Brain bloom

Another person spoke, expressing the sentiments of everyone present. These wealthy residents were indeed willing to pay the "peace tax."

The dandelion swayed back and forth, waving its little hands excitedly, and kept echoing, "Yes, pay up, and then there will be peace."

"I don't intend to." But that was Lord Balzac's answer, leaving no room for argument.

"Stop beating around the bush. What's more important to your people is a sense of security, not just empty words. Balzac, reveal your plan!"

"Can't you leave me in suspense?"

"This is not the time to joke."

He laughed for a while: "...Then I'll show you my trump card. Silvermoon City isn't just wasting your tax money; it's built far more than just a few flying ships. Even if our enemy is the old-fashioned sea lord, so what?"

He gave a certain instruction to the group of people following behind him.

The men were all craftsmen, some old and wise, others young and strong, and a few capable women. But when the lord's order was given, without exception, their faces lit up with excitement.

"Go and touch the sky—go to the places where the waves of the sea cannot reach."

They seemed to know the lord's plans.

“It seems… that Lord Balzac doesn’t know our inside story, nor does he intend to pay money to avoid trouble,” Melia speculated. “Instead, he has some means to avoid war, which is why he is so confident.”

What do you think it could be?

"have a look."

Dandelion and Melia's eyes became the focus of countless eager anticipation. But within minutes, no one received the answer they sought.

Only the group of craftsmen were writing and drawing on the ground, and the pens and techniques they used were those honed through magic. It was rather strange that such construction-related, mental magic would appear on the ground.

Dandelion couldn't understand it, and neither could Melia.

They all silently pondered, thinking that if Mori were here, he would surely have found the answer. But unfortunately, that guy was probably still sleeping in at home. This might be related to Silvermoon City's unique "pseudo-science craftsmanship," but something didn't quite add up.

This technology, although it involves a lot of content and has strange principles, is mostly geared towards civilian use... After all, it can always create all sorts of small and large things to make life more convenient.

Does its appearance in this context imply a military application...?

Amidst the heated discussion, the answer soon emerged—

Lord Balzac pointed to the back of the crowd. People strained to turn their heads, every pair of eyes held high, and only then did they witness the astonishing scene.

what is that?

A city? No... just a corner of a city.

“That’s…my home?!” someone exclaimed in astonishment.

“That’s my shop…” A shop assistant recognized the sign in the sky, which he had cleaned himself that morning.

"That's a commercial street! It's completely floating up?!"

A corner of Silvermoon City seems to have gained its own soul and life, completely breaking free from the island's constraints. The island itself, upon which these buildings depend, has also been carved out of Silvermoon Island.

The rocks and soil still retained the moisture from being soaked by the sea.

Although it was a difficult scene to understand, this part simply floated into the air.

……

(Since you've sent me so many razor blades... fine, I'll accept them. When I get back from my trip, I'll start updating 10,000 words a day... bring on all the razor blades!)

Volume 1, Chapter 224: Mori, the Prophet

This scene reveals the trump card that Lord Balzac possessed.

The answer was right in front of everyone: his way of dealing with those ferocious sea monsters was to take to the skies.

The entire city, along with everyone, took to the air. If this could be achieved, and they remained suspended in the air, the enemy's henchmen would be unable to harm them. The war brewing at sea would naturally never break out.

The originally compact and well-planned city of Silvermoon City was now riddled with a large pit due to this change.

If you don't look up, you might think that Silvermoon City was hit by a meteorite.

Lord Balzac gazed at the suspended, somewhat unstable part of the city, a look of genuine pride on his face.

Furthermore, no one was injured. After all, the vast majority of people had gathered in the square. Perhaps the few who remained were just dizzy from the shaking and didn't fall.

"War—will not come!" he shouted again.

The doubts vanished completely, replaced by shouts of joy.

Only a few remained calm, their minds filled with questions: How did Lord Balzac manage to do such a thing? And how did he keep it a secret until now?

……

"What...what's going on? What on earth are my spies doing? Such a big secret, and they haven't discovered it?"

Melia stared at her, speechless.

Dandelion's face also turned ashen: "The city... flew up? What happened? When did they get this technology? I thought making ships fly was the limit."

"The key is that it's hopeless! If it's in the air, the Peda Empire has no way to take it down."

"yes……"

“Princess Dandelion, let’s give up. There’s no way to besiege the city anymore. This matter has to end here.” She was unwilling, but she could only follow reason. “Unless we resort to some underhanded tactics… but that would be too deliberate and might completely enrage Silvermoon City.”

Dandelion nodded silently, unable to ask for more. This method of avoiding war and making money was already at its limit, and it was originally a sure thing—but Silvermoon City also had a very strong trump card.

The cheers in the square were like waves caused by a tsunami, but Melia and Dandelion were both very depressed.

They tacitly decided to go back and discuss it with Mori.

……

The winery, Mori, also witnessed this scene.

She was basking in the sun, writing down her upgrade plan for the next few days. But then, the warm, comforting feeling of every leaf overhead faded. She habitually looked up, wondering which cloud insect had blocked her sunlight.

But they were startled, because part of Silvermoon City was blocking out the sun.

“This…this…this…what the hell is this…” But she quickly noticed something was wrong. “Hmm? This technology…this so-called pseudo-science process? It’s the same as the recycling system used by those ‘traveling souls’.”

She murmured to herself, because the suspended part was emanating a very heavy and special spiritual energy cycle.

This allowed it to escape the world's gravity, and then, with just a little push, it could take flight. This is the principle of levitation—simple, yet requiring perfect handling of the various effects of gravity.

Moreover, this cyclical design has a particularly solid and substantial feel.

This is the result of accumulated technical expertise, rather than a stroke of genius.

It is likely that... it took a century of development, with problems being discovered and improved little by little in practical use, before it finally became a mature technology. Technically speaking, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it perfect.

It's just like an airship.

Sen stood by the window, observing the enormous thing for a long time, even forgetting the upgrade locations he had just written down.

What is this thing for? Silvermoon City actually has such methods? If this can avoid war, then their plan to rob the rich is just a pile of waste paper.

As Mori pondered this, his expression grew increasingly grim.

She—and everyone in the square—was watching a corner of the city suspended in mid-air at that moment.

They failed to discover how dark the enormous, empty hole was.

After flying to a certain height, the massive creature stopped and slowly fell back to its original position. Upon impact, the entire island remained unharmed, without even the slightest tremor.

She wasn't stupid; based on the information she received today, she immediately drew a conclusion.

Dandelion and Melia weren't there; they'd gone to the city to join the fun. And since Lord Balzac had given an important speech about the recently brewing war, then this whole scene was his doing.

The purpose is... yes, to appease the people.

He had probably achieved his goal, so he stopped.

Having figured things out, and since there was no excitement to be had, Sen Shi quietly returned to his seat, only regretting that he probably wouldn't receive the money. It was a bit of a disappointment, but oh well, it wasn't a big loss.

But before she could even warm her bottom to the wood, she moved it away again.

She is a creature of all four seasons, her head full of leaves is very sensitive to light—

Now that the floating city has returned to the ground, the blocked sunlight should be shining again. But why does the eerie atmosphere still linger? Even though there isn't a single cloud around the sun, it remains dark.

Mori felt a chill.

I have a strange, slightly creepy feeling about it.

Just then, the footsteps and conversations of Melia and Dandelion came from downstairs.

"I wonder if she's awake yet..."

"She should be awake by now, otherwise we'll go and pull back her blanket and see what kind of underwear she's sewn for herself. A while ago, she was being mysterious and said something about what it was called, but I can't remember."

"...No, that's not good, is it? That's so rude. I... need a minute to think about it."

"—I heard you." Mori Toki sternly rebuked them.

The two of them said she had misheard, then pretended they hadn't said anything, and ran upstairs, pushed open Mori's door, and slipped inside.

His steps were hurried, suggesting he had come with a problem.

“Underwear… I mean, Mori, you're a master-level magic practitioner, did you see what just happened? Silvermoon City has created a way to levitate.”

"Yes...it seems the war won't break out," Mori Toki replied, with some regret.

After speaking, she habitually glanced outside and noticed that the previously gloomy sky had brightened. The sun was now gently shining on her branches and leaves, and the warm feeling had returned. This was a bit strange; had everything just been an illusion?

Melia asked in a casual tone—

"By the way, Princess Dandelion, if your winery also flies up in the sky, wouldn't that be considered embezzlement of your property?"

"...Then I must be furious, furious enough to want to bring Silvermoon City down. Hey, Mori, you made a slingshot? Did you foresee this all along?" Dandelion's face lit up with surprise.

Volume 1 #225: It's that damn thing again.

Dandelion's gaze swept across the area and she was pleasantly surprised to find a slingshot, which looked to be newly made.

Of course, only Mori Toki knows how to tinker with these kinds of gadgets in the family.

She hesitated for a moment, then decided to reach for the slingshot. This action made Sen Shi a little uneasy. After all, unlike her, a small fry, Dandelion was a true all-season plant that had been sun-dried for at least ten years. Even a soybean could be made into soy sauce after being sun-dried for a few months.

Dandelions, needless to say, already hold a very high status.