Chapter 68 - The Regressor Accepts Fate (4)

I could tell at a glance.

A room shaped like a long corridor. A barrage of arrows flying from every direction after just a single step.

If arrows were flying right from the start, I couldn't imagine what would come at us farther in. Poison? Spikes? Flames?

Whatever the case, for someone like me, who regressed at even a graze, these traps were practically impossible to get past. No matter how I looked at it, this room wasn't designed for dodging. It was designed for pushing through while taking a few hits.

But that was fine.

"... Boss Chan."

"What is it?"

"Can you smash everything up ahead?"

Because I had a cheat code.

"... My power isn't the kind to be used carelessly."

But Boss Chan seemed hesitant.

"Oh."

He seemed concerned about these fragile cave walls. After all, there had already been an instance where he'd misused his power against the giant wolf and brought the ceiling down.

"I understand your concern. But I think it'll be fine."

"..."

Still, I felt certain it would be all right this time. The reason was simple.

"It's pretty obvious there are traps up ahead, right? That means there are intricate mechanisms installed here."

This wasn't a relatively natural cave like the cavern where the wolf had been hiding.

The walls and floor had been carved smooth. There were signs of human handiwork.

And since the arrow-firing mechanisms seemed to be concealed behind the walls...

"That means smashing them won't bring this entire cave down. If they've concealed complicated mechanisms in here, they must have designed it to withstand a certain amount of impact."

I left out the word 'probably.' If I was wrong, I could just regress.

"..."

Even so, Boss Kang Chan kept deliberating.

All my predictions so far had been right, earning his trust, but he still seemed worried we might get hurt.

"Um..."

That was when Dok Suhui came to my aid.

"I put almost all my stat points into mana... so I'm really vulnerable to traps like these... If we do this the normal way, I'll end up a porcupine..."

She gazed at Kang Chan with pleading, tearful eyes that seemed at odds with their sharp shape.

"Isn't there something you could do...?"

"Please, boss...!"

And so the two of us, desperate to avoid those arrows, clung to Kang Chan and pleaded.

"... Fine. Stand back."

Unable to withstand those looks, he took his stance.

WHOOOOOM.

Kang Chan's fist slowly began to glow.

Wind whipped through the narrow passage, and the moment his steadily brightening fist blazed with light—

KABOOM!

Kang Chan's punch slammed into the trap-filled passage.

"Whoa..."

I'd moved far away, worried the shock wave might trigger Regression, so I couldn't get a proper look at the punch.

RUMBLE.

But the violently shaking floor and walls gave me an indirect taste of Kang Chan's might.

Then the tremors subsided.

"... It seems it hasn't collapsed."

As Kang Chan gave his fist a casual shake, I poked my head out to look at what had once been a trap-filled passage.

"Ha, haha..."

Before I noticed the various concealed weapons embedded at haphazard angles, apparently fired by malfunctioning mechanisms, or the buckled and crumbled stone walls...

I saw the hole punched clean through everything straight ahead.

"... The hole is shaped like a fist."

How to breeze through the worst traps imaginable:

Borrow the power of someone ridiculously overpowered.

* * *

"..."

Boss Chan looked a little pale, as though that punch had consumed a considerable amount of his strength.

Well, if he could throw that kind of power around at will, calling him overpowered wouldn't cut it. We'd have to call him a god.

After all, wasn't the god who'd descended to Earth throwing his power around however the fuck he pleased?

"Should we take a break?"

"... I'm fine."

We passed through the wreckage of the trap corridor and continued straight ahead for about five minutes.

"... A fork in the road?"

The path before us split in two.

"Hmm..."

On the left was a primitive-style drawing of a man fighting a monster. On the right was a man clutching his head in agony.

Each stone door had two palm-shaped recesses. Apparently, we were meant to split into pairs.

"I'll go left."

It was obvious that a mental trial awaited on the right.

And as I kept emphasizing, the most important thing for a regressor was maintaining their mental health.

A regressor could overcome physical suffering, but not mental suffering. The mind carried on even after Regression.

In other words, there was no way I was walking through that right-hand door of my own accord. I'd rather regress a few times and clear the left one. Why would I go out of my way to take the right?

"Th-then I'll take the right door with Mr. Kang Chan!"

Despite his stammer, Ahn Gyeongjun insisted on accompanying Kang Chan through the right-hand door.

"But why Boss Chan...?"

"Because Mr. Kang Chan has his killing intent... He can force my Spirit Possession to activate in an emergency."

That made sense.

Boss Chan could look after himself perfectly well, but without Spirit Possession, Ahn Gyeongjun was extremely vulnerable to surprise attacks.

It was only reasonable to pair him with Boss Chan, who could get him combat-ready in an emergency.

"Then that means..."

"It's the two of us?"

Dok Suhui gave a small nod and placed her palm against the left door.

After briefly meeting her eyes, I placed my palm on the stone door as well.

RUMBLE.

The floor slowly sank. It wasn't suddenly dropping away like a trap; it was descending slowly, like an elevator.

"S-see you when we're done!"

By the time the rumbling that drowned out Ahn Gyeongjun's voice had stopped...

"..."

The scene before us had changed completely.

We were in a small room carved out of the cave walls.

"There's a door, but..."

A stone door stood directly ahead, but there was no obvious mechanism to open it.

That meant we had to do something in this room to get it open.

"Hmm."

A stone pedestal stood in the very center of the room. On top were a small box and a bottle of liquor giving off a fragrant grain aroma.

"..."

I opened the box in silence. The first things I saw were two cups carved from stone, with a needle displaying its sharp point in the center of the box.

A needle? Out of nowhere?

"What the..."

Just as I unwittingly voiced my bewilderment—

[What is a warrior? Though the essence of a warrior lies in killing the enemy, the purpose lies in protection. A warrior with nothing to protect is nothing more than a murderer.]

A mysterious voice rang out from somewhere.

It was a strange voice, one that seemed to enter my mind directly rather than reach my ears.

[On a grand scale, warriors fight to protect their nation. On a smaller scale, they fight to protect their family. Fundamentally, they fight to protect themselves. Thus, a true warrior must know how to protect oneself.]

"..."

The voice preached that warriors existed not to kill, but to protect.

[To take this one step further, a warrior must be able to protect the comrades who fight alongside them. For it is when each seeks to protect the other that a warrior's true strength manifests.]

"Hmm..."

It sounded reasonable. I understood this room's theme now, too.

Was it testing our willingness to protect each other? Presumably, they'd split us into pairs because the trial ahead required two people to cooperate.

All right, so I just had to fight while protecting Dok Suhui.

Just as I was about to give a small, unconscious nod—

[Drink from cups of wine mingled with each other's blood, and look your comrade straight in the eyes. Fully understand the comrade who stands shoulder to shoulder with you. Then the true trial shall begin.]

"..."

Those next words left me speechless.

Only now did I understand what the needle in front of me was for.

We were supposed to prick our fingertips, mix our blood into each other's cups, and drink.

Sure, I knew customs like this existed. I knew about expressions like 'blood brothers,' too.

Yes, I knew about them. I'd simply never dreamed I'd find myself having to do it.

"There, I'm done."

Without making a fuss, Dok Suhui drew a drop of blood into a cup, then smoothly poured grain liquor over it.

"Here you go."

The needle she lightly placed in my palm felt as heavy as a log.

"..."

Was this tower truly determined never to let me have an easy time?

"Haa..."

I gently closed my eyes and pricked my fingertip with the needle.

[You have taken damage.]

[Regressing to the moment you first entered Floor 3-5.]

* * *

"I'll go right."

"... Are you sure you'll be all right? That man clutching his head looks like he's in terrible pain..."

"Of course I'll be fine."

Of course I wouldn't.

As a regressor, keeping myself mentally healthy was already crucial. How could I possibly welcome a route that would inflict psychological damage?

But what else could I do?

"Really... I'll really be fine."

I didn't have a choice...

A Word from the Author (Afterword)

Thank you, as always, for reading.

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