Crossing the lake
"For war?"
Ximu repeated subconsciously.
Her family's territory also had some mechanical beasts stationed there to defend against foreign enemies, but from the time she was born until she stepped onto the altar, her family had never encountered a major crisis that required the deployment of mechanical beasts, so she was not very clear about the difference between them.
"This cyborg's underlying logic was 'drag the enemy into the lake and drown'—a direct command that kills the enemy doesn't seem like something used solely for guarding the house, does it? Luckily, we intercepted it before it entered the water, otherwise, Morina's life might have been in real danger."
These words were spoken without avoiding anyone. Upon hearing this, Morina, who was standing by, immediately withdrew her hand that was fiddling with the toad and silently retreated to the two of them.
But...it doesn't look like we're in a state of war here, does it?
They had already explored almost every explorable part of the forest, and apart from the waiter monsters and the mechanical toad, they had only encountered Morina, a living person.
It has come to the point where we need to send out mechanical beasts. It is unlikely that this is just a small-scale friction, right?
But where are the troops on both sides? Where are their respective flags and battlefields?
Everywhere I looked, there was only pitch black silence.
"Could it be that the people who fought here were also affected by the owner of this place and died? Because the machine beasts are lifeless and unaffected, they have been carrying out their original mission here all this time?"
Morina guessed so, but Ruisha did not respond, as if she had some other ideas.
"It's true that Mechamons don't have life, but they do have energy cores."
He waved to Toad, who immediately turned around and crawled in front of him.
"For a Mechamon to function properly, it also requires the energy of its core as fuel. Although with my current abilities, it's difficult to accurately analyze that strange formation in detail, judging by its characteristics, the energy core itself is also a form of 'energy', so it should be absorbed by it..."
The young man was puzzled.
Xi Mu didn't understand these mechanical engineering knowledge, but after hearing what he said, he became a little worried about the safety of the toad.
Although Ruixia seems to have completely rewritten its program, what if there is any hidden danger that causes it to suddenly turn against us at a critical moment?
After hearing her question, the boy smiled and said calmly but confidently:
"Don't worry. Although I think the possibility is low, I've already installed the safety just in case. If I feel it's out of my control, then just—bang!"
He made a gesture as if sparks were exploding, and Xi Mu understood and felt a little relieved.
"And to be honest, this toad's technology is... quite backward."
"Yeah?"
"Well, their attack methods are very simple, and they don't even have a skill that can kill the enemy directly. They need to use roundabout methods like 'drag them into the water and drown' to complete the killing action. It's really primitive. These days, the guard-type mecha beasts that can be purchased on a large scale are equipped with some corresponding magic crystal equipment, otherwise those powerful people will not even look at them."
"You mean to say that mechanical beasts of this quality should be from a long time ago?"
In response to Ximu's question, Ruixia adjusted her wording to make the concept clearer.
"It's not like there aren't simple mechanical beasts like these on the market... What I mean is, equipping an entire unit with large quantities of these mechanical beasts made of high-quality materials but with a single function is something that only nobles from a few hundred years ago would do."
Could it be that... this weird and strange place has existed for hundreds of years?
"So... what should we do next? Should we continue exploring the lake?"
Morina interrupted at the right moment and squeezed in between the two of them.
"Explore."
Ruixia stood up and patted the toad beside her, seeming more confident than before.
"Since this thing can drag the enemy into the water, it means it can swim. If we can catch a few more, won't we have the tools to cross the river?"
Upon hearing this, Morina's eyes suddenly lit up, and all the resentment she had towards the toad disappeared. She even ran over to discuss with Ruixia whether she could ride it for fun.
Ximu stood up and looked at the deep lake hidden in the mist in the distance, but he didn't feel relieved.
She is also good at water.
But right now, they don't even know how big the lake is.
There are many things that can be hidden beneath the water.
+++
To be on the safe side, the three men, who for some reason had no sense of hunger or thirst, spent a lot of time around the lake, sweeping back and forth, following the same method, and confiscated almost all the mecha beasts that appeared in the vicinity.
Looking at this spectacular flock of toads, Ximu came to Ruixia and asked softly, "Is it okay with such a large number?"
"No problem. These things are old, the program is simple, and they're easy to control. I dismantled some of them to increase the strength of the remaining ones, and then optimized their energy algorithms. This will save at least one-third of the energy consumption compared to before... And, you see, I placed some scrolls in their mouths. This way, if we encounter any emergencies on the water, we will have more diverse responses..."
In fact, it can be seen that Ruixia is very tired.
Mechanical engineering is a technology that requires extremely high concentration and brainpower. With such high-intensity, large-scale calculations, adjustments, and reorganizations, most people would have become exhausted and gone to rest long ago.
Yet he looked so happy.
It was the same before. Whenever he mentioned something related to his major, he was always so enthusiastic and talked incessantly, as if he wanted to break down every knowledge point and explain it to others, as if he was really ready to teach others.
The same is true for Morina.
When she was charging the earring magic tool again, she just asked how to properly nourish her mind, and the short-haired girl then gave her a lot of instructions, from the opening of her sea of consciousness to the flow of magic power, and even began to speculate on how she had used magic power in the past based on the hidden injuries on her body.
"I can see that you used to have very fine control over your magic power, but sometimes, in order to be quick, you would instantly gather your strength, which actually put a certain strain on your meridians... This is a typical symptom of a high-damage, high-burst profession, and it's indeed difficult to avoid.
"If you want to alleviate the symptoms, you should regularly repair and treat them. Additionally, I suggest you consciously train your magic power to gather in frequently used areas, such as your hands or feet. During meditation, direct your magic power towards those areas. This way, your muscles will develop a certain tolerance, which can mitigate the damage caused by sudden bursts of magic power to your body..."
In areas that they are familiar with and passionate about, they always seem to have endless things to talk about.
Sometimes Ximu would feel that at this time, there seemed to be light on them, making the whole person bright, as if they could be seen in the darkness at a glance.
People who have lived in darkness for a long time will always be more sensitive to bright things.
When she's not on a mission, she doesn't actually hate light.
But the more this happened, the more she felt that she was different from them.
—What could she share with them?
What force and angle can break a person's dominant hand faster?
Or how to get behind someone silently while ensuring silence?
At what angle should the dagger be inserted into the gap in the armor in the first place?
Or where on the neck does the hand have to be placed to make a person lose their voice and die instantly?
Will they... be afraid?
If they knew that this silver-haired companion was willing to travel with them only after confirming that he could easily kill them...
Will they still surround her without any vigilance like they do now?
"...Ximu, what's wrong with you? Are you feeling unwell?"
Ruixia's voice woke her up from her silent thoughts. She raised her head and saw the boy's worried look. Then the girl not far away also turned back when she heard the voice, as if she would run over to check on her as soon as she responded.
A stuffy, damp feeling of discomfort came over me.
But Ximu knew that this was not due to the pain in his body.
Her family, her family, what had been imprinted on her by the years up to that point was peeling off bit by bit.
All the emotions that had been sealed away by the harsh past began to emerge from the gaps little by little, leaving her at a loss.
Yearning, touching, lost, guilty...
The puppet, having lost its hard shell and its strings, is experiencing a panic of loss of control.
"nothing."
This is her war, and no one else can help her.
It's fine.
She has been fighting alone until now, and after some time, she will naturally get used to it.
It's always been like this, nothing will happen...
+++
They waited until the fog cleared again, and then, surrounded by a group of mecha beasts, the three of them came to the dark lake in a mighty procession.
For some reason, even the monsters that had been randomly patrolling the forest had stopped making any sound. The complete silence made the impending storm seem even more pressing, making people even more nervous.
"……no."
Retrieving the released "insect swarm," Ruixia shook her head and sighed, "There's a lot of interference in the center of the lake. All the 'insect swarms' deeper inside have lost their response."
It seems that there is no other way except to wade there in person.
"Maybe once we reach the other side, we can just exit from here. Didn't Ruixia say that the magic circle by the lake is already very fragmented and almost unformed?"
As the only one in the team who can't swim, Morina has a good attitude as always.
"Well, then... let's go."
The three men each mounted a mechanical beast, and groups of toads emerged from the water in large numbers, and moved across the lake little by little according to the formation they had arranged in advance.
Because there was no moon in the sky, Morina contributed the only lighting tool in the team.
After Ruixia's transformation, the ordinary lantern was transformed into a magic crystal lamp that glowed by energy. The brightness increased several times, and the battery life and wind and water resistance were also greatly improved.
At this moment, it is at the forefront of the team, held by countless flying mechanical insects, lighting the way forward for them.
The scenery of the surrounding woods gradually faded away. For a moment, it seemed as if only the sky and the lake were left in the world. There was no other reference as far as the eye could see.
The cold lake water occasionally splashed over his feet, and thanks to this chill, Ximu was able to stay awake in the dead silence where there was nothing but the sound of water. He looked around the water vigilantly, fearing that some unexpected danger would appear in it.
At this moment, a cry of surprise suddenly came from the side——
"Oh, gods... look, what is that?!"
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