A Regressor's Guide to Hunting in the Academy

Chapter 51

Chapter 51

That night, Henrik secretly slipped out of the dormitory and headed to the academy's back mountain.

He intended to go underground through the path he had previously used to sneak out with William.

Unlike the time with the Underground Maze, there was no separate gatekeeper this time. Since it was originally a sealed path, there were no enemies or traps blocking the way. Because of this, he armed himself with light equipment focused on rapid movement rather than heavy armaments for combat.

Whoosh!

Henrik nimbly threw himself toward the underground passage.

Slide!

Sliding down the earthen tunnel, Henrik passed the collapsed Underground Maze and arrived at the Large Underground Cavern where he had fought Nebiross.

Thud.

As he entered the cavern, a massive hole appeared before Henrik's eyes. This was the space where Nebiross had summoned a Gate on the floor, and the hole he had bored to obtain an artifact.

Since he had visited this place after regressing, it was a familiar sight to Henrik.

Lighting the lantern at his waist, he stepped inside. The wide passage extended deep underground.

This path likely led to the deepest part of the Academy's Underground Ancient Castle.

With every step Henrik took, cold air tickled his forehead. Henrik pulled up his mask slightly and moved forward, relying on the light of the lamp.

Descending the massive underground stairs where the lantern light revealed only the ground beneath his feet, a gigantic door finally revealed itself.

This door was the entrance to the deepest part of the Academy's Underground Ancient Castle. The door to the 'Dungeon.'

Henrik approached and touched the door.

—Crumble.

Thin stone chips fell to the floor as he touched the old stone door. Rubbing his hand across it, he found the door covered in thick white dust.

Henrik tried pushing the door. It didn't budge an inch.

'As expected, it hasn't opened yet.'

Henrik stepped back.

He felt a bit relieved. The fact that the door wouldn't open meant it hadn't been touched by Nebiross; the seal was still intact.

However, he hadn't come to open this door today.

He had come down to open a door elsewhere, not this one.

Henrik turned slightly to the side and followed a narrow path to the left, heading deeper inside. Before his eyes stood a small stone door engraved with a statue of a winged human—an angel.

Just like before, Henrik tried pushing the door.

The door did not open.

Seeing that the doors were intact, it seemed Nebiross had taken his time working on this place. It was fortunate, but at the same time, it was a dilemma for Henrik.

"What should I do…."

In the past, when he visited this place, the seal had already been broken. Because of that, Henrik only had memories of entering the room, passing the trial, and retrieving the artifact.

Now, he had to break the door's seal himself.

'Do I have to force it open?'

Henrik took the Sephirum Warhammer from his waist.

As he gripped it, the hammer emitted a brilliant white light. And then,

—Thud!

Henrik swung the hammer.

The moment the hammer touched the door, yellow lightning crackled—Zzzzt!—and repelled the hammer.

—Clang!

Bounced off, the hammer left Henrik's hand and fell to the floor with a thud.

"…This is."

Henrik's eyes widened as he looked at the door. A barrier glowing with golden light was surrounding it.

A very familiar barrier.

It was the exact same type of barrier that had been protecting the Sephirum.

'I see. This is why Nebiross couldn't open the door.'

Nebiross couldn't take the Sephirum despite having it right in front of him because of this sacred barrier. Similarly, he couldn't touch this door because it was protected by the same barrier.

If the barrier is the same, the method to dismantle it should be the same. As Henrik placed his right hand on the door, Woong! The barrier reacted.

At that moment, the angel carving on the door flashed with light, and arms shot out, tightly gripping Henrik's right arm.

Sizzle! Along with pain that felt like his flesh was burning, the carved arms wrapped around him. Henrik, sensing a trap, tried to pull back.

At that moment, a voice was heard.

[One who wishes to obtain the treasure, prove your qualifications through the trial. If you are unqualified and do not wish to burn to death, turn back now.]

"……!"

The chilling voice cut off abruptly. Henrik looked down at his right arm.

'Don't tell me… I have to endure this?'

Henrik gritted his teeth, suppressing the pain, and used his left hand to take a painkiller from his waist. He intended to use the medicine to cheat his way through.

That moment,

—Zing!

A laser shot from the angel statue's eyes, shattering the potion bottle Henrik was holding. The broken potion spilled helplessly onto the floor.

'So, no shortcuts allowed?'

Henrik smirked, then grabbed his right arm with his left hand and braced himself.

—Sizzle!

Burning pain.

As he endured it, the power of the seal—the Sacred Mark—on his body began to resonate. The more Henrik withstood the pain, the brighter the Sacred Mark began to glow. In particular, the new Sacred Mark engraved on his chest during the battle with Nebiross shone with exceptional brilliance.

At that moment, his surroundings turned white.

Black wings, which he had experienced before dying, sprouted from his back and gently wrapped around him.

'Is this a dream?'

Just as he questioned the surreal sight, several scenes began to flash past his eyes.

It was a woman with black wings.

She was sitting listlessly in a cage, looking outside.

Then, accompanied by a man's urgent shout, a scene followed where six people appeared and knelt before the goddess.

'What… is this?'

Information he had never seen before flooded into his mind like a rising tide. It felt like someone else's past, not his own.

Henrik recalled the memory of the moment he regressed.

'Black wings… It's that woman.'

That very woman was the one responsible for Henrik's regression. Henrik then watched the six people kneeling before her.

Characters were engraved on their bodies, one by one. And those characters were familiar to Henrik.

They were identical to the Sacred Marks engraved on his own body. However, the difference was that they each possessed only one Sacred Mark on a specific part of their body.

One on the arm.

One on the leg.

One on the back.

But Henrik possessed all those Sacred Marks in a single body. At that moment, the Sacred Marks engraved on Henrik's body began to shine.

'Amazing.'

As the barrier and the Sacred Marks resonated with each other, Henrik, having glimpsed the black-winged woman, could finally understand the meaning of the Sacred Marks engraved on his body.

Currently, Henrik had a Sacred Mark engraved on his arm.

Including the faintly engraved one on his back, there were two in total.

When the mark first manifested, his entire body had glowed, but now it was only his arm and back.

It seemed that various conditions were required to use the marks on other parts of his body.

And during the decisive battle with Nebiross, the mark on his arm had shone clearly.

That was proof of awakening; it meant Henrik had properly utilized the mark on his arm.

Without realizing it, he had fulfilled the usage conditions for the arm's mark.

Thanks to the Sacred Mark on his arm, divine power circulated within his body, and controlling that power became easier. Furthermore, when the mark's power was activated, it felt as if his strength surged several times over.

'It's supernatural strength….'

The power of Supernatural Power.

'The mechanism was that whenever I became stronger, the Sacred Marks would activate and grant me power. Then, if I become even stronger, new Sacred Marks will be engraved on my body.'

The moment he realized the true nature of the Sacred Marks, the scene changed.

It was the scene of the woman again.

But it was different from before.

One of the woman's wings was missing.

'The wing….'

As he recognized the wing, a black feather fluttered from his own back and fell to the floor. A single wing had sprouted from his back.

'It is with me.'

Was this the price of regression?

The one wing missing from the woman was with him.

Just then, the woman raised her head and locked eyes with Henrik.

Henrik wanted to ask.

Why me….

As Henrik's mouth slowly opened,

—Thud!

The surroundings were dyed in darkness, and his consciousness returned to reality.

—Pop!

The Sacred Mark and the barrier resonated, and the barrier began to melt away gently.

As the barrier disappeared, the Sacred Mark glowing on his body also faded back into invisibility.

'Did he call it the Ancient Sacred Mark?'

Henrik looked at the Sacred Mark on his arm and recalled what Nebiross had said.

Judging by the demon's reaction, this originally belonged to someone other than Henrik, and the person who transferred it to him appeared to be the one responsible for Henrik's regression. However, the fact that this person had such a deep connection to demons was a very significant mystery.

'I should meet a heraldry scholar once I go to the capital.'

Henrik glanced at his right arm. Released and emitting hot steam, his right arm was actually in fine condition compared to the pain he had felt.

It was fascinating.

The burning pain had been the result of the door's barrier verifying the Sacred Marks engraved on Henrik's body one by one.

The existence of the Sacred Marks.

It had become an opportunity to learn an unexpected secret.

"Phew…."

Henrik wiped his forehead, which was drenched in cold sweat, and gently pushed the sealed door.

—Rumble.

With the sound of stone moving, the heavy stone door began to open slowly. Brilliant light leaked out from within.

Rarely, a flush of color returned to Henrik's face. It was a very faint smile, but he was in a very good mood right now. It wasn't joy at seeing the armory filled with weapons, but rather a delight in the artifacts he had used for a long time in his past life.

This place was the Sealed Armory of the Underground Ancient Castle.

In his previous life, the demons had looted everything, leaving only trash behind, but it was different now.

Weapons and armor used during the First Divine-Demon War were preserved in pristine condition.

As Henrik entered the armory, a voice was heard.

[To gather with two hands, the door is too small. To take with one hand, it is far too wasteful.]

It was an incomprehensible statement, but Henrik smirked and began rummaging through the armory.

Naturally, the brilliant weapons were tempting, but it was impossible to take them all out.

This was because this armory was like a trial of sorts. Whether it was a security device of the ancient castle or truly a trial to test people, he didn't know for sure, but to take something from this armory, only one thing was allowed.

He could take only a single item out.

If he tried to leave with multiple items, he would be trapped in this room forever, lost in illusions.

He could possess only one single object.

As he walked deeper into the armory, the artifacts displayed in the cases shone brilliantly.

Swords spewed light and fire as if appealing to him.

Dazzling magic power flowed from bows, spears, and various other weapons.

Shields and armor flashed with shining steel as if boasting of their durability, and rare accessories and ores were scattered everywhere.

Exuding brilliant presence, they tempted Henrik as if begging to be taken.

They were dazzling treasures he was experiencing for the first time, but Henrik walked on silently without even giving them a glance.

Beyond the display cases, at the very end of the armory, even more magnificent items welcomed Henrik.

Compared to that blinding light, the black curtain decorating the back of the display case looked truly shabby.

Henrik walked forward with a smile.

In the past, in the present, and in the future.

Only one item caught his eye.

Henrik approached without hesitation and—Grab!—clutched it tight.

Surprisingly, what Henrik grabbed was not the equipment decorating the display case extravagantly.

What he grabbed was the shabby, worthless-looking old curtain hanging on the wall behind the display case.

'Found it.'