WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈
Episode 568: Best Friend (1)
──────
- Han Ga-in
Patrick Biederman, Ryan Reynolds, and another Wisdom whose identity I didn't know.
After clashing with those three Former Participants, I made a decision.
I needed to recharge the Sacred Sun.
When I first escaped, I hadn't planned on charging it again.
I felt uneasy about charging it with real people rather than NPCs inside a Curse Room.
Even from a practical standpoint, it wouldn't be easy because of the wish of oblivion and the Management Bureau's interference. Besides, I still had enough power left for one fight, so I had room to spare.
Things had changed.
The Sun had already run dry before the Hotel's foretold crisis had even begun in earnest, and the enemy was formidable.
When circumstances change, plans have to change with them.
...
The important points of Plan B were as follows.
First, the Sacred Sun's charging criteria were more lenient than I had thought.
The crowd didn't necessarily have to see me as a god.
Remember that in Room 206, the citizens regarded me as the Progenitor's successor, and that alone had replenished my strength.
When Elena showed complete trust by relying on my judgment, that had also counted as a form of Faith.
Appearance and name didn't matter.
In truth, real-world religions weren't much different.
Who knew what God, Allah, Buddha, or Brahma looked like?
“Yahweh” was only one theory born from the fact that the Jews had forgotten the name they originally used. There were many other theories, including Jehovah, Yaho, and Yahwa.
Second, Ictus was still alive!
Let's review what happened during A Midsummer Night's Dream.
I escaped through the main entrance on the first floor, fell from the sky, and, while possessing Pero, used the Hourglass to stop my body in midair.
I was captured by the Management Bureau as a talking parrot, then escaped alongside Ictus when he broke out.
After that, I worked with Apollion, the demon Ictus served, and retrieved my falling body from the sky.
There was a minor conflict at the end, and Apollion died, but it hadn't been a huge problem.
It had been quite a long time ago for us, but in real-world terms, it happened about a year and a half ago.
For people living in reality, that made it a relatively recent event.
Still, the demon died, yet the demon worshipper survived?
Then again, there wasn't any particular reason for him to die.
If anything, with his protector gone, I thought he would have fallen to the Management Bureau's merciless purge...
It seemed Ictus had a plan of his own.
I'd find out the details once I met him.
As I organized the situation in my head, the person beside me cautiously asked.
“Um... Ga-in.”
“Yes?”
“What abilities did you say that person had?”
“Charisma that enthralls people, a bit of divine power, and the strength to resist my Possession. But.”
“But?”
“Will those powers still be the same now that Apollion is dead? We won't know until we see.”
“One more thing. Is it safe to approach him carelessly? If he recognizes you...”
“Did you forget what my Empty Wish through Dream was?”
“Ah!”
“Even the Management Bureau has lost most of its information about me. There's no way that guy would be an exception.”
“One last question. How did you find him?”
It was too easy.
“I heard it from A-ri.”
“What?”
“The Management Bureau recently found where he was hiding.”
“... He seems incredibly good at surviving, yet strangely careless.”
“He's my friend.”
I meant it sincerely, but no answer came back.
It seemed my companion couldn't agree.
“Right now, he's using the name ‘Yohan.’”
“Yohan is the Korean form of John, one of Christianity's Twelve Apostles. This guy loved Christianity before too. If he likes it that much, he should just go to church.”
* * *
- Ictus (ἸΧΘΥΣ)
About a year and a half ago.
I lost the god I had served my entire life.
An incomprehensible, terrifying being erased the dignified Apollion from this world.
The events of that day remained vivid even now.
I screamed as Apollion's remains rained down all over me.
Was this how Jesus Christ felt as he sought God in the wilderness?
Even the Messiah of Israel had never lost his god, so no one could understand the pain I felt that day.
I thought I was dead.
I thought there was no way I could survive.
I wanted my wretched life to end there.
...
I survived.
There must have been several reasons.
First, it had been an incident serious enough to throw the entire country into an uproar, so the Management Bureau had been busy cleaning up the aftermath.
The second reason might have been my own growth.
There was an old saying.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.
Humans grow stronger through trials.
The same was true for a chosen one like me.
In the pain of a collapsing sky...
I survived, and I grew stronger.
* * *
A conference room where Sunrise's major shareholders and directors had gathered.
“This is the XX-year first-half report. Revenue rose by a remarkable 13 percent, with the Diamond class making an active contribution to this growth...”
“There is more good news! According to the Chinese government's recent announcement...”
“Revenue from the Vietnamese branch is also trending upward...”
Everyone's faces brightened at the endless stream of good news.
What did it mean for Sunrise's revenue and net profit to rise?
It meant the major shareholders and directors were getting richer!
Look at the naturally devout expressions on their faces.
Yes, this too was a lesson I had learned from the past.
What was needed to foster devotion in people's hearts wasn't sermons or grace.
Wasn't the gold flowing into their bank accounts the greatest miracle of all?
There was another remarkable fact.
When I gathered believers, preached to them, and bestowed “great grace,” the vicious Management Bureau sent in the military.
But when people who gained gold through a flourishing business voluntarily bowed down, not only did the military fail to come, the government even awarded them commendations.
That didn't mean Sunrise's success was unrelated to the “Cult.”
“Ha ha, Director Yohan! You've done excellent work again.”
“Isn't everything going smoothly because we trust and follow only you, Director?”
“Director Yohan! You truly are... a person sent by heaven!”
Look at the people around me, their faces like they were about to cry.
Not only the directors and major shareholders, but even the chairman we publicly put forward bowed before me.
They were no different from the believers of the past.
The old-fashioned word “god” had only been changed to “Director Yohan,” and the object of prayer had changed from Apollion to “Director Yohan.”
The number of people bowing before me increased either way, but one path brought the military while the other brought commendations.
The answer to which path was wiser was clear.
In the past, “someone” had given me this wisdom.
Without that person, I would have remained unaware and lived as some rural cult leader.
“...”
Who was it?
Who had bestowed that wisdom upon me?
I definitely knew, yet... at some point, I could no longer remember.
“Director? Is something wrong?”
“Ha ha, no. I was just thinking about something.”
Was it a month ago? Or two?
Around then, large parts of my memories had suddenly become hazy.
I couldn't even recall exactly what happened when Apollion died.
Just as I was pondering that...
“Director! Director Yohan!”
I raised an eyebrow at the frivolous voice, and someone recently recruited to the board appeared.
“Director Park Jin-ho, what is it?”
“I am impressed! I, Park Jin-ho, am impressed by Director Yohan's skill once again!”
“... You flatter me.”
What was he talking about?
Why was he suddenly impressed?
“To pull off something so huge without anyone knowing! You could have at least given me a hint!”
“...”
What was wrong with this bastard all of a sudden?
What huge thing had I done?
I didn't even know about it, so what was I supposed to tell him?
I was thoroughly bewildered, but the surrounding directors and major shareholders already wore expectant expressions.
With no other choice, I was about to awkwardly laugh it off when the Host, who had been announcing today's first-half results from the podium, proudly shouted.
“Now! Members of the Sunrise family! There is even better news today! Let me introduce a new family member, brought to us by Director Yohan's exceptional skill...”
What did I do?
Who did I bring here with exceptional skill?
“Elena Ivanova!”
The moment an astonishing beauty entered, silence fell over the conference room.
Of course, it didn't last long.
“Please welcome her with a round of applause!”
“Waaaaah!”
“W-welcome!”
In an instant, the shareholders and directors turned red in the face and erupted into chaos.
It wasn't simply because the newcomer was a beautiful young woman.
Elena Ivanova was the owner of Esper, the world's most luxurious cruise ship, and a wealthy woman with personal assets worth at least one hundred billion won.
There were wealthier people than her even in Korea, but few were so-called celebrities as beautiful and famous as her, with connections to prominent people around the world.
If such a famous figure joined the company, how much advertising value and how many connections would that create?
Rosy expectations began spreading everywhere.
Of course, someone said something ominous.
“I heard there was some sort of accident involving Esper recently...”
“Oh, Director Park! That doesn't make her beauty or wealth disappear, does it?”
“My friend! If the ship is gone, she can just build another one!”
Naturally, they were silenced in an instant.
Whether that beautiful young woman joining the company would actually provide practical help wasn't that important.
What mattered was that everyone had already begun to see a future filled with gold.
“Ahem! Hello.”
“Wow! You speak Korean so well too?”
“That's right. The public doesn't know this, but I lived in Korea as a child.”
“Ooh!”
“I strongly identify with Sunrise's vision. The reason I decided to invest this time is...”
Did Sunrise even have some grand vision beyond my selfish desires?
The beautiful young woman began passionately talking about a vision I, its founder, was hearing for the first time.
The conference room was full of happy dreams.
I, Ictus, the one everyone called “Director Yohan” these days, had only one question.
“...”
Who brought that woman here?
It wasn't me, so why was everyone making such a fuss about me bringing her?
Soon, she began walking toward me under everyone's gaze.
Maybe some people envied the fact that such a beautiful woman was approaching me, because they gave me jealous looks...
I was too busy hiding the cold sweat pouring down from my extreme tension.
--- Thud!
“Hello?”
“... Hello.”
As I considered what to ask this famous young woman first, something, a soft living creature, climbed onto my shoulder.
“Hmm?”
“Ha ha, this is my beloved parrot. Please be kind to the parrot.”
It was an utterly absurd thing to do.
If it had been an ordinary person, someone would have shouted, asking what the hell they were doing. But she was a wealthy woman bringing rosy dreams to the company, as well as a stunningly beautiful young woman.
Thanks to that, everyone laughed it off.
“Ha ha! What a cute bird.”
“What is its name? Does it speak well?”
“The parrot's name is Pero, and Pero speaks extremely well. Um... I have a favor to ask.”
“O-oh! Please, go ahead!”
“I have something I wish to say to Director Yohan privately. Would that be possible?”
“Of course. There is a soundproof room over here.”
As I entered a private room like I was bewitched, together with an unknown young woman and a parrot, I thought one thing.
At least the part about Pero speaking well was true.
The parrot whispered from atop my shoulder.
“Friend, it's been a long time.”
Only then did I realize it.
This bird was behind today's utterly bizarre events.
“... This is our first meeting.”
“That's disappointing. The time we couldn't spend together... I never imagined you'd build such an excellent business.”
“...”
“You had a talent for business? I never knew.”
It was an unknown monster acting suspiciously familiar with me.
Yet it didn't feel awkward.
It was clearly a bird I didn't know.
Clearly a voice I didn't know.
But it felt strangely familiar.
It was like this “friend” existed somewhere within the memories I had forgotten.
“I believed in you, I did! My precious friend, Ictus.”
“...”
I wasn't surprised to hear my true name, Ictus (ἸΧΘΥΣ), which I had hidden from everyone since that day.
Subconsciously, I felt that it was only natural for this bird to know my name.
“Tus, say something.”
“‘Ic’ isn't my surname, and ‘tus’ isn't my given name.”
“We're going to do something big from now on.”
No matter how it looked to others, I decided to drive out this suspicious bird and the blonde young woman.
So the moment I gathered Dignified Power at my fingertips...
“Oh! This vibration! Impressive.”
“...”
“I had a feeling, and I was right. When Apollion died, you picked up a Fragment and gained power? That's my friend.”
“If you know that much, you'd best quietly leave before I make a move...”
“Friend, I'm saying this for your sake, but this building is surrounded right now.”
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
“One Management Bureau agent brought seven Assault Team members here. You can check if you're curious.”
“...”
“So? Do you feel like going into business with me now?”
“... I don't know why you want to go into business with me so badly. My extraordinary bird friend, can't we both do our best in our respective fields...”
“Why are you being so cold? We're best friends.”
“...”
“Between friends, there’s no such thing as yours and mine.”
Of everything I had heard, those were the most ominous words.
Footnotes:
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