WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

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◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 141

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The regressor is training (2)

Grim Reaper.

This alias could be seen as cool, or as a bit cringe.

If someone went around calling themselves the Grim Reaper, well, I do think that’s a bit much. Traditionally, even in martial arts stories, weren't titles like that supposed to be given by others?

[In the past, when I worked for the 'company,' I often had occasions to meet criminal profilers. They all shared one common observation.]

"What was it?"

[A lunatic is frightening, but what's even more frightening is a lunatic with conviction.]

And right now, this bastard who called himself the Grim Reaper, well, given that he went around calling himself that, he wasn't just any ordinary psycho.

[The Grim Reaper is currently a vicious criminal that even the Player Association is keeping an eye on. His first crime was a month and a half ago. It started when a corpse with the character for death carved into its forehead was discovered.]

'Murder' was an act that, unless it was truly unavoidable, all civilized people avoided. When conflicts arise online, people say things like they'll kill someone, stab them with a knife, or recite acts so brutal and terrible to even put into words. 

However, when it came down to it, those who could actually carry it out without hesitation when given the opportunity were rare. If it weren't for the Tower, I probably would never have killed anyone in my entire life.

[Even after his first murder, the Grim Reaper continued to post photos on the deep web, showing off his 'handiwork.' It's the typical behavior pattern of a serial killer.]

Serial killers want to be recognized. They are attention seekers who can’t fill their self-esteem through normal means, so they satisfy their ego needs in twisted ways by thinking, 'I made others suffer this much,' or 'Other people fear me this much.'

[But the Grim Reaper is a bit different. While ego does play a role, he acts out of a twisted sense of 'justice.']

"Justice?"

[Yes. He perceives his actions as 'vigilante' activities.]

But the Grim Reaper was different. He wasn't just a pleasure killer.

[First of all, the Grim Reaper only kills those he judges to be evil. He doesn't just kill them either. Very slowly, painfully, cruelly. Like slowly filleting their skin...]

Takae from Japan. He was a psychopath who killed seven prostitutes for fun.

Riya from India. She was a crazy woman who kidnapped and murdered handsome men, then displayed their skin as decorations.

Jang Roe from China. Drug trafficking, human trafficking, rape, murder, and he didn't stop there, he even livestreamed the process, committing all sorts of crimes.

The thing they had in common was that they were all successful players. And thanks to that, they managed to hide their criminal activities right up until just before their deaths. If a superhuman was determined to hide their crimes, there was no way modern law enforcement could catch them.

[However, the Grim Reaper kills these people and posts their criminal activities on the web. According to our profiler's analysis, he seems to be driven by a sense of 'duty.' Like in the manga 'Death Note.']

He selected evildoers to kill, displayed their corpses on the internet, and through this entire process, suppressed crime. This was the ultimate result the Grim Reaper was aiming for. Of course, the fact that he only dealt with criminals wasn't widely known yet, but that was only a matter of time.

"Kind of sounds like a protagonist from a web novel."

There was a strong refreshing vibe to it. Honestly, weren't there plenty of people in the world who deserved to die? Predicting that there wouldn't be any scoundrels in the world who suddenly gained abilities was far too optimistic.

[The problem is, the Grim Reaper is quite irresponsible.]

The issue was that the Grim Reaper's batting average was pretty low.

[Maybe because he gets his information from the deep web, he makes mistakes sometimes. About 30 percent if we're talking ratios.]

Most notably, his first victim was just an innocent, law-abiding civilian. Just someone who looked a bit rough and enjoyed insect taxidermy as a hobby alone in his room, a middle-aged loner.

And while truly vicious ones like the players mentioned above deserved to die, there were also many ambiguous evildoers who fell victim.

Someone who got drunk and beat up a dozen people, someone who robbed multiple stores, someone who accidentally tore off a classmate's arm while fooling around...

These were definitely evildoers. But to the question 'Do they deserve to be brutally tortured and die in pain and despair?' there would be question marks.

[Anyway, we're planning to publicly announce this 'Grim Reaper' worldwide next week. Until now we've been concerned about backlash because of his history of hunting evildoers, but we've decided that catching this bastard takes priority.]

"Hmm..."

So in the end, the Association had decided to put out a wanted notice for the Grim Reaper. Well, it didn't make sense to just leave a criminal like that alone.

But aside from the Grim Reaper's viciousness, listening to Yoon Joong-hyun's story, something felt off. This tingling sensation at the back of my head. This feeling that I was missing something important...

"Jun-ho."

Ji-won seemed to feel something similar to what I was feeling, tapping my shoulder lightly and gesturing for me to hang up.

"Uh, just a moment. Something came up. I'll call you back later."

[Ah, yes. Understood.]

After putting the phone down, I turned my gaze to Ji-won.

"What is it?"

"Jun-ho. Won't other people mistake you from floor 11 for the Grim Reaper?"

"Ah."

That was it. The source of the dissonance I felt was that my actions on floor 11 were far too similar to the Grim Reaper's.

Enjoying skinning people. Tormenting the dead until the very end before killing them. The Grim Reaper's identity of 'only killing evildoers' was missing, but the Association probably wasn't going to mention that detail anyway.

Therefore, if the Association started spreading word about the 'Grim Reaper' far and wide...

"The people who were with me on floor 11 will say he died, won't they?"

The me who died on floor 11 had a very, very high chance of being mistaken for the Grim Reaper.

"Mmm..."

Once again, it was time to make a choice.

I'd roughly resolved the floor 11 problem. What remained was that bastard Jang Roe, but he'd been dead for a while. The one who killed him was the insane killer 'Grim Reaper' who only killed evildoers.

What choice should I make here? Should I find and kill the Grim Reaper? Or just capture him? Should I meet him directly and guide him to the right path? What should I do about how to deal with the Grim Reaper?

And my actions on floor 11. Should I adopt a slightly different concept on floor 11? Or should I maintain a similar concept to the Grim Reaper as is? Which would be more beneficial to me?

That wasn't all. My 'cold symptoms' were also at a crossroads of choice. Should I just drink the elixir? Or save it? Since Ji-won had also successfully achieved a perfect clear of floor 4, there were two elixirs. But it was an 'elixir.' Was it right to use it here? What if I used it now and when the critical moment came, I didn't have an elixir and ended up trapped in time forever?

"Ha, my head hurts."

This was the regressor's dilemma. In the end, moving on to the next cycle depended entirely on my choice.

What if I chose the wrong option here, and it came back as a massive snowball later? What if I killed the Grim Reaper, but his ability turned out to be essential for killing the final boss on floor 66? What if I let the Grim Reaper live, and that bastard killed a key talent and Earth was destroyed?

I… I might be holding the button right now that could determine humanity's fate...

"Ugh, urgh... blegh."

My head was spinning. A deep dizziness covered my entire body, and my stomach tightened, making me retch repeatedly.

"Jun-ho, Jun-ho!"

"Just a moment, just a moment..."

Judging by the fact that I wasn't regressing, this was dizziness purely caused by psychological factors. It was the price of becoming aware that a responsibility of a magnitude too massive for a mere human to handle was resting on my shoulders.

"Jun-ho."

Ji-won gently patted my back as she spoke.

"For now, let's rest a bit. And wait to see what happens."

"But."

"You're worried that if you rest once, you'll want to rest more?"

"Yeah."

"That's a valid point. But from what I can see, your mental fatigue has reached a dangerous state right now."

"..."

"You're going to regress anyway, aren't you? When you regress, you'll return to the moment you entered floor 11, so there's no wasted time. Let's wait and see how the 'Grim Reaper' reacts. That much is fine."

By Ji-won's gentle insistence, I was forced to take a break.

And just like that, a week passed in the blink of an eye.

Exactly one week later, news about the 'Grim Reaper' swept across the entire world. Naturally, the part about the Grim Reaper only killing evildoers was completely omitted, and he was portrayed simply as a pleasure killer.

For reference, the Player Association was also aware of the 'Skeleton Slayer' who died on floor 11.

And after careful review, they concluded that the killer who died on floor 11 was not the Grim Reaper. There were quite a few differences in the details between the two killers.

Nevertheless, the Player Association made a bold decision.

The Player Association officially announced, 'The Grim Reaper died on floor 11 at the hands of the Hero Choi Ji-won.'

[The Grim Reaper is already dead! Citizens can rest assured.]

They went around telling everyone that the Grim Reaper was dead.

At first glance, it seemed like an incomprehensible action, but this turned out to be a brilliant move by the Association.

[Jun-ho-nim.]

"What is it?"

[Are you watching the news right now? It's probably talking about the Grim Reaper.]

"Right?"

[That guy just started a YouTube live stream. The Grim Reaper was a 15-year-old Japanese student.]

"...?"

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