I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 84

At the same time, in China.

In the heart of Shanghai stood a 123-story skyscraper with a pointed spire, visible from anywhere.

It was the Five Star Divine Tower (五星神塔) [a prominent landmark and headquarters].

Known as the stronghold of the Five Star Assembly, its scale was immense, dwarfing even the CSA, the Chinese Awakened Association, and other organizations.

There were five dungeons nearby, so large that they were located within the confines of the Five Star Divine Tower.

“…….”

In a secret laboratory on the ninth basement floor of the Five Star Divine Tower.

Access was strictly controlled, and Jin Geuk-myeong, the chairman of the Five Star Assembly, stood with his bodyguards, arms crossed, since morning.

The Five Star Seven Swords (五星七劍) [elite bodyguards of the Five Star Assembly].

That was what people called these bodyguards.

“Chairman, the autopsy is complete. The cause of death is as follows.”

A doctor affiliated with the Five Star Assembly presented Jin Geuk-myeong with a concise autopsy report.

After reviewing the report, Jin Geuk-myeong asked the doctor curtly.

“Suicide? Or murder?”

“If I had to classify it, it would be suicide. He failed to control his own power, and the Venomous Hand became a dagger that stabbed himself.”

Just then.

“…….”

Jin Geuk-myeong glanced at one of the men standing expressionlessly behind him.

The next moment.

Swish!

“Kkeueuk!”

A warrior emerging from the shadows slit the doctor’s throat.

Fwoosh!

Blood sprayed in all directions, but no one even blinked.

“Igeol, you verify this.”

“Yes.”

At Jin Geuk-myeong’s command, a man named ‘Igeol,’ with entirely white hair and skin from head to toe, stepped forward.

He silently stepped over the doctor’s corpse and delicately infused magic power into various parts of Joo Young-saeng’s cold body.

The silence stretched on for quite some time, but everyone remained motionless, as if in a still frame.

After an hour passed.

Igeol spoke.

“From the muscles to all the mana lines through which the Venomous Hand flows, everything is twisted and contorted, leading to death. This death was forcibly caused by external force, not self-inflicted.”

“That means Kang Shin-hwa’s magic power emission ability was strong enough to reverse Joo Young-saeng’s Venomous Hand.”

“The mana lines are completely shattered without a trace. To achieve this level, you need at least three times, or even more, the magic power emission ability.”

“He’s no ordinary guy.”

“I don’t want to admit it, but it seems his magic power emission ability is very outstanding, at least.”

“Good work. As expected, doctors can’t properly handle autopsies that are beyond common sense. Burn this corpse. Erase the records.”

“Yes!”

As soon as the words were spoken, all seven of the swordsmen collected the doctor’s body and headed somewhere.

They went to a darker and deeper underground, and now everything about the doctor would disappear without a trace.

Soon, only Jin Geuk-myeong remained in the room.

Joo Young-saeng was the ‘messenger’ he had personally sent, intending to either win Shin-hwa over or divert his attention.

He had instructed him to bring Shin-hwa back, even if it meant turning him into a fool if he didn’t comply.

But the result was only Joo Young-saeng’s corpse, returned cold.

This situation itself was tantamount to expressing hostility toward the Five Star Assembly.

“I’ll make sure he pays the price someday. Well, there’s no need to rush. Dealing with one Awakened is nothing, after all.”

Jin Geuk-myeong gave a sinister smile, gazing at Joo Young-saeng’s face, which was pale and lifeless.

“Impressive, very impressive…….”

A man who not only subdued an A-rank Awakened in an instant but also snuffed out his life, Kang Shin-hwa.

It was the moment when a nobody entered Jin Geuk-myeong’s mind, who had never been interested in ‘youngsters’ before.

* * *

Five minutes before noon.

I came out of Exit 13 of Sadang Station and slowly surveyed the surroundings.

Because it was a transfer station, the exits and entrances were crowded with people.

‘I almost was late.’

I took quite a bit of time meticulously preparing the ‘supplies’ needed before meeting Han So-joon.

But thankfully, I made it on time.

Anyway, as I looked around.

A man wearing a red cap pulled low and a black hoodie, hunched over in front of a convenience store, caught my eye.

Unlike his comfortable attire, he was wearing leather gloves on both hands and even a mask.

I walked toward him.

Twenty-three years old this year.

Even counting by my age after regression, he’s a year younger than me.

‘An Awakened perfectly specialized in pain relief, recovery, regeneration, and healing. But his combat abilities are terrible. And his mysophobia [fear of germs] is the worst.’

Various memories come to mind.

Good and bad memories are mixed, but his strengths are unmatched, enough to offset all his weaknesses.

I’m not trying to create a team like Nine Road that will be responsible for the entire fate of humanity.

Upper dungeons that surpass my level!

So, I just need a team member who can efficiently 攻略 [clear/conquer] dungeons that can make a lot of money.

Of course, I’ll continue to find common ground in a win-win situation, not unilateral exploitation.

“Mr. Han So-joon? Hello. I’m Kang Shin-hwa. I contacted you via KakaoTalk.”

I spoke carefully to Han So-joon in a low voice.

I didn’t touch his shoulder unnecessarily or bring my face too close.

“Ah……. Yes.”

Han So-joon, who vaguely looked down, awkwardly accepted my greeting.

“The front of the convenience store doesn’t seem like a suitable place to talk.”

“I’ve reserved a cafe in advance.”

‘As expected.’

Han So-joon pointed to a cafe one block ahead.

Reserving a cafe doesn’t just mean reserving one seat. It means securing all the seats in the cafe.

It was the result of Han So-joon’s peculiar personality, who hates being involved with unspecified people.

“Heh, then let’s go inside.”

Confirming his personality, which was as expected, I headed to the cafe with him.

* * *

“I’ve checked all the information. It’s very tempting. A dungeon owned by WSA, and Ayase Yuzuha of Team Osaka is also participating.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Ayase Yuzuha is Hara Marina’s alias. She mainly uses this name when working with Team Osaka.

“The departure is about 15 hours away, but I need quite a few supplies.”

“I’ve already done some shopping.”

I calmly dealt with his notorious reputation as he slowly started to rev up.

I opened my subspace and took out the prepared items one by one.

“First, here’s a K-brand [Korean brand] dungeon fine dust mask. It’s K99 grade and has its own oxygen supply.”

“……?”

Han So-joon was somewhat surprised as I started taking out the supplies one by one before he could even list them.

The fact that I have a subspace must have been a bonus.

“I also have hand sanitizer. Well, P-brand [Popular brand] is the most famous, right? It’s made by mixing dimensional water that can only be obtained from the well inside the dungeon.”

“Heh heh.”

Han So-joon’s eyes, located under his deeply pulled-down hat, flickered.

Usually, when strange requests are made at the first meeting before forming a party.

It was his hobby to enjoy the party leader’s flustered reaction. I don’t know why he developed such a perverted hobby.

“E-brand [Expensive brand] mineral water imported from France. I’ve prepared three boxes generously. And I’ve prepared N-brand [Nice brand] shoes so you can change them every day.”

Every time I summoned items from the subspace, the supplies piled up neatly on the table between us.

“As far as I know, the dungeon has severe ultraviolet rays…….”

“So, I’ve prepared goggles too.”

Chuck!

“There probably aren’t any in Korea, but coffee-flavored candy…….”

“Of course, I bought them.”

Cheoeok!

“Latex gloves…….”

“You don’t use anything other than L-brand [Luxury brand] premium, do you?”

Cheoeok!

“……What is this?”

“I didn’t know what you’d like, so I prepared everything.”

“Keu heuk.”

Whether he was beyond dumbfounded or had ascended to heaven, Han So-joon, who had been expressionless except for his initial flustered appearance, finally burst into laughter.

This is the real regression user manual! I instantly opened the shortcut to his heart.

* * *

The subsequent events proceeded more quickly than Shin-hwa had expected.

The preliminary test to confirm Shin-hwa’s skills was also completed in the training room that Han So-joon had secured in advance.

The facilities were not as good as the Yewha training room of the Yanghwa Guild, but it was okay for matching each other’s tempo.

‘You probably won’t be bored. From start to finish, we’re going to be stirring up the entire dungeon non-stop.’

‘If there’s even a little bit of wasted movement in combat or tangled movement between us, tell me. I’ll reward you with additional royalties for that effort.’

‘It will be difficult, but it won’t be an uninteresting 攻略 [dungeon clear].’

In the car returning home after parting with Shin-hwa.

Han So-joon smiled without realizing it as he recalled Shin-hwa’s words and actions.

“He’s a strange person.”

He was really strange.

Without even saying anything, he seemed to know all about his tendencies and had prepared everything he needed.

He felt good that he had taken care of everything meticulously, but on the other hand, he felt like everything about him had been exposed.

Moreover, the feeling he felt while matching tempo with Shin-hwa in the training room was completely different from when he had faced other Awakened before.

“Extreme healing! He stimulated my spirit of challenge to the point where I wanted to let him feel the exhilarating pleasure of infinite recovery.”

It had been a long time since he had met an opponent who made him want to implement healing magic while moving to the extreme.

Shin-hwa was several times more active and aggressive than he had thought.

Ten years of training without a single day of laziness.

Han So-joon, who rarely gasped for breath, felt his heart pounding for the first time in years.

“Why me?”

So, he was curious.

Why would someone with such skills be interested in him, who had a notorious reputation – a reputation he knew all too well.

“Well……. Is it a useless thought?”

Rustle, rustle.

Crunch. Crunch.

Han So-joon pushed the coffee candy that Shin-hwa had given him into his mouth and stepped on the accelerator with all his might.

He had an interesting schedule for the first time in a while.

Dungeon 攻略 [clearing] with Kang Shin-hwa, who is very ‘hot’ these days. It seemed like it would be quite a fun fight.

* * *

Back at midnight.

Shin-hwa, who briefly visited his house and met Jung-hoon, handed him four of the best magic potions that had been produced and received 17.3 billion won.

4 billion won was the price of two potions sold to the Yanghwa Guild, and the remaining 13.3 billion won was the value after deducting commissions from two external guild sales.

Then, he immediately moved to Incheon Airport and met Marina.

Han So-joon, who had arrived early at the scene, was busily sanitizing his hands and quickly putting on gloves. He had already been wearing a mask.

“Mr. Kang Shin-hwa! You’re here early? Mr. Han So-joon and I came too early, so we were just talking.”

“Well, I’m the kind of person who always keeps appointments.”

“Hoho! Are you praising yourself?”

“Heh, it’s a kind of appeal to my strengths. It’s much better than not keeping appointments, isn’t it?”

“Anyway, I’m glad to be with you. It’s the first time we’re going to a dungeon together, right?”

“I’m fine with the private jet, but well, I’ll gladly accept it since you’re being considerate.”

“Shall we depart now? Everything is ready. Follow me.”

‘Courteous treatment. Ayase Yuzuha……. I know that woman is very arrogant.’

Han So-joon was surprised by the extremely courteous treatment, as if everything was tailored to Shin-hwa alone.

Even a private jet!