They packed up their things casually. There wasn't much to pack anyway. Ethan and the others were mostly just waiting for Evelyn and the rest, who were still out having fun, to return.
After spending over two years exploring this world, they had basically done and seen everything they wanted. Evelyn and the others had also lost interest.
This once again proved that after boarding Ethan's ship and witnessing countless wondrous worlds, they were no longer content with a quiet, ordinary life. They could enjoy it from time to time, but if they had to live that way for the rest of their long lives, they'd die of boredom.
So when Ethan contacted them and asked if they wanted to return to Artemis, O'Connell, Jonathan, and Evelyn all responded that they would report back shortly to go with him.
And it was clear that for a long time to come, they would all be seeking excitement.
Just like O'Connell. The moment he saw Ethan and Logan, his first reaction was to complain that he was no longer normal. After enjoying a few years of peaceful life, he actually found himself missing the days of killing bugs in Starship Troopers.
"When you go back this time, you can use your connection with Cherry Military Industries to return to the battlefield... under the pretense of testing new equipment."
Cherry Military Industries was progressing steadily. During Ethan's last visit, the Claymore rifle had already gained widespread recognition. The design and manufacturing of the Iron Monger and power armor were already on the agenda.
"Or... you don't have to rush back to Starship Troopers. If you're that bored, I can arrange a mission for you."
Just as he had planned, now that his crew had matured, Ethan no longer needed to handle everything personally. For those worlds that held interesting things but were no longer very important to him, he could let his crew handle them.
"No problem. Leave it to me!"
O'Connell suddenly realized that this was the first time Ethan had assigned them a 'formal mission' in the true sense. It meant his abilities were being recognized.
More importantly, there were so many people on the ship. The first to be sent on a mission wasn't Logan, Ada, or Selene, who were either stronger or had closer relationships with Ethan, but him—someone relatively average. This gave him a strong sense of being acknowledged.
In reality, O'Connell was overthinking it. Ethan sent him simply because he happened to be standing right in front of him. But with Ethan's increasing status, this kind of situation would likely become more common in the future.
"But can I at least know what kind of mission it is?"
"A modern Earth world. There are some interesting technologies in that world that I want you to retrieve."
Ethan was thinking of the G.I. Joe world. In one of the G.I. Joe movies, both nanotechnology and powered exoskeletons were introduced—two things he was very interested in.
Tony also had nanotechnology, and his was even more advanced, but it was fundamentally different from what was seen in G.I. Joe. As for powered exoskeletons, they were more for Cherry Military Industries. The powered armor in G.I. Joe was well-suited as a basic template. It could be further developed and improved into more powerful and advanced models.
More importantly, that type of powered armor was far more suited to mass production than Tony's Iron Man suits. Tony's suits were now so advanced that, even after removing various functions, the complexity couldn't be drastically reduced.
After briefly explaining the situation to O'Connell, Ethan didn't provide further details. O'Connell would need to investigate the rest on his own. After all, it wasn't realistic for Ethan to give a full technical lecture every time someone went on a mission.
With strength far beyond that of ordinary people and the support of various equipment, O'Connell could basically do whatever he wanted in the G.I. Joe world. Even if he couldn't complete the mission perfectly, there would be no real danger, so Ethan had no concerns about his safety.
"Need any help?"
O'Connell looked at the two people beside him. Evelyn was clearly uninterested in this kind of task. She preferred worlds rich in "historical heritage."
Jonathan, however, nodded. The two of them often moved around together now. Since they were from the same world, they had a closer bond.
After returning to Artemis, besides these two, Maria Hill had also been feeling bored and wanted to explore other worlds. So, she conveniently formed a small team with O'Connell and Jonathan.
With Hill joining, Ethan was confident that they could complete the mission. O'Connell and Jonathan had their unreliable moments, but Hill could effectively make up for that weakness.
After all, Hill was a professional agent and knew better how to handle real missions. With her guidance, O'Connell and Jonathan would also have a clearer direction.
However, the team didn't depart immediately. Ethan spent a few days upgrading and improving the teleportation device. Once everything was ready, he had them stand on the largest teleportation platform, and together with Luna, they sent the group to the G.I. Joe world. Of course, he had tested it himself beforehand to make sure there were no issues before putting it into actual use.
"One step closer to the teleportation device I envisioned."
Originally, this teleportation device could only connect to the Starship Troopers world. Now, it could teleport to other worlds, although it still required Ethan's assistance for positioning. When he wasn't present, it could currently only link to Starship Troopers and the Marvel universe.
After establishing the Starship Troopers world, Ethan had finally connected his main world with the Marvel universe. Now, time in both worlds was fully synchronized. The people aboard Artemis no longer needed Ethan's help to travel to the Marvel world.
Compared to Starship Troopers, everyone was more familiar with the Marvel universe. Not to mention, there were already locals like Maria Hill, Banner, and Nebula.
After all of this, Ethan returned to the Starship Troopers world for a look. Annette was still steadily developing her company. The Claymore rifle from Cherry Military Industries had gone through several upgrades and refinements, steadily moving toward the original power level Ethan envisioned.
"At this pace, the rifle can be fully matured within two years."
By then, the Claymore rifle wouldn't just easily kill bugs, it would also possess significant lethality against armored vehicles and aircraft.
Only at that level could it be considered a truly excellent interstellar weapon.
"What about the Iron Monger?"
"The Federation has shown some interest, but they want to see the finished product and its actual performance on the battlefield before making a decision."
Cherry Military Industries was currently building the Iron Monger prototype. Although they already had a relatively complete design, some technologies needed to be modified using this world's resources, so it would take more time before the physical product was completed.
Although Ethan had stayed in the Harry Potter world for over two years, nearly three, when he entered that world, this one was in a frozen state due to its connection to the main world. In other words, not much time had passed here.
For these people, it had only been a few days since they last saw Ethan. Ada didn't miss him and wasn't particularly eager to see him. She was still having fun exploring other places.
After discussing the major matters, Ethan left directly.
He waved to the group that had just tested the Claymore rifle. This large group of "shareholders' kids" all left the Starship Troopers world and returned to Artemis.
"Where are we going next?"
Even though the Starship Troopers world was boring for Ethan and the others, Scáthach, Illya, and Rin still found many interesting things in it. After all, it was a "futuristic world." Just some of the electronics were enough to fascinate them.
"I need to return to your world for a bit, but you don't need to follow me. I'll be back right away."
"Then send us to Emiya's place."
Ethan naturally didn't refuse. He sent them all to Arthur's location. When he arrived, he learned that Arthur was still out conquering, and Shirou, Artoria, and even Sakura were still with him.
In this world, Britain's territory was larger, and such a vast land inevitably had people stirring up trouble—especially after modern weapons became more widespread. Some people believed that knights' personal strength had lost its decisive role and their ambitions exploded.
However, Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table were repeatedly proving them wrong. With overwhelming power, they crushed these enemies. It just took time to deal with them one by one. And for Arthur and the others, Ethan hadn't been gone long.
During the battles, Artoria gained the recognition of the Round Table with her powerful strength. Several times, she had single-handedly destroyed the enemy's musket and artillery positions with pure martial skill. Not only did she help secure victory, but she also greatly reduced casualties.
Many knights proposed promoting this young Knight Guard to a seat at the Round Table, or even granting her real military authority.
But what confused many knights was why King Arthur, who was usually wise and strategic in using talent, repeatedly refused. This led many to speculate about the true identity of this Knight Guard. Looking at her appearance and her nearly identical golden hair, could she be the King's illegitimate daughter?
When Ethan brought Rin and Illya over, Arthur had just finished suppressing another rebellion and was interrogating the prisoners to decide who to keep and who to eliminate.
Artoria, meanwhile, was enjoying dinner prepared by Shirou. During this time, she had learned a lot from the knights' performance in the war and Arthur's leadership. Her inner turmoil had gradually resolved, and she had started smiling more often.
When Ethan brought Rin over, Artoria was smiling happily.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)