Magi Craft Meister

Magi Craft Meister 566

16　Resolution With The Demons Arc

17-15　No. 13

Someone calling themselves “No. 13” was now calling in.

Laojun quickly decided how to deal with the incoming call and gave instructions to every Land and Smith unit via Mana Comm.

His decision was to not respond to the call.

He had also forbidden everyone from making any noise.

No.13 would eventually realize that something was off, so the less information Laozi and the others carelessly leaked out, the better.

Since all of the transfer markers of this base had been removed, it was highly unlikely that No. 13 would suddenly teleport himself to Laozi’s location.

The uncertain factor was how this person would respond after getting nothing from Nega-Doll 001’s side for a while.

“…001? What happened? 001!”

After calling his name several times, the call was cut off. Laojun immediately gave out new instructions,

“Everyone, get ready for battle.All Smith units on the ceiling. All Land units go invisible and stick to the walls.”

He also ordered Pegasus 1, and Falcons 2 and 3 to monitor from the air for anyone approaching.

“…It seems that there was another one after all.”

On Hourai Island, Laojun reported his findings to Jin.

“He called himself ‘No. 13’. No. 700672 mentioned that 13 ‘failures’ had been created, so it seems that this is one of them.”

“It’s reasonable to think so.”

“Correct. Apparently, No. 001 had already deteriorated considerably due to age, and physical problems had begun to appear. But we don’t know if the same applies to No. 13. We’ll have to decide how we’re going to deal with him from now on.”

“Do you think there are any more ‘failures’, that is, more ‘Nega-Dolls’ out there?”

“Hard to tell. However, according to No. 700672’s story, it is highly unlikely that more than a third of the original ‘failures’ still remain operational to this day. Therefore, I would like to make a plan on the assumption that No. 13 is the last of them.”

“What do you know about No. 13?”

“Unfortunately, all I know is their name. But since we’re analyzing his communication device, I believe their whereabouts will be revealed soon.”

“Okay, let’s start by gathering as much information about them as we can… And what about the radicals?”

“For better or worse, having suffered a second Ether Stampede has caused them to be more open to our views and to discussion in general.”

“I see… It’s a shame it had to come to this, but I hope it brings us closer for a brighter future…”

＊　　　＊　　　＊

“Mr. Jin, we decided to call upon the chiefs of the remaining radical clans.”

After learning of the fate of the “Shundo” clan, the chief of the Kaigyaku clan, Bafrosk, and the chief of the Kaijin clan, Florodorus, both started to show a positive attitude towards the discussion.

“Representatives from the three clans of Raitei, Guren, and Gufu are set to come here soon.”

Each of these clans had about 30 members each, and with their inclusion, all of the radical clans would be accounted for.

“Since these representatives can use Transfer Magic, we’ll have them all here by tomorrow.”

“I see, that’s great news.”

Jin’s “Double” expressed his relief with a heavy nod.

If he could manage to persuade all of the radical clans at once, a war between humans and demons could be completely avoided.

However, Jin was also worried about something.,,

“We don’t know where Alciel and Lardus are at this moment… Do we?”

It was the fact that those two demons were still missing.

Though Jin’s concerns remained unchanged, night fell, then the sun rose once again, and the next day -the 11th- came.

Using their Transfer Magic, several radicals appeared on site one by one. By noon, all of them had arrived.

A total of 15 members of several radical clans had gathered in the courtyard of the residence of the Kaigyaku clan’s chief.

Jin had prepared a large amount of Pelshika juice on Hourai Island, which he brought in the day before via Warp Gate.

The radicals, who thought it was nothing more than just a simple juice, were surprised by the effect it had on their bodies after taking a sip of it.

“W-Whoa…!”

“…This is so good.”

“My body feels lighter?”

Seeing some big, tough, and angry-looking demons drinking juice and relieving the tension on their faces -and some of them even smiling- was not an everyday sight. But their alertness towards Jin seemed to have dropped considerably.

“Well then, let’s begin with what brings us all here today.”

Jalardos of Shinshoku was acting as the mediator for this gathering.

“Unfortunately, as you all know by now, the Shundo clan was completely annihilated, and the Kaigyaku clan has also sustained a tremendous amount of casualties. Both of them fell victim to an Ether Stampede.”

This time around, the gathered radicals listened quietly.

“To begin with, let me talk about our ancestors…”

As they listened to Jalardos speak about the nature of the demons’ ancestors, they started to get a little noisy.

“After settling in these lands, our ancestors mated with the local inhabitants…”

This fact made the noise become even louder.

“…The being known as ‘Nega-Doll’ was plotting to create a conflict between humans and demons in hopes that they would destroy one another…”

At this point, the radicals’ restlessness finally reached its climax.

“Do you have any proof of what you’re saying!?”

“You want us to just believe that demons and humans share the same ancestors!?”

Many voices were jeering and booing.

When the discussion was about to get out of control, Bafrosk yelled.

“Silence!”

His order was final. The sheer authority exuded by his voice was enough to make the room completely silent.

“…It’s true that this ‘Nega-Doll’ was the one behind the Ether Stampedes… I was there too. I was just lucky enough to survive. I have the barrier created by Jin’s Automata to thank for that.”

Though his clan only had 20 members now, the words of the chief of the Kaigyaku clan, once considered to be the strongest of them all, were still indescribably convincing.

“All I could think of was about taking revenge for my people. But I didn’t even know where to begin searching for this ‘Nega-Doll’. However, Jin here tells me he should be able to find him.”

“Is that true!?”

At that time, a mysterious voice echoed in the room.

“Hahaha… You don’t have to search for me. I’ve come to you.”

“What!?”

“Where?”

Everyone was looking around for the source of the voice.

“…Where are you looking? I’m right here.”

“Look up!”

Jin (‘s Double) shouted. He had been alerted by Falcon 2, which was standing by in the sky.

“Up?”

“…Oh?”

About 50 meters above the courtyard, nearly 50 unusual humanoids with feathers were floating in the air.

“Have they transferred themselves here? Even though there are no more markers left?”

That was the first thing that crossed Jin’s mind. His question was answered by Sky 2, who was aboard Falcon 2.

“They appeared suddenly from outside of the residence. From there, they flew up to their current position atop the courtyard.”

“Outside of the residence?”

Jin ordered the Land Corps waiting outside to conduct a search. However, the situation was pressing.

“My fellow 001 has been eliminated. As the last remaining ‘Nega-Doll’, I, No. 13, will continue his legacy. I will wipe both humans and demons from the face of this world.”

The voice was coming from one of those 50 winged humanoids. It was extremely large and dark-colored.

As it descended slowly towards the courtyard, its shape and features became more visible.

“…Angelus…”

“Huh?”

Jin was surprised at what one of the demons had named this winged humanoid.

It was, after all, a humanoid being with wings on its back.

However, its skin was dark green. Its face was ferocious, and its mouth had large fangs. Its body was about 2,5 meters long.

Its appearance reminded Jin of the “gargoyles” that often appeared in fantasy.

＊　　　＊　　　＊

“That’s… an angel?”

The real Jin on Hourai Island remembered the Golem Party that had once been held in the Egelia Kingdom’s Royal Palace.

At that time, a Golem that looked like an angel had been put on display, one “Helios”, made by Kerihidor…

However, that Golem had a feminine appearance, and its body and wings were pure white. It looked completely different from the gargoyle that stood before their eyes.

“I wonder if their concept of ‘angel’ differs from ours…”

In his Control Room on Hourai Island, Jin was rather calm about this entity. However, the demons were trembling with fear.