Genius Regressor Makes Mythic Items

Tap, tap, tap.

The sleek table trembled at regular intervals. The liquor in the glasses on top rippled, spilling its potent contents onto the table. Yet, no one present bothered to point it out.

Finally,

“Phew… so.”

A rough-looking man, reminiscent of a gangster, exhaled a cloud of smoke as he spoke.

“What are you planning to do now? Go after him with a knife?”

Matching his appearance, he easily spoke intimidating words. In response, “You always know exactly what I’m feeling, don’t you, senior?”

In stark contrast to the first man, the handsome young man, whose appearance alone could be refreshing, said something equally chilling.

“But I’m not going to shank him. I’ll behead him instead.”

He smiled, a smile that didn’t suit his grim words. But anyone who knew the handsome young man even a little would understand.

“I need to hang his head at the entrance of Holy Trinity Town for all to see.”

That beneath his calm smile, his eyes were filled with a murderous intent. Naturally, the gangster-like man knew this well.

“Hey, you bastard! How can you take that seriously!”

Park Jinwook spat out his cigarette as he shouted.

“Don’t you know the Awakener Act? Even drawing a knife in front of Chairman Lee will get you labeled as a villain immediately!”

“It’s fine. If I draw my knife, I’ll make sure to take his head for sure.”

“You crazy bastard!”

Barely holding back his curse, Park Jinwook said, “Ha… Shihyuk, please, make some sense!”

He pleaded with his mad junior, who seemed sane only on the outside.

Then, “And buddy, his family is right there. How can you say such things?”

He gestured towards the elegant woman sitting beside him, scolding Kim Shihyuk with a stern look. However, “Family? Do you think she considers that old man family?”

Kim Shihyuk merely raised an eyebrow and smirked.

“Kim Shihyuk!”

Park Jinwook’s expression grew even sterner.

“Are you a child? No matter how angry you are, there’s a limit! To say such things in front of family…”

His reprimand was cut short. Or rather, it was stopped.

“Limit?”

By the monstrous hand of his junior that suddenly blocked his mouth.

“Senior. Do you know what kind of suffering my brother endured because of that old man? And you speak of limits? Huh?”

Kim Shihyuk, with eyes wide open, murmured as he covered Park Jinwook’s mouth. Never mind that Park Jinwook, a top-rank Diamond assassin, couldn’t even react to the junior’s sudden move.

Even with just one hand covering his mouth, ‘This monstrous brat! His strength is absurdly strong!’

Park Jinwook couldn’t shake off his damn junior’s grip.

Fortunately.

The grip of Kim Shihyuk’s hand on Park Jinwook’s mouth was firm, but strangely enough, it didn’t inflict any pain.

In other words, he was holding back his strength.

‘Why are you holding back if you’re mad? Either hit me or don’t!’

Unable to react and overpowered by his junior’s single hand, Park Jinwook’s pride took a serious hit.

And then, “Kim Shihyuk, stop.”

A clear voice saved him. It was Lee Yujeong.

“I don’t care if you curse at Grandfather, but don’t take it out on senior.”

“Ha!”

Kim Shihyuk scoffed at Lee Yujeong’s firm tone.

He let go of Park Jinwook and took a step towards Lee Yujeong. Then,

Sing.

Another slender woman who had been quietly observing the situation, Kang Dayoung, drew a dagger and positioned herself next to Lee Yujeong.

“Unni, it’s okay.”

Lee Yujeong raised her arm, gently pushing Kang Dayoung aside.

“Taking it out? Did you just say I’m taking it out on him?”

“Isn’t it? Did the senior say something offensive?”

“Wow, Lee Yujeong. Are you really that pissed because I cursed your old man?”

“Not at all. It has nothing to do with you being rude to the senior. Don’t twist things.”

“Pretending to be virtuous, huh? Do you really think you’re a saint because people call you one?”

“Are you stupid? Do you not know I hate that nickname?”

The two glared at each other without backing down. Given their status as some of the hottest rankers in Korea,

whooosh!

The luxurious penthouse seemed to be on the brink of destruction from their sheer presence.

Park Jinwook and Kang Dayoung exchanged urgent glances, but that was all they could do. They couldn’t calm these two monsters down.

At that moment,

Ding.

The sound of salvation came from Park Jinwook’s pocket. And not just his.

Ding. Ding.

The same notification tone sounded from the phones of Kim Shihyuk and Lee Yujeong, who were currently tearing the place apart with their sheer willpower. Park Jinwook hastily checked his phone and uttered the magic words.

“Kim Shimun-ssi has started streaming!”

“…….”

“…….”

As if they had never been at odds, the aura of the two rankers vanished instantly. The only remnants of the earlier hostility were the scattered furniture fragments and half-shattered glass cups.

Kim Shihyuk and Lee Yujeong quickly checked their phones, only to lock eyes once more. Of course, the screen still displayed Kim Shimun’s stream.

“Alright, calm down. Let’s finish what we were discussing. Aren’t you going to watch Kim Shimun-ssi’s stream?”

Park Jinwook continued to use the magic words, successfully calming the two monsters. It seemed effective, Kim Shihyuk and Lee Yujeong quietly sat back down on the half-destroyed sofa.

Then, “Senior, I’m sorry for getting angry. I lost my temper.”

Kim Shihyuk even apologized, a rarity. Without showing any surprise at this change,

“Shihyuk, I understand how you feel, but you need to control that temper.”

Park Jinwook gently scolded him, bringing up Kim Shimun again.

“If you keep this up, you’ll get in trouble with Kim Shimun-nim eventually!”

“Yes, senior. I’ll be careful.”

Kim Shihyuk responded obediently, like a well-trained beast, and then glanced at Lee Yujeong.

“You really have no feelings for that old man, do you?”

“None. Not at all.”

“Really? Then don’t stop me when I go for his throat.”

“That, I can’t allow.”

“… Are you messing with me?”

Kim Shihyuk’s face grew ferocious once more.

Lee Yujeong answered, emotionless, “I’m not joking. Grandfather… I’ll handle him myself. Not you.”

“What?”

The response was unexpected. Not just for Kim Shihyuk, “Yujeong.”

“What are you saying?”

but also for Park Jinwook and Kang Dayoung, who looked at Lee Yujeong in surprise.

Lee Yujeong maintained her unchanging expression as she replied,

“I mean it. I’ll end this with Grandfather. It’s the right thing to do.”

Kang Dayoung quickly grabbed Lee Yujeong’s shoulders.

“Yujeong! Chairman Lee is your grandfather!”

“I know. That’s why it’s even more fitting that I’m the one to end it.”

For the first time, emotion flickered across Lee Yujeong’s face as she turned to look at Kang Dayoung.

“Both orabeoni and mom… they were all made that way by Grandfather.”

“Yujeong…”

It was filled with profound betrayal and anger.

“You know how much I wanted to find the person responsible for that incident.”

At Lee Yujeong’s growl, Kang Dayoung could only bite her lip, unable to say anything. She knew better than anyone what the incident ten years ago meant to Lee Yujeong.

“I’ve known for a long time what kind of person Grandfather is. But the incident ten years ago…”

She couldn’t continue speaking from the choked emotions, her pale neck visible with throbbing veins.

Then, “Phew… It’s okay, unni. I’ve always hated Grandfather.”

After calming herself, Lee Yujeong lifted the corners of her mouth into a smirk. Seeing her trembling lips, Kang Dayoung gripped Lee Yujeong’s shoulders tightly.

But that was all.

“Yujeong, no matter how much you hate him, he’s still your family.”

“Family? Unni, it wasn’t me. It was orabeoni.”

She couldn’t stop Lee Yujeong.

“And mom, of course. Grandfather originally aimed to get rid of me, too!”

“…”

He had tried to kill his daughter, Lee Yeonhee, and the same with his granddaughter, Lee Yujeong. That this was all a scheme by the family patriarch, Lee Suncheol, how could anyone comfort her?

Grit.

Kang Dayoung tightened her grip on Lee Yujeong’s shoulders.

Feeling the intent behind it, “Unni, I’m fine.”

Lee Yujeong gently held Kang Dayoung’s hand on her shoulder.

“Actually, I feel relieved. Now that I’ve discovered who made things so difficult.”

“Yujeong, why don’t you go to the Vice Chairman…”

“Not mom.”

Lee Yujeong adamantly shook her head at the mention of Lee Yeonhee.

“I may only have hateful memories of Grandfather, but for mom, it’s different.”

Lee Yujeong knew. Her mother, Lee Yeonhee, chose love over background, causing a rift with her father. But before that, they had shared a very harmonious relationship.

‘She always used to talk about her father and grandfather.’

Just like any mother-daughter relationship, they always talked about the men in the family. Lee Yeonhee spoke about what kind of person her father was, how kind-hearted he had been before she married her husband, and without hiding her longing for those times.

So, “I’ll take care of it, unni.”

This task was hers to handle. Seeing the resoluteness in Lee Yujeong, Kang Dayoung reluctantly turned her head.

“Look, I’ll just handle it.”

Kim Shihyuk, who had been watching silently, finally spoke.

“You stepping in makes it a parricide. Just leave it to me.”

“If we’re already becoming villains, what’s wrong with a little parricide?”

“Lee Yujeong, there’s no need to act tough.”

“I’m not acting. I genuinely don’t care. He hated me my entire life.”

Returning to her usual demeanor, Lee Yujeong looked at the phone broadcasting Kim Shimun’s stream. Kim Shimun engaging with the viewers.

The sight made Lee Yujeong’s face soften.

Then,

“Since orabeoni is streaming, now is the perfect time.”

She stood up from her seat.

***

“Are you kidding me!”

“No matter if we’re on the same side as Kim Shimun, this is just too much!!”

Beyond confusion, the nine other players expressed their horror.

However,

『The region is ‘Barbarian Fortress.’』

『Assigned to the assaulting side.』

『Eliminate the defending team or capture the target point.』

The system continued its announcements without concern.

“We’re screwed! Seriously screwed!”

“Man… I’d rather be on the enemy side…”

“It’s your fault! You jinxed it by saying we’re on the same team!”

The players were in despair. However, Shimun was not only calm but seemed to be enjoying it. The reason was simple.

‘I thought they might limit my abilities, but they just adjusted the team numbers.’

His main stat, Alchemy Energy, was at 212. Converting that to level terms, it was the equivalent of level 212.

Moreover, his bound stats—Magic, Dragon Force, and Death Energy—were each half of that at 106. While Death Energy didn’t directly help much in battle, it still provided subtle perks like resistance to death-related spells.

Thus, his combined bound stats totaled 318. Adding his Alchemy Energy of 212,

‘Alchemy Energy alone gives a stat efficiency of 530…’

In simple level terms, that’s about level 530. Even excluding the less impactful Death Energy stat, it still resulted in a whopping 424 stats.

Unbelievable for someone at level 117.

Yet,

‘They didn’t nerf this?’

The Galaxy Arena only adjusted the team numbers?

And even then, ‘They gave me 9 teammates?’

Shouldn’t it be something like 199 to 1?

Kim Shimun’s brow furrowed slightly in a peculiar way.

“Well, it’s good for me… but it’s a bit of a blow to my pride.”

The Galaxy Arena knew his stats better than anyone, yet they balanced it so generously?

However, this thought seemed exclusive to Kim Shimun.

– ?

– Why is your pride suddenly hurt?

– Is it because of the balance adjustment?

– Do you think the team split is insufficient?

– No way! LOLOLOL Are you serious?

– Hyung… this isn’t the time for pride… We’re in deep trouble!!

The chat quickly heated up.

“Pride hurt? Are you serious, looking at this balance adjustment?”

“Hey, Kim Shimun, the ones who should be upset about the balance patch are us!”

“Mr. Kim. You come across as very arrogant in real life.”

“Even if you’re a mage, isn’t this overkill? We’re in the upper tiers of Platinum here.”

The remaining 9 players, along with Kim Shimun, raised their voices.

Well, technically, 8 of them.

“……”

A neatly dressed young boy, wearing a school uniform that seemed out of place in the Arena, and even more so with his long Japanese sword on his back, silently watched Kim Shimun.

Then,

Step.

The boy took a step forward.

In response,

“That guy…”

“What? He’s on this team too?”

“Well, he’s been soaring lately. They probably matched us as an elite small team.”

The players glanced at him and whispered.

Suddenly, he stopped walking.

Then, “Elite small team?”

As if hearing the most ridiculous thing, the boy looked back with a face full of displeasure.

“Why would anyone say we are an elite small team?”

The players, taken aback by his reaction, glanced at each other and replied.

“You and Kim Shimun are already top-rank here.”

“We’re no pushovers either.”

“Exactly! If you tally our MMR, it’s probably higher than that of the 190 over there…”

“Ha!”

Without wanting to hear more, he scoffed and cut off the player’s speech.

“Kim Shimun. I’ll acknowledge him.”

Despite his young appearance, he spoke.

“But you all are not. You’re actually bringing down our MMR.”

With a look full of contempt, Yuto glared at the players.

“So, please don’t include me in your ‘we’. It’s unpleasant.”

Naturally, “What did you say!”

“That brat!”

“Just because Masamune endorses you, do you think you’re something special? Huh!”

The 8 players glared back, veins bulging, but Yuto ignored their anger completely.

“It’s been a while, Kim Shimun-ssi.”

He turned to Kim Shimun.

“Long time no see, Yuto-ssi.”

“Please, feel free to speak casually. You’re much older than me.”

Nodding at Yuto’s friendly demeanor, Shimun did so silently. Unlike the cold look he gave to the other players, “I felt it during your Platinum debut match as well, you always bring chaos with you.”

Yuto gazed at Kim Shimun with a hint of admiration.

Feeling slightly puzzled, Shimun responded, “Uh, well… do I?”

“You don’t even realize it yourself? Well, for someone of your caliber, I suppose that makes sense.”

Whatever misunderstanding Yuto had seemed to deepen.

“The strong are always calm. I understand perfectly. Even your earlier remarks make sense.”

Yuto nodded thoughtfully, speaking earnestly to himself.

Then, “But…”

He glanced around Kim Shimun, as if searching for something.

“Is that child not with you?”

“Child?”

Tilting his head for a moment, Shimun then realized,

“Oh! You mean Shiyeon.”

Nodding quickly, Shimun explained, “Yes, Shiyeon. That was her name.”

Yuto nodded as well, and Kim Shimun smiled warmly.

‘Yuto is a fan of Shiyeon too. Well, my Shiyeon is quite adorable.’

With her sweet nature and pretty appearance, children are universally loved, no matter the country. Having fans internationally was natural.

Kim Shimun couldn’t hide his swelling pride.

“Shiyeon is busy, so she couldn’t come this time.”

“Busy?”

“Yes, she’s been helping me out a lot lately, so she’s quite busy.”

“What kind of work would you have such a young child doing…?”

“Oh, she’s making something with her sister. She’s really into it and can’t get enough.”

“With her sister?”

Yuto’s face slowly contorted in bewilderment.

What exactly was so shocking?

“A child that young, being so obsessed with something involving her sister…”

Like a protagonist from a horror manga, Yuto’s eyes began to twitch nervously, his expression turning dark. Kim Shimun scratched his cheek a bit.

‘Does he have some sort of world of his own?’

It would be a lie to say he wasn’t a bit flustered, ‘Well, in my past life, he had issues with his affiliation, but as a person, he wasn’t bad.’

Knowing Yuto well from his previous life, Shimun didn’t see his gloomy demeanor as negative. At that moment.

Whoosh!

With searing heat, something flew through the air. A fireball launched from the towering Barbarian Fortress in the distance.

‘A fireball from the defenders, attacking from this far out?’

Kim Shimun frowned.

‘Are they feeling overconfident because of the balance adjustment?’

He raised his finger towards the fireball, but then lowered his hand.

The reason was simple.

Yuto, having shed his earlier gloom, had already cleaved the enormous, likely five-star, fireball in two with his sword.

Swish.

Boom!

The explosion’s scorching heat tousled their hair.

“Well, it’s fine. It’ll be more challenging with just the two of us, but that has its own kind of fun.”

Yuto stated, making another incomprehensible statement to Kim Shimun.

Before Kim Shimun could respond, “Like hell it is!”

An enraged voice rang out.

“Who said we should clear it!”

It was one of the eight players on their team.

“Who said we’d play this game with you? I’m out!”

“Me too! That brat has no manners!”

“Forget the fun in clearing it! It’s 10 against 190!”

“Kids these days, think they’re something special.”

“Kim Shimun is no better, associating with this kind of person.”

The players were livid, veins popping in their necks.

Yuto tilted his head at them.

“What are you talking about?”

“What do you think we mean! Are you deaf already, you little brat? We’re not playing!”

“Why? Are you scared? Too late now!”

“I don’t care if we win or lose. Not planning to reach Diamond anyway~.”

“If you kneel and bang your head, maybe I’ll consider giving a buff.”

“Throw in Kim Shimun too, and we might even think about the siege.”

The players’ threats, declaring they wouldn’t participate, made Yuto snicker.

“It’s not just about being young that’s good, getting old doesn’t seem all that great either.”

“What?”

“On top of everything, when did I ever say it’s 10 against 190?”

The eight players blinked in confusion.

“I said ‘just the two of us,’ didn’t I?”

Repeating his earlier words, “You bastard!”

“From the start, you didn’t even care about us…”

Before they could express their anger further,

“If you understand, then it’s time to…”

Swish.

“Die.”

Eight heads flew into the air simultaneously.

TL’s Corner:

Damn, Yuto is pretty merciless.