Kazuma_trash

So I'm a Dragon, So What? - Game System [83]

"The Saintess has been found!"

The old elf’s voice was heavy with importance, but Potimas just offered a thin, polite smile. "Oh?" he said, his tone dripping with fake surprise. "How... wonderful."

Potimas knew he wasn't the only power in these woods. 

This old man, Gyazo Tolleponte, was the Pontiff of the Divine Religion, a holdover from a forgotten era. 

He was a contemporary of the Human Pontiff, Dustin, ...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 52]

Mc name is from now on is “Stell” cant keep calling it ex-machin or some numbers.

….

Time flew by, and soon it was late afternoon. Remembering his, appointment, with his teacher, Takson gathered up the armful of food he had bought, including a few special treats he hoped she would like, and headed for their designated meeting spot.

Like an excited husky, he bounded towards the city's central square, the place his teache...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 51]

After a rather eventful lunch, I gave Takson a heavy pouch of coins and told him to spend the rest of the day exploring the city on his own.

With my apprentice temporarily dispatched, I began my usual routine: walking the streets, scanning, recording. 

Over the years, I had mapped and logged over a hundred towns and villages. With their coordinates stored in my database, I could open a Vector Gate to any of them at a moment's ...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 50]

According to the projections from my own database, a change like this should not have happened so quickly. Based on his trauma profile, he shouldn't have shown signs of recovery until his early twenties.

Takson looked at my golden eyes, and though they were as cold as ever, he seemed to sense the question within them.

He smiled.

"You're not a 'person,' are you, Teacher?"

Excuse me? The sudden accusation caught ...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 49]

Takson bounded over to me, a look of pure, unadulterated hope on his face. He was so much taller now that he had to consciously crouch down to meet my eye level. He looked like an eager puppy; if he had a tail, it would have been wagging furiously.

"Answer: Data received. Congratulations on passing," I said, my voice as flat as ever.

"Yes!" he cheered, pumping his fist in the air.

I still didn't quite understand the change. S...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 48]

This allowed me to "test" its various abilities repeatedly, gathering all the data I needed on its "Fusion Magic" before finally erasing it. Its combat data and personality profile were also uploaded to the Virtual Combat Arena for future training sessions.

As for what exactly transpired between me and Zard in that underground cave... let's just say that sometimes, having superhuman regeneration is more of a curse than a blessin...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 47]

One of his large horns had shattered in the impact, and his mask was cracked, revealing the blood-streaked face beneath, making him look even more menacing.

Tap, tap…

The human was walking towards him again, this time with a slow, deliberate pace, as if mocking him.

Zard didn't understand the meaning behind this gesture. All he knew was that his opponent was giving him an opportunity.

A cornered beast will fight its h...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 46]

"Lord Zard."

"What is it?" the demon, Zard, asked, his voice laced with annoyance. He didn't appreciate being interrupted. But he knew his subordinates wouldn't dare disturb him unless it was important.

"There's a human outside the facility."

"A human?" Zard was perplexed. Why would a mere human warrant such a panicked report? "Is there something... different about this one?"

It wasn't uncommon for adventurers to...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 45]

Originally, I had simply returned the grimoires I found back to their labyrinths. I had no need for physical copies; the knowledge was already stored in my database. If I ever needed one, I could simply replicate it.

But then I noticed Takson's intense curiosity about magic. I saw the look of genuine regret on his face whenever I'd had a clone dispose of a book. So, I changed my policy.

Now, whenever he had a spare moment, b...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 44]

Against a more technical opponent like Leslie, his raw talent and brute force were not enough. His first "death" was a valuable, if painful, lesson.

He opened his eyes. He was back in the clearing, the golden portal shimmering before him. He frantically checked his body. The wounds were gone. Not even a scar remained.

"Huh? What the...?"

He was confused, but then he remembered: this was his teacher's creation. It stood to rea...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 43]

"To turn your back on an opponent," Zera mocked. "You die!"

The demon swung its axe down again. But it didn't know that Takson's retreat had been a feint.

"I don't think so," Takson said, a confident smirk spreading across his face.

As he spoke, spears of holy light shot up from the ground, piercing Zera's wrists.

Schlick—

With a wet, tearing sound, the demon's hands, still clutching its great axe, were...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 42]

After recording the grimoire's contents, I tossed it into a small portal that opened and closed at my side.

"Teacher, next time I'll do be—"

"Warning: Overtraining yields no strategic benefits."

"Addendum: You are still a juvenile. Haste is an inefficient path to strength."

I knew what he was thinking, and I cut him off before he could make any foolish promises. There was no encouragement, no criticism. Just a cold, l...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 41]

Another night, another campfire. I was on watch, as usual. But tonight, Takson wasn't sleeping. He had asked to see the holy book I had been studying. I had no use for it, so I tossed it to him.

He took the book, and as he held it, a memory surfaced. He remembered the old priest, standing against the demons, his hands glowing with holy light.

I remember... he did it like this...

And then, it happened.

My eyes s...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 40]

"Query: Do you remember what happened?" I asked, my voice flat.

"Some of it..." he began, his voice trembling. "The demons... they attacked our home. Mother took me to the church, but she was already hurt... The old priest... he hid us in the cellar... used the Goddess's magic on me... then I heard... noises... from above..."

He recounted the events slowly, his voice faltering. I recorded every word, processing the information.

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 39]

I sat in the crater I had created, cataloging the new magic I had just acquired.

With the demons now eliminated, I had, in a sense, avenged the town's fallen inhabitants.

Pitter-patter...

Dark clouds gathered overhead, and in seconds, a torrential downpour began.

Pseudo-Zadkiel.

I was using Yoshino's power, manipulating the water and cold in the atmosphere to create a storm. The rain would extinguish the ...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 38]

The trail was cold. The unknown entity had eliminated his entire retinue, one against many, and vanished without a trace. Its power was not to be underestimated.

Blood Magic.

It was the art Drakul had dedicated his four-hundred-year life to perfecting. It was his pride, his masterpiece. And this city of the dead, with its rivers of blood and fields of corpses, was the perfect canvas.

He extended his will, and the blood he had...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 37]

A powerful warrior was a mage's natural predator. Leslie knew this. And like all demons, her own survival was her highest priority. She would never face such a dangerous opponent alone.

Her companions were on their way. She just had to hold out until they arrived. Together, they would overwhelm this strange human. Victory would be theirs.

But as she formulated her plan, her thoughts were cut short.

A thick, blindingly bright ...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 36]

Clang! Crash! Boom!

Zera swung his axe with all his might, a whirlwind of muscle and steel. He put every ounce of his considerable strength, every bit of his learned combat technique, into each blow.

But... what is this human? It was so small, so fragile-looking. Why wasn't it dead?

The girl, who should have been paste by now, had produced a greatsword from thin air and was effortlessly blocking all of his a...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 35]

But when I arrived at the so-called encampment, it was deserted.

Huh? Where did the demons go?

I scanned the area. There were clear signs of a recent camp, but it had been abandoned in a hurry. Then I remembered something. On my way here, as dusk settled over the forest, I had seen a faint orange glow on the horizon.

Following the tracks leading away from the camp, I emerged from the forest and onto a wide plain. In ...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 34]

The sight had sent them scrambling back into the undergrowth, their hearts pounding. That had to be magic. Was she... a demon? The thought made them tremble.

Then came the smoke, thick and unnatural, plunging the forest into darkness. They were sure they had been discovered, that the demon-child was coming to silence them. They huddled together, shaking like leaves.

But then, the smoke cleared. And I was gone.

"Where'd she go...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 33]

I sat on a stone block outside the entrance to the labyrinth, waiting patiently. A moment later, a portal opened behind me, and an identical copy of myself emerged. It walked over and handed me a book.

I took the tome and began to "read."

To an outsider, it would have looked like I was flipping through the pages at an impossible speed. But my Ex-Machina eyes were recording every word, every diagram, every rune, committing the entir...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 32]

A few minutes later, it was over.

It had been surprisingly easy. Neither demon was particularly powerful. Their knowledge of magic and the world was disappointingly shallow. And neither of them had any useful information about human settlements.

No matter. I was heading there myself anyway. Hopefully, I would find more useful information there.

I had to admit, though, Gavelet was proving to be surprisingly effective.

�...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 31]

I left the village, following the small dirt path the owner had described.

Without a technological network to hack, I couldn't simply teleport to my destination. I had no coordinates. In a world of magic, not machines, many of an Ex-Machina's greatest advantages were nullified.

As I ventured deeper into the woods, my scanners began to pick up an increasing number of magical beasts. They were no threat. My sensors tracked their ever...

As Ex-Machina In No Game No Life: Zero [Chapter 30]

“Farewell.”

The words, clear and final, hung in the air between us.

"...Yeah," Nia replied after a moment. "Have a safe trip."

I closed the door to her apartment and looked out at the city sprawling below. The entire vibrant landscape was captured by my senses. My pupils, like camera apertures, contracted for a moment, taking one last snapshot.

I didn't bother with a disguise this time.

"Dimensional Engine, ac...