Arknights, but the sickly pretty girl starts

"...Since arriving in Kjerag, nothing has gone smoothly..."

His resentment was about to overflow. Zofia and Enshia initially thought he was just an innocent tourist who fell into a pit trap. It seemed that his travel experience in Kjerag was not so pleasant. However, it was true that this kind of pit trap was basically used for hunting. The Kjerag people had a hunting tradition and hunting prey in the snowy mountains was not prohibited. This kind of pit trap was relatively simple and easy to catch prey. Moreover, as long as some dead branches were placed on the pit, it would soon be covered by snow. It was the favorite trap of Kjerag hunters.

In the past, people would insert some arrows or sharpened wood under the trap. However, recently, since all the mountains have been opened to tourism, the use of deadly traps is not allowed, so this unlucky guy escaped.

"Are you okay, friend with the strange hat?" Zofia raised her hands, making a trumpet-like gesture, and called out to the unfortunate person at the bottom of the pit. "Don't worry, we'll pull you out right away."

"This pit is really deep, about five meters, right?" Enxia sighed. "The person who dug this pit actually put a warning sign next to it, but it must have snowed so hard last night that the sign got buried. What an unlucky person!"

"Do you usually dig a hole next to the mountain path?" Maria complained, but she also stepped forward to lend a hand. Enxia had a climbing rope, which she lowered directly into the hole, allowing Mr. Strange Hat to climb up by grabbing the climbing rope. After climbing up the hole, the unlucky man patted the snow off his body, saluted sincerely with his chest, and expressed his gratitude.

"Thank you all for your generous help. Without your help, I would have stayed in the snow pit for a while." The thanks were indeed sincere, but Maria frowned. After all, this outfit... didn't look like something for climbing a mountain.

"It's just a small matter. Remember to pay more attention to the road next time, and don't leave the mountain path casually." Rosalyn smiled and waved her hand. "We are all tourists, it's just a matter of convenience."

"Well, I have to thank you... Miss Rosalyn, whom I met once before on the train." The man in the gray hat didn't fall in on purpose this time; he really did. After all, he was not familiar with Kjerag's hunting traditions, and he didn't expect that someone would be so stupid as to dig a pit next to the mountain path, so it was so embarrassing - he just wanted to go around to the front.

"Oh... I just remembered." Rosalyn clapped her hands, "You are uncle's colleague?"

"You two know each other?" Zofia blinked. "Are you together?"

"Not really. It's just a chance encounter, just like this time, it's all just fate." The man in the gray hat waved his hand. "Besides, Miss Rosalyn is of such noble status that a mere fool like me cannot compare to her."

"...That sounds strange. How did I become so noble again?" Rosalyn thought it was strange, but Victorians always say strange things, so she just took it as a social politeness. "Speaking of which, how did you fall in here? Although this place is close to the mountain road, most people wouldn't leave the mountain road to come to a place like this, right?"

"I was simply captivated by the mountain scenery. I had no idea there would be such a trap beneath the snow," explained the man in the gray hat. "But I'm lucky enough to have run into Miss Rosalyn again, haven't I?"

"You were just saying you were unlucky... Forget it, why did you come to the mountain? You're not here to find a partner, are you?" Rosalyn had heard about the superstition of finding a partner on this mountain, but she didn't take it seriously. However, others might not feel the same way.

"Ahem... No, I don't have anyone I'm attracted to yet. I just came to see the scenery." Gray Hat replied half-seriously. The fact that he didn't have a crush on anyone was true, but the rest of the story was pure nonsense. He couldn't just say he was trying to get ahead of them and ended up falling. "But my destination is indeed the top of the mountain. If the ladies don't mind, we can walk together for a while."

"...I don't mind...I don't mind." Zofia looked at the guy with the strange hat. For some reason, her intuition told her that he was a little strange. But he was so polite and didn't make any excessive demands, so there was no reason to refuse. "It's still a long way to the top of the mountain. Why don't you just come with us? Did you get hurt in the pit? Can you walk?"

"Of course I was lucky. There was a lot of snow at the bottom of the pit, and I landed on it." The man in the gray hat wasn't bad enough to get hurt. In fact, he could have jumped out on his own if he had just been introverted for a while. But since it was like this, it wouldn't be a bad idea to just blend in with the group. It's much more convenient than sneaking around, and there's no need to hide in the snow. As a Victorian, he's still a little afraid of the cold. "My name is John Smith, you can call me whatever you want."

"...John Smith...Why does it sound familiar to me?"

"Of course, Maria, didn't you go to see a movie related to this with Noah before? Even though Noah was just accompanying you." Zofia complained, "Seriously, I wanted to kick you at that time. Noah couldn't even see at the time, and you were so stupid as to ask her to watch the movie with you?"

"I was still young at that time." Maria was also very embarrassed. It was better to say that she realized this problem after she arrived at the cinema. Fortunately, Sister Noah didn't mind and accompanied her to "audit" the movie. She even got a general understanding of the plot through the sound effects and lines of the movie. She also explained the foreshadowing and the director's intentions to her in a very interesting way. However, the movie was essentially a popcorn movie and did not have any special connotations, so Maria did not remember much of the plot. However, the protagonist was indeed called John Smith, a Victorian agent.

"Despite the name, she actually has a stunning partner." Rosalyn had also seen the movie and even drew a line on her chest. "Her breasts are so big! But this one... don't mind me. Your own beautiful busty woman will definitely be waiting for you in the future."

"Thank you for your kind words..." The man in the gray hat curled his lips. He had just made up a pseudonym, but he hadn't expected to be associated with a character in a movie. He wasn't in the habit of watching movies... and he had only heard of the movie, never seen it. His job was to be a secret agent, so watching secret agents' lives for fun was too abstract. It was like a doctor wouldn't watch medical dramas, or a racing driver wouldn't watch racing movies.

Most of the movies he shoots don't really fit his profession, but focus on entertainment, and when these real practitioners watch the relevant content, they will be speechless...

For example, this busty girl next to John Smith—how could a real secret agent have such a conspicuous partner? Was he afraid he wouldn't attract attention? The man in the gray hat silently adjusted his slightly tilted hat, completely unaware that it was also quite eye-catching.

"I haven't seen that movie... but it's quite popular. I prefer Dragon Gate Pictures' kung fu films. 'Kung Fu Ursus,' which came out a few days ago, is quite good." Enxia also joined the topic. "If you haven't seen it, you must watch it. It's the comeback work of kung fu superstar Wan Shengsheng. Her martial arts moves are really pleasing to the eye, especially the scene in the furniture store. It's amazing."

Talking about movies, these teenage girls naturally had a common topic. Gray Hat did not continue to participate in the conversation. Instead, he was thinking about whether the legendary Grey Knight Armor really existed. However, asking directly would be too obvious, so it would be better to change the subject... But at this time, they started talking about movies. Movies and knight armor have nothing to do with each other... Eh.

"Ahem...actually, I'm a fan of the Steam Knight movie series." Gray Hat coughed twice. "I'm from Victoria, and I'm really fascinated by Steam Knight. If they were still recruiting Steam Knights, I would definitely sign up."

"Steam Knight—indeed, that big thing has a very visual impact."

The topic seemed to have returned to big machinery. Fortunately, Victoria had filmed a state-funded film series to promote Steam Knight, and even borrowed the real Steam Knight to assist in the filming. It can be said to be a very famous film series. It would not arouse suspicion if he used this as a topic, and he was indeed a fan of Steam Knight. How many real Victorians did not like Steam Knight?

That's been a symbol of honor since I was a kid...

"It's just that Victoria doesn't have any Steam Knights anymore... What a shame! I really want to see how powerful a complete Steam Knight is." Maria became excited when talking about machinery. "How did that behemoth ensure its energy supply? There was no technology to miniaturize Originium reactors at the time, so it had multiple reactors? Steam... Or maybe it relied on its size to carry a large reactor, and then used steam to drive it? But why steam..."

"Ahem...that's not something I could possibly know." The man in the gray hat almost blurted out the relevant principle, but he restrained himself and immediately evaded the question, "Steam Knight's technology is top secret. There's no way a fan like me would know it casually."

"That's true... Fortunately, Miss Catherine has participated in the relevant casting process..."

—Catherine? Workers who participated in the casting of the Steam Knight? Shouldn't such personnel be strictly managed? Why did they leave?

—No, the political turmoil in Victoria and the death of all the Steam Knights must have been due to the chaotic management at the time...

——The Steam Knight technology leak... This is not something to be happy about.

The man in the gray hat sorted out the information and his eyes narrowed slightly under the hat.

——Continue to test it out?

Chapter 28: No snowflake is innocent in an avalanche

"I don't know much about Steam Knight, but it must be something very powerful, right?" As a craftsman, Maria is a very cautious and professional type - only in theory. In practice, Maria stands out as bold and careful. Well, sometimes she is just simply bold.

After all, creating explosions was already her signature trick. Golden Pegasus had a very high resistance to explosions, fire, and the like. This was one of the reasons she was able to quickly become the primary engineer for the Grey Knights' armor. She was simply too resistant to explosions...

Most explosions couldn't even penetrate the armor, and even if they did, they could usually be repaired quickly with Originium skills. Furthermore, given her skills, she could even protect important components before the explosion. This also saved a lot of trouble in the development of the Grey Knight armor.

But this is only Maria's special feature. For other people, let alone the Anaconda, if Wendy, Grandma Catherine, or even the tin were blown up like this, they would be torn into pieces, if not seriously injured. It is precisely because of the Anaconda that Maria can have such a vacation away from the workshop. After all, the Anaconda can also take on the responsibility of being bombed.

"It doesn't matter. For an enthusiast like me, I'm lucky to hear so much knowledge about large machinery from you." The man in the gray hat didn't want to learn more. During the conversation just now, he hinted at the situation of the so-called Gray Knight Armor... To be honest, Maria didn't say anything about the real key things, and she just brushed it off with a commercial secret.

But all these known things have made Gray Hat sweat profusely. From these descriptions, Gray Hat even saw a terrifying war machine - even though Maria said that it was not a weapon of war, but Gray Hat understood that this kind of weapon of mass destruction, even if it was not made with the purpose of killing people, would most likely become a breeding ground for war in the end.

As long as the blade is sharp enough, even if it is just placed in the scabbard, it can make people terrified.

"It's okay. I didn't expect you to be a mechanical enthusiast. I had a lot of fun chatting with you."

Maria thought she had met just an ordinary mechanical enthusiast. She naturally didn't know that the person in front of her was a real agent and even Victoria's spy. The information she casually mentioned was enough for him to guess the strength of the so-called Grey Knight armor.

"Ah, we're almost at the top of the mountain, Aunt, Rosalin - hey, what's wrong with you? You look so scary..." Maria had already seen the stone tablet on the top of the mountain and was about to greet the two of them, but she found that Zofia and Rosalin actually blocked the way down the mountain with unfriendly expressions.

"Maria, come here. Don't you think you just said too much?" Zofia's face darkened. She hadn't taken action before because she was afraid the guy would escape. Now, at the top of the mountain, besides the cliff, there was only one way down. It would be impossible for him to escape even if he had wings. "Do you really think you can meet such a mechanical enthusiast who is so proficient in machinery on the roadside?"

"Ah?" Maria hadn't really thought about this question. She turned her head and looked at the gray hat up and down. "Are you saying he's deliberately deceiving me? Is he trying to trick me?"

"Come here if you understand. Let's take him down first." Zofia stared at the man in the gray hat closely. As long as he moved a little, the weapon in her hand would cut off his fingers in the first time. Her whip blade was not a vegetarian.

"Be still and don't move!" Rosalyn wasn't going to be polite. "Mr. Agent, do you really think we're fools? If the first encounter was an accident, then the second one is different. Besides—I never told you my name!"

"What if the Viscount told me?" The man in the gray hat tried to explain, but his hands were already clenching a smokescreen behind his back. He had no choice but to muddy the waters and escape. "Besides, this meeting was indeed a coincidence. You should trust me."

"Maybe, but don't you think you've been talking too much along the way? You were able to climb to the top of a mountain in one breath without even taking a breath. With your physique, would you really fall into a roadside trap? Even if you did, you wouldn't be unable to get out." Rosalyn had already grasped her weapon. "Or do you think we're easy to fool?"

"...You are much more careful than I thought, Miss Rosalyn." The man in the gray hat smiled bitterly. It was true that he fell into the trap, but the reason he fell was because he was distracted and staring at the actions of Rosalyn and others. After falling into the trap, he did realize that he could gain other people's trust in this way. After all... it was too sudden and too hasty.

"You admitted it! Miss Zofia, Miss Maria! Let's go together! Take him down first! This guy is most likely a real spy, and he should be coming for Miss Noah!" Rosalin naturally didn't think that she had attracted the other party. According to Rosalin's logic, the other party could appear here, most likely specifically for Miss Noah or Miss Maria.

"Let me correct you. I'm not here to target Miss Noya." The man in the gray hat shook his head. "I just wanted to get some information. You can think of me as just gathering intelligence. This is my job. I haven't hurt anyone. At most, I just deceived you. It's not a crime punishable by death, right?"

"Quibbling!" Zofia drew her whip. "Once we're done interrogating you, you'll tell us everything!"

"I have no such interest, Miss Whip Knight." The man in the gray hat smiled. "And I did let my guard down a bit this time. I didn't even realize you were trying to trap me this way. Truly, I couldn't possibly challenge a free fall; that's not what a spy does. And... defeating two descendants of the Golden Pegasus head-on isn't something I'm good at either."

"That's good to know. This is the top of a mountain. There's snow beneath your feet. Even the slightest noise could cause it to collapse. You'd better not act rashly!" Rosalyn, having grown up in the Ursus snowfields, knew all too well how fragile such thick snow could be. "You might not understand, but I'm very familiar with avalanches!"

"I don't know what you're so proud of..." Zofia couldn't help but complain, "And there's actually an avalanche? I thought we were on solid ground..."

"As long as you don't move around, it won't collapse," Rosalyn reminded him. "And that's the only way to keep him from running around."

"Victoria boy!!!" At this moment, a powerful shout came from the mountain path behind them, "Aktos is here! Stay away from her!"

"…What did you just say?"

"If you make a little noise, it might collapse..."

Rosalin's face turned pale. Where on earth did this uncle come from? Didn't he know that you can't speak loudly on the snowy mountain? But it was too late. This loud shouting, like a bell, had an immediate effect. Soon, cracks appeared in the snow under their feet, and Maria and Zofia's feet began to tilt.

"Wow!" Rosaline had no time to retreat to the mountain path, and was swept into the collapsed snow along with Gray Hat, Zofia, Maria and others. When Actos saw Rosaline fall into the snow, his eyes turned red, and he immediately jumped into the avalanche that was about to form.

-

"...What's going on?" Noah had just left the clothing store, and the atmosphere between him and Margaret was somewhat awkward. Yaer and Anma had already left temporarily, probably to inform the behemoths waiting outside, while Noah had just learned from the terminal that Zofia and Maria had also come to Kjerag - Kjerag was really a mess.

After inquiring about the whereabouts of the two people, Noah had just reached the halfway point of the mountain when he heard a noise like muffled thunder.

"...Not sure... Wait, is that... an avalanche?" Margaret looked up. Her hearing wasn't as good as Noya's, but her eyesight was excellent, and she quickly spotted the signs of an avalanche. "Oh no, Aunt Maria and Zofia!"

After realizing the possibility that both of them might be caught in the avalanche, Noah and Margaret looked at each other, and they both understood each other's plan, so they set off immediately. Noah snapped his fingers and lit up his halo. The halo and wings that were originally hidden emerged at the same time, and gray matter also overflowed from the surface of his body, entangled with each other behind his back, forming a pair of silver wings with a wingspan of about seven meters.

The wings flapped violently, and Noah pulled Margaret to take off from the ground immediately. If the crown was still there, she could fly directly in the flesh, but now, she could only rely on gray matter to complete the takeoff. The wings composed of gray matter were extremely light, and with the advancement of Originium skills, Noah's flying speed was very fast, almost close to that of a peregrine falcon. The two of them soon arrived right above the avalanche, and Margaret was held by one hand by Noah, hanging in the air with one hand, observing the situation in the avalanche.

Margaret was sharp-eyed and immediately saw the two people drifting in the avalanche. This avalanche was not a flood. Maria also reacted quickly, pulling Aunt Zofia into her arms, and then wrapped the two of them with Originium skills, so that she could stabilize her body in the avalanche. The glittering golden light also attracted Margaret and Noah, so at Margaret's signal, Noah flapped his wings and threw Margaret directly down.

Margaret adjusted her posture and crashed into the avalanche like a meteorite. Then, her lance pierced through the snow and embedded itself into the stone wall. With the help of the anchor point provided by the lance, she actually managed to stabilize her body in the avalanche. Her Originium skill transformed into a sword blade that directly split the avalanche in front of her. Like a miracle, she cut the avalanche in half, which was full of force and heavy power.

Only an exaggerated guy like Margaret could do such a thing. The momentum of the avalanche was blocked, and Maria also realized the opportunity. She hugged Zofia, exerted force with her legs, and pushed herself out of the snow pile directly. However, this was a steep slope, and she didn't know how to determine where to land. But this was also a gamble. If she was buried in the snow, she didn't have the confidence to get out directly. But fortunately, Noah was in the sky to pick her up.

By the time Maria was free, Noah had already arrived above the two of them and caught her mid-air. To be more precise, it was Maria and Zofia who were pulling the two together. Noah felt a bit tired and said quickly, "I'll take you back to the mountain path first. I'll come back to help later. You two go first."

"Sister Noah? Why are you here? And... why are you flying?"

"Can't we wait until we solve the problem?" Noah asked helplessly. With a flap of her wings, she drew a graceful arc in mid-air, avoiding the avalanche area and dropping the two of them into a thicker snowdrift. Worried about Margaret's safety, she sped away, not even having time to explain.

When Maria and Zofia crawled out of the snow pile, Maria's wounds had begun to heal. Only the Golden Pegasus had such an abnormal physique. Zofia was really scared. She checked Maria's injuries from head to toe before she felt relieved.

She was directly swept into the avalanche... and she didn't even have any broken bones. Maria's physique is still as exaggerated as ever.

"What were you thinking just now? It's hard for you to protect yourself, and you still want to protect me?" Zofia was really anxious and angry. She wished she was the one who got hurt, but Maria protected her very well. Apart from being frightened, Zofia was basically unharmed. Maria, on the other hand, had a lot of bruises on her body - but the bruises were considered healed.

"Subconsciously..." Maria scratched her head awkwardly. "But it's a unique experience, isn't it? After all, being caught in an avalanche isn't something most people can experience."

"...You... Hey, I don't know what happened to Rosalin..." Zofia rolled her eyes at Maria. After confirming that Maria was fine, she also began to worry about Rosalin who was with them. In fact, Rosalin was much luckier than them. Although she was also caught in the avalanche, her position could be said to be the last, so she was also the luckiest. After falling, she was directly pulled up by Aktus who came later. Aktus grabbed a small tree next to the cliff and pulled Rosalin out of the avalanche.

"Are you okay... Rosalin..." Actor pulled the small tree and asked about Rosalin's condition worriedly. Now the two of them were hanging on the edge of a cliff, and they could fall at any time. Rosalin looked down at this time and felt a little scared.

"I'm fine...but the others..."

"I'm sorry... I was too impatient, but I have to get you up there first..." Actos knew that if he hadn't been so impatient, this terrible thing probably wouldn't have happened. But now he only knew that he had to protect his daughter first. He used one hand to grab the little tree, and the veins on his hand bulged. If he was alone, he could probably get up there easily, but with Rosaline added to the mix, and he was hungover, he really didn't have enough strength. After a while, he showed no signs of pulling himself up.

"Hey, uncle, are you okay?" Seeing Actor's face flushed red, Rosaline couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "If it really doesn't work..."

"Shut up! I'm definitely going to rescue you!"

"I mean, if it really doesn't work, just put me down. There's a small platform down there where I won't die from the fall." Rosalyn was speechless. Indeed, she had initially thought she was on the edge of a cliff, but once she actually landed, she realized that the collapse of the snow had exposed a portion of the ground. It wasn't really a cliff, but a small platform, just enough for a foothold. "And... why did you rush over like this? Aren't you afraid of being swept into the avalanche yourself?"

"..." Actor looked at the situation below and let go after confirming that there would be no problem. He also jumped down after making sure that Rosaline had landed safely, and landed on the small platform under the cliff.

It was safe... but now Actor was a little afraid to look his daughter in the eyes.

"...Why don't you say anything, uncle?"

"……I……"

Chapter 29: Same Here, Xiaoya

Rosalyn is a bad kid!

She has no dad, we don't play with her, she's a freak!

Hahaha, Rosaline is a bad girl without a father!

I'm not a bad kid!

You, you are not allowed to talk nonsense!

Ouch! She hit someone! She's such a bad kid!

Come on! Let's beat her up!

Beat her!

Fight if you want, who’s afraid of who!

I'm not a bad boy!

I only have a mother, I don’t need a father!

No need...

The girl defended her dignity with her fists. The world of children is very simple. It is a simple society. Children without shelter are naturally at a disadvantage in this simple and primitive society.

But in this situation, Rosaline did not accept her fate.

If there is no protection, then she has to protect herself. If there is no father, then she has to be her own protector. She raised her fists at all those who mocked her and bullied her.

When she mustered up the courage, the children who had bullied her, after facing a counterattack, simply felt fear -

It is true that in a society of children, those who are unprotected will be bullied, but if the child is strong, the opposite will happen and she will receive more respect.

Such is the society of children.

Her resistance allowed her to regain her status. If it were just that, she would probably have become a bad kid.

Fortunately... she is not alone.

As the second best fighter in the school, she met the real boss of the school, General Dong. It is said that General Dong is the so-called "patron saint of the bullied". At that time, Rosaline was probably of similar status in some sense, so she was also called General Xia.