The Regressor Plays the Game Too Well - Chapter 168

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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 168
168
Count Zapin’s expression grew puzzled as Jin-woo returned far sooner than he had anticipated.
Jin-woo hardly seemed like the type to give up.
So why had he returned so suddenly?
As Count Zapin tilted his head in confusion, Legard knelt on one knee and bowed his head respectfully.
He knew his own knight well enough to understand the gesture’s meaning.
Count Zapin accepted the bow and posed his question.
“Why have you returned so quickly?”
The question was directed not at Jin-woo, but at Legard.
Legard’s voice rang out boldly in response.
“Lord Jin-woo has completed the task and returned! It would be best to hear the details from Lord Jin-woo himself!”
“What? Is what you’re saying truly so?”
Count Zapin swallowed hard, his gaze fixed upon Jin-woo.
Jin-woo regarded the Count with an enigmatic expression as he spoke.
“The Ancient Empire Ruins were none other than a Magic Tower.”
“Ah, so it was as expected. You did mention the imperial seal was located there.”
“Yes. And within that place existed the Tower Master and the mages of the Magic Tower from ancient times, all in spiritual form. And…”
Jin-woo paused mid-sentence.
Suddenly, spirits began pouring forth from the Emperor’s Seal he had kept within his possession.
They were none other than the mages who had belonged to the ancient Magic Tower.
Of course, they were not the end of it.
To escape the Magic Tower, the Emperor’s Seal was necessary, so all the spirits had entered it, and thus they emerged together with him.
This was the first time I’d witnessed something like this even while playing the game.
But if my forces increased in this manner…
Well, that couldn’t be so bad, could it?
As Jin-woo contemplated this,
the ancient Tower Master also emerged from the seal and gazed upon Count Zapin.
-Ah, so you are our descendant.
“Then… does that mean?”
-Indeed. I am one of the royal bloodline of the once-glorious Zarpin Empire. My name is Marun de Zarpin. I am ashamed to face our descendant, now called merely Zapin.
At those words, Zapin shook his head urgently.
Denying the sentiment.
Watching an ancient ancestor and a distant descendant meet and converse, Jin-woo found himself uncertain of what to say.
[Ancient Empire Ruins]
*Description: Count Zapin conducted extensive investigations after learning of his true identity.
In doing so, he discovered ruins. According to legend, within these ruins lies an imperial seal left behind by an ancient emperor.
Only Count Zapin, bearing the bloodline of the Ancient Empire, is said to know of this fact.
Before it is too late, please retrieve the imperial seal from the ruins and present it to Count Zapin.
Should you do so, all other artifacts within shall become your possession.
*Mission: Find the Imperial Seal in the Ancient Empire Ruins.
*Reward: Ownership of all artifacts from the Ruins, and one favor from Count Zapin.
[Rewards have been enhanced.]
[You have obtained multiple skill books containing ancient skills and magic that cannot be acquired through normal completion.]
[The number of favors from Count Zapin has increased from 1 to 3.]
[The Ancient Empire’s Magic Tower now falls under Count Zapin’s command.]
Upon receiving the Quest completion message, I let out a soft chuckle and left the chamber.
The rewards were already secured.
The favors from Count Zapin could be called upon later.
For now, should I leave this place?
I need to stretch my legs.
Just as Jin-woo was about to exit, another message appeared.
[The Divine Blade, Typhoon’s Isis, has been completed.]
Finally, a Divine Blade.
Jin-woo gazed at it with a satisfied smile and murmured.
“Then shall I see its true power?”
* * *
The Kaiser Guild Alliance—a colossal force bearing that name.
What was amusing was that even the major guilds who had initially scoffed at it, once absorbed into his faction, fell silent thereafter.
It wasn’t as though he had silenced them with vast sums of money.
Though he had classified it as a secret.
But as the saying goes, you cannot cover the sky with a few hands.
Someone eventually discovered why those who joined the Kaiser Alliance had stopped talking.
Simply by belonging to the Kaiser Alliance, members received buffs.
In other words, it was a privilege exclusive to the Kaiser Guild Alliance.
Ability stats increased by 5% compared to normal.
Final damage rose by approximately 3%—such reports began circulating.
An effect so tremendous it seemed like a lie.
Yet there were far too many testimonies to dismiss it as false.
Kaiser’s overt hostility was merely one tactic among many.
These very rumors circulating now were also one of Kaiser’s strategies.
A massive promotional effect for the Kaiser Guild Alliance.
A classic approach, admittedly.
But when both carrot and stick were wielded with such certainty, the response was staggering.
Guilds that once had to be forcibly absorbed through sheer strength
now had considerable numbers volunteering to join.
And among them were individuals with surprisingly diverse classes.
Two months had passed since launch.
Now entering the third month, a considerable number of hidden classes were being unlocked.
In a sense, it was only natural.
Kaiser, the leader of the Guild Alliance, had also transitioned into one of the God Series classes.
So it made sense that he could produce such Guild Alliance effects.
Members of a colossal alliance that had nearly reached one million strong.
The fact that such numbers had gathered despite his selective recruitment spoke volumes.
Among those, Kaiser gazed at the elite of the elite—those specially selected from the exceptional few—with a satisfied smile.
He nodded upon seeing fifty of them.
One could say merely fifty out of a million.
But these were already a carefully filtered million, and from among them, the absolute elite appeared at a rate of one per twenty thousand.
They were none other than a legion of Hidden Classes.
“Hmm.”
Naturally, some didn’t meet his standards, but there were certainly quite a few impressive classes among them.
For instance.
“A Hero.”
Kaiser spoke thus while regarding the woman standing before him.
A woman wielding a golden sword, her appearance radiant and magnificent.
Setting aside her beauty, one could discern she was quite formidable.
Indeed, her exceptional appearance alone was enough to draw involuntary admiration.
Such a woman opened her mouth confidently, meeting Kaiser’s gaze.
“Yes, I am the wielder of Arondight, the Holy Sword, among Heroes.”
“Oh.”
Kaiser nodded while observing the woman displaying Arondight.
She possessed genuine skill that did not pale in comparison to Valen and Raigan, whom he considered his trusted subordinates.
Her name was Ren, if he recalled correctly.
But what drew his gaze more than her skill was none other than that weapon.
A blade that gleamed brilliantly with silver and gold light, displaying its magnificent form.
Was it because it was said to be a sword whose edge never dulled?
It was a blade that even created the illusion of blue aura dancing along its edge.
An extraordinary weapon even Kaiser found himself swallowing hard over.
Yet since it had already chosen its master, he could not claim it—a regrettable fact.
The consolation was that he had managed to recruit its master into his faction.
What more could one ask?
Was there not a legend that this very blade had slain a fire dragon?
It could not be anything but an extraordinary weapon.
He wished he possessed such a weapon himself.
Unfortunately, that was not possible.
Had he not already transitioned into a God Series class?
Holy Swords and Demon Blades could only be wielded by Heroes and Demon King-series classes.
In any case, since she possessed a class befitting her skill, Kaiser smiled with satisfaction.
Beyond her, there were quite a few other impressive classes.
But the Hero class was certainly a remarkable one.
Even another notable profession was included among them.
The polar opposite of the Hero I had just witnessed.
There was only one existence that could be called the Hero’s antithesis.
“A man named Kan who possesses the Demon King job class. It would be easier to explain if I mention he is the owner of the Demonic Spear Ardbar.”
A male named Kan introducing himself with a cunning gaze.
A Demon King job class, then.
Kaiser too looked at Kan while observing the spear that was called a demonic spear.
An ominous demonic spear emanating an eerie aura where sickly green and violet light intertwined, as if poison would drip from it at any moment.
It was a grotesque demonic blade that looked as though it would cause addiction merely by gazing upon it.
Yet watching Kan wielding it with such ease, Kaiser shook his head.
Whether it was his job class or his abilities.
Kan also possessed exceptional qualities.
Though he was slightly inferior to the Hero Ren I had just seen.
On the other hand, the demonic spear Ardbar had superior performance in certain aspects.
As evidence, despite being right beside it, the holy sword Arondight’s radiance was being overwhelmed by Ardbar’s toxic aura.
There was one more amusing detail.
Kaiser asked, looking at the two of them with an expression of surprise.
“Is it true they’re siblings?”
“Haha, yes, we’re twins.”
At Kan’s words, Ren, whom I knew as his younger sister, frowned.
Their relationship didn’t seem particularly good, but they appeared to be siblings nonetheless.
However, they didn’t resemble each other enough to be called twins.
Fraternal twins, perhaps?
Well, that was possible.
With that, Kaiser surveyed the personnel he had added to his executive ranks.
Truly, only Valen and Raigan were completely trustworthy.
Yet having executives accumulate like this certainly had tremendous effects.
Above all.
I had recently heard news that Jin-woo was making moves.
Apparently he was gathering major Guilds one after another.
Especially, I heard that he had begun joining hands with both the Han-sung Guild and Barmon, whom Kaiser had designated as enemies.
But it was fine.
‘I had already accounted for even that.’
Rather, they were far too predictable.
There was no way not to see it coming.
This alliance was created precisely with that in mind.
A massive force with as many as fifty Hidden Classes alone.
Moreover, those who could be called rankers were abundant.
Of course, Kaiser did not underestimate the abilities of Barmon or Yuna.
Rather.
‘I must assume he stands two tiers above Valen and Raigan.’
And Kaiser wasn’t the only one thinking this way.
Raigan and Valen harbored the same assessment.
They were exceptional, certainly, but it was manageable.
If Kaiser leveraged the skills his entire body possessed, they might fall in individual combat.
Yet in a full-scale war, victory would be within reach.
But there was one troubling factor.
‘We can move freely.’
A colossal Guild Alliance numbering a million strong.
Moreover, they weren’t confined to the Bark Empire alone—scattered across different nations entirely.
Of course, there existed the new content known as Guild Wars to overcome even that limitation.
But it came with restrictions.
A maximum of one thousand combatants per side.
Certainly, implementing a thousand-versus-thousand large-scale war in a virtual reality game was an extraordinary feat in itself.
Yet if they couldn’t deploy their full strength, it would be worthless.
And then there was this.
‘A thousand is still insufficient, truth be told.’
Numbers meant nothing before Jin-woo.
But what if Kaiser acquired new skills for his entire body?
What if there were hidden class users specialized in defense?
Kaiser hadn’t been recruiting talent for nothing.
Now all preparations were nearing completion.
“The war begins soon.”
Kaiser’s eyes gleamed with fierce intensity as he spoke the words quietly.
He would sever this long, bitter enmity once and for all.
And so the war was beginning.

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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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