Chapter 5: The Stigma of Lyra (2)

Vega cocked her head, puzzled by Kwon Oh-Jin’s sudden stiff expression. “What’s wrong?”

Her mystical voice echoed directly in his head, snapping him out of his confusion.

Damn it.

Gulp.

He swallowed nervously and desperately tried to steady his trembling hands.

How do I get out of this insane situation? Should I just tell her I lied because I thought I was going to die?

For a brief moment, he considered giving up and confessing to everything, but that thought didn’t last long. Kwon Oh-Jin bit his lip and clenched his fists.

No.

The damage had already been done. Whatever the reason, he had lied to a Celestial. A mere human had dared to deceive a god.

I have to keep up the act.

There was no turning back anymore. Unlike Lee Shin-Hyuk, Kwon Oh-Jin wasn’t a Regressor.

I have to see it through to the end.

Kwon Oh-Jin’s eyes sparkled.

This was the nature of lies. One could always avoid telling a lie, but they couldn’t stop once they started. Now that he had chosen to deceive her, he had to do it perfectly. He had to fool her so thoroughly that she wouldn’t ever realize she had been deceived, just like the other Awakeners who had fallen for his lies in the past.

If that’s the case...

He quickly gathered his thoughts and formulated a plan. It wasn’t difficult; over the past eight years or perhaps even his whole life, deceiving others had been as natural as breathing for him.

He looked up at the goddess.

“Hmm?”

Vega’s questioning gaze remained fixed on him.

“I’ve missed you, Vega,” said Kwon Oh-Jin with a trembling voice.

Drip.

Tears streamed down his cheeks, causing Vega’s eyes to widen in shock.

“What?”

He took two steps toward her.

“I thought... I’d never see you again.”

He reached out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her toward him. Naturally, she didn’t budge. There was no way a new Awakener could be strong enough to move a transcendent being like her.

It doesn’t matter.

The point wasn’t to actually pull her closer.

“Sniff. Sob...!”

He collapsed at her feet, crying like an animal.

“I’m so relieved. So... relieved...!”

“W-What are you doing?”

The once emotionless and cold goddess now seemed visibly flustered, stepping back in confusion. Her brilliant, star-like golden eyes wavered, revealing her inner disturbance.

This is good

.

He had managed to unsettle her.

I'm just getting started.

Confusing the target was a crucial first step in scamming someone. People didn’t usually fall for lies easily, but in moments of emotional chaos, they crumbled much faster than one could imagine. This was why scammers always started off with something shocking, like “we’ve kidnapped your child.”

It disoriented the victim, making them more vulnerable.

Although this might be different for Celestials and humans.

However, Kwon Oh-Jin didn’t have the time to ponder if that was the case.

“Vega! It’s me, Oh-Jin... Ah.”

With a look of futility in his eyes, he let out a small gasp and dropped his head.

“Right, you've lost all your memories of me...” he trailed off with a bitter smile.

“What exactly was our relationship in the future?” Vega asked in confusion.

Kwon Oh-Jin tightly pressed his lips together and shook his head.

“No, I’m sorry. It’s nothing," he said, though his expression conveyed otherwise. Taking a few steps back, he added, "Please, forget everything I just said.”

“It clearly isn’t ‘nothing.’ Tell me, what was it? What kind of relationship did we—”

“Next time,” he interjected. Right after, he smiled bitterly and shook his head. “I’ll tell you next time.”

The key point here was to make an expression that hinted at some deeper, untold story. This meant delicate eye movements, slightly trembling eyebrows, biting his lower lip gently, and scratching his palm with his fingernail.

There’s no way she won’t fall for this.

If there was one thing he was good at, it was crafting an intricate expression and a fitting atmosphere for it.

“Alright. We seem to have a long story behind us, but besides that, you thought you’d never see me again...? I see. It seems I will eventually disappear.”

Vega nodded rather calmly.

Eventually?

Kwon Oh-Jin squinted at her calm—no, indifferent response. He had thrown around some vague words to make her believe that he was a Regressor, but judging by her reaction, she seemed to know something.

Is there really someone out there who can wipe out a top-tier Celestial?

He thought about the notorious monsters known among Awakeners, but he still couldn’t imagine anything powerful enough, which wasn't a surprise. Celestials couldn’t kill the monsters occupying a third of the Earth not because they were weak but because they were bound by restrictions that prevented them from doing so directly.

Well, whatever.

It didn’t hurt to have her playing along on her own. He deliberately widened his eyes and looked surprised.

“You already know?”

The goddess nodded with a somber expression.

“Yes, I know that I—no, all the Celestials are destined to eventually be swallowed up by the darkness of the Black Heavens.”

“That’s right. The Black Heavens...”

Wait, what? The Black Heavens? As in that thing earlier?

This was the power that he had awakened in the critical moment earlier—the black cloud that absorbed Lee Shin-Hyuk’s Stigma.

Why is that coming up now?

𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

A cold chill ran down his spine, and an ominous feeling followed.

She mentioned something about an 'end' earlier.

When Vega first appeared, she had called him “the savior of a world fated to end.”

As she had said, the Earth was a world destined to die.

Whether it was a prophecy or prediction, he couldn’t tell. But Vega had known from the start that the Earth would come to an end.

And that’s why Lee Shin-Hyuk came back... To prevent that from happening.

The only problem was...

I’m the one who caused the crisis?

Ha.

The absurdity of it all left him speechless. Not even a bitter laugh escaped his mouth.

What kind of bullshit is that?

Whether or not he had the power to destroy the world didn’t matter. He had absolutely no reason to do such a thing.

Fuck.

He felt like his head was being wiped clean into a blank canvas. Part of him just wanted to shove his fist into his mouth and sob uncontrollably.

“You’re spacing out again,” Vega said with concern.

As if splashed with cold water, he snapped out of his confusion.

This isn't good.

If he kept acting strange, she would start to become suspicious. He had to do everything in his power to prevent that.

“I was just revisiting that memory,” Kwon Oh-Jin responded in a low tone.

“That memory?”

“Of the time our Earth was destroyed.”

“...”

Vega tightly pressed her lips together.

“The sky was swallowed by a deep darkness. So many people—more than I could count—died.”

“... Is that so?”

I don’t know. I’m just making all of this up as I go.

“But I came back.”

He took a step forward.

“I’ve been given a chance to change the future.”

As he moved closer to Vega, he carefully reached out and held her hand. The deity's hand was surprisingly soft.

“L-Let go,” Vega said.

“I won’t.”

Shaking his head firmly, he tightened his grip on her hand.

“I’m not going to lose you again.”

“...”

“This time, I will protect you.”

“Regressor.”

“My name is Oh-Jin. Kwon Oh-Jin.”

“I have no memory of you.”

“I know.”

I don’t have any memories of you either.

“Memories can be rebuilt, and what was once lost can be found again. I will make it happen,” continued Kwon Oh-Jin.

With a faint smile, he slowly released her hand.

Now that he had committed to scamming her, he wouldn’t be satisfied with merely deceiving her.

I need power.

He needed power to truly become a Regressor and prove to her that he alone could save this world.

“Will you lend me your strength?”

He was going to use whatever it took, even if that was a transcendent being even other Celestials bowed their heads to.

Vega closed her eyes gently. After a brief pause, she slowly nodded.

“Regressor... no, Awakener Kwon Oh-Jin,” she called, her expression growing serious. “O’ Heaven-Defying Star that goes against destiny.”

She extended her hand slowly.

“I shall illuminate your difficult path with the light of my star.”

Her pale fingers touched his forehead.

Ring!

[Vega the Weaver wishes to appoint Kwon Oh-Jin as her apostle.]

[Does Kwon Oh-Jin accept?]

Feeling her cool touch on his forehead, Kwon Oh-Jin slowly nodded.

Woooong!

A radiant cluster of silver light bloomed from Vega's hand and surged into Kwon Oh-Jin like a tidal wave. At the same time, blue system messages appeared before him.

[The Black Heaven is absorbing the Stigma’s mana.]

[The conditions for the Black Heaven's second enlightenment have been partially met!]

The power coursing through him became even more overwhelming than when he had first awakened.

“Thank you, Vega.”

Kwon Oh-Jin pushed aside the system message and gently held the hand resting on his forehead. He then gazed at the goddess with fiery determination.

“From this day forth, I vow to protect you from the evil maw of the Black Heaven,” he said with unshakable resolve.

Vega smiled softly and nodded.

“What a truly trustworthy vow,” she replied. Afterward, she turned to the charred, blackened corpse of Lee Shin-Hyuk. “Anyway, who is that?”

“He’s someone who, in the past—no, I guess it’s the present now. He's a scammer who tricked and lured me into this gate,” Kwon Oh-Jin responded without hesitation, having waited for this question.

It’d be strange if she didn’t ask about the burnt body lying right next to me.

“A scammer?”

“Yes.

Haha

. Back then, I went through quite a lot of trouble because of him. He took everything, even my money and equipment.”

“So you took revenge as soon as you regressed?”

Kwon Oh-Jin shook his head.

“That’s not the only reason. He later becomes part of a criminal organization of Awakeners, preying on the innocent as a vile predator.”

Vega nodded with a short exclamation. “I see! Eliminating future evil in advance is very much something a Regressor would do.”

Her gaze drifted away from the corpse, perhaps no longer intending to question him any further.

Crackle!

“Ah.”

While she was surveying her surroundings, blue sparks rose from her floating figure.

“I’d love to continue talking, but it seems the law is starting to resist.”

“The law’s restrictions?”

“Did I not grant you a blessing earlier? Even though it was an indirect intervention, it still violated the law.”

“Ah, I see.”

By nature, Celestials were bound by a law that restricted them from intervening in the mortal world.

But that doesn’t mean I can let my guard down.

Just as she had granted him a blessing in spite of the law, Celestials could still intervene to some extent if they were willing to face the consequences. There were even instances where Celestials stepped in to directly deal with catastrophic monsters that Awakeners couldn’t handle on their own.

In other words, she can easily kill a scammer like me who dared to mock a god.

The law couldn’t protect him. The moment she discovered that he wasn’t truly a Regressor, no restriction would stop her from crushing him with her wrath.

I’d rather just die on my own.

At all costs, he had to stop his consequences from spreading to those around him.

I can’t let that happen.

“Even just being here in this form is already a violation of the law, so I’ll return to the Sanctum now.”

The Sanctum was a dimension wherein the Celestials resided, accessible through gates scattered across the Earth. Only Awakeners could enter it, though, so Kwon Oh-Jin had never been there before.

“In one week, come find me at the Sanctum. We’ll discuss the plan for the future then.”

“Yes, I understand,” he bowed politely.

Wooong!

With a low hum, the goddess scattered into silver dust and disappeared.

“Phew.”

Finally left alone, he let out a deep sigh and collapsed onto the ground.

Damn it. What on earth just happened?

“Should I just go home for now?”

Too many things had happened all at once, and his head was throbbing.

But still...

He pulled his shirt down and looked at his left pec. Instead of the fake Stigma that he had carved out with a knife, a real Stigma was clearly etched on it, and it belonged to one of the North Stars, no less!

The corners of his lips rose as he stared at the Stigma.

“Well, it’s not all bad.”

No, this was actually a great opportunity. If he used this chance well, he could obtain power that other Awakeners could never even imagine.

I’ve still got many obstacles to overcome, though.

The thought of regression and the Black Heaven made his head start to ache again.

I’ll think about all that at home.

Sitting here and worrying wasn’t going to solve anything.

Before leaving the gate, there was one last thing to do.

“Well then, let’s see how much our Regressor friend here has on him.”

He rummaged through the charred remains of Lee Shin-Hyuk. The leather armor he had worn was burnt and ruined, but fortunately, his wallet remained intact.

“Holy shit. This guy was carrying around two million won in cash?”

Seeing the thick stack of cash in the wallet, Kwon Oh-Jin licked his lips and chuckled.

Ever since the gates had opened and the world had gone into chaos, it wasn’t uncommon for people to carry more cash than usual. Still, it was rare for one to carry around millions of won.

“I’ll make good use of your weapon too, buddy.”

After thoroughly looking through Lee Shin-Hyuk’s body for anything valuable, Kwon Oh-Jin stood up with a smirk. However, before he could, something strange caught his eye.

“Huh?”

He took a closer look at Lee Shin-Hyuk’s charred face.

“What the hell? Is this guy smiling?”

Was he having a good dream or something?