WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 6: Only Bad Guardians

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Humans were tool-using beasts, born with the dexterity and resourcefulness to make what they needed from the materials at hand.

Before heading over to Azzy, I found some torn scraps of clothing and roughly stitched them into a ball. It was far too crude for any real game, but more than good enough for playing with a dog. I walked along, tossing and catching the ball while Azzy circled around me.

Every time I threw it, her whole body bounced. Azzy's sparkling eyes never left the ball. Drawing her gaze with it, I headed for the wide yard.

Then.

'Hidden by this Dark Curtain, I’ll watch exactly what you do.'

Something strange was following me. Resisting the urge to glance back, I slowly made my way to the yard.

What a nuisance. Why was she following me around instead of doing whatever she was supposed to do? What did I do?

I was only trying to train the King of Dogs with a ball and snacks.

And a little whipping.

They said training a beast was all about the carrot and stick. I had not a shred of shame about what I was doing. Still, with the regressor following me, there were limits to what I could do.

'The King of Dogs is one of the few Beast Kings who side with humanity. If the King of Dogs turns against humans like in the previous cycle, it’ll put us at a huge disadvantage in the battles to come. If this bastard tries anything with Azzy... I’ll settle this with my life on the line. I don’t know how strong this man is, but I have to fight him.'

After reading her thoughts, I shoved the military state standard-issue whip, which I had picked up somewhere in the prison, deep into my pocket. Whipping probably counted as the kind of thing she considered unacceptable.

The core of training was alternating between positive and negative responses. The so-called carrot and stick. If they listened well or did something commendable, plus one. If they were stubborn or displeased me, minus one. You had to provide feedback for certain actions and gradually teach them to behave in ways that benefited you.

I planned to use playing ball and chunks of meat as the carrot, and this as the stick.

'If he hurts her, hits her, or even puts a collar on her... That’s it. I’ll give it everything I have.'

A chilling killing intent washed over me.

It looked like I had to put the whip away for today. Without negative feedback, the efficiency would drop to half or less, but that was better than losing my head. I would stick to carrots today.

Once we reached the yard, I held the ball up high and shouted.

"Here!"

"Woof!"

The moment I took the stance to throw it, Azzy pressed her hands and feet flat against the ground and lowered herself. Even then, her tail spun like a propeller.

I started gently. I rolled the leather ball along the ground. Azzy darted out like an arrow, snatched it up as she ran, then curved smoothly and raced straight back to me. Her limbs were human, but her four-legged running was no worse than any ordinary beast's.

As Azzy rushed back in an instant, I made a fuss over her.

"Good girl! Azzy, hand!"

"Woof!"

"Good. Left hand!"

"Woof?"

Okay. She could not do that one yet. That was fine. Do not look disappointed. A dog did not need to distinguish left from right, after all.

I took out a piece of meat I had cut earlier and shouted.

"Nice! You even know the difference between hands and feet. You really are the best, Azzy!"

"Woof! I’m the best! Woof woof!"

"The best puppy deserves a reward. Here, a snack!"

I hid the meat in my fist and held it out. Azzy pressed her nose against my hand and frantically pawed at it. Like she was digging for treasure, she stuck out her tongue toward the meat hidden between my fingers.

I opened and closed my fingers, teasing her by making it seem almost within reach. Just as Azzy began getting irritated and tried to shove my fingers aside, I opened my hand wide and revealed the meat. Seizing the opportunity, Azzy quickly snatched it up.

Plenty of interference, followed by a clear reward. Maybe she saw this as another kind of game, because Azzy gave a satisfied growl and rubbed her chin against my hand.

'At least it looks like he’s playing with her normally...'

The scene was like a painting. Perhaps the word pastoral existed for this very moment.

A connection between an animal and a human. The Beast King, a symbol of nature, was interacting with a human from civilization.

What did you think, regressor? A perfect scene with nothing to criticize, right?

'Something about it... It feels wrong because he’s training her like she’s a real dog...'

What was I supposed to do if even that bothered her?

'She’s the King of Dogs, but she looks like a cute dog beastkin. Her appearance is human, yet he treats her completely like a dog... He really isn’t normal. I need to be careful.'

I had never felt so wronged after reading someone’s thoughts.

Even when I did everything right, she still complained.

Treating a dog like a dog was normal. Treating a dog like a person was abnormal, and treating a person like a dog made you a pervert.

And if you treated a person like a person, they looked down on you.

That came from experience.

Therefore, the only truth in this world was treating dogs like dogs. I was simply doing what was right.

After that, I threw the ball a few more times and tossed Azzy pieces of meat. Throughout it all, the regressor held her breath and kept watching what I did.

Repeated routines bred inertia. Azzy was focusing more on fetching the ball than training now. It was about time to use the whip, but the regressor showed no sign of leaving.

How long was she going to watch? She had seen enough, so I wanted her to head back soon. If I only gave the King of Dogs good reactions, she might get too full of herself and start pushing her luck.

No. I changed my mind.

You always had to carve out your own destiny. Waiting passively for someone to leave without knowing when was too passive.

I would drive the regressor away myself.

Of course, I could not drive her away by force, so I had to use another method.

I shook the ball once more. Apparently still not tired of it, Azzy recognized my signal, flipped herself over in excitement, and prepared to bolt at any moment.

"Let’s go!"

"Woof!"

Azzy answered eagerly and leaped backward. I tossed and caught the ball a few times, then hurled it in a certain direction.

Toward where the regressor was standing.

'Ghk?!'

I could not see her position. What kind of stealth technique was this? Even though I could read that she was somewhere around there, all I saw was the dreary prison in the distance.

Still, my mind-reading told me the regressor was somewhere over there.

So if I just picked a rough direction and threw...

"Fetch!"

"Woof woof!"

'There’s... no need to dodge. It missed. But...'

I could make her nervous.

People who used petty tricks like stealth techniques were all voyeuristic creeps. What those creeps feared most was their existence being dragged out into the open.

You thought you could comfortably watch from behind your curtain? Not a chance. You could feel a little tension too.

"Azzy! Fetch!"

"Woof!"

"Good girl. One more time!"

"Woof, woof!"

"Yahoo!"

"Awooooo!"

Every time I threw the ball, Azzy howled happily and ran after it. Each time, the regressor flinched with anxiety.

Azzy ran around noisily and unpredictably, truly like a wild beast. Whenever she charged off, the regressor held herself back, worried they might collide. By now, watching Azzy and me had become a secondary concern.

As always, making life difficult for someone trying to be clever was so much fun.

"Let’s gooooo!"

"Woof!"

This time, the ball flew straight toward the regressor. Seeing it fly directly at her, the regressor’s eyes widened.

'No! If I move too suddenly, the Dark Curtain will break!'

Violent movements broke stealth techniques. Gritting her teeth, the regressor curled up and quickly rolled across the ground. The ball barely skimmed over her, and Azzy leaped after it. The regressor slowly rose and let out a relieved breath.

'That took ten years off my life... But this is too dangerous.'

Good. The operation was a success. The regressor was slowly backing away.

'Kgh. I need to retreat for now. If he discovers I’m here, he might become wary of me instead...'

I still could not see her, but the regressor’s thoughts began growing faint. That meant she had put enough distance between us.

Whew. Now I could finally train her properly without interruptions.

'It’s a shame, but it’s better than being discovered. As long as he doesn’t find out, I’ll have another chance to observe him later.'

A strange thought came from the retreating regressor. That sounded like she intended to spy on me again later. Had she learned nothing but voyeurism throughout her regressions?

I wanted to chase after her right now and loudly announce that I had seen through her stealth technique. But I held back. There was no need to show off my ability.

Just like that, the regressor vanished from our awareness. She had things to do in her own way, so she would not come back.

The only one who returned to me was Azzy, carrying the ball in her mouth.

"Woof! Woof!"

When I did not throw the ball, Azzy rolled it to my feet in agitation. She was urging me to throw it again without taking a break. Bending over to pick up the ball, I looked down at Azzy with colder eyes and asked.

"You like it when I play with you?"

"Woof! Woof! I like it! I like it!"

Was that so? My shoulders were starting to hurt. Yet here she was, enjoying consequence-free pleasure.

The unseen observer was gone now too. Nothing remained between us except nature’s merciless laws.

I was human, and Azzy was a dog. Between us existed a perfect hierarchy. Like oil floating on water, like smoke rising into the sky. Unless some force stirred them together, they would clearly separate into upper and lower.

That was called rank.

I roughly pulled the whip from my pocket and said.

"Playtime’s over, mutt."

"Woof?"

I put the ball in my pocket. Azzy’s eyes widened, and she looked as though she had just been scammed right in front of her eyes.

Having killed Azzy’s excitement, I declared coldly.

"The party’s over. There’s no more meat for you either. Go back to your doghouse before I season you with soybean paste."

"Arf! Arf! Arf!"

She barked in protest, telling me not to joke around and demanding that I keep playing. I did not miss the faint irritation in that howl.

I knew this would happen. Dogs did not know moderation, so they wanted anything they liked to continue forever. You could not reason with them using words.

That was why humans used whips. I snapped the whip through the air. The explosive crack rang out threateningly.

"Tch. Listen to me. Do I have to play with you all day?"

"Yeah!"

"Oh? You say that like it’s a given."

I raised the whip high. It was time to properly train the King of Dogs.

"You’d better change that attitude."

Then I swung the whip toward Azzy’s back.

This was not a whip I had made. It was a standard-issue whip approved by the Ministry of Defence of the military state.

The military state was famous for making bad things, but that was why the whip’s performance was unmatched. It was made from processed leather reinforced with meticulously alchemized iron strips, a high-quality item that would have been perfectly suitable as an actual weapon.

The sound of it cutting through the air inspired fear, and the impact of its iron strips brought pain. If handled well, it could inflict pain without causing internal injuries, making it perfect for dealing with beasts.

Let it be carved into your body with a wound. The greatness of humanity...

"Ruff!"

At that moment, Azzy moved.

Azzy’s head turned at almost the same speed as the whip’s tip. To my eyes, she moved in jerks, like a film with frames cut out. Azzy tracked the incoming iron strips perfectly, then bit down on the whip at the exact moment it was about to strike her.

And she tore it apart with her teeth.

Crunch.

A military state weapon made from processed leather reinforced with meticulously alchemized iron strips, a weapon suitable even for killing.

Azzy chewed it like gum, then spat it out.

"Grrrr. Tastes bad."

I stared at the whip with its end bitten off.

You did not block a whip with your body. The tip of a snapping whip could exceed the speed of sound. If you tried to grab one without knowing what you were doing, your flesh would be torn away.

Yet.

The King of Dogs had bitten off only the very tip of the whip aimed at her back.

If she could snap processed leather reinforced with iron strips just by twisting her head...

"Grrrrrrrr."

Ah, right.

She was a dog, but she was the King of Dogs.

Hmm.

I carefully put the whip away and picked up the ball again.

"...Normally, I’d stop here, but since it’s our first day, should we play a little longer?"

"Grrrr..."

"Here, fetch!"

"...Grrr. Woof! Woof!"

Azzy happily ran after the ball again.

Fine. I would sort out the hierarchy later. For now, I would play with Azzy until she was satisfied.

I had not lost. I was only continuing because spending time with a dog was so enjoyable.

I was simply a human playing with a dog.

Ah. This was fun.

I was happy.

Footnotes:

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