WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 204: Episode 38: Fake Revolutionary (4)

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"Dodge!"

The Executioner's scythe moved with Aileen's shout.

「In an instant, his thoughts accelerated, and the world seemed to move in slow motion.」

「Kim Dokja thought. Just who the hell is he?」

I clenched my teeth and ran toward Hayoung.

There was a difference in timing from the 111th round of the original novel, but nothing like this had happened on the original second Night. The Executioners, who hadn't received separate orders from the duke, should have wasted the second Night in confusion after failing to kill me again.

[Ki ll th em a ll.]

Yet the Executioners' movements made them seem like people who had played this game for a long time. Someone had clearly given them orders.

Screeeech!

I shoved Hayoung aside by a hair's breadth, then deployed Blade of Faith to block the Executioner's scythe.

[The composition of your fables has become incomplete due to the impact of battle.]

This was a terrible situation. I shouldn't be fighting right now.

[The Fable Fragment Face Skin of the Casanova Who Died in Bed has been slightly damaged.]

Damn it, my face!

Fortunately, the Executioner didn't seem interested in fighting me and quickly changed targets. I barely managed to catch my breath, but it didn't take long to realize that wasn't fortunate at all.

[Spa re the Revo lution ary.]

"Arghhhh!"

Industrial citizens struck by the Executioners' scythes screamed. No one had died yet, but more than five or six people were already bleeding.

"R-Revolutionary!"

I bit down hard on my lip.

「Kim Dokja thought. Is there a strategist I don't know about? Or has the duke already made a move? Stories from TWSA raced through Kim Dokja's mind.」

"Everyone, gather here! I can't protect you if you scatter!"

「Kim Dokja judged. The duke couldn't have moved. If he had, it wouldn't have ended at this.」

The Fourth Wall was right. If the duke had made a move, the industrial complex would already be in ruins.

"Arghhhh!"

The injuries kept mounting. People struck by the Executioners fell all over the ground. The number of injured quickly passed ten.

The one fortunate thing was that the enemies couldn't kill that many industrial citizens. Under the game's rules, the Executioners could only kill one industrial citizen per day. At least, that was true until the third day.

Aileen gritted her teeth and shouted, "Fight back! They can't use [Execution] without placing a Mark!"

At Aileen's words, some industrial citizens raised their weapons and fought back, but the situation didn't improve easily. Only a few industrial citizens could match the Executioners' stats in the first place, and even those who fought back couldn't last long.

"Argh!"

The fact that no one knew when the Executioners would place a Mark only intensified the industrial citizens' fear. The bastards would inevitably place a Mark someday, and one of the industrial citizens would inevitably die. On top of that, the Guard was protecting me and couldn't protect them.

"R-Run!"

In the end, their formation broke apart, and the industrial citizens began scattering in every direction.

"No! Don't go!"

Aileen shouted desperately, but it seemed nothing reached the ears of the industrial citizens consumed by fear. Some of the injured citizens sobbed, while others hurled incomprehensible curses into the air.

「And Kim Dokja quietly grew angry.」

I didn't know who had done this, but whoever it was...

"P-Please save me..."

The wounded industrial citizens crawled toward me. Some of them would die after the Night ended if they were unlucky. The ones who ran away would be no different. This Night would be remembered as more terrible than any other Night the industrial complex had known.

「If the damage grows any worse here, it will go exactly as they intended.」

The industrial citizens would no longer try to help the revolution. The industrial complex would return to obeying only the duke's orders, and Aileen's industrial citizens' council would become isolated.

I couldn't let that happen.

I had to make another move.

Just as I drew a short breath to call Aileen, someone shouted.

"Over here! Kill me!"

Someone hiding behind a building shouted. It was Mark.

"I'm here! I'm the Guard!"

Hayoung shouted, face pale.

"Damn it! What are you doing, innkeeper!"

It was a hasty choice, the right thing to do and yet still a mistake.

"I'm the Guard! Kill me!"

By the time Aileen and Hayoung turned toward me, I was already running toward Mark. At almost the same time, the Executioners moved too.

[Gu ar d.]

Mark's provocation worked perfectly. The Executioners scattered across the area gathered in an instant.

[Ki ll the Gu ar d.]

I activated [Bookmark] and used [Way of the Wind] to push them back as I raced toward Mark. His pale face drew closer.

[The Exclusive Skill Character Profile has activated!]

+

<Character Summary Profile>

Name: Mark Xavier

Patron: None

Exclusive Attributes: Dimensional Traveler (Hero), Retired S-grade Mercenary (Rare), First-Rate Chef (Rare)

Exclusive Skills: [Cooking Lv.9], [Ingredient Preparation Lv.8], [Old Justice Lv.4], [Sword Dance Lv.9], [(Undisclosed Skill) Lv.1]...

* This Incarnation holds a special role in the Scenario.

* Some skills have been hidden due to a Scenario penalty.

+

Contrary to what I had told Aileen, even [Character Profile] couldn't identify someone's exact Scenario Position.

Still, I could tell when someone held a special position, and roughly what skills they possessed because of that position.

"So it was a fleeting dream..."

Everyone who existed in a Scenario had a reason for being there.

Mark Xavier, a Dimensional Traveler from the planet Gaines. A retired mercenary who came to the Demon Realm and became a chef.

Mark smiled at me as scythes flew at him from all directions.

"I hope you succeed, Revolutionary."

I didn't really know anything about his life. In TWSA, he was only a minor supporting character, born and killed countless times.

[The Executioner of Seisvitz has placed a death mark on Mark Xavier.]

[Mark Xavier has been designated as the Night's sacrifice.]

TWSA had no fewer than 3,149 chapters.

Some people might think it was a long story.

They might think it was a boring story.

「But to Kim Dokja, 3,149 chapters had been short.」

I had always thought that I wanted TWSA to be longer.

Even after reading so many chapters, I was still curious about TWSA.

"Don't worry. You won't die."

So from now on, I would read the parts I hadn't been able to read.

"Move aside! If I don't die..."

Mark shouted with a bewildered expression.

"Why is everyone so desperate to die? No one will die. At least, not in my fable."

I blocked the approaching Executioners and activated a skill.

[The Exclusive Skill Bookmark has activated!]

[The proficiency of Bookmark has increased, and a new slot has been activated.]

"I'll place Revolutionary Knight Mark Xavier in Slot Six."

[The character Mark Xavier has been registered in Bookmark Slot Six.]

[Bookmark Slot Six has been activated.]

[Undisclosed Skill Lv.1 has been activated.]

The Executioner's scythe plunged toward Mark's neck as he squeezed his eyes shut.

[You have temporarily acquired the position of Guard!]

But I was a little faster.

[Someone is using their life force to protect Mark Xavier.]

The Executioners' scythes creaked to a halt, exactly a handspan from Mark's neck. The scythes stopped as if caught in a net. Mark, who understood what that sight meant, widened his eyes.

[The protection has succeeded, and the death mark has been removed!]

Of course, Mark wasn't the only one shocked.

[The re is ano ther Gu ar d?]

Their voices were full of disbelief. One by one, the Executioners scattered into the darkness. They disappeared without killing anyone, despite their intentions. It wasn't satisfying, but we seemed to have made it through somehow.

When I turned around with a soft sigh, the survivors were looking at me. Hayoung and Aileen in particular...

Judging from their expressions, it looked like it would be a long night.

[No one has died tonight.]

* * *

As expected, Hayoung and Mark grilled me without resting.

"Who the hell are you, really?"

"What exactly is your position? Were you actually a Guard?"

It would have been even more painful if Aileen, who had gone to tend to the industrial citizens, had been there too. I shook my head and spoke with a sigh.

"I told you. I'm a Fake Revolutionary. So I can probably become a Fake Guard too."

"You think that explains anything...!"

"Just let it go. If I tell you the details, all my secrets will be exposed. You two know better than anyone how dangerous it is to reveal information carelessly at a time like this, don't you?"

"..."

"Let's say I tell you my information. What do you think will happen to this revolution if one of you gets kidnapped and spills everything to the duke?"

In truth, those were excuses Junghyeok often used when he found something bothersome in the middle and later rounds. Since I really was Yu Junghyeok right now, it shouldn't matter if I said them.

"I'm just Yu Junghyeok. Remember only that."

「Kim Dokja thought. The more I say it, the more it feels like I'm really becoming Yu Junghyeok.」

You're being noisy.

「I mi ss the Kim Dok ja who speak s po litely.」

While I argued with the Fourth Wall, the two of them shook their heads as they looked at me with fed-up expressions.

"...You're truly a troublesome person."

By now, a message was probably reaching Junghyeok's ears on Earth too.

I imagined it would be something like this.

[A fable about you is being created in the 73rd Demon Realm.]

If he was smart, he would figure out roughly what was going on, but it didn't matter if he didn't. Once the mood had settled somewhat, I immediately brought up the main issue.

"More importantly, let's talk about what happened. Unfortunately, there's someone on their side who has defied my expectations. Someone is attacking us by using the game's rules."

"I heard the marquises of Seisvitz aren't strategists. Do you think the duke moved personally?"

"I don't think so. It seems there is someone else."

"Still, we made it through tonight. Since there are two people who can use the Guard's power, doesn't that put us in a better position?"

"Not necessarily. At this rate, they won't place a Mark from tomorrow onward."

"What?"

"If it's difficult to kill someone anyway, they'll injure as many people as possible."

"Ah...!"

If they didn't place a Mark, the Night wouldn't end until sunrise.

"Many people were already hurt tonight. We didn't win. We lost."

Tonight, people had learned to fear the Executioners all over again. When tomorrow came, people's attitudes would definitely change. They would fear the duke again, and they would fear the revolution.

The enemies wouldn't miss that opening. Mark's expression darkened as he asked, "Then what should we do from now on?"

"We won't need to do anything. That side will probably move first."

I had seen countless Revolutionary Games through TWSA. So if things developed this way, the next development was certain.

"The second position will appear soon."

"The second?"

"Yes. A position other than the Revolutionary, Guard, or Executioner."

The moment I finished speaking, someone knocked on the door. It was Aileen.

"...Revolutionary, someone has come to see you."

Looking at her strangely tense face, I immediately knew the enemies had begun to move.

"They say they're a Spy."

Footnotes:

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