The Regressor Can Make Them All - Chapter 565

Chapter 565

BLEEEP- BLEEEP- BLEEEP-

The blaring siren moments after the researchers had all withdrawn from the central plaza was the defining moment of the beginning. All final checks were done.

—Attention: Project Almagest will commence shortly.

—Planetary-scale mana fluctuations are expected; all citizens are advised to cease mana usage immediately and remain where they are.

—I repeat, Project…

The broadcast alert that began in Babel soon spread across the entire world. The deafening sound made not only those walking the streets but even those within buildings stop what they were doing and freeze in place immediately.

Woong-

All supplies of mana were cut off except those of the DL Institute’s subsidiary branches that were scattered around the globe. And because of that, the lights and sounds of every city vanished, plunging the world into silence. It was like time itself had stopped.

But within the utter stillness, the researchers of the DL Institute were moving busily to respond to the situation in Babel.

“Connection to the Central Facility confirmed!”

“Activate the Towers of Heroes and start the Deferent System!”

Centered on Babel’s central plaza, all subsidiary branches of the DL Institute were linked. Soon after, the Towers of Heroes that each branch was stationed around began dispersing a wave of mana that enveloped the planet.

The geocentric theory was a model that defined Earth as the center of the universe. And it was that very model around which the Deferent System, the celestial fixation system, was based. Now they could twist the very concept of the heliocentric solar system.

Rumble-

Earth’s revolution around the Sun halted. Then, every planet in the solar system began revolving around Earth instead. It was an event that violently distorted the gravitational structure of the entire solar system—yet neither Earth nor the other planets suffered any major abnormalities.

“Solar system gravitational field realignment complete.”

“Epicycle system operating normally.”

Thanks to the gravitational calibration system Epicycle, gravity had been stabilized and held in place. Without that system, the utterly unrealistic special orbital paths of the planets in the geocentric model, which all traced small circles around Earth, would never have come true.

“…”

A dark-blue veil covered the sky, with celestial bodies visible beyond it. To the naked eye, things looked little different from before; however, the truth was that, at least within the confines of the solar system, the very laws of the universe had been rewritten.

Truly, all preparations for activating Almagest were now complete. Se-Hoon turned his head toward Lea.

Swish-

Seven golden rings encircled a luminous sphere, with seven lights rotating around them. The Sphere—synchronized with the solar system through the magic array in the central plaza—was being finely adjusted with each of Lea’s gestures.

“…”

Watching her work, Se-Hoon was once again struck by the sheer magnitude of what they were doing.

To think humanity will eventually reach this domain even after I regress…

Without support from the Golden Ring, it wouldn’t be achievable in a short time. But, as surprising as it still was, Se-Hoon acknowledged it wouldn’t take all that long either. After all, the knowledge and technology required to reach the current singularity were perfectly preserved in his memory.

At most, a hundred years. Minimum, fifty.

Just how would humanity change upon encountering the new revolution known as the singularity? How would the Golden Ring respond to humanity then?

Se-Hoon’s thoughts deepened—

“Se-Hoon. We’re ready on this end too,” Lea said, having finished adjusting the Sphere.

“…Yeah.”

Right now, pushing the project to success and activating his regression took priority over such distant futures. Clearing his thoughts, Se-Hoon headed toward the Tower of Heroes towering in the center of the plaza.

Woong!

The purpose of Project Almagest was not merely to recreate the geocentric theory. Rather, the true purpose was to propagate the core idea that Earth is the center of the universe throughout all of existence, thus tricking the Golden Ring into mistaking it for a new law. In broad terms, it resembled the Planetary Reinforcement Plan.

Yet there was one major problem.

The Deferent and Epicycle Systems must be applied across the entire universe.

They had barely extended it across the solar system by gathering the entirety of Earth’s mana. To spread such a thing across the entire cosmos? How much mana would it even need? It was the domain of infinity—one that even the technology of a post-singularity humanity could not overcome.

That was the condition for activating Almagest.

Woong-

However, that was also the very role of the ring Se-Hoon had received from Ludwig.

Thump!

Light burst from the Hero’s Ring, stretching beyond the dark-blue veil. The Golden Ring immediately shone brilliantly, responding and sending a pillar of light crashing down upon Se-Hoon.

The Towers of Heroes were the links to the Golden Ring’s immeasurable power. And now that power, which was once inaccessible without reaching the final floor of the Towers, was spread across the entire Earth through the link known as Se-Hoon.

RUMBLE!

Earth’s mana, exhausted by manipulating the solar system, recovered in an instant. That excess power immediately began flooding outward, dyeing the entire planet ‌ gold. In the blink of an eye, Earth had reached a critical point.

Just as the overflowing power was about to scatter uncontrollably in all directions…

[The Towers of Heroes have been restructured.]

Every Tower of Heroes on Earth turned golden, transmitting all of that excess power of the Golden Ring beyond the solar system.

Woong!

High above in space, artificial towers originally built to aid humanity’s space exploration connected to the Towers of Heroes and re-dispersed the Golden Ring’s power throughout the cosmos.

At that point, upon detecting that immense energy, the Aether Neural Network stirred into motion.

Click-

The Aether Neural Network, a self-replicating expansion spell designed to stabilize unstable mana arrays in space, normally only acted when it detected mana arrays more unstable than itself—which was why exposure to the Golden Ring’s power reversed that behavior.

Swoosh!

Acknowledging the Golden Ring’s power as something more stable than itself, it erased itself while rapidly spreading that power outward. Its reach, which extended across countless celestial bodies that humanity had explored and observed, caused everything to be instantly enveloped by the Golden Ring’s power. And with enough mana, Almagest’s two systems worked between them to take root at a breakneck speed.

With each celestial body centered on Earth, the geocentric model strengthened exponentially. In turn, the immense attraction generated began pulling even more distant bodies in.

Eventually, the endlessly expanding pull of Earth finally reached the edge of the universe: the Golden Ring itself.

Click!

With the entire universe flooded in a golden light, an eighth ring formed around the Sphere.

Analog Celestial System, Phase Manifestation: Stellar Heaven

Woong-

A formless wave reverberated throughout the world. The Golden Ring, the Towers of Heroes, and Se-Hoon created a circulation of power that applied the fictitious law of geo-centrism to the entirety of the universe.

We actually did it…

She had confirmed it countless times with the Model World Observer, yet seeing it unfold before her eyes made her heart pound wildly. It was almost impossible to believe that the small device floating in front of her—the Sphere—could now move every celestial body in existence.

Whew… calm down, me. This isn’t over yet.

Almagest was ultimately just the foundation for triggering regression. In a sense, now was when the real thing began.

Lea steadied herself before looking toward Se-Hoon.

“Se-Hoon.”

Se-Hoon, who had been staring down at the Hero’s Ring, slowly turned his head. Despite circulating power vast enough to fill the universe, Se-Hoon’s expression hadn’t changed at all. Outwardly, he looked no different… but Lea could tell there was a subtle shift in his gaze.

“Are you okay…?”

“…Seems so.”

Although Se-Hoon could have completed the power of Regression at any moment and become a Perfect One, he deliberately abandoned that path. Thanks to that, he could receive the Golden Ring’s power more stably than anyone else—with the caveat that he was still being gradually pulled toward ascension.

From here on, it’s a race against time.

Before Se-Hoon became a Perfect One, she had to manipulate the Golden Ring herself and trigger his regression. Recalling her role, Lea reached out toward the Sphere.

“Let’s get it started right away.”

Nodding at her instruction, Se-Hoon clasped both hands around the Hero’s Ring.

Woong!

Golden light spilled out between his fingers, then soon mixed with violet and gray to become turbid.

We can’t trigger regression at this stage.

Almagest was merely a law that made Earth the center of the universe. The Sphere could manipulate celestial bodies thanks to it, but that was all. It had no power to reverse time.

Thus, the answer was simple: he had to create what Almagest lacked, to create a power that could move time and space.

Swoosh-

Se-Hoon’s violet-tinged eyes observed countless dreams while the gray ring around his heart split into fragments and rotated.

Slowly but surely, a strange power seeped into the golden light filling the universe.

Dream Manifestation: Time-Space Coupling

Woong!

The Sphere hovering above Lea’s hands slowly tilted upright. From its center, violet lines surged forth, linking the eight rings. Right before Lea’s eyes, a path that connected all space in the world was forged alongside a clock hand that symbolized all time.

Then, Lea engraved the inscription that would begin it all onto the Sphere.

Analog Celestial System, Phase Manifestation: Temporal Regression

The first ring began rotating in reverse.

Rumble-

The moon that had been about to rise in the east vanished beyond the horizon before reappearing in the west to set toward the east.

Clack-

With the first ring completing a reverse rotation, part of the clock hand turned gray. Next, the second ring followed. Seven such reverse rotations were completed one by one; every planet in the solar system had now moved backward.

The clock hand turned completely gray—

Clack-

The final eighth ring moved, reversing the world into the past along with the clock hand.

“Ah…”

Countless stars flowed eastward across the sky, following the slow reverse rotation of the Golden Ring. At long last, the regression of the world they had built through innumerable trials and the full expenditure of their strength had truly begun.

They could now return to the original world, to the past—it filled Lea with a flood of emotions.

The regression point was correctly input from the start, so that’s fine…. I guess all that’s left is to wait.

For now, the reversal of time-space was slow enough to observe. Once it started speeding up a little more, only then would it escape her perception and return them to the moment Puppeteer was defeated.

Thinking about the conclusion, Lea turned to Se-Hoon.

“Se-Hoon, how is your condition now… huh?”

Mid-sentence, Lea noticed something strange and frowned. Despite successfully triggering regression, Se-Hoon stood completely motionless as though he were frozen in place.

It doesn’t seem like there’s a problem with Almagest…? Did he get swept up in the regression?

If Lea was the administrator controlling Almagest through the sphere, Se-Hoon was the control device supplying power and performing fine calibration. Thus, unlike Lea—who had relative freedom until regression fully activated—Se-Hoon was affected immediately.

I knew this could happen, but…

Lea fell silent. Watching the long-awaited moment of regression alone left her feeling a faint sense of regret.

Guess it can’t be helped.

It would all be over soon anyway. She could explain everything after they had regressed.

With that thought, Lea turned her gaze back to the Sphere.

“Ho.”

A headless woman’s shadow appeared across the Sphere.

“To reach this point through your own skill alone, without the help of powers…. Hm~ Should I call this a blessing or a curse?”

“?!”

Startled by the sudden appearance of an entity she had never seen before, Lea instinctively manipulated the Sphere. Instantly, the regression halted, and the world’s time-space froze.

Without hesitation, she activated the time-space suspension protocol prepared for emergencies. The protocol was capable of binding all existences in place except Se-Hoon and Lea, allowing her to freeze even a headless shadow.

Is that Tuner? No… it’s not him.

The figure bore similarities, yet she was sure it was something else.

Mulling it over, Lea calmly deliberated how to respond—

“Ah. It seems I never introduced myself.”

Lea froze. The shadow that had definitely been bound moments ago was suddenly moving again, greeting her playfully?!

“My name is Natalia Kanayeva. You can call me the Seeker.”