"Eternal life and youth? Of course I want that. That's an instant yes."
In response to my question, Luciana answered without hesitation.
I had posed the same question to Luciana, another one of my top lieutenants, that I'd asked of Henry.
The answer I got was the exact opposite.
In the private audience chamber, Luciana shrugged and said:
"I still don't want to die. If I could live forever, that's what I'd choose."
"Honest."
"Don't you think that's more befitting of a succubus?"
Luciana said this looking somewhat proud.
She always took pride in her race and carried herself with dignity.
Every word and gesture was brimming with confidence.
I had heard that many in the Demon Lord's army were devoted to her.
Not because of her succubus traits, but because of her own charisma.
"If I'm going to become undead anyway, a vampire is pretty attractive. Not having your appearance change much really matters... In any case, I won't die as long as I stay by the Demon Lord's side, so don't you worry, okay?"
Luciana grinned mischievously and poked my nose with her finger.
That was when I first realized.
Eternal life wasn't her only motivation.
She was worried about me.
She seemed to have reservations about being the one to die first, leaving me behind.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into all this."
"Don't apologize. That's water under the bridge, isn't it? We both benefit from this, so don't worry about it."
Saying that, Luciana sighed.
She looked slightly exasperated.
I fell silent, unable to retort.
Unfortunately, nothing clever came to mind.
All I could do was feel grateful.
Unable to stand watching me like that, Luciana changed the subject.
"Well, never mind that. I got word from the lab. It seems the golem analysis is complete."
"I see."
I shifted my thinking as well.
They had said it would take some time, but it was much sooner than expected.
Only ten days had passed since I'd requested the analysis.
They had probably thrown themselves into the work without even taking time to sleep.
Having delivered her message, Luciana opened the door and turned toward me.
"I've got things to do so I can't come along, but make sure to tell me the results later."
"Understood."
When I nodded, Luciana waved and left the room.
Her manner was casual, but she was capable of genuinely caring about others.
This was a side of her I never would have noticed when she was alive.
Back then, we were enemies, and the moment we faced each other, all we could do was try to kill one another.
What a strange fate.
Now alone, I decided to head straight for the lab.
I had to check on the golem's condition no matter what.
Along the way, I explained the situation to Grom and Henry and brought them along.
At the entrance to the lab, the director was waiting.
"Lord Demon Lord! Welcome! Please, please, do come in!"
She greeted us in an obsequious tone and promptly took the lead.
We passed through the entrance checkpoint and proceeded down the corridor.
It was Henry's first time visiting the lab, but his mana had already been registered, so no alarms went off.
Henry surveyed the interior with great interest, glancing at the staff members who bowed each time they passed.
"You've got quite the welcoming committee."
"Indeed we do! The other day, the Demon Lord provided us with a most excellent specimen. The entire staff is deeply grateful!"
Dark circles were clearly visible under the beaming director's eyes.
She was obviously suffering from severe sleep deprivation.
And yet, she was strangely energetic.
She enjoyed her research from the bottom of her heart, and even extreme fatigue didn't seem to bother her.
That said, I'd be in trouble if she collapsed from overwork.
Sooner or later, I'd have to mandate rest periods at the lab.
There would be pushback, but this was one thing I couldn't budge on.
As I took note of this unexpected issue, I continued deeper into the lab.
Along the way, Henry posed a question to the director.
"I came to see this thing called a gun. Where is it?"
The director's face lit up as she approached Henry.
She grabbed his hand and shook it vigorously up and down.
"You're interested in firearms? Then let me have someone show you right away! I'd love for you to test-fire one so you can experience the performance firsthand!"
The director flagged down a passing staff member and instructed them to guide Henry to the gun storage room.
The staff member nodded at once and led Henry away.
"Chief, I'm going to check out the guns. Let me rejoin you later."
"Sure."
Having seen Henry off, Grom and I continued following the director.
The director walked ahead, talking away as she looked back at us.
"My, my, that golem is truly something... The more we analyzed it, the more astonished we became. Was it really manufactured in the Magitech Nation?"
"Without a doubt. I captured it from the Magitech Nation's army."
It would be impossible for another nation to produce one.
I had never heard of a country with technological capabilities rivaling the Magitech Nation.
"I hear the analysis is complete. Is that true?"
"Rest assured. We threw everything we had at the task, and the results speak for themselves."
When Grom asked with an intimidating air, the director placed a fist against her chest and replied.
She wasn't fazed in the slightest.
Her passion for research appeared to be genuine.
Eventually, I arrived at the room I was looking for.
It was in the basement of the lab, sealed off by a massive steel door.
The director undid multiple locks and opened the door.
"Now then, please. This way."
Beyond the door lay an entirely white space.
And there, in the center, sat the golem.
Compared to when I'd captured it, it looked brand new, with unfamiliar components added on.
The moment Grom laid eyes on the golem, he rushed over.
"Oh! Oh! It's been restored beautifully!"
"We referenced other intact sections to repair the damaged areas. Some functions have been lost, but it should be operational for the time being."
While the director explained in detail, Grom was completely absorbed in examining the golem.
He was clearly more excited than usual.
In truth, he'd probably been looking forward to the analysis more than anyone.
He must have really taken a liking to its design.
"Here are the analysis results. Everything we found about the golem is included."
"Mm."
I looked over the documents handed to me.
They had examined the golem's basic performance and internal structure in considerable detail.
As expected, its lineage was entirely different from existing spells and designs.
The Magitech Nation's proprietary technology had been used extensively.
The golem before me appeared to have been restored to the extent possible.
For the parts that couldn't be replicated, they had compensated with the lab's own technology, apparently.
As the director had said, several functions had been lost, but the core drive system seemed to have survived intact.
What caught my attention most among these was the shared vision function.
A small crystal housed in the golem's head served as its eye, projecting the captured scenery into the spellcaster's field of vision.
This allowed the spellcaster to remotely operate the golem as if it were their own body.
However, if the distance became too great, the function ceased, and control was inevitably lost.
This was probably why the golem hadn't pressed its attack against the Holy Staff army during the battle at the fortress.
The golem could only be operated within the range of the shared vision.
With the spellcaster stationed at the fortress, the golem's range of movement was naturally restricted.
It was an unexpected weakness for such a high-performance golem.
(I see...)
I read through all the documents.
Having grasped the full picture, I spoke to the director.
"Director. I'd like to hear your personal assessment."
"...May I speak freely?"
"By all means."
When I gave my permission, the director looked at the golem with a bitter expression and spoke.
"I can understand the design philosophy and intent. When it comes to ingenuity, it's nothing short of genius. It pains me to say it, but I have to admit it. However, the technical capability is critically lacking."
The director flipped through the documents in my hand and pointed to one page.
She furrowed her brows and protested with evident dissatisfaction.
"First of all, this golem is unfinished. You must have captured a prototype that was deployed in the field for testing."
The director flipped through the documents again.
This time, she showed me a different page.
It was covered in red-ink annotations, practically from edge to edge.
"Just off the top of my head, there are 178 magical defects. And that's after excluding damage and malfunctions. What's incredible is that these defects interact with one another to produce performance beyond what should be possible. Even if you eliminated every defect and perfectly calibrated the whole thing, you'd never achieve this level of performance. It's nothing short of a miracle."
"As I thought."
I largely shared the director's view.
The Magitech Nation did indeed possess formidable technological capabilities.
But even so, they hadn't yet reached the stage of being able to manufacture this golem.
The flaws and unresolved defects somehow compensated for each other, resulting in a weapon that actually worked.
It didn't seem like an intentional design.
I could see why the director called it a miracle.
"Would you like me to activate it? It won't perform to its original specifications, but we might discover something."
"That's a good idea. Please do."
I nodded in agreement.
Seeing it in action would be the clearest way to understand it.
It was also essential for identifying areas of improvement.
Grom, who had sidled up to the golem, was looking at me with anticipation.
Even without saying a word, his feelings were clear.
Since we were here anyway, I decided to grant his earnest request.