The Regressor Plays the Game Too Well - Chapter 165

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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 165
165
As Jin-woo progressed through the Ancient Empire Ruins Quest.
Lee Yeon naturally tried not to concern herself with Jin-woo.
Yet she found herself unable to help it.
“Sigh.”
It wasn’t as though she were some stalker.
She wondered if watching Jin-woo like this every single day should have grown tiresome by now.
But what could she do?
She had to observe what Jin-woo was doing in order to prepare countermeasures afterward.
Right now, Jin-woo was like an enormous catastrophe.
One couldn’t prevent it from arriving.
But one had to respond swiftly to its aftermath—a natural disaster of sorts.
So there was no helping it.
If she delegated this to another staff member,
missing the timing and failing to respond quickly would result in far too much damage.
Above all else.
“This is driving me insane. Siiiiigh.”
Lee Yeon exhaled a long, drawn-out sigh, and the Secretary observed her.
The Secretary nodded in agreement this time as well.
Then she looked at Lee Yeon and spoke.
“Still, wouldn’t this be better?”
“Better how?”
“Count Zapin is offering a reward for granting him a favor, isn’t he?”
“Right, that’s true.”
“From what I can see, I suspect that user Jin-woo will use that reward differently than what you’re imagining, Chairwoman.”
“Hmm? How so?”
“Well, I’m curious what you think that user Jin-woo will do with it, Chairwoman?”
At the Secretary’s question, Lee Yeon was momentarily startled and taken aback.
That’s right.
As she said this, she suddenly wondered why she had been worrying about it in the first place.
Was it because she had suffered so much at Jin-woo’s hands?
Her dominant feeling now was that whenever she received such rewards, her skin crawled so badly she couldn’t bear to look at them—she hadn’t actually thought about what she would do with them.
So instead, she listened intently to what the Secretary had to say.
A rare occurrence.
The Secretary, knowing this, smiled faintly.
And spoke directly to Lee Yeon.
“Looking at that user Jin-woo’s current state, he’s been gathering other users, and particularly he’s been pairing users Lin and Yuna together, while also contacting user Barmon in advance.”
“…Is that so?”
Lee Yeon, already aware of this, nodded in acknowledgment.
And soon, I could realize it.
“Ah!?”
“Have you figured it out?”
“Could it be a kingdom transfer?”
“Yes, that’s my assessment.”
In other words, the Secretary’s prediction was that Jin-woo would now ask Count Zapin to consolidate the guilds related to him.
And surprisingly, that prediction aligned with Jin-woo’s own thoughts.
“After all, the Jin-woo player defeated the Kaiser Alliance this time, but there’s no guarantee it will happen the same way next time—Jin-woo knows that well.”
“Or more precisely, it seems Jin-woo doesn’t want to let other guilds suffer damage either.”
“Ah, that could be it too.”
When I mentioned it to Lee Yeon, she too quickly worked through the logic and grasped it.
Then Lee Yeon pondered carefully, trying to discern the future developments.
As she did, things that hadn’t been visible until moments ago began to come into focus.
What was it?
“Still, if Jin-woo tries to rally the guilds that have helped him like this, it’s entirely feasible. The region where the Yuna player is located can borrow Count Decan’s power, and with Count Zapin’s power as well, it’s sufficient, right? Given both counts’ personalities, they wouldn’t refuse.”
“Especially since Count Zapin is in a position where he needs to rebuild the Empire right now.”
“Right. If he hears he can gather several adventurer armies, he might even ask for it himself.”
“Yes.”
Lee Yeon nodded at the Secretary’s words.
And if things flow this way?
For a moment, I thought to myself.
I couldn’t help but smile wryly.
There had been plenty of talk about Kaiser lately.
Though he hadn’t done anything decisive yet.
There were signs of him advancing his entire force and attempting several wars.
We created content like Guild Wars as a competition.
But those guys weren’t the type to stop at just Guild Wars.
If Jin-woo were to stop that?
“Is this using barbarians to control barbarians?”
Defeating Kaiser through Jin-woo!
And since this wasn’t even something Lee Yeon had planned—it was just them clashing and fighting each other.
The outcome was too perfect.
I didn’t know how much work remained for Jin-woo in founding the Ancient Empire.
But if things proceeded this way?
Kaiser could be dealt with far faster than expected.
“The Jin-woo player is actually quite helpful.”
“Sigh, I hate to admit it, but there are quite a few instances like that.”
The Secretary nodded as well.
Even if he’s a troublemaker.
Jin-woo has done much that’s been helpful too.
Well, it’s mostly because I’ve been causing chaos everywhere.
It did stress me out, though.
If I handle this situation well?
“Game operations could become much smoother going forward.”
In truth, Kaiser is far more irritating to deal with in game operations than Jin-woo.
He cunningly walks the line that administrators can’t touch, tormenting users with impunity.
So I wanted to just crack down on him hard.
But I couldn’t do that for fear of being sued by the group Kaiser belongs to.
If I penalize something that isn’t technically a violation, it creates problems.
So in this case, Jin-woo was the perfect solution.
“Let’s wait and see for now.”
“That sounds right.”
When did I start relying on Jin-woo like this?
Good grief.
Life really is something you understand better the longer you live.
* * *
Jin-woo strutted forward with an air of supreme confidence.
And the knights escorting him.
In particular, one knight who had unfastened only the breastplate section of his full plate armor was attending to him with exceptional diligence.
“Ah, yes, p-please come this way.”
“Ahem.”
“Please, do be careful with your steps, my lord. We cannot risk harm befalling your noble person.”
“Yes, yes.”
Legard had become considerably more respectful after being struck just once.
Of course, this was also partly due to Legard’s own misunderstanding.
He had sensed not only Jin-woo’s tremendous power, but also that his swordsmanship was far from ordinary.
Legard had certainly heard that adventurers were shameless and lacked refinement.
Yet now he perceived in Jin-woo a dignity and nobility that adventurers supposedly lacked.
Why had he not noticed this sooner?
Legard regretted it again and again.
He deduced that Jin-woo must surely be a man of considerable noble standing among adventurers.
Recalling the captain’s words, he now treated Jin-woo with utmost respect.
The other knights needed no explanation—they followed suit.
They boarded the carriage and swiftly crossed the territory toward the Ancient Empire Ruins.
As befitted a count’s carriage, there were no obstructions whatsoever.
Perhaps the security was so good that even without knights guarding the surroundings.
There were no bandits or monsters to be seen.
Arriving at the ruins without incident, Jin-woo gazed at the entrance and tilted his head.
At first glance, it looked no different from any other dungeon.
Except.
Venturing just a bit deeper, I could tell something was distinctly different.
Upon entering the entrance, I could see the antiquated architectural style visible from within.
“This is….”
Jin-woo spoke quietly.
Legard rushed over from beside him and offered an explanation.
“At first, we were equally astonished. To think such a tower lay hidden within the mountain. Truly remarkable, is it not?”
“Mm. Indeed.”
Jin-woo let Legard’s words go in one ear and out the other, his gaze fixed upon the tower.
And observing the magical energy radiating from that tower, he shook his head.
Jin-woo had already seen a tower like that before.
Before the regression.
It wasn’t an Ancient Empire Ruin, but rather the Magic Tower of the Baroque Empire looked exactly like this.
And so I could discern it.
“It’s a Magic Tower, not an Ancient Empire Ruin.”
“Yes, precisely so.”
“So that’s why you predicted the imperial seal would be here.”
“Truly remarkable insight, sir.”
Legard spoke with flattery, though his admiration seemed genuine.
Typically, imperial seals are kept in royal or imperial palaces.
But what’s this?
The current Baroque Empire is quite famous for not possessing an imperial seal.
Because of this, when sealing the emperor’s documents, it’s known that the emperor’s thumbprint is used instead.
And the reason for this was simple.
Whether kingdom or empire, in any emergency, the king or emperor moves to the Magic Tower alongside the court mages.
And to prevent the imperial seal from being seized by foreign invaders, it’s known to be sealed within the Magic Tower.
That was the law of the Pantheon Continent.
In other words.
“The Baroque Empire conquered this place and obtained the land, but failed to obtain the imperial seal.”
“Ah.”
Hearing this, Legard nodded with genuine admiration.
And at Legard’s reaction, Jin-woo let out a quiet chuckle.
Well, he considered adventurers to be people from another dimension.
So merely knowing the laws of this place was enough to astonish them.
In any case, that wasn’t what mattered now.
What mattered was that the imperial seal was here.
‘If I obtain the imperial seal, I could seize the Baroque Empire immediately?’
The Baroque Empire currently had a strong reputation for being quite corrupt.
First, there was Nível, the Iron Hero, who was overworked in the Imperial Palace, contracted an incurable disease, and was cast out.
Beyond that, countless other examples existed.
There were even those who mocked those who had devoted their loyalty to the Empire.
Of course, it was territory by territory.
But wasn’t it also a territory to receive orders descending from the Imperial Palace?
That’s why the amount of blood squeezed from the Empire’s citizens was considerable.
Things were somewhat stable now.
But before my regression, it was truly severe.
The increasingly corrupt Empire saw adventurers departing in droves.
Such an Empire seemed to be gradually crumbling.
In other words, if only legitimacy were recognized?
It might be possible to seize the Empire outright.
Count Zapin especially so.
Wasn’t he from the Empire’s foremost knight house and the territory with the greatest military might?
That’s why I thought it was entirely feasible.
‘Count Zapin is even known to have an excellent character, after all.’
I drafted several scenarios.
If I obtained the imperial seal, I could gain the consent of various nobles and ascend as Emperor.
Of course, there would be battles with the Imperial Family in between.
I felt I could contribute to that as well.
Of course, one might question how much help adventurers would be, but by then, all the Guild members I’d gathered would exceed level 50.
A level higher than ordinary soldiers.
Simply increasing the number of soldiers in battle against the Imperial Palace would be considerable aid to Count Zapin.
And what of me?
I smiled with deep satisfaction at such thoughts.
‘Reclaiming the Empire.’
I had even more reason to summon Yuna here.
And Lin as well.
The Deron Kingdom, once you enter its territories, admittedly has less content than the Empire.
There was even talk that if the Empire hadn’t been so corrupt, it would have become a paradise for users.
Thinking thus, I gazed at the Magic Tower.
And the message that appeared.
[You have discovered a Hidden Dungeon: ‘Ancient Empire Ruins’.]
[As a first-discovery reward, experience and drop rates increase by 2x upon clear.]
[You have discovered a Hidden Dungeon.]
[The effect of the First Title, ‘Capable Explorer’, activates.]
[First-discovery rewards increase by 50%.]
[Upon clear, experience and drop rates change to 3x.]
[You are not currently in a party.]
[Upon clear, the effect of the First Title, ‘Lone Wolf’, applies.]
[The effect of the First Title, ‘Hidden Collector’, applies.]
[Rewards from the Hidden Dungeon increase.]
Simultaneously, the Dungeon information appears.
[Ancient Empire Ruins]
→This appears to be a ruin that once served as a Magic Tower in ancient times.
→Given the tremendous surge of mana emanating from the ruins, it is presumed that formidable monsters inhabit this place.
→However, contradictory to that, the Magic Tower emanates far more negative mana—the kind undead would possess—rather than pure magical energy.
→Purify this Magic Tower, teeming with undead.
A rather straightforward explanation.
Though all dungeons are like that—you only truly understand them through experience.
Jin-woo spoke with that thought in mind.
“Let’s go.”
This was the moment I would become the architect of a new Empire.

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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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