WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ Damned Transmigration ◈

Chapter 81: Alderan 5

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"There are quite a few empty seats."

A figure strolled out of the pitch-black darkness, glanced around the gray round table, and spoke.

The table looked large enough to seat dozens, yet only ten chairs surrounded it.

With so few chairs for a table that size, the gaps between them were naturally wide. Yet the distance between their owners was far greater than the space visible to the eye.

That was the nature of Saints. Some had been born and raised in this world, while others were transmigrators. They belonged to the same sect, served the same god, and sought to bring chaos to the world, but they were far from close.

"If we'd summoned everyone and ordered them to attend, at least half the seats would've been filled, Sau."

The figure lounging in a tilted chair with legs stretched out sneered.

Everyone here was known only by the baptismal names bestowed personally by the Pope. Even if they could roughly guess each other's identities, speaking a true name was an unspoken taboo. Their appearances were obscured, and even their voices differed from how they sounded in reality.

"Today is only a regular meeting. If it were a meeting we truly had to attend, the Pope would've convened it personally."

Haewol, seated in a distant chair, spoke.

"With how chaotic things have been lately, I honestly thought the Pope would call a meeting. It seems things haven't reached that point yet."

"The Pope might be personally involved in the Vernoc conflict."

Agwi, with his feet hooked over his chair, chuckled.

"I heard it's a living hell over there. There are countless people dying every day."

"Judging by your laughter, you seem less bothered than expected."

Gwimyeon spoke from a distant chair.

Creeeak...

Agwi dragged his chair upright with a loud scrape and glared at Gwimyeon. Through the mist obscuring his face, only his eyes gleamed ominously.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Do you really have to ask?"

Gwimyeon's altered voice carried unmistakable amusement.

"Panteleon. Agwi, wasn't that the place you put so much effort into? How many years had you been watching it?"

"..."

"The more lawless a place is, the harder it is to devour. Lawless people always keep other lawless people in check. Besides, the city's leaders had been watching the outer districts all along, even if they pretended otherwise."

Grit.

Agwi said nothing, only glaring at Gwimyeon with open murderous intent. Gwimyeon's eyes curved into crescents within the mist drifting around their face.

"You carefully deployed the bare minimum manpower so you wouldn't draw attention, yet the result was utterly futile. Didn't we warn you from the start? We told you it would be difficult to take control of a major city ruled by a Pride family."

"Shut up."

Agwi ground out the words, restraining the urge to leap from his seat.

"What happened in the Foul Village turned out that way because you failed to do your job properly, Gwimyeon."

"Hah. Now you're blaming me?"

"The area around the Demon Subjugation Palace was your territory, wasn't it? What the hell were you doing that you didn't even notice the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult leaving the Demon Subjugation Palace?"

"There was almost no information about the Young Cult Leader before this happened. No matter how diligently I kept watch, how was I supposed to find someone whose face I didn't even know?"

Gwimyeon shrugged and shook their head.

"Besides, we couldn't infiltrate followers into the Demon Subjugation Palace when they were guaranteed to be caught and killed. Nor could we attack everyone coming and going from it."

"The Young Cult Leader ran wild because you were cowering in fear!"

"I don't understand why you're blaming me. You were the one who poked at something you couldn't devour despite lacking the ability to do so, Agwi."

"That's enough."

Sau, who had been listening with his arms folded, finally spoke. Haewol, who had been enjoying Agwi and Gwimyeon's argument, smacked her lips regretfully.

"What's the point of clinging to the past and arguing about whose fault it was? Still, I believe Agwi's attempt was admirable."

"Even though it failed."

Gwimyeon added another taunt, and Agwi's shoulders trembled.

"Hmm. It doesn't seem anyone else is coming."

Having settled things for the moment, Sau looked around at the surrounding darkness. Only four people had attended the regular meeting. The other Saints, including the Pope, had not come.

"I thought candidates would be brought in to fill the empty seats soon."

"I don't even know how many empty seats there are."

"You never know. More seats may be opening up even as we speak."

"Oh my, are you talking about Vernoc?"

Haewol asked, eyes gleaming.

"I've heard Vernoc is a living hell as well."

Battle Saint, Zenith, Hyeonya, King of the Luminous Wheel, Heavenly Healer, Sword Demon, Tide of Carnage, Zenith Star, Moonlit Reveller.

Nine famous powerhouses were already involved in the Vernoc conflict. There were also quite a few others whose reputations were less impressive but whose tiers were not greatly inferior.

Perhaps one of those famous powerhouses was a Saint of their sect.

"No matter how brutal it is there, I don't think our brothers and sisters will die."

Haewol's voice carried a smile.

"The current empty seats have yet to be filled. I hope no more open up. There doesn't seem to be anyone worthy of being elevated as a Saint, either."

"Hmph. I only need one seat to remain empty."

Agwi, still glaring at Gwimyeon, spoke.

"A seat for that person. That seat must never be filled."

"Has that person crossed over?"

Haewol tilted her head.

"You never know, right? Perhaps that person has already crossed over but hasn't joined our sect."

"That's impossible."

Agwi's tone was absolute.

"If that person had crossed over into this world, that person would've joined the sect without fail."

"What if that person isn't an Apostle?"

"Do you think that's possible? No one has guided more transmigrators than that person. If that person isn't an Apostle, then who could be?"

"Hmm, I don't know much about the person you're talking about, but couldn't that person already be among us?"

Haewol, who had been giggling at the immediate response, spoke.

"Since that person is presumed to be an Apostle, couldn't it be the Pope? Or Yulho? Sau, what about you?"

Sau burst into laughter at being singled out. He raised a hand to stroke the lower half of his face beyond the mist, as if tugging on an invisible beard.

"Me, an Apostle? Even the thought is an honor. But I am not an Apostle."

"That person has not crossed into this world yet."

Agwi spoke again. Even Gwimyeon, who had kept taunting Agwi, did not sneer at the mention of that person. Instead, Gwimyeon nodded in agreement.

"I think so as well. That person... is not someone who would hide."

"Why not?"

"Because that person... enjoys having followers."

This time, Agwi answered. Haewol giggled as she looked back and forth between Agwi and Gwimyeon, seated far apart.

"Hehe. Agwi, Gwimyeon. You two bicker like sworn enemies every time you meet, but you always agree when it comes to that person. Though transmigrators are unusually interested in that person."

"You speak as if you aren't a transmigrator yourself."

Haewol covered her smile with a hand behind the mist.

"Let's stop with the obvious probing, shall we? Please consider how I feel after being suspected like this for ten years."

"Now, now. At this rate, we'll start fighting again. There aren't many attendees, so wouldn't it be nice if this were an enjoyable gathering?"

Sau, seated in the center, stepped in to mediate once more.

"First, Gwimyeon, I don't mean to mock you by bringing up this subject. It must be addressed at this meeting, so I ask for your understanding."

"It seems we're talking about the Demonic Cult."

Unlike with Agwi, Gwimyeon's attitude was indifferent. Sau was an old Saint trusted by the Pope, not someone Gwimyeon could treat like Agwi. More importantly, matters concerning the Demonic Cult were significant.

"What do you all think of the Demonic Cult's declaration of war?"

"Isn't that too weighty a subject to discuss without the Pope here?"

"Ha ha, that is true, but aren't individual opinions important as well?"

"If we want an all-out war with the Demonic Cult, every Saint would need to gather."

Gwimyeon continued after a dry cough.

"I doubt the Pope will issue an order for the Saints to assemble. As we've done until now, why not let each Saint do as they please?"

"Even if the Demonic Cult declared war, it won't be easy for them to find us. Both we and the Demonic Cult have plenty of enemies."

"An all-out war could cause enormous chaos, but both sides would have to stake their lives on it. Wouldn't that only benefit everyone else? Other sects, the Cartel, the Righteous Heavenly Alliance. More than a few people would laugh if we clashed with the Demonic Cult."

They all shared the same opinion. They did not want an all-out war with the Demonic Cult, and it was a sensible one. With the Pope absent from this regular meeting, radical proposals were impossible anyway.

"Hmm, it seems everyone agrees on the Demonic Cult. That is welcome news."

Sau nodded with a smile.

"Gwimyeon, I know how hard you've worked, but keep a closer watch on the Demonic Cult from now on. Pay particular attention if large groups of personnel or martial forces leave the Demon Subjugation Palace."

"Most large groups leaving the Demonic Cult lately are heading to Seonryeong."

"Ah, Seonryeong. That is where the recently completed training grounds are located, correct?"

"They say large numbers of children are being sent to the training grounds in Seonryeong. Not only talented youths from prominent Demonic Cult families, but children bought or kidnapped from the Demon Subjugation Palace and other regions as well. Their ages vary, from their early teens to people over twenty."

"Hwajo oversees the diocese near Seonryeong. It is regrettable that he is not here."

Sau let out a quiet sigh before continuing.

"Next, have you found any clues concerning the Sect of Order's movements?"

"Isn't Yulho in charge of tracking the Sect of Order?"

"Ha ha. That is true, but perhaps the brothers and sisters gathered here have come across even a small clue?"

"The Sect of Order has remained hidden in its Sacred Domain and has not emerged into the world for twenty years."

"Even the Sect of War's hounds have failed to find the Sect of Order with their keen noses for decades."

Agwi scoffed and leaned back in his chair.

"Well, maybe they really did search diligently. Still, the sects besides ours lived together in the Union until twenty years ago. Couldn't they all be in league with one another?"

"Heh. More likely, Battle Saint fears Calamity Star. When it was decided twenty years ago that the Sect of Order would be expelled from the Union, that madwoman Calamity Star went berserk and tried to beat Battle Saint to death, didn't she?"

"Calamity Star hasn't roamed the world for the past few years either. It bothers me a great deal. Calamity Star still appeared occasionally until five years ago, didn't she? Whenever an influential person openly badmouthed the Sect of Order, she would show up like a ghost and cause a violent incident in the name of divine punishment. But she doesn't do that anymore, does she?"

"I hope she suffered a Qi Deviation and fucking died."

Gwimyeon openly muttered the curse, and Agwi nodded. Their hatred for Calamity Star was not born from caution alone. There was a great deal of fear mixed into it.

That applied not only to Agwi and Gwimyeon, but to most Saints who were transmigrators.

-One day, Calamity Star will come to punish you.

Every transmigrator who became a Saint had killed the priest of Order assigned to them. That had happened twenty years ago, before the Sect of Order withdrew into its Sacred Domain. Not every transmigrator who killed an assigned priest had become a Saint, but every Saint who acknowledged being a transmigrator had killed the priest assigned to them.

"Then how is the management of each diocese?"

"Hahahaha."

The moment Sau asked, Gwimyeon burst into laughter and openly looked at Agwi.

"I'm very curious about that as well. Isn't the very person who ruined a diocese after spending years cultivating it sitting right here?"

Grit.

The mist covering Agwi's face shook violently as he ground his teeth.

"I heard you had been gathering divine power for years to terrorize Panteleon. Hahaha, what will you do now?"

"You bastard."

Agwi could not hold back any longer and shot to his feet.

"I've already prepared the next move. I'm planning to make something go boom within a few days, so shut your mouth."

"Oh, really? What exactly are you planning to blow up, and where? The bishop of the Foul Village is already dead, and I hear most of the followers have been hunted down."

"Agwi, I don't mean to mock you, but I think it would be best not to cause any unnecessary trouble."

Haewol, who had been watching Agwi and Gwimyeon argue from a distance, moved a little closer before speaking bluntly.

"Hasn't the diocese in Panteleon's outer district already been purged? I know you've gathered divine power for years, but even if you detonate it in a purged diocese, you can't overthrow Panteleon."

"Hmph. Who said I was targeting Panteleon?"

Gwimyeon's eyes blazed.

"There happens to be a large event taking place near me."

"My goodness, don't tell me."

Haewol's eyes widened within the mist.

"Are you saying you plan to carry out a terrorist attack at Alderan's magic fair? Agwi, I don't think you're making a rational decision right now."

"Hahahaha!"

Gwimyeon clutched their stomach and laughed.

"Your ass really is on fire, isn't it? Are you going to cover up your failure by doing something reckless?"

"Hmph. I'm not trying to overthrow an entire city. Is wiping out one fairground really so reckless?"

"Agwi, what are you even saying? That magic fair is being held in the middle of the city!"

Haewol raised her voice, unable to contain her frustration. A terrorist attack was one thing. What came afterward was the real problem. Even for a Saint, escaping unharmed after carrying out an attack in the heart of Alderan would not be easy.

"Alderan has a Cartel Pride family too! You aren't looking down on the Mabeld Family just because they aren't a martial family, are you? The Mabeld Family's private soldiers and retainers alone could wipe out most major martial sects! And Alderan has the Habert Mage Tower and a temple of the Sect of Earth!"

"I will turn the fairground into a Pseudo-Sacred Domain."

Agwi had no intention of backing down. He glared at Haewol with wide eyes.

"I've secured enough divine power, and if I serve as its center, I can construct a Pseudo-Sacred Domain over the fairground. The Sect of Earth? You fool! Their archbishop is attending the Union's bishops' council, so the highest-ranking clergy left at the Earth Temple are merely bishops! Even if the Mabeld Family, the Habert Mage Tower, and bishops from the Sect of Earth are there, breaking through a completed Pseudo-Sacred Domain from outside is impossible!"

"What are you going to do about the people inside? There will be thousands of mages attending the fair...!"

It would not be difficult for Agwi, a Saint, to massacre everyone at the fairground. Haewol mentioned it anyway. In her judgment, carrying out an attack in the heart of Alderan was madness.

"Hmph. So what? Why should I fear such insignificant trash? Besides, mana is suppressed within a Pseudo-Sacred Domain. Unless they are seventh-tier or higher mages of Mage Tower Master caliber, their control over mana will be significantly weakened inside it. Most mages won't even be able to cast spells!"

"Oh, so this isn't simply an emotional outburst?"

Clap, clap.

Gwimyeon applauded and laughed.

"Even so...! There could be mages of the seventh tier or above at the fair! And martial artists are less affected by mana suppression..."

"Enough."

Sau intervened.

"What a splendid plan."

Haewol had naturally assumed Sau would stop Agwi. Instead, Sau even exclaimed as if genuinely impressed.

"I have not heard that any Mage Tower Masters will attend the Alderan magic fair. At any other time, Zenith would have been invited, but Zenith is currently involved in the Vernoc conflict. The other influential figures will attend on the fair's final day, so if Agwi avoids that time, there is a very high chance the plan will succeed. Martial artists are certainly less affected by a Pseudo-Sacred Domain's mana suppression, but why would Agwi have any reason to fear them?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying!"

Agwi's voice grew louder after receiving the agreement he wanted.

Agwi's standing among the Saints was bound to shrink after his failure in Panteleon. The diocese had been purged, and he had lost many followers. That alone would not have been a serious problem, but the real issue was that Agwi's trail had been picked up.

There was no way the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult had visited Panteleon's diocese by coincidence. The Heavenly Demon had selected Panteleon's diocese from the beginning to use for a declaration of war and sent the Young Cult Leader there.

The Withered Crone, bishop of that diocese, was a deserter from the Rudella Mage Tower. That was why Agwi's trail had likely been picked up, but regardless of the circumstances, Agwi was the one who had dispatched the Withered Crone. The fleeing followers being tracked meant even the Withered Crone's hiding place had been ransacked. That rotten old bitch had failed to manage things properly, but the Withered Crone was already dead and could no longer be held accountable.

So Agwi had to bear responsibility. No matter how unfairly he protested, Yulho would not listen and would punish him. He probably would not be stripped of his position as a Saint, but his Divine Favor would certainly be reduced.

Being Saints did not make them unconditional allies. They were always looking for chances to tear into one another, and Agwi was especially wary of Gwimyeon.

"I don't even need to prepare anything! I just need to go there and blow it up myself. I can do it as soon as tomorrow!"

"Ha ha, of course. Agwi, you've gathered divine power for a long time to overthrow Panteleon. Maybe not a whole city, but you can easily turn a fairground into a Pseudo-Sacred Domain."

Sau smiled gently and stroked an invisible beard.

"It is a splendid plan to use a Pseudo-Sacred Domain instead of carrying out a simple massacre. That would leave a deep scar on Alderan. And if Agwi's power is added to that Pseudo-Sacred Domain, you could turn them into trees and harvest the souls of the thousands trapped in the fairground. If you devoured that many souls, you might even break through your wall. I wonder if we should offer our congratulations in advance."

"Hmph... It's not like I can break through my wall just by mindlessly fattening myself up on souls."

Gwimyeon grumbled, apparently not expecting Sau to agree.

"Haha, that is true. You must also be cautious. A mage of the seventh tier or above could be a minor variable. So, Agwi, you should identify the mages at the venue before constructing the Pseudo-Sacred Domain."

"Of course I will."

"And as I understand it, the young ones who ruined Agwi's work are currently in Alderan."

Agwi's body twitched at those words.

"Sword Dragon and Thunder Cloud... Haha, no. Cloud Dragon and Dark Blossom are there. I don't know about Sword Dragon, but Cloud Dragon and Dark Blossom appear to be visiting the fair. If you draw them into the Pseudo-Sacred Domain, you can punish them and restore your dignity at once."

Agwi said nothing, only looking at Sau. Sau stroked an invisible beard within the mist and continued in a relaxed voice.

"Well, even if they don't get caught in the fair's Pseudo-Sacred Domain, they are only two fifth-tier youngsters. Couldn't you kill them anywhere?"

Agwi's shoulders shook as he laughed.

"Those little bastards are there?"

A murderous light shone in Agwi's eyes.

Footnotes:

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