WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Damned Transmigration ◈
Chapter 78: Alderan 2
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Yuri looked utterly aggrieved. Lacey stared at him for a moment, then clicked her tongue.
“Wouldn't it be better to stop lying when we both know what's going on?”
“I don't know what you're talking about, Lacey.”
She hadn't expected him to lie so shamelessly. Dumbfounded, Lacey let out a hollow laugh.
“Ha, Yuri. I don't want to make things even more difficult between you and Elena, when they're already...”
Weren't things long past the point of merely being rocky? The thought crossed her mind, but Lacey continued.
“I'll make this clear because I don't want to drive an unnecessary wedge between you and Elena. Elena hasn't said anything about you. But we're certain that you're a transmigrator.”
“I'm taken aback.”
“I'm taken aback too. I never imagined you'd deny it.”
“You can't accuse someone based on suspicion alone.”
“Suspicion? Ha!”
His answer still sounded shameless, but Elena had firmly denied what had happened two years ago. So it was true that Lacey had only circumstantial evidence.
“Two years ago, you were attacked in Logos by the Blood Fiend, one of the Seven Evils of the previous generation.”
“Yes.”
“Even if it wasn't in perfect condition, Elena and Haryeong couldn't possibly have survived against the Blood Fiend with the strength they had at the time.”
“The Blood Fiend was in worse shape than you assume.”
“Urgh... And then, you reached the fifth tier in just two years! You even defeated the Sword Dragon in a spar!”
“A lot happened to me over those two years. I found some fortunate opportunities too.”
Lacey couldn't help feeling frustrated by his smooth answers.
The reason she had dragged Yuri into this room the instant they met was because he was the most recent transmigrator. If she could hear about Earth from him, she might also learn what had happened to UrMumSpammer and how things were on Earth. But she couldn't get Yuri to open his mouth.
“Wouldn't it be better if we were honest with each other and put each other at ease?”
Lacey swallowed her irritation and anger before asking.
That man was definitely a transmigrator. Even if Elena refused to admit it, the fact that Elena had become so broken was proof enough.
There was also evidence that came close to confirmation.
The conversation Orca and Elena had shared. Lacey hadn't been in the room that day, but Orca had told her what they discussed.
If the Sect of War ever suspected Yuri of being a transmigrator and investigated his past, Orca would personally vouch for his identity.
That wasn't all. Orca had even summoned the owner of a general store in Oldor to Rutlan. Judging by the circumstances, that shopkeeper had been the first person Yuri met after transmigrating into this world.
‘It must have been for Elena's sake.’
Elena herself hadn't seemed to care about that shopkeeper at all, but Orca's consideration was enough to reassure her.
Still, Lacey couldn't tell Yuri any of that. Even as Heavenly Thunder Orca's closest confidant, Lacey held that position because she knew when to keep her mouth shut. Elena was especially important. Orca had spent over a decade nurturing her as a disciple. Yuri was someone who could provoke and manipulate Elena, so Lacey absolutely couldn't talk about him.
“I know that you're a transmigrator...”
“You're being extremely rude.”
Lacey Yuzha was a transmigrator. Yuri had held a suspicion bordering on certainty since they first met at the Dersia Mage Tower, and watching her pressure him now made it seem certain.
Her initial desperation must have come from not wanting Elena to find out about this meeting. That meant Elena probably didn't know Lacey was a transmigrator either.
“You asked me to come with you, so I did. Yet you've dragged an innocent person in here and interrogated him about being a transmigrator. I didn't know you were this unreasonable, Lacey.”
From the way she spoke, her suspicions had clearly become conviction. Still, even if Lacey was a transmigrator, Yuri had no intention of immediately admitting that he was one too. As Heavenly Thunder Orca's closest confidant, Lacey wasn't someone he could silence by killing, like the Pointing Flame.
“Th-that...!”
It was a perfectly reasonable point. Lacey's shoulders trembled.
“...”
She thought for a moment. How could she make him admit he was a transmigrator? She couldn't make him talk while she alone kept her secret.
Could she get the answer by force? It was worth trying. Yuri might have defeated the Sword Dragon in a spar, but Lacey had long surpassed the level of an ordinary fifth-tier mage.
She didn't want to do that, though. Question him by force? Lacey considered herself an intelligent, refined, moral person.
“I'm a transmigrator too.”
It had been a little over six years since Silver Wood of the Habert Mage Tower transmigrated into this world.
The information Silver Wood had passed on about Earth stopped in June 2022. Lacey didn't want to return to Earth, but she was curious about what was happening in the place that had been her first home.
More than that, she was curious about Yuri's identity. What had happened to UrMumSpammer? Could this man be UrMumSpammer?
Please.
Honestly, Lacey hoped Yuri was UrMumSpammer. If he was, she was willing to shed her intelligent, refined persona for a while.
“So... what do you want me to do about that?”
Yuri hadn't expected Lacey to come out as a transmigrator first. No matter how secure her backing was, wasn't that far too reckless? Still, even if Lacey revealed her identity, there was no reason Yuri had to reveal his.
“...”
Lacey's tightly pressed lips trembled. She felt a powerful urge to become a barbarian, but barely restrained it.
“Um, Yuri? I don't think you understand the situation. Even if Elena hasn't said anything, Orca and I are certain you're a transmigrator.”
“You're deeply mistaken. I don't even know where to begin clearing that up.”
“Aaah!”
Unable to hold back any longer, Lacey let out a shrill scream. She ripped off the ridiculous hat she wore and threw it onto the floor, then stomped on it again and again.
“Argh! Aaah!”
“You look like you just bought that. Is it really okay to stomp on it?”
“I'll buy another one!”
Breathing heavily, Lacey jerked her head up and glared at Yuri.
“You're UrMumSpammer, aren't you?”
“Mum... insults? What are those?”
“Chuk-sin-doo! Cat Panties! USAUSAMI! FUCKINGSEXY!”
Thud, thud! Lacey kept stomping on the hat as she shouted. Yuri was genuinely taken aback by the change in the Lacey who had seemed so rational and gentle moments ago.
“Please calm down.”
“You're UrMumSpammer!”
“What are you even talking about...”
“I know you're a transmigrator! Tell me, tell me your name!”
“My name is Yuri.”
“Not that name! Your name on Earth!”
“Listen, Lacey. Let's say, just for the sake of argument, that I am a transmigrator. Even then, why would I have any reason to admit it to you?”
“I told you I'm a transmigrator too!”
“I'm not a transmigrator, so I don't know what kind of relationship transmigrators have with each other. But two transmigrators don't have to trust each other unconditionally just because they're both transmigrators, do they?”
“Th-that...!”
That was another perfectly reasonable point, making it hard for Lacey to find a rebuttal. She felt like she was going insane with frustration. She was certain that man was a transmigrator because of what Orca told her, but she couldn't tell him that directly, so she couldn't make him admit it...!
“...”
Lacey bit down on her lip, then kicked a nearby chair once.
“Fine. I got too worked up.”
“I'm glad you realize that.”
“First...! I don't want there to be any more misunderstandings, so I'll make my position clear. Yuri, I'm beyond merely suspecting that you're a transmigrator. I'm certain of it. But I don't intend to use that against you or blackmail you.”
“Blackmail?”
“I mean I have no intention of spreading your identity among the people around you.”
The moment she said that, Yuri's gaze changed. Hostility so chilling that goosebumps rose over Lacey's body filled his eyes. It wasn't killing intent yet, but it was perilously close. It would take only the slightest tilt for it to become killing intent.
“Hmm...”
The hostility cleared her mind instead. Lacey clenched and unclenched the fist hidden beneath her gown sleeve as she stared at Yuri.
An ordinary mage would first consider putting distance between them when faced with someone displaying such hostility. Lacey wasn't an ordinary mage. She had learned martial arts as well as magic. Her magical studies ran far deeper, but she had learned martial arts to use that magic better.
“Please put away that hostility...”
“Fuck you.”
Lacey hadn't even finished speaking. Ptui! Yuri spat into a corner of the room and glared at her.
“I put up with you dragging an innocent person in here and trying to blackmail him, even though it pissed me the fuck off. But you've seriously crossed the line.”
“E-excuse me?”
“What the fuck are you trying to do? Huh? I said I'm not one, so what are you going to do about it? Got proof?”
She probably did. If she had proof she could show him, she would have already done so. Lacey was the one who had crossed the line and started running wild. Yuri had been patient enough.
“You say you don't intend to blackmail me? Then what the hell have you been doing this whole time? Just because the master of the Dersia Mage Tower favors you, does that mean you can grab an innocent person and torment him like this?”
“Y-you're swearing...”
“Are you upset because you're getting sworn at after doing something that deserves it? What do you want me to do? I was basically a third-rate gangster back home, so I don't know what else I'm supposed to do in a situation like this besides swear.”
Yuri scowled at Lacey, then raised his fist.
“It's not like I can punch you just because I feel fucking awful, right? See? I'm such a rational person. I might have been an orphan who got tossed around in a third-rate gang, but I'm not the kind of person who suddenly misunderstands someone, finds their weakness, and blackmails them.”
“Um, wait a moment, Yuri.”
“So what are you, Lacey? Even an orphan and third-rate gangster like me knows what manners are, so why don't you? Are you an orphan too?”
“...What?”
“I asked if you're an orphan. Didn't your parents teach you there are things you shouldn't do when you were little?”
Lacey opened and closed her mouth, unable to continue. An orphan? Lacey wasn't an orphan. Even if they hadn't been close, she had parents on Earth. The person named Lacey Yuzha had parents too.
“You're asking about my parents... This is...”
Lacey knew what parental insults meant. But the words Yuri had just spoken and the parental insults UrMumSpammer used in the past felt different in meaning and weight. Unlike UrMumSpammer, who hurled parental insults indiscriminately in every situation, Yuri's question fit both his feelings and the current situation.
‘Was that even a parental insult to begin with...?’
She knew the meaning, but Lacey didn't perfectly understand parental insults. That made her even more confused. Yuri had adamantly denied being UrMumSpammer, yet now he was spewing something like a parental insult. Was that a silent admission? Or had he said it because he genuinely didn't know what parental insults were? If it was the latter, Yuri might still be a transmigrator, but he wasn't UrMumSpammer...
Her thoughts were a mess, but she needed to calm the fury in Yuri's eyes first. Lacey raised both hands to put out the immediate fire.
“I'm sorry, Yuri. I made a mistake. I don't want to become your enemy, so please calm down. This was something I desperately needed to confirm too.”
She forcibly calmed herself. As she had said, Lacey didn't want to become Yuri's enemy. If possible, she wanted to build enough closeness for him to tell her his identity himself.
Preferably without Elena finding out. Either way, Lacey didn't want to give Elena another reason to be upset.
‘Though Orca might enjoy it.’
It was true that she had acted on her own and been rude. How could she ease Yuri's hostility? After thinking for a moment, Lacey spoke.
“Moonlit Reveller, Chuk-sin-doo, is looking for the Sect of Order.”
It was something she had heard from Orca, but Lacey didn't consider it a secret. Moonlit Reveller and Orca were fairly friendly, but nowhere near as close as Orca was with Elena.
“Also, he's looking for other transmigrators, especially transmigrators from the same place. His use of the name Chuk-sin-doo in this world, his outfit, and...”
She suddenly tested him. Strongly suspecting Yuri was UrMumSpammer, Lacey boldly cast aside her refined persona and jumped.
“Ho... Hou!”
She wanted to cast it aside boldly, but stuttered once instead. It was a pose she had never tried in her life, so it looked awkward.
Lacey knew the cry for that celebration wasn't actually pronounced “Hou.” She had corrected Chuk-sin-doo several times. But when facing UrMumSpammer, that Korean man, she had to say “Hou,” not “SIU.” Lacey hadn't forgotten what Chuk-sin-doo had told her directly.
“...”
Lacey suddenly jumping up and performing that celebration left Yuri unable to continue. If he hadn't been angry and tense, he would have broken into laughter and failed to keep a straight face.
“The... the reason for doing this celebration... is to find people from the same place.”
“Ah... I see.”
Aside from her sudden insanity, Lacey's story was worth hearing. Chuk-sin-doo was looking for the Sect of Order. He was also searching for transmigrators from the same place...
‘Me? Cat Panties?’
Cat Panties had said they knew Chuk-sin-doo from the old community, and Yuri had been fairly close to Chuk-sin-doo too. It never happened, but Chuk-sin-doo had even said he would buy Yuri a drink sometime.
“Whether Chuk-sin-doo is looking for the Sect of Order to obtain information about other transmigrators, or because he has business with the Sect itself, I don't know. But he became a problem solver for the Ascard Family so they would introduce him to the Sect of Order. The reason he intervened in the Vernoc conflict was also because of the Ascard Family's wishes.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Isn't that quite an interesting story for a transmigrator like you?”
“I told you I'm not one.”
His answer was consistent. Remembering something Chuk-sin-doo had muttered, Lacey blurted out a question.
“Vomit, perhaps?”
It was fortunate Yuri had been controlling his emotions, since he never knew what nonsense Lacey would throw at him next. Her nonsense was sharper than Estor's sword during their last spar. Without consciously maintaining a mind as clear and still as water, she was hard to deal with.
“V-vomit? What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Hmm...”
Chuk-sin-doo had been skeptical that Yuri was a transmigrator from the same place, but Lacey still left room for doubt.
“Fine. Let's leave it at this. No matter what else I say, it seems difficult to hear the truth from you.”
“Is it finally over?”
“Heavenly Downpour!”
Lacey suddenly shouted.
“You said we'd leave it at this.”
“Ahem...”
Heat rushed to Lacey's face from embarrassment, and she cleared her throat.
“If... if you ever want us to be close enough to share secrets, please tell me. I know several transmigrators, so I may be able to help you.”
“No, thank you.”
Yuri answered flatly.
“I'm sorry I got angry and swore at you, but you did something deserving of it. Honestly, anyone else would have sworn worse. You might have even gotten hit.”
“I'm sorry.”
Lacey was the first to bow her head. Yuri didn't respond. He sharply turned around and opened the door.
‘I’d better be careful the next time I meet that crazy bitch.’
Honestly, what Lacey said about other transmigrators was information worth hearing. That still didn't mean he could openly reveal he was a transmigrator.
He especially thought it would be best not to reveal anything about UrMumSpammer.
Anyone obsessed with that name even after coming to this world probably wasn't in their right mind.
Footnotes:
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