WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ A Gacha Addict's Life in Fusionpunk ◈
Chapter 39: Premium Fever!
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1.
[ 1. Kill Ceres Cassian. ]
[ 2. Kill Arbel Montraven. ]
“No, what the hell is this supposed to be now?”
Kill Arbel, my beloved body pillow and bonsai, or kill Mama Ceres?
“Are you trying to play mind games with the user? I'll start banging a gong.”
Are you some pure-love Taliban?
The moment I try to go down the harem route, you go straight to Allahu Akbar.
“Ha, fuck... I'm so pissed my scalp's itching...”
What the hell was this situation?
“You called it a premium route! Premium means it's good!!! Ah...”
I got it.
It was premium, all right.
If the previous Choices had simply been “branching points,” this one felt much more like a quest.
There was a time limit to clear it. A reward.
And clearing it itself was incredibly easy.
Simple.
Choose the option to kill Arbel Montraven.
Then kill Arbel, who could do nothing but make sounds like, “Uh... uhh...” and “Mmm...”
All I had to do was kill the defenseless Arbel, and I would receive an SSR-grade perk.
A cheat reward on par with The Sack God Spilled would fall right into my hands.
“Nope. I can't give up bunny girls.”
Then I could kill Ceres. What about that option?
That one... honestly, it was a complete balance failure.
Ceres was a Rank 5 Mage.
A conversation wasn't even possible if we were talking pure combat strength, and combat power was far from all she had.
I recalled my conversation with Ceres a moment ago.
The conversation we had after I learned about Mama Ceres's Masquerades and incarnations.
‘Director Ceres, what happens if an incarnated body dies?’
‘What a strange question.’
‘I'm curious.’
‘My consciousness moves to another body.’
‘What if the incarnated body had died before I released your Commandment?’
‘Because of the Commandment, I would have incarnated in another Masquerade instead of my true body. Why?’
The moment I got my answer, something occurred to me, so I asked one more question.
What would have happened if I had not been there, or if I had failed?
In other words, if Yiming had not reported Project Z.
If Yiming and Gisela had joined forces to attack her.
‘Amazing. Cedric, you can see that far ahead?’
Ceres grinned.
‘Take a guess. Why do you think I gave Yiming the original documents?’
Despite seeing the future, I had only realized it afterward.
‘Originally, I planned to fake my death, lure the two of them in, and kill them by tying together evidence of their conspiracy. From that point on, I would have had justification too.’
Ceres in the fourth iteration had not been killed because she was showing off and got stabbed in the back.
Her death itself had been a trap Ceres had set.
Yiming and Gisela had taken the bait.
I'd wondered why she had built a united front with me so readily...
To Ceres, I had been an option. A jackpot if I succeeded, no loss if I failed.
Ceres, a director of Twilight Resource Development, was several steps ahead of me even in strategy.
The difficulty was fundamentally different from killing defenseless Arbel.
“Phew.”
I let out a deep breath.
My mind whirred, heating up like a cockroach in a crisis.
What should I do?
Think through every possible variable.
What happened if I failed to clear it within the time limit?
What happened if I did not follow the Choices?
Was that the only difference between a branching point and a quest?
When exactly was the save point? The moment I chose an option?
Once I cleared it, the result would be locked in, right?
Was there no possibility of simply not choosing?
Ding ding ding.
A system message appeared with a notification.
[Please choose an option.]
“I waited five hours! Don't start this shit after three minutes!”
Ding ding ding ding ding.
[An option will be selected automaticall...]
“Fuck!!!!”
With the countdown looming, I finally made my decision.
[ 2. Kill Arbel Montraven. ]
It felt as though my blood were running backward.
I wanted to boycott the Status Window and all its bullshit, but...
Even in investing, it was important to pick an exit.
Both options were fucking awful, and both were hard to choose, but...
If things became so fucked that I could not improve the situation anymore, choosing “Kill Ceres Cassian” meant escape itself would be impossible.
I would be trapped in the loop.
“...Ha. What the hell am I even doing?”
The moment I chose, a three-piece set of fatigue, skepticism, and listlessness washed over me.
Arbel was asleep, curled up in a ball.
Helpless, pitiful, defenseless.
She was pretty. And cute.
But that was all. Did I really need to take care of her like this?
We weren't even close. All we did was act awkward around each other in Aden, then kiss because of a misunderstanding.
I'd done more than enough out of duty and decency.
What the hell was all this over seeing bunny girls once?
I did not even need to kill her myself.
If I did not give her medicine or take her to Isis for treatment, she would wither away on her own in about ten days.
My guilt would fade as time diluted it.
“Sorry, Arbel...”
Today, I would abandon my comfort doll Arbel and become a real adult.
“Like I'd say that?”
I did not know what the Choices wanted.
What exactly this was. Whether it was trying to help me or hinder me. What it wanted from me. What path it was trying to lead me down. Whether it simply wanted to laugh at a clown dancing to fate.
I knew nothing.
But.
“Did I look like someone who'd obediently do whatever you told me?”
Then it had picked the wrong person.
Go on, fucker. Try to rig things against me.
I'll struggle until the very end.
No matter what, I would achieve the Arbel, Mama Ceres, and Petite Ceres triple bunny-girl lineup.
“I'll show you exactly how stubborn I can be, you fucking Status Window.”
The moment I made that vow.
Ding!
Another system notification appeared.
======
★★ [PREMIUM FEVER!] ★★
≪Premium Route initiated! “Premium Fever” will remain active while the route is in progress!≫
✧ [Growth Acceleration]: All growth proficiency gains ≪500%≫ UP!
✧ [Shop Pickup]: Pickup chance for R-grade items and above ≪200%≫ UP!
✧ [Fated Encounter]: Chance to encounter key figures in the scenario ▲greatly increased▲!
✧ [Special Enhancement]: You may enhance three “Jokers” free of charge!
✧ [Disclaimer]: For three deaths, ※Death Penalties※ will not be applied.
Until expiration [ 479h : 59m : 02s ]
======
I quickly scanned the various benefits.
Benefits enough to make anyone's eyes roll back.
I almost failed to keep my expression under control.
Premium Fever? It would last for this entire loop?
“Hmm...”
It did not seem entirely bad, but...
What good was any of this if Arbel died?
“Wait... Look at this bastard.”
My mind started turning quickly.
Something was strange.
An SSR reward for clearing it, an excessively generous twenty-day time limit, and Fever Time on top of that.
Too much was being offered for a route I could clear in one second if I wanted to.
Why?
Let's not forget genre conventions.
It had been strange from the beginning.
The fact that killing Ceres or Arbel were options one and two made no sense from a balance perspective.
But it was a premium route, including killing Arbel?
It gave me all these benefits just for that?
I found that unnatural.
I imagined it.
Myself breaking through this route somehow and saving Arbel.
Cedric, the genius necromancer, growing stronger by greedily devouring the growth bonuses, various probability bonuses, and Death Penalty prevention.
The stage was set for me to grow faster than in any other iteration.
“Status Window-kun! I know I complain every time...! I whined that you only gave me shitty things...! But I always knew you weren't completely bad!!”
Hope welled up inside me.
Maybe I could clear the route another way.
The Status Window had laid the groundwork for me.
[Special Enhancement]: You may enhance three “Jokers” free of charge!
This was the clause that immediately caught my eye.
When I touched the sparkling notification, a new Joker was added to my inventory.
「Premium Joker Enhancement Ticket」
- Grade: Event
- Description: Try the Joker enhancement feature for free!
- Effect: Enhances a Joker of SR grade or lower.
- Note: Disappears when the Premium Route ends. Remaining uses: 3.
The Jokers I currently possessed were...
Paltry Indulgence (C)
Lost Receipt (R)
Honorific Speech Coupon (C)
The Hotel Abyss Suite Room Voucher (UC)
Sudden Festival (C)
Exhumation Monocle (UC) 1/3
Misfortune-Warding Talisman (R) 2/5
Mysterious Contract Seal (R) 1/2
“This is a little awkward.”
It could enhance up to SR grade.
And normally, you used enhancement materials on good equipment.
It felt like a waste to spend them on something so minor.
“Good. I've decided.”
At last, I could see the direction for this route.
An opportunity like this did not come every day.
The three “immunity privileges” from Premium Fever were essentially temporary Misfortune-Warding Talismans.
I would die without holding back, use Growth Acceleration to grow as much as possible, grind Points, pull R-grade or higher Jokers through Shop Pickup, then use the enhancement tickets to raise their value.
“Alright, shall we do this?”
I would save Arbel through an unconventional clear.
2.
After waking up with Arbel held tightly in my arms.
‘Citizens of Necropolis, this morning as well...’
Listening to the low-energy street broadcast, I headed to Aquarium Street.
Now that I had chosen the option to kill Arbel.
How could I clear this iteration without killing her?
The answer.
1) Kill Arbel first.
2) Clear the route afterward.
3) Bring her back to life.
I decided to visit Isis, the unlicensed doctor, and have her verify this theory that would impress even Nietzsche.
“Is this possible?”
“Are you trying to commit insurance fraud?”
“Are there even insurance companies in this shitholepolis? They all seem like they'd have gone bankrupt.”
“Come to think of it, there aren't.”
Isis, who opened the door with a sleepy expression, answered with her usual blank face.
By the way, this woman really had her guard up.
I could get close to most people easily, but none of my sweet talk worked on her.
“No, I didn't get in for free. Could you answer me properly?”
“Who asked you for money?”
“You said I had to pay to come in because it wasn't business hours!”
“You only paid 3,000 Bios.”
“...Here, have more. Is that enough?”
“Should've done that from the start.”
Isis quickly took the 10,000 Bios, then smiled smugly.
“What are you saving up so desperately for? Buying a newlywed home?”
“Fulfilling a medical professional's social responsibility through volunteer work.”
“Ugh... Even your lies...”
Ha. I wanted to slap her.
If she were not a Mage, I would have shown her the terror of being pronounced dead.
“So, is there a way to bring a dead person back to life or not?”
Isis carefully checked the gold coin I had given her against a lamp before speaking.
“You can't bring them back.”
“What Rank are you?”
“You can't beat me.”
Phew.
If she had not been Arbel's doctor, I would have gone straight to Brother Yiming, given him stockings as a gift, and hired him to kill her.
“You really can't?”
“Is Arbel in bad shape? If she is, why didn't you bring her?”
When I kept pressing, Isis put down the gold coin, a spark appearing in her eyes.
“It's not like that. Just in case. Even if Overnus Pharmaceuticals or Twilight Resource Development got involved, would it be impossible?”
“Impossible. No living Mage can revive the dead. Maybe they could ‘bring them back,’ but it would not be in the form you expect.”
I had been thinking of asking Ceres or Yiming if it came to that, but that was out too.
“Would it still be impossible with Universal Coins?”
“...Hmmmm, probably impossible too. Death is death because it is irreversible.”
As expected, it would not be that easy.
That complicated things.
Still, I had no intention of getting discouraged now.
I would gather Points and look for a variable in the shop.
The shop had all sorts of things. Maybe it even had a Joker that reversed death.
The artifact I had drawn last time, Burning Life, gave power for three minutes in exchange for lifespan.
“Alright, I understand. Thanks for your work.”
Just as I was about to leave.
Isis poked my shoulder.
“Come to think of it, there is a way to revive a dead person.”
She did not look like she was about to give me a proper answer. For Isis, she even looked a little playful.
“Hey, a person's life is on the line here. What kind of doctor jokes around?!”
“I'm unlicensed, so it's fine.”
“What is it? Let me hear it.”
Isis grinned.
“True Progenitor.”
True Progenitor?
“If you have a True Progenitor's blood, you can revive a dead person.”
I felt like I had heard that word somewhere before.
Memories burst forth like a flashback.
‘The documents call it “Awakening Serum Reagent Z,” but I believe the biochemical weapon is a liquid made by diluting the blood of a “True Progenitor.”’
‘The purpose of this experiment is probably clinical testing to control the True Progenitor. Securing resources is merely a pretext.’
Right.
I had definitely heard it before.
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