WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 108: Project Alice-02 (6)

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‘My body won’t move.’

Alice.

The girl had fallen into a panic and could no longer control her power.

Even that brief encounter with Oz had pushed her to the brink.

Instinctive fear weighed down on Alice.

If she called forth a dream like this, it felt as though the nightmare would seize control at once.

‘Calm down.’

She couldn’t lose her reason.

She had to pull herself together and summon the soldiers again.

They couldn’t overcome this disadvantage unless she stepped forward.

“Huff, huff...”

No matter how many times she repeated it to herself, her body refused to listen.

Fragments of memories rattled through her mind as they came pouring in.

A voice full of static rang out.

- Sis... I... always... wanted to be by your side...

Sister.

I want to run away.

- Sis... is... okay.

- Alice... being happy... is... Sis’s... happiness.

No matter how hard she tried to shake them off, the memories of that day dragged her down.

An ocean of deep sorrow soaked through her.

Alice felt as though she were drifting through it.

Through what little consciousness remained, the figures of her teammates flickered into view.

“We can’t let them take Miss Alice!”

“Wait... Don’t just stand there blankly. Follow me!”

“Hey! What are you doing sitting down?!”

The scene moved slowly.

At this rate, they would all die.

There were only a handful of them, while the other side had hundreds, perhaps thousands.

On top of that, they had passed through a corridor filled with monsters, so their stamina was far from intact.

‘I need to move.’

Even Alice was out of the fight.

There was no hope in sight.

- My, are you really going to try this?

- I was planning to let the rest of you live if you just handed over Miss Alice.

Wouldn’t it have been better if I had simply handed myself over?

Even if they had beaten me half to death for resisting, shouldn’t I have accepted that offer?

The boy had refused.

The other team members had raised their fists as though it were only natural.

‘Why?’

I’m a monster who survived after killing my sister.

As she sank into those thoughts, a rough hand grabbed her arm.

“Hey...!”

Caitlin.

When Caitlin pulled Alice away, a pitch-black net barely missed her.

The girl, who had nearly been taken by the Cult just like that, could only gasp for air.

Caitlin’s bronze hand seized her by the collar.

“Fuck, snap out of it!”

Static crackled around her.

Her fierce eyes swam before Alice’s vision.

“Everyone’s going through this shit to save you, so don’t stand there looking like someone loosened a screw in your head!”

To save me. Everyone.

Each of those words stabbed into her heart like a dagger.

Everyone was risking their lives to save someone like me.

“Follow me! Match my pace and run!”

“...”

“Hey!”

“...I...”

Led by Caitlin’s hand, Alice raced forward.

Caitlin’s face was growing sickly, as though she had reached her limit.

Even so, she didn’t let go of Alice’s hand.

Over the swaying scene, her sister’s hand overlapped with it.

- You, at least... live as Alice.

Ah.

Alice felt as though she no longer knew anything.

Everything was too difficult, too overwhelming to accept...

- How was the outside world you stepped into after sacrificing your sister?

She felt dizzy.

All of it choked off Alice’s thoughts.

She couldn’t breathe. She wanted to cover her ears and hide somewhere, anywhere.

I don’t want to lose them. I don’t want to be left alone. Why am I always...

“...Just hand me over.”

“What?”

“I’m a monster.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m not even human. I’m a monster... and I’ve kept deceiving all of you.”

“...”

“I’m the Seed of Ruin. A weapon made for that purpose.”

How much had she hated herself?

How much had she loathed her own life?

She just wanted to let go of everything like this...

“Why would you... save someone like me...?”

Slap!

At that moment, Alice’s blurry vision snapped to the side.

Her muttering stopped.

A burning shock remained on the girl’s cheek.

When she blankly turned her head, she saw the hand that had struck her hard.

“Hey.”

Caitlin.

Her yellow eyes stared at the girl as though they would tear her apart.

“I hate you.”

“...”

“I always have.”

“...”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. You aren’t the only one I treat specially. I hate everyone. People better than me, people worse than me, I can’t stand any of those fucking assholes. You’re one of them too. Just one of them. I don’t care whether you’re human, a Chimera, or a weapon of war. I hate all of you the same.”

Her answer was violent.

Yet every sentence was filled with nothing but sincerity.

Caitlin roughly pulled Alice’s limp body upright.

“Don’t think I’ll see you differently just because you spilled some grand tragic backstory. And if you hold us back in a situation like this, you’re twice as fucking annoying, so don’t whine in front of me.”

Crackle!

Gritting her teeth, Caitlin squeezed out the mana she had left.

Bright yellow sparks wrapped around her entire body.

“Get a grip.”

“...”

“There isn’t a single person here who’s going to cry and get scared over whatever your identity is.”

“...”

Crack!

Leaving the dazed Alice behind, Caitlin charged forward.

She burned through the pursuing swarm of Chimeras in an instant.

After letting out a brief, pained breath, she rejoined the battlefield crawling with demonic energy.

“What do you expect by pushing her that hard?! That child needs stability, how many times must I say it...!”

“Shut up! That bitch was saying annoying shit!”

“To tell a princess of a nation to shut up, what insolence...”

“Please focus, both of you! They’re coming from the front this time!”

The desperate battle of her teammates continued before her eyes.

Chimeras were sliced apart, magic exploded, and attacks were blocked.

Alice stood there unsteadily.

Caitlin’s words still remained lodged in her heart.

Was it because of the sharp pain poking at one corner of her heart?

- I hate you.

Her fading consciousness gradually rose to the surface.

At the same time, her pounding heartbeat took on a lukewarm warmth.

Then it slowly cooled.

“...”

The chaos in her mind came to a halt.

Thinking about it, it had always been like this.

- Miss Alice.

Why did they stay so close to me?

Why didn’t they leave whenever I broke down on nights like this?

They knew all about my ugliness, so how could they still kindly tell me not to blame myself?

- Don’t think I’ll see you differently just because you spilled some grand tragic backstory.

The people who stayed by my side.

The people who kept me from crying.

- Alice.

- You’ll definitely be happy someday.

She had lost her sister.

She couldn’t lose them too.

If she lost them too, she didn’t think she could keep living.

- Miss Alice.

- If something is troubling you, you can tell us, you know?

- We’re here. We want to be your strength.

Her breathing settled.

Her vision, once soaked with tears, became clear.

- When we leave this place someday, let’s build a quiet house and live there together.

- We can just run away! Or are you going to stay in the laboratory forever?

- Alice.

Memories she had repeated tens of thousands of times so she wouldn’t forget.

Two Alices.

Two lives.

One name.

Alice had received so much from Alice.

Her sister had given her life, and with it, the younger sister had become wholly Alice.

- I’ll give you my name.

- So you... you, at least, live as Alice.

It was a name given to her by her sister.

It was a life given to her by her sister.

She couldn’t let it be taken away.

She couldn’t give up her sister again.

She couldn’t lose the people precious to her again.

‘Sister.’

So...

‘This time... please help me not lose them.’

She wanted her sister to watch over her.

Her breathing quietly settled.

“...”

Her eyelids slowly opened.

Black had now mixed into her blue eyes.

Her emotions no longer surged, and fear could no longer squeeze her heart.

- I love you, my little sister.

Yes. Love.

A black crown floated above her head.

She imbued the dream she could create with a clear emotion.

‘I love you too... Forever.’

Who was she speaking to?

Without knowing why, Alice mixed those words into her dream.

The crown above her head spun fiercely, casting deep darkness over the girl.

Flutter.

A blackish-red cape rested across her back.

Everyone suddenly realized that dreamlike mist had spread around them.

“What is this? There’s suddenly mist everywhere...!”

“Calm down. This is probably...”

Alice’s feet lifted from the floor.

Floating in the air, the girl walked through the mist for a moment.

In a scene where everything seemed to have slowed down, the monster made a wish through the window.

“Come out.”

The dream whispered.

“Protect the people I love.”

Whoooosh.

A night wind from an unknown source brushed over the area.

As the air cooled pleasantly, a response came from the open window.

[♥]

Something lightly descended before the girl.

A fluttering dress collar, graceful movements, and a crown upon its head.

It looked at Alice.

It resembled a carefully maintained mannequin.

A heart shape was drawn upon it, with a soft dreamlike light leaking out.

Rumble.

Its presence weighed down the area covered in mist.

The one wearing the heart crown approached the girl wearing the black crown and greeted her.

[♥]

It kissed the back of her white hand.

An act of reverence.

Alice calmly accepted the gesture.

Amid its subtle elegance, the heart-crowned being looked down at the Cult.

Chapter illustration

Queen of Hearts.

One of the most substantial parts of the girl’s nightmares.

Alice whispered calmly to her dream.

“Please.”

[♥]

Two queens joined the battle.

The unfavorable tide of battle was overturned in an instant.

Footnotes:

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