The Martial God who Regressed Back to Level 2 Novel

* * *

[Another victory! Sung JiHan easily tears through the top 100!]

[Even if it was 10 vs. 90 or 1 vs. 99, the game results wouldn't have changed.]

[A broadcasting accident that has never happened before on Battle.net! "Viewing is not available during the tutorial." What exactly happened?]

"If you want to make money, bet on Sung JiHan! Koreans laughing all the way to the bank."

"What does 'limitation' mean? Sung JiHan coined a new buzzword just two months after his debut."

Korean portal sites are flooded with news related to Sung JiHan.

Even though a day has passed since the game, there is no sign of the Sung JiHan-related articles disappearing.

"Wow. Uncle. It's crazy even overseas?"

"It seems there was a broadcasting accident."

Especially this time, due to the unprecedented Battle.net broadcasting accident, the situation was the same on portal sites in other countries.

The number of subscribers to Sung JiHan's channel surpassed 2 million in just one day after the game.

It quickly grew to the point of aiming for 3 million.

"Oh. But... Sofia is coming to Korea?"

"Sofia? What are you talking about?"

"Look at this."

Yoon Se-ah showed Sung JiHan a news article.

["'I'm going to Korea to eat!' Sofia. She uploaded a picture taken on the plane"]

Sofia making a V sign with her fingers inside the plane.

Her expression was incredibly bright.

"Wait... She didn't mention anything to me."

"She did talk about it. During the game. She seemed really interested in you. I watched the broadcast."

Yoon Se-ah narrowed her eyes as she said that.

"But, Uncle. She's the same age as me, right? 19 years old."

"...She was a teenager?"

When they met in their previous lives, she was in her 20s.

Because she looked similar then and now, he didn't know how old she was.

"So when it's the day you treat me to a meal, I'll leave the house for you. Don't go out and sleep somewhere. What if you get caught by the paparazzi?"

"Hey. Don't bother. I'm not interested."

"She's so pretty though."

Sofia had a face that perfectly matched the Western beauty standards with her blonde hair and blue eyes.

That's why, even though she had recently entered American First, she was enjoying superstar-level popularity.

It seemed the same was true in Korea.

-Wow, Sung JiHan crossed the line again.

-Sofia is not allowed, you jerk!

-What is he doing with a teenager?

-He's coming, right?

-And if she's 19, it's not a problem, right?

-There's a problem! Just leave it!

The replies to the Sung JiHan article felt different from usual.

"Being interested in someone pretty and being interested in someone are different things."

"...Uncle, do you happen to like guys?"

"What are you talking about?"

Does he have to be suspected of his sexual identity just because he's not interested in Sofia?

Sung JiHan smirked and shook his head.

"Rather than that, let's look at your gifts again."

"Oh. Because of the upgrade conditions?"

"Sure."

Yoon Sae-ah showed Sung JiHan her upgraded gift, which had reached E rank.

The effect of the gift she showed was simple yet powerful.

[Gift - Waiting Perseverance (E rank - upgrade condition not met)]

-Upgrades the basic BattleNet system by one level.

-F rank effect: Increases the number of daily game participations by one.

-Natural growth rate of stats increased by 100 percent.

-E rank effect: Additional stat effect changed to +2.

-In order to upgrade the gift to the next level, special conditions must be met.

Since the additional stat has changed from +1 to 2.

This condition was similar to the one where you gain +2 stats through two status windows.

At first, the difference may not be significant.

But as you reach level 200 or higher, the gap in stat points you can obtain becomes significantly larger, making it a tremendous benefit.

"To think that E rank is already like this... I can't even imagine what it will be like later."

Even though it was called Waiting Perseverance, it had already become a big bowl.

It was not unreasonable for Sung JiHan to think that it had such potential.

However.

[Upgrade conditions to D rank]

-Be the sole owner of the Waiting Perseverance gift on the planet. (Currently 2 people)

-Be the first among the owners of the Waiting Perseverance gift to become a gold player.

* One of the two conditions must be met.

* When one person's Waiting Perseverance gift reaches D rank, the other person's gift will automatically disappear.

Sung JiHan was bothered by the upgrade conditions.

"I didn't know there was someone else who had the Waiting Perseverance gift. Who could it be?"

Yoon Sae-ah calmly spoke with a peaceful voice while looking at the upgrade conditions.

But Sung JiHan's expression stiffened upon seeing this.

"Did Jin Yu-hwa already have Waiting Perseverance?"

Jin Yu-hwa, the Chinese ranker who had achieved second place in the world rankings.

Her speed of climbing the rankings was so astonishing that Sung JiHan, who was ranked first, was always on edge, wondering when she would be overtaken.

There wasn't much information available about Jin Yu-hwa, so Sung JiHan didn't know much about her either.

"I heard rumors that she is connected to the Samhap Society."

The Samhap Society, a widely spread criminal organization in Hong Kong and the Chinese region.

It was rumored that Jin Yu-hwa was the daughter of a high-ranking member of the organization and had played a significant role within it.

Of course, she vehemently denied it, and the Chinese government also strongly responded to such rumors, causing the Samhap Society theory to subside.

But the rumors about her didn't stop.

"Her skills weren't that great."

Just like Sung JiHan, Jin Yu-hwa, who was ranked second, wasn't particularly skilled.

As an archer, she gave off the feeling of pushing through with inflated stats, and there was no sense of facing an opponent with excellent control.

So even in China, until the death of the Heavenly Horse King Lin, she was practically considered the number one player in the country.

"In the previous life, Sae-ah easily met the conditions by dying...."

Since Yoon Sae-ah, who possessed Waiting Perseverance, died, she must have met the first condition.

Sung JiHan reluctantly recalled the memories of that time.

Jin Yu-hwa started gaining fame in Korea about a year after Yoon Sae-ah's death.

-The supernova from China, Jin Yu-hwa. Her gift is none other than Waiting Perseverance!

Until then, it was known that Waiting Perseverance, which Yoon Sae-ah, the daughter of a traitor, possessed, was a trash gift of the generation.

But suddenly, the Chinese player climbed to platinum with Waiting Perseverance.

In an instant, she reached Diamond and rapidly climbed the rankings, shocking everyone.

-Oh, so Waiting Perseverance is a good gift when you know about it?

-Why did Yoon Sae-ah commit suicide? It's so regrettable, lolololololol.

-She must be regretting it even in the afterlife, ㅠㅠ

-Even though a person has died, your words are too harsh.

-After looking at the previous comments made by the person above, it's ridiculous how they keep criticizing Yoon Sae-ah like an enemy, lololol. Suddenly acting all nice, it's absurd.

After reading the comments on the article, Sung JiHan felt disgusted by the hatred from people and since then, he hasn't even looked at any articles related to Jin Yoo-hwa.

If he had known it would regress like this, he would have paid more attention.

"This time, I'll take the initiative."

It's better for Yoon Sae-ah to take the lead for the sake of the Earth, rather than Jin Yoo-hwa.

With conviction, Sung JiHan said to Yoon Sae-ah.

"We should keep partying together."

"Uncle, are you going to keep taking the bus?"

"Yeah. You, with your Gift of Patience, should level up faster than the other opponents. We'll party for one game, and you can play the rest by yourself. Let's do it like this next month."

"Got it. Can't let the gifts be taken away!"

"Let's make participating in the October promotion matches our goal."

"Yes!"

Upon hearing Sung JiHan's words, Yoon Sae-ah nodded with determination.

"I wonder what level Jin Yoo-hwa is at now."

Thinking back to the previous life, it didn't seem like Jin Yoo-hwa was at a higher level than Yoon Sae-ah.

She only started gaining recognition as a player and making a name for herself a few years later.

However, there was a variable: the broadcast Yoon Sae-ah and Jin Yoo-hwa had done before.

There, they revealed the usefulness of the Gift of Patience, so if Jin Yoo-hwa had seen that broadcast, she might have started leveling up quickly, unlike in the previous life.

"If she's in Bronze, there's no need to worry, but if she's in Silver..."

Even if it meant using any means necessary, she had to prevent her from leveling up.

Sung JiHan was deep in thought when he suddenly had a realization.

He wasn't the only one thinking about this.

"I should also prepare for how she might come out on the other side."

Just like the rumors from the previous life, if Jin Yoo-hwa had any connection to the Tri-Union.

There was also the possibility that she might come out threateningly from the other side.

To prepare for such a situation, Sung JiHan opened his inventory and handed Yoon Sae-ah the Veil of Emptiness.

"...What's this?"

"It's an item called the Veil of Emptiness."

He had been hesitant to give it to Yoon Sae-ah until now because of the condition that it would be buried in emptiness if it was used for too long.

But considering the nature of this gift, it seemed like a good idea to have a means of escape in case of emergency.

"Don't use it when you're playing games normally. Only use it when there's a dangerous situation in real life."

"Ah. Will there be a dangerous situation for me in real life?"

"I don't know. Other players with the Gift of Patience might terrorize you."

"Ah... That's true."

"And for the next month, try not to go out unless necessary. Take care of yourself. I'll do the shopping."

"No going out for a month... Is it that serious?"

"Let's endure it for just one month."

Yoon Sae-ah thought her uncle was being overly protective.

"But it's only for a month."

Yeah. It'll be fine as long as I'm careful.

"Got it, Uncle."

"Great. Starting from today?"

"But then, what about Sophia?"

"Why would Sophia come out and be here?"

"Wasn't I supposed to keep the house empty?"

When Yoon Sae-a laughed, Sung JiHan playfully tapped her finger as if things were going well.

"What are you talking about? Ah, right. Let's go eat together. I can't leave you alone."

"Ugh. You want me to be a third wheel on your date? That's a bit..."

"What date? I'm not interested."

"But you're still buying me food."

"We came all the way to Korea, it would be weird to just send her off."

Even though there were no romantic feelings, there was still the bond of being former guildmates.

He didn't want to leave the girl who had come all the way to Korea feeling neglected.

"I'm fine just staying at home alone..."

"What will you do if a terrorist comes when you're alone?"

"What terrorist? And if I go with you, what will Sophia think of me?"

"Enough, let's eat together. Otherwise, I'll tell Sophia that I couldn't meet you."

When Sung JiHan said that, Yoon Sae-a nodded with a reluctant face.

"Ugh, fine... I'll go. This is such a hassle."

* * *

A building in Hong Kong.

In the office of the Cheonji Cheondi Guild, which occupies the entire 44th floor, a woman was reading a report.

Light makeup and a youthful face.

Even though she was sitting in a chair, she appeared noticeably short and petite, making it hard to believe she was an adult woman.

"Is this report true?"

"Yes, miss."

The subject of the report was none other than Yoon Sae-a.

With Sung JiHan's backing, the report stated that she was likely to be promoted to gold rank in October, causing the corners of her mouth to lift.

"That won't do."

"Then..."

"Let's kill her."

"K-kill her?"

Appearing innocent and naive on the surface, she casually mentioned death.

"Yes. I don't think I'll be able to get promoted by October."

The owner of the Gift of Eternal Patience in China.

Jin Yu-hwa said with a bright expression.

"Do we really have to kill her? She's a fairly famous person. It will attract attention..."

The man, who looked rough and intimidating, showed a hesitant reaction to the idea of killing.

"Then should we kidnap her? That would be even more difficult than killing, right? Just do it in one go, ambush her and kill her."

"Ah..."

"Start immediately. Kill her before October 25th. Definitely."

"U-understood."

"Then take the kids with you."

Watching the man leave with his head down.

Jin Yu-hwa raised an eyebrow.

"Can they handle it?"

The way they seemed unsure made her lose confidence.

She picked up her phone.

"Dad, dad~!"

"Yes, daughter. What's the matter?"

"Um, I have a favor to ask!"

She started the call with a voice full of aegyo.