"Much obliged."
"We each get what we need. I'll help you improve your control over your Devil Fruit powers, and you'll help me produce the materials I need. Where did you start getting stuck in that booklet I gave you?"
"Uh... the first page."
Bear's voice gradually softened, and he seemed increasingly embarrassed.
That was simply his nature. He was excessively gentle; even if a stranger asked him to do something completely unrelated to himself, Bear would still give it everything he had.
The booklet contained chemical knowledge written by Oran, intended to help Bear better understand the composition of matter.
"No need to be embarrassed. You have no foundation, after all. It was only a test, so now I know where to start teaching you."
Bear had been born into a priest's family and captured as a slave in childhood. Being able to read at all was already no small accomplishment.
The Kingdom of Sorbet's royal palace was not particularly large. After chatting for a few moments, Oran and the others arrived at the kingdom's banquet hall.
Although some of the people Oran had brought looked rather unusual, Bulldog did not show excessive surprise. He was, after all, a King. If he could not even control that much of his expression, he could not have sat on the throne for so many years.
"Mr. Oran, I have been awaiting you for quite some time. Please, everyone, take a seat."
"King Bulldog, I won't waste time with pleasantries. Do you have any questions about the agreement?"
"None, Mr. Oran. The terms you proposed are highly meaningful to the Kingdom of Sorbet's development.
But as you have seen these past few days, this country is not wealthy. Celestial Gold alone has practically drained the nation's economy.
I would like to pay part of the cost first and pay the remainder in installments. If your designs truly prove effective, we will soon be able to make up the rest."
To be honest, Bulldog did not want to do this.
There were no local researchers here, nor were there any powerful warriors. Gathering enough Celestial Gold to keep the nation from becoming a lawless land was already Bulldog's limit.
They had finally gained an opportunity for technological advancement. If Oran left directly, the Kingdom of Sorbet would lose a chance to develop.
But he dared not gamble either. If he gave Oran all that money at once and something went wrong, there would not be enough Celestial Gold next year.
"Of course, the Kingdom of Sorbet can pay interest. You may also take a share of the profits from any profitable ventures."
Bulldog proposed a new condition. So long as Oran was not simply making empty promises, he would only gain more from it.
"I can accept those terms, but the specifics must follow my arrangements. I do not want amateurs directing professionals."
"Of course, Mr. Oran. This is the agreement drafted by the Finance Minister. Please see if there are any issues with it."
Oran knew Bulldog was uneasy about the technology, but that was normal. Paying the full amount upfront was the rare case. The two sides soon reached an agreement. Oran solved his initial funding problem, while the Kingdom of Sorbet gained an opportunity to gamble on its future.
Both sides were generally pleased. If there was any problem, it was that Bulldog regretted allowing Oran to bring people to the banquet.
Other than Oran, whose appetite barely resembled that of a normal person, the other three could eat more than the last. Ginny, who looked the youngest, had the biggest appetite of all, single-handedly consuming several days' worth of food from the royal palace.
Time gradually passed. During this period, Oran taught Bear mathematics, physics, and chemistry from the ground up, allowing him to master quite a bit of knowledge. And it paid off.
Place a freshly mined piece of iron ore before Bear, and he could separate it. He could also compress and fuse certain elements, making up for Oran's lack of equipment.
More accurately, Bear was even more useful than those machines, provided he could understand the existence of the material in question.
A rudimentary factory also appeared within the Kingdom of Sorbet. It possessed some forging and processing capabilities and could even take forging orders from nearby small nations.
While testing his own body, Oran also discovered its changes. His strength and recovery had increased significantly. Put simply, his physique had become closer to that of the natives of this world. Perhaps it was a change brought about by traveling through time and space.
The world of Valoran strengthened Spiritual Power, while the world of pirates strengthened the body.
Using the initial funding provided by Bulldog, Oran also began creating things that could assist him. Bear, Kate, and the others helped him in this temporary workshop.
After a period of effort, a massive iron shell roughly five meters tall had begun to take shape.
Bright bolts dotted the brass-colored metal. Pipes made from special materials connected its arms and torso, while two radiators on its back released white steam.
As Oran fed fuel into the hatch on the machine's chest and abdomen, light also appeared in the robot's eyes.
"Engine... activated. Ready to... depart."
"It... it moved! Oran, this thing really moved!"
Seeing the steel robot stand up on its own and even speak, Ginny, who had been helping nearby, jumped in fright.
"I can see that. Wasn't that obvious? Blitz, grab that stone in front of you to the left."
"Stone... understood..."
Whoosh!
Two jets of steam burst from the pipes behind the robot, and the rocket fist in its hand extended at once, grabbing the stone in its palm. As the chain retracted, it pulled the stone back.
"Master, task complete."
"Shut down and enter standby mode."
"Yes."
"The system is basically operating normally. Now... only the final step remains."
After the robot shut down, Oran reopened the power compartment in its chest. A recessed slot had been left above it.
The robot—or more accurately, the Steam Golem—was a disaster relief and rescue robot born in Zaun, primarily used to replace humans in toxic environments.
But that was merely its original model. It had since undergone several modifications. Oran then took out an altered Hex Crystal.
It was not an ordinary Hex Crystal. It incorporated new technology and a new core similar to the Seraphic Rights Chip. It was both an energy core and a controller.
Bang!
With a tremendous crash, Oran firmly secured the core into the slot. The power contained within the Hex Crystal immediately surged through the circuitry and into the robot's body.
Yet as electric sparks flickered, the light on the robot's body gradually dimmed.
"Almost there, Kate! Aim for the core and discharge at full power."
"Meow, understood."
Crackle!
Electricity coursed along the metal shell, and light flickered in the robot's eyes once more. Its voice remained cold and mechanical, but its tone seemed to have changed somehow.
"Blitz, reporting for duty."
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