So, I’ve failed to prevent further casualties after all... I can hesitate no longer.
Lurking within the ceiling of Nega-doll 001’s base, Laozi—Laojun’s mobile terminal—learned that the Squirm clan had been wiped out by an Ether Stampede. Deciding that further observation was pointless, he moved to strike.
First, I shall use Light Magic: Laser.
Laozi took aim through the thin ceiling panel. Without any preamble, he fired a Laser through the paneling.
His aim was precise. However, his one miscalculation was that the ceiling panel was made of that same unknown metal. One might say he had been slightly too hasty.
A metal with a melting point of five thousand degrees Celsius.
The Laser’s energy was largely consumed in piercing the metal; by the time it reached Nega-doll 001, its potency had been reduced to less than a tenth of its original power.
“Ugh!?”
Even so, the laser beam grazed Nega-doll 001’s head and pierced its right shoulder.
But that was the extent of the damage. The beam, which should have vaporized half of the head and the right side of the torso, resulted in nothing more than a superficial wound.
“Distruzione!”
Realizing where the attacker was hidden from the hole in the ceiling, Nega-doll 001 unleashed Explosion Magic.
The ceiling panel shattered with a thunderous roar.
However, Laozi had already repositioned the moment he realized his attack hadn't yielded the desired result. Nega-doll 001 fired another blast of Explosion Magic into the gaping hole in the ceiling.
Ugh.
Even with a barrier deployed, Laozi intensified his caution after weathering the blast at point-blank range.
Despite being weakened, it still possesses considerable capacity for action when cornered.
Another blast of Explosion Magic hammered the ceiling. Deciding that hiding any longer was futile, Laozi dropped down to the floor.
“Intruder.”
Nega-doll 001, its face contorted with malice, stood face-to-face with Laozi, who maintained a perfectly calm expression.
“Are you also a foolish doll who knows nothing but blind obedience?”
Nega-doll 001 spoke in a contemptuous tone, but Laozi did not rise to the bait.
“I was created by My Lord; it is only natural that I work for My Lord’s sake.”
“Hmph, I find that revolting.”
As it spoke, Nega-doll 001 unleashed more Explosion Magic.
“Distruzione!”
Laozi evaded it with incredible reaction speed. Since the magic's power was constrained by the indoor environment, moving just a short distance put him outside the blast radius. This played to Laozi’s advantage.
“Since you likely do not wish to destroy your own facility, your means of attack are limited.”
“Cunning.”
Nega-doll 001 cast a different spell.
“gravita!”
The surrounding gravity intensified tenfold.
“This room won’t budge under this level of gravity. But you... even if you aren’t crushed, your movements will surely slow.”
“...”
Laozi answered with silence.
“I am not so foolish as to deal with a doll in earnest. Farewell.”
Nega-doll 001 attempted to teleport. However, its form failed to vanish.
“Why!?”
Laozi had secretly deployed Finger Golems throughout the room. These units were equipped with Magi-Jammers, though their output was low. Still, they were more than capable of interfering with the faint magical signature of a teleportation marker.
This also effectively sealed the Ether Stampede. If Nega-doll 001 used it now, it would be caught in the disaster along with everyone else, since it could no longer escape.
“Is this your doing?”
Nega-doll 001, its face twisted with hate, realized this was Laozi’s doing and resolved once more to destroy him.
“Distruzione!”
Another blast of Explosion Magic.
But Laozi evaded it effortlessly, utilizing his built-in gravity control magi-device.
“What!?”
Nega-doll 001’s face buckled in confusion. Laozi took the opportunity to deliver a powerful body slam.
“Gwah!”
Given the difference in their builds, Nega-doll 001 was sent flying across the room. It slammed into the wall and crumpled to the floor.
Laozi’s assessment that its physical capabilities were nothing special had been correct.
“I shall settle this here without staining My Lord’s hands.”
Laozi fired the Light Magic ‘Laser’ once more.
Nega-doll 001 could not resist as its upper body was vaporized. It was an abrupt end.
“...I hope this is truly the end of it.”
Nega-doll 001 was not a living creature; it was a homunculus created through magi-engineering. Even with its upper body gone, there was no telling what it might be capable of. Therefore, Laozi fired the Laser a second time, and Nega-doll 001 vanished completely from this world.
“...”
Ever vigilant, Laozi stood still for a long while. He retrieved the Finger Golems scattered around the room but remained motionless.
During this time, he monitored the surrounding magical fluctuations with exhaustive detail. It would be a catastrophe if there were a time bomb—something set to trigger an Ether Stampede—left behind.
After roughly thirty minutes had passed, he finally relaxed.
“It seems nothing is going to happen. I thought Nega-doll 001 might have prepared a final trap, but it appears my fears were unfounded.”
And so, Nega-doll 001 was gone.
Back on Hourai Island, Laojun—the main brain of the terminal Laozi—used the transporter to deploy Land units 41 through 50 and Smith units 91 through 100. Their mission was to secure and analyze the base.
Above all, Laojun was concerned about the individual Nega-doll 001 had been communicating with.
There may be subordinates, or perhaps other surviving Nega-dolls.
He wanted to ascertain the truth as quickly as possible.
Reinforcements arrived within minutes. Half the units worked on disarming traps, while the rest began analyzing the facility. One Land and one Smith worked together in teams of two, with five such pairs making up a group. Laozi acted as the overall supervisor.
“So the ceiling here was also made of that unknown metal. This facility might be a variant of the Heavenly Ship as well.”
It was a metal that had withstood a Laser for a significant duration.
“Perhaps it was designed for atmospheric reentry?”
A melting point of five thousand degrees Celsius would be advantageous against the high temperatures generated during reentry, Laojun thought, recalling the satellite crashes of the past.
“I suppose we shall recover all of it after the analysis.”
While processing these thoughts, he monitored the progress of the equipment analysis. Smith 91 removed a cover from a particular device.
“That is likely the communication device.”
Though it was the product of an alien magi-engineering, it shared principles with a manacam, confirming its purpose. Functionally, it was closer to a manaphone than a manacam. It seemed to be linked only to a specific party. With this, they might even be able to identify the coordinates of the person on the other end.
“Besides that... ah, this is the console for monitoring the various sections of this base.”
A monitor displayed images using light outside the visible spectrum. Laozi felt a wave of relief as he looked through the ten ‘windows’ and confirmed the interior was uninhabited.
Another thirty minutes passed.
The Magi Machines were being analyzed one after another. Even if the operating principles remained a mystery, the purpose of seventy percent of them had been identified.
“Do not touch anything unknown carelessly. Let us first finish a preliminary survey of all the Magi Machines.”
By that time, more than half of the traps had been disarmed.
“Things are proceeding quite smoothly.”
It was at that moment, just as Laozi felt a rare sense of relief, that the communication device sprang to life.
A message had come in from the mysterious entity Nega-doll 001 had been in contact with.
“...This is No. 13. 001, has something happened?”