WeTried Translations
Translator: Coughing Baby
Editor: Coughing Baby
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 96: Old Records, an Ossuary of Letters. (1)
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Class A's sudden attack.
The moment I mentioned a loser from a bygone era, they charged at me like some donut guy from who knows where.
I'd even retracted what I said because I knew this would happen, but these guys didn't have an ounce of forgiveness or tolerance in them.
“Take that back... What you just said...!!”
“You bastaaard!”
Their eyes burned with rage.
Seeing them act like this even during a school trip, I had to admire their loyalty.
‘Still.’
Maybe they had enough sense to know they couldn't cause trouble.
They didn't draw their swords or cast any magic.
If violence broke out, their fun school trip would be ruined.
Besides, even if they used force, there was no guarantee they could beat me...
‘No swords, no magic, no fists...’
Then how did we fight?
With the method that was practically the root of all duels.
The fairest GOAT game in human history.
“Rock, paper, scissors!”
That's right, rock-paper-scissors.
They held out their hands together and shouted the chant.
It was a cowardly gang-up, but I met them head-on.
“Bring it on!”
Streeetch.
I had them line up single-file and wait their turns.
There were about nine of them.
Even if I beat the first one, there would still be eight behind them.
The chance of me winning nine times in a row was only 0.0051%.
‘But.’
I had a way to overcome even those impossible odds.
I slipped my hand into my pants pocket, out of sight.
Inside, I held an old pocket watch.
As its hands ticked on, I pressed the button in the center.
Click.
‘That's scissors...!’
My vision slowed as if everything had entered slow motion.
I could see every movement of their fingers.
On top of that, the Class A students weren't using mana, aura, or sorcery.
It was easy to read their moves and throw the hand that beat them.
“No way! My scissors lost...?”
“Scrub cut.”
“Move! I'll avenge you!”
“Scrub cut.”
“It's my turn...!”
“Scrub cut.”
Endless rock-paper-scissors.
It was a fight I could never lose.
The Class A students couldn't accept the results and kept challenging me, only to suffer loss after loss.
Only after I achieved the bizarre score of one hundred wins in one hundred matches did it finally end.
The Class A warriors lay scattered across the ground in Yamcha poses.
“Urgh...!”
“Damn it, Class E's top student! Are you the strongest even at rock-paper-scissors...?!”
“You have everything! You're lucky too! Don'tliveyourlifelikethatyoufuckingbastard!”
“Class E's top student, I am a creature that should not exist.”
The losers’ lavish praise rang in my ears.
I smiled brightly.
Mm.
Rock, paper pussy.
“Hehe.”
I walked toward the guys sprawled on the ground.
Broken scissors, shattered rocks, torn papers.
They were defeated soldiers, clutching their ruined weapons in despair.
When the conqueror stood before them, those who had been trampled and broken lifted their heads to look up at me.
“What now...? You already won, so what else do you want?”
One of them muttered.
They were the first to charge at me, only to lose with rock.
I smirked.
“You lost.”
“What?”
“You have to pay the price.”
“T-The price? What are you planning to do...?!”
Their eyes filled with shock.
Then they snapped shrilly.
“You're going to get rough with me! Like in an erotic doujinshi...!”
“...”
Fuck, you're a man.
I barely stopped myself from throwing a punch.
Were there really nothing but lunatics in Class A?
“Shut up and hand over your wallets.”
Naturally, I collected their wallets.
As expected of young masters, they were stuffed full.
I took every last thing inside.
“Hehe, it's all mine.”
“Stop! That coin was left to me by my mother...!”
“Oh, was it a keepsake from your late mother? Forgive me. I didn't know...”
“My mother's alive, though?”
“...What?”
“I mean, she gave it to me.”
“...”
For fuck's sake.
That distinctive non-orphan flex, slipping out as naturally as breathing.
To think someone would flex about having parents in front of an orphan.
‘I got beaten because I'm an orphan.’
Anger boiled up inside me.
After thoroughly ransacking their wallets, I returned them.
The non-orphans hurriedly checked inside, but everything had already been taken.
“Alright, everyone! There are lots of street-food stalls nearby! Shall we buy something to eat before we head back?”
I turned to my group.
Lua's eyes were especially bright.
“Miss Lua. Is there anything you want to eat? Tell me everything.”
“Really? Dad's the best...!”
“Everyone, pick the expensive stuff. The things with the worst value for money.”
Lua jumped up and down with delight.
The non-orphans in Class A looked shaken.
“No! That's this month's living expenses!”
“Don't you have a human heart?!”
“Why are you doing this to us...?!”
I stopped in my tracks.
“...Why am I doing this?”
They picked a fight first, and now they were playing the victims.
I took a deep breath and answered their question.
I told them why I was trampling them and making them pay the price.
A kindly smile rested on my lips.
“Because that's what Himmel the Hero would have done.”
That day.
The Class A students lost half their monthly living expenses.
* * *
After filling ourselves up, we returned to the lodging.
The lively first day of the school trip came to an end.
The students collapsed in their rooms and slept as they waited for morning.
“...”
Night settled quietly.
While everyone else had gone off to dreamland, I slipped out of the lodging.
I still had something to take care of while the kids were asleep.
The cool sea breeze tousled my hair.
“Mm.”
Whoooosh.
The night sea had put summer's heat to rest, leaving only a refreshingly cool salty scent.
I made my way along the coast as though savoring the moment.
The sound of waves filled my ears while starlight poured down from the sky.
The clear sea reflected the colors of night across its surface.
“It's a beautiful view.”
I casually tossed out the remark.
A silver-haired girl walked beside me.
Her long hair fluttered in the gentle breeze, shimmering with dreamlike hues.
“Yeah... It isn't bad.”
The princess muttered absently.
Like a watercolor landscape, she stood framed by the night sea.
Carmilla stepped across the sandy beach as though enjoying a brief stroll.
Lua, on the other hand, clung to my sleeve and bounced around.
“Dad! The wind is so cool...!”
She was as excited as ever.
The princess gently stroked her head.
“Lua, do not bounce around too much. You could fall.”
“Yes, Princess!”
“Mm... You still won't call this lady Mother.”
“Princess is Princess! Dad's liege!”
“Well, I do like that too.”
It was idle chatter.
This outing was meant to deal with the quest.
I spoke to Carmilla as she blended into the night scenery.
“Thank you for accompanying me.”
“Why say that now?”
“Still, I dragged Your Highness into a personal errand.”
“It is fine. If it is important to my retainer, then it is important to me as well.”
“I'm honored.”
“Then be even more grateful.”
A faint smile formed in her eyes.
Maybe it was because she was a vampire, but the night suited her especially well.
Whoooosh.
We made our way along the coast.
About an hour passed before a huge statue blocked our path.
Without stopping, I slowly approached it.
“We're here.”
It was a statue modeled after an old man.
It was said to depict an ancient sage.
It was so worn that its facial features could no longer be made out.
Only its bent back revealed that it was shaped like an old man.
‘Around here.’
I circled the statue and looked down at the staff the old man leaned on.
Then I reached out and knocked on it.
Carefully, making sure not to get it wrong.
‘It was definitely... this rhythm.’
Knock, knock.
I had to keep a fixed beat.
If I made even one mistake, the statue wouldn't respond for twenty-four hours.
I paid attention to the shifting rhythm and continued until I had knocked ninety-three times.
I'd come here a few times in the game, so it wasn't difficult.
“That's it...”
After finishing the prescribed knocks, I waited for a moment.
Before long, a faint light glimmered beneath where we stood.
Hummm.
The gravel trembled as if resonating with mana.
A blue magic circle appeared between the sand-covered paving stones.
A bright flash soon filled my vision, and blue light swallowed my companions and me.
Flash!
“Viktor...!”
“Dad!”
The two of them panicked.
I took both their hands to show them it was alright.
After a brief pause, we blinked away.
Crackle.
‘Interdimensional teleportation.’
An unknown spell inscribed in ancient times.
When I opened my eyes again, we stood in an entirely different world.
Carmilla regained her bearings and looked around.
“This is...?”
“It looks like we arrived properly.”
I walked past her and stepped out of the darkness.
A new sight awaited us.
Lamps placed throughout the area lit our surroundings.
“...A library?”
The ceiling had to be at least thirty meters high.
Bookshelves rose as if they would reach that ceiling.
They were filled with books written in all kinds of languages.
“Dad! It's huge...!”
It was about the size of two soccer fields.
Bookshelves packed that entire space.
It was like looking at a city made of books.
Ding!
[You have entered the nonexistent space ‘Raziel's Library’.]
[The apostles ‘Guardians of Ancient Knowledge’ are watching you.]
[Clear the field and claim your reward.]
Messages flashed past before my eyes.
Then beings hidden between the bookshelves poked their heads out.
Their eerie cries echoed throughout the ancient library.
<Grrk, grrrrk.>
<Scrk, grrk, rk.>
They were golems that looked as though they had been made by binding books together.
Their bodies were covered in scraps of torn pages and book covers.
As though they had been given an order, they mechanically approached us.
“Viktor, those things are...”
“We should clear them out.”
One look at them wildly swinging their arms was enough to tell they weren't friendly toward outsiders.
They were monsters guarding this field.
I held out a hand toward Lua.
“Miss Lua? I'm counting on you.”
“Okay! If it's for Dad, I'll do anything!”
“Activate. Scythe.”
Shhhk.
Blackness took the form of a massive scythe.
I took a step toward the approaching golems.
Ding!
[Linked Quest]
-Title: Old Records, an Ossuary of Letters.
-Details: Break through the field ‘Raziel's Library’. Hunt the boss monster ‘Sentinel of the Highest Knowledge’. Find a book related to ■■■ among millions of books.
-Penalty upon Failure: None
-Reward upon Success: ■■■
[Time Limit: ???]
“Then... shall we get started?”
Thump!
I sprang forward.
My sweeping strike severed the Guardians' necks.
Shhhk!
Paper scraps fluttered from the torn gaps.
I pressed my crooked mask firmly back into place and aimed my scythe at the golems behind them.
“Nothing's stopping us.”
The rich scent of books filled my nose.
Footnotes:
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