The Venus let out a deep, resonant rumble as she slowly pulled away from the massive hangar. On the distant city wall, Wei Yenwu and Fumizuki watched side by side, while the Rat King and Lin Yühsia stood nearby, quietly exchanging a few words.
"This model reminds me of Rim Billiton's mining vessels and Victoria's land-based military warships. Did you combine the two designs?" Wei Yenwu narrowed his eyes as he spoke.
"I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to design."
The voice came from a floating drone beside them. Above it, a pale blue holographic projection displayed Felix's figure. "But Lord Wei truly has keen eyes. I did indeed invite ship designers and engineers from both Rim Billiton and Victoria."
"…You're leaving this time. When will you be back?"
"I'll return for the New Year at the end of the year."
Wei Yenwu responded with a quiet hum. "Come back and have New Year's Eve dinner with us. Just the three of us."
As for Ch'en Hui-chieh, she always followed Wei Yenwu's orders when it came to work, but ignored anything related to daily life.
Felix smiled at that. "All right, I'll invite Hui-chieh too."
A loud fit of coughing erupted to the side.
"Ahem… ahem… ahem…"
"The wind's been strong these past two days. Uncle Lin, you really should avoid standing around in the cold," Felix remarked.
The Rat King spat phlegm to the side while Lin Yühsia sighed helplessly and patted his back.
Wei Yenwu let out a snort. Hearing Felix call the old man "Uncle Lin" somehow irritated him. He muttered sarcastically, "Exactly. In this weather, staying inside a candy shop and watching TV would be much more sensible, wouldn't it?"
The Rat King lifted his chin triumphantly, completely ignoring Wei Yenwu. He spoke earnestly to Felix, "Felix my son."
"Uncle Lin?"
"This year, come have New Year's Eve dinner at my place too. The missus wants to see you again. And you and Yühsia should settle things soon."
"Pfft!"
Wei Yenwu nearly sprayed on the spot. Even Fumizuki gave the Rat King a sharp look. The Rat King only let out a raspy laugh and continued coaxing, "Once it's settled, your deals with us will always be nine percent off."
"Hm…"
The holographic Felix appeared to be seriously considering it.
Wei Yenwu snorted coldly. "Felix, don't listen to your Uncle Lin. As long as things work out between you and Little Ch'en, your cooperation with Lungmen itself will always be fifteen percent off."
"You're stingy. You call yourself Lungmen's governor? Fifteen percent? Are you fooling children?"
"And you think nine percent is generous?"
"One day I'll retire. When that happens, Yühsia's burdens will naturally be shared with Felix. The nine percent discount is only temporary. The real inheritance is a lifetime of responsibilities."
"You… old scoundrel."
Ignoring his daughter's bright red face, the Rat King let out a creepy chuckle. "Can you hand Lungmen's authority, this entire city, over to Felix to manage? I think you're just jealous."
Wei Yenwu reached for the sword at his waist, and the sand around them stirred as the Rat King sneered.
Fumizuki stepped between the two and snapped her folding fan shut with a sharp sound, breaking the tension instantly.
She first glanced at her husband. "The Rat King is joking with you. Starting a fight over this would only sour relations."
Then she turned to the Rat King. "Your intentions are good, but my household cannot withstand such jokes. I hope you understand."
The Rat King nodded and fell silent.
With just two sentences, she dissolved the conflict entirely. Madam Fumizuki truly lived up to her reputation as a formidable woman.
Felix looked to Lin Yühsia. "When are you departing?"
"I'm still packing. I should be able to board tonight."
"All right."
The departure of the Venus meant that a group of Lungmen operators would soon embark with Felix for Kazdel. Among them was Anthony—though perhaps it was more appropriate now to call him by his Tomorrow's Development codename: Mountain.
Besides the operators from Tomorrow's Development, Lin Yühsia would also accompany Felix to Kazdel. The Lungmen black market needed to expand its reach as well. Light naturally cast shadows, and Kazdel's black market had always been dominated by the Scar Market. Felix intended for Lin Yühsia to stir things up there and give the Scar Market a sense of pressure. After all, the monopolistically inflated prices had long irritated this King of Liberation.
After Wei Yenwu and Fumizuki nodded to Felix, the two departed together. The projection above the comms device vanished as its stealth module activated, disappearing into the sky. Only the Rat King and Lin Yühsia remained, gazing from afar at the ship preparing to depart.
"I won't say anything else," the Rat King sighed. "He has become a king now. Whether crowned by himself or by the people, once a man becomes king, he is no longer the same."
Lin Yühsia thought for a moment. "I don't think Felix has changed."
"To serve a king is like keeping company with a tiger. Things aren't so serious yet, and our relationship is only one of cooperation, nothing deeper," the Rat King continued. "The boy is a flirt, but no one close to him has ever said he abandons others. I suppose that counts as a virtue."
"Yühsia, once you're aboard, take care of yourself. And when opportunity comes, you should be bold. You have plenty of rivals."
"I understand, Father."
"Since you've made your decision, then see it done. Leave after dinner tonight. Your mother will miss you."
Lin Yühsia nodded softly and walked away with her father.
Soon, a stream of Tomorrow's Development operators began boarding the massive ship. Among them were high-ranking members, regular operators, and even a few lucky adventurer-players who happened to be stationed in Lungmen. To be honest, many of them assumed an enemy nation was attacking when they first saw the enormous vessel.
"Why is there a Landkreuzer P. 1000 Ratte here?!"
Only after a closer look did they realize it was docked just outside Lungmen.
Then they received a lottery invitation through the Tomorrow's Development faction panel. Only then did they learn the origin of the vessel.
The landship—Venus the Morningstar—would become Tomorrow's Development's new mobile headquarters, traveling across the land and carrying out missions in every region. Due to limited space, the first wave of passengers would be selected by lottery.
The lottery was only a temporary measure. Anyone wanting long-term residence aboard would eventually have to pay contribution points. In other words, it was basically like renting a room.
Lungmen's players rushed to press the lottery button, hoping to be chosen. Others snapped photos from a distance and posted them directly to the forums, causing another community-wide uproar.
"Holy crap, Tomorrow's Development actually built a warship. Isn't that basically confirming a war story arc?"
"Forget the story, I just really want to get on that landship!"
"Bro, they made a warship for land travel. How long before they build an airship?"
The Lungmen players were stunned. Players from other regions were even more frustrated as they stared at the lottery notification, falling silent. Why could only Lungmen players participate?
But soon their worries faded. Internal news from Tomorrow's Development stated that in the coming days, the Venus would travel to the neutral zones outside major mobile cities in every nation. It would dock near each of them for a period, during which players would also be able to enter the ship lottery.
Lungmen had a massive player population. This was the first big city visited by Yan, Higashi, and neighboring players alike. The original headquarters of Tomorrow's Development had once been built here. They had developed housing, constructed research labs, traded with Lungmen officials—leaving behind countless memories and small stories. Saying goodbye to the beautiful landlady with the gentle brows and leaving this city made many a bit reluctant.
Even so, a huge number of players still wanted to follow the main storyline and fight alongside the King of Dawn himself. Most players entered the lottery.
That night, Tomorrow's Development operators boarded the colossal Venus. Her interior was complex, and it would take time to learn the routes. Many operators had never seen such scale before. The moment they stepped into the vast floor at level -2, they were stunned. Even Lungmen's largest buildings could not compare to such open space.
Staff members guided groups to their assigned floors. Previously, some operators lived in company dorms, while others rented apartments around Lungmen. Aboard the Venus, they were placed into four-person dormitories. They had no complaints; men and women were separated, and everyone was treated equally.
The higher-ranking members of Tomorrow's Development, however, lived in single rooms modeled after standard hotel suites. Many of them were delighted. Some had been squeezing into cramped rental rooms back in Lungmen.
Felix sat in the ship's command room, listening as the technicians discussed energy data and the power system. He couldn't understand everything, but that was the privilege of being the boss—he didn't need to. He had people to handle it.
Mountain stood beside him, eyes wide with awe as he took in the glowing instruments and control panels around them. He had known about his parents' involvement in building the landship for Tomorrow's Development, and he had even checked the construction progress himself. But this was his first time seeing the massive steel giant in full operation.
All work in Lungmen had already been handed over to Nine. Felix trusted her to handle everything flawlessly.
"It's late. Leave the rest of the handover work for tomorrow."
Felix rose and patted Mountain on the arm. He had intended to pat his shoulder, but Mountain's height made that a challenge. "You're new here. Take some time to familiarize yourself with the place."
"Yes, boss."
Mountain bowed politely, then took his leave.
This time, aside from ship staff and Tomorrow's Development operators, hundreds of container trucks had boarded as well, delivering supplies. Among them were labor workers like cleaners, repairmen, and cooks. These people were indispensable cogs in the machinery of the Venus.
Some Lungmen shops also wanted to open branch stores on the Venus. Felix fully supported the idea. He presented a plan that let the merchants compete for spots, just like buying storefront locations in a mall. A good location could mean better profits.
But because the Venus housed infected individuals, some merchants backed out. Felix saw this as perfectly normal.
After listening to the technicians' explanations for another ten minutes—understanding very little but gaining a sliver of "technician experience"—Felix headed to the deck 5 dining area. Since it had been designated a leisure zone, even though everyone had just moved aboard, many people had already gathered there at this hour.
Felix felt somewhat constrained. Everyone greeted him respectfully as he passed, which reminded him of Amiya from his previous life. Players had always acted as if under a spell, desperate to "pamper" the little rabbit. Operators loved Amiya too. Every time she went to eat, she would get swarmed. Thinking of it now, Felix felt Amiya had been an extraordinary girl.
The Summer Bar sat at the center of the dining zone, easily the liveliest place around. Anyone who secured that spot was no ordinary merchant; they must have spent a fortune in Lungmen Dollars to claim it.
"Ella, how's your first day at work?"
"Ah, Brother Felix!"
The bartender, Rafaela, turned toward him with a bright, innocent smile. Eyes closed, she tilted her head forward. Surrounded by the kind smiles of nearby operators, Felix reached out and lightly patted her head.
Rafaela had not chosen the path of a combatant. She knew a bit of self-defense taught by Degenbrecher, but beyond that she had little interest in fighting. Encouraged by Brother Felix, she chose instead to follow her father's former undercover profession: bartender.
After graduating high school, she attended a vocational college, earned her certificate, gained experience working in a bar, and eventually obtained her bartender qualification.
Now she ran the Summer Bar on the Venus, serving alcohol of all sorts. Managing such a large bar was tiring, but Rafaela felt happy and fulfilled.
That alone was enough. Felix ordered a drink and chatted with her for a bit. He suggested hiring someone to handle the kitchen in the future. Ella's eyes sparkled at the idea; she looked ready to start recruiting immediately.
After finishing his drink and giving her one more gentle head-pat, Felix made his way to the top deck. Many operators were up there working late, enjoying the night breeze. They gazed at Lungmen in the distance, at the towns and villages beneath it, at the yellow soil stretching far away, and at the enchanting twin moons hanging in the night sky. Every face held a smile, brimming with ambition.
Felix tilted his head back and looked at the stars. Only a few months remained in year 1095. Version 3.0, a world full of war—Tomorrow's Development was ready.