Genius Regressor Makes Mythic Items

“Hmm~.”

A low hum could be heard.

It wasn’t particularly pleasant, but it was clear that the person humming was in a great mood.

Moments later, “Representative Yuan, we’ve arrived.”

A man in a suit and sunglasses opened the car door.

“Understood.”

Nodding, Yuan Hong stepped out of the car.

‘So, this is the Korean Awakened Association?’

A tall building that made one tilt their head back to see the top. The landscaping around it, and the building, reflecting the current president’s personality, was clean, restrained, and almost cold in appearance.

However,

“Hmm. It’s smaller than ours.”

Yuan Hong scoffed and followed his attendants into the building.

Ding.

After a long ascent, the elevator doors finally opened.

Even then,

Tap, tap, tap.

Yuan Hong’s fingers incessantly tapped his pocket. The hum from the car now manifested through his body movements.

“Welcome. We’ve been expecting you.”

A towering 2-meter tall man bowed his head.

“Haha! Secretary Choi, isn’t it? You still live up to your nickname ‘Golem.'”

“You flatter me.”

Yuan Hong laughed heartily and shook hands with Choi Changwook.

“Please, come inside.”

Choi Changwook immediately opened the door.

“Thank you.”

Expressing his gratitude, Yuan Hong entered the association president’s office with brisk steps. Though he clearly saw Shimun, Kim Shihyuk, Park Jinwook, and Lee Yujeong seated inside,

“Ah! President Kim Muyeol. It’s been a long time. Haven’t seen you since you took office, right?”

Yuan Hong only greeted Kim Muyeol.

Of course, given the position of association president, it wasn’t strange to greet him first. In fact, in terms of protocol and etiquette, this was the correct approach.

Yuan Hong, knowing this well, ‘Huhu. This should be sufficient as a show of dominance.’

He glanced at Shimun and his party with a subtle smile, extending his hand towards Kim Muyeol.

But, perhaps because it had been so long, “Yuan Hong, do you think you have the right to shake hands with me?”

Yuan Hong, utterly surprised by the Ironwood King’s reaction, blinked for a moment.

“Excuse me? Ah… haha! You’ve really developed a sense of humor since I last saw you.”

Forcing a smile, he continued his words naturally, but nothing more.

“Humor?”

Kim Muyeol’s eyes twitched with irritation. Normally, Yuan Hong would have backed down quickly, “Hey, why are you acting like this? Am I not a representative of the World Awakener’s Alliance?”

But since his intent was to preemptively undermine Shimun’s confidence,

“Naturally, I should greet the president of a national association…”

He ended up crossing the forgotten line.

“Heh. An F-rank insect dares!”

Sparks flew from the Ironwood King’s eyes immediately. It wasn’t just his eyes.

Creak.

The bonsai trees arranged around the office. Their branches rapidly grew and flew towards Yuan Hong.

“What the!”

“Representative Yuan!”

The attendants who had entered behind Yuan Hong quickly stepped in front of him. As befitting World Awakener’s Alliance attendants, they too seemed to be awakened,

Whirr.

Creating protective barriers with their own energy or fending off the bonsai branches, but that was all.

They could not overpower the first-generation ranker, who was still active.

“Gah!”

“Ugh!”

Eventually, their defenses broke, and they suffered deep wounds on their arms and legs. One of the attendants glared at Kim Muyeol.

“What are you doing?! This person is a representative of the World Awakener’s Alliance! How dare you…”

“One more word.”

Like a sharp blade, Kim Muyeol cut off the attendant’s words. He glared at the attendant with fierce eyes.

“Speak one more word, and I’ll divide you into five pieces right here.”

The bonsai branches, which had surrounded the area seamlessly, moved like venomous snakes.

Creak.

Creak.

Their tips moved menacingly.

Naturally.

“……”

The attendant was left speechless. Yuan Hong, unable to wipe the cold sweat trickling down his forehead, “Uh… President? Please, calm down… for a moment.”

He raised his trembling hands slightly to try and appease Kim Muyeol.

To which, “A man who got his position just by talking dares…”

Kim Muyeol’s fierce gaze was locked on Yuan Hong.

“Just because you’ve been in the position of a representative for a few years, you think you can equal me? Yuan Hong, it seems you’ve lost your mind since we last met.”

“President, there seems to be a misunderstanding…”

Yuan Hong tried to pacify the Ironwood King’s anger somehow.

“It’s not just you. Most of the people in those representative positions are like that.”

Once ignited, Kim Muyeol’s fury didn’t easily subside.

“Thanks to their backers, they obtained their positions, and being hailed as representatives of international organizations has made them overly confident.”

A cold sneer, “In the old days, we could kill such vermin and no one would even look for them.”

With his eyes showing sheer potential for violence, Yuan Hong found himself speechless. How could he not?

‘This is dangerous.’

Ironwood King Kim Muyeol. His switch had been fully activated. And, Kim Muyeol’s temperament was very much like that of his superior.

‘As far as he’s concerned, there are no ‘representatives of the alliance’! If I’m not careful, I really might die!’

Yuan Hong was certain he was standing at the border between life and death. That man, as sharp as a blade, who would even turn against his family to maintain his authority.

‘I should be bowing my head now…’

Perhaps it was because his abilities had stagnated at the Silver rank since becoming a representative?

Faced with the Ironwood King’s overwhelming killing intent,

Tremble.

Yuan Hong’s body refused to function correctly.

Then,

“President, let’s show some mercy.”

A voice of salvation cut through the tension. A strikingly handsome man whose voice was just as clear. It was Shimun.

“He’s just happy to see you after such a long time. Representative Yuan didn’t seem to have any bad intentions, did he?”

However, Yuan Hong’s tension did not ease. It was understandable.

‘Of all people, why did that guy have to speak up, not the Sword Saint!’

Despite his fame, he was just a Platinum ranker. He wasn’t on the same level as rankers like Kim Shihyuk or Lee Yujeong. This would only add fuel to the fire.

That’s what Yuan Hong thought.

“Tsk. I’ll let it slide this time because of Zhang Liqiu.”

Kim Muyeol clicked his tongue and retracted the bonsai branches, relieving some of the tension on Yuan Hong’s throat.

‘What is this…?’

Yuan Hong glanced back and forth between Shimun and Kim Muyeol with wide eyes.

‘The Ironwood King is listening to a mere Platinum hopeful?’

For someone who knew Kim Muyeol well, it was an unbelievable situation. But since Shimun had indeed saved him from Kim Muyeol’s wrath,

“Th-Thank you!”

Yuan Hong bowed his head to Kim Muyeol and quickly took a seat.

“Ahem! Let’s get straight to the point without further ado.”

He prepared to finish the business and leave as soon as possible.

Loosening his tie slightly, Yuan Hong spoke.

“I assume the official letter sent to the Shimdrasil Guild has been received.”

“This one, right?”

Shimun slid the document on the table.

“Yes, that’s correct. Were there any clauses you didn’t understand?”

“The clauses are clear. It’s the nature of the document that’s the problem.”

“Th-That…”

Yuan Hong furrowed his brow as he tried to respond. The reason was simple.

“By the way, isn’t the guildmaster of Shimdrasil supposed to be the Sword Saint?”

Until now, Yuan Hong had always dealt with Kim Shihyuk, the Sword Saint. But it was Shimun who was answering, and he had done so very naturally.

‘Now that I think about it, the seating arrangement is strange too.’

Shimun sat opposite him, the representative of the alliance, while the guildmaster, the Sword Saint, was to his right, and the vice guildmaster, the Night Hunter, was to his left.

Anyone could see that Shimun was sitting in the representative seat of Shimdrasil.

Sensing his confusion, “Oh, I entrusted this matter entirely to him. It has nothing to do with me.”

Kim Shihyuk waved his hand nonchalantly. Yuan Hong’s eyes gradually widened.

However, “Let’s get on with it. You probably have other places to be soon.”

With Shimun’s prompt, Yuan Hong quickly nodded. Not knowing when the ruthless Ironwood King might change his mind, “Ahem! So, going back, what do you mean by the problem with the document itself?”

Clearing his throat and putting on a sly smile, Yuan Hong inquired. Even though it was clear he knew, asking such a question would be quite irritating.

And the smile was meant to provoke.

“It’s exactly as I said. It seems the document is ‘incorrect’.”

Shimun mirrored the smile without any sign of faltering.

“From what I know about the World Awakener’s Alliance, they wouldn’t do something so foolish.”

With that, “Foolish? Do you understand the gravity of what you’re saying right now?”

Yuan Hong’s eyes narrowed dangerously. That term ‘foolish’ was nearly a direct insult aimed at him for proposing the motion.

“You’re discrediting the decisions of the World Awakener’s Alliance. Such arrogance!”

However, Yuan Hong’s outburst did not seem to affect Shimun at all.

“Hmm. It’s about time…”

Shimun muttered while fiddling with his phone.

“You!”

Just as Yuan Hong was about to explode at the blatant disrespect,

Ring, ring.

The phone in his pocket rang. Yuan Hong irritably pulled out his phone to silence it but,

‘It’s the Alliance?’

Seeing the caller ID, he said, “Excuse me for a moment.”

Feigning courtesy, he answered the call.

“What the hell are you talking about!”

He immediately started swearing.

‘The motion’s been retracted all of a sudden?! What nonsense is this?’

He was here precisely because of the motion, and now it was being retracted?

For a moment,

‘Wait. Could it be…?’

A troubling thought surfaced. It wasn’t unreasonable.

‘This happened recently with Lee Yujeong too!’

Such an experience had occurred before.

‘Back then, everyone agreed the day before, but on the day the motion was to pass, it was suddenly withdrawn!’

The villain designation of Lee Yujeong had also been retracted right before the motion was to be passed. It was practically the same situation as now.

The words Shimun had said earlier, ‘You’ll probably have to leave soon,’ flashed through Yuan Hong’s mind.

Naturally, his gaze shifted to Shimun.

Seeing that inexplicable smile, “Ah…”

It dawned on him what was happening.

“I… No, I’ll go there myself.”

Biting his lip, Yuan Hong ended the call.

“It seems we’ll have to reschedule this meeting.”

He stood up abruptly.

“Indeed.”

Shimun nodded naturally.

Though Yuan Hong’s suspicions were turning into certainty, handling the current absurd situation took precedence.

“Then, I’ll take my leave.”

Bowing, he quickly exited the president’s office.

Behind him, “Representative Yuan?”

A clear voice reached him.

“I hope we can meet again.”

Leaving behind Shimun’s cryptic words, Yuan Hong exited the president’s office.

*

Despite the strenuous overseas travel, Yuan Hong briskly walked down the corridor.

“Every single country agreed to retract the proposal?”

The flustered secretary chasing behind him adjusted her large glasses and nodded.

“Yes. It seems all the representatives agreed to retract the proposal.”

“Hah!”

Yuan Hong let out a hollow laugh.

This was because, ‘Retracting a proposal requires a majority vote. Every single country agreed to retract?’

A 100% agreement on retraction?

In all the years he had served as China’s representative, he had never witnessed such an event.

‘Kim Shimun… what the hell did you do?!’

The strikingly handsome man, even a man would admire his looks, but right now, he felt incredibly annoying.

“Also, there’s unusual activity from Germany and the United States.”

“What do you mean?”

Yuan Hong frowned and looked back at the diligently following secretary. Adjusting her slipping glasses, she replied in a timid voice, “I heard from Sergey earlier that there’s talk of your resignation from the German and US sides…”

“What?!”

Even in the corridor of the World Awakener’s Alliance international organization, Yuan Hong’s voice rose sharply.

‘These… They all agreed to the proposal and now they’re not just backing out but trying to oust me too?!’

Yuan Hong clenched his fists and trembled with anger. He had always anticipated friction with the US, but, “Germany too?”

“Yes, it seems so!”

One of Europe’s leading nations, Germany.

Of course, ‘Despite Europe having had some close connections with the US…’

For them to take initiative suggests this was their own decision, unrelated to the US.

Most importantly,

‘Miller. She’s not one to step forward in such matters, is she?’

As far as he knew, Miller, the representative of Germany, despite her position in the front row of the conference room, rarely took initiative in such matters.

Since she took office, the number of proposals she personally raised could be counted on one hand.

So this wasn’t Miller’s doing.

‘Could Valtenberg be behind this?’

The force that backed her and propelled her into the representative position. It meant Valtenberg was exerting its influence.

“Damn it… What the hell is going on!”

Yuan Hong cursed again. Quickly composing himself, he roughly brushed back his bangs. Regardless of what was happening.

“The way things are going now, it’s dangerous.”

He tried to engulf the Shimdrasil Guild completely, but instead, it got him spit out. Nevertheless, the proposal was withdrawn, of course.

“If I end up getting ousted here…”

Not only would he lose everything he had, but the whole continent would also suffer enormous damage, that much was certain.

Naturally.

“Master Zhang Liqiu will never forgive me!”

His merciless lord would never let this go.

“That can’t happen!”

Yuanhong, who had now arrived at the conference room.

Bang!

He forcefully opened the door and entered. All eyes, over 200 pairs, fixed on him. Furthermore, it was as if someone had been gossiping behind his back and suddenly stopped.

“……”

“……”

The uncomfortable silence weighed down on his shoulders.

Yuanhong, noticing this.

‘Bastards!’

Step.

Clenching his teeth. He made his way to his seat at the front row of the conference room with a fierce look in his eyes.

As he moved.

Even though the Russian representative Sergey and a few other close representatives sent him uneasy glances, that was all.

‘If the approval was 100%, then those guys would have agreed to withdraw the proposal too.’

They were the ones who ultimately betrayed him. Yuanhong didn’t even glance at them.

Thud.

He arrived at his place and opened his mouth.

“I’ll get straight to the point. Why was the proposal withdrawn?”

Continued silence.

At that.

Bang!

Yuanhong slammed his desk hard. He scanned the assembly with his piercing gaze.

“Didn’t I just ask!”

He continued, as if ready to devour them whole. Under normal circumstances, a threat from the representative of a powerful country would have shown significant influence.

“……”

“……”

The gazes that returned were so different from before. Somehow, it felt like he was being ignored.

Yes.

Just like the look one gets when being ostracized. There were over 200 such gazes.

Opposite Yuanhong.

“Um.”

The uncomfortable silence was broken by Marcus, the black man sitting closest to him.

However.

“Representative Yuan, it seems you don’t know anything this time either.”

His words were no different from the shit-filled silence just moments ago.

“Representative Yuan, the proposal has already been withdrawn. What’s the point of arguing about it now?”

Marcus continued without blinking an eye. At this, Yuanhong’s eyes grew even fiercer.

“Of course, it matters! Everyone agreed! This proposal was passed, and I personally went to Korea!”

“Oh, is that your complaint? Don’t worry. We were just discussing giving you a long vacation anyway.”

Marcus shrugged nonchalantly. To this.

“You damn darkie!”

Finally, Yuanhong exploded in rage.

“You were the first to agree to that proposal! What kind of bullshit are you spouting now?!”

“Whoa! Representative Yuan, it seems you’re quite agitated. Calm down…”

“Calm down? Who are you to tell me to calm down?!”

Once the dam broke, it seemed.

“You all are the same! You bat-like bastards!”

Yuanhong’s mouth was unrestrained.

“When it was about sharing the growth buffs, you all agreed without a second thought. Now what? Withdrawal?”

His fury spread through the entire conference room.

“Do you think this proposal is a joke? You voted without looking back when it suited you, and now what kind of crap are you spewing? And you call yourselves representatives of your countries?!”

As if ready to bite someone’s head off. Yuanhong raged, pointing fingers as he spoke passionately. But no one seemed upset by his unrestrained words.

Rather.

“A representative of a country? You spoke well, representative Yuan.”

Eyes looking pleased with the turn of events were cast toward him.

“A representative of a country, and yet you spew not just racial slurs but also abusive language in an international setting?”

The American representative Marcus smiled broadly.

“I, Marcus, believe that current Chinese representative, Yuanhong, should resign from his position…”

He pressed the button on his seat.

“What does everyone think?”

Beep.

A green light appeared above Marcus’s head.

In response.

Beep beep beep.

Green lights lit up above the heads of all the representatives in the conference room. Even the Russian representative, sergey, and the other representatives close to Yuanhong, who were watching the situation, also.

Beep.

Subtly turned on their green lights. The result was unanimous, just like the proposal withdrawal.

*

The luxurious door closed.

Plop.

The middle-aged Asian man, Yuanhong, collapsed to the floor. His unfocused eyes wandered aimlessly through the air.

At that moment.

Ring ring.

The bell rang.

It wasn’t coming from his pocket, but.

“Re-representative, a phone call…”

It was from the clumsy secretary who had followed him inside. Yuanhong’s dazed eyes focused when he saw the phone screen she handed over.

“Ah.”

He regained his focus instantly.

“G-give it to me!”

He quickly snatched the secretary’s phone.

Trembling.

With hands shaking like a leaf, he answered the call.

Into his ear.

-I’ve heard the report.

A low voice reminiscent of an abyss came through. Just moments ago, Yuanhong was half out of his mind. The voice on the other end of the call instantly brought him back to his senses.

“L-Lord Zhang Liqiu, I greet you!”

With no one in the room except for the secretary, Yuanhong bowed at a perfect right angle while still holding the phone.

Despite his loyal action.

“I told you to check the growth buff of Shimdrasil, and this is the result?”

The voice on the other end did not brighten.

“I-I’m sorry! It was my incompetence, and…!”

“They even stripped you of your representative qualification?”

“Th-that is…!”

“You’ve greatly disappointed me, Yuanhong.”

How Zhang Liqiu already knew that wasn’t even registering in Yuanhong’s mind.

“I placed a low-ranked Silver like you in that position because you had a somewhat usable brain.”

“I-I’m sorry! If you could just give me one more chance, I promise I will fix this!”

All he could do was beg desperately. But even that seemed to be something the voice didn’t want to hear.

“Enough. Someone else will handle wrapping this up. You are to return to the mainland immediately.”

With that unilateral command, the call was disconnected.

Thud.

The phone fell from Yuanhong’s hand. Despite the lack of any explicit reprimand, Yuanhong trembled like a man facing death.

“Ugh…”

He shuddered all over.

The reason was clear.

“If I go back, I’ll definitely die!”

None of those who failed their missions and returned to the mainland had ever survived. If he returned now, he would likely disappear without a trace like the others before him.

‘I have to run!’

He wasn’t sure how long he could evade the mainland’s pursuit. Maybe they wouldn’t allocate resources to chase an F-class Silver Rank like him.

Yuanhong quickly fetched a travel bag and began packing his clothes and belongings.

‘I have the funds I received from years of lobbying. I’ll use that to survive as long as I can!’

The funds were well-laundered, so the risk of being caught through records was low. If he chose his hideout well and stayed submerged for a few years, the mainland might stop looking for him.

With this plan in mind, Yuanhong grabbed his bag and turned around.

Sing.

Cold metal touched his sweat-drenched neck.

“Representative Yuan, you are indeed a loyal person. Moving so swiftly at the leader’s command.”

A familiar voice. When he turned to look.

“Shall we return to the mainland?”

The once clumsy secretary now wore a bloodthirsty smile.

Thud.

His travel bag hit the floor. Being dragged by the delicate hand of the secretary, why was it?

In that moment, Yuanhong suddenly recalled Shimun’s farewell words:

“I hope we meet again.”

TL’s Corner:

Damn, it was quick. I am glad they didn’t drag this to a couple of chapters.