"Today, we’ll begin the first lesson of ’Steel Golem Design.’"

Mercer’s voice echoed in the classroom as a holographic screen materialized in mid-air. "First, you must understand a fundamental concept: what, exactly, is a Golem."

A term appeared on the holographic screen: Mechanical Body.

"All creations made from non-living matter, driven by Witchcraft or Alchemy Technology, and endowed with mobility fall under the category of ’Mechanical Body.’ The Factory Servants you built before are the most basic form of Mechanical Body."

Mercer swiped his finger across the console, and the image on the holographic screen changed to reveal a ferocious Gargoyle. It had bat-like wings, sharp claws, and a body with the rough texture of rock.

"’Golems,’ on the other hand, are a subcategory of Mechanical Bodies, specifically referring to creations born for war and destruction."

He pointed to the Gargoyle. "This is one of the most classic Golems of the Witchcraft School, a type of Rock Golem. The principle behind its creation is ’animation.’ Wizards of the Witchcraft School select suitable materials—earth, rock, crystal, even corpses—and then use specific Magic to ’animate’ them, or activate them by embedding a Control Core."

"Take this Gargoyle, for instance. Its ’Heart of the Stone Golem’ serves as its Control Core and its vital center. Its entire body is sustained by a single, complete Shaping Magic. It’s powerful, direct, and not slow to create."

Victor spoke up at an opportune moment, his tone carrying the intellectual superiority typical of a nobleman’s son:

"Master, I’ve heard that the Witchcraft School’s Elemental Golems, like the Flame Lord, are essentially created by imprisoning an Elemental Creature within a Mechanical Body. This allows them to think and fight like true living beings, but if control is lost, the backlash is also incredibly destructive."

"Correct."

Mercer glanced at Victor, an affirmation of his contribution. "The Bloodline School has its own version, which they call Flesh Golems. As the name implies, they are assembled from the flesh and blood of living organisms."

He reached out and tapped the holographic screen. A red line of light sliced off the Gargoyle’s wing. It tumbled through the air, and where the wing had been severed, no parts flew off—it simply crumbled into ordinary rubble.

"Do you see? They are created as a single, solid piece, which means once damaged, they are difficult to repair. You can’t just give it a new wing, because the wing and the body are extensions of the same ’Magic.’ Repairing it is almost the same as creating a new one. In a war of attrition, the cost of this model is unacceptably high."

’The Golems of the Witchcraft School excel in individual combat, but their maintenance costs are astronomical, making them unsuitable for large-scale, high-intensity warfare.’

In Allen’s opinion, these creations were only suitable for use as guards or elite units.

Mercer seemed to sense Allen’s line of thought, and his gaze shifted to him.

"And so, we of the Alchemy School chose a different path."

The Gargoyle on the holographic screen vanished, replaced by a mechanical creation forged entirely from metal.

It had a scorpion-like form, with six articulated mechanical legs, a flexible tail ending in a high-frequency vibrating stinger, and two front pincers replaced by a rotating chainsword and a multi-barreled autocannon. Every joint, every armor plate, was filled with the beauty of industrial design.

"The Steel Golem."

A hint of pride laced Mercer’s voice. "Its essence is not ’animation,’ but ’assembly.’"

"Instead of pursuing the near-miraculous act of ’animation,’ we manufacture components: power cores, drivetrains, weapon mounts, armor modules. When one of its legs is severed, it takes us only three minutes to grab a new one from a parts crate and install it. When its weaponry becomes obsolete, we can simply research and develop new weapons to replace the old."

"You should all understand what this means in warfare."

Allen raised an eyebrow. Of course he understood.

’It meant a Steel Golem Legion would possess unparalleled combat endurance.’

’Master Mercer’s words aligned perfectly with the principles of modern warfare ingrained in Allen’s mind.’

’Standardization, modularity, replaceability... This was the true power of a system-based approach.’

"It is precisely because of this unique advantage that Steel Golem research broke away from the Witchcraft School to become one of the most important pillars of our Alchemy School, especially the Macrostructure Domination branch."

Mercer concluded, "And my specialty is the design and creation of colossal Golems and direct-assault Steel Golems."

He swiped the holographic screen again, and rows of Golems of varying levels appeared.

"Next, we have the Golem power level classifications. This system is universal throughout the Wizarding World."

"Level 1 Golems are auxiliary units. Similar to your Factory Servants, they possess no combat capabilities."

"Level 2 Golems."

A video clip appeared on the holographic screen. The steel scorpion from earlier charged into a squadron of Knights clad in full plate armor. Its chainsword ripped through shields while its autocannon blasted Knights and their horses into the air. It was a one-sided slaughter.

"They possess combat strength on par with an Advanced Apprentice. A standard Level 2 combat Golem can easily defeat a company of fifty mortal Knights or fight on even terms with a Low-Level Magical Beast."

"Level 3 Golems are equivalent to Official Wizards. They are the backbone of interplanar warfare. A single unit is enough to breach the defenses of a city in a mortal world, and they can be used to battle monsters on the level of an Official Wizard."

"Level 4 Golems are equivalent to Morning Star Wizards. They are walking catastrophes, strategic-grade weapons. One of the core objectives of ’Project Dominion,’ which I am currently leading, is to create a Level 4 Assault Golem capable of confronting a Fire Element Lord head-on."

"Level 5 Golems are equivalent to Moonlight Mages. These are true war gods. A single Level 5 Golem possesses the power to conquer a small-to-medium-sized plane on its own."

"As for Level 6 Golems..." Mercer paused as a giant question mark appeared on the holographic screen. "They are a theoretical construct, equivalent to a Sunshine Wizard. They are the ultimate dream of every Golem Wizard. To this day, no one has succeeded in building one."

"A Wizard’s methods are countless and ever-changing. In a one-on-one fight, a Golem would have a hard time defeating an experienced Wizard of the same level."

Mercer’s voice brought Allen back to his senses. "However, an Alchemy Wizard is never limited to operating just a single Golem."

His voice rose, and the projection expanded to fill the entire wall, displaying a vast battlefield.

"An Official Wizard might be able to dodge a single laser, but can he dodge a hundred Magic-guided Cannon blasts fired simultaneously from different angles? He might be able to withstand a single strike, but can he withstand a saturation bombardment powerful enough to sink an entire island?"

"What’s more, there are specialized Golems built with an extreme focus on raw power, and it’s not unheard of for them to take down a Wizard of the same level."

His gaze fixed on the two students. "On the battlefields of low-to-mid-tier planes, the Wizards of the Alchemy School are the undisputed main force. Because we can use our resources to simply overwhelm any enemy. Therefore, the path you have chosen is a bright one, but it is also incredibly expensive."

Mercer deactivated the holographic screen, bringing the lecture on Golems to a close.

"Next, I will teach you your first Core Witchcraft."