……
“So, Tilly xiaojie is the one writing the 《Flight Manual》 after all?” Anna put down the book in her hand and said with a light smile, “Won’t Wendy feel greatly discouraged?”
“She’ll definitely be a little down, but I don't think it will be a big problem.” Roland shifted his body, making himself sit more comfortably.
“Are you so sure?”
“Nightingale just pre-ordered next month’s Chaos Drink from me, and Scroll applied for three servings of ice cream rolls. With those two accompanying her, she might recover in one night. And I specially sent two bottles of fruit wine as a kind of consolation. Once she’s drunk, she won’t dwell on it.”
“Is this wine called ‘Living in Drunken Dreams’?”
“No, it's called Vanilla Flavored Low-Alcohol Wine.”
“What, that’s so ordinary…”
Such moments were always the most relaxing for Roland—after the two of them washed away the dust and fatigue of the day, they leaned against the soft black velvet pillows, sharing the trivial things they had experienced that day. Usually, Anna would also bring a travelogue or miscellaneous biography to read before going to sleep, and one thing he liked to do was to turn sideways and admire her soft and bright profile.
Since the construction of the Misty Forest Railway began, this was one of the few times the two could face each other.
About every three days, she had to take the train to the northwest to handle the tracks laid by Leaf, and then take the train back in the evening.
Even without welding the tracks, she had a lot of work to do.
Such as critical components for some weapons.
As well as the replacement and improvement of new machine tools.
The frame cutting and assembly of gliders also couldn't do without her.
Although the industrial level of the Western Territory had made great progress since its initial creation, and basic metal raw materials and production tools had achieved de-witchification, it still couldn't keep up with the speed of Roland's design drawing updates.
Therefore, this leisure time seemed even more precious.
“However, it’s also good for Tilly xiaojie to write the 《Flight Manual》,” Anna shifted the topic back to the test flight, “After all, what you ultimately want to manufacture is for everyone to use, and her feelings are closer to ordinary people. Besides, in terms of learning ability alone, the knowledge she has mastered is no less than mine, and her help to you should be greater than Wendy’s.”
“Well… Wendy’s specialty is indeed not in this area,” Roland nodded, “I should have thought of this from the beginning.”
“So, have you considered the engine for the new aircraft?”
“Of course,” he replied confidently, “This is what I’m best at. Besides, now there’s the Dream World to provide reference, so the prototype drawings can be completed in one step. We just have to wait for the oil fractionation tower to be completed before we can try to start production.”
Then the two discussed many industrial problems in Neverwinter, ranging from technical details to development plans—and it wasn't just his monologue. Anna could not only understand his intentions, but also offer opinions and praise appropriately, making him feel truly comfortable and refreshed.
Recalling the terrible male-to-female ratio in the Mechanical Engineering Institute, and the lack of hope for improvement in his work prospects, and then looking at the constantly fluttering eyelashes of the girl beside him, he suddenly had the feeling that the God of Machines was blessing him.
Perhaps he had been staring for too long, and Anna finally couldn't help but chuckled, “Is my face that good-looking?”
Roland didn't answer, but directly showed his thoughts with action—he leaned over and gently kissed the other person's ear.
“If I had known you were like this, I should have taken action earlier.” Anna had a smile on her face.
Was she referring to that night of the celebration after the end of the first Demon Month, when she blocked him alone at the entrance of the castle?
“What did you initially think I was like?” Roland couldn't help but ask curiously.
“No matter how benevolent, you are still a prince, the pinnacle of the nobility. You are always different from us.”
“Haha… Sorry to disappoint you,” he pretended to be regretful, “I’m just an ordinary person.”
“No, this is the best…” Anna shook her head and replied with a pout, “Because, I’m also an ordinary person.”
*******************
Two days later, the Wilderness.
The main force of the First Army finally arrived at the planned artillery position, Hope Slope, as scheduled.
However, what made Iron Axe suspicious was that the journey had been too smooth. Not only was there no expected ambush, but even aerial harassment hadn't occurred once.
He had originally prepared to advance by stepping over the corpses of the enemy, but in six days, he hadn't even seen the shadow of a demon. The only battle was with a pack of foraging wolves. Apart from that, the entire plain was in an eerie silence, as if all the observers had been attracted by the sniper team.
If that were the case, it would be fine, but the feedback from the witches showed that this was not the case.
In fact, the demons also increased their patrol density in the first two or three days, but then withdrew most of the Terror Beasts, and the patrols at the outposts had not been restored, as if they had given up monitoring the area.
After setting up camp, Iron Axe immediately summoned the heads of several participating troops and the staff to the central tent.
“What do you think of the demons’ silence?”
“It is indeed a bit strange…” Agatha, the representative of the Witch Union in this trip, pondered for a moment and said, “Only the Red Mist can restrict their movements, but Sylvie said that the construction of the outposts has not stopped, at least the red line supply has not been cut off.”
“It would be easier to understand if it were those nobles,” said Morning Light, “Either there is a problem in the rear, or they are reluctant to part with their reconnaissance Terror Beasts.” As he said that, he looked at Agatha, “Can Sylvie xiaojie see the movements of the Taquila ruins?”
“They are too far away,” the latter shook her head, “The sniper team gave up luring the enemy a day ago and is rushing towards us.”
“How long will it take to arrive?” Iron Axe asked.
“At least four days,” Agatha glanced at the map, “Although the magic ark is not slow, they and the First Army are taking opposite routes. Of course, if only Lightning and Maisie come, they can arrive tonight.”
“Actually, we don't have to guess the enemy's intentions,” Edith suddenly said, “Whatever they want to do is a godsend for us—entering the attack position without any losses, and the underground supply line is unobstructed. There is no better start than this. Next, we only need to deploy the fortress guns and level the demons' outposts.”
From a consequentialist point of view, this statement was unquestionable.
Iron Axe thought for a moment, “As long as the magic ark doesn’t surface, it’s basically impossible for the demons to discover it, right?”
“You can think that way,” Agatha replied.
“Then can you please ask Maisie to bring Sylvie xiaojie over?”
“I will tell her.”
“Thank you,” Iron Axe quickly made a decision, “Captain Vanna!”
“Present!” Vanna stepped forward.
“Deploy the fortress guns and prepare to fire,” he said word by word, “The attack will officially begin at dusk tomorrow!”