SSS-Class Revival Hunter - Chapter 139

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

◈ SSS-Class Revival Hunter ◈

Chapter 139: Latecomer (1)

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The protagonists living within stories shone like constellations.

I had no interest in the constellations twinkling in the night sky. To me, stars were the protagonists. Their unfolding stories were my dazzling constellations. Ah, the universe was filled with countless stars, and the myriad of things held infinite stories.

-I wish to see more of the story.

I unintentionally touched the starlight.

-Just a little more.

That was all.

Silence settled over the library.

The Great Library of All Lives. A place where every single book contained a world. Countless characters lived across its countless worlds, and every character carried a story. Here stood two characters from one such book, the world called [Leafanta Aegim].

"......"

Constellation Killer quietly looked down at the director.

“You claimed to be one of those who killed me?”

“Yes, Kim Yul.”

“What a strange statement.”

Constellation Killer's voice was bleak.

“My death is recorded as having occurred 153 years, 7 months, and 9 days ago. The one who killed me at that time was named the Sword Emperor.”

Constellation Killer pulled an old notebook from inside his coat. That diary was the final station reached by [Kim Yul], a declaration that he would leave traces of the past he had passed through but never remember it.

“The description of the Sword Emperor in the diary doesn’t match yours.”

Just as my skeletons never relinquished their daggers even after being consumed by Ghoul Reincarnation.

Constellation Killer, too, had only one old notebook.

"Are you a successor to the Sword Emperor?”

"......"

“Based on my understanding, the Sword Emperor was not one to apologize or seek apologies from others.”

The director must have realized.

“I conclude that you are not a successor to the Sword Emperor, nor are you one of those who killed me. There is no reason for you to apologize to me.”

That he was already too late.

“Therefore, I will not accept your apology.”

"......"

“Moreover, my name is Leafanta Aegim. My alias is Constellation Killer. You called me Kim Yul. However, there is no record in the diary of me being called Kim Yul. Perhaps you’ve mistaken me for someone else?”

“Kim Yul.”

The director's voice trembled.

“Kim Yul was the name you had before being called Leafanta Aegim. Before you obtained that diary, long before that, in your past. The world you originally lived in..."

“It’s futile.”

Someone approached and murmured beside me. It was the Head Librarian. They whispered to me in a voice too soft for Constellation Killer and the director to hear.

"What a touching scene. Even I, a Constellation, acknowledge that. One is a victim whose time was sealed. The other, a bystander with time preserved like a specimen. Ah, beautiful like a painting..."

I looked at the Head Librarian.

[The Holed-Up Head Librarian is delighted and in despair.]

The Head Librarian wore a strange expression. They seemed sorrowful and delighted at once. Their eyes drooped mournfully, yet their breathing was feverish with excitement.

“However, King of Death. It’s too late for everything. The [Constellation Killer] is beyond redemption."

"......"

“Even if he receives an apology now, it means nothing. He remembers nothing. His appearance and mindset have completely changed from when he was Kim Yul. How can one apologize for what is not remembered? How can one forgive what is not remembered?”

“You.”

I spoke softly.

“You know about my regression, don’t you?”

The Head Librarian smiled.

“Of course.”

“How? Do you experience the same time when I regress?”

“Heh. Things don’t work that way. Especially your [Returner’s Winding Clock] is quite special. Even Constellations can't easily approach its majesty. Like other Constellations, I simply possess a cute authority.”

The Head Librarian snapped their fingers. Click! A book flew towards us.

[Story of the City of Ascension]

It was the book that the Constellation showed me when I first set foot in the Great Library.

“Remember? The book containing your world. It's not an Apocalypse since it hasn’t perished yet.”

The corners of the Head Librarian's eyes lifted.

“Now guess. Whom do you think I designated as the protagonist of [Story of the City of Ascension]?”

"......"

Indeed.

“It’s me.”

“Correct! That’s it!”

“Is everything I experienced, every skill I have, when and how I regressed, all recorded in that book? Is that why you know everything?”

“Ahh.”

The Head Librarian chuckled, flipping through the pages of [Story of the City of Ascension].

“The kiss of time you shared with Raviel Ivansia... That love and communion were truly sweet! You overcame the difficulty in a direction I never anticipated. It became one of my favorite scenes.”

"......"

“Of course, the ‘Trauma’ you experienced this time is also written here. That’s why, specially, I allowed that human to enter, despite not having an alias.”

The human the Head Librarian referred to was the director. Even now, the director was desperately explaining to the Constellation Killer. Who he was, what he had experienced. But Constellation Killer's expressionless face remained unchanged.

“You’ve done well, King of Death.”

The Head Librarian spoke.

“You worked. You struggled. You did everything you could. But it is already too late for Constellation Killer. No matter how hard the characters try, reaching the best ending is never easy. This is the normal ending permitted to Constellation Killer.”

The Head Librarian was sad, yet a little more delighted.

“Aside from a bad ending, it is at least an ending Constellation Killer can reach. Regrettably, Constellation Killer will never know it. Your efforts and the director's regret are all powerless. Ah, Constellation Killer will remain a slaughtering machine that kills Constellations. Forever...”

“No matter what I do?”

“That’s right. Whatever you do.”

The Head Librarian was about to put [Story of the City of Ascension] back in their pocket when I reached out and grabbed their wrist. They flinched.

“If you’re so sure.”

I looked straight at the Head Librarian.

“Let’s make a bet.”

“A bet?”

“I will connect Kim Yul’s time with Constellation Killer’s. Just like Kim Yul became Constellation Killer, I’ll make Constellation Killer become Kim Yul. Then maybe the director’s apology can be accepted.”

“Ho-ho, bold words. Didn’t I tell you? It’s simply impossible..."

“That’s why.”

I gripped the Head Librarian’s wrist tighter.

“Let’s make a bet.”

"......"

“You said Constellation Killer was one of your favorite characters. I will restore his memories by any means necessary. You help too. You don't have to exert yourself too much. Just help as much as you did when you sent me into [Leafanta Aegim's Epic].”

“Hmm.”

The Constellation’s eyes narrowed.

"And if I help and you still fail? What do I get?”

"You can do whatever you want with me for ten years.”

The Head Librarian paused.

“You mentioned wanting to keep my eyebrows, right? Do it. Wanted to clip my nails? Go ahead. Whatever you want, I’ll oblige, and for ten years, you can play with me as you please.”

The Head Librarian's pupils shook.

“Anything?”

“Yes.”

“A scary proposition, King of Death. Even I have been quite polite in front of you all. If I were to truly do as I please, it would be quite extraordinary. Just look at the Bookmark Maids..."

“Are you going to take the bet, or not?”

The Head Librarian's lips moved soundlessly. For a moment, greed filled their eyes. Like Constellation Killer, I was also one of the characters they adored. The Head Librarian looked me over like a snake studying its prey.

“I adhere to a principle of non-interference.”

The Head Librarian swallowed.

“But if a character themselves makes a request, it's a different story. Fulfilling the wish of the butler from [Tales of Sormewin Academy] was for the same reason.”

"......"

“Very well. King of Death, I shall help you. But if you fail to connect Constellation Killer to Kim Yul... I shall take ten years of your life and savor them to the fullest.”

Okay.

I walked towards Constellation Killer and the director, still gripping the Head Librarian's wrist. My footsteps echoed in the library's isolated section.

-Hey. Hey! Zombie, are you insane? Why make such a bet?!

Guardian Spirit was in an uproar.

-Are you making that bet because you're one hundred percent sure you'll win? Huh? That shut-in calls you their favorite character and fawns over you, so you must have lost your mind. That bastard is still a Constellation. A very high-ranking one! You have no idea what will happen if you entrust your soul to someone like that!

‘It's okay. I'm betting because I'm 100% confident.’

I had thought long about why the 'Tower' existed.

There might be no reason for something to exist. But at least to me, the Tower seemed to have a clear reason. Thanks to the Tower, lives that had turned their back on the outside world got a chance to start life anew.

To live life once more.

Some might call it reincarnation, others transmigration.

“Constellation Killer.”

For some, it would mean reunion.

“Director.”

Thus, halted times would regenerate.

“Let's make a youth drama together.”

Constellation Killer and the director looked at me.

First to speak was the Constellation Killer.

“What do you mean?”

“Constellation Killer, you can’t accept the director’s apology because your memories are gone. You probably think there's no need. But if you could, you’d want to accept it.”

"Hmm."

Constellation Killer nodded while flipping through his diary.

“That is so. We have spoken only briefly, but the person kneeling before me has a very gentle nature. Upright. Not an inborn uprightness, but one acquired later through enduring life. If possible, I would like to accept the apology.”

“Director.”

I turned to the director, who was still kneeling on the library floor.

“If you could apologize to Kim Yul...”

“Even my life.”

The director answered immediately, not waiting for me to finish.

“I'd willingly offer my soul.”

“......Thank you.”

I took the director's hand and helped him to his feet. An old, fleshy hand. Only then did I remember how long it had been since I last held that hand. Long ago, I had built sand towers with the director in a playground.

‘Thanks to you, this story is possible.’

Because you didn't forget, I was raised in the orphanage.

‘If even you had forgotten Kim Yul, this moment wouldn’t be possible.’

Kim Yul's life wove the director's life. The director's life created mine.

Now, my life is gathering the Constellation Killer's, barely bringing the three of us together here.

We three are connected by fate.

‘I will not let it become meaningless.’

It's a bit late.

But the time to repay the kindness of the person who raised me has come.

“Head Librarian.”

Holding the director's hand firmly, I turned to the Constellation. The Head Librarian was grinning, confident of winning the bet.

“Speak, King of Death! The hunter whom I dearly love.”

“Constellation Killer, the director, and I will tackle the next stage together.”

“Oh!”

The Head Librarian's eyes sparkled with intrigue.

“How shall I put it? That is a praiseworthy notion. Though rather late, you mean to begin building the connection among the three of you now? Well, it is a possible ending. A kind of open ending! Our story begins now...”

“No.”

I extended my other hand and snatched a book.

“It's not like that.”

[Story of the City of Ascension].

The book where I was the protagonist.

“I choose this book for the next stage.”

“Hmm...?”

The Head Librarian looked puzzled.

“My apologies. I do not understand. [Story of the City of Ascension] is already unfolding here in real time. There would be no meaning in turning it into a stage and clearing it.”

“You said it yourself. I was chosen as the protagonist in this book. Everything I experienced is recorded here.”

“That’s true, but...?”

“Send us three to one of the events I've experienced.”

“Which event are you referring to?”

“The Trauma.”

Silence.

Thud.

The smile vanished from the Head Librarian's face.

I calmly faced the Constellation.

“You said it just now.”

『Of course, the ‘Trauma’ you experienced this time is also written in this book.』

“That Trauma ended in tragedy. The world was destroyed. Even if it was just an illusion, it swallowed everything into the void, ending all the characters’ stories. Head Librarian. According to your classification, that Trauma is an impeccable [Apocalypse].”

“Ah...”

The Head Librarian opened their mouth.

Their eyes, filled with shock, looked up at me.

“King of Death, you...”

“Make the three of us characters in the Apocalypse of Shinseo Middle and High School. Naturally, Constellation Killer will be Kim Yul, the director will be the class president, and I will be a perpetrator.”

If he can’t accept or offer forgiveness because he's lost his memory.

“Also, grant us [Immersion].”

Then give him back his memory.

Like Heretic Inquisitor was immersed in Goldencup, becoming the same person.

Like I was immersed in Butler, gradually submerged in his memories.

If Constellation Killer immerses in Kim Yul---

Kim Yul's memories will be transplanted into Constellation Killer.

Constellation Killer will be able to recall Kim Yul's time.

“Head Librarian. No, Hamusutra.”

Yes, we were a little late.

But nothing has ended yet.

“Open the book.”