WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became the EX-Rank Pet Maker Hunters Obsess Over ◈
Chapter 41: Gate Religion
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A laboratory in Europe’s magic engineering technopolis
The researchers deciphering the flesh artifact’s Prophecy tilted their heads in confusion.
“...That’s strange.”
“Was our interpretation wrong?”
“Up to the breath that swallows twelve days and nights, it seems roughly accurate...”
The Prophecy had matched events up to the point where the fog swallowed Japan, but everything after that was off.
They went over the flesh artifact’s Prophecy once more.
[ The shields you took pride in shall pierce my eyes, and when the screams of the lost fill the red streets, my children, born from the mold of fog, shall tear apart your limbs and knead them into mud. The blinded city shall become a vast cradle, and the second temple, risen by feeding on despair, shall take firm root. ]
“Hmm... The latter half of this Prophecy doesn’t line up with the current situation.”
“The fog that appeared in Japan itself seems to cause confusion and loss of direction. It doesn’t feel as though the Prophecy was that far off. Even the monsters emerging from the fog are just as it described.”
“Still, isn’t it vague? Like only half of it came true?”
“That’s true...”
The flesh artifact had issued several other Prophecies as well, and every one of them foretold disaster in Japan.
[ When red moisture chokes the city’s breath, screams shall turn into low gasps, and skin shall swell against skin with no boundaries between them. A hundred faces shall sob beneath one jaw, and a thousand fingers shall burrow into one another’s flesh, sharing hot convulsions. When the grand mass formed from blood, pus, and crushed organs slowly breathes within the cradle of fog, you shall finally be completed and become a single fetus that will never be torn apart. ]
In particular, the part about weaving together the flesh of people wandering through the fog to create something appeared in the other Prophecies as well.
“Those mysterious forms in Japan have been absorbing humans. Something will happen once they swallow enough people.”
Yet for some reason, those grotesque, chilling Prophecies did not match the current situation.
The number of survivors in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, was rapidly increasing.
[ Exclusive ] “A Rider appeared in the fog”... Thousands rescued safely from Saitama over three days, heroes of the fog zone
[ Global ] 72 hours since the sudden anomaly... Japan’s disaster-management agency: “Survivor search rate reaches 66% thanks to the Magna Rider unit”
[ Issue ] “I can still save more!”... The madness of Magna Rider tankers charging through the fog for three days and nights
“Those Magna Riders really do seem to be the variable here...”
No matter how they looked at it, the researcher found the Magna Riders suspicious.
“But shouldn’t a Prophecy account for something like that? Maybe our perspective is wrong, and the Prophecy is still unfolding.”
“That’s possible. Perhaps we interpreted it incorrectly. Even in myths, Prophecies were delivered through wordplay that exploited double meanings and ambiguity.”
Bzzz.
The laboratory’s automatic doors opened, and a man and a woman entered.
The man was Agent Constance, the person who had first revealed the existence of the flesh artifact to the researchers from the podium on the day experts from every field had gathered.
The woman was a small girl who looked about middle-school age.
One of the researchers looked at the girl, whose presence did not fit the place at all.
“...Mr. Constance, who’s that girl? She doesn’t look like your daughter.”
The girl had well-kept blond hair and striking features. She wore an excessively frilled outfit that did not suit a research institute in the slightest.
Was that gothic lolita?
More absurdly, she was even carrying a black frilled parasol.
“...We’re indoors.”
One researcher muttered something, but the girl ignored the remark and spoke without lowering the parasol.
“...It appears you are at a loss over the Prophecy, but their Prophecies are not absolute. They are closer to a means of invading this world.”
She had the voice of a young girl, yet it was strangely clear and captivating, lingering deep in their minds.
The researchers focused on her words.
“...Mr. Constance, who is this girl? I’ve asked twice now.”
“Phew... How should I explain this...”
“Why? Nothing could be more shocking than that twisted lump of flesh you showed us before, so just say it.”
What could possibly be worse than a grotesque mass of flesh that predicted disasters? Was this simply the man’s habit of dragging things out?
“She is... a famous YouTuber and one of the saints of the Gate Church.”
At Constance’s introduction, the researchers grimaced as if they had seen something they should not have and began swearing.
“They’re flat-earther-level conspiracy theorists, for fuck’s sake!!”
“Get her out right now!!! Ptooey!”
“Ugh... Those insane Gate Church bastards... They worship a young girl like this as a saint...? This is deeply unpleasant.”
As if he had expected the fierce reaction, Constance shook his head and continued.
“Her name is Ernesta Diamant. I invited her because I believed she could help us study the Prophecies of extraterrestrial intelligent life. And despite her appearance, she is twenty-three years old. Her growth stopped due to the effects of awakening.”
A researcher objected in a voice full of displeasure.
“Ha... Even if we’re stuck interpreting the Prophecy, do we really have to work with a conspiracy theorist like that? Of all people, you brought in someone from the Gate Church. You’ve lost your mind.”
In the early days of the Gates, there was no information or system, and people had to clear them by charging in blindly. Gate Breaks occurred constantly, causing countless casualties and enormous property damage.
The Gate Church was a cult that claimed Gates were God’s baptism, meant to purify a decaying Earth and declining humanity.
As a cult, the Gate Church had plenty of urban legends surrounding it.
There were stories of fanatics taking their families into Gates and never returning, or calling monsters angels and executioners while interfering with Hunters...
Whether the stories were true or not was unclear, but the Gate Church was crazy enough for such rumors to circulate.
And he had brought in someone called a saint even within that group?
Any sensible researcher would naturally be unhappy about working with a cultist.
“Phew... There’s no need for a long discussion. Mr. Constance, please send that girl out.”
How could he dare bring a cult saint into this sacred laboratory?
Despite the researchers’ reactions, Ernesta, the Gate Church saint, leisurely walked around the laboratory.
Click. Click.
In high heels, she looked around with interest and began to speak.
She listed one incomprehensible name after another.
“...The one clad in a golden shroud, the crawling gray chaos, the veins flowing backward, the beast with a black tongue... They are not one. Prophecies are only one means of interfering with this world. Everything until now was the prologue. It is only beginning now.”
“...Ha, here we go again. You said that earlier too. Do you actually know something?”
The researcher decided to hear her out.
Not out of curiosity. The researcher only wanted an excuse to speak with her briefly, then throw this cultist out.
“For reference, the title of the being affecting Japan is the Cradle of Rotting Fog.”
“I’m asking how you know that! We don’t have time to listen to your made-up nonsense!!”
“The reason... Rather than explain it myself, I think you’ll understand faster if you see this directly.”
Ernesta took an elegant golden casket from inside her clothes. An eye on its surface rapidly scanned the room.
The grotesque sight, along with a strangely familiar sense of revulsion, made the researcher speak without thinking.
“Don’t tell me... Is that also a Prophecy artifact?”
Ernesta smiled at the researchers, their faces filled with shock.
“It seems you are finally willing to talk.”
* * *
The mysterious fog that had appeared around the S+-rank Gate in Saitama Prefecture.
The fog caused delirium and loss of direction, and it also gave birth to bizarre life forms. Before long, it began affecting Tokyo beyond Saitama.
It slowly advanced as if it were moving toward densely populated areas.
As though it were expanding its reach in search of more victims.
Even worse, the fog was gradually turning red, which felt ominous as hell.
The only reason casualties had not risen dramatically was the Magna Riders.
“...This wasn’t intentional, but the Panoplia - Beta model is performing better than I expected.”
“Pant, pant...”
Surprisingly, wearing a Panoplia model’s biosuit prevented the fog’s harmful effects from reaching the wearer.
That allowed the Riders to keep their sense of direction even within that bizarre fog.
Thanks to them, casualties could be kept to a minimum.
As for the bikes they rode, they were reportedly made by concentrating the technological capabilities of this magic engineering special zone.
Apparently, a blacksmith had begun making them after seeing my Panoplia model. The reason they had managed to mass-produce them so quickly was likely due to the special nature of this magic engineering zone.
There was a problem, though.
“Yoo Hyun... We’ve lost contact with Hunter Azuma Ryusei and Hunter Shirasaki Ayame. It has been four days since they entered the Gate... It normally never went beyond three days...”
Chairman Asakura appeared before me, looking worse than before.
Japan’s two S-rank Hunters had gone to investigate the S+-rank Double Gate just before the fog appeared and had not returned.
“Don’t tell me they fell in battle inside...?”
“No. Those two must still be alive. The inside of the Gate is probably filled with fog too, so they can’t find their way.”
That made sense. Even S-rank Hunters’ senses might not be able to shake off the fog’s effects.
If the source of the fog was inside the Gate, its concentration there would be on a completely different level from outside.
“...Then we need to send a Rider rescue team that can find its way through. Their food supply can’t be infinite, so we need to act as quickly as possible.”
“That’s right... But Japan’s Hunter industry has no capacity left. The Riders are barely keeping the S-rank Gates contained, and now we have to deal with this fog-related emergency too... There is no longer anyone available who can enter an S+-rank Gate.”
This situation was getting more serious than I thought.
It had gone beyond being something I could be happy about just because I could gather more data.
If Japan fell, my research institute would fall too.
Considering what I had contributed so far, I could get better treatment and facilities than under the original contract...
More than anything, I liked the environment here in Ars Magna too much to just watch it collapse.
And the S-rank magical beasts that had just been born would become ownerless orphans the moment they entered the world?
No. Absolutely not. They were custom-made pets, so no one else could use them properly!!
“...Chairman Asakura, keep contacting S-rank Hunters overseas. I’ll reach out to someone I know too. Also, select ten Magna Riders and bring them here. The Cultivation is complete, so let’s distribute them.”
“The Cultivation is already complete! Understood!!”
* * *
Wolyeong Guild building, Korea
Guild master’s office
Yeon Harim grinned as she looked at her smartphone.
[ Yoo Hyun ]: Hunter Yeon Harim... I’m really sorry to ask, but could you come support us in Japan? I know you’re busy, but we need your help. As you know, this place is on the verge of collapse, so we’ll make sure the compensation is worthwhile.
[ Me ]: Hmm, what should I do~? Honestly, I don’t care about the compensation... If Yoo Hyun is calling, I should go, right? How about granting one of my wishes later!?
“Heheh...”
“Chirr...”
[ Yoo Hyun ]: That much is easy... While we’re at it, I’ll cultivate you a new magical beast too.
[ Me ]: Really? Then help me tour Japan too! Let’s spend about a week going around and having fun together! I want to treat you properly too!
[ Yoo Hyun ]: Is that all? Fine. Please come right away. Come to the Hermes Research Institute in Ars Magna.
“Heheh... Aah! It’s a date!!”
“Chirrrrrk-!!!!”
When Yeon Harim tightly hugged Chirring, the Keraunos model, Chirring struggled as if in pain.
Crackle-!!!
Lightning spread in every direction. Yet Yeon Harim used Etherization to control all of it.
“Hehe... That won’t work anymore.”
“Chirr...”
* * *
A few days later
After wrapping up her work in Korea, Yeon Harim opened the couple app before leaving the country to check Yoo Hyun’s location in real time as usual.
“...Huh? What’s this?”
The app’s connection flickered as if it were unstable, then Yoo Hyun’s GPS signal disappeared.
[ Breaking ] Blood-red fog crosses Saitama and reaches Tokyo Bay... Swallows Ars Magna, the colossal magic engineering special zone
[ Emergency ] Communications lost with Ars Magna, the “cradle of magic engineering”... Cutting-edge barrier proves useless, highest-level disaster declared
[ Comprehensive ] Artificial island Ars Magna sealed off... Korean alchemist Yoo Hyun confirmed trapped inside the special zone
Footnotes:
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