WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 576: The Demon God, Is That All?

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"First, imagine this world as one vast, enormous human being... No, that's difficult to picture. Let's make it simpler. Imagine an absolute god who established this world's rules."

I didn't particularly like the analogy, but it couldn't be helped. I continued explaining.

"The great principles created by that god make up this world. They make water flow, kindle flames, call down lightning, and move the world. A Demon God is a human being who possesses part of those great principles as innate arcane."

"Innate arcane? Are you saying a Demon God's power is innate arcane?"

"Yes. Fundamentally, it's no different from your innate arcane. There's only one difference: their innate arcane resonates with this world's principles. The principles you control are only true in your vicinity. A Demon God has no such limitation. A Demon God's innate arcane belongs to the whole world."

That was why the world underwent such upheaval after a Demon God was born. A Demon God's innate arcane was available to everyone. Of course, like all knowledge, it still required considerable effort and study to actually use.

"Is that why my gears can't become a Demon God?"

"Yes. Well, if you covered this entire land in gears, hung the moon and stars in the sky from gears to make them orbit, and made gears part of the great rules that move the universe, then perhaps you could become a Demon God too. If you can manage it, that is."

For a brief moment, Maximilien planned to do exactly that. After calculating how many gears it would take to cover the land, they soon realized it was practically impossible.

"Then is there no other way to become a Demon God?"

"You should search diligently for a method yourself. Still, I'd recommend a different path."

"What would that be?"

"Do you really need to become a Demon God? Is being a Demon God really all that?"

Maximilien frowned, thinking I was mocking their dream. I was mocking it, but not merely for mockery's sake.

"A Demon God is still human. They explore the world, happen upon a fragment of its great rules, and make it their innate arcane. They're no different from you. No, you might even be greater. Demon Gods merely imitate and steal the world's innate arcane, don't they?"

Whether they discovered the great principles hidden in the world or walked a path only they could understand was Maximilien's choice. No matter how I looked at it, they suited the latter better, but they didn't seem to think so.

"Hm. An impressive view. Still, that isn't the direction I desire."

"Do you still dream of becoming a Demon God?"

"Yes. I will cover the world in gears!"

Maximilien was a gear. The only way they could engage with the world was by pressing gears against it. If the other party resembled gears, they would mesh together. Otherwise, their teeth would tear the other party apart.

Maximilien wished to turn the world, and humanity, into gears. Their true wish was to make rational thought and efficient exchanges of opinion possible.

"That won't work."

"But that's no reason for me to stop. Above all, it isn't as though there is no method."

Maximilien looked at me through their monocle. Having read their thoughts, I grimaced.

"...The King of Humanity?"

"Of course. You said replacing the King of Humanity would accomplish nothing, but that isn't truly the case, is it?"

"No. I'm speaking only the truth. Replacing me would accomplish nothing. No matter how much you redraw and color in a graph, reality doesn't change."

"Hahaha! Is that really so? Then why did you change? Why did you lose your power? How did the Sanctum change humanity?"

Tch. Everyone had picked up bad habits. There was no need to insist on the proper method for everything, but there were limits to cutting corners.

"I clearly warned you. That wouldn't be enough."

"You may be right. Having lost your power, you can't rule humanity. But what about the King of Humanity, who will soon awaken?"

"...Even if they regain their power and awaken, they won't rule the world."

"The world will wish to be ruled!"

Maximilien laughed loudly, then sighed as a faint tremor ran through the floor.

"Goodness, there isn't even a moment to rest!"

Their instinct was accurate. A single flower bloomed from the floor, and Nevida stepped out from within its fully opened bud. Upon seeing me, Nevida brought both hands together and bowed.

"My lord. Have your accommodations been satisfactory?"

"Ah, yes. The room is nice."

"If you require anything, please tell us at any time."

After offering that ceremonial courtesy, Nevida gestured to Maximilien. Though they looked annoyed, Maximilien had no choice but to rise.

"All right, I'm going! What is it this time?"

"I'll tell you when we get there."

So that overbearing behavior wasn't reserved for me. At least that was a relief. It would've felt unfair if Nevida only acted that way toward me.

Maximilien gave me a regretful glance.

"I apologize for leaving before our conversation is finished. It's unfortunate, but I'm rather busy. Let us meet again!"

"You don't need to apologize. I hope you remain busy. Let this meeting be our last, if possible."

Then the regressor's thin voice drifted out.

"Wait, Gear Maiden...!"

"What is it?"

Apparently glad to hear someone call for them, Maximilien quickly turned around. They looked desperate to put off their work.

"What... are you doing here?"

"By asking what I am doing, do you mean what role I serve here?"

"Yes. You handle gears... There should be nothing for you to do at the Tree of Corruption."

"Hahaha! That is the greatest misconception of all!"

Nevida urged Maximilien with a cold gaze, but Maximilien, whose heart was driven by gears, didn't seem capable of fear. Brushing off Nevida's terrifying glare, they spoke brightly.

"This great and arrogant blind watchmaker creates all manner of things, yet cannot make the tools it needs. It creates chimera beans, paper trees, and meat fruit, yet agonizes because it doesn't have even a single usable spring at hand!"

"...A spring?"

"Yes. Just as in the military state, I make springs for them here..."

"Shut your mouth."

Nevida didn't tolerate Maximilien's attempt to blurt out all their information. Bamboo shot up through the floor and sliced threateningly past them. It was as though a forest of blades had been summoned from somewhere. The sharply grown bamboo was keen enough to use as spears the moment it was cut.

Even Maximilien seemed a little frightened by that. They shut their mouth and raised both arms. After silencing them, Nevida warned the regressor.

"You live only because it is my lord's will. That is all. If you do not wish to die, stay out of my sight whenever possible."

Nevida, born in an age of savagery, didn't merely talk. Their methods were cruel enough to make ordinary thugs look harmless. The warning that had silenced even Maximilien was chilling.

Yet the regressor only snorted.

"Try killing me."

...Right. You weren't the type to let words get ahead of action either. Though unable to move either arm, the regressor faced Nevida defiantly.

"Why don't you ignore your king's order and kill me? Defy the King of Humanity you worship so fervently to her face. Then I'll die satisfied."

Their gazes collided. The standoff was brief. Nevida turned away coldly. There was no need to test their loyalty by killing an opponent who had already been neutralized.

Instead, Nevida quietly warned the Great Witch's parrot.

"Hexia. You would do well not to speak with her."

The parrot tilted its head.

[Is that an order?]

"No. I cannot give you orders. It is advice. The Holy Maiden's enemies are not limited to me."

[Huh? All right, I'll think about it.]

"That is enough."

Having finished speaking, Nevida skewered Maximilien on bamboo and boarded the flower petal. The petal instantly closed, and Nevida and Maximilien vanished from the room.

The regressor sighed as her tension eased, while the parrot flew around the room with relief.

[Eek. The nuisances are gone too. Gears. I don't like them. They're cold and hard. I like soft, fluffy things. If that becomes a Demon God, the world will become hard.]

"Don't worry. That won't happen. To become a Demon God, you have to be at least as capable as Tyr."

[I hate that too! Eek! Why Tyrkanzyaka? Why did it have to be her who became a Demon God!]

The parrot seemed to have only one question. Why had Tyr become a Demon God instead of it?

[Tyrkanzyaka was a little brat controlled by her own power! All she had was strength beyond her means and talented people drawn to her because they coveted that strength! She was clearly not fit to become a Demon God, so if I kept studying this blood, I could have surpassed her and become a Demon God someday!]

"That's just trying to snatch someone else's achievement. Isn't that awfully shameless?"

[Tyrkanzyaka never wanted to become a Demon God anyway! She was a vengeful spirit with nothing but revenge on her mind! Then it would've been fine for me to become a Demon God! There'd be no problem!]

"There wouldn't be a problem, but it's been several hundred years since you acquired Tyr's blood, hasn't it? If you made no progress despite researching it all that time, you probably couldn't have done it anyway."

[Tyrkanzyaka was the same! For twelve hundred years, she never even dreamed of becoming a Demon God, so why did she suddenly awaken as one? Why did someone who should've been beating the Sanctum to death start digging into her own power? Who put that idea in her head...]

The grumbling parrot spotted me avoiding its eyes and whistling, then immediately swooped down.

[It was you! You were the one who persuaded Tyrkanzyaka to become a Demon God!]

"I didn't make her a Demon God. Tyr became one herself."

[You must have been the trigger! Tyrkanzyaka wasn't stupid... Well, even if she wasn't stupid, she didn't care about that sort of thing. It could only have been you!]

"The person who becomes the trigger is impressive. You aimed to become a Demon God from the start and still couldn't do it."

[Hey!]

The parrot grabbed both my arms as if it meant to tear them apart, flapping its wings. It seemed to be planning to lift me into the air and drop me.

"And shouldn't you be focusing on something else right now? More important than who helped Tyr become a Demon God is how she became one."

[Eek? You know?]

"I know roughly. I was nearby when Tyr became a Demon God."

The parrot, which had been pulling me upward, froze in midair. Once it set me down, I briefly explained what had happened to Tyr.

"After one thing and another, Tyr achieved her wish and lost her power. More precisely, she lost her control over blood. She lost the vast authority that controlled all Yeilings, Ains, and Elders, becoming nothing more than a girl with bloodcraft."

[Really? Then there is no need to avoid her control through doll rituals anymore. And?]

"Then several Elders plotted rebellion. There were many reasons. Some were disappointed that the great Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka had abandoned her control. Some wanted that power for themselves. Most of all, rebellion became possible because she had lost that control. That's human nature. Once something becomes possible, people want to do it."

[Haha! Serves her right. I knew it would happen from the beginning. Tyrkanzyaka was powerful, but she wasn't a leader worthy of respect like me!]

It was funny to hear someone so shy that they went around possessing a parrot talk about respect. I wished it would look at itself in a mirror.

"So Tyr learned every power and technique she could to overcome the Elders' rebellion. Those techniques included what the Elders had cultivated over hundreds of years. Even though her control was gone, the techniques they used had originated from Tyr. Tyr absorbed the power and techniques of every Elder and became a Demon God."

Every Elder was a powerhouse worthy of being recorded in history. The skills and knowledge gained by twelve powerful beings, each developing their own bloodcraft, were immense. Gathering all the knowledge that had branched into twelve paths was enough to become a Demon God.

[Eek! See? In the end, Tyrkanzyaka didn't achieve it through her own power! How underhanded!]

"A cunning Demon God is better than a Demon God candidate who tried to steal someone else's blood."

[What was I lacking? Hey. What was Tyrkanzyaka's realization?]

"Her realization?"

[The final piece she lacked to become a Demon God. The realization that led Tyrkanzyaka to become a Demon God!]

Ah, that? It wasn't anything remarkable. Tyr had already known it. She simply hadn't had a reason to reflect on it.

"Being alive, surprisingly, isn't that big a deal."

Footnotes:

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