The Regressor Is Kind of Strong (2)
The Regressor Is Kind of Strong (2)
"Hup!"
Slash.
"Hyaat!"
Slick.
I cut down goblin after goblin with my sword.
It was a pretty grotesque sight, but rather than disgusting, it felt incredibly refreshing.
Like playing a slightly violent video game.
The fact that I'd already heard people's death rattles multiple times probably played a part—I was somewhat mentally prepared.
Honestly, if we're only talking about grossness, beating them to death with your fists is even grosser.
"Hoo... Hoo..."
Around the time the sun was sinking low. Feeling like I wanted to rest, I gathered up my sword and headed back toward the clearing.
It was also time to swap out the sword. The whole blade had gone dull.
I'd killed more goblins today than I'd killed in all the previous days combined. It'd be weirder if the blade was still sharp.
If I became a master like Choi Ji-won, could I cut goblins without dulling the blade? No, heck with that.
I'd probably be splitting the sky and cleaving the earth.
I returned to the clearing with those cheerful thoughts, and at the entrance where I'd started cutting down the grass, water and food had been neatly set out.
"...Oh."
I turned my gaze toward Choi Ji-won. She had her back to me, silently swinging her sword.
"..."
That woman really is kind.
Not only does she look after everyone in the clearing, she even sets aside food for the lunatic who spends all day cutting grass.
I poured a little water and wiped the sweat and blood from my face.
Ah, what a refreshing feeling.
'Thank you, Choi Ji-won. I'll definitely repay you.'
After expressing my thanks mentally, I wolfed down my food and instantly fell asleep.
I had a pleasant dream that night. Though I can't remember what it was about.
**
Repetition. Repetition. More repetition.
Amidst this grueling grind, a thought suddenly struck me.
"...Status Window."
[Name: Kim Jun-ho] [LV:2]
[Traits]
-Regression [EX]
"Hmm..."
Nothing had changed. Except maybe that I'd reached Level 2?
I'd killed so many goblins this cycle... I still don't know if levels carry over between cycles or are limited to this one, but...
What matters is that just in this cycle, I killed dozens of goblins.
I'm not like the others who quietly sneak out through the underbrush.
I pushed forward noisily, cutting down the grass, so I drew way more aggro than anyone else, and since mowing slowed my advance, I encountered goblins far, far more times.
Even by a conservative estimate, I killed at least 20 of them... and my level only went up by 1?
Is it just me? Or is it the same for everyone? The trend these days is to hand out levels fast before you even change class, you know.
And second.
"...I guess hoping for a miracle from leveling up is pointless."
The level went up, but I hadn't even noticed it had gone up.
What does that mean?
It means there's no moment where all your wounds heal and your condition returns to normal the instant you level up.
Since I'm a regressor, I was thinking about ways to deliberately control the timing of level ups, but it seems impossible.
It also seems like I never saw any special [You have leveled up!] message window.
There might be exceptions, of course. If there's a system where your level only goes up after you sleep, I might not even have known I leveled up.
But even in that case, it's the same—no using it in combat...
I think it's safe to forget about exploiting level-ups.
"...Tch."
I clenched and unclenched my fist uselessly, but I didn't feel any noticeable difference, like a huge boost in strength or stamina.
The Status Window exists, but I can't see my stats, so it doesn't hit home how much stronger I've gotten.
Well, once my level gets a bit higher, it'll probably show more.
I was cutting grass, lost in idle thoughts, when—
"Whoa!"
My sword cut empty air and I lost my balance.
I barely avoided falling but... I was nearly screwed.
But why did my sword miss?
I slowly raised my head and saw the ground.
"..."
The ground I hadn't been able to see for so long because of the thick grass. Soil. Earth. Mother.
Finally... I had escaped the underbrush hell.
**
I'd broken out of the suffocating prison that had trapped me for so long... but there was no dramatic change.
The grass was much lower now, only up to my ankles, and the number of trees had increased a lot. That was about it.
Surprisingly, I didn't see any monsters.
If anything, there seemed to be more monsters inside the underbrush.
"...Maybe that makes sense?"
Thinking about it, it wouldn't be right if there were lots of monsters out here.
I escaped this underbrush after an extremely abnormal growth process...
But from the perspective of other people, they've only just now cleared the tutorial of the tutorial.
And the moment they step out of the grass, a powerful monster attacks?
Unless you're a monster like Choi Ji-won, they'd all die without a chance.
I stretched my shoulders, then turned around to look behind me. The prison I'd escaped from came into view.
"..."
It looked even more bizarre from the outside.
The thick grass formed a perfect ring... So it really was functioning as a safe zone.
If I were a monster, I wouldn't want to push through that grass either.
Now, putting that aside.
I scratched my head for no reason.
What do I do now...?
My main goal had been to escape this place... but now that I've escaped, I can't see an obvious next goal.
They said to find a golden orb, but I have no idea where to find one. And I don't see any monsters.
It feels like I've lost my purpose.
Should I go look for water, like that firefighter guy did? Or should I climb a tree and scout the area?
While I was mulling it over—
"Kyaaaaaaah!"
From quite nearby, a piercing woman's scream rang out.
"..."
My next destination had just been decided.
**
If there's a classic monster that always appears in the tutorial, what would it be?
The first things that come to mind are goblins and slimes.
Both are known as the weakest creatures in the fantasy world, and they're widely recognized.
But that's a story limited strictly to ordinary goblins.
The moment a modifier gets attached to the name 'goblin', they stop being easy.
If you say "Goblin!" it just sounds like a pushover.
But if you say "Warrior Goblin!" or "Elite Goblin!" it suddenly sounds strong and gives off an unnerving aura.
"Kyaaaaaaah! Help me! Kyaaaaaaaah!"
The scene I faced was no different.
Two men lay sprawled on the ground, blood streaming from their wounds, and a terrified woman was shrieking.
"Kerrrrick... Kerrrrick..."
About five or six goblins carrying wooden spears surrounded the woman, and three more were rummaging through the fallen men's belongings.
"..."
The two men had wounds on the backs of their thighs.
They'd been caught from behind—an ambush. The wounds were stabs, not slashes, which meant they were inflicted by wooden spears, not teeth or claws.
First, they would have aimed for the thighs to take away mobility, then stabbed from a distance with long spears to drain their strength.
An intelligent hunting method. Similar to how humans hunt wild beasts.
These guys seemed on a completely different level from the goblins in the underbrush. If those were beasts, these guys seemed to have at least ape-level intelligence.
"Somebody... Somebody..."
The woman shrieked with a voice gone thoroughly hoarse.
"Kerrrrrick... Kirrick... Kick..."
The goblins approached, drool dripping.
"..."
Saving her is the right thing, but... I couldn't help hesitating.
To get this far, I'd already invested a lot.
I escaped the underbrush by doing nothing but cutting grass all day for nearly three days.
Since the opportunity cost was so high, I honestly balked at the idea of throwing this chance away for a stranger.
I also really didn't want to spend another three days cutting grass...
Another problem was that the goblins were armed with spears.
They call the sword the king of weapons, but in a scuffle between pushovers, the longer weapon always wins.
Since these were goblin spears, they weren't two or three meters long, but their reach was still a little longer than my sword.
If one of those spears so much as scratched me, I'd regress instantly. The only things I'd fought so far were claw-using goblins and Choi Ji-won.
I had zero experience going up against a spear.
Meaning winning without a single scratch was damn near impossible.
"...No..."
While I was hesitating, the goblins grabbed the woman.
"Kirrick... Kirrrrick..."
One goblin let out an unpleasant laugh and started fumbling around his waist.
Wait, are they... actually going to do it?
Are they about to switch the genre to 19+?
"Ke-rick!"
No. What he pulled from his waist wasn't a hideous dangling thing, but a sharp stone knife.
It's still 19+, but just a different genre.
Very different.
Still, she's human. I can't just stand here and watch. I'd end up regressing eventually anyway, so I might as well hurry up and save her.
Just as I was awkwardly getting up to strike from behind—
Shiiiiing!
"Huh?"
Along with a sharp gust of wind.
"Ke-rick?"
In the blink of an eye, every goblin's head had vanished.
It felt like watching a cheap special effect in a B-movie.
Did she slice them off at a speed so fast I couldn't see?
And the heads of roughly ten goblins here, all at once?
Among the people I know, only one person could pull that off.
And from her perspective, this situation was definitely easy to misinterpret.
"No, it's not that I purposely didn't save her..."
I hurriedly tried to explain.
"I'll hear your excuses later."
Whack!
Choi Ji-won brought the scabbard down on the back of my head.
Unfortunately, Choi Ji-won was a crazy bitch whose fists were faster than her words, so I was given no chance to explain.
[You have taken damage.]
[Regressing to the moment you first entered Floor 0.]