episode_0162

A moment later, I realized what mistake I had made.

‘Did they misunderstand because of the word?’

Just in case, I asked the two directly.

“You two, you’re not imagining something perverted, are you?”

The expressions of the two changed subtly after hearing my words. It seemed these idiots really had fallen prey to some strange misunderstanding. Just by how they kept avoiding my gaze, it was clear.

I put my hands on my hips and glared at these lecherous people.

“Mister, you said you needed someone earlier, right? This lady is an expert in magic and artifacts.”

“Ah, so her job is an assistant. But why ‘slave’…”

“Exactly! If ‘slave’ sounds strange, just think of her as a graduate student.”

Hearing my words, Ennis flinched, letting out a groan and nodding, while Yurik let out a short sigh.

“I admit I phrased the word strangely, but you two know it’s also your fault for interpreting ‘slave’ in such a lecherous way, right? Alright, I’ll go show the lady around! Follow me!”

“…Wait a moment!”

Violet dragged Ennis out. As soon as Yurik let out a small sigh, Assistant Violet walked out from behind.

“We’ll need another desk in the office, won’t we?”

“Yes, if we’re going to share it from now on. More importantly, Ms. Violet.”

Yurik turned to look at me.

“Call me President-nim! I told Ennis the same, so it’s probably better to use that title instead of ‘Ms. [Name]’ from now on. Anyway, why?”

“…Yes, I will, President-nim. You mentioned ‘slave’ earlier, didn’t you?”

The goofy researcher mister’s voice changed to a rather serious tone.

“I saw what she was wearing on her wrist. From what I know, that’s a restraint for Awakened ones. Right?”

I nodded. Yurik’s gaze turned towards the window. Ennis was looking around, guided by the Violets.

“Come to think of it, it doesn’t seem like you used the term ‘slave’ lightly. An explanation is needed.”

To answer Yurik’s curiosity, I explained what had happened so far. As he listened to the story, Yurik’s face gradually darkened, and when I finished speaking, it changed to a troubled expression.

“…How could that be.”

“So, in a sense, she is a slave. She’s our prisoner. I’ll treat her differently from you, mister. She won’t get a salary either.”

Prisoners only get food, clothing, and shelter.

Yurik, who had been silent for a while, suddenly blurted out a remark.

“President-nim, about that hit list from last time. My professor was on it. That means, though I don’t know for sure, the people from the underground laboratory were also on it. Right?”

“That’s right! But why do you ask? If it’s a request to save your supervising professor, the answer is no.”

“No, it’s nothing like that at all. It’s just, I had this thought: if I had been kidnapped… *ahem*, sorry. If I had participated there instead of joining here, I would probably be on that list by now, wouldn’t I?”

“Yep!”

Seeing me nod firmly, Yurik gave a bitter smile.

“It’s just, hearing about her, I started thinking. If I had been in that laboratory too, wouldn’t I have ended up like her? No, I’m not saying she’s innocent. She clearly committed wrongdoings. It’s just a little regrettable, as a fellow scholar, even if our fields are different.”

I sensed a gaze mixed with shock and a hint of pity from Dr. Yurik, who was looking at that Ennis fellow outside the window.

“Mister! Don’t make such a scared face. If she had been even slightly off-track, I would’ve killed her already. Don’t worry about the past; just focus on what’s ahead. Talk to her later. You’ll need to discuss what to do and how to do it, and coordinate schedules, right?”

Just then, 567 appeared with coffee.

“Alright, you’ve had enough fresh air, haven’t you? Drink your coffee!”

Watching Teacher Yurik enter the laboratory, I suddenly thought of 10. I wonder if that fellow finished talking with Adela Unnie properly.

‘I explained it well. We might even get some support!’

**

While explaining Violet’s identity and the structure of the Violet barracks to the new slave, we were receiving a real-time report from 10, who had followed Adela on a helicopter yesterday.

The phrase ‘heard it’ is actually a non-Awakened expression. Information transmitted through the Violet Network is absorbed instantly, unlike information conveyed through written or spoken language. Therefore, part of the purpose of our Violets’ conversations is a kind of rumination, to fully understand the information.

‘Adela was very shocked. Not negatively, but literally! She keeps asking how there can be so many of us.’

The Violet who was taken to the Cascadia combat unit by helicopter yesterday rested at a rented hotel before having this conversation now.

‘Room service at a luxury hotel… I’m jealous!’

‘That’s not important! Focus on the conversation.’

Currently, Adela is hearing various stories from 10. The content she received was almost identical to what we revealed to our friends at the previous explanation meeting.

“My goodness, Violet. So that was the story. And I didn’t even know…”

After hearing about the academy’s true nature and our story, Adela gave 10 a fierce embrace. I buried my face in Adela’s chest. Student Council President Unnie’s embrace was soft and warm!

“It’s okay, Adela Unnie! I’ll discipline all those academy and clan fellows.”

Hearing my brave declaration, Adela smiled and stroked my head, as if stroking a praiseworthy child. After the explanation of the truth, we then discussed the suspicious activities of the research institute, the academy, and the clan.

“Indeed, Laplaxia was always a company with a bad reputation. The rumors that Chairman Raihan and his group were behind illegal human experimentation were true. By the way, what exactly is Magnabius up to?”

“I don’t know. First, I plan to capture all the researchers and interrogate them. And then, I’ll disseminate all the secured academy data to the media and institutions. You just need to help a little, Unnie. We don’t have to go to war or anything.”

“Then I’ll do my best to help, to the extent of my abilities. Violet also saved me and our students, after all. I promise on my family’s name.”

Hearing the encouragement from the beautiful Unnie, who might one day become our senior, made me feel invigorated.

Afterward, 10 and Adela’s small discussion slowly came to an end.

“I just received word that people from our family have completely dismantled the Vision Prism. There was a little friction with the newly arrived Federation soldiers, but it ended successfully.”

“Thank you, Unnie!”

Adela, who had been looking at 10 with a pleased expression, suddenly looked at 10 with a meaningful expression.

“By the way, you mentioned that Violet’s unique ability was a type of hive mind, right? That everyone is Violet, and you can connect anywhere, anytime, to create clones.”

“That’s right. But why do you ask?”

Adela hesitated for a moment before answering. Her demeanor reminded me of a model student awkwardly putting a cigarette in their mouth, claiming to be rebelling. Having made up her mind, she slowly opened her mouth.

“Could you create a clone right here now? I’m just curious what it looks like when it’s created. It’s purely for confirming your power, of course.”

Confirming power, huh? I inwardly agreed with Adela’s words. Since we’ll be allies against the Four Great Clans, it’s necessary to let her confirm our abilities one more time.

“That’s not difficult at all. Alright, everyone. Come out!”

Immediately, over ten Violets appeared in the hotel room. A wide smile bloomed on Adela’s face.

“Wow, there are… multiple Violets!”

**

After concluding the discussion with Adela, the Violets fell into deep contemplation.

‘There’s still time until the weapon trade. The specific date for the operation hasn’t been set either.’

‘What do we do now, then?’

Everyone’s opinion settled on training.

‘We need to do combat training!’

Our future opponents are the Four Great Clans, specifically the Magnabius Clan, renowned for their magic. Despite the victory we achieved in the Battle of Lion’s Plaza, we couldn’t let our guard down.

‘Mages! Magic! That’s the problem. Too strong!’

That’s right. The name ‘Four Great Clans’ isn’t an empty boast. They were truly powerful. There was a gap that couldn’t be filled by numbers and firepower alone.

Violet pondered. How could a large number of weaker warriors win against a small number of skilled Awakened warriors?

Conventional firearms were effective enough against powerful Awakened ones and even magical beasts. The Federation was proof of that. The Federation Army tried to supply soldiers with high-end equipment like exoskeletons and railguns, as long as the budget allowed. If they brought out heavy equipment like tanks and fighter jets, even highly skilled hunters of A-rank or EX-rank could be killed.

Except for a few exceptions who could single-handedly collapse mountains and cleave seas.

Nevertheless, the easiest way to counter an Awakened one was to counter with another Awakened one. Because Awakened ones were superhumans who defied common sense and laws. Mages, too, were a type of Awakened one, if you thought about it. From this, Violet deduced the following logic:

‘The most effective way to counter magic is with magic.’

‘Let’s show them infinite magic!’

Of course, in this case, the problem of how to overcome the skill difference arises. Ordinary Awakened ones who primarily focus on enhancement abilities can somehow make up for it with technique, experience, or equipment, but when it comes to magic use, the skill difference is clearly evident. Think of Lucian, who was beaten and knocked out by Vanguard, or Daphne, whose shield was pierced.

‘That’s just a problem of those guys being strong enough to break through unique abilities.’

‘Is that so?’

The discussion continued.

‘The deal with Armas is coming up soon. Let’s learn magic later.’

Violet 671 put forward a skeptical argument. They had earned a good amount of money wandering through dungeons, and a few hours ago, they received money that the clan members had separately collected and delivered after the Vittorio Dungeon incident. Considering the firepower of the weapons they could buy with this money, magic seemed a bit laughable.

‘Didn’t you see the message the arms dealer sent via Director Leslie? He said they luckily took over a Federation military surplus warehouse.’

Saying that, 671 listed the surplus inventory mentioned by Armas within the network. Although they had already seen it, it was quite terrifying.

‘Look, there are cannons too! They’re old-fashioned, but if we fire a blast, we can kill Vanguard and the chairman alike. It can even destroy buildings, you know?’

The Violets who had been silent countered.

‘What if they bring out combustion suppression magic again? Look at fellows like Lera carrying combustion suppression artifacts. We have to assume there are at least several more similar ones within the clan.’

‘There might also be mages who use high-speed movement nullification fields, even if it’s limited. Putting everything else aside, think about interception spells. Skilled mages can intercept incoming rockets. You all saw it, didn’t you?’

As the image of mages intercepting barrages of Violet guided bombs and rockets with dazzling light bullet volleys came to mind, the network fell silent.

‘…Alright, then we should focus on magic training. First, let’s look for some equipment.’

We decided to focus on magic training. But then another problem arose. The Violets had almost no magic equipment.

‘Let’s organize the inventory!’

‘This is an assault rifle, that’s an automatic shotgun, this is a human leg. This is a head…’

‘Why do we have a leg and a head? Throw them away quickly!’

‘No! I’ll use the leg to tease the student council president. I’ll only throw away the head.’

Violet sent the nameless head to Violet 1004, the rocket manufacturing facility on the uninhabited island. 1004 kicked the head into the sea with a thump.

‘Fish, eat it deliciously~’

Once the inventory was organized, a few items were placed on the floor: an electric staff acquired from beating up a gang earlier, and a few cheap magic items, and a few staffs picked up after capturing the Vanguard fellows. The problem was that they were all broken.

‘If I’d known this, I wouldn’t have crushed them with a tank.’

‘Still, look at this! The tip is fine.’

678 picked up one of the staffs lying on the floor. At the end of the staff, where the exterior had peeled off, a spherical, translucent blue orb was revealed.

‘Couldn’t we repair this and use it?’

‘Who are we going to ask?’

Suddenly, a fun idea came to mind.

‘Should we ask Ennis? That fellow seems to have some skill when it comes to manipulating artifacts.’

‘That sounds like a baseless idea… Well, let’s ask her. If not, we’ll just order some.’

A moment later, we called for the slave researcher who was having a late lunch.

“…These are Vanguard’s equipment.”

“That’s right. You can fix these, right? Fix them for us!”

Hearing our words, Ennis briefly wore a troubled expression and examined the equipment laid out on the floor. She slowly examined the various staffs on the floor.

“They’re not as badly damaged as I thought.”

“Oh, you can actually fix them? I thought you were just a researcher.”

“My position in the department was artifact and magic equipment analysis and development. So, I do know a bit about handling technology. But…”

She said.

“It might be better to just buy new ones, would that be alright with you?”

“Just try it! They’re Vanguard’s equipment, right? They must be really good!”

Hesitantly, she began to list the small items needed for repair.

Alright, let’s see this slave’s skill.