Star Forge Titan

"Star base, Bernoulli configuration, double magic power counterattack... Let me think, what else is there? Oh, right, spiral reversal circuit." Ivan sneered and blurted out a series of professional terms related to the magic engine.

At first, the old wizard Victor was dissatisfied with the other party's rude behavior of interrupting him.

Immediately, the dissatisfaction on his face turned to astonishment, and finally to an expression of unconcealable anger. The whispers behind him suddenly became noisy and buzzing, like a swarm of flies discovering rotting meat.

“You guys really…!” The solemnity on Victor’s face was replaced by anger, but the great wizard still couldn’t finish his words.

"It's just a conservative design like the Hurricane III. Why not try changing the Bernoulli configuration to a Whittle architecture? Propellers aren't the only thing that can provide thrust."

Alvin smiled and shook his head without continuing, but the expression on the old wizard's face suddenly froze completely when he heard what he said.

As the external spokesperson for the Cloud Tower, although Victor is much more sophisticated and experienced than a pure research mage, he is still a qualified mage after all, and his understanding of magic engines is definitely not unfamiliar.

Although it was just a short sentence, he felt as if the door to a new world had been opened to him, and countless possibilities that he had never thought of arose in his mind.

As for the doubts he had previously felt, they melted away like snow under the blazing sun. The angry expression on his face vanished as if it had never existed.

"Excuse me." The old wizard swayed slightly, then bowed actively under the astonished gazes of the people behind him.

At this moment, a scream suddenly pierced the air in the banquet hall.

The sounds of nausea and vomiting were heard one after another, and the crystal glasses that were originally held in the hands of nobles or wealthy businessmen were smashed to pieces on the ground.

The previously clear and transparent wine was now turbid with blood and filth, flowing on the ground in winding, turbid streams.

"The wine is poisonous!"

In an instant, chaos enveloped the entire place.

Chapter 138: The Clouds Are Turbulent

It served as the palace where the Carolingian royal family lived and ruled for generations.

There is a very complete security mechanism inside Neuschwanstein Castle, which naturally includes various regulations related to food.

There is even at least one wizard and one alchemist on duty in the royal kitchen every day. The former is mainly responsible for detecting various heresies, mainly curse spells, while the latter is responsible for security work such as testing poison reactions.

The chefs, cooks, and even the apprentices who cut vegetables in the kitchen are mostly from craftsman families who have worked for the Carolingian royal family for generations. They rarely interact with outsiders, so the possibility of them betraying or being controlled by spells is very small, and there are spellcasters to check on them regularly.

To sum up, with such a strict security mechanism to safeguard the safety of the Carolingian royal family and Neuschwanstein Castle, no accidents should have occurred even though this banquet was quite luxurious.

Ten minutes ago, the sturdy and spacious solid wood dining table was filled with delicacies that weighed it down to the point of collapse. Bottles of fine wine from the Royal Winery were neatly arranged on the table like a formation of soldiers. Even the seemingly insignificant drinking water was filtered clear mountain spring water brought from the distant Albert Snow Mountain early that morning.

But just as the guests were enjoying the dinner, a large-scale poisoning incident broke out without any warning.

No fewer than twenty wealthy merchants and nobles, who had previously been laughing and talking, collapsed to the ground, vomiting blood. Like landed perch, they clutched their necks tightly with their hands, their faces a purplish blue from suffocation. The resulting series of screams plunged the entire banquet hall into complete chaos.

In the chaos, the extraordinary people from all forces were on guard. They protected their players and subordinates, and the Duchess and the Emperor were also surrounded by palace guards, fearing that someone would take advantage of the chaos to assassinate them.

In contrast, Ivan, standing in the corner, didn't rush to act. The tall, dark-haired boy simply folded his arms and continued to lean against the wall, but his sharp eyes lit up with a faint, dark golden light that signaled the retreat of all evil.

On this isolated island in the midst of chaos, he calmly asked the necromancer beside him, who was still holding a wine glass and studying its contents:

"what have you found?"

"Nothing, just smells something that shouldn't be in wine..." Kayon paused, his expression a little subtle:

"odor."

"Smell?" Ivan raised his eyebrows and realized from the other party's pause that things were not as simple as they seemed.

"Strictly speaking, that's not a 'smell' that can be smelled by senses alone. In fact, I smell the scent of curse in this glass of wine." Khayon lowered his eyes, and a glint of surprise flashed between his narrowed eyes.

"And it's something familiar."

"How to say?"

"Remember those fragments you brought back from the factory last time? They were the ones that were stained with the aura of a group of fools who believed in that stinking hemorrhoid from the Outlands."

As if recalling something, the flawless fake smile on Khayang's face turned ugly, as if an uncontrollable ferocious rage would be revealed in the next second.

"It's them again? What exactly do they want to do?" Alvin frowned.

According to the original plot, in 1886, the year of the rise of the various nations, each was still developing its own new technologies and the resulting changes in economics, military affairs, and other aspects. Although there may have been constant friction between them in secret, the overall situation was relatively peaceful until the outbreak of the Skeleton Tide, which led to the collapse of order worldwide.

But with Ivan's drastic intervention, the Skeleton Frenzy, a major event that was enough to break the world pattern, was completely blown away by the muscle butterfly from another world.

Logically speaking, driven by inertia, the countries should continue to maintain the general trend of local instability and overall stability. After all, no one has yet mastered high-level technology, so it's best to wait and see whether they start competing for supremacy in the world of Palladia.

Even if the cultists had been corrupted by the evil god, considering the reality that their countries were under little external pressure and had strong internal vigilance, they should have chosen to lie low rather than rashly jump out and cause trouble. Even if they wanted to summon the power of the evil god to the material world, they shouldn't have chosen to exert force in a direction with almost zero chance of success.

Simply put, this is abnormal behavior that is inconsistent with their fundamental interests.

"Tsk." Alvin sighed and held his forehead.

"I just wanted to learn some magical engineering knowledge and advance my career, so how could I get involved in this mess?"

"Maybe... because you are too nosy?" Khayang looked sideways at this duplicity fellow.

If they hadn't gotten involved in the magic car competition, the two of them wouldn't have been drawn into this mess involving Linde's various supernatural factions and even the cultists.

“…” The Necromancer’s pointed words made Alvin’s face turn dark, but he was unable to refute it.

To be honest, as a mere passerby, objectively speaking, he does have some reasons for it.

"Forget it, don't think about him." After moving his shoulders, Alvin gave up thinking.

At the same time, the people who had vomited blood and collapsed suddenly stood up.

They had confused expressions on their faces, and their mouths, stained with their own blood, opened at the same time.

"This is a proclamation!" The different voices from men and women merged into a strange harmony.

"Announce our coming!"

"The true God of the Outer Realm will bring the gift of mercy, and those who disobey will be baptized by plague!"

After saying this, the poisoned people all showed happy smiles, smiles of bliss that were enough to tear the corners of their mouths.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

"Stay away from them!" someone shouted.

But it was already too late. The bodies of the poisoned people swelled like balls, and anyone could guess the tragic changes that were about to happen to them.

Even so, Alvin still stood there, with a hint of disdainful sneer on his lips.

Sure enough, just when the two "evil-minded" international friends were keeping their distance, it was also the moment before the explosion.

No fewer than twelve protective barriers surrounded the swollen poisoned people. Several solid stone walls suddenly rose from the ground due to the influence of magic and were reconstructed into metal barriers through alchemical transformation, until a temporary shelter was built to protect everyone present. Purification spells from the Temple of Light also shone on the poisoned people, causing their originally twisted and terrifying smiles to immediately soften, and even their mutated bodies slowly began to reverse and recover.

Are you kidding? This is Neuschwanstein Castle, where the Carolingian royal family lived for a hundred years. Representatives from various supernatural factions in Linde attended the dinner.

Even though they, as foreign affairs personnel, are not the strongest within the faction, their own strength is definitely not weak.

With more than a dozen extraordinary people of high rank attacking at the same time, there is no chance of any uncontrollable "accidents".

Unless the cult's top leaders come out in full force, in that case, the Linde officials will definitely discover various signs in advance, and the Temple of Knowledge that is responsible for this matter will also take the initiative to attack.

Only then will it be a real big scene!

Thus, this sudden chaos ended just as abruptly as it had begun.

However, a cloud of gloom hung over everyone's heart.

The entire situation in Linde also became turbulent.

Chapter 139: Finding the Ghost

The meaningless failed assassination cast a gloomy shadow over the already turbulent dinner party.

At the same time, the entire banquet was terminated early.

Except for the victims who had not yet recovered, the participants from all parties left Neuschwanstein Castle with their own thoughts. Before leaving, they were subjected to a very polite but unrejectable search.

Several foreign spies were exposed on the spot, but no other emergencies occurred. As for Ivan and Kayon, who didn't even carry a dagger, they left the banquet hall unharmed.

However, after walking out of the door, the two of them looked at each other with a subtle expression of "That's it?"

Being involved in an assassination involving the Carolingian royal family, he was able to get away so easily. Obviously, there were some more inexplicable factors hidden behind the matter.

"Don't you have a staff?" Ivan glanced at Khayon sideways.

"You don't have a sword either?" Khayon tapped his hair (helmet) that was jingling after being fixed with hairspray, and gave him his usual flawless fake smile.

"Aha." x2 both laughed.

The laughter stopped abruptly, and the duo got into an ordinary magic car rental and began driving at a slow legal speed on the road leading from the perfect city - Lutetia to the suburban downtown.

Since Diana didn't come, Ivan was the driver today.

He'd already taken his driving test in real life, and while the two vehicles differed slightly in detail, the experience was generally transferable. Furthermore, as a former high-ranking Lind player, Ivan had even driven a Colossus in the game, so a mere Magic Car Rental was no problem. He just needed to read the manual carefully.

"Mage, what do you think?" the black-haired boy in the driver's seat suddenly spoke.

"What do I think? I don't think much." Ka Yang shrugged.

"The whole thing is so weird. God knows what those cultists are thinking. Besides, was that really the work of the cultists?" At the end, a look of deep doubt appeared on the necromancer's face.

"It seems that this is indeed a common trick they use. It is difficult for other forces to perform such a secret curse. I even suspect that it is not only that guy's followers who are behind the scenes." Alvin sneered lightly, revealing a row of neat white teeth between his grinning lips.

The 'that guy' he was referring to was naturally the one who had once attempted to stir up trouble in Elrond, but had his entire plan thwarted in the final stage by the Iron Fist of a passing visitor from another world, a certain immortal sore, a foul-smelling beast, and the twisted evil god who ruled over the deep hell's stagnant sky - Narvus.

"Is there anyone else? The night in Linde seems to be darker than expected." There was something hidden in Kayang's words.

But other than that, he didn't say anything else. This made Alvin grumble inwardly: even with his personal history changing, this guy, besides being a traitor and a trickster, was still an old riddler who deserved a beating.

As I thought about it, my fist gripping the steering wheel became harder!

At the same time, the magic taxi had passed through the tall Heaven's Gate standing above the earth and drove into the downtown area in a very stable manner.

Unlike the upper city where streetlights are bright and densely arranged on both sides of the streets, after passing through the entertainment district named Fallen Street by the lower city, the brightness of the surrounding environment suddenly drops to a level that is only slightly better than pure moonlight.

Especially tonight the moonlight is particularly dim, making the surrounding streets seem even darker and more eerie.

"Oh, things really aren't that simple." Ka Yang suddenly said without any warning:

Aiwen's reaction to this incoherent sentence was somewhat unusual. He showed neither surprise nor confusion. He simply stepped on the valve controlling the output of the magic engine and replied in a calm tone:

"As expected."

hum!hum!

Although he had switched back to an ordinary magic engine with limited power, when the black-haired boy input a wisp of original magic power flowing through his bones and flesh into the incinerator.

In an instant, a dark red light rose from the surface of the high-pressure and high-temperature resistant incinerator, as if the metal was overheated to the point of melting. Violent magic power was transmitted along the trembling energy pipeline to the power rotor part of the magic engine, causing the ordinary car engine, which originally had a pitifully small total power, to suddenly emit a shrill scream.

The small civilian car that resembled a Beetle was now like a mediocre horse that had been severely whipped. Even though it had limited innate qualities, it burst out with an unexpected burst of brute force in a very short period of time, and the whole car leaped forward like a funny cartoon character.

If it weren't for Alvin's excellent driving skills, the car might have performed a dramatic scene of taking off from the ground and crashing into the second floor of the street building.

The few passers-by around avoided the crazy taxi. As residents of the downtown area, they all knew that excessive curiosity would only bring them unnecessary trouble. In short, they should mind their own business.

As the speed of the rental magic car increased, another roar that sounded very familiar to Alvin came from behind him.

Hearing the ferocious and brutal roar of the engine like a wild beast, the boy couldn't help but reveal a dangerous smile on his face.

"I'm catching up."

"To be honest, I'm curious if other contestants get the same treatment."

The sudden acceleration caused a change in the expression on Khayang's face. Although his knuckles turned white from gripping the seatbelt due to excessive force, he still maintained a relatively calm expression and even had time to continue chatting with the temporary 'driver' beside him.

"Who knows? Remember to remind me to repair the engine later, otherwise God knows how angry old Patton will be."

Ivan raised his hand to his forehead and let out a helpless complaint, while at the same time holding the steering wheel with one hand, firmly controlling the violent power transmitted by the engine under the stimulation of the original magic.

The black-haired boy quickly recalled a road map of the surrounding neighborhoods in his mind. He had memorized it when he and Diana were test driving the new engine. It was originally just a subconscious action due to the cautious nature of an experienced player, but now it brought him some convenience.

With the superhuman thinking ability blessed by the secret ritual and bloodline, Ivan planned the driving route in a few flashes.

Then, he extended his free hand out of the car window and made a rude gesture, common in Linde's lower city, toward the car behind him that was constantly roaring like a beast. The gesture was so rude that even the necromancer in the passenger seat beside him could not help but frown.

Just like swear words are easiest to learn when studying a foreign language, after living in the downtown area for a while, Alvin passively learned a lot of details that he had not noticed when playing games before, or perhaps even did not exist at all.

This made him sigh. As expected, there were many differences between the real Palladio and the game. At least in terms of details, this was a complete world.

Of course, the point now is not to make gestures.

The pursuers, already furious, were completely enraged by this gesture. The terrifying roar, like a wild beast's roar, grew closer. Meanwhile, the rickety car, barely accelerating past its limit under the influence of primal magic, now emitted a continuous wheezing sound like asthma.

After both parties rushed through the sparsely populated streets and arrived at a wide open space with only one entrance and exit, Alvin simply stepped on the brakes and did a sideways drift to stop the car on the side of the road, then got out of the car slowly and relaxedly.

Seeing this, the dark shadow-like pursuer suddenly stopped, blocking the intersection with its body, which was larger than an ordinary magic car. Then, a thin figure walked down from it.