Noah moved in absolute silence. His heightened senses could clearly discern the flow of sap inside the tree trunks and catch the faintest notes of damp forest earth. More importantly, he could smell hot blood. A massive stag with sweeping antlers was peacefully grazing near a fallen oak. With a brief, blurred lunge, the beast collapsed onto the moss without a sound. Heaving the heavy carcass over his shoulder, Noah made his way back to the settlement.
Over at the Dornheim construction site, the camp was already a hive of activity.
"Marek, hold off on framing the interior partition here," Clara said, stepping closer and pointing to the outlined window opening. "If we shift the doorway just half a meter to the left, the future residents will actually have room for a proper kitchen hearth. Plus, the indoor logistics will flow much better."
The builder paused for a second, ran the numbers in his head, and slapped his thighs in approval.
"You know, you’re absolutely right! Classic tunnel vision—I completely forgot about actual liveability. Boys, change of plans on the left wall! Follow Clara's lead!"
While walls were rising on the surface, an unbearable drone filled Iron’s workshop from the furiously pumping bellows.
Darwin worked tirelessly, catching the engineer's every gesture without a single word. Iron would subtly signal the required temperature zones, and the blacksmith would prepare the heavy, refractory molds with flawless precision.
Iron set his charcoal pencil aside and studied the specimens laid out before him. Under the flickering glow of the oil lamps, the multicolored mineral continued to shimmer across the entire spectrum.
"Calling it 'Rainbow' ore is a bit unscientific," Iron remarked quietly to Darwin, who was currently cooling a pair of heavy tongs in a water barrel. "From now on, this material will be officially designated as 'Prism.'"
Darwin simply nodded in silence, accepting the ore's new name.
Over the past week, Iron had successfully calculated the mathematical formula for the perfect alloy. The ultra-dense crystal lattice of "Ocean" would serve as the rigid internal base, while the heat-resistant matrix of "Prism" would act as a protective shielding at the molecular level. But forcing two materials with such opposing properties to fuse demanded a colossal, concentrated heat.
The engineer turned his gaze to a massive, angular apparatus connected to the generator by thick, heavy cables. It was an experimental, ultra-high-temperature thermal emitter, slapped together by Iron using scrap equipment and rare circuit boards. Right then, the translucent lines of the system interface flared to life before his eyes:
[Warning! Peak thermal load on the internal emitter circuits exceeds the safety threshold by 340%.]
[Projection: Thermal destruction of the device will occur 120 seconds post-activation. Component recovery will be impossible.]
Iron sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. How did I manage to overdo the power focusing this badly? he thought in annoyance.
"We only have one shot at this, Darwin," Iron said softly. "The concentrated beam will hit the required temperature, but the apparatus will literally melt itself from the inside out in exactly two minutes. If the crystal lattices of 'Ocean' and 'Prism' don't lock together in the correct proportions in time, this unique ore will turn into useless slag. We won't get a second chance to build another emitter—we're entirely out of rare parts."
Darwin slowly set down his massive hammer and fixed a solemn look on the engineer.
"Then we'll just have to get it right the first time. Where are we firing it up?"
Iron surveyed the wooden walls of the workshop, the dry ceiling beams, and the mountains of highly flammable blueprints surrounding them.
"Definitely not in here. We're rolling the rig outside. We'll test it on the square."
Darwin, along with a few of the sturdier laborers, carefully wheeled the heavy, angular cannon out to a safe distance from the residential buildings. The camp's entire leadership quickly gathered around the makeshift firing range.
Marek and Clara walked over from the construction site, setting their tools aside. Noah, freshly back from his hunt, dropped the heavy deer carcass near the field kitchen with a dull thud and stood a short distance away. Even Elyria cut her antics short, quietly perching on Noah's shoulder, staring wide-eyed at the strange contraption.
Iron rolled his chair up to the control console. Inside a heat-resistant crucible secured directly in the path of the focused beam lay precisely measured proportions of dark-blue "Ocean" and shimmering "Prism."
"Everyone step back!" Iron commanded loudly, booting up the interface. "Maintain a minimum distance of ten meters! The heat is going to be immense."
He took a deep breath and decisively threw the main breaker switch.
At first, the cannon let out a heavy, throbbing hum. Then, the air surrounding the apparatus began to warp in thick, rippling waves, visibly distorting space. A split second later, a blindingly white beam erupted from the emitter's barrel.
The light strike slammed dead-center into the crucible. People instinctively shielded their eyes as an unbearable, searing wall of heat rolled across the square. Seconds stretched into hours. Almost instantly, the emitter's metal chassis began to glow a violent cherry-red, before rapidly shifting into an alarming, incandescent white.
[Critical Failure! Emitter core collapse in 5... 4... 3...] — the system alerts from Lumon flashed a furious crimson before Iron’s eyes.
Boom!
With a loud pop and a violent shower of sparks, the cannon died for good. Its internal components hissed and liquefied, slumping down into a shapeless mound of molten slag.
A dead silence fell over the square. Everyone waited tensely for the thick, gray smoke hugging the ground to clear in the wind.
Iron was the first to charge forward, furiously spinning the wheels of his chair. Darwin followed close behind, heavy long-handled tongs in hand. Once the soot was fully swept away by a gust of air, right in the center of the scorched ruins of the apparatus, resting on a charred stand that had miraculously survived, everyone saw the crucible.
Lying perfectly still inside it was a rectangular, monolithic slab. It was a rich, deep midnight-blue that fractured the sunlight along its edges, throwing off brilliant emerald, crimson, and violet sparks. Not a single crack. Not a hint of warping or surface melting.
The final system readout flashed before the engineer's eyes:
[Object scan complete.]
Success: Stable composite alloy ("Ocean" + "Prism").
Physical Strength: Maximum (molecular lattice integrity sustained).
Melting Point: Extremely high (exceeding 3600°C). Thermal paradox resolved.
Iron let out a long breath, and a genuine, open smile spread across his face.
For a heartbeat, Dornheim stood frozen, and then the square absolutely erupted into deafening cheers from the workers. Marek slammed his fist into the air in victory, Clara pressed her hands to her chest in profound relief, and Elyria began joyfully looping circles over a stunned Darwin's head. Even on Noah’s exhausted face, a satisfied smirk broke through.
Iron raised his hand, signaling the crowd for silence. As the shouts died down, his voice—firm, confident, and resonant—carried across the entire square:
"The material is ready! It's time to build the tower!"
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