The Regressor Gets Stronger (2)
The Regressor Gets Stronger (2)
I regressed. Again and again and again.
By now, a fair amount of time had passed since I returned to Floor 12. I'd regressed so many times I'd lost track; I couldn't say exactly how long.
Any infinite regressor would understand. When you loop over and over within a short span, your sense of reality inevitably blurs. The same situation keeps replaying, and you can't tell if this is a dream or you're awake. (You're not an infinite regressor? Then just take my word for it.)
"Something's off."
It was the same now. I was manipulating the Cold Mana inside me, same as ever, but the sensation felt off. A little awkward. The mana wasn't responding the way I wanted it to. (Oh, and Cold Mana is what I'm calling it now. Saying "cold mana" every time was too wordy and sounded a bit shabby. Plus, a Sino-Korean term is supposed to be cooler, isn't it?)
Anyway, as I worked the mana with that vague discomfort, the muscles around my chest started prickling and twinging. Then I realized what I'd done wrong.
"...Ah. I forgot to drink the Elixir."
I'd blanked on the Elixir—the one I'm supposed to drink the instant I regress. Imagine grinding the same boss over and over in a game and then forgetting to buff. When your mind is worn down, you screw up the absolute basics.
"I should rest."
My body wasn't in good shape at all, so I flopped backward where I sat. Should I go see Choi Ji-won for a bit? No. Right now I needed to clear my head and think about something else.
"..."
Mist drifted across the floor from the cold I was radiating—like the vapor when you open a freezer—and the electric light overhead shone down. As I stared blankly at the light, a chill still lingered in my chest. Maybe because I hadn't drunk the Elixir, the mana's presence felt even heavier.
"Come to think of it, this is seriously weird."
I spent a long, long time on that mountain on Floor 10. At least three months, I think. Possibly even longer. There were plenty of failed attempts where I tried to starve the yeti to death. But back then, I never imagined my mana would transform like this.
My guess is that the mountain on Floor 10 wasn't an ordinary mountain. It was a mountain inhabited by mythical creatures, so maybe it was saturated with spiritual energy. Staying on a mountain like that for so long must have gradually changed my mana.
Calling it a lucky fortuitous encounter doesn't feel quite right either. This Cold Mana is a far more dangerous power than I initially thought. It's cold, yes, but that's not all. Exposure to this mana makes your muscles seize up. Every regression I've had since then—all of them happened because the muscles in my chest, specifically my heart, froze solid.
"...Without regression, I'd probably have died a long time ago."
Your own mana stopping your heart. Talent doesn't matter in that situation. Unless a nearby ally shoves a potion into you in time, it's instant death. Without an invincibility trait or a resurrection trait, this power seems far more like a poison.
So, can I control this mana now? Half yes, half no. My training absolutely produced results, but I still can't handle this mana perfectly.
I'd figured out a few conditions for using Cold Mana. When I wrap my whole body in mana, I can't breathe heavily. My heart can't race. If my body heats up, the warmth repels the cold mana, so I have to stay relaxed. But in a drawn-out fight, the body inevitably runs hot. Meaning, I can't maintain a full-body mana enhancement for very long.
"But I regress the moment I get hurt anyway."
Of course, since I regress the moment I'm wounded, my body isn't built for long, drawn-out fights. You could say I'm a style naturally specialized in short, decisive battles. So this penalty isn't as big a deal as it looks.
In the end, it all circled right back to the same point: "using Cold Mana at full power stops my heart." When I enhance my whole body with mana to boost my physical abilities, my muscles refuse to obey. I managed to overcome that somehow with willpower and the help of a trait. Once I focused on my whole body, I found I could still move.
But the heart is impossible to control through will alone. Humans can't consciously regulate their heart muscles, and because Cold Mana gathers around the solar plexus area, using mana at full power always exposed my heart. Thanks to a newly acquired trait I could endure it for a brief moment, but the critical point is that the window doesn't exceed five seconds.
"Hmm..."
That's what I've been agonizing over. What can I possibly do to overcome this? If not for the rewards Choi Ji-won shoved at me, I might've given up long ago.
Right, I haven't mentioned what Choi Ji-won gave me. I'd already used the rewards. The All-Purpose Elixir just needed to be consumed, and the Random Trait Box gave me an E-rank trait called 'Strange Atmosphere'.
-Strange Atmosphere [E]
-When people look at you, they feel there is something different about you. However, it will be difficult for them to put into words exactly what. It is a strangely different atmosphere.
There are traits like 'Hero' that are low-rank but exceptionally effective, but this Strange Atmosphere trait looked close to garbage just from the description. The hell am I supposed to do with a strange atmosphere? If I were some kind of cult leader, I could probably put this to incredibly good use, but right now it felt like a straight downgrade from my 'Curiosity' and 'Awe' traits.
Of course, those two rewards weren't the main event. The real prize was the A-rank Trait Selection Ticket. The earlier me had used it with huge anticipation, and the result was mildly disappointing.
I'd expected thousands and thousands of traits to scroll before me so I could pick one I liked... but in reality, only a hundred choices appeared.
Among those hundred options, there were plenty of interesting picks. From straight boosts to physical abilities to entirely new means of attack—just reading the descriptions, so many traits looked overpowered. If I had my way, I'd loop through regressions and claim all 100 traits, but the (Unique) Selection Ticket was the issue.
-A-rank Trait Selection Ticket (Unique)
-Unique Selection Tickets obtained from the same source can only be used once.
Honestly, that's only logical. If groups pooled their resources to dump dozens of A-rank Trait Selection Tickets onto a single person, wouldn't that create a full-blown monster who could breeze through the Tower? And as a bonus, it would keep regressors in check.
At any rate, after carefully reviewing those hundred traits, I narrowed it down to three finalists.
-Indomitable [A]
-Indomitable because it does not yield. Your willpower will not be easily broken.
-Steel Skin [A]
-The ultimate weapon is the body itself. Your skin becomes tough enough to rival steel.
-Cold Affinity [A]
-Cold is no longer your enemy. You gain significant affinity for all forms of cold.
The earlier me agonized over these three. Indomitable would be a huge help for my fragile mental state, and Steel Skin would prevent those absurd regressions from minor damage. Cold Affinity would assist me in handling Cold Mana.
This was the first time I'd had to agonize over a choice like this since entering the Tower. All the options were appealing. I never thought that I—someone who always had to pick the lesser of two evils—would ever face such a luxurious dilemma, and that made me more cautious than ever.
"Jun-ho. Are you stupid?"
Unexpectedly, it was Choi Ji-won who put an end to my long deliberation.
"I can get the traits ahead of you and we can performance-test them. What are you even worrying about?"
"...Oh. Right."
So, with Choi Ji-won's help, we repeated three regressions and reached the conclusion that Cold Affinity would be the most helpful.
As for my mental state—Choi Ji-won could handle that by fussing over me. The Steel Skin trait felt like a white elephant. It blocked light attacks without a scratch, but it couldn't stop strikes made with serious intent. (Choi Ji-won already had high durability thanks to her Unity with the Sword trait, so we experimented using online volunteers.)
But the effect of Cold Affinity was outstanding. It drastically reduced the muscle freezing from the cold. So I chose Cold Affinity with my A-rank Trait Selection Ticket, and I'm still very satisfied with it.
"Hmm..."
Thanks to this trait, operating my mana at low output no longer freezes my heart. The problem is at full output. And if I'm not mistaken, I'll have to fight at full power against enemies on Floor 70.
What if I try sustaining a gentle operation? If I keep my mana running at low intensity for a prolonged time, maybe a solution will reveal itself. Yeah, let's try that this cycle.
My mind made up, I took out the Elixir, drank it, and sat on the bed to begin slowly rotating my mana. Manipulating mana was arduous but oddly addictive—I'd focus and before I knew it, hours had flown by. Especially when my mana moved exactly as I intended.
"..."
And this cycle, whether my luck was good or my meridians had opened, I managed to achieve the deepest concentration I'd ever reached.
So deep I didn't even realize that eleven days had passed.
**
In a modern society where competition is the norm, being in the upper-middle ranks might sound unremarkable, but things are a little different in the player industry.
Compared to other players, there were truckloads of people stronger than me. But the moment you compared me to an ordinary person, I started looking like a god.
Overwhelming physical ability. Superpowers beyond human comprehension. A Status Window that let me check my own condition. It would actually be stranger to not become arrogant. Even players who never climbed the Tower strutted around on YouTube and social media, so imagine how high the noses of those actually climbing the Tower must be.
"Whoa, what's this? They've got a microwave?"
The man Kim Jun-ho had nicknamed 'the acne guy' was no exception. This young man, freshly arrived on Floor 12, thought very highly of himself. Partly because he'd never fought another player in the Tower so far, and partly because whenever he saw someone stronger, he'd mentally win by telling himself, "If we actually fought, I could take him."
"Hey, where are you guys?"
"I'm over here."
"This base looks modern."
Unlike Kim Jun-ho, who entered every floor on high alert, the acne guy yelled loudly as he flung doors open. He'd heard his allies' voices, so he felt untouchable.
"...Oh?"
But when he stepped outside, he spotted a highly suspicious door. The design was identical to the room he'd just come out of, but cold smoke was quietly seeping through the gaps in the frame.
"Guys, come out and look at this."
Normally, this would be the moment to raise his guard, but right now the acne guy was in a state of extreme arrogance. Without waiting for his teammates, he opened the suspicious door.
"Huh?"
Whoosh!
The moment the door opened, white smoke burst out, and the acne guy's body froze. Not frozen from the cold. If he had to describe it, it was more like his muscles seized up from shock. What mattered was the fact itself: he could not move.
"...!"
As the acne guy floundered in panic, the smoke gradually cleared to reveal the scene inside the room. His pupils, which had been staring blankly ahead, shook violently.
Pure white mist rippled along the floor, and his legs, rigid from the cold, refused to move. This was clearly a situation that demanded he struggle and fight, yet for some reason, surging curiosity made it impossible to tear his eyes away.
The bed on the far side of the room. A single man sat upon it in a full lotus position. Now that he looked, this smoke—whether mist or sheer cold—was flowing from the man.
"..."
You could call the acne guy arrogant. But at this moment, he didn't dare to wield that arrogance.
Wreathed in white mist, eyes closed, the man focused with his sword laid across his lap.
"...Immortal Sage?"
He looked exactly like an Immortal Sage.