WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

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◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 138

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The regressor is cunning (5)

"Bung-bung...?"

"..."

Bung-bung. Ji-won's sword. The very one that had sent me back through regression countless times in the tutorial. I'd been aware of its existence for a while now. After all, Bung-bung was Ji-won's companion, and she'd told me more than once that "Bung-bung grumbles when he looks at me."

"Why are you coming out now...?"

But the timing of Bung-bung's appearance was genuinely puzzling. Ever since Ji-won had regained her memories and started dating me, Bung-bung hadn't shown itself even once. It had stayed quiet this whole time, so why now? At such a coincidental moment?

"No way, it can't be..."

Perhaps it was inevitable that my imagination would spiral in a negative direction. Could it be that Ji-won's consciousness had been caught in some kind of restriction? And because of that, Bung-bung's consciousness, which had been lurking beneath the surface, had risen to the top?

In fiction, doesn't it always happen like this? The protagonist loses consciousness, and some ominous entity sealed within their body emerges. Bung-bung wasn't exactly ominous, but still, wasn't the situation a perfect match? Or was that just my imagination?

"...I can tell what you're thinking, but it's not like that."

But Bung-bung flatly denied my speculation.

"Look at Ji-won's body."

He, or she... no, I should just call her "she." Anyway, she tapped her shoulder a few times, emphasizing that I should look carefully at her body.

"Look at... the body?"

I looked, as she said, but I didn't notice anything particularly unusual. It was just the same Ji-won I always saw, slender and attractive. A reasonably sized chest. Long, straight legs. A slim waist. Her swaying ponytail. And to top it all off, that little mole beneath her eye...

"...You pervert."

Feeling my gaze freely roaming over her figure, Bung-bung's face flushed. She fidgeted with her hands in apparent irritation, but the look on her face suggested she was barely holding back from hitting me, knowing full well that doing so would trigger my regression.

"The lightning! Look at the lightning, not just the body!"

"Mm..."

Only then did my gaze shift to the blue currents wrapping around Ji-won's body.

"...I'm not sure what I'm supposed to see. What am I looking for?"

"Idiot! Can't you see that the current's stable?"

"...I guess so?"

As Bung-bung said, the lightning crackling from her body was surprisingly stable for a first-time activation of Heart of Lightning Flash. Some traits could be used freely from the moment you obtained them, but others required time to get used to after acquisition...

"You wouldn't know, but the moment this trait activates, the mana throughout the body goes wild. On top of that, currents flow along the skin, muscles writhe, and the whole body starts trembling."

"...Now that you mention it, that is a bit strange."

Ji-won knew how to handle mana. I'd taught her, and she'd practiced repeatedly on her own. She certainly had talent in handling mana, almost as much as with swordsmanship, and her skills had improved at an incredible rate, but she wasn't so good at controlling mana that she'd be this stable right off the bat.

As I realized that fact, something finally clicked.

"Wait, don't tell me..."

"Hmph. I had to spoon-feed you that much."

Bung-bung's lips curled into a slightly annoying smile. It had a different flavor from Ji-won's warm smile.

"Right now, Ji-won is concentrating on controlling her mana. I don't really understand mana myself."

"...Then what are you doing?"

"Me? I'm adjusting the muscles throughout the body and enduring the pain. Being a sword, I'm used to that sort of thing."

Right. Ji-won's personality was currently focused on suppressing the rampaging mana. Bung-bung's personality was controlling the physical body, which was why Bung-bung's personality had risen to the surface.

One personality handling mana. Another personality handling the body. It was an optimized division of roles for using a high-risk technique like Heart of Lightning Flash.

"...Isn't that cheating?"

I'd seen great mages in web novels split their consciousness to cast dozens or even hundreds of spells, but a swordsman doing this felt like breaking the rules. No, this was genuinely overpowered.

Maybe there was a reason Ji-won's Sword and Soul as One trait was SSS-rank. I'd thought it was a bit underwhelming for SSS-rank if it only sharpened senses, improved physical abilities, and increased bodily durability, but who knew it could be used like this?

"Ji-won and I are geniuses, after all. We can easily do this much, right?"

"..."

Seeing my admiration, Bung-bung let out a snort. Her cocky attitude was oddly irritating.

Just bear with it. She's only a three-month-old sword, after all. Young children naturally enjoy teasing adults, so I, having perfected a mature personality, should be understanding.

"Look at this. Ji-won seems to be getting used to it."

Crackle! Crackle-crackle!

But whether I was calming myself down or not, Bung-bung played around with lightning in mid-air. She couldn't manage extremely fine control, but it seemed she could manipulate the lightning to some extent according to her will.

"..."

Watching that, a possibility surfaced in my mind.

"Bung-bung."

"Hm?"

"Can you deliberately miss with that lightning? And how powerful can you make it at maximum?"

According to the original plan, I'd intended to burn down a large portion of the forest and then show the players only the aftermath of the battle.

"Want to work on something with me?"

But if Ji-won and Bung-bung could put on this kind of performance, then for the sake of Ji-won's reputation, it might be nice to show a flashy finale.

"..."

"..."

Near the entrance to the fortress, countless dwarves and players were anxiously pacing around the entrance, unable to settle down.

"How long has it been since the first lightning strike?"

"About ten minutes..."

"Ugh..."

The showdown between Ji-won and the Skeleton Slayer. If they had their way, they'd want to watch it directly. But if there were spectators, Ji-won wouldn't be able to fight comfortably, so they were circling around here like a dog that needed to poop.

Rumble! Rummmmble!!!

The sound of thunder and lightning echoed from far away. Thunder roaring in a clear sky had long since sent animals fleeing, and even people flinched every time they heard the thunder.

Indeed. Was that the effect of Heart of Lightning Flash that Ji-won had obtained? The flashing light in the distance and the rumbling thunder carried an overwhelming sense of intimidation in and of themselves.

"Are they still fighting?"

"What do you see?"

"Nothing. It's too far."

"Mm. Who do you think will win?"

"Are you trying to jinx us, you bastard?"

The players were chatting about this and that while waiting for Ji-won's battle to end.

"...?"

"What?"

"Doesn't the sound seem to be getting louder?"

Being players with sharp senses, one by one they began perking up their ears. The thunder was gradually growing louder. Was the fight intensifying?

"Th-they're coming."

No. They were approaching this location. Realizing that fact, the players immediately tensed their bodies, and the dwarves hid behind the wooden barriers they'd prepared in advance.

"..."

"..."

A brief silence followed. Nervous gazes exchanged, and in that moment when even the sound of someone swallowing could be heard clearly...

"Wh-whoa!!!"

"What? What is it?"

What appeared in the distance was the Skeleton Slayer. He walked through the forest with a leisurely gait, almost floating along. In stark contrast to the roar filling the surroundings, his body bore not a single wound, and his breathing was stable.

And almost simultaneously, they saw Ji-won running from the opposite direction. Blue lightning coiled around her entire body, and streams of blue light poured from her eyes.

"Hup!"

Ji-won swung her lightning-wrapped sword through the air. Following its trajectory, a blue slash flew with fierce momentum, but...

"...?!"

"It didn't even come close?"

Despite its deadly power, the slash struck a ridiculously distant spot from the Skeleton Slayer. As if she'd never intended to hit him in the first place.

"Kihihihi..."

As if mocking that sight, the Skeleton Slayer stood still, taunting Ji-won. Several more of Ji-won's slashes followed after that, but not a single one reached him.

"...What, is she losing control?"

"It looks like it would be fatal if it hit, but there's no substance to it."

"No... the way I see it, she just can't land her attacks."

A large Russian player dismissed the doubts of several other players.

"There's no way Choi Ji-won would fail to land attacks like that so many times. If she couldn't control it, she would've chosen to coordinate with us instead. She must have stepped forward because she was confident in her abilities to some degree."

"Then why is this happening right now...?"

"The way I see it, that Skeleton Slayer's ability must be specialized in evasion."

He had a history of being utterly defeated in a fight against the Skeleton Slayer. The experience of being miserably toyed with without landing a single successful attack.

"Look at how those attacks keep missing. The bastard probably has an ability to twist space or interfere with attacks somehow."

Wasn't it more plausible that he had some special ability rather than having his techniques completely read and toyed with? This claim, mixed with a bit of self-rationalization and a bit of logic, seemed quite convincing even to himself.

"Ohhh..."

"That makes sense..."

It sounded plausible to the other players too, so everyone expressed their agreement. Just as everyone was nodding their heads, Ji-won took action.

"Hoo..."

Lightning erupting from her entire body, Ji-won raised the sword gripped in both hands above her head. The lightning energy concentrated at the sword's tip climbed up the blade and reached the sky.

Lightning is, after all, most threatening when it strikes down from the heavens. The moment the lightning energy released from Ji-won's sword tip connected with the sky...

Rummmmmmble!!!

A speed so fast you couldn't even register the flash. An incomparable roar to what came before echoed as the world was dyed blue.

Ears were filled with ringing. Eyes were consumed by blue light, unable to see anything, and noses smelled nothing but the scent of burning.

Right now, there was no one who could keep their eyes open. No one who wasn't terrified. Divine punishment. That was the appropriate expression.

"...Insane."

"...Fuck."

The onlookers' vision and hearing gradually returned, but no one moved. They were overwhelmed by what they'd just witnessed.

The players were superhuman, but that went far beyond simply being good at running and hitting things. Rather than a superpower, wasn't it closer to a natural disaster?

"O-over there."

One dwarf pointed toward the forest with a trembling hand.

Thud. Thud.

Ji-won walked unsteadily with a battered body.

"...Are you of the Hero's bloodline?"

"You've worked hard."

Several dwarves rushed to Ji-won with water and towels, but the players still couldn't move.

Before the fight began, several questions had been raised. Just how strong was Choi Ji-won? Could Ji-won win against the Skeleton Slayer? How powerful was Heart of Lightning Flash that people told others not to approach?

No one was asking anymore. The result was clear.

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