Star Forge Titan

However, Catherine seemed to see a different side of Diana today.

However, the short-haired girl sitting at the tea table on the other side was actually very nervous.

She had never lived with so many people her age before, so whether she was facing Ivan before or facing these girls now, Diana was actually panicked at first.

However, being born in the downtown area, she is much more mature than her peers, at least in terms of her personality, she is much more rational.

Faced with a situation where she had no relevant social experience, Diana's approach was to find a suitable, or at least seemingly suitable, response based on her previous knowledge.

So, the girl relied on her excellent memory to quickly find the 'at least seemingly appropriate method' - imitating the characters in novels and works of bards.

This involves another issue. The technological development brought about by the Magic Revolution has also promoted the upgrading of printing technology. Therefore, the price of books on the market in Linde is much cheaper than in the past few decades. At that time, when wars broke out between nobles, they would treat robbing each other's private libraries as an act equivalent to robbing a vault. This shows how expensive books were at that time.

Back to the point, the decline in printing costs has led to a shift in the types of readers and the content of books. Since many ordinary people who previously couldn't afford books now have access to them, popular novels targeting the general public have become increasingly popular.

This naturally led to the rise and changes in the novel industry. In order to adapt to a wider range of readers, various new types of novels emerged one after another, and romance novels were naturally one of them.

Although traditional and conservative families often regard this thing, also known as the "Rosary", as a disaster, adolescent girls always find a way to get what they want.

Although Diana was not very interested in love, even if the cost of book production decreased, the children in the orphanage did not have the money to buy such things. After all, they could not be eaten.

However, just as little kids like Betty would occasionally run small businesses as guides on the street, there were also some children who were interested in this and would obtain one or two books through less legal channels. They would then be disciplined by Diana, the head of the family, and their illegal gains would be confiscated. (Mother Theresa was very strict about this. Although life in the downtown area was difficult, she did not want to raise a group of thieves.)

Diana, having received the books, was naturally reluctant to destroy them. Even as second-hand goods, they could fetch a few bucks on the black market. And before selling them, flipping through them out of boredom was understandable... right?

To be honest, due to her personality, Diana actually doesn't like the plot that describes a weak heroine. Such a person simply cannot survive in the downtown area.

But her girlish nature made her curious about the part of the book that described the emotions between boys and girls, so she read the first, second, and third books intermittently with a conflicted feeling.

In short, before becoming the champion of the Youth Magic Car Competition, Diana's impression of aristocratic life and their social activities remained entirely at the level of novels, which led her to subconsciously imitate the words and deeds of the characters when looking for reference objects.

Of course, since she doesn’t like the heroine, Diana chooses to imitate… the hero.

His gentlemanly conversation, the occasional teasing joke (unbeknownst to the person involved), and the girl's already handsome and heroic appearance made him look like a prince from a novel come to life.

To put it in more understandable terms, it is a COSPLAY behavior with 120% restoration.

The female students who come here to participate in the magician program are also very outstanding, but this does not prevent them from secretly taking a look at romance novels, also known as "The Rosary", to relax after their heavy schoolwork.

So, faced with Diana like this, they... they were completely unable to resist.

The tea party with a pink atmosphere continued. Diana, who gradually became familiar with taking the lead, finally turned the topic of conversation to what she wanted to know.

The short-haired girl, who always smiled quietly, gently stirred the black tea in front of her with a spoon and spoke very naturally:

"I believe you have heard the surprising news before."

"The thing about Mr. Rimoré de Maupassant? Oh, Holy Father, that's simply terrible. Although that gentleman usually behaves very proudly, he is at least a Linde man with a gentlemanly spirit. To be honest, I don't quite believe it." A female student exclaimed repeatedly.

"Is that true, or is he actually that kind of person? How scary." Another female student next to her shook her head uncertainly.

"It's hard to see the human heart." Diana simply agreed, then suddenly looked at a female student who seemed a little uneasy.

"By the way, I heard that you had afternoon tea with Limore yesterday afternoon. Is that true?" Her tone sounded very casual and a little unintentional.

"Yes...right? It seems like that happened, I think so. Ha, hahahaha, disgusting. It was just a very ordinary afternoon tea together." The female student who was asked replied a little awkwardly:

Although she does not look gorgeous, she is very quiet and relatively fits the traditional image of an aristocratic lady.

"Afternoon tea, did he look normal then? I heard that mentally unstable people can also behave strangely on a daily basis." Another female student asked curiously:

"No, we were just having a normal cup of tea together. Oh, and he did say at the time that he was surprised to be surpassed by a commoner. He might be busy lately and can't come often... Anyway, he wants to train hard to regain the first place that belongs to him. That's normal, right?" The quiet female student said shyly.

"Oh, is this an omen?"

“But I think it sounds quite passionate.”

"Hey? Is there any?"

"But, he said this to you, didn't he..."

"No way! Don't talk nonsense."

"Hee hee hee."

Amidst the confusion, the topic turned to rosy things again.

After getting the exact news, Diana found an excuse to get rid of all the beautiful women and then met up with Catherine who was waiting in a nearby cafe.

Because of the latter's status as a member of the royal family and a Grand Duke, in order to prevent the students attending the girls' association from being too nervous, she did not participate in it as well, but just waited in a nearby cafe.

"So, what's the situation?" Catherine asked. For some reason, she was eavesdropping secretly, and her cheeks had a slight blush similar to that of the girls' association members.

"Rimore was having afternoon tea with his fiancée at the time, so his memory of that period should be complete." Diana nodded slightly and came to a simple and clear conclusion.

"Is that so?" Catherine said noncommittally.

Then, she suddenly changed the subject.

"How have you been lately?"

Chapter 42: Girls' Time (Part 2)

"Just like what the letter said, nothing major has changed." Diana shook her head.

After arriving in Vulcan, she and Catherine actually maintained a correspondence. After the Magic Revolution, the trains connecting several major cities made correspondence much more convenient than before.

After saying the first half of the sentence, Diana suddenly thought of the black-haired Ivan, and couldn't help but add again with a somewhat subtle expression:

"Except for what happened today, to be honest, that guy is like a whirlpool, always getting involved in all kinds of accidents, or rather, pulling all kinds of accidents into himself."

"Including you?" Catherine asked teasingly with a wink.

“…” Diana blushed and raised the teacup to block it in front of her.

"Oh, I really envy you guys for being able to study so peacefully. I was very, very, very busy before." Catherine stretched, allowing the clothes on her chest to bear the pressure that was not anticipated at the beginning of the design, and also used three "very" to seriously express her resentment towards her brother.

"Should I say... thank you for your hard work?" Diana looked at Catherine with uncertainty.

"That's right, so please treat me well today." Catherine blinked and gave a cunning smile.

"For example?" Diana, who was essentially an honest child, didn't even try to dodge and stepped directly into the other party's rhetoric 'trap', which in turn stunned the aristocratic girl with blonde hair in front of her.

"Let me think about it." Catherine raised her index finger and tapped her chin.

"Just treat me to cake."

Soon, a piece of sweet-smelling strawberry cake appeared in front of the two of them.

"That guy is really too much. He even forgot about receiving foreign envoys. Is he an idiot?!" Although she was eating cake and drinking black tea, Catherine was like a drunk, chattering in front of Diana about a salted fish on the throne.

"Foreign envoys?" Diana took a sip of black tea and asked curiously:

"Well, the envoys from Elrond are nominally led by their second prince, Ostolfo Andre Gustav Gusmith. Oh, now we should call him His Excellency the Duke of Yorkshire. After all, since the death of the previous King of Elrond, he has inherited the County of Yorkshire in the north of Elrond." Recalling a beautiful boy with pink hair, Catherine couldn't help but reveal a strange expression.

The first time she saw a beautiful boy wearing women's clothes who was even cuter than herself, she felt a little frustrated. Although she was not a cute character, he was a boy, not a girl.

"Speaking of which, it seems Elrond has also undergone significant changes since the new Demon King took office. According to reports from the ambassador to the City of Tears, Avonmore, their arcane techniques for transforming creatures have become quite dramatic. They are said to be able to create monsters nearly a hundred meters long." Catherine frowned and sighed uneasily.

"Will there be... a war?" Diana couldn't help but get nervous upon hearing this.

"That's not the case. Although the technological upgrade is exaggerated, they have become more moderate on the border. Together with the small kingdoms that serve as a buffer, large-scale conflicts should not break out in the short term." Catherine waved her hand to let her relax.

However, the Duchess herself was not as calm as she appeared on the surface.

Recalling the scene she had experienced in Lutetia before, she couldn't help but feel uneasy.

Arriving in Lutetia with Ostolfo were his guards. Unlike the Black Knights of Elrond's royal guard who had appeared before, these new guards, draped in white robes with their features shrouded by hoods and masks, were exceptionally tall, and each emanated a powerful magical aura comparable to that of a third-tier transcendent.

That would be fine, but what is even more shocking is their number.

Although the Black Knights of Elrond were powerful, their number as the Demon King's personal guards always remained at a reasonable level. After all, they were third-level strongmen and were the backbone of the forces in each country.

However, the Elrond envoys sent to Lind this time included over fifty of these new guards, which was close to the full number of Elrond's Black Knights at their peak.

The name these guards declared to the outside world is Phantom Knights, which makes people wonder, are they things that do not exist like phantoms?

"By the way, the Duke of Yorkshire also asked about you?" Catherine suddenly said with great interest:

"Huh?" Diana was stunned for a moment, then became a little at a loss.

"Don't joke around, I'm just an ordinary girl from downtown."

"No, well, actually, he's just interested in the Magic Car Competition, so he brought up you as a member of the championship team during the conversation."

"He also asked about Ivan and Khayon. Don't worry." Catherine told the truth with a smile.

"...Huh, it's just a magic car." Diana breathed a sigh of relief. She was really nervous just now.

Then, looking at Catherine with a wicked smile, Diana's eyes suddenly became sharp!

She reached out and poked the side of her abdomen, instantly causing the Duchess to burst into uncontrollable laughter due to being tickled.

After a while of playing around, they stopped panting when they noticed that everyone else in the coffee shop was looking at them in surprise (?).

"To be honest, I was also a little surprised that the Duke of Yorkshire, a foreigner, was particularly fond of magic cars. Later, I heard that the idiot brother even gave him a new magic car. I have to say, he is quite talented in leading children astray." At the end, Catherine couldn't help but reveal a helpless expression again.

While the two girls were chatting and playing, Alvin and the scorching hound Little Q had also arrived at the door of Joseph's office.

He raised his hand and knocked gently on the door. A gentle "come in" sounded from inside. Then, Ivan and Little Q pushed the door open and walked in. Joseph was obviously a little surprised by his arrival, but he didn't seem panicked.

"What's wrong? Do you have any problems with your studies again? I happen to be free today." Joseph got up to make tea and greeted the other party enthusiastically.

During his studies in the past period of time, Alvin often came to ask questions to the tutors of various subjects, so they were very accustomed to it.

Joseph's attention was instead focused on the scorching hound, Little Q. His eyes very subtly swept over the data box under the crystal armor on the other's head, while his other hand in his pocket inadvertently fiddled with another data box, a lead-gray data box.

Chapter 43: Mr. Lind

Joseph Kerr, a gentle Linde gentleman.

The so-called Linde gentlemen are actually a new social trend that gradually formed after the Magic Revolution. Some merchants and civilians who were originally from the lower class began to learn the aristocratic spirit and abide by aristocratic etiquette due to the increase in assets and admiration for the aristocracy's control over the upper class.

Just as the root of the word "noble" in ancient common language comes from a variant of the phrase "a powerful leader who protects his people", the so-called aristocratic spirit has its source in the chivalrous spirit that is nurtured by heroic legends and combined with idealism.

Protect women and children, respect the elderly, protect the weak, and wield swords against dangerous beasts and evil people. Although chivalry does not have strict rules and regulations, nor is it a certain belief, it was initially widely respected by the nobles who were the leaders of the tribe. It was not until most of them became addicted to the game of power that it gradually disappeared.

However, the human nature of pursuing light, truth, goodness and beauty has prevented this fragmented spiritual worship from completely dying out. Its broad support base and idealistic romantic appeal, coupled with the further beautification and sublimation after combining with the poetry of bards and chivalric novels, as well as the strong spirit of self-reliance and protagonist consciousness contained in this popular culture, are very consistent with the pride of the Lind people for their nation and country after the Magic Revolution, and thus gradually became the cultural value orientation of the emerging class.

In addition, after the Magic Revolution, many people who originally came from the lower classes but were creative and enterprising gradually gained a higher social status. They felt that relying on inheritance to possess wealth was backward and that the future of mankind should be obtained through their own efforts.

Even a person of humble birth can become a gentleman respected by everyone through competition and hard work.

The ideas of these people gradually spread and merged with the original aristocratic spirit, eventually creating the cornerstone of modern Linde gentleman culture.

As for the aristocratic etiquette corresponding to the aristocratic spirit, the latter has become extremely cumbersome and complicated, and its main purpose has become to highlight the differences between itself and ordinary people, and only then have the basic moral standards been preserved.

But it still contains the legacy of the ancient spirit of chivalry, such as being humble to ladies, protecting the weak, pursuing honor, etc.

Joseph Kerr, a young man who looked to be about 27 or 28 years old, created the image of a gentleman Linde in front of his students and colleagues.

When Alvin walked into his room, he saw a polite and gentle Mr. Lind.

"Is there anything wrong, Mr. Elian?" Joseph came to Ivan with brewed tea.

In his office, there are sofas and coffee tables for meeting guests. The wood carving art from the Great Wilderness Forest makes these furniture full of exotic atmosphere.

"Thank you." After thanking the other party for the black tea he prepared, Alvin began to explain the purpose of his visit.

"You mean, there might be someone or something else interfering with Rimore, causing him to lose control on the training ground?" Joseph's expression turned serious.

"Yes." Ivan nodded, his eyes fixed on Mr. Linde who was sitting opposite him.

Joseph thought for a moment, then said:

"I can't rule out this possibility. Judging from Limore's usual personality, although he's a bit too proud, he's definitely not the kind of despicable person who would attack from behind."

"You think so too? That's great. We want to find that person and restore the honor that belongs to Rimore." Ivan looked somewhat happy, and then he continued to ask:

"Did he behave in any way that was unusual when he came to this office before?"

"No, at that time, classmate Rimore came here to ask me some academic questions. We discussed for about an hour. He looked normal the whole time and didn't do anything strange." Joseph shook his head and briefly recounted his previous contact with Rimore.

Then, half jokingly and half complimentingly, he added:

"As the victim of the attack, Mr. Elian, you are truly forgiving. Even I, who am much older than you, feel ashamed."

The person before him was genuine, and the truth was clear. If the person hadn't immediately forgiven him, Rimore's actions on the training ground would have been punished and reported, potentially even alerting the Magister Program's leaders. At that point, he would likely have been expelled from the program for violating discipline.

"You're too kind." Alvin scratched his cheek, looking a little embarrassed.

But in fact, he was extremely serious in his heart.

Before coming here, from the word "image", Alvin suddenly had an association that was different from his previous reasoning.