Sol wiped the fresh blood dripping down from his face. He took a deep breath and looked at the remains of the Chosen yer before him.


    ’Finally got it. Maybe it would have been easier if I used [Overpower], but it was better this way.’


    He reflected that using it earlier might have left him less injured and could have ended the battle sooner, but he had hesitated. It was his final trump card, and it left him exhausted afterward. With Full Spectrum from [Polychromatism] still on cooldown, he’d be helpless if he encountered something strongerter on.


    Besides, [Overpower] wouldn’t have increased the Tynamo Cannon’s power, only expedited the destruction of the cannons and other defenses.


    Looking once more at the Chosen yer’s remains, he wondered, ’I don’t think I got to see that unknown skill. Maybe it was its power source? And its name… Why would anyone create something specifically to kill Chosen?’


    Chosen were those blessed by the gods, bing much stronger than others. Sol hadn’t met any Chosen himself, but they were generally considered representatives of the gods. Creating something to kill Chosen would be seen as sphemy.


    ’Unless… it’s meant to kill Harbingers?’


    N?v(el)B\\jnn


    From what Diana had told him, Harbingers were exactly like Chosen, except they were selected by Outer Gods. If the Chosen yer was designed to kill Harbingers, that would exin its purpose.


    Sol wanted to rest, but he knew this ce wasn’t safe. With the Chosen yer defeated, he feared the waves of puppets might resume, or something equally strong might arrive to finish him off.


    He took out another health potion, drank it, and as the cool liquid revitalized his body and elerated his regeneration, he began making his way back to the entrance to regroup with the away team.


    Or at least, he tried to. He had only taken a few steps when he heard heavy footsteps echoing through the area. He turned toward the sound and saw a puppet twice the size of those he had encountered before. Unlike the others, this one looked significantly worn down. It had clearly reced parts, those appeared newer, but its torso and head seemed untouched since the day they were made.


    Sol watched cautiously, ready to run if necessary, but soon realized the puppet wasn’t even looking at him. It ran toward the remains of the Chosen yer in a panic, inspecting the wreckage in a strangely human like manner.


    As it examined the debris, it muttered to itself, "No no no… Merdi! Suus confrig fractul!"


    It then turned toward Sol and stomped over, yelling, "Qui est tum problic?! Parqu tum destuc et?!"


    The puppet continued with a long rant, leaving Sol tilting his head in confusion, unable to understand a word. But even withoutprehending the exact phrases, the puppet’s gestures and tone made it clear: it was furious.


    ’Clearly not like the other puppets, and it’s not hostile, yet. Maybe I can reason with it?’


    Meeting the first possibly sentient being in the ancient dwarven city, Sol decided to let the puppet get everything off its chest. When it finally stopped, it tapped its metal foot, as if waiting for an exnation.


    Scratching his head awkwardly, Sol said, "Yeah. I have no idea what you’re saying."


    Upon hearing his response, the puppet trembled in ce, trying to hold back its anger. But ultimately, it failed.


    "FUCK! And you wait till now to say that?! Why didn’t you say anything ten minutes ago?!"


    Itunched into another rant, this time in anguage Sol understood. He had been right about the profanities. Now, he could fully grasp how much the puppet cursed him, his ancestors, and even his future descendants. Not a single member of Sol’s past or future family tree was spared from the puppet’s wrath.


    "And screw your great great great granddaughter too! I hope she suffers eternally with the feeling of wanting to sneeze but never being able to!"


    At first, the puppet’s curses involved unimaginable pain or tragedy, but after a while, it began running out of ideas and started cursing random inconveniences. After a full ten minutes, it finally calmed down.


    "You good?" Sol asked, unable to read its emotions from its metallic face.


    The puppet stood silent for a moment, then nodded with a long sigh, despite not being able to breathe. "Yeah. It’s just… fuck, why did youpletely destroy it?"


    "Well… it tried to kill me."


    "That’s because YOU broke in here! It’s an automated defense system, for gods’ sake!"


    "In our defense, we thought this ce was abandoned. We—" Sol began exining, but the puppet interrupted him, finding his words ridiculous.


    "Abandoned?! HAH! Your gods may think they killed all the Azrem Dwarves, but I still live! And as long as I live, the Azrem Dwarves will never die!"


    "Our gods? What are you talking about?"


    "The God of Thunder, the God of Bliss, the Goddess of Lust, and so on. The Outer Gods. Don’t try to deny it, you’re even speaking in theirnguage. So I guess they sent you here to finish the job… took you long enough."


    Sol’s eyes widened in surprise. Many pieces of the puzzle started falling into ce, but for now, he had to clear up the misunderstanding.


    "I think I need to catch you up on a few things…"


    Though Sol didn’t know everything, he had been slowly piecing together the past and the war against the Outer Gods. To someone who had been stuck in that time for countless years, there was a lot to exin.


    "So, everyone eventually learned the universalmonnguage so they could understand the system… You know, thatnguage used to be reserved for the upper echelons of society. Now, to hear that it’s spoken even in the most remote viges… Time really does change things."


    The puppet sounded both amazed and a little mncholic, realizing that the world it once knew no longer existed. While relieved that the war had eventually been won, it seemed uncertain whether it still had a ce in this new world.


    "What year is it again?" the puppet asked.


    "518. Two months away from 519."


    "Even the calendar was reset…"