The Genius of Cloning in the Academy City

Kail made a momentarily sulky face and nodded.

“This is about all I can do at the moment. Plus, I still need to repair my main ship. I need to find materials for substitutes! And I lack data about this world. As of now, what I can do is mass-produce and improve the weapons of this world.”

His words brought a tinge of regret, but still, this was way better than nothing. At least weapons were secured.

“And what about Rugilinn’s Iron Fist—”

“Then Kail! Check this out!”

I laid several types of weapons on the floor.

On the far left was a worn, black, standard-issue automatic rifle from the Federation, and on the far right was a hefty modern electromagnetic rifle for the Federation’s elite mobile unit.

In between, personal firearms I had acquired from various places filled the gaps.

“Can you enhance and mass-produce these?”

“Hmm… are these the weapons you used? They look a bit rough…”

Kail stared at them for a moment before nodding.

“Well, they’re simple. But with a little work, they could be quite useful. Leave it to me! I’ll whip one up right away!”

Before Kail’s words even finished, the surrounding robotic arms sprang into action. Their movements toward the weapons were impressive, as if they were living creatures.

Some arms deftly picked up the weapons I’d laid down and disappeared deep into the factory along the conveyor belt.

At the same time, machines installed all around the hangar started moving in unison, creating a wave of machinery that felt like a massive flood.

-Clunk!

Maybe about thirty minutes later, the factory sounds that had echoed in our ears began to diminish, and a robotic arm slid down from the ceiling rail smoothly toward us.

“Done!”

What appeared before me was the enhanced version of the automatic rifle I had handed over earlier.

While the overall design hadn’t changed drastically, it now looked sleek and futuristic.

“Wow, it looks amazing!”

Upon closer inspection, I noticed subtle traces of improvements everywhere.

The barrel had specialized metal parts that hadn’t been seen before, reducing weight while increasing strength, and the scope looked more precise than ever.

The stock and grip felt like they had been perfectly adjusted to fit my hand.

“How’s that, Commander? Is this enough to satisfy you?”

Kail asked, brimming with pride. I cautiously lifted the enhanced rifle and checked the sights.

It was significantly lighter and felt much more responsive than before.

Initial impressions alone were a perfect passing score.

“First, I boosted the efficiency of the electromagnetic accelerator! Right now, it’s just a prototype. The mass-produced version will enhance the barrel and battery for even more power!”

“I see.”

“But the real highlight is this! I made it just in case, and it was a total success!”

Kail quickly summoned another robotic arm. A small silver metallic object gently fell from the ceiling and landed in front of me, proudly displayed in its grasp.

It was a bullet with a unique design that was slightly thicker and longer than the existing one.

“I prepared a target! Give it a shot!”

Full of curiosity, I loaded the bullet into the chamber and pulled the trigger.

-Boom!

The bullet pierced the metal plate, causing a powerful explosion.

“Huh? What is this?”

“It’s a rocket-propelled armor-piercing explosive! Your gun can now shoot farther and harder, and when it reaches its target, it goes kaboom! The gun I just showed you will use this bullet as the standard moving forward!”

“Whoa!”

This was an unexpectedly revolutionary achievement. With this level of innovation, I could trust Kail with other weapons too.

“Great! Then here, this, and this too—mod it all for me!”

I laid out everything from the mortar to V-series homemade rockets on the ground. I knew Kail could elevate all of them to a higher level.

“Sure! Got it! But to expand the production line, I’ll need extra support!”

“Leave that to me!”

The new leap of the Violet Army was ready to begin. Now, all we had to do was wait for the fruits of our labor.

“We’ll be able to smash the enemies of democracy even harder!”

“Hooray!”

A wave of joyous excitement erupted in our network.

Feeling the thrill, Hekatonkheires jumped up on the table, arms wide open, as if in a dance of victory.

“See? This is my power crafted for war! Praise me!”

Some of us lifted her high into the air.

“Wow! Hekatonkheires for the win!”

But our celebration was short-lived. The hangar door creaked open, and a familiar voice spilled in.

“Violet, I heard a new cute kid accomplished something amazing, so I came to check it out! Is the work going well?”

In walked a blonde beauty with a mature aura.

Kail’s face instantly stiffened the moment he saw her.

His expression dripped with boredom.

“That woman is back again…”

“That woman? She’s our senior! Watch your words!”

Aura radiated from Sister Adela’s violet eyes, and her gaze sparkled even brighter as she looked at Kail.

“How about some tea? It’s just the perfect tea time!”

“Yeah! Kail! You should learn about tea time! You’ve got the longer clone distance too, right? Let’s enjoy tea with Iron Fist! And have some dessert!”

“Ugh…that sounds annoying!”

He was dragged out of the hangar, still in our hands.

X-B29 Maritime Base could only be described as a pile of wreckage.

The aftermath of the clash and ambush that felt like a battle of superhumans had shattered the precarious structures and various floating platforms set on the reefs.

Even without being a construction safety expert or a structural engineer, anyone could tell that this place had fallen into irreparable condition.

“Amazing. To think even Rumyx was wiped out.”

The soldiers of the Federation were dispatched here much later.

Following faint traces barely caught by the Air Force’s surveillance and satellites, they were lucky enough to find some survivors trying to escape in the nearby waters.

After pushing through an offer they couldn’t refuse, they managed to extract some information, though even that wasn’t sufficient. They still had to wander the vast sea.

The Federal Army could finally reach this monumental spot, where the Foundation had severed its growth plate, only long after all the commotion had settled.

“Find anything?”

The officer shouted at the soldiers searching the base wreckage. The noncom in charge of the search operation lifted his dust-covered face to respond.

“Not yet… It’s emptier than a locust swarm. We’ve combed through every inch!”

“Those filthy scoundrels!”

The officer couldn’t hide his annoyance.

The higher-ups had instructed them to extract useful information from the Foundation’s remains, but it seemed that the infamous pillaging instincts of the Ariel Group were thoroughly on display here too.

All that remained in the wake of their passing was ash and dust.

They plundered it all, kidnapped, and burned everything—that was the barbaric nature of this anti-establishment organization.

“Hurry up! We’ve got to salvage something before that tin can knight and assassin catch a whiff of it!”

Yet, sadly, the traces of Secretary General Fegan, who had reportedly escaped, along with those of his key aides, were nowhere to be found.

Only information confirming that many core researchers and elite agents had already been absorbed by other clans or retreated to the continental branch was available.

“… By the way, where the hell are we supposed to find that guy in white armor? Not a trace in sight!”

Through a threadbare intelligence network, they managed to glean only the existence of a secret weapon of the Foundation, an Awakened One unit known as ‘Hellman.’

Even that offered no more information than the name.

“It’s likely he’s withdrawn. I just hope that’s the case on high!”

“Hey! Don’t talk like that. If we find nothing, they might order us to search the ocean floor!”

Just then, the sharp sound of engines pierced the air above the soldiers. A vertical take-off and landing aircraft began its gentle landing, and men in white suits poured out like a wave.

“What’s going on? Who are you people?”

Despite the soldiers’ defensive reactions, the group in white suits didn’t flinch.

The man at the forefront wore a faint smile as he replied.

“We’re from the Federal Intelligence Agency! Sent by the Parliament, so please cooperate. Here’s the official document stating our agreement with your Army Command!”

The officer glared at the white-suited group with narrowed eyes but soon pulled out an electronic device to scan the document. Unfortunately, it was genuine.

“There’s no issue? Then we’ll also take a look. This is all for the sake of the Federation’s security. Could you step aside?”

“…Understood.”

It was common knowledge that the relationship between Parliament and the military was strained, but in the face of a valid reason, they had no choice.

The soldiers reluctantly stepped back.

The agents in white suits began to leisurely patrol the maritime base, as if they were touring an ancient ruin.

“They somehow survived even the biological weapon release operation… Truly monstrous beings.”

“I know, right? I wonder which clans or companies are behind this? It could possibly be a clever deception from other clans, right?”

“No way. The evidence is too clear. It’s more likely the Obsidian Legion’s handiwork. They’re the military’s misfits.”

The agents continued their hushed conversation.

“In any case, it’s clear that we need to approach this situation quite seriously. The fall of Rumyx along with the loss of the Lumynex is…”

In just a year, two key players in the Tea Time Treaty had crumbled and were left only as names.

This power vacuum was soon going to grant the Federation a golden opportunity to expand its influence even deeper into Rustroom.

And that meant they would be able to snatch up the future warriors currently studying mathematics in the Academy into their ranks.

“The upper-ups are seriously considering this as a chance to revert to pre-Tea Time Treaty dynamics. They’ve even been discussing the nationalization of the academies and related facilities. Every single mistake is unacceptable now.”

“Understood.”

The Federal Intelligence agents meticulously videotaped their surroundings according to their respective tasks.

Meanwhile, another member of the Parliament’s faction ventured with the agents toward the center of the maritime base.

The giant sinkhole above the seawater, tangled with immense wreckage and countless wires—the strange phenomenon caused by Ether still continued even after the alien battleship had vanished from the depths below.

“A peculiar energy flow is being detected. This is the secret that the Foundation had focused its research on…”

“Who are you people! Stop right there! Don’t touch that! It’s a crucial piece of evidence!”

“We’re scientists associated with the Parliament! Don’t get in our way!”

As an argument ensued between the soldiers and the agents, one investigator quietly maneuvered out of view and peered down at the bottom of the sinkhole.

Looking remarkably ordinary and harmless, he was someone typically overlooked.

Once he felt the gaze of those around him fade, the man reached toward a gleaming object buried among concrete dust and broken tiles.

What he held in his hand was a golden shard emitting a mysterious glow, appearing to be a piece of debris that had fallen from somewhere.

A deep crease formed on the face of the man pretending to be a scientist.

“A material from Nornir. Where did these lowly beings manage to acquire such a relic?”

He thought to himself, bemused at how a being like this could hide away something so precious.

While he pondered how to reprimand his subordinates for failing to spot the interspecies tampering, an unexpected interruption halted his train of thought.

“Hey! We’re still in negotiations! Come here! Don’t touch that!”

Was it a soldier or an agent calling out to him?

“Y-Yeah! I’ll be right there!”

The man turned and ran off, assuming a cowardly demeanor as if nothing had happened.