Akatsuki Translations

I’m often called stupid by my master. I know I’m stupid too. So even though Yuuta and my master tried hard to teach me this plan, I didn’t really understand it well.

“Charge in. Take them down,” I thought to myself.

It’s a very simple idea. That’s what I always do. But apparently that’s not okay this time. The reason it’s not okay is because this world is complicated and bizarre. At that time, I was feeling sleepy while thinking that I didn’t really understand my master’s explanation as usual.

“That’s not it,” my master said.

“Evie, explaining it complexly won’t help Lean understand,” Yuuta interjected. “Lean, you don’t need to think about it too hard. Just approach quietly without the enemy noticing and kill them. Misuzu will help with everything else.”

“…Understood,” I replied.

It’s incredibly simple.

“Yuuta, that’s missing some of the finer details,” Evie objected.

“Evie, getting her to understand is more important,” Yuuta countered.

“But…” Evie started to protest.

I think my master is a bit strict with me. Or rather, she fusses too much and it’s annoying. But I know she’s worried about me because she’s my master. I like Yuuta. He’s always kind. When I snuggle up to him, he pats my head and it feels good.

“Me stupid. Troublesome,” I once asked my master.

My master replied, “W-What are you saying? You’re not troublesome at all! Do you know how much I was encouraged by your ‘gya-gya’ sounds in the American dungeon? And it’s okay even if you say you’re stupid. You’re smarter than a chimpanzee at least.”

“Evie, that’s not a compliment…” Yuuta pointed out.

“Yuuta, what are you saying? It’s plenty of praise. Chimpanzees can’t talk. But Lean can talk. That means she’s smarter than a chimpanzee,” Evie insisted.

“Evie, I still don’t think that’s a compliment,” Yuuta sighed.

I probably felt like I wasn’t being praised either. So I wanted to show my master my smart side too. This time, I’m acting alone, separated from Yuuta. Using my small size to my advantage, I’m doing what they call an infiltration mission. The target is a male Goblin Mage, a being I can hardly believe is the same as me.

If I find him on top of the highest building, I’ll charge in and kill him. No, that’s not quite right. I forgot. Kill him quietly. This still feels off somehow. Oh right, I forgot. Kill him quietly from behind. I succeeded in killing the first one after separating from Yuuta.

When I approached quietly and killed, was it really this easy? This opponent is probably much stronger than me right now. It’s a being called a Goblin Mage. To defeat it without letting it use magic.

Is it this easy when you do it that way? I’m glad it was easy with Misuzu’s help too. I didn’t feel like it was that difficult. I remember what I need to do next. My master had said:

“After you kill two goblins on high buildings, Misuzu will snipe and take down enemies in your path from another high building. However, Misuzu can’t take down more than two at once. You understand why, right?”

“I understand. It’s because of Misuzu’s skill,” I had replied.

“Yes. But if we don’t take these enemies down all at once, their comrades will suddenly gather,” my master explained.

“Suddenly… what happens?” I had asked, confused.

“Evie, the explanation is getting complicated again,” Yuuta had interjected. “Lean, first you need to find Misuzu on top of a high building.”

I remembered Yuuta’s words. I searched for the high building where Misuzu was. Misuzu, wearing the same ghillie suit as me, was peeking out slightly from a high building. I could tell our eyes met.

“Yuuta, I’ll teach Lean myself. You don’t need to,” my master had said.

“O-Okay,” Yuuta had replied.

For some reason, my master has been arguing with Yuuta lately. I don’t really understand why. Rai had told me:

“I’m not sure of the exact reason, but it seems the master has been lacking confidence in herself recently.”

“Why argue because of that?” I had asked.

“It’s probably because the master is human. Humans don’t seem to think as simply as we do,” Rai had explained.

“…Is Yuuta bullying master?” I had wondered.

“That’s probably not it either,” Rai had replied.

Humans are complicated. They suddenly lose confidence, worry about someone dying, or fear fighting even though they fight.

If you die, it’s over.

That’s all there is to it, but my master worries excessively about me.

“Lean. After you find Misuzu, kill the goblins that are always visible to her. Do it quietly from behind without being noticed. And no more than three goblins at a time. Don’t target more than that,” my master had instructed.

I lie flat on the ground and move slowly. Ahead, I see a goblin with an arrow in its head. It’s a well-built one called a Soldier. Misuzu’s work. If there are two or fewer goblins, Misuzu might dispose of them on her own.

In that case, my master had said, “Hide the bodies. Okay?”

“Understood,” I reply.

I drag the large goblin’s body. After hiding it in the shadow of a building, I spray a very smelly perfume on it. Then I take out a lot of grass from my magic bag and cover it. I don’t make mistakes because I’ve practiced the procedure many times.

“Is this good?”

Not quite confident, I look towards Misuzu. I can see her nodding on top of the high building. I don’t understand why she looks pale.

I lie down on the ground again and start moving.

“Gya~ Gya~”

I hear a goblin’s voice. A cheerful voice. Being originally a goblin, I can understand what the dungeon goblins are saying, which my master and Yuuta can’t understand at all.

It’s like saying, “I’ve come to play~”

Probably, he came to play with the one I hid under grass behind the building.

“Gya~ Gya~” (“Not here?”)

I understand what he’s saying. For some reason, I feel a stirring in my chest. While thinking I don’t really understand why, I slowly approach the goblin who came to play at his friend’s house, just as Yuuta and the others told me to.

The very well-built goblin seemed to be about twice my height. He had gone into the building, and it seemed he hadn’t noticed anything.

*Creak*

The house made a noise.

“Gyagya” (“Oh, you are here”)

Still, the large goblin, off guard, seemed to think the sound I made was his friend. He turns around without any sense of caution. I thought I could definitely kill him. I drew my short sword and stabbed it into the Soldier’s neck.

“Gya?” (“A female goblin?”)

Ah, no good. I failed. I realized the sword didn’t go in deep enough. The goblin seems dull. Even with a short sword stuck in his neck, his battle switch hasn’t turned on yet. He’s quite stupid. Master, the dungeon goblins are stupider than me.

But the goblin in front of me is much bigger than the small, red-clothed goblins, and his neck is higher.

It was a mistake for someone as short as me to aim for the neck in the first place.

But it’s okay. Misuzu’s arrow will help me soon.

“Gyagya” (“Rare. First time seeing a female goblin”)

The large goblin drew a thick greatsword from his waist. Strange. Misuzu should have shot through the goblin’s head long ago, but not yet? When I look towards Misuzu, there’s just the wooden wall of the building.

Come to think of it, I was told not to go inside buildings.

“Be careful not to enter buildings because Misuzu won’t be able to see you,” my master had said.

So I shouldn’t have entered the building. I really am stupid. Looks like I’ll die here. This guy probably wants to keep me, so he won’t kill me. But I don’t like that, so I’ll die by myself.

“Gya!”

He swings down his greatsword. I barely manage to pull out a halberd from my magic bag to block it. The tremendous force makes my whole body creak. My master’s summon strengthening has already worn off. Overpowered, I’m blown away. I’m slammed against the building’s wall. My arm hurts.

Looking at it, I see my arm has bent in a strange direction, overpowered by the goblin’s strength.

“Gyagya” (“What a weak goblin”)

“As I thought, I can’t win,” I think to myself.

If that’s the case, I need to die quickly. After that one hit, I understand clearly that I absolutely can’t win. Above all, if I make a commotion, other goblins will gather. If that happens, I won’t even be able to die properly. With my arm broken, it’s hard to grip the short sword.

Still, I somehow manage to press the short sword against my neck, trying to cut my own throat.

But for some reason, I couldn’t make the motion to cut.

The image of my master’s crying face flashed in my mind.

If I die, my master will cry.

Thinking that, I became unable to cut my neck.

Just as I started to feel troubled, I felt my body starting to disappear.

Ah, I really am stupid after all.

I remember a conversation:

“Hey, isn’t an infiltration mission too dangerous for Lean no matter what?” Misuzu had said.

“It’s okay, Misuzu. Let me know the moment you judge that something’s wrong with Lean,” my master had replied.

“Evie, you’ll be waiting outside, right? Won’t it be too late to help?” Misuzu had asked.

“Misuzu…” my master had looked at Misuzu with an incredibly pitying expression.

“W-What’s with that disappointed face? It’s really hurtful to look at me like I’m an idiot,” Misuzu had protested.

“【Summon Cancel】”

I understood why my master had said that.

“Listen. Never try to die recklessly. You seem to think of your life as lighter than a feather sometimes, so be careful. No matter what happens, I will absolutely bring you back to me. Dungeon goblins don’t easily kill females. So as long as I’m safe, you’ll be fine,” my master had told me.

I always think that I want to help my master.

But again, I couldn’t be of any use. I need to become stronger. How can I become stronger? The large goblin in front of me falls backward, looking puzzled as I disappear. Because he’s so big, his fall makes a huge noise.

What? Was I able to take him down with that strike to the neck earlier?

What a dull guy. He should have died sooner.

Master, I properly defeated him. So please don’t worry and bring me back immediately.

【Announcing a race evolution. Race evolution condition: Defeat a total of 1000 goblins of higher level than yourself has been confirmed. As the specified condition has been met, the summoned beast Lean will begin race evolution from Blue Goblin to High Blue】

I feel like I heard such a voice.