and going hunting in a dangerous region that only Level 4 players ought to visit.

Most of them were commissions that the players downstairs would never be able to obtain.

“If… there’s anything you need…”

“Could I get a cup of coffee?” I asked.

“Sure,” Equia answered.

They also served coffee.

‘It’s a good thing I endured all that.’

The coffee was even delicious.

Level 4 players were equivalent to Epic players on our continent, so of course they were treated nicely. There was a difference in individual skills, but moving up from Rare was worth praising.

Moreover, Players below Level 3 couldn't really work with Woo Hyo-Yeol.

‘He requires a lot of attention.’

In addition to recruiting party members, I had to be with them during raids. Now that I thought about it, Kim Hyun-Sung was a lot easier to deal with because he at least recruited Kim Ye-Ri and Jo Hye-Jin. Recruiting people to fight with him was the basics of being a regressor.

There was a reason he looked for Jung Ha-Yan as soon as he became a regressor.

‘Woo Hyo-Yeol doesn’t even have the basics down.’

He’d beat the heads of his rivals, but the dummy wasn't planning on recruiting people he had met during his past life. No, he wasn’t planning on creating a party at all. He was actually wary of people and that was probably the reason why he was wary of William.

In that sense, we didn’t need the heroes from his first life. Of course, it would be nice if we could recruit them, but the regressor of Rohen needed comrades who could help him grow mentally while keeping their distance from him rather than heroes.

‘I can make up for the skills that they’re lacking, and I have Mind’s Eye, so I shouldn’t have a problem looking for people.’

That was the reason I visited the Adventurer Guild. Players frequenting the Adventurer Guild at Level 4 usually had some sort of flaw. Many Epic adventurers back on our continent were part of a group as well. They were either part of a small clan or guild.

Epic adventurers not part of a group usually had flaws or had a heartbreaking backstory.

Some were betrayed by their group, others weren’t accepted because of personality issues, or they had to have grown into useless people. In extreme cases, there were many players who couldn’t endure being part of a group.

‘I wouldn’t have come here if I wanted to find normal people.’

I would have asked William for a recommendation or recruited people through normal means. Naturally, I looked around while taking a sip of my coffee and saw Level 4 players.

‘Not bad… but I think they’re already drunk.’

They could have been kicked out of a party because they were often drunk.

‘Those who stopped growing are out as well.’

“You know… during my battle with three ogres… last time…”

‘Arrogant assholes are no good as well.’

“I heard the rumors. So he’s from the Flower and Fertility Familia?”

“...”

“If the Flower and Fertility Familia are recruiting people… I want to try talking to him…”

People interested in the Flower and Fertility Familia were no good either.

After checking their stats, jobs, nature, unique habit, item levels, and growth potential, I categorized all of them in my head. I also checked the people downstairs…

‘Lonely Wolf as a unique habit doesn’t sound so bad.’

Their nature was "Silent Thinker," which wasn’t so bad either.

Of course, this was going to take me some time, so I sat quietly, hoping that there would be one person who would catch my attention. While I was in the process of sorting out the best and second-best options, someone from downstairs came up.

“...”

“...”

‘He’s a veteran.’

I could tell without using Mind’s Eye. He had a belt that could hold his equipment, weapons, and consumables. He also had a secondary weapon attached to the belt for emergency use.

Despite the fact that his equipment looked old, it seemed like he took good care of his items, which was another plus. He was meticulous, and it was a rare trait among players. One ought to know how to take care of their items, especially when one was clad in plate armor just like the veteran before me.

At first glance, item maintenance seemed useless, but it could increase your chance of survival. He had a good personality as well, and his unique habit seemed normal, so I couldn't understand why he was here…

'Why are you here?'

‘I like him.’

I was sure had his reasons for coming here, and I immediately figured out why.

‘He’s too…’

“...”

‘He’s too old.’

He was an old warrior with a white beard and a bed of slicked-back white hair.