The Regressor Trains (14)
The Regressor Trains (14)
"Oh, you're back? That was really fast..."
"...No injuries?"
The bespectacled woman greeted me as I stepped out of the elevator, while the acne-scarred man and the man with the mole stared at me, eyes wide with disbelief. Fair enough—they'd just watched me pick Difficulty [1], so their surprise was justified.
"Well, you see, the thing is..."
This was the moment. I had casually drawn my sword, ready to demonstrate just how strong I really was—
"I-I'll go in next..."
"..."
The short-haired woman slipped right past me into the elevator. Wait, shouldn't you at least hear the explanation first?
Whatever. She keyed in [20] and vanished, leaving [25] on the display. Roughly speaking, the remaining two could split it as 12 and 13 and clear it that way.
"So... anyway. I'm actually pretty strong."
Fwoosh!
I settled into a stance and slashed the empty air. A menacing howl of displaced air rang out. Back in the Tutorial or on Floor 4, this much had been enough to impress.
"...Ooh."
"Huh."
The reaction was oddly lukewarm. Seriously? You can't recognize the sheer artistry in that slash? That downward cut alone contained no fewer than three potential follow-throughs—
"Still, with that level of skill, maybe you could try Difficulty [20]..."
Ha. So I wasn't strong—the man with the mole was just weak. The acne-scarred guy still hadn't come to his senses and was spouting nonsense.
"Hey."
"...Yes?"
"Shut your mouth."
"..."
I grabbed the acne-scarred man's wrist and squeezed. He finally went quiet. He wouldn't get petty over a light threat like this and pick a harder difficulty out of spite, would he? I wanted to believe he wouldn't.
"..."
"..."
My "light" threat left the atmosphere thoroughly awkward, and for about ten minutes, silence hung over the room.
"I cleared it..."
At last, the short-haired woman returned. Her armor was discolored from the heat, and she bore wounds here and there, but none were in fatal spots. She must have won by only letting through the attacks she could afford to take.
As I thought, she was the strongest among the four. Her ability was difficult to control, which meant it was easier to bring her full power to bear in a one-on-one fight without allies around.
"Th-then I'll go next..."
"M-me too..."
The acne-scarred man stepped up next, challenged Difficulty [13], and won. Then the bespectacled woman took on Difficulty [12] and returned victorious. Their earlier claim about letting their guard down on Difficulty 8 or 9 didn't seem like a lie—neither had deep wounds—but their ragged breathing and faint sweat made it clear it hadn't been easy.
So... the acne-scarred man and the bespectacled woman were capped around 16 or 17. The man with the mole had managed to clear 20, so I'd peg him near there, and the short-haired woman still had energy to spare. I had a rough grasp of my allies' strength now. That would be useful later.
-Now, before we begin the final test, each of you will choose your reward. Please take your seats.
In any case, everyone had cleared their test, so the time for the final test had arrived. Whatever the rewards turned out to be, I planned to pick the lowest difficulty available. Clearing it was the top priority.
"..."
"..."
Unlike earlier, when things had felt lively, the players shuffled hesitantly to their chairs. The moment everyone was seated, a message window appeared in front of us.
[20] Book of Possibilities (Unique)
[30] Elixir of Choice (Unique)
[40] A-rank Trait Selection Ticket (Unique)
"Wow."
This time, the difficulty jumped by a full 10 points between each option. And every single reward option carried the (Unique) designation.
I skimmed the item descriptions. The Elixir of Choice permanently raised a chosen stat by 20... the Book of Possibilities supposedly revealed its owner's hidden potential... and... an A-rank Trait Selection Ticket? Were they insane? Could they really give out something like that on Floor 12?
Either way, my decision was already made. I intended to clear Floor 12 as fast as possible, so without the slightest hesitation, I selected [20]. The protective barrier around me dissolved.
"Oh?"
"H-hello..."
The short-haired woman greeted me sheepishly. Aside from the two of us, the other three were still hidden behind their barriers, apparently still deciding. Unlike before, when they'd chosen their rewards without much deliberation, they were taking their time now.
-All climbers have completed their selection.
About three minutes later, the barriers finally vanished. Every player's choice was locked in.
Now, what number did we end up with? I turned my head slightly to check the elevator display.
[130]
"...?"
"Huh? W-wait, weren't you the one who picked 40?"
"...No?"
A number I had never even imagined was displayed there. 130? 130? How?
"J-just so you know... I chose [30]... I wanted to invest in my mana stat..."
When I said I hadn't picked [40], the short-haired woman spoke in a trembling voice. A reddish aura rippled around her body; she was genuinely flustered.
"...I chose 20. What about the rest of you?"
"I-I also chose 20..."
"Same..."
The other three all claimed they'd picked 20. Together with my 20 and her 30, that made 110. The number on the display was 130. Wait—had someone lied this time and picked 40? Wasn't this a bit much? Unless the base difficulty was 20? That felt excessive too.
"No, I—uh—um..."
I didn't know what to say. They say you stop being angry when something is so absurd it leaves you speechless. That was exactly how I felt right now. I had no idea what kind of reaction I was supposed to have.
No. This was just how the Tower was. Whether the Tower was stacking the deck against me or there was some piece of shit hiding among us—it didn't matter. Clearing this floor was what mattered most. Fine. I'd handle everything myself.
"Hoo... Fine. I'll take [40]. The rest of you, just handle exactly what you picked."
I didn't know if I could beat a Difficulty 40 opponent. But I would have to, even if it meant regressing again and again. That would be the fastest way to clear Floor 12.
"..."
"..."
Yet even after I'd magnanimously declared I'd shoulder the excess, the players' reactions were underwhelming. The rest of them were busy avoiding my gaze, staring intently at the floor instead.
"Um... if it's not too much..."
The man with the mole was the first to speak.
"Could you... maybe take on just [10] more from my share?"
"...Excuse me?"
"My armor's been wrecked... and sure, I healed my wounds with potions, but I used up a lot of mana in the process... I'm really not in good shape..."
"..."
"If you asked me to fight a Difficulty [20] mannequin again right now, I honestly don't think I could win. You seem like an incredible powerhouse... couldn't you please just take a little off my plate..."
He had a point. The man with the mole was nowhere near peak condition. His armor was stripped away, and his spirit was broken. In that state, he genuinely might not be able to beat a [20] mannequin again.
The problem was, the lowest difficulty available right now was [20]. That had to be why he'd hesitated over his choice. The easiest option was Difficulty [20], but he wasn't confident he could clear it. What to do, then? Ah—right. He could just dump it on that guy from earlier.
"I don't need you to take [10] from me. Even just [5] would be..."
"If you could just take [5] from me as well..."
The acne-scarred man and the bespectacled woman chimed in with the same pitiful tone. So, in summary... the reward I'd actually chosen was the [20] reward, but they wanted me to handle [60] instead. I glanced at the short-haired woman. She shook her head frantically, signaling that even [30] had left her with nothing left to give.
"Ah..."
If they had only shoved their burden onto me—if I had simply needed to clear [40]—I could have accepted it.
If there had only been a liar among us—if I had simply needed to cover the liar's share and handle [40]—I could have accepted it.
But with both bad situations crashing down at once, my head spun until I couldn't take it anymore. [60]? Were they joking? They wanted me to clear [60]?
Should I just kill them all and clear it alone? Killing intent surged in my chest. At the same moment, I felt a searing heat from my waist. Instinctively, I understood: a sword of crystallized bloodlust was about to form.
"N-no, I—um—"
"I-it's not like we can just let ourselves die either..."
The players shuffled backward, clearly sensing my bloodlust. Not so long ago, they'd been running their mouths with that arrogant tone about growth opportunities and whatever else—and now here they were, whining pathetically. Worthless bastards. Self-important bastards. Insect bastards. Because of bastards like you, I'm forced to suffer like this.
I just wanted to quit. To kill the annoying ones, monopolize the rewards, and climb this Tower in peace. A few pieces of trash dying shouldn't matter much when the goal was to save all of humanity. If I did that, I wouldn't have to agonize. I wouldn't have to suffer. Why was I going out of my way to put myself through this?
"...Quit?"
The word lodged itself in my mind. Quit. After all, when a monk dislikes the temple, he leaves. When the mage dislikes the hero's party, he quits.
Did I have a way to quit right now?
I did.
"..."
"Wh-where are you going?"
"The elevator."
I strode into the elevator in a few long steps.
[1]
With an utterly natural motion, I keyed in [1].
<Floor 12>
-Clear a total of three rounds of 'Tests'. Each person may participate in each test only once, and no rewards will be granted if the final test is failed.
-All rewards are granted individually after clearing Floor 12.
A single possibility had just surfaced in my mind. I focused on that line: "no rewards will be granted if the final test is failed."
If you fail the final test, no rewards are given. At first glance, that seemed obvious—but something about it nagged at me. If you fail a test, isn't it natural for rewards not to be given? Actually, wouldn't you just die if you failed in the first place?
The true implication of that sentence was that "test failure" and "rewards" were separate matters. Admittedly, it was only a hypothesis. But it was worth testing.
In other words.
"I'm not doing it."
Even if I failed the final test, Floor 12 might still be processed as cleared. I decided to bet on that possibility.