WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 080

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The Regressor is flustered (1)

"Kim Jun-ho, you should go."

Chan spoke calmly from within the protective barrier.

"I can feel this seal weakening. It will probably be released in an hour or two."

He grazed the spherical protective barrier with his fingertip, then shifted his gaze to the fallen Su-hee.

"When the seal is broken, I'll take Dok Su-hee and escape the 3rd floor. So, you should go through the red door."

"But…"

It was good for me. I needed to go through the red door at least once anyway.

However, the fact that Chan was so readily giving up the reward weighed on my mind. I hadn't told him about my regression in this timeline, so I couldn't understand why he was acting so favorably.

"The reason? The reason is simple."

Chan turned, looking at the door that was a mix of red and gray.

"First, I don't find the reward itself appealing."

His eyes were heavy and sunken.

"This is a Tower built to judge humanity. On top of that, cooperation was the main task on this floor. Yet, after designing it so we couldn't move forward if even one person died, it went and induced betrayal at the very end."

What Chan said was true. This Tower, at the same time it encourages evil deeds, it also threatens to judge you for committing them. It couldn't be more duplicitous.

"Therefore, it's hard to think that the reward will be entirely good. There might even be a penalty."

In the first place, the door itself was a deep, bloody red. Just as Chan said, it was unlikely to give a purely good reward.

"For that reason, I will not take the risk."

Chan said with his arms crossed.

"I am already strong enough. Rather than taking an unnecessary risk, I will just take the basic reward. You can bear the risk."

Although those were the words Chan spoke, I could guess his inner thoughts.

In this timeline, Chan had not revealed his abilities to me. Therefore, he was currently playing the part of 'Kang Chan, the ruthless and arrogant powerhouse.'

He was probably yielding the reward because he inwardly acknowledged my contributions from our recent struggles.

"I-I also… think that Jun-ho-nim should be the one to go in. But my reason is a little different."

This time, it was Gyeong-jun.

"Jun-ho-nim was the one who first identified the wolf that appeared… and it was largely thanks to Jun-ho-nim that we broke through the strange maze in the middle… and more than anything, the arrow trap was Jun-ho-nim's one-man show, wasn't it? I think Jun-ho-nim contributed more than enough to deserve that reward."

What he said was true. In order to progress through the timeline quickly, I had predicted all sorts of threats under the guise of 'insight', and thanks to that, we were able to get through the 3rd floor smoothly. In fact, if you only considered the overall contribution, mine was probably the highest.

"And…"

Gyeong-jun continued speaking as he looked down at Dok Su-hee.

"...Su-hee-ssi probably would have thought the same thing."

"Dok Su-hee is a traitor, not an object of pity."

Chan said with a frown. But Gyeong-jun just smiled, even as he was sweating profusely.

"...Haha. It's true that she's a traitor. But, would she have acted this way if the Tower didn't exist? In the end, it's because of the Tower that a young student changed like this…"

Chan let out a sigh and shook his head.

"...Let's just not talk about it."

"…"

Looking at Gyeong-jun taking care of Su-hee, I felt my heart sink.

Su-hee's terrible wounds came into view. I could see her distorted expression.

Would the normal person I strived to be have really blown off a high school student's arm?

Dok Su-hee is a traitor. But did I have the right to pass 'judgment' on such a traitor? I didn't know. In the end, it was a matter of choice.

I should have taken some kind of action… intensity was always the problem. Doing too little was a problem, and doing too much was a problem too. The current sight of Dok Su-hee's entire arm being gone was clearly excessive.

My expression twisted without me realizing it. In the process of repeating my regressions to break through the arrow trap, people had started to stop looking like people.

As much as I had been on guard against my reasoning breaking down, I had already become twisted to a certain extent.

"...It's fine."

It was Chan who pulled me from the swamp of my consciousness.

"You did well."

"...What do you mean?"

"…"

Chan didn't answer. He was staring intently at my right index finger.

"...Ah."

In the past, when I was prying for Chan's abilities and planning to break through the arrow trap, I had a chance to talk with him.

The Chan I had figured out at that time was someone who accurately recognized the limits of his own abilities and moved according to meticulous calculations.

That's why he said he had a habit of observing first when encountering a new environment. Chan stared at my finger for a while, then gave a small nod.

He saw. He definitely saw it.

He must have seen me rush toward the red door as soon as we entered the room. He might not know how I knew the red door would be there, what kind of trait I had to make the door explode, or if I had acted knowing in advance that Dok Su-hee would betray us…

But he could have easily inferred that I was involved in the door's explosion.

"…"

And… Chan, even knowing that I had blown off Su-hee's arm, yielded the chance to enter the red door to me.

That was trust. Chan had spoken his reasons for not entering, but he showed with his actions that he trusted me.

All the hardships I had struggled through in the past to clear the 3rd floor were by no means meaningless.

That's what I thought.

After we exchanged contact information and briefly discussed how to act from now on, Kang Chan looked me straight in the eye from within the protective barrier and said.

"Think carefully. Will you go in?"

"…"

It was true that I was conflicted.

I still didn't know how to get rid of a trait. If I received some strange trait or reward here like 'The Traitor's End'… my already wavering mind might become completely twisted.

Perhaps, I might regret this decision for a long, long time.

"I will go in."

But despite that, I placed my palm on the discolored door.

The surface of the door, where the scab of blood had been blown away, was the color of ordinary stone, no different from the other doors.

Because even though its outer surface might have turned red from layers of hardened blood, its essence was sound, no different from the other stone gates.

Because I believed that it wasn't the door that was twisted, but the people who used it.

I placed my palm on the stone gate.

Rumble.

A blue portal revealed itself. A normal blue portal, no different from the other portal on the right.

"...I'll see you again later."

I threw myself into the portal while holding the large box under one arm.

My vision was instantly dyed black.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw a giant stone statue.

[Warrior.]

This place was a mountain somewhere, and a stone statue that looked like a sculpture of some man was speaking to me.

[A warrior needs a fitting weapon.]

It was a voice from my memory. The voice from the room where we had to split into two groups, the one that told us to share and drink the blood.

From where I was standing, I could only see the back of the stone statue, but it had a solemn gravity.

"...Who are you?"

[Warrior. As you passed through the cave, did you act like a warrior?]

The statue didn't answer my question, only saying what it had to say.

[…Originally, this space was a space for the most honorable warrior. A place where, in the process of overcoming trials, people would evaluate and acknowledge each other, and yield the reward to the most honorable warrior. It was created with that meaning, but…]

The presence of the statue, which had seemed as mighty as a great mountain, softened a little.

[…By the hands of those who lost their reason to greed, its meaning became tainted at some point.]

"…"

That was right.

The red door that only one person could enter was probably not red from the beginning. It was tainted and turned red after blood piled on top of blood on top of blood.

That's how everything in the world is. It is bound to change when exposed to the trials and tribulations of the world. Even if it started with good intentions… by the time you come to your senses, it has become strangely twisted.

Like Dok Su-hee… and maybe me too.

[The idle talk has gone on too long. The reward shall be given.]

Slowly, the stone statue began to glow.

The entire statue turned white, then in an instant, it transformed into a halo of light.

[A weapon is a warrior's mirror. An evil person is bound to be given an evil weapon… Did you act like a warrior in the cave?]

The halo of light drifted toward me and gathered into the shape of a sword.

"…"

And the sword that soon materialized… was not a sword.

"Huh?"

A scabbard.

Literally, a single scabbard was placed in my hand.

"...This isn't a weapon."

What's more, a status window usually pops up if you stare intently at an item, but one didn't appear for this scabbard. The ring the archangel gave me was like this too, maybe hidden items just don't get status windows.

[A weapon is a warrior's mirror. Always keep that in mind.]

The voice did not answer this time either.

With the profound voice of the statue as the last thing I heard, my vision went dark for a moment.

[You have cleared Floor 3-5.]

[Entering Floor 1.]

When I opened my eyes again, I was on the 1st floor.

Author's Note:

Floor 3 is finished. I would like to express my gratitude to all the readers who have read until the end.

I don't know what you all thought of Floor 3, but it was a floor where I pursued relatively mainstream fun. The ending was very disappointing due to the limits of my writing ability...

For Floor 4, I will pursue plenty of fun that suits my own taste. I hope it suits your tastes. Thank you.

P.S.) Actually, there was a scenario where Dok Su-hee didn't betray everyone.

They just peacefully use a lottery to decide who enters the red door, and Dok Su-hee gets picked first.

The protagonist thinks it's bad luck and regresses to draw again... but strangely, no matter how many times he repeats the regression, more than 10 times, Dok Su-hee keeps getting picked. She had cheated using her Inventory.

I debated this before switching to the betrayal plot... I regret it T.T

Footnotes:

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