When the plot-skips players into the game world

Chapter 635: Chapter 44: The One with Blood on Their Hands Chapter 635: Chapter 44: The One with Blood on Their Hands The Stranger felt waves of dizziness wash over him, his eyes wide open like a corpse lying on the ground.

The night sky was dyed red by the flames, while Gargoyles screeched sharply, flying past like a swarm of bats.

It wasn’t that he wanted to feign death to evade the attack, but rather because he felt his limbs ice-cold and numb, unable to muster any strength.

——Besides, under his beloved creation, playing dead was futile in the first place.

The Gargoyles’ shells were the work of amber craftsmen; their essence was no different from that of Hellhounds, with Familiars’ souls inside.

However, the anti-magic Gargoyles crafted by the amber craftsmen were more robust and reliable than that rusted scrap iron.

Whether based on the Path of Dusk or the Path of Transcendence, both were exceptionally skilled at manipulating souls.

From the very start, the search mode of the Gargoyles was aimed at souls, making invisibility, camouflage, or death feigning useless.

Now, as the Stranger lay there, there was a hint of resignation in him.

His mind was in chaos…

Perhaps being struck down by the Gargoyles wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all.

Yet strangely, the Gargoyles did not attack him.

They only circled overhead, emitting sharp cries like monkeys; Alchemical Bombs were thrown down, exploding one after another.

An explosion even happened close by——soil thrown by the blast flew up, landing on him.

Perhaps it was the sound of the explosions, or maybe some other reason, but the Stranger only felt a ringing in his ears and an increasingly strong sense of vertigo in his head.

In his daze, he seemed to pass out, yet also remained conscious.

It felt like a very long time had passed, until the blood soaked into his clothes cooled and tightened his skin like mud, then he finally heard other sounds.

It was a group of soldiers in the black uniforms of Star Antimony.

The one leading them was a captain.

He appeared to be in his thirties or forties, with a determined gaze and a beard.

His officer’s uniform was looser than the others’, adorned with a silver star-shaped metal badge on his chest, along with the white gloves exclusive to Alchemists.

That signified his identity——an Alchemist.

“…It’s been a long time, Teacher.”

The captain stood at attention with respectful posture and looked down at Master Nobel lying on the ground, his voice deep.

The Stranger kept a straight face, not responding with a single word.

As if he heard nothing at all.

“The Association made a special point of telling us, if we encountered you, to ensure your safety.”

Seemingly aware that Master Nobel would not speak at this moment, the captain went on to say on his own, “We are here to escort you back to the country now.

“Welcome back to Star Antimony, Teacher.”

“…I’m asking you.”

Despite knowing he shouldn’t, the Stranger couldn’t help but be overwhelmed and embittered inside.

He glared at the officer, who in name was his student but whom he didn’t even know the name of, and asked in a low voice, “Why attack civilians?

“——The queen is dead, the princess has fled, Avalon’s army couldn’t stop ours, and we have won!

Now what’s the point in having the Gargoyles bomb villages and slaughter civilians?!”

He subconsciously regarded himself as a person of Star Antimony.

Fortunately, Nobel indeed had Star Antimony ancestry, and for this reason, the captain couldn’t help but laugh, “You still think of yourself as a Star Antimony person…”

“——Answer my question, Captain!

Is this an order from your superiors?!”

“Yes, these are the orders I received.”

The Star Antimony captain spoke calmly, “It’s because we need to rest here, to replenish energy.”

At this point, the Stranger was momentarily taken aback.

His mind spun with dizziness, suddenly realizing something.

These autonomously acting, widespread Gargoyles…

naturally don’t live on vegetation.

And to sustain them with mana would require a large number of casters to act as mana batteries near the frontline.

But in Star Antimony, whether Alchemists or Demonologists, both are highly esteemed and it would be impossible to spare so many casters for the war effort.

After all, the essence of this war was due to these casters demanding higher treatment without success.

Therefore, Valentine VII sought to divert domestic conflicts by opening new markets.

If the war itself required these noblemen’s intense participation, it would be missing the point.

Since the Gargoyles’ essence is that of Familiars, they are like other Demons…

capable of regenerating mana by consuming human souls and flesh.

Familiars themselves don’t need much mana, so they don’t even require the souls of Transcendents.

Merely killing one civilian could supply at least six Gargoyles with enough energy to fight for over twenty hours continuously.

…But.@@novelbin@@

But…

“I remember, the military should have devices for replenishing mana for Gargoyles…”

Without thinking, the Stranger said, “There shouldn’t be a need…”

Before they were given commands, these Gargoyles were true “statues.” They just remained on those devices, able to stay put indefinitely if not activated.

Hearing this, the Star Antimony captain only smiled nonchalantly, “What you’re talking about are traditional Gargoyles, Teacher.

Those Gargoyles don’t really see much use, only to harass soldiers or throw explosives.

And they’d instantly lose the ability to move upon entering a Priest’s Holy Field.

“These new golems are immune to the priests’ banishment, remedying their biggest weakness.

Bishops who tried to stop us were all torn apart by machine guns.

However, because these golems must bear the weight of weapons and metal armor, their energy consumption is much higher…

If we use ‘stakes’ to replenish energy, I’m afraid it would take five or six hours to charge for less than half an hour of operation before they need to return.”

“The Gryphon Legion is fully formed.

We may have to confront them head-on later.

It won’t do to go into battle without replenishing our mana beforehand.

Moreover, the corpses we’ve used can provide material for the next squads of ritualists.

We can achieve the best effect with as few killings as possible.”

“——Of course, in order to escort you, our team probably won’t be going to the front lines.

Let’s head directly to the port next.”

…Is it because of me?

They’re attacking civilians, is it because the golems I invented consume too much energy…

so they have no choice but to attack civilians?

Such thoughts flickered in the Stranger’s mind, sending shivers through his scalp.

Golems in laboratory conditions naturally would not lack energy.

He had never even considered the issue of their use environment.

Listening to this, the Stranger felt the dizziness growing stronger.

“…Who invented this special kind of golem?”

He struggled to sit up, clinging to his last thread of rationality and wishful thinking, as he tentatively asked.

“Strictly speaking, this should be a military secret.

But after today, it will be declassified anyway, and it can’t be hidden anymore…

Telling you wouldn’t hurt.”

The captain revealed a very cordial smile: “After all, the Association has explicitly said that they must show you the utmost respect and fulfill any of your needs as far as possible.

Star Antimony needs your brain and technology.

“‘Armed Gargoyle’ was developed by the well-known genius ‘Albert Lorey’.

He’s the young master of the Lorey family…

You left early, so you might not be aware.

He’s barely in his twenties and has already become a Calamity Stitcher, even on the Path of Balance he has reached the Third Power Level, becoming a big name in Star Antimony and a standout among the younger generation.

“I’ve heard that he’s been nominated to join the Royal Alchemy Association and should be able to receive the Star Antimony medal after the war.

They say he might even touch upon the Fifth Power Level before he’s thirty!”

The more the Stranger listened, the more his brain spun.

Not once had he felt such revulsion for his hobby of developing necromancy techniques.

He only saw it as an art, a technique.

An art that turned the transient into the eternal, a technique that breathed new life into the deceased.

But now, he finally recognized it——it was a sin.

When he developed for efficiency and committed to mass production…

even if he had never personally killed a person, his hands were already stained with blood.

…Thankfully, all this was false.

In his world line, the ‘Armed Gargoyles’ had not yet been mass-produced.

He was still in the development phase, iterating versions…

He lied to himself.

But soon, he realized another problem.

If he stopped developing—would no one else take over and continue to develop these Armed Gargoyles that required the killing of civilians to operate?

He had opened Pandora’s box.

And he could not close it again.

“——In the future, the Teacher might also join in, working together with that genius to develop even stronger golems!”

Just then, as if to mock him,

A perfectly timed laugh sneered in the Stranger’s ears.

The sharp mockery, laughing almost hysterically, laughing until breathless.

Despite a competitor being eliminated, the Stranger could not muster any interest; he only felt as if the laughter was mocking him.

He suddenly heard the sounds of tearing and chewing.

Instinctively turning his head, the Stranger saw the image of those golems congregating to feed.

——Of course, he had seen golems eat corpses.

Pure stone didn’t have a digestive system, but demons could consume human flesh.

Even he himself would feed spent corpses to the golems to dispose of experimental materials.

And the golems were obedient, accepting anything offered.

He had kept a gargoyle in his own laboratory, even crafting it a body of red jade to make it more beautiful.

But for some reason, he suddenly felt nauseated.

He saw the gargoyle sense his gaze and turn its head back.

Looking at those blood-red mouths, the Stranger could no longer endure it and completely passed out.

Only a vague thought remained in his mind——

——I don’t ever want to invent that kind of “weapon” that exists solely for more efficient killing again.