WeTried Translations
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Editor: Abstract
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Regression is Too Much
Chapter 048
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The Regressor takes action (5)
A placard placed in the plaza listed the rewards for each grade.
The bronze grade rewards were trivial consumables or junk-grade potions.
The silver grade rewards were weapons or armor with the prefix ‘sturdy’, and lowest-grade potions.
The gold rewards were weapons and armor with the prefix ‘well-made’, and low-grade potions.
And now, having reached the platinum rewards, there was the ‘Flash’ set with its blatantly overpowered performance, and even a reliable pill that was a satisfying reward no matter when or where you got it.
In truth, if you ignore the systemic unfairness, you couldn't deny the fact that Floor 2 was a pretty generous stage from a player's perspective.
There was virtually no risk, and a reward was guaranteed, regardless of its size. Compared to the Tutorial Stage, which was rampant with blood and death, it was literally close to heaven.
There were no bull-headed monsters aiming for your life, nor were food supplies limited. In the first place, the 2nd floor was a place where a player could stay indefinitely if they chose to, and a place they could pass through in an instant if they wanted to move on. If you didn't get greedy and aimed for just the silver grade reward, clearing it was never an issue.
This was the diamond reward, obtained through all sorts of hardships despite such an easy clear being right in front of me.
It would be a lie to say I wasn't looking forward to it.
Is there a pill this time too? Or an item with insane performance? Come to think of it, I remember other people's status windows having a stat called ‘Mana’… Could the reward be a lightning mana cultivation method? Could I also be able to shoot out streams of lightning from my whole body like the master of the city?
I unknowingly gulped and checked the message that appeared before my eyes.
[Please select your diamond reward.]
-Heart of Lightning Flash [Trait]
-Flash Step [Trait]
-Lowest-grade Elixir [Consumable]
“…Hmm.”
An elixir is an elixir, but what in the world is a Lowest-grade Elixir?
With that useless thought, I decided to read the detailed descriptions.
-Heart of Lightning Flash [S]
‘For a Knight of Thunder to use this technique means they are prepared to die.’
Upon activation, consumes all possessed mana and replaces it with Lightning attribute mana. All physical abilities, including reaction speed, are drastically increased, and all attacks inflict additional lightning attribute damage. The user continuously takes damage for the duration, and 'Heart of Lightning Flash' persists until all Lightning attribute Mana is depleted.
-Flash Step [S]
‘By the time you see it, it’s already too late.’
This is a movement technique that utilizes extreme tempo control. It consumes a large amount of mana to enable momentary super-speed movement. However, the movement distance is affected by proficiency.
-Lowest-Grade Elixir [S]
‘Immortality may be impossible, but a long life free of disease seems possible.’
Consuming one full bottle heals all physical dismemberment. Unlike the original, it is not very effective against curses.
“Tsk…”
Heart of Lightning Flash. It looked like it had amazing performance at a glance, and it seemed like a pretty cool trait too.
A protagonist cornered in a crisis. People to protect. An overwhelmingly powerful enemy. After deliberating, the protagonist decides and activates ‘Heart of Lightning Flash’. Kyaah, so cool.
On top of that, my regression ability itself is a great match for short, decisive battle-type traits. Just like how I pumped up my strength with the Hero trait to take the Minotaur's head, I could just amplify my combat power for a moment, grab the rewards, and then regress.
But as long as it’s written that ‘the user continuously takes damage for the duration,’ it's all just a pie in the sky. Because I would regress the moment I activate the trait.
In the first place, as long as I regress upon taking damage, I can't use any of those "Hold on, my body!" type traits.
Likewise, the Lowest-grade Elixir is a consumable. If I took it to the real world and sold it, I could get my hands on an enormous sum of money… but I can't take it with me when I regress.
Drinking it right now might be okay, but my body is currently the picture of health itself. There's no merit in choosing the elixir.
In the end, there’s only one option left. Flash Step.
For a diamond reward, I suppose I should be grateful that there's at least one thing I can use.
“…How do I even use this?”
I had never acquired a skill like Flash Step that I had to activate myself.
The moment I pressed ‘Flash Step’ with my fingertip, feeling a bit of curiosity.
“Ugh, ugh…”
A headache-inducing pain washed over me. It felt like all my brain cells were burning up, but it didn't seem to count as damage, as there were no signs of regression.
Information was forcibly flowing into my head. How to maintain balance at the tips of my toes. When and where to guide the mana. How to take a step so as not to strain my feet.
“Hoo… hoo…”
About a minute later, the pain gradually subsided, and I was barely able to lift my head.
As if an entire book's contents were hammered into my head, all the information about Flash Step was now inside my mind.
“…”
The movement technique used by the Knights of Thunder. Flash Step.
As they say, you see as much as you know.
The strange movements the master of the city had shown. The reason she could suddenly appear after I blinked my eyes. The knowledge in my head understood that the secret originated from the unparalleled movement technique called ‘Flash Step’.
And I was able to realize a very important fact.
“…I'll need to know how to use mana to be able to use this.”
The explanation ‘consumes mana’ attached to various items… it wasn’t something where mana was consumed automatically like in a game.
It was a structure that activated only when I moved the mana myself. And I don’t know how to use mana.
I got an S-grade reward… but I have no way to use it right now.
“Status Window.”
[Name: Kim Jun-ho] [LV:16]
[Traits]
-Regression [EX]
-Flash Step [S]
-Curiosity [A]
-Awe [B]
-Hero [C]
-Swordsmanship [F]
My achievement level, which was 13, had risen to 16.
And a reliable S-grade trait had been added. One that I had no use for.
“Well, that’s that…”
I was originally planning to test out the S-grade reward I got this time… but that became unnecessary. Because I found out I can’t use it right away anyway.
In that case, I should immediately move on to the next step.
I first opened a portal to the real world and moved to my familiar studio apartment.
Right now, I have cleared Floor 2 but have not yet entered Floor 3. Therefore, if I take damage, I will regress to the moment I just entered the 2nd floor…
The part to note is that I am currently in a state where I have cleared the 2nd floor.
What does that mean? It means the 2nd floor embargo has been lifted. Therefore, it means I can freely browse the reviews of other people who have already cleared the 2nd floor.
If I listen to other people's stories, I will surely find out something I missed.
There must be a way to persuade or subdue the pig-headed master of the city. Someone had said that there were others who tried to replace the nobles. It means I'm not the only one who tried to change the structure of the Tower.
I immediately turned on the computer and started digging through various domestic communities here and there. Having spent my share of time surfing communities back in the day, it wasn't hard to find the information I wanted, but…
-I got this as a silver reward, is it any good?
-What happens if you hit each other on the 2nd floor? I was too scared to try it.
-I seriously want to kill all the bastards blocking the way.
-But why do bronze rewards even exist? I don't get it.
“…This is a variable.”
The problem was, there was literally not a single piece of new, useful information. It was all information I already knew.
I had a decent grasp of the 2nd floor's situation through repeated regressions, while these people had only gone through the 2nd floor once.
On top of that, not much time has passed since the President of the United States announced the existence of the Tower.
At this point, the number of people who had cleared the 2nd floor could literally be counted on one hand. I don't know if they were training on the 1st floor or just playing around, but everyone was reluctant to go up to the 2nd floor.
“…A wild goose chase, huh.”
After about two hours of continuous web surfing, I came to the conclusion that searching for information on the internet was meaningless.
The climbers' community had yet to become active, and there were almost no people who had gone up to Floor 2. Even then, most of them would have chosen the silver reward.
Come to think of it, I might be the one who knows the most about the 2nd floor on Earth right now.
“Tsk.”
Just as I turned off the computer and was about to lie down on my bed to make a plan.
“…Huh?”
I remembered the large, handwritten poster by Michael Zetter that was attached to a corner of the plaza.
And I remembered the conversation of the American guys who were chatting in front of it. They said there was an unofficial player community in America.
“…An American community?”
Everything I had looked for was limited to Korean communities. Why didn't I think of checking foreign communities?
I immediately moved my hands busily and skimmed through the major American communities.
It seemed the American guy's words weren't just idle talk, as I could confirm that several player communities had already been formed.
I connected to the largest of them and scrolled down, and down.
It didn't take long to find what I was looking for. Because that post had an enormous number of upvotes.
“…Found it.”
<My experience on the 2nd floor was extremely unpleasant. I was almost killed by the master of the city.>
Author: M.Z.
A familiar nickname. Exactly the content I was looking for.
I think I've found a possibility.
Footnotes:
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