Grand Welcome
Although she is not a mechanic, she thought she had some idea about mechanics.
Because of a few quarrels, his hand was chopped off by a domineering nobleman at the age of seventeen. In a rage, he killed the other party, fled his hometown, and was eventually rescued by a passing mechanic.
That was also the first time he knew that this cold, inorganic lump of iron, when placed properly, could be indistinguishable from a real human hand.
So when he heard that they had a teammate staying behind, who was a mechanic with great skills, he was curious, but also guessed that there might be some scenes beyond imagination, and he thought he had made sufficient mental preparations.
——But when they passed through the atrium without bloodshed under the cover of a group of mechanical birds that could shoot small energy cannons, and were welcomed by a row of mechanical puppets holding various weapons and waving four arms, he suddenly felt that he had not done enough psychological preparation.
"...Didn't you say this was a magic academy?"
The swordsman wearing a conical hat asked the question involuntarily, and his movement of turning his head was very stiff.
"Yes, Saint Feses School of Magic, is there any problem?"
Seeing that Ximu ignored him, Molina took over the conversation and waved towards the sky.
"This spire, this style of painting, this extravagant and elegant atmosphere, doesn't it fit the world's stereotype of magicians?"
That’s true… but that’s not the point!
Which magic academy would have so many mechanical gadgets?
The mechanical bird lands on various locations on the building like a real bird, seemingly randomly, but just happens to get into every optimal attack position. It even lifts its wings to preen its feathers - are those real feathers? Just do it right there!
And what's with that mechanical puppet? Why does it look both new and old? Has it been modified? Those four arms look like they can extend. If we really fight, I'm sure it'll be tough to deal with...
And...how many things are hidden in the invisible places?!
If he paid close attention, he could sense a swarm of tiny creatures rustling in the corners of the building... What were they? Were they the same bots he'd once dealt with? Wasn't the sheer number a bit too alarming?
Could there be any traps around here that he hasn't noticed?
——Isn't this too abnormal?!
Is a transformation of this scale something that a mere mechanic can accomplish?!
This is not a magic academy at all, it is clearly a military fortress built by a group of mechanics!
"You're trying to trick me again, aren't you? I'm already in your hands, what can I possibly do? Can't you just be honest with me? How many people are left in your base? This kind of situation, there's no way one person could have pulled it off, right?"
Zhui Nin asked sincerely, but the two girls did not respond to his question. They just exchanged glances and smiled with pride at the same time.
"Did he send all the puppets out to welcome us?" Morina tilted her head and smiled secretly.
Ximu smiled without saying a word, glanced at the shocked Zhui Ning seemingly casually, then raised his hand and very naturally caught a landing mechanical bird.
Although it was unknown how much Ruixia knew about their subsequent entry into the underground mine, the demonstration intent of such a full-scale display was too obvious.
Unlike Sorens, Zhui'en's primary concern was getting out alive, rather than the truth behind the incident. Because of this, a clear demonstration of strength was more crucial to convincing and impressing him than the progress of the investigation into the truth behind the incident.
With such a strong team with follow-up supplies, I believe he will be able to make a more reasonable judgment whether to make enemies or join.
"You've had a hard time along the way. Are you okay?"
The bird standing on the hand opened its mouth and uttered human words - although there was some subtle distortion, it was still possible to tell that it was Ruixia's voice.
"fine."
In fact, Ximu inevitably suffered some scratches in the battle with Zhui Na, but these minor injuries could be healed by Morina in the blink of an eye, so there was no need to mention it specifically to make people worry.
"We brought people back again."
"I know."
The mechanic bird jumped in her hand, changed direction, flapped one wing, and nodded to Zhui Ying beside her like a human.
Such relaxed sensitivity made the swordsman's face change slightly, but he quickly organized his usual professional fake smile and even responded to Ruixia's greeting very enthusiastically and casually.
——That thing that flashed by in the bird’s beak, is it a magic crystal?
Although its size shouldn't be powerful enough to crush a person with one blow, but...
After meeting Ximu's calm but unruffled gaze, Zhuiren had no doubt that if he dared to make any unusual movement at this moment, given the disadvantage of being unarmed, these two men, one far away and one close, would cooperate with each other and cripple him in no time.
He didn't know whether he was lucky or unlucky to meet such a rich and brutal team in such a terrible place.
While they were away on the expedition, Ruixia used the spare key to bring in all the mechanical toads that had been left outside the academy, which greatly enriched the amount of materials, expanded the production line of the base, and facilitated the mopping-up work in the dormitory building.
Initially, it was just to save Ximu and the others some effort when returning to the base, but in the process of constantly clearing the monsters in the building, Ruixia discovered that although these monsters would continue to resurrect, they would also become weaker as the number of times they were killed increased, becoming the kind of slime that could hardly maintain a human form.
If it is killed multiple times in this form, it may disappear completely and never appear again.
"Knowing you'd be bringing back ore later, I decided to be a bit generous and sent all the Mechamon that had reached combat standards out to clear out the monsters. So far, it's been quite effective."
The mechanic bird stood on Ximu's shoulder, explaining the results of his work along the way, with Ruixia's usual display and love for her own skills.
"Then I decided it would take too much time to chase and clean up the robots one by one, so I made something else. You guys wait here for a moment."
The four people stopped in front of a long staircase as instructed. A magician with a staggering gait on the upper floor noticed the approach of outsiders. He raised his staff and cast a spell, but was blocked by an energy barrier.
The barrier is deployed from four suspended diamond-shaped devices, like a net floating in the air.
Then, the big net seemed to have eyes and covered the opponent on the stairs. The light of the energy barrier changed, and electric current flashed on the surface, passing through the magician's body calmly.
The broken opponent twitched violently, then fell to the ground with a bang, turning into a ball of ashes in front of everyone.
Zhui Ning was shocked.
Sorens was also shocked.
Molina did let out a long-drawn "Yo," but then she moved closer to Ximu and muttered softly, "Sure enough, I'm still a little poor... I thought the monsters would be eliminated directly when that thing swept over."
Ximu even nodded after hearing this: "Yeah... After all, Ruixia must have done her best to keep so many robot dolls and robot beasts moving around. Otherwise, it would be more efficient if they put a group in front and back, interspersed in opposite directions."
"To maintain this situation, I think there won't be many magic crystals left in Ruixia's bag... Luckily, we found the mine."
"We really need to get rid of that long centipede in the workshop. Otherwise, it will be very troublesome for us to transport the ore later, after all, we have to pass through there all the time..."
The two girls walked in front, discussing things back and forth, and the two men in the back couldn't get a word in at all.
So... in their opinion, this mechanical performance that is no less than an arms display could have been even more terrifying, right?
It’s not that the mechanic named “Ruixia” is incapable of making something even more amazing, but his performance is hampered by limited resources, right?
This feeling of "the world is so big that it's beyond my reach" had been looming in Zhui's heart until she walked into the door and saw the black-haired boy wearing a monocle, sitting casually in mid-air, checking dozens of screens at the same time, that finally reached its peak.
Subconsciously moving the already somewhat faulty mechanic's hand, Zhui's mouth twitched slightly, and she suddenly realized that she might never know what real mechanics were.
+++
"Everyone has worked hard this time."
The same desk, the same group of people. But this time, Sorens sat closer to Ximu and the others, while Zhuiren sat alone in the corner, secretly observing them with a half-smile.
"Thank you so much this time."
After listening to everyone's brief account of what happened in the underground mine, Ruixia turned to Sorens with a sincere smile. "During this trip, you've been doing your best to protect your companions, even at the cost of sustaining such serious injuries..."
"No, I only know a little bit of defensive magic, but it's not very useful... If we talk about usefulness, those two are more powerful."
The simple boy really believed so and quickly waved his hand.
"You don't have to be so modest. Everyone in the team is important. You protect them, and they help you in return. The key to a team's normal operation is mutual trust and support, isn't it?"
Ruixia has always been easygoing with Sorens. Now that the latter has passed the test, she naturally includes him as a companion.
He looked at Xi Mu and nodded slightly.
The silver-haired girl cast her gaze upon him, and Sorens subconsciously sat up straight. Just as he was getting nervous, a chill suddenly rose in his neck, but it quickly disappeared.
He reacted and raised his hand to touch his neck——
The black mark that pierced the skin like a thorn has disappeared.
Looking at the happy face of the brown-haired boy, Zhui Nin raised the hat that blocked her vision and sneered in her heart.
This happy scene was deliberately done for him to see, right?
But even though he understood in his heart that there were conditions for breaking the curse, it was difficult for him to refuse.
After all... who would want to go against their own life?
"Oh, I'm so envious."
After sighing in a dull tone, Zhui'en leaned back. If she hadn't been worried, she might have even put her legs on the table.
"So... when will I be lucky enough to take this thing off my neck?"
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