Chapter 139
I closed the lid now that I was ready to leave . In the next instant, the box began to sink into the floor by itself, until the surface was perfectly level with the rest of the floor . For a moment, I wondered if there was some kind of trap, and I frantically turned around . But there was nothing to suggest the doors were going to close on me or that some guardians were going to appear out of nowhere . It was merely signaling the end of the attraction . And so I picked up the two pairs of glasses and left the room .
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The hallway seemed a lot shorter this time, now that I wasn’t nervous . I felt like I reached the Automata again in no time .
“Well, well, what should I do about it…”
I tried appraising it with the glasses, and it was indeed an Automata .
‘Automata type F . Out of order due to lack of reactor core . ’
You needed something called a reactor core to make it move . Type F must be for female… But what was a reactor core? Where did one acquire it? I tried flipping it over and searching . There was a barely visible slit on the back of its neck . I dug my finger into it and the skin rolled back .
“Uhhh…that’s bizarre…”
Underneath the skin, I could see bones that were similar to the other dolls in the room .
“…Ah, it’s no use . I don’t think I’ll be able to fix it . ”
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I wasn’t an inventor or scientist . Any more tinkering would probably result in permanent damage . I gently returned the skin flap to normal then searched through the dolls that had exposed bones . Upon searching one that was a similar model, I saw that there was a lid in between the shoulder blades and a hole which something could be inserted in . This was probably where this reactor core thing went .
So that was the next thing I searched for . I used the appraisal glasses to search each doll and see why they were out of order . If it was for a reason unrelated to the reactor core, there was a chance the doll still contained one .
“I haven’t found any so far…what about this one?”
I looked at one doll which had no arms or legs .
‘Automata type F . For lovers of sadism . Inoperable due to bodily damage . Currently out of order due to lack of magic energy . ’
Sadism…? So it was broken by a sadist? Okay, these ancient elves really were perverts . Complete, total perverts .
However, there was good news too . If the reason was that it was out of magic…
“I knew it . So this is the reactor core . ”
I opened the lid on its back and a multifaceted crystal-like object came out . It was like a large super ball . When inspecting it through the appraisal glasses, it displayed, ‘reactor core for Automata . ’
‘Automata Reactor Core, Remaining Magic: 0’
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So I could probably recharge it by sending magic into it . But I felt a little bad for the broken one… To end your run on such a note . I brought my hands together for a moment of silence .
Then I tried sending magic into the reactor core in my hand . It was pure void magic . Would it work?
‘Automata Reactor Core, Remaining Magic: 5%’
Well, it worked a little . Good .
I recharged and rested a few times . After this, I would sleep and meet up with Daniela tomorrow . It was safe down here, so I decided that this would be where I spent the night .
After repeating the process a few times, I checked it again with the appraisal glasses and saw that it had reached 100% . Now the Automata should move . …But it was kind of difficult to move that skin flap . So I decided to practice on a nearby doll .
That night, I forgot to eat dinner as the time went by and I tinkered with the machines .
“…Mmm… Ahh…I fell asleep…”
I awoke in the room that was littered with the Automatas . As I had slept on the bare floor, my body hurt all over . And plus, it was very cold .
“I want a bath…and food…”
Though, there was no one there to make my wishes come true . I now had four more of the reactor cores in my hand . I had removed them from the other machines that I was tinkering with . Though, these ones were empty .
As for the skin peeling, I was quite good at it now . This was the result of practicing on models that were missing arms or legs . I even practiced on a complete model as well, and was able to return the skin to its former place .
And I made another discovery . The dolls were based on humans in both appearance and bone structure . Strictly speaking, they would move just like humans, in spite of being machines . Their joints could not move in the wrong way and they had no structural features that humans lacked . The only things that they didn’t have were organs and blood . They ran on the magic supplied by the reactor core .
There was a spherical object inside of their heads that acted as a brain . The appraisal glasses informed me that it was covered in magic patterns . I believed it held information, programming that made the machines move .
There were new discoveries the more I looked . These things were full of ancient technology .
After much searching, I realized that there was no switch, and they should move by just putting the reactor core into their backs .
“…But what happens then?”
I had been excited due to how unusual all of this was to me, but suddenly, I was struck by the dilemma of what to do after I turned it on . What was its purpose? Did it have a will? What if it turned out to be an enemy of all mankind? That would be incredibly annoying .
“Sometimes, romanticists meet cruel ends…”
Perhaps treasure hunters always had to take a degree of responsibility for what they uncover . As the first person . That meant I had to see this through . Sell it or manage it . If I wanted to claim ownership, I would have to remain responsible . Of course, I did .
“I’ll talk about it with Daniela . ”
It was too difficult a problem for me alone . This was another world, and it had its own rules . I would just push the burden of the decision to Daniela, I mean, um, discuss it with her . Yes, that would be for the best .
However, it would be very cumbersome to carry this thing . It was the body of a woman with almost scientifically approved proportions . And naked . And so I took off my poncho and waist mantle to hide what needed to be hidden . The five reactor cores were small enough to fit into my pockets . Then I just needed to carry the thing on my back and I was ready .
“…I’ll just have to be careful that no one sees me . ”
This was probably what people felt like when they did something shameful…
I tried not to pay any mind to the two cushions that pressed onto my back as I went down the hallways and reached the ladder…which I could not climb . And so I used Legs of the Forest Wolf to go up . After all, my hands were full .
“No one around…? Good…”
I searched the area with Presence Detection as I came out of the hole . There were no humans or monsters about . For a while, I wondered what I should do about the hole . If I buried, it would likely never be found by anyone again . And so I closed the hatch but decided to leave it as is . It wasn’t because I was lazy or anything . But a treasure hunter had to leave evidence of his great accomplishments .
I stepped on the air and vaulted up in a straight line towards the mountains in the south . The forest rushed below me, and I could see the burned village . Then I noticed some movement and stopped .
I could see that there were figures who were pulling down the burnt houses and cleaning the rubble . They had started with restoring the village . They were tough people… The village would likely return to its former state in very little time . I couldn’t help them as I was carrying something, but I wished them well in my heart as I continued to run towards the rocky mountains .