Konjiki no Word Master - Chapter 64: The Fight with the Cactus Man

Ok. Long one, but I finished it within a day.
I'll fix up the notes/annotations/errors after I get some sleep.

Source: http://ncode.syosetu.com/n7031bs/64/

Edit 1(31/3/2015): Fixed Notes/Annotations.
Edit 2 (31/3/2015): Converted to US spelling/grammar.

Chapter 64: The fight with the Cactus Man

As Silva had indicated earlier, the area was absent of overgrown weeds. Looking at the environment filled with a variety of numerous blooming flowers, it was as if they had entered another world.

Silva: 「Please proceed with caution.」

Hiiro: 「You’re trying to say that there are also monsters that mimic flowers here, right?」

Silva: 「Nofofo⁽¹⁾, precisely.」

In response Hiiro’s perceptiveness, Silva responded with a beaming smile.

As they plowed through the field while maintaining high vigilance, Silva began to grow restless.

Hiiro: 「Is this about that thing you were looking for?」

Silva: 「Yes. It was supposedly growing around this area, yet...」

As he examined a patch of flowers of various vivid hues, his gaze focused on a single flower.

Silva: 「Oo~⁽²⁾, here it is!」

Hiiro similarly directed his gaze. What was present was a flower that blossomed with petals the shade of a rare gold. Its shape and appearance somehow resembled a rose.

Silva: 「Uu~⁽³⁾, I was finally able to obtain it, Ojou-sama~⁽⁴⁾」

Taking a handkerchief from his pocket, Silva began to wipe his tears brought forth by overflowing emotions. Perhaps Silva’s heart was moved due to the fact that he achieved his mission in such a treacherous area where one could die at anytime.

Silva: 「Nofofofofo!  I have successfully retrieved the 《Golden Rose》⁽⁵⁾!」

At that moment, as if Silva’s sentiments were being interjected⁽⁶⁾-

*Gogogogogogogogo*⁽⁷⁾

The environment began to sway. The trembling was so substantial it would make one question whether a magnitude 5⁽⁸⁾ earthquake was occurring. Following this, a crack ran across the ground that the 《Golden Rose》 was growing on. From the crack, something seemed to be squeezed out.

「Kiii~!⁽⁹⁾」

What had raised such a peculiar cry was a monster that had the 《Golden Rose》 appended to its head as hair. It’s body length was about the size of a passenger carriage’s height, and it had sharp needles covering its whole body. It was a monster that resembled a cactus with arms and legs.

Silva: 「A-as I thought, this it’s been infected by a parasitic cactus!」

Hiiro: 「What kind of monster is it?」

Silva: 「Parasitic Cacti usually sleep in the ground, however, they occasionally feed by latching onto high vitality flowers for their nutrition! The 《Golden Rose》 has oft been referred to as the ‘rose that will never wither’. Its not a plant whose vitality would be classified as minuscule. In addition, the flower also possesses special effects. I had anticipated that a Parasitic Cactus would feed on it, however, I sincerely wished that I would not have to encounter one.」

Hiiro; 「I see.」

As he returned a faint nod, he instructed Mikazuki to keep her distance.

Hiiro: 「Well then, although it was hard to do anything earlier, it looks like I’ll be able to move as I please this time. I’ll help you clean this up」

Silva: 「Please wait, Hiiro-sama⁽¹⁰⁾! If you were to use fire, then-!」

In as state of panic, Silva shot off a string of words.

Hiiro: 「I know. You’re saying that I’ll end up burning the 《Golden Rose》, right?  Calm down, I’m not gonna use fire.」

As he spoke, he drew out his 『Thorn Sword - Piercer』. Seeing this katana⁽¹¹⁾, Silva was impressed as he widened his eyes.

Silva: 「Nofofo, that is the 『Thorn Sword - Piercer』, is it not!?」

Hiiro: 「Nn?⁽¹²⁾ You know of it?」

Silva: 「Indeed. As-」

However, as if restating that this was no time for leisure, the Parasitic Cactus’ needles flew at them.

Silva: 「Nofo!」

Hiiro: 「Yotto⁽¹³⁾! We’ll talk later! First, let’s crush this guy!」

As the two evaded the needles, they distanced themselves from the cactus.

Silva: 「H-however, are you certain about this?  This opponent is of substantially high skill .」

Hiiro: 「Fun⁽¹⁴⁾, it’s perfect for leveling up. Oi⁽¹⁵⁾, Cactus Man! If you’re gonna fight then get your ass over here!」

In face of Hiiro’s provocation, the Parasitic Cactus approached while raising a fairly loud groan. If they were to collide, Hiiro would undoubtedly be skewered by the myriad of thorns growing all over the Cactus Man’s body.

Silva: 「As those needles contain poison, please be cautious.」

Hiiro: 「Got it!」

Strongly kicking off the ground, Hiiro slipped past the Parasitic Cactus’ right side, turning towards its back. As Hiiro was going to plunge his katana into the Cactus Man’s back, the Cactus began to shoot the needles on its back towards Hiiro’s direction.

Hiiro: 「This asshole-!?」

In an instant, Hiiro considered cutting down the projectile needles with his katana. However, as the number of needles were overwhelming, he determined that he would soon become prey to a countless number of the Cactus Man’s thorns, being the end of him.

Hiiro: (Shit! If it comes to this, I should use the 「Protect 」| 『坊』word and-!)

As Hiiro was about to attempt to use 《Word Magic》 out of necessity, Silva suddenly appeared in front of him, spreading his arms wide as if he were shielding Hiiro.

*busubusubusubusubusubusubusu*⁽¹⁶⁾

Hiiro: 「Jii-san⁽¹⁷⁾!」

The needles mercilessly pierced Silva’s body.

As if it was exhausted after expelling all of its needles, the Parasitic Cactus’ movements halted. Silva slightly moved his mouth.

Silva: 「....n-now...is the….time…..if you...sever the….flower from the head, then…..」

It seemed that the Cactus would be defeated if the flower from the head was cut. Thinking that he had to do something to the Parasitic Cactus, Hiiro placed a large amount of force in his feet as he made a huge leap.

Hiiro: 「Haa-⁽¹⁸⁾!」

Hiiro used his katana to cut the stem of the 《Golden Rose》. The 《Golden Rose》 was splendidly severed from the Parasitic Cactus’ body. The body of the Parasitic Cactus that was of a green tint, changed to an earthly shade before collapsing as if it were made of sand. Only the 《Golden Rose》 remained.

Taking the 《Golden Rose》 on top of the sand that was once the Parasitic Cactus, Hiiro spat out a sigh with a *Fu~*⁽¹⁹⁾. Following this, as if suddenly occurring to him, he looked towards Silva.

Seeing the state that Silva was in, Hiiro widened his eyes without thinking. As to why, this is because...

Silva: 「Fu~, yareyare⁽²⁰⁾.」

As if he were simply brushing off dust, Silva began to brush off the needles with a *pasapasa*⁽²¹⁾. In addition, he was doing it nonchalantly.

Hiiro: 「...Jii-san, the poison?」

No matter how one looked at it, Silva’s countenance was not one of somebody suffering from any sort of deadly poison. Hearing Hiiro’s doubts, Silva returned his question with a pleasant smile.

Silva: 「There is no issue.」

Hiiro: 「.....ha-⁽²²⁾?」

Silva: 「Because I am a Butler.」

Hiiro: 「......」

As Hiiro’s cheat was also outside the realm of the ‘standard’, he couldn't help but feel a connection with the elderly man before him who had apparently also exceed the norm.

Hiiro: 「Oi, weren't you speaking really painfully earlier?」

Certainly, during the time when Silva informed Hiiro of the weak point concerning the flower, his face was distorted in considerable pain.

Silva: 「Nofofofofo……..let us just say, that I conformed with the atmosphere?」

Hiiro: 「....this Jiji⁽²³⁾.」

*Piki*⁽²⁴⁾ A blue vein appeared on Hiiro’s forehead. It seemed that he had only put on an act in order to fit the situation.

Silver: 「In any case, Hiiro-sama. The 《Golden Rose》 is…?」

Hiiro: 「...ha~⁽²⁵⁾, here.」

Even if he were to pursue further, Hiiro somehow understood that Silva would just answer ‘Because I am a Butler’, shrouding the truth in a cloud of mist. As he determined that this meant the butler did not want to disclose any more, Hiiro simply answered him without investigating further.

Silva: 「Oo~, with this, I can finally return to the mansion!」

As he received the 《Golden Rose》 from Hiiro by gently wrapping both his hands around it, he raised it towards the sky, using it as a background as he gazed at it.

Silva: 「I am eternally grateful, Hiiro-sama! It was truly thanks to you that I was able to obtain the item that I was searching for without harm! Nofofofofo!」

Hiiro: 「Good for you.」

As Hiiro said this without any particular feelings charged into it, he sheathed his katana. Seeing this, Silva expressed an 「Oo~」as he tapped his hand with a *pon*⁽²⁶⁾.

Silva: 「Speaking of which, about our previous conversation...」

Hiiro: 「Ah? ...Aa, you mean about the katana?」

In the middle of the encounter, Silva brought up a story concerning the 『Thorn Sword - Piercer』. His atmosphere indicated that he was familiar with it.

Silva: 「Indeed. I believe that is the 『Thorn Sword - Piercer』, correct?」

Hiiro: 「Aa, what of it? It’s not for sale.」

Silva: 「Nofofo! I am not indicating that I desire that katana. It is just that as it has been such a long time since I have seen that katana, I couldn't help but get a little emotional with my words.」

Hiiro: 「A long time? You've seen it?」

Silva: 「Indeed. That katana happens to be one produced by a dear friend of mine. Well, 『Thorn Sword - Piercer』 was a prototype that was developed in a single attempt, but...」

Hiiro: 「A prototype...you say?」

Silva: 「Indeed. Although he is a Gabranth, he is a sword-smith⁽²⁷⁾ that has an arm that cannot be compared with any other. How nostalgic~. I wonder as to how he is doing right now...」

As he saw Silva’s distant eyes immersed in nostalgia, Hiiro opened his mouth with a skeptical expression.

Hiiro: 「This is a prototype?」

If you were to put it succinctly, its sharpness was outstanding and its ease of use was admirable compared to other swords in its group. This katana, Hiiro couldn't count how many times he had been saved by it. He thought that its absence would undoubtedly have made his journey more difficult.

Hearing that such workmanship amounted to a prototype at most, Hiiro could not help but suspect those words.

Silva: 「That is, without a doubt, a prototype. I say this because his genuine works often have his signature applied to the hilt and the blade.」

Upon closely inspecting the katana, Hiiro could not find anything resembling a signature.

Silva: 「In addition, if that were genuine, a monster of that level would be sliced with one swing.」

Hiiro: 「...so his real works are at that level, huh?」

Silva: 「You are correct. Well, even if a prototype, his katanas tend to select their own owners. In my eyes, that katana appears to be very satisfied. Satisfied that it is in the hands of a good owner.」

In the face of this statement, Hiiro began to feel an itchy feeling infested in him. As he determined that should this continue, he would grow sick due to the cozy atmosphere, he began to change the topic.

Hiiro: 「A-any way. Where’re you going from here? You've finished your errand, right Jii-san?」

Silva: 「Eh? Ah, indeed. If we were to advance, we would soon reach the granite area. As it is a downward slope from there, the exit of the mountain will follow soon after.」

Hiiro: 「I see. Then let’s hurry up and move.」

Silva: 「As you wish.」

Hiiro: 「Oi, Yodare-Tori⁽²⁸⁾! Show yourself!」

As Hiiro called for Mikazuki, she poked her head out from behind a tree with a *hyoko*⁽²⁹⁾.

Hiiro: 「Yosh, let’s quickly get out of this mountain.」

Notes:

(Disclaimer: I am describing the terms used above as best as I can describe them. You’re probably better off checking with Google. With that said, please don’t quote me as I am not a professional.)

1. ^ Nofofo: Silva’s laugh. Get used to it. He does it a lot...
2. ^ Oo: Not 2 ‘o’o but an elongated O. Expresses surprise/amazement.
3. ^ Uu: An expression denoting joy in this context.
4. ^ Ojou-sama: A term used to refer to a female of high status. Alternate Trans: ‘My lady’ | ’Mistress’
5. ^ TL Note: Konjiki no Rose Master...
6. ^ TL Note: Term used for ‘interject’ is tsukkomi. Couldn't be bothered to try and incorporate it into the sentence.
7. ^ *Gogo*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *rumble*.
8. ^ TL Note: Not sure if this is precise. Phrase used is ‘Japanese Earthquake Measurement’.
9. ^ Kiii~: Shrill cry?
10. ^ -sama: A suffix used to show respect to the one addressed. Very formal and used to address someone of higher position (eg. A maid addressing her Master).
11. ^ TL Note: Katana|刀 is the kanji used here. As this is different from Sword|剣, I have translated it as such..
12. ^ Nn: Expression denoting interest or confusion.
13. ^ Yotto: Expression used when someone is casually demonstrating effort. Similar to ‘hah!’ or a groan.
14. ^ Fun: Equivalent of ‘Hmph’.
15. ^ Oi: Kinda like ‘hey’.
16. ^ *busubusu*: Sound of something getting pierced. The sound a pin makes when pierced into a pincushion.
17. ^ Jii-san: An incredibly informal way of addressing an elderly male. Think of the friendly ‘old-man’ or the rude ‘old-fart’. This can be thought to be a variant of Ossan.
18. ^ Haa: A grunt and/or shout used when someone is demonstrating effort.
19. ^ *Fu*: Japanese onomatopoeia denoting the sound of exhalation.
20. ^ Yareyare: An expression mildly denoting exasperation. Think ‘good grief’.
21. ^ *pasapasa*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *patpat* (I think?). Not sure. Consult Mr. Google.
22. ^ Ha-?: ‘Huh?’
23. ^ Jiji: An alternative of Jii-san. As it does not have the suffix ‘-san’, it is considerably more informal/rude.
24. ^ *Piki*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *twitch* (I think?). Not sure. Consult Mr. Google.
25. ^ Ha~: Exhalation | A sigh | Exasperation
26. ^ *pon*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *pop* (I think?). Don’t know how to explain this one. If you’ve watched anime, you’ve probably seen it.
27. ^ TL Note: Literally read as Katana-Smith. I thought it sounded weird so changed it to Swordsmith.
28. ^ Yodare-Tori: Hiiro’s nickname for Mikazuki. Literally means Drool (Yodare) Bird (Tori).
29. ^ *pyoko*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *poking out* (I think?). Think of a wood block sound. If you've watched anime, you've probably seen it.

Konjiki no Moji Tsukai - Chapter 63: Venom Mountain

Finally! I'm Free! I've finished my assignments!
I'm so happy, that I translated ahead of time and am releasing this now! (Please don't kill me for posting ahead)

Alright. Me and my freedom aside, I've decided to change my format a little bit.
I've replaced quote marks "" with 「」to denote talking. As the author uses this format, I thought I should follow suit. I'll also be using some stylized brackets as the author uses them.

In addition, I'll be following NetBlazer's format for the words/characters. This is how it will look:
「English Word 」| 『Japanese Character』

One more thing. Before people start complaining about discrepancies, we have yet to decide on the Old-Fart's Name. NetBlazer uses Silvan, however, our reference list had Shyuba, so...yeah.

Source: http://ncode.syosetu.com/n7031bs/63/

Edit 1 (30/3/2015): Fixed Errors, changed 'old-fart' to 'Jii-san' and added corresponding note.
Edit 2 (31/3/2015): Converted to US spelling/grammar. Preemptively changed 'Shyuba' to 'Silva'
Edit 3 (31/3/2015): Fixed Error (Credit to Commentor: Henrique Castilho)

Chapter 63: Venom Mountain

【Venom Mountain】 was spread with carpet of lush and dense grass. One was able to discover a Evila road that was unlike any of the Gabranth paths.The trees held thickly grown black leaves. There were even uniquely large mushrooms that made their habitat here.

Hiiro: (That’s obviously a poison mushroom.)

While thinking thus, Hiiro proceeded to walk down the grass road while being extremely wary of his surroundings. In front of him was Silva who was leading the way.

Silva: 「Please take care, Hiiro-sama⁽¹⁾. The monsters that inhabit this area are well-versed in mimicry. It is not uncommon for those to be killed by poison fangs before one notices.」

Hiiro: 「You seem to know a lot, huh?」

Silva: 「This is because I am a Butler.」

As he contemplated upon the reason for this, Hiiro thought that Silva might have performed a preliminary investigation before coming here. He was completely different from Hiiro who improvised his actions. Hiiro thought that it became necessary for him to emulate a little bit of Silva’s manner of operation.

Silva: 「Please stop here!」

As Silva’s feet abruptly stopped, Mikazuki followed suit.

Hiiro: 「What is it?」

Silva: 「It is those branches.」

In the direction that Silva had pointed his finger were, indeed, thick branches that grew from a large tree. However, all that Hiiro felt when he looked at it was that those were just branches.

Silva: 「Over there are monsters that are mimicking branches. I presume that they are the monsters referred to as Lugoon.⁽²⁾」

The knowledge of such a monster did not appear in Hiiro’s memory. It was probably a monster specific to the 【Evila】 Continent.

Silva: 「Please observe.」

As he said thus, Silva began to retrieve something from his pouch. What had sparkled with a *kira~n*⁽³⁾ was clearly a knife used for eating.Throwing the knife with a *shuba*⁽⁴⁾, he pierced the branch that he had pointed at with his finger earlier.

「Gugya-!⁽⁵⁾」

At that location, a fat, cobra-like monster appeared, squirming around painfully with a *kunekune*⁽⁶⁾ due to the knife protruding out of its body. It tried to move, however, as the knife had fastened its body to the branch it was mimicking, it could not escape from that spot.

Soon after, it expelled green blood as its movements stopped, as if forfeiting.

Hiiro: 「You’re pretty knowledgeable, huh.」

Silva: 「That is because I am a Butler.」

Hiiro: 「......whatever.」

Hiiro convinced himself that this was due to Silva's eyes having good vision.

Hiiro: 「By the way, is this annoying weed-zone gonna keep going?」

As the area around one’s feet cannot be determined well, it would be a pain if they were attacked from below.

Silva: 「No, we will soon be approaching an open location. Unlike this area that is lush with long weeds and bushes, this location seems to be a grassland. Should one advance further, they would be met with a zone of granite. Proceeding past this stony area will bring you to the exit of the mountain.」

Hiiro: 「I see. In that case, we should probably aim for that open area or something first, huh?」

Silva: 「Indeed. What I am searching for appears to be in that location.」

It seemed that Silva had been ordered by his master to search for a certain something. As Hiiro had no interest, he didn't ask any further. After walking for a while, Silva once again abruptly paused.

Hiiro: 「Another monster?」

Silva: 「......I must apologize.」

As Silva's eyes were staring straight ahead, he gave his apology.

Hiiro: 「What’s up?」

Silva: 「It appears that we have been completely surrounded.」

Hiiro: 「What was that?」

Saying this, Hiiro instantly grew increasingly vigilant. Standing on Mikazuki’s back, Hiiro attentively surveyed his surroundings. However, no matter where Hiiro looked, all he could see around him were weeds. Following this, a leaves began to flutter through the air. Hiiro thought that this was caused by the wind.

However, the leaves headed straight for Hiiro.

Silva: 「Please evade Hiiro-sama!」

Hiiro: 「Eh?」

In the instant that Hiiro expressed his confusion, Silva threw the knife towards Hiiro’s location. Of course, what Silva was aiming for was not Hiiro, but the leaves. The knife penetrated the leaves before piercing itself into a tree trunk with a *ton*⁽⁷⁾.

Six legs began to grow from the leaves. Similar to the previous Lugoon, it struggled to escape from the knife, yet it drew its last breath as its existence faded.

Silva: 「That was a Venom Insect⁽⁸⁾ that disguises itself as tree leaves! It may look small, however, they contain an extremely deadly poison!」

Hiiro: 「Ku-!⁽⁹⁾」

As he was surrounded by dancing leaves, Hiiro assumed that all of them were those insects as his thoughts raced. As he looked around restlessly, Hiiro began to ponder about how to deal with this situation when-

Silva: 「There is a certain point that you can use to distinguish them! In the center of the leaf, if there is a red dot then they are Venom Insect!」

While splendidly avoiding the leaves, Silva accurately pierced the insects. With that said, in this blizzard of leaves, identifying only the Venom Insects was a daunting task.

Hiiro: (I guess I've got no choice. If I use this, then the Jii-san⁽¹⁰⁾ will probably disregard it as just normal magic.)

As he determined thus, Hiiro cast the word 「Fire」|『火』to wrap flames around themselves. Of course, he made sure to avoid targeting Mikazuki. The flames spread as if they were a barrier of fire, mercilessly consuming any of the leaves that touched them.

Silva: 「Oo!⁽¹¹⁾ So Hiiro-sama was a spell-caster of Fire!」

Receiving the reaction that he had expected, Hiiro felt relieved. After one minute passed, the flames naturally extinguished. At the same time, it seemed that the leaves that were dancing around earlier were now neatly and refreshingly burned.

Silva: 「Nofofofofo!⁽¹²⁾ In any case, that was quite impressive. Normally, using fire in such a place would result in the flames spreading out of control. I did not believe that you were such a spell-caster capable of controlling the flames so that they would burn only the surrounding area. A thousand pardons.」

As the surroundings were full of weeds and trees, it would not be strange for such a flame to turn into a forest fire. However, as Hiiro’s magic caused the flames to be erased after a minute has passed, he wasn't concerned. On top of this, as Hiiro had made created the fire precisely according to his image, Silva mistook Hiiro as a flame spell-caster that could completely control his magic, an extraordinary mage.

Hiiro: (It looks like it went well, huh.)

Silva: 「With this much magic, even among those of the 『Imp Race』, you must be an extremely talented person, am I correct.」

Hiiro somewhat happily began to speak.

Hiiro: 「Aa⁽¹³⁾, in regards to fire magic, I've never lost once.」

Although this wasn't a complete lie, as he didn't want to reveal his <<Word Magic>>, he had no choice but to phrase his answer as such.

Silva: 「Nofofofofo! Indeed, indeed. It appears that one such as myself might not have been necessary!」

Hiiro: 「More importantly, let’s keep moving. It looks like the grassland is up ahead.」

As the three of them continued walking, they advanced through and exited the weed-zone.

Author’s Note: It looks like the Butler’s pretty skilled.⁽¹⁴⁾

Notes:

(Disclaimer: I am describing the terms used above as best as I can describe them. You’re probably better off checking with Google. With that said, please don’t quote me as I am not a professional.)

1. ^ -sama: A suffix used to show respect to the one addressed. Very formal and used to address someone of higher position (eg. A maid addressing her Master).
2. ^ TL Note: Lugoon = ルグーン. For those that have better translations, feel free to suggest. Although, I doubt that this will be used again so...
3. ^ *kira~n*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *shine*.
4. ^ *shuba*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *woosh* (I think). Just think of the sound that occurs when someone makes a rapid, sudden movement. The sudden movement causes friction with the wind (or fans it), making the sound.
5. ^ Gugya: Sound of agony/pain/torment/death cry/etc.
6. ^ *kunekune*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *wriggle*.
7. ^ *ton*: Japanese onomatopoeia meaning *thump*. Think of something striking wood.
8. ^ TL Note: Venom Insect = ヴェノム虫 with the 虫 character read as ちゅう. Again, better translations are welcome.
9. ^ Ku: An expression similar to a grunt of frustration.
10. ^ Jii-san: An incredibly informal way of addressing an elderly male. Think friendly 'old-man' or rude 'old-fart'. This can be thought to be a variant of Ossan.
11. ^ Oo: Not 2 ‘o’ but an elongated O. Expresses surprise/amazement.
12. ^ Nofofofofo: Silva's laugh. Get used to it. He does it a lot...
13. ^ Aa: An expression of affirmation. Usually used by, but not exclusive to, masculine, dominant people. Kind of like ‘Uh-huh’ or ‘Yeah’.
14. ^ TL Note: The author uses the phrase なかなか| nakanaka. This usually denotes to the subject being ‘pretty good’. As this made no sense when translated literally, I took some liberties in the translation.