Chapter 9

It was a tough battle. The Pawn Ant's attacks were simple, and since their bodies were larger than Am's, they couldn't coordinate their attacks effectively even when they attacked simultaneously.

Am had no means of attacking, but with the ability to become intangible, as long as my commands reached in time, she wouldn't suffer fatal injuries.

The swords and jaws clashed, and a contest of strength ensued. Am, her face turning red, resisted the sharp jaws that were trying to crush her from above with her copper sword. Another ant was about to bite Am's unprotected back from behind.

That's when I gave the 'command.'

"Am, 'jump to the right'!"

Am's body followed my instructions and jumped to the right, dodging the attack. The full weight of the first ant's jaws collided with the head of the other ant, creating a loud boom.

It had been a long time since I issued so many commands.

There, I activated the ability of the Monster Tamer for the first time in a long while. A corner of my brain tingled with heat.

'Battle Bell'

My already scarce mana drained from my body. Then, I shouted.

"Am, 'cut it down with all your might'!"

"...It's like Phil is the one fighting."

Safari's voice sounded hollow in my ears. Am's body, enhanced by the 'Battle Bell,' glowed faintly. She then kicked the ground hard and, just as I said, brought her sword down on the ant's torso, which had stopped moving due to the impact of the collision.

Idiot! Aim for the head, not the torso!

The most powerful, thoughtless, all-out slash struck the Pawn Ant's tough armor. A high-pitched metallic sound rang out. Even the sturdy carapace couldn't withstand the blow, and a crack appeared.

---But the cost was high.

"The sword broke..."

"It broke..."

The skills of a Monster Tamer are, to be honest, quite weak. A Monster Tamer is a breeder.

'Battle Bell' is a skill that boosts the abilities of the contracted slave during use, but its increase is the weakest among all the enhancement spells of all classes. I hadn't used it in a long time.

Unable to withstand Am's strength, the copper sword broke and its blade spun and embedded itself in the wilderness. Am stared in shock at her partner, now only half its original length. She was wide open.

"Am, 'take a big step back'!"

Am's body leaped several meters backward.

The Pawn Ant slowly got up. The Pawn Ant that had been attacked by Am had a crack in its torso, but it didn't seem to hinder its movements. Its compound eyes stared at Am eerily and menacingly. The other one, which had been hit directly by the other ant's charge, was in worse shape. Its jaws were missing, and one of its compound eyes was destroyed, sparking. Its sensory range must have been significantly reduced.

For the one that took more damage from friendly fire... What a useless kid, Am is...

The remaining compound eye, the only one left, looked at me. There was a slight red glow in it. At that moment, I clearly felt anger from what was just a magical machine.

The Pawn Ant with the cracked torso lunged at Am, while the other one charged at me.

"Hey, Phil. Are you okay? That ant seems to have changed its target..."

"I'm not okay..."

Ha... What should I do? Am, who had noticed me, screamed.

"Phil, run!"

"Focus on your side! I'll handle this!"

Fortunately, there was some distance. The Pawn Ant's speed wasn't that fast. Even a novice like Am could barely hold her own against two of them. As expected, the threat was a distress signal, and its performance wasn't high.

"Hey, are you really okay? You look unarmed..."

"No, I wouldn't come to a battlefield unarmed..."

This was Am's first battle as a contracted slave. Overestimating her abilities was to be expected. Handling it was part of my duty as a master.

I scolded my trembling limbs, took a deep breath to steady my breathing, and pulled out a newly purchased weapon from my belt.

"Hey, are you serious? That's not a weapon..."

This trembling... is just battle tremors.

"It's a weapon. A fine one. Especially against magical machines..."

I bought it with the money from selling the ring at the guild shop.

'Dissection Pen'.

Explorers strip materials from defeated monsters. The materials vary by monster, such as meat, skin, blood, and bones, but the 'Dissection Pen' is a tool designed to strip materials from inorganic lifeforms with metal bodies.

I aimed the dissection pen at the Pawn Ant, which was charging at me without looking to the sides. The distinct metallic smell and the palpable killing intent. From a distance, it was hard to grasp the reality, but at ten meters, the D-rank's presence was overwhelming.

I didn't want to involve Safari. I waited until it was about five meters away, then started running.

I'm not particularly fond of insects. Insect-type Monster Tamers are objects of my respect.

I observed closely. The Pawn Ant's most dangerous weapon is said to be its mandibles, but the biggest threat to a vulnerable human is its size. A single collision could render me combat-incapable.

I timed it. The Pawn Ant approached. When the distance between us was about two meters, I turned on the dissection pen and threw it at the Pawn Ant's forehead like a dart.

"Mode Signal Paralysis!"

A small, three-centimeter light needle emitted from the pen tip hit the Pawn Ant's forehead perfectly.

The result was immediate. The massive body collapsed effortlessly. I barely dodged the inertia-driven body with a side step.

Phew—this was the most dangerous part.

The ant slid about three meters and stopped. Its limbs twitched, but with the central nervous system paralyzed, it couldn't move.

I brushed off the dust from my coat, took a deep breath, picked up the dissection pen that had fallen to the ground (since it wasn't a physical needle), and returned to Safari, who was staring in shock at the twitching ant.

"Phil, what did you do..."

"I just paralyzed the central nervous system with the dissection pen's function. Since magical machines have a single command center, paralyzing it stops them. Of course, they're not dead, just paralyzed..."

"Ridiculous... It's a magical machine! The central nervous system isn't necessarily in the head. What if it was in the legs!?"

"That's a pointless question. I'm risking my life here. Of course, I've memorized everything about the Model Ant."

I'm not just playing at being an explorer. I stood in front of the fallen Pawn Ant.

Its red eyes looked at me. They seemed a bit vacant, but that was probably just my sentimentality.

"Mode Excision"

I switched the dissection pen's mode. A five-centimeter light blade emerged from the pen tip.

'Excision' is a function to quickly cut and strip valuable resources. The light blade, designed for hard armor, has a very short reach but a cutting power far superior to a copper sword.

The thinking circuit—chip—of the Pawn Ant is located under the head, in the prothoracic shield.

I heard the strange sound of the drive system. I slipped under the twitching mandibles and stabbed the light blade into the prothoracic shield. I cut out a square of armor and extracted the chip. Of course, a living magical machine contains a vast amount of magical energy, but with an understanding of its structure, dissection isn't difficult. I was also wearing anti-magic gloves prepared from the guild shop.

The Pawn Ant, with its brain equivalent chip removed, stopped completely without a scream.

I would cut off the antenna for proof of kill later.

I clapped my hands and, just to be sure, confirmed with Safari, who was watching me.

"Phew, not worth it... Hey, Safari, no distress signal, right?"

"...No, there shouldn't be. It was paralyzed in one hit, so it didn't have the time."

"Good... Even if they were just grunts, I wouldn't stand a chance against a large number."

Actually, I don't want to do this anymore. My heart is pounding now.

"Well, the problem is... Am..."

I looked at Am, who was desperately fighting. Fortunately, with only one opponent, she should be able to handle it even with a broken copper sword.

There's a difference in racial strength, after all...

"...Maybe Phil is stronger?"

"No, I just had a good opponent this time... I hope."

I'm so inexperienced. She's bashing the armor with the copper sword, but it doesn't seem to be effective.

Of course not. The armor is harder than the copper sword. ...Ah, she slipped and fell.

"Am, 'intangibility'"

Am's body became intangible just in time, and the ant's leg passed through her.

"Am seems to be critically unprepared. It's strange that she can't win when I can."

"Exactly. How has she survived until now?"

"Probably has potential... I hope. Ah, I'll go help her."

Ignoring Safari's exasperated look, I jogged over to help.

Am, seeing me approaching, screamed.

"Phil! It's dangerous! I can finish it off in a bit, so please wait!"

"In a bit... how long?"

I pulled out the dissection pen from my waist and turned it on again.

"Mode Restraint"

I activated the function to temporarily block signal transmission and hinder movement. I threw the ten-centimeter light band at the ant's right rear leg.

The ant, focused on Am, had no chance to avoid it. The leg went limp, and the ant's posture collapsed. Am took the opportunity and brought her copper sword down on the ant's head.

I pulled out another dissection pen from my waist.

"Mode Restraint"

This time, I threw it at the left rear leg. It hit perfectly, and the ant's posture collapsed again. Essentially, the ant's mobility depends on its rear legs. With two paralyzed, it couldn't move more than half its normal speed.

I ignored the sound of the copper sword hitting the ant's head and silently pulled out another dissection pen from my waist.

"How many do you have, Phil..."

Safari, who had come closer, sounded exasperated. I sighed.

"...About thirty, as a precaution..."

"...That's a lot."

"It's a matter of life and death..."

I showed him the dissection pens lined up on my belt, ready to be pulled out. By the way, each one costs 500,000, so this was 15 million. The shop clerk was surprised that someone would buy so many at once.

I looked Safari in the eye and said clearly again.

"It's a matter of life and death..."

"...I see."

"It's not a game..."

"...I understand..."

While looking at the Pawn Ant, which was undamaged even after being hit in the head multiple times, I pulled out a new dissection pen.