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The sun has set today.

The gentle warmth of the sunset has disappeared, and the cold night has arrived.

Even with such chaos, no one came into the Mechanical Knight School until nightfall.

It’s easy to tell why, just by looking at the flames rising throughout the capital.

Although they claimed it was a plague and scattered for a moment, there are actually no dead bodies. Furthermore, everything that could be destroyed has already been destroyed, and everyone who could be killed has been killed.

This is the place where the hunt has ended.

The citizens turned into rioters have not suffered at all.

Without suffering, there has been no learning.

People are creatures that find it hard to learn if they don’t hurt.

Those who have not felt the pain that tells them their actions are wrong, after scattering, thought this way:

They defeated the enemy of society.

Yet they are still cold and hungry.

Nothing has changed.

They gained nothing by becoming rioters, and reality remains the same. So now they take the same actions, thinking that it’s not that their reasoning was wrong, but that they haven’t killed all the enemies.

The citizens of the capital poured back into the streets. Someone mentioned that a plague was spreading, but very few have actually seen anyone collapse.

They just fled because others said there was a plague.

Things that lack reality and certainty are not scary. Compared to a plague that might not even exist, the reality they are feeling right now is much more painful.

So they come back outside.

Watching this with the eyes of the Harvesting Machine, I was curious what their next target would be.

The easily understood enemy of the Mechanical Knight School has already been completely destroyed, right?

So, I watched to see what they would do, and wow.

Their skill in creating a true enemy is exceptional. Very creative.

The people of this world have a built-in ability to use magic power. In other words, they can feel magic power.

Even the untrained, sensitive persons can sense the flow of magic power well. And those who live within the capital know at least the basics of using magic power.

Because older mechanical devices require magic power.

So to operate the machines, magic power is needed, and at that moment, they know the sensation of the magic power flowing. There’s no way they wouldn’t know. It was everyday life for them.

When you apply the formula that all machines are evil, it becomes this:

Anyone currently using machines is a social evil that must be killed.

Yes.

In this cold winter, they cannot completely eliminate the mechanical devices. This is because their homes are fundamentally built on the existence of mechanical devices.

They can sense the power apparatus sucking up magic power.

What will happen?

They attacked. I don’t know the exact emotions, but perhaps the reason is, “You guys are sucking up magic power to live while we are having a hard time.”

On top of that, those kinds of homes belong to people whose financial situation is decent. In other words, they mean their upper class. Of course, it refers to the upper class among commoners.

There’s reason to be jealous. It is also a place where there are many things to steal by raiding.

Coincidentally, since it’s dinner time, many people had turned on their power apparatuses to cook food here and there. It’s easy to find.

They go in, kill everyone inside, and come out with valuable items.

There were some who had doubts about this, but they brainwashed themselves.

They tell themselves they’re defeating villains and obtaining rightful wealth.

Among those acting this way, there are those who, even while knowing the truth, pretend not to know.

Because they look at those who claim to be right as foolish idiots.

Interestingly, those who know the truth act even worse.

They incite people and lead them to expensive-looking homes, and then take out the most valuable items from there. Those who are intelligent enough to realize the situation use it correctly instead of changing it for the better.

Truly smart.

Saying the truth would get you killed immediately.

In such a case, it’s better to mix with that group and extract as much profit as possible.

Thus, those who are angry at their current situation rampaged with their minds deteriorating.

As flames rose throughout the capital, the various law enforcement officers began moving here and there.

At first, it was like that.

But this is not something that happened in a particular group.

Most of the people living in the capital have been sick with hunger and cold for a long time.

It is far too few the number of law enforcement officers to do anything about these sick people.

Law enforcement fundamentally requires the citizens who live there to cooperate properly.

But if the entire citizenry turns against them, no matter how many law enforcement officers there are, they cannot stop it. The very premise has collapsed.

So they let go of their duties to ensure safety for the entire society to survive. They decided to only ensure safety for certain people.

The breakdown of law enforcement happens in an instant.

Now that the sun has completely set,

most of the capital is already burning in an inferno. People easily give up their future like fools.

No, it’s not that they’ve given up their future.

They made the best choice they could. But the end of that choice was the collapse of society.

Such robbery is spreading more and more. Because by doing that, there’s not only wealth but also food to be gained from the upper-class homes that still use mechanical devices.

Here, the relation between class and population draws a pyramid shape.

The poorer, the more numerous they are.

Murdering, arson, and looting throughout the capital spreads like wildfire.

The era is heading irreversibly in that direction.

And when the era changes, many die.

I turn my gaze and approach Victoria, who is crouched among the corpses.

Victoria knows I’m by her side but remains still with her head bowed.

It was time to break down.

Too much has happened.

Until now, no one has come to save her.

It’s too much for just one person to endure.

Still, I expected her to be angered and transfer a great deal of warmth to me, but I never imagined she wouldn’t kill anyone.

I thought she had long since gotten used to killing people, and I know just how many people Victoria has killed, from Nantes Port all the way to Bern City.

I’ve received their warmth and memories.

It’s a sight to see a murderer who has massacred countless innocent lives feeling gloomy because someone died.

“Bell, what should I do?”

In a voice as thick as rusted iron, Victoria asked me.

“Weren’t you angry at me?”

Oh my.

I thought our relationship was ending, but she’s speaking to me now. Or does she just want to collapse and feel relieved?

Hmm- hmm- hmm-

Kick.

I can let her depend on me and use her as she pleases!

No way.

I stood in front of the still bowing Victoria. And I waited for her to speak.

After a long silence, Victoria opened her mouth.

“I’m angry.”

And silence returned again.

Seeing her eyes rolling around, I could tell she was assembling her thoughts in her head. Yes, this is definitely comfortable. Even with her head down, the harvesting machine can’t escape from me.

She has everything, so what more could she possibly want?

She has already consumed everything.

Of course, the warmth is inside her, but it only appears to be delayed; it is something that has already ended. From a broader perspective, both Daegon and the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign are equally horrifying.

The more foolish, the less I can take more warmth from this person. But that’s what it means.

Eating this food makes me incredibly happy! What’s the problem?

That’s a drug, experiencing intense pleasure while destroying brain cells each time you consume it. Only a wretched future remains.

But the same drug addicts might say this.

Right? As long as I’m happy right now, isn’t that enough?

That’s it. Only those who can see things broadly know that their lives have ended in an unhappy conclusion. Looking just at what’s in front of them, they can only see the profit of pleasure.

That’s warmth.

I am not so terrible that I would take even more from someone who has already been ruined.

With such thoughts, I wait for Victoria’s words with a heart warmed by the warmth flowing in from the Harvesting Machine, which delights in killing people.

“But how do I get angry?”

Now that’s another.

A philosophical question. It’s not that I’ve never been angry. In fact, I’ve been angry several times. I once got angry at Beatrice during the break and went a whole day without eating.

I was angry over trivial reasons, got scolded, and reflected on it.

But that’s not what she’s asking.

“Should I just kill everyone? Should I take revenge for the teachers and friends who died so miserably? If I wanted to, I could have done it. Now, killing people is too easy.”

Hmm, is she saying that it’s too easy, after all?

No, it would really be easy, as I extracted body fluids through the lungs and made people faint.

When I dig through the memories of the Harvesting Machine gained in this world, I can deal with it simply. Blocking it with magic is possible.

But it’s a skill that you must know or die trying. Particularly as magic power does not move at all, it’s hard to predict the signs.

“But, you’re saving people up front.”

It has the tone of, “You originally intended to kill, didn’t you?”

That’s strange. It was Victoria who earlier didn’t kill anyone.

“Why did you choose not to kill anyone earlier?”

For me, it was a time of mass-producing harvesting machines, so I was happy, but it was Victoria who made the choice not to kill anyone, right?

Upon hearing my question, she buried her face in her arms and replied in a hoarse voice.

“You did, so.”

I did? When?

Oh, right. That makes sense. Making harvesting machines only appears to be saving people on the surface.

“I never forced you into that.”

“Yeah. I know. You always say to do what you want, but you leave it up to me in words.”

As she said this, Victoria raised her head.

“And while doing that, you showed us a path that looked cool. Wasn’t that intentional? To tell us to make good choices, to observe and learn, to think for ourselves? You’re trying to lead me, right? So…”

Victoria spoke to me with a pleading expression.

“Tell me what I should do.”

She bore a face that accused me of not telling her despite already knowing the way.

First, let’s correct that misconception.

This is something I must make clear.

“Victoria Bet. You should do what you want. Don’t make others think for you, think for yourself. I have no intention of leading you, and to begin with, I’m not someone who could lead anyone. I’m not even human.”

Just in case she doesn’t misunderstand.

“As you said, I am a monster.”