Arknights' Lock of Heaven

Although it's unclear why Lord Kal'tsit was so confident, the guerrillas struggling to survive in a remote corner of northern Ursus could not possibly be aware of the changes in Kazimierz.

But if Lord Kal'tsit had said those words, he would have believed it.

This person has always been so mysterious and unpredictable.

“Summon the soldiers,” he said, brandishing his halberd and looking south.

"If we don't have enough food, we'll just rob it!"

“I remember that Count Antoine’s moving castle contained grain looted from the entire territory during the scorched-earth policy, and yet his moving castle was refused entry by the Archduke of Roman…”

"Go and break into his castle, hang Count Antoine, and bring back all the grain!"

"What if it's a trap?" the guard asked, sounding puzzled. "After all, no matter how you look at it, Grand Duke Roman's actions seem too deliberate, given that the count and his wife are having an affair..."

"When has he ever cared about that? In his territory, you can run into two or three of the Duchess's lovers just by going out to buy a bottle of wine!"

“I know,” Patriot said calmly, “but the food isn’t fake.”

"They're only after me; it seems they haven't given up yet."

"It's alright, I'll make them remember what the Infected Shield is all about!"

331 Love That Came Late

How was the performance?

Ceylon stood at the door of the room and asked an operator who came out.

"Absolutely amazing!" Hongdou's eyes lit up when she heard this. "I wish I could perform like that someday."

"Uh..." Upon hearing this, Ceylon smiled politely and then continued to ask others.

“It’s truly beyond imagination…” Hrag exclaimed. “I’m sorry, I can’t say too much, but it’s really astonishing.”

"Let me tell you, Amiya! She's the best in the world!" This was said by a doctor who wished to remain anonymous. "She's just too cute!"

"Wait, what about the performance?" Ceylon was on the verge of tears. "I was only a few minutes late because of what happened with the Black guy..."

Upon arriving at the hotel, I found the rooms completely empty.

As she frantically tried to call the doctor, she was unable to get through.

But when I asked the hotel management, they all said that many people from Rhode Island had returned and hadn't gone out at all.

But where did such a large group of people go?

Then, just as she was questioning her existence, Rhodes Island operators filed out of the previously empty room.

From them, Ceylon learned a shocking piece of news.

The performance? It's already over!

Although she didn't originally come here simply for the performance, hearing the praise from these operators made Ceylon feel incredibly restless.

But she was still preoccupied with important matters, so she had to suppress her curiosity about the performance for the time being and quickly told the doctor what was going on.

"I'm planning to send a resume to Rhodes Island."

"Hmm, you want to join Rhodes Island?" The Doctor scratched his head upon hearing this. "And you're bringing that black guy who was praised by old man Hellagur along?"

"Is it not possible?" Ceylon asked nervously. "I am a graduate of the Originium Studies program at Victoria National University, and I have already asked Miss Eyjafjalla and Miss Skyfire. They said that with my abilities, there is absolutely no problem."

"This incident has also shown me your capabilities, so after careful consideration, I made this decision."

"Why, can't it?"

“No, of course, there’s nothing wrong with that,” the doctor shrugged. “We would naturally welcome highly educated individuals like Miss Ceylon.”

"Moreover, your ability to detect clues and investigate before a natural disaster occurs demonstrates your solid professional knowledge."

"So that's okay?" Ceylon looked at her expectantly.

"Of course you can," the doctor asked doubtfully. "We're a legitimate company, not some secret society. Why would we need all sorts of complicated assessments and qualifications? With your qualifications, you could just submit a resume to HR and you'd be accepted, right?"

"I just thought that with your family background, you would probably stay and help your father and learn how to manage a city."

"I didn't expect you to be willing to pursue further academic studies."

“I’m not cut out for it,” Ceylon said with a smile. “A father is a father, and I am me. I know I don’t have that ability. Forcing myself will only plunge the fate of this city into an unknown situation.”

She was very nonchalant: "I have never regarded this city as my family's private property. Perhaps in the future there will be someone who can take over the city from my father and carry it forward, but it will not be me."

“From a young age, I’ve only ever worked toward one goal,” her eyes gleamed, “Black Oripathy.”

“Well then, welcome to the team,” the Doctor smiled and extended his hand to her. “I believe you will find many like-minded people on Rhodes Island.”

“I sincerely hope so too,” Ceylon replied, taking her hand. “By the way, it’s so dark…”

“You don’t need to worry about that,” the Doctor said with a smile. “Rhodes Island has a mature management system for operators who excel in a particular area.”

Upon hearing this, Ceylon couldn't help but recall the scene of his rampage in the alley of Riskati that day.

Then I shivered.

It shouldn't... turn out like that, right...?

-

Siesta is peaceful.

Or rather, this kind of tranquility is what a tourist city should look like.

People were unaware that the nearby volcano would erupt in three months.

After the first month, the Obsidian Music Festival will end, and visitors from all over Terra will gradually leave.

Meanwhile, during this period, the new urban area that Mayor Hermann had been planning for many years, namely the mobile city of Siesta, was also under construction at an accelerated pace.

Of course, these districts are not comparable in size to any proper mobile city in any country, but as an independent city-state, this is the limit for Siesta.

There was more than enough room to accommodate all the residents of Siesta, and the time Xia Yu had bought them meant they didn't have to worry about the large number of tourists.

After the tourists leave, Siesta, under Herman's leadership, will begin an intensive relocation operation, moving everything of value to the mobile city, completing the task in a little over a month and a half.

Then, use the last ten days to start the mobile city, far away from home.

We'll return here after the volcanic eruption ends.

To continue the lives of their ancestors.

Almost all mobile cities in Terra are like this.

If a weaker person had been in charge, Siesta might have been reduced to ashes today.

But Hermann was different; he had great foresight and had been preparing for the mobile city project for a long time.

It was precisely because of his foresight that Siesta was able to preserve its strength during this outbreak.

“Thank you, Doctor of Rhodes Island,” Herman raised his glass to the Doctor, his tone full of sincerity. “Without your help, my daughter’s reckless actions would probably have ended in disaster.”

Hearing this, the doctor modestly raised his glass and clinked it with his, "I didn't do much. If it weren't for Miss Ceylon, the situation would probably be even worse."

“Let’s just say that,” Herman smiled when he heard this. Of course, he knew that before they even met Ceylon, Rhodes Island’s explorers had already entered the volcano and saved Ceylon’s life.

Although it's unclear where Rhodes Island got its information, their contributions to Siesta must be genuine.

Herman didn't intend to delve into it further; he wasn't some hot-blooded idiot.

“Kronin was someone I personally mentored. He’s ambitious, but he also has the ability, so I’ve always turned a blind eye to some of his little tricks over the years.”

Hermann shook his head regretfully at this point, "But in recent years, he has gone astray, and I am not at ease with him."

"This time, taking advantage of the trip to the new development zone, I left Hei behind, also to let her see if this kid is still usable."

"The result is regrettable."

"Why are you telling me all this?" The doctor narrowed his eyes upon hearing this. "I think you should be telling Miss Ceylon instead."

"After all, she doesn't seem to understand you that well."

“…I love walking along this beach,” Herman didn’t answer directly, but looked out the window at Siesta, “because Barbara—my wife, sleeps in this sea.”

“I still remember that day. It was a bit hot, and the sunset was beautiful. Right here, she said to me, ‘I wish we could live here forever.’”

“In the blink of an eye, I’m all alone now,” Herman said, a look of nostalgia in his eyes. “Doctor, look back.”

"Can you understand? This city is the paradise I built for her."

"And why am I telling you all this..." He looked at the doctor, "because I can see that you and I are the same kind of people."

"In this world, some things cannot be solved by good things; sometimes, we have to resort to so-called bad things."

"For me, whether I am kind or not has been meaningless for a long time. There is only the result, and there is only this city."

Upon hearing this, the doctor nodded thoughtfully.

“I agree with you,” the doctor said calmly. “Some things cannot be explained simply by good and evil, but I still think you should talk to Ceylon about some things yourself.”

“I’m not here to seek understanding, Doctor,” Herman said, shaking his head. “If I needed my daughter’s understanding, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”

"Besides, will she understand if I tell her?"

"No, it will take her a long time to understand that the world is not as orderly as she thinks."

"Hei hopes she will never understand, and I... I regret that I lost the opportunity to choose, and lost it forever when I chose to focus my energy on this city instead of my young daughter while I was immersed in the grief of my wife's death."