The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 126

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Maxed-Out Player’s 100th Return – Episode 126
126. Unmanned Cafe
Deep in the night.
Ryu Min’s gaze was fixed on the abandoned Warehouse.
Chilling screams echoed from within at intervals, yet Ryu Min laughed.
They were trash that deserved to die, after all.
‘I chose the location well. This place is perfect as a garbage incinerator.’
Surrounded entirely by Mountains with sparse foot traffic, it was ideal for disposing of bodies.
Besides, I had an obedient janitor at my disposal.
‘Honestly, I was half-doubtful whether Ma Gyeong-rok would comply with my request, but he’s moving exactly as I wanted….’
Ryu Min had entrusted the cleanup to Ma Gyeong-rok.
Taking the risk of revealing that I knew his secret.
‘It was a calculated gamble. Once the secret was exposed, it wouldn’t be strange for him to show hostility at any moment.’
I was even prepared to fight Ma Gyeong-rok if necessary.
No matter how much I supplied him with human trash to feed his dark power, no one would be pleased to have their lifelong shame exposed.
That’s why I chose the direct approach instead.
Most people had probably treated Ma Gyeong-rok with pretense all this time, so wouldn’t the opposite work? That was my calculation.
‘But I didn’t expect it to work. Opening my heart and speaking honestly was a masterstroke. Though strictly speaking, I was only pretending to open my heart.’
I was relieved that things unfolded smoothly.
‘Besides, it’s not a bad deal for Ma Gyeong-rok either.’
Even if I failed to win his heart, I was confident I could handle it.
Since I could see seven seconds into the future, I could always adjust course toward a better outcome.
In the worst case, I might have had to fight Ma Gyeong-rok.
‘Anyway, the garbage cleanup is settled with this.’
Ryu Min immediately turned away.
The screams grew longer—apparently he wasn’t killing them gently—but I didn’t bother going inside.
Even if we shared secrets, I had no desire to interrupt Ma Gyeong-rok’s private meal.
Hearing the screams was enough for now.
‘Morning, afternoon, evening, and Dawn—five at each time. Since I promised twenty per day, Ma Gyeong-rok should be able to accumulate enough dark power.’
Twenty-eight days remained until Round 9.
Even if I lured and killed for all twenty-eight days straight, I could only dispose of five hundred sixty, but there was no help for it.
‘Anything more would be too risky.’
Excessive feeding seemed burdensome for Ma Gyeong-rok as well, so we reached an agreement at that level.
‘What should I do with the remaining four hundred seventy-one….’
Half of them would disappear in the next round anyway.
If I was going to kill them, I might as well strip their items first.
‘Should I handle the ones Ma Gyeong-rok can’t process myself?’
With that thought, Ryu Min returned Home and picked up his phone.
While reviewing the murder list Yamtti had sent, examining who to kill, a familiar name caught my eye.
‘This person is…?’
In the quiet night, Ryu Min’s eyes gleamed with a chilling intensity.
* * *
August—the height of summer.
Eight months had passed since the world began its collapse.
In that brief span, countless catastrophes had unfolded.
The economy had convulsed, financial crisis had struck, and stock prices had plummeted to their nadir.
It was inevitable—most of those in their twenties, who had driven the economy’s engine, were dead.
Shop owners had hastily replaced them with workers in their thirties, yet the shortage of hands and customers remained stark reality.
Now, part-time work could be secured with a single text message.
Consequently, unmanned convenience stores and unmanned cafes were proliferating explosively.
The Cafe that Seo A-rin and Hong Sun-ah had entered operated on an unmanned system as well.
“Alright, A-rin. Caramel macchiato with two extra shots, right?”
“Yep, thanks.”
“The world’s really improved. We can use cafes without staff now.”
“You sound like an eighty-year-old. Anyone listening would think you were ancient.”
Seo A-rin smiled softly.
There had been little to smile about lately.
Simply stepping outside with a fellow actress and chatting peacefully felt like happiness itself.
The world had transformed so drastically.
Hell had never been distant.
It had always been close.
“Come to think of it, our core fanbase is in their thirties now. Most of those in their twenties are dead.”
“Ah… why’d you suddenly bring up something so depressing?”
Seo A-rin had wished countless times.
That her reality was a lie.
That the survival game of killing and dying was nothing but a dream.
“Even now, when I return from a round, I think—could all of this be a dream? Won’t my close fellow actors reach out again with laughter?”
Seo A-rin had always been sincere about acting.
She had loved her craft and cherished the chemistry with her fellow performers.
Fortunate enough to meet Ma Gyeong-rok, she had received support from multiple quarters and climbed steadily to success.
A successful life.
But such a life no longer existed.
Like most professions now, the Entertainment Industry too showed signs of collapse.
As the atmosphere plummeted, Hong Sun-ah apologized.
“Sorry. I shouldn’t have brought up something so gloomy.”
“It’s fine. This is just our reality.”
“It’s rough, isn’t it? Want to learn smoking while we’re at it? We could share a cigarette?”
“Ha, you’re making me laugh despite everything.”
She laughed off the joke and drew a long sip of the caramel macchiato.
The sweetness melting across her tongue lifted her spirits considerably.
“Still, we’re better off than most. We survived. We’re Players.”
“That’s true.”
“I still can’t believe Gu Yeon-seung died. Who would’ve thought she’d fall in the first round? And a woman at that.”
“Stats are the same regardless of gender, so it doesn’t matter.”
“Right, when a middle schooler has the same strength as an adult, there’s no real difference. Looking back now, goblins were nothing but trash, weren’t they?”
When her fellow actress swore, Seo A-rin reproached her.
“Even if there’s no one around, watch your language.”
“What’s wrong with it? Isn’t that part of my charm? My fans wouldn’t know anyway.”
Hong Sun-ah lifted her chin with a smug smile.
Though it was an Unmanned Cafe, there was no one else around besides them.
“There’s an advantage to having no one here. We can walk around outside without hiding our faces.”
“But your income has dropped too.”
“True. But does profit matter in a situation like this? Survival is the priority right now.”
Since it wasn’t wrong, Seo A-rin listened quietly.
What could be more important than survival in this situation?
“You’re lucky, A-rin. Your job is great for survival.”
“Oh, you mean my summons?”
“Yeah. Hearing you talk about it, it sounds like a completely broken class. Your golem tanks for you, your fairy shields you. After level 20, the fairy even helps in combat? It does everything like a slave. How amazing is that? I’m jealous, really jealous.”
“Your class isn’t bad either.”
“Mine? No way. I just have slightly higher damage, but it turns out the Assassin is a dime-a-dozen class. Sure, there’s an invisibility skill, but it’s useless.”
“Why? You can use it during combat.”
“I can, but it’s not that useful in a fight. One attack and it breaks. The cooldown is long too. I just use it for survival when things get dangerous.”
“That’s still good. What’s more important than survival?”
“Right. But in reality, there aren’t many dangerous situations, you know? It’s awkward to use. I’m not a voyeur, and robbing a bank is pointless now with all the security measures in place.”
“….”
“Even this cafe only accepts card payments, I noticed? They’re probably scared Players might rob them of cash.”
“Sun-ah. You’re not seriously considering that, are you?”
“Am I an idiot? Would I actually think something so ridiculous? You really can’t tell the difference between jokes and serious talk, can you?”
Despite the jab, Seo A-rin simply smiled.
Thinking of the friendship they’d built filming several projects together, even this casual chatting felt precious.
She was the only actor friend who’d survived.
“But we’re really amazing, aren’t we? Surviving to round 8.”
“We are.”
“I heard only a handful of people from the Entertainment Industry have survived?”
“That many died?”
“Of course! You still don’t know? Almost all the seniors, juniors, and idols in the music industry are dead. About 70% of entertainers are gone?”
“I had no idea it was that bad….”
“You were running around attending funerals so frantically, you really didn’t notice.”
Hong Sun-ah clicked her tongue disapprovingly.
“You don’t know this either? Our market value has skyrocketed.”
“Huh? My market value went up?”
The Entertainment Industry, populated heavily by people in their twenties, was destined to collapse.
But what about the players who survived?
Instead, they monopolized public popularity as a select few elite entertainers.
That was the current state of the Entertainment Industry after the great upheaval.
When Hong Sun-ah explained this, Seo A-rin’s expression turned blank with confusion.
“Our market value went up and we became more famous than before?”
“You really don’t know? Haven’t you searched your name on the internet?”
“I don’t really do ego searches that often….”
“Search it now.”
Seo A-rin, playing along, typed her own name into the search bar.
Then, without realizing it, she let out a vacant sound.
“Huh?”
There were far more articles than she expected.
[List of entertainers in their twenties who survived Round 8? Seo A-rin, Hong Sun-ah, Gu Yeon-seung, Jang Bok-chul, and 15 others—19 total!]
[Seo A-rin, Hong Sun-ah, and other entertainer players who became flagship stars amid gloomy circumstances! Advertisers’ inquiries pouring in.]
[Jang Bok-chul, who appeared as an extra for 10 years, emerges as a rising star following Seo A-rin….]
[Unknown actor player Jang Bok-chul gains fame. His ideal type is Seo A-rin. Shocking confession.]
[Seo A-rin and Round 8 survivors’ advertising rates overall increased 2.8 times compared to before.]
These were the articles that appeared when searching her name.
Seo A-rin’s eyes widened like a startled rabbit, realizing her name had been mentioned so frequently.
“W-what is this? When did my market value go up?”
“With fewer entertainers, advertising revenue actually increased and market values shot up. That Jang Bok-chul mentioned in the article was an unknown actor, but he survived this Round 8 too and is building recognition at an incredible pace.”
“….”
“And you didn’t know about any of this? You’re messing with me right now, aren’t you?”
Seo A-rin genuinely flustered, waving her hands in denial.
“No, no. I really didn’t know. I haven’t even searched my name, and I haven’t been on the internet for a while….”
“Even if you haven’t been online, your manager or someone from the company should have told you.”
“My manager…?”
Seo A-rin recalled An Sang-chul and shook her head.
“He didn’t say anything to me….”
“With this many articles out there, you didn’t hear anything? Who exactly is your agency’s representative?”
It’s not a formal agency, but if we’re talking about the representative of the company providing support, that would be Ma Gyeong-rok….
Still, she had never heard anything from him either.
Seo A-rin shook her head with a bitter expression.
“No one told me. About how things stand right now.”
“How is this possible? An entertainer doesn’t even know her own market value increased.”
Seo A-rin looked at Hong Sun-ah, who was sighing.
She seemed to be smiling somehow—or was it just her imagination?
“You need to quit that company fast. They’re absolutely terrible. They’ve been deliberately hiding information to milk the contract fees.”
“….”
“The article about my market value came out three months ago. That means you’ve known for at least three months and kept your mouth completely shut. How could you do that?”
“I hate to say it, but you didn’t say much either. You went months without contacting me, and then suddenly called today.”
“Hey! I naturally assumed you’d seen it! Who in this world doesn’t read internet articles? Especially when you’re an entertainer!”
Seo A-rin became speechless.
She’d brought it up for nothing and gained nothing in return.
“I’ve been busy. As you know, the world’s been so unsettling lately that I’ve been avoiding all my calls for a while….”
“Ugh, seriously! You’re so clueless, so clueless!”
Hong Sun-ah, who had been criticizing her without hesitation, spoke as if bestowing a favor.
“Why don’t you come work at our company instead? You have no idea how well our CEO treats people. Someone like you, A-rin, could get pretty decent treatment. You’ve got some name value among the newer actors, after all.”
“No thanks. I’m fine. What’s the point of switching now? I still have time left on my contract.”
“Just break the contract. Should I mention it to our CEO? I bet he’d even cover the penalty for you?”
“No, I don’t want to hop around from place to place like a migrating bird.”
Hong Sun-ah’s eyes turned cold for a moment.
“Are you saying that to me?”
“Huh? What?”
“Never mind. Anyway, it’s a shame. It would’ve been nice to work at the same company.”
“What work? My career as an entertainer is basically over anyway. I can’t even guarantee I’ll survive the next round, so how could I possibly do long-term work like dramas or anything….”
“You only know half the story. What do you mean there’s no work? Just landing decent commercials earns you ten years’ worth of a regular office worker’s salary. And that’s not all—even if you can’t do dramas or films, you can still appear on variety shows and all sorts of programs.”
Now that she mentioned it, it made sense.
“But your company has blocked all those kinds of opportunities? You really haven’t done any proper work since the Great Change?”
Seo A-rin nodded carefully.
She didn’t want to get scolded for no reason.
“Mm….”
Sure enough, Hong Sun-ah pressed her forehead with her palm.
“That company’s hopeless. How could you even join such a ridiculous place….”
“Sun-ah. Even so, that’s too harsh….”
“Let’s go!”
“Huh?”
Without warning, Hong Sun-ah stood up and grabbed Seo A-rin’s wrist.
“Come on, I’m going to introduce you to someone.”
“Who?”
“Someone who can save you from this predicament!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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