The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 283

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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 283
283. Round 18 Begins
Over the past two weeks, I distributed points not only to Seo A-rin but to everyone I had made promises with.
A full million points per person.
Min Ju-ri, Seo A-rin, Christine, Jo Yong-ho, Heo Tae-sik, Um Jun-seok, Russell, Victor, Sophia, Jeffrey, Alex, Dorothy, Yamtti, John Delgado, Ju Sung-tak… and who else?
Counting on my fingers, I had distributed points to a total of fifteen people.
Fifteen million points had vanished over the course of two weeks.
My remaining share was a mere million points?
Though little remained, I felt no regret.
Points were useless to hoard anyway. Distributing them to those who would prove invaluable in the boss battle was far more advantageous for strengthening our collective power.
With a million points, I could craft not only expensive equipment but also at least two Legendary-grade items.
Of course, I would need to know the combination formulas.
I could also spend it on experience packs to instantly gain five levels.
Though admittedly, even that paled in comparison to God-tier items.

* * *
Time waits for no one.
June 1st, 2023, at midnight.
Without fail, that day arrived, and 286 players set foot upon the Other World.
Where am I?
Scorching heat, sulfurous dust drifting through the air, a sky as if the world had been torn asunder.
An environment resembling the end of all things greeted the players.
This was Hell itself—the stage for Round 18.
I heard this round would take place in Hell…
It looks exactly like what I imagined.
So Hell really does look like this.
A war is about to break out here, and against demons no less?
This is nerve-wracking.
What do demons even look like?
The players murmured nervously to calm their anxiety.
While this was the first round where they would encounter the Demon Tribe, what truly unnerved them was the prospect of direct participation in warfare.
I chuckled at the sight.
In this peaceful era, they had been preoccupied with competing at desks against one another—who could have predicted they would be dragged into a war between Angels and Demons?
Strictly speaking, it was merely a friendly match rather than true warfare, but what difference did it make?
With players’ lives on the line, it was warfare in every meaningful sense.
At that moment, light flashed across the sky as if a meteor were about to fall.
[Welcome! Our dependable players?]
Normally, the sight of a smiling Angel would have prompted a grimace of displeasure, but perhaps because they understood the Quest, the players showed little reaction.
[You’ll need to help our Angel side greatly today. What do I mean? First, let me reveal the Quest and explain!]
◀ ROUND 18 ▶
【Main Quest】
└Achieve victory in the war against the Demon Tribe
[Integrated Zone CA-EA001]
└Participants: 286
└Achievers: 0/143
It was a Quest I’d already been warned about.
I’d even mentally prepared myself for it.
Perhaps that’s why no one seemed surprised.
Except for Angel Millen.
[Huh? Why isn’t anyone surprised? You’re acting like humans who already knew about the Quest?]
“Do we have to act shocked every time you spout nonsense?”
The players who hadn’t even flinched at the Quest suddenly widened their eyes, staring at one figure.
The one who’d talked back to Angel Millen was none other than Ryu Min.
Angel Millen looked down at Ryu Min with bewildered eyes.
‘How dare a mere human talk back to me?’
I wanted nothing more than to use Instant Death to kill him, but unfortunately I’d already used it long ago.
Moreover, since this round had angels and players on the same team, using Instant Death was blocked.
Even if I had uses remaining, I couldn’t deploy it.
[Ha… A human daring to defy an angel. This is the first time something like this has happened, and it’s truly absurd.]
“I don’t care if it’s absurd or not. Just explain things to the players instead of running your mouth every time. Did the System tell you to do that?”
[A, am I going insane? Human, after reaching Round 18, have you finally lost your mind? Do you want to die?]
“Can you kill me? Then try.”
[….]
“You’re too scared to even come down from Heaven, yet you act tough? A mere guide angel who doesn’t even rank among Combat Angels—where do you get off?”
Millen’s expression froze as if her mind had shut down.
Was that too much of a direct hit?
“No matter how low your status is, you should know this: I’m the psychopath human who killed six Archangels.”
[….]
“You think I couldn’t kill you because you’re floating in Heaven? I’ve held back all this time because I needed a guide, but if you keep irritating me, I can kill you too. I know that even if I kill you, you’ll just be replaced by another guide.”
Even though not a breath of wind stirred, Millen’s wings trembled violently.
From her expression, it wasn’t anger at the insults—it was fear of my threat.
“So shut up and explain the Quest like you’re supposed to. Stop muttering useless comments or laughing at us. You might find this situation amusing, but we don’t.”
[….]
“If you understand, explain it quickly.”
[Ahem, ahem… L, let me continue the explanation.]
Millen began explaining as instructed, masking her panic.
[T, this round is literally a war against the Demon Tribe. You must team up with us Celestial Tribe and fight the Demon Tribe to achieve victory.]
Millen paused briefly, gauging Ryu Min’s reaction.
His gaze was as sharp and cold as frost, terrifyingly piercing.
[Y, you may be dissatisfied about having to fight alongside us. But you mustn’t try to kill the Celestial Tribe. Since you’re all recognized as a party together, you won’t be able to kill them anyway.]
Black Scythe knew he couldn’t kill her, yet Millen trembled with fear.
Because she would be the guide for the next round as well.
[Unlike the previous round, even if you win this war, not everyone can survive. Rankings will be determined based on contribution to victory, allowing only half to live.]
Not everyone would survive this time.
Only half would live.
Since that information came from Black Scythe as well, there was no change in people’s expressions.
Instead, they maintained tense faces from the beginning until now.
On the surface it was a team, but in a way it was competition.
[T-there may be much resentment between you, but just this once, let’s join forces and tear off the heads of these vicious demons together. F-fighting!]
‘Cheering without any heart in it. How pathetic.’
That was when Ryu Min let out a soft chuckle.
Boooooooo—
The war horn’s blast shook heaven and earth.
[I-it’s starting. W-well then, d-do your best!]
The guide angel vanished as if fleeing.
With her departure, gates materialized.
From the luminous gate that appeared nearby emerged Combat Angels clad in resplendent armor.
From the gate of darkness appearing beyond the distant hills emerged Demons in crimson armor.
Angels and Demons crossed through the gates and set foot upon the infernal ground.
Endlessly, continuously.
“H-how many are there in total?”
The forces pouring from the gate without end soon became too numerous to take in at a glance.
By then the gates closed and the stream of reinforcements ceased.
Comparing both sides’ forces by eye, the Demon Tribe was overwhelmingly numerous.
[In a moment, the war will begin: Celestial Tribe 5,000 (+286 Players) VS Demon Tribe 10,000.]
[The side whose forces fall below 10% first will be considered defeated.]
“The Demon Tribe has twice as many?”
“C-can we win this?”
Shadows fell across people’s faces.
It was natural to worry since they’d never faced the Demon Tribe before, but they’d know soon enough.
They were weaker than expected.
‘The Demon Tribe is about High Orc level in terms of monsters. Of course, that’s just the weakest ones.’
Though they differed in numbers, the Celestial Tribe’s strength wasn’t inferior.
Even a 6th-rank Combat Angel could easily kill a High Orc alone.
‘Looking at them, it’s not just 6th-rank but 5th, 4th, 3rd-rank too, quite varied.’
The rank of Combat Angels could be determined by looking at the seals on their armor.
Scanning around, I even spotted 1st-rank Angels.
As if discovering quality prey, Ryu Min’s lips curved into a grin.
But the truly delightful discovery was something else.
Michael had appeared, just as I’d anticipated.
[Black Scythe.]
“Oh, you’re here?”
Though Ryu Min pretended to know what was going on, Michael seemed hesitant about the conversation itself.
[I’d like to talk with you alone for a moment.]
“Sure thing.”
Michael, conscious of the surrounding gazes, led Ryu Min to a secluded space.
Upon seeing him again, Ryu Min broke into a smile as if genuinely pleased.
“You managed to stay alive? I was worried you’d gotten yourself killed.”
[Fortunately, your plan worked. We were able to deceive the gods.]
Yet Michael’s expression seemed oddly restless.
“But why do you look like that? Like a dog desperate to take a dump.”
[Well, the thing is… I have a favor to ask you.]
Watching Michael hesitate over his words, Ryu Min caught on immediately.
Something unnatural emanated from his expression.
‘This bastard is acting.’
Sure enough, despite the awkward reluctance in his demeanor, Michael was internally calculating the timing of his lines like a rehearsed script.
“What kind of favor?”
[Would you mind going to have a conversation with the Demon Archduke and then coming back?]
“You’re asking me to meet the Demon Archduke?”
[The gods still want to hand you over to the Demon Archduke. That doesn’t mean I’m selling you out. If they just see the two of you making contact, the gods will think we’ve fulfilled our promise as agreed. They won’t be able to hear what you’re actually discussing.]
“So you want me to make contact where they can see it from above, but I don’t actually have to be handed over to the Demon Archduke. Got it.”
[Exactly, exactly. It’s not such a difficult favor, is it?]
Ryu Min nodded.
It truly wasn’t a difficult favor.
I had been planning to meet Phlunikthos back in Round 18 anyway.
The problem was that Michael was deceiving me.
‘This bastard is leaving out the entire content of what they negotiated? And the fact that once I set foot in the Demon King’s Castle, I’ll be in the Demon Tribe’s domain and won’t be able to leave.’
He spoke as if it were harmless, saying I should just talk and come back, but that was far from the truth.
The Demon King’s Castle was a restricted zone, just like the Heavenly Realm—not accessible to just anyone.
The moment a player entered it, they wouldn’t be able to escape unless Phlunikthos granted permission.
[Don’t worry about not being able to escape. Just exchange a few words with the Demon Archduke and then flee straight back to our side. There won’t be any problem.]
He spoke as if to reassure me, but both Ryu Min and Michael knew I wouldn’t be able to escape.
‘Shameless bastard. He kept saying I had to stay alive so he could become a god, and now he’s selling me to the Demon Tribe?’
Through thought, I figured out that instead of handing over the authority of the Akashic Record, he’d extended the grace period to Round 18 and decided to hand me over.
I wasn’t exactly sure what the Akashic Record was.
‘Losing the war must have frightened him more than becoming a god.’
I understood, but it was infuriating that he was trying to push me into danger with such a brazen face.
Of course, I had also planned to use Michael and then kill him.
‘There’s no point in using him for long. I should have seen this coming.’
Unaware that he had set his own execution date, Michael urged me for an answer.
[Please. Can you do this?]
At that question, Ryu Min pulled his lips into a smile.
“Of course.”

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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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