Two weeks later, a coach with Jircniv on board left for the Colosseum.
两周后 ,载着吉克尼夫的马车正一路驶向斗技场。

On the surface, he seemed to be going to the Colosseum to watch a fight, but in truth, he was there to enter into an agreement with emissaries of the Slaine Theocracy and high-ranking priests of the Empire.
表面上是为了去斗技场观战，而其真正的目的则是为了与教国使者、以及帝国的高位神官们进行协商。

He had not brought any of his royal guardsmen with him to avoid standing out, but two of the Empire’s  Four Knights -- Lightning Bolt and Violent Gale -- were on the vehicle as Jircniv’s guards.
虽然为了避免显眼而没有带近卫来，但马车上搭载了四骑士中的两人一一”雷光”和”激风”来担当吉克尼夫的警卫。

If possible, he would have liked to use all of these outstanding warriors to protect him. However, Heavy Explosion was not reliable, so he had left her behind under the pretext of guarding the Imperial Capital. No, saying that she was unreliable was not exactly correct. To be precise he could already tell from her actions that she wanted to move on to the Sorcerous Kingdom. Thus, in order to avoid leaking any information to her which she could offer to the Sorcerous Kingdom as a gift, Jircniv had decided to keep a distance from her.
虽然实际上是很想命令一骑当千的他们，全员来担任警卫的。但因为只有”重轰”不能信赖 ,所以以守护帝城为名目把她留下来了。不对, 说不能信赖也有点不太正确。更为正确地说，是因为从她的举动中、能看出有着想要前往魔导国的心思。所以为了避免将，能作为献给魔导国手信的情报泄漏给她，吉克尼夫现在与她保持着距离。

She had originally said, “I will do anything to lift this curse, even point this sword at Your Highness”. Jircniv understood this, but had still decided to make use of her. Therefore, he could not rebuke her even if she decided to betray the Empire. That said, he still could not allow her to take away information that was critical to the Empire.
她原本就是「只要能解开诅咒 ,即使是把剑指向殿下也在所不惜」如此宣言了的人。吉克尼夫也是明知这一点，却还是决定将她收做部下的。为此即使她背叛了帝国，也不能责备她。但话虽如此，容许她把帝国重要的情报带走也是不可能。

That said, if she really had managed to eavesdrop on the Empire’s state secrets, then he would need to have her arrested. However, she was one of the strongest people in the Empire, so he would need to send out people on her level to eliminate her. In terms of swordsmanship, only Lighting Bolt and Violent Gale were up to the task. Sending anyone else would only result in a one-sided slaughter for them. In addition, suppressing her with numbers meant that the Imperial Capital and the Emperor’s security details would be thinned out.
假设她真的窃取了帝国的重要机密潜逃了话，那就不得不派人追捕她了。但若要面对好歹也是帝国最强的一角的她的话，便有必要派出与她同等的人吧。论剑术的话，便只有”雷光”和”激风”有这个资格，要是派出其它人的话说不定只会被单方面反杀。而假设要动用数量压制的场合 ,帝都与皇帝的守备便会变得薄弱。

That being the case, he would have to turn to Fluder’s disciples, Workers, or perhaps assassins as represented by Ijaniya, all of whom possessed skills outside of melee combat. However, no matter which option he chose, he would have to be prepared to pay dearly for it.
那样的话，就只有请夫路达的高徒们、工作者、又或者是以伊杰尼亚为代表的暗杀者，这类有着非近接战斗技能的人出面了。但无论最终选择的是哪种，都得做好付出相当费用的心理准备了吧。

The disciples were paid on a yearly basis -- although ever since Fluder’s betrayal, he had confiscated Fluder’s land and made them nobles -- so there would not be too many additional expenses there. However, dispatching them would require them to stop their work, which would incur losses invisible to the naked eye. In addition, if they were actually killed instead, the damage done would be more than what the latter two would cost.
由于高徒们的薪水是以年俸制——虽然自从夫路达背叛后便已把其领地让渡，并封他们为贵族了——来支付的，所以不会出现多余的追加费用的。但是如果真的要派遣他们的话，会导致他们手头工作的停滞等肉眼看不到的损失。而且如果被反杀的话，所造成的损害也不是后两者能比得上的。

Therefore the best option was to deny Heavy Explosion the chance to obtain valuable information and let her go empty-handed to the Sorcerous Kingdom. That might well be the most satisfactory solution for all parties concerned.
由此能作出的最佳选择就是扼杀”重轰”接触重要情报的机会，让她两手空空地地前往魔导国。这恐怕才是能令所有人都满意的结果吧。

Jircniv had hinted as much to Heavy Explosion.
吉克尼夫也对”重轰”暗示过这类的话题。

However, Heavy Explosion was still in the Imperial Capital. Her response was along the lines of “I shall remain until I repay the kindness that Your Majesty has shown me”.
但直到现在”重轰”也仍然留在帝城里。根据她的话来说「直至报答完，从陛下那里所受的恩情为止，都会留下」的样子。

He wanted to take that at face value, but that was impossible.
虽然也想要坦率地接受她的话 ,但这是不可能的。

Heavy Explosion might be one of the Empire’s Four Knights, but the Sorcerous Kingdom would most likely rate her fighting power very poorly. Each and every one of the many undead directly loyal to the Sorcerer King were stronger than her. Because of that, she was looking for a way to raise her value in their eyes.
虽然”重轰”确实是帝国四骑士中的一人，但其实力会被魔导国高度评价的可能性却非常的低。魔导王直辖部队那大批不死者的力量，无论哪具都在她之上吧。而正因如此她才正在窥视着，能够抬高自己身价的时机吧。

As Jircniv thought about the hopeless reality that the Sorcerer King commanded a thousand undead who were individually stronger than Heavy Explosion, the mightiest warrior of the Kingdom -- and this did not include the Sorcerer King himself -- his stomach began aching again.
比自国最强的战士之一的”重轰”还要更强的不死者已有千具——即使不包括魔导王本人——想到这令人绝望的事实，吉克尼夫的胃不禁又痛了起来。

What should I do about this?!
（这到底叫我如何是好啊！）

A single strong person cannot change the course of a battle, they said. Yet, reality said otherwise.
只有一个的强者是不能改变战局的，然而事实却不一定如此。

The Kingdom’s Gazef Stronoff was a man who could do just that. It was even more true of the Empire’s head magician, Fluder Paradyne, a being who could shake an entire nation.
王国的葛杰夫?史托罗诺夫，便是将其化为了可能的男人。帝国主席魔法师，夫路达?帕拉戴恩更是在其之上，是能够摇动国家存在的魔术师。

Each of them was a figure comparable to an army, or a country.
一个个体有时候是能与一军,一国相提并论的存在。

In other words, even without considering the frightening power of its undead king, the Sorcerous Kingdom already wielded the might of a thousand armies.
那也就是说，即使不把那个骇人的不死者之王给算进去，魔导国仍拥有着千支军队的力量。

There’s nothing to be done, is there? If… well, you couldn’t stop him even with a thousand armies, right? ...As I thought, giving up is better...
(……没法玩吧、这个？如果……假设有一千支军队的话，根本就没有能够防御的手段吧？……果然还是放弃更……)

Of course, he could not actually say that in front of his subordinates, but the idea had appeared in Jircniv’s mind several times already. In fact, it had been his first thought once he heard about the Battle of Katze Plains.
虽然绝对不会在部下面前、将这种话说出口。但吉克尼夫的脑海中，同样答案已经不知道闪现过几次了。而且这也是他一开始听说卡兹平原之战的事时，最初所浮现出的答案。

“--Then, Your Majesty. After we meet with Silver Canary, we’ll move out. Will that be alright?”
「——那么 ,陛下。于斗技场内与银糸鸟的成员会合后 ,然后移动便可以了吗?」

Jircniv shifted his gaze to regard the man seated before him.
吉克尼夫移动视线，看向了坐在前面的男人

Before him was one of the Four Knights, “Lightning Bolt” Baziwood Peshmel.
在那里坐着的是帝国四骑士之一的、”雷光”巴杰德•佩什梅。

Jircniv nodded in silence.
吉克尼夫默默地点了头

They had engaged a team of adamantite-ranked adventurers as security for today. While they were ostensibly there as a security detail, their main objective was to seek out any spies from the Sorcerous Kingdom. Regretfully, he could not meet up with Ijaniya, which had been considered as one of the alternatives. This also made Jircniv realise that inducting them into the Empire would be very difficult.
这次的警备雇用了精钢级冒险者。虽然姑且是以警护为名目而雇的，但其真正的目的还是以警戒魔导国间碟为主的。十分遗憾的是，与曾是候补之一的伊杰尼亚没能进行接触。这同时也使得吉克尼夫明白了，要把他们纳人帝国是件很困难的事。

“Your Majesty, although adamantite-ranked adventurers possess the highest fighting strength of all humanity, they still cannot step beyond the bounds of human ability. Please do not lower your guard.”
「陛下，虽然精钢级冒险者确实是人类的最高战力。可是 ,那终究也仍未踏出人类之域。还请不要放松警惕」

Jircniv was painfully aware of those words which “Violent Gale” Nimble Arc Dale Anoch was trying to tell him. In fact, having seen the serried ranks of monsters within that throne room, he might understand those words better than Nimble, who had watched that grand massacre with his own eyes.
“激风”宁布尔•亚克•蒂尔•安努克想说的话，吉克尼夫早已深深地明白。而且要说不定比亲眼看过大虐杀现场的他更为清楚，作为亲眼见过在那王座之间并排的怪物们的人

“Of course. However, they might be able to hold out. Consider the Kingdom’s adamantite-ranked adventurer, Momon. He pointed his sword at the Sorcerer King and defended the people with his strength. Since the members of Silver Canary are adamantite-ranked adventurers as well, it’ll be quite troubling if they can’t do the same.”
「当然了。但若是他们的话，说不定就有可能抵挡得住。王国的精钢级冒险者飞飞。我听闻那家伙就曾将剑对向魔导王，用其力量守护了百姓。那既然同为精钢级冒险者。若抵挡不了的话我可就头疼了啊」

As he said this, Jircniv smiled sadly.
说着这些话的同时，吉克尼夫露出了寂寞的笑容。

“And if even they… if even they can’t do it, what then?”
「而且如果连他们也……抵挡不住的话又该怎么办呢?」

Jircniv’s question brought pained expressions to the faces of both knights. That look was a better answer than anything they could have said. Unconsciously, Jircniv began mirroring their expressions.
面对吉克尼夫的疑问 ,两名骑士露出了痛苦的表情。这表情便是胜过任何言语的答案。这让吉克尼夫也差点不自觉地，浮现出与二人相同的表情

“Your Majesty, please do not make that face. We might not be strong, but we will still devote our hearts and souls to completing our task.”
「陛下,请不要做出这样的表情。我们虽然无力 ,但也会尽心尽力来完成我们的职责的」

“That’s right, Your Majesty. Please, adopt that confident, swaggering attitude of yours again. This fragile state you’re in now ill suits you.”
「说的没错，陛下。还请变回以前那落落大方的、充满自信的身姿吧。而不是这样憔悴的样子呀」

Their gentle words pierced Jircniv’s heart, and he could not bring himself to say, “doesn’t that apply to you as well?” Yet, he decided to accept them without complaint. Those words might have had as much effect as scattering water on the desert, but it was true that they had soaked into the desert of his heart.
两人温柔的说话刺中心头，说不出你们不也是这个样子的吗这句话，吉克尼夫坦率地接受了下来。即使那就像是在对砂漠撒水,但还渗透了吉克尼夫那荒芜了的心，也是无可否认的事实。

“..Forgive me. Thank you for your sincerity. Then… since only the two of you are here, would you mind listening to my foolishness for a while?”
「……抱歉了啊。多谢你们的一片真心。然后……正因为这里只有你们在,所以能听我稍微抱怨几句吗？」

The two knights nodded wordlessly.
二人的骑士无言地点了点头。

“What do you think I should do? Why would a monster like that appear next to the Empire? Why? What sin did I commit against heaven and earth to warrant that? What should I do to slay that monster -- or failing that, to seal it away? Now that the Empire’s trump card has been stolen away by the enemy, is there really any way to turn the situation around?”
「你们觉得、我该怎么做才好？像那样的怪物，为什么会出现在帝国旁边啊? 为什么？我到底做了什么伤天害理的坏事。要如何才能把那怪物打倒——也不能做到这地步，至少要将其封印起来啊。在帝国最强的杀手锏倒戈向了敌人这种最坏的情况下，真的还有逆转的方法存在吗?」

He had not planned to say that much.
原本没有吐露这么多的打算。

If Jircniv did not stand at their head, his people would not be able to follow him. One who placed himself above others needed to adopt an appropriately superior attitude. This was especially true for the Bloody Emperor, who had purged many nobles.
吉克尼夫不走在前面的话，自然没办法引领身后的人。立于人上之人自得有、与上位者身份相符的态度。而对于把多数的贵族肃清了的”鲜血帝”来说，就更是如此了。

The Emperor could not afford to show weakness. That was a lesson which the father he respected had taught him.
皇帝是绝不能露出弱点的，那是尊敬的父亲的教诲。

However, all humans had a limit to what they could take.
但是,只要仍是人类，其忍耐也有极限的。

The human side of Jircniv was one he would only show to his concubines. Now, that part of him was shouting.
原本只会展现在侧室面前的、身为的人类吉克尼夫在呐喊着。

“It’s true I asked him to cast us a spell. But that couldn’t be helped! We can’t plan any countermeasures if we have no idea of his abilities! Am I at fault for that? Must I take responsibility for everything that went wrong? Everyone seems to think so!”
「确实，我是有拜托那家伙使用魔法啊。但是，那也是迫不得已的吗！不弄清楚那家伙的能力的话，根本就不可能想的出对策啊！这难道是我的错吗！坏事全都是我的责任吗！不管哪个家伙都这样！」

Jircniv bit his lip and clutched at his hair.
吉克尼夫紧咬住嘴唇,用双手抓住了自己的头发。

The truth was, this was merely the tip of the iceberg. If Jircniv had completely given himself over to the feelings in his heart, he would probably be crying and screaming and rolling around on the floor. He was simply trying to protect the image of the Emperor.
而实际上,这还只是个开头而已。如果真的将身体完全交给心底里积上来感情的话,那吉克尼夫肯定得哭嚎着在地上打滚的吧。这只是努力在维护帝国皇帝的体面而已。

Still, he had some sense of self-awareness about how he was letting himself go.
但是他还是有所自觉的，关于最近自己松懈了下来的这件事。

It would seem this was becoming a habit, so Jircniv returned himself to normal.
看来最近正慢慢地形成习惯了啊，吉克尼夫把姿势复原过来。

“Forgive me. It seems I got a little excited. I’ve been under a lot of stress recently.”
「抱歉 ,稍微有些兴奋了啊。毕竟这段时间压力很大啊」

He glanced down, and saw strands of hair on his fingers.
向下瞄了一眼，发现手上附着几根头发。

Judging from the portraits, none of his ancestors had thin hair. Jircniv could not help but muse that he might be the first Emperor in the history of the Empire to go bald.
就肖像画来看，先祖中并没有头发稀薄的人。说不定自己会是成为帝国史上首位、秃顶的皇帝也不一定啊。这不禁使吉克尼夫这么联想到。

He waved his hand to keep his subordinates from noticing. Sometimes pity hurt more than a rebuke, and the same applied to the matter of hair loss.
为了不让两名部下察觉而挥了挥手。同情有时是会比骂声更令人痛心，头发的问题也是如此。

“That said, it might not be very convincing after you’ve seen that side of me. However, the two of you need not worry. I’ll take care of it, somehow. I won’t let him do what he wants to the Empire.”
「虽然露出了这样的姿态，还这么说可能有些缺乏说服力，但你们两个不用担心。肯定还会有什么对应方法的。我不会让这帝国任由那家伙来摆布的」

That confident smile of his seemed to soften the faces of his subordinates.
那让人觉得充满信心的笑容，使得两名部下的表情也稍微缓和了一些。

However, none of them was truly at ease.
只是，其中仍没有真正的安心。

They too understood that Jircniv’s words were just a temporary relief.
他们也明白，吉克尼夫的话不过只是一时的慰藉。

No matter how they thought, they could not come up with any way to deal with that monster.
不论怎样想，也想不出什么能够对付那怪物的策略。

In truth, Jircniv felt it would be impossible if there was no weapon which could permanently slay the undead, or if another very powerful human being showed up.
老实说吉克尼夫其实自己也认为，若不是有能确实杀死不死者的武器存在，又或者突然觉醒了很强的力量的人类出现的话，大概是不可能的吧。

That’s why we need to rely on the Slaine Theocracy. Their history is longer than ours, so they might be able to find a weapon that can slay the undead in one blow. No, just sharing information with them will allow us to keep fighting!”
（所以才得靠斯连教国啊。若是他们、若是拥有比我国更远久历史的他们的话，或许就有能一击弑杀不死者的武器的可能性。不对,只要与其相关的知识的话 ,那样我就能继续战斗下去！）

All he could do now was pray that this was the case.
现在能做的，也只有这样祈祷了吧。

The coach continued forward, and with it rode Jircniv’s last hopes.
马车向前行驶着。那其中乘载着吉克尼夫的希望。

***
The Colosseum was circular in shape. There was a large entrance at one of its sides, and the coach entered from there. This entrance led to the VIP rooms, and so very few people made use of that entrance. The other entrances were used for the entry and exit of the regular patrons or for the transportation of cargo. These were the three main types of entrances to the Colosseum.
斗技场整体呈圆形。其中一个区划有一个大的入口,马车从那儿驶入。那是通向贵宾室的、只有很少一部分人才能使用的入口。而剩下的就是普通观众用的入口和搬运货物用的入口，斗技场的入口大致就分为这么三种。

The first to alight from the coach were, naturally, the two knights serving as bodyguards. After they had verified the safety of the location, Jircniv dismounted from the coach.
最初从马车上下来的自然是，担当护卫的两名骑士。由他们确认了安全后，吉克尼夫才从马车上走了出来。

Five men waited for them there.
在那里等着五个男人。

Their manner of dress looked entirely out of place for the VIP entrance.
穿着不符合站在贵宾用入口的装扮。

Ainz could evaluate the worth of any particular work of art with a glance, but he could not divine such information from their gear and equipment. This was because what they were wearing was both artwork and wargear. Theirs was not the outfit of a noble’s house guards, but the panoply of battle-hardened veterans.
虽然吉克尼夫只要看到美术品便能大致推断出其价格，但他却不能从他们身上的装备中读取出这些信息。这是由于他们所装备的是作为美术品的武装一一不是贵族的警备兵,而是身经百战的人，身着在身的战斗用武装的缘故。

By the normal rules of etiquette, the inferior party should have introduced themselves first. However, some adventurers did not care about status or rank, and they were such adventurers.
按照礼仪地位较低的人，应该先作自我介绍的。但是一部分的冒险者不会在意身份，而他们也是那一部分的人。

Still, he was the ruler of the Empire. Was it really appropriate for him to be lowering his head to adventurers?
可是,自己好歹也是帝国的支配者。轻易向冒险者低头这种举动又真的合适吗？

Amidst this awkward atmosphere, the man standing in the center of the group of five spoke up:
在这困惑的气氛中,站在五人中央的男人打开了口

“Your Majesty, Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix. I believe this is the first time we have met, and it is an honor. We are the adamantite-ranked adventurer team Silver Canary, who have accepted the request of providing security services. I am the team leader, Freivartz. Pleased to meet you.”
「吉克尼夫•伦•法洛德•艾尔=尼克斯陛下。初次见面,深感荣幸。我们是接受了警卫委托的精钢级冒险者队伍”银丝鸟”，而我则是担当整合队伍的弗赖瓦尔兹。此行还望多多指教啊」

His dignified voice echoed through the surroundings.
端庄的声音在附近回响着。

He had a lute on his back and a rapier at his waist. He wore a chain shirt which wreathed his body in bizarre lights.
后背上挂着鲁特琴，腰部佩戴着护手刺剑[Rapier]。身上所穿的则是寄宿包围着身体的奇妙光芒的链甲。

All his equipment did not just reflect the light, but emitted magical radiance from within. Every piece of his panoply looked like it was a first-rate magic item, especially that lute, which was also known as Star Symphony.
不管哪件装备都不同于光的反射，而是从内部散发出魔法的光芒。无论哪件好像都是一级的魔法道具的样子，特别有名的是那鲁特琴，甚至有着星之交响曲[Star Symphony]的别名。

As he observed the man’s thoroughly confident attitude, Jircniv recalled himself from several months back, and could not help but feel some envy.
看着那充满自信的姿态令吉克尼夫回想起了数个月前的自己，不禁感到有些羡慕。

“...As the highest-level adventuring party in my country, I have heard about the deeds of you gentlemen. That heroic saga of how you slew the Radiant Crawler truly got my blood boiling. Therefore, I know about all of you to some extent. However, since this is a rare opportunity, could I trouble you to personally introduce the heroes of my country to me?”
「……作为我国最高等级的冒险者队伍，诸君的事我一直有所耳闻。那击败了闪耀爬虫[radiant crawler]的英雄谭真是令人热血沸腾啊.所以我对于你们每位自然都是有着一定了解的。可毕竟机会难得，能否由你们亲口，来向我介绍我国的英雄们呢？」

“Then, allow me, as the bard to…”
「那么就让作为吟游诗人[bard]的我来……」

“--C’mon chief, lay off a bit, will ya? Hate ta say it, but when I hear ya go at it, I break out in bumps. Shiny shortsword or whatnot… anyway, can we just skip that part? Ayy, ya Majesty. Sorry ‘bout the way I talk, I was born this way. No worries, yeah?”
「——咱能别这么玩吗，领队。不好意思啊，听你那个真心会让我起鸡皮疙瘩嘚。光辉短剑啥的……真的, 能别这么玩吗。哎呀，失礼了陛下。由于我出身不怎好，所以语气一直都是这个样子的啊。还请不要怪哎」

The man beside Freivartz stepped forward and gently inclined his head.
站在弗赖瓦尔兹右边的男人，向前踏出一步后轻轻地低下了头。

He was a stocky and short man. Though he had a smile on his face, those disproportionately small eyes of his had no mirth in them.
那是一个剃成短寸的、矮小男人。虽然脸上挂着的是笑脸，与脑袋大小不成正比的小眼睛中却并没有笑意。

He was Keila No Sedeshtin, the “Planner” of the thief profession.
那是身位盗贼职业中的 ”杀手[仕掛人]”的，凯伊拉·诺·瑟德修汀。

There was not much information about the Planner, so there was much which remained unknown about him. He was probably closer to the underworld, ambushing and assassination than regular thieves.
因有关”杀手”的情报不足 ,所以不明的地方十分多。大概是比起盗贼这类的，更接近于地下社会、暗杀者等潜伏在黑暗中的职业吧。

Jircniv indicated that he should not worry about it, and then Baziwood chuckled.
吉克尼夫对轻轻地低下了头的男人表示不用在意后，只见巴杰德发出了小小的笑声。

“Haha, it’s fine. His Majesty’s long used to it.”
「哈哈，没有问题的啦。陛下早就习惯我了」

“Oh, and this would be… you must be “Lightning Bolt”-san of the Empire’s Four Knights. Could it be you were born there as well, friend?”
「噢，这还真是……想必阁下就是那帝国四骑士之一的”雷光”先生吧。难道说，老兄也是打那儿出生滴？」

“Hm? Ahh, no, probably in a different place. I popped out in a dirty little alley. You must have crawled out of a deeper and darker place than me.”
「嗯？咿呀,我想应该不同吧。我只是脏小巷出身的而已，可你应该是从比我黑暗的地方爬上来的吧」

“Seems that way. The air around you’s different… sorry ‘bout that. Guess I was too hasty.”
「看来是这样呢。确实气场有所差异啊……这还真是失敬。好像是我太着急下结论了」

“It’s fine, “Dark Cloud”.”
「不要在意啦。”暗云”」

“I’ve never called myself “Dark Cloud” before… really, this is all your fault, chief.”
「我可是一次也没报上暗云的名字呢…….真是的，这可全是领队的错啊」

Freivartz simply quirked up the corners of his mouth as Kaila looked to him.
而他瞪大眼睛地望向他时，只见弗赖瓦尔兹正撅起着嘴。

“It’s better to let us introduce ourselves rather than go by strange nicknames. My apologies, Your Majesty. First, this is Sede, our eyes and ears. Next is our fighter. You might be a bit surprised when you see him, but I can guarantee his strength.”
「比起被什么奇怪的别名，还是由我们自己来诱导的好吧。失礼了,陛下。首先这是担当本队伍的耳目的瑟迪。那么接下里，就让我来介绍一下我们的战士吧。虽然看上去的话可能会有些吓惊吧，但我可以保证他的实力」

“No, of course His Majesty won’t doubt him. After all, I feel he might be stronger than me.”
「不会 ,陛下可不会怀疑的啦。毕竟感觉还要比我还要强啊」

“Well, I’m glad to hear that from a strong man. This is Fan Long.”
「能被强者说真是荣幸啊 ——这是方·隆」

The person being introduced was red-furred ape which stood around 170cm tall. He was wearing armor that looked like it was made of white furs, and he had battle axes on either side of his waist.
被介绍的是只身高一百七十厘米左右的、全身都是红色毛发的猴子。那样的人物又穿着像由白色毛皮制成的铠甲般的防具，左右的腰部挂着惯用了的战斧[Battle Axe]

He was an Ape Beastman, as well as one who channelled the spirit of the apes through the power of his warrior class, the Beast Lord. He had read about this in a report before, but actually seeing it with his own eyes was quite the shock.
这既是一种名为猿猴亚人，也是寄宿了森林动物的灵魂的在兽王[Beast Lord]这战士职业之中,寄宿了猿之力的人物。虽然曾经在这么记录着的报告书上看过，但实际看到时的所感受到的冲击依然很大。

And indeed, by appearances alone, he looked stronger than even Baziwood, the mightiest of Jircniv’s subordinates.
而且就外表上看上起，甚至比吉克尼夫部下中最强的战士、巴杰德还要更强。

Fan Rong raised his right hand and waved to Jircniv and the others.
方·隆轻轻举起了右手，向吉克尼夫他们打了个招呼。

“Then, next is the one who heals our wounds.”
「那个，接下来便轮到治愈我们伤痛的人物了」

Freivartz hurriedly began the next introduction. This was because he was worried Jircniv would be displeased.
弗赖瓦尔兹慌张地转移至下一个介绍。这是由于担心吉克尼夫会不会感到不快的缘故。

This time, the man at Freivartz’s left stepped forward.
这次站在弗赖瓦尔兹的左手边的男人向前踏出了一步。

“Forgive me,” he said as the strange staff he held made a ringing noise. That weapon was apparently called a “shakujo”.
「失礼」拿在手上的奇妙的杖发出了响声 ,那好像是叫作「锡杖」的武器。

“This monk goes by Unkei and is a follower of the Buddha. Pleased to meet you.”
「贫僧，僧名运庆。乃信仰佛神之人，今后还望多多指教」

Though he was dressed strangely, he seemed quite a bit more civilized than the Beast Lord from just now.
虽然他穿着的服装也挺奇怪的，但和刚才的兽王比起来已经算是相当文明了。

After he removed his bizarre, large hat -- called a fukaamigasa -- the head thus revealed had no hair upon it. If he had not known that the man had shaved it all off himself, Jircniv might have looked pityingly upon him. He was quite young, after all.
只见他戴着的奇妙大帽子---斗笠----给摘了下来，在那之下并没有头发。如果不是事先知道、那是剃掉的话, 吉克尼夫说不定还会向他投去怜悯的目光呢，明明还很年轻的呢，像这样。

He wore a strange battle robe called a kasa. He was a soryo, who were spiritual magic casters that might lack a bit in the healing department, but which showed exceptional power when battling the undead.
身穿帝国几乎不会看到的、名为袈裟型的战斗衣着的他，正是虽然治疗能力稍微有些尴尬 ,但在与不死者的战斗中能够发挥出卓越能力的、名为僧侣的精神系魔法咏唱者。

The Buddha he followed hauled from the far South, and had few followers. Some viewed him as one of the followers of the Four Gods. There was little known about him and there had been no interesting in building a temple to such a god within the Imperial Capital. However,Jircniv did know that this man’s existence was considered a nuisance of sorts.
他所信仰的佛神，是在遥远的南方之地被信仰的十分小众化的神。也有一种说法，认为那是四大神的从属神。虽然由于寡闻，并未听说过帝国有兴建起那样的神殿。但他的存在好像被认为是一件麻烦事，关于这一点吉克尼夫倒是知情的。

Basically, the temples set the price for the use of healing magic. However, when a lone, unaffiliated user of healing magic appeared, how would they deal with him? What would they do if that man was also an adventurer of the highest order -- an adamantite-ranked adventurer?
基本上治愈魔法都是在神殿来管理下来决定价格的。但若出现了有一个与其毫无瓜葛的、治愈魔法使用者的话会受到怎样的对待呢。再加上那个特别的人物，还是最高位的冒险者——精钢级的话又如何呢。

There was no particular link between the Empire’s government and its religion. The fact that Jircniv had no ties to them could be considered good fortune.
帝国的政治与宗教并没有紧密的联系。吉克尼夫与其毫无关系真是可以说是幸运。

He did not want to be further embroiled in troublesome issues.
已经不想再被卷进什么麻烦事了。

However, when checking through the man’s record, he found that he displayed exceptional performance against the undead, which immediately drew Jircniv’s attention. If need be, he might need to apply the necessary pressure to the temples. Of course, that was only if his abilities were really that effective.
只是 ,在调查他的功绩时，得知了他对不死者能展现出非常优秀的能力这点，吸引了吉克尼夫的注意。如果有必要的话，或许需要对神殿的相关者采取一定程度的施压。当然，前提条件是他的能力真的能派上用场的话。

“I see. Then, the last one must be Powapon.”
「原来如此。那最后的这位就是波朋了吗」

“It is as you say, Your Majesty.”
「正如你所说的，陛下」

The man Freivartz had saved for last was stranger than the ones before him. He was arguably the most bizarrely-dressed of the five men, and he lowered his head to Jircniv.
被弗赖瓦尔兹介绍到后，比先前的人物要更奇怪的，真要说的话是五人中最为异样的装扮的人低下了头。

His bare upper body was tanned black with strange white patterns painted all over him. This was probably because he was a member of the odd class called the Totem Shamans.
是由于做着图腾萨满[Totem Shaman]，这样奇怪的职业的缘故吗。裸露着被晒黑了的上半身上，并在上面涂抹着奇妙的白色纹样。

“...Aren’t you cold?”
「……不会觉得冷吗？」

“I have already equipped a magic item which protects against shifts in the temperature, so there is no problem at all.”
「由于已经装备上了、守护温度变化的魔法道具。所以完全不成问题」

Jircniv could not help but feel surprised at the reply, which was more normal than he had expected. He had received reports about his queer appearance, as well as the news that he was a regular person under all that. Still, the sheer dissonance filled him with surprise. At a closer look, he seemed quite handsome, and quite young as well.
得到了比想象中更为普通的解答后，吉克尼夫在心中露出了惊讶之情。记录着其奇异外表的资料他早就读过，也收到实际上是正常人的报告。但仍会不由得对这反差感到惊讶了。仔细地看其外观也是长得挺端正的,看起来似乎也很年轻。

Why had he chosen this class? Part of him wanted to know, but at the same time he did not want to now.
他为什么会投身于这样的职业呢。对此既有想知道又有不想知道的心情。

Jircniv regarded Silver Canary before him.
吉克尼夫眺望着眼前的银丝鸟。

This was a weird team made up of weird members. The only thing they had in common was that they carried a feather of the silver canary their team had once raised somewhere on their persons (in the case of the Totem Shaman, it was on his waist).
那是支由奇怪成员所构成的奇怪队伍。唯一的共通点只是每人的装备各处----身为图腾萨满的他则是在腰身-----都装饰着，以前队伍所养过的银丝鸟的羽毛。

Those feathers glittered with silver light, as though they had just been shed.
那是婉如刚落下般的、闪烁着银色光芒的羽毛。

“Understood, gentlemen. Then, I’ll be in your care today.”
「了解了，诸位。那么今日就请多多指教吧」

“Leave it to us, Your Majesty. Think of it as riding a big boat.”
「放心交给我们吧，陛下。就当是上了艘大船吧」