WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

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

[Translator – Aren]

◈ Chapter 337 With These Hands of Mine (1)

-Is the West done for?

An emergency council was held over the unprecedented crisis. It had been hastily thrown together, with every available wizard being rotated in to sustain it.

-Three cities have disappeared, that’s all. What do you mean, ‘Done for’?

-To start, we still don’t even know for certain that those three cities have fallen. They may simply be unable to contact us. It would be best not to jump to conclusions.

-Oh… I don’t know. Now that we’ve lost contact with the Grand Temple, I think taking no news as good news is far too optimistic.

Since the meeting had been assembled in such a hurry, relatively few people were actually being projected here through Arcane Power. Not every city had a Magic Tower, and even among those that did, few could immediately provide the resources needed for real-time illusion transmission.

-We don’t have time, so let’s not waste it on such pointless speculation. The information I’ve received so far is that we’ve lost contact with the Grand Temple and the nearby cities of Corsata, Mernes, and Santero, while Enkuman and Mardelpia have sent distress signals.

-So it wasn’t only three cities that were attacked……

-Also… Ah, another report just came in.

-What is it?

-...Mardelpia has fallen. The damage is beyond recovery, and they’re currently evacuating the survivors to other cities. This report has only reached us through the testimony of said survivors who made it to another city as well.

-What about Enkuman?

-We’ve heard no news of them yet, but I doubt their situation is much different from Mardelpia’s.

In that sense, I guess being able to hear all of this could be considered lucky. No, maybe not exactly lucky, considering it only loaded on more pointless guilt onto my shoulders.

Thanks to the Young Lord’s consideration, I stood there with my arms crossed. For whatever reason, the Lord himself was nowhere to be seen, and beside me were only the pale-faced Inquisitor and several others. They had rushed over after hearing about the situation while the meeting was arranged.

-So had the Western Front completely collapsed? How far had the line been pushed back? Far enough to sweep past Jiodiva, Cognac, and the Porsen region?

-Of all times, this had to happen when everyone’s attention was focused on the East……

-Perhaps it didn’t just happen while everyone’s attention was on the East. Maybe they drew everyone’s attention to the East precisely so they could make this happen.

The longer the discussion went on, the paler the Inquisitor's face became. She looked so pitiful that my eyes just kept drifting toward her. It wasn’t often enough to be obvious, but I did sneak some glances at her quite often.

"...Inquisitor, are you alright?”

"I-I’m okay.”

But the Inquisitor didn’t even notice. That was how much of an impact the fall of the Grand Temple had on her.

"I-I’m fine……”

Ever since she had staggered into the room, it had affected her so badly that she didn’t even seem aware I was there.

-What is the situation in Munmund?

"...The immediate crisis has passed thanks to the efforts of the Hero and warriors.”

-Do you need any further reinforcements?

In the meantime, the discussion briefly shifted to Munmund. The Young Lord, who had been silent up until now, showed the faintest bit of displeasure in his eyes. Given the flow of the conversation, it looked as though supplies for this city were about to be diverted to the West, so his reaction was quite understandable.

"...With an entire region on the verge of destruction, we can’t concern ourselves only with the safety of this land.”

But if he insisted on keeping the support with all the things going on right now, he would basically be asking to be branded a traitor to mankind. Under the implicit pressure, the Young Lord took a step back.

"But we also can’t only focus on the West and allow the Eastern front to collapse. There is no guarantee those cunning Demons were only trying to draw our attention east while striking elsewhere.”

Even so, he didn’t back down completely either. By presenting a reasonable justification and using the concessions he had already made to draw concessions from the other side, he secured the resources he needed most. Food and medicine.

"Besides, isn’t it difficult to send food all the way to the West anyway? Armor and weapons are one thing since they don’t spoil.”

-If the North sent food west while we supplied food to the North, then the food could still make its way there……

"Then we’ll give up the food. Send us people instead. 20 from each city should be enough.

-...You of all people should know that gathering soldiers from different commands in one place accomplishes little.

"That depends on the commander's ability. Besides, when did I ask you to send troops? I asked you to send people.”

In the process, he also managed to make them hand out some human resources. I couldn’t tell whether he had planned that from the start or simply spotted an opening and took advantage of it.

Several eastern lords looked quite flustered as they were about to lose some of their people because of their poor choice of words.

-Do you really need people that urgently……?

"While battle casualties are quite tragic, the loss of our noncombat personnel from the plague Gluttony spread has been far more severe. We especially need people who can repair collapsed walls and damaged supplies.”

And the human resources the Young Lord was requesting weren't just ordinary craftsmen you could find anywhere. The lords of the nearby cities, who felt that their people were almost certainly getting taken, went pale.

The plague spread by Gluttony…huh.

But before they could give in under the pressure, someone cut in. The loose wizard’s robe draped over their body made their racial traits particularly easy to make out.

Feathers. And smooth skin. He was unmistakably of the Curety tribe. A Curety so visually distinctive that it was strange I hadn’t noticed him until now.

-That’s actually something I’ve been meaning to ask about, so this works out nicely.

-...I don’t recognize you. Who are you?”

-Looks like the Magic Tower Master of Kleve.

-Isn’t Kleve a city in the North……?

With the others whispering among themselves, Meister, who was only standing here thanks to the Inquisitor’s authority, muttered a small curse. “Damn bastard." Fortunately, it was quiet enough that only someone like me could barely make it out.

None of the officials had caught Meister’s words.

-I thought you would be taking part in the northern discussion right about now. This is quite unexpected.

-My deputy is attending that thing on my behalf. I came here personally because there was something I wanted to hear.

But the moment Meister swore all of a sudden, my attention unavoidably shifted toward them. Meister might have a filthy mouth, but he wasn’t stupid enough to curse in the middle of an important meeting like this.

-The unrest in the west is certainly serious, but from a northerner's point of view, this concerns me more.

-By 'this' you mean……?

-Gluttony. Is that Great Demon truly dead?

-Is that really important right now……?

-It is. Considering the influence that Great Demon’s existence had on the Northern Front.

In other words, if Meister was swearing in a setting like this, there had to be a reason serious enough to prompt him to do it behind this.

"Is something wrong?”

"...No.”

Apparently the Archmage also noticed something, because she checked on Meister, her voice barely louder than a mosquito’s buzzing. “I’m fine.” Though in the end, all she got from him was a completely crumpled-up face.

-If Gluttony is dead, the scale of what we can do in the North changes completely. So I would like a clear answer. Is it truly dead?

While we were busy worrying about Meister, the Magic Tower Master of Kleve pressed for an answer. The Young Lord’s eyes narrowed at their insistence.

"It’s unquestionably dead. Everyone on the walls saw it. Every member of the Temple, including the Hero and the Bishop, confirmed this death as well. Or do you require more conclusive evidence?”

- No, that’s fine. There’s no need to waste valuable time verifying a fact that the lord himself has officially attested to.

The Tower Master accepted that quite easily. I’d been wondering whether I might have to take out the corpse, so this was quite fortunate for me.

-Praise and a toast to the destruction of such terrible evil.

"...The city didn’t overcome that ordeal through its own efforts, and there are others who truly deserve the praise, so I will decline. Nor will I raise a toast prematurely when we still don’t know anything about the West’s situation."

Couldn’t he at least accept the praise? They might not have contributed to hunting the Demon itself, but surviving until then had been the city’s own achievement.

“However, since you wanted an answer from me, Tower Master, I would like to make one request of you in return.”

-And what might that be?

"Share the information and weaknesses of the two Great Demons that the North has been hiding.”

-Surely you know why we keep that information under strict control.

"I do. It’s an indispensable measure to prevent leaks. But do you know how much damage this city suffered when Gluttony, which seemed to confine itself to the North, came down here? If the remaining Great Demons take advantage of the city’s weakened state and come south as well, the consequences will be even greater.”

-I express my deep regret regarding that matter. But despite being left ignorant in the face of this crisis, didn’t you accomplish the great feat of killing Gluttony in the end?

"That was a feat we never could have accomplished if the Hero’s party hadn't been in this city. Must I say it with my own mouth again that this city survived entirely because of them?”

At some point, I felt my concentration beginning to slip. It was as though my concern for the western cities I had passed through, along with the lingering regret over the cities already destroyed, had finally reached its limit.

I felt even more helpless because it’s neither something I should be concerned about nor something I can do anything about.

-Ahem… I understand how both of you feel, but this is a meeting attended by everyone. I think it would be best to leave matters concerning only your two cities for later.

-Has any additional news come in yet?

Ignoring the two people locked in a battle of nerves and those trying to get the discussion back on track, I blanked out for a moment.

If several western cities had been wiped out, would the Inquisitor go there to help now? But even on horseback it would take more than half a year. Would there be any point? It wouldn’t be completely pointless, I guess, but by the time she got there……

-Right, um… Has the Hero said what she intends to do? Why is she keeping silent?

-Yes, what about the movement of the one said to have played such a major role in defeating the Demons……

-If the Grand Temple can no longer fulfill its role, the defenses of the West still collapse. So perhaps the Hero could assist with the reconstruction……

Do I have to go too?

I silently repeated the words the Young Lord had said earlier. ‘The city got through this crisis because of them.’ He’d only said it to make sure no one stole our credit, but instead, it became another burden on me. Because if you turned those words around, they meant. ‘Without me, the city would have fallen.’

Even though I had no need for a world that couldn’t function without me.

"I believe I said it at the beginning of this discussion. The Hero is observing this meeting, so I asked everyone to keep that in mind. I suggest you choose your words more carefully.”

-Oh.......

"Furthermore, the same applies to the warrior who distinguished himself. Just because he contributed to defeating the Demons doesn’t mean he has any obligation to go to the front.”

-That’s quite the strange thing to say. If someone blessed with great power doesn’t fight for mankind, then what purpose does that power serve?

"Then let me ask you this. If you try to make use of that tremendous power without offering proper compensation, do you truly think its owner will just happily accept that? Even lords such as ourselves enjoy many privileges in exchange for fulfilling our duties as rulers.”

While I clenched and unclenched my fists under the weight of the pressure and pointless responsibility thrust upon me, the discussion sharply veered into another direction again. This time, they were discussing the matter of selfless sacrifice without compensation.

-But……

"Don’t think of forcing him to do anything. This city owes him a great debt, so we will cooperate fully with whatever he wishes to do.”

Naturally, something in my chest grew heavier. I’d been debating whether I should step forward or not just moments ago, so I couldn’t help it. At least hearing the Young Lord say that gave me a little more room to breathe.

"......”

Even so, that relief only lasted for a moment.

I looked at the young woman who would have to carry an entire world on her back the instant I stopped. She never once noticed I was there, and that only made the bitterness on my tongue worse.

-Are you threatening us?

"If that sounded like a threat to you, then I apologize.”

-I know you are the Lord of Munmund, but this is just outrageous……!

-Now, now. Let’s put this discussion aside for later. Whether or not an individual’s wishes should be respected doesn’t seem like something we need to debate right now.

-Lord Charco!

-Another report has come in regarding the situation in the West. Do you not want to hear it?

Honestly, if they had simply outright demanded that I help them, I probably wouldn’t have felt so quietly like this.

-We’ve learned that the true culprit behind this catastrophe is most likely one of the Great Demons. Pride, about whom we know almost as little as about Wrath.

The moment the being Wrath had warned me about most severely was mentioned, I closed my eyes again. I shouldn’t have come. A deep sense of regret washed over me.

* * *

-White Crow, what do you make of this catastrophe?

The Magic Tower Master of Kleve glanced up at the mention of his epithet. On one side of the vast hall where he stood, the northern council was being projected through magic, while in the other corner where a puppet had been set up, the eastern council was being projected as well.

"An opportunity within a crisis."

-An opportunity within a crisis?

"No matter how fiercely the Demons sharpen their fangs, biting and tearing into something is bound to dull them, wouldn’t you say?”

Controlling and thinking through both his own body and the magically linked puppet at the same time was no easy task. Even so, White Crow did it with complete ease.

"Especially when sharpening those fangs even once costs them an enormous amount of resources."

─I’d like a more precise explanation……

"I’m saying this attack must have cost them dearly as well.”

Of course, thinking through a situation so obvious was far too easy. Easy enough that even doing two things at once wasn’t difficult at all for him.

"Otherwise, there's no reason they would only attempt something like this now. If they could have used it whenever they pleased, mankind would have lost long ago.”

-So it’s only a suspicion… But this incident pushed the front back considerably. We suffered enormous losses as well.

"I wonder. Did we really?”

-......?

"I wonder whether a front with no troops left to hold it can even be called a front.”

-...No troops left to hold it?

"Huhu… This is still only a suspicion, so I won’t say it’s anything certain. Once we have more testimony and evidence…it won’t be too late to say it then.”

Still, there was one question even a mind like his couldn’t solve.

"But I still won’t take back what I said about this being an opportunity within a crisis. Honestly, the Grand Temple functioned less as the practical center of the Temple and more as a sacred site of faith, right? At least as far as the North was concerned.”

-...I won’t deny that. The northern Temples often act independently.

"In that sense, the destruction of the Grand Temple will stir the priests’ faith and stoke their desire for revenge…which will directly lead to greater fighting strength. And the western cities were so accustomed to the Grand Temple’s protection that few of them were particularly skilled in combat. No matter how many cities were wiped out, mankind’s actual military strength hasn’t really declined."

─On the other hand, if your theory is correct, the Demons have effectively spent one of their expendable fangs on the West……

"Now that Gluttony is dead, if we kill Lust as well, there will be nothing left obstructing the Northern Front. Setting aside Sloth in the South, that would leave only Pride and Satan in the Demon King’s Castle. If that isn’t an opportunity, then what is?”

Pride had to know that too. So what were they thinking by making a move like this? What picture was their cunning mind trying to paint?

"As long as we don’t fall for the Demons’ schemes, this war that has continued for thousands upon thousands of years will end in our generation.”

White Crow smiled broadly at the puzzle that had been laid before him.

A contest of wits with lives on the line. Of all the amusements Pride had ever given him, this was the finest toy of them all.

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