Romanian time: July 23, 2026, 08:21.
The ancient castle's plaza.
"Jack! Keep the digging tools safe! I don't want to damage the artifacts beneath us."
"Yes, Professor."
"Rossi! Stop drinking that Starsucks stuff over there! It's barely worth anything, yet they sell it so expensively! Don't spill any on the scanning equipment!"
"Yes..."
Quill, looking as if he had been injected with adrenaline, stood in the center of the camp, directing the students as they prepared the equipment they would need to enter the ancient castle's underground tombs.
At eight in the morning in Romania, the sunlight shone perfectly into the ancient castle, dispelling the sinister atmosphere of the night.
With Flynn's mercenaries leading the way and so many people gathered inside the ancient castle, the students felt very confident. They believed in science even more, rather than thinking there might be monsters or something similar underground.
Even if there were, the students believed that the mercenaries protecting them had the strength to deal with them.
Speaking of the mercenaries, Flynn, Li Lie, and the others were also sorting out their equipment.
They put on camouflage combat uniforms that were not entirely uniform, helped each other don their Mechanical Skeletons, and installed Titanium Alloy protective plates in the skeletons' slots.
They strapped Tactical Belts over the protective plates, belts that could carry magazines, grenades, and various other equipment, then adjusted their weapons to their optimal condition.
The latest Pulse Series rifles, Submachine Guns, and machine guns were all present. Flynn even had a Gauss Rifle whose price was exorbitant even on the black market.
After all, the investors behind this archaeological expedition were willing to spend heavily on the archaeological team and the mercenaries. As a result, the mercenaries' equipment was even considerably better than that of the UNSC Marine