Chapter 49 – Variable (4)

“Robert, answer. Is the golem a success or a failure!”

“T-that is…….”

Slam!

As Nikolai slammed his fist on the desk and cornered him, Robert’s out-of-focus eyes trembled.

He was the youngest in the magic engineering department and a beginner who had only been a magic engineer for three years.

There was no way he could properly understand the progress of the golem, which was a mid-to-high-level magic engineering project.

Nikolai’s deliberate targeting of him, leaving Demian Vail alone, could only be seen as highly malicious in intent.

“What, why isn’t he saying anything?”

“Don’t tell me that the golem development being just around the corner was all a lie?”

“No way, that can’t be…….”

However, the citizens, who had no reason or need to understand such intimate details, only frowned.

Regardless of the facts, as the atmosphere was formed according to his intentions, Nikolai was struggling to keep the corners of his mouth from rising.

At that time, before the atmosphere could grow any harsher, Department Head Demian Vail stepped forward.

“Robert has not been in the department or been a magic engineer for long, so he does not know the circumstances well. You may ask me about the golem.”

Demian’s face looked extremely tired. He seemed sick of this meaningless wordplay.

However, Nikolai had no intention of letting them off the hook like this.

Because that kind of reaction from the magic engineering department was exactly what he was aiming for.

“The golem is such a crucial task for our Ember, is it an excuse that he doesn’t know because he hasn’t been in the department long?”

“Of course we know the responsibility is heavy, but the golem is a high-level magic engineering project reaching mid-to-high rank, which cannot be easily answered by a beginner like Robert or the others. I hope the leadership does not mislead the efforts of the magic engineering department in that manner.”

“Mislead? Even so, isn’t it something a magic engineer shouldn’t be ignorant of? If you act like this, we have no choice but to doubt whether the golem is truly being developed.”

“Everyone has different levels, so their assigned roles and fields are different, and Robert is also working hard to fulfill his given mission. If dismissing it simply as not knowing is not misleading, then what on earth is it?”

Malicious and petty words aimed at pressing down the opponent were traded back and forth.

At this moment, the assembly hall was no different from a battlefield where sharply honed blades crossed paths.

Though the Ember was small, the people gathered here were individuals who had lived fierce lives.

Even Yann Casselos, who had made as many as three hundred people follow him toward a new home solely through his political power.

And Nikolai, who served as his brain, seizing control of the Ember’s public opinion through all kinds of political maneuvering and instigation.

And Demian Vail, who was talked about as the next Grand Magic Engineer. All of them were people with outstanding abilities and talents relative to the size of the Ember.

Of course, in terms of sheer caliber, there was no one who could surpass Demian.

He was a magic engineer with the greatest talent on the continent, and he was also a person who received the patronage of Herman Melville, the co-supreme ruler of the Immortal Ember and a Grand Magic Engineer.

However, that was only true in the limited field of magic engineering, and it did not apply in politics.

Rather, in terms of political power, Yann Casselos was a step above him.

It was a moment when the verbal dispute between Demian and Nikolai threatened to spread into a full-scale battle between the magic engineering department and the leadership.

“Leadership, be quiet.”

Yann Casselos quietly spoke to the leadership.

Soon, his eyes swept over the magic engineering department, carrying a cold chill.

“I understand Department Head Demian’s words. Magic engineering is indeed a very difficult discipline.”

“…….”

“But whatever the circumstances, this is the Grand Assembly Hall. Shouldn’t you have trained even an under-qualified magic engineer to be able to give a minimal explanation?”

“As I said earlier, that is an act of god due to the extreme difference in realm—”

“An unavoidable matter. Do you plan to reply in that manner even to the citizens who look only to you? It might be an explanation to you, Department Head, but to the citizens, it only sounds like an excuse.”

Demian Vail had no choice but to remain silent.

Although holding the citizens hostage was a petty thing to do, it was the value he prioritized above all else.

Moreover, because the citizens were those who trusted and waited for the magic engineering department like baby birds waiting for their mother bird, Yann’s words were not wrong either.

He had returned the very logic Demian had used against the leadership: that difficult circumstances were merely their own business which others did not need to understand.

However, while not wrong, it was not correct either.

Category-wise, the situation faced by the leadership and the situation faced by the magic engineering department were not the same.

“So, what is it that the leadership truly wants to know?”

However, since further arguing would only make the magic engineering department look miserable, Demian immediately got to the point.

Taking the baton from Yann, Nikolai asked back nonchalantly.

“Just as I said from the beginning, it’s the progress of the golem development. The progress status…… no, just tell us whether it is a success or a failure. By now, the outcome must have roughly been decided, hasn’t it?”

The leadership was cunning.

If it was a success, they would further heighten the citizens’ expectations through grand propaganda.

Because if it was a failure, it was obvious that they would crush the magic engineering department with similarly biased propaganda.

It was even malicious to ask such questions while knowing full well what kind of ending the golem development would face.

No matter what answer he gave, he would fall into the trap designed by the leadership.

“Department Head Demian, why are you silent?”

Would he predict success and buy time?

Or would he admit failure and reduce the backlash?

Standing at a crossroads of choice, Demian Vail slowly opened his mouth at Nikolai’s prompting.

“The golem development is a success. There is absolutely no need for the leadership, nor the citizens of our Ember, to worry.”

In the end, what he chose was success.

“Department Head……!”

At that, the other magic engineers were shaken.

This was because they had concluded in the magic engineering department’s internal meeting to announce the failure as soon as possible to protect their approval rating.

However.

“The golem will surely be completed in five months. Our Ember will be the first among all Embers to witness the marvel of a golem roaming the streets.”

As if he had completely erased the internal meeting from his mind, Demian Vail spoke in an unwavering voice.

At that sight, even the magic engineers who knew better than anyone what ending the golem development would face were under the illusion, thinking, “Is there really a way to succeed in the golem development?”

But naturally, there could be no such way.

‘The situation has changed compared to a month ago. The reinforcement of hunters is not simply for securing food…….’

Looking at the empty seat of the hunting captain Archer Fordham, Demian broke out in a cold sweat.

Recently, the bill to temporarily reinforce hunters in preparation for the snowstorm was passed, and the increased quota was a whopping fifty.

It was an unprecedentedly radical increase, with a headcount twice the size of the existing hunting party.

And as he had confirmed for the second time through the document earlier, Demian knew that food was not scarce thanks to the aid received from the Immortal Ember.

His calculations reached the conclusion that the real purpose of the reinforcement was to secure armed forces, and the date of the leadership’s coup was the upcoming snowstorm period.

So he had to postpone the leadership’s coup, even if it meant taking the unreasonable risk of declaring the golem development a success.

Because for the next five months, the leadership would not be able to act recklessly, if only because they would be conscious of the citizens’ eyes.

In other words, it was a battle of justifications.

“I have a request for the leadership.”

To wrap things up definitely, Demian added.

“Speak.”

“Please announce the success of the golem development through the propaganda department. Not that it is hopeful, positive, or making progress…… but precisely that ‘the golem development has succeeded’.”

“……!”

“Please make sure not to get a single word wrong.”

At Demian’s assertion that erased even the slightest possibility of failure, everyone gaped in surprise.

Even Yann Casselos, who had with difficulty received advice from a mid-level magic engineer of another Ember that the golem development in his Ember would ‘unconditionally’ fail, was confused whether those words were a bluff or not.

“……We will do so. I will tell the propaganda department to write a public notice today.”

However, whether those words were true or false, Yann still held the overwhelming upper hand.

If the magic engineering department failed as scheduled, he could take advantage of their downfall to transition into a military dictatorship, and in the unlikely event they succeeded, he could just block the golem from being procured here.

That was why he had reinforced the hunting party members.

“Then I will conclude the 246th Grand Assembly. Thank you all for your hard work.”

Thus, the Grand Assembly on which the fate of the Ember hung came to an end.

And no one here predicted the conclusion of this battle.

* * *

The day after the Grand Assembly ended.

As requested by the magic engineering department, public notices announcing the success of the golem development began to be posted all over the Ember.

Furthermore, the propaganda members, who had received orders from the leadership to expand the scope, even visited the workplaces to spread the news that the commercialization of the golem was not far off.

“I heard Lord Demian gave a definite answer at the Grand Assembly?”

“If we just endure for five months, will we be liberated from this dreadful labor……!”

“Is the sun finally shining on our Ember too!”

The people who read the records of the Grand Assembly cheered.

Because Demian Vail had given a definite answer that the golem development succeeded.

However, the enthusiasm of the citizens arising from being liberated from hazardous labor did not last long.

It was because of the hunting party returning in the distance, dragging their tattered bodies with their heads bowed, alongside a large unidentified sled covered with cloth.

Their gloomy atmosphere was reminiscent of a funeral home.

“H-hey. Why did you return so quickly? The departure ceremony was only yesterday, you should have returned at least three days later.”

“Yes, say something. What on earth are those wounds on your bodies? And why are there six people missing?”

“Don’t tell me, don’t tell me…… it can’t be?”

Witnessing the too-early return and the wounds on the bodies of the hunting party members, the citizens instinctively felt an ill omen and ran to ask them.

“……Get out of the way.”

However, they did not say anything.

They only opened their mouths when Yann Casselos, who had heard the news of the hunting party’s early return, came out to greet them.

“Archer, what is the meaning of this?”

Archer Fordham, the hunting captain, spoke with a shamefaced expression.

“We have returned early due to unexpected circumstances.”

“Circumstances? What kind of……?”

“This is not the place to talk about it. Let us speak in a quiet place.”

Archer gestured toward the sled covered with cloth.

There lay the carcass of the mutant snowfield wolf, and there was no telling what kind of ripples it would cause if such a thing were disclosed to the citizens.

“Let’s do that. Let’s move to the tavern.”

Yann, who instantly grasped Archer’s intention, spoke.

He realized that whatever was hidden under the canvas had something to do with the six missing hunting party members.

At a time when he had to solidify his position as a leader, there was nothing good about creating something that would agitate the citizens.

As they, accompanied by Jeremy Scott, entered the tavern and removed the canvas from the sled.

“……!”

“What on earth is this!”

“S-snowfield wolves? Don’t tell me that is a snow bear?”

Everyone except the hunting party took a step back.

Four snowfield wolves and one snow bear of absurd sizes revealed themselves before them.

Rustle-

On the rest of the sleds lay six corpses.

“Ugh……!”

“Ugh, ugh…… *Gag*!”

Thanks to the freezing weather, the bodies did not decompose, so there was no smell, but they were all horribly torn to the point where their forms were hard to recognize.

At that, some gagged or vomited.

However, the truly surprising thing was something else.

“Look closely.”

“……?”

Slice, slice.

Archer, who dissected the mutant with skilled movements, reached his hand deep near the heart.

Squish, squelch!

When his arm, stained with crimson blood, pulled out, what was held in his grip was a stone emitting a mysterious blue light.

That was to say, the fact that there were magic stones inside their bodies.