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The fusion of two materials was a complicated affair, one that required more than just mixing equal parts of two materials. The right ratio required countless trial and errors, along with a veritable cocktail of other ingredients to act as a flux. Even a meister like Belud needed to try many times before he succeeded. And succeeded he did, with it came a barrel of ale in celebration…

On top of fixing the problem of the armor’s durability, this series of tests was valuable experience for the dwarf as a blacksmith. After all, magicite and mithril were both rare and expensive materials -not something he would have been able to handle in such large quantities had it not been for this unusual set of circumstances.

Meister Amori was the one handling the internal structure of the armor. Akin to the skeleton in our bodies, this was a complex task that brooked not even the slightest miscalculation. In light of that, I had even considered looking for a necromancer to help -they were very good at skeletons, after all… Not that I was somehow connected to one… and Amori soon proved my concern unnecessary.

A few days passed as such in the lab. Day by day, the progress towards completion marched on. And nothing could fill me with greater joy than seeing that. The adoring eyes of those around me weren’t all that bad either…

However, this morning proved different from the last. Having just finished my own breakfast, the ever-talkative elf, Redleaf, actually left her gardens to come find me as I was leaving for the lab.

Just barely a second after Doris led her through the door, she immediately opened up with a melodic greeting in a voice akin to honey, or perhaps someone a century or two younger than she was… not that one could tell with elves -they all looked like they were twenty to humans.

“Nana, I’ve come to play.”

Caught off-guard, I did not know exactly how to respond to the long-eared, golden-haired beauty in a green dress.

“What’s the matter, Nana?” She walked up to me to feel my forehead. “Your temperature seems fine.”

At this distance, I could smell the scent of flowers off her, mixed in with the refreshing smell of the outdoors…

Ahem…

“Why is your face turning red? You don’t have a fever, or anything.”

Ahem!

Honestly, I was planning to head to the lab, but since she was already here, I couldn’t very well just leave.

Pushing aside her hand on me, I did not know whether to cry or laugh as I asked, “I’m fine. By the way, Redleaf, what brought you to me today?”

“Ah, I wanted to check if Nana has read the book I gave her.” She answered in a stern, teacher-like manner. “Don’t tell me you haven’t…”

“…”

I actually hadn’t. In fact, there wasn’t much of a chance, seeing as I was dragged away by a certain maid right after that. Then we had a movie screening, and this whole affair with the researching…

I really did not have time to spare on a novel.

Or rather, I was busy acting as Ferti’nier’s mouthpiece, seeing as whatever questions those two meisters had for me were met with feigned contemplation. At which point I would beg Ferti’nier for the answer. Oh, how those two meisters would go wide at my brilliant answers! Each and every one of them, a genius in their own right. Truly, that lab was great! Never would I have imagined that I was such a workaholic until these past few days. Stunning.

“No?” She pouted. “What has Nana been so busy with recently?”

Can I say that I was busy experimenting? Of course not!

The research on magitek armor was top secret. State secrets, or kingdom secrets, in this case. Such information wasn’t meant for the casual listener. And while I might not be the king himself, I was a beneficiary of his treasury. Keeping my lips tight was the least I could do.

“Oh, nothing in particular. Just movies. That’s right, movies.”

I knew that if I were to let slip anything now, I would never hear the end of it, thus I decided to pull out my trump card.

“Movie? What’s that?”

As expected, the lure of a never-before-heard term was undeniable to her ears.

“Let’s have a seat, or maybe a lie.” Now that I had her, I quietly had Lingling pull up a romantic tragedy movie.

She immediately jumped when the first image appeared. Thankfully, I was there to stop her, else she would have already tossed a spell at the holographic screen.

“Don’t move, I conjured that up, just sit by me and relax.”

“Oh.”

As expected, that sudden and very loud appearance of the movie company’s logo caught her by surprise. But it didn’t take long before her eyes were glued to the screen, enraptured by even the most mundane of scenes, yelping from time to time.

While she was distracted, I took the opportunity to throw a glance at Doris. She had already been by my side for a few days now; she was more than accustomed to movies. Thus, I had her send word to the lab that I was taking a day off.

Being a maid of the palace, she naturally understood my meaning from a simple glance.

“Ohhh. Nana, what’s that… and that…”

Redleaf grabbed my hands, dragging it all over as she started peppering me with questions, completely oblivious to the departure of Doris.

For the time being, my secret was safe. Now… how to get rid of her…

I began to patiently explain the scenes to her. As she listened, she kept her eyes nailed to the screen. Intermittently, she would squeal in delight and surprise. Seeing that, I finally gave up on trying to end this screening early.

I guess it’s okay to take a break once in a while. I’ve really been working too hard recently.

As a side note, the movie was known as “Seven Winters”, a Wuxia romance film.

Shameless Self-promotion

I hate this novel.

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