Regression is Too Much - Chapter 34

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 034

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The regressor’s conditional strength (3)

“…”

The Minotaur’s head rolled over and came to a stop, its eyes meeting mine.

Yeah, you must be dumbfounded too. A creature as strong as you probably never imagined it would die in a single strike, especially not in the Tutorial.

But life is a series of surprises. I never thought I’d be dragged into the Tower either.

Come to think of it, there are no gasps of awe. I flicked the blood off my sword and turned to look at the people.

“…”

Their reaction was incredibly lukewarm.

No, it would be more accurate to say that reality hadn’t set in for them yet.

They suddenly woke up in a clearing, then a fairy appeared and started rambling on about something.

Right after that, some guy started shouting about how they should trust only him while performing a sword dance, and then he led them off somewhere.

They followed him without much thought, only to see a giant bull-headed monster roar, and then its head was sliced off in an instant.

From their perspective, it must have been utterly bewildering. All they did was walk where they were told, and yet something significant had just happened.

“…Achievement level? What’s this?”

A man was fiddling with something in the air in front of him.

His voice was quite familiar… Ah. He was the man who had first shouted ‘Status Window’. We didn’t have a group session to chant ‘Status Window’ this time, so it seems he must have secretly said it on his own.

His ability to adapt really is on another level.

Anyway… I suppose I should let them know what they need to know.

“Everyone, would you please try saying ‘Status Window’?”

Following my friendly guidance, people began to murmur the words one by one… and soon, they were engrossed in the message windows that appeared before their eyes.

Of course, they probably don't have a level yet, so they'll only see an achievement level, just like me. They haven’t killed any goblins, after all.

“…It should be fine, right?”

Considering my own achievement level rose when I pushed the Minotaur into the swamp in the past, it seems that achievement levels increase even without direct contribution.

And since we took down a hidden boss, their achievement levels must have increased substantially.

Even I am getting by somehow by covering my lack of a regular level with my achievement level, so maybe there won’t be a big difference in our direct combat abilities.

Besides, if they start gaining regular levels later on, wouldn't these people become much stronger than in my past regressions?

Or they could just kill a monster or two in the next stage after going through the portal.

The problem is their lack of real combat experience, which makes them unfamiliar with fighting…

Real combat inevitably results in casualties. And I'd have to betray the goblins.

I can’t just let people die for the sake of gaining combat experience.

As I was pondering this, the Goblin Shaman took a spot next to me.

“Hey.”

“…Kereuk.”

The Goblin Shaman stood beside me, looking down at the Minotaur’s head.

He nudged the head with his foot a couple of times, then looked up at me.

“Human. Now that you have what you wanted, will you betray us? Kereuk. I heard that humans grow stronger by killing their own kind.”

“No. And the achievement level will probably be enough.”

“…Kereuk.”

The Goblin Shaman that had been nudging the large bull head disappeared with a shimmer, and then the real Goblin Shaman came walking over from the direction of the swamp.

Wow, this guy. He was testing me until the very end.

“…Kereuk. Good work, human.”

When he waved his hand, the gathered goblins began to scatter in different directions.

“…Yeah. You did good work too. Should I send you off in one go?”

“Kereureuk. This is a monumental day where humans and our kind did not kill one another. Are you trying to spill blood on such a day, human?”

The creature fumbled with the skull it wore on its head and swallowed something that came out of it.

“Human. That Regression of yours… it’s similar to my kind who repeat death in the Tower.”

“…It is similar, I guess.”

The goblins who revive even after death, and me, who regresses after getting injured. If you think about it, you could say we are similar.

“But human… you retain your memories. Kereuk.”

“…So?”

“Sometimes… remembering can be more painful. One day, it might even feel like a curse. Kereuk.”

“…”

“Do your best, human. I’ll be here, working hard to kill humans too.”

After saying that, he grinned and collapsed right where he stood.

“…”

It seems that what he swallowed earlier was something poisonous.

Right, so Regression could feel like a curse?

I know that all too well. I’m doing my best to make sure that doesn’t happen. What's with him saying something so ominous at the end.

And how am I supposed to receive this special reward for contributing to the kill. Why isn't there any announcement about it?

Just as I was grumbling to myself.

Woong.

-[Achievement Notification!]

-You have defeated the boss.

-A portal will be generated at the location where the boss died.

The portal finally revealed itself.

"Hmm."

I thought about it for a moment… and decided to go in for now rather than regressing. After all, this was the only way to save ‘everyone’.

And I had to experience the next stage at some point anyway.

“Alright, please enter one by one. It should be safe…”

No. Come to think of it, this could be a huge problem.

What am I supposed to do if a monster suddenly pops out?

Even if they have achievement levels, those people have no regular levels or combat experience.

It seems right for me to go in first, and if the atmosphere feels strange, I should regress.

“…Wait here for a bit after I go in. About 5 minutes."

I threw myself into the portal.

[Moving to the next stage.]

Kowtow.

A man in a suit bowed politely.

“Welcome, everyone. Did you have a pleasant experience?”

For some reason, the space had a neat, yet cold atmosphere. It seemed the lights weren't all on, as most of it was covered in darkness, but…

Judging only by the visible parts, its design was like that of a human world courtroom.

The peculiar thing was that there were no seats for a defense attorney or a prosecutor, only the judge’s seat existed.

And in the center of the courtroom, there was a large scale.

“Were you thinking you had barely survived… Are you flustered?”

After finishing his greeting, the man in the suit naturally sat down in the judge’s seat.

“First, I will ask a question. What do you think you will be doing here?”

This Tower was built to judge humanity.

At the same time, it was a Tower built to test humanity. It was mankind's last chance to escape the wrath of god.

Perhaps for that reason, god did not permit just anyone to enter this Tower.

He only permitted entry to the faithful little lambs who followed his rules well.

But he also knew well that such people were few, as the world had become so corrupt.

The generous god decided to show mercy. As long as a price was paid, anyone would be given a chance to enter the Tower.

“From now on, you humans will stand on the scales of judgment. You will undergo a screening to enter this Tower.”

Flick.

The place the man pointed to with his hand held something that looked like a large spring scale.

“This scale… measures the ‘weight of your sins’.”

The man rubbed his white-gloved hands together.

“What sins did you commit to survive? Did you stab a colleague in the back? Did you strangle your sleeping benefactor? Or if not that, did you finish off the dying Goblin Shaman, just so you could live?”

The man tapped the pan of the scale.

“All the sins you have committed… this scale will calculate them accurately. And you will have to pay a fitting price.”

It’s unreasonable. It’s unfair.

They create a situation where you have no choice but to kill or be killed, and then they demand you pay the price for committing a sin.

This is nothing short of tyranny.

But… god has always been like that.

It is god who gets angry at will when the behavior of his creation does not please him.

It is god who makes the rules as he pleases and punishes those who break them.

It is god who erased a whole kingdom for the reason that they dared to challenge him.

It is god who demanded a father to offer his two sons as a sacrifice.

God is selfish. God is cruel. God forces his rules upon humans.

And humans have always just accepted it.

It is the same this time.

“Now. Come up to this scale one by one. And pay the price.”

Humans… can only accept.

Humans have always been like that.

“The method of payment is up to you. You can pay with your lifespan, you can pay with stats from your status window… or if not that, you may offer a part of your body. You just have to pay a sufficient price.”

The man smiled.

No, the 5th-rank angel, Zeziel.

He enjoyed this moment the most.

When a human who couldn’t accept their sin wailed. When they frantically racked their brains to pay the price. When they realized that even their life was not enough to pay the price and they begged him.

The greatest masterpiece was a man who asked if he could pay the price with someone else's life.

Humans become endlessly selfish the moment their lives are on the line.

It might be a given, but… since god doesn’t like it, the angels just carry out his will.

“Well then, please come up one by one.”

While the angel sat in the judge’s seat, the humans were seated in the audience gallery.

Snap!

When he snapped his fingers, the light above the darkened audience gallery turned on.

And the humans were finally revealed.

“…Huh?”

The angel Zeziel, without realizing it, drew in a sharp breath.

There were many.

There were too many people.