Starting with Fireflies, Speedrun the World

Clara, why didn't you just invite her directly?

As they stepped outside, Schwarz's voice rang out.

Clara clearly wanted Kurome to join her group more than the other members of the Hunters. This would make Akame more willing to join as well.

But Clara did nothing; she simply shared snacks with Kurohime.

"Because Clara felt that now was not the right time, although she had accepted my good intentions, she remained wary."

"Let's wait a few more days, until a more suitable time."

"Moreover... other preparations have also reached a critical point, and the final decision is about to be made."

Clara shook her head. It would be best if Will and Lan agreed... but it wouldn't matter if they didn't. However, she really hoped that Kurohime would agree, even if it took more time.

However, just a few days later, news came from Tatsumi and his group that the assembly of the Creation Engine had entered its final stage.

Meanwhile, the scale of other base constructions is also nearing completion.

More importantly, without Esdeath's threat... the Revolutionary Army's advance will definitely be faster with the help of the mechanical creatures she provides.

It seems that it won't be long before the local governors can no longer hold out.

Therefore, the final battle will be much faster than in the original story...

Chapter 59 No Choice

Time passes day by day.

Just as Clara had suspected, after receiving Najenda's report and confirming that Esdeath was no longer a threat to them, the Revolutionary Army...

The revolutionary army no longer concealed its activities and launched a massive campaign, uniting with other forces resisting the empire to conquer cities and seize territories across the land.

The Empire is not without powerful generals, but only Esdeath commands the fear of rebel forces across the land. It is Esdeath's prestige that previously, the Revolutionary Army and other forces could only advance in small-scale or clandestine operations.

Without Esdeath's threat, there's nothing to worry about.

Although the Empire also has a veteran powerhouse on par with Esdeath, the renowned General Bud, he is only capable of leading troops to the front lines to protect the royal family in the capital, and is only able to do so in critical moments of life and death.

Other military generals, even those with decent strength, were simply unable to quell the rebellion.

In the imperial court, the ministers had already received more than a dozen memorials from prefects in various regions requesting assistance.

Initially, the minister would have General Bude arrange for military officers to lead troops, but after several consecutive defeats, he stopped considering it.

Meanwhile, the members of the Jaeger organization, led by Esdeath, have lost contact, and rumors are circulating that General Esdeath has died at the hands of Night Raid.

Although it felt unbelievable that a strong person like Esdeath could die at the hands of Night Raid, the current situation was what it was, and one had no choice but to believe it.

Without Esdeath, unless General Bud personally leads the troops, the Empire currently has no one to quell the rebellion.

But compared to the panic of others, the ministers ignored it all. As long as the capital was still under their control, it didn't matter as long as their own interests were not greatly affected.

He didn't believe that the rebels could possibly reach the capital.

Even if we do manage to reach the capital, we'll still have to get past General Bude, the capital's garrison, and hundreds of thousands of guards and imperial troops.

Even if that doesn't work, he still has various trump cards, big and small, to ensure his safety and wealth; nothing will happen to him.

The young emperor is under his control, and he possesses the bloodline of the young emperor. Once the legendary supreme imperial weapon is activated, all resistance forces will cease to exist.

Meanwhile, at the Night Raid Base, with the help of Esdeath and after several days of contact, Clara had completely won over several members of the Hunters, who had basically all agreed to join her side.

After all, even General Esdeath has become Clara's person, so what else is there for them to hesitate about?

Moreover, the mechanical empire blueprint planned by the girl is also an opportunity to realize her ideals.

Even if Kurohime doesn't explicitly agree, she won't become an enemy.

"Why did you suddenly gather us all here?" In the base's main hall, all the Night Raid members were gathered.

This time it wasn't Najenda's summons, but Clara who provided the Automaton with a message saying that there was something very important she needed to explain to everyone.

"There's something Clara has to tell everyone."

Clara stood on the steps, her young face unusually serious.

Although a showdown at this point could very well lead to a parting of ways, it must be said; the longer it is delayed, the more difficult it will be to explain.

They had also considered that they might expose their affairs to the Revolutionary Army, so Mr. Schwarz had already ordered the Automaton soldiers to surround the area.

Of course, even if the people in the night raid were unwilling to join her, she wouldn't kill them; at most, she would just imprison them temporarily until the war ended.

So as not to become one's own opponent and obstacle.

After the war ends, whatever I want to do won't affect me anymore.

"showdown?"

Seeing Clara's serious expression, everyone looked puzzled.

“Um… um… Mr. Schwarz, why don’t you explain it to me?”

Clara wanted to explain the situation, but after opening her mouth several times, she didn't know how to say it. After hesitating for a few seconds, she asked Schwarzlo, who was standing next to her, for help.

【Then let me explain, members of Night Raid. On behalf of Clara and the members of the Mechanical Empire, I invite you to join us.】

Schwarz did not refuse Clara's request and stepped forward to extend an invitation to everyone.

At this moment, he represents the commander of the future mechanical empire.

Swaro's words caused Najenda and the others to change their expressions slightly and widen their eyes. This clearly indicated that Clara and the others no longer belonged to Night Raid or the Revolutionary Army.

Instead, it's other forces...

Before they could even question him, Schwarz explained the reason and that he hadn't initially had this idea. It was only after learning about the actions of the Revolutionary Army's high command that he became highly skeptical about whether their revolutionary blueprint could be realized.

That's why I chose to start my own business...

"So, Clara and Mr. Schwarzroth, you mean to establish your own regime outside of the Empire and the Revolutionary Army? And you're inviting us to join?"

Najendan processed the news Swaro had told her, and her tone became somewhat unfamiliar.

I never expected this to happen at this time.

This is Clara's wish; she sincerely hopes to become family with everyone, not enemies on the battlefield.

【otherwise……】

Otherwise, with the mechanical legion that Clara and Swallow have built up, they wouldn't need to care about the Night Raid's thoughts at all.

"Boss, can a divided regime really achieve peace? The conflict between foreign tribes and the people of the empire has lasted for thousands of years. Without unification, peace and stability are impossible."

Clara then stepped forward and shared her thoughts with Najendan.

She believed that Najendan cared more about the people than loyalty to the Revolutionary Army, and that it was impossible for her long-term dealings with the high command of the Revolutionary Army not to have noticed the shady dealings.

"Clara doesn't trust the high-ranking members of the revolutionary army and doesn't want the new nation to be even more chaotic after the empire collapses..."

"So, can everyone join Clara and Swallow's camp?"

"..."

Najenda glanced silently at Clara and Swaro, then looked around. The automatons she had previously felt proud of and safe with were now surrounding them.

"After saying all that, do we even have a choice?"

Yes!

There was no choice from the start.

Having witnessed firsthand the power of the Automaton and Schwarz, they realized they were nothing more than fish to be slaughtered.

Since there's no other choice, what else is there to say?

However, it should have been anticipated that a mechanical army of such scale created by one person would not be so easy to control.

The main reason is that Clara's appearance is too deceptive, making people subconsciously regard her as a cute little sister.

Chapter 60: The Creation Engine is Completed

After confronting Night Raid, Clara entered into an even busier period of work.

As the resistance alliance continues its offensive and territorial conquests, the war is about to spread to the very edge of the capital.

In particular, many prefects along the way, seeing the strength of the rebels, especially the terrifying mechanical creations, did not put up much resistance and even opened the city gates to surrender.

Far from the political center of the capital, the local government and the officials in the capital were already somewhat detached from each other, so there was no need for them to fight to the death for the sake of the empire and the resistance.

Many prefects didn't get their positions through legitimate merit, but by currying favor with the powerful minister who held absolute power.

As the resistance continued to advance, Swaro accelerated the production of mechanical artifacts, even taking advantage of the chaos of war to have his mechanical legions seize several of the Empire's major mines.

He started mining and refining ore, and continued to mass-produce troops...

Compared to manual mining, the speed and efficiency of automated mining is undoubtedly superior, producing batches of steel raw materials at a speed that ordinary people cannot even imagine.

However, rare metals were indeed scarce, so Clara also instructed Tatsumi and others to increase their trade with imperial nobles and merchants.

They even resorted to outright robbery, taking any rare metal materials, such as Orichalcos, that they found that were sufficient to forge Imperial Arms without hesitation.

In this turbulent time, many nobles in the capital began to sell their property, making transactions easier.

Besides the Empire, Clara also sent Esdeath to rob rare metals from the homes of local governors, and even carried out night raids on their transactions with the Revolutionary Army.

While constantly fighting against the Allied Forces and the Empire, they also developed themselves.

Until Clara's long-awaited creation engine was finally completed...

"Finally finished."

Clara put away the God's Hand and looked at the enormous, completely finished object before her, feeling a surge of confidence.

This is the cornerstone of the nation's founding!

Even if I and Mr. Schwarzlo leave this world, with it in the new country, there will be no trouble.

This place is located in a valley, and the huge creation engine is the size of a mountain, which looks particularly exaggerated.

Fortunately, the creation engines were all mechanical creations that helped build and assemble them; if it were done by human labor, who knows how long it would have taken.

This place is very remote, with hardly any people in sight, so the Creation Engine has not been revealed yet. When it finally appears, it will definitely be a huge shock.

……