The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 195

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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 195
195. The Emergency Meeting
Crackle, crackle—
Despite the warmth of the fireplace logs burning in the cabin, the atmosphere was gloomy.
“Say something, will you? Didn’t we gather here for an emergency meeting?”
“…There’s no point in speaking if there’s no solution to propose.”
Five people sat around a table in the Cabin.
Spaniard, Dark Soul, Yang Chui-wen, John Delgado, and Ryu Min disguised as Swingman.
The Five Apostles, as they had suddenly become, huddled together to devise a strategy against Black Scythe, but thirty minutes had passed in complete silence.
No matter how hard they thought, no answer emerged.
Unable to bear it any longer, Spaniard finally spoke.
“Black Scythe has killed seven of our Apostles. Naturally, we should seek revenge. However… put another way, he’s an existence that even seven couldn’t overcome. It seems difficult to suppress him through sheer force.”
“So? Are you suggesting we surrender?”
Yang Chui-wen’s tone dripped with disdain, but Spaniard shook his head as if to say no.
“There’s nothing to surrender. Black Scythe doesn’t even know we exist. We simply need to withdraw.”
“You want us to give up just like this?”
At his nod, Dark Soul cried out as if the idea were absurd.
“How can we give up without even trying? We should at least attempt an assassination!”
“We attempted it, and this is the result.”
“I haven’t stepped forward yet.”
“Are you confident?”
“Of course! Just lure Black Scythe to my sniping position. I’ll blow his brains out immediately!”
Dark Soul spoke with absolute confidence, but Yang Chui-wen’s counterattack came swiftly.
“So you want us to be the bait?”
“That’s the only way to kill Black Scythe.”
“And if you fail? We all die, right? No, wait. Only we bait die. You’ll survive safely two kilometers away.”
“Don’t worry about that. I won’t fail. My sniping skill is flawless.”
“With such a superior profession, how did you fail to make the All Districts TOP 3?”
Dark Soul flinched, struck by the truth.
“That’s… because monsters move too unpredictably….”
“Yeah, I get it. Being good at assassination doesn’t mean you’re good at hunting.”
“Thank you for understanding….”
“But I can’t entrust everything to your hands. I have no intention of becoming bait.”
“This isn’t the time to be prideful. There’s no other way. The method I’ve proposed is the most realistic!”
“Bullshit.”
Even when opinions were offered, it was difficult to reach consensus when everyone had different thoughts.
“What about this? It just occurred to me while listening to Yang Chui-wen, but looking at the past Rounds, there’s always been someone in the All Districts TOP 3 besides Black Scythe, right?”
“Ah, that guy called Cheon Ma and those idiots?”
“Exactly, exactly. What if we made recruitment proposals to them? We’re clearly insufficient on our own, and we need to bolster our forces….”
“How are we supposed to find them? We don’t know their nationality or faces. All we know is their nicknames.”
“That’s certainly a problem as well….”
Spaniard, who had proposed the idea, fell silent once more.
Yang Chui-wen pondered for a moment before voicing his opinion.
“In my view, a direct confrontation has no chance of success. We need to go for a thorough assassination instead.”
“Then my method….”
“I told you sniping carries too much risk, kid. Listen up. There’s a better way.”
Yang Chui-wen, who had rebuked Dark Soul, suddenly posed a question.
“When is a Player most vulnerable?”
“Well, I’m not sure?”
“It’s when they enter the Other World. At that moment, they fall into forced sleep and become completely defenseless. That’s why we all wait to enter the Other World from safe locations, isn’t it?”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
“We exploit that weakness. As you all know, I have plenty of subordinates under my Triad who’ll take assassination contracts. We use those guys to strike when Black Scythe enters the Other World. While he’s in there, we break into his Home and finish him off cleanly.”
“Oh, if we do it that way, we can definitely kill him easily.”
“What do you think? Not a bad plan, right?”
“Yes. Now we just need to find out where Black Scythe lives.”
“But how do we find that out?”
Everyone stared at Yang Chui-wen with hopeful eyes, but his answer was disappointing.
“We’ll have to figure that out from here on. I haven’t thought beyond this point either.”
“Hmm….”
Assassinate Black Scythe using outsiders while he’s in the Other World.
No matter how high-leveled he is, he’d die easily that way.
‘The plan is good. Really good, but….’
The problem is discovering where Black Scythe’s Home is located.
“What if we bait him like this time by targeting a CPF Unit member and then tail him? That way we’d find out where his Home is, wouldn’t we?”
“What if we get caught while tailing him? We’d be dead men on the spot.”
“Of course we’d have to tail him without being detected. We’d maintain a distance of over 30 meters to avoid triggering his presence detection.”
“Presence detection isn’t the problem. The problem is his area exploration skill. Don’t you know it catches everything within a 500-meter radius? But we can’t exactly tail him from over 500 meters away either.”
“You’re right, tailing would be difficult.”
“To tail him safely, you’d need an Assassin class. With invisibility, presence detection wouldn’t catch you, but area exploration wouldn’t either.”
“We don’t have an Assassin among us.”
“That’s right.”
The Five Apostles consisted of a Gladiator, a Hunter, a Sniper, a Necromancer, and a Martial Artist.
There was no occupation capable of tailing safely.
At that moment, Ryu Min, seizing the opportunity, quietly raised his hand.
“I have a trustworthy Assassin among my acquaintances. Wouldn’t it work if I asked him?”
“An acquaintance? What’s his name?”
“Jeffrey. His nickname is [Zephyr].”
“Is he a famous assassin?”
“No. He’s not particularly skilled. But as long as the pay is good, he’ll do whatever you ask. He’d be perfect for tailing.”
“Bringing in an outsider seems unreliable….”
“Don’t worry. He’s not the type to cause problems.”
Despite Ryu Min’s guarantee, the Apostles looked reluctant.
All except Yang Chui-wen.
“So the Curry Man actually proves useful sometimes? An assassin, you say? We could hire that one.”
“But he’s an outsider…”
“That’s exactly why it’s better. Perfect for cutting loose ends. We just give him the job, keep it clean, and sever ties afterward. What’s the problem?”
“Hmm…”
Yang Chui-wen’s mind burned with the desire to execute his plan.
If it succeeded, all the credit would flow to him alone.
After careful consideration, Spaniard ultimately sided with Yang Chui-wen.
“Very well. Let’s proceed with Yang Chui-wen’s strategy. Before the 12 Rounds begin, we’ll use the assassin hired by Swingman to locate Black Scythe’s residence, and on December 1st, while Black Scythe sleeps, we’ll have the Triad carry out the assassination. If anyone else has a better method, please raise your hand now.”
I expected everyone to remain silent since no better option existed, but surprisingly, one person raised his hand.
It was Ryu Min.
“Yes, Swingman. Do you have another opinion?”
“Ah, I’m not opposing Yang Chui-wen’s plan. I just thought it would be wise to lay down insurance in case things go wrong.”
“Insurance?”
“Yes. What if things don’t go according to plan? Then Black Scythe will still be alive and well during the 12 Rounds. In that case, wouldn’t it be worth trying the method I’m about to suggest?”
“What method would that be?”
“Everyone’s focused solely on killing Black Scythe. I’m thinking the opposite—we turn him into an ally.”
“An ally…?”
“Honestly, I don’t think direct confrontation with Black Scythe is viable. He’s already killed seven rankers from powerful nations, and even John Delgado acknowledges that all twelve Apostles together would struggle to defeat him. Given that, do you really think we have a chance? I don’t.”
“Swingman!”
In that instant, John Delgado slammed the table and shouted, his face flushed red.
“What nonsense are you spouting? Are you suggesting we surrender to that bastard?”
“There’s no surrender to speak of. As Spaniard said, Black Scythe doesn’t even know we exist.”
“That’s exactly what surrender is!”
“Hear me out. I’m not saying we become true allies—I’m suggesting a ceasefire.”
“A ceasefire?”
“Keep your most dangerous enemies close. If we build rapport with Black Scythe first, then stab him in the back, won’t the assassination succeed with even greater certainty?”
“Ah, so you’re suggesting we deliberately cultivate a relationship and then betray him?”
Spaniard stroked his chin thoughtfully.
The other Apostles leaned in with interest at this practical strategy.
All except John Delgado, who harbored a grudge against Black Scythe.
“To shake hands with someone we should kill immediately—it’s an absurd plan.”
“It’s not a genuine alliance but a temporary one to secure future advantage, isn’t it? I find it acceptable.”
“So do I. Swingman’s strategy seems promising when considered as a backup.”
“It’s decent enough as a contingency if my plan fails. Well, it doesn’t look like a bad alternative.”
Everyone except John Delgado responded positively.
As he said, direct confrontation was impossible—backstabbing was the only viable option.
“John, we’ll mark you down as opposed. Does anyone else have objections to Swingman’s strategy?”
Spaniard posed the question, but no one raised their hand.
“Very well. By majority vote, we shall use Swingman’s strategy as a contingency plan should Yang Chui-wen’s operation fail. Now then, shall we discuss how best to build rapport with Black Scythe?”
At that question, Ryu Min raised his hand once more.
“If Yang Chui-wen’s operation fails, we must immediately transition to my strategy. In other words, to establish a connection with Black Scythe, we need to work in the Other World. However, if a complete stranger approaches him, it will raise suspicion. Therefore, it would be wise to send someone already familiar to Black Scythe. As it happens, there is one among us who has a history with him.”
At those words, every eye in the room turned toward that person as if by prior arrangement.
John Delgado pointed at himself in bewilderment.
“Me? You want me to approach him?”
“Yes.”
“Are you insane? Do you know what kind of relationship I have with Black Scythe?”
“I do. You suffered greatly at his hands during the 11th Round, did you not?”
“And you still say something like that?”
Though he cried out in disbelief, Ryu Min had not spoken carelessly.
“Among us, only John Delgado has seen Black Scythe’s face. He is the only person who can approach Black Scythe naturally, as a gesture of reconciliation.”
“Naturally? How exactly? I failed to ambush him, had my limbs severed, and was driven away trembling—and now I’m supposed to return and seek reconciliation? Wouldn’t anyone find that suspicious?”
“That’s precisely why you must speak carefully. Express remorse, regret, apology. Surely that appears more credible than a stranger approaching him?”
“No, no. That’s your thinking. From anyone else’s perspective, it doesn’t work that way. Doesn’t it?”
John Delgado looked around at the other Apostles seeking agreement, but their response was not what he expected.
“It certainly seems better for John to approach rather than for us to step forward.”
“That’s right. They say even enmity is a bond, don’t they? If he approaches with a tone of remorse, Black Scythe could easily become our ally.”
“I agree with Carleman’s assessment.”
“Excellent. Then by unanimous consent, John shall take the lead—”
‘These bastards! Unanimous consent? I never agreed to this!’
At Spaniard’s declaration, John Delgado bristled, but then it dawned on him.
‘Could it be they’re afraid to step forward themselves?’
These wretches simply needed bait.
If things went wrong while he was stabbing Black Scythe in the back, he would be the one to die.
‘Damn these bastards.’
John Delgado’s eyes, burning with murderous intent, fixed on one person.
‘It’s because of that bastard. He’s the one who manipulated this.’
The one who had pushed him off the cliff was none other than Swingman.
‘When the 12th Round comes, I’ll hunt that bastard down and kill him.’
He swore vengeance with blazing eyes, but Ryu Min, who had read his thoughts, was inwardly scoffing.
After all, it was impossible to find someone already dead.

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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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