WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 542: Which Comes First, Faith or Ability?

──────

The monastery coughed the regressor and me out.

The children, unaware that we had nearly died, were still running around the fields. Azzy was rolling around with Lemme's hair tightly wrapped around her. Lemme let out a mournful cry as her hair tangled.

"Baa-a. Who brought this dog here? If you brought her, take responsibility, baa!"

"Bark! I herd sheep! Sheep, I take responsibility!"

"Biting isn't taking responsibility, baa! Let go, baa!"

Lemme, the Sheep King. The king of sheep who followed shepherds.

Sheep were timid and foolish creatures. Since ancient times, humans had driven herds of hundreds with nothing more than a wooden staff and a dog. As long as they could find a field full of food, sheep did not care much whether a human led them there or a dog drove them along.

Perhaps that foolishness appealed to priests, because sheep had become animals always mentioned during the Eucharist.

I could have ignored her and moved on, but we had run into each other. We should at least exchange greetings. It wasn't as if Lemme and I were strangers.

"Sheep. What are you doing here?"

"Can't you see, baa? This dog is tormenting me, human! Hurry and pull her off, baa! Before all my hair gets ruined, baa!"

"Zzz."

"Wake up, baa! Your drool is tangling my hair, baa!"

Lemme squirmed around but couldn't pull Azzy off her hair.

Wolves were sheep's natural predators, while dogs were sheep's guides. Their roles were complete opposites, but both sent sheep somewhere they did not want to go. Sheep and dogs had a very clear hierarchy between them.

After pulling Azzy away, I asked Lemme, "No, why did you come to the monastery? There aren't even that many sheep here."

"To receive service, baa!"

Lemme tried to loosen the spots Azzy had licked as she spoke.

"I have soft, fluffy hair, baa! But when the wind blows, when it gets wet, or when dirt gets in it, my hair clumps up and feels stuffy, baa!"

Lemme fiddled with her hair. Even a Beast King couldn't comb their own hair properly. With Lemme's small hands, she couldn't even reach all of her long, thick white hair, which fell nearly below her knees.

"So I travel around, baa. Looking for humans who will comb my hair!"

"You came all the way here looking for people to comb your hair?"

"Baa-a! That's right, baa! The little humans here have small, gentle hands, so they comb my hair without hurting me, baa!"

"People elsewhere could probably comb it just as well."

"It's not about skill, baa. What matters is the heart that reveres me, baa! Other humans just scrub at me with brushes and try to cut my hair, so I don't like them, baa!"

"Why? Just let them cut it."

"They can't cut it, baa! Humans try to rip my hair out, baa!"

The Sheep King's hair was soft but tough. As a Beast King, a conceptual being with particularly exceptional hair, ordinary methods couldn't cut it. If someone tried using scissors, the blades would only chew up the hair.

Then the regressor stepped forward with a suggestion.

"Want me to cut it?"

"Baa? You, baa?"

"Yeah. I think my Skywarbler could cut your hair."

"Not a chance, baa. A human blade can't cut my hair, baa. I'm a sheep. I hate pain, baa!"

Lemme firmly rejected the regressor's offer. At that moment, the children gathered up the fallen strands of hair from their brushing and held them out to the regressor.

"This is hair left behind by the Lamb's Envoy."

"If you can cut this, we'll believe you!"

"It won't be easy. Sometimes we use this for cat's cradle, but once it gets tangled, we can never undo it! That's why we keep so much of it piled in one corner of the dormitory!"

The innocent children approached the regressor without knowing any fear. It was proof that fear had to be learned. If they could sense it instinctively, they would never have approached someone with such a frightening face.

Despite her appearance, the regressor didn't particularly dislike innocent children. She had two of them pull the sheep's hair taut, then lightly drew Skywarbler.

Ting.

Lemme's hair was cut with only the faintest sound.

"Wow! It cut!"

"That's amazing! Even when we used scissors and saws, it wouldn't break!"

"Great! We'll give you the chance to cut the Lamb's Envoy's hair!"

The children chattered away, and Lemme replied suspiciously.

"Baa-a? Is it really all right, baa? Fine, baa. I'll give you the chance to cut my hair. But you only get one chance, baa! If you pull any of it out, I'll ram you!"

Lemme waddled over, lifted her hair with both hands, and held it out to the regressor. The regressor remained calm even before that enormous mass of hair, large enough to hide a person inside.

Growing uneasy for no reason, I asked, "Mr. Shei, can you really cut it?"

"Of course. You saw it just now, didn't you? Skywarbler can cut even the Sheep King's hair."

"No, not that. Can you cut hair properly? You don't seem very handy."

"What are you talking about? How do you think I trim my hair while traveling? I cut my own hair too, you know."

"Ah, so that's why your hair..."

"Want me to shave your head clean?"

"Let's get cutting. Lemme is waiting."

Grumbling, the regressor condensed Skywarbler and heated the blade. Skywarbler gave off a heat haze as it gently slid through Lemme's hair.

Snip, snip.

She gathered the hair with energy, then cut it at an angle with Skywarbler. Clumps of Lemme's hair fell away. Each clump probably contained more hair than an average person had on their head, yet even after dozens of cuts, there was no sign of Lemme's hair running out.

The snow-white hair falling like snow was strangely captivating. Azzy, the other children, and I all watched without a word.

Lemme, the one receiving the service, showed no gratitude at all. She smacked her lips and shifted about.

"Baa-a. I'm bored, baa. You people, bring me grass to chew on, baa."

She acted like a master giving orders. I wasn't the only one who found it rude, because Azzy, who had been watching, suddenly barked at Lemme.

"Bark! Stop!"

"Baa!"

"Don't move! You'll get hurt! You and the human!"

"Baa, baa-a... Chewing grass should be fine, baa..."

Frightened, Lemme clasped her hands together and sat still, watching Azzy's reaction. Thanks to Azzy, cutting her hair became much easier.

After nearly an hour of trimming, the regressor curled the ends of Lemme's hair with heated Skywarbler, then brushed off her hands.

"Hm. How is it? I did a pretty good job, right?"

I couldn't say no. The regressor's skill was impressive. The cut was quite clean, and curling the ends on a whim was something impossible without both taste and an eye for beauty.

Lemme, who had been buried beneath messy hair, had become a pretty young girl with lovely long hair. The children marveled at how different she looked.

"Wow! She's pretty!"

"The Lamb's Envoy looks much cleaner and prettier now!"

"The fluffy Lamb's Envoy was nice too, but she looks much more comfortable now!"

Lemme herself had no particular reaction. She was too busy watching Azzy's mood. I couldn't expect a sheep to have any sense of beauty. At most, she probably felt a little less stuffy.

The regressor shook off the remaining hair with a confident voice.

"See?"

"When did you learn how to do that?"

"I told you. I used to cut my hair while traveling alone."

'I spent a lot of time trimming it because I wanted to look at least somewhat human. That's why. Thanks to my Seven-Colored Eyes, I could even see the back of my own head.'

I thought she didn't care about things like that at all... No, that wasn't true. Looking at things like Manhan Quanxi and Rene's pouch, she did take fairly good care of herself and her surroundings. Well, it was better to take care of what you could.

"And it was easier thanks to the Holy Maiden's blessing."

"What? The Holy Maiden's blessing? What does that have to do with this?"

"Huh? You don't know? It's a Holy Maiden's blessing."

"What does the blessing even do? I don't feel any special power."

"Heh. So there are things even you don't know? Well, when have you ever received a blessing?"

Maybe because she had successfully trimmed the sheep's hair, the regressor spoke in a slightly smug tone.

"The Holy Maiden's blessing differs according to each one's authority. The Steel Maiden grants the power to make your will reality, and the Holy Maiden of Causality grants knowledge to discover what you want. The Holy Maiden of the Sun illuminates the road ahead. And the Holy Maiden of Heaven... grants luck."

"Luck?"

"Yeah. Whatever you do turns out well, and even when an obstacle stands before you, a way to overcome it easily appears. Fortuitous opportunities fall right in front of you before you even realize it. The blessings of other Holy Maidens are clear but somewhat limited. The blessing given by the Holy Maiden of Heaven is far vaguer and broader. Like a goddess of luck."

Luck? What kind of luck was that? Luck existed, but it was still only probability.

"Look at today. It may be something minor, but barely any stray hair was left after cutting the Sheep King's hair. I only learned by watching others, so I'm not that skilled. It turned out this well because of the blessing."

"That can't be true... Cutting hair is just your own ability."

"Oh, stop flattering me."

"I'm not flattering you. You're the strange one for believing in the Holy Maiden's blessing, Mr. Shei. What are you, some cultist? You believe something you did with your own hands was the Holy Maiden's blessing?"

I couldn't say the Holy Maiden's blessing had no power. They really did have the power to see the future. Still, attributing the results of something you did yourself to a blessing was even stranger.

"And think about it again. If the blessing is that incredible, why would it help you cut Lemme's hair? This is just a pastime."

"Who knows? Maybe we'll have a use for the neatly cut hair of the Sheep King."

"What would we use hair for when we're not even making cloth out of it right away...? In the first place, the Holy Maiden of Heaven ordered you to defeat an ancient evil, didn't she? No matter how valuable that hair is, it doesn't seem like it would stop an ancient evil. Are you planning to give it as a gift?"

"It doesn't hurt to keep it. And I might have someone to give it to."

"What? What kind of gift could it be in a monastery where Lemme's hair is everywhere?"

This was also a land of savagery untouched by civilization. Even if we sold it, there would be nobody to buy it. Would we barter with savages? It could be useful in that sense, but they didn't seem to have much to give us.

Then it happened.

"Hello! Is the sister here?"

Someone's booming voice rang out. It was loud enough to startle the sheep, the children, and even Lemme.

In the civilized world, causing a commotion at someone else's home would be considered an intrusion. This savage world was different. Barking dogs didn't bite, and threats always approached without a sound. Making your presence known was instead a sign of goodwill.

"You are one of the earthfolk."

Yegcheriya, her face once again covered with a veil, came out to greet the huge brown-skinned figure.

"All beings beneath the sky are children of the Celestial God, but not every child is devoted. I have heard that the earthfolk do not serve the Celestial God, but worship the Earth Mother. As a servant of the Celestial God, I welcome all visitors, but are you certain it is all right to continue this meeting?"

The earthfolk. An immortal race that absorbed earth energy into their bodies, giving them properties similar to soil. They were also the native inhabitants of the Kingdom of Ten Thousand and followed a somewhat different faith based on a distorted concept of the Earth Mother.

That was why there was only one monastery in this vast land of savagery. The lands overflowing with life were full of weeds that couldn't be uprooted even by the Celestial God's wind.

Still, this particular earthfolk seemed enlightened enough to show courtesy to the nun.

"That is right! I came here to meet you in the first place, Sister!"

Yegcheriya spread both arms wide, welcoming the immortal.

"Welcome! Even in this distant land of savagery and heresy, seeds of faith carried on the wind will take root! I, Yegcheriya, sincerely welcome your repentance, brother!"

"Haha. I have no intention of believing in the Celestial God!"

"That is quite all right! The fact that you came here is already a most hopeful thing! Why not begin by reading the scriptures?"

"No, truly, that is not why I am here. I only came to receive that... What was it called? A sacrament?"

"A sacrament?"

"That's right. The marriage sacrament, I believe. I heard that in the countries up north, people receive a priest's blessing when they marry. My bride-to-be came from far away, and I wanted to follow her customs if possible!"

The immortal laughed heartily and explained his situation. He had brought a woman from a distant place to marry, but their village customs were so different that it had caused some conflict. He wanted to receive a sacrament at the Blood Monastery so there would be no objections.

He wanted to use a holy sacrament as a means to an end, but Yegcheriya didn't care about such trivial motives. Instead, she clasped her hands together, looking even happier.

"Ah... This is true repentance through love! I have not yet met your bride-to-be, but she must be a truly devout woman! Very well. I will prepare so that I may bless this sacred union at any time!"

"Hm. I would appreciate it! I brought hides and meat, so, what was it called? I will make a donation!"

"I will gratefully accept your offering!"

"And I am sorry to ask, but could you give me a token proving that this monastery has promised the sacrament? I would feel awkward returning empty-handed."

"Of course. As it happens..."

Yegcheriya looked this way with a broad smile. The children, who were neatly gathering Lemme's hair, received the nun's gaze.

"We have just obtained wool well suited to serve as a token."

At that moment, I felt something unsettling.

Was it discomfort? It felt like gambling on a perfectly arranged board. Like I was dancing after the card I would draw, and the card that would appear, had already been decided.

The world was fitting together strangely. In this savage land, wool and hides were necessities and wealth. They were precious goods beyond comparison. If it was the Sheep King's hair, there was no need to compare it with anything. Carrying it home alone would have people treating you as an honored guest.

Such a good opportunity had appeared right away? As if it were showing off?

Come on. It had to be a coincidence...

...was what I wanted to say, but.

"Hughes."

"You noticed too, Mr. Shei?"

"Yeah. I know. That immortal..."

The regressor had recognized the immortal's identity just as I had, and she was caught up in a strange feeling. It was too odd to dismiss as coincidence, but too incomprehensible to call the Holy Maiden's blessing...

"Oh? Teacher. And boy! It's been a long time! What a strange coincidence, running into you here!"

Rashy, the immortal and fellow prisoner I had met in Tantalus, recognized the regressor and me and waved broadly.

Footnotes:

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried