“How long do I have to wait?”

“W-wait, just a moment.”

“I’ll wait for exactly one minute. After that, well, you can figure it out.”

“Ten minutes! Just give me ten minutes!”

Bel, his face pale as if he had imagined something terrible, struggled, making clanking tool noises.

I watched him with my arms crossed.

The android, with its chest plate open, remained motionless despite the complex tool work.

Its appearance was identical to a human, giving it a bizarre impression.

I had never seen that delicate machine move with power flowing through it.

The android, which I had gone through all sorts of trouble to seize… was unfortunately just a piece of scrap metal at the moment.

“……”

I glanced at my watch at short intervals.

As time passed, my gaze on Bel became more and more displeased.

The waiting time was already two hours.

The excitement had died down in thirty minutes, understanding and consideration had lasted for an hour, and distrust and suspicion had reached the present.

This bastard, did he scam me with an unfinished product?

As if sensing the ominous energy, Bel’s hand movements quickened.

[The World Tree wonders if humans are the same as machines.]

Probably not.

There were only a limited number of cases where a person could be fixed like a machine by being hit.

If done wrong, it would only break.

…Or maybe not, weren't there opposite cases?

It was my fists that had made the unruly ones I met while working as a contract killer act like human beings.

I was tempted for a moment, but I endured and calmed the World Tree by stroking it.

I understood the feeling, but it was still too early.

It wouldn't be too late to scold and reprimand with emotion after it was revealed to be a scam.

“I-it’s done!”

Bel shouted, raising his hands in triumph like a philosopher who had discovered the truth.

His face, filled with joy, was dripping with sweat.

He had concentrated so much in a short time that his whole body was soaked in sweat, and his work clothes were damp.

“This time it’s perfect! I can’t touch it anymore!”

“Do you remember that this is the fifth time you’ve said that?”

A person’s words must have weight.

The man named Bel had a knack for naturally fostering distrust in others.

He avoided my gaze and made an excuse.

“No, well, there’s no technology that guarantees 100% success…”

“If you fail this time, you’ll have to be prepared.”

To seize this android, I had fought Bianca, competed with large corporations, and deceived Sylvester.

Each one was a hurdle that was directly linked to my life.

Bel had an obligation to repay me for my troubles.

For example, if the android’s activation ultimately failed.

“I needed a slave, so you can be the substitute.”

As it happened, he was the manager of the vegetable garden.

Although it felt like a chicken instead of a pheasant, it was good for me either way.

But not for Bel.

Swoosh— It was as if I could hear the blood draining from his face.

His sparse eyebrows trembled.

“...Will about thirty years of hard labor be enough?”

“You’re a lifesaver, so it’s only right to pay with your life.”

Where do you think you’re getting a discount?

It was a lifetime slave contract.

“Ugh.”

Bel, his face so pale it was blue, prayed, chanted, and bowed.

Was it like a programmer performing a ritual to prevent bugs?

It seemed that the world of humans was the same everywhere.

The ritual of wishing to the miscellaneous gods took longer than the final maintenance.

“H-here I go.”

The technician, who had finished the ritual, operated the activation device with a trembling hand.

Vrooom!

This time, the reaction was different from the previous time when it had rattled like an old machine and then died.

A white light spread from the central circuit board to the peripheral limbs of the machine.

The refined mana crystal solution, supplied as fuel, rushed through the whole body in place of blood, in time with the pulse.

The engaged gears rotated at high speed, generating a deafening noise.

The pistons reciprocated in the cylinders, and steam was sequentially discharged from the outlets located at the peripherals.

That wasn't all.

Inside the small machine, the size of a person, countless actions that I could not recognize were taking place.

Even to me, a layman, its complex strangeness was an unknown mystery and a technology to be revered.

“Oh.”

“F-finally!”

And soon.

“……”

The android’s artificial eyes glowed.

***

Sylvester’s headquarters, the office assigned to the royal family.

Click!

Milina Allqueur locked the door.

She cut off the network and even the communication connection by using a simple signal jammer.

It was to block all machinations, including the clandestine wiretapping and secret filming that were carried out as part of the power struggle.

Normally, she wouldn't have gone to such lengths.

That was how much this time required complete secrecy.

Flip! Flip!

The office, which had become a secret room, was silent.

Only the sound of paper turning was heard intermittently in the silence.

Milina, who had been careful even with her breathing, opened her mouth right after her boss closed the file folder.

“As a result of analyzing the ledger, the circumstances of Director Berman’s investment in Delight Conquem have been confirmed as true.”

“The investment circumstances themselves were almost certain. What’s important is the flow of funds.”

“As you said. We have captured circumstances of the misappropriation of company funds, not his own, and we have secured testimony and circumstances that he committed additional acts to cover it up.”

“He secretly moved a platoon of the company’s security guards but lost half of his forces, is that the report?”

“Yes, it seems he immediately scattered money and silenced them to cover it up, but the security guards who had lost their comrades secretly leaked the story.”

“A double contract with the Shadow Empress of Madhouse… As expected, she was not a person to be taken lightly. Looking at the contents, it was a plan that could have overturned the board.”

Claire raised her hand and covered her mouth.

There were many who had doubts about the Shadow Empress’s actions.

But they trusted the name of a member of Madhouse and did not express their suspicions.

But to think she had really tried to seize the item.

It was a lawless behavior that was far from trustworthy.

It was also because she had disregarded the fact that her true nature was nothing more than a thief with bad habits.

That was why it was a plan that would have succeeded in most cases.

If she had approached the target directly and even guaranteed Berman’s direct cooperation, it would have been strange to bet on failure.

“If it had succeeded, that is.”

Claire lowered the hand that had been covering her mouth.

The revealed red lips, unlike her serious gaze, clearly had a smile.

“Pfft!”

A golden plan that had not considered failure had become a bubble.

And that was by her own hands.

A thrilling shiver ran down her spine, gently tickling not her skin but somewhere deep in her chest.

And soon, it burst.

“Ahahaha!”

For the first time in a very long time, Claire could not contain her laughter.

She felt like she was floating on a cloud.

She kicked her feet like a child and giggled without dignity, unable to hold back her snickering laughter.

Even Milina’s eyes widened at the sight she had never seen before.

Claire, after a good laugh, calmed down and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.

“Ah, I’m sorry. You were surprised, weren’t you?”

“Not at all, since you’ve been carrying a heavy weight, you must have a time to let loose.”

“Carrying a heavy weight…”

Was she trying to save her boss’s face, or was she subtly dissing her?

Claire, who could not find any malice in her secretary’s blank face, decided to believe it was the former.

“He acted all high and mighty, interfering in every little thing, sneering and ignoring me, and now he’s finally gotten a big blow. Serves him right.”

An investment contrary to the company’s policy? Misappropriation of company funds?

Although it could be a pretext to create a cause for attack, it was not fatal.

But the fact that he had failed in his investment and, on top of that, had not even been able to recover it was a different matter.

Even more, he had mobilized the company’s forces, the security guards, without permission, and because he had moved a beat too late and had a chaotic battle, he had lost nearly half of his forces.

This was a clear case for disciplinary action.

The disappointment his cronies would feel was basic, and his authority within the company would not be what it used to be.

It was not a result she had intended.

That was why Claire was purely happy.

“For a gain obtained by moving just one contract killer, it’s quite significant.”

In fact, Claire would have been satisfied even if she had only achieved half success.

The existence of a big shot like Bianca, and the situation where each company, not inferior to Sylvester, was also participating and looking for an opportunity.

Even if Sylvester had planned the operation directly, success was not guaranteed.

That was why her original purpose was to request the securing of the ledger.

“The destruction of the android, the deletion of the blueprint, all have been confirmed and dealt with in the presence of an investigator.”

“As expected, he’s a talent too precious to be left as a contract killer.”

No matter how much a designated request proved that one was a top-tier talent among contract killers, there were few who had achieved such clear results.

In the first place, a talent of that level would have found their own nest or formed a force early on.

Even if she tried to give up her lingering attachment, she coveted him more and more.

Claire licked her lips at the lingering regret that would not go away.

“How did the background check on that man go?”

Because she couldn’t shake off her regret, she had to know more about her opponent.

Whether it was a greed for an object, a craving for fame, or revenge on an enemy, as long as one was a person, there was a desire one wanted to achieve.

But from the current Allen, it was difficult to guess his inner thoughts.

That was why the clue must be in the past.

Milina swallowed dryly at the change in the importance of her voice, which was different from before.

“That is…”

“...Don’t tell me you still haven’t found out anything?”

“I’m sorry.”

Even before she could get angry at how slow the progress was, admiration came first.

“You hired a private detective and even an information agency, but still nothing came out? Does that make sense?”

Even if she had requested an investigation of the current chairman of the city government, it would not have been to this extent.

Was it because of a counter-operation using the unknown information power he possessed?

Even if that was true, it was abnormal.

Unless he was determined to completely erase the existence of one person…

“Although we failed to find out his past, it was not without results.”

“What is it?”

“His whereabouts right before he entered the contract business. It seems he had escaped from a factory and headed to the city.”

“Are you saying he was a factory worker? With that kind of talent?”

In terms of years, a rookie in the industry was already causing a storm.

This could not be anything but talent.

The fact that he had been a factory worker at the lowest level, where even human rights were deprived, was an unexpected thing.

Even if he had decided this on his own, it was a very difficult path.

“That is also not certain, as there was a worker named Allen in that factory, but he is said to have died from a severe skin disease.”

“Since there wouldn’t be a professional medical person in the factory, isn’t it possible they were mistaken?”

“They say his heart had stopped and he wasn’t breathing. And, crucially, the point that they can’t be sure they are the same person is.”

Milina spoke with the utmost seriousness, as if conveying the truth.

“The factory worker named Allen had severe burns on his face and was terribly ugly.”

“……”

Indeed, Milina’s suspicion was valid and rational.

The contract killer Allen was a handsome man with an appearance that was closer to a work of art than a person.

He was far from an ugly man who was described as terribly ugly.

No matter how much it was an era of replacing the body with machines, it was impossible to overcome the limits of the original plate with plastic surgery.

“But we can’t just ignore the clue that has come out.”

To be honest, it didn’t seem like anything would come out.

But the only clue that had come out was that one.

Rather than just sucking her thumb, it was right to at least investigate.

“Investigate on the premise that there is a connection. About the factory, and about the worker with the same name.”

“I will take action.”

“It will be busy, but please do your best.”

“I won’t be as busy as you, Director.”

“I guess so.”

A wave of fatigue suddenly washed over her, and Claire put her hand on her forehead.

“Just focusing on Director Berman’s matter, I feel like a day is not enough.”

“Since you’ve seized the opportunity, you must bite down hard.”

“Of course. I’m going to crush him thoroughly on this occasion.”

How long had she waited for this chance of revenge?

Claire was not a fool to kick away the fortune that had rolled in.

“After I regain my lost position, I’ll need more of my own people than now.”

Thinking so, it bothered her.

“The android, should I have seized it instead of destroying it?”

Since it was a machine and not a person, it would have been 100% trustworthy.

“There will be a lot of work to do.”

Since it was a model with deep learning introduced, her competence was beyond words.

Before getting down to business in earnest, Claire imagined.

It was a happy imagination of entrusting all the company’s important projects to an android secretary, taking only the credit, and treating it like a slave.

“Can’t we recover it and restore it now?”

“Impossible.”

At the firm answer, Claire pouted her lips for a rare occasion.

Although it was a vain dream, it was a sweet imagination to let go of.

An android, it would be so nice.

She would supply the highest quality refined mana crystal solution as fuel, and she would never make it do low-level labor that could damage its body.

She could guarantee that she would treat it with the best in non-work-related areas.

“What a pity.”

…She just had such an escapist imagination.

Since the first and last machine had been destroyed.

The development of androids was now a distant future event that could not be achieved in her generation.

***

“You pull out the weeds like this. You don’t just tear off the leaves, you have to pull out the roots with force. These things are so tenacious that if you manage them carelessly, they’ll revive and multiply in no time.”

“Like this?”

“No! I told you to pull out the weeds, who told you to dig up the ground? Then the healthy plants will die too!”

“I did my best.”

“Don’t just do your best, do it well! If it’s an android I made, it should learn such a chore in no time!”

“It takes time to correct the movements through trial and error.”

“How long?”

“As a result of calculating the maximum efficiency.”

“The result?”

“Ten years.”

“Isn’t this just a piece of scrap metal!”

At the same time.

The first and last android was making its creator’s blood boil.

(End of Chapter)