Vending Machine - 172 - Heat & Cold

Chapter 172: Heat & Cold

Link: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n7583de/

Author: Hirukuma

Translated by Zzonkedd

Edited by Gumihou

Gaining victory by attacking an enemy in their sleep was like playing the villain. Even so, as the saying goes, ‘Victory for the official army, defeat for the rebel army’. Our lives would have been spent in vain if we did not win.

This is not a game where one could simply whittle away at a powerful opponent’s HP in a ‘fair fight’. To survive, we must gauge our enemies’ abilities carefully and take the best path to victory. To do otherwise could lead to death.

After reconciling this in my mind, I looked down at the corpse of the Two-Headed Ogre.

One of the heads had been crushed beyond recognition, the other was rolling away after having been severed by Mishael’s sword. When the body showed no sign of reviving or growing a third head, it could be considered dead.

As further proof of its death, I experienced a sudden increase in points. Over a million points had been added all of a sudden. Even though it must have been split between Mishael, Ramis and myself, it was still a lot. Well, at least I don’t have to worry about not having enough points from now on.

By the way, I had been thinking of spending my points on the <Telepathy> skill, but after some thought, I decided to try and level up to Rank 3 instead, which would cost me 3 million points.

“Um, may I absorb the Two-Headed Ogre?” asked Kikoyu. She had the fragment of Mister Field in her hands, obviously itching to let it absorb such a powerful enemy.

“Hold on,” said Hyurumi. “Ogres have several rare and valuable parts. Let me retrieve them first. You can absorb the rest later. Lend me a hand, Ramis.”

“Kay~ Hakkon, please pass out drinks to everyone while we work.”

While Hyurumi and Ramis worked on the Two-Headed Ogre I passed out drinks according to everyone’s preference.

Hevoy kept glancing towards the stairs leading to the upper floor. Eager to press on, but held back. Mindful of what had happened earlier.

“Well, it’s done. Go suck it all up, Kikoyu,” said Hyurumi.

“Thank you very much!” Kikoyu happily pressed the ball of earth against the corpse and the giant body vanished in an instant. I really don’t understand how that small ball of earth could absorb such a huge body, it was just too mysterious.

“Hey, sorry for making you wait, Hevoy,” said Hyurumi.

“No need, it only took 3 minutes,” he said with a stiff smile.

Hevoy must be thinking about Tasite. We left that guy with both legs crushed and bleeding out. Even so, there is a possibility that he could be revived through recovery magic or divine magic.

“I think we have cleared out the enemy, but don’t let your guard down, yeah?” said Hyurumi.

We proceeded up the stairs cautiously with Mishael in the lead.

The second floor was in a pretty bad state. During our frantic escape, the Two-Headed Ogre had caused gaping holes and smashed up the tiles on the floor. There were even several holes in the ceiling.

“Looks like we don’t even have to use the door,” said Hyurumi as she touched the wall and it crumbled under her hand. It was just large enough for one person to enter.

“Woah, it’s cold!” said Ramis with a shiver.

“What the- the temperature’s dropping too fast. This kind of cold feels more like we’re in the dead of winter-”

“What?! Aren’t we in the middle of the desert? Are we still in the desert?”

“What could this be, Master Hakkon?!”

“How strange, even though it gets quite cold at night, the interior of the Pillar should not be colder than the outside. This is several times colder.”

The moment everyone stepped through the room, I could see my friend’s breaths as they exhaled. Indicating that they were not over-exaggerating the coldness.

Just what is happening? Only Kikoyu and I were unaffected since she’s a Snow Child while I am a machine with no sensory feelings in my body.

“Hm? This coldness… this feels like…” Kikoyu began looking around restlessly. What could she be looking for?

I tried looking around as well. There were the bodies of the Raging Inferno Squad littered the room. Some were trampled and squashed by the Two-Headed Ogre, but… where is Tasite? I scanned the area a bit more and found him. He was propped by the wall next to the stairs to the third floor, encased in ice.

“Whaaa, he’s frozen solid!?”

Hyurumi exclaimed. Obviously shocked to see something that was supposed to be impossible in this desert situation.

Everyone else looked like they had trouble comprehending what was happening. All except Kikoyu.

“This… this can’t be! Everyone, gather around Mister Hakkon!”

Kikoyu, who is usually polite to a fault, had panicked to the point of raising her voice. Even though everyone was still confused, they all gathered around me. Wait, am I supposed to deploy <Barrier>?

Although I was not quite sure what was happening, I quickly activated <Barrier> the moment everyone came within range.

The next second, the world suddenly turned white.

“Eh? Snow? On Scorching Sand?”

“Oi, oi, this is the first time I heard about a creature that could manipulate the cold on this floor. Moreover, this level of control is too abnormal.”

The blizzard was so powerful that I could see my points streaming away like a waterfall. Luckily, I had just gotten a good boost of points earlier.

Once the storm came to a halt, the entire place was pure white. From the sight alone, no one would ever believe that this place was part of the Sorching Sand Floor.

Even though the storm had stopped, I kept the <Barrier> up. Wary against the source of that storm. Once the winds ceased blowing, a woman appeared from behind the frozen stiff Tasite.

She was a breathtakingly beautiful woman with cool elongated eyes and a straight nose. Her complexion was snow-white and entirely devoid of warmth. The most striking part about her was her white hair, which added to her ethereal beauty.

She was dressed in a white coat. The design looked like something out of a Russian film.

Everyone appeared to have come to the same conclusion as all eyes turned to Kikoyu.

Although there were differences in terms of height and facial features, their similarities were striking. Their winter-themed clothes, pure white hair and pale skin were so alike that one could easily believe them to be sisters.

Without reacting to our gaze, Kikoyu stepped outside the limits of the <Barrier> with Botan and Kuroyata.

“You are a Snow Spirit, are you not?”

It was less of a question and more of a statement. There was no uncertainty in Kikoyu’s voice.

The woman wordlessly nodded once.

“Why are you doing this? The Snow Spirit Clan are not one that kills people indiscriminately. If you think we are the enemy, you are mistaken. We are only here to meet with that person.”

The Snow Spirit woman glanced at the frozen Tasite. Suddenly, the ice shattered and the corpse broke into pieces with the ice.

“Wh-why?!”

“Why is a Snow Child travelling with humans?”

Her voice was very faint, barely audible, but the coldness in her voice was very clear.

“These people are my friends.”

“Humans are trash. You should know that.”

I understand her point. According to stories from Kikoyu, Snow Spirits are a race that undergoes a rapid transformation from child to adulthood once they are of age. This transformation also allowed them to gain powerful magical abilities.

Once a Snow Child becomes an adult Snow Spirit, they would have incredible magical power and be able to control the cold at will, just like this woman in front of us.

However, if one interrupts the coming-of-age process by cutting off the head of a Snow Spirit, the head becomes an artefact that is powerful enough to ruin an entire city while the rest of its body becomes a statue capable of dispelling any curse.

Needless to say, a Snow Child’s existence is something sought after by many hunters, thugs and power-hungry nations since the days of old. As a result, the Snow Spirit people faced extinction.

“It is true that I have been pursued by greedy humans most of my life. However, there are also trustworthy humans in this world! Not only humans, there is also a field… that is to say, there are lots of trustworthy people!”

Mentioning a ‘field’ as a trustworthy comrade would likely be dismissed as a joke at this point. I hope that she will at least hear Kikoyu’s frantic explanation and show some understanding.

We all turn hopeful eyes at the Snow Spirit. Her eyebrows lifted and her face, which had been like an emotionless doll before became fractured with anger.

“Pitiful thing… you have also been deceived by despicable humans…” a raging wind suddenly started picking up.

“No! This is a misunderstanding! We’re not your enemies!”

The wind stopped as suddenly as it started. Had Kikoyu’s words reached her?

“Not the enemy?”

“Yes.”

“Then, are you followers of the Ruler of the Netherworld?”

“Eh?”

Is that how it is? That’s right, why would a Snow Spirit suddenly appear in a place like this? Several possible reasons come to mind. First, she was a victim brought here by Tasite. Considering how he had bragged about his thieving habits, it is not a stretch to imagine him kidnapping and confining someone.

It is also possible that she is part of Tasite’s party, or even an underling of the Ruler of the Netherworld. If that is the case, that would make her an enemy.

Now that I think about it, the latter was certainly possible. We had been wondering how Tasite and his crew crossed that scorching desert. If they have this woman with them to regulate the temperature, things suddenly become a lot more possible.

“No, that can’t be… that box… It looks like the magical tool Hakkon as described by the Ruler of the Netherworld.”

Did I somehow become famous among the people from that side? Well, I guess there’s no point in me changing my form now.

“Indeed, you are our enemy,” said the woman.

“Are you one of the Ruler of the Netherworld’s subordinates?”

“That is so, I am General Sulrim of the Medical Division.”

A twenty-finger general class no less. Additionally, the same race as Kikoyu.

Looks like they had most likely sided under the Demon King’s army forces against humans for persecuting their race. A difficult and troublesome opponent has appeared.

[Gumihou: Okay, did not expect that at all]

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