It was obviously impossible for something like this to just appear out of thin air.
No matter how you looked at it, someone had to be living inside.
“It looks like a circus camp, just a bit on the small side,” Skinny Monkey muttered from the side, then nudged the leader with his elbow.
“Do you think it could be some big shot’s mobile shelter?”
“A mobile shelter!?”
The leader’s heart skipped a beat in surprise.
“Yeah. Wasn't there talk on the world channel recently about the possibility of shelters having many different attributes? Like open-type or membership-based? It would be normal for there to be a mobile type too,” Skinny Monkey explained.
This rumor had been circulating on the world channel lately.
It seemed to have leaked out from the Kalim Supreme Council.
They said it was possible to consciously nurture the growth of one's own shelter.
Although he didn't quite understand what that meant, it sounded very impressive, so Skinny Monkey had immediately made the connection.
“What you’re saying makes sense. Why don’t you go up and take a look, then?”
The leader tilted his chin slightly, giving Skinny Monkey a signal. The big-mouthed Skinny Monkey was once again cast in this 'honorable' role.
Skinny Monkey took three steps forward and looked back once, watching with a lingering sense of reluctance as his brothers and sisters saw him off with 'farewell' gazes.
Some even clenched their fists to cheer him on.
Forget it.
It wasn't like this was the first time he’d done something like this.
In the end, he was just paying the price for his big mouth. It was no big deal.
And so, right before everyone's eyes, Skinny Monkey’s figure slowly vanished.
Mirage—a C-grade invisibility talent.
This talent was perfectly suited for assassins and stealth, and it had allowed Skinny Monkey to survive the early days. He had even used it to find quite a few supply chests and sell enough resources to upgrade to a Level 2 shelter.
Of course, while it sounded impressive, the talent was only C-grade.
It was something that could be detected, seen through, or even attacked.
To put it simply, it was like a chameleon draping itself in a layer of protective coloring.
But Skinny Monkey used it with master-level skill.
At the very least, he didn't trigger any alarms even when he penetrated within twenty meters of the magic shield’s protection range.
But!
Given Lan Qingyou’s caution, how could she possibly pin all her hopes on a single defensive alarm?
“Ji?”
Steel Wool, who had been sleeping curled up next to Lan Qingyou, suddenly snapped its head around a full 180 degrees. It stared warily at its surroundings with those wise, yellow, bead-like eyes.
“Ji!”
As if sensing something, it jumped up. It was about to slap Lan Qingyou with its wings but stopped.
Its eyes darted around twice, and then it hopped directly onto a Blade-roller.
“Ji!”
With a wave of its wings, the Blade-roller began to roll forward with a rumbling sound.
Don't worry—this wasn't some supernatural event. This was a 'cockpit' Lan Qingyou had designed for Steel Wool so it could control the golems in an emergency.
In a way, it was also a toy Lan Qingyou had made for it.
After all, besides protecting her and fighting for her when she went out, these golems didn't have much use while inside the shelter.
Thus, a golem that balanced both combat and entertainment was born.
Rumble, rumble...
As Skinny Monkey crept timidly toward the edge of the tent, he heard a strange sound coming from inside.
Realizing he might have been discovered, his first thought was naturally to flee.
However, before he could even move, the tent flap was pulled open.
Two things that looked like chainsaws were suddenly held right in front of his face.
They were about thirty centimeters away from his eyes.
Very close, and very cold.
The reflection of the sunlight off the metal hit his face, sending an indescribable chill from his tailbone straight to the top of his head.
It was too late to run now. The only thing he could do was stay still and hope as hard as possible that the other party wouldn't notice him.
Are you kidding me?
One look at those saws and you knew they weren't meant for cracking walnuts.
If he got caught and chopped into eight pieces, he’d probably be lucky to be considered 'mostly intact.'
Then, he saw the bronze-colored Blade-roller slowly drive out of the tent.
“Ji!”
Ji?
Just as Skinny Monkey was breaking into a cold sweat and finding it impossible to even force a smile, a very discordant sound came from the robot.
He searched for the source.
Then, he spotted an even more discordant creature sitting on top of the Blade-roller’s back.
An owl!?
And an owl riding a robot at that?
Well, while Skinny Monkey had never seen an Aurora Snow Owl before, there was no denying that a snow owl was a type of owl.
The question was: why was an owl sitting on top of something that looked like a robot?
It couldn't possibly be just for fun, could it?
Never mind that, he had to stay still. Once he got through this crisis, he would...
Thump-thump!!!
Just as Skinny Monkey was about to give up on thinking, he realized the owl’s yellow eyes were staring directly into his own!
No way! I’ve been spotted!?
Skinny Monkey began to doubt his life choices.
There was no denying that his talent could be discovered, but it definitely shouldn't have been this easy.
And yet?
Had it even been ten seconds since this owl appeared?
He’d been caught already?
Was the opponent some kind of monster with a special search skill?
This is bad!
Seeing the saws that served as the brass robot's arms start up, the buzzing sound made Skinny Monkey instantly realize he had definitely been exposed.
Boom!
“Monkey! Run!”
A small fireball slammed into the robot, followed immediately by the leader’s voice.
In fact, ever since Skinny Monkey had crept forward, the leader and the others had been preparing their attacks.
They were ready to provide backup at any moment.
After all, anyone who could brazenly pitch a tent in a place like this was definitely not someone to be trifled with.
But then, he had seen a scene straight out of science fiction.
A robot?
And a robot with chainsaws?
He had thought their situation—transmigration and magic—was already fantastical enough, but the sudden appearance of something so sci-fi was a bit much for the leader to handle. He had frozen on the spot.
If it hadn't been for the person next to him reminding him, he would have lost his disposable buddy.
The moment he received support, Skinny Monkey performed several backflips. After landing steadily, he turned tail and bolted.
Although such large movements would cause his talent to fail immediately, this was no time to worry about that.
“Ji ji ji!!”
Seeing another person suddenly appear, Steel Wool immediately commanded its 'mount' to give chase.
The Blade-roller was a high-mobility assault golem. Skinny Monkey’s two legs were no match for its two wheels.
He ran, it chased; he had no escape.
If it weren't for the constant long-range harassment every time it caught up, Skinny Monkey might have been carved up by the chainsaws long ago.
Boom!
As Skinny Monkey moved rapidly, the group in the distance finally saw the owl sitting on the robot.
Under the leader's command, they all focused their fire on Steel Wool.
Rate on N.U.
