UHWKT 16

Chapter 16

[…That thing, a core?]
The giant golem muttered.
[A small core.]
[A core. A golem’s.]

The other golems around it began to murmur.
I didn’t miss the moment and answered at once.

“That’s right. It’s a core. I came to return it.”

[The core… returned. To us?]

Ever since the great first discovery, golem cores had become an essential item for mages. Simply possessing one enhanced magical power, and they could be processed into all kinds of magical tools.
Naturally, Charlotte also had golem cores.

I searched through the subspace for a long time, but most of them had already been processed and used to make magical tools. This was the only one left in its original form.
Thank goodness I had even this much.

“Here, look.”

Taking advantage of the brief lull in the golems’ attacks, I poured magic into the core. A warm light spread over the fist-sized yellow orb, forming a thin veil around it.
As I slowly lowered it to the ground, the pebbles scattered around the swamp gathered together, clattering as they assembled into a small shape.

A moment later—

[Kyuu.]

The small golem opened its eyes.

[A baby… golem?]
[A small… golem.]
[It lives.]

“I regenerated the core.”

[Kyuu, kyuuu!]

The awakened little golem flailed its limbs and bounced around. At only about two handspans tall, it looked like nothing more than a crumb beside the giant golems.

[A baby golem.]
[Kyuu!]

All the golems bent at the waist and looked down at the small golem.
After confirming that their hostility had subsided, I finally let out a breath.

“So, how about it? Feeling like making a deal with me now?”

[Human saved the baby.]
[A mage like this is a first.]
[We will listen. Speak.]
[The deal—what is it?]

Thank goodness.
Now we can finally communicate.

Earlier was terrifying.
I really thought I was going to be turned into dried meat.

Rumble—along with a vibration, the giant golem disassembled itself. I, too, quietly descended from the air and set foot on the ground.

“Isn’t this habitat uncomfortable for you? Hardly any sunlight, damp everywhere—you’re all covered in moss.”

[Damp. Moss. It cannot be helped.]
[Here, humans do not come.]
[No attacks.]
[We protect our kind.]

Originally, rock golems were magical beasts that lived on sunny plains.
But a few hundred years ago, humans began indiscriminately hunting golems, and they gradually hid away in places ever more remote and hard to find.

In damp, humid swamps, golems couldn’t sleep comfortably, so they were forced into a half-awakened state like this, waking at even the smallest stimulus.

[But human—moss removal—help?]

“Oh, you mean earlier? Yeah. I thought scratching where it itched might make conversation easier.”

[Did not know. We apologize.]

“It’s fine. That happens.”

I waved my hand dismissively.

“Anyway, so the problem is humans who come after your cores, right?”

[Yes.]

“Wait a moment.”

I lined them up and spread my arms wide.
Dozens of blue lights wrapped around the golems’ bodies—more precisely, around where their cores were located.

After a moment, the light sank into their bodies all at once.

“There. I’ve placed a protective spell on your cores. If anyone attacks you aiming for them, a reflection spell will activate and return the damage in full.”

[The core has grown stronger.]
[We feel it. A barrier.]
[Human, why?]

“Why? Proof that I won’t harm you.”

[Proof… strange. Humans.]

The golems tilted their heads.
They didn’t look at all like the monsters that had been shooting laser-like beams from their eyes and trying to kill me just moments ago.

Seen like this, they really were incredibly gentle creatures.

[Kyuuu!]

The small golem toddled over and rubbed itself against my leg.
I reached out my hand.

“If you come with me, I’ll clean off all that dirty moss and provide you with a dry, clean habitat. Want to come along?”

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Rumble.

Without warning, a tremor shook the office, rattling its contents.
Caius, who had been reviewing documents, frowned and lifted his gaze toward the window.

“…Don’t tell me.”

Had the landslide the woman mentioned already begun?

“Milord!”

At that moment, Basil burst through the door in a hurry. Caius rose from his seat and threw on his outer coat.

“Where?”

“The northern mountain range.”

Caius’s face twisted openly.
He’d just ordered the construction of a wall, and something like this happened immediately? Unless that woman was a prophet, how could a landslide occur the moment she spoke of it?

No matter how he thought about it, the coincidence was far too precise.

“What about the damage? Have the residents been evacuated? What are the dispatched mages doing?”

“Well…”

Basil, who normally would have reported the damage and casualties before even being asked, hesitated.
Caius looked at him suspiciously.

“What is it?”

Basil worked his lips for a long moment, then gave up. He seemed unable to find the right words.

“It would be best if you saw it yourself.”

That was all he said, then hurried out of the grand ducal castle to guide Caius.

As Caius rode with Basil toward the northern mountains, the ground tremors never stopped. If anything, the rumbling that had started far away seemed to be drawing closer.

Halfway there, Caius suddenly felt a sense of unease.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

The vibrations shaking the earth were strangely regular and continuous for a landslide. Yet they didn’t quite feel like seismic waves either.

Soon, the horses they were riding reached the outskirts of the territory. And there, Caius witnessed an unbelievable sight.

“…What in the world is that?”

At the edge of the high snow-covered mountains, where the forest began, massive boulders were approaching.
They weren’t rolling down.

They were walking—clearly, on two legs.

After a moment of stunned silence, Caius muttered,

“…Golems?”

Why were those magical beasts here?

“Damn it.”

Long ago, golems had been considered among the gentler magical beasts—but not anymore. Any human who encountered a group of golems wouldn’t survive. They didn’t even leave corpses behind.

Caius leapt down from his horse and instinctively reached for his sword. At that moment, Basil approached and quietly grabbed his arm.

“…Look over there.”

Caius followed the direction Basil pointed—and froze.

The golem group had reached the edge of the forest, and atop the head of the largest golem sat a small figure, waving cheerfully.

“Graaand~ Duuuke~”

……
……?

“Don’t tell me that’s—”

“Yes. Miss Charlotte Schmidt.”

“…What.”

“I have no words myself.”

Basil bowed his head.

Caius didn’t look at him. Or rather, he couldn’t. For once, his dazed gaze was fixed on Charlotte’s bright, beaming face.

“I’m here!”

…What kind of insane thing did that witch do this time?

“Say that again.”

“I’ve already said it three times.”

“Again.”

“…Allow me to introduce them: golems who will become a sturdy castle wall.”

Ta-da.
I spread my arms as wide as I could.

A cold silence fell.

If it was going to be like this, why keep telling me to say it? This is embarrassing.

Caius alternated his gaze between the golems—huddled behind me in a neat line—and my face, then pressed a hand to his forehead.

“Is this some kind of challenge directed at me?”

“A challenge? Not at all. I merely carried out the task you assigned me with utmost sincerity, Your Grace.”

I answered confidently.

“You said all I had to do was build a wall within ten days. A wall made of golems will be far sturdier than one made by hauling ordinary stone, don’t you think?”

[Kyuu!]

The baby golem clung tightly to my leg, acting cute.

So adorable.
Golems are the best.

“So you brought golems into my territory?”

“Yes. Say hello. This one’s name is Golsuni. I came up with it on the way here.”

Caius squeezed his eyes shut.