After being captured and taken to Zelandia, after that meeting that changed his fate forever, Braska had imagined countless times what it would be like to meet that dragon lord again.
Most of those imaginings involved being pressed for updates on his progress in cracking the Diamond Golem.
After all, he and the other party had an eight-year agreement.
If he failed to breach the Netheril golem's mythal protection program within those eight years, then having the Diamond Golem taken back would only be logical.
But how could he possibly allow that to happen?!
This was the pinnacle achievement of the golem field!
The love of his life!
And now, it had practically become his forbidden possession.
If anyone wanted to take it from his hands again, they would have to step over Braska's corpse first!
Thus, during those first eight years, he raced against every second and could not sleep at night. He practically treated this golem workshop as his nest, eating, drinking, sleeping, and relieving himself all inside it.
Had he had a different "landlord," he would probably have been kicked out long ago.
After all, few normal people could tolerate such a filthy "tenant" who triggered "red alert" at the drop of a hat.
Yet Braska's routine, unchanged for years on end, not only failed to draw the mages' rejection—it instead earned the admiration of his peers and high praise from Director Igg.
As for the magical materials he needed, as long as his funding requests were within reasonable limits, they were almost always reviewed and approved the very same day.
Magic Research assistants?
I'll give you ten times as many!
And so, as time passed, more and more people filled Braska's golem workshop.
At first, the vast majority were mid- and high-ranking mages who had come