Dream of the Golem
A whole month had passed since the Gates first began appearing.
That also meant it had been a month since I started sensing mana.
I was currently running a simple experiment on my family in the living room.
Using mana, I arranged letters right in front of Dad’s face while he watched television.
«Tsutsutsu—»
“Dad, can you see this?”
“See what?”
“Look closely. Don’t you see anything?”
“Oh! I see my pretty daughter~”
The letters clearly spelled out ‘Dad is an idiot.’ A bit disrespectful, sure, but this was purely an experiment.
‘Alright, next… How about trying penetration? Normally, a person’s innate mana repulsion should bounce it right back.’
I formed a clump of mana and fired it straight at Dad.
Of course, from my past-life knowledge, this was completely harmless to the human body.
Besides, the mana density in the air was still so thin that gathering pure mana alone made it nearly impossible to harm anyone.
It definitely wasn’t because I was some absolutely devoted daughter who would never use fire-attribute magic on her father.
“Huh? Why does it suddenly feel so creepy?”
“Dad, are you catching a cold? Wait, me too!”
“What’s going on?”
“Whoa! Could it be a ghost?”
“Idiot! There’s no such thing!”
It seemed the mana had some kind of effect, but a ghost? Really?
From my perspective as a mage, I could easily disprove the “ghost” my father and Hojuck-mate were talking about.
Based on what I’d read online, it was probably something closer to a spirit.
‘Still, this is pretty fun. Should I do it one more time?’
“Hiiik!”
“Hiiik!”
“Again?”
“Dad… maybe we should call a shaman? What if there really is a ghost?”
What a pair of idiots.
After finishing my little magic experiment on Dad and my older brother, I turned my attention to the television.
They were talking about people who could use mana besides me.
Ever since the Gates appeared in our world, people capable of using mana had started showing up.
People who could shoot fire or lightning, or move objects with telekinesis—superpowers, they called them.
Of course, to me they looked like primitive mages at best, but their power wasn’t something to scoff at.
The simpler the method, the stronger the force tended to be.
Earth’s primitive mages were called Awakened, and they were currently the center of everyone’s attention.
Maybe it was because their abilities seemed like something straight out of a novel—dreamlike powers.
— Everyone, our proud Hunters are returning! The Gate that opened in Seoul this time was an E-class Gate. We extend our deepest gratitude to the Hunters who risked their lives to protect the citizens’ safety.
An E-class Gate was known to spawn kobolds or groups of goblins.
Those were low-grade monsters that even an average adult male could defeat with decent weapons.
Even the one-meter-tall small golems commanded by a 1st Circle Golem Mage could handle them without much trouble.
‘The level is way too low. I still haven’t seen any news about ogres or trolls appearing. I’m certain goblins and the like were the lowest-tier monsters. So where are the stronger ones hiding?’
They said more monsters appeared in E-class Gates than F-class ones. That probably meant the higher the Gate rank, the more dangerous the creatures that would come out.
‘The Gates are definitely growing too. It’s probably connected to the fact that the mana density in the atmosphere has been steadily increasing over the past month…’
It would be nice if there was someone I could openly talk to about this.
My magical knowledge didn’t belong to this world, so there was nowhere I could ask for advice.
If I carelessly revealed any of it, I’d probably get dragged away and have my brain dissected.
‘Just in case, I need to get stronger to protect my family. And while I’m at it, having stronger golems would be nice too.’
It was absolutely not because I was using my family as an excuse.
I genuinely loved them, after all.
Completely unaware of my concerns, my family seemed focused on something else.
“The Gate’s color is changing! I guess it turns like that once it’s cleared!”
Just as my Hojuck-mate said, the Gate that had looked like it was smeared with ink was gradually growing lighter.
And the people walking out of it weren’t carrying guns—they were holding spears, swords, and shields.
Apparently monsters inside the Gates had some kind of unknown resistance, making guns ineffective, so they used cold weapons instead.
‘Idiots… If it’s mana resistance, you just need to imbue the bullets with mana… It’s only been a month, so I guess they’ll figure it out eventually?’
Still, the atmospheric mana density was so thin…
It might take quite a while.
“Dad, I looked it up. It starts from red like a rainbow and changes all the way to purple.”
“Is it a coincidence? It overlaps with the visible light spectrum? It seems the energy coming from the Gates affects light wavelengths.”
A scientific approach I’d never even considered in my previous life.
I wondered what would happen if science and magic were used together…
Completely separate from my interest, my older brother sitting beside me with a blank face clearly hadn’t understood a single word.
How could he not get something that simple?
How on earth did someone with that kind of brain get into university?
“Anyway, they gather resources and hunt, and when the boss appears the Gate turns black. That’s when the Hunters who will fight the boss go inside.”
Dad and my Hojuck-mate brother were staring at the television like it was the most fascinating thing in the world.
It would be nice if they at least glanced at Mom, who was looking increasingly displeased…
Still, these Gates really were incredible.
You could say they gave wings to a resource-poor country like ours.
Iron ore, coal, timber, rare earth metals—there was apparently nothing you couldn’t find inside them.
Of course, you still had to go in, explore, and bring in heavy equipment.
“Honey, they say monsters live inside those Gates… Isn’t that too dangerous? What if something terrible happens?”
“The Hunters will take care of it!”
“That’s right, Mom! I heard Hunters have superpowers! I want them too! Wouldn’t it be cool if fire shot out of my hands?”
«Smack! Smack!»
A sound like sudden thunder even though it wasn’t raining.
The sharp noise that rang through the living room was Mom’s horned smash, delivered mercilessly to Dad and my brother’s backs.
‘Mom used to do ballet, right? That snap is no joke. I don’t think even a volleyball player could hit that hard…’
““Aaaaargh!””
“Sigh.”
Watching the two of them writhe on the floor, desperately reaching for their backs, I couldn’t help but let out a sigh.
“You! Don’t even think about doing anything dangerous!”
“I was just saying it! I don’t even have any superpowers!”
“That’s right! Mom! I was just…”
Talking back? He was clearly asking for another hit.
«Smack! Smack!»
Once again, Mom’s palm made a crisp impact with their backs.
I’d seen it more than once or twice, but Mom’s skill seemed to improve with every passing day.
“Both of you, shut up!”
“Uwaaa! My back! I can’t reach it!”
“Dad! Me too!”
It was a bit embarrassing to say, but watching the two of them wriggle like caterpillars trying to touch the spot where they’d been hit…
‘They’re really too embarrassing to take anywhere, aren’t they?’
At school, Dad was known as the rational, calculating Robot Professor. His students would never imagine he acted like this at home.
My brother had never had much sense to begin with, but still…
“Why would anyone personally do something so dangerous? Are they idiots?”
“Kyaa~ As expected of our daughter! There’s no one like our daughter!”
“Umm…”
What I’d actually meant was that they should use golems or robots instead of doing it themselves…
But Mom seemed to like my answer so much that she hugged me tightly before I could even finish my sentence.
«Fluffy, fluffy»
By the way, I think Mom’s chest has gotten even bigger… Must be my imagination, right?
The culprit that made Mom give up ballet.
I hope mine don’t grow into melons like that.
I wish I could at least grow a bit taller…
Both Mom and Dad were taller than average, yet somehow I ended up at this awkward 162cm.
As I sat chatting with my family, a sudden question popped into my mind.
The cause of the Gates’ appearance and the mana that had begun to be felt at the same time.
“But why did it suddenly come back?”
“Hm? Ian? What did you say?”
Her ears really are sharp. I was just talking to myself.
“Oh, um. I was wondering why Gates and superpowers suddenly appeared. What’s the principle behind it?”
“Sigh. It’s bad enough that your father does this. Now you’re going to start too?”
Mom didn’t seem very interested in science or anything like that, so it probably wasn’t fun for her.
“But I’m so curious about why it happened! They say there wasn’t even any sign or precursor. I have a feeling we might be able to use real magic soon.”
It was still faint, but mana had appeared in the atmosphere. The difference between zero and 0.0001 was enormous.
“Pfft. Our Ian hasn’t talked about magical girls for a while. But now that you’re older…”
“No! Not that! Real magic!”
Damn it. The burning sensation in my ears meant I was blushing again.
If I looked in a mirror, I’d probably be as red as a tomato.
“Aww, how cute~”
No matter what I did, she always said I was pretty and cute. She probably knew exactly what she was doing.
It was embarrassing that only I was reminded of the past.
Ugh… My dark history from when I was little.
I really needed to find a way to delete those photos and videos Mom and Dad had.
“By the way? Are you talking about the Awakened?”
“No. I’m talking about the fundamental source behind abilities that are different from those.”
“I don’t really understand, but Mom is against Hunters!”
“That’s right! I’m not interested either.”
“Sigh… You’re not going to do anything dangerous, right?”
“Of course not.”
That’s what golems are for, you know?
There was no need for people to face monsters directly and take on that kind of risk.
If you got cut by a rusty blade or a monster’s claw, the problem wouldn’t be bleeding—it would be dying from infection.
In that sense, golems that could simply be repaired if broken were far more efficient.
“Mom! What about me?”
“You… Well, if you really want to, I can’t stop you, but you have to be careful, okay?”
“Wait, why? You won’t let Ian but you’ll let me?”
“Hmm?”
What was with this temperature difference?
My poor Hojuck-mate brother…
Were you adopted or something?
‘Anyway, there’s still way too little mana… At this rate, when will I ever reach 1st Circle?’
Even while talking with my family, I was diligently gathering mana, but I had no idea when I’d be able to form a circle.
“Dad, what do you think about the Awakened?”
“Hm? Suddenly? They’re cool, but… I refuse to have an Awakened son-in-law. No, just live with Dad forever!”
Did he think I was going to bring home an Awakened boyfriend or something…?
Well…
That probably wouldn’t happen…
“Not that. What if we combined the power the Awakened use with robots?”
Since Dad was a scientist, he had absolutely no connection to magical thinking.
A brand-new power had appeared. Obviously we should research it and think about how to apply it!
“Hmm… Nothing has been clearly identified yet…”
“Didn’t you see the new paper about mana stones that went up three days ago?”
“There was something like that?”
Having a university professor for a father had its perks.
It made it incredibly easy to get my hands on the latest papers.
“Hoo… They say mana stones will become the next-generation energy source to replace fossil fuels and nuclear power?”
“Hm? Tell me more?”
It seemed Dad was interested now. He had turned to face me.
A good sign.
“They say mana stones contain enormous amounts of energy. If we can finish research on converting that into the energy we want, we’ll have a pollution-free resource.”
“Oh? Really?”
“Don’t you think the day will come when we can create small energy sources like the Arc Reactors from movies?”
“Whoa! That would be amazing!”
As expected, he didn’t become a professor for nothing. He immediately understood why this was important.
“For starters, we could replace those heavy battery packs. It would let us make robots that are larger and have more diverse functions.”
“That’s right! Just removing the battery pack would drastically reduce joint fatigue!”
“Exactly. We’d be able to generate much stronger power!”
I believed that with this new energy source called mana stones, robotics could take another big step forward.
And if robotics advanced, then the giant golem tall enough to touch the sky that was my dream…!
Ehehehe! Just imagining it made my heart swell with grandeur!
“What was the title? I should read it too.”
“I left it on your desk after I read it. Take a look.”
“Will do!”
“Ehehe… And so my dream of a colossal golem takes one step closer…”
“Hm? What did you say?”
“Nothing…”
I couldn’t possibly reveal my dark inner thoughts in front of Mom and Dad.
After all, I had to be their smart, pretty, and good daughter.
With how overprotective my family was, they might ground me and forbid me from going outside.
I hope the day I gather enough mana to form my first circle and create my first golem comes soon…