The Player Who Must Kill the Regressor to Survive.

Chapter 3

—–CROW—– 

“[Rewards will be distributed to the top-ranked players in each sector.]”

“[‘Sector Rank 1 Reward Box’ has been granted.]”

“[Please check your Inventory window.]”

The rewards for the recently displayed ranking were distributed.

However, what was important to Hae-jin now was something else.

It was the ‘Hidden Trial Reward.’

The reason why the former leader, Nam Joo-hyuk, had designated Hae-jin as a companion to regress with, and the reason why he had to kill Joo-hyuk hyung after regressing together, lay here.

‘Now, it’s time to talk about the Hidden Trial.’

As Hae-jin expected, the electronic billboard displayed a message about the Hidden Trial.

“[Announcing the achiever of the First Trial’s Hidden Trial.]”

“[The Hidden Trial achiever will be revealed to all players in every sector.]”

Seeing the message, the players were puzzled.

“What’s a Hidden Trial?”

“Something about achieving a hidden condition, I guess?”

“So what is the Hidden Trial?”

“How would I know?”

Meanwhile, the electronic billboard revealed it.

The objective of the Hidden Trial and who had achieved it.

[First Trial’s Hidden Trial]

-Objective: Achieve 1,000 Kills or more.

-Achieved by: Park Hae-jin.

“One thousand kills…”

A condition that could only be achieved by killing more than a thousand people.

All the players looking at it stared at Park Hae-jin.

While all the surrounding players stared at Hae-jin with a mixture of awe and fear in their eyes, only Hae-jin was presented with the Hidden Trial reward options.

[Hidden Trial reward will be granted.]

[Choose one of the following three rewards.]

Rune Evolution Ticket.

Rune Exchange Ticket.

Rune Dismantling Ticket.

Seeing the Hidden Trial rewards, Park Hae-jin thought.

‘Finally… it begins.’

In truth, Park Hae-jin had only heard about this Hidden Trial reward; it was his first time seeing it with his own two eyes.

This was something he had only heard about from Nam Joo-hyuk hyung, whom he had killed with his own hands.

In the lives before this round, this hidden reward had always been obtained by Joo-hyuk hyung, the leader, so he hadn’t known the true nature of this hidden reward.

Hae-jin then recalled the information he had heard from Nam Joo-hyuk about each of the Hidden Trial rewards.

‘Rune Evolution Ticket, I don’t need to explain this, do I? Runes evolve every 20 levels, and reach their final evolution at level 100, right? So the Rune Evolution Ticket is a reward that lets you use a Rune evolved to level 20 even before reaching level 20.’

‘Rune Exchange Ticket, this can only be obtained as a Hidden Trial reward… It’s a reward that allows you to exchange your Rune with the Runes of the players you killed in the first trial.’

‘Lastly, the Rune Dismantling Ticket is… well, this is familiar, right? If you dismantle a Rune you obtained by luck but don’t really need, you get Divine Stones, materials for God-grade equipment.’

Among these, the reward Park Hae-jin would use was already decided.

This was the will that Nam Joo-hyuk hyung, the leader, had left him at the end of the last round.

“[Hae-jin-ah, I can no longer use the Rune of Regression. I’ve already used up all 216 chances. So… please kill me in the first trial of the next round. And use the Rune Exchange Ticket to take the Rune of Regression and finish these trials in my place. You can become a much more perfect player than someone like me.]”

That was Leader Nam Joo-hyuk’s request.

Instead of himself, who had used up all 216 regressions and could no longer regress, Hae-jin was to use the Hidden Trial in the first trial to take ‘the Rune of Regression’ that Nam Joo-hyuk possessed with the Rune Exchange Ticket.

Therefore, Hae-jin, inheriting Joo-hyuk’s will, now had to walk the thorny path of 216 regressions once again.

To see the end of these trials and finally achieve the world’s salvation.

That was the heavy burden of the Regressor entrusted to Hae-jin, the player who killed the Regressor.

Thus, among the three Hidden Trial rewards, Park Hae-jin chose the ‘Rune Exchange Ticket’ as a matter of course.

[You have selected the ‘Rune Exchange Ticket’ as your Hidden Trial reward.]

*

“I’ve returned.”

These were the words Hae-jin spoke after returning to reality upon completing the first trial.

As soon as he returned to reality, Hae-jin used his player ability.

‘Inventory.’

Players could store their rewards and equipment in their inventory.

[Inventory]

– Rusty Greatsword.

– Sector Rank 1 Reward Box

– Rune Exchange Ticket.

Everything Hae-jin had obtained in the first trial was inside the inventory.

Ignoring everything else, Hae-jin focused on a single item.

The ‘Rune Exchange Ticket,’ the item containing the last hope entrusted to him by his comrades.

Hae-jin used it immediately.

Then, a list appeared before his eyes.

It was a list of the Runes possessed by the players Hae-jin had killed in the first trial.

The ‘Rune Exchange Ticket’ system only allowed exchanges with the Runes of players he had personally killed.

Wasn’t this also the reason why he had to kill Joo-hyuk hyung?

There, Hae-jin searched for only one thing.

Nam Joo-hyuk’s Rune, the ‘Rune of Regression.’

However, it was strange.

“What? Why isn’t the Rune of Regression here?”

Hae-jin sensed something was amiss.

He slowly scrolled through the list again to check.

“Ah, right!”

Hae-jin belatedly remembered what he had overlooked.

He then immediately returned to the section of the Rune list starting with ‘C’ instead of ‘R.’

The reason was simple.

Having recalled the reason, Hae-jin finally found the Rune he was looking for.

“Ah, so that’s why I couldn’t see it.”

The Rune of Regression that Hae-jin had mistakenly thought he couldn’t see.

It was currently in the ‘C’ list.

– Transcendental Regression Rune.

Runes had grades.

The maximum level for a player was 100.

Every 20 levels from the base Rune, a grade was added.

At level 20, it was Low-grade, at 40, Mid-grade, at 60, High-grade, at 80, Highest-grade, and upon reaching the maximum level of 100, a Transcendental Rune could be created.

So, he thought that even if Joo-hyuk, the Regressor, regressed, he would start with a ‘Transcendental Regression Rune.’

However, seeing it, Hae-jin tilted his head.

‘But did Joo-hyuk hyung originally start with a Transcendental Regression Rune even after regressing?’

Thinking about it, it was strange.

Because there was no such ability among the information Hae-jin had heard from Joo-hyuk.

He was puzzled, but Hae-jin didn’t dwell on it too deeply.

‘Let’s exchange it first.’

Hae-jin selected the ‘Transcendental Regression Rune’ he had found in the Rune Exchange Ticket list.

Then, a message appeared before Hae-jin’s eyes.

[Do you wish to exchange ‘Rune of Absorption’ for ‘Transcendental Regression Rune’? Y/N]

“Of course.”

As Hae-jin accepted, a new message appeared.

[‘Rune of Absorption’ will be deleted.]

[You have acquired ‘Transcendental Regression Rune’.]

[Title! ‘Player Who Killed the Regressor’ acquired.]

[You have acquired a ‘Transcendental Rune’ for the first time.]

[Title! ‘Rune Master’ acquired.]

Hae-jin, who had exchanged his Rune of Absorption for the Transcendental Regression Rune.

He then checked the status of the Transcendental Regression Rune, and upon seeing it, a curse involuntarily slipped from Hae-jin’s mouth.

“What the f*ck… is this?”

[Transcendental Regression Rune]

Description: Allows the owner and 5 individuals chosen by the owner to regress to the past a set number of times. However, the number of times decreases depending on the number of people.

Option: Regression.

Number of Possible Regressions: 0/216

Hae-jin’s face instantly turned pale.

What was the plan he and Joo-hyuk hyung, the leader, had devised?

Hae-jin would start with higher stats than others thanks to the Rune of Absorption.

He would kill Joo-hyuk in the first trial and obtain his Rune of Regression with the Rune Exchange Ticket, gaining another chance to regress.

That way, even if Joo-hyuk hyung, the leader, disappeared, a Regressor with 216 regression attempts would be born once again in the survival game.

But if this happened… the story would be completely different.

“…”

Hae-jin was speechless as he stared.

– Number of Possible Regressions: 0/216

There were no possible regressions.

Zero.

Seeing that, his face turned pale, and then Hae-jin laughed emptily.

“Haha…”

Then what was the point of him killing Joo-hyuk hyung, the leader?

What Joo-hyuk hyung wanted was simply for another player to gain the chance to regress with his Rune of Regression and see the end of the survival game.

But a Transcendental Rune with no regression attempts left, an empty shell?

Did Joo-hyuk hyung die for something like this?

Hae-jin felt like he was going crazy.

‘Why did I kill the leader?’

But, at that moment.

Other rewards appeared before his eyes.

[Rune Master]

Description: The first among players to acquire a Transcendental Rune.

Option: All Rune stats +100%, Rune-specific skill effects +100%, Rune-specific skill duration +100%, Rune-specific skill cooldown -50%. All stats +100.

‘Rune Master,’ a title obtained by being the first among players to reach level 100 and evolve an existing Rune into a Transcendental Rune.

And, another one.

[Title! ‘Player Who Killed the Regressor’ acquired.]

Another title appeared for Hae-jin.

A title that neither he nor Joo-hyuk hyung had anticipated.

[Player Who Killed the Regressor]

Description: A title obtained upon killing a player possessing the ‘Rune of Regression’ and acquiring it as a Rune. Allows inheriting everything the Regressor possessed.

Option: Inheritance.

“What is this…”

‘Player Who Killed the Regressor,’ a title he was seeing and hearing for the first time.

But as soon as he saw it, an immense pain began for Hae-jin.

[Inheritance system activated.]

[Loading Regressor’s information.]

[Inheriting Regressor’s information.]

As the inheritance began, Hae-jin writhed in agony.

“Kugh!”

Having experienced the survival game as a Regressor, Hae-jin was used to enduring considerable pain.

But the pain he felt at this moment was on a completely different level.

The blood vessels throughout his entire body swelled as if they would burst.

Along with it, a fierce headache struck.

And within that headache, Hae-jin could feel someone else’s memories incessantly pouring into his mind.

‘This is… the leader’s knowledge and memories…!’

All the information and power from 210 rounds of Leader Joo-hyuk hyung, whom he had only exchanged words with.

Not only his player information but also all his thoughts and knowledge were being inherited.

If it hadn’t been for Hae-jin, who possessed an iron will, the massive ego of the Regressor would have consumed his mind, making him question his own identity.

Hae-jin, who suffered for a long time.

He staggered to his feet.

As the inheritance concluded, his physical condition gradually returned.

Then, a message window appeared before Hae-jin’s eyes.

[Regressor’s information has been inherited.]

A message window indicating the completion of the inheritance.

Afterward, Hae-jin could feel it.

The feeling that everything about him had become remarkably stronger.

And he could see.

A black sword and a white sword grasped in his two hands.

Moreover, he could see a black leather coat covering his body.

And a hood obscuring his vision.

Confirming the changes in his state, Hae-jin looked at the mirror inside his studio apartment.

Then, he could see.

“This is…”

His current attire.

It was none other than the equipment Leader Joo-hyuk had worn in the last trial before regressing.

Not only his various stats and skills but even the equipment he last wore had been inherited as they were.

—–CROW—– 

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