Future City (2)

Now then, what will he do?

Until now, countless people must have asked Geppetto about the trial, but none would have asked like I did.

Even the reason he was suspected to be the trial’s parent was just speculation based on what was seen at the end.

Honestly, who would think that way?

That a mere individual created a trial.

People usually just think they’re related to the trial, that they know the most about it.

Even the Pantheon Temple was probably looking for ways to tackle the trial, while other groups each sought to fulfill their own greed.

Isn’t this the future city? All the inventions in this city that transcend centuries were created by the <The Future Drawer>.

How much would the value of such a <The Future Drawer> amount to?

And information related to it?

“A parent…”

Everyone must have approached Geppetto to fulfill their own greed.

Or to seek advice on how to destroy the trial.

None would have thought Geppetto wanted to protect the trial.

Of course, I don’t believe it either.

But I’m not foolish enough to tread the same path others have walked.

I’ll just push forward treating this ridiculous assumption as truth.

“Hahaha! You’re quite the amusing religious fellow!”

“You think so?”

He laughed it off heartily.

But there was definitely a brief pause in between.

He had to think about it. He was clearly so taken aback by my question that he needed to prepare a separate answer.

“No, isn’t it an unrealistic story? Do you think this old, sick dwarf created such a massive city? Even I can’t approach the center of this city.”

“That’s true. I was just joking. You don’t seem to like my kind very much, so I was trying to start a conversation differently from those who came before.”

“Yes, you’ve got humor. Better than those stiff-necked fellows who came before.”

Has his guard dropped?

Because I showed a friendly stance toward the trial unlike others?

Because I didn’t display greed or make hostile remarks?

That can’t be.

He’s lived so long that counting his age would be meaningless. Such a person wouldn’t carelessly bite the bait dangled before his eyes.

He must have noticed too.

That there was a slight pause before he spoke.

So that wasn’t him lowering his guard but raising it to the maximum.

“If you haven’t decided where to stay, come to my house. You’re an interesting group, so I’ll treat you well.”

Different people handle suspicious individuals differently.

Geppetto decided to keep us close and watch us.

At the same time, it would be a way to prove his innocence.

No matter how openly suspicious gazes are directed at him from the closest proximity, they won’t find any evidence of wrongdoing.

“Then I’ll gratefully accept your hospitality.”

“Kahaha! Do that!”

A battle of nerves beginning in a situation where both sides know each other’s intentions.

“I’m looking forward to the sightseeing.”

I truly mean it.

*     *     *

Inside Nidavellir, there were plenty of strange vehicles instead of horses.

The most representative among them was a carriage that moved with gears and steam.

No, calling it a carriage might be inappropriate. They each looked different and their operating methods were subtly different too.

If there was any commonality, it might be that they all imitated the form of living creatures.

Tick tock tick tock.

A small dog-shaped mechanical device wandering around making strange noises.

I’m not sure what that device is for. Seeing many similar ones wandering around, it seems to be a familiar mechanical device here…

“It doesn’t get boring watching them.”

“They’re not even edible.”

“True. But hunting them would probably yield expensive items.”

“Should I catch one?”

Titan raised his hammer as if suggesting we should break one.

For someone who claimed to have no interest, he seems quite intrigued.

“I’d rather not cause trouble in someone else’s city, so stop.”

“Tch…”

Besides, any loot we’d get would be meaningless to us.

What would we do with mechanical device parts when we’re not engineers?

Selling them to local engineers would have relatively low value, and if we tried trading them in other cities, we’d probably get ripped off.

They’re only treasures to those who need them, meaningless to those who don’t understand them.

“Lost! Lost! Look at this! Isn’t it cute?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you have to show such obvious disinterest…?”

Linea, the most sensitive among us, was bouncing around everywhere with shining eyes.

Despite everything, she’s still just an ordinary girl. She shows neither impossible techniques nor excessive cruelty.

“Ah! How about this? I think it would suit you, Lost. Plus, it’s practical too.”

“Hmm… You’re right. This wouldn’t be bad to carry around.”

This time Linea had her eye on a clock. Just making a clock requires considerable technical skill, and this one was small enough to fit in a pocket.

Inside, precisely crafted gears were turning.

This is… Such incredible technical skill no matter how you look at it. Could craftsmen who just hammer away really make such small and precise gears?

“How did you make this?”

“If you’re curious, why not buy it and take it apart? You can get the materials nearby, so exploring the method could be enjoyable entertainment, don’t you think?”

“You have quite an elegant way of saying you can’t tell me.”

“So? Are you buying it or not?”

“Let’s hear the price first.”

A clock like that would be worth buying even if somewhat expensive. After all, plans only become truly perfect when time conditions are included.

“Ah, don’t worry. I’ll buy it for you.”

“That would be wrong.”

“It’s fine. It’s a memento, right?”

Well, it might not be that expensive for Linea.

A doctor and a count’s daughter – who knows how much money she has.

When money meets money, there’s nothing to fear.

Just under her worn robe, there are expensive clothes that can’t be hidden. At the point of wearing such things as everyday clothes, she’s already in a different class from us.

“What would be good for Claire?”

We left Claire at the mansion.

I’m not sure if she was looking forward to sightseeing too, but it will take time for her fatigue from the previous journey to fade.

“How about this?”

“…Lost, you’re too harsh on Claire sometimes.”

“How so?”

“Making her study even in a city like this!”

What’s wrong with that? It’s all for Claire’s own good.

Linea surprisingly doesn’t like the book I picked – “How to Become a Master of Mechanical Engineering.”

For a doctor, she seems quite negative about studying despite probably having studied a lot herself.

Building up education early makes life easier later, doesn’t it?

“Well, I guess since Linea is nobility, you don’t understand a commoner’s desperation.”

“Claire is nobility too, you know?”

“Fallen nobility.”

“That’s… but still.”

I examine the book.

Various mechanical device blueprints were drawn with explanations.

Just looking at it makes me dizzy. Isn’t it too difficult for a beginner to understand?

“Perfect.”

“…”

Difficulty means high level. This will be the gift.

“Um, I think it would be better to give her something else…”

“Well, we should consider the gift-giver’s feelings too. Then I’ll buy this one?”

“You’re really going with that book…”

This is why privileged kids don’t understand. They lack desperation.

But Claire has that.

Don’t you need solid foundational knowledge to become an excellent person?

I made a promise to Burke.

That I would ensure Claire could live a happy life later.

But happiness isn’t something others give you – it’s something you create yourself.

And to create happiness yourself, you need money and honor.

A lot of money.

Good. Now that we have the necessary things, I just need to pave the way.

“Our Claire will definitely become the director of the religious court someday.”

“Then why mechanical engineering?”

“It’s not bad to know as general knowledge, right?”

“…Maybe I shouldn’t interfere with family education policies.”

Seeing my firm determination, Linea finally seemed to give up and turned away.

“I’ll go with this.”

What Linea chose was clothing.

A pure white dress. It’s hard to think of it as a design that would be particularly rare even outside of Nidavellir.

Of course, the material must be excellent. It’s not a bad choice for Claire who has trouble even being in sunlight.

“Still, my gift is better.”

“…”

Claire will surely be happy.

*     *     *

“Thank you, Linea-unnie. And Lost? I recommend returning this trash before it’s too late.”

“…”

Why?

“So you were a noble after all.”

I thought she would understand desperation, but her stomach is quite full.

“Linea-unnie. Lost is starting to talk about reverse discrimination. It’s getting tiresome, so could I ask you to handle what comes next?”

“Lost, let’s go?”

“You’re not taking this?”

“Lost, don’t be unseemly and just come out. Even I can see that strange book is completely unsuitable as a gift.”

“Right, you’re royalty too.”

“The madman is particularly bad today.”

I’m not wrong.

What’s wrong is the world. Nobles and royalty act like this because they don’t know how valuable learning opportunities are.

Damn it.

Everyone except me is royalty or nobility.

Where can I find someone who understands me?

It was while I was trudging through the mansion interior holding the book, filled with such indescribable sense of betrayal.

“Huh?”

While doing what wasn’t quite an investigation, I heard the sound of metal striking metal from somewhere.

Could someone be doing blacksmith work?

When I followed the source of the sound, sure enough, Geppetto was hammering iron in a forge.

“What is it, got something to say?”

“No, it’s just different from what I expected.”

Mechanical engineering, representative of Nidavellir.

Just looking at the craftsmen, I could see them working on precise and detailed tasks with cutting-edge tools.

Since that’s what they show to the public, I thought special techniques would be even more impressive, so this ordinary blacksmith work is surprising.

“Hmph, that’s because those fellows have gone astray.”

“Is that so?”

“You’re a religious fellow too, shouldn’t you know? What the problem with Nidavellir is?”

“Knowing and practicing are different matters. The Pantheon Temple wouldn’t designate it as the most dangerous trial for no reason.”

The danger level of trials.

If we’re just talking about pure power, it would be <The Corruptor> or <The One Who Is Everywhere>.

But what evaluates a trial’s danger level is how much influence it has. Of course, <The One Who Is Everywhere> Malice is dangerous too.

Human malice seems almost impossible to overcome.

But <The Future Drawer> Deus Ex Machina is different.

“It’s cruel to tell people not to look at an answer right in front of them.”

<The Future Drawer> is neither friendly nor hostile to humans.

Its mere existence is beneficial.

After all, Nidavellir developed this far because of the inventions that unidentified machine creates.

“That can’t be called growth. That machine has stolen our drive for improvement.”

All of Nidavellir’s cutting-edge technology was created by <The Future Drawer>.

Though we don’t know its purpose or what it wants, <The Future Drawer> is something that holes up in the largest mine and endlessly creates things.

They say the technology level changes moment by moment as you get closer to the center of the city, to its main body, so how much more advanced must the leftovers that will fall later be?

“Even the outskirts are like this.”

Just looking at the various mechanical devices moving with gears and steam is impressive.

But if there’s even more advanced technology inside…

Who wouldn’t want to tackle this trial? From individual craftsmen to the heads of each country, none could abandon their greed.

“Everyone has changed. No matter how hard they try, they’ve chosen to kneel and become disciples before overwhelming technology they can’t match.”

“Learning from others when you’re lacking doesn’t seem like a bad thing.”

“Yes, learning from someone is a good thing. But what meaning is there if you can’t explain what you’ve learned to others?”

“It doesn’t seem that way to me.”

‘How to Become a Master of Mechanical Engineering’

If that were true, would they sell books like this? Even if slowly, they’re definitely making the technology their own.

“Let me see that.”

“Here.”

Geppetto put down his hammer and briefly skimmed through the book.

“You’ve been scammed. Looking decent but buying such trash.”

“…”

Whoosh!

Then he threw it into the furnace.

For a moment I stepped back, startled by the suddenly flaring flames.

“Quite a coward for a man.”

“Who in this world isn’t afraid of fire?”

“You seem a bit excessive.”

“…”

After briefly trying to excuse my unsightly behavior.

Belatedly coming to my senses, I covered my eyes and sighed.

Sometimes I think humanity’s greatest malice might be words carelessly spoken without considering others.