Regression is Too Much - Chapter 298

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Regression is Too Much

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Chapter 298

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The regressor fights (17)

The dagger swung out. A precise strike aimed at a weak point, and Bung-bung knocked it aside. In that gap, the distance opened again.

The whip lashed in. Block it with the sword and the whip would wrap around the blade. Take it on the body and unbearable pain would come with torn flesh. Faced with that impossible choice, Choi Ji-won dodged the whip. Because the whip struck along a line rather than a point, her stance was forced out of shape. Distance opened up again.

Whip and dagger. Two weapons that should never have gone together, yet the Heavenly Demon had found harmony between them. The problem with a whip was that its full power only came out when there was distance. Since it fundamentally relied on centrifugal force, its power dropped miserably the moment an opponent closed in. There was a reason nobody used a whip for self-defense. A single opening was fatal.

But the Heavenly Demon plugged that opening with the dagger. Light enough that swinging the whip carried no burden, concealed enough to give an edge in close combat. The whip's weakness was range, covered by the dagger. The dagger's weakness was close combat, covered by the whip. Watching him wield two extreme weapons to control both offense and defense, "seasoned" felt like too small a word.

"Gulp."

Someone's swallow rang out loud. That was how focused everyone was. Every last person there understood that watching this fight live was a once-in-a-lifetime stroke of luck. Not a single moment could be missed.

"But."

In the middle of it, the veteran tentacle groaned.

"It's... being broken down."

The Heavenly Demon got pushed back again. A combination that looked unbeatable at first glance, yet Choi Ji-won had found the answer inside it.

The dagger was short. The whip was long. The gap between them, a distance too far for the dagger to reach yet too close for the whip to unleash its full power, was where she stayed. With near-supernatural control over spacing, Choi Ji-won kept herself exactly at that distance where neither weapon reached full effect. She used her mana to fend off the whip's harassment and gave the dagger no room to close in. A counter she'd worked out in an instant. Common sense didn't apply to a genius.

Clang!

In the end, the Heavenly Demon lost his grip on the dagger. His right arm was cut in a long gash. He managed to use the whip to snatch up the spear that had fallen to the floor, but a wound was a wound. He was the one losing ground now.

"..."

No. Maybe not. Looking at the two fighters' expressions, it was clear who was losing.

The Heavenly Demon wore a faint smile. Whether that smile looked fierce because of the beastman body, or because it was simply his own particular smile, no one could say. But that smile was unmistakably aggressive.

Choi Ji-won, by contrast, showed no expression at all. It wasn't a relaxed blankness. It was the blank face of someone desperate, straining to hold composure.

The Heavenly Demon threw the whip aside and gripped the spear with both hands. Another new stance. Anyone who didn't know better would think Guntar was cornered. But fighters strong enough to matter were starting to read the situation for what it was. Guntar was stalling for time.

"Somehow... he seems to be getting faster."

The tentacle muttered. It was true. The wolf beastman's body had gathered more wounds, a couple of them deep. His condition should have been getting worse, yet Guntar's movements kept accelerating. He was growing. No, he was reclaiming his original power.

Choi Ji-won, meanwhile, was growing more exhausted by the moment. She had no time left. More than five minutes had passed since she activated Heart of Lightning Flash. The mana burning away by the second was one problem, but the damage steadily piling up on her body was another. Wrapping her whole body in lightning never came cheap.

Clang!

While they'd been trading blows, the Heavenly Demon dropped the spear. Choi Ji-won had finished reading him again. She charged in as if she couldn't let this chance slip by, but mid-sprint she had to stop short and swing her sword instead.

"A hidden weapon?"

It was hard to see from where we sat, but the drone's high-performance camera caught it. A small throwing weapon hidden in his fur. It carried no mana at all, but thrown at exactly the right moment toward exactly the right spot, it was still a threat. He'd timed it precisely for the instant Choi Ji-won released the mana wrapped around her body for mobility.

Taking the brief opening, the Heavenly Demon grabbed an axe this time. Blows traded back and forth. The Heavenly Demon pushed back. The axe split in half. A sliver of an opening.

Choi Ji-won charged again. The Heavenly Demon scattered hidden weapons once more. She didn't dodge. This wasn't an enemy she could bring down without sacrifice. There wasn't much time left either. To seize this chance, taking a small wound from the throwing weapons was something she could accept.

Small drops of blood scattered. A red line was drawn across Choi Ji-won's cheek. The gap between the Heavenly Demon and Choi Ji-won closed. Bung-bung swung. The last chance. Now, finally, the moment to end everything...

"Too slow."

BOOOM!

With a sound like a drum bursting, Choi Ji-won's body was flung hard into the wall.

"...!"

That terrifying sound made me shoot up from my seat without thinking. The dust cleared, and Choi Ji-won staggered back up. A chunk of flesh had been torn from her side. Her repaired clothes soon covered the wound, softening the horror of it, but the red stain spreading across the fabric made my hands shake.

Wounds were an everyday thing for players. Mine or the enemy's. So blood and torn flesh should have been nothing unfamiliar. That's what I'd thought.

I was wrong. "Choi Ji-won's blood" meant something different to me. This was the first time I'd ever seen her cornered. I wanted to regress right then, but we'd agreed to send a "regression signal" before any fight. She hadn't sent it yet. It meant she still wanted to keep fighting.

"Hah."

The Heavenly Demon exhaled with satisfaction, black energy rippling around his mouth. Mana. No, more precisely, the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique. That was when I realized it. The time limit had run out.

Choi Ji-won was strong. She'd fought brilliantly. But she'd fallen one step short of finishing the Heavenly Demon off completely. And that Heavenly Demon had reclaimed power through this fight. Fighting Choi Ji-won had only sped that up. The strong grow fastest fighting the strong.

While the Heavenly Demon loosened his body, Choi Ji-won pulled an Elixir from her clothes and drank it in one gulp. The fading blue lightning surged back to life, and her paling lips returned to red. But the black line left by the throwing weapon on her cheek stayed. Even with the Elixir, some aftereffect remained.

"I'd like to call myself This Venerable One, but my level is still too meager to earn that right. I can wield every weapon there is."

The Heavenly Demon spoke while opening and closing his fingers.

"At first, it was only to win. Understanding an enemy raises your odds of survival. After that, it became curiosity. The techniques humans developed across generations had depth, and learning them was enjoyable."

"..."

Choi Ji-won leveled Bung-bung at him. The Heavenly Demon didn't react, and kept talking.

"Later... it became revulsion. That creatures who dared resemble me were still alive offended me. Watching endlessly inferior beings train their techniques just to survive was disgraceful to look at. In a world where beings are born from the heavens, the fact that I was born a mere human filled me with hatred. Weapons belong to the weak. The strong stand complete in the body they were born with."

Dark red flame gathered on the Heavenly Demon's fist. Only then did everyone realize it. Until now, the Heavenly Demon hadn't used mana at all. He'd withstood Choi Ji-won, who had activated Heart of Lightning Flash, using nothing but a beastman's superior physical abilities.

"I found the human species disgusting. I killed every one I saw. Killing and killing again, at some point a realization came to me. I was on the verge of transcending humanity. If only I hadn't died."

Choi Ji-won's blue lightning flashed. The Heavenly Demon's black flame burned. Defeat was already certain. From here, it was only a matter of how much information she could carry away. The trigger for regression was already set. All that remained was to hold on as long as possible, then regress.

"A new chance has come to me. I will become the most exalted being there is. I will escape this cursed Tower. You are the historic cornerstone of that. Consider it the finest glory a mere human could ever hope to enjoy."

I wanted to close my eyes. I wanted to look away. But I couldn't. I had to burn this moment into my brain until the very end.

"Come."

"Here I come."

Two silhouettes collided. A roar rang out that no one could believe came from two people clashing. The sound carried outside the arena, drawing curious stragglers to peek in. Something was happening. That much was obvious to anyone.

I'll spare the details of what happened after. Choi Ji-won fought hard. The Heavenly Demon was stronger, and then some. Bung-bung couldn't pierce through his mana. Every single attack the Heavenly Demon landed was a killing blow.

Once I felt I'd watched enough, I bit down on the inside of my cheek.

Next time would be different.

[You have taken damage.]

[Returning to the moment of first entry on Floor 28.]

I thought Choi Ji-won might be in despair. If she'd shut herself away in defeat, I was ready to comfort her.

"I figured out how to win."

Choi Ji-won was, if anything, wound up with excitement. A wide smile spread across her face as she grabbed my hand.

"It's you."

"What?"

"I think you can win this."

"...What are you talking about?"

Her finger poked at my chest.