Chapter 7 - #03. The Dwarf (1)
Even if Yu Dahui were the only regressor, from my perspective she was still the first person I had met today. Of course we had gone through life and death together, but was this really too much? I had been about to strip her down to nothing, but then realized it might not work. Probably she wanted to put on a mask and compare notes. After all, this had only happened a few hours ago, so it was possible she could still catch me if I wasn’t careful.
How could I avoid this predicament? The answer was right in the novel. I needed to recall the character Yu Dahui had found the most difficult to deal with. Let me think. She’d been the one who lashed out at me like I was the last person she wanted to see. So I’d play the role of the guy she couldn’t stand either.
Time to reboot the filters in my brain.
“...Dahui-ssi, you should take a look too.”
“...What?” She fired back instantly.
“Dahui-ssi, think about it. You and me—today is the first time we’ve met, right? But if I just get pushed into this situation, what would you think I would do?”
“......”
Yu Dahui said nothing, just quietly listened to what I said. She looked like she had a mountain of words piled up at the back of her throat, but she swallowed them down like they were nothing.
I went in hard.
“So you want to see my body, huh?”
“No, it’s not like that...”
“I get it. I know it’s hard to put into words. When I was in the military, the only thing guys gave me was time, so I just worked out. I guess you’d say it’s decent enough to look at.”
“I’m not even interested in that kind of thing...!”
Yu Dahui had always struggled with the most pathetic characters in the novel. Especially the ones who kept their own face no matter what.
I unzipped my combat shirt and said,
“What’s the matter? Not taking it off?”
“No no no! Just a second. You really want me to take mine off too?”
“Right. When you’re trying to kill someone, don’t you need two graves? If you want to see someone else’s body, you have to show your own. Equality, right?”
“......”
When I stared at her like that, Yu Dahui gave up and shook her head.
“Fine. I don’t want to look.”
She was the kind of woman who treasured her own body more than anything. That was probably why she was chasing me. She couldn’t take it anymore.
“Hmph. Too bad.”
“What?”
I straightened my clothes and headed toward the Beginner Village. Yu Dahui huffed and followed right behind me.
That was when the world shook.
An incomprehensible message popped up.
I turned around and looked at Yu Dahui. A large axe was stuck in the back of her head.
“Kuhuhu... The scent of blood, the battlefield calls me!”
A troll grinned cruelly and yanked the axe out of Yu Dahui’s head.
That was the last scene. In the blink of an eye, we were back in the Colosseum.
“This is the fifth tutorial.”
The fairy explained.
“Sibal.”
The troll was one of the Greenskin races—goblin, orc, troll, ogre... Among them, the one with the best regeneration.
“Why didn’t I notice him?”
When the troll had attached himself to Yu Dahui, I hadn’t even realized he was there. Whether he was hiding his presence well or I was just stupid, I didn’t know.
I found Yu Dahui at a distance. She stood there with a dazed expression. Honestly, I was happy about it. It looked like she really had tried to regress.
“Ah. Damn.”
There was no way I could be in a good mood. Being forced to regress felt like a terrible experience no matter when it happened.
The quest helper fairy finished its speech, and the players were finally freed.
How long was it going to take until we could actually kill the field boss?
“Let’s go back to the Korean party first.”
I kept an eye on Yu Dahui while waiting for the suit lady.
Thanks to my army combat outfit, the suit lady came to pick me up first.
“Um, over here...”
The suit lady approached. I naturally joined the Korean party.
Yu Dahui also joined.
We quickly left the Colosseum plaza.
This time Yu Dahui gave us hints. She was still suspicious, but it wasn’t as obvious as before.
“Don’t worry about Dahui-ssi. I’ll protect her.”
That’s why the mackerel started flirting with Yu Dahui right away.
This was the exact same route as my first loop.
We had to go all the way to the pig just for a Return by Death. Damn.
“Dahui-ssi, let’s go together.”
“Dahui-ssi, come with us.”
“Pig, left. Mackerel, right.”
It was ridiculous. Yu Dahui sharpened her gaze whenever they got too close, but when she relaxed, they became completely useless.
“I have somewhere else I need to go. Sorry.”
Yu Dahui shook them off and headed off alone to hunt.
She was definitely going to the Candy Shop.
“Good thing I have time now.”
I had things to do.
“What about you, Jinwoo-ssi?”
“I’ll prepare separately too.”
I brushed off the suit lady and bought a white mask. I stored it in my inventory.
“Time to go find a skill.”
The more I regressed, the more I had left—skills and stats. Equipment and items vanished the moment I regressed, before the starting point changed.
Kim Jinwoo (1★)
Species — Human
[Species Restriction]
Stats — Strength Lv.2 | Agility Lv.1 | Mana Lv.1
Skills — Tough Skin Lv.2 | One-Handed Sword Lv.1 | Shield Lv.1
Inside the Beginner Village, near the North Gate, there were all kinds of hidden pieces. Without knowing how to get them, you had to rely purely on luck. No matter who looked at it, it was clearly set up for regressors.
“I’ve already taken one bite, but...”
“Just one more.”
“Where is it...?”
Somewhere near the North Gate in the Beginner Village. There was a church on the verge of collapse.
Creak—
I pushed open the half-broken door and stepped inside.
A thin ray of light barely illuminated the church.
“......”
A young priest who would die soon came here every day to pray.
Only he came to this church.
I naturally kept my distance and sat in the back.
I pretended to pray quietly.
In the silent church, the old priest’s rough breathing echoed.
Even though life was almost over, he never stopped praying to the “God.”
I didn’t understand, but if I faked it well enough, I might get a little divine power.
It wasn’t about receiving it—it was more like gathering a bit of the overflowing flow.
“...Young man. Are you here to pray?”
The old priest finished my prayer and came over.
I slowly nodded and looked at him.
I tried my best to give off a sincere feeling.
“Heh heh. Out of all the churches, why this one?”
“Because this church. It has meaning.”
“What meaning?”
The old priest was interested in my words.
I mumbled the line I had read in the novel.
“Because it’s a lonely place no one comes to, the prayer here has meaning. Because I pray here, this space gains value and breathes.”
A boy summoned from a dimension where the future had become harsh had spoken his feelings as they came.
“Oh...”
The old priest felt something strange in my words and prayed together.
The prayers of a sincere person carried enormous divine power. The divine power flowing from his body was absorbed into my body and became one skill.
Divine Power Lv.1 Acquired!
Weak recovery and enhancement properties.
Strengthens the body’s recovery and physical ability to a higher level just by filling the body with it.
At Lv.1 it won’t show any effect yet, but if I keep it up, it will definitely shine someday.
“It feels calming.”
“Because you prayed together, you’re closer to the God.”
“Really...?”
By the way, I don’t believe in God. The “God” who created the Tower of Struggle—well, I guess I should believe he exists to some extent.
“Then I’ll go first. My colleagues are waiting.”
“...I hope the God watches over you.”
The old priest gave a simple blessing and saw me off.
I left the church and headed toward the North Gate.
“Shall we depart?”
When we reached the North Gate, the Korean party was gathered.
“What’s that?”
“Th-this? It’s candy.”
Yu Dahui, who had been messing with the butt-shaped candy, avoided my eyes.
“Candy? But why is it shaped like that?”
“What’s wrong with the shape?!”
I triggered my temper button.
I ignored Yu Dahui and followed the leader.
We hunted and hunted.
This time Yu Dahui controlled them properly. If we went too deep, she would cut us off nicely.
Thanks to that, we finished the hunt safely and returned.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Everyone worked hard.”
The Korean party disbanded.
“Let’s meet again at the North Gate at around 8 o’clock tomorrow.”
We had arranged a meeting place and time. It felt pretty good, so everyone cheerfully promised to meet again.
“Kuhum. Dahui-ssi, if you have time later, how about dinner...?”
“Dahui-ssi.”
The mackerel and pig kept hitting on her. Yu Dahui smiled awkwardly and headed off to eat with them...
“Jinwoo-ssi, you should come too.”
They called me while walking.
“Me?”
“Yeah. Come eat with us. It’s fine, right?”
The mackerel and pig nodded with nervous eyes. Trying to look cool.
It felt like something really bad was about to happen.