Chapter 81
The aerial vehicle carrying Giselle and arrived at Akbaran’s First Airport.
The airport was on a completely different scale from an airfield. Among them, the First Airport was the largest.
The airfields we commonly used in the city could only accommodate small to dium-sized aircraft. Large aircraft such as warships or airships took off and landed at airports located on the outskirts rather than inside the city.
Because of this, despite being in the outskirts, Akbaran’s airports had security and facilities that were just as good as those in the upper districts.
Wuuuuuung!
Even now, a colossal cargo ship, responsible for the Empire’s logistics, cast an imnse shadow as it moved through the sky. The massive thrusters attached to its underside numbered in the dozens. If that thing were to fly at low altitude, the entire city would be engulfed in flas.
‘This is driving crazy.’
But the reason I felt like losing my mind lay elsewhere. The overwhelming presence of the unrealistically enormous airship didn’t register with at the mont.
Swish.
The skirt swaying around my lower body felt unfamiliar.
"Relax your face. Your makeup’s going to get ssed up."
Giselle, who had stepped out of the aerial vehicle first, spoke. I took a deep breath to calm myself.
‘This is a mission.’
And I am a soldier of the Empire. I am not so fool who lets a petty sense of pride ruin an operation.
My mind cooled. I flushed out any unnecessary emotions, like water down a drain. I was not defective. I was not subversive.
"Yes, my lady."
I spoke in a modified voice, altered by the function embedded in the choker. It had a sowhat androgynous tone. But since my appearance was unmistakably female, it was sufficient.
Now, let’s recall my identity. My na right now was Keisa. I had entered the Custoria household as a maid two months ago. Keisa was from the lower district, but she had been designated for a noble household’s service and educated for it from a young age.
‘Because she was deed suitable as an attendant to a noble family in the selection exam.’
Keisa was obedient, patient, and diligent. From now on, I had to beco that kind of woman.
"My lady? Ah, well, yeah... sure."
Giselle seed more surprised by my sudden change in deanor than anything else.
Click, click.
I stepped down from the aerial vehicle, letting my heels announce my presence. A servant must always make their position known to their master. That’s why they wore shoes that made pleasant sounds. A master could recognize their attendant’s approach just by hearing it. It was similar to putting a bell on a cat’s collar.
"Shortly, the Carthica family’s..."
I hesitated for a mont as I checked the ti. Damn it, I had to speak like this to Ilay as well. Even the resolve I had gathered felt like it was starting to crack.
"......Young Master Ilay will be arriving shortly."
Since I had already started, I had no intention of doing this half-heartedly.
"Right, Lu... Ke... isa."
The one who needed to pull themselves together wasn’t —it was Giselle.
‘Giselle is not a soldier.’
She was different from . Giselle was soone I had to observe and protect. If there were any mistakes in this mission, they would co from her. And as a soldier, it was my job to cover for those mistakes and make sure they didn’t affect the operation. I had to stay sharp.
Click, click.
I stepped in front of Giselle. Amid the bustling crowd of the airport, I spotted Ilay.
Unlike , who felt strangely empty in many ways, Ilay was fully ard as he walked toward us. He wore a chest guard to protect his vital organs, and a thinly folded variable helt hung around his neck.
Flinch.
Ilay hesitated—for a brief mont. Because he had seen . The glowing edge of his cybernetic eyes flickered rapidly as he analyzed .
My disguise was thorough, but deceiving Ilay’s sharp eyes, after spending years together, was no easy task.
...Damn it.
Realizing who I was, Ilay desperately tried to hold back his laughter. But his cheeks were so red and puffed up that it was obvious.
"S-Sorry, sorry. If you’re here, that ans... yeah."
Ilay muttered quietly as he walked up to . He didn’t ask why I was dressed as a woman.
The surface-level mission was to escort Giselle Custoria. But beneath that, there were private affairs of the Custoria family involved. If it was Ilay, he would have already figured it out.
‘Do not seek knowledge beyond your authority.’
That was one of the virtues of an Imperial soldier, and Ilay followed it faithfully.
Brushing past as if I were nothing more than a maid, he approached Giselle and greeted her.
"Ilay Carthica, dispatched from the Imperial Guard for escort duty."
From his appearance to his deanor, Ilay was the very model of a noble young master.
"...Giselle Custoria. We’ve seen each other several tis, but this is the first ti we’re properly speaking."
Giselle and Ilay weren’t particularly close. But they undoubtedly knew a great deal about each other.
‘Because of .’
I had told Ilay about Giselle, and I had told Giselle about Ilay.
"I wanted to arrange a separate eting to speak with you, Giselle."
"I feel the sa way. This is a good opportunity. And this here... is Keisa, my attendant."
"A pleasure to et you, Keisa."
Ilay looked at as he spoke. His expression was unnaturally neutral, his smile so chanical it was almost unsettling. The laughter from earlier felt like an illusion.
"It is an honor to et you, Lord Ilay."
I grasped both ends of my skirt and bowed.
My expression and tone were just as chanical as Ilay’s. But that didn’t an they were lifeless. Like his smile, my deanor layered artificial, insincere emotions over a machine-like facade.
That was what we were—beings who could, if we wished, beco machines wearing the shape of humans.
"...Is that all?"
Giselle hesitated at the bland exchange. She must have expected two close acquaintances to chatter away upon eting.
But Keisa and Ilay were eting for the first ti. That was how we acknowledged each other. And right now, there were too many eyes watching.
Completing the mission was our priority.
"My lady, I believe it would be best to proceed with the boarding process before we are further delayed."
I urged Giselle forward.
"Thank you, Keisa. It’s been a while since I last ca to the airport, so I got a bit distracted. Yes, I need to focus."
Giselle quickened her pace, and I followed closely behind her.
* * *
The First Airport had over fifty terminals. Dostic flights using personal aerial vehicles departed from the 30s section.
In the Empire, only nobles and the wealthy used aerial vehicles for intercity travel. The lower class primarily relied on ground vehicles or trains.
Even so, even the privileged needed official authorization to enter or leave Akbaran’s airspace. Without a permit, departure and entry were, in principle, impossible. Of course, that was only in principle.
In reality, it was impossible to prevent all unauthorized flights and movent. And those with real power could ignore the rules entirely.
‘But if you have nothing to hide, there’s no reason not to get a permit.’
Giselle, having completed the process, walked toward us, an entry permit in her hand.
‘Another privilege of the nobility.’
We had applied on the sa day and obtained approval within minutes. The family’s prestige guaranteed her status, eliminating the need for any thorough verification. If a lower-class citizen had applied, it would have taken days just to issue the permit.
By now, Giselle’s travel records and destination had been registered in the airport’s database. All that was left was for Barbara to take the bait.
With the permit in hand, we pushed through the crowd and returned to the aerial vehicle we had arrived in.
-Switching to manual operation mode.
As Giselle operated the controls, a system voice announced the change. When she moved to sit in the driver’s seat, Ilay hurriedly stepped forward.
"I can drive—"
"No. I’ll do it. I enjoy handling machines."
Giselle spoke firmly. What she said was true—her academy major was chanical engineering. I had often seen her working with cybernetic prosthetics and machines.
"In that case, I’ll leave it to you."
Ilay backed off without protest and took a seat inside.
"As you probably already know, Ilay, my destination is a research facility in Autonovus. A new prototype vehicle has been released. Anyone with even a slight interest in this field will be visiting to take a look."
Giselle thodically operated the aerial vehicle, preparing for takeoff.
"A prototype from Autonovus would certainly draw attention. Even I’m curious. Ah, by any chance..."
Ilay feigned interest, using his social skills to steer the conversation. Though he had no real enthusiasm for the topic, he asked about chanical engineering to get Giselle to talk.
‘Autonovus.’
I knew the na well. It was a massive corporation specializing in ground vehicles. While it was slightly behind in aerial and flight technology, its ground vehicles boasted overwhelming reliability and advanced engineering.
‘Nothing about this feels unnatural. It’s just the kind of well-arranged plan Hemillas would set up.’
Many nobles would be attending to see the Autonovus prototype. Giselle’s visit blended in perfectly.
Perhaps Barbara had even expected Giselle to attend this exhibition and had been waiting for this exact day.
"Quadrupedal tracked vehicles are rare in Akbaran’s urban areas," Ilay remarked. "They’re not well-suited for city environnts."
He kept the conversation flowing with Giselle.
"But I’ve heard their usage is increasing in rough terrain. That’s why people are speculating that Autonovus’s prototype might be a quadrupedal tracked vehicle."
"Hmm, I prefer classic four-wheeled vehicles. I wish they’d release more of those as well."
Their discussion was completely beyond my interest.
I closed my eyes and let my mind wander. My only weapon at the mont was the dagger strapped to my thigh.
I reached under my skirt, brushing my fingers over the dagger’s handle, recalling its feel.
‘Graken Vuth.’
A dagger with a cumberso na. Unlike the shock pistol Ruina or the high-compression heavy weapon Crucis, Graken Vuth was sothing I almost never needed to use.
‘A gift from Ilay.’
According to Ilay, it was an extraordinary sword. A treasure that only commander-class warriors of the alien Equessian race were allowed to possess.
‘If things go south, this is the only weapon I’ll have to rely on.’
Ruina and Crucis were stored in the aerial vehicle’s compartnt. Both were high-powered weapons produced by the Empire’s workshops—far too conspicuous for a re maid to be carrying around.
‘Well, Ilay is here, so it should be fine.’
I narrowed my eyes, observing Ilay.
Over the past few months, he had been living at an intense pace, pushing himself relentlessly as if to make up for wasted ti.
I could sense it—Ilay was growing stronger.
"Is there sothing on my face, Keisa?"
Noticing my gaze, Ilay flashed a smug smile, his tone laced with amusent.
It was only for an instant, but through subtle glances and expressions, we had already exchanged an unspoken understanding.
"You just seem to be an exceptionally handso man. It’s hard to look away."
I spoke slowly and composedly.
Screech, clunk!
The aerial vehicle jolted violently as if we had just crashed. Giselle, who was in the driver’s seat, had nearly lost control after hearing my words.
"Khh... Kkk... I-Ilay, please... I need you to take over the controls...!"
She gripped the steering lever with one hand while desperately covering her mouth with the other.
...Perhaps our little joke had gone a bit too far.
Before the vehicle could completely spin out, Ilay took the driver’s seat. As Giselle switched places, she barely managed to compose herself, then turned to glare at , silently mouthing:
‘Weren’t you the one saying we should take this mission seriously?’
I tilted my head, pretending not to understand.
She wasn’t wrong. That was a mont where we shouldn’t have been joking around. It was a lapse in judgnt—an impulsive mistake on both mine and Ilay’s part.
But we weren’t perfect machines. Not yet.
Yes, we weren’t perfect.
That’s why, for now, we were still just humans—humans close to becoming machines.
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