Chapter: 15
The repair of the automaton, which was supposed to take a week, was finished in only two days.
I had expected it, but the fact that my guess had actually been correct still made me sigh.
As soon as I heard the news, instead of going straight to the workshop, I went to find Father.
At this point, I had no connections that could properly introduce Emily, no money to send her to the academy, and not even an empty building where she could set up her own workshop.
But Father had all of those things.
If it was my father, he would definitely recognize at a glance just how extraordinary Emily was.
“Father, can I come in?”
“Adelaide? What is it?”
As if showing that his next business trip was approaching, the large desk was covered with maps stained with ink and records about foreign lands.
“Where are you going this time?”
His thick finger pointed to the far right edge of the map.
“I heard there are herbs here that can even bring the dead back to life. If such a thing exists, your mother might be able to regain her strength as well.”
“…That’s extremely far east.”
“It will take a while, won’t it?”
“I promise I’ll return after only ten nights of sleep.”
I was no longer young enough to be fooled by such lies, but I pulled Father’s finger toward me, hooked it with my pinky, and lightly shook it.
“So, what happened?”
“The automaton I told you I had sent for repairs is finished. They said I could come pick it up. Could you come with me?”
“With me? If you need someone to carry things, anyone from the mansion…”
“I want to introduce someone to you, Father.”
“To me?”
I was certain.
He would definitely like her.
Although he had initially hesitated, saying he was busy, the moment we arrived at the workshop, Father became completely captivated by the fascinating mechanical devices filling the place, like a child.
“Hoho! Oh, my. There are twice as many amazing machines as before. What kind of principle makes them work?”
“Would you like me to explain?”
“You?”
Emily confidently nodded.
“Impressive. I never expected a receptionist to be this knowledgeable about the operating principles of machines. Someone might think you created them yourself.”
“…Thank you, Viscount.”
“I’m not just saying that. I mean it sincerely. Do you happen to have an automaton you made yourself? If so, I would like to buy one.”
“Pardon?”
Leaving Emily with Father, I checked the automaton Emil had brought.
“Wow! I didn’t expect it to be repaired this quickly. As expected of Tonel Workshop.”
“Haha. The skills passed down through generations have not disappeared.”
Emil proudly placed both hands on his waist.
“What caused it to break?”
“Hmm. You probably wouldn’t understand, young lady. The principles are far too complicated and difficult for that small head of yours to comprehend. If I explained it, your head would go ‘pop!’”
Emil was not completely incompetent.
He simply had the talent to turn even correct statements into things that deserved a hit.
“Hmm… Ah, right. I forgot to mention this last time… Did you replace the ink while repairing it?”
“…What? The… ink?”
The moment I casually asked, Emil’s proud expression froze.
The corners of his mouth stiffened as he forced an awkward smile, trembling slightly.
“Yes. The red ink.”
“Ah… Aha! The ink, right. Yes, of course, I replenished that as well.”
“Haha. Hahaha.”
Despite his exaggerated laughter, Emil kept glancing toward where Emily was standing.
However, Emily was busy explaining the workshop’s machines—more accurately, her own creations—to Father and did not notice Emil’s gaze.
“Then, can I test it here?”
“R-right here?”
“Yes! Just to check whether the repair was done properly.”
Without giving Emil a chance to stop me, I immediately wound the automaton’s mechanism.
The newly repaired automaton’s spring moved smoothly.
With every turn of the key, the anxiety on Emil’s face grew deeper.
As if the thing being tightened was not the machine, but his own heart.
Eventually, when I released the key, the mechanical heart inside the automaton began to beat.
Instead of blood and muscles, oil and gears moved its porcelain arm.
The arm lifted.
The pen moved.
And finally, the pen tip filled with ink touched the paper.
“Gasp.”
With a short cry, Emil hurriedly held his breath.
The ink that appeared on the paper was not red.
It was ordinary black ink.
“…You said it was red ink.”
“Ah… I… well… that is… Perhaps there was some kind of mistake. Ah! Come to think of it, I had Emily handle the final inspection instead of myself…”
“You mean the craftsman entrusted the final inspection—not to another craftsman, not even an apprentice, but to a receptionist?”
“That’s… I mean…”
Emil’s face darkened like it was covered in black oil stains.
No matter what excuse he came up with, there was no way out of this situation.
If he had repaired it himself, he would naturally have noticed that the cause of the malfunction was a lack of ink.
And then he should have known that the ink had been black from the beginning.
Could he have secretly switched the ink at the end?
That was impossible as well.
Touching another person’s work—especially a commission handled by a craftsman of the workshop—was practically an unforgivable act of insubordination.
But if he admitted his mistake honestly, he would be ruining the reputation and honor that he had built with his own mouth, claiming they had been passed down through generations.
“What happened?”
Seeing Emil’s pale face, Father quickly approached.
After hearing the explanation, Father’s expression also became serious.
“Hmm. Would Miss Emily perhaps know? Earlier, I noticed that her knowledge about machines was extraordinary.”
“Viscount! What could a mere receptionist possibly know?”
“She probably knows more than I do. Miss Emily, if you have any idea, please tell us honestly.”
When I pointed toward her, Emily’s shoulders shook violently.
After hesitating for a long time, Emily finally confessed in a trembling voice.
“…It was simply a lack of ink… The spring and gears had no problems. I only applied some oil.”
“It seems the payment for this repair should go to Emily, not Emil.”
Emil could not say a word.
“W-wait. Did I understand correctly? Emily repaired this automaton?”
Father stammered as if he could not believe it.
“At this level, doesn’t that mean Emily was actually the person who created the automaton from the beginning?”
The moment I casually said that, Emil reacted as if he had been struck exactly where it hurt.
Well, since it was the truth, his reaction was only natural.
“Miss Emily. Is Adelaide’s statement true?”
“I… I…”
“No! Everything here was made by me! By me, the craftsman! D-do you have proof? Lady Adelaide. You cannot say such things carelessly. This workshop! The works here! Everything was created by me, the craftsman!”
That was when it happened.
“…I have it.”
“What?”
“Proof… I have proof that I… that I made it!”
Emily shouted with tears filling her eyes.
