# Chapter 69
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# Recorder Ⅰ
## Shin Noah
### 1
I suddenly think I've been talking about Tang Seo-rin too often lately.
Of course, I can't tell the story of my regression life without Tang Seo-rin. But even the Korean Peninsula's greatest output, the great witch of the railroad, the idol of all people—she too has a private life.
That's right. Private life.
I'm not the type to actively dig into someone else's secrets, nor am I the type to interfere with their hobbies.
Even if that 'someone' is a mentally unhinged dual-personality malignant stuttering keyboard warrior.
"Ah. G-Guild Master…… G-good morning……"
Sim A-ryeon.
Nickname: One of the biggest aggro-baiters on SG.net, the Goryeojang Villain.
But in the 50th iteration, she treated ordinary people for free and was praised as the [Angel of Healing], and even volunteered as an art teacher, school nurse, and librarian for elementary school children.
Fashion style: Prefers brown-toned tops. Especially likes to wear a white doctor's coat over a brown turtleneck. Why? Probably to show off that she's a high-priced healer-type awakened.
Up to this point, quite a headache-inducing character profile is complete, but her awakening skill was even more insane.
Ability: Commonly called Spirit Bomb. Alternatively, an Aggro-Swallower. The more curses she received, the stronger her healing ability became. Because of this ridiculous ability, Sim A-ryeon stayed on SG.net and attracted all kinds of aggro.
Sim A-ryeon, who could be called the Anubis of the Korean Peninsula… but when it came to her private life, she had quite wholesome hobbies.
"Right, good morning. Going somewhere at this hour?"
"I, I was thinking of d-drawing some pictures for the first time in a while. Hehe. Since the Guild Master gave me an easel as a gift last time……"
Under Sim A-ryeon's awkwardly smiling armpit, a canvas and easel were tucked.
Hobby: Drawing.
That's right. She was actually an art student. Readers with good memory might recall that even when we raided the Goryeojang Villain's home in the 50th iteration, Sim A-ryeon was drawing.
And… believe it or not, surprisingly, Sim A-ryeon was among those with outstanding academic credentials in our guild.
Education: The royal road of Yewon School (Art Department) - Seoul Arts High School (Art Department) - Seoul National University (Design Department).
Not only that. Since childhood, she swept all school art exhibitions and had an impressive history of winning various design competitions.
Two Minister's Awards in elementary and middle school, one Presidential Award in high school. Art students who had to prepare for entrance exams in the same year, born in the same year, all hated Sim A-ryeon. Her qualities as an Aggro-Swallower were already overflowing since childhood.
Sounds like bullshit, right? I also thought it sounded like bullshit, so I infiltrated the ruins of the schools and dug through the data. It was all true.
Why on earth is this real…… At the time, I could only sigh while looking at exhibition materials spread out in the middle of an abandoned school.
With such shining academic credentials and career, what Sim A-ryeon mainly devoted herself to was—
-Goryeojang: Hmm…… You can tell you've never observed people in real life. Did you draw this referencing your own body joints? Then I seriously recommend transitioning from Illustrator to lab experiment subject.
-Goryeojang: Huk, honey. If you draw like this at an entrance exam academy, you could get your tuition refunded right away?
-Goryeojang: Seriously, I drew better than this when I was 8ㅋ.
This kind of comment criticism.
Or drawing manga that pissed people off and uploading it to SG.net.
Right before my eyes, Sim A-ryeon was pretending to be the most harmless person in the world with her hehe smile, but just last night, she gave birth to a triple crown of mother-curses, father-curses, ancestor-curses from the pointing fingers of SG.net members.
"Where are you going to draw?"
"Ah, the Han River. I just wanted to paint a landscape while watching the water babble…… Oh, the weather is really nice today. Yum. And if I get bored, I thought I'd walk around the neighborhood and see if there are any sick elderly people to examine for free……"
"Oh God. Why was a Spirit Bomb-like ability given to this kind of child."
"Pardon?"
"It's nothing…… Anyway, you're going to the riverbank in front, right? Give me the bag."
"Hiek. Y-you don't have to go that far… Ah. There. Th-thank you, Guild Master……"
Sim A-ryeon followed behind me hesitantly, but as soon as we arrived at the Han River and set up the easel, all signs of fidgeting disappeared completely.
Facing the canvas, she went "Hm, uuuuuhm, huum" matching her own rhythm while applying paint with swift strokes.
"……"
Truly a masterful stroke. They say 'speed' is among the virtues of artists, and Sim A-ryeon's hands were certainly incredibly fast.
It wasn't just her hands that were fast. Having lived as a regressor and encountered various artworks, I prided myself on having developed quite a discerning eye, and even to my eyes, Sim A-ryeon's painting reached a considerable level.
"Heh…… A-as expected. I'm a genius……."
The occasional unconscious muttering was, well, honestly a bit cringey.
'Well. It's a much healthier hobby than baiting aggro on communities.'
I shrugged my shoulders.
At least until this moment, I had absolutely no intention of interfering with Sim A-ryeon's hobby.
The change began in the 95th iteration.
### 2
Let me briefly describe the flow of history surrounding us—the first time the Meteor Shower was subjugated was in the 42nd iteration.
Unfortunately, caught in the law of action and reaction, when the Meteor Shower was subjugated, we awakened also perished.
However, a regressor's time defies the laws of physics. 43rd iteration, 44th iteration, 45th iteration, as we moved forward, the strategy for the Meteor Shower became increasingly refined.
By around the 95th iteration, it was no exaggeration to say the strategy was complete.
"Tang Seo-rin. When the Meteor Shower appears, cast something like a net made of magic underneath it beforehand."
"Huh? A net? Why?"
"Think of meteors and it's simple. Destroying meteors is a problem, but aren't the fragments after destruction also a problem?"
"…Ah."
Following my advice, Tang Seo-rin began developing magic. The net magic 'Heavenly Net' created solely to counter the Meteor Shower was completed. Thus, the Meteor Shower's final desperate special move was simply sealed.
Was that all?
The list of Constellation quests tempting Korean Peninsula's awakened also improved day by day.
The AAA-rated game 'Becoming an Awakened on the Korean Peninsula' that I planned and the Saint serviced was an open-world sandbox hyper-real MMORPG that not only provided information about numerous Void beings but also automatically provided 'customized growth.'
"Heok. My awakening ability wasn't actually turning filth into clean water, but a purification ability?"
"After clearing the dungeon, a build-up guide for the most efficient way to develop my ability appeared!"
"Kyah. The world is shitty, but at least there's the fun of growing."
"Quests are invincible, Constellations are god!"
"Recite! The Meteor Shower is just… a star."
Of course, all those rewards were obtained through my rolling as a regressor.
It was worth operating the Academy and raising as many awakened as possible. Thanks to that, I developed their potential and optimal builds.
"Huh? The reward that appeared is…… an Equivalent Exchange magic tome? What is this?"
Just looking at Tang Seo-rin right now, the 4th iteration Tang Seo-rin and the 95th iteration Tang Seo-rin were on completely different dimensions.
Magics that took her years to create in previous iterations were now given almost for free.
"…Oh my! Such an absurd magic existed?"
The effect was tremendous.
Not just S-ranks like Tang Seo-rin, but most awakened grew drawing an upward curve like Bitcoin in the early 2020s.
As a result, while not quite the Ten Legs, the Meteor Shower too began entering the lineup of pathetic water rocket monsters.
Udambara? That one was included ages ago.
-Kyuu?
-Hungry?
-Twinkle twinkle?
Ah, unfortunately, the Korean Peninsula's three monster brothers that drove the early part of my regressor life into despair are now out of service——.
Anyway, if worldly matters have advantages, disadvantages follow.
Just as the probability of the corrupted version 'Executor' appearing increased as the Saint's power reached its limit, others were in similar situations.
The awakened became stronger, but also became that much more dangerous. It could be said that 'acceleration' was starting to build up.
If this were a character collection gacha mobile game, there would be no problem. Rather.
'10th iteration Tang Seo-rin is 2-star, 50th iteration Tang Seo-rin is 3-star, 100th iteration Tang Seo-rin is 4-star! Wow! Multiple Tang Seo-rins!'
'If you just change the clothes on the same character, you can sell them twice, three times, four times!'
'Limited pickup rerun! Saint Alter version—Executor appearance! Clairvoyance, telepathy, time stop, massive upgrade to existing abilities!'
'Don't like it?… Then you have to pull, right?'
And so on, they could test people's wallets and patience from various angles.
But as you all know, this is reality. As a regressor, I had to be mindful of various side effects.
"Um…… Guild Master……?"
Therefore, if someone spouted such lines in reality, one had to be very careful.
"Hm? What is it, A-ryeon?"
"I, I don't know if I should say this. No, actually I shouldn't say it. B-but I thought it might be okay if it's the Guild Master……"
"Hm? What is it? Speak comfortably."
"Th-then. Please lend me your ear."
Sim A-ryeon whispered in a hushed voice.
"Um…… Guild Master. About the Meteor Shower…… If it's okay, just a little, c-could you please subjugate it a bit slowly……?"
?
"Why?"
"I want to draw it……."
?
"Why?"
"W-well… It's freaking awesome. Starlight bringing destruction from the heavens. Creating waves of blackness. Even sirens and lullabies…… Honestly, I think this needs to be preserved in a painting for future generations to see forever……"
???
If Cthulhu appeared in the sea and someone said 'Heok, we absolutely must draw that in realistic style and make as many civilians witness it as possible!' they would be treated as a madman, and my expression at this moment was exactly similar to witnessing such a madman.
"A-ryeon student. The Guild Master is confused right now, but the Meteor Shower is a special-grade anomaly."
"Huh? Ah, yees…… By the Library Society standards, it's a continental-grade anomaly. It's more dangerous than any anomaly observed on the Korean Peninsula so far. Of course I know that well……?"
"And yet you want to preserve the Meteor Shower in a painting at your leisure? Are you serious? What if the combat team members who go out to subjugate it die?"
"Umm…… I think the Guild Master just needs to t-try a little harder……"
"……"
"A-and honestly, I think sacrifice for the sake of art is unavoidable. Last time, I wanted to draw the Ten Legs too. Huek. The Ten Legs painting being lost is humanity's eternal loss. It's such a waste……"
"……"
For reference, the official designation of the Ten Legs by the group called the Library Society was 'Crawling Baby Cthulhu.' In other words, Sim A-ryeon was genuinely trying to draw Cthulhu.
And she actually did.
I was so dumbfounded that in the next iteration, I created an opportunity for her to try drawing while subjugating the Ten Legs.
"M-my goodness. These tentacles! Bizarre forms that no life form on land, no, no life form in the deep sea has ever possessed throughout the evolutionary process……! Such things actually exist! This doesn't make sense! Hueeeeek. I'll draw it, draw it, I'm going to draw it……!"
"……"
I regretted it a little.
But the surprising fact was… the monster drawings Sim A-ryeon uploaded to SG.net were a massive hit.
-Anonymous: Sketch) Just uploading a Ten Legs drawing I drew today, nothing special… ^^
(Image file)
-This is the recently subjugated monster Ten Legs! I was really lucky to join the subjugation team and got a chance to draw it! But the subjugation team fought so well that I didn't have enough time to sketch… ㅠㅠ
-It's embarrassing, but I thought it would be nice for awakened who couldn't participate in the subjugation to see what Ten Legs looked like… so I'm uploading it like this……!
-PS: It seems like SG.net image quality deteriorates every time I upload an image file, it's always regrettableㅠㅠ Administrator, please work harder……!
Hmm.
Right. I know what you all want to say. Unfortunately, this is indeed written by Sim A-ryeon (aka Goryeojang Villain).
She just didn't write it under her regular member nickname but anonymously.
Naturally, comments of completely opposite nature to the aggro posts the Goryeojang Villain spewed lined up one after another.
-[Baekhwa]High School 6th Year: Waah! So pretty!! >_<)!!
-Anonymous: No, it's a bit too realistic though…….
-Anonymous: If you participated in the Ten Legs subjugation, doesn't that mean you're quite high-ranking among awakened? Kyah. Amazing.
-[Samcheon]Witch Judge: Really looks like Ten Legs.
└Anonymous: Did you say it looks like shit?
-dolLhoUse: Disgusting.
-ChildLove: Oh my, Golden Hand, please become a full member. I look for Golden Hand's drawings every day but they're hard to searchㅠㅠ.
-Anonymous: Really drew it well.
-Anonymous: I was in the subjugation team too, and Ten Legs really looks like this. Completely identical even down to the feeling.
└Literature Girl: How do you catch a monster like this?
└Anonymous: 'Undertaker' 'Great Witch' End.
└Anonymous: Simply GOAT.
-Anonymous: But why does the writing style of the person uploading these drawings seem so cringey every time I see it?
└Anonymous: What exactly is cringey about it??
└Anonymous: Don't slander Golden Hand
-[Manjok]Cooking Queen: A wonderful drawing. Rather than drawing it exactly as is, it has a strong abstract feel, yet I feel like I'm looking at the real Ten Legs. You seem to have a natural talent for expressing anomalies!
Hmm.
I nodded at the comment Goryori left.
There were quite a few awakened who participated in the Ten Legs subjugation on SG.net. Even such people testified in unison that 'it looks like the real thing,' so Sim A-ryeon definitely had some talent.
Brushwork that feels real even to those who don't know, and makes it feel like a real monster even to those who do know. The impact felt like it could leap out of the screen at any moment. Talent. The aesthetics of monsters.
"Hehe…… So many compliments saying I drew well……"
"……"
At that moment, suddenly, an idea flashed through my mind like lightning.
It was a flash of insight that occasionally came while living as a regressor.
"A-ryeon."
"Hehe…… Yees? Guild Master?"
"You like drawing monsters, right?"
"I, I do? W-why are you asking so…… anxiously all of a sudden……?"
Rest.
I grabbed Sim A-ryeon's shoulder.
I smiled broadly at Sim A-ryeon, who was tilting her head in bewilderment.
"Have you ever thought about becoming a Constellation?"
"…?"