Chapter 55: What’s a Golem?

“Hmm. An attack? On where?”

“S-sir! Someone has... the Central Research Institute—it’s been—”

The man delivering the report looked terrified. Emperor Gilinades of the Dalai Tokazma Empire—the same ruler who had recently crushed the Paptes Kingdom’s Silver Wheel Knights with overwhelming force, displaying the might of his personal war machine, the Black Dragon—furrowed his sharp brows. The Black Dragon, a steel giant reinforced with imperial-grade mithril and classified as an Iron Golem, was the pinnacle of his nation’s military power.

“The Central Research Institute, you say. What’s the damage?”

“…It’s difficult to report, Your Majesty.”

“Speak.”

“…Yes, sire. They—they’re all dead. The worst part is that every last manufacturing unit—the Mother Machines—they were…”

“Destroyed?”

“…Yes, sire.”

The subordinate lowered his head, voice trembling with defeat.

“I see. Understood.”

Gilinades closed his eyes, struggling to suppress the anger rising inside him. But it was too much. The pen he’d been toying with between his fingers snapped clean in half.

“Which organization was behind this?”

“…We still don’t know, Your Majesty. No leads yet.”

“Fools! Begin an immediate investigation! And the remaining armored doll divisions—reassign them to guard the other research facilities at once!”

“Y-yes, Your Majesty!”

The officer bolted from the room as if his life depended on it.

“So, half of our production units are gone. If they struck now, it must be connected to the ‘Covenant Protocol.’ Worst case, the Demon King’s army has begun to move. We’ll have to act swiftly—if only to keep them in check.”

Running through the empire’s risks and resources, Gilinades calculated quickly. Fortunately, the overall strategy remained intact—for now.

“Um… is that news about the golem units true?”

“Yes, Lady Sonia. According to reports from our scouts, there’s no mistake.”

“Ugh… seriously?”

Kamina summarized the intelligence gathered from scouts across the region.

In this civil war, the Paptes Kingdom’s royal faction commanded sixty thousand troops—Royal Knights, local lords’ armies, and mercenaries—plus four thousand reinforcements from our own Sugarcreek forces.

Opposing them, the Prince’s Rebellion had twenty thousand men—noble levies and mercenaries—plus an additional ten thousand reinforcements from the Dalai Tokazma Empire, mostly cavalry. That number was expected to keep growing over time.

Up to that point, the situation didn’t look too bad for our side.

But what made my stomach twist wasn’t their troop count—it was the report about them fielding nearly a hundred magical constructs, Golems, alongside their army.

“So, a golem… that’s one of those dolls that move using magic, right?”

“Indeed. They sometimes appear in ruins from the ancient Magical Empire era, usually as monsters guarding the site. The most common types are Stone Golems and Wood Golems.”

“Then the ones we’re up against this time are like those? The ones guarding ruins?”

“It seems not. Reports indicate these are man-operated golems.”

“Golems that humans can pilot? That’s amazing! Used right, they’d work just like heavy machinery!”

“Heavy… machinery?”

“Ah—never mind. Anyway, if people can pilot them, then they’re basically robots.”

Images from old robot anime popped into my head.

“So… can we even fight something like that?”

“Well,” Kamina said, “if they were ordinary ruin guardians, we could manage. But these ones are piloted, armed, and reportedly clad in iron armor. We can’t yet say what kind of battle this will be.”

Good grief. What is this—some kind of Gundam, Votoms, or Eva situation?

In every robot story, the only way to fight fire is with fire. If we had our own mechs—or a strategist who knew their every weakness—we might stand a chance.

“S-so… what’s the plan? What’s the Paptes Kingdom going to do? Are we preparing anything? Can we make golems too?”

“They’re… considering strategies. For now, the plan is to rely on cavalry charges driven by unshakable faith, and to test siege engines—large catapults and the like.”

“...Wha—? O-oh. Right. Sure.”

Yeah, that’s not going to work. You can’t win with “spirit” against something made of metal. And siege weapons against a moving target? Good luck with that.

“Hey, Kamina… we’ll be staying in the rear lines, right? Right?”

“? Yes, Lady Sonia. Our orders are to guard the main camp.”

“Oh. Okay. That’s… that’s good.”

If things start looking bad, I’m running first.

Even I have my limits when it comes to defending Sugarcreek’s honor. I’m just not built for life-or-death chaos—and honestly, that’s fine by me. I’m a civilian at heart, not a soldier.

“Oh? This facility has Iron Golems guarding the entrance.”

“Looks like they’ve reinforced their defenses since last time.”

The Demon King murmured casually, and Zex nodded beside him.

They were observing a military complex in a port city of the Dalai Tokazma Empire. Nearby stood an imperial garrison—if they caused a commotion, soldiers would swarm them instantly.

Peering from the shadows, they counted nearly ten Iron Golems standing guard, confirming their intel was accurate.

“L-Lord Zexais, what are your orders? With just our current forces…”

Sylphy asked nervously. She was leading seven operatives from the Special Ground Assault Unit, an intelligence squad embedded within the empire.

“Don’t worry,” Zex said gently. “We’ll draw their attention. You and your team focus on gathering internal intel.”

“The last place only had a bunch of blueprints—pretty dull ones at that. Let’s hope this time we find something actually interesting.”

The Demon King’s tone was almost cheerful, clearly enjoying himself.

“I, for one, am getting tired of this. I’d rather go home now,” Heishil muttered.

“Quit whining and help out a little. Part of the blame lies with your department anyway—for the sloppy management that led to this mess.”

“And why, pray tell, must I clean up after my subordinates’ mistakes…”

Heishil grumbled under his breath, sulking.

“Everyone ready? …Then, let’s begin.”

With that calm smile still on his face, Zex dashed straight toward the Iron Golem—his speed unbelievable, like a human bullet.

The pilot inside the Iron Golem spotted the rapidly approaching figure and shouted a warning.

“E-enemy attack!”

Without hesitation, the towering Iron Golem swung its massive iron battle axe down at the incoming blur.

Zex met the blow head-on, raising his enormous two-handed war mace to block the strike.

“W-what the—?!”

Even the Iron Golem’s pilot couldn’t suppress his shock at such an inhuman feat.

“Now then… let’s see just how durable you really are.”

Still smiling, Zex spun once, building momentum before slamming the mace down onto the Iron Golem with both hands.

BOOM!

“Uwaaaah!”

The Iron Golem was hurled backward, crashing through the hardened wall of the military facility with an explosive roar that echoed across the compound.

But after a moment, it stirred—and rose unsteadily back to its feet.

“Quite the tough one, aren’t you,” Zex murmured, glancing at his weapon—now bent out of shape—with mild exasperation.

The Iron Golem’s armor was dented but largely intact. It raised its battle axe once again.

Meanwhile, the other Iron Golems—ten in total—began to mobilize in pairs, advancing toward the Demon King and Heishil.

Another one closed in on Zex.

“Alpha-Two, this one’s dangerous. We’ll strike together.”

“Alpha-Two, acknowledged.”

The Iron Golems tightened their grips on their axes, closing the distance with deliberate, grinding steps.

“…I see. Destroying them physically will take some effort. Well, so be it.”

Zex said this with a faint smile, letting his hands sway loosely at his sides as he faced the advancing machines.

“You’ve all been rather naughty, haven’t you? I think it’s time for a little… reflection.”

And with that, Zex vanished.

“What—?!”

The Iron Golem’s pilot let out a startled cry as their target disappeared before their eyes.

Before they could even react, Zex reappeared silently behind them—his expression serene, almost merciful—as he swung down an invisible scythe of death.

“Now then, resist if you can… Disintegrate.”

The spell activated instantly. The golem’s massive frame dissolved into a storm of glittering particles, vanishing as if it had never existed. It was over in the blink of an eye.

“Wah—!”

A foolish yelp escaped the Iron Golem’s pilot—a young boy—who was suddenly launched into the air, still seated as if the machine remained beneath him. He hit the ground hard, landing flat on his rear.

“O-ow…”

He looked up at Zex, trembling, eyes wide with fear.

“I see. So they choose pilots based on magical aptitude,” Zex murmured thoughtfully, nodding once before turning toward the remaining Iron Golem.

“I would have preferred to capture that one intact for study, but…”

He trailed off as he glanced toward the Demon Lord and Heishil. The golems that had charged the Demon Lord lay in pieces, limbs scattered across the ground—while the Demon Lord himself sat casually atop the wreckage, looking bored. As for Heishil, he had apparently hijacked one of the golems and was now using it to fight the others.

“…It appears that won’t be necessary after all. Still, I should probably offer a chance to surrender.”

“I—I surrender!”

The last Iron Golem lowered itself to the ground, limbs folding beneath it like a knight bowing in submission. Its cockpit opened, and a young girl emerged, tears welling in her eyes as she raised her trembling hands.

Zex smiled gently.

“A wise decision.”