Netori: Stealing The Hero's Party!-Chapter 642: Madder Of The Women - Part 2

With the shut of an eye, Mono's clone changed her appearance from a gothic raven to the peppy fashionista that was Mono. Her clothes, however, couldn't be replicated by her masking system, mostly due to the fact that, unlike her counterpart in this world, the clone was still half human and wearing actual clothes instead of being a part of her body.

Thus, taking a dress out of Mono's wardrobe, the woman dressed herself as the queen, and just as she was done, a sudden knock made her jump. Turning around, she watched the door slowly open with an unfamiliar face on the other end.

'Who is this?' She thought, confused about the tall automaton that was now standing in front of her.

"Master," lifting her head after a quick bow, Grace squinted while looking at the clone. "I saw Avarice walking around the halls. Considering how insane that sounds after what she'd done last time she was awake, I'm guessing it's your doing?"

Her sarcastic tone only confused the clone further. After all, why would a machine talk to its master in such a familiar tone?

"What about her?" Trying to keep up the pretence, Mono turned to the machina and leaned on her side. "Do you have a problem with her now?"

"A problem?" Taking a deep breath, Grace moved closer to her presumed master. Stopping right in front of her, she glanced down at Mono's frame and replied. "With the possibility of her trying to kill everything and everyone? Yes…Yes, I have a problem with her."

'What the hell is she talking about?' Her own model being more for defence than the offensive, the clone was struggling to figure out what kind of monstrosity Grace thought Avarice was.

"I made some changes in her, she'll be fine working for us now." As she responded to Grace, the clone also called out to Avarice through her mental link. Appearing by the door in just a second through teleportation, she tried to strip Grace of her mana, but to her and the surprise of her master, the Machina in front of them was utterly unaffected by the lack of magic in the surrounding air.

Taking a step back, Mono kept her eyes glued to the oddity. She now knew that Grace was a rudimentary machina devoid of magic. Pumps, pistons and fuel, that's what she ran on–something they couldn't do much about without blowing away their cover.

'Stand down.' Glancing past Grace, the clone brushed off Avarice. 'She could be a battle model, same as the Avarice she's talking about. I don't wanna risk a fight and ruin any chance of us getting those guys to our world.'

With a nod, her servant moved away and went back to her petrol. In the meantime, looking at Grace again, Mono faked a smile and urged her to follow her to the edge of her bed.

"We can talk sitting down, can't we? It would also give me a chance to check on you for repairs and whatnot." Eyeing the rough dents and sockets on Grace, she grabbed her by the hand and made her sit next to her on the bed. Once settled, she forced yet another smile–something that made her wanna vomit her guts out. "Well…Let's take a better look at you, shall we?"

Reluctant and somewhat confused about the sudden change in demeanour, Grace almost pulled her hand away, but right as she was trying to do so, Mono grabbed her arm and held her firmly on the bed. Squinting her eyes, the machina tried to figure out what was wrong, all the while the other person was trying to do the same.

However, unlike the clone–Grace did learn something from that touch alone. The mind of a Machina beyond her own was often a mystery for Grace, so when Mono's human mind opened up to her, she decided to peer deeper and deeper in as never before had this happened.

'I thought I couldn't read the minds of machines, then why–' Right as that thought crossed her mind, Grace saw everything that was burning in the clone's head. From their intention to the disarming of her master, she saw it all in just a few seconds.

And yet as her mind came back to the smiling liar in front, she did not confront her; instead, keeping her emotions settled, she decided to play along cautiously with her ruse.

'Raven should be here in a few days to check on master, I can tell him everything.' Very much aware of her limited abilities, she decided to simply be a silent observer for now and keep a close eye on this clone from another world. 'I can also try talking to Shamisha, but if they already have master subdued, what hope does she have? Her ability to fight a situation like this might be even worse than mine, thanks to that scaredy nature.'

Staring at the Machina's dull expression, the clone tilted her head sideways as she reached for Grace's shoulder. Shaking a little, completely unaware of her mind-reading ability, she asked.

"Is something wrong? All the more reason for me to check up on you, isn't it?"

"No," lifting herself up, Grace dusted her already pristine clothes and smiled the faintest of smiles. Looking down at the clone, she bowed yet again and added. "I'll bring you your evening meal, you should rest up in the meantime. All that working in the lab must be hard for your joints, no matter how mechanical they might be."

Lifting her head again, Grace turned around and began walking away. The moment she exited the room, however, she noticed Avarice standing beside the door to the queen's room. Giving her a passing look, she whispered.

"If master's okay with you being here again, then so be it. Just watch your act, I'm still the one responsible for the castle's upkeep, and I don't want anything to break." Lacking a voice box, however, the Machina simply stood there, returning a blank stare.

'Tsk…This is going to be a headache. I hope the hero comes soon.' And as if the gods had answered her prayers, the hero was already on his way.