WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Occult World’s Coveted Blacksmith ◈
Chapter 92: Play Ball
──────
I stood before the mirror, lost in thought for a moment.
Reflected there was a ridiculously handsome young man who looked about eighteen or twenty.
Right. This was the face of the boyish handsome craftsman from the Tianshan Sect... no, No Corp's Master Do now.
'Hmm... Should I go with this face, or that one?'
I'd volunteered to accompany Mu-yeong without much thought, but going out with this face would be troublesome.
Come to think of it, this face was practically a celebrity in the Occult World now.
Someone might recognize me if I went along on this job.
Wearing a mask didn't feel right, either.
From what Mu-yeong had told me, this job was something like a protection detail.
How suspicious would it look to the client if one of the suddenly added personnel had half their face covered by a mask?
Besides, we had to leave right away. I didn't have time to stop by the dispensary and set up a new face. You had to book ahead there, too.
That left only one answer.
I tightened the Spiritual Power control on the Suppression Talisman around my neck as far as it would go.
Sliiide.
As the Spiritual Power holding my bones and muscles in place was cut off, the youthful pretty boy in the mirror gradually vanished, changing back into my original appearance.
My Spiritual Power acted as the glue that maintained my changed form.
So if I locked the Suppression Talisman down completely with Spiritual Power?
That was the OFF switch!
“Hmm...”
It felt a little unfamiliar seeing this face again after so long.
I was back to having the kind of ordinary face you might see at any neighborhood convenience store.
It wasn't like I'd have to step in today anyway.
'It's only one day. What could possibly happen?'
Today, I was neither Do Emperor nor a genius craftsman, just support staff member No. 1 for Grade-3 sorcerer Jin Mu-yeong.
That was all I'd be.
* * *
“All right, let's go.”
When I came down from the second floor, Mu-yeong, now changed into a suit, sprang up from the sofa.
“Yes, we still have time, so we can take it easy... Huh?”
He stopped mid-sentence and stared at me with a vacant look.
“That appearance...”
Oh, right.
It had probably been a while since Mu-yeong had seen this face too.
“I’m going like this today. I shouldn't stand out too much, right?”
“Y-yes, that's true.”
“What are you staring at?”
Mu-yeong looked me over from head to toe, then casually gave me a thumbs-up.
“You still look cooler like that, boss.”
“What are you talking about...”
What a punk. Trying to flatter me.
“Come on. We’ll be late.”
We left the arcade and headed for the parking lot.
“Boss, my car is this way.”
“No, follow me. I’m driving today.”
“Huh? You’re driving? Do you even have a license?”
“Yeah. Got it pretty recently.”
That was right!
While learning talisman sorcery from Ha-na noona and working on the Enchant Talisman business, I'd also been attending driving school whenever I had the chance.
I couldn't keep getting rides from Ms. Ji-an and Mu-yeong forever.
Now I was a proper owner-driver too.
My first beloved car, which I'd splurged on and bought brand-new.
Its name was...!
“...Vroomie?”
Mu-yeong made a stunned noise as he stood before Vroomie.
A domestic midsize SUV.
“Yeah. What do you think? Awesome, right?”
“Well, it's nice, but...”
Mu-yeong looked between the car and me before carefully opening his mouth.
“Pardon me, boss, but you make an incredible amount of money these days, don't you? So why...”
“...? Why what?”
“...Never mind.”
Ahh...
It was so pretty I could stare at it all day.
Wasn't it practically a universal rule to buy a used car as your first car?
Since you'd bump and scratch it everywhere.
But I'd decided to treat myself. The luxury of buying my very first car brand-new!
And paying for it all in cash!
Ahh... This was what earning money was for, wasn't it?
The new-car smell hit me as I opened the door.
'Vroomie, take good care of me today.'
“Boss, you're looking at it like you could eat it up.”
“Anyway, I'm going to start driving too. Put on your seatbelt already.”
“Ah, yes...”
Vrooom!
And so, I boldly drove Vroomie out onto the road.
* * *
But then.
[You have left the route. Recalculating.]
“...”
[You have left the route. Recalculating.]
“...”
“B-boss. I can drive, even now.”
“It’s fine. Stay still. Just trust me.”
Why had that guy been gripping the passenger-side handle this whole time?
For the record, I wasn't that good at driving yet.
I was a little bad with directions, though. Was that why?
...No, I'd only just gotten my license. It would be stranger if I were good at it already.
I turned the wheel.
Ha. Successful lane change.
“Hey, Mu-yeong. Do you usually have to dress up in a suit like this for work?”
“No, not usually... but there are places like that sometimes.”
Mu-yeong fiddled with his tie.
Apparently, sorcerers tended to dress so freely and bizarrely that clients sometimes specified a dress code for jobs like protection details.
This client was the daughter of an executive at a fairly large food company.
The company had recently clashed with some faction in the Occult World. It wasn't as if she had any direct bad blood with them, but apparently her father had arranged protection for his daughter just in case.
“Hmm... What if nothing happens?”
“Then that's good news. Easy money.”
“...”
Well, that was true.
He had a point, but still.
'Hmm...'
I glanced up at the rearview mirror.
One long black bag lay neatly in the back seat.
'Well, there's no rush.'
* * *
Meanwhile, in front of a mirror.
Kim Eun-chae hummed to herself as she gently swayed from side to side.
“Hmm hmm~”
She couldn't help humming.
How long had it been since she'd gone out?
Her newly bought dress was pretty, and she was very pleased with the makeup she'd carefully done since morning.
As Eun-chae adjusted her dress one last time, she checked the clock.
“...”
Ten minutes remained until it was time to leave.
'What is this? Why are they taking so long?'
Eun-chae pouted and left her room.
She asked Mrs. Jeong, who was passing through the living room.
“Mrs. Jeong, when did they say the bodyguards would arrive?”
“They're nearly here.”
“...Okay.”
'Seriously.'
Shouldn't they have arrived early and waited already?
Then again, those people were always full of weirdos.
'Please... Let them be normal this time.'
Kim Eun-chae. Twenty-two years old.
The only child of a corporate executive.
Apparently, her father's company had recently clashed with “those people.”
Eun-chae didn't know the details.
All she knew was that one day, her father had sternly told her not to go anywhere alone for the time being, and protection from people in that field had been assigned whenever she went out.
It had already been several months.
Thanks to that, it had been a long time since she'd properly gone outside.
Even on the rare day she got to leave, she couldn't take a single step out the door alone.
But the real problem was something else.
The problem was that all those “people from that side” who had come before...
Had been completely abnormal.
The middle-aged man who had arrived in a modified hanbok and a gat had been one of the better ones.
They'd close their eyes in cafes and mutter incomprehensible spells.
They'd scatter salt while claiming she had bad luck clinging to her.
They'd suddenly shake bells while walking beside her.
At the department store last time, she'd honestly wanted to hide in a mouse hole.
'...Ugh. I don't even want to think about it.'
So this time, she'd made herself perfectly clear.
Suits. They absolutely had to come wearing suits.
'Oh dear... But what if another strange person comes?'
“Don't worry too much. We made the dress code very clear this time.”
Mrs. Jeong smiled kindly and reassured her, but...
'How can I trust that...?'
Just as annoyance began to rise again.
Ding dong!
“They must be here.”
Soon, the front door opened.
“Oh dear! Sorry we're late!”
A man strode in.
'He is wearing a suit, at least.'
Bleached bright-yellow hair and a crooked tie.
He had some long bag slung over one shoulder.
Most importantly, he had a scary-looking face.
'...He looks like a thug at first glance.'
Of course.
Another weirdo.
Maybe she should just not go out.
Eun-chae was seriously considering that when...
“Sorry we're late.”
One more person entered behind him.
A calm, low voice.
A sharply tailored suit, with a fit so neat there wasn't a single flaw.
'...Huh?'
Ahem.
He was handsome.
'...Maybe this time will be okay?'
* * *
Inside the car.
Mu-yeong ended up driving after all.
“Oppa. Oppa.”
Ziiing.
I could feel an intense stare from beside me.
I'd originally planned to sit in the passenger seat, but the client had kept insisting that I sit in the back.
“...Excuse me?”
“Yes?”
“How old are you?”
“Huh?”
I roughly told her my age, and we exchanged a few words.
Apparently, today’s schedule was watching a baseball game in person.
“I've never been before, but the friend I'm meeting today is a huge baseball fan!”
She was a very cheerful person.
She chattered nonstop in front of someone she'd just met.
How should I put it? She had that innocent, carefree air unique to the youngest daughter of a wealthy family.
“I've been stuck at home lately, so this is great, right?! Hehe.”
She looked excited.
But a baseball stadium would have tens of thousands of people. Wasn't that rather dangerous for someone who needed protection?
“It'll be hard to control a place with that many people.”
At my words, Eun-chae pouted.
“Come on~ My dad is just overprotective, overprotective. He's an executive, but he's just a salaried employee. From what I heard, he wasn't even directly involved in the clash. He's only doing this just in case.”
Eun-chae complained that it had already been several months of this.
The only weird people she'd met in all that time had been the bodyguards her father hired.
“Oh! Right, what should we do? There are only three tickets.”
One ticket for her friend, one for Eun-chae, and one for a bodyguard.
Since I'd been added at the last minute, it seemed they hadn't secured a ticket for me.
“Then I can stay in the car.”
“Eek. Why? Can't the yellow-haired mister stay in the car, and you come with me?”
“I only came along as support staff...”
Mu-yeong, who had been quietly listening from the front, spoke up.
“Let's see if we can get one more ticket once we arrive.”
“That'll be impossible~ My friend said these were incredibly hard to get too, since it's around the time when the Titans might take first place~”
She'd been chatting excitedly for a while when...
Bzzzt.
Eun-chae's phone rang.
“Yeah! I'm on my way now~ Take your time... Yeah. Yeah.”
Eun-chae's expression stiffened as she took the call.
“No, no. If that's the case, it can't be helped. Yeah, it's really fine. See you later.”
Click.
She didn't look happy.
“...? Is something wrong?”
“My friend suddenly... has something very urgent going on at home.”
“...”
Mu-yeong glanced at her through the rearview mirror.
“What should we do? Should we turn around?”
“...”
“No! I finally got out! I dressed up so much today, how can I go back home? I look so pretty today?!”
“...Still, you said you've never watched baseball before. Wouldn't it be boring to watch alone?”
“Ugh...”
After agonizing for a while, Eun-chae smiled brightly.
“Oh! Then that works.”
Then she abruptly turned toward me.
“You can be my friend today!”
* * *
“So? Have you ever seen friends speak so formally to each other?”
“...”
“Oppa. I'm not going in until you stop speaking formally!”
“...All right, so stop. Let's go inside already.”
“Hehe. Okay!”
'Is this really a protection detail?'
Before I could even pass through the main gate, I'd been forced to drop the formal speech.
The route from the parking lot to the stadium was already packed with people.
Wow, that was a lot of people.
Groups wearing matching uniforms moved along in crowds.
“Th-there! Take a picture of me!”
Click. Click.
In front of the enormous mascot statue at the stadium entrance.
Eun-chae excitedly had picture after picture taken.
Then, even after we went inside.
“Here too! Make sure you get the stadium!”
Click.
She turned around, stretched out her hand, and flashed a V-sign.
She was very natural at posing.
“Let me see.”
Tap, tap.
Eun-chae came over to check the photos, pressing close enough that our shoulders touched.
She smelled cool and sweet, like citrus.
“Come on~ What is this? You're terrible at taking pictures! Doesn't your girlfriend get mad when you take photos like this?”
“I don't have a girlfriend.”
“Really~ Hmm hmm. I see.”
Eun-chae smiled, then suddenly snatched the phone from my hand and held it out to Mu-yeong beside us.
Mu-yeong, who had been watching our surroundings, accepted the phone without thinking.
“Mister, you take it! Come here. Let's get one together!”
Eun-chae tightly hooked her arm through mine and made a V-sign.
Click.
“Can we go to our seats now?”
“Hehe, first! There's somewhere we need to go!”
* * *
In the end, I was dragged to the merchandise store and had to watch Eun-chae pick out a uniform and put it on.
“Come on~ I said I'd buy you one. Wear one too, okay?”
“No.”
“Hmph...”
She sulked only briefly.
Soon, she came out wearing a sparkling cheering headband too.
Then came the food court.
“Oh, this looks good too!”
Mu-yeong and I were already holding churros, butter-grilled squid, and fries.
“Chicken and beer~ Chicken and beer~”
“...Isn't that too much?”
“There are three of us. If we can't finish it, you can eat it.”
With both hands full of food, we finally took our seats.
“Oppa, oppa. I don't know any baseball rules, so you have to teach me, okay?”
“...? I don't know baseball rules very well either.”
“Huh?”
“It's fine. That yellow-haired mister over there knows baseball, so he can teach you.”
Mu-yeong, sitting by the aisle and keeping watch, looked at me as if he'd been wronged.
“Come on, boss... Why are you calling me mister too...?”
* * *
Then the game began.
Crack!
“Waaaaah!”
Whenever a batter hit the ball, the crowd rose as one, shouting and singing along with the cheering songs.
It suddenly occurred to me that this was my first time coming to a baseball stadium in person.
Come to think of it, this was the first time I'd done something like this since Octagon.
'This isn't bad.'
Back then, I'd thought I should visit places like this when I took breaks.
The cheering songs were loud.
Everyone looked like they were having a great time.
As the game reached the middle innings, though, the Titans kept making mistake after mistake.
They let ground balls slip through. Their throws went wide.
“Come on, seriously!”
“Ahhh! What are you doing?! Throw it properly!”
'...The mood has turned gloomy again.'
Was she having fun?
I glanced to the side.
Instead of watching the game, Eun-chae was resting her chin on her hand and staring right at me.
“...? You're not watching the game?”
“...!”
She jolted, hurriedly turning her head toward the field.
“Ahem, ahem.”
After clearing her throat, she secretly looked back at me and asked.
“Why don't you have a girlfriend? Ah, I know. You broke up recently, right?”
“...No? I've never had one.”
“Huh? Why not?”
No, why...
Wasn't that a rude thing to ask?
“I worked. I had to earn money.”
Of course, I'd spent all my time playing games at home. I didn't have time for that.
...Well, I did it because I enjoyed it.
“Hmm...”
She smiled softly.
What was with that smile?
Ahem.
I cleared my throat for no reason and turned my attention back to the field.
The pitcher threw another ball.
“What are you doing?!”
“Hey! Open your eyes properly!!”
Boos burst out from all over the stands.
Everyone was serious about baseball.
Well, that was probably normal at places like this.
...But then.
Thud.
With the bases loaded, the pitch hit the batter, and the score was reversed.
“Ah, fuck!”
Someone in the row directly ahead of us abruptly stood.
Thud!
They threw their cup of beer straight ahead.
“...?”
Foam splashed everywhere.
That wasn't the end of it.
“Get down! Get down!”
“Are you kidding right now?!”
“What a waste of money!”
One person threw something, then another beside them did too.
A chicken box flew. Uniforms flew.
“Uh...”
Eun-chae quietly grabbed my sleeve.
“Um, oppa.”
“...”
“Are baseball stadiums... normally like this?”
“I don't know.”
I slowly looked around.
“...I don't think so.”
Getting angry because the game was going badly was one thing, but wasn't this too much?
At this point, it wouldn't have been strange for the game to stop or for staff to rush in and intervene.
But the safety personnel didn't move at all.
“Waaaaah!”
Meanwhile, the cheering only grew louder.
The rhythm of the cheering song began to slip in a subtle way.
One line behind. One line ahead.
Tens of thousands of voices gradually fell out of sync, overlapping like a bizarre chord.
“...Boss.”
Mu-yeong was already on his feet.
Without a word, he tapped at his tie.
'...Right.'
Quietly, I raised a hand to the back of my neck.
Keeping only the Spiritual Power flowing to my face blocked off, I released the Suppression Talisman.
Snap.
The cheering song stopped.
“...”
The baseball stadium suddenly fell silent.
The people who had been throwing things, the people screaming themselves hoarse.
They all froze exactly where they stood.
Even the players on the field.
In a stadium packed with tens of thousands of people, not a single breath could be heard.
Then the sky above began to change color.
From the center of the brilliant blue sky, it spread yellow in an instant, like old film.
The sky, the field, the scoreboard.
'...!'
Only then, with my senses opened, did something enormous press in.
Spiritual Power of an overwhelming density, bearing down on the entire stadium.
A Barrier.
And one so huge it could swallow the whole stadium.
“...Boss?”
Then.
Bzzzt. Screeeech.
The speakers turned on.
Ba-bam! Ba-ba-ba-bam!
A lively fanfare rang out, followed by a bright voice.
A voice so endlessly cheerful it sounded like something from an amusement park.
[All right.]
[The real game will now begin.]
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
