The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 310

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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 310
310. The Qualifications of a Demon King
Sixty-six hours earlier.
When I used the newly acquired skill, Qualifications of the Demon Tribe, I found myself transported to a familiar location.
‘This is… the Demon King’s Castle.’
I warped to the Demon King’s Castle exactly as the skill description indicated.
I’d been here during the eighteenth round, so there was no mistaking this place.
‘I’d annihilated every guard and Cerberus back then.’
Perhaps because of that, the interior of the Demon King’s Castle was eerily silent.
Not a single demon was visible, and I couldn’t even hear an ant crawling.
A message suddenly appeared, though it made my vision swim.
[You have abandoned your position during round progression.]
[If you do not return to your progression location within one hour, your player status will be revoked.]
[Time remaining until status revocation: 00:59:59]
‘Yeah, yeah. I’m going back.’
Returning wouldn’t be difficult.
I just needed to use the warp function again.
However, instead of warping, I moved my feet toward something else.
I hadn’t come here merely to test whether the skill functioned properly.
‘I obtained information through Phlunikthos’s thoughts.’
Thud, thud—
My footsteps halted at some point.
‘That if I sit upon this Throne of Flames, I can become a Demon King.’
Before me stood the Throne of Flames, its flames flickering with an eerie glow.
It was incomparably massive, befitting the seat where the Demon Archduke—who stood over ten meters tall—had once sat.
My objective was precisely this seat of the Demon King.
‘I became a god, so why couldn’t I become a Demon King?’
Of course, not just anyone could sit down and become a Demon King.
One needed qualifications equivalent to the nobility of the Demon Realm, and had to undergo a trial to determine if one possessed the vessel befitting a Demon King.
As for me, thanks to my skill, I was receiving treatment equal to that of Demon Nobility, so my qualifications were more than sufficient.
‘If I just pass that trial, I can become a Demon King, right?’
Viewing the title of Demon King as something I could casually obtain, I didn’t take it seriously.
‘Let’s see what happens.’
With that thought, I sat upon the throne.
Or rather, it would be more accurate to say I climbed onto it.
The chair was so enormous that it was meant for a giant to sit upon.
[Player ‘Black Scythe’ has sat upon the Throne of Flames in the Demon King’s Castle.]
[Examining whether you possess the qualifications to challenge the seat of Demon King.]
…
[Conditions have been satisfied.]
[I shall now test your qualifications to become Demon King.]
【Demon King Qualification Test】
└Defend the Throne of Flames for 30 minutes.
└Upon success ▶ Ascension to Demon King
[A message has been delivered to all Demon Nobility.]
[Shortly, the Demon Nobility will arrive to interfere with the Demon King’s position.]
[Do not leave the Throne of Flames during the time limit.]
[The moment you leave, you will be disqualified as a Demon King candidate and stripped of your noble status.]
‘A message has been sent to all the Demon Nobility?’
It seemed the demons were coming to interfere after seeing this message, testing whether I truly had the qualifications.
As expected.
Less than a minute after arriving through the portal, a demon appeared.
It was an armored demon riding an enormous crocodile.
[What is this? I came thinking the Demon Archduke was finally challenging the Demon King’s position, but it’s just some pathetic human?]
The creature’s eyes widened in surprise at the revelation that I was human.
The other demons reacted similarly.
[Huh? What? A human?]
[Why is a human here?]
[This is absurd.]
[How can a human even take the Demon King qualification test?]
[This makes no sense.]
The demons arriving in succession each voiced their own remarks.
Skeptical demons, grumbling demons, mocking demons, demons showing hostility—all varieties.
Countless demons gathered before the Throne of Flames in the Demon King’s Castle.
Their number had already exceeded sixty.
“Exactly sixty-two. So all the demons ranked eleventh through seventy-second have come?”
Even my muttering seemed to displease the demons, who cried out with angry faces.
[What are you babbling about?]
[Human. Get down from that seat at once!]
[How dare you, a pathetic human worse than vermin, occupy such a sacred position?]
Despite the barrage of insults, I could only respond with a contemptuous sneer.
“How pathetic. Cowards without even the courage to attack first, and you call yourselves nobility? The future of the Demon Realm looks grim indeed.”
[What did you just say?]
[You wretched human bastard!]
The demon who had been shouting loudly dismounted from the crocodile it had been riding.
It was the armored demon that had arrived first.
[Demon Nobility Rank 19, Saleios, shall test your qualifications!]
“Must you really introduce yourself like that before starting? Can’t you just attack right away?”
[You insolent human wretch!]
Saleios leaped forward with a violent bound.
Screech—!
The creature soaring toward the Demon King’s Castle was cleaved in two before it could even swing its weapon.
Thud thud thud—
A pathetic end, despite the momentum.
Though I’d displayed nothing, the watching demons understood this was no meaningless death.
‘What… what just happened?’
‘The attack… I couldn’t see it?’
‘The Strange-Armed Duke Saleios, falling so pathetically…’
An unprecedented wariness took root in the demons’ hearts.
Of course, only a handful felt it—most demons couldn’t even comprehend what had transpired.
They could only stare with incomprehension in their eyes.
“Next. Who else will challenge me?”
[….]
“Don’t tell me you’re afraid of a mere human?”
Ryu Min’s provocation worked. A demon stepped forward.
[Demon Nobility Rank 22, Ipos. Challenges the foolish human.]
Ipos, who had stepped forward with a stern face, intent on teaching me a lesson, leaped up and ascended the throne.
[You have no right to be the Demon King!]
But those words became his final testament.
Before he could finish speaking, my scythe severed Ipos at the waist.
Thump—
“Next.”
I hadn’t used a skill, nor employed any elaborate technique.
It was merely a simple horizontal slash, yet the demons tensed.
The gruesome result spoke for itself.
But not all were deterred—a demon in a violet robe stepped forward.
[Foolish wretches. Cowering before a single human.]
The arrogant demon took to the air and gazed down at Ryu Min with haughty eyes.
[The seat of Demon King belongs to me, Gusion, rank 11. That’s an undeniable fact. A mere human has no business sitting there.]
“Does it look to you like I’m sitting?”
[Silence!]
Gusion employed magic befitting his attire.
He summoned something pitch-black like arrows used by dark sorcerers—over fifty of them.
The watching demons were convinced without doubt.
That Gusion would tear apart the human’s limbs.
But it was Gusion’s limbs that were torn instead.
Rip—!
[Aaaaagh!]
My scythe flashed at a speed invisible to the eye, and his limbs were wrenched away, leaving only a torso.
Plop—
The black arrows that had filled the void moments before vanished, leaving only a limbless torso at Ryu Min’s feet.
Gusion stared up at the Demon King candidate with eyes drenched in terror.
[P-please… spare me…]
Thud!
Kicking aside Gusion’s corpse—its heart pierced clean through—Ryu Min spoke.
His voice utterly devoid of emotion.
“Next.”

* * *
Defending the Throne of Flames for thirty minutes proved effortless.
Countless demons challenged him after Gusion, yet the outcome remained identical.
When the mightiest among the nobility fell so easily, what hope could those beneath them possibly harbor?
The result was foregone.
“This is all beneath standard. The hierarchy needs restructuring.”
Ryu Min felt somewhat disappointed.
He’d hoped at least one worthy opponent might emerge, but they were all demons that barely warranted a yawn.
That such creatures occupied positions of nobility, each holding their own post, made him wonder how the Demon Realm even functioned.
“You.”
[Yes?]
Ryu Min pointed to one of the ten remaining nobles and asked.
“What’s your rank? You look the strongest among them.”
A demon with a leopard’s face and griffin’s wings spoke with dejected resignation.
[I am twelfth-ranked. My name is Sitri…]
“Why don’t you attack?”
At that absurd question, Sitri glanced around, his eyes sweeping left and right.
There had been sixty-two high-ranking nobles. Now only ten remained.
And he was supposed to attack?
It was no different from asking whether he wanted to die quickly.
[I… I wish to live.]
“Good choice. Wise judgment. I don’t want to kill anymore either. They’re so weak now that I’m starting to feel guilty about it.”
[…]
The demons knew that wasn’t mere bravado.
Indeed, the human before them had slain fifty-two demons.
Yet his breathing hadn’t wavered once—a clear sign he hadn’t even begun to reveal his true power.
‘If he’s this formidable without unleashing his full strength, just how devastatingly powerful is his true capability…’
Knowing this truth, the demons remained still.
Even though their opponent was human.
Though in truth, Ryu Min was merely wearing a human form—in essence, he was divine.
“Hmm? Time’s up.”
The moment Ryu Min’s words ended.
[The allotted time has elapsed.]
[You have proven yourself worthy of the Demon King by defending the Throne of Flames of the Demon King’s Castle within the time limit.]
As the message appeared, flames like molten lava coiled around Ryu Min’s body.
[The Throne of Flames of the Demon King’s Castle welcomes its new master.]
[You have acquired the title ‘Ruler of the Demon Realm’.]
[Title – Ruler of the Demon Realm]
-Acquisition Condition: Acquired by defending the Demon King’s Throne for 30 minutes.
-Effect: You gain the status of Demon King and can rule the Demon Realm.
[You have become the Demon King.]
[From now on, you can rule the Demon Realm.]
[All servants of the Demon Realm will obey your commands absolutely.]
Moments later, the flames of the Throne roared brilliantly before shrinking in size.
As it continued to diminish, it transformed into a throne perfectly suited to Ryu Min’s frame.
[Congratulations on becoming the new Demon King!]
[Congratulations!]
The nobles who had been watching Ryu Min until moments ago bowed their heads.
Though only ten nobles remained, receiving their respectful salute made me feel like I’d become a Mob Organization boss.
“Alright, that’s enough.”
Finding the salute burdensome, I commanded them to raise their heads and turned my gaze elsewhere.
Where I looked, there was a message.
A message worth celebrating.
[As a reward for achieving Demon King status, ‘Branch of Molten Flame’ has been obtained.]
[As a reward for achieving Demon King status, the temporary skill ‘Qualification of the Demon Tribe’ transforms into ‘Qualification of the Demon King’.]
[Branch of Molten Flame]
-Classification: Weapon
-Grade: Eternal
-Attack Power: 6,666
-Effect: Burns the soul.
-Durability: Infinite
-Usage Restriction: Black Scythe (Soul Bound)
-Description: A whip that only those who have obtained the qualification of Demon King can wield. A weapon capable of burning souls.
‘An Eternal grade weapon? This is pretty decent.’
The advantage of Eternal-grade weapons is that they can be used alongside God-grade equipment.
I immediately equipped the item.
Whoosh—
The scythe appeared with crimson flames coiling around it.
Using the whip together definitely felt significantly more powerful.
‘I didn’t have an Eternal weapon anyway, so this works out perfectly.’
Beyond this, the temporary skill ‘Qualification of the Demon Tribe’ had been strengthened into ‘Qualification of the Demon King’.
The other effects remained the same, with the addition of [Stat Points increase when slaying Celestial Tribe members].
‘Good, good. Now this is what being a Demon King should feel like.’
Ryu Min, who would have been disappointed if he merely ruled the Demon Realm, curved his lips into a sinister smile.
The Demon Nobility flinched at the sight of it.
Noticing their reaction, Ryu Min’s expression hardened as he gazed at the lined-up nobles.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Do I look insane?”
[N-No, Your Majesty.]
The Demon Tribe could only tremble in fear.
After all, the being standing before them had mercilessly cut down dozens of demons.
“You’re not thinking of betraying me, are you?”
[Of course not! How could such a thing even be possible?]
Ryu Min quietly read the minds of the demons.
Just as the system had said, they showed absolute obedience—their loyalty bore not a trace of falsehood.
“Good. I’ll trust you.”
[Thank you.]
“Is that all of the Demon Nobility?”
[Y-Yes, that is correct.]
“Line up in order of rank from here.”
At Ryu Min’s command, the demons glanced at one another before arranging themselves according to their respective ranks.
“You said you were Sitri, ranked twelfth?”
[Yes? Yes!]
“From now on, you’re rank one. You’re rank two, you’re rank three. And so on, down to rank ten.”
Since there were only ten high-ranking demons, the promotion was inevitable.
[Your benevolence knows no bounds….]
“Don’t use that archaic tone, tsk.”
[Th-Thank you, Your Majesty.]
Though the demons were moved with gratitude, Ryu Min paid them no mind.
His attention lay elsewhere entirely.
“I have a command for you.”
[Yes! Please issue your command, Your Majesty!]
Ryu Min spoke with a smile.
“Do you have any food humans can eat here?”
[Pardon?]
“I’m hungry. Bring me something to eat.”
It was the first command he had issued since ascending to the throne of the Demon King.

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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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