117
Chapter 117
The Evolution list floated in the air.
Among them, one option caught my eye.
◎ Mecha Teddy Bear - Elite
.......
...Mecha Teddy Bear appeared!!!
I jumped up from my seat and cheered.
I never imagined Evolution into a real Mecha Teddy Bear would actually be possible!
It was the moment my long-held Wind came true.
I had always wanted to undergo Evolution into a cyborg-like species at least once.
Shortly after my Reincarnation into this world, I used to always pray inwardly for a Mecha Teddy Bear before the Evolution list even popped up.
Tears are blurring my vision.
I can finally achieve my dream!
"...?"
"Yong-yong? What are you doing, Papa?"
Princess Doll and Little Yellow Dragon expressed their doubts at my eccentric behavior.
Just then, Fox made a face as if she had figured out the meaning of my Action.
"Ah! That's the cheering game! Everyone stand up and cheer!"
Fox stood up from her seat and raised her arms high.
"Kku-oo? Hooray!"
"Woong!"
Following Fox, Jjokkomi and Tosuni also shouted hurrah.
"All of a sudden?"
"...I really have no idea what goes on in a Teddy Bear's head."
Ailee and Ms. Vampire sat quietly in their seats.
I approached Fox and patted her head.
Thank you, good Fox.
For yielding the Pink Mana Stone.
While I felt grateful to everyone, I felt especially thankful to Fox.
After all, the Pink Mana Stone was originally supposed to be mostly Fox's share.
"Hehe. Gom-jjang is praising me. I'm really quick-witted, as expected."
Fox mistakenly thought she was being praised for playing the cheering game with me.
I didn't bother to clear up the misunderstanding.
I'll just let her keep thinking that.
Anyway.
There's no need to even look at the other options.
I definitely have to pick Mecha Teddy Bear here.
Because what I want is the correct answer and the right path.
Just as I was about to make up my mind.
...No, wait.
I should at least look at the other options.
We aren't pressed for time, so let's not make a hasty choice.
I quickly changed my mind.
I had lost my mind for a moment because the option I'd wanted for so long appeared.
I sat back down in my seat.
Then, while continuing my meal, I slowly took in the options floating before my eyes.
Kingka Teddy Bear.
Queenka Teddy Bear.
Not appealing, pass.
Teddy Bear Bloodmoon
Is it a Vampire-related species?
It doesn't seem bad.
However, I'm not really drawn to it.
Pass.
Great Explosion Teddy Bear.
It's a species that looks like it has terrifying power.
It looks pretty good.
But compared to Mecha Teddy Bear, it was nothing special.
Pass, pass!
Bear Puppet Lord.
It finally even brought out a Lord.
What even is a Bear Puppet that it keeps showing up in the options?
Is it a species recommended by Helper?
No, come to think of it, he didn't recommend it last time.
He just said it wouldn't be a bad choice to pick.
Anyway, I'm not interested, so pass.
Yong Doll.
Dragon Doll.
Other forms of the Doll Tribe appeared in the Evolution route.
These two look fine as well.
However, I have no intention of choosing them.
Even if I undergo Evolution, I don't want to break out of the Teddy Bear mold.
Because I'm already so used to this appearance.
Because of that, I felt like I'd lose my identity if I took on another form.
Therefore, pass.
Beardoppelganger.
What a funny-sounding species.
Is it some kind of Doppelganger subspecies?
It's a bear, but not a Doll, so pass.
Original Bear King.
This isn't a Doll either, so pass.
Alright, my decision is final.
My choice is Mecha Teddy Bear!
I didn't suffer from my usual indecisiveness today.
***
After finishing dinner.
A little time passed, and as everyone began drifting off to dreamland one by one, I settled into a suitable spot to slowly proceed with my Limit Breakthrough.
I had already let everyone know that I would be undergoing my Limit Breakthrough throughout the early morning.
It will take time, so don't wait up.
Go to sleep and let's see each other in the morning.
I had even told them that much.
"...!"
Cheered on by Princess Doll, I closed my eyes.
Then, the Mana Orb slowly began to envelop my body.
I'm finally becoming an Elite rank like Ms. Vampire.
I've almost caught up to Ms. Vampire too.
It was truly amazing that a day like this had come.
Elite had seemed endlessly high, like I'd never be able to reach it in my entire life.
As I was having those thoughts, the Mana Orb completely encased my body.
***
[You have succeeded in your Limit Breakthrough.]
[Mecha Teddy Bear lv.27]
┗Pw.162 (+25)
┗Rnk.Elite (Limit Breakthrough Impossible)
[Consumption Mana: 29,950/29,950]
[Domain: Luck]
┗Rank - Divine
┗Assimilation Rate - 2.31%
[Skills]
[Helper lv.3], [Evolution lv.4], [Magic Doll Engineering lv.7]
The Assimilation Rate had gone up quite a bit.
And my appearance had changed.
My Button, one leg, and half of my face had turned into metal.
Ah, a bit of my upper body too.
I hadn't completely transformed into a robot.
I was only partially mechanized.
The rest of my body was still fluffy.
It felt like I was still stuffed with cotton inside too.
My outfit was also as gentlemanly as before.
I was wearing my precious Suit just as it was.
What a relief, a huge relief.
I can't give up my gentlemanly attire, of course not.
...But, wait a minute.
After finishing my appearance check and taking in the Information Window again, I belatedly realized that something was wrong.
What is this?
What happened?
I froze right on the spot.
Action, Teddy Bear Camouflage, Bloodsucking Enhancement, Flame Manipulation, Synthesis, Rolling, Gourmet, Dragon Mimicry, Monster Common Language, Cane... all my indispensable, precious skills had vanished.
No! Where did all my skills go?!
Do you know how hard it was to get those skills?!!!
I couldn't see them even after rubbing my eyes to look closer.
My skills had completely evaporated.
Could it be that I made the wrong choice?
Just as a wave of despair was about to wash over me at the thought that all my past struggles had become bubbles in an instant.
[[Magic Doll Engineering lv.7] description will now be displayed.]
[Magic Doll Engineering lv.7]
─A skill that fuses magic, mechanical engineering, and the traits of the Doll Tribe.
─Allows the use of a Module.
─Previously held skills are incorporated and converted into Modules, gaining enhanced functions. However, skills that cannot be converted into a Module are an exception.
─Upon leveling up, the Module becomes more sophisticated and the performance of the doll body improves.
[Owned Modules]
1. Mana Engine
┗(Old) Action lv.3
2. Dormant Camouflage Gear
┗(Old) Teddy Bear Camouflage lv.2
3. Blood Fuel Conversion
┗(Old) Bloodsucking Enhancement lv.2
4. Flamethrower
┗(Old) Flame Manipulation lv.4
5. Module Fusion System
┗(Old) Synthesis lv.2
6. High-Speed Drive Wheel
┗(Old) Rolling lv.3
7. Biosensor
┗(Old) Gourmet lv.2
8. Food Printer
┗(Old) Gourmet lv.2
9. Dragon Doll Pattern Module
┗(Old) Dragon Mimicry lv.4
10. Language Protocol Conversion
┗(Old) Monster Common Language lv.1
11. Analysis Module
┗(Old) Cane lv.1
12. Vaccine (New)
13. Recovery Module (New)
14. Repair Module (New)
15. Barrage Mode (New)
Helper brought up the skill description on its own.
Reading the description, I could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Wow, that scared me.
The skills hadn't evaporated; they were just incorporated into the newly acquired Magic Doll Engineering skill.
I totally thought all my skills had been deleted.
Jeez! You nearly gave this Teddy Bear a heart attack!
Ah. Helper, please don't misunderstand.
I'm not angry at you.
[.......]
It seemed.
As I was about to despair, mistakenly thinking I had lost my skills, Helper must have brought up the information to tell me otherwise.
What a good kid.
More importantly, what kind of skill is Magic Doll Engineering?
I don't really know what a Module means either.
Does it mean a skill that operates by being equipped onto the Magic Doll Engineering skill?
In any case, it didn't seem like an ordinary skill.
Magic Doll Engineering.
I read the description for this skill more carefully.
Most of the skills had been incorporated into this skill, and a lot of things had changed and been created.
Several new skills had been created as well.
No, should I call them Modules instead of skills?
...Whatever. I'll just call them whatever is comfortable.
They seem like the same thing anyway.
***
After finishing the Limit Breakthrough.
When the Mana Orb shattered, the lights embedded in the ceiling were still emitting a faint glow.
Perhaps because it was early morning, no one had returned from dreamland yet.
Except for the Fake Dolls and Toy Soldiers, the only one awake was Princess Doll.
Since we pure Doll Tribe members can't sleep.
For reference, Princess Doll had been waiting nearby ever since I started my Limit Breakthrough.
"...! ...!!!"
Princess Doll kept observing my appearance with wide, surprised eyes.
Observing from the front, from the back, and from the side.
She seemed fascinated that parts of my body had turned machine-like.
And every time I tested the converted skills, she even clapped like a seal beside me.
"...!"
The Module I'm currently checking is High-Speed Drive Wheel.
I'm trying out what originally used to be the Rolling skill.
Vrooooom-!!!
Several wheels protruded from the soles of my feet.
The wheels spun rapidly according to my will.
It felt as if I were riding automatic roller skates.
The Speed was just slightly faster than when I used the Rolling skill.
I kind of like this.
To be honest, I didn't want to use Rolling anymore.
I can't just roll around vulgarly while wearing a gentleman's suit, right?
I have to maintain my dignity, ahem.
After finishing my checks appropriately.
Next, I tested another Module.
This time, it was a Module called Vaccine.
[Would you like to execute Vaccine?]
Let's do it for now.
I'm not sure what will happen if I execute it, but it shouldn't be anything bad.
[Executing Vaccine.]
[Detecting Virus.......]
[Virus detected.]
[[Helper lv.3]- Virus infection confirmed, Function Degradation Curse discovered.]
[[Evolution lv.4]- Virus infection confirmed, Incorrect Evolution discovered.]
[Virus - Incorrect Limit Breakthrough discovered.]
[There may be undiscovered Viruses.]
[When the skill level of Magic Doll Engineering increases, the performance of the Vaccine will also improve, allowing it to detect and remove more Viruses.]
What? A Virus... no, a curse was planted in my skills?
In both Helper and the Evolution skill?
And even on top of that, in Limit Breakthrough?
And what exactly is an Incorrect Limit Breakthrough?
Could it be referring to the Otherworldly Taboo Predator Gold Doll that appeared in the Special Evolution options last time?
Just as I was harboring those doubts, Helper's notification popped up again.
[Would you like to remove all detected Viruses? If desired, it is also possible to remove only specific Viruses.]
Hmm... let's just remove them first.
It's definitely right to unconditionally delete Viruses.
[Removing Virus.......]
[[Helper lv.3]- Function Degradation Curse removal complete.]
[The curse that interfered with Helper's ability to detect Incorrect Evolution has been removed.]
[[Evolution lv.4]- Incorrect Evolution removal complete.]
[The Incorrect Evolution 'Bear Puppet Tribe' has been removed from the built-in Evolution route.]
[Incorrect Limit Breakthrough removal complete.]
[The Incorrect Evolution 'Bear Puppet Tribe' has been removed from the built-in Evolution route.]
The thing called Incorrect Evolution was removed.
My guess was completely wrong.
To think that the Bear Puppet Tribe was an Incorrect Evolution.......
[I apologize.]
[The Bear Puppet Tribe is presumed to be an Evolution route created by a curse placed on you by this world.]
[It was previously undetected due to a judgment error caused by external interference (curse) and sophisticated sabotage.]
[I repeatedly apologize for previously stating that there would be no issue with choosing the Bear Puppet Tribe.]
It wasn't something for Helper to apologize for.
Since Helper was apparently infected by the curse as well.
But this was also a curse placed by the world?
No, seriously, why is it doing this to me?
What did I even do wrong to deserve this?
Does it have some kind of grudge against a Reincarnator from another world?
Even for an uninvited guest, this treatment is too harsh.
Just as my anger was about to boil over at the fact that there were more curses.
I suddenly caught sight of Princess Doll standing next to me.
"......."
"...?"
Maybe, her too?
With that thought in mind, I immediately asked Helper.
Helper, can you use the Vaccine Module on Princess Doll too?
[Target: Princess Doll, would you like to execute Vaccine?]
Looks like it's possible.
Is it because Princess Doll is also a member of the Doll Tribe like me?
Or maybe my Vaccine Module can just be used on any living creature.
Anyway.
Please execute Vaccine.
[Executing Vaccine.]
Vrrrm-
A light shot out from my metal Button.
That light slowly scanned Princess Doll from head to toe.
[Detecting Virus.......]
[Virus detected.]
[Virus - Incorrect Limit Breakthrough discovered.]
[Virus - Curse of Communication Restriction, discovered.]