Being a little far meant that they had not reached their destination yet.
But they did reach a point where they could overlook it very clearly. Qualia and Spirito stopped there, and understood the situation.
“…Uu…”
It was brutal enough that a sound leaked from Spirito’s mouth.
The bodies of beast people littered the streets, and four magic dolls stood on a carpet of blood. Judging by their appearance alone, they looked to be the same age as Qualia.
But the values taken from their eyes, mimetic muscles, actions…
There was not a hint of ‘tasty’ to be found.
Every value sensed from them lacked life. They were just machines with a magic stone embedded in their chest serving as their energy source.
“Garuda… Is being pushed back.”
There was a shadow, belonging to the ruler of the skies, garuda.
Like the salamander, it was a monster found in the lower floors of dungeons, but the noble bird was covered in fresh and clearly deep wounds.
“Kiaaaaaaaaa!!”
Despite its wounds, yelled and unleashed a blade of wind.
It hit one of the magic dolls directly, and its thin body was bisected.
This reminded Qualia of the moment Mind’s head fell, but there was a very clear difference.
Not a drop of blood fell from the cut.
Also, the magic stone lost its shine.
Its role as a substitute for life was over, and instead it became a substitute for death.
“Hmph… A defective one. Fine. I have insurance.”
Qualia saw a plump old man smoking a cigar and stepping on the doll that stopped moving.
“That’s Ddos, a merchant.”
“Error. Merchant is not recognized as a combat role.”
“They’re still being tested, and not open to the public, but magic dolls are being sold… Are you by any chance angry?”
“Error. Word ‘angry’ not registered.”
“Yes… Well, I don’t feel good about it either.”
It was not normal for humans to be angry about weapons being treated poorly.
And if magic dolls were on the same level as inorganic substances or weapons, the static blocking calculations should not exist.
So why? What was this ‘anger’?
Why was he overheating in a way not dissimilar to when Ina was hurt, or Mind’s head was cut?
Many bugs popped up inside Qualia’s head again.
“Now Ace. Take down that garuda.”
“Demand received.”
Said the black haired girl named Ace with a completely monotone voice, as she stepped forward.
She followed it by touching the magic stone in her chest, and saying one word.
“Gaia.”
There was a verdant green sparkle, and a soprano fourfold voice echoed.
“Reverse.”
The light bursting from her magic stone fluttered like fireflies, and entered Ace.
For a moment, she blinked and her right eye was green, and part of the ground, several meters, turned into a cone.
Its thick point then pierced garuda right in its core.
The giant cone cast a dark shadow due to the setting sun, and in its tip, the bloodstained garuda drew its last breath.
“Those magic dolls really are…”
Spirito was amazed, and Qualia asked a question.
“Request explanation. This differs from regular magic sequence. Is this a peculiarity of magic dolls?”
“Yes, magic dolls can manifest skills through the processed magic stones in their chests.”
“Request explanation. What are skills?”
“A power magic dolls can manifest through their magic stones. They’re generally above magic. The skill that magic doll called Ace used is called Gaia. It controls the earth with force that greatly exceeds earth magic.
“Situation understood. Skills are very valuable.”
He understood their strength. The magic energy when the skill was activated, the energy that pushed up a cone big enough to bury a building, everything about it showed values Qualia had not calculated so far.
“But they are not like humans.”
“Of course. They are figures shaped like people with bodies that are constructed golems and magic stones that give them the power to move, created for the convenience of people.”
“…Understood. Recognized as humanoid combat weapons.”
“Qualia?”
Asked Spirito, but there was no response from Qualia.
There was heavy static somehow, but this time it was not anger.
There was a feeling that he was overlapping with the magic dolls. That he was seeing from the same point of view as the magic dolls that did not respond at all even after the garuda was down.
Qualia still did not know the name of the emotion called sympathy.
They moved as they were instructed. Qualia still could not decide if that lack of autonomy was good or bad.
“It looks like Ace can be valuable… No, I should let them run wild to really serve as advertisement.”
The plump man, Ddos, looked at Ace with a satisfied expression while puffing on his cigar.
But immediately after, he kicked the remains of the other magic doll that laid on the ground.
Qualia suddenly felt as though a flash of lightning ran through his circuits.
“You useless… Did that careful screening fail? Ah, the scrap paperwork is going to be a bother.”
“Type GUN.”
A beam shot from afar grazed the tip of the cigar.
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