Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint
Chapter 297: A World Made of Gears (4)

The gears whirred fiercely as they scraped through the groove, rapidly accelerating along the evenly cut track and, in the blink of an eye, it flew right toward my face.

They weren’t as fast as Historia’s Qi-infused bullets as I could see them coming.

However, getting hit by those heavy gears would still result in a massive impact.

｢The shoulder.｣

But I have Mind Reading.

I figured out where he was aiming and dodged just in time.

The gear whipped up a tailwind as it narrowly missed where my shoulder had been.

If it were Historia, I’d never be able to dodge, as she’d hit her target the moment she fired.

But against Maximilien, who wasn’t specialized in projectile weapons, this much was manageable.

｢You dodged one. Impressive… but what about a hundred?｣

What?

Dozens, no, hundreds of gears crawled up towards the bowgun, like insects swarming all over Maximilien’s body.

The gears that reached his shoulders slid down the contours of his body, marching in rows until they reached his wrists where they were loaded into the bowgun and, just like before, accelerated along the groove.

Whirr, whirr, whirr, whirr, whirr…

Now, there was no specific target, he just planned to scattershot the gears by swinging his arm.

This was indiscriminate firing, solely relying on brute force.

In this situation, Mind Reading was useless.

Tch.

If this were a battle of skills, we would be locked in an intense psychological duel, each holding back a trump card.

But instead, I’m facing this!

Rather than fighting a losing battle, I called upon my most reliable meat shield.

“Azzy!”

“Woof!”

The Dog King answered my call.

Azzy, who had been struggling to climb up the Steel Beetle, leaped toward me without even catching her breath.

Her head whipped around and the gears that were flying toward me vanished as if they were sucked into her mouth.

Every time Azzy chewed, there was a crunching sound.

Sparks flew from between her teeth.

Even though each gear used by Maximilien was made from at least Grade 4 Alchemic Steel, to Azzy’s teeth, they were nothing more than slightly tougher chew toys.

No matter how many he fired, Maximilien only had two hands.

Azzy expertly selected and chewed up the ones that were aimed at me.

The barrage ended.

After spitting out the last gear, Azzy stood tall, her tail stiff, and let out a long howl.

“Awoooooo!”

The Dog King.

Humanity’s oldest friend was still on my side.

She might not be able to tear Maximilien apart, but at least she could keep me from getting killed.

How about that?

This is the power of the Human King…

“Behold! The full extent of my creation!”

Maximilien muttered softly as he spread his hands.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud.

The ground shook beneath my feet.

The Steel Beetle vibrated violently.

The sudden tremor startled Azzy.

“Woof! Woof woof! The ground is moving! An earthquake!”

“It’s not an earthquake! The Steel Beetle is shaking!”

“Woof? Beetle?”

“Never mind, it’s an earthquake!”

After vaguely explaining things to Azzy, I searched for the source of the shaking.

The Steel Beetle itself wasn’t moving.

To someone like me, who lacked strength, a massive weapon like this Steel Beetle was a huge challenge.

If Maximilien had used it against me earlier, I would have been in serious danger.

That was why I climbed on top of the Steel Beetle, to suppress Maximilien and prevent him from moving it.

“I’m definitely holding it down, so how…?”

Maximilien kindly explained to me.

“The Steel Beetle stores many gears as spares for emergencies. You can’t control the ones you can’t reach.”

The gears I could control were only those I was ‘touching.’

When two gears meshed together, they essentially became one large gear since the operational principle was the same.

Therefore, I could control the gears that were meshed together, and I used that property to wrestle Maximilien’s control over the Steel Beetle.

However, I couldn’t affect the ones scattered about aimlessly, as they were beyond my reach.

But Maximilien, who wasn’t bound by such conditions, could command them freely.

For example:

“What if the gears move like this!”

The source of the shaking soon revealed itself.

Hundreds, thousands of gears rolled along the side of the Steel Beetle.

They weren’t meshed together. They were just rolling like ordinary gears—without any special control like a swarm of ants rushing toward me.

An overwhelming force in sheer numbers…

“I wonder if the Dog King can save you this time.”

Damn it.

If I could touch them, I could stop them from turning, but there are too many and they’re gaining speed as they roll toward me.

I need to intercept them before they arrive.

Desperately, I shouted.

“Azzy! Kick them all away!”

“Woof?”

Azzy gave me the dumbest look.

She spaces out when faced with impossible tasks.

I guess a dog’s intelligence isn’t enough to figure this out.

This is where a human must step up.

I pulled out a card.

A club suite, a one-time-use spell.

This is the last resort I’ve been saving, the card that will protect my life.

Magic is irreversible.

Unlike tools, once magic is used, it can’t be recovered.

Using a club results in the permanent loss of part of my assets.

Even now, as I decided to use it, my hands were trembling.

But it’s better than dying.

It’s not like I plan to take this to the grave.

I imbued the card with mana, and the sealed magic within responded, lighting up with a bluish glow as I held it between my fingers.

“Set.”

The Military State’s Standard Magic is based on black magic that uses the body as a medium and a sacrifice.

It was easy and fast to cast, though it did harm the body.

A simple chant could deplete your mana to create a useful effect.

But there was also white magic, which operated on the opposite principle.

This one used a magic-infused object as a medium and drew a magic circle to create effects—a more traditional kind of magic.

True to its classical roots, it was elegant, but it was hardly practical in battle, as it required an external source of mana, a slow casting time, and complex rituals.

Plus, magic-infused objects were expensive, making them something only the wealthy and leisurely could afford. Hence, calling it classical was fitting.

However, some people value their bodies more than money, and I’m one of them.

Just before the light exploded, I threw the card.

The card, the Six of Clubs, sliced through the air and landed right in the middle of the gears.

For a moment, it spun like a top, resisting the gears.

But a thin card couldn’t hold out against steel gears, especially not against such a large number.

After a brief spin, the card was soon buried under the wave of gears.

Now!

I pointed my finger and spoke the activation word.

“Aquas Ritter!”

The Six of Clubs held a stronger version of the condensation spell favored by the Military State.

It gathered water from the surrounding air, and while a basic condensation spell might produce a small amount of drinkable water, mine was more forceful—so much so that it could even crystallize water vapor instantly.

After a flash of light, a white storm surged forward.

Magic threads spread in all directions, pulling in all the water they captured.

The gears, which had been rolling toward me, were instantly encased in ice.

If cast on a person, the spell could turn them into an ice sculpture.

That same magic encased the gears, severely restricting their movement.

This should impede them.

Just as I expected, Maximilien seemed rather flustered.

“Magic?! Don’t tell me…!”

…Though his reaction was a bit different from what I had imagined.

｢You think that’s enough?｣

The sound of crushed ice came from all directions.

Although the gears were covered in ice, they didn’t stop turning.

They scraped and gnawed at the ice that blocked them. Fragments of shattered ice glittered as they fell.

It didn’t take long before most of the gears broke through the icy barrier.

My spell only bought me about three seconds, mostly thanks to the gears slipping and skidding on the ice.

Maximilien shouted, unable to hide his disappointment.

“Is that your trump card? Just some magic? You should know that magic can’t win against Unique Magic!”

Who doesn’t know that?

The only reason I’m using it is because I don’t have anything else!

I don’t even have Unique Magic!

How could the Human King not have anything unique?

Tsk. It seems like cheap tricks won’t work against a Star General.

I’ll have to be satisfied with the three seconds I gained.

During that time, I dashed away, leaving Azzy to deal with it.

“Azzy, it’s all up to you now!”

“Woof! Yelp! Woof!”

I heard her pained yelp behind me.

Azzy was probably catching gears like a mouse while occasionally getting hit by those shots by Maximilien, but I didn’t see it, so I’m not sure.

For me, the most dangerous thing was the gears fired by Maximilien.

So, my top priority was getting out of his line of fire.

After reaching the edge, I threw myself over and clung to the side.

Just as I sighed in relief, I heard the click-clack of gears turning.

Looking up, I saw dozens of gears following me along the edge.

Azzy, you useless mutt! You missed some!

“Damn it! You’re so persistent!”

The gears cascaded down toward me.

Though they weren’t being fired, the sheer force of them falling toward me was enough to be a problem.

It was painful and if they managed to knock me off the Steel Beetle, it would once again be under Maximilien’s control.

I can’t let that happen.

If Maximilien regains control of the Steel Beetle, even Azzy won’t be able to stop him.

I ran along the uneven surface, dodging the gears that fell from above.

I barely managed to avoid them, but a few caught on my cloak, jerking me backward.

As my balance wavered, more gears rolled toward me.

I quickly raised my hand to grab one.

A rapidly spinning gear was like a flying blade.

If I grabbed it barehanded, the spinning force would shred my palm.

Some were even already tangled up in my cloak.

Before the gear could tear me apart, I used Maximilien’s Unique Magic to stop its rotation.

The gear that had been thrashing at my cloak grew silent as soon as it touched my hand.

But even though I could stop the rotation, I couldn’t counteract the momentum it had already built up.

A heavy impact traveled up my arm.

It felt like catching a soccer ball that had been kicked with full force.

“Even though I can control its rotation, I can’t counteract the momentum… Does that mean that as long as it follows the concept of gears, nothing else matters? It seems a bit irrational, but…”

It’s irrational, which is why it’s called Unique Magic.

Tsk.

Compared to his Unique Magic, Mind Reading feels like nothing at all.

Can’t someone give me a better ability?

Wait. A rule? I might be able to use that.

I fiddled with the gear.

Should I just toss it?

But if I do, it’ll keep coming after me.

Grumbling, I shoved the gear into a nearby crevice in the wall.

The gear stilled.

I continued running, dodging or catching gears as they fell.

After a while, I picked up on Maximilien’s thoughts from above.

｢The Dog King, this is truly annoying. She isn’t trying to attack me, but she’s methodically destroying my gears. If he touches them, the Human King turns them against me. If he doesn’t touch them, the Dog King blocks them. It’s troublesome.｣

It’s not just me who finds this annoying, huh?

That’s somewhat comforting.

｢Without the Steel Beetle, I wouldn’t have the means to subdue the King of Beasts, but the Human King is preventing me from using the Steel Beetle… Was the King of Beasts always this troublesome…? Wait, the King of Beasts?｣

He finally realized the one piece that might turn the tide. Maximilien belatedly recalled that entity.

The King of Cats, Nabi.

“The King of Cats!”

You’re late to the realization, Maximilien.

I never forgot about Nabi.

“Nabi isn’t coming.”

Step, step.

The sound of military boots with metal studs hitting the concrete floor echoed, the sharp rhythm stretched slightly as it hit the dry ground.

Long, jet-black hair swayed behind her.

She approached with a tired and sluggish gait, her expression weary and lethargic.

Her eyes were filled with fatigue and stress.

Yet, at this moment, she must be very happy.

“Phew~.”

Because there was a mana herb cigarette made from the World Tree held between her lips.

Historia, blowing out a long stream of smoke, muttered in a daze.

“This is… nice… My arm doesn’t hurt, and my head feels clear. It feels like my strength is returning…”