WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 203: Episode 38: Fake Revolutionary (3)

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The one who opened the door was a thin middle-aged man. Sparse gray hairs dotted his head, and his apron was stained with grime. A faint scar on his freshly shaven cheek was the only thing on his face that suggested any strength.

No matter how I looked at him, he didn't seem capable of protecting anyone. Aileen stared at him in disbelief before collapsing into a chair.

"You're the Guard?"

"More or less."

"...Really?"

"I was worried you'd react like this."

At the middle-aged man's words, Aileen looked at me. I smiled at her.

"I told you. I said he'd be nearby."

"But I didn't think he'd be this close..."

The Guard was the tavern owner who had made me snacks earlier. Of course, I had suspected from the beginning that he was the Guard. He looked remarkably similar to the Guard described in TWSA.

I already knew he would save me, too. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have made a Revolutionary Declaration in the first place.

"Why did you stay quiet until now? If you really were the Guard, you had plenty of chances to save people."

"I had to conserve my points. As you know, the Guard can only save someone once a day, five times in total."

"That's true, but as long as you don't use all five..."

"If I had saved someone else."

The owner glanced at me and continued.

"That Revolutionary would've died."

"You sound like you knew a Revolutionary would appear."

"I've always been waiting. Not everyone gave up like you did, Aileen."

"...Are you finished?"

The mood was about to turn heated when Jang Hayoung quickly stepped in.

"All right, Aileen, and you too, boss. Stop fighting and think about what comes next. Isn't it good for us that the Guard came to us himself?"

I watched Hayoung in silence. Jang Hayoung was one of the most perceptive people in TWSA. Here, the anger held back on Earth had exploded, earning Hayoung the nickname of foulmouth, but Jang Hayoung was originally an exceptional mediator who understood people's hearts better than anyone.

Hayoung patted the owner's shoulder while he cleared his throat, then said,

"Anyway, I was surprised too. I thought you were only good at cooking. Honestly, you could've given us a hint."

"A good chef has many secrets. Come to think of it, Revolutionary, how was my cooking earlier?"

"Unfortunately, I didn't get to try it. Someone ate it all."

Hayoung squinted at me, and the owner chuckled. Just as the atmosphere began to ease, Aileen threw cold water over it again.

"You're acting like you're already allies, so let me remind you. The game has already started."

If Hayoung was an exceptional mediator, Aileen was a seasoned strategist. She wasn't on the level of Reclining Dragon, but she pointed out exactly what a Revolutionary needed to question.

"I know."

Her warning pointed to a passage from the Revolutionary Game in TWSA.

「Making allies is important. But just as important is finding out who the ‘enemy’ is.」

It wasn't easy to distinguish allies from enemies.

In fact, most Revolutionaries failed to overcome this point and destroyed themselves.

The owner met my gaze and gave a bitter smile.

"Do you suspect me? Do you think I'm the duke's lackey?"

I smiled without answering. I already knew the owner was the real Guard. This gesture wasn't for my sake, but for the others.

"Let's introduce ourselves first."

"My name is Mark. What about you?"

"I'm Yu Junghyeok."

"Yu Junghyeok? Hmm. That sounds familiar..."

Come to think of it, videos of Earth's Scenarios had spread around. There could be people in the Demon Realm who knew Yu Junghyeok from Earth. I should make some preparations in case something happened. I had a few Fable Fragments on hand, too...

"Anyway, to get to the point, I'm not the duke's lackey. I know it'll be hard to believe just because I say so."

"No, I believe you."

"You believe me?"

"Yes. You really are the Guard."

Mark blinked stupidly at my words.

"...I don't know what this is, but I guess I've passed the test?"

"That's right. Welcome to the Revolutionary Army."

Aileen cried out at the sudden conclusion.

"No, wait a minute!"

"This man came looking for me immediately after I made a Revolutionary Declaration. If he were the duke's lackey, he couldn't have reacted this quickly. The last Revolutionary Scenario was thirty years ago."

Aileen hesitated at my quick explanation.

"That isn't wrong, but I don't think it's enough evidence."

"That's true. But I'm certain this man is the Guard."

"How?"

"Just as you're certain that you're a magic engineer from Lindberg."

"Come to think of it, how did you know that...?"

"And just as I'm certain that the real name of ‘Aslan’ over there is Jang Hayoung, and that Jang Hayoung is from Earth."

"Hey! That's someone else's privacy...!"

Aileen's expression changed when she saw Hayoung's furious face.

"You... Can you look at Attribute information?"

"As much as I need to."

I had already activated [Character Profile] and confirmed all of Mark's Attribute information. Aileen didn't look pleased, but she seemed convinced.

"You have a strange skill. I've never seen anyone with a Detection skill capable of seeing even Position information."

"My skill is unique."

"It's fortunate that you have such a skill. It seems this situation isn't completely hopeless after all."

"You should call it very hopeful."

Aileen sighed with a half-resigned expression.

"So this is the formation of a Fake Revolutionary Army."

"...Fake Revolutionary Army? What are you talking about?"

Come to think of it, my situation was a little complicated.

I should explain it. These four were the people I would take with me until the end of this Scenario.

I took some time to explain, in highly persuasive language, that although I wasn't the real Revolutionary, I was an outstanding talent who could definitely make the revolution succeed.

"Whaaaaat?!"

"...You're not the Revolutionary?"

The two of them screamed before I had even finished speaking.

Come to think of it, I had never received good evaluations whenever I presented projects at work. Mark, who had spent points because of me, looked completely dazed.

"This is insane. A fake Revolutionary, a pathetic Guard, the chairman of the industrial citizens' council, and one half-baked brat... Do you think this is children's play?"

"Half-baked brat? That's too harsh, Mark!"

"Stop fighting. The situation has already exploded. What we need to consider is what comes next."

"So do you have a plan, Mr. Fake Revolutionary?"

"There are a few things we need to prepare."

I briefly explained my plan to them. They initially listened with displeased expressions, but gradually became serious. By the time I finished, Mark, now a member of the Fake Revolutionary Army, spoke.

"They're certainly measures we need right now."

"Will you join us?"

"I don't have a choice anyway. What are we doing first?"

"I need to change my face first."

I took out the Fable Fragment I had kept in my pocket, 「Face Skin of the Casanova Who Died in Bed」, and grinned. Mark tilted his head in confusion.

"Your face? That wasn't part of the plan..."

"The most important things are never in the plan."

"Why your face?"

"If I'm going to be a Revolutionary, shouldn't I be handsome? Let's make a few small changes."

* * *

At the same time, Demon Count Sirok and Han were heading down to the industrial citizen quarters.

"Hey, Han."

"What?"

Sirok didn't like that curt answer. Still, Han had ties to the Demonic God of Wrath and Lust. Since they were walking together anyway, Sirok thought it wouldn't be bad to get a little friendlier.

"You don't seem to have originally been from a demonic species. May I ask where you're from?"

Surprisingly, Han answered readily.

"A place called Earth."

"Earth! Ah, I've heard of that planet."

"Of course you have. It's famous these days."

"If you receive the protection of the Demonic God of Wrath and Lust, you must've been someone important there too?"

"Someone important? You think that's all I was?"

Sirok was a little startled by the pride that appeared on Han's face. Just how great had Han once been to wear that expression?

"What were you originally? A Sword Master? Or an Archmage?"

"Ha! Something like that."

"What were you?"

"A department head at a major corporation."

"...A major corporation? What's that?"

"Ugh... You don't know that?"

Han thought for a moment before explaining.

"If I had to put it into words, it's a group similar to a nebula."

"...A nebula?"

"That's only an analogy."

"Then were you a Constellation?"

"Not exactly, but you could say it was similar, as an analogy."

"Goodness... You were an incredible person."

Sirok had no idea what words like corporation or department head meant, so Han's explanation left him stunned. Now he could understand why Han had ties to the Demonic God of Wrath and Lust.

"What's that?"

A huge barricade was being built on the road between the noble district and the industrial citizen quarters. It was an iron fence whose purpose was obvious.

Sirok asked irritably.

"You there, what are you doing?!"

One of the industrial citizens working on the barricade answered.

"Ah, noble sir."

"I asked what you're doing!"

"Can't you see? We're blocking the road."

Sirok was slightly taken aback by the shameless response.

"Who ordered this?"

"The chairman's orders. For the time being, noble sirs aren't allowed into the industrial citizen quarters."

"What nonsense is this? What right does the chairman have to... Remove the barricade at once! Otherwise, I'll split you in two right now."

The industrial citizen flinched back at Sirok's fierce voice. Then another voice came from behind the citizens.

"If you're confident, go ahead and try."

The industrial citizen who spoke was different from the others, an unnamed industrial citizen radiating a powerful presence.

Sirok stepped back tensely. Most industrial citizens were weaker than nobles, but not all of them were. They were Dimensional Travelers too, and some were as strong as demonic nobles.

"You bastards are acting like this just because one Revolutionary appeared? Do you think we can't kill that fool?"

The reason industrial citizens had been unable to resist nobles until now was because they feared the Executioners of Night. But after last night, the situation had changed a little.

"From what we saw yesterday, you couldn't kill him."

The industrial citizens snickered among themselves. Sirok swallowed his anger, but he couldn't cross the barricade. He had no way to deal with so many industrial citizens by himself.

Then Han asked, "Are those guys on strike?"

"A strike?"

"It means they aren't doing their jobs and are slacking off."

Sirok wondered what that had to do with anything, but nodded for now.

"...It's a similar situation."

"I see. This is my specialty, so leave it to me."

A different kind of wickedness appeared on Han's face.

"When workers don't know their place, things like this happen. First, we should instill some fear in them."

* * *

Aileen worked on the Fable Fragment I had absorbed through Lamarck's Giraffe.

But plastic surgery was harder than expected. It wasn't until evening that 「Face Skin of the Casanova Who Died in Bed」 finally settled safely onto my face.

I looked in the mirror and smiled in satisfaction.

「Kim Dokja thought. I wasn't as handsome as Junghyeok, but didn't I look pretty decent?」

But Aileen, who had finished the procedure, didn't sound satisfied at all.

"I did my best to adjust it, but... It doesn't seem very different. More importantly, why does your face look so indistinct...?"

It looked good to me. My nose had become a little higher, my cheeks seemed firmer, and my skin was glowing.

...Wait. Did it really not change much?

"By the way, is it all right to be this relaxed? The second night is coming soon. The Executioners will return."

"It's fine until tonight."

"The Guard's protection isn't unlimited. You know that, right?"

"I know."

I wanted to avoid using the Guard's points if possible, but there was no other way for now. We had to survive until the second day with the Guard's help. Only then could we try a new method from the third day onward.

"Mark won't suddenly become a target, will he? The Guard can't protect his own life..."

"No one besides us knows that he's the Guard yet, so it doesn't matter."

The duke's side would still be off their guard. They probably couldn't imagine that a revolution would actually succeed. I had to make good use of this opportunity.

"Aileen! Night is coming!"

Hayoung, who had been waiting outside, shouted. Aileen and I went outside first to become targets and prevent unnecessary trouble.

"The Revolutionary!"

People who remembered my clothes cheered. I was a little disappointed that no one noticed my face had changed.

[The Second Night has arrived.]

Mark was probably hiding somewhere on the street, protecting me.

[You are currently under the protection of the Guard.]

Sssssss.

A chilling flute sound came from somewhere, and the Executioners appeared one by one. It was exactly as I had expected.

[Wh o is the Revo lution ary.]

"It's me."

You came again even though you can't kill me.

The Executioners looked at one another.

[You are the Revo lution ary.]

Then they spoke.

[B U T.]

Something felt wrong.

Wait, this... That couldn't be. Were they using this strategy already?

[The one who di es to day.]

The Executioners raised their scythes in unison, each aiming at a different target.

[Is not the Revo lution ary.]

One Executioner's scythe flew toward Jang Hayoung's neck.

Footnotes:

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