“Hello, Mr. Roland,” a steady voice came quickly from the other end of the phone, “I didn't expect you to call me so early. Is there something urgent?”
Hearing the other party's words, Roland realized that it was only around seven in the morning. He said somewhat embarrassedly, "Uh...sorry, did I wake you up? I've encountered some trouble and might need the association's help – it's not related to Fallen Evils, but it's definitely important."
“It doesn’t matter,” Panshi said frankly, “Prolonged sleep is just a bodily habit. For awakened ones of my age, we spend most of the day with our eyes open. Tell me directly what the trouble is.”
Recently, his performance in the eyes of the Martial Artist Association's higher-ups has been extremely active. Not only is he the most active in dealing with Fallen Evils, but the results he has achieved are also among the best, second only to the two town guardians' teams and Fei Yuhan's star team. More importantly, unlike other martial artists, he always acts alone. Such efficient eradication has greatly boosted the old faction's momentum and has also given him an influence that is not weaker than the higher-ups.
Of course, this is the result of Roland trying his best to conceal his achievements. Most of the Fallen cores have been disintegrated and returned to the dream world. He also never hunts Fallen Evils alone. Every time he acts, he is followed by a large group of Taqila witches. Faced with all kinds of strange abilities, the Fallen Evils have almost no ability to fight back.
In any case, his various performances have quickly spread his reputation among the higher-ups. Now, not only can he freely enter and exit the various facilities operated by the Martial Artist Association, but he is also equipped with a phone that can directly contact the town guardian.
“Before that, I want to ask a question. What is the relationship between Prism City and the Trifolium Group?” Roland remembered hearing from Jia西亚 that her father had participated in the construction of Prism City.
“Simply put, it’s a long-term cooperative relationship,” Panshi replied, “Of course, we maintain close cooperation with many companies. After all, the association’s operation requires a lot of resources.”
“Does that mean we are a big customer with influence?”
“You can think of it that way.”
“Okay.” Roland quickly explained his needs.
“……” There was a rare silence on the other end of the phone. After a while, the other party replied hesitantly, “There’s nothing wrong with doing this, but… is it really that important to you?”
“It’s the same for this world.” Roland said in as sincere a tone as possible. Even if Nightingale came to the dream world, she would not be able to determine whether this was a lie – because if humans were at a disadvantage in the War of Divine Will, he would also be unable to escape disaster. If that were to happen, the time in the dream world would also freeze, forever frozen in the realm of consciousness.
“Okay, I understand.” Panshi didn’t dwell on it any further, “In any case, the association thanks you for your contribution. If you hadn’t stepped forward, the younger generation who decided to stay would never be as numerous as they are now, and our situation would be even more difficult.”
Hearing the town guardian's candid reply, Roland suddenly felt inexplicably moved. Although his reasons for hunting those Fallen Evils were very different from the association's goals, the other party's gratitude was genuine and unfeigned. Perhaps, as Lan said, for them, this world is the true whole.
He originally wanted to use clichés such as "It's nothing, it's what I should do" as an answer, but he unconsciously changed it to another sentence.
“……I will protect this place.”
After hanging up the phone, Roland first sent Jie Luo out the door – although she awakened her natural power on the day she invaded the real world, she still had to go to school. Moreover, Saint Milan, Duo Duo, Ling Du, and Jie Luo were in the same school, so there was no need to worry about Fallen Evils coming to their door.
Then he went to the Rose Cafe.
Since contacting Lan, the cafe has never officially opened again. The rolling gate is always closed. Only by entering the cafe from the warehouse side door can you see that there is a different world inside.
No matter when, it is always bustling.
At this moment, the witches are preparing their breakfast. As soon as he opened the door, an enticing aroma of barbecue wafted into Roland's nose.
After enjoying a rich meal and arranging the matters for their free activities, he drove the van away from the tube building complex.
The Trifolium Group's headquarters building is in the city center. Roland quickly arrived at his destination.
Since he had already informed the association in advance, this time he hadn't even revealed his identity before someone took him upstairs. The elevator finally stopped on the hundredth floor. Walking into the spacious office surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows, he had a new understanding of the Trifolium Group's financial resources.
“We meet again, Mr. Roland.” Jiade took the initiative to step forward and shake his hand, “I didn't expect that in such a short period of time, you would leap from a new martial artist to a person valued by the association's town guardian. It's really amazing to see such promising young people.”
So polite? The other party hadn't been so respectful when he took out his hunting license before.
Sure enough, compared to personal ability, the background of a big financier is what businessmen care about most.
After a few pleasantries, Roland went straight to the point, "I wonder if Town Guardian Panshi has explained my intentions?"
Jiade shook his head, "Mr. Panshi only said that you needed the group's help with some matters and asked us to assist you as much as possible in achieving them. But you also know that with the current size of the Trifolium Group, many things are not up to me alone."
The implication of these words is probably that it is unlikely that the demolition of the tube building will be withdrawn. Even if he agrees, the board of directors will not approve it. Roland couldn't help but laugh. The other party probably thought he was here to intercede for Jia西亚. The fact is that as long as he doesn't nod, no one can tear down the building under the guard of a group of witches.
In addition, the town guardian's statement also gave him considerable freedom. This approach of full trust made him feel even more favorable towards the association.
“It’s nothing too complicated,” Roland spread his hands, “I want to set up a small manufacturing plant – or a model factory, mainly to design and manufacture some mechanical equipment with a sense of the times, such as steam cars, old-fashioned tractors… something that will evoke memories at a glance… Multi-turreted steam-powered armor, you understand?”
Jiade twitched his lips, "To make movies?"
“You can think of it that way, but unlike those props that only have appearances, it can actually move, and it will also have some special requirements.”
“As far as I know, the market for this kind of thing is probably pitifully small……”
“I don’t plan to sell it either. It’s fine to make one or two to play with. Assembly lines or anything like that are not needed, which can reduce a lot of costs.”
Jiade couldn't respond for a long time. In his eyes, this was simply a money-losing endeavor.
“I can’t tell, Mr. Roland also has interests in this area.” After a while, he said, “In other words, you hope that the Trifolium Group can find such a small factory and equip it with relevant designers and workers?”
Uh, it seems quite difficult to do this. Leaving aside the factory, the designers must at least be engineers with relevant experience. Even with the group's strength, it won't be easy to gather these conditions, "More or less these, it doesn't matter if the time is longer."
“I’ll ask the secretary first.” Jiade returned to his desk and picked up the phone.
A quarter of an hour later, the secretary called back.
After listening, Jiade turned to look at Roland, "Perhaps there is a factory that meets your needs."
“So fast?” Roland said slightly surprised.
“Just lucky,” although the other party’s mouth carried humility, his expression had a sense of pride in the group’s strength, “If there are no other arrangements, I can take you to see it now.”