Miracle Card Shop: All My Cards Can Be Actualize

Chapter 541 : Convinced the Dwarf

— Hargrim POV —

The lad led us deep below, and I noticed the floor numbers increasing the deeper the elevator descended. We just passed Level 5, which seems to be dedicated to laboratories and artifact manufacturing.

The layout of this level appears connected to the city above. No… it looks like Levels 1-5 are part of a large, interconnected space utilized for hangars, the city, laboratories, and artifact manufacturing.

This place… it reminds me of a dwarven city, except the roof and walls are equipped with reality augmentation technology to make it seem like a real sky. Hmph! A waste of resources. Typical humans—they can't even endure the hardships we dwarves do. We don't need toys like this to adorn our city roofs or walls.

The elevator continued its descent, deeper and deeper. Level 6 seems to be secretive; the doors were closed, but judging by the large power lines, this must be the generator level.

Finally, it stopped at Level 7. The plaque here reads "Clockwork Enclosure." Drones were flying to and fro on this level. Wait… those drones… Some of them have magical signatures. Are they artifacts? No… they're not true artifacts—they're just… probably… pseudo-artifacts that make use of mana.

The lad led us deeper into the passage, and we arrived at a vast space where drones were flying around, scanning a giant spherical artifact in the middle of the room.

What in the world is that? I sense immense power from it, but I'm sure it's not a weapon, nor does it use mana as its energy source. Instead, it feels… strange. It's like something in this space isn't where it should be… no, it's more like something unusual has happened, but we can't perceive it directly—only feel it.

This… this is the first time in my life that I've felt something like this.

"Danny… is that… is that the Beaumont family's Clockwork Artifact!? No… it can't be. This thing… it's more advanced than anything the Beaumont family has ever made," the hag—er, Lady Envy—seems to recognize it.

The Beaumont family… I know about them too. Since our secret realm entrance is in Switzerland, of course we know about them. If this is similar to the Beaumont clan's artifact, does that mean this thing is powered by the movement of time?

So that's why I felt something was off—it's because the movement of time is being used as fuel to activate that sphere. And this thing is quite powerful too.

If… if this lad can make this work, then creating a mana-rich environment here would be child's play for him. If he can utilize time as fuel, then transforming one form of energy into another is entirely plausible.

"Lad… you have my word. There's no need for a gambling contract. We'll share our dwarven smithing techniques with you." Before I knew it, I had already accepted the lad's conditions. But… It can't be helped. This technique of utilizing time as fuel… and to this degree at that, no one has ever done it before.

—

"Huh?" Daniel stopped and turned toward Hagrim, confused. "Pardon?" He asked, still didn't believe what he just heard.

"I said, I agree to your condition, we'll share dwarven smithing knowledge with you, no need for gambling contract." The dwarf said as he looked toward the Clockwork Enclosure.

"In return, can you teach me how to use time as fuel? If we could utilize that, I'm sure that the product that we produce will be much higher grade than we used to." The dwarf said without hiding anything.

"Yes, I think I can teach you that, but I'll warn you, it's not easy," Daniel said.

He then led the group toward the Clockwork Enclosure. Meanwhile, Nexus Prime drones were still scanning the area. The drones entered and exited the enclosure, then flew toward the robotic manufacturing section below through designated passages.

"Prime, are you testing how to send drones into the enclosure?" Daniel asked the A.I. overseeing the drones.

"Yes, Master. The tests and adjustments are 78% complete. So far, the results indicate that pre-programmed drones can operate independently within the Enclosure, but they lack the capacity to adapt to unexpected situations.

Therefore, I'm researching the construction of a signal amplifier on the other side, which will allow me to send signals and control the drones within the enclosure more effectively," Nexus Prime reported promptly.

"That's good. Also, these two are my guests: Mr. Hagrim Goldgrip and Her Majesty, Queen Sylpharia Silverleaf. Her Majesty is here to inspect the enclosure, as her people will be helping us manage the magical creatures within it," Daniel introduced the two to Nexus Prime.

"Oh… It's nice to meet you, Mr. Goldgrip and Your Majesty, the Queen. I am Nexus Prime. I manage the base's systems and nearly everything that ensures its smooth and efficient operation.

In times of need or emergency, I can also calculate the most effective means of eradicating any plebeians who dare to infringe on the rights or property of my master," Nexus Prime introduced itself in its cold, artificial voice.

"Hahahaha! Nice joke!" the dwarf laughed out loud.

"It's not a joke, Mr. Goldgrip. My efficiency in simulations for eradicating all plebeians and primates has a success rate of 97.02%. The most effective method is to send fake signals to fool the Qing Empire's warhead detection systems into believing Russia has launched a nuclear strike.

This would escalate into a nuclear war that would eradicate most plebeians and primates on Earth… This is the most efficient method with the least investment," Nexus Prime's unfeeling voice sent a chill through everyone except Daniel.

"HA.HA.HA…. that is a joke. Are you having fun?" Nexus Prime added.

"That's not funny," Envy said, turning to Daniel. "Danny, that sick humor—he learned it from you, didn't he?" Envy interrogated.

"Errr…" Daniel hesitated, wanting to deny it but unable to admit that what Nexus Prime said wasn't a joke and that it didn't learn it from him. The A.I. might actually put such scenarios into practice before in the Nexus Prime timeline, but he couldn't reveal that.

After Daniel spent some time convincing Envy that it was just a joke and promising to teach Nexus Prime better manners, she finally let the issue go. He then led the group to the Enclosure.

As the group passed through the entrance, another world unfolded before their eyes.

A vast grassy plain stretched out before them, with a forest on the horizon, shrouded in a white mist, and tall mountains rising in the distance. The breathtaking scene left them awestruck. The cries of various magical creatures echoed through the air.

A handsome unicorn trotted slowly toward Daniel, nodded at him, then turned to the elf queen, nuzzling her gently as if drawn to her by her natural affinity with nature.

In the sky, a dragon flew past on the horizon, its roar echoing as it asserted its dominance over its claimed territory.

"A dragon?" Envy gasped in shock. From what she knew, dragons were considered an extinct species, and it was believed that mages could no longer obtain new dragon materials. This scarcity was why dragon materials were no longer found on the market and could only be obtained through personal deals.

Envy immediately used her magic to examine the space, confirming that it wasn't connected to any other known places, such as the Hightower magical creature reservoir or any undiscovered secret realms.

"I have decided!" declared the elf queen, her voice cutting through the shock of the group.

"I will move the entrance to the Elven secret realm here. This place is far better than the Hightower Reservoir."

It's important to understand that the Hightower magical creature reservoir is essentially a ranch for mages to exploit the creatures within. The reservoir's population of magical creatures has dangerously dwindled because many mages have secretly constructed entrances to access the space.

The situation worsened after Envy was no longer a Grand Councilor, leading to excessive hunting, which the elves strongly disapprove of. While the elves also hunt magical creatures, they do so only out of necessity, not for profit, unlike the mages, who hunt for the commercial value of the creatures.

"Is this really okay, Your Majesty? What about your place in Switzerland?" Envy asked.

"Please don't misunderstand, Lady Envy. I still love Switzerland, and our secret realm remains there. What I'm going to move is just the entrance to that secret realm. Secret realms operate differently from normal spaces; their entrances can be placed anywhere in the world.

For example, if the secret realm is in Europe, but the entrance is in Asia, one can still enter the secret realm located in Europe. It doesn't function like real space," explained the elf queen.

Seeing this, Envy nodded. With these two alliances secured, the Order of Ember would no longer need to feel inferior to the Hightower. Moreover, the Hightower would need to think twice before making any moves against Daniel, especially with both the Elves and Dwarves on his side—two races not to be underestimated.