Genius Regressor Makes Mythic Items

“It is not that I do not trust you, Shimun-ssi. It is just that business is… I believe you understand.”

A somewhat cautious and polite voice came from the other side of the phone.

“Of course, of course. It’s not a personal deal, after all. These things need to be clear,” Shimun replied while nodding.

“I have not forgotten your help with Yujeong. And the conditions I set back then, as well.”

“So, the renewal of the growth buff rental this time will be for 3 months?”

“Absolutely. Oh, and this time, the buff will be enhanced once more, and we plan to accept more guild members,” Shimun added.

As soon as he finished speaking, “Whatever the amount! We will rent all the additional slots!” a voice immediately shot back.

Anyone who knew the Winter Queen would be shocked.

“Just like during the last scouting, state your terms. Our American Dream is always ready!”

Olivia Denson said in an increasingly excited tone.

Shimun’s eyes widened briefly. Then, “I’m sorry, Olivia. I cannot give you all the slots,” Shimun responded gently.

Olivia, unusually excited, spoke rapidly.

“Shimun-ssi, you still do not seem to understand our sincerity. If you wish, we can even hand over the guild leader position right away!”

“No, that is not what I mean, Olivia,” Shimun calmed her and continued.

“If it were to accept members from only one place, I would have rented only to the players in Korea from the start.”

“I do not think they can afford to pay as much as we can, though.”

“Olivia, you know what I am trying to say.”

“… Sigh, I apologize,” a short sigh followed by an apology.

“I must have been momentarily excited by the changes you mentioned. I sincerely apologize.”

“No need to apologize, I completely understand. Even as someone holding the growth buff, it’s a surprising thing.”

Shimun smiled gently and, suddenly, Shiyeon ran over and nestled snugly into his arms.

“Appa!”

Knowing it was an important call, she rubbed her face sweetly without fussing.

“Mm.”

Shimun stroked her head gently and resumed speaking.

“As you might have suspected, I intend to share the growth buff with talented individuals from various countries.”

Shimun, who had lived through a previous life on Earth and survived until just before its destruction, knew well.

‘No matter how much I grow on my own, I can’t solve everything.’

No matter how strong one becomes, it was impossible to prevent the destruction alone. It was only natural.

‘Even the powerful Shihyuk and Malsuk ultimately died.’

Whether the cause was another human or a transcendent being, even the strongest high-rankers who once ruled the world eventually met their end. No matter how strong you become on your own, you cannot prevent the doom of Earth.

More importantly.

“Hehe.”

Shiyeon laughed brightly in his arms. It wasn’t just Shiyeon. He wanted to protect a world where everyone—children, parents, relatives, friends—was interconnected.

In other words, he wanted to maintain the current state of Earth. To do that, ‘I need to share the growth buff with as many countries as possible.’

Of course, not everyone will survive. In his past life, many countries, starting with small ones like Vatican City and Monaco, were wiped out by the outbreak.

But even so, ‘The damage should be less than in the previous life.’

The ones renting the growth buff were the top prospects of each country, future rankers. Considering their value, the outcome would certainly be different from what it was back then.

“This is…”

Suddenly, Shimun let out a chuckle. He voiced the cause of his laughter.

“It’s funny, isn’t it? A guy who rents buffs for money, pretending to care about the world.”

A somewhat self-deprecating laugh.

But, “No?”

The voice on the other end of the phone immediately denied that laugh.

“Honestly, I still don’t fully understand your true intentions, Shimun-ssi, but I can say one thing for sure.”

“What would that be?”, Shimun asked.

“Whichever force it might be. If they had obtained such a growth buff, they would never share it with other countries or guilds.”, Olivia answered.

“Even if they sold it for money like this?”

“Of course! Do you think money is the problem here?”, Olivia said firmly.

“From national conflicts to guild battles and other events. Everyone is an enemy, so why would they nurture them?”

To her words, Shimun chuckled bitterly.

‘Yeah, that’s the mindset of the current Earth.’

Thinking only of oneself and one’s own group. That wasn’t necessarily wrong or bad.

‘Because of this mindset, even when a country faced destruction, they hesitated to lend a hand.’

In his past life on Earth, they had all acted based on selfishness, constantly checking each other. Naturally, unless their own country was greatly affected, they would only stand by and watch the downfall of other countries.

As countless past events have proven, the next target would be them, and humanity steadily lost its ground on Earth.

Of course, ‘Though they eventually provided aid, nearly half of Earth was no longer human territory by then.’

Even though they fought to the bitter end, even launching nukes, it was only a temporary fix. They couldn’t always use nuclear weapons to handle the recurring outbreaks caused by the arena’s failure.

Eventually, it was only a self-destructive act that further devastated Earth. Shimun’s thoughts, as he reflected on his past life, were interrupted by Olivia’s voice.

“In that light, honestly, Shimun-ssi, I cannot understand your approach to renting out these buffs.”

“If, as you said, this is truly for the development of the entire Earth…”

Olivia’s words trailed off. Shimun chuckled and finished her sentence.

“You see me as nothing but a genuine fool?”, Shimun asked.

“Honestly, I initially thought so. But after watching the arena with Leoni Wolf, I changed my mind.”, Olivia answered.

Even though they were talking over the phone, and she couldn’t see his face,

“I realized, you are genuinely a good person.”

Would it be an illusion to think that the formidable Winter Queen might be smiling warmly?

Shimun scratched his cheek, feeling a bit awkward.

“That’s quite an embarrassing thing to hear.”

Then, “But even with such words, I won’t be increasing the number of recruitment slots.”

Shimun replied playfully.

“Haha, you really are tough to deal with.”

Olivia’s voice also sounded amused.

“Anyway, Olivia, rest assured that I will keep my promise to you.”

“Understood. Just so you know, I recorded this conversation.”

“Good, if I ever go back on my word, make sure to use it.”

“I definitely will. See you in two days.”

The call ended.

“……”

Moments of silence followed. But Shimun’s lips curved gently.

‘To think I’d hear something like that from an unexpected person.’

Winter Queen Olivia Denson.

Shimun prided himself on knowing just how cold and rational she could be.

‘It seems that past life memories aren’t always reliable.’

Shimun chuckled.

In response, “Appa, are you in a good mood?”

Shiyeon, who had been fidgeting in his arms, asked.

“Yes, it seems so.”

“When Appa is happy, Shiyeoni is happy too!”

Shimun hugged the brightly smiling child tightly.

“Our little princess, who do you get your prettiness from?”

“From Appa!”

“Oh my! Even the way you talk is cute.”

“Hehe!”

Shimun rubbed his face against Shiyeon’s soft cheeks.

After spending some time playing with his daughter in the laboratory’s resting area,

“Shiyeon, help me~.”

“Okay! Unni!”

Shiyeon ran to the workbench at the call of the Philosopher’s Stone. Watching Shiyeon’s back with warm eyes, Shimun stood up.

“I should start getting ready too.”

Shimun waved his hands slightly into the air. Then,

『Achievement Shop』

Guild Member Expansion – 1,000p

Inventory Expansion – 500p

A humble achievement shop window popped up.

‘Since it’s still an unofficial arena, there are hardly any items for sale.’

The achievement shop had no items related to specs.

However, ‘If I complete a lot of titles and quests, they’ll eventually add stat sales here.’

Just as Shihyuk and Malsuk had informed him in his past life, the moment a player’s personal achievements, which were not quantified, accumulated, stats, the most directly connected to spec growth, would be sold.

Moreover, ‘By next week, there will be items to prevent death penalties as well.’

More items would be added once he entered the official arena.

‘For now, let’s increase the number of members.’

Shimun invested achievement points to expand the guild’s member capacity. With 1,000 points, the guild’s capacity increased by 50 members.

The next 100-member increase required 3,000 points. A small crease formed on Shimun’s forehead.

“If I count the unregistered countries, there are about 206 countries…”

Shimun tapped his chin briefly.

“This is going to consume quite a lot of achievement points.”

Given the achievement shop’s listings, one would typically not consider the prices expensive. But for Shimun, with achievement points directly linked to power, the cost was quite painful.

What could he do though?

If he wanted to accept more members globally, he had to expand.

“Interest in the growth buff will increase with this Semi-Arena. Let’s invest around 10,000 points.”

Shimun expanded the guild’s member capacity with 10,000 points. He then checked the expanded member capacity.

‘We can accept about 800 more members now.’

Based on 206 countries, about 3-4 members could be accepted per country.

“If there’s still a shortage, we’ll expand more later.”

Shimun nodded satisfactorily. With a snap, he proceeded to forge a fragment of the World Tree’s Seed.

『Insufficient alchemy energy to synthesize according to the requirements.』

『The Philosopher’s Stone requires 20,000 achievement points to establish an equivalent exchange.』

『Do you accept? (Yes / No)』

A familiar message popped up. Shimun’s hand, naturally moving to select ‘Yes,’ hesitated.

The reason was clear.

“What? Suddenly 20,000 points?”

Equivalent exchange. The achievement points required for synthesizing the World Tree’s Seed fragment had been 10,000 points.

But now, the message window stated 20,000 points.

At that moment…

“Oppa, you know that permanent alchemy materials cost more as you progress.”

A cheerful voice echoed.

“It’s time for the World Tree’s Seed fragment to increase in value.”

The Philosopher’s Stone, nestled in a flask, had approached unnoticed. Shimun nodded in agreement.

“True.”

Shimun acknowledged, nodding.

“If I alchemize it this time, the experience gain increase will be 50%.”

Just like how the Heavenly Demon Divine Art and Obsidian Tablet grew stronger, the cost increased proportionally.

Shimun chose ‘Yes’ and immediately started the alchemy.

A clear, ringing sound accompanied by lush greenery formed at his fingertips. With a significantly different alchemy impact than before, ‘Could there be new options added?’

A small hint of expectation glimmered in Shimun’s eyes.

『You have gathered a sufficient amount of World Tree’s Seed fragments.』

『The seed’s form is starting to take shape.』

『A new option will be added to the title ‘Companion of the World Tree.’』

That expectation turned into reality. Shimun quickly opened his title window.

『Companion of the World Tree』 – Growth

A title given to the companion of the World Tree.

50% increase in experience for guild members.

110% increase in stat growth rate for guild members.

Nullifies one death penalty every 7 days, except under specific conditions.

“Wow?!”

Shimun’s eyes widened in surprise, like a startled rabbit.

It was not without reason.

An increase in experience gain from 40% to 50%.

A stat growth rate increase from 90% to 110%.

Not to mention, “It nullifies one death penalty every week?!”

Once a week, this option nullified the death penalty. Shimun wasn’t the only one shocked by this.

Brrr, brrr, brrr.

The phone next to him kept vibrating.

The caller ID displayed “Kim Shihyuk” in large letters.

Above that,

『Lee Yujeong: O-Orabeoni! This is…』

『Go Malsuk: Hey, you jerk! Pick up the phone!』

『Park Jinwook: Shimun-nim! If you do this without a word, I’m going to die…』

『Uncle Kim Muyeol: You brat! What on earth have you done this time…』

『Aunt Lee Younghee: Shimun, are you eating well? Regarding what I said last time…』

『Olivia: Unread Messages +18』

Numerous message notifications kept popping up incessantly.