The 100th Regression of the Max-Level Player
Chapter 98: Betrayal (2)

‘As long as I can save Min Juri… that’s all that matters.’

His vision blurred, and the faces that had mocked him seemed to vanish into the distance.

[A hidden sub-quest is available!]

‘A message?’

Squish—squish—

Cracks appeared in everything he was looking at, as if the world he’d seen moments ago wasn’t real.

‘What’s happening… Ah!’

One after another, messages flooded his consciousness, and Ryu Min finally snapped back to reality.

└ Commit Suicide Without Hesitation

└ Upon Success ▶ Receive ?? ??? ?

[You have completed the sub-quest!]

‘This was… an illusion.’

The moment he read the message, it dawned on him.

What he had seen moments ago was an illusion crafted from his inner anxieties.

There’s no way Ryu Min, who had gone through it 99 times, would not have known.

But the system had ensured Ryu Min couldn’t realize it. Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ N0vᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

‘Actually, it’s not the system. I did it to myself.’

Ryu Min examined the information for the temporary skill, Dominion.

[Temporary Skill – Dominion]

– Remaining Uses: 9 times

– Target: Black Scythe

Dominion had been used once.

And it had been used on the Black Scythe—himself.

‘It was as I suspected.’

His memories flooded back to him belatedly.

‘I used Dominion on myself to prevent me from realizing that it was an illusion.’

Ryu Min used Dominion on himself as soon as he entered the 7th round.

The first half of the order he gave himself was simple.

‘Do not entertain the thought that this is an illusion until you complete the sub-quest…’

The main quest of the 7th round was to escape from the illusion.

But if you knew from the beginning that it was an illusion, you couldn’t be trapped by it.

In other words, you’d be stuck at the starting point, unable to progress with the quest.

‘Ultimately, you’d be excluded from participating and vanish.’

How do I know that?

Because I’ve experienced it once before.

I recognized it as an illusion, yet I continued with the 7th round, only to receive a warning message and then disappear.

‘I felt so empty then. Just like when I was defeated in the 20th round boss room.’

This was the reason why Ryu Min had never explicitly stated that it was an illusion when he talked about his prophecies.

Knowing in advance that it’s an illusion would lead to immediate erasure.

“I’ve tried various methods of self-mind control, but it’s futile. If you’re aware of the illusion in your mind, it tends to surface unintentionally.”

To eliminate such risks, he had thought of using the Dominion.

If he used Dominion to wipe his own memories, there would be no problem.

‘I only realized I could use Dominion on myself because of this round.’

However, the real challenge lay in devising a strategy.

Progressing through the rounds was possible, but strategizing wasn’t easy.

‘Especially the sub-quest, it was difficult.’

Committing suicide without hesitation was no simple task.

Especially for someone like Ryu Min, who valued survival above all else, it was even more challenging.

‘Moreover, I couldn’t intentionally commit suicide since I didn’t know it was an illusion.’

That’s why he had gone through the 7th round numerous times, searching for a solution.

Eventually, he found the answer.

The solution was simple yet not so simple.

‘Before coming to this world, I needed to brainwash myself. To sacrifice my life if necessary, to save Min Juri. My ‘true love’ Min Juri.’

The 7th round presented illusions based on inner anxieties.

In Ryu Min’s case, he had anxieties about his trusted comrades betraying him upon discovering his true identity.

Based on this, the system created an illusion and induced a situation where he had to commit suicide as per the sub-quest’s objective.

‘So, what if I trick the system into believing that I love Min Juri?’

The system would likely craft a story around it and push him toward committing suicide.

His prediction had been accurate.

‘The result was committing suicide without hesitation.’

It had worked because he had conditioned himself to believe in his love for Min Juri.

‘Thankfully, it went according to plan.’

If he hadn’t made up his mind that way, he would have hesitated when told to commit suicide.

‘In the past, I’ve failed numerous sub-quests because I hesitated when told to commit suicide.’

Back then, before meeting Min Juri, someone else had been taken hostage.

‘My younger brother.’

Returning after completing the 7th-round quest would have meant Ryu Won being kidnapped and threatened by the villain.

At that time, Ryu Min had hesitated slightly when faced with the threat of suicide.

‘So, I came up with a method of mind control before the round to avoid it.’

If the situation arose where he needed to save Ryu Won, he wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice his life.

Thus, he had mentally repeated this hundreds of times, and when entering the 7th round, he had no qualms about committing suicide.

This time, the target had changed to Min Juri.

‘Thankfully, the brainwashing worked, and I succeeded in the sub-quest.’

Ryu Min chuckled, and suddenly, Seo Arin appeared.

“Oh, Black Scythe. Did you pass the 7th round quest?”

“Yeah. You?”

“Yes… I also escaped from the illusion.”

She blushed and glanced around, making sure no one else was present.

“Others… seem to still be trapped in the illusion.”

“Is that so?”

“Um, Black Scythe.”

Suddenly, Seo Arin’s expression turned serious, and she blushed.

“This might sound sudden, but… I actually… really like you.”

“Don’t joke around.”

“Haha… I know it sounds too sudden. I understand if it seems like a joke. But it’s not a joke; it’s sincere.”

“…”

“I gathered the courage to say this now that we’re alone.”

“…”

Ryu Min’s response was icy.

In fact, he tightened his grip on the scythe, as if waiting for something.

Whether she was aware that the atmosphere was strange or not, Seo Arin summoned the courage to speak again.

“Uh, Black Scythe. Will you… date me…?”

Squelch—!

With a chilling sound, Seo Arin’s head flew into the air.

Thunk—

Ryu Min stared at the system with a cold gaze and muttered.

“Enough with these absurd tricks.”

As if responding to him, Seo Arin’s body disappeared, and a message appeared.

[You have completed the main quest ‘Escape Temptation within 2 hours!”]

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