Chapter 36: Off to Machine City Mikania! / Now THIS Is Chaos!

After Lies was firmly denied permission to enter the forest, the group decided to head to the Machine City together for the time being and figure out what to do next.

They reasoned that there might be opportunities for interaction in a nearby city, and that those connections could help them find a way to resolve the situation.

And then—

"Welcome♪! This is Machine City Mikania, the city of endless progress! I'm Minia☆, your officially certified city guide! I'll be your guide during your stay in the city! First, may I ask what brings you here today?"

Yep. Chaos. We've got full-on sci-fi now!

How am I supposed to describe this thing...? Basically, it's a silver oval... sort of like an airship that floats by filling itself with gas? ...Imagine making it so enormous that you couldn't see the end of it in any direction—not its height, width, or depth. The entire upper half of the oval is transparent, but it's so high up that we can't make out what's inside.

On either side of the main body are smaller ovals, each about a quarter of its size, positioned parallel to it.

They kinda look like arms. Should I go ahead and plant that totally unnecessary flag?

Anyway, there's a huge slit running down the middle of the main oval, from its highest point to about halfway down. Basically, the upper half looks like it's been split wide open into two pieces. And from that opening, an incredibly tall tower extends upward like a mast.

I don't feel like I've done a very good job describing it at all. But the point is, it's a spaceship.

No. If a "spaceship" is a vessel that travels through space, then this thing should probably be called a "worldship."

A gigaton-class immigrant ship that had traveled across worlds. That was the true identity of this vessel.

Incidentally, the one doing all the talking as our guide was... what should I call her? A virtual idol?

A girl about the size of my palm was emerging from a floating sphere about the size of a baseball. She had red hair, white skin, frilly clothes, and tiny wings on her back. With freckles as her charming feature, she flashed a bright, mischievous grin that brought a playful fairy to mind.

Her expressions were vivid, and she spoke fluently. There was nothing about her that seemed different from a human being. And yet, she was unquestionably the product of AI and holographic projection. Since about half the technology involved was based on magic and sorcery, it was clearly different from anything you'd find on "Earth," too.

And the reactions of our fantasy-world residents upon witnessing such hardcore sci-fi were...

"Whoa..."

"I'm amazed..."

"Truly astonishing..."

"Whoaa..."

"Even after seeing it so many times, I'm still amazed... This is insane..."

"I-I'm the next lord, so something like this doesn't s-surprise me..."

"Don't try to act tough, nya, Padron. Both you and I are country bumpkins, nya."

『This unit has suffered a complete defeat...』

"We know how amazing you are, Tetoma. Thank you for everything you do for us."

『Tierra...』

Well, of course they'd react like that.

In order, those were Kizuna, Rene, Nanashi, Lies, Pahal, Padron, Piska, Tetoma, and me.

Even I, despite having a decent amount of prior knowledge, was looking at something that could easily send my emotions into overdrive. Just as I'd expected, everyone was standing there frozen, mouths hanging open.

That said, I'd been able to prepare myself a little beforehand, so I casually offered Tetoma some reassurance. I'd keep cultivating that image of a kind, caring big-sister type. It was a desperate struggle to keep myself from fading into the background.

"Um... We came here because we wanted to find out where this part came from..."

"Hmmm~? Let's see~? There's no model number or manufacturer's name~? But technology this advanced could only be connected to Mikania, don't you think~? Please wait just a moment~!"

Minia pressed both index fingers to her temples and scrunched up her face as though the sound effect "Hmmmm..." were practically audible.

"Accessing—requesting database usage authorization—approved—cross-referencing data—no matches found—initiating discussion—concluded—subject designated as requiring further investigation—submitting application for entry into research district—approved—and... there we go! Sorry to keep you waiting~! For now, I'd recommend visiting the research district! You might find something out there! Leave the guiding to me!"

That was what she said.

"Ah, um... okay...?"

Kizuna's bewildered response perfectly expressed what everyone in the group was feeling: none of us could keep up with how quickly the situation had changed.