Chapter 38: I Got a Treasure from the Machine Race!

Just one look, really just one look meow! It definitely won’t explode!

Phyllis followed the tracks through the canopy, her movements light and nearly silent.

The forest grew denser, with the light blocked by layers of treetops, and the surroundings gradually dimmed.

Suddenly, the tracks ended.

Phyllis stopped in her tracks, her cat ears twitching as she caught the surrounding sounds.

The wind, the chirping of insects, birds in the distance…

And a faint, rhythmic buzzing.

It sounded like the hum of machinery.

Phyllis gently pushed aside the leaves in front of her, and the scene below the tree made her catch her breath.

It was a humanoid mechanical creation, about 2 meters tall, silver-white, with smooth and fluid lines.

Phyllis looked at its head, which had no facial features—only a smooth, curved surface that was currently flashing with a faint blue light.

However, it was clearly in a terrible state.

There was a massive dent in its chest, its left arm was severed with only a few cables still connected, and its right leg was twisted into a spiral from the knee down.

It sat leaning against the tree, and the buzzing sound was coming from inside its body.

‘Is this the Machine Race?’

Phyllis had only seen descriptions of the Machine Race in books within Carola’s Library.

This was the first time she had seen a real one.

It was very different from the classic T800 robots she remembered from her previous life.

It felt significantly more advanced.

‘Strange. Didn’t I reincarnate into an otherworldly world? Why does the mechanical creation here look so advanced? Could the ancient technology of this world have developed to such a high degree?’

Phyllis had many questions in her heart.

But the most important question right now was:

Why was this member of the Machine Race here? What had it encountered?

Just as Phyllis was about to do something—

“Click!”

The machine’s head suddenly turned toward her current position.

It had clearly discovered Phyllis.

The blue light on the machine’s head flashed more frequently.

“Life signs detected… Catkin… female…”

The mechanical voice was dry and cold, but it surprisingly spoke the Common Tongue that Phyllis could understand.

Phyllis felt her entire body stiffen.

‘Should I finish it off while it’s down?’

Phyllis bit her lip.

However, this being was clearly capable of communication.

“No need… to hide… I cannot… attack…” The mechanical voice was intermittent.

“Energy… insufficient… to initiate weapon systems…”

‘That’s true.’

Phyllis could sense it.

Otherwise, the machine would have likely fired a blast at her the moment it saw her instead of trying to talk.

Phyllis hesitated for a moment, but she felt more at ease when she thought of the Life-saving Magic Tool Carola had given her.

If this machine was truly trying to trick her, she wouldn’t be in immediate danger.

Phyllis leaped down from the tree but maintained a safe distance, ready to dive behind cover and flee at any moment.

“I’m Phyllis. Who are you?” Phyllis asked the machine.

“I am… Machine Race… reconnaissance unit… codename ‘Watcher-7’…”

The machine’s voice stabilized slightly, as if it had adjusted its Language Module.

“You… are not afraid of me?”

“I am, but you look like you’re about to fall apart…”

Phyllis spoke the truth.

“Why are you here? How did you get hurt like this? Meow~”

“Executing… reconnaissance mission… encountered Blood Tribe ambush…”

The blue light on the machine’s head dimmed for a second.

“My squad… wiped out… only I… escaped here…”

“A Blood Tribe ambush?”

Phyllis’s ears twitched slightly.

‘It wasn’t Carola who did this, was it?’

But the timing didn’t match up.

“Do you need help?”

Phyllis asked subconsciously, then immediately regretted it.

“Helping a Machine Race reconnaissance unit? “

“Was she crazy?”

“No… my core is damaged… beyond repair… but… I do need your help… there is information… I need help transmitting…”

Fortunately, the machine’s answer saved Phyllis from her embarrassment.

“What information?”

Phyllis felt a sense of relief.

If it was just delivering a message, she could do her best.

The machine lifted its still-functional right hand, and the center of its palm opened, ejecting a small Translucent Chip.

“Inside… important intelligence is recorded… regarding the Blood Tribe…”

The machine’s voice grew choppy again.

“Must not… let them obtain it…”

Phyllis didn’t take it immediately.

Instead, she stared at the chip, a battle raging in her mind.

“Should she take it?”

“What if it was some kind of trap? Or what if it brought her trouble?”

“Why… choose me?”

Phyllis asked the machine.

She didn’t believe she had some kind of “protagonist aura” where legendary figures would cry and beg to be her subordinates just by her standing there.

“So, why her?”

“Because you… are not Blood Tribe…”

The blue light on the machine’s head flickered inconsistently.

“Moreover… on your person… there is a strange entity… the system cannot identify it… yet judged you as an ally…”

“A strange entity? Was it her System Panel?”

Phyllis thought about the unique things about her.

The Protection of the Cat God probably wouldn’t resonate with the Machine Race, so the only thing left was the System Panel.

It was quite likely that the system truly had some connection to the Machine Race.

“Click!”

The machine’s right arm made a soft sound, revealing the precise mechanical structure inside.

“Clink!”

A silver-white Metal Cylinder about 30 centimeters long fell out.

The cylinder’s surface was as smooth as a mirror, without any seams or decorations, except for a tiny groove at the top.

“This is?” Phyllis asked, puzzled.

“This is… a reward.”

The machine’s voice began to fade.

Clearly, that action had consumed a significant amount of its energy.

“Take it… you will find it useful…”

Phyllis hesitated for a moment but eventually stepped forward and carefully took the chip.

Then, she picked up the Metal Cylinder that had fallen to the ground.

The chip was cold to the touch with a metallic texture.

The Metal Cylinder, however, was lighter than she had imagined; she could barely feel any weight while holding it.

“Is this a weapon? How do I use it?”

Phyllis looked it over a few times.

She guessed that the Metal Cylinder was a weapon, but she didn’t know how to operate it.

“…Mental… activation…”

The machine’s voice was now so faint it was almost inaudible, and the blue light in its head flashed slower and slower.

“Watcher-7… mission complete…”

With the final mechanical sound, the blue light in its head went out completely.

The entire mechanical body no longer made a sound, looking as if it had truly become a pile of scrap metal.

Phyllis stood there, looking at the two items from the Machine Race in her hands, her heart filled with a mix of emotions.

How did she end up getting a treasure from the Machine Race just by coming out once?

“This pacing felt wrong!”

Phyllis carefully tucked the chip into the inner pocket of her cloak and then examined the Metal Cylinder closely.

“Mental activation?”

Phyllis focused her mind, attempting to establish some sort of connection with the cylinder.

The moment her consciousness touched the cylinder, a sudden change occurred.

A faint, ghostly blue light suddenly lit up in the groove at the top of the cylinder.

Then, a beam of blue energy surged out.

Phyllis’s eyes lit up as she tried swinging the weapon in her hand.

The weapon sliced through the air, easily cutting through a nearby branch as thick as a wrist.

The cut was as smooth as a mirror.

“Cool!”

Phyllis had seen this kind of weapon in movies in her previous life.

“A Lightsaber!”