The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 374

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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 19
19. Ryu Won’s 100th Cycle (Part 1)
I can’t recall the exact timing.
Just a naive elementary school student back then.
Something terrible happened to me.
“Sob… Mom… Dad…”
Traffic accidents—hundreds occur every single day.
That tragedy, which had always seemed like someone else’s misfortune, befell our family.
“A drunk driver hit us, they said.”
“Sob… sob…”
“He didn’t even realize what he’d done until he sobered up.”
“Sob…”
Through my endless tears, I could see my older brother’s back.
How could he remain so composed?
My grief was overwhelming.
‘He’s cold-hearted. Brother doesn’t seem sad at all.’
That’s what I thought back then.
Think about it.
A son who’d just become a high school student, having lost both parents in a traffic accident in an instant, calmly recounting the circumstances of the accident at the funeral.
How could anyone not appear composed in such a situation?
‘Wait… now that I think about it…’
I realized later that my brother wasn’t cold-hearted at all.
His voice had been trembling faintly as he recounted the accident.
‘He was just pretending to be calm. Brother must have been devastated too.’
It was probably the weight of being the head of household.
Realizing he was the only one who could take care of his younger brother, he forced himself to appear composed.
If the head of household showed weakness, he wouldn’t have had the confidence to navigate the life ahead.
Naive as I was, I didn’t understand this until I entered middle school.
‘Brother is strong. He’s already grown up.’
Despite being only four years older, he was more dependable than anyone.
He always had been.
Even more so after our parents passed away.
“Won, we’ll be living on basic livelihood assistance for the two of us, so from now on we need to cut back on expenses. Forget about hagwons, eat as little as possible, and hold back on buying anything you want. Can you do that?”
“Yes! I can do it, brother!”
“Fortunately, Grandfather, our landlord, said he won’t take a deposit and will adjust the monthly rent to the minimum, so we don’t need to worry about being evicted anytime soon. We won’t even need to change schools.”
“Okay.”
“Steel yourself. Now that things are this way, the two of us have to make it through somehow.”
“Yes, brother.”

* * *
After that, my older brother and I scraped by in a cramped Multi-unit Residential Building, pinching every penny we could.
I attended High School without fail, maintaining the appearance of an ordinary life.
At least, that’s what it looked like to everyone else.
But in reality, it was far from ordinary.
Beep, beep, beep, beep, beep!
“Mmm… Mom, just a little longer, please.”
“Ryu Won. Wake up. The alarm’s going off.”
When I opened my bleary eyes, the face before me wasn’t my mother’s—it was my older brother’s.
“Oh… it’s you, hyung.”
“You need to get to school.”
“Yeah, okay…”
It was always my older brother, never my mother, who woke me each morning.
Preparing breakfast in the kitchen, reminding me to pack my things—all of it had been replaced by him.
“Eat.”
…
“What’s wrong? It’s fried eggs—your favorite.”
“Hyung… I miss Mom and Dad. Sob, sob…”
Seeing the fried eggs on the table, I was overwhelmed by thoughts of my parents and broke down in tears.
Even knowing I shouldn’t, I wept like a child.
“It’s okay. You can cry. Cry all you need.”
“Waaaaahhh…”
Wrapped in my brother’s embrace, feeling his hand gently patting my back, I didn’t hold back—I sobbed with all my heart.
My older brother was all the family I had left.
I knew it wasn’t right, but I found myself leaning on him completely.

* * *
My older brother had always been busy, but after entering High School, he became even more so.
To earn more living expenses, he began juggling various part-time jobs, including distributing flyers.
“Older brother. Are you okay?”
“Of course I am.”
“You’re going to ruin your health like this. You only sleep four hours a day.”
“I sleep at school, so don’t worry. Besides, the human body is tougher than you think. It doesn’t break down that easily.”
While others studied without a care, supported by their parents, such luxury was unthinkable for us.
Without money, I couldn’t even dream of attending university, and chasing scholarships meant falling behind those who attended cram schools in every way.
While others grappled with their studies, we had to worry about survival, tightening our belts to save every last penny.
‘I’m not struggling. The one who’s really struggling is my older brother.’
I only helped with household chores to some extent; my older brother shouldered most of the burden.
Earning money, managing living expenses, taking care of the household—all of it fell to him.
“Older brother. I want to help you too.”
“You already are. With the housework.”
“I mean something else—earning money.”
“What could a middle schooler do? Leave that to me and focus on your studies. I’ll at least send you to university.”
Every time I said I wanted to help, he responded like this.
As if telling me to stay put because I was young.
I felt frustrated, but he wasn’t wrong—a middle schooler had no real means to earn money.
‘I want to help my older brother too…. I don’t want to see him struggling….’
My older brother, who sacrificed everything for our family, was undoubtedly the head of our household.
I wanted to be of some help to him, but there was little I could do.
‘I wish he hadn’t said he’d send me to university. Do you think I’d feel good going to university while leaving him behind?’
But I only thought it; I couldn’t bring myself to say it aloud.
I knew exactly why my older brother worked so hard.
I didn’t want to disappoint him.
Perhaps that’s why.
I always put on a bright face in front of my older brother.
At High School, I was a complete outcast—gloomy, timid, lacking confidence, bullied by delinquent gang members—but he never saw that side of me.

* * *
Sizzle!
“Aaaaaahhhhh!”
“Hehehehe, listen to this bastard scream.”
“What a powerful voice.”
“He could be a singer. Hehehehe.”
They say burning to death is the most agonizing way to go.
I had tasted that pain, if only in a fraction.
From a cigarette burn seared into the back of my hand.
“Ugh… hnngh…”
“Hey, Ryu Won. Your voice is so loud—so why do you normally speak like a little mouse? See? You can do it. Right? Straighten those shoulders, you bastard.”
Every time he patted my shoulder, my body swayed unsteadily.
His touch from a frame of 185 centimeters was a crushing blow to my frail body.
“A tall guy like you, always shuffling around like you have no strength. Anyway, aren’t you grateful that your senior helped you find your voice?”
Senior? He was just a classmate in the same year.
“What are you doing? Ignoring me?”
“Huh? Y-yes, th-thank you…”
“Hehehehe, is this bastard a pervert? He’s thanking me.”
“Bahahaha! A masochist? You enjoy the pain?”
“Want me to burn you again?”
As Bang Tae-gyu brought the cigarette to my hand once more, my mind shattered completely.
My thoughts turned white.
“Don’t be scared. I won’t burn you. I won’t.”
Bang Tae-gyu—someone I could never defeat in weight class or in a fight.
Marked by him, my High School life had become Hell itself.
‘That’s right… I can’t call this Hell. True Hell is the reality of living without my parents…’
Part of me wanted to simply die and follow them.
But if I did, my older brother would be left alone.
-Steel your resolve. Since things have come to this, the two of us must survive however we can.
My brother’s voice—spoken with that hardened expression—echoed in my mind.
‘That’s right. I can’t surrender to this. I have to endure… no matter what.’
As difficult as it was, I couldn’t abandon life for my brother’s sake.
How could I leave him, when he worked so hard for me?
‘Even if it hurts, I have to bear it. And I can never tell my brother.’
The reason I could endure the constant harassment and violence from Bang Tae-gyu, my assigned delinquent gang member.
It was all because of my brother.
He was my pillar of support.
“Ryu Won, you bastard. Why are you so unresponsive? Boring.”
“Huh? U-um… s-sorry.”
“Those scars on your hand—hide them well, got it? If you report this to the cops or snitch to your brother, you know what happens? Then you and your brother both really die at my hands. You go to Heaven and see your mom and dad, you little shit. Understand?”
“….”
Even when insulted, I could only nod silently in acceptance.
I didn’t have the strength to escape this situation.
Nodding was simply the best I could manage right now.
‘Don’t worry, Bang Tae-gyu. I have no intention of telling my brother about this, not even a shred.’
He was already in a difficult position—I couldn’t burden him with more worries.
I couldn’t let him carry any additional weight.

* * *
“I found a part-time job at a meat restaurant. The owner isn’t great, but what can I do? I should be grateful he’s willing to hire a high school student.”
“Wow, a meat restaurant? So you’ll be eating meat every evening with your brother?”
“No. The shift is from 6 PM to 2 AM, so I have to eat dinner separately.”
“Huh? But 6 PM includes dinner time.”
“Still, he told me to eat dinner before coming in. He said I only work weekends anyway, so why should he provide meals? He has no intention of covering food costs.”
“….”
Normally, when working a shift that overlaps with dinner, wouldn’t the restaurant owner provide at least something to eat?
I’d hoped my brother could at least have some meat to give him strength, but the disappointment was crushing.
“What? Do you want meat?”
“Huh? No, it’s not about the meat.”
“Our Ryu Won looks worn out lately. Why don’t we go to a meat restaurant sometime and put some fat back on your belly?”
“No, no, there’s no need because of me. I really don’t want meat.”
Of course, it was a lie.
I hadn’t eaten grilled meat since our parents passed away, so how could I not think about it?
That’s when my brother suddenly asked something unexpected.
“Are you doing well at High School?”
“Huh? Um… yeah. I’m doing fine. My friends and I get along so well. Hehe.”
“That’s a relief.”
I forced brightness into my voice, but inside, I was festering.
It’s my body—I know it better than anyone.
“The new year’s coming soon.”
“Yeah, it is. What wish will you make, brother?”
“A wish?”
“Usually people make wishes when the new year comes. Or is it a resolution? Either way.”
“Well, I do have one wish, but it’s impossible.”
“What is it? Tell me!”
“To turn back time.”
This was the moment where I should have laughed and said, ‘Haha! If only such a power existed!’ But….
“….”
I couldn’t do that.
Because I understood why my brother wanted to turn back time.
‘My brother wants to see them. Our parents…’
I feel the same way.
I miss them.
Desperately.
“It’s not far from here. Should we stop by for a moment?”
“Where?”
“The New Year’s Bell Ringing Site.”
My brother really does intend to make a wish.
To return the time we lost.
“Ryu Won, do you want to come with us?”
“No. I don’t like crowded places.”
“Got it. I’ll be back soon, so get some rest first. Don’t skip dinner.”
“Yeah. See you later, brother.”
That day, I didn’t know.
That an event catastrophic enough to overturn the world would unfold while I slept.

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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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