Regression is Too Much - Chapter 58

WeTried Translations

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 058

──────

Choi Ji-won is too strong (9)

“Make it happen.”

“…”

“I said, make it happen.”

Archangel Raphael’s face did not contort in an instant. His expression was the same as usual. However, I felt that the smile on his lips had grown deeper.

“What kind of reward would you like me to provide?”

Just as I thought. It was just like the one who had been showing goodwill all this time.

Instead of getting serious or angry, Archangel Raphael passed the baton to me, as if telling me to make a proposal.

I must not get the wrong idea here. The one explaining is always in the weaker position, and the one listening is in the stronger position. The one proposing is weaker, and the one making the decision is stronger.

No matter how unreasonable a demand I make, if that guy just brushes it off with a ‘That won’t do’ then it’s all for nothing.

In other words, the important thing is for me to propose an appropriate level of compensation. I have to present a reward plan that is neither too excessive nor too insufficient.

“I’ll take whatever you give me.”

Therefore, I decided to just lie down and say I’d take whatever he offered.

Racking my brain here thinking, ‘What would be an appropriate reward?’ would be playing right into the opponent’s hands.

In negotiations, I always have to lead the flow of the conversation at my own pace.

“…You’ll take whatever I give you?”

Archangel Raphael is, at least on the surface, maintaining a favorable stance towards humanity.

He probably can’t lowball the reward by giving me some ridiculous piece of trash. He has the dignity of an archangel to maintain, after all.

In other words, the one who had to worry about ‘what level of reward would be appropriate’ was once again Archangel Raphael.

This counter-proposal also contained my irritation at not wanting to lose this war of nerves against an archangel.

“Interesting.”

I don’t know how much of my inner thoughts he had grasped, but Raphael shrugged his shoulders once.

Snap!

When Raphael snapped his fingers, a single silver ring appeared in the air with a bright light.

“To be honest, I cannot clearly know your status, Junho-nim. Father has placed a restriction on the information. However, from what I can see on the surface, I believe this will be the most necessary reward for you. I promise you this on my honor.”

I carefully took the ring floating in the air.

“…The options aren’t showing up for this.”

“Isn’t it always fun finding things out for yourself?”

“…Including the part where I don’t know its function, the reward is still not enough. I think I’ll need to get the three diamond rewards we talked about earlier to make it sufficient.”

“As you wish.”

Although I said it was not enough… I could instinctively tell that wasn’t the case.

The ring in my hand was constantly emitting a somehow sacred and cool energy. As Raphael said, it was probably no ordinary object.

I clenched the ring tightly without a word.

“Well then… It was a pleasure meeting you, Junho-nim.”

With the conversation having come to a close.

Just as Raphael was about to bid his farewell. My eyes fell on the placard angel, trembling in Raphael’s grasp.

“…The angel in your hand.”

“Pardon?”

“What will happen to him?”

“…I will just give him a little punishment. A light punishment for dereliction of duty.”

“…”

However, the placard angel’s trembling body and his pale expression were telling. It wouldn’t end with a simple ‘punishment.’

“Just leave him and go. You need someone to act as a guide anyway. And since the master of the city is gone, you’ll need someone to control whether the rules are being followed, won't you?”

“…”

Archangel Raphael gently released the placard angel.

“Th-thank!! Thank you, climber-nim!”

Leaving behind the placard angel who thanked me with a face that had brightened in an instant.

“Then… once again, congratulations.”

With a strange smile.

The moment I blinked, Archangel Raphael had disappeared.

The baby angels that filled the sky also vanished.

The plaza, which had been filled with the sound of hymns and trumpets, instantly regained its empty silence.

“Ugh…”

“Shit… my head…”

I noticed players around me coming to their senses one by one.

The sacred atmosphere from just a moment ago was gone without a trace, and the plaza had returned to its shabby state.

“…”

“Um…”

The placard angel, who had been cautiously glancing around, sidled up and spoke to me.

“Thank you very much, but… why did you save me…? N-no, it’s not that I don’t like it…”

“…Just because.”

He was an annoying angel, but the reason I went out of my way to save him was…

Because I felt that Raphael was trying to pin the blame on the placard angel. I didn’t like seeing someone, even if they were an angel, being used like a tool.

Because it felt like humanity too… was being played by the gods.

-Hey I cleared the 2nd floor, but it’s a bit different from the posts I saw here? There’s some weird instructor and missions… are you guys climbing a different tower than me?

-I heard that Choi Ji-won made a deal with an angel and got it changed.

-Who’s Choi Ji-won?

-She’s the unofficial world’s strongest. A woman who fought the 2nd floor hidden boss one-on-one and won.

-Bullshit. America’s Michael Zetter is stronger.

-I lurk on the American community forums too, and they said Zetter got his ass kicked by the master of the city? Doesn’t that mean Choi Ji-won is stronger?

Three weeks after the President of the United States acknowledged the existence of the Tower.

The hottest topic in player communities around the world right now was the Korean, Choi Ji-won.

-It just doesn’t make sense. I thought I got a bit stronger after getting a trait, but that woman is just a monster.

-I couldn’t even see her sword swinging… I really felt the gap in power.

Many eyes had watched Ji-won’s showdown with the master of the city.

She wields a sword with unbelievable skill. She has her hair in a ponytail. She is a beautiful East Asian woman. She is Korean.

Because she had drawn so much aggro while roaming the city for the ‘revolution’, her appearance had spread in quite specific detail among the players.

-Isn’t this the woman? She looks exactly the same.

And as a photo of Choi Ji-won taken at her father’s funeral was unearthed, her personal information spread in an instant.

Choi Ji-won. Her three-syllable name was firmly engraved in the minds of the players.

-I never even thought it was possible to change the rules of a floor… Her way of thinking is amazing.

-I agree. While we were just thinking about getting better rewards, that woman was thinking of changing the system itself.

Furthermore, on the internet, Choi Ji-won was credited with changing the rules of the 2nd floor. Most players had fainted when the master of the city started to rampage, so they didn’t see the whole story, and the few players who remained conscious were also put to sleep by the archangel’s power, so the truth was buried.

It was to the point where the accepted official history was that ‘Choi Ji-won, after taking a blow from the master of the city, miraculously came to her senses and subdued the master of the city with her last remaining strength.’

Of course, given Ji-won’s personality, she would have actively stepped forward to clarify if such false rumors spread… but because Kim Jun-ho didn’t want to draw aggro, Ji-won just accepted it as it was.

The aftermath of the 2nd floor did not end there.

『 Ms. Choi, Who Is She? 』

『 [GoryeoTV] A Korean Who Amazed America, Shocked Japan, and Made China Tremble?! 』

Players who hadn’t reached the 2nd Floor and ordinary people couldn’t see the specific details due to information restrictions, but they could see indirect descriptions from other players who were talking about how ‘she was just damn amazing anyway.’

“Wow… that young lady is incredible… getting recognized all over the world…”

“Isn’t our country’s talent our resource, after all?”

And so, ordinary citizens, without even knowing what Ji-won had done, took a big drink of nationalistic pride.

“…Should I try going up to the 2nd floor too? If I can draw aggro well, I could rake in the cash.”

“…What the hell happened on the 2nd floor…”

Around the time when the players staying on Floor 1 were watching Ji-won receive a nationwide spotlight and contemplating whether to go to Floor 2 or not.

“…The real deal was that man.”

“To be able to copy the hidden boss’s technique just by watching that short battle? Is that something a human can do?”

“Choi Ji-won is important. But what’s more important is that man. Pay attention to that talent.”

The strong players who had withstood the master of the city’s lightning were talking about Kim Jun-ho.

They had clearly seen with their own two eyes Jun-ho using Flash Step to subdue the master of the city. Choi Ji-won was one thing, but the impact Kim Jun-ho had shown was literally on another level.

Those who had acquaintances scurried over to talk about Jun-ho, and that story was then passed on to another ranker…

Although his exact identity was unknown, a rumor about ‘Choi Ji-won’s helper with unbelievable talent’ spread secretly among the rankers.

“Zetter, did you hear about the 2nd floor?”

To the extent that the big shots were paying attention.

-Should I have just challenged for the Gold reward? It seemed too tough so I just got the silver reward and came out.

-The angel holding the placard was cute lol he’s so damn kind.

-I know right. That bastard from the Tutorial ‘Judgment’ was a complete jerk.

-Baron Licht << seems to be a hidden NPC. He’s hiding in a corner of the city, and if you ask him, he gives you a buff. The effect is awesome.

-Did you guys see the woman who used to be the master of the city? She was so damn pretty.

-Isn’t she that tanner’s assistant with the fluffy fur? I think I saw her this time.

-Can ordinary people use this low-grade potion? I’m thinking of selling it.

“…Hmm.”

After a full tour of the internet communities, the 2nd floor was showing clear signs of improvement.

The ‘no violence’ condition and the newly introduced ‘instructor’ system were said to be extremely well-received.

Some even said that Floor 0 was nothing more than a test of basic qualifications, and Floor 2 felt like the real tutorial.

For the latecomers who intend to climb the Tower in the future, the 2nd floor will act as a bountiful, generous floor where they can learn combat skills and also collect rewards. As the material resources are also close to unlimited, quite a few people planned to stay for a long time to get used to combat.

In the end, I succeeded in changing the system of the 2nd floor just as I had initially intended. People no longer have to commit unnecessary sins to get good rewards.

“…Regression is not an option.”

Regressing here seemed like a bad choice.

First, there was no guarantee that I could repeat the same situation.

Let’s just look at the results for now.

Thanks to the archangel making huge concessions, I succeeded in completely improving the 2nd Floor.

Moreover, I obtained all the rewards that could be obtained. I even got an Elixir as a diamond reward this time, so there were no rewards I missed out on.

In other words… just looking at the results of the 2nd floor clear, I succeeded in leading to the outcome I wanted. There was no need to regress.

Also, what worried me was Archangel Raphael.

It’s impossible for me to gauge accurately at my level, but Archangel Raphael is an overwhelmingly strong being that I can’t even dare to look at.

Now, let’s imagine I regress here and face Raphael once again.

Could I perfectly replicate my reaction from when I first met Raphael? To the point where I could deceive a transcendent being?

What if, after seeing my reaction… Raphael somehow deduces my regression?

Right now, he didn’t seem to know about ‘Regression’ itself, and he was consistently favorable towards me…

But there was no guarantee he would act the same after noticing the regression.

In other words… The plan to regress and go through the 2nd floor again is scrapped.

In that case, what I had to do was simple.

[Choi Ji-won]: The day after tomorrow at 6 PM. Is that okay?

[Kim Jun-ho]: Sounds good.