WeTried Translations
Translator: Coughing Baby
Editor: Coughing Baby
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 52: Thank You
──────
After smashing the Cult branch and returning to the dorms at dawn, I slept straight through until the afternoon.
My whole body still throbbed with soreness, but the fatigue weighing down my eyelids seemed to have eased quite a bit.
“Ugh...”
That didn't mean the lethargy had gone away.
I sprawled limply across my bed.
I lounged around like I had absolutely no intention of getting up.
It made sense. This was the first break I'd had after being dragged through the wringer for days.
Until now, I'd been busy preparing this, dealing with that.
‘Nobody can drag me out of this bed.’
I even hummed to myself as I savored the peace.
Something small stirred in my shirt pocket.
[Mmngh...]
It was Carmilla.
In the form of a silver bat, she lay on my chest.
She must have liked this sleeping spot, because she was sleeping as comfortably as could be.
I quietly looked down at her.
‘How strange.’
When she was in human form, she got embarrassed just from holding hands. Yet in bat form, she sprawled right across my chest.
If you only went by how much of us was touching, wasn't this much more embarrassing?
Or did volume matter more than the amount of contact?
As her tiny warmth spread through me, I had no choice but to seriously consider it.
‘Or maybe she's selectively embarrassed...’
Carmilla had pretty wild sleeping habits.
Even while deeply asleep, she would constantly squirm around.
Maybe because she was exhausted today, she moved far less than usual.
‘Doesn't look like she's waking up.’
For a moment, I considered waking her, but her little purring was cute, so I left her alone.
When I gently stroked her with my fingertips, she practically melted.
[Mmm... Nnngh... Viktor, how presumptuous...]
Even while sleep-talking, the princess showed no sign of wanting to move away.
She rubbed her cheek against my chest, then pulled my shirt pocket over herself as if it were a blanket.
I couldn't help but chuckle.
‘Would anyone even know...’
That this tiny, insignificant little creature was actually the last princess of the Blandir Dynasty.
‘Of course, that contrast is what makes her cute.’
I lay properly on my back so the princess could sleep comfortably.
Then I fiddled with my status window.
I idly moved the blue UI around.
‘Come to think of it...’
Yesterday had been hectic in every possible way.
To sort through things, I brought up my information window.
――――
[Status Window]
Name: Viktor
Title: Saint
Equipped Items: Mask of the Evil God, Robe of the Evil God
Active Set Effect: The World ■■■ Sees.
.
.
[Saint]
-> Merit Points accumulate according to the number of lives you save.
-> Merit Points can be used to improve the user's basic stats.
(The special ability of this title takes priority over other restrictions within the system.)
――――
Last night had been eventful.
The traces it left remained intact in the form of points.
Ding-!
[Basic Stats]
Stamina: E+
Strength: E
Agility: E
Mana Sensitivity: E
[Remaining Merit Points: 620p]
I had accumulated a total of 620 Merit Points at the Cult branch.
Since I received 20 points for every life saved, it was the reward for saving thirty-one people.
“Yeah... It's probably better to raise them right away.”
That was what I'd earned the points for, after all.
To be honest, I still couldn't quite believe it.
I never expected I'd unlock an additional option that let me raise my stats.
There had been no function for modifying stats in the original work, after all.
‘There weren't even any related bugs.’
It was great news for me.
The higher my stats became, the more bugs I could make use of.
There were as many bugs as stars that could only be pulled off if my body was capable enough.
‘Raising my basic stats means having more options at my disposal.’
Without hesitation, I invested the points.
Since it was my first time, I distributed them evenly.
Ding-!
[Merit Points will be used.]
-The rank of the basic stat ‘Stamina’ will increase by +1.
-The rank of the basic stat ‘Strength’ will increase by +1.
-The rank of the basic stat ‘Agility’ will increase by +1.
-The rank of the basic stat ‘Mana Sensitivity’ will increase by +1.
[600 Merit Points have been consumed.]
[Remaining Merit Points: 20p]
It cost 100 points to raise an E rank to E+.
It cost 300 points to raise an E+ rank to D-.
The reward for saving thirty-one lives vanished just like that.
A large chunk of points disappeared, and the status window before me changed across the board.
[Basic Stats]
Stamina: D-
Strength: E+
Agility: E+
Mana Sensitivity: E+
“Ooh...”
Maybe because I'd raised several stats at once, the improvements felt much more noticeable than before.
“My body definitely feels lighter.”
It felt like I'd been carrying a forty-kilogram backpack all day, then finally took it off.
Even my sore muscles had relaxed.
I tried lifting the desk beside my bed.
Swoosh-.
“What?”
A desk leg lifted far more easily than expected.
It wasn't like I could lift it with my pinky and spin it around, but it felt about forty percent lighter than it should have.
‘The effect is this good...?’
And I'd only gone from E to E+.
I couldn't help but let out a low gasp.
Everyone but me had been doing something this good...
Beyond the curse that fixed my stats lay an entirely new world.
“Oh, oho, ohoho, ohohoho.”
I playfully swung my arms several times.
Of course, I stopped immediately when the princess seemed like she might wake up.
“Hm...”
I thought it over.
‘I raised everything evenly this time, but I should make a plan for future upgrades.’
The higher the rank, the more the required points would increase exponentially.
I needed to plan ahead if I wanted to spend my points wisely.
The highest priorities were stamina and agility.
Strength and mana sensitivity were a little less important.
‘I’m not planning to learn magic or anything yet.’
Strength was also less important than my other stats.
Especially since all the weapons I used were light.
Black Mist weighed no more than a sheet of paper, and there was no need to even mention the balloon sword.
‘For now, I'll accumulate as many Merit Points as possible.’
In other words, I needed to save as many people as possible.
It meant I had to continue walking the path of a saint.
Satisfied, I closed my status window.
“Good, good...”
All the cleanup was done.
‘I’m really not doing anything.’
It was time to go back to sleep.
After several days of nonstop hardship, rest tasted sweet.
With a broad grin, I wrapped myself tightly in my blankets again.
“Heheh.”
I was going to rest.
Nobody could stop me.
* * *
Fuck.
They could stop me.
[Student Viktor.]
I sat awkwardly in Class E's waiting area.
My name was called, and this poor lamb was summoned onto the stage.
[Not only did he achieve first place in this practical training evaluation, he also played a decisive role in apprehending the mole within the academy.]
[Please come up to the stage.]
[Cadets, welcome him with a round of applause.]
Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap-.
Applause rang out around me.
I got to my feet and walked toward the stage.
The faculty members and the headmaster were waiting for me there.
“Whew...”
The academy had arranged this event to praise my accomplishments.
The eyes of every student were on me.
‘They're praising me this loudly...’
No.
Well.
I wasn't sure how to put this.
I liked it, obviously, but I wasn't sure if I should really be happy about it.
‘There goes my quiet academy life.’
The ordinary-citizen-who-kept-his-head-down concept had failed a long time ago.
Like every other transmigrator, it turned out that even if I tried to live quietly, it never worked out.
I'd realized that a quiet life was impossible to begin with.
Especially in a setting as brutal as Ngme, all kinds of disasters came pouring in that even the faculty couldn't stop.
A transmigrator who knew the future had to deal with all of that alone, and that inevitably drew attention.
‘Whenever I saw that stuff, I used to leave loads of snide comments asking why they weren't sticking to their quiet-life concept...’
I'd honestly thought I could do it better.
Countless senior transmigrators flashed through my mind.
‘Only now do I understand...’
In the end, transmigrators only had two paths. They either became attention whores, or ignored every incident and ran off to live alone, becoming reclusive losers while the world went to ruin.
So I'd reached a conclusion.
All transmigrators were mentally ill people who lived lives that couldn't possibly be quiet, desperately denied reality, and believed they could still enjoy a quiet life.
What a bleak reality.
Your mom.
No, Ngme.
[Student Viktor displayed excellent ability during the practical training...]
[Then, together with the Senior Investigator, he apprehended the mole within the academy...]
A faculty member on the stage was enthusiastically listing my achievements.
I half-listened while calmly climbing the short steps.
Then I accepted the plaque the academy handed me.
‘At least it was good that they told me about the ceremony ahead of time.’
I learned this event was happening early that morning.
I wanted to refuse, but I swallowed down my annoyance and nodded.
It was better to maintain a good relationship with the faculty.
I also had a plan in the works, so I was affinity-grinding with the faculty to make sure I could call on their help whenever I needed it.
‘...Still, wasn't knocking on my dorm door at dawn a little much?’
I forced those stray thoughts away.
In front of the entire student body, I put on a friendly smile.
No... Now that I thought about it, I was wearing a mask, so I didn't need to manage my expression at all.
So I just stood there on stage with a half-crying look on my face.
[Now then, Student Viktor.]
[As the academy's hero, please share a few words.]
A microphone was suddenly passed to me.
It was the usual representative speech held at every ceremony.
Since I was the main character today, they had probably decided to leave it to me.
“Ah, ah... First, I would like to thank the faculty of Grandia Academy for arranging this event.”
I had received a script beforehand anyway.
All I had to do was read it aloud.
My voice reached the magic device, and the amplified sound rang through the auditorium.
“I would also like to thank Senior Investigator Javert for supporting us in every way during this incident...”
The students' stares felt sharp.
The looks from the top-ranking cadets were especially something to behold.
They couldn't hide the resentment in their eyes, as if they were saying, ‘Who the hell does that guy think he is?’
Maybe it was because they were young, or because their egos were too big, but they wore their emotions openly.
- “What's with him? He got first place in the practical training and caught the mole too?”
- “That's impossible. He's the top student in Class E.”
- “A Class E top student took first place in the practical training?”
- “He's famous. They say Shariel from Class C couldn't even put up a fight against him...”
- “If he's that skilled, why is he in Class E? Isn't the rumor just exaggerated?”
Quiet whispers reached my ears.
Some were surprised, some jealous, and some doubtful.
One thing was clear. Very few students were sincerely congratulating me.
‘Figures.’
Someone they considered trash, someone from Class E, had suddenly appeared and accomplished things they couldn't accept.
Of course they felt bitter.
- “No... Class E is still Class E, no matter what.”
- “Didn't you see him during the Freshman Welcome Test? I'm telling you, he's different.”
- “Different, my ass. He's just wearing that weird mask on his face...”
- “He really does seem like he's getting ahead of himself.”
- “No, more than that, how did he really get first place in the practical training?”
That was especially true for the competitive cadets of Grandia Academy.
They were students trapped in an elitist mindset who hated falling behind.
- “Ah, fuck, this is pissing me off.”
One person said it as though she wanted me to hear.
She was sitting in the very front row, close to the stage.
- “I heard that bastard was in the same group as Lady Kihano.”
- “Isn't it obvious? He just got lucky and rode her coattails.”
- “And he's standing up there blabbering away. Someone should do something about that stupid mask on his face.”
Bright yellow hair, tanned brown skin.
She dressed too sloppily to be a noble lady.
How should I put it?
In the language of my previous life, she had the air of a delinquent girl.
The girl lounged in Class B's waiting area with a bad attitude.
- “Fuck, what's so impressive about someone from Class E...”
- “Everyone's sucking him off just because he got lucky once.”
- “One punch from me and that bastard would be bawling with a bloody nose.”
The delinquent girl was Class B's top student.
She was one of the stronger students at Grandia Academy.
‘Bear with it.’
I continued reciting the script.
Maybe because she was so close, her faint muttering still reached my ears.
She was pretty sly.
She was talking just quietly enough that the professors wouldn't hear.
When she saw that I didn't react, she sneered as if it were even funnier.
- “Ha... See how scared he is?”
- “He must be embarrassed too. He's getting praise he doesn't deserve.”
I was familiar with people like her, those who couldn't quite reach the very top and instead guarded the middle of the upper ranks, their inferiority complexes brimming even as they clung to their pride.
They all had that trait.
When someone they considered beneath them accomplished something, it twisted their guts until they couldn't stand it.
- “He's frozen stiff.”
- “I should set aside a day later and teach him a lesson.”
- “And he's a commoner, right? There's nothing to worry about.”
The delinquent girl seemed to be trying to tell me something.
Don't show off. Don't stand out.
‘Bear with it.’
I decided to ignore her.
I would just stay quiet and endure it.
A soft bed was waiting for me in the dormitory.
I would finish the ceremony without trouble and return to my room.
‘If I let her provoke me here, I'll be just like her.’
That thought seemed to settle my mind.
I didn't have to fight her right now.
There would be opportunities later.
It would be better to let this pass quietly today.
- “Pfft... I guess he really is scared of Class B's top student.”
- “Hey, what's so special about him anyway?”
- “Well, just because he beat Class C's top student doesn't mean he thinks Class B's top student will be easy too.”
- “Besides, Class B's top student is kind of... You know how awful her personality is. If you get on her bad side...”
Other cadets seemed to have been caught up in the mood and began whispering among themselves.
The top-ranking students in particular smiled as if they had expected this.
I continued reading through the long script until I reached the final sentence.
- “What a boring bastard.”
Thank you for listening to my long speech.
Once I said that one line, everything would be over.
“Thank you for listening to my long spee...”
The arduous journey was finally ending.
That was what I thought as I smiled.
- “What's he so happy about? His voice is so cheerful.”
- “Yeah, I'm telling you, he's nothing special.”
The delinquent girl was still busy tearing me down.
Whatever.
“Thank... thank, thank, thank...”
My voice caught in my throat and refused to come out.
I took a deep breath and looked at the delinquent girl.
“Thank... thank...”
Then, in a bright voice for everyone to hear, I delivered my final sentence.
“Thank you, you orphan bitch. Got a problem? Let's have a match.”
Ah.
I couldn't hold it in.
Footnotes:
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