Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 391 Returning with a Full Load
Old Master Zhang silently mourned for the fragmented emptiness, but when he looked away, he couldn't help but be captivated by that lonely head.

The triangular shape of the head, detached from the body, became increasingly prominent, resembling a pair of men's underwear painted with a bizarrely large mouth... Ah, this...

Distracted for only a moment, Zhang Yuan walked without stopping to his mentor, who was still bent over his desk studying the blueprints, and took out the scroll:
"Teacher, I've been studying this for several days and still can't quite grasp the underlying principles. I can only grasp a superficial understanding, but I think successfully casting it shouldn't be a problem. Shall we begin now?"

"No rush. It's only been a short time. Let alone time magic, I haven't even had time to figure out the mechanisms of these internal circuits. Even if I see the original owner, I'm afraid I won't be able to get any answers."

Tyrandeur first waved his hand, then stared for a moment before turning to look at him:

"Keep the scroll, and also give me another set of chess piece materials as a backup."

Zhang Yuan nodded without saying much. After completing his teacher's requirements, he went straight back to the workshop. He no longer paid attention to the scroll and devoted himself to the processing of the parts with the two master craftsmen.

The main structure of the thruster is complete. The drive unit, energy supply circuit, and even the turbine blades have been polished. Only the assembly and testing of the remaining parts are needed.

Three more days passed quickly. This precious time could not be wasted. In addition to the turbine device being completed on schedule as expected, Zhang Yuan also took the opportunity to supplement his database.

After all, the Grand Mage's private library contains some materials, documents, and even spell models that cannot be found in the academy's public library.

Besides that, what Mr. Zhang coveted even more was one of his teacher's research findings.

Although the mysteries hidden within the chess pieces have not been fully unraveled, the process of much of the research itself is meaningful. Even if the dream of reaching a distant destination is not realized, the scenery along the way is still beautiful.

For example, our Master Tyrantir, despite being unable to create a simplified version of the Construct Golem due to various limitations, has still developed and improved a series of simplified and improved technologies for the manipulation and power supply systems of the Construct during his exploration.

After verification and practical simulation, the data, which was confirmed to have application value, was included in the library. Zhang Yuan, a family member of the research subject, also learned about this from a casual mention by his teacher.

Although it's not very useful at the moment, Mr. Zhang shamelessly asked his mentor for this technology, which has many potential for the future, to keep for later.

Over the next two days, the tested turbine engine ran smoothly. As magic flowed into the drive components through the engraving circuit, a small amount of dissipated mist flowed out from the connection between the rear and the turbine, and was stirred into scattered fluorescence by the rotating fan blades.

"Now we can proceed with the final sealing, right? Based on the estimated propulsion power of this engine, it should be able to push the Auerbach to a speed of twenty-two knots, a speed that will leave all non-magical ships in its dust."

Master Zhang nodded in satisfaction, flicked his finger on the metal casing of the device, and produced a clear, resonant chime.

"Twenty-two knots is the ideal maximum speed, but in actual navigation, the ship's load-bearing capacity and stability must also be considered."

Old Wind-Up's words shattered Mr. Zhang's daydream, his steady, methodical voice like the clicking of gears saying:

"Given the structural stability of the Auerbach wooden sailing ship, even after modification and reinforcement, its normal cruising speed should not exceed sixteen knots."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yuan inevitably showed a hint of regret, but it was fleeting, and he quickly regained his spirits.

"That's enough. This speed is already twice that of an ordinary sailing ship, enough to get us and our cargo to Neverwinter within ten days."

The following morning, after storing the debugged and packaged turbine thruster in his storage bag and deactivating the summons, Zhang Yuan returned to his mentor. The mentor, as always, was hunched over his workbench, flipping through scrolls and books that made Zhang Yuan dizzy just looking at them.

Seeing his disciple come to say goodbye, Tyrandeel nodded slightly and casually threw something over. The disciple took it and examined it; it was a runestone engraved with blue patterns.

Before Zhang Yuan could ask a question, the Grand Master spoke up:

"Go to room 302 on the west side of the third floor and give the runestone to the golem at the door. It will open the teleportation room for you."

After saying that, he waved to shoo people away. Zhang Yuan, who had received the talisman, paid his respects and went up to the third floor without delay, turning left to the entrance of the teleportation room.

During his previous studies, Zhang Yuan had also been curious about this door that was always tightly closed and guarded by the golem, but he didn't have the guts or the urge to accidentally break in.

Now, the once silent, stone-carved golem's eyes lit up. Upon seeing Zhang Yuan arrive, it stretched out its palms, making a gesture inherited from the Beggars' Sect, clearly having received instructions from the Grand Mage beforehand.

Unsurprisingly, the golem that took the rune stone from Zhang Yuan turned around and used its other hand as a key to open the door.

The room was where the teleportation array was located, and its overall layout was similar to that of Neverwinter Academy and Old Habasser's General Store, but it gave Zhang Yuan a sense of oppression, similar to the spatial stagnation of a dimensional anchor.

The latter, who followed the golem into the room, saw the other party walk straight to the center of the array, remove the red rune stone embedded in it, and replace the one in his hand.

In an instant, the patterns on the ground of the magic array lit up with a faint light, and something in the void seemed to be released joyfully, causing ripples to spread slightly. After a moment of thought, Zhang Yuan chanted an incantation, and two beams of light shone almost simultaneously in the Flame Fist base of Baldur's Gate in the distance.

As the light and shadow faded, only the steel golem silently carrying out the orders remained in the Highhold Teleportation Chamber. After waiting for a while, it bent down, took out the blue runestone, and returned to its previous appearance.

On the other side, Zhang Yuan's arrival at the squad's training ground naturally attracted the attention of the Flame Fist members. They only lowered their guard after seeing his face and instead surrounded him, curiously asking him questions.

"Wow, is this a teleportation spell? Not bad."

"How far did they teleport this time?"

"Where's the dragon? Where's your white cloud chariot?"

"Hey, I have a rough idea and a bold suggestion, what do you think..."

Having finally found a familiar and approachable mage teammate, the Flame Fist soldiers, whose curiosity had already exploded, swarmed around him, asking a barrage of questions that left them breathless.

Zhang Yuan didn't put on airs; as they walked, he responded to their whimsical ideas with either tact or cajoling.

"Dragons? Don't dragons hibernate? They're sleeping. The appearance fee to wake them up would bankrupt me."

(End of this chapter)