Regression is Too Much - Chapter 352

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Chapter 352: Ruin (13)

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Surprisingly, the first thing this world's Kim Jun-ho did was voluntarily reveal his identity. Well, the intent behind it was obvious enough.

"A regressor? Like in that web novel...?"

"Yes, that's right."

"I mean, well... even if you say that..."

"Well, it's only natural you wouldn't believe it. So I brought a few things to prove it. First, a week from now, a stock called Holy Delta Tech..."

"Uh... hm..."

"And three days from now, it'll come out that a famous YouTuber is actually gay, and that he committed a sexual assault against another man."

"Wait, wait! What are you even saying, PD-nim!"

The moment he declared a celebrity was about to fall from grace, the live broadcast dissolved into chaos. Afterward, posts circulated on the community boards with titles like "Mental patient who thinks he's a regressor."

But then...

-Famous influencer booked on charges of same-sex sexual assault...

-Holy Delta Tech hits its daily upper limit... Will superconductor-themed stocks 'moon'?

-Is this actually real?

-Wait, what is this guy? Is he really a regressor?

Once every single statement turned out to be true, attention slowly began to build.

"Cutting a rock with a sword? Easy. I'll show you right now."

-Isn't this staged? Even pretty solid players can't pull that off.

"You think it's staged? Where do you live? Let's do a collab stream."

-lol Think I'll back out? Come to Incheon.

"...You actually came."

"Pick any rock you want."

He abandoned his former air of mystery and went around showing off his Strength wherever he went.

"Why am I stirring up so much attention when I'm a regressor? Because I need to get famous."

There were plenty of suspicious looks and plenty of people cursing him out, but he steadily began building his fame. The goal, obviously, was one thing: triggering the Hero trait.

Unlike before, there was no cooperation from the American President or the Korean government. Sure, he'd cleared Floor 4 solo, perfectly, but nobody knew that the person who did it was an individual named Kim Jun-ho. So the process of getting famous went a lot slower, and the suspicion aimed at him was a lot harsher than before, too.

"If you handle your Mana carefully enough, flying is possible too."

Overwhelming skill.

"Ah, that's information that gets released in the future. Here's how it happened."

Information that jumped across time.

"I'll protect all of you. I'll use this power, and I will absolutely save you."

Sweet words that sounded good to the ear.

All of it built into fame, and my Strength grew stronger as time went on.

Honestly, this couldn't be called a wise course of action. A regressor shines brightest when their identity remains hidden. People aren't stupid. If they catch on that a regressor exists, there are ways to deal with it, mixing in false information, or running a plan that depends entirely on randomness.

But this world's version of me didn't care about any of that. From the start, getting famous and getting stronger weren't the goal. They were just the process.

"Good."

The core of it was what he'd do after getting stronger. This world's me checked over the plan one last time, then suddenly started flying straight up into the sky. Higher, and higher still.

What was the intent? What was he trying to test? Even though we were the same person, the time given and the circumstances were different enough that I couldn't make sense of it at all.

"Let me take a guess of my own."

There were a few possibilities. How could someone like me have cleared Floor 25?

I was a player too, so I could probably hold my breath for about five minutes. If I strung enough of those five-minute stretches together, maybe I could at least make a plan.

But could I, in those short five-minute intervals, build a Mana filter the way Choi Ji-won had? No. Absolutely not. I wasn't that kind of genius, and I wasn't impressive enough to create something like that while running low on oxygen. If there was any possibility left...

"...I would’ve had to do something before going in."

Something like preparing completely before ever entering Floor 25. But that had its own problem, because I hadn't fully grasped the situation on Floor 25 either. Was it poison? Did blades come raining down from every direction the second you stepped in? Was a monster waiting in front of the portal? I knew a crisis existed. I just didn't know what kind.

And in that situation, would I really invest time beforehand just in case there was poison? It wasn't completely unreasonable, but knowing my own personality, it didn't seem like something I'd do.

So then... how...? Honestly, I still didn't even know how Floor 25 got cleared, and I couldn't figure out what this world's version of me was even trying to do. What did flying up into the sky have to do with a maze?

"...Should I go?"

While I was stuck puzzling it over, this world's me, having flown high enough, suddenly released my Mana and began free-falling through open air. The wind roaring past my ears sounded incredibly loud.

What was this? What was going on? I still had no idea at all, but it was fine. Given enough time, I could surely figure out what he was intending...

"Huh?"

There was no time to figure anything out. One moment I was falling from the sky, the next, I was slaughtering monsters left and right on Floor 29. I had clearly regressed, but I hadn't expected the process in between to get skipped entirely. Why had I regressed? Had I failed?

"What? What is this?"

Time started running. It flowed faster than anything I'd seen up to this point, incomparably so. It began sprinting, wild and unrelenting, so fast that I couldn't infer anything.

"Wait, wait!"

I wanted to look more closely, but only brief images flickered past, like fragments of memory drifting by. Me, gritting my teeth. Me, giving some kind of speech in front of a crowd. Me, collapsing in the street from exhaustion. Me, with bloodshot eyes, agonizing over something. Me, sobbing my eyes out. Me, meditating under a waterfall. Me, completely losing myself and carousing wildly with women. Me, the next morning, writhing in self-loathing. Me, meeting all kinds of scientists before scribbling complicated equations on paper.

Me... doing my best.

Like a movie skipping through a training montage, short scenes appeared and vanished, over and over. I wanted to estimate the flow of time from my state, but that wasn't easy either. The images I saw were a jumbled mess, completely erratic.

I couldn't say my counterpart in this world marched straight toward the goal. Sometimes his mind seemed to snap and he pulled some bizarre stunt, and other times he seemed swallowed by madness, smoking a cigarette amid hundreds of corpses. The arrow my counterpart was drawing bent this way and that, warped out of shape.

"When you break it down, it's fucking easy. Just don't move to the next floor. Then I'll succeed eventually, I'm telling you."

Me, dead drunk, screaming at the empty air.

"No, actually, if I just hadn't turned down the Book's offer back then. If I'd just handed over the Elixir quietly. No, wait, maybe? Now? Am I?"

He couldn't handle the alcohol and collapsed flat on the ground, then got back up again a moment later. Even suppressing his Mana to get properly drunk, he still couldn't sleep easy.

"...What was I supposed to try next again?"

Warped as it was. Twisted as it was. The arrow was clearly aimed at a single goal. Advancing steadily, one step at a time.

Toward the goal named Choi Ji-won. Toward one single person.

And as all these varied images kept flashing by...

"Waaaaaaah!!!!"

"Uwaaaaaaah!!!"

An enormous roar of cheering suddenly shook heaven and earth. Everywhere, joy, pure happiness, bright positive energy overflowed.

"Kim Jun-ho!"

"Our savior!!!"

"We love you!!! We really love you!!!"

Broadcast helicopters flying through the sky. Phones in everyone's hands. A sight like every single broadcast camera on Earth had been gathered in one place.

Dozens, thousands, tens of thousands, perhaps even more, made up an enormous crowd. The massive throng, mixed together regardless of race, age, gender, or ideology, was waving its hands toward the sky. Crying tears of joy was the least of it. Some people had fainted outright and collapsed.

The crowd, swallowed by a madness called joy, chanted the name "Kim Jun-ho" over and over, all staring up at the sky.

"Everyone."

At the end of every gaze, I floated, wrapped in a radiant, shining aura. At first glance, I looked ordinary, but anyone could tell I was steeped in something unmistakably mysterious.

"Thank you."

"He said thank you!!!"

"Jun-ho-nim!!! He said thank you to me!!!"

I smiled faintly at that reaction.

"Thanks to all of you... I've realized something."

It was a smile that came from the heart, one I could recognize because it was my own smile.

"The answer wasn't far away at all."

He brought his middle finger and thumb together, then snapped his fingers.

"Huh?"

The next moment, everything was plunged into complete darkness.

Whoosh.

As light slowly spread back in, what came into view was the same park as before. The park where this world's version of me had once collapsed in despair.

Except there was one difference.

"The weather's really nice."

"Yeah, it is."

I wasn't alone. I was holding hands with someone as we walked through the park together.

Choi Ji-won. It was Choi Ji-won. The real Choi Ji-won, her eyes overflowing with affection as she looked at me, matching her pace to mine with obvious care, her ponytail swaying. I didn't know how he'd done it, but this world's Kim Jun-ho had succeeded. He'd gotten Choi Ji-won back.

"Jun-ho-yah, what's wrong?"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"No, it's just... your eyes looked a little sad."

"It's nothing. We had a rough time in the Tower, you know. That's probably why."

"...Yeah? Was it really hard?"

"A little."

"Come closer."

A man and a woman walked down the road, pressed close together.

"Are you still sad now?"

I still had no idea how he'd done it.

"No, I'm happy."

He had succeeded in getting Choi Ji-won back.