The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 276

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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 276
276. The Truth Confronted
Ryu Min pulled Michael from the wall and tapped his cheek.
“Hey, wake up. Come on. I need to ask you something.”
Even shaking his shoulder, Michael didn’t stir.
He was completely unconscious.
I clicked my tongue briefly and considered how to wake him.
‘Should I just cut off his wings?’
As if reading that cruel thought, Michael groaned and regained consciousness.
“You awake?”
[Gasp!]
The enemy was right in front of him, pressing his face close.
Michael, startled, reflexively summoned a sword and swung it.
Whoosh—
It was quite fast, but to Ryu Min, whose Agility stat exceeded 2 million, it seemed as slow as a tortoise.
“Looks like you just woke up and haven’t fully come to yet.”
Whoosh— Whoosh—
Michael’s blade sang sharply through the air.
He was desperately trying to kill his opponent.
“Then I’ll make sure you understand clearly.”
Ryu Min, who had only been evading, suddenly appeared behind Michael.
“Who rules the heavens.”
I grabbed the base of his wings and tore them clean off.
Rip—
[Ugh, uuuuugh!]
Pain unfamiliar to the Archangel ranked first.
Michael, barely enduring that agony, aimed for Ryu Min behind him, but—
Whoosh—
His blade only cut through empty air.
“Your wings are beautiful.”
The opponent who was in front was now behind him.
Rip—!
[Uuugh!]
His wings were completely torn away, but instead of counterattacking, Michael drew upon his divine power.
“Going to use a skill?”
The words had barely reached his ears when—
Boom—!
[Aaaaagh!]
Michael was driven into the wall like a shell.
Crash—
“I held back this time.”
Ryu Min spoke with ease, but Michael heard none of it.
He could barely cling to consciousness, spitting up golden blood in waves.
[Ugh….]
Michael came to his senses only when he heard the voice again.
“Want to go again?”
At those words, Michael flinched and retreated.
Black Scythe had already closed the distance—it felt like facing a phantom.
“Keep trying if you’d like.”
[….]
“I wouldn’t recommend it. You might die.”
[Does that mean… you won’t kill me if I don’t attack?]
Ryu Min smiled faintly.
“Depends on what you do.”
[….]
Faced with an opponent so composed, Michael could not bring himself to charge.
‘Is he saying he’s strong enough to handle me with ease…?’
There’s a saying that masters recognize masters.
But Michael couldn’t even fathom the depths of his opponent’s strength.
He only knew that this being could crush him whenever he wished.
‘Was I the insect… not him?’
After that brief exchange, Michael understood he was outmatched.
Calling it a fight was generous.
He’d been battered one-sidedly and knocked unconscious without even grazing his opponent.
Any further resistance would be meaningless thrashing.
He could only accept the beating.
Detecting the shift in Michael’s resolve, Ryu Min’s lips curved upward.
“So you’re accepting it now?”
Michael nodded.
[You’re stronger than me. Far stronger than I could ever imagine. How can a human become so powerful?]
“Your Angels gave humanity the system’s blessing.”
[Even so, this is absurd. Never in history has anything like this….]
“So you’re saying you’ve done this to humans more than once?”
[….]
Michael did not deny it.
Even if he had, he couldn’t deceive Ryu Min, who could read his true thoughts.
“You know something the other Archangels don’t, don’t you?”
[….]
Watching Michael exercise his right to silence, Ryu Min crossed his arms.
“Tell me. What are you Angels doing to humanity? What’s the purpose of making them participate in the Survival Game?”
And I glared at him as if I might kill him.
“You’d better speak quickly. Unless you want to get beaten to a pulp.”

* * *
Multiple races coexist throughout the universe.
If we counted only the sentient ones, we could narrow it down to five.
Divine Beings, Celestial Tribe, Demon Tribe, Dragon Tribe, and Humans, among others.
Elves, Dwarves, and other races were not included.
They were created races that did not exist at the beginning of time.
[The Fantasy World that serves as your humans’ stage is a created world. Naturally, all the races and monsters that exist within it are life forms born under the creation of the Divine.]
“So… you really were an NPC? One equipped with such advanced AI that it could read thoughts?”
[NPC? AI? I don’t understand what you’re saying.]
“It’s just me talking to myself, so don’t worry about it and keep going.”
[As you might guess, among the five races, the Divine Beings are the most superior. They possess not only the power of creation but also the power of destruction capable of annihilating all created beings. Naturally, the Celestial Tribe, Demon Tribe, and Dragon Tribe have no choice but to cater to the whims of such Divine Beings.]
Ryu Min listened intently, muttering to himself.
In a hundred iterations, this was the first time I had learned such advanced information.
[The Divine Beings in such an absolute position easily accomplished everything, so they easily grew bored. Perhaps that’s why they desired a game.]
“A game?”
[They wanted the Celestial Tribe and Demon Tribe, who had poor relations normally, to fight each other. They said the tribe that won would be cared for by them. From the Divine Beings’ perspective, it was a form of entertainment. That was the beginning of the First Celestial-Demon War.]
Michael’s voice carried a sense of melancholy.
The thought of their own plight, reduced to mere entertainment for the Divine Beings, weighed heavily.
[The Celestial Tribe and Demon Tribe fought as if to kill each other. Their relations were already poor, and with the Divine Beings watching, they had no choice but to fight. There was also the reward that the victorious tribe would receive protection from the Divine Beings. But…]
Michael’s voice grew hoarse as emotions welled up.
[It seemed the Divine Beings found it uninteresting when the balance tilted to only one side. Displeased that the victorious tribe would win again the next time, they decided to change the rules.]
“How?”
[They decided to give the defeated tribe the opportunity to use humans as mercenaries. They hoped humans would act as a variable that could reverse the outcome of war.]
‘Humans as… mercenaries?’
[But humans were only numerous in numbers—an absurdly weak race. Compared to the Celestial Tribe and Demon Tribe, they would appear as insects.]
At the word “insects,” Ryu Min’s expression turned cold.
Michael, not missing that change in expression, hesitated before carefully continuing.
[…The Divine Beings, after much deliberation, ultimately developed a system. One that would allow humans to grow stronger and serve as mercenaries in the Celestial-Demon War.]
Unable to contain himself, Ryu Min asked with an astonished expression.
“So what you’re saying is that the reason the Divine Beings designed the Rounds and created the Fantasy World as a stage was entirely to train players for use in war?”
[In a manner of speaking, yes.]
“Ha…”
Faced with this staggering truth, I exhaled a hollow sigh.
“Then the claim that Angel created the system was a lie.”
[The system is a creation of the Divine. Angels have neither the authority to create the system nor to touch it. They simply found the Human Planet and threw humans into the Survival Game to cultivate mercenaries for the next Celestial-Demon War, taking on the role of guide.]
“In other words, to raise mercenaries for their own use, they ground us humans into this damned death game, and yet they treat us like insects even though we’re supposed to be on their side—why?”
[That is…]
Michael hesitated, glancing nervously at Ryu Min before finally opening his mouth under that piercing gaze.
[Each Angel thinks differently, but… the reason is likely that you humans, once insignificant as insects, were chosen by the System and now stand as our equals. That displeases us.]
“…Is that truly the only reason?”
Ryu Min felt no anger.
Did not humans themselves discriminate against and despise one another based merely on skin color?
The Angels’ disdain for humanity stemmed from a similar logic.
[B-but the Angels don’t truly hate humans that much. As proof, didn’t the Guides always speak to humans with formal respect?]
“Don’t lie. Who doesn’t know the System forced them to use formal speech?”
[…]
“Was the promise that clearing Round 20 would grant a wish also a lie?”
[That is not a lie.]
“Truly?”
As killing intent radiated from Ryu Min’s body, Michael panicked.
[I-I speak truthfully. It is systematically established, and since it is a reward prepared by God for humanity, that much is certain.]
“Then the losing tribe in the Celestial War has been continuously attacking the Human Planet, creating Players and using them as Mercenaries? Both the Celestial Tribe and the Demon Tribe?”
[Y-yes, that’s how it is. We had no choice. The Divine Beings were so obsessed with victory and defeat that they even wagered on our war, and they desired we do the same.]
‘They even placed wagers?’
The Celestial Tribe’s willingness to feed billions of humans into a slaughter program simply because they were ordered from above infuriated me, but what truly enraged me was the Divine Beings’ attitude.
‘They wage war to alleviate mere boredom, predict outcomes, and place bets on it?’
All creation was merely a game piece in the Divine Beings’ hands, played for their amusement.
“Is the Celestial War you speak of the conflict that occurs in Round 18?”
[No, that is not it. The war in Round 18 is merely a rehearsal for the true war to come. A sort of friendly match, if you will.]
“So the real war begins after Round 20.”
[Indeed…]
“Do you truly believe humans who survive until Round 20 will serve as Mercenaries according to the Celestial Tribe’s demands?”
[They will have no choice. The System will demand it of them.]
“And after the war ends? What becomes of them?”
[I do not know. Humans who have cleared Round 20 are so few in number.]
“So some have existed.”
[Yes, they have existed, but I have never heard what became of them. Only humans raised by the Demon Tribe have succeeded in clearing Round 20. Believe me, I speak truthfully.]
Reading his thoughts, I confirmed he was not lying.
“Very well, I believe you. Then why are you targeting me?”
[To restore order in the Heavenly Realm…]
“Stop spouting nonsense. Tell me the real reason.”
[…What meaning would there be in telling you? It is all futile anyway.]
Michael spoke as though sighing, but I pressed him relentlessly.
I needed to know every detail of what lay beneath the surface.
[Demon Archduke Phlunikthos filed a complaint against the Divine Beings who sponsor the Celestial Tribe. He claims it is a rule violation—that you arbitrarily used the Demon’s Resurrection Scripture and even killed an Avatar.]
“A rule violation?”
[The rule that before the Celestial War occurs, there must be no interference between the Celestial Tribe and the Demon Tribe. However, by using the Resurrection Scripture, the Demon Tribe lost one of their means of attack.]
“Why on earth did you use that?”
[I thought it would succeed… If I offered your soul as a sacrifice, Phlunikthos would be satisfied with that. But looking back now, it was a mistake.]
Michael lowered his head as if in reflection.
Ryu Min, indifferent to his remorse, pressed him to continue speaking.
[He said that if I don’t bring you to him before Round 18, he’ll start a war. It’s a violation of the rules, so we have no grounds to object. If war breaks out now, the Celestial Tribe’s defeat is certain. And we’d incur the wrath of the Divine Beings who are counting on the Celestial Tribe.]
“So you chose to take me away rather than face defeat in war.”
[Yes. Though I never imagined you’d become this strong….]
After hearing the full story, Ryu Min nodded.
I grasped the situation well enough.
[What will you do with me now? Kill me?]
“I’m not sure.”
Ryu Min had no intention of killing Michael immediately.
‘There’s no benefit to killing him.’
Because I hadn’t killed enough Angels, I lacked the stacks to use the Demon’s Blessing.
Even if I killed him, I might complete the Soul Bond Quest, but I wouldn’t gain the substantial gold and stat increases.
‘What should I do?’
Ryu Min rubbed his chin, lost in thought for a moment, then made a proposal.
“I’ll let you live. How about we do this instead?”

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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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