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“Uwaaaah!? Wh-Wh-Wh-What do we do, Master!?”
“Step back a bit, Momo… ‘Explode.’”

Master chanted a spell and launched an attack, but even with the blast hitting square on, the door didn’t take a single scratch.

There wasn’t even a scorch mark—no sign of a handle, either. If I hadn’t seen it open and close earlier, I would’ve thought it was just part of the wall.

“It’s solid. We’ll have to boost the firepower to break through.”
“Then let me try! Ready… set… go!!”

Taking over for Master, I slammed my fist into the door with everything I had—my full strength, my entire weight.

The blow landed with a deep, resonant clang, like a temple bell on New Year’s Eve, and the door…

“…didn’t crack! Oww! Master, this thing’s insanely hard!!”
“I know.”

The door didn’t so much as budge—not even a millimeter. At this rate, it was my arm that was going to break first.

Meanwhile, the alarm behind us was blaring bee-bee-bee, and the golems were starting to move—clank, clank, clank. If we stayed here, we’d be crushed between the wall and the advancing machines.

“Emergency activation: Hostile presence detected. Immediate elimination protocol engaged.”
“…I see. So the door’s seam is here. Even if I try to pry it open, there’s not so much as a ridge to catch a finger on.”
“Now’s not the time to analyze it—we’ve got to run! We’re in trouble!!”
“There’s nowhere to run. Unfortunately, we’re cornered. At this rate, we’ll just be crushed by sheer numbers.”
“Noooo!!”
“…Then we’ll have to wait. Luckily, you made such an absurdly loud noise that there’s no way he didn’t hear it.”
“――Indeed, a splendid noise it was! My ears nearly fell off from the blast!”
“Eh? …Wah!?”

Just before the horde of identical golems charged us, the door that refused to open a moment ago suddenly swung wide without resistance.

Leaning against it, I yelped as someone grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and yanked me inside.

Master dove in right after me, and just as the golems came into view, the door slammed shut again—tight as ever.

“Phew, that was close. You all right, Momo?”
“Y-Yeah… Thank you too, Your Majesty.”
“Think nothing of it. It was my own lack of foresight that put you in danger. I apologize.”

Apparently, the loud noise I made was enough for the king to notice something was wrong and hurry back for us.

From outside came the heavy thuds of something ramming against the door—and for once, that ridiculously sturdy thing felt very reassuring.

“If that door could withstand your strength, those golems could ram it all day and still not break it.”
“But that means we can’t open it anymore either! We’ve lost our way back!”
“Then forward is the only path left. I have found something quite fascinating ahead—come, accompany me!”

The king’s eyes gleamed like a child who’d just stumbled upon a secret base, and he beckoned us forward.

Behind us lay a door that would never open again. The passage itself was short—barely ten steps before another door blocked the way, with no side paths in sight.

A steady current of air blew down from the ceiling, ruffling my hair. What kind of room was this supposed to be?

“They must not want any dust or impurities carried inside. Whatever lies beyond must be exceedingly delicate.”
“Oh, I get it! It’s one of those… something-rooms!”

A memory from grade school popped into my head—when we toured a bread factory, we’d passed through a similar chamber. It was used to blow off every speck of dust to keep the bread pristine. Funny how until now, the only thing I’d remembered from that trip was how delicious the freshly baked bread was.

“Pink-haired one, what do you suppose lies beyond this door? Speak freely.”
“Freshly baked bread!!”
“Hahaha! I hadn’t considered that. Very well—come lunchtime, I shall see to it that you eat your fill!”

Oh no. I’d just blurted out exactly what I was thinking. I didn’t even dare to look at Master’s face behind me.

And from the king’s reaction, it clearly wasn’t food that awaited us beyond this door. So… what was this room for?

“Hey! Hurry up and untie me already! Make me mad and I won’t forgive you, even if you’re human!!”
“Oh, my apologies, my apologies. Now then, to open this door…”
“Wait… Master, that voice just now—”
“Yeah, it’s the same one that came from the ceiling earlier.”

While Master and I were talking, the king had started tapping at a console embedded in the wall. A moment later, the door slid open without a sound.

And beyond it—there lay the look-alike golem who’d been guiding the king earlier, its legs sprawled out beside… a robot whose design stirred a strange sense of déjà vu.

Its body was sleek and white, smooth as porcelain, with a monitor panel set into its chest. Something about it—its shape, its shine—made me suddenly crave sushi.

“P-Pepp**-kun!?¹”
“Ah!? Who ya callin’ Pe**er-kun, huh!? Who had the bright idea o’ givin’ this premium white body such a tacky name!?”
“What a thick accent… what is this golem?”
“It calls itself Icarus. From the looks of it, it’s the one controlling all the golems outside.”
“Oh?”
“Huh? What’s this lil’ brat want? Sorry, kid, but I ain’t into no flat-type humans—you gotta be one o’ them big ol’ steam gals with extra heat plates on the chest to get my attention—wait a sec! What are the calamity brats doin’ here!?”
“Sorry, but you’ve got the wrong people. Momo and I are perfectly ordinary humans, believe it or not. Would you mind talking with us for a bit?”
“Nah nah nah, ain’t no talkin’ to be had! I’m done with y’all! First real job I get in ages, and it turns into this mess! I swear, can’t catch a break today!!”
“So much for negotiation. Oh well—guess we’ll just have to look around on our own.”
“Master, what about this **pper-kun?”
“It doesn’t seem armed. Leave it be. What matters now is figuring out what this room is for.”
“Hey, hey, don’t y’all dare! If any o’ ya lay a single finger on my precious workspace, I’ll curse ya stone-cold dead, ya hear!?”
“Uh, Master, this machine just broke! I didn’t even touch it!”
“You! Especially you! Don’t touch nothin’!”
“Momo, you handle this ‘Icarus.’ Try to get it talking. And for heaven’s sake, don’t touch a single piece of equipment.”
“Okay…”

This futuristic computer room was crammed full of machines I couldn’t even begin to understand—each one looked like it’d explode if I so much as breathed on it. Probably best to do as Master said.

Besides, talking to Mr. Icarus and finding out what’s going on was important too.

“Kuh! Just scrap me already! I ain’t got nothin’ to say to no filthy humans!²”
“Hmm… I wonder if he’ll talk at all…”

Now then—how in the world was I supposed to get this guy (?) to open up?