Regression is Too Much - Chapter 158

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 158

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The regressor grows stronger (3)

There is a concept in the wuxia novels I used to read called "realize first, feel pain later," which you can roughly understand as—the comprehension of a realm first, and the actual breakthrough that follows later. Anyone who has read enough web novels will get what that means right away.

"..."

In my case, though, it was the other way around, closer to "feel pain first, realize later", where the physical experience comes first and the understanding catches up afterward. Having cycled the chill through my body over and over again, something about it was starting to feel strangely comfortable, like my body was slowly adapting to it.

I had no idea why, but something was improving. If nothing had changed at all, I would have just shrugged and moved on, but because I kept feeling myself getting better at it, I couldn't bring myself to stop.

"...Is my body just adapting to it? Or is it something to do with the nature of the mana itself? Is there anything I can actually do about it?"

It was that maddening feeling of being just within reach of something but not quite being able to touch it. I couldn't tell whether I was hovering near the right answer or spinning my wheels somewhere completely off-track. Something was improving, whether because of the elixir or my own talent, but I had no idea how or why.

"Hmmm..."

In the end, the only thing to do was to keep at it. If I focused a little more, something might break loose. I turned my attention back to the mana inside me and began to slowly sink inward.

No, I was right on the verge of sinking in when I felt something warm pressing against me from outside. It wasn't coming from inside my body. It was an energy I could feel from outside.

At first I tried to ignore it and focus on the mana within, but the warmth only kept growing, to the point where it felt genuinely strange no matter how I thought about it.

Only then did I quietly open my eyes. I had kept them shut for an extraordinarily long time, and the temperature in the room had dropped quite a bit, so my eyelids had stuck lightly together on their own.

"...?"

The scene that greeted me the moment I opened my eyes was decidedly odd. Near the door, three players were frozen in ridiculous poses, staring at me, and the short-haired girl was wreathed in fire, burning with hostility.

What's going on? Why are they like that? Is there something they want to say? Then just say it. Why are you just standing there staring.

"Ah. I see."

It clicked then, and I understood the situation. They had clearly been exposed to my chill and locked up. The moment they stepped into the room while I was training, the cold I was putting out must have seized them. And the short-haired girl handled fire, so she had managed to resist it at least a little.

But wait, did that mean eleven days had already passed? I knew in my head that as your stats went up, you could go for long stretches without eating or drinking, but experiencing it firsthand left me a little flustered all the same.

"..."

Thud. Thud.

The moment I stopped cycling the mana, it seemed like the others regained control of their bodies, because they toppled forward onto the floor. I had wanted to present a composed and polished image when this moment came, but my sense of time had gone so dull that I hadn't had a chance to prepare properly.

Should I regress? I still wasn't handling the chill perfectly. I didn't want to challenge floor 13 in a state where I wasn't fully ready.

I had just about finished making my judgment and was about to bite my cheek when the list of rewards from the final test flashed through my mind.

[20] Book of Possibilities (Unique)

[30] Elixir of Choice (Unique)

[40] A-grade Trait Selection (Unique)

'...Book of Possibilities?'

If I remembered right, it was supposed to show the user's potential as a numerical value. Wouldn't that help me find some kind of direction for how to handle my mana? Yes, it definitely would. And even if it turned out not to be that helpful, at the very least it would serve as a milestone showing me how strong I had become.

"Ahem. Ahem."

Decision made, I cleared my throat, rose slowly from the bed, and offered a casual greeting.

"Hello there?"

Looks like I need to clear floor 12 at least once.

"I'm sorry. It wasn't intentional. The mana I use is a special kind called chill, and..."

Kim Jun-ho sat the four players down and calmly explained things to them. Perhaps because traces of mana were still lingering in his body, thin wisps of white mist curled off him little by little.

"..."

The acne guy had an arrogant streak, but he was also the cheerful type. Under normal circumstances, he would have cracked a few jokes here to lighten the mood, something like, "Isn't 'chill' kind of a lame name? Sounds like a refrigerator," or "You're giving off steam, you're basically a block of dry ice, haha." That sort of harmless nonsense.

But right now the acne guy had his mouth firmly shut, listening intently to Jun-ho's explanation, his hands folded neatly in his lap, the picture of politeness.

The reason was simple. That man was different.

It wasn't as though the acne guy had never encountered someone strong before. The short-haired girl outclassed him right here in this very room, and he had crossed paths with many powerful players on floors 4 and 11.

Those people were strong, sure, but they were still players, the same as anyone else. Fast, powerful, technically skilled, gifted with exceptional abilities, but they never gave him the feeling of being fundamentally different. It was like looking at the class valedictorian who outscored you on every exam. Impressive, but that was as far as it went.

But that man was something else. Mist drifted off his body. He had a way of catching and holding your gaze, and if you kept looking at him for too long, there was something subtly uncomfortable about it, as though he wasn't a fellow player but the boss of floor 12. It was simply the aura he carried that was different.

The mole guy and the bespectacled woman felt it too. They were curious about him, but at the same time uneasy and afraid. They had plenty of questions but couldn't bring themselves to ask a single one. The Mysterious Aura trait, the Curiosity trait, and the Awe trait were all firing at once and creating a synergy effect, triggering the Awe trait's copy ability. The short-haired girl seemed to be the most free from its influence among them, but since she was quiet by nature anyway, the atmosphere remained utterly still.

"...?"

Jun-ho picked up on the strange mood quickly. These weren't the type of people to act like this. He opened his status window out of curiosity, and confirmed that the trait copy effect attached to the Awe trait had activated.

But the last time he had tried to intimidate them, the Awe trait hadn't gone off at all. What was different this time?

There were only two things that had changed. A fine layer of white mist spread softly across the floor, and the newly acquired Mysterious Aura trait.

With that understood, Jun-ho finally had the presence of mind to look around him. After a quick moment of thought, he grasped the fact that all of this must look incredibly mysterious from where they were standing. He also understood that when the mole guy had muttered the word "transcendent" earlier, the man had been referring to him. A transcendent. A transcendent immortal sage, is it? He could see how he might look like one, honestly.

"All right, everyone get up."

The moment he realized this, Jun-ho's tone shifted sharply into something more distant and controlled. He had clocked the fact that letting them misread the situation could only work in his favor, never against him. And now that the Awe trait had activated, the road ahead was going to be very, very smooth.

'This is actually perfect.'

Up until now, Jun-ho had only ever known two ways of dealing with people—clean and courteous, or openly threatening. He had just discovered that there was a third option.

Not a word was spoken by anyone for the whole walk to the test site. When I took the lead and started walking, the others scrambled to keep up behind me.

Since I had learned that the mist and cold were useful for building an air of mystery, I was still cycling my mana even now, letting out just enough to produce a thin trail of vapor. From their perspective it probably looked like some kind of passive effect. In reality I was working my mana very hard.

-Pass three rounds of 'tests.' Each person can participate in each test only once, and if you fail the final test, no rewards will be given.

-All rewards will be given individually after clearing floor 12.

Anyway, we arrived at the test site and everyone took a seat. Perhaps because I was cycling the chill through my body, even the cold metal chairs didn't feel particularly unpleasant.

-Then, before starting the first test, each person will select their reward.

[1] Lesser Potion x 10

[5] Custom Item Box (B-D)

[10] Universal Pill, increases all stats by 3.

A message window floated up before me. Without much deliberation, I chose [5]. I had already obtained the Universal Pill once before, and since stat-boosting consumables had no effect when used in duplicate, it held no value for me. Rather than waste the opportunity, I decided to see what the Custom Item Box would turn up.

Once I made my choice quickly, the protective barrier around me dissolved and I could see the others clearly. Their expressions were... still slightly uncomfortable. They kept glancing at me sideways, but the moment our eyes met, they looked away. If a girl had done that, I might have thought it was a green light, but coming from the men, it was just a bit awkward.

"I… I chose 5."

"Same here."

"Me too..."

Just like the previous cycle, everyone claimed to have chosen [5]. Since I had also chosen [5], that meant the number showing on the elevator should logically be [30]. I shifted my gaze to the elevator to confirm it, and.

"...Huh?"

[25]

The number on the elevator was, surprisingly, just [25].

Five players had all chosen 5. The result was [25]. At a glance that seemed perfectly logical, but the true meaning behind that number of [25] was something else entirely.

"Ha."

This cycle, the liar had seen me and chickened out.

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