WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS x FLAME COMICS
Translator: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint ◈
Chapter 801: Episode 38: Fortuitous Encounter (7)
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“Sealing, huh.”
At Jaehwan's indifferent voice, a sudden hope sprang up in me. If Jaehwan, the strongest of the Phantasmagoric Tree, was here, couldn't he destroy that Apocalypse Dragon's Sealing Sphere?
“You think something like that can contain me?”
Jaehwan sounded confident, as if he were certain no world could ever imprison him. Metatron nodded.
[It may be difficult to contain you forever. This Sealing Orb does not borrow the full Plausibility of the Great War of Angels and Demons.]
That was true. Unless the Great War of Angels and Demons suddenly broke out here, that Sealing Orb's fable could not display the Status it had originally possessed when it sealed the Apocalypse Dragon.
[However, you are not as strong as you were in your own world.]
“I still have enough strength to wipe out the likes of you.”
[Perhaps. Even so, I wonder whether anything you wish to protect will remain by the time you escape this Sealing Orb.]
Only then did I realize what Metatron was after. A terrible thought ran through my mind. What if Jaehwan escaped the Sealing Sphere only to find that Yu Junghyeok and I had already been dealt with by the Constellations?
Watching Metatron smile coldly, I whispered to Jaehwan.
“Mr. Jaehwan, let's just kill those two, including Michael, and get out of here. You can manage that much, right? I'll buy you a hundred Murim Dumplings.”
Once again, I wanted to see Jaehwan turn toward me with a dumbfounded expression before stabbing them without hesitation. However, Jaehwan's expression as he looked back at me wasn't very bright.
Since when had faint sparks been flowing across his body? They weren't the Plausibility of a nebula.
[The Star Stream is watching Jaehwan.]
This world, which he did not belong to, was steadily tightening its grip around him. As if he had noticed that, Metatron spoke gently.
[This world is not your playground.]
“......”
[I do not know what you sought by coming here, but the world you lived in has been destroyed. And your story has ended as well.]
Jaehwan raised his head without responding. His gaze turned toward the void once more. I thought I knew what he was remembering. That was why I couldn't interfere with his return.
Those memories belonged to him alone. Now, no one except him could share the memories of that world.
“I know. My world has already ended.”
Perhaps Metatron thought he was finally getting through to him. The force behind the Sealing Orb being summoned weakened.
[Then let's do this. If you return right now, I will not use this Sealing Orb.]
Heavy silence swept over the surroundings once more. I slowly backed toward the child Junghyeok, ready to flee at any moment.
Honestly, Jaehwan no longer had any reason to protect us. It was already an overwhelmingly generous favor that he had protected us until now.
After thinking for a moment, Jaehwan spoke again.
“My world has ended, but I have not.”
Metatron tilted his head as if gauging what that meant, then replied.
[Even if that is true, this is not the place for such a story. I will say it again. This is not your world.]
“Of course, you aren't my world.”
Jaehwan looked at me.
“But these guys are different.”
The moment I met those indifferent eyes, something welled up inside me.
I knew instinctively.
「This would probably become a debt I could never repay.」
Sensing that something was wrong, Metatron urgently spoke.
[They are also beings of this world! You have no justification to interfere with this world's fables! You are...]
“I don't need justification.”
Before I could say anything, black light began to condense around the tip of Jaehwan's sword. He took a thrusting stance.
No, wait. Why was he aiming at us?
Jaehwan then turned to Junghyeok and said,
“That pale bastard told me. He said that if you regressed 1,863 times, you could become stronger than even me.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“If something can only be done after 1,863 regressions, then you should be able to do it without regressing any further.”
“What...”
Jaehwan's blade erupted in flames.
A thrust poured toward us.
I instinctively grabbed child Yu Junghyeok by the nape.
“Yu Junghyeok!”
The thrust flew at us as if it would erase us at any moment. Yet unexpectedly, it gently wrapped around us before shooting us into distant space. The scenery around us rushed away in an instant, as if we had boarded a rocket.
I could see stars shouting at us from far away.
[The Demon King Demon King of Sonic Speed opens their eyes wide!]
[The Demon King Merciless Hunter Who Defies Heaven is pursuing you!]
……
[The Constellation Protector of Youth and Travel is looking at you.]
[The Constellation Lily Blooming in Aquarius looks relieved.]
Before we had a chance to say goodbye, Jaehwan became a tiny dot and vanished. Then a bright light burst out in the distance. The battle had finally begun.
Would he be all right? Even if it was him, could he face Archangels and demon kings using the Sealing Orb while bearing the Star Stream's Plausibility penalty?
“This isn't the time to worry about someone else.”
Junghyeok was right. Jaehwan's thrust was pushing us away with overwhelming Status, but enemies targeting us still remained everywhere.
They were Constellations from small and medium-sized nebulae who had avoided Jaehwan and waited for us at the edge of the galaxy.
[Chase them!]
[What speed...]
Fortunately, Jaehwan's thrust was far faster than the Constellations chasing us. It even seemed to be accelerating.
I carried the small Junghyeok on my back and said,
“Hold on tight.”
The scenery of the galaxy rushed past at a suffocating speed. Perhaps it was a sight I would never see again.
Making sure the child Junghyeok faintly shifting on my back wouldn't be thrown off, I asked,
“How many Fable Engravings did you use?”
Junghyeok becoming younger was a side effect of Fable Engravings. However, he had gradually become accustomed to that side effect, and I hadn't seen him become a child recently. Yet he had become a child now. That meant he had expended an enormous amount of mental energy in his fight against Jaehwan.
“All three.”
“Are you out of your mind?”
This round, Junghyeok had engraved a total of three Fable Engravings upon himself.
「Truth's Restraint」
「Restraint of Emotion」
「Life's Restraint」
I had seen him use the first two before, but I had never heard that he used the third engraving.
That was because 「Life's Restraint」 was, literally, a Fable Engraving that demanded his own life as payment.
Junghyeok calmly shook his head.
“It's not a problem. The ‘life’ of the third Fable Engraving can be used in portions.”
“No, do you have multiple lives?”
“It means I can divide up my lifespan.”
Ah, so the cost was calculated in lifespan.
It seemed that 「Life's Restraint」 demanded a cost similar to Junghyeok's 0th-round Attribute, 「Life of Full Force」.
“How many years did you use?”
“None of your concern.”
“No, it is my concern, so tell me already. It'd be a problem if you suddenly died in the middle of a fight.”
Junghyeok didn't answer.
After some time passed, I heard soft breathing from my back.
I was a little dumbfounded.
“Don't tell me you're asleep?”
“......”
“Hey.”
Was it because he was in his child state?
He must have decided that it would be better to sleep as much as possible to recover his Incarnation body faster.
What a nerve he had. I muttered quietly,
“Get some good sleep.”
However many years of his life Junghyeok had sacrificed, he had ultimately used the engravings to protect me.
Even if it was to achieve his own goal in the end, offering up one's life for someone else was never easy. Especially when that person was Yu Junghyeok.
Still, thinking back, I suddenly felt disappointed. I had missed a scene where two protagonists from different worlds fought. If I had kept my wits about me, I might have been able to write a good passage.
Imagining the two protagonists swinging their swords at each other, I looked back toward where Jaehwan had been.
「Kim Dokja thought it felt as though he were riding on Jaehwan's back.」
Despite everything that had happened, the darkness of the Star Stream remained firmly silent, as though nothing had occurred.
「I have to become strong enough to carve my own way through this universe.」
Only Jaehwan's imperious thrust, as if to prove that he was still going strong, carried us leisurely onward.
「So that I won't be ashamed of this moment when we meet again.」
* * *
Damn it, I dozed off.
[A giant nebula is looking for you!]
The message ringing beside my ear woke me up. Something moved on my back, so it seemed Junghyeok had regained consciousness as well.
“Kim Dokja. Get a grip.”
When I hurriedly looked around, I saw stars approaching us from a great distance.
No one remained to protect us now. If we encountered Asgard or Olympus here, we would really be finished this time.
“The power is weaker than before.”
To make matters worse, the force of the thrust that was sending us flying had weakened as well.
Had something happened to Jaehwan?
For now, there was nothing I could know.
“It doesn't matter. That area should appear soon.”
Was it just my imagination? Since meeting Jaehwan, Junghyeok felt strangely different as well. It was as if he had solidified some resolve.
“Do you know where we are?”
“I do.”
Since when had he been activating [Sage's Eye]? Child Junghyeok rolled his golden eyes around before speaking again.
“We'll arrive soon.”
The moment I heard Junghyeok's words, stars that had spotted us in the distance began to rush over.
[Catch them.]
I could see Olympus and Asgard. There were Historical-grade Constellations and fabled-grade Constellations. Once again, I thought there were far too many stars in the Star Stream.
“We get off here.”
At Junghyeok's signal, we left Jaehwan's thrust. Then I felt the gravity of the story pull us in.
[Chase them! We can't let them...]
Fabled-grade Constellations radiating terrifying auras cried out. A weapon flew through the air like an arrow and brushed past my cheek. Even then, Junghyeok and I continued falling toward the Scenario Area.
Then something like a soft curtain wrapped around us.
The Void Curtain.
The Plausibility of the Star Stream protecting Scenario Areas had activated.
The Constellations chasing us stopped in frustration. Beings displaying their original Status could not enter the Void Curtain.
Then what about us?
[The Star Stream is looking at you.]
For a moment, I felt the distant universe gazing at me.
Fortunately, the curtain did not stop us.
The next moment, it felt as though the world had turned upside down.
[You have entered a new Scenario Area!]
[You are an Exile.]
[Acquire a new Scenario and participate in the Scenario!]
[If you fail to acquire a Scenario, the rate of your Incarnation body's collapse will accelerate!]
A far stronger backlash than before surged through my Incarnation body. It felt as if my insides were about to turn inside out.
[This Scenario Area is......]
A message was saying something beside my ear, but I couldn't possibly listen.
How long had I been retching like that? Then I heard the child Junghyeok's voice.
“Kim Dokja. Get up.”
“Give me ten minutes.”
“I said get up.”
“Five minutes. I'm too dizzy to get up.”
“Overcome it with mental energy.”
“No, there are things mental energy can and can't do.”
Cursing inwardly, I got to my feet. As I looked around through my swaying vision, I saw bundles of straw piled in one corner.
We had fallen into some sort of barn.
And before me stood the child Junghyeok, glaring at me with bright eyes.
“Did you say you would see ‘the end of the world’ with such weak resolve?”
“......”
“Why are you smiling?”
Because child Yu Junghyeok was making a solemn speech with a piece of straw stuck to his mouth.
If only I had a keyboard, I felt like I could immediately write a short story titled 『Child Yu Junghyeok at the End of the World』.
“Where are we?”
Junghyeok looked at me as if I were pathetic, then spoke.
“Perhaps.”
Junghyeok didn't often use the expression “perhaps” in the story.
Yet the fact that he had used it meant we were in a difficult situation.
It meant Junghyeok, who preferred certain choices, had been driven to the point of relying on hope.
Still, what Junghyeok said next honestly wasn't so bad.
“A place where the only person who can help us can be found.”
Footnotes:
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