Chapter 245

#245 Episode Tin Knight and the Strange Resort (4)

The next dawn,

as you gazed out at the immaculately white beach, as if nothing had ever happened, you nodded in satisfaction.

What a shame it would be if the beautiful sandy beach was soiled with the remnants of harmful creatures.

Watching the sun rise slowly, the wagon door opened and Dorothea stepped out.

She was dressed in a black swimsuit topped with a light, airy white shirt, creating a striking contrast of black and white.

Even though her overall exposure had decreased, somehow her allure seemed to have increased, and you found yourself nodding inwardly.

Surely, a female villainous officer should look just like this, right?

Did she catch onto your gaze? Dorothea narrowed her eyes.

“It seems like you’re looking at me with impure thoughts.”

[‘The Tin Knight expresses admiration for your gaze!’]

“Why don’t you at least pretend to be flustered or make an excuse?”

Dorothea shook her head incredulously, but you stood your ground.

[‘The Tin Knight remarks that those who usually pretend to be innocent are often the most cunning!’]

“You sure have some thick skin… uh, never mind.”

Perhaps Dorothea intended to say “you have a thick face,” but realizing that speaking that out loud would be direct derision rather than a metaphor, she hesitated.

When did it start?

Dorothea had begun to take an interest in your body or give you little considerations quite often.

Even this modification was a result of that.

Enhancing magical power reserves or allowing for logistics support from a distance has direct relations to your combat abilities, so they were necessary modifications to protect her own body.

However, enhancing the taste of food had no real significance or usefulness at all.

Yet, Dorothea presented you with a gift, even momentarily putting aside her original goals.

Was it because it was a rare quiet morning just for the two of you?

Or was it due to the human sensations you had regained yesterday?

You acted in a way you wouldn’t typically do.

[‘The Tin Knight suggests taking a short morning stroll!’]

***

On the deserted sandy beach, the footprints of the two of you piled up neatly.

One set was small and light, barely touching the ground.

The other was large and heavy, sinking deeply into the sand.

Despite proposing to walk first, the Tin Knight remained unusually quiet.

Though, it could be argued that it was a prejudice to think that one must chatter during a stroll.

Walking quietly while listening to the sound of the waves can sometimes be as precious as a gem.

Squish, squish.

It was a leisurely time. A relaxing moment.

Being used to living life in a frantic rush, this time of simply walking without any particular purpose resonated significantly with Dorothea.

Suddenly, she recalled a conversation she had with Gale.

“Your soul isn’t here. To be exact, it seems like it only gets summoned over here while the magical power is residing in the magical automaton’s body.”

“So where exactly is this thing’s soul?”

“Nowhere around here.”

“Are you joking with me?”

“I’m not kidding; that’s about all I can say. I tried all sorts of methods to search, but I couldn’t figure out where your soul comes from. One of the magical towers investigated thoroughly, and if they still couldn’t find out, then it seems there’s no way to know with ordinary techniques. If I were to speculate, perhaps the 4th Grade Witch or that Holy Kingdom?”

“What’s the deal with that guy—”

“Oh, among the wizards involved in the modification work, I’m the only one who remembers anything about your soul, so there’s no need to worry about leaks. After all, we entered into that contract before we started the work. The technicians in the magical tower are mainly curious about your body, not your soul.”

“So, is that it? We don’t know the identity of the soul, its whereabouts, and that’s all?”

“Unfortunately, yes, at this point. I’d rather suggest that you ask Dorothea directly about it. She is your knight, after all.”

Questions.

Asking questions.

Who the hell am I? What’s my identity? Just ask openly?

‘… Easier said than done.’

It wasn’t that you thought the Tin Knight would hide anything.

He was just less inclined to volunteer information; however, he would answer any questions if you inquired, as Sophia had already proven.

If he truly intended to keep his identity serious, he wouldn’t just blurt out all sorts of bizarre words and phrases that boil down to ‘Tin Knight speak.’

But Dorothea was a witch.

Her master had carefully taught her the principles a witch should adhere to.

– Unnecessary interference breeds misfortune. Reaching into things carelessly can lead to burdens too hard to bear.

– Demand a price when offering something. Unpriced kindness will be regarded as worthless someday.

– When faced with malice, show suitable retribution. Compassion and patience will be viewed as submission by many fools that populate the world.

Of course, it wasn’t that Dorothea completely trusted her master’s words, seeing them as absolute laws, but it wasn’t easy to suddenly act in a way entirely opposite to how she had been raised.

Was that perhaps why?

[‘The Tin Knight asks if it’s okay to ask something!’]

When the Tin Knight brought that up, Dorothea almost automatically replied.

“Sure, but that’s boring, isn’t it? How about a Q&A, taking turns asking each other? No lies or silence allowed.”

One question for one question.

The scales were balanced, and it was the perfect condition to achieve a goal.

She was truly capable and rational as a witch.

[‘The Tin Knight suggests limiting it to three questions each.’]

[‘The Tin Knight requests to ask the first question!’]

“Alright. What’s your question?”

So, she made a careless mistake.

It was a blatant violation of the absolute rule of not approaching a lunatic rationally.

[‘The Tin Knight, having always been curious, asks why her usual outfit looks the way it does!’]

“Of all the things to ask, NOW!? And what’s wrong with my outfit!!”

Dorothea flared up, but the Tin Knight just gazed at her as if to say, ‘Wait, really? Are you serious?’

That response only made Dorothea’s blood boil even more and she began to unleash her pent-up feelings.

“Do you have any idea how much effort it took to make that?! My master is that ‘clothes? Just throw on whatever and you’re good’ kind of ignorant person who sends me off in rags for errands and I’ve been humiliated enough! I managed to scrape some allowance together from running errands to buy new clothes, but they fell apart under necromancy’s poison! I somehow got a hold of materials that could withstand necromancy to make this outfit, and then my skin starts breaking out! It’s so hard to find materials that satisfy durability, practicality, and touch sensitivity, I exhausted every resource only to create the best design! Still, that person just snickered at MY masterpiece!!”

[‘The Tin Knight, sensing he had hit a nerve, sends a sympathetic glance and asks if that book she referred to was an old magazine that was out of style decades ago… No, he admits he was at fault, so enough!’]

“Gyaaaa!”

Dorothea roared, raking her hair in frustration.

It was a conversation completely devoid of mood.

After taking a few deep breaths, she wore a chilling smile that seemed as if she could kill someone and asked,

“…So, what about you? If you’re so keen on judging other people’s outfits, that means you have some kind of taste yourself, right?”

It was quite unbalanced to question someone while draping hostility over them, but knowing that her intent was to use that knowledge as fodder for teasing made her question straightforwardly transparent.

[‘The Tin Knight responds that it’s the fashion of the villainous officer!’]

“……So what was all that talk about my outfit before?”

[‘The Tin Knight defiantly states that others’ strange opinions and his own enjoyment are two different things!’]

[‘The Tin Knight concludes that with this, Dorothea has also consumed one question!’]

“This bastard, really.”

Dorothea clenched and unclenched her fists, but unfortunately, she wasn’t holding her staff, so she couldn’t smack the Tin Knight like usual.

“Ha.”

Dorothea let out a deep sigh.

For some reason, she felt her shoulders droop.

Thinking too much about what to ask began to feel foolish.

So, she casually opened her mouth.

“I’ll start the second question. So, what’s your identity?”

[‘The Tin Knight replies that the question is too vague!’]

“Then you answer vaguely too! Feel free to say a lot or a little, but remember, no lies or silence as per our initial rules.”

The Tin Knight paused for a moment to scratch his cheek and then spoke.

[‘The Tin Knight reveals he was asked by the original owner of this body, his master!’]

[‘The Tin Knight admits he finds it hard to explain what his master’s identity is or what principle allows him to be here!’]

Suddenly, the Tin Knight turned to look at Dorothea with a curious expression.

[‘The Tin Knight, who initially thought this was a dream or well-crafted illusion, admits now he isn’t sure!’]

[‘The Tin Knight asks if this is reality, will you be angry if I ask?’]

Dorothea thought the question was bizarre.

The Tin Knight himself appeared to have a similar thought, tilting his head slightly as if asking, ‘Is this real?’

“It’s reality.”

Dorothea replied.

Short and filled with certainty.

She wondered if it would be better to offer a more detailed explanation but also had an instinct that this answer was enough.

Just as the second Q&A was about to wrap up,

In the woods near the beach,

a rustling sound caught the attention of both of their heads.

In the shade of the dense trees, despite it being midday, a girl was staring at Dorothea and the Tin Knight.

“What’s that?”

Dorothea muttered as she saw the girl, who promptly fled deeper into the forest.

The Tin Knight and Dorothea exchanged glances and silently chased after her.

Even with the sun blazing overhead, the woods were eerily dark.

Even as both of them walked quickly, the distance to the girl did not seem to shorten; they glimpsed only her back or profile now and then.

How long had they been running?

Suddenly, a small cabin appeared in front of them.

And just as they arrived, the hem of the girl’s clothes was seen disappearing through the cabin door.

As the Tin Knight pushed the door open, it creaked loudly to reveal the inside of the cabin.

Despite its worn exterior, the interior was in outstanding condition. In fact, it was splendid.

While the simplistic facilities couldn’t compare to Dorothea’s wagon, any ordinary traveler or castaway would surely light up with joy upon discovering it.

While the two were looking around the interior,

Bang!

Suddenly, the cabin’s front door slammed shut with a terrifying force, locking itself immediately after.

At the same moment, they heard the giggle of a girl from the second floor.

– Hahaha!

From the seemingly normal wall, blood-red letters began to appear, and the pictures hanging in frames contorted grotesquely with chilling smiles.

[‘The Tin Knight asks if it’s okay to smash this place!’]

“Well, if it was dirty in a physical sense, I’d say so, but looking at it, it’s just a setup. There’s no real blood, so I think we can tidy it up and make it usable?”

The laughter from the second floor stopped. The figures in the frames looked dumbfounded. The letters on the wall even froze in their movement.

Dorothea raised her hand.

An overwhelming surge of magical energy emanated from her, engulfing the cabin.

The malignant spirits that had resided there suddenly realized they had messed with something strange and tried to escape, but a ghost has no option to flee.

Exactly three minutes later,

A second base for the Tin Knight’s group emerged at the resort.

---