WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer?

[Translator – Aren]

◈ Chapter 307 Make it Stronger (1)

I raced along with Meister riding behind me. It was a motorcycle in name only, a knockoff with no fuel tank, engine, or muffler, but that didn’t matter. At least it looked convincing, and it actually moved.

[...Hah.]

「W-wow……」

For the record, there was no special principle behind how this fake motorcycle with no engine moved. Just like a bicycle moved when you pushed the pedals, I was simply using Demonic Energy to turn the wheels directly.

As expected, it consumed a ridiculous amount of Demonic Energy.

"What is this? What is this thing?!”

And yet, even such a simple, crude method was enough to get engineer Meister incredibly excited. In an age where horses were the greatest means of transportation, there was really no helping it after he saw something like this.

Riding behind me, Meister grabbed the hem of my clothes and shook me back and forth.

"Is this also the Demon’s power?"

"...It’s something from my homeland.”

"Is your homeland full of lunatics like you who are obsessed with Arcane Power?”

"Of course not.”

We don’t even have Arcane Power or Demonic Energy there to begin with. Not knowing whether saying that would hurt Meister, I swallowed the words and furrowed my brow instead. I was trying to remember how an engine worked.

"Normally… It contains a mechanism called an engine. The engine receives fuel from a fuel tank and causes a series of explosions inside……”

"It causes explosions?”

"...The force from those explosions rotates gears. Those rotating gears are connected to the wheels, making the wheels turn.”

Was that actually how it worked? I’d only ever used machines. It wasn’t like I’d ever taken an interest in how they worked. Hell, I’d barely ever even been into steampunk settings. They were too hard to draw.

"I don’t know the details.”

When I flatly refused to explain anything beyond that, Meister let out a thoughtful ‘Hmm.’

"It receives fuel and causes explosions…The fuel obviously won’t explode on its own, so there must be some kind of ignition mechanism…No, before that, you’d need a material capable of withstanding the explosion……”

And everything that came after that was stuff I hadn’t told him. Feeling kind of creeped out, I made the wheels turn even faster. The body of Behemoth I had killed came into view on the left, while on the right, the overturned earth and the city began to appear precariously in the distance.

"Later, you’re going to tell me everything you know about things from your homeland.”

...Scary. I began regretting showing him the motorcycle. A horse would have required me to individually control all four legs, so the motorcycle had definitely been the best choice, but that didn’t make it any less terrifying.

"If the Temple gives me the opportunity, I’ll try.”

Whoosh.

Using a massive hill as a ramp, I soared through the air for dozens of meters, then, timing it with our landing, transformed Ratel’s wheels into a viscous liquid. Since I couldn’t change it into a rubber-like elastic material, this was the next best option.

Splat. The wheels struck the ground, then smoothly rose again as they regained their original shape. I had given them a little viscosity, so although they couldn’t completely absorb the impact from the uneven terrain, at least we weren’t rattling around like an empty cart.

"If something like this became widespread, it would revolutionize transportation.”

"It wouldn’t cause as much of a revolution as that Battery you were making.”

"......"

From what I knew, even motorcycles on Earth used batteries during production, so in that case, the battery won by a landslide.

I nodded to myself without waiting to hear Meister’s response.

"That."

Clunk.

"Well, that’s obvious.”

Unfortunately, we ran over a large rock that was awkward to avoid and too much even for the gelatinous wheels to compensate for, making the motorcycle jolt once. Meister’s words broke off with the impact before continuing.

"Ah, could you take a look at an item for me?”

Around then, however, I remembered something I could ask him about. I had temporarily forgotten about the chest protector while confessing the truth, facing the threat of death by embarrassment, and asking for advice about the future.

"What?”

Using my inventory, I skillfully passed him the protector I was still wearing over my chest.

"What’s this?”

"Equipment with explosion magic engraved into it.”

"...But it’s a chest protector?”

"I had it made because I planned to kill myself before I could go berserk. Anyway, I tried to use it recently, but it didn’t explode. Is the magic actually engraved correctly?”

At my question, Meister remained silent for a while. I couldn’t quite tell whether he was examining the magic on the armor or had simply been struck speechless by what I’d just said.

"...It’s not an explosion spell. There’s protection magic engraved on it, though. The circuit is cleverly designed so it’s easy to mistake it for one.”

"...I see."

Still, in the end, he did appraise it for me. That proved I hadn’t simply said the keyword wrong.

“You going to change it?”

"Who knows. I don’t intend to for now. There’s no longer any need to.”

But why had White Wind deceived me? She had seemed like someone who wanted me dead without any personal feelings involved.

"I should still ask her about it, though.”

I let out a quiet sigh as I thought about White Wind’s actions, which I simply couldn't understand. It was true that I had been given another chance because White Wind had engraved different magic than promised, but somehow it left me feeling strange. A little disappointed and a bit unsettled……

"...We’re almost there.”

Anyway, not long afterward, we reached Behemoth’s corpse, our intended destination. It wasn’t located particularly far from the wall, so walking the rest of the way shouldn’t be much of a problem.

"Go."

"Yeah, yeah."

For the record, we had agreed beforehand that Meister would return to the city alone.

I was uneasy about leaving Behemoth’s corpse unattended, and I also thought that if I approached the city myself, they might interpret it as a threat. Besides, from this distance, even if they decided to turn hostile toward me, I would be able to run away without getting caught.

All things considered, it was the most convenient choice.

[Why don’t you just leave now? With the Demonic Energy you have left, I think you could easily shake off the Hero even if she chased after you……]

Though when I thought about the collapsed wall and the soldiers sprawled around like the remnants of a defeated army, I wasn’t sure they even had the strength left to pick a fight with me.

"While you’re waiting, organize everything you know about the culture and technology of your homeland.”

Most of all, looking at Meister, I somehow got the feeling that he would definitely persuade the Temple if only for the sake of satisfying his own curiosity. He felt strangely reliable.

“...Use the signal."

"Yeah."

Still, no one ever knew what might happen. Keeping the signal we had agreed on in mind in case of the worst case, I stopped the motorcycle a reasonable distance away from Behemoth’s corpse.

Meister’s back grew smaller and smaller, while the wall grew noisier the closer he got to it, creating a stark contrast.

Swoosh.

But there wasn’t much I could do about that. I turned away from the wall and leaned against the motorcycle. I wonder if Mister Richa and, what was his title, the young lord are still alive.

With nothing else to do, my gaze subtly swept over the wall even as I drove away the bugs.

「Ah......」

But Faust found that person before I did. A suppressed gasp reached me, and a beat later I spotted dark blue hair. Stained with blood, dust, and who knew what else, the dark blue honestly looked closer to black now.

"...He’s alive."

But he was alive. That was what mattered. He hadn’t died. Even if he could only stand with someone supporting him, he was still here on this land as a living person rather than a corpse.

And he was looking this way.

"......”

Suddenly, I had the feeling he was watching me. I couldn’t even properly make out his face from here, yet strangely, I could feel his gaze distinctly.

「...Ah.」

And that was probably a sensation Faust could feel even more strongly than I could.

The sound of him swallowing back sobs repeatedly spread through my head. It was the kind of sound people made when they covered their mouths and even tried to kill the breath leaking out.

[What a racket……]

'You’re still louder than him. So shut up.'

How long had it taken that child to learn how to cry without making a sound?

Even as I wondered that, I didn't rashly try to comfort him. I had no way of measuring the sheer weight of what the boy was feeling right now.

And realistically, I didn’t have the luxury to do so either.

No matter how positively I tried to look at things, the situation was still what it was.

Choosing, as the victim, to accept the person who had harmed me. Running all over the place trying to save people in the middle of that. The Inquisitor’s enormous emotions crashing into everything. The bomb I had finally decided to trigger after suppressing every stray thought, only for it to fizzle out anticlimactically……

I was doing my best to keep taking everything lightly, but I was starting to reach my limit. At this point, the best I could manage was to stay silent and give him enough distance to cry in peace.

[What’s wrong? Starting to regret it?]

And then the Demon causally prodded at exactly that spot. She really was frighteningly good at identifying people’s weak points. What made her hopeless trash was that instead of soothing them, she dug into them for her own benefit.

‘Why? Do you want me to regret it?’

[So you do regret it.]

Was she fishing for a reaction? Either way, it was pretty meaningless.

Honestly, as long as I was human, it was impossible not to feel at least some form of regret.

Call it overseas volunteering all you want, 9 years wasn’t exactly a short amount of time.

[And at the same time, you genuinely regret that the bomb didn’t go off.]

Of course, even if I could turn back time, I wouldn’t make a different choice. Having regrets didn’t mean the best choice stopped being the best choice.

Still… Did I really need to spell out every little bit of that? I looked away from the Demon, who was grinning to herself. Her laughter rose a little higher.

[Ah, Gretchen, you really are……]

‘Enough. What was the thing with the clothes regenerating earlier?’

And I had no desire to listen to that laughter for very long. I cut her off with an indifferent expression.

[I don’t know what you mean.]

'When this body regenerated earlier, the clothes came back too. What was that?’

Smack. A bug clinging to my neck burst beneath my palm.

[Ah, that. If you consider the fact that most of this body is currently composed of Demonic Energy, the answer should be obvious.]

'...You’re saying the clothes are part of the body too?'

[Yes.]

My brain stopped for a moment.

'...Seriously?'

Hearing that the clothes were part of the body made me feel weird about them. Feeling thoroughly unsettled, I fiddled with the hem of my clothes.

'This really is part of this body too?’

Seriously, that was kind of…

[...What strange thoughts are you having? To put it another way, those clothes are no different from the shell worn by hermit crabs or shellfish. If I had to compare them to a human body part, they would be like hair or fingernails and toenails.]

'No, but still……’

Calling them a shell like a hermit crab’s or a clam’s did make it a little better, but… Hmm. I don’t know. I let go of the hem.

'Then why not just wear actual clothes?'

[Do you seriously think clothing with that ridiculous a design, even enchanted with automatic repair and automatic cleaning magic on top of that, would actually exist?]

'Ah.'

So it was just for convenience. Without even realizing it, I nodded in understanding.

'Right, how did you match the design from the artwork made?'

[I referenced the game you were planning to play.]

But with what came next, the weight of the answer changed considerably.

'...How did you know about that game?'

I brought up a question I had forgotten about for quite some time but had continued carrying with me ever since realizing this world was real.

'And why does this world resemble that game?'

It was something I had truly wanted to ask.

[First, I knew about the game because I read part of your memories. Second, I don’t know why that game and this world resemble one another.]

But the answer I got wasn’t quite so clear-cut. Especially the answer to the second question.

My hand tightened.

'...Let’s put the part about reading my memories aside for a second. Why the hell is your answer to the second question like that?'

[If I say I don’t know, I really don’t know. Should I lie and say I do? More importantly, didn’t you yourself say something like this once? ‘If you could explain a coincidence, would it still be a coincidence?’]

'So you’re saying Legend of Heroes and this world really do resemble each other purely by coincidence?'

[Yes.]

Having my own words from the past thrown back at me…was this revenge for earlier or something? Thinking even that, I repeatedly clenched and unclenched my hand. It wasn't that I didn’t understand what she was saying. I just couldn’t quite accept it.

[You’ve got a look on your face like you just can’t accept it. Yeah, fair enough. It’s suspicious enough that calling it a coincidence feels questionable.]

'Then bring me something I can actually accept if you know so much.'

[Why should I? You take only what you want from me, and you refuse to move according to my wishes.]

'You heartless bastard. Fine, if you don't want to tell me, forget it. I’d be an idiot to keep relying on you.'

Even so, I didn’t want an answer badly enough to cling desperately to that bastard for one. The same went for the traces of my homeland she kept flaunting so openly, practically begging me to ask about them.

I readily gave up on getting an answer, and after a moment of silence, the Demon spoke.

[I truly find you irritating and detestable. Even so, I hold you dear, so I can at least tell you what I’ve inferred.]

'You said you didn’t want to tell me, though?'

[Did I just say it? I’m telling you because I hold you dear.]

Did she eat something weird while I wasn’t looking……?

I spent a moment trying to figure out the ulterior motive behind her suddenly changed attitude. Though, come to think of it, she had answered every question I asked pretty faithfully up until now, so saying her attitude had suddenly flipped wasn’t entirely accurate either……

[So? Don’t you want to hear it, my dear Gretchen?]

Still, I didn't think this was kindness without an ulterior motive. As far as I knew, someone like her wasn’t the type to give up or reform just because she’d lost once. Just like when she thought she’d been driven into a corner earlier and started struggling desperately all on her own.

[Do you really want me to keep quiet?]

I looked at the Demon smiling faintly at the durumagi and modern suit she wore. I remembered the game knowledge she had casually displayed and the moment when everyone else called something damn awful while she alone had used a different but equally vulgar expression for it.

'If you’re that confident, then go ahead and try to mess with me. Let’s see how good that mouth of yours really is.'

Wasn’t it cunning? Instead of openly emphasizing that she was from the same homeland as me, she subtly let me realize it myself, planting a sense of familiarity.

But even if she really was from the same place as me, I had no intention of forgiving her.

[How unfortunate. I’m afraid I’m not confident I can meet your standards. Like I said earlier, what I’m about to tell you is only my speculation. I don’t know whether it’s actually the correct answer.]

'I’ll filter whatever comes out of your mouth myself, so don’t worry.'

[Oh, then that's a relief.]

Anyway, given all that, I figured there were broadly two reasons why she was acting like this now.

[Then shall I begin by explaining how you came to be summoned? But Gretchen, remember this much. We didn't personally choose who would be brought here. We merely presented the conditions each of us wanted.]

First, perhaps because cooperation had been forced upon her whether she liked it or not, she was at least trying to build up the image of being cooperative.

[And it was the ancient magic that selected someone who matched those conditions. The ancient rules, the thing also called the "absolute law," judged you to be the most suitable.]

Second, perhaps she was pretending to cooperate while mixing lies into the truth, intending to stab me in the back at some crucial moment.

'So you’re saying it wasn’t your fault that I was chosen?'

[We weren’t the ones who chose you.]

'Fine, let’s say that’s true. Then what were the conditions that caused me to be selected?'

[That boy asked for someone who would not succumb to evil, while I wanted someone who would prioritize their homeland over this place. The boy sought someone who could triumph over Demons, while I wished for someone capable of surviving in this world. Of course, I overlooked the fact that someone capable of surviving and someone who actually wants to live are two very different things, which is how someone like you ended up being summoned.......]

Of course, this could all just be my prejudice, so I couldn’t be certain. But so what? It was easier not to place any hope in her from the beginning than to hope for something and end up betrayed.

Keeping that in mind, I asked another question.

'Judging only by those conditions, it doesn’t seem like there was any particular reason it had to be me.'

[Who knows? Is that really the case? Gretchen, what do you think is the greatest advantage when it comes to survival?]

'Strength?’

[Not an incorrect answer, but there should be something even more certain than that.]

'...Information?'

[Exactly. Information. Information is the greatest power of all. In that sense, the fact that the game you know resembles this world isn’t especially strange. There are countless dimensions, and some dimensions may exist in forms resembling the written stories or games of another world. What truly matters is that by playing a world resembling this world, you came to possess something that could serve as information.]

'...Shit, so basically, I ended up like this because I played Legend of Heroes.'

[As I said earlier, this is only my speculation.]

'Yeah, I figured……'

But even knowing that the information might be poisoned didn’t stop the sudden reality check that overcame me.

After all, who could have known that liking a single game would screw me over this badly? Of course, that might not actually have been the real cause, but still.

'This seriously sucks......'

The game company and the game itself probably hadn’t done anything wrong, but even so, I didn’t think I could ever like Legend of Heroes again.

I quietly said goodbye to those memories.

* * *

"If there are no longer any injuries to treat, then there’s no need to dispatch personnel.”

Meanwhile, while someone was saying goodbye to his memories, Meister, having climbed the wall, heard those words from the Bishop.

Apparently, after they replenished his Arcane Power, he restored his body on his own. And apparently, the reason he hadn’t come to the wall was because he was worried someone might swipe that fat Demon corpse over there. As a bonus, the expressions of the relieved inquisitor and Deathbringer twisted in their own respective ways upon hearing that.

"Bishop, even so……!”

"In that case, we will continue with the treatment and purification."

But even those expressions froze at what came next.

"We’ve already wasted a great deal of time as it is.”

"Bishop……?”

The Bishop added nothing whatsoever about how the Demon Knight should be dealt with.

"Do you mean……”

"Representative, I don’t know him, and because I don’t know him, I was wary of him. But if you’re willing to speak for him to that extent, then I suppose that is enough.”

"......"

"But Representative, remember this. It’s precisely because you’re someone willing to lay down the title of Hero to save an innocent person that you’re called the Hero."

Of course, just because the Bishop had made this choice now didn’t guarantee that the Temple would react the same way afterward.

Perhaps even the Bishop was merely changing the subject because there were more urgent matters at hand, so he might reverse his attitude later.

"Then we shall return to our own work, Young Lord.”

But for now, the Demon Knight’s existence had been tolerated. She hadn’t been condemned for saving him. That made the Inquisitor happy.

"I’ll go help save people too……!”

With tears welling in her eyes, the young woman followed after the Bishop as he headed toward the ward.

"Whenever things go this smoothly, something always happens……”

"...What is with that ominous line? Though, well, I agree with you.”

"If the Bishop accepted it that easily, maybe that bastard Daniel is about to raise hell.”

"Ah, haven’t you heard that words have power? Watch what you say.”

Though the embodiments of distrust left behind still didn’t look particularly reassuring, even in a situation like this.

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