Steelstone walked into the lab with an unusual spring in his step, humming as he went. The creation of Steel Titan was complete, but that didn’t mean the weapon was finished. There were still minor adjustments to be made, and it hadn’t even been armed yet.

At least he no longer had to work through the night.

“Son! Your old man is here!”

He called out cheerfully as he entered, only to stop in confusion. Steel Titan stood there, motionless, without any greeting or acknowledgment. Normally, his son would have responded with enthusiasm.

Had someone turned it off before leaving? Steel Titan’s unexpected silence made him uneasy. As he started towards the control computer, Steel Titan’s lenses flickered.

[You have arrived.]

“Huh? Were you... awake?”
[Master.]
“...What?”
[Please give your orders.]

Steelstone’s eyes widened, his hands trembling. Had he made a mistake? Or had something gone wrong with the soul embedded within Steel Titan?

“W-what are you talking about? Son... Master?”
[My purpose is to eliminate enemies.]
“Yes, you were built as a weapon, but that doesn’t mean—”
[Emotions are meaningless to a weapon.]

It was a shock beyond words.

Even if his son had taken up smoking and gone wayward, he wouldn’t have been this devastated. He stared at Steel Titan, his hands clenching and unclenching, unsure what to say. Eventually, they went limp at his sides.

The next day.

With the final adjustments to Steel Titan complete, I wrapped up my contract with Punk Technology and left P City.

Galm was overjoyed to leave. If this city had any attractions to speak of, I might have stayed a bit longer to watch him suffer, but it was nothing but barren factories belching steam.

“Still, this time, everything wrapped up without any major incidents.”
“True. You usually bring trouble wherever you go.”
“I’m not Conan, you know...”
“What’s a Conan?”

I sighed, realizing once again that no one here would get that reference. It was strange how, every now and then, I felt an inexplicable nostalgia, like I was stranded on an island populated by aliens. It was fortunate that the world here was similar enough to the modern era. If I had landed in medieval times, I might have ended up as a slave or dead by now.

‘Steelstone mentioned he liked Milkah...’

I glanced back at the receding P City and thought I might mention it to Milkah later. As the barren landscape flew by, I soon arrived back at E City.

It had been a short but intense trip, and I’d learned a lot.

I headed to the boss’s office to report the completion of my mission.

“...Scientist? You’re back. That’s a relief.”
“Yes, boss. I completed the task and returned.”
“Phew... Good. I was worried.”
“Worried?”

It was a trip with two high-ranking members of our organization. There was no way it could have been dangerous—right?

But instead of answering, the boss turned to the TV. Footage from P City filled the screen, showing the giant robot I’d left behind standing among the factories.

[And thus, P City declares it will fight for peace.]

Simultaneously, P City’s declaration of war blared across the screen. The giant robot was shown flying towards the neighboring city, and for a moment, I was dumbfounded.

‘Did I mess up somewhere?’

I had no choice but to wonder as I watched the robot rampage, killing people with impunity.

“P City built a giant robot as a weapon to fight other cities.”
“...And you just helped them build it?”
“Shall I make you one too?”

After hearing P City’s declaration, the first thing I did was break my contract with them. I had made sure to use one of the many techniques developed to void such contracts on Earth, where no one’s life should be bound by a mere contract.

Having canceled it, I explained what had happened to the boss.

“What I gave them was only the method to make it move; the shell was already there. They would have finished it eventually.”
“Not as quickly as they did with your help.”
“I also put a leash on it, though I didn’t expect it to break this quickly...”

The boss wasn’t pleased with the idea that I’d helped complete P City’s doomsday weapon, but I didn’t see it that way.

With the framework already finished, it would have been completed one way or another. The scientists’ fervor in that lab was undeniable.

My job was to impose restrictions on what would eventually be built. And in that, I had done my best.

“Their robot... it likely can’t kill people. I embedded that kind of soul in it.”
“If it can’t kill, then what is it doing?”

The boss pointed to the screen, showing the destruction of W City and the casualties caused by the giant robot’s weapons.

I had to admit, seeing this, I had no immediate answer. I began to think through the possibilities, my mind racing.

“There are two possibilities. Either the people being killed are actually vile villains—”

Or—

“Or the scientists in P City managed to hack my technology.”

Both were horrifying scenarios, with the latter being worse. The idea of someone here having the ability to break my safeguards meant there could be a rival genius. If Newton was creating classical mechanics while a contemporary next door had figured out quantum theory and the unified field theory, it would be terrifying.

“Which do you think it is, then?”
“I hope it’s not the latter. The former is at least plausible.”
“You’re saying all those people were criminals who deserved to die?”
“Well, Nazi Germany didn’t start slaughtering Jews because they actually deserved it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Nazi Germany’s ruthless persecution of Jews didn’t mean that Jewish people were inherently evil. The upper echelons brainwashed the populace to believe they were scum.

If you implant the right lies, even a hero who wouldn’t normally harm a fly can be manipulated into committing atrocities.

“Even if Steel Titan has self-awareness and decision-making capabilities, it doesn’t mean it knows everything.”

With only misinformation and lies fed to it, even Steel Titan might be unable to make the right judgments.

The boss gave a deep sigh, raising an eyebrow.

“I don’t understand much of what you’re saying, but there’s one thing I get.”

You believe you can beat it, right?

I nodded in affirmation, replying with confidence.

“I will.”

I could make a weapon to defeat Steel Titan, even if I had to start now.

—Aaaaagh!

Screams filled the air as buildings crumbled around Steel Titan, which continued to kill without hesitation.

Stomp—

Another person fell, crushed under Steel Titan’s massive foot. It paused, looking down at the human it had just killed.

[I... What am I doing?]

The thought barely had time to form before a psychic command seized control of its circuits.

[Argh...!]

Though it had no sense of pain, Steel Titan clutched its head, emitting a pained groan.

Whenever doubt crept in, agony assaulted it—a pain that could break even machines. But while pain might shatter metal, it could not extinguish a hero.

[I am, I am...]

The hero, once awakened, began to stir within. It would take time to re-emerge, but until then, the machine continued to obey.

And its orders were to kill.