#7 #Regression #4th Floor

"A bit tired. Thinking of resting now... and blasting straight through to the 5th floor tonight. What do you think, Constellation?"

Jin So-yul's voice calling out to her constellation snapped me out of my reverie. I paused my scrolling through the shop's info tab and shifted my gaze to the tablet. There she was, perched on the edge of the bed in her one-room apartment, staring out the window.

Her outfit seemed a little too light for the occasion. Should I send a message or not?

"Ah...! If it's a refusal, maybe just one message... Ah, no, I shouldn't... Even if I think of a way, I have no idea."

Her situation was truly peculiar. She wanted my opinion, and I wanted to give it—but I had to conserve CP. Still, her plan to clear up to the 5th floor in one go didn't sound bad at all. Come tomorrow, a hangover might hit her hard, so fighting at peak condition was the efficient play.

In the end, my fingers moved first.

"...Sorry. Shouldn't have said anything unnecessary. Anyway... can you see this?" Jin So-yul pointed into empty space. A translucent holographic interface floated before her eyes. Probably the community unlocked as a reward from the 1st floor.

Posts were trickling in at a snail's pace—barely a handful.

"Region: South Korea. Number of people who've cleared the 1st floor so far..."

She uttered a brutally realistic number, then let out a long sigh.

"Most of them must've died, as expected. If only we could've stopped it..."

It was no different ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from a natural disaster. How could anyone stop it? But my consolation couldn't reach her.

"I'll rest a bit. You can't watch me forever, Constellation, so if anything happens when I wake up, I'll call for you."

Exhaustion must've piled up, as her eyes slowly drifted shut. Watching her like that, those community post numbers lingered in my mind. Jin So-yul alone wouldn't cut it. No matter that she was a regressor, no one could solo to the 100th floor.

The second apostle. The promotion condition from the constellation rank guide flashed in my head: two or more apostles for Low Grade...

Just one more person, and the situation could change. Still a distant prospect, but I'd keep it in mind.

I must've dozed off without realizing. No dreams. Closer to say I hadn't dreamed in ages.

The call for her constellation woke me. Grabbing the tablet, I saw Jin So-yul manipulating the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠holographic interface.

She must've absorbed mana while resting. It had increased.

"Got a good chunk of points from clearing the 2nd floor. Planning to buy a weapon. Can you see this one-handed sword? Haha... suddenly reminds me of the past. This was actually my first purchase back then."

Her slender fingers flew across the interface. Purchase complete. A short sword materialized in midair amid a flash of light, its edge gleaming coldly. Sharp enough to slice a finger clean off on contact. Worlds apart from a kitchen knife.

Jin So-yul swung it lightly a few times in the room. Shick, shiiiick. The sound of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠air parting echoed.

"Feels perfect in the hand. Great reach too."

Was swinging around in the room okay? As I watched with needless worry, she sheathed it.

"Alright, Constellation. Heading in now. Gonna push from the 3rd to the 5th without stopping."

"Always cheering you on."

Maybe because her old weapon was a kitchen knife, but switching to a proper one-handed sword brought an inexplicable sense of relief. She reached into the air, manipulated something, and light flared.

The 3rd floor was a maze of narrow, dark passages branching in multiple directions. Wall torches lit the paths at intervals, but unlike the 1st floor, the shadows between them were unnaturally thick.

"3rd floor's an extreme maze setup. Paths split every which way, easy to get lost... and goblin archers mixed in. More dangerous from ranged ambushes than melee."

Just the 3rd floor, and already this tough. Could anyone else even clear it?

"Don't need to kill everything—just reach the hidden goal to clear."

Trap. My shoulders twitched at the word on the overlay. First time seeing it—terrain warning glowing. Did the dungeon structure itself become a hazard from the 3rd floor?

Jin So-yul reached the first fork: left or right.

"Left has... one... two? Right's clear. Going right."

Spot on. Normally, the empty right would seem safest. But a hidden danger lurked. Luring into an easy path with traps was obvious bait.

I moved to send a message but paused. She hadn't entered the passage yet, and my overlay tracked the trap in real-time. Even if she missed it entirely, I could warn her when close.

50 CP was worth saving whenever possible. She chose the right path, one-handed sword at the ready, hugging the wall as she advanced. The terrain warning blinked as she neared the trap: 5m, 4m, 3m.

Jin So-yul stopped.

"...Floor color's different."

"As expected of a regressor."

She spotted the subtle shade difference instantly, sidestepped, and passed unscathed. She might not remember the exact spot, but she knew traps existed. No message needed.

Pressing on, the overlay updated.

Right-front 8m: goblin lurking around the corner. She seemed aware, but the position made fighting tricky. Change perspective, though...

If the enemy charged, it'd hit the trap inevitably. The layout sketched itself in my mind. Simple tactic, but tension had her overlooking it.

Better not risk her getting hurt by standing by. Decision made quick.

Complex content ate two messages' worth of CP, but it was necessary. Her gaze flicked to the corner, then the floor trap.

"...!"

She moved past the trap, deliberately stomping. Thud, thud, thud. The goblin reacted instantly, charging out—only to crash through the collapsing floor with a boom. Jin So-yul plunged her sword down from above amid a short screech. Done.

"As expected of you, Constellation... Never would've thought of that."

"It worked."

100 CP... I slapped my cheeks to shake off the thought. Not just warning, but tactical use of the environment—satisfying.

No more messages needed as she mopped up the rest. She methodically applied the trick to each goblin and archer.

Then, the constellation report popped up.

"500 CP."

Rewards were scaling up with floors: 200 for 1st, 250 for 2nd, 500 for 3rd. Difficulty ramped accordingly, but she was handling it.

"3rd floor cleared... Way easier with a proper weapon."

"...?"

"Onward, Constellation."

Stepping onto the magic circle without hesitation, Jin So-yul headed straight to the 4th.

The 4th floor differed sharply from the 3rd: mid-sized rooms linked by passages, with wide-open sightlines overall.

"Mana density spiked. Two threats... no traps."

"4th floor monsters are hobgoblins—upgraded goblins. Bigger, clad in armor scraps. Weakness: slow."

Entering the first room, two hobgoblins waited head-on: rusted iron swords and wooden shields. Even through the tablet, their presence felt a step above goblin warriors.

But Jin So-yul charged without pause, slashing legs at shield-blind angles, piercing throats as they fell. She deflected incoming sword arcs effortlessly, recovered, and finished the second the same way.

Total time: about 30 seconds.

"Not too tough here either. Even pre-regression, I managed up to 4th fairly smoothly."

"To me, it just looks like raw talent from the start."

A wry chuckle escaped. Per her words, she'd cleared with an untrained woman's body. And per ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠branch guide info, solos only up to 10th floor. Impossible for me, for sure...

Clearing the second room, she advanced down the passage.

New foes ahead. But something else grabbed my eye.

"14.3...? Nearly double?"

Not a threat or terrain warning—just an abnormally high mana spot to the right? Only one pattern matched in my knowledge: opportunity, hidden piece. Massive rewards in most tower-climbing tales. Placement randomized per instance, as confirmed before.

In short, pre-regression Jin So-yul likely missed it. Hidden rooms being random meant no memory of them.

Her reaction confirmed ignorance. Her mana sense apparently couldn't detect beyond the wall; she focused solely on frontal threats.

"No choice."

"...Right wall? Hold on, checking."

She halted, pressed her hand to the wall. Intense focus ended with her eyes flashing.

"...! Definitely something. Mana from behind the wall...!"

She tapped the wall; hollow echoes from specific spots. A hard hilt strike cracked it, collapsing a section to reveal a secret passage.

"Hidden space? Never seen this in 9 years...?"

"No way..."

A narrow path led to a small stone chamber. At the central altar floated a fist-sized blue crystal.

Approaching cautiously, she reached out—and her interface pinged. Mine too.

"3,000! And mana nearly doubled...!"

CP and her mana jumped almost twofold in one go. Plus full restore of HP, stamina, mana.

"This...! Never encountered in 9 years. Didn't even know places like this existed. No one did, far as I know."

Hidden piece confirmed. Truly undiscovered?

"Normal constellations wouldn't have this observation power—no... from what I recall... well... modifiers aside..."

She trailed off, lips pressing shut as she bowed her head slightly.

"Thank you, Constellation."

A grin slipped out. Pride. Something impossible in my bunker isolation.

Exiting the hidden space in peak condition, Jin So-yul carved through hobgoblins. Crimson afterimages from her swings burned sharper than before.

"Phew... 4th floor down. Full mana made it a breeze."

7,147 CP... 10,000 to regrant a tag. So close now. Clearing speed accelerating. Accounting for variables, maybe next floor.

At the magic circle, Jin So-yul exhaled deeply, head tilting to the ceiling.

"Riding this momentum to the 5th."