Akatsuki Translations

Going back in time

To the night when Ur and his party, the 【Walkers】, arrived at the temporary city.

“……..So,” -Ur

Ur had quietly slipped out of the lodging facility. Without turning on any lights, as if hiding from people’s gaze, he stepped outside and headed straight for what lay ahead: Diz’s carriage, parked right next to the lodging.

Nearby, the Rock’n’Roll was also parked. Rock, clad in full armor, was guarding under the light at the carriage parking area.

“Rock, how’s it on your side?” -Ur

Though his expression couldn’t be seen under the helmet (not that he was known for his expressions), his voice unmistakably carried a tone of annoyance.

『Boring. 』-Rock

“I figured.” -Ur

『Got any books? Cards would do, too. 』-Rock

“Stop it. You won’t look like you’re on guard. And who would you play cards with? Jenna-san?” -Ur

『Right there. 』-Rock

Rock pointed towards where Dāru and Sūru, two horses, were looking at us with wide-open eyes.

“They’re horses, though.” -Ur

『They’re smarter than average humans, you know? They can even play games. 』-Rock

“Seriously?” -Ur

Ur knew they were intelligent, but he hadn’t realized they were that capable. Dāru lightly headbutted him as if to say, “Don’t underestimate us.” “Sorry,” Ur apologized, bowing his head.

Dāru seemed to say, “Well, it can’t be helped,” blowing a warm breath on Ur before turning away with a snort.

“Well, I’ll bring some cards next time, but anyway, don’t drop your guard.” -Ur

『It’s annoying, but can’t be helped. ‘The client’s orders,’ after all. 』-Rock

Saying so, Rock resumed his unmoving stance.

Ur then climbed into Diz’s carriage next to it.

The interior of the carriage was as spacious as ever, even emitting a pleasant scent. It felt like a luxurious lodging facility, more comfortable than where Ur was currently staying.

“Ur-sama.” -Jenna

“Hello.” -Ur

Inside, a white-haired maid was quietly making tea, seemingly having sensed Ur’s entrance. Ur stepped into the carriage, expressing his gratitude.

In the back seat, sleeping was, of course, the owner of the carriage, Diz. The beautiful girl with golden hair sleeping in the beautiful carriage looked almost like a doll.

Ur sat on the opposite seat and after watching her sleeping face for a while, he spoke.

“Diz.” -Ur

“What is it?” -Diz

With a snap, she woke up.

Ur wasn’t surprised. He had been told beforehand that she would wake up if he called her when needed. He didn’t understand how she differentiated between necessary and unnecessary times, but it seemed she had recognized this moment as necessary. Ur felt relieved.

“Should I explain the situation?” -Ur

“We’ve arrived at Uuga. Uuga was cursed by a dragon. We’re now in a nearby shelter. Is this understanding correct?” -Diz

“…Did you hear from Jenna?” -Ur

“I’ve been asleep. Though, I’ve been receiving information from Akane all along.” -Diz

By the way, Akane is sleeping soundly on Diz’s chest in the form of a cat. It was cute.

“So, do you understand what’s going on?”  -Ur

“Not really.”  -Diz

“Not really, huh…” -Ur

The moment the entire city was covered in a pitch-black barrier, he was certain they needed Diz’s help for this dangerous case, so that answer was a bit disappointing.

“Barriers like this are often used by dragons associated with 【Sloth】. It’s not from 【Gluttony】.” -Diz

“Does that mean it came from somewhere else?” -Ur

“Possibly… However, the dungeon’s overall characteristic is 【Gluttony】’s 【Hunger】.” -Diz

“Meaning?” -Ur

“It’s mismatched. It doesn’t fit together. The completion level is low.” -Diz

Diz seemed troubled. If she, who had far more knowledge about dragons than Ur, was this troubled, then it was understandable that Ur wouldn’t know what to do. And her being troubled meant that the current situation was extremely complicated.

There was only one thing Ur could suggest.

“Look, Echelle might not like it but—” -Ur

“No.” -Diz

“Hey.” -Ur

He was refused faster than he could propose enlisting the 【Hero】.

“I do have a duty to deal with dragons, but I have no intention of moving for a while.” -Diz

“Is the damage still that bad?” -Ur

“The damage has mostly healed. But it’s bad if they ‘notice’ me moving.” -Diz

Ur frowned at the ominous implications of her words. He tried to look outside the carriage, but he was quickly pulled back and restrained.

“Don’t look around too much, okay? There’s someone who’s been watching this carriage for a long, long time.” -Diz

“…Who is it?” -Ur

Ur’s voice instinctively became quieter. It might be meaningless at this point, but thinking that their conversation had been under surveillance all this time was unsettling.

“Well, the most suspicious are the heretics, and the 【Dragon that Devours the Sun】.” -Diz

Fortresses, necromancers, gashadokuros, and dragon offsprings – remembering these unpleasant things made Ur feel sick.

“Is this turmoil their doing?” -Ur

“I don’t know. It might be them, but I can’t say for sure. They seem to be monitoring us very cautiously to avoid being traced back, so I don’t even know who it is. If they’re keeping this distance, they probably can’t hear our conversation.” -Diz

There were no signs of magic being used around the carriage, suggesting they were indeed just being watched from a distance. It was surprising that she even noticed, but coming from Diz, it probably wasn’t a lie.

“What’s clear, though, is that they’re trying to do something sneaky to me, the 【Hero】.” -Diz

“That’s definitely trouble… But if that’s the case, wouldn’t it be all the more reason for you to act?” -Ur

However, Diz just shook her head while lying down.

“I want to appear as if I’m injured. Considering how cautious our observer is, if they realize I can move, they’ll flee.” -Diz

“If they just flee, honestly, that would be preferable for us.” -Ur

Ur’s true wish was to avoid confrontation if possible.

Diz smiled gently at Ur’s sentiment.

“It would be nice if the observer cleaned up their mess before fleeing.” -Diz

“…So, you mean to say  in the worst case, they might just spread chaos and then run away?” -Ur

“If the 【Dragon that Devours the Sun】 is involved, the moment their plan falls apart, they might switch to indiscriminate destruction. As long as it harms those living under the Sun God, anything goes for them.” -Diz

Ur forced a smile, then felt sickened.

A group aimed solely at harming people, today’s society, and the world, using any means necessary and consisting of various forms and beings, united only by hatred. They were essentially monsters, not human.

Ur’s perception shifted slightly. The fact that the cultists were human like him had, perhaps, made him view them too lightly. They were unmistakably enemies of humanity.

“So, that means I’ll keep drawing the observer’s attention to the limit before making a move, and I’ll continue to rest. My body hasn’t fully healed yet.” -Diz

“Should I also keep a low profile then?” -Ur

“No, I still want information from Ur’s perspective, other than Akane’s, so show your face around occasionally. Just don’t arouse suspicion.” -Diz

“That’s easier said than done.” -Ur

“Act like a boyfriend who’s worried and visits frequently. That shouldn’t raise any eyebrows.” -Diz

“Visiting a friend should suffice.” -Ur

Diz got unusually excited at the prospect of a friend’s visit, something she claimed she’d never experienced before. Moved by her reaction, Ur decided to bring some fruit the next time he visited.

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“A dragon appeared.” -Ur

“You sure get wrapped up in trouble a lot, Ur.” -Diz

“And then Echelle was subjected to a subservience contract by Shizuku and became a member of our party.” -Ur

“Shizuku sure causes a lot of trouble.” -Diz

Ur accepted these comments with a bitter face. Annoying, but true.

It had been a day full of events. After returning from the dungeon and negotiating with Jain, a dragon suddenly appeared, which they fought desperately before Echelle officially joined their party.

“So, what was the dragon like?” -Diz

“You heard from Akane, right? Akane was the biggest contributor this time.” -Ur

《Yeeaah! I did good! 》-Akane

Akane proudly wiggled her soft body around, imitating a snake or rather, a slime, it seemed.

Akane was wide awake today. Apparently, she was incredibly dissatisfied that she had been asleep when Ur last visited the carriage. She had been upset that he hadn’t woken her up, scolding him adorably for it.

“I want to hear your thoughts, Ur. Even just your impressions. Anything?” -Diz

As Diz asked, sipping tea that Jenna had served, Ur peeled off the clinging Akane and stared into space. Asked for his impressions, he was at a loss… but not really. In truth, encountering and battling the dragon had indeed left him with significant thoughts and feelings, which he had discussed and confirmed with Shizuku.

“It was incomparable to a dragon of sin, even weaker than the dragon puppy that Diz had defeated, which was just born. Was that really a dragon?” -Ur

Despite the hard fight and failing to defeat it completely, allowing it to escape, such words came out because Ur knows about 【dragons】.

Indeed, it was stronger than them. But it wasn’t that they couldn’t fight back. They were able to temporarily repel it with a counterattack from Lynne’s White King Formation. But Ur knows by experience that dragons are not that weak.

“The reason Shizuku decided we should continue the fight on our own was apparently because her anti-dragon formula didn’t work on it. It looked the part, but the essence wasn’t that of a real dragon.” -Ur

Diz nodded as if she was convinced by that answer.

“I’m not sure how much we can trust that ‘formula’, but if both you and Shizuku say so, then that flying dragon must be a fake.”  -Diz

“Are we okay to conclude that based on our impressions?” -Ur

“Seems like you’re not fully aware, so let me tell you, you and Shizuku are the only ones besides the 【Seven Heavens】 and the【Gold Ranks】 who have faced a dragon of sin and lived to tell the tale.” -Diz

“Wow, I’m not happy at all.” -Ur

The depth of experience that was too great gave him a headache.

“Having firsthand knowledge of the threat of the highest-ranking dragons and surviving, I’ll trust your instincts.” -Diz

“So, a monster resembling a dragon just happened to come to this temporary city?” -Ur

“Do you really think it was just by chance?” -Diz

Diz asked. Ur grimaced and shook his head.

“…Well, no way that’s the case.” -Ur

“The trigger for this city’s incident, the anomaly in the city under construction, the appearance of a supposed dragon in Gradol, the request for protection from a gold-rank City of Sin. The result, attention was diverted from here. Too coincidental.” -Diz

Piecing together fragments of information, the outline of this request quest emerged. There was no uncertainty like that of a natural disaster. What existed was just raw, human malice and intent.

“…Using a monster shaped like a dragon to lure gold ranks…? Some kind of familiar?” -Ur

“What’s happening in this city isn’t a dragon calamity. It’s a human-caused disaster.” -Diz

Currently, including the dragon calamity happening in Gradol, everything seemed to be a human-caused disaster. She seemed convinced of that. A dreadful dragon calamity, for reasons unknown, had been replaced by vile human malice. Supposedly less severe than a dragon calamity, but the malice of humans felt far more repugnant.

“And, even if it’s just in form, using the guise of a dragon significantly increases the likelihood of heretical involvement. In this world, even the worst villains shun the idea of imitating a dragon.” -Diz

“Heretics confirmed… what a pain.” -Ur

“If this is the level of trouble, it’s still manageable.” -Diz

Diz’s remarks were ominously unsettling. It would have been preferable if it were just a joke to scare him, but she wasn’t even smiling.

“What’s with that ominous tone?” -Ur

“It’s a bit too elaborate just to cause chaos in a city under construction.” -Diz

“So, this turmoil is some kind of precursor?” -Ur

“Seems like it. So, Ur…” -Diz

Ur grimaced.

“You’re saying to investigate.” -Ur

“I’m lucky to have found  a guard who’s so quick on the uptake.” -Diz

“Is this really a guard’s job?” -Ur

“It definitely is, in terms of protecting both me and your own safety.” -Diz

Ur wanted to argue but found himself speechless.

“But we’re probably already stretched thin just exploring Uuga. We don’t have the capacity for more.” -Ur

“Exactly, I want you to investigate Uuga. If there’s something to find, it’ll be there.” -Diz

The temporary city, the reason for the shelter’s inception, the destination where the flying dragon fled after Lynne’s attack. The epicenter of everything was there. Indeed, if there was a place to investigate, it would be there.

“I’ll have Akane search the temporary city side. Even if the heretics are the vile enemies of humanity, they need food and water to survive. They must be hiding somewhere in the temporary city.” -Diz

《Hide ‘n seek! 》-Akane

“Akane is ‘it’, then. Do your best to find them.”  -Diz

Akane’s face lit up with enthusiasm at Diz’s words.

Chasing after the enemies of all humanity, one wonders if it’ll be okay.

“So, in the end, I just need to explore the dungeon as Echelle requested, normally?” -Ur

“Yes, but keep in mind that this is something caused by humans.” -Diz

“What do you mean?” -Ur

“Unlike naturally occurring dungeons, those created by humans always have a clear purpose. Whether it’s for defense, invasion, or something else. Grasping that is key. It could also serve as a hint for navigating it.” -Diz

Ur silently nodded at her advice.