#393 Expo Attendees: Part 1

My name is Victorine, a magic engineer of the demon race.

A magic engineer adjusts, improves, or restores the quality of a tangible object through magic.

And what tangible objects am I in the middle of ‘tuning’?

Monsters.

Some anthropomorphic monsters spawning from dungeons can be of service to us.

During the war with the human race, many of them were deployed to the front lines.

However, that war has ended, and the demand for such monsters is rapidly falling.

“Can’t you do something about this?”

The client requested that I modify the monsters to become stronger and more ferocious.

The sight of a monster, far more powerful than before, would stimulate the desire of the higher-ups in the army to wage war.

“No, I want you to tune them to become friendlier and more apt at minor work...”

No worries!

I, Victorine, a tech genius, have it all figured out!

I will create the strongest and most brutal monsters that surpass even His Majesty’s power!

***

It took over a year after the war, but it was worth it.

The ultimate modified monsters are finally here.

I call these custom orcs Destroyers!

I used orcs as the base body because they were the most convenient.

Giant Demon Ogres have the highest base combat power; for that, it’s valuable yet lacks impact even when modified.

Goblins, on the other hand, are small and hard to remodel. Skeletons are nothing but bones, so that’s a much bigger challenge.

So I went with an orc, which is the most ideal of them all.

The results of the modifications were terrific!

The magic makes their conventional strength 1.7x stronger! Not only that but in a controlled test, the time it took an orc to defeat a skeleton was reduced by 17%!

I recognize their performance is close to that of the Warrior Orc, a mutant species.

I hope you don’t mind me tooting my horn right now, as this will all soon go away.

Many people, including the Demon King, will see my custom orcs’ performance.

I hear there is a fitting place to showcase my masterpiece—an expo!

It feels like it has been forever since the last one, but that is not the important point.

People say there’s an extraordinary orc there.

How cheeky of them to disregard my masterpiece.

I shall make haste and head for the expo to crush that cocky orc with mine.

I bet it will be crowded. It’s the perfect venue to attract attention and advertise my achievement!

Onward, my Destroyers!

The stage is set for your debut!

***

When I got to the expo, my masterpiece’s debut match was over in a heartbeat.

“Huwaaaaaaaaaaaat?!” I scream as I witness the unbelievable reality.

My orc was pulverized, his entire body blown off with just his opponent’s finger.

“I don’t feel good about this...” says the other orc.

...Wait, says?!

“Our brethren modified to look like a commodity... It’s as if we are treated like mere objects.”

The orc speaks like he has an ego of his own!

Anthropomorphic monsters don’t even have the wit to talk, let alone have self-consciousness!

“I can’t say it was done with good intentions. I accepted your challenge out of modesty, but I hope this is the last time we’ll have such a pitiful match, madam,” admonishes the orc in a gentlemanly tone.

What in the world is this orc?!

Not only did he blow away my masterpiece with a flick of his finger, but he was fluent in the language and had the wisdom to criticize his opponent!

“No! This is some kind of mistake! The orc I have poured my heart and soul into improving shouldn’t be defeated! Fight my next custom orc: Destroyer III!”

“There’s still more...?”

“III is the most successful of all my custom orcs! Surely the previous one just wasn’t modified enough!”

“Oh dear...”

Hm?

What’s going on?

“How could you treat our kind like objects? I suppose I’ll just have to show you an absolute and decisive defeat that cannot be distorted in any way.”

Then, it didn’t even take him a second to defeat Destroyers III till VIII.

Not even a bunch of my creations were a match for him!

“Take it easy, Orkubo.”

A goblin calls out to him from the sides!

Were goblins always capable of human speech?!

“Your opponent wouldn’t even last a moment if you get serious. We have an audience, so we need to liven things up.”

“It is because of the surrounding audience that I wanted to show them monster modification is of no benefit. Don’t you feel the same way, Gobukichi?”

“Well, I agree, but still...”

Even this goblin feels like he’s not your run-of-the-mill monster!

Are they, perhaps... mutants?

“A Warrior Orc and a Spartan Goblin, maybe?”

Among orcs and goblins, it is said that some mutate in extremely rare cases and become dozens of times stronger.

If such mutated individuals appear on the battlefield, the results will be beyond astonishing.

My work to remodel orcs is also aimed at mutated Warrior Orcs.

But now there’s actually a Warrior Orc here!

“You’re mistaken, madam.”

“Huh?!”

If he’s not a Warrior Orc, then what is he?

“When Warrior Orcs mutate further, they become Legatus Orcs.”

“Huh?!”

“If they mutate even further, they become a Julius Caesar Orc. That’s me.”

“Three-staged mutationnnnnnnnnn?!”

How is that possible? The chance of just one mutation is about one in a few tens of thousands!

I feel faint...!

“By the way, Gobukichi over there has also mutated thrice.”

“I’m a Susano-o Takehaya Goblin.”

...

...The shock is too much for me to take in all at once.

Two three-stage mutants?! That’s like a probability of one in trillions or ten quadrillions!

Compared to that... My modified orcs are but a child’s plaything!

“Ah, there you two are.”

And then, someone new comes along!

I was spooked, only to find out they looked normal.

“I heard there was some kind of commotion. I was worried, so I came to see things. Isn’t your demo match coming up soon?”

“Indeed, My Lord, but this guest challenged me with her own orcs... I apologize for straying from your original plans.”

My Lord?!

That’s what this three-stage mutant calls this ordinary man?!

Is he their owner?

Their creator?!

“Please tell me!!!”

“Huh? What???”

I cling to the man.

“Please tell me the secret to creating high-performance monsters that even mutated thrice! I admire your skills!”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I don’t take credit for Orkubo and Gobukichi’s growth. They did that on their own.”

No...

It’s as if this orc and goblin have their own personality!

“If I had to say, it’s probably love.” 

“Love?”

“The more you love them, the stronger they become.”

I see!

What I lacked was love! I never went beyond that point because I just saw the orcs as commodities!

“I see now! You have awakened me to the truth!”

“I-Is that so...”

“I will now treat my orcs with love! I believe they will grow to perform miracles!”

For love is the power to believe in miracles!

I will raise my orcs to great heights with all the love I can muster!

“What was that all about?”

“I suppose she’s at that age where she wants to devote herself to her passion.”