As if escaping from there, I ran up the stairs and went straight for the rooftops. As I reached it, however, my breathing wasn’t disturbed at all. If it were me from the past, then I’d probably be panting like a dog in the summer after that short run.
The sniper rifle in my hand reminded me of the purpose I had when coming here, though. I moved to the edge of the fence, where a small table was, and placed the gun on top of it. After sitting down on one of the two stools, I turned to face the starry sky and felt pensive once more.
“It feels like a long time has passed, but it’s only been a few months, huh…”
I guess the effect of my training with the five regressors and the incomplete memory of the time when I was stuck in that black space with the Demon Worms made me completely lose track of time. It was funny, but I guess doing it frequently can have adverse effects on my social life.
“Right, have I told you how I was apparently the heir of the Seimei and Luo clans? Right now, I’m acting as the head of the two, which have basically merged into one now.”
Just like yesterday, I felt like telling stories about what happened to me with Fatima, who was still stuck inside the gun. Although it was a one-sided conversation, I got the feeling that she was listening to my words with a smile on her face, not missing a single detail.
Soon, midnight came. Just as I drank some water, quenching my thirst and wetting my slowly drying lips and throat, a voice suddenly echoed in my surroundings.
“(You’ve really worked hard, Will. I’m proud of you.)”
“…!”
This familiar voice, despite sounding like it was recorded and being played by a cheap speaker, made me almost jump out of my chair.
“MASTER!”
I leaned forward, inspecting the gun in front of me without touching it, afraid that I would break something. However, the gun was still staying still, other than two out of the four energies getting agitated without anyone touching it.
“(Hehe, over here, idiot. Up here.)”
The voice echoed once more, making me turn upward, where the stars were supposedly shining. Instead, what I saw was a familiar womanly figure clad in her usual attire of all black.
“… Master… Is it really you?”
The figure, Fatima, was floating in the air, looking down at me with a lonely gaze. However, for some reason, I could faintly see the sparking stars through her body.
“Are you… A ghost…?”
“(Haha, no. I’m… Well, I guess I technically am a ghost at the moment?)”
Her words were slightly confused too, but after hearing her next few words, I was convinced as to why she’s undecided too.
“(Right now, my soul is merged with the gun’s core. To be specific, it was the 13th form’s core. So technically, my body is now that of the gun, and I’m just appearing to you now using the projection function.)”
“This gun has such a function?!”
I was surprised to hear about the projection, but I was more surprised by the fact that she was merged with the gun. Taming System, why the hell did you not brief me on this drawback beforehand?!
… Well, technically, it was the System’s help that managed to save her soul, which was supposed to vanish into nothingness together with that Sealed Space. Beggars can’t choose, I suppose.
“But the gun’s 13th form? What is it, really?”
I remember her giving me the assignment of figuring it out, but even after I tried to decipher the entire gun’s structure, I could only figure out ten out of the twelve that I knew existed. The thirteenth was a complete mystery to me, even up to this day.
“(You couldn’t figure it out? I guess you still have a lot to learn, my little student.)”
I slightly felt irked by her comment, as if she was looking down on me.
“What little? I remember you screaming that it’s too big before, though?”
“(T-That was! Wait, we’re not talking about that now, are we?!)”
The way she panicked was cute and extremely nostalgic. I guess she’s really the Fatima that I know. I felt a wave of peace wash over me as I sighed in relief.
“Anyway, the 13th function is…?”
“(A-Ahem, right. The 13th function of the gun, put simply, is it becoming a Mechanical Lifeform.)”
“A life form? From an inanimate object?”
I have seen monsters in the shape of plants, rocks, or other inanimate but natural objects, but that was slightly different. A gun, a manmade weapon, turning into a life form? That’s somewhat of a farfetched idea, even to me.
“(What’s with that look? You should know that it’s possible, given your knowledge in this [anime] thing that you mentioned before. Something like objects gaining life after existing for a long time.)”
“You mean a [Tsukumogami]? That’s folklore!”
“(But the idea exists. Just think of it being like that.)”
Master shrugged her shoulders, revealing that the sleeve over her right arm was empty. Looking closer, even her left leg was missing, as her pants hung loosely, empty.
“Your body…”
“(Ah, this? Don’t mind it. My soul is mostly damaged, but it can recover. This shape is temporary, at least.)”
She smiled happily while using her other hand to wave the empty sleeve of her coat. Although she downplayed the fact that she lost her right arm and left leg, I could feel the hint of sadness in her voice. She must be lying to me again, not wanting me to worry much about her.
“… You really suck at lying…”
I sighed before showing an exasperated smile. 𝗼𝐯𝗹．𝐞𝘁
She heard my little comment and scratched her head lightly with an awkward expression on her face.
“(Anyway, back to the topic. A Mechanical Lifeform. Just as I’ve said, I merged with the core of the 13th function and partially activated it. However, it’s still far from full activation…)”
“Really?”
I asked while tilting my head.
“Then how did you appear before me right now?”
“(Simple, I just used the excess energy you had from using the gun earlier. It was hard to convert it, though, so I’m actually running out of time now.)”
“…!”
As I heard her words, I quickly placed my hand over the gun and poured out all the energy I could muster. As I did, Fatima’s figure slowly appeared to have become more solid, and her transparency almost vanished.
“(Enough, Will. Any more than that and you’d damage the core.)”
Fatima scolded me, but I knew that the core wasn’t that fragile. It was able to withstand her, a God Tamer’s, energy, so mine wouldn’t even scratch it no matter how hard I tried.
I continued to pour energy until I was feeling lightheaded. However, this isn’t enough to deter me from continuing.
“(WILL, STOP! OTHERWISE, I’LL GET ANGRY AT YOU!)”
Her words made me halt unconsciously. Looking back, her holographic figure was no longer blurry or transparent but looked like it was completely solid. Although I felt like I’d be passing out from how much energy I lost, I guess it was worth it.
“Alright, alright, I’ll stop. Chill.”
I sighed as I sat back down on the chair, hiding the fact that I was almost unable to keep standing anymore. Fatima glared at me, tears visible at the corner of her eyes, as her lips curled into a cute frown.
“So?”
I asked her, prompting her to continue her earlier words. Fatima probably noticed how I was hiding the state of my body, and she coughed lightly before continuing.
“(So, where were we…? Right, the gun is now a half-mechanical lifeform with me added into the mix. So it can no longer be inserted into any sort of storage.)”
“Ah, so that’s the reason… No wonder…”
I was wondering why it became impossible to stow the gun inside my [Spatial Storage] or the storage rings. Well, it’s now treated as half a monster after all.
“(Yes. And now, as your master, let me give you an assignment.)”
The atmosphere around her changed after the words left her mouth, prompting me to sit straight and listen attentively.
“(Will, you need to figure out how to completely turn the gun into a Mechanical Lifeform. As it is now, the core is unstable.)”
“Why? Shouldn’t it be more stable with more cores?”
“(The problem is not the number of cores, but the way they repel each other. Given a month or two, I guess the 13th form’s core would dissipate…)”
A month… A pretty concrete figure. But that’s too short! I turned to Fatima and asked as politely as I could.
“Can I get a hint at least?”
“(No… It’s not because I want you to figure it out yourself, but more because I have no idea about it myself. I can tell you the methods for the normal 13th form activation, though.)”