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Chapter 7
‘First things first… I should secure food supplies.’
Jang Su-nam opened up the skill Diary of the Regressor.
‘I’ll need money and some titles too, so a big supermarket would be best.’
As soon as he thought it, related information appeared in neat rows.
‘Yep, this diary is the best. Covers for all the holes in my memory.’
Su-nam sifted through markets that could still possibly have food left after 100 days had already passed.
‘Not many… as expected.’
The further into the higher zones one went, the more untouched supermarkets remained, since stronger aberrations prowled there. But since most hunters still stuck to lower zones, those stores had been picked clean.
Su-nam was no exception. Even with his experience from six regressions, going into higher zones with F-grade equipment would be suicide.
It’s like expecting even the best boxer to beat someone holding a shotgun.
‘Still, there has to be something… Ah, there it is!’
On the very first day of God’s Trial, all items from the old world had been sealed. Sealed items couldn’t be moved, essentially becoming immovable walls.
Like the warehouse-style mart Su-nam just located. Its main entrance had been blocked by a giant display TV—sealed the moment the trial began. With that TV in place, the door couldn’t even be opened.
Of course, one could purchase the TV, unseal it, and move it. But the price was absurdly high, and no one would waste that much money so early.
‘But a building never has only one door.’
If you knew where the vents were, you could always find another way in.
‘Good. Been a while since I visited that place.’
With a grin, Su-nam set off toward the massive mart he could stop by on his way to the Holy Heart Clan.
Not long later, he arrived. Crawling through a vent in the parking lot, he managed to slip inside.
‘Without the diary, I’d have been completely lost in here.’
Even the vents had become part of the anomalous space, warped into a ridiculously huge labyrinth.
Clang!
On his way, he passed several corpses—people who had starved to death after losing their way. It still took him about 30 minutes before he finally emerged inside the mart proper.
“Alright, made i—”
「Kyaaaak!!」
Whoosh!
A club swung at him from the side.
“Holy—!”
A hundred days ago, that ambush would’ve landed. But after acquiring the Mind and Body Training skill, things were different. He could dodge an attack like this with only the bare minimum of movement.
Or so he thought.
Whack!
“Urgh!”
Another club struck him from a blind spot—right on his backside.
‘Son of a— that hurts like hell!’
[Polar Misfortune has activated.]
Of course, the system only informed him after he got hit.
‘At least it wasn’t my arms or legs… or I’d have broken a bone.’
「Kikik!!」
Rubbing his sore behind, Su-nam spotted the attacker. A familiar green runt.
<Goblin> (F)
‘Good. Only F-grade.’
Creatures’ displayed ranks usually represented the highest-grade equipment they carried. But monsters didn’t need equipment; some, like slimes, simply had a natural rank.
‘As misfortune goes, this isn’t too bad.’
Su-nam burst forward, swinging his axe at the nearest goblin.
「Kiiik?!」
Slash! The goblin collapsed from the knees down, split by Su-nam’s clean strike.
One hit kill.
The difference after a hundred days of body training was like heaven and earth.
‘Now, one more to go—’
He turned—
「Grrrk…」
A new enemy towered over him, nearly 2 meters tall, muscles bulging, wielding a massive axe.
‘…Don’t tell me this is the misfortune effect again.’
Whoosh!
“Shit!”
The axe swung frighteningly fast. Su-nam barely dodged.
But—
「Kikik!」
—out of nowhere, another goblin leapt at him, swinging a club from the side.
Whack!
“Khuk!”
The blow smashed into his ribs. Definitely cracked.
‘Damn this cursed misfortune!’
Su-nam retaliated with his own swing—
Slash! The smaller goblin’s head rolled off.
「Krrrroooaaargh!!」
The giant goblin roared with fury.
[Elite Goblin (F+)]
‘Seriously? A boss-tier monster here?’
The slime boss had been easy thanks to its fatal weakness: salt. But goblins? They had no such Achilles’ heel. The only way to bring one down was through raw skill. And this one had an entire grade’s advantage.
It was only thanks to Mind and Body Training that Su-nam had a fighting chance.
The elite goblin swung again. The clumsy motion was overshadowed by sheer brute strength and speed.
‘One hit and I’m done for.’
Su-nam dodged by a hair’s breadth again.
‘Damn, these cracked ribs are a problem…’
He held his ground, waiting, enduring the pain.
The enraged goblin raised its axe high overhead, preparing a devastating strike.
‘…Now!’
Su-nam lunged in.
「Kyak?!」
But the goblin was quicker than expected, as if it had anticipated him. It instantly countered, bringing the axe down in a brutal swing.
Whoosh!
The blade came screaming toward him.
‘Knew you’d try that.’
Su-nam twisted just enough to avoid death.
The blade ripped across his shoulder, tearing flesh.
‘Ghh!’
Not clean enough. Misfortune made sure of that.
Still, he pushed forward through the pain.
‘If I fail, I die!’
The goblin’s axe slammed into the ground—
Boom!
And Su-nam’s axe carved into the monster’s exposed neck.
Slash!
Blood sprayed like a fountain from the severed artery.
「Ghhak?! Kkhak?!」
The goblin staggered, clutching at its neck, flailing wildly. But no amount of pressure could stop the blood from gushing.
Its eyes rolled back white.
Thud.
The giant collapsed, lifeless.
“…Hahh…”
Su-nam exhaled slowly, tension still taut in his body. Short fight, but deadly. A single mistake and he’d have lost a life.
[Elite Aberration slain.]
[♥ restored by +1.]
[♥ already at maximum.]
[5 Coins acquired.]
Killing elites restored a life-heart—something hunters prized above all else. Whole guilds and syndicates waged wars to monopolize respawn zones of elites, selling access for fortunes.
‘As misfortune goes, stumbling on this place was actually lucky.’
There were monsters so strong, even after six runs, Su-nam had needed to burn through all three lives just to win. A personal, secret respawn spot like this was a godsend.
He tossed a Mini Tidal Spirit toward the vent entrance, leaving it as a marker to return easily.
But his eyes narrowed.
‘Strange… the diary never said goblins were in this warehouse.’
That must’ve been because he came at a different time than before. Respawn points often shifted. Or maybe it was another twist of his cursed “Polar Misfortune.”
Either way, Su-nam looted the elite goblin’s axe.
[Equipped <Goblin’s Axe> (F+).]
His displayed hunter rank now read (F+), instead of plain F.
Swinging the weapon experimentally, he noticed something in the corner—bones, human and NPC alike, coated in dust. Judging by the scene, it looked like an NPC had ambushed a hunter. Both had perished together.
Among the corpses, Su-nam found a blood-stained note.
『To the hunters… Beware of the organization called Seed of the Evil God.
A wicked faith brought here by the NPCs from their world.
Their symbol is a toothed seed. And chaos—』
The rest was unreadable, cut off by death.
Su-nam glanced at the NPC’s skeletal remains. Sure enough, a brooch pinned to its chest bore the toothed seed emblem.
‘So it really was a cult…’
He purchased the brooch for 1 coin. No idea how it might be useful later, but better to hold onto it.
But for now, something far more pressing awaited.
Su-nam grinned as he looked at the warehouse, stacked high with food supplies.
“Let’s clean this place out.”
He spent nearly 12,000 coins—roughly 1.2 billion won—stockpiling large bundles of packaged food. Nearly half his fortune, but with this haul, food would never be a concern this run.
‘Infinite inventory really is the best.’
Satisfied, he headed back to the vent.
Tapping his new axe against his shoulder, he chuckled.
“Alright… time to go earn some pocket change.”
