I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 57

Episode 57

Perhaps, if Marina could hear Shin-hwa’s thoughts, she would have ‘snapped’.

She took immense pride in her skills, more than anyone else.

And for Marina, who was usually so confident, Shin-hwa’s words acted as a trigger, amplifying her emotions.

Whoong! Whoong!

This time, the dummy pressured Shin-hwa by moving its legs in intricate patterns instead of just its arms.

The intensity of the attack increased significantly.

Before, the attacks felt like they carried the hidden message of ‘I won’t let you die.’

Now, it was a real battle. The fierce kicks were attacks that could easily crush a jawbone upon impact.

‘It’s definitely powerful,’ Shin-hwa thought, impressed.

Marina was also constantly impressed by Shin-hwa’s skills, though Shin-hwa couldn’t tell because she didn’t show it.

Befitting someone destined to become one of the Nine Lords, Marina’s movements were clean and precise.

In reality, she was desperately blocking with all her might.

The fact that she countered and smashed the dummy’s right hand was only possible because she fought with every ounce of her strength.

‘Marina, you’re really a golden spoon [born into privilege] like Nicholas. You were quite useful even back then.’ Shin-hwa smiled inwardly.

Even amidst this, the dummy’s fierce attacks continued relentlessly, but Shin-hwa cleanly blocked them with his steel reinforcement.

Marina’s advantage lay in her ability to manipulate other bodies—or dummies—to launch unconventional and unpredictable attacks.

However, this also presented a significant disadvantage: a limited repertoire.

Of course, Marina’s talent was rare, and most people had never experienced it.

But from Shin-hwa’s perspective, having sparred with Marina countless times in his previous life, her attacks fell within a predictable range.

‘In the end, she can’t accurately feel the sensations as well as if Marina herself were fighting.’

At that moment…

Paat!

Shin-hwa, who had seemed only to be defending, suddenly leaped forward with an expressionless face.

Reaching the ceiling quickly, Shin-hwa twisted his body and kicked off with all his might, using the defense barrier as a stepping stone.

Koong!

Shin-hwa rapidly closed the distance, the sound of air splitting in his wake.

Shwieek!

He narrowly avoided the dummy’s left-hand attack, which sharply pierced the gap.

“Ah… !” A scream escaped Marina, flustered. She couldn’t stop Shin-hwa because he had accurately targeted the dummy’s blind spot.

Even though the blind spot was a tiny area, only 1% of its range of activity.

Shin-hwa found the blind spot too easily and arrived right in front of her.

Ssuk.

Soon, Shin-hwa’s right arm, transformed into a long sword, sharply aimed for Marina’s neck.

“Damn it,” Marina spat out, a short, sharp word of anger. Shin-hwa continued to speak, his weapon still aimed at her neck.

“Controlling a human body or model as you please is certainly powerful. The problem is the main body. The more the clone’s movements are maximized, the weaker the main body’s defense becomes.”

“Did you aim for the blind spot?”

“I aimed for it. Unlike my body, which can see and respond directly with my eyes, the dummy’s response has a delay, no matter how short.”

“……”

“Eliminating blind spots is very difficult. But it will be easy to lower your aggressiveness and find a way to protect yourself.”

“… I lost. If it was a real battle, I would have already died.”

“If it was a real battle, Marina would have been more aggressive. I don’t want to put too much meaning on winning or losing.”

“Damn it.”

Shin-hwa’s calm reaction was a great stimulus to Marina.

She was very angry, but also satisfied because she felt she had glimpsed the essence of Shin-hwa’s talent.

‘This isn’t a coincidence. It’s definitely not luck. Shin-hwa’s cold calculation worked.’ Marina admitted honestly.

And she coldly evaluated Shin-hwa’s skills in the sparring match.

‘With this level, he can easily beat an A-rank Awakener. His raw power is somewhat lacking, but he has a lot of combat experience.’

She was curious about his secret.

This level of skill could only be mastered by someone who lived in dungeons almost constantly after the Great Change and had been constantly engaged in combat.

Almost all Awakeners defend against attacks in a textbook manner.

This is the easiest and least dangerous response.

However, Shin-hwa used a martial art that could be several times more dangerous if the response failed.

Thanks to that, he avoided the attack with very little force and instead aimed for the gap in reverse.

“I learned a lot.”

Shin-hwa withdrew the tip of the sword from Marina’s neck and returned to his original position.

Shwiririk!

She also retrieved the silver thread from the dummy, which stood pathetically with one arm missing.

She needed to repair the 500 million won dummy because she had taken the test too seriously. She felt bitter for no reason.

“You’re really amazing. I definitely lost. I have no excuse because I was defeated even though I did my best.”

“Are you a little curious now?”

“Well… I can say that it’s not a little, but definitely resolved.”

Marina nodded.

She thought she was qualified to have a meeting with the VVIP [Very Very Important Person].

She continued to speak.

“Shin-hwa.”

“Yes?”

“In fact, today’s sparring was also to confirm whether Shin-hwa is qualified to meet the VVIP.”

“VVIP?”

It wasn’t that he didn’t know; he was asking for clarification.

Shin-hwa knew who it was.

It was the head of the WSA [World Superpower Association].

However, they were an unknown existence to the outside world.

If he traced back his memories from his previous life…

‘Elijah Group’ was like that, but the WSA, in particular, was also a suspicious organization.

He didn’t know why, but the two organizations were very passive in preparing for the Great Disaster and didn’t cooperate well.

When the Nine Lords requested help, they refused or delayed support, citing various reasons each time.

For that reason, they often couldn’t attack necessary dungeons or came to the brink of armed conflict.

But even then, the VVIP never showed up.

Not only that.

They didn’t appear even after defeating the Great Disaster and preventing the cruel end predicted for this land.

‘Kang Shin-hwa, this is just my guess… VVIP that XX, I think there’s something else going on.’

‘But now it’s all over, so I don’t think you need to worry too much. I’ll keep monitoring, so you can take a good rest.’

Shin-hwa recalled the words Nicholas had left immediately after the victory against the Great Disaster.

He also thought there must be a reason for the VVIP’s extreme secrecy and silence, but he couldn’t pinpoint it.

‘Anyway, if it’s VVIP, it’ll be fun. If it’s a customer with money, fame, and skills, I’m in.’

No matter who the other person was or what story they had, they were just customers to Shin-hwa now.

Shin-hwa didn’t care much.

Marina said,

“If you participate as a guest of the WSA later, you will be able to have a video conversation with the VVIP.”

“I see. I understand.”

“Well, then… shall we seriously negotiate the sale of the enhancement potion now?”

“That’s what I wanted. Two men and women played too hot before selling the goods,” Shin-hwa smiled and nodded at her change of topic.

* * *

The negotiations proceeded quickly.

He had a strong desire to sell, and Marina had a strong desire to buy at all costs.

Perhaps Marina had been delegated some negotiating power from the higher-ups.

He was a little surprised throughout the conversation.

Marina was a member of Team Osaka and also a member of the WSA.

Seeing her proceed with such an important purchase, it seemed certain that she was receiving strong trust from the WSA.

“I want to buy 100 packs of the enhanced potion produced this time. Is there a separate official name for the potion?”

“It’s Stimulus.”

“It means stimulant. It sounds very primal?”

“It’s a good name.”

That was the official name, but ultimately, it would be called an enhanced potion among the Awakeners.

That’s more intuitive.

“Shin-hwa said earlier that he would give the WSA priority to purchase. Then, of course, there will be conditions.”

“There are two conditions.”

“Please tell me.”

“First, when participating as a guest, I will attack two dungeons owned by the WSA as the dungeons I want.”

“Is that a request or a notification?”

“Well, it depends on how you interpret it?”

“Let’s hear the rest of the conditions first.”

“Second, price negotiations are only possible twice. If it breaks down, I will look for another seller without regret.”

“It’s not twenty questions; it’s a story that you have to end the proposal with two questions.”

“It means that we shouldn’t be fighting each other while measuring each other. If necessary, the person who needs it must clearly show their intention to purchase.”

He continued to speak without hesitation.

“You’re playing a strong hand.”

“It’s an easy problem to think about who will benefit when the deal is concluded.”

There are many forms of sales, but in his experience, the most cunning sales tactic was to make the other person think.

The words he just said could be interpreted in completely different ways depending on how you interpreted them.

But it would somehow sound attractive to her ears, as she was already very interested in his enhanced potion.

It wasn’t that the expression of confidence sounded unpleasant; it was a gutsy move that could be fully sympathized with.

“Okay. Let’s set the purchase price for the 100 packs secured today at 10 billion won [approximately $7.5 million USD].”

100 million won per piece.

It was a good offer.

Unlike the highest-grade magic potion, this could be produced indefinitely as long as there were production materials.

The Stimulus price around 2050 was about 300 million won, so considering the inflation rate, the appropriate price was correct.

‘It’s literally the right price, and that’s it.’

He didn’t say anything.

One of the two chances he gave her flew away like that.

He knew very well that his current appearance could be seen as so-called ‘gapjil’ [abuse of power].

In fact, he narrowed down the choices so that she could feel that way openly.

He had nothing to lose.

Originally, the more you beg and plead to get something, the more you feel its value.

Also, if you increase the value of the item, your value will naturally increase.

After that, no matter what you sell, a premium like a premium is attached, and of course, it becomes much easier to make money.

In other words, it could lead to early retirement in a few weeks or months.

“This is… .”

“If you don’t think about the appropriate price and think about the ripple effect, you’ll be able to make a quick decision.”

Even if it’s temporary, the fact that an Awakener can taste the combat ability of the next rank is not an ordinary experience.

It can be a definite motivation.

Of course, if you think about it in reverse, it can have the opposite effect of increasing dependence on enhanced potions.

Isn’t that what doping’s [use of performance-enhancing drugs] ambivalence is all about?

However, he wasn’t selling addictive drugs. So he was confident and had nothing to worry about.

“……”

A long silence flowed.

After having time to contemplate that the seller could fully understand.

Finally, Marina’s mouth, which had been tightly closed, opened.

“Okay. Let’s do it at this price.”