The Third Broadcast (2)
From behind Yuri, Seolhwa took aim with Aurora. The golem's massive arm swung toward the two of them.
“Hngh!”
Bang—!
The golem's arm slammed into Yuri's shield, and the shockwave rippled outward across the field. In that instant, Seolhwa began reshaping Aurora.
[Mode Change: Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle]
[Registered Modes: 8/10]
The weapon in her hand morphed with a series of rhythmic metallic clicks, and before she knew it, Aurora had taken the form of a sniper rifle.
“When you're hunting hardware, nothing beats this.”
It was a high-caliber, high-power rifle designed not for killing people at range, but for destroying equipment—armor plating, radars, and the like. And the golem standing before Seolhwa's eyes was far closer to inanimate object than living creature.
She dropped one knee to the ground and braced the other as a support. It was the stance soldiers commonly called kneeling—or shooting from the knee.
“Hoo.”
She held her breath and sighted the target. The moment the golem's shoulder aligned in her scope, she squeezed the trigger.
What tore across the battlefield was not the crack of an ordinary rifle, but a report several times louder. The recoil that slammed into her shoulder traveled down through her body all the way to her knee, and Seolhwa's frame shifted just enough to scatter the dust at her feet.
The arm locked against Yuri's shield went limp the instant the bullet passed through, dangling like a marionette with its strings cut.
“Nice shot.”
Yuri brought her shield down hard on the flailing arm. With the blow, the mana that had sustained the limb came undone, and the debris it had been holding aloft began crashing to the ground.
“Hyaah!”
Yuri batted the falling wreckage away with shield and sword alike, making sure none of it reached Seolhwa. Sheltered behind her, Seolhwa kept lining up shots. The moment the crosshairs and the golem's other arm fell into a straight line, she fired again. The silver bullet punched clean through the limb.
“Two.”
“I think it's about time we moved on to phase two.”
“Already?”
The viewers' reactions weren't all that different from Yuri's.
Just as Seolhwa had said, mana erupted from the golem's truncated body, and it began lifting the mounds of stone scattered around it.
“It's regenerating its arms.”
Seolhwa watched the golem rebuild itself with a look of mild irritation.
“Should we go for the core after all?”
“That's the surest way, all right. But it'll take one really big shot.”
Seolhwa gathered the mana at her fingertips and fed it back into Aurora.
[Using Special Rounds.]
[High-Velocity Disintegration Round]
[Ammo Consumption Doubled]
“Approved.”
While Seolhwa swapped in the new round, the golem finished regenerating and came charging at her.
Yuri slammed her shield into the ground and unleashed her skill.
Hunter Jeong Yuri casts Noble Oath – Sanctuary
“Over here!”
The golem's gaze, fixed on Seolhwa, snapped back to Yuri. And the moment shield and golem fist collided—
Hunter Jeong Yuri casts Holy Radiance of Judgment – Judgment
“Take this!”
With a deafening BANG—!, a golden cross came crashing down atop the golem's head. Every time Yuri's blade connected, another golden cross hammered down in relentless succession. Under the onslaught, the rock-like shell encasing the golem's core began flaking away piece by piece.
And then, in Seolhwa's field of view, the golem's core appeared, glowing brilliant blue.
Anti-Materiel Sniper Rifle: Bullet Acceleration
Wind mana around Aurora's barrel to increase propulsive force. Grants the enemy a faster, more powerful strike.
Aurora's silver mana rippled and began coiling round and round the barrel. The moment the mana had fully enveloped it, Seolhwa pulled the trigger.
BANG—!
In the blink of an eye that the silver bullet crossed her field of vision, golden mana bloomed magnificently along its trajectory. Like golden thread winding itself up a silver strand, the mana fused with the bullet and tore onward, tracing a fierce, spiraling vortex.
The golem crossed both arms to block the round. But the mana vortex ground the golem's arms to dust and drove straight on toward the core in its chest.
CRACK—!
With a dull burst, the bullet shattered the core and punched through. The moment it broke, the golem's form began collapsing in on itself, little by little.
“Is it over?”
The moment Yuri said it, the chat window exploded.
Seolhwa pressed a finger to Yuri's lips.
“Shh. Even if it's over, you don't say that on a battlefield.”
After a short while, Seolhwa walked slowly over to where the golem had stood. Strewn across the ground lay the shattered remains of its body.
“Totally obliterated.”
“Still, that was a pretty clean kill, I'd say.”
Seolhwa picked up a single blue orb from the ground.
◈ A core composed of highly refined mana. Can be used as a power source for artificial lifeforms, or consumed.
“It's an item that sometimes drops when you take out an artificial-life-type monster in a single strike.”
At Seolhwa's words, Yuri nodded.
“After all, you only fired three times this whole fight, Seolhwa.”
“Something like that.”
In truth, she had used six rounds, but there was no reason to announce that.
“Then shall we see if there's anything useful left in the wreckage?”
Seolhwa walked toward where the hill had stood. The ruins the golem had smashed apart were piled high everywhere.
“It's all broken to pieces—will we really find anything?”
Yuri glanced around with a disappointed look on her face. Then something caught her eye: a single book that looked very old.
“Seolhwa! I think I found something!”
Clutching the book in one hand, Yuri dashed toward her.
“Careful—”
Seolhwa started walking slowly after her.
“Ah!”
Yuri's foot caught on the debris, and the instant she began to topple, Seolhwa darted toward her. She caught Yuri around the waist with one hand while her other hand steadied the arm holding the book.
Their faces drew suddenly close. Yuri gave a small smile.
“Hehe, I just wanted to show you quickly.”
The viewers who witnessed this, of course, immediately began gushing.
Could the clue be in here?
Seolhwa brushed the dust off the book and opened it. And then, at her ear, a soft woman's voice began to speak.
I received the Emperor's decree to create golems to replace his soldiers. He said he wished for an army that would never die, never tire, and obey nothing but his commands.
I have finally created my first life. But it is a failure. This is no soldier. No bones, no flesh—nothing but a formless, slithering mass of slime. My husband and my daughter looked at the slime and told me it was cute.
I have continued my research, but still only slimes are born. What am I doing wrong? The pressure from the palace never stops.
The Emperor has sent his final ultimatum. If I do not produce results by the end of this month, he will close my laboratory and exile my family to the frontier. I cannot let that happen. My Mary is ill. If we are sent to the frontier, she will receive no treatment.
With every page turned, the woman's voice trembled more and more. The calm tone from the beginning had vanished, and just as ink blooms across wet paper, the voice grew heavier with tears.
The problem is the self. An artificial core woven from mana cannot hold the intellect required to carry out orders. All that remains is instinct, like a slime. Then what if... what if I were to transplant a finished self into the core?
Reactions sensing the encroaching dread flooded the chat. Even Yuri's expression, as she read along, began to stiffen.
My husband saw my research notes. He did not despise me for it. On the contrary, he said he would help me—for our family, for Mary. My love... I am so sorry. I am so sorry...
A chill froze over the chat. Yuri too had gone pale, a hand pressed over her mouth.
It succeeded. The first prototype. A soldier clad in hardened stone, endowed with tremendous strength. But... he does not recognize me. He only stands there, staring blankly at the broken rubble.
Having read this far, Seolhwa turned her gaze toward the wreckage of the very golem she had just destroyed.
There was never any story like this.
Seolhwa let out a sigh as she stared into the empty air.
They probably stumbled onto it by chance, killed it by chance, and found the item by chance.
She tried to recall the advance team's interviews, but there had been no mention of anything like this.
“Then that golem was...”
“Probably made from her father's soul.”
“It was guarding the place where its family had lived.”
Seolhwa silently turned to the final pages.
The Emperor was pleased. But one, he says, is not enough. To build an army, he needs more materials. But the only thing I have left... is Mary.
Mary keeps asking for her papa. I told her a lie—that Papa went on a journey for His Majesty the Emperor. Mary will not stop crying. The Emperor's pressure continues. Mary, be a good girl, won't you? Mama will... Mama will make sure nothing ever hurts you. Mama promises that you, at least, will be happy.
zzzt—
The last of the recording cut off in a burst of static. The back of the book had been damaged, as if someone had torn the pages out by force.
“......”
A heavy silence settled over them. Yuri, her face frozen in shock, clutched the hem of Seolhwa's clothes.
Seolhwa calmly closed the book and slipped it into her inventory.
Mary? Where have I heard that name before?
Slowly, Seolhwa began to sift through memories stained with blood.