WeTried Translations

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ I Pulled Out Excalibur

Chapter 324

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Prologue (■)

Najin's eyes trembled.

There was no way he could fail to recognize him. Standing in front of him now was Ivan, not a hallucination or an illusion, but a clear, tangible presence.

Why was Ivan here?

In Underground City, Artman, Najin never found Ivan's corpse in the end. Thinking Ivan had become part of the City of the Abyss and could no longer be brought back, Najin had given up searching for his body. Then why was Ivan here now?

Cackle, cackle cackle, cackle cackle cackle!

The Carnival King's laughter rang out. A sword thrust toward Najin as he faced Ivan. It was so slow he could have lightly knocked it aside, or even caught it barehanded without needing to deflect it, but the moment he saw the face of the one holding the sword, he could not do it.

It was Offen.

Offen had appeared alongside Ivan.

Najin's insides shook again. The scenery of the underground city that had firmly supported him began creaking because of the sudden appearance of those two.

There was no way the Carnival King would miss that gap.

A thread shot down from the sky and pierced Najin's stage. The Carnival King's fingers dug into the cracks in the stage. In a fleeting instant, the very moment she had waited for, she released her Authority.

Adaptation.

Space creaked around Ivan and Offen. Using their lives as a base, the Carnival King unfolded the stage. She developed the story, then scattered her colors over a story that had already been completed.

...Najin's sense of self is firm.

The Carnival King knew that well.

Even after reaching Transcendence at only twenty, that detestable knight's confidence did not fall short in the slightest even compared to Transcendents who had reigned at the peak for centuries. To the point that she could not find even a crack for her Authority to burrow into.

Because Najin's life was not made of only "his own" story.

The lives of heroes he had interacted with, their stars, convictions, values, techniques, and the answers they gave at the ends of their lives... with countless such things, Najin had forged himself solid. The lives of so many heroes supported Najin, so there was no way he could be easily broken.

A person who resembled the Carnival King, yet walked the exact opposite path.

To the Carnival King, he was enough to be called a natural enemy. That was why she sought a method. She had the advantage in force, but she did not let her guard down for even a moment, because she did not know what variable might arise.

So the answer she found was simple.

If that boy, too, supports his life with the lives of others, but unlike her, did not steal their lives and make them his own, and instead respected their lives and used them as his guideposts...

Then all she had to do was twist the person who became that "starting point."

Najin's stage is Underground City, Artman. Many stars rise in Underground City, Artman, and among them, the Carnival King knew what the very first star meant, and whose life was contained in that star.

Through the Lighthouse that Illuminates the Abyss, through the spies she had scattered across the Empire, she had scraped together information in every way possible.

"One-Eyed Ivan."

In the end, the Carnival King obtained that man's corpse. Along with it, she also secured the corpse of the one called "mercenary Offen," who could shake Najin.

Cackle cackle, c-cackle cackle cackle!

With laughter, the Carnival King's hand moved.

The stage flipped over. Countless stage mechanisms interlocked with precision and began to bind Najin. Until now, Najin had dismissed the Carnival King's stage with "This is not my story" and blown it away, but he could not do that even now.

The axis of the stage was none other than Najin's own imagery. A stage began to unfold with Najin's story, his life, and Underground City, Artman as its background.

Najin's stage bound Najin.

Using Offen and Ivan as mediums, the Carnival King intervened in the stage.

And so, Adaptation began.

【You awaken from a long dream.】

Najin opened his eyes.

2.

You awaken from a long dream.

Your eyelids are heavy.

Your head is heavy too.

You let out a long breath, rub your sleepy eyes, and look around. The first thing that enters your eyes is the sight of an alley where trash is rolling around.

It is an alley reeking with foul stench. Carelessly thrown garbage, shattered glass shards, and dead light stones are rolling around.

"An alley in the underground city."

Yes, that is right. An alley in the underground city. To add a little more, one of the most remote alleys even in the underground city. You do not know where you were born, but this is where you were abandoned, so this might be your birthplace.

In that alley, you opened your eyes.

It feels like you had a very long dream. In the dream, you were a one-of-a-kind hero. Good lord, you, born in an underground city where even starlight does not reach, you who were going to live the very lowest life among the very bottom, pulled out Excalibur, the legendary holy sword?

You drew a sword no one had drawn in a thousand years, a sword even Sword Masters could not draw.

It is such an absurd dream that it is almost laughable.

Dreams are mirrors that project people's wishes.

Certainly, in that sense, it was exactly the kind of dream you would dream. Because dream and reality are exact opposites.

"I."

You have no talent at all. In a city built on the bottom, you were abandoned once again, even by your mother. You do not have extraordinary bloodline, you were not raised with love, and even if you had talent, there is no room in this place to make it bloom.

You have nothing.

In the dream, your overwhelming talent caught the eye of Ivan, ruler of the underground city, and his close friend Offen. They recognized your talent, trained you, and in the end gave their lives for you.

Because they existed, your life could begin.

Because they pushed you forward, you could go outside, and in the end become a hero acknowledged across the continent.

What a beautiful story.

But reality... well.

"..."

Staggering, you stand up.

Your appearance is miserable.

Unable to eat properly, you are skin and bones. Instead of the splendid coat of a Free Knight, you wear worn-out rags. At your waist, forget Excalibur, there is not even one decent sword.

You are an ordinary child who could be anywhere in this city. The kind of useless human who could disappear overnight and no one would care.

Tap.

You step out of the alley. What you see outside are passersby frowning as they look at you.

"Sky."

When you lift your head and look at the sky,

there is a sky with light stones nailed into it. No stars are visible. The blue sky you saw in the dream is gradually fading too. Dreams are originally quick to blur once you wake.

"Something."

You start walking aimlessly. Is it because you had such a happy dream? You are doing something you normally would not do. You head toward the downtown district.

In a place where people who have fallen to the bottom gather, people still divide ranks one more time. Humans are that kind of creature. Underground City, Artman is the same.

If you have even a little talent and find a job, if by luck you catch the eyes of the rulers of each district, you can live in the center of the underground city, the so-called downtown. But how could a child with no talent, abandoned even by his parents, set foot in downtown?

Cold stares. Eyes that look at you as if you are trash. Stares full of disgust.

"..."

Ignoring those stares, you walk. As if searching for something. And the place you arrive at is a tavern. Voices come from inside the tavern.

"Remember that time? Ha, I really could not have been cooler. I miss it, I really do. I held my sword like this and shouted proudly. If you know honor, come out and receive my blade!"

"I've already lost count of how many times you've told that story."

"Wahaha!"

You think, that is a familiar voice.

Familiar, what does that even mean?

You know those voices from inside, not because you had any exchange with them, but because there is no one in this city who does not know those voices.

Inside the tavern sit One-Eyed Ivan, one of the three rulers of the underground city, and his close friend Offen. Beside them, the Ivan Family tilt their drinks and burst out laughing.

You walk toward them.

You walk up to them.

"Ivan."

And end up calling his name.

Not a good choice.

The moment you put his name in your mouth, silence falls over the tavern like cold water has been thrown on it. Ivan, who had been drinking cheerfully, turns his head and looks at you.

A cold gaze.

Then Ivan turns his head away. As if he has no interest at all. And besides, there was no need for him to step in personally.

"Did this bastard lose his mind?"

The low-ranking members of the Ivan Family rise roughly from their seats. You dared put the boss's name in your mouth and ruined the drinking mood, so they shove your shoulders and drag you outside.

They kick you. They beat you thoroughly and throw you back into the alley you came from. Even in the middle of that, you keep looking into the tavern.

But Ivan does not even spare you a glance.

Offen is the same.

"Remember that time? The day we met when you were working as a mercenary."

"It was the worst first impression. Some punk that looked like a street thug came rushing at me shouting, 'My name is Ivan, I am a knight.' It was awful."

"Hahaha! There was a bit of a misunderstanding back then."

As if nothing happened, they drink, laugh, and chat.

Of course.

To them, you are not even worth a glance. In the dream, they gave their lives for you, but that was only a dream.

In reality, you are nothing.

Not a pillar of the Empire, not a great hero, not an unmatched genius who shattered the youngest record, not someone who drew Excalibur, just someone buried at the very bottom of the bottom...

You are only that kind of nothing.

"No."

You...

"That is just a story you made up and rambled on about."

Ah.

Yeah, well.

【You awaken from a long dream.】

Again.

3.

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"Break him."

"What?"

"I said break him, Ivan. The brat has talent, but we cannot become teachers great enough to make that talent bloom. Better to break him here. That will be better for him too."

"..."

"Didn't you say it? If you cross the line, life gets harder. Better to make him understand his place for sure than to plant false hope."

"...Hoo."

"Will you do it? Or should I..."

"No. Offen. I'll do it."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"...Tch."

During your spar with Ivan, you fail to block Ivan's Sword Aura. Your sword breaks, and one of your arms falls off.

"Well."

As you bleed and let out a suppressed groan, Ivan's shadow falls over your head.

"If this is enough to break you, then breaking here is right. If you cannot reach it anyway, giving up is easier. Fucking hell, hoo..."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"Ha..."

"We all had dreams."

"I did, your master did, everyone who fell into this city did... once, all of us dreamed of up there, and of going even higher. We longed to carve our stars into that high night sky."

"But with only scars we could not erase carved into our bodies, we fell into this city of sinners."

"Why?"

"Because we chased a light too far beyond us."

Drugmaker Hakan burst into laughter.

"So you will be the same, brat. You will collapse without achieving anything. That light is far too bright for the likes of you to hold."

Her fingers dug into your neck. The means she had prepared for so many years were not sloppy enough for someone who had just drawn Excalibur to handle.

"No matter how much you struggle."

Crack, your neck snaps.

"Your end is here too."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

As you run away after drawing Excalibur, Offen appears before you. Blocking the path, he wipes his face with his palm.

"Why did you do that."

He asks you.

"Why did you draw it? Even if you could draw it, you should not have. It is still too early. You cannot handle it. Right now, that is far too much for you to have."

With a painful expression, he points his sword at you. Sword Aura rises over the blade.

"I cannot hide it anymore, and I cannot do anything for you. There is no choice. Najin. For everyone, their own life is most precious. So..."

The sect's shadow operatives come rushing in.

"This is the only way left for me."

Centered around Offen, they press in on you. One, two, as more and more shadow operatives' blades pierce you, your consciousness grows faint.

You died.

【You awaken from a long dream.】

Ivan looks down at you. Eyes gone cold. In the end, at the final moment, he chose to be not a knight, but merely a human swayed by desire.

"...I have to survive too, don't I."

He chose life over honor and pride.

The sword of the underground city's ruler, who gave up being a knight, pierced your fallen heart.

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"Do not cross the line."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"Live as you are given."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"If you reach for what you cannot touch, you will only suffer. A life satisfied with what is given is happiness."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

"Do not stake your life on trivial things like honor, pride, or stars."

【You awaken from a long dream.】

【You awaken from a long dream.】

【You awaken from a long dream.】

Cackle.

【You.】

Cackle cackle, cackle cackle cackle!

【From a long dream.】

Cackle cackle, cackle cackle cackle! Cackle cackle cackle cackle cackle!

【You awaken.】

.........

......

...

.

.

.

.

Countless hero tales say this.

Wherever you stand, if you look up at that vast night sky, you will see constellations. And those constellations are the traces of heroes who raced across this land, and their lives.

All of that is wrong.

No stars are visible.

Constellations are not there.

Glorious stories like the lives of heroes are far from your life.

This place is Underground City, Artman.

People from the upper districts call this place this:

Landfill.

A place where discarded trash is buried.

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