WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 135: Raccoon

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"The head of the Crows' Southern Branch attacked the Sword Church Master and the young master?!"

Lamika, who was driving the carriage in Kyle's place, shouted in outrage.

"What kind of insane bitch is she?! Sword Church Master, give me permission and I, Lamika, will head south right now and take that bitch's head!"

"There's no need."

Inside the carriage, Helenas replied as she idly played with Kyle's hand.

"I've already punished her for her insolence. And Lamika, your sword wouldn't be able to handle her."

"Not even my sword?"

"No."

Galea, who had come last night, had not been in her true body.

Yet even without being in her true body, she had wielded that much power.

"The south is an ominous land. It's best not to get involved with it if possible, and best not to go looking for it. If you must deal with them, draw them out instead."

Helenas spoke in an even tone as she stared at Kyle's face. Those words were not only for Lamika. They were for Kyle as well.

"True."

Kyle nodded. He had never fought the mages or dark mages of this era, but the precautions one needed to take when fighting such people had not changed in five hundred years.

Both mages and dark mages held a great advantage within their own territory. A warrior could fight at full strength anywhere as long as they had a weapon, but mages turned ground they had claimed beforehand into a stronghold. Within that territory, they could wield power beyond their usual limits.

The south in particular was a land blessed by nature, brimming with mana. Mana was so densely concentrated there that it had many forbidden lands where Spirits ran wild, while Secret Realms left unattended for ages had gone out of control and become mysteries in their own right.

It was a land no one had ever conquered. That was why nearly half of the dark mages had gone into hiding in the south five hundred years ago. Now that Galea had joined hands with them, the strength her true body could display would far surpass what she had shown yesterday.

'If we attack, I can't do it alone. I'll have to bring Alastor in.'

That was only if they had a reason and the room to do so. Alastor was currently investigating the Imperial Palace and the Moon Church. Depending on what they learned, in the worst case, they might have to turn both the Moon Church and the Imperial Palace into enemies.

Alastor had no room to keep the south in check right now. The state of the continent was troubling from every angle. Even distant Erebos was in turmoil over the Demon King succession...

[Crow Company Northern Branch Inspection Report.]

[The Northern Branch Head, Guspell Rubalt, has held frequent private meetings with Demon King Babelio Erebos.]

[The details are unknown, but there is a possibility that the Northern Branch Head is involved in Erebos's current war of succession.]

Kyle let Helenas knead his left hand as he looked down at the tablet resting on his lap.

This was the payment he had received for resolving the Central Branch's Black Cube rampage. A data server containing the Crows' most classified information, access to which Duke Oun himself had approved. These were the headquarters' inspection records.

[Research facilities established by the Northern Branch for the development of new technologies cannot be approached due to strict surveillance by units directly under the Demon King.]

[The Northern Branch's official reports describe the work as "development of next-generation mana tank technology," but Hidden Crow's observations do not match the recorded material shipments.]

Kyle swiped down the screen. The headquarters' inspection records, which compared official reports to the actual circumstances, were meticulous. It was proof that Duke Oun did not trust even his own children and continued to watch them.

[Large quantities of materials unnecessary for the development of mana tanks have been brought in. Biological culture tanks, nutrient supply equipment, large cold-storage vaults, corpses of magic beasts, and living magic beasts are being delivered regularly.]

[The Demon King's Castle has been sending prisoners to labor at Northern Branch facilities for the purpose of reformation, but their subsequent whereabouts are unclear.]

[It is suspected that the Northern Branch is not developing mana tanks, but biological weapons created by combining the bodies of magic beasts and members of the Demon Tribe in cooperation with the Demon King's Castle.]

[There is a possibility that humans have been used.]

[The development of biological weapons itself appears to be an extension of a project headquarters discarded long ago. However, if the Demon King's Castle has provided magical support, it may have advanced far beyond the level headquarters abandoned.]

[The exact circumstances cannot be confirmed. Hidden Crow's eyes cannot enter the facilities.]

[The development of biological weapons was originally headquarters' most classified magical engineering technology. If the Northern Branch Head has abused it, strong recommendation is made for judgment to be passed.]

Kyle looked away from the screen for a moment and fell into thought.

'Biological weapons...'

One face immediately came to mind.

'Lucia.'

She was not simply a Half-blood of the Demon Tribe. According to Akarion, she was a perfect chimera, something that had never existed in this world and could not possibly exist. A new kind of Demon Tribe, with none of their weaknesses and only their strengths remaining.

'If the Northern Branch is making chimeras as biological weapons, with the Demon King's Castle backing them... then Lucia receiving an Inscription was no accident.'

Everything in the report was still speculation. Even so, Kyle believed there was a high chance that Lucia was the product of a joint project between the Demon King's Castle and the Crows' Northern Branch.

'Was it really chance that Lucia, made with so much effort, ended up in Alastor?'

Or had the Demon King or the Northern Branch deliberately planted Lucia in Alastor?

'That's too much of a leap. It's far too careless considering the effort they put in.'

Lucia had been taken in by Alastor because several coincidences had piled up. What if the Gladiheim knight who found her had not brought her back and instead punished her on the spot because she seemed suspicious? What if Katarina, who met Lucia, had not felt pity for her? What if Julius had not accepted Lucia's talent for the sword?

If even one thing had gone differently, Lucia could not have remained in Gladiheim.

'Lucia has no memories from before she came to Gladiheim. There's no answer to be found by thinking about this.'

The Northern Branch was cooperating with the Demon King's Castle and had involved itself in this war of succession. There was no doubt that a connection existed between the current Demon King, Babelio Erebos, and the Northern Branch Head.

Kyle looked down at the screen again. The continuing report contained a list of Inscription-bearing members of the Demon Tribe participating in the war of succession, all backed by the Northern Branch.

'Lizet Beliar.'

Her name ranked fairly high. She stood high among the Demon King's many children and was a rising member of the Demon Tribe with a solid position in Erebos.

[Lizet Beliar is not in a position to be called the strongest among the Inscription inheritors, but as the undefeated star of the arena, she enjoys tremendous support from young members of the Demon Tribe.]

[Her growth potential deserves particular attention. Among the Demon King's biological children, she is presumed to possess the greatest potential.]

[If Lizet Beliar does not suffer an early elimination in the war of succession, it is highly likely that the later stages of the war will become a two-way contest between Lizet Beliar and Varka Aspel.]

Varka Aspel. Kyle scrolled back up. In Hidden Crow's judgment, he was the member of the Demon Tribe most likely to win the current war of succession. One of the Demon King's biological children.

'The First Prince.'

Had this sort of war of succession not taken place, he would have become the next Demon King without incident.

'Erebos's First Sword.'

He might only be Erebos's First Sword, but a sword worthy of such an epithet could not be all reputation. Kyle committed the name Varka Aspel to memory and scrolled down. After the lengthy report on the Northern Branch came a report on the Southern Branch.

[Crow Company Southern Branch Inspection Report.]

[According to official reports, "Mining and refining of high-purity mana resources throughout the Avara Plateau." On the surface, it is steadily supplying headquarters with immense resources as stated in its official reports.]

[There is nothing especially suspicious in the branch's operation or performance, but the dark mage group it has been associating with for "magical cooperation" is dangerous.]

[The group known as Athanatoi traces its roots to dark mages who went into hiding in the south after the end of the Dark Age five hundred years ago. It is a unified body formed from dozens of dark mage sects of that time.]

[The current leader of Athanatoi cannot be identified, nor can the territory they have claimed somewhere in the south.]

[No unusual findings have been discovered in the surveillance of Southern Branch Head Galea Rubalt, but caution is considered necessary regarding the dark mage forces with which she has colluded.]

The inspection report on the south was not long. Unlike the Northern Branch, which had the Demon King backing it in a distant land, the Southern Branch had not left anything in its reports to headquarters that could be caught.

Headquarters was wary of its collusion with dark mages, but only wary. It meant that although it was suspicious, they had done nothing for which physical evidence could be found.

'Nothing about the native tribes of the south, either.'

Everything outwardly visible about the Southern Branch was clean. Galea herself, whom Kyle had met in person, had been anything but clean. She was ominous to the point of seeming pathetic, filled with arrogant ambition.

'That approach was too sloppy. I could understand it if I were alone, but acting that aggressively with Helenas there... did that mean she never intended to drag me away by force in the first place?'

Her provocation had gone too far.

'What could Galea gain by talking about ambitions that sounded like empty delusions? Did she simply want to provoke me and see my strength?'

Did she want to draw out a sword that could convince her he was Ruin reincarnated? If that had been her intention, Galea was badly mistaken. Kyle had deliberately imitated Ruin's sword.

'The Northern Branch and the Southern Branch. I haven't learned anything definite about either one.'

The Northern Branch and the Demon King's Castle being involved with Lucia was only speculation for now, while all he had learned about the south was that it had colluded with a group of dark mages called Athanatoi.

'What I wanted to learn about in the first place was not the north or the south. It was the Imperial family and the Moon Church.'

With that thought, Kyle turned the page.

[Should you clash with Guspell or Galea, and should a situation arise where you have no choice but to kill them, I will not blame you.]

That message was written on the next screen.

There was no need to think about who had left it. Kyle let out a hollow laugh as he stared at the screen for a moment. Duke Oun had left this message.

'He won't blame me if I kill them? Even though they're his second son and eldest daughter?'

He had seemed to have little affection for his children when he said he would not shed a tear even if Orban died. Still, Kyle had not expected him to leave a message saying he would not blame someone for killing his children.

'The fact that Duke Oun left a message like this... means he considers the Southern and Northern Branches a threat to headquarters.'

If Kyle had no choice but to fight the Southern and Northern Branches and killed the two of them, Kyle and Alastor would be doing the work Duke Oun and headquarters would otherwise have to bear.

"What a fucking bastard."

Kyle cursed without thinking as he recalled Duke Oun. Helenas turned to look at him after the sudden profanity.

There was no reprimand in her eyes. The Raikal Helenas remembered from five hundred years ago had been born and raised in a mercenary band, then led one himself. His mouth had not been clean even then.

'Duke Oun and headquarters have their strength tied down at the dark frontier. If the Southern and Northern Branches have been building up their own reserves because they want to cut headquarters out... then headquarters must find it damn troublesome.'

If Kyle brought Alastor in and chose to strike the Crows' Southern and Northern Branches, Duke Oun would be so pleased that he might want to strip naked and dance.

'If such a situation ever arises, that is.'

In truth, there was no reason for Kyle and Alastor to check the Northern Branch just yet, even if it had its roots sunk into Erebos. Even if they were researching biological weapons alongside the Demon King succession, and even if Lucia was a product of that research, it was not Alastor's concern for now.

'The war of succession is still underway, and Lucia defied the master-servant Inscription. She's also controlling the Inscription with Astaros's cultivation technique.'

They needed to remain wary, but not to the extent of lashing out and attacking the Northern Branch. The south was different. Galea had strongly provoked Kyle just yesterday and revealed an ambition for continental hegemony so extravagant it seemed absurd.

'She didn't just touch me. She touched Helenas too. She has built up her forces while minding headquarters' gaze, yet Galea's approach was far too aggressive.'

Was it because she had that much confidence? Or because she had another goal? Kyle rubbed his chin as he thought for a moment. Either way, it was excessively suspicious. He could not help thinking that Duke Oun, holed up on the dark frontier, benefited the most from this situation.

'Not only Duke Oun, though.'

The corner of Kyle's mouth twitched.

'Alastor, the Crows, and the Sword Church. From the Empire's perspective, they're all far too powerful.'

Alastor and the Sword Church in particular possessed not only forces and power, but history and trust. Alastor was descended from the hero who had built this age, while the Sword Church followed the Sword Church Master, who had lived for five hundred years.

The Crows, on the other hand, were merchants who sold war. In this era, they had built immense wealth and influence as the continent's leading private military company, but merchants like them were always cursed at and disliked by people everywhere.

And they had colluded with dark mages and the Demon Tribe? From a narrow-minded point of view, there could hardly be a dirtier image or a better excuse to get beaten to death.

'If Grandmother Lavian had not awakened. If I had not seen the Emperor and the Imperial family for what they were... Alastor might have enthusiastically danced its blade in a game someone had arranged.'

Alastor, the Sword Church, the south, and the north. Duke Oun, tied to the dark frontier, was not the only one who would benefit if those four turned their blades on one another.

The Emperor. And perhaps the hidden power using the Emperor as a puppet.

[Regarding the peculiarities of the current Imperial Emperor, Germea Valhart, and the Moon Church.]

[The research into immortality that the Emperor urgently requested and headquarters supported was discarded twenty years ago.]

[The immortality sought by the Emperor does not align with the purpose of the long-cherished Valhalla Project, proposed by this corporation's great founder and refined by the current director. Technically, the conclusion was also that human immortality is impossible.]

[Yet the Emperor has steadily grown younger over the past ten years, and has now succeeded in returning his body to what could be called its prime. Since ten years ago, the Emperor has cut off all outside activities beyond the Imperial Palace and remained solely within it.]

[This is believed to be a miracle of the Moon Church, the Empire's state religion.]

[However, it is unclear when the Moon Church became capable of wielding holy arts on such a scale. Compared to the scale of holy arts understood by headquarters, that power is excessively omnipotent.]

[The true state of the current Moon Church cannot be determined. Contact has been lost with every follower planted there long ago. They are presumed to have been eliminated.]

[Following headquarters' orders, attempts have continually been made to infiltrate young Crows, but those too have failed.]

[In Hidden Crow's judgment, investigating the Moon Church is too dangerous. We will obey if ordered, but there is a risk of being charged with treason against the Empire.]

A red seal had been stamped beneath the report.

[Investigation suspended.]

Below that was a message from Duke Oun to Kyle.

[If you wish it, I will turn the eyes I withdrew back toward the Moon Church.]

[Should that happen, in the worst case, my corporation and your family may be charged with treason against the Empire.]

[In other words, you cannot simply pick out and eat the sweet fruit. Isn't a partner someone who shares both profit and loss?]

[If you seek assistance, discuss it thoroughly with the Thunder Emperor and then write your intentions on this server.]

"Wow."

Kyle laughed as he looked down at the screen.

"So you're not a Crow. You're a fucking raccoon."

He was tossing out tempting information and trying to make sure they boarded the same boat.

Footnotes:

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