Chapter 44

I Regressed But The World Didn’T Fall Apart 44

Back to the Beginning, the World Isn’t Doomed -44-

044.

There is something called an emergency code in hospitals.

It is used to convey urgent matters or important announcements in medical institutions, indicating the severity of the situation based on the color attached to the emergency code.

In dramas or movies, you often hear phrases like ‘Code Blue, Code Blue!’ or ‘Code Red, Code Red!’ These are used when a CPR-requiring cardiac arrest patient appears for Code Blue, and in case of a fire within the hospital for Code Red.

Directly saying ‘There’s a cardiac arrest patient here!’ could cause anxiety among patients or their guardians, so these emergency codes are used to express it in a roundabout way.

And borrowing such emergency codes, if we were to describe the current situation in the Ultimate Fighter Celestial Realm…

CODE ORANGE! CODE ORANGE!

···It could be seen as such.

Code Orange.

A code used in the event of a disaster or mass casualties.

In this case, which of the two was it?

It was both.

A disaster occurred, and casualties followed.

– Emergency! –

– hahahahaha, something about a Doberman.

– Isn’t this at the level of a natural disaster where a disaster alert should be issued?

If we were to choose something similar, the current disaster could be likened to a typhoon.

Typhoons are unique among various natural phenomena because they have names.

The natural disaster occurring in Alpa right now is no different.

A disaster named Idohyuk.

It struck the Ultimate Fighter.

Thud-

A light step.

But the outcome was far from light.

Hook!

With the sound of the wind, a clenched fist aimed for the chin of a man.

A muscular man.

Once a former pro in Alpa who used the nickname Captain Q.

Captain Q reacted swiftly.

By backdashing, he created distance and dodged. S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

But it’s inevitable that he can’t keep creating distance forever.

Captain Q’s face began to tense.

At this rate, he would soon be cornered.

Of all times, to be stuck on such a small map in Random.

His strategy as a mid-range character, trying to keep his distance and aim for the opponent, was thwarted from the start.

In the end, Captain Q chose the close combat specialized character, Hasashin.

A character belonging to the fast attack speed axis within the Ultimate Fighter.

So, starting off with a head-on approach, trying to chip away at the opponent’s HP one way or another.

[Hmmm]

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

[Captain Q Returns]

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ □ □ □ □

Yet, only his HP was nearly halved.

Though he thought he could at least graze with a hit.

‘What kind of monster is this…’

Even if he was told to try to match their rhythm, he wouldn’t dare.

With minimal movements, he blocked or dodged all of his attacks, countering whenever a flaw was exposed.

In close combat, it was almost impossible to engage in such one-sided damage exchange with a mere difference in skill.

In other words, it meant that the opponent’s level was significantly higher.

“Should I have taken a break instead?”

Regret came late but quickly vanished.

It was of no use, and there was no time to think about it.

Blame!

The distance that widened with each of the opponent’s steps quickly narrowed.

Now, there was no more room to retreat. The only remaining option was to strike back.

Captain Q heightened his focus to the extreme.

“Just one hit…”

In the end, what mattered now was not winning or losing.

Just one strike.

Even if there were openings to exploit, all that was needed was to land a successful blow on the opponent.

With a higher attack speed than the character, even if all remaining HP disappeared, he could land just one hit…

That moment arrived.

Ido-hyuk’s expression slightly stiffened.

Thunk!

His body, in the midst of an attack, twisted unexpectedly.

A strike that grazed past Ido-hyuk’s ear.

Did this hit too?!

For a moment, a look of surprise crossed Captain Q’s face.

Thud!

A strong impact struck him.

Ido-hyuk’s foot that unexpectedly reached his side, striking Captain Q’s ribs.

Captain Q urgently tried to dodge.

No, he tried to.

Thud!

But then, a force felt from behind.

Captain Q’s posture momentarily staggered.

Ido-hyuk did not miss that instant.

His sole forcefully struck Captain Q’s solar plexus.

Involuntarily, the opponent’s head bowed, and Ido-hyuk’s other foot slammed into the ground.

Thud!

A knee shot out swiftly.

The previously bowed head of Captain Q was now jerked in the opposite direction.

And what followed was a strike aimed precisely at the exposed neck area.

“Cough!”

There was almost no pain, but the sensation of breathlessness when the neck was hit was faithfully reproduced by the dive.

Captain Q was left defenseless.

Pushing against the wall, a barrage of teasing was directed at him.

Sunflower Pavilion to Crimson Flame Pavilion.

Continuing on to the collarbone-breaker.

– Beyond Teasing is so delicious.

– Huh? Now it’s Do Hyuk-sensei’s turn for teasing?

– Kweok!

– Kekekekekeke Reading the Beyond chat while watching the broadcast, sighing kekekekekeke

– Ah keke You’re not the target now

Kwaaang!

Under the continuous impact, the wall shattered into pieces.

And through that broken wall flew Captain Q.

Captain Q, in his pro days, had made a name for himself multiple times in the main rounds of the Ultimate Fighter World Championship, showing quite a promising performance.

However, there is a significant difference between being ‘quite promising’ and being labeled ‘GOAT,’ ‘Pure Physical Strongest,’ and the like.

Especially when it comes to Anatole and Beyond, who had heard such titles as ‘GOAT,’ ‘Pure Physical Strongest,’ being brought down by Lee Do-hyuk.

[PERFECT]

[Defeat]

In the end, it was only natural for an announcement like this to appear on Captain Q’s screen.

From the glory of his pro days to his peak skills, Captain Q had a considerable gap compared to Anatole and Beyond.

In fact, he was not only left behind by Anatole, who was just a ‘Plain Girl,’ let alone reaching the level of ‘GOAT,’ ‘Pure Physical Strongest.’

“Hmm, huuuh.”

Of course, from Captain Q’s perspective, who had to accept the ‘defeat’ in front of him, it didn’t feel as obvious.

Captain Q spat out a curse, running his hand through his hair.

It might be a misconception, but he felt a dizzying sensation for a moment.

A perfect defeat… How long had it been since he last experienced this?

His memory was hazy, from a long time ago.

Most likely, the last perfect defeat was during an event match played with random picks, when he was stuck with a magical girl character, completely opposite to his style.

Of course, the situation then and now was different.

The character Captain Q brought out this time was one of his main characters.

Being defeated perfectly as a main character was the first time since the early days of Ultimate Fighter.

“Phew, you’re certainly good.”

Still, the shock wasn’t that great.

Captain Q removed the perfect defeat notification and addressed the opponent.

Lee Do-hyuk, a streamer on the second day of his broadcast.

But the man in front of him was not just a streamer.

A natural disaster in Ultimate Fighter.

It was thanks to him that one could quickly calm their mind.

Being hit by a natural disaster was nothing to be ashamed of.

– Sssssss

– Season 7’s 7th casualty!

– Captain Q? Hmm… Is that so?

Other players experience defeat now and then, so it’s not a big deal for Captain Q to lose as well, lol.

Moreover, isn’t it his first time losing without landing a single hit on the opponent?

To borrow the expression from Lee Dohyuk’s chatroom, Captain Q is the seventh victim of Season 7.

[Dark Girls]

[Beyond]

[RaW.EF]

.

.

.

[Captain Q]

Here is the list of victims so far.

His name enters as the seventh on that list, not the first or second.

It was bearable to this extent.

After all, he won’t be the last on this list.

The honored(?) first spot was once held by Dark Girls, the idol of the Alpa Realm, who lived up to her fame and basked in the spotlight, while the last spot is…

“At least it’s not me.”

Who will take that spot is uncertain, but one thing is for sure, it won’t be himself.

Captain Q was content with that fact.

“I’ve learned my lesson. You truly live up to your reputation.”

Thanks to this, Captain Q even had the leisure to leave compliments for his opponents.

“Thank you.”

Yet, Lee Dohyuk’s expression while exchanging greetings wasn’t as bright.

He waited for a moment for his opponent’s revenge request, but none came.

“Most of them don’t seek revenge anymore.”

Opponents met since the 5-game series with Beyond.

They were all former pros or gamers who once dominated the golden age of Alpa.

Initially, they were enthusiastic opponents, just like the ones before them.

After the first loss, they would immediately request a rematch, eager enough to go for a 5-game series.

But at some point, opponents who wouldn’t even bother requesting a rematch began to appear.

“I’ll take my leave then. Good job.”

*Click*

Finally, Lee Dohyuk left the room, leaving Q behind.

“Huh?”

“You’re not doing it this time?”

“Did you forget, lol.”

The chatroom buzzed with chatter.

Unlike when the battles with the previous opponents ended, Lee Dohyuk left the room without saying a word.

To him, it was a heartfelt message, but it quickly turned into a meme, “You’re talented,” sounding like a tease.

This time, he didn’t even say those slightly similar words.

Of course, there was a reason for that.

“I didn’t forget.”

The opponent’s goal wasn’t victory but to avoid a perfect defeat.

From midway, their intentions became too clear.

Among the previous opponents, there were those who tried to avoid losing perfectly by any means, but none charged in from the start like Captain Queue, blatantly disregarding victory.

Yet, there wasn’t a moment bright enough to make up for that.

“Just… Can’t you feel the talent? But I can’t lie.”

-Gasp

-Season 1: “You Lack Talent”

-Wow

-hahahaha Captain Queue will be sobbing

-Honestly, it’s true hahahaha. They weren’t just aiming to win but to land at least one hit to avoid a perfect loss, it’s so obvious

-For real, the enthusiasm is shattered

The chat room echoed Do Hyuk’s words.

Thinking they had dodged the end of the list, Captain Queue ended up being the first on the “Do Hyuk’s Fictitious Talent is Lacking” list.

[Attempting Matchmaking…]

“I hope we get a proper opponent this time.”

Anatol and Beyond.

Do Hyuk hadn’t faced opponents like them yet.

In fact, there was no opponent as formidable as Dark Girl.

If lacking in skills, he wished he could at least show her level of fighting spirit.

[Attempting Matchmaking…]

But contrary to Do Hyuk’s hopes, the queues weren’t filling up as expected.

Of course, there was a reason for that.

To prevent showing the same picture repeatedly, Do Hyuk had applied a setting where opponents he had already faced wouldn’t match for a while.

As a result, gamers who had already won weren’t getting matched.

-Queue isn’t popping up at all

-Matchmaking wait time is 12 minutes;

-Is everyone in a game?

The pro players weren’t fools.

Initially, when Dark Girl or Anatol fell, they thought, ‘Hmm… [Is that so?]’ but after saying that and mocking, they also miserably fell to the next batter, Beyond.

Since then, there’s been no shortage of victims.

A situation where countless players are being swept away by a natural disaster.

Now, even they can’t help but realize that [Is that so?] is indeed an accurate assessment.

Even plausible speculations have emerged as to why everyone deleted the replays.

[hahahaha Anatol, Beyond seem to have deleted all replays]

According to Gemini’s testimony, Teacher Do Hyuk uses all Novojeong skills. So everyone seems to have hidden it to keep it a secret?

-?

-All Novojeong? Is that possible?

Gemini was suspicious at first, but found out by the third round. They left the analysis in the replay, check it out

-hahahaha then did you guys delete the replays so others could experience being hit like you did?

Gemini seems to think so, lol.

Nah, these guys have no loyalty.

Oh, lol, can’t be the only one left in the dark~

Because Gemini, the fifth victim, had a testimony.

Moreover, Gemini even went as far as analyzing Idohyuk’s play to support his claim.

From Noble mtl dot com

It was only natural that the former pros were astonished by that.

Being able to use all skills with perfect adjustment? Being able to reduce delay by utilizing adjustment to the extent of following Beyon’s aggressive play style?

The former pros couldn’t help but wonder what that meant.

[Breaking News) Just two hours ago, while Wilder was confidently saying he would catch the culprit, he discreetly escaped]

The reason being his mother called him to eat

The menu was Vienna sausages and fried eggs

– Oh, can’t resist Vienna sausages + eggs

– I’m drooling

– Wow, never seen Wilder like that, saying he doesn’t want to meet Idohyuk’s mom…

Nah lol, he did call me

Aha

Lol, but usually he says, “I’ll eat it later!” But today, he ran happily with a big smile lol

Seriously, are you all excited? Can you see the external message right now? Oh, I can’t miss this,” they were saying lol

-Wow, Chill out, Treader…

Eventually, the audience’s control device, the Mezgi (≆cc device) sent to the former pros broadcasting Alpa, no longer accepted even the word ‘Chill?’

Everyone was truly scared.

Originally, there was only one case where that magic word didn’t work, and that was when they were genuinely scared.

Since an hour ago, there were only those in Alpa Heavenly Queue who thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be sweet if I hit once, avoid a perfect defeat, and upload it on YouTube for sweet views?’.

Even Captain Queue, who just got told by Idohyuk, ‘You have no talent,’ was withering away.

– Getting close…

– Hmm, is this the end?

– Or should we turn off the options and try again? Anatol, Beyon, and Geomhee are all waiting

– Lol, Geomhee, stop waiting

– For real lol

At this rate, it could really take ages to find the next Queue.

The chat was also worried about that.

Just as Idohyuk was contemplating turning off the setting to avoid his usual match opponents, then.

Boom!

[Match found!]

With its distinctive sound effect, a sign indicating a successful match appeared.

The initial estimated match time of 11 minutes and 30 seconds was instantly shortened.

– Oh

– Match found?

– Who’s the identity of the 8th victim of Season 8?!

– Exciting

And what was revealed was······

“Gombangwa. Today, I will visit the Kanko Saba to find Kangkokujin, who claims to have defeated Anatolu.”

“······?”

Facing an opponent who goes by the nickname [Tsuki].

“eeeh? What? An amateur? Really? (How did I end up facing a first-round amateur?)”

-LOL

-Is this the Japan-Korea match?

-Why does he like it?

-LOL Since the news of Dok Hyuk Sensei hasn’t spread to Japan yet

“Lucky! (Lucky me)”

-Koitsu, knowing nothing hahahaha

-What’s with the interpreting quality LOL

-Guys, why is this kid laughing?

Tsuki, the strongest in the Japanese fighting world, once rivaled Anatol for the top spot globally. In the Japanese game Iron Fist, Tsuki was considered equal to or even superior to Anatol, at least among the Japanese.