“Linda. Make me an omelet. I’m feeling hungry.”
[Command confirmed. Cooking level 2. Will create an omelet.]
“This time, don’t spill the eggs on the wrong stove and flail around in the air!”
[Unrecognizable command.]
“Hey!”
Linda leaves the room.
Amidst Cern’s booming voice…
‘Yerina is coming and going…?’
I was caught in serious contemplation.
This is bad.
Really, really bad.
If you asked if I’ve ever been in a bad situation before, I’d say no, but…
This time it’s on a whole different level of bad.
If it were Jill or Yulia stepping on my tail, I could kinda accept that.
I’d just say the difficulty of running away has gotten a bit higher.
But if it’s Yerina who’s caught up with me, that’s a different story.
Yerina would chase me to the ends of the earth, to the depths of hell.
Following around all day long is just standard procedure for her.
With investigative techniques that ordinary folks couldn’t even imagine, she tracks my traces.
She could come after me by recognizing my footprints in the snow or dirt paths.
Following the faint scent only beast-folk could sniff out?
Somehow, every time I’ve reset this 12 times, new methods keep popping up.
She has this onion-like charm where the more you peel away, the more you find.
‘Are there any spies planted here too?’
Suddenly, a chill runs down my spine, and I hurriedly check outside the window.
It’s pitch black, and no one is in sight.
But I can’t let my guard down.
Just earlier, when I came here…
I recall running into a beast-folk in the alleyway.
Could that beast-folk possibly be one of Yerina’s underlings?
“Haa…”
When a person is gripped by fear, all sorts of suspicions arise.
I close the curtains tightly and turn away.
It’s already spilled water.
Yerina coming here isn’t a matter of the future; it was part of the past.
The important thing is from now on.
I need to leave as little trace in Clockwork City as possible.
“That woman. She might have come dressed in countryside clothes to hide her identity, but her noble looks couldn’t be concealed. Living on the Northern Continent, there’s no way I wouldn’t recognize her face. It was definitely Palana’s Frost Duchess.”
“……”
Cern pulls a cigar from the drawer and sticks it in his mouth.
He’s already quashing any thoughts of whether it might’ve been some other woman.
“You’ve caught the Frost Duchess’s grudge, haven’t you?”
“Let’s just say that’s the case.”
“It seems you’re in a complex situation. When I told her I’ve never seen a man like that, she simply backed off. But she did say to contact her if that man ever shows up.”
“It’s better not to contact her.”
“Haha, there’s no need to glare so menacingly. With my mind already spinning, who would want to flaunt riches? Unless you’re some kind of heinous serial killer.”
“It’s not like that…”
Thank goodness Cern is a nobody.
In a state where he’s just waiting for death, trying to please the Frost Duchess would actually take me nowhere.
Cern wouldn’t want riches or status.
“That’s good to hear. Since you’ve woken me up, I guess I should return the favor. It’s been a while since I took a commission to create a magical tool. I’ll have to adjust Linda again and might end up losing it.”
“Are you waiting for something?”
“Waiting? Me? Haha… No way. Suicide is a sin, so I’m just alive because I can’t die. Honestly, I’d rather just die in my sleep. Oh, don’t worry. Even if I die, I’ll make sure to repay my debts.”
“……”
Something feels off.
Cern has lost his entire family and has withdrawn from creating clockwork machines.
He seems to have no attachments to life at a glance.
In that case, he shouldn’t feel any gratitude for curing his dementia.
There’s no reason for him to repay a favor.
Is there perhaps a reason he needs to keep his wits about him?
“I understand. The commission is for a magical tool. Here’s the blueprint…”
But whatever his circumstances are, it’s none of my business.
Once I create this magical tool, I probably won’t have to see Cern again.
Not wanting to waste any time, I pull out the crumpled blueprint I had in my pocket and hand it to him.
My drawing skills may be lacking, but…
When it comes to blueprints I’ve drawn by hand, I can manage to draw fairly well.
It’s not something I invented; it’s just a recreation of something I’ve seen, so it’s not that hard.
“This is…?! Isn’t this magic that interferes with the space-time continuum?”
Cern’s eyes widen as he examines the blueprint carefully.
True to being a genius craftsman, he seems to have figured out what kind of magical tool it is straight away.
As expected, it’s a magical tool meant to pierce holes in the space-time continuum.
To catch the Final Boss in the Otherworld, this tool is essential.
Originally, this was a magical tool created by a gathering of mages and magical engineers in the late game.
It’s one of the essential items to challenge the Final Boss.
So it’s technology that’s way ahead of its time.
Cern instantly recognizes technology that doesn’t even exist at this point.
With the severe nerf of dementia, it’s fair to say he possesses broken genius.
But what if Cern, who should be stuck talking nonsense in a corner because of his dementia…
Is awakened through an Easter egg?
‘I could create the final item beforehand and save a ton of time.’
All the knowledge and power of the world gathered in one place! A heartwarming story like that could just be completely skipped.
It was originally designed as a gimmick for players speedrunning…
Unfortunately, the game fell apart before someone could speedrun it.
Instead, I’m the one using it while doing the speedrun.
“This blueprint won’t operate correctly. I’m not skilled with time-related magic, but I can see just from the blueprint that it’s a defective product.”
“I know that. But please make it according to the blueprint without modifications.”
“Hoh… If that’s what you want, I can do that. How strange.”
Cern furrows his brow and examines the blueprint again.
He’s right.
This blueprint isn’t capable of functioning normally.
Not at this point, at least.
To operate that magical tool, I’ll need to gather one more part…
But I can find it later at the St. Francesco Fortress.
Even if it’s not because of the part, that’s a place I have to visit eventually, so I can take my time going there later.
“All the other materials I can get quickly, but… gathering the Mana Stone for the core will be difficult. It needs to be high purity and quite sizeable.”
“I’ll go fetch that.”
I thought I might run into trouble there.
Fortunately, there’s the Black Star Dungeon near Clockwork City, so I can get the Mana Stone from there.
It’s said the Dungeon Core there is quite large and beautiful.
Perfect for a central core.
The performance of the magical tool won’t change as long as the core meets certain conditions.
So there’s no need to bother Tay; I can just have any craftsman here process it.
I’ll go into the dungeon tonight to obtain the Mana Stone.
If I have it processed first thing tomorrow morning, I should have the completed Mana Stone by tomorrow evening.
I’ll be able to hand it over to Cern by then.
“Then I can proceed with the creation minus the core. It should take about three days. You need to bring the Mana Stone during that time. Just keep in mind, if it gets delayed more than a week, I might just lose it again. The last time I was sane for about a week, so it might be even shorter this time.”
“Understood.”
Last time was a week.
How many days will it be this time?
It seems Cern doesn’t have many days left to live in his current sane state.
With the commission handed over, I give Cern a nod and leave the room.
“……”
Just as I leave and pass through the corridor…
I spot Linda coming down the corridor holding an empty bowl.
She looks like a clockwork doll, expressionless and devoid of spirit.
Every time I see it, I’m just amazed at the level of craftsmanship.
If you don’t look closely, you’d mistake her for a person.
In fact, even if you look closely, she could pass as a person if she just kept quiet.
‘I feel like I’ve encountered a déjà vu. Is it just my imagination?’
Linda walks by.
The clockwork gears tangled and moving behind her maid dress are a sight to behold.
That scene almost triggers a memory but fades quickly.
Deciding it’s not worth thinking about, I quicken my pace.
[Omelet has been completed.]
“Hey, you! It’s another empty bowl! Where did you spill the eggs?!”
Amidst Cern’s furious roar, we step out of Cern’s house.
“Now, I’m free, right? This means I can go, yes? No one will chase after me, right? Right? Right?!”
“……”
Throughout the journey to our next destination, she’s been chattering away loudly next to me.
If she’s so curious, she could just try running away.
Is her courage not as big as her mouth? The Centipede Nun trots along behind me with a disgruntled look, her short legs working diligently to keep up.
“No, there’s still something left to help with. Let’s make one more favor request.”
“Again?!”
With her shoulders slumped in a defeated expression, the Centipede Nun reacts in a way that makes me want to tease her further.
“I thought you said you’d let me live if I awakened that old dementia patient! This isn’t right! I should be set free now! It’s a breach of contract!”
“Just one more time, and it will really be over.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Really.”
Really, truly.
Those words are no longer effective against the trio of main heroines.
I’ve used those words before to lie.
Fortunately, the Centipede Nun seems to be gullible.
Of course, even if this is the end, I can’t say whether I’ll actually set her free.
A Curse Caster is a precious resource…
And I can manipulate her as I wish.
A non-human monster with no human rights, huh?
She’s quite valuable.
“So what is it this time? Let’s wrap this up quickly.”
“Look over there. Can you see that door?”
“That’s… isn’t it a dungeon?”
After leaving the city and traveling for a while, we arrive at a mountainous path.
A giant stone gate is embedded in a steep cliff.
Just like any other dungeon, it’s located in a really random spot.
And in front of the dungeon, there are countless signs, fences, and barbed wire.
With sinister messages like ‘Black Star Dungeon’, ‘Turn Back’, ‘No Entry’, and ‘Owner is Responsible for Death’ written alongside terrifying illustrations.
It’s a familiar sight.
I cut through the barbed wire with my sword and break down the fence as I move forward.
“Can you put a curse on this dungeon?”
“A curse on the dungeon?”
The Centipede Nun tilts her head in confusion.
I suppose casting a curse on a dungeon must be an unfamiliar concept to her.
I’ve never done something like that until now.
Just like I cursed the whole train, perhaps it’s possible to cast a curse on the entire dungeon and give a debuff.
That’s where I’m starting from.
Of course, if this method is abused, I could also curse the dungeon and strengthen the monsters…
“That can’t be possible!”
“Just try it.”
Unless she’s lost her mind, no one would go about doing such a thing.
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