WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 156: The Military State's Cinderella

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I strode down the street. We had only moved a little way off the main road, yet the streets ahead were dark and tangled, as though early evening had already fallen.

The toy-like buildings, made by pouring concrete again and again, were covered in tightly packed windows. Grimy faces occasionally appeared behind them, only to vanish the moment they met my eyes.

Lines that may or may not have been clotheslines crisscrossed between buildings like a spiderweb. They looked like shoes before their laces were pulled tight. If someone grabbed those lines from both sides and tugged, the flimsy buildings looked as though they would tilt inward and cinch together.

Shouting came from several homes. Someone yelled in irritation at the noise, another person responded, and the sounds climbed the walls, growing louder and louder like echoes that never faded.

Then.

Brrrrrrring.

At the sound of an alarm clock, everyone shrank back in terror.

The bell that woke people up silenced every other sound.

Ah, it was good to be back amid this noise.

Even louder were the noise and screams I heard through my mind-reading.

Now that I was somewhere crowded, it finally felt real.

"This is District 15. It exists only as an administrative district, with no notable facilities. Land abandoned by the military state."

Right in the middle of that chaos, the captain and I walked calmly along. People glanced at us when they saw strangers, then spotted the captain's uniform and either fled in panic or hid.

I spoke to the captain, who was twitching slightly.

"Captain Bbi. I think we should do something about that uniform first. People are afraid of it... or they hate it."

"...Fear and hatred are not illegal."

"Haha. That may be true, but shouldn't we reduce unnecessary friction?"

Pushing through the crowd, I entered what could loosely be called District 15's shopping district.

Countless people were trying to trade goods with filthy coins and broken alchemical coins.

The buildings had not originally been made for shops. By some accident, the outer wall of a first floor had collapsed. People began selling things through the exposed wall, and that was how this market street had naturally formed.

I led the captain into a darker alley within it. She followed without a trace of suspicion.

Huh. Wasn't she being a little too trusting?

"Shouldn't you be more careful, though? Is it really okay to follow someone into an alley like this?"

The captain looked puzzled as she asked back.

"I am a captain of the military state. Would a criminal truly risk summary punishment to attack a military state captain?"

Summary punishment. What a frightening thing to say.

It was true enough for someone of the captain's rank, though.

"Usually not. Still, be careful."

With a snicker, I grabbed the wrist of a child passing beside me and swept his leg out from under him.

Crash. The child tumbled over in a ridiculous heap. Whistling, I twisted his arm as he tried to stand and whispered.

"Kid."

"Ow! Let go!"

"Your brains are even worse than your sticky fingers. Didn't anyone teach you not to mess with someone in uniform? And if you know that, you shouldn't mess with the person beside them either. Idiot."

"What did I do?! I didn't do anything!"

The child kept screaming and refusing to admit it. People began gathering around us, shooting glances our way.

Oh? This kid knew how to draw attention. Smiling, I spoke to him.

"So nobody taught you. Then you're not from the Shelter. You don't have ears, so you're not Family. Ah. You're from the Market?"

"N-No!"

"Is that what Manager Kryn teaches you? I think I should give him a warning."

The moment I mentioned the leader of his organization, terror filled the child's face. The clever little brat changed his attitude in an instant and dropped to his knees.

"I-I'm sorry. I was hungry. Please forgive me."

'Tch! He knows the manager?! I'm in trouble! I need to beg until my palms wear out! Still, I'm a kid. If I do it right, he'll let me go!'

Even in the military state, children were not punished. They were only dragged off to orphanages.

So every child who did something wrong was an orphan? It certainly showed the military state's view of education. Still, it was better than becoming a laborer.

"I-I'll give it back. Here..."

The child politely held out what he had stolen from me. Then he flinched upon seeing what he held.

Ta-da, you little brat.

"What are you giving back? A filthy handkerchief? You little bastard, where did you hide my wallet? Were you trying to get away with this?"

"Huh?"

The child looked back and forth between me and the filthy handkerchief in his hand, confused.

"It, it was a wallet..."

"Are you denying it? I saw you pull my wallet right out of my pocket!"

I immediately grabbed the child by the collar, and his face turned pale with fear.

"Hand it over right now."

"I-I'm telling the truth!"

"Where do you get off raising your voice at me? Fine. I'm taking you straight to the Market headquarters. I'll shove your face in front of Kryn and demand answers. Ah, and I'll bring the soldier beside me too. That way Kryn will understand how serious this is."

"P-Please! Anything but that!"

"Kahaha. Where do you think you're going? Learn your lesson! Kids like you need a good, hard beating!"

The captain standing behind me as I smiled wickedly tapped my shoulder. When I turned, she pointed at my pocket.

"...Sir. What is currently in your pocket?"

"This? My wallet."

"Why is it there?"

What an obvious question.

"Because it's my wallet, so it's in my pocket. Where else would it be?"

"Did you not say that you clearly saw the child take it out of your pocket?"

"Of course that was a lie to put the little brat in a difficult position. Do you think I'd get pickpocketed by some snot-nosed kid?"

Only then did the child realize he had been played. He spat on the ground and shook off my hand.

"Tch! Damn bad luck!"

Where had he learned language like that? Should I really go ask about it?

The child immediately took off running down the street. I shouted at once.

"Ah! The pickpocket is getting away! Captain, what are you doing? Catch him!"

"...Negative. I am not a military police officer. Furthermore, it would be difficult to charge that boy, as he did not actually steal anything."

"Geez. That was a perfect opportunity to teach that brat some manners."

The people who had gathered around us had already disappeared. Once the child fled, they deliberately avoided looking our way. No matter what, they must have been afraid of being noticed by the captain.

Grumbling, I tossed the wallet I had taken from the child's pocket into the air and caught it. The captain, who had been about to continue walking, suddenly stopped and asked again.

"...What is that?"

"That brat's wallet."

"Why is it in your hand?"

"Because I pickpocketed it?"

Trying to pickpocket someone right in front of me? Not a chance. As a senior pickpocket, I needed to teach that brat a harsh lesson.

"The more I think about it, the most dangerous person on this street appears to be you."

"What are you talking about? I'm harmless. Like a snake without venom!"

The child's wallet was completely empty. Well, wallet packets were common these days, so hardly anyone carried money that could be pickpocketed.

Still, I would keep it as a trophy. As I slipped the child's wallet into my pocket, I offered the captain some advice.

"Anyway, look. Even after seeing a captain in uniform, that kid still targeted my wallet, didn't he? Crime happens that often here."

"Pickpocketing is a crime, but the sentence is not particularly severe. One must compensate fifty times the amount lost, or work it off through labor."

"Right. It's a minor crime. But minor crimes like that happen every day here. All the more because they're minor."

A strange logic of public safety ruled this district.

Even if this was a half-abandoned district where people could die without anyone noticing, it was impossible for a pleasure killer to roam the streets murdering people freely. If things went too far, the military police would come, arrest everyone, and throw them into forced labor.

Let's not forget. This was the military state.

A dark ruler controlling the back alleys? Something like that could never exist. The instant someone powerful enough entered the military state's surveillance net, a general would turn the entire district upside down.

What if someone stronger than a general appeared? Then the military, including the Six Generals, would reduce the place to ruins. It hadn't happened yet, but still.

This was a land where the strong and weak were clearly divided. No behind-the-scenes ruler could be born here. Perhaps in the nation's darker corners, but these filthy back alleys were... wilderness where weak people fought to survive on their own.

"This is paradise for petty criminals. All kinds of bizarre situations can happen. And if you're wearing a captain's uniform, you could become a target for the truly dangerous people hiding among them. So..."

As soon as we turned the corner, stairs leading straight down came into view. I guided the captain there. She descended the dark stairs after me.

At the bottom, I opened an antique door and said,

"Let's get you changed."

A cozy, warm scent greeted me the moment I stepped inside. The aroma of tea drifted gently from a boiling kettle.

All around us were bolts of fabric in every color, neatly rolled up.

They were alchemical fabrics, which had risen to prominence over all other textiles after packets became commercially available.

A thin elderly man in a neat suit looked at his customers over a monocle.

"Customer... Ah, it is Mr. Hughes. Have you returned?"

He was skin and bones, but that only made the clothes stand out more on him. He looked as though he deliberately stayed thin to make clothing look better.

I greeted him in return.

"It's been a while, Smen."

"Has it? Hehe. Perhaps this old man has grown too old. It still feels like yesterday when I was making clothes for you, Mr. Hughes."

Smen poured tea into a cup and set it gracefully on the table. I dropped into a chair as though I owned the place and took a sip. The captain awkwardly sat across from me.

Smen placed a cup of tea before her as well.

"Please, have some. This old man makes a decent cup of tea. It is one of my few talents."

"A-Acknowledged."

Was this what it had been like when the old kingdom held balls? It was probably similar. Smen had been one of the people who led those balls.

Swept up by the atmosphere, the captain timidly sipped her tea. She must have liked it, because her eyes lit up as she kept taking small sips.

Leaning back in my chair, I said,

"I went traveling and just got back. Make us one outfit each."

"One each? Including clothes for this lovely young lady?"

"Yes."

The captain, who had been carefully savoring her tea, immediately waved her hands.

"Negative. I am a soldier of the military state and cannot receive monetary compensation from you."

Anyway, I glanced at the captain and discussed it with Smen. "I'll leave the color to you. Give it as free-spirited a feel as possible."

"I have already decided on something rough. Still, I cannot ignore the customer's preferences. Now then, miss. Is there a color you like?"

"Negative! I refuse! That would be a bribe! Bribery is a serious crime that can result in forced labor for not only the recipient, but the giver as well!"

Come on, she was so rigid.

"Captain Bbi."

'I'm grateful that he doesn't use my official designation, but I worry that the name Captain Bbi becoming established could negatively affect a captain's dignity...'

"...Speak."

"Do you think I'm trying to bribe you so you'll think well of me?"

Bang. I slammed the table, carefully enough not to spill the tea, and shouted at the captain.

"Captain Bbi, are you kidding right now? You said you wanted to stay with me for a week!"

"N-Negative... I didn't... say that."

"Either way, whether you're trying to enjoy a short vacation or keep watch over me, do you think you can do it in that outfit?!"

I pointed at her stiff uniform. It had clearly been worn for a long time, yet it remained spotless after undergoing a cleaning process every three days.

"You should at least make an effort to dress for the situation and disguise yourself!"

"...M-Make an effort?"

"That's right! Whether you're enjoying a vacation or keeping watch! Do you think that will go well when you're in uniform? Why not just advertise it in every direction that a captain on a secret mission is here? Shall I do it for you? World, behold! Captain Bbi is here!"

"Stop!"

'There is not a single advantage to a communications officer being exposed...!'

Good. She was almost convinced. I drove the point home more confidently.

"If you don't want to get caught, you need to wear regular clothes!"

"B-But I am a soldier of the military state. If I don't wear a uniform..."

"You said it was allowed during secret operations!"

"Urk. B-But I already have casual clothes."

"One shirt counts as casual clothes? Smen, does that make any sense? She calls a shirt she only wears to sleep casual clothes!"

Smen shook his head and let out a sigh.

"Goodness. That makes no sense at all. Clothes each have a clear purpose, so how can one live with only one outfit? It is an insult and cruel treatment to clothing. If clothes had hands and feet, they would rise up in protest at once."

"Did you hear that? Smen here is a master tailor who worked in the old kingdom as well. He was pushed a little out of the mainstream after clothing packets were developed, but he grit his teeth, learned packet technology too, and became an expert who kept up with the times! Are you going to ignore even his advice?"

The captain could no longer voice any objection and only shook her head helplessly.

"Now. At least wear regular clothes, okay?"

"...Acknowledged."

In the end, persuaded by me, the captain accepted the packet Smen handed her and entered the fitting room.

Footnotes:

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