Modern World Warlock-Chapter 233: Android Versions
After Dante and his group cleared the ghouls' nest, they stayed looking around the area for any potential hidden clues.
When Alice checked on the condition of the female android, she noticed a tattoo on her burnt frame reading "0.8" and deduced that it must have been the android's "version."
The female android's brain was still functional, but her body was utterly destroyed, so she wouldn't be able to do anything.
Dante, seeing the condition of the android, picked up his opponent's severed arm and walked towards Alice, thinking that they could ask the android some questions.
However, before the warlock got closer, Alice pulled out her sword and stabbed the android in the forehead, completely shutting her down.
"Oh… I wanted to see if we could talk with her," Dante commented, slightly disappointed.
The ex-detective gazed at Dante with a raised eyebrow. His way of talking made it seem like the androids were real people, which left her a bit confused.
"You know you can't torture an android for answers… Right?" Alice said.
"Besides, these things can send distress signals to the Azure Rebels. They probably already know that we are here…" Alice continued.
Dante nodded in understanding and gazed at the female android's frame, instantly noticing the tattoo and grabbing the severed arm to compare them.
"What are these numbers?" Dante asked.
The burly android that Dante had defeated had a "1.1" in his arm, while the female android had a "0.8" near her stomach.
"I think these are their version numbers…" Alice replied.
Seeing the warlock's face of uncertainty, the ex-detective elaborated and explained that when androids were upgraded, they were given a higher version number.
"The higher the number, the stronger you can expect them to be…" Alice continued.
"Honestly, the fact this one wasn't even version 1.0 is pretty scary. It seems like they purposely placed these weaker versions to protect the nest," she explained.
As Megan heard the conversation, she checked on the body of her opponent, which had been severed from the arms, legs, and head.
After confirming that the android was indeed inoperative, she found the tattoo on one of his calves reading "0.9."
"Yeah… These robots are at least ten years old," Megan commented.
"That young!?" Dante asked, half joking.
With how fast the Azure Rebels developed their androids, ten years was enough time for them to have versions that were at least 20x more powerful than their recent opponents.
"By the way, you can't take that arm with you…" Alice said to Dante, noticing he was carrying it quite confidently.
"Eh? Why not?" Dante asked.
"It probably has a tracking system. The rebels place trackers in different parts of their androids' bodies," Alice replied.
Even though they had fought older versions of the androids, the ex-detective was sure that they were being tracked, so taking the arm with him would reveal their location to the Azure Rebels.
"I see…" Dante muttered.
'Sorry, Miss Paige…' He thought, dropping the arm back on the ground.
The main reason he was taking the arm with him was for the scientist to study it, knowing that Paige would gladly work on it. However, it proved more complicated than what he thought.
When Zac and the vampires rejoined Dante, they said they didn't find anything near the nest, so the group was clueless as to what the point of the nest even was, being so far from everything.
Dante explained that, in Terra, Netherius would build spawners or other necrotic structures in seemingly random places to divert attention from his plans.
"The thing is… Even if we know it's a diversion, we can't leave these nests alone, or they could become a much bigger problem later on," Dante elaborated.
"It makes sense to use these things as a distraction, but we are not even in the cartel's territory, so why are they placing these here in the north?" Alice pondered aloud.
Nevertheless, nobody could answer her question, as they were all oblivious to their enemies' plans.
"Let's return to the manor for now and speak with the others…" Megan commented, prompting the group to leave the area the same way they arrived—in the arms of the three who were able to fly.
When they returned, they landed in the manor's backyard late at night, where Asphodel was waiting for them.
The Vampire Mother approached Laurent and Claudia first, asking them how they were doing, to which the two vampires confidently replied that they were wholly unscathed.
Even though the vampire lord and lady looked to be around the same age as Dante, Asphodel patted their heads like a loving mother and told them to get inside the manor.
"You really are a mother now, huh?" Dante jokingly said.
The Asphodel he remembered from his previous world was a savage vampire who only got along well with her older sister, so seeing her act like a good mother was somewhat strange to him.
Still, he believed it was better for Asphodel to be like that instead of her past self.
After the group gave the Vampire Mother a summary of the events, she instantly deduced that it was a diversion, as it made no sense for a ghoul spawner to be out in the open and far away from people to prey on.
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"That's why we need to talk with the others…" Dante said.
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Inside the laboratory at the Jade Palace, the scientist Paige was working closely with Dr. Sylva—Trinity's father.
The pair were intently watching Clara practice her warlock spells, jotting down notes with an almost illegible calligraphy.
*Achoo!* Paige suddenly sneezed loudly.
"Bless you…" Dr. Sylva said without taking his eyes off Clara.
"Ugh… Why do I feel like I just missed out on something?" Paige wondered.
"What?" Dr. Sylva asked, halting his note-taking and glancing at the scientist.
"I just got a strange, disappointing feeling, as if I just missed the opportunity to learn something…" Paige explained.
"Umm, should we take a break?" Dr. Sylva asked.
"No, no. Never mind me, let's continue…" the scientist replied, waving off her strange feeling.
