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111. Unscheduled

 

「Presenting the final model in the line of intercepting dolls housed within the Golem Fortress—also known as the Emesmes Estate—number sixteen! Crafted by the Forty-Second Head herself! Behold—the activation of the ‘The Sage Who Waited in Vain’!」

It towered so high it seemed to pierce the heavens. Compared to this, even the large golems Angelina had made in the past were trivial. This massive figure now stood like a guardian deity in the middle of the city. Angelina and the others appeared to be piloting it from a workshop-like structure on its head.

Even the Dungeon King seemed to acknowledge the menace it posed. It turned to face it, crushing the mountain slope underfoot with each step. A clear sign he saw this golem as a worthy opponent. Yet, in that moment, I realized a major problem.

「Koe-san, stay close to me!」

「Yes, what’s the matter?」

「Golems can reflect the skills of their users. Which means—」

I scooped up Koe-san in one arm and grabbed Kirmiji, who was sprawled nearby, then looked up at the sky.

At that very moment, a colossal shadow fell over us.

The sky, which had cleared after the clouds were blown away, was suddenly darkened again—not by a storm, but by the enormous white-porcelain figure that had until moments ago been standing on the outskirts of the city.

「[Leap], activate!」

「[Space Jump], activate!」

The golem had launched itself in a single bound. I instinctively altered our position coordinates, dodging by the slimmest of margins. The spot we’d just been was crushed under the weight of that porcelain foot, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.

Even Koe-san, who rarely looked rattled, had a twitch in her expression as though she’d just imagined herself being squashed flat.

「…Thank you, Master.」

The ‘major problem’ with the golem ‘The Sage Who Waited in Vain’ was simple: just moving around turned everything underfoot into a wasteland.

Fighting with that behemoth inside the city would be a disaster later on. So it made sense to leap toward the King, who was still on the outskirts. It made sense.

But still—

「You’re not even trying to avoid us, huh, Angelina!?」

I thought we could only hear her voice, but apparently, she could hear us too. The golem’s face even seemed to turn in our direction. To think it had such a high-performance audio sensors built in—as expected of the Emesmes family tech. 1100 years of history wasn’t just for show.

「You won’t die so easily, Skill Lender-san, so Geli is gonna go ahead and kill him without restraint! Sorry!」

「…I see you were trying to be careful up until now.」

Angelina had come to me under the pretense of researching the use of skill on golems, but in truth, she’d been searching for her parents. She’d played the part of the free-spirited girl, but it was clear now she’d been unconsciously avoiding doing anything that would truly displease me.

So the way she switched gears completely—if anything, I had to admire it.

「…Are you angry with Geli?」

「No, it’s fine. Go all out.」

「That’s the part of you I love most, Skill Lender-san!」

「Did I just hear something a parent should not ignore!?」

The golden chain wrapped around the golem shouted indignantly, but before it could say more, the golem’s massive right arm swung back, silencing everything.

A declaration of war delivered by a single punch of brute force.

「Right fist of [Fougères the Artificer]!」

The King unfurled its wings in response. Those massive wings, veined in crimson like leaf patterns, whipped up a storm just by moving. The red veins must have served as magical circuits—mana instantly concentrated in its right arm. Power surged through it as its own right hand met the golem’s.

Right met right—and the clash was even.

But as the golem staggered back, the King’s tail lashed down at it. Unable to dodge in time, the golem raised a barrier overhead.

「[Rudel of the Hollow’s Bed]! Guh—!!」

「Daaamn, that’s heavy!」

Mana barrier and tail collided. A thunderous shockwave tore through the ground. The golem, staggered, had its right shoulder bitten by the King’s jaws.

The tide was turning against us.

If both size and strength were equal, then the difference would lie in reaction speed—and the King was fighting with its own body. Angelina, piloting a massive frame, was at a disadvantage there. The golem buckled and dropped to one knee.

「Master, I trust Angelina-san, but even so…」

「I know. The Emesmes plan assumes a ‘fully realized alchemist Angelina.’」

The current Angelina might still be lacking.

The mountain, which should never move, shifted. The ground, which should never quake, trembled. Amid this chaos, Angelina’s voice rang out.

「Even if this fight was part of the plan, going in cold against the King like this—yeah, it’s reckless… Of course Geli knows that!」

With a shout, she plunged the golem’s left hand into the earth.

「That’s why Geli is going with something unscheduled! Azula-chan!!」

「[Messenger of the Mine], activate! Though I’ve never done one this big before…!」

A deep rumbling began underground. Something was clearly gathering where the hand was buried—but that meant the golem was rooted in place, right in front of the enemy.

Naturally, the King didn’t let that slide. It raised both claws. Eight talons came crashing down toward the golem’s head.

A fatal strike—yet it was stopped mid-swing. Glittering chains and blades intercepted the blow.

「Papa!」

「[Divine Blade/Three Moon Sword], activate! I’ve blocked it, but I can only hold for five seconds…!」

Even with its mighty mana-infused edge, it couldn’t completely withstand the King’s claws. One by one, the blades cracked and shattered.

「Oh, and uh—the chains are about to snap too. Yup, breaking—definitely breaking—Azula-chan it’s breaking—」

「Rushing a desperate artisan never ends well! So zip it!」

「…My daughter’s hit her rebellious phase. I’ll keep at it though!」

This wasn’t good.

The tide was against us. I should jump in to help. Just as I began to move, I felt that pulling back sensation—someone calling for me.

I turned to Koe-san.

「[Skill Lender], activate. Debtor: Roll All Emesmes. Lending skill…[Slash Enhancement]. Give him a generous share.」

「Yes, Master.」

「Debtor approval confirmed. Lending process complete.」

「Oho!?」

The moment the lending was complete, one of the King’s claws was sliced clean through by the blade. Even the mighty King paused. It was only a second or two, but in high-speed combat, that was an eternity.

「Geli-sama, please use it as you see fit.」

「Yeah!」

The golem rose. Its left hand lifted high—dirt and debris cascading off it in a landslide, kicking up a dust cloud.

Clutched in that hand was a massive—no, colossal—warhammer. Big enough to flatten a castle in a single blow.

Its crude design held a certain functional elegance. Black steel shimmered in the sunlight. Azula’s ragged breath confirmed that this was the best she could forge.

「Born with hammers in hand, as they say—us Dwarfs pride ourselves on our tools. And this… this is the largest, heaviest weapon in our entire history. There is nothing it cannot shatter.」