WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ SSS-Class Revival Hunter ◈
Chapter 17: Trauma Penalty (2)
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[Initializing the penalty.]
[Creating the trauma of the monster Hellfire Maiden.]
An elegant Western-style mansion.
Suddenly, I found myself there.
Or rather, it was odd to say 'I was there.' My body wasn't present. Only my consciousness floated around like a ghost, viewing the unfolding scenes in the third person.
‘What's this?’
I was perplexed.
‘What’s happening...?’
-Help, please.
A child’s voice reached me.
A young child was tied up in a corner of the mansion's first-floor lobby. At first, I thought the plea was directed at me, but it wasn't. The child was begging someone else.
-Please, I’m so hungry... I need food... please...
-Hmm.
A nobleman, dressed lavishly.
-You orphans are a plague to this kingdom.
-Food...
-Left alone, you gnaw away at society. You do not work. You wander from one town to another, spreading disease. I am the warden and guard charged with isolating your kind from the kingdom.
Suddenly, various scenes invaded my consciousness.
In an era plagued by famine and vagrants.
The nobleman gathered orphans and confined them in the mansion, ostensibly running an orphanage. To the outside world, he was a compassionate philanthropist, a great businessman, an intellectual with a conscience.
-Others may see you as rotten from the root, but not I.
But inside this grand mansion.
-I shall educate you.
The nobleman was nothing but a tyrant.
-Being hungry doesn’t justify snatching whatever food is in front of you. You might have been born like animals in the fields, but must you grow up as animals?
-I’m hungry... my stomach...
-Endure it. Even if you're hungry, endure. Become human through endurance.
The nobleman smiled benevolently while looking down at the emaciated child. He was the kind who could smile at such a scene. In some world, in some era, such behavior was considered virtuous.
-Repent!
Madness attracted more madness.
-Aaaaaah!
-Oh, children of witches! The poison of Zuraqua and the disease of our kingdom! Do not worry. God never abandons their faithful. Just as I will never abandon my lambs!
-Pain... it hurts... it hurts...
A priest of some god raised a hammer.
-Pray!
An era where madness was disguised as virtue.
The mansion never ceased to echo with screams.
-I’m hungry...
Hunger.
-No... please forgive me... why... please forgive me...
Torture.
-Thank you... kind nobleman. Kind sir... A reward for enduring pain. A promise. Thank you. Thank you, kind sir...
Brainwashing.
The orphans were dragged into the mansion like corpses and left it as corpses. Lives already near death had merely become lives truly ended, but the children had never imagined such relentless suffering could lie between the two.
Dozens. Hundreds. Thousands of them in the mansion.
Dozens, hundreds, thousands of deaths.
‘......’
I was stunned by the rapidly unfolding scenes before me.
‘What is all this...’
-What the hell is this?
Thankfully, the Sword Emperor snapped me out of it.
‘You saw it too? I thought you weren't there.’
-I’ve been watching from the start. I didn’t know you were there either, since I couldn’t see you.
‘It seems like only our consciousnesses are floating around...’
-That doesn’t matter.
The Sword Emperor said.
-What kind of lunatics are these? Educate humans? What non-human creatures think they can educate others?
‘I guess this is the origin of the 10th floor boss stage.’
Just before my consciousness arrived here, a voice had informed me.
[Re-enacting the trauma of your killer.]
The enemy that killed me this time must be the real doll hiding somewhere in the inferno mansion. Thus, the scenes unfolding before us were the doll's trauma.
‘I had no idea….’
I whispered softly.
‘That a monster was once human...’
-Monsters aren't always like that. It's mostly just the bosses. Boss monsters are based on actual events from other worlds.
The Sword Emperor scoffed.
-Beings native to other worlds, heroes who performed feats there. Such things. This tendency becomes even stronger after the 11th floor.
‘Why didn’t you tell me this before?’
-You didn’t ask.
‘......’
I was speechless at his blatant attitude.
-But even I’ve never seen something like this.
‘Seen what?’
-The origin you mentioned. These scenes. I knew boss monsters were based on other worlds, but how could I know what they experienced? I don't have mind-reading skills...
The Sword Emperor murmured.
-This really sucks.
I agreed.
‘...Yeah.’
While such horrors are always happening somewhere in the world, worse than this, thinking about them and seeing them directly are different.
Just different.
Unfortunately, or fortunately.
-Fire!
The [trauma] soon ended.
A servant accidentally knocked over a candle. Unaware, they passed by. In the dark night, while everyone slept, the fire quietly spread. By the time someone noticed, it was too late.
-Cough, choke. Cough!
-We need to escape...
Flames surged.
The ropes in the basement burned. The chains burned. The shackles suspending the orphans burned, and the orphans hanging from those shackles burned. The brainwashed children, the tortured children, and the starving children burned. It seemed the flames would burn away all the brainwashing, wounds, and hunger.
-Ah...
The children opened their mouths.
Red-hot chains bound their wrists and ankles. They couldn't move, like dolls, only able to scream.
But I heard them.
-I don’t want to die.
Resentment.
-I’m hungry.
-I want to live...
-Kind sir.
Hatred and grievances directly entered my consciousness.
-I did nothing wrong. I had no family. It was okay. I wanted to play more. Still...
-It’s not our fault. It's unjust. I didn't do this.
-I’m hungry.
The mansion burned.
The chandelier-decorated lobby, the nobleman’s bedroom, the luxurious bed, the antique curtains, the deep basement with stone stairs, all incinerated.
-I don’t want to die.
Crackle.
Crackle-.
Flames leapt into the air.
All that was visible was the mansion burning in the distance.
[Trauma re-enactment complete.]
[Penalty ended.]
And I returned to a day earlier.
ㆍ
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When I opened my eyes.
The Sword Emperor and I said nothing. We both sat on the bed in silence.
Not so much shocked, but unsure how to react.
-Um...
After a long time, the Sword Emperor scratched his head.
-It's a tragic and sad story. We saw it, but what can we do?
“Wow. That's the first thing you say? You're really...”
-Yeah. So? I have terrible character.
The Sword Emperor scowled. Ever seen a gorilla angry? It was remarkably similar.
-But truth is always harsh! That 10th floor boss is just a monster, and the children it originated from died long ago in some other world. An old event. You can’t do anything, zombie! Even if it happened in this tower, you could die 4000 or 5000 times and return to the past. But this? It's just from another world, another era. Even I couldn’t fix this! Not even if I were a Sword God, not just a Sword Emperor.
He was right.
-Find the real doll and hunt it down. Kill it.
The Sword Emperor advised.
-Then climb to the 11th floor. The 20th, 30th, 40th, 50th, all the same. If you're determined to reign as a top hunter, solve these issues yourself!
Again, he was right.
Yet.
“Yoo Soo-Ha probably thought the same.”
-Huh?
“Flame Emperor. Flame Retard. Yoo Soo-Ha. The first human I hunted.”
I got out of bed.
I tied my sleeping bag to the top of my backpack. Slung the backpack over my shoulders. Strapped the sword to my waist. In other words, I was ready to climb the tower. When I left the lodging, I was equipped as a hunter, however clumsily.
“Did you know? Yoo Soo-Ha definitely found the real doll and crushed its head. Regardless of seeing the trauma or not. Without any hesitation.”
-So what?
“I don’t want to become like that Flame Emperor bastard.”
I climbed the tower.
As before, I deceived the administrator.
And once again, I stood before the mansion's door.
The Western-style noble mansion, just like in the trauma.
-Hey! You're not a child. You won't skip the boss just because you don’t want to be like him, right? What will you do? You must defeat the boss to clear the stage, zombie!
“Who decided that?”
-What?
I placed my hands on the gate.
And murmured.
“Damn. I acted stupidly.”
-What are you saying now?
“I'm saying I was stupid! So were you. 'Not knowing the answer even when it's right in front of you' perfectly describes us right now.”
The Sword Emperor frowned.
-Are you out of your mind? Sure, your stupidity is a universal truth, but why am I stupid? I've been called a prodigy since I was young.
“The skill card.”
I muttered irritably.
“The S-rank skill card we didn't choose. Remember? Hellfire Barrier. You insisted I should choose that one.”
-Yeah? Of course, I remember.
“Say it once.”
-Sigh. You see me as something... Fine. Listen.
The Sword Emperor recited the skill details without missing a beat. Perhaps his claim of being a prodigy as a child wasn’t entirely false. He remembered the skill card perfectly.
+
[Hellfire Barrier]
Rank: S-
Effect: Grudges (怨恨). Cries of resentment (怨聲). Unfulfilled wishes (怨望). Your unresolved sorrow, your unheard voice, your unfulfilled wish. Burn them all. ‘It’s hot.’ Is it hot? Turn the world into a sea of fire. ‘I feel like I’m dying.’ Then kill. If you wish it, a hell of aura will descend over a two-kilometer radius.
No one can leave this hell without your permission.
No one.
*However, you must also be inside the barrier.
+
I quietly listened to the skill's content and then questioned.
“Sword Emperor, don’t you find something strange?”
-You're exasperating. What exactly is strange?
“The last part.”
[No one can leave this hell without your permission.]
[No one.]
I said.
“Nobody can escape the Hellfire Barrier without the boss's permission. Not a single soul. Then how, by what means, did the hunters who attempted the 10th floor escape alive?”
-Oh?
The Sword Emperor blinked.
-...Huh? Fuck, you’re right.
There's a guild named Black Dragon.
A guild that has reigned supreme since the day the tower appeared in this world.
The Black Dragon, led by the second-ranked hunter, the Black Witch, attempted the 10th floor dozens of times. They always failed. The second-ranked hunter returned alive each time, saving all the participating hunters.
Everyone returned alive.
“It doesn’t make sense.”
I exerted strength in my arms.
The gate slowly began to open.
“If the boss doesn't permit it, escape is impossible. It's a skill designed that way... yet hunters have escaped without killing the boss. Everyone. It makes no sense.”
-Then... what’s going on?
“Damn it. There’s obviously only one possible conclusion!”
Creeeak.
The gate fully opened.
“The boss allowed them to escape! Told them to run away!”
The boss of the tenth floor.
A stage that no human had ever conquered.
The blazing inferno mansion was revealed.
[You have entered the boss stage.]
[Challenger: Hunter Kim Gong-Ja. Alone.]
[May fortune be with you.]
“Can’t you tell from the way the boss lets them run away whenever they want? The boss, these children, never saw the hunters as enemies in the first place.”
-......
[Initiating the boss stage.]
“They just wanted to play with those who visited.”
Candles.
Candles toppled over here and there in the mansion. Flames erupted from where they fell.
-Hahaha!
Among the flames, the dolls remained. As if tied to somewhere, the dolls couldn't move, only managing to turn their heads towards me.
-Wanna play?
The dolls opened their mouths.
-Will you play with us?
-Freeze Tag? Rose of Sharon Blooming? Hide and Seek?
-The ice has melted. The flowers are torn. Let's play Hide and Seek!
-Yes! Play with us! Play Hide and Seek with us!
-Hahaha!
Flames surged.
The lobby with the chandelier burned. The nobleman's bedroom burned. The ornate bed, the antique curtains, and the deep basement with stone stairs, all incinerated.
Yet, the children, turned into dolls, remained unburned.
“......”
I clenched my teeth for a moment.
“Alright. I'll play.”
[Activating skill.]
The flame immunity skill I obtained from my last death. As soon as the skill activated, the heat enveloping my body vanished like washed away. Breathing became easier. The scenery, obscured by the hellfire, became clearer.
I saw the dolls' faces.
-Oh?
-You're not burning.
The dolls had different faces. Although expressionless, I could tell.
-Aren’t you hot?
-Strange man.
-Can you play?
-Will you play with us?
I nodded again.
“Sure. Hide and seek, right? Be careful. I’ve never lost at hide and seek since I was a kid.”
-Hahaha! Strange man!
-Hide! Everyone, hide!
The dolls laughed. They said to hide, but none moved. They were all fixed in place. Dozens. Hundreds. Thousands of children laughed.
-Hide well, don't let your hair show. Hide well...
The game of hide-and-seek began.
“...Got you.”
I wandered the mansion. As I walked, I caught each doll. As I gently stroked their heads, they would tilt their heads with a creak. Each time, the dolls opened their mouths.
-Ding! I’m not it!
The dolls disappeared, laughing.
-I’m not it!
-I’m not it!
Wherever I went, there were dolls. Many. I walked and caught each one.
-......
One.
-Hey, this is...
Another.
-This is a soul consoling ritual.
The Sword Emperor murmured.
Consoling souls.
I silently toured the mansion. I saw the shackles that hung the orphans, the chains that bound the children. Where shackles and chains were placed, there was always a doll.
Flames surged.
-I’m not it! I’m not it! I’m not it!
-I’m not it! I am, not it. I am... I am... not it... I am...
-I am... not it...
Time passed.
Thud.
Eventually, my steps stopped in the basement. At the end of the long stone staircase. The dolls on the stairs lay fallen. As if they tried to crawl up to escape and suddenly stopped.
“......”
After catching all the children lying on the stairs, I finally stood before the last doll.
The basement.
-Will you play with us?
In the depths of the mansion, the doll was leaning there.
Around the doll lay hammers, awls, saws.
-......
I walked slowly.
And gently stroked the hairless head of the doll.
“Caught you.”
The head of the child who created the inferno was small. Small enough to be encircled by one hand.
“...Now you’re the seeker, kid.”
Silence followed.
The doll slowly raised its head. Like the others, it was expressionless. With a face devoid of expressions, the doll opened its mouth.
-Kind sir.
Not just a voice flowed from the doll's mouth. Lips. Skin. Eyes. The doll's body melted like wax. Flames instantly engulfed it, and even as it burned, the doll murmured like a broken record player.
-Thank you.
And it melted.
-Thank you.
The doll burned. Chains melted and flowed. Shackles, hammers, awls, saws, all burned. Hunger and traces of hunger. Like wax melting away, everything vanished.
There was no trace of death.
I stood amid the ruins of the mansion, which had burned away without leaving a trace.
“......”
For years.
[Congratulations.]
A place no human had cleared for years.
[Normal Stage Cleared.]
[Hidden Stage Cleared.]
[You have cleared the boss stage.]
That day. The tenth floor of the tower was cleared.
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