WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Even in a Dark Fantasy, You Still Have to Eat ◈
Chapter 27: Fortress of Black Sorcery # 2
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The carriage was cramped and uncomfortable.
After riding through the night, we arrived at the fortress city of Lavadon.
“This is the biggest city near the Wall. It has a huge, deep pit, so people also call it the City of the Bottomless Abyss.”
Hermit, who had been sleeping soundly throughout the carriage ride, woke up and cheerfully shared what she knew.
It made things easier for me when she explained it first.
“Wow, it’s been so long since I last went out.”
Hammer stretched after getting out of the carriage.
Felix got out too.
He clicked his tongue as he looked at the moon hanging in the night sky.
“Hammer, may I go separately for a while?”
“Why?”
“Someone I know lives around here. I have something to ask them, so I should meet them now.”
“Really? Then let’s meet here tomorrow morning. We need to head up to Oldor Fortress tomorrow.”
“Then I want to visit a magic tool shop too! I want to find out how to hatch this egg!”
It seemed Hermit had brought the Familiar egg with her.
She said she slept holding it every night, and apparently that was true.
Pat, pat.
Hammer patted my back.
“Then Yore, let’s find an inn together. If it gets too late, all the rooms might be taken. Then we’ll have to sleep outside.”
“Hehe, I’m good at that sort of thing. Hey, you tattooed guys over there!”
I called out to the men wandering the street.
They looked like obvious thugs at a glance.
I knew how to read faces.
“Fuck, tattooed guys?”
“You talking to us?”
The pair frowned.
But when they saw Hammer in heavy armor, their expressions quickly softened.
“What do you need?”
“Ahem.”
“This knight wants to know which inn has good food and good facilities. If you answer honestly, there’ll be a reward.”
“The inn with the best facilities is Toboso Inn.”
“But the best food is at the place run by Madam Dortea.”
I see.
I remembered that.
The men soon looked at me expectantly.
“So what’s this reward?”
“Are you buying us a beer or something?”
I took the Fragment of a Stone Man from the Black Bundle and held it out.
“This is a precious raw ore that only comes from beyond the Wall. Sell it, and you’ll have more than enough for drinks.”
“Isn’t that just a rock?”
“Feels like you’re trying to scam us...”
“You idiots. If it were just a rock, would I carry it around in my bundle when it’s this heavy? Just give it back. I’ll pay you in money instead.”
“Ah, forget it!”
“Hehehe.”
That was how I got information about the inns.
Then Hammer asked me, “Yore, is it okay to lie to people you’ve just met like that?”
“It’s easier with people you’ve just met. Even I feel a little guilty lying to people I see often.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“I mean I want to see you often!”
“Yes, let’s see each other for a long, long time!”
“Then let’s go to Toboso Inn. I don’t care much about food. I just want to sleep comfortably.”
Hammer and I headed to Toboso Inn, which had good facilities.
It must have been newly built. Everything was very clean, and the bed and blankets were soft, as though they had just been washed.
But what surprised me was that Hammer lay down on the bed wearing armor.
“I’ve wanted to ask for a while. Do you never take that armor off?”
“It’s comfortable.”
Hammer really was strange when I thought about it.
‘It feels like I’m the only normal person in this party.’
‘I need to keep my head straight.’
Rumble.
How much time passed?
Hammer fell asleep, snoring.
I used that chance to quietly leave the room.
I had business in this city.
# # #
Walking through dark, damp back alleys that smelled of piss made me feel at ease, like I had come home.
It was the freedom of throwing off a heavy bag.
“So, if you have business with me, why don’t you stop testing the waters and come out?”
I identified the smell at the tip of my nose.
It was the burnt smell given off by the Fragment of a Stone Man.
Step, step.
The two men who had been hiding behind me revealed themselves.
“You little bastard.”
“You lied and said an ordinary rock was precious raw ore from beyond the Wall?”
Had they already looked into the Fragment of a Stone Man?
“You lied to us, then wandered around alone without a care in the world.”
“Prepare to die.”
Shing.
The pair drew their blades.
One held a dagger.
The other held a fairly impressive longsword, though I had no idea where he got it.
“Hand over everything you have.”
“Or you die!”
The pair slowly closed in on me.
I pulled out a shuriken from my waist and threw it.
Clang! Clang!
The weapons in the men’s hands flew away in an instant and stuck into the ground.
“Fuck, what was that?”
“That bastard’s one of the Blessed!”
The two thugs looked up.
“Boss!”
“What do we do?”
I looked up too.
Under the moonlight, a hooded man was watching me.
He held the Fragment of a Stone Man.
The sword at his waist and the armor he wore were clearly different from the thugs’ equipment.
That was explorer gear.
“Are you a member of Lavadon’s Thieves’ Guild? Jermain-noona told me to meet a guild member when I came to the city.”
“Jermain? Ah, I see. You’re the newcomer who took down One-Eye and joined the Thieves’ Guild.”
Hop.
The hooded man lightly jumped down in front of me.
He waved a hand, sending the pair away.
“You two, get lost. If this guy took down One-Eye, you’re no match. He’s letting you off because he used you to draw me out.”
The hooded thief seemed quick-witted.
He had immediately realized that I had used the Fragment of a Stone Man as bait to draw out people connected to the Wall and the Thieves’ Guild.
This would make things quicker.
“Jermain-noona said there’s something I need to bring back from the Black Fortress. She said a Thieves’ Guild contact in Lavadon would know what it is.”
“The Eight-Armed Great Mother Idol? It’s probably in Lieutenant General Raiden’s secret vault.”
“Secret vault?”
“It’s where the lieutenant general keeps his treasures. Not just anyone can enter, so give up.”
The hooded man showed me his right hand.
It was round and smooth, like the head of a bowling pin.
“Every thief who approaches that place carelessly ends up like this. Priests can’t heal a missing part like this. It means the end of your life as a Wall thief.”
Fuck, the difficulty was insanely high.
Was this the kind of difficulty I had to deal with for it to count as my next training?
“By the way, that shuriken and arm guard. They’re antiques belonging to the Emperor of the Abyss. You already collected two of them. That means there are only three left.”
“What do you mean, three left?”
“What? Don’t tell me you don’t know. If you don’t know, I’m not telling you for free.”
The hooded thief chuckled.
Then I felt a strange sense of déjà vu at my waist.
When I looked down, my Black Bundle was moving on its own.
“Hey, what is this?”
“Hehehe. You noticed my pickpocketing. No wonder Jermain took an interest in you. My blessing is Invisible Hand. I have one extra invisible hand.”
Fuck, first he showed me a wrist like the head of a bowling pin.
He let people lower their guard by making them think, ‘I can’t steal anymore.’
Then he immediately used the power of his blessing to pick their pockets?
‘I learned something today.’
The world was wide, and there were still plenty of masters.
If I had not learned concentration training from Jermain-noona and the lesson not to trust my eyes, I would have been pickpocketed here.
The hooded thief chuckled again.
“I’m Adam, guildmaster of Lavadon’s Thieves’ Guild. You’re Yore, right? I’m saying this for your sake as a junior. Stay away from this matter.”
Even a thief as skilled as Adam could not steal something belonging to Lieutenant General Raiden.
But...
I thought I understood why Jermain-noona had asked me.
I had a connection with Lieutenant General Raiden from carving the Breakthrough Stone.
He had said he would grant me any one request.
What if I asked him to let me enter that secret vault?
‘Maybe Jermain-noona considered even that when she gave me this job.’
After meeting Adam, the Lavadon guildmaster, I returned to the inn.
Hammer was still sleeping soundly.
Seeing Hammer asleep in armor made me feel uncomfortable and stiff all over for some reason.
The next morning.
We met at the agreed location, boarded a carriage, and headed for the fortress.
We rode for about half a day.
The moment I saw it, I understood why it was called the Black Fortress.
Its towering walls were pitch-black.
Only the lion banners fluttering in the wind shone gold.
The armor of the guards on duty was painted black as well.
Hermit gagged at the sight.
“Bleurgh, there are unknown spells everywhere. Is this the work of that sorcerer we met before? I feel sick, bleurgh...”
Hermit was in terrible condition.
Felix smacked Hermit’s back.
“Stand properly before the lieutenant general.”
“...Hey, is that really your concern when your party member is sick?”
We entered the tent where the lieutenant general was staying.
I thought he would live in a fancy office, but it was strange that he lived in a tent on the training ground like some Native American chief.
The bald lieutenant general welcomed me.
“Yore, you’re here. How is the Breakthrough Stone working? Do you still have it?”
“Hehehe, thanks to you, Lieutenant General, I’m flying around! Look at this.”
I took out the brilliant golden Breakthrough Stone.
“You said it only works if I carry it around like a charm. Hehehe.”
One small stone strengthened all my passive skills and even gave additional effects?
After successfully carving it all the way through, there was no better bargain than this item.
“Just looking at this thing makes me feel full even without eating!”
“Hoho, look at that! Didn’t I say my luck had changed? That’s the proof!”
“Ooh!”
The knights exclaimed in admiration.
Then Felix stepped forward.
“Lieutenant General, Felix greets you.”
“Felix. It has been a while. You must be tired after the long journey, so rest well today.”
“Lieutenant General!”
I stepped forward too.
The sword-wielding knight standing beside the lieutenant general placed a hand on his sword hilt.
“...How dare you speak so casually to one of the Empire’s Four Stars!”
“That’s enough, Sir Gottwald. Yore and I are close. So, why did you call me?”
“You said you would grant me one request.”
“I did.”
“Would it be all right if I entered your secret vault?”
“My vault...?”
The lieutenant general’s face stiffened.
Sir Gottwald shouted beside him.
“A thief in the treasury? Impossible!”
The air became suffocating.
Everyone’s eyes turned to the lieutenant general.
And then...
“Oh dear, this is troublesome.”
His single remark seemed to echo.
“Yore, could you ask for something else?”
“Lieutenant General, can a man take back his word after giving it?”
“Ah, tch. Fine! If you put it that way, I have no choice.”
“Ooh! Then you’ll allow it?”
“Just remember, I tried to stop you. Don’t blame me later.”
“Blame you?”
Something felt strange.
The lieutenant general did not look like an old man protecting a treasure chest. He looked restless, like an adult trying to stop a child from approaching a fire.
“The reason I stopped people from entering is that no one except me can freely go in and out of that place. You’ll understand when you see it yourself.”
Author’s Note
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