Regressor Instruction Manual

Chapter 560: Our Hayan Has Changed (4)

Chapter 560: Our Hayan Has Changed (4)

“Are you talking about Miss Hayan?”

“Yes.”

“She has been very quiet lately. She’s also become very kind. She takes care of me every time I meet her, but it was a little bit scary because of her past. There’s no sign of her past behaviors these days, though. You know… When her eyes used to give off a strange light. I don’t know if it’s because she became more patient or if she realized something.”

“She certainly seemed to have quieted down, but…”

“That’s why I wanted to tell you…”

“Oh! Yes, please continue.”

“I’m sorry if I’m being rude, but… I don’t think you have to transfer me anymore. It’s comfortable for me to stay here… And I would like to stay in Lindel for now.”

“I understand what you are saying, Miss Sora.”

‘I wasn’t going to transfer you in the first place anyway…’

I was glad that she said that on her own. Of course, the main point of the conversation wasn’t her transfer issue.

‘If even Sora says this, Hayan really must have changed…’

I talked to Sora in order to gauge Hayan’s current condition.

Establishing a forward base in the North and establishing a Continental Protection and Management Committee to prepare for the entire war were important issues, but checking up on the growth of special human weapons like Hayan was also important.

I didn’t know what Han Sora thought of Jung Hayan, but I was sure that Hayan considered Sora her friend. Every time an incident related to Hayan broke out, I used Sora. Since Hayan had limited human relations, it was inevitable that Hayan would’ve developed friendly feelings for Sora.

I was certain that Han Sora was probably one of the people Hayan trusted the most.

Of course, Han Sora was afraid of Jung Hayan due to the events that happened between them in the past. However, based on her action that day, things seemed to have changed.

‘Their relationship has changed for sure.’

That was proof that Jung Hayan had matured.

‘It’s weird to think about it.’

I thought she had grown up since the kidnapping incident, but that was weird no matter how hard I thought about it.

I couldn’t judge whether I hadn’t noticed or pretended not to know, but I had to admit that Jung Hayan had changed 180 degrees from before…

‘Even the problem with the Magic Tower ended easily.’

Even though I strongly recommended it, if it were the usual Hayan, she would’ve never obediently listened to my words. The tower wasn’t that far, but normally, shutting herself in a tower would’ve been unbearable for her.

We went out together once a week, but that couldn’t have been enough for her.

Of course, there were many times where she seemed like she was holding it in, but it was still difficult to understand. Even when she met Hee-ra, whom she hated the most, Jung Hayan didn’t throw a tantrum.

I just saw her bite her lips tightly while her hands shook, but she didn’t do anything else besides that. When I went out to work, she didn’t beg me to let her follow me like before and just watched as I talked to other women.

Even her response to the Continental Management Committee was the same. The news about me leaving the guild temporarily and heading north… From Jung Hayan’s point of view, there should’ve been nothing worse than that.

I couldn’t simply say that her patience had grown because it didn’t seem like she was going to explode any time soon.

‘Maybe she feels like she can’t explode anymore…’

She might’ve realized that when she did something, it could have a negative impact. There might’ve been many other complex reasons, but there wasn’t a need to find the cause.

The only thing that mattered was that the kidnapping incident was limiting her behavior.

In the first place, I was aiming for a situation like that. What was a more attractive option than having Jung Hayan, who didn’t act out of the blue?

However, thinking that the previous self-produced drama was limiting not only Jung Hayan’s actions but also her mind, I grasped onto my head tightly once again.

“Is everything all right, Vice Guild Master?”

“Yes, everything’s fine… Well, is there anything unusual about her these days…?”

“No, there isn’t anything like that. She doesn’t seem to be under any kind of stress since it would’ve prevented her from studying otherwise… and it doesn’t look like there are any other problems. She was holding a book even on her way to meet you.”

“Hmm…”

“And…”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know if this is the right expression, but…”

“Yes?”

“She seems to be having a bit of a hard time.”

“…”

“No, I think it’s more accurate to say that she’s not having fun rather than saying she’s having a hard time.”

“She doesn’t like it? Is the tower’s standard that low?”

“No, that’s not what I meant. She doesn’t seem to be that interested in magic itself. It just feels like she’s forced to study… In fact, I don’t think there are that many people who study magic and enjoy it… However, lately, she seems even more uninterested. No matter how much I look at her, she looks like she has been forced to sit on a chair and study.”

“It can’t be…”

“I’m not sure, but… That’s my gut feeling.”

“I see. First of all, thank you.”

“…”

“…”

‘Jung Hayan doesn’t find magic interesting?’

“Well, Vice Guild Master.”

“Yes.”

“I know you’re busy, but… I hope you’ll visit Jung Hayan more often…”

“Yes, I understand what you’re saying.”

“W-Well, then, I’ll get going.”

“Yes, I’ll call you again in a few days, so please refrain from going far away as much as possible.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Why would she find magic boring? She loves to study…’

Even after Han Sora had gone outside, I couldn’t get off my chair.

‘I can’t be. Is that what it really is?’

It wasn’t like I had kept watching Jung Hayan’s appearance in the 1st Timeline, but it sounded absurd that Jung Hayan didn’t feel interested in magic.

Magic was her purpose in life, her breakthrough, and cure. She relieved her stress by reading magic books and relied on magic when she was bored or lonely.

It was her friend who talked to her, comforted her, and laughed with her when she was having a hard time. In extreme terms, magic and mana were her only friends. She was that type of person…

“Ah…”

‘This is…’

As I pondered quietly, I realized something.

‘This isn’t the First Timeline.’

Jung Hayan was neither lonely nor felt like magic was her only friend in this timeline.

‘Rather…’

She probably thought of it as a scheme. In the First Timeline, Jung Hayan was confined at the top of the Magic Tower as soon as the tutorial was over.

She spent her time on the top of the tower without going outside. The old magicians there probably adored her, but she probably felt lonely.

That created a situation that not only developed her original talent in magic but also increased her passion for it.

However…

‘Things are completely different now.’

My existence itself could be a problem.

If her purpose in the 1st Timeline was magic, her purpose in the 2nd timeline was Lee Kiyoung.

In the First Timeline, when Jung Hayan found herself in a situation that she couldn’t handle, she fled to magic. In the 2nd Timeline, she looked for me.

Unlike the First Timeline, it wasn’t too much for her to feel that magic was indeed boring. Her means and her purpose had changed so clearly, after all.

‘So is it inevitable for her to be weaker than she was in the First Timeline?’

Not necessarily. Considering what Jung Hayan had achieved at that moment, she was still loved by magic and mana.

‘The problem is that the love is one-sided…’

I couldn’t stop myself from sighing. It seemed like I had reached a conclusion to some extent. The current method couldn’t bring Jung Hayan to her maximum potential. Even if I kept shouting at her to grow, she wouldn’t.

I had to make a new keyword and act like before. Of course, it wasn’t difficult to find an answer.

Just by thinking about how Jung Hayan had grown so far, I quickly realized what I had to do. The main factor that made Jung Hayan grow in the Second Timeline wasn’t training, but anger, jealousy, and negative emotions.

Anger towards Cha Hee-ra, the mask trash, Jin Qing, The Federation, and the demons… At each point, she had grown and become unimaginably strong.

Simply put, every time I had an accident, she jumped up several steps at once. Of course, that was why she couldn’t grow. Since Jung Hayan, who was discouraged by the kidnapping incident, began restraining her negative emotions, her growth couldn’t proceed smoothly.

‘Man, why did it discourage her?’

I had tried so hard to put a leash around Jung Hayan, and when I eventually succeeded in putting it on, Jung Hayan became a pet dog, not a hunting dog.

‘Sh*t, what should I do?’

“Damn it…”

‘Is it right to untie the leash again?’

“But I put a lot of effort into tying her down…”

“Can I win a battle while completely excluding Jung Hayan? What the hell am I going to do?’

“I don’t know.”

‘This could be better for Hayan, too…’

It wasn’t just a matter of personal greed. Jung Hayan was clearly becoming gentle.

She was always socializing and gradually becoming calmer even around Han Sora.

It might be expecting too much right at that moment, but it might be her last chance to regain some of the humanity that she had worn out since she was summoned. That was exactly what I wanted…

In the first place, I always felt a little guilty putting her in the wrong direction. Only a little bit, though. It was inevitable that it would take a lot of things to drop another bomb once again.

Did I have to choose?

‘A weaker but more stable Jung Hayan? Or a mad crazy one?’

Exactly a month later, I had no choice but to tell her my decision carefully in the end.

“Let’s stay apart for a bit.”

“What? What?”

“I think I need some personal time…”

I could guarantee that my words must’ve sounded like thunderbolts coming down from the sky.

Of course, to Han Sora too.