The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 40

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

The Maxed-Out Player’s 100th Return – Episode 40
40. Jang Seok-hyun
Jang Seok-hyun is garbage with twelve prior convictions.
Most were petty crimes like theft or sexual harassment, but he had committed serious offenses too—rape, murder.
‘In the end, I just serve two or three years in prison and walk free.’
Though he called it “serving time,” prison life wasn’t actually that difficult.
Sometimes he even missed prison meals.
When financial hardship pressed down on him, he’d thought dozens of times about committing a crime and checking himself back into prison.
‘This country is perfect for scum like me, isn’t it? Get drunk and they reduce your sentence. Hehehehe.’
Sentence reductions, criminal rights protection—they had it all.
In prison, the state fed him three meals a day with taxpayer money.
It was even better if you were young.
In middle school, he’d beaten a classmate—an outcast—to death.
He’d destroyed an entire human life, but…
‘Because I was young, I only served two years before getting out.’
Of course, now at twenty-nine, he was too old to pull the same youthful stunts.
‘But petty crimes like theft and sexual harassment? Those are still easy pickings.’
Especially this year, things had gotten even better.
Because he’d become a Player with supernatural abilities.
‘During the first round, fighting goblins to the death, I thought this was some kind of nightmare…’
But now his perspective had changed.
He was actually grateful to God.
‘With these abilities, committing crimes is even easier. Hehehehe.’
The Rune of Radiance.
It was the rune Jang Seok-hyun had obtained early on.
It caused his body to emit blinding light in an instant, rendering his target temporarily blind.
‘A perfect rune for committing crimes.’
If he blinded someone with the Rune of Radiance and then sexually assaulted them, they couldn’t even report him.
The cooldown was only ten seconds, which made it easy to avoid CCTV as well.
‘This is perfect. I love being able to do whatever I want like this. Hehehehe!’
It felt like a gift God had prepared specifically for him.
‘Before, life was so boring I didn’t care if I died at any moment…’
But now it was different.
He would survive round after round and indulge in his abilities to his heart’s content.
‘Somehow I’ve managed to survive through the third round.’
He was still only level nine, so he hadn’t acquired a class yet, but that didn’t matter.
He had the Rune of Radiance.
‘The rune is all I need. With the rune, I can live a heavenly life however I please.’
He worried about whether he could survive the next round, but what did it matter?
‘As long as I have the Rune of Radiance, I’ll find a way.’
Still, the unease was undeniable, so Jang Seok-hyun decided to live in the present moment.
A life where death could come at any moment.
Shouldn’t I at least spend a day living as I please before that happens?
‘Which woman should I pick today?’
Jang Seok-hyun prowled the streets like a hyena hunting for prey.
He was exhausted from holding back the monster waves during the third round, so he needed to relieve some stress.
‘One woman should be enough to wash away all this fatigue. Hehehehe.’
Jang Seok-hyun enjoyed wandering the streets and choosing women on impulse.
Whenever he spotted one he liked, he’d follow her, grope her buttocks or squeeze her chest, and flee.
Even doing this dozens of times a day, he never got caught.
‘It’s all thanks to the Madness Rune.’
But today, such simple sexual harassment wouldn’t satisfy the desires piling up inside him.
He wouldn’t be able to sleep without going all the way.
‘Before that, let me quench my thirst.’
Craving a refreshing iced Americano, Jang Seok-hyun found the Cafe he frequented.
“Welcome.”
‘Huh?’
But there was a woman at the counter he’d never seen before.
‘Damn, she’s pretty.’
Jang Seok-hyun, whose lips had been twitching, composed his expression and approached.
“I’ll have an iced Americano, venti size.”
“For here or to go?”
“For here.”
“I’ll process that for you. That’s 5,100 won.”
Jang Seok-hyun pulled out a wad of cash from his pocket and asked.
“Did the staff change here?”
“Pardon?”
“I’m a regular, and I don’t see the usual employee anymore.”
“Oh! You’re a regular customer. I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. All the part-timers quit due to personal circumstances. You know how it is, right? The world’s changed so strangely lately.”
Jang Seok-hyun nodded.
He understood what she meant.
The world had changed drastically—part-timers who became Players wouldn’t be working at cafes.
Some of them might even be dead.
“Are you the owner?”
“Ah, yes!”
“How old are you? You look very young.”
“I’m… 32 years old.”
“Oh, so you’re not a Player?”
“No. I consider that fortunate.”
“Could you give me your number? I’m interested in you.”
“Huh?”
The Cafe Owner’s expression turned flustered at Jang Seok-hyun’s blunt remark.
“Ha ha, just joking. A joke.”
Jang Seok-hyun flashed a sickly smile, his eyes raking up and down her figure.
‘A woman running a cafe, huh…’
Her face and body were both impressive.
He grinned wickedly, but the Cafe Owner seemed to be frowning for some reason.
“What’s wrong?”
“Huh?”
“Why are you frowning?”
“Oh, that’s…”
“Is my face ugly to you?”
“Huh?”
“Damn it, you’re disgusted because I have a few pockmarks on my face? Suddenly I’m in a terrible mood.”
Jang Seok-hyun, his displeasure evident, glared as he spoke.
“I’m not drinking the coffee anyway. Give me my money back. It’s disgusting.”
“I-I’ll r-refund it right away.”
The Cafe Owner, caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, extended bills with trembling hands.
Jang Seok-hyun snatched them and left without so much as a backward glance.
‘Damn bitches. Just because they’re decent-looking, they look down on people based on appearance.’
Genuinely enraged, I had selected my prey.
‘I’ll make her pay for looking down on me with that gaze.’
I would sexually assault the Cafe Owner until she wept and clung to me desperately.
‘But not today…’
I set the execution date for four days later—Friday, March 4th.
I needed to scout the locations of the CCTVs and learn the Cafe Owner’s commute times.
I needed to find a suitable place to commit the crime.
‘I’m not ready to go to prison yet.’
My twisted smile deepened.
* * *
Four days passed. The day of execution arrived.
My plan had worked perfectly.
Thump, thump, thump, thump—
The Cafe Owner, trapped in the trunk, was pounding on the door. That was the result.
‘Heh heh, I was right to get a car. It’s a rental, so there’s no problem.’
Nothing beats a car for kidnapping.
Easy to transport, and no need to worry about prying eyes.
‘Too easy. I didn’t even need to use my abilities.’
I had hidden in the Alley where the Cafe Owner would pass and struck her unconscious as she walked by.
Then I simply shoved her into the trunk of the car I had waiting.
It was fortunate that I had tailed the Cafe Owner beforehand and memorized her route home.
Thump, thump, thump, thump—
“Damn it, stop squirming. We’re almost there.”
Jang Seok-hyun drove to an Abandoned Factory devoid of people.
‘This place is perfect for the work.’
No one came here at night, and there wasn’t a single CCTV camera in the vicinity.
‘Where should I set up? Ah, that spot looks ideal.’
After parking in a suitable location, I opened the trunk.
Clang—!
“Mmph!”
The Cafe Owner, bound with duct tape, thrashed about like a fish out of water.
Her makeup around her eyes was smudged from crying in the darkness for so long.
Not that it mattered.
“Hup!”
Jang Seok-hyun hoisted the Cafe Owner onto my shoulder with ease.
With stats, even physical labor felt effortless.
Creak! Screeeech—
I pushed open the dark door of the Abandoned Factory and stepped inside.
Click, click—
There was a switch nearby, but it didn’t work.
“Well, that’s fine. The darkness isn’t so bad.”
I could have made myself glow, but that would blind the Cafe Owner.
There’s no fun in dealing with someone who can’t see.
“I’ll untie you, so don’t scream. Understand?”
When the Cafe Owner nodded, I peeled off the duct tape I’d applied.
Riiip—
“Haa, haa. P-please, save me. Save me….”
“Damn it, is that all you can say the moment your mouth opens?”
My excitement deflated at such predictable dialogue.
“Say something different. Spare me the boring stuff about saving your life, having children at home, or offering money.”
“I-I’m sorry….”
At the woman’s apology, my eyes changed.
“Sorry for what?”
“B-because I looked at you with displeasure a few days ago, is that why you’re doing this? I’m s-so sorry….”
Perhaps it was the sincerity in her apology.
I let out a long sigh, my excitement subsiding.
“Sigh… Then why did you do something to apologize for?”
“I’m sorry….”
“You can’t go around looking down on people based on their appearance. Do you understand?”
“…Y-yes, I understand. I won’t do it again.”
“….”
The Cafe Owner apologized, but Jang Seok-hyun simply stared at her without responding.
“This won’t do.”
“What?”
“I don’t feel any sincerity in it.”
Jang Seok-hyun roughly shoved the Cafe Owner onto the ground.
“Did you think I wouldn’t notice? You’re just pretending to apologize to weasel out of this.”
“P-please, let go of th-this….”
“Sorry, you say? If you’re truly sorry, then you need to pay the price.”
Desire gleamed once more in Jang Seok-hyun’s eyes as he smiled.
He began forcibly removing the woman’s clothes.
“No, please don’t. I’m begging you!”
The woman tried to resist as best she could, but she was no match for a player’s strength.
“I was wrong! I was wrong!”
She pleaded for forgiveness over and over, but her words never reached the excited Jang Seok-hyun’s ears.
Or rather, he heard them but let them go in one ear and out the other.
‘I’ve come this far—I can’t turn back now.’
He had already crossed a bridge that couldn’t be uncrossed.
“Since you were wrong, just stay st-still…!”
“That’s why I’m telling you—if you know you were wrong, then keep quiet. Hehehehe!”
“You stay quiet, got it?”
In that instant, Jang Seok-hyun’s movements froze like a statue.
‘What the—?’
A third party’s voice had just spoken.
And it was a man’s voice.
‘I thought there was no one here…!’
Cold sweat beaded on Jang Seok-hyun’s spine.
Could a detective have followed him here?
He pulled up his pants and rose to his feet.
“Who the hell was that?”
“Don’t curse.”
Jang Seok-hyun turned his head toward the voice.
“Though you’ll get plenty of practice later anyway.”
The owner of the voice stepped out from the darkness.
The first thing that caught Jang Seok-hyun’s eye was the massive scythe.
‘What—what is that ridiculously huge scythe?’
Next, he saw the white mask the figure wore.
The outfit looked like some kind of character cosplay.
A sneer escaped Jang Seok-hyun’s lips.
“You crazy bastard. Do you think this is Itaewon? Halloween’s still a long way off, buddy.”
“Seems you still don’t grasp the situation. Does this look like a toy to you?”
Ryu Min traced a crescent arc through the air, swinging the scythe with deliberate force.
The sharp whistle it produced was unmistakably menacing.
‘Wait. Not a toy?’
Only then did wariness ignite in Jang Seok-hyun’s eyes.
“Are you a Player?”
“Stupid question. Is that really what you’re calling speech?”
Ryu Min exhaled a sigh from behind his mask, his gaze shifting to the woman behind Jang Seok-hyun.
“Go now. This is your only chance.”
“What? Who do you think you—”
Perhaps he’d grown complacent, thinking the distance sufficient for safety.
The moment Jang Seok-hyun turned his head toward the woman.
A sharp crack split the air—!
Ryu Min closed the distance in an instant.
He reversed his grip on the scythe, driving the shaft’s blunt end directly into a vital point.
A sickening thud—!
“Gaaahhhhh—!”
It happened in the blink of an eye.
No one saw him move.
Jang Seok-hyun crumpled backward, his body convulsing from the strike to that most sensitive area.
A wave of indescribable agony crashed over him moments later.
“F—FUUUUUCK!!! F—FUUUUUUUUUCK!!!”
“I told you. You’d end up cursing like that.”
Ryu Min kicked Jang Seok-hyun’s writhing form away from the woman with casual precision.
“Leave now. I’ll handle what comes next.”
“Y-yes. Thank you so much.”
The Cafe Owner fled without hesitation, leaving only two figures in the Abandoned Factory.
Ryu Min’s laughter echoed from behind his mask.
“Now then. Shall we begin the real match?”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————