WeTried Translations
Translator: Joy
Editor: Joy
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Damned Transmigration ◈
Chapter 55: Total embarrassment
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Of course, Yuri had not come expecting a good reaction.
If the man was not a transmigrator, Yuri had suddenly shown up spouting incomprehensible bullshit. He could understand being attacked.
And if he was a transmigrator? Even if he was somehow living well in a decrepit shack, another transmigrator had suddenly come to visit. Yuri could understand the wariness.
Still, the reaction was far more intense than he had expected. An attack was one thing, but the expression on the man’s face was not normal.
Fear.
Yuri had lived a rough life for the past two years. Rather than getting involved with righteous-path martial artists or adventurers, he had spent his time dealing with Black Path martial artists and wanderers.
It was not as though none of them had been reasonably decent people, but most had been after Yuri’s money or his life. Even a cheerful man who had laughed heartily and asked Yuri to join his sect or organization had turned into a knife-wielding thug after Yuri politely refused, threatening him.
Yuri had nearly died many times, but he had survived in the end. And whenever he survived, the situation reversed.
Roichi of Haomun, who had smugly told him that he would not receive a letter of recommendation unless he paid up, had begged for his life with cold sweat, tears, and drool running down his face after every martial artist he had brought along to intimidate Yuri died.
Even if it was cheap fear obtained by threatening people with a knife, no, with his fists, Yuri was used to fear. Over the past two years, he had returned fear to those who tried to kill him far more often than he had felt it himself.
That was why the fear on The Pointing Flame’s face was both familiar and surprising. The emotion created by the mingling of the threat of death and the collapse of the life he had built was more intense than any fear Yuri had witnessed before.
How should he put it?
The man looked as though he had seen a ghost.
“Ji-ssibal-a, why the fuck are you acting like this?”
This was no time to worry about pronunciation.
A red line shot out from The Pointing Flame’s fingertips, and explosions erupted before Yuri’s eyes. Yuri moved instead of relying solely on his protective force aura.
BOOM!
A series of explosions pursued Yuri.
He had fought someone at the fifth tier once before.
Third- and fourth-tier fighters were everywhere, but even in this world, there were quite a few fifth-tier fighters who remained stuck at that wall.
His opponent had been a swordsman, and Yuri had not struggled. Naturally, the man had been weaker than the Blood Fiend. Yuri had won without even using Sacred Flame Release.
However, this was his first time fighting a fifth-tier mage.
The matchup between martial artists and mages depended heavily on distance. At a range where a mage could unleash spells, the mage naturally held the advantage. At a range where a martial artist could attack, the martial artist held the advantage.
In terms of range, an unarmed fighter had many disadvantages. No matter what weapon they faced, their range was shorter than their opponent’s. If they got inside, they were almost guaranteed to gain the advantage, but getting inside was not easy.
In other words, the disadvantage of facing a mage was not especially troublesome for Yuri. He was used to being at a range disadvantage, and for the past two years, he had pursued ways to close distance decisively and boldly.
Naturally, the answer was his feet.
How he moved them. Combat footwork for fighting, and movement arts for crossing long distances.
Yuri lowered his body as though he were about to lie flat on the ground.
Crack.
Internal energy erupted from his dantian and filled every muscle in his body.
The direction of a pointing finger was a feint. The line extending from The Pointing Flame’s fingertips was the same. It was a simple and obvious fake, but openly pointing made it surprisingly effective.
However, it meant little to Yuri. His intuition, sharpened with every rise in tier, combined with his understanding of mana to broaden his perception.
The explosion had not occurred yet, but an explosion caused by magic inevitably had fluctuations in mana as a precursor.
Even if it lasted only an instant, Yuri did not miss that precursor. The moment it was about to become reality, Yuri sprinted forward.
“!”
The Pointing Flame had stepped in to prevent Yuri from coming any closer because this was the optimal range for bombarding him with magic.
Mages were not necessarily duller in their senses or slower in their reactions than martial artists. Low-tier mages might be, but by the fourth tier, mages gained senses appropriate to their tier through the expansion of their souls.
At the fifth tier, they also kept all kinds of support spells active to assist their consciousness and senses. The Pointing Flame was no different. The magical switches he had kept off switched on, accelerating his thoughts and slowing everything in his vision.
That triggered a succession of other switches. Various corrections were added to balance the distortions created by his accelerated thoughts.
‘Crazy.’
Bzzzzing!
The Pointing Flame felt intense pain in his eyes and brain. It was not merely because Yuri was moving quickly. What Yuri had wrapped around himself was not ordinary protective force aura.
‘Magic?’
Accelerating one’s thoughts to conveniently control one’s vision was a technique used by most mages. Yet Yuri’s protective force aura fluctuated chaotically within that slowed vision, placing a burden on The Pointing Flame’s eyes and brain.
It was like staring intently at a dizzying optical illusion for too long.
Within the violently shaking protective force aura, internal energy circulated in chaotic currents, twisting even the mana around it.
To The Pointing Flame, it looked as though a living flame were approaching him. Already gripped by chilling fear, he found it difficult to remain calm as that blazing flame came closer and closer.
“D-don’t come!”
That scream-like cry only made Yuri more confused. He understood that the man would be flustered and frightened, but The Pointing Flame’s reaction seemed far too intense.
BOOM!
Every time The Pointing Flame wildly waved his hands, lines of flame streaked out. It did not stop there. The entire decrepit shack shook.
Rumble!
Magic buried beneath the ground activated.
A wall of crimson flames blocked Yuri’s path. Yuri did not panic and kicked off the ground.
Suddenly, he remembered a tokusatsu show he had watched as a child. The protagonist had worn a mask with an insect-like face and tights. Yuri knew it had been a long-running series, and its signature finishing move had been a flying kick.
The special effects bursting with a bang. A flying kick with an explosion at its back.
It was not a technique created with that in mind, but Yuri’s kick now resembled that tokusatsu show’s finishing move.
The wall of flames split apart.
He saw The Pointing Flame’s face, eyes wide open. The man did not give up and continued bombarding him with magic, but he could not stop Yuri.
Crash!
The tightly shut door was kicked backward and fell.
“Aaargh!”
His territory had been invaded. The Pointing Flame let out a terrified scream and hurriedly tried to throw himself out the window.
But Yuri moved his hand faster.
Black Fang flew from Yuri’s waist toward The Pointing Flame.
“Eek!”
A defensive barrier formed immediately, but Black Fang had always been sharp, and Yuri had infused it with force aura. The moment it made contact, it punched through the barrier and pierced The Pointing Flame’s robe.
Crash!
The Pointing Flame was dragged down by his pierced robe and rolled across the ground. He hurriedly twisted his body and extended a finger toward Yuri, but Yuri moved first again.
Thud!
Yuri rushed forward and drove a kick into The Pointing Flame’s solar plexus.
“Keuk!”
The fallen man’s body jolted violently.
He had cast a defensive spell inside his body the moment Yuri’s kick came in, but it was useless. It felt as though a large sword, rather than a foot, had stabbed into him.
And Yuri had held back considerably. If he had put proper strength into it, The Pointing Flame would not merely have suffered ruptured organs. His body would have burst apart.
“Controlling my strength with my feet is really difficult.”
Yuri grumbled as he removed his hood.
Since he had changed his face, he had planned not to use Fist of the Rending Cloud here and to use only his feet. But sealing away the fists he normally used was simply uncomfortable.
The opponents he had fought so far had all been around the same level, so it had been fine. But could he handle someone above the middle of the fifth tier with only his feet?
‘If I really have to, I’ll mix in my fists.’
Would it not be fine as long as he sealed away the Art of the Violet Lightning Flash? In truth, all he needed to do was leave no witnesses.
“I told you not to throw Black Fang.”
Haryeong grumbled as she entered the house. She stood the fallen door back up and roughly leaned it against the entrance.
“What Voice Transmission did you send him to make him react like that?”
“It’s a secret.”
“A secret, my foot. Did you perhaps say that, um, Cat Panties thing you said to me?”
“I said it’s a secret.”
“Young Brother Juga, I am genuinely curious. What exactly are Cat Panties? Does it mean a cat wearing panties? Or panties with a cat drawn on them?”
“Big Sister, can’t you just not ask?”
“What can I do when I am curious?”
“I was briefly insane and said nonsense. I would appreciate it if you erased it from your memory.”
“That will not be easy.”
As they chatted quietly, they lifted The Pointing Flame. Unable to endure the pain from the kick, he had passed out foaming at the mouth.
“Should we bind him?”
“Why bind him when we are having a conversation?”
Yuri answered as he looked around the house.
Nothing particularly stood out, but he could see several spells. Yuri walked around the house, disabling the troublesome spells one by one.
“Did you teach yourself magic as well?”
“Shared magic, yes.”
“And the gift you received?”
Yuri did not answer. He merely glared at Haryeong.
“You should abandon any hope that Lady Elena is looking for you.”
That was the extent of what Haryeong had told Yuri about Elena when they reunited, and Yuri had not asked further.
Honestly, he wanted to ask. How had Elena lived over the past two years? Was she healthy? Was she eating properly? Was she lonely? There were countless things he wanted to ask, but he could not bring himself to do it.
Still, he had heard rumors about Elena. The favored talent of the Dersia Mage Tower had reached the fifth tier at the age of twenty-two. He had also heard that she was no longer called Marigold, but Mad Thunder.
“...I learned those too.”
Yuri had learned the three spell formulas from the Heinderga Magic Formula Elena had left behind two years ago as magic and incorporated them into his martial arts as well.
The reason Yuri had gained the alias Thunder Cloud was not only the combination of Fist of the Rending Cloud and the Art of the Violet Lightning Flash. It was also because he had incorporated the Heinderga Magic Formula into his techniques.
‘You are full of lingering attachment.’
Haryeong’s lips twitched beneath her fox mask. Elena was not the only one clinging to attachment while trying to look away from it.
‘Would it have been better to bring her along by force?’
The thought suddenly crossed Haryeong’s mind.
Their final meal together the day before they left had not been pleasant, honestly. They had spoken as they normally did, but there had been a distance between them greater than the table they sat across from.
That had been largely Haryeong’s intention. It was not that she had wanted Elena to sever her feelings. She had deliberately provoked her, hoping Elena would change. If Elena had said she wanted to go with them, Haryeong would gladly have taken the driver’s seat for her.
But Elena never said she would go with them. Just as she had for two years, she chose to turn away from her emotions and lingering attachment, remaining alone in that empty, lonely, dreary estate.
‘I wonder if she is eating properly.’
Haryeong had not brought up Yuri solely for Elena’s sake. Her words then had also been a declaration of war of sorts.
She was interested in Yuri. She wanted him and wanted to claim him first.
Of course, this interest was not the affection between a man and a woman that might make Elena jealous. Still, would it not be cleaner to tell Elena first and seek a kind of permission, rather than approach Yuri in secret and tell her later?
“Should I go outside?”
Haryeong asked, glancing out the window.
It had not taken long to subdue The Pointing Flame. But he had caused loud explosions and flung flames about, making far too much noise. The shack was isolated, but it was in the middle of the slums.
Slum residents drawn by the noise were approaching.
“You would stand out more if you went outside.”
As Yuri spoke, he raised a finger and traced lines through the air. The surrounding mana followed the formula he inscribed and became magic.
Whoosh...
A soundproof barrier spread around the shack.
“You have become quite talented.”
“...”
“If you are pleased, say so. This big sister is not stingy with praise.”
“Ahem. It is nothing impressive.”
“It seems you have not received much sincere praise over the past two years.”
That was not it. It just felt quietly good to receive praise from someone he had known two years ago.
Naturally, Yuri did not show it on his face or say it aloud. Haryeong would certainly tease him.
“Ugh...”
When Yuri jabbed a pressure point on The Pointing Flame, the man groaned and regained consciousness.
“Hah...!”
The Pointing Flame, who had been slumped over, suddenly came fully awake.
“Don’t scream.”
Yuri no longer added usa to the ends of his sentences. He placed a chair he had dragged over in front of The Pointing Flame and continued.
“Your neighbors seem worried about you, so stand at the window and tell them you’re fine.”
“You... you...!”
“Don’t do anything unnecessary. You know it too, don’t you? No matter what you do, you can’t handle me.”
“...”
“I didn’t come here to kill you. I only want to have a conversation. But even this conversation is only possible if you cooperate. If you don’t cooperate, I’ll have no choice but to conduct a different kind of conversation.”
Before Yuri, Lee Su-hyeok, came to this world, Lorelia had told him something.
“Violence is an excellent tool for negotiation and conversation that works in most situations!”
He had not truly understood those words before, but over the past two years, he had come to feel their truth in his bones. Rather than trying to negotiate or converse by putting forward flimsy reason or emotion, it was much easier to lead a negotiation and conversation after first demonstrating the difference in power.
The Pointing Flame hesitantly stood and approached the window. Under Yuri’s watch, he waved a few times at those outside, then returned to the chair and dropped heavily into it.
“Is... is it really true...?”
The Pointing Flame asked, panting.
“You really... didn’t come to kill me...?”
“I told you I didn’t.”
“Then... then what was with the way you spoke?”
Fear spread across The Pointing Flame’s pale face again.
“The... the Rabbit Star! Usa!”
“Rabbit Star?”
Haryeong, who had not heard the Voice Transmission, tilted her head.
“Usa?”
“Hey, Ji-ssibal-a, let’s not say unnecessary things.”
Yuri hurried to cover The Pointing Flame’s mouth, but the man seemed half-panicked. His unfocused eyes shook wildly as he spat out his words.
“What you, you said to me through Voice Transmission! That you came from the Rabbit Star... the Rabbit Star!”
“Shut the fuck up.”
“To meet me! R-revenge? Revenge? Did you come from the Rabbit Star to get revenge on me?!”
“Please, just stop.”
“Usa, usa... usa!”
Yuri had no idea what trauma those words held, but The Pointing Flame clutched his head with both hands and trembled as though he were having a seizure.
The whites of his eyes darkened as though ink were spreading through them, and black blood trickled from his nose.
“An Inner Demon!”
Haryeong cried out in surprise.
An Inner Demon, a type of mental breakdown, was not an illness exclusive to martial artists. Every human possessed one. Even a humiliating childhood memory flashing back and making someone scream and kick their blanket was a type of Inner Demon.
Of course, those were extremely mild Inner Demons. A genuine episode caused by intense trauma, like The Pointing Flame’s, was a serious case.
In particular, if the minds of mages or martial artists were shaken by an Inner Demon, the internal energy in their dantians or their Soul Power could flow in reverse and develop into Qi Deviation.
“U... usa, usa, usausa...”
A stream of nosebleed ran down The Pointing Flame’s chin and dripped below.
“Sir, Ji-ssibal-a’s mind could collapse if this continues.”
Perhaps because the situation was so urgent, Haryeong’s voice was hurried as well.
“W-what am I supposed to do?”
Yuri had gone through all sorts of experiences over the past two years, but this was his first time facing something like this.
“I don’t know the details, but didn’t the Voice Transmission you sent and the pressure of this situation trigger his Inner Demon? I think you need to calm him down first.”
At those words, Yuri bit his lip.
[A-are you alright, usa? Get a grip, usa!]
“Sir, he won’t even hear Voice Transmission in his current state.”
“Ah, please...”
Yuri felt as though he might develop an Inner Demon himself.
But he had no choice. Yuri squeezed his eyes shut and opened his mouth.
“G-get a grip, usa!”
“...?”
“I-I didn’t come here to kill you, usa! I didn’t come here for revenge, usa!”
After speaking several lines in succession, Yuri cautiously opened his eyes and looked at Haryeong.
His eyes met Haryeong’s behind her fox mask. At that moment, she slowly lifted the mask she wore.
He wondered why, only to realize that she wanted to show him that expression.
Her face was usually expressionless, but now there was a clear distortion in her brows and the corners of her mouth.
What that distortion held was unmistakable disgust.
“Huuurk...”
After Yuri calmed him down with several more usausas, focus returned to The Pointing Flame’s eyes. He vomited a mouthful of black, dead blood and panted as he took deep breaths.
“You... really didn’t come... to kill me?”
“Y-yes, usa.”
It felt as though the dignity and honor inherent to a human being had been chipped away. To control the murderous intent spreading from the depths of his chest, along with the emotions and Inner Demon drifting through his mind, Yuri recalled the oral verses of the Heavenly Art of Annihilating Evil.
“...Then why did you recite that demon woman’s speech pattern and persona? Is that, that, that demon still alive? Did she send you to kill me?”
“W-what?”
The Pointing Flame’s stammering voice reached Yuri as he recited the oral verses of the Heavenly Art of Annihilating Evil in his mind. Yuri could not help stammering as well.
“A demon woman?”
More shocking than the possibility that USAUSAMI₍ᐢ.ˬ.ᐢ₎ might be dead was the fact that USAUSAMI was a woman.
“USAUSAMI is a woman?”
Yuri asked again, unable to believe it.
Footnotes:
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