Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Mass-Produced Golems (4)
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Golem magic has relatively clear origins.
Unlike Fireball, golems began as weapons of war.
That's why there had been numerous attempts to refine golem magic over the years.
But they all failed.
No one could figure out how to properly link together chunks of stone in different shapes and sizes.
On top of that, golems fell under minor magic, which was another problem.
Creating one required a core and stones of consistent size and shape.
The preparation was already a hassle, but then you had to bind them all together to produce useful movement.
And cram it all into a single magic circle, no less.
Plus, right after the war ended, more popular spells surged in demand.
Naturally, golem research fell by the wayside.
Curiously, dungeons housed things similar to mass-produced golems.
But since no one knew about them...
I figured I could claim to be the first inventor.
If anyone had a problem with that, the golem's creator in the dungeon could come complain.
Anyway, the mass-produced golem I unveiled at the Magic Society garnered an explosive response.
A bit too explosive, in fact.
"Give it to our Magic Tower!"
"No, that's the Blue Magic Tower's!"
Suddenly, an auction for the mass-produced golem kicked off.
As I'd mentioned before, I couldn't cast spells on my own.
Building a factory for this would be a pain—selecting a site, hiring workers, setting up production lines, and so on.
Having Professor Herman around would have helped, but unlike the fountain pens, this was actual magic.
So I'd been looking to license it out—let someone else produce it in exchange for royalties.
Somehow, though, it turned into an auction.
The loudest bidder was the Blue Magic Tower.
Because the parchment I'd used belonged to them.
They were pushing that point hard.
"He made it with our materials, so naturally, he should contract with us!"
Well, I'd bought it because it was the closest and quickest option at the time.
Still, he wasn't wrong, so momentum was shifting toward the Blue Magic Tower.
The other towers seemed at a loss for how to counter the claim.
Just when it looked like Blue was going to win...
"We'll give you the full sales amount."
"What?!"
"Whoa."
The Red Magic Tower boldly declared they wouldn't take a single coin.
What were they thinking?
I had no idea, but it didn't matter to me.
I hadn't planned to contract with every tower anyway—if they'd compete on their own, great.
So I munched on the snacks the Magic Society provided while watching the Red and Blue Magic Towers bicker.
Hmm, these are tasty.
"The mass-produced golem is ours! Wasn't it developed using Blue Magic Tower materials from the start?!"
"Hah, by that logic, everything's yours? Enough nonsense! It doesn't matter whose materials were used!"
The Red Magic Tower's argument was simple but aggressive.
Dismissing Blue's claim as rubbish and pushing forward forcefully!
Blue wouldn't back down and raised their voice in response.
"Contract with us!"
"No way we're handing it to the likes of the Blue Magic Tower!"
As I watched over snacks, the mood grew increasingly hostile.
Neither side showed any sign of yielding.
The problem was both had valid points, making it tricky to intervene.
After a moment's thought, I decided to step in before it dragged on and got exhausting.
I had an idea, so might as well voice it.
I stood and approached the two.
"Would both of you hear me out for a moment?"
They turned to me mid-argument.
The room fell silent for a beat, which felt awkwardly heavy, but I played it cool.
"Ahem. Allow me to make a proposal to you both."
"Let's hear it."
"Go on."
Good, they weren't ignoring me.
It was something I'd just thought up, but no need to show that.
I puffed out my chest confidently.
"I'll provide the technology to both Magic Towers. But there are conditions."
The two, who had looked surprised at first, swallowed hard at the mention of conditions.
I paused dramatically for effect.
They had impressive patience, though—it wasn't as fun as I'd hoped.
This is why they're wizards, I realized.
Though I was similar during research.
Not too disappointed, I got to the point.
"It's simple. Once you receive the tech and start production, we'll check sales after one month. Whichever tower sells more gets the official contract. How does that sound?"
In other words, the two towers would compete.
Would prideful wizards accept?
Well, judging by their fight so far, probably.
Sure enough, they grinned eagerly, competitive sparks flying as they eyed each other.
"Excellent! That fires me up!"
"Heh, takes me back to my younger days."
Red was fired up, Blue flashed a cool smile.
Both seemed on board.
"Then that's settled. Oh, and no cheating. To ensure that, we'll seal it with a soul contract right here."
"Eh, even that?"
The heated Red wizard faltered.
Soul contracts carried serious weight, after all.
But what choice was there?
I couldn't monitor them myself.
Still, soul contracts were heavy—they bound your soul to an absolute command.
Without it, though, the competition wouldn't be fair.
So I smiled provocatively.
"What, scared?"
"Me?! Do it now! Hurry!"
"Understood."
And so, I bound them both with a soul contract.
Now all that was left was to watch their rivalry unfold.
I began sharing the technology, already plotting how to spectate, after clearing everyone else from the room.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Wizards tend to be sensitive about their magic.
It's their reason for being, their conviction.
Not all are like that, but most.
So even after this competition ends, they'll honor their promise to Edn.
No illegally profiting off the shared tech.
"Hah, it's impressive no matter how many times I look. How did he come up with this?"
Bento of the Red Magic Tower smiled as he gazed at the documents Edn had handed him.
He folded them and turned to his chief disciple.
"Prepare production based on this! We can't lose to those Blue fools!"
"Y-yes..."
His disciple looked glum, but Bento paid it no mind.
He barked orders at his other disciples, desperate to ramp up speed.
If he'd built more muscle and been a bit more violent, he might've cracked a whip.
"Move it! Faster!"
"Eek! This is torture..."
As wails echoed in part of the Red Magic Tower...
The Blue Magic Tower handled things differently.
The wizard who'd received the tech spoke calmly.
"Move that over here first. Experimental cores go there."
"Yes."
Unlike Red, they operated with impressive organization.
Pilling of the Blue Magic Tower adjusted his glasses and directed his disciples.
They bustled about, inspecting the golem magic, preparing materials, readying production.
The whole process flowed like water.
"We can't lose to the Red Magic Tower. Right?"
"Of course not."
Red Magic Tower and Blue Magic Tower.
Different styles, same goal.
Produce and sell mass-produced golems.
Originally for internal use only, but Edn's words changed that.
Anyone with money—even commoners—could enjoy golems!
It struck a chord with wizards who'd researched golems for ages.
Three days later, sales began at both towers.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Sales of the mass-produced golem seemed ordinary at first glance.
Take orders, verify identity, collect deposit.
Produce the magic parchment scroll, ship to customer, collect the rest.
The issue was the promotion—it spread like wildfire in every direction.
Truly everywhere.
"Kuhahaha! So this is a golem?"
Inside a massive mansion, a noble laughed gleefully at his golem.
He'd never heard of Edn before, but he loved the golem.
His silent gratitude felt almost like a prayer to a god.
He stared at it like a priceless treasure.
Grinning with desire, he commanded it.
"Right now..."
He paused, gauging the golem's reaction.
Of course, the emotionless golem couldn't panic, but that's how it looked to him.
"Change into a maid outfit and clean!"
An astonishingly bizarre order.
The golem froze briefly before moving.
The noble thought, Yep, it's panicking.
In truth, it had just processed the delayed command.
Like this, mass-produced golems could handle simple commands even for laypeople.
Edn hadn't intended it, of course.
He'd simply preserved a feature from the base golem magic that formed its foundation.
Combined with Edn's custom logic circuits, it meshed surprisingly well by coincidence.
The response to mass-produced golems was explosive.
Especially their affordability.
The influence of the Red and Blue Magic Towers helped too.
Rivalry led to discounts and promotions galore.
Of course, they couldn't fully replace maids or servants.
But people weren't buying them for that.
They were fun, flashy status symbols that occasionally hit niche tastes.
Luxury items, in a word.
Edn let out a hollow chuckle at the sight.
"Didn't expect it to blow up like this."
Even in Rlangbur, the mass-produced golem craze swept through.
Golems roamed here and there, handling human chores.
"Golems are amazing!"
"Yeah, they handle tough jobs effortlessly!"
Unlike in novels, but similar enough—Edn just shrugged.
If you can't avoid it, enjoy it, right?
Edn decided to do just that.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ While Edn pitted the two Magic Towers against each other with mass-produced golems...
In a certain region of the Magic Realm, someone perked up.
"...Huh? Someone broke a golem?"
It was Alfheim, home to elves and part of the Magic Realm.
The World Tree stood tall at its heart, a protected sanctuary.
One elf there twitched her ears.
She'd once obsessed over golems and painstakingly crafted one, now destroyed.
Some time had passed, but she sensed it clearly.
She felt no regret, though.
Instead, the golem's destruction piqued her interest.
"I just stashed it there because it was good storage."
Who had gone there?
And who had seen that golem?
Her ears fluttered with intellectual excitement before she stopped them.
"Eh, I'll see eventually."
The elf shrugged it off nonchalantly.
Classic elf thinking—it'll happen someday.