A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 312 What is it calculating?

Benedict observed carefully and had to admit that the dark monster was just like his ears.

A black beast roared and pounced on the camp's defenses. The knight thrust it with his lance and then flicked it upwards. At that moment, the monster changed its posture, from being on all fours like a wild beast to standing upright, making it clearer to the three people behind it—it was undoubtedly a mutated elf.

Rorschach and Caroline also joined the battle. Caroline's hand gestures flew, and then she unleashed several sharp blades. The invisible sword energy was actually a misaligned spatial rift, which was like a sharp and rapidly transmitted wave in spacetime, completely cutting through all the abominations it passed through until its energy was exhausted and dissipated into the distance.

Rorschach raised his left hand and first used the [Melting Ray] to sweep across the monsters that were approaching the camp, releasing a burnt stench. Then, a strong wind blew away the odor and gathered most of the monstrous creatures together. He stretched out his other hand, and a giant hand burst out from the broken stone pavement. He swung his right hand and then clenched his fist, grabbing the gathered monsters and squeezing them tightly.

Thick, dark red liquid flowed from the cracks in the giant rock and earth hand. The surviving abominations screamed madly at the giant hand, their erect tentacles trembling uncontrollably.

"Corrosion is systemic and thorough; they should be interconnected." After the test, Rorschach released his right hand, and many bits of flesh and blood fell off with a pattering sound.

The knights stared blankly as the two mages fought, while the other surviving abominations glared venomously at the camp before whimpering and running away. The soldiers, having repelled (and witnessed) an abomination charge unscathed for the first time, cheered and surrounded them.

"I've never seen such a powerful mage before. I thought spellcasters were just using sticks to set off fireworks. This is amazing! Thank you so much!" James seemed to know Rorschach and Caroline very well and was the first to come over and talk to them.

Caroline chimed in, "Actually, the mage Heisenberg does have a staff, but he doesn't use it. Why doesn't he take it out, mage Heisenberg?"

Rorschach didn't react much, saying smoothly and calmly, "It's broken and it's in the storage ring." He then held out his hand to show Caroline the gift from Bart.

"My alchemy skills are also quite decent. Would you like me to try and make some repairs?"

"No need, the energy storage crystal is broken, thank you." Rorschach turned around and asked if he could enter the camp.

As meritorious service members, they were naturally allowed to pass, but disagreements arose among the knights regarding whether Benedict, this "bastard," could enter.

Finally, Rorschach made the final decision: "You all witnessed our strength just now. It is most reasonable for us to keep a close watch on this 'bastard'." Benedict blushed. He didn't know why the language module had malfunctioned, but that didn't stop him from nodding in agreement with Rorschach's statement.

The knight was greatly shocked to see that even a bastard child could listen to the mage, and the others also agreed with Rorschach's statement that once Benedict fell, it would be best to hand him over to the mage.

"Have you been staying near the camp the whole time?"

"Yes, since the outbreak of the abominations, the entire city has become ruins. We have lost contact with the mother group and can only rely on the environment to survive in this camp." James naturally became the guide and introduced the situation to Rorschach and the others.

However, they had been in the ancient ruins area, while the other side was the core area, the "civilized world." Rorschach didn't point this out, but instead went along with it, saying, "We were originally training in a magic tower deep in the forest, but after leaving the tower, we found the city destroyed. What happened?"

James had no doubt about the character's persona and revealed everything: "They used to be in the form of elves, like the one you captured, Master. Just a few months ago, there were reports of corruption. These monsters destroyed the city, and most of the survivors evacuated. We were ordered to protect them. Ordered to hold our ground."

They were heading towards the core of the camp, which was the spot marked on the map and the location of the seal of the Lord of Order.

"So the thing you were ordered to guard is inside?" Rorschach spotted the largest barracks, which had been transformed into a semi-permanent fortification. The knights had built it with as many large stone blocks as possible, and in addition to engineers on guard and gatekeepers on the top, there were two three-man squads patrolling the building in shifts.

"No, no, this is just the tent of our commander—the Knight Commander. If you need an undisturbed environment to study the abominations, we can vacate the infirmary. Thank you, there were no casualties this time." James thanked them again, repeatedly saying that the abominations were becoming more and more numerous and more difficult to deal with, and how difficult this would have been without Rorschach and Caroline's help.

As he spoke, he tried to take Luo Xia away from the camp.

"I want to talk to the Cavaliers captain." After saying that, James paused for a moment, and the other guards stopped moving at the same time.

It was almost like a pause, but it didn't last long. After a delay of a second or two, James said, "Okay, I'll go report it."

Finally, they were allowed into the heart of the camp. Inside the seemingly small barracks, an enormous machine was in operation. The small fortress was only a little over two stories high, but once inside, the machine was at least five stories high, or even taller; in fact, it was half-buried below the waterline.

Countless brass-cast mechanisms reciprocate, with parallel or intersecting gears rotating at different speeds. The clicking sounds of countless parts are like an endless winding of a clockwork mechanism, and from time to time, there are also rough impact sounds and teeth-grinding friction and squeezing sounds, indicating that the machine is not in perfect condition.

Looking down from the rusty railing, white mist rises from the buried part of the structure, and the sound of ocean waves is hidden among the mechanical symphony.

"Is this a difference engine?"

"You have a good eye, but not an exceptional one." The knight commander added with a touch of humor, appearing from the side of the machine and shaking Rorschach's hand. "The Burning Lion Knights thank you and salute you!"

Rorschach was still observing the machine, which now overlapped with the dot on the map. Seeing that the mage's attention was entirely focused on the enormous machine, the Knight Commander introduced it: "It's the Analytical Machine, the largest and most advanced Analytical Machine in Istani. It's a trophy that surpasses even that of the elves and dwarves; it's the culmination of our human wisdom."

"So what can it analyze?"

"My lord, we are merely warriors ordered to guard it, and we cannot answer your question. In fact, we are still struggling to maintain it. All I can say is that it is constantly performing very, very important calculations."

Caroline asked, somewhat puzzled, "What powers it?"

The knight commander remained silent. Rorschach used [Communication] to remind his teacher, "Gaze at it with [Arcane Vision]."

Caroline did as instructed, and her breath caught in her throat. The machine was no longer a metal casting, but rather a collection of imaginary gears and circuits operating at a speed beyond the reach of the naked eye. It was an energy node where magic and the power of the Lord of Order constantly flowed and interacted, and the terminal was... on every member of the Knights.

As Rorschach leaped over the railing, the instant his hand touched the machine's surface, everything in the camp, except for outsiders, came to a standstill.

(End of this chapter)