Adriana considered her next move.
She would begin by earning recognition. Unlike her father, Shuuki Tsetse—the man known as the Magus—she was still an unknown, so she resolved to advance one step at a time.
"First... maybe it would be best to start with something eye-catching."
With that in mind, she decided to build a "general-purpose golem." She had wanted to call it "all-purpose," but since she had not yet reached that level of mastery, she settled for a more modest designation.
When she informed Sane of her plan, he granted his permission immediately.
It was only natural, given that the proposal came from Adriana, a woman who already traveled with four golems in her service.
"Oho, that is wonderful. By all means, I would like you to build one. We will provide as much as we can for the budget."
And so, the creation of a golem using the materials currently on hand began.
"‘Forming’. ‘Forming’. ‘Hardening’."
She crafted the skeleton.
"‘Shaping’. ‘Toughening’. ‘Toughening’."
She attached the musculature.
"‘Copy’."
She produced the control core.
Because Adriana kept the control cores of her previous golems as master data, she was able to simplify such technical tasks.
"‘Finish’."
Once she completed the bronze exterior, the work was done.
"...Four hours, huh? I'm still not fast enough."
Because she had integrated new experiments into various sections, it had taken longer than she expected. Adriana felt the sting of her own perceived lack of skill.
Regardless, after breaking for lunch and finishing the operational checks, she immediately went to report to Sane.
"Oh, Adriana-dono, what is the matter? Are you missing some materials?"
Sane looked up from his paperwork and smiled.
"No, I finished it, so I came to report."
"Pardon?"
Sane’s smile twitched. "Er, what exactly is finished?"
"The general-purpose golem."
"What!?"
Sane’s eyes bulged. Seeing his rare display of shock, the female clerk beside him followed suit, her own eyes widening.
"Um, Adriana-sama... did you just say the general-purpose golem is finished?"
"Yes."
"Incredible! You completed an entire golem in just half a day!?"
"I did."
"..."
Sane was rendered speechless by her nonchalant reply.
"A-At any rate, let us see the completed golem. Tanya, a moment if you please."
After a quick word to the clerk, Sane headed to the workshop with Adriana. When he arrived, the sight before him stole his voice entirely.
"..."
Because the exterior was cast in bronze, a golem the color of polished copper—brighter than pure copper—lay upon the table.
"Y-You did this in only half a day...?"
"Yes."
"I-I mean no disrespect, but does it actually move?"
"Of course....‘M-005’, ‘Wake up’."
"YES, ADRIANA-SAMA."
"Whoa!"
When the golem she had dubbed M-005 replied and sat up, even the normally composed Sane nearly jumped out of his skin.
"How is it? I've made several improvements..."
"W-Wait just a moment." Sane interrupted Adriana as she began her explanation. "I must report this to His Majesty. I suspect he will want to hear the details himself, so please, wait right here."
"Oh, alright."
Since she couldn't exactly go marching through the Royal Palace with a golem in tow, it made sense for those who wanted to see it to come to her. Adriana waited, wondering if the King would truly bother to come.
Ten minutes later, the King, Sane, and three individuals she didn't recognize arrived in a frantic rush.
"Adriana-dono, I hear the golem is complete!?"
"Ah, yes, Your Majesty."
"I must see it!"
A middle-aged man standing beside the King pressed toward Adriana.
"Y-Yes." Adriana recoiled slightly at his intensity.
"This is His Highness the Crown Prince," Sane explained. "He currently serves as the chancellor."
In this country, a chancellor was essentially the equivalent of a modern prime minister. The other two men were guards.
"Ooh, so this is it!?"
The group looked upon the standing golem with uniform astonishment.
"I'll show you how it moves....M-005, walk."
"YES."
"I-It s-spoke!?"
M-005 began to march forward.
"Oh! It walks!"
"Hmm, its movements are remarkably smooth."
"There isn't a person hidden inside, is there?"
"M-005, come back."
"YES."
M-005 executed a U-turn and returned to its spot. Their amazement did not end there.
"M-005, lift that desk."
"YES."
"W-What!?"
The onlookers were stunned as the golem effortlessly lifted a workbench weighing over fifty kilograms with a single hand.
And finally:
"M-005, please sweep the floor."
When Adriana handed it a broom, M-005 began to sweep the workshop floor with precision.
"W-W-What!?"
They could only stare in disbelief, shocked that it could perform such detailed chores.
"That's enough. ‘Behold’."
M-005 stood still and ceased all movement.
"So, it works like this."
Adriana opened the chest plating of the deactivated M-005, revealing the control core and several other magi-devices nestled within.
"It is a golem I crafted myself, through and through."
She was answering the earlier suspicion that there might be a person inside.
"N-No, I-I see... It is truly magnificent."
"Indeed... It was a stroke of luck for our kingdom to welcome such a brilliant engineer."
Just as Adriana Barbora Tsetse had intended, her name began to spread throughout the Garandia Kingdom from that day forward.