Sword Plover and Combat Artificer

The ground was covered in a thick layer of dead leaves, and the bright flames licked at the leaves, causing them to curl and burn, turning into scattered embers. The firelight cast long shadows of the gnarled roots in the forest. Tata pushed aside some of the leaves with effort, looked up, and watched Fang Heng assemble the last part.

Fang Heng let out a sigh of relief, took a step back, placed his right hand on his chin, and tilted his head to examine his creation.

Unlike the miniature and exquisite Clockwork Sprites, the Walker's style was flexible and sharp. It crouched low on the soft ground, reflecting a cold light under the flickering campfire. Beneath its domed shell, a precise gear set could be seen, with a glass cover holding two gleaming Silver Rails and a high-speed gyroscope.

Two metal claws gleamed faintly, their tips inserted into the ground. However, apart from the clawed feet and the precise core components, most of the Walker construct's structure was made of wood.

While ensuring the design's strength, the wooden structure brought a lot of unnecessary dead weight. In the end, Fang Heng had no choice but to opt for a more cumbersome, but higher combat-load-bearing, six-legged system.

Moreover, due to the fragility of the wooden structure itself, the advantages of better protection and higher durability of the six-legged system were not realized in this Walker. It only gained better stability and balance due to the increased dead weight.

"Mr. Knight."

Fang Heng nodded to Tata and took the Alpha Crystal from her arms.

He walked over, carefully opened the Walker's outer shell, and inserted the crystal into the base's slot. With a soft 'click,' a page popped up, displaying the remaining magic power sufficient to support the Flexible Construct's operational time:

Normal State - 7 hours 44 minutes 12 seconds, Combat State - 30 minutes 17 seconds

Seeing this data, Fang Heng couldn't help but sigh. This was an Alpha Crystal with only one-third of its magic power reserve. It was known that Walkers consumed more than twice the energy of Clockwork Sprites, yet Clockwork Sprites had a shorter operating time than Walkers even with the support of Attribute-less Crystals.

This showed the weakness of Attribute-less Crystals.

Furthermore, Alpha Crystals were not only superior to ordinary Attribute-less Crystals in terms of magic power reserves, but their instantaneous output was also more than three times that of Attribute-less Crystals.

Fang Heng put on his gloves and tried to make it move. The Walker construct made a soft sound and its six legs spread out, standing up. Fang Heng raised his middle and index fingers, and it also made a 'click' sound, raising two pairs of claws high like a praying mantis, their tips pointing at the campfire, reflecting brightly.

Fang Heng frowned and inwardly exclaimed, Oh my god.

"This thing is so hard to control, it requires more than twice the number of flexible components to control compared to a Clockwork Sprite," he said to Tata as he operated it. "I shouldn't have removed all the Silver Rails. A pair of flexible rails can't fully control it—this is troublesome now."

Tata frowned and replied, "Mr. Knight, I'm very sorry. I didn't foresee this beforehand."

"It's not your fault."

Fang Heng looked at the young lady and suddenly smiled. He said with a smile, "Actually, there's no need to worry so much. Don't worry, watch this—" As he spoke, he pointed forward.

The Walker construct sprang up, its claws moving forward rapidly in an alternating motion, then it leaped forward, crossing several roots. Its movements were swift, like a nimble wolf spider.

"How about that, reliable?" Fang Heng turned back and boasted, but before he finished speaking, the Walker construct crashed into a tree and stood there, shaking. Calculating the time, it was no more than three seconds from start to finish.

Seeing this, Tata looked up at him.

The two stared at each other, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

"Um... W-which part is broken, probably." Fang Heng's face was covered in black lines.

Tata had already flown over.

Fang Heng had no choice but to follow dejectedly and pick up the Walker construct from under the tree to inspect it. The Walker construct was a bit larger than a basketball but much heavier. Ordinary ones weighed fifteen kilograms, but this one weighed a full nineteen kilograms.

Of this, the wooden structural base alone accounted for nearly two-thirds of the dead weight. The remaining weight was mostly from the water-cooling system, with the gear set taking up only a small portion. As for the power-enhancing components, Visual Link Crystals, and vibration sensors (for reconnaissance), these variable components were saved as much as possible, barely reaching the standard combat load for a six-legged system.

The maximum combat load for a six-legged system was twenty-one kilograms, but some margin had to be left to avoid disintegration due to excessive self-weight load during combat.

Fang Heng inspected it for a long time without finding anything. He suddenly slapped his forehead, realizing he was being foolish. Of course, perhaps out of habit, he remembered that he still had the system and quickly opened the Artificer's retrieval interface:

'Walker Type 170 [Six-Legged System] -- (Equipment Level, F-Class)'

'Basic Attributes: Attack Power - 23-30 (+6), Strength Modifier +34%; Melee Accuracy - 43 (+11), Strength Modifier +37%; Balance - 34 (+7), Agility Modifier +22%; Burst Power - 18, Output Modifier +50%'

'Defense Attributes: Armor Value - 6 (Outer Shell Part), Durability Value - 35, Shield Value - 0, Evasion Value - 132, Block Value - 14'

'Core Attributes: Magic Capacity - 130M, Magic Output - 5.5M (Legs 33%, Flexible Components 25%, Gear Set 16%, Water Cooling System 15%, Gyroscope 7%, Others 4%); Self-Weight - 19.3Kg, Combat Load - 21Kg; Core Heat - 0.2~2.5/S, Cooling System Load - 14%'

'Additional Attributes: Balance +2'

'Component Skill: Agile Swiftness IV (From Flexible Components, Agility-related Modifier +50% upon activation)'

'Operational Status: Good, Assembly Precision - 97%'

Since Fang Heng could see the page, the young lady could naturally see it too. "The design itself is not problematic, it's still the issue with operability," she said without mincing words, causing his face to flush. But Tata looked up at him and asked, "Is there a problem?"

Fang Heng then nodded.

This was a makeshift solution, a last resort. But as long as he operated it carefully, the problem could always be overcome, although the performance would be greatly reduced. In fact, he had already tapped into the potential of this temporary design as much as possible.

For example, after removing various components, the Alpha Crystal's magic output power had a large surplus. Thus, Fang Heng set a considerable output margin for combat mode, allowing this Walker to have a burst power of up to 27 when operating at full capacity, more than double his own—though he himself was considered to have trash stats.

He also added an extra flexible component to improve the Walker's issue of being too heavy and cumbersome due to excessive dead weight. However, flexible components require bearings, and wooden bearings are inefficient and extremely unreliable. For this reason, he made several extra sets for replacement.

Thinking of this, Fang Heng glanced at the panel again and couldn't help but shake his head, saying, "The strength of the wooden structure is too poor. This durability and armor are as good as nothing—my only prayer now is that it doesn't fall apart during combat."

"It's already very good, Mr. Knight," Tata replied calmly. "Adapting to local conditions is also a part of an Alchemist's ability. Moreover, Mr. Knight's assembly precision is very high, perfectly bringing out the attributes of all components."

Being praised by the young lady in her unhurried tone was truly a delightful thing.

Fang Heng couldn't help but touch his cheek—

However, he was not one to shy away from this.

Assembly was also a skilled job, even considered one of the most important steps in an Alchemist's crafting process. The keyword for assembly was precision—perfect precision calibration could allow the final product to truly exhibit the sum of the attributes of each component.

The greater the error, the lower the percentage of attributes provided by the components.

As for how bad it could get, it was hard to say. Fang Heng knew that there was no lower limit to this. One of his most important experiences as an apprentice in Kapuka was watching many people assemble a set of high-quality components into a pile of junk that could fall apart at any moment.

Some of these processes were reversible, but some were irreversible. If an irreversible situation occurred, it meant all previous efforts and money were wasted.

It was common for senior Alchemists to beat their apprentices severely for this reason.

There was no such thing as human rights in this world--

As for Fang Heng, he was beaten less often. He was one of the few favorite apprentices of the master artificers at Kapuka.

And with that came a solid foundation.

If there was anything that the current Fang Heng was most confident about, it wasn't the so-called talent that Miss Sprite and Miss Scarpe had repeatedly mentioned, but this fundamental skill.

It was precisely with this that he joined the Dawnstar adventuring group and gained everyone's approval.

Fang Heng reminisced about the past as he placed the Walker construct back on the ground. He had confirmed the main problem: when it lost balance, it was difficult to regain it due to the lack of control methods--the Walker was supposed to have this function.

To put it in simpler terms, this Walker had the legendary "natural attribute" and could easily fall over on flat ground.

Fang Heng began to feel a little fortunate about its own weight.

He raised his hand and gestured downwards, giving the command: "Maximum power, attack!"

The Walker construct leaped forward with its legs, its blade flashing cold light, leaving a deep gash on the trunk of a banyan tree nearby. White sap oozed out instantly.

Fang Heng gestured with his hand; the cut was over twenty centimeters deep.

"The explosive power is very strong, basically on par with a Level 3 Warrior," Tata commented.

"From what I saw earlier, its speed in the swift state was also quite commendable... roughly, about Level 2 Rogue level," Fang Heng added with a self-deprecating remark: "At full speed, I can't catch up no matter how hard I try, let alone make small directional changes."

He suddenly fell silent.

The combat power of this Walker was basically comparable to a Swordsman Chosen who had invested in both agility and strength. Its combat power was probably around forty to fifty thousand experience, which was close to a standard Level 3 character, although the difference in defense might be significant.

But this wasn't a fully functional Walker, was it?

At this moment, he suddenly understood why Combat Artificers were called pseudo Dragon Knights or secondary Dragon Knights. There was indeed a reason why this profession was so highly regarded in Aethelria.

"Unfortunately, this thing doesn't have a Visual Link Crystal," Fang Heng had the Walker return to a state of alert, then bent down and extended his hand to let Tata sit in his palm, saying, "This way, I can only control it within my line of sight."

"That's enough," Tata suddenly said. "This is Knight's first independently completed design. As the first step for a Combat Artificer, let's give it a name."

The two returned to the campfire, and Fang Heng was slightly stunned by her words.

He realized then. From this moment on, he had truly become a Combat Artificer.

He couldn't help but look up. Moonlight bathed the forest canopy. A silver owl not far away suddenly flapped its wings and flew silently into the darkness. Fang Heng had a feeling and replied, "Let's call it Sword Plover--"

Tata's emerald green eyes also looked towards the deep woods in that direction.

She nodded gently.

"Sword Plover?"

The night deepened.

Fang Heng leaned quietly against a giant oak tree, occasionally switching pages in front of him--they were complex design schematics for a Type I Crystal. He yawned and turned his head--Tata had fallen asleep at some point. She was leaning against him, her head resting on his lap, fast asleep. Her thick eyelashes still fluttered slightly in the firelight.

Do Dragon Souls dream too?

Fang Heng felt a sense of curiosity. He saw faint points of light appear around Miss Sprite, knowing that Tata was replenishing the surrounding free-floating magic in her sleep. He gently placed his left hand down, covering her with his sleeve like a warm blanket.

Miss Sprite pursed her lips, grabbed the edge of the 'blanket' with her hand, and subconsciously pulled it up, turning over.

She seemed to be having a good dream, as the frown on her brow relaxed.

Fang Heng turned back, looking at the flickering firelight not far away, and felt a warmth in his heart. In the dark forest, thick fog was surging from the northern wilderness. The warm, orange light dispelled the chill and mist, like a solitary lamp in the wilderness.

It flickered unsteadily.

But it was still bright.

The mountain morning--

Began with the chirping of birds.

Fang Heng opened his eyes groggily. The first thing he saw was a verdant shadow. Sunlight streamed through the treetops, casting dappled light. As if by coincidence, several Sword Plovers were perched on the treetops, tilting their heads and looking at him. These birds seemed unafraid of people. Fang Heng could even see every downy feather on their white neck rings and complete black breastbands.

Fang Heng was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but laugh.

Yes, he happened to know these wading birds that lived in swamps and wetlands.

When he was very young, his uncle and aunt, who raised him, had told him a story: plovers were a type of bird whose footprints were found in most parts of the world. Although small, they were migratory birds that would travel thousands of kilometers to begin their life journey.

That was also the origin of his name--

The only inheritance his parents left him.

"To be someone who doesn't hesitate in place, brave and determined..." Fang Heng muttered to himself. "Will my uncle and aunt understand my choice...?" He saw the birds suddenly flap their wings and disappear into the treetops.

Then Tata's small face appeared in his field of vision. The Sprite's eyes seemed to hold a tranquil and distant lake, looking at him calmly.

"Someone's coming."

She spoke.

Fang Heng sat up abruptly. He turned his head and saw the Sword Plovers all flying in one direction in the forest.

The current cover should be provided by Qidian, and it doesn't feel quite right. I drew one myself last night, and you'll probably see it soon. Also, I'm still asking for collections and recommendations. The number of collections is increasing a bit slowly, don't be lazy, friends. By the way, I'm also asking for promotion~ (Forgot to mention, there was a small bug in the previous chapter. It should indeed be less than thirteen times, not fifteen. Thank you for the reminder. Alas, math is completely defeated.)