Chapter 167

After having a hearty dinner, the Violets commenced the construction of facilities for expanding the Vision Memory Chip supply.

“The trend is semiconductor factories, let’s build one!”

“Well, saying ‘factory’ feels a bit off. The Vision Memory Chips are manufactured outside the network. How about calling it a warehouse? Or a distribution center!”

“A distribution center? This isn’t a delivery service. Sure, we’ve done a lot of package deliveries, but how about a data center?”

“A data center…! That sounds cool!”

With the name decided, the Violets began to build the data center.

As they gathered and focused their minds, thoughts began to rise from the ground of the network world like a spider web. Those thoughts intertwined like fabric, creating pillars and floors, and soon, a building arose featuring a sturdy frame and thick walls.

The large and solid door was quite impressive.

“Construction successful!”

Now this warehouse would serve as a place to store Vision Memory Chips. When battle situations arose, they could pull out the stockpiled memory chips from here.

“It’s a shame to use up magical power. It would be nice if it were free magic.”

The only regret was the amount of magical power of our Violets.

The Vision Memory Chips were, after all, magical formulas fixed by utilizing the peculiar phenomenon known as the Violet Network.

The magical power consumed when using the formulas is identical to that required for ordinary spellcasting.

Even so, the fact that the choices available have increased with the given magical power is encouraging.

It’s also an attractive point that consuming magical power to create the memory chips doesn’t hinder the production of Hibernating Bodies. They can be produced simultaneously.

“It’s about time to refill the warehouse.”

I never dreamt I would suddenly encounter those Magnavis fellows in the last dungeon.

As a result, unexpected warfare ensued, and the warehouse ended up completely empty.

“My inventory is nearly empty! I’ve used up almost all the ammunition.”

“Already? We bought a ton when we could.”

“Of course! We fired at nearly a thousand people with guns! Isn’t it natural for the bullets to run out?”

When Unit 7 questioned Unit 1, she quickly ran some simple calculations in her head.

“Since a magazine typically holds about 30 rounds… Hmm…” A simple calculation alone means the number of rifle rounds available for a thousand Violets exceeds thirty thousand. Besides, Awakened Ones don’t go down easily with just one or two bullets. Thus, the nature of the shootouts tends to be rapid-fire, and in desperate situations, it’s likely to increase even further.

“Ugh, so that’s why it felt lacking!”

“As for rifle rounds, we can somehow gather a few. There are people besides us who use those bullets. The issue lies with other types of ammunition. While we have some leeway with combat rifles and sniper rifles, rockets and grenades should only be used when absolutely necessary.”

“Electromagnetic rifles are the same. We can’t count on finding those.”

Well, thankfully we don’t have much time left for weapon trading.

If there are tasks requiring effort for the time being, we’ll need to focus on magic and crossbows.

“Let’s think positively. We’ve used guns a lot during this time, right? We can consider this a chance for us to practice with crossbows and magic. How about it?”

“Wow, that sounds good!”

Once the discussions that needed to be held for the future wrapped up, the Violets started to lay down one by one.

“Alright, then let’s rest for today and focus on producing Clones and magic starting tomorrow.”

“Good night!”

—

From the next day onwards, the Violets began to split into several teams and start their activities.

“You handle the military supplies; we’ll handle the training!”

“Then we’ll take care of the miscellaneous tasks!”

As soon as we finished breakfast, we hurriedly moved to our respective posts, with barely enough time to spare for leisure amidst all the tasks.

The first thing we did was enhance our bodies and magic.

“All present! Let’s start production!”

The Violets consumed their magical power to create Clones. The generated Violets lined up as they began to move one by one.

The ones waiting at the front of the line grabbed the mountain of plastic bags and corpse bags piled high on the table and headed toward the warehouse.

“Okay, hurry inside, get dressed, and lie down. It’ll be over quickly.”

Once inside the warehouse, the Violets unzipped the bags and crawled inside. Then, they flipped over the plastic and lay down.

Once all the procedures were complete, the Violets shifted their consciousness outside the network. The worker Clones waiting outside zipped up the bags.

It didn’t take long for the shelves and floors to be filled with Hibernating Violets.

“The first warehouse is full. You all go somewhere else! Where’s the second line again? You’re the training team. Go somewhere else!”

“Got it.”

While we were producing Hibernating Bodies and reservists, the other Violets were mass-producing magic.

Inside the spacious factory building, the Violets sat on mats laid across the floor, closed their eyes, and focused on the spell calculations.

Meanwhile, Factory Manager Violets moved around checking for any errors in the formulas.

“No need to rush. Let’s focus on completing it.”

“One, two, three!”

With each calculation the Violets progressed, a Vision Memory Chip containing the spell would appear one by one in the data center of the network.

Each memory chip contained various types of magic. Inside the data center, the simplest Fireballs to tracking blades, tracking spears, and a variety of other spells were stored.

“Alright, now it’s time to create high-level magic. Everyone gather!”

The Vision Memory Chips containing the easy-level magic lined up neatly inside the data center. Gaining confidence, we resolved to mass-produce more difficult spells.

“Shall we try?”

“Let’s do it!”

As the factory doors opened, more Violets entered inside. Once everyone was seated, the Factory Manager Violet gave the command.

“Everyone sit down. Take a breath, prepare! Start!”

The complex spell for the Melting Ray materialized before the Violets.

Within less than ten seconds, the factory was filled with the low murmur of over two hundred Violets.

“Ugh! My head hurts!”

“Hang in there! We’re almost done! Just a bit longer!”

The uproar inside the network subsided for a moment, and our work soon approached its climax. The Factory Manager Violet constantly checked to ensure nothing was amiss in the progression of the formulas.

“The progress of Orbit 13 and Orbit 25 is proceeding correctly. The coordinates and curvature handled by Unit 674 are also fine. No, it’s Unit 841. Stop! You just skipped a few functions in the temperature calculation process!”

“Eek! Thank you; I almost had my head explode again.”

“That’s not good. Let’s redo it!”

Multiple attempts continued to fail due to Violets making calculation errors. We were getting exhausted.

Nevertheless, we still had an innumerable amount of attempts left.

Numerous trials and errors gained from countless deaths were present.

More than anything, we had the managers to check the progression.

After an extended period of attempts, the moment when everything fell perfectly into rhythm finally arrived.

“Whoa, whoa! We did it!”

“It’s not done yet. Stay calm! The last critical step remains: recovering the magical power and transferring it to the network, right? We need to do them simultaneously. We can’t make errors!”

“I’m going! Three, two, one!”

The Violets maintained their focus until the very last moment. With their bodies feeling lifted, they all plopped down onto the mats.

At the moment when the Violets inside the warehouse shouted, we could see that our efforts had not been in vain.

“W-we did it! Look, it’s the Melting Ray!”

We managed to obtain the results we had long awaited. In a corner of the warehouse, a granite slab larger than a person, adorned with complex patterns, shimmered in brilliant colors. Everyone couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with emotion at the sight.

The destructive power that only skilled mages could create had come into our hands.

Just as everyone was about to celebrate, one by one, they began to groan and hold their heads.

“I-I did it…! Ugh. My head is burning…”

“I’m dizzy. I must have overdone it…”

The workers at the magic factory each picked up cold water bottles and ice to cool their heads.

“Look at us. We’re all soaked in sweat.”

Now that I looked, the factory interior was hot and stifling. The Violets were drenched in sweat.

Moreover, it seemed that our heads had been put under strain during the calculation process. A few Violets had fainted, bleeding from their noses.

Recognizing the seriousness of the situation, the Factory Manager Violet and the worker Violets convened a meeting.

“What should we do? There are production issues. My head is throbbing and I can’t concentrate.”

“How about rotating new ones in?”

“That’s impossible. Everyone has their own tasks to do. We can’t pull any more from the training personnel. Instead, let’s bring in a ton of ice and do some cooling! We should install a large fan too. How does that sound?”

We brainstormed together, but a proper solution didn’t materialize.

Above all, the burden on our heads couldn’t simply be managed through cooling.

“This is frustrating. Then we need a way to prevent head injury… Ah.”

Suddenly, a dangerous thought began to spiral through our minds, like a shark sensing blood.

“You guys thought of the same thing just now, right?”

“Yeah, but… it feels a bit iffy. Do you think it’s possible? What if they refuse to do it?”

“Let’s just say it plainly. I’m sure they’ll help!”

We headed over to where Daphne was. Daphne was located in the corner of the factory.

After coming back from Vittorio Arcade, my roommate had become engrossed in personal training, focusing intently on something in a corner of the factory.

On the table were apples, cans, plastic bottles, and a variety of other items lined up neatly. That sight made me think of a shooting target board.

Suddenly, a thin, jade-green protective shield shot up from beneath the apple, causing it to drop to the floor. One after another, the items on the table fell to the ground.

With a serious expression, Daphne murmured, “Is it truly impossible? What should I…?”

“Um, hey, Daphne?”

After calling her a few times, Daphne turned around.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I was so focused on my training that I didn’t hear you. What’s the matter?”

“Uh, it’s… could you come with me for a moment?”

As we returned to the factory, I felt the muggy air enveloping us. Perhaps Daphne felt the heat too, as she involuntarily waved her hands like a fan.

I explained my predicament to her. Her eyes filled with curiosity.

“Memory chips, that sounds like a good idea! I’m sure Violets can manage it. But why is that? Is there a problem…?”

I explained to her the crisis facing the Violet factory while observing her reaction.

Daphne’s blue eyes filled with concern.

“Well, we did push ourselves a bit, but if Daphne helps, it’ll surely work out. How could it not?”

As we worried about the next reaction, an unexpected response came.

“What’s the problem? It’s a favor from a friend, right? Of course, I’ll help!”

Daphne replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Really? You won’t back out?”

At my question, she smiled. That smile was filled with a bittersweet flavor.

“What right do I have to intervene like this? I should be thanking you. The Violets have always stepped up to take on danger for us…”

A question mark popped up in my mind. While I pondered why Daphne would say that, she strode into the middle of the magic factory.

“I’m ready. If you’re okay with it, let’s start right away!”

“Oh, okay!”

The Violets who had cooled their heads once again began the production of memory chips.

This time, the spell to be produced was the Melting Ray.

As the room heated up once again, I felt my head throbbing once more.

“Ugh, ugh!”

“I’m feeling dizzy…!”

Just as the Violets started to reach their limits, Daphne’s Unique Ability activated, causing a refreshing green magical energy to spread from the center of the room.

“Wait, oh! It worked! My head is clear now!”

“It doesn’t hurt anymore!”

The Violets working on the task were freed from their headaches.

The healing waves of the Unique Ability spread continuously like a fountain, enveloping everyone.

Freed from pain and heat, the Violets’ minds accelerated as they performed their tasks.

“This can’t be right? No one made a mistake. What the heck is going on…?”

Before the Factory Manager Violet’s words, which were a mix of admiration and worry, could fade, the Vision Memory Chip containing the Melting Ray spell appeared in the data center.

Just as we were rejoicing in a pain-free production, even more surprising news spread among us.

“Although just slightly, the production speed has also increased.”

“It might be an illusion. Let’s test it.”

To be on the safe side, we continued the magical production while keeping Daphne standing.

The speed I felt wasn’t an illusion. There were differences depending on the magic’s difficulty, but the production speed of the Vision Memory Chips increased slightly.

In the face of this revolutionary result, the Violets in the factory stood up and cheered.

“Daphne for the win!”

“Thank you!”

Hearing our praise, Daphne’s expression turned awkward, as if unsure.

“…It really helped, right?”

“Of course!”

There was no way it wouldn’t help. Daphne’s cooling power had truly been remarkable.

The official history of the Violet Magic Factory, boasting the best cooling system, had just begun.

“We’ll bury them in magic!”