Man on the ark, forced to become king

"Don't call me that name!"

Fiameta's forehead veins bulged as she protested loudly, but Mostima completely ignored her.

"I'm so unlucky to have run into you two!"

Muttering indignantly, the Liboli girl channeled her grief and anger into action, raising her knife and slashing down a rock.

"Believe me, Fiameta, your work is absolutely worth it. Okay, give me a hood."

"Hmph, let me make this clear beforehand, I absolutely will not wear this thing!"

Snapped!

Lin Lu caught the stone head that was thrown to him with both hands, carefully took out the sealed metal box containing the Pure Origin Stone, and gently opened it. The azure magical light rippled in his palm, completely enveloping the egg-sized Pure Origin Stone.

The Shining Stone Shield is a specialty of the Realucalia Magic Academy, worn by both apprentices and full-fledged mages, and comes in many variations depending on one's status and position.

Although it doesn't look particularly beautiful, this thing is actually a magical artifact with a long history, possessing multiple functions and uses. It can keep the mind clear and, to some extent, enhance the power of magic.

Depending on the complexity of the manufacturing process, the effects vary. What he is preparing to make now is the simplest one—the Kaleros Shining Stone Shield. Its function is relatively simple, only enhancing the power of magic and having a slight refreshing effect.

Perhaps it should be called Originium Shield now?

The pure source stone is embedded in the groove at the top of the hood. Under the guidance of magic, the internal energy seeps into the stone to form tiny nodes, which then connect to each other.

In about ten minutes, the eyes carved from the headgear gathered an orange glow, which gradually solidified into crystals at the location of the eyes, and then dimmed again.

Theoretically, a well-structured pyroxene shield can guide all the energy contained within all the pyroxene into a closed loop structure without any leakage. This also applies to Originium, because the energy is completely confined. Therefore, the essence of this thing is actually similar to a staff, so there is no risk of contracting Oripathy. Of course, this is just speculation, and a definitive conclusion still needs to be reached through instrumental testing.

"Xiao Mo, take out your Originium radiation detector and test this thing. If there are no problems, you can use it."

"Is it done?"

Mostima snapped out of his reverie, went to the window, rummaged through his clothes, pulled out a small device that looked like a remote control, and pulled out an antenna-like structure, scanning it back and forth a few times.

As a messenger who travels all over the world year-round, this portable detector is naturally always on hand.

"The test results are within the safe range, there's no problem."

"Very good, it seems my theory is correct."

Lin Lu also saw the green light on the instrument and was very satisfied with the result, but she was troubled when she saw the bright halo above Mostima's head.

If you have that thing on your head... how do you put on the hood? It seems like this thing wasn't designed with the special needs of someone like Sakta in mind when it came to wearing it...

Who in their right mind would have a halo above their head?

And it seems that the Sarkaz race cannot wear hats.

After pondering for a moment without coming up with a good solution, Lin Lu could only look at the Lani doll leaning against the windowsill. Why not ask the magical Lani when faced with an unsolvable magical problem?

Thinking this, he reached out and tapped the brim of the little doll's hat twice with his finger.

"Lani? Lani? Can you hear me?"

"Do you know that forcibly waking me up will prolong my recovery time?"

A hint of liveliness suddenly appeared on the doll's stiff face, as it awoke from its slumber. Its eyes wandered and then settled on the stone-carved headdress.

"A luminous stone shield? You made it with Originium?"

"That's right, this is how it happened..."

Lin Lu briefly explained her thoughts and pointed to Mostima beside her: "Is there any way to put a hood on her in this situation?"

"Yes, but it needs to be modified."

Lani clearly had a deep understanding of magic academy matters, and provided a solution with almost no thought.

Following her instructions, Fiameta performed a minor operation on the headgear, modifying the face section of the headgear into a detachable structure without affecting the overall effect.

After explaining the specific modification process, Lani fell asleep again. Lin Lu held the new version of the Shining Stone Shield in her hands and held it up to Mostima's head; the size seemed to be just right.

"Try wearing it? This thing might help you grasp the Tops position more quickly."

"Oh... shall I give it a try?"

This thing was hardly aesthetically pleasing, but considering that he hadn't yet mastered the spell, Mostima hesitated slightly before picking up the hood. Under the watchful eyes of the two, he removed the face mask and put it back on his head from behind, then put the face mask back on.

Yes, it fits perfectly.

"Pfft~"

Upon seeing Mostima's new look, Fiameta, who had been watching the whole thing, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

The Radiant Stone hood was quite large, and when it was put on her head, it gave her a three-headed appearance. The Originium block embedded at the top of the hood just passed through the middle of the halo, making it look like a circular lamp standing on her head, which was quite comical.

Lin Lu really wanted to laugh, but she held it in and asked with a straight face, "How is it? Does it feel good?"

"It's...it's amazing. I do feel much clearer-headed...it's a bit strange, like I'm wearing a staff on my head, and it doesn't feel uncomfortable at all, and it doesn't affect the halo above my head."

Wearing the enormous stone hood, Mostima stood up unsteadily, seemingly unaccustomed to the sudden weight on his head. Because it was made of stone, it was quite heavy.

"It doesn't affect visibility either, so what's the principle behind it?"

"I'll teach you later if you want to learn. You should learn the Tops position first."

The creation of Radiant Stone magic items involves a complete process that cannot be explained in just a few words.

Lin Lu temporarily set aside this topic, took the other stone head that Fiameta had carved, and began to make the second headgear.

For reasons unknown, Fiameta glanced at Mostima, who had returned to the foot of the bed with her stone head, and after a moment's thought, she made some modifications to the half-finished product in her hand, making two holes about the same size as the feathers on her head.

Lin Lu saw her actions but didn't point it out.

"Does this thing really work?"

As dawn broke and the last headgear was finished, Fiameta held it in her hands and, driven by curiosity, held it up to her head a few times before finally deciding to put it on.

Crimson feathers peeked out from the deliberately left holes, like two decorations on the hood, making it look even more comical than Mostima's.

"How is it? Although it's a basic item, I think it's quite useful."

Lin Lu also picked up the head covering and put it on her head. Her slightly groggy brain, which had been staying up all night, immediately became much clearer.

dong dong dong~

Before he could even process what was happening, there was a knock on the door.

Fiamet, who was closest to the door, was wearing a hood and didn't think much of it. She casually turned the doorknob and saw Touch, a fully armed Babel Tower agent, standing outside the door, leaning back as if she had been startled.

She stiffly turned her gaze, taking in all three stone heads in the room, and after a long silence, she finally managed to utter a single sentence.

"Is this...is this some kind of latest performance art?"

Chapter Forty-Five: The Great Melee!

"Heh, this is one of our internal recreational activities. Isn't it interesting?"

Lin Lu shook her head and approached the doorway, adjusting the headgear before looking at the Touch icon on the door.

"What's up so early?"

"As agreed, I will install an alarm system in the room to ensure that you do not leave before this evening."

Touch brandished his staff and took out several small spheres from his tactical pouch.

"Put this down. I'll sense if you leave. The agreed-upon time is 6 PM. If we haven't returned by then..."

She didn't continue, but Lin Lu had already guessed what she meant.

If these Babel Tower operators do not return on time, it means their mission has likely failed and they have all perished, in which case the agreement will no longer be binding.

The battlefield is such a cruel place that no one can guarantee absolute success, especially front-line operators, for whom casualties during missions are a common occurrence.

"Okay, we'll wait until 6 p.m.

"Ah."

Touch didn't seem to be in a good mood. He waved his staff and used Originium Arts to make the sphere fall to the windowsill and doorway before turning away without saying a word. It was clear that with the mission imminent, his team was under a lot of pressure, and this mission was probably quite important.

"What do you think?"

After closing the door, Lin Lu touched the stone chin of the hood and turned to ask the other two people in the room.

"What else can we do? Let's prepare for battle."

Fiameta fiddled with the stone on her head, two fiery red feathers emerging from the hole swaying back and forth, like two tiny arms growing from it.

"Based on their requirements, we can deduce that the mission area for the Tower of Babel should be in this town, or at least not too far away. That group of people, including that short guy from earlier, are all experts. The fighting will be quite loud and will inevitably cause a disturbance."

"Don't be fooled by the fact that those mercenaries down there are all quiet and reserved. They are actually the most sensitive group. If a large-scale conflict breaks out in the town, the situation could get out of control in an instant. We must be prepared to protect ourselves."

"Then let's be prepared. If things really get chaotic, we won't be able to care about any agreements anymore."

Lin Lu didn't know much about the situation in Kazdel, but since Fiameta said so, there must be a reason for it.

The other party has traveled to various countries around the world for many years and is very experienced; they would not make baseless accusations.

"Don't worry, if we want to leave, no one here can stop us. Even if that Babel Tower squad tries to stop us, it won't work. We just don't want to clash with Kazdel's official organization, but that doesn't mean we're really afraid of them."

Mostima sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, with two staffs, one black and one white, lying across his thighs, exuding confidence.

"I am not so weak that I need your protection."

Lin Lu shook her head and chuckled, then walked to the window and looked down at the relatively peaceful street below, her eyes deep and thoughtful.