Absolute Regression - Chapter 385



Only Noblemtl

Episode 385 Today is the youngest of the short stories.

The day of the meeting finally arrived.

Cho Chun-bae, who started preparing for business earlier than usual, wrote a message on a piece of paper and posted it in large letters at the entrance.

Closed today.

Jo Chun-bae took a deep breath as he looked at the writing he had written. Today is finally the day! You can do it, Chun-bae.

“Is something going on today?”

Mr. Yang, the lumberjack, asked worriedly.

“There’s a meeting of the new religion at the tavern today.”

It’s been kept a secret until today, but I can finally reveal it.

Of course, Mr. Yang was surprised.

“There’s a religious meeting being held at your tavern?”

“That’s right.”

“Congratulations, congratulations.”

Everyone knew that Jo Chun-bae was close to the leader of the cult, and that not only the new cult demons but even the Heavenly Demon visited the tavern, so it wasn’t surprising that a meeting was held.

“Can I come and see it later?”

“If you had the courage to do that, you would be living a life wearing the uniform you sell.”

Mr. Yang laughed heartily, saying that was true.

“Good luck.”

“Thank you.”

Songi, who helps him in the kitchen, also came out earlier than usual. In fact, there wasn’t much to prepare. This was because Jo Chun-bae had prepared everything in advance. So that the food could be prepared even if an order came in right away.

“Aren’t you scared, Master?”

Songi was very scared about the meeting that was going to take place today.

“What are you afraid of?”

“Aren’t there going to be a lot of mines here today?”

“Don’t be afraid. We have our little sect leader. The most reliable person in the world is on our side. What are you afraid of? And don’t bother with those who are not good, the real masters are polite.”

After reading Songi, Jo Chun-bae came out through the back door of the kitchen.

In fact, Cho Chun-bae was also nervous. The pressure of treating someone who suddenly showed up and treating them after preparing for it were worlds apart.

Just then an old man came in through the back door.

“Sir, we are closed for business today. And you are not allowed to come in here.”

“Are you the owner of this place?”

“Yes, but.”

“I have something to ask. My legs hurt, so I’ll just rest for a bit.”

An old man sat on a small platform in the backyard.

Judging from the wrinkles on his face, he was a fairly old man, but his physique was very sturdy. His sharp tiger-like eyes made me think he must have been angry when he was young.

Other than that, he was ordinary. I looked at the old man with my intuition and discernment, which I had gained from my long experience in business, but he didn’t seem like a person without a sense of duty. He didn’t seem like a bad person either.

“I haven’t seen you before.”

“You come from Hubei.”

“Oh my, you came from far away. What brings you here?”

“I came to see someone.”

“You’re old, so you must have had a hard time. Should I get you a glass of water?”

“It’s okay.”

“Who are you meeting that brought you all the way here?”

“If we’re enemies, we’re enemies. If we’re close, we’re close.”

Then Jo Chun-bae asked cautiously.

“Have you come to see your child?”

In an instant, the old man’s face hardened and a shadow fell over him that he could not hide.

Cho Chun-bae thought his guess was correct. There were many cases like this. Elderly people who had been separated from their children and came a long way with the intention of seeing their children and grandchildren before they died.

“How long has it been since you last saw me?”

“It’s been over ten years, I guess.”

Jo Chun-bae felt sorry for her. Didn’t he also experience something big with his family this time?

“Where did you decide to see it?”

“We agreed to meet at this tavern.”

“Oh my! Why did you choose today of all days? The bar is closed today. When was the time we agreed to meet?”

“You came early even though you still have time. I wonder what your intention was behind choosing this place for the meeting.”

Just by hearing the word ‘Kung-Kung’, you could tell that this feisty old man and his son were not on good terms.

“Please reconcile now.”

“Should I do that?”

“If you do business here, you’ll meet all sorts of people. They hate you to death and fight with you. But later on, you’ll regret it all. You just have to endure it for a moment, and be a little more lenient, so why did you have so much pride? Isn’t it too late for you, old man, to be able to stand up for yourself? No, it’s time to throw away the old days.”

The old man stared at Jo Chun-bae without saying a word.

“If you do it later, it will be too late. When you see it, you should be the first to admit that you were wrong. Isn’t that what an adult is like? Please calm down a little.”

“Why do you think I have a temper?”

“We can tell just by looking at your face. Didn’t you have a similar temper when you were little?”

The old man smiled strangely.

“I did.”

“I am also a person who is very accurate in judging people.”

Suddenly, the thought of Wang Sook-su, whom I hadn’t properly recognized, crossed my mind, but I quickly passed it by.

“Anyway, I’m not doing business today, so please wait down at the inn. If anyone comes looking for the old man, I’ll make sure to tell them to go that way.”

It wouldn’t be easy to convey that message in today’s atmosphere. Should I ask the man guarding the entrance? I was worried that we might cross paths and never see my child again.

Then, the old man suddenly asked.

“I heard there’s a Demonic Cult headquarters nearby. Have you ever seen the Heavenly Demon?”

Is this old man crazy?

“Who dares to mention it? If you speak such words in Magachon, you will not die a good death.”

“I’m sorry.”

I was going to kick him out right away, but I answered him because I thought it wouldn’t work since he was an old man who had come from far away to see his child.

“I’ve seen it. The cult leader came to our tavern too.”

“What kind of person is he? Is he really that scary as the rumors in the martial arts world say?”

“He is not a fearful person to the righteous or the wicked, but he is kind to us. And he is the one I respect the most.”

“For protecting you from the sect and the satanists?”

“Of course, there is a reason for that.”

Jo Chun-bae gave a surprising reason.

“I’m glad that the little sect leader is my father.”

Cho Chun-bae uttered these words for the first time. He also realized for the first time that he was thinking like this.

‘But this old man, why are you looking at me like you know something? What do you know about the cult leader?’

At that moment, Songi’s voice was heard from inside.

“Sir, we have a guest!”

“Go.”

Jo Chun-bae woke up.

“Go quickly. If you wander around here today, you might get into big trouble, so wait in the guest house. Do you understand?”

“Thank you. See you later.”

“I told you I can’t see you today!”

Jo Chun-bae hurried into the building.

The customer who came to the tavern was an unexpected person.

“Huh? Your Majesty.”

He was none other than the Demon Lord Jang Ho. Unlike his usual plain martial arts uniform when he came to drink, today he came wearing the Demon Lord’s formal attire.

When I saw the terrifying demon symbol drawn on his chest, I felt fear and the thought, “Ah, this person is the leader of that terrifying demon army.”

“Your Majesty, what is the matter?”

“I’m going to rearrange the seating arrangements a bit because we have a meeting today.”

“Just say the word and I will do it.”

“No, I’ll take care of it.”

Jangho went up to this floor.

He arranged the table and chairs there so that the three could see each other in a triangle formation.

Jo Chun-bae was inwardly puzzled.

‘Are there three people coming to the meeting today?’

I thought it was a gathering of many people, but it seems not. But it’s a gathering of only three people, and the king’s steward comes to check the food and the demon lord comes to arrange the seats?

‘Huh? No way? Is the cult leader coming?’

Then he shook his head. If that were true, the seating arrangement would not have been like that. The leader would have been seated at the top. Right now, the three seats were facing each other equally.

“But why do you do it yourself, Your Majesty? Why don’t you order your subordinates to do it?”

“My men will not be here today.”

Cho Chun-bae didn’t know that today, no one below the rank of a bartender could come to the Pungryu Tavern. Today, the bartenders were the youngest here.

The leaders of each organization were stationed all over the streets like ordinary people.

“No other people will be allowed to enter the tavern.”

Cho Chun-bae stopped talking about the old man. He was already gone anyway. If he were to speak unnecessarily and the old man were to be taken away by the minions for questioning, he would never be able to see his children.

At that moment, a person entered the tavern.

Surprisingly, it was none other than Kwon Ma. Jo Chun-bae’s heart pounded when he saw that scary face.

‘It looks like Mr. Kwon is also attending the meeting.’

Kwon-ma and Jang-ho greeted each other.

When the two of them stood side by side, it seemed as if the guest room was full. Moreover, weren’t they the two most frightening-looking people in the Cheonmasin Church? When the two impressionists met, Jo Chun-bae couldn’t even look at them.

After a brief conversation with Jang-ho, Kwon-ma approached Jo Chun-bae.

‘Oh, I should have gone into the kitchen earlier.’

Kwonma came up to me and asked an unexpected question.

“Is the food preparation going smoothly?”

Kwon Ma asks you to prepare food for him?

Jo Chun-bae looked at Kwon-ma with a surprised face and then quickly lowered his head. It was a face that was too scary to look at.

“Don’t be surprised. I was in charge of the safety of today’s meeting.”

Kwon Ma is in charge of safety? Why isn’t he attending today’s meeting as the main character?

“There is no problem with preparing the food. You can order it anytime and it will be ready to go.”

“Before serving the food, a staff member from our school will come and check for poison. It’s not because we suspect you, but it’s a matter of procedure, so please understand.”

“Of course.”

Jo Chun-bae entered the kitchen. He already felt the strength leaving his legs.

Why would the Ma-Zone, and that scary Kwon-Ma, explain everything to a mere tavern owner like this? He never would. He never would. If he wasn’t a minor cult leader.

It was at that very moment that Jo Chun-bae was looking into the bubbling broth.

Another Amazon entered the tavern.

It was a bloodthirsty demon with a large sword on his back. He was also dressed differently than usual.

He was wearing a red robe that symbolized the bloody sky. The current Blood Heavenly Swordsman was not the Blood Heavenly Swordsman of that time, when he used to read poetry and dance with swordsmanship.

A chill like frost was rising in his sharp eyes.

Jo Chun-bae felt out of breath, so he quickly turned his head and started trimming vegetables that didn’t need trimming.

Songi asked with her eyes.

‘You’re still not scared?’

It’s scary, really scary.

I couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud because of my pride.

Bloodthirsty Horse asked Kwonma.

“Have you seen the little cult leader?”

“I heard about it in the cult.”

“Okay.”

Bloodthirsty Demon walked out slowly. The Heavenly Sword on his back was shining colder than ever.

After seeing the Kwonma and the Bloodthirsty Horse, Jo Chun-bae felt pressured. The momentum of the Demon Lords today was different than usual. They were talking calmly and just standing there, but something felt different.

‘Whew, let’s come to our senses. We need to come to our senses, at least for the sake of our cult leader.’

He opened the small window that faced the street from the kitchen and took a deep breath.

As I was looking up at the sky and calming my mind, I saw a person.

Someone was standing on the roof of the building across the street with their arms crossed. It was impossible to tell who it was, because the white mask was shining in the sunlight.

Was it because he looked lonely standing alone, leaning on a mask? Was it because the cherry blossom petals that flew in with the spring breeze and brushed past the evil soma were beautiful? Jo Chun-bae looked at him as if he was possessed.

At that moment, the gaze of the evil soma quickly turned towards Jo Chun-bae.

‘omg!’

Jo Chun-bae, who was so surprised, quickly hid under the window. Did their eyes meet?

When I lifted my head again and looked at the place, the evil Soma was no longer there.

He said with a sigh.

“Whew. Lord Soma is the scariest person next to the Poison King.”

When Songi didn’t answer, Jo Chun-bae turned around absentmindedly.

‘Ugh!’

He was even more surprised than before.

Before he knew it, the poison king had come in, crouching down next to Songi and staring at a snail-like insect crawling between the vegetables she was trimming. Songi was frozen, covering her mouth with her hand.

The Poison King was also dressed in formal attire. Dressed in a stylish green and white robe, he immediately caught everyone’s attention as a beautiful man.

Even in a state of shock, Song-i thought the twelve zodiac signs on the poison sac on the Poison King’s waist were cute. If she knew what was inside, she would imagine these cute animals’ eyes turning bloodshot and jumping out as monsters.

The Poison King lifted the bug onto the grass and carried it out.

As he left, Jo Chun-bae let out the breath he had been holding.

“I admit it. I’m scared too.”

Then Songi looked at the place where the Poison King had left and said.

“No, I’m not scared.”

“what?”

“it’s awesome.”

Jo Chun-bae shook his head.

At that moment, someone was heard entering the tavern. Jo Chun-bae lifted his head slightly through the small window facing outside the kitchen to check who had come.

The one who came in was Ilhwageomjeon, dressed in a pure white uniform. On a day like today, it would have been nice to have put on makeup for the first time in a while, but she came with a bare face. The traces of time were naturally evident.

Moreover, his face was tanned from arduous training, which stood in stark contrast to his pure white martial arts uniform.

However, Cho Chun-bae felt that she was more beautiful now than when she had put on all that extravagant makeup. He wanted to go and tell her that. She was more beautiful and elegant now. Of course, he couldn’t dare to do that.

There was someone who said those words for me.

“Is this the most beautiful sword I’ve ever seen?”

When she turned around, the horse had entered.

He was also dressed up properly today. The clothes he was wearing had a picture of a drunken god of wine smiling. Of all the clothes with pictures of gods, today was the day he would wear one with a picture of a scary god drinking wildly.

“Is the spring breeze blowing in Chwimongru these days?”

“He is the one who will become the leader of the cult, but how can he be so tight-lipped?”

Chwima smiled faintly, opened the cork of the bottle of alcohol, took a deep sniff, and closed it again.

‘Is this an important day for the drunkard to hold back on alcohol?’

As Jo Chun-bae was thinking about this, a golden light poured in from outside the tavern. The small giant Ma-bul had arrived, revealing an unmistakable presence.

The lyrics he sang depicted humans and demons suffering in the fires of hell, as if the golden light he emitted was a flame that burned them up.

In addition, the Subhonmazone appeared as if it had been there from the beginning. Her eyes, which had matured while I hadn’t seen them, were flowing with an eerie ghostly aura. She was walking the narrow path between humans and ghosts.

It was Cho Chun-bae’s first time seeing all the Palmazones in one place. When they were properly dressed and gathered in one place, it was truly a spectacle.

The sight of them all gathered together in a shabby street where they didn’t fit in became an even more unforgettable one.

If I were a painter, I would definitely paint this scene.

‘It really was a Palmazone meeting!’

Then, a question naturally arises.

Jo Chun-bae’s gaze turned to this floor. With all the demons gathered here, why are there only three seats?

‘Why is no one sitting there?’