Star Forge Titan

It would be fine if they just had some private fights, but if something really happened to this lazy guy who was both his master and his best friend, he, as a friend, would probably be worried too.

"I'm starting to lose my hair!" Conrad wailed as he took out a few strands of golden hair carefully wrapped in a handkerchief from his pocket.

“…” Galar’s ​​face immediately turned as dark as a frying pan that was accidentally burnt.

"That's it?" He slowly took off his helmet, revealing his head with the middle part of his scalp vaguely visible.

"Ever since I started working as your bodyguard, I can see a handful of hair next to my pillow every morning when I wake up! And I'm only thirty years old this year!"

Galar put his helmet back on and even pulled down his visor, which made his voice sound particularly dull and even a little choked.

"Thirty is almost the age to go bald. I remember when the old earl was thirty-five, there was already a sea on the top of his head. Your eldest brother seems to be similar, but he seems to have an M-shaped baldness." Conrad spoke without emotion and tears, and at the same time he felt that his mood seemed to have inexplicably improved a lot.

As for the old earl he mentioned, he was naturally referring to Galar's father, the earl who was actually powerful.

"Okay, okay, next time I'll introduce you to a wizard who's good at this. If I remember correctly, I met him when I sneaked out to watch the can-can dance before." His Majesty the Emperor muttered words that made his captain's eyes shine, and then continued to annotate the documents on the table.

"Speaking of which, how are the Royal Guards preparing for the military parade security?"

"Although the scale of this event is relatively large, it is not without precedent. We just have to follow the old rules. After all, we in Linde are an old and powerful country with a history of thousands of years. We can always find reference cases for this kind of thing." Galar shrugged, his tone carrying the natural pride, or arrogance, of the people of Linde.

"I see." Conrad paused with the pen in his hand, as if he had thought of something.

"Then let's add a new veterans' stand and place it farthest from the main stand. The ostensible reason is that this is to allow the veterans to be the first to see our Linde's now incredibly powerful army."

"Why? Adding another stand is fine, but why demolish the area farthest from the main stand? The reason you just gave seems a little subtly unreliable, although it does make sense." Galar asked in confusion:

"Well, it's not complicated. Think about who is the most famous and senior veteran among the veterans?"

"Old Prince?" Galar immediately thought of the answer.

"Yeah, you've forgotten how scary that elder has always been. When we were little, we always walked around him. When I think about standing next to him for a whole day while reviewing the troops, my legs feel as soft as a Lindt baguette soaked in stew." Conrad looked up at the ceiling, speechless.

"...To be honest, I'm a little afraid of that lord." In front of his best friend, Galar didn't deliberately maintain the image of a brave knight. He nodded and expressed his agreement very quietly.

"So, I plan to set up a veterans' stand, where a group of veterans and my dear great-uncle can stand together. If we want to highlight the dignity of this elder, we can also build a special seat surrounded by seats in the stand. In short, as long as it is far enough away from the main stand, it will be fine." Conrad said with a sly smile.

"That makes sense. It doesn't take much time to build a temporary stand, and it doesn't need to be too large. After all, as for the veterans, only a few high-level transcendents near the capital are able to come to watch the ceremony." At this point, Galar suddenly frowned.

"However, their relationship with His Excellency the Prince doesn't seem to be very good. Is this really irrelevant?"

"It's okay, it's okay. They won't fight during the parade." Conrad shrugged and said nonchalantly:

"That's true. If a few fourth-level warriors and a fifth-level warrior fight each other, I'm afraid the entire Lutetia will be turned into ruins." Galar smiled and shook his head, feeling that his previous question was indeed unnecessary.

"Yes, if a fight really came to pass, even if those fourth-rank warriors had no companions in their own dedicated legion battle groups, my formidable great-uncle alone could accomplish this."

As he spoke, Conrad seemed to recall something related. A subtle and strange expression gradually emerged on his handsome face, which although handsome, inexplicably made people want to punch him.

"The premise is that he doesn't plan to continue attending his birthday party this year."

Prince Louis, who was inexplicably arranged, must not have known that he was being criticized very viciously behind his back by his own juniors. However, he did not have time to care about what others said about him at the moment, because something more important was imminent.

Looking at the roaring machine in front of him, the old man with wrinkled and shriveled skin actually revealed an extremely bright light in his eyes.

He was like a person who had been walking in the dark for too long, and suddenly saw a faint but not illusory light of hope suddenly flashing in the distance.

This machine is similar to a combination of a large steam engine and a boiler. Many factories use similar devices as the power source for various equipment within the factory, using centralized power to provide a relatively economical way to maintain various production activities within the factory.

He raised his hand and pressed the hot outer wall of the machine, and the skin on his palm immediately made a hissing burning sound. The fifth-level extraordinary person, whose power cycle was broken, although had the terrifying power to easily destroy an entire city alone, could not even maintain the extraordinary characteristics of his body in daily life.

But Prince Louis showed no intention of withdrawing his hand. He simply stared at the machine in front of him with a terrifying look filled with abnormal desire, while muttering to himself:

"Come on, come on!"

Chapter 125: Unwilling to be humble

It takes about a day to travel from the steel city of Vulcan to the capital of Lutetia by magic train.

On the train, the students were all very excited about being able to participate in the year-end military parade.

In Alvin's opinion, these young people were just as excited as the high school students who were experiencing spring and autumn outings in their previous lives.

Incidentally, a BBA who looked twelve years younger was also among them. Perhaps it was because objective material things would eventually have some influence on subjective spirits. Anyway, Christina had a very good relationship with the students, with no generation gap at all due to age.

Driven by the relaxed atmosphere, everyone's originally excited mood gradually calmed down, and some people even took out poker cards to invite others.

On the driver's standby side, Rimore and others were pulled over, and the atmosphere in the car became extremely lively for a while.

Fortunately, the passenger compartment is divided into small compartments of four people each, so it doesn't become too noisy.

At the same time, Alvin saw Ka Yang constantly running from one carriage to another, chatting and laughing loudly with people from time to time, and seemed to be very familiar with everyone.

Little Q, still using the Scorching Hound shell, also followed him around, looking nothing like an awakened tower spirit, but more like an ordinary pet dog.

As he passed by this carriage, the necromancer, who still had messy hair like a bird's nest, glanced at the Northern Savage Titan. The two discussed for a while in the deserted place at the junction of the carriages, or rather, had a covert communication comparable to an encrypted code.

The result made Alvin frown slightly. It seemed that Ka Yang and Xiao Q did not find any useful information.

Returning to the carriage, he saw Diana looking out the window with her chin supported. The sunlight shone on her fair face, dyeing her heroic eyebrows a little golden.

Ivan was a little dazed for a moment. Compared to the Valkyrie in his memory, the current Diana was not as heroic as the former, but she had a more girlish and gentle feeling, and had a more real feeling, which made him feel very novel.

Catherine, who was sitting opposite, also held her chin with her hand, but she didn't look out the window all the time, but occasionally glanced at Diana's face. Their relationship had improved a lot after coming to Vulcan.

But when Alvin came in, Catherine subconsciously looked up at him. When their eyes met, her face turned red, and she snorted and immediately looked away.

Miss, what's going on with you?

Ivan twitched his lips. Considering the Duchess's arrogant personality, he didn't say much, but just put down the tray in his hand.

When he left just now, Alvin used the excuse that he and Kayon went to the dining car in front to get afternoon tea and matching snacks.

"Shocked! Even on the train, are Linde people so particular about afternoon tea?"

While sighing, Alvin picked up the exquisitely shaped teapot from the tray and poured the fragrant black tea into the pure white porcelain cup.

"Why do you say that?" Catherine asked unexpectedly:

"Here, these are the cakes." Alvin raised his chin and pointed to the pastries on the tray.

"When I went to the dining car just now, the fat chef actually put all kinds of snacks in a long box that looked like a jewelry box."

"Wow, that's quite an exaggeration! A small-town boy from Genoa is quite enlightened." He jokingly said in a slightly exaggerated tone:

"...What? When it comes to being particular about food, you Genoese are the most carefree, aren't you? There's even a trade governor who ate so much puffer fish that he nearly had to sleep in the ground." Catherine raised her eyebrows and immediately retorted:

"Is there? Maybe?"

Alvin didn't deny it and just drank his tea. You said bad things about the Genoese, why do you care about me, a barbarian from the Northern Ice Age?

"Little Catherine, what are you young people talking about? Can your aunt know too?" The carriage door was pulled open from the outside. Looking up, Alvin didn't see anyone at first, then he lowered his head and noticed that it was Christina.

"Young man, your eyes are a little rude." Christina put her hands on her hips and said with a puffed face:

Then, she jumped onto the seat and took the teacup very familiarly. Catherine was stunned for a moment by the teasing just now, and then she reacted, sighed, and poured a cup of Dahuanglin black tea for her little "aunt".

Afterwards, several people began to chat casually. Under Ivan's intentional guidance, Christina slowly talked about the old story of discovering the whale fall ruins thirty years ago.

It must be admitted that this seemingly small director was surprisingly gifted at storytelling. Even Diana, who had been boredly looking out the window, was drawn in by her story, and the three of them listened intently.

"Finally, when we lost many of our companions, we discovered the source of all the changes, which was the whale fall ruins." When talking about this, Christina's voice couldn't help but become low.

"Ma'am, are you saying that there are a large number of alienated creatures in the underground cavity that have mutated due to the high concentration of magical energy?" Ivan asked in surprise.

"Yes, you should have heard of the existence of the Star Furnace in the History of Magical Engineering course, right? That thing is even more exaggerated than you can imagine. Even with a damaged shell, it has been able to operate on its own for at least 30,000 years! That's 30,000 years!" Christina's eyes lit up.

"Add to that the relatively closed environment of the underground cavern, so the concentration of mana in the air alone was high enough to have a significant impact on the effectiveness of spellcasting. Some ordinary people in our team even nearly spontaneously awakened and became quasi-transcendent beings, not to mention the various creatures that have lived there for generations."

"The underground caverns at that time were like an undeveloped forest beneath the ground, teeming with previously unheard-of alien creatures. The best of them even possessed spell-like abilities."

"The scariest one has a white reptile covered in slime."

"As we all know, dragon creatures have a biological structure that is best adapted to an environment with high concentrations of magic. However, due to the excessively high concentration of magic in the environment, that monster actually evolved a rare dragon-like structure." Christina opened her hands and gestured like claws.

"This monster, named Frumf Alienosaurus by the archaeological expedition team, even possesses a unique hunting method that's perfectly adapted to the underground environment. It uses suction cups on the ends of its limbs to anchor itself to the cave ceiling, then uses its neck, which can be twisted and extended at will, to prey on other creatures passing below."

"This hunting method is extremely cruel. After capturing its prey, the Frumf Xenomorph uses its self-dislocating jaw and pharyngeal teeth located within its mouth to tear at the prey's flesh and blood while slowly swallowing it."

As Christina described, Alvin saw very clearly that Catherine, who was sitting opposite him, looked more and more unhappy, and the diamond-shaped twin ponytails hanging behind her were also standing up little by little.

Diana, who was sitting next to him, also showed a hint of nervousness. The smile on her handsome face had completely disappeared, and she once again turned into the expressionless iceberg look she had before. At the same time, the silver-haired girl's body seemed very stiff, and she subconsciously moved closer to Ivan.

"Luckily, the thick fat on this monster's body is very easy to ignite. At the critical moment, I seized the opportunity and threw a fireball into its open mouth. Then, hehe..." Christina smiled.

“It becomes roast chicken.”

Call ~

The sound of the girls sighing in relief instantly filled the carriage. Ivan couldn't help but laugh to himself, and then listened to Christina continue talking about the past thirty years:

"The massive lost ruin we refer to as the 'Iron Whale' has an incredibly solid surface. Even with destructive excavation, the archaeological team is unable to create a breach in it."

"Then how did you get in?" Catherine asked curiously.

"After further excavation, the archaeological team discovered that the ruins were incomplete. To be more precise, the remains we found were probably only part of a larger entity, so there were fractures on both sides of the remains. The archaeological team entered the ruins through the unexpected passages created by these fractures."

"I have to admit, that was truly the most shocking sight I've ever seen in my life. A massive ruin made entirely of special metal, and all sorts of unearthed treasures never before seen..."

As she spoke, Christina couldn't help showing a nostalgic look.

"Although the subsequent discovery was arguably the greatest archaeological find in nearly a thousand years, we were ultimately blocked by a door."

"A door?" Ivan's eyes narrowed, and he immediately asked:

"Yes, a door that only allows special people to pass through."

"Someone special?" Diana subconsciously repeated Christina's words.

"As for what kind of person it is, we haven't found out yet. It's just that every time a creature approaches the gate, it will alert some kind of scanning mechanism. If the scan fails, it will be denied entry. At the same time, a force field protection with magic fluctuations close to the level of prohibited magic will be activated to cover the entire metal gate." Christina sighed.

"Perhaps only by using extremely forbidden magic can it be forcibly destroyed."

"...That's too exaggerated." Catherine said in astonishment:

"But the truth is just that exaggerated. For thirty years, the door leading to the depths of the ruins has never been opened, and we still don't know what the scene is like at the door." Christina said in a deep voice.

"The world behind the door?" Ivan whispered to himself:

No one spoke in the car for a while.

The large magic train continued to move forward. Due to its huge size, other trains along the way had to give way in the waiting area of ​​the yard.

The passengers on the train couldn't help but complain, but their attention was soon attracted by the large magic train passing through the station. They couldn't help but discuss what was being transported on it that required it to occupy two train tracks to move.

"Who knows? Maybe it's gold?"

In the noisy carriage, a man wearing glasses and cheap clothes, who looked like a country youth coming to the city to find a job, said casually.

The young man wore a pair of very bulky thick-framed glasses on his slightly rustic face. The frames covered most of his face, making him look even dumber than the other people around him.

At this time, he was playing cards with several passengers in the same carriage. This was the third-class seat on the train. Judging from the clothes of the other members of the card game, most of them were of ordinary backgrounds similar to those of young working people.

Perhaps it was for this reason that, although they did not know each other before boarding the train, they quickly became familiar with each other after chatting for a few minutes. So, during the boring time waiting for the large magic train to pass by, they squatted in the corridor of the carriage and played cards.

"Gold? Impossible. How could they use such a large train to transport gold? This isn't the Lutetia Central Union Savings Bank relocating its vault."

A fellow card player who was dressed like a small businessman shook his head and immediately denied the young man's casual guess.

"I think I saw some military markings. It's probably some special equipment that will be used in the grand parade in a week. I'm really curious about what it is."

The other person who participated in the card game had better eyesight. The speed of the magic train was not particularly fast at the moment, so although it only flashed by, he still saw the emblem printed on the side of the large magic train.

"Ha, is it a particularly large cannon?" the young man with glasses said half-jokingly:

"It's one of those super cannons that can destroy half a city with one shot." The young man gestured with his hands to show the exaggerated size, and the other card players laughed out loud with joy.

"Pfft, what nonsense are you talking about? There is no such exaggerated cannon. I have never heard of such rumors in my business trips." The card player dressed as a businessman laughed and shook his head, looking at the young man with a little contempt.

He couldn't help but think that country people are just ignorant and like to brag.

"Yeah, yeah, if we really had that kind of cannon, we would have already reached Avonmore." Other poker players echoed:

"Hey, I just said it casually." The young man seemed a little embarrassed and withdrew his hand.

Watching the large train gradually moving away, the card players no longer cared about the outcome of the game, but instead started chatting about family matters.

"By the way, Joseph, you haven't told me where you are from yet." The young man with glasses pointed at himself and then looked a little embarrassed.

"Hey, I'm from a village in the Vulcan Basin, looking for work. All the family land was left to my eldest brother, and as the youngest son, I didn't get anything, so I had to go out and find another way out."

"The Vulcan Basin, Steel City is a good place, there are many opportunities to make money, and the people in charge follow the rules. It's just that other places around here are a bit hard. Those mine owners who open mountains and dig minerals are more ruthless than each other and don't care about the lives of local people at all." The small businessman and his poker partner shook his head and said nothing more.

"Yeah." The young man called Joseph pushed his glasses which were sliding down a little, and a hint of gloom flashed across his face.

"I just didn't like the place where even the air was filled with the smell of slag, so I decided to run away."