The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 167

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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 167
167. Why Is He Here?
“I’m Lost Yak.”
Min Ju-ri’s eyes widened in surprise beside me.
“That was your nickname?”
“Yeah.”
“I had no idea.”
Given the circumstances, I decided to reveal my nickname.
I couldn’t hide it forever.
‘Of course, this isn’t my real nickname either.’
It’s too early to reveal that I’m Black Scythe.
There’s nothing to gain from drawing unnecessary attention.
‘There might be people who harbor resentment toward Black Scythe, so revealing my identity would be dangerous.’
If things went wrong, my younger brother could become a target.
There’s absolutely nothing to gain from revealing my identity.
‘So the later the truth about Black Scythe comes out, the better.’
Instead, I decided to use the name Lost Yak.
Even if I revealed my nickname, they wouldn’t be able to find me in the Other World anyway.
‘To use tracking, they’d need to know my customized appearance as well.’
Besides, it was a dead man’s nickname to begin with, so they couldn’t find it anyway.
“Democracy, Lost Yak. Welcome. Please, have a seat here. Let’s chat leisurely before the other believers arrive.”
“Are others coming?”
“Of course. We have quite a few people interested in the Saesin Religion.”
The four of us sat down and conversed quietly.
“You live in Seoul?”
“Yes. It took exactly an hour to get here.”
“I see. Thank you for making the journey. The fact that you both came here must mean you love and respect Black Scythe, yes?”
“Well, love might be too strong a word…”
Heo Tae-sik and Min Ju-ri carried most of the conversation.
I simply listened in silence.
I had never shown much interest in myself anyway, and I had nothing to say.
“There’s something I’ve always wanted to ask if I ever met Democracy.”
“What is it?”
“Are you and Black Scythe… in that kind of relationship?”
“Yes, yes—what?!”
“You said yes?”
“No, no! Of course not!”
Min Ju-ri, who had been shouting, glanced over at me.
‘Why is she looking at me like that?’
Heo Tae-sik scratched his head and asked again.
“Huh? That wasn’t it?”
“Of course not! No way!”
“You don’t actually stay in contact with Black Scythe?”
“No, I don’t. Black Scythe is someone I met in the Other World.”
Only after I waved my hands frantically with a flustered expression did Heo Tae-sik finally believe me.
“Haha, my apologies. From the moment I first saw you, you were always together with Black Scythe, so I thought you two were lovers… Fortunately, it was just a misunderstanding.”
At the word “fortunately,” Min Ju-ri’s expression shifted subtly, but Heo Tae-sik paid it no mind.
“Then the partner who went to Nigeria with you wasn’t Democracy?”
“I’ve never even been to Nigeria in my life.”
“I see. That’s quite fortunate…”
“But why is this house so run-down? I came expecting a grand religious organization…”
Apparently offended by the word “fortunate,” Min Ju-ri seized on the building itself.
“This house belonged to my late grandmother. We removed some walls to make better use of the interior space and did some minor renovations.”
“Ah… I see.”
While Min Ju-ri, now embarrassed herself, searched for words, people began filing in one after another.
I didn’t recognize any of them, but their appearance made it clear they were all Players.
As more and more gathered, their numbers soon exceeded ten.
Then suddenly, over a dozen more crowded in at once.
It was none other than Jo Yong-ho’s group.
“Hello! We’ve all come because we want to join the Saesin Religion!”
“Oh, welcome!”
With Jo Yong-ho’s group arriving, the previously empty space became cramped in an instant.
‘Jo Yong-ho looks the same in real life too.’
While thinking such thoughts, I encountered an unexpected acquaintance.
“Isn’t that actress Seo A-rin?”
“Wow, I never thought I’d see Seo A-rin in person.”
The person who entered was indeed Seo A-rin.
Since she was an actress whose stock was rising lately, many people recognized her immediately.
“Oh, Seo A-rin has arrived?”
“No Poe-in?”
“That’s right. My face is identical to Seo A-rin’s, isn’t it? You said you’d definitely come before, and here you are! I had faith in you!”
“I made a promise, so I had to keep it.”
Seo A-rin’s gaze, as she answered shyly, suddenly turned toward me.
“Oh? Yes… Ryu Min?”
Seo A-rin had been about to say “Prophet” but hastily corrected herself, and I laughed awkwardly in response.
“Ha ha… Hello.”
“What brings you here? Were you also interested in Black Scythe?”
“No, I just stopped by to take a look around.”
“I never expected to meet you in a place like this.”
“Neither did I.”
“But the person next to her looks very familiar….”
As I muttered this while looking at Min Ju-ri, Um Jun-seok suddenly interjected.
“That person is Democracy.”
“Democracy? Is that the Buffer you mentioned?”
“Yes, I’m Democracy.”
“Ah, nice to meet you. I had a feeling. You bear a striking resemblance to someone from the Other World.”
Seo A-rin, speaking thus, subtly approached Min Ju-ri and whispered.
“Um, I, I’m curious about something….”
“Yes?”
“Do you perhaps stay in contact with Black Scythe in real life as well?”
“No. I’ve never even met him.”
“Ah, is that so?”
Seo A-rin’s expression grew crestfallen.
Ryu Min changed the subject by asking a question.
“A-rin. What about Director Ahn and Representative Ma? Didn’t they come with you?”
“I invited them, but they said they weren’t interested, so I came alone.”
Upon hearing the response, I fell into thought.
‘Of course they wouldn’t come. Those guys view Black Scythe as a rival and remain wary of him.’
Then Min Ju-ri asked with a surprised expression.
“You… how do you know actress Seo A-rin?”
“She’s my neighbor. She lives in the apartment above mine. She’s also an entertainer under one of the companies I invested in.”
“Ah, is that so?”
Min Ju-ri watched Seo A-rin in silence for a while.
Reading her thoughts, I sensed a subtle wariness in her gaze.
‘Don’t worry, Ju-ri. I’m far too old to date anyone else.’
Looking around, nearly thirty people had gathered and were conversing in small groups.
‘Quite the turnout.’
There’s no need to think of the Saesin Religion as anything grandiose.
It’s simply a social gathering of Black Scythe’s fans.
‘This gathering was arranged purely to attract followers.’
Since it was a group that revered a person rather than an actual deity, thirty people gathered had little to do besides converse.
Tick-tock—
Checking the wall clock, the scheduled meeting time had already passed.
Heo Tae-sik, thinking it was time to begin, stepped onto the makeshift podium.
“Ahem, hello everyone. I am Heo Tae-sik, the founder and leader of the Saesin Religion. My nickname is No Poe-in No-ge-i, and I’m currently a level 45 dark mage.”
As he began speaking, the murmuring subsided and a quiet silence fell.
“Thank you for coming to the Saesin Religion. As you all likely know, the Saesin Religion is an organization devoted to revering Black Scythe. First, let me tell you what inspired my admiration for Black Scythe….”
The story grew lengthy, yet no one averted their gaze from Heo Tae-sik.
Though he recounted his honest family circumstances and the bullying he endured during his school years in tedious detail, no one grew bored.
His voice possessed a captivating quality and genuine sincerity.
Ryu Min inwardly marveled at this unexpected side of Heo Tae-sik.
‘He’s surprisingly gifted at preaching.’
I’d always thought he was introverted, but I was wrong.
The moment Black Scythe comes up, words flow from him like a torrent, and he transforms into someone entirely different.
“Thus, Black Scythe has granted me profound wisdom throughout my life. I say with certainty that he is the savior who will end the despair of this world—the only light. And I’ve come to realize that many others share this conviction. This is precisely why I founded the Saesin Religion….”
That was when it happened.
Tap—tap—tap—
In the midst of his sermon, a grating sound interrupted him. Turning around, I saw a man entering on crutches.
‘Huh? That guy is….’
My eyes widened at the unexpected arrival of this figure.
‘Isn’t that Ju Sung-tak?’
Ju Sung-tak, the serial killer who competed with Ma Gyeong-rok for ranks two and three.
The man who’d lost his limbs and become disabled had appeared with prosthetic arms and legs.
‘What’s he doing here?’
Since Ju Sung-tak was also a Player Cafe member, he could have found this place after seeing the promotional post.
‘But he’s not the type to follow Black Scythe, as far as I know.’
Suspecting he had some ulterior motive, I read his thoughts.
As expected.
‘That bastard came looking for me.’
More precisely, he came looking for Hwang Yong-min.
To take revenge on the man who’d crippled him.
‘He figured that if he went to a place where players gather, he’d run into him.’
As it turned out, he had no interest in Black Scythe whatsoever.
“A new believer has arrived during our gathering. Welcome. I am Um Jun-seok, the founder of the Saesin Religion.”
“….”
Ju Sung-tak didn’t respond, his gaze sweeping coldly across the assembled people.
His mind held only one thought.
-One of these bastards might be the one who did this to me.
Vengeance.
Ju Sung-tak’s rage was directed solely at Hwang Yong-min.
“Are you alright, believer? You don’t look well.”
Concerned by the way he was glaring about, Um Jun-seok placed a warm hand on his back, but—
Tap—
“Don’t touch me. I’ll kill you.”
At Ju Sung-tak’s harsh response, Um Jun-seok could only turn away with an awkward smile.
The people around them wore various expressions.
Some clicked their tongues disapprovingly at such words, while others gazed at him with pity, wondering what he must be suffering.
Reading that gaze and atmosphere, Ju Sung-tak’s anger burned hotter, like a furnace stoked with fresh wood.
-Damn bastards, looking at me like that? Do I look pathetic to you? I’m already pissed off—I should just kill every last one of these fuckers.
His rage was justified.
One could understand such thoughts when receiving pity.
In a fit of rage, one might entertain the desire to kill.
‘The problem is that bastard is a serial killer who murders people without hesitation.’
It wouldn’t stop at mere thought—he might actually act on it.
‘If he uses Corpse Explosion in this cramped space, the casualties would be catastrophic.’
Everyone here could die.
Corpse Explosion was that powerful a skill.
‘This is unsettling… deeply unsettling.’
Should I really leave this human time bomb alone?
Or should I stop him?
The deliberation didn’t last long.
Because I could sense his twisted thoughts bleeding through.
-Damn it, nothing. I checked every single face, but the bastard who did this to me isn’t here. Wasted trip, damn it. Should I just kill these unlucky bastards and bounce?
Hearing his voice, I felt the sincerity behind those words.
‘Fighting in here would be dangerous.’
Ryu Min, recognizing the need to lure him outside, whispered to Min Ju-ri.
“I need to use the Restroom for a moment.”
“Sure, go ahead.”
Whether Ryu Min left or not, everyone remained fixated on Heo Tae-sik’s sermon.
None of them aware of what Ju Sung-tak was thinking.
‘If I quickly kill three people to secure corpses, then use Corpse Explosion enhanced by the [Soul Storage] skill I recently learned? I could slaughter everyone here.’
There were many people, but they were all roughly at his level.
They wouldn’t have the presence of mind or ability to respond to a sudden ambush.
‘If I play this right, I can cleanly kill them all and leave.’
For Ju Sung-tak, killing people offered almost no tangible benefit.
At best, storing their souls meant he wouldn’t need to hunt for additional souls when using enhanced skills.
Though there was risk in the numbers, Ju Sung-tak’s mind was leaning toward slaughter.
Simply because he despised those pitying gazes directed at him.
‘You bastards. Unranked nobodies mocking my condition like this? Just wait. Let’s see what this disabled man you’re looking down on is capable of. Hehehehe.’
Imagining the shock on their faces after Corpse Explosion, he could only laugh.
Wearing that sickly smile, he was surveying who to kill first.
Then his face suddenly went rigid as stone.
“You… you bastard!”
Because standing before the entrance, fully equipped, was the man he’d been searching for so desperately.

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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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