The Legendary Regressor Devours the Tower - Chapter 25

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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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Chapter 25
Seong-un swung his blade downward, slashing at the Lizardman Shaman’s neck.
“Shriek!”
The shaman raised his staff to shield his throat.
Crack—
But Seong-un’s blood-crimson blade severed the staff cleanly and carved through the Lizardman Shaman’s neck without resistance.
Scrape—
“Shrieeeek!”
Blood poured from the gash as the Lizardman Shaman staggered backward.
‘That landed perfectly.’
The sensation in his hand told him everything.
The One Sword Two Severings had connected successfully.
Yet the creature’s head didn’t fall to the ground.
‘Thread?’
Looking closer, several threads were holding the severed neck in place.
Seong-un thrust his blade forward, slicing through them.
Only after the magic threads snapped completely did the Lizardman Shaman’s head fall.
[You have defeated the Tower’s Master, the Lizardman Shaman.]
[75,000 Experience Points have been awarded.]
[Your Level has increased by 2.]
[No additional resources can be obtained.]
[Your Clear Rating is being calculated.]
[Clear Score: S+]
[As a bonus reward for your Clear Rating, you have been awarded 1 Gold.]
It was over.
‘The One Sword Two Severings made that easy.’
With the Experience Points gained, Seong-un’s Level rose to 21.
The Apartment Complex had transformed into a small tower, allowing him to gain 3 Levels, and not a single casualty had occurred despite the building being inhabited.
“It should be right there.”
Seong-un approached the altar where the Lizardman Shaman had been conducting his ritual.
A small glowing Fragment lay before him, and Seong-un immediately recognized it as a Destined Item.
“Was it always this small?”
Yet the Fragment’s size was far smaller than he’d anticipated.
When he’d seen the photograph, it had looked at least five times larger.
Had his memory been warped?
[Mana Heart Fragment]
-Type: Consumable
-Grade: A+
-A piece of the heart carried by the dragon clan.
-Upon absorbing a Mana Heart Fragment, Magic Power increases by 20.
His memory hadn’t been warped.
The Destined Item that should have been here was not a Mana Heart Fragment—it was the Mana Heart itself.
The Lizardman Shaman must have intended to use that Mana Heart to summon one of Kayak’s avatars.
“Did I arrive too late?”
In his previous life, the Lizardman Shaman had been defeated before ever using the Mana Heart, which was why it had been preserved intact.
To say he felt no regret would be a lie.
Had he possessed sufficient strength, he could have rapidly cleared the Blood Ant Queen as well, and struck down the Lizardman Shaman during the preparation of the ritual.
He conducted a thorough search to ensure nothing was missed, but found nothing except the single Fragment.
“If this counts as misfortune, then so be it.”
The difference between the expected reward and what he’d obtained left him with an unmistakable sense of loss.
* * *
At that same moment.
Han Geon-u was stumbling about the first floor of the Tower of Destruction.
The hallucinations from the jester’s laughter that he’d consumed before entering were beginning to take effect.
“What in the world… what kind of madman is that?”
Unable to steady his body, drooling like someone deranged, Han Geon-u prompted the Starting Village residents to furrow their brows and distance themselves from him.
“I’ll handle this.”
At that moment, the one who stepped forward was an NPC named Jayden.
He had been heading to report to the village chief after completing his patrol duties for the settlement.
“Ah, Jayden.”
“Please. Do something about that.”
Jayden approached confidently and placed a hand on Han Geon-u’s shoulder.
“Listen here.”
In that instant, Han Geon-u’s eyes flashed and he hurled a fist toward Jayden.
Crack!
The punch landed squarely on his right cheek, snapping his head to the side.
He nearly lost his balance, but Jayden too was built sturdy enough not to be bullied—he recovered quickly and seized Han Geon-u by the collar.
“Listen. Just because you’re a Climber doesn’t mean you can treat us however you like now—ugh!”
Crack!
Jayden’s words died in his throat.
Han Geon-u, gripped by the collar, drove his head forward into Jayden’s face.
The impact was brutal enough that Jayden released his hold and staggered backward, nearly reeling.
“I won’t become someone like you!”
Han Geon-u looked at Jayden with scorn in his eyes, turned away, and then collapsed where he stood.
“Jayden!”
“Are you okay?!”
The resident watching from a distance rushed to Jayden, who waved dismissively—but blood was streaming from both sides of his nose.
“I’m fine… I’ll just take him outside and deal with it.”
“Let’s treat you first!”
“No. If he wakes up, it’ll be a real headache. Better to handle it quickly.”
Jayden pressed his hand to his nose and approached Han Geon-u.
Damn brat.
You’ll make fine goblin food.
* * *
“Uhhh…”
The world spun in circles.
His head throbbed as though it might split, but remembering that he’d entered the Tower, he forced himself upright.
“Hell, that old bastard.”
I should’ve known better than to drink that Elixir.
I drank it just to gain 1% Elemental Resistance to Darkness—and it bit me back.
Still, the absorption had succeeded; the 1% Elemental Resistance to Darkness remained on his stat sheet.
“But why am I here of all places…?”
He’d awakened not in Starting Village, but at the forest’s edge.
Han Geon-u’s face drained of all color.
Had he woken even a moment later, the goblins prowling here might have killed him.
He scrambled to his feet and looked toward the village entrance.
The guards at the entrance regarded him with such obvious revulsion that Han Geon-u realized he’d caused a disturbance inside.
“So it wasn’t a dream.”
Han Geon-u pressed his forehead with his palm.
The hallucination glimpsed through the Jester’s laughter was an old memory.
When he was young, he and his younger sister sat in his mother’s small tteokbokki shop, eating together and chatting softly.
It was one of the few happy memories he possessed.
He’d been boasting about his future success and filial piety when someone placed a hand on his shoulder.
The size was all too familiar—Han Geon-u threw a punch without hesitation.
It connected squarely, but when he wouldn’t fall and instead grabbed his collar, Han Geon-u headbutted him with the intent to drag them both down.
“Hell, I just beat up an NPC.”
I never thought it could’ve been one.
Dealing damage to an NPC lowers your Clear Rating.
I don’t know how Seong-un reached EX+, but that must’ve been an exception.
Han Geon-u scratched his head furiously and drew out the A-grade Greatsword he’d received from Seong-un.
“Clearing through an NPC is already off the table. So I’d better hunt goblins quickly and clear that way instead.”
There was the approach Pyo Byeong-u took—reaching the Goblin Lord before slaying a hundred goblins—but honestly, with only Unyielding, beheading the Lord was beyond reach.
Yet he might still get close enough to the Goblin Lord to try, mightn’t he?
“I’m finishing this as A-grade at minimum.”
Han Geon-u’s eyes blazed with resolve.
With that determination set, he stepped into the forest’s mouth.
* * *
Seong-un descended the stairs after finishing the Tower’s conquest.
On the twelfth floor, Jang Byeong-jun and the other guards awaited him.
“Seong-un!”
Jang Byeong-jun’s face brightened at the sight of Seong-un unharmed.
“Were you worried about me?”
“Of course I was. What were you thinking, going in alone like that?”
He stepped closer, examining Seong-un’s condition as he spoke.
“I judged that prolonging things would serve no purpose.”
“That may be true, but honestly, this time was reckless.”
The Blood Ant Queen was Level 32.
For someone who had only just climbed the second floor, it was a formidable opponent.
And something even more dangerous than that lurked beyond—yet he’d entered alone with no information at all. How reckless must it have seemed.
“There will be many more situations like this ahead.”
As he climbed higher, the level gap would only grow more extreme.
Eventually, there would come a point where repeatedly climbing lower floors to gain levels would hit its limit.
That’s why a weapon to overcome that gap was necessary.
It could be equipment, it could be skills, it could be experience.
“……But even so, please leave such matters to us from now on.”
He didn’t want to lose Seong-un here.
Eight years ago, the Tower had claimed the woman he loved. He’d climbed it seeking revenge.
But he’d been stopped by a wall at the fifteenth floor—and Curtis, who had been a Named ranker back then.
The guild Jang Byeong-jun had belonged to was decimated.
As the sole survivor, he’d faced despair once more and tried to abandon everything, until Choi Hyeok—now the association chairman—had extended his hand.
Not strength and power, but the erasure of the Tower itself.
Finding their purposes aligned, he’d sworn his loyalty, and now, watching Seong-un, he dared to hope.
This cursed Tower—Seong-un was the only one who could save the world from it.
That’s why he had to stand beside him and give his utmost support as Seong-un grew stronger.
“I will do so.”
At his serious expression, Seong-un nodded.
* * *
After Jang Byeong-jun came Choi Hyeok.
A Fragment had swallowed the Apartment Complex managed by the association.
At the emergency, Choi Hyeok had rushed to the complex late, and only once he confirmed Seong-un was safe could he breathe easy.
Especially when he received reports that casualties were zero—he rejoiced greatly, saying fortune had blessed them.
‘I’ll strengthen security.’
He added security personnel and ordered them stationed on every floor so that even if a Fragment swallowed the complex again, they could respond immediately.
As the Apartment Complex’s security was raised to stage one, a day passed and the Misfortune Debuff vanished.
Just then, he received a report that Han Geon-u had finished climbing the first floor, so he summoned him briefly.
“B+?”
“Yes.”
“Why B+? I gave you an A-grade Greatsword—you should’ve gotten an S-grade Clear Rating at least.”
He hadn’t been able to secure the tutorial rewards, but with Han Geon-u’s physical specs, Unyielding, and an A-grade Greatsword in hand, he should have easily earned an S-grade—shouldn’t he?
Especially when this guy called Little Meteor had apparently finished the first floor with an SS+ Clear Rating.
Because of that, the subsequent climbers were easily getting S-grade or higher ratings and finishing their climbs.
So why B+, not even S-grade?
Han Geon-u began stammering out excuses.
“That’s…… I drank that damned old man’s Elixir and started right away…….”
“Are you insane? Once you’ve suffered through the pain, shouldn’t you drink it later?”
“It loses effectiveness once you go past Level 5.”
“Then you should’ve drunk it and entered afterward.”
“Time was running short and I got impatient, so…….”
“So that’s how you ended up with B+?”
“Yes…….”
Who would’ve thought he’d beat up an NPC and get kicked out of the village.
This sort of thing had happened a few times in the early days, but since strategy guides had spread widely, no one short of a complete madman would pull such a stunt anymore.
Since it was already done, there was little point in scolding him, but if this became a pattern, it would be a problem.
For now, he was useful enough as an errand boy, but later on, he’d need to handle tasks of considerable difficulty.
If he couldn’t manage that, there was no reason to keep him around.
“But tell me—why are you so obsessed with power?”
It seemed strange to be mere stupidity.
He’d already suffered once through the Elixir.
He should have learned his lesson—so what had driven Han Geon-u to such impatience?
“That’s…… Do you know about Paldo?”
Han Geon-u opened his mouth slowly.
“Paldo? Is it a guild?”
“Yes.”
Han Geon-u searched for Paldo on his smartphone and showed it to Seong-un.
A guild ranked 54th in South Korea.
The guild master was his father, Han Sang-jin, a tanker who had climbed to the latter half of the 17th floor.
“It’s a guild led by that bastard I call father. Of course, I’ve cut all ties with them.”
“He was your father?”
“……Yes.”
He was a man with his own story.
Han Geon-u had suffered domestic violence from childhood.
His father, Han Sang-jin, was a man perpetually soaked in drink, throwing punches at the slightest opportunity.
But when the Tower appeared and he received an Invitation shortly after, he awakened and abandoned his family, leaving them behind.
“So you wanted to become stronger as quickly as possible and destroy Paldo?”
“Yes. I can’t stomach the sight of that cursed man lording it over everyone, even if it kills me.”
Anger surged through him, and his fists clenched visibly.
“From the second floor onward, nothing below S-rank.”
“Pardon?”
At those words, Han Geon-u’s eyes went wide.
“The guild I build will be greater than any other. Doesn’t being a founding member require real strength to back it up?”
At the confident declaration, something shifted in Han Geon-u’s gaze.
There was only one reason he could be moved by the words of someone who’d only just climbed the second floor—a mere newcomer.
The one who spoke them was Seong-un himself.
A founding member of the guild built by the Irregular Seong-un.
That title was beyond price.
Desire began to ripple through Han Geon-u’s eyes with fierce intensity.
“So I just need to clear it at S-rank or higher?”
“That’s right.”
“……I will succeed, no matter what!”
A resounding cry echoed through the entire Apartment Complex.
The Record-Breaking Returner Devours the Tower (Serialized)
Author │ Yeon-i-yo
Publisher │ Kim Ju-hyeong
Published by │ J Plus Media Co., Ltd.
Marketing │ Han Jae-hyeok
Address │ 401, 11 Digital-ro 33-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul (Guro-dong, Ace Techno Tower 8th)
Email │ [email protected]
Website │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ Yeon-i-yo 2026
※This work is published by J Plus Media Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder, and the contents may not be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
Violation of this may result in criminal and civil legal liability.

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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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