Chapter 35

“You’re crazy.”

That was Neg’s comment.

Though Lee Woo-jae looked like he was about to say the same thing.

“What do you think, master engineer? Does it look possible to you?”

Neg, still stunned, stared at the chalkboard. He checked every drawing and equation, traced them with his finger, and did the math in the air.

Finally, he spoke.

“I don’t know about the magic formulas, but the mechanical design is perfect.”

“The mana circuits look perfect to me too,” Lee Woo-jae added.

Everyone looked at Chris with admiration. Chris scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.

“Hehe, I took a quick look around outside the Tower earlier.”

“That’s what makes it insane talent. I should’ve known when I saw your first robot.”

Neg didn’t understand the “outside the Tower” part but still seemed impressed.

“You, would you like to become my apprentice? With your creativity and talent combined with my forging skills, we could achieve my dream.”

“What’s your dream?”

“25 years ago, it was to create a new race of machines that could think and act on their own. Now, I want to create a world where they’re all ruled by a single god. You could be that god.”

Oh right. This guy’s a total psycho.

He once created a robot army that massacred humans and was proud of it.

Why are all the people around me so weird? I just hope Chris is normal…

“I want to learn from somewhere else. Sorry.”

“Somewhere else? Where?”

“There’s a place with new technology I discovered.”

“New tech? Sounds interesting. Can I go?”

“Probably not.”

“Tch. That’s too bad.”

Phew, Chris seemed normal after all. I sighed in relief.

But then he said:

“I want to learn more tech so I can build amazing machines. Ones that can kill anyone who tries to stop Namjoong.”

“…Huh?”

“Namjoong is such a good person. Anyone who gets in his way must be bad. They deserve to die.”

“…Uh…”

Was he hiding this kind of thought behind his sweet smile?

This kid is crazy too!

I quickly interrupted him.

“No, no, Chris. Just because someone gets in my way doesn’t mean they’re bad. Don’t kill people.”

“Then can I kill them if you give me permission?”

“No! Don’t even think about killing anyone. If needed, Woo-jae or I will do it.”

“But I want to help…”

“You’re already helping enough. I won’t abandon you.”

“R-really?”

“Of course. So don’t think scary thoughts.”

“Okay! But if you ever need something, just tell me!”

“Sure, sure.”

But no way was I going to do that.

How could I tell a ten-year-old to kill someone?

Why is he so loyal?

“Probably not because of the Tower’s system. He’s just grateful and acting on his own,” Woo-jae said.

“So… he’s just like this normally?”

“Maybe. Or maybe you influenced him.”

“Ugh, now I feel kind of guilty.”

I glanced back at the chalkboard.

Even though I didn’t really understand engineering or mana circuits, the drawing looked beautiful. Everything fit together perfectly, like a scene from a science movie.

Still, I could understand one thing:

“The bullet’s design is really creative.”

“Agreed. It doesn’t look too complicated, but no one’s thought of this before.”

Chris’s bullet had layers of mana-conductive metal that would crack slightly on impact and release explosive energy depending on the mana stored.

And since the special ore (Haemangseok) absorbed and stored enemy mana, it could explode like a grenade inside the body.

Even though the bullet was small, it would be terrifying — it was filled with mana metal.

A feather can become deadly with mana. Imagine a metal shard exploding inside you.

And that’s not all.

The ore’s owner could use the absorbed mana as they pleased.

So you could choose when to detonate the bullet inside someone.

For example, if someone got shot and their allies came to rescue them, you could blow up everyone together.

“This weapon is insane.”

We couldn’t deny it.

Magic defense wouldn’t help. If the bullet pierced the skin, it would start absorbing mana.

Then you’d be carrying a time bomb inside you, ready to explode whenever I wanted.

And I could retrieve the bullet afterward.

“Those people deserve to die.”

When I first saw the design, I thought it was impressive. But after hearing that line, I realized how dangerous it really was.

It was a weapon built with intent to kill from the very start.

“I probably shouldn’t use this on people.”

I’d killed before, and I believed some people deserved it, but this was way too brutal.

Still, its power was undeniable.

Neg looked at me and said:

“It’s not just the bullet. If this gun is actually made… it could be more powerful than most melee weapons.”

I looked at Woo-jae.

Hunters preferred melee weapons since they could use mana more effectively, but outside that, guns were usually stronger.

Woo-jae nodded.

“Of course. Normally, guns lose power due to mana transfer issues, but this design minimizes that — it even has artificial targeting built-in.”

“All this complicated stuff is for that?”

“Yep. Mana efficiency over 99%, with extra functions like auto-aim. This would surpass most S-grade items. We’ll see once it’s made.”

“You didn’t bring a fool — you brought a genius.”

“Hehe, you’re too kind.”

Chris smiled.

This must be what having a genius son feels like.

Seeing him praised made me happy too — after all, I brought him here.

“Then I’ll start refining the ore. I’ll leave the barrel design to the kid.”

“Understood.”

Neg looked at Chris.

“Tch. I wanted to take you as my student, but oh well. If you ever want to learn, come find me. I’ll teach you.”

“Thanks. But… do I have to fulfill your dream too?”

“What? Haha!”

Neg burst into laughter.

“You really know how to hit someone’s pride! Forget it! I’m not putting my dream on someone like you!”

“Hehe, then I’ll come learn if I get the chance.”

“This deal’s a total loss.”

“I’m still young, but I’ve always looked up to you. You’re the top engineer in Crank Nova.”

“…That’s true.”

“Then we’ll go build the barrel now.”

“Take care.”

The journey had taken longer than expected, but it was worth it.

We gained a genius companion and a powerful new weapon.

“Where to next?”

“We’re going to the Association Head — a person who helps with lots of stuff. And just call me by name from now on. I’m not the mayor anymore.”

“Okay, Woo-jae. That’s so simple. If we need something, just ask the Association Head.”

“Not everyone’s requests. Only Namjoong’s.”

“That’s the same for you too, right?”

“True.”

Meanwhile…

Whoosh — Namjoong’s group disappeared.

“Still amazes me every time… I wonder if I can turn that kind of magic into tech.”

Neg muttered to himself.

The once-busy area felt empty now.

Had he grown attached? He shook his head.

But one thought lingered, like dust in the corner of his mind.

“Top engineer in Crank Nova…”

His expression turned bitter — something no one would expect from the usually grumpy dwarf.

If anyone who knew him saw it, they’d be shocked.

But Neg had to feel this way — because he was the only dwarf left in Crank Nova.

If there were others, maybe the top engineer would be someone else.

Neg wasn’t the best among his kind.

“Heh. This is all my fault anyway.”

The dwarves had gone into hiding because of him.

To them, he was a traitor who gave technology to humans. And humans had enslaved other races.

The dwarves might’ve avoided slavery, but they couldn’t tolerate humans using their tech.

Neg wasn’t a hero either — his mana-tech machines went berserk and destroyed part of the city.

But he hadn’t done it recklessly. He had reasons.

Feeling angry, Neg stood and shouted toward the land where the dwarves hid.

“You see this world? It advanced because of me! You think you could’ve built this? Answer me, you bastards who looked down on me!”

Dwarven tech had hit a limit.

They rejected magic, stuck to metal, and only made the same stuff over and over.

They never tried creative ideas like steam engines or hydraulics.

Which was fine — dwarves barely interacted with humans, and their forging was second to none.

But Neg disagreed.

We need to copy human tech!

To dwarves, mastering metal was easy. Learning human inventions wasn’t hard — they could improve them.

So Neg suggested they copy humans and combine their skills with magic circuits.

But they refused. Learning from “inferior” humans was shameful. Studying magic was cowardly.

And so Neg became an outcast.

“Go hide all you want, you cowards! You’re afraid to lose to humans, so you ran! Cowards!”

If they just kept making swords and armor, humans would surpass them.

Neg dreamed of building machines that could think.

To overcome both problems, there was only one path — combine dwarven craftsmanship with human and magical tech.

But the dwarves rejected it.

He became a traitor to his people. A complete loner.

“Tch, I got all worked up again. Time to get back to hammering.”

He sighed. The anger faded a little.

Being alone didn’t bother him anymore.

Soon, the lonely sound of hammering filled the workshop.