Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Mass-Produced Golem (2)
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I had a reason for publishing a paper on the artificial shaping of explosive mana stones.
It was because I'd set the advancement of civilization as my immediate ultimate goal.
Explosive mana stones had tremendous potential for practical use.
They could be employed in mining operations, or in engines like the ones I'd devised.
Or perhaps even in something as simple as fireworks.
Advancing civilization wasn't something I could achieve alone, so I was deliberately releasing this information.
Who knew what might come of it? Maybe even something akin to gunpowder.
Of course, it was possible that nothing would come of it even after a long time passed.
Someone might ask me then:
"Didn't you refuse to write a paper on the magic stone engine because you were hiding the core technology?"
"Naturally, I've hidden the core of this paper too."
Using the principles of explosive mana stones, one could create artifacts that mimicked explosions.
That was the heart of this paper.
In other words, it wouldn't allow anyone to develop an improved magic stone engine from this.
I hadn't detailed how I built my engine.
What its structure was, what principles it operated on.
Nor had I specified the ratios for the explosive mana stones or the amount of mana to input.
For starters, artificially shaped explosive mana stones were less efficient than natural minerals anyway.
And I'd only added a brief footnote about the magic stone engine.
Moreover, even just preparing the infrastructure would take them far longer than it had taken me.
"Anyway, I think this is good enough for the paper."
One copy for Professor Herman.
One for the academy.
I sealed them in envelopes and sent them off by post.
The best option would have been to submit them in person, but unfortunately, I had mass-produced golems to build.
Still, I'd entrusted them to reliable Biena and the guards, so it should be fine.
"Now, time to make those mass-produced golems out of these rocks."
Unfortunately, Katiranya was out on a stroll right now.
Which meant I'd have to roll them myself.
"Hmm, maybe I'll go for a walk too."
Yeah, there was no way I could move dozens of rocks, each several dozen kilometers in size—no, wait, several dozen kilos—by myself.
A semi-forced break had been decided, so I headed outside promptly.
Having stayed cooped up here for a while, it had been ages since I'd seen the sunlight.
I stretched lightly and began strolling slowly down the street.
It felt nice to enjoy this rare leisurely time.
The outskirts were quiet even in the midday sun.
It probably got busier toward the center, with markets and all.
As I walked along leisurely like that, something odd caught my eye.
Here and there, I spotted snow-white hair.
What on earth was that?
The familiar silhouette made me call out before I knew it.
"Hepiriya? What are you doing there?"
"Eek!"
What? Why was she acting like that?
She flinched in surprise like someone who'd been caught red-handed and tried to hide even more.
There was no way a priestess had committed a crime.
Besides, did she really think she could hide like that?
It wasn't even bushes—just the back of a bench.
And there were so many eye-catching aspects about her that it was weirder not to notice.
As I approached slowly, I could see her trembling with tension.
No, this made me feel like the bad guy.
I scratched the back of my head, unsure what to do, then sighed.
She flinched again.
Hepiriya peeked her face out from behind the bench.
She gave an awkward smile and asked,
"...Did you catch me?"
"I-It looks that way, doesn't it?"
What the heck was she doing?
I reached out a hand to help her up.
Hepiriya took my hand, her face full of apology.
She definitely had a guilty conscience—her eyes darted away guiltily.
"Ahaha, sorry."
"No worries. I was just helping you up. So, what were you doing back there?"
She flinched again, gauging my reaction.
No way a priestess actually committed a crime, right?
As I eyed her suspiciously, she flashed another awkward smile.
Still avoiding my gaze.
"I, uh, was looking for something I dropped."
Something she dropped?
I glanced at the ground, but nothing stood out.
Of course, if she said she was searching, it might just not be visible to me either.
I looked back at Hepiriya, who was watching me with an anxious expression.
She was trying to hide her feelings, but they leaked out bit by bit.
Suspicious.
But without hard evidence, I decided to let her white lie slide.
No need to pry and ruin our rapport.
"So, did you find it?"
"Oh, n-no. Looks like it's not here. Haha, well, I'll be going then."
Hepiriya hurried off like she was fleeing.
Her face had brightened into a smile, but it still felt somehow off.
"...Eh, probably nothing serious."
If she'd really done something wrong, she wouldn't be hanging around here.
I shrugged it off and resumed my stroll through the city.
Then, a sudden realization hit me.
"But can a priestess even lie?"
It was a thought born from lingering suspicions about her.
Of course, there was no way to confirm now.
Meanwhile, after parting with Edn, Hepiriya's face heated up belatedly.
She covered her flushed cheeks with both hands in embarrassment.
"Ugh, I went and lied."
Discarding her usual speech entirely, she slipped into a nearby alley.
Leaning against the alley wall, she clasped her hands and murmured softly.
"Goddess. I confess my sin."
Hepiriya prayed devoutly to the Goddess, confessing her sin and begging for mercy.
How much time passed like that? Fortunately, the Goddess said nothing.
A gentle breeze merely brushed past her.
"...Thank you."
If Edn had seen it, he'd say it was just wind from pressure differences in the alley.
But to Hepiriya, it was the Goddess's merciful touch.
Even if the Goddess was merely an observer, She wouldn't ignore the sins of Her faithful.
With a sigh of relief, Hepiriya knew it was time to make a decision.
"...I guess it's really time to head back now."
She'd spent the past few weeks watching Edn and Katiranya, but with scant results.
Just that they were unusual?
Edn occasionally vanished for periods.
Katiranya took frequent strolls and got along surprisingly well with people.
Her constant use of a parasol was odd, but it wasn't grounds for suspicion.
It was just a parasol, not some strange artifact.
That was Hepiriya's succinct summary.
Which left her all the more regretful.
She'd vacated her post for this, after all.
"And I got so little out of it."
Still, she was glad she'd stuck around to finish Don Quixote.
She licked her dry lips and sighed.
"Sigh... I hope nothing happens in the Holy Kingdom."
In the end, Hepiriya left Rlangbur behind and returned to the Holy Kingdom.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Mass-produced golem.
It sounded simple, but it was trickier than it seemed.
The kind of mass-produced golem I was aiming for had to function regardless of the materials used.
In other words, it needed to be producible anywhere.
"At least I saw a good sample in that dungeon before."
I hadn't brought it back, unfortunately, but I roughly remembered how it moved.
Though the details would only come clear once I built one myself.
"First things first, I should make a basic golem."
I was about to head to the third floor to fetch a core when—
"Edn. Are you finally getting started?"
"Ah, Katiranya."
Katiranya had returned from her stroll—not to the house, but straight to the lab.
I greeted her warmly and brewed some tea leaves for tea.
For the record, this was another indispensable noble habit.
Biena handled things at the mansion, but I'd insisted on keeping this here.
Thanks to that, I could maintain noble appearances.
Though I rarely bothered because it was a hassle.
I sat in the chair opposite her and sipped my tea.
I took a moment to relax and soothe my mind and body.
Ah, but this wasn't the time.
I snapped to attention and stood.
Needed to grab a core from the third floor.
"Katiranya. I'll be right back from the third floor."
"See you soon."
I hurried up, fetched a core, and returned.
The core was about the size of a baseball—enough to run a golem for at least a month.
As I brought over the part that would serve as the golem's core, Katiranya showed interest.
"Is that the golem's heart?"
"Yes. All but the rare cases have cores."
"Fascinating. I've seen plenty of golems in the past, but this is the first intact heart I've laid eyes on."
First time?
I started to ask, puzzled, then realized and shut my mouth.
Come to think of it, this vampire had mentioned warring with the Holy Kingdom, which I'd forgotten.
Whether true or not, with the power she'd shown in the dungeon, she wouldn't have seen any.
They'd shatter with a gesture, so inspecting them would be impossible.
And if she had no interest in golem crafting, even more so.
I nodded, understanding her circumstances.
"Anyway, I'll use this core to make a basic golem."
"Basic? If my memory serves, didn't you say mass-produced?"
I had said that.
I wanted to jump straight to mass-produced golems too, but sadly, it was impossible.
Because mass-produced was just something I'd blurted out.
As I'd told the council.
I'd only ever made a single golem before.
With Professor Herman's help, at that.
So I needed to build a basic one first to get the feel.
Katiranya listened, then said gravely,
"...Edn. If you ever need a place to escape to, just say the word. I still have a spot in the kingdom. Of course, there'd be a small price."
Her gaze flicked briefly to my neckline, then away.
Surely the price wasn't blood?
I flashed a confident smile to reassure her.
"Haha, don't worry. I've never failed."
If anything, it made her look even more suspicious.
Well, it did sound unreliable.
I ignored her stare and asked her to move the rocks for me.
As requested, she lifted the rocks with shadows and shifted them.
She selected ones of similar size and shape, gathering enough for one golem.
"Help me out a bit more from here."
"Of course. I've never seen a golem made before, so I'm curious."
True to her curiosity-driven nature.
She wasn't actually doing it, but her eyes seemed to sparkle anyway.
Next, I instructed her to shape the rocks into a humanoid form.
She molded them without hesitation, and I placed the core in the center.
"Alright, now for a little shortcut."
"Shortcut?"
"Yes. Since I can't form an Inner Realm yet, I couldn't advance to the next stage. So I'm going around it."
Katiranya tilted her head, not understanding.
Well, I hadn't explained it for her to get it.
It didn't even seem related to magic, so showing her directly would be faster.
I walked to the desk and picked up the parchment placed there.
This was a special item procured from the Azure Magic Tower.
With this, even I was a golem master.
"It's a magic parchment."
"You can make a golem with that?"
"Yes. Here goes."
I recited the incantation from the letter that came with the parchment.
Mana from my body flowed into the parchment.
The inscribed spell formulas and magic circle glowed brightly.
Soon, a brilliant orb of light shot toward the core before my eyes.
Pfwoong.
A strange, clear sound rang out, and faint light emanated from the core.
But it went no further.
I immediately pinpointed the issue and turned to Katiranya.
"Katiranya. Could you remove the shadows?"
The moment the shadows vanished, the core's light spread to the rocks.
The core section was soon covered by the rocks, and it slowly began to stand.
"Oh, it worked."
Good, no failure.
Inspecting the golem, it thankfully hadn't formed oddly anywhere.
Well, it was from the Magic Tower—what would be weirder is if it had.
As I examined it, I turned to look at Katiranya.
She stared at the golem in wonder at first, then seemed to lose interest.
"But Edn. Wasn't this pretty simple?"
"Ah, what I want to make is even simpler. Plus, this isn't as simple as it looks."
It only seemed easy because of the magic parchment.
Of course, Katiranya, who was practically a layman in this, tilted her head again.
"Well, listen closely from now on, since I'm about to explain."
"I'm all ears."
I began a private lecture just for Katiranya.