WeTried Translations

Translator: ZEROSUGAR

Editor: Abstract

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◈ Regression is Too Much

Chapter 093

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The night is too dark (2)

“I’ve checked all the entrances to the castle. There won’t be any monsters sneaking in like yesterday.”

Fixing the stable after the cow is stolen won't bring it back, but it's a different matter when you still have other cows to protect. After the funeral, Baron George meticulously repaired the existing barricades to prevent a repeat of yesterday's tragedy.

“…Hoo.”

About 270 otherworlders remained. It was a large number to begin with, but it felt even larger in the cramped confines of the narrow castle.

And from Baron George's perspective, allocating these people was a great source of stress.

First, it was difficult for all 270 people to gather together. There was no wide-open space within the castle, so there simply wasn't a place for all of them to stay together.

However, sticking together was essential for mounting their own resistance. Thanks to Da-hye's pleading, they had received a few magical tools, but those alone wouldn't be enough for everyone to survive.

Some otherworlders even asked if they could hide behind me while I blocked one of the passages… but that was out of the question.

Right now, I was the strongest on the 4th floor, so hiding right behind me would indeed be the safest option. The problem was that my own escape route would be blocked. It would make me unable to respond to any variables.

“The work on the fourth floor just finished. The timing was a little tight.”

The conclusion Baron George came to was, ‘If there’s no place to gather, we just have to make one.’

It was the idea to completely tear down the already half-tattered fourth floor of the castle and remodel it into a space where hundreds of people could gather. At first, I wondered, is that even possible? But after seeing it, it turned out to be a pretty good idea. (Thanks to demolishing the side opposite to where the portal was hidden, the portal was not revealed.)

It was the top floor, so it was the safest to begin with, and after blocking three of the four staircases leading up, it was a natural fortress like no other. Of course, there was the problem that it would become extremely vulnerable if monsters climbed the castle walls… but if things got to that point, we would all be dead anyway, so it was probably fine to disregard that possibility.

“Ah, and did you get the magical tools?”

Baron George asked, as if the thought had just occurred to him.

“I’ve placed them over there in the back.”

Among the magical tools we obtained on the second floor was an orb with a communication function. As luck would have it, there were exactly three orbs, so I, Joong-hyun, and Baron George each took one.

-Ahem. Can you hear me?

“I can hear you.”

The voice I just heard belonged to Yoon Joong-hyun. Communicating over long distances was impossible due to the castle’s narrow and echoing nature, but this magical tool made it possible. We should now be able to respond even if a variable like yesterday’s occurs.

“I’ll say it again, if you have the capacity when a problem arises, go provide support, but if you don’t, just stay where you are.”

-Understood.

Right after Joong-hyun's voice cut off, Baron George looked me in the eye, nodded, and then left for the 4th floor of the castle.

The castle’s defenses are even more thorough than yesterday. I dare to predict that among all the people who have attempted the 4th floor of the Tower so far, we have prepared the most diligently and the best.

“They’re coming.”

But just as our light was brighter than yesterday, the night was darker than yesterday.

A black something leaped nimbly from the castle wall.

It wasn't the wolf I saw yesterday. That… is the cat that was said to have massacred the otherworlders. The problem was that it wasn't just one or two, but dozens, hundreds of them leaping from the castle walls.

And that wasn't all. There was also a bizarre reptile that looked like a mix between a hippo and a crocodile, and a green, slime-like monster I had never seen before.

Is the composition of the monsters changing too? The number of familiar orcs, wolves, and goblins had decreased, while the number of monsters I was seeing for the first time had increased.

Of course, just because the composition of the monsters changed didn't mean my job changed.

Just protect this passage. Just do the best I can.

After a final check of the dozens of swords piled up behind my back.

“Kyaaaak!”

Dozens of black cats rushed towards the passage.

“Come on.”

I drew my sword.

The battle flowed in a way that was contrary to my expectations.

“What is this?”

The monsters were certainly strong. The black cat was swift, the hippo-and-crocodile-hybrid beast was heavy, and the slime monster was annoying.

“This is manageable, though?”

Despite all that, it was all too manageable. To the point where it felt like I could hold them off for years, assuming I maintained my concentration.

No matter how tough the enemy was, I could handle them in a single strike, and their swift attacks were no match for the arrow trap on the 3rd floor. The slime monster was a bit of a problem, but as I took care not to let the slime spatter on my body and sliced its round core, it immediately melted away.

If Choi Ji-won were to show up right now, she would be able to carry the 4th floor by herself. No, I didn't even need to think of someone like Choi Ji-won. Even someone like Ahn Gyeong-jun from the 3rd floor could probably pull off a massacre on par with mine.

Kang Chan, who can emit killing intent, or Dok Su-hee, who handles the Inventory… heck, even if Firefighter Park Cheol-jin showed up, it was a level that was plenty manageable.

Of course, the passage was narrow, the environment was suitable for utilizing the Hero trait, and the defenses were thorough. But even taking all that into account, it felt like the 3rd floor was more difficult…

“Uwaaaak!”

As I was lost in thought, a man's scream rang out. A player being dragged away, one leg caught in the muzzle of a hippo-like monster.

The hippo monster wasn’t weak, but it wasn’t particularly strong either. There’s no way he should be taken down so helplessly…

“Ah.”

The Tower isn’t just filled with people like Choi Ji-won or Kang Chan. There are many who have only just shed the guise of an ordinary person and have not yet entered the ranks of superhumans.

Now that traits and levels have appeared, the gap between people has become wider than ever before. The strong are boundlessly strong, and the weak are boundlessly weak. It was just that the people I had met so far were too strong.

Right, the 4th floor isn’t easy. I am strong.

I had consistently gathered the best rewards from the tutorial all the way to the 3rd floor, so if I struggled here, everyone else would be completely wiped out.

“…Let’s focus.”

Let’s stop the useless thoughts and focus on the monsters in front of me.

Let’s survive for as long as possible and dig up all the information I can get.

For the best result.

-29 : 00 :56

A considerable amount of time had passed. I had gone through more than 10 swords, and the severe mental fatigue brought a stabbing headache upon me.

“Is everything alright?”

-There have been some casualties, but we are holding the front line. Some people were burned by the slime monster but William-nim healed them and they're fine. At this rate, I think we'll be okay.

“What about Baron-nim?”

-I spotted a few slime monsters trying to climb the walls, so I killed them and captured one. If there had been windows, it was a situation where they might have infiltrated the interior, so this is a relief for now.

“The slime monster is the problem. By any chance, are there any signs of that slime monster trying to enter through the passages we blocked?”

-There are no signs for now.

There had been an attempt to make a window because the inside of the castle was too stuffy, I'm glad I shut that down.

“If time keeps passing like this…”

We can survive today too. At this rate, it wouldn't be unreasonable to achieve full survival by repeating the regression.

-Wait a moment. This is strange.

Just as I was continuing my hopeful imagination.

-The property of the slime is… strange.

“What do you, ugh, mean by that?”

-Jun-ho-nim, be careful.

I asked Baron George while simultaneously dodging the claws of a monster cat. I had detected an unusual indication in his voice.

-As you know, the fourth floor of the castle is very dirty. There's dust strewn all over the place, not to mention stone fragments on the floor.

-And?

-The spot that the slime monster's body passed over was strangely clean. Finding that bizarre, I am experimenting with the one I captured… Oh dear.

-Why? What is it?

-The existing bricks show no reaction. But the broken or shattered bricks are corroding the moment they are touched. Wait, just a moment. This is… Thomas! Louise!

I heard Baron George’s flustered voice shouting something, but it wasn't clear enough for me to understand.

“Damn.”

Just then, the monsters’ momentum intensified, forcing me to pay a little more attention to the battle. I couldn't hear Baron George’s voice anymore, either.

About 3 minutes of bloody time passed like that, when.

-Jun-ho! Jun-ho! Can you hear me!

“Yes, I… can… hear… you.”

-The bricks of this castle have fine, inscribed magic circles all over them. Corrosion resistance, magic resistance, sound wave resistance, and so on… no, that's not what's important. The important thing is that when a brick is damaged, its effect disappears!

“What the hell… does that… mean?”

There was no time to dwell on Baron George’s words. While I was killing one hippo-crocodile, two cats aiming for an opening pounced on me at the same time.

-The passages we blocked! It means they are vulnerable to the slime monster!

“…What?”

-Jun-ho-nim!

At that moment. I heard Joong-hyun’s urgent voice.

-I think one of the passages has been breached! Monsters are swarming in from behind! We will retreat and move to the second floor!

Besides Joong-hyun’s voice, piercing screams and shouts came from the magical tool.

The passage was breached? Because of the slime monster?

“Get lost!”

I swung my sword wide to cut down the three orcs in front of me, then started running frantically into the castle. I have to get to the second floor. I have to avoid being surrounded at all costs. For someone who regresses at the slightest touch, being surrounded meant an immediate regression.

“Hoo, hoo…”

I ran like crazy through the narrow passage. There was no sign of monsters yet. It seemed they had flocked towards Joong-hyun's side, where there were more people.

“…Shit.”

But when I finally reached the stairs, I couldn't help but spit out a profanity.

A horde of monsters was swarming towards the second floor. They didn't even look at me, just blindly climbing the stairs.

Should I fight? No. There are too many of them. I can't guarantee I won't get a scratch.

And most importantly, the monsters are climbing at a fast pace. If Yoon Joong-hyun had decided to make a stand on the second floor, he would have blocked the stairs first thing. But for them to be climbing so freely? It was right to assume the second floor had already been breached.

“…They must have gone to the fourth floor.”

It's hard to guess accurately because I left the communication orb on the floor, but it's clear they retreated to the fourth floor, the safest place.

As I was deep in thought, I heard the howl of a beast from behind me. It seemed the monsters from the entrance I had fled had reached this point.

“…”

The way back was blocked. The way up was blocked too. There was only one path left.

“Fuck…”

I cut down a few monsters blocking the path and then threw myself down the stairs leading to the basement.

Footnotes:

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