WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ A Gacha Addict's Life in Fusionpunk ◈
Chapter 52: A New Beginning (2)
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1.
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『 EP5. Reset Button 』
So, you chose your own death after all.
Death is the surest defeat, but...
Perhaps it is different for you.
<Iteration Results>
▶ Achievements Obtained: None
▶ Titles Obtained: None
▶ Challenges: +22 pt
※ Death Penalties are waived under the Disclaimer. ※
Remaining Disclaimers: 2.
- Choice: 2. Kill Arbel Montraven.
The Premium Route continues.
At the end of pride and folly, may you arrive at transcendence.
======
2.
Intermission quiz time!
Which death hurts the most?
The answer is burning to death.
I will accept no arguments.
Wow. I thought I had adapted to just about everything, but apparently not.
After diving straight into the heart of death itself.
Even after returning to my save point, I could not pull myself together for quite a while.
“Fuck... fuck... fuck... fuuuck.”
It had been to strengthen Death Sentence, but Cedric butter roast was something I would never do again.
It hurt so much that I clenched my teeth, and I could still vividly hear my molars cracking.
“Aaaah!!!”
I hurried over to Arbel.
I hugged Arbel, my squeaky doll, and cried my eyes out while whining for an hour.
“Arbel... It was so hard... So much happened....”
“...”
“But I'm living for the future where you wear a bunny girl outfit, big sis. You'll wear it, right? Hehehe... cutie....”
“Ugh... uugh....”
As I planted smooch after smooch on Arbel's warm, soft cheeks.
“Hoo....”
I finally recovered my composure.
For mental and physical stability, Arbel was the best.
Reliable performance!
I wiped the saliva off Arbel's cheeks and sat down.
“Then shall I sort things out?”
The first iteration of the Premium Route.
Since it was connected to clearing the previous iteration, it felt like the longest one ever.
Had I gone nearly a full month without regressing?
I had farmed 22 Points through Challenges.
My current Points totaled 44.
There were no titles or achievements besides that, but there was no reason to be discouraged.
I had gains that could not be converted into numbers or metrics.
Magical growth.
“Let's see.”
It was time to check out my exciting new magic.
I closed my eyes and drew up mana.
Sticky mana tingled as it heated my magic circuits.
Fwoooosh!
Pitch-black flames writhed like snakes and flew toward the wall.
“That is so coooool!!!!”
It was as cool as the badass flames used by that runaway ninja!
They were not real flames, so the wallpaper remained intact.
But if they touched a person, the mindscape of burning to death that I had created would manifest.
“I already feel sorry for the victims.”
Next, I checked whether my Engraving would return.
“Amaterasu! Luxury Extinguishing Kick! Fuga! Flame Breathing! Flowing Blade Like Flame! Prominence Burn! Incendio! Explosion!”
I happily put on a fire show for the walls of my studio apartment.
The result was this.
It had not even taken many repetitions for a clear Engraving to reappear on my right upper arm.
It felt far more elaborate and complete than before.
If I maintained my mindscape and interpretation as Ceres had taught me.
It seemed that carving a new Engraving into my body would not be very difficult.
“Good. Next is Heaven’s Lament.”
Ah, I had actually been looking forward to this one....
I could not reproduce Heaven’s Lament, the Rank 1 magic I had reached by burning seventeen years of my lifespan.
Well, if Cedric could reproduce that distant realm just from experiencing it once, Cedric would not be Cedric.
Still, having experienced the realm of ascension even once was an enormous gain.
Even Mr. Pennywise from next door knew how much it helped to have your meridian gates opened.
“This is enough.”
That alone was already a sufficient harvest.
But the most valuable spoils of the first iteration lay elsewhere.
Quality information.
A way to save Arbel and clear the Premium Route.
The fake Progenitor Shion's true identity and location.
The fact that the fake Progenitor and the Gold Carp Family were deeply entwined, and that for some reason Ceres had thrown in with them too.
Yiming's blazing brotherly love.
And beneath Big Brother Yiming's agape, I had even seen Ceres's vulnerable side. She was much more forgiving than I had expected.
I had originally planned to focus on improving my specs, but I had gained more than I expected.
Now I needed to draw up the grand plan for the second iteration....
“Ah, fuck... My head hurts.”
All strength drained from my body. I had no motivation.
Maybe I had pushed myself too hard. Emotionally, I was completely dried out.
If I had my way, I would take this entire iteration off.
Honestly, living well on my own for twenty days would not be much of a problem.
But of course, I could not do that.
“This calls for gacha!”
Cedric's instant mood-lifting button!
Joker Random Shop, open!
✧ [Shop Pickup]: Pickup chance for R-grade items and above ≪200%≫ UP!
Rainbow-bright letters immediately greeted me.
This casino-like screen that sucked a man's soul right out drove me crazy!
“Let's go for it for the first time in ages!!!”
Thump thump, do-thump.
As I bounced my shoulders to the cheerful music....
I saw a spinach-green light.
“Motherfucker.”
It was UC-grade.
“You said the rates were up! You said it was a pickup!”
Cedric was suddenly depressed!
I was already fucking miserable from burnout, literally burning out. Were they playing with me now?
“I won't do it. I'm quitting. Fuck. Do you take it as a joke because I always say I'm quitting and never actually do it? Huh?”
All at once, pent-up resentment surged from deep inside me.
This Status Window?
It was fucked in more ways than I could count.
It did not even show its face in the first iteration and made me grope around blindly.
It could have just generously given me infinite regressions, but instead it packed in Death Penalties by the truckload.
At this point, it was on the same level as those scumbag used-car dealers who posted fake listings and fleeced people.
“And what? Premium Route?”
Don't give me that dick-sucking bullshit!
What part of this was premium?
“Status Window, even if I kill your mother, this is still premium, right? Right?”
Hah, fuck....
Still, I could not throw it away, so I opened the box.
The result was...
A key with a heart-shaped jewel for a handle.
「 Wonderland Rabbit Wardrobe 」
- Grade: UC
- Description: A wardrobe filled with a man's dreams.
- Effect: Receive a bunny girl costume fitted to the designated target's size.
- Note: Single-use.
“....”
Hmm.
“Enhance.”
「 Premium Joker Enhancement Ticket 」
- Grade: Event
- Description: Try the Joker Enhancement function for free!
- Effect: Enhances a Joker of SR grade or lower.
- Note: Disappears when the Premium Route ends. Remaining uses: 2.
Ding!
[ 「Wonderland Rabbit Wardrobe」 is enhanced. ]
「 Wonderland Rabbit Dressing Room 」
- Grade: R
- Description: A dressing room filled to the brim with a man's dreams.
- Effect: Choose a bunny girl costume set fitted to the target's size.
- Note: Remaining uses: 3. Recharges once per week. Cannot be enhanced.
“....”
I sank into painful regret.
Looking back, without the Status Window, I would have ended in the first iteration.
It had helped me so much that, if the Status Window were a heroine, it would be the undisputed main wife.
“What... have I done....”
A thought suddenly crossed my mind.
The time I had spent doubting, calculating, and chasing only dry efficiency.
Had living in this fucking-fucking-fucking-polis made me forget what was precious?
Why not take a moment to catch my breath today and tell someone precious how I felt?
“Status Window, thank you. I love you. I care about you a lot.”
I gave the Status Window smooch after smooch, then immediately gripped the key.
“Use!”
A door appeared in the middle of my studio apartment, leading who knew where.
I turned the key in the lock and flung the door open.
A massive dressing room, like one attached to some grand mansion, greeted me.
“Wow... wow... wow...!!!!!”
Under soft amber lighting.
Mannequins stood in rows inside luxurious glass displays.
They wore thousands upon thousands of bunny girl costumes, each with different designs, colors, materials, and concepts.
“I found it. My bunny suit....”
I really got on my knees and wept for fifteen minutes.
2.
For Arbel, I chose the most classic bunny girl set.
A black patent-leather suit with artistic smooth corset curves and a high-leg cut.
Cuffs and a choker with cute little ribbons.
She did not need a rabbit-ear headband.
Moon Rabbit Mage Arbel could have real rabbit ears.
“Natural is always best!”
I left home without trying it on her.
Was I insane? Did they think I would put this on her right away?
Bunny girl Arbel would only be complete after Arbel woke up.
‘Y-you want to make your sister wear something like this...? Cedric, are you out of your mind?’
And yet.
‘I'm only wearing it once because you went through so much because of me.’
She would shyly change clothes.
‘A-are you satisfied now? Don't say it... suits me...!’
She would respond with a huffy blush, and that would complete it.
For that shining future.
I could die as many more times as necessary.
“There is no time to sit around.”
I left the apartment for now.
I had already roughly mapped out the plan ahead.
The strategy for clearing the second iteration of the Premium Route.
To sum it up in one phrase.
Bottom-dealing.
To explain in more detail....
It was a strategy to steal only the fake Progenitor and carry out servant conversion on Arbel, without Ceres's help or Yiming's.
From what I had seen in the previous iteration, trying to break through this head-on at my current weight class was suicide.
First, the Gold Carp Family was involved.
I did not know the details, but Mama Ceres had somehow gotten a hand in it too.
But the Gold Carp Family had practically left the fake Progenitor unattended, trusting only their perception-obscuring barrier.
Until the fake Progenitor escaped and was recaptured, they had not realized that I had abducted it.
Why?
Maybe they could not even imagine that a small fry like me had taken it.
Maybe they had let their guard down.
Or maybe the Gold Carp bastards were just idiots.
In any case, their follow-up measures had been rather sloppy.
So, if I dealt with it before the scale of the incident grew too large, before anyone could blink, would it somehow work out?
...That was the first reason for choosing the bottom-dealing strategy.
Then why not tell Ceres and Yiming?
This takes a little explaining.
First, Mama Ceres.
Ceres seemed more attached to me than I had thought.
If I stopped acting like a traitor and built a deeper bond with her, maybe I could rope her in as an accomplice, just as I had with Project Z.
But Ceres was far more deeply involved with this fake Progenitor than Yiming hyung was.
Moreover, because of the Penalty, I could not explain why I needed to carry out servant conversion on Arbel.
If I failed to persuade her... I would essentially waste an entire iteration.
Then what about Yiming hyung?
At a glance, persuading him and pursuing our grand undertaking together seemed like the obvious play, but....
“Honestly, it's iffy.”
It was just as difficult to persuade him of the justification for carrying out servant conversion on Arbel as it was with Ceres.
Some might ask this.
Yiming had risked his life for Rowan in the last iteration.
Would he not risk his life to help again this time?
It sounded plausible at first glance, but....
These were separate matters.
Let us take Yiming hyung's point of view as an example.
1) A close kid brother incurred enormous debt trading futures and entered Squid Game.
Yiming would join the game and risk his life.
The water had already been spilled, so he would protect his younger brother even at the risk of his life.
That was the shining brotherly love Yiming had shown in the previous iteration.
But this time?
2) A close kid brother quits a perfectly good job, takes out the maximum possible credit loan, and asks Yiming to trade futures with him. (If they fail, they both go to Squid Game. There is no prize money.)
Would he really do that too?
Yiming's loyalty was certainly radiant.
But it was not the kind of loyalty that leaped into a hell of fire with a younger brother throwing an illogical tantrum.
Besides....
This iteration had obviously given us less time together than the previous one, had it not?
In the worst case, forgiveness was easier than permission.
I would steal the fake Progenitor first, and if I hit a snag, it would not be too late to ask for cooperation then.
“Brother Yiming, this worthless younger brother is desperate too. Please help me just one more time.”
Therefore.
Creeeak!!!
This was my second visit to the basement.
A bag of familiar shape sat in the middle of the container.
The sight of it brought back fond memories.
The memory of growing weak from offering blood every day.
The memory of breaking my back waiting on the True Progenitor, drawing bathwater every morning and buying snacks.
The memory of walking on eggshells whenever the True Progenitor so much as twitched an eyebrow.
But my devoted service had failed to reach it, and it eventually ran away from home.
And instead of hiding properly after running away, it got caught again and got me killed too.
They were truly wonderful memories.
When I opened the bag, Shion was curled up inside the straitjacket with eyes closed.
“Wow, it has really been a long time.”
A smile bloomed on my lips.
“This iteration, I'll really treat you well.”
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