Chapter 34
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Maker Sect (2)
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Senior Choi Seong-myeon cleared his throat awkwardly and cautiously spoke up.
"Just so you know, you absolutely cannot tell Elder Masha that she's young-looking or girlish or anything like that. She deliberately shaped her body that way to live inside that mecha suit, so don't take her appearance at face value!"
"...Understood."
I couldn't help but wonder if he had some bad memory tied to it, given how he shuddered as he impressed it upon me. Then, he carefully approached her.
"Um, Elder! I've brought the junior you asked about, Kang Ihyeon!"
The welding sparks paused for a moment. Masha slowly turned her head and flipped up her welding mask. Her youthful face was smudged with a bit of grease. But her eyes were deep and sharp in a way that didn't match her looks at all.
She glanced at us dismissively, as if we were a nuisance, then spotted Lena standing beside me and narrowed her eyes.
"Ho... So this is what you were talking about. Even more refined than I heard. Mechanical structure, or biomimetic?"
Her voice had a slightly husky, mechanical edge to it.
Masha leaped down from the top of the suit—easily ten meters up—landing lightly before circling Lena, inspecting her. It was the detached, analytical gaze of someone examining a rare insect specimen.
She meticulously checked the joints, skin texture, even traces of mana flow. Then, as if her interest had suddenly waned, she let out a short snort.
"The human model itself isn't anything new. It's refined, sure, but there's nothing innovative about the technique."
She averted her gaze from Lena and turned back toward her workbench. She seemed to have lost interest already. Panicking, Senior Choi Seong-myeon quickly added,
"Ah, Elder! That's not all! According to Junior Kang Ihyeon here, this thing can output combat power on par with an active C-rank Hunter!"
Masha's movements froze at his words. She slowly—agonizingly slowly—turned to look at me. This time, her eyes held genuine curiosity mixed with sharp suspicion.
"C-rank combat power? From an independent humanoid doll this size? What's the power source? How did you implement the attack system? Solo output at that level without external mana support? That doesn't add up... Ah, I see. It's your skill, isn't it."
She stepped closer, locking eyes with me intently.
"You. What exactly is your skill? It can't be just basic mana control or doll-making."
It was a piercing interrogation.
"...A doll-making skill that can partially replicate the traits and abilities of a real person."
Masha furrowed her brow at my vague answer, staring me down as if trying to peer into my soul like a lie detector.
Silence stretched on for a long moment.
She seemed lost in thought, then a strange smile crept onto her lips.
"Replicating a real person's abilities, huh..."
She glanced at Lena again before making an unexpected proposal.
"Interesting. How about making a doll modeled after me, Masha Leosika? It'd be a good deal for you too, I think."
What kind of bizarre offer was this?
She wanted me to clone the Maker Sect's third-ranked mad scientist?
Honestly, it was tempting.
Third in the sect—that put her on the same level as Instructor Cheon Da-eun.
Her skills had to be insanely powerful; no need to see them firsthand to know that...
But I refused without a second thought.
"It's an honor, but unfortunately, I don't think it's possible, Elder."
"Ho? Care to explain why?"
Her eyebrow arched slightly. She clearly hadn't expected rejection.
"Copying the appearance alone might not be impossible. But my skill isn't like standard mechanical or magical engineering. Even if I made one of you, I couldn't provide the detailed technical data or analysis of the creation process that you'd expect."
That was the truth.
Why would an elder-level figure make such an offer otherwise?
Research data. Data analysis. Technical breakdowns.
That's what most researchers would demand in exchange.
'And once it's done, she'd want to disassemble it for internals, demand all sorts of data... No way I'm dealing with that cleanup.'
I had no intention of wasting my precious time and mana on something so unbalanced.
"Hmmm, fair enough."
To my firm refusal, Masha showed no displeasure. If anything, she smirked as if amused.
"Then how about a counteroffer? I'll give you a massive database from another elite hunter in my place. In return, you help me out once every few months using that unique skill of theirs. Tempted now?"
Another elite hunter?
'Elite' was reserved for A-rank and above. This wasn't some casual proposal tossed around like plastic models.
Even for a merit-first Maker Sect, suggesting to clone someone else's clone without hesitation was bold.
I swallowed dryly and asked,
"...Legal issues aside, may I ask who it is?"
"Mm. Nothing that'd cause you trouble. You think the Association would come after you for replicating a vicious criminal's abilities?"
"Cr-criminal?"
"Yeah, Ira Petrovna. Used to be in our sect—a Maker hunter obsessed with artificial dolls like you. Then one day, she up and joined the villain group Black Sun."
Ira Petrovna, Ira Petrovna...
Didn't ring a bell, so probably not a main story character.
'But villain...'
I'd considered it early on.
Making clones of villains or criminals to sidestep legal issues.
But I scrapped the idea after barely a minute.
Even if I could make one, controlling it properly would be the real problem.
They're criminals, after all.
Even Cheon Da-eun barely listened to me—fat chance a criminal would.
Might have to slap a halt command on it the second it's summoned.
'Still... tempting.'
A Maker hunter obsessed with artificial dolls.
Perfect match for my abilities.
If I could summon this Ira and have her focus on clone production instead of me... it might upgrade my clone-making efficiency several levels after the precision humanoid models!
"...Then, I'll propose a few conditions of my own."
First, a reliable way to restrict Ira Petrovna's clone abilities—curse items or restraints.
Second, a firm time limit: max two years, cooperating once every three months.
Third, strict secrecy. My skill and our arrangement stay top secret.
Masha listened calmly, a playful smile spreading across her face. She chuckled as if it was cute.
"Restraints? NDAs? Heh, you're thorough! But sure, all reasonable. Masha accepts them all!"
She nodded readily and turned to Senior Choi Seong-myeon.
"What do you think, Seong-myeon?"
"Huh? M-me? I... I didn't hear anything! Never heard any dangerous talk about villains or whatever, Elder! I was just admiring Junior Kang Ihyeon's talent, hehe!"
Senior Choi Seong-myeon waved his hands frantically, sweating bullets. Masha giggled at his desperation.
"Deal then. Looking forward to working with you, Junior Kang Ihyeon."
"...Likewise, Elder."
Masha nodded in satisfaction and extended her small, grease-smudged hand for a shake—an unexpectedly formal gesture.
But in that brief moment, she suddenly leaned in close. She brought her nose to my neck and sniffed—right up in my face, leaving me flustered.
"Hmm..."
She tilted her head, mumbling to herself.
"Did you spray perfume? You smell just like sweet cake."
Cake? I'd never worn perfume, and no sweets today. Totally out of left field.
I stared awkwardly, unsure what to say. Fortunately, she dropped it and pulled back casually.
'What the hell?'
I blinked in confusion.
After sealing the deal with Masha Leosika, time flew by like an arrow. For the next few days, my routine was packed to the brim with ruthless efficiency.
First, the academy's pointless classes.
I tuned out the lectures, focusing on clone production.
To onlookers, it looked like fiddling with a tiny figurine—but really, it was a scaled-down precision humanoid model.
Meticulously crafting every little part.
After school, I headed to the Maker Sect. Needed to analyze the basic data scraps on Ira Petrovna that Masha had provided as promised.
The only downside was Professor Delphine persistently trying to recruit me as a researcher whenever we crossed paths. Otherwise, prime time.
And all the built-up stress? Vented on Lee Soo-yeon, my dedicated cumdump.
Pahng!Pahng!
"Ah, haat, th-there... Hnng...!"
Deflowering her was still a ways off, but results were coming along.
A week of this routine, and one thought started dominating my mind.
'Fuck, time's so tight. Gotta hit the rift with Cheon Da-eun sis, and creampie sex too...'
Unlike the Straggler Program, my handler had changed, tasks piled up, and I straight-up had no time for solo low-rank rifts.
If only I could swap out those useless classes... Even with clones, it felt like ages since I'd seen Da-eun sis's face.
'Gotta cut a deal with Seraphina after all.'
After-school was my free time, but classes fell under her jurisdiction.
If I could work something out with her, I could optimize my schedule better.
"...Tonight at Paradise, right."
This was basically an invite from the villain group Ashen to me personally.
Time to play my hand with her.
Moving to Class D had upgraded my dorm a bit.
One wall in the extra space had become my personal ops room.
A clean whiteboard covered in faint evidence photos and scribbled notes from my game knowledge and hazy memories, pinned haphazardly with magnets.
All centered on one topic.
Ashen.
The Ashen I remembered was a cult of fanatical tech worshippers pushing regression to past eras—or the rift-ified Earth Great Rift.
True to their ideology, they helped the protagonist at times, leaking key tech—like a giving tree.
'But that's protagonist stuff. I'm not the hero here.'
Online they got called a pushover joke, but facing them was different.
Vast organization, two or three times Black Sun's size, with black tendrils even in the Hunter Association—top dog in Nocturne Town.
So it wasn't weird I'd never heard Seraphina's name in the game.
Big groups, easy to miss someone.
Problem was her being an elite academy instructor.
"From what I recall, the Ashen infiltrator in the academy was a guy."
Two possibilities.
One: Seraphina was actually a man.
Two: Seraphina gets purged in internal politics within months.
Either way, bad for me... The first's obvious; the second?
This invite.
It's recruitment into Ashen—specifically her faction.
Grab a rotting rope if she falls soon?
'Not good.'
From my committed perspective, she needed to climb high, not get ousted as loser trash.
'...Might have to raise her myself.'
If possible, not just ride her coattails—but turn her into an obedient bitch following my orders.