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On the very first day of entering the gate, my suspicions lingered like a shadow—I wasn’t sure my robot would even function. Yet Dolmaeng-i delivered performance far beyond expectations.
“Our Dolmaeng-i is seriously strong!” I declared, my voice bubbling with pride.
“Who knows how powerful it really is, but if we replace human excavation crews with robots inside the gate…”
“Exactly! And we won’t even need bodyguards, right?”
“Well, well! Right you are! Even boulders would crumble before these things. Goblin or kobold? Not even a problem!”
I was so proud it felt ridiculous! I was beaming with joy at my own creation!
“I apologize for the intrusion. Is this robot going to be put on the market?”
“Yes! It’s fantastic!”
“F-class and E-class hunters are going to have a hard time showing their faces from now on. Hah. What a brilliant invention you’ve made. We’ll take our leave first. See you tomorrow.”
The hunter who had escorted us earlier smiled awkwardly and walked away, but for some reason my mood sank.
“Dad, you seem kind of off today.”
“Yeah… I guess I do.”
“There’s no way our golem could be stolen or anything…”
“He probably wouldn’t think that.”
“Ugh…”
Could he be planning something like human trafficking?
But my worries were completely wrong. Testing the golem’s performance inside the gate went smoothly.
“Let’s stay back a bit first.”
“I’m only sending the robot in for now.”
“Monsters have resistance. Who knows how much power a mana-less robot can muster.”
What a dumb question. This hunter clearly hadn’t felt a thing.
Dolmaeng-i is a true magical being. Mana-based, after all.
‘Dolmaeng-i, go and crush those monsters!’
[Target: Three goblins moving.]
Clank-clank. Dolmaeng-i marched forward with surprising vigor.
It was strong, but short, and the ground was uneven, so it had to stomp along.
‘Aww. So cute.’
[I possess a 35-kilogram titanium alloy frame. The probability of matching the dictionary definition of ‘cute’ is 0.01%. I do not understand.]
It seems he doesn’t realize that makes him cuter. Well, he’s a golem, after all—a robot.
Even stomping along, Dolmaeng-i’s speed, thanks to reinforced output and joints, was surprisingly fast.
“We’re about to engage.”
“Dolmaeng-i fighting!”
“Hang in there!”
We had set up a camera on Dolmaeng-i and were watching from a safe distance on a tablet.
I was testing how far we could go while still keeping safety.
CRACK!
With so many monsters attacking at once, Dolmaeng-i had no choice but to defend itself.
The goblins swung their rusty blades with all their might, but the rust caused them to snap in half.
“Whoa— I hit it!”
“Don’t worry, it’s not hurt.”
“Amazing, right? Monsters carry some mana in their weapons, so regular steel shouldn’t hold up well…”
I knew this would happen.
In my past life, golems weren’t hollowed out like these robots. They were mass weapons that fought by body weight.
Based on how those joints had been reinforced, a golem built on a robot base was probably going to be ridiculously strong.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
“KEEEEEE!”
“KYAAAAK!”
The goblins were brutally turned into chunks of meat by Dolmaeng-i’s punches.
“Ugh… This is getting gross.”
“We should give them weapons to hold…”
“That’s amazing, isn’t it?”
Watching monsters burst apart and limbs snap in places they absolutely shouldn’t was hard to take.
Still, the hunter uncles who had seen plenty of monsters before were grinning like they were watching a movie.
Ugh. My stomach churned.
Back in my past life I just plowed fields and carried loads.
I really was nothing but a nobody.
“Professor, when will such robots appear on the market?”
“Probably… it’ll be difficult.”
“Why?!”
“Dad? Why?”
I didn’t know why the hunter was shocked, but to me this was a major issue.
How could they not commercialize golems that looked this useful?!
They could handle an F-class gate without any casualties, right?
“The materials are quite expensive.”
Huh? Blinking? Dad, something got in your eye? I should have brought eye drops.
Thinking about it, it must be the mana stones…
Wait, that’s weird. Why are they being harvested entirely from monsters here instead of from mines?
‘Mana stones… I think they’re solid mana that accumulated in one place due to some unknown force… Mana Stone Mines!’
Back in my past life I forgot how expensive they were, but I remember mana stones mainly came from mines.
They weren’t like iron ore, piled up in huge quantities, but I heard they regrew if you didn’t destroy the surrounding terrain.
It took a long time, though.
‘A place where mana gathers. At least it doesn’t exist on Earth. So there must be spots inside gates where mana stones grow!’
I was lost in thought when the hunter looked a little regretful.
“If they can be mass-produced, they’d be perfect for porters or low-level gates.”
“I’ve thought about that too. At the very least, they could be used in mines.”
“What a shame. Will we see them on the roads someday?”
“I’ll work hard on developing new materials.”
It was pure eye contact! Was my father trying to read my mind?
The two of them traded those suspicious glances while I stayed busy.
I didn’t move my body. I closed my eyes and began mana interference at maximum range.
‘There has to be a place where mana flows. Mana stones should concentrate around where mana gathers, so they’ll get sucked in.’
I started sensing and felt it clearly.
It wasn’t the small flows used by humans or monsters.
A massive flow of mana, like a strong wind or jet stream.
‘It’s definitely flowing in one direction. But was it right to look for mana stone mines like this? Or could it be that my enhanced mana sensitivity lets me feel it?’
Maybe the biggest gift my reincarnation brought was this body.
CHUCKLE-CHUCKLE!
I was thanking my deity and feeling happy when a finger poked my side.
“It’s ticklish!”
“Our daughter looks happy.”
“Yes. We have something to do.”
“Hmm? What?”
“We need Grandpa’s power.”
“Huh.”
The moment Grandpa came up, Dad’s face dropped.
He could have just smiled and been fine, but what had Dad done that was so wrong?
We tidied up our plans and were about to wrap up the day when I sensed an unknown gaze at the very edge of the mana flow.
SHIVER!
“Huh? Why are you falling? Cold? Want me to get you a coat?”
“No. There’s something unpleasant.”
“Where?”
“A little farther that way…”
The problem was that it felt far too sinister, like a ghost staring down at me from a nightmare.
If it was just my mood, it was too clear—pure hostility.
“Eh?”
“What? Dad’s scared?”
“A movable creature? It’s coming this way!”
Had I accidentally sensed mana, so they detected me too? Or were they feeling the flow and found us?
“Dad, let’s go back!”
“Got it.”
Was I panicking too much? Dad called for the hunter and we headed for the exit.
“Why are you in such a hurry?”
“I had a meeting today but completely forgot.”
“A weekday meeting? Weird.”
“Yes. An academic gathering, haha.”
Dad was faking it poorly.
His lies were too obvious.
I suspected he sometimes did a bit at home, but he was moving too smoothly.
“…”
“Why?”
“They’re faster. It’ll show up soon.”
“Keep going then.”
“Okay.”
Why didn’t Dad question the strange situation? I was grateful.
But we soon ran into trouble.
“KIIIT!”
“KIKIK!”
“KIIK! KII!”
A goblin horde. One unusually large one and twelve normal-sized ones.
“Huh?! How did the boss already appear?!”
That had to be the hop goblins that were supposed to be F-class gate bosses.
Damn it, why were they so bumpy and toad-like?!
Gross.
If they burst they’d probably ooze goo.
“Didn’t we say the morning gate was blue? Black for bosses, right?”
“Correct. How did it skip two stages?!”
“Can you take him alone?”
He’s a boss? That’s not a monster I can face.
I had always thought Earth had physics laws, and so must my past life.
Mana laws had similarities with physics, but it was impossible for a sudden one to appear.
Gates turn black and bosses come out? No, I think the inside was already there—the gate color change just lets people out.
The proof was that after gates turned black they eventually disappeared.
If the color changed because mana was leaving Earth and internal mana decreased, that would be accurate.
This wasn’t the time to think about it! Sorcerer’s job was a curse!
“Everyone, stay alert!”
“Yes! We’ll help too!”
“Dolmaeng-i, get ready!”
Even if the hunter could handle the boss alone, we had to help him survive.
CLANG!
A cheerful footstep rang out.
The hunter leaped high.
“No way… that dog…”
“What?! Where?! You bastard!”
I cursed for the third time in my life and the first time I saw Dad swear.
Because the hunter had jumped toward the opposite side.
He vanished with a frog-like leap.
“…”
“…”
“Sob… I’m sorry, Ian!”
“Life throws a lot of weird things, huh?”
“I love our daughter! Go!”
“Where to?”
“Even if it’s just you, run! Dad will hold them off somehow!”
No… Dad? Crying.
With trembling limbs? How was that dignified?
He’d lose in a fight with me anyway.
‘Dolmaeng-i sortie! Please deal with these guys!’
[Crisis detected. Maximum output movement considering output and body durability.]
The sight of Dad crying and setting me on his back so I could live was painful to watch.
How helpless could someone be?
I couldn’t find any courage, but was there another such broad back in the world?
ZIIING!
“What?”
“Full power, of course.”
Dolmaeng-i started ramping up output beside me.
I could hear the mana core overloaded by the lid.
So far it had been normal mode. Now it was combat mode.
The lid hid the core, but it was probably glowing blinding blue.
The mana circuits engraved across Dolmaeng-i’s entire body lit up blue.
Like a robot awakening from some sci-fi manga.
“The monsters are stupid.”
“Why? Aren’t they scared?”
“They’re scared, but why are they waiting for the opponent’s transformation? That’s the most vulnerable moment!”
BOOM!
Dolmaeng-i, now glowing blue, leaped and flew right in front of the monsters.
The goblins who had been running or crying Dad were laughing.
“Kyaaa—”
“KIIIT! KIIIT!”
Those were the last words they uttered while alive.
POW! POW! POW!
“Eh?”
“Wow? Stronger than I thought!”
The minions exploded one by one.
Dolmaeng-i was rampaging, but the goblins were wiped out instantly.
The final boss had a large hole in its side.
CRUNCH!
But because it had rushed in, Dolmaeng-i’s left arm was completely destroyed and its right arm was dangling.
“Ah! It broke!”
Dad was panicking, but I believed.
[Damage within acceptable range. Victory probability 99.8%. No need to worry.]
My golem stretched its dangling right arm.
BOOM— CRACK!
The boss monster’s head flew off. At the same time Dolmaeng-i lost its last arm.
[Hostile entities neutralized. Stabilizing.]
Gurgle-gurgle. Even if it was a silly golem, please be kinder to its body.
One by one the mana circuits on its body went dark and Dolmaeng-i settled.
How could anyone not love such a sturdy, reliable companion?
I loved golems.
Robots were the same.
“Haaa… It’s over…”
“Dad, hurry. We might run into more monsters and that would be bad.”
“Yes! Let’s go!”
“Wait!”
Dad was about to flee without looking back.
“Grab that.”
“Eh?”
“We’ll carry Dolmaeng-i. I’ll handle the arms.”
“What?”
“It overloaded and entered sleep mode. We have to carry it.”
“Huh?”
It was only 35 kilograms, so the arms flew off… maybe around 30?
“Hurry in. We might still be in danger.”
“Got it!”
We discarded all our gear. We were too busy carrying the robot.
Dolmaeng-i had worked hard for us. Let’s give it a rest for now.