WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 230: Who Do You Like Better, Mom or Dad?

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Wasn't it arrogant for a mere human to discuss the shape of a country too vast to see with their own eyes? Still, on a map, the military state was clearly stretched out horizontally.

Blood vessels followed the shape of the body. Accordingly, the Meta Conveyor Belt, the military state's great artery, was also a broad oval. No, more precisely, it resembled a long horizontal rectangle with angular semicircles attached to either end. Curves caused greater wear along the edges.

Headquarters was located at the exact center of the circular Meta Conveyor Belt. The center of the Inner Circle. To reach it, we needed to travel some distance sideways.

That was why we were boarding the Meta Conveyor Belt we had once left.

Once the plan to attack Headquarters had been drafted, the regressor headed for the Meta Conveyor Belt. There was no better way to travel without exposing our movements while communications officers and searchlights kept watch in every direction. After climbing aboard with ease, we searched for a container where we could hide and pass the time.

The container was full of cargo... but the regressor emptied it with a very simple method. She opened her subspace pocket and began stuffing everything inside.

Historia's mouth fell open as she watched the pocket endlessly swallow goods.

"...What the hell is that?"

"Oh, it's a cheat item. It's packed with all kinds of bizarre tools too."

"Those two treasured swords, your reserves of energy...! Are you the Empire's emperor's secret son or something?"

"Do the emperor's secret sons carry things like that around these days? I'm kind of jealous. Being the emperor's son might not be so bad, huh?"

Ah, what a relief. I wasn't the only one feeling inferior out of jealousy. Historia looked at that thing and felt the same absurdity I did.

That was the normal reaction. Carrying around something like that was what was abnormal.

"Tch. It's full."

The regressor stopped only after emptying two-thirds of the container. She clicked her tongue in disappointment, which was downright infuriating. Someone should remind her that she could revolutionize the military state's logistics industry.

One human rivaling one container? The container had been made solely to hold goods. Wasn't that unfair to it?

The regressor pulled other daily necessities from her pocket and said,

"Let's shove the rest into a corner. We should stay here until we reach the Central Waystation. And if possible, our priority is to contact the Resistance."

"The Resistance? Do we need them? Isn't this getting too reckless?"

"They're perfect for making a bigger mess. Without them, well, we'll make the mess ourselves."

From the military state's perspective, they would rather call in the Resistance. The kind of havoc the regressor caused was something they had never experienced before.

"Are you done? Then it is my turn. Must I mark this place?"

"Yes. Please."

"Hehe. Very well. Dividing up the work feels strangely rewarding."

Someone who usually would not lift a finger was discovering the satisfaction of labor.

Tyr drew a mark onto the container's inner wall with her bloodied finger. The blood-soaked pattern glimmered ominously in the darkness, and the inner wall came under her control. Back when she could wield blood freely, she could have done it just by reaching out a hand. Now that her heart was beating again, she had to draw it herself, stroke by stroke. The container was large, and her characteristic leisurely manner made it take quite a while.

Still, I couldn't rush her. Only Tyr could do this.

That was what a specialist was.

All right, everyone was working. It was about time I earned my keep too.

If I didn't work, my share would vanish, along with my right to enjoy the benefits. If I wanted to enjoy everything life had to offer, I had to work for my share.

I raised a finger and pointed ahead.

"All right, let's go! Azzy, Nabi, Ria! Move the cargo into one corner!"

"Woof!"

"Meow?"

"...Am I included in this?"

A dog ran off like Azzy. No, did I have that backward? Either way, she dragged the cargo around, leaving bite and claw marks in it before tossing it into a corner again and again.

The instinct inside me that loved neat right angles screamed for me to stop her and straighten everything out, but I put it off for now. It wasn't a goal worth achieving if it meant giving myself more work.

In other words, I couldn't be bothered.

"Meow. Good job, meow."

"Nabi. You need to work too."

"Meow? Meow, I have eating and smoking to do. Offer tribute at once, meow."

"Seriously, cats have the easiest lives... If you push that cargo neatly into the corner, I'll give you a box that fits you perfectly."

"A box? Give it to me, meow! Right now!"

"Does this beast not understand the relationship between labor and compensation?"

As the human here, I handled the cleanup. It was the privilege of an intelligent being. I stacked the cargo Azzy had shoved against the wall and made space for us to stay.

Ah, right. We needed to clean the floor too. Should I put someone else to work on that?

"Ria. I'll give you a rag, so clean the floor. Even with your hands tied, you can still mop with a rag, right?"

Historia grabbed the rag with her toes and asked me,

"...Hui. You're joking, right?"

"Joking? Does this look like a joke to you? If you're part of this group, shouldn't you work too? Prisoners don't have to work? Then I want to be a prisoner too!"

"Not that. Attacking Headquarters."

Historia glared fiercely up at me, grinding her teeth.

"You said you wanted to live an ordinary life. Since when was raiding Headquarters an ordinary thing?"

"No. Didn't you hear Mr. Shei explain it? What we're doing is pursuing peace. Love and peace. That's the most important thing an ordinary person can do, isn't it?"

I answered while making V signs with both hands.

When there was a beast on a leash, was it instinct to walk right up to the edge of its reach and tease it? Knowing Historia would snap, I kept provoking her.

If her hands hadn't been tied, she would have grabbed her head. Historia looked mentally overwhelmed as she said,

"You're attacking Headquarters to stop a war? That's war! Are you stupid?"

"Just between us, I honestly think so too."

"...I'm talking about you, Hui!"

"Huh? Why? Mr. Shei planned this whole operation. If you're calling someone stupid, then obviously it's Mr. Shei!"

If war had broken out in her previous timeline, she should have told us in advance. We nearly escaped straight into the Lesser States, which were bound to become a battlefield.

Attacking Headquarters wasn't exactly comfortable, but it was better than getting caught in a war. Unstable killing intent aimed at countless unknown people, like in a war, was too deadly for me. You couldn't dodge a blind bullet.

And according to the regressor, this war would mark the beginning of steadily rising tensions between nations...

Well, there was no harm in stopping it, right? It wasn't like I was the one stopping it.

"That's how it is, Ria. Anyway, didn't I tell you to clean? Since when did cleaning mean glaring at me like you wanted to shoot me dead?"

"Hui!"

"If you don't like it, get off right now. Who's stopping you? Your feet aren't tied, so run to your Absolute Spear father and War Mage mother and tell on us. 'They're charging Headquarters! Hurry and stop them!' Like that! Go on, make my journey as difficult as possible!"

"You...!"

Instead of the fists hidden behind her back, Historia's shoulders and chest trembled. I took the chance to sneer even harder.

"Go! I said I won't stop you! What, are we going to kill you? Torture you or take you hostage? I'm telling you we'll let you go! You're the one who said you wanted to come along because you wanted to watch!"

"Hey!"

Still tied up, Historia moved her leg. The rag landed on the top of her foot, then shot straight at me like a shell. Despite her terrible posture, it flew precisely toward my head.

Ha ha. Not a chance. No matter how useless I was, could I fail to dodge a rag, especially one thrown with a foot? I bent backward and...

"Agh!"

It hit my face. Since it struck while I was bending backward, my body toppled straight back. The bone that had lost its tail over countless generations slammed against the hard floor. At that moment, I missed my vanished tail more than ever.

Right. Legs had three times the strength of arms...! Their only weakness was that their movements were bigger and easier to spot, but that didn't matter much to someone with mind-reading!

Lying on the floor, I rubbed my throbbing tailbone and peeled the rag, which had taken a perfect impression of my face, away from it.

"Ptoo, ptoo. You dared hit my face with a rag covered in dust!"

"Considering what you did, you deserved it."

"Not even a hint of remorse! I'll punish you right now!"

‘Punish me? Even tied up, how are you going to punish me? You'll have to think of something creative, Hui. I'm looking forward to it.’

I'll live up to those expectations!

Not me!

Someone stronger than me!

I immediately ran over to Tyr and the regressor to tattle.

"Mom! Dad! She hit me! Scold her!"

The reaction was immediate. The regressor, whom I had called Dad, shouted as violently as if she had been shot.

"Why am I Dad?! First of all, I'm a wo, no! You're older than me!"

Oh, so she knew I was older? I got shoved around and disregarded so often that I thought she had completely forgotten that. Or maybe she was counting her age before regression too.

...Though knowing I was older and still talking down to me so rudely might make her even worse.

Still, it was fair.

"Shei. Was it not simply a light joke meant to amuse? Could you not play along a little?"

"No! What do you mean, Dad?! Even as a joke, it gives me chills! I've never had a son like that!"

She treated Tyr that way too, even though Tyr was at least a thousand years older than her, even counting the time before regression. She was equally rude to everyone, so I found it oddly endearing.

Tyr did not point it out or seem offended in the slightest. Having dealt with every kind of person over the ages, she no longer cared about every individual reaction. It made sense. Whenever people saw her, they hurled every imaginable insult, saying they would hammer iron nails into that filthy vampire's limbs. If she got hurt by all of it, her heart would not have survived.

Tyr lightly scolded the regressor, then approached me with a kind smile.

"Come now. Come here. What would you have me do?"

I ran over and told her all about Historia's atrocities. Historia had thrown a rag at my face and turned this handsome face into a rag. The scorched-rice dust scraped off the container floor had a truly exquisite taste.

After chattering away, I pointed at Historia, who stood there with an incredulous look, and shouted,

"Teach her a good lesson! Make sure she never does something like that again!"

"Very well."

Tyr nodded as if she meant it, then lightly walked over and stopped before Historia. In a loud voice meant for me to hear, she began to lecture her.

"I understand that you were close to Hughes and longed for him out of affection. I also accept that you greatly regret and resent what happened before, and that you do not wish to repeat the tragedy. But."

Tyr placed a hand over her chest with a touch of pride and continued.

"Remember this. You were the one trying to pursue Hughes, and we were protecting Hughes against your side. The lines are so clearly drawn, yet you seek to behave far too familiarly. You even went so far as to pose a small threat to him... You are a prisoner, and you must not forget that we accepted your request to come with us out of goodwill."

It was an entirely reasonable argument, and it struck exactly where Historia hurt most. At the same time, it supported me perfectly.

Historia's opponent was Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka. Even at her best, Historia could not defeat her. With her arms tied and still wanting to continue with us, Historia had no choice but to accept Tyr's words.

"...All right, Progenitor."

"You have made no promise. Tell me in your own words what you understand."

After the continued scolding, Historia gritted her teeth and answered in humiliation.

"I won't... harm Hui."

"Those were your own words. I trust you will uphold them with your will and honor."

Tyr spoke firmly, then glanced back at me with a smile. She was asking whether that was enough. When I nodded, Tyr opened her arms slightly and offered me her empty embrace.

‘I played along and taught her a lesson. What do you think?’

A pretty old sis... I mean, anyway, I was good at playing along with this sort of thing too. Since I read thoughts, I ended up matching whatever performance the other person had planned.

I opened my arms too and ran into Tyr's embrace.

"Thank you, Tyr!"

"For what?"

I was bigger than Tyr, who had a relatively small frame, so it looked more like I was wrapping her in an embrace. Still, Tyr hugged me back with a satisfied smile in her eyes.

‘Hehe. This is enjoyable. It may be cruel to the female general before us, but flaunting my present relationship before the remnants of the past brings a petty, primal pleasure. It seems humans have such childish feelings.’

Her slightly superior thoughts came from within her embrace. Historia was thoroughly irritated and only glared at me like she wanted to stab me. It was fortunate we had taken her gun beforehand. Otherwise, my back might have become a target.

Then I felt the world lurch forward.

The belt was slowing down.

The container had arrived at an intermediate waystation.

Footnotes:

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