WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Haruto
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became the EX-Rank Pet Maker Hunters Obsess Over ◈
Chapter 83: Temple of Stygian Darkness
──────
Shhhhh...!
Rain continued to pour down as if a hole had opened in the sky.
The charred corpses of Merfolk lay scattered everywhere.
This was the place where the mana bombs had caused a massive explosion.
Yet the Gate that should have been there was nowhere to be seen.
This could mean only one thing.
The Gate had vanished.
The Hunters’ only exit from this space was gone.
“H-How can this be...?”
“What the...?”
“What? Where did it go?”
Faced with an unprecedented situation, the Hunters fell into confusion.
“The Gate really disappeared!!!”
“This is definitely where the entrance was, right?”
“...It has to be. The communication relay is set up here too...”
“But there’s no exit? Does that mean we’re trapped?”
The streamers who had followed the Hunters into the Gate sank to the ground at the unimaginable turn of events.
“This can’t be... We’re stranded in a Gate... Guys, I’m fucked....”
[ Chat ]
- Holy shit;;; Gates can disappear????
- No, Gates don’t disappear unless you kill the core boss... Something seriously weird is happening right now;
- Wow... What do we do now? We’re screwed, aren’t we?
- This is how it ends up????
- I thought things were going way too smoothly, fuck
- Cream bro!!! Don’t give up!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Upvote if you think following them all the way into the Gate was a bad idea
- Wow... We’re fucked;;;;
- ...But if the Gate disappeared, why hasn’t the stream cut out?
- Yeah. Don’t they usually set up one communication device inside the Gate and another outside?
- There does seem to be a little buffering?
A Hunter watching the streamers continue interacting with their viewers checked something and spoke up.
“Wait...!! The signal’s a little weak, but the communication link is still active!”
“Then that means...”
“Yes! We haven’t been completely cut off from the outside!!”
If communications still worked, they had not been completely isolated. Which meant...
“Yes!! The Gate’s location changed!!! It didn’t completely disappear!!”
“...I see. Those Merfolk must have hidden the Gate somehow... I don’t know how they did it, but...”
“Then where is it? If it’s high in the sky or deep underground, we won’t be able to find it....”
“Finding it probably won’t be difficult.”
One Hunter stared toward the center.
The statue that had stood outside the Gate on Merfolk Island was here as well.
Once the tremors that had swept through the Gate with the voice from before subsided, a massive Black Shrine revealed itself around the statue.
It looked like a fortress prepared for battle.
“Yeah... That looks suspicious to anyone.”
“Then do we head there?”
“We have no choice now. We have to clear the Gate....”
Having found their path forward, the Hunters did not hesitate. In such a bizarre situation, speed of judgment was directly tied to survival.
To survive, they paradoxically had to venture into the most dangerous place.
* * *
I was watching the broadcast with the Jelly Dogs at a research complex in the UK.
Amon folded their arms while watching the stream and spoke.
[ Hm... They’re trapped. Changing the entrance’s location takes considerable energy, so if the Merfolk made that decision, they intend to slaughter every last one of them. ]
“Don’t you think they have a chance, though? There are Apostles mixed in with them.”
“Pant, pant....”
Apostles were extremely powerful too. With that lineup, weren’t they in the same weight class as the Merfolk?
The Hunters had practically entered the heart of enemy territory without shedding blood.
But Amon shook his head.
[ You underestimate the Merfolk. Unlike me, those fish heads are the sort that overwhelm others through sheer physical power. And they’ve remained manifested far longer than I did, so many of their restrictions must have been lifted. ]
Unlike Amon, who often used status-effect abilities, the Merfolk were certainly more physically developed.
And unlike unstable Amon, they had undergone a longer stabilization period, meaning they could display greater power.
“Hmm... So defeating the boss of Merfolk Island will be difficult.”
“Pant, pant....”
[ The environment inside the Gate differs from reality. You could call it the Merfolk’s own domain. ]
“Hmm. I guess the concept of a domain really is important.”
“Pant, pant....”
Come to think of it, Gates caused Breaks and transformed the surrounding environment into their own territory. And that was also the goal of the Transcendent factions.
If so, perhaps raising one’s hierarchy was a step toward painting the world in one’s own colors.
Tier 1 mana was colorless. The most fundamental power that naturally existed.
Then what about Tier 2?
‘It’s the stage where color gradually takes form.’
Well, anyway, I understood that the Hunters were in danger.
[ Unless an extraordinary variable appears, most of them will die. No, it will not end with death. The survivors will be offered as sacrifices, while the dead will remain trapped in that world forever, screaming without escape. ]
Grin.
Amon smiled maliciously for some reason.
I grabbed the little bastard and kneaded him mercilessly.
Creak. Squish. Squish.
[ Gyaaaaaah!!! I told you not to knead this body of mine!!!!! ]
“Don’t say bad things.”
[ I merely stated the truth!!!!!!!! ]
Amon thrashed around, wildly flailing his front and back paws.
I kept kneading him as I spoke.
“Sure, sure. Hearing you say that does make me nervous. But I put in a variable of my own too.”
“Pant, pant....”
Amon stopped struggling at my words.
[ A variable...? ]
“Yeah. I was curious what would happen if I crammed Tier 2 energy into Essentium. I still don’t fully understand this power, so I don’t know what’ll happen... but I sent one along just in case.”
For reference, the Tier 2 energy I put into Essentium had not stabilized with only one kind of energy.
I tried Spiritual Energy and Dharma Power, but before long, cracks formed from within, and the Essentium went crumble and collapsed.
It felt as if its connective structure had shattered because it could not withstand the injected power.
‘That is probably because, unlike magical beasts, Essentium itself lacks the will to control the power.’
But surprisingly...
“Strangely enough, one or two kinds of energy caused it to collapse, but once I got to three, it stabilized.”
When I infused it with three types of Tier 2 energy, Spiritual Energy, Dharma Power, and Blood Qi, the powers began turning like interlocking gears and stabilized.
It reminded me of the principle of the Three Powers, Heaven, Earth, and Humanity.
Amon stared at me in shock after hearing my explanation.
Like he was looking at someone who had committed a taboo.
[ What the hell have you done...!! ]
“I was curious.”
They said a variable was needed, so I made one. What was the problem?
It was something that had to be done eventually anyway. I had simply done it now.
[ ....... ]
“They’ll figure it out on site.”
“Pant, pant....”
I watched the broadcast with keen interest as they moved toward the massive shrine at the center of the Gate.
Cheonseong Guild members joined them along the way, and I spotted a familiar face among them.
“Oh, you’re alive. The Echidna Model is intact too.”
“Pant, pant....”
[ More tenacious than expected. ]
Cheon Sanha was alive with all four limbs intact. He seemed to have recovered some strength as well, walking on his own.
‘The magical beast genes in the treatment should temporarily raise the body’s vitality, so he’ll feel more energetic.’
Anyway, the survivors joined them, and after leaving the noncombat personnel at the shrine’s entrance, the Hunters entered the shrine.
What surprised me was that Petite Cream, the YouTuber running the stream, entered the shrine too.
“My channel’s blowing up... My channel’s blowing up...!!”
[ Chat ]
- Holy shit, he’s following them in?
- Just wait outside, you insane bastard!!!!!
- This guy’s gone crazy over his channel blowing up lmaoooooooo
- But this is the highest viewer count ever, holy shit;; He hit a million and it’s still climbing;;;;
- People are flooding in from other streams lmaoooooooo
Unlike Amon’s shrine, this one had an open layout like a colosseum, seemingly wrapping around a cephalopod-headed statue.
And before its altar stood a being two or three times larger than the other Merfolk, one that seemed slightly more evolved.
It stood with its back turned, surrounded by Merfolk corpses piled like a mountain.
“I-I think that’s the boss.... F-Fuck... What’s wrong with me? Why are my hands shaking so much?”
[ Chat ]
- Hey, hey, bro, calm down. The screen’s shaking...!!
- But why are there so many Merfolk corpses here... Is this a mass grave?
- ...There aren’t any external wounds?
- What is this???
- Guess there won’t be any minions in this boss fight
- I don’t know what it is, but I’m nervous...
Hundreds of Hunters began spreading out cautiously.
They formed the prearranged formation and started encircling the boss.
The unmoving Merfolk quietly opened its mouth, and its voice echoed deep within their minds.
[ You have come, sacrifices... This is where you... ]
Fwoooosh!!!
Boom!
Countless spells and arrows poured down before the Merfolk King could finish speaking.
Theodore, commander of the landing operation, shouted at the top of their lungs.
“Don’t give that thing time to talk!!! Hit it with everything you’ve got!!!!”
[ ....... ]
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