The Constructs

The streets looked so busy, not only with people, but also with carts and horse-drawn carriages. It could be seen that they carried so much food, as if today were a harvest day and a big feast was to be held.

The vast Veyrain Kingdom now appeared smaller due to the multitude of carts and various races, walking side by side, conversing with each other, reuniting with old friends long separated by fate. Even important figures like the leaders of the races arrived, or at least, were replaced by their children. Like Glok, for instance.

However, amidst it all, that kingdom stood out the most. Like a flower in the middle of a field of grass. But instead of beauty, the flower was full of thorns in a deep red color. So none dared to approach them, keeping their distance, choosing to avoid future trouble. They seemed unbothered, even assisted. Therefore, everyone made way, as if they were important people untouchable by the common folk.

"How dare they come here," someone whispered in the crowd.

"What do the elves think by accepting them?" another asked.

"Don't you know? The elves are said to be forced; otherwise, the same thing would happen to them as happened to the dwarves," someone else explained.

And not only them, whispers almost echoed from everyone there, making it hard not to hear what they said, although difficult to understand due to the low voice. Of course, the knights continued to step forward, ignoring the useless chatter. Besides, all they could do was talk without action. So why worry?

"Hmm, so they're the ones," Ailord remarked, observing the knights in shining white armor who seemed more like forces of righteousness than agents of slaughter. "Indeed, you can't judge someone by appearance. If you hadn't told me, I would have thought of them as extraordinary knights that even capable of clearing the way."

"Extraordinarily wicked, yes," Glok replied curtly. He truly disliked them. Just a bunch of people who felt extraordinary for trampling the weak. "Pathetic."

Ailord sighed. "What else can be done? They have the power to do so." He turned away from the window, which happened to overlook the main street. The guest house itself was not far from there, atop a higher mound of earth, enabling them to see what was happening on the main road. "It makes me wonder, don't you have someone who can stand up to them? There's no way, among all the races here, none of you are capable."

However, looking at their faces, the answer was already apparent.

"It's impossible. It's impossible that no one can confront them," Ailord couldn't believe that out of all the races present, none of them could face those knights. What made them so special?

Glok sighed. "It's not that we're incapable. But..." He gathered his courage, though something so frightening lingered in his mind that his hands trembled even when clenched. "They have something we don't. Constructs."

"Constructs?" Ailord recalled how they kept mentioning Constructs and iron Constructs as if they were something extraordinary.

"Just like the one you're wearing now. They also have Constructs. The difference is, they don't use them directly; instead, they control them like puppets that follow every command of their masters," Glok explained, then glanced at the iron Construct. "They don't use iron; they use copper. I don't know how you make Constructs from iron, even ones that match the speed of heroes.

But their Constructs are also strong. However, the problem lies in their numbers. Facing one or two is not a problem. One hundred? Two hundred? Even if you have great strength, you'll tire out. While they will never tire, never feel pain, and surely will continue to execute orders even when their bodies are no longer perfect."

"So you mean, you're outnumbered?" 

Reyn shook his head. He stood beside Glok, leaning against the wooden wall with the same heavy sigh. It seemed the strength of that kingdom had long robbed them of hope. "Not only that," he answered with frustration. "Their copper is also imbued with magic, making it difficult to penetrate with ordinary weapons. Moreover..." His hand clenched tightly. "They can take our mana."

This final explanation left Ailord even more intrigued.

"That's the reason why none of us want to face them," he continued, concluding.

'No wonder they're afraid. Having no mana is equivalent to being an ordinary human. Ordinary humans facing Constructs are essentially handing over their lives,' he thought, then looked back at Reyn. "Are the heroes you mentioned not fight back?"

They exchanged glances, appearing more desperate.

"No. They've tried, and as a result, one of them had to sacrifice themselves to save the others," Heyla replied. "From the information I've heard, their mana was indeed greater than others. However, in the face of those Constructs, they were just like large mana tubes waiting to be sucked dry. Meanwhile, the Constructs that absorbed them would become stronger and stronger until the heroes were forced to explode themselves so that the Constructs sucking them would also be destroyed and not pose a threat to others."

"They managed to escape, but the sorrow in their hearts was too great, considering their sacrifice was their own leader. Without him, the heroes could not possibly cooperate and would still attack each other. His loss was a heavy blow, not only to them but to all of us," Glok continued, looking down at the floor. There was no longer his usual cheerfulness and spirit, only regret and sadness.

The room grew heavier. For a full minute, not a single word was uttered as they pondered, trying to figure out how to escape this situation. They had thought of various ways, but none seemed useful against those Constructs. Without mana, they were just ordinary creatures who knew how to fight but lacked the power to do so. Dealing with ordinary bandits was one thing, but facing copper creatures without pain or fatigue was entirely different.

'Could this be the reason I was transferred to this world? To help them?' He observed the four people in front of him. Their somber faces made him feel uneasy, especially after the long and lively conversation they had had the night before. After struggling alone for so long, this was the first time he had felt a sense of camaraderie again.

"You need to take me back to base, Glok," he suddenly said, surprising them.

"B-base?" Glok asked, not understanding.

"The place I took you to be healed. We need to go there if you still want to face them."

"Wait wait, what do you mean?" Reyn asked, not understanding. "Of course, we want to face them, but why does it sound like you're making it possible? Do you have a plan?"

"Ah!" Teena exclaimed, instantly brightening up. "You mean, you want to attack them using your Construct, right? Does your Construct also absorb mana?" She asked eagerly.

"No," Hearing that, their faces immediately turned somber again. "Wait, I'm not finished talking. My mec- Construct indeed cannot do that. But," a confident grin formed, "He can do many other things more than that. I'm sure Glok knows what I mean," he looked towards the goblin who immediately caught on.

"Your weird attacks!" he exclaimed. "When fighting alongside him facing the lizards in the inner part of the forest."

"Lizards?"

"Inner part of the forest?"

Reyn and Heyla asked, surprised.

"I'll tell you later," Glok cleared his throat a few times, then continued, "So, when fighting with him, I noticed that each of his attacks always caused explosions? I don't know what it is, but what I do know is that the internal organs of the lizards were instantly exploded."

"Huh!?" Teena, Reyn, and Heyla exclaimed simultaneously.

"What do you mean? Even the attacks of the heroes couldn't do it. Internal bleeding, maybe, but exploded?" Reyn couldn't believe what Glok was saying now. He had seen with his own eyes attack after attack from the heroes, and none of them could do what the owner of the iron Construct did.

Heyla approached cautiously. "S-so, you're stronger than the heroes?" she asked softly.

Before Glok could answer, Reyn stood beside him, pulling Heyla's arm to face him directly. "No! It's impossible for anyone to be stronger than them. If they were people from the dark ages, okay, maybe I'd believe it. But in our time? No one has ever breached the 'Red Core'. Even Sir Knight Von Vrederick is only at the 'Purple Core'! And that's already incredibly strong!"

Glok placed a hand on his shoulder, drawing Reyn's attention. "Sorry to say this, friend, but he is indeed stronger than them. Believe it or not, I saw it with my own eyes. The heroes would also struggle against those lizards, and he managed to face two of them at once."

Reyn realized that while Glok might not be as strong as them, he still ranked directly below them in terms of strength. So, Glok could definitely estimate the strength of the lizards they faced in the inner forest. However, he still found it difficult to accept that there was something or someone stronger than the heroes because they were the strongest beings currently in existence.

"If he's really that strong, why did he get injured?" he asked again, insisting.

"I was there, almost died. He had to fight two lizards while protecting me, which caused him severe injuries. I could only join in at the last moments when he received a massive attack, and as we heard from him, his Construct ran out of energy," Glok looked towards Ailord, who was smiling. "Is that why you suddenly stopped in place? Because you forced your Construct to fight even though its energy was on the verge of running out, especially after chasing me for so long."

"Wait, chasing you?" Teena asked, worried.

"I'll tell you later."

"No no no. I won't believe this. I have to see it with my own eyes if he really is as strong as you say," Reyn insisted, making Glok sigh, giving up on convincing him.

"Umm."

Every pair of eyes turned towards Heyla.

"All this time, we've been continuously referring to him, his, and he. We haven't even asked for his name. Did you guys realize that?"

Reyn snorted. "You're just realizing it now too, aren't you?"

"Reyn!"

"Ailord."

"Huh?" Reyn replied.

"Ailord, my name."

"That's the weirdest name I've ever heard."