WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ SSS-Class Revival Hunter ◈

Chapter 332: Glass Palace (2)

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3.

I knew.

"It’s a pity."

For a long time, I thought I knew.

"Think about it. Whoever, whatever being created this tower must have put in tremendous effort."

"It should be a moment to marvel and admire."

“But we've become too accustomed to everything by the 10th floor."

Always maintaining a stoic expression, hidden behind a helmet, making immense effort to show as little of her face as possible to others.

Always clad in armor.

"I thought I had a good poker face.”

"Kim Gong-Ja, do you possess a mind-reading skill?"

Someone who has built even more formidable walls within her heart.

"No choice then."

My companion.

Patricia.

Our noble and pure Paladin.

"I have the ability to detect lies.”

"It's the skill that helped me rise to the position of deputy guild master of the Vigilante Corps."

"Doubt is a poison that eats away at humans, and truth is the most powerful antidote. We may not be able to regain the trust we've lost so far, but at least we can cooperate on the 12th floor."

Just before the decisive battle with the Demon King of Autumn Rain.

After years, the excitement among the hunters who had finally broken through a stage was palpable. So much that they easily fell into the Demon King's trap. The possibility that 'the quest itself could be a trap set by the Demon King' was overlooked.

When it was announced that someone had betrayed us and sided with the Demon King, the leaders of the major guilds readily suspected each other.

"Foolish! I told you never to choose the Demon King's reward."

"How dare they. I still don't know who betrayed us, but I will give that person the most painful death imaginable."

It was a time when the trust among us was yet to be established.

The Heretic Inquisitor interrogated people in the Temple's basement under the guise of heresy, the Black Dragon Master's assassins roamed the nights of Babylon, and the Countess was busy encroaching on the capital of other guilds.

And above all.

"This atmosphere. This air. It feels like it did when we were clearing the Tower's early floors."

"That's true. Reminds me of the days when the 5 great guilds were actually 10.”

“Many died back then. Killed many too, didn't we?"

Everyone was nothing more than a mass murderer.

Everyone knew it. They knew it far too well.

"Paladin! Start interrogating everyone with [Lie Detection] right now. Don't leave anyone out! If even one person refuses to answer or tries to evade the question, I'll kill them right here and now!”

Thus.

"I was planning to do that anyway."

I knew.

"First, I'll start by clarifying that I am not the traitor."

Sommeone like you would never forget the mass murderers.

You would never accept them, never be persuaded, and never forgive them.

If you lack the power to punish the mass murderers now, you will wait until that power accumulates. You will be patient. Whether it takes 5 years or 10 years, you will persevere until the moment of opportunity arrives.

"As for my poker face."

"I'm rather confident in it."

Making others think [the Paladin is a reliable person].

Even if you miss the opportunity, you won't show any regret.

Even if the opportunity comes, you won't show any excitement.

You will do what needs to be done.

"Life is truly unpredictable."

"Reconciling with the Black Dragon Master and becoming friends again, improving relations with other guild leaders..."

"Really."

"Considering everything that happened between us."

I've thought I knew for a long time.

When I faced a doll that looked exactly like the Paladin in a dead-end alley of the 63rd floor's glass labyrinth, when I saw the paper sign the doll was holding.

I wasn't surprised.

Not at all. Not even a little bit.

"I have…"

The sign was written in a simple script.

"Planned 17 different ways to assassinate all my comrades."

That was exactly the Patricia I knew.

4.

Creak.

"Are you surprised?"

The doll, identical to the Paladin, moved its lips. The serpent, revealing neither its form nor voice, whispered through the doll.

"This human is a model believer of mine. As a rule, Constellations are forbidden from interfering at will with humans who have not crossed the 50th floor. That is why we make indirect contact through skills and blessings."

"......"

Indirect propagation of faith.

From the standpoint of Constellations, skills and blessings are merely tools.

There are far more worlds that fail to reach the 50th floor than those that do. Far more.

From the Constellations' perspective, it would be a waste to let the faith resources of so many worlds go unused.

Therefore, they create skills and distribute blessings, like the [Blessing of the God of Snakes] I once received as a hidden stage reward, using their powers.

"But this human was desperate."

Creak, creak.

As I filed away this new information, the marionette Paladin spoke as if delighted.

"Although I don't particularly enjoy giving special treatment, this human was indeed 'special' to me. Such fervent prayers hadn't been seen in quite a while! Over ten years ago, this human bit her lips until they bled, praying to a god she didn't even believe in."

During the Tower's major purge.

"Grant me the power to execute evildoers without anyone knowing," Patricia prayed.

"......"

"Essentially, this human wished to become an assassin! Secret killings. Concealed executions. Planned murders. Although I don't govern death, all conspiracies and assassinations are touched by my power. I gladly lent my strength!"

I muttered bitterly.

"So, [Lie Detection] was a skill you gave."

"Yes. And that's not all!"

The doll produced a grating sound.

"This human's skill set is practically a list of my glorious powers. She can see how much others like her in numerical form. When revealing her skills to others, she can distort and manipulate the descriptions as she wishes. Secret detection. Information distortion. Manipulation. Strategy. Isn't it beautiful?"

"......"

"You thought your comrades were trustworthy, but they were plotting your death!"

[The Eyes Dwelling in the Labyrinth] taunted.

"They never approached you with genuine kindness. Not a single one."

Perhaps.

"What do you think?" The serpent Constellation asked.

"Before they had even heard your story, they were already thinking about your death. Only after devising flawless ways to kill you did they show you spotless smiles. King of Death, they did this before you had even received that title!"

Yes.

"This is the true nature of the friendship you hold so dear!"

Even the most inconsequential dagger can hurt when it grazes the flesh.

Even if I already knew, even if I had already come to terms with it, even if what I'm hearing now is nothing but provocation aimed to shake me, meant to push me to the brink because that's the only chance the other side has, even if I know all this...

A blade is a blade, and a wound is a wound.

It would be a lie to say it did not hurt.

"If you wish, I can keep silent about these secrets and not divulge them."

Then the question is.

"Even if you don't wish it, I can lay bare all their secrets right before your eyes!"

Can I endure it?

"Fear what should be feared. You humans, you should be wise enough for that. You've been granted a name far beyond your destiny. Lay down that sword..."

"What do you know?"

The doll's artificial eyes turned towards me.

"What?"

"What makes you think you know so much about Patricia?"

I took a handkerchief from my pocket and fiddled with it.

A white handkerchief with silver thread embroidery.

Feeling its soft touch, I calmed my agitated emotions by tracing the patterns with my fingers.

Lowering my heart's temperature.

"You know far less about Patricia than I do."

"Ha! You didn't even know what murderous plans those things had!"

"Patricia used Yoo Soo-Ha."

"…What?"

I recalled a memory.

It felt like a distant past.

The moment I decided to undergo 4,000 days of regression, Patricia was there at the scene.

"Water ability users, don't use your skills alone!"

"Right, time it together! Right!"

Yoo Soo-Ha had set the back streets of Babylon ablaze.

Amongst the top rankers, only the Paladin and the Master Alchemist rushed to the scene of the fire. The Paladin might not have known, but that was the first time I saw her.

The two rankers talked amidst the flames.

"It's strange. Why hasn't the Saintess arrived yet…?"

"She mentioned she had something tonight. I'm not sure what, but it's probably a date. She's been spending a lot more time with the Flame Emperor lately."

"…I don't like that Flame Emperor."

Of course, both of them knew Yoo Soo-Ha.

"The Saintess should be with someone better, I think."

And.

"There's no one better than the Rank 1 holder. Who else could she possibly meet?"

The Paladin didn't speak ill of Yoo Soo-Ha.

Someone who should despise Yoo Soo-Ha more than anyone, if there was anyone in the world who should hate Yoo Soo-Ha, it should have been her, but she showed no signs of contempt.

"Welcome, Flame Emperor."

On the contrary, she was polite.

"As you can see, there's been arson in the old slum area. Could you please help?"

She was respectful.

"What's in it for me?"

"Tomorrow, headlines in every newspaper and broadcast around the world will read, 'The Flame Emperor, a Great Deed in Extinguishing a Fire.' It will shock the public and improve your image at the same time."

Why?

Why did she do that?

Was it because Patricia failed to realize what sort of person the Flame Emperor was? I once thought so. I had seethed with frustration, believing the Flame Emperor's acting had been so masterful that it fooled the entire world, Patricia included.

"When the Saintess attempted to poison Yoo Soo-Ha, he fell for it once but then returned through regression to take revenge on the Saintess. At that time, Yoo Soo-Ha believed for some reason that 'the person who ordered my assassination was the Black Dragon Master.'"

"What? …What are you talking about?"

"Who put that idea into his head?"

I no longer believe Patricia was fooled.

"That night, Yoo Soo-Ha told the Saintess, [Think carefully before you answer. I may not have perfect poison immunity, but I do have a skill that detects lies. If I catch you bullshitting me, I'll burn you to the bone.] But Yoo Soo-Ha did not possess Lie Detection."

"What are you trying to say...?"

"The person who possessed that skill was Patricia."

The exact opposite was true. I believe Patricia had deceived everyone.

"In the world before I regressed, the Sword Saint was probably killed by Yoo Soo-Ha. The Sword Saint was powerful. Even with a regression skill, Yoo Soo-Ha would have found it extraordinarily difficult to defeat him alone. Yet the Sword Saint was taken down, classified as missing, and left behind nothing but rampant rumors that he had vanished somewhere."

"......"

"As it happened, Patricia knew the Sword Saint well. Patricia had served directly beneath him when he led the Vigilante Corps. Patricia would have known all his weaknesses and his entire schedule, and had been sharpening a blade for him because of his part in the Great Purge. I would not be surprised if Patricia helped the Flame Emperor hunt the Sword Saint."

I believe Patricia fooled them all.

"And, conveniently, the Vigilante Guild had both the authority to classify a murdered person as [missing] and disguise the death as a disappearance, and the guild was at Patricia's beck and call."

In another world.

The worldline the Tower Master showed me. The hypothetical scenario in which I joined Yoo Soo-Ha's guild and lived as one of his guild members. In that world, the Saintess had taken up her spear and attacked Yoo Soo-Ha.

"For some reason, the Saintess knew that Yoo Soo-Ha was the murderer who had killed her grandfather, the Sword Saint."

「Yoo Soo-Ha!」

「You murdered my one and only grandfather!」

"Who told her?"

Someone wanted to use Yoo Soo-Ha to eliminate the Sword Saint.

That someone wanted to use Yoo Soo-Ha to get rid of the Black Dragon Master.

Someone wanted to instill a desire for revenge in the Saintess, irreparably damaging the relationship between Yoo Soo-Ha and the Black Dragon Master.

"Who could have suggested that?"

In the IF scenario shown by the Tower Master, the great guilds collapsed.

The Heretic Inquisitor was killed by a terrorist who infiltrated the Temple, and the Black Dragon Master was also dealt with by an assassin.

The Heretic Inquisitor and the Black Dragon Master were people who valued security above all else.

How could a terrorist and an assassin not only enter the tower but also infiltrate the core of the great guilds?

"As it happens, the guild responsible for examining and vouching for the identities of people entering the Tower is the Vigilante Corps."

Only one person had both the ability and the position to make such infiltration possible.

To be trusted is to possess the power to betray.

And among the guild masters, only one person had a motive to do it.

To possess the power to vouch for someone is to possess the power to falsify that guarantee.

"The Tower Master showed me that vision to prove that [Yoo Soo-Ha could change]. Yet even in that vision, the Tower Master could not hide the Tower breaking down and the great guilds collapsing. Why? If the Tower Master was going to show me a vision anyway, why not show me the most perfect world imaginable? Why deliberately show me that particular broken world?"

Because the Tower Master cannot ignore human desires.

Even if it's blood-stained resentment, Patricia's wish was to deliver just retribution to the mass murderers.

The Tower Master simply couldn't ignore that wish.

"......"

For a long time, I thought I knew.

"Hisimet Cretsu."

I spoke up.

"You probably knew none of what I just said."

"......"

"You want to suggest that the trust I've built is nothing more than a sandcastle, to reveal each of my companions' secrets one by one, to push me to a point where I can trust no one, not even myself. That's what you want."

But.

"I know far more than you think I do."

About Patricia.

About my companions.

I did not reach out to them because I was ignorant. Nor did I give them my trust while knowing nothing about them.

"I know the expressions they've shown and even the expressions they've never shown. I know everything about them, even the things they don't know about themselves."

It's not because they seem incapable of such acts, or because I believe they wouldn't do such things that I trust them.

I grasped my sword.

"I'm by their side to ensure that those capable of such acts don't, and to ensure that those who could do such things don't end up doing them. That's why I'm here, and that's why they trust me."

"You..."

"There's no blade among the secrets you could reveal that could shatter me."

"Insolent brat!"

"Human beings are not dolls meant to be displayed in your glass garden."

With all my might, I struck the ground of the labyrinth with my sword.

"No one lives to be displayed to others, and no one has the right to display another."

The glass world shattered around the point of impact.

"Let's bring you down now."

The world of glass split apart.

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