WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

Wizard of the Abyss

[Translator – Aren]

Chapter 97 - Three Calamities (4)

As soon as I returned from the kingdom, I went to look for Dercia, who had arrived ahead of me.

"...Ah, Sir Jern.”

But all that greeted me was Ciel, wearing a troubled expression, and the mansion thrown into chaos and partially engulfed in flames.

"An…attack?”

My first thought was that Scarlet Abyss had struck the capital.

But looking closer, only Dercia’s mansion was burning in various places. Ciel let out a sigh before finally answering me.

"Erm, this happened while the Lady was teaching Princess Lumia.”

"Ah."

Right. That was the deal we made.

Lumia and Dercia. They couldn’t be said to be a compatible pair.

I asked, feeling a little worried,

"Did it escalate to the point of treason?”

"No. It just got rather heated. For now, it’s best to leave them alone. No matter how unhinged the Lady may be, she’ll stop at correcting Princess Lumia’s habits, so you don’t need to worry about it too much.”

"Understood."

Given the situation, it seemed best to first seek out Carose.

I went up to a palace guard and explained why I was here. He then handed me a letter.

Inside was a simple map, leading to the same teahouse where I had met the princess before.

"...Hmm."

I hesitated for a moment.

Was it really wise to meet Carose alone? She didn’t seem that fond of me.

I felt a slight unease creeping up in me, but—

'I still need to know about those executives.'

If there was one thing I had learned from fighting the Lump, it was that I knew far too little about Scarlet Abyss.

Even if they were skilled in covert operations, at this point I should at least have a sense of how they operated. Instead, all I really knew was that they were a bunch of lunatics obsessively creating more Fallen.

With no other choice, I headed to the teahouse and opened the door, searching for Carose, but there was no sign of the dark-armored Knight.

I looked around for quite a while.

Until someone quietly cleared their throat at the table right next to me.

"...Over here."

"?"

I narrowed my eyes as I looked at the woman sitting at the table, her face distinctly sullen. She looked like someone who had just come up from the countryside.

"Uh, hmm. You look more ordinary than I expected.”

That was the gentlest way I could phrase it. I hadn’t imagined that the Princess’ greatest sword would look so plain.

"I am aware that I lack presence. That’s why I usually wear that set of armor.”

As I hesitantly took a seat, Carose let out a sigh.

Then she raised her hand and swept it through the air.

At the same time, the surrounding noise dropped to almost complete silence. The chatter from the table next to us sounded as faint as if it came from a hundred meters away.

What an impressive ability. I let out a small exclamation and ask,

"Dame Carose, are you a mage as well?”

"I am, by all accounts, a commoner. This isn’t magic. Just a simple tick. I sliced through the Realm of sound.”

... Can that really be called a mere trick?

"Isn’t that more impressive than magic?”

"This is all I can barely manage after reaching this level. What’s so impressive about it? Even 3-star mages can accomplish something similar with a simple spell. All I’ve done is spend more time and effort to achieve inferior results.”

Watching her self-deprecating smile, I suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity.

I had thought I’d seen this face somewhere…

"Come to think of it, that was Her Highness’ face when we first met, wasn’t it? The impression was so different that I didn’t recognize it.”

"Yes. At the time, Her Highness briefly borrowed my body.”"

"...Borrowed?”

"We possess a specific artifact that allows us to exchange our minds. It’s a secret only known to Her Highness and myself.”

"But now I know. Is it really okay to tell me something like that?”

Was this some kind of setup leading to her killing me?

I asked cautiously, feeling slightly nervous, but Carose only let out a short laugh before nodding.

"Compared to what I’m about to tell you, that’s trivial.”

"Aren’t we just talking about Scarlet Abyss’ executives?”

"Indeed. But bringing up that topic means I’m prepared to betray Her Highness. In that context, what significance does the switching of bodies truly hold?”

"..."

I studied Carose’s face.

Only now I realized that her face was filled with determination.

I quietly shook my head and tried to stop her.

"If that’s the case, I won’t listen. There’s no need to cross a river as dangerous as that. Her Highness Sharmia probably already knows.”

"Her foresight isn’t perfect.”

"No, wait. I didn’t come here to hear that.”

Sensing the gravity of the situation, I frowned and stood up.

If she finished what she was about to say, that would mean real betrayal.

And I had absolutely no intention of making an enemy of the princess.

Living in the Empire and baring fangs at its true ruler? And for no apparent reason at that? That would be nothing but stupidity.

And now Carose, Her Highness’ personal guard, was about to reveal secrets tied to the princess’ ability. A secret that must be protected no matter what.

That was an unmistakably hostile act.

"I thought you were a Knight with unwavering loyalty. Why are you doing this all of a sudden?”

"Loyalty…”

Carose lowered her gaze to the table and replied with a low voice.

"Have you ever heard the discourse on the difference between dogs and Knights?”

"No."

"A well-trained dog obeys humans absolutely. When it’s told to bite, it bites. When it’s told to chase, it chases. In that case, can we truly say the dog is loyal to its master?”

"That’s debatable, right? It’s just following orders in the end.”

"A Knight’s loyalty has similar aspects. Executing orders as given. Becoming a blade wielded exactly as the master desires. Strictly speaking, aside from differences in strength and method, is there truly any distinction between a dog and a Knight in the eyes of their master? A Knight with the mind of a dog, a Dog Knight, would be the greatest Knight of all… That was one side of the debate, countered by countless opposing arguments.”

"Hmm."

I didn’t quite understand why she suddenly brought this up, but I nodded anyway.

"What do you think, Dame Carose?”

"I—still don’t know.”

She clasped her hands together and ground her teeth.

"Whether what I’m doing now is the right thing, or whether I’m simply being rash based on my own arbitrary standards. To be honest, all I feel is that I’m making a mistake.”

"There’s a saying. When you’re torn between doing something or not, you shouldn’t do it.”

"That’s what I’ve always done. But, eventually, I came to regret it. The more time I spend at Her Highness’ side, the more I come to understand. There are things you simply can’t not notice…”

–Clench.

Her hands tightened until they nearly turned white as she spoke with desperation.

"Seeing the future is not a matter of ordinary magic. If anything, it’s closer to sorcery. Her Highness pays for seeing the future with her very life.”

"You mean, her lifespan?”

"Her life.”

Carose said it decisively. As she was about to continue, I raised a hand to stop her.

"Please don’t go into details. I really don’t want to become an actual traitor.”

"Didn’t you say before that you couldn’t cooperate unless you knew these things?”

"Yes. But that was a gamble based on the assumption that you wouldn’t be able to say it. If I’m going to hear something like that, it should come from Her Highness Sharmia herself. Hearing it from you just makes me a traitor for no reason.”

"...Yes. Understood.”

She nodded, then changed the subject.

"From the age of 10 until now, Her Highness has protected the Empire without allowing a single breach. But after Scarlet Abyss appeared, that burden grew even heavier. So heavy that she even reached out to a child like you.”

"Ahem. I’m aware that you don’t like me.”

"This has nothing to do with liking or disliking. The princess can now only see the near future, but once, when she was 10 years old, she saw something far beyond that. A very distant future…”

Her eyes grew distant.

"Her Highness saw you in that future.”

"Is that so?”

So that was why the princess was so fixated on me?

Interesting. I leaned in, feeling quite intrigued.

"What did I become in that future?”

"A Scarlet Abyss executive.”

"...I did what?”

"Exactly what it sounds like. You became the Empire’s worst enemy. Someone who obstructs it at every turn.”

"Did Her Highness say that herself?”

"Yes."

"That can’t be right. I’d rather die than willingly join those bastards.”

Carose’s bombshell of a statement was honestly quite incomprehensible.

I hated Scarlet Abyss. Truly. Once I learned they abducted and tortured children, I found them nothing but revolting, repulsive even.

I had absolutely no desire to become one of them. If I ever ended up among them, it would be because I was taken by force. And I most certainly had no desire to end up as an executive.

Yet Carose only nodded slightly and spoke with conviction.

"But it is true. In one way or another, you will join them. It’s like fate. Something that cannot be changed. Her Highness once said that there were futures that can be altered and futures that cannot. Your becoming a Scarlet Abyss executive belongs to the latter.”

"I see…”

I nodded slowly, starting to understand.

"So that’s why you hated me?”

"I said it wasn’t a matter of like or dislike—but it’s true that I was wary of you. If you were destined to become a Scarlet Abyss executive, then the correct course would be to kill you. That was my judgement… I apologize.”

"You don’t need to apologize. You weren’t wrong.”

If anything, finally understanding the reason behind Carose’s unexplainable wariness put my mind at ease.

If the core strength of Scarlet Abyss were standing right in front of me, I wouldn’t be able to tolerate it either. The fact that she went so far as to permit an audience with the princess despite that speaks of her superhuman levels of mental fortitude.

"However, Her Highness still tried to make use of you. I believe the reason is that, in the first future she saw, she recognized your competence.”

"Competence?”

"Jern. You are 11 years old.”

"That’s right. And?”

"That means you’re still young. and that you still have plenty of room for growth. You will develop far beyond where you stand now.”

A flicker of fear appeared in Carose’s eyes.

"At first, I couldn’t understand it. But now that I know you as you are, I can comprehend Her Highness’ judgement. She saw you as a card that, simply by being held, could multiply one’s available choices dozens of times over.”

"I don’t follow. You just said that my becoming a Scarlet Abyss executive is unavoidable, right? If I’m a card destined to fall into the enemy’s hand anyway, why bother helping me develop?”

"Because Her Highness is cornered enough to reach out even for such means.”

Carose looked straight into my eyes.

"She ordered that all of this be kept from you.”

"...Why did you disobey her?”

"I’ve seen your ability. You are promising, and even at your current level, you are more than usable. I’ve also come to understand your character. I know now that no reward or temptation would be enough to move you. But what I focused on was your humanity.”

"?"

"Jern. You are a good person. Someone who knows how to care for others, someone who can feel anger on behalf of the weak. At least, that is my judgment.”

She blurted out those embarrassing words without any hesitation, then stood and bowed her head.

"More than any offer of reward or temptation, I believed that a sincere plea like this would be more effective. That is why I deliberately arranged this meeting. I have told you everything I know. Please. Can’t you help Her Highness?”

"I’m just a Fallen struggling to find a way to survive. I think you’re expecting far too much from me.”

"I am not asking for your help based on your goodness alone. As Her Highness’ Knight, I swear to you, if you help Her Highness, then I will betray her once more.”

“What?”

"There is no one who has heard more from Her Highness than I have. I will tell you whatever future knowledge you desire.”

"For example?”

"I know several hidden bases of Scarlet Abyss. Places where their accumulated research materials are stored.”

That was quite tempting.

If I were to extract future knowledge directly from the princess, I couldn’t even imagine how steep a price she would ask for.

But if I helped the princess through Carose, I could clear my conscience while receiving tangible compensation from Carose herself.

Killing two birds with one stone. As long as Sharmia didn’t foresee our secret contract through prophecy, it was a deal with virtually no downside.

And prophecy itself didn’t seem to be invincible either. More than anything—

"..."

I met Carose’s clear eyes.

Even if I couldn’t fully trust the princess, I could trust her.

I could feel the resolve unique to someone speaking the truth from her.

I slowly nodded.

"Alright. But there’s one thing we should settle before moving forward.”

"...I apologize for having tested you so much up until now—”

"That’s not it. You said my becoming a Scarlet Abyss executive is unavoidable, right?”

"...? Yes. That’s correct.”

"If that’s true, then even I’m starting to be afraid of myself. Are you really willing to enter into a contract like this? Isn’t that far too dangerous?”

"I asked for your help fully prepared to accept that risk.”

I looked at Carose’s stiff expression and gave her a slight smile.

"Can I ask you a few questions?”

"Yes. Ask anything you wish.”

"First, when does it happen? When do I become a Scarlet Abyss executive?”

"I don’t know. It could be tomorrow, or it could be in 10 years.”

"Do I kill or attack anyone as part of Scarlet Abyss?”

"That isn’t fixed either. These things belong to futures that can be changed. Unlike the fact that you enter Scarlet Abyss itself.”

"Hmm."

With that, the pieces fell into place.

I opened my spatial storage and took out the red steel choker.

Carose tilted her head when she saw it.

"What is that?”

"During my last battle with Scarlet Abyss, I received an offer to join them. I rejected it, of course, but they told me to apply if I ever changed my mind and gave me this. I assume it’s some sort of communication device.”

"Why are you still keeping it…?”

"Dame Carose. You said that I will someday become a Scarlet Abyss executive. That it’s an unchangeable future, something that will absolutely happen. And therefore I’m dangerous.”

"Ah, yes.”

"Then wouldn’t it be better to just do it now?”

"I’m sorry, but I don’t quite…understand what you mean.”

"I’ll become a Scarlet Abyss executive and work as a spy.”

"...What?"

I steeled my resolve as I looked at Carose’s stunned expression.

There was once a great person I deeply admired who said this:.

If you can’t change the future, then deceive the world instead.

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