Upon hearing this, the bakery owner's mouth dropped open in astonishment:
"You, you can't really be, ' Machine Spirit ', can you?"
At this moment, his previous doubts vanished, replaced by undisguised excitement, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two young outsiders and his old friend.
He explained somewhat incoherently:
"I knew it was a problem with the speed controller, but replacing it is too expensive. Do you know which two gears are faulty?"
"I know."
The voice slowly spoke:
"The model number of those two gears is... and their exact location is..."
"Great, I can replace it for you right now. I've already bought the parts."
After saying this, Keli suddenly turned to look at the two smiling young men and asked with some concern:
"When I replace parts, can the Machine Spirit still talk?"
[ On the Do Some Farm Work ] nodded and said:
"Of course, as long as you don't take it all apart."
"That's good."
Upon hearing this, Keli was completely relieved and began busily disassembling the dough mixer components.
But just then, he suddenly heard the voices of those two people behind him again:
"Mr. Keli, are you satisfied with ' Machine Spirit '?"
"Satisfied, of course I'm satisfied!"
Keli nodded eagerly; if his hands weren't covered in engine oil, he would have loved to shake both of their hands.
He was already thrilled that the Machine Spirit could explain where his problem lay; after all, it hadn't cost him any money, so what more could he ask for?
In this way, my old partner can continue to work, and in another ten or eight years, I can save a lot of maintenance and replacement costs.
He received a satisfactory answer, but then the two men continued speaking:
"We're glad you're satisfied. There's something else we need to inform you about—"
"Speak."
Old Keli was preoccupied with his old buddies and only had a fraction of his attention left to these two.
The young woman said earnestly:
We have currently activated the ' Machine Spirit Activation Trial' package for you. We hope you have a pleasant experience during this period.
"Wait, what does this mean? What does 'this period of time' mean?"
Old Keli raised his head from under the lid of the dough mixer, and was so surprised that he even bumped his forehead.
"It means exactly what it says, sir."
[ On the Do Some Farm Work ] He bowed slightly, like a fox finally showing its tail:
"The package will last for three days, and will expire after the election of the Grand Foundry Master."
Keli was immediately horrified:
"What does this mean? Does it mean that the Machine Spirit will disappear after the Grand Foundry Master is selected?"
It won't disappear; it will simply fall into a deep sleep again.
[ Vanilla Ice Cream Scoop ] explained.
Those seeds implanted with the Blood Corpse were her doing; she certainly knew that the plant could only live for three days.
Three days later, the plants withered and died, and the connection between the Blood Corpse and the machine was severed by the plant system. At that time, the Machine Spirit became mute and lost its ability to think again.
That is, it reverts to its state before it was activated.
"But there is one exception."
[ On the Do Some Farm Work ] He chimed in at the right time, giving Keli a renewed sense of hope.
He said earnestly:
"This situation is that— Gray Griss, the inventor of the Machine Spirit, has been successfully elected as the next Grand Foundry Master."
"In that case, he will definitely promote the Machine Spirit, and your Machine Spirit will be able to stay by your side for a long time."
Upon hearing this, Keli felt a sense of relief—it wasn't really only three days; there was a high probability that there would be more.
But... he suddenly recalled the names of the three candidates.
Why doesn't Gray Griss seem to be in it?
Is that correct?
Seeing the doubt in his expression, [ Do Some Farm Work ] appropriately applied the ninth of the " Ten Common Persuasion Techniques " left by [ Ginseng Rooster ]:
"Candidate Gray Griss encountered Corpse Tide on the way and is currently rushing back to the Great Labyrinth City. He has an elite guard with him and will surely return safely."
After saying this, he began to recite the seventh section of " Common Persuasion Techniques ":
"Everything has its priorities. Only when Gray Griss comes to power will the Machine Spirit be vigorously promoted. The others who become the Grand Foundry Master certainly have their own things to do."
Although Old Keli understood this principle, he still asked in return:
"Don't other people also promote Machine Spirit?"
Of course.
[ On the Do Some Farm Work ] nodded and said:
"But that might take ten or twenty years."
He sized up Old Keli, who looked to be about fifty years old.
"You should be able to wait."
This statement should obviously be interpreted in reverse.
Keli then understood what was going on, and he looked at the two young men in front of him and repeated:
"You mean, as long as that guy, that Gray, becomes the Grand Foundry Master, everyone will have such good Machine Spirit to use."
"Right."
"Then why should we support others?"
For the first time Keli, who had never cared about elections, experienced what it meant to think, "I absolutely must vote for him."
"Because other candidates also have their own supporters."
[ Do Some Farm Work ] said with a smile, while [ Vanilla Ice Cream Scoop ] changed the subject and continued promoting the Machine Spirit:
" The Machine Spirit can do far more than you can imagine."
"Really?"
Old Keli's somewhat calmed emotions were stirred up again:
What else can it do?
"There are many more."
[ Vanilla Ice Cream Scoop ] confirmed:
Are you sure this dough mixer is twenty years old?
Of course.
"Good."
The Soul Returner to its resting place and turned to look at the headless dough mixer, asking:
"My Machine Spirit, if Mr. Keli is to sell five hundred loaves of bread today, how much flour and water would he need?"
After a brief silence, the three Blood Corpse spoke in unison again:
"In my experience, this bowl holds ten bowls of flour. As for how much water to add, it depends on Mr. Keli's desired texture for today's bread."
"Ah?"
Keli paused for a moment:
"You're really good at that?"
"These are all based on experience."
The Machine Spirit sounded quite humble.
[ Vanilla Ice Cream Scoop ] continued to ask:
"If I equip you with a multi-functional robotic arm, can you automate the entire process of kneading, fermenting, and producing bread dough?"
"It's not difficult."
This time, Machine Spirit's tone carried a hint of confidence.
Old Keli was completely dumbfounded. He looked at the two young men and tentatively asked:
"That Gray Gray, can he really become the Grand Foundry Master?"
[ On Do Some Farm Work ] said with a smile:
"If everyone liked Machine Spirit as much as you do, it would definitely be possible."
[ Vanilla Ice Cream Scoop ] then seemed to suddenly remember something and said:
"Oh, Mr. Keli, there's one more special offer I haven't told you about."
"Tell me, tell me!"
The Soul Returner cleared his throat and uttered a cliché that had been overused in another world:
"Although we told you before that the Machine Spirit can only exist for three days, if you introduce us to a new supporter who agrees to install the Machine Spirit and votes for Gray, we will extend the usage time of your Machine Spirit by three days."