Star Forge Titan

Joseph's gentle voice came from beside her, which made Meni seem to have found support. She was like a frightened little animal, grabbing the corner of Joseph's clothes tightly, and her knuckles turned white from excessive force.

"Did you dream about a terrorist attack again? Don't worry, you are safe now." Joseph put down the work in his hands, and a barely noticeable magical light appeared on his hand.

Under the influence of the spell, Meni, who had woken up from a nightmare, gradually calmed down. Many illusions of warm memories from the past flashed before her eyes, and Joseph's gentle voice in her ears became softer, like a randomly changing stream of water penetrating deep into her heart.

"Thank you, Mr. Joseph. I'm sorry for making you laugh just now. I feel much better now."

Meni let go of her hand, raised her head and forced a smile at Joseph. Although her face was still a little pale, at least her body was no longer shaking.

"It's okay. To be honest, even as a man, I feel my heart beating faster when I think about that incident." Joseph comforted him.

"Yeah." Meni nodded, then she seemed to remember something and looked a little embarrassed.

"Well, Mr. Joseph, can I ask for leave early tomorrow afternoon?"

"Oh? What's wrong? Is there something wrong?" Joseph turned around and continued to work without turning his head.

"Well, this is Diana's first time in Vulcan, so I want to show her around, and maybe even take her to the central commercial street." Meni said with a blushing face.

"I see." Joseph paused for a moment, then continued in a casual tone:

"Have you become familiar with those people?"

"Well, although she doesn't like to talk much, Diana is actually a very nice person. Although Mr. Elian is very tall, he actually has a good personality and is not as rude as those tall soldiers. However, the other gentleman with them looks like a bad guy..." Meny spoke happily, gradually putting the content of the nightmare behind him.

"By the way, that train robbery mentioned in the newspaper a few days ago seemed to have been safely resolved because they happened to be on the train. All the members of the famous Phantom Thieves were even captured."

When Joseph heard that the train case was closed, his expression did not change, but his hand holding the pen tightened slightly.

Then, he nodded in agreement as Meni said and continued:

"Haha, that's true. I also feel that he must be a kind and enthusiastic person."

Then, Joseph described what he saw in a slightly teasing tone.

"But he might be a bit impatient. You know, when that incident happened before, his first reaction was to lift the rubble with his hands. Thinking about it afterwards, it's really a bit laughable."

"Huh? There's such a thing! Even Mr. Joseph, a high-level wizard, couldn't even withstand the magic shield he opened." Meni said in surprise.

"I'm not worthy of the title of Senior Mage. Compared to third-level mages from other schools, I, who come from the Moruoji school, am still a long way from being 'excellent' in terms of spellcasting ability." Joseph shook his head modestly.

"But you are different, Meni. Once an orthodox academic wizard like you is promoted to the second level, your general spells may not be much worse than mine." When saying this, Joseph's expression was very natural, and he didn't seem to care much about it.

"Mr. Joseph, you are too modest." Meni lowered his head embarrassedly.

The intermittent conversations between the two echoed in the empty laboratory.

Time passed quickly. After a few days at the inn, Ivan and his companions received notice that the relevant personnel for the Mage Project had arrived and would soon enter the New Era Research Institute for three months of targeted training. This included training in operating magical vehicles and specialized courses related to the latest magical engineering.

At the same time, that afternoon, an alchemist came to Ivan with a handwritten letter of introduction from Mr. Flamel, the vice president of the Linde Alchemist Association.

He very respectfully conveyed the information about the Living Dagger Project and informed that while receiving training, Alvin could go to the Linde Alchemist Association branch in the Steel City of Vulcan at any time, where all projects related to the Living Dagger Project had been transferred.

"Tsk tsk tsk, how did they manage to sneak into two of the most top-secret projects so easily? This was something I had never expected to unfold when I boarded that sailboat bound for Linde."

Looking at the pass with three stamps in Ivan's hand, Khayang couldn't help but marvel at it.

At this moment, the two were sitting in the luxury suite on the top floor of the hotel.

As the most influential research institute in the Steel City of Vulkan, the New Era Institute obviously has abundant funding, so the accommodation arranged for personnel related to the Magician Project is the best.

The suite where the three people stayed was luxuriously decorated and spacious. In addition to three independent bedrooms, it even had a spacious living room with sofas, a piano and a self-service bar.

The floor of the reception room is paved with black marble, and the gaps are even filled with rust-resistant brass, giving it an extremely luxurious feel.

The sofa is also a genuine leather sofa made of top-grain calfskin. It goes through a three-month aromatherapy period before leaving the factory, allowing these soft seats to emit a light and not strong scent of spices.

When she first came in, Diana was completely stunned. Her handsome face, which usually had no expression, unexpectedly revealed a bit of cuteness because of her jaw that couldn't close.

As for the other two, they settled in without a care in the world, seemingly uninterested in these things. After all, one had been the leader of the Undead faction, and the other had been Prince Elrond for a few days, and they themselves came from another world with greatly developed productivity.

Therefore, the two guys disguised as a wild alchemist and a wild mage, no matter which one, are actually accustomed to the luxury goods of the world of Palladia.

In addition, there was no one else in the room and no monitoring spell was sensed, which made them too lazy to even act.

"I'm ashamed. Actually, I just want to learn some magical engineering knowledge, that's all." Ivan leaned back on the sofa and shrugged, then put away the pass and said casually:

Hearing this, Ka Yang gave him a look that said "I don't believe you" without any concealment.

"By the way, have you gained anything in the past few days?" Ivan asked nonchalantly:

"It's okay. The Thieves Guild nearby isn't that powerful, so even if I just showed off my skills and got in, it probably wouldn't take long for me to completely control them. The main reason is that the factory has absorbed most of the young people, so there are only a few old thieves left there, and there are not even many apprentices." When talking about this, Ka Yang's tone couldn't help but become strange.

"This is a situation unique to Linde as it gradually transforms into an industrialized society, and it is also the fundamental reason why this country is different from other countries." Alvin did not feel surprised, and even showed a nostalgic expression.

"Maybe, but they are unexpectedly capable in collecting intelligence. They can actually analyze a lot of additional information from a few newspapers." Ka Yang twitched his mouth, with an expression that looked like he wanted to laugh but couldn't.

"How do you say that?" Ivan asked with great interest:

"There's nothing else to say, except that there seems to be an increasing trend in terrorist attacks launched by extreme druids recently. Vulkan has taken the initiative to reduce exhaust emissions this year due to negotiations with the Great Wild Forest." Khayang narrowed his eyes, smelling a familiar scent of conspiracy.

"This doesn't make sense." Alvin also frowned. He seemed to remember something, but was a little uncertain.

"Yeah, that's not reasonable." Khayon nodded.

For a moment, both of them were silent.

Chapter 26: Entering the Truth

The next morning, in the hotel lobby on the first floor.

About forty or fifty young people were sitting casually there. They were all under thirty years old and exuded obvious vitality and confidence.

The most crucial thing is that anyone with a certain level of magical perception will discover that these young people are all extraordinary beings. Although most of them are not of high rank, it is indeed a very rare situation to have so many young extraordinary beings gathered together.

In the corner, Ivan, Kayon and Diana looked at the others silently.

"It seems like I've been excluded." Ka Yang's smile remained unchanged, but his narrowed eyes revealed a hint of deep meaning.

"This is normal. The others are from the military or other extraordinary organizations. Only we are pure civilians selected through the Magic Car Competition." Ivan narrated in a calm tone:

"This can't even be called exclusion, at most it's just..." The black-haired boy showed a slightly mocking expression on his face.

“People are divided into groups.”

He was all too familiar with this sort of thing.

In fact, Alvin didn't particularly hate it.

You know, compared to the either-or circle culture of adults, these young people who are divided into groups simply because of their backgrounds are much easier to deal with.

Just use your strength to subdue them.

The receptionist from the New Era Institute soon arrived at the hotel. Alvin was a little surprised by the other party's identity, because the visitor was Joseph Kerr, a formal researcher who had met several people before, and his assistant Menie Kaye was also here.

Joseph winked at Ivan, then clapped his hands to draw the attention of all the young people in the hall to himself.

"Everyone, welcome to the Steel City of Vulcan. I will be your guide to the headquarters of the New Era Research Institute."

A noisy discussion erupted from the crowd, and excitement could be seen on most of their faces. Most of them had heard the rumors about the New Era Institute.

In fact, in Lind, the Central Empire, where the magic industry is developing rapidly and even the first magic industrial revolution took place, the New Era Equipment Research Institute has gradually become a holy place in the hearts of those who study magic engineering technology in Lind because of its strong research capabilities and continuous research results.

Although the young people who came here had different backgrounds, they had one thing in common, which was their admiration for magical engineering technology and their pursuit of the new extraordinary sequence based on this technology.

They may not be the most outstanding new generation in the force, but they are all brave people who dare to try new things. At least, they hope to find a way to break through the bottleneck and become high-level extraordinary people.

Hope and desire are the common lights shining in the eyes of these young people.

Of course, that could perhaps also be called - ambition!

Taking the vehicle sent by the institute, the young people finally arrived at the New Era Equipment Research Institute located in District Zero in the center of the Steel City Vulkan.

The institute was located in the very center of District Zero, the focal point of the entire city. However, it was different from the traditional buildings with various decorations that the people of Linde were familiar with.

The institute is located in a large, square, new-style building with almost no artistic beauty.

What is surprising is that this building has fifteen floors and there is no visible wooden structure from the outside.

At first, when looking at it from a distance, most people thought it was a rocky mountain that had been modified into the shape of a monument. They never imagined that it was actually a purely man-made building.

At the same time, this design that makes full use of the space and presents a sense of simplicity and practicality seems familiar to Alvin.

Because many of the buildings he had seen in his previous life were of this style.

"Let me introduce you." Walking in front of the crowd, Joseph tapped his throat lightly with his staff, making his voice particularly loud.

"This is the headquarters building of the New Era Research Institute—the Rock of Truth. It was built in 1883. The entire design was completed by the institute's in-house researchers specializing in architecture. Even the construction method utilized the latest wrought iron beam frame technology at the time. The top five floors even utilize a pure steel frame."

"The more crucial point is that this massive 75-meter-tall building was constructed without the involvement of any high-level transcendents. Instead, it utilized a vast amount of magical machinery. In other words, this is the first modern building constructed since the magical industrial revolution!"

Joseph's voice revealed a hint of pride, and this feeling seemed to be contagious to the others, making them look amazed.

"This is indeed extraordinary." Kayang looked up at the tall building.

It's not that he hasn't seen buildings that are larger and more magnificent than this one, but those buildings with a long history require a long construction period of at least several decades or even hundreds of years, and high-level extraordinary people must be involved, otherwise it would be impossible to complete the construction.

But the building in front of him was different. If what the other party said was true, it meant that the Linde people had mastered the most advanced construction methods in the world, and they could build a large number of fortresses at any time at a speed far exceeding traditional ones.

After entering the institute building, Joseph led everyone to visit several laboratories on the first floor of the institute. The excellent research environment made everyone feel excited.

After completing the initial tour, Joseph suddenly led everyone to a large door.

"Everything that follows is confidential. I won't repeat the relevant regulations. I believe you have all heard of them before coming here."

After saying that, Joseph placed his hand on a smooth flat plate beside the door.

Soon, a moving light appeared on the tablet from bottom to top.

Then, a very dull voice came from inside the tablet.

"Palm print confirmation."

"Magic Power Fluctuation Confirmation"

"Welcome in, Mr. Joseph Kerr, First-Class Official Researcher."

The door automatically moved to the left and right. Through the slowly opening door, the young people found that there was a closed room with no windows and made entirely of metal on all sides.

The room is five meters high and the interior space can easily accommodate dozens of young people standing together.

Alvin raised his eyebrows, feeling more and more familiar with it from his previous life.

At Joseph's signal, everyone walked into the spacious, empty room. Then, they saw the doors that opened to the left and right automatically close, and then they felt a sudden vibration under their feet.

"We are descending!" someone with keen perception shouted in surprise:

"This is normal. Next, you will enter the real New Era Research Institute." Joseph's voice calmed the slightly confused crowd.

After a few minutes, the slightly shaking room returned to calm.

With a soft 'ding' sound, the closed door opened again.

What followed was an incredibly shocking scene. Beneath the towering structure known as the Rock of Truth, a vast, immeasurably vast underground cavern lay dotted with various buildings and filled with bizarre structures.

And this is the real new era research institute!

Chapter 27 Iron Man and Iron Cavalry

The shock of the huge underground cavity beneath the Rock of Truth did not last long, because everyone saw something even more shocking.

The mobile device where the few people were located was called an elevator. Above their heads, one could see a track extending high upwards, the end of which extended deep into the thick rock layer.

But compared to the track, which seemed particularly long and narrow due to the vast distance, the location they were currently standing in was even more impressive. They were standing on top of a pyramid-shaped building that was so huge that it was difficult to estimate its size.

The towering building occupies almost one-third of the underground space, like a cover on a dinner plate, making people very curious about what kind of "delicacies" are inside.

Judging from the materials, this huge and amazing building should have been built after the Magic Industrial Revolution, after all, industrial products such as cement are used here.

However, considering the time when the Magic Industrial Revolution began and the astonishing size of this building, high-level extraordinary people must have participated in its construction process, so that such a huge building could be completed quickly in a space where entry must be kept confidential.

After completing the first round of demonstrations, or rather the first round of 'shocking education' for the newcomers, the elevator slowly closed its exit and once again carried the young people into the interior of the huge pyramid-shaped building.

"In fact, this is the real Rock of Truth, and it's also the headquarters of the 'New Era Research Institute.'" Joseph continued to introduce it to everyone as the elevator descended.

"And the place we are about to arrive at is the area where you gentlemen and ladies will receive training in the coming months."

"Mr. Joseph, what will we learn next?" Suddenly, someone asked:

He was a young nobleman with golden hair. He looked somewhat similar to Conrad, except that his hair was relatively darker in color, not as bright as the latter's that seemed to glow. He was most likely a descendant of a noble family with some royal blood.

"If we're just studying magical vehicle piloting and magical engineering, I'm sure many of us have already undergone years of training. Compared to the minority who haven't received systematic instruction, wouldn't it be more appropriate to divide us into different groups and train at different paces?"

As he said this, Alvin noticed that this young nobleman, whose name he didn't know yet, seemed to glance quickly at the people on his side.