I am a mindless machine.

"...Lord Yu, do you really think that plan has any chance of being implemented?"

Sunset said this with some worry, her words filled with distrust. Emotionally, she really hoped that Riku's plan would succeed, but emotionally... she didn't want to see Yunyou risk her life for a plan with such a slim chance of success.

She is kind, that's true. If necessary, she wouldn't mind sacrificing her useless self to change this cruel world. But it's different if it hurts the important people around her. Hurting important people for the sake of strangers is absolutely not kindness... that's hypocrisy.

"【Answer】Statistically speaking, I think it's completely impossible." Yun You didn't deny Xi Yang's idea; instead, she nodded in agreement. Looking at the sorrowful expressions on the faces of the people who had left the settlement, she said softly, as if sighing, "【Statement】However, probability isn't a hundred or zero. No matter how perfect the deduction, the limit is only 99.99999...%. If any unknown additional information is added, the entire calculation will be completely overturned. So it's not entirely impossible."

"【Additional】And if you can achieve that, you'll be very happy, won't you? This world will become the peaceful world of your dreams."

"Hmm...! But that's still very dangerous. You could very well die because of it!"

Sunset was taken aback by this direct approach, but thankfully, her patience with such situations had grown considerably over their recent interactions, and she continued to persuade her. Only now did Sunset feel fear; what if this silver-haired girl were seriously injured, or even killed, because of her unreasonable demands...?

She absolutely did not want that kind of ending to happen!

"[Encouragement] So, Sunset, you must become stronger." Yun You, taking advantage of her slight height, patted the girl's head and smiled gently: "As long as you become strong enough, my life will be safe."

As she spoke, Yunyou's gaze fell upon Riku and Shubi approaching from afar. She clearly sensed an unfathomable heat emanating from the two of them. It was a steadfast will that only those with souls... those with hearts could radiate.

"[Action] Let's go, the meeting is about to begin."

After saying this, the girl pulled up the sunset and turned to walk towards the cave behind her, where 178 humans had gathered, waiting for Riku to arrive—no, after this conversation, they should be called ghosts.

Although that was a future that had not yet occurred, Yun You, the transmigrator, already had a clear understanding of what would happen next. That's why she could express her feelings in advance, just like she was now.

...

...

In a cave far from the new settlement shown on the map given to Kron.

In the makeshift secret base, those who were commanding the evacuation until the very end and thus perished—those who were outwardly considered dead—now include Rick and Shubi, a total of 179 ghosts, gathered around a round table. Burning torches were placed on a high platform, and the use of precious wood as fuel instead of water-based fuel stones was a luxury for humans, but at this moment, no one would complain.

This will be a momentous occasion that will not be recorded in history.

A warm, orange light bathed everyone's faces, illuminating their uniformly resolute expressions. Riku—the Ghost Chief—stood on the high platform, surveying everyone's expressions before finally speaking slowly: "Gentlemen, it's about time we had the courage to admit it. To eke out a living and wait for the final battle—that's impossible. This world... holds no hope. We don't even have a god to pray to." Those things are nothing but powerful thugs who wage war at will according to their own desires.

His voice was tinged with suppressed emotion, and his face was tense. This was a fact that couldn't be admitted. Although everyone understood it to some extent, they still needed to use fantasy to cover it up. Because... if this reality were acknowledged, then all of humanity's actions to date would become utterly meaningless.

Upon hearing this, everyone's eyes dimmed and they lowered their heads.

What's more terrifying than death is meaninglessness. Why would people recklessly die under Riku's orders? Because it gave them meaning in life—as long as they obeyed, their families could survive. But even this was just a fabricated illusion. What was the truth? The truth was that even if they lost their wives and sons then, they would only repeat his actions and die someday in the future!

Humanity is as easily wiped out as garbage; it can do nothing and accomplish nothing! Whatever it does is a meaningless act!

"So—" As if to break the deathly silence, Riku spoke again, his tone bordering on arrogant, "So-called hope—can only be created by our own hands!" He spread his arms wide, declaring, "There is only one way. It's an act of insanity, madness, which, in common sense, would be considered arrogance—but precisely because it defies common sense, it is we, the weak and powerless, who are given the possibility of accomplishing it!"

He smiled, a smile as innocent as a newborn calf, unaware of reality, as clueless as a child. But it is precisely because he knows nothing that children dare to do anything.

"It's not hard to understand, really. It's just repeating the same actions we've been repeating all along. We can't exist, we can't not exist." Riku looked at the petite girl standing beside him, gazing into her clear red eyes, his resolve hardening. He clenched his fist. "But! We will use this ghost-like non-existence—to lure this great war to its end from beginning to end!"

All 177 people—plus Yun You, who stood calmly in the corner watching everything, and Xi Yang, who was clearly moved by Riku's aura—all eyes and expectations were focused on Riku at this moment.

He slightly curled the corners of his mouth, unable to suppress a carefree smile.

Yes, how could I not laugh? Only gods could resist such a ridiculous and arrogant idea—and that is proof of being human.

"Yes, we must fight. Whoever stands in our way, whoever they may be, we will use our strength—that is, our folly—to deceive them all, to gain the upper hand. We will act like the weak, employing every trick in the book, even at the cost of shame and honor. Even if being flattered is despicable, being praised is worthless, being lauded is vile—!!"

His voice no longer carried its usual emotionless, cold-blooded tone, like a computer making a decision. He waved his hands passionately, as if tearing apart and pulling out a nonexistent glimmer of hope from the dim, lightless darkness. It was as if, when all roads lead to Rome, he chose to walk down a dead end, relentlessly crashing and crashing until a path leading to an unimaginable place was forcibly dug open!

"We must challenge those incomprehensible monsters—and achieve final victory. This victory will wipe away all our past, all the continuous defeats in human history—the end of the great war!"

This is childish willfulness.

But at the same time, this is also the only trump card they all hold!

They will not be recorded in any books, will not be remembered by anyone, and their very existence is only allowed to vanish into nothingness. Only by completely concealing themselves can they move through the darkness, like rats that everyone wants to kill. Once discovered, it's game over.

But even if the odds are as small as a speck of dust, as long as you succeed... no, even if you fail in the end! As long as you never give up and try until the very end.

Then this would become an incredibly handsome, proud, and fulfilling proof of existence!

...

...

"[Execution] Let's go, Sunset, it's time for us to complete our assigned tasks."

Stepping out of the cave unnoticed, Yun You spread her machine-type wings, reached out towards the setting sun, intending to pick her up and fly away. Although vampires could also fly briefly through deception, it wasn't cost-effective.

"Mmm." If she had hesitated a little before hearing Riku's speech, then Xiyang had made up her mind. She nodded her little head vigorously, then took Yunyou's hand, leaned in, and was embraced by her.

Even a race like humans dares to utter such arrogant and presumptuous words. How could she, a peerless genius among vampires, admit defeat before the game even begins?

She was now certain in her heart that she would win this game, not just because of the 179 ghosts, but because she would use her own strength to create as many victories as possible. It would be too shameful for someone with power to be unable to forge ahead into the future.

As the setting sun felt itself rising off the ground, it gazed at the girl's delicate face before it. The girl had automatically formed a protective barrier around herself to keep her warm. The setting sun could almost hear its own heart pounding, felt its cheeks flush, and its whole body warmed up.

At the same time, she made another decision.

—And, Lord Yu, I will absolutely not admit defeat in this game (romance)!

Chapter 46 This is part of the plan

Following their assigned mission objectives, the two have been constantly moving across the battlefield for the past few months.

Now, after spending a full two weeks collecting data and making calculations, they have finally determined the correct location of their current destination.

If places associated with elves are filled with lush green flowers and beautiful grass, then places associated with goblins are probably like what they are now, filled with smoky and chaotic factories.

What's more, this is the current capital of the goblin race.

"【Conclusion】Anyone who seeks a sense of reality in a fantasy world is mentally ill. This statement is absolutely true." Looking at the scene before her, Yun You hesitated for a moment before nodding in affirmation.

If I had to give a general description... just type the keyword "factory night view" into a search engine and you'll get a rough idea of ​​the atmosphere.

Countless steel bars and concrete structures intertwine and interlock, ultimately forming towering steel buildings. A multitude of blindingly bright light sources fill this space. And most importantly... the laws of gravity are completely overturned here. There is no sky, and even basic orientation is difficult to determine. Factories billowing black smoke, manufacturing weapons and machinery, are built entirely suspended in mid-air.

And in the very center of this (incomprehensible) city, there is a huge pillar of light running through it from top to bottom—a divine furnace, a gift from Okan, the god who created the goblin race, capable of melting and refining everything.

The setting sun reflected the city, its lights shimmering everywhere, and murmured in a hushed tone, "...This is truly magnificent..."

The noise of factory machinery, the clanging of hammers, and the sounds of countless goblins moving and conversing filled this goblin city built deep underground. Although this was not the Haddonfel of six thousand years later, it was still a goblin city, and the concept for building the capital was the same.

At a depth of ten thousand meters, while other races could still enter, there was at least a protective shield to physically defend against initial attacks. The goblins, in particular, had prepared numerous spells to counter sneak infiltration. In terms of security, it was even higher than the forest elf capital.

However, this is not a big problem for Yunyou and Xiyang.

Once the exact location is known, Accelerator's spatial teleportation ability, which allows him to leap to a distance of 100 kilometers, would allow him to easily enter the enemy's capital. Of course, if that were all, she would probably be detected halfway there, and her landing point would likely be subjected to a barrage of incredibly powerful artillery fire.

However, with the addition of Sunset's increasingly sophisticated illusion magic, all the problems were easily solved.

The two were now secretly lying on the roof of an industrial area, looking down at the weapons manufacturing process in the largest industrial area below.

Yunyou wondered if she could use the unparalleled learning ability of the Mech race to learn and imitate the equally unscientific equipment manufacturing techniques of the Goblin race. That's why she didn't execute the plan immediately after entering, but instead dragged Xiyang here to stake out the area.

And the result...

"[Silence]...Alright, I give up. As expected, all races other than humans in this great war are utterly incomprehensible. This planet has survived for over ten thousand years without being destroyed; Gaia-san, you've really done a great job." After about 30 minutes, Yun You decisively determined that her actions were pointless. She then decided to leave.

The answer is—imitation is not possible.

As we all know, geniuses who consistently rank first in exams fall into two categories. One type possesses the perseverance to work hard, able to bury themselves in their desks for extended periods and clearly understand what they need to do to improve (the hard-working genius); the other type is the genius who casually listens in class, touches things as much as they can, and always has comic books or game consoles in their hands after class, yet always appears among the top students in exams (the gifted genius).

These two types of geniuses correspond precisely to the Forest Elves and the Goblins, the two races that are currently shining brightly in the great war.

The former refers to the forest elves, who can compile countless spells that can do almost anything, and use multiple spells simultaneously through soul stones, making them essentially synonymous with magic; and the latter refers to the goblin species that Yunyou has witnessed, which do not have any formulas or rules, and simply create weapons based on their supreme sensibility (imagination).

In this world, due to the limitations of technological progress, there is no definite industrial system—but goblins don't need such a thing either. They just need to think, "I need a facility (lathe) that can manufacture a large number of identical parts," then raise their iron hammers, shout "Ooh-da!" with great momentum, and then smash them onto an iron block that is larger than themselves.

—Okay, in less than a second, an industrial lathe with an accuracy of less than 0.0001 was completed.

They are a race that forges their creations entirely through divinely bestowed intuition. Yun You can instantly analyze the functions of the items they create and accurately replicate them. But this kind of forging based on imagination... is something Wu Lun simply cannot do. It's too far beyond the norm.

"[Ranking] Alright, since the initial imitation failed, let's get started on the task..."

As Yun You spoke, she pulled back the wide sleeves of her outer robe, revealing her slender, fair arms with several mechanical lines.

"[Read] - 1673C85E345W Armor Activation - [Diankai] - "

In the next instant, the small arm transformed into a ferocious cannon, primarily made of red steel and adorned with blue energy light—this weapon could be used to perform most of the external energy cannons of the Machine Race. This included the [Pseudo-Scripture? Dragon Roar] that she was about to use.

Actually, according to her usual practice, since she was going to be armed anyway, it would be more convenient to dismantle any extra items on her body (clothes). However, when she destroyed the settlement of the demon race (note: ignorant low-level demons) two days ago, this action was rejected by Xi Yang with a flushed face and an excited tone, leaving Yun You with the strange requirement that she not strip naked unless absolutely necessary. It's truly incomprehensible.

Looking at Yun You, who was about to materialize her armor, Xi Yang panicked and said, "Huh? Is it starting already? Don't we need to do any more preparations?! Or should we wait until I set up a thirty-plus-layer illusion barrier..."

--boom!

The death, condensed to its extreme, appeared as a perfectly straight line in the form of blue light cannons, roaring through the air like meteors.

In the distance, the device that could convert the heat energy of the divine furnace into kinetic energy and supply it to the entire factory, a super-precise device that was estimated to be able to last for thousands of years, has now reached the end of its lifespan.

Amidst the deafening explosions and the terrified cries of countless goblins, Yun You put away the cannon, wiped imaginary sweat from her forehead, and gave the setting sun a sweet smile.

"[Smug] So what if they can use manufacturing methods that I can't understand at all? They've still been destroyed by me... Mere goblin species, utterly vulnerable."

Hearing the girl's defiant words spoken in a calm tone, Xi Yang could only silently dismantle the half-finished spell and begin to compile the magic needed for the next step.

Chapter 47 A Magnificent Entrance

After the formal meeting, Riku, Shubi, and Yunyou held a secret meeting.

After all, these two who agreed to assist the plan are helpers with extraordinary combat abilities; making them do the same things as the other ghosts would be a complete waste. Only by properly utilizing every bit of power at their disposal can humanity find a chance of success in this impossible mission.

Therefore, the two of them received a completely different task than everyone else.

Clouds and sunsets—in Riku's words, a mediocre half-baked existence.

Indeed, they are the strongest potential individuals among the Machina and Vampire races, respectively. However, neither of them has yet reached the limits of their abilities and remains incomplete, still in a state of growth. Moreover, both of them are currently unable to use their race's strongest racial talents—the Machina's Shared Link and the Vampire's Soul Stealing—due to their respective reasons.

Besides, even if it really grows into its complete form, so what?

Considering the overall power level of this great war, the power possessed by the two girls was far too insignificant. Let alone gods, they would even be questionable whether they could win against the strongest among the dragon spirits.

Using them for normal intelligence gathering would be a huge waste, and their overwhelming power could even expose the fact that all the ghosts are secretly interfering in the war. However, if they were to be used for military intimidation, they would be more than capable of self-defense—making it difficult to utilize this resource effectively. Calling them a double-edged sword wouldn't be an exaggeration.

However, Liku still managed to find dedicated jobs for the two of them under these circumstances.

That is—to act recklessly and disruptively in this great war, playing the role of a problem child—to divert the attention of other races from the ghosts.