The Martial God who Regressed Back to Level 2
The Martial God who Regressed Back to Level 2 - Chapter 5

Chapter 5

* * *

“Leveling up in the middle of the game.”

Upon seeing the message, Seong Jihan was quite surprised. Originally, the most experience would come in after the game ended, so leveling up usually occurred all at once after the battles were over.

“Is it because I’m a lower level after all?”

It wasn’t unreasonable since he had managed to defeat monsters that a typical level 2 wouldn’t be able to handle. So, it wasn’t that surprising.

Seong Jihan opened his status window and looked at the attributes.

[Strength – 5]

[Mana – 5]

[Remaining Attribute Points – 1]

Seong Jihan invested the remaining attribute point into Strength.

“Once Strength reaches 30, the path to the Nameless Divine Arts will open.”

The Nameless Divine Arts was an SSS-rank skill that had placed him at the pinnacle of the world. Thus, his current top priority was to increase his Strength, the prerequisite for acquiring the skill.

However, even as he approached such a goal, Seong Jihan’s expression remained grave.

“Strength probably won’t go up, but… I should allocate it anyway.”

Allocating points to stats didn’t necessarily mean the stats would increase.

Strength stat.

This unique stat encompassed strength, agility, and stamina, the three main attributes.

“But that’s not all.”

Strength 5 and Mana 5.

Considering these two attributes, you might think that they would be similar in terms of the force they can exert since the numerical values are the same. However, in reality, the strength side was overwhelmingly more powerful.

In terms of ratio, it was at least twice as strong.

In other words, Strength was a crazy stat that not only combined the three attributes but also exhibited an efficiency of more than double.

“But it has a weakness.”

It was damn difficult to raise.

In his previous life, he had initially thought it was a bug. Clearly, he had invested attribute points, but Strength hadn’t increased.

Later on, he had come to realize that attribute point investment merely extended the threshold for Strength’s growth.

After participating in leagues, engaging in numerous battles, and undergoing intense personal training, his attributes had gradually increased.

Ultimately, Strength was a stat that had to be built up through relentless effort.

“But why…”

Seong Jihan furrowed his brow, and checked his status window.

“Why is that?”

The numbers looked oddly different.

[Strength – 6]

Why did ‘5’ appear as ‘6’?

No matter how many times Seong Jihan blinked, he belatedly felt a surge of strength in his body.

Only then did reality sink in.

“Did my Strength… just increase?” He had never experienced something like this before.

For a moment, he was taken aback by the unexpected stroke of luck.

“This is great, isn’t it?”

Since it increased his attributes directly, he should be grateful.

He formed a deep smile on his lips and looked around.

Strength 6.

He wanted to test this newfound power immediately.

[There are 60 survivors.]

[Tutorial will end soon.]

At that moment, the voice of the system resonated.

Suddenly, there were only 60 survivors left in the tutorial.

Perhaps because the map was a confined arena with nowhere to hide, the game’s pace was remarkably fast.

Seong Jihan opened the scoreboard to check the rankings.

1st: Seong Jihan – 4 kills – No affiliation

2nd: Lim Gayeong – 3 kills – Divergent Guid

…

Seong Jihan, with 30 orc kills counted as 3 kills, was in the lead.

And behind him, a player named Im Gayoung was closely chasing.

“Lim Gayoung?”

It sounded like a name he had heard somewhere before.

Seong Jihan tried to recall for a moment, but he couldn’t figure out who it was.

It was understandable, considering he had been living in exile in the United States for quite some time.

Apart from the distinctive name, he couldn’t remember much.

“More importantly, it’s a 3-kill score. If I make a small mistake, I might lose the top spot.”

Seong Jihan postponed his thoughts about Im Gayoung for later.

What mattered most now was securing the top spot in the tutorial.

He needed to get at least one more kill to solidify his position.

As he made up his mind like that.

Swoosh!

An arrow flew from the left.

Seong Jihan, who easily dodged it, looked to the side.

“I missed!”

“Lucky, aren’t you?”

Two individuals approached, clad in armor with hexagonal patterns reminiscent of a turtle’s shell.

“Are they from the same guild?”

Survival map.

While the original concept of this map was for solo play, there weren’t any rules against cooperation.

The system had mechanisms to prevent the simultaneous summoning of guild members on the same map, though.

“Figured out how to join, huh?”

In places like Gangnam 1, where there weren’t many participants, such instances of joining forces were quite common.

“Combination is good there.”

A male warrior with a sword and shield, accompanied by a female archer.

Simple yet effective synergy.

The two approached with determined expressions.

“Let’s take out some foes and raise our rank.”

“Sure thing. Anyone’s kill will do.”

“Sounds good.”

Seong Jihan was in a messy state, covered in orc blood. While he looked odd carrying multiple weapons, dressed in tracksuit attire, he appeared to be a prime target.

“Summoned the wrong guy, huh?”

“He probably can’t log out due to the absence of a log-out button… This is a chance to achieve a kill.”

These two individuals were from one of Korea’s teenage guilds, originating from Turtle Guild. When they noticed they were summoned in close proximity during the tutorial, they quickly joined forces to gain an advantage.

A warrior and an archer. Close-range damage and long-range damage.

With this combination, survival was practically guaranteed.

“I intended to hold back a bit to pass the tutorial, but…”

“I can’t ignore such a newbie.”

Perhaps they already considered Seong Jihan a helpless rat trapped in a hole.

“If you personally treat me to a meal, I might be willing to show some mercy.”

“Hehe, it’s settled then.”

Rather than being wary of him, they approached with mischievous grins. Ironically, it was Seong Jihan who was smiling.

“They’re getting complacent. That’s actually good.”

And there’s no time, but it’s going well.

Seong Jihan hurled the hand ax like a beam of light.

Swoosh!

The hand axe, faster than when he slaughtered the orcs, flew even more swiftly.

“Huh…?”

The archer momentarily lost focus at the terrifying speed, attempting to dodge.

Thud!

Her right arm, holding the arrow, was cleanly severed, falling to the ground.

“Ah…!”

The archer grimaced in pain, clutching her heavily bleeding forehead.

Seeing her reaction, Seong Jihan snorted.

“She’s using Battle Net Connector for connection, yet she’s being so dramatic.”

The Battle Net Connector significantly reduced pain sensitivity. It might not reduce it as drastically as Yun Sejin’s version, but it would still diminish it by at least 70 percent. Yet she couldn’t endure the pain and faltered in combat.

“Still a long way to go.”

Seong Jihan concluded his judgment of them based on this.

“H-Halt!”

Ignoring the warrior who raised his shield to block him, Seong Jihan aimed at the head of the archer who stood dazedly.

As the spear’s tip approached, the archer tried to quickly dodge, but…

Thud!

Her head was impaled on the spear, turning pale and disappearing.

“H-How could you…kill a woman…”

The warrior, witnessing the archer’s death, trembled in his voice as Seong Jihan stared at him as if he were insane.

“Wh-What, a woman? Did you come here for a vacation?”

Arguing about gender on the battlefield. Is this really the class of the Bronze League?

“You need to roll a bit more here.”

He couldn’t let someone with this kind of mental state pass the tutorial.

Seong Jihan charged straight at the warrior.

“I-I yield…!”

[There are 52 survivors.]

[Tutorial will end soon.]

Just two more kills and it’ll be over.

The warrior hid his body behind his shield.

“Don’t think about fighting, just survive. There’s not much high ground left!”

As Seong Jihan passed by him, the warrior could assess his capabilities.

He’d lose a hundred percent in a fight.

However, he could withstand it.

The weapon the monster was wielding was so crude.

Wearing full plate mail and a solidly cast helmet, hiding behind his shield.

No matter how strong he claimed to be, what could he do?

Meanwhile,

“Hmm. No fighting spirit, huh?”

Seeing the warrior hunching over, Seong Jihan could understand his thoughts.

“Then, let’s see where you can endure.”

Clang!

As Seong Jihan pivoted behind the warrior, his spear precisely impaled the back of the warrior’s neck.

“Ugh…”

While the armor contorted and the warrior staggered,

Thud.

The crude spear couldn’t withstand the impact and broke.

“As expected, I can defend!”

B-rank armor!

Even Turtle Guild’s dedicated full plate armor for warriors, it’s indeed reliable!

[There are 51 survivors.]

[The tutorial will end soon.]

Just one more death, and he could survive…!

As the warrior, believing in his armor, prepared to endure more,

Clang! Clang!

Successive impacts struck his nape.

“Ugh! This guy… had so many weapons…!”

He was carrying clubs, hand axes, and various crude weapons hanging all over him. Was he utilizing all of them now?

“But, wait… where he hit me before… he’s hitting there again!”

The warrior wasn’t just sitting idly. He turned his body in anticipation of incoming attacks and tried to block as much as possible.

However, Seong Jihan stubbornly circled behind him, striking the back of the warrior’s neck.

An opponent who skillfully handled various types of weapons as if they were his own hands.

Cold sweat trickled down the warrior’s back.

The more the impact piled on, the more the armor crumpled severely.

And eventually.

“Snap…!”

Crunch!

Four weapons shattered, creating openings.

Within those gaps, a sword blade broken in half drove in.

Thud!

The blade pierced straight through his neck, and the warrior’s consciousness faded.

Then, a system voice echoed in his ears.

[There are 50 survivors.]

[The tutorial will end.]

The 50th victim was indeed him.

In his last moments, the warrior regretted deeply.

“This human. I shouldn’t have provoked him…”

He should have sensed something amiss from the moment the guy didn’t log out while holding a weapon.

The warrior’s body turned pale and disappeared.

In front of Seong Jihan, the scoreboard appeared.

1st: Seong Jihan – 6 kills – No affiliation

2nd: Lim Gayeong – 4 kills – Divergent Guild

…

With a 2-kill difference from the 2nd place, he had secured a solid 1st position.

[Achieved 1st place in the tutorial.]

[Acquired the title ‘Tutorial Conqueror’]

[Completed the limited quest ‘Achieve 1st place in the tutorial.’]

[Received 1,000 achievement points as a reward.]

“Great.”

An involuntary satisfied smile spread across his face.

“With just one game, I got 1,600 achievement points and even a title.”

Moreover, once he returns to the real world, he might even obtain experience rewards based on his ranking.

He was excited to see how much his level would rise.

* * *

“1st place, Seong Jihan… No affiliation?”

And about the results of that day.

A peculiar undercurrent swept through the guilds participating in the tutorial.