Chapter 45 - The Regressor Takes Action (2)

“Easy.”

And that’s how you clear Floor 2.

See? Easy, right?

You just need to learn that you can beat the shit out of the nobles, have the strength to actually do it, think of changing clothes to avoid the Players’ eyes, and, at the very end, have the physical ability to shove aside the thug blocking your path and reach the angel within three seconds.

Honestly, I had no idea how anyone who wasn’t a regressor could figure all that out... But judging by what those thugs had said earlier, someone apparently had cleared Floor 2 that way.

Alternatively, you could stockpile about four Gold-grade tokens, then merrily head over to the angel with the three guys blocking the road. Aside from having to let the bastards trying to screw you over reap the same benefits as you, that was the most rational option.

The setup was outrageously unfair, but it was true that they’d made it possible to get good rewards if you wanted them.

“Whew.”

Using Floor 1’s special feature, I imagined a soft bed and immediately flopped onto it.

I hadn’t felt this in a while. So soothing. It was so soft it just made me happy.

“... I’ve gotten a little soft.”

During the tutorial, I’d stubbornly kept trying again despite regressing far more often, and far more times, than this.

There were several reasons. I’d had a clear goal of clearing the tutorial, enemies standing in my way, and plenty of determination.

But now my resolve had grown much softer, just like this bed.

There were thugs blocking my path, but they weren’t enemies. They were just freeloaders looking for an easy ride. If anyone was the enemy, it was the God who’d made this unfair system.

Clearing Floor 2? Easy. But the moment you decided to clear it properly, it became endlessly difficult. The rules were so fucking convoluted.

Besides, I’d already indulged in all the comforts of modern life. It was only natural that the thought of throwing myself back into the grind felt exhausting.

Despite all my vigilance, Floor 1’s comforts had eaten away at my resolve without my even noticing.

“... Let’s get the reward first.”

The moment I thought about viewing the small message window floating in the corner of my vision, the window that had been shyly hiding there slowly expanded to fill my sight.

“Hmm...”

[Platinum Reward List]

After looking through the list, I narrowed the choices that appealed to me down to three main options.

-Flashstep [B+]

While wearing these shoes, you can move approximately two meters at extreme speed in an instant, once per day.

-Flash Sword [B+]

While this sword is equipped, you can call down a weakened lightning bolt at a location of your choice once per day. Consumes the user’s mana.

-Flash Fist [B+]

While wearing these gloves, you can apply a lightning enchantment to a weapon once per day. The effect lasts for five minutes.

They were all good items.

Flashstep specialized in closing the distance in an instant. No matter how skilled someone was in combat, it would be hard to anticipate an opponent suddenly moving two meters at extreme speed. It practically guaranteed a killing blow. Personally, I thought this equipment had the highest ceiling.

The Flash Sword had an equally broken ability. Lightning suddenly falling out of a clear sky? Dodging it would be nearly impossible. It was an almost perfect counter to me in particular. If someone else got that sword... I would never be able to beat them. I’d regress before I could even react.

Finally, the Flash Fist was another attractive option. I didn’t know exactly what a lightning enchantment did... but imagining sparks of lightning flying with every attack was fucking cool. Lightning just had that special appeal, you know? I didn’t know how practical it was, but its cool factor was off the charts.

The items among the Platinum rewards were only B+ rank, but their performance was so impressive that I could hardly believe they were being offered on Floor 2.

Or perhaps B+ items themselves were nearly impossible to obtain on the lower floors. Platinum rewards were rare rewards with a limited supply to begin with. Only about thirty people in all of humanity could get one.

They were all good items... Really good items... The problem was that they were items.

I couldn’t take them with me when I regressed. And since I wasn’t going to advance to the next floor on this run, they were utterly out of reach.

-Flash Pill

Increases your Agility stat.

“... Another pill?”

In the end, I chose a pill again.

It was the only reward on the list whose effects would remain after Regression.

Since the nobles used magic, I’d held out a faint hope that the reward list might include a spellbook, but my hopes were dashed.

Everything on the list was either a performance-enhancing consumable or a powerful item.

“Tsk...”

[Your Agility stat has increased by 10.]

I swallowed the tingling pill in one gulp and checked the message confirming my increased Agility. A few light punches into the air made it clear that my body really had become more nimble.

“Nice.”

Right. Stats were what stayed with you, and elixirs were always a regressor’s best friend.

There would be time to get those flashy items on another occasion.

I desperately wanted to lie in that soft bed a little longer, but I knew all too well that if I gave in now, I’d lose the drive to move forward.

“This time... how about I stir up some trouble?”

There was one more thing I wanted to try.

Floor 2’s structure was much like a class system.

What would happen if I destroyed the classes altogether?

I tore off a bit of skin inside my mouth, ran my tongue over the wound, and closed my eyes.

[You have taken damage.]

[Regressing to the moment you first entered Floor 2.]

* * *

Life’s repetitive routine left the city short on vitality, but it was still a city of abundance.

It had received God’s grace, after all. The moment one stepped beyond the city walls, the Garden of Eden spread out before one’s eyes.

There were clothes in abundance, more food rotted and was thrown away than was eaten, and everyone had a home in which to rest.

Some climbers had recently given rise to disturbing rumors, but those had quickly subsided once the residents formed a vigilante group.

The city was so peaceful that comparing it to the days before its incorporation into the tower, when it had been called “the city where the shouting never stops,” felt almost embarrassing. God’s grace lurked in every corner of every alley. People had their minor complaints, but on the whole, they were happy.

“Ugh, uhhh...”

Except, that is, for this beggar lying between the buildings.

Clean clothes made his entire body itch as though hundreds of insects were crawling over him. Even delicious food tasted and smelled like filth in his mouth. A soft bed felt more painful than thorns. He couldn’t even wash, because water touching his body sent chills coursing through him.

This beggar had never wanted to become a beggar.

He had simply kept choosing the less painful, less distressing option, and being a beggar was the result.

He knew the cause. The bronze-colored box tucked inside his clothes. It was forcing him to behave this way.

But knowing changed nothing. He was still a beggar groaning in the darkness, and throwing the box away outright rather than exchanging it violated the city’s rules.

“Uhhh...”

As he lay groaning on the ground, a man wearing leather armor and carrying a bucket full of water stopped in front of him. The beggar immediately rolled over, prostrated himself, and stretched out his hand.

“F-food, please... I can give you a token if you want...”

Past experience had taught him something.

He had no idea why, but the food climbers tossed him tasted like ordinary food. It smelled appetizing, rather than giving off a rotten stench as though it had been dredged from a sewer.

And so, whenever someone in leather armor approached, lying flat and holding out a hand to beg for food had become his routine.

“Please, please...”

But he sensed no movement.

Did the heartless climber have no time to waste on him? Not enough mercy to bring him a single morsel from those streets overflowing with plenty?

“Stand up.”

Contrary to his expectations, however, the climber took his filthy arm and helped him to his feet.

“Uh, um...”

Before the bewildered beggar could react, the man reached inside his clothes and pulled out the familiar bronze-colored box.

“Step back.”

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The climber repeatedly struck the box with a hammer he’d acquired somewhere, then clicked his tongue and stuffed the brown box into a sack tied at his waist.

“...”

One baffling development after another. While the beggar stood frozen, still struggling to understand what was happening, the mysterious climber flashed him a dashing smile.

“How do you feel?”

“... Pardon?”

“Your body. How does it feel?”

“... I’m not sure what you mean by— Aaah!”

The climber poured the bucket of water over the beggar’s head.

Knowing that water brought a stabbing chill upon contact with his body, the beggar huddled in on himself as tightly as he could...

“Huh?”

For some reason, the water wasn’t cold. It was refreshing instead. When he pressed his fingers against the dirty water coating his skin, he felt a pleasant dampness he hadn’t enjoyed in a long time.

“H-how...”

“I took it, remember? The box. You’re free now.”

“...”

“First, go wash up... Get something to eat... Change your clothes, and get a haircut. There must be things you’ve wanted to do, right?”

That was right.

There had been so many things he wanted to do.

So many things he’d been forced to abandon because he had to live as a “beggar.”

“In return... once you’ve done all that, please help me out.”

The climber smiled.

The beggar had sunk weakly to the ground, and from where he sat, the bright sun overlapped the climber’s head, shining down like a halo.

The climber had figured out the city’s rules.

That these boxes... dictated the residents’ behavior.

That residents could never discard their boxes of their own free will.

That if someone took a box away, its resident would be liberated.

As tears welled in his eyes, the beggar... no, Thomas, finally closed them.

“Now, repeat after me. Long live the revolution.”

“... Long live the revolution.”

This climber was the hero he had waited for so long.

A Word from the Author (Author’s Afterword)

Wasn’t I supposed to be on hiatus, you ask?

I took a hiatus from my hiatus. Thank you.

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