Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: Airship Manager and Aegis
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“As expected, riding it around right away is impossible.”
―Due to operating without an administrator for a long time, the mana in the airship’s core, the Seablue Pearl, has been depleted.
I let out a sigh at Leaf’s telepathy, which felt like it was speaking directly into my brain rather than my ears.
So that’s where the other administrator-level golems were— in sleep mode.
Leaf’s mana heart being deactivated was also due to power-saving mode from the lack of mana in the Seablue Pearl, the airship’s core.
There’s a saying that a house turns into ruins if the owner doesn’t maintain it while living there. The airship must have been the same.
Without an administrator to periodically switch the Seablue Pearl to mana recharge mode, it had just been used up without refueling.
On top of that, quite some time had passed. It was in power-saving mode with no operating time displayed, but at least a thousand years must have gone by.
I switched the Seablue Pearl to recharge mode, then rested my chin on my hand and opened my mouth.
“Estimated time until the minimum power required to operate the airship accumulates?”
―Estimated time required: about 140 days. 140 days.
I’d been dreaming of soaring through the fantasy world on a wyvern instead of using words or warp gates...
“What if we recharge it with mana stones?”
―The mana types are different, so there would be a slight reduction in time, but it would be inefficient.
If it were just a matter of efficiency, I would’ve poured in money since I had plenty, but it was ambiguous.
‘No helping it.’
The airship wasn’t the main course anyway.
I leaned back deeply in the chair and touched the hologram.
Originally, the plan was to random-teleport all the Evil God Cult intruders and then join Zero.
‘Who knew the underground passage connecting Gamur’s mansion and the airship had collapsed.’
It was probably the Evil God Cult’s doing. Those guys were useless. They were digging a tunnel with operational mass-produced golems, but due to the risk of a secondary collapse, it would take at least three days.
As for teleporting out, we couldn’t trust the airship’s registered coordinates. Over a thousand years had passed, after all.
In the end, since we couldn’t leave right away, we all agreed to do everything we could here before going.
While I was at it, I rummaged through the exportable list from the airship’s armory and spoke up.
“Kane, how’s the official administrator exam going?”
Since I was registered as a temporary administrator, I naturally had to be promoted to official to get everything, but surprisingly, the method was pretty outdated.
Airship operation methods, repair methods, material calculations. Route adjustments, types of facilities inside the airship and their operation methods.
There was a mountain of study material like that, so I shamelessly dumped it all on Kane.
He didn’t show it because he was always in good shape, but Kane’s traits included genius. Handsome face, great body, smart too.
The guy I thought could do it because he was the novel protagonist was actually living and breathing right next to me, which was a bit ridiculous.
‘Some people run every day and never get a single running trait.’
Besides, once you become administrator, you’d just have the golems handle operations, repairs, routes, etc., so why the exam...?
Well, once Kane became official administrator, he could just designate me, and that’d be it.
“Found it.”
I’d searched the exportable list from start to finish and found nothing, so I dug deep into the list not available to temporary administrators and finally discovered the item.
Its registered name was ‘Semi-Magic Weightless Defense Golem Small,’ but users of Innocent Saga called it this.
‘Aegis. Or Aegis.’
The invincible shield. Epic-grade unique support defense gear.
There were a few other pieces with similar performance, but this was the only ultra-compact one.
It looked like a fist-sized round metal orb, but the listed description alone took up a handspan of the hologram.
In short: constantly protects the user’s body, nullifies or reflects physical and magic attacks below a certain damage threshold.
Resists curse- and sorcery-like pseudo-magic attacks, and can be used as a supplementary launch weapon depending on output.
Plus, the protection target can be temporarily switched at the user’s will.
In a pinch, I could attach it to Luna or Kane to save them from fatal wounds.
Of course, Aegis’s top priority was the user, so it would return after one use, but that was still something.
“The exam is done. But who is Kang Su-ho?”
Huh?
I looked up at Kane, who approached me and pressured me with his golden eyes.
When registering as a temporary user, I’d been in too much of a hurry and entered Kang Su-ho instead of Adelrian.
For a moment, I hesitated.
Should I just come clean now?
Or not?
What if it created a total mess of variables? There was a reason Rachel sent me here as Adelrian in the first place, right?
“That’s me. Adelrian Su-ho Kruger. Middle name.”
Fortunately, maybe because I’d practiced acting like some shady black幕 character, I smiled without changing expression, and Kane nodded expressionlessly before moving his fingertips.
―Pleased to meet you, Kang Su-ho. Congratulations on becoming the official administrator.
Basic airship administration knowledge flooded into my brain. It felt like knowledge was being forcibly crammed in.
No pain, but the sensation was unpleasant. And even as official administrator, there were documents with access restrictions.
Probably documents from the era when this airship was flying. Even asking Leaf, she said she was a combat-command golem and didn’t know history.
Most were locked for a certain time for security reasons, but some had undisclosed unlock conditions...
‘No time to dig into this right now.’
Unless I planned to stay in this airship for years.
As soon as I became official administrator, I requested export of Aegis, and with approval from the other administrator, Kane, Leaf went to fetch it.
“Convenient.”
They’d probably made it so you needed majority approval from official administrators to prevent mutual checks.
But with Kane and me as official administrators, that system was meaningless. While waiting for Leaf, I woke up Luna, who was asleep on the side.
“Eat and sleep.”
“Yesss...”
She must’ve consumed a lot of stamina clashing intensely with Leaf, as she rubbed her eyes, unable to shake off her sleepiness. I put a carrot in Luna’s hand and turned my eyes back to the hologram.
Leaf’s mana heart—this was a battery for external activities, not the one in the Seablue Pearl airship, so switch to active.
Regeneration seems to adjust based on supplied mana output, so nothing for me to touch.
Change behavior pattern from basic to autonomous, combat pattern from guardian to tank.
When Kane picked her up, the airship without the Seablue Heart must’ve had its system completely fried, so Leaf was set free, but now with the airship and Seablue Heart here, I had to do it all manually.
―Master. Here is the semi-physical, semi-magic weightless defense golem small.
Leaf’s expressionless face seemed a bit different. Her mouth corners lifted just a tiny bit, maybe.
Still with her doll-like face, she handed me the fist-sized metal orb, and I spoke.
“Change the title from Master to Adelrian.”
―Yes, Administrator.
No. Not Administrator, the name.
After trying a few times and it not inputting, I tried with Kane.
“That one over there is Kane.”
―Yes, Kane. Input complete.
What? It works for Kane.
Kane is Kane, but why am I Administrator?
Even after trying again, the title didn’t change, so I gave up and gripped Aegis.
‘User registration.’
A ticklish sensation like a feather brushing my brain, then Aegis’s round surface sparkled.
After completing user registration, I lightly placed Aegis in midair.
Blue thin lines zigzagged across the round metal orb’s surface, and parts of the metal exterior popped out and closed like it was opening.
Then it spun around me once, detected non-combat status, and melted transparently into the air like stealth mode.
‘Now I can relax a bit.’
Now I was defended against most magic or physical attacks, as well as curses and the non-formulaic magic—sorcery—used by the Ain race to some extent.
There were other items besides Aegis I could take, but most were for golems, and thanks to the Seablue Heart’s discharge, they weren’t charged.
Thousands of mass-produced golems and a golem factory. Armored golem existences, and even command golems in sleep mode.
Right now buried underground, but originally a flying airship.
‘No matter how I think about it, this is for war.’
Even asking Gamur wouldn’t give a clear answer. If so, he would’ve anticipated this ruin’s identity and excavated it already.
“Planning to found a nation or something?”
At Kane’s words as he approached, I just turned my head and gave him a look asking what he was talking about.
“The core is switched to recharge mode now and can’t do anything. But in about a year, basic operation will be possible.”
“And?”
“Float this massive building into the sky and just produce and drop mass-produced golems, and it’d be a massive disaster for civilians.”
On top of that, connections to the beastkin, and though sealed, a dragon placed in the mansion.
With my eyes slightly narrowed in question, a bit of playfulness returned, and I deliberately turned my chair, rested my chin, and smirked with just my mouth corners raised.
“So what? What if I become the continent’s enemy? What then?”
You gonna kill me? I looked at him smiling like that, but Luna spoke first.
“No matter what Young Master does, I think it’s right.”
She fiddled with her floppy ears, saying it casually like they deserved to die anyway, and even expressionless Leaf sent telepathy.
―You can slightly alter the core settings you just switched to recharge mode and activate the golem production facilities, Administrator.
Despite their words, Kane stayed silent before slowly opening his mouth.
“It’s a lie.”
“You don’t know. Hypothetically.”
People can flip their minds like the palm of a hand in an instant.
At my nonchalant attitude, Kane’s golden eyes stared indifferently at me. Damn. So handsome.
Even in something this minor, as expected of the protagonist—his appearance trait was working overtime.
“Do I have any reason to be for the continent?”
Huh?
While I briefly lost my words, Kane rarely smirked.
It was like a photoshoot moment; if they’d just drawn Kane’s face in (S)-rank instead of writing, everything would’ve been solved.
“If that’s what you want, I’m your sword, so I’ll do it.”
I burst out laughing at Kane’s words.
Ah, yeah, you never moved with grand justice.
It started with simple revenge.
At first revenge, then because you were the only one who could do it. Not seeking reward or fame.
Just like it was the natural thing to do.
That’s how you were.
I knew how desperately the original Kane lost, broke, and fought them.
Pushed by public opinion into being the villain, injured and exhausted, yet never stopping until the end with his six companions...
Before getting too sentimental, I quickly spoke.
“You know, huh? Hey, no training? If you were a bit stronger, even in this tight space, you could’ve caught that weirdo and interrogated him.”
―Correct, Administrator.
Luna nodded as if she’d caught on by instinct, even without hearing Leaf’s words.
“Kane’s too easy like this.”
At my playful teasing, Kane shook his head once and turned away as if refusing to engage.