WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator/Editor: Ryuu

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DAMNED 13TH REGRESSION

Chapter 15: Our Great and Almighty Sovereign

Within the GM's crimson velvet cloak, a whirlwind swirled, conjuring a form.

In the gloomy underground world devoid of light, children with dark-skinned, bald heads gathered, drinking murky water.

'The dead,' their flesh falling off in chunks, approached the children, those obsessed with the living.

Mothers offered one arm to 'the dead' to beg for the lives of their husbands and children. Men, having scavenged dried moss and mushrooms from deep caves, threw them aside and rushed to someone.

It was a priest with a black jackal head, akin to the Temple Guardian.

'O Protector, when shall our Lord Ra Djehuty grace us again?'

'We were born here, yet we know this place to be abominable. Here, devoid of any hope, we merely await our end, day by day.'

'We are weary of this place. Urben and I shall depart with our families for the 'Original City,' inhabited by those ascending the tower.'

Two men left with their families.

The priest, holding a circular Ankh Cross[1], silently wept.

'O our Almighty Lord Ra Djehuty, I beseech thee, deliver us.'

The two families cautiously escaped the dead and fled to the entrance of the 48th floor.

There, they encountered a group of armed men.

It was the Babel Expedition Knights from the continent of Pezalon.

'What bringeth these dimensional refugees to us?'

'We desire entry into the 5th floor's Original City, where the great ones dwell. We shall do anything. Please, take us in.'

'Anything, thou sayest? How fortuitous!'

The holy knights of Pezalon rejoiced with laughter.

The families, once twenty, were reduced to four.

'The holy sword of Valmeyer is replenished. Sixteen shots remain.'

'This place lacked useful souls. Fortuitously, we have found some.'

Urben, trembling in a corner and observing the knights, murmured.

'Our families were doomed to perish here, regardless.'

Urben, now alone without the other man, tried to justify. A girl, having lost her father, stifled her sobs and prayed.

'O Almighty Ra Djehuty, I implore thee, save us.'

Fortuitously, Urben, having lived in the 48th floor's world, possessed a talent for necromancy.

Employing his talent, he became a mercenary for the Pezalonians. Always at the forefront of battle, he sustained the families that came with him. The Original Cities on the 5th floor, designated for tower ascenders, were safe havens.

Dimensional refugees often sought refuge there, pleading for safety. They were residents of worlds already doomed.

Only those of use could lead lives within the city, while the incapable met their ends outside its walls. Survival demanded continuous proof of one's necessity.

Urben always endeavored to remain a useful tool. Clear the tower? Such luxury of thought was unaffordable. To live another day, another month, another year, was satisfaction enough.

Crisis ensued.

On the 55th floor, led by the Demon Archduke Valbalus, Ten Thousand Knights triumphed in their mission.

The victory reward was the 'Three-Touch Death.' A law where the enemy perishes upon three contacts.

3,000 heroes of Pezalon were utterly ravaged by merely eleven demons.

Thrice blocked, yet ineffective. Thrice struck, yet fatal. Long-range attacks proved futile. Any contact with them meant death. Resistance was fundamentally impossible.

All of Pezalon retreated from the 55th floor, hoping for another opportunity.

Of course, sacrificial lambs were needed to thwart the eleven demons.

'Urben, use thy necromancy to halt the demons. Even death knights and zombies perish upon thrice contact, confirmed. Yet, at the very least, thou canst serve as a shield.'

'Ah, I cannot. Elders, please do not forsake me! My family…'

'Flee, and I shall slay thee. Thy family within the city shall all perish. Thy wife and daughter, violated for ten days and nights before death. Their corpses, thrown to hounds in heat, shall be defiled until limbs detach. Thy hometown on the 48th floor shall suffer the same fate. Thou hast enjoyed peace and happiness within our city. Yet, utterest such words. Dost thou, a once defeated race, know not gratitude nor pride? Filthy losers of Babel.'

Urben had no choice. He clutched the Ankh Cross he couldn't bear to part with.

'O Ra Djehuty, I beseech thee, deliver us…'

The Pezalonians departed. Urben, drawing upon all his life, raised the dead. Doggedly guarding the rear until the last Pezalon hero escaped.

And then, he perished.

…

Fortune favored him.

A week later, he arose amidst corpses. The demon's blade that dealt him the final blow was a necromantic weapon. Not thrice touched, but obliterated in one strike, it scattered soul fragments among the corpses using its power.

Grateful for his life, Urben returned to the 5th floor's Original City.

'A death knight of Anubis! All hands, battle formation!'

'Elders, 'tis I, Urben. Pray, lower thy bows.'

Struck by a hundred arrows and spells, Urben groveled, showing submission.

'Urben? Thou art not alive, yet thou art more useful than before. I commend thee.'

'Nay, elders. 'Tis my wish to be of service to thee.'

'Very well. This time, a grand reward for thee. I shall speak to the 'king' of the city and exempt thee from missions twice hence. Such privilege is immense for a refugee mercenary like thee. Now, retire and rest.'

'I am deeply grateful for thy magnanimity, elder.'

Urben kissed the elder's feet and withdrew. He longed to return to his family and reveal his survival.

Passing the screams of the passersby, he finally reached his home where his family awaited.

The home remained as always. Cheerful utensils, sunlight streaming in. Furniture clumsily made by the son, who helped with the blacksmithing. A wardrobe prepared for the newly adopted daughter, a friend's child, for her dowry. An armchair for the wife who had offered her limbs to the dead.

In the ever-familiar home, no one was to be found.

That was the last of Urben's sanity.

'Urben has gone mad! Urben has lost his mind!'

'Pour more holy water, priests and paladins! How many hours must we endure before it shrinks?'

'Prepare for the archduke raid! Where are the heroes and racial representatives?'

"They departed for the 55th-floor raid four hours ago!"

On the day Urben died, his family, too, was abandoned outside the city and perished.

Clearly, they never promised to care for his family in his stead.

The city could sustain only a limited number of lives. They merely discarded three useless, incapable individuals and a baby.

They made no promises to Urben, acting only as needed.

This fact pushed Urben to the brink of despair and madness.

Urben went mad. Or rather, it might be more apt to say he came to his senses.

For everyone here was mad.

"O Ra Djehuty! I beseech thee, save us!"

He pleaded for mercy.

"O Ra Djehuty, please. O Ra Djehuty!"

He called out in desperation.

"Ra Djehuty, Ra Djehuty! O Ra Djehuty!"

He cursed.

The lich's scream echoed throughout the city.

The dead rose, spreading darkness, while the remaining heroes of the city clenched their teeth, firing blasts of heat and waves of light.

At the city's highest spire, a massive lich cradled four ghouls picked up from the city's end. Gently, he stroked each head.

…

448 years later.

In the ruins of the 5th-floor city dungeon, a man picked up a book.

"The Anubis Lich, Urben's…"

Flutter.

The GM's crimson cloak closed.

"The tale ends here."

Gong-hyeok, by now, had taken a pipe from his bosom and put it to his lips.

"Yeon-si, give me a spark."

"Yes!"

At Gong-hyeok's flick of a finger, Yeon-si hurried over and handed him a lit match.

-What was yon occurrence but a moment past…?

"O our all-knowing Ra Djehuty. Thou wouldst know, wouldst thou not? Whether what was just shown be false or no."

-......

The pipe's tobacco, ablaze, emitted smoke. Gong-hyeok, having filled his mouth with smoke, closed his eyes and slowly exhaled, savoring the heavenly flavor, then smiled kindly.

"This is a declaration, Ra Djehuty. I now ascend Babel. Wilt thou but slumber here?"

Ra Djehuty closed his eyes. After a moment's silence, a soft resonance spread.

-I shall lend thee my strength. I, too, shall ascend Babel. Open thine embrace.

[Welcome to your abode.]

"Welcome, the second avatar."

Once consent was given, Ra Djehuty, like a shadow, was drawn into the GM's cloak.

[SS-tier Avatar. God of Covenants and Time, Ra Djehuty (Lah-Djehuty), has been bound to you.]

[Remaining Avatar Space 2/2. 'Game Master (Game Master)' 'Ra Djehuty']

[Avatar Ra Djehuty (SS)] LV.01

Stat Increase - Mind +100, Mana +200, Willpower +120, Technique +80.

1st Ability 《Unlocked》 '365 Days of Covenant'

2nd Ability Sealed 'Pre? Magic?'

3rd Ability Sealed 'Time? Land?'

Final Ability Sealed '? Myth'

"Truly, abilities of no immediate use."

Though nominally SS-tier with glamorous increases of +100, +200, these stats were not immediately necessary for Gong-hyeok.

Certainly, had he desired a combat avatar forthwith, he would have needed to subdue Cerberus (S+) from the Hellgate Labyrinth. Ra Djehuty, whose 1st ability was useless in combat, overall suited a supporter or long-range dealer.

Yet, as abilities awaken, Ra Djehuty reveals its utility (multi-purpose) avatar nature.

Especially, Ra Djehuty's '365 Days of Covenant' is a 'Covenant-type ability,' possessed by only three entities among tens of millions of avatars.

If not obtained on the 1st floor, one could only acquire such an ability from the Library Goddess 'Seshat'[2] on the 48th floor or the God of Records 'Nabu'[3] on the 72nd floor.

Moreover, the 2nd ability, 'Pre? Magic,' halves all magic skill mana consumption, doubling power and efficiency, while the 3rd ability, 'Time? Land?,' though limited in use, allows for manipulation of time's flow, a cheat skill.

Not all abilities are combat-oriented, but they are clearly top-tier skills adorning a manifestly SS-tier avatar.

"Are the conditions now met?"

After hunting the two-headed hellhound in the Hellgate Labyrinth to bolster combat prowess,

Gong-hyeok intended to dominate this game completely.

"Be it demons or angels, this is a game played by humans."

If humans play the game, rightfully humans should be the masters of the game.

"NPCs act as NPCs, dispensing quests and fade as extras. I shall govern the game."

Watching the day's events and Gong-hyeok's retreating figure, Soma quietly marveled.

"He’s truly an extraordinary man, gathering avatars within the dungeon."

Soma Sanggai, with a heart as soft as silk, wished to witness till the end the extraordinary Gong-hyeok, alongside the kind-hearted Yeon-si, surpassing all expectations.

Footnotes:

[1] The ankh or key of life is an ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic symbol used to represent the word for "life" and, by extension, as a symbol of life itself.

[2] Seshat was the ancient Egyptian goddess of writing, wisdom, and knowledge. She was seen as a scribe and record keeper; her name means "female scribe".

[3] Nabu was the patron god of scribes, literacy, and wisdom. He was also the inventor of writing, a divine scribe, the patron god of the rational arts, and a god of vegetation. As the god of writing, Nabu inscribed the fates assigned to men and he was equated with the scribe god Ninurta.

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