—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“Sip.”
After taking a sip of coffee, Mr. Cern said.
“It’s late, but… I’m going to try to return to my wife and daughter now. I’ll have to put in much more effort to make up for all the neglect. They might not forgive me. But I’m going to try to take responsibility for what I abandoned.”
[You’ve made a good decision. you caused trouble for both of them because of me.]
“It was my fault. What fault could you have… But if I say I won’t touch machines anymore and then bring you along, it won’t seem sincere. So I have to leave you behind…”
For a moment, as if pondering, Mr. Cern looked at me with a serious expression.
It seemed he was considering how to dispose of me.
I understand.
Mr. Cern has worked enough, it’s time for him to rest now.
I’ll just be handed over to someone else to continue the research.
“That human who saved you. Do you have any idea what kind of person he is? Sip. No, you wouldn’t have seen him…”
[I did see him. In the dungeon, when I was caught up in demonic energy and obsessed with the thought of harming people. I clearly saw that human man and his companions save me.]
“What? How was he? What kind of person was he?”
[…]
What kind of person he was…
That was a bit difficult to answer.
Since he didn’t specify evaluation criteria, he must want a comprehensive and general assessment.
The human man called and his companions.
Hereafter referred to as Yoo-jin, he seemed to be the leader of the group.
He had the judgment and power to evacuate and protect his companions even in sudden or urgent situations.
He also had the trust of his companions, one of them even jumped into the gears trusting Yoo-jin.
Ah, were they slaves rather than companions?
I’m not sure.
Yoo-jin also seemed to have strong determination.
A desire to achieve his goals even at great risk, and resolve was evident.
How should I summarize all this?
After running my circuits for a moment to think of an answer, I was finally able to describe what kind of person Yoo-jin was.
[He was a strong person.]
“Strong? In terms of power?”
[In many ways. Internally, he had firm resolve, and externally, he was solid, so he was a strong person. At least, he didn’t seem like a bad person.]
“I think so too. He suddenly came and woke up a senile old man, asking me to make a magic tool that could cut through space-time… He’s certainly planning to use it for something extraordinary, but at least it doesn’t seem like he’ll use it for evil.”
Mr. Cern’s assessment was quite similar to mine.
The common point was that he didn’t seem like a bad person at all.
But why was he suddenly talking about Yoo-jin?
“My eyes for judging people have grown dim now, and I have no one left around me, so I can’t tell who’s a good person. As the first artificial soul, I can’t just give you to anyone. But your eyes must be more accurate than mine. Linda, I’ve decided on your new owner. Your owner is that ill-mannered human.”
[…!]
That was how my owner was decided.
My owner was the one who faced me when I was in a terrifying state, the one who pulled me up from the abyss.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Excuse me. Is there a problem, Master?]
“No. Nothing. For now…”
My body kept flinching and trembling every time she said “Master.”
Trying to hide my embarrassment, I slurped.
I drank the coffee Linda had brewed and savored its taste.
It was delicious.
So delicious that I wanted to see Linda’s sad face if I added sugar and milk to it.
That was how good it was.
She brewed such good coffee, and this intelligent, human-like robot maid was mine?
Even this mansion?
They say you start to doubt when too many good things happen in a row, and it seemed that was true.
‘No, maybe it’s not that suspicious.’
Considering what Cern had lost by clinging to Linda until now, it was not that strange.
He had abandoned his family to focus on Linda.
Now he must have put Linda aside as a declaration of his will to focus on his family.
He was making it impossible for himself to continue his research.
So he was trying to sell Linda and the lab quickly, and I was the only person around.
I looked after a senile old man and was rewarded with a beautiful maid and a mansion?
This sounds like the beginning of a web novel…
“First, I need to know what you can do.”
[Since I’m for household chores, I can do cleaning, laundry, simple cooking, and other housework. I can do math too. The problem is that using me for calculations doubles fuel consumption… And even if there’s something I can’t do, I can learn anything. Within the limits of my memory, I can learn and perform anything. I also have a self-repair function, so if there are physical constraints, I can modify myself.]
“Oh…”
“Your eyes look lecherous! Just like a human!”
“No, I didn’t…”
Come to think of it, since Linda was an artificial soul, there was no point in distinguishing between what she could and couldn’t do.
If she didn’t know something, she could just learn it.
So while she couldn’t use magic, in terms of usefulness, she might even surpass the all-purpose tool, Undecided.
The expensive fuel cost wasn’t a problem since Cornelia would cover it.
She didn’t sleep or rest and could stand guard.
If I was hungry, she could cook for me, carry luggage, and do all sorts of chores.
If there was an ideal companion I’d only dreamed of, it would be Linda.
She was perfect.
So perfect that it was moving.
[I forgot to mention something.]
“What is it? Is there some kind of personality switch option?”
[Oh. There’s nothing like that.]
“I see… So what is it?”
[I’m quite complex even among clockwork dolls, so I break down frequently. So it might be difficult for me to leave this lab far behind, where various repair tools and parts are available.]
“You should have said that earlier!”
[I’m sorry.]
I had been imagining a super luxurious journey, taking a robot maid around and having her take care of everything without lifting a finger.
She couldn’t leave this place?
My fantasy was shattered.
“This complicates the plan…”
[So you were planning to leave the Clockwork City after all?]
“Yeah. I have things to do. I can’t stay here just because of one clockwork doll.”
[Even though I’m not just a simple clockwork doll? I can think and feel emotions just like a person. If you stay here, I’m confident I can make you happy. Do you still have to leave?]
“Uh…?”
Linda grabbed my hand with a desperate expression.
Her hand was warm, as if she had a heater function.
I was surprised once by the strangely alien texture of the silicone, and surprised twice by Linda’s 500% realistic expression.
It was a face that made you believe she was real, even knowing she was a doll.
[Pfft. I’m joking. You’re not the type to waver over something like this, are you? Don’t worry, you can leave. I’ll keep this lab and mansion spotlessly maintained.]
“The vulgar human seems to have wavered though.”
“Be quiet.”
It was true I wavered slightly, but in the end, I couldn’t stay here.
Yerina would soon storm into the Clockwork City so stopping was never an option to begin with.
Unable to settle anywhere, not belonging anywhere, I must keep wandering without rest.
“I have a favor to ask before I go.”
[Please give me your orders.]
“Receive letters here for me.”
[Letters…?]
Linda made a puzzled expression, as if confused.
Right now, I was using Tay’s workshop as the address for me to receive messages from Alicia, Cornelia, and Mia.
I did that because it was the only place available at the moment, but…
In fact, there was nothing more troublesome than that.
If discovered, I’d have to face the full wrath of the main heroine trio.
On the other hand, using this place as a contact point has considerable advantages.
There was Linda who could collect the letters for me, and since this mansion was my property, even if discovered, it wouldn’t cause trouble for anyone else.
“Yes. Letters will come from Elvenguard, Palana, and Cologne. Receive them and keep them safe. Hide them well in a safe or something so no one but me can see them.”
[Yes, I’ll do that. But will you come to check the letters in person?]
“I’ll have to. There’s no other way.”
[There is a way. There’s a prototype Mr. Cern made… Here it is! A wireless communication device!]
“What?”
Thud.
After rummaging through the storage, Linda placed a large machine in front of us.
[It’s just a prototype, so it hasn’t been commercialized. There are only two in this world – one is built into me, and this is the other one.]
“Oh…”
This would certainly be useful.
A device that could communicate with Linda in real-time.
Then I wouldn’t need to come to the Clockwork City to check the letters in person.
Linda could just read the letters to me via the communicator as soon as she received them.
It could save a lot of time, but how could I carry around something this big?
Of course, I could change its appearance with the ‘Disguise’ trait, but that didn’t reduce its weight.
Just as I was wondering what to do, Undecided, standing blankly beside me, caught my eye.
“You’re not carrying anything anyway, right? Carry this on your back.”
“…What.”
“Come on. Put it on.”
“…He-heavy.”
Undecided’s pupils shook.
Now Undecided had luggage too, her back must have felt empty.
This worked out well.
When I put the communicator on Undecided’s back, the size was perfect.
If I covered it with a backpack, anyone would think she was a traveler setting out on a long journey.
It wouldn’t look suspicious either, it suited her perfectly.
“…Too. Cruel.”
“What’s cruel about it?”
“…Compensation. Too, little. Pat pat. Need, more. Often.”
“Alright. I understand.”
With the communicator on her back, Undecided complained with an expressionless face.
Certainly, carrying that heavy thing would consume a lot of magical power.
I’d have to replenish her magical power and let her suck blood more often from now on.
We dramatically settled our labor negotiations.
“You’re giving head pats as compensation for labor…? Aren’t you exploiting her too much?”
“What does it matter? She’s my slave.”
“Even Lord Draken doesn’t exploit like that. The Four Heavenly Kings probably have better welfare-”
[Draken? Did you just say Draken?]
I was about to give the centipede nun a knuckle rap for spouting nonsense as usual, but Linda urgently interrupted, looking between me and the centipede nun.
She reacted to the name of the final boss, Draken?
It wasn’t entirely impossible.
Although she had been asleep the whole time, Linda had also played the role of a boss monster in the dungeon for over a decade.
Did she know something about Draken?
“Do you know Draken?”
[I don’t know him, but I’ve heard of him. When I fell into the dungeon, someone spoke to me. The name he gave was…]
“Draken?”
[Yes, that’s right.]
“Tell me more in detail.”
I pulled up a chair and sat down in front of Linda.
This was a great catch.
I might be able to get a preview about the final boss.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[New heroine acquired bois]
Bro What😭