Genius Regressor Makes Mythic Items

『How many kills is this now?!』

『Kim Shimun! He’s incredibly powerful. Absolutely incredible!』

Earth’s premier arena channel, TWC. Just like the day when arena broadcasting first became possible. Michael and Jonathan continued their commentary in high tones.

It wasn’t unreasonable. The broadcast of the Diamond debut match. In an empty, dark, and flat cave, “What the…? Why is there nothing here…?”

Crack!

Another massacre was unfolding for the umpteenth time.

『Oh! He’s dead immediately upon entering again!』

Caster Michael exclaimed once more.

To which,

『We already knew that player Kim Shimun was powerful, even before the preliminary matches began, but…』

Commentator Jonathan calmed his heightened excitement.

『This is truly on another level.』

He looked at Shimun, who was wiping blood in the screen, with a serious face.

『Those who watch personal broadcasts will know, but the level of the alien players is quite high, isn’t it?』

『That’s right. In fact, players who are mid to lower rank on Earth are struggling in the preliminary matches, aren’t they?』

『Yes, exactly. They call it the ‘abyss rank’ in common parlance, right?』

『Ah, that term originated in Korea. Many players suffered from that term, didn’t they?』

『The term ‘abyss rank’ is used for those who do not show performance fitting their rank level.』

Jonathan slightly loosened his tie and took a deep breath. Michael skillfully filled the empty audio left by his partner.

『I get what you’re saying. You’re saying Earth players are significantly lacking compared to those in the regular matches, right?』

『It’s not that significant, but there is a difference in skill level.』

『Indeed, even players who are considered strong in their rank are only performing decently in the preliminary matches, aren’t they?』

『Exactly! Michael. They aren’t showing remarkable results in their respective skill levels. But…』

Jonathan trailed off, looking at Shimun on the screen with astonished eyes, as though he was witnessing something bizarre.

『Look at Kim Shimun. Isn’t it his Diamond debut match? Yet, he’s taking down each entrant with a single blow…』

『Ah! Now that you mention it, that’s true. Could he have some special growth-related trait or item?』

『Maybe he’s drinking those rare stat-boosting potions like cola.』

『Haha! That would… Ah! As we speak! Another one bites the dust!』

Michael raised his tone again, heightening the atmosphere.

*

=That’s some incredible strength. But what does this 5,000 points mean?

=I don’t know either. It seems to signify something… but he is strong.

=In the end, it’s just brute strength.

The chat window from other dimensions kept rolling. Could it be because they participated in regular matches?

=Running wild without any dungeon settings…

=Isn’t his kill count at 10 now? The number of allowed attackers will double.

=This is just a temporary regular arena dimension. He might not understand dungeon offense and defense.

=Hmph. It’s just the limit of his species. If you don’t know, you should step back, right?

They seemed knowledgeable about dungeon offense and defense, Voicing negative opinions about Shimun’s play.

-The extraterrestrials don’t seem normal.

-Is there something we don’t know?

-No choice. We have too little information about regular matches.

-Don’t you watch other broadcasts? Even rankers are at a disadvantage due to lack of information.

-But they don’t seem to know what the 5,000 points are either lol.

-If we don’t know, how would they know lol.

Even Earth’s viewers were starting to show signs of anxiety.

However, “Phew. Now I feel a bit better.”

Shimun himself calmly shook off the blood from his hands. It was not strange at all.

‘So this makes it 10 kills, huh?’

Shimun, who retained his past life’s experiences, was well-versed in the dungeon offense and defense system.

‘Then the number of allowed attackers will double.’

As if to prove that,

『You have reached 10 kills.』

『You are a player affiliated with the defense position.』

『Kill points are multiplied by five.』

『The number of allowed attackers will now double.』

Messages popped up in front of his eyes.

Continuing on.

Buzz.

With a faint ringing in his ears, another door appeared on the opposite side of the only entrance that had existed before.

‘Whenever an entrance increases, they give a rest period, right? Then it’s time to set up the dungeon.’

Crunch.

Shimun deactivated the Dragonoid and took a light breath.

Beep.

『Entering dungeon settings.』

He opened the dungeon settings window. Then, as if it had been waiting,

『A 10-minute rest period has been granted.』

A message announcing the rest period popped up.

‘As expected.’

Shimun let out a faint smile.

‘The defense position is indeed unpopular and disadvantageous enough to warrant a rest period.’

Shimun, who had spent 5,000 points to draw a random +1 stat out of anger, had been thrown into a state of shock.

As a result, he couldn’t select between attack and defense positions, and it moved to automatic selection. Naturally, the automatic selection always picked the defense position, which was often lacking in participants.

The so-called fair and just Galaxy Arena, along with the rest period,

『You have selected Dungeon Default Preset 1.』

『As the dungeon is formed, additional bonuses are granted.』

『All abilities of summoned creatures within the dungeon increase by 30%.』

『All resistances of yourself and your summoned creatures within the dungeon increase by 20%.』

Provided several buffs to balance this inequity.

Of course, ‘Even with such buffs, it’s still not popular.’

Summoning-related professions, such as spirit mages, summoners, and necromancers, were somewhat popular, but that was it.

Even with an incredible buff that increased all abilities of summoned creatures by 30%,

And increased all resistances, including one’s own, by 20%,

‘Ultimately, once the dungeon’s rank rises and the entrances max out, it can’t hold for long.’

As the number of attackers entering increases, it eventually collapses. That was the general perception.

=Finally setting up the dungeon.

=Hmph! But he’s alone, isn’t he?

=No. He has summoned creatures. Did you forget about that mysterious dragon we saw last time?

=Are you really from a dimwitted race? Do you think one creature will be enough in a dungeon offense and defense battle?

=Right. No matter how good the nullification ability is, one creature isn’t enough.

This perception was also shared by viewers from other dimensions.

However, ‘Conversely, if I can swallow up all the attackers entering the dungeon…’

The defense position would indeed be a golden goose, an infinite killing machine.

“I’ll have to mobilize them all.”

Shimun had ample capability to do so.

Buzz.

A black alchemical circle glowed at the end of the cylinder attached to Shimun’s left arm.

And then,

‘Philosopher’s Stone?’

-Yes. Should we call them?

Even without specifying the subject, the Philosopher’s Stone answered on its own accord.

Soon after.

‘Please.’

Once Shimun gave his permission,

– Hey guys! Grab your gear!

The Philosopher’s Stone shouted in an abruptly rough voice.

And thus, “Ptooey! Boss, you called?”

Shiyeon appeared, presumed to be wielding a bat made of mithril over her shoulder, while spitting non-existent phlegm.

And then,

Kyururung!

Rather than revealing her true form, Kyung appeared in a form as small as a puppy, trying hard to look fierce.

“……”

Shimun was left momentarily speechless.

Soon after, “Ahem! Shiyeon, help Appa along with Kyung, okay?”

He quickly regained his composure and spoke clearly.

“Don’t worry, boss! Shiyeon will take care of everything!”

Kyung.

Shiyeon and Kyung both nodded in an exaggerated swagger.

To this,

– Kyaa! Shiyeon! Kyung!!

– What’s this! Why are they both so cute?!

– Kyung… Uncle’s heart…!

– The Earth chatroom erupted into chaos.

– But it wasn’t just Earth.

=…… Cute.

=Such small beings, yet so ferocious. My heart aches.

=I agree. So… this is how lesser races feel?

Cuteness seemed to transcend nationalities and even races. The previously critical chatroom from other dimensions quickly warmed up. Likewise, Shimun, “Control the golems as much as you can next to the dungeon core. You mustn’t go outside, okay?”

He couldn’t help but smile.

“Yes, boss!”

“Kyung!”

Shiyeon and Kyung answered energetically and ran off towards the tidy levitating stone positioned at the back—the dungeon core.

Watching their retreating figures, Shimun thought, ‘The dungeon core is vital for defense, and the kids might get into danger…’

He busily touched various geometric shapes on the dungeon settings screen.

Rumble.

With a vibrating sound, walls configured according to the settings rose from all directions.

Particularly,

Rumble.

Clang!

In the area where the dungeon core was placed, where Shiyeon and Kyung were positioned, thick walls formed in multiple layers—two, three layers deep.

“This is the maximum possible configuration through dungeon settings.”

Having witnessed this, Shimun snapped his fingers several times.

Tssst.

Several more layers of walls were added.

He even went ahead and plated them with mithril, only then did he seem satisfied.

“This should be sufficient.”

At that moment, a voice from the Philosopher’s Stone rang in his ears,

– Oh dear~ I came here prepared to ruin my image today. Should I be happy about this?

But that was all.

『The rest period has 1 minute remaining.』

The system announced the end of the rest period, prompting Shimun to quickly raise the cylinder on his left arm towards the ceiling.

Then.

Beeping.

A series of black alchemical circles shot out continuously.

What differed from before was that, the black alchemical circles stopped in midair.

Zing.

Of course, this was Shimun’s intention.

‘Just like when I first acquired it, the devil energy has excellent compatibility with demonic energy.’

The devil energy had originally been placed within the demonic energy.

Even after it was separated,

The devil energy harmonized exceptionally well with demonic energy, as he had personally experienced when hitting Yujueong’s protective shield imbued with Raphael’s power.

‘If I integrate this with the summoning of magic beasts using demonic energy…’

He was likely to witness considerable results. Was it the experimental spirit unique to alchemists kicking in?

“Hehehe!”

Anticipation and excitement shimmered on Shimun’s face.

Then.

With a quiet exhale.

A darker and more malicious aura than the demonic energy emanated from Shimun’s white fingertips.

ZIIIIING!!

The four black alchemical circles hovering in midair vibrated simultaneously.

Soon, the four circles formed a square, with each circle becoming a corner.

“Huh?”

This square-shaped formation began to slowly consume the dungeon ceiling.

“What the…”

Before Shimun could react, it engulfed the ceiling entirely.

Flash!

*

As if it was bombed, the dungeon lay in ruins.

“Grr! So.”

A deep voice, contrasting with a unique nasal tone, resounded.

“Is it ready yet? I can’t wait any longer.”

With dark green skin and a physique easily over four meters tall, with hearty breath exhalations, the massive muscular figure, exuding immense intimidation, fiddled with a vicious axe.

Opposite him, even more surprising was the giant figure, one meter taller than the green giant.

“Personally, I wish we could wait a bit longer. (Wait!)”

Uttering two statements simultaneously, rejecting the suggestion. It was not odd at all.

“Isn’t meat tastier when aged? (Aged meat! The best!)”

With two heads, though he had only one eye and one nostril per head and spoke somewhat clumsily, he was capable of speaking in sync.

To the words of the double-headed green giant, “Grr! Although you are a valued shaman and I’ve followed your words till now, it’s too much.”

The muscular giant with the unique nasal tone frowned deeply. Due to his extraordinary appearance, “The dungeon is already shrinking. The prey are decreasing!”

“Barq… (That, that…)”

Called Barq, the giant’s face was the very epitome of ferocity.

“Shaman. For nearly the last ten years, we’ve been considered the best among ogres who became players.”

“I know that very well, Barq. (Know! Know!)”

“But if we wait for prey in a limited field while watching the arena’s reaction, when will we ever raise our points?”

Bang!

The axe, which he’d been fiddling with, was thrust nervously into the ground. Barq, the ogre referred to as the shaman, glared at the twin-headed ogre he called a shaman.

“We even crushed the Jotunn that dominated our species in the last promotion match. We are the strongest this generation!”

“That… that’s true, but…”

Both faces of the Ogre Shaman darkened momentarily.

Then, “Of course, the higher rank the dungeon, the more kill points it gives. I understand you want to wait for that. But look.”

Barq waved his large hand in the air with a noticeably calmer tone.

『Attack』

1st Place – ???? 120 points (2 destroyed dungeon cores)

2nd Place – ?? 98 points (1 destroyed dungeon core)

3rd Place – Barq 73 points (1 destroyed dungeon core)

4th Place – ?…

The arena board unfolded before them.

“Look at my rank, which I achieved by grabbing points through teaming.”

Barq pointed at himself ranking third with a thick finger.

“I, who was first, have already been pushed to third place. Seeing that they have over 100 points, the current first place must be attacking their third dungeon, likely a high-ranked one.”

Barq picked up the axe he had thrust onto the ground and slung it over his shoulder.

“Those in first and second place must be teaming up just like us. If they sweep even the higher-ranking dungeons, it will be impossible to overturn the tables later, no matter how hard we try.”

Isn’t the defense position particularly unpopular?

There are already too few dungeons as it is.

“What if we wait for them to give higher scores, and others take them first?”

“We need to sweep through the dungeons right now. We don’t have the luxury to watch the Arena’s reaction.”

Barq’s words made perfect sense.

“Fine. We will follow the Great Warrior’s judgment. (Follow! Follow!)”

Eventually, the two hesitant heads of the Ogre Shaman nodded.

As soon as he agreed, “Let’s go! Warriors! From now on, there will be no rest! Those who want to rest can do so in death!”

Barq stood up abruptly, raising his large axe and shouting.

“RAAAA!”

“Destroy everything!!”

Behind him, dozens of ogres roared with such intensity that it shook the ground.

Thus, “First, let’s devour the biggest one and break through the 100-point mark in one go.”

“Let’s follow the Great Warrior’s will. (Big one! Number one!)”

Barq opened the Arena’s defense board, showing the top dungeon.

『Defense』

1st Place – ??? 22 kills.

2nd Place – ?…

“Ha! Already 22 kills? Even with the defense buff, they must be quite exhausted. Perfect.”

He chose the first place, which had already achieved 22 kills.

Parts-wise, the door to the number one dungeon was summoned in front of Barq.

‘Hmm? 22 kills mean there should still be two doors. Is there no queue?’

Barq momentarily tilted his head in confusion. Soon after, ‘Well, there’s nothing strange about it.’

A smirk spread across Barq’s lips.

As a debutant participant in the Diamond rank,

‘There should be more than a few idiots who don’t know their place and run wild.’

There were always plenty of fools who died challenging the number one rank without fear. Having killed such idiots in his previous Arena experiences as the top-ranked,

‘I will charge through and claim the number one spot in this Arena too.’

Fuelled with burning determination, “Let’s go, brothers! Let’s prove that our Ogre race is the best this generation!!”

Boom.

He kicked open the door to the completed dungeon and stepped inside.

Thud. Thud.

Powerful footsteps that caused vibrations. As Barq’s group entered the first-ranked dungeon, the first thing they encountered was,

“The smell of blood?”

A very thick and pungent scent of blood. And then, “… Thank goodness. They came in fully prepared.”

A voice so soft it could tickle one’s ears.

“Isn’t that right? Appa thinks Syeonie is a kind and gentle princess.”

Barq, the shaman, and the ogres turned their gazes to where the voice was coming from.

There, “Of course, I also want to seem like a pretty princess. I love when Appa cherishes me.”

Kyu? Kyu.

“Hehe! Kyung is right.”

In front of a round silver-white sphere, a little girl and a colorful creature were having a chat.

However, “But as you said, I always craved such things. Things like tearing, piercing, and cutting live beings.”

The content being spoken did not match their appearance at all. And then, ‘Wait. Around that little girl…’

The source of the pungent smell of blood, which stung the nostrils. The vision of red liquid soaking the surroundings came into view.

Kyung.

“I know. Appa would probably be disappointed if he found out… but it can’t be helped, right?”

At the moment when something felt off due to the contradiction, Barq locked eyes with that tiny little girl.

“I’m not a princess… I’m a queen.”

Chilling.

The colossal figure, resembling a boulder, felt chills running along his spine. In an instant, “It’s still okay.”

A voice so soft it almost tickled whispered in his ‘ear’.

“Thanks to Appa stepping out for a while…”

From Barq’s body, which had even withstood the attacks of the highest-ranked Jotunn,

“I can still be a princess for a little longer.”

Splat!

A fountain of blood erupted.

TL’s Corner:

Shiyeon might have gotten her personality from the ant queen’s egg. With her mentioning that she’s a queen.