Death Regression? And the Seemingly Useless System

The seemingly ordinary young man was on his way to the kitchen.

“I’m a bit hungry. I should grab a bite to eat first today.”

The moment he reached for a sausage in the cupboard, the knife resting on the cutting board suddenly sprang up.

The young man died instantly.

“My name is Reg. I’m still not quite used to the sight of death.”

“It hurts, man, it really hurts!”

“Why does a knife suddenly stabbing you hurt? Anyone would be in pain, right? I’m naturally very afraid of pain!”

Endless tentacles seemed to be whipping his body, attempting to pull him into an infinite loop. His flesh and blood seemed to be continuously growing, breaking through and forming a shell.

The moment he awoke, Reg was back outside the kitchen again.

“I possess a special ability.”

“Death Regression. However, my luck is incredibly awful. If I’m not careful, I can be killed by simple obstacles.

I possess the ability to absorb the bad luck of others, but this bad luck is passive, and there is no way for me to get rid of it.”

“Death Regression. What a wonderful name it sounds like!”

With this ability, shouldn’t I be invincible?”

But as a transmigrator, Reg possesses neither an unyielding will nor an invincible ‘Golden Finger’ cheat. All he seems to have is silence and the terror of organizing his memories.

Acquiring this skill only guarantees that he won’t truly die.

By the way, every time he dies, he gains a certain amount of Trait Points.

Reg can use these Trait Points to exchange for skills.

However, the amount provided by each accidental death varies and is almost pitifully small.

From birth until now, Reg has only died about 20,000 times.

If there’s one thing that is most painful about dying, it’s that Reg has to endure the lonely solitude in a dark, lightless space.

Although dying can grant him some Trait Points to enhance his physical fitness, the human body has its limits. For an ordinary person like Reg, the most he can achieve is barely being able to forcibly kill a weak Yokai (demon/monster).

Death is not without cost; rather… the cost is terrifyingly steep.

Neither spiritual death nor physical death can grant Reg release.

Once a certain trait is triggered—once Reg feels he can no longer bear it—Death Regression occurs. And once Death Regression occurs, he is subjected to a mental attack.

【Trait Points: 0.6】

Reg looked at the Trait Points displayed. The progress bar still hadn’t moved today, so it seemed this death wouldn’t provide him with extra Trait Points.

Reg rubbed his chest, which still seemed to retain the painful sensation of the knife stab.

Although his body had regressed, his memory remained. He sighed helplessly, gave up on the sausage, and turned to walk out of the house.

He lived in a converted old, rusty trailer home, parked on a secluded dirt road.

He had converted it himself with a little bit of handy work, saving up money for a long time. In this place, it could be considered relatively safe.

A crude wooden sign hung on the outside of the vehicle, sloppily reading, “Reg’s Handiwork Shop.”

Near the door, a small stand was set up, displaying a few small items he had made.

A few smoothly polished wooden tops, a few oddly shaped slingshots, and an automatic bird feeder made using the principle of levers.

They were all practical but slow-selling items.

He pushed open the trailer door, and the cool morning air washed over him, somewhat dispelling the discomfort caused by the shadow of death in his mind.

He was just about to stretch and loosen his muscles when a lively greeting, tinged with a metallic friction, suddenly rang out not far away.

“Hey! Reg, long time no see! Still selling stuff that won’t sell today, da☆ze!”

Reg looked toward the sound.

He saw a blonde girl wearing a large, black pointed hat and a dark cloak, hovering a short distance above the ground on an old broom that looked disproportionate to her size.

The most striking thing was the pair of eyes under her hat brim, full of curiosity and vitality.

She was grinning at him, showing a set of neat white teeth.

It was none other than Kirisame Marisa.

Reg and Marisa were childhood friends and had studied together at the temple school. During a certain search for magic, Reg discovered that Marisa could use magic, and he immediately latched onto her for support.

He sought her protection for the future, but knowing Marisa’s personality now, Reg regretted spending all his savings to help this girl who loved causing trouble for others.

Oh no, or rather, given Reg’s personality, he would still kindly try his best to help anyone who asked.

“Ai, are you here to mock me again?”

Reg actually possesses a System named [Automatic Life Strategy].

As the name implies, it’s supposed to help him achieve major life events.

However, Reg has no way to use it; the System seems to be just for show, occasionally sending him inexplicable skills related to his life.

Frankly speaking, Reg just wants to live an ordinary life in this place called Gensokyo.

And experience interesting scenery along the way. Reg really, really loves all kinds of scenery, which is why he converted the trailer home, even though the villagers constantly complained about how the vehicle could possibly move.

But Reg didn’t care.

When he was little, Reg was abandoned outside the village. His infant body was highly unsuitable, and after being raised into a young man by someone named Shan Ku, he was mercilessly abandoned again.

Reg doesn’t actually hate Shan Ku. After all, even with the ability of Death Regression, an infant lacks the ability to move and would likely enter countless death loops, causing Reg’s mind to completely break down.

But luckily! Reg has today announced that he is 18 years old and officially an adult!

Having lived two lives, he is finally a grown man in this one again.

Mm, yes, yes, yes. Although Death Regression means he has lived for more than one life and his actual age might be terrifyingly high, humans are ultimately just herd animals.

“Reg, I’ve actually reached a marriageable age this year too. I’m sure my father would be very happy to see you get married, right?”

Marisa tilted her head, looking at Reg. She then seemed to glance around at the handmade items on the trailer, a smile on her face.

It was as if she was implying something.

Reg was startled by Marisa’s words, and immediately, a rush of heat went straight to his ears.

He quickly lowered his head, pretending to tidy the wooden tops on the stand that were already neatly placed. His fingers clumsily knocked one of them down.

“Marriage? Sorry, I just came of age this year! I want to find an ordinary woman to marry, so please don’t use that to attack my vulnerable point, okay?”

Reg bent down to pick up the rolling top.

“Besides, Marisa, we’re best friends! Don’t say such frightening things so early in the morning.”

He picked up the top and unconsciously spun it in his hand. The edges of the wood bit into his palm.

The sunlight shone brightly on Marisa’s pointed hat. She watched Reg’s flustered state with a grin, seemingly finding it very amusing.

“Well, I was just stating a fact.”

She swung the broom handle, letting her mount get a bit closer to the ground.

“By the way, that top you polished is really round. Can you give me one?”

“Take it, take it. Anyway, besides small children who might play with it, you’re the only one who comes by.”

Reg let out a sigh of relief and quickly handed over the still-warm top in his hand. He was finally saved from that alarming topic.

Marisa took the top and casually tucked it into the pocket of her wide cloak.

“Thanks. Here’s the money. Be sure to stay alive, okay?”

Marisa placed the money directly on the stand. Her gaze returned to Reg, with a hint of inquiry.

“You look a bit strange today? Did you bump into something again? You’ve been getting hurt ever since we were kids, but I’ll protect you!”

Marisa emphatically patted her chest, showing her determination to protect Reg forever.

Reg rubbed his chest, which no longer felt any pain, and vaguely replied,

“It’s nothing, just died this morning, feeling a bit out of it.”

He deliberately ignored the memory of the incident in the kitchen earlier that morning.

Changing the subject was the most important thing.

“You flew over on your broom so early. Is something up?”

“Nothing special. I just flew back after gathering some mushrooms in the forest. I saw you open your shop, so I dropped by to check out my old friend’s new stock.”

Marisa patted the broom handle and pointed at the stand.

“It’s the same old stuff, as expected. Reg, can your shop really earn you enough money to eat? Why don’t you come live at my house? My place is quite big.”

Marisa demonstrated how large her place was with a gesture, a strange look in her eyes.

“Are you kidding? I’m quite popular in the Human Village! Living in someone else’s house is not my style. I appreciate the offer, but my stomach really is quite hungry.”

Reg helplessly spread his hands. Mentioning his stomach reminded him of the breakfast he hadn’t managed to eat today, and the empty feeling in his stomach became more pronounced.