Chapter 244: The sin of the reincarnated person again! Transmigration switch, one button to start!
Deep within the Ruins, the stagnant air carried the musty scent of a hundred years of solitude, as if even time itself had decayed there.
Arthur held a magic stone lamp, its dim light dispelling the endless Darkness ahead.
He followed the narrow tunnel downward, reaching the complex lower level.
There were many branching paths here, leading in all directions, and numerous stone platforms were casually adorned with toys and assorted items of unclear purpose.
Arthur picked up a dust-covered Blackbeard pirate barrel, blew off the accumulated dust, and with a 'pop,' the plastic figure sprang out, still functioning perfectly.
"All these items lack production dates and trademarks... could it be that the reincarnator made them himself?"
Just as Arthur was analyzing the clues, a drop of water seeped from the cold rock wall and hit the ground with a crisp 'tap.'
This seemed to be a signal.
In an instant, countless pairs of crimson light points lit up deep within the tunnel—dense, malevolent gazes of observation.
From the edge of the magic stone lamp's halo, mechanical dolls, each the size of a basketball and entirely pale, poured out of the tunnel!
They were miniaturized Ruins Guardians, seemingly sharing an intelligence network with the giant Guardian outside.
The moment they identified Arthur, a rapid, fierce glint flashed in their eyes—
This was a self-destruct signal!
"This trick again."
Arthur sighed calmly, then, with a flick of his wrist, he forcefully tossed the magic stone lamp towards the rock wall above his head.
His figure flickered, and he transformed into a blur sweeping across the ground!
His sharp blade unsheathed, and intersecting silver arcs of light filled the entire space in an instant!
The swarming Ruins Guardians all stiffened, their heads separating from their bodies with a resounding crack, then belatedly toppling to the ground.
The flashing self-destruct glow immediately extinguished, yet those headless bodies, swaying precariously, began to rise again.
Like headless zombies, they groped their way forward, guided by some strange perception!
Arthur raised his hand, steadily catching the free-falling magic stone lamp, a hint of surprise creasing his brow.
"Ghosts stuffed into mechanical constructs? That reincarnator's thought process is indeed abnormal."
"Cycle's ritual, life's and death's order, descend, pure grace."
A soft, sacred azure tide surged out from Arthur's center.
Wherever the light reached, the vengeful spirits let out silent wails, completely cleansed and purified, leaving behind only cold, mechanical husks.
Having done all this, Arthur compared the number of mechanical remnants at each tunnel entrance, determined the direction of the densest enemy attack, and casually walked towards one of the Fork in the Road.
As he ventured deeper, the once narrow tunnel suddenly opened up.
Before long, a tightly sealed door appeared before him.
There were no traces of magic fluctuations on the door, and Arthur pushed it open, revealing a study with a distinct Japan style.
The furnishings here were vastly different from the control room of the mobile fortress destroyer, yet Arthur, as if having a plan, walked directly to the desk, picked up the books on it, and flipped through them one by one.
Soon, a diary written in Japan script caught his eye.
"Day 1 of Otherworldly Life: The goddess reincarnated me into this world, saying I needed to defeat the Demon King and save the world. Although it sounds difficult, my resolve is unshaken!"
"Day 7 of Otherworldly Life: I tried out the ability the goddess gave me. Although it has many restrictions, I can indeed create anything with my imagination. This power is too overpowered!"
Upon reading this, Arthur suddenly understood.
No wonder both the modern daily necessities and those utterly unreasonable mechanical constructs originated from this.
Creating all things through imagination, even with restrictions, was enough to be called a world-class disaster power.
"Strange, if that's the case, why didn't he just imagine an 'invincible mobile fortress destroyer'? Instead, he kept running away?"
With this question in mind, Arthur sped up his reading of the diary slightly.
"Day 113 of Otherworldly Life: It's still too hard to create tools to fight the Demon King; the ability is too limited. The strength of created items is tied to the intensity of my emotions. Could it be that my desire to defeat the Demon King is only this strong...?"
"Day 171 of Otherworldly Life: I know what I truly want, but wanting to defeat the Demon King isn't a lie either. I'm so troubled, what should I do? I've asked myself countless times, and at the end of my worries..."
The diary recorded the reincarnator's daily struggles, which gave Arthur a new understanding of the lazy fellow who ultimately caused the destruction of the magic kingdom.
It turned out that the other party once had such a diligent and ambitious side.
Moreover, during this process, he seemed to have come into contact with the indigenous people of the other world, and the diary's text began to mix in the common language of this world.
"Day 214 of Otherworldly Life: I've given up on defeating the Demon King! There's no helping it, I'm just a shut-in, and even in another world, I can't become a hot-blooded protagonist. From today onwards, I'm going to do whatever I want!"
"Day 215 of Otherworldly Life: First! It's the beautiful girl robots that all men understand! Then! Giant robots are also a man's romance! I don't care! I want them all!"
Arthur smiled, unsurprised by this change. This was the unreliable fellow he knew.
"Day 216 of Otherworldly Life: The giant robot was built, but no! It's too ugly! Unpresentable! I test-drove it, and I felt like I was thrown into a tumble dryer... I threw up."
"Day 289 of Otherworldly Life: Started building the beautiful girl robot, oh ho! It actually succeeded on the first try! And it's a super-intelligent machine assistant! I'm truly a genius! So lucky!"
Arthur, quietly flipping through the diary, suddenly paused.
He keenly sensed a discordant air from this seemingly ordinary record of ecstasy.
"Day 563 of Otherworldly Life: Miss Assistant is amazing! She always provides me with the perfect solutions. Could it be that the supercomputer program I casually set up is at work? Who cares! As long as it's useful!"
"Day 1230 of Otherworldly Life: I was inspired by Miss Assistant! That's right! With my ability, wouldn't it be great to just find a country and become a person above others? With my beloved assistant, let's go!"
The diary's contents ended here.
Clearly, the reincarnator and this Miss Assistant left the Ruins together to take up a position in the magic kingdom.
But what concerned Arthur the most was that mysterious Miss Assistant, so beloved and relied upon by the reincarnator.
In all subsequent historical records concerning the magic kingdom, she completely disappeared, as if she had never existed.
"Hmm... Is this the clue the masked demon spoke of? Unable to see through the truth of the unknown entity, yet able to discover an anomalous blank in the historical trajectory."
Arthur returned the diary to its original place, then thoroughly searched the room again, and after confirming nothing was missed, he turned and left.
"Next, perhaps I should visit the old site of the magic kingdom; maybe I can find some information about that Miss Assistant."
Arthur pondered his subsequent plans all the way, unconsciously returning to Axel.
Coincidentally, just as he reached his doorstep, he ran into his eccentric teammates returning from a quest.
Yunyun was supporting Megumin, who was drained of magic and wobbled as she walked, while Darkness's armor was covered in hideous scratches.
Kazuma, on the other hand, was unharmed, but his face looked as if all his vitality had been drained, making him appear a dozen years older.
The most miserable was Aqua, soaking wet and emitting a familiar foul stench, looking as if she had just been squeezed out of a giant frog's mouth again.
"I reminded you all," Arthur pushed open the door, looking helplessly at this group of lively characters, "Why are you still in such a mess?"
Hearing the commotion, Fou and Douzhinosuke, who were guarding the house, scurried over, followed by the White Tiger, who had just opened its eyes two days ago and was still stumbling.
Arthur crouched down, preparing to pick up the White Tiger, but unexpectedly found it holding a square metal block in its mouth, with a red button on it.
"What is this?"
"Ow!"
The young sacred beast seemed to want to respond, but forgot it was holding something in its mouth, and its tiny teeth inadvertently—
Ding-dong!
With a soft click, it pressed the red switch.
"Hmm?"
Everyone who had just entered the room cast confused glances.
The next second, Arthur's expression changed drastically; he was the first to notice that the surrounding space was rapidly distorting!
This familiar sensation of dizziness was a prelude to world-crossing!
"...I think I've been led astray by a tiger cub?"
Before he finished speaking, an intense white light burst forth from the switch, instantly engulfing everything.
When the light dissipated, the hall was empty.