I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 61

61.

“Still, thanks to Byeol’s quick thinking, we definitely bought some time.”

“It’s nothing. The only possible method was detonating the Dimension Stone.”

“For now, those guys chose the brute force method of breaking through.”

I stared at the pile of rubble heaving at the entrance of the canyon.

Thanks to the rockslide caused by the Dimension Stone Yun Byeol detonated, the path was well blocked.

Thump! Thump!

Beyond it, the monsters were slamming their bodies against the rubble, trying to collapse it by any means possible.

Flash!

Just in case, I leaped high with all my might to survey the surroundings.

Yun Byeol predicted that the monsters would return via the side path, but they were simpler than expected.

There was nothing on the side path. Not even footprints.

And the number of monsters visible beyond the rubble was about thirty.

Upon closer inspection, they were Enhanced Tokras.

It was accurate to describe them as Rank A monsters, bipedal, and about the size of an adult woman, but ‘muscular’ rabbits.

Crackle. Rumble.

“……What do we do?”

As the rubble shook from the Tokras’ charge, Yun Byeol wore an anxious expression.

‘She’s using top-tier daggers worth over 10 billion won each, but her courage is bottom-tier. Well, Yun Byeol in this era was really just a seedling.’

The KSA [Korean Special Abilities Association] clearly doesn’t know how to properly use Yun Byeol.

Namina was right to discover her talent early as a diligent worker, but not as an Awakened.

Like Father Choi, Yun Byeol could experience rapid change if she received useful advice…….

It was a shame.

In any case, the plan to deal with the Tokras was already in my head.

The Tokras were easy to target because their instantaneous explosive power was inversely proportional to their body’s durability.

“Get behind me.”

“Yes?”

“Stay behind me.”

No sooner had I finished speaking than Yun Byeol stood right behind me like a piece of gum.

“Haa, haa, haa.”

Her chill and breath, shivering from fear, terror, and a rain-soaked body, were completely conveyed.

I first summoned a Magic Ball from the subspace.

“Wilson, it’s your time to shine.”

I pondered what to call him and decided to name him Wilson a while ago.

I remembered a movie I saw where the protagonist, stranded on a desert island, named a volleyball he found Wilson.

The name came to mind, so I named him the same.

Wilson seemed quite satisfied with his name – though all he could do was bounce around.

Goo-ooo!

I began to pour all of my magic power into Wilson, whom I held in my left hand.

Even if I exhausted all of my magic power, I could instantly recover that much using the modified heart.

The number of Tokras wasn’t large, but it wasn’t small either.

Moreover, in an Outbreak situation, those guys were just the vanguard, and the main force would soon arrive.

It was better to deal with them quickly.

Krrr! Krrr!

With angry cries, the rubble began to collapse little by little from above.

“Hoo.”

With a deep breath, I began to condense the magic power poured into Wilson to the maximum value.

‘More, this isn’t enough.’

I forcibly increased the degree of magic condensation, which seemed to have reached its limit. Wilson trembled.

Just as a water balloon filled with as much water as possible is more powerful when it bursts, I aimed for the same effect with Wilson.

The next moment!

Rumble!

The Tokras, who had finally collapsed the rubble, began to sprint, feeling the ground shake.

Having smelled humans, they drooled greedily and ran without considering the consequences.

I liked their formation.

Perhaps because they had all worked together to push the rubble, they were running together in one place instead of being scattered.

Since they already had a clear numerical advantage, there was no need to consider formations or anything else.

“Haaaap!”

With a shout, I threw Wilson with all my might towards the Tokra horde.

Gwaaa!

The sound of space tearing apart, a sonic boom beyond imagination, erupted as Wilson flew powerfully.

It looked as if we were watching a meteor falling through the atmosphere, with Wilson flying with a huge fiery tail.

Kiek?

One of the Tokras tilted its head, seeing Wilson flying straight towards it.

It must have wondered what it was.

Something similar to a ball was flying, glowing red and even having a tail.

Monsters and Awakened ones alike.

A common mistake made by fearless monsters is that they don’t take things they see for the first time very seriously.

Because they believe in their own strength to some extent, they try to block it once or explore it.

Sure enough.

The Tokra crossed its arms forward, preparing to block with its unique strength.

The thick arm muscles, comparable to those of a bodybuilder, crossed together, creating a plausible shield.

But.

Puh-uh-uh-ung!

The price for receiving Wilson head-on was by no means light.

A massive explosion occurred.

It was a huge miscalculation for the Tokra to block Wilson.

It directly endured the tremendous heat, firepower, and the explosive power unique to magic.

It played the role of a bridgehead, effectively spreading the shockwave in all directions.

Puh-pung! Pung! Puh-pung!

The Tokras that were clustered around began to explode and burst like balloons, caught in the explosion.

It was like a shell exploding right in front of a person, so unless they had an indestructible body, there was no way to withstand it.

Kuaaaa!

The power of the explosion was so great that it naturally flew towards me and Yun Byeol as well.

I immediately used the Steel Enhancement ability.

And in case there were any gaps, I hugged Yun Byeol, who was behind me, tightly with my arms and body.

If I didn’t do this, Yun Byeol could be injured by the fragments.

Thud! Thud! Koong!

“……”

A fairly strong impact relentlessly struck my back, which was covering Yun Byeol.

Then, the hot wind created by the explosion blew in, but this felt warm compared to the cold weather outside the dungeon.

“There’s no ulterior motive.”

I calmly added the afterthought while holding her tightly.

* * *

At the same time.

“……”

Yun Byeol, who was gazing up at Shin-hwa, who was 25cm taller than her, blushed without realizing it.

She was hugging Shin-hwa at such a close distance that their lips seemed to touch if Shin-hwa lowered his face slightly.

It was cool.

Yun Byeol had been working hard as a KSA member and exploring dungeons, but.

This was the first time.

It was not a common experience for someone to protect her by throwing their whole body.

In fact, what was even more surprising was the shocking sight unfolding behind Shin-hwa.

‘They’re……all dead.’

Pieces of Tokra flesh were falling like snow from the sky.

Except for the fact that it felt very gory, it was a sight that made her exclaim involuntarily.

One small ball fired by Shin-hwa instantly sent thirty Tokras to the afterlife.

Krrr.

But there were still two Tokras alive.

They had been caught in the explosion, but they seemed to have barely survived thanks to the other Tokras nearby blocking it for them.

“Let’s go as promised.”

Shin-hwa briefly concluded and soon released the Steel Enhancement state.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Shin-hwa leaped in front of Yun Byeol, closing the distance with the Tokras in one fell swoop.

And.

Paah!

Shin-hwa’s foot, which had instantly become as hard and powerful as if his suit would burst, struck the Tokra’s cheek.

Normally, they should have stood their ground without budging at this level of attack, but.

Crack!

The sound of bones shattering rang out, and the Tokra’s neck turned halfway around.

Swae-aek!

Kuh-uh!

Soon, Shin-hwa’s right arm sharply grazed the carotid artery.

Clearly, the movement was light and nimble, but the wound created on the Tokra’s neck was by no means light.

Cough! Cough!

A fountain of blood poured out from the Tokra’s wound, which had been cut to a deep level.

Yun Byeol did not forget the mission given to her.

She had asked Shin-hwa for help because she needed it, but she had no intention of doing nothing and freeloading.

“Haat!”

She let out a powerful shout.

And after quickly closing the distance between them, she leaped up and stabbed the Tokra’s neck with her dagger.

Since Shin-hwa had already ‘lined’ it up, it was not difficult to put strength into that spot and shove the dagger in.

Kkeu-wek…….

Shin-hwa’s help was very significant, but in any case, it was the moment she eliminated a Rank A monster.

The pleasure of easily subduing an existence much stronger than herself was exhilarating beyond imagination.

In addition, infinite respect for Shin-hwa, who made this situation possible, welled up.

“What’s the point of working hard to build up your body all day? Your head gets smashed like this, you stupid bastard!”

Pook!

Shin-hwa, who then landed on the other Tokra’s shoulder, grabbed the monster’s hair and stabbed the upper part of the back of its neck with his sword.

Kkeu-uh-uh!

Then, the sword went in deeply like soft tofu, making the muscular, burly exterior seem insignificant.

A cut that severed the center of the cervical vertebrae.

The Tokra, whose nerves were instantly paralyzed, began to stagger.

Shin-hwa, who landed with light steps, gestured to Yun Byeol, pointing to the Tokra’s wound.

“Haap!”

Puh-uh-uh-ook!

Thud.

Yun Byeol ended the monster’s life as Shin-hwa had hoped.

‘Shin-hwa’s movements are completely free of unnecessary actions. He moves along the shortest path and maximizes firepower with minimal movements.’

This was Yun Byeol’s overall assessment after watching the entire battle.

It was definitely not a response method for dealing with a monster she was experiencing for the first time.

He was very skilled.

As if he had a manual for dealing with these monsters in his head, he instantly took the lives of over thirty monsters.

‘Wouldn’t even Busan Branch Manager Lee Han-yeol be a match for Shin-hwa?’

Busan Branch Manager.

S+ Rank Awakened, Lee Han-yeol.

He was also an Awakened who enjoyed close-range melee combat like Shin-hwa, but his movements were not clean.

In other words, despite not being clean, he possessed powerful instantaneous firepower.

But Shin-hwa’s skills were superior to that.

This is because subduing multiple Rank A monsters at once is impossible without a so-called ‘finishing move.’

And that had to be an Awakened who could generate firepower of about S+ Rank, like Lee Han-yeol.

‘I don’t know, really.’

This was Yun Byeol’s honest feeling as she looked at Shin-hwa.

She would rather Shin-hwa receive an S+ Rank rating, so that there would be no cognitive dissonance.

It was bewildering that an Awakened who was a D+ Rank for life was soloing like this.

Shu-uk! Shu-uk!

In a fleeting moment, Shin-hwa used subspace to sweep away all the corpses of the dead Tokras.

Yun Byeol didn’t care because it was a pre-arranged part.

Besides, solving the problem was the priority now.

But right then.

“Let’s go further inside. Let’s sweep the interior completely.”

“Aren’t we waiting?”

“Why did you call me if you’re just going to wait blankly for the monsters to appear? Of course, I have to get a hefty business trip fee.”

Shin-hwa began to stride forward, continuing his words.

“My body is definitely warmed up. Let’s fight properly from now on.”