The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 81

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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 81
81. Mr. Ryu
Unlike Dark Knight, Buffer, and Mercenary King, Blacksmith is not a unique class.
It meant there were plenty of Blacksmiths who could replace Russell.
Yet there was only one reason Ryu Min had flown all the way to the Deep Mountains of England.
‘Talents as exceptional as Russell are few and far between.’
Russell’s survival through Round 15 was no lie.
Neither was reaching the pinnacle of the Blacksmith class.
‘Though he never reached max level before dying, he was the only Blacksmith who survived to the very end.’
It meant his character, skill, and survival instinct were all exceptional.
‘If I could maintain a favorable relationship with such talent?’
It would prove invaluable in progressing through the Rounds.
Repairing the Orb’s durability was merely a bonus.
‘The Blacksmith class shares similarities with the Buffer—there’s no downside to keeping him close.’
The difference was that unlike a Buffer, a Blacksmith didn’t need to stay constantly at my side.
Once he repaired and enhanced equipment, his job was done.
Ryu Min glanced at Russell.
His mind was tangled, wrestling with whether he could trust me.
‘I should help him decide.’
This was the English I’d learned through countless regressions, saved for moments like this.
Ryu Min spoke with fluent ease.
“What I’m asking for isn’t much. Simply repair and enhance equipment when needed, and cast a few skills when necessary. In return, I’ll share information about the next Round. Do that, and you’ll secure the benefits you missed in the future, growing stronger rapidly.”
“Hmm….”
Obtaining future information in exchange for merely using skills.
It was an offer that required no deliberation, yet that wasn’t what concerned Russell.
It was whether he could trust Ryu Min.
-He seems honest enough from how he speaks, but can I really trust him….
After turning it over in his mind, Russell offered a compromise.
“I’m grateful you value my future so highly, but I’m not yet certain. So I’d like to decide whether to continue this arrangement after seeing the results of Round 6.”
“By all means. I wasn’t asking you to sign a contract anyway.”
Ryu Min flashed a confident smile.
Just like Ma Gyeong-rok, once he confirmed the prophecy with his own eyes, he’d have no choice but to rely on me.
“Let me repair your items first. I’ll receive the Round 6 information afterward.”
“Understood. Here.”
Ryu Min retrieved the Orb of Eternal Sleep from his inventory.
With only 1 durability remaining, it was hanging by a thread.
Upon receiving the necklace, Russell didn’t even bother checking the Item Information before immediately casting his skill.
Whoosh—
The repair finished with a brief flash of light from the Orb.
“All fixed.”
Ryu Min received the item and checked its information.
The durability had somehow filled up completely to [1,000/1,000].
‘Good. Now I can start stacking again.’
Ryu Min, grinning widely, glanced at Russell.
-I’m not sure what kind of necklace it is, but it must be quite valuable. The fact that you keep using it even while repairing its durability says something.
When I read his thoughts, I realized he didn’t know about the item’s details.
Even though he could have easily read the full information.
‘He deliberately didn’t read it, respecting the customer’s privacy.’
A true professional with integrity.
“Thank you. Thanks to you, the durability has been perfectly restored.”
“Will you now provide information about Round 6?”
“Of course I should. The Round 6 Quest is….”
Ryu Min laid out all sorts of advanced information.
With each revelation, Russell’s eyes widened and narrowed in turn.
“Hmm… If what you just said is true, I’ll need to gather the strongest allies I can find.”
“Yes. That would certainly help. The monsters are incredibly powerful, after all.”
Russell nodded along, but inwardly, he still doubted whether the prophecy would come true.
‘Well, I won’t believe it until I experience it myself.’
Ryu Min wasn’t impatient about it.
Once Round 6 passed, Russell would understand.
That to survive, he’d have no choice but to grasp this lifeline of a prophet.
“Then is our transaction complete?”
“Yes, but….”
Ryu Min trailed off.
There was still more business with the blacksmith.
“Would you be willing to sell me an item?”
“An item?”
“You have [Black Iron Powder], don’t you?”
“…!”
Russell, who had been skeptical until now, couldn’t help but be shocked this time.
‘He even guessed what I have!?’
I never expected him to predict even the items inside my inventory through prophecy.
But that wasn’t all that shocked him.
“Sell that item to me. It seems you’re looking for work because the material cost is insufficient, but I’ll pay you generously.”
‘…He even knows I’m looking for work?’
It wasn’t prophecy but reading his thoughts, though to Russell, there was little difference.
“This is truly remarkable. Now I believe it. That you’re a prophet. And I apologize. To be honest, I suspected there might be some deception involved.”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. I simply speak what I see of the future—believing or not is your choice.”
“The Round 6 information will surely be accurate as well.”
Saying so, Russell, who had been thinking intently about something, lifted his head as if he’d made a decision.
“Do you need black iron powder? I’ll just give it to you.”
“Just give it to me?”
“It seems like what I received is worth more than what I gave. I’m not that unprincipled, am I?”
He must have belatedly trusted the Round 5 information and valued it highly.
Russell smiled as he retrieved the black iron powder from his inventory.
“Please take it.”
Without hesitation, I accepted it, and Item Information appeared.
[Black Iron Powder]
-Classification: Possession
-Description: Black iron powder. A faint magical aura can be felt.
‘He’s just giving away such a precious item.’
Strictly speaking, I received it in exchange for the information, but Russell wouldn’t know that.
How much value the black iron powder actually held.
‘It’s a material that just entered the god-tier grade, after all.’
It’s said to be easily obtainable once you pass Round 11, but it’s difficult now.
The chances of it dropping from monsters like Russell hunts are slim.
‘Shouldn’t I be the one thanking him?’
If I gave Round 5 information and received black iron powder, it’s not a bad deal.
“Are you sure? You’re really just giving this away?”
“I’m fine with it. Honestly, I don’t even know what it’s used for. Only you, the oracle, would know the true value of that item.”
Russell had some sense of it too.
-The fact that he specifically asked for it means it must be quite an important item.
But he deliberately doesn’t ask.
He doesn’t try to find out.
He thought that wanting more when he’d already received help would be greed.
‘Not crossing unnecessary lines. That’s Russell’s strength.’
Ryu Min, who had been smiling, held out the bag he’d brought.
“Please take this.”
“What is this?”
Russell, caught off guard, opened the bag.
“Gasp!”
Dozens of bundles of ten-pound notes were inside.
“It’s a total of 20,000 pounds.”
“….”
“I can’t just accept the item for free, so I’ll pay you in return. That should be enough to cover material costs, right?”
“W-well, yes.”
Russell answered sharply.
More than enough.
20,000 pounds amounted to 32 million won in Korean currency.
-This is enough that I won’t need to find a job!
Was it because I could do whatever I wanted during the remaining time?
Russell’s eyes, which had been fixed on me, quickly turned favorable.
When I let out a soft chuckle at that, Russell belatedly caught on and looked embarrassed.
“Ah, well, but I’m not sure if I should accept such a large sum….”
“You absolutely should accept it. The items you gave me are worth that much.”
‘In truth, even if I gave you tens of millions, it wouldn’t be wasteful, but if the amount is too large, you’d feel burdened instead.’
This was already me exercising restraint.
But Russell seemed to think even this was too much.
Thinking there was no helping it, I spoke casually.
“Of course, I didn’t give you this large sum just for material costs.”
“Pardon? Then….”
“Open an overseas stock account and invest about half of the money I gave you in Korean stocks.”
“Korean stocks?”
“The company name is Player Place. It’s a company that will strike it big soon, so if you invest, you won’t have to worry about material costs for the rest of your life. Well, whether you believe me or not is up to you.”
“I will believe you. Since it’s the word of a prophet, it cannot be wrong. Besides, this is money I obtained without any effort….”
Only after seeing him promise to invest in Korean stocks could I take my leave.
“That concludes our business, Russell Daniel. I wish you good fortune in the next round. Ah, do you have a phone?”
“Of course. I even upload videos to YouTube on my phone.”
“Then I’ll give you my number. Save it just in case.”
Russell, who had taken out his phone to write it down, lifted his head as if he’d just realized he’d forgotten to ask something important.
“I’ve been so forgetful—I never even asked your name. Your name is…?”
I smiled broadly and spoke.
“You may call me Mr. Ryu.”
* * *
Time cannot be stopped.
That day came, as it always did.
June 1st, at midnight.
As usual, I was summoned to the Other World and looked around.
Unlike the verdant landscape before, a barren wasteland stretched out before me.
It was none other than the setting for Round 6.
‘Round 6 is a cooperation round. I need to find people to move with.’
As I surveyed my surroundings, I activated my Tracking skill.
The first person I found was Min Ju-ri.
If I’m to form a party, she is absolutely essential.
‘In truth, I don’t need anyone besides Min Ju-ri.’
But I still needed people to fill out the numbers.
The rules of this round required forming a five-person party.
‘Besides Min Ju-ri and me, I need three more people. Who should I choose?’
Four candidates immediately came to mind.
One of them was someone I’d never met before, but there was a reason to include them in the party.
After all, this person would be helpful to my future endeavors.
“Oh? Black Scythe!”
Min Ju-ri spotted Ryu Min and came running toward him, waving her hand.
“It’s so nice to see you like this! How have you been?”
“You’re speaking as if we haven’t seen each other in ages.”
“Hehe, but it’s been a month since we last saw each other.”
Min Ju-ri smiled brightly, no longer afraid.
In fact, their chemistry had been excellent in the previous cycle as well.
‘That’s why we could become close without knowing each other’s true identities.’
Ryu Min glanced around, and he noticed that people’s gazes were directed toward them.
-Who is that woman? Why is she talking to Black Scythe?
-Min Ju-ri? Is she a top-ranked player on par with Black Scythe?
-Now that I think about it, I think I saw her in the last round’s ranking results. She was ranked 2nd, I think…
-Either way, I’m jealous. To have connections with a top-tier ranker…
Ryu Min paid no attention, but Black Scythe was popular among the Players.
Being the immovable Rank 1 and possessing an icy charisma, both men and women wanted to befriend him.
However, they only harbored such feelings in their hearts and couldn’t actually act on them, for a simple reason.
Black Scythe was terrifying.
An unapproachable aura circled around him like a barrier.
But Min Ju-ri seemed unaffected and continued speaking to him regardless.
“Did you defeat the final boss in the last round?”
“I did.”
“You defeated it quickly despite the time being tight? Then you also completed the sub-quest for collecting the Stones of Balance?”
“Completed it. By the way, I’m not telling you what reward I got.”
“Tsk, how did you know? I was about to ask.”
“You can tell just by looking.”
“I’ve felt it for a while now, but your insight really is profound, Black Scythe.”
“….”
As silence fell, Min Ju-ri finally realized the atmosphere had become strange.
-W-what did I just say? How embarrassing.
Belated embarrassment washed over her, and her face flushed red.
“Ah, I-I just said something really cringey, didn’t I? I’m sorry.”
“What’s there to apologize for?”
“Huh? Ah… You’re right. Why did I apologize?”
“Anyway, I appreciate the compliment.”
As he said that with a soft chuckle, Min Ju-ri laughed along with him.
-One moment he’s considerate, the next he’s overflowing with charisma… He’s really a fascinating person.
Just as Min Ju-ri was laughing it off.
“Hello, Black Scythe.”
Two party candidates approached Black Scythe.

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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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