Once again, it proved that one truly had to travel and see more of the world.
Separated by nothing more than a single continent, yet the culture and scenery differed so drastically.
If he hadnât personally made this trip to Tenge, Kanzaki Rei would never have imagined... that such a place could exist.
Unlike Loren.
Here, gears and pipelines were everywhere.
Massive pipes transported steam, while thinner conduits carried a refined energy known as "Pure Fluid."
Even along the streets, finely crafted mechanical attendants served customers like living beings.
If this had been the first place he arrived after crossing into this worldâ
He might have believed this was the worldâs true baseline.
Like blind men feeling different parts of an elephantâafter visiting only two continents, one still had no real grasp of how vast and magnificent this world truly was.
"A nation of mechanists..."
Mechanists could be considered half-combat classes. Through intricate components, they created unique constructs vastly different from mages or warriors.
In theory, even high-tier constructs could be operated by low-level mechanists.
That made their combat power extremely unstable.
Some low-level mechanists could wield terrifying strength through powerful constructs.
Others, even at high levels, could become weaker than lower-tier warriors or mages if deprived of their machines.
"...Itâs in that direction."
Buzzâ
A ripple in space.
One moment, Kanzaki Rei stood on a bustling street.
The next, he appeared inside a dimly lit room.
Before him sat an utterly ordinary middle-aged man, focused on repairing a clock.
"Customer, this monthâs reservations are already full."
"If you have valuable items for repair, youâll need to schedule for next month."
He looked up.
Seeing only a child, confusion flickered across his face.
But Kanzaki Reiâs expression bore none of a childâs innocence.
He hadnât disguised himselfâthere was no need in a future simulation.
Instead, his voice came out low and cold.
"Oh? So youâre saying... the Secret Sand Isles will still have a next month?"
"...Mokri."
The moment that name was spokenâ
Mokriâs hands froze.
"...Customer, youâre quite young. Where exactly did you hear that name?"
Swishâ
Without answering, the environment shifted.
They now stood inside a dark dungeon cell.
A place Kanzaki Rei had casually found through his perceptionâand repurposed.
"Youâ"
Mokriâs pupils shrank.
"Who exactly are you?"
"Who I am doesnât matter."
"What matters is... what youâre trying to do."
Kanzaki Rei raised his right hand.
A projection appearedâa golden scroll inscribed with a prophecy of apocalypse.
"You wrote this, didnât you?"
"How did youâ"
"No... how did you even know this was mine?!"
He had left no trace.
Hidden himself far from Loren.
So why had he been found?
Why now?
But there was no time to dwell on that.
He had to subdue this child first!
Swish!
His right arm instantly turned blackâ
Countless components assembled in an instant!
ăMechanical ArmamentâExecutioner Type VIă
Bang!
Before he could even moveâ
A spear of ice pierced through!
Boom!
His entire mechanical arm was obliterated, the spear embedding deep into the wall and freezing everything around it!
Clackâ
Kanzaki Rei hovered midair, gripping his throat with one hand.
ăMokriăăLevel 5 Mechanist / Level 1 Doomsday ProphetăăForetold the destruction of the Ruilen Continent, guiding its calamity into existenceăăEquipped Constructs: Phantom Slayer VI Arm, Titan Force VI... Floating Cannon Array, Magnetic Base, Lightburst Base...ă
Quite the arsenal.
Kanzaki Reiâs gaze turned cold as he looked behind Mokri.
Swishâ
A cloud of black sand surged forward.
ăMicro-Mechanical Swarmă
They could burrow into a targetâs body and destroy them from within.
Whoosh!
With a mere thoughtâ
Flames erupted.
A blazing inferno sealed off the surroundings, instantly incinerating every single mechanical insect.
Not one remained.
"I suggest you stop trying anything clever."
His grip tightened.
Mokriâs eyes bulged as he struggled.
"W-What do you want to know?!"
"How did you create this disaster?"
"Did you already know Roya and Samu would come?"
Kanzaki Reiâs tone was icyâprobing.
A Level 5 mechanist coordinating Level 8 entities?
Impossible, under normal logic.
"IâI donât know those people!"
"Then why did you predict the destruction of Ruilen on April 1st?"
"Donât tell me you just made it up."
ăDread Intent (Tier 5) (LV:401)ă
A crushing mental pressure descended.
Fear seeped into his very soul.
With Kanzaki Reiâs mastery over soul, death, and mental magicâ
This was absolute domination.
"Itâit was the King!"
"He made me take the Doomsday Prophet class!"
"He said he would carry out the destructionâI just had to issue the prophecy!"
"Thatâs all! I didnât have to do anything else!"
Kanzaki Rei observed his mental fluctuations.
Fear, desperationâbut no deception.
"...The King?"
"Why would he make you become a Doomsday Prophet?"
"I donât know! I swear I donât know!"
Kanzaki Rei snorted coldly.
"Think carefully. If youâre hiding anything..."
"Your life ends here."
A childâs faceâ
Yet utterly terrifying.
"IâI... thereâs more!"
For the next half hour, Kanzaki Rei interrogated him thoroughly.
The truth unfolded.
Mechanists required immense resources to advance.
The kingdom controlled those resources.
To reach Level 5, Mokri had accepted the Kingâs conditionsâ
One of which was becoming a Doomsday Prophet and issuing the prophecy.
Once a prophecy was declaredâ
That location would become a "destined convergence point."
Disasters would gradually gather there.
An absurdly terrifying class.
Simply predicting destruction... would cause it.
Howeverâ
If the prophecy failedâ
He would forever lose the chance to advance to Level 2 Doomsday Prophet.
As for why the King targeted Lorenâ
Or how he intended to execute the destructionâ
Mokri didnât know.
He had only wanted to advance.
After reaching Level 5, fear consumed him.
But he couldnât tell anyone.
So he hidâliving as a humble repairman.
Waiting for the prophecy date to pass.
"...So the true mastermind is the King of Tenge."
Crack!
Kanzaki Reiâs grip tightened.
Ice exploded.
Mokriâs body shattered into countless fragmentsâ
Only the head remained barely intact.
"W... why... I told you everything..."
Kanzaki Rei ignored him.
The storage device floated into his hand.
A sweep of perceptionâ
Then he vanished.
Inside were numerous valuable constructs.
Type VI modelsâcrafted by Level 6 mechanists.
Mechanical naming conventions were simple:
Types IâVIII corresponded to Levels 1â8.
Only Level 9 constructs were differentâ
They were simply called "Perfect."
"...The King of Tenge should be a Level 6 mechanist."
Over a century agoâ
A Level 7 mechanist had visited Tenge, leaving behind powerful creations.
Those became the kingdomâs trump cards.
Within decadesâ
Tenge conquered the entire continent.
Now, only one kingdom remained.
The Kingdom of Tenge.
SwishâSwishâSwishâ
Kanzaki Rei blinked through space repeatedly.
Instead of magical barriersâ
This kingdom relied on precision engineering.
Massive doors.
Biometric locksâface, fingerprint, iris scans.
Technologicallyâ
It rivaled his previous world.
Yetâ
In a world with magic, rituals, and combat artsâ
Technology was just one of many viable paths.
Not the only one.
Barriers meant nothing.
He simply bypassed everything with spatial movement.
Inside the palaceâ
Mechanical guards patrolled, armed with light blades and rotary cannons.
Their eyes could detect invisibility.
He casually destroyed two.
ăRoyal Guard AutomatonăăTier: 4ăăWeapons: Light Blade, Rapid Cannon, Radiant Eye...ăăFunctions: Boost Thrusters, Translation, Humor Module, Stealth Detection, ID Recognition...ă
Even included... joke-telling.
Mass-produced Tier 4 combat units.
Equivalent to mid-tier adventurers.
"Mechanists... truly impressive."
Unlike Lorenâs sprawling palace complexâ
This was a single colossal structure.
Nine hundred ninety-nine floors.
A fortress.
A dungeon boss lair.
SwishâSwishâSwishâ
Floor after floor.
He paused occasionally at interesting locations.
A sealed black chamberâ
He entered instantly.
Insideâ
A server room.
ăTenge Central Information ServerăăManages all citizen data, automaton registrationâhigh encryptionă
"Even servers exist..."
Yet no phones or computers.
A strange tech tree.
ăCreator: Zilbar â Chief Mechanist of Tengeă
Level 6.
Attempting decryptionâ
Level 7 difficulty.
Required knowledge far beyond Lorenâs.
"...Not enough."
He left.
Nextâ
A chamber filled with artificial organs.
"Mechanical heart... optical implants... alloy jaw."
"...Cyberpunk, huh?"
He shattered a tank.
Took the mechanical heart.
Swallowed a pain-dulling pillâ
Rip!
He tore out his own heart.
Installed the mechanical one.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Power surged.
"...Not much."
Andâ
Some skills became unusable.
Ripâ
He removed it again.
"Trash."
Regeneration restored everything instantly.
Nextâ
Floor 666.
"...Mechs, huh?"
Makes sense.
Higher-level mechanists were basically living machines.
"Who goes there?!"
Boom!
A towering mech chargedâ
A massive blade descending!
"Even killing children... ruthless."
Boom!
Before impactâ
Kanzaki Rei vanished.
Appeared behind it.
ăSpatial Shock (Tier 5) Ă Arcane Refinement â Fifth Form: Extreme Comboă
Bang!
The mech disintegrated instantly.
He glanced backâ
Boom!
Spatial fractures tore through everything.
Over a dozen mechsâ
Destroyed in an instant.
"...Thatâs it?"
Stylish.
But weak.
His hands never left his pockets.
Swishâ
Floor 999.
The top.
"...Why do kings always live at the top?"
He appeared directly in the throne room.
No alarms.
No barriers triggered.
"Who are you?!"
Kanzaki Rei replied calmly:
"If everyone asks that, Iâll get tired of answering."
"I only want to know one thing."
"About you ordering Mokri to predict the destruction of Loren."