C338: Doll Life

I was so surprised.
They suddenly entered Nirvana.

Although, it’s a mystery whether the concept of “entering Nirvana” exists in this fantasy world.

Anyway, it seems Mariage, the automaton inventor, and the first automaton he made were content with their reunion.
Their souls separated from their bodies (?) and they ascended to heaven.

The sky is supposed to be the celestial gods’ realm, where the infamous Celestial God resides.
Oh well, details shmetails.

Besides, Mariage was supposed to have died about a hundred years ago, so this was long overdue.

“Take care in the afterlife!”

Wait.
I’m not even sure if that exists.
I’m just glad to see them depart this life.

Maybe I should’ve said, “Take care in the underworld” instead?

Anyway, we decided to put the genius’s invention, the automatons, to good use.

A hundred dolls were brought to the farm.
More than 9,000 weather-beaten dolls remain in the lab, but these 100 are more than enough.

They’ll either continue to be left alone, or the Demon King will order his men to collect them for future research.

And so, these newly-joined, rather, newly-deployed automatons are contributing significantly to optimizing our work.
They’re dolls, after all.
They don’t need a place to sleep, and they don’t need food.
We can get by as long as there’s enough space for maintenance and storage.

Now, we can escape from that hellish loop of increasing manpower, which in turn makes us expand the fields and build new lodging.
All thanks to automation by these dolls!

Long live automatons!
Long live mechanization!

The automatons are mainly engaged in simple tasks such as checking the crops for diseases and pests, watching for vermin, carrying supplies, and managing the steamship dock and the hot spring.
This is all due to their workmanship that Mariage was so fussy about.

They can make their own decisions thanks to their magic sensors, artificial intelligence, and attitude control device.
It’s a great thing to be able to leave things to machines that could only be left to people in my world.

“Man… Isn’t this revolutionary, Demon King? It’s a major technological innovation!” I say to the Demon King, who’s checking the automatons with me.

He also spoke highly of Mariage’s invention and wanted to incorporate it into his nation’s research.
Surely, our farm’s sample would be a valuable example for the practical use of automatons in the Demon Kingdom.

And someday, Mariage’s dream may come true: his inventions will work in villages and towns worldwide.

“Oh, about that…” says the Demon King timidly.

He seems hesitant about something.

“About the labor conditions being improved by automatons… It’s actually been solved, or should I say, things are sufficient…”
“Pardon?”
“We demons have anthropomorphic monsters… You know, orcs, goblins, and the like. They work for us where we need help, so we have more than enough in that regard…”

Right…
In this world, monsters spawn in dungeons.

And among them, those that are relatively human-like can be made to do things through magic.

“We sent them to the front lines when we were at war with the humans. Even now, they’re used for labor in many places. They’re not very intelligent and can only perform simple tasks, however…”

I’m sure it’s the same when using automatons.

“The Demon King back then probably refused Mariage’s proposal because of that. The things the automatons can do are pretty much the same as the monsters…”

True.
But then, why was he so impressed with Mariage that he even offered him to join the research institute?

Giving that much credit to research that has no hope of being useful…

Oh, a lie?
A tender lie?!
The Demon King lied out of sympathy?!

“No, er, um…”

He blatantly averted his eyes!
I knew it!

He did it out of kindness!

But why did he tell such a lie?

It’s good Mariage immediately left for the afterlife, but if he hadn’t, how would he have fixed things?!

Ah!
Did he perhaps anticipate this?

He knew Mariage would ascend to heaven with no regrets if he said that!

“No… I just thought his forcedly transferred soul wouldn’t last long in an inorganic object, so… At the very least, I wanted him to be satisfied and leave for the underworld!”

God, he’s too kind.

“But that doesn’t mean to say that his research is meaningless! We can’t use them directly as labor, but they can be studied in research institutions to see if they have other uses!”

It’s okay.

You don’t have to be so defensive.
I can tell you were being considerate enough as a demon king.

…
Whether the results of Mariage’s research will be passed on to future generations is something we can only hope for.
We, who live in the present, should just face the present.

“I-It’s okay! His research is already bearing fruit here!”

On my farm!

But the anthropomorphic monsters already occupying the automatons’ role have one disadvantage: they soon mutate into higher beings without my knowledge!
Monsters like Orkubo and Gobukichi have now become valued allies!
We can’t treat them like tools!

Above all, we can’t mass produce any more beings that might upset the world’s balance!
The mutated orcs and goblins hold that much power!

“But! The automatons are fine! They can’t possibly evolve!!!”

They’re only dolls, not living beings!
We’re turning a blind eye to No. 1, who ascended with its inventor earlier, a phenomenon that proves they have souls!
Other than that, I’m sure they’ll make the perfect labor force on the farm!

“You’re so pretentious, Dear.”
“Huh?!”

The one standing behind me saying that is…

Platy!
My waifu! With Junior in her arms!

“Has that optimistic thinking ever got you anywhere?! Your cowardly aspiration is going to get a reality check from me! Whatever you keep on this farm always turns out to be special!”

Even Junior is nodding his head to his mother’s words.

…No, wait.

That’s not always the case, is it?
It’s been a series of coincidences lately. You think I’m not gonna stand up to such miracles happening repeatedly?

Besides, automatons are special in the eyes of the public, so don’t worry!
There’s no room for further growth for them.

You can’t enjoy your life if you’re always on the lookout for red flags!
So, it’s okay.
Things are going to be fine!
The automatons will stay like this forever, I’m telling ya!

…But I was too naïve.
The automatons started changing after about a week.

“Let’s work hard today!”
“Then, let’s play with the students after.”
“Haha, that’s so silly.”

They’re talking like high school girls!

The dolls’ appearance has changed from spherical-jointed to smooth and human-like.
They even have hair, supple cheeks, and an expressive face.
They’ve become human beings themselves!

And they’re all pretty girls!
They’ve transformed into cute girls!!!

I took my eyes off them for a moment, and this happens?!