Ice Vapor Goddess

Chapter 89 "Research Center"

After dinner, it was time for night to fall.

After washing the last dish in the kitchen, Xiren came out of the basement when it was completely dark. He could hear distant crying outside. Looking through the frost-covered glass window, he could only see faint torches and mournful prayers.

That's the direction of the cemetery, where people are weeping as they bury their loved ones, and a pastor stands by, offering prayers for the departed.

Aldridge hadn't left yet. He took out a cigar from the spiritual dwelling's storage cabinet. He knew that Celen never smoked these things, so he kept all the good stuff. The smoke swirled in front of the window, as if the snowflakes had been there for thousands of years. The crying sound lingered in the white smoke, becoming clearer and clearer.

Seeing the bishop come out of the kitchen, he stubbed out his cigar.

“Aldridge?” Cyren was somewhat surprised, but quickly understood. “You’re still here just to get my cigar?”

“Of course there’s something else.” He smiled.

"Was it inconvenient to say this earlier?"

"It's convenient, but the product isn't finished yet. If I were to reveal it to the public prematurely, it might seem like I'm showing off." He carefully wrapped the half-smoked cigar and stuffed it into his pocket. This was an absolute luxury item these days.

“It seems you can’t wait,” Xiren smiled.

Aldridge gave a smug smile, as if discussing his most outstanding work: "Of course."
-
The building has 11 underground floors and is located in an industrial area.

The church has a few factories here that can carry out some processing and smelting.

The dilapidated iron sheds sheltered the two factory areas, using the most decaying structure to block any view of the church's secrets.

“These are abandoned sheds left over from previous construction; I bought them all for five pounds,” Aldridge said.

Xilun looked around curiously. The rusty scrap metal shed was tied together with wire, and the door was just a cut-out frame with a scrap iron plate tied to it with wire.

Aldridge effortlessly ripped open what could perhaps be called a "door," and the apprentices inside, hearing the sound, cried out, "Master!"

Six apprentices stood behind machine tools and wooden tables, while some workers and craftsmen were smelting metal not far away.

On the cast iron ground, Xilun saw countless metal blocks, gears, connecting rods, armor plates, steam engines, pistons... They were scattered all over the ground, and occasionally a few helmets could be seen, like the metal remains of some kind of monster, dismembered and piled up.

Although he couldn't understand these machines, he could feel a certain beauty and power from those castings, some so precise they were tiny and some so enormous. It was hard to imagine how humans could use these things to create such terrifying steel creations. Those people holding blueprints and compasses seemed like creators, adding a few parts, pouring in a spoonful of steam, welding up some steel, and then letting it sweep across the world.

“The Judgment VI.” Aldridge picked up a dismantled gun barrel. “We dismantled a lot of things to learn about the Church’s mechanical structure—I’m a rune expert, after all; forging and mechanics are still their job.”

He pointed to the white-bearded old man standing in front of the furnace, berating his apprentices.

"Let me introduce you. This is Nicholas, the blacksmith." Aldridge led Siron to the forge. "He is in charge of both metal smelting and forging."

Xilun saw the blacksmith, but his height of less than 1.4 meters really surprised him, reminding him of dwarfism.

“Hey, kid! Stop staring at me like that!” Nicholas said, stroking his beard. Aldridge quickly said, “Master Nicholas is a halfling, with half-dwarf blood. Master, this is the bishop.”

"Hmph, of course I know." Nicholas snorted coldly, giving him a cold look. "I can smell the stench of clergy from 800 meters away."

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Siren seemed completely unconcerned, extending his hand with a bright smile. “How’s it working here?”

Nicholas sized him up several times, then looked at Aldridge before reluctantly shaking hands with Celen twice: "It's terrible. We're short of tools, machines, and raw materials. If it weren't for Aldridge, I wouldn't have come to a place like this."

Aldridge said in a low voice, "I used to run a halfling shelter and I got along well with the halflings. They've been having a terrible time ever since the fall of the Mountain Kingdom."

Siren nodded. He didn't know the details, but he could guess that it was Aldridge's atonement—atonement for the Church's war.

Then he introduced Xilun to another person.

“Zelo Russell, our mechanic and engineer,” he said.

He was a meticulous old gentleman with silver hair combed back and sporting the currently fashionable "walrus mustache," with two small tufts of mustache above his lips, reminding Xilun of Nietzsche's classic portrait—though this was just a common style favored by intellectuals today.

“It is an honor to meet you, Your Excellency the Bishop.” Zelo bowed slightly and made the sign of the cross. “However, when it comes to engineers, I dare to only rank second here.”

Xilun returned the greeting slightly, and asked with a smile, "And who is first?"

“Right here beside you.” Zero smiled very politely and looked at Aldridge.

The Rune Master wasn't smug; he simply explained, "Rune design usually involves mechanical design, so I also have some knowledge of engineering design."

“Mr. Zelo came here voluntarily. He is very interested in the church’s mechanical designs, and in exchange, he will stay here to work,” Aldridge said.

"You came from the military?" Xiren shook hands with him.

“Oh dear, you noticed that?” Zero smiled. “During the Fifth Crusade, I was part of the Albion Expeditionary Force and witnessed firsthand the power of the Steel Angels. Therefore, I am honored to work in your research center.”

If this dilapidated construction site had resembled a "research center" even slightly, it wouldn't have made Zelo's rhetoric seem so sophisticated. Therefore, Xiren could only accept the title with a slightly embarrassed smile.

Aldridge said, "The three of us each have six to eight apprentices, plus a dozen or so workers, a canteen cook, and a cleaner. That's all there is for now."

Silen nodded. Aldridge had indeed done a good job, setting up this team in just over a week.

“Next—” Aldridge led Siron into the center of the “research center,” across the furnaces and assembly lines, to the place where the real secrets were hidden.

"Witness the first walking mech of the Church of Speyside."

(End of this chapter)