Clockwork Bride

Page 120

“I sing of the deadly hunger on earth,”

"And the warrior who vanquished famine."

Sing, sing, the sadness will eventually pass!

"A tower beyond death, longer than eternity,"

"The song of life never ends!"

For ten days, Angela had been singing in the circle surrounding the apple tree. Leaning against the tree, she sang new songs that flowed like a spring. Her beautiful voice soared into the clouds, constantly infusing the entire mountain town with a continuous stream of life, sustaining this incredible energy cycle. As Angela sang, every stone and every blade of grass in the mountain trembled slightly at her celestial music, for her song contained so much love and life.

Every life in this mountain and the entire city has been blessed by Angela's songs.

...But precisely because of this, Angela is currently unable to do anything else. For the past ten days, she has been singing beside the apple tree, and she can't even speak a single word to anyone, let alone do anything else.

So now, naturally, only Hayden is left to manage the situation on the mountain.

Normally, Hayden disliked getting involved and would probably leave all the management work to the demi-human chieftain. However, the current situation was special, and even if he were incredibly generous, he couldn't simply abandon the matter.

Moreover, the storm constantly rubbed against the barrier, creating cracks that allowed contaminants and toxins to seep in. For the past ten days, Hayden had to be ready to intervene at any moment. Each time the barrier cracked, he would rush over to purify the seeping filth. Once the cracks were repaired and the contamination cleared, he would take the opportunity to lie down and rest for a while.

Then, before long, the storm would tear the barrier apart again. Hayden, who had been lying down, would have to jump up again and rush to the rescue. He worked tirelessly day and night, racking his brains to solve the problem.

So much so that he's now too lazy to even pretend to be a wolf in front of the demi-humans anymore.

After all, Hayden couldn't continuously activate the wolf-transformation spell 24/7. Any magic that transforms the body will inevitably affect the mind, only differing in degree depending on willpower and the quality of the spell. Hayden's improved spell was of good quality, and his willpower had been strengthened by Hela in the alchemical furnace, but if he were to continuously transform into a wolf for ten days, he'd probably be able to gnaw on a bone all day long.

This is definitely not a good thing.

So Hayden simply transformed back into a human in front of the demi-humans, declaring that this was his human form—and the demi-humans showed no surprise or doubt, nodding as if they understood. This left Hayden somewhat speechless.

But the demi-humans were also innocent: "They're gods. What's so strange about them changing? Why should we doubt them?"

It's all thanks to their straightforwardness. Otherwise, Hayden would be running around the mountain every day, putting out fires, exhausted and dizzy, and certainly wouldn't be able to continue playing the role of "White Wolf God" properly.

This is going to be a long and drawn-out battle.

So, thanks to these straightforward subhumans, Hayden was able to persevere in this tug-of-war until the tenth day.

Unlike Hayden, who was pushed to his limit, these demi-humans were much more adapted to the current situation. After all, they were generally unafraid of sacrifice and were used to the attacks of pollution storms. The entire tribe of over a hundred people worked in shifts, managing to cast the summoning magic of the gorilla beast god as usual, allowing it to maintain the barrier with wine. When the other demi-humans weren't resting, they were responsible for keeping the tribe running.

After all, whether or not there's a typhoon hitting the city walls, everyone still needs to eat and sleep. Someone has to be responsible for the daily tasks.

Why are demi-humans better at these things? Is it because they've become so accustomed to the disasters and curses they encounter every day that they've become numb to them?

This is certainly one aspect, but another is due to differences in technology and cultural systems. The technology and culture of the demi-humans made them more adept at surviving in the wasteland than modern humans like Hayden.

Just as humans are not solitary beings, neither cities nor countries can be established by a single person.

Or it should be said that—in the cycle of power brought by Angela, the people and land of the entire mountain city formed a complete living entity.

Angela did not reach out to shield everyone from the storm.

But the cycle she created made the entire mountain town's nature and humanity form a single life, a giant standing on the earth, raising its hands to support the sky and resisting the calamities brought down by the gods.

Apart from this mountain town that has stood firm, the rest of Changqing Prefecture is now reduced to only the towns, villages, and public facilities such as roads approved by the company. Everything else will be swallowed up by the typhoon's sweeping force.

How long will this storm, this so-called climate-controlled sweeper, continue to operate?

Hayden actually contacted Karen on the first day and quickly asked her this question.

However, the news Karen heard was not so optimistic.

I heard that Dhritarashtra, the Heavenly King, wants to test the durability limit of their new energy system called "Kowtowing Bug."

During the communication, Karen gritted her teeth and told Hayden,

According to information I received from an insider, the strength of this new energy system seems to be fluctuating, with inconsistent power output. It's unclear how it was implemented. Therefore, they plan to conduct testing for at least half a month, possibly longer, but this won't affect the normal operation of the market.

Because any place with normal economic activity, including all public transportation systems connecting them, has been added to the climate control system's whitelist, how could a storm sweeper possibly disrupt the normal functioning of the market?

“So,” Hayden finally couldn’t help but complain when he heard Karen say that, “are we really going to keep going like this indefinitely?”

Although they can barely hold on for now, and the demi-humans don't even seem to be under much pressure, mental strength always has its limits. Even if Angela's singing and the cycle of life give everyone endless energy, if they keep their nerves on edge, someone will eventually start to collapse mentally first.

To my shame, Hayden might even have collapsed from exhaustion before the other demi-humans.

[Definitely not. What company would conduct experiments indefinitely for free? It's absolutely impossible for it to continue indefinitely.]

Karen immediately shook her head.

I will continue to gather inside information and will work to get the entire city legally registered as soon as possible. You must hold on. Don't give up.

what?

Hayden was taken aback by these words: "I thought you didn't like taking these crooked paths."

Do you think I'm stupid? Your lives are definitely more important than this little taboo!

Karen responded with a sarcastic remark.

[Considering there's a lot of information that needs to be hidden, and that hundreds of demi-humans are essentially hundreds of unregistered individuals, I need to spend more time processing the entire program. It'll probably take another... about ten days. You guys absolutely have to hang in there!]

"I know. We have no choice but to hold on."

Hayden could only cover his face in response.

"After all, you can't possibly teleport all one hundred-plus demi-humans from outside the city back into the New Yatu barrier. If they can't hold out, they'll all die."

He and Angela might be able to teleport away and escape the moment the city's barrier collapses, but the demi-humans, who are not legitimate humans, simply don't have that kind of luck to escape.

Every day, whenever he had a spare moment, Hayden would look at the satellite images Karen sent him, watching the entire Evergreen State gradually being swallowed by the storm. He felt the scene was just like watching the shrinking safe zone in a battle royale game.

The mere thought of this analogy only fueled Hayden's already exhausted anger, which welled up from the bottom of his heart.

Why?

By what right do the capitalists of the Mitra Group decide which places are legal and which are not? By what right do they decide what can be left behind while everything else is swept away and blown away by the storm to places where they have no responsibility?

Just because they have a little money?

Therefore, Hayden was unhappy, therefore, Hayden was annoyed.

He was just as furious as he had been a year ago when he first learned that Adam had implanted a brainwashing chip in Alicia.

Sometimes Hayden even felt that he could keep fighting these capitalist gods until he died, fueled only by this anger. However, it was precisely because of this socially inept mindset that he overlooked something else.

On the eleventh day after the Storm Sweeper entered diffusion mode, the demi-human chieftain ran to report to Hayden, his expression unexpectedly tense:

"Great wolf! A group of people from the Windrider tribe have appeared at the foot of the mountain and request entry into the city. This is a matter of great importance; we beseech your decision!"

……ah?

"what?"

Hayden was still in a daze.

"The Wind-Riding Tribe? Other demi-humans? How did they get here? Isn't there a storm outside... Oh, right."

After all, they're called the "Wind-Riding" tribe.

Hayden has recently come to understand that these demi-humans possess unique abilities in many strange magical techniques. It's like how primitive humans knew better than modern humans how to survive in the wild using only flint.

Even if the typhoons that descended from the heavens were so powerful, perhaps these "wind-riding" tribes of demi-humans are just particularly adept at dealing with pollution storms?

"Then what's the point of making a decision? Let them enter the barrier quickly!"

So Hayden was still not in a daze at this point.

Out of desperation, the demi-human chieftain had to put it more bluntly: "Great wolf, what other tribes bring is not necessarily security."

"Although tribes usually exchange goods and even bloodlines with each other, conflicts of interest are inevitable. After all, the place where people can live in the wasteland is limited. The magical beasts that can be hunted and the resources that can be gathered have become increasingly scarce over the years."

Thanks to Hayden's teachings, these demi-humans have recently begun to use the word "year".

"The situation is even more tense now, with the entire land swept by a storm of disaster. Everyone is suffering from this calamity, so what if they come with malicious intent to plunder?"

Ah, that's true.

Hayden immediately understood most of it.

What is the most dangerous enemy for demi-humans living in the wasteland?

First and foremost, of course, is the terrible environment. But the environment, after all, isn't something with a hostile intent. The demi-humans have survived for so many years, and have accumulated experience and technology in dealing with such a harsh environment.

As for the mindless, corrupted magical beasts roaming the wasteland, there's no need to elaborate. These demi-humans can even capture and eat Terasque, so what are they afraid of from normal magical beasts? Even primitive humans can hunt lions and elephants with spears. Demi-humans always have ways to deal with mindless magical beasts.

Therefore, in reality, the biggest enemies of the demi-humans living on the wasteland were other demi-human tribes that competed for resources.

It's truly tragic. The ancestors of the Ajin were people who couldn't compete in modern society and fled to the wilderness to escape the cutthroat competition. Now, their descendants are forced to compete with each other, which is utterly miserable.

The entire Changqing Prefecture is now almost enveloped by the typhoon's sweeping force, and like the shrinking safe zone in a battle royale game, there are fewer and fewer places to hide and survive. It wouldn't be surprising if other subhuman tribes, unable to survive, tried to come and seize their territory.

However, Hayden frowned after hearing this: "Raiding? With me here, what are you afraid of? I'll be frank, even if an entire tribe comes looking for trouble, I can easily deal with them on this mountain."

“I know that great wolves can easily defeat mortals. But what if they summon their tribe’s earth god here through the bond of flesh and blood?”

The demi-human chieftain retorted.

Ah this

Hayden was speechless.

In truth, even if the demi-humans of other tribes did manage to summon their own earth gods through blood sacrifice within the city's barrier, Hayden would almost certainly win. After all, this was Angela's city, where power was constantly circulating. His combat strength here was greater than that of most earth gods.

On the other hand, if the city were to truly become a battlefield, and others were to wreak havoc within it, it would indeed be difficult to guarantee that everyone would escape harm. The chief, as expected of a chief, made a much more prudent judgment than Hayden.

"...Then, put them inside the first layer of force field barrier, and leave them outside the second layer of tree wall. That thing is something that ordinary land gods can't break."

So Hayden thought about it for a moment and issued a new order.

"I'll transform into a wolf now and go meet them outside the second layer of the tree wall. By the way, did they say why they came here?"

Since it is common sense for these desolate tribes to be wary of each other, when these Wind-Riding tribes came to the city requesting entry, they would naturally state their purpose.

If they don't state their purpose, what if they're mistaken for enemies and killed? They'll have nowhere to seek justice. Since they're requesting entry into the city, they should at least state their reasons and express their stance.

The chief nodded, but his expression suddenly became very serious.

"The envoy from the Windrider tribe told me,"

This man, who had been incredibly brave since Hayden met him, even daring to chop off his own hand, now shuddered and began to tremble.

Then the chief swallowed hard, lowered his voice, and continued:

"The demon has arrived."

……demon?

131: The Demon Who Cannot Even Say His Name

The matter was of great importance, so Hayden immediately used witchcraft to transform into a giant white wolf and led Chief Kong and several other demi-humans toward the second layer of the tree wall.

"Speaking of which, I don't think I've ever asked what your tribe's name is again?"

On the way, he suddenly thought of asking this question.

If you don't even know the name of the tribe you manage, you're bound to run into problems when negotiating with other tribes.

The chief was somewhat speechless upon hearing this, but he immediately replied, "We originally had another name, but for some reason, others all call us 'King Kong Tribe,' and over time that's how it got settled."

This is quite understandable for Hayden.

In short, now that they knew the name, everything was fine. Soon they saw the Windrider Tribe visitors requesting entry into the city.

The number of guests was neither too many nor too few, around fifty people. However, when Hayden saw the appearance and attire of these Wind-Riding Tribe demi-humans, he couldn't help but exclaim "Eh!" in his mind.

Although these people were also demi-humans, and it was clear that they were all affected by the pollution of the wasteland environment, they were obviously not as miserable as the demi-humans of the Vajra Tribe. These demi-humans of the Wind Riding Tribe did not have such severe mutations, and they were all wearing complete sets of woolen clothes, which appeared to be made of the fur of the wasteland mutant cattle and sheep, and were wrapped up very tightly.

Hayden examined their equipment closely and found it quite amusing. They all wore headscarves, seemingly to protect their clothes from sand and pollutants. Their faces were adorned with goggles and gas masks; the lenses appeared to be polished from the transparent shells of mutated giant insect monsters from the wasteland, and the gas masks, likely handmade, looked rather rough. However, Hayden intuitively felt that this equipment would probably be quite effective.

Furthermore, the weapons carried by these Wind-Riding Tribe demi-humans are quite interesting. They are all equipped with knives, less than a meter long, which appear to be made from the shells of mutant insect monsters, as thin as cicada wings, and must be very light.

Their clothes all came with long gloves tied together with fur clothing, and they all wore long trousers with leg wraps, and shoes made of tanned cowhide without heels.

Shoes without heels are not suitable for walking on barren ground, yet the entire Yufeng tribe wears such shoes.

Hayden understood everything about the outfit after seeing it all.

"You must have flown here on the wind? To be able to ride the wind and fly in such a strong storm is truly remarkable."

Hayden, who always had an irrational fondness for these strange, low-cost magical techniques, immediately approached them with goodwill.

However, when these demi-humans of the Wind-Riding Tribe saw the giant white wolf god walking directly towards them, they were startled and instinctively took a few steps back.

This is why Hayden noticed another problem. Although the demi-humans of the Windrider tribe did not mutate as severely as those of the Vajra tribe, and their clothing was better, they all had expressions of fear on their faces, and appeared more tired, tense, and exhausted, with many wounds on their bodies.