Children of the Holy Emperor

CH 42

A day before the Inquisitors attacked the stronghold of the Cornsheim tribe.

Having discovered the attack in advance, the guild, under the emperor's orders, began the work of smuggling out some of the scholars and research records.

During the process, the emperor took an interest in the artificial lifeforms that were lined up in one corner of the lab.

"Useful. Let's take a few."

The guild's executives looked at the emperor with pale faces. After all, wasn't this research into artificial life the primary reason the Cornsheim were branded as devil worshipers?

Nevertheless, he spoke with an impassive face, "This has nothing to do with the so-called devils. It's a technology that abides by the rules of this dimensional world."

While the majority of the artificial lifeforms – Homunculi – were destroyed during the great purge, the guild managed to smuggle out three of the dolls without the Inquisitors noticing.

"These are just empty dolls in the shape of a human."

"When a soul enters, it will move properly. That's how they're designed."

Then, how do you insert a soul?

As everyone expressed their bewilderment, the emperor started experimenting by moving his own soul into the dolls.

Moving one's soul in and out freely wasn't something an ordinary person could do, but everyone in the guild accepted it because it was the emperor who was doing it. Initially, they wondered what use they might have for dolls in the shape of a person.

Soon, the guild members unexpectedly witnessed moments when the dolls, which had been lying quietly, suddenly opened their eyes or got up and walked around.

Just as the emperor said, once a soul entered, the doll began to move like a human. It resonated with the incoming soul and gradually transformed to resemble the emperor, a remarkable sight to behold.

However, the emperor's Homunculus demonstration hit an unforeseen snag. Forcing a soul to synchronize with the artificial life form used up too much mental energy, so it wasn't easy to move his soul as freely as he could when using his own body.

The senses were also extremely dulled, so the emperor had to struggle for a while to adapt.

Most importantly, the dolls, which existed outside the rules of this world, couldn't accept aura at all.

It goes without saying that this was extremely inconvenient for the emperor, who handled aura as easily as breathing. Aura was a force that underpinned life. Its lack was equivalent to becoming as powerless as a dying man.

Fortunately, there were no restrictions on using divine power, perhaps because it was bound with his soul, as the emperor explained.

So, where will you use it?

The guild executives were puzzled watching the emperor, who could destroy a guild building with a casual wave of his hand, move around weakly and unsteadily like a patient after entering the doll.

The emperor seemed somewhat unsatisfied, but he finished the experiment and placed the dolls in major branches of the guild, far from the capital.

And indeed, the emperor demonstrated the worth of those dolls on the southern front two years ago. The tide of the battle, which had been faltering, was reversed in an instant when a single priest with infinite divine power joined the fight.

With the added valiant efforts of the 1st Prince Owen, who was furiously fighting on the front lines, the front continued to push south until it stabilized at its current position.