WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ SSS-Class Revival Hunter ◈

Chapter 241: We Were Sitting on the Main Wooden Floor of an Old City (2)

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[The Constellation 'The Princess Who Strolls Through Mirages' manifests.]

The light descending from the sky suddenly fragmented into countless petals.

Countless petals, petals, petals...

The gleaming white petals cascaded down into the courtyard. They seemed like transparent butterflies fluttering beautifully, for these petals had only color, lacking any outline or scent.

"Eeeeum! Hello!"

Amidst the dance of petals, one of the Tower's pillars energetically stretched.

"It's been a while! Everyone!"

The pillar, 'The Princess Who Strolls Through Mirages', was a blonde lady.

The Princess hopped from petal to petal as she descended the staircase from the sky to the ground. From the courtyard, we looked up at the sight of a god descending upon the land as if dancing.

"Did everyone have a good time? Were you satisfied with the vacation I sent you on?"

Thud.

Finally, the Princess's foot crushed the last petal, firmly planting her foot on the ground. The crushed petal turned into white dust and gently disappeared somewhere.

"Ah, King of Death. Seeing you with your beloved lover and adored son, it's truly heartwarming."

The Princess looked around. Those who once bore the burden of being ghouls stood upright, alive and in flesh, surrounding us.

"Mmm."

It seemed like she realized something.

Then, she immediately turned and looked straight at me.

"Indeed. It looks like you had quite an extraordinary holiday, King of Death."

"It has been a long time, Princess."

"Yep. I sent you all here for a rest. But what's this? Far from a holiday, it seems you've been up to unimaginable things, King of Death. Why have these people regained their physical bodies? Why have they resurrected in their prime?"

"I did what I always do."

I opened my palm.

"Got a good skill, and put it to good use."

As the skill opened, a golden card appeared. Recognizing the identity of the golden card, the Princess furrowed her brows.

"[The Earth Bone Dragon's Skull]...? Wait, this is…"

"Yes. It's a skill possessed by your mother."

"......."

"I know you are the first daughter of the Tower Master. And I also know that the Tower Master is named Jaa Soo-Jeong."

The Princess's face hardened.

As I continued, the atmosphere around grew darker.

"Hmmm," the Princess tilted her head and looked up at me.

"That's quite a lot you've come to know, King of Death."

"Yes."

"Amazing. Incredible. Yep, I mean it sincerely. I'm genuinely praising you. Because, copying mom's skill means you died once at her hands--- then, you must have seen it?"

The Princess gently grabbed my forearm.

And leaning against my upper body like a snake, she whispered softly in my ear.

"Mom's trauma."

"......."

"How far did you see?"

Only then did I realize how much the Tower Master and the Princess resembled each other. Both had brilliant golden hair bright enough to make platinum jealous. They even shared the habit of leaning in to whisper into another person's ear.

"I fell right in the middle of a noble council attended by the Tower Master."

"Ah-ha. Hmm, ah-ha. And?"

"I came to understand how corrupt the world where the Tower Master lived was, and how Viscount Jaa Soo-Jeong saved it. I also learned that she would rise to the rank of Duke."

"Is that all?"

"I also learned about the Golden Rule."

The Princess clamped her mouth shut.

[‘The Princess Who Strolls Through Mirages’ is shocked.]

Perhaps she didn't expect me to break through that far.

"I saw the Tower Master’s will there. The Tower master intends to bear all the wounds occurring in this world."

"Mom isn't just saying that. She truly intends to create that kind of world."

The Princess's voice sounded hollow.

"A world where everyone only blames a single person, where there are no 'people born wrong'. A world where only mom is the 'one born wrong'."

Her eyes seemed to look somewhere beyond this place.

"In the old days when the light of reason was extinguished, people were engulfed in all sorts of fears. To alleviate these fears, they created a scapegoat, shifting all sins and pain onto it, like the snail empire created by the Heretic Inquisitor."

It's all because of you.

"The world of primitive religion, created to soothe people, overlaps in some respects with Mom's world, which seeks to bring the logical consequences of causality to a close."

It's all because of me.

"Interesting, isn't it?"

But the Princess saying this didn't seem to find it enjoyable at all.

However, she soon changed the atmosphere, altering the tone of her voice.

"Anyway, to have gone that far and still return to the present. King of Death, you're tougher than I thought. I don't usually give compliments, but this deserves one. You're incredible."

The Princess clapped her hands with an 'Oh!' sound.

[‘The Princess Who Strolls Through Mirages’ praises you.]

Hmm.

"I'm always open to your compliments. But first, you should send us to the next stage. The vacation turned out to be longer than expected. Think of the comrades waiting above."

"Yeah, I’ve already taken care of that, so don’t worry. Got it."

The Princess looked around.

"Then let us all split up. Raviel can be sent back to the world with Sormewin Academy, and the Constellation Killer can be dropped off at Café Planetarium, right? Hmm, the 999 believers are the problem. You can train in the martial realm for a while..."

"Princess."

"There's no need for that."

I grabbed the Princess's hand.

"Everyone gathered here, excluding Raviel, will be deployed for the stage conquest."

"Hoong...?"

The Princess crossed her arms.

"What do you mean? From the 30th floor to the 40th, only top-tier warriors can enter. Your warriors are strong, but their rankings haven’t been determined yet."

"No."

I still held onto the Princess's wrist.

"All of them will ascend this stage with me."

"What?"

"This stage, and the next one, and even the one after that. Until the end of the Tower is in sight, they will move with me."

Words against the rules.

Actions the Tower would not allow.

I casually stated that it was [okay].

"Hmmm."

The Princess grinned.

"How so? No, how can you? What authority do you have?"

"I have no authority. But as I said when we first met, all I have is a skill."

I showed the [Earth Bone Dragon's Skull] card.

"All of them are tied to my skill [Earth Bone Dragon's Skull]."

"Yes. And?"

"I have used [Ghoul Reincarnation] in the Apocalypse where the number of entrants was already limited."

I said emphatically.

"Meaning, adding personnel through a skill does not violate the Tower's rules."

"Ha. So?"

"It's the same this time. I possess [Earth Bone Dragon's Skull], and about a thousand of my family members are bound to it. Therefore, it’s only proper to interpret that my family's force of a thousand is an extension of me."

"Still playing with the rules, our King of Death."

The Princess smiled thinly.

"But ghouls were summons, right? These are living humans. So, King of Death, do you want to treat them as your summons? Or are you suggesting there's an issue with interpretation and you want to request another pillar meeting?"

The Princess was unmistakably the Tower Master's daughter. As she paced in a circle with her hands clasped behind her back, the smile on her lips brought to mind the sheen of snake scales.

"Just saying, the chances of getting support in a pillar meeting again aren't high. Especially if it’s revealed that you've got mom's skill."

"......."

"You saw it at the kingdom's noble council, right? There are as many who worship mom as those who oppose her. And naturally, such people are among the pillars too. King of Death, just the fact that you have mom's skill will make a tremendous number of them---"

"Princess."

I interrupted her.

I asked the Princess as she tilted her head.

"Princess. What does [skill] mean to you?"

"Hmmm," the Princess uttered and immediately responded without hesitation.

"Preserved techniques. Tools to compete and win against others. Means to seize advantageous positions."

"No."

I shook my head.

“At first, I thought so too, but it's not the case.”

"Hmm, then?"

"Skills, without exception, all embody someone's [life] who once lived in another world."

Jaa Soo-Jeong had told me this.

Skills were a reflection of someone's abilities or someone's life.

In a way, skills were self-portraits, and when we use a skill, we're not just attacking someone, but at the same time, we're proving the existence of someone who once lived in this world long ago.

"Just think about the [Puppeteer's Parade] card."

A skill once possessed by the Constellation Killer.

Though not in my possession, I vividly remember the card's description.

I manipulated Aura to create an exact replica of the card with the same words in the air.

+

[Puppeteer's Parade]

Rank: S

Effect: In one world lived an old puppeteer. The puppeteer feared being loved, but they were not strong enough to endure eternal solitude.

"Let's create another me." The puppeteer thought. "Let the other me be loved. Let it live. With people, among people. And if it gets hurt--- let's throw it away." The puppeteer whispered. "Erase it forever."

Countless puppets lived.

Countless puppets were discarded.

This skill is a sorcery for the weak. The right to choose memories to keep and discard. You can create 13 puppets with the same appearance and abilities as you. When a puppet dies, another wakes up. Broken puppets can be repaired.

Granting you a replicated immortality. An assembled eternity.

*However, memories are not shared between puppets.

+

"Even [Goblin High Society] contains the same principle."

+

[Goblin High Society]

Rank: F

Effect: The Great Goblin King pondered. 'Our goblin culture is far too crude. Every utterance ends in kereureuk or kereuk. How can this sovereign's majesty shine through like this!' Then the Great Goblin King's genius flashed. 'That is it! From now on, this sovereign shall say Goruk instead of kereuk. Goruk! A pronunciation befitting this sovereign's refined sensibilities.'

*However, this causes internal conflict within the tribe.

*Skill copied from the monster Great Goblin King.

+

"If skills were merely tools and only about functionality, why would they have such detailed descriptions?"

"That's because, King of Death, in card games, flavor texts add depth to the setting. In reality, they're just for overpowering others."

"No."

I interrupted the Princess, lifting the card.

"Skills aren't just for overpowering others."

The card in my hand was [Sword Constellation].

A card I obtained in my naive early days.

"Rather, it's a system for connecting people with each other."

And it was a skill that left a profound impact on me.

"Opening Skill Card."

Words emerged from the card I held.

+

[Sword Constellation]

Rank: A+

Effect: From another world. He cleared that world's Tower through the 99th floor, only to meet defeat with the 100th floor before him. His lingering resentment kept him from passing on, and he became a Guardian Spirit.

The Guardian Spirit cannot physically interfere with this world, but can meddle in the skill owner's mind.

Seek counsel from his vast experience and astonishing skill!

*However, no one except the skill owner can perceive the Guardian Spirit.

*Skill copied from Marcus Calenbury.

+

The Guardian Spirit stood directly behind me with his hands clasped behind his back, looking every bit as imposing as when he had dominated the martial realm.

"This is the true intent of skills."

I said.

"Connecting person to person. Connecting world to world. Knowing that the skill I activate today merely by extending a foot is a lightness technique some venerable master devoted an entire lifetime to perfecting. Through skills, we feel the human being within them and connect with one another."

That's...

"Isn’t that what your mother, the owner of this tower, desires?"

"......."

The Princess fell silent.

Deeply silent.

Her lips quivered momentarily, but then closed again, and quivered once more.

"Really,"

Her words came sporadically, spaced out over a long time.

"I really cannot beat you in an argument."

Silence fell.

"So, King of Death. Do you want to go up together?"

"Yes. Please."

"Hoo."

The Princess sighed deeply.

[‘The Princess Who Strolls Through Mirages’ shakes her head in disbelief.]

Flapping her sleeves, the Princess shouted to those around.

"All of you will be transported to the 36th floor! If you have anything to pack, do it now! I won't give you much time, gather within 2 minutes! Hurry! Quickly! I'm a busy person!"

Clatter, clatter, clatter.

The warriors, who had been strictly aligned, started to move. They tried to move as carefully as possible, but the old hanok trembled as if struck by an earthquake.

"Huh."

I was astounded.

"Hey! Be careful! If it gets damaged..."

"It's okay."

The homeowner, Jaa Soo-Jeong, spoke plainly.

"They're just things I never use. If they get damaged, it means they carry the memory of your visit. That’s not bad."

"......."

I took a deep breath.

Then, to the avatar of the god, to the offering doomed to live the most unfortunate life, to the incarnation existing only as a mother, to Jaa Soo-Jeong of class 3-A of Shinseo Middle School, I asked.

"Won't you come with us?"

"No."

The question was long, but the answer was short.

Jaa Soo-Jeong bowed her head.

"I'm sorry. If I leave, there will be no one to care for the rabbits at school."

"......."

"There are people who would be sad if I left. Not many, but they certainly exist. Mr. Baek, Miss Neung-Hyang, my senior, and Mr. Do-Yeon are away on summer vacation right now. I think they would be terribly lonely if this humble one disappeared. So I am sorry, but I cannot accept your offer, Mr. Gong-Ja."

Probably.

If I asked for help here, saying [please help me].

Jaa Soo-Jeong would follow me without a moment's hesitation.

She was a god, a fragment of a god.

She was a part of the god who sought to exist in order to bear everyone's wounds.

But.

"....Yes."

I am not climbing the tower to prove the omnipotence of god.

I climb the Tower to create a world that has no need of gods.

To show that we can live happily without seeking help from gods.

"Yes."

To prove she wasn’t born wrong.

"Go safely, Mr. Gong-Ja."

Jaa Soo-Jeong prayed for me.

And at that moment, a pure white light enveloped the old hanok.

[The 36th floor is opening.]

[To those ascending the tower.]

Just before being completely enveloped in light.

Worried about Jaa Soo-Jeong, who was near me, I turned around and saw an unexpected sight.

Jaa Soo-Jeong was smiling brightly. Her hands gently clasped in prayer, surrounded by a white light, making her appear not as a human praying to a god, but as a god praying for humans.

She whispered softly, her lips barely moving.

[May fortune be with you.]

And the light embraced our family.

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