Arknights' Lock of Heaven

"She works at Rhodes Island now, so she's my colleague."

"So the Radiant Knights have also joined the company?" Upon hearing this, Sona lowered her head.

Living in the Great Knight Territory and subjected to oppression by the Business Federation, it's only natural that they would look at all businesses with suspicion.

Or rather, their biases would be applicable to the vast majority of companies in the world.

Rhodes Island is a complete exception; it's simply a pharmaceutical company in disguise.

As for what's inside, well...

“Isn’t this normal?” Xia Yu raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. “After all, at least half of our Rhodes Island employees, from top to bottom, suffer from Oripathy, including even the de facto rulers and future heirs of Rhodes Island.”

"In this world where there is widespread discrimination against those infected, it's perfectly normal for us to stick together and support each other, isn't it?"

"us?"

Although Sona was somewhat surprised to hear this, not expecting that the proportion of infected people on Rhodes Island was so high, she still looked at Xia Yu.

The implication is: Are you infected?

"What's wrong? Just because some people are allowed to bully infected people doesn't mean that non-infected people aren't allowed to sympathize with them?"

"The Grand Knight Commander is truly terrifying; look at the distrust on your faces."

“Okay, I apologize,” Sona said, bowing her head generously. “I was narrow-minded.”

"However, you are right about one thing: the Grand Knight Commandery is truly terrifying..."

"At least in all these years of struggling to survive, the number of non-infected people who have truly helped us is very small."

At this point, Sona asked cautiously, her eyes filled with anticipation, "Are there many people like this outside?"

“A lot? Ha,” Xia Yu shook her head upon hearing this, “It depends on the location.”

"It depends on whether it's in Ursus or Letania..."

"To be honest, I don't ask for any special treatment. In this era, it would be an excellent privilege for infected people not to be looked down upon."

"Oh, so it's about the same."

Sona lowered her head and smiled, "I thought it would be better outside."

"You're overthinking it," Xia Yu scoffed. "If you don't fight for it yourself, do you think you can get good treatment by relying on other people's charity?"

"No matter how much you talk about it, nothing is more stable than something you've built up through hard work and perseverance."

“It seems I was short-sighted,” Sona sighed upon hearing this. “Well, let’s set a time. I want to have a serious talk with you.”

"Let's meet at the usual place tomorrow night," Xia Yu said. Although she had already found out the real base of the Red Pine Tree, she couldn't just go there like that.

It will scare them.

So let's meet at the usual place.

-

"Maria, you... played well."

Even Zofia couldn't say much about Maria's fighting style.

"Oh, that's good then," Maria said with a silly smile, shaking her head after hearing her praise.

"It's all thanks to this armor. I'm so grateful to Mr. Xia Yu."

“It’s alright, after all, it was Margaret’s request,” Xia Yu waved her hand dismissively, “It’s not a big deal for me.”

“But we should still thank those who deserve it,” Maria said with emotion. “If it weren’t for this armor… I probably would have lost the first battle…”

"Don't underestimate yourself," Xia Yu shrugged upon hearing this. "You might just win."

"Haha, I don't even have that confidence..."

Xia Yu shrugged as she looked at Maria's smirk.

The reason is that Maria's ambitions lie elsewhere; she is simply blindly following in Margaret's footsteps.

If it were Margaret, she would never have worn her enhanced armor.

This is her belief, and also her confidence in herself.

Yes, at least that's true on the field.

But Maria is different. Her ambition is not to be a knight. For her, the championship is not even a thought. As long as she makes it into the main tournament and keeps her family title, that is a victory.

So she won't mind these things as long as she doesn't break the rules.

“But to be honest, I’m worried about you, Maria,” Zofia said suddenly, looking at the beaming Maria. “It’s only been a few matches, and they’ve already unleashed a killer like Olmer Ingra…”

“I’m really worried that if you continue like this, you’ll face even more targeting.”

"Oh, don't worry, Zofia," Maria immediately hugged her arm and said coquettishly, "You know the performance of the armor. Even if we lose, I won't get hurt."

"Don't be too superstitious about this armor!" Zofia frowned and said, "Although you survived these two matches with it, don't think that there are no opponents in the Knights' Arena who can break through armor..."

"Ah, Mr. Xia Yu, that's not what I meant..."

She only remembered that Xia Yu was still standing there when she started to explain.

“I know, I know,” Xia Yu waved her hand dismissively. “My Originium Arts aren’t omnipotent either. Skadi, who came with me, could easily break through your armor.”

“If the Lion Scorpion uses some tricks, it's not impossible.”

“Many people you know, including Margaret, can do that.”

After all, this is just an enhancement magic. Even if you upgrade a fine piece of armor to a masterpiece, it's not some kind of conceptual weapon, and it's not something that no one can break.

It's just that Maria hasn't encountered such an opponent yet.

"This armor is enough for you to get into the main tournament, but if you want to win the championship, you'll need the sword I made..."

“No, no, no, we don’t need that,” Zofia and Maria waved their hands repeatedly in refusal.

They had witnessed the power of that sword before... a metal wall as thick as a palm was easily sliced ​​through like paper...

Bringing a weapon like that into the arena is practically murder!

Which knight's armor could withstand a single sword strike?

It's normal for it to have such power, after all, the sword isn't imbued with enhancement magic... it's a legitimate Noble Phantasm.

The pristine lake scenery—this is no ordinary treasure.

“But to be honest, I think Zofia’s concerns are quite reasonable,” Xia Yu said seriously. “So, why don’t you take the sword I made with you, just in case?”

"In case there's a real need to use it, you won't be completely powerless to resist, right?"

"If you think the effect is exaggerated, you can simply not turn it on normally."

As expected, after hearing his words, Zofia immediately turned to look at Maria.

The meaning in his eyes was quite clear.

You bring it to me!!!

"..."

"I'll think about it," Maria said as she stood up.

"It's getting late, we should go back."

“Oh, you guys go ahead,” Xia Yu raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, “I’ll drink a little longer.”

“Um, then we should also…” Maria was about to sit down when Zofia pulled her away.

After they left, a white figure entered the tavern.

199 Platinum's Confession

"Our bar hasn't had such lovely customers in ages! Would you like something?"

Bald Martin saw the look of utter surprise on her face.

After all, apart from those old guys, Zofia and Maria, very few people come to his little tavern.

“Hmm,” in response to his question, Platinum looked at the tavern’s sign, “This name is quite nice, let’s go with this one, Thorn Tears.”

"Okay, please have a seat."

Upon hearing this, Bai Jin went straight to Xia Yu, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

Bald Martin raised an eyebrow at this, said nothing, and started mixing drinks.

"Let's talk."

Looking at Xia Yu, who was slowly and deliberately drinking her wine in front of her, Bai Jin said indifferently, "Thanks to you, the Qing Jins have begun to doubt me."

"So?" Xia Yu raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. "Are you here to ask me to take responsibility?"

"Then are you willing?" Bai Jin rested her chin on her hand, staring intently at Xia Yu, striking a pitiful pose. "Are you willing to take on this responsibility?"

After hearing this, Bald Martin silently placed the drink she had ordered on the table and left without a sound.

Hmm, this topic is a bit explosive.

Go back to the counter, and then listen carefully.