Chapter 279
“Hmm?”
It was a morning like any other, bustling with the preparations for the day’s work. Lloyd, who always prided himself on being the first to arrive at the site, surveyed the surroundings with a sense of anticipation. However, today, something felt off.
“Why is my heart behaving like this?”
It was peculiar. For no apparent reason, his heart was pounding, a slight chill perceptible in the left and right atria and ventricles, as if someone had sneakily placed a piece of ice cream directly in his heart.
“What’s this about?”
The sensation wasn’t severe. It was so subtle that someone less attuned might not even notice it. But Lloyd was different. Possessing an Intermediate Expert’s Mana Heart, he was acutely sensitive to even the smallest changes or signs in his body.
“This is odd. I’ve never experienced anything like this.”
Closing his eyes momentarily, he focused on his heart, trying to discern any anomalies. The more he concentrated, the clearer the sensation became.
“It’s not the heart per se… but the Mana Heart within it acting on its own.”
Without any command, his Mana Heart had circulated a cold mana. It was a brief occurrence, but it startled him into a thorough check of his heart, noticing the cold sensation quickly fading away.
“What could this be? Perhaps I should consult Javier later.”
Given Javier’s expertise in matters of the Mana Heart and Mana Circles, it seemed prudent to discuss it with him once the day’s work was over.
“I’d prefer to ask him right away.”
Unfortunately, Javier was not currently present at the site. Summoned by the king for a sparring session, he was likely busy serving as the king’s sparring partner, spending his day in the training grounds.
“I’ll take the opportunity to have him check the status of my Mana Circle as well.”
Lloyd resolved to ask for a check-up along with his inquiry, given the slight unease he had been feeling lately. He worried that his Mana Heart Skill might advance to a higher level unexpectedly, potentially leading to the dreaded Sword Master Syndrome and the accompanying insomnia.
“Insomnia is the last thing I need.”
Shuddering at the thought, Lloyd was relieved as the unexplained chill in his Mana Heart finally dissipated. By now, the workers began to trickle into the site.
“Everyone’s late! You should have arrived in time to prepare your tools and be ready for roll call. Isn’t that right?”
His reprimand quickened the workers’ pace as the site buzzed with renewed vigor.
♣
Thump… thump…
This was a device supplying refrigerant to pipes used in freeze-thaw methods, where within a special control box, the Heart of Winter pulsed.
Like the heart of someone excited to meet a beloved, or the flutter of someone encountering their soulmate, a bead no larger than 2 centimeters resonated in an unprecedented manner. It felt a profound familiarity with someone’s distant Mana Heart, sensing a unique kinship that it could not find in others.
With each beat of that person’s heart, it resonated in excitement, pondering through its faint self-awareness about a distant past, the founding era of the Magenta Kingdom, and its creator, the ice dragon Tyrannus.
“Could the creator have foreseen this day? Was I gifted to King Michael for this very reason?”
It seemed inevitable, this meeting, for a human bearing the traits of a dragon’s Mana Heart was unprecedented. The concept of such an existence, let alone the anticipation of this encounter, had never been considered before.
♣
Ding-dong.
“Uh?”
Lloyd paused, in the midst of intensive excavation work. As he directed the vertical shaft deep into the earth, using triple blasts to bore through the ground and expanding the tunnel with the help of a device affectionately called “the beak,” and as the work crews were busy removing debris and applying temporary concrete to the tunnel walls, a sudden message appeared before his eyes.
“What’s this?”
He stared at the message in bewilderment.
[Mana Heart Skill Option ④: Half-Dragon Activation. A fortuitous encounter has awakened the unique traits of the Dragon Heart within your Mana, attracting the interest of a dragon-like entity nearby. This mysterious being is already quite curious about you, and even a small gesture on your part could lead to a significant demonstration of goodwill.]
“What?”
Lloyd’s eyebrow twitched.
“A dragon-like entity? Nearby and curious about me?”
He scanned his surroundings, but only saw his workers, fantastical creatures like the beak, and the royal magicians monitoring the device containing the Heart of Winter.
“Could one of them be a dragon?”
The thought crossed his mind, but it seemed unlikely.
“The message mentioned a dragon-like entity, not an actual dragon. So, something dragon-esque?”
Confused and intrigued, he had no clear idea what that could mean.
“Strange. Everything’s been odd since this morning.”
From his Mana Heart acting independently to produce a chill, to now attracting the interest of a dragon-like entity, these were all unusual occurrences for Lloyd.
“Could it be the Heart of Winter? But no, that’s merely a magical artifact, unlikely to be directly linked to dragons. Hmm.”
After a brief contemplation, he couldn’t come to a satisfactory conclusion and decided to set aside these thoughts for the time being. The task at hand demanded his full attention.
“Getting distracted on the job is the last thing I need.”
Work sites are inherently dangerous. Even the most mundane and safe-looking environment can become perilous in a moment of distraction. Lloyd had witnessed his fair share of accidents resulting from such lapses.
“Minor incidents might result in a sprain or a cut from a grinder. The worst I’ve seen… let’s not think about that.”
Recalling such memories was disheartening. The current project had its own set of risks.
“We’re digging a vertical shaft.”
The depth had already reached 10 meters below the surface, with workers suspended by ropes as they applied temporary concrete to the walls, reminiscent of painting the exterior of a high-rise or cleaning its windows. Lloyd knew he needed to keep a vigilant eye on everyone’s safety.
With a sense of responsibility, he monitored the progress, ensuring that every precaution was taken to avoid any mishaps. Thus, days passed with Lloyd fully immersed in his duties, the message about the Half-Dragon option gradually fading from his immediate concerns.
The freeze-thaw method progressed smoothly under his watchful eye, reaching a depth of 45 meters. Along the shaft’s side, facing the castle, numerous holes were bored, thanks to Haviel’s precision blasting.
“Carefully, aim well. Follow the marks I’ve set. A slight deviation could compromise the foundation of the castle. You understand?”
“Absolutely.”
With each flash of Haviel’s sword, tunnels hundreds of meters long were bored beneath the castle’s foundation. Over the course of several days, dozens of such tunnels were created, with special metal pipes installed in some of them for the refrigerant to flow through. These pipes were connected to the control box containing the Heart of Winter, which the royal magicians operated.
As they manipulated the control box, the Heart of Winter began to emanate cold, its intensity controlled to only the desired level. This cold spread along the refrigerant pipes, extending into the metal pipes and quickly freezing the moisture in the surrounding soil.
“Good, everything is proceeding as planned.”
Lloyd watched, using his surveying skills to monitor the freezing process underground. The sheer cold emanating from the Heart of Winter was astonishing, far exceeding the chill of a standard freezer, and that was using only a fraction of its power.
“This pace, we’ll freeze the entire foundation under the castle in a few days. Normally, this isn’t how freeze-thaw methods are supposed to be applied.”
Typically, the process should be slow, allowing the expansion of freezing water to be managed carefully to prevent damage to the structure above. Rapid freezing could cause the ground to swell, leading to potential disasters.
“That’s why freeze-thaw is a method reserved for large, time-rich projects. But we don’t have the luxury of time.”
To mitigate the rapid expansion and prevent ground swelling, Lloyd and Haviel had strategically left some tunnels empty, allowing them to accommodate the expanding volume of the frozen soil.
“This should cover the expanding volume.”
Their meticulous planning allowed for the rapid stabilization of the castle’s foundation without significant upheaval.
Moving on to the next phase, Lloyd coordinated the excavation teams with practiced ease.
“Once the boring machine breaks through, the finishing team follows, and the cleanup crew takes care of the debris. Blacksmiths, what’s your role when the reinforcements are in place?”
“Installing support beams!”
“Right. I trust you all know the dimensions for each section as per the blueprints.”
The project advanced, employing techniques reminiscent of those used in Lloyd’s past ventures, now enhanced for this larger endeavor. The team worked in unison, creating a massive horizontal tunnel beneath the castle, supported by steel beams and further stabilized by rock bolts and concrete, akin to modern tunneling methods.
As the tunnel extended beneath the frozen ground, its stability was assured by the solid ice and earth around it, distributing the load and preventing collapse. This harmony of innovative techniques ensured smooth progress.
Days turned into weeks, and as the tunnel reached its target near the base of a key pillar, Lloyd shifted tactics once more.
“Now, upwards.”
They began vertical excavation towards the pillar, aiming to extract the target with precision. The team worked together, tunneling upwards and reinforcing the passage as they ascended.
Everything seemed to be proceeding flawlessly, the project advancing without a hitch. However, on the morning they began the vertical ascent, an unexpected challenge arose. This incident, unforeseen by all, would not only test Lloyd but also serve as a pivotal moment of growth, marking the beginning of a fortuitous accident.
