Suddenly, the ground exploded.

［Whoa!]

Even <1>can't hide his surprise at this.

［What in the world is ......?]

The answer came quickly.

Along with the sand and soil, pieces of the golem also fell.

They belonged to the preceding <<9>> and <<10>>.

［It was a trap!]

［No, <<1>>, look at this.]

<<3>> pointed at what appeared to be a part of the body of the patrolling golem <>.

［It blew itself up!]

[...... it seems so...]

It seems that the magic brain of <> tried to get rid of the intruder, even at the cost of sacrificing one of its own bodies.

［Is it really worth sacrificing a golem from your own camp!]

It seems that the management and magical brain of <> has a very different way of thinking from <>. In other words, he thinks in a way that is unusual for an <>.

［This is something we need to think about a little. ......]

<> recognized again that he was up against a more radical opponent than he had expected.

And the remaining eight have moved away from the place where the magic circle was located.

* * * * *

"Hey, hey, hey.

They're doing something wrong.

The whole was watching the scene on Horai Island.

"Ummm...... is this a magic circle exploding?　......No, I don't think so."

"Wasn't there another magic circle under the magic circle for exploding?"

"No, then the golem over there named <> can't have been destroyed.

"That's true."

Jin and the others argue.

"Now that the dust has settled, let's take a look at the hole.

"Yes, that's right."

The discussion was interrupted by Goose's offer. Everyone is staring at the screen.

"How deep is it, ......10 meters?"

"That's about right."

"Does that mean that the has moved there at one point?"

"I don't know, since the bottom of the hole has also been destroyed. ......

I don't think it's surprising that the < also had the idea of reducing the risk by going through at least one relay point, rather than transferring to the central area all at once, like the intermediate station <> that Jin built as a security for the transfer.

< was waiting at the relay point after his transfer, and when the two of them transferred, he took countermeasures.

I see. I wonder how and what they detonated. ......"

In order to capture <> in the future, we need to know a little more about our opponents.

<> himself that detonated the bomb.

"A self-destructing golem. ......"

Whether it was of its own volition, or whether it was ordered by the controlling magical brain, we do not know.

But the golem at the Oeste base may be equipped with a self-destruct function .......

"That's a nasty opponent."

Jin said as if to throw up.

Jin doesn't like the way the golem is being used up.

Reinhardt noticed this and asked the old man another question.

"How much explosive or destructive power do you think it has?"

<>.

There are from No. 1 to No. 10, and the power increases in order.

The No. 1 has no killing power even at close range, but the No. 10 can shatter a rock 50 meters in diameter.

No. 3 is about the same as the blasting used in mines.

"Reiko, of course, and even the Land troops will be fine, right?"

<

"Yes. We have to be careful."

There are still <<<<> and troops left in the area.

"I don't want to push them too hard."

He thinks that he needs to gather more information about the other party for this purpose.

* * * *

Eight golems stand by at a distance from the hole created by the explosion.

［...... no change.]

After waiting for half an hour and nothing happens, <<1>> decides to send <<2>> to the bottom of the hole to investigate.

［Confirm.]

［Roger that.]

<<2>> immediately descends to the bottom of the hole and begins to investigate.

Rubble, sand, and golem fragments are scattered about, but there is one thing that stands out.

［An adamantite plate was found. The pattern on the surface suggests that it was a sensor of some kind.]

The accompanying magical crystal (magicrystal) was probably blown away or shattered in the aftermath of the explosion.

［Is there a conductor extending from the plate?]

［Yes, it is.]

［Yes. There's a very good chance that the magical brain is at the end of that conductor.]

Here, we have found a clue.

［I'll dispatch a golem with metal-detecting abilities. Wait a moment.]

［Understood.]

So, decides to dispatch a golem of the engineer type with metal detecting ability.

This will also be sent via the transfer magic circle at the midpoint, so it will be necessary to wait for about an hour.

Since they are golems, waiting is not a pain.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

But Jin and the others do not like to wait for an hour.

So, the old man decided to use his "peeping telescope" to see where the line leading from the plate that <<2>> had found ended up.

<

<

The scanning speed has been doubled due to the recent improvement.

There is a hollow about 30 meters below the ground, and the line stops there.

At the end of the cavity, there is a magical device that seems to be a repeater.

<>

The old man secretly raised his alertness, thinking that the opponent seemed to have different ideas and equipment from those of the previous <>.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

An hour passed, and the technological golem arrived.

［Thank you very much. Can you follow the line of sight from this plate?

［Possible.]

［Good.]

The technological golem uses magic to follow the line.

It is similar to engineering magic, but it is not engineering magic.

It channels weak magic and follows the traces of it.

It takes longer than the old man, but the technological golem reaches the underground cavern.

［It is cut off about 30 meters below the surface. We do not know what is there.]

［I see. Perhaps it is a relay point.]

<1>(=Jonathan) considers how to approach from here.