WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS

Translator: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈

Chapter 23: Episode 5 - Warden of the Dark (4)

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Perhaps I could have fought on for longer.

[The Exclusive Skill Bookmark has activated.]

[Bookmark 2 has activated.]

[Due to the low level of the skill Bookmark, the activation time is limited.]

[Active duration: 1 minute.]

You know how it goes. Trading flesh for bone, staking everything on a blood-spattered battle of a lifetime.

[Due to your low understanding of the character, only some of the character's skills have activated.]

[Weapons Proficiency Lv.1 has activated.]

But I didn't do that. More precisely, I didn't have the room to. I poured everything I had into a single instant and mobilized every ounce of strength at my disposal. I wrung out my Strength and charged, gritting my teeth as I slammed into the tentacles flying at me.

Slash!

Something flashed across my field of vision, and blood sprayed across my cheek. All that remained was the afterimage left by a sharp white flash and the unmistakable sensation of having cut through something.

[Your understanding of the character Lee Hyeongseong has increased.]

[Bookmark 2 has deactivated.]

I could feel all strength draining out of my body. That was how completely I had poured everything into that one strike. Then, a moment later, a trembling voice rang out through the air.

[......Constellations. Did you all just see that? D-did I just see that wrong......?]

The dokkaebi Biryu looked like he had forgotten even his own role. Then again, it wasn't strange for him to be shocked.

[Some constellations doubt their eyes.]

[The constellation Abyssal Black Flame Dragon has opened his eyes wide.]

Because that supposedly powerful Tier-7 demonic species was lying in front of me like a cockroach on its back, its tentacles overturned.

[The constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband seems satisfied and plucks out some hair.]

[You have received 500 coins.]

The severed tentacles rolled across the floor, and the surrounding Ground Rats had long since either died from the aftermath of the battle or fled. Only the Warden of the Dark, not yet fully dead, crawled across the ground as its lips twitched.

"......Ki. Kii. Ki."

Ordinarily, a Tier-7 demonic species was an enemy the current me could never fight, not even if I died and came back to life. That was why I prepared. I wasn't as strong as Yu Junghyeok, and I didn't have a good patron constellation like Lee Hyeongseong did.

[A constellation with obsessive tendencies praises your thorough preparation.]

[You have received 200 coins.]

The only advantage I had over others was information. But sometimes, information was more powerful than anything else in this world.

Giiiiing.

Because the product of that information was the very sword in my hand right now, this White Ether Sword.

[An Aether Blade this early in the Scenario......? C-Constellations, is this for real?]

Fortunately, I didn't need to explain. That chatterbox dokkaebi was already babbling away on his own.

An Aether Blade. The main technique used by Incarnations backed by top-tier patron constellations, and a technique martial artists from Murim often referred to as [Sword Force].

"Strictly speaking, it isn't a real Aether Blade. The real thing is far stronger than this."

[Th-that's right! Strictly speaking, it's Broken Faith creating a blade by absorbing Mana, with White Pure Star Energy loaded into it......]

For all his nonsense, he was still a dokkaebi. He wasn't completely stupid.

[Amazing....... What kind of bastards are all in Bihyeong's channel......?]

As if it had been waiting, the Blade of Faith went out with a pop.

[Broken Faith has exhausted its durability. This item can no longer be used.]

It was a shame, but it had done its job.

"I cleared the Sub Scenario, so give me the reward."

[Ugh, right. W-wait a second!]

Biryu hurriedly typed something into the air, and soon a message rose up.

[You have satisfied the Clear Conditions of the Sub Scenario!]

[You have received 500 coins.]

[Some constellations marvel at the Scenario you created.]

The reward was more modest than I'd expected. Which made sense. Because I still hadn't killed the Warden of the Dark.

[B-but you're not going to kill that guy?]

Biryu asked with eager eyes. I drew a tired breath, glanced at the Warden of the Dark sprawled on the ground, and kindly explained,

"I'm a pacifist."

[P-pacifist......?]

"I'm not the type to kill things easily."

[The constellation Demonic Judge of Fire is impressed, saying this is exactly what was expected!]

[You have received 100 coins.]

Of course, that was a lie.

[The constellation Secretive Plotter looks at you and smiles sinisterly.]

[You have received 100 coins.]

A flustered Biryu stammered,

[B-but if you kill this guy, the reward will be huge! If you kill it now, you'll be the first to kill a Tier-7 demonic species, so y-you'll definitely get more than 7,000 coins! Do you know how much money 7,000 coins is?]

"I'm not killing it. More importantly, I need to open the reward chest, so move."

I shoved the irritating Biryu out of my way as I spoke. The real reason I had come here wasn't that thing in the first place. It was...

Stab!

[Tier-7 demonic species Warden of the Dark has died.]

...What?

There was the dokkaebi, looking like he was dying of laughter, the Warden of the Dark vanishing after being struck by a Ground Rat blade, and then...

"Haha, hahahahat! I-I can get stronger now too! Kim Dokja, you son of a bitch! Bet you didn't know this!"

Han Myeongoh stood there grinning, the weapon in his hand. I could roughly guess what had happened. Then an explosive string of messages swallowed up my hearing.

[You are the first to successfully hunt a Tier-7 Demonic species!]

[You have achieved an impossible feat.]

[You have received 8,000 coins.]

[Contributors: Kim Dokja, Han Myeongoh.]

Han Myeongoh was probably seeing part of these messages too. Since he had barely stolen the final blow, he probably got fewer coins than I did, but he still looked ready to die of happiness as he read them.

"Pacifist? You idiot! What kind of pacifism is there in a world like this! That's why a guy like you can never become the Superior! Got tha-"

But did Han Myeongoh realize what he had just done?

[By killing the Tier-7 demonic species Warden of the Dark, the Demon King Demonic God of Wrath and Lust has noticed the slayer's existence.]

[The Demon King Demonic God of Wrath and Lust will pursue the Incarnation who dealt the final blow until that Incarnation dies.]

[The Demon King Demonic God of Wrath and Lust will place a terrible curse on the final blow dealer!]

[Final blow dealer: Han Myeongoh.]

"W-what is this? What's with this message?!"

Han Myeongoh shouted in panic.

[The constellation Secretive Plotter is impressed by your wickedness.]

"Ah... Didn't I mention it? I left it alive on purpose."

[The constellation Secretive Plotter has recommended your Scenario to the Star Stream.]

Han Myeongoh stared into the air like a man whose soul had left his body.

The curse of the Demon King Demonic God of Wrath and Lust made one of the killer's greatest fears come true. I didn't know what form it would take, but whatever it was, it would definitely be horrifying.

When I turned back, Yu Sangah and Lee Gilyeong were staring at me blankly. I smiled at them as if nothing had happened.

"Let's open the rewards together."

* * *

A short while later, we thoroughly searched the treasure vault and each showed what we had found.

"I found this."

"I got this......"

What Yu Sangah and Lee Gilyeong found were a small bracelet and an old shield respectively.

[Mana Recovery Bracelet]

[Rusty Iron Shield]

Both were D-grade items, but they were better than nothing. A Mana Recovery Bracelet was useful to anyone, and the Rusty Iron Shield would be good for Lee Hyeongseong to carry. You shouldn't underestimate it just because the word "iron" was in the name. Iron from other worlds was far stronger than iron from Earth. Yu Sangah spoke in a slightly disappointed voice.

"It's more modest than I expected."

Modest. She wasn't wrong. This place was empty enough that calling it a "treasure vault" was almost embarrassing.

Yu Junghyeok. The bastard who had reportedly left for Yaksu yesterday had probably passed through here. Since he would know fighting demonic species was exhausting, he must have waited for an opportunity and stolen only the treasure. In the end, we were robbers hitting a house that a thief had already looted.

"It's fine. The main item is still left."

I said that while looking at the Black Box in the center of the vault. We didn't waste any more time and opened it.

The thing inside the box was a brazier. It was so small it could have fit in a pocket, something almost too tiny to even call a brazier.

[Mana Brazier]

It was still here after all. This item was, in fact, the key item in this Sub Scenario.

[Only one Mana Brazier can be possessed per person.]

Since Yu Junghyeok had taken one, there must originally have been two Mana Braziers.

"......What exactly is this?"

"Hm, I think I can guess how to use it."

Putting on an innocent act, I lit the Mana Brazier and placed one of the dead Ground Rat's legs on top of it. It looked ridiculous, like setting food on something far too small, but in less than five seconds, an astonishing change came over the Ground Rat leg.

"Wow, that smell......"

A savory aroma rose up, and before long the Ground Rat leg had turned a golden brown.

"It's meat!"

Lee Gilyeong shouted in excitement. Yu Sangah asked hurriedly,

"I-is this really okay to eat?"

"I'll try it first."

I grabbed the hind leg, glistening with a suitable amount of fat, and tore off a mouthful. Juice seeped subtly out from between the meat fibers... I closed my eyes, forgetting even to chew. As expected, reading about something in a book and actually tasting it were completely different.

[Some constellations drool.]

[A few constellations nod, saying they know that taste as well.]

[Some constellations sponsor 100 coins.]

[The constellation Abyssal Black Flame Dragon swallows his saliva.]

[The constellation Prisoner of the Golden Headband bites his nails.]

......

The messages came nonstop. As expected, nothing beat a mukbang for a broadcast. When food was involved, everyone came together.

"Go ahead and eat. It should be fine."

The moment I finished speaking, the two of them lunged for the meat. Their meals had been irregular for the last three days, so they must have been starving. Even Han Myeongoh, who had been standing there in a daze the whole time, had apparently crept over at some point and was sneaking glances this way.

"Uh, Dokja-ssi. A-about earlier, I just went a little crazy......"

"Eat. Don't worry about it."

"Thanks!"

"They say even a ghost looks better if it dies on a full stomach."

"W-wha......!"

Han Myeongoh's face turned dark. I had said it like a joke, but Han Myeongoh really was going to die. Even Yu Junghyeok would have difficulty overcoming a demon king's curse. And if the one in question was the Demonic God of Wrath and Lust, all the more so.

Each of us grabbed a leg and started tearing into the meat. Even after going through something like that, here we all were, hungry enough to gnaw on meat together. Humans really couldn't help themselves. Everyone focused on eating in silence. Maybe it was the soft light spreading from the Mana Brazier, but I found myself feeling oddly sentimental.

You kill something, and you survive by eating it. That is human life. It had always been that way, so why did it suddenly feel so new?

When I happened to lift my head, my eyes met Yu Sangah's. Startled, Yu Sangah suddenly made a miserable face.

"I'm pathetic."

"......Pardon?"

"Here I am, just stuffing my face like a pig with something Dokja-ssi worked so hard to get...... and I'm no help at all......"

"No, Yu Sangah-ssi. That's-"

"But how do you know all this, Dokja-ssi? You even know how to cook an animal you've never seen before......"

"Ah, that's......"

"I guess it's because you always read so many fantasy novels, right? Honestly, I was just memorizing Spanish without ever imagining the world would turn out like this."

I found myself wondering whether that was sarcasm or not. An ordinary person wouldn't really think that. But if it was that "Buddha" Yu Sangah...

"Yu Sangah-ssi, maybe the reason you could already understand the language of demonic species is because you've always studied foreign languages so hard."

"......Could that be it? Thank you for saying that, Dokja-ssi......"

Judging by her tone, she apparently meant it sincerely. Sometimes it scared me how far that hard worker's sincerity might go. Yu Sangah glared down at the meat in her hand for a moment, then declared in a resolute voice,

"I'm going to eat a lot. Then I'll get stronger too."

I nodded at her to show my support and stood up. The others went back to concentrating on their meal. While they were distracted, I slipped toward the back of the group.

In truth, the Mana Brazier was important, but there was another item that had been my real objective all along. I took a close look at the Black Box that had held the Mana Brazier.

This is it. No mistake.

Even Yu Junghyeok had probably not known this. The real treasure in this vault was this Black Box.

Yu Junghyeok didn't learn about this item in TWSA until after going through no less than six rounds of regression. Who was it that discovered it first again? Flying Fox? Hm, it's been so long that my memory is hazy. I'm not sure, but I think there was a line like this.

"Well, you know. If you go around the early areas, there's this really strange box. And when I put something inside it......"

That was when my eyes met Yu Sangah's, her cheeks puffed out with meat.

"That box, what kind of thing is it?"

"Ah, this is, well......"

Yu Sangah peered closely at the box, then tilted her head. Looking closer, there were unknown letters written on it.

...Don't tell me she can read this too?

"Random... Item Box?"

Damn it.

This is why people who are good at languages are a problem.

"Uh...... well...... you see, this is."

I spoke with a bit of embarrassment. But Yu Sangah cut in first.

"Hurry up and use it, Dokja-ssi!"

"......Is that really all right?"

Nod nod. Lee Gilyeong's head also bobbed vigorously up and down.

"You don't need to worry about us. Dokja-ssi should take every item we get here. That's only natural."

Right, since I'd already been found out, I might as well just use it quickly.

"Then I'll use it."

[Some constellations nod at your decision.]

I pulled out the core of the Tier-7 demonic species from my pocket. I had carved it out of the dead Warden of the Dark's corpse earlier. Then I took out Broken Faith, now ruined after its durability had run out. According to TWSA, the way to use this box was simple.

"Who would've known? It turned out to be a limited-edition coin item."

I put the demonic species core and Broken Faith into the box.

"Hah, you don't believe me? I'm serious. You put a low-grade item in there, close the box, and then!"

To be honest, I didn't know what would happen when these two items were put in together either. But one thing was certain. Something incredible was going to come out.

"It gives you a higher-grade item every time!"

A moment later, a dazzling light burst out from the closed box.

Footnotes:

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