The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 57

—————
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 57
57. Abduction
“Oh my, it’s already 2 PM. Shall we grab a meal before we proceed with the interview?”
At the Interview Officer’s suggestion, the other three nodded in unison.
I was already hungry anyway, having caught the aroma of food wafting from somewhere nearby.
“Let’s head over there.”
Following the Interview Officer, we soon arrived at a restaurant.
The savory scent of miso stew hit me immediately.
“This cafe happens to operate as a restaurant as well.”
The Interview Officer smiled as he claimed a table, and the rest of us followed suit.
“Owner!”
At the Interview Officer’s call, the owner emerged from the kitchen carrying a water pitcher and cups.
She appeared to be in her early thirties—quite young for someone running an establishment.
“Did the interview go well?”
Though the final interview still awaited us, the Interview Officer smiled as if he didn’t know.
“Yes! Thanks to you, we were able to wrap things up smoothly in a quiet atmosphere without disturbing other customers. We’re grateful.”
“Not at all. I should be thanking you for using the space and paying so generously. This place is so remote that customers are few and far between. Money’s been tight. Thanks to you, I can finally breathe a little easier.”
“I’m glad it helped. Though I do feel a bit sorry. I thought today was your day off, yet here I am putting you to work…”
“I’m the one who should apologize. It’s supposed to be a cafe, yet I haven’t even served you coffee…”
“Ha, not at all. Coffee is meant to be enjoyed after a meal, isn’t it?”
At the Interview Officer’s jest, the Cafe Owner covered her mouth with a smile.
“Hehe, well then, once you’re done eating, I’ll prepare some cold iced coffee for each of you. Just wait a moment. I’ll bring the meal right away.”
As if she’d prepared everything in advance, the Cafe Owner returned quickly with the food.
Numerous side dishes were arranged across the table.
It was a set meal featuring an exquisite savory miso stew.
“Please, help yourselves.”
“Yes, thank you, Owner.”
The Interview Officer spoke with a smile, his gaze lingering on the Cafe Owner’s form as she returned to the kitchen before he quickly looked away.
“Ahem, you must all be quite hungry? Go ahead and eat.”
As if they’d been waiting for those words, the Players picked up their utensils.
The Black Flame Dragon ate ravenously, as though filming a mukbang.
“Seems you were quite famished. Ha.”
“Munch, munch.”
Without even acknowledging the Interview Officer’s comment, he focused entirely on eating.
“That’s right, eat well. You’ll need the energy for the final interview.”
At those words, the Players paused and glanced at the Interview Officer.
Discussing murder at the dinner table—it was understandably unpleasant.
“Ah, my apologies. Perhaps that wasn’t appropriate dinner conversation?”
“Hardly.”
As the Imposter’s expression soured, the Interview Officer bowed his head once more.
“If I’ve caused offense, I sincerely apologize. But please don’t view murder so negatively. Isn’t this all for the unity of Players?”
“Still, killing innocent civilians seems a bit….”
At Ryu Min’s words, the Interview Officer scratched the bridge of his nose.
“Hmm, so it’s the fact that they’re innocent civilians that bothers you?”
“Yes….”
“Don’t worry about that. My selected targets are criminals.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. So there’s no need to feel pangs of conscience. Well, aside from that, if you want to lead the world as a Player, you’ll need a heart of steel. Like Black Scythe here.”
The Interview Officer smiled with his eyes while praising Black Scythe.
He was already showing signs of trying to curry favor.
‘Once Black Scythe joins the cafe, he’ll immediately rise to an executive position.’
Ryu Min was actually interested in an executive position himself.
His participation in this interview wasn’t solely to obtain the Rune of Doppelgänger.
It was part of a plan to establish connections with the Player Union Cafe.
‘To rally Players, it’s only natural that I need to climb to a higher position first.’
Securing an executive position at Player Cafe wasn’t difficult.
All I had to do was reveal myself as Black Scythe like the Imposter before me and pass the interview.
‘But that’s not the method I want. I have no intention of joining by killing civilians.’
In any case, rising to an executive position at Player Cafe was something to do later.
For now, obtaining the Rune of Doppelgänger was more important.
As the meal was winding down.
“Did you enjoy your meal?”
The Cafe Owner approached with a smile in her eyes.
On the tray she held were four iced americanos.
“Please have some coffee as dessert.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
“No, I should be thanking you.”
The Cafe Owner returned the Interview Officer’s smile.
The atmosphere was warm, but only for a moment.
Once the Cafe Owner disappeared into the kitchen, the Interview Officer’s words turned sinister.
“Then shall we proceed with the final interview after finishing our coffee?”
“Who are we killing?”
At Black Flame Dragon’s question, the Interview Officer grinned wickedly.
“Originally, I was planning to target someone among you if any of you had someone you wanted dead….”
The Interview Officer sucked on his straw with a slurp.
“Since you said there isn’t anyone, we’ll have no choice but to kidnap a target we’ve selected.”
“Kidnap?”
“Yes. We’ll kidnap the target and move the body to a place convenient for disposal. Then the four of us—myself and you three—will happily dismember the target together. If you do just that, you’ll pass the interview.”
It sounded simple when put into words.
After all, they’d stabbed people multiple times in Round 4.
But reality felt entirely different.
-Having to kill an ordinary person in reality… it feels uncomfortable. Still, since we’re doing it together rather than alone, at least my conscience won’t weigh as heavily.
Reading his thoughts, I could see that even the Imposter, who had committed countless fraud crimes, hesitated to get blood on his hands.
It was only natural for him to worry—a man interested solely in money with no taste for murder.
‘Well, later when he becomes notorious as a doppelgänger, he’ll strut around without a care for murder or anything else.’
While the Imposter worried about murder, there was someone who didn’t.
A middle schooler for whom killing was a natural talent.
-The interview is X, so it’s easy. Just kill one ordinary criminal civilian, right? The stack won’t even go up by X though.
For the Black Flame Dragon, who had already committed murder in reality, it was nothing.
“Have you finished your coffee?”
“Yes.”
“Shall we get going then?”
As the Interview Officer stood, the players followed suit.
The Cafe Owner came out to see them off with a bright smile.
“Oh my, you’re leaving already?”
“Yes, thank you for the delicious meal, ma’am.”
“There’s more if you’d like.”
“No, thank you. I have urgent business to attend to.”
As he said this, the Interview Officer suddenly frowned and rubbed his stomach.
“Oh dear, I think I ate too much… Where’s the restroom?”
“Ah, just around that corner over there.”
“Ma’am, may I ask one favor?”
“A favor?”
“Could you move my car for me? As you can see, I’m in a hurry…”
“Of course, that’s the least I can do.”
The Cafe Owner readily accepted the valet request and took the keys.
She immediately walked to the bongo truck parked in front of the cafe and opened the door.
Click—
The moment she leaned in to get into the driver’s seat.
“Ugh!”
Someone from behind wrapped their forearm around her neck and strangled her.
The Cafe Owner thrashed about without even seeing who it was, then went limp.
“Heh, easy.”
The one strangling her was none other than the Interview Officer.
He had pretended to go to the restroom, then quickly returned to strangle her.
The Interview Officer immediately placed the limp Cafe Owner in the back seat and shouted toward the outside.
“What are you doing? Get in, quickly!”
The interview candidates, who had been watching the abduction in stunned silence, hurriedly boarded the bongo truck.
Vroom—
The vehicle departed, but the candidates still wore bewildered expressions.
“W-what are you doing? Why the Cafe Owner…?”
“I told you. I had a target in mind.”
“It was the Cafe Owner?”
“Yes.”
“…”
The Interview Officers stared at the Cafe Owner lying beside them with bewildered expressions.
She was unconscious, sleeping soundly.
“You said you target criminals.”
“She is a criminal. A typical con artist who was recently released from prison and has been living under a laundered identity.”
“A con artist…? The owner?”
“How else would a woman in her thirties have the money to open such a large establishment? Every penny came from men’s wallets.”
“Ah…!”
“She seemed so nice, but such a twist…”
They reacted with shock, realizing they had almost fallen victim themselves, but only Ryu Min knew the truth.
He could hear the Interview Officer’s true thoughts without fail.
-Heh heh, deceiving people is so easy, isn’t it? They’d believe it even if I said her entire extended family are criminals.
Ryu Min’s eyes narrowed.
‘Framing an innocent civilian as a con artist.’
He was inciting them to falsely accuse an ordinary person, making murder easy to justify.
There was no depravity quite like this.
‘He’s trying to make them complicit in murder so they can’t back out later.’
When they eventually discovered the person they killed was just an ordinary civilian?
Someone would feel guilt.
Then blackmail becomes simple.
Alternatively, he could seduce them with promises of building a new order together.
This was Player Cafe’s method for ensnaring Players so they could never escape once they joined.
Ryu Min glanced at the Imposter and Black Flame Dragon’s thoughts.
-I never expected the Cafe Owner to be a con artist. She deserved to die anyway.
-Now that she’s supposedly a criminal, it’s easier to kill her. Well, even if she weren’t, we’d have no choice but to kill her to join.
Their thoughts differed slightly, but both were resolved to kill the Cafe Owner.
They believed one person’s sacrifice was unavoidable for joining the Cafe.
Screech—
The car, which had been driving along the National Highway before turning onto a Mountain Road, came to a stop.
“We’ve arrived. This is the Warehouse where the final interview will take place.”
The Interview Officer, who had parked at a shabby Warehouse in the mountains, carried the Cafe Owner over his shoulder.
Though he looked like an ordinary middle-aged man, he was a level 13 Player, so he moved her without difficulty.
Thud—
He dropped her carelessly on the ground, yet the Cafe Owner didn’t wake.
She was truly unconscious.
“Let’s leave her here and begin the work. But first…”
A sinister smile spread across the Interview Officer’s lips.
“Would you like to have some fun with me? It would be a waste to just kill her like this, wouldn’t it?”
“Hmm….”
The young Black Flame Dragon showed no interest in the Cafe Owner, but the Imposter was different.
“Black Scythe? I see you’re contemplating—it looks like you’re considering it?”
“Well… if we’re going to kill her anyway, it would be a shame not to.”
“Then shall we enjoy it together? No, I should practice the virtue of courtesy. I’ll give you a special opportunity, Black Scythe. Go ahead and have your fun first. Hehehehe.”
“Ahem, in that case….”
The Imposter stepped forward, fidgeting with his trouser cuffs.
Reading his thoughts, he had already decided to kill the Cafe Owner.
He considered rape to be acceptable.
“While Black Scythe finishes, Black Flame Dragon and Nol will wait in the back for a moment.”
“Yes. Just finish quickly.”
Unlike the Black Flame Dragon, who stepped back with an air of annoyance, I stepped forward.
“Wait a moment.”
“What is it? Nol?”
“Would it be alright if I went first?”
“Huh? You want to go too, Nol?”
The Interview Officer was surprised, then broke into a sinister smile.
“Kekeke, this is interesting. I thought you were too shy, but it seems you’re quite interested after all? Well, at nineteen years old, you’re at a vigorous age… Ah! Is this your first time?”
“Yes? Yes….”
“Hehehehe, excellent. Black Scythe?”
The Interview Officer asked the Imposter, who was about to remove his underwear, for permission.
“I’m sorry, but could you yield the first turn to Nol? It’s apparently their first experience.”
“Ah, if it’s their first time, I should yield.”
The Imposter pulled his pants back up without hesitation.
In the meantime, I walked toward the Imposter with an expressionless face.
As the two of us passed each other like we were switching places, the Imposter spoke in passing.
“Do well. I’m making a special concession for you.”
I replied with a smile.
“Thank you. I’ll make good use of the Clone Rune.”
“Huh? A rune? What do you mean….”
That was when it happened.
Crack—!
I grabbed the Imposter’s face with both hands and applied a slight amount of force.
Crunch, crunch, crunch—!
His head twisted like a chicken’s neck being wrung, and the Imposter crumpled to the ground lifelessly.
Instant death.

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