The Regressor Plays the Game Too Well - Chapter 157

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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 157
157
The Temple of the Heavens.
A location that could be called an exclusive Quest map for the Heavenly Deity class advancement, one of the God Series.
That was precisely why Gia had asked Jin-woo to form a party with her.
Watching this unfold, Jin-woo found it rather intriguing.
Among the God Series, there existed a Quest that required a party to clear?
He never would have imagined it.
After all, it wasn’t such a secretive class.
So while it was peculiar that a Quest required a party, he supposed it was possible.
There could certainly be diverse classes out there.
‘Anything is possible, after all.’
He wondered if Kaiser, who had chosen a different class instead of the Sword God, might have experienced something similar.
Though it hardly mattered now.
His guess was that Kaiser hadn’t obtained a class unrelated to military forces.
Whether it was a God Series or a Hidden Class.
He couldn’t know for certain.
But it was undeniable that it was a commander-type class related to military command.
Just by observing Kaiser’s current behavior, wasn’t that evident?
He was moving in a completely different way than before the regression.
Most notably, he was operating on a guild-wide scale far too frequently.
Before the regression, Kaiser moved in party units, but he rarely moved on a guild scale.
When Kaiser’s Guild moved, Kaiser himself was often absent.
But now it was different.
Surely he was acting this way out of awareness of me?
‘A commander-type class, then.’
Several possibilities came to mind immediately.
But what if there was one among the God Series?
‘That would be interesting.’
A God Series related to military forces.
If such a thing truly existed, he could apply buffs and various effects to command vast armies with complete freedom.
If that were really the case.
Wouldn’t I struggle in combat?
Well, I’d only know that by facing him directly.
But for now, this was more important.
With that thought, Jin-woo
gazed at the message that appeared before him.
[The Temple of the Heavens can only be progressed with a party.]
[Only a party composed of a Heavenly Deity candidate and at least one other party member may enter.]
“I thought it might be helpful for you too, Jin-woo oppa… but if it’s inconvenient, you can go to a regular Hunting Ground instead! I’m sorry for always having you help me like this…”
“No, I think it’ll be fun?”
“Ah, well, that’s a relief then….”
“Besides, places like this don’t just reward the Celestial God candidate, right?”
“Ah.”
A precise point.
If only the Celestial God benefited, party members who came along would often protest.
Of course, experience and various other rewards would be distributed.
In cases like this, the most common reward is a skill.
And quite a high-grade one at that.
How could I pass this up?
Even if I don’t eat, I’ve reached the summit!
Though the odds of actually getting something are much higher.
“Actually, I’m the one who should be thanking you for inviting me to a place like this.”
“Ah. Well, no need.”
“Haha, so shall we go?”
Jin-woo laughed at the bashful Gia and spoke.
Gia nodded in agreement.
The Yellow Dragon and Luna also flew about the sky excitedly, signaling they were ready.
Watching them play together was a pleasant sight.
With that thought, Jin-woo attempted to enter the place called the Temple of the Heavens.
A message appeared.
[The trials conducted in the Temple of the Heavens boast considerable difficulty.]
[We’ve detected a 2-person party. Are you certain you wish to proceed?]
There seemed to be some appropriate difficulty level.
But would these people back down because of that?
Besides, they weren’t just any 2-person party.
One was Jin-woo, who could be called the supreme authority of this game, and the other was Gia, who was now beginning to rival the highest-ranked players like Kaiser, Han Yu-na, and Barmon.
Of course, that wasn’t all.
With the Yellow Dragon and Luna as well.
They would be far more overwhelming than any ordinary full party.
In fact, Jin-woo alone could rival an entire guild and still have plenty left over.
No one was concerned.
“Yes. We’re going.”
Gia cried out.
The scenery melted away and transformed.
Before I knew it, I had entered the temple.
Instantaneous entry.
A common method, but the sensation felt slightly different.
There was no dizziness or nausea.
I wondered if it was a higher-order concept than expected and moved on.
The message surfaced once more in my mind.
[The Temple of the Heavens is about to commence its trial.]
[The nature of this trial is as follows.]
[The ancient Sky People were abandoned by the Celestial God and harbored deep resentment.]
[Because of this, they seek to destroy the statue of the Celestial God that exists within the Temple of the Heavens.]
[Should the statue—the very source of the Celestial God’s power—be destroyed, the Celestial God will cease to exist.]
[You must repel all attacks from the Sky People.]
Reading those messages, Jin-woo let out a thoughtful hum and turned to look behind me.
There stood an enormous statue.
Gazing upon the sculpture, carved entirely from crystal-like gemstones in every detail, I nodded, thinking how befitting it was of a god.
In essence, this is a defense game. That’s what this is.
The defense aspect makes it considerably challenging.
Repelling waves of enemies pouring in from all directions is no small task.
If it were like a siege, defending a single stronghold, it would be manageable.
But a defense game protecting a structure like this?
That’s quite difficult.
“This difficulty is certainly formidable.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Still, the rewards should be proportionally greater, right?”
At Gia’s words, Jin-woo smiled and nodded.
Honestly, the Pantheon tends to offer greater rewards for harder trials like this.
Though I suppose that’s true for any game.
Jin-woo glanced at Gia as if asking if she was ready.
Gia nodded in return.
Once both of us finished our preparations.
Luna and the Yellow Dragon took their positions as well, gazing seriously into the distance.
Though Luna, being so small and adorable, didn’t quite manage to look serious no matter how hard she tried.
When everyone had completed their preparations.
A message appeared announcing the invasion’s start.
Not long after the message appeared.
-Banish the hateful Celestial God!
-The Celestial God must perish!
-Do not expect our mercy any longer!
Such arrogant words to hurl at a god.
The statue stood in a vast plaza.
And from the distance, the ancient Sky People surged forward, their appearance utterly grotesque.
Though they possessed bird-like wings, they were rotting and decaying, and their bodies themselves had withered away.
Yet they continued to fly nonetheless.
It seemed to be some form of magical phenomenon.
Watching them all swoop down toward us, Jin-woo let out a quiet chuckle and began casting magic.
Jin-woo gripped his weapon and swung it.
Not Gram and Eucria’s longsword that he normally wielded.
Rather, it was Mjolnir, the Hammer of Thunder.
A weapon with an attack power approaching a staggering 1,500, and above all, one of the weapons that possessed a wide-area strike effect.
Of course, the wide-area strike effect did have a cooldown.
Kwaaaaarrrrng―――!
A tremendous thunderstorm swept through, obliterating all the Celestials flying toward Jin-woo.
Every Celestial caught in the wave of thunder, their rotting bodies crumbling, vanished in an instant.
Truly formidable power.
But it was a basic attack with a cooldown.
Still, it was somewhat disappointing.
During cooldown, I could only swing the hammer mindlessly.
Yet Jin-woo smiled, watching the Celestials surge forward again.
They had pressed right up to my face until moments ago.
But now look at them charging from far away.
It would take roughly twenty seconds or more before the next strike.
Considering the cooldown was thirty seconds.
It was perfectly adequate.
“Infinite wide-area strikes, essentially.”
A thirty-second cooldown on a wide-area basic attack was practically difficult to use in normal circumstances.
But for defensive situations like this, it was tailor-made.
As Jin-woo waited for the Celestials to charge, he surveyed the other areas.
Thud―――――ang! Kwaddddduck!
A small angel with a cute appearance, yet belligerent in demeanor, swiftly swinging her fists and slaughtering the Celestials.
Watching Luna, Jin-woo laughed awkwardly.
She certainly fought brilliantly.
At first, seeing that angel’s form, I had thought she was a support unit.
Now I harbored no such notion whatsoever.
In any case.
Beyond her, I saw the Yellow Dragon.
Rapidly traversing the battlefield, slaughtering Celestials with claws and sharp fangs.
While also manipulating rain and thunder to attack them.
Displaying considerable damage and power.
‘The difference compared to the Black Dragon is certainly immense.’
So this was what made a Legendary Divine Beast different.
Jin-woo marveled at the sight.
Far more developed than when I first saw it at birth.
The artificial intelligence itself had grown accustomed to combat.
And finally.
Gia, who buffed the Yellow Dragon while fighting with her own sword.
The way she fought wielding a shield and longsword was identical to the Valkyries from Norse mythology.
Moreover, she wielded both blade and shield with considerable skill, effectively checking the Celestials’ advances.
Watching her performance, I dismissed my concerns as unnecessary.
As the Celestials pressed closer and I felt Mjolnir’s cooldown expire, I swung it through the air once more.
Kwaaaaaaaarrrrrrr――――――――!
A colossal wave of thunder surged forth, sweeping away every Celestial in its path.
Seeing them all vanish in an instant, I let out a quiet chuckle.
“The first trial should be a breeze at this rate.”
I smiled at the thought.
There truly seemed to be no weak points in our defense.
Truth be told, without these companions, things might have been considerably more difficult.
‘A two-person party is definitely challenging.’
Even Gia and I might have been forced to move more frantically without our pets.
For others, it would likely have required a party of at least six or more.
Regardless, I was curious what would appear in the second wave at this rate.
Eager to see the tedious first phase end, I continued attacking the Celestials while occasionally unleashing skills.
The Celestials could do nothing but be swept away by the onslaught.
* * *
Meanwhile, the guilds that had received Kaiser’s declaration of war were growing increasingly fearful.
And for good reason.
The difference in scale and power was absolutely staggering.
Naturally, they had no choice but to tremble with dread.
Yet even amid this tension, many guilds responded with composure.
And some even demonstrated remarkably impressive capabilities.
None other than Han Yu-na’s Han-sung Guild.
“Kaiser’s true target is undoubtedly Jin-woo, not us. I’m sure you all understand this.”
Everyone nodded at Yuna’s words.
And all of them were radiating a single emotion.
Their pride had been wounded, and they burned with indignation.
“Frankly, it’s insulting.”
Again, everyone nodded in agreement.
Kaiser targets the Han-sung Guild to get at Jin-woo.
A reasonable strategy.
But.
The problem lay in the attitude that the Han-sung Guild was beneath his notice entirely.
The guild members were seething at this disregard.
And Yuna felt the same.
“What infuriates me is that Kaiser didn’t even consider us worthy of his attention. Of course, I acknowledge that Jin-woo is exceptional—that’s only natural.”
“Exactly. That’s beside the point.”
“Precisely! Kaiser is utterly arrogant!”
“That is precisely why we must prepare.”
Everyone nodded at Yuna’s words.
After that, Yuna began to speak.
“We need to gather the other members of the God Series. And we’ve already made one of them our ally.”
“Ooh.”
“Indeed!”
“Who is it?”
At everyone’s question, Yuna paused for a moment before.
Speaking again.
“It is Barmon from the Barmon Guild. Since he is connected to Jin-woo, we were able to align our interests more easily. And our objective remains the same.”
Yuna said this and surveyed the room.
Then spoke thus.
“We will conduct research on the God Series Quests and make them obtainable. The same applies to Hidden Classes that are not part of the God Series.”
Yuna then.
“Let us go to war with Kaiser.”
And so the preparations for war began.

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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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