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While experimenting with various types of harvesting machines in the Fourth World, I found myself pondering what to do with the suddenly increased freedom in the Third World.

In the First World, I was locked up, so I had nothing I could do.

But it’s not like the Second World was without freedom either. There weren’t any major restrictions.

However, the Second World was too remote.

Even the closest village was so small that there was nothing to do, no matter how hard I tried.

I attempted to gradually expand the harvesting machines, but they were being rejected in a proper society.

Initially, the Third World seemed nice, but after being captured by the royal family, it was starting to feel like the First World again.

The people living in the accommodation were likely all watchers keeping an eye on me.

But seeing how they’ve prepared this new house for me, it seems they’re not monitoring as much anymore. It’s not impossible that something operated by magic power exists here…

But that’s something I’ll have to live with.

I can’t even sense it, so if it does exist, there’s not much I can do about it.

Just like before, it’s not a problem to sit quietly and spend the weekend. But with this newfound leisure, I find myself not knowing what to do.

I mean, it’s not like I’ve just suddenly quit from being overworked—how strange.

But really, there’s nothing to do.

Even without actively seeking out fun, I’m not bored since I can see the real-time updates on the harvesting machines.

Maybe I should just wander around and try to expand the harvesting machines?

Hmm.

But I’ve already got things somewhat on track, so is there really a need?

If maintaining the status quo is enough, then there’s no need for adventure.

Last time, when I drew out Maleficent, I went in as bait.

I had no idea Merryweather was actually Maleficent.

I really had no clue.

You can’t distinguish by light alone.

Because having a strong presence or extensive knowledge doesn’t necessarily mean having a larger aura. And getting older doesn’t inherently mean it becomes more significant either.

So does that mean all old beings have a huge aura?

Even the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign only had a somewhat minimal glow.

Maleficent was exactly at that level.

The skinny middle-aged man from the Brightshin slums had a larger aura. Just because the aura is big doesn’t mean they’re great, and a small aura doesn’t mean one can’t do anything either.

No, Dae-gon, who grinds others to fatten his own aura, is the odd one in this scenario.

It’s not that I lack knowledge about souls, but this area remains difficult to interpret. Having specialized texts isn’t the same as understanding them.

Why can others raise intelligence, yet I remain low in mine?

Ultimately, yet another day, not much different from the days spent in the accommodation, slipped by.

*

Oh!

Finally!

One of the harvesting machines from the Fourth World was released into the outside!

Of course, it wasn’t deliberately sent out by Jeber; strictly speaking, it was an escape incident.

The escaping subject wasn’t a person, but a bird resembling a crow.

There were about seven of them, and one pretended to be sick. There was nothing out of the ordinary in its body compared to the other healthy birds, so it was really just faking it.

Seeing that, the Chimera opened the cage doors to check on the bird, and it laid there for a long time, swaying or flapping its wings strangely.

But when the Chimera reached out for it, it suddenly flopped down. The Chimera removed the collar from the bird’s neck and took it toward the grinder.

At that moment, the bird sprang to its feet and flew away into the sky.

It was playing dead.

I knew that the crow-like bird was smart, but I didn’t expect it to escape like that.

The Chimera stared blankly as the bird flew away. Once it vanished from sight, the Chimera reported to Jeber.

Then Jeber exploded in magic, blasting the Chimera’s head off, and commanded the next Chimera to confirm kill whenever extracting corpses from then on.

Let’s be honest; he got mad at someone else for not explaining things properly.

Meanwhile, the escaped bird sought freedom and soared outside.

Thanks to that, I could see this world from the air.

The city, seen through a bird’s eye, was obscured by smoke that half-covered the sky, making it dreary. Not just any smoke but industrial smog.

Under that gloomy sky, the buildings seemed to be constructed haphazardly, as if there were no proper planning. And the roads visible between the buildings were packed with vehicles.

Two-wheeler, three-wheeler, four-wheeler, six-wheeler.

The variety of vehicles was astounding.

When digging through memories, I didn’t notice much, but seeing it from high above made everything clear. It was a surprisingly large and developed city.

The faded memories reminded me of early 19th-century scenery.

In other words, it meant that steel and chemical industries were somewhat developed here.

Down below, laborers with blackened faces wandered the streets, while buildings resembling factories puffed out dark smoke.

The nearby stream was also pitch black like sewage, bubbling with foam. As the bird flew that way, it caught a whiff of the stench.

But perhaps familiar to the bird, it abruptly veered toward that direction, descending to the ground, heading towards something next to the factory.

But the destination was not the factory. It was a building that looked like a restaurant nearby.

It turned sharply again and descended to the back.

The alley.

There were already various beasts swarming around. There were wild rodents and birds estimated to be of the same kind.

Among those, the bird rummaged through the garbage.

Oh? In the midst of that, a half-eaten corpse was visible. A common sight.

In any case, with the factory right next to it, those working in the factory needed to eat something. So a restaurant sprang up next door.

And there was food there.

The bird had come for that.

The fact that its first instinct was to search through food waste instead of hunting bugs shows that this bird had adapted to the city long ago.

No, to begin with, there is no nature in this city.

The presence of parks or similar places within the city arises from having such a culture, as illuminated by memories of a few intellectuals.

Based on those faded memories, it felt broadly similar to modern Europe.

However, without the interlude of world wars, it feels firmly retained until that time.

Well, it would be hard for revolutions or changes to take place. It seems that here, magic is monopolized by certain individuals.

Magic doesn’t entirely exist outside of civilization, but while they use things that resemble it, there’s an underlying thought that it’s a power used mostly by the rich and powerful.

And there’s one very alien element present.

Temples.

There are temples where several gods are worshiped, and in them, there are individuals using some form of divine power.

They heal people or use special powers depending on the type of god they trust, yet strangely, they do not hold a particularly high position.

In fact, it’s the opposite.

Similar to butchers or morticians, they’re essential for life yet met with disdain.

At least among the memories of the harvesting machines I’ve collected, there was no one who knew the exact reasons for that. I only heard from parents or neighbors that those folks are filthy and terrible, so be cautious around them.

It became a common sense, and no one explored the reasons behind it.

Because that’s what common sense dictates.

The Fourth World is incredibly strange.

Gods…

If they’re like Dae-gon, they might swallow me whole.

Even if they’re not of that kind, with such weak influence, they likely won’t obstruct me like they did in the First World.

Or perhaps in this country alone, the temple is looked down upon. Conversely, other countries might have theocracies.

I want to learn more about the Fourth World.

Seeing the world not through memories, but from the bird’s point of view—I was estimating this world when suddenly the bird’s body let out a shriek.

Terrible pain.

As I looked around, a long stick pierced its body. An arrow?

No, isn’t it a bit too short for an arrow?

The bird was dying in a faint state. It was in agony, but not dead yet. However, with such a large penetrating wound, it would bleed out and die soon.

Then someone lifted the bird. Noticing the wound was particularly painful, they grabbed the arrow that was lodged into its body.

“Purple. This is indeed a bird that flew from Haideka’s house.”

A thin voice suddenly rang out. It was a woman. Haideka, that’s Jeber’s name. In other words, it meant she was looking at a bird that flew from Jeber’s house, targeting and capturing it.

“Is it a Servant Beast?”

This time, a deep voice emerged. A man spoke. A pair of man and woman seemed to be doing something.

If it’s a Servant Beast, that would mean a technique enabling it to do similar things to me using magic power, right?

At that moment, a hard sensation was felt. Judging by the shape, it was a hand. Rather than touching around, it pressed and then dropped.

“No, there’s no trace of magic power. It’s just the color. But this bird shouldn’t have that color; did they dye it for a party or something?”

Then the body jolted and shook. Since I felt it rise a bit, it seemed someone else had lifted it.

“I don’t know. For a while now, they’ve been suddenly talking about some strange rejuvenation and preparing to gather people. What on earth are they thinking?”

“Maybe they’re gathering people like last time to shove them into an arena for entertainment?”

“I wouldn’t be surprised. Whether it’s this guy or that guy, they disregard humanity, so this is what they get.”

Crunch.

The bird just died. Given the last pressure I felt, it seems they probably crushed the bird.

From that point, I certainly knew something was going to happen.

I don’t know if this is from the resistance side or some legitimate government agency, but it was clear they opposed Jeber.

Furthermore, whether they’re nobles, magicians, or a blend of both concepts—they were undeniably committing heinous acts without hesitation.

Moreover, the fact that they even used the word “punishment” suggested a high possibility of preparing for an attack.

Hehe.

It seems something fun is about to happen. I didn’t expect it to unfold like this, but…

I’m looking forward to it.