Regression is Too Much - Chapter 140

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 140

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The regressor is training (1)

[You have cleared floor 11.]

"Ugh, that was so exhausting."

As soon as I returned to reality, I crawled into my bed like a caterpillar. After being forced to rough it outdoors for the past several days, the softness of the bed felt absolutely essential.

"Mmm... You're back?"

"Yeah. Go back to sleep. I need to get some rest too. Let's talk in the morning."

"...Okay."

It was late in the early morning hours. I lay down next to Ji-won, who had been sleeping, savoring the sensation of the fluffy pillow. Ah, this feels like living again.

I’ll think about the details tomorrow, but for now, I really need to get some sleep. I’m so, so, so tired...

The next morning.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just... a bit awkward."

I hadn't noticed when I first got back, but now I could see a massive sword propped up next to the bathroom door along with various pieces of armor as a bonus.

Having menacing cold weapons in an ordinary modern home created a sense of cognitive dissonance, or maybe I should say they just didn't fit. Anyway, there was this subtle feeling of discomfort. When the setting was a forest or cave it made sense, but seeing them in reality made it truly bizarre.

"The dwarf ahjussis said they'd give me equipment for free, so I grabbed some for you too."

Ji-won grinned broadly. It was true that having dwarf-made armor would reduce the chances of regressing in ridiculous ways. The bonus was that since they were items, I could wear them into the Tower.

"Mm... Good job. And I want to rest too, Ji-won. But before that, there's something I need to bring up."

This wasn't really the kind of conversation to have right after waking up from a nap, but precisely because it was now, I needed to raise this topic.

"Should we regress this time? Or not?"

Specifically, deciding whether or not to regress.

"As you know, we did waste some time going up to floor 11..."

Enduring floor 10 had been so absolutely revolting that we'd rested quite a bit before climbing to floor 11, but my original policy was to climb the Tower as quickly as possible, as efficiently as possible, and as perfectly as possible.

And floor 11... wasn't as revolting an environment as floor 10, so repeating it a few more times wouldn't have been a big deal. I'd actually regressed quite a lot already.

"Hmm..."

Ji-won let out a contemplative hum at my question.

"I think this cycle produced the best results, at least for now. There were some regrettable points, but I don't think it's worth repeating regressions."

"...The results did turn out pretty well."

"But there's one thing we haven't solved yet, right?"

Ji-won opened Google Maps and pulled up Beijing, China.

"Jang Roe. We need to find this bastard. If it's for that, I think it's fine to regress."

Right. Even though the floor 11 problem was solved, the person who'd ruined floor 11 in the first place was still out there.

"Yeah. We definitely need to deal with him..."

If we couldn't find a proper way to deal with that Jang Roe bastard, all the suffering we endured on floor 11 would become meaningless. How could we know if he'd cause another commotion on floor 12 or floor 13?

"How do we find him?"

The problem was that this task was no different from finding a needle in a haystack.

We knew nothing about him except the name Jang Roe. At best, we knew he was a top-tier player? I had no idea what we'd find using that as a clue.

"First... I'll dig through Chinese communities. With a VPN and a translator, I should be able to manage something."

And so I cautiously turned on the computer.

"Hmm..."

Then, not long after I started browsing the web, I realized this task was impossible.

First of all, the name Jang Roe was apparently incredibly common in China. Since China already had a huge population, there were so many people with the same name they were practically overflowing.

And in Chinese communities, there were very few mentions of players. The rare mentions that did exist were all praise, and no matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find any stories about who did what or who did something else.

"Hmm..."

Was there truly no way to find Jang Roe? Just as I was about to give up with a sigh.

"There's an association in China too?"

I discovered on a Chinese community that the Player Association had also been established in China. Perhaps the association could be the answer.

"Ji-won. We need to regress."

If I couldn't find Jang Roe, I was prepared to regress. And what I was about to do from now on was based on the premise of that regression.

"Where's my phone?"

"Who are you trying to contact?"

"That person I mentioned before."

With a determined gesture, I picked up my phone and dialed the number from my memory. After the ringtone continued for quite a while, I heard the voice of the man I was looking for.

[Yes. This is Yoon Joong-hyun, Director of the Player Management Department.]

"Hello. This is Kim Jun-ho."

[...Yes?]

The attitude of 'It's me, Kim Jun-ho' was a cheeky attitude only permitted for Ji-won, but it was different for Joong-hyun. This man already knew my name.

Former National Intelligence Service agent, currently Director of the Player Management Department, Yoon Joong-hyun.

We'd shared hardships together on floor 4. Of course, in the final cycle I'd just unilaterally led others and cleared floor 4, but I remembered we'd at least exchanged names. To Joong-hyun, I probably seemed like some mysterious crazy player.

[By any chance, on floor 4...]

"Yes. That's right."

[Please wait a moment.]

Joong-hyun's voice cut off briefly, and I heard some clattering sounds. He probably had something to prepare.

If I hadn't been planning to regress, I wouldn't have pulled something like this. It would expose my number, expose my location through my phone, and even expose my purpose, all of which went completely against my policy of staying appropriately hidden and operating from the shadows.

But since I'd made up my mind to regress, what did I have to fear? A regressor who decided to regress was unstoppable, like a berserker wielding axes in both hands.

[Yes, Jun-ho-ssi. It's good to hear from you. What brings you to contact me?]

"...You're not asking how I got your number?"

[Haha, that's not important. You contacted me first because you have business, didn't you?]

"..."

What was this? Why was he acting so relaxed? We weren't enemies, but we weren't close enough for this either. Did he know something about me? I was suspicious, but since I had something to confirm right now, I decided to get to the main point.

"I want to find a player."

[A player? If they're registered with the association, it's possible. I happen to be in 'Player Management,' after all.]

"But it's a Chinese player. I heard there's an association there too."

[Hmm. China might be a bit difficult...]

Joong-hyun trailed off. His previously confident voice gradually shrank.

[The thing is... the Chinese branch has a different character from other countries.]

"...Different?"

[Yes. While it nominally carries the 'association' name, it's strongly influenced by their government... so we don't communicate smoothly with them.]

"Is that even possible?"

[All dictatorships are similar. We maintain the pretense of having associations spread across the world, and they receive our know-how in a transaction, you could say.]

"Tsk..."

This was extremely troublesome. I'd contacted Joong-hyun as a last resort, but even he didn't have any clear solution. Should I really give up at this point?

[Still, we do occasionally receive news from their side, so if you give me the name, I'll keep it in mind. I'll contact you immediately if I learn anything.]

"..."

That... didn't mean much. Since I was planning to regress anyway, I had no 'future' to speak of.

"Jang Roe. It's a player named Jang Roe. I heard he has quite a nasty temper."

Still, with a wishful heart I mentioned Jang Roe's name.

[...Jang Roe? Are you certain?]

For some reason, Joong-hyun's reaction was unusual. There was a hint of shock in his voice that he couldn't quite hide.

[If it's the Chinese player Jang Roe... I know of him. But I have to ask you one thing. Why are you looking for him?]

Joong-hyun asked with a meaningful tone. I could have deflected here, but since I was planning to regress anyway, I decided to just tell him honestly.

"...I just cleared floor 11. But that Jang Roe bastard caused a mess there. Ah, have you cleared floor 11? Can you hear me?"

[...No. I can hear you. It's probably because you haven't given me the details.]

"Really? Anyway, I'm planning to find him and take appropriate measures."

The 'appropriate measures' here was wording that included even the last resort.

[Hmm... I understand. I get what you're intending, Jun-ho-ssi.]

It was just a phone call so I could only hear his voice, but somehow I got the feeling Joong-hyun was nodding his head.

[But unfortunately, your wish won't be fulfilled.]

"...Why not?"

[Jang Roe. How do you think I know about that player?]

Ding. A sound came from my phone, so I briefly pulled it away from my ear to check the screen, and a community link sent by Joong-hyun had arrived.

-Don't you guys know that bastard called the Grim Reaper? The crazy fucker who posts corpse photos on the dark web.

-Grim Reaper? That's such a chuunibyou name.

-He calls himself the Grim Reaper. But his trait is, after he kills someone, he carves the character for 'death' into their head with a knife. Then he takes a photo and posts it on the dark web.

-Isn't he fucking insane?

-I know him. That bastard only kills famous players and posts proof. He's genuinely lost his mind.

-He posted a photo of that Indian player Riya recently too, it was really disgusting...

-Wasn't Riya reported missing in the Tower? She died in reality? I liked her because she was pretty.

-The disgusting one is the bastard who bothered to look it up, stop your bullshit.

"...What is this?"

I was asking what this was with my words, but in reality I'd already figured it out.

[Jang Roe. That person is already dead.]

"..."

[By that 'Grim Reaper' bastard.]

The Chinese player Jang Roe.

He was already deceased.