The Regression of a Challenger-Level Player - Chapter 25

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

Episode 25. Can You Pull This Off? (4)
The thugs were stronger than I’d expected.
Though come to think of it, that made sense.
If the Kingdom had fallen into this state, then the world had basically collapsed—and in a collapsed world, those who survive tend to be strong. Maybe they’d grown strong through survival itself.
That said.
“Aaaaaaagh!”
They weren’t a real threat to me.
One of the thugs who’d dared rush at me just moments ago—only to have his joints hyperextended—let out a blood-curdling scream.
“You damned bastard!”
Another seized the moment to thrust his blade at my back.
“No, stop!”
Iris cried out in warning, though it hardly mattered.
I’d already known about such an obvious ambush long before he even raised his sword.
Whoosh!
I ducked smoothly beneath the slash aimed at my neck, then closed the distance with a single step and drove my knee up into his abdomen.
“Ghack!”
Next, I seized his arm and shoulder, then twisted the bone in its socket.
Crunch-crack!
With a sickening sound, I wrenched his arm so his palm now faced outward.
In that condition, he wouldn’t be wielding a blade anywhere anytime soon.
“Nngh…!”
“Live with some dignity, will you? How shameful.”
To finish it off, I gave the prostrate man’s jaw a light tap.
His eyes rolled back, foam flecked his lips, and he passed out.
“Phew. Done.”
I dusted off my palms with a couple of sharp claps, like someone finishing a cleaning job, and exhaled deeply.
In a way, sweeping up trash and making the world a tiny bit cleaner wasn’t so different from mopping a floor.
-This guy’s fought more than just a couple of people-
-We won’t give you any more trouble, sir-
-Ha ha, as expected you’re the best, Jae-ha-
-Please, spare me…-
After a casual glance at the sprawled forms, I approached Iris, who stood frozen in place, utterly dumbstruck.
“Are you all right?”
“Ah…”
The princess stared at me with eyes that still couldn’t quite believe what they’d just witnessed.
Though her clothes were grimy and unwashed, her beauty was so striking it drew gasps regardless.
-Wow…-
-She’s the most beautiful NPC we’ve seen in the story-
-Can’t help myself, I’m going to unlock that scenario too-
-Sister!-
-Beauty!-
The viewers’ reaction was explosive.
As for me, I was slightly troubled.
‘What’s my role supposed to be in this scenario?’
The story fundamentally follows the structure of a Role Playing Game.
Each player who enters a scenario receives a role tailored to that world’s setting.
In “Goblin Lair Subjugation,” I was a low-ranking mercenary soldier.
In “Escorting the Supply Cart,” I was a hired knight tasked with protecting it.
My role—tied directly to the mission—was assigned automatically, and the people around me naturally perceived me that way.
So there must be a role for me in this “Doomed Princess” scenario as well.
Iris probably already knew what it was.
“You are…!”
The princess’s small lips parted, and the truth tumbled out.
My role in this place was—!
“…Who are you, exactly?”
Who am I, exactly!
…
Huh?
“Pardon?”
“Judging by your attire and the weapons you carry, you don’t seem to belong to the Kingdom forces. Ah, but how rude of me—I haven’t properly introduced myself! Thank you so much for saving me!”
“Um, well….”
“Might I ask your name? Even in circumstances like these, I’d be remiss in my honor if I didn’t repay my debt to my benefactor.”
If you don’t know, how would I?
‘How did this happen?’
I’d suspected something like this, roughly.
The scenario I’d entered seemed to be an entirely different beast from what had come before.
“Is it… difficult for you…?”
Toward the girl who gazed at me with sorrow, like a cat drenched in rain.
I let out a quiet sigh inside and answered.
“Shin Jae-ha. That’s my name.”
***
When Iris pressed me with question after question, I deployed the go-to cheat code of otherworlders.
Namely, the convenient excuse of “Memory Loss.”
“Oh, what a terrible ordeal that must have been…!”
This wonderfully innocent girl swallowed my story whole without a second thought.
-Scammer alert.
-Don’t lie~
-(not actually Memory Loss)
I’d be better off closing the chat window.
How do streamers even manage to play with this garbage hanging off their screen? It’s maddening.
“Here, eating something warm might help you feel better.”
She handed me a steaming bowl of soup from the pot.
“Is it really alright to give this to me? Food seems to be in short supply….”
“…It doesn’t matter anymore.”
Doesn’t matter?
When I looked at her with a questioning expression, Iris caught herself and cleared her throat.
“I’m sorry. If you’re suffering from Memory Loss, you must be confused enough already….”
“No, please. Could you explain what happened to this Kingdom, and what you mean by ‘it doesn’t matter anymore’?”
“If I can be of any help to my benefactor at all.”
Iris began her explanation without delay.
In summary, here’s what it was.
Long ago, this place had been the capital of a flourishing kingdom.
A kingdom so powerful and great that it stood on the brink of unifying the entire Continent.
The last remaining kingdom had essentially lost all function and awaited nothing but military conquest—and those who feared that fate committed something terrible.
“An Ancient Sorcery passed down from ages long past… they performed a ritual sacrificing the souls of 666 children, the souls of 666 criminals, and the souls of 666 noble spirits.”
Despite requiring such terrible sacrifice, the spell had scarcely a 0.1% success rate—it was essentially a gamble where they sacrificed nearly everyone left in the kingdom.
But regrettably.
The sorcery succeeded.
“As a result, it was summoned onto the Continent.”
“It?”
“…….”
Iris spoke carefully.
But the very next moment.
“■■.”
That part came through as though filtered out, inaudible.
No matter how many times I asked again, the result was the same.
As if the current stage simply wouldn’t allow it.
‘What exactly is it?’
It was frustrating, but since I couldn’t learn it immediately, I let it pass.
“According to the records, the summoned ■■ can Manifest three times in total each year.”
From what I heard, it was closer to oral tradition than written record.
『The Giant that appears in January kills all young things.
The Giant that appears in June erases all traces of civilization.
The Giant that appears in December sets the world ablaze.』
Three times in a year.
That “Giant” had already completed two Manifestations.
During the first Manifestation, everyone under the age of twenty had perished.
The second Manifestation had turned the once-grand kingdom into the empty plains it was now.
‘And the final Manifestation….’
Even if I had no poetic sensibilities whatsoever, I could see what that meant.
‘Burning the world’ doesn’t mean cranking up some boiler, does it.
It’s almost certainly the collapse of the entire world.
And that final Manifestation is scheduled to occur four days from now.
“I… I haven’t given up. I can’t just watch my homeland disappear like this.”
Iris clenched her fists.
“That’s why I’ve kept searching for survivors. If we gather our strength and organize an army, maybe we can stop the third Manifestation!”
“And did you find anyone?”
“Well… that is…”
Of course she hadn’t.
If she had, she wouldn’t have been cornered by those three ruffians just now.
The fact that anyone is still alive in the first place means they’ve endured those two previous calamities, and I doubt many would be foolish enough to actively resist.
“I… I can’t just give up easily.”
Iris’s small shoulders trembled.
“Never abandon hope until the very end. If you surrender, all others will surrender with you. Those were my father’s words. I recall them whenever things grow difficult.”
“That’s quite a lofty vow. Anyone listening might think you were royalty.”
“Cough…!”
Iris sputtered and quickly looked away, flustered.
She seemed reluctant to reveal that she was of royal blood.
“…But honestly, I have no idea what to do anymore.”
After drinking a cup of water, her voice emerged hollow and weary.
“Ever since the second Manifestation, I’ve been searching for people who would stand with me… but no one was willing to fight. What am I supposed to do…?”
“You haven’t found anyone, but there’s one right in front of you.”
“What…?”
Iris’s eyes widened.
“I will follow your cause.”
“You… really mean it…?”
“Besides, everyone dies if that thing Manifests anyway. So I might as well resist while I still can.”
The objective of this story is to protect Iris from death.
If I let the third Manifestation proceed unopposed, she will certainly die, and I’ll fail to clear the scenario.
“We still have two days left. In that time, let’s search for more people together. If that fails, I’ll fight with all my strength on my own. I’m stronger than I look.”
“…Ugh…!”
Iris’s large eyes grew moist with tears.
“Thank you… thank you so much… truly…”
“If you cry, you’ll lose your strength. Come, eat the soup and cheer up!”
“Hehe… thank you, Jae-ha.”
Though I didn’t make it myself.
‘Anyway, now I understand how this is supposed to play out.’
So the way to clear is to defeat the one causing this Ruin.
With a direction set, a smile spread across my face.
What remained was to gather more information about that creature…
Ding!
That was the moment.
When a golden message appeared before my eyes for the very first time.
[Information on ■■■ has been collected.]
[The activation condition for the special system has been met.]
[Return to Challenger]

▶Gather all Keys to unlock your potential.
●First Key: Slay the Calamitous Giant, ‘■■’
●Second Key: (???)
●Third Key: (???)
●Fourth Key: (???)
The moment I read the contents, I jolted upright in shock.
‘Challenger?!’
What is this system.
How does it know I achieved Challenger rank before?
“J… Jae-ha? Are you alright?”
-Why did you stand up?
-You suddenly jumped to—
-Stand at attention! All of you!
—Princess Iris does have that much beauty, I suppose. Mm.
Iris let it pass, but the chat responses had quieted as well.
Basically, apart from my personal status window, quests and rewards are automatically shared unless I adjust the settings myself.
It’s more convenient during streams since I don’t have to explain everything individually.
‘But the fact that no one else can see it…’
This golden quest really does seem to be visible only to me.
“…It’s nothing. In any case, let’s hurry. Four days will be tight even if we move immediately.”
“Yes! Understood!”
Who sent me this quest?
The owner of that voice I heard when I died?
The being that returned me?
Or someone entirely different?
‘I don’t know who it is.’
But I could guess what they wanted from me.
Become a Challenger again.
Become the strongest player, the highest rank.
“If that’s what you want… Fine. I’ll do it.”
There’s no reason I couldn’t do it again.
In fact, it should be easier this time.
[Return to Challenger]
That quest seemed to be asking me something.
‘Can you do it?’
“I’ll make it happen faster, more perfectly. Just wait.”
At least in this life, I’ll take responsibility and create a different ending than before my return.
-…Why is this person talking to themselves?
-Leave him be. He won’t hear you when he’s like that.
-Poor thing, nervously slurping soup while watching Iris ㅠㅠ
.
.
.
[You wandered the Ruined Kingdom with Iris, searching for people. But you found no one.]
[The first day comes to an end.]
Challenger-Rank Player’s Return
Author
: Ki Sa-hon
Published
: August 10, 2026
Publisher
: Acesmedia Co., Ltd.
Editor
: Acesmedia Editorial Team
Address
: 10F Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Email
: [email protected]
※ This work is published by Acesmedia Co., Ltd. under contract with the copyright holder.
No part of this work may be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
This e-book is protected by copyright law, and unauthorized reproduction or copying may result in legal liability.
UCI
: G720:N+A129-20260730114

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