The next day, Kazimierz welcomed the dawn.
The morning was no different from any other. Residents of Kawalerielki rose from their beds, washed, and headed out to work as usual, as though nothing extraordinary had occurred the day before. Large LCD screens hanging in shopping malls along the streets broadcast the morning news.
"Maria, champion of the 24th Kazimierz Major, is hereby awarded the title of Flawless Knight!"
From that day forward, the portrait of the Flawless Knight appeared in every major knight arena. With both Margaret and Maria crowned as champion arena knights, the Nearl family's name once again spread through every street and alley of Kazimierz.
The few remaining vassal knights of the Nearl family held their heads high with pride. Though they were veterans who had long retired from the battlefield, some forced into retirement by injury, they felt immense satisfaction watching the younger generation, Margaret and Maria, claim victory in the competitive arena.
With the Kazimierz incident settled, the Chamber of Commerce still existed in name, though only insiders knew that members of the Adeptus Sprawiedliwi had already infiltrated it, gradually taking control of parts of its authority and economic system. Kazdel's diplomatic mission had been an undeniable success. Thanks to Tomorrow's Development's involvement, Lady Russell readily signed a trade agreement with Kazdel. She even stated that despite the geographical distance, they could contact her directly regarding any matter within her power.
Felix merely listened and let the words pass. Given Lady Russell's position, agreeing to unreasonable requests would be difficult. His true aim was to establish goodwill and ensure long-term stability between the two nations.
The Chamber of Commerce also reached certain covert agreements and forms of cooperation with them. With Mr. A's tacit approval, several families departed aboard the Venus. These families maintained extensive networks not only in Kazimierz but also across neighboring countries. Through them, Kazdel would gain broader options for future import and export channels.
Perhaps the final "good deed" of the Chamber of Commerce was dismissing all competitive knights under its command. When these knights awoke and found themselves unable to contact the organization's spokesperson, they were not fools. From the events of the previous night, they could easily piece together what had happened.
Some chose to return quietly to their hometowns, discarding their identities as knights. Others joined the Adeptus Sprawiedliwi. Still others were drawn by the recruitment efforts of Tomorrow's Development' personnel department and decided to enlist.
Nearly a thousand competitive knights made their choice, including those from various knight orders who had fought alongside Tomorrow's Development and the Fate Knights during the final counterattack against the Chamber of Commerce. Moved by Tomorrow's Development ideals, they pledged themselves to the cause.
For Felix, the more capable hands, the better. Beyond these new operators, Flametail and her companions from the Fate Knight chose to depart with her. Candle Knight Viviana bade farewell to her foster mother, Lady Russell, and boarded the Venus to see more of the world. The Blood Knight, however, chose to remain.
Just as Felix had expected, Kazimierz was entering a period of renewal, and now was the time when capable individuals were most needed. The Blood Knight was still in his prime. Though his seniority and experience were somewhat inferior to those of the Knights of the Adeptus Sprawiedliwi, his prior actions had demonstrated his alignment with the Adeptus Sprawiedliwi faction.
Lady Russell granted him a seat on the Registry of Infected Knights, establishing him as a symbol among Infected knights. Naturally, she would not overlook someone of his caliber.
Meanwhile, Zofia of the Nearl family and the newly crowned champion Maria boarded the Venus as well. Darksteel, leader of the Armorless Union, surrendered with his hands raised. His reputation was despised, especially among the former competitive knights of the Chamber of Commerce now aboard the ship. They had long dared not speak openly against the Armorless Union. If Darksteel had boarded without protection, he likely would have been beaten to death.
After a thorough review of his background, Loughshinny discovered that although he bore the title of Darksteel, he had been promoted in recent years primarily to stabilize morale. He had rarely inflicted serious harm upon knights, and recorded injuries under his watch were minimal, with no confirmed fatalities. Loughshinny, the Banshee HR lady, and Anthony conducted the interview together, carefully assessing his character. He appeared to be a decent young man. Having never revealed his face while serving as Darksteel, and considering that he had originally been a knight, they decided to assign him a new codename and place him within the Royal Guard.
In addition to the assassins, other members and adventurers of the Armorless Union also joined Tomorrow's Development. Some were motivated by rewards, though Tomorrow's Development offered far greater incentives than the Union ever had. Others chose not to join simply because the distance was too great.
Felix was not surprised. In his previous life, when playing games, players could switch factions, but doing so meant starting from scratch and rebuilding favor points. These individuals had just fought against Tomorrow's Development, and their relationship values had likely fallen below zero.
That was only natural. Once someone joins a hostile force, their standing cannot simply begin from neutrality.
This arrangement was not unusual. After the Armorless Union disbanded, its members boarded the Venus and immediately began working. The players of Tomorrow's Development were neither particularly enthusiastic nor hostile toward them. After all, they were all players. The operators of Tomorrow's Development, however, stared in disbelief. Just days ago, these people had been fighting desperately on the battlefield. Now they were working aboard the landship as if nothing had happened.
By mid-November, the Venus had completed her cargo loading and supply preparations. Shrouded in thick fog, she quietly departed Kawalerielki and Kazimierz.
Felix leaned back in his chair in the conference room, listening to reports from the senior executives on economic and trade matters.
He understood some of it, though he was no expert. The focus of the meeting remained diplomacy.
"Your Highness, Kjerag has sent another letter. The Silverash family invites us to Kjerag to participate in their winter celebrations."
Felix nodded slightly. There were indeed many matters to handle this year. Enciodes' invitation to Tomorrow's Development had been postponed again and again. This time, Felix had no intention of declining.
After a brief moment of thought, he said, "Adjust the route. We're heading to Kjerag."
"Yes." Loughshinny nodded gently. "Our arrival will surely provide a significant boost to Kjerag's tourism industry."
With so many people aboard the Venus, each one a potential tourist, Felix gave a faint nod. It could be considered a favor to Enciodes. Attending the festival alone was one thing; arriving with an entire landship was something else entirely. Enciodes must have heard about the previous occasion when Felix had brought the whole landship to Siesta for its festival.
"Then it's settled." Felix clapped his hands lightly. "We'll spend the winter celebrations and the New Year in Kjerag. Everyone has worked hard. Since the incident in County Hillock, the operators haven't had a proper break, and they played a major role in the Kazimierz diplomatic mission. It's time for them to relax."
Ines frowned slightly. She agreed that alternating between intense work and rest suited Tomorrow's Development, but she worried that His Highness might exhaust himself managing everything while others took their leave. After all, when the senior staff went on vacation, the workload would inevitably fall on him.
As his subordinate, it was only natural for her to shoulder part of that burden.
After the meeting ended, Ines stayed behind and expressed her intention.
Felix was somewhat surprised. He did not find the work particularly taxing. Economic matters could be entrusted to Anthony and the others, and the rest was manageable.
His current responsibilities resembled those of an emperor reviewing memorials, except the process had been streamlined to the extreme. Moreover, his territory did not span all of Terra. In a single mobile city like Kazdel and surrounding areas, how much truly required his personal attention? Most issues were diplomatic. Felix simply assessed the credibility of correspondence and transactions based on the other party's goodwill toward Tomorrow's Development.
It might seem like bending the rules, but players could tell at a glance.
"Ines." Felix leaned back in his chair. "Since you're interested, why don't you temporarily take on Loughshinny's role and accompany me to receive Enciodes' hospitality?"
Ines paused, her heart stirred by a mix of joy and uncertainty. She quickly nodded. "I will ensure Your Highness's safety."
"Kjerag isn't some den of danger. Enciodes has been corresponding with me for a long time. He's a close friend and ally. This trip is meant to be a visit, but in truth, it's a vacation. Loughshinny, Anthony, and the others have been exhausting themselves over Kazimierz and haven't had proper rest."
"Your Highness, please allow me to travel with you."
Felix smiled and nodded. "Very well."
Ines left with light steps, gently closing the office door behind her. She let out a quiet sigh, wondering what had stirred that sudden feeling of happiness within her.
She was not like W, the stubborn girl who was still underage. Though W had become more obedient and endearing after developing that kind of relationship with His Highness, Ines was a mature adult. She did not hide her feelings or deny her emotions.
She was not worried about whether His Highness would accept her. After all, W…
The little brat had already managed to steal a kiss. His Highness was too gentle. And as a king, having a harem was only natural, wasn't it? Ines had once heard from a messenger from Yan that the one seated upon the throne possessed at least two hundred concubines, if not three thousand.
After hearing that, Ines no longer felt flustered or anxious. She simply continued her duties as usual.
Felix narrowed his eyes at the thick fog beyond the window. As Kazdel's first ally, Kjerag naturally deserved greater benefits. In time, Kjerag would stand upon the diplomatic stage of the world. It would no longer serve as the backyard of Victorian nobles.
That was also Enciodes' wish.
While playing Arknights, Felix hummed the game's theme song as he left the conference room. He took the elevator down to the lowest level and swiped his card to enter the innermost chamber.
Pushing the door open, he found Theresa's bedroom exactly as it had been before. He stepped forward and checked the data displayed on the sarcophagus screen. There were still thirty-five minutes remaining before the healing would be complete. Seeing that, Felix relaxed, dropped onto the sofa, and resumed playing Arknights.
Not bad. The first event was launching only a few weeks after the server opened. However, instead of the Kazimierz and the Black Knight storyline he had imagined, the event introduced a brand-new six-star operator, Ch'en Hui-chieh, along with a five-star operator, Nine. The story revolved around a series of lighthearted and comedic incidents that occurred after Felix brought the protagonist to Lungmen for the first time. Beyond the humor, it also highlighted a tour of Lungmen. He could not help but wonder whether Hai Mao had received sponsorship from the city.
Still, setting everything else aside, Felix had indeed visited Lungmen more than once. It could practically be called his second home. Framing the event from Lungmen's perspective was, without a doubt, a smart move.
As he studied the six-star character portrait of Inspector Ch'en, Felix saw the same determined officer who once cast aside everything for the sake of Lungmen's justice. Beneath that resolute exterior, however, he could also glimpse her hidden softness.
He pondered for a moment. The artwork was beautiful, certainly, but the shy expression Ch'en Hui-chieh wore when they were alone together was even more endearing.
At this point, he could only be described as a complete hoarder. After exhausting all the free ten-pulls and Originium obtained from clearing the main story at launch, he had not drawn a single six-star. In his previous life, he would have immediately bought value packs without hesitation. Unfortunately, that was not an option now. Fortunately, his roster of four- and five-star operators was already solid, so there was no urgent need for a six-star. Besides releasing dungeon strategy videos, MagicZX had begun uploading low-rarity Arknights guides as well. Felix had relied on those videos to understand the boss mechanics and clear the final stages of the Summer Eternity storyline.
"Healing sequence completed."
The Clever and the sarcophagus spoke in unison.
Felix stood, approached the sarcophagus, and pressed the activation button.
The sarcophagus slowly rose, gently lifting Theresa into an upright position from where she had been lying. A soft burst of mist escaped as the lid slid open smoothly.
Theresa's head tilted slightly forward, her eyelashes trembling faintly. As if sensing a chill, she instinctively curled in on herself. Her skin was flawless and unmarked, with no trace of the assassin's wounds that had once marred her body.
A moment later, Theresa slowly opened her eyes, revealing irises as pink as cherry blossoms.