WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Inept Mage’s Infinite Regression

Chapter 27

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After telling Boen to rest, Ethan returned to his room and entered Limbo. In short, it meant he was taking a nap.

Limbo had changed slightly. The room, which Ethan had previously thought of as the size of a reception hall in the Charasen castle, had grown larger. Beyond the door of the reception hall, there was now a small corridor, a reception room attached to the corridor, and a bedroom connected to the reception hall.

Ethan woke up in the bedroom. After looking around Limbo, Ethan spoke to Demi,

"Who's that?"

Ethan pointed at a creature that looked unmistakably like a spider. Its head was covered in eight eyes and it had fluffy, white fur. However, from the neck down, it vaguely resembled a human. It had six arms, and while its hands had fingers like a human's, there were fewer fingers, and they were black and hard.

The rest of its body was covered by clothing. It wore a white silk hat and a smooth, white suit but its abdomen bulged out from behind its hips. Ethan initially wanted to say, "What is that?" but since it was clearly imitating a human, he decided to show some respect and changed his question to "Who is that?"

As Ethan approached the spider, who was about as tall as his waist, it gracefully removed its silk hat and bowed.

"Greetings, Lord Ethan Dora Charasen. I am Broker Zir."

"Uh, hello, Zir. I don’t have a title yet, so there’s no need to be so formal. Moreover, ‘Lord Charasen’ is my father."

"This Limbo is Sir Charasen’s mental realm and territory. Therefore, Sir Charasen is the lord of this land and deserves such respect. But if you dislike the title, I shall refrain from using it."

"Just Ethan is fine."

"Then I shall address you as Lord Ethan."

"...Can I ask why you’re here?"

Zir explained, "Our species has traditionally served as dimensional brokers, or in Terra’s terms, intermediaries between dimensions. Our clan determined that Lord Ethan’s Limbo was worthy of assigning a broker, and thus, I have arrived. I will relay requests from other dimensional beings to you, Lord Ethan, and if you complete those requests, I will deliver the profits to you."

"Can you explain it in simpler terms?"

Zir said, "From now on, Broker Quests will be added to your quests. These quests will have no connection or context to your current objectives, but upon completion, you will receive rewards."

Having more quests was something to celebrate. However, Ethan was suspicious of good things happening without a catch.

"What’s the downside for me?"

Perhaps the question was unexpected, as Zir scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"Hmm. Humans, unlike our species, are not good at multitasking. If there are too many quests, you may become overwhelmed."

"Leveling up means receiving a comprehensive reward for your accumulated achievements."

Demi explained further.

"Why not just give proper rewards each time? In smaller increments."

"...The system doesn’t work that way."

After confirming there was no downside, Ethan shook hands with Zir, saying they should get along well.

"As your level increases, Limbo will expand, and new guests will arrive."

"I’ve already noticed the added space. There’s a reception room and a bedroom."

"Correct."

"Is this still the Charasen castle I know?"

"Not exactly. Limbo reflects your experiences. It seems you’ve chosen the Charasen castle as a safe and familiar place."

"The structure is a bit different, but it’s similar to the castle I know. There’s even a Rocaf set."

Rocaf was a game similar to chess, but each piece had a point value and players could arrange pieces in any number as long as the total points matched. People who enjoyed Rocaf often carried their own custom pieces.

"If you wish, you can spend time with other guests in Limbo."

Ethan glanced at the merchant, Broker Zir, and Administrator Demi, considering whether he wanted to spend time with them.

"Well, not today."

Ethan then brought up the B-rank Lottery Coupon.

"Can I draw now?"

"Of course."

Demi handed over the lottery box.

Ethan reached in, but for some reason, it felt smaller than the C-rank lottery box, and had fewer tickets.

"You’re taking your time."

"With C-rank, I might not mind, but I feel like I won’t get another B-rank for a while."

"That’s likely."

Ethan drew a ticket, and his eyes widened.

[Archive acquired!]
[Archive: Metallurgy (B)]

From smelting ore in a furnace, casting it into molds, forging it into shape, heat treatment through quenching, and to surface finishing—Ethan understood the processes in metallurgy.

It was an overwhelming amount of knowledge. While Ethan knew almost nothing about blacksmithing, he could see the vast gap between Damarth Yumaha’s metalworking technology and Terra’s. Sharing this knowledge with blacksmiths could bring immense wealth and fame.

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However, Ethan let out a sigh.

"...This is useless."

"Why do you say that?"

"Some parts could be applied immediately, and that alone could bring significant advancements in steelmaking. But Damarth Yumaha lacks the infrastructure. Maintaining metal at specific temperatures, for example, I doubt blacksmiths here even have the tools, let alone the concept, to measure temperature so precisely."

"You might gain synergy skills."

"Anyway, it’s meaningless for now."

Furthermore, Ethan wasn’t sure if running around meeting blacksmiths would be worth the effort.

"Now, explain the portable solar generator."

Demi explained that some of Terra’s tools consumed an energy called electricity, and there were various ways to charge it. The portable solar generator used sunlight to charge electricity, which could then be transferred to other devices. The generator consisted of a black, wide panel to absorb sunlight and a terminal connected to it.

"So it’s like mana, but only for Terra’s magical tools?"

"It’s a bit different, but you can think of it that way."

"Is this also one of those?"

Ethan approached the merchant while saying this. The merchant didn’t react until Ethan pointed at an item.

The merchant said, <That’s a battery and a battery charger. It’s compatible with your portable solar generator.>

"What’s the battery for?"

<It’s used in smaller Terra devices.>

"Does it fit in my handgun?"

<No.>

The merchant picked up a card from the corner, and it transformed into a square box.

"What does this do?"

Demi pointed out, <But there are no radio stations in Damarth Yumaha, so you won’t be able to hear anything.>

Ethan looked down at the stall and picked up another card.

"It says here that this also uses a battery?"

<That’s a flashlight. A tool that emits light.>

When the merchant demonstrated, Ethan was impressed. The merchant showed how to adjust the brightness, send distress signals, and even change the light color.

"Cool, huh?"

Demi interjected, "I wouldn’t recommend that."

"Why? I can’t even cast a light spell. This is better than that."

Ethan did as suggested.

As Ethan approached, Demi pointed to a table beside her. On the table were three bags.

The box on the left was red. Inside the red box were several cylindrical bottles of transparent liquid, smaller medicine bottles, clean cloths, gauze, bandages, ointments, and basic first-aid supplies.

The box on the right was orange. Inside the orange box were ropes, fire starters, lighters, compasses, thermometers, thermal blankets, clean water, long-lasting emergency rations, and survival books that could also be used as kindling.

Finally, the box in the middle was black. The black box was simpler than the others. Inside were long rods that Ethan couldn’t understand and what looked like a vest.

Demi picked up a small rod and clicked it. A bright light shot out.

Ethan asked, "Are you giving me all of these?"

< You have reached level 2. Each box represents a ‘class’, or job, you can choose.>

"My class is student."

"Really?"

It was an important choice but Ethan didn’t hesitate for long.

Ethan chose the black box.

The Rescuer could save others, and the Survivor was advantageous when alone, but what he needed to do was neither of those. Ethan had to kill others now.

"Now, I need to explain the most important thing."

Ethan listened to Demi’s explanation. And three days later, he shot Sirund Zen between the eyes.

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