Chapter 43: The Tin Knight and The City of Clockwork (2)
“...This city presents quite a unique sight.”
You nodded at Dorothea’s words.
Tik-Tok, the City of Clockwork.
Instead of human guards, magic dolls guarded the city gates, horse-shaped magic dolls pulled carriages instead of real horses, and small bird-shaped magic dolls popped out of clocks to announce the time—it was all quite different from the scenery you had seen so far.
It felt as if the film reel of time itself had swapped.
Adelaide’s eyes sparkled as if she had come to an amusement park, while Sophia was looking around with interest, nodding as if she was making sense of the sight before her.
Even Dorothea had momentarily entered tourist mode, however, she ultimately came to her senses first.
“Ahem, anyway, let’s go, everyone. We might stay in this city for quite a while, so we can sightsee later if we want.”
“Are we staying long?”
“We don’t know how long it will take to modify this guy.”
At Dorothea’s answer, Adelaide showed a slightly pleased expression.
Your party’s travel pace was quite fast.
In other words, it was rare for you to stay in one place for more than three days.
Since it was routine to follow a quick course of arrival, reorganization, and departure, proper sightseeing was nearly impossible. The prospect of more free time must have been quite a delight for Adelaide.
Upon arriving in a city, the party’s routine was usually similar.
First, secure lodging. Those who had business in the city would then wander off.
The rest would rest in the room or take a light stroll.
Naturally, you were definitely part of the “wander and stroll” faction.
For you, who didn’t have the concept of fatigue, it was more enjoyable to wander around even without a specific purpose than to sit idly by in the room.
However, in Tik-Tok, the fact that you only had one body might become an issue.
“Then I’ll take this guy to the workshop.”
At Dorothea’s declaration, Adelaide and Sophia each opened their mouths.
“Ah, after you come back from the workshop, I’d like to move around with Sir Knight too! Um, I get nervous if Sir Knight isn’t watching over me...”
“Would you lend him to me as well? After all, being of a weak constitution, it’s reassuring to have a strong companion.”
Dorothea made an exasperated expression, but she didn’t coldly reject the two’s requests.
“Do as you like. I’ll return to the room after I’m done at the workshop anyway. You can negotiate the rest with this idiot.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ puffs out his chest, saying this is the pain of being popular!]
“...”
Dorothea glared at you with half-closed eyes, but perhaps thinking it was futile to even say anything, she silently started walking ahead.
Leaving behind Adelaide and Sophia waving their hands, you followed after Dorothea.
***On the way to the doll workshop.
You spoke to Dorothea about various things.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ says it’s become more fun now that the party members have increased!]
“I don’t particularly like noisy things.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ argues that to break the stereotype that necromancers are gloomy and brooding, she should actively interact with people!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ warns that if she’s not careful, she might develop a habit of only babbling to corpses or souls!]
“Ha, that’s nonsense.”
Dorothea suddenly fell silent.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ points out that this is the reaction of someone who’s been hit where it hurts!]
“I don’t do that!? I just remembered my teacher a bit, is all.”
Teacher.
It was a title Dorothea often used.
Moreover, when Dorothea talked about her personal history, you had never seen her refer to anyone else.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ is curious about what kind of person Dorothea’s teacher is!]
“What kind of person...?”
Dorothea paused for a moment to choose her words, then blurted out, “First of all, she’s not exactly a proper human.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ is shocked by such an unfilial statement!]
“What can I do if it’s the truth? She’s someone who doesn’t bat an eye at the death of dozens, moves as if worldly power and authority can go to the dogs, and casually throws their only apprentice into dangerous situations. She even delegates all the minute details of daily life to familiars, you know? There’s no way such a person could be a ‘proper’ human. You should have seen skeleton soldiers stirring a pot with a ladle in front of the stove, or doing laundry by the river,” Dorothea continued to complain with a scowl, but somehow you found her appearance enjoyable.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if Dorothea grew up under her teacher from a young age!]
“Well, that’s right.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ is curious about Dorothea’s parents!]
“They passed away when I was young,” Dorothea answered indifferently, and you paused for a moment.
And then you pondered your own reaction.
It was easy enough to predict that Dorothea’s family situation wasn’t very good, just from the mere fact that she never brought up stories about her family.
The early death of parents was a cliché “story element”.
In the various games you had played, there were several characters with similar backgrounds.
So, there was nothing particularly new about it.
You should just consume the character’s story as content, as you’ve always had.
But why.
Why did you feel the sensation of your ■■■■■ for a moment?
Your previously detached vision seemed to lower a bit, and your chest, which had been full of reflexive impulses without deep thought, felt a little heavier.
Without noticing your moment of contemplation, Dorothea continued speaking as she walked forward, “With two corpses in front of me, I didn’t know what to do. Whether to dig a grave or cremate them—none of these options even crossed my mind. Well, even if they had, I lacked the means to carry it out. So there I was, in a daze, ready to starve to death. That was when my teacher came. I think they said something like, ‘The corpses and souls of your parents seem to be of quite good quality, so I’ll be taking them.’ I doubt there’s a worse first impression than that.”
Your deliberation wasn’t long.
Perhaps you simply didn’t want it to be.
Your vision returned to as it was, and the heaviness in your became light once more.
You answered as always, frivolously, with an attitude of pure enjoyment.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ testifies that this teacher is fully qualified to be a final boss!]
“That’s good. It sounds rather fitting. After passing this damn graduation exam, when we become witch and witch rather than teacher and apprentice, it might be fun to go settle some grudges.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ insists on joining in!]
“Join in or not, you obviously have to participate. You seem to forget often, but you’re my guard, you know?”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ feels wronged, protesting he’s never forgotten!]
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“I wonder. Judging by your usual behavior, I find that rather hard to believe.”
After chatting like this for a while as you walked.
Finally, you were able to reach your destination.
“...There are more shops than I expected?”
Dorothea blinked.
The place you arrived at after asking passersby for directions was not a specific shop, but an entire street.
On both sides of the wide avenue, shops displaying various magic dolls were positioned as if competing with each other.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ argues that in times like this, the correct answer is to compare several places and choose the cheapest one!]
You spoke the common sense of shopping that you knew, but Dorothea’s reaction was lukewarm.
“There’s a reason why cheap things are cheap. We should choose the one with the highest final specs, why choose based on price?”
You were shocked.
A sense of duty to impart the strict teachings of capitalism to this witch who didn’t know the harsh ways of the world enveloped your entire being.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ warns that reckless spending of money leads to dire consequences!]
“Oh? And whose money am I spending? Yours or mine? Should I skimp on your upgrade and save money?”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ bows his head deeply, saying it seems fine to do as the witch wishes!]
Come to think of it, it seemed okay for her to remain ignorant of the ways of the world.
You must have been temporarily insane to question the judgment of your benefactor.
“Let’s start with that shop first.”
With that, you and Dorothea entered the first shop on the left.
It seemed like it would be an enjoyable shopping experience.
***“Oh dear, We’re terribly sorry, customer. That doll is so old that even repairing it is difficult.”
“Oh my, where on earth did you find such an antique? We can’t fix it, but if you’re looking to sell it, we’ll gladly take it off your hands. What would we use it for? Why, for a museum, of course!”
“Customer, how about taking a look at our latest magic doll instead? We’ll dispose of the old model cleanly for you—wait! Let go of my hand, ack!”
To cut to the chase, it wasn’t enjoyable at all.
The clerks, noticing that Dorothea had quite a lot of cash, desperately pitched their sales, but most of it was about recommending the purchase of new magic dolls.
They said you were too outdated to repair, and even if they forced a repair, it would just be a waste of money with little meaning.
When even the owner of the last workshop on the street shook his head, you drooped your shoulders in defeat.
“They sure love to call themselves the Empire’s best, but they’re just a bunch of quacks.”
Dorothea, for her part, looked quite irritated.
Most of the clerks maintained their manners, but in some shops, once they realized Dorothea had no intention of buying new items, they openly disparaged you and mocked Dorothea’s judgment for keeping a magic doll like you.
Of course, those clerks had to pay the price with screams as they fell victim to the “curse of stubbing their pinkie toe every time they turn a corner” that Dorothea used, but anger didn’t necessarily disappear just because revenge had been successful.
“...Fine, then. I’ll find one by force if I have to.”
Dorothea, with her mouth tightly shut, entered a dim alley.
After confirming there were no people around, she tapped the ground with her staff, spreading her mana.
Similar to what she did in the labyrinth, several souls flocked towards Dorothea, and she asked these souls, “If you know of a doll workshop skilled enough to repair this guy, tell me.”
Most of the souls silently remained silent or drifted away, but only one soul confidently guided the way as if sure of itself.
Contrary to the expectation that it would leave towards the outside of the alley, that soul led you deeper and deeper in.
Deeper and deeper, to a place where shadows remained untouched by light.
A somewhat gloomy atmosphere, and wary and hostile gazes felt from here and there.
Your knowledge knew a word to describe such a place.
A slum.
Due to Dorothea’s magic, the slum residents couldn’t see the soul guiding Dorothea.
But they seemed to see Dorothea’s figure very well.
In fact, her appearance was quite eye-catching even just walking down the street.
Some shady figures approached with lewd smiles, but the moment they noticed you behind Dorothea, they immediately backed off.
You, who had been planning to physically smash them the moment they picked a fight, felt a little disappointed.
At the end of this journey, what appeared was... a shop that could be described as atmospheric if being kind, or looking half like an abandoned warehouse if being harsh.
Moreover, because the sign was half erased, the shop’s name remained unreadable.
Dorothea glared at the soul with a terrifying gaze, but far from being intimidated, the soul showed a proud appearance as if snorting.
Perhaps feeling trust in that appearance full of pride, Dorothea opened the shop door and entered without a word.
With the creaking sound of rusted hinges, the interior scene revealed itself.
“Hoh.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ evaluates that the inside is cleaner than expected!]
Unlike the exterior appearance that seemed like it could offer a haunted house experience with half a spoonful of exaggeration, the shop interior was quite impressive.
Various parts of magic dolls gleamed as if well-maintained, and there wasn’t a speck of dust on the display shelves.
“Welcome—“
With a slightly lisping pronunciation, a man sitting at the counter rose.
He was quite tall, seeming to be about 180cm, and below his gray short-sleeved T-shirt, tanned skin, and muscular arms full of all sorts of scars were visible.
The man scanned Dorothea up and down, then abruptly asked, “Who introduced you to come here?”
“Introduction?”
“You wandered to this corner on your own? That’s hard to believe... Tch, were there some loose-lipped bastards?”
To the man who roughly cursed under his breath, Dorothea asked without showing any sign of shrinking back, “This is a doll workshop, correct?”
“That’s part of what I do. You can think of it as dealing with all sorts of metal scraps generally. So, what do you need?”
“Can you repair this guy?”
“Hmm?”
The man’s gaze turned towards you.
One second, five seconds, ten seconds.
Then a hundred.
After staring at you for about 2 minutes, the man soon laughed as if finding it interesting.
“Hiya, where did you dig this up? I’ve repaired magic dolls used during the founding of the Empire, but this one seems to be from much earlier than that?”
“Just tell me if you can fix it or not.”
“Well, I’d have to take it apart to know for sure. Actually, there’s not much point in repairing the exterior of this type. It seems to have a self-repair function anyway. Adding strange things would just be superfluous. If you want to repair it, we need to overhaul the interior.”
Looking a bit surprised, Dorothea blinked.
You were the same.
This man was the first to notice that you had a self-repair function just by looking.
Seeming to like that reaction, the man grinned.
“Well, even if you’re an unexpected customer, if you got enough cash, you can be considered a VIP customer. So, how much have you looked into so far?”