[After finding the breakthrough, Stelle and the others immediately followed Clara.]
[To show sincerity, the ever-capable Dan Heng even helped repair her power supply device.]
[This made Clara quite troubled. She knew everyone before her were good people, but she couldn't bear to watch them clash with Svarog.]
["Clara, you're good at observing, right? Look at the three of us—do we seem like people from the Underworld?"]
[Facing Clara's puzzled expression, March 7th explained: "We're not from this world. Svarog's calculations don't account for our existence. If his calculations are only based on [the people of the Underworld], then the results he derived are no longer applicable now."]
["From another... world?" In response to March 7th's words, Clara merely puffed her cheeks and shook her head gently: "P-please don't treat Clara like a child! Those stories are just made up by adults, Clara knows..."]
["Clara, Stelle and March 7th aren't lying. I believe them," Bronya reassured. "I understand how you feel. You want the Underworld to have a chance but don't want anyone to get hurt. Yet my intuition tells me that March, Dan Heng... and Stelle—these three are the turning point for this world."]
["Let them meet Svarog and see how the calculations change. There's no loss for you or him, right?"]
[Bronya's words seemed to strike right at Clara's heart. After a brief moment of contemplation, Clara finally agreed.]
[Perhaps, as March 7th said, Svarog's calculations had already become outdated. Even if Clara wanted to change Svarog's mind, it would take a long time. Why not take this chance to be brave? Maybe everything would turn around?]
[Clara led Stelle and the others through the final gate and successfully met Svarog.]
[Thanks to Clara's introduction, Svarog was willing to give them a chance to speak. As for his attitude, that would depend on the outcome of the negotiation.]
[Unfortunately, the moment Stelle simply mentioned the words [Stellaron], the previously "mild" Svarog suddenly grew tense. He assessed the group's threat level as maximum and, without hesitation, immediately engaged in combat.]
[As a prototype, Svarog's strength was leagues above other robots in the settlement. Not only could he freely control countless missiles for relentless bombardment, but he could also summon mechanical giant hands to firmly restrain his opponents.]
——
The sight of Svarog single-handedly battling five left Ambessa utterly stunned.
Th-this... this is the power of technology?!
It's practically like magic!
Missiles poured endlessly from Svarog's back, bombarding the group until they could barely keep up. The firepower from his palm cannons was immense—a direct hit could instantly reduce a fully armored Noxian soldier to ashes. If a robot like Svarog ever reached the battlefield, he alone could suppress Demacia's entire army!
——
Meanwhile, in the Undercity of Zaun at the same time...
Countless burly men carried mechanical equipment of all sizes into a secret underground factory.
Though hidden, the factory's interior was vast. Not only did it house the "scrap metal" from Singed's lab, but it also contained additional massive mechanical devices, some as enormous as beasts. These machines, new and old, were piled mountain-high, forming a dizzying fortress of steel two stories tall.
Ever since first seeing Svarog in the Great Mine, Silco had intensified his collection of machinery from the Upper City. This time, it was Singed's turn to guess Silco's thoughts.
But it wasn't hard to guess—he simply wanted to replicate the robot named "Svarog" from the Celestial Screen.
After witnessing Svarog's overwhelming firepower suppressing five people, it was only natural for anyone to be tempted. Silco's interest was understandable, and Singed fully comprehended that. However, understanding didn't change the insurmountable technological gap dictated by objective reality.
——
"Doctor, I support your ideas and research, but before that..." Silco pointed at Svarog on the screen, locked in fierce combat. "You've probably guessed what I'm thinking—"
"I'm afraid that's impossible."
Before Silco could finish, Singed outright denied his delusion.
He shook his head calmly and walked slowly forward until he reached the deepest part of the factory. There, he stopped before a massive mechanical turret, as tall as a person, its surface flowing with a dark red glow.
"The H-28Q Evolution Turret—an automated defensive weapon developed by Professor Heimerdinger for Piltover's security. It once represented the pinnacle of craftsmanship on this continent."
Singed stroked the turret's core mechanism. Twisted, large cylinders clustered together, coiled copper pipes wrapping around the core like blood vessels. Such dense piping was undoubtedly for heat dissipation. Legends said that after several rounds of firing, this turret could unleash a powerful laser—one that could pierce even the thick walls of Demacia.
"Though it's hard to imagine where you managed to acquire this from the Upper City..."
"I can say with certainty that even with technology ten times more refined than this turret, I couldn't replicate something like Svarog."
"...That's not the answer I wanted to hear, Doctor." Silco's voice remained calm, devoid of anger.
"Don't rush. I'll give you the answer." Singed waved him over, signaling Silco to come closer and look with him.
He pointed at the turret's inner core—though time had passed, it remained well-preserved. Through the gaps in the turret, Silco could see chains interlocking with a metal gear less than a centimeter in diameter, each link no larger than a sesame seed.
"Legends say Piltover's early turret cores had diameters exceeding two meters. Later, Professor Heimerdinger's modifications reduced it to twenty centimeters. Thanks to this, the turret could incorporate more functions and deliver greater firepower."
"But this step alone took Professor Heimerdinger decades..."
Singed sighed. "To create a mechanical behemoth like Svarog—aside from AI technology—it requires overwhelming firepower, missile deployment, giant hand manipulation... Simply put, the craftsmanship needed would be equivalent to shrinking this twenty-centimeter core to less than two millimeters."
"Moreover, we don't even know what powers Svarog. If it's electricity... unless you're willing to sacrifice nearly half the Undercity's power supply, even if we built him, we couldn't make him move."
"And if he can't move, what difference is there between him and a useless hunk of iron?"