“Wow, gods of machinery above! How could there be such terrifying aberrations in a swarm? Kind-hearted lady, why do you look completely unafraid?” Ice Rain said as she emerged from her crouched defensive position after the whale swarm had vanished.

“I trust the gods of machinery will protect us,” Yvette replied.

Ice Rain puffed up her cheeks, feeling like Yvette was brushing her off, but she had no evidence to support her doubts. After all, she could hardly question the greatness of the gods.

Then she remembered the earthen wall Yvette had summoned in an instant; it appeared she hadn’t used any magical device yet had done so effortlessly, much like the legendary human mages.

Beast taming, magic… Yvette’s abilities were multiplying! Was she really on her way to evolving into a human?

As a worshiper of humanity, Ice Rain couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy, dispelling the panic brought on by the whale swarm. Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on novel[f]ire.net

Although there had yet to be any mechanical beings who transcended to humanity, everything had its first time. Based on the realms and mysteries Yvette demonstrated, Ice Rain believed the chances of her achieving this were quite high.

At the very least, Ice Rain had never felt that uncanny sense of discord in her presence that came from a mechanical being trying to imitate humanity. Every action and mannerism seemed entirely natural, a rarity among all mechanical kin.

If one day Yvette could truly become human, then she would indeed be a trustworthy companion to humanity! Ice Rain privately concluded that wouldn’t be too bad.

On the other side…

Noticing the whales had departed, Dugrabi finally exhaled, uncoiling from his prone position and raising his dragon head once more, reclaiming some pride for his lineage.

In his mind, just moments ago had undoubtedly been the most dangerous instance he had faced since crossing over. Those horrifying giant aberrations were likely formidable minions of the Witch of Endings, capable of easily destroying an entire city, leaving him in a state of panic even at several kilometers of distance, feeling as if he’d brushed near the gates of death itself.

Indeed, the End of Days was terrifying, with monsters lurking everywhere! Thankfully, he had divine protection nearby…

He stole a glance at the silver-haired girl and suddenly felt that this third-rate wild deity, who had once humiliated him and provoked his hatred, now appeared much more endearing, exuding a sense of safety that even made him a bit more accepting of the task of pulling the RV.

Well, he had indeed caused the vehicle’s damage; pulling it along could be seen as a form of reparations, fitting for a dragon’s honor…

…

After witnessing the fearsome aberrant flying whales, Dugrabi resolved to work even more diligently and, before night fell, reached a nearby valley with Yvette and Ice Rain.

According to Ice Rain’s introduction, this valley housed a kingdom of mechanical beings, the only one around the ruins city of Kuxes.

“Where’s the village?” Dugrabi asked as he surveyed the surroundings after dragging the RV to the valley entrance. All he could see were the town ruins nearly swallowed by the heavy snow and the mountains, a vast expanse of white interspersed with black rock formations—there wasn’t a living soul in sight.

Ice Rain and Yvette also exchanged puzzled looks, scanning the area. After a while, they managed to make a bit of noise. Soon after, an obscure stone door beneath the nearby mountain opened, and an aged mechanical automaton cautiously poked its head out, regarding the group with curiosity.

It had no mouth, relying on an internal speaker to ask in a raspy synthetic voice, “Who are you…?”

Yvette did not respond immediately. Instead, she assessed the automaton, noting that its design was particularly industrial. With a cylindrical body and little stubby legs, its upper half consisted of a spherical head and two tweezers-like arms. It was an impressively crude construct, worn and rusty, likely once part of a factory assembly line replacing human laborers.

She also observed multiple patches and scars on it, uncertain whether they were recent or had been there from the start.

“Hello! We are passing travelers!” Ice Rain greeted, stepping forward. Being the only pure-blood mechanical automaton among the trio, her visible seams and spherical joints helped alleviate the wariness of other mechanical kin.

“Oh, so it’s travelers,” the aged automaton said before visibly relaxing. While its smooth face betrayed no expression, the change in tone was evident. Yet it soon noticed the black dragon that was pulling the RV and froze for a moment, exclaiming in fear, “What is that… an aberration?”

“No, it’s a tamed wild animal. Look, it’s pulling our RV just like a horse in human civilization,” Ice Rain explained.

“Is that so? How impressive!” The rustic automaton immediately believed her, without a trace of doubt. “Two guests from afar, please come in and have a seat!”

“Wait, do I have to stay outside?” Dugrabi complained as he watched Yvette and Ice Rain head toward the stone door. After gauging the doorway’s height in comparison to his own size, he grumbled.

“Find a place to wait outside,” Yvette instructed.

“Damn it…”

A minute later, upon entering through the stone door, Ice Rain immediately asked, “What did the beast say earlier? Was it upset because we abandoned it?”

Due to her unfamiliarity with beast taming, she couldn’t fathom why a wild animal might speak, even hypothesizing that communication between humans and beasts could have been commonplace in the civilization of the past, lamenting her own lack of knowledge in beast language, wishing she could be as capable as a human.

“It said it prefers being alone and that we shouldn’t disturb it,” Yvette replied.

“I see! I thought it was feeling lonely,” Ice Rain said, somewhat embarrassed.

During this exchange, Yvette turned her gaze around the interior.

Unlike the mechanical town of Agash, the members of this mechanical kingdom seemed to be residing in what appeared to be a bomb shelter. Considering that automata, while mimicking humanity, did not feel cold, she found the situation puzzling.

“Mr. Automaton, Mr. Automaton,” she softly called out.

“Traveler lady, you can just call me ‘Copper Skin’,” the automaton responded, turning to face her. It possessed only two glowing red cameras to represent eyes, with no other facial features. In the dim environment, its empty visage looked somewhat eerie.

However, its tone carried a gentle, unassuming quality, akin to the simplicity of a country youth. Yvette introduced herself and asked, “What is the name of your kingdom? Why are you staying in a bomb shelter?”

“Miss Yvette, our kingdom is called ‘Kuxes Family’, consisting of a group of mechanical kin from various places. We do not have the prestigious ‘noble bloodlines’ like the Four Great Kingdoms, and there aren’t many of us—now, we number fewer than thirty,” Copper Skin explained. “We do not wish to remain in this bomb shelter either. We want to venture outside to repair the structures left behind by our creators, but there are often frightening Mountain Whales passing by, and they attack, leaving us no choice.”

“Mountain Whales?” Ice Rain exclaimed. “Are they huge, like whales, capable of flying, and coming in swarms as aberrations?”

“Yes, have you seen them?” Copper Skin said, surprised. “Those Mountain Whales are very dangerous; you’re not hurt, are you?”

“They didn’t spot us,” Ice Rain assured.

“Then that’s good.”

“How did the Mountain Whales suddenly appear?” Yvette suddenly asked, focusing on the numerous discrepancies surrounding those aberrant whales.

She didn’t believe those giant flying whales were merely aberrations derived from normal whales. The genuine aberrant whales she had encountered while crossing seas were completely different in evolutionary design.

“We don’t know either; they suddenly appeared from the city center of the ruins city of Kuxes. It’s too dangerous there. After we prayed to the gods, the Sanctuary sent a divine envoy here, but he wasn’t able to approach that area and nearly suffered serious injuries.”

“Even a divine envoy…” Ice Rain said in astonishment. This was the strongest battle force of the mechanical kin, the key protector of all kingdoms!

She and Dugrabi teamed up, barely escaping from a Phase Three aberration, but if a divine envoy were there, they could eliminate it in no time!

Such an invincible presence could also be injured?

“The divine envoy told us that the monsters in Kuxes are very strange and possess dangers far beyond their assumed phase. Advancing further would be reckless. Additionally, he advised us to depart this place and relocate our kingdom. However, everyone has lived here for so long, establishing attachments, so…”

At this point, Copper Skin sighed, “Honestly, I support the idea of moving, but everyone is unwilling. After all, this place is dear to us. We cherish its history, love its landscape, and the memories we’ve created together.”

Listening to its sorrowful tone, Ice Rain empathized, perhaps reminded of her own home in Silver Mirror Isle.

Meanwhile, Yvette’s brow tightened, her attention still fixed on the Mountain Whales.

The mention of dangers far exceeding their expected phases confirmed her judgment: that swarm of Mountain Whales was indeed Phase One aberrations but could wield flying spells that required knowledge beyond a Phase Three’s capabilities. Moreover, the presence of such bizarrely dangerous aberrations in Kuxes was startling…

Was there still a need to hunt? Wouldn’t circling back through hunting leave her with even less aberrant magical energy rather than more?