WETRIED TRANSLATIONS
Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer?
[Translator – Aren]
◈ Chapter 351 I Shall Convey it to God (9)
"It’s not like the corpse was torn to pieces. They even wrapped it properly for us to carry, so why are you making such a fuss?”
"........."
Hey, don’t you hear something? Like the sound of my glass heart cracking?
"...I don’t think “wrapped up properly for us” is an appropriate way to put it in front of the deceased.”
Of course, considering the era and world he came from, not to mention how and where he’d been raised, I was pretty sure he didn’t say all that out of malice. Yeah. I knew that, so I just let it slide.
After glancing at Meister for a bit, my eyes return to the coffin in front of me. I wasn’t about to stuff this corpse into my inventory wrapped in nothing but cloth, so I hurriedly prepared a coffin.
Well, there weren’t many finished coffins available, and because of the size requirement, we ended up using the most expensive pine coffin…it cost me a fair bit, but I felt a lot better about all this.
Even if I didn’t know much about this person’s circumstances…but treating someone like luggage after they died just didn’t sit right with me.
"Sure, whatever…but no matter how much I think about it, I’m telling you, you got scammed. That bastard definitely had paulownia coffins too and deliberately told you he only had the expensive pine ones.”
"I don’t care."
"Seriously, you……”
After checking the body one last time, I closed the coffin lid. The fragrance of the flowers I’d placed inside was sealed away completely, and the inventory space I’d emptied was filled again.
The subtle unease of having a corpse inside my inventory mixed with the satisfaction of successfully completing another round of inventory Tetris.
"Let’s go.”
Anyway, that took care of everything I needed to do. It was almost time for our appointment too.
"Sure."
Mesiter, who had been watching what I was doing, leisurely followed after me. He looked pretty exhausted from the way he kept yawning, but I didn’t feel sorry for him.
After all, he was the one who had stubbornly followed me around to squeeze materials out of me even after I told him not to follow me. And he hadn’t stopped at mere threats either. He’d successfully billed me for roughly 400 thousand gal worth of materials.
So he definitely wasn’t someone worthy of my concern.
"You’re here!”
"Am I the last one? I’m sorry.”
"N-not at all. The food isn’t even all out yet.”
When I went down to the dining room, I found everyone gathered together. The only things on the table were a salad, sausages, and bread, which apparently served as an appetizer.
"Did you secure the target?”
"Yes."
Come to think of it, you’d think people this far north would eat nothing but hot food, but cold dishes were surprisingly common. Was it because reheating everything every single time was too much trouble?
Lost in these idle thoughts, I spread Suzma on some bread. It was similar to Greek yogurt and one of the few things I could eat comfortably. Though it was…very cold.
"Have some of this."
"That brat…I mean, that friend of ours here ran around since dawn to find this for you.”
Just then, the Archmage pushed a freshly served dish toward me. Daniel, with exhaustion tinting the area beneath his eyes, was busy justifying her actions.
"W-why would you tell him that?!”
"It’s hardly something worth hiding.”
"How thoughtful.”
Anyway, what they pushed toward me was a steamed fish dish marinated in spices. Northerners didn’t really like fish, so it was something this restaurant normally didn’t serve.
"E-even so……”
So who had prepared this for me? I glanced at Deathbringer, whose neck had gone bright red with embarrassment.
How should I put it? I felt pretty touched.
"Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
"D-don’t mention it……”
"You have my thanks as well.”
"I didn’t do anything……”
"You went with him, didn’t you?”
"Please just try it!”
The exhaustion on his face was proof enough. I couldn’t help letting a faint smile slip on my lips at their thoughtfulness. At least no one called me a Demon for it this time.
It was a meal filled with warmth.
"You arrived at just the right time."
The Magic Tower, however, was very far from being such a warm place. Meister’s face had gone completely pale even though we had arranged to meet at the courtyard outside of the Magic Tower, which served as clear proof of that.
"God guides our souls to green pastures……”
The Inquisitor must have been worried about Meister’s condition too, because she kept reciting prayers of blessing beside him.
A subtle golden glow flowed from the hand resting on Meister’s shoulder.
"Hmm……?”
Someone, however, was watching that process very closely. A Curety whose shoulders were covered in white and whose hands resembled a bird's talons. A figure that somehow seemed familiar to me.
"I didn’t expect you to ever come back here.”
"White Crow.”
A wizard, judging from the robe draped over his arms. Probably someone quite high-ranking, seeing that he was wearing an expensive-looking dress-like long tunic and that the robe was covered in elaborate patterns. It definitely was someone I had seen before. And finally, the fact that he knew Meister, along with the name the Archmage had just called him, made it clear to me.
"Are you the Magic Tower Master of Kleve?”
"Hm? Ah, you must be……”
I stepped forward and drew the Tower Master’s attention to myself. It wasn’t all too difficult. The traits I possessed were extremely good at attracting the interest of wizards after all.
"A pleasure to meet you. I am White Crow, the one in charge of Kleve’s Magic Tower Branch. I lost my name long ago, so please, call me White Crow.”
"Adventure. No other title is necessary.”
Well, strictly speaking, this was probably something the Inquisitor should have been handling rather than me… But she was busy boosting Meister’s mental state right now. I could step in just this once.
"Enough pointless chatter. Introduce the person you brought us here to meet. That’s why we gathered here, right?”
Apparently reaching a similar conclusion, the Archmage moved into a position that blocked the two of them from each other. Her intention to skip any further introductions on our side couldn’t have been clearer.
"As impatient as ever, I see. I finally got to meet the famous Demon Knight. Surely a little small talk wouldn’t hurt, right?”
"White Crow.”
"Yes, yes."
White Crow shrugged and raised the beak-shaped mask he had been holding to his face. Sssshh. A thin wisp of smoke leaked from the gap in the beak.
This might sound a little harsh, but he looked like he was doing drugs, which definitely put me off.
Anyway, with his voice lower than before, White Crow flicked a free finger. Someone stepped out from behind him. They emerged from the shadows dressed entirely in black, making it look as though a shadow itself had stepped forward.
"......!"
The Archmage flinched. Apparently, she hadn’t even noticed the person was there.
"...I normally make it a point not to comment on how people dress, but White Crow, I simply can’t say nothing about the person you’ve introduced.”
Still, she didn’t stay flustered for long. The fact that she immediately started criticizing the person’s clothing choice made that clear enough.
Well, considering the full-face iron mask and the outfit making them more or less seem like an assassin, it would’ve been harder not to comment.
"Did you honestly think someone dressed like this would be welcomed?”
"Oh, of course not. Wise Golden Wind, I’m not an idiot.”
Though really, wasn’t the mask the only major problem? Calling the rest of it "assassin-like" was one thing, but it was basically your standard Adventurer A outfit. Aside from the thick cloak for keeping out the cold, the pieces of plate armor in certain places, and the fact that the entire color scheme was pure black.
"Then?"
"The reason this friend dresses like this despite knowing how suspicious it looks is simply—”
"I am not desperate.”
While I was lost in thoughts, the masked person cut White Crow off with a curt remark. White Crow already had a pretty serious deep voice, but this one had a rasp on top of that, making it sound even heavier.
"Does my attire offend you? Then refuse me. I came here because I was asked to. I have no desire to abandon what I’m accustomed to for your sake.”
They were about the same size as Meister, but the combination of their voice, manner of speaking, and clothing made them anything but easy to dismiss. At the prickly response, the Archmage adjusted her grip on her staff.
"You're correct. If our dispositions don’t suit each other, there is no need to force ourselves to get along.”
She acknowledged that point, but she still clearly wasn’t pleased.
"Now, don't be like that. Being covered from head to toe isn’t really that much of a problem, now is it?”
"It’s not merely a matter of covering oneself.”
"Aah. Is it the fact that everything they’re wearing is a magic item that bothers you? But Golden Wind, surely there’s nothing strange about a wizard wearing magic items.”
"It’s common for a wizard to possess magic items. Being covered in them from head to toe, however, is certainly unusual.”
Come to think of it, I felt like I’d just learned the Archmage’s epithet, but the conversation was too serious for me to pay much attention to it.
What bothered the Archmage wasn’t the design of the clothing but the properties imbued in it.
"I’m quite fond of this friend here, so I gave them a few things.”
You cared for them that much? I had no idea.”
Anyway, while the Archmage and White Crow continued their standoff, Meister stepped forward. His face was still deathly pale, but at least he seemed to have mentally recovered enough to move.
"Enough. Let’s just see what they can do.”
"Are you sure?"
"You’re really going to skip checking their skills just because they look suspicious?”
Why are you asking me? That isn’t my decision.
My gaze naturally shifted toward the Inquisitor, and her round eyes blinked at me. “Ah!” She’s great in every other way, but sometimes it seemed like she forgot that she was the leader.
"I think it would be best to see what they can do. If they’re good, then we’ll have to think about it. If they’re not, the answer will be obvious.”
The Archmage was already digging information out of White Crow. So in the meantime, we could check the wizard’s abilities.
After saying what could more or less be summed up like that, the Inquisitor looked at me with sparkling eyes. Without a word, I took out a piece of candy and placed it in her hand.
"Are you raising a dog?”
"...I know you mean no harm by that, but I think you should choose your words more carefully.”
Sure, our Inquisitor was cute like a puppy, but calling her a dog right to her face was just mean.
While I silently reproached Meister, the Inquisitor wiped the grin off her face. Even with the mask covering their face, she must have felt the wizard’s gaze on us.
"Then, um……”
"Aerotelk. No honorifics are necessary.”
"Ah, yes! Wizard Aerotelk—”
"No honorifics.”
"Right. Then, Aerotelk, may I ask this of you?”
The Inquisitor looked between Aerotelk and Meister as she made the request. Maybe because they were meeting for the first time and this was official business, things proceeded surprisingly smoothly.
“This is strange……”
"Are they not very skilled?”
"No, they’re not bad. It’s just……”
Meister frowned. A faint sense of displeasure, fear, and mild irritation swirled behind his violet eyes.
"Tell me the difference between fire created with Arcane Power and real fire, and how to keep Arcane Power inside a flame for an extended period of time.”
"The decisive difference would be what each requires as a catalyst. And for Arcane Power to remain within fire……”
But rather than show what he was feeling. Meister focused on the task he had been given. The conversation that followed sounded like a foreign language to me at times, but even to a complete layman like me, it was obvious that neither of them ever found themselves at a loss for words and that the exchange flowed smoothly.
"Wait, you shouldn’t go that way there. Rather than doing it like that, it would be better to……”
"For those with abysmal skill in manipulating Arcane Power, perhaps. For someone above average, this method is more efficient……”
Actually, could I really call this smooth? The Inquisitor and I both felt more and more awkward as their discussion abruptly started turning intense.
I had no idea what they were talking about, but I could at least tell that the two wizards were having a battle of wits.
"Condensed Arcane Power is……”
"What a narrow-minded view. That needn’t be handled only in that manner……”
Fortunately, their discussion never crossed over into an actual emotional argument. Though it was obvious they were both getting excited and enjoying themselves now that they had found someone on their intellectual level.
"Meister.”
Normally, I would’ve told them to enjoy their conversation and left them to it…but unfortunately, that wasn’t an option right now. Our goal wasn’t to provide Meister with a venue for a heated Arcane debate. It was to assess the person we were considering recruiting.
"Meiser.”
I called him again, in a firmer tone this time. Meister, who had been completely absorbed in the discussion, finally reacted. “Ah, right.” Apparently, it took me calling him like that for him to remember he was here to do a job. Well, at least he remembered at all.
"What do you think, Meister?”
“Ahem. If we’re judging purely by skill, they’re top-tier. Their Arcane knowledge, their proficiency in handling magic, the movement of their Arcane Power, none of it is lacking. The only issue is that the spells they can actually use really are limited to basic magic.”
That was extremely high praise. I tapped my finger against the sword hilt beneath my hand as I watched Aerotelk accept Meister’s assessment as though it were only natural. There was nothing else to drum on, so the hilt had become my second-best option.
“What are you going to do?”
“Hmmmmm……”
Honestly, this would’ve been easier if they’d just turned out to be bad.
I watched the Inquisitor's head on the verge of exploding from all that thinking. “Ironwall.” Around then, as if perfectly timed, the people who had gone off separately to gather rumors returned.
“How did it go?”
“...No one here knew them.”
“......??”
“At most, one of the senior wizards knew the Tower Master had recently recommended someone… Everyone else just asked me instead. They wanted to know whether someone like that had even been in the Tower.
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
Unfortunately, the information they brought back didn’t give us a clear answer either.
“I think this is something we need to discuss a bit more.”
If anything, it only intensified the war of words between White Crow and the Archmage, who had already been subtly keeping an eye on us.
And so, the matter of recruiting this new party member gradually sank deeper and deeper into the mire.
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