Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

Dion kept staring at Cleo, who sat across from him looking entirely at ease as she thoroughly enjoyed her tea. "Huh," he grumbled, though his eyes drifted back toward her. In his mind, he understood full well just how immense Cleo’s power was, and he began to think deeply about the situation.

While it was understandable that Cleo could obliterate a watchtower with a single blow, the real issue was what would happen if a legitimate threat possessed power comparable to hers. Even if the watchtower could self-repair, the process still took time, and by the time it finished, his entire village could be turned to ash.

Furthermore, he reflected on how his watchtower had taken the initiative, firing first and provoking someone like Cleo, who was normally laid-back, into displaying her destructive magic over a mere warning shot.

"Hmm... Looks like I need to do something about this. Today’s mess can’t happen again. But how should I handle it? At the very least, I need a way to monitor everything without getting noticed. I need eyes to keep watch over the village, and what I need definitely isn’t a weapon," he thought in his head.

While pondering, he looked down and realized he was still wearing his Mechanical Crafter and Gunner gear, he hadn’t deactivated his persona yet. A subtle grin crept onto his face as he pulled up his status screen.

"Craft Survival Kit."

He activated his special skill, causing a holographic menu to expand right in front of his face. He scanned down the options, glancing briefly at Cleo, who seemed entirely oblivious to the glowing screen floating before him.

**************************************************

Craft Survival Kit:

1. Pair Surveillance Sphere: 20 small magic crystals, 5 medium magic crystals. [Create?] [YES] [NO]

2. Emergency Bunker: 50 small crystals, 20 medium crystals, 5 large crystals, 20 iron scrap. [Create?] [YES] [NO]

3. Checkpoint Teleportation Mirror: 300 small crystals, 100 medium crystals, 30 large crystals, 2 full-body mirror. [Create?] [YES] [NO]

4. ???

5. ???

**************************************************

Dion slowly unzipped his dimensional pouch and checked his inventory. He still had 100 small magic crystals and 25 medium magic crystals remaining. He also noted that he had five emergency bunkers left after using one back when he camped with Luna on their journey to Phobos City from Minatheras.

With a swift motion, he placed 100 small magic crystals and 25 medium magic crystals onto the coffee table. Naturally, Cleo noticed the sudden pile, but before she could utter a word,

"Alright... Now then... Craft five Pair Surveillance Spheres! Execute!" Dion declared, raising his hand toward the coffee table.

A magic circle expanded beneath the two piles of crystals. A small holographic display appeared to count down the required materials, and once the calculation finished, a blinding burst of light flooded the room. Cleo was forced to shield her eyes with her forearm.

"Hey... What are you doing?!" Cleo demanded.

"Relax. Just wait and see the results," Dion answered casually with a smirk.

As the light faded, Cleo lowered her arm and gasped. Sitting on the table were five pairs of metallic spheres, each fitted with a camera lens. One sphere from each pair possessed dragon-fly-like wings made of polished steel. Dion separated the winged spheres from their static counterparts, stood up, and walked over to the window. He tossed the five winged spheres out into the open air, and their metallic wings instantly fluttered so fast they blurred into invisibility.

"Keep watch over my domain," Dion commanded.

Syuuut!

The metallic spheres zipped off into the distance to patrol the perimeter. Dion walked back over to his couch and sat down, pointing the remaining spheres on the table upward toward the space above his bed.

"Display feeds," Dion commanded.

Bwoooosh!

Beams of light shot out from the five spheres on the table, each projecting a holographic screen into the air that displayed live footage captured by the five flying spheres. Gina, who was rolling around playfully on the bed, flinched in surprise at the floating screens. She flew over the displays and landed right in Dion’s lap. Dion leaned back onto the couch, comfortably taking in the five floating magical screens in front of him.

"Now then... With this setup, I don’t even have to step outside," Dion noted, drawing on his familiarity with modern life where monitoring security camera feeds on smartphones or TVs was second nature.

Cleo, however, was a completely different story. She sat frozen in place with wide eyes, her mouth agape, her tea cup tilting unnoticed until hot liquid spilled over her clothing, though she didn’t even flinch. She watched as one sphere transmitted footage of Luna showing the newcomers around the village area; another sphere showed Sheila hauling timber and stone alongside the golems; a third sphere displayed Mei giving a briefing to both the old and new villagers simultaneously.

She could also see the watchtower area from left to right, as well as a sweeping overview of the entire settlement as the winged sphere circled high above the village. Cleo slowly turned her head toward Dion.

"Hey... You... Did you just craft ancient artifacts?" Cleo asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"Hmm... Yep. Back when we were inside the dungeon, I crafted these to track enemy positions and map out traps in the labyrinth," Dion answered nonchalantly, keeping his eyes glued to the feeds as he leaned back, cradling Gina, who was equally mesmerized by the screens.

"These artifacts... They’re the kind used in warfare thousands of years ago... in the legends of the lost kingdom of Xandor... I thought everything in those history books was just fairy tales," Cleo stammered out.

Cleo went on to explain that ancient texts specifically detailed self-repairing tower artifacts and tiny flying metallic reconnaissance devices that were virtually impossible to shoot down.

"Oh, is that so?" Dion replied casually, completely unfazed, since on Earth, surveillance drones were commonplace, with the only difference being the magic sphere design.

"Why is your only reaction... ’Oh, is that so?’" Cleo asked, bewildered by his nonchalance.

"How else am I supposed to react, my pretty big sister?" Dion teased sarcastically.

"Who... are you really? You pulverized a mountain, now you’re cradling a little calamity dragon in your lap, and just now you crafted artifacts considered mere myth... Not to mention that tower sitting at the entrance of the village," Cleo pressed once more, her voice full of genuine wonder.

"Hmm? Dion von Oswald. How many times do I have to say it, my pretty big sister?" Dion said with a grin.

"Grrr... Stop calling me big sister! I’m only two years older than you!" Cleo protested, her irritation flaring up.

"Hey, weren’t you the one who asked for it earlier?" Dion pointed out casually.

Cleo went quiet for a moment, observing Dion as he tickled Gina until the little dragon let out tiny, giggling squeaks. She then looked back up at the five screens floating in the air. Sigh. She finally let out a long breath, only then realizing that her clothes were soaked from her spilled tea.

She stood up from her chair.

"Whatever. Just make sure you don’t use anything that causes an international uproar. I’m going to take a bath," Cleo said, turning on her heel.

"Wait, does that mean I’m allowed to leave my room and walk around the village?" Dion asked, sitting up with Gina in his lap as he looked over at Cleo.

"Well... Go ahead. It’s not like I could stop you even if I tried. But let me warn you about one thing: I might understand what you’re capable of, but not everyone is like me. So I’m asking you not to go displaying the things you just did in front of other people. Understood?" Cleo cautioned thoughtfully.

"Hmmm... That’s fair. Alright, I understand," Dion agreed after a moment’s thought.

"Good. I’m glad we understand each other. Now, your pretty big sister is going to take a bath, so if you dare peek, I will personally obliterate you. Got it?" Cleo warned sternly.

"Don’t worry, my pretty big sister. I have zero interest," Dion replied, offering her a casual thumbs-up.

"Hah?! What do you mean you have zero interest?!" Cleo spun around, her face flushing with irritation as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Wait... Why are you getting mad at that? You’re weird, my pretty big sister," Dion teased.

"Kyuuu!" Gina squeaked in amusement, giggling in Dion’s arms.

In the end, Cleo called off her bath, returning to chatter away nonstop. She even ended up watching the holographic screens right alongside Dion and Gina, both of whom kept their hands firmly over their ears to block out the endless barrage of Cleo’s questions.

Meanwhile, as the two argued, a drone hovered up the hill toward Dion’s parents’ gravesite located behind his mansion. On the screen, a clear image emerged revealing what actually lay hidden inside the circular valley, a dense, sprawling wilderness anchored by a massive obelisk standing dead center, its face carved with a single name: Xandor.

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