The Speedrun Manual of Miss Witch-Chapter 113 - Let’s See Whose Life is Harder (1/2)

【Berren, United Kingdom of Ansu】

【Roswell Manor】

【June 24th, 741】

【——】

【Berren, United Kingdom of Ansu】

【No. 71 Gem Avenue】

【Miss Ciel】

【——】

【Dear Ciel:】

【It took a little time, but I’ve translated all the text I copied... Honestly, it’s not that easy to understand, which is due to my skill level】

【It’s just that the latter two copies have too many errors, making a detailed translation impossible】

【If you feel the translation isn’t quite right, may I mail the copied attachments to Ansu? I know a professor specializing in Old Ansu script; she can do better than me】

Ciel continued reading downwards. Below were some analyses Avena herself made for each word.

Avena also pointed out many errors in Ciel’s writing, even detailing the translations of each word in different regions and interpretations by scholars from different periods, spanning several pages.

The final attached translation was Avena’s own polished version of the entire Old Ansu text.

This amount of work didn’t seem like it only “took a little time” as Avena wrote in the letter.

Avena clearly put a lot of effort into consulting numerous resources, possibly even staying up all night to produce this translation—after all, Avena herself hadn’t studied Old Ansu script extensively, making the workload seem even greater.

This serious and rigorous translation, like an investigation report, was indeed a significant help to Ciel.

Unknowingly, Ciel once again owed Avena a debt of gratitude.

As for how to repay this debt, Ciel already had an idea.

Avena’s potion path was stuck at the second-tier “Psychologist.” Clearly, Avena digested the prerequisite first-tier “Listener” very smoothly, yet she couldn’t overcome the hurdle of “Psychologist.”

Avena in the previous simulation held a grudge about this, remaining upset for a long time.

Ciel decided that in the next simulation, after completing the Reconstitution Ritual for her new potion, if she had free time, she would help Avena find the reason and then help her resolve this matter in reality.

Ciel could naturally sense Avena’s affection for her. Whenever it concerned her matters, Avena was exceptionally attentive and serious.

But in Ciel’s own heart, there was always a barrier, making her somewhat ashamed to face Avena’s affection.

That was the “friend fee,” the Eye of Order contract.

Even with the existence of the “Substitute Death Relic” on Avena, it inevitably made Ciel wonder how much of Avena’s affection was genuine, and how much was due to the contract.

[Translator’s Note: Substitute Death Relic, or previously Sacrificial Saint’s Relic. I made a mistake with the previous translation, so I’ll use the current name from now on. I have edited the name in the precious Chapters, too. Please let me know if I missed anything.]

However, Ciel decided not to dwell on this matter anymore.

If she was uncertain, she just needed to confess once in the simulation.

Regardless of the outcome, at least it wouldn’t leave Ciel’s heart conflicted again.

Ciel took out the attachment from the envelope and unfolded the paper on top.

【”Fate Calamity (?) arrives, punishing the three Fate Vessels (?)”】

【”The chosen ones are fickle, unwilling to follow the fated (?) guidance”】

【”Rules remain chaotic and unclear, twisting fate (?) only invites dire punishment”】

【”Dire consequences will follow like shadows, irreversible, irretrievable”】

【”The first tribulation has descended, the remaining calamities will follow one after another”】

The first piece of Old Ansu script, polished by Avena, was presented before Ciel’s eyes.

The places Avena marked with red ink and question marks were where Avena herself wasn’t sure if the translation was correct; after all, Avena couldn’t understand the meaning.

But Ciel could understand.

Most likely, Avena hadn’t translated incorrectly.

Fate Calamity, Fate Vessel, Fated...

Fated... Ciel was all too familiar with this term.

When the system was first activated, the first lesson the system taught her was “Fated Death.”

Overcoming “Fated Death” would bring Ciel bountiful rewards, and the original meaning of “Fated Death” was a calamity that was destined to cause death in the original fate.

“System, someone stole your line.” Ciel called out to the system in her mind, wanting to see if she could get anything out of it.

Soon, a silver-white screen appeared before Ciel.

【I’m open source】

Oh awesome, there’s a Source God here too.

“Do you know who did it?” Ciel was still trying, but the system’s reply screen never appeared again.

Just as Ciel was preparing to further interpret these sentences, a flash of inspiration crossed Ciel’s mind, and she promptly caught this fleeting insight.

Open source?

The system seemed to say nothing, but it did reveal some information to Ciel.

It was the phrase “open source” used by the system. This proved the term was indeed created by the system itself.

Moreover, the system didn’t deny Ciel’s statement “someone stole your line.” This proved that the person or “thing” who left this message likely had intricate connections with the system.

This wasn’t Ciel overthinking. At a time like this with no clues, any possible idea should not be dismissed.

First, grasp a potential breakthrough point, think deeply, and perhaps there will be unexpected gains.

Sometimes, the truth lies hidden in the details.

Even if there were no gains, it would count as eliminating one wrong answer.

Ciel tentatively followed this train of thought, continuing to deduce, to see if her reasoning could be self-consistent in the end.

Fate Calamity, Fate Vessel, Fated.

The chosen ones...

Ciel wrote these four terms on a blank sheet of paper, her dip pen gently tapping on “the chosen ones.”

Ciel slowly drew an arc with the pen, connecting “the chosen ones” and “Fate Vessel.”

“The chosen ones” most likely referred to the three of them: Ciel, Lucy, and Oppold.

Then what was “Fate Vessel”?

Fate Vessel, Fate Vessel, Fate Vessel...

Vessel...

Ciel opened the letter Avena wrote her earlier, flipped to the latter two pages, and started searching.

Soon, she found the term. There were indeed different translations, even words formed with different prefixes under the same root. Avena’s work was indeed very meticulous.

“Vessel” in modern Ansu script could be translated as “tool” or “container,” “handicraft,” all related to items of use.

But in Old Ansu script, this term had different connotations in different places or organizations, even in different contexts.

Ciel copied all the words with the same root that Avena helped her collect onto her notebook in Ansu script.

“Relic,” “Chalice,” “Amulet,” “Tool”...

The roots of these words were the same. It couldn’t be ruled out that Ciel copied them wrong; any of these words could potentially be the original text.

After all, memorizing several large paragraphs of unfamiliar words purely by imagination was indeed too difficult. Ciel could only barely remember the first few paragraphs by imagining them as images.

After carefully comparing the analyses and translations of these words, Ciel fixed her gaze on the word “Relic.”