Michel was drowning in despair.
Betrayed by Jigil—the one friend she thought she could trust and confide in.
Her body wouldn't move.
Completely severed from her brain's connection, she could feel her own body as though it were impossibly far away.
*Ah, I'm so tired,* Michel thought.
When her father's idealized dream had crumbled, Michel had chosen to hide her true feelings. As one of the leaders, she prioritized cold theory over sentiment.
She had resolved to sacrifice the many to save those who mattered. Even if she couldn't save everyone, she should have saved as many as she could. In the worst case, she wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice a hundred to save one. That was the resolve she had carried into politics.
Suppressing her emotions, she had acted on cold numbers alone. That was what made one a true statesman.
So no matter how much she wavered or suffered, she never let complaints pass her lips before others. She had always carried herself with composure, guiding others with the conviction that her actions were absolutely right.
—But with Jigil, she had spoken her true heart.
Being betrayed by the one person she'd opened up to was damage beyond anything Michel had imagined.
That must be why the key to the door had broken.
*(It doesn't matter anymore...)* Without a voice, Michel murmured to herself. Resignation born from despair—it was a natural progression.
But then— *—Don't give up, Michel. If you give up, the Infinite Engine will truly spiral beyond control—* A voice she shouldn't have been able to hear—her father's voice—pulled Michel's consciousness back to wakefulness.
*(That's right... I can't give up just yet—)* Though her body was immobile, Michel's brain was still functioning.
The Infinite Engine had already begun its runaway process, but there was still time— Besides, there were still unclear points about Jigil's betrayal.
*(Come to think of it...)* Thinking back, Jigil's behavior had been off. The same gestures as always, the same manner of speaking. Even the casual remarks woven into idle conversation about old times—Jigil had responded to everything perfectly.
She had dismissed it as imagination, but perhaps some unknown force had been at work—something beyond Michel's ability to perceive.
The brain, the most vital organ, was protected by every conceivable means. That was why hypnosis and brainwashing didn't work on it. But to say it was absolutely impossible...
The current Michel was proof of that.
Michel had finally realized this truth. Perhaps Jigil, like her, had been isolated from his "brain" and had his information stolen—based on mere fragments of limited information, Michel had made a remarkably accurate deduction.
*(If that's the case, then I absolutely cannot give up here!!)* Her fighting spirit reignited. Michel began to consider what she could do in her current state.
Her body was immobile.
All Michel could do now was pray for the safety of Jigil and the rest of the Resistance.
However— That powerful force of will from Michel merged with the energy leaking from her body, transforming into thought.
It traveled silently, faster than light, reaching the hearts of those Michel believed in...
◆◆◆ Michel's prayer reached Jigil as well.
But by then, the situation had already been decided.
......
......
...
Kalmann, who had undergone a grotesque transformation, was no opponent Jigil could handle.
At first, Jigil—the specialist in Machina Arts—held the advantage, but none of his attacks landed as finishing blows.
Kalmann possessed extraordinary regenerative power—recovery that far surpassed even super-class magical beasts—restoring every injury Jigil inflicted back to its original state.
No. If anything, after regeneration, his defensive capabilities seemed to have *increased*. Like a bone growing denser each time it broke, the Dragon Machine Exoskeleton appeared to develop biological characteristics.
On top of that, Kalmann was gradually adapting to Jigil's movements.
Though technically superior in skill, Jigil's attacks were landing less and less often.
Kalmann handled attacks from every direction as though he had eyes in the back of his head.
And it didn't stop there.
Though Jigil could land his fists on Kalmann's body, that armor was coated in poison—an intense acid that burned Jigil's fists on contact.
The impact from strikes, the plasma he'd hammered in the instant of contact—the damage Jigil sustained seemed far greater than what he'd dealt.
A wide array of weaponry, countermeasure systems, energy output rivaling or exceeding the Four Machine Generals, and absolute defense that Jigil couldn't breach.
Kalmann had completely blocked Jigil's ultimate attack: the Bio-Electromagnetic Vibration Wave.
By vibrating the domain it created, it could dissolve the bonds between molecules and atoms—a destruction technique beyond all defense.
The only thing Jigil knew of that could achieve this was a special Barrier that rejected and sealed away all interference— Indeed, Kalmann had mastered the Singular Chain Barrier.
*(What's going on? The Singular Chain Barrier requires a Stellar Engine to operate. You need a particle accelerator chain to produce Exotic Matter—Don't tell me he replicated it!? Does that modified exoskeleton Kalmann is wearing have a Stellar Engine built in!?)* Jigil had no choice but to reach that conclusion.
He didn't want to believe it, but what he'd witnessed before his eyes demanded he accept it as reality.
*(How could a mere Resistance group get their hands on such advanced technology—?)* His questions were endless, but now was not the time.
With his killing blow nullified, Jigil had no means left to defeat Kalmann.
And Kalmann's subordinates, who had joined the battle at some point, were also present.
They wore what should have been the very exoskeletons Jigil had destroyed, and were overwhelming Leitz and his squad.
Super-class beasts had also joined the fray. The battlefield had descended into chaos.
No support was coming. No last-minute stratagem was available.
And finally, seizing the opening right after Jigil's attack, Kalmann's Charged Particle Cannon vaporized Jigil's lower body.
Now, to finish off the faltering Jigil, Kalmann thrust forward a fist like a dragon's jaw—and it was closing in on Jigil's very eyes.
......
......
...
Watching the fist closing in before him, Jigil realized his defeat—and his death.
*(Why... why am I fighting like this?)* Not out of fear, but with genuine bewilderment.
The "brain" embedded within his bio-modified body was activating, and Jigil's original free will was beginning to awaken.
Having taken devastating blows from Kalmann, the specialized cells that composed his modified body had been heavily depleted. Computational resources had been redirected toward sustaining life functions, loosening Kalmann's hold on Jigil.
That was why Jigil had begun to question his current situation.
In his own perception, he was currently in the middle of a meeting.
Yet somehow he was fighting Kalmann—and Jigil was thrown into violent confusion.
Like flailing in a dream, Jigil fought desperately against his clouding consciousness.
Then— *—Jigil, is that you? Don't give up, reclaim your heart!!—* Michel's thoughts, carried from the depths of Jigil's mind, reached him as his consciousness surfaced.
And hearing that voice, Jigil's awareness fully awakened.
*(Yes, that's right. I was—I believe I was with Prime Minister Fuedra—)* As though waking from a dream, Jigil remembered the events just before this.
He then read the records of his actions during the period when he was himself yet *not* himself, accessing the data stored in his memory sectors.
*(Ah... There's no way anyone would believe me now. I'm sorry, Michel... I couldn't be of any use to you...)* With the death-dealing fist before him, his thoughts scattered like a revolving lantern.
Regret and frustration flooded in—regret over being manipulated by Prime Minister Fuedra, for betraying Michel and forcing her into crisis.
Yet there was also a sliver of hope.
Watching Kalmann—one kick that could send even Jigil, one of the strongest among the Four Machine Generals, flying—there was power there. Perhaps enough power to rescue Michel.
Clinging to both regret and hope, Jigil accepted the coming death— "I refuse to give in! We can't abandon the ideals we've pursued for years—not here!!"
—There was no way he would.
Now that Jigil's true will had awakened, he would never give up—not without Michel telling him to.
Jigil used the properties of his modified body to deflect Kalmann's Particle Fist, sacrificing even more cells to protect his vital organs.
He survived, but Jigil's combat ability was now virtually nil.
The battle was decided.
All that remained was negotiation.
"I was planning to end things with that last hit. You're a stubborn one, Jigil."
"Hmph. I suppose I can't very well die anymore. I've remembered the dreams and ideals I once held."
"Oh? Hate dying that much, do you? And ideals, now of all times? You're one to talk—the guy who pulled a fast one on us..."
"I'd like to explain the situation, but there's no time. Until I can rescue Lady Michel, could you let me pass?"
"Let you pass? After you betrayed us? You think that kind of excuse is going to fly?"
Even Jigil himself recognized how convenient this proposal sounded.
But if he couldn't convince Kalmann here, not just Jigil—even Michel would be lost.
He absolutely had to make Kalmann understand his current position.
"I know it's hard to believe, but I was being controlled. I'm heading to rescue Lady Michel—would you let me go for now?"
"Let you go? Oh, that's a *real* convenient story. Like hell that's gonna work!"
*Fair enough,* Jigil thought.
Kalmann was known for his fierce temperament and merciless treatment of enemies.
Jigil understood that Kalmann wouldn't simply let him go.
But he had no choice but to try.
And then, something entirely unexpected happened.
As Jigil opened his mouth to plead his case, Kalmann suddenly froze, staring up at a single point in the sky.
"That's..."
At the same moment Kalmann's murmur reached Jigil's ears, a black speck appeared in the sky above.
No—according to Jigil's telescopic analysis, it was a multipurpose strategic reconnaissance aircraft.
"That's Lieutenant Hiiragi's ship, isn't it—?"
"Yeah. I've worked with Hiiragi before. No doubt about it. But why here...?"
Both Jigil and Kalmann momentarily forgot they were in the middle of a battle, reflexively wary of the scout.
Jigil saw an opportunity.
Kalmann wanted to keep the scout from interfering.
But both their intentions were blown away in the next instant.
*"Can you hear me? Jigil, and Kalmann too!"* Hiiragi's voice blared through the atmosphere at tremendous volume.
Jigil and Kalmann locked eyes for a split second.
Kalmann's subordinates and Leitz's group also halted the fighting.
*"First, I need both sides to stop fighting and listen to me! I believe that is what Lady Michel wishes!"* Thus, the unexpected arrival of an intruder brought Jigil and Kalmann's battle to a halt.
◆◆◆ Kalmann was reuniting with Lieutenant Hiiragi.
"Hey, Hiiragi. You made it out safe?"
"So I did. After I informed Lady Michel of your defeat, I received a secret transmission from Jigil here—instructing me to find an opening and extract you. But Lady Michel moved on her own, and the situation changed. I was ordered to track you and gather intelligence while providing covert support until further instructions."
Hiiragi directed his gaze toward Jigil while responding to Kalmann, adding, "Though it seems the support wasn't needed."
At that moment, Hiiragi's female subordinate had just finished laying Jigil—who'd lost his lower body—into a medical capsule. The healing capsule couldn't restore lost cells, but Jigil had said that replenishing nutrients alone would allow him to self-regenerate.
"From Jigil...?"
"Yes, indeed."
"—I remember now. I did give that order."
Hiiragi nodded to the bewildered Kalmann, and Jigil confirmed it as well.
"So... you really were being controlled...?"
"That does seem to be the case. I can hardly believe it myself, but—board the ship. We'll talk while heading to rescue Lady Michel."
With that, Hiiragi guided Kalmann and the others to the reconnaissance aircraft.
Kalmann wasn't entirely convinced, but he'd known Hiiragi for a long time. He didn't believe Hiiragi was betraying him, so he chose to trust him.
Trusting Jigil, however, was another matter entirely.
That was what Kalmann was thinking when— *"Jigil seems to be in one piece. I'm glad we made it in time."* When Jigil's medical capsule was brought to the bridge, a mechanical voice echoed through the air.
"What!?"
Kalmann was startled.
Jigil's eyes widened, and he murmured involuntarily.
"—Could it be... Michel?"
*"Yes. Using Thought Communication, I've taken over this ship's computing systems."* "Wha—!?"
"You've got to be kidding..."
An outrageous statement delivered in a mechanical voice.
This wasn't some artificial intelligence trying to trick them with programmed speech.
Even Kalmann could tell that much. The voice's timbre might have been synthetic, but the manner of speaking was unmistakably Michel's.
More than anything, that voice carried the Intimidation unique to one who commands others.
*"Kalmann, I've detected Thought Communication waves. The wavelength is an exact match to the Michel in your memory records."* Kalmann could only nod.
"Amazing... truly. Lady Michel never ceases to exceed my expectations..."
"Well, it's Michel after all. I awakened to your voice myself, so I have no complaints..."
Kalmann had plenty to say, but at this point he had no choice but to believe.
Looking at Jigil's stunned expression—his face as though a weight had been lifted—Kalmann was convinced those words held no lie.
And it wasn't just Jigil.
The captured members of Leitz's group had also had their minds restored upon being bathed in Michel's Thought Communication.
"What the hell were we..."
Leitz and his people looked around as though waking from a dream.
With everyone before him in such a state, Kalmann could hardly continue to harbor doubts.
He clenched a cigar between his teeth and scratched his head vigorously.
"Tch. Fine, I get it. So, Lady Michel—what's the situation?"
In the end, Kalmann was the one who yielded.
Swallowing his anger toward Jigil, he agreed to listen.
He then learned that Michel had been severed from her body.
And that her body was running rampant, on the verge of releasing a catastrophic amount of energy...
"—If I have the encryption key, I can reconnect Michel's brain to her body. Get me to Michel immediately!!"
Jigil declared.
Approaching Michel in her rampage was incredibly dangerous for Jigil as well.
But even so—Jigil had made his resolve to stop Michel.
Kalmann didn't hesitate.
"Let's go, Hiiragi."
"Already heading there. Full speed."
Not just Kalmann, not just Hiiragi—everyone aboard this multipurpose strategic reconnaissance aircraft had steeled their resolve as one.
To witness the fate of the world.
Just as Kalmann reluctantly came around— Kristoph, too, had heard Michel's "voice."
Not just Kristoph—every soldier fighting on the battlefield, every member of the Resistance, each had heard that voice.
Michel had taken the enormous energy leaking from her body and projected it outward as Thought Communication in all directions.
Those whose "brains" had survived, bathed in that powerful message, had their sense of self restored.
And naturally, the soldiers who had merely been following orders now obeyed Michel's words.
The Resistance as well.
Shalma had told them Michel was an ally, so they immediately recognized that the current situation was abnormal.
Fortunately, Zaza believed without hesitation.
"Cease fire! This is undeniably Lady Michel's voice!!"
Thanks to Veldora's influence, Zaza had grown somewhat unshakable in the face of the unusual.
It was precisely that quality that allowed him to accept this extraordinary crisis as just another part of daily life.
Zaza had been somewhat corrupted by that influence too, but this time it worked in his favor.
With Zaza—the Resistance's greatest fighting force—calling a halt, the Imperial side also gained breathing room.
As a result, the battle subsided relatively calmly.
Once the fighting ended, an impossibly high energy release was detected from the direction of the city.
Now aware of it, continuing the battle would be an act of folly—and neither the Resistance nor the Empire made the wrong call on that point.
"I'm worried about Lady Michel. Something's happening—we have to find out—"
Zaza's words spoke for everyone present.
And so— Each of them set out toward that place, where they would witness something so extraordinary it defied anything they could have imagined in a lifetime.
◇◇◇ What in the world is going on?
I leave for a single week, take my eyes off things for just a moment, and a whole world nearly collapses.
I know that doesn't make sense, but honestly, I don't understand how things got to this point either.
I'd escaped for a little vacation as a reward to myself, but letting Veldora and
To think they'd actually drive a world to the brink of collapse...
My little trip was nothing compared to this.
They're absurd, I tell you. Completely off the rails.
It's not just a matter of being unconventional or defying common sense—it can't be summarized with such trivial words.
Seeing a world on the verge of collapse was even more shocking than the time I saw my own main body split clean in two.
It was only natural that
......
......
...
I absorbed my bisected main body, headed to the labyrinth to hear the results of my research while I was away, and detected the anomaly there.
Shinji greeted me looking suspicious.
When I pressed him, he told me that Veldora and the others had up and departed to another world on their own.
They'd used the Gate to Another World that was still mid-experiment, taking advantage of my absence to make their move.
*I should've known,* I thought.
They'd probably found something new before I could and wanted to show off about it.
Their petty schemes were as transparent as ever to me.
Waiting around wouldn't help, so I analyzed the remaining magic circle and had the coordinates of Veldora's destination estimated.
*"Already completed."* With
Just as I was settling that, a Thought Communication from Beretta arrived.
*"Rimuru-dono, we have a problem. Both of them are with me—"* That was the message from Beretta.
The timing was almost *too* perfect, but I'll let that slide.
It seemed Beretta had come asking for help and was in quite a panic.
Apparently Beretta had been dragged into things by those two as well.
Stopping those two had been too much for Beretta to handle.
They'd finally found a chance to contact me?
Putting that aside— "Shinji, looks like Veldora's caused trouble again. I'm heading out—you've got things handled here!"
I told Shinji.
As for Shinji, he seemed to be making excuses in front of Irina—the new researcher I'd introduced—drenched in cold sweat... but honestly, that was none of my business.
His cheek was swollen and red, but I couldn't afford to worry about that either.
"Wait, Lord Rimuru!? You're leaving me alone in this mess—!?"
Farewell, Shinji!
Sorry, but I can't save you!
Enjoy your time alone together.
Leaving Shinji—tearful, no, actually *crying*—behind, I performed an Inter-Dimensional Transfer to Beretta's location.
Beretta greeted me, and I was about to ask for an explanation.
But there apparently wasn't time for that sort of leisure.
"As a matter of fact—"
The instant Beretta began to speak, I felt the premonition of the world beginning to groan under strain.
"Whoa, whoa—this is way too much! Veldora doesn't know when to quit..."
"Er, no, this isn't Lord Veldora's doing—"
"I'm sorry this is putting you through trouble too, Beretta. All right, I'll give Veldora a proper scolding!"
"What!?"
And as an afterthought, "Ramiris too—" I added before leaping off toward Veldora and the others.
......
......
...
So that's how I ended up spanking Veldora with a paper fan...
Now what to do?
"Glueeeh!? Rimuru!? Why are you here!?"
"It's not my fault! I was just collateral damage from what Master did!"
Ramiris delivered a magnificent betrayal to the stunned Veldora.
Ramiris making excuses was nothing new, so she was clearly an accomplice.
Beretta had tried to gloss things over, but there was a limit to how much covering up one could do.
Just then, Beretta Transferred after me.
"Pl-please wait, Rimuru-dono! It's not what you think. We were in the middle of an experiment on an inter-dimensional magic circle, and we just got caught up in an accident!"
Beretta, having chased after me, blurted that out in a panic.
Hmm. An accident, you say.
Maybe there was more to it?
Or was it just an excuse?
Hearing Beretta's words, Veldora seized upon them as if to say "I knew it!"
"That's right, Rimuru! It's unfair to assume everything is my fault! And besides, hitting me on the head without warning is just cruel!"
He was practically radiating indignation, but his eyes were slightly evasive.
So it wasn't entirely without guilt after all.
Ramiris had betrayed Veldora first because she knew she was in the wrong... In that case, maybe I should press the matter.
"I see. My apologies, then. That magic circle was a splendid piece of work, and I was actually going to commend you for it... So if it was an accident, it was just a coincidence?"
Well then, how would they react?
"That magic circle was *my* research achievement! It wasn't an accident—it went exactly as calculated!"
"What are you saying, Ramiris?! That was joint research with me! You're not stealing all the credit!!"
Fools.
They took the bait perfectly.
"...Lady Ramiris, Lord Veldora—that was essentially a confession," Beretta murmured mournfully.
"Wha—!?"
The two realized it simultaneously.
*To speak is to fall*—that was exactly what happened.
Beretta was an accomplice too. He'd tried to reduce the blame by claiming it was an accident, but their coordination was sloppy.
Well, there were probably all sorts of circumstances behind it.
And besides— "Anyway, it doesn't seem like that's the main issue right now. This clearly isn't Veldora's doing."
I said that, turning my attention to two Gravity Vortices that were attempting to grow by pulling in all matter and energy from their surroundings.
Two Gravity Vortices, centered on a single woman, feeding off each other and growing—becoming Singularities, super-gravity Black Holes that devoured all matter.
"How did it come to this?"
"That's what *I'd* like to know! Something called an 'Infinite Engine'—the power reactor belonging to some woman named Michel went haywire. We were trying to stop it!"
"That's exactly right! I was desperately trying to prevent the world from collapsing! To blame me for this is unjust, Rimuru!"
Thank you for that explanation that explains absolutely nothing.
Ramiris also seemed to be in a panic, so I'd get the details later.
The cause was clearly not Veldora—if anything, he'd been trying to help.
I felt a twinge of guilt for hitting him, but then again, it was only a misunderstanding caused by Veldora's usual behavior.
Self-inflicted, really.
I'd like Veldora to reflect on his track record.
But—an Infinite Engine?
A black hole as a power reactor—what kind of joke was that?
It didn't make sense.
Was this world's technology really that advanced?
Or rather, how could you even extract energy from something like— *"In essence, it's a type of phase-conversion reactor—"* Keep it concise, understandable, and brief, please.
*"...In simple terms, it's a mechanism that utilizes the phenomenon of mass converting to energy when matter falls into a Gravity Vortex. By using two Rings that mutually interfere with each other, it can theoretically produce infinite energy. However, it's far from perfect and appears to be an extraordinarily dangerous device."* Ciel's explanation was difficult.
As expected, "concise" was not the word for it, but I got the general idea.
So it was an unfinished product.
An imperfect engine went haywire, causing the current situation—that was all I needed to understand.
If this continued to expand and run rampant, it would eventually consume this entire universe.
And if that happened, would it affect other dimensions as well?
*"No. It won't affect other dimensions. This universe alone will lose its growth rate and converge to zero."* If there was no impact on other worlds, we could just leave this one behind and head home...
But Veldora had been trying to save this world.
In that case, I wanted to respond to that spirit.
Could I deal with it?
*"Easily. This is, in a sense, a phenomenon similar to the
If we considered the growth rate as the progression of time, then the disappearance of expansion force from this universe would mean the end of the concept of time.
If the universe's expansion represented positive energy, then what was happening before me was negative energy. Negative energy was special—it wasn't something you could counter through conventional defense.
Veldora was virtually immune to the effects of nearly all interference waves.
That was how omnipotent "Probability Manipulation" was.
Even as an enemy attack, it would have been completely ineffective.
Even if the world were destroyed, Veldora could simply move to another dimension without being affected.
He could operate without issue even in a world where all energy—and thus, time—had ceased.
Yet even Veldora could only counter this phenomenon that absorbed all surrounding energy by using his vast reserves of Magicules to neutralize it.
In other words, it came down to compatibility.
But that had nothing to do with me.
Hypothetically speaking, if my Ability—the Gluttony King—had gone out of control, it would have produced something similar to this.
So I understood how to deal with it.
Whether expansion or annihilation, force has a direction. Energy has a flow, and you just need to stop that flow.
In other words—stop time.
If you stopped time, the ever-expanding negative energy would also halt.
Veldora couldn't handle this phenomenon.
He simply couldn't manipulate time.
The Ultimate Skill Chaos King had "Space-Time Manipulation," but Veldora had never stopped time of his own volition. He probably could if he practiced, but he was too lazy to bother training his abilities.
Having been born at maximum strength from the start, he had zero interest in anything beyond what entertained him. That was Veldora's worst habit.
He'd always insisted that since he could move within stopped time, there was no need to stop it himself.
That was a fair point, but it became a problem in situations like this.
Not that it mattered much—he'd run into plenty of situations like this and it'd always been fine. It would be nice if this made him want to practice a bit... but being relied on only when things went wrong was tiresome.
...It was always like that, so oh well.
◇◇◇ I'd grasped what was happening. Let me sort this out quickly.
Just as I thought that, people began gathering around.
Armed squads pouring out of buildings.
They seemed to be trying to neutralize the gravitational waves, but it was completely pointless.
The one commanding them had despair written all over his face—he knew their efforts were futile.
And then, from above—a flying ship arrived. Or rather, a warship.
It was clearly a product of impressive technology, but a warship wasn't going to solve this problem.
Whether they existed or not, no beam weapon could blow away a black hole.
As I was thinking this, several figures burst from the ship.
"Michel, stay strong! I'll reboot you right now!"
Someone was shouting that while flying toward us.
A woman missing her lower body, and a grizzled old man carrying her.
It looked like they were calling out to the woman named Michel, trying to use her own will to halt the rampage.
The woman herself looked to be in serious danger, but her concern for Michel outweighed it.
Still, I wouldn't recommend getting any closer.
The old man was clad in impressively designed armor and concealed energy output roughly twice his own volume—he could probably survive. But the area around here was already forming a gravity field.
If they got too close, wouldn't they also get pulled straight toward the event horizon?
Whether my concern reached them or not, the old man stopped in his tracks, and the woman—unhappy about it—began arguing with him heatedly.
What I could hear was a back-and-forth of "Let me go" and "I can't do that."
The old man seemed to be the rational one, desperately trying to convince the woman.
Well then—better do this before they waste any more time.
Lingering here would only increase the damage.
And so, I casually stopped time.
Then, *boing boing*, I walked right up to the singularity.
A rainbow bridge floating in the darkness—beyond the boundary on the other side, two rings hovered.
The Infinite Engine, was it?
*"The Compression Breeder Reactor, to be precise. The ultimate culmination of the art called science—the pinnacle of energy generation."* Impressive indeed.
That much came across clearly enough.
So it was a power beyond nuclear. But without control, it was meaningless.
*"This technology is, frankly, anachronistic. Compared to the Main Body's previous life, this world is roughly two centuries ahead in terms of civilization level... and yet they still lack the foundational capability to utilize this technology. They can't refine metals capable of withstanding the heat generated, nor can they produce force fields sufficient to contain it. It's no surprise it went out of control."* Right.
Those cyborg-type people appeared to have miniaturized fusion reactors and spatial-compression particle accelerators built in.
Those were clearly products of a super-civilization, but at least you could trace some semblance of a technological progression.
But an engine capable of controlling a micro black hole—where had they gotten that technology? It was incomprehensible.
It was too alien, too far beyond their civilization level.
In other words, whoever built it might have been some kind of outsider from another world. If I ever met them, I might consider offering them a position as an honorary researcher.
Standing in the stopped world, I gazed at the Infinite Engine and pondered.
It'd be dangerous to leave it behind—best to recover it.
*"Then allow me to manage it properly!"* M...manage...?
Ciel, my Ability enthusiast—could it be she'd found a new hobby?
Her voice was practically *gleeful*, and the likelihood was high.
Oh well.
We weren't short on energy at the moment, but Ciel was in high spirits, and it would be rude to rain on her parade.
And so, the Infinite Engine was absorbed into my "Stomach."
"So, Rimuru. What are you going to do with that?"
Stopping time had given Veldora some breathing room.
He'd spotted me secretly recovering the Infinite Engine and immediately grilled me about it.
I'd let my guard down. Veldora could move in stopped time.
"I was thinking of studying it since it's interesting."
"Hmph! That's cheating! Even Ramiris and I couldn't analyze it! I was working so hard to obtain it—!"
"How should I know!? I thought you were trying to save the world! That's why I was willing to overlook you trying to get ahead—!"
"Ah, well... that's true, I suppose... Kua-ha-ha-ha... *phew*, Ramiris wanted me to install it in Beretta, though..."
Sensing he was losing the argument, Veldora backed down.
Trying to win a verbal argument with me was several centuries too early.
But install it in Beretta, hmm?
That was actually an interesting idea.
*"—It's possible, but please allow me to finish my research first. I'd like to provide a more perfected version."* Ohh, Ciel!
Still the perfectionist, I see.
But with this, I had Ciel's approval.
Installing it in Beretta was practically a done deal.
"Right—let's go with that plan!"
"What!?"
"Beretta's been through a lot too. Let's reward him by installing this!"
"Kua—ha-ha-ha! That's my ally, Rimuru—you always understand! Ramiris will be pleased too!"
Veldora was in high spirits.
I was interested too, and efficient use of resources was important.
Beretta had an earth attribute, so if it was the Infinite Engine perfected by Ciel, it could be operated safely without risk of another runaway.
That took care of the hazardous material disposal.
All that remained was to provide Michel with a replacement heart—a power reactor.
That would be easy enough.
I'd already analyzed the surrounding cyborgs, and Ciel had prepared something.
*"A Nuclear Fusion Heart Reactor—in this world, it's called a Stellar Engine. Rather excessive for individual ownership, but I suppose it will do."* Ciel seemed caught in a dilemma: she didn't want to compromise on something she'd built herself, yet what she'd made was far too high-performance for individual use.
After all, this engine was far more powerful than the uncontrolled Infinite Engine she'd analyzed. I could understand her feelings.
She always tried *way* too hard.
Even though it looked like she'd only put together a few parts, the result was nothing compared to the engines installed in those cyborgs.
Well, we were getting the Infinite Engine, so consider it a fair exchange.
While handling that, I also got the full story from Veldora.
He'd apparently thrown off all restraint the moment he arrived in this world and started having fun however he pleased.
That was exactly why I had to come in person.
Veldora and Ramiris needed a guardian.
And now that he'd finished telling his tale, Veldora wore a bright expression, convinced he wouldn't be scolded anymore.
No, no—the punishment is still coming!
He was so relieved now that the Infinite Engine crisis was resolved, he seemed to think the world had been saved...
To give him a proper reality check, I resolved to leave the cleanup of this world firmly in Veldora's hands.