I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy

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“······.”

Claire looked around her body with a dazed expression.

Her body surrounded by golden light.

This was a sensation she had never felt before.

She was filled with a sense of fulfillment, both mentally and physically.

“Lucas···.”

And the source of this fulfillment was the sincerity she received from Lucas.

She didn’t know the principle, but the buffs and mana she had given to him returned to her multiplied by dozens or hundreds.

And within that mana were Lucas’s feelings.

“Like this for me····.”

Warmth surged.

Her face flushed.

It felt as if the emotion of ‘love’ was perfectly articulated and embedded in her heart.

The raw emotions contained in the recovered buffs were pure and unprocessed.

This unrefined pure love made Claire invincible.

She felt she could defeat any enemy she faced at that moment.

“Damn cocoon····.”

Claire glared at the cocoon that had trapped Lucas.

Then she bit down on her teeth, feeling a crunch.

She reached out and placed her hand on the cocoon.

At that moment, the cocoon, which had shown no signs of damage no matter what was done, started to crack with just a hint of pressure from her hand.

Soon, the golden aura emanating from her began to melt the cocoon.

– Puuuck!

The cocoon melted like ice cream, finally revealing what was inside.

A sticky mucus burst out, and Lucas emerged from within it.

“Lucas!”

– Thud! Thud! Thud!

Claire immediately helped Lucas stand.

He opened his eyes faintly and muttered an apology.

“No, I’m the one who should apologize for putting you through this. I’m just glad you’re alive.”

Claire hugged Lucas tightly.

Then, she placed her hand on his chest and sent out mana.

It was to check his condition.

‘····It’s a mess.’

His body was a wreck.

His muscles were torn all over.

Fortunately, with treatment, he could return to normal.

But unrelated to that, anger surged within her.

“Lucas, rest. By the time you open your eyes again, everything will be over.”

With those words, Claire cast a recovery spell on Lucas.

Though it would force him into a deep sleep, the recovery effect was second to none.

“···Did you say Cassandra? I won’t let this go. Right now, I feel like I can do anything.”

Claire ground her teeth slowly, rising from her position.

Golden aura burst from her body with a bang!

Bernhardt, who had always provided buffs and auras from the back, was finally stepping forward.

With that, Ed raised the corners of his mouth and muttered quietly to himself.

‘The difficult act is finally over. It’s time to have some real fun.’

***

Honestly, this act had been quite the ordeal.

To break Lucas, she had to hurl venomous words she didn’t mean.

However, with Claire awakening Bernhardt’s true power now,

I was finally able to perform the act I wanted.

‘To act like a third-rate villain to a much younger cousin during the holidays and then suitably exit.’

【Ugh! How can this be!? How did he melt my cocoon!?】

Thus, I continued with my cliché act.

Shaking my spider legs, I began to let out furious shrieks.

“I’ll return Lucas’s suffering right back at you.”

However, Claire was incredibly serious.

And her sincerity, awakened through Bernhardt’s true power, was quite threatening.

The beam emitted from Claire pierced through Cassandra’s suit.

【Kyaaaaaaa!!!】

I screamed like a third-rate villain and checked the condition of the suit.

Despite being a suit of considerable toughness, it couldn’t withstand even a second before its exoskeleton was penetrated.

This was the extent to which Claire perfectly replicated the original Bernhardt’s power.

【D-Don’t get cocky! I’ll gladly become Cassandra’s prey, too!】

With that, I spat out typical villain lines to test Claire’s powers.

I attempted various patterns of attack to test her defenses.

And I provoked her in numerous ways to evaluate her offensive capability.

I also mocked Lucas in various ways to see how unshakeable her mentality was.

【Kiaaaah··· I, I can’t believe this····.】

After various tests, I was ready to give her a passing mark while preparing to exit.

Having confirmed all her abilities, the remaining role for the hypothetical demon ‘Cassandra’ was to get defeated by Claire.

– Puuurge!

With that, the final blow pierced through Cassandra’s suit.

At the same time, I utilized a teleportation spell to flee to where Elena and Eve were.

“Congratulations, brother. Everything went as planned.”

After moving to that place,

Eve smiled and congratulated me on the success of this endeavor.

Thus, Isabella, Enya, Lucas, and Claire were all on a certain trajectory.

Having laid the groundwork for their growth, all that remained was for them to build their skills through real battles.

By steadily stepping up, they could get closer to becoming ‘Heavenly Beings,’ the mythical entities of this world.

“···Phew. Then, is it time to move on to the next stage?”

All preparations were complete.

The ‘Noah’s Ark’ project was also proceeding without issues.

The ‘Fortress’ project was on track as well.

The storehouse in my territory was already filled with supplies capable of sustaining us for nearly a decade.

Thanks to conducting several food revolutions in the meantime, along with drastically increasing refrigeration facilities and shelf life.

‘If it’s you guys, you could become a new focal point.’

However, for everything I prepared to have meaning, ‘my people’ needed to grow.

In other words, the children of the Grand Duke must evolve to become a new focal point.

But with Claire having completed her awakening today.

That meant I had done everything I needed to do.

‘So now I···’

It’s time to exit.

Because no matter how many future simulations I ran, there was no way humanity could endure as long as I was alive.

So the best-case scenario was that the Lord of Hell would expend everything on me.

Thus, I could become a new myth.

***

The demon invasion began to intensify.

However, the more it escalated, the more humanity showed signs of division rather than unity.

As the situation became dire, they began to ignore all treaties, seeking their paths of survival.

[Down with Edgar Fix]

Furthermore, amidst this chaotic state, the Demon Church began to resurge.

They started inciting, saying, “Edgar Fix is ultimately an agent of the Empire, using other countries for the Empire’s sake.”

And that incitement was quite effective on the people.

After all, there was no logically incorrect statement.

– Isn’t it strange? Edgar Fix is neither an angel nor a volunteer. Isn’t he just helping us for his own purposes?

– Exactly. If we think about it, the treaty itself is suspicious. Saying we should open portals between nations to help us? What if the Empire’s army crosses over? We’d fall immediately.

– Plus, are there not ominous rumors circulating? That Edgar Fix is secretly siphoning food through the portals.

– That’s not all. Is he not watching the skies with some weird drones? Acting like he’s an omnipotent god? It’s infuriating! How dare he gaze upon foreign lands without permission!?

The more life became difficult,

The more cornered they felt, the more individuals and nations grew closed off.

They began to lock their doors, fearing that even the little they had would be pillaged by the Empire.

“I’m sorry. I misjudged.”

As inter-country exchanges began to dwindle,

The Emperor sighed and apologized to Ed.

After all, due to the Empire’s past conquests, foreign lands were closing their doors.

No matter how sincere Ed might be, as long as he was the Emperor’s right-hand man, they couldn’t trust him entirely.

“It’s fine. You probably didn’t see it coming either. I anticipated this to some extent.”

However, Ed nodded calmly, as if it was no big deal.

The Emperor sipped his beer and looked at Ed.

“Hmm. You said you expected this···. Then, you must have thought of a solution?”

“No.”

But Ed’s following answer was unexpected.

Since he had stated so nonchalantly that he had anticipated it, the Emperor thought he had a solution in mind.

Yet Ed replied that he didn’t have a particular method.

Ed looked at the Emperor and said.

“What am I, some god? If they don’t want it, what can I do?”

“·····Then, what will happen to the foreign countries?”

“What can be done? They must be abandoned.”

“······.”

The Emperor stared at Ed with a dumbfounded expression for a moment.

Even he, who was jaded by ennui, could only be taken aback by Ed’s words.

“Abandon them? Didn’t we start this whole endeavor to save those people? Supplying mechanization units to the world, sparking a scientific revolution, imparting technology, igniting economic revolutions through diplomacy, sending auxiliary forces against the demon invasion—all this was for the sake of saving foreign lands, wasn’t it?”

As the Emperor pointed out, Ed’s response was contradictory.

Ed’s actions were all aimed at uniting the world in defeating the demon invasion.

“That’s right. I did all that to unite humanity.”

And Ed admitted it straightforwardly.

Every action he had taken was indeed with the intent to unify the world.

“But I understand humans. Humans aren’t that idealistic. When given a benefit, instead of thinking to repay it, they tend to compare the benefits others received with what they got and feel dissatisfied. Especially during tough times like this.”

“······.”

The Emperor, deep in thought, nodded.

It is true that when one is given something, they appreciate it at first but later come to take it for granted.

An endless craving for a higher standard of living is human nature.

“There are extremely few humans who know how to be grateful. No matter how magnanimous someone may be, if they go days without food and have no place to live, they will inevitably become aggressive. When the free bread runs out, instead of resigning themselves to the situation, they are more likely to turn into a mob, asking why it isn’t being shared.”

The Emperor nodded.

He deeply empathized with Ed’s words.

His decision to choose iron-blooded politics over diplomatic politics stemmed from this very context.

Persuading others with words can take a century, but using fists would suffice in just a month.

“In other words, the stance is crucial. If you find someone hanging off a cliff, do you rush over and say, ‘Hurry, grab my hand!’? No! You pass by whistling. You wait until they’re crying and pleading for help.”

“····Maybe that’s true.”

“Then, do you help them immediately? No. You let them continue their sobbing, maybe you sing them a song. You grill pork belly right in front of them. They will surely yell every curse word at you. But you don’t care. You drink soju. Eat your pork belly. Enjoy. Keep whistling.”

“······.”

“Eventually, they will lament that they were wrong and beg to be saved. They will let go of everything.”

“···Oh?”

“That’s when you’ll save them. Of course, after they’ve surrendered everything they have.”

The Emperor wore a satisfied smile.

Indeed, as a leader of Heavenly Beings, he knew how to handle people.

If the Empire was to accept refugees, establishing such a hierarchy would certainly help in maintaining order.

“Well, it can’t be helped. My goal is not to establish an ideal society. The purpose is to preserve as much of humanity as possible until we can stop the demons.”

The Emperor nodded.

Indeed, Ed’s goal was to make his territory a sanctuary and relocate humanity itself.

To govern that many individuals, strict regulations were necessary.

“Then, growing the Grand Duke’s household was also for the sake of clear control?”

“···That purpose exists too. Overwhelming power is the most perfect means of governance.”

The Emperor rubbed his chin.

Indeed.

Ed’s plans were aligning perfectly.

He did not intend to save foreign lands, but simply aimed to take control over this side first before extending his aid.

That kind of stance itself was quite appealing.

“However, what you are trying to do is inherently bound to lead to trouble. Honestly, even just merging the Empire was difficult for me.”

But the Emperor knew well.

How challenging it was to maneuver countless interests to ensure the Empire’s sustainability.

Furthermore, what Ed was attempting involved gathering all of these ‘humankind’—with different cultures, races, lifestyles, and interests—into one.

It was like a time bomb just waiting to cause problems.

“···That’s true. However, it’s not entirely hopeless. There is one way to unify the world, a solitary method.”

Despite its improbability, Ed spoke confidently.

The Emperor tilted his head, asking what that might be.

Then Ed replied─

“My death.”

“······.”

“To be more precise, ‘sacrifice.’ Only that can be an event that unites the world.”

He declared that his sacrifice would be the only event that could unify the world.