Genius Regressor Makes Mythic Items

Chapter 6. Another Alchemy (1)

TL: xLordFifth
ED/PR: The reader

*Sigh*

A cloudy smoke escapes from parched lips. A middle-aged man rubbing his cigarette into an ashtray muttered under his breath, “Losing even after teaming up with four…”

His voice, rough from years of smoking, was nothing special; just another middle-aged man’s voice. However, the four people standing in front of him were frozen stiff, like mice before a cat.

“Hey, Kang Hoyoung.”

“Yes, Vice-Guildmaster.”

“Do you think this makes any sense?” The man called Vice-Guildmaster casually waved a document before him. “It’s not like you were ambushed by hyenas, nor did you face fellow Alliance members. You lost a frontal assault to a guy without a single piece of equipment?”

And that too, four against one. To a lone mage?

Disbelief was written all over Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster’s face as he asked.

“… I have nothing to say.”

“Ha!” Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster tossed the document onto the desk and swept his face with his hand. “You know, I don’t blame losing due to lack of skill. Money can’t fix that anyway.”

“…”

“But, listen.”

Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster stood up and approached Kang Hoyoung. The other team members shuddered slightly and bowed their heads. Then…

Slap. The sound of flesh hitting flesh resounded as Kang Hoyoung’s face turned to the side.

“Forming an Alliance and then dropping out! I just can’t let it slide!”

Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster glared fiercely at Kang Hoyoung. “An Alliance inherently means sacrificing your reputation for it. Do you understand what that implies?”

“That it will inevitably become known through word of mouth… and the longer it continues, the more damage we suffer in various aspects.”

Notable examples included cooperative tasks such as dungeons or raids. Especially if you were matched in a cooperative task with a player who had directly suffered from your trolling?

It was practically a session for retribution.

“Yet, we, the Scorpio Guild, tolerate it. Why do you think that is?”

“Because the benefits we receive when successful far outweigh the disadvantages we might face.”

“That’s right.” Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster tapped Kang Hoyoung’s forehead in affirmation.

“Because of that advantage, we permit it. But what about you guys?”

Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster’s gaze swept over Kang Hoyoung and the other three. “Failed in the Arena! Couldn’t even pass the Tutorial! Ah… And now, seems like you’ve invited all the damned penalties upon us.”

No one could respond. It was inevitable. The tutorial Kang Hoyoung and his party were matched in was a top-tier level 1 MMR. Naturally, it would have drawn participants from the country’s elite guilds. And it wouldn’t take long for their names to come up on the Arena board.

“Soon enough, it will be found that you four who allied are newcomers to the Scorpio Guild, within a day, no doubt.”

“The guild contract does include a clause that any play within the Arena will be protected by the guild.”

“… Provided that you produce results.”

“You remember correctly. I wonder why someone so intelligent could mess up this badly.” Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster handed out a document. Kang Hoyoung’s eyes widened in shock.

“This… this is…”

“A bill. Despite the guild’s full support, you failed to pass the tutorial and only caused trouble. It’s specially made for such situations.”

Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster then threw copies of the bill to the other three.

“All rewards earned by you for the next 10 years will be transferred to the Scorpio Guild. Sign it.”

“Uh…”

As Tank Kim Jaewon cautiously raised his hand, Vice-Guildmaster’s right arm blurred. Simultaneously,

“Ac-ack!”

Kim Jaewon, gasping for air, lifted off the ground. In the blink of an eye, Scorpio’s Vice-Guildmaster had grabbed his throat. For a Ranker like Vice-Guildmaster, lifting a level 1 by the throat was trivial.

“Idiocy comes with its own punishment. Do you really want to know?”

Witnessing this, Kang Hoyoung and his companions silently signed.

* * *

“It’s hard to believe.”

At the bespectacled man’s words, the small-statured man bowed his head even more. The two people beside him did the same.

The bespectacled man hurriedly waved his hand.

“I’m not blaming you. It’s just… such an unbelievable story.”

The small-statured man, Kim Minhyung, finally spoke.

“I agree. The fact that he fired magic without casting, and achieving 15 kills… all by himself.”

“Right! He swept away the top-ranking teamers all alone. I was watching the Arena board live!”

Hearing the testimonies of the Tutorial participants, the bespectacled man nodded. “Alright, we’ll sort this out through a report. You all can leave now.”

“Uh…”

“I know what you want to say. Don’t worry. Our Holy Trinity Guild doesn’t penalize for dropping out of the Tutorial.”

The bespectacled man shrugged. “You’ll just do better next time, right?”

“Ah! Yes!”

The faces of Kim Minhyung and the others brightened. They bowed and left the room.

As the door closed, the bespectacled man skimmed through the report.

“Defeated a four-person Alliance alone, huh…”

He turned to look at the female employee standing quietly behind him. “Yeonhee, did you find out?”

“Section Chief Park, this is an office.”

“Come on, if. I call you Deputy Woo, you’ll sulk.”

At this, the veins on the forehead of the woman, Woo Yeonhee, throbbed slightly.

“I’m not upset.”

Thump.

Woo Yeonhee slammed the documents down on the table with force.

At that,

“Tch, saying you’re not upset…”

“What did you just say?”

“Oh, nothing, Assistant Manager Woo.”

Park Minchul, who had been whispering softly, hurriedly checked the documents she had put down.

“Looks like they’re a team from the Scorpio Guild, huh?”

“Yes. There were three members with B-class abilities and one with an A-grade ability.”

“Wow! That’s a superstar team. If we were comparing it to movies, it’s totally Hollywood-level.”

Manager Park Minchul couldn’t hide his admiration.

The most anticipated member of this cohort in Holy Trinity Guild was Kim Minhyung, who had a B-class ability.

To think there were three others with abilities equal to his, and even one with an A-grade ability.

Of course, having a high-grade ability didn’t automatically mean it was good.

There would surely be differences in real combat situations.

But if four of them managed to achieve 20 kills together, they must be pretty skilled in combat.

‘How did the notoriously ill-mannered Scorpio Guild manage to gather such talents?’

Before contemplating that question,

Another popped up.

“How did he manage to wipe out those high-level teamers all by himself?”

“Must be a magic user. Probably wiped them out with his firepower.”

“A first-level with that kind of firepower? Even if it were possible, he would need a substantial casting time.”

“According to the report, he manifested magic by simply snapping his fingers, so it’s probably because of his ability. At least S-class or higher.”

“That’s one way to see it. But. I have a different opinion, Assistant Manager Woo.”

Though Woo Yeonhee also belonged to the platinum rank,

Park Minchul, a player of the diamond rank, knew better.

“No matter how good the ability is, there’s a limit at Level 1. There must be something else.”

“…You mean something like a regalia?”

“Yes, a regalia. If it’s that level of a variable, it makes sense.”

Those chosen by a regalia were known to turn the impossible into possible.

But even this was merely conjecture.

“Manager, he’s just completed the tutorial and is at Level 1. He can’t have the backing of a regalia.”

Since the emergence of the Galaxy Arena in 2015,

Regalias had only appeared for those above the diamond rank, never showing themselves to ranks below.

Knowing this well, Park Minchul chuckled.

“Then, he must be an irregular. Or there’s something other than a regalia. Well! Either way.”

Park Minchul’s gaze returned to the tutorial report.

“It’s clear that he’s a must-recruit.”

“The other guilds won’t sit still either.”

“That’s why you’ll have to work a bit harder, Assistant Manager Woo.”

Responding thus, Park Minchul pushed up his glasses and looked towards the wall.

“Isn’t that right, Guild Master?”

As he spoke, the wall shimmered.

“Even though it’s an office here, since it’s just the two of us. Feel free to call me ‘miss’.”

A woman in her early twenties appeared.

Park Minchul shrugged his shoulders.

“Then you’ll tease me.”

“Oh my. Someone listening in might think. I’m a juvenile using my authority to harass my employees.”

“Isn’t that what you’re doing?”

“Manager!”

Taken aback, Woo Yeonhee.

However, Park Minchul, unfazed, gazed at the suddenly appeared woman.

“You seem to have a misunderstanding, Manager Park.”

The woman donned a smile fitting her innocent appearance.

“I’ve never flaunted my authority. It’s just…”

She glanced at Woo Yeonhee and continued,

“… because our group policy strictly prohibits office romances, I just reminded Manager Park about it.”

Park Minchul immediately buried his face in his hands.

“Sigh… That’s exactly what. I’m talking about.”

“Tehee! It’s totally different, you know?”

She giggled before asking,

“Since when did you know? This is a Grade A stealth artifact.”

“I didn’t at first. But when you suddenly felt a presence while talking about Player Kim Shimun…”

Was it her body that flinched for a moment, or was it his imagination?

Being of the diamond rank,

Normally, Park Minchul would have noticed such a change.

Unfortunately, being compromised over an office romance, he didn’t have that kind of leisure.

Loosening his tie, Park Minchul sighed.

“So, what’s the reason for such a whimsical infiltration?”

“Whimsical? I came because. I wanted to see Manager Park. Are you going to hurt my feelings by saying that?”

“That’s also whimsical. I’m already taken.”

“Manager!”

At that, Woo Yeonhee gently hit Park Minchul on the shoulder.

Though her cheeks were slightly flushed.

Clearing his throat, Park Minchul sought to change the subject.

“Cough! Anyway, what brings you here? You’re supposed to be graduating, aren’t you?”

“I was bored. The academy doesn’t mean much to me anymore.”

“That may be so, but…”

“Even with the world changing like this, I have to suffer because some old-fashioned person insists on me graduating. ”

“Yu, Yujeong-ssi!”

Worried that someone might overhear,

Park Minchul flusteredly waved his hands.

“It’s okay. My grandfather already knows you talk behind his back.”

“Sigh… If you’re that bored, why don’t you fight in the arena instead of doing this?”

“I just came back from fighting. Didn’t you watch my broadcast?”

“Ah, my apologies. I was caught off guard by an unexpected report and didn’t get to check.”

“No need to apologize.”

Shrugging her shoulders, the woman, Lee Yujeong, twirled her long hair and looked at the report on the desk.

“Is this it? The report that surprised our dear Manager Park?”

Swiftly snatching the report, Lee Yujeong.

“Mi, Yujeong-ssi!”

Unable to react in time, Park Minchul stretched out his hand towards the report.

“You shouldn’t do this! It’s confidential to the guild!”

“What does it matter? After all, I own the guild. “Yujeong Lee skillfully dodged Park Minchul’s hands with impressive agility. Was it because both were top-tier players?

Swish!

Their movements resembled a scene from a movie. Yet, throughout this,

“Uh…?”

Yujeong’s gaze never left the report. In particular, she checked the name ‘Kim Shimun Kim’ several times over.

* * *

The first thing Kim Shimun encountered upon returning to reality was a series of messages.

[You have gained additional experience as the first-place reward in the tutorial.]

[The bound trait ‘Philosopher’s Stone’ receives a portion of the experience.]

[Your level has increased by 2.]

[The level of the Philosopher’s Stone has increased by 1.]

Kim Shimun scanned the messages with calm eyes.

“Looks like. I would have reached level 3 if not for the Philosopher’s Stone.”

Though it was a significant difference, Kim Shimun felt no regret. Why?

“Being at a lower level and having a higher level Philosopher’s Stone gives me an advantage in the arena.” It was simple logic.

Everyone else is at level 3, but. I possess another level?

This was a spec even better than innate stats.

“Let’s see, shall we?”

Kim Shimun, feeling cheerful, opened his status window.

[Status Window]

Title: Pioneer of Alchemy (and 2 others)

System: Magic

Level: 3

Nationality: South Korea

Strength: 4

Agility: 4

Stamina: 5

Alchemy Energy: 11

Remaining Stats: 2

Owned Traits – Philosopher’s Stone (F)

Achievement Points – 12,300

Kim Shimun opened the title window and checked the options for the ‘Pioneer of Alchemy’, a growth-type title.

“The title remains the same.”

[Receives a very small bonus related to alchemy.]

The description was unchanged.

“Well, Malsuk did say it was a lot of work to grow titles.”

Images of Malsuk cursing the slow growth speed of titles flashed through his mind.

With a smirk, Kim Shimun’s gaze moved to the newly acquired title, then he slightly furrowed his brow.

[Tutorial Conqueror]

The one who recorded an overwhelming victory in the tutorial.

The Galaxy Arena favors promising newcomers.

“What? No other options?”

No matter how many times he checked, there were no additional options.

Kim Shimun clicked his tongue in disappointment.

“Well, this is what titles generally are.”

This was not why titles were disparaged in his previous life for no reason.

It was odd to have received a growth-type title from the beginning.

However, he couldn’t say it was a loss.

“As titles increase, the rank of the achievement shop goes up.”

To purchase stats from the achievement shop, which opens from the gold rank upwards, collecting such titles was crucial.

Lastly, Kim Shimun looked at the remaining 2 stats.

“At this point, investing all remaining stats into alchemy energy seems ideal?”

Forging even replicas of mythic-grade equipment meant that increasing alchemy energy could either reduce the achievement points used or possibly increase the quality of the replica.

“The Philosopher’s Stone may be overpowered, but it doesn’t solve the fundamental principle of equivalent exchange.”

The immediate demand for achievement points was proof of that.

Solving this required a higher alchemy energy.

After all, alchemy energy was a unique stat tailored for alchemy.

Naturally, the higher the alchemy energy,

The better the results of equivalent exchange and overall alchemical abilities.

“Ah, this is a dilemma…”

Considering the value of alchemy alone, investing fully in alchemy energy was the answer, but,

“I can’t ignore the physical stats either.”

Kim Shimun knew.

Those skilled in the magic category often didn’t neglect physical training.

They didn’t invest remaining stats in strength and agility but relied solely on training.

The reason was simple.

“From the regular arena, your actual life is at risk, so you had to do something if you wanted to live.”

Ultimately, such stat management determined whether or not one could rank among magicians.

Thus, the stats of strength, agility, and stamina were crucial for magicians.

And Kim Shimun, knowing that even a single point in stats made a big difference in the low-level range, found it more troubling.

“Maybe aim for an awakening average of around 5, then work on the stats separately…”

That’s when,

“Wait a minute.”

Crossing his arms and pondering over the remaining stats for a while, Kim Shimun’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“Why limit myself to only training for stat management?”

The Emerald Tablet from his past life.

It contained not only the recipes for the elixir and the Philosopher’s Stone.

At the time, obsessed only with curing magic incapacity, he had overlooked the content.

“Philosopher’s Stone, let me ask you something.”

Now was different.

“Can you forge anything as long as equivalent exchange is possible?”

A pleasant tinnitus resonated warmly from the center of his chest.

However,

“Then, is human alchemy possible?”

Following Kim Shimun’s question, the ringing abruptly stopped.