Chapter 48: Regressor in Action (5)
It listed rewards for each rank.
Bronze rewards were trivial consumables or defective potions.
Silver rewards included ‘sturdy’ weapons or armor, along with the lowest-grade potions.
Gold rewards were ‘well-crafted’ weapons and armor, as well as lower-grade potions.
And then, came the Platinum reward; there was a set of ‘Flashlight’ with its evidently cheat-like performance and good elixir that would be useful for anyone.
If one were to overlook the systemic unfairness, it’s undeniable that from the player’s perspective, the second floor was a remarkably generous stage.
With virtually no risk, and rewards guaranteed regardless of their size. Compared to the tutorial stage, rife with blood and death, this was quite literally heaven.
There were no bull-headed monsters out for your life, nor was there a rationing of food. If a player wished to stay on the second floor, they could do so indefinitely, and if they wanted to move on, they could do so in an instant. If one didn’t get greedy and aimed only for the silver rank rewards, clearing the stage was never an issue.
Despite the easy clear right before my eyes, the diamond rewards I struggled so hard to obtain couldn’t help but raise expectations.
Will there be elixirs this time? Or an item with insane performance? Come to think of it, I remember seeing a ‘Magic’ stat on other people’s status screens... Could the reward possibly include the Thunder Mana Technique? Could I, like the master of the city, emit lightning from my body?
I swallowed hard without realizing it and checked the notification that appeared before me.
Please select your Diamond reward - Heart of Lightning [Trait]
- Flashbow [Trait]
Lowest-grade Elixir [Consumable]
“...Hmm.”
Elixir is an elixir, but what’s with a ‘lowest-grade’ elixir?
Dismissing useless thoughts, I decided to read the detailed descriptions.
Heart of Lightning [S] ‘To wield this technique is to be prepared for death,’ said the knight of thunder.
- Upon activation, it expends all your magical power and replaces it with lightning attribute mana. It greatly enhances all physical abilities, including reaction speed, and every attack you make inflicts additional lightning damage. While the effect lasts, the user continually takes damage, and the ‘Heart of Lightning’ remains active until all the lightning mana is exhausted.Flash Step [S] ‘By the time you see it, it’s already too late.’
- A movement technique utilizing extreme speed control. Consumes a large amount of mana to allow for instantaneous high-speed movement. However, the distance moved is affected by proficiency.Lowest-Grade Elixir [S] ‘Immortality may not be possible, but a long, disease-free life seems within reach.’
- When consumed in full, it heals all physical ailments. Unlike the original, it is less effective against curses.
“Tsk...”
The Heart of Lightning. Just by looking at it, one can tell it possesses immense power and has that certain cool factor.
The protagonist, cornered. Loved ones to protect. An overwhelmingly powerful enemy. After contemplating, the protagonist decides and activates the ‘Heart of Lightning’. Wow, how cool.
Moreover, my regression ability itself suits the short-term combat-type traits very well. Like when I decapitated the Minotaur by pumping power into my heroic trait, I just need to amplify my combat power momentarily, grab the reward, and regress.
But since it’s written, ‘the user continues to take damage during the duration,’ it’s all just pie in the sky. I’d regress the moment I activate the trait.
Since I regress upon taking damage, I can’t make use of ‘Endure, my body!’ type traits.
Similarly, the lowest-grade elixir is a consumable. If I could take it back to reality and sell it, I’d make a fortune... but it’s not something I can take with me when I regress.
It might be nice to drink it now, but my body is the epitome of health. There’s no merit in choosing the elixir.
That leaves only one option. The Flash Step.
Should I be grateful that there’s at least one thing I can use from the diamond rewards?
“...How do I even use this?”
I’ve never had a skill like Flash Step that requires direct activation.
The moment I touched ‘Flash Step’ with the tip of my finger, out of a bit of curiosity...
“Uh, ahh...”
A splitting headache assailed me. It felt like all my brain cells were burning up, but apparently, it didn’t count as damage since there was no sign of regressing.
Name: Junho Kim [LV:16] Traits:
- Really wanna kill all those blocking the way lol
- But why even have bronze rewards? Don’t get it.
“...This is just a mess.”
The problem was that there was absolutely no new useful information. It was all the stuff I already knew.
I had a relatively thorough understanding of the second floor through repeated regressions, while these people had barely managed to get through it once.
Moreover, it hadn’t been long since the U.S. president had announced the existence of the tower.
The number of people who had cleared the second floor at this point could literally be counted on one hand. Whether they were training on the first floor or just messing around, most seemed reluctant to ascend to the second.
“...A waste of time.”
After about two hours of web surfing, I concluded that searching for information online was pointless.
The climbers’ community wasn’t active yet, and there were hardly any who had gone up to the second floor. And most of them probably chose the silver rewards.
Thinking about it, I might be the person who knows the most about the second floor on Earth right now.
“Tsk.”
As I turned off the computer and was about to lie down on the bed to plan...
“...Huh?”
I remembered the large poster of Michael Jeter that was stuck in a corner of the square.
And I recalled the stories of those American middle-aged men. They had mentioned an unofficial player community in the U.S.
“...The American community?”
All the communities I had searched were limited to Korea. Why hadn’t I thought of checking foreign communities?
Quickly, I maneuvered through various major American communities.
The American middle-aged man’s words were no exaggeration; I could see that a few player communities had already formed.
I accessed the largest of these communities and scrolled down swiftly.
It didn’t take long to find what I was looking for. The post was pinned with an astonishing number of recommendations.
“...Found it.”
A familiar username. The exact content I had been looking for.
“My experience on the second floor was quite unpleasant. I almost died at the hands of the city’s master.”
Poster: M.J.
It seems I have found a lead.
– – – End of Chapter – – -
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