The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 356

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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 – Side Story Episode 1
1. Seo A-rin in the 101st Cycle
There are moments like this sometimes.
When facing something important, the mind goes blank.
“Seo A-rin? Seo A-rin.”
“…Yes?”
“Why are you spacing out? The bell-ringing ceremony is about to start.”
“Oh… I’m sorry, bodyguard.”
“There’s no need to apologize to me.”
“Yes…”
With those words, I awkwardly turned my head away.
An Sang-chul.
A manager provided by the Entertainment Company.
But in reality, he was a watchdog and bodyguard monitoring my every move.
After learning that fact, an unbridgeable wall had formed between us.
He wasn’t the type to get close to either.
‘Let me focus on my work for now…’
I deliberately avoided An Sang-chul’s gaze and waited backstage with other senior entertainers.
Soon the new year would dawn.
I had no idea it would be the beginning of Hell.
[Kekekeke. Humans are amusing. They celebrate the new year without even knowing their own predicament.]
“W-Bodyguard! That is…!”
“…”
Who wouldn’t be startled seeing an Angel floating in the sky?
When I saw bewilderment cross An Sang-chul’s usually expressionless face, I couldn’t help but be alarmed as well.
But An Sang-chul was indeed An Sang-chul.
“Calm yourself, Seo A-rin. Let’s first hear what the Angel has to say.”
Seeing him regain composure even in such a situation.
[Let’s see… counting humans aged 15 to 29, the number of participants would be 1,801,029,290. Well then, since the explanation is complete, shall we go? Kyohohoho.]
The moment the Angel finished speaking, my consciousness flew elsewhere.
It was an empty space.
I heard something about customization, but I panicked and ran out of time without doing it.
Because of that, I had to stand on the Grassland in my true form.
The moment I entered this new environment, I searched for my closest friend first.
Fortunately, my bodyguard An Sang-chul was right beside me.
With a slightly different appearance.
“Bodyguard. That appearance is…?”
“I changed my style a bit. You look the same as always, Seo A-rin.”
“Yes… I panicked and couldn’t do anything.”
“Most people probably did the same, but now you need to come to your senses. If we’ve come this far, it means this isn’t a dream.”
“I understand. I’ll keep my wits about me.”
I nodded with a grave expression and listened intently to Angel’s words.
I received something called a Random Rune Fragment and used it as instructed.
[You have used the Random Rune Fragment.]
[Congratulations! The ‘Summoner’s Rune’ has been acquired!]
[The acquired rune is automatically inscribed upon the player’s body!]
‘Summoner’s Rune? Is that good?’
Seo A-rin’s eyes widened as she checked how to use it.
[Summoner’s Rune]
-Effect: Increases summoned creature stats by 50%. When no summoned creature is present, increases your own stats by 25%. Significantly raises the probability of later advancing to the Summoner class.
‘My summoned creature’s stats go up? But I don’t have any summoned creatures?’
However, reading further, my stats would increase even without a summoned creature.
Though it was only 25%, that alone was something.
My overall stats would rise.
Seo A-rin’s mouth opened slightly as she recognized what an excellent rune this was, but she quickly composed herself.
Showing emotion was the same as revealing information about the rune.
I couldn’t let my joy show.
‘I’m confident in my acting.’
I deliberately erased my expression while also preparing what to say if anyone asked about the rune.
But An Sang-chul didn’t seem particularly interested.
“Seo A-rin. Have you seen the Round 1 Quest?”
“Yes. We’re supposed to defeat 100 goblins, right…?”
“It looks like an individual competition, but cooperating with each other will make it easier to complete. So…”
“I understand. I’ll help you as much as I can from your side.”
Seo A-rin formed an alliance with An Sang-chul.
In this other world, the only person I could trust and rely on was the bodyguard beside me.
‘I have to survive. No matter what it takes.’
As I steeled my resolve, Round 1 began, and a scene of utter chaos unfolded.
Countless hordes of goblins slaughtered the humans.
Yet even in such circumstances, An Sang-chul remained composed.
“I see there are some wielding clubs. If possible, engage those ones. Even if you end up fighting others, as long as you’re careful of the daggers in their hands, there’s nothing difficult about it. First, pick up any dropped daggers.”
“Yes!”
The two of us picked up the dagger left behind by a goblin and immediately engaged in desperate combat.
The sensation of tearing through a living creature’s flesh was unpleasant, but after repeating it several times, I grew numb to it.
Or rather, I didn’t have time to dwell on it?
The scene was that brutal and intense.
With our lives on the line, it was only natural.
“Seo A-rin, here!”
“Yes!”
Thwack! Thwack!
The two of them worked together to pierce the fallen goblin.
With two cooperating instead of one, killing them wasn’t difficult.
Naturally, much of the credit belonged to An Sang-chul.
An Sang-chul, true to his role as a bodyguard, dispatched the goblins with skilled proficiency.
‘Even without stats increasing like mine have… he’s impressive.’
The technique of counterattacking simultaneously with evasion was something I couldn’t replicate, even with my elevated stats.
‘Just a little more… just a little more…’
Thus the numbers accumulated steadily, and I barely managed to add my name to the Round 1 survivor list alongside An Sang-chul.
But the real problem was the next round.
‘I got lucky this time, but can I really survive Round 2?’
My anxiety grew precisely because I didn’t know what Round 2’s mission would be.
Then the doorbell rang.
Someone from downstairs had come to distribute rice cakes.
“Hello… wait, aren’t you actress Seo A-rin?”
“Oh, yes, that’s right.”
“Wow, I can’t believe a celebrity lives upstairs. It’s nice to meet you.”
The male neighbor, roughly my age, left a steamed rice cake after suggesting we see each other often and departed.
‘Mmm, this is delicious.’
At that moment, I had no idea.
That I would meet this man again in Round 2.
That this man was Black Scythe, who had ranked first in Round 1.
And that Black Scythe would be the first to reveal his true identity.
“Did you enjoy the steamed rice cake?”
“Oh… yes. It was really delicious.”
“Then why are you stepping on my shadow?”
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Our tailing in Round 2 had been discovered.
What now?
“We didn’t follow you with any ill intent, so I hope you’ll forgive us,” An Sang-chul apologized with an explanation, but Black Scythe didn’t seem angry at all.
He simply asked straightforwardly.
Rather than getting angry, he even provided information.
“A group tracking Seo A-rin will appear shortly.”
“Pardon? Me?”
“You’ll understand if you wait.”
At his cryptic words, An Sang-chul looked skeptical, but when we waited, a group truly did appear.
Just as Black Scythe had predicted.
The group with the nickname Hwang Yong-min was startled to see us standing with Black Scythe.
Like criminals caught in the act of committing a crime.
“Why did you follow us?”
“Why did you follow me?”
“W-wait, who said anyone was chasing whom….”
“I saw you walking around muttering about targeting Seo A-rin. Are you going to play dumb?”
“….”
Whether Black Scythe’s words were true or not, Hwang Yong-min’s group clamped their mouths shut like they’d swallowed honey.
What followed was a one-sided beating, and thanks to Black Scythe, we managed to prevent disaster.
“Thank you, Black Scythe.”
“But, Black Scythe. It seemed like Hwang Yong-min’s group came from a different direction—how did you hear what they were saying….”
“I didn’t hear them. I simply observed the situation.”
“What?”
“I obtained something called the Rune of Prophecy. You can think of it as a rune that shows the future.”
Both An Sang-chul and Seo A-rin were startled by Black Scythe’s words.
It was a story that was difficult to believe.
A rune that could see the future.
Black Scythe possessed a rune that would tempt anyone living in modern times, where the future is uncertain.
At that moment, the thoughts running through both Seo A-rin’s and An Sang-chul’s minds were similar.
‘I need to stay with this person no matter what happens.’
‘I absolutely cannot let Black Scythe slip away.’
They had to stay with Black Scythe.
They had to secure his cooperation by any means necessary.
Recognizing this, An Sang-chul made the first move.
“Black Scythe. I’d like to repay this debt of gratitude—would you be willing to meet our representative?”
“Very well.”
Black Scythe, who accepted surprisingly easily, met with Representative Ma Gyeong-rok that very day.
At a gathering arranged after the round ended, Ma Gyeong-rok heard our story but didn’t readily believe the word “prophet.”
He was naturally a suspicious person.
Knowing this, Black Scythe made two prophecies.
First, a surge in coin prices.
Second, information about Round 3.
Black Scythe, who provided the information and left saying belief was optional, had now become an indispensable ally.
He had proven his worth.
‘Even if it weren’t prophecy, Black Scythe is trustworthy. In terms of skill and in other ways….’
We weathered hardship and adversity together with him.
Based on our informational advantage, we smoothly cleared the subsequent rounds and received additional help.
“Among your friends, there’s someone named Hong Sun-ah, right? She and other actors will stab Seo A-rin in the back.”
“What? Why me?”
“Their goal is to steal gold and items. They plan to recruit fellow and senior entertainers and secretly kill them in the Club. For their own survival.”
“That’s something someone like that wouldn’t do….”
“If you can’t believe it, try playing along. I’ll stay beside you using invisibility to protect you, so don’t worry.”
Seo A-rin wanted to verify Black Scythe’s prophecy.
She wanted to prove that a close colleague in entertainment would never betray her.
So I reached out to Hong Sun-ah first.
To meet up.
But it seemed there was no friendship between us after all.
Judging by how Hong Sun-ah lured me to a Club filled with actors before revealing her true colors.
“Damn bitch. Don’t you understand the situation? Hand over the item already!”
“We’re not joking around, A-rin. When your seniors speak, you listen, right?”
“While we’re at it, strip everything off. It’d be nice to enjoy ourselves before we die, wouldn’t it?”
Disgusting traitors.
Trusted colleagues and seniors were willing to stake someone else’s life to survive the competition in an instant.
Where could you find garbage this despicable?
“Did you see that look in her eyes?”
“She’s staring at us like we’re pathetic.”
“This won’t do. You guys, we’ll have to force—”
“Black Scythe.”
At Seo A-rin’s words, Black Scythe materialized from the empty air.
The actors, startled as if seeing a ghost, paid them no mind and spoke to Seo A-rin instead.
“Do you believe now?”
“Yes.”
“What about their treatment?”
Seo A-rin regarded the actors with a cold gaze.
“Kill them.”
After that, Seo A-rin completely trusted Black Scythe.
But at the same time, she felt uneasy.
Because her feelings for Black Scythe grew stronger with each passing Round.
‘Round 20 is over, and now it’s the Final Round.’
Ninety-seven players, including myself, had finished preparing to enter the Wish Room.
Everyone’s hearts trembled at the prospect of facing such a formidable enemy as Chaos, yet hope shone through.
If we could just conquer this Round properly, we could finally achieve the wish we’d yearned for so long.
‘I just need to follow Black Scythe’s instructions.’
And so the long-awaited Final Round commenced—the 7th Heavenly Demon War.
[In a moment, the war between the Celestial Tribe 100,921 members (+97 players) VS the Demon Tribe 283,078 members will begin.]
In the war that began with a thunderous roar, Seo A-rin gave her all.
“Resonant Echo!”
All her summoned creatures, standing like a wall, became invincible and blocked Chaos’s attacks.
That single turn bought Black Scythe time, and finally.
[The Demon Tribe’s forces have been reduced to 10% or less.]
[The 7th Heavenly Demon War concludes with victory for the Celestial Tribe.]
The ninety-seven players, including Seo A-rin, could now face the five-colored Wish Stone.
‘If I touch this… according to what Black Scythe said, I’ll enter the Wish Room….’
Seo A-rin brought her hand toward the Wish Stone as if entranced.
In that moment.
[Player Seo A-rin enters the Wish Room.]
Arriving in the White Space, Seo A-rin recalled her deepest desire.

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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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