WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Reincarnation of the Sword Demon

Chapter 95

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Let's Not Do It Too Often (Illustration Rough)

The words that entered his mind left Kyle with no choice but to feel blindsided.

If vampires and lycanthropes were magic creatures made by dark mages, then chimeras were magic creatures made by mages.

Not all magic was the same, and not all magic creatures were the same. Vampires and lycanthropes were made by embedding dark magic into humans, whereas chimeras were created by magically fusing different types of monsters together.

Why? The reason was simple. During the Dark Age five hundred years ago, wars had raged across the continent for decades, and war naturally demanded powerful weapons.

No matter how thoroughly you trained a human, stripping away their will entirely was difficult, and training itself took time.

Conscripts were mostly used for charging with a cheap spear until they died, or holding a single shield to form a wall of flesh. Even then, if they died at the front without fleeing, you could say they had done their part admirably.

Hiring mercenaries cost money, and in that wretched age, there were far too many without any professional conscience. Too many who took the coin and ran.

Knights? Knights were no ordinary commodity. Entry into mana was not easy back then, and a single outstanding knight was often enough to flip the tide of an entire battle.

Far stronger than ordinary conscripts or mercenaries. No need for lengthy training. Absolutely obedient to their master. Never fleeing from the battlefield under any circumstances.

Because that kind of existence was needed, chimera production flourished and was heavily researched five hundred years ago. There was almost no family or kingdom that held mages and did not pursue that research. It invited moral condemnation, but unlike dark magic, it did not turn humans into monsters, and chimera production was tolerated in that era. If you could make them well and succeed at mass production, it would be better than sending humans to the battlefield.

'Lucia is a chimera? What on earth are you talking about?'

Kyle could not help but ask, bewildered. The chimeras he had seen in his previous life were mostly crude. Several monsters fused together and sent to the battlefield, hideous to look at, yet not nearly as strong as their appearance suggested.

They were still serviceable enough against ordinary soldiers, but when you factored in the manpower and resources poured into the research, they fell short of expectations. Partway through the wars, chimeras had nearly vanished from the battlefield. When a war dragged on long enough, cost-efficiency became everything.

[This is a chimera unlike any I've ever seen.]

Akarion answered. He had wrestled with how to phrase it differently, but once he said chimera out loud, he actually felt a weight lift from him. From Akarion's perspective as a mage, there was no other conclusion he could reach about Lucia.

'Lucia is a Half-blood of human and Demon Tribe descent. Not a monster.'
[You're mistaken about something, Sir Kyle. The defining quality of a chimera is that it is a creature made through magic. A homunculus is a creature made through dark magic.]
'...'
[Sir Kyle is not a mage and seems unfamiliar with dark magic, so this may be hard to grasp. But magic and dark magic are completely different. Magic uses the mana one has accumulated alongside the mana that exists in the world. Dark magic, on the other hand, borrows the power it needs from somewhere outside.]

Akarion paused for a moment, considering how to explain this to someone with no background in it.

[It's the sort of thing that would be called blasphemy if spoken aloud, but I can think of no other explanation. If holy arts borrow power from the gods, then dark magic borrows power from the outer gods beyond this world. Clergy don't call those outer beings gods, they call them demons.]
'...'
[If you listened carefully, you'll understand. Sir Kyle, I'm calling Lucia a chimera, not a homunculus. That means it isn't the worst case.]
'In what sense is it not the worst?'
[Her foundation is not wicked. And given that she has even inherited the Demon King's brand, Lucia is a chimera that would not be an exaggeration to call a member of the Demon Tribe.]
'In that case, can't we simply count her as a Demon Tribe Half-blood?'

Kyle closed his lips and looked at Akarion. He did not fix him with a sharp stare. Right now, Akarion was only relaying information he had examined and determined.

"No, that won't do. Even if she is as close to the Demon Tribe as possible, Lucia is still a chimera."

Akarion stopped speaking into Kyle's head and opened his mouth aloud.

"On what basis have you reached that judgment?"
"Two reasons. First, Lucia is too perfect."

Even in this age where all humans had come to awaken Spirit Roots, the Demon Tribe still called humans an inferior race.

That was not entirely wrong. The Demon Tribe sensed and handled mana without Spirit Roots. They were born with a dantian from the very beginning.

"The tradeoff is that the Demon Tribe carries Mana Addiction and Madness Erosion as weaknesses. Mana Addiction occurs because Demon Tribe cells are hypersensitive to mana. That hypersensitivity is also why they can sense mana from the moment they're born, and why they cannot withstand overuse. In any case, according to the examination I conducted with Association Master Erdera, Lucia has absolutely no risk of Mana Addiction whatsoever."
"And you're certain she's a chimera on that basis alone?"
"It's not that basis alone. Didn't Sir Kyle hear it directly from the angel? The law of a species is the natural order of this world, the very principle of heaven. To change it, an Ascendant who has reached complete, or near-complete, perfection must ascend and rewrite the law."

Akarion's eyes shimmered.

"Of course, that alone might feel like insufficient grounds for a non-mage like Sir Kyle to be certain she's a chimera. But the second reason is one Sir Kyle will have no choice but to accept."
"Let's hear it."
"There is a master-servant spell lodged in Lucia's head."

Kyle's lips parted at those words.

"It's a spell that is always embedded when creating a chimera. You could call it an instinct built in at the design stage. An instinct that makes it impossible to betray one's master and compels obedience to one's master's commands."
"What in the..."
"Sir Kyle. Every existence that is born into this world is imperfect. Perfect beings are born extraordinarily rarely within that imperfection, against all reason."

Akarion's hands grabbed Kyle's shoulders.

"Can mixing imperfection with imperfection produce perfection? That's impossible. They don't even blend well to begin with. All beings are born imperfect and struggle desperately to fill the deficiencies they were born with. They learn cultivation techniques, they learn magic, and sometimes they implore the gods."

Akarion leaned close and whispered in a low voice, looking Kyle straight in the eye.

"That is why Lucia is remarkable. From a magical standpoint, she is beautiful. Different species were blended through magic, and the imperfections were successfully restrained. Unexpected weaknesses may emerge later, but at least for now, she is perfect."
"What are you trying to say?"
"To be direct: I want to take Lucia with me."

Of course he would. Akarion was a mage and a vampire. Just as he had said, he was a being born imperfect, one who struggled desperately to fill his innate deficiencies. Someone who could not live without drinking blood, and could not walk under the sun without magic. A being born through dark magic.

"Lucia is a being of immense academic value. I have no idea who created her, but neither I nor any of the Grand Mages in the Association could produce a chimera of this level of completion."

Akarion released Kyle's shoulders. He felt he ought not keep holding them. Akarion was honestly impressed, and smiled, at the sharpness of the hostility radiating from a boy who was only fifteen years old.

"Don't look at me like that. I have no intention of taking her by force."

Akarion spread his hands wide and held them up.

"Returning to the mage tower together would allow for more research, but... from what I can see, Sir Kyle has no intention of handing over a subordinate."
"Correct."
"Then how about this? Send a little blood once a month."

Akarion's raised hand shifted slightly, and a vial of red blood appeared.

"I can conduct research with just this. If you feel any sympathy for my situation, surely you can spare me that much?"
"Direct that request to Lucia, not to me."
"That's the problem. Lucia said to ask you."

Akarion smiled wryly.

"The Thunder Emperor also said he would leave the matter of Lucia's treatment entirely in Sir Kyle's hands."

Akarion's raised hands. His left hand, the one not holding the blood vial, shifted, and a pitch-black choker appeared.

"He also said to follow Sir Kyle's decision on this matter."
"And what is that?"
"A collar, as you can see."

Kyle's eyes narrowed at the word "collar." The choker in Akarion's hand was made of thin metal of indeterminate material.

"It's a magic tool prepared because we don't know what influence the Demon King's brand may have. Its function is simple. When worn around the neck, if a command is disobeyed, the choker tightens, until it snaps the neck bone."
"Well."
"Lucia needs a collar. She is a chimera of unknown origin, she has a master-servant instinct embedded in her head, and she carries the Demon King's brand."

Akarion watched Kyle with steady eyes.

The moment his suspicion that Lucia was a chimera solidified while examining her, he had confirmed that the master-servant spell was lodged in her head.

'Every time she spoke about Sir Kyle, there was a magical reaction in Lucia's head.'

Especially whenever she was presented with a choice, Lucia left the decision to Kyle's will.

'Lucia cannot make decisions about her own affairs on her own. Commander and vice-commander. That relationship has triggered Lucia's master-servant instinct.'

But that was not enough. Lucia had no memories before the age of five, and she was a chimera of unknown identity. Whatever circumstances had led to her wandering the coastline, if the mage who created her had infiltrated Gladiheim with a clear purpose in mind...

'The probability is low. The method is too sloppy. It's more natural to assume she escaped from some research workshop for unknown reasons and drifted to the coast.'

How had a chimera of that level of completion been leaked? That was impossible to know right now, but every chimera had a command carved into it at the design stage. A command that established the master-servant bond with a single order, overriding obedience training, hierarchy, and bonds of affection alike.

"For the safety of Gladiheim too, I believe Lucia needs a collar. So Sir Kyle, I hope you make the wise decision."
"Understood."

Kyle stared at the collar for a moment, then held out his hand. He took it from Akarion, turned around, and opened the door to the hospital room.

Inside the room, Lucia sat upright on the bed. Her color had gone paler than before, and she was biting her ashen lower lip. The faint trembling of her fingertips told him she had heard every word of the conversation outside.

"You're not very considerate."
"It was something Lucia needed to hear too."

Erdera sat at the bedside. She had been quietly watching Kyle, but she rose and offered him her chair.

"I apologize on behalf of Lastea Tower Master for his discourtesy."
"Well... it was a necessary conversation. I'm fine."

Kyle answered and sat down in the offered chair. Lucia, whose fingertips had been trembling faintly, turned her head and looked at him. Her red eyes were a swirl of every emotion tangled together.

"Ky... Kyle-nim. I..."
"Lucia."

Kyle spoke first. What a wretched situation, he thought. It had only been a few days since she received what they called the Demon King's brand on Beltua Island. And now she was a chimera on top of it.

"You heard what was said outside?"
"Yes... I heard everything."
"Here."

Kyle held up the collar so Lucia could see it clearly.

"What do you think?"
"Does Kyle-nim... think this is something I need?"
"That's for you to decide."

At those words, Akarion's eyes narrowed. Erdera's expression became one of disbelief. She made to step forward again, but Akarion immediately reached out and caught her shoulder. He shook his head at her as she looked back at him.

"What reason is there for me to decide?"
"Because it's your matter."
"But... Kyle-nim is the commander, and I am the vice-commander. I need orders."
"No. I don't give you orders."
"Why not?"
"That's a secret. Think it through on your own and decide."

The movement in Lucia's eyes quickened. Caught in deeper confusion, she looked back and forth between the collar and Kyle.

She had heard that she was not a Half-blood but a chimera. She had heard what a chimera was and what instincts it carried. Judging by the information alone, Lucia could not trust herself.

After everything they had been through on Beltua Island, she had thought she might finally be able to love herself a little. But now that she knew she was a chimera, that love evaporated entirely. In the space it left behind, revulsion took root.

Not even a Half-blood, a monster, they said. An existence born through magic, with no idea who had made her. That made it all the more repulsive and frightening. If the person who created her were to invoke a command, Lucia might become an enemy of Alastor and Kyle.

That was why Lucia thought the collar was something she needed. A beast that might run wild at any moment required a collar. And if a collar was not enough, she would need a muzzle too.

If Kyle wanted it, if Kyle commanded it, Lucia would accept both the collar and the muzzle. But Kyle had left this choice to Lucia. He had not even given her a proper explanation.

A throb.

Her head ached. Lucia let out a short groan and pressed her hands to her head. Kyle stayed silent, and Akarion's eyes turned violet. He watched through magic as the master-servant spell inside Lucia's head was being stimulated.

'A pointless thing to do.'

Akarion swallowed the sigh rising in his throat. He, too, was a being made through magic.

Homunculi and chimeras were distinguished by what magic and what method were used to create them. As a homunculus, as a vampire, Akarion arrived at his judgment with an added magical perspective.

A homunculus was closer to human than a chimera. A homunculus was a living human onto whom dark magic had been transmitted, while a chimera was literally a being born from nothing through magic.

That was why Akarion believed he possessed humanity. It was three hundred years ago that homunculi like him were freed slightly from the chains of dark magic and came to possess intellect.

At the same time humans developed Spirit Roots, homunculi gained intellect. The homunculi who should have turned to ash upon the death of the dark mage who created them did not turn to ash, and it was at that very time that they gained their freedom.

The human Ascendant. The most nearly perfect Ascendant. Ruin Alastor had rewritten the law of the human species, and homunculi were also swept up in that change, coming to belong to a species known as aberrations.

In other words, homunculi were half human.

'But Lucia is different. She is a chimera born purely through magic.'

That had been confirmed by both Association Master Erdera and Akarion. Erdera had examined Lucia through magic, and Akarion had tasted Lucia's blood.

It was not human blood, and it was not Demon Tribe blood. Cases of Half-blood between the two races were rare, but not completely unheard of. Akarion had lived long years and tasted countless kinds of blood, and after becoming Tower Master, he had also tasted rare blood for research purposes. Among them was Half-blood blood.

'Lucia's blood is artificial and magical. A chimera made far too well. That is the only conclusion her blood allows.'

And on top of that, a master-servant spell was embedded in her. From Akarion's perspective, the choice Kyle had just offered was meaningless. That chimera already instinctively regarded Kyle as her master.

A chimera prioritized the commands and wellbeing of its master. Even given the command to choose for herself, a chimera's choice would be made with the master's wellbeing as the priority.

That chimera had recognized herself as a dangerous existence. She understood that if she was not collared, she might run wild someday and harm her master, and she understood that her current master might someday be defined as an enemy by a new master.

That was why the chimera would make the choice that prioritized the wellbeing of her current master, Kyle. She had no choice but to put the collar on herself and prepare for whatever might someday come.

"Kyle-nim..."

Lucia breathed out in short gasps and opened her mouth.

"Do you... trust me?"
"No. I don't."

Kyle shook his head. An immediate answer, without a moment's hesitation. Akarion, who had heard it alongside them, could only manage a bitter smile.

'Even if she is mature for her age, she's still a child in the end. He didn't want to be the one to make the decision that would earn him her resentment, so he passed it to her, and now he's pushing Lucia toward an answer.'

Lucia's eyes moved fast at those words. He didn't trust her. Why? Because she was a chimera? Because she had the Demon King's brand? The collar stood out sharply in her trembling field of vision.

If she put the collar on herself, she could earn his trust. Because she would no longer be dangerous. If she put on the collar, these complicated thoughts would disappear too. She would not have to fear a future that might someday arrive.

Lucia's trembling hand moved toward the collar. Kyle quietly held it out without a word. His expression had not changed from when he first offered it.

Suddenly.

A thought surfaced.

'Why doesn't he trust me?'

They had known each other for ten years. The connection began the day Kyle first came to the Sword Tower, when they sparred in the Sword Hall. After the shocking defeat she suffered that day, Lucia had been aware of Kyle ever since.

She couldn't help it. She had been defeated by a five-year-old boy who had not yet awakened a Spirit Root and who barely seemed capable of swinging a wooden sword properly. She had lost sparring matches before, but every other loss had been to an opponent who was simply stronger than her for reasons she had to accept.

Once she became aware of him, she had met Kyle any number of times. That young boy, with hair like rose petals, vivid and red, and eyes that glinted like gold, had never once cast a look of contempt at Lucia. Her background as a Half-blood meant nothing to him. To him, Lucia was an interesting sparring partner, and Lucia had tried to live up to that.

'Why doesn't he trust me?'

When that young boy came to her, no longer with a wooden sword but a real blade, and said he was going to form a knight order, Lucia had joined without a moment's hesitation. She had wanted to be his sword, wanted to be at his side.

It was Alastor who had first given Lucia a sword and a place to stand, but now Lucia wanted to swing that sword for the boy, for Kyle.

'Why?'

From Lucia's perspective, she had done her very best for Kyle. Many places within Gladiheim had wanted her, but just as Kyle had chosen Lucia, Lucia had chosen Kyle.

And even after all that, he said he didn't trust her. Because the Demon King's brand had appeared on her? Because she was a monster who might switch masters without warning?

Yes, she understood.

If she put on the collar herself, she could earn Kyle's trust again. Even if she was still a monster, she would be a less dangerous one, and even if her master changed someday, she would not bite the previous one.

"..."

Lucia gripped the collar.

She understood, she understood, but—

"Kyle-nim."

She said his name and threw the collar she was gripping out through the window. Crash! The window shattered into pieces as the collar flew far outside.

"Why don't you trust me?"

Lucia glared at Kyle with bloodshot eyes.

"Is it because I'm a chimera that you can't trust me? The fact that I am, that I am a chimera,! Is that enough to make you forget every last bit of loyalty I have shown you until now?"
"Why did you throw it?"
"I! I... even if I am a chimera, it is because I am not a monster. Kyle-nim, answer the question. Is the fact that I'm a chimera..."
"It is."
"Kyle-nim is...! A son of a, a bastard. You're garbage! Something that... though I can't call it a small thing, yes, being a chimera is something shocking even to me, shocking enough that it's no small thing, but even so, for you to say so firmly that you don't trust me..."
"I don't trust a chimera. But I trust Lucia."

At those words, Lucia's voice cut off.

"I don't trust a monster that thinks she needs a collar on herself. But I trust a Lucia who gets angry on her own terms instead of reaching for the collar."

Kyle smiled faintly and closed the hand that had been holding out the collar.

"I think this is the first time I've seen you get angry."
"..."
"I also just learned you can curse at me."
"That was..."
"Hearing you curse felt good."

Thunk.

Kyle's fist tapped Lucia lightly.

"But let's not do it too often."

Lucia couldn't find any words and just opened and closed her lips.

"Sir Kyle."

Akarion, who had been watching the two of them in a daze, couldn't hold back any longer.

"Did you intend for Lucia to make that choice?"
"Making her angry was intentional."
"Why?"
"Because when people are angry, they tend to be honest."

At that answer, Lucia's face flushed bright red. She recalled the insults she had just blurted out in the heat of the moment and dropped her head.

"If Lucia had accepted the collar?"
"Then she chose it, so I would have respected it."
"That... wasn't the choice you wanted, was it?"
"I would have respected whichever choice Lucia made."

He didn't know what was right or wrong. Even after dying and being reincarnated, he still didn't know.

In the first place, Kyle was someone who had lived doing as he pleased and died that way, without worrying about right or wrong. So he wanted Lucia to do as she pleased too.

"Still, well... I had a feeling Lucia would hate the collar."

Kyle smiled and glanced over at Lucia. She still had her head bowed, not wanting to show her flushed face.

"Lucia wouldn't want to be a monster."

From a young age she had been unable to love herself, despising the Half-blood that ran through her veins. That was who Lucia was.

Putting on a collar was no different from admitting to herself that she really was a monster.

So Kyle had trusted that Lucia would refuse the collar.

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