My Favorite Isekai Adventure (Konosuba)

Chapter 13: Elegance, a Sharp Tongue, and a Maid

Although it was just a simple self-introduction, she had already fully displayed her personality.

A stark contrast of elegance and a venomous tongue.

The posture, etiquette, and demeanor of a noble, paired with excessive retorts purely for the fun of ridiculing others. It could both display her own composure and allow her to see the exasperated expression of her target after being hit.

It had to be said, she knew how to enjoy herself.

Aqua clung to Kobayashi's back and whispered, "What do we do? She seems really hard to deal with."

"Aren't you a goddess? How can you be afraid of an automaton?" Kobayashi glanced at her with disdain.

Aqua hurriedly explained, "It's precisely because she's not human and not a lich that I'm scared!"

Their secretive whispering drew the automaton girl's suspicion.

"Is something the matter?"

"Ahem, it's nothing."

Kobayashi extended his right hand to her. "Um, your name is RyuZU... right? My name is Kobayashi, and she's Aqua. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"What is this gesture? Are you a little puppy who wants to shake hands? I must say, paired with your weak aura, it would certainly make most girls' hearts overflow with affection. Even I am tempted to shake it."

RyuZU's retort was incredibly harsh. Kobayashi couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

There were many types of sharp tongues. Some used it as a tsundere way to cover up their inability to express their feelings, some used it as a barrier to resist intimacy with others, and some were just naturally tactless and spoke without a filter.

But RyuZU was different. She was sharp-tongued purely for the sake of being sharp-tongued.

Was it her personality... no, was she programmed this way?

Kobayashi felt awkward, unsure what to do with his hand hanging in the air.

But in the next second, it was tightly grasped.

"My name is RyuZU. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Master Kobayashi."

Her skin was soft and smooth, making one wonder if the automaton girl before him was truly not human. However, her slender, jade-like hand lacked any warmth, making him understand that the RyuZU before him was undoubtedly a mechanical automaton.

"Wait, why are you calling me 'Master'?"

"Because you were the one who repaired me, were you not?"

"No, it was the two of us together."

Seeing RyuZU's misunderstanding, Kobayashi pointed to himself and Aqua behind him, not shamelessly taking all the credit.

Hearing Kobayashi's explanation, RyuZU was visibly stunned.

She blinked, saying uncertainly, "Even if you collaborated with her, you must have been the one leading, I presume. After all, this young lady looks quite dazed and foolish; she does not seem like an advanced clockmaker capable of understanding my structure, finding the problem, and repairing it."

"W-wait! Are you mocking me?! I'm a goddess, a goddess, you hear me!"

Seeing that she was being looked down upon, and by a mechanical automaton no less, Aqua stomped her feet in anger.

She shouted, "It was me! I was the one who fixed you! Even if you're a mechanical automaton incapable of generating faith, you should still show gratitude and respect to the benefactor who repaired you! Not to mention I'm a goddess, so you should worship me, shouldn't you?!"

Kobayashi also nodded helplessly in admission. "As much as I'd like to say otherwise, as you can see, she was indeed the one who led the effort to repair you."

"Is that so? One truly cannot judge a person by their appearance."

RyuZU was somewhat surprised.

Aqua, taking offense at RyuZU's sharp tongue, stuck her little nose in the air and said smugly, "That's right. It took me a full half-hour to fix you. There were too many parts, and it was too complicated. This goddess is exhausted."

It wasn't hard to see that although she was complaining about being tired, she was actually showing off.

Kobayashi flicked her forehead. "Idiot, you just moved your mouth from the side. How are you tired?"

"Ngh... but I put in effort too," Aqua said, clutching her forehead with watery eyes, looking very wronged.

Hearing her words, RyuZU's eyes widened, her expression one of utter shock.

She maintained that state for a full five seconds before coming to her senses and saying, "...My apologies. Upon hearing the conversation between you two masters, I had to repeatedly confirm two ten-million times whether I had misheard."

"Misheard what?"

"You said it took half an hour to repair me..."

"That's right."

Kobayashi and Aqua exchanged a glance, then nodded simultaneously at RyuZU, indicating that what they had just said was true.

To be precise, it was less than half an hour. After all, you had to factor in the time wasted by Kobayashi and the others hesitating out of fear that something might go wrong. However, seeing RyuZU's shocked expression, Kobayashi chose not to say more, to prevent her from being even more surprised and causing her brain to crash.

After a moment of silence, RyuZU spoke again.

"...My two masters, may I ask a question?"

"If we know the answer."

Seeing them agree, RyuZU placed a hand on her chest in an elegant gesture, closing her eyes as if sensing something. Then she spoke:

"Excuse me, how many gears in total constitute my body?"

"Four trillion, two hundred seven billion, six hundred eighty-six million, four hundred and three!" x2

They spoke in unison. Kobayashi and Aqua said the exact same number without any prior discussion.

It was an incredibly absurd number!

Kobayashi didn't know how Aqua knew, but he knew from his [Probe] skill. (Foreshadowing)

It was because of this ridiculously high number of gears that Kobayashi had felt the task was tricky and wanted to take his time to repair RyuZU. But he never expected Aqua to just charge right in. The most infuriating part was that she had actually fixed it cleanly and efficiently. Where could you even go to reason about that?!

RyuZU's questions continued.

"Excuse me, what is the set vibration frequency of the main cylinder?"

"Six billion, two hundred fifty-four million, nine hundred forty-one thousand, three hundred and ninety-five!" x2

"The number of neural circuits connected to my body?"

"Sixty-two trillion, nine hundred forty-five billion, six hundred thirty-four million, five hundred seventy-four thousand, five hundred and seventy-eight!" x2

They answered fluently.

Give it up, girl.

You may be unwilling to accept it, but we know your internal structure even better than you do.

Such confidence showed on both of their faces.

RyuZU was completely won over.

"I wish to confirm, have my two masters seen my design schematics?"

"No."

Aqua puffed out her chest proudly. "I have no need for design schematics. Nothing can escape the probe of my divine eyes! After all, I am the Goddess of Water and Wisdom!"

You can always trust Aqua!... except when she's doing her actual job.

"Is that so... I do not possess such things as design schematics either."

RyuZU paused for a moment. Once again, she elegantly held her skirt and bowed slightly to Kobayashi. "Master Kobayashi, please allow me to formally register you as my master. Allow me to serve by your side, will you?"

With that, RyuZU extended her hand towards Kobayashi.

"Master-servant certification?"

"Yes. To form a master-servant relationship."

"Hmm..."

Kobayashi's brow furrowed, and he became hesitant.

RyuZU paused, tilting her head slightly in disbelief. "Is there some inconvenience? Would having someone as perfect and capable as myself serving by your side harm your tiny little pride?"

Her tongue was as sharp as ever. It seemed she had a very high opinion of herself. But that was to be expected. After all, she was an automaton created by the most mysterious clockmaker, and even if she was the weakest of the Y-series (self-proclaimed), it was still the strongest series.

That's right.

From the moment RyuZU was opened, Kobayashi knew who she was. An important character from Clockwork Planet, and also the Y-series Unit 1, created by the mysterious clockmaker who had saved the world—"Y."

—The Attendant, RyuZU.

And the prerequisite for her to acknowledge a master—

"The first person to repair you?"

"That is correct. That is why I hope you will be my master, Master Kobayashi."

RyuZU did not deny it.

But was this really okay? He had relied on magic, not real repair skills. Although there was the saying "magic is just science we don't understand yet," they were, for the most part, opposites. Using magic instead of repair skills, did he, a person without true expertise, really have the right to be RyuZU's master?

Seeming to notice Kobayashi's hesitation, RyuZU lowered her head slightly.

"—You do not need me, do you?"

She let out a sad sigh, a trace of melancholy and loneliness in her eyes. It was the look of someone unneeded, who had no reason to exist, who believed they had no value. Anyone who had experienced it would remember it vividly, to say nothing of RyuZU, who was a mechanical automaton in need of recognition and acceptance.

"No, that's not it. I need you very much."

Kobayashi shook his head, unabashedly showing his desire for her. "To be honest, I'm happy to be acknowledged by you, RyuZU, and even happier to be recognized as your master."

Who could refuse a beautiful automaton maid, after all?

"But you must have noticed. What got you running again wasn't superior clockwork skill, but magic. And this isn't your home of Tokyo, Japan, but another world."

"...Is that so?" RyuZU feigned surprise. "This dimly lit room without lamps, the old furniture, and the narrow bed... I had thought you were a destitute person forced to live in this shabby inn. So this is another world."

"...You can tell from the clothes, can't you?"

"My apologies, I thought that was your special hobby. After all, an elegant automaton cannot insult others for their inferior taste in clothing, can she?"

"You're already insulting me."

Kobayashi knew she was definitely doing it on purpose. With her abilities, she must have noticed that the unnatural vibrations from the "Great Pillar" below were gone, so she would naturally know she was no longer in Tokyo, Japan.

"I didn't repair you with skill. I have absolutely no self-discipline or related knowledge of a clockmaker. If you break down again, I have no confidence I can fix you."

Kobayashi listed a whole host of his own shortcomings. Then he looked her straight in the eyes. "Even so, do you still want me as your master?"

"Yes, there is no problem."

RyuZU bowed slightly. "No matter how useless you may be, I—Initial-Y Series 1, RyuZU—will acknowledge you as my master."

With that, she extended her right hand again, a hint of expectation in her eyes.

Honestly, she's just a mechanical automaton, why does she have such vivid human emotions? This makes it impossible for me to refuse, doesn't it?

"Since you've said so, RyuZU."

Kobayashi wasn't a wishy-washy person. He placed his own right hand on her slender little one.

RyuZU revealed a happy smile.

"Then, if you'll excuse me—"

...

...

...

Kobayashi's mind went slightly blank, as if a thread of his soul were being drawn out. At the same time, a faint, unusual sound of countless gears turning came from RyuZU's body.

The ritual ended smoothly. He then placed his palm on her cheek. The icy touch had become warm.

"Mmm..."

The automaton girl's eyes were moist. She pressed her face against Kobayashi's hand, exhaling a warm breath.

"Code Y-Series Unit 1—[The Attendant, RyuZU]—swears to serve by Master Kobayashi's side, and to offer absolute obedience and loyalty, until the moment the gears on my body are damaged and cease to turn."

In the face of the absolute loyalty RyuZU offered, Kobayashi naturally had to give an equally sincere response.

"The otherworldy hero chosen by the goddess—Kobayashi—swears to work hard to learn repair skills to be a worthy master and to protect the Attendant, RyuZU. Even if she is damaged, I will repair her. I will never abandon her, until the moment of my death, when I can no longer be revived."

This declaration far surpassed a normal master-servant certification, exuding a sanctity akin to wedding vows.

And beside them, Aqua was like an outsider.

Oh no, she was the witness.

(End of Chapter)