Chapter : 609

Ira stood perfectly still near a large metal crate. Her pale face showed zero emotion. "Statistically speaking, environments with excessive industrial noise reduce hearing capabilities by fifteen percent over a long period. We should limit our exposure."

Luna rubbed her sleepy eyes. The lightning user shuffled her feet. She held a soft knitted blanket over her shoulders. She let out a massive yawn. "The noise is giving me a headache. I just want to find a quiet corner. I need a nap."

Risa hugged her stuffed teddy bear tightly against her chest. The sweet pink-haired healer looked at the sparks flying from a welding torch. She smiled a tiny, nervous smile. "It looks very hot over there. I hope they do not burn their fingers."

A mechanic slid out from under a large metal vehicle. The mechanic lay on a wooden creeper board. He wore a dirty leather apron. His face was covered in dark black soot. He pushed a pair of welding goggles up onto his messy brown hair.

It was Prince Hephaestus.

The 9th Prince wiped his greasy hands on a rag. He stood up and smiled. He did not look like a royal. He looked like a tired, hardworking mechanic.

"Iris," Prince Hephaestus greeted warmly. He walked over to his sister. "It is really good to see you. Sorry about the mess. We are testing a new engine manifold. What brings the 13th Unit to my garage today?"

Princess Iris offered a polite, graceful bow. "Brother Hephaestus. We are here to propose a temporary alliance."

Prince Hephaestus raised an eyebrow. He tossed the dirty rag onto a nearby table. "An alliance? You guys usually handle your own missions. What is the occasion?"

"We received the details for the new ten-point mission," Princess Iris explained smoothly. "The target is the Core of Luminus. We must retrieve it. But the artifact is located inside the Sunken Labyrinth. The ruins are sitting at the absolute bottom of a massive, submerged crater lake."

Hephaestus let out a long, low whistle. He crossed his arms over his chest. "An underwater mission. That is a massive tactical nightmare. Water ruins basically everything."

Ken Eliot slouched his shoulders even further. He popped another potato chip into his mouth.

"I completely agree," Ken mumbled lazily. He pointed a finger at the Prince. "Water levels are the absolute worst part of any video game. The movement speed is terrible. You run out of breath. It is a massive design flaw. We need a cheat code."

"A cheat code?" Hephaestus laughed deeply. He liked Ken's casual attitude. "I do not have cheat codes, Ken. But I do have machines."

"We know," Sayma stated politely. She stepped forward. She opened her notebook. "That is exactly why we are here, Prince Hephaestus. Our vanguard is highly skilled in terrestrial combat. But we completely lack the magical tools to survive a deep aquatic descent. We need a way to breathe underwater while we fight."

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Princess Iris looked directly at her brother. Her violet eyes were full of determination. "We need your advanced engineering, Hephaestus. We need a localized breathing field. If you help us secure the artifact, we will gladly share the tactical data with your unit. We will form a temporary truce."

Hephaestus rubbed his chin. He left a smear of grease on his jawline. He thought about the proposal. He knew his team was not built for deep underwater combat. His engineers were smart, but they were not elite fighters like Iris's vanguard.

"You make a very solid point, Iris," Hephaestus agreed. He smiled a genuine smile. "My team needs that Core. But we cannot fight aquatic golems by ourselves. A truce works perfectly for both of us."

Hephaestus turned around. He looked toward the back of the loud workshop.

"Heart!" Hephaestus shouted over the hissing steam. "Get out here! We have guests!"

A tall, muscular woman walked out from behind a massive metal generator. It was Heart, the Vice-Captain of the 9th Unit. She wore a thick leather apron. She carried a gigantic steel wrench. She had a streak of black oil across her cheek. She looked incredibly tough.

Heart walked over to the group. She rested the giant wrench on her shoulder. She looked at the 13th Unit. She grinned a confident, friendly grin.

"What is the plan, Boss?" Heart asked the Prince.

"The 13th Unit needs to go deep sea diving," Hephaestus explained casually. "They need us to build them a localized breathing field. They need to fight underwater."

Heart lowered her wrench. She tapped the metal against the floor. She looked at Sayma. She noticed Sayma's neat notebook and thick glasses.

"An underwater breathing field?" Heart asked. She crossed her arms. "That requires a massive amount of pressure regulation. We have to balance the oxygen output with the ambient water density. It is a very complex calculation."

Sayma pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. Her dark eyes sparkled with pure intellectual excitement. She clicked her pen.

"I have already calculated the baseline pressure metrics," Sayma announced politely. She flipped her notebook around to show Heart. "The crater lake is exceptionally deep. The water pressure will crush a normal human in seconds. We need a device that generates a continuous, spherical mana bubble. The bubble must repel water while constantly filtering fresh oxygen."

Heart leaned forward. She stared at Sayma's complex mathematical equations. A huge smile spread across Heart's face. She loved working with smart people.

"These numbers are fantastic," Heart praised enthusiastically. "You totally solved the compression ratio. I can easily build a metal housing unit to project this exact mana field. We just need to calibrate the magical crystals to power the output."

"I can assist with the crystal calibration," Sayma offered smoothly. "My barrier magic relies on similar geometric principles."

"Let's get to work," Heart cheered. She gestured toward a large metal workbench in the corner of the room. "Follow me, Sayma. We have a lot of welding to do."

Sayma and Heart walked over to the workbench. They immediately started speaking in highly technical, complicated engineering terms. They grabbed blueprints, metal parts, and glowing blue crystals. They operated like a flawless, perfectly synchronized team.

The rest of the 13th Unit watched them work.

Zinia walked over to a pile of thick steel beams. Two soot-covered engineers were struggling to lift a beam. Zinia chuckled deeply. She stepped forward and lifted the massive steel beam entirely over her head with her bare hands. She set it down easily on a nearby table.

"Thanks!" one of the engineers gasped. He looked at Zinia in pure awe.

"No problem," Zinia smiled a tough smile. "Let me know if you need more things moved."

Laxmi wandered around the workshop. She looked at the different machines. She found a large metal pipe shooting out steam. She tossed a tiny orange flame at the steam. The steam sizzled loudly. Laxmi grinned wildly.