The Regressor Plays the Game Too Well - Chapter 188

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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 188
188
“Kyaaaaaahhhhh!”
Lee Yeon screams and throws her hands up in triumph.
It’s finally done!
I really rushed to prepare the update.
I finished it in three or four days.
It was practically impossible!
But I actually pulled it off!
Even the Secretary had to acknowledge it this time.
Watching the Secretary clap with genuine admiration, Lee Yeon stood with pride and laughed as she spoke to her.
“You can admire me even more!”
“…Now that you mention it, I don’t feel like admiring you anymore.”
“Ugh, seriously! Anyway! No more late nights now!”
At Lee Yeon’s words, the Secretary shook her head and replied.
“Isn’t it finally time to leave work instead of staying late?”
“Same difference! Anyway, it’s finally done. So how has the war progressed while I was away?”
At Lee Yeon’s question, the Secretary picked up a pre-prepared report and began her briefing.
Before the main game began.
Naturally, Marquis Kawen and the Imperial Palace didn’t disperse their forces—instead, they urgently summoned their factions to the Imperial Capital where the palace stood.
On the vast plain right before the Imperial Capital.
That’s where they positioned themselves to catch the rebels.
Naturally, Count Zapin’s forces advanced toward the Imperial Capital by systematically eliminating Empire-aligned nobles one by one, and purged those Empire faction nobles who failed to reach the Imperial Capital in time.
Since they were all nobles guilty of corruption and abuse of power, there was no hesitation whatsoever.
Even as this unfolded, players clamored for faster updates, but everyone was anticipating the news that an update would come before the main game began.
And right at that moment, the update was completed.
Lee Yeon could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
“Phew, barely made it.”
I couldn’t even tell how many days I’d pulled all-nighters with the Development Team.
It felt like almost a week.
Well, anyway, that’s not what matters.
Now the truly massive event is about to begin.
“What should we call it?”
“Empire Battle?”
“No, that’s too bland. Hmm, since it’s a war for the fate of the Empire, what about Summit Showdown?”
“Isn’t that… plagiarism?”
“Oh, is it?”
“Let’s just call it the Imperial Decisive Battle.”
“Oh! I like that!”
And so the final battle for the fate of the Empire began.
* * *
Tuesday, 3 PM.
Ordinarily, just another unremarkable day.
But today was different.
Within Pantheon, this day was exceptionally different.
A momentous occasion—concurrent player count had shattered even the opening day record.
Countless players had logged in for what was designated as the Empire’s Final Battle, the ultimate conflict.
A colossal event that even those who had yet to experience the main scenario could participate in.
Of course, only those who had joined earlier could fight at the headquarters.
But if players achieved victory against each other in battle, they could join the headquarters!
Everyone would have their chance to participate.
Inevitably, an astronomical number of players converged.
The fervor ran so hot that, despite it being a weekday, countless people took leave, causing genuine disruption to businesses across the nation.
An impact of staggering magnitude upon society itself.
One could almost hear Pantheon’s stock price soaring from miles away.
Two opposing forces arrayed across the vast plain.
Both sides commanded staggering numbers.
The endless tide of humanity was so overwhelming it naturally inspired awe.
With millions converging for this battle, how could it be otherwise?
Amid it all, the Han-sung Guild and Barmon Guild, preparing for war, gazed upon the battlefield with taut expressions.
Tension was inevitable.
The opposing side had amassed the Magic Tower, the Imperial Knight Order, imperial soldiers, and under the command of Marquis Kawen, even the forces of corrupt nobility.
Judging by sheer numbers alone, Count Zapin’s forces appeared vastly outnumbered.
Roughly only two-thirds of the enemy strength.
But to bridge that gap, Count Zapin cried out.
“Spirits of the ancient Empire!”
At his call, souls surged forth from the ether.
Yet these were no malevolent specters or undead monsters—they radiated sanctity.
They were the Mages of the ancient Magic Tower, awakened by Jin-woo.
With their addition, the numbers grew comparable.
Yet the enemy still possessed two Sword Masters among their ranks.
The soldiers might have despaired, but Count Zapin, his knights, and…
Groooooooaaaaaahhhhh―――!
An ominous aura emanated from the knight of the abyss.
As Abyss Knight Demoros advanced, the momentum shifted instantly.
And standing beside Demoros, Jin-woo himself wore an expression of supreme confidence.
Buuuuuuu―――!
With the war horn’s clarion call.
The battle had begun.
* * *
Marquis Kawen couldn’t make sense of it.
He had never doubted for a moment that those under his command would emerge victorious.
And for good reason—he had two Sword Masters positioned strategically, with countless others of comparable strength.
Of course, the enemy had their own formidable forces.
But he knew they possessed no Masters whatsoever.
More than that, without even a Magic Tower to their name, this should have been an overwhelming victory for his side.
So why was this happening?
Why were they being pushed back?
It made no sense.
Especially Count Zapin—he was incomprehensible.
‘…He was hiding his true strength.’
It was unmistakable to his eyes.
Count Zapin had transcended the threshold of a Sword Master, ascending to the realm of a true Master.
There was no doubt.
He fell short of Marquis Kawen himself, but against the Imperial Palace Knight Commander, the outcome would be too close to call.
If I were to step in personally?
I would certainly emerge victorious.
But I cannot afford to intervene.
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Marquis Kawen’s gaze shifted to a young man fighting on the opposite flank.
An overwhelming swordsmanship that swept through the strong with absolute dominance.
Combined with a cruel, life-draining aura.
The Abyss Knight was running rampant across the battlefield.
Only Marquis Kawen himself could stand against that.
The traveler beside it appeared quite formidable, but compared to the Abyss Knight’s overwhelming presence, they seemed insignificant.
Yet he could sense it.
‘That Abyss Knight belongs to the traveler.’
He could discern that the Abyss Knight was a creation born from the traveler standing beside it.
Their auras were connected.
Those who weren’t Masters might fail to notice, but for Marquis Kawen, such details posed no difficulty.
He had anticipated an overwhelming victory.
If he remained idle like this, defeat was a genuine possibility.
Possessing absolute power as he did, he had no intention of accepting such an outcome.
Marquis Kawen stroked his chin lightly as these thoughts crystallized.
‘I will win, regardless.’
Observing the Abyss Knight from a distance as it carved through enemies, he began to understand it better.
As expected of a creation born from the traveler, it lacked depth.
Its physical form and abilities transcended humanity by an immeasurable margin.
But its swordsmanship was shallow.
There was no way he could lose to something so crude.
With that judgment rendered, Marquis Kawen’s resolve solidified.
There was no hesitation.
He charged toward where Jin-woo and Abyss Knight Demoros stood.
To kill them.
* * *
Unlike the headquarters, the players’ battlefield, which consisted of territorial conquest, required each faction to defend their positions while simultaneously conducting siege operations.
I wanted to fight as fiercely as in the headquarters, but it was simply impossible.
There were no commanders appointed to each faction, and they weren’t gathering in one place to fight either.
Guilds attempted to move as unified groups, but since channels were divided by level, the reality was battles of hundreds against hundreds.
Inevitably, our eyes were drawn to the millions-strong war raging at the headquarters.
We all wanted to go there and fight as well.
United by that yearning, everyone fought as one.
“Insane! Hold the line! Hold it!”
“Don’t let those bastards charge through!”
“The gates are breached! Pay attention to defense too!”
“You crazy fools, pick one commander! We’re going sideways!”
“This is maddening! Let’s coordinate!”
The greatest fault lay in failing to assign commanders due to the hasty update.
Yet despite that, many were fully enjoying this content precisely because they could experience actual warfare.
Moreover, across numerous channels where players clashed and fought, they could observe the headquarters situation, and users were exclaiming in amazement.
“What? Wasn’t the Empire supposed to have the advantage?”
“This is insane!”
“What is this! The Empire is being pushed back?”
“Count Zapin is that strong?”
“Insane! Hwang Kyung-ma-jeol is flying around!”
It was absolute chaos.
Desperate to participate in the headquarters war as soon as possible, we slaughtered our opponents and pushed forward for victory, but it couldn’t compare to the intensity of the main battlefield.
That battlefield, teeming with NPCs, was where life and death truly collided.
“Wow, insane.”
“How are they flying around like that?”
“Aren’t the NPCs way too strong? We’d all die if we went there?”
“But seeing other guilds holding their own pretty well, I think we could too?”
“It’s not just high-level players, crazy! Let’s go faster!”
“Capture it! Hurry!”
“Quickly!”
One massive battlefield was dividing into zones.
One where Count Zapin and his knights moved together, and the other—
“Kill them!”
-All things according to my lord’s will.
The zone where Abyss Knight Demoros and Jin-woo were located.
Moving alongside the Abyss Knight, Jin-woo swiftly cut through the strong ones, while Abyss Knight Demoros aided him, rapidly annihilating enemies.
And standing before him, blocking his path, was a frowning middle-aged man.
Jin-woo smiled upon seeing this middle-aged man.
“…A knight bearing an ominous aura. Is he your plaything?”
“If you’re calling that a plaything, your taste is rather poor, isn’t it?”
“Hmm.”
Unable to bring himself to command both to attack, Marquis Kawen watched Jin-woo with tension etched across his face.
After all, facing both Abyss Knight Demoros and Jin-woo simultaneously would be beyond his capacity.
The moment he resolved to summon someone else.
Jin-woo grinned wickedly and spoke.
“No need to be so nervous. I’ll handle him alone anyway.”
At Jin-woo’s words, Marquis Kawen’s eyebrows twitched.
A reaction as if questioning whether that was truly the case.
And Jin-woo chuckled softly.
Had he been deceived all this time?
Even if it were true.
Jin-woo thought this to himself while laughing and nodding toward Demoros.
A gesture telling him to go elsewhere.
Demoros vanished immediately at Jin-woo’s nod.
Witnessing this, Marquis Kawen’s face flushed crimson.
“How dare you….”
He felt contempt.
He must have believed himself insulted.
Given that the traveler had acted this way, it was a natural consequence.
But.
Jin-woo swung his twin blades wreathed in dark radiance, and Marquis Kawen blocked with a single sword.
The impact felt in that moment.
Boom!
Beneath the two steps Marquis Kawen took, a massive crater formed in the earth.
Staring down at the sunken ground, Marquis Kawen fell silent.
“….”
“Nothing to say, it seems?”
Meanwhile, Jin-woo’s mocking expression was the very epitome of contempt.
Marquis Kawen exhaled a small sigh.
He had known this foolish traveler was quite capable.
“But you are not my match.”
Thud!
As he lightly pushed the blade away, Jin-woo was sent flying backward rapidly.
Yet despite witnessing this, Jin-woo’s expression remained unchanged as he was driven back with a smirk.
Rather.
“If that’s all you have, I’m rather disappointed.”
“I’ll kill you regardless of what you say.”
Marquis Kawen spoke, his fury reaching a boiling point.
But was it truly frightening?
Not particularly.
Perhaps I should test whether he meant it.

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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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