Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Regression
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Stab!
A sharp blade pierced through his heart.
“Gah!”
Dark red blood erupted from Kang Hyun-soo’s mouth.
His body, run through the heart, slowly lost its vitality.
“Why the hell would you...?”
Kang Hyun-soo couldn’t comprehend the situation unfolding before his eyes.
The final war, waged across countless dimensions for their very fates.
Ragnarok.
Kang Hyun-soo was one of the named players who bore the title of Emperor, known as the ranker of rankers. He had been fighting fiercely alongside his comrades on the front lines against the Demon King.
In this battle, the fate of the entire battlefield hung in the balance.
The Demon King was strong.
But in the end, their side emerged victorious.
He thought he could simply bask in the joy of victory with his surviving comrades.
That was the moment.
He was betrayed.
By the very comrades he had risked his life alongside.
A surprise attack from the 21 other survivors, excluding himself.
He resisted fiercely, but in the end, he couldn’t escape the cold blade plunging into his heart.
“Why? You seriously asking why we’d do this?”
Hwang So-wook, one of the 21 who ambushed him, asked with a look of incredulity.
“Of course it’s because of your skill. We only teamed up with you out of necessity for survival. Honestly, you have no idea how uncomfortable it’s been for us, putting up with you all this time.”
The other comrades nodded in agreement at Hwang So-wook’s words.
Kang Hyun-soo’s unique skill, Replica.
That was the root cause of this disaster.
Replica created a copy of another player’s skill.
The problem was that the copy’s performance far surpassed the original.
Because of this, Kang Hyun-soo was always eyed with suspicion by other players.
An existence that perfectly copied their main skills and improved upon them.
From the players’ perspective, Kang Hyun-soo was nothing more than a thief who stole their skills.
In truth, Kang Hyun-soo only created copies; he didn’t steal the originals.
However, the players thought differently when they saw him wielding their main skills with proficiency through Replica.
It felt as if Kang Hyun-soo had stolen their main skills.
Especially for those whose unique skills—meant to be possessed by only one person—were copied.
They regarded Kang Hyun-soo as their mortal enemy.
“Lies.”
Kang Hyun-soo muttered lowly.
“What’s a lie?”
Hwang So-wook asked with a puzzled expression.
“That’s not the real reason.”
It might be the real reason for the other players.
But not for Hwang So-wook.
Kang Hyun-soo knew the secret of Hwang So-wook’s unique skill.
He also had some inkling of Hwang So-wook’s ambitions.
That’s why he had finished preparing to keep Hwang So-wook in check once the final war ended.
There was one problem, though.
‘I didn’t expect these guys to betray me too.’
The ones Kang Hyun-soo had secretly allied with to counter Hwang So-wook.
The ones he truly thought were comrades had betrayed him.
And instead, they joined hands with Hwang So-wook to strike him down.
Honestly, he hadn’t anticipated this at all.
Why?
Because he trusted them.
He never imagined they could be this stupid.
“I never thought you’d betray me too.”
Kang Hyun-soo glared at Shin So-hee with venomous eyes.
He thought that even if everyone else betrayed him, Shin So-hee never would.
But that faith had been shattered.
“Sorry.”
Shin So-hee’s curt apology.
It offered Kang Hyun-soo no comfort whatsoever.
“Once I’m dead, you’re next.”
Kang Hyun-soo glowered at the betrayers as he spoke.
“Keukekeuk!”
The betrayers burst into hollow laughter.
“You think we don’t know that?”
“Then why make this choice?”
“Because you’re a bigger threat than Hwang So-wook.”
They really were idiots.
They must have thought that even after removing him, the 20 of them could band together to keep Hwang So-wook in check.
It was a delusion possible only because they didn’t know about Hwang So-wook’s unique skill.
“Because of your foolishness, all of humanity across the dimensions will become that bastard’s slaves.”
The betrayers wore expressions of utter disbelief at Kang Hyun-soo’s warning.
“It’s all over already, isn’t it? How about you stop yapping and just die?”
Hwang So-wook twisted the blade with a smug grin.
Crack!
His ribs ground apart, sending waves of pain that blurred his mind.
“Over my dead body.”
Kang Hyun-soo flashed a faint smile.
He had anticipated Hwang So-wook stabbing him in the back.
But he hadn’t expected the betrayal from Shin So-hee and every other survivor.
However, Kang Hyun-soo had one final trump card.
‘The success rate is low, though.’
In the past, he had killed an enemy player and copied their unique skill.
The skill’s name was 1-Second Regressor.
It was an F-Rank skill that allowed returning to 1 second prior, once per week.
Kang Hyun-soo had copied the 1-Second Regressor skill with Replica.
And every time the cooldown reset, he used it to raise its rank.
Once the 1-Second Regressor skill grew from F-Rank to SSS-Rank, the cooldown shortened from a week to 1 hour.
And finally, when it reached EX-Rank.
The skill itself transformed.
[Regressor – EX-Rank]
- Active Skill
- Replica Skill.
- Returns to the past upon use.
- Activates 5 minutes after casting.
- Success rate fixed at 30%.
- One-time use skill.
The 1-second limitation vanished, reborn as the one-time Regressor skill.
‘Thanks for giving me time to talk.’
That allowed him to fulfill the 5-minute activation time.
There was only one problem.
The success rate was a mere 30%.
“See you in the past.”
Kang Hyun-soo shouted with a radiant smile.
Whoosh!
At that moment, a brilliant light emanated from Kang Hyun-soo’s body, pierced through the heart.
“What the hell is that bastard doing?”
“Stop him!”
His enemies shouted and unleashed powerful attack skills.
But they couldn’t penetrate the light enveloping Kang Hyun-soo’s body.
‘The activation time is surprisingly long.’
Kang Hyun-soo’s consciousness began to fade.
‘I’ll never forget.’
Clinging to his dimming awareness, Kang Hyun-soo seared his enemies’ faces into his soul.
That was when it happened.
Shiiiing!
The Demon King’s corpse fragments, torn to shreds and scattered everywhere.
They gathered back together, as if time itself was rewinding.
‘This is possible?’
The Demon King, whom Kang Hyun-soo had eliminated alongside the betrayers at great sacrifice, was resurrecting.
Kwaaakwaaakwa!
The revived Demon King unleashed magical power waves even stronger than before death.
-Die!
It attacked the betrayers.
“What is this?”
“That guy was definitely dead!”
“How is he alive again?!”
The betrayers, who had been attacking Kang Hyun-soo, now clashed fiercely with the Demon King once more.
But the outcome was set.
It was an enemy they had barely defeated even with Kang Hyun-soo’s help, now revived even stronger.
Without Kang Hyun-soo, there was no way they could win.
‘Idiots.’
He wanted to calmly watch the betrayers die.
But Kang Hyun-soo’s consciousness could no longer hold on.
‘No way I die like this, right? Then humanity’s done for.’
If Kang Hyun-soo’s regression failed?
Humanity would perish as is.
‘Please succeed...’
With that final thought, Kang Hyun-soo’s consciousness completely cut off.
* * *
His consciousness slowly returned.
‘I survived.’
As soon as awareness returned, Kang Hyun-soo realized he had lived.
‘When is it now?’
Surviving meant the Regressor skill had succeeded despite the 30% odds.
The problem was figuring out when he had returned to.
Kang Hyun-soo looked around.
A small, cramped one-room entered his view.
“Huh?”
Tears streamed from Kang Hyun-soo’s eyes.
“I’m back?”
Familiar yet alien products of Earth’s civilization came into sight.
TV, smartphone, computer.
“Hahaha!”
A hollow laugh burst from Kang Hyun-soo’s mouth.
Return to Earth.
It was the one wish Kang Hyun-soo desired most.
Even if the Regressor skill activated successfully, he thought it would take him back to the Atlantis dimension.
Who would have thought it would bring him to Earth?
Kang Hyun-soo reached for his smartphone.
He wanted to see his dear parents’ faces.
He wanted to hear his older sister and brother’s voices.
Kang Hyun-soo pressed the speed dial to call his mother.
Riiiing!
The ringtone felt endlessly long.
A moment later.
-What’s up, my youngest?
His mother’s voice, so longed for, came through the receiver.
“Mom!”
Kang Hyun-soo cried out in感動.
And as he tried to continue speaking.
Whoosh!
A bright light enveloped Kang Hyun-soo’s body.
* * *
“What the fuck!”
A curse slipped out involuntarily.
Kang Hyun-soo had definitely been on Earth just moments ago.
But not anymore.
Now, Kang Hyun-soo sat in a room surrounded by pure white walls, wearing only underwear.
Kang Hyun-soo knew what this place was.
‘The Starting Room.’
Grit!
His teeth ground together involuntarily.
[Welcome to the Starting Room, Kang Hyun-soo.]
[Kang Hyun-soo has been selected by the Gaia System as Earth’s final bastion of defense.]
[You have awakened as a Player.]
[Status window created.]
[Assigning the most suitable skill based on your behavioral patterns on Earth.]
[Congratulations. You have obtained the unique skill Replica.]
[Tutorial begins in 10 minutes.]
[Please select and equip 5 pieces of desired equipment within 10 minutes.]
System messages poured down like a waterfall.
“Damn it.”
He had been truly happy returning to Earth.
But that happiness shattered in less than a minute.
‘Did it send me back right before being dragged to the Atlantis dimension?’
It felt empty.
If it had just given him one day.
No, even one hour.
He could have reunited with his longed-for family.
‘Goddamn it.’
Rage boiled to the top of his head.
But Kang Hyun-soo had no time to vent his anger.
‘10 minutes.’
He had to equip gear and prepare for battle within that time.
‘Status window.’
Kang Hyun-soo opened his status window first.
[Kang Hyun-soo]
Player Level: [0]
Class: [None.]
Title: [The One Who Regressed Through Time – EX-Rank]
Stats: [Strength 55] [Agility 55] [Vitality 55] [Mana 75] [Mental Strength 61]
Unallocated Stats: [0]
Unique Skill: [Replica – F-Rank]
Active Skills: [None.]
Passive Skills: [None.]
“Huh?”
Kang Hyun-soo tilted his head.
The status window was on a completely different level from his first awakening.
For starters, his base stats were ridiculously high.
Total stats: a whopping 301.
The average initial total for players was 50.
Kang Hyun-soo’s own initial stats at first awakening had been the average 51.
‘The difference is this.’
Kang Hyun-soo tapped his title.
[The One Who Regressed Through Time – EX-Rank]
-All stats +50.
As expected, the title was the cause of his suddenly boosted stats.
‘Everything else is the same.’
His unique skill Replica was identical to before regression.
‘What a waste.’
All the stats and skills he had painstakingly raised, and the titles he had worked hard for, had been reset.
‘Forget it all cleanly.’
Kang Hyun-soo had succeeded in the once-in-a-lifetime adventure of regression.
‘I can grow stronger faster than before regression.’
Thanks to the EX-Rank title The One Who Regressed Through Time, he started at level 0 with an enormous stat pool.
‘Time to move.’
He didn’t have time to act like a fool as he did in the past.
Kang Hyun-soo first examined the items displayed in the Starting Room.
‘There it is.’
A small copper ring caught his eye.
Kang Hyun-soo quickly equipped the copper ring.
The copper ring’s name was Ring of Protection.
Its rank was the lowest, F-Rank.
Its only option was a slight defense boost.
‘This is the most important.’
Right now, it was a ring with low rank and meager options.
‘But its growth limit is EX-Rank.’
Moreover, it was the unique item that existed only as one across all dimensions.
The signature item of Lee Cheol-min, called the Guardian God and the strongest tanker before regression.
Kang Hyun-soo claimed that item.
Probably, in the next tutorial, the Ring of Protection would be replaced by another item.
If so?
Lee Cheol-min would never obtain his signature item, the Ring of Protection.
‘Fuck you, betrayer.’
Lee Cheol-min was one of the betrayers who had lunged to kill him right after the Demon King fell.
Snatching that bastard’s item brought a smile to his face.
But he didn’t have time to relax.
The items displayed in the room began disappearing at a rapid pace.
The competition had begun.
‘Why the hell design it like this?’
Whoever made this Gaia System was surely a devil, not a god.
The tutorial hadn’t even started yet.
But players had to compete to survive.
Kang Hyun-soo moved as well.
He grabbed four more items.
Leather armor top and bottom, leather boots.
And finally, a single sword.
All F-Rank with negligible options.
But this would suffice.
Once selection was complete, the items displayed in the Starting Room vanished cleanly.
A moment later.
[First Tutorial begins.]
[Mission: Survival.]
[Survive for one day.]
System messages scrolled up continuously.
And.
Whoosh!
A bright light enveloped Kang Hyun-soo’s body.