WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 177: A Story of the Past, Insider

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The military state's history went hand in hand with clothing packets.

Improved over two generations, clothing packets were a truly revolutionary invention. Convenient, durable garments that wrapped around the body in an instant once infused with mana. Soldiers, for whom food, clothing, and shelter were all part of their work, quickly became enamored with the convenience of clothing packets.

However, the salons and tailors leading fashion at the time did not welcome their existence. They lacked the technology, but had more than enough money and connections. Carrying a chest of gold coins, they approached the knights.

The effect was unmistakable. Just a few weeks later, an order banning clothing packets was issued throughout the kingdom. Officially, it was meant to curb soldiers' luxury and debauchery. In truth, the knights in power had simply weighed a chest of gold against the soldiers' "minor" inconvenience.

Seamless Perfection also received a duel challenge from an unknown knight, and the heir who would become the third-generation Seamless Perfection lost the duel.

Without having any right to refuse.

If the knight who received that chest of gold were still alive, they would regret it bitterly.

The coup probably did not happen solely because of that, but without it, it likely would have been delayed by several years.

"...The second-generation Seamless Perfection devoted herself to the military state. Thanks to her material and moral support for the soldiers, they never had to endure the cold, even when the military state was struggling. We are deeply grateful for that, but..."

Peto answered with an awkward expression.

"Even so, the holding company's affairs are beyond our reach. We're public relations soldiers. We take care of every sort of household matter and odd job, but the question of a company's heir isn't something we can handle."

Even the girl standing bravely among strangers could not hide her disappointment at Peto's words.

"B-but I was told to come here if I wanted help!"

"Who on earth told you that?"

"My friend said that a rich, fearless girl like me only had to go to a host bar to find just the man to help me and keep him on my arm!"

Cut ties with that friend immediately.

The words nearly burst from everyone's lips before they swallowed them back down. Until they knew the full story, giving unsolicited advice about someone else's private life was taboo.

Deeper conversations came only after forming deeper relationships. That was the iron rule of public relations soldiers.

"Hmm. This is getting interesting."

That was when Hughes, who had unusually kept quiet and listened, straightened up with an intrigued expression.

Just as Peto muttered, "Don't tell me..."

"Senior. I'll help her."

The unthinkable became reality.

"What? You?"

"You told me to look after children. Well, I was demoted anyway, so I'll lend Miss Bakia a hand."

Hughes stepped forward without the slightest hesitation, as though everything would be resolved the moment he intervened. The granddaughter of Seamless Perfection brightened.

Peto felt like ripping out every one of his sideburns.

"Help her with what? We go around calling ourselves public relations soldiers, but we're no different from a host bar!"

"You're admitting it yourself."

"You have to admit it when it's true! What do we have besides our faces and smooth talk?"

With every word Peto spoke, Sephier's newly brightened face darkened in real time. Feeling the customer's displeasure with his whole body, Peto grabbed Hughes by the collar, pulled him close, and whispered in his ear.

"Know your place, Hughes. You and I are nothing but empty husks with pretty exteriors. If we want to keep even this host bar, we need to keep our heads down!"

"So we're just sending her away? The heir to Seamless Perfection, the military state's greatest holding company, came here asking for help, and we're going to pretend we don't see her? Is that something a proud soldier of the military state should say?"

"We feel bad too. But what can we do? We're just useless layabouts! We have neither the ability nor the responsibility to get involved in something this big!"

Separating public and private matters was a virtue expected of every public servant, but public relations soldiers bore a responsibility several times greater.

They were an impossible combination: soldiers who could die in public service and hosts who could die over private matters. Their responsibility was beyond imagination. To avoid enraged officers storming in with swords, they had to know when to hold back.

That attitude had become second nature to Peto, and he actively tried to stop Hughes. Eventually, Hughes gave in.

"Ah. I suppose this won't work, then."

"Right? You thought it through..."

Hughes deactivated his packet. The countless ornaments attached to it fell to the floor, leaving him in a simple shirt.

After shedding his uniform in an instant, Hughes handed the uniform packet to Peto.

"I've always wanted to say this. I quit as of today."

"You crazy bastard..."

"I'm not your junior anymore. Watch your mouth, Mr. Peto."

"You're really a crazy bastard..."

Hughes shoved the packet into the arms of the stunned Peto and approached Sephier. She had been trying to hide her disappointment, but looked at the young man who came over to her.

"That's an interesting story. May I help you, Miss Sephier?"

"...Thank you. But."

She had not noticed while Hughes was wearing that flashy uniform, but without it, he looked closer to Sephier's age than to adulthood, only a few years older than her. She gave Peto a doubtful look and asked,

"Is this man a public relations soldier too?"

Peto squeezed his eyes shut before answering.

"Not anymore."

"Does that mean he used to be one?"

"He was a substitute, but yes."

He had the lean, tall build of a child who had gone through a sudden growth spurt. His face still retained its youthful softness. It was a childish face, one that even the words young man did not quite suit.

Sephier looked Hughes up and down, then tilted her head.

"He's not just a child who borrowed a cool-looking uniform?"

"Pwahahahaha! Hey, Hughes! She said you borrowed it!"

Peto burst into laughter for the first time that year.

They said a drowning person would cling to even a straw, but if someone actually held a straw out in front of them, their expression would sour. Sephier looked exactly like that.

She watched Hughes suspiciously, then turned away. Whether he understood her feelings or not, Hughes walked beside her with a broad smile.

"So, to put it simply."

Hughes neatly summarized the situation.

"Your other relatives are seizing the opportunity presented by the second-generation Seamless Perfection's worsening chronic illness to go after your position as heir, Miss Sephier?"

"...Yes. For now."

"For now?"

Sephier tightly gripped the clothing packet in her hand.

"Right now, my grandmother and I are the only people in the military state capable of making Aki Avatars. When Grandmother was healthy, she taught me and protected me from behind the scenes. But..."

Once the second-generation Seamless Perfection's health worsened and she could no longer exert any influence, no one remained to protect Sephier.

Hughes asked as Sephier's voice trailed off.

"That's strange. I heard Aki Avatars are essential tools for making clothing packets. What do they plan to do if you completely refuse to cooperate, Miss Sephier?"

Sephier hesitated before answering.

"...Unless I want to destroy Seamless Perfection, I can't refuse to make Aki Avatars."

"Ah. No matter how unfair it is, you don't want to destroy the company. And they know that."

"Seamless Perfection is a venerable fabric shop passed down for generations. It struggled for a long time, but only recently began to prosper again. I can't ruin it for the sake of my own desires..."

"Hmm. What should we do about this?"

Sephier spoke heavily, but Hughes's response was endlessly light. Finding him untrustworthy no matter how she looked at it, Sephier cautiously asked,

"...This time, let me ask. How old are you?"

"Eighteen."

"You're only two years older than me..."

"Age doesn't matter much when you're doing something important."

"Do you have some kind of plan?"

Instead of answering, Hughes gave her an ominous smile. A chill instantly ran down Sephier's spine.

That smile made him seem like either a mischievous brat who did not know his place or a strategist of the century. Sephier felt an unease she could not understand, along with a sense of relief.

It was not relief because he was on her side. It was the relief of knowing that a man capable of doing who knew what was, at the very least, not an enemy...

"Miss, can you trust me?"

...But if she tried to flatter him now, she somehow felt as though she would lose. Sephier swallowed and answered,

"No. I can't trust you at all."

"Wise of you. But you'll have to trust me."

"Why?"

"Because."

By then, the two had arrived at Seamless Perfection's headquarters in District 3. The headquarters occupied the entire seven-story building, and hired guards stood at its entrance, glaring fiercely at them.

Hughes pointed toward them and answered,

"I'm going to tell them everything."

Alexei Bakia, the acting president managing the company in place of the second-generation Seamless Perfection, who was bedridden with the infirmities of old age, received an unexpected guest.

After hearing the story from Hughes at year's end, he laughed so hard at the year's most delightful news that his sides hurt.

"Kahahaha! What a stupid little bitch! She had nowhere else to go, so she went to public relations soldiers! To men who are no more than hosts! A child will always be a child!"

"Considering she went straight to a host bar without knowing anything... Isn't she rather precocious? Kehehehe!"

"Hahahaha! I like you! Your way with words, your attitude, all of it!"

After laughing for quite a while, Alexei continued with a nasty smile.

"...And you were sharp enough to come find me right away."

They said small-minded people recognized each other. Hughes returned Alexei's words with a similar smile.

"So you already had a rough idea of her whereabouts?"

"Ah, naturally. A little girl who has never even set foot in another district had nowhere to go except around here... I did not expect her to stop by a host bar, so I missed her."

"But that means she walked into an even more dangerous place on her own. A place full of husks who can think only of making a quick score... Kekek."

"Kahahahahaha! That's not even funny!"

"Kehehehehehe!"

The two laughed like mirror images for a while before finally getting to the point several minutes later.

Alexei, who had been laughing so happily just moments before, hardened his expression. He asked Hughes what he wanted in payment with a deeply defensive, reluctant look.

"Fine. You. What do you want from me?"

"I'm a host. More precisely, my job is to keep women company and unsettle them enough that they dare not entertain other thoughts in front of me."

"Oh? And?"

Alexei's reaction to the word unsettle was positive. Realizing that he had succeeded, Hughes rubbed his hands together.

"Wouldn't it be troublesome for you too, Mr. President, if that little lady keeps scurrying about? Especially if she receives citizen registration in two years, who knows where she might run off to. Don't you need someone to keep her close and keep her under surveillance?"

"Surveillance?"

"Surveillance has an unfortunate ring to it. What I meant was, don't you need a tutor for her, Mr. President?"

More than anything else, addressing him as president clearly pleased Alexei. He extended his hand to Hughes with a far heartier, more sincere smile than before.

"I look forward to working with you. From today on, you are Sephier's tutor. She will not attend secondary school because of her heir training, so it is my duty as her godfather to at least find her a tutor!"

Hughes bowed obsequiously and took his hand. That attitude pleased Alexei even more.

"Leave it to me. I'll pressure her so thoroughly that she'll never think of defying you again, and she'll be able to do nothing except make Aki Avatars!"

If Sephier had possessed a gun then, she would have shot Hughes.

Unfortunately, she did not have a gun at the time.

Sephier paid dearly for trusting people too easily.

And so, one year passed.

Footnotes:

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