The Regressor Plays the Game Too Well - Chapter 125

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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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Episode 125
Episode 125
Yu Ji-a was brimming with anticipation right now.
To think she could meet Jin-woo like this.
Honestly, she was quite nervous.
What would be the Pantheon skill level of the person who defeated me?
That thought dominated her mind.
But it wasn’t just that.
After all, Geumgwon was an older-generation device, wasn’t it?
So what would control using a real capsule be like?
That was something to look forward to as well.
Most of all.
This was her first time meeting a friend in the game.
More like an older brother than a friend, though.
Well, it’s all the same, isn’t it?
An acquaintance is an acquaintance.
There was some nervousness in her heart.
Not long after that.
“Ah, here you are.”
Someone said that and approached her.
Yu Ji-a smiled brightly at the sight.
At the figure of Jin-woo visible from a distance.
His character was virtually identical to his real appearance, so he was easy to recognize.
Hers was similar too.
Though she had adjusted her eye color and hair color somewhat.
So the overall impression was a bit different.
As expected.
Jin-woo could sense that as well.
‘Just changing the hair and eyes makes such a difference in atmosphere.’
Looking at her now, someone else came to mind.
She seemed to be one of the quite high-ranking players, but he couldn’t quite remember.
Well, but thinking about it, that made sense when considering Geumgwon.
Her control skill was considerable.
Jin-woo knew well that there weren’t many options available in Geumgwon.
It’s difficult to nail movement timing and skill execution.
Yet Yu Ji-a used it well.
In other words, she demonstrated that her control itself was quite excellent.
Well, but that would be immediately apparent if one hunted or heard her nickname anyway.
Jin-woo thought this and immediately extended his hand.
“Let’s register as friends first.”
“Oh, that sounds great!”
Yu Ji-a responded immediately to my suggestion.
Of course, we could see each other’s usernames.
Since we’d already met in person, there was no need to hide our usernames anyway.
[You have successfully registered as friends with user ‘Lin’.]
‘Wait.’
Hold on a second.
Lin?
The username Lin, combined with that deep black hair and the ruby-like eyes that suited it perfectly.
With that appearance and the username Lin, I could say for certain.
‘Insane—could it be? Lin, the owner of the Black Dragon?’
Looking at her face again, it really did seem to match.
I’d thought of her as a high-ranking player.
Lin was actually within the top 100 rankers.
She was someone I never expected.
No wonder I couldn’t remember her face.
While Lin did reveal her face publicly, she wasn’t the type to expose videos or images of herself.
More than anything.
When thinking of Lin, the first thing that came to mind wasn’t her, but rather the Black Dragon.
Most men were captivated by her beauty and recalled her lovely face.
But I was different.
If I weren’t, I wouldn’t still be single at thirty-six.
Anyway.
The important thing was that she was Lin.
‘This is crazy.’
And now that I thought about it.
I’d forgotten that one of the famous rankers in Margantia was Lin, the owner of the Black Dragon.
How would I have recognized Lin before she obtained the Black Dragon?
I hadn’t even considered it. Really.
She obtained it quite a while later anyway.
She got it while active in Garun Territory, didn’t she?
Since she hadn’t made it public, I couldn’t know for certain.
Precisely because Lin, the Black Dragon’s owner, hadn’t revealed such information.
No one knew how she’d obtained an Epic-tier or higher pet.
She’d refused to disclose information even in interviews.
So there was no way for me to find out.
Well, even without that, I already had a Legendary+ pet waiting, didn’t I?
‘But when is this thing actually going to hatch?’
It was then.
Lin—or rather, Yu Ji-a—spoke to me.
“By the way, oppa, I’m sorry, but I level up experience pretty slowly.”
“Huh?”
“So if we hunt together, I might fall behind a bit.”
“You fall behind because you level up experience slowly?”
What was she talking about?
It wasn’t that her experience pool was large.
If she consumed experience slowly, that meant she received less in the first place.
Could it be…?
Jin-woo’s mind raced, and he asked.
Gulp.
“Don’t tell me you have a pet?”
“Ah! Yes. It hasn’t hatched yet, but I got one from a random item box last time. It has a high grade, and they say the grade can increase when it hatches, so I’m looking forward to it.”
“I see.”
So that’s how she obtained it in Garun Territory.
Well, there was nothing to say about that.
I got it from an item box through pure luck!
What ranker would ever admit that?
There was nothing to do but keep quiet.
To think she pulled a black dragon through sheer fortune.
Honestly, it was absurd, but I was hardly in a position to complain.
Consider the money I’ve made just since my sudden regression.
Haven’t I achieved results far beyond what I did in the past?
When I think about it, well.
‘She’s doing better than me, honestly.’
Either way, if that was the problem, there was nothing to worry about.
“It’s fine. I’m slow too.”
“Ah, yes! Thank you.”
“Then shall we head to the Hunting Grounds?”
“Yes!”
Yu Ji-a answered energetically.
Jin-woo chuckled at her enthusiasm and began walking.
Should we make this hunt enjoyable?
Though I had no idea how it would go from her perspective.
Yu Ji-a smiled brightly, unaware of what the future held.
* * *
Five hours later.
I’d always thought the saying about tasting blood in virtual reality was just an exaggeration.
At least, that’s what Yu Ji-a used to think.
But not anymore.
She could actually taste blood.
I feel like I’m going to die.
But.
Boom!
“They’re coming again.”
“…Yes!”
I forced myself to muster the strength.
Hunting with Jin-woo.
Is it hard?
It’s hard.
But beyond that, it’s incredible.
‘This is absolutely insane!’
I’m Yu Ji-a, someone who’s always been told I’m tough.
But even I was no match for him.
Yu Ji-a primarily wielded a sword, taking the position of a swordsman.
Honestly, I thought Jin-woo would be the same.
Since he’d chosen the swordsman class in Geumgwon.
But what’s this?
He’s a Mage.
The fact that he’s a Mage was unexpected enough.
But there was something even more unexpected.
‘He’s incredibly precise.’
Gulp.
His magical control was like that of an intricate watch mechanism.
It gave me chills.
He seemed to know exactly how the monsters would move.
His magical timing was flawless.
When the moment came, he unleashed his skills with zero margin for error—not even 0.00001 of a second off.
He’d immediately cast the skill right on cue.
And when he triggered such skills.
The monsters essentially panicked, and I had to contain them.
The process was so meticulous and detailed that I was becoming mentally exhausted.
And somehow, he managed to pull monsters from so far away.
We’d been hunting for five hours straight, and I hadn’t rested for even ten minutes total.
Since this was field hunting rather than dungeon diving, that was part of it.
But even so, this was beyond unreasonable.
‘Does he have some kind of monster magnet or something!?’
It was so exhausting that such thoughts came naturally.
But.
‘I’ll keep going.’
I’m not the type to collapse from mere fatigue like this.
Instead, I burned with determination and pushed forward even faster.
Moreover.
‘When I move exactly as he tells me, something feels different.’
My control was subtly improving.
It felt like paths I never could have conceived before were opening up.
Watching this, I swallowed hard.
He was timing his magic so exquisitely while simultaneously helping me refine my control.
Could a human even achieve such control?
It was a skill beyond imagination.
Well, without this level of ability, how could one go professional?
With that thought, Yu Ji-a swung her sword even faster.
And Jin-woo, watching Yu Ji-a like that.
‘Hmm, I could push her a bit more.’
I’d used magic partly to practice it myself,
but there was also the intention of improving Yu Ji-a’s abilities.
She possessed all the characteristics of someone who practiced control through self-study without formal instruction.
Her thinking was somewhat lacking.
Hadn’t I learned from Kaiser too?
Of course, through Kaiser’s future videos.
After learning from that, my already monstrous physique became even more extraordinary in terms of mental acuity.
That’s the proof—I can now use magic with the same precision as a blade.
But what’s the point of developing Yu Ji-a like this anyway?
It’s obvious, isn’t it?
‘If I help her, it’s beneficial.’
Then receiving help would be convenient too.
Haven’t I been hearing ominous rumors?
Kaiser’s Guild is targeting me.
That’s not all.
The Mountain Guild is also targeting me, they said.
Multiple guilds are targeting me.
And not just any guilds—these are already massive organizations.
In other words, I need trustworthy people.
I’ve managed to gather some people along the way.
For instance, Han Yu-na’s guild, the Han-sung Guild.
‘That’s reassuring.’
But multiple guilds are sharpening their blades against me.
Perhaps the Han-sung Guild alone might not be enough.
Then there’s Barmon, with whom I’ve built a good relationship.
And Lin—no, Yu Ji-a as well?
Aren’t they the ones once called the highest-ranked players?
Above all, Han Yu-na was someone who shone at rank two.
I couldn’t help but feel reassured.
Even I couldn’t survive alone, no matter how capable.
This was how I built my influence, piece by piece.
Not by creating a real Guild, necessarily.
But if I gathered my own people, one by one?
It would become a means to protect myself from massive Guilds.
That’s why I paid attention to controlling Yu Ji-a.
Seeing her rise rapidly was entertaining too.
I wanted to push her further.
The more I pushed, the faster she seemed to grow.
It was exhilarating.
Besides.
The fact that I could still think of other things meant I had room to spare.
So I figured I could push even harder.
I gazed at the monster visible in the distance.
The Swamp Terrain, an unpopular Hunting Ground in Margantia.
The creature I’d hunt here?
Predictable enough.
Kyaaaaaaaa!
A massive lizard, larger than a human, charged forward with a roar filled with metallic sounds.
The second most common monster after Orcs in games.
A Lizardman.
Seeing it, I chuckled softly and immediately cast magic.
None other than the basic spell: Mana Bolt.
A skill that creates a Mana Bolt in midair and strikes directly with it.
Thwang!
But that sound was as fast as a gunshot.
Whoosh!
Gurk!
Naturally.
Even a basic skill becomes different when I use it.
Of course, I used the Sage’s Extreme to consume minimal MP and minimize damage.
But still, it was me.
The bolt naturally pierced through its body.
The creature staggered for an instant.
And Yu Ji-a rushed in, seizing that moment.
Her timing was excellent.
Now she reacts without me even saying a word.
Her response speed had grown faster than before.
‘That should do it.’
It was hard to believe this was someone who’d been hunting for a full five hours.
I watched Yu Ji-a’s movements intently.
She rushed at the Lizardman and swung her sword first.
The first target was none other than its eyes.
No matter how much a monster exists within a game, the instincts of a living creature remain.
Why?
Because that’s how the artificial intelligence is programmed.
They are living beings, after all.
Naturally, all living creatures instinctively flinch when something flies toward their eyes.
It’s because they rely so heavily on their vision.
The Lizardman was no exception.
Screech!
It leaned back to dodge, then gripped its spear and attempted to strike at Yu Ji-a.
But Yu Ji-a used the Lizardman’s forearm as a springboard, launching herself upward, and in that instant, she swung her sword again, slashing out both its eyes.
Slash!
Grrrrgh!
The Lizardman cried out in agony.
The actual damage wasn’t that severe.
Yu Ji-a’s level was quite low for hunting in this place.
But she’d struck its eyes.
The psychological impact was far greater.
It didn’t matter if it looked pathetic and ugly.
All that mattered was strength.
Yu Ji-a activated a skill against the cowering Lizardman.
A skill wrapped in sword energy, boasting tremendous destructive power.
Boom!
With that sound, I could see the message.
[Your party member has defeated the Lizardman.]
[You have obtained minimal experience.]
Up to this point, these were messages I’d seen before.
But something was different.
[A mysterious egg has completed its hatching preparations.]
[It will hatch soon.]
[The birth of a legend!]
[All eggs in the vicinity respond!]
At the sudden message, I let out a dumbfounded sound.
“Huh?”

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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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