The Regressor Plays the Game Too Well - Chapter 68

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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 68
Episode 68
Everyone could only stand in stunned silence at the spot where Jin-woo had vanished.
Even Neira, who was always brimming with playfulness, couldn’t utter a single word.
Ellen and Pandel went without saying anything at all.
What in the world was this situation?
How was that even possible?
How could he display such overwhelming power compared to them?
It made no sense.
In that moment, Yuna stood before them, gazing at her party members with satisfaction while cradling something precious to her chest.
Yuna looked as though she knew everything.
Naturally, they turned to Yuna and asked.
“W-what just happened?”
“Wh-what was that skill just now?”
“I mean, I knew he was incredible, but h-how is this even possible…”
None of them could properly comprehend the situation.
Seeing their expressions, Yuna finally opened her mouth.
“The person who just left is the user Jin-woo.”
“J-Jin-woo?”
“F-from the Hwang Gyeong-ma-jeol?”
“Wh-whoa, no way.”
Everyone’s faces went blank.
No, even if it was Jin-woo, it still didn’t make sense.
Wasn’t that user a Warrior-class user in the first place?
Yet he possessed magical skills of that caliber?
That made even less sense.
But none of them could deny what they’d witnessed.
They’d all seen it with their own eyes, hadn’t they?
“…So, he’s both a first-rate Warrior and a first-rate Mage?”
“No, can you even call him first-rate? He’s transcended first-rate in both Warrior and Mage classes. Isn’t he the strongest?”
“…Wow, I really can’t compete with that.”
As they all marveled and shook their heads in amazement.
Yuna opened her mouth as she watched them.
“Why are you all just standing here like this?”
“Huh?”
“What do you mean?”
“…?”
Her words made no sense to them.
But Yuna continued without hesitation.
“Isn’t it frustrating to just leave things as they are? When you think about it, our help wasn’t needed at all, was it?”
“Ah….”
“That’s right. It’s difficult for us to even be of help.”
“…Who would even need our help in the first place?”
Everyone’s expressions had grown gloomy, as if reality had struck them hard.
But Yuna’s eyes only gleamed brighter.
Everything they said was true.
But,
“That’s exactly why we need to work harder. Hard enough to actually be useful to Jin-woo.”
“Ah!”
“Huh?”
“What?”
“It certainly won’t be easy. But if we just follow in his footsteps, wouldn’t we become the strongest Guild? Unless Jin-woo creates his own Guild, that is.”
Hearing those words, everyone felt their spirits suddenly awaken.
A person with overwhelming power.
If they merely followed in that person’s wake, it would be incredibly difficult.
But wasn’t having a direction to aim for everything?
Simply by moving in that direction.
Growth was guaranteed.
That’s what Yuna was saying now.
Moreover,
“If we ever want to be useful to him, we must give it our all.”
“Agreed.”
“Staying like this is far too frustrating.”
“Understood.”
Everyone’s passion ignited.
Remaining as they were felt too pathetic.
Not even being helpful?
That was unbearable.
To one day be useful to Jin-woo?
They had to surpass everyone else.
“Let’s grow stronger.”
“Yes!”
“Let’s go, let’s go!”
“Ooh!”
Jin-woo’s recruitment no longer mattered.
In fact, they’d stopped caring about it altogether.
Their goal had simply shifted to becoming useful to Jin-woo.
Yuna and her party members had flipped some strange switch.
But one thing was now certain.
Jin-woo had gained formidable allies.
* * *
Stepping away from Yuna’s party, I exhaled deeply, as though I’d wrung out every drop of sweat from my body.
Everything had gone well, but at the very end, when Yuna asked me for an autograph, I couldn’t help but feel deflated.
I was caught completely off guard in that moment.
Well, setting that aside, I’ve now left the streets behind.
Should I prepare to leave Falcon Village right away?
The next city after Falcon had quite a bit of good food as well.
‘Let’s go immediately.’
I arrived at the village faster than anyone else.
Then I boarded a carriage, just as I had when I went to Free City Felsia.
The distance was so great that without a carriage, it would be nearly impossible to arrive.
Once I boarded the carriage, everything moved swiftly.
Fortunately, I managed to catch a carriage right before departure, so I could leave immediately.
Now, as I spend time in the carriage, I’ll arrive before long.
So, what should I do to pass the time?
Well, there’s that.
‘I should open my rewards first!’
I’d obtained skill books and even two titles.
Of course, one of them is a common title.
The effect won’t be bad, but it falls short of a First-tier title.
Let me see what appeared.
First, the common title whose effect I already know.
『Beginner’s Graduation』
→Common Title
→A title granted to users who defeat a regional boss and advance to the next region
→Experience +10% for 30 days
This is the most commonly obtained title.
But the effect is quite substantial.
A full 10% increase in experience for 30 days!
The efficiency of this option varies greatly depending on who uses it.
I chuckled upon seeing it.
My experience gain has been terribly slow lately, so this is perfect.
I never expected to obtain this.
I’d already obtained a First-tier title after leaving the Beginner Region.
That’s why I didn’t think I’d get this one.
But that wasn’t the important part.
There’s a First-tier title I never even considered.
A title that should be absolutely impossible to obtain normally.
‘A title that can only be earned by defeating two Beginner Region bosses.’
This must be a title that demon king class jobs typically obtain, right?
Obtaining that was quite significant.
So, shall I check out its effects?
『Persistent Boss Killer』
→First Title
→A title granted to the user who first defeated two Beginner Region bosses
→All damage +10% when attacking bosses
The title I confirmed was honestly not beyond my expectations.
Well, it’s not bad though.
Damage increase is never unwelcome.
Of course, I was disappointed since it was weaker than what I’d hoped for.
But there was always a reward without disappointment.
None other than a skill book.
A random skill book that had been upgraded in rarity as an initial reward, becoming a Hero-grade skill book.
Jin-woo opened that skill book and let out a quiet chuckle.
Wasn’t this the main objective?
And on top of that, I received 30 million gold as mercenary fees this time.
This is too profitable.
‘Hmm, I wish a magic-type skill would come up.’
Most of my skills are close-range combat skills.
After experiencing the appeal of magic-type skills, I found myself wishing more magic would appear.
But would that happen?
If only things worked out as I wished.
But they don’t.
I just hoped a reasonably decent skill would come up.
With exactly that thought, I spoke.
“Open.”
[Will you open the Hero-grade Random Skill Book?]
[Once opened, it cannot be reversed.]
[Will you still open it?]
Of course!
I shouted inwardly like that.
The skill book disappeared and a message appeared.
Since there was no special effect, it seems it’s Hero-grade and not Unique.
For me who had harbored slight expectations, it was disappointing.
But this was the natural outcome.
I wondered what skill it would be.
[You have acquired the Hero Skill ‘Whirling Killing Wind’.]
“Huh?”
Whirling Killing Wind?
The name itself is a magic-type skill.
Moreover, this skill name feels familiar somehow.
‘Isn’t this the favorite skill of frost mages!?’
I immediately checked my skill window.
Sure enough.
『Howling Bitter Gale』
*Grade: Hero
*Level: 1
→Unleashes a freezing gale forward that chills to the bone.
→MP Cost: 2000
→Cooldown: 300 seconds
Excellent.
A magic skill, just as I’d hoped!
And an area-of-effect one at that!
The MP consumption is higher than expected, and the cooldown is quite lengthy.
But it’s an exceptional skill.
‘That skill dealt frost damage and applied a bind effect, didn’t it?’
Solid damage output combined with a status ailment—frost—making it an incredibly valuable skill.
The grade isn’t as high as I’d anticipated either.
It’s a truly excellent skill.
No wonder it’s the favorite among frost mages.
If it ended there, I wouldn’t have brought it up.
There’s even a hidden effect that applies a debuff to enemies exposed to Howling Bitter Gale, amplifying frost magic damage against them.
‘This is fantastic.’
Acquiring magic skills sporadically like this delighted me.
Between the mercenary wages, excellent skills, and the title I’d obtained.
This mercenary work had been quite rewarding.
However, I found myself reconsidering the Guild.
This party play experience.
To be honest, it wasn’t bad.
Cooperation couldn’t possibly be negative.
But…
‘It felt far too restrictive.’
Party play was enjoyable, certainly.
But that was all it was.
I couldn’t feel any real merit in it at this stage.
Building a faction?
I still don’t think it’s a bad idea.
But I couldn’t sense sufficient incentive to join a Guild.
‘There might be problems when clashing with other factions, though…’
Haven’t I already found the answer to that?
None other than Necromancer skills.
Were the skeletons’ efficiency really that poor?
They were incredibly powerful.
Watching them operate without requiring any command at all.
It seemed far more efficient than forming a faction alongside a Guild.
‘Even if it’s difficult for now….’
If I could acquire a considerably high-grade undead summoning skill?
I’d gain enough power that I wouldn’t need to create or join a Guild.
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.
But there’s merit in it, isn’t there?
A one-man army.
I could pull that off.
‘This is quite appealing.’
Omnipotent power.
To obtain that?
Who wouldn’t want it?
Becoming an army unto myself.
All by myself alone.
But there’s so much I’d need to do for that.
Dark magic skills and magic skills.
Of course, it could be resolved through Possession, but I can’t neglect warrior-type skills either.
‘The skeletons grow based on my own combat.’
I need to consider my own combat power as well.
In other words, I’m creating a jack-of-all-trades.
The ultimate jack-of-all-trades.
It’ll be difficult.
But that’s what makes it fun, isn’t it?
The direction is somewhat set now.
So how should I go about this?
Well, it’s obvious.
‘Just do what I’ve been doing all along!’
Hunt down Hidden Pieces indiscriminately.
The one thing I’m most confident about.
Well then, the direction is set.
Should I think about the Hidden Pieces in the next region?
Since it wasn’t something I’d planned beforehand, it didn’t come to mind quickly.
My original plan was the Hidden Pieces around Felsia, wasn’t it?
Since the region has changed.
It took some time to think it through.
‘The region after Falcon Village… was Small City Marganti, right?’
I recalled the region first.
Thinking back to how Han Yu-na had played through it.
It came to mind quite easily.
Unfortunately, the hidden piece that Han Yu-na had consumed in Small City Marganti?
There was none.
Not a single one.
Of course, it’s possible Han Yu-na had hidden some.
But that’s what she’d said in the interview.
‘Back when I was actively growing my Guild, I didn’t have time to consume hidden pieces.’
That’s why Han Yu-na had earned such a stellar reputation.
Unlike Kaiser, she’d consumed fewer hidden pieces yet still climbed to second place.
She’d been teased for always being second, though.
But no one denied that Yuna was remarkable.
Why didn’t such words come up?
That second place was still an achievement.
Well, it was backhanded praise too.
But it was the truth.
Anyway, this time I’d arrived faster than anyone else, so things might be different.
Fat chance!
‘As long as I’m here, there’s no way.’
Of course, if Jin-woo consumed hidden pieces he didn’t know about, that would be another story.
Right now, I could recall a total of three hidden pieces.
Hidden pieces I could consume immediately given my current level.
Still, I should think about the order.
I wondered what would be most useful.
What Jin-woo wanted right now was a dark magic skill.
Or a magic skill in general.
And there was someone who came to mind.
‘That’s right. The Aged Sage!’
The Aged Sage Wirun.
Now that I thought about it, he existed.
If Gruen, the guardian of Deron Kingdom, was in Nen Village.
Then the sage of Deron Kingdom was right here in Margantia.
Once you built sufficient intimacy, he granted a magic skill of Unique+ grade, no less.
An incredible NPC.
‘Heh heh, it’s decided.’
I’d determined what to do first in Margantia.

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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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