WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 228

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I stood on the turtle’s head and looked ahead. It had already been about a week since we left the tower. We should reach our destination soon.

As I stood there lost in thought, I felt sharp magical power stabbing into my lungs. I frowned and gave a light cough.

There were twelve cities in the university. Their number had neither increased nor decreased, remaining unchanged for a very long time. These cities, which had existed since ancient times, had accompanied the university throughout its history.

I had once been curious about their history and gathered some information. But even the Abyss Secret Association did not know the cities’ clear origins.

If even they did not know, then surely no one currently at the university knew when the cities had first come into being. No, perhaps one person did.

The president, who was said to have founded this university.

I lightly shook my head as I recalled him. Meeting him before had practically been a lucky opportunity granted only because I had been at Professor Irian’s side.

I would probably need to reach a higher realm before I could meet him again. Just as the president had said, meeting him without becoming a professor would surely be impossible.

So naturally, I had no way of learning the cities’ origins. Still, I had not stopped looking into them. Cities were quite fascinating places.

I rubbed my chin as I recalled Stalactite City, which we had briefly passed through after leaving the tower. Every city possessed its own characteristics. Stalactite City, for example, was located underground and built its structures upside down.

I still vividly remembered my amazement when I first saw it. The city’s buildings stretched down toward the depths of a vast underground space. Everything was held in place solely through magic.

But those buildings were no longer being extended farther downward. They stopped at the twelfth floor.

That was not the sort of thing mages, who always pursued efficiency, would normally do. The more floors they added, the more points they could earn, and those below would struggle even harder to climb upward.

There was no reason for those managing the city not to add more floors. Yet it ended at the twelfth floor because of the Abyss flowing deep underground.

Living in the city, one naturally came to understand its rules. And one of the first rules was never to go below the Abyss.

They said that without sufficient strength, one could not withstand the malice of the things dwelling within it. The Abyss beneath the city formed a strange current that could not simply be called darkness.

Having spent a long time on the city’s first floor and encountered its magical power, I too had felt the malice contained within the Abyss. That magical power was too murky for any living creature to safely absorb.

And I knew very well what had created that Abyss. I had learned it by asking Professor Irian. I rubbed my chin uneasily as I recalled what she had explained.

As I had learned when I met the president before, the university had grown atop the corpse of a living being called the turtle. That was why it contained such astonishingly abundant magical power.

Magical power meant the potential for growth. Naturally, the university was a blessed place for mages.

But we were not the only ones who enjoyed that magical power. Magical beasts also grew endlessly beneath the university’s magic. And those magical beasts were not limited to the creatures we encountered while walking around.

I looked down at my hands.

Everything in this world had the potential to contain magical power. Even a small stone by the roadside. That was what a mana stone was.

If even stones could contain magical power, then naturally all living things could absorb it and mutate. The tiny creatures living inside our bodies were no exception.

Parasitism was one of nature’s finest survival strategies. It let one maintain a comfortable life without taking risks. In a way, I was half-parasitizing the Professor too.

Such parasitic relationships existed inside my body as well, with the worms commonly called parasites. They could even pierce magical barriers and seep into my body.

Mages always kept their bodies in optimal condition. If creatures could parasitize a mage’s body, it was only right to regard them as magical beasts too. Ordinary parasites would not have been able to withstand magical power.

Of course, these parasites did not simply steal a mage’s magical power. Rather, they processed external magical power and helped the mage advance further.

If they did nothing but harm their hosts, mages would naturally eradicate them. They had clearly formed a kind of symbiotic relationship. Some people were even fascinated by this efficient method and used parasites in their magic.

Mages had parasites like these. Then the turtle must have contained parasites as well. Countless tiny flies would have been drawn to that enormous life form’s magical power.

Since the turtle’s body was large enough to form a continent, its parasites could not have been particularly small either. In that sense, perhaps the underground space occupied by Stalactite City was also a trace left by such parasites.

But most of those parasites would have disappeared with the turtle’s death. Its life force had vanished, and the magical power it possessed had rotted and sunk deep below. That was the Abyss flowing beneath Stalactite City.

Still, not every parasite had died. Some survivors changed their methods to suit the altered environment. They mixed themselves into the magical power of the rotting Abyss.

Thus, the Abyss did not simply keep sinking as decayed magical power. As a habitat for parasites, it spread throughout this giant turtle corpse.

I smacked my lips lightly. Somehow, the Abyss’s current felt like the sea that existed in the outside world.

The unknown things dwelling in the sea were hostile toward approaching life. The sea’s magical power was also too bizarre for living beings to handle. It was somewhat similar to the Abyss.

Still, the things contained in the Abyss could be dealt with through magic. Yet no one touched them carelessly. Not even the professors.

Professor Irian had explained with obvious disgust that the Abyss’s parasites were pets raised by the president. Raising something like that as a pet... As befitted his position, the scale of what the president did was on another level.

Stalactite City was located where it intersected with the Abyss’s current. But such peculiarities were not found only in Stalactite City. Canyon City, which I had visited before, also possessed plenty of character.

I recalled Canyon City, which looked as though it had been split apart by a giant sword. Countless magical beasts periodically gathered there.

They gathered in Canyon City for one reason only. The lake at the very bottom of the canyon. The exceedingly sharp magical power rising from it stimulated the magical beasts.

I did not know what lay beneath the lake. But it surely was not the Abyss’s magical power. Stalactite City had been built near the Abyss because magical beasts fled from it.

Since magical beasts gathered there, swordsmen naturally gathered for training as well. That was why Canyon City was overflowing with swordsmen.

Each of the twelve cities possessed its own peculiarities. And those peculiarities were also why the cities could exist.

Cities were not built in such places because their special qualities helped people advance through realms or served as lucky opportunities.

The reason was much simpler.

Points.

The cost of magical power there was much cheaper than elsewhere.

Building a city required a huge territory. Naturally, its maintenance costs had to be paid to the university’s administration.

But magical power on the surface was incredibly expensive. Just as one was immediately charged outrageous fees for absorbing even a little magical power in areas outside the tower, cities were no different.

Better locations required more points. Naturally, cities had no choice but to be built in cheap, accessible areas. That was the most efficient method.

The twelve cities, including Stalactite City, could rent their land cheaply because each of them had its own problems. Of course, even if it was cheap, they must have paid astronomical sums beyond anything I could imagine.

There was only one way to avoid paying such magical power costs.

Become a professor and possess your own tower.

Of course, everyone knew how difficult that was. Perhaps taking over a city would be more likely.

So while the organizations governing cities might change, no new city would surely be built. The losses would outweigh the benefits gained from establishing one.

In that sense, the city I was visiting this time also possessed its own unusual magical power. As the name Icewall City suggested, intensely cold magical power surrounded it.

I narrowed my eyes as I felt the wind biting into my flesh. Then I glanced around.

I could see huge chunks of ice shattering beneath the turtle’s feet.

I slowly extended magical power and snagged a piece. Then I felt the magical power contained within it travel through my fingertips into me.

I gave another light cough.

This unfamiliar magical power was not simply cold. It also contained a kind of contagion. It was freezing my magical power itself.

The object in my hand was proof of that contagious nature. This was not merely a fragment of ice, but a tree. It had clearly adapted to this strange magical power and taken on an icy form.

What kind of shape would it take if I made a puppet from it? I was a little curious.

Of course, I did not particularly want to make one. Adapting to this magical power would not be easy.

Still, perhaps because of this magical power, we had encountered few magical beasts blocking the turtle’s path on the way here. The journey had been quite comfortable. Of course, even if there had been magical beasts, none of them could have approached us.

As I felt magical power burrow into me again, I slowly sniffled. Someone approached me.

Turning my head slightly, I saw Isabella holding a teacup.

[Your coughing seems to be getting worse, so I prepared some tea. It was made by processing the ice tree you are holding. If you drink it, your insides should feel a little warmer.]

Isabella carefully offered me the cup. I accepted it and savored its scent. The chill that had been digging into my body faded, if only a little.

Oh, there was something this useful?

I nodded at the slightly more comfortable sensation, and Isabella continued writing.

[It grows only around here, so I could only serve it to you now. People visiting Icewall City for the first time would always drink this. I tried making it again based on old memories, and I am glad it seems to suit your taste.]

They made tea by steeping ice?

I slowly took the tea into my mouth. Then I felt the magical power dwelling in it seep inside me.

I frowned slightly. The sensation brought by the tea was quite strange.

The freshly brewed tea was very warm. Yet the magical power within it was as cool as though it contained ice.

Those two opposing currents mixed inside me and quickly spread throughout my body. Before long, they reached the tree standing tall in my chest.

The magical power circled the tree once before quickly vanishing. At the same time, I realized that breathing had become a little easier.

The tea really was effective.

Feeling much better, I bowed my head to Isabella.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, Isabella, I feel much less uncomfortable.”

[Not at all. Your comfort is my happiness, Master.]

Calling it happiness was a bit much. I lightly shook my head at the burden of it, and Isabella gave a small laugh.

Isabella had revealed that she had completed the university’s basic curriculum while she was alive. Perhaps because of that, she knew plenty of miscellaneous knowledge that I did not. I received help from her from time to time, just as I had now.

Isabella slowly looked around. Then she raised magical power and wrapped it around me. She had spread a filtering curtain of magical power so I could remain comfortable.

I smiled with satisfaction at the much more comfortable feeling. She really was a useful person, moving on her own like this. I felt bad about making her work for me.

Then someone suddenly slipped an arm through mine.

“Hmm, I thought this was going to be a trip for just the two of us. I never expected an uninvited guest to join us.”

A faint scent of roses brushed past my nose.

The owner of that familiar scent was Mira. She held my arm and stared at Isabella.

Mira had said she was going to look around for a while. But judging from how quickly she had returned, there did not seem to be anything that satisfied her. Meeting Mira’s gaze, Isabella tilted her head.

[You misunderstand. I had planned this journey months ago because of work. If we are being precise, Mira, you are the one who joined in.]

Isabella gave a gentle smile.

The two began warmly chatting while maintaining eye contact. They said ordinary things about how prettily the other spoke, or how grateful they were for the compliment.

On the surface, nothing appeared to be wrong.

Yet somehow, the atmosphere the two created felt colder than the chilling magical power I had felt earlier.

I sipped my tea comfortably without caring about that cold atmosphere. This happened every time the two met. There was no need for me to step in.

If I tried to stop them for no reason, the conversation might turn on me. I did not want to deal with that sort of headache again. Besides, this was their own way of building rapport.

Watching magical power leak from the two as they conversed, I smacked my lips lightly. The magical beasts here avoided us partly because of the unusual environment, but also because of the magical power those two were producing.

Even magical beasts would not easily approach after sensing magic like that.

And we had this fellow too.

I lightly tapped the turtle’s head.

Meee!

The turtle let out a cry that echoed around us. It looked extremely excited. Feeling its intent that our destination was now in sight, I borrowed its eyes for a moment.

Then I saw a faint silhouette beyond the mountains.

I rummaged through my clothes and pulled out a map. It told me that the object before us was indeed the city. It seemed I had not been mistaken.

“We’re almost there. Icewall City is right ahead.”

I gestured with my chin toward the direction the turtle was looking. The two also seemed to realize that we were near the city and looked where I indicated.

Mira seemed quite pleased, as though she was looking forward to the city. But Isabella wore an expression as though she had much on her mind. Watching her face, I spoke.

“Isabella, are you really sure it was all right for you to come with us?”

It was not something I should have asked with the city right before us. Still, looking at Isabella’s face made me a little worried.

At my question, Isabella stared toward the city and gave a small smile. Then she slowly nodded.

[Yes. If I were absent, you would be inconvenienced, Master. As the person in charge, I ought to step forward.]

If she said so, I had no intention of stopping her. The truth was, I needed her help with this matter.

I looked at Isabella’s faintly shadowed face, then turned my gaze to the city drawing nearer. This trip to the city had begun because of my puppets.

Over the past five years, puppets had become more than a trend in Stalactite City. They had become part of its culture, an everyday sight.

And that was the result of the People’s Council’s efforts. To recover the losses caused by Hwaryeong and make up for the losses caused by me, they had to sell puppets with everything they had.

So they sold puppets in a wide variety of ways. They made guide puppets for those entering the city for the first time, and thought up ways to attract customers from the upper floors as well.

On the foundation of low prices and convenience, puppets spread throughout the city. Of course, not everyone used them.

Mages were an inherently wary sort. Puppeteers were devious, they said, and might use puppets to steal information. Even on the first floor, about half the mages were suspicious of puppets and kept their distance.

I lightly shook my head. Puppeteers were devious? How could they hold such a prejudice? Though, some of their suspicions were true. I smacked my lips as I felt the points accumulating in my shadow tree.

Still, excluding those who were suspicious, more and more people began using puppets. Having secured customers nearly to the limit, the People’s Council began wielding considerable influence on that basis.

They advertised through the mirrors attached to puppets, provided many services, and began cooperating with other departments of the merchant association. In this way, they fully recovered the losses they had suffered before.

I recalled what Jegang had said before. He had wanted to guide people’s actions through puppets and gain enormous profits from it.

Jegang had disappeared, but the will he left behind had been fulfilled by his colleagues. Even having left the merchant association, he could surely be somewhat satisfied now. I quietly nodded.

Perhaps because dealing with them had become more difficult than before, Hwaryeong was busier as well. If she had accepted my proposal, none of this would have happened. It truly was a shame. Well, it was her choice. What could I do?

And as the People’s Council’s members grew so splendidly, I too benefited greatly from them. Those dissatisfied with the People’s Council’s puppets naturally came to me and became members of my shop.

Thus, many points I had not earned before began flowing in. It was more than tens of thousands of points a month.

Naturally, people did not flock to cities for no reason. Opportunities like this existed, so everyone gathered in cities with dreams in their hearts.

Of course, many people earned that much in cities. Even Koite, who belonged to the same association as me, received more than a hundred thousand points for creating a simple dream.

Still, among those staying on the third floor like me, there surely would not be anyone earning this much. It was very satisfying.

But I did not want to stop here. I placed a hand on my chest. Then I began to feel the domain of the shadow tree spreading deep beneath my tree.

Over the past five years, this domain had continued to expand. The three types of puppets based on the elements of life combined with one another, refining the domain into something sturdier and keeping it steady even amid explosive growth.

Based on the puppets scattered throughout the city, the domain had grown to more than twice its former size. And such a broad domain proved very useful for my business as well.

Originally, my puppets could only be used near the city. If they went too far away, the connection weakened and the puppets would grow unstable.

But the expanded domain I had now was structured firmly enough to spread beyond the city alone. It was the result of tending the shadow tree’s domain as much as possible instead of cultivating myself.

And that effort had borne fruit. My puppets could move freely within the domain. My inner demon puppets could travel freely between the tower and city. The same was true of my customers’ puppets.

With my domain stabilized like this, my gaze naturally turned outward. Having such a broad domain meant I could set my sights not only on Stalactite City, but on other cities as well.

This trip to the city was part of that expansion. If you stopped, you stagnated. Even if business was going well now, a crisis would surely come.

If I stagnated, I would not be able to respond adequately to such a crisis. If I stopped here, I would ultimately be nothing more than an easily handled tool. So I had to keep moving forward.

That was my way. And Mira’s way as well. When she was hungry, she devoured. Wasn’t that desire? I glanced at her. She leaned her head against me, her eyes sparkling.

“Oh my, it’s a pretty city. I like it.”

Mira seemed quite taken with the city now that we were close enough. Naturally. I too found the city’s appearance fascinating.

Seen up close, it perfectly embodied the name Icewall City. I narrowed my eyes at the endlessly transparent ice walls.

The cold magical power filling the area was being emitted by the ice walls. And countless people moved about inside those enormous walls.

They had literally carved out the ice and built a city inside it. Even the buildings were transparent, letting me clearly see within them. I rubbed my chin.

“Then let’s go in.”

“Hehe, I’m looking forward to it. I should buy clothes first.”

Mira looked down at herself. Deep interest showed on her face, which seemed full of thoughts of exploring the city.

I nodded quietly. Mira had worked hard by conducting lectures in my place, so I intended to grant whatever she wanted.

Of course, we needed to handle our business first.

I smiled lightly at the thought of seeing a familiar face after so long. Then I moved the turtle and headed swiftly toward the city.

There, I encountered someone unexpected.

“Oh my, Evron. It’s been a long time.”

I quietly blinked at the woman wearing a warm smile. I had been thinking of seeing a familiar face, but she was not the person I had had in mind.

The long-haired woman with black hair somehow seemed to carry the thick scent of blood.

Just as she said, it had been a long time since I had seen her. Yet she still seemed as full of killing intent as ever.

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