One thing I’ve learned from being with Elcia:
Despite being the representative of the World Tree reception, she’s extremely impoverished.
“Master! Our goat is finally starting to stand up after all that pain! We need to give it some nutrients right away!”
“You crazy btch! You’re addicted to coins, fck!!!”
“Then, to prove I’m not addicted, I’ll put in one more time!!!”
Well, maybe the result is expected.
“How are you going to pay for tomorrow’s meal, you ear goblin b*tch!!!”
“I trust tomorrow’s me!”
“I have a feeling tomorrow’s you will be somewhere shouting ‘Stay!!!'”
“I just got a call from the future!!”
“…What did they say?”
“They said to ask for a double!! Let’s go!!”
As I came up with excuses in real-time for putting in coins, it was strange not living in poverty.
It’s just that it makes my heart ache to watch.
Not because of Elcia, but because all my money is tied up and it’s f*cking frustrating.
[See, why did you entrust that much money to an elf?]
‘I was an idiot.’
Then, I suddenly noticed the escort elf behind Elcia.
Maybe they have a solution to this predicament, so I spoke.
“I feel like I’m going to starve before meeting the World Tree. Is there any support?”
“The support funds are all tied up over there.”
“Then at least the escort should take responsibility for Elcia’s meals, right?”
“…My money is tied up there too.”
There was none of that.
These ear goblins all seem to have some defect; it’s already making my head throb.
“I could raise a tiger at home and get less bitten by this!!! F*cking ear goblins!”
“Oh my, Master. We raise bears at our home.”
“It wasn’t a redneck elf but a redder one, huh? Should I stand up?”
[Dear. Did that elf get elected with a voting rate of 140%?]
It’s certain that even getting addicted to coins is too much.
Such an obsessive degree of mania.
“Elcia, why are you so obsessed with this ridiculous coin?”
“It’s going to rise soon!!! I’m sure of it!!!”
“Ha…Okay.”
[Is that not a sickness?]
‘She seems confident, but I don’t get it.’
Elcia just smiles and insists it’s going to go up.
I reluctantly accepted that.
Hyeji had already returned to the dormitory.
I heard she needed to discuss something urgently with her father.
Meanwhile, Jeong Ahyeon also said she had to help her sister in the library today.
Lately, there have been frequent attempts to steal the mana goose from another world, so she went to help with security.
In the end, it was just me, Elcia, and the escort elf heading toward the dining hall.
There wasn’t a major issue.
Except for the minor problem that I was the only one who could pay.
Just then, a loud sound echoed from a distance.
Gwaak!!!
‘What is that? I’ve slaughtered all the pigs.’
[Dear. That doesn’t sound like those creatures, but like a monster’s roar.]
I stopped and turned my head toward the direction of the sound.
What I saw was a rectangular shape tightly wrapped in black cloth.
Research students were sweating buckets as they struggled to move it in a cart.
And there was a male professor who seemed to be leading them.
He had a completely bald head, except for some hair on the sides.
[It seems they are transporting a live monster.]
‘F*ck, that guy’s not a professor but a poacher.’
As I got closer to check, I could hear the conversation between the professor and the research students.
“Hurry up and move it before someone sees!”
“Professor, do we really need to bring an actual monster?”
“If we don’t produce results again, we’ll have to shut down the lab!!!”
“Really, can we even bring a monster into the academy? Is it approved?”
It sounded like they really brought in a monster.
The professor showed no sign of it being a problem compared to the hesitant research students.
“I’ve already got the approval!!! Don’t think of useless things!!”
“Then why are you using us? Can’t you just move it by vehicle?”
“That’s all money, money!!! Are you going to pay for that!!!!!!”
“Y-yes, understood! We’ll move it!”
[That guy is seriously a money pig. Cheapskating on a bit of fuel, making tons of research students work.]
‘He must have come from Mihoyo. They are money pigs too, right?’
[At least those guys seem to invest a lot, no?]
Though he said they got approval, the situation certainly didn’t look normal.
Just then, I spotted Professor Pilyong walking past and stopped him to discuss this.
“What…it’s not completely illegal. A sufficient number of professors agreed, and a few higher-ups also consented.”
“And that thing?”
He dismissed my further questions, saying it’s not a problem.
“You agreed too, right?”
“I did, for now.”
“What on earth is that thing to get such approval?”
“…That’s what it is.”
He didn’t answer my question and quickly tried to leave.
From what I gathered, many professors and the administration had very quickly agreed, and this was clearly updated on the academy app notifications.
When I checked the names on the list, one common point emerged when searching through the academy app profiles:
They were all severely lacking in hair.
[……I think I might develop a prejudice that the presence or absence of hair reflects a person’s conscience.]
‘Let’s think of it as knowledge from experience.’
We rushed back to the dining hall in haste.
*
In the dark research lab where light wouldn’t properly enter at any moment.
Inside that space were one monster and two people.
They could barely distinguish each other by the flickering light from a dusty monitor.
One monster.
Currently, it was in a weakened state, sleeping inside a cage.
The hubbub of the day seemed like a lie.
Two research students.
They were jolted awake by sugar and caffeine, trying to overcome their heavy eyelids.
A typical attempt of research students.
The monster had a familiar appearance.
A Minotaur, often forgotten but appearing in myth, games, and novels.
An upper body of a human. A bull’s head and lower body. Distinct scars etched over bulging muscles.
Having never been groomed in its life, it had a pair of menacingly sharp black horns, sharp enough to pierce anything.
If it weren’t for the faint trace of a once-mighty mane, it would have looked just like the stereotypical Minotaur.
One of the two began to talk.
Soon after, the other responded.
Since the conversation was between them:
“Hey, why are we testing hair loss medicine on a monster?”
“Last time we tested it on a human, he ended up covered in fur.”
“Are we talking about the furry incident? Didn’t we also have cases where all body hair disappeared?”
“You know about the Bald Mountain incident? They barely stopped it from above, but we can’t do human trials for a while now.”
“Why the hell is it a monster then?”
“Because it’s the closest to human form? I don’t know what that professor b*tch is thinking.”
Both were diligently making a potion while talking.
Truly, the posture of skilled research students.
“Can’t we test it on that bastard? He’s also bald.”
“I would f*cking love to do that.”
“So what should we test on this one?”
“They said it’s a success if the mane grows back. Did you make all the injection solutions?”
“Yes, three different injection solutions in order.”
“Then let’s get started. Note the time.”
The silky silver mane of the monster began to grow rapidly.
Success of the experiment.
The two thrilled research students celebrated the results and went home slightly earlier than usual.
Three hours later, they returned again.
But at least they were happy.
They had gotten an extra hour of sleep.
*
When it comes to the final exam.
It’s said to be purely practical with no theory involved.
The practical content is simple.
To capture a randomly selected monster.
Due to my bad luck in the lottery, I ended up in the very first group.
‘Being first means I have to go early, right?’
[It’s better to think of it as the military sentry duty, no?]
‘Feels more like being a lab rat for experiment 1.’
Just as I barely reached the sparring ground, it was already crowded with people.
Second-year students who finished the test early.
Third-year students who came to watch out of boredom.
And many first-year students waiting for their turn.
[There are so many people.]
‘Of course, watching lowly fights is delightful.’
I entered the sparring ground designated for me, which I was informed about the day prior.
As I spotted Hyeji, Jeong Ahyeon, and Elcia outside, I waved at them.
In each sparring area, the monsters the students were supposed to fight had been pre-generated.
Naturally, the same applied to the sparring ground I was in.
The monster in front of me was a Minotaur, known for its bull head.
Curiously, this monster seemed to possess some intelligence, holding a huge double-edged axe and just staring at me.
With its silvery mane flowing.
It felt almost like a real monster was alive and breathing in front of me.
‘Oh, the final exam feels like a real monster this time.’
[It’s a properly implemented monster, not some silly bug that rubs against the wall until it disappears.]
‘Well, they said to start when ready. The system is also supposed to be activated now!’
I pulled out a hand axe and slowly approached the Minotaur to observe.
The heavy breaths, a bit of drool leaking from its mouth soaking the ground.
The sharply pointed horns, its silver mane flowing in rhythm with its breath.
And the number written above its head.
‘……A number?’
[Why are you acting strange?]
Just as I felt a slight discomfort, the distance between the Minotaur and I had already narrowed enough.
At that moment, a number increased above the Minotaur’s head, and a mirror fragment materialized.
[Do modern simulators implement this too???]
‘What the f*ck????????????’
We both activated the “Galgog” feature and began checking the future that the mirror fragment showed.
The checked future was simple.
The Minotaur was splitting ‘me’ in half and munching on ‘my’ corpse.
Before I could even gather my thoughts from the shock.
We returned back to our original standpoint.
And what I saw above the head of the Minotaur was it holding its axe high.
The veins were popping up on the arm gripping the axe.
It was about to increase the momentum for a powerful strike.
[Dear! Something feels off!]
‘F*ck????????????’
As the lofty axe came crashing down like a guillotine aiming for my face, I desperately swerved to escape the impending disaster.
It was only at the moment I dodged the axe that the red number above the Minotaur’s head went up by one.
I couldn’t believe what was happening, and the reality felt surreal.
However, the strands of hair getting sliced off by the Minotaur’s swing proved to me that this was indeed real.
‘No, what the heck? What is this?’
[This is no fake…]
Just then, a bizarre aura began to flow even among those watching the sparring.
As I was about to open my mouth to say something, a powerful electric field suddenly enclosed the area around the sparring ground.
I could see two research students breathing rapidly while clutching onto something outside the electric field.
“Pant pant. Senior, fortunately, we trapped it!”
“Yeah, reduce the electric field! Let’s retrieve it quickly.”
As the range of the electric field began to shrink, I shouted urgently.
“F*ck, stop it!! There are people in here!!!”
“Are you an idiot? Why are you even there?!”
“I’m in an exam, you dumb f*ck!! What’s going on here!”
“Th-that…”
The student couldn’t answer, his tone faltering just at that moment, the bald professor I saw last time hurriedly waddled over.
“Hey! What the hell did you do to let that in there!!!”
“It was definitely a success in the experiment. Look at that mane.”
“Oh! Then there’s no problem!”
“Why the fck is there no problem, you shtheads!”
My voice barely reached their ears.
It was incredibly frustrating.
“So hurry and reduce the electric field to retrieve that thing!”
“I’m still in here!!! You have to listen to me!!!! You bald f*ck!!!”
[Let me rip off that bald f*ck’s head!!!!]
‘I’ll split you in half, you prick.’
I threw the hand axe at the bald professor.
Unfortunately, the axe didn’t hit him but narrowly missed.
– Swoosh!
“What, what was that! Who’s doing this?!”
“That’s me, you dumb f*ck!!!”
I swiftly shaved off one side of the bald professor’s hair.
Only then did the professors realize something was amiss.
Among them, a sense of chaos started to rise.
“Professor! Didn’t you activate the system for the sparring ground that Kim Shinwoo entered?!”
“Wait a minute! I’ll activate it right now!”
At least that’s a relief.
As long as it activates, I might at least survive.
“This is strange! It won’t activate!”
“Don’t joke around! There was no problem during the inspection yesterday!”
“The thing is, someone spilled tteokbokki on it! So the system’s device is broken!”
That was not a relief.
We’re screwed.
‘You can break the servers; that’s enough, f*ck.’
[……If the servers break, public sentiment will plummet.]
Meanwhile, other professors began desperately surrounding the one responsible for this situation.
“Professor, can we shut down the device and restrain the monster?”
“I’ll ask. Research student! Quickly turn off the device!!!”
However, the named research student had a defeated expression.
It seemed difficult to do so.
“T-that device was made roughly for capture, so only someone inside can turn it off!”
“Then turn it off another way!!!!”
“It will automatically turn off in 15 minutes!”
“Is that a proper answer!!!!”
“They’re hard to control since we disassembled the generator!”
“What do you mean by ‘hard’?!”
Anyway, the talk wasn’t helping me.
I summarized my situation.
Because of the electric field, I couldn’t escape.
I had two choices.
Either survive for 15 minutes or fry the monster in front of me with electricity.
The opponent, absurdly, had a weapon.
And I had to face it with my bare hands.
‘It’d be faster to fry it with electricity.’
[Electric roasting isn’t the best, other than chicken.]
‘That’s true. I’m really craving grilled chicken.’
When I glanced toward my team, I saw the numbers above Hyeji and Jeong Ahyeon’s heads rising by one.
The two were urgently trying to persuade the professors.
Seeing the number above Elcia’s head rise one, it must also be a situation she hadn’t experienced before in the past.
[If the future changes compared to before regression, one red number counts up.]
‘Even if I reset settings now, not many will remember.’
Moreover, Hyeji seemed to be on the verge of tears.
“Professor! We need to stop this quickly! Shinwoo will really die!”
“Professor! I echo what Hyeji says! If this doesn’t stop quickly, Gongja Shinwoo will die!”
“My younger brother is right! This needs to end!”
“I’m sorry, but right now, there’s nothing we can do.”
Gradually, a few students started to show interest in our situation.
The ones whose numbers were rising all wore faces of sympathy or pity.
Of course, there were also some kids showing an amusing expression.
Some even started recording.
[So they’re planning to make a snuff film.]
‘I’ll get those bastards in a film later. Just remember their faces.’
In the distance, there were even a bunch of bastards involved in illegal betting.
‘Who’s betting on who dies, these f*ckers?’
[What a well-matched level of students for the academy.]
“Professor! Those bastards are illegal betting over there!!!”
“F*cking idiots! Stop immediately! It’s finals, and even if you want to, you can’t do this!!!”
‘Maybe omit the part about wanting to do this, f*cker.’
[Well, what would students learn from such examples? That’s what they’re going to learn.]
As the professors focused on eradicating the illegal betting, a Minotaur, now gripping its axe, began to scrape its hooves against the ground.
It looked ready to charge.
At that moment, the number above its head rose by one, and another mirror fragment appeared.
In that future, the rapidly approaching Minotaur swung its axe horizontally.
As ‘I’ barely dodged that axe in mid-air, the Minotaur’s horn would pierce ‘me’ and lead to ‘my’ death.
[At least quick futures can be somewhat countered.]
‘That bastard has to regress to see the future.’
As soon as I returned, the Minotaur charged as before.
It swung its axe with the same arc.
When I dodged that attack up high, the Minotaur’s horn was aimed directly at me.
It felt like an incredibly natural development of unfolding events.
As if it serves as a normal course of action. And as if it had experienced this before.
Yet here is where it starts to differ from before regression.
I grab the horn and spin around before landing behind the Minotaur.
As soon as I land, I power my right leg and throw a punch.
– Puhak!
Even with some enhancement, it barely budged; the strike didn’t seem to affect the Minotaur much.
Only the red number above the Minotaur’s head ticked up in response, and the creature tilted its head in confusion.
At that moment, one of the excited research students, who had just been praised by the professor, spoke up.
“Ah! I changed the concentration a bit, so the monster’s overall muscle density increased!”
“Dude, f*cking tell me that earlier!!!!”
[So maybe it’s going to be tastier meat, huh?]
‘Marbling’s reduced so it should be less appealing, right?’
Once again, the Minotaur attempted to charge at me.
In the pre-regression future, it would ram its twin horns at me.
Just as ‘I’ narrowly dodged, it would suddenly let go of the left hand of the axe and grab ‘me’ to crush.
[That’s one beefy monster now has a regenerative ability.]
“This is starting to f*cking annoy me.”
Suddenly, a surge of anger began to rise from deep within my chest.
The rage that swirled inside me eventually erupted outside.
Before I even realized it, an anguished cry escaped.
“F*ck, is this some kind of novel?”
I dodged the Minotaur as it dashed toward me again, this time to the left.
However, it couldn’t grab me with its right hand.
The right hand, gripping the axe near the blade, found it impossible to let go even due to sheer weight distribution.
As the red number above the Minotaur’s head went up by one, I became even angrier.
“I’m the only one missing out.”
Enhancing my left hand, I thrust it into the Minotaur’s side.
The target location was the gap in its right side.
The Minotaur gave a huge heave from the sudden pain, expressing agony throughout its entire body.
At that moment, I quickly dashed toward the space in front of it.
“You bastard, whether you’re a fcking cow or a fcking bull.”
I powered my right hand and punched it right in the gut.
This time, it felt as though I might burst through if I pressed just enough.
However, I barely went overboard.
As a consequence, a bit of blood sprayed from a few knuckle joints but ignored it.
I clenched my fist even tighter and dove deeper in.
– Pook!!!!!
“F*ck!!!”
My fist plunged deep into the Minotaur’s abdomen.
The Minotaur’s body lifted slightly as it lost its footing, sending it flying.
Watching it soar away, I finally voiced my pent-up frustration.
“F*cking regress after causing such a mess!!!!”
