287 - Regression Is Too Much

287 – Battle of the Regressor (6) A player has died. The impact is greater than I anticipated. “… Dead? Who?” “Wow, do you know? That Brazilian guy…” “Ah.” Since he was the only South American player, I could recall some general details. A man who mentioned that he combined magic with capoeira and smiled, suggesting we should have a match sometime. A man with a pleasant personality. A man who offered me a mysterious purple drink, claiming it was delicious. “…” My first impression wasn’t bad. That was it. He had a truly, truly fragile nature. If I were to step back, I would live again. Death before me was only temporary. Yet... I still felt uneasy. Human death always has that effect. It’s fine if I’m the one who dies, but if I’m the one causing death or if someone around me dies, my mouth dries up. I wonder if this is how someone labeled as a regressor should behave. No. It’s proof of humanity. It’s okay. “So, how did he die?” I steadied myself and asked Jiwon. Jiwon Choi would also feel uneasy. Should I reveal my vulnerability? What I need to do now is not to be cold, but to analyze the cause and effects. “First of all… The opponent was a rank 270 beast.” “Rank 270?” Being ranked 270 out of a million is indeed remarkable, but for someone aiming for number 1, not even number 100, what am I supposed to say? It feels like just another hurdle to overcome. 'A rank that doesn’t seem easy at all. “This person hasn’t been active for a while, so their rank seems to have dropped. By the way, this person personally targeted him. He wanted to fight.” “And you accepted it?” “Yes.” A player with a low rank cannot challenge someone with a higher rank, but a higher ranked player can target those below. I think I understand why the Brazilian player readily accepted the challenge. Because he believed he could win, he might’ve wanted to climb ranks by defeating someone of higher status. I believe he was ranked around 700 at the time. “The guy wasn’t weak…” He was a strong player who had reached the 28th floor. He couldn’t be weak. “It’ll be faster if I just watch it myself.” “Oh. You can watch the video if you pay.” “Sure. Here.” Choi Ji-won played the video. I swallowed hard and concentrated on the footage. ** It was quite a grand match. A battle between rank 270 and 700. Although it wasn’t the main event, it was a match that drew a lot of attention. Perhaps because of this, there were many spectators and the excitement was palpable. “Wow, wow, wow!!!” “Kill him!!!” “I’ve bet my entire fortune!!!” “Let’s go!!! Let’s go!!!” The audio quality of the video being played was terrible. No matter how hard I tried to adjust the angle or replay it, the sound couldn’t be masked. The cheers of the crowd blended together, resembling animalistic cries. The indistinct clamor remained. Even with the sound distorted and the camera shaking from the waves of excitement. “:…” The Brazilian player gently stretched his ankles. He stretched and spat on the floor for no apparent reason. His neck cracked audibly as he rolled it left and right. It was difficult to make out his expression since the drone was filming from afar, but at least he appeared relaxed. On the other hand, his opponent stood still. His appearance was more akin to a wild dog than a human. He was a beastman, a relatively common race in this arena. Yet, the one unique thing was his appearance... He seemed exceptionally composed for a beastman. He wore glasses perched on his nose, and his outfit was a fabric suit. His pants were plain, and he carried an unusually large backpack. Given that beastmen usually donned flashy combat gear, his appearance was hard to believe; it was as if he hadn’t come for a fight. Rank 270. That person was ranked 270. If you encountered such a beastman in the streets, you’d think he was just an ordinary person, but he was strong. The strange dissonance, along with his unmoving stature, created a sense of pressure. “$%#!#.” The Brazilian player said something calmly as he twisted his waist. His voice was inaudible, and his lip movements indescribable. However, it felt like he was joking. -Thud. It seemed like a sound was heard. Instead of responding, the beastman emptied the backpack off his shoulders onto the floor. The flap of the old backpack opened, and its contents spilled out. “What?” The Brazilian player tilted his head. On the ground lay swords, spears, bows, blades, staffs, maces, axes. Every weapon imaginable. All from the oversized backpack. “$%$#%#$.” Finally, the beastman spoke. The Brazilian player, who had been moving smoothly, halted. The beastman’s lips moved in a language foreign and unrecognizable. The Brazilian player’s expression wasn’t visible, leaving his words unknown. “Game!!! Start!!! 3! 2! 1!” The beastman picked up a staff from the floor. The Brazilian player immediately took his stance and drank a potion. The gap between them closed. The cheers grew louder. “” … The Brazilian player moved first. He lowered into a stance and advanced in a zig-zag pattern, using the typical capoeira steps. The beastman simply swung the hammer repeatedly without moving. Left. Right. Left. Right. A repeated motion like a dance. The beastman didn’t react. Once more, left. Right. Now. -Whoosh! An unexpected high roundhouse kick. Suin stepped back and dodged it effortlessly, but as expected, the Brazilian player used the centrifugal force to spin around once more. Suin had no choice but to take another step back. Simultaneously, the Brazilian player’s body sank. He lowered his posture as if lying on the ground, but he didn’t fall, thanks to his superhuman strength. A low kick aimed at a very low impact point followed by a swift upward summer kick. A mid-range push kick immediately afterwards. The attacks flowed smoothly and continuously. “Oh, wow!” “That’s it!” “This is amazing!” “Let’s go!!!!” The audience was growing even more animated, witnessing what seemed like a mesmerizing dance. The Brazilian player’s movements were intricate. His kicks altered his posture. With each change in stance, new attacks became possible, which in turn altered his posture again. Continuously shifting, relentlessly attacking, constantly changing the center of gravity—up, down, back, left, and right—it was hypnotic. Anyone could see the Brazilian player was advancing. Yes, it certainly appeared that way. “Huh?” “Huh?” -Clang! The iron hammer collided violently with the human leg. The shin guard shattered, and the leg twisted in a direction it shouldn’t have. Normally, a human leg would break against a chunk of metal, but things were different in the superhuman world. If you infused enough mana into your body and wore protective gear, your body often proved stronger than the weapon. Reason defying reason broke down once more. “What the, what the hell is happening!” “What is this!” The Brazilian player quickly retreated on one leg. Suin didn’t pursue him. His shattered leg began to regenerate gradually. “Does he have a healing ability?” “Is this the first time he's shown this capability?” “No. Initially, he held a potion in his mouth. He swallowed it when he got hurt.” The sharp-eyed spectators noticed the Brazilian player’s trick. Now, his leg was fully healed. “…” “…” Suin approached, holding a spear instead of an iron hammer. The Brazilian player, now healed, attacked again. After one round of attack and defense, this time a hole opened in his shin. Once again, the Brazilian player retreated. Suin didn’t chase him. His wound had healed. “Isn’t this strange?” Only then did the spectators realize. Something was off. “…” Those who fought directly couldn't know what the spectators discerned. Suin was toying with his opponent. He seemed intent on inflicting endless pain. The Brazilian player was brave but not foolish. There was no chance of victory. Rushing into an unwinnable fight was foolish. Survival had to come first. Just as he finished calculating and was about to shout to surrender... -Ouch. A spear flew at a speed too fast to see, piercing his head. The video ended. It was an execution. ** “… What is this?” The winner doesn’t necessarily have to kill the opponent. Just neutralizing them is enough. No, the Brazilian player was even trying to surrender. Hatred. I could feel genuine hatred. Was there some kind of vendetta? Was it just a blatant lie? I couldn’t understand it fully. “Information about this match…” “It’s quite expensive.” “… Hmm.” I wanted to meet and talk, but there was no information, and the rank difference was too vast for us to meet in the arena right now. There’s no reason for us to fight unless they specifically challenge me or something. “Are there such variables like this?” A major variable appeared on a floor I thought I could easily resolve. I thought this person would become a major obstacle in my future strategies. I lacked information. “First… Once the match is set, let’s make it our priority to watch it. Until then, let’s focus on gathering information about this person.” “I think that’s a good idea, too.” Three days passed after deciding on our next course of action. “Junho…” “…” A second player had died. The fifth person. All of them killed by the same beastman. Now the situation was clear. The beastman was targeting humans exclusively.