The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 240

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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 240
240. Round 14 Results Tallied
[Title – One Who Stands Against Evil]
-Acquisition Condition: Obtained upon first defeating a Demon Archduke (applies to avatars as well).
-Effect: All stats doubled when facing Demon-type enemies.
‘Hoh, something like this existed?’
The title I received for the first time was quite satisfying.
Previously, my stats only increased when facing Angel, a holy-type being, but now it applies to demons as well.
‘I didn’t get anything from killing ordinary demons, but killing an Archduke produced this.’
If I hadn’t killed the avatar, I would never have known about it.
‘Well, would it have mattered if I didn’t know? I don’t fight demons that often anyway.’
It doesn’t make much difference either way, but having it is better than not having it, isn’t it?
“Hey, Black Scythe killed the demon.”
“Maybe that’s why he was trying to attack with the whip.”
“But what were those two talking about? Did you hear anything?”
“They were having a conversation?”
Because the demon spoke quietly, the players couldn’t hear the contents of their exchange.
They had no idea that Ryu Min had killed the Archangel.
‘He must have spoken quietly thinking they were allies, but that’s wishful thinking.’
Without a doubt, Phlunikthos must have felt betrayed by Black Scythe, whom he trusted.
But it was an unavoidable choice to save the other players.
‘What I saved wasn’t just the players.’
My gaze turned toward Angel, hovering in the sky.
If I hadn’t stepped in, Angel would have truly had her wings torn off and died.
Angel, whose heart had stopped racing, descended to the ground.
As soon as she entered the 30-meter communication range, her thoughts reached me.
-I… I’m alive. I almost died at Phlunikthos’s hands. This is all thanks to Black Scythe….
Angel, who had descended to offer her thanks, had to avert her gaze and rise back into the sky.
Because I was glaring at her with terrifying eyes.
It was a natural reaction, after all.
She was the one who sent Simple Mukbang to the Heavenly Realm.
‘Damn that Angel. Now I understand why she disappeared before the round started.’
I could have immediately spread my wings, flown up, grabbed her by the head, and dragged her down, but I refrained out of consideration for the surrounding attention.
I couldn’t afford to ruin the heroic image I’d carefully built.
Besides, I needed a guide to tally the results.
‘Consider yourself lucky.’
Unaware that her life had been spared once more, Angel cleared her throat and shouted.
[Ahem, there was some commotion, but it’s been resolved well.]
“Angel! What was that just now? It looked like a demon?”
“Was it a new sub-quest?”
[It is not a Quest. An unexpected outsider has simply intruded, so please do not be concerned… W-well then, shall we check the Round results?]
Angel, wearing an awkward expression, brought up a message window.
★ Round 14 Results Tally ★
[Integrated Zone CA-EA001]
└1st Place. Black Scythe (Lv92 Death God) Contribution: 392,291 points
└2nd Place. Democracy (Lv62 Buffer) Contribution: 149,201 points
└3rd Place. Krishi (Lv62 Priest) Contribution: 135,329 points
The results were as expected—Black Scythe claimed first place.
It seemed he earned a substantial score from defeating the final Devourer.
Beyond that, Min Ju-ri, who had buffed countless people, and Christine, who had cast wide-area healing, secured high contribution scores.
[Surprisingly, many people survived? However, rules are rules. Regrettably, only those ranked up to 2,304th will live, and everyone below will be annihilated.]
After passing through the now-familiar, almost routine annihilation phase, roughly two thousand players remained alive.
‘Thank goodness. The Death God Cult members all survived.’
It was at that moment, as I verified the personnel count with my eyes and wore a satisfied smile.
The Round rewards arrived.
[We will convert the contribution you earned as a clear reward into experience and gold.]
[Experience +370.3%]
[Gold +1,961,455]
[Your level has increased!]
[Your level has increased!]
[Your level has increased!]
‘Damn. My level jumped up by three?’
Now at level 95, I wore a bitter smile.
I still had no desire to reach max level.
[Congratulations! You have achieved the Quest as the top ranker in this zone!]
[Your current rank as ‘Black Scythe’ is 1st place in this zone.]
[As a reward for 1st place in the zone ranking, you receive a ‘Potion Bundle Selection Box’!]
[As a reward for 1st place in the zone ranking, you receive a ‘Special Reward Selection Box’!]
After receiving the items, I opened the Potion Bundle Selection Box first.
[Please touch the potion of your choice from the following.]
└ 1. Premium Healing Potion x5
└ 2. Premium Defense Potion x5
└ 3. Premium Speed Potion x5
└ 4. Premium Invisibility Potion x5
‘Perhaps with Round 15 in mind, these potions are being offered.’
Looking at the potions, there was a common thread.
All of them were defense-focused potions.
There were no offensive potions.
That made sense—in Round 15, there would be nothing to attack.
In other words, my powerful damage output would be useless in Round 15.
‘Super regeneration isn’t on the list. So there’s no particular potion I need….’
As I deliberated over what to choose, I selected the highest-grade invisibility potion.
It seemed fitting to give it to her, who would play a crucial role in Round 15.
After using the special reward selection box, options appeared.
[You may select one of the following special rewards.]
[Please touch the reward you desire.]
└ 1. 50% Stat Increase Buff (Limited to Round 15)
└ 2. Temporary Skill – Heal (Limited to Round 15)
└ 3. Information about Round 15
A striking option caught my eye.
‘Heal, huh…. This is basically advertising how dangerous the difficulty is.’
In the previous selection, I could only choose defensive potions, and now they’re offering Heal as a temporary skill.
It meant the next Round 15 was that perilous.
‘Then I have to pick it. I choose option 2, the temporary Heal skill.’
I had an Emergency Treatment skill, but I selected a more powerful Heal instead.
The stat increase wasn’t particularly necessary.
‘Just in case an Archangel appears, it might come in handy….’
If it doesn’t appear, this choice becomes rather useless.
‘Better to go with the safe option of Heal than gamble.’
The reason I needed stronger healing power than before was because there was someone I had to protect.
If she, who would shoulder a critical role in Round 15, were to fall, it would be disastrous.
◀ ROUND 14 COMPLETE ▶
[Integrated Zone CA-EA001]
└Survivors: 2,304
[Shortly, your soul will transfer to your body in the original dimension.]
[Round 15 will commence at midnight on March 1st, 2023. We shall meet in the next round then. Congratulations on your survival.]

* * *
An abandoned warehouse somewhere in Florida, United States.
Normally deserted, but people gathered here on the day a round ended.
All of them were players of the Despair Cult.
But.
“Is this all there is…?”
Today, the warehouse was not crowded as usual.
“Count the heads!”
“Yes! Cardinal Berber.”
At Cardinal Berber’s command, the followers began counting one by one.
“Excluding you, Cardinal, there are twenty of us in total.”
“Mother of—….”
Berber gnawed at his lips in frustration.
How had the two hundred followers dwindled to this?
‘Even during Round 11 when we attacked the Saint, we had considerable numbers. When did it all fall apart….’
It was infuriating, but no amount of irritation would bring the dead back to life.
Berber regained his composure and gathered the senior followers for an emergency meeting.
“We need to recruit new followers immediately. How many players are left in the United States?”
“I saw an article last round estimating two hundred. But with half of them gone after this round ended, there should be roughly a hundred remaining.”
“That’s fortunate. At least a hundred exist. We must draw all of them into the Despair Cult.”
“That won’t be easy.”
At the pessimistic remark, Berber’s eyebrows twitched.
“Why?”
“Haven’t you heard? The majority of American players have joined the Death God Cult.”
“The Death God Cult? What’s that?”
“A religious organization that follows Black Scythe. I’ve seen them actively promoting it recently in Texas, and quite a crowd has gathered.”
“The Death God Cult, huh. Sounds like a damned cult.”
I had never imagined there was a rival religion.
Of course, Black Scythe wouldn’t know about the Despair Cult either.
“Are you saying those bastards are invading our territory and stealing our potential followers?”
“That’s essentially what’s happening. And I’ve heard the Saint is leading the charge as well. Black Scythe is undoubtedly behind it all.”
“Ha. The Saint I failed to kill back then is becoming a thorn in my side.”
In Round 11, following John Delgado’s orders, they had ambushed the Saint’s followers.
The memory of severing the necks of all the followers except the Saint and earning quite a bit of points remained vivid.
“Wasn’t it because Black Scythe appeared at that moment that the Cult Leader had to retreat with severed limbs? It was unavoidable.”
“What about now? Shouldn’t we kill the Saint now and destroy the Death God Cult?”
“But with Black Scythe standing in the way, is that even possible….”
The senior followers’ reactions were negative.
Black Scythe was not an opponent to be trifled with.
Numbers alone wouldn’t solve this problem.
Will twenty eggs even scratch a boulder?
“Don’t worry. Our leader is a member of Messiah, an international organization.”
“Messiah?”
“An international organization?”
The executives’ eyes widened in surprise at this unexpected revelation.
“How did you know about that, Berber?”
“As a Cardinal, is there anything I wouldn’t know?”
In truth, I knew because Spaniard had come to me asking about John Delgado’s whereabouts.
Though I didn’t know that Messiah had already been annihilated by Black Scythe.
“So there’s absolutely nothing to worry about….”
That was when it happened.
Screeeech— clang!
The warehouse door opened and John Delgado, the leader, entered.
“Welcome, sir.”
The followers greeted him respectfully, but Berber remained silent.
There was something that made me uncomfortable.
“What were you all doing here?”
“We were having a meeting.”
“What kind of meeting?”
“We were discussing the best way to recruit more followers.”
“Who told you to hold a meeting on your own?”
“It was Berber who….”
John’s sharp gaze pierced toward Berber.
“What are you doing, Berber? Were you trying to proceed with a meeting without me?”
“Of course not. I was planning to report to you once you arrived.”
“You weren’t trying to make a unilateral decision?”
“What are you saying? Obviously, the final decision-maker is you, our leader. I simply started the discussion because every moment counts.”
John couldn’t press further against such a natural, well-prepared response.
“So, what conclusion did you reach?”
“Do you know of the Death God Cult?”
At the sudden question, John nodded with a composed expression.
“I’ve heard of them.”
“Those damned bastards came to our country and swept up every Player they could find. So now we can’t even recruit followers for the Despair Cult anymore.”
“So what do you propose?”
“Remember the Saint you missed before, sir? It seems she’s gotten involved with Black Scythe.”
“The Saint?”
It seemed like a misunderstanding, but John pretended not to notice.
“Why not target the Saint once more? Then we could manipulate Black Scythe. If we play our cards right, we could absorb all his followers into our religion as well. What do you think of my plan?”
In short, it was a plan to kidnap the Saint and use her as leverage to blackmail Black Scythe since brute force wouldn’t work.
John stroked his chin, lost in thought.
In fact, I couldn’t make a judgment call on whether to refuse or defer the matter.
‘This isn’t a decision for me to make. It’s a decision for my master.’
After reaching his conclusion, John spoke to Berber.
“I need time to think about this.”
“There’s no other way to gather believers, sir.”
“I understand. I’ll review it positively.”
Having given that answer, John excused himself from the room.
‘I need to inform my master of this as soon as possible.’
Berber and the other followers of the Despair Cult never imagined it.
That their cult leader was in collusion with Black Scythe.

* * *
Upon hearing news of Round 14, the Archangels fell into a funeral atmosphere.
[To think we couldn’t stop it even with the Demon Archduke manifesting….]
Gabriel’s expression was particularly striking among them.
His initial confidence had vanished without a trace, replaced by a thoroughly dejected face.
Since it was a strategy he had devised, the burden of failure fell squarely on his shoulders.
[What’s the meaning of this, Gabriel? You agreed to the operation because you said the Demon’s Resurrection Scripture would absolutely turn him into a sacrifice.]
[I apologize. I never anticipated that Black Scythe would see through it beforehand….]
[Didn’t I ask you multiple times? Whether you could truly guarantee success?]
[…I have no excuse, Michael.]
Gabriel lowered his head, and Michael’s expression hardened like a tiger’s.
Yet inwardly, he felt relieved despite his stern demeanor.
‘Thank heavens Black Scythe survived. It’s divine providence. But what do I do now? I need to send an Archangel to make up for this failure?’
The remaining Archangels, including himself, numbered three.
If all three deployed simultaneously, Black Scythe would have no chance of survival.
‘I need to buy as much time as possible for Black Scythe to grow. What excuse should I use? Should I postpone this round? Or should I demand Gabriel take sole responsibility?’
Just as Michael was about to speak after his deliberation.
[Huh?]
[Ah!]
A being worthy of startling even the Archangels tore through space and appeared.

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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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