The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player Novel - Chapter 328
Chapter 328 – End of Round 20
Ryu Min had a clear reason for reviving Sophia.
Among the deceased, she was in the best condition.
The others had died in such horrendous ways that it would be difficult to resurrect them.
‘I must save whoever I can. There’s no other choice.’
Chaos had declared that he would attack as soon as his invulnerability ended, but that was uncertain.
Hopefully, the round would end before then.
‘Then Chaos would be expelled by the system and those who had been resurrected would survive.’
That’s why Ryu Min had to use the remaining life potion immediately.
If the round ended, he would lose the chance to save one more person.
‘I must revive her before it’s too late.’
Ryu Min ran to the person who came to his mind, without even checking the state of the corpse, and used the life potion.
Fortunately, the potion worked since the body was not damaged by more than 30%.
“Ugh…”
“Min Juri! Are you conscious?”
“Min…?”
The familiarity in the voice made Ryu Min shudder.
‘Did she regain her memory?’
Min Juri with her memory erased wouldn’t call him by his first name.
She would call him Ryu Min or Black Scythe.
“Min, I’m so sorry…”
“….”
That her first words after regaining her memory were an apology.
While Ryu Min stood speechless, Christine used the resurrection skill she had saved to revive Sophia.
Shhh—
Sophia’s pierced heart repaired, and her eyelids opened as if waking from a dream.
“Ugh. Christine?”
“Huh?”
Christine, who regained her composure after fulfilling the order, also looked at Ryu Min.
Both seemed to expect an explanation of the situation.
But there was no time for that.
At any moment, Ryu Min’s invulnerability would wear off.
‘Please, let it end…’
He hoped the round would end before Chaos attacked, but his hopes were dashed.
Just as the golden effect of invulnerability disappeared, Chaos opened four spaces.
[It seems your luck ends here.]
Four dark red spears emerged from the spaces.
They were aimed at Ryu Min, Min Juri, Christine, and Sophia.
At that moment, Chaos’s eyes began to fade.
The system was expelling him.
[I regret not seeing your death, but I hold no grudge. My purpose has been fulfilled…]
Chaos’s voice faded like an echo, and along with his eyes, he completely disappeared.
Finally, he was expelled by the round-ending system.
But the spears aimed at the players did not disappear.
‘This is serious. I can’t think of how to stop them.’
In moments, Chaos’s instant-death spears would take the lives of the four.
If at least one of the four had a life potion, there would be a chance, but all had been used.
“Sophia!”
“Yes?”
“You haven’t used your sacrifice skill yet, have you?”
Before Sophia could nod, Ryu Min, reading her thoughts, shouted.
“Use it to protect Christine or Min Juri! I’m sorry, but this is the only way to save one more!”
“And you, Black Scythe?”
“Don’t worry about me!”
There was really no need to worry.
He had one last resort, a special title.
‘I can revive thanks to my Last Time Reverser title.’
The decision was quick, but the fate was inevitable.
Swiish!
The spears struck almost simultaneously.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The gruesome sound of three people being impaled.
“Ah…”
Ryu Min looked at Sophia in disbelief.
“Why… why did you save me…?”
Sophia had taken the damage meant for Ryu Min with her sacrifice skill, smiling weakly before bowing her head.
-I have repaid my debt…
He could hear her thought just before dying, understanding the sentiment behind her action.
She had decided to sacrifice herself in gratitude for being saved by Ryu Min before.
But Ryu Min was not grateful at all.
“I told you to save someone else, I would have been fine…”
Even if he was left alone, he could survive thanks to his title.
If he had saved Christine or Min Juri, he could have saved one more person.
“Black Scythe…”
“Min Ah…”
Turning his head, he heard the agonizing voices of Christine and Min Juri.
He tried to approach, hoping to save them, but at that moment, they took their last breath.
Both died.
‘If I hadn’t used the life potion…’
He regretted it.
He hadn’t brought people to round 20 for this end…
How had it come to this?
‘The tower I built with so much effort collapsed in an instant. Everyone who was with me died because of Chaos’s appearance.’
Blood dripped from his lips due to how hard he had bitten them.
Everyone died, except him.
Ryu Min looked around, determined not to forget the ghastly scene of his dear friends’ faces, feeling his fist tremble with rage.
Then, an infuriating message appeared.
[Round 20 has ended.]
[Calculating results.]
“Damn it! What kind of joke is this? How can they end the round so late?!”
Ryu Min expressed his frustration to the air.
If the round had ended earlier, so many people wouldn’t have died.
However, the system continued displaying the results without any concern.
★ Results of Round 20 ★
[Combined Area CA-EA001]
1st. Black Scythe (Lv111 Reaper) Contribution: 291,001,920 points
2nd. None
3rd. None
[The ranking for round 20 is based on contribution in the elimination of the boss.]
[Congratulations! You have completed the mission as the number 1 in this area!]
[Currently, the rank of ‘Black Scythe’ is number 1 in this area.]
[As a reward for being number 1 in this area, you will receive ‘Refined Ether.’]
[As a reward for being number 1 in this area, you will receive a ‘Special Reward Box.’]
“Damn it, I don’t need this now!”
Ryu Min shouted, but the system continued its relentless monologue.
[The only one who completed round 20 is ‘Black Scythe.’]
[Congratulations. You have been granted the right to challenge the final round.]
[To reach the ‘Stone of Desire’ that fulfills your wishes, you must complete the mission of the Final Round.]
‘Final Round?’
He already knew that Round 20 wasn’t the end.
Michael had told him that in the end, he would have to participate as a mercenary in the Seventh Celestial War.
‘They want me to participate alone? What about my companions?’
The hope of fighting alongside his companions was already shattered.
Just when his mental state was about to break, Ryu Min’s eyes shone with determination.
‘Since it’s like this… I’ll do whatever it takes to obtain the stone of desire. At all costs!’
◀ END OF ROUND 20 ▶
[Combined Area CA-EA001]
Survivors: 1
[Soon, your soul will be transferred back to your body in the original dimension.]
[The Final Round will begin at midnight on September 1, 2023. See you in the next round. Congratulations on surviving.]
————–
It’s been 1 year and 7 months since the survival game began.
It was already common knowledge that players fell into narcolepsy on the first day of each month.
Is that why?
The anonymous community ‘Play Gallery,’ where people discuss players, becomes very active on the first day of each month, even though it is normally inactive.
It’s the day when the life or death of players is decided.
We’ve finally reached the last round.
Yes, I hope the players stay strong.
I don’t know what the mission of Round 20 will be, but I hope everyone returns safely.
Cheer up, all 72 players!
Just before midnight, the forum fills with messages of support from ordinary people towards the players.
However, after only 30 minutes, messages of concern start to appear.
My brother is in the final round, do you think he’ll be okay?
Check if he’s still breathing.
Fortunately, he’s still breathing.
Then don’t worry, he hasn’t disappeared yet.
How many hours will this round last?
I don’t know. The last round lasted 72 hours, so maybe this one will last a week.
That long?
So my brother will be without eating or moving for a week?
I don’t think it’s that extreme.
I’m a 52-year-old father who runs a convenience store. I hope my daughter returns soon…
She’ll come back. I pray every night for everyone to return safely.
Don’t worry and rest well, sir.
The lack of information about the round and what’s happening in it makes the families and friends of the players feel anxious.
They can only spend the night awake, desperately hoping the player returns alive.
Ryu Won felt the same.
“Brother… come back soon.”
Waiting as always for his brother to wake up, Ryu Won stayed by his bed.
However, after an hour and ten minutes, the community erupted.
Relatives of players, please check. My brother isn’t breathing. Is this normal?
What?! Not breathing? That means he has disappeared…
They say that means he has died…
Ah… My God.
My condolences…
What do we do? I checked my brother and he’s not breathing either.
Is it possible that all of them died?
My daughter is still breathing…
Check everyone!
“Is someone already dead?”
Seeing the appearing messages, Ryu Won, alarmed, quickly brought his hand to his brother’s nose.
Fortunately, he was still breathing.
Just in case, he also put his ear on his brother’s chest and clearly heard the heartbeat.
“Ah, what a relief…”
Ryu Won, with a relieved face, sighed deeply and looked back at his phone.
Chaos erupted in the middle of the night.
The community was ablaze with the sudden appearance of multiple deceased players.
I can’t believe there are so many dead players…
What exactly is happening?
Has the round already ended?
No, my daughter is still breathing, but she hasn’t woken up yet.
This can’t be the end, right? Even if they die, they can revive, right?
Probably yes. There are resurrection skills, and they’ve taken potions, so don’t worry too much.
Please, let my brother start breathing again…
The more messages of concern he read, the more Ryu Won’s anxiety grew.
There had never been a round with so many deaths so quickly, and this was the final round.
No matter how strong his brother was, they didn’t know if an invincible enemy would appear.
‘Please… please, brother. Come back alive.’
Ryu Won closed his eyes and prayed fervently.
His wish was finally granted.
An hour and twenty minutes later, Ryu Min’s closed eyelids slowly opened.
“Bro… brother!”
Ryu Min, looking at the ceiling with a blank mind, finally turned his head.
“You weren’t sleeping, huh?”
“Broooother!”
Ryu Won threw himself into his brother’s arms and cried like a little child.
“I thought you had really died! Waaah!”
“Who said I was going to die?”
Ryu Min, speaking indifferently, patted his brother’s back and got up.
Noticing something strange in his brother’s voice and expression?
Ryu Won, wiping his tears, asked seriously.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
“……”
“And the others? How many survived?”
Ryu Won could deduce the answer just by looking at his brother’s expression.
That many people hadn’t survived the final round.
“No… it can’t be…”
“That’s right.”
Ryu Min spoke in a regretful tone.
“Only I survived.”
“…What? Really?”
“Do you think I would lie about that?”
With a sigh, Ryu Won finally understood that it wasn’t a joke.
“So… Seo Arin, Min Juri, Yamti, all of them too…?”
“They all died. Leaving no one behind.”
Ryu Won’s mouth slowly opened.
Realizing that his brother was the only survivor of round 20.