episode_0325

As Violet’s first test flight was underway, the Grand Duke of Cascadia was receiving reports on the training progress.

“It’s beyond imagination. Is it really that fast?”

Grand Duke Alister’s voice was filled with surprise. Every time he turned a page of the confidential report handed to him by his aide, his eyebrows rose higher.

“Yes, it seems… the capability of their collective intelligence has far exceeded our predictions.”

The graphs showing the rapidly growing simulated combat results and knowledge acquisition speed day by day displayed a breathtakingly steep upward trend. Alister knew of Violet’s high combat power and potential, but he hadn’t expected it to be this much.

“Adela truly brought a raw gem.”

As the leader of a prestigious family that had survived for hundreds of years, Alister had seen many things. Superhumans with diverse abilities that could make eyes widen, sages boasting profound wisdom. Mysterious and bizarre artifacts. Even the world’s mighty powers capable of incinerating the atmosphere and tearing apart the crust, and the darkest and most dangerous secrets hidden behind the veil.

However, among all the superhumans he had met, there was no one like Violet. This was especially true concerning intelligence.

“Did they call it an intelligence explosion? Truly a peculiar term attached to it,” Alister muttered.

“Otherwise, it’s inexplicable. This kind of speed cannot be achieved through normal learning processes.”

Ordinarily, the training method for military aircraft takes at least a year, or even several years at most. A fighter pilot is not a mere motorcycle rider. They are a compendium of knowledge, intertwined with the equations of human aerospace engineering and the labyrinth of tactical doctrine. The volume of manuals and educational materials to master them is vast, to the extent that it surpasses the thickness of most encyclopedias.

Fighter jets piloted by pilots trained through such arduous processes are like sharp scalpels forged by modern civilization. The fighter jets that pilots fly are also comprehensive works of technological engineering. They are masterpieces equipped with anti-magic shrapnel warhead missiles, electromagnetic rapid-fire cannons that unleash inscribed shells with various magical formulas, laser cannons, and various awakened-personnel magic-linked weapons. A well-trained pilot guarding the skies of the Red Zone and Yellow Zone is a finely forged artisan’s sword.

Therefore, at first, they were concerned. Whether it would be possible to master this difficult and vast amount of knowledge.

Violet, with a simple yet innovative method, blew away those concerns. It was by splitting and absorbing knowledge through an unbelievably large number of clones, 24 hours a day. The countless simulation cockpits and training aircraft installed by the family were operated tirelessly to fulfill Violet’s thirst for knowledge.

Violet’s training progress, which had faltered for the first few days, exploded in an instant. To be fair, Violet was not a blank slate. She could basically fly helicopters and light planes, and thanks to her awakened physical abilities, processes like G-force training could be significantly reduced.

“Still, it’s astonishing. Frankly, I’m at the point where I want to expand the scale of the air fleet even more. It’s a shame to only give her second-line equipment like this. Isn’t it a principle to give the best weapons to excellent warriors? I feel like assigning a few hypersonic fighters immediately.”

Duke Alister’s voice was a mix of admiration and regret. His eyes glowed with passion as he read Violet’s performance report.

“We advised her multiple times, but she refused. She said she wasn’t familiar with operating jet aircraft yet. For now, she requested weapons that she could ‘use freely and throw away’.”

Alister’s expression subtly changed at the aide’s words. Remembering the girl who was strangely obsessed with suicide attacks, the corners of his eyes twitched slightly.

“…She seems a bit rough and insensible, but if she wants it, there’s nothing that can be done.”

The office was steeped in silence. A thoughtful aura lingered in Alister’s eyes.

The situation when he first met Violet flashed through the Duke’s mind.

“Hello, Unnie’s dad!”

He himself laughed it off, but it was clear how others would react. While it was important to raise a prodigy in combat, since she might be introduced to high society someday, other education would also be essential for her own sake.

“Manners… They’ll be essential for that child.”

The Duke pondered deeply on how to refine this special raw gem.

**

After completing the first solo flight, we left Ruzilin’s Cheolkwon here and prepared to return. Training inside a dungeon or in the academy city was impossible because the super-heavy tank was too large.

“Cheolkwon! Be well!”

“Anyone hearing that would think we’re parting forever. Boss, there are other Violets left here.”

“Oh, right! Isn’t that so?”

For the return, we decided to use Cascadia Airlines. We considered a charter flight, but chose a regular flight, hoping for delicious in-flight meals.

“Since we’ve already had good food here. I really want to eat airplane food. Whenever friends or other researchers at the lab talked about their travels, I wondered what airplane food tasted like.”

At Enrica’s words, perhaps recalling her unconscious lab colleagues, her expression darkened.

“If you try it later, when they wake up and you travel together, you can recommend what tastes better.”

“Yes! That’s a good idea!”

In my experience of flying on planes multiple times under disguise, airplane food is more or less the same. Enrica seemed to expect airplane food to be special, like a fancy restaurant menu.

“Sometimes it’s good to ride commoners’ transportation!”

“Why are you suddenly talking like a noble? Weren’t we commoners originally?”

“No! We Violets are nobles now. We have knightly titles!”

Perhaps thanks to our wealthy friends, we had somehow grown accustomed to luxury. When we got money, it became routine to spend it on expensive weapons or magic recovery items.

“Okay, let’s live frugally again starting today! Eat only instant food every day, and eliminate enemies only with swords instead of bullets and bolts.”

“That’s good!”

While Unit 5211 flew to the academy city, we spent our time having a heated discussion about economical and commoner-friendly methods of slaughter.

**

While Violet’s firepower demonstration was underway, an exciting scene was unfolding in our temporary lab at home.

Cheerful noises filled the lab.

“Ooh-ooh!”

Pat pat pat!

“Ugh!”

A monkey patting Yurik Ajusshi’s shoulder came into view. At first glance, it looked like the monkey was causing a commotion, but the reality was completely different. We Violets are peaceful and kind girls. The V-monkey, which gained intelligence through our network, couldn’t possibly be violent. What it was doing was none other than a shoulder massage.

“Ooh-ooh-eek?”

“Yes, that’s enough. Ugh… that feels better now. Thank you, monkey. Here’s a snack.”

“Ooh-ooh!”

The monkey devoured the cookie Yurik Ajusshi offered with a joyful expression. Perhaps remembering that Yurik Ajusshi took its side during the last strike, the creature seemed to have rapidly grown close to him.

While the V-monkey enjoyed a delicious snack as payment for the massage, behind the lab, ten V-rats, which had increased in number, were marching in an orderly fashion, tidying up the surroundings.

“Squeak?”

“Squeak squeak!”

The V-rats communicated with each other, clearing away trash and neatly cleaning every nook and cranny that human hands couldn’t reach. Watching that sight, the V-crows on their perch gave a short ‘caw’.

“Huh, look at these little guys. They’re really moving in an orderly fashion.” Instructor Frederick’s voice was tinged with surprise.

“Is that all? They also understand human speech to some extent. Look at this. Alright, you guys. Attention! Stand to attention!”

“Squeak!”

The working rats gathered in one spot and stood rigidly in two rows, which made the instructor unable to hide his surprise.

“I temporarily received command authority from Violet President-nim. All the animals here understand our words and act accordingly.”

“So Violet isn’t manipulating them individually? Interesting. Indeed…”

Of course, the reason the instructor came here wasn’t just to see animals.

“Follow me, monkey. Let’s see your skills.”

“Ooh-kit?”

The monkey that was massaging Yurik Ajusshi got down from its spot. Unit 443, who was waiting, followed the monkey and the instructor. Out of the office, past the large factory, and then into another warehouse.

“Let’s see. Your skills.”

“Ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh!”

The monkey quickly picked up a stick that had fallen on the floor. The trajectory of the stick slicing through the air unfolded before their eyes like a dance. The patterns drawn in the air by invisible lines were as complex as an abstract painting, and the intangible shapes created by the combination of curves and straight lines appeared and disappeared in an instant.

Watching that sight, Instructor Frederick’s eyes narrowed, then widened again with surprise.

“It’s true. This is Polaris combat art. It’s the one-handed sword technique I taught, the content from basic attack and defense transition stances 1 to 5.”

This monkey is definitely a success.

“Right? It’s good, isn’t it? It’s good at fighting! It even fought and won against a dog!”

At the mention of fighting, the instructor’s eyes sparkled with interest. I explained the incident where it subdued a fierce dog that had previously attacked Yurik Ajusshi.

“It was originally a bit violent. Even after losing its intelligence, it kept barking and acting like that.”

Upon examination, the dog was too aggressive to be used for experiments, making it unsuitable. We left it alone for a while to look for an adoption center or a dog shelter, but in the meantime, it broke its leash and tried to escape. Of all things, it happened to run into our monkey.

“Grrr…!”

Even in its unintelligent state, its viciousness remained, and the dog lunged at the V-monkey. Normally, they would have snarled and fought like animals, but…

The V-monkey was different.

“Ooh-ooh-eek! Ooh-kit!”

Thwack!

“Whine!”

After deflecting the attack using a tray as a shield, it strongly jabbed the stick into the dog’s neck. A powerful series of blocks and counterattacks. The monkey mercilessly beat the dog as if we were hunting magical beasts. By the time I noticed the situation and ran out, everything was already over.

“Whine…”

“Ooh-ooh-ooh!”

The monkey striking a victory pose and the dog cowering after being beaten were truly funny even when I think about it now.

“Amazing. Beyond simply imitating, it even actively utilized it.”

“Right? So I’m going to give it guns and weapons too! Like this.”

Click-clack!

We handed the monkey a submachine gun. The creature awkwardly placed its finger on the trigger and checked the chamber or detached the magazine. The instructor, with a troubled expression, looked back and forth between the monkey and me.

“Oh no, if this continues, I wonder if you’ll end up creating an animal army.”

An animal army, huh? Hearing the instructor’s words, an interesting idea flashed through our Violet minds.

“Why didn’t we think of that? Let’s connect the network to horses and elephants too!”

“Violet elephants? Wow, are we going to become General Hannibal?”

It didn’t seem bad to imagine it. Except for the problem that they couldn’t use magic. Since the animal experiments were progressing smoothly lately, it seemed we could dream bigger dreams. There were no safety issues. The animals connected to the Violet network were living healthily without causing a single accident.

Yes, there were no problems, except for one.

When we returned to the office, Yurik Ajusshi muttered.

“By the way, they don’t have names, do they?”

“Names?”

Oh, now that I think about it, our animals didn’t have names. We just called them rat, monkey, crow.

“The number of animals might increase in the future. We need to give them names to differentiate them.”

Yurik Ajusshi’s point was valid. If we were to create a Violet animal army, we would need a way to distinguish each individual.

“I’ve got a good idea!” Unit 443 confidently exclaimed.

“What is it?”

“Chimp-Chimp! Let’s call it Chimp-Chimp! This one is Chimp-Chimp Number 1.”

The monkey froze as if stunned. Was it frozen with joy? Ajusshi also fell into thought for a moment, then quietly asked.

“…What about the crows or rats?”

“Hmm, I’ll name the crow ‘Caw-Caw’ and the rat ‘Squeaky’.”

“…Aren’t those a bit too carelessly made up?”

The frozen monkey suddenly wailed and waved its hands.

“Ooh-ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh-ooh!”

“Ooh-ooh-ooh! Boss, I hate that name! It’s not cool!”

At the monkey’s strong refusal, the crows and rats also loudly agreed. I sent my will to calm them down, then asked Ajusshi.

“Then what did Ajusshi think of? Do you have a better idea?”

“Yes, Caesar! Let’s name him Caesar. I’ve been thinking of it for a while, isn’t it cool?”

A chilling sensation swept through the Violet network like lightning.

“Oh, I don’t like that! It sounds a bit like plagiarism!”

If we gave a name like that, a rebellion would clearly break out. We should avoid names with a sinister scent.

After several discussions and considerations, a good name came to mind.

Violet proudly said to the company’s first monkey, “Your name is… Basung!”

The monkey’s rage exploded.

“Ooh-ooh-eeek!”

“Boss, I hate it so much!”