Emotionless War Machine

*****PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU HAVE READ CHAPTER 38 'THE VILLAIN' BEFORE PROCEEDING!!

I MESSED UP THE CHAPTER NUMBERS, SO THIS CHAPTER IS CH 39, NOT CHAPTER 38!!!

SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE :(

...

Eyrie sighed. Brushing back her long brown hair, she looked past Fei and out the clear windows. She squinted her eyes.

An idea popped into her head. She turned to look at the mutant who was reading intently, not noticing the change outside.

"Fei, let's go outside!"

Fei lifted her head. "… Go outside?"

"The rain stopped," Eyrie pointed out the windows, "and after such a large storm, there should be a rainbow appearing!"

Fei glanced through the windows and found that what she said was partially true. It indeed had stopped pouring, though there were still a few drizzles of rain that were falling from the sky.

A few droplets of water slid down the glass windows.

She glanced back down at her book and hesitated. "No, I will stay in the library. You can go if you wish, Eyrie."

Eyrie exhaled. "You can read your books at any time. But natural rainbows are seen only after storms. Months will pass before another storm as large as this one."

Although she was exaggerating a bit on purpose, what Eyrie said did have a chance of happening.

"No. I need to follow what my schedule says."

"What is the use of reading so many books without ever experiencing anything?" Eyrie asked, trying to keep her inner annoyance from showing.

"I need to protect my master—Carlos, by accumulating all of the knowledge that I can."

Eyrie grit her teeth. "But that knowledge that you've accumulated would be worthless if you never use it!"

She continued, seeing that Fei had no intention of replying. "A bodyguard protects the physical state of their employer. But you are not merely a bodyguard. You are also his friend. Carlos is a child. He would want a friend that can play with him. If all you do is read, how are you being a good friend?"

"And what is the use of seeing a rainbow?" Fei shot back. She decided not to question Eyrie's statement of her being Carlos' friend.

"You go see a rainbow because you WANT to see one. Seeing one when you have never seen one before gives you a memorable experience."

"You are a human. You are not a robot that only knows how to follow rules. To hell! You wouldn't even be arguing with me right now if you are a robot."

Before she even realized it herself, those words had flown out of Eyrie's mouth. She flinched and looked to see Fei's reaction.

Fei looked startled, and the air around the two had turned into an oppressive silence.

Scared of the consequences her reckless words might bring, Eyrie immediately apologized, hoping to reconcile. "I-I'm sorry. That was--"

"I'll go with you to see the rainbow." Fei raised her head. "But I'm afraid you are terribly mistaken, Miss Eyrie. I am no human; I am a mutant. My master is Carlos; he is the only reason I am alive. My duty is to protect him and follow his orders until death."

"That is my only mission."

She continued, "Since you are his sister and knows him better than I do, I will believe your words. It is important to gain experience in the real world. That is the only reason I am going to see the rainbow."

Blinking in incomprehension, Eyrie contemplated Fei's words.

After saying her piece, Fei smiled at Eyrie. "Let us set off now. The rainbow might have already dissipated by now."

Eyrie shook out of her daze and hurriedly nodded. "Y-Yes, of course." She overtook Fei and led the way to the nearest open corridor.

Fei silently looked at the fading back of the eldest miss of the Rochester house. She followed her, thinking of the lady's outburst.

Eyrie thought I was a human? She doesn't seem to be ignorant of the fact that I am a mutant though. Carlos and Mr. Rochester must have told her about it.

Then why?

Well, I used to be human. But that's only 'used to'. I am not one anymore.

… But maybe I am a human? No, I am more likely to be a Success.

Fei recalled her memories of the books that she read regarding mutants.

It is said that Mutants hadn't been successfully created yet. The process of creating an entity that is robot yet has all of the properties of a human is too complex. Although logically, it can work, experiments that were done have never been successful.

The closest example of a Mutant is the scientist Buwen, who is regarded as the top treasure of Country E. Buwen is technically a human, but his physical prowess is elevated, and his brain is altered.

However, Buwen's physical state is very strained and relies on special medication to survive. He is not a true mutant, but he is the only human to retain his memories after undergoing the process of becoming a mutant.

As a result, all matters regarding the creation of mutants were under Country E despite their low rank.

On the other hand, there are plenty of Successes. These entities have superhuman physical abilities and intelligence as well. They are said to never betray their masters and follow the master's command like a robot.

However, it is very obvious to see that these Successes are different from normal humans. They have a hard time adapting and blending in with their environment, making it difficult to use these entities as spies or anything of the sort.

Perhaps they can only be used as war machines.

Fei's eyelashes trembled. She felt a little averse to the idea of being an emotionless war machine.

Exhaling, she walked forward, following close behind Eyrie.