I am a mindless machine.

Actually, she did want to save Bart at the time... but human life is just too fragile. Bart left this world leaving behind only that long-lost smile. At that moment, Yun You wasn't sure if she felt any regret, because even the tightness in her chest disappeared after a few seconds, and everything returned to calm. Just like a wild goose leaving no trace.

Even though she understands that she can never go back to the past and that Funa will never treat her the same way again, the girl's heart remains as calm as still water.

"Yu-chan... are you planning to... leave?"

A familiar voice called out, stopping the girl in her tracks.

Funa emerged from the entrance in a disheveled state, her gait unsteady, clearly having injured her foot during her escape. She knew the girl was responsible when the orcs holding the residents suddenly scattered. So, after quickly leaving you to gather essential supplies and prepare for the relocation, she hurried over.

Thank goodness, we made it in time.

Her face was filled with unease, as if she were afraid of losing something important. She wanted to reach out and grab the girl as she always did, but she was afraid that the action would backfire. So she could only stand in the garden, tears of sorrow streaming down her beautiful face, her voice trembling: "Are you... going to abandon this family? Abandon me...?"

"Dad... Dad is gone, and now... even you, Yu-chan, are going to..." she said sadly, tears falling onto the muddy ground before she could finish her sentence.

Yun You said in a calm voice, "[Explanation] I am not human, but a machine race. I have only been pretending to be human all along. Do you still remember what I taught you—machine races are a race without hearts."

"Even so! But didn't you save me when I was attacked!? And you don't seem like the emotionless people in the books!"

"【Negative】But at that time I didn't save Bart, nor did I intend to save anyone else. Feelings are easy for me to imitate. As for saving you—I admit, that was a logical fallacy."

"If that's the case, then...!"

"【Conclusion】But—I no longer need to stay here. That's a settled fact."

Just as Funa stopped crying and started laughing after hearing Yunyou's words, thinking things had taken a turn for the better, the girl plunged her into despair with another cold remark, leaving her only able to utter a passive "Huh?"

"—Because you are no longer useful."

The girl finally turned around, her body, previously concealed by a white robe, now fully revealed to Funa. The sight of her human-like form and the various flashing electrical devices made her gasp in surprise, her face showing fear.

However, the girl ignored her expression. She walked quietly towards Funa, her eyes fixed on her coldly, radiating a chilling killing intent. Beastman blood stained her long silver hair and tattered white robe.

This pitiful sight made Funa involuntarily take a step back, but due to her injured legs, she lost her balance and fell to the floor. She could only helplessly gaze up at the lifeless, mechanical girl, feeling an overwhelming sense of alienation and fear.

"Haven't I been emphasizing the irrationality and cruelty of this world to you all along, Funa?"

Yun You then adopted a more emotional tone, but this only sent a chill down Fu Nai's spine. She shook her head violently, muttering, "No, don't say any more..."

But Yun You didn't stop. She leaned down, put her mouth close to the girl's ear, and whispered cruelly, "The reason I pretended to be human and stayed by your side was only to observe and collect data—to me, you are just an experimental animal... Recognize that, human."

After hearing what the girl said, Funa felt a sharp pain in her neck, and her vision went dark.

...

...

"Funa! Funa! Are you alright!? Funa!!?"

The young boy, dressed in a tattered robe made of animal hide, shook Funa's shoulder in panic, his face showing signs of tears. Correction, he actually cried. Tears and snot streaming down his face.

"Funa waa ...

"How should I react to hearing you say that...?"

In short, although Funa's mind was still muddled after just regaining consciousness, she instinctively pushed the boy away to avoid getting the strange liquid on her clothes. She looked around; she had been carried to a safe place, which, judging from the texture of the walls, seemed to be inside a cave. Finally, she vaguely remembered why she had fainted, and her expression immediately changed. She cried out, "Where's Yuu-chan?! Where is she?!"

"Uh... this..."

Upon hearing this familiar word, the boy, who had been dramatically crying, shut his mouth, his gaze darting around, unable to utter a single word.

Seeing his reaction, Funa knew the outcome and shook her head, indicating that the boy didn't need to continue. The boy, understanding the situation, left the room. His original purpose in being sent there was to provide psychological counseling to Funa, fearing she might do something rash after learning of Yunyou's death. But since she seemed quite calm now, he decided to give her some time to rest.

Life goes on, and the world remains cruel. This orc raid reduced the tribe's population to less than half, and the most important crops were completely uprooted by the orcs who inexplicably retreated, leaving nothing behind like locusts.

In such an environment, the settlement must have Funai.

Otherwise, everyone will die.

When the room was empty, Funa lay on the cold floor, looking up at the narrow ceiling above the hole.

...Even until the very end, you were still a good teacher, Yu-chan.

Funa murmured to herself, a bitter smile playing on her lips. Unlike what others perceived, she knew she had never been strong; it was only through the existence of those two that she had the courage to laugh and live on. It was also because of them that she wanted to learn, to prove herself… and that's why, even after Bart died, even knowing that Yun You had been deceiving her all along, she still wanted to win Yun You back. To continue relying on her.

But Yunyou let go, pushing her off the cliff in an overly violent way and with the cruelest words, sending her plummeting into the abyss where there was no one to protect her anymore—

—That's why she was able to spread her wings (become completely independent).

The initial fear that Shuang Lai Leng sensed in Yun You was not because of Yun You's strength or the fact that she had been deceiving him, but because... he was afraid that all the connections between Yun You and him were fake.

And now—the girl knows the answer.

"call......"

Taking a deep breath, Funa's beautiful purple eyes sparkled again, but this time the light was more real and mature than the superficial gleam of the past. She had no time to waste.

"Alright! Now I'm going to put in some extra effort! At least I need to live long enough to see Yuu-chan again!!"

After exhaling forcefully, the girl patted her cheeks, looked around again to confirm something, and then laughed.

This is the small cave where she lived three years ago... the very place where the settlement originally started. This is understandable, given that the original settlement is no longer habitable, and with the population reduced so drastically, there's no way to quickly find a new base. Moving back to a place that can be used quickly is therefore only natural.

Familiar places no longer have familiar people, and past memories can only remain beautiful in recollection... So! The most important thing now is to create new memories (beautiful ones)! That means we must survive.

Funa pushed open the wooden door forcefully, and to her surprise, the rest of her tribesmen were already waiting for her outside. Although these survivors did not look well, they no longer had the lethargy they had shown before, but instead displayed a resolute expression and smiles like a rainbow after a storm.

After a moment of surprise, the girl... no, the leader, returned the smile, her beautiful face blossoming into a radiant smile. In a vibrant voice, she announced to everyone that preparations for setting up the new settlement had begun—her first order.

The old flowers wither and die—and so, new seedlings are born!

Chapter Twenty-One: A New Story

The heavy snow fell gently, quietly dressing the silent world in a pure white mourning garment.

In this silent world, a girl dressed in a loose, creamy-white hooded robe walked alone through the boundless white expanse. A thin layer of snow had accumulated on her clothes, some of which would shake off with each step she took, only to be replenished by the falling snowflakes.

However, the girl seemed oblivious to the chill, continuing her journey forward as if there were no end in sight—she was a race made of machinery, the [Machine Race]. Although she possessed sensory connections similar to humans, under normal circumstances, only a minimal reflex was maintained to deal with sudden attacks; negative states such as cold or heat were automatically eliminated. The emotions (emotional fluctuations) that the girl was now striving to find were also suppressed as negative states.

After 259252 seconds (approximately three days), Yunyou finally recovered from the damage sustained in the previous battle. Compared to flesh and blood, as long as the machine armor is not completely destroyed, it only needs to spend a certain amount of time performing a complex and tedious self-repair process: repairing damage → creating parts using matter transformation → connecting the operating program's neural pathways → repeating the above actions before it is fully repaired. After that, it can return to its full state as it is now, and can even make adjustments to certain parts depending on the cause of the damage.

—If Yunyou were to encounter Shuanglai Leng again under those circumstances, she was confident that she could end the battle within 15 seconds with the cost of 3.7% damage to her mecha.

This is the ability to constantly confront the most ferocious races that are growing ever larger.

"【Confirmation】My first phase of the plan to restore my emotions has been successful. 【Determination】That means my overall approach wasn't wrong, and I can continue trying." Yun You fully opened her half-closed eyes, finally adjusting the last neural circuits. Then, without wasting a moment, she continued her analysis. "【Judgment】However, even if the same method is used again, it won't be as effective as the first time. Moreover, in these three years, I've roughly figured out life in the settlement. It's impossible for any race other than humans to infiltrate..."

Unlike humans, a race with poor senses and unable to sense elves, Yun You struggled to blend into other tribes even with disguise magic. Races capable of sensing elves were a given; orcs could forcefully detect them using their unscientific senses, and sea creatures could identify them by sensing the water spirits (special sea spirits) within them… Moreover, even infiltrating a race like the sea creatures, whose entire race seemed to be incompetent, didn't seem to reveal anything…

"【Summary】In other words, I need to continue along the current line of thought, but I need to analyze something new..." Her pupils flickered, and Yun You quickly listed hundreds of pieces of information for reference in her mind. "Currently, the only ones who can successfully cause me to have emotional fluctuations are Bart and Funa. In other words, as long as you spend time with someone and establish a certain degree of intimacy, there is a high probability that you can trigger emotional changes."

This line of reasoning is correct and confirms that the path to Shubi's success in the original work truly exists. However, finding a human with qualities like Riku from the original work is no easy task, especially since possessing those qualities also requires someone Yunyou would fall in love with...

So, what if we don't limit ourselves to humans? We just need to slightly change the method...

Yun You silently pondered in her heart, shamelessly listing out her preferences (sexual fetishes) from her human past. In truth, the body she was currently using was one of the best templates, since she had created the character entirely according to her own desires... However, she wasn't Narcissus from Greek mythology; she couldn't possibly fall in love with herself.

so......

The girl gazed at the sky, having almost reached an answer in her heart. But just then, the mechanical ears on either side of her face twitched slightly.

—She sensed a faint sound.

...

...

Unfamiliar sounds lingered in the girl's ears.

Clang, clang, clatter—the dull thud of hammers striking steel filled the spacious room with noise, machinery, goblin hordes, and industrial equipment. This was to be expected, as this was one of the goblin hordes' numerous branch factories. The petite girl curled up as much as she could, trying to hide herself completely, but not in the usual way. She seemed to blend into the color of the walls—completely becoming part of the background.

The girl lurking in the goblin factory corridor has small bat-like wings on her back, a heart-shaped tail at the end of her buttocks, and cute little pointed fangs in her mouth—her true identity is a vampire. A race that uses bloodsucking as its mark and is skilled in illusion magic (disguise).

"Huff...huff..." The girl breathed heavily, her black, shoulder-length hair, soaked with sweat, clung to her skin. An eerie light flickered in her purplish-red eyes as she whispered to herself, as if trying to encourage herself, "It'll be okay...I'll definitely succeed this time...absolutely no problem..."

The girl was searching for prey—a bloodsucker. That's why she, a vampire, was here. She was now so hungry she was dizzy and on the verge of fainting; even breathing was an arduous task.

Finally, the opportunity the girl had been waiting for arrived. A goblin, having just finished his forging and preparing to move on to the next location, walked alone through the corridor. The hungry girl's eyes lit up, and she eagerly prepared to launch a surprise attack...

"Huh!? Who's there!!" The burly elf, wielding a large hammer, sensed a presence. Sensing danger, he activated his hammer (spirit armor) without hesitation. In an instant, the pre-engraved spirit armor incantation was activated, and the hammer, reaching a temperature exceeding 400℃, slammed down on the spot, knocking out a previously hiding figure (inconsistent element)—

—But that was just an illusion (bait).

The hunter who had set the trap bared his fangs at that moment, appearing behind the goblin as he watched in terror, and then made a biting motion toward his neck... before stopping.

"As expected... I still can't do it...!!" she shouted in a self-deprecating voice, as if she were about to cry. However, the goblin man, who couldn't understand the vampire language, didn't care about the hunter's situation. After realizing he had been tricked, he immediately turned around and launched a second attack, while activating another spell engraved on his spirit armor—instantly, a piercing alarm sounded throughout the entire factory.

The girl nimbly dodged the punch aimed at her, then kicked the man hard in the back, gracefully executing a backflip to create the greatest distance with the simplest of movements... Then, weakened by hunger, she let out a mournful cry of "Ahhh!?" before her face made intimate contact with the ground. It was practically a perfect example of what a comedic performance looks like.

"It's...it's all over!?"

However, she at least knew how dire her situation was. Although tears welled up in her eyes from the pain, she immediately stood up and looked around in panic. After the alarm blared, countless goblins wielding weapons rushed towards her, intending to surround and capture this intruder.

So, in order to escape, she had no choice but to disregard her near-death physical state and cast an illusion spell on her own mind again—by ​​deceiving her own mind, she made herself unaware of her exhausted physical condition, thus temporarily restoring her body to its optimal state.

After finally escaping the factory with great difficulty and making sure her escape route was completely hidden, she collapsed to the ground. Fortunately, it was already dark, otherwise she would have been burned to death before starving to death.

But if you think about it carefully, being burned to death and starving to death don't seem to make much difference... you're going to die anyway!

She was already on the verge of death, and was lost in thought when she heard someone approaching from afar.

After struggling to lift her head, what came into her view was a petite girl in a snow-white robe with a perfectly lovely face.

"An angel...an angel has come to take me away...?"

After murmuring this unconsciously, the girl fell into a coma due to utter hunger. She drifted into a deep sleep.

Chapter Twenty-Two Conditions

That is a very, very ancient legend. It exists only in the memories of a few people, a dreamlike and peaceful story.

In that legend, the world was a far more beautiful place, where the sun shone brightly and the sky was a clear, azure blue. Birds sang and flowers bloomed on the ground, and there was no slaughter in the world.

At that time, there was a belief in some places that if one did enough good deeds in life, then when a person was dying, they could see a person dressed in white with an unimaginable, dreamlike face appear and take that person to a carefree heaven created by God.

This is a story told to the girl by her mother, whose gentle voice accompanies her as she rests her head on her mother's lap when she is still a child. The girl has always remembered this story and even boasts about it when playing with her friends.

But she was ridiculed for telling this story. As for why she was ridiculed, she finally understood after receiving the news from the expressionless messenger that her mother had been killed by the Skywing.

Yes, those stories may have existed in the past, but the reality we face now is the present tense.