"Phew... I apologize for my earlier rudeness."
After putting some distance between herself and Lumina, Lingsha felt the lingering fragrance gradually fade, allowing her senses to return to normal.
It couldn't be helped. That aura, that intoxicating scent, was simply unbearable. If Lingsha hadn't maintained a safe distance from Lumina, she would have lost control...
Lost control and lunged at Lumina, frantically inhaling the fragrance from her body...
Setting aside the question of dignity, if she had actually done that, Lady Lumina's wrath would have brought an end to both Lingsha herself and her ambitions.
"You weren't rude at all. I'm just glad you're alright, Miss Lingsha."
Though Lumina had noticed Lingsha's flushed expression and the strange way she had clung to her earlier, lacking telepathy, she never considered the possibility that Lingsha was overwhelmed by her aura.
She smiled gently, nodded, and gestured politely to Lingsha.
"Thank you, Miss Lumina," Lingsha said with an awkward but polite smile. Uncertain of what else to say, she figured expressing gratitude was always the right move.
Huff...
Lingsha took a deep breath and focused her gaze on the mechanical fragments before her.
She stepped forward, crouched slightly, and picked up a small shard with her fingertips to examine it. After a moment, her expression remained unchanged as she set it down and picked up another fragment.
After another brief examination, Lingsha showed no discernible emotion. She set the second shard down, stood up, and said, "My lords and ladies..."
"Mm, my apologies. My mistake. Let me fix it," Lumina interrupted.
Though Lingsha's expression remained blank, Lumina noticed subtle signs that the fragmented state of the massive machine had rendered it nearly impossible to inspect. It would be difficult to glean any useful information from it in this condition.
Lingsha's impassive demeanor was likely just for her own sake, Lumina reasoned.
Cutting off Lingsha's words, Lumina clenched her fist in the air, summoning a magnificent Staff into her hand.
Lumina raised the Staff and pointed it at the fragments.
In the next instant, the fragments seemed to awaken with sentience, floating into the air and beginning to reassemble themselves. Moments later, a fully intact machine and its surrounding cabin materialized before everyone's eyes.
Having completed the restoration, Lumina retrieved her staff.
Although such a simple act required no magical assistance from the staff—a mere tap of her fingertip would have sufficed—using the staff undoubtedly looked far more impressive.
Lumina: ♪
"As expected of Sister Lumina!" March 7th and Little Swarm clapped enthusiastically, their faces beaming at the miraculous sight before them.
Stelle stood with her hands on her hips, radiating pride as if every accomplishment of Lumina's were her own. Any praise for Lumina felt like praise for herself.
"Truly... truly astonishing," Lingsha murmured, momentarily awestruck, before refocusing on her work.
"Thank you, Lady Lumina," Lingsha said, then carefully approached the machine and gently placed her hand on it. When the machine showed no signs of activation, she began her inspection with confidence.
"My lords, the preliminary examination is complete. Just as the artisans claimed, there are indeed biological tissues concealed within."
A moment later, Lingsha delivered her verdict, though her expression remained troubled.
After a moment's thought, Lingsha continued, "To be honest, I can't even tell if this thing is more machine or more biological."
She shook her head, her furrowed brow and downward gaze stirring concern among the others.
"Why do you say that?" Stelle asked, puzzled.
"Well, it's like this," the artisan explained, stepping forward to examine the device. "This thing uses the nervous system of some kind of creature as its central control system."
"It's a Borisin!" Lumina announced while the others were still pondering the matter. "The biological component—the nervous system inside—it's from a Borisin."
She pointed to the machinery within the hatch and added, "And don't you think this whole contraption looks like a massive, mechanical Borisin?"
Hearing this, everyone turned their gaze to the machine, scrutinizing it closely.
"Hiss... Now that Sister Lumina mentions it, it really does look like one," March 7th exclaimed after a moment of careful observation, noticing numerous striking similarities to a Borisin.
Sister Lumina had blasted this machine to smithereens the moment it activated. Now that it's been restored and examined, it's clearly just a giant, mechanical version of Borisin.
"Why would the Intelligentsia Guild resort to such technology?" Dan Heng murmured, lowering his head in thought. "Are they trying to create new weapons?"
"Since this machine was built using Borisin's neural network, the reason Borisin attacked the ship earlier must be connected to this," Yanqing mused. He didn't know—nor did he care to know—why the Intelligentsia Guild would build a Borisin mech. But recalling the earlier incident, the reason for Borisin's attack had finally surfaced.
"Hmm, that's probably the case," Yanqing agreed.
"Master Craftsman, please depart with the Cloud Knights and report this situation to the Judge of the Shackling Prison."
"As the safest place on the Luofu, prisoners and weapons involving dangerous organisms should all be sent to the Shackling Prison for containment and further processing," Yanqing instructed, turning to the craftsman.
"Understood," the craftsman nodded, saying no more as he left the scene.
"Yanqing, you shouldn't throw around the phrase 'safest place' so casually," Lumina cautioned once the craftsman had departed, leaving only familiar faces behind.
"Huh? Why?" Yanqing asked, looking at Lumina, puzzled.
The Shackling Prison is the safest place on the Luofu, that's for sure, right?
"The Shackling Prison might have been the safest place before, but once you say it out loud, it definitely won't be anymore. It's a cosmic law, you know?" Lumina explained simply.
"Ah... Sister Lumina's words just stirred up some unpleasant memories," March 7th said, her eyes darkening and her expression souring. At first, she hadn't grasped the connection, but Lumina's words immediately made her realize: the claim that the Shackling Prison was the safest place on the Luofu conveyed the exact same effect as Penacony's Sweet Dream, where no danger existed.
"Looks like we definitely can't go to the Shackling Prison," March 7th muttered. Then, remembering it was a prison for criminals, she quickly added behind her, "Of course, we'd never go in there anyway."
Yanqing: ?
Yanqing scratched his head, a large question mark floating above his small head as he looked at the others, who all seemed to understand Lady Lumina's meaning.