The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player - Chapter 85

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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 85
85. Hunting Trash Mobs
The definition of a trash mob varies from person to person, but generally refers to monsters that can be defeated easily.
For Ryu Min, Centaurs fell into the category of trash mobs.
‘Though for others, they’d be considered elite-tier monsters.’
For players at the early level 20 stage right now, they would be formidable opponents.
That said, they weren’t impossible to defeat.
With five people together, one could be handled without much trouble.
‘The problem is that it’s classified as a trash mob.’
Contrary to people’s expectations, the Centaur wasn’t the boss.
The real boss was the bull-headed Minotaur lurking somewhere in this place.
‘To defeat the Minotaur, you’d need at least twenty level 20 players.’
In other words, you’d need at least four five-person parties just to have a fighting chance.
That’s how powerful it was.
‘Of course, from my perspective, it’s just a monster with impressive durability but sluggish movements.’
The players probably thought this when forming their parties.
That the mission was easier than expected.
That five people could defeat the boss.
‘But while the Centaur is possible, the Minotaur is impossible. Early level 20 players in a five-person party don’t stand a chance.’
To defeat it with five people, you’d need to be at least level 30.
Actually, even level 30 is honestly unrealistic.
‘Level 40 might be different.’
This was why Angel said she absolutely couldn’t defeat it alone.
The Minotaur was fundamentally not a creature that could be defeated solo.
‘The trap of this round lies right here. It was designed to make it seem like a five-person party could defeat the boss.’
Of course, Angel never explicitly said that five people could defeat the boss…
‘Even knowing that at least twenty people would be needed to have any chance, that bastard Angel pretended not to know.’
Deliberately withholding information that should have been disclosed was the only way to interpret it.
‘Well, they were probably just following orders from above.’
Still, there was no justification for spreading such information around.
It would only invite unnecessary suspicion.
‘I’ll just have to watch and see.’
Those who clashed with the Minotaur would come to realize it.
That a single five-person party alone couldn’t handle it.
That cooperation upon cooperation was necessary to defeat the boss.
‘Once they realize that, multiple parties will band together and help each other.’
That was the strategy for Round 6.
Only by cooperating and yielding kills to one another could they survive.
‘There will be some friction in that process, but ultimately they’ll cooperate. There’s no other way.’
Some might think otherwise.
So there was no need to hunt the Centaur.
It had nothing to do with the Quest’s objective.
‘But any player with a bit of insight would understand. Why there’s a time limit.’
What could be the reason for granting a six-hour time limit?
‘It’s an invitation to hunt down the Centaur and level up even slightly during that window.’
The Minotaur could be defeated later.
The ranking system wasn’t based on who defeated the boss first.
‘Rankings are determined by how quickly you eliminate the target.’
In other words, the order doesn’t matter.
Securing first place is possible by defeating it in the shortest time.
That was why Ryu Min had been acting so leisurely.
‘The other team members didn’t rush either because they understood that too.’
Ryu Min had shared six pieces of information under the guise of prophecy.
First. Round 6 is a mission to form a five-person party and defeat a boss.
Second. The Centaur is a regular mob, and the Minotaur is the true boss.
Third. The boss requires at least four five-person parties to defeat, so cooperation between parties is necessary.
Fourth. Ranking isn’t determined by who defeats the boss first. It’s determined by who takes the least time to kill it.
Fifth. Once a team defeats the boss, they’re immediately protected by a pillar of light. In other words, they must waste the remaining time, which is actually disadvantageous.
Sixth. The best strategy is to grow stronger by defeating the Centaur during the time limit, then challenge the boss.
This was the core strategy for Round 6.
Only Heo Tae-sik, who hadn’t heard the prophecy, remained ignorant. Everyone else knew.
“Judging by the other teams’ reactions, that thing doesn’t seem to be the boss. The real boss must be elsewhere.”
Ryu Min, laying out knowledge he already possessed as if he’d just figured it out himself, spoke to his party members.
“I’ll explain my plan from here on.”
“Please do.”
“We’ll put off the boss for now and hunt that Centaur first to level up. Until the time limit runs out.”
“What? Why…?”
“We five at level 20 struggled to defeat that Centaur. If such a creature is merely a regular mob, then the boss must require at least several teams to defeat. Since we can’t gauge how strong it is, rushing to fight the boss doesn’t seem wise. There could be other traps involved.”
“Ah….”
“What if we defeat the boss early like in Round 1 and get trapped by the pillar of light? We’d just suffer losses during the remaining time, so hunting regular mobs and observing the situation seems like the better judgment.”
“Ah… I, I see.”
An Sang-chul was inwardly shocked by Ryu Min’s assessment.
‘To think Black Scythe possessed this level of insight….’
The fact that multiple parties were needed to defeat the boss.
The fact that defeating the boss traps you in a pillar of light.
The fact that the time limit’s purpose was for hunting, among other things.
He’d grasped the strategy perfectly without hearing the prophecy.
Had it been him, he would have thoughtlessly gathered other parties to fight the boss.
“S, so you’re saying we’ll hunt the regular mobs first and fight the boss later?”
“That’s right.”
“But wouldn’t that risk losing first place?”
“It doesn’t matter. Even if we don’t get the first-place reward, we’ll have six hours of hunting experience. Besides, the ranking system might not be based on who defeats the monster first.”
“….”
An Sang-chul found himself at a loss for words.
‘Remarkable. How does he find the right path without any foresight?’
It was as if he were navigating an unfamiliar maze without making a single wrong turn.
“Understood. Shall we all head out to hunt the Centaur then? Oh, but first we should probably establish our positions and devise a simple strategy….”
“No, that’s unnecessary. I’ll be hunting the monster alone.”
“Pardon? Black Scythe, you’ll do it by yourself?”
An Sang-chul and the entire party were taken aback.
A monster that even a five-person party could barely defeat, and he intended to solo it?
Of course, considering Black Scythe’s level, it was certainly possible.
But if he hunted alone, what were the rest of them supposed to do?
As if reading their thoughts, Ryu Min spoke up.
“You do nothing. I’ll be the one killing it.”
“Pardon? Then what should we do….”
“Just follow me around and collect the experience and gold. In a way, you could call it a free ride.”
In other words, he was offering to carry them.
“In exchange, I’ll take all the items that drop based on contribution. In return, you’ll be able to gain levels and gold quickly without any risk. How about it?”
“Hmm…. If that’s the case….”
It was certainly an attractive proposition.
Why would anyone refuse to gain experience and gold safely in exchange for forgoing a few items?
“Agreed.”
“What about the rest of you?”
“We’re in as well.”
“We’ll follow Black Scythe’s lead.”
With the agreement reached, Ryu Min nodded.
“Good choice. I doubt you’ll regret it.”
For Ryu Min, soloing was far more convenient than fighting alongside others.
Having them assist would only get in the way.
‘A Centaur is nothing but a mob to me.’
Ryu Min drew Death Side.
“Shall we go?”
Whoosh—!
The party gasped as Ryu Min shot forward like a bullet.
“W-we need to hurry and follow!”
Led by An Sang-chul, they all pursued Ryu Min.
Despite having Swift active, which granted considerable movement speed, the gap refused to close.
‘How is he so fast?’
‘Just how high is his agility….’
Even Heo Tae-sik, who prided himself on his considerable speed, was nothing more than a house cat before a cheetah when standing before Black Scythe.
“There!”
Ryu Min faced a Centaur for the first time.
“Roooar—!”
Before the roar even finished, its head flew clean off with a wet slice.
The time it took to dispatch the Centaur: 0.3 seconds.
At a hunting speed that didn’t even break a second, the approaching party members froze in stunned silence.
‘W-what just happened?’
‘One hit…?’
No one had expected the Centaur to die in a single blow.
Whether Ryu Min noticed their reaction or not, he immediately dashed toward his next target.
* * *
About thirty minutes had passed since the hunt began.
[You have located the target ‘Centaur’.]
[Current distance: 52 meters away.]
Ryu Min, who had been using his tracking skill to locate prey one after another, paused briefly to catch his breath.
[You have defeated the Centaur!]
[3x Experience Buff is active.]
[Title effect increases experience by 1.5x.]
[Experience +0.89%]
[Gold +60]
[Current Kill Count: 172/100]
[Massacre Rune effect increases all stats by 100%.]
Defeat messages streamed continuously across one corner of his vision.
‘172 kills in thirty minutes. Not a bad pace.’
There were a total of 2,000 Centaurs released in the Field.
At this rate, I might be able to monopolize them all within six hours.
‘Well, other players will get some kills too, so I’ll leave a few for them.’
Ryu Min’s gaze shifted lower on the screen.
[Eternal Sleep Orb Stack: 71/100]
[Eternal Sleep Orb Current Durability: 828/1,000]
[Stat Points Gained from Eternal Sleep Orb: 11]
Below that, messages from the Eternal Sleep Orb were also updating in real time.
When defeating mobs while wearing the Eternal Sleep Orb, these messages appear.
‘I just need to keep hunting Centaurs until the durability drops to 1, like before.’
It was convenient not having to check the equipment window manually each time.
‘When I get back, I’ll need to ask Russell to repair its durability again.’
While thinking such thoughts, I suddenly heard the sound of hurried footsteps.
Turning around, the party members came rushing over, out of breath.
“Huff, huff, huff…”
“Ugh… I’m dying.”
A smile crossed my face as I watched my party members struggle just to keep up.
“If it’s too hard, take a break.”
“Really?”
“Th-thank you so much!”
Given this rare moment of rest, my companions collapsed onto the ground without ceremony.
Seo A-rin and Heo Tae-sik, whose Strength stats were low, sprawled out completely flat.
“Even chasing after monsters is exhausting, truly.”
“I thought a 100-meter range would be plenty, but apparently not…”
“Tell me about it. Phew…”
Yet despite their complaints, this was hardly a burden to bear.
They’d already leveled up in just thirty minutes.
“Black Scythe, you’re truly amazing. Your hunting speed is incredible.”
“Does that mean you dislike it?”
At Ryu Min’s mischievous question, Min Ju-ri waved her hands frantically.
“Oh, no! Not at all! We’re gaining levels just by following along—how could we possibly complain?”
“Isn’t this what they call being carried? You’re the one suffering more than us, Black Scythe.”
Seo A-rin seized the opportunity to interject, but Ryu Min simply replied without emotion.
“It seems like you’re the ones working harder.”
“Haha…”
As they caught their breath with laughter, a group approached Ryu Min.
“Huh? Isn’t that Black Scythe?”
“No way! Really?”
The group numbered four.
As a total of twenty people drew near, my party members’ laughter faded, replaced by cautious gazes.
But there was no need to worry.
They wouldn’t be insane enough to attack a party that included Black Scythe.
And indeed.
The moment they spotted Ryu Min, they bowed respectfully.
“Greetings, Black Scythe. What fortunate timing to encounter you here. Haha!”
“Skip the pleasantries. What do you want?”
“Well, we’re currently recruiting a team for a boss hunt. Would you be interested in joining our group…?”

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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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