"Don't worry, I'm not dissatisfied with your progress." Although she might have felt a bit awkward inside, Selene maintained a calm expression as she spoke to Aoki Youichi.
The scale of this project was enormous. Even with countless construction robots working nonstop, completing the first phase in such a short time was no small feat. Aoki Youichi had practically worked himself to death making it happen.
As for why Aoki still looked so nervous—well, Selene's reputation as an exploitative capitalist had already been deeply etched into everyone's mind.
"Alright, let's go. Time to see your real results." Without waiting for a response, Selene eagerly made her way toward the nearby first-phase factory building.
"Y-yes, ma'am..."
As they approached, the supposed "low-rise" building didn't seem low at all. The term only applied when compared to its massive width and length. In truth, it was at least three stories tall above ground—and that was excluding the deeply buried sections below. In total, the structure was anything but small.
With the guards' authorization, the large titanium-alloy main gate slowly opened, allowing Selene and her entourage to step inside.
After walking through a straight corridor about twenty meters long, Selene reached the security relay station of the factory. As the second door slid open to both sides, a massive 500-square-meter platform came into view.
"Director!" Inside the relay station stood several dozen security robots and a handful of soldiers in black tactical uniforms, rifles in hand. Upon seeing Selene, they immediately saluted. Even though the plant relied heavily on automated patrol units, live personnel were still stationed throughout the facility for redundancy.
Around the hall were several more doors leading to dormitories, surveillance rooms, armories, and other guard posts—all constantly vigilant against intruders.
Naturally, as the owner of all this, Selene was given unrestricted access. Following a brief security procedure, the massive steel door at the center of the platform slowly rumbled open.
With an ear-splitting metallic screech, the twin panels slid apart, revealing another set of vertically-splitting gates behind it. After that came a third—this one spiral-shaped. Only after all three gates had fully opened did the passageway beyond finally reveal itself.
Proceeding straight ahead, Selene finally arrived at the factory's true core—the manufacturing hall.
This rare, semi-subterranean industrial complex was immense, even by Academy City standards. Its total area easily surpassed that of most skyscrapers.
Though modular construction had sped up the process, only the outer framework had been completed so far. Inside, just a portion of the automated production lines had been installed, leaving much of the cavernous space still empty. The remaining internal systems would be added later.
Currently, thanks to the factory's high level of automation and robotic labor, fewer than ten human workers were present, each busy with their respective tasks. Their division of labor was clear and efficient.
Selene observed them quietly. She didn't really understand what they were doing, but they looked professional enough. And as for the risk of spies or saboteurs? That didn't worry her at all.
After all, under the long-term influence of her Mental Seal barrier, ordinary people were virtually incapable of resisting its subtle mental conditioning.
Honestly, without this subconscious control mechanism, Selene wouldn't have dared to run things on such a grand scale. With so many people and so much equipment involved, it was inevitable that someone would try to get greedy or sell secrets.
As the saying went, "Fortune favors the bold"—but that's exactly why the Mental Seal barrier was so invaluable.
Aside from the main project—the Type-II Military Robots—the factory also produced a wide range of new weapon systems. As they walked, Aoki Youichi explained the development processes for various pieces of combat equipment.
"At present, we've nearly stopped purchasing weapons from external suppliers. We've already established a fully independent production capability for many armaments."
"These are tactical pistols... and these are combat knives, modeled after the SEAL units'..."
Listening to Aoki's detailed explanations, Selene nodded in satisfaction as she inspected each section.
It seemed Aoki was indeed very competent. Looking at his tired face, Selene couldn't help but think that maybe—just maybe—she should give him a few days off. After all, she wasn't that heartless of a capitalist.
"Hmm?" As Selene followed Aoki toward a metal rack, something suddenly caught her attention. Her eyes lit up as she stared at the black armor inside. "What's this?" she asked, visibly intrigued.
"Oh, that's our independently developed personal protective gear. Besides internal use, we're planning to market it to Security officers as well," Aoki explained, clearly proud of the creation.
"The steel used in it is quite special—actually, it was Matsuzaki's discovery. I think it has something to do with residual particles from Honkai energy bonding with metal during processing. I'm not too sure about the specifics myself... but the resulting material's overall performance—weight, hardness, toughness, and so on—is exceptional."
"...And most importantly, it's cheap to produce."
Hearing that, Selene couldn't help but chuckle. So it's basically a low-grade fusion metal infused with Honkai energy, she thought. Normally, regular materials shouldn't be able to withstand such enhancement. Could it be because she had granted Shuji Matsuzaki partial access to energy control systems?
Whatever the case, she decided to treat it as a budget version of Soulium. Compared to standard alloys, it was still a massive improvement. And as for the "low cost"? Of course it was cheap—besides the raw metal, the key component in the process was her.
Moving closer, Selene picked up a sample and examined it carefully. The armor plating was coated in a matte black finish, made from nano-ceramic carbon-fiber composites. Each interlocking armor plate fit precisely across the chest, back, waist, and other vital areas, giving it a cold, futuristic look.
Around the neck was a thick, collar-like protective ring—at least four centimeters in thickness—that fully covered the neck area.
The design exuded raw, brutal elegance. Each plate weighed only one-fifth as much as steel yet boasted over five times the strength. The armor also possessed excellent heat resistance and corrosion resistance.
It could be lifted easily with one hand, surprisingly lightweight. According to Aoki, it had the weight of a Level I ballistic vest but provided protection on par with Level IIIA and above.
After inspecting various other weapon production processes, Selene gradually grew numb to the overwhelming display of firepower. While there were no major breakthroughs in weapon design itself, the new materials used gave everything a distinctly more formidable presence. The calibers on some of these firearms were downright monstrous.
Well, she thought, no surprise there—after all, this was designed by people who used to take "summer jobs" in Middle Eastern warzones. The entire design philosophy radiated an unmistakable Eastern European, almost "Russian," intensity.
"And over here, Boss, is our latest helmet prototype..."
"This section's for portable shoulder-launched missiles. We also have two alternative variants—Type I: recoilless rifles, and Type II: rocket launchers..."
"And this one here is a grenade launcher..."
...
As time passed, the afternoon tour finally came to an end. Even Selene, with all her stamina, began to feel slightly fatigued after walking through every section of the massive factory.
Standing outside the rear gate, she waved off Aoki Youichi's offer to escort her back. Watching the sun dip below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of amber and gold, she couldn't help but sigh softly.
"This... already qualifies as a war factory, doesn't it?" she murmured.
Have I just gone from a civil industrialist to an arms dealer?