The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 217

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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 217
217. Round 13 Begins
January 1st, 2023. A new year had dawned.
While some listened to the New Year’s bell and resolved to quit smoking, study harder, or exercise, such luxuries were beyond the reach of Players.
Their ultimate goal was, and would always be, survival.
‘Round 13 has started right on schedule, as always.’
Staring at the Monochrome Space that had become not just familiar but tedious, I let out a sigh.
‘Is that really all the people left?’
The vast expanse still held nearly ten thousand people, yet it was noticeably fewer than before.
‘Too many died in Round 12.’
Three-quarters of them had been eliminated because the Cave of Trials couldn’t be cleared without a Summoner in the party.
‘There’s nothing I could have done about it.’
I couldn’t very well teach the strategy to every single person in front of me, could I?
‘With fewer people around, I should start looking after other Players too. Not just those nearby.’
At the very least, I intended to ensure the followers of the Saesin Religion survived.
That’s why I’d revealed the Round 13 strategy.
‘If half survive this round and half survive the next, we’d have close to 2,500 people left.’
But the real problem was Round 15.
In the cursed Round 15, only a quarter of people could pass.
That would be roughly 600 people, but the insane difficulty meant fewer than 50 would actually survive.
Among the twenty total rounds, excluding the final one, it was arguably the most critical.
‘I need to save as many people as possible in Round 15. I can’t let it fall short like Round 12.’
I intended to fill all 600 slots and save every last one.
That way, I could face the Boss with as many people as possible in the final round.
‘Since I have no information about the Boss, having more survivors won’t hurt. That’s why I’m looking after the Saesin Religion. And to prepare for Round 16 as well.’
Korean Players needed to survive in large numbers to clear Round 16 without losses.
That’s why I’d released the Round 13 strategy—if they followed my instructions, they’d clear it easily.
‘If all goes well, every Korean Player might survive.’
Of course, I wasn’t only looking after Koreans.
Christine, Jeffrey, Russell, Victor, John Delgado, and others.
I’d shared an easy-to-follow strategy with foreign Players as well.
“Black Scythe.”
Min Ju-ri, who had just arrived, spoke to me.
“You’re here? Follower of the Saesin Religion.”
“Ha… it feels strange to be called a follower. Just call me Democracy like usual. Or if you prefer, just use my name…”
When she’d joined the Saesin Religion, she’d filled out all her personal information.
There was no reason I wouldn’t know her name, but I shook my head.
“Democracy suits me better than your name.”
“Is that so?”
Min Ju-ri smiled faintly and followed my gaze toward the crowd of people.
They could be seen as competitors, but on the other hand, they were beings who had fought their way through to Round 12—in a sense, comrades-in-arms.
“It’s a new year, and yet all these people have to participate in a survival game instead of watching the sunrise… It’s rather melancholy.”
“Quite sentimental of you.”
Min Ju-ri puffed out her cheeks, as if she’d taken the remark as a jab.
“So you’re saying I’m sentimental despite appearances… Is that what you mean?”
“I didn’t say that.”
Ryu Min, lacking confidence in a verbal sparring match with Min Ju-ri, quietly turned his head away.
Just then, Seo A-rin and Heo Tae-sik were approaching from that direction.
“Black Scythe!”
“Are you sad you couldn’t watch the sunrise too?”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
“With the time limit, we couldn’t see the sunrise anyway.”
Thanks to Ryu Min, everyone knew the time limit for this round was ten hours.
When they returned to reality, it would already be ten in the morning.
“Ah, so Democracy wanted to watch the sunrise?”
“N-no, I didn’t say that. I just….”
“With whom did you want to watch it? Perhaps a boyfriend?”
“I-I don’t have a boyfriend!”
“Really? Someone as beautiful as you, Democracy?”
“Please don’t joke, Master.”
“I’m not joking….”
Suddenly, with two more people gathered, the atmosphere became lively and boisterous.
Meanwhile, Ryu Min, who had sparked this whole sunrise discussion, remained silent.
‘I wonder if the Necromancer is doing well?’
Ryu Min had issued one command to John Delgado, who had become his slave.
It was a simple order: do not meet any other apostles in the Other World.
‘I can’t let those Messiah bastards target Jeffrey.’
He learned from John that they were targeting Jeffrey.
As a precaution, he had ordered John to confess if he was planning anything suspicious.
‘They probably intended to interrogate Jeffrey this round, but that won’t happen now. I’ve already seen through their scheme.’
Only John Delgado, who had been in his party, could track Jeffrey’s location.
So if he deliberately instructed John to avoid the apostles?
Their plan would easily fall apart.
Of course, John would be resented for it.
“Black Scythe!”
Turning his head, this time Um Jun-seok, Ju Sung-tak, and Yamtti appeared in succession.
Followed by Christine, Jeffrey, and Jo Yong-ho’s group all seeking out Black Scythe, the crowd swelled in an instant.
‘With Jo Yong-ho joining, the numbers grew quickly.’
True to his name as the Mercenary King, he appeared with over thirty mercenaries in tow.
Of course, they were all Korean and followers of the Saesin Religion.
‘I only brought Jo Yong-ho to my side, yet his mercenaries came along as well. Not bad at all.’
While the newly acquainted group exchanged greetings and laughter, Angel appeared.
[How wonderful to see you all, humans. Right on schedule as always!]
Angel teased the humans even though she knew they hadn’t come by choice.
[Oh my! Fewer than 10,000 survivors remain across all districts! The last round was quite challenging, wasn’t it? Don’t worry though. In just a few more rounds, you’ll be whittled down to double digits. Kuhuhuhut.]
“D-double digits?”
“I-insane.”
Angel, having needlessly sown anxiety, giggled at the people’s reactions.
[Kuhehe, so shall we open the Quest? This time it won’t be too difficult, so rest assured. Really.]
Angel fluttered her wings as if to convince them to believe her.
◀ ROUND 13 ▶
【Main Quest】
└Raise one race’s reputation to ‘Very Favorable’ within 10 hours
【Sub Quest】
└???? Multiple
[Integrated Zone CA-EA001]
└Participants: 9,994
└Achievers: 0/4,997
It was a simple Quest.
Especially for Ryu Min, there had been no easier Quest across all previous rounds.
‘I’ve already completed it.’
[This round’s Quest is to survive by raising one race’s reputation to Very Favorable. Quite easy compared to other rounds, wouldn’t you say?]
“Very Favorable?”
“We could actually raise reputation?”
Most people didn’t even know reputation existed.
‘If reputation never increased, they might not know about it.’
But Ryu Min had already raised the Elves’ reputation to Very Favorable back in Round 8.
Excluding the Elves, he had achieved Very Favorable with three other races.
‘The Elves especially have gone beyond Very Favorable all the way to Eternal Ally.’
The Reputation Rune, which raised all reputations by one tier, had played a significant role.
Therefore, Ryu Min had nothing to do this round.
It was as if he had cleared the Quest the moment it started.
[Race reputation defaults to Neutral. When you perform actions that gain favor with that race, it becomes Favorable, and the next stage is Very Favorable.]
Two stages from Neutral to Very Favorable.
‘Raising it two stages isn’t an easy task.’
The round wasn’t as simple as it sounded.
That’s why such a long time limit of 10 hours was given.
But the Saesin Religion’s position, having heard the strategy from Ryu Min, would be quite different.
‘I told them about the Quests that raise reputation quickly.’
Angel was explaining this very matter at that moment.
[You’ve done sub-quests while traveling through the Fantasy World before, haven’t you? If you complete sub-quests that specific races would favor, your reputation will accumulate. As a bonus, you’ll earn experience points, gold, and items from quest rewards.]
“So I need to do quests to raise my reputation?”
“There’s no choice but to pick one race and clear sub-quests like a madman, right?”
[Of course, the reputation gain and rewards vary depending on the quest difficulty, so do your best accordingly. The key point to remember is that you must raise one race’s reputation to ‘very favorable’ within 10 hours to survive.]
“The fact that they gave us 10 hours means it’s that difficult to raise, doesn’t it?”
“Ugh… this isn’t going to be easy, is it?”
Most would feel like they’d been cast into a boundless sea without a light, but the 170 Saesin Religion followers who’d heard the strategy were different.
At least they knew the path forward—which quests to complete to achieve the goal quickly.
[There’s no time to dawdle. Survivors will be listed in order of how quickly they achieve the reputation goal. Well, if someone has already achieved it, they’d get 10 hours of free time, but there’s no way anyone could have… huh?]
The Angel speaking seemed to have checked the achievement list, her voice tinged with bewilderment.
[Wait, there’s one person? Someone who’s already achieved ‘very favorable’ or higher….]
Though the nickname wasn’t mentioned, with only one person, there was no need to wonder.
‘That’s me.’
Ryu Min let out a soft chuckle, his expression relaxed and composed.
Since he’d cleared it the moment the round started, he could spend the next 10 hours freely doing sub-quests, just as the Angel had said.
[S-so, shall we choose a starting location?]
A message window appeared before the players’ eyes.
[Please select the region where you wish to begin.]
└ 1. Albitz Kingdom
└ 2. Braham Kingdom
└ 3. Holy Empire
└ 4. Elsorium
[If you don’t select within the time limit, a region will be chosen randomly.]
[Time remaining until selection ends: 00:00:59]
While most people fell into contemplation over the choices, the Saesin Religion followers knew exactly where they needed to go.
“We’ll head out first, Black Scythe.”
“Same here.”
As Heo Tae-sik and Seo A-rin prepared to move, Min Ju-ri called out urgently.
“Oh, wait a moment! Get your buffs first!”
She quickly distributed buffs to the group, and thanks came flowing back.
“Thank you, Democracy.”
“May you be blessed!”
“Everyone, fighting spirit for this round too!”
After exchanging words of encouragement, they selected their choices and vanished as expected.
“Black Scythe, you should get a buff too.”
“Much obliged.”
Ryu Min, who’d been subtly anticipating it, couldn’t help but smile pleasantly as he received the buff.
Not that he particularly needed one, but one never knew what might happen, did they?
‘The Archangel might show up again seeking revenge.’
Since Sariel had appeared before, there was a strong possibility he’d appear this time as well.
After Jo Yong-ho’s Mercenary Group and Min Ju-ri disappeared, only Ryu Min remained.
Glancing at the options, I had already decided where to go before the round even began.
‘Option 4. I choose Elsorium.’
The moment I touched the screen, the ground beneath me transformed in an instant.
* * *
Chirp, chirp—
I landed in a dense forest and surveyed my surroundings.
‘This is the right place.’
My choice of Elsorium wasn’t arbitrary.
‘I need to obtain the rune fragments in the elves’ treasure vault.’
If I merely had favorable standing, it would be impossible, but with eternal ally status, they would willingly open their vault.
Even Princess Yupinelsia herself.
In Elsorium, where the Council elders held power, the princess’s position was correspondingly weak.
Swish, swish—
Pushing through the undergrowth, I gazed ahead.
‘It’s over there.’
Only dense trees were visible, yet an oddly foreign energy emanated from the direction.
The moment I crossed the boundary after walking a bit further.
Whoosh—
The forest and trees that had been visible moments before vanished, replaced by a magnificent and grand architectural structure sprawling before my eyes.
It was Elsorium, the elves’ city concealed behind a magical veil.
‘Quite impressive architecture.’
I walked forward, gazing up at the kingdom-scale buildings crafted by the elves.
After crossing the bridge over a river flowing with iridescent colors, the Elf Guards at the entrance crossed their spears to block my path.
“What business does a human have here?”
“Be gone at once!”
Ignoring their cold words, my gaze turned toward empty space.
[The Round trait ‘Interpretation’ is now active.]
[You can communicate with races from the Other World.]
[You can converse with all players without language barriers.]
Fortunately, there would be no problem conversing with NPCs.
“Human! Are you deaf to reason!”
“I said to leave… wait?”
The guards, about to turn me away simply for being human, froze in shock upon seeing my face.
As if they recognized me.
“Gasp—could you be the warrior of the Other World, Black Scythe?”
“Can’t you tell?”
At my curt reply, the guards snapped to attention, bowing their heads at a ninety-degree angle.
“We sincerely apologize for not recognizing your noble presence!”
“Please forgive our rudeness from moments ago!”
The guards’ attitudes shifted a complete one-eighty.
‘Eternal Ally’ was a prestigious reputation bestowed only when one saved an entire race rather than merely an individual.
It would have been unremarkable to receive treatment befitting royalty or higher.
“Never mind that. Summon the Council elders. I need to meet with them.”
“The, the elders, sir?”
“I have matters to discuss with them directly.”
“Yes, please wait just a moment. I’ll bring them at once.”
Ryu Min watched the guard hurry away, waiting with unhurried composure.

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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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